288. Беседа к Братству Николаевского Угрешского Общежительного монастыря

(Said Oct. 16th; printed in the Works of the Holy Father, 1853, and in the collection, 1861) Jesus said to him: if you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor; and have treasure in heaven, and follow Me (Matthew 19:21). In these words we have the doctrine of non-covetousness taught by Jesus Christ himself. The occasion for this was brought by someone whom the Evangelist Matthew calls “a young man” (Matthew 19:20), and the Evangelist Luke “a prince” (Luke 18:18), therefore, a man is not without dignity and not without education, as his words show. He asked Christ the Savior: “What good will I do, so that I may have eternal life” (Matthew 19:16)? The Lord responded that for this he must keep the commandments of the ten books given by God, and especially the deep and significant commandment: love your neighbor as yourself. To this the young man responded that he had done all this since childhood. The review, of course, is thoughtless: because true zealots for fulfilling the commandments always feel and recognize their imperfections and shortcomings in fulfilling them; and those who boast of fulfilling the commandments reveal through this that they have dissatisfied with themselves and the power of the commandments. But the meek Divine Teacher did not deign to oppose the word of self-praise with a word of reproof, but pointed out the path of perfection and allowed the boaster to expose his own imperfection by deed. “Jesus said to him: If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor; and have treasure in heaven; and follow in the footsteps of Me." What about the young man? Is it possible, it seems, not to wish to become perfect? Is it possible not to want to follow Christ, and especially when He himself invites you to do so? - But, no. The young man does not take the path of perfection: he does not want to follow Christ; It’s a pity that he doesn’t have the courage to decide on this, but he doesn’t dare, retreats back: “I left mourning.” Why is this so? Because he is unwilling to live in complete non-covetousness; does not want to part with wealth: “I went away mourning, for I had much to gain” (Matthew 19:22). And so, he exposed himself in action for the fact that in vain in words he presented himself as the executor of the commandment commanding him to love his neighbor as himself. If he loved his neighbor as himself, then it would not be difficult and even pleasant for him to, by distributing his property, console and reassure his kind neighbors, the needy and the poor. The doctrine of non-covetousness contained in the Gospel narrative now presented is obviously true and saving, because it is a Divine teaching taught by Jesus Christ, Who Himself is the truth and source of salvation. Despite this, the young man mentioned in the Gospel, who himself recognized Jesus Christ as “a good teacher” (Matthew 19:16), encountered a difficulty in applying His teaching to life, which he could not overcome. Aren't there people like this young man now and among us? Will some say that the doctrine of perfect non-covetousness could only be applied to the closest followers of Christ the Savior during His earthly life, when the scarcity of natural benefits was easily replenished by His miraculous power, that, on the contrary, this teaching in general is not applicable to the improvement of public and private life; because if all the rich gave away their property to the poor, then those who earn food for themselves through honest labor for the benefit of the rich would become beggars, and the whole world would become helpless? These perplexities about the possibility of a non-covetous life seem to be based on reasoning: but their hidden basis is a lack of faith and carnal wisdom, eclipsing the spiritual light. You are afraid that a non-covetous person will not be able to live if Christ is not visibly with him, feeding five thousand people with five loaves. In vain. After the time of Christ’s visible presence on earth, we know many who are not possessive; and we do not know a single one of them who, as a result of lack of wealth, died of hunger or nakedness. The providence of God was for them, for the most part, invisible, but a continuous miracle for their preservation and provision; and sometimes, when they naturally could not get food for themselves in the desert, the Angel apparently provided them with food, just like Elijah did in ancient times on the way to Horeb. You are afraid that the spread of non-covetousness will impoverish the whole world. In vain. If the spirit of non-covetousness embraced all people, both rich and poor; then there would be very few beggars left asking; they would not be enough to exhaust the rich; and the rich, remaining lovers of non-covetousness, due to their readiness to give everything to the poor, would remain rich, due to the lack of beggars who accept squandered wealth; a non-covetous world would be richer than a covetous world. However, if anyone does not believe this; he can still calm himself down. The present world gives no reason to fear that there will be a shortage of those who are covetous and wealthy. If anything can threaten him, then it is not the non-covetousness hungry for truth, but insatiable covetousness, all-consuming luxury and idle, inventive for evil, parasitism. One can expect that some will also say: since the Savior calls for complete non-acquisitiveness of those who “want to be perfect” (Matthew 19:21), and we find ourselves unworthy to have a claim to perfection; then Christ’s advice about non-covetousness does not apply to our fulfillment. We can and can say this, every single one of us. And as a result of this, the word of Christ may remain completely unfulfilled. Why is it said? The Lord does not throw His word into the wind. His verb should not “return” to Him “thin” (Is. 55:11). The spiritual seed of the word of Christ should not fall to the ground uselessly, but should, although on a smaller part of it, vegetate and bear fruit. So, the plausible excuse of unworthiness to have a claim to perfection should not prevent the action of the doctrine of perfection. If, from self-knowledge and humility, the thought is born in you that you are unworthy to have the claim to perfection; then this thought is correct; and it should not stop you or hinder you on the path of the teachings of Christ, but should encourage you to reach out to the fore, to strive in order to somehow reduce your unworthiness, and to become not unworthy of eternal salvation. The grace of God comes to meet this desire, and will support you and lead you from unworthiness to dignity, from imperfection to perfection, whether in the ease of non-acquisition, if you feel the burden of acquisition and the temptation of wealth, or in the burden of honest acquisition and impartial possession; because Christ the Savior indicated non-covetousness as an aid to perfection, useful for some, and not as necessary for all. “Be perfect” (Gen. 17:1) 747, God said to Abraham, and he was perfect, while he “was not very rich” (Gen. 13:2), but was not partial to wealth, and, consequently, kept non-covetousness in his soul, possessing acquisitions in the house. But a soul in which a voice is heard suggesting that it is unworthy to strive for perfection in general, and especially the perfection of non-acquisitiveness, must try to correctly recognize whose voice it is. Is this really the voice of humble self-knowledge? Isn't this, on the contrary, the voice of laziness or covetousness hiding under the guise of humility? In this latter case, the soul is in danger of not only not rising to perfection, but also of becoming mired in vice. When the young man mentioned in the Gospel heard from Christ the Savior a call to perfection through non-acquisitiveness, he decided not to strive for perfection, remaining, of course, in the hope of achieving eternal life through the ordinary fulfillment of the commandments. But how pitifully his covetousness deceived him! “Departure grieving.” He moved away not only from perfection, but also from the Savior, and therefore from salvation. Monastic brothers! Christ's teaching on non-covetousness applies to us in a special way. For others, this is advice subject to free choice: for us it is a vow, which, together with the vow of chastity and obedience, we have already taken upon ourselves before the altar of the Lord. If failure to accept good advice can be a mistake, and a dangerous mistake: then the violation of a given vow is definitely a guilt subject to the justice of God. So, we must carefully arrange our way of life so that, as much as possible, it is consistent with our vow. The monastery gives you an easy way to observe non-covetousness in relation to your home: for it gives you a ready-made home. Complement your non-possession by not wanting a home according to your taste, spacious, decorated: be content with what is necessary. By presenting you with a ready-made meal, the monastery frees you from the need to have your own food supply. Complement your non-possession by always being content with what is offered without complaint, and not demanding anything fancy. The custom of many monasteries allows each brother to take care of clothing and some other needs in these ways. How can one observe non-covetousness? You can observe this if you consider what is given to you not as property, but as a benefit and a gift, if you have clothes and other things only that are necessary and simple, you do not have what is superfluous, you do not allow yourself to desire what is elegant, if you do not keep or multiply the excess of what is entrusted to you, but use it for the benefit of your soul and for the benefit of your neighbor. But isn’t it simpler, isn’t it more complete, the matter of non-acquisitiveness in those who, having taken a vow to this, and entering the monastery, decide not to have any clothes, nor pay, nor shoes, less than a mite, as property, but entrust themselves to the care of the authorities of the monastery, and expect from him everything they need? With this decisive cutting off of property, many worries and temptations are suddenly cut off. If you are given money for your needs, you will have to worry whether you will have enough of it; you will be tempted to use it not only for your needs, but also to satisfy some kind of whim. If you need to purchase a thing at your own discretion; The love of things and vanity easily creeps in and encourages you to acquire beautiful things instead of the simple things that are appropriate to your rank. There is no place for these worries and temptations if you have renounced all arbitrary property. If you buy decent and humble clothes for yourself; it comes to you simply, like any purchased thing, without bringing you a special blessing: and if you buy something dishonest, then you buy your condemnation with it. But if in obedience you accept clothing from the hands of the authorities of the monastery: you accept it as a gift from God, as a blessing from God through the authorities. Thus, simple things for the non-covetous are blessed and in some way sanctified. If you were to use your own labor and time to satisfy your own needs, this diligence would be worthy of approval and pleasing to God; however, it would not promise you any special reward in the sense that you would be a worker for yourself. But if, having renounced property, you devote all your work and all your time to God and the monastery, then through this you make a sacrifice to God and service to the monastery, and your sacrifice calls for a special good reward for you. Brothers of this holy monastery! Glorify the man-loving God, who has placed in the heart of a person living in the world care for you, who have renounced the world, in order to help cleanse your spiritual path from external worries. Two magnificent churches constantly call you to prayer for those who do good in the holy church and in the holy monastery. This day confirms for you this responsibility, which you must pass on to those who follow you. It depends on you, brethren, that the benefits that will undoubtedly bring blessing to the benefactor bring true and complete benefit to you who are benefited. Strive not with diminishing, but with increasing zeal in fulfilling the vows you have taken upon yourself. Strive in the ease of complete non-covetousness to follow in the footsteps of Christ, and “have treasure in heaven,” priceless, eternally inalienable. Amen. Exact quote: “be blameless” You might be interested in: