Беседа 28

The communicant needs purity of conscience. - Moral instruction. – We must avoid excessive lamentation about the dead. - Job's example. 1 Corinthians 11:28. Let a man test himself, and in this way let him eat of this bread and drink from this cup. 1. Why were these words spoken, when they were talking about another subject? Paul usually, as I said before, discusses not only what constitutes the main subject of the speech, but if the speech touches on something else, then he expounds it with great care, especially when it comes to subjects that are very necessary and urgent. So, when he talked about spouses and in his speech touched on slaves, he presented this subject very strongly and in detail; when he spoke about the fact that one should not be judged in courts, and touched upon covetousness in his instruction, he said a lot about this subject; he does the same here. Having mentioned the sacraments, he found it necessary to explain this subject in more detail, as it was not unimportant; Therefore, in a conversation about him, he inspires great fear and proves that the main good is to approach them with a clear conscience. Not content with what was said before, he adds the following: “let a man test himself”; He also says this in the second epistle: “test” (2 Cor. 13:5), and not as we act, conforming more to time than to spiritual disposition. We try not to come prepared, cleansed of all evil and with complete reverence, but on holidays and when everyone is coming. This is not what Paul commands; he knows only one time to begin the mysteries and receive communion - when his conscience is clear. If we do not approach a sensual meal, suffering from a fever and a rush of bad juices, so as not to suffer death, then much less should we touch this meal with vicious desires, which are worse than a fever. By the name of vicious desires I mean both bodily desires and covetousness, anger, rancor, and generally all vicious inclinations. The one who is approaching must cleanse himself of all this and then touch this pure sacrifice, and not proceed with negligence and laziness, as if under compulsion, because a holiday has happened, on the other hand, when there is contrition and readiness, not to postpone because there is no holiday. The holiday is the performance of good deeds, piety of the soul and severity of life; if you have this, you can always celebrate and always get started. That is why (the apostle) says: “let everyone test himself, and in this way let him”; commands to test not one another, but oneself, holding a trial without publicity and denunciation without witnesses. “For whoever eats and drinks unworthily eats and drinks condemnation to himself” (1 Cor. 11:29). What are you saying? The source of so many blessings, the table that exudes life, turns into condemnation? Not according to his own essence, he says, but according to the will of the one approaching. Just as His coming, which brought us great and unspeakable benefits, served to greater condemnation of those who did not receive Him, so these mysteries bring greater punishment on those who partake unworthily. Why does it “eat... condemnation of itself”? “Without discussing the body of the Lord,” i.e. without reflecting, without imagining, as it should, the greatness of the proposed (secrets), without thinking about the importance of the gift. If you fully understood Who is before you and to whom He offers Himself, you would not need any admonition, and this alone would be enough to arouse complete reverence in you, unless you have fallen too deeply. “For this reason many of you are weak and sick, and many die” (1 Cor. 11:30). Here he cites as an example not others, as he did in the conversation about the sacrifice to idols, where he spoke about ancient events and the disasters (of the Jews) in the desert, but the Corinthians themselves, which makes his words more impressive. Having said: “there is condemnation for himself”, and: “he will be guilty”, and meaning that this should not be taken as mere words, he also points to deeds, calling them as witnesses, which is stronger than the threat, expressing that the threat has already turned into action. Not content with this, he then reminds them of Gehenna and confirms his words, frightening them from all sides and resolving the question that is often proposed. Many people ask each other in bewilderment: why do premature deaths occur, why do prolonged illnesses occur? The cause of many, he says, of such unforeseen disasters lies in sins. 2. How, you say, those who enjoy constant health and reach venerable old age are really not sinners? Who can say this? Why, you say, are they not punished? Because there they will be subjected to the most severe punishment. And we, if we want, will not be punished either here or there. “For if we had judged ourselves,” says (the apostle), “we would not have been judged” (1 Cor. 11:31). He did not say: if they punished themselves, or tormented themselves, but only: if they wanted to acknowledge their sins, condemn themselves, admit their iniquities, then they would get rid of punishment both here and there. He who condemns himself doubly appeases God - both with the awareness of his sins and the readiness not to commit them in the future. But we do not want to do this easy task as we should, and yet he does not threaten us with punishment along with the world, but spares us, threatening us with the punishment here, which is temporary and contains a lot of consolation; it frees you from sins and gives you sweet hope for the future, which alleviates present (suffering). By this he wants to both comfort the weak and make others more zealous. “Being judged,” he says, “we are punished by the Lord” (1 Cor. 11:32). He did not say: we are subjected to punishment or torment, but: we are punished 48. Real punishment is more admonition than condemnation, more healing than torment, more correction than retribution. And not only with this, but also with the threat of greater (future) punishment, he makes the present easier: “let us not be condemned in peace,” he says. Do you see how he points to Gehenna and the Last Judgment and proves that this judgment and punishment are inevitable and will certainly occur? In fact, if believers and those who are under the protection of God do not escape punishment for their sins, as can be seen from these instructions, then much less will the unfaithful and those who sin gravely and incurably. “Therefore... when you gather together to supper, wait for one another” (1 Cor. 11:33). When the feeling of fear was still alive and the terrible thought of Gehenna had not yet passed, then he again offers instructions regarding the poor, about which he said everything previous, and inspires that those who do not do this are not worthy of communion. If those who do not give away from their property are excluded from the table of the Lord, then much more those who steal. He did not say: when you come together, give to the poor, but more sublimely: “Wait for each other.” With such words, he instilled secret concern for the poor, and offered admonition in the appropriate form. He goes on to shame them: “And if,” he says, “anyone is hungry, let him eat at home” (1 Cor. 11:34). By giving such permission, he prohibits even more strongly than by direct prohibition; He removes them from the church, sends them home and thus greatly touches them, presenting them as slaves of the womb and incontinent. He did not say: if anyone neglects the poor, but: “if anyone is hungry,” reasoning as if with impatient children, or with dumb animals serving the belly. Indeed, it would be very funny if, prompted by hunger, they began to eat at home. Not content with this, he adds a more terrible thought: “so that you do not gather together for condemnation,” he says, “so that you do not gather for condemnation, so that you do not incur punishment by insulting the church, shaming your brother; you gather to show love to one another, to benefit and to benefit one another; if the opposite happens, then it is better for you to eat your fill at home. He says this in order to attract them more; For this purpose, he pointed out the harm that stems from this, and proved that this is an important sin, and inspired fear on all sides - from the mysteries, the sick, the dying, and other things mentioned above. Then he again inspires fear in a different way: “I’ll arrange the rest,” he says, “when I come,” meaning here either something else, or the same thing. Since, probably, they gave some other reasons and it was impossible to arrange everything through a message, he says: for now, let it be observed as I taught; if you have anything else to say, then let it remain until I arrive. He says this, as I said, either about the same matter, or about some other matters that are not very important; He does this in order to make them more attentive. By waiting for his arrival, they could correct their shortcomings, because Paul's arrival was not an unimportant matter, as he himself shows when he says: “Because I do not come to you, some have become proud” (1 Cor. 4:18); and in another place: “not only in my presence, but much more... in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil. 2:12). And he not only promises to come, so that they do not doubt and do not indulge in carelessness, but also presents the reason that makes his arrival necessary: ​​“I will arrange the rest,” he says, “when I come,” suggesting that even if he did not have the desire (to go to them), the need to correct other matters draws him there. 3. Hearing all this, let us show great concern for the poor, curb our belly, abstain from drunkenness, try to worthily partake of the Holy Mysteries, and not grieve or be sad when some calamity happens to us or to others, for example, premature death or a long illness. Such a disaster is deliverance from punishment, it is correction, it is the best admonition. Who says this? The one through whom Christ himself spoke. And despite the fact that many wives are so reckless that they surpass even the infidels with their excessive lamentation (about the dead); some do it in the dark of passion, others do it for show and to avoid complaints from strangers; I especially consider the latter unworthy of any apology. Let God, they say, condemn me, if only so and so does not condemn me; let the law of the King of all be violated, if only people who are more reckless than dumb (animals) do not reproach me. How does thunder not strike them for such words? When someone, after crying, invites you to a feast, no one refuses, because the accepted custom requires it; and when God commands not to indulge in lamentation, then everyone resists. Do you really, wife, not know Job? Do you really not remember the words he said after the misfortune that happened to his children, which adorned his holy head with more than a thousand crowns and glorified him louder than many trumpets? Do you really not understand the importance of his misfortune, this new shipwreck, this strange and extraordinary tragedy? You may have lost one, or two, or three children; and he had many sons and daughters, suddenly becoming childless from many children; little by little his womb was tormented, but suddenly all the fruits were stolen, stolen not according to the general law of nature, not because they had reached old age, but struck by a premature and violent death, moreover, all together, not in his presence and not before his eyes, so that he could at least hear their last words and receive some consolation in such a deplorable death, and beyond all hope, completely without his knowledge, suddenly they were all buried and the house became for them with a coffin and a grave. And not only premature death, but besides, many other things increased the grief, namely the fact that they were all at a flourishing age, were virtuous and friendly, they all died together, so that there was no one left, neither one nor the other sex, they died not according to the general law of nature, after such losses, while he was not aware of anything vicious behind him or them, for which he would endure all this. Each of these disasters in itself could revolt the soul; and when it all flowed together, imagine how high these waves were, how great this storm was. But, what is even more important and above all tears, he did not know why all this happened to him. That is why, not knowing what to attribute his misfortune to, he turns to the will of God and says: “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away, [as the Lord willed, so it was], blessed be the name of the Lord” forever (Job 1:21). He says this, seeing himself, having succeeded in every virtue, in extreme misfortune, and evil people and deceivers in prosperity, abundance and all kinds of pleasures. He doesn’t say anything that weak people usually say: did I raise my children and cherish them with such care, did I open my house to those passing by, so that after many cares for the poor, naked and orphaned, I would receive such a reward? But instead he utters words that are more excellent than any sacrifice: “naked I came from my mother’s womb, naked I will return” (Job 1:21). If he tore his clothes and cut his hair, do not be surprised at this: he was a father, and a loving father; along with the wisdom of the soul, the feelings of nature had to be revealed; if he had not done this, then perhaps others would have attributed such philosophy to insensibility. Therefore, he discovered both his heart and the height of piety, felt sorrow and did not change, but, continuing his feat, crowned himself with new crowns, answering his wife with the following words: “Shall we really accept good from God, but will we not accept evil?” ( Job 2:10 ). He had only one wife left after the loss of everything, his children, his property and his body itself, and even that one was for his temptation and reproach. This is why the devil did not destroy her along with her children and did not ask God for her death, so that she would have a great aid in attacking this saint; he left it as his strongest weapon: if, he said, through it I expelled from paradise, then all the more I can strike it on the rot. 4. And look at the deceit (of the devil): it was not then that he brought this weapon to him when the oxen, donkeys and camels died; even after the destruction of the house and the death of his sons, seeing in him a strong fighter, he still hesitates and does not force her to act; but when heaps of worms formed, the rotting skin fell off, the ulcerated flesh exuded fetid pus, when the devil’s hand tormented him worse than frying pans, stoves and any flame, tormenting and devouring his body on all sides more ferociously than any beast, and when a lot of time had passed in such suffering, then he brings her to the exhausted and exhausted (husband). If she had come at the beginning of the misfortune, she would not have found him so exhausted and could not have imagined his misfortune to be so grave and great: but now, seeing that he is tired from the length of time, longs for relief and desires deliverance from disasters, she approaches him decisively. Feeling extremely exhausted, suffocating from suffering and wishing for death, listen to what he said: if I could lay hands on myself, or ask someone else to do it, I would do that too. Therefore, - look at her cunning - where does she begin her speech? With the duration of time: “how long,” he says, “will you endure?” If often words alone without deeds can strike a person, then imagine how he must have felt then, upset by both these words and the deed itself; and, worst of all, this was said to him by his wife, who was exhausted and discouraged, and therefore tried to bring him to despair. But in order to see more clearly the power of the attack directed at this adamantine wall, let us listen to its very words. What words are these? “How long will you endure? saying: “I will endure a little while longer, waiting for my salvation” (Job 2:9). Time, he says, has exposed your words; A lot of it has passed, but no relief is visible. By saying this, she not only drives him to despair, but also reproaches and mocks him, because, while comforting her and refuting her complaints, he constantly said: “Wait and a little more,” and soon this will end. Reproaching him, she says: won’t you say the same thing now? Much time has already passed, and there is no end in sight. And note the deceit: he does not mention either oxen, or sheep, or camels, knowing that all this did not upset him very much, but directly turns to the essential and reminds of children, knowing that in grief for them he tore his clothes and cut his hair. He doesn’t say: your children are lost, but it’s much more touching: “the memory of you has been erased from the earth,” something that makes children dear too. If even now, when the resurrection is certain, children are kind because they preserve the memory of their dead parents, then even more so then. Therefore, the curse (of his friend) becomes strong; cursing, he did not say: let the children perish, but: “the memory of him... from the earth,” i.e. sons and daughters (Job 18:17). With the expression “memory” she again deliberately reminds him of the children of both sexes. If, he says, you do not care about them, then at least pay attention to my situation: “the illnesses and labors of my womb, which I painfully endured in vain.” The meaning of her words is as follows: I, who have suffered a lot, am subjected to suffering for you; suffered labor, but lost the fruits. She does not directly indicate the loss of property, but look how she does not keep silent about it and does not pass by, but hints at it, as much as it was possible to say more sensitively. “And I,” he says, “wander and serve, moving from place to place and from house to house,” hinting at the loss (of property), and revealing my great suffering; the very expressions sufficiently increase misfortune: I, he says, go to other people’s houses, and not only ask for alms, but also wander, serve, do work unfamiliar and new to me, and wander everywhere, wearing signs of misfortune and revealing my misfortunes to everyone; and what is most regrettable is that I constantly move from house to house. Without ending her lamentations, she adds: “I am waiting for the sun to set, so that I can rest from my labors and the illnesses that now oppress me.” For others, he says, it’s nice to see the rays of the sun, but for me it’s hard; Night and darkness are desirable for me, because it alone gives me peace from my labors, it brings me consolation in misfortunes. “But blaspheme against the Lord and die” (Job 2:9). 5. Do you see deceit here too? In her complaint, she did not immediately offer disastrous advice, but in advance bitterly described the misfortune and expanded on the calculus of disasters, and then in brief words she offers advice and does not directly express it, but covertly, offering a change that was very desirable for him, promising death, which he especially desired. Notice here too the deceit of the devil. Knowing Job’s love for God, he does not instill in his wife a murmur against God, lest (Job) immediately reject her as an enemy. That’s why she doesn’t mention God anywhere, but only depicts what happened. Add to the above the fact that this was advised by the wife - a strong speaker to deceive the inattentive. Many have fallen without misfortune from the advice of their wives. What is this blessed man, the hardest adamant? Looking at her sternly, with one glance, even before words, he destroyed her intrigues. She expected to make him shed streams of tears, but he turned out to be stronger than the lion; filled with anger and indignation not at what he himself endured, but at her devilish advice, and revealing anger with his gaze, he makes a moderate reproach to her - since he was prudent in misfortunes. What is he saying? “Why do you sound like one of the crazy women?” ( Job 2:10 ). That’s not what I taught you, he says, that’s not how I raised you; I don’t recognize my wife in you, because your words are characteristic of a mad wife, your advice is befitting of a madwoman. Do you see how moderate his answer is, how his blow is sufficient to heal her illness? Then, after the reproach, he offers advice, also sufficient to console her and filled with great prudence: “if we receive good things,” he says, “from the hand of the Lord, then will we not endure bad things?” Remember, he says, about the past (prosperity), think about its culprit, and you will courageously endure the present (misfortune). Do you see the humility of this man? He does not attribute his patience to his courage, but says that it is in the order of things. Why did God give us the previous blessings, why did He reward us with them? Not for anything, but solely because of His goodness; they were a gift, not a reward, grace, not a reward; Let us bravely endure the present. Husbands and wives, let us write down for ourselves and inscribe in our souls these words and those that preceded them; Having depicted in our minds, as if in a picture, the story of his sufferings, such as: the loss of property, the death of children, body ulcers, insults, ridicule, the intrigues of his wife, the deceit of the devil and in general all the details of the suffering of the righteous, we will arrange for ourselves the most reliable refuge so that, enduring everything courageously and with gratitude, we can drive away all sadness from ourselves in this present life and (in the future) receive rewards for such prudence, grace and love for mankind of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, with the Holy Spirit, be glory, power, honor, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen. These conversations were delivered by the saint in Antioch around 390. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” (παιδευόμεθα – being brought up) You might be interested in: