About poverty and charity

The sermon “On poverty and charity” was delivered by St. Gregory of Nyssa in March 382. In it, the saint speaks about the benefits of charity to the poor and needy. *The title of the work in Greek is Περὶ εὐποιίας. *The title of the work in Latin is De beneficentia; De pauperibus amandis 1. The head of this church and the teachers of unswerving piety and virtuous life have many similarities with the teachers of literacy and mentors in the original reading. For just as those, having received from their parents children young and still unsteady in speech, do not immediately lead them to final knowledge, but having first inscribed the alpha and the following letters on a wax table, teach them to recognize their names and exercise their hand in their outline: “after this they lead further to syllables,” and then teach them the pronunciation of words: “so do the leaders of the church, leading the listener first to the initial teachings of they teach him the most perfect knowledge.” So, since in the previous two days we curbed our attachment to the pleasures of the larynx and belly, do not think that now I will talk about the same thing - how good it is to give up meat and abstain from laughter-loving and noisy wine, to stop the zeal of the cooks and the completely tired hand of the cupbearer. For I have said enough about this; and by your actions you have demonstrated the effectiveness of persuasion. It is good for you, having studied the initial teaching, to gradually pass on other, higher and more decent instructions to men. So, there is fasting and incorporeal, there is immaterial abstinence, relating to the soul - keeping oneself from evil; It is for his sake that abstinence from food is also legalized for us. So, fast from malice, abstain from coveting the things of others, abstain from unjust gain; starve the love of mammon to death; let there be no expensive decorations in the house, from violence and theft. For what good is it if you do not bring meat to your lips, but bite your brother with malice? Or what is the benefit if you do not eat your own, but wrongly take what belongs to the poor? What kind of piety is this if, while drinking water, you prepare deceit and thirst, out of malice, for blood? Of course, Judas also fasted along with the eleven, but without taming his money-loving disposition, he did not receive any benefit from abstinence for salvation. And the devil does not eat, for he is an incorporeal spirit; but because of malice he fell from on high. Likewise, each of the demons does not consume any food, nor can they be accused of excessive drinking or drunkenness, for nature has not given them the opportunity to take food. However, wandering through the air night and day, they are the workers and servants of evil, and carefully plot against us. They are melting away from envy and hatred, which it is good to avoid if we people want to be close to God, while they have disappeared from the commonwealth with good. So, let wisdom guide the way of life of Christians, and let the soul avoid the destruction of evil. For if, by abstaining from wine and meat, we are guilty of sins of the will, then I predict and testify in advance: water, and vegetables, and a bloodless table will not bring us any benefit if we do not have an internal disposition similar to external appearance. Fasting is legalized for the purity of the soul; if it is defiled by other kinds of intentions and actions, then why do we waste the water we drink? Why cultivate this indelible and excessive dirt? What is the use of bodily fasting if the mind is unclean? For there is no benefit if the chariot is strong and the harness is in order, but the driver is not in his right mind. What good is a well-built ship if the pilot is drunk? Fasting is the basis of virtue. But just as the foundation of a house and the bottom of a ship, even if they were very firmly laid, are useless and have no value if what follows is not built skillfully in them: “so there is no benefit from this abstinence unless they are added to it, and other righteous deeds do not follow.” Let the fear of God teach you to say what is proper and not to say empty things. know the time and measure, and the necessary word and the appropriate answer: “do not speak excessively, do not shower your interlocutors with a hail of words.” For this is why the most delicate of the membranes, which attaches the tongue to the lower cavity of the mouth, is called a bridle, so as not to speak disorderly and indecent: let the tongue bless and not slander, sing and not revile, praise and not blame. Let the rash hand be bound by the remembrance of God, like a chain. We fast because we insulted our Lamb before the nailing with reproaches and strangulations: therefore, we disciples of Christ are not jealous of Jewish custom. If we are so disposed, then Isaiah will tell us: “Behold, you fast for quarrels and strife and in order to beat others with a bold hand” (Is. 58:4). Learn from the same prophet the actions of sincere and pure fasting: “loose the chains of unrighteousness, untie the bonds of the yoke, and set the oppressed free, and break every yoke; divide your bread with the hungry, and bring the wandering poor into your home” (Isa. 58:6–7). The present time presents us with a great abundance of those deprived of clothing and shelter; for a multitude of captives is at every door; and there is no shortage of strangers and strangers; Everywhere you can see an outstretched asking hand. Their home is open air; hotels - porticos, streets and vacant lots in squares. Like night crows and owls, they hide in the slums. Their clothes are tattered rags; agriculture is the favor of the merciful; food - what will fall from someone; drinking, as for the dumb, is springs; drinking vessel - handfuls; the pantry is a sinus, and even if it is not torn, it holds what is put in; table – knees squeezed; bed-earth; a bathhouse is the one that God created and gave to everyone in general - a river or lake. Their life is wandering and wild; She was not like that at first, but she became like that out of misfortune and need. Help them, the fasting one! Take care of the unfortunate brothers! What you have taken from your belly, offer it to the hungry. Let the fear of God be a fair equalizer. With prudent abstinence, cure two opposite sufferings: your own satiety and your brother’s hunger. For this is what doctors do: they deplete some, fill others, so that through the addition and subtraction (of food) each one can preserve health. Hear good admonition; may (our) word open the doors of those who are sufficient; Let our counsel lead the poor to the rich. Let one word not enrich those in need: let the eternal Word of God give them a home and a bed and a meal. With a kind word, fertilize the use of your acquisitions. Besides these, there are other beggars - the sick and the bedridden. Let everyone take care of their neighbors. Do not allow another to serve your neighbor. May no one else take the treasure offered to you. Embrace the unfortunate like gold. Embrace the misfortune in the arms of the victim, like your health, like the salvation of your wife, children, family and the whole house. The poor and sick are doubly poor. For the healthy among the poor go from door to door, walk among those who have, and sit at the crossroads calling out to all who pass by. These same ones, bound by illness, imprisoned in cramped dwellings and cramped corners, like Daniel in the ditch, are waiting for you, God-fearing and poor-lover, like Habakkuk. Be a friend to the prophet through alms, appear to the needy as a quick and generous provider. There is no loss in giving. Don't be afraid; The fruit of alms grows abundantly. Sow by giving, and you will fill the house with good gains. But you will say: “I am poor too.” So be it; Let's. Give me what you have; for God does not demand beyond one’s strength. You (give) bread, another - a cup of wine, another - clothing, and thus the common collection destroys the misfortune of one. And Moses received the expenses of the tabernacle not from one servant (of God), but from all the people. One rich man brought him gold, another brought him silver; the poorest is skin, the poorest of the poor is wool (Ex. 25, 28–30). You see, how the widow’s money surpassed the deposits of the rich. For she poured out everything that she had, but not much fell out of those (Mark 12:43–44). Do not despise those who lie down as if they are worthless. Think about who they are and you will find their worth. They bear the image of our Savior. For the Lover of Mankind gave them his own image in order to shame them who were uncompassionate and haters of poverty; they are like those who point out royal images to those who rape them, in order to shame the despiser with the image of the ruler. They are the treasure-keepers of expected benefits, the gatekeepers of the kingdom, which opens doors for the good and closes them for the cruel and misanthropic. They are both strong accusers and good defenders. They defend and accuse not with their words, but with their appearance before the Judge. For what is done for them calls to the Knower of the Heart more clearly than any herald. For their sake, this terrible judgment was written out for us by the messengers of God, about which you have often heard. There I see the Son of Man coming from heaven, walking through the air as on earth, surrounded by many thousands of angels; then the towering throne of glory and all the tribes of men, whatever came into being, were illuminated by the sun and inhaled this air, divided into two parts and facing the judgment seat. Those on the right side are called sheep, and those on the other, I hear, are called goats, having incurred this name due to their similarity in morals. I hear there the speeches of the Judge to the defendants and the responses of those on trial to the King. Each person is assigned what he should receive: “those who have led a good life will enjoy the kingdom, and those who hate mankind and the wicked will have fiery torment, and, moreover, eternal.” All this is described carefully (Matthew 25:31–46). And this strict judgment is vividly depicted in words for no other reason than to teach us the benefits of charity. For she contains life, she is the mother of the needy, the teacher of the rich, the good nurse, the guardian of the elders, the treasury of the needy, the universal refuge of the unfortunate; she shares her concerns with all ages and misfortunes. For just as judges in empty human competitions, proclaiming their generosity with a trumpet, promise a rich distribution to all those who struggle in the place of struggle: so charity calls to itself everyone who is in difficult circumstances, sharing with those who come not rewards for blows, but benefits against misfortunes. She is above every praiseworthy deed; she sits before the good God, is beloved by Him and is very close to Him. Thus, the first performer of good and humane deeds is God himself. For the creation of the earth, and the decoration of the sky, and the well-ordered change of times, and the warmth of the sun, and the cooling nature of the ice, and everything in particular, God constantly produces not for Himself, for He has no need for this, but for us. He is an invisible farmer who produces food for people. He is a timely sower and a wise irrigator. For He, according to (the word) of Isaiah (Is. 55:10), gives seed to the sower and water from the clouds; either quietly irrigates the ground with it, or quickly pours it onto the furrows of the fields. When the crops have grown and the greenery has ripened, then, having scattered the clouds throughout the sky, the sun releases its cover, which spreads warmth and fiery rays so that the ears of corn are ripe for harvest. He also makes the grapes grow, preparing in due season drink for the thirsty; feeds for us various kinds of herds, so that people have abundant food, and the skins of some animals, producing wool, provide cover, and others give us shoes. You see that the first lover of charity is God, who feeds the hungry, gives drink to the thirsty and clothes the naked, as stated above. If you want to hear how He cares for those depressed by illness, then find out. Who taught the bee to make wax and honey with it? Who made the pine, terevinfe and mastic tree exude this fatty juice? Who made the Indian country the mother of dry and fragrant fruits? Who grew the olive tree to help with bodily suffering and illness? Who taught us to recognize the roots of plants and recognize the properties contained in them? Who created the art of medicine that gives health? Who brought out from the earth sources of warm waters, sometimes healing us from cold and humidity, sometimes resolving dryness or hardening? And it is timely to say with Baruch: “This... you have invented every way of cunning, and given it to Jacob his servant, and to Israel his beloved from Him” (Bar. 3:36-37). Hence the arts that operate with the help of fire and without fire, and others with the help of water, and countless inventions of crafts so that the needs of life are satisfied without shortage. And thus God is the first inventor of charity, a rich and at the same time compassionate giver of what is necessary for us. We, by every letter of Scripture, are instructed to emulate our Lord and Creator, to the extent that it is possible for a mortal to imitate the Blessed and Immortal, we turn everything to our own pleasure: we separate one thing for our own life, we save the other as heirs for the unfortunate - not a word about the beggars! - no good care. O merciless heart! A person sees a person in need of bread, who does not have the necessary life-giving food: “but does not help him willingly and does not give him salvation, but leaves him unattended like some green plant, miserably drying up from lack of water; and this (a person does) possessing overflowing wealth, and having the opportunity to pour out the consolation of property to many! For as the overflow of one spring fattens many vast plains; so the wealth of one house is enough to save many poor people - unless a stingy and uncommunicative heart, like a stone hit when leaving, does not hold back the flood. Not everything is for the flesh; let us live a little for God. For sensation and pleasure from food is received by a small part of the flesh - the larynx; and the food, having rotted in the stomach, is finally ejected. Mercy and charity are deeds dear to God, and if they dwell in a person, they deify him and form him in the likeness of the All-Good, so that he would be the image of the first, and pure, and surpassing every mind Being. What end is promised to such jealousy? Here is good hope and joyful expectation, and then, when we have left this fleeting flesh, we will be clothed in incorruption - a blessed life, unceasing and undying, where some wondrous and now unknown pleasures are prepared. So you, who were created intelligent and have a mind that serves as an interpreter and teacher of Divine (commands), do not be deceived by transient things. Acquire something that never leaves the acquirer: determine the measure of how to use life. Not all is yours, but let some belong to the poor, dear to God. For everything belongs to God, the common Father. We are like brothers; It is best and fairest for brothers to divide the inheritance equally. Otherwise, if one has appropriated more than the other, let the others take advantage of at least part of it. If anyone would want to be the master of everything in general, depriving his brothers even of the third or fifth part, he is an evil tyrant, an irreconcilable barbarian, a hated beast, joyfully opening his mouth only for food; such a one is more severe than even the most beasts. For the wolf allows the wolf to eat, and the dogs also torment one corpse in large numbers: “he is insatiable and does not allow any of his uterine members to share in the wealth.” A moderate table is enough for you; do not go into this sea of ​​unbridled feasting. For you are threatened with a cruel shipwreck, not crushing against reefs, but plunging into the deepest mud, from where the one who falls will never emerge. Use it, but don't abuse it; for this is what Paul also teaches you (1 Cor. 10:23); allow yourself moderate pleasure: “do not get drunk with pleasures.” Do not be the destroyer of almost all animals: “four-legged, large, small, birds, fish, easily caught, rare, cheap and expensive.” Do not fill one belly with the sweat of many fishers, like some deep well, which the many hands of those who fall asleep cannot fill. For the sake of those who live in luxury, the abyss of the sea does not remain calm. Not only fish swimming in the water are caught; but also those miserable animals that move at the bottom of the sea are also taken out onto land and into this air. So the (various) genera of oysters were not hidden; A sea urchin is caught and a crawling seii gets caught in the net. And the polyp, attached to the stones, breaks away from them, and the shells are removed from the deepest abysses. And all kinds of animals, both those that swim on the waves, and those that are destined to inhabit the bottom of the sea, are brought up into this air, and the ingenuity of lovers of pleasure invents various nets for them. What does luxury entail? Wherever this evil appears, it, like a disease, necessarily entails its bad consequences. Those who decide to have a luxurious and pampered table must necessarily be involved in the construction of magnificent buildings and spend a lot of wealth on spacious houses and their exquisite decoration; at the same time, they take care of the beauty of the beds, arranging them with colorful and all kinds of carpets; They make very expensive silver tables, some smoothly polished, others decorated with carvings, so that at the same time they serve for the larynx and saturate the eye with the events depicted on them. Pay attention with me to the rest: bowls, tripods, mugs, washing vessels, dishes, countless types of glasses; jesters, actors, musicians, singers, wits, singers, singers, dancers, the whole retinue of debauchery, youths with feminine hair, shameless girls, but the immodest sisters of Herodias, killing John - the god-like and wise mind found in everyone. While all this is happening inside the house, countless Lazarus will sit at the gate: “some are covered with severe ulcers, others with a knocked out eye, others mourn the loss of their legs, and some of them are completely crawling, having suffered the deprivation of all members.” But when they cry, they are not heard; for the noise of trumpets, the songs of unauthorized singers and the roar of strong laughter disturb. If somehow the poor knock harder on the door, the impudent gatekeeper of the unmerciful master, jumping out from somewhere, drives them away with sticks, calls merciless dogs, and irritates their wounds with whips. And the friends of Christ, about whom the commandments speak first of all, depart, without receiving a piece of bread or food, with only an increase in insults and blows. Inside, where mammon does her work, some, like ships overflowing with water, spew out food, others fall asleep near the table on which there are glasses in front of them. A double sin dwells in this house: “one is the satiety of the drunkards, the other is the expulsion of the hungry beggars.” If the Lord sees this (and He certainly does), then what, in your opinion, will follow such a life, you say, haters of the poor? Or don’t you know that for their sake the sacred Gospel proclaims and confirms with its testimony all these terrible and terrible examples? There is described there a heavily gnashing of teeth and groaning (rich man), luxurious in fine linen and kept in an abyss of evils (Luke 16:19-31). Another again, similar to this, was condemned to an unexpected death: in the evening he consulted about the morning food, and did not live to see the morning ray (Luke 12:16-21). Let us not be dead to faith, nor immortal to enjoyment. And we adhere to this way of thinking when we want to sacrifice everything to carnal deception, like householders who have no heirs, like permanent masters on earth, during the harvest taking care of the sowing, and during the sowing hoping to rejoice in the harvest, planting a plane tree and waiting for the shade of a tall tree; planting date grain and awaiting the sweetness of the fruit. And this often happens in old age, when the winter of death is near, and there are not a number of years left to live, but three or four days! So let us understand, as rational beings, that our life is transitory, that time is fluid, impermanent and uncontrollable, like some river stream, which carries everything that falls into it to final destruction. And, oh, if only life, being short and fleeting, were unaccountable! But the hourly danger lies in the fact that not only for deeds, but also for the words spoken by us, we must give an answer before an incorruptible court. Therefore, the blessed psalmist, having in mind something similar to what we have just said, wants to know the time of his death, and begs God to tell him the number of remaining days in order to prepare for the circumstances of the exodus, and not suddenly become confused, like an unprepared traveler who, during the journey itself, is looking for supplies necessary for the journey. He says: “Tell me, Lord, my death and the number of my days, so that I understand that I am deprived. Behold, these are my days, and my composition is as nothing before You” (Ps. 39:5–6). Look at the good care of a wise soul, and at that in royal dignity. For he imagines himself as the King of kings and the Judge of judges, and takes care that, having provided himself with an excellent supply of fulfilled commandments, he departs ready as a citizen of that life, which may we all achieve through the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. You might be interested in: