Слово 18. О ненависти и вражде

If anyone has suffered an insult from a neighbor, let him remember and bring David to his mind, so that, when his heart is still boiling, with the memory of this meek and gentle man he can tame the sea of ​​anger. Why, in fact, is your brother your enemy? Did he insult you? But he didn't do you any harm. Or maybe because of money you look at him as an enemy? Do not, I beg you, do not delay in order to cut the chains of anger, because delays give rise to delay: if you miss today, you will be ashamed a lot; if you add tomorrow too, there will be even more shame; If you add the third day, you will become even more ashamed due to such a long delay. Let me, I ask you, speak freely about this. Give me the opportunity to hear that from this constant learning we have achieved some success, that someone, leaving here, embraced the enemy with both hands, squeezed him in his arms, kissed him, shed tears; even if the latter were an animal, or a stone, or whatever it was, but, touched by such friendliness, he will become meek. In this way you will free yourself from accusations, and you will gain him by inclining him to a good disposition. And don’t tell me: I have an enemy who is godless, wicked, lost, incorrigible, and I cannot be reconciled with him. Whatever enemy you name, he is no worse than Saul, who, having been saved once, twice, and many times over by David, himself plotted against him a thousand times, and, being instead favored, continued to hold his malice against him. Really, what can you say? Is it that he separated your land for himself? What harmed you in the field? What crossed the threshold of the house? What kidnapped slaves? What offended you? What did you rob? What brought you to poverty? But he has not yet tried to take your souls, neither twice, nor thrice, nor many times (like Saul), and, moreover, without receiving so many benefits from you, as well as without falling into your hands many times and being saved. And even if so, then in this case David again has an advantage, since, having been brought up in less perfect laws that did not require anything like that, he reached the very pinnacle of the law of grace. Moreover, you often hold a grudge, being angry about the past; and this (righteous man), even fearing for the future and knowing full well that he would have no place in the city and life would be unbearable if he saved the enemy, still did not stop caring for him, but did everything for his benefit, feeding the enemy against himself. So, tell me, what is it that you blame the enemy for that you don’t want to reconcile with him? How did he offend you? Robbed you of money? But if you bravely endure their abduction, you will receive the same reward as if you had given them into the hands of the poor. In fact, both the one who gave money to the poor and the one who, for the sake of God, did not plot evil against the one who stole from him, or did not even say a bad word to him, are doing the same thing. If there is one reason for spending, then it is obvious that there is one crown. But he plotted against your life and tried to kill you? This is charged to you as martyrdom, if only you consider the attacker, who carried his enmity to such a degree, among your benefactors, and do not stop praying for him, asking God to have mercy on him. Let us not look at the fact that God did not allow Saul, who was pursuing David, to kill him, but at the fact that the latter received a double, or triple, or even quadruple crown of martyrdom from his evil machinations. In fact, whoever, for the sake of God, saved an enemy who not once, not twice, but repeatedly threw a spear at his head, who, having the full opportunity to kill him, spared him, knowing that after such mercy he would attack him again, he was obviously subjected to slaughter a thousand times by will; Having been slain a thousand times for God's sake, he also has numerous crowns of martyrdom. And what Paul said, he also thought about it, and died every day for God's sake (1 Cor. 15:31). Having the opportunity to kill the one who was preparing his death, he did not want to do this for the sake of God, but preferred to be exposed to danger every day rather than get rid of so many deaths, even by committing a just murder. If one who is malicious, even against life itself, should neither take revenge nor pay with hatred, then even less so one who causes us offense in any other, external things. Do you want to know that it is possible to reconcile with ourselves, if we only wish, every person who is hostile to us, no matter how wicked, corrupt and incorrigible he may be? What's fiercer than a lion? And yet people tame it, art masters nature; and the one who is fiercer and more royal than all the animals becomes more humble and obedient than any sheep and walks around the square, instilling fear in no one due to his meekness. What kind of excuse, what kind of forgiveness will we have when we tame animals, but about people we say that we cannot tame them in any way and force them to treat us well, especially since meekness is not inherent in the beast, and ferocity is alien in nature to man? If, in this way, we defeat nature, then what justification will we have when we say that we cannot correct arbitrariness? If he is incurably ill, then the more work you do, the more abundant the reward will be when you do not stop caring about healing the incurably ill person. But what did your enemy do to you that was so hard that you refuse to reconcile with him? Did he speak ill of you, call you an adulterer and a fornicator? What's wrong with that? If he is telling the truth, correct yourself; and if it’s a lie, then laugh. If you are aware of what he is reproaching you for, then come to your senses, and if you are not aware, neglect it; It’s better to say - not only laugh, not only disdain, but even rejoice and be glad according to the word of the Lord: “When,” He says, “they revile you and call your name dishonorable, because of the Son of Man, rejoice in that day and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven” (Luke 6:22-23; Matt. 5:11-12). If he told the truth, and you bear his words with meekness, do not respond to him with an insult, do not slander him, but bitterly groan and condemn your sins, then you will receive a reward no less than in the first case. Often, with their just reproaches, enemies do what friends cannot do with their praises and pleasant speeches. The latter, usually saying pleasant things, or even flattering us, only intensify the disease; the former, prompted by enmity and blaming our sins, force us to correct ourselves, and thus enmity becomes a source of greatest benefit for us. So, let’s not say: “So-and-so irritated me, so-and-so made me say shameful words.” We ourselves are always the culprits; if we wish to be philosophical, then not only the enemy, but even the devil himself will not be able to bring us into anger. And this is clear from the story of David. When he said: “Look at the hem of your garment in my hand” and all other further words in his justification before Saul, the latter said: “Is this your voice, my son David?” (1 Samuel 24:12, 17). What a great change suddenly happened to this brutal man, thanks to the meek words of David! The one who previously could not even call him by name, and hated even his very nickname, now elevates him to kinship with himself, calling him son, and is touched even by the very sound of his voice. And just as a father, having heard the long-unheard voice of his son returning from somewhere, is not only glad to see his face, but listens with love to the voice itself, so Saul, when the words of David reached him and the enmity was removed, finally recognized the saint and, freed from one passion, was imbued with another passion: he cast aside anger and was imbued with joy and sympathy. What could be more blessed and exalted than David? He made the murderer a father, the wolf a sheep, filled the furnace of anger with abundant dew, turned excitement into silence and extinguished all the ardor of anger. So, beloved, let us try not only not to suffer any harm from our enemies, but also to avoid doing any harm to ourselves. And then we will not tolerate any evil, even if we were subjected to countless disasters, just as David, despite exile, persecution and danger to life itself, did not suffer any evil, but turned out to be even more glorious and more praiseworthy than the enemy, and more desirable to everyone, not only to people, but also to God Himself. Indeed, what harm did this saint suffer, having experienced so many disasters from Saul? Is he not glorified to this day, is he not glorious both on earth and in Heaven? Do not unspeakable blessings and the Kingdom of Heaven await him? On the other hand, what benefit did that pitiful and unfortunate person who plotted so many intrigues get for him? Has he not lost his kingdom, suffered a miserable death together with his son, and is he not subject to universal condemnation? But what’s hardest of all is that now endless torment awaits him. When, therefore, you see your enemy or remember him, then do not say that I suffered such and such from him, that I heard such and such from him, do not inflame anger through this and do not increase the ardor of passion even more; on the contrary, forget all the grief you heard or suffered from him; and if you remember, then blame them on the devil; collect, on the contrary, everything that he has ever said or done to you that is good, and then you will soon stop the enmity. If you want to turn to him with denunciations, then first subdue your passion, quench your anger, and then denounce him and demand an answer, and you will easily defeat him. In fact, being irritated, we will not be able to say or hear anything sensible; Having freed ourselves from passion, we ourselves will never utter an offensive word, and we will not hear offense in the words of others. It is not usually the words themselves that arouse anger in us, as a hostile prejudice against another. Just as at night we often do not recognize the friend standing in front of us, and when day comes, we recognize him from afar, so it usually happens in the case of enmity: while we treat each other with hostility, we listen with prejudice to the voice of others and look at their face; and when we free ourselves from anger, then the same face that previously seemed hostile and unpleasant becomes sweet and pleasant. When the enemy reviles you for a sin that you are aware of, and you, hearing this, do not respond to him with an insult, but bitterly groan and begin to beg God, you will immediately blot out all the sin. And lest you think that we are simply consoling you, we will present evidence from the Holy Scriptures. There were a Pharisee and a tax collector; one reached the extreme degree of vice, the other zealously cared for righteousness; and both one day came to the church to pray. The Pharisee stood and said: “God! I thank You that I am not like other people, robbers, offenders, adulterers, or like this publican” (Luke 18:11). The publican, standing at a distance, did not respond with insult and reproach, did not say any empty words with which we wash each other every day, but only said, groaning bitterly and beating himself on the chest: “God! be merciful to me, a sinner! (Luke 18:13) - and came out justified. See how soon? He accepted the reproach and washed away the reproach; realized his sins and was freed from sins; the accusation of sin became a revocation of sin, and the enemy, against his will, turned out to be a benefactor. Can there be anything more blissful than this? Could there be an easier means of liberation from sins? In fact, how much work would a publican need to do, being in the labors of fasting, vigil, lying on the ground, distributing his property to the poor, sitting for a long time in sackcloth and ashes, in order to atone for his sins? Meanwhile, now, without having done anything like that, he removed all sins and reproach from himself with just one word; and the slander of the one who apparently offended him, without prolonged effort and labor, brought him the crown of truth. That is why God commanded us to pray for our enemies, so that we would not only forgive their debts, but also consider them among our first friends. If you only do no injustice to others, but turn away from them and look with displeasure, and there is a fresh wound in your soul, then you have not yet fulfilled the commandment taught by Christ. How can you ask God to be merciful to you, if you yourself have not yet become merciful to those who have sinned against you? If you want to know that God Himself will not let go of your enemies and offenders, even if we prayed for them, when they only become worse as a result of our kindness, I will tell you one ancient story. One day Miriam rebuked Moses; what about God? He sent leprosy to her, made her unclean (Num. 12), although in everything else she acted justly and wisely. Then, when the offended Moses himself asked and begged to leave his anger at her, God did not heed him, but what did he say? If she had a father who drove her out of his sight, wouldn’t she have suffered the punishment? I approve of you for your meekness and kindness, but I must not leave her without punishment. So, remember that Last Judgment, when everything will be naked and open; think that then everything that is hidden now will be revealed. If you forgive your neighbor’s sins, then all your sins, which should be revealed then, will be destroyed here, and you will leave here, not carrying any of your sins with you. This way you receive more than you give. Often we commit sins that no one else has seen. And if we think that on that day all our sins will be revealed before the eyes of everyone, will be exposed to the disgrace of the whole universe, then will we not experience more severe suffering from the remorse and torment of our own conscience than from any punishment? Meanwhile, such a great shame of yours, such great sins can be washed away by condescension towards your neighbor. And, if you want, listen to the power of this commandment. “Even though,” it is said, “Moses and Samuel appear before Me, My soul will not bow to them” (Jer. 15:1). And yet those whom Moses and Samuel could not snatch away from the wrath of God can be snatched away by this very commandment. That is why God constantly commanded those to whom he spoke these words, saying: “Do not think evil against one another in your hearts,” and: “Let none of you think evil in your heart against your neighbor” (Zech. 7:10, 8:17). If we are commanded to love our enemies, then what punishment will we be subjected to when we even hate those who love us? If the one who loves the one who loves him has no advantage over the publicans, then where will he end up who hates the one who does him no harm? How will he escape Gehenna, turning out to be worse than the pagans? If the one who does not love his brother, even if he gave away all the money, even if he shone with martyrdom, does not receive any benefit, then think, what kind of punishment is worthy of the one who is hostile to a person who has not offended him in any way? If God does not forgive the sins of those who do not forgive the actions committed against them, then will he give forgiveness to those who dare to offend those who have not done them anything bad? So, why do we recklessly quarrel with each other, why are we at enmity with each other, when we are commanded to love even those who hate us? What are you saying, man? Do you have an enemy and are not ashamed? Isn’t the devil enough for us that we also incite our same-blooded ones against ourselves? Oh, if only he didn’t want to be at enmity with us! Oh, if only he were not the devil! Or do you not know what pleasure comes after reconciliation? There is no need if in the midst of hostility this is not particularly clear. If you say that when you remember an insult, you seethe with anger, then remember whether the offender did anything good to you, remember how much harm you yourself caused to others, and you will soon leave hostility. Truly, you did not suffer such evil as you would inflict on yourself through rancor. Indeed, how can you receive forgiveness that you do not give to others? The pagans, not expecting anything great, often philosophized about patience; and you, for whom Christ gave His soul and did not refuse to be slain when you were still an enemy, you, who must depart from this life with such hopes, do not dare and hesitate to end the enmity? What time does, you do not want to do ahead of time for the sake of the law of God, and do you want your passion to go out without any reward rather than with a reward? After all, if this happens from time to time, then not only will there be no benefit to you, but there will also be a great punishment for the fact that the law of God did not convince you to do what time did. For this reason, it is God who gives you an ineffable reward, so that you warn him. If you reconcile with the offender only at his request, then peace is no longer the result of your zeal for fulfilling God’s commandments, but the efforts of another; That is why you remain without a crown, while he receives rewards. Robbers, entering into a partnership with someone, are no longer robbers in relation to their accomplices: participation in a common meal changes their disposition and makes those who were fiercer than beasts more humble than sheep; and we, taking part in such a meal, having fellowship in such food, take arms against each other? After this, won’t we find ourselves worse than even the animals? That is why we are becoming weaker and weaker every day, and our common enemy is stronger and stronger. Instead of defending ourselves with our common forces against him, we, together with him, rebel against each other and make him our leader for this kind of battle. Let us avoid such authority over us, by the grace of Christ, to whom belongs glory, power, honor and worship, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, forever. Amen. Ἐκλογαί άπό διαφόρων λόγων . Under this name are known collections of conversations compiled by various persons after the death of Chrysostom on certain topics, from those related to the topics and especially liked by the compilers of the works of the saint. The passages are given partly in a literal presentation, partly in a free retelling and are borrowed both from the original works of Chrysostom, and from works only attributed to Chrysostom, which have not only survived to this day, but have also been lost. These Eclogues (selections) were widespread and were used by both private individuals and kings. Known, for example, is the luxurious collection of Eclogues, owned by the Byzantine emperor Nikephoros Botaniatus (1078–1081), registered among the codices of the Koalene Library under No. LXXIX. The paragraphs in the text were arranged by us. – Editorial staff of “ABC of Faith” You might be interested in: