Беседа 16

About the life and morals of his clergy (2) 1. Today your love will have to listen to a speech about ourselves. “We,” as the apostle says, “have become a disgrace (spectaculum) to the world, to angels and men” (1 Cor. 4:9). Those who love us are looking for something to praise in us. Those who hate reproach us. We, placed in the middle between one and the other, with the help of the Lord our God, must protect our life and name in this way, so that those who glorify us do not remain in shame before our detractors. And how we would like to live, how, by the grace of God, we already live, although many of you know from the Holy Scriptures, however, as a reminder, a passage from the book of Acts of the Holy Apostles will be read to you, so that you can see where the image that we want to imitate is indicated. While reading, I wish you to be especially attentive, so that after reading I can express to your attention, with God’s help, what I have decided. [After these words, Deacon Lazarus reads]. “And because of their prayer, the place where they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness. The multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul; and no one called anything of his property his own, but they had everything in common. The apostles testified with great power to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ; and great grace was upon them all. There was no one in need among them; for all who owned lands or houses, selling them, brought the price of what was sold and laid them at the feet of the Apostles; and to each one was given whatever he needed” (Acts 4:31–35). [When Deacon Lazarus read and gave the book to the bishop, Bishop Augustine continued: “I’ll read it again. It gives me more pleasure to be a reader of this word than to speak my own word."] “And through their prayer, the place where they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness. The multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul; and no one called anything of his possessions his own, but they had everything in common. The apostles testified with great power to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ; and great grace was upon all of them. There was no one in need among them; for all who owned lands or houses, selling them, brought the price of what was sold and laid them at the feet of the Apostles; and everyone was given whatever they needed.” 2. Now, brothers, you have heard about what we are striving for. Pray that we will be able to accomplish this. There is also a certain necessity that forces me to take careful care of this. Because, as you already know, one presbyter from our community, organized like the one testified to by the reading you just heard, when dying, made a will regarding his estate. He had an estate that he called his own, although he lived in a community where no one was allowed to call anything his own, but everything should be common. Now, if some admirer and admirer of ours began to praise our community before our detractor and said: “This is how all his cohabitants live with Bishop Augustine, as indicated in the book of the Acts of the Holy Apostles,” he would immediately, shaking his head, angrily (dentem promovens) answer him: “Do they really live there as you say? Why are you lying? Why do you extol the unworthy with false praise? Didn’t the presbyter who had just died in that community make a will and didn’t he leave and distribute in his own way what he had? Is it fair that everything is common there? Is it true that no one calls anything there their own?” What will my admirer do at these words? Will not that detractor block his mouth as if with lead? And will he not repent of his praises? Filled with respect for us and embarrassed by the speech of this detractor, will he not begin to revile us and the one who made the will (testatory illi)? This is the necessity that prompted us to pay special attention to this circumstance. 3. So, to your joy, I will tell you that all my brothers and clergy, presbyters, deacons, sub-deacons who live with me, and my relative Patricius turned out to be what I wanted them to be. Two people have not yet done what they decided regarding their property: Valens, the deacon, and my relative, the sub-deacon, whom I have already named. The latter was prevented by his mother, because she lived on that estate. They also awaited the arrival of his legal age, when he would finally be able to do as he wished. The first did not do this, because he owns the plots of land he has inseparably with his brother. When the plots are divided, he wants to donate them to the benefit of the Church, so that from here those who condemn themselves to a holy life (qui sunt in proposito sanctitatis) will have food until their death. After all, Scripture teaches this too. “If anyone,” says the apostle, “does not provide for his own, and especially for those at home, he has denied the faith and is worse than an infidel” (1 Tim. 5:8). He also has slaves (mancipia) in common with his brother, who have not yet been divided. He thinks about releasing them, but cannot do this until they are separated. Now he doesn’t know what belongs to whom. He, of course, as the eldest, has the right of division, and his brother has the right of choice. The latter also devoted himself to the service of God and holds the position of sub-deacon with my reverent brother and co-bishop of the North, in the Milevis church. This is how things stand, and without delay, care must be taken, of course, that those slaves are divided, set free and placed under the care of the Church, which would feed them (ut eorum excipiat alimentum). My relative, from the very time he began to be with me, found it difficult to do anything with his estate, in view of the support of his mother, who died this year. The affairs between him and his sisters should soon, with the help of God, be over, so that he himself will do what befits a servant of God, and what his ministry and the reading you heard from the Acts require. 4. Deacon Favstin, as almost all of you know, came here to the monastery straight from the crossroads of the world (de militia saeculi). Here he was baptized, here he was promoted to deacon, and since he had little, which, apparently, he owned more, as experienced lawyers say, nominally, and not really (iure, non corpore), he left it for himself and did not encounter any obstacles in this from his brothers. He never regretted his past, neither did he seek anything from his brothers, nor did they seek anything from him. Only now, with my advice, he divided his estate: he gave half to his brothers, and the other half to the benefit of the poor church existing in that place [of course, in the place where Favstinus came from]. 5. You also know Deacon Severus, you know what misfortune and punishment he suffered from God. However, he did not lose the spiritual light [from these words one can conclude that the misfortune that befell the North apparently consisted in the fact that he lost his sight]. Here he bought one house for his mother and sister, whom he wished to move here from his fatherland. He bought the house not with his own money, which he did not have, but with assistance from pious men, whose names he told me when I asked him about it. As for the house, I cannot say what he will do with it, or what he will do with it. I will only say that he gave everything and himself to my will and, as I want, so it should be. But he has some misunderstandings with his mother, for which he asked me to be the judge. When these misunderstandings are over, then the house will be dealt with as I want. But what can I want, if the Lord only helps me, if not what truth and piety require? He also has some estates in his homeland; He intends to divide them so that part of them will be donated to the poor church founded in that place. 6. As for the Ipponian deacon [the name is not indicated because this Ipponian was known to all listeners], he is a poor man and absolutely does not have anything to give to anyone. However, before becoming a cleric, with the savings from his labors he acquired several slaves, apparently still minors, and today in front of you he wants to release them, with this act performed by the bishop himself (episcopalibus gestis). 7. Before you is also Deacon Heraclius. His deeds are in front of your eyes. Evidence of them and his generosity is our basilica in honor of the holy martyr [probably the holy martyr Arch. Stephen, whose remains were brought to Africa around 425]. With his own money, with my advice, he bought the plot, wishing that the money itself be paid through my hands, as I please. And if I were greedy for money or if I were more concerned about my needs, which I experience because of the poor, then, of course, I would keep them. "Why?" - someone will say. Because the property that he bought and gave to the church does not give it anything. There was less money compared to the value of the estate, and since it was borrowed, the income from it has to be paid off for now. Besides, I’m already an old man, and what use could he be to me? Can I promise myself that I will live for so many years until it covers its cost? Thus, here the benefit is promised only in the distant future; in another case, I could have everything if I wanted to use it. But I didn’t do this, having something else in mind. I confess to you that the very age of Heraclius was suspicious for me, and I was afraid that maybe I wouldn’t like it, because there are such people, his mother, and she would say that the young man was infatuated with me because of taking advantage of his property, and he himself was left in need. That is why I wished that his money would be saved in that estate, so that if something, God forbid, happened differently than we want, the estate would be returned, and the good name of the bishop would remain untarnished. I know how necessary my good name is for you; For me personally, my consciousness is enough. He bought an area of ​​land adjacent to the distant church, which you know, and built a house there at his own expense; and you know this. He recently donated this house to the Church. He waited for it to be finished so that he could sacrifice what was already finished. There was no other need for him to build the house, except for the assumption that his mother would come here. And if she had come earlier, she would have taken part in her son’s property. Now, if he comes, he will dwell in what he has done (in opere filii sui habitabit). I testify of him that he remained a poor man, remaining in the service of love. He still has some slaves who also live in the monastery; He now intends to release them, however, according to church rites (gestis ecclesiasticis). So, let no one say that he is rich, let no one think this, let no one slander or torment himself or his soul with his own teeth. He doesn't have any money. And - oh, if only it remained as it should! 8. Others, i.e. sub-deacons, all, by the grace of God, poor people who trust in God’s mercy. They do not have any property and have completely renounced worldly everyday affairs. They live with us in a common union. No one distinguishes them from those who brought anything with them. The unity of love must be preferred to the gain of earthly possessions. 9. Now there are still elders left. Gradually I decided to reach them. Briefly, I will say that they are God’s beggars. They brought nothing to the abode of our union except love, which is better than nothing. However, since I know that rumors have appeared about their wealth, they, which I have no reason to suspect of anything, must be cleared before you by my real word. 10. I will tell you, precisely those who perhaps do not know, because there are many of you who know this, that I accepted the presbyter Leporius, who, despite his glorious, high origin, devoted himself to God, completely without any means, after he left everything that he had and did what the reading you heard calls for (from the Acts of the Holy Apostles). This is not where he did it, but we know the place where he did it. The unity of Christ and the Church is one, and wherever a good deed is done, it also applies to us if we rejoice in it. There is a garden in some place. There he built a monastery for his own people, because they too serve the Lord. This garden now belongs neither to the church nor to him, but to that monastery. But he, and this is true, until now cared so much about the monastery that he took upon himself the costs of its maintenance and did them at his own discretion. But in order to avoid bad assumptions on the part of suspicious people, it was desirable for me and him that those living there should live as if he himself were no longer alive. But when he dies, can he dispose of anything from them? It is more pleasant for him to see them prospering and abiding, with the help of God, in the teachings of Christ, abiding in such a way that one can only rejoice for them, and not suffer for their needs. He has no money that he could call his own. He had in his hands a hospitable house under construction, which you now see already rebuilt. I laid all this on him, I commanded. He obeyed me very willingly and, as you see, fulfilled the order, just as, at my order, he erected, with the funds that the Lord gave through you, a basilica in memory of the eight martyrs (ad octo martyres). He began to build with small funds that were given to the Church for the hospice house, and when he began to build, pious people, who wanted their deeds to be written down in the book of life (in coelo), helped as much as they could, and he built it. The matter is before your eyes, and everyone can see what has been done. And if he doesn’t have money, let them believe me, let them calm down and not worry. With the money intended for the host, he bought one house in Carraria, which, as he assumed, would be useful to him due to the properties of the stones. But those stones turned out to be unnecessary for construction, because the material was found elsewhere. So that house remained; He gives income, but to the church, not to the presbyter. Let no one consider it the house of the elder and say: “To the house of the elder, in front of the house of the elder, or at the house of the elder.” This is where the presbyter's house is: where my house is, there is the presbyter's house. He has no home anywhere else; he has only God everywhere. 11. What else do you want to know if not to tell you what I promised you, namely, what I will do with the children of Presbyter Januarius, brother and sister, in view of the financial misunderstandings that have arisen between them. But, thank God, there was still love between them, like between brother and sister. I wanted to examine with my judgment what happened between them. I had already prepared to examine the case, but before they acted as a judge for me, they themselves finished among themselves what I had to examine. I didn’t find anything from them that could be judged, but something that I could only rejoice at. They decided, in accordance with my desire and advice, to equally divide the money that their father left, and which the church refused. 12. After this speech of mine, of course, people will say different things. But no matter what they say, and no matter what wind blows, some of it will reach my ears. And if it turns out that we again need to justify ourselves, I will answer our detractors and ill-wishers, I will answer the unbelievers who do not believe us, my leaders; I will answer as best I can, whatever the Lord will reveal to me. Now there is no need for this, because perhaps I will not say anything special, and those who love us will rejoice for us, and those who do not love us will, perhaps, only grieve in silence. However, if anyone wants to exercise his tongue, he will hear, with the help of God, my answer, but not my scolding. I will not name people and will not say: “He said this, or this one blasphemed,” because false rumors may reach me. But still, whatever comes to me, if it turns out to be necessary, I will speak about it to your love. Before your eyes, I wish that our life was. I know that those who are prone to bad deeds try to find examples of bad life for themselves and disgrace many, as if finding in them, apparently, their allies. Therefore, we have done everything that depends on us, and we do not know what else should be done. We are before your eyes. We want nothing else but your good deeds. 13. Moreover, I ask you, my brothers, if you want to give anything to the clergy, know that you should not, as it were, indulge them, acting against my demands. Bring everyone what you want, bring it according to your wishes. This will be our common property, and everyone will be given as much as they need. Remember our common treasury (Gasophylacium attendite). I would be very pleased if there would be a special stall for us, so that we would be like God’s beasts of burden, and you would be God’s field. Let no one give me a birga, or a linen tunic, or anything else, except for general use. I also take from the common pantry for myself, because I remember that I only want to have together what I have. I don’t want your holiness to bring me anything that I alone could use more preferentially than others. I don’t want anyone to bring me, for example, a precious birga. Perhaps it is appropriate for a bishop, but it is not appropriate for Augustine, a poor man born of poor people. Then people will say that I have found precious clothes that I could not have had either in my father’s house or in my worldly ministry. She doesn't suit me. I want to have one that I could give to my brother if he needed it. Whatever a presbyter may have, whatever a deacon and sub-deacon may consider appropriate for themselves, I wish to accept such, therefore I accept it for general use. If someone gives me a better one, I usually sell it, so that when the clothing itself cannot be common clothing, its price can at least be common. I sell and distribute to the poor. If anyone would like me to wear it, let him give me clothes that I would not be ashamed of. Because, I confess to you, I am ashamed of the precious clothes, since they are not suitable for this service, for this title, not suitable for these members and these gray hairs. I will also tell you: if anyone in our house or in our community turns out to be sick, so that he needs to be strengthened with food before the time set for dinner, I do not prevent pious men and wives from sending them what they find possible. But none of them will have breakfast or lunch on the side (extra). 14. Here I say to you: you have heard, and they hear: whoever wants to have property, lives with his property and acts against our rules, it is not enough to say that he will not stay with me, but he will not be a cleric either. I have already said and I know that I said that if anyone does not want to live our common life, I will not deprive him of the title of cleric, but let such people abide in a special way, let them live in a special way, live as best they can for God. At the same time, I have already explained to you how great an evil it is to betray your vow. I would rather have the crippled (claudos) than grieve for the dead. Because whoever is a hypocrite is dead. So, if anyone wants to be outside our community and live separately, I will not deprive him of the title of cleric, equally, if one of those who, by the grace of God, liked this common life, lives hypocritically and turns out to have property, I will not allow him to make a will on it and will exclude him from the list of clerics. Let him make a complaint against me to a thousand councils, let him go wherever he wants, let him stay where he can. God is my helper, so where I am a bishop, he will not be a cleric. You listened, and they listened too. But I hope in our God and in His mercy, and I think that, just as they willingly accepted this definition of mine, they will so reproachfully and faithfully observe it. 15. I told you that the elders, my cohabitants, have nothing of their own; Among them is the presbyter Barnabas. But some rumors spread about him and, first of all, that he bought the villa from my beloved and venerable son [sonship here should be understood, of course, spiritual] of my Eleusinus. This is not true. Eleusin gave it to the monastery, but did not sell it. I am a witness. I don’t know what else you need. I am a witness: he gave it, not sold it. But while they didn’t believe that he could give it as a gift, they thought that he sold it. Blessed is the man who has done such a good deed that they don’t even believe it. However, at least now believe and stop listening to slanderers. I already said that I am a witness. They also say about him that during his previous ministry he (Barnabas) incurred debts, and so that he could pay them, I supposedly gave him the right to use Victorian land. “So that I can pay my debts, give me,” he seemed to say, “Victorian land for ten years.” But this is also false. However, there were grounds for such a rumor: he had, however, incurred debts that needed to be paid. Partially, as far as possible, they were paid by us. There was something left that had not yet been paid to the monastery that the Lord founded through him. Since there were still debts, we began to think about how to pay them off. For the lease of that piece of land (Victorian) no one gave more than forty gold pieces (solidorum). But we saw that the plot could yield more, so that the debt could be paid more quickly, and I entrusted it to him (Barnabas), so that the brethren would seek benefits not from the surrender of the plot, but from the fruits it would give, they would count as much as possible to pay off the debt. Everything we do is based on faith. The presbyter is also ready for me to appoint another one who would give the brethren a report on the fruits from the plot. I would like to entrust this to someone from among you, from among those who make offerings to us. Because there are pious people among you who grieve over that false rumor, and yet believe it. So, let one of you yourself come to us, take possession, sell the fruits in good faith at their value, so that the debt can be more easily paid and so that today all concern about this will be removed from the presbyter Barnabas. The very place where the monastery was founded by my memorable and venerable son Eleusinus was donated to the presbyter Barnabas before he became a presbyter. He built a monastery on this site. And since a place was given in his name, he changed the rights of ownership in such a sense that it was listed behind the monastery. And regarding the Victorian site, I pray to you, I convince and insist that if there is any pious person among you, he will act in good faith (fide agat) and try for the church, in order to pay the debt as quickly as possible. If there is no one from the laity, I will choose another, and this one (Barnabas) will not have anything to do with that matter. What do you need even more? Let no one defame the servants of God, because it is not useful for those who defame. For God's servants, the reward increases as a result of false reproaches, but at the same time the punishment for those who reproach also increases. It is not in vain that it is said: “When they revile you... and slander you in every way unrighteously for My sake. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven” (Matthew 5:11–12). However, we do not want a great reward with misfortune for you. They are ready to have less, just to reign there with you. You might be interested in: