Беседа 11. О зависти

God is good and gives good things to the worthy; The devil is wicked and promotes sins of all kinds. And just as envy follows the Good, so envy follows the devil everywhere. Let us, brothers, beware of this passion - envy, so as not to become accomplices in the affairs of the enemy and subsequently not be subject to the same condemnation as him. If one who is proud “falls into judgment the devil” (1 Tim. 3:6), then how can one who is envious avoid the punishment prepared for the devil? No other passion, more destructive than envy, arises in human souls. It harms strangers less, but is the first and closest evil for the one who has it. Just as rust eats away iron, so envy eats away the soul in which it lives. It would be better to say, just as they say about vipers that they are born by gnawing the womb that bears them, so envy usually devours the soul in which it is born. Envy is grief for the well-being of one's neighbor. Therefore, an envious person never lacks sorrows and grief. Is there a harvest in your neighbor's field? Is your home replete with all the necessities of life? or does he lack joys? - all this is food for illness and an increase in sorrow for the envious. Therefore, he is not at all different from a person who is not covered with anything, and at whom everyone is throwing arrows. Is anyone strong or healthy? - this amazes the envious. Whether the other person has a handsome face is a new blow to the envious person. Such and such surpasses many in spiritual advantages, draws attention to himself and arouses competition with his prudence and power of speech; the other is rich, famous for his generosity in giving and sociability with those in need, and receives much praise from those who benefit. All these are blows and wounds inflicted to the very heart of the envious person. And the hard thing about this illness is that the envious cannot say about it. Although he lowers his eyes, walks sad, embarrassed, sad and dies from illness; however, when asked about suffering, he is ashamed to make his misfortune public and say: “I am an envious and evil person; I am overwhelmed by my friend’s perfections; I lament my brother’s complacency; I can’t see other people’s perfections; on the contrary, I consider my neighbor’s prosperity a misfortune for myself.” This is what he should have said if he wanted to tell the truth. But since he does not dare to express this, he is held in the depths by an illness that gnaws and consumes his insides. Therefore, he does not accept the one who heals the disease, he cannot find any medicine that relieves suffering, although the Scriptures are full of such healing remedies. On the contrary, he expects only one consolation in disaster - to see the fall of someone who excites his envy. One limit of hatred is to see that the one who inspired envy from happy became unhappy, and the one who aroused competition became pitiful. Then he is reconciled and becomes a friend when he sees him crying and meets him sad. He does not rejoice with the one who rejoices, but with the one who mourns he sheds tears. And if he mourns the revolution of life, due to which a person fell from such happiness into such misfortune, then not out of philanthropy, not out of compassion, he praises his previous state, but in order to make the disaster more painful for him. After the death of his son, he praises him, extols him with thousands of praises, that he was beautiful, and understandable in learning, and capable of everything; and if the baby were alive, the tongue would not have uttered a kind word about him. As soon as he sees that many people begin to praise him along with him, he changes again, again begins to envy the deceased. Marvels at wealth after ruin. He praises and extols bodily beauty or strength and health after the onset of illness. And in general, he is the enemy of what exists and the friend of what has perished. What could be more harmful than this disease? This is corruption of life, desecration of nature, enmity against what is given to us from God, resistance to God. What armed the culprit of evil - the demon - to fight against man? Isn't it envy? The God-fighter clearly exposed himself in envy when he was indignant at God for His generous gifts to man, but took revenge on man because he could not take revenge on God. Cain, the first disciple of the devil, turns out to be doing the same thing, having learned from him both envy and murder - these related iniquities that Paul combined when he said: “full of envy and murder” (Rom. 1:29). What did Cain do? He saw the honor from God and was inflamed with jealousy, destroying the one endowed with honor in order to offend the One who honored. Lacking the strength to fight God, he fell into fratricide. Let us, brothers, avoid this illness, which becomes the teacher of the fight against God, the mother of murder, the perversion of nature, the forgetfulness of kinship, the most indescribable disaster. What are you grieving about, man, without suffering anything bad? Why do you go to war against a person who has several benefits and has not harmed your benefits? If you, the benefited one, are indignant, then aren’t you just jealous of your own benefit? Such was Saul, who turned his excess of good deeds into a pretext for war against David. At first, freed from his frenzy by his harmonious and divine playing on the harp, he attempted to pierce the benefactor with a spear. Then, saved from enemies with a whole army, delivered from the shame that Goliath threatened, as soon as the jubilant virgins in their songs of victory began to attribute to David a tenfold greater participation in the acquisition of victory: “conquer... David with his tens, and Saul with his thousands” (1 Sam. 18:7), for this one expression, for this testimony based on the truth itself, he first wanted to kill David with his own hand and destroy by cunning, then, forcing him to become a fugitive, and after that he did not stop the hostility, but in conclusion he came out against him with three thousand chosen warriors and searched through the deserts. And if you asked him about the reason for the war, then, of course, he would point to David’s good deeds; because at the very time of the persecution, when he was caught sleepy and prepared to be killed by the enemy, but was saved by the righteous, who resisted laying hands on him, he was not touched by this good deed, but again gathered an army, again continued the persecution, until another time he was captured by David in a cave, where he showed his virtues in a greater light, and made his wickedness more obvious. Envy is the most insurmountable type of enmity. Other ill-wishers are made more meek by beneficence. The envious and malicious is even more irritated by the good done to him. The more he sees good deeds for himself, the more indignant, sad and upset he becomes. He is more offended by the power of the benefactor than he feels gratitude for what was done for him. Which beast are not surpassed by the envious in the cruelty of their morals? Do they not exceed the ferocity of the most indomitable of them? Dogs, if they are fed, become meek; lions, when they are followed, become tame. But the envious become even more ferocious when they do them favors. What made noble Joseph a slave? Is it the envy of the brothers? Therefore, the unreasonableness of this disease is worthy of surprise. Fearing the fulfillment of dreams, they sold their brother into slavery, as if they never bow to a slave. But if dreams are true, is it possible to ensure that what they foretell does not come true at all? And if dream visions are false, why do you envy the one who is deceived? But now, at God’s discretion, their wisdom turns into nothing. By doing what they thought to prevent the fulfillment of the prophecy, they, as it turned out, paved the way for the event. If Joseph had not been sold, he would not have come to Egypt, he would not have fallen, due to his chastity, to the slander of a lustful wife, he would not have been imprisoned, he would not have made acquaintance with Pharaoh’s servants, he would not have interpreted dreams, he would not have received authority over Egypt for this, and the brothers who came to him because of a lack of bread would not have bowed to him. Turn your thoughts to the greatest envy, which turned out to be 51 in the most important case, which, due to the fury of the Jews, was towards the Savior! Why were you jealous? For miracles. What kind of miracles were these? Saving those in need. The hungry were fed, and rebellion was raised against the One who feeds. The dead were raised, and the Life-Giver became an object of envy. The demons were cast out, and they plotted against the Commander of the demons. The lepers were cleansed, the lame began to walk, the deaf began to hear, the blind began to see—and the Benefactor was driven out. Finally, the Giver of life was put to death, the Liberator of men was beaten with whips, and the Judge of the world was condemned. Thus the malice of envy spread over everything. With this one weapon, from the foundation of the world until the end of the age, everyone is wounded and overthrown by the destroyer of our life - the devil, who rejoices in our destruction, himself fell from envy, and overthrows us with himself with the same passion. He was wise who forbade supper “with an envious husband” (Prov. 23:6), by drawing together at supper he meant all communication in life. Just as we take care to place a highly flammable substance away from the fire, so, as far as possible, we should not have friendly conversations with envious people, placing ourselves far from the arrows of envy. For there is no other way to indulge in envy than by getting close to her in close communication; because, according to Solomon, “a husband’s jealousy comes from his girlfriend” (Eccl. 4:4). Indeed, this is what happens: it is not the Scythian who envy the Egyptian, but everyone of his fellow tribesman; and among fellow tribesmen they envy not those who are unknown, but those they know briefly; and from acquaintances - neighbors, people of the same craft and for something else close; and from them again - to peers, relatives, brothers. In general, just as rust is a disease of grain, so envy is a disease of friendship. And the only thing anyone can praise about this evil is that the stronger it acts in a person, the more painful it is for him who has it in himself. Arrows thrown strongly, when they hit something hard and elastic, fly back to the one who fired them; so the movements of envy, without harming the object of envy, strike the envious person. Who, upset by the perfections of his neighbor, diminished them through this? Meanwhile, consumed by grief, he exhausts himself. Those suffering from envy are considered even more harmful than poisonous animals. They let poison in through the wound, and the bitten place gradually rots; About the envious, others think that they cause harm with one glance, so that from their envious glance, bodies of strong build, blooming with all their beauty in their youth, begin to wither. All their fullness suddenly disappears, as if some destructive, harmful and destructive stream is pouring from envious eyes. I reject such a belief, because it is common among the people and is brought into women's chambers by old women; but I affirm that the haters of good - demons, when they find in people the wills characteristic of demons, they use all measures to take advantage of them for their own intentions; This is why the eyes of the envious are used to serve their own will. Therefore, will you not be horrified by making yourself a servant of a destructive demon, and will you allow evil into yourself, from which you will become the enemy of people who have not offended you in any way, and, moreover, the enemy of the good and unenviable God? Let's escape from unbearable evil. It is the suggestion of the serpent, the invention of demons, the sowing of the enemy, the guarantee of torment, an obstacle to piety, the path to Gehenna, the deprivation of the Kingdom. Envious people can be recognized by their very faces. Their eyes are dry and dull, their cheeks are sunken, their eyebrows are drooping, their soul is outraged by passion, and does not have a correct judgment about objects. With them, neither virtuous action, nor the power of speech, decorated with importance and pleasantness, nor everything else worthy of competition and attention is praiseworthy. Just as kites, flying past many meadows, many pleasant and fragrant places, strive for something stinking, and like flies, passing by something healthy, hasten to pus, so the envious do not look at the lordship of life, at the greatness of merits, but attack only the rotten. And if something happens to slip up (as often happens with people), they divulge it, they want a person to be recognized by this alone, just as unkind painters distinguish the face of the person they depict in a picture with a crooked nose, or some kind of scar, or other defect, natural or caused by illness. They are skilled at making something contemptible that is also praiseworthy, interpreting it in a bad way, and slandering virtue, presenting it in the form of a vice adjacent to it: the courageous are called impudent, the chaste - insensitive, the just - cruel, the prudent - treacherous. He who loves splendor is slandered that he has coarse taste; a generous person is said to be wasteful, and a thrifty person is said to be stingy. And in general, every type of virtue does not remain with them without such a name, which is borrowed from the opposite vice. What then? Shall we limit our speech to one condemnation of this evil? But this is like one half of healing. It is not useless to show the suffering person the importance of illness in order to instill in him due care to rid himself of evil; but leaving the suffering person at this, without giving guidance for acquiring health, means nothing more than leaving him to the action of illness. What then? How can we either never suffer from this disease, or, having fallen under it, avoid it? Firstly, we can, if we do not consider anything human to be great and extraordinary, neither what people call wealth, nor fading glory, nor bodily health, because we do not seek good for ourselves in transitory things, but we are called to partake of eternal and true blessings. Therefore, those who are still unworthy of our competition are the rich for the sake of his wealth, the ruler for the sake of the greatness of his dignity, the wise for the sake of his abundance in words. These are instruments of virtue for those who use them well, but do not contain bliss in themselves. Therefore, it is pitiful who uses this badly, like a man who, taking a sword to take revenge on his enemies, voluntarily wounds himself with it. But if someone manages real goods well and as they should, if he remains only a steward of what is given from God, and does not collect treasures for his own pleasure, then justice requires that he be praised and loved for his brotherly love and sociability of character. Again, whoever is distinguished by prudence is honored by God with the gift of speech, whoever is an interpreter of sacred words; do not envy this, do not wish that the prophet of the sacred word should ever fall silent, if, by the grace of the Spirit, he is accompanied by any approval and praise from his listeners. This is your good; the gift of teaching is sent to you through your brother if you want to accept it. At the same time, no one blocks the source of spring water, no one closes their eyes from the shining sun, no one envy them, but wants to enjoy them themselves. Why, when the spiritual word flows out in the church and a pious heart pours out streams of the gifts of the Spirit, do you not bow your ears with joy, do you not accept the benefit with gratitude? but on the contrary, the applause of your listeners gnaws at you, and would you wish that there were neither the one who receives the benefit nor the one who praises? What excuse will this have before the Judge of our hearts? It is true that spiritual good should be considered beautiful by nature, but if someone surpasses others in wealth, is famous for his power and physical health, however, what he has, he uses it well, then he should be loved and revered as a person who has the common tools of life, if only he disposes of them as he should, is generous in giving money to the needy, serves the weak with his own hands, and everything else that he has is no more considered his property, just like the property of anyone in need. And whoever does not accept these benefits with such a disposition should be considered more pitiful than worthy of envy if he has more occasions to be bad. For this means dying with great benefits and means. If wealth serves as a guide to untruth, then the rich man is pathetic. And if he serves virtue, then there is no place for envy; because the benefit of wealth becomes common to everyone, unless someone in an excess of guile begins to envy his own benefits. In general, if you see with an intellect above the human and direct your gaze to what is truly beautiful and praiseworthy, then you will be very far from recognizing anything perishable and earthly as worthy of respect and competition. And whoever is like that, who is not amazed by the worldly as something great, envy can never approach him. But if you absolutely desire fame, want to be more visible than many and cannot stand being second (for this can also be a reason for envy), then direct your ambition, like some kind of stream, towards the acquisition of virtue. Do not, under any circumstances, desire to become rich in any way or to earn approval through anything worldly. For it is not in your will. But be just, chaste, prudent, courageous, patient in suffering for the sake of piety. In this way you will save yourself, and with great benefits you will acquire great fame, because virtue depends on us and can be acquired by hardworking people, but great wealth, physical beauty and height of rank do not depend on us. Therefore, if virtue is the highest and sufficient good, and is generally recognized as having preference, then we must strive for it - for virtue, which cannot exist in a soul that is not cleansed both from other passions, and especially from envy. Don't you see what evil hypocrisy is? And it is the fruit of envy, because double-mindedness of character occurs in people for the most part from envy, when, hiding hatred in the depths, they show an exterior garnished with love, and are like underwater rocks, which, being slightly covered by water, cause unforeseen harm to the unwary. Therefore, if from envy, as from a source, death, deprivation of goods, alienation from God, confusion of statutes, degradation of all worldly blessings flow for us, then let us obey the Apostle, and “let us not be vainglorious, annoying one another, envious of each other” (Gal. 5:26); but let us be more blasphemous and merciful, forgiving one another, as God also forgave us in Christ Jesus our Lord (Eph. 4:32), with whom be glory to the Father with the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen. Revealed, revealed. You might be interested in: