Nilus of Ancyra→Hierius|c. 415 AD|nilus ancyra|From Ancyra|AI-assisted
To Hierius the Presbyter.
Since you love beyond measure the words of the God-honored and God-bearing John, the bishop of Constantinople [John Chrysostom], it is from those words that I write to you concerning the things you have now inquired about. Let us by no means be troubled at the trials of good people, nor be at a loss, nor be thrown into confusion, but let us both discipline our own souls and teach these things to others as well. And if you see the virtuous man suffering countless terrible things, do not be scandalized. For I know that many people often raise this question: "Such-and-such a man," they say, "set out abroad on an errand of witness, conveying money to the poor, and he fell into shipwreck and lost everything; and another again, doing this very same thing, encountered robbers and barely saved his own life, withdrawing from there stripped bare." What then should we say? That over none of these things ought one to be vexed or be at a loss. For even if he fell into shipwreck, nevertheless he holds the fruit of his almsgiving brought to completion. For he fulfilled everything that was his own: he gathered together the money, and taking it he set out to distribute it, he embarked on the journey. The shipwreck, then, did not come about from his own purpose. But for what reason did God permit this? In order that he might render this man proven. "But the poor," he says, "were deprived of the money." You do not provide for the poor in the way that God who made them does; for even if they were deprived of these things, he is able to furnish them from elsewhere with a greater occasion of abundance. Let us therefore not demand of God an accounting of the things that happen, but let us glorify him in all things. For not simply, nor at random, does he permit such things to occur; for often, in place of the consolation of this money, God has bestowed another occasion of sustenance upon those who grieved [text uncertain]. And this man, by means of his enduring the shipwreck, he renders more proven, and procures for him the greater reward. For much greater than the giving of alms is this: that one who has fallen into such a calamity should give thanks to God. For it is not only the things we give through almsgiving, but also the things of which we have been deprived by others, if we endure them nobly, that these too bring us much fruit. And so that you may learn that this is greater than that, I will make it plain from the things that happened to Job. He, when he possessed money, opened his house to the poor, and gave out all that he had. But he was not so resplendent when he opened his house to the poor as when, on hearing that it had collapsed, he did not despair; he was not so resplendent when from the shearing of his sheep he clothed the naked, as he was resplendent and well-approved when, on hearing that fire had come down from heaven and consumed all the flocks, he gave thanks. Then he was a lover of humankind; now he has become a lover of wisdom [a philosopher]. Then he showed mercy to the poor; now he gives thanks to the Master. And he did not say to himself: "What in the world is this? The flocks have been consumed, from which countless poor people were fed. Even if I myself was unworthy to enjoy abundance, yet for the sake of those who shared in it he ought to have spared them." But he said none of these things, he conceived none of them, but he knew that God orders all things toward what is beneficial. And so that you may learn that he dealt the devil a greater blow afterward, when, having been deprived, he gave thanks, than when, while possessing, he showed mercy: while he possessed his goods, the devil might have had some pretext to say, even if it was false, yet still he had something to say, namely, "Does Job revere God for nothing?" But when he had taken everything away, when he had stripped him of everything, and Job preserved the same goodwill toward God, then at last the shameless mouth was stopped up, and it had nothing more to say. For now the righteous man has become more resplendent. For greater than performing almsgiving while living in wealth is to bear nobly, and with thanksgiving, the loss of everything, as has been demonstrated in the case of this righteous man. Then he was full of much kindly affection toward his fellow servants; now the great love he bore toward the Master has been displayed.
Since you love beyond measure the words of the God-honored and God-bearing John, the bishop of Constantinople [John Chrysostom], it is from those words that I write to you concerning the things you have now inquired about. Let us by no means be troubled at the trials of good people, nor be at a loss, nor be thrown into confusion, but let us both discipline our own souls and teach these things to others as well. And if you see the virtuous man suffering countless terrible things, do not be scandalized. For I know that many people often raise this question: "Such-and-such a man," they say, "set out abroad on an errand of witness, conveying money to the poor, and he fell into shipwreck and lost everything; and another again, doing this very same thing, encountered robbers and barely saved his own life, withdrawing from there stripped bare." What then should we say? That over none of these things ought one to be vexed or be at a loss. For even if he fell into shipwreck, nevertheless he holds the fruit of his almsgiving brought to completion. For he fulfilled everything that was his own: he gathered together the money, and taking it he set out to distribute it, he embarked on the journey. The shipwreck, then, did not come about from his own purpose. But for what reason did God permit this? In order that he might render this man proven. "But the poor," he says, "were deprived of the money." You do not provide for the poor in the way that God who made them does; for even if they were deprived of these things, he is able to furnish them from elsewhere with a greater occasion of abundance. Let us therefore not demand of God an accounting of the things that happen, but let us glorify him in all things. For not simply, nor at random, does he permit such things to occur; for often, in place of the consolation of this money, God has bestowed another occasion of sustenance upon those who grieved [text uncertain]. And this man, by means of his enduring the shipwreck, he renders more proven, and procures for him the greater reward. For much greater than the giving of alms is this: that one who has fallen into such a calamity should give thanks to God. For it is not only the things we give through almsgiving, but also the things of which we have been deprived by others, if we endure them nobly, that these too bring us much fruit. And so that you may learn that this is greater than that, I will make it plain from the things that happened to Job. He, when he possessed money, opened his house to the poor, and gave out all that he had. But he was not so resplendent when he opened his house to the poor as when, on hearing that it had collapsed, he did not despair; he was not so resplendent when from the shearing of his sheep he clothed the naked, as he was resplendent and well-approved when, on hearing that fire had come down from heaven and consumed all the flocks, he gave thanks. Then he was a lover of humankind; now he has become a lover of wisdom [a philosopher]. Then he showed mercy to the poor; now he gives thanks to the Master. And he did not say to himself: "What in the world is this? The flocks have been consumed, from which countless poor people were fed. Even if I myself was unworthy to enjoy abundance, yet for the sake of those who shared in it he ought to have spared them." But he said none of these things, he conceived none of them, but he knew that God orders all things toward what is beneficial. And so that you may learn that he dealt the devil a greater blow afterward, when, having been deprived, he gave thanks, than when, while possessing, he showed mercy: while he possessed his goods, the devil might have had some pretext to say, even if it was false, yet still he had something to say, namely, "Does Job revere God for nothing?" But when he had taken everything away, when he had stripped him of everything, and Job preserved the same goodwill toward God, then at last the shameless mouth was stopped up, and it had nothing more to say. For now the righteous man has become more resplendent. For greater than performing almsgiving while living in wealth is to bear nobly, and with thanksgiving, the loss of everything, as has been demonstrated in the case of this righteous man. Then he was full of much kindly affection toward his fellow servants; now the great love he bore toward the Master has been displayed.
AI-assisted translation - This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.