Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and the Epistle to the Hebrews

NPNF (V1-14)St. Chrysostomit saith, “and deeds of faith sins are cleansed away.” ( Ecclus. iii. 30 .) By alms-doing I do notmean that which is maintained by injustice, for this is not alms-doing, but savageness and inhumanity.What profits it to strip one man and clothe another? For we ought to begin the action with mercy,but this is inhumanity. If we give away everything that we have got from other people, it is no gainto us. And this Zacchæus shows, who on that occasion said, that he propitiated God by giving fourtimes as much as he had taken. ( Luke xix. 8 .) But we, when we plunder unboundedly, and givebut little, think that we make God propitious, whereas we do rather 2117 exasperate Him. For tellme, if thou shouldest drag a dead and rotten ass from the waysides and lanes, and bring it to thealtar, would not all stone thee as accursed and polluted? 2118 Well then, if I prove that a sacrificeprocured by plunder is more polluted than this, what defense shall we obtain? Let us suppose thatsome article has been obtained by plunder, is it not of fouler scent than a dead ass? Wouldest thoulearn how great is the rottenness of sin? Hear the Prophet saying, “My wounds stank, and werecorrupt.” ( Ps. xxxviii. 5 , LXX.) And dost thou in words entreat God to forget thy misdeeds, anddost thou by what thou thyself doest, robbing and grasping, and placing thy sin upon the altar, causeHim to remember them continually? But now, this is not the only sin, but there is one more grievousthan this, that thou defilest the souls of the saints. 2119 For the altar is but a stone, and is consecrated,but they ever bear with them Christ Himself; and darest thou to send thither any of such impurity?“No,” saith one, “not the same money, but other.” Mockery this, and trifling. Knowest thou not,that if one drop of injustice fall on a great quantity of wealth, the whole is defiled? And just as aman by casting dung into a pure fountain makes it all unclean, so also in the case of riches, anythingill-gotten entering in makes them to be tainted with the ill savor from itself. Then we wash ourhands when we enter into church, but our hearts not so. Why, do our hands send forth a voice? Itis the soul that utters 2120 the words: to that God looketh; cleanness of the body is of no use, whilethat is defiled. What profits it, if thou wipe clean thine outward hands, while thou hast those withinimpure? For the terrible thing and that which subverts all good is this, that while we are fearfulabout trifles, we care not for important matters. To pray with unwashed hands is a matter indifferent;but to do it with an unwashed mind, this is the extreme of all evils. Hear what was said to the Jewswho busied themselves about such outward impurities. “Wash thine heart from wickedness, howlong shall there be in thee thoughts of thy labors?” 2121 ( Jer. iv. 14 .) Let us also wash ourselves,not with mire, but with fair water, with alms-doing, not with covetousness. First get free fromrapine, and then show forth alms-deeds. Let us “decline from evil, and do good.” ( Ps. xxxvii. 27.) Stay thy hands from covetousness, and so bring them to alms-giving. But if with the same handswe strip one set of persons, 2122 though we may not clothe the others with what has been taken 2123from them, yet we shall not thus escape punishment. For that which is the groundwork 2124 of thepropitiation is made the groundwork of all wickedness. Better not show mercy, than show it thus;2117al. “ not knowing that we. ”2118al. “ abominable. ”2119i.e. of communicants.2120al. “ offers. ”2121E.V. “ How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee? ”2122al. “ the poor. ”2123al. “ given. ”2124ὑ πόθεσις405