Gregory of Nyssa: Grudging uncharitable heart

Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Corinthians 9:7

“God Himself is the prime Author of beneficence, the rich and generous Provider of all that we need. But we, who are taught in every letter of Scripture to imitate our Lord and Maker — we snatch everything to our own enjoyment, assigning some things to ourselves to live upon, hoarding the rest for our heirs. Merciless as we are, we care nothing for the unfortunate, we give no kindly thought to the poor. We see a fellow human with no bread to eat, no food to sustain life itself; yet far from hastening to help, far from offering that person a rescue, we leave him like a once sturdy plant to wither unwatered pitifully away under a scorching sun — and this even if we have wealth to overflowing and might let the channels of our abundance run forth to comfort many. The flow from one river-source brings richness to many a spreading plain; so the wealth of one household is enough to preserve multitudes of the poor, if only a grudging uncharitable heart does not fall like a stone to block the passage and hinder the stream.”

Gregory of Nyssa (c. 335-394), the younger brother of Basil the Great and Bishop of Nyssa in Cappadocia, also known as one of the Cappadocian Fathers, in On the Love of the Poor based on the translation by Peter C. Phan in Social Thought (Wilmington: Glazier, 1984), revised and expanded by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 73-74.

Rhee notes (xxxvi): “[Gregory] describes the destitute in general and emphasizes again their dignity, sharing the image of God. This common humanity as natural kin warrants common and equal sharing of resources with one another against one’s exclusive and absolute ownership.”

Two statements along these lines stuck with me. Perhaps they did with you as well. The first generalizes how people relate to possessions from God: “we snatch everything to our own enjoyment, assigning some things to ourselves to live upon, hoarding the rest for our heirs.”

Times sure have not changed much. Whether in the fourth or the twenty-first century, people claim “private ownership” when God owns everything. While God’s Word does allow for “private property” it is always, always, always owned by God and to be stewarded according to His purposes.

Here’s other statement that hit me, perhaps because I am a fly fisherman: “The flow from one river-source brings richness to many a spreading plain; so the wealth of one household is enough to preserve multitudes of the poor, if only a grudging uncharitable heart does not fall like a stone to block the passage and hinder the stream.”

We must neither “snatch everything to own enjoyment” nor “fall like a stone to block the passage” of provision God supplies for us to share. Let us imitate the generosity of our Lord and Maker. Ask God to guide you in putting to work whatever surplus you have for His glory.

Sow righteousness for yourselves, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and showers His righteousness on you. Hosea 10:12

“Imitate the earth; bring forth fruit as it does; should your human status be inferior to a lifeless thing? The earth brings forth fruits not for its own pleasure but for your service; you can reap for yourselves the fruit of all generosity because the rewards of good works return to those who offer them. If you give to the hungry the gift becomes your own and comes back to you with increase. As the wheat falling on the ground brings forth a gain for the one who scatters it, so the grain bestowed on the hungry brings you profit a hundredfold hereafter. Make the end of harvesting the beginning of heavenly sowing, “Sow for yourselves unto justice,” the Scripture says [Hos. 10:12]…

“I am not doing anything wrong to anyone,” you say, “I hold fast my own, that is all.” Your own! Who gave it to you to bring into life with you? You are like the one who takes a seat in a theatre and then keeps out newcomers, claiming as his own what is there for the use of everyone. Such are the rich; they seize what belongs to all and claim the right of possession to monopolize it; if everyone took for oneself enough to meet one’s own wants and gave up the rest to those who needed it, there would be no rich and no poor.

Did you not come naked out of the womb, and will you not go back naked to earth again [cf. Job 1:21]? Whence came the riches you have now? If you say from nowhere, you deny God, you ignore the Creator, and you are ungrateful to the Giver. But if you acknowledge they came from God, tell us the reason why you received them. Is God unjust when He distributes the necessaries of life unequally? Why are you rich and another poor? Surely it is that you may win the reward of generosity and faithful stewardship, and the poor the noble prizes of patience…”

Basil of Caesarea (330-379) a.k.a. Basil the Great, Bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia, also known as one of the Cappadocian Fathers, in Homily 6: “I Will Pull Down My Barns” edited and translated by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 58-60.

Rhee adds this helpful background (xxxiv): “In 368, a catastrophic drought and famine…struck Caesarea and its surrounding area, resulting in massive crop failures and a severe food storage throughout the region…In Homily 6: “I Will Pull Down My Barns” (c. 369), Basil displays his homiletic efforts to open the local granaries during the famine as part of institutional relief… Basil describes the poor as victims of injustice and addresses his audience as the rich who willfully deprive the poor of grain, intent to make a profit while taking from the poor whatever they have.

Practically in modern settings today, we can “make the end of harvesting the beginning of heavenly sowing” by making giving to meet the needs of a neighbor the first thing we do with any surplus money beyond what is necessary for ourselves. Sure we must give to our local church and to ministries that do the work of God, but we must not forget to love our neighbor. With Basil we must not view any money as our own, especially any surplus, but put it to work to benefit others so that we too may “win the reward of generosity and faithful stewardship.”

Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, as it is written: “The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.” 2 Corinthians 8:13-15, cf. Exodus 16:18

“God who created human beings and gave them breath of life wanted all to be equal. He instituted all the same conditions of living for everyone; He made us all capable of wisdom; He promised immortality to all; no one is cut off from God’s heavenly benefits. Just as God distributes His light equally to all, sends forth His fountains to all, supplies food, and gives the sweet rest of sleep to all, so He bestows equity and virtue on all.

With Him no one is a slave and no one is a master; for if He is the same Father to all, we are all His children with equal rights. No one is poor in God’s eyes except the one lacking justice; no one is rich except the one full of virtues; moreover, no one is excellent except the one with goodness and innocence; no one is most renowned except the one with abundant works of mercy; no one is more perfect except the one having fulfilled virtue in all degrees.

Therefore, neither the Romans nor the Greek could possess justice because they kept people distinct in different levels from the poor to the rich, from the humble to the powerful, from common people to the highest authorities of kings. Where people are not all equal, there is no equality; and inequality excludes justice of itself. The whole force of justice lies in the fact that it makes equal everyone who comes into this human condition on equal terms.”

Lactantius of Rome (c. 240-320) in Divine Institutes 5:14, based on Peter C. Phan translation in Social Thought (Wilmington: Glazier, 1984), revised and expanded by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 50. Lactantius served as spiritual advisor to the first Christian Roman Emperor Constantine, and tutor to his son, Crispus.

Christianity lived out with generosity in every generation always leads to Christian sharing that brings equality. This is not about communism, socialism, capitalism, or any other political ideology. It’s about viewing and treating people as God views and treats them. When one person is hungry and the other has surplus, God’s design for His people since providing manna for them in the wilderness has always been for them to share. That’s Christian justice.

I titled today’s post “abundant works of mercy” because that’s the core issue in play. The fact that each of us has received mercy from Christ, means we have not gotten what we deserve; that’s mercy. To get what we don’t deserve, that’s grace. And to dispense surplus to the needy, especially the undeserving, with grace and mercy, is justice. Christian sharing that brings equality won many in the ancient world and is the only answer for ours too.

Rhee adds these helpful thoughts (xxx): “The key to achieving and acting out Christian justice and aequitas [equity] in the present (in his society) is service to fellow humans… Lactantius debunks a deep seated Greco-Roman custom of reciprocity and patronage… Christian generosity and charity should be directed to “the unsuitable” as far as possible, “because a deed done with justice, piety and humanity is a deed you do without expectation of return” (6.11).

Thus, equality in the present is something that is true irrespective of social and economic distinctions but demand that the works of justice be directed to the poor and desperate (“the needy and the useless”) entirely irrespective of their worthiness and reciprocity. Well before the passionate arguments of the Cappadocian Fathers and John Chrysostom in the East, and Ambrose and Augustine in the West, Lactantius championed the humanity of the needy and the useless.”

Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will reward them for what they have done. Proverbs 19:17

“What the adversary tried to take away, let Christ receive; your property must not be retained now or loved; by which you have been both deceived and conquered. Such wealth is to be avoided as an enemy, to be fled as a thief, to be feared by its possessors as a sword and poison. What has remained should be of benefit, only to this end that the crime and sin may be redeemed by it. Let your good works, be done without delay and in abundance; let all your wealth be expended on the healing of the wound; let us lend our goods and means to the Lord, who is to be our Judge. Thus faith flourished under the apostles’ time; thus the first people of the believers kept Christ commands — they were prompt; they were generous; they gave all to be distributed by the apostles…”

Cyprian of Carthage (c. 200-258) in On The Lapsed 35, edited and translated by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 41. I shot the new header photo on my evening walk last night with my wife and our dog.

Rhee adds this commentary (xxvii): “As the sign of true repentance, the (wealthy) lapsed should apply themselves frequently to “almsgiving, by which souls are freed from death” (35; cf. Tob. 12:8). Cyprian urges them to invest their earthly goods and riches with their Lord, their coming Judge, a practice that could allow them to be readmitted and reconciled to the church.”

A time of peace between instances of persecution may have caused Christ followers in the third century to become complacent in their faith. Rather than participate in a community of sharing, many appear to have stored up treasures for themselves. It sounds similar to America in modernity. Prosperity contributes to the tendency for Christians to assimilate to the culture, rather than functioning as a caring community.

Cyprian beckons followers of Christ to do good works “without delay and in abundance” like the first believers by holding nothing back. Ironically, people focus on how much people give and God focuses on how much we hold back. What we retain impacts us like poison and betrays our misplaced trust. We can gain the world and lose our souls in the final judgment, but when we distribute it to the poor, we can be sure of reward from the Judge.

This is not about earning salvation through almsgiving. It’s about generosity serving as a sign of genuine faith. Cyprian seems to echo James who said that faith without good works is dead (cf. James 2:17), and that faith with good works is alive and reflects the pattern the apostles set forth for us in obedience to Christ. Wealth was good then, and is good now, only insomuch as it is used according to God’s purposes.

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. 1 Timothy 6:10

“If you are disturbed by the loss of property, then, in practically every passage of the holy Scriptures one is admonished to despise the world. And one can find no greater exhortation to an indifference toward money than the example of the Lord Himself who did not own any worldly riches. He always justifies the poor and condemns the rich. Thus He has set disdain for wealth ahead of the endurance of losses, pointing out through His rejection of riches that one should make no account of the loss of them. Hence we need not seek wealth, since our Lord did not seek it; and we ought not to bear the deprivation or even theft of it without regret. The Spirit of the Lord, through the Apostle, has called the desire for money the root of all evils [1 Tim. 6:10].

We should not interpret that this desire of money does not consist only in the desire for another person’s property. Even what seems to be our own belongs to another; for nothing is our own, since all things belong to God to whom we, too, belong. Therefore, if we feel impatient when we suffer some loss, we exhibit that we entertain a desire for money, since we grieve over the loss of what is not our own. We are seeking what belongs to another when we are unwilling to bear the loss of what belongs to another. The one who is upset and unable to bear one’s loss sins, you might say, against God Himself by preferring the things of earth to those of heaven. For, the soul which one has received from the Lord is upset by the attractiveness of worldly goods.

Let us then, with willing hearts, relinquish earthly goods that we may preserve those of heaven! Let the whole world fall in ruins provided I gain the patience to endure it! In truth, people who have not resolved to bear with fortitude a slight loss occasioned by theft, violence, or even by their own stupidity, will not readily or willingly touch what they own for the sake of charity. For who that refuses to undergo any operation at all at the hands of another, puts a knife to one’s own body? Patience to endure, shown on occasions of loss, is a training in giving and sharing.

Those who do not fear loss are not reluctant to give. Otherwise, how would one who has two tunics give one of them [Luke 3:11] to the destitute, unless the same is one who can offer his cloak as well to the one going off with his tunic [Matt. 5:40]. How will we make friends for ourselves with mammon [Luke 16:9] if we love it only to the extend that we do not share in its loss? We shall perish together with the lost mammon… It is for pagans to be unable to sustain all loss; they would set worldly goods before their life perhaps..since we are different from them, it befits us to give up not our life for money but money for our life, either by voluntary charity or by the patient endurance of loss.”

Tertullian of Carthage (c. 155-225) in On Patience, edited and translated by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 36-38.

Rhee sums up this piece aptly saying (xxvi): “When a Christian is unable to bear his or her material loss, he or she sins directly against God since greed is essentially an offense to God’s sovereignty ownership and a false and pretentious claim to non-ownership. Therefore, just as patience is a virtue that defines a Christian’s relationship with God and his/her “neighbors,” impatience in loss is a vice that disrupts and eventually destroys both vertical and horizontal relationships.” Today’s reading reminds us of the vital importance of indifference.

Father in heaven, “either by voluntary charity or by the patient endurance of loss” thanks for your grace and patience with us in learning indifference so we treat nothing as owned by us. Train us to give and share with open hands as good and faithful stewards. By your Holy Spirit root out the parts of our hearts that are captivated by worldly goods, so that the desire for money and things does not destroy our lives, our relationships with others, or with relationship with You. In Your mercy, hear our prayer, we ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 1 Timothy 6:9

“My mouth is not sufficient to praise you, neither am I able to conceive the care and providence which you have had for me. For I desired to gain riches, but you by a vision showed me that they are full of loss and injury to those who gain them; and I believed your revelation, and continued in the poverty of the world until you, the true riches, were revealed to me, who filled both and the rest who were worthy of you with your own riches and set free your own from care and anxiety.”

Judas Thomas a.k.a. “the Twin” (d. 72) in The Acts of Thomas 145, edited and translated by M. R. James in The Apocryphal New Testament (Oxford: Clarendon, 1924), updated and revised by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 30. Today marks the third of fourteen excerpts of voices from early Christianity that we will explore with Rhee’s assistance.

Church history reports that Judas Thomas, known more commonly as “doubting Thomas” to many, was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. After the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, he went on to proclaim the gospel in India until his martyrdom.

Rhee notes (xxiii): “The Acts [of Thomas] shows a particular interest in portraying Jesus as a poor one (on earth) yet a generous dispenser of true (heavenly) riches. This portrayal of Christ seems to be a natural outworking of the apostle Paul’s description of Christ in 2 Corinthians 8:9.” For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

In short, today’s testimony from Thomas begs this question: What kind of riches are you pursuing? The wrong choice results in “loss and injury” or “ruin and destruction” as the apostle Paul put it. The announcement of Jesus about the possibility of gaining the whole world and losing one’s own soul intends to shake and wake hearers to pursue true riches (cf. Mark 8:36). If this all seems hard for you to grasp, then listen closely and take comfort.

This reading reveals that it was hard for the one known as “doubting Thomas” to conceive of the care and providence of God. So if it seems hard for you, take heart in knowing that you are not alone. Thomas would beckon you to believe. Just as Christ set him from care and anxiety, He can do the same for you!

Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.” Mark 10:27

“It is the duty of all who love truth and who are a part of the Christian community not to treat wealthy members of the church with rude contempt or, on the other hand, to bow to them in order to benefit from their friendship and generosity. Use the words of Scripture to help them overcome their despair, and show them with interpretation of the Lord’s teachings that the kingdom of heaven is not an impossible goal for them if they will obey the commandments.”

Clement of Alexandria (c. 150 — c. 215) in The Rich Man’s Salvation, ed. and trans. by Jan L. Women in Morality and Ethics in Early Christianity (Sources of Early Christian Thought; Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1987), as recounted by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 8-9.

Today’s excerpt gives us a glimpse into late second century thinking with regard to the treatment of the rich in the church. This homily, Quis dives salvatur, or literally, Who Is A Rich Man That Is Saved?, wrestles with the implications of Mark 10:17-31 for the rich.

Rhee notes (xxii): “Is there hope for the rich, then? If so, how can they be saved? Clement acknowledges that salvation seems to be more difficult for the rich than the poor, but he wants to show the concerned rich that have already been initiated into the salvation process “how what is impossible with humans becomes possible” — with Christ’s instruction to the truth and their good works in lifelong perseverance.”

Clement’s advice in antiquity is timeless. We must neither despise the rich nor bow to them to benefit from their giving, but “use the words of Scripture” to help them obey the commands of Christ to share the riches they possess to take hold of a kingdom of one hundredfold value. Rhee’s counsel in modernity echoes that. We must help them understand “Christ’s instruction to the truth” and exhort them not just to hear Christ but to do what He says.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22

“Listen, my children: I brought you up in much sincerity and innocence, and reverence through the mercy of the Lord, who instilled righteousness in you in order that you may justified and sanctified from all perversity. Yet you do not want to cease from your wickedness.

Now listen to me and be at peace among yourselves, and be concerned for one another and assist one another; and do not partake of God’s creation in abundance by yourselves, but also share with those in need. For by overeating some people bring on themselves fleshly weaknesses and injure their flesh, while the flesh of those who do not have anything to eat is injured because they do not have enough food, and their bodies are wasting away.

This lack of community spirit is harmful to those of you who have, yet do not share with those in need. Look to the coming judgment. You, therefore, who have more than enough, seek out those who are hungry, until the tower is finished. For after the tower is finished, you may want to do good, but you will have not the chance. Beware, therefore, you who exult in your wealth, lest those in need groan, and their groaning rise up to the Lord, and you together with your good things be shut outside the door of the tower.

Now, therefore, I say to you who lead the church and occupy the seats of honor: do not be like the sorcerers. For the sorcerers carry their drugs in bottles, but your carry your drug and poison in the heart. You are calloused and do not want to cleanse your hearts and to mix your wisdom together in a clean heart, in order that you may receive mercy from the great King. Watch out, therefore, children, these divisions of yours deprive you of your life.

How is it that you desire to instruct God’s elect, while you yourselves have no instruction? Instruct one another, therefore, and have peace among yourselves, in order that I too may stand joyfully before the Father and give an account on behalf of all of you to your Lord.”

Shepherd of Hermas (c. late first or early to mid-second century) in Visions 3:9, trans. Michael W. Holmes in The Apostolic Fathers: Greek Texts and English Translations (3rd ed.; Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007), as recounted by Helen Rhee in Wealth and Poverty in Early Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2017) 2-3.

I am enjoying this book by Helen Rhee, which features the writings of 14 different early church writers. I plan to pull daily meditations from these ancient writings over the next two weeks. These Christian authors give us a glimpse of how the first followers of Christ championed obedience to the teachings of Jesus on handling wealth and riches.

Rhee adds this insightful comment that sums up the aim of the Shepherd of Hermas (xx): “The goal of these visions…is not to denounce wealth or the rich as such but the move the rich into concrete behaviors for the good of the community (and thus their own good).” The leaders of ancient and modern churches must avoid hypocrisy and model obedience in these matters!

But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Matthew 6:3

“Compassion, charity, duty and justice are all important virtues as we interact with one another. In fact they should all work in harmony… I believe that generosity is the first car in the train of virtues. Without it, the other virtues are unlikely to ever get started or be fully expressed.

On a number of occasions I have observed individuals who wish to practice charity, but their attitude is so lacking generosity that the expression of charity is almost lost. There is such precision and calculation to their gift that one questions whether they really mean to help another person or simply check off another mark on the list of good things they have to do. In an unfortunate way the process of expressing their charity undermines the very wholesomeness of the virtue. Generosity removes the pettiness and calculation that can easily work against the goodness of our original intent.

The Bible describes the attitude that the giver should practice when making a contribution — don’t let the left hand know what the right hand is doing (Matthew 6:3). The implication is not to think too much about your gift or how it will benefit you. The gift that is too calculated is not worth giving.”

Dave Toycen in The Power Of Generosity: How to Transform Yourself and Your World (Waynesboro: Authentic, 2004) 3-4.

It’s sobering to think we can tarnish “the very wholesomeness of the virtue” of generosity by being too calculated or by encouraging such over-calculation in the lives of others.

Conformity to the world is also evident when we start using merit-based giving language like this charity or that charity “deserves” our support. We should follow the leading of the Spirit over charity ratings because Christian giving flowed first from Christ to us when we were undeserving by grace. None of us was more deserving than another.

It’s getting close to the year-end giving season. That’s how it is often described in the USA associated with our tax laws. What’s my advice?

If you want to calculate things while also preserving “the very wholesomeness of the virtue,” adopt the perspective of Richard Foster in The Challenge of the Disciplined Life, “Rather than, ‘How much of my money should I give to God?’ we learn to ask, ‘How much of God’s money should I keep for myself?'” Calculate how much of God’s money you need and give the rest away!

Why do this? It all belongs to God, and that’s what Jesus said to do. I suggest you ask the Father to guide you in sharing it joyfully. Likely the Spirit will lead you to show mercy to your neighbor, to put it work with your local church, and to give it to ministries that engage in God’s work regionally, nationally, and globally.

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. Luke 1:38

“Does it matter what the will of God is for you? That may sound like a strange question at first. But think about it. Does it matter what God wills of you? What if He were to call you to constant work? Or what if He were to call you to a restful repose? Or what if He were to fill you with delight? Or remove all delight from your soul? Or call you to be extolled and honored in the sight of many? Or draw you into the desert of solitude and hiddenness?

The truth is that it matters not what God’s call is in our lives, it only matters that He calls. We must strive for a holy indifference in our lives. A “holy” indifference is not indifference to God and His will; rather, a holy indifference is a detachment to all preferences regarding what the Lord asks of us. We must be ready for all but we must be willing to receive nothing. The goal is to be ready for God and His will, whatever it may be.

Reflect on whether or not you are ready and willing to accept whatever God wills of you. What He wills is not as important as the fact that He wills. This may be a difficult subtlety to grasp at first. But it’s important to understand. The simple truth is that we should be ready for anything God asks of us without clinging to our personal preference. If you can achieve this level of detachment, the mercy of God will begin to flow in abundance in your life, and through you into the lives of many others.”

John Paul Thomas in “Reflection 181: Holy Indifference” in Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy: 365 Days with Saint Faustina (North Charleston: CreateSpace, 2016) 158-159.

Rooted in holy indifference, a facet of our generosity this week (and every week) may just be that we serve as conduits of the mercy of God to others. We do this by embracing God’s will for our lives, regardless of what it may be.

We may respond like Mary and be “greatly troubled” at first, but with the holy indifference of Mary, knowing God’s call for us is for our good, we can trust Him and say, “I am the Lord’s servant” and “may your word to me be fulfilled” (Luke 1:26-38).

Who could have imagined that a young girl could be a conduit of the mercy of God for the world? We must be ready for anything God asks of us. God’s will for your generosity or mine might be humble submission so that others are blessed.