On Works and Alms.

 1. Many and great, beloved brethren, are the divine benefits wherewith the large and abundant mercy of God the Father and Christ both has laboured and

 2. The Holy Spirit speaks in the sacred Scriptures, and says, “By almsgiving and faith sins are purged.” Not assuredly those sins which had been previ

 3. Let us then acknowledge, beloved brethren, the wholesome gift of the divine mercy and let us, who cannot be without some wound of conscience, heal

 4. Finally, beloved brethren, the divine admonition in the Scriptures, as well old as new, has never failed, has never been silent in urging God’s peo

 5. The remedies for propitiating God are given in the words of God Himself the divine instructions have taught what sinners ought to do, that by work

 6. Neither, beloved brethren, are we so bringing forward these things, as that we should not prove what Raphael the angel said, by the testimony of th

 7. Therefore in the Gospel, the Lord, the Teacher of our life and Master of eternal salvation, quickening the assembly of believers, and providing for

 8. In fine, He calls those the children of Abraham whom He sees to be laborious in aiding and nourishing the poor. For when Zacchæus said, “Behold, th

 9. If you dread and fear, lest, if you begin to act thus abundantly, your patrimony being exhausted with your liberal dealing, you may perchance be re

 10. You are afraid lest perchance your estate should fail, if you begin to act liberally from it and you do not know, miserable man that you are, tha

 11. Are you afraid that your patrimony perchance may fall short, if you should begin to do liberally from it? Yet when has it ever happened that resou

 12. Unless you imagine that he who feeds Christ is not himself fed by Christ, or that earthly things will be wanting to those to whom heavenly and div

 13. Wherefore do you applaud yourself in those vain and silly conceits, as if you were withheld from good works by fear and solicitude for the future?

 14. You are mistaken, and are deceived, whosoever you are, that think yourself rich in this world. Listen to the voice of your Lord in the Apocalypse,

 15. But you who are such as this, cannot labour in the Church. For your eyes, overcast with the gloom of blackness, and shadowed in night, do not see

 16. But neither let the consideration, dearest brethren, restrain and recall the Christian from good and righteous works, that any one should fancy th

 17. Thus that widow in the third book of Kings, when in the drought and famine, having consumed everything, she had made of the little meal and oil wh

 18. Moreover, also, (you say) there are many children at home and the multitude of your children checks you from giving yourself freely to good works

 19. Neither should you think that he is father to your children who is both changeable and infirm, but you should obtain Him who is the eternal and un

 20. Be rather such a father to your children as was Tobias. Give useful and saving precepts to your pledges, such as he gave to his son command your

 21. What sort of gift is it, beloved brethren, whose setting forth is celebrated in the sight of God? If, in a gift of the Gentiles, it seems a great

 22. And that the indolent and the barren, and those, who by their covetousness for money do nothing in respect of the fruit of their salvation, may be

 23. What do we reply to these things, dearest brethren? With what reason do we defend the minds of rich men, overwhelmed with a profane barrenness and

 24. And therefore, dearest brethren, whose fear is inclined towards God, and who having already despised and trampled under foot the world, have lifte

 25. Let us consider, beloved brethren, what the congregation of believers did in the time of the apostles, when at the first beginnings the mind flour

 26. What, dearest brethren, will be that glory of those who labour charitably—how great and high the joy when the Lord begins to number His people, an

15. But you who are such as this, cannot labour in the Church. For your eyes, overcast with the gloom of blackness, and shadowed in night, do not see the needy and poor.  You are wealthy and rich, and do you think that you celebrate the Lord’s Supper, not at all considering the offering,44    “Corban.” [The note of the Oxford translation is useful in this place, quoting from Palmer, Antiq., iv. 8. But see Pellicia, Polity, etc., p. 237, trans. London, Masters, 1883.] who come to the Lord’s Supper without a sacrifice, and yet take part of the sacrifice which the poor man has offered? Consider in the Gospel the widow that remembered the heavenly precepts, doing good even amidst the difficulties and straits of poverty, casting two mites, which were all that she had, into the treasury; whom when the Lord observed and saw, regarding her work not for its abundance, but for its intention, and considering not how much, but from how much, she had given, He answered and said, “Verily I say unto you, that that widow hath cast in more than they all into the offerings of God. For all these have, of that which they had in abundance, cast in unto the offerings of God; but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.”45    Luke xxi. 3, 4. Greatly blessed and glorious woman, who even before the day of judgment hast merited to be praised by the voice of the Judge! Let the rich be ashamed of their barrenness and unbelief. The widow, the widow needy in means,46    This is differently read “a widow, a poor widow is found,” etc.; or, “a woman widowed and poor.” is found rich in works. And although everything that is given is conferred upon widows and orphans, she gives, whom it behoved to receive, that we may know thence what punishment, awaits the barren rich man, when by this very instance even the poor ought to labour in good works. And in order that we may understand that their labours are given to God, and that whoever performs them deserves well of the Lord, Christ calls this “the offerings of God,” and intimates that the widow has cast in two farthings into the offerings of God, that it may be more abundantly evident that he who hath pity on the poor lendeth to God.

XV. Caeterum, quae talis es, nec operari in Ecclesia potes. Egentem enim et pauperem non vident oculi tui superfusi nigroris tenebris et nocte contecti . 0612B Locuples et dives es, et Dominicum celebrare te credis, quae corban omnino non respicis, quae in 0613A Dominicum sine sacrificio venis, quae partem de sacrificio quod pauper obtulit sumis. Intuere in Evangelio viduam praeceptorum coelestium memorem, inter ipsas pressuras et angustias egestatis operantem, in gazophylacium duo quae sola sibi fuerant minuta mittentem: quam cum animadverteret Dominus et videret, non de patrimonio sed de animo opus ejus examinans, et considerans non quantum sed ex quanto dedisset, respondit et dixit: Amen dico vobis quoniam vidua ista plus omnibus misit in dona Dei. Omnes enim isti ex eo quod abundavit illis miserunt in dona Dei, haec autem de inopia sua omnem quemcumque habuit victum misit (Luc. XXI, 3). Multum beata mulier et gloriosa, quae etiam antediem judicii judicis meruit voce laudari. Pudeat divites 0613B sterilitatis atque infidelitatis suae . Vidua, et vidua inops rebus, dives in opere invenitur. Cumque universa quae dantur pupillis et viduis conferantur, dat illa quam oportebat accipere; ut sciamus quae poena sterilem divitem maneat, quando hoc ipso documento operari etiam pauperes debeant. Atque, ut intelligamus haec opera Deo dari et eum quisquis haec faciat Dominum promereri, Christus illud Dei dona appellat, et in dona Dei viduam duos quadrantes misisse significat, ut magis ac magis possit esse manifestum quia qui miseretur pauperis Deum foenerat .