Canon XII.
Against those who have given money that they might
be entirely undisturbed by evil,2323
an
accusation cannot be brought.
For they have sustained the loss and
sacrifice of their goods that they
might not hurt or
destroy their
soul, which others for the sake of
filthy lucre have not done; and yet the
Lord says, “What is a man
profited, if he shall
gain the whole
world, and lose his own
soul?”
2324
and again,
“Ye cannot serve
God and
mammon.”
2325
In these things, then, they have
shown themselves the
servants of
God, inasmuch as they have
hated,
trodden under
foot, and
despised money, and have thus fulfilled what is
written: “The
ransom of a man’s
life are his
riches.”
2326
For
we read also in the Acts of the
Apostles that those who in the stead of
Paul and Silas were dragged before the
magistrates at
Thessalonica,
were
dismissed with a heavy fine. For after that they had been
very burdensome to them for his name, and had
troubled the people and
the
rulers of the city, “having taken
security,” he says,
“of Jason, and of the others, they let them go. And the
brethren immediately sent away
Paul and Silas by
night unto
Berea.”
2327
Balsamon. After that the
saint had finished his discourse concerning those who of their own
accord had offered themselves to martyrdom, he said that those were not
to be reprehended who by a sum of money paid down freed themselves from
the affliction of persecution. For they preferred to make a
sacrifice of their money rather than of their souls. Then he
confirms this, and brings forward different Scripture examples from the
Acts of the Apostles concerning the blessed apostle Paul and
others.
Zonaras. But those,
he says, are not to be reprehended who have paid money down, and thus
escaped, and maintained their piety, nor for this thing may any one
bring an accusation against them. For they have preferred to lose
their money rather than their souls, and have shown that they wish to
serve God and not mammon; that is, riches. And he brings forward
the words of Scripture, and the example, as in the Acts of the
Apostles, of the blessed apostle Paul and others. Now, when it is
said that they have been undisturbed by all evil,2328
it is to be so taken, either that
they have been left undisturbed, so far as the denial of the faith is
concerned, which overcomes all evil,
2329
or he means
2330
the afflictions of
persecutions.
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