Letter 53: 1. My soul is deeply pained at the enormity of the matter on which I write, if for this only, that it has caused general suspicion and talk. But so far it has seemed to me incredible.

To the Chorepiscopi. 1. My soul is deeply pained by the reports reaching me of irregularities in the ordination of men to the ministry. You have been admitting people to holy orders carelessly — men whose character has not been tested, whose lives have not been examined, whose fitness for the sacred ministry is, to put it charitably, uncertain. 2. I must remind you of the rule: no one is to be ordained without a thorough inquiry into his manner of life, conducted by the presbyters and deacons of his locality, and confirmed by their written testimony. The laying on of hands is not a favor to be distributed to friends and relations. It is the conferral of a sacred trust, and every unworthy ordination is a wound inflicted on the whole body of Christ. 3. From this point forward, you will ordain no one without first submitting the candidate's name and credentials to me. If you have already ordained men improperly, those ordinations must be reviewed. I take no pleasure in issuing commands of this kind, but the alternative — a clergy riddled with unfit men — is far worse than any temporary awkwardness. 4. Understand that I hold you responsible. The chorepiscopi exist to maintain discipline in the rural districts, not to relax it. If you cannot or will not discharge this duty faithfully, I will be compelled to find men who can.

ST. BASIL OF CAESAREA To the Chorepiscopi. 1. My soul is deeply pained at the enormity of the matter on which I write, if for this only, that it has caused general suspicion and talk. But so far it has seemed to me incredible. I hope then that what I am writing about it may be taken by the guilty as medicine, by the innocent as a warning, by the indifferent, in which class I trust none of you may be found, as a testimony. And what is it of which I speak? There is a report that some of you take money from candidates for ordination, and excuse it on grounds of religion. This is indeed worse. If any one does evil under the guise of good he deserves double punishment; because he not only does what is in itself not good, but, so to say, makes good an accomplice in the commission of sin. If the allegation be true, let it be so no more. Let a better state of things begin. To the recipient of the bribe it must be said, as was said by the Apostles to him who was willing to give money to buy the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, Your money perish with you. Acts 8:20 It is a lighter sin to wish in ignorance to buy, than it is to sell, the gift of God. A sale it was; and if you sell what you received as a free gift you will be deprived of the boon, as though you were yourself sold to Satan. You are obtruding the traffic of the huckster into spiritual things and into the Church where we are entrusted with the body and blood of Christ. These things must not be. And I will mention wherein lies an ingenious contrivance. They think that there is no sin because they take the money not before but after the ordination; but to take is to take at whatever time. 2. I exhort you, then, abandon this gain, or, I would rather say, this approach to Hell. Do not, by defiling your hands with such bribes, render yourselves unfit to celebrate holy mysteries. But forgive me. I began by discrediting; and now I am threatening as though I were convinced. If, after this letter of mine, any one do anything of the kind, he will depart from the altars here and will seek a place where he is able to buy and to sell God's gift. We and the Churches of God have no such custom. One word more, and I have done. These things come of covetousness. Now covetousness is the root of all evil and is called idolatry. Do not then price idols above Christ for the sake of a little money. Do not imitate Judas and once more betray for a bribe Him who was crucified for us. For alike the lands and the hands of all that make such gain shall be called Aceldama.

[Πρός: Χωρεπισκόποις.] Τὸ τοῦ πράγματος ἄτοπον περὶ οὗ γράφω, διότι μὲν ὅλως ὑπωπτεύθη καὶ ἐλαλήθη, ὀδύνης ἐπλήρωσέ μου τὴν ψυχήν· τέως δὲ ἐφάνη μοι ἄπιστον. τὸ οὖν περὶ αὐτοῦ γράμμα ὁ μὲν συνεγνωκὼς ἑαυτῷ δεξάσθω ὡς ἴαμα, ὁ δὲ μὴ συνεγνωκὼς ὡς προφυλακτήριον, ὁ δὲ ἀδιάφορος, ὅπερ ἀπεύχομαι ἐφʼ ὑμῖν εὑρεθῆναι, ὡς διαμαρτυρίαν. Τί δέ ἐστιν ὃ λέγω; φασί τινας ὑμῶν παρὰ τῶν χειροτονουμένων λαμβάνειν χρήματα, ἐπισκιάζειν δὲ ὀνόματι εὐσεβείας. τοῦτο δὲ χεῖρόν ἐστιν. ἐὰν γάρ τις τὸ κακὸν ἐν προσχήματι τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ ποιῇ, διπλασίονος τιμωρίας ἐστὶν ἄξιος, διότι αὐτό τε τὸ οὐκ ἀγαθὸν ἐργάζεται, καὶ κέχρηται εἰς τὸ τελέσαι τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις, τῷ καλῷ συνεργῷ. ταῦτα εἰ οὕτως ἔχει, τοῦ λοιποῦ μὴ γινέσθω, ἀλλὰ διορθωθήτω· ἐπεὶ ἀνάγκη λέγειν πρὸς τὸν δεχόμενον τὸ ἀργύριον, ὅπερ ἐῤῥήθη παρὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων πρὸς τὸν θέλοντα δοῦναι, ἵνα Πνεύματος ἁγίου μετουσίαν ὠνήσηται· Τὸ ἀργύριόν σου σύν σοι εἴη εἰς ἀπώλειαν. κουφότερος γὰρ ὁ δι’ ἀπειρίαν ὠνήσασθαι θέλων ἢ ὁ πιπράσκων τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ δωρεάν. πρᾶσις γὰρ ἐγένετο, καὶ ὃ σὺ δωρεὰν ἔλαβες, ἐὰν πωλῇς, ὡσανεὶ πεπραμένος τῷ σατανᾷ, ἀφαιρεθήσῃ τοῦ χαρίσματος. καπηλείαν γὰρ ἐπεισάγεις τοῖς πνευματικοῖς, καὶ τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ, ἔνθα πεπιστεύμεθα σῶμα καὶ αἷμα Χριστοῦ. ταῦτα οὕτω γίνεσθαι οὐ χρή. ὃ δέ ἐστι τέχνασμα, λέγω· νομίζουσι μὴ ἁμαρτάνειν τῷ μὴ προλαμβάνειν, ἀλλὰ μετὰ τὴν χειροτονίαν λαμβάνειν. λαβεῖν δὲ ἔστιν ὅτε δή ποτε τὸ λαβεῖν. Παρακαλῶ οὖν ταύτην τὴν πρόσοδον, μᾶλλον δὲ τὴν προσαγωγὴν τὴν ἐπὶ γέενναν, ἀπόθεσθε· καὶ μὴ τὰς χεῖρας μολύναντες τοιούτοις λήμμασιν, ἑαυτοὺς ἀναξίους ποιήσητε τοῦ ἐπιτελεῖν ἁγνὰ μυστήρια. σύγγνωτε δέ μοι πρῶτον μὲν ὡς ἀπιστήσας, εἶτα ὡς πεισθεὶς ἀπειλῶ. εἴ τις μετὰ ταύτην μου τὴν ἐπιστολὴν πράξειέ τι τοιοῦτον, τῶν μὲν ἐνταῦθα θυσιαστηρίων ἀναχωρήσει, ζητήσει δὲ ἔνθα τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ δωρεὰν ἀγοράζων μεταπωλεῖν δύναται. ἡμεῖς γὰρ καὶ αἱ ἐκκλησίαι τοῦ Θεοῦ τοιαύτην συνήθειαν οὐκ ἔχομεν. Ἓν δὲ προσθεὶς παύσομαι. διὰ φιλαργυρίαν γίνεται ταῦτα, ἡ δὲ φιλαργυρία καὶ ῥίζα πάντων τῶν κακῶν ἐστι, καὶ ὀνομάζεται εἰδωλολατρεία. μὴ οὖν πρὸ τοῦ Χριστοῦ τιμήσητε τὰ εἴδωλα διὰ μικρὸν ἀργύριον· μηδὲ πάλιν τὸν Ἰούδαν μιμήσησθε, λήμματι παραδιδόντες δεύτερον τὸν ἅπαξ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν σταυρωθέντα. ἐπεὶ καὶ τὰ χωρία καὶ αἱ χεῖρες τῶν τοὺς καρποὺς τούτων δεχομένων Ἀκελδαμὰ κληθήσονται.