Letter 53: The world is bitter when used passionately; care for the poor and spiritual kin.

Thoughts about this world are sweet, but the world itself is bitter, and all the more bitter the more someone uses it passionately. You know, honored father, that the desire of the body, as body, is one thing, and the desire of the soul, as a bodiless nature, is another. Both cannot exist together in a person, because no one can serve two masters: he will either hate the one and love the other, or cling to one and despise the other. Still, as far as you are able, break your bread for the hungry, and bring the poor who have no shelter into the house of your virtue. If you see someone naked, clothe him, and do not turn away from those of your own seed. By seed I do not mean natural relatives, but those who are matched to us by their state of life. And if some of the brothers speak badly of us, do not be surprised. Remember that physicians do not look for gratitude from the dead, but from the living.

Greek retroversion from Syriac transmission (Frankenberg 1912, TAN/TEI CC BY 4.0): γλυκειαι μεν αι περι του κοσμου τουτου διανοιαι πικρος δε αυτος ο χοσμος και μαλλον πικρος καθοσον τις αυτωι εμπαθως χραται. οισθα δε πατερ εντιμε οτι αλλο μεν εστιν η επιθυμια σωματος καθοσον σωμα αλλο δε εστιν η επιθυμια ψυχης ως ασωματου φυσεως, εκατερα δε ομου εγγιγνεθαι τινι ουχ οιον τε οτι ου δυναται τις δυσι κυριοις δουλευειν η γαρ τον ενα μισησει και τον ετερον αγαπησει κτλ . πλην κατα την δυναμιν σου διαθρυπτε πεινωντι τον αρτον σου και πτωχους αστεγους εισαγε εις τον οικον της αρετης σου, εαν ιδηις γυμνον περιβαλεε και απο των οικειων του σπερματος σου ουχ υπεροψηι , σπερμα δε λεγω ου τους κατα φυσιν αλλα τους απο καταστασεως ημιν αντισους. ει δε τινες των αδελφων ημας κακολογουσι μη θαυμαζε· μνημονευε ιατρων χαριν παρα νεκρων ου ζητουντων αλλα παρα ζωντων Syriac transmission available in the linked TAN/TEI source. The complete corpus is Syriac-transmitted; Greek survives only fragmentarily, so this display text is a retroversion witness.