Letter 1631: Wealth is a tool, not a treasure.
To Maron. I have spoken to you privately and I have written to you publicly, and neither has produced the amendment I hoped for. Your vices are not secret — they are known throughout the community — and the scandal they cause is not limited to yourself but extends to the entire Church. When a clergyman lives scandalously, the laity conclude not merely that he is a bad man but that the faith he professes is a bad faith, and they are driven not to correct him but to reject his religion. This is the terrible arithmetic of scandal: the sin of one churchman is charged against the whole Church, and the disgrace of one minister becomes the disgrace of Christ himself. I appeal to you therefore, Maron, not for my sake or even for your own, but for the sake of Christ, whose name you bear and whose reputation you damage: repent, reform, and restore the honor of the ministry you have disgraced. The time for excuses has passed, the season for half-measures is over, and the patience of those who love you — and of the One who loves you most — is wearing thin. Act now, decisively and completely, before the damage becomes irreparable and the scandal becomes permanent. For the present difficulties, great as they are, are temporary, and the glory that awaits those who persevere in faithfulness is eternal. The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us, as the Apostle assures us. Therefore let us fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen, for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. And let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
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