Letter 1640
Isidore of Pelusium→Unknown|isidore pelusium
From: Isidore of Pelusium, monk
To: An unnamed person
Date: ~410 AD
Context: Isidore writes on matters of priesthood.
The priesthood is a sacred trust, not a career. Those who pursue it for gain or status have already disqualified themselves. A true priest serves God's people, not himself. The priest who measures his success by income rather than the state of his people's souls has traded the priesthood for commerce.
πιαϊ ἶα. (ϑαρν. ορίδί. .) Μὴ μέμφου τοὺς τὸ ἀμείλικτον ἐχεῖνο θηρίον τ᾽ τροπάδην φεύγοντας, τὸ ἐν τοῖς ἐλεεινοῖς ὠμότατον, ἐν δὲ τοῖς αἰσχίστοις ἀναιδέστατον, τὸ ἐχθροὺς ἡ μενον τοὺς μήτε χατὰ γνώμην βλάπτοντας τοὺς λας, μήτε ἐξ ἐπιτάγματος. ΦΛΕ". -- ΟΥ̓ΑΛΕΝΤΙ, ἘΡΙΘΤΟΙΛΕΆΙΜ . Υ. -- ἘΡΙ5Τ. ΧΙ... ὈΧΧΧΥ͂. -- ΥΔΙΕΝΤΙ. δὲ εαοεταοίϊο ἱπαϊρπὶς. (γί46 ορὶδι. ὅ50 εἰ .) Τοὺς παρ᾽ ἀξίαν τυχόντας ἱερατιχῃῆς τιμῆς ὑπ- αχηύειν ἀνάγχη τοῖς οὐ δεόντως δεδωχόσι, χἂν εἰς αὐτὸ τὸ Θεῖον τὰ δρώμενα βλέπει " διὸ χαὶ ἀλλήλοις τὴν ἄδιχον ταύτην ἀντίδοσιν παρέχοντες, δύναμιν οὗ μικρὰν εἰς τὸ χατὰ τῶν εὖ βιούντων ὁπλίξεσθαι προσλαμθάνουσιν. Εἰ δέ τις ἢ τούτους, ἣ ἐχείνους αἱτιάποιτος παραχινῶσι τοῖς δρωμένοις χαὶ εἰρω- νείαν, ὃ τῶν δρωμένων ἀλγεινότερον, τῷ συγχωρεῖν γίγνεσθαι, ταῦτα βούλεσθαι τὸ Θεῖον χαταψευδόμενοι.
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From: Isidore of Pelusium, monk
To: An unnamed person
Date: ~410 AD
Context: Isidore writes on matters of priesthood.
The priesthood is a sacred trust, not a career. Those who pursue it for gain or status have already disqualified themselves. A true priest serves God's people, not himself. The priest who measures his success by income rather than the state of his people's souls has traded the priesthood for commerce.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.