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| Elder Ephraim of Arizona. |
Slander is a great evil. Just as the little rudder steers the
whole ship wherever it wants, likewise the tongue leads a person either to good
or to evil. The holy fathers greatly censure judging other people’s sins,
faults, or evil habits. When we judge our brother, we condemn ourselves to a
great sin. But when we cover our brother, God will also protect us from great
sins. When we expose our brother, we drive the grace of God away from us and He
permits us to fall into the same sins so that we learn that we are all weak and
that the grace of God supports us. Whoever guards his tongue guards his soul
from great sins and grievous falls. The chief cause of criticism and slander is
pride and egotism, because one considers oneself better than the others. For this
reason it is very beneficial for a person to think of himself as below
everyone, so that he considers his brother than him in order that, with the
help of God, he may be delivered from this evil.
If something pushes you to
criticism in any matter regarding a brother or the monastery, try to pray about
the matter instead, without passing it under the judgment of your reason. If
you turn within yourself through prayer, humility, and mourning, you will find
a spiritual treasure—just keep pride and criticism far from you.
Be attentive, my child, that you
not judge any soul. For God permits the one who judges his neighbor to fall, so
that he learns to have sympathy for his weak brother. The mercy of God supports
all of us, but if we become proud, God will remove His grace and we shall
become worse than the others. It is one thing to condemn someone and another to
be fought by thoughts of condemnation. To condemn is a terrible passion, but to
be fought by such thoughts and to fight back—this is an occasion for crowns.
Each person must bear the
weaknesses of others. Who is perfect? Who can boast that he has kept his heart
undefiled? Hence, we are all sick, and whoever condemns his brother does not
perceive that he himself is sick, because a sick person does not condemn
another sick person. Love, endure, overlook, do not get angry, do not flare up,
forgive one another, so that you resemble our Christ and are counted worthy to
be near Him in His kingdom. My children, avoid condemnation—it is a very great
sin. God is greatly saddened when we condemn and loathe people. Let us concern
ourselves only with our own faults—for these we should feel pain. Let us
condemn ourselves and then we shall find mercy and grace from God.
Love one another, and do not be
embittered out of egotism. Humility is a sure guide; it does not let the one
who possesses it hit the reefs of carelessness and be shipwrecked, but as a
luminous guide it leads him faultlessly on sure ground. Egotism is the most
evil of evils; it causes all our lapses through unsubmissive thoughts. Fear
this and strive to get rid of it, for the more it remains within us, the more
it will wound us with the proportionate pain. I beg that you not criticize one
another, for this is downright egotism. Excuse your brother’s fault; this is
evidence of humility and love. The brother who acts thus will find much grace
from God, but he who judges and scandalizes his neighbor should know that not
only will he not find grace, but even if he has something he will lose it, so
that he may learn the lesson of humility through suffering. Be particularly
afraid of inner criticism, that is, thoughts of criticism, because it does not
come to light through the spoken word, in which case it is likely to be
corrected by someone who hears it. Be careful, I say, about criticism from
within, which imperceptibly makes us fatally guilty and deprives us of the life
of divine grace and offers as a most bitter drink the death of the soul. I pray
that love and freedom from criticism will reign in every expression among you,
so that the Holy Spirit may rest in your souls.
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"The LORD is near to the brokenhearted,
and saves the crushed in spirit"(Ps34: 18).
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Experience has shown that it is wrong to accuse and condemn
someone without letting him defend himself. As also the sacred Gospel says:
“Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?” (Jn.
7:51 ). If we are not attentive, many sins of condemning others heap up within
us, and then repentance is needed. How often a person repents because he spoke!
Let us bear in mind the words of Abba Arsenios: “I have often repented for
speaking, but I have never repented for keeping silent”. If we are often
deceived by the sense of touch, how much more so we are by people’s words.
Therefore, much attention is needed, for the devil prowls around roaring to
devour us (cf. 1 Pet. 5:8 ). A Christian ought to be like the many-eyed
Cherubim, for evil has multiplied greatly, especially the sin of condemnation,
which is a common as “bread and cheese”. May God cleanse us and sanctify us for
His glory. “Do not let the sun go down on the wrath of your brother” (cf. Eph.
4:26 ). That is, let no one be angry and enraged against his brother past the
setting of the sun. have you heard about that brother who was negligent and
lazy, who did not go to the all-night vigils and did not do his duties, whom
the brethren knew to be a negligent monk? When he fell ill and the hour of his
death drew near, the brethren gathered to hear something beneficial, or to
comfort him, or in case he wanted to say something to them, but they saw him
joyful, cheerful. One brother was scandalized and said, “What is this we see in
you, brother? We see that you are joyful even though you are approaching death.
But we have the thought that you were not a violent* monk, so how do you have
such courage and a cheerful face? How do you justify yourself?” “Yes,
brethren”, he said, “indeed I was a negligent person and I did not fulfill my
duties. But I achieved one good thing, by the grace of God: not to condemn any
brother and not to scandalize anyone; and never did I let my heart have
something against any brother of the monastery when the sun set. And inasmuch
as I did not judge any brother, I believe that God will not judge me either,
for He said, “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Mt. 7:1 ) and since I did not
judge, I will not be judged”. The brethren marveled and said, “Brother, you
found the way of salvation very easily”. And the brother died with much joy. Do
you see how the Fathers struggled and how they found the way of salvation?
*A “violent” or “forceful” monk or
person is one who strives vigorously to “do violence to his nature constantly”
(Ladder 1:4 ), for “the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent
take it by force” (Mt. 11:12 ).
https://pemptousia.com/2014/12/elder-ephraim-of-arizona-on-slander-condemnation/