Memra 27: About the History of the Thief Who is Saved

Memra 27: About the History of the Thief Who is Saved All those who see our Lord’s suffering and are likened to his sufferings send forth to him who shows them the way of truth. And if they look upon our Lord’s sufferings and swallow them as he swallowed, and pray for him who strikes them—as our Lord prayed for him who struck him, and for him who called him a sorcerer and a son of carpenters and who led the people astray—if they give peace to him who delivers them to death and wash his feet as our Lord did to Iscariot, if they act thus and are likened to his sufferings, then our Lord becomes their teacher and shows them his way and his door; and then they become men and go forth; they become for Jesus heralds and teachers to everyone. What then, if they know truth and love and humility, is it fitting that we go from our city to another place? But if they are not weaned from milk and yet go out from their city, they go and are choked by the foreign and bitter teaching. And soon they are not taught correctly; and soon they are not at peace with the Church; and they become either from fears or from heretics; and their affairs are managed like children; and they err and die without knowing. But as long as they remain in their own city, whether man or woman, until they are established on their own to go and come, so that they do not go and lose themselves.

There is, indeed, a good upbringing, which raises one better than a mother. And there is an evil upbringing, which makes a man a slave of sin, or makes a slave of his passions. Nor do they learn from the world, that however much their children are raised, they do not let them go to walk on the path, but if they entrust them to one who receives them and brings them? And when they are men, they are entrusted to them, and they send them out alone, and they go and come and are not lost. And you, my son, I say to you: until you become a man and stand on your own, and you know, and you go and come, and you do not fall into a pit on account of a man, then you will enter and go out on the path of our Lord Jesus. So that when you depart from the world, a man does not steal you and make you a slave of sin or of the passions. If, however, your parents are evil and harsh like the parents of Tekla, do like Tekla: she struck him and they struggled with her and threw her into the furnace, and they did not harm your hair, and the evil desire that they were teaching her did not do (its work). But the day the world sits and mocks you and says: "Now, because of Christianity, a son or daughter has gone out," what they say to you, even if they bring a hundred witnesses, and concerning one harsh word that they say to you like parents, that they may test you, if there is patience in you, they give you ten evil words.

Lest, because of the world's children, you should not know how Jesus taught his disciples humility and patience. And they say, "Rejoice that you have served and become perfect, as in your childhood." And only the fruits of perfection were to be seen in you. I have seen that our fathers run after severity and not after humility. And if your fathers are harsh and evil, show them your humility for an hour or a month, or even for ten days, and then go out. Do you think that when you go out without being humble, you have overcome the evil? That very time increases your debts, when you go out from your fathers. And if there is no humility in you, sin destroys you. If, however, you resolve in your mind to endure everything that comes upon you—deceit, oppression, and tyranny—when they say to you that you have become a stranger and have begotten, and you are silent like a good stone that swallows a hundred secrets and does not speak, then you will not go out, because you are still a child. For a man endures great things from these and from the aged, until they become angry with him and magnify him and exalt him like the apostles; he endures while silent, and his boast is for himself and for his Lord. But... you will not go out. Your fathers will mock you because of the teaching and because of the word of God that you went to hear and came, and endure their curses and prostrations until you become a man.

And from here you ask yourself: if you are able to endure, you go without care, while you boast in your house and to your Lord, and you say, "Why, if he strikes me, where shall I go?" It is better that my fathers and the sons of my city strike me because of teaching and because of humility, they strike me. And thus you become a man, as you take up the burden of yourself and you grind your mind with teaching and with the questions of the word. The more humble you are, the more you increase. And so that you do not say, "It is enough for me," as my Lord said, "Come after me while you are emptying yourselves from what is seen." It is not that a father stops for you, so that you do not go out and be lost; a father fears. But a father rejoices, that today you learn and tomorrow you teach your fathers. And on the next day your humility will be for the priests, and on the fourth day for the covenant, and on the fifth day for the youths, and on the sixth day you will be a new creation like Adam. And your humility will be traded and known to all the sons of men. And on the seventh day you will rest with the one who called you in the heavenly Jerusalem. The stopping is from you, that you humble yourself and know the truth, and you become a father to others. But if from love, it is a king who tells you to know where you go; it is not a father who comes to you. Be a son of wisdom, and know everything, and pray for me, by the love of my Lord Jesus Christ.

There are indeed teachers of days: when the disciples go to a master without his knowing, they say to him, "Come out." And when he comes out, they say to him, "Go, seek from the master." And the master does not know, nor does he know what the teaching is; they leave him to learn. And if the master does not send the teacher from the place, they make him idle, so that he does not know how to pray, and they leave him to learn. And he becomes like a lay merchant, who does not know how to be managed, so that whatever he loses, he destroys by his laymanship. And soon it will be said: God chose laymen to shame the wise through them. These laymen whom God chose were laymen in earthly matters and wise in heavenly matters, as it is written: because I did not know scribal art, I entered into the might of the Lord. This one, however, because I neglected earthly wisdom, I acquired heavenly wisdom. But the father says: learn the sufferings of the master and his humility, and thus you will be bound by his sufferings, while you stand, you will be bound; and while you sit, you will be bound by the master in heaven, and you will not go to be bound by the crown like an animal, while you know nothing, and you will be bound for yourselves on earth.

But they are bound every day in heaven by the Lord: when they offer the sacrifices of knowledge, sometimes when they stand, sometimes when they kneel, sometimes when they walk, and sometimes when they sing with the Holy Spirit. And no one knows how the Church and its priests are divided. And from the Church itself the Catholic is known, the whole truth. And it also loves the fears and the deniers, when the great one among the eyes of the Church is Catholic. What you know, then, that you should leave: then you should pray and say, "Our Father in heaven, forgive us, as also the thief forgave the guilty ones." As our Lord Jesus taught us, that one should love one another, and all the children of Adam. And what you know, that he should do thus, and forgive thus, and go and pray: that he does not call our Lord to account. For thus did the disciples of our Lord, and they also went and prayed, as he told them: that they should pray for all the living, that they might not enter into heresy; and as it is written: that a foul word should not come out of your mouth... No one should hear a foul word from your mouth, neither in your city nor in the house of your parents. And bow your head and worship everyone. And you should be guilty of loving everyone, as the Apostle said: that you should owe nothing except to love one another. And you should know from everyone what is owed to you: to whom honor, honor; and to whom fear, fear.

Sometimes of peace, peace. And sometimes of love, love. And sometimes of conduct, conduct. And sometimes of knowledge, knowledge. When he is worthy of honor, they honor him; and great is his portion. He does not give him the teaching that he might become angry and say, “You, teach me?” And when he is worthy of fear, he does not give him simple love and he scolds. And when he is worthy of simple love, he does not show him bitterness and his affliction. And when he is worthy of conduct, he does not give him peace from afar and he complains against him. And when he is worthy of peace, he does not delay with him and he bears weight in his branches and his praises. And when he is worthy of knowledge, he does not cease from him until he is established, so that he does not stumble and perish. Let them be perfect in this world from evil things and cunning to do all good things. And he is equal to everyone and he is rich from everyone, and he surpasses everyone and knows all voices of perfection from purity, and of purity from deceit. For this reason the Lord said: “Be cunning, that you may know teaching from teaching and word from word,” not that you may persecute evil men from among the good. For evil teaching harms you, not evil men. And if they kill you by killing, it is a benefit to you. The end of Memra 27: About the History of the Thief Who is Saved.