Mt 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its savor, with what shall it be salted?”
“You,” he says, “are the salt of the earth; you are the seasoning of humankind. By your example others must be instructed, by your wisdom they must be taught, by your humility and patience they must be shaped and brought into harmony. But if the salt loses its savor—if the preacher loses his strength, if the bishop gives himself over to luxury and vanity—by what shall it be salted, by what shall the people be seasoned?
It is no longer good for anything except to be cast out and trampled underfoot by men. For such salt, because it has become foolish (μωρανθέν), is cast out, since the false preacher and his doctrine—which is empty, without flavor, and useless—are expelled from the Church. And he is trampled underfoot by men, because he is worthy to be held in contempt by all.
Mr 5:14 “You are the light of the world.”
For what the sun and the moon provide for the body, this the apostles and teachers provide for the soul. The former illumine the eyes of the body; the latter illumine the eyes of the mind. Therefore they are the light of the world, who illumine the greater and better part of the world.
“A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.”
Thus the apostles and bishops stand over the Church, like a city upon a mountain. They cannot be hidden; placed on high, the eyes of all are turned toward them. And if they are beautiful—if they preserve the dignity and integrity of their order—they are revered by all, admired by all, and praised by all.
CONTINUE
Mt 5:15 “Nor do they light a lamp and place it under a bushel, but upon a lampstand, so that it may give light to all who are in the house.”
For this purpose the lamp is lit: that it may shine. For this purpose the bishop is ordained: that he may enlighten others. For the lamp is the bishop himself—either the light of grace of the Holy Spirit, or evangelical preaching—and the lampstand is the Church.
Therefore, whoever is placed upon the lampstand of the Church must take care not to place under a bushel the grace of the Holy Spirit by which he has been enlightened. Let him take care not to bury in the earth the talent entrusted to him. For it is written: “Hidden wisdom and a concealed treasure—what profit is there in either?” Hence also the one who hides grain is cursed by the people.
Mt 5:16 “So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
“You are light,” he says, and you must shine both by word and by deed. For you profit more by acting than by speaking, because the splendor of a deed is greater than that of a word. Therefore he does not say, “that hearing your good discourse they may glorify your Father,” but what does he say? “That seeing your good works they may glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
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