Chapter 12

1That bishops ought to be peacemakers and merciful men, who pardon anyone who has trespassed against them and receive the repentance of those who turn to God; and if they do not act in this way, they shall not be called bishops, but evil.

2If the bishop prays that peace may rest upon others, should he not all the more be peaceable himself, so that he may not be a son of darkness but may be called a son of light? If there is no peace within him, how can he give peace to others? Therefore, the beginning of all his work must be peace, without evil or hatred. Let him feed Christ’s sheep in love and peace. Above all, let him guard them as a faithful friend, so that they may be saved together and become one flock. But let evil men, who work iniquity and cause hatred and trouble, be far from God.

3For the Lord, the God of mercy, desired to bring all generations back to repentance through the teaching of the Holy Spirit, the righteous, and the prophets. Before the flood, the people lived according to the teaching of Abel and the admonition of Abel, Seth, and Enoch, who ascended to heaven. Noah taught those who lived after the flood, and Lot, the lover of strangers, taught the people of Sodom. After Lot, people were taught by Melchizedek, the patriarchs, and Job, the lover of God. The Egyptians and the children of Israel were taught by the commandments of Moses, Joshua the son of Nun, Caleb, Phinehas, and those who came after them. After the law they were taught by the admonition of angels and prophets. After these came our Lord, who became incarnate and was made man of our Lady, the Holy Virgin Mary. After John the Baptist had been cast into prison, he preached, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

4After he had suffered on the cross, he commanded us—his twelve apostles—to preach together with our good brother Paul. We are those to whom he granted that we should be witnesses concerning his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. With us also are James, the brother of our Lord, and the seven deacons. We heard the word of life from his mouth, and we have believed and known that he is Jesus Christ, in whom the Lord, the Father, is well pleased. We fully declare to you what we heard from him, so that no one who believes in him shall perish. Let us offer praise to him with one voice, so that we may obtain eternal life.

5Thus our Lord commanded us to say when we pray to the Father, “Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth,” so that, just as the heavenly and spiritual hosts give glory, every creature on earth may glorify the one God through his only-begotten Son, our Lord, our God, and our Savior Jesus Christ. This, then, is his good pleasure: that we should glorify and bless him with one mind and worship him with one spirit. This is Christ’s good pleasure: that those who are saved should be many, that not one of them should perish, and that the Church should not be diminished.

6Do not kill the soul that has been made alive through repentance, for it has been saved from indignation and anger. Instead, in the beauty of your patience fulfill every word of the Scriptures. If you scatter the sheep of his flock, you shall be enemies of God. Do not destroy the lambs Christ has fed. Be discerning, then, O bishop, lest through you the sheep of Christ’s flock be scattered. We gathered them from every region through the preaching of tongues, through toil and weariness, through sorrow and watching, through hunger, thirst, laborious journeys, persecutions, affliction, and imprisonment. Behold, we have done what pleases God and have filled with plants the house that is the holy congregation, the Church of God. Those who are called into it rejoice and are glad, glorifying and blessing God—those whom you have called to eternal life. And you also, O people, perform among yourselves the works of love and peace, so that you may walk in the Church of God with one heart. For this you shall receive a good reward from God.

7But you, O bishop, be holy and without blemish. Do nothing unseemly, and do not be given to passion, deceitful, or evil-minded. Instead, be a teacher and helper of those who perish, a counselor of what is good, and confirm the people as a man of God. When you are gathered together in the church, command them, like a wise shipmaster, to walk in the good way. Command the deacons to be like sailors, so that they may seat the brethren, each in his own place, as befits righteousness and purity, for they are together with you in one ship.

8Let the length of the church face toward the East, and let it have two porches on its sides, resembling a ship. Let the bishop’s throne be set in the middle. Then let the presbyters sit on his right and on his left, and let the deacons stand ready to serve, with their garments girded up like sailors. Let the people sit in their places in fear and trembling, and likewise let the women sit by themselves in silence.

9Let the reader also stand in his place and read the books of Moses, Joshua the son of Nun, Judges, Kings, Chronicles, the books after the captivity and the return from Babylon, Job, Solomon, and the fifteen prophets. After they have read from the books, two at a time, let one person rise and sing praises in the words of David, and let the people answer with praises. Then they shall read the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of our brother Paul, our beloved fellow worker, which he wrote and sent to all the churches with the help of the Holy Spirit.

10After this, let the presbyters or deacons read the Gospel that we have given you—I, Matthew, and John—and that Luke and Mark, the fellow workers of the renowned Paul, proclaimed and appointed for you. When the Gospel is read, let the presbyters, deacons, and all the people stand in great fear, for it is written, “Be silent, O Israel, and listen.” Then let the presbyters stand one by one and confirm the people, and afterward let the bishop stand, so that he may save them through his admonition.

11Next, let the doorkeepers stand where the men enter and place them in their appointed places. Likewise, let the deaconess make the women stand in their places. If any man is found standing in a place that is not his, let the deacons put him to shame and then bring him back to his own place. For the deacons are like sailors, and the church is like a ship. Yet it is not a ship, but a flock of sheep. Shepherds separate the sheep from the goats and place them according to their kinds and divisions. In the same way, let the people be gathered together in the church according to their classes.

12Let the young men stand by themselves; but if there is not enough room for them, let them stand with the rest of the people. Let the old men sit by themselves, and let the children sit in front of their fathers, with their fathers taking care of them. Let the maidens sit by themselves; but if there is not enough room, let them stand behind the married women. Let the virgins, widows, and older women stand before all the other women. Let those who have husbands and children sit by themselves.

13The deacons should arrange them one by one, and no one should cross over into his neighbor’s seat. Let the deacon observe the people’s conduct and behavior in church, lest they sleep or become slothful in prayer. Let him watch them, and if anyone is found laughing or speaking foolishly, let him admonish them and make them silent. We ought to stand in the church in fear and trembling and direct our minds to hear the word of the Scriptures.

14When the catechumens and those under penance have departed, let all the people rise, look toward the East, and pray to God, who is in every place, to bring them back to their former place, to the garden of joy from which the first man went out when he consented to the serpent’s counsel and transgressed God’s commandment.

15After this, let the presbyters rise and offer the sacrifice to God with fear and trembling. Then let the ministers rise and command the people to keep silence. Let the deacon who stands at the bishop’s right hand say to the people, “Let no one harbor revenge, hatred, or envy against his neighbor in his heart.” Then let the men greet one another with a holy kiss, and likewise let the women greet one another. But do not greet one another with deceit, like Judas Iscariot, who kissed our Lord and wickedly betrayed him.

16After this, let the deacon pray and make supplication for the whole world and all that is in it: for the fruits of the ground, for the king, for the priests, for the rulers, for the chief priests, and for the peace of the holy Apostolic Church. After this, let the chief priest make supplication and entreat that peace may rest upon the people. Then let him bless them, as Moses commanded the priests to bless the people, saying, “The Lord bless you and keep you, make his face shine upon you and have mercy upon you, and give you peace.”

17After this, let the bishop make supplication and say, “Save your people and bless your inheritance; feed them and lift them up forever. By your precious Blood you have purchased and redeemed your holy Church through our Lord Jesus Christ, who has called her to be a congregation of kings and priests, a pure family, and a holy people.”

18After the priests have taken up the mysteries, let them take care that no one enters who is not among the faithful. Then let the men stand, and the women also, veiling their heads. Let them extend their hands, pray for pardon, and receive his holy Flesh and precious Blood.

19If any brothers or sisters come from a distant place, let the deacon inquire into their lives and learn about their faith. If they possess the tokens of the right faith, let him permit them to enter the church; but if they are unbelievers, let him not permit them to enter. If a presbyter comes from a distant place, let the presbyters receive him, and let the deacons do likewise for a deacon.

20If a bishop comes as a stranger, let the bishop who is his equal receive him and seat him with himself, showing him honor. Then let him ask the visiting bishop to teach and admonish the people, for it is said, “A prophet is not held in honor in his own city.” Entreat him to offer the sacrifice. But if he refuses because of fear, entreat him all the more to bestow a blessing upon the people.

21If someone comes to you, whether a stranger or a local man, dressed in fine clothing and full of grace, you, O bishop, should declare the word of God to him. When you hear them teaching or reading the Scriptures, do not cease from the work of your ministry. The brethren ought to receive strangers, esteem them, and honor them. But if anyone is haughty and does not honor a stranger, let the deacon come and admonish him, and let him place that person behind the rest of the people, so that others may see and fear.

22If poor people come to you, whether young or old, let the deacon receive them with a glad heart and place each one where appropriate, without partiality, so that your service may be pleasing to God. Let the deaconess do likewise with the women, whether rich or poor.

23Therefore admonish your people, O bishop, and command them to come to the church by day and by night and never to absent themselves from it, so that the congregation there may not be diminished, for they are members of Christ. We say this not concerning the priests alone, but concerning all the people, so that each one may understand the word of the Lord. For our Lord says, “He who is not with me is my adversary, and he who does not gather with me scatters.”

24Do not be slothful, then, for you are members of Christ. Do not separate yourselves from his Body and his Blood, and do not choose the cares of this world over the commandments of God. Gather together in the church in the evening and in the morning. Glorify God, sing, and read the Psalms of David, both the sixty-second and the hundred and fortieth.

25Especially on the Christian Sabbath, which is the day of his holy resurrection, offer praise, thanksgiving, and honor to God, who created all things through his Son Jesus Christ, whom he sent to us, who was pleased to suffer according to his will, was buried in the earth, and rose again from the dead. But if you do not come to the church, what excuse or answer will you give to God? For on this day, the Christian Sabbath, we ought to hear the preaching of his holy resurrection, remember his sufferings, make remembrance of him, read the Scriptures of the prophets and the Gospel, and celebrate the Eucharist—the sacrifice and offering, our spiritual food.

26But if you do not keep watch by day and by night and do not act as we say, you are transgressors against God and his enemies, for you have chosen pleasure, eating, drinking, and delights that grow old and perish, and you have forsaken that which neither grows old nor perishes. To those who do such things God says, “The foolish people are better than you,” just as he reproached Jerusalem and said to her, “Sodom is better than you.”

27Consider, then, the foolish Gentiles. Every day, when they awake and rise from sleep, they go at once to those gods that give no benefit. They worship them and make supplication to them concerning their needs. On their feast days they gather together, great and small; and not only these, but others also come from distant places to worship and serve them.

28The foolish Jews, although ungodly and unbelieving, nevertheless work for six days and rest on the seventh. Then they gather together in the synagogues, keep a feast to idols, and magnify and honor those that have neither life nor spirit and give no benefit at all. Yet they boast and say, “We are Jews.” If these act in this way, gathering together at all times and foolishly serving those in whom there is no benefit, how is it that you, who have received grace from the Lord God, are slothful and neglect the service of the church?

29If you remain far from the church, you shall lose your hope, abandon your salvation, and become ungodly—you who turn away from what is good and become evil. Behold, the Lord said through Jeremiah the prophet, “For my people have forsaken my law, which I set before their face, and have not heard my voice. Instead, they have gone and followed the desire of their own hearts, and they have followed idols, as their fathers taught them.”

30Moreover, it is said, “Rebellious Israel has justified herself more than treacherous Judah,” and, “Their shepherds have led them to the mountains and driven them away, and they wander on the hills.” What excuse do those make who are too slothful to go to the church and who leave it at the time of prayer? At what time shall they hear about the salvation of their souls, and what answer shall they give to God?

31Understand, then, that the service of the faithful, which abides with them in truth, is this: the worship of God. Do not let your work and toil be devoted to the cares of this transitory world, which grows old and perishes, but direct your thoughts toward God. As our Lord says, “Do not labor for transitory food that grows old and perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life.” Moreover, he says, “The work that pleases God is this: that you believe in him whom he has sent to you.”

32Take care, then, that you do not remain far from the Church of God or follow the steps of the ungodly, unbelievers, idolaters, or the congregation of the Jews. Do not go to a temple of devils, have fellowship with Christ’s murderers, or enter a congregation of the ungodly.

33Have you not heard what is said? “I have not sat in the assembly of vanity, nor have I entered with evildoers. I have hated the congregation of the wicked, and I will not sit with the deceitful and evildoers.” Again it is said, “Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, who has not stood in the way of sinners, and who has not sat in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditated day and night.”

34But behold, you have left the congregation of the faithful and despised the Church of God. You have not kept his law and ordinance, but have followed the way of robbers. You have counted the unclean as clean, become a companion of those who were separated from you, made your dwelling with the heathen, and inclined your ear to the words of the theater, which are full of every uncleanness and vanity and contain no benefit.

35You have refused to listen to the words of Jeremiah the prophet, who says, “O Lord, I have not sat upon the seat of judgment with injustice, but I am afraid before your face.” Why do you desire to hear the words of the dead heathen, who were wounded through sin and, through the works of the devil, slay the person who follows them, draw him away from the right faith, and make him serve many gods?

36But do not act in this way. Keep the commandments of God and choose life for yourselves. Above all, seek the law of the Church of the Lord, which Christ, his beloved Son, who existed before the world was created, purchased with his Blood. For his Church is the Daughter of the Most High. She strengthens our hearts and draws us near to God, so that we may find a place with him, for we are his members and his friends. Let us, then, be good and pure, without uncleanness, and perfect in the right faith and in every good work.