Love-The Chief Thing
[1I.4.
LOVE-THE CHIEF THING
BASIL: But you---do you not love Christ?
John: Yes, I love him and shall never stop loving him.
But I am afraid of provoking the one I love.
Basil: Could any paradox be more obscure? Christ commanded the man who loved him to tend his sheep, and you say that your reason for not tending them is that you love the one who gave this command!
John: What I said is no paradox, but a clear and simple statement. If I had been qualified to administer this office as Christ wished, and then had refused it, you might well have been puzzled by what I said. But since the infirmity of my spirit makes me useless for this ministry, what have I said that is open to criticism? I am afraid that if I receive the flock from Christ plump and well-fed and then damage it through ineptitude I may provoke against me God who so loved it that he gave himself for its salvation and redemption.
Basil: You are not talking seriously. For if you were, I do not know how else you could have proved the justice of my resentment more clearly than by the argument with which you mean to dispel my despondency. I knew already that you had deceived and betrayed me, but now that you are trying to refute my charges, I understand and realize all the more fully what a plight you have landed me in. If you extricated yourself from such an office because you knew that your spirit was unequal to the responsibility of the work, you should have rescued me from it first, even if I
LOVE-THE CHIEF THING
had been full of eagerness for it-quite apart from the fact that I entrusted to you the entire decision about our actions.
As it is, you regarded yourself and forgot me. Or rather, I only wish you had forgotten me! Then I should have been content. But you plotted to make me an easy prey to those who wanted to get hold of me.
You cannot even take refuge in the plea that popular opinion deceived you and led you to suspect great and marvellous things of me. For I am not one of your famous and distinguished men. And even if I had been, you ought not to have preferred popular opinion to the truth. If I had never let you enjoy my company, you might have seemed to have a reasonable excuse for giving your verdict in accordance with common report. But since no one knows me as well as you; since you know my inner nature better than my parents who brought me up : what argument can you find strong enough to convince those who hear it that you did not deliberately push me into this danger?
However, let that pass now. I will not insist that you answer these charges. But, teU me, what reply shall we make to those who criticize us?
John: No, I will not pass on to that until first I have made it up with you, however willing you may be to release me from answering these charges.
You said that ignorance would have condoned my offence and freed me from all responsibility, if I had known nothing of your character, and so had led you on to your present position; but that since I betrayed you in spite of not being ignorant but knowing your character quite well, all just excuse or reasonable defence was precluded. But I maintain the opposite. And why? Because questions like this need close examination. If someone is about to present another man as fit for the priestly office, he must not be content
LOVE-TilE CHIEF THING
[1104merely with popular report, but in addition to this he ought, beyond and before all else, to examine that man's character himself.
For when St Paul said, "Moreover he must have good testimony from them that are without," 1 he does not do away with a careful and exact scrutiny, nor does he set up this testimony as a chief sign of assurance about such men.
But having listed many requirements already, he added this one afterwards, to show that we must not be content with it alone for this kind of election, but only take it into account along with other considerations. For it often happens that popular report is false. But when a careful scrutiny has led the way, we need not suspect any danger from it. So he adds it-the opinion of those outside the Church-after the other kinds of evidence. He did not say absolutely, "He must have a good testimony," but he added the word "also", because he wanted to show that before adducing the report of those who are outside, we must examine the man himself with care. Since, then, I myself knew your character better than your own parents, as you yourself admitted, I deserve to be acquitted of all blame.
Basil: That is the very reason why you would not have been let off, if anyone had wanted to accuse you. Or do you not remember having often heard me say and show by my actions how mean my spirit is? Were you not for ever jeering at my small-mindedness, because I so easily gave way to commonplace worries?
John: I do remember often hearing you say so, and I will not deny it. But if I ever jeered at you, I did so in fun, not in earnest. However, I will not argue about that now. But I beg you to show me the same forbearance when I want to call to remembrance some of the good qualities you possess.
11 Tim. 3.7.
LOVE-THE CHIEF THING
For if you try to prove that I am not telling the truth, I shall not spare you, but I shall demonstrate that you are just making a pretence and not speaking for the truth's sake.
And I shall use your own words and actions as evidence of what I say.
But first I want you to tell me this: do you know the power of love? Christ passed over all the marvellous works which were to be performed by the apostles and said, "By this shall men know that ye are my disciples, if ye love one another."2 And Paul says that love is the fulfilment of the law/ and that without it spiritual gifts profit nothing. 4 This then, the chief of virtues, the talisman of Christ's disciples, the highest of all spiritual gifts, this I saw was truly implanted in your spirit and teeming with fruit.
Basil: I confess myself that I give much thought to this matter and take great pains over this commandment. But I have not half fulfilled it, as you yourself might testify, if you would stop paying compliments and give the truth its due.
John: Very well, then, I will turn to the evidence. I shall do what I threatened and prove that you meant to disparage yourself rather than speak the truth. I shall mention something that happened recently, to prevent anyone suspecting that by relating far-off things I am trying to obscure the truth through long lapse of time, since forgetfulness would then preclude any denunciation of my compliments to you.
When one of our friends had been wrongfully accused on a charge of insolent and presumptuous conduct and was in the utmost danger, then although no one made any charge against you, and the man in imminent danger made no appeal to you, you threw yourself into the midst of the peril.
That was what you did. But, to convict you from your words as well, you said to your critics (since there were some who 2 Cf. John 13.35.
3 Rom. 13.10.
4 I Cor. 13.3.
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[u.6 did not approve of your concern, though others praised and admired it), "What am I to do? I know no other meaning for friendship but that which carries the offer of my own life, when one of my friends in danger needs to be saved."
That was to repeat in other words, but with the same meaning, Christ's saying to his disciples, when he defined perfect love. "Greater love," he said, "hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." 5 If, then, no greater love than this can be found, you have already reached its perfection. By what you did and what you said, you scaled its summit. That is why I betrayed you. That is why I wove my web of deceit. Have I convinced you that I dragged you into this arena, not from ill-will or the desire to put you in danger, but because I knew that you would do good work?
Basil: Then do you think that the power of love is enough to enable a man to direct his neighboUI's?
John: Certainly it goes a long way towards it. But if you want me to give examples of your wisdom as well, I will proceed to that, and show that you are even more wise than loving.
Basil (colouring up and blushing at this): Suppose we let my character alone now! At the outset I did not ask you to give an account of it. But if you have any reasonable answer to give to outsiders, I should be glad to hear it from you. So stop this shadow-boxing, and tell me what answer to make, both to those who honoured us and to those who are resentful on their behalf as though they had been insulted.
5 John 15. 13.