Hermas

“ Hermas shook his head. "Certainly I would rather live in an airy house with colonnades than in our dingy cavern, but building would never be in my way. What a long time it takes to put one stone on another! I am not patient, and when I leave my father I will do something that shall win me fame. ”

“ The Shepherd of Hermas is in form an apocalypse. It consists of a series of revelations made to Hermas by the Church, who appears in the form of a woman, first old, and afterwards younger; by the shepherd, the angel of repentance; and by the great angel, who is in charge of Christians. Each revelation is accompanied by an explanation, and from these it can be seen that though the form of the book is apocalyptic and visionary, its object is practical and ethical. The main problem, which constantly recurs, is that of sin after baptism. ”

“ Hermas had sprung up with these words, and as he met the astonished gaze of his hosts, he tried to collect himself, and said:
“Paulus never even saw Sirona, and I repeat it, if there is a man who may boast of being good and pure and quite without sin, it is he. For me, and to save me from punishment and my father from sorrow, he owned a sin that he never committed. ”

“ Nor must we fail to observe, that the tedious allegorizing of Hermas, though not acceptable to us, was by no means displeasing to Orientals. To this day, the common people, even with us, seem to be greatly taken with story-telling and “similitudes,” especially when there is an interpreter to give them point and application.
After reading Irenæus Against Heresies, then, we may not inappropriately turn to this mild protest against the most desolating and lasting delusion of primitive times. ”

“ While I was thinking about this, and feeling vexed that she did not let me sit on the right, she said, "Are you vexed, Hermas? The place to the right is for others who have already pleased God, and have suffered for His name's sake; and you have yet much to accomplish before you can sit with them. But abide as you now do in your simplicity, and you will sit with them, and with all who do their deeds and bear what they have borne." ”

“ And the Spirit carried me away, and took me through a pathless place, through which a man could not travel, for it was situated in the midst of rocks; it was rugged and impassible on account of water. Having passed over this river, I came to a plain. I then bent down on my knees, and began to pray to the Lord and to confess my sins. And as I prayed, the heavens were opened, and I see the woman whom I had desired saluting me from the sky, and saying, "Hail, Hermas!" ”

“ Hermas sees that mere repentance is not enough to meet the backsliding condition in which so many Christians then were, owing to the recoil of inveterate habits of worldliness [4] entrenched in society around and within. It is, after all, too negative a thing to stand by itself or to satisfy God. “Cease, Hermas,” says the Church, “to pray all about thy sins. Ask for righteousness also” (Vis. iii. 1. 6) . The positive Christian ideal which “the saints” should attain, “the Lord enabling,” it is the business of the Shepherd to set forth. ”

“ Irenæus, the contemporary of this Hermas, had received the traditions of the same age from Polycarp: hence the greater probability of my conjecture that the brother of Pius compiled many traditional prophesyings of the first age.
3. Supposing the work to be in fact what it is represented to be in fiction, we have seen that it abounds with anachronisms. As now explained, we can account for them: the second Hermas forgets himself, like other poets, and mixes up his own period with that which he endeavours to portray. ”

“ Hermas, saluted by Saint Paul in his epistle to the Romans, in a piece very little connected with historical recitals, thus speaks: "Such as have believed and suffered death for the name of Christ, and have endured with a ready mind, and have given up their lives with all their hearts." ”

“ The American editor has devoted more than his usual amount of annotation to Hermas, and he affectionately asks the student not to overlook the notes, in which he has condensed rather than amplified exposition. It has been a labour of love to contribute something to a just conception of The Shepherd, because the Primitive Age has often been reproached with its good repute in the early churches. So little does one generation comprehend another! ”

“ Hermas [1] [2] whom the apostle Paul mentions in writing to the Romans “Salute [3] Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas [4] and the brethren that are with them” [5] is reputed to be the author of the book which is called Pastor and which is also read publicly in some churches of Greece. It is in fact a useful book and many of the ancient writers quote from it as authority, but among the Latins it is almost unknown. ”

“ He set before them fruits, drinking cups, and a vase of water.
“We are come,” said Hermas, the elder of the deacons, “to inquire of thee why thou differest from other preachers of Christus of whom we have heard? Thou eatest not with us, neither dost thou visit our sick.”
[See p. 101.]
“Tis false! Did not I, when the fierce ungodly mob stoned Lepidus, the slave of the armourer of the River Street,—did not I visit him? Did not these arms support his dying head—these garments wipe from his bleeding mouth the foam of death? Did not these lips speak to him of Christus and the future world ”

“ Now the writing was this:—
9 Thy seed, O Hermas! hath sinned against the Lord, and have betrayed their parents, through their great wickedness. And they have been called the betrayers of their parents, and have gone on in their treachery.
10 And now have they added lewdness to their other sins, and the pollutions of their naughtiness: thus have they filled up the measure of their iniquities. But do thou upbraid thy sons with all these words; and thy wife, who shall be as thy sister ”

“ That Hermas was an artist, and purposely gave his fiction a very primitive air, is evident. He fears to name the Scriptures he quoted, lest any one should doubt their use, in the days of Clement, in the Western churches.] ↑ [1 Cor. iii. 16, 17. Owen, On the Spirit, passim. Ambiguities, cap. ii.] ↑ [Acts xvii. 30.] ↑ Omitted in Lips. Æth. has simply, “But be on your guard now.”↑ The Vatican has a sentence before this: “For if you sin not afterwards, you will greatly fall away from your former [transgressions] .”↑ Found only in Pseudo-Athanasius. ”

“ We have seen, moreover, that it was extremely unlikely that Hermas was a real personage. It would be, therefore, far more probable that we have here an interpolation, or addition by a member of the Roman or African Church, probably by the translator, made expressly for the purpose of serving as proof that the Pastor of Hennas was not inspired. The paragraph itself bears unquestionable mark of tampering," (1) &c. It would take us too far were we to discuss the various statements of the fragment as indications of date, and the matter is not of sufficient importance. ”

“ Happy ye who endure the great tribulation that is coming on, and happy they who shall not deny their own life. [47] For the Lord hath sworn by His Son, that those who denied their Lord have abandoned their life in despair, for even now these are to deny Him in the days that are coming. [48] To those who denied in earlier times, God became [49] gracious, on account of His exceeding tender mercy.”
Chap. III.
“But as for you, Hermas, remember not the wrongs done to you by your children, nor neglect your sister, that they may be cleansed from their former sins. ”

“ Sim. ix. 28) , the exact place in the kingdom or consummated church (the Tower) , is given as reward for zeal in doing God’s will beyond the minimum requisite in all. Here comes in Hermas’s doctrine of works of supererogation, in fulfilment of counsels of perfection, on lines already seen in Did. vi. 2, cf. i. 4, and reappearing in the two types of Christian recognized by Clement and Origen and in later Catholicism. Again his doctrine of fasting is a spiritualizing of a current opus operatum conception on Jewish lines as though “keeping a watch” (statio) in that way atoned for sins (Sim. v.) ”

“ I said, “did these stones ascend out of the pit, and be applied to the building of the tower, after having borne these spirits?” “They were obliged,” he answered, “to ascend through water in order that they might be made alive; for, unless they laid aside the deadness of their life, they could not in any other way enter into the kingdom of God. Accordingly, those also who fell asleep received the seal of the Son of God. For,” he continued, “before a man bears the name of the Son of God [128] he is dead; but when he receives the seal he lays aside his deadness, and obtains life. ”

“ And I said to him, “Why then is she an old woman?” “Because,” said he, “she was created first of all. On this account is she old. And for her sake was the world made.” After that I saw a vision in my house, and that old woman came and asked me, if I had yet given the book to the presbyters. And I said that I had not. And then she said, “You have done well, for I have some words to add. But when I finish all the words, all the elect will then become acquainted with them through you. You will write therefore two books, and you will send the one to Clemens and the other to Grapte. ”

“ All of you, then, who shall remain stedfast, and be as children, [148] without doing evil, will be more honoured than all who have been previously mentioned; for all infants are honourable before God, and are the first persons with Him. [149] Blessed, then, are ye who put away wickedness from yourselves, and put on innocence. As the first of all will you live unto God.”
After he had finished the similitudes of the mountains, I said to him, “Sir, explain to me now about the stones that were taken out of the plain, and put into the building instead of the stones that were taken out of the tower ”

“ They whose branches were half-withered to the same extent are the wavering; for they neither live, nor are they dead. And they who have them half-withered and cracked are both waverers and slanderers, [railing against the absent,] and never at peace with one another, but always at variance. And yet to these also,” he continued, “repentance is possible. You see,” he said, “that some of them have repented, and there is still remaining in them,” he continued, “a hope of repentance. And as many of them,” he added, “as have repented, shall have their dwelling in the tower. ”

“ And as many as do not repent at all, but abide in their deeds, shall utterly perish. And they who gave in their branches green and cracked were always faithful and good, though emulous of each other about the foremost places, and about fame: [90] now all these are foolish, in indulging in such a rivalry. Yet they also, being naturally good, [91] on hearing my commandments, purified themselves, and soon repented. Their dwelling, accordingly, was in the tower. But if any one relapse into strife, he will be east out of the tower, and will lose his life. ”

“ This view of the subject, moreover, explains historical facts which have been so unaccountable to many critics; such as the general credit it obtained, and that its influence was greater in the East than among Latins. But once commended to the Asiatic churches by Pius, as a useful instruction for the people, and a safeguard against the Phrygian excesses, it would easily become current wherever the Greek language prevailed. Very soon it would be popularly regarded as the work of the Pauline Hermas, and as embodying genuine prophesyings of the apostolic age. ”

“ But the white part is the age that is to come, in which the elect of God will dwell, since those elected by God to eternal life will be spotless and pure. Wherefore cease not speaking these things into the ears of the saints. This then is the type of the great tribulation that is to come. If ye wish it, it will be nothing. Remember those things which were written down before.” And saying this, she departed. But I saw not into what place she retired. There was a noise, however, and I turned round in alarm, thinking that that beast was coming. [128]
Vision Fifth. ”

“ Faith is always honoured in its primary place; and penitence, in its every evangelical aspect, is thoroughly defined. He exposes the emptiness of formal works, such as mere physical fastings, and the carnal observance of set times and days. That in one instance he favours “works of supererogation” is an entire mistake, made by reading into the words of Hermas a heresy of which he never dreamed. ”

“ Paul’s arguments in his Epistle to the Romans were personally appropriate, yet in the West, generally, it was not so: hence the greater diffusion of The Shepherd written in Greek, through the Greek churches. There, too, the Montanists were a raging pestilence long before the West really felt the contagion through the influence of the brilliant Tertullian. ”

“ He is supposed to be a lector, who might read for the edification of the elect, if permitted by the presbyters. Grapte, the deaconess, is supposed to have charge of widows and orphans; while Clement, only, has canonical right to authenticate books to foreign churches, as the Eastern bishops were accustomed to authenticate canonical Scriptures to him and others. The second Hermas falls into such anachronisms innocently, but they betray the fiction of his work. ”

“ They resemble, therefore, the waverers: for the wavering are neither withered nor green, being neither living nor dead. For as their blades, on seeing the sun, were withered, so also the wavering, when they hear of affliction, on account of their fear, worship idols, and are ashamed of the name of their Lord. ”