Conferences of John Cassian, Part II — Source paragraphs and footnotes

Date uncertain | John Cassian

The answer that Christ looks not only at the action but also at the will.

Complete source paragraph · Conferences of John Cassian, Part II, Chapter XXII.; original source section: Chapter 22; original book/conference: XVI. The First Conference of Abbot Joseph., source paragraph 2 · Original source

Date uncertain | John Cassian

Joseph: As was said a little before, we must look not only at the thing which is done, but also at the character of the mind and the purpose of the doer. And therefore if you weigh with a careful scrutiny of heart what is done by each man and consider with what mind it is done or from what feeling it proceeds, you will see that the virtue of patience and gentleness cannot possibly be fulfilled in the opposite spirit, i.e., that of impatience and rage. Since our Lord and Saviour, when giving us a thorough lesson on the virtue of patience and gentleness (i.e., teaching us not only to profess it with our lips, but to store it up in the inmost recesses of the soul) gave us this summary of evangelical perfection, saying: “If any one smites thee on thy right cheek, offer him the other also” (doubtless the “right” cheek is mentioned, as another “right” cheek cannot be found except in the face of the inner man, so to speak), as by this He desires entirely to remove all incitement to anger from the deepest recesses of the soul, i.e., that if your external right cheek has received a blow from the striker, the inner man also humbly consenting may offer its right cheek to be smitten, sympathizing with the suffering of the outward man, and in a way submitting and subjecting its own body to wrong from the striker, that the inner man may not even silently be

Complete source paragraph · Conferences of John Cassian, Part II, Chapter XXII.; original source section: Chapter 22; original book/conference: XVI. The First Conference of Abbot Joseph., source paragraph 3 · Original source