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Shorter Rules

St Basil the Great, tr. Lowther Clarke, 1925

Rule 245: Who is Wise as a Serpent and Harmless as a Dove? (R. 162)

The man wise as a serpent is he who with circumspection and consideration of what is possible and readily attainable contrives his teaching so that his hearers are disposed to accept it. He is harmless as a dove who never even dreams of avenging himself against his adversary, but continues to confer benefits upon him according to the apostle’s command: “But be ye not weary in well doing.”² For the Lord, sending His disciples to preach, gives them these injunctions. In this task there was need of wisdom to persuade and endurance of evil as regards adversaries, in order that, just as the serpent knew how to approach with a docile appearance and speak persuasively so as to lead men away from God and enslave them to sin, so we are to choose our appearance, methods and time and in every way dispose our words with judgment so as to lead men away from sin and restore them to God; and we are to sustain to the end our endurance in temptations, as Scripture tells us.

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