The Shepherd of Hermas

Date

• Cerca 100–150 AD

Summary

The Shepherd of Hermas is an early Christian work structured around visions, commandments, and parables given to Hermas. It places particular emphasis on repentance after baptism, moral transformation, fasting, generosity, self-control, and the need for Christians to live out their faith rather than merely profess it. Its imagery of the Church as a tower being built from living stones gives the work a strong concern for both personal holiness and belonging to the Church.

Memorable Quotations

Faith, Virtue and the Powers

The righteous must maintain righteous thoughts. While their thoughts remain righteous, their heavenly reputation stays firm and they find God easily appeased in everything. But those harboring evil thoughts invite death and captivity, especially those boasting of present achievements and wealth while neglecting future blessings.

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Your salvation lies in not departing from the living God, and in your simplicity and great self-restraint. These have saved you if you continue in them, and they save all who do likewise and walk in guilelessness and simplicity. Such people overcome all wickedness and continue to eternal life.

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First of all, there’s faith, fear of God, love, words of righteousness, truth, concord, patience; nothing is better than these in men’s life. If a man keeps these, and exercises no self-restraint from them, he becomes blessed in his life.

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“Reveal to me, Sir,” I say, “the virgins’ names, and the women wearing black garments.” “Hear,” he answers, “the names of the more powerful virgins, those positioned at the corners. The first is Faith, the second is Self-Control, the third is Power, and the fourth is Patience. The others positioned between them possess these names—Simplicity, Innocence, Purity, Cheerfulness, Truth, Understanding, Harmony, Love. Anyone possessing these names and God’s Son’s name will be capable of entering God’s kingdom.”

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Maintain simplicity and be innocent, and you’ll be like small children who don’t know the wickedness that destroys human life.

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“From the fifth mountain with its lush vegetation and rough terrain, believers are such as these: they are faithful, but resistant to learning, obstinate, and self-indulgent, wanting to know everything, yet knowing absolutely nothing.”

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“And the others, lady, who are they?” “They’re each other’s daughters. One is named Simplicity, next is Knowledge, then Guilelessness, Reverence, and Love. When you follow all their mother’s works, you can live.”

My thoughts

These are presented almost as a progression of virtues. It begins with Faith and ultimately ends with Love. Continence follows Faith: first restraining ourselves from evil, then growing in simplicity, knowledge, innocence and reverence, until finally reaching Love - the greatest commandment.

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Each power is governed by the next, following their birth order. From Faith comes Continence, from Continence comes Simplicity, from Simplicity comes Guilelessness, from Guilelessness comes Reverence, from Reverence comes Knowledge, and from Knowledge comes Love. Their works are pure, reverent, and divine.

My thoughts

Interestingly, the following passage gives the virtues in a slightly different order. Even so, I like the image of succession. Faith is not presented as something static, but something that produces other virtues and gradually shapes the way we live.

Perseverance in Faith

But the rest you saw lying in great numbers, not going into building—the moldy ones knew truth but didn’t remain in it or cling to the saints. Therefore they’re useless.

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But other stones you saw cast far from the tower, falling onto the path and rolling off into regions without paths—these believed but, from double-heartedness, abandon their true path. Thinking they can find better paths, they go astray and suffer greatly wandering in pathless regions.

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Your salvation lies in not departing from the living God, and in your simplicity and great self-restraint. These have saved you if you continue in them, and they save all who do likewise and walk in guilelessness and simplicity. Such people overcome all wickedness and continue to eternal life.

Trusting God, Worry and Hope

Just as elderly people, hopeless of renewing their youth, expect only to sleep, so you, weakened by worldly affairs, surrendered to lamentation and didn’t cast your worries on God. Your spirit was crushed, and you were aged by your griefs.

My thoughts

This feels like a good reminder to trust God in everything, both in good times and bad. We are not only called to cast our worries upon Him, but also to allow Him to guide and strengthen us when our spirit feels crushed by grief.

I also like the image of worry ageing us. We know how heavily stress and anxiety can weigh on both mind and body. Trusting God does not mean our struggles disappear, but that we do not have to carry their weight alone.

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For He pitied you, renewed your spirit, and you abandoned your weaknesses. Strength came to you, and you became powerful in faith. God rejoiced seeing you renewed in strength.

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Just as a mourner, receiving good news, immediately forgets previous griefs, focusing only on the good tidings and being strengthened and renewed by the joy received, so you’ve experienced spiritual renewal by seeing these good things.

My thoughts

This is another good reminder to thank God for everything. Gratitude does not necessarily remove sorrow, but it stops sorrow from becoming everything we can see. By remembering the good things God has given us, even in difficult moments, we are reminded of His goodness and strengthened by it.

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She said, “You escaped well because you cast your worry upon God and opened your heart to Him, believing you could be saved only by His great and glorious Name. Therefore God sent His angel over the beasts, named Segri, to close the beast’s mouth so it couldn’t harm you. You’ve escaped great tribulation because of your faith and because, despite seeing such a huge beast, you didn’t doubt.

My thoughts

Even on the next part it says: “Cast your worries upon God, and He’ll straighten them”. This is what walking with God looks like, praying and trusting that He will protect and guide us always.

At times we think “I believe I can do everything”, but this is a good reminder that this sentence should be “I believe He can do everything and act through me”, because God provides and gives everything we need.

the coming great tribulation. If you prepare beforehand and repent wholeheartedly, you’ll be able to escape it, provided your heart is pure and blameless, and you serve God blamelessly for the rest of your life. Cast your worries upon God, and He’ll straighten them.

Repentance

Those who’ve truly repented will be renewed and firmly established, having repented wholeheartedly.

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Don’t you think the very act of repentance is a form of understanding? To repent is to possess great understanding. For a person who’s sinned realizes they’ve done wrong before God.

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“So trust in God, you who’ve lost hope for your lives because of your wrongdoing and keep piling on more sins, weighing down your life; for if you turn unto God with your whole heart, work righteousness for your remaining days, and serve Him rightly according to His will, He’ll give healing to your former sins, and you’ll have power to master the devil’s works. But of the devil’s threatening fear not at all; for he’s unstrung, like a dead man’s sinews.”

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“Still others were wavering, losing hope of salvation because of their actions; and others were inconsistent and created divisions among themselves. For those who were inconsistent due to their deeds, repentance remains available; but their repentance must be swift, so their dwelling may be within the tower; but for those who refuse to repent and persist in their indulgences, death approaches.”

Anger

“But if any angry temper arises, the Holy Spirit, being delicate, is immediately constrained, lacking clear space, and seeks to withdraw from that place; for it’s choked by the evil spirit and has no room to serve God as it desires, being polluted by the angry temper. For God dwells in patience, but the devil dwells in angry temper.”

My thoughts

This is a clear warning against anger. In fact, often times, anger is an impulse, an explosion. Anger clouds everything, this is why Christ commands us to love one another, even our enemies. If we learn to love even those who wrong us, anger may still arise, but we refuse to let it take hold of our hearts.

Prayer and Trust

He said to me, ’Remove doubtful thinking from yourself and don’t question whether to ask God, thinking within yourself,”How can I request something from God and receive it, seeing I’ve committed so many sins against Him?” Don’t reason this way, but turn to God with your whole heart, and ask of Him without wavering, and you’ll know His immense compassion, that He’ll surely not abandon you, but will fulfill your soul’s request.

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Therefore, cleanse your heart from doubtful-mindedness, and put on faith, for it’s strong, and trust God that you’ll receive all your petitions;

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Therefore clothe yourself in cheerfulness, which always has favor with God and is acceptable to Him, and rejoice in it.

Charity/Wealth

Consider the coming judgment. You who have abundance, find the hungry while the tower remains unfinished; for once the tower’s complete, you’ll want to do good but find no opportunity.

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Instead, clothe yourself in reverence, which contains no stumbling-blocks but is smooth and joyful. Do good works, and freely give from the labor God provides you to all in need, without questioning who should or shouldn’t receive. Give to everyone, for God desires His bounties shared with all.

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“Instead of fields, buy souls that’re in trouble, as you’re able, and visit widows and orphans, and don’t neglect them. Spend your wealth and all your resources, which you received from God, on such fields and houses.” “For this is why the Master has blessed you, so you can do these acts of service for Him. It’s much better to invest in such fields and possessions, which you’ll find in your own city when you visit it.”

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“The poor man, being helped by the rich, prays for him, thanking God for the help he’s received. The rich man then becomes even more eager to assist the poor man, knowing the poor man’s prayers are valuable and effective before God.”

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But if you do any good beyond God’s commandments, you’ll gain even greater glory and be more esteemed in God’s sight than you’d otherwise be. If you keep God’s commandments and add these additional good deeds, you’ll rejoice if you follow them according to my instructions.”

Fasting

“God doesn’t desire such a vain fast; fasting like this does nothing for righteousness. Instead, fast in this manner: Do no wickedness in your life and serve God with a pure heart; observe His commandments and follow His ordinances. Let no evil desire rise up in your heart, but believe in God. If you do these things, fear Him, and control yourself from every evil deed, you’ll live unto God. This will be a true and acceptable fast to God.”

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First, avoid every evil word and desire, and purify your heart from this world’s distractions. If you do this, your fast will be perfect. On your fast day, eat only bread and water. Calculate the amount you’d have spent on food and give that amount to a widow, an orphan, or someone in need. This way, you humble your soul, and those who benefit from your charity can pray to God for you.

My thoughts

The important idea here is that fasting is not merely about eating less. The physical fast is joined to self-control, purification and charity. Even the money saved by eating simply is turned outward and given to someone in need. Fasting becomes an act of self-denial that bears fruit in love of neighbour.

Purity

Always remember your own wife, and you won’t go astray. If such desires arise in your heart, you’ll falter, and if you commit any evil like this, you’ll sin. For this desire in God’s servant is a serious transgression; anyone engaging in such actions brings death upon themselves.

Source

The Apostolic Fathers: Complete Collection of Early Church Fathers, Including Shepherd of Hermas, Didache, Epistles of Ignatius, Martyrdom of Polycarp, Clement, Barnabas, Diognetus and Commentary.

Compiled by Robert Kingswell Published by Eterna Verba Publishing.
Kindle edition.

Note: Quotations on this page are taken from this edition unless otherwise stated.