On the Twelve Abuses of the World, with extracts from On the Soul and its Origin and On the Divination of Demons against the Pagans

of the air and the disruption of the hemispheres, the fruitfulness of the lands, and the mysteries of the sea reveal [his sins], and sometimes the striking of lightning shakes the crops, the flowers of the trees, and the vines. The pride of a king and his injustice not only darkens the face of the impious, but also obscures his own children and grandchildren, and those who hold the inheritance of the kingdom after him. On account of the sin of Solomon, the Lord tore the kingdom of the house of Israel from the hand of his sons, and on account of the justice of David the king, He left a lamp for his seed always in Jerusalem. Behold how clearly it appears to those who observe it, how much the justice of a king avails for the age. It is the peace of the people, the struggle of the fatherland. The safety of the commoners. The defense of the peoples. The joy of men and the temperance of the common languor. The serenity of the air. The fruitfulness of the earth. The consolation of the poor. The inheritance of the sons. And for himself and for them, the hope of future blessedness. Nevertheless, let the king know that just as he was established first on the throne of men, so also in punishments, if he has not done justice, he is to have the primacy. For he will have all the sinners whom he had under him in the present, [now] over him in that punishment, in an implacable manner.

¶ The tenth degree of abuse: The negligent bishop.

The tenth degree of abuse is the negligent bishop, who seeks the honor of his station among men, but does not guard the dignity of his ministry before God, through which he is to be led to safety. For first, it is inquired from the bishop what the dignity of his name holds, since the name "bishop" is Greek and signifies a "watchman" original: "speculator". Why, therefore, is he called a watchman, and what is required of a watchman? The Lord explains this in detail: "I have given you as a watchman to the house of Israel. You will hear the word from my mouth and you will announce it to them from me. But if you see the sword coming and you do not announce it so that the impious man turns from his way, that impious man will indeed die in his iniquity, [but] I will require his blood from your hand. But if you have announced it and he has not turned, he will indeed die in his iniquity, but you have saved your own soul." It behooves the bishop, therefore, to attend diligently to all things in which he is placed as a watchman, and after he has attended, if he is able, [he must] correct [the people] by word and act; and if he is not able, [he must] excommunicate the workers of evil according to the rule of the Gospel. For if, says the Lord in the Gospel, your brother sins against you, correct him between you and him alone; if he hears you, you have won your brother. If he does not hear you, take with you one or two, so that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may stand.