Today the church remembers Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazianzus, two fourth century bishops and teachers of the faith. The
Common Worship lectionary invited us this morning to read the first chapter of the book of Ruth. So here is what
Gregory of Nazianzus might have said to Naomi:
Sorrow is not immortal. Let us not aggravate our light griefs with
ungenerous thoughts. If we have been bereaved of blessings, we have
enjoyed them too. To be bereft is the lot of all; to enjoy, is not the
lot of many.
Cited from Words Old and New: Gems from the Christian Authorship of all Ages selected by Horatius Bonar (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1994), 23.
