Salmos 118

Salmos 118:8-9

Avoid entertaining people of the world, especially those whose honors make them swell with pride. You are the priest of a crucified Lord who was poor and lived on the bread of strangers. It is a disgrace to you if the consul's lictors or soldiers keep watch before your door and if the governor of the province has a better dinner with you than in his own palace. If you plead as an excuse your wish to intercede for the unhappy and the oppressed, I reply that a secular magistrate will defer more to a pastor who is self-denying than to one who is rich; he will pay more regard to your holiness than to your wealth. Or if he is a man who will only listen to the clergy over a glass, I will readily forego his aid and will appeal to Christ, who can help more effectively than any judge. Truly "it is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in people. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes." — LETTER 52.11