How Does the Bishop Punish a Sinner?
How Does the Bishop Punish a Sinner? [1]
It is the bishop’s right—and indeed his duty—to punish.
The Church is a community of saints. It is the bishop’s responsibility to watch over the holiness of the Church: to warn sinners, to heal them, and when necessary, to punish them. The Lord said, “I have made you a watchman; you shall hear the word from My mouth and warn them from Me. When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand” (Ezekiel 33:7–8).
Thus, the Apostolic Fathers say to bishops in the fourth chapter of the Didascalia: “We must not be silent about those who sin, but rebuke and teach them, and appoint for them a fast, that it may be discipline for the rest and fear for all.” Similarly, Saint Paul told his disciple Timothy, bishop of Ephesus, “Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear” (1 Timothy 5:20). Paul also rebuked the Corinthians for tolerating the immoral young man (1 Corinthians 5), and the Lord rebuked and punished Eli the priest for being lenient with his sinful sons (1 Samuel 3–4).
But does this mean that the bishop should punish every sin, or every sinner, or that he should be quick and harsh in punishment?
Certainly not. The Church canons established conditions to preserve justice and prevent misuse of authority—lest a bishop act violently, in anger, or for personal reasons, and thus judge unjustly.
Therefore, the canons require that a bishop not be hasty or wrathful.
He must be gentle, patient, and meek—not quick to anger, obstinate, slanderous, or greedy for money.
If justice, patience, and gentleness are protective virtues to ensure sound judgment, then love must also guide the bishop.
The Bishop’s Love for the People: His Role as a Healing Physician
The Apostolic Fathers say in the Didascalia, chapter four: “Let the bishop love the laity as his children and admonish them with the discipline of love, as a bird that broods over its eggs until they become fledglings.” They also advise him: “Feed the flock not with irritation or mockery because of your authority, but as a good shepherd who gathers the sheep into his bosom.”
They add: “You are the physician of the Church of the Lord. Enter with remedies suitable for each one, healing and saving them by every example, and strengthening them in the Church. Heal those who have erred in sin as a careful and compassionate physician. Be a good physician—cheerful, without deceit or guile. Be not harsh, nor severe, nor without mercy, nor proud of heart.”
A Bishop Must Not Be Hasty in Judgment
The Apostolic Fathers required that a bishop be patient and not quick to expel, cut off, or excommunicate sinners. In the Didascalia, chapter four: “Do not be quick to cast anyone lightly out of the Church, but be well assured first. It is not right to be ready to expel those who sin, or to be easy in expulsion and without mercy, but rather to heal the sick.”
This same idea appears again in chapter eight: “Do not be quick to cut off, nor bold, nor hurry to the great-toothed saw. Begin with what cleanses and purifies, and remove the filth gently.”
They warn further: “If you expel one from the Church who is not guilty, or if you refuse to accept a repentant person, you have killed your brother and shed his blood like Cain, whose brother’s blood cried out to God—and God required it from him.”
Chapter five adds: “He who drives out the innocent as though guilty is worse than a murderer… likewise, he who does not accept the repentant divides what belongs to Christ and opposes Him.”
In chapter ten, the Apostolic Fathers rebuke bishops who are quick to cut off believers, saying: “If you thus scatter the sheep and become their adversary, you are an enemy of God and a destroyer of the flock which the Lord has shepherded. By doing this, you disperse those we have gathered from many nations and tongues and languages through toil, fasting, sleeplessness, hardship, and constant suffering, fulfilling the will of God by filling His house—the Holy Catholic Church—with invited guests.”
And they affirm: “This is the will of God through Christ—that those who are saved may increase, that the Church may not diminish, and that not one soul be lost from her number.”
The Bishop Who Judges Unjustly Is Condemned
The Apostolic Fathers warn: “He who expels someone from the Church without due cause—if that person departs and joins the heathen, or falls into heresy, or becomes alienated from the Church and the hope of God—you shall be condemned for his destruction.”
And again in chapter eight: “If you judge anyone unjustly, know that the sentence from your mouth will return upon your own head.”
The Didascalia also states in chapter four: “If the righteous is unjustly slain, he shall rest with God forever; so also is he whom a bishop unjustly casts out.”
No Judgment Without a Trial
No bishop, however high his authority, may say to anyone, “Go, you are excommunicated,” or “Go, you are cut off,” or any such verdict—without a fair trial. Otherwise, the Church would descend beneath even the standards of worldly justice!
Even a murderer caught with the weapon in hand and the victim beside him undergoes multiple investigations before judgment—by the police, the prosecutor, and the court—where he has the right to defend himself, even with a lawyer appointed by the court. Trials may last months, and sometimes the sentence is reduced for psychological or other reasons.
Shall a bishop, as a successor of the Apostles and steward of God, pass judgment without examination or defense, merely based on slander or deceit?
Hence the Didascalia, chapter eight, warns bishops: “When sinners are brought before you, O bishop, you must examine every word spoken to you and judge with truth and justice; be not hasty, nor believe every man who bears witness, for many bring false accusations against their brethren out of envy or malice.”
It recalls the false witnesses against Susanna in Babylon, Naboth the Jezreelite in Samaria (1 Kings 21:8–13), and our Lord Jesus Christ and Saint Stephen (Matthew 26:60–62; Acts 6:11–14).
The Didascalia adds: “Be long-suffering, O bishop. Consider the accusers, and examine wisely what they have said, to understand what and how it is.”
Yes, O father bishop—many come to you with complaints against their brethren, but some are hypocrites who speak evil behind others’ backs while flattering them face to face. If you confronted them together, you would see astonishing contradictions.
Even Roman law, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, allowed the accused to face his accusers and defend himself (Acts 25:16).
The Didascalia teaches the same: “Do not give judgment in the presence of one party before the other has arrived.” And it warns bishops: “If you hear the words of one side and judge quickly before the other is present to answer and defend himself, you are guilty of the very death you have judged.”
It also requires reliable witnesses—not all may testify, for there are many false witnesses. “The witnesses must be blameless, merciful, loving, pure, good, faithful, and without evil. Those whose conduct is contrary should not be accepted, even if they all agree.” “The father who hastily drives away his children and accepts such testimony is a father of wrath, not of peace.”
The Didascalia further commands: “He who bears false witness deserves punishment. Do not leave such a one unpunished, lest he grow bold to lie again. When his falsehood is proved, punish him as he intended for his brother.”
What Should the Bishop Do When a Sinner Is Found Guilty?
The Didascalia teaches: “The bishop must cleanse the sin by teaching.” He must admonish, guide, and instruct the sinner until repentance. “Take him alone and rebuke him between you and him, that he may repent. And if he repents, receive him with joy.”
Canon 36 of the second book of Apostolic Canons declares: “If a bishop refuses to receive a penitent sinner, let him be deposed, for he has grieved the heart of the Lord who said, ‘There is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents’” (Luke 15:7).
If the sinner refuses to repent, the Didascalia advises: “Take with you one or two and admonish him with gentleness and teaching. If he persists, tell it to the Church; and if he will not hear the Church, let him be to you as a heathen and a tax collector. Cast him out with sorrow and pain of heart.”
What Should the Bishop Do After Punishing the Sinner?
The Apostolic Fathers say in the Didascalia, chapter four: “O bishop, restore him who has fallen. Do not leave him outside, but receive him. Ask about the one who strayed.” Their compassion goes so far as to say: “Let the bishop take upon himself the sin of the sinner, making it his own, and say to him, ‘Return, my son; I will accept death for you, as my Lord Christ did.’”
[1] Article by His Grace Bishop Shenouda, Bishop of Education – El-Keraza Magazine, Year 2, Issues 1 & 2, January–February 1966.
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