The man who raised me sold me to a woman named Rhoda in Rome. Many years later I met her again and began to love her as a sister. Some time later I saw her bathing in the Tiber River. I gave her my hand and helped her out of the river. When I saw her beauty, I thought in my heart, ‘I would be happy if I had a wife like this, both in beauty and in character.’ That was the only thought I had, and nothing more. Some time later, while I was traveling to Cumae and glorifying God’s creations for how great, splendid, and powerful they are, I fell asleep as I walked. A spirit took me and carried me away through a pathless place where no one could travel. The place was steep and broken into ravines by the waters. After crossing that river, I came to level ground, knelt down, and began to pray to the Lord and confess my sins. As I prayed, heaven opened, and I saw the woman whom I had desired greeting me from heaven and saying, ‘Greetings, Hermas.’ I looked at her and said, ‘Lady, what are you doing here?’ She answered me, ‘I was taken up so that I might accuse you of your sins before the Lord.’ I said to her, ‘So are you my accuser now?’ ‘No,’ she said. ‘But listen to the words I am about to say to you. God, who dwells in the heavens, who created out of nothing the things that exist, and who multiplied and increased them for the sake of His holy Church, is angry with you because you sinned against me.’ I answered her, ‘Sinned against you? How? When did I ever say anything shameful to you? Did I not always regard you as a goddess? Did I not always respect you as a sister? Why do you falsely accuse me, woman, of these wicked and unclean things?’ She laughed and said to me, ‘The desire for evil arose in your heart. Do you not think it is an evil thing for a righteous man if an evil desire arises in his heart? It is indeed a sin, and a great one,’ she said. ‘For a righteous man thinks righteous thoughts. When he thinks righteous thoughts, his glory is established in the heavens, and he finds the Lord favorable to him in everything he does. But those who think evil thoughts in their hearts bring death and captivity upon themselves, especially those who cling to this present age, boast in their riches, and do not hold fast to the good things that are to come. Their souls will repent, because they have no hope, but have despaired of themselves and of their life. But you, pray to God, and He will heal your sins, the sins of your whole household, and the sins of all the saints.’
After she had spoken these words, the heavens closed, and I was completely overcome with fear and grief. I said to myself, ‘If this sin is recorded against me, how can I be saved? How will I appease God for my completed sins? With what words can I plead with the Lord so that He may be merciful to me?’ While I was considering and weighing these things in my heart, I saw before me a large white chair made of snow-white wool. An elderly woman came in very bright clothing, holding a book in her hands. She sat down alone and greeted me: ‘Greetings, Hermas.’ Grieving and weeping, I said, ‘Greetings, Lady.’ She said to me, ‘Why are you gloomy, Hermas? You are patient and peaceable and always smiling. Why do you look so downcast and joyless?’ I said to her, ‘Because a very good woman told me that I had sinned against her.’ She said, ‘Far be such a thing from a servant of God! Yet the thought about her certainly arose in your heart. For servants of God, such a thought brings sin. It is an evil and shocking thought for a wholly reverent spirit that has already been tested to desire an evil deed—especially for Hermas, who is self-controlled, abstains from every evil desire, and is full of complete simplicity and great guilelessness.’
‘But God is not angry with you because of this. Rather, He is angry so that you may turn back your household, which has acted lawlessly against the Lord and against you, their parents. Because you were too indulgent toward your children, you did not admonish your household but allowed it to become thoroughly corrupted. This is why the Lord is angry with you. Yet He will heal all the evil that has happened before in your household. For because of their sins and lawless deeds, you yourself were corrupted by worldly affairs. But the Lord’s great compassion has had mercy on you and your household. He will strengthen you and establish you in His glory. Only do not grow careless. Take courage and strengthen your household. Just as a smith, by hammering his work, masters the object he intends to make, so a righteous word spoken day after day overcomes every evil. Therefore, do not stop admonishing your children. For I know that if they repent with their whole heart, they will be written in the books of life with the saints.’ After she finished these words, she said to me, ‘Would you like to hear me read?’ I said, ‘Yes, Lady.’ She said to me, ‘Listen attentively and hear the glories of God.’ I heard things great and marvelous, which I was unable to remember, for all the words were fearsome, beyond what a person can bear. But I remembered the last words, because they were helpful to us and gentle: ‘Behold, the God of hosts, whom I love, created the world by His mighty power and great understanding. By His glorious purpose He clothed His creation with beauty; by His powerful word He fixed the heaven and founded the earth upon the waters; and by His own wisdom and providence He created His holy Church, which He also blessed. Behold, He moves the heavens, the mountains, the hills, and the seas, and everything is made level for His elect, so that He may give them the promise He made with great glory and joy, if they keep the ordinances of God that they received with great faith.’
When she had finished reading and rose from the chair, four young men came, took up the chair, and went away toward the east. She called me over, touched my chest, and said to me, ‘Did you like my reading?’ I said to her, ‘Lady, I like these last words, but the earlier ones were difficult and harsh.’ She said to me, ‘These last words are for the righteous, but the earlier ones are for the gentiles and the apostates.’ While she was speaking with me, two men appeared, took her by the arms, and went away toward the east, where the chair had gone. She left cheerfully and, as she went, said to me, ‘Take courage, Hermas.’