St. Ambrose:
Let our enemies not be jealous of our properties; let them confiscate them, if such be the emperor’s pleasure. I do not give them, but I shall not refuse them. They seek gold; I can say, I do not seek silver or gold. I do not fear this jealousy. I have my bankers and they are Christ’s poor. That is the treasure I have amassed. May they always reproach me for the crime of distributing money to the poor! If they object that I must seek my defense from the poor, I do not refuse this, but even court it. My means of defense are the prayers of the poor. The blind and the lame, the weak and the aged are stronger than the most robust warriors. Gifts to the poor put God under an obligation, as it is written, “He who gives to the poor lends to God” [Prov. 19:17]. On the contrary, a garrison of soldiers often does not merit the divine favor.
~From “Sermon Against Auxentius,” in The Early Church and the State
