Righteousness And Anger

Quia nisi abundaverit justitia vestra plus quam Scribarum et Pharisaeorum et caetera. Ideo ponit justitiam Scribarum et Pharisaeorum, quia isti justiores in lege esse videbantur, quia non solum faciebant praecepta Moysi, sed etiam faciebant traditiones novas. Scribae erant cancellarii, qui legem exponebant, et novas traditiones scribebant. Dominus autem praecepit, quod abundantior sit apostolorum justitia, quam Pharisaeorum, quia Judaei sequebantur tantum initialia praecepta Moysi et imperfecta. Christus praecepit sequi illa, sed perfecta et consummata, et perfectionem et impletionem mandatorum illorum docet. Sed ut lex sua gravior sit, poenam addit, quia aliter non intrabitis in regnum coelorum. Audistis quod dictum est antiquis: Non occides... Ponit justitiam Pharisaeorum, et suam adimpletionem exponit. Cum enim lex prohibeat occidi manu, Christus occidere voluntate, jubens non irasci. Videamus ergo quam iram prohibeat. Primum, est suggestio in homine, et illa aut est exterior a diabolo, aut est interior ab ipsa carnis fragilitate, quae utraque non est peccatum, sed materia pugnandi et victoriae. Post suggestionem propassio est, id est subitus motus est, qui est aliqua culpa, sed venialis sine aliqua deliberatione boni et mali. Deinde sequitur passio, quando non solum habet motum, sed etiam deliberat quomodo faciat, et ista est mors in domo, haec passio duplex est. Alius enim in ea cogitatione delectatur, et bonum est ei ibi immorari, et tamen nollet perficere etsi haberet opportunitatem. Alius non solum delectatur, sed quaerit etiam opportunitatem, quae aliquando deficit, nec ut vellet contingit, haec ab actu occulto non differt. Prima passio dicitur delectatio. Secunda consensus, aliquando etiam nomina alternantur. Deinde sequitur actus, qui est mors in porta. Tandem consuetudo, quae est mors quatriduani. Cum ergo prohibeat iram, videtur contrarius esse ei, qui dicit: Irascimini et nolite peccare. Sed qui dicit, Irascimini, de passione dicit, quae auferri non potest, et non est criminalis, imo naturalis. Deus autem prohibet passionis iram, quae est ex deliberatione, quae est criminalis, quae est mors. Anselmus Laudunensis, Enarrationes In Matthaeum, Caput V Source: Migne PL 162.1294b-1295a

Because unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and The Pharisees...1 He sets down the justice of the Scribes and Pharisees, because they seemed very just in the law, since that did not only perform the commands of Moses but they even made new traditions. The Scribes were the commentators who expounded the law and wrote down the new traditions. But the Lord commands the righteousness of the Apostles to be more abundant than the Pharisees because the Jews followed only the initial and imperfect commands of Moses. Christ commands them to be performed, but perfectly and consummately, and He teaches the perfection and fulfillment of the commands. But as His law is weightier, He adds the penalty, that otherwise you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard it said to the men of old, 'Do not kill'... He sets down the justice of the Pharisees and he explains its fulfillment. For when the law prohibits killing with the hand, Christ does the wish to kill, commanding us not to be angry. Let us see, then, what anger He prohibits. First there is the suggestion in a man, and that comes either from outside by the devil, or from within by the weakness of the flesh, and neither of these are sins, but the ground of violence and victory. After suggestion there is fore-passion, that is, an interior motion, which is a fault but venial without the deliberation of good and evil. Then follows passion, when there is not only motion but even thought on how to accomplish it, and this is death in the house, which is a twofold passion. One part is delight in the thought, and it is good to delay there and not to accomplish it even if one has the opportunity. Another part is not only that delight but the seeking of an opportunity, which sometimes fades, so that he does not wish it to happen, and this does not differ from a hidden act. The first part of the passion is named delight and the second consent, and sometimes other names are used. Finally comes the act, which is death in the gate. And habit is the fourfold death. But when He prohibits anger, it may seem contrary to Himself who said, 'Be angry and do not sin.' 2 But He who said, 'Be angry' speaks of the passion which is impossible to remove, and it is not criminal but natural. But God does prohibit the anger of passion which is from deliberation, which is criminal, and which is death. Anselm of Laon, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Chapter 5 1 Mt 5.20 2 Ps 4.5

On Not Returning Evil for Evil

Ἠρώτησεν αὐτὸν ἄλλος ἀδελφὸς, λέγων· Τί ἐστι, Μή ἀποδώσεις κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ; Λέγει αὐτῷ γέρων· Τὸ πάθος τοῦτο τέσσαρας ἔχει τρόπους· πρῶτον ἀπὸ καρδίας, δεύτερον ἀπὸ ὄψεως, τρίτον γλώσσης, τέταρτόν έστι, τὸ μὴ ποιῆσαι κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ. Ἐὰν δύνασαι καθαρίσαι τὴν καρδίαν σου, οὐκ ἔρχεται εἰς τὴν ὄψιν· ἐὰν δὲ ἔλθῃ εἰς τὴν ὄψιν, φυλάττου τὸ μὴ λαλεῖν· ἐὰν δὲ καὶ λαλήσῃς, ταχὺ κόψον τοῦ μὴ μοιῆσαι κακὸν ἀντὶ κακοῦ. Αποφθεγματα των ἀγιων γεροντων, Παλλαδιος Source: Migne PG 65.332a-b

Another brother questioned Father Poimen, saying, 'What is it not to return evil for evil?' 1 The elder said, 'This passion has four stages, first from the heart, second from appearance, third from the tongue, fourth from the act of not returning evil for evil. If you can keep your heart pure it will not come to appearance, if it comes to appearance, guard against speaking, if you speak, quickly stop yourself less you return evil for evil.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia 1 1 Thess. 5.15

The Gates

Portas suas habet mundus quibus stulte ingredi nititur ad Deum. Quae sunt corrupta sensualitas, et incesta cupiditas. Unde est: appropinuaeverunt usque ad portas mortis. Portae inferi sunt caeca dispensatio et dura obstinatio: Portae inferi non praevalebunt adversus eam. Portae coeli sunt humilis potentia, quae est porta ferrea ducens ad vitam, et amoris concordia, quae est porta orientalis. Hugo De Sancte Victore, Miscellanea, Liber VI, Tit XCIV De variis portis Source: Migne PL 177.802b

The world has its gates through which there is a foolish striving to draw near to God. They are corrupt pleasures and wretched desires. Whence 'They have drawn near to the gates of death.' 1 The gates of hell are blind inclination and hard obstinacy. 'The gates of hell shall not prevail against it.' 2 The gates of heaven are the power of humility, which is the iron gate that leads to life, and the harmony of love, which is the gate that faces to the east. 3 Hugh Of Saint Victor, Miscellanea, Book 6, Chapter 94, On the Different Gates 1 Ps 106.18 2 Mt 16.18 3 Acts 12.10, Ezek 44

A Bad Promise

Accessit unus scriba, et ait illi: Magister, sequar te quocumque ieris. Accessit autem non fide, ut centurio ille, de quo diximus; sed tantum labiis dicendo: Magister, sequar te. Sic itaque decicit qui promittit, aut incaut aut fice, se Deum ad omnia sequi posse. Displicet enim Dei infidelis et stulta promissio. Necdum sciebat miser, quinam vel quantus esset, quem sequi se promittbat quocunque iret; alioquin quomodo promitteret quod nemo mortalium in hac vita potest, licet post finem vitae dicatur de sanctis, qui empti sunt de terra ex omnibus primitiae Deo et Agno, quod sequantur eum quocunque ierit. Quorum profecto mox addidit causam, quod virgines sint, et empti de terra ex omnibus, ut primitiae Deo et Agno essent etiam sine macula. Sed iste nec suam perpendit mensuram, nec Christi considerat celsitudinem, ignorans quid vel quantum inter se et illum esset. Unde patet quod nihil eum amplius quam hominem putabat, unde et magistrum eum vocat. Credidit enim quod unus esset ex doctoribus legis, et ideo sic eum appellat. Vult ergo sequi, non ut imitetur, sed ut de miraculis et virtutibus lucrum, aut vanam quaerat gloriam. Sic itaque et Simon Magus sequi desiderat. Nam Petrus princeps apostolorum per mare sequitur, sed mergitur: ad passonem quoque, sed negat. Quod si tantus una cum caeteris deserit, nec sequi valet ad omnia; quid putas iste incautus promissor, si tunc adesset? Verumtmen sic dicit, quasi cum eo posset ferre crucis ignominiam, portas confringere inferorum, mortem quoque morte destruere, et vitam resurgendo restituere, ac caetera quae de Christo difficile est enumerare. Idcirco unicuique prius cogitandum quod possit, aut cui, vel quid voveat, quove animo, qua intentione. Sed quod iste dolose haec promiserit, pandit mox conspector omnium, qui corda inspicit singulorum. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Liber V, Caput VIII Source: Migne PL 120.356b -357a

One of the Scribes came to Him and said, 'Teacher, I will follow you wherever you shall go.' ' 1 He does not draw near in faith, like that centurion of whom we have spoken, but only with the lips does he say, 'Teacher, I will follow you.' Thus he who promises to be capable of following God in everything errs either by imprudence or deceit. A faithless man and a foolish promise is displeasing to God. That wretch did not know what it meant or how much it meant, when he promised to follow Him wherever He would go. Besides how shall he promise what no mortal in life is able to do, that is said to be possible only after the end of life for the saints, who have been redeemed from the earth, the first fruits to God and the Lamb, who shall follow Him wherever He shall go, 2 concerning which he soon gives the cause, that they are virgins, and redeemed from all on earth as first fruits to God and the Lamb, and they are without spot. But this man here he does not consider that measure, nor does he consider the heavenly nature of Christ, because He is ignorant of the great gulf between himself and Christ. Whence he openly shows that he does not think Him anything more than a man, and hence he calls Him teacher, for he believes he is one of the teachers of the Law, and therefore he names Him so. He wished, then, to follow, not that he imitate Him, but because he sought profit and vainglory from miracles and power. Simon Magus desired to follow in this way. 3 And Peter the prince of the Apostles followed on the sea but then sank, 4 and also at the Passion he denied Him, and if one as great as this were to desert Him along with the rest, being unable to follow in everything, what do you think would have happened had this imprudent man here who promised been present? Yet so he spoke, as if He was able to bear the disgrace of the cross, and to shatter the gates of hell, and destroy death with death, and rise to the restoration of life, and the other things of Christ which are difficult to enumerate. Therefore each of us should first think what he is able to do, and to whom, and what he shall promise, and how it sits in the soul, and with what intention. But that this man promises wrongly He who sees all things soon reveals, He who looks into the hearts of us all. Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 5, Chapter 8 1 Mt 8.19 2 Apoc 14.4 3 Act 8.13 4 Mt 14.30

Two Crosses

Et tollat crucem suam quotidie, et sequatur me. Duobus etenim modis crux tollitur, cum aut per abstinentiam afficitur corpus, aut per compassionem proximi affligitur animus. Pensemus qualiter utroque modo Paulus crucem suam tulerit, qui dicebat: Castigo corpus meum, et in servitutem redigo, ne forte aliis praedicans, ipse reprobus efficiar. Ecce in afflictione corporis audivimus crucem carnis, nunc in compassione proximi audiamus crucem mentis. Ait: Quis infirmatur, et ego non infirmor? Quis scandalizatur, et ego non uror? Sed in utraque crucis bajulatione notandum quod hanc et quotidie tollere, et ea sumpta Dominum sequi jubemur. Sanctus Beda, In Luci Evangelium Expositio, Liber III, Caput IX Source: Migne PL 92.452c

And let him take up his own cross every day and follow me. 1 Indeed the cross is taken up in two ways, when either the body is afflicted with abstinence or the soul is afflicted with compassion for a neighbour. Let us think of how Paul took up his own cross in two ways, he who said, 'I chastised my body and reduced it to servitude, lest perhaps preaching to others, I make myself blameworthy.' 2  Observe that in the affliction of the body we have heard of the cross of the flesh, and now in compassion for a neighbour let us hear of the cross of the mind. He says, 'Who is weak and I am not weak? Who is scandalised and I do not burn?' 3 And in both struggles of the cross let it be noted that it is to be taken up every day, and with these things taken up we are commanded to follow the Lord. Saint Bede, Commentary on the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 9 1 Lk 9.23 2 1 Cor 9.27 3 2 Cor 11.29

Treating Others

Καὶ καθὼς θέλετε ἵνα ποιῶσιν ὑμῖν οἱ ἄνθρωποι, καὶ ὑμεῖς ποιεῖτε αὐτοῖς ὁμοίως. Καὶ εἰ ἀγαπᾶτε τοὺς ἀγαπῶντας ὑμᾶς, ποία ὑμῖν χάρις ἐστί; Καὶ γὰρ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ τοὺς ἀγαπῶντας αὐτοὺς ἀγαπῶσι. Καὶ ἐὰν ἀγαθοποιῆτε τοὺς ἀγαθοποιοῦντας ὑμᾶς, ποία ὑμῖν χάρις ἐστί; Καὶ γὰρ οἱ ἁμαρτωλοὶ τὸ αὐτὸ ποιοῦσι. Ὁ ἐὰν θέλῃς σὺ ἐπὶ σεαυτοῦ, τοῦτο ἔνδειξαι καὶ τοῖς ἑτέροις. Καὶ γενοῦ τοιοῦτος ἄλλοις, οἴους ἂν θέλῃς περὶ σεαυτὸν γενέσθαι ἑτέρους. Εἰ μὲν σκληροὺς καὶ ἀσυμπαθεῖς καὶ ὀργίλους θέλεις εἶναι τοὺς ἐχθρούς σοι , ἔσο καὶ σὺ τοιοῦτος, εἰ δὲ τούναντίον ἀγαθοὺς καὶ συμπαθεῖς καὶ ἀμνησικάκους, μὴ ἀδύνατον εἶναι νόμιζε τὸ τοιοῦτος καὶ αὐτὸς εἶναι. Ὁρᾷς νόμον ἔμφυτον ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν ἐγγεγραμμένον; Οὕτω καὶ ὁ Κύριος εἶπεν· Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις διδοὺς νόμους μου, εἰς τὴν διάνοιαν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν καρδιῶν αὐτῶν ἐπιγράψω αὐτούς. Εἶτα καὶ ἄλλὴν ἀνάγκην ἐπιτίθησιν ἡμῖν, ὅτι Ἐὰν ἀγαπᾶτε τοὺς ἀγαπῶντα ὅμοιοί ἐστε ἁμαρτωλοῖς καὶ ἐθνικοῖς. Ἐὰν δὲ ἀγαπᾶτε τοὺς πρὸς ὑμᾶς πονηρευομένους, ὅμοιοί ἐστε τῷ θεῷ, ὃς ἐστιν ἀγαθὸς ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀχαρίστους καὶ πονηρούς. Ποῖον οὖν θέλετε , ὅμοιοι εἶναι τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν, ἢ ὅμοιοι εἶναι τοῦ Θεοῦ; Ὁρᾷς διδασκαλίαν θείαν; Ἔπεισέ σε πρῶτον ἀπὸ τοῦ φυσικοῦ νόμου. Ὁ γὰρ θέλεις σὺ γενέσθαι σοι, τοῦτο καὶ αὐτὸς ἄλλοις ποίει. Εἶτα πείθει σε καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ τέλους καὶ τοῦ μισθοῦ· μισθὸν γὰρ ὑπισχνεῖται ὑμῖν τὸ ὁμοίους γενέσθαι Θεῷ. Θεοφύλακτος Αχρίδος, Ἑρμηνεία Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λουκαν, Κεφαλὴ Ϛ’ Source: Migne PG 123.773d-776a

And what you wish men do to you, do to them likewise. If you love those who love you, where thanks are to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what thanks are to you? For even sinners do the same. 1 What you wish for yourself, exhibit this before others. And be to others as you wish others be to you. If you wish your enemies to be hard hearted and pitiless and full of anger, be so, and if you wish them to be good and compassionate and forgetful of injury, do not think it is impossible for you to be so. You see the natural law written in our hearts? So the Lord said, 'In those days I shall give my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts.' 2 After which He exhorts us about other necessary things. If you love those who treat you well, you are like sinners and the gentiles. If you love those who treat you wickedly, you are like God, He who is good to the thankless and wicked. Do you wish, then, to be like sinners are before God? Do you see the Divine teaching? First He teaches you from natural law, that what you wish done to yourself, do this to others. Then He teaches you from the end and the reward, for the reward promised to you is to be like God. Theophylact of Ochrid, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Luke, Chapter 6 1 Lk 6.31-33 2 Heb 8.10

Suffering And Blessings

Mακάριοι οἱ δεδιωγμένοι ἕνεκεν δικαιοσύνης, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστιν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν Τίς οὐκ οἶδεν, ὅσῳ τοῦ ἀγαπᾶσθαι τὸ ἐπιβουλεύεσθαι χαλεπώτερον κέκριται; Τοῦτο µέν τοι πολλάκις τὸ δοκοῦν χαλεπὸν, καὶ τῆς κατὰ τὸν βίον τοῦτον εὐκληρίας πολλοῖς αἴτιον γίνεται, οἷον περὶ τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ ὁ λόγος ἐνδείκνυται· ὃς ἐπιβουλευθεὶς παρὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν, καὶ τῆς µετ' αὐτῶν συν διαγωγῆς ἀπελαθεὶς, διὰ τῆς πράσεως βασιλεὺς ἀν εδείχθη τῶν ἐπιβεβουλευκότων, οὐκ ἂν ἴσως προελθὼν ἐπὶ τὸ τηλικοῦτον ἀξίωµα, µὴ τοῦ φθόνου διὰ τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς ἐκείνης τὴν βασιλείαν ὁδοποιήσαντος. Ὥσπερ τοίνυν εἴ τις τοῦ µέλλοντος τὴν γνῶσιν ἔχων, προεῖπε τῷ Ἰωσὴφ, ὅτι Ἐπιβουλευθεὶς µακάριος ἔσῃ, οὐκ ἂν ἐκ τοῦ προχείρου πιθανὸς ἔδοξε τῷ ἀκούοντι, πρὸς τὸ παραχρῆµα λυπηρὸν ὁρῶντι· οὐ γὰρ ἂν ᾠήθη δυνατὸν εἶναι κακῆς προαιρέσεως ἀγαθὸν ἀνα δειχθῆναι τὸ πέρας· οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἐνταῦθα ὁ τῶν τυράννων τοῖς πιστοῖς ἐπαγόµενος διωγµὸς, πολὺ κατὰ τὴν αἴσθησιν τὸ ἀλγεινὸν ἔχων, δυσπαράδεκτον ποιεῖ τοῖς σαρκωδεστέροις τὴν διὰ τῶν ἀλγεινῶν αὐτοῖς προκειµένην τῆς βασιλείας ἐλπίδα· ἀλλ' ὁ Κύριος τὸ σαθρὸν ὑπεριδὼν τῆς φύσεως, προαναφωνεῖ τοῖς ἀσθενεστέροις, οἷόν ἐστι τῆς ἀγωνίας τὸ πέρας, ἵνα τῇ τῆς βασιλείας ἐλπίδι τὴν πρόσκαιρον τῶν ἀλγεινῶν αἴσθησιν εὐκόλως καταπαλαίσωσιν. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Εἰς Τους Μακαρισμους, Λόγος Ηʹ Source: Migne PG 44.1296a-b

Blessed are those who suffer persecution for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 1 Who does not know how more difficult it is to bear if instead of being loved we are schemed against? Yet often what seems hard becomes a cause of happiness for many even in this life, which is shown in the story of Joseph, he who was plotted against by his brothers and they expelled him from their company, but because of this he became the king of those who had plotted, 1 and perhaps he would not have attained to such great dignity had not the envy of the plotters made a way for that kingdom. If, then, someone who had knowledge of the future had told Joseph, 'You are being plotted against, you will be blessed,' it would not have appeared immediately believable to him who heard, for looking only to present distress, he would not have thought it possible that evil purpose could reach a good end. So here the persecution of the faithful by tyrants, in which there is much material pain, makes it difficult for those who are more worldly minded to admit the hope of the kingdom that is to be brought forth by these pains, but the Lord, looking down on the infirmity of our nature, foretells to the weak what the goal of the struggle is, so that with hope of the kingdom they more easily triumph over the transient feelings of pain. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, On The Beatitudes, from the Eighth Oration 1 Mt 5.10 2 Gen 37-45

Trials And Endurance

Πειρασμοῦ ἐπελθόντος, μὴ ζήτει διὰ τί, ἣ διὰ τίνος ἐλήλυθεν, ἀλλ᾽ ὅπως ἂν αὐτὸν εὐχαρίστως καὶ ἀμνησιχάχως ὑπομείνῃς. Ἅγιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης, Περὶ Νόμου Πνευματικοῦ Source: Migne PG 65.960a

When trial comes, do not seek why, or through whom it has come, but how you may endure it joyfully and without mindfulness of injury. Saint Mark The Ascetic, On The Spiritual Law.

Expanding The Heart

Sepimta utilitas triublationis est quod dilatat cor hominis ad receptione gloriae et gratiae Dei. Quia sicut malleus aurifabri dilatat aurum vel argentum frequenti percussione a faciendum vas pretiosum; sic Deus fabricator totius creaturae ordinavit tribulationem ad cordis dilationem, ad deponenda dona gratiae. De hac tribulatione dicit Psalmista: In tribulatione dilatasti cor meum. Sustine ergo tribulationis ictus, quia quanto dilatatur cor tuum in plus sustinendo, tanto plura spiritualia dona in te reponet Deus. Considera quod quanto metalium est pretiosius, tanto est ductilius est majis obediens ictibus mallei; sic cor pretiosum et mite majorem habet in tribulatione patientiam. Et licet ictus mallei, tribulationis scilicet, te dure affligant, in hoc tamen consolare, quod Deus aurifabar tenet in manu sua malleum tribulationis, qui bene novit ictum suum secundum possibilitatem recipientis materiae moderari. Noli ergo esse sicut metallum in massa, sine extensione, sicut sunt cords dura et indiscuplinata, in quibus locum non invenit tribulatio vel disciplina. Similiter noli esse sicut sartago vetus, quae prae vetustate sub ictu frangitur, et pro una fractura veteri multas recipit novas; sic durum cor et impatiens in tribulatione auget damnum suum. Sustine ergo hilariter tribulationem cor tuum dilatantem. Ad hoc te invitat Sapiens dicens, Sustine sustentationes Dei, conjungendo te Deo; et sustine ut crescat in novissimo vita tua. Quasi diceret: Sustine patienter et libenter tribulationes hujus mundi pro Deo, qui pro te multa sustinuit; et redde ei vicem hujus servitii. Conjungere Deo et sustine; ac si diceret: Sociare Deo, et quidquid tibi imposuerit sustine, et scito quia non ultra possibilitatem te onerabit. Unde Apostolus: Fidelis est Deus, qui non permittit vos tentari ultra id quod ferre potestis. Sustine ergo libenter modis praedictis, ut crescat in novissimis vita tua, quia per hoc vives in aeternuum in gloria. Petrus Blenensis, De XII Utilitatibus Tribulationis Source: Migne PL 207.1000d-1001c

The seventh usefulness of tribulation is that it expands the heart of man for the reception of the glory and the grace of God. Because as the hammer of a goldsmith stretches out the gold or silver with frequent blows to make a precious vase, so God, the maker of all things, has ordained tribulation for the expansion of the heart, even to dispose it for the gift of grace. About this tribulation the Psalmist says, 'In tribulation you expanded my heart.' 1 Endure, therefore, the blows of tribulation, because the more your heart expands with greater endurance so the more spiritual gifts He will bestow on you. Consider how the more precious a metal is, so it is more ductile and more obedient to the blows of the hammer. So it is that a heart that is precious and meek has greater patience in tribulation. And when the blows of the hammer, that is, the blows of tribulation, severely afflict you, you may yet be consoled in this, that God the goldsmith holds the hammer of tribulation in His hand, He who well knows how to moderate His blows according to the possibility of the material receiving them. Do not, then, be like a dull lump of metal, without any ductility, as hard and undisciplined hearts are, in which there is found no place for tribulation and discipline. Similarly do not be like an old pan that because of its age cracks beneath blows, and for one old crack receives many new ones. So even the hard and impatient heart gains its ruin in tribulation. Therefore joyfully delight in tribulation with your heart expanded. To this Wisdom invites you, saying, 'Endure the trials of God, be joined to God, and endure so that you might increase your life in the end.' 2 As if it said, 'Patiently and joyfully endure the tribulations of this world for God, who suffered so much for you, and return to him His service.' 'Be joined to God and endure.' As if he said, 'Cleave to God and endure whatever He imposes on you, and know that He shall not burden you beyond your capability.' So the Apostle says, 'God is faithful, He does not permit you to be tested beyond your ability.' 3 Endure joyfully, therefore, in the ways we have said, 'that you increase your life in the end,' because by this you shall live in glory forever. Peter of Blois, On The Usefulness of Tribulations 1 Ps 4.2 2 Sirach 2.3 3 1 Cor 10.13

Directing Deeds

Felix, cujus cogitatio, hoc est verbum nostrum, omnes actiones suas ad justitiam dirigit, ut et intentio sana sit, et operatio recta. Felix, qui passiones corporis sui propter justitiam ordinat, ut quidquid patitur, propter Dei Filium patiatur: quatenus et a corde tollatur murmuratio, et in ore versetur gratiarum actio, et vox laudis. Qui sic extulit se, iste tollit grabatum suum, et vadit in domum suam. Grabatum nostrum corpus est, in quo prius languidi jacebamus servientes desideriis et concupiscentiis nostris. Nunc vero portamus illud, cum spiritui obedire cogimur: et mortuum nostrum portamus, quia corpus mortuum est propter peccatum. Ambulamus tamen, non currimus; quia corpus quod corrumpitur aggravat animam, et deprimit terrena inhabitatio sensum multa cogitantem. Ambulamus etiam in domum nostram. In quam domum? In matrem omnium, quia sepulcra eorum domus illorum in aeternum. Vel potius in domum nostram, quam habemus ex Deo non manufactam, aeternam in coelis. Qui sub hoc onere ambulamus, posito eo, quid putatis quomodo curremus? quomodo volabimus? Plane super pennas ventorum. Amplexatus est nos Dominus Jesus per laborem et dolorem nostrum: amplectamur cum nos quoque vicariis quibusdam amplexibus propter justitiam et ad justitiam suam, actiones ad justitiam dirigendo, passiones propter justitiam sustinendo. Dicamus quoque cum sponsa: Tenui eum, nec dimittam. Dicamus etiam cum patriarcha: Non dimittam te, nisi benedixeris mihi Quid enim jam superest, nisi benedictio? Quid post amplexum, nisi osculum restat? Si sic adhaererem Deo, quomodo non jam exclamare liberet: Osculetur me osculo oris sui? Ciba nos interim, Domine, lacrymarum pane, et potum da nobis in lacrymis in mensura: donec perducas nos ad mensuram bonam, et confertam, et coagitatam, quam dabis in sinus nostros, qui es in sinu Patris super omnia benedictus Deus in saecula. Amen. Sanctus Bernardus Clarae Vallensis, Sermones De Tempore, De passione Domini Source: Migne PL 183.270a-d

Happy the one whose thought, that is, our word, directs all his deeds to righteousness, with a healthy intention and upright action. Happy the one who on account of righteousness disciplines the passions of the body, so that whatever is suffered, is suffered for the sake of the Son of God. As much as there may be murmuring in our hearts, let there be thanksgiving in the mouth and the voice of praise. He who lifts himself up, he takes up his pallet, and he goes off to his own house. 1 Our body is the pallet on which we have languished, cast down by the service of our desires and lusts. Now, however, let us carry it, when we are driven to obey the spirit, and let us carry our death, because the body is dead on account of sin. But let us walk and not run, 'Because the body which is corrupted lies heavy on the soul, and a worldly habitation weighs down the sense of many thoughts.' 2 Let us indeed walk to our own house; but to which house? To the mother of us all, because their tombs are their houses forever? 3 Or rather to our house which we have from God, not made, but eternal in heaven. 4 Since we walk beneath this weight, since we are so placed, how do you think we shall run? How shall we fly? Certainly on the wings of the winds. 5 The Lord has embraced us through our labour and our sorrow. We are embraced when we also embrace our neighbour in the way of righteousness and for his righteousness, with our actions directed by righteousness, and suffering because of righteousness. Let us also say with the bride. 'I have held him, I will not let go.' 6 Let us say with the patriarch, 'I shall not go until you have blessed me.' 7 What then is left but to be blessed? What remains after the embrace but a kiss? If I adhere so to God, how shall it not be possible to cry out even now, 'That he kiss me with the kisses of is mouth?'8 Meanwhile for us, O Lord, is the bread of tears, the drink of weeping, given to us in measures, until you lead us to a good portion, gathered up, set together, which you shall pour out into our laps, you who are in the lap of the Father, over all things blessed God forever. Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons For The Year, On the Lord's Passion 1 Mt 9.2-7 2 Wisd 9.15 3 Ps 48.12 4 2 Cor 5.1 5 Ps 17.11 6 Song 3.4 7 Gen 32.36 7 Song 1.1

Escaping The Mouth

Ἔξεστιν ἐμπεσόντα τινὰ εἰς τοῦ θηρὸς στόμα, τοῦ διαβόλου φημὶ, ἀπολυθῆναι τούτου διὰ τῆς μετανοίας, καθάπερ λελύτρωται καὶ ἐῥῥύσθη ὁ ἐν Κορίνθῲ προφθαρεὶς τῇ μητρυιᾷ ἐκ φάρυγγος τοῠ ἐχθροῦ, πρὶν τῆ περισσοτέρᾳ λύπῃ καταποθεῖ, καὶ εἰς τὴν κοιλίαν χωρήσῃ τοῦ θηρίου διὰ τῆς ἀγεννσυς δυσθυμίας, καὶ τῆς ἀπογνώσεως. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΣΙΒ’ Ιγνατιῷ Ἀνθυπατῳ Source: Migne PG 79.161a

It is possible for one who has fallen into the mouth of the beast, I speak of the devil, to be released through repentance, as he was released and delivered from the jaws of the enemy who in Corinth associated with his step mother, 1 before he was absorbed by an excess of sorrow and a weak soul in despair and torment was engulfed by the bestial belly. Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 212, to Ignatius the Proconsul 1 1 Cor 5.1

Considerations Of Saffron

Nάρδος καὶ κρόκος κάλαμος καὶ κιννάμωμον μετὰ πάντων ξύλων τοῦ Λιβάνου σμύρνα αλωθ μετὰ πάντων πρώτων μύρων Ὑπόλοιπον δ’ ἂν εἴη τοῦ κρόκου τὸ αἴνιγμα παραστῆσαι τῷ λόγῳ. Φασὶ μὲν οὖν οἱ τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ ἄνθους τούτου κατανοήσαντες μέσως ἔχειν ψύξεώς τε καὶ θερμότητος καὶ τῷ φεύγειν τὴν ἐφ’ ἑκάτερον ἀμετρίαν παρηγορικὴν τῶν ὀδυνῶν ἔχειν τὴν δύναμιν, ὡς διὰ τούτου τάχα τὸν περὶ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἡμῖν λόγον φιλοσοφεῖν τῷ αἰνίγματι, διότι πᾶσα ἀρετὴ δύο κακιῶν ἐστι μέση, τῆς τε ἐλλείψεως τοῦ καλοῦ καὶ τῆς ὑπερπτώσεως. Oἷον τὴν ἀνδρείαν ἢ τὴν ἐλευθερίαν φασί, τὴν μὲν δειλίας τε καὶ θρασύτητος, τὴν δὲ μικρολογίας τε καὶ ἀσωτίας ἐν μέσῳ θεωρεῖσθαι· καὶ τὴν μὲν δειλίαν τε καὶ μικρολογίαν κατ’ ἔλλειψιν τοῦ καθήκοντος ἐν κακίᾳ λέγουσι γίνεσθαι, τὴν δὲ ἀσωτίαν καὶ τὴν θρασύτητα κατὰ πλεονασμὸν καὶ ὑπέρπτωσιν, τῆς δὲ καθ’ ἑκάτερον ἀμετρίας τὸ μέσον ἀρετὴν ὀνομάζουσιν. Oὐκοῦν ἔχοι ἄν τι πρὸς τὴν ἀρετὴν ὁ περὶ τοῦ κρόκου λόγος ἀκόλουθον τῇ τῆς δυνάμεως μεσότητι τὸ ἀνελλιπές τε καὶ τὸ ἀπέριττον τῆς ἐναρέτου καταστάσεως ἑρμηνεύων, ἐγὼ δέ φημι, κἂν ἰδιωτικώτερον ᾖ τὸ λεγόμενον, τάχα μᾶλλον πρὸς τὸν τῆς πίστεως λόγον οἰκειότερον τὸ αἴνιγμα τοῦ κρόκου παραλαμβάνεσθαι· τριπλῷ μὲν γὰρ ὑποτρέφεται τὸ ἄνθος τῷ κάλυκι καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ κάλυξ ἐν ἀεροειδεῖ τῇ χρόᾳ ἄνθος ἐστίν, ἐκδυθείσης δὲ τῆς τῶν καλύκων περιβολῆς τρία εὑρίσκεται πάντως τὰ εὐπνοοῦντα καὶ χρησιμεύοντα πρὸς τὰς ἰάσεις ἄνθη τὰ ὑποκεκρυμμένα τοῖς κάλυξι, μεγέθει καὶ κάλλει καὶ εὐπνοίᾳ καὶ τῇ τῆς δυνάμεως ἰδιότητι ὡσαύτως πρὸς ἄλληλα ἔχοντα καὶ ἓν τὰ τρία διὰ πάντων δεικνύμενα εὐχροίᾳ τε, καθὼς εἴρηται, καὶ εὐπνοίᾳ καὶ τῷ ποιῷ τῆς δυνάμεως. Oἷς συμπαραπέφυκεν ἕτερα τρία, ξανθὰ μὲν ἰδεῖν ἄποια δὲ πρὸς πᾶσαν ὑγιεινὴν εὐχρηστίαν. Περὶ ἃ γίνεται τοῖς ἀπείροις ἡ πλάνη τοῖς διὰ τὴν εὔχροιαν τὸ νόθον δρεπομένοις ἀντὶ τοῦ κρείττονος. Ὅπερ καὶ νῦν ποιοῦσιν οἱ περὶ τὴν πίστιν ἐξαμαρτάνοντες τὰς σεσοφισμένας ἀπάτας πρὸ τῶν ὑγιεινῶν δογμάτων αἱρούμενοι. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Ἐξηγησις Του Αἰσματος Των Ἀσμάτων, Ὁμιλία θʹ Source: Migne PG 44.969d-972c

Nard and saffron, sweet cane and cinnamon, with all the trees of Lebanon, myrrh and aloes with all the best perfumes. 1 What remains is to express in words the mystery of saffron. Those who have acquired some understanding of the power of this flower say that it is a mean between cold and heat, and that because of its avoidance of extremes to which the latter incline it has the power of easing pain. Perhaps, then, because of this, one can use the mystery of saffron to philosophize on virtue, that is, that every virtue is a mean between the two evils of falling short of the good and of exceeding it. 2 Courage and liberality, they say, are to be understood as the means between terror and recklessness and miserliness and prodigality, and they say that because terror and miserliness fall short of what is right they are evils, and prodigality and recklessness are evils because they exceed and exaggerate what is right, and thus they name virtue as the mean between each extreme. Therefore what is said of saffron may have analogy with virtue and because the power of saffron produces a median state thus interpret for us the lack of defect and excess in the condition of virtue. But as inexperienced as my speech may be, I say that it perhaps may be more correct to consider that the mystery of saffron touches on the understanding of faith, for this flower is nourished with a threefold corolla and it is the colour of the sky, and when the cover of these outer petals are removed, three flowers which were previously hidden by the petals are revealed, which are replete with fragrance and useful for healing, and which flowers are similar in size and fairness and fragrance and special power, and the three are one in all things, in the freshness of appearance, and as said, in fragrance and in special power. Then another three grow with them, yellow to the eye, but without any power of healing. And concerning these error besets those who are inexperienced, for they pluck what is inferior instead of what is better because of the attractive hue. And even now those who err regarding the faith do this by taking hold of clever deceits rather than the teachings which restore health. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Commentary on The Song of Songs, from Homily 9 1 Song 4.14 2 Aristotle, Nic Eth 1107a

Healing Sins

Porro autem, monens et ostendens unde mundi et purgati esse possimus, addidit eleemosynas esse faciendas. Misericors docet et monet misericordiam fieri; et quia servare quaerit quos magno pretio redemit, post Baptismi gratiam sordidatos docet denuo posse purgari. Agnoscamus itaque, fratres charissimi, divinae indulgentiae munus salubre, et emundandis purgandisque peccatis nostris, qui sine aliquo conscientiae vulnere esse non possumus, medelis spiritalibus vulnera nostra curemus. Nec quisquam sic sibi de puro atque immaculato pectore blandiatur, ut, innocentia sua fretus, medicinam non putet adhibendam esse vulneribus, cum scriptum sit: Quis gloriabitur castum se habere cor, aut quis gloriabitur mundum se esse a peccatis? et iterum in Epistola sua Joannes ponat et dicat: Si dixerimus quia peccatum non habemus, nos ipsos decipimus, et veritas in nobis non est. Si autem nemo esse sine peccato potest, et quisquis inculpatum se esse dixerit, aut superbus aut stultus est, quam necessaria, quam benigna est divina clementia, quae, cum sciat non deesse sanatis quaedam postmodum vulnera, dedit curandis denuo sanandisque vulneribus remedia salutaria. Sanctus Cyprianus, De Opere et Eleemosynis Source: Migne PL 4.604a-c

Then admonishing and showing how we should be clean and purged, He added that alms should be given. He who pities teaches and warns us that we should have pity, and because He seeks to save those whom at a great cost He has redeemed, He teaches that after the grace of baptism those who have become soiled may once more be cleansed. Let us then acknowledge, beloved brethren, the wholesome gift of Divine mercy. Let us who cannot be without some wound of conscience heal our wounds by spiritual remedies for the cleansing and purging of our sins. Let no one flatter himself with the notion of a pure and immaculate heart so that depending on his own innocence he thinks that there is no need to apply the medicine to his wounds, when it is written, 'Who shall boast that he has a clean heart, or who shall boast that he is pure from sins?' 1 And again in his letter John sets it down and says, 'If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.' 2 But if no one can be without sin and whoever will say that he is without fault is either proud or foolish, how needful, how kind is the Divine mercy, which knowing that there are still some wounds on those who have been healed, has given wholesome remedies for the curing and healing of their wounds anew. Saint Cyprian of Carthage, Treatise On Works And Alms. 1 Prov 20.9 2 Jn 1.8

Sin And Healing

Cor mundum crea in me, Deus, et spiritum rectum innova in visceribus meis Hinc pauca quae Dominus dederit, in eius gratia ministrabimus vobis. Psalmus est paenitentis, amissam spem recuperare cupientis, lapsu suo iacentis, et Domini manu surgere deprecantis, tamquam qui fuerit idoneus ad se vulnerandum, et non sit ad sanandum. Sicut enim ipsam carnem nostram percutere et vulnerare cum volumus possumus, ut autem sanetur medicum quaerimus, nec ita nostra potestate sanamur ut nostra potestate sauciamur, ita et ad peccandum anima sibi ipsa sufficit, ad sanandum autem quod peccando laeserit Dei medicinalem dexteram implorat. Unde dicit in alio Psalmo: Ego dixi, Domine, miserere mei. Sana animam meam quoniam peccavi tibi. Ad hoc ait: Ego dixi, Domine, ut constitueret ante oculos voluntatem arbitriumque peccandi ex anima oriri sibique sufficere ut perdat se, Dei autem esse quaerere quod perierat et salvum facere quod se vulneraverat. Venit enim Filius hominis quaerere et salvum facere quod perierat. Huic precem fundentes dicimus: Cor mundum crea in me, Deus, et spiritum rectum innova in visceribus meis. Dicat anima quae peccavit, ne plus pereat desperando quae se perdidit delinquendo. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensi, Sermo XX, De eo quod scriptum est in Psalmo L, Cor Mundum Crea In Me, Deus Source: Migne PL 38.144-5

Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew an upright spirit within me. 1 What few things the Lord shall give me, by His grace we shall serve you. This is a Psalm of penitence, of someone trying to recover lost hope, laying where he has fallen, entreating that the hand of the Lord might raise him up, like someone who was capable of injuring himself but not of healing himself. As we can strike and wound our own flesh when we wish but we seek a physician for healing since we who can harm ourselves are not able to heal ourselves, so the soul is capable of sinning but for healing when it has been wounded by sin it must implore the medicine of God. Hence it says in another Psalm, 'I said, O Lord, be merciful to me. Heal my soul because I have sinned against you.' 2 He says, 'I said, O Lord,' to set before our eyes that the will and the decision to sin arises from our own souls and we are able to ruin ourselves, but it is for God to seek what has been ruined and to heal what has wounded itself, for the Son of Man came to seek what was lost. 3 To Him we pour out the prayer, saying, 'Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew an upright spirit within me.' Let the soul which has sinned say this, lest it perish again in despair, having ruined itself by wickedness. Saint Augustine of Hippo, from Sermon 20, On what is written in the Fiftieth Psalm, 'Create a clean heart in me, O God.' 1 Ps 50.12 2 Ps 41.4 3 Lk 19.10

Sickness And Infirmity

Et circumibat Iesus totam Galilaeam docens in synagogis eorum et praedicans evangelium regni et sanans omnem languorem et omnem infirmitatem in plebe Quod dixit, Languorem, ad passiones pertinere voluit corporales: quod autem dicit Et omnem infirmitatem ad passiones animae spirituales. Non enim pauciores morbi animam vexant quam corpus. Etsi quidem dixisset, Sanas languores et infirmitates, poteramus utrumque ad passiones intelligere corporales, ut languores quidem intelligerentur graviores passiones, infirmitates autem taedia leviora. Nunc autem cum dicens, Omnem langourm, omnes genus sive gravium, sive leium passionum concludit, alterius clausulae videtur adjectio esse superflua, nisi unam quidem ad passiones corporales intelligamus, alteram autem ad spirituales. Possumus tamen et utramque clausulam, ad utrasque intelligere passiones ita: id est, Omnem languorem, sive corporalem, sive spiritualem: et Omnem infirmitatem, sive corporalem, sive spiritualem: ut languorem quidem intelligamus animae morbum passionis alicujus, infirmitatem autem infideliatem: utputa qui avaritiae morbo subditus est, aut libidinis, aut vanae gloriae, languorem animae patitiur: qui autem mysterium vocationis Dei ignorant, ille infirmus habetur in fide. Multi enim sunt qui possunt bona opera facere, et Deo placere, sed non faciunt: quia mysterium vocationis Dei ignorant, et ipsi sunt infirmi. Quidam autem sic passionibus carnalibus sunt mancipati, ut etiam si sciant mysterium vocationis Dei, tamen bene agere non permittunur, et ipsi sunt languorem habentes. Sed passiones corporales divinitatis virtute sanavit, spirituales autem verbo pietatis. Sicut enim medicina languenti corpori, sic verbum prodest animae aegrotanti, Deinde vide, quod non prius posuit, Sanas omnem languorem, et omnem infirmitatem, sed primum, Praedicans et docens Evangelium regni, et postea, Sanas, propter duas causas. Primum quia miracula virtutum aedificant animas secundum verba pietatis. Ideo autem premittitur quod magis necessarium aestimatur. Deinde quia non verba pietatis virtutes miraculorum commendant, sed virtutes miraculorum veritatis sermones. Nec ideo credebatur Christus posse facere virtutes, quia veritatem praedicabat: sed ideo credeatur veritatem praedicare, quia poterat facere virtutes. Nec ideo credebatur Christus posse facere virtutes, quia veritatem praedicabat: sed ideo credebatur veritatem praedicare, quia poterat facere virtutes. Opus Imperfectum in Matthaeum, Homilia Octava Source: Migne PG 56.678-9

'And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every infirmity among the people.' 1 When it says 'sickness' it wishes to refer to corporeal afflictions, but because it says 'every sickness' it refers to the afflictions of the soul. For diseases do not afflict the soul less than the body. If it had said, 'Healing sickness and infirmity,' we would be able to understand that both referred to corporeal afflictions, so that sickness would be understood as the heavier afflictions and infirmity as the lighter ones. But now when it says 'every sickness,' it includes all sorts of afflictions whether they are heavy or light, but then the additional clause seems superfluous, unless we understand one to be referring to bodily afflictions and the other to spiritual afflictions. However we can understand both clauses to be referring to both afflictions, so that 'every sickness' is either of the body or the spirit, and 'every infirmity' is either of the body or spirit, and thus we may understand 'sickness' to refer to the diseases of the soul and infirmity as faithlessness, so that he who is ruled by avarice or lust or vain glory, suffers from a sickness of the soul, but he who knows nothing of the mystery of the call of God is infirm in faith. For there are many who are able to do good works and to please God but they do not do so because they are ignorant of the mystery of the call of God and they are infirm. Certainly when they are delivered from corporeal afflictions, even if they know the mystery of the call of God, yet they are not permitted to do good since they are sick. But He heals bodily afflictions with divine power, and spiritual ones with the word of piety. As medicine is to the sick body so the word is beneficial to the sick soul. Then see that 'healing every sickness and every infirmity' is not placed first, but 'preaching and teaching the gospel of the kingdom,' and then comes healing, and for two reasons. Firstly because the power of miracles edify the soul according to the words of piety. Therefore that which is more needful is set first. Then because it is not words of piety that commend the power of miracles but the power of miracles commend true words. Christ was not believed to be able to perform miracles because He preached the truth, but He was believed to preach the truth because he was able to do miracles. Opus Imperfectum on Matthew, from Homily 8 1 Mt 4.23