The Pure In Heart

Beati mundo corde, quoniam Deum ipsi videbunt. Mundis corde conspectum Dei spondet. Nihil enim pollutum et sordidum ad occursum divinae claritatis insistit, et ad conspectum Dei acies obsoletae mentis hebetatur: eos scilicet et visui et occursui Dei esse patentes, quibus per animi nitorem ac vitae puritatem potestas sit contuendi. Non enim nisi spiritus perfecti, et immortalitate immutati, quod solis mundis corde dispositum est, hoc quod in Deo est immortale cernemus. In Evangelium Matthaei Commentarius, Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 1 He promises the vision of God to those who are pure in heart. So nothing polluted or filthy may disrupt the meeting with the Divine Splendor and forgetfulness of the acuity of the mind is dulled for the vision of God, that is to say, for those who endure for the vision and encounter with God, by which, through the brightness of the soul and purity of life, comes the ability to behold it. Certainly it cannot be without perfection of spirit and transformation into immortality, for it is only for those pure in heart to see that which is immortal in God. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, from the Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew 1 Mt 5.8

Fighting The Vices

Nobis autem per gratiam innovatis divina quid imperet bonitas, audiamus. 'Ego autem dico vobis.' Quibus? Utique Christianis, 'Non resistere malo.' Sic cum dicit, vult nos vitia non repensare vitiis, sed superare virtutibus, et in ipsos scintillis adhuc exstinguere iram, quae si pervenerit ad totum furoris incendium, sine sanguine non sedatur. Ira vincitur lenitate, mansuetudine exstinguitur furor, malitia bonitate palpatue, crudelitas pietate prosternitur, impatientia patientia punitur, contentio superatur blanditiis, superbiam humilitas sternit. Ergo fratres, qui vult vitia vincere, pietatis arma teneat, non furoris. Sanctus Petrus Chrysologus, Sermo XXXVIII  Source: Migne PL 52.307b-c

Let us hear what the Divine Goodness commands us who have been renewed through grace. 'But I say to you.' To whom? Obviously to the Christians. 'Not to resist the evil man.' 1 When he speaks so, He wants us not to repay vices with vices but to overcome with virtues, and by them to smother anger when it is but a spark, for if it comes to the full fire of fury, it is not restrained without blood being spilled. Anger is conquered with gentleness, by meekness fury is extinguished, malice is soothed by kindness, cruelty is prostrated by piety, impatience is disciplined by patience, contention is overcome by soft words, pride is laid low by humility. Therefore, brothers, he who wishes to gain victory over the vices should lay hold of the arms of piety, not rage. Saint Peter Chrysologus, from Sermon 38 1 Mt 5.39

Meekness and Fear

Auferat a me virgam suam, et pavor ejus non me terreat. Mansuetudine potius quam terrore nos correxit. Per legem quippe virgam Deus tenuerat, cum dicebat: Si quis haec vel illa fecerit, morte moriatur. Sed incarnatus virgam abstulit, quia vias vitae per mansuetudinem ostendit. Unde ei per Psalmistam dicitur: Intende, prospere procede, et regna, propter veritatem et mansuetudinem et justitiam. Timeri quippe quasi Deus noluit, sed quasi pater ut amaretur inspiravit. Quod liquido Paulus dicit: Non enim accepistis spiritum servitutis iterum in timore, sed accepistis spiritum adoptionis filiorum, in quo clamamus, 'Abba pater'. Unde hic quoque apte subjungitur: Loquar, et non timebo eum. Timor a peccato nos suscitare non valuit. Vir enim sanctus, quia humani generis Redemptorem venire mitem conspicit, non metum ad Dominum, sed affectum ad patrem sumit; et timorem despicit, quia per adoptionis gratiam ad amorem surgit. Hinc Joannes ait: Timor non est in charitate, sed perfecta charitas foras mittit timorem. Hinc Zacharias dicit: Ut sine timore de manu inimicorum nostrorum liberati serviamus illi. A peccati igitur morte timor nos suscitare non valuit, sed ad statum vitae aspirata mansuetudinis gratia erexit. Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, Moralia, sive Expositio in Job, Liber IX

Let Him take away His rod from Me, and let not His fear terrify me.1 Meekness rather than fear corrects us. For in the Law God held the rod, in that He said: If someone do this or that, let him die the death. But in the Incarnation He removed the rod because He showed the paths of life by meekness.  So it is said to Him by the Psalmist: 'Set forward, go forth prosperously and rejoice, because of truth and meekness and righteousness.' 2 For He had no wish to be feared as God, but he has inspired us that as a Father He should be loved. Thus Paul clearly says, 'For you have not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption of sons, whereby we cry, 'Abba, Father.' 3  Hence too it is rightly added here, I would speak and not fear Him.4 Fear on account of sin is not able to lift us up. The holy man, because he sees the Redeemer of the human race coming in meekness, does not assume fear towards a Master, but affection towards a Father, and he looks down on fear, because through the grace of adoption he rises up to love.  Hence John says: 'There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.' 5 Hence Zechariah says, 'That delivered out of the hand of our enemies we might serve Him without fear.'6 Therefore fear was not able to raise us from the death of sin, but the infused grace of meekness erected us to the condition of life. Saint Gregory the Great, Commentary on Job, Book 9 1 Job 9.34 2 Ps 44.5  3 Rom 8.15  4 Job 9.35  5 1 Jn 4.18  6 Lk 1.74

Isolation And Cure

Bonus itaque doctor dum promittit alterum de duobus, utrumque donavit. Venit in virga, quia a communione sacra convictum removit. Et bene dicitur tradi satanae, qui separantur a Christi corpore. Venit etiam in charitate, spirituque mansuetudinis, vel quia sic traididit, ut spiritum ejus salvum faceret, vel quia eum quem ante sequestraverat postea sacramentis reddidit. Nam et sequestrari oportet graviter lapsum, ne modicum fermentum totam massam corrumpat: et expurgandum est vetus fermentum, vel in singulis vetus homo, hoc est, exterior homo cum actibus suis, vel in populo inveteratus peccatis, vitiisque concretus. Et bene dixit expurgandum, non projiciendum: quod enim expurgatur, non totum judicatur inutile; ideo enim purgatur, ut utile ab inutili separetur: quod autem projicitur, nihil in se utile habere creditur. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, De Paenitentia, Liber I, Caput XV Source: Migne PL 16.490a-b

So the good teacher, the Apostle, while he promised one of two things, gifted both. He came with a rod, for he separated the guilty man from the holy community, and well is it said that they are given over to Satan who are separated from the body of Christ. But he came also with charity and with the spirit of meekness, whether because he so delivered another up so as to save his soul, or because he afterwards restored him to the sacraments from which he had separated. For it is necessary to separate one who has grievously fallen lest a little leaven corrupt the whole lump. And the old leaven must be purged out, the old man in each person, that is, the outward man and his deeds, he who among the people has grown old in sin and hardened in vices. And well did he say purged, not cast forth, for what is purged is not considered wholly valueless, for to this end is it purged: that what is of value be separated from that which is worthless, but that which is cast forth is considered to have in itself nothing of value. Saint Ambrose of Milan, On Penitence, Book 1, Chapter 15

Leaders and Meekness

Μὴ τὴν ἔννομον ἀρχὴν τοῖς ἀναρμόστοις ἥθεσιν ἐκβαρβάρου, άλλὰ τοῖς πρέπουσιν αὐτῇ πράγμασι κατακόμει πραότητος μεταδιδοὺς τοῖς ἀθύμοις, καὶ ἰσοτητος τοῖς ἤττοσι πρὸς τοὺς μείζους· καὶ τότε λαμπρὸν ἐξάψεις πυρσὸν τῆς εὐνομίας. Ὑπέκκαυμα γάρ ἐστι δικαιοσύνη τοῦ φωστῆρος τῆς εὐαρχίας. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΣΗ', Δονατῳ

It is not fitting for a legitimate leader to adopt barbarous conduct, but rather it is proper that he adorn himself with meekness, giving to himself a passionless soul, and so fairly he treats both the little and the great and he kindles the bright lamp of justice. Righteousness is the fuel of the the light of good government. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 208, to Donatos

Humility and Meekness

Καὶ ὅτι πρὸς τοῦτο μάλιστα τὸ πάθος ὁ Λόγος βλέπει, δῆλόν ἐστιν ἐκ τοῦ μετὰ τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην νομοθετῆσαι ἡμῖν τὴν πραότητα. Ἔοικε γὰρ ἔχεσθαι τοῦ ἐτέρου τὸ ἔτερον, καὶ οἴον μήτηρ τις εἴναι τῆς κατὰ τὸ πρᾶον ἔξεως ἡ τῆς ταπεινοφροσύνης κατάστασις. Εἰ γὰρ ὑφελοις τοῦ ἤθους τὸν τῦφον, καιρὸν οὐκ ἔχει τὸ κατὰ θυμὸν ἐγγενέσθαι πάθος. Ὓβρις γὰρ καὶ ἀτιμία τῆς τοιαύτης ἀῥῥωστίας τοῖς ὀργισθεῖσιν αἰτία γίνεται. Ἀτιμία δὲ οὐχ ἄπτεται τοῦ ἑαυτὸν ταπεινοφροσύνῃ παιδαγωγήσαντος. Εἰ γάρ τις κεκαθαρμένον ἔχοι τὸν λογισμὸν ἐκ τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης ἀπάτης, καὶ βλέποι τὸ οὐτιδανὸν τῆς φύσεως ᾖ συγκεκλήρωται, ἀφ' οἴας ἀρχῆς τὴν σύστασιν ἔχει, καὶ εἰς ὅ τι φέρεται τέλος τὸ βραχὺ καὶ ὠκύμορον τῆς τῇδε ζωῆς,  καὶ τὸν συνεζευγμένον τῇ σαρκὶ ῥύπον, καὶ τὸ πενιχρὸν της φύσεως, τὸ μὴ εἰναι αὐτὴν αὐτάρκη δι' ἑαυτῆς πρὸς τὴν ἰδίαν σύστασιν, εἰ μὴ τῇ περιουσίᾳ τῶν ἀλόγων τὸ ἐνδέον ἀναπληρώσειεν· λύπας τε πρὸς τούτοις καὶ πένθη καὶ συμφορὰς, τάς τε πολυτρόπους τῶν νοσημάτων ἰδέας, αἶς ὑπόκειται ἡ ἀνθρωπίνη ζωὴ, ὦν οὐκ ἔστιν ὅστις ἐκ φύσεως ἀτελής ἐστι καὶ ἐλεύθερος. Ταῦτα δι' ἀκριβείας κεκαθαρμένῳ τῷ τῆς ψυχῆς ὀφθαλμῷ βλέπων, οὐκ ἄν ῥᾳοιως πρὸς τὰς τῶν τιμῶν ἐλλείψεις ἀγανακτήσειεν. Τὸ ἐναντίον μὲν οὖν ἀπάτην ἡγήσεται τὴν ἐπὶ τινι προσαγομένην αὐτῷ παρὰ τοῠ πέλας τιμὴν, οὐκ ὄντος ἡμῖν ἐν τῇ φύσει τοιούτου τινὸς, ὅ δύναται τὴν πρὸς τὸ τίμιον κοινωνίαν ἔχειν, εἰ μὴ κατὰ ψυχὴν μόνον, ἧς ἡ τιμὴ οὐκ ἀπὸ τῶν κατὰ τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον ἐπιζητουμένων συνίσταται. Τὸ γὰρ ἐπὶ πλούτῳ κομπάζειν, ἤ γένει σεμνύνεσθαι, ἤ πρὸς δόξαν ὁρᾷν, ἤ τὸ δοκεῖν ὑπὲρ τὸν  πέλας εἴναι, δι' ὦν αἰ ἀνθρώπιναι πληροῦνται τιμαί ταῦτα πάντα καθαίρεσις τῆς ψυχῆς καταμολύνεσθαι. Τὸ δὲ οὕτως ἔχειν οὐδὲν ἕτερον, ἤ ἐν ἔξει βαθείᾳ τῆς ταπεινοφροσύνης ἐστὶν εἶναι, ἦς κατορθωθείσης, οὐ δεμίαν εἴσοδον ὁ θυμὸς κατὰ τῆς ψυχῆς ἔξει. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Εἰς Τους Μακαρισμους

And so it is clear that the Word, noting this great passion, prescribes meekness for us after humility. For it seems that the one and the other are linked, and it is as if humility is like a mother giving peace to meekness. For if a person draws himself away from the delusion of pride it is unlikely that the passion of anger will take hold. A proud person is shaken by abuse and driven to anger by it but insults do not trouble the person practiced in humility. If a man had clear thoughts concerning the condition of men and he looked into his nature, how fallen it was from its original state, that the end of life rushes upon us so soon, the bodily waste and other discharges of our nature, that he is not sufficient in himself but must supply himself with what he lacks from the goods of brute animals, and, further, let him think on the pains, miseries and various fell diseases and so let him see human life, that no one is by nature free and untroubled. So with the eye of the soul sharpened by such purification, a man is not easily irritated by a lack of respect from others. And, on the other hand, if someone should give us honour for some reason, we do not hold it as a part of own nature since we do not have such things. He who receives honour in the world, after his soul has departed, has no more honour from those who continue to go about in the world. For to base your worth on amount of money gained or the rank of one's family, or observable glory, or other measures by which you judge yourself to excel other men, are the things that pollute the purity of your soul. He who has nothing of these things has the depths of humility, he who has been cleansed allows no access to passion to seize his soul. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, On The Beatitudes

Anger and Vengeance

Audisti convicium, ventus est; iratus es, fluctus est. Vento igitur flante, fluctu surgente, periclitatur navis, periclitatur cor tuum, fluctuat cor tuum. Audito convicio vindicari desideras: et ecce vindicatus es, et malo alieno cedens, fecisti naufragium. Et quare hoc? Quia dormit in te Christus. Quid est, dormit in te Christus? Oblitus es Christum. Excita ergo Christum, recordare Christum, evigilet in te Christus: considera illum. Quid volebas? Vindicari. Excidit tibi, quia ipse cum crucifigeretur dixit: Pater, ignosce illis, quia nesciunt quid faciunt? Qui dormiebat in corde tuo, noluit vindicari. Excita illum, recole illum. Memoria ipsius, verbum ipsius: memoria ipsius, jussio ipsius. Et dices apud te, si vigilat in te Christus: Qualis ego homo, qui volo vindicari? Qui sum ego, qui in hominem exsero comminationes? Morior forte antequam vindicer. Et anhelans, ira inflammatus, et sitiens vindicatam, exiero de corpore, non me suscipit ille qui noluit vindicari: non me suscipit ille qui dixit, 'Date, et dabitur vobis; dimittite, et dimittetur vobis. Ergo compescam me ab iracundia mea, et redibo ad quietem cordis mei. Imperavit Christus mari, facta est tranquillitas. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis, Sermons ad Populum, Sermones De Scripturis Veteris et Novi Testamenti, Sermo LXIII

You have heard abuse, it is the wind; you are angry, it is a wave. When therefore the wind blows and the wave swells, the ship is endangered, the heart is in imperil, the heart is shaken. When you have heard an insult, you long to be avenged, and, yes, you are avenged and so falling into doing evil to another you have been shipwrecked. And why is this? Because Christ is asleep in you. What does this mean: Christ is asleep in you? You have forgotten Christ. Rouse Christ then, recall Christ, let Him wake in you, pay attention to Him. What did you wish? To be avenged.? Has it slipped from your mind that when He was being crucified, He said, 'Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do?'1 He who was asleep in your heart did not wish to be avenged. Rouse Him, call Him to mind. Be mindful of Him and His commands. And then, if Christ is awake in you, you will say to yourself, 'What sort of man am I, who longs to be avenged?' Perhaps I may die before I am avenged, and breathing my last, burning with rage and thirsting for vengeance, I shall depart from the body and He will not receive me who did not wish to be avenged, He will not receive me, who said, 'Give, and it shall be given to you; forgive, and it shall be forgiven you.'2 Therefore I will check my anger and I will return peace to my heart. Christ has commanded the sea, tranquility is restored. Saint Augustine of Hippo, Sermons on the Old and New Testament, Sermon 63 1 Lk 23.34 2. Lk 6.38

Baptism and Sin

Ἐι οὖν ἡ ἄνωθεν γέννησις ἀναστοιχείωσις τε τοῦ ἀνθρώπου γίνεται, ταῦτα δὲ τὴν μεταβολὴν οὐ προσίεται, σκεπτέον τίνος μεταποιηθέντος, ἐντελὴς τῆς ἀναγεννήσεως ἡ χάρις ἐστί. Δηλονότι τῶν πονηρῶν γνωρισμάτων ἐξαλειφθέντων τῆς φύσεως ἡμῶν, ἡ πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον μετάστασις γίνεται. Οὐκοῦν εἰ, καθώς φησιν ὁ προφήτης, λουσάμενοι τῷ μυστικῷ τούτῳ λουτρῷ, καθαροὶ τὰς προαιρέσεις γινοίμεθα, τὰς πονηρίας τῶν ψυχῶν ἀποκλύσαντες, κρείττους γεγόναμεν, καὶ πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον μεταπεποιήμεθα. Εἰ δὲ τὸ λουτρὸν μὲν ἐπαχθείν τῷ σώματι, ἡ δὲ ψυχὴ τὰς ἐμπαθεῖς κηλίδας μὴ ἀποῥῥίψοιτο· ἀλλ' ὁ μετὰ τὴν μύησιν βίος συμβαίνει τῷ ἀμυήτῳ Βίῳ, κᾶν τολμηρὸν εἰπεῖν ᾕ, λέξω, καὶ οὐκ ἀποτραπήσομαι, ὅτι ἐπὶ τούτων τὸ ὕδωρ, ὕδωρ ἐστὶν, οὐδαμοῦ τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐπιφανίστης τῷ γινομένῳ, ὅταν μὴ μὸνον τὸν θυμὸν αισχρος ὑβριζῃ τὴν θείαν μορφὴν, ἢ το κατὰ πλεονεξίαν πάθος, καὶ ἡ ακόλαστος καὶ ἡ ἀσχήμων διάναοια, καὶ τύφος, καὶ φθόνος, καὶ ὑπερηφανία· ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ ἐξ ἀδικίας κέρδη παραμένῃ αὐτῷ καὶ ἡ ἐκ μοιχείας αὐτῷ κτηθεῖσα γυνὴ ταῖς ἡδοναῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ μετὰ τοῠτο ὑπηρετεῖται. Ἐὰν ταῦτα περὶ τὸν Βίον τοῦ βαπτισθέντος ῇ, το μεταπεποίηται ἰδεῖν οὐκ ἔνι· τὸν αὐτὸν Βλέπων ὅνπερ καὶ πρότερον, ὁ ἠδικημένος, ὁ σεσυκοφαντημενος, ὁ τῶν ἰδίων ἀπωσθεὶς, οὐδεμίαν ὁρῶσιν εφ' ἑαυτῶν τὴν τοῦ λεγομένου μεταβολήν. Οὐκ ἥκουσαι καὶ παρὰ τούτου τὴν Ζακχαίου φωνήν, ὅτι Εἰ τινός τι ἐσυκοφάντησα, ἀποδίδωμι τετραπλασίονα. Ἄ πρὸ τοῦ βαπτίσματος ἔλεγον, τὰ αὐτὰ καὶ νῦν περὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ διεξέρχοντι, ἐκ τῶν αὐτῶν ὀνομάτων κατονομάζουσι, πλεονέκτην, τῶν ἀλλοτρίων ἐπιθυμη τὴν, ἀπὸ συμφορῶν ἀνθρωπίνων τρυφῶντα. Ὁ τοί  νυν ἐν τοῖς αὐτοῖς ὤν, ἔπειτα ἐπιθρυλλῶν ἑαυτῷ δια τοῦ βαπτίσματος τὴν πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττον μεταβολὴν ἀκουσάτω τῆς Παύλου φωνῆς· ὅτι εἰ γὰρ δοκεῖ τις εἶναί τι μηδὲν ὤν, φρεναπατᾷ ἑαυτόν. Ὅ γὰρ μὴ γέγονας οὐκ εἰ. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Λόγος Κατήχητικος Ὁ Μέγας,

If, then, the birth from above is a refashioning of the man, and yet his properties do not allow change, it should be sought by what sort of change the grace of rebirth is perfected. It is clear that when the evil features of our nature have been obliterated there is a change to the better. If, then, as the Prophet says, being washed in that mystic bath we become clean in our will and set aside the evil of our souls, we become better persons being changed to a better state. But if, the bathing having been applied to the body, the soul has not washed off from itself the stains of its passions, but the life after initiation is as the life of initiated, though it be a bold thing to say, yet I will say it and will not shrink from it, in these cases the water is but water, for the gift of the Holy Ghost in no way appears in him; when, that is, not only the pride deforms the divine form of the soul, or the passion of greed, or unbridled and disgusting thoughts, with envy, and arrogance, but the gains of injustice also stay with him, and the woman he has bought by adultery still even after that attends to his pleasures. If these things are present in the life of the baptized I cannot see how he has been changed, for I see the same man as he was before. The one treated unjustly by him, the one falsely accused by him, the one who has had his property taken him, these,  see nothing in him which could called change. They do not hear the cry of Zacchaeus from him: 'If I have by false accusation taken anything from a man, I restore it fourfold.'1  The things they said of him before his baptism, the very same things they now relate, calling him the same names: a covetous person, one who desires what belongs to others, one who lives luxuriously at the cost of  the sufferings of other men. Let the man, therefore, who is the same as before, proclaiming loudly to himself of the beneficial change of his baptism, hear the voice of Paul: 'If a man thinks himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.'2 For what you have not become, you are not. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, The Great Catechism 1 Lk 19.8  2 Gal 6.3

On the Damned

Frustra itaque nonnulli, immo quam plurimi, aeternam damnatorum poenam et cruciatus sine intermissione perpetuos humano miserantur affectu, atque ita futurum esse non credunt: non quidem Scripturis adversando divinis, sed pro suo motu dura quaeque molliendo, et in leniorem flectendo sententiam quae putant in eis terribilius esse dicta quam verius. Non enim obliviscetur, inquiunt, misereri Deus, aut continebit in ira sua miserationes suas. Hoc quidem in Psalmo legitur sancto; sed de his sine ullo scrupulo intellegitur qui vasa misericordiae  nuncupantur, quia et ipsi non pro meritis suis sed Deo miserante de miseria liberantur. Aut si hoc ad omnes existimant pertinere, non ideo necesse est ut damnationem opinentur posse finiri eorum de quibus dictum est: Et ibunt isti in supplicium aeternum, ne isto modo putetur habitura finem quandoque felicitas etiam illorum de quibus e contrario dictum est: Iusti autem in vitam aeternam. Sed poenas damnatorum certis temporum intervallis existiment si hoc eis placet, aliquatenus mitigari. Etiam sic quippe intellegi potest manere in illis ira Dei, hoc est ipsa damnatio (haec enim vocatur ira Dei, non divini animi perturbatio), ut in ira sua, hoc est manente ira sua non tamen contineat miserationes suas, non aeterno supplicio finem dando sed levamen adhibendo vel interponendo cruciatibus, quia nec Psalmus ait " ad finiendam iram suam " vel " post iram suam ", sed in ira sua. Quae si sola esset quanta ibi minima cogitari potest, perire a regno Dei, exulare a civitate Dei, alienari a vita Dei carere tam magna multitudine dulcedinis Dei quam abscondit timentibus se, perfecit autem sperantibus in se, tam grandis est poena ut ei nulla possint tormenta quae novimus comparari, si illa sit aeterna, ista autem sint quamlibet multis saeculis longa. Quod aeterna sit poena damnatorum quamvis diversa pro qualitate factorum sicut iustorum aeterna erit beatitudo licet inter se meritis differant. Enchiridion de Fide, Spe et Charitate, Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis

It is in vain, then, that some, indeed very many, lament the eternal punishment and perpetual continuous torments of the damned, and they do not believe it shall be so. Not, indeed, that they are opposed to Holy Scripture, but on account of their own soft feelings they soften down that which is hard and give a more gentle meaning to things spoken which they think are more terrifying than true. 'Has God forgotten to be merciful?' they say, 'Has He in His anger shut up His mercy?' 1This they have read in one of the holy Psalms, but without any doubt we are to understand it as spoken of those who are called 'vessels of mercy,' 2 because, not on account of any merit of their own but solely through the pity of God they are freed from misery. Or if they say that the passage applies to all mankind, there is thus no necessity why they should  suppose that there will be an end to the punishment of those of whom it is said, 'And these shall go into everlasting punishment,'3 for this end shall be in the same manner as the happiness of those of whom it is said, 'but the righteous into eternal life.'3 But let them think, if it pleases them, that the punishments of the damned are at intervals, in some degree, lightened. Even so it should be understood that the wrath of God remains upon them, that is, their condemnation, for indeed this condemnation is the wrath of God and not any disturbance in the Divine mind, and His wrath, though it persists, does not shut up His mercy; which does not mean an end to their eternal punishment but gifts a lightening, or a respite from their torments, for the Psalm does not say, 'to put an end to His wrath,' or, 'after His wrath,' but 'in His wrath.'1 If this wrath stood alone, or even if it were to thought minimal, to be lost to the kingdom of God, to be exiled from the city of God, to be alienated from the life of God, to lack that great goodness which God has reserved for them that fear Him, and has fashioned for them that trust in Him, would be a punishment so grave, that, as it is eternal, no torments that we know of, continued through as many ages, could be compared with it. The perpetual punishment of the damned will be eternal, though there may be difference in accordance with their deeds, just as the eternal life of the righteous will be eternal however their merits differ. Enchiridion, Saint Augustine of Hippo 1 Ps 77.10  2 Rom 9.23  3 Mt 25.46

Sin and Judgement

Et dixisti: Absque peccato et innocens ego sum: et propterea avertatur furor tuus a me. Ecce ego judicio contendam tecum, eo quod dixeris, Non peccari: quam vilis es facta nimis (sive quomodo contempsisti nimis) iterans vias tuas. His utendum est adversus eos qui nolunt sua peccata cognoscere: sed in tempore afflictionis et angustiae dicunt se injuste sustinere quae sustinent: magisque provocant iram Dei, dum alterum, majusque peccatum sit, non lugere quod fecerint, sed vanas excusationes obtendere peccatorum. 'Judicio,' inquit, 'contendam tecum pro eo quod dixeris, Non peccavi.' quasi majus quippiam sit hoc peccatum, aliud habere in conscientia, aliud in sermone proferre. Audiat nova ex veteri haeresis, iram Dei esse vel maximam, nolle peccatum confiteri humiliter, sed impudenter jactare justitiam Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentariorum In Jeremiam Propheta

And you say 'Without sin and innocent I am and so let your anger turn from me.' Behold I  shall bring judgement upon you because you have said, 'I am without sin,' for vilely you have acted (or you have been contemptible) repeating your ways.  These things should be used against those who are unwilling to acknowledge their sins but rather in times of affliction and anguish say that they are suffering unjustly what they suffer, and because of this they provoke more the anger of God, since it is another and greater sin for them to not mourn over what they have done and instead to cling to vain excuses for their sins. 'I shall bring  judgement upon you because you have said, 'I am without sin,' as if this sin were worse, to have something in one's conscience and to say something else with one's words. Let the new heresy learn from the old: the anger of God is even greater when a man is unwilling to confess his sin humbly but instead impudently boasts that he is righteous. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Jeremiah

Hypocrisy And Virtue

'Attendite ne justitiam vestram faciatis coram hominibus, ut videamini ab eis: alioquin mercedem non habebitis apud Patrem vestrum qui in coelis est.'  Qui tuba canit, eleemosynam faciens, hypocrita est. Qui jejunans demolitur faciem suam, ut ventris inanitatem monstret in vultu, et hic hypocrita est. Qui in synagogis et in angulis platearum orat, ut videatur ab hominibus, hypocrita est. Ex quibus omnibus colligitur hypocritas esse, qui quodlibet faciunt, ut ab hominibus glorificentur. Mihi videtur et ille qui dicit fratri suo: 'Dimitte ut tollam festucam de ocula tua, propter gloriam hoc facere, ut ipse justus esse videatur. Unde dicitur ei a Domino: Hypocrita, ejice primum trabem de oculo tuo. Non itaque virtus, sed causa virtutis apud Deum mercedem habet. Etsi a recta via paululum declinaveris, non interest utrum ad dextram vadas, an ad sinistram, cum verum iter amiseris.  Sanctus Hieronymus, Commentaria in Matthaeum, Liber I, Caput VI Source: Migne PL 26 41-42

'Take care lest you make your righteousness before men, that you be seen by them, thus you will not have a reward from your Father who is in heaven.' 1 He who blows his trumpet while giving alms is a hypocrite. He who disfigures his face when he fasts, so that he might show the emptiness of his belly by his face, is a hypocrite. He who prays in the synagogues and at the street corners so that he be seen by men, is a hypocrite. It should be gathered from all this that the hypocrites are those who do what they do so that they may be glorified by men. It seems to me that even he who says to his brother, ' Allow me to remove that speck from your eye,' does this on account of glory, that he might appear to be righteous. Thus it is said to him by the Lord, 'Hypocrite, first take the plank from your own eye.' Not otherwise is there virtue, but that the reason of virtue has a reward with God. If you wander a little from the correct way, it does not matter it you go off to the right or to the left, since you have lost the true way. Saint Jerome, from the Commentary on the Gospel of St Matthew, Book 1, Chapter 6  1 Mt 6. 1

A Warning about Fasting

Εἶπε πάλιν· Εἰ νομίμως ἀσκεῖτε νηστεύοντες, μὴ τυφοῦσθε· εἰ δὲ ἐπὶ τοῦτο αὐχεῖτε, μᾶλλον κρεωφαψεὶτε. Συμφέρει γὰρ ἀνθρώπῳ μᾶλλον κρέα ἐσθίειν, ἢ τυφοῦσθαι καὶ μεγαλαυχεῖν ᾽Αποφθεγματα των ἀγιων γεροντων, Παλλαδιος

Again father John of Thebaid said, 'If you lawfully exert yourself in fasting, do not be conceited; for if you glory in this, it would be better that you ate meat. It is better for a man to eat meat than to be proud and to boast.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia

The Instruction and Benefit of Fasting

Quotidiano enim, dilectissimi, experimento probatur satietate carnis aciem mentis obtundi, et ciborum nimietate vigorem cordis hebetari, ita ut delectatio edendi etiam corporum contraria sit saluti, nisi ratio temperantiae obsistat illecebrae, et quod futurum est oneri, subtrahat voluptati. Quamvis enim sine anima nihil caro desideret, et inde accipiat sensus unde sumit et motus; ejusdem tamen est animae, quaedam subditae sibi negare substantiae, et interiori judicio, ab inconvenientibus exteriora frenare, ut a corporeis cupiditatibus saepius libera, in aula mentis possit divinae vacare sapientiae, ubi omni strepitu terrenarum silente curarum, in meditationibus sanctis, et in deliciis laetetur aeternis. Quod etsi in hac vita difficile est continuari, potest tamen frequenter assumi, ut saepius ac diutius spiritalibus potius quam carnalibus occupemur; et cum melioribus curis majores impendimus moras, ad incorruptibiles divitias, etiam temporales transeant actiones. Hujus observantiae utilitas, dilectissimi, in ecclesiasticis praecipue est constituta jejuniis, quae ex doctrina sancti Spiritus ita per totius anni circulum distributa sunt, ut lex abstinentiae omnibus sit ascripta temporibus. Siquidem jejunium vernum in Quadragesima, aestivum in Pentecoste, autumnale in mense septimo, hiemale autem in hoc qui est decimus celebramus, intelligentes divinis nihil vacuum esse praeceptis, et verbo Dei ad eruditionem nostram omnia elementa servire; dum per ipsius mundi cardines, quasi per quatuor Evangelia, incessabiliter discimus quod et praedicemus et agamus. Sanctus Leo Magnus, Sermo XIX

Indeed, beloved, by daily experience it is proved that the mind's edge is blunted by indulgence of the flesh and the heart's vigour is dulled by excess of food, so that the delights of eating are actually opposed to the health of the body unless reasonable temperance resists enticement and prospect of future burdens draws us from pleasure. Although without the soul the flesh desires nothing, and from whence it receives its sense so it receives its motions, yet it is of the same soul to deny certain things to the matter which is subject to it and by interior judgment to restrain the exterior from things inconvenient, that it may be more often liberated from bodily desires and in the palace of the mind have leisure for Divine wisdom, where, all clamor of earthly cares being silent, it may rejoice in sacred meditations and eternal delights. And even though in this life it is is difficult to maintain, yet one can frequently take up the task again, that we may more often and for longer be occupied with spiritual rather than bodily cares, and that by devoting ever greater time to higher cares even our temporal actions may pass to incorruptible riches. So this useful observance, dearly beloved, is especially established for the fasts of the Church, which, by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, are distributed over the whole course of the year that the law of abstinence may be present at all times. Thus it is we practise the spring fast in Lent, the summer fast at Pentecost, the autumn fast in the seventh month, and the winter fast in the tenth month, knowing that there is nothing lacking in the Divine commands and that to our instruction all the elements serve the Word of God, while on the very hinges on which the world turns, as if on the four Gospels, we learn unceasingly what to preach and to do. Saint Leo the Great, Sermon 19

The Chains of Wealth

Dissimulanda, fratres dilectissimi, veritas non est, nec vulneris nostri materia et causa reticenda. Decepit multos partimonii sui amor caecus, nec ad recedendum parati aut expediti esse potuerunt quos facultates suae velut compedes ligaverunt. Illa fuerunt remanentibus vincula, illae catenae quibus et virtus retardata est, et fides pressa, et mens vincta, et anima praeclusa, ut serpenti terram, secundum Dei sententiam, devoranti praeda et cibus fierent qui terrestribus inhaererent. Et idcirco Dominus, bonorum magister et praemonens in futurum, 'Si vis,' inquit,' perfectus esse, vade, vende omnia tua, et da pauperibus, et habebis thesaurum in coelis; et veni, sequere me.' Si hac facerent, per divitias suas non perirent; thesaurum in coelo reponentes, hostem nunc et expugnatorem domesticum non haberent. Esset in coelo cor et animus et sensus, si thesaurus esset in coelo, nec vinci a saeculo posset qui unde vinceretur, in saeculo non haberet. Sequeretur Dominum solutus et liber, ut Apostoli et sub Apostolis multi, et nonnulli saepe fecerunt, qui, et rebus suis et parentibus derelictis, individuis Christo nexibus adhaeserunt. Sequi autem Christum quomodo possunt qui patrimonii vinculo detinentur? Aut quomodo coelum petunt, et ad sublimia et alta conscendunt qui, terrenis cupiditatibus degravantur? Possidere se credunt qui potius possidentur, census sui servi.   Sanctus Cyprianus, De Lapsis

One must not conceal the truth, brethren, nor must our wounds' matter and cause be concealed. A blind love of one's own property has deceived many, nor could they be prepared for, or feel free, with its loss when their possessions bound them like a chain. Those were the chains to them that remained, those the bonds by which both virtue was retarded and faith burdened and the spirit enslaved and the soul hindered, so that they might by clinging to worldly things become spoil and food for the serpent which feeds upon the earth, according to God's sentence. And therefore the Lord the teacher of good things, forewarning for the future, says: 'If you will be perfect, go, sell all that you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven, and come, follow me.' 1 If they had done this, they would not have perished by their riches; laying up treasure in heaven, they would not now have a domestic conqueror and enemy. In heaven would be heart and mind and feeling, if one's treasure were in heaven, nor could he be overcome by the world who had nothing in the world by which he could be overcome. He would follow the Lord unbound and free, as did the Apostles, and many in the times of the Apostles, and not a few abandoned both wealth and relatives and clung to Christ with undivided ties. Indeed how can they follow Christ who are held back by the chain of wealth? Or how can they seek heaven and ascend to sublime and lofty things, who are weighed down by earthly desires? They believe they possess when they are rather possessed, of their own property they are slaves. St Cyprian, On The Lapsed 1 Mt 19.21

Angels, Satan, Man

Cui dixit Dominus, Unde venis?  Quid est, quod venientibus angelis electis nequaquam dicitur, Unde venitis? Satan vero unde veniat percontatur? non enim requirimus, nisi utique quae nescimus. Nescire autem Dei, reprobare est. Unde quibusdam in fine dicturus est: Nescio vos unde sitis, discedite a me, omnes operarii iniquitatis. Sicut et nescire mentiri vir verax dicitur qui labi per mendacium dedignatur; non quo si mentiri velit, nesciat, sed quo falsa loqui veritatis amore contemnat. Quid est ergo ad Satan dicere, Unde venis, nisi vias illius quasi incognitas reprobare? Veritatis igitur lumen tenebras, quas reprobat, ignorat; et Satanae itinera, quia judicans damnat, dignum est ut quasi nesciens requirat. Hinc est quod Adae peccanti conditoris voce dicitur, Adam ubi es? Neque enim divina potentia nesciebat, post culpam servus ad quae latibula fugerat; sed quia vidit in culpa lapsu, jam sub peccato velut ab oculis veritatis absconditum, quia tenebras erroris ejus non approbat, quasi ubi sit peccator ignorat; eumque et vocat, et requirit, dicens, Adam ubi es? Per hoc quod vocat, signum dat quia ad poenitentam revocat. Per hoc quod requirit aperte insinuat, quia peccatores jure damnandos ignorat. Satan ergo Dominus non vocat, sed tamen requirit, dicens: Unde venis? quia nimirum Deus apostatam spiritum ad poenitentiam nequaquam revocat; sed vias superbiae ejus nesciens, damnat. Igitur dum Satan de itinere suo discutitur, electi angeli requirendi unde veniant non sunt: quia eroum viae tanto Deo notae sunt, quanto et ipso auctore peraguntur; dumque soli ejus voluntati inserviunt, eo esse incognitiae nequeunt, quo per apporbationis oculum, ex ipso semper ante ipsum fiunt. Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, Moralia, sive Expositio in Job, Liber II

To whom the Lord said, 'From where do you come?'  Why is it that it is not said to the elect Angels, on their coming, 'From where do you come?'  while Satan is questioned from where he comes?  Indeed we never ask about something unless we do not know it. But God's not knowing is condemnation.  So at the end He will say to some, 'I do not know from where you are, depart from me, all you workers of iniquity.'  In like manner it is said that a truthful man does not know how to lie, he who will not stoop to deceit, not that he would not know how if he had the will to lie, but from love of truth he disdains to tell a lie.  What then is it to say to Satan, 'From where do you come?'  unless to reprove his ways as though unknown.  The light of truth then knows nothing of the darkness which it reproves, and as for the paths of Satan, which it as judge  condemns, it befits that it should ask of them as though it were ignorant of them.  Thus it is said to Adam in his sin, by his Creator's voice, 'Adam, where are you?' For Divine Power was not ignorant to what hiding place His servant had fled after his offence, but because He saw him fallen into sin, he was now, as it were, hidden under sin from the eyes of Truth, in that He does not approve the darkness of his error, knowing not, as it were, where the sinner might be, and He both calls him, and asks him, saying, 'Adam, where are you?'  By His calling, He gives him a sign that He recalls him to repentance. By His questioning, He plainly intimates that He does not know, because sinners justly deserve to be damned. So the Lord does not call Satan, but yet He questions him, saying, 'From where do you come?' because certainly God never recalls the apostate spirit to repentance, but, not knowing his paths of pride, He condemns him. Therefore while Satan is examined concerning his way, the elect Angels do not need to be questioned from where they have come, since their ways are known to God in so much as they are moved by that same author, and while they are subservient to His will alone, they can never be unknown to Him, for through the eye of His approbation, it is Himself from Whom and before Whom they act. Saint Gregory the Great, Commentary on Job, Book 2

Sin and Toleration

Peccata quamvis magna et horrenda, cum in consuetudinem verterint, aut parva aut nulla esse creduntur, usque adeo ut non solum non occultanda verum etiam praedicanda ac diffamanda videantur, quando, sicut scriptum est: Laudatur peccator in desideriis animae suae, et qui iniqua gerit bene dicitur. Talis in divinis libris iniquitas clamor vocatur, sicut habes apud Isaiam prophetam de vinea mala: Expectavi, inquit, ut faceret iudicium, fecit autem iniquitatem, et non iustitiam sed clamorem. Unde est et illud in Genesi: Clamor Sodomorum et Gomorrhaeorum multiplicatus est, quia non solum iam non apud eos puniebantur illa flagitia, verum etiam publice veluti lege frequentabantur. Sic nostris temporibus ita multa mala, etsi non talia, in apertam consuetudinem iam venerunt, ut pro his non solum excommunicare aliquem laicum non audeamus, sed nec clericum degradare. Unde cum exponerem ante aliquot annos Epistolam ad Galatas, in eo ipso loco ubi ait Apostolus: Timeo vos ne forte sine causa laboraverim in vobis, exclamare compulsus sum: Vae peccatis hominum, quae sola inusitata exhorrescimus; usitata vero, pro quibus abluendis Filii Dei sanguis effusus est, quamvis tam magna sint ut omnino claudi contra se faciant regnum Dei, saepe videndo omnia tolerare, saepe tolerando nonnulla etiam facere cogimur, atque utinam, o Domine, non omnia quae non potuerimus prohibere faciamus. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis, Enchiridion de Fide, Spe et Charitate, Cap LXXX

Sins, although grave and horrible, when men become accustomed to them, are looked upon as trivial, or they are judged not to be sins at all, and this goes so far that such sins are not merely concealed but are vaunted and spread aboard, and so, as it is written, 'The sinner is praised in the desires of his own heart and he speaks well of him who openly carries his iniquity.'1 Such iniquity is called in Scripture called a cry, as in the Prophet Isaiah, who speaking of the evil vineyard says, 'I looked for judgment to be done, but there was iniquity; for righteousness, but there was a cry.' 2Whence also it says in Genesis: 'The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah has grown,'3 because in these places outrages were not only not punished, but were openly committed, as if by law. And so in our own times there are many forms of sin, though not just the same, are now so openly and habitually done, that for doing them we not only dare not excommunicate a layman but we dare not even degrade a clergyman. So it was that a few years ago when I was expounding the Epistle to the Galatians, at that very place where the apostle says, 'I fear for you, lest perhaps I have bestowed labor upon you in vain,'4 I was driven to exclaim, 'Alas for the sins of men, for it is only when we do not do them that we shudder at them. When we are accustomed to them, though the blood of the Son of God was poured out to wash them away, though they are so grave that the kingdom of God is shut against them, by familiarity all things are tolerated, and by habitual toleration we are compelled to do them. But may it be, O Lord, that we may not come to practise all that we have not the able to prohibit.' Saint Augustine of Hippo, Handbook on Faith, Hope and Charity 1 Ps 10.3   2 Is 5.7 3 Gen 18.20  4 Gal 4.11

The Serpent Within

Tales quidem secundem eos sententiae sunt, a quibus, velut Lernaea hydra, multiplex capitibus fera de Valentini schola generata est. Quidam enim ipsam Sophiam serpentem factam dicunt: quapropter et contrariam exstitisse factori Adae, et agnitionem homnibus immisisse, et propter hoc dictum serpentem omnium sapientiorem. Sed et propter positionem intestinorum nostrorum, per quae esca infertur, eo quod talem figuram habent, ostendentem absconsam generatricem serpentis figurae substantiam in nobis.  Sanctus Ireneaus Lugdunensis, Adversus Haereses, Lib I, Cap XXX.

Such are the opinions of these heretics, by whom, like the Lernæan hydra, a beast of many heads has been born from the school of Valentinus. For some of them assert that Wisdom herself became the serpent, on which account she was hostile to the creator of Adam, and implanted knowledge in men, and so the serpent was called wiser than all others. And on account of position of our intestines, through which the food passes, by the fact they have such a figure, since this is in the form of a serpent, it exhibits our hidden mother.   Saint Ireneaus of Lyons, Against Heresies, Book 1, Ch 30.

On Communion

Κοινωνία κέκληται ἡ τῶν θείων μυστηρίων μετάληψις, διὰ τὸ τὴν πρὸς Χριστὸν ἡμῖν χαρίζεσθαι ἒνωσιν, καὶ κοινωνοὺς ἡμᾶς τῆς αὐτοῦ ποιεῖν βασιλείας.   Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΣΚΗ', Σωραννῳ

Participation in one of the Divine Mysteries has received the name of Communion, that through which we are able to be joined to Christ, making us partakers in his kingdom. Saint Isidore of Pelusium,  Book 1, Letter 228, to Sorannus

The People of the Snake

Ophitae a colubro nominati sunt, coluber enim Graece dicitur. Hunc autem Christum arbitrantur; sed habent etiam verum colubrum assuetum eorum panes lambere, atque ita eis velut eucharistiam sanctificare. Quidam dicunt istos ophitas ex Nicolaitis sive Gnosticis exstitisse, et per eorum fabulosa figmenta ad colubrum colendum fuisse perventum.   Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensis, De Haeresibus ad Quodvultdeum

The Ophites are named from the snake, Ophis being snake in Greek. This they judge to be Christ and they even have a real snake to lick their bread, and this is to them the santification of the eucharist. Some say these Ophites sprung from the Nicolaiteans or Gnostics and through their fabulous accounts they were brought to snake worship. Saint Augustine of Hippo, On Heresies, To Quodvultdeus

The Virtue Of Silence

Maxima est virtus tacendi, praesertim in Ecclesia. Nulla te divinarum sententia fugiet lectionum, si aurem admoveas, vocem premas. Nullum ex ore verbum quod revocare velis, proferas: sed parcior loquendi fiducia sit. Copiosum quippe in multiloquio peccatum. Homicidiae dictum est: Peccasti, quiesce, ne peccaret amplius: sed virgini dicendum est: Quiesce, ne pecces. Conservabat enim Maria, ut legimus, omnia in corde suo quae de Filio dicebantur: et tu cum legitur aliquid quo Christus aut venturus annuntiatur, aut venisse ostenditur; noli fabulando obstrepere, sed mente admove. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, De Virginibus, Lib III, Caput III Source: Migne PL 16.223a

Great is the virtue of silence, especially in Church. Let no meaning of the divine readings escape you. If you would listen, restrain your voice. From your mouth bring no word which you would wish to call back, rather let your boldness be to be sparing of speech. Truly in much speaking there is an abundance of sin. To a murderer it was said: 'You have sinned, be silent, lest you sin again,' 1 that he might not sin any more. But to the virgin it must be said, 'Be silent lest you sin.' Indeed Mary kept, as we read, in her heart all things that were said about her Son, 2 and so, when any passage is read where Christ or His coming is announced, or He is shown to have come, be unwilling to make a noise by talking, but attend with the mind. Saint Ambrose, On Virgins, Book 3, Chapter 3 1 Prov 10.19 2 Lk 2.19

Silence And Action

Ἄμεινόν ἐστιν σιωπᾷν καὶ εἶναι, ἤ λαλοῦντα μὴ εἶναι. Καλὸν τὸ διδάσκειν, εἄν ὁ λέγων ποιῇ. Εἶς οὖν διδάσκαλος, ὄς εἶπεν, καὶ ἐγένετο· καὶ ἄ σιγῶν δὲ πεποίηκεν, ἄξια τοῦ Πατρός ἐστιν. Ὅ λόγον Ἰησου κεκτημένος ἀληθῶς δύναται καὶ τῆς ἡσυχίας αὐτοῦ ἀκούειν, ἵνα τέλειος ᾗ, ἵνα δι' ὦν λαλεῖ πράσσῃ, καὶ δι' ὦν σιγᾷ γινωσκητα. Οὐδὲν λανθάνει τὸν Κύριον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ κρυπτὰ ἥμῶν ἐγγὺς αὐτῷ ἐστιν. Πάντα οὐν ποιῶμεν, ὡς αὐτοῦ ἐν ἡμῖν κατοικοῦντος, ἵνα ὦμωεν αὐτοῦ ναοὶ, καὶ αὐτὸς ᾖ ἐν ἡμῖν Θεὸς ἡμῶν· ὅπερ καὶ ἔστιν καὶ φανήσεται πρὸ προσώπου ἡμῶν· ἐξ ὦν δικαίως ἀγαπῶμεν αὐτόν. Ἅγιος Ἰγνάτιος Ἀντιοχείας, Ἐπιστολή Προς Ἐφεσιους

Better it is to be silent and be than to speak and not be. Beautiful it is to teach if one acts as one speaks. One the teacher, then: 'He who spoke and it was,' and what He did being silent is worthy of the Father. He who is truly able to grasp the word of Jesus and hear his silence, thus being perfect, that which he speaks he does and by his silence is knowledge. Nothing is hidden from the Lord but even the hidden things of ours are present to him, so whatever it is that we do, let it be as He were dwelling in us, we being His temples, and indeed He shall be manifest to our eyes insofar as we rightly love Him. Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Ephesians