Crowns and Victory

Corona victoriae non promittitur nisi certantibus. In divinis autem Scripturis assidue invenimus promitti nobis coronam, si vicerimus. Sed ne longum sit multa commemorare, apud apostolum Paulum manifestissime legitur: Opus perfeci, cursum consummavi, fidem servavi; iam superest mihi corona iustitiae. Debemus ergo cognoscere quis sit ipse adversarius, quem si vicerimus coronabimur. Ipse est enim quem Dominus noster prior vicit, ut etiam nos in illo permanentes vincamus. Et Dei quidem Virtus atque Sapientia, et Verbum per quod facta sunt omnia, qui Filius Dei unicus est, super omnem creaturam semper incommutabilis manet. Et quoniam sub illo est creatura etiam quae non peccavit, quanto magis sub illo est omnis creatura peccatrix? Ergo quoniam sub illo sunt omnes sancti Angeli, multo magis sub illo sunt omnes praevaricatores angeli, quorum diabolus princeps est. Sed quia naturam nostram deceperat, dignatus est unigenitus Dei Filius ipsam naturam nostram suscipere, ut de ipsa diabolus vinceretur, et quem semper ipse sub se habet, etiam sub nobis eum esse faceret. Ipsum significat dicens: Princeps huius mundi missus est foras. Non quia extra mundum missus est, quomodo quidam haeretici putant: sed foras ab animis eorum qui cohaerent verbo Dei, et non diligunt mundum, cuius ille princeps est; quia dominatur eis qui diligunt temporalia bona, quae hoc mundo visibili continentur: non quia ipse dominus est huius mundi, sed princeps cupiditatum earum quibus concupiscitur omne quod transit; ut ei subiaceant qui neglegunt aeternum Deum, et diligunt instabilia et mutabilia. Radix enim est omnium malorum cupiditas; quam, quidam appetentes, a fide erraverunt, et inseruerunt se doloribus multis. Per hanc cupiditatem regnat in homine diabolus, et cor eius tenet. Tales sunt omnes qui diligunt istum mundum. Mittitur autem diabolus foras, quando ex toto corde renuntiatur huic mundo. Sic enim renuntiatur diabolo, qui princeps est huius mundi, cum renuntiatur corruptelis, et pompis, et angelis eius. Ideoque ipse Dominus iam triumphantem naturam hominis portans: Scitote, inquit, quia ego vici mundum. Multi autem dicunt: Quomodo possumus vincere diabolum quem non videmus? Sed habemus magistrum, qui nobis demonstrare dignatus est quomodo invisibiles hostes vincantur. De illo enim dixit Apostolus: Exuens se carne, principatus et potestates exemplavit, fiducialiter triumphans eos in semetipso. Ibi ergo vincuntur inimicae nobis invisibiles potestates, ubi vincuntur invisibiles cupiditates: et ideo quia in nobis ipsis vincimus temporalium rerum cupiditates, necesse est ut in nobis ipsis vincamus et illum qui per ipsas cupiditates regnat in homine. Quando enim dictum est diabolo: Terram manducabis; dictum est peccatori: Terra es, et in terram ibis. Datus est ergo in cibum diaboli peccator. Non simus terra, si nolumus manducari a serpente. Sicut enim quod manducamus, in nostrum corpus convertimus, ut cibus ipse secundum corpus hoc efficiatur quod nos sumus: sic malis moribus per nequitiam et superbiam et impietatem hoc efficitur quisque quod diabolus, id est, similis eius; et subiicitur ei, sicut subiectum est nobis corpus nostrum. Et hoc est quod dicitur, manducari a serpente. Quisquis itaque timet illum ignem qui paratus est diabolo et angelis eius, det operam triumphare de illo in semetipso. Eos enim qui foris nos oppugnant, intus vincimus, vincendo concupiscentias per quas nobis dominantur. Et quos invenerint sui similes, secum ad poenas trahunt. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensi, De Agone Christiano

The crown of victory is not promised unless to those who struggle. In the Divine Scriptures continually we find a crown promised to us, if we conquer. But lest it take too long for many to recall these things, most manifestly in the Apostle Paul it says: The work completed, the course run, the faith kept, a crown of righteousness is ready for me. 1 We should therefore know who it is who is our adversary, him whom if we conquer we shall be crowned. He is the one over whom our Lord has been victorious, that even in Him remaining we might conquer. And certainly of God is virtue and wisdom, 2 and the Word through whom everything was made, 3 He who is the only Son of God, over every creature always unchangeably remaining. And because beneath him is every creature which has not sinned, how much more beneath him is every creature that is a sinner? Therefore, because beneath him are all the holy angels, much more beneath him are all the rebellious angels, of whom the devil is the prince. But because he ensnared our nature it is was right the Unbegotten Son of God himself take up our nature, that by it the devil might be conquered, and that he whom He always has beneath himself, He should make to be beneath us. He himself declares this, saying, 'The prince of this world is cast out.' 4 Not because he has been cast out from the world, which certain heretics think, but because he is outside of those souls who adhere to the word of God, and who do not love the world, of which he is the prince, for he rules those who delight in temporal things which this visible world contains, not because he is lord of this world, but because he is prince of their desires, by which they desire everything which passes; thus to him they are subject who neglect the eternal God and delight in things unstable and changeable. For the root of all evil is cupidity, which in its desires wanders from the faith, embroiling a man in many griefs. 5 Through this cupidity the devil rules over a man and he holds his heart. Such are all those who love this world. The devil is cast out when from the whole heart this world is renounced. So even is the devil renounced, who is prince of this world, when corruptible things are renounced, and pomp, and his angels. Therefore the Lord himself already bears the triumphant nature of man: 'Know,' He says, 'that I have conquered the world.' 6 But many say: 'How can we conquer the devil whom we do not see?' Yet we have a teacher, who thought it right to show to us how invisible enemies may be conquered. Concerning this the Apostle says, ' Putting off the flesh, despoiling the dominions and powers, faithfully triumphing over them in Himself'  7 There, then, the invisible hostile powers are conquered by us, where the invisible desires are conquered. And so that we conquer desires for temporal things in us ourselves, necessary it is that in us we conquer him who through desires rules a man. When it was said to the devil: 'Earth you shall eat,' it was said to the sinner, 'Earth you are and into earth you shall go.' 8 Thus the sinner is given as food to the devil. We are not earth if we are not eaten by the serpent. As even what we eat we convert into our own body so that the food be used in accordance with the body that we are, so by wicked ways, through evil and pride and impiety, a man is made like the devil, that is, similar to him, and subject to him, as our bodies are subject to us. And this is what it means to be eaten by the serpent. Whoever then fears that fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels, 9 let him work for the victory in himself. For those who oppose us without, within we conquer in the conquering of the desires by which they rule us. And those discovered to be like them, with them will be dragged off to punishment. Saint Augustine of Hippo, On The Christian Struggle 1 2 Tim 4. 7-8 2 1 Cor 1.24 3 Jn 1. 1-3 4 Jn 12.31 5 1 Tim 6.10 6 Jn 16.33 7 Col 2.15 8 Gen 3.14-19 9 Mt 25.41