Life And Remembrance

Εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα οὐ μὴ ἐπιλάθωμαι τῶν δικαιωμάτων σου, ὅτι ἐν αὐτοῖς ἔζησάς με. Ἀλλὰ μεμνήσομαι τῶν μαθημάτων σου, ὦν ἔμαθον ἐν τῷ βίῳ· δι' ἐκεῖνα γὰρ ἀπὸ γῆς εἰς οὐρανὸν μετελθὼν οἰκῶ μετ' ἀγγέλων. Ὥωπερ γὰρ ὁ ἐκ μεγάλης νόσου διά τινῶν ἰατρικῶν βοηθημάτων παγίαν καὶ βεβαίαν ἀναλαβὼν ὑγίειαν δι' αὐτοῦ τοῦ ὑγιαίνειν καὶ εὐεκτεῖν οὐκ ἐπιλανθάνεται τῶν ἰατρικῶν ἐκείνων οἷς ἠκολούθησε τὸ οὕτως αὐτὸν μετ' εὐεξίας ὑγιαίνειν· οὕτως ὁ ἅγιος οὗτος, ὐπὸ Θεοῦ ζωοποιηθεὶς ἐν οἷς ἔσχε παρ' αὐτοῦ δικαιώμασι λέγει παρ' ὅλον τὸν αἰῶνα μὴ ἐπιλανθάνεσθαι αὐτῶν, ἀποδιδοὺς τὴν αἰτίαν, τὸ ἐν αὐτοῖς τὸν Θεὸν αὐτὸν ἐζηκέναι. Εὐσέβιος ὁ Καισάρειος, Ὑπομνηματα Ἐις Τους ψαλμους, ψαλμος ΡΙΗ' Source: Migne PG 23.1380c-d

Never will I forget your justifications, for by them you have given me life. 1 I shall be mindful of your teachings, which I learnt in life, by which, passing from the earth to the heavens, I dwell with angels. For as from a grave sickness, by the aid of medicines, a man receives strong and stable health, and he who is now healthy and in a good state does not forget the medicines by the means of which his health was restored, so this holy man, who, receiving justifications from God, was given life, speaks through every age lest there come about forgetfulness of these things, making the declaration that by these things he was given life by God. Eusebius of Caesarea, Commentary on the Psalms, from Psalm 118 1 Ps 118.93

Ruth's Inclusion

Quomodo enim Ruth, cum esset alienigena, Judaeo nupsit? Et qua ratione in Christi generatione ejus putavit evangelista copulae commemorationem esse faciendam, quae Legis serie vetabatur. Non ergo ex legitima Salvator generatione manavit? Videtur esse deforme, nisi ad Apostolicam sententiam revertaris, quia lex non est justis posita, sed injustis. Haec enim cum sit alienigena et Moabitis praesertim cum lex Moysi prohiberet has nuptias, Moabitasque excluderet ab Ecclesia; sic enim scriptum est: Moabite non introibunt in Ecclesiam Domini usque ad tertiam et quartam generationem, et usque in saeculum, quomodo intravit in Ecclesiam, nisi quia sancta et immaculata moribus supra legem facta est, Si enim Lex impiis et peccatoribus postia est, utique Ruth, quae definitionem Legis excessit, et intravit in Ecclesiam, et facta est Israelitis, et meruit inter majores Dominici generis computari, propter cognationem mentis electa non corporis, magnum nobis exemplum est, quia in illa nostrum omnium qui collecti ex gentibus sumus, ingrediendi in Ecclesiam Domini figura praecessit. Hanc igitur aemulemur; ut quia haec moribus hanc praerogativam meruit adsciscendae societiatis suae, sicut historia docet: nos quoque propter morum electionem in Ecclesiam Domini, meritis suffragantibus, allegemur. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, Expositio Evangelii secundum Lucam, Liber III Source: Migne PL 15.1601b-1602a

But how did Ruth who was a foreigner, marry a man who was a Jew? And why in Christ's genealogy did the Evangelist think to make mention of a union which was prohibited by the commandments of the Law? Was the Saviour not drawn from legitimate lineage? It appears monstrous to us unless we attend to that passage of the Apostle: 'The Law is not given for the righteous but the unrighteous.' 1 For this woman was an foreigner, a Moabitess, from a nation with whom the Law of Moses forbade all marriage and completely shut them out of the Church. So it is written, 'A Moabite shall not enter into the Church of God, even to the third and fourth generation, and even forever.' 2 How then did she enter into the assembly unless that she was holy and unstained in her life above the Law? If the Law was given for the impious and sinners, so Ruth, who exceeded the scope of the Law, entered into the assembly and took her place among the Israelites and merited to be reckoned among the great ones of the lineage of the Lord, on account of the elevation of her mind, not her body, being to us a great example, because in her was prefigured the entrance into the Lord's Church of all of us who are gathered out of the Gentiles. This, then, emulate, that as by her conduct she merited the right to be approved for this society, as the history teaches, so we also on account of the elevation of our conduct, by right of merits, be voted into the assembly of the Lord. Saint Ambrose, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Luke, Book 3 1 1 Tim 1.9 2 Deut 23.3

A Different Birth

In Isaac vocabitur tibi semen ... Promissionis enim verbum hoc est: secundum hoc tempus veniam: er erit Sarae filius. Non, ergo, inquit, per ordinem nativitatis carnalis Isaac nascitur; quippe cum jam Abraham emortui esset corporis, et mortua vulva Sarae, sed per virtutem promittentis. Merito ergo non carnis, sed Dei filius dicitur qui ex adventu et sermone Dei nascitur. Guillelmus S Theodorici Abbas, Expositio In Epistolam Ad Romanos, Liber IX Source: Migne PG 180.646a

Through Isaac your seed shall be known ... For this was the word of His promise: at this time I shall come and Sarah shall have a son. 1 Thus He says that it is not according to the carnal order of birth that Isaac shall be born, since Abraham was already barren in his body and Sarah was barren in her womb, but through the power of the promise. Rightly then he is not called a son of the flesh but of God, he who is born from the coming and the word of God. William of St Thierry, Commentary on Romans, Book 9 1 Rom 9.7-9, Gen 18.10

Various Escapes

Adorato autem Domino, magi, et omni devotione completa, secundum admonitionem somnii non eodem quo venerant itinere revertuntur. Oportebat enim ut jam in Christum credentes non per antiquae conversationis semitas ambularent, sed novam ingressi viam a relictis erroribus abstinerent. Tum ut etiam Herodis vacuarentur insidiae, qui in puerum Jesum impietatem doli per simulationem disponebat officii. Unde quia spes istius erat soluta commenti, in majorem furorem iracundia regis ardescit. Nam recolens tempus quod indicaverant magi, in omnes Bethleem pueros rabiem crudelitatis effundit, et caede generali universae civitatis illius in aeternam gloriam transituram trucidat infantiam; aestimans fore ut, nullo illic parvulo non occiso, occideretur et Christus. At ille, qui sanguinem suum pro mundi redemptione fundendum in aliam differret aetatem, Aegypto se parentum ministerio subvectus intulerat, repetens scilicet Hebraeae gentis antique cunabula, et principatum veri Joseph majoris providentiae potestate disponens, ut illam diriorem omni inedia famem qua Aegyptiorum mentes veritatis inopia laborabant, veniens de caelo panis vitae et cibus rationis auferret; nec sine illa regione pararetur singularis hostiae sacramentum, in qua primum occisione agni, salutiferum crucis signum et pascha Domini fuerat praeformatum. Sanctus Leo Magnus, Sermo XXXIII, In Epiphaniae solemnitate III Source: Migne PL 54.242c-243b

When the wise men had adored the Lord and completed all their devotions, according to the warning of a dream, they do not return by the same road by which they had come. For it was not befitting for them who now believed in Christ to walk the paths of their old way of life, but having entered a new way to avoid the errors they had left. Which indeed confounded Herod's plot, who under the appearance of duty was inclined to a wicked crime against the infant Jesus. Hence when his hope in his design unravelled, the anger of the king rose to a greater fury. For considering the time which the wise men had indicated, he poured out his cruel rage on all the male children of Bethlehem, and in a general massacre in the whole of that city slew the infants who thus passed to their eternal glory, thinking that, if every single babe was killed there, Christ too would be slain. But He who was delaying the shedding of His own blood for the world's redemption until another time, was carried and brought into Egypt by the aid of His parents, and thus sought the ancient cradle of the Hebrew race, and by the power of a greater providence took up the princely office of the true Joseph, in that He, the Bread of Life that came down from heaven 1 and the Food of reason, removed that worst of all famines, the lack of truth, in which the minds of the Egyptians were labouring. Nor without a stay in that land would the mystery of that unique victim have been complete, in which by the first slaying of the lamb was prefigured the saving sign of the Cross and the Lord's Passover. Pope Leo the Great, from Sermon 33, On The Epiphany 1 Jn 6.59

John And Philosophy

Οὗτος δὴ οὖν ὁ ἁλιεὺς, ὁ περὶ λίμνας στρεφόμενος καὶ δίκτυα καὶ ἰχθῦς, ὁ ἀπὸ Βηθσαϊδὰ τῆς Γαλιλαίας, ὁ πατρὸς ἁλιέως πένητος, καὶ πένητος πενίαν τὴν ἐσχάτην, ὁ ἰδιώτης ἰδιωτείαν καὶ ταύτην τὴν ἐσχάτην, ὁ γράμματα μήτε πρότερον μαθὼν, μήτε ὕστερον μετὰ τὸ συγγενέσθαι τῷ Χριστῷ, ἴδωμεν τί φθέγγεται, καὶ περὶ τίνων ἡμῖν διαλέγεται. Ἆρα περὶ τῶν ἐν ἀγροῖς; περὶ τῶν ἐν ποταμοῖς; περὶ συμβολαίων ἰχθύων; ταῦτα γὰρ ἴσως παρὰ ἁλιέως ἀκούσεσθαι προσδοκᾷ τις. Ἀλλὰ μὴ δείσητε· τούτων μὲν γὰρ οὐδὲν ἀκουσόμεθα· τὰ δὲ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, καὶ ἃ μηδεὶς μηδέπω ἔμαθε πρὸ τούτου. Οὕτω γὰρ ἡμῖν ὑψηλὰ δόγματα, καὶ πολιτείαν ἀρίστην, καὶ φιλοσοφίαν ἥκει κομίζων, ὡς εἰκὸς τὸν ἀπ' αὐτῶν φθεγγόμενον τῶν τοῦ Πνεύματος θησαυρῶν, ὡς ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἄρτι παραγενόμενος τῶν οὐρανῶν· μᾶλλον δὲ οὐδὲ τοὺς ἐκεῖ πάντας εἰκὸς ἦν εἰδέναι, ὅπερ καὶ ἔφθην εἰπών. Ταῦτα οὖν ἁλιέως, εἰπέ μοι; ῥήτορος δὲ ὅλως; σοφιστοῦ δὲ ἢ φιλοσόφου; παντὸς δὲ τοῦ τὴν ἔξωθεν πεπαιδευμένου σοφίαν; Οὐδαμῶς. Οὐ γὰρ ἀνθρωπίνης ἁπλῶς ψυχῆς περὶ τῆς ἀκηράτου καὶ μακαρίας ἐκείνης φύσεως τοιαῦτα φιλοσοφεῖν, περὶ τῶν μετ' ἐκείνην δυνάμεων, περὶ ἀθανασίας καὶ ζωῆς ἀπείρου, περὶ φύσεως σωμάτων θνητῶν τε καὶ ἀθανάτων ὕστερον ἐσομένων, περὶ κολάσεως, περὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος δικαστηρίου, περὶ τῶν ἐσομένων εὐθυνῶν, τῶν ἐν ῥήμασι, τῶν ἐν πράξεσι, τῶν ἐν λογισμοῖς καὶ διανοίᾳ· καὶ τί μὲν ἄνθρωπος, εἰδέναι, τί δὲ κόσμος· καὶ τί μὲν ὁ ὄντως ἄνθρωπος, τί δὲ ὁ δοκῶν μὲν εἶναι, οὐκ ὢν δέ· τί κακία, καὶ τί ἀρετή. Τούτων γὰρ ἔνια ἐζήτησαν μὲν οἱ περὶ Πλάτωνα καὶ Πυθαγόραν· τῶν γὰρ ἄλλων οὐδὲ ἁπλῶς μνημονευτέον ἡμῖν φιλοσόφων· οὕτω καταγέλαστοι ἐντεῦθεν μεθ' ὑπερβολῆς γεγόνασιν ἅπαντες. Οἱ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων θαυμασθέντες πλέον παρ' αὐτοῖς, καὶ πιστευθέντες εἶναι κορυφαῖοι τῆς ἐπιστήμης ἐκείνης, οὗτοι μάλιστα τῶν ἄλλων εἰσίν· οἳ καὶ πολιτείας μὲν ἕνεκεν καὶ νόμων συνθέντες τινὰ ἔγραψαν· ὅμως δὲ ἐν ἅπασι παίδων αἰσχρότερον κατεγελάσθησαν. Τάς τε γὰρ γυναῖκας κοινὰς ἅπασι ποιοῦντες, καὶ τὸν βίον αὐτὸν ἀνατρέποντες, καὶ τὸ σεμνὸν διαφθείροντες τοῦ γάμου, καὶ ἕτερα τοιαῦτα καταγέλαστα νομοθετοῦντες, οὕτω πάντα τὸν βίον αὐτῶν ἀνάλωσαν. Δογμάτων δὲ ἕνεκεν τῶν περὶ ψυχῆς, οὐδὲ ὑπερβολήν τινα κατέλιπον αἰσχύνης λοιπὸν, μυίας, καὶ κώνωπας, καὶ θάμνους τὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων λέγοντες γίνεσθαι ψυχὰς, καὶ τὸν Θεὸν αὐτὸν ψυχὴν εἶναι φάσκοντες, καὶ ἕτερα ἄττα τινὰ τοιαῦτα ἀσχημονοῦντες. Καὶ οὐ τοῦτο μόνον ἐστὶ τὸ κατηγορίας ἄξιον· ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ πολὺς αὐτῶν τῶν λόγων εὔριπος. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐν εὐρίπῳ τῇδε κἀκεῖσε περιφερόμενοι, οὕτως οὐδέποτε ἐπὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἑστήκεσαν, ἅτε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀδήλων καὶ ἐπισφαλῶν λογισμῶν πάντα φθεγγόμενοι. Ἀλλ' οὐχ ὁ ἁλιεὺς οὗτος οὕτως· ἀλλ' ἅπαντα μετὰ ἀσφαλείας φθέγγεται, καὶ ὥσπερ ἐπὶ πέτρας ἑστηκὼς, οὐδαμοῦ περιτρέπεται. Ἐν αὐτοῖς γὰρ τοῖς ἀδύτοις γενέσθαι καταξιωθεὶς, καὶ τὸν πάντων Δεσπότην ἐν ἑαυτῷ λαλοῦντα ἔχων, οὐδὲν ἀνθρώπινον ἔπασχεν·ἐκεῖνοι δὲ ὥσπερ οἱ τῶν μὲν βασιλείων οὐδὲ ὄναρ ἐπιβῆναι καταξιωθέντες, ἔξω δὲ ἐπ' ἀγορᾶς μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων διατρίβοντες ἀνθρώπων, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς ἰδίας διανοίας καταστοχαζόμενοι τῶν ἀοράτων, τὴν πολλὴν ἐπλανήθησαν πλάνην, περὶ τῶν ἀῤῥήτων διαλεχθῆναι θελήσαντες, καὶ καθάπερ τυφλοὶ καὶ μεθύοντες, καὶ ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ πλάνῃ ἀλλήλοις προσέῤῥηξαν·οὐκ ἀλλήλοις δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἑαυτοῖς, πολλαχοῦ καὶ περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἀεὶ μετατιθέμενοι.Ὁ δὲ ἀγράμματος οὗτος, ὁ ἰδιώτης, ὁ ἀπὸ Βηθσαϊδὰ, ὁ Ζεβεδαίου παῖς· κἂν μυριάκις καταγελῶσιν Ἕλληνες τῆς τῶν ὀνομάτων ἀγροικίας, οὐδὲν ἧττον μετὰ πλείονος αὐτὰ τῆς παῤῥησίας ἐρῶ· ὅσῳ γὰρ ἂν τὸ ἔθνος αὐτοῖς βάρβαρον φαίνηται καὶ τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς ἀπέχον παιδεύσεως, τοσούτῳ λαμπρότερα τὰ ἡμέτερα φανεῖται. Ὅταν γὰρ ὁ βάρβαρος καὶ ἀμαθὴς τοιαῦτα φθέγγηται, ἃ μηδεὶς τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς ἀνθρώπων συνεῖδέ ποτε, καὶ μὴ φθέγγηται μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πείθῃ·καίτοι εἰ καὶ τοῦτο μόνον ἦν, μέγα τὸ θαῦμα ἦν· νῦν δὲ πρὸς τούτῳ καὶ ἕτερον τούτου μεῖζον παρέχῃ τεκμήριον, τοῦ θεόπνευστα εἶναι τὰ λεγόμενα, τὸ τοὺς ἀκούοντας πείθειν ἅπαντας διὰ τοῦ χρόνου παντὸς, τίς οὐ θαυμάσεται τὴν ἐνοικοῦσαν αὐτῷ δύναμιν; Καὶ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο μέγιστον, ὅπερ ἔφην, τεκμήριον τοῦ μηδὲν οἴκοθεν αὐτὸν νομοθετεῖν. Οὗτος δὴ οὖν ὁ βάρβαρος, τῇ μὲν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου γραφῇ τὴν οἰκουμένην κατέλαβεν ἅπασαν, τῷ δὲ σώματι μέσην κατέσχε τὴν Ἀσίαν, ἔνθα τὸ παλαιὸν ἐφιλοσόφουν οἱ τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς συμμορίας ἅπαντες, κἀκεῖθεν τοῖς δαίμοσίν ἐστι φοβερὸς, ἐν μέσῳ τῶν ἐχθρῶν διαλάμπων, καὶ τὸν ζόφον αὐτῶν σβεννὺς, καὶ τὴν ἀκρόπολιν τῶν δαιμόνων καταλύων· τῇ δὲ ψυχῇ πρὸς τὸν χῶρον ἀνεχώρησεν ἐκεῖνον, τὸν ἁρμόττοντα τῷ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἐργασαμένῳ. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος, Υπόμνημα Εἰς τὸν ἅγιον Ἰωάννην τὸν Ἀπόστολον και Εὑαγγελιστην, Ὁμιλία Β´ Source: Migne PG 59.30-31

This fisherman, then, whose business concerned lakes and nets and fish, this man of Bethsaida of Galilee, this son of a poor fisherman, even poor to the last degree, this uneducated man, even ignorant to the last degree, who never learned letters before or after he accompanied Christ, let us see what he speaks and what he converses with us about. Is it things of the field? Is it things of rivers? It is about the fish-trade? For these things, perhaps, one expects to hear from a fisherman. But do not fret, we shall hear nothing of such things from this man but rather the things of heaven, even what no one had ever learned before. For he has come bringing to us sublime teaching and the best way of life and philosophy, as might be expected from one who speaks from the very treasures of the Spirit, as though just come from those heavens, and indeed things which not even all there would have known, as I have said. Tell me, are these the things of a fisherman? Do they belong to a orator at all? To a sophist or philosopher? To all those educated in the wisdom apart from us? Not at all. The human soul is utterly unable thus to philosophize on that pure and blessed nature, on the powers that it possesses, on immortality and endless life, on the nature of mortal bodies that shall later be immortal, on punishment and future judgment, on the examinations that there shall be of deeds and words, and of thoughts and meditations, on what is man and what the world, on what is man in truth and what seems to be man but is not, what is the nature of virtue and what of vice. For some of these things the disciples of Plato and Pythagoras looked into, and the other philosophers we need not call to mind at all, since they have all on this point been so excessively ridiculous, and those who have been in greater esteem among them than the rest and who have been considered the leading men in this discipline, more than the others, they have composed and written somewhat on the subject of politics and law, and all  have been more shamefully ridiculous than children. For they have spent their time in making women common to all men, in overthrowing the order of life, and in destroying the honor of marriage, and likewise with every activity of life. As for their teaching on the soul, there is nothing excessively shameful that they have not said, saying that the souls of men become flies and gnats and bushes, and that God Himself is a soul, and other similar disgraceful things. And it is not this alone in them which is worthy of reproof, but most of their works are like the Euripos strait; 1 for as those carried here and there by the Euripos, so they stand firm on nothing, but propose everything on obscure and deceitful arguments. But not so this fisherman, for all he says is steadfast, and as if standing on a rock, he never moves. For since he has been deemed worthy of the innermost chambers and has the Lord of all speaking within him, he is not oppressed by that which is human, whereas they, just as those who are not held worthy to enter the royal palace, even in a dream, must spend their time outside in the marketplace with other men, and from their own imagination guess at things unseen, and they are gravely deceived by that, yet wishing to speak of things unspeakable, they crash against one other in their delusions like blind or drunken men, and not only against each other, but even against themselves, because they continually shift their opinion concerning the same things. But not this unlettered man, this ignorant man, this native of Bethsaida, the son of Zebedee. And though the Greeks mock ten thousand times the rusticity of these names, I shall speak them with greater boldness. For the more barbarous his nation seems to them and the more removed from Greek teaching, so much more the brighter does what we have appear. For when a barbarian and an untaught person speaks such things that no man on earth ever knew, and does not only speak them, though if this were the only thing it would be a great marvel, but with this gives another and a greater proof that what he says is divinely inspired, namely, the persuasion of those who hear him through the ages, who will not wonder at the power that dwells in him? For this is the greatest proof, as I said, that he lays down no laws from himself. This barbarian then, with his writing of his Gospel, has taken possession of all the civilised world, and with his body he has taken possession of the centre of Asia, where the Greek party of old philosophised, 2 becoming a bane to those spirits, in the midst of his enemies shining forth, scattering their darkness, and casting down the stronghold of demons, though in soul he has withdrawn to that place that befits one who has done such things. Saint John Chrysostom, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint John, Homily 2 1 A narrow strait subject to strong tidal currents separating the island of Euboea from Boeotia in mainland Greece 2 The Presocratic Ionic Philosophers

Stephen And Forgiveness

Positis genibus clamavit dicens: ne statuas illis hoc peccatum. Si enim, inquit, dimiseritis hominbus peccata eroum, dimittet et vobis Pater vester coelestis peccata vestra. Si autem non dimiseritis, nec Pater vester dimittet debita vestra. Videtis, fratres, quia cum Dei gratia in potestate nostra positum est, qualiter a Domino judicemur. Si, inquit, dimiseritis, dimittetur vobis. Jam saepe dixi, fratres, et frequenter dicere debeo, nemo se circumveniat, nemo se seducat; qui vel unum hominem in hoc mundo odio habet, quidquid Deo in operibus bonis obtulerit, totum perdit, quia non menitur Paulus apostolus dicens: Si dedero omnes facultates meas in cibos pauperum, et si tradidero corpus meum, ut ardeam, caritatem autem non habuero, nihil mihi prodest. Quam rem etiam beatus Joannes confirmat, dicens: Omnis qui non diligit fratrem suum, manet in morte. Et iterum: Qui fratrem suum odit homicida est. Hoc loco fratrem omnem hominem oportet intelligi; omnes in Christo fratres sumus. Nemo sine caritate de virginitate praesumat, nemo de eleemosunis, nemo de orationibus confidat; qui quandiu inimicitiam in corde tenuerit, neque istis, neque aliis quibuslibet bonis operibus placare sibi Dominum poterit. Sanctus Maximus Taurinensis, Homilia LXIV, In Natali Sancti Stephani Levitae et Protomartyris Source: Migne PL 57.381c-82a

On his knees he cried out, saying: 'Do not hold this sin against them.' 1 'For if,' He said, 'you forgive men their sins, your Father in heaven shall forgive you your sins. If you do not forgive them, nor will your Father forgive your trespasses.' 2 You see, brothers, that when the grace of God has been placed in our power, how we shall be judged by the Lord. 'If,' He says, 'you forgive, you shall be forgiven.' I have often said, brothers, and I shall frequently say it, that no one should delude himself, no one seduce himself, who has hatred for even one man in this world, for then whatever he offers to God in the way of good works, all of it perishes, because Paul the Apostle did not lie when he said, 'If I should give all my possessions for food for the poor, and if I should give my body over to be burnt, if I have not love, it shall not profit me at all.' 3 Which matter the blessed John confirms, saying: 'Every man who does not love his brother, remains in death.' And again, 'He who hates his brother is a murderer.' 4 In which passage every man should be understood to be a brother. And thus let no one trust in chastity without love, let no one have confidence in alms or prayers. While a man holds hostility in his heart, neither these nor any other good work can please the Lord. Saint Maximus of Turin, from Homily 64, On The Feast Day of St Stephen 1 Acts 7.60 2 Mt 6.14-15 3 1 Cor 13.3 4 1 Jn 3. 14-15

Word And Man

Verbum igitur Dei Deus, Filius Dei, qui in principio erat apud Deum, per quem facta sunt omnia et sine quo factum est nihil, propter liberandum ab aeterna morte hominem, factus est homo: ita se ad susceptionem humilitatis nostrae sine diminutione suae majestatis inclinans, ut manens quod erat, assumensque quod non erat, veram servi formam ei formae in qua Deo Patri est aequalis uniret, et tanto foedere naturam utramque consereret, ut nec inferiorem consumeret glorificatio, nec superiorem minueret adsumptio. Salva igitur proprietate utriusque substantiae et in unam coeunte personam, suscipitur a maiestate humilitas, a virtute infirmitas, ab aeternitate mortalitas, et ad dependendum conditionis nostrae debitum, natura inviolabilis naturae est infusa passibili, Deusque verus homo verus in unitatem domini temperatur, ut quod nostris remediis congruebat, unus atque idem Dei hominumque mediator et mori posset ex uno et resurgere posset ex altero. Merito virgineae integritati nihil corruptionis intulit partus salutis, quia custodia fuit pudoris editio veritatis. Talis ergo, dilectissimi, nativitas decuit Dei virtutem et Dei sapientiam Christum, qua nobis et humanitate congrueret et divinitate praecelleret. Nisi enim esset Deus verus, non afferret remedium, nisi esset homo verus, non praeberet exemplum. Ab exultantibus angelis nascente Domino gloria in excelsis Deo canitur, et pax in terra bonae voluntatis hominibus nuntiatur. Vident enim caelestem Hierusalem ex omnibus mundi gentibus fabricari de quo inenarrabili divinae pietatis opere quantum laetari debet humilitas hominum, cum tantum gaudeat sublimitas angelorum? Sanctus Leo Magnus, Sermo XXI, In Nativitate Domini Source: Migne PL 54.191c-192b

Therefore the Word of God, God Himself, the Son of God, who in the beginning was with God, through whom all things were made and without whom was nothing made, 1 with the purpose of liberating man from eternal death, was made man. So He lowered Himself to take on our humility without decrease in His own majesty, that remaining what He was and assuming what He was not, He might unite the true form of a slave to that form in which He is equal to God the Father, 2 and by such compact join both natures, so that the inferior was not swallowed up in its glorification, nor the superior diminished by what it has taken up. Therefore with preservation of the properties of both substances which came together in one person, humility was taken up by majesty, weakness by strength, mortality by eternity, and for the paying of the debt of our condition, passible nature was infused with inviolable nature, and true God and true man were combined in the unity of the Lord, so that, as was fitting for our remedy, there be one and the same Mediator between God and men, 3 that it be possible both die with the one and rise again with the other. Rightly, therefore, the birth of salvation brought no corruption to the Virgin's purity, because the bringing forth of Truth was the keeping of chastity. Such then, most beloved, was the nativity which was fitting for the Power of God and Christ the Wisdom of God, by which He might join with us in humanity and excel us in Divinity. For unless He were true God He could not bring a remedy, unless He were true Man He could not give an example. Therefore the exulting angels at the birth of the Lord sing: 'Glory to God in the Highest and peace on earth to men of good will.' 4 For they see that the heavenly Jerusalem is being built up out of all the peoples of the world, and concerning this indescribable work of Divine love, how great should be the rejoicing of the humbleness of men, when the joy of the angels above is so great? Pope Leo the Great, from Sermon 21, On The Nativity Of The Lord 1 Jn 1.1-3 2 Philip 2.6 3 1 Tim 2.5 4 Lk 2.14

The Troubles Of The Nativity

Audiens autem Herodes rex turbatus, est omnis Jerosolyma cum eo. Existimans illum regem fore terrenum, quasi de successore regni turbatus est. Semper enim grandis potestas majori timori subjecta est. Sicut ramum arborum in excelso positarum, etiam si lenis aura flaverit, movet: sic et sublimes homines in culmine dignitatum exsistentes etiam levis nuntii fama conturbat. Humiles autem, sicut in convalle, plerumque in tranquillitate consistunt. Aut ideo turbabatur, audiens regem natum Judaeos ex genere Judaeorum, cum esset ipse genere Idumaeus, ne, regno revoluto iterum ad Judaeos, et ipse a Judaeis expellerentur, et semen ejus post ipsum praecideretur a regno. Puto quod non tantum Herodes a semetipso turbantur, quantum diabolus in Herode. Herdoes enim timebat, quod suspicabatur: diabolus autem timebat, quod vere sciebat. Herodes hominem aestimabat, diabolus Deum cognoscebat. Audierat enim jam angelos aere clamantes Gloria in excelsis Deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis. Ideo quanto magis testes addebantur pro Christo, tanto magis destructionem potestatis sua diabolus timebat. Unusquisque ergo eorum zelo proprio turbabatur, et secundum suam naturam sui regni successorem timebat: Herodes terrenum, diabolus autem caelestem. Nam nec Herdoes terreretur, si caelestem regem nasci suspicatus fuisset, nec diabolus, si terrenem. Vis scire, quia non tantum ipse turbabatur, quantum diabolus in eo? Ecce et Judaicus populus turbabatur, qui magis de auditu isto gaudere debuerat, quia rex Judaeus surgere dicebatur, designatus a Deo. Sed turbabantur, quia de adventu justi non poterant iniqui guadere. Aut certe turbabantur timentes ne forte iratus Herodes Judaico regi, genus ejus vexaret. Nam quemadmodum, certantibus ventis, mare concutitur, sic regibus adversantibus sibi, populus regni vexantur. Opus Imperfectum in Matthaeum, Homilia I Source: Migne PG 56.639

When king Herod heard he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 1 He was troubled because he judged Him to be a worldly king, a successor to his kingdom. Great power is always subject to great fear. As the branches of trees set on a height are moved even by a light breeze, so highly placed men in elevated places are troubled by the least word of rumour. The humble, as set in a valley, commonly remain at peace. Or perhaps he was thus troubled by hearing that a Jewish king from the Jews had been born, when he was of the people of Idumaea, lest the kingdom be returned again to the Jews and He be expelled from the Jews and his lineage be cast out of the kingdom. I think that Herod was not only troubled in himself but the devil in him was troubled just as much. Herod feared because he suspected, but the devil feared because He knew the truth. Herod judged Him to be a man, the devil knew Him to be God. For he had already heard the angels crying out 'Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to men of good will.' 2 So as more witnesses were added for Christ, so much more did the devil fear for the ruin of his power. Each of them then was troubled according to his jealousy and each according to his nature feared a successor to his kingdom. Herod feared a terrestrial king, the devil feared a heavenly one. For Herod would not have feared if a heavenly king had been born, nor the devil if it were a terrestrial one. You wish to know how it was that not only was he troubled so much and the devil in him? Behold, even the Jewish people were troubled, who by the hearing of this should have rather rejoiced, because it was said that the king of the Jews had risen, marked out by God. But they were troubled, because those who are iniquitous cannot rejoice at the coming of a righteous man. Or certainly they were troubled because they feared that with Herod angered because of a Jewish king he would become a trouble to his people. For as contending winds stir up the sea, so do opposed kings cause trouble to the people of the kingdom. Opus Imperfectum on Matthew, from Homily 1 1 Mt 2.3 2 Lk 2.14

A Winter's Tale

Etiamsi ego taceam, fratres, tempus nos admonet quod Domini Christi natalis in proximo est. Nam praedicationem meam praevenit dierum extrema conclusio. Ipsis enim angustiis suis mundus loquitur imminere aliquid, quo in melius reparetur, et expectatione festina desiderat, ut tenebras suas splendioris solis candor illuminet. Dum enim cursum suum brevitate horarum concludi meruit, spe quadam annum suum indicat reformari. Haec igitur expectatio creaturae, etiam nos expectare persuadet, ut peccatorum nostrorum tenebras novus sol Christus ortus illuminet, et longam in nobis caliginem delictorum justitiae sol nativitatis suae vigore discutiat: nec patiatur cursum vitae nostrae tenebris vitae concludi, sed virtutis suae gratia dilatari. Igitur quia natalem Domini etiam mundo indicante cognoscimus, faciamus et nos, quod mundus facere consuevit: hoc est, sicut in illa die mundus spatia suae lucis extendit, ita et nostram justitiam protendamus: et sicut diei illius claritas pauperibus et divitibus communis est, ita et nostra liberalitas peregrinas et indigentibus sit communis: et sicut tunc mundus noctium suarum recidit caliginem, ita et nos avaritiae nostrae tenebras amputemus; atque ad instar hiberni temporis, sicut in segetibus solis vapore resoluto gelu nutriuntur semina, ita et in pectoribus nostris resoluta duritie justitiae semen tepefactum Salvatoris radio coalescat. Sanctus Maximus Taurinensis, Homilia IV, Ante Natale Domini Source: Migne PL 57.233a-c

Even if I were to be silent, brothers, the time admonishes us that the nativity of our Lord Christ is near. The utter end of days anticipates my preaching. And in its sparsity the world speaks that something is imminent, by which it shall restored to what is better, and with an eager expectation it desires it, that the brightness of the sun might illuminate its darkness with its splendour. For while the brief course of the year has come to its end, a certain hope hints at its refashioning. Therefore let us also be persuaded to hope with this expectation of created things, that the rising of the new sun of Christ will illuminate the darkness of our sins and the birth of the sun of righteousness dissipate with its power the lengthy darkness of the wickedness in us, that it suffer not the course of our life to end in darkness but enlarge it with the power of His grace. Therefore, because we know that the world points to the birthday of the Lord, let us act as the world is accustomed to act, that is, that in that day in which the world extends its span with light, so even we give greater scope to our righteousness, and as the light of that day is common to the poor and to the rich, so our generosity is common to the vagrant and to the needy, and as the world reduces the darkness of its nights, so we cut off the darkness of our avarice, and as in the season of winter the vapour of the sun melts the snow for the nourishment of the seeds of crops, so even in our heart the rays of the Saviour warm from its hardness the tepid seed of righteousness. Saint Maximus of Turin, from Homily 4, On The Nativity Of The Lord

Receiving Christ

Καὶ αὐτὸς ἐδέξατο αὐτὸ εἰς τὰς ἀγκάλας αὐτοῦ... Εἰσεφέρετο μὲν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ ὁ Χριστὸς βρέφος ὦν ἕτι βραχὺ τε καὶ ὑπομάζιον, καὶ τὰ ὠρισμένα τῷ νόμῳ προσῆγε, ζεῦγος τρυγόνων καὶ δύο νεοσσούς περιστερῶν· σωφροσύνης τε καὶ πραότητος ὁ τύπος, οὐ μὴν δὲ ἀλλὰ καὶ βίου διαφορᾶς, ὦν ἀμφοτέρων νομοθέτης, γάμου τε καὶ ἀγαμίας. Εἴποις γὰρ ἂν τοὺς μὲν εὐζώνους καὶ πνευματικωτέρους καὶ τὸν μονήρη βίον ἐπανῃρημένους, εἶναι τὰς περιστεράς· τοὺς δὲ παιδοποιίας καὶ τῆς ἄλλης οἰκονομίας πεποιημένους πρόνοιαν, τρυγόνας. Ὁ δέ γε μακάριος Συμεὼν, προφητικῇ χάριτι τετιμημένος, δέχεται μὲν εἰς ἀγκάλας αὐτὸν, θυμηδίας τε τῆς ἀνωτάτω πιμπλάμενος, εὐλογεῖ τὸν Θεὸν, λέγων· Νῦν ἀπολύεις τὸν δοῦλόν σου, Δέσποτα. Πόθεν ἀπολύεις; Ἐκ τοῦ βιωτικοῦ σκάμματος· λύτρα γὰρ καὶ δεσμωτήριον ὁ βίος. Ὁ γὰρ μέλλων εἰρήνην ποιεῖν τῷ κόσμῳ παρεγένετο, ὁ συνάπτῶν τὸν οὐρανὸν τῇ γῇ, ὁ κατασκευάζων τὴν γῆν οὐρανὸν διὰ τῆς εὐαγγελικῆς διδασκαλίας. Ὅτι εἶδον τὸ σωτήριόν σου, δ' ἠτοίμασας κατὰ πρόσωπον πάντων τῶν λαῶν. Προητοίμαστο γὰρ τὸ Χριστοῦ μυστήριον καὶ πρὸ αὐτῆς τοῦ κόσμου καταβολῆς· πεφανέρωται δὲ ἐν ἐσχάτοις τοῦ αἰῶνος καιροῖς· γέγονε δὲ φῶς ἐν σκότει καὶ πεπλανημένοις καὶ ὑπὸ χεῖρα πεσοῦσι διαβολικὴν· κέκληνται γὰρ παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς πρὸς ἐπίγνωσιν τοῦ Υἱοῦ, ὃς ἐστι φῶς τὸ ἀληθινόν· ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς δόξαν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ γεγόνασι τινες ἐξ αὐτῶν ὑβρισταὶ καὶ ἀπειθεῖς καὶ ἀσυνεσίας ἔμπλεῳ τὴν διάνοιαν ἔχοντες, ἀλλ' οὖν σέσωσται τὸ κατάλειμμα, καὶ δεδόξασται διὰ Χριστοῦ. Ἀπαρχὴ δὲ τούτων οἱ θεσπέσιοι γεγόνασι μαθηταὶ, ὦν ἡ τῆς εὐκλείας φαιδρότης, ὅλην περιαστράπτει τὴν ὑπ' οὐρανόν· δόξα δὲ καὶ ἑτέρως τοῦ Ἰσταὴλ ὁ Χριστὸς, ὅτι προὴλθεν ἐξ αὐτῶν κατὰ σάρκα, καίτοι Θεὸς ὤν ἐπὶ πάντας καὶ προαιώνιος. Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας, Ἐξὴγησις Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λούκαν Εὐάγγελιον, Κεφ' B' Source: Migne PG 72.504b-505a

And he received Him in his arms... 1 Christ was carried to the temple, while yet little and unweaned, and what was commanded by the law was offered, a pair of turtle doves and two young doves. These were types of temperance and meekness, and not only this but they indicated two different types of life, both of which are of the legislator God, that is, marriage and celibacy. One is able to say that the more advanced and spiritual are the lovers of the solitary life and are the doves, and those who produce children and give themselves to thought for works are the turtle doves. And the blessed prophet Simeon, adorned with prophetic grace, receives Jesus into his arms, and full with an excess of joy, he blesses God, saying: 'Now dismiss your servant, O Lord.' Why 'dismiss'. From his mundane station, for this life is a prison and redemption is to be freed from it. For He who shall give peace to the world has come, who binds heaven to earth, who with the teaching of his Gospel shall transform earth into heaven. 'Because I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared before the face of all your people.' For the mystery of Christ was prepared before the foundation of the world, and made manifest in the later time of the world. He was a light to those in darkness and who were deceived and fallen beneath the hand of the devil. So they were called by God the Father to the knowledge of the Son, who is the true light, and also a glory to Israel. For even if some were insolent and disobedient and bore unwise minds, yet a remnant were to be saved and glorified in Christ. 2 The first of these were the holy disciples, who were enlightened by that bright splendour of all beneath heaven. And indeed Christ is the glory of Israel, because He came from it according to the flesh, even He who is God over and before everything. Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Luke, Chap 2 1 Lk 2.28 2 Rom 9.27

Three Visions

Aspiciebam in visione noctis: et ecce in nubibus caeli quasi Filius hominis veniebat, et usque ad Antiquum dierum pervenit, et in conspectu ejus obtulerunt eum. Et dedit ei potestatem et honorem et regnum, et potestas ejus postestas aeterna, et regnum ejus quod non corrumpetur. Daniel Dominici adventus inflammatus desiderio, unde et vir desidorium ab angelo vocatus est, effudit in se animiam suam, ut transiret in locum mysterii admirabilis, et videret sacramentum Incarnationis Dominicae absconditum a sanctis, sicut Apostolus dicit. Unde et in visione noctis aspiciebat. Est enim visio noctis, est et visio diei, et visio lucis: visio nocturna ante gratiam, visio diei sub gratia, visio lucis in gloria. Videbant prophetae et patriarchae in visione noctis. Unde legitur: Locutus es in visione sanctis tuis et dixisti: Posui adjutorium, etc. De secunda visione quae in apostolis sub tempore gratiae facta est, dicit Pauls: Speculantes gloriam Domini in eamdem imaginem transformamur a gloria in gloriam tanquam a Domini Spiritu. Nunc spiritualiter videmus quasi per speculum in aenigmate, sed cum venerit visio lucis, fulgebunt justi sicut sol in conspectu Dei, et tunc videbunt lucem in lumine, et purificatis oculis videbunt lucem, quam non posset mortalis oculus sustinere. Petrus Blenensis, Sermo II De Adventu Domini Source: Migne PL 207.564d-565b

I saw in a vision of the night, and behold in the clouds of heaven one coming like the son of man, and even to the ancient of days he came and into his sight they brought him. And he gave to him power and honour and the kingdom, and his power is eternal power, and his kingdom will not be corrupted. 1 Daniel was inflamed with a desire for the advent of the Lord, whence he was called by an angel a man of desire, 2 and his soul poured out within him that he might pass over to the place of this wondrous mystery and that he might see the mystery of the Incarnation of the Lord, which was hidden from those who were holy, as the Apostle says. 3 Whence he saw in a vision of the night. For there is a vision of the night and a vision of the day and a vision of light. A vision of the night is before grace, a vision of the day under grace, a vision of the light in glory. The prophet and patriarchs saw in a vision of the night. Whence we read: 'You spoke in a vision to your holy ones, and you said: I have placed a helper...' 4 Concerning the second vision, which happens among the Apostles in the time under grace, Paul says: 'Looking at the glory of the Lord, into the same image we are being transformed, from glory into glory, by the spirit of the Lord.' 5 Now spiritually we see as in a mirror in darkness, 6 but when comes the vision of light, the righteous will shine like the sun in the sight of the Lord, and then we shall see light in light, and with eyes purified we shall look on the light, which it is not possible for the mortal eye to endure. Peter of Blois, from Sermon 2, On The Advent of The Lord 1 Dan 7.13-14 2 Dan 9.23 3 Ephes 3.4-5 4 Ps 88.20 5 2 Cor 3.18 6 1 Cor 13.12

Light And Darkness

Lux in tenerbis lucet... Christus iterum lux est secundum quod Deus; de quo Ioannis duodecimo: Ego lux in mundum veni, ut omnis qui credit in me, non maneat in tenebris; quod refertur ad Divnitatem; credimus enim in Christum Dominum, non in hominem secundum quod homo. Nota autem, quod lux habet puritatem in materia, speciositatem in forma, sublimitatem in situ. Christus autem secundum quod Deus est lux altissima, lux purissima, lux speciosissima. Altitudo attestatur potentiae, speciositas sapientiae, puritas bonitati. Est igitur Christus lux altissima; primae ad Timotheum ultimo: Lucem inhabitat inacessibilem. Lux speciossima, Sapientiae septimo: Speciosior est sole et super omnem dispositionem stellarum luci comparata invenitur prior. Lux purissima, primae Ioannis primo: Deus lux est, et tenebrae in eo non sunt ullae. Haec lux lucet interius secundum operationes divinae naturae. Emittit autem interius triplicem lucem sive lumen, lumen scientiae, Psalmus: Emitte lucem tuam et veritatem tuam, item, Illumina oculos meos, ne unquam obdormiam in morte. Lumen gratiae, Isaiae quinquagesimo ocatvo: Orietur in tenebris lux lua, et sexagesimo: Surge, illuminare, Ierusalem, quia venit lumen tuum. Lumen laetitiae spiritulais, Psalmus: Signatum est super nos lumen vultus tui, Domine; dedisti laetitiam in corde meo, quocontra dicitur Threnorum tertio: Minavit me Dominus et adduxit in tenebras et non in lucem. Sequitur: Et tenebrae eam non comprehenderunt... Ubi reprehenditur ignorantia humanae caecitatis. Circa quod considerandum est, quae sint istae tenbrae, et qui illorum defectus. Tenebrae istae peccatores sunt, qui in tenebris sunt, et tenebras quaerunt, et ad tenebras tendunt. In tenebris spiritualibus sunt, tenebras temporales quaerunt et ad tenebras aeternales tendunt. In tenebris sunt, Psalmus: Nescierunt neque intellexerunt in tenebris ambulant. Ecclesiastici undecimo: Error et tenebrae peccatoribus concreata sunt. Tenebras quaerunt, Ioannis tertio: Dilexerunt homines magis tenebras quam lucem, erant enim eorum mala opera. As tenebras tendunt, in Canonica Iudae: Quibus procella tenebrarum servata est in aeternum; Iob decimo: Dimitte me, ut plangam paululum dolorem meum, antequam vadam et non revertar ad terram tenebrosam et opertam mortis caligine. Isti ergo tenebrae sunt. In comprehensione autem lucis deficiunt, quia aversi; Psalmus: Averterunt se et non servaverunt pactum. Quia operti, Psalmus: Operti sunt iniquitate et impietate sua. Quia caeci, Matthaei decimo quinto: Sinite eos, caeci sunt et duces caecorum. Avertuntur Deum deserendo, operiuntur peccatum operando, excaecantur in peccato perseverando. Sanctus Bonaventura, Collationes In Evangelium Ioannem, Caput I Source: Here, p536

The light shone in the darkness... 1 Again Christ is light in that He is God, concerning which the twelfth chapter of John says: 'I have come as a light to the world that all who believe in me do not remain in darkness,' 2 which refers to His Divinity, for we believe in Christ the Lord, not in the man according to which He is man. And let it be noted that the light has purity in matter, and beauty in form and sublimity in place. Christ in that which He is God is the highest light and the purest light and the most beautiful light. The height declares His power, the beauty His wisdom, the purity His goodness. Therefore Christ is the highest light in the last chapter of the first letter to Timothy: 'He dwells in inaccessible light.' 3 The light is most beautiful in the seventh chapter of Wisdom: 'More beautiful than the sun and the arrangement of the stars, and compared to light found superior.' 4 The light is purest in the first letter of John: 'God is light and there is no darkness at all in Him.' 5 This light shines forth from within according to the works of the Divine nature. And it shines from within according to a threefold light or illumination. The light of knowledge, as in the Psalm: 'Send forth your light and your truth.' 6 And again: 'Illuminate my eyes lest they should ever sleep in death.' 7 The light of grace, as in the fifty eighth chapter of Isaiah: 'Your light shall rise in darkness.' 8 And in the sixtieth chapter: 'Rise, shine, Jerusalem, because your light has come.' 9 The light of spiritual joy as in the Psalm: 'The light of your face is sealed upon us, O Lord; you have given joy to my heart.' 10 Against which the third chapter of Lamentations says: 'The Lord has threatened me and led me into darkness and not into light.' 11 It follows: And the darkness could not comprehend it... Here the ignorance of human blindness is reproved. According to which one must consider what this darkness is and what its defects are. This darkness is sinners, those who are in the darkness, and they seek the darkness and to the darkness they tend. They are in spiritual darkness, and in temporal darkness they seek and to eternal darkness they tend. In darkness they are, as in the Psalm: 'They do not know and they do not understand, they walk in darkness.' 12 In the eleventh chapter of Ecclesiasticus: 'Error and darkness were created with sinners.' 13 They seek the darkness, in the third chapter of John: 'Men loved the darkness more than the light, for their works were evil.' 14 In the letter of Jude: 'For whom the gloom of darkness has been reserved forever.' 15 In the tenth chapter of Job: 'Allow me that I might bewail a little less my woes, before I go and do not return into a dark land, covered with the darkness of death.' 16 These are the darkness. And in the comprehension of the light they are deficient because they are averse. In the Psalm: 'They turn themselves away and do not guard the covenant.' 17 Because they are covered, in the Psalm: 'They are covered with iniquity and their impiety.' 18 Because they are blind, in Matthew chapter fifteen: 'Allow them, they are blind and leaders of the blind.' 19 They turn away and because they forsake God they are covered with the working of sin, and they are blinded because they persevere in it. Saint Bonaventura, Observations On The Gospel Of Saint John, Chapter 1 1 Jn 1.5 2 Jn 12.46 3 1 Tim 6.16 4 Wisd 7.29 5 1 Jn 1.5 6 Ps 42.3 7 Ps 12.4 8 Isaiah 58.10 9 Isaiah 60.1 10 Ps 4.7 11 Lamen 3.2 12 Ps 81.5 13 Sirach 11.16 14 Jn 3.19 15 Jude 13 16 Job 10.20-21 17 Ps 77.57 18 Ps 72.6 19 Mt 15.14

Seeing The Light

Ὁ λαὸς ὁ καθήμενος ἐν σκότει, εἶδε φῶς μέγα... Σκότος ἐνταῦθα οὐ τὸ αἰσθητὸν καλεῖ, ἀλλὰ τὴν πλάνην καὶ τὴν ἀσέβειαν· διὸ καὶ ἐπὴγαγε· Τοῖς καθημένοις ἐν χώρᾳ καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου, φῶη ἔλαμψεν αὐτοῖς. Εἴτα δεικνὺς ὅτι οὐκ αὐτοὶ ζητήσαντες εὗριον, ἀλλ' ὁ Θεὸς αὐτοῖς ἄνωθεν ἐφάνη, φησίν· Αὐτὸ τὸ φῶς ἀνέτειλε καὶ ἔλαμψεν. Οὐκ αὐτοὶ πρότερον τῷ φωτὶ προσέδραμον· καὶ γὰρ ἐν σκότει τὰ ἀνθρώπινα ἧν πρὸ τῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ παρουσίας· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐβάδιζον ἐν σκότει, ἀλλ' ἐκάθηντο, ὅπερ συμεῖον ἧν τοῦ μὴ ἐλπίζειν αὐτοὺς ἀπαλλάττεσθαι. Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας, Ἐξὴγησις Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Ματθαιον Εὐάγγελιον Source: Migne PG 72.372d-373a

A people sitting in darkness have seen a great light... 1 He does not speak of a material darkness here, but of error and wickedness, therefore he adds: 'On those sitting in a land and in the shadow of death a light has shone.' By which it is shown that they were not seekers who found it, but God on high revealed it, The light rose and shone forth, he says. Not that they hurried to the light before, for before the coming of Christ the things of men were in darkness, and they did not walk in darkness, but they sat, as a sign that they had no hope for a change for themselves. Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Matthew, Fragment 1 Mt 4.16

Undiminished

Εἰ ἐλαττώτεως τοῦ Υιοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ συμεῖον νομίζουσιν οἱ κακόσχολοι, τὸ τῷ εὐαγγελιστῇ περὶ αὐτοῦ εἰρημένον, Δόξαν ὡς Μονογενοῦς παρὰ Πατρὸς, ἐλαττοῦσθαι καὶ τὸν Θεὸν εἰς ἀγαθότητα, νομιζέτωσαν, τοῦ Δαβὶδ λέγοντος, Ὡς ἀγαθὸς τῷ Ἰσραὴλ ὁ Θεός; Εἰ δὲ ἐνταῦθα κατὰ ἐπιτασιν τὸ, Ὡς ἀγαθὸς, εἴρηται, κἀκεῗσε τὸ, ὡς Μονογενοῦς, κατὰ βεβαίνωσιν καὶ ὁμοίωσιν γέγραπται. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΥΟΓ´ Παλλαδιῳ Διακονῳ Source: Migne PG 78.441a

If men who spend their leisure poorly think it is a sign that the Son of God is diminished because the Evangelist said: 'Glory as the Only Begotten of the Father,' 1 they also judge the benevolence of God is diminished when David uses the words: 'So good is God to Israel.' 2 Because if in this place these words, 'So good', were spoken for amplification, so there also the words, 'as the Only Begotten', were written for confirmation and likeness. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 473, to Palladius the Deacon 1 Jn 1.14 2 Ps 72.1

Clay And Water

Exspuit in terram et fecit lutum ex sputo et linivit lutum super oculos eius... Secundum allegoriam: saliva sive sputum, quod ex ore procedit, quod etiam salsum est, significat Dei sapientiam, de qua Ecclesiastici vigesimo quarto: Ego ex ore Altissimi prodii primognita etc. Terra, caro Virgnis; Psalmus: Terra nostra dabit fructum suum. Saliva terrae coniungitur, quando Dei Filius ex Virgine nascitur, et fit lutum, cum Verbum caro factum est, et hoc ad nostram reformationem, secundum Augustinum. Sicut Deus hominem de limo terrae formavit, ita per idem genus luti humanum genus reparavit. Hoc luto inunguntur oculi nostri, dum in Christum credentes illuminantur unctione sancti Spriitus, de qua primae Ionannis secundo: Unctio docebit vos de omnibus. Et lavamur in aquis Siloe, id est sacrae Scripturae, quae cum silentio fluunt, quia non strepitu verborum mundanae philosophiae fucantur vel colorantur, et in humilibus requiescunt et de montibus descendunt; Isaiae octavo: Aquas Siloe, quae fluunt cum silentio. Sanctus Bonaventura, Commentarius In Evangelium Ioannem, Caput IX Source: Here, p801

He spat on the earth and He made clay from the spit and He anointed his eyes with the clay... 1 According to allegory the saliva or spit, which comes from the mouth, because it is salty, signifies the wisdom of God, concerning which it is said in the twenty fourth chapter of Ecclesiasticus: 'I, the first born, came forth from the mouth of the Most High...' 2 The earth is the flesh of the Virgin; the Psalm says: 'Our earth shall give forth its fruit.' 3 The saliva is joined with the earth when the Son of God is born from the Virgin, and made clay, when the Word is made flesh, and this for our salvation, according to Augustine: 'As God fashioned man from the mud of the earth, so through the same way of clay He restored the race of men.' 4 With this clay He anoints our eyes, when believing in Christ we are illuminated by the unction of the Holy Spirit, according to the second chapter of the first letter of John: 'With anointing He shall teach you everything.' 5 And we are washed in the waters of Shiloah, that is, Sacred Scripture, which flow quietly, because we are not stained or dyed with the clamour of the words of worldly philosophy, but among the humble these waters come to rest, and from the mountains they descend, as in the eighth chapter of Isaiah: 'Waters of Shiloah, which flow quietly.' 6 Saint Bonaventura, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint John, Chapter 9 1 Jn 9.6 2 Sirach 24.3 3 Ps 84.13 4 Aug Tract John 44.2 5 1 Jn 2.27 6 Isaiah 8.6

An Altar Of Earth

Quod autem additur ibi a Domino: Non facietis vobis deos argenteos et aureos, altare de terra facietis mihi. Altare enim de terra Deo facere est incarnationem Mediatoris sperare; tunc quippe a Deo nostrum munus accipitur, quando in hoc altari nostra humilitas, id est, super dominicae incarnationis fidem posuerit quidquid boni operatur; in altari ergo de terra oblationum munus offerimus, si actus nostros dominicae incarnationis fide solidamus. Sanctus Isidorus Hispalensis, Mysticorum Expositiones Sacramentorum Seu Quaestiones In Vetus Testamentum, In Exodum, Cap XXXII Source: Migne PL 83.304a-b

And there it is added by the Lord: 'You shall not make for yourselves gods of silver and gold, but an altar of earth you shall make for me.' 1 For the altar of earth for God is hope in the incarnation of the Mediator. Then certainly we have our gift from God, when our humility on this altar, that is, on the faith of the Lord's incarnation, shall place whatever good may be done. Therefore on this altar of earth, we offer our gifts of oblation, if we fortify our deeds in the faith of the Lord's incarnation. Saint Isidore of Seville, Expositions of Sacred Mysteries or Questions on the Old Testament, On Exodus, Chap 32 1 Exodus 20.23-24

Coming To Save

Venit, inquit, Jesus in patriam suam. Nemo miretur, si conditor rerum, coelorum Dominus, Deus omnium, patriam locumque sortitur, quando se claudit utero, metitur cunis, uberibus occupat, arctat gremio, dat in ulnas; et ut angustias tollat humanas, humanis se dedit atque aptavit angustiis. Homo, ad te Deus se per ista deponit, te per ista sequitur, per istas te perquirit angustias; ut quem formavit opere, reformet exemplo; quem judicio repulit, reducat affectu, et in se servet quem praeter se conspicit deperisse. Sanctus Petrus Chrysologus, Sermo XLVIII Source: Migne PL 52.333c-334a

Jesus came, it says, to his homeland. 1 Let no one wonder if the Creator of the universe, the Lord of the heavens, the God of all, is appointed a homeland and a place, when He encloses Himself in a womb, is measured for a cradle, clings to breasts, presses himself into a bosom, gives Himself to be held in the arms, and that, to remove the narrow constraints of humanity, He gave and adapted Himself to humanity's narrow limits. O man, God gave Himself to these things for you, through these things He follows you, through these narrow limitations He seeks you, so that the one whom He formed by His work He might reform by His example, so that him whom he drove off by His judgment, He might lead back by His affection, and that He might save in Himself the one whom He sees has been lost apart from Him. Saint Peter Chrysologus, from Sermon 48 1 Mt 13.54

Coming Into An Inheritance

Αἴτησαι παρ' ἐμου καὶ δώσω σοι ἔθνη τὴν κληρονομίαν σου, καὶ τὴν κατάσχεσίν σου τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς κ.τ.ἑ. Τέθειτα γὰρ ὡς ἄνθρωπος κληρονόμος πάντων οἰκομικῶς, ἵνα λοιπὸν ὡς αὐτῷ προσήκοντά τε καὶ ἵδιον ἀνασώσῃ κλῆρον τοὺς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἀνοσίως διεσπαρμένους ὑπὸ τε τοῦ διαβόλου καὶ τῶν σὺν αὐτῷ δυνάμεων πονηρῶν· οὗ καὶ εἰς πέρας ἐνηνεγμένου πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτον Πατέρα φησὶ περὶ ἡμων· Οὔς δέδωκάς μοι ἐκ τοῦ κόσμοῦ, σοὶ ἧσαν, καὶ ἐμοὶ αὐτοὺς δέδωκάς. Ἅρθει δὴ οὖν ὅπως εἰς τὸν ὑπάρχοντα αὐτῷ πλοῦτον κατὰ φύσιν ἄνεισι καὶ μετὰ σαρκός. Εἰ γὰρ ἧσαν οἱ ἐν κόσμῳ τοῦ Πατρὸς, κατά τινα τρόπον νοηθεῖεν ἂν τοῦ συμβουλεύοντος αὐτῷ Λόγου· τοιγάρτοι καὺ ἔφασκε· Πάντα τὰ ἐμα σά ἐστι, καὶ τὰ σὰ ἐμά· καὶ δεδόξασμαι ἐν αὐτοῖς. Πῶς οὖν αἰτεῖν προστάττεται, καὶ δέχεται μὲν εἰς κληρονομίαν ἔθνη, κατασχεσιν δὲ ποιεῖται τὰ πέρατα τῆς γῆς; Ἀποσκιρτήσαντα γὰρ ἐξιτήλως τὸν ἄνθρωπον δουλείας τῆς ὑπὸ Θεοῦ, διασῶσαι θέλων τοῦτον Γενεσιουργὸς καὶ Πατὴρ πέπομγεν εἰς τόνδε τὸν ἐνεστηκότα κόσμον τὸν μονογενῆ Λόγον, ἵνα γενόμενος σὰρξ, καὶ χωρηθεὶς, καὶ φύσει ἀστραφὴς, κηρύξῃ αἰχμαλώτοις ἄφεσιν, καὶ τυφλοῖς ἀνάβλεψιν. Οὐκοῦν κἂν εἰ λέγοιτο λαβεῖν καὶ τεθεῖσθαι κληρονόμος διὰ τὸ ἀνθρώπινον, οὐκ ἀγνοήσωμεν τὴν οἰκονομίαν. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαί Εἰς Ψαλμους, Ψαλμος Β' Source: Migne PG 12.1107a-c

Ask of me and I shall give to you the nations for your inheritance and your possession the ends of the earth, etc. 1 For placed as a man who is the inheritor of all by the dispensation, and thus as one coming into His own and proper inheritance, He gathers up those who have been dispersed across the earth by the devil and by those with him who are strong in evil. For the dispensation is already given, since concerning us He said, 'Those you have given to me from the world, yours they were, and you have given them to me.' 2 Consider, then, how coming to His wealth according to the flesh He ascended even with the flesh. For if these who were in the world were the Father's, thus one can understand how in this way the Word received His counsel, for certainly he said, 'Everything mine is yours, and yours mine, and I am glorified in them.' 3 How then is He asked to request that He have His inheritance of the nations and make His possession the end of the earth? Without doubt when He wished to save men who shrank from Divine service, the Begetter and Father of the Only Begotten Word sent Him into the world, that made flesh, and encompassed, in nature not changed, He preach forgiveness to captives, and give light to the blind. Thus although one may say that He was made an inheritor by his taking of humanity, we should not be ignorant of the dispensation. Origen, Excerpta On the Psalms, from Psalm 2 1 Ps 2.8 2 Jn 17.6 3 Jn 17.10

The Anointed

Christi uncti. Spiritus Domini super me, eo quod unxerit me Dominus: Unges autem Pater, Unctio deitas Spiritus sancti, et Unctu humantias. Dilexisti iustitia et odisti iniquitatem, propterea unxit te Deus, Deus tuus oleo laetitiae. Oleum effusum nomen tuum. Iesum a Nazaeth unxit Deus spirtus sancto et virtute. Ideo dicit Damascenus quod Iesus sonat Deum humanatum, et Christus hominem deificatum, quasi sibi obviantibus deitate et humanitate. Et motum Dei in hominem dicit Iesus; motum autem hominis in Deum dicit Christus. Osculetur me osculo oris sui. Os enim Dei Verbum est, quod loquitur eum: Osculum unio Verbi cum homine. Ideo dicitur Christus nomen officii: quia unctione sacrante officium Regis et Sacerdotis conferuntur. Sicut et Christus Rex et Sacerdos. Regnabit in domo Iacob. Multiplicabitur eius imperium. Tu es sacerdos in aerternum secundum ordinem Melchisedech. Ideo Melchisedech figura eius, Rex fuit et sacerdos. Utrumque autem, Regnum, scilicet et sacerdotium per hereditatem devolvebatur ad ipsum. Et ideo sequitur filii David propter Regnum, et filii Abraham propter sacerdotium. Sanctus Albertus Magnus, Commentarium in Mattheum, Caput I Source: Here, p2

On Christ the anointed. 'The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me.' 1 For you anoint, Father, and the anointment is the deity of the Holy Spirit, the anointed humanity. 'You loved righteousness and you hated iniquity, for which reason the Lord anointed you, your God is an ointment of joy.' 2 'His name is ointment poured out. 3 'Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and power.' 4 Therefore John Damascene says that 'Jesus' means God made man, and 'Christ' man deified, as a meeting together of Divinity and humanity. And the motion of God into man he calls 'Jesus', and the motion of man into God he calls 'Christ'. 'That he would kiss me with the kisses of his mouth.' 5 For the mouth of God is the word of God, which is spoken to him: the mouth is the union of the Word with man. Therefore Christ is the name of the office, because the office of King and Priest is conferred with holy unction. Likewise Christ is King and Priest. 'He shall rule in the house of Jacob.' 6 'His kingdom shall be multiplied.' 7 'You are a priest in eternity according to the order of Melchizedek.' 8 For both the kingdom and the priesthood descend to Him through inheritance. And therefore it follows, 'son of David' according to the kingdom, and 'son of Abraham' according to priesthood. 9 Saint Albert The Great, Commentary On The Gospel of St Matthew, Chapter 1 1 Isaiah 61.1 2 Ps 44.8, Heb 1.9 3 Song 1.3 4 Acts 10.38 5 Song 1.1 6 Lk 1.32 7 Isaiah 9.7 8 Ps 109.4 9 Mt 1.1

Declaring His Generation

Quaeri etiam potest, et profundissima quaestio videtur, cur Matthaeus publica voce Liber generationis Jesu Christi dixerit, cum Isaias clamet et dicat, Generationem ejus quis enarrabit? Si enim, quis, pro impossibilitate ibi accipitur, quomodo hic iste generationem ejus narrare sibi possibile judicavit? Nisi quia ibi de generatione quae secundum Divinitatem est, dictum putamus: hic autem de generatione, quam pro nobis secundum hominem suscepit, quanquam et ista magna ex parte inerrabilis esse credatur. Verumtamen illa, per quam genitus est ab aeterno, tota ineffabilis et incomprehensibilis esse probatur. Nisi illud obsistat quod Joannes ait: In principio erat Verbum et Verbum apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum. Ergo dum ait, In principio erat Verbum, narravit aliquid, et cum addidit quid hoc Verbum esset, et quod apud Deum Patrem esset, jam non solum aliquid de eo, sed multa dixit. Unde non inconvenienter sane quaeritur, quomodo ineffabilis, si effari possit, recte dicatur? Aut si non possit, quomodo ut probamus, quidpiam de eo narratur? Nam et sancta Dei Eccleisa ex omnium divinarum Scripturarum auctoritate colligans, plura de hac divina nativitate catholice confitetur. Forsitan ergo quando dictum est, Generationem ejus quis enarrabit? non impossibilitatem, sed raritatem narrandi ostendit, sicut et in aliis Scripturarum locis legitur. Denique habes in psalmo: Domine, quis habitat in tabernaculo tuo? aut quid requiescet in monte sancto tuo? Non enim dicit quod nullus habitabit, nec hoc, quod nemo requiescat, sed quod rarus et non nisi electus. Et, ut scias hoc verum esse, continuo definit loci illius habitator esse debeat. Et in alio psalmo: Quis ascendet in montem Domini? aut quis stabit in monte sancto ejus? Ut sit sensus, non quicunque de vulgo vel plebe, sed vitae egregiae, singularisque meriti. Quotienscunque quis dicitur in divinis litteris, non nullus, sed aliquis interdum significatur. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Lib I Cap I Source: Migne PL 120.45b-d

It is possible to ask, and it seems to be a most profound question, why Matthew with public voice said, 'The book of the generation of Jesus Christ,' 1 when Isaiah cries out and says, 'Who shall declare his generation?' 2 For if 'who' is understood here as impossibility, how did he judge it possible that he might speak of His generation? Unless we think that there is a generation according to Divinity but here the generation is that which is according to man, which He took up for us, and that the former greater part is believed to be ineffable. Truly that, by which He was begotten from eternity, is judged to be utterly unspeakable and incomprehensible. But here John opposes us when he says: 'In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God' 3 For when he says, 'In the beginning was the Word,' he speaks of something, and when he adds what this Word was, even that it was with the Father, not only does he speak of something concerning Him, but much more. Whence it is not out of place to ask how it may be right to say it is ineffable when it can be spoken. Or if it is not possible, how is it that we approve what he has spoken of concerning Him? For even the holy church of God, gathering from the authority of all the holy Scriptures, declares many things in a catholic manner concerning this Divine nativity. Perhaps, then, because it was said. 'Who shall declare His generation?' it was not to show the impossibilty of narration but the rarity of it, as we read in other places in the Scriptures. For you have in the Psalm: 'Lord, who shall dwell in your tabernacle? Or who shall find rest on your holy mount?' 4 He does not say that no one dwells there, nor that no one rests there, but that it is rare, and not unless one is elect. And that you might know this to be true, he goes on to define what the dweller in that place should be. And in another Pslam it says: 'Who will ascend the mount of God? Or who shall stand on His holy mountain?' 5 Which means that it is not anyone who is base or common, but only one of exceptional life and singular merit. So many times when 'who' is said in the Divine scriptures, it does not mean 'no one' but 'someone'. Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 1 Chap 1 1 Mt 1.1 2 Isaiah 53.8 3 Jn 1.1 4 Ps 14.1 5 Ps 23.3

Among Us

Sequitur: Et habitavit in nobis; in nobis, id est in nostra humanitate, vel: in nobis, id est in nostra societate, vel: in nobis, id est in nostra mente. In nostra humanitate habitavit corporaliter, in nostra societate habitavit sacramentaliter, in nostra mente spiritualiter. Habitat ergo Verbum in nostra humanitate; de quo tertio Regum octavo: Dixit Dominus, ut habitaret in nebula, nebula, humanitas assumta, de qua profluxit omnium medicina. Habitat in nostra societate sacramentaliter; de quo Matthaei ultimo: Ego vobiscum sum usque ad consummationem saeculo; et Psalmus: In pace, id est in fratrum concordia, factus est locus eius; in Sion, id est in Ecclesia, habitatio eius. Habitat in nostra mente spiritualiter; Ioannis decimo quinto: Manete in me, et ego in vobis; secundi Machabaeorum decimo quarto: Tu Domine universorum, qui nullius indiges, voluisti, templum habitationis tuae fieri in nobis. Sanctus Bonaventura, Collationes In Evangelium Ioannem, Cap I, Collatio II Source: Here, p537

It follows: 'He dwelt among us.' 1 Among us, that is, in our humanity, or among us, as in our society, or, among us, as in our mind. In our humanity He took up His dwelling bodily, in our society sacramentally, in our mind spiritually. Therefore the Word dwells in our humanity, as in the eighth chapter of the third book of Kings: 'The Lord said that He shall dwell in a cloud,' 2 in the taking up our humanity, from which flowed healing for all. He dwells in our society sacramentally, as in the last chapter of Matthew: 'I am with you until the end of the age,' 3 and in the Psalm: 'In peace,' that is in brotherly concord, 'He made His place, in Sion' that is, in the Church, 'is His habitation.' 4 He dwells in our mind spiritually, as in the fifteenth chapter of John: 'Remain in me as I in you,' 5 and in the fourteenth chapter of the second book of Maccabees: 'You, O Lord of all, who lack nothing, you wished that the temple for your habitation be among us.' 6 Saint Bonaventura, Observations On The Gospel Of Saint John, Chapter 1 1 Jn 1.14 2 3 Kings 8.12 3 Mt 20.20 4 Ps 75.2 5 Jn 15.4 6 2 Mac 14.35

The Son And Creation

Πρὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος ἐθεμελίωσέν με ἐν ἀρχῇ Ἀντὶ τοῦ, kατέβαλεν αἰτίαν τε καὶ κρηπῖδα τῶν κτισμάτων· κατὰ τὸ, Πάντα ἐν αὐτῷ συνέστηκε, καὶ αὐτός ἐστι πρὸ πάντων. Καὶ αὐτὸς δέ φησιν ὁ Κύριος· Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς κτίσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ὡς γὰρ θεμέλιος βουλόμενος εἶναι τῆς Ἐκκλησίας, ἄνθρωπος ὑπέμεινε γενέσθαι, ἵν' ἐπ' αὐτῷ ἱδρυνθῇ μὴ σαλευομένη· οὕτω καὶ τῇ κτίσει παρασχεῖν τὸ εἶναι βουλόμενος, κατ' αὐτὴν γέγονεν, τὴν προειρημένην σχέσιν εἰσάγων, γινόμενος τοῖς ἐσομένοις ἀρχὴ καὶ αἰτία· ἀλλ' εἰ καὶ κατὰ ταῦτα, φησὶν, ἐκτίσθην, ἀλλὰ πρὸ πάντων γεννᾷ με Θεὸς, ὅπερ ἐστὶν Υἱόν. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Παροιμιας Source: Migne PG 39.1631c

Before everything He laid me down as a firm foundation in the beginning. 1 With this saying that He was brought forth as the cause and foundation of created things. 'In Him He established everything and He is before everything.' 2 And the Lord Himself says: 'I am the beginning of the creation of God.' 3 For just as He wished to be the foundation of the Church, and suffered to become man, that she should be fixed fast in Him, thus even He wished to give existence to created things, to that accommodating Himself and bringing forth the forespoken state, being for them the beginning and cause. 'But though I was created according to these things,' He says, 'God begot me before everything,' He who indeed is the Son. Didymus the Blind, On Proverbs, fragment 1 Prov 3.16 2 Colos 1.16-17 3 Apoc 3.14, cf Jn 8.25

The Firstborn Son

Primogenitus est in multis fratribus, quia quotquot receperunt eum, dedit eis potestatem filios Dei fieri, quorum recte primogenitus appellatur, quia omnes adoptionis filios, etiam illos qui incarnationis eius tempora nascendo praecesserunt, dignitate praegreditur. Si quidem illi possunt cum Ioanne veracissime testari, quia qui post nos venit, ante nos factus est, id est, post nos quidem in mundo genitus, sed merito virtutis et regni primogenitus omnium nostrum iure vocatus. Qui et in ipsa divina nativitate non inconvenienter potest primogenitus dici, quia priusquam creaturam faciendo gigneret aliquam, coaeternum sibi Pater aeternus genuit Filium; priusquam verbo veritatis adoptionis sibi filios redimendo gigneret aliquos, coaeternum sibi Pater aeternus genuit Verbum: unde ipsum Verbum, ipse Dei Filius, videlicet virtus et sapientia loquitur: Ego ex ore Altissimi prodivi, primogenita ante omnem creaturam. Peperit ergo Maria Filium suum primogenitum, id est, suae substantiae filium; peperit eum qui et ante omnem creaturam Deus de Deo natus erat, et in ea qua creatus est humanitate omnem merito creaturam praeibat. Sanctus Beda, Homila V In Vigilia Nativitatis Domini Source: Migne PL 94.33d-34b

Firstborn He is among many brothers, because as many as received Him, He gave them the power to be sons of God, 1 among whom He is rightly called the firstborn, because all the sons of adoption, even those who preceded the time of His incarnation by their own birth, He precedes in dignity. Certainly if with John they are able to testify most truly that He who came after us, was before us, 2 that is: indeed He was born after us in the world, but by the merit of virtue and kingship he is rightly called the firstborn of all of us. He who even in that Divine nativity is not inappropiately said to be firstborn, because before the making of any created thing He was generated, the eternal Father begetting the coeternal Son. Before, with the word of truth, for redemption, He produced sons for His adoption, the eternal Father begot the coeternal Son, whence the Word, the Son of God, truly virtue and wisdom says: 'I came forth from the mouth of the Most High, first begotten of all creatures.' 3 Therefore Mary bore her own first born son, that is, the son of her substance, and God bore Him who was born before every creature, God from God, and through her created man He preceded in merit every created thing. Saint Bede, On The Vigil Of The Nativity of the Lord 1 Jn 1.12 2 Jn 1.15 3 Sirach 24.5