The Scattered And The Shepherd

In omnem montem, et in omnem collem, et in omnem faciem terrae dispersae sunt. Quid est: In omnem faciem terrae dispersae sunt? Omnia terrena sectantes, ea quae in faciem terrae lucent, ipsa amant, ipsa diligunt. Nolunt mori, ut abscondatur vita eorum in Christo. Super omnem faciem terrae, dilectione terrenorum, et quia errantes oves sunt per totam faciem terrae. Non omnes haeretici per totam faciem terrae, sed tamen haeretici per totam faciem terrae. Alii hic, alii ibi, nusquam tamen desunt. Ipsi se non norunt: alia secta in Africa, alia haeresis in Oriente, alia in Aegypto, alia in Mesopotamia, verbi gratia. Diversis locis sunt diversae: sed ea una mater superbia omnes peperit sicut una mater nostra catholica omnes christianos fideles toto orbe diffusos. Non ergo mirum, si superbia parit discissionem, caritas unitatem. Tamen ipsa catholica mater, ipse pastor in ea ubique quaerit errantes, confortat infirmos, curat languidos, alligat confractos, alios ab istis, alios ab illis non se invicem scientibus. Sed tamen illa omnes novit, quia cum omnibus fusa est. Verbi gratia, est in Africa pars Donati, Eunomiani non sunt in Africa, sed cum parte Donati est hic Catholica. Sunt in Oriente Eunomiani, ibi autem non est pars Donati, sed cum Eunomianis ibi est Catholica. Illa sic est tamquam vitis, crescendo ubique diffusa; illi sic sunt tamquam sarmenta inutilia, agricolae falce praecisa merito sterilitatis suae, ut vitis putaretur, non ut amputaretur. Sarmenta ergo illa ubi praecisa sunt, ibi remanserunt. Vitis autem crescens per omnia, et sarmenta sua novit quae in illa manserunt, et iuxta se quae de illa praecisa sunt. Inde tamen revocat errantes, quia et de ramis fractis dicit Apostolus: Potens est enim Deus iterum inserere illos. Sive dicas oves errantes a grege, sive dicas ligna praecisa de vite, nec ad revocandas oves, nec rursus ad inserenda ligna minus idoneus est Deus, quia ille summus pastor, ille verus agricola. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensi, De Ovibus, Sermo XLVI, De Pastoribus In Ezekial XXXIV Source: Migne PL 38.280-1

'They were scattered over every mountain and over every hill, and over the whole face of the earth.' 1 What is this, that they were scattered over the whole face of the earth? It is the pursuit of all the earthly things that shine on the face of the earth, and the loving of them and the cherishing of them. They do not want to die so that their life may be hidden with Christ. Over every land of the world, because of their love of earthly things, they are sheep straying all over the face of the earth. Not every type of heretic is to be found all over the face of the earth, and yet heretics are to be found all over the face of the earth. Some here, others there, nowhere is spared. They do not know each other. For example one heresy is in Africa, another in the East, another in Egypt, another in Mesopotamia. Different ones in different places, but one mother, pride, gave birth to them all, just as our one Catholic mother bore all the faithful Christians spread out through the whole world. And it is not to be wondered that pride gives birth to division, and charity to unity. Yet this Catholic mother, this shepherd in her, everywhere seeks those who stray, she strengthens the weak, cares for the sick, binds up the broken, some from this group, others from that group, those who do not know each other. But she knows them all because she is poured out among all of them. There is the party of Donatus in Africa, for example, but there are no Eunomians in Africa, and yet there with the party of Donatus is the Catholic Church. There are the Eunomians is the east, but no party of Donatus there, yet the Catholic Church is there with the Eunomians. It is like a vine which has spread everywhere by growing, but they are like useless twigs cut off by the farmer's sickle because of their sterility, so that the vine be pruned, but not cut down altogether. So where those twigs have been cut off, there they have remained. But the vine that grows everywhere knows both its branches that have remained with it and those that have been cut off. But it calls back those who stray, because concerning broken branches the Apostle says, 'For God has the power to graft them in again.' 2 Whether you call them sheep straying from the flock, or you call them branches cut from the vine, God does not lack the capability of calling back the sheep and grafting in the branches again, because He is the chief shepherd, he is the true farmer. 3 Saint Augustine of Hippo, from Sermon 46, On The Shepherds in Ezekial 34 1 Ezek 34.6 2 Rom 11.23 3 Jn 15.1