Healing The Paralytic

Et venerunt ad eum ferentes paralyticum, qui a quatuor portabatur. Curatio paralytici hujus salvationem designat animae post diuturnam illecebrae carnalis inertiam ad Christum suspirantis, quae primo omnium ministris qui eam sublevent et Christo afferant, id est bonis doctoribus qui spem sanationis opemque intercessionis suggerant, indiget. Qui bene quatuor fuisse referuntur, sive quia quatuor sancti Evangelii libris omnis praedicantium virtus, omnis sermo firmatur, seu quia quatuor sunt virtutes quibus ad promerendam sospitatem fiducia mentis erigitur. De quibus in aeternae sapientiae laude dicitur: Sobrietatem enim et sapientiam docet et justitiam et virtutem, quibus utilius nihil est in vita hominibus. Quas nonnulli diversis nominibus prudentiam, fortitudinem, temperantiam et justitiam nuncupant. Sanctus Beda, In Marci Evangelium Expositio, Caput II Source: Migne PL 92.146e-146d

'And they came to Him bearing a paralytic, who was carried by four men' 1 The curing of this paralytic signifies the soul's salvation in its desire for Christ after long torpor amid carnal snares, which first of all requires helpers to lift up the soul and carry it to Christ, that is, good teachers who counsel hope of healing and intercessory work for the one who is infirm. And these are well said to be four, either referring to the four Gospels, in which is the preaching of all virtue and every word of which strengthens, or the four virtues by which the confidence of the mind is raised to hope of gaining healing. Concerning which it is said in praise of eternal wisdom, 'It teaches sobriety and wisdom and righteousness and virtue,' 2 and there is nothing more useful in human life than these, which not a few speak of under the alternative names of prudence and fortitude and temperance and righteousness. Saint Bede, Commentary on the Gospel of Mark, Chapter 2 1 Mk 2.3 2 Wisdom 8.7

A Keen Learner

Didymus, Alexandrius, captus a parva aetate oculis, et ob id elementorum quoque ignarus, tantum miraculum sui omnibus praebuit, ut dialecticam quoque, et geometriam, quae vel maxime visu indiget, usque ad perfectum didicerit. Is plura opera et nobilia conscripit, commentarios in psalmos omnes, commentarios in Evangelium Matthaei et Joannis, et de Dogmatibus, et contra Arianos libros duos, et de Spiritu sancto librum unum, quem ego in Latinum verti, in Isaiam tomos decem et octo, in Osee, ad me scribens, commentariorum libros tres, et in Zachariam, meo rogatu, libros quinque, et commentarios in Job, et infinita alia quae digerere proprii indiciis est. Vivit usque hodie, et octogesimum tertium aetatis excessit annum. Sanctus Hieronymous, De Viris Illustribus, Caput CIX Source: Migne PL 23.705a

Didymus of Alexandria, afflicted by blindness of the eyes while very young, and because of this ignorant of the rudiments of learning, displayed such a miracle of intelligence in all things that even dialectics and geometry, studies which especially require sight, he learned perfectly. He wrote many admirable works: Commentaries on all the Psalms, Commentaries on the Gospels of Matthew and of John, On The Doctrines, two books Against the Arians, and one book On the Holy Spirit, which I have translated into Latin, eighteen volumes On Isaiah, three books of commentaries On Hosea, addressed to me, and five books On Zechariah, written at my asking, also commentaries On Job, and countless other things, which to set forth would be a work in itself. He is still living today, and has passed his eighty third year. Saint Jerome, On Illustrious Men, Chapter 109

The Rise of a Scholar

Velut lampade quamdam divina luce fulgentem Didymum Dominus accednit. De cujus vita, atque institutis, quoniam ad Ecclesiae gloriam Dei munere concessus creditur, licet in transcursu, necessario tamen commemoranda nobis pauca videntur. Is namque in parva aetate, cum adhuc etiam prima litterarum ignoraret elementa, luminibus orbatus, majore desiderio scientiae veri luminis inflammatur: nec desperationem cupita adipiscedni passus est, cum audisset scriptum in Evangelio: Quod apud homines impossiblie est, possibile est apud Deum.  Hac igitur  divina  pollicitatione confisus indesinenter Dominum deprecabatur, non ut oculorum carnalium visum, sed ut illuminationem cordis acciperet. Miscebat tamen precibus studi ac laborem, et juges continuatasque vigilas, non ad legendum, sed ad audiendum adhibebat, ut quod aliis visus, hoc illi conferret auditus. Cum vero post lucubrationis laborem, somnus, ut fieri solet, legentibus advenisset, Didymus silentium illud non ad quietem, vel otium datum ducens, tanquam animal ruminans cibum, quem ceperat, ex integro revocabat, et ea quae dudum, percurrentibus aliis, ex librorum lectione cognoverat, memoria et animo retexebat, ut non tam audisse quae lecta fuerant, quam descripsisse ea mentis suae paginis videretur. Ita brevi, Deo docente, in tantam divinarum humanarumque rerum eruditionem ac scientiam venit, ut scholae ecclesiasticae, doctor exsisteret, Athanasio episcopo, caeterisque sapientibus in Ecclesia viris Dei admodum probatus. Rufinus Aquileiensis, Historia Ecclesiasticae, Lib II, Cap VII

The Lord kindled Didymus as a lamp shining with Divine light. Of his life and character, since it is believed that he was given by God for the glory of the Church, it seems necessary to us make brief mention. When he was of few years, while he was yet ignorant of the elements of letters, he was deprived of light, yet he was inflamed by a greater desire for the true light of knowledge, nor was he afflicted with despair of gaining what he desired, since he had heard that it was written in the Gospel, 'What is impossible for men is possible for God.' 1 Trusting in this Divine promise, he prayed to the Lord unceasingly, not that he might receive sight in his physical eyes, but that he might have illumination of heart. He combined labour with prayers and study and took to the toil of continuous vigils, not for reading but listening, that what sight gave to others hearing might give to him. But when after their work as usual sleep had come over the readers, Didymus, deeming that silence was given neither for rest nor idleness, like a clean animal chewing the cud, 2 what he had taken in, he would recall entire, and these things which others had raced through in their reading of books, in his mind and memory he would turn over and over, so that he seemed not so much to have heard what was read as to have written it out on the pages of his mind. Thus in a short time, with God teaching, he arrived at such erudition of Divine and human things that he became a teacher of the ecclesiastical school, having won the approval of bishop Athanasius and other wise men in the church of God. Rufinus of Aquileia, Ecclesiastical History, Book 2, Chap 7 1 Lk 18.27 2 Lev 11.3

A Lady's Marriages

Interea neque hoc silendum arbitror quod mihi personarum gravium atque fidelium est relatione compertum. Gothorum namque temporibus Galla hujus urbis nobilissima puella Symmachi consulis ac patricii filia, intra adolescentiae tempora marito tradita, in unius anni spatio ejus est morte viduata. Quam dum, fervente mundi copia, ad iterandum thalamum et opes et aetas vocarent, elegit magis spiritalibus nuptiis copulari Deo, in quibus a luctu incipitur, sed ad gaudia aeterna pervenitur, quam carnalibus nuptiis subjici, quae a laetitia semper incipiunt, et ad finem cum luctu tendunt. Huic autem cum valde ignea conspersio corporis inesset, coeperunt medici dicere, quia nisi ad amplexus viriles rediret, calore nimio contra naturam barbas esset habitura, quod ita quoque post factum est. Sed sancta mulier nihil exterioris deformitatis timuit, quae interioris sponsi speciem amavit, nec verita est si hoc in illa foedaretur, quod a coelesti sponso in ea non amaretur. Mox ergo ut ejus maritus defunctus est, abjecto saeculari habitu, ad omnipotentis Dei servitium sese apud beati Petri apostoli ecclesiam monasterio tradidit, ibique multis annis simplicitati cordis atque orationi dedita, larga indigentibus eleemosynarum opera impendit. Cumque omnipotens Deus perennem jam mercedem reddere ejus laboribus decrevisset, cancri ulcere in mamilla percussa est. Nocturno autem tempore ante lectum ejus duo candelabra lucere consueverant, quia videlicet amica lucis, non solum spiritales, sed etiam corporales tenebras odio habebat. Quae dum nocte quadam ex hac eadem jaceret infirmitate fatigata, vidit beatum Petrum apostolum inter utraque candelabra ante suum lectum consistentem; nec perterrita timuit, sed ex amore sumens audaciam exsultavit, eique dixit: Quid est, Domine mi, dimissa sunt mihi peccata mea? Cui ille benignissimi ut est vultus, inclinato capite annuit, dicens: Dimissa; veni. Sed quia quamdam sanctimonialem feminam in eodem monasterio prae caeteris diligebat, illico Galla subjunxit: Rogo ut soror Benedicta mecum veniat. Cui ille respondit: Non, sed illa talis veniat tecum; haec vero quam petis, die erit trigesimo secutura. His itaque expletis, visio apostoli assistentis et colloquentis ei ablata est. At illa protinus cunctae congregationis accivit Matrem, eique quid viderit, quidve audierit, indicavit. Tertio autem die cum ea quae jussa fuerat sorore defuncta est; illa vero quam ipsa poposcerat die est trigesimo subsecuta. Quod factum nunc usque in eodem monasterio manet memorabile, sicque hoc a praecedentibus Matribus traditum narrare illic solent subtiliter juniores quae nunc sunt sanctimoniales virgines, ac si illo in tempore huic tam grandi miraculo et ipsae adfuissent. Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, Dialogi Liber IV, Caput XIII

Nor do I judge that I should be silent concerning that which I learned from the report of persons who are solemn and trustworthy. In the time of the Goths, a most noble young lady named Galla, daughter to Symmachus the Consul, during her adolescence was given in marriage, and in the space of a year death made her a widow. Yet though she did not lack for world's wealth and her riches and young years cried out for a second marriage, she chose rather to be joined to God in spiritual marriage, which begins in mourning but arrives at everlasting joy, than to become again subject to carnal matrimony, which always begins with delights and comes to its end in sorrow. Now since this lady had an extremely warm state of body, the physicians said that unless she took a husband again, on account of her heat, contrary to nature, she would grow a beard, and so it happened. But the holy woman feared not at all outward deformity, since inwardly she loved the beauty of her spouse; nor did she care if anything of her became foul, which her celestial spouse did not love. Therefore soon after the death of her husband, casting off her secular habit, she gave herself to the service of Almighty God at the monastery by the church of the blessed Apostle Saint Peter, where for many years she lived in simplicity of heart and prayer and gave alms plentifully to the needy. When almighty God determined to gave to her an everlasting reward for her labours, she was struck by a cancerous growth in one of her breasts. In the night she was accustomed to have two candles burning before her bed, for being a friend of the light, she hated not only spiritual but also corporal darkness. One night, lying afflicted with her infirmity, she saw Saint Peter standing between the two candlesticks before her bed, and not being afraid at all, but rather love giving her boldness, she said to him: 'How is it with me, my Lord? Are my sins forgiven me?' To whom he who had most kindly countenance inclined a little his head and said: 'They are forgiven; come.' But because there was a consecrated lady in the monastery whom she loved more than the rest, she said, 'I ask that sister Benedicta come with me.' To which he replied, 'No, but another will come with you, and the one whom you wish shall follow after thirty days.' And having said this, the vision of the Apostle standing near and his speech was taken from her. Immediately she called for the mother of the congregation and told her what she had seen and heard, and the third day following both she and the other nun died, and then thirty days later the one whom she had asked for also followed. The memory of this is kept until today in that monastery, so that the consecrated women who now live there, having it handed down to them by their predecessors, are accustomed to tell every detail of it, as if they had been there at that time when the great miracle occurred. Saint Gregory the Great, Dialogues, Book 4, Chap 13

The Struggles of the Contemplative

Est autem in contemplativa vita magna mentis contentio, cum sese ad coelestia erigit, cum in rebus spiritalibus animum tendit, cum transgredi nititur omne quod corporaliter videtur, cum sese angustat ut dilatetur. Et aliquando quidem vincit, et reluctantes tenebras suae caecitatis exsuperat, ut de incircumscripto lumine quiddam furtim et tenuiter attingat; sed tamen ad semetipsam protinus reverberata revertitur, atque ab ea luce, ad quam respirando transiit, ad suae caecitatis tenebras suspirando rediit. Quod bene sacra historia designat, quae beatum Jacob cum angelo luctatum narrat. Cum enim ad parentes proprios rediret, in via angelum invenit, cum quo in luctamine magnum certamen habuit. Is enim qui certat in luctamine, aliquando superiorem se, aliquando vero eum cum quo contenderit inferiorem invenit. Designat ergo angelus Dominum, et Jacob qui cum angelo contendit uniuscujusque perfecti viri et in contemplatione positi animam exprimit. Quae videlicet anima cum contemplari Deum nititur, velut in quodam certamine posita, modo quasi exsuperat, quia intelligendo et sentiendo de incircumscripto lumine aliquid degustat; modo vero succumbit, quia et degustando iterum deficit. Quasi ergo vincitur angelus, quando intellectu intimo apprehenditur Deus. Sed notandum quod idem victus angelus nervum femoris Jacob tetigit, eumque marcescere statim fecit, atque ab eo tempore Jacob uno claudicavit pede, quia scilicet omnipotens Deus cum jam per desiderium et intellectum cognoscitur, omnem in nobis voluptatem carnis arefacit. Et qui prius quasi duobus pedibus innitentes, et Deum videbamur quaerere, et saeculum tenere, post agnitionem suavitatis Dei unus in nobis pes sanus remanet, atque alius claudicat, quia necesse est ut, debilitato amore saeculi, solus convalescat in nobis amor Dei. Si ergo tenemus angelum, uno claudicamus pede, quia dum crescit in nobis fortitudo amoris intimi, infirmatur procul dubio fortitudo carnis. Omnis quippe qui uno pede claudicat soli illi pedi innititur quem sanum habet, quia cui desiderium terrenum jam arefactum fuerit, in solo pede amoris Dei tota virtute se sustinet. Et in ipso stat, quia pedem amoris saeculi quem ponere in terra consueverat, jam a terra suspensum portat. Et nos ergo si ad parentes proprios, id est ad spiritales patres redimus, teneamus in via angelum, ut suavitate intima apprehendamus Deum. Contemplativae etenim vitae amabilis valde dulcedo est, quae super semetipsam animam rapit, coelestia aperit, terrena autem debere esse contemptui ostendit, et spiritalia mentis oculis patefecit, corporalia abscondit. Unde bene Ecclesia in Canticis canticorum dicit: Ego dormio, et cor meum vigilat. Vigilanti etenim corde dormit, quia per hoc quod interius contemplando proficit, ab inquieto foris opere quiescit. Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, In Ezechielem Prophetam, Liber Secundus, Homilia II

Even in the contemplative life there is a great struggle of the mind, when it reaches to heaven, when the soul tends to spiritual things, when it exerts itself to pass beyond things corporeal, when it groans as it stretches forth. And certainly sometimes it triumphs, and the clinging darkness of its own blindness it overcomes, secretly and tenuously touching the surrounding light, yet to itself swiftly rebounding it returns, and from the light, to which it gasped to come, it returns sighing to the darkness of its own blindness. And this the sacred history indicates well when it tells of blessed Jacob's struggle with the angel. When he was returning to his own parents, in the way he came upon an angel with whom he had a great struggle of wrestling 1. For to  this man with whom he struggled in wrestling sometimes he was superior, and sometimes he found himself inferior to the one with whom he contended. The angel therefore indicates the Lord, and in Jacob, who with the angel contended, is expressed anyone of the perfect whose soul is engaged in contemplation. Certainly the soul when it struggles to contemplate God, is as if placed in a contest, and sometimes it overcomes because in its understanding and sense it has some  taste of the surrounding light, and sometimes it succumbs because again it loses the taste. The angel, then, is conquered when with in depths of the intellect God is grasped. But it must be noted that the same conquered angel touched the thigh sinew of Jacob and instantly he made it wither, 2 and from that time Jacob walked with a limp, because obviously the omnipotent God as soon as he is known by desire and intellect dries up in us carnal pleasures  And he who before with two feet stood, we seemed to be when seeking God and holding to the world, but after the knowledge of the sweetness of God, one our feet remains healthy and the other is lame, because it is necessary that with love of the world withering that in us only the love of God remains healthy. If then we hold the angel, in one foot was are lame, because while there grows in us the strength of deep love, without doubt it weakens love of the flesh. Thus everyone who has one lame foot has only one healthy foot to use because in him the desire of the world has dried up and only in one foot does he sustain in love of God all his strength. And on it he stands, because the foot of the love of the world which he was accustomed to place on the earth now he carries suspended apart from the earth. And we, therefore, if we go to our own parents, that is, if we return to our spiritual parents, we shall grapple with the angel in the way, that we might grasp the deep sweetness of God. The sweetness of the contemplative life is indeed lovable, which seizes the soul beyond itself, and the heavens open, and it shows there should be contempt for worldly things, and it reveals spiritual things to the eye of the heart, and corporeal things it obscures. Whence the Church in the Song of Songs says well, 'I sleep and my heart watches.' 3 With vigilant heart she sleeps, because through this she profits by interior contemplation, giving rest to all troubling exterior works. Saint Gregory the Great, On the Prophet Ezekiel, Book 2, Homily 2 1 Gen 32.24 2 Gen 32.25 3 Song 5.2

The Silence of Zachariah

Ἡ Ζαχαρῖου κώφευσις οὐκ ἐκπλήξει γέγονεν, ὡς ἐνόμισας, νουνεχέστατε. Ἐν συνηθείᾳ γὰρ θεοφανείας καὶ ἀγγελικῆς ὁσπτασίας ἥν ὁ ἱερεὺς, καθαρῶς τοῖς μυστηρίοις διακονούμενος, ἀλλὰ τῷ τύπῳ τῆς ἐκείνου σιγῆς, ἡ τοῦ νόμου ἐδηλοῦτο σιωπή. Τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ σιγῆς καὶ στειρώσεως, καὶ γήρως τεχθῆναι τὴν φωνὴν, τοῦτο οἴμαι δηλοῠν, τὸ ἐκ τοῦ παλαιωθέντος καὶ καταγηράσαντος στειρωθέντος, τῇ ἀνηκοῖα τῶν δεξαμένων νόμου τοῦ γραπτοῦ, τὰς περὶ Χριστοῦ προῥῥήσεις προελθεῖν, καὶ τὴν αὐτοῦ μητέρα ἐκ τούτου συνελθεῖν.     Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΡΛΑ', Τιμοθεῳ Αναγνωστῃ

The muteness of Zachariah was not on account of fear, so you should judge, most prudent man, for in his priestly office, during his service of the mysteries, he was accustomed to theophanies and angelic visions, but rather it is a type of silence signifying the silence of the law. In the silence and barrenness, both of the working of an aged voice and the struggles of unfruitful aging, I think is made clear the disobedience of those who had received the written law, these things foretelling Christ's advent and his mother's meeting. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 131, to the Lector  Timotheus

Bearing Suffering

Ἀλλὰ μὴ νόμιζέ σοι τοῦτο ἀπολογίαν εἶναι εἰς τὸ καὶ αὐτῆς ἐπιθυμεῖν τελευτῆς, εἰ ἐκεῖνος ἐπεθύμει θανάτου, τὰς ὀδύνας οὐ φέρων. Ἐννόησον γὰρ πότε ἐκεῖνος ἐπεθύμει, καὶ πῶς τῶν πραγμάτων διακειμένων, οὐ νόμου δοθέντος, οὐ προφητῶν φανέντων, οὐ τῆς χάριτος οὕτως ἐκχυθείσης, οὐδὲ ἄλλης φιλοσοφίας μετασχών. Ὅτι γὰρ ἡμεις τῶν τότε πολιτευομένων πλείονα ἀπαιτούμεθα, καὶ μείζονα ἡμιν κεῖτα τὰ σκάμματα ἄκουσον τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγοντος· Ἐὰν μὴ περισσεύσῃ ἡ δικαιοσύην ἡμῶν πλέον τῶν γραμματέων καὶ Φαρισαίων, οὐ μὴ εἰσέλθητε εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐπανῶν. Μὴ τοίνυν τὸ εὐχεσθαι νῦν τὴν τελευετὴν, ἀπηλλάχθαι ἐγκλήματος νόμιζε, ἀλλ' ἄκουε τῆς τοῦ Παύλου φωνῆς τῆς λεγούσης· Τὸ ἀναλῦσαι καὶ σὺν Χριστῳ εἶναι πολλῷ μᾶλλον κρεῖσσον, τὸ δὲ ἐπιμεῖναι τῇ σαρκὶ ἀναγκαιότερον δι' ὑμᾶς. Ὅσῳ γὰρ ἄν ἐπιτείνηται τὰ τῆς θλίψεως, τοσσούτῳ πλεονάζει καὶ τὰ τῶν στεφάνων· ὅσῳ ἂν πυρωθῇ τὸ χρυσίον, τοσούτῳ καθαρότερον γίνεται· ὅσῳ μακρότερον ἂν πλεύσῃ πέλαγος ἔμπορος, τοσούτῳ πλείονα συνάγει τὰ φορτία. Μὴ τοίνυν νομίσῃς μικρόν σοι προκεῖσθαι νῦν ἆθλον, ἀλλὰ πάντων ὦν ὑπομεμένηκς τὸν ὑψηλότερον, τὸν ἐπὶ τῇ τοῦ σώματος ἀῥῥωστίᾳ λέγω.  Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομο, Ἐπιστολὴ Δ' Ὀλυμπιάδι

But do not think to yourself that this is an excuse for desiring death, since Job desired it, not being able to bear his sufferings. For consider the period when that man desired it, and the manner of his circumstances, the law not being given, the Prophets having not appeared, grace yet to flow forth, nor had he partaken of any philosophy. For that more is asked of us living in freedom now, and harder tasks are set before us, listen to Christ saying, 'Unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of Heaven.'1 Do not think then that to pray for death now is accounted blameless, but hear the voice of Paul saying 'To depart and to be with Christ is far better, but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.' 2 For as affliction is increased so are the crowns multiplied, as the fire is fiercer so is the gold more pure, as the voyage of the merchant is longer so the greater the goods he brings home. Do not then think that the labour now allotted to you is trivial, but rather that this affliction of the body is higher than all you have suffered. Saint John Chrysostom, from the Fourth Letter to Olympias 1 Mt 5. 20 2 Phil 1.23

An Improvement In Prayers

In eisdem quoque Homiliis rem narrasse me recolo, quam Speciosus compresbyter meus, qui hanc noverat, me narrante attestatus est. Eo namque tempore quo monasterium petii, anus quaedam Redempta nomine, in sanctimoniali habitu constituta in urbe hac juxta beatae Mariae semper virginis ecclesiam manebat. Haec illius Herundinis discipula fuerat, quae magnis virtutibus pollens, super Praenestinos montes vitam eremiticam duxisse ferebatur. Huic autem Redemptae duae in eodem habitu discipulae aderant, una nomine Romula, et altera, quae nunc adhuc superest, quam quidem facie scio, sed nomine nescio. Tres itaque hae in uno habitaculo commanentes, morum quidem divitiis plenam, sed tamen rebus pauperem vitam ducebant. Haec autem quam praefatus sum Romula aliam quam praedixi condiscipulam suam magnis vitae meritis anteibat. Erat quippe mirae patientiae, summae obedientiae, custos oris sui ad silentium, studiosa valde ad continuae orationis usum. Sed quia plerumque hi, quos jam homines perfectos aestimant, adhuc in oculis summi opificis aliquid imperfectionis habent, sicut saepe imperiti homines necdum perfecte sculpta sigilla conspicimus, et jam quasi perfecta laudamus, quae tamen adhuc artifex considerat et limat, laudari jam audit, et tamen ea tundere meliorando non desinit; haec quam praediximus Romula ea quam Graeco vocabulo medici paralysin vocant molestia corporali percussa est, multisque annis in lectulo decubans, pene omni jacebat membrorum officio destituta, nec tamen haec eadem ejus mentem ad impatientiam flagella perduxerant. Nam ipsa ei detrimenta membrorum facta fuerant incrementa virtutum, quia tanto sollicitius ad usum orationis excreverat, quanto et aliud quodlibet agere nequaquam valebat.  Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, Dialogorum Libri IV, Libri IV, Cap XV

In the same homilies I also recollect a certain thing that was told me, to which narrative Speciosus, my fellow-Priest, would attest. In the time when I sought the monastic life there was a certain old woman named Redempta established in the holy garb, dwelling in this city near the church of the Blessed Mary Ever Virgin. She was a disciple of that Hirundina who was renowned for her great virtues, and who led a hermit's life in the mountains of Praeneste.This Redempta herself had two disciples who wore the same dress as she had adopted, the one named Romula, but the name of the other, she who has survived to our own day and who I know by sight, I can not tell. These three, then, lived together in a little house, replete with the riches of virtues but leading a poor life in worldly things. Of the disciples just spoken of Romula far surpassed the other in merit of life. She was possessed of admirable endurance, perfectly obedient, a guardian of her mouth for the sake of silence, and one who with great diligence employed herself in continual prayer. But as many things are judged by men to be perfect yet in the eyes of the consummate artisan have some imperfection, as often we unskilful folk see fine seals and praise them as perfect yet a true artist having looked at the same would note flaws, and, though hearing it praised, would not hesitate to lay hands on it and improve it, so the aforesaid Romula was struck down by an affliction of the body which the physicians call by the Greek word of paralysis, and for many years she lay on her bed, being cast down in such a manner that she was deprived almost of the use of all her limbs, yet this scourge did not drive her to impatience, for the damage done to her limbs was to the benefit of her virtues, because the more she was rendered incapable of acting in other things, the more she was able to exert herself in prayer. Saint Gregory the Great, Dialogues, Bk 4, Chap 15

The Perils of Relaxation

Fatigatus a sepultura Tobias venit in domum suam ... et factus est caecus.  Ne mireris, lector, quae aliquando bona typice malum, aliquando bonum mala hominum facta significant. Quod si non liceret, nunquam nigro atramento, sed auro semper lucido scriberetur Deus, quia lux est. Sed etsi nomen diaboli in calculo scribas candido, nihilominus tenebras significat profundas. Caecatus ergo Tobias designat quia, sicut Apostolus ait, 'Caecitas ex parte contigit in Israel.' Fatigatus est a sepultura, et caecatus, quia qui infatigabilis in bonis operibus persistit, nunquam fidei luce privatur. Jacet spiritualiter, et dormit fatigatus, qui vigilare et stare in fide, viriliter agere, confortari negligit. Cui bene congruit illud apostolicum: Surge qui dormis, et exsurge a mortuis, et illuminabit te Christus.  Sanctus Beda, In Librum Beati Partis Tobiae Allegorica Interpretatio

'Weary from the tomb Tobias came into his house ... and he was made blind.' 1 Do not wonder, reader, that sometimes by a good type the evil of men is signified and sometimes by an evil one the good. That it should not be allowed to write 'God' in jet black but that the name should always be written in pure gold because he is light. Even if you should write the name of the devil in blazing white nevertheless it signifies utter darkness. Blind then is Tobias designated because, like the Apostle says, 'Blindness touched a part of Israel.'2 'Weary from the tomb and blind' because he who persists without respite in good works never lacks the light of faith, but here he lays down spiritually and he sleeps exhausted, he neglects vigilance and steadfastness in faith and firm action. With this the Apostle agrees, saying: 'Rise up you who sleep, rise up from the dead, and Christ shall illuminate you.'3 Saint Bede, An Allegorical Interpretation of the Book of Tobit 1 Tob 2.10-11  2 Rom 11.25 3 Eph 5.14

Loss And Gain

Et ne veteres replicando historias, longum faciam, et excedam mensuram epistolae, brevem tibi fabulam referam, quae infantiae meae temporibus accidit. Beatus Antonius cum a sancto Athanasio, Alexandriae Episcopo, propter confutationem haereticorum, in urbem Alexandriam esset accitus, et isset ad eum Didymus vir eruditissimus, captus oculis, inter caeteras sermocinationes, quas de Scripturis sanctis habebant, cum eius admiraretur ingenium, et acumen animi collaudaret, sciscitans ait: Num tristis es, quod oculis carnis careas? Cum ille pudore reticeret; secundo tertioque interrogans, tandem elicuit, ut moerorem animi simplicitier fateretur. Cui Antonius: Miror, ait, prudentem virum ejus rei dolere damno, quam formicae et muscae et culices habent, et non laetari illius possessione, quam sancti soli et Apostoli meruerunt.  Sanctus Hieronymus, Epistola LXVIII, Ad Castrutium  Source: Migne PL 22 652-653

And lest in repeating old tales I become prolix and exceed the proper measure of a letter, I will briefly refer to something that happened in the time of my childhood. The blessed Anthony was summoned by the holy Athanasius to the city of Alexandria in order to confute heretics, and there came to Anthony a man named Didymus, a most wise scholar who had lost his sight, and the talk among them when it dwelt upon scripture made him admire Didymus' intelligence and acumen. Anthony asked him, 'Does it grieve you that you have lost the use of your eyes?' Didymus was unwilling to reply on account of shame, but he was asked a second and third time until he answered that it was a grave grief to his soul. To which Anthony said, ' I am amazed that a prudent man should lament the loss of a thing which he shares with ants and flies and gnats and not rejoice over that possession which he has merited along with the saints and Apostles.' St Jerome, from Letter 68, To Castrutius