Fasts And Feasts

Tu autem cum jejunas, unge caput tuum, et faciem tuam lava... Idioma sanctarum scripturarum est, ut sic uni quasi omnibus, et sic omniubs quasi uni loquatur; idcirco singulari numero, tu autem, dixit, cum jejunas, ut unusquisque specialter sibi intelligat hoc dictum. Caeterum notandus est locus, quod non omnia etiam Novi Testamenti praecepta juxta litteram sunt servanda. Alias autem fugientes in jejuniis hominum conscientiam, et vanae laudis jactantiam, uncti capitibus magis ostendimur jejunare, et ridiculi erimus olei pinguedine delibuti. Verumtamen more Palestinae provinciae loquitur, ubi diebus festis solent ungere capita sua solemnia celebrants. Ex quo liquet jejunantes nos festivos esse debere, et in diebus abstinentiae laetitia spiritali pinguescere Est namque interior homo noster, in quo sicuti a capite omnia membra corporis reguntur, ita a mente illlius participantur partes, propter quod saepe caput pro mente ponitur. Quam oportet denique in diebus jejuniorum sacro perungi unguento, illo videlicet de quo sponsa in Canticis ad Sponsum loquitur: Unguentum effusum nomen tuum, ideo adolescentulae diligunt te. Quo nimirum unguento mens nostra peruncta, recte diligit eum, cujus amore interius perfusa, fragrat odorem, et virtutum odoramenta passim bonis operibus decorata respergit. At vero hypocritarum caput unguento ungitur adulationis, de quo Psalmista canens: Oleum autem peccatoris non impinguet caput meum. Christus itaque factus est nobis unguentum, quod effusum per passionem mortis, totam domum, sanctam videlicet Ecclesiam, suo replevit odore. Idcirco non alterius causa jejunare convenit: sed illius spiritu profusi, debemus per abstinentiam macerare carnem, ut ejus passionibus particimur. Alioquin nisi ejus ungamur spiritu amoris, jejunia nostra vana erunt. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Liber IV, Caput VI Source: Migne PL 120.302b-303a

When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face... 1 It is the idiom of the Holy Scriptures that as one is spoken for many, so many is for one, therefore when He speaks with the singular 'you' about fasting everyone should understand that it has been spoken to him especially. Besides, let it be noted in this place, that not every commandment of the New Testament should be taken literally. Otherwise in fasts, fleeing from the good conscience of men, even as a boast for vain praise, we would exhibit our heads anointed, and be ridiculous doused in ointments. However it is said of the custom of the province of Palestine that they are accustomed on their feast days to celebrate their solemnities with their heads anointed. From which it is clear our fasts should be feasts, and in the days of abstinence we should anoint ourselves with spiritual joy. For it is our interior man with which as a head all the members of the body are ruled, thus by the mind they are made participant parts, on account of which the head is often set down for the mind. Therefore in the days of fasting one should be anointed with the sacred unguent which the bride speaks of to the groom in the Song of Songs, 'Your name is oil poured out, therefore the young maidens love you.' 2 Whence certainly with our mind anointed, rightly it loves Him whose love is diffused through the interior, a fragrant odor, and the fragrances of virtue waft forth from the adornment of good works. However the heads of hypocrites are anointed with the oil of adulation, concerning which the Psalmist says, 'Let not the oil of the sinner anoint my head.' 3 Thus with the passion of His death Christ was made an ointment for us, which was poured out through the whole house, which is filled with His scent, that is, the Church. Therefore no other cause befits fasting, but that with His spirit diffused in us, we should emaciate the flesh with abstinence so that it participates in His sufferings. Besides, unless we are anointed with the spirit of His love, our fasting shall be in vain. Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 4, Chapter 6 1 Mt 6.17 2 Song 1.3 3 Ps 140.5

The Feast Of Dedication

Κἂν ἐν χειμῶναι ἐσμεν τῶν πολλῶν περιστάσεων, οὐ κωλυθησόμεθα ἐπιτελεῖν τὴν ἑορτὴν τῶν ἐγκαινίων ἐν τῇ Ἰερουσαλὴμ, καὶ ᾄδειν τῷ Κυρίῷ, καθά φησιν ὁ Δαυὶδ, ᾆσμα καινὸν, δηλαδὴ εὐαγγελικόν. Ἰερουσαλὴμ γὰρ νῦν νοείσθω μοι ἡ ψυχὴ, ἐν ᾗ ἐπιτελοῦμεν τὴν ἑορτὴν τῆς θεογνωσίας, καὶ παντοίας ἀρετῆς, διωθούμενοι μὲν τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἐπαμφισκόμενοι δὲ τὸν νέον τὸν κατ' εἰκόνα, καὶ ὁμοίωσιν τοῦ Κυρίου κτισθέντα· Ἀνακαινσθήσεται γὰρ ὡς ἀετοῦ ἡ νεότης σου. Ἐγένετο οὖν, φησὶ, τὰ ἐγκαίνια ἐν Ἰεροσολύμοις, καὶ χειμὼν ἦν. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΣΜΒ' Σωσανδρῳ Πριμισκρινιῳ Source: Migne PG 79.172b

Even when we are in a winter of many trials it is not forbidden to celebrate the feast of the dedication in Jerusalem and to sing to the Lord a new song, as David said, which is clearly the Gospel. For now I think of Jerusalem as the soul in which we celebrate the feast of Divine knowledge and all virtue, 'casting off the old man and putting on the new one created according to the image and likeness of the Lord.' 'Your youth shall be renewed like the eagle's.' 'It was then the feast of dedication at Jerusalem,' he says, 'and it was winter.' 1 Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 242, to Sosandros the Primiscrinius 1 Colos 3.10, Ps 102.5, Jn 10.22

Saints And Feasts

Festivitatem hodiernam Sanctorum omnium cum omni devotione dignum est celebrari. Nimirum si magna videtur, et est, beati Petri solemnitas, seu beati Stephani, aut cujuslibet caeterorum; quanta ista est, quae non unius tantum est, sed universorum? Verum non ignoratis, fratres, saecularibus id moris esse, ut diebus festis festiva sibi convivia parent: et quanto fuerit solemnitas clarior, tanto splendidius epulentur. Quid ergo? nonne et his qui convertuntur ad cor, cordis deliciae sunt quaerendae, et spiritualibus spiritualia comparanda? Propterea jam paratum est convivium nostrum, fratres, jam cocta sunt omnia, et epulandi tempus advenit. Dignum est enim ut prius anima satietur, quod haec portio sine dubitatione, et sine comparatione sit potior: praesertim cum Sanctorum solemnitates manifestum sit ad animas magis, quam ad corpora pertinere; et quae animarum sunt, animae plus acceptent, quippe naturali quadam eis cognatione conjunctae. Quibus propterea quoque sancti isti compatiuntur amplius, propterea magis desiderant animarum bona, et plus earum refectionibus delectantur, quoniam et ipsi similes nobis fuere passibiles; et ipsi peregrinationis hujus et exsilii miserabilis deploravere molestias; et ipsi grave hujus corporis onus, et tumultus saeculi, et tentationes experti sunt inimici. Nihil itaque dubium, quin gratior eis sit et multo acceptabilior illa festivitas, qua intenditur epulis animarum, quam sit ea, quae celebratur a saecularibus, curam carnis perficientibus in desideriis voluptatum. Sanctus Bernardus Clarae Vallensis, Sermones De Sanctis, In Festo Omnium Sanctorum, Qui Habitat, Sermo I Source: Migne PL 183.453b-d

Today's feast of all the saints is worthy to be celebrated with complete devotion. Certainly if the feast of Saint Peter, and Saint Stephen, and all the others seem great, as they are, how great is this one, which is not only of one saint but of all of them? Truly, brothers, you are not ignorant that according to worldly custom banquets are prepared on feast days, and as much more great this brighter solemnity, so more great should the feasting be. What then? Is it not to those who are converted in their hearts that the delights of the heart should be sought and that the spiritual should prepare spiritual things? Therefore a feast has been prepared for us, brothers, now everything has been cooked and the time of the banquet has come. Without doubt and without comparison it is right that before the soul is sated that its portion should be greater, certainly when the solemnity of the saints has been revealed to pertain more to the soul than to the body and the things of the soul should be accepted by souls, since there is a natural joining of understanding between them. Because of this these saints are also more compassionate, since they more desire the goods of the soul and delight in their refreshment, for like us they were passible, and they deplored the troubles of this journey and wretched exile, and the grave weight of the body, and the tumults of the times, and the testing trials of the enemy. Thus there is no doubt that those festivals are more welcome and acceptable to them which are intended for the feasting of souls than those which are celebrated in the world, where the care of the flesh is perfected in the desires of the will. Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons For The Saints, On The Feast Of All Saints, from Sermon 1

Leaven And Life

Πᾶς ὃς ἄν φάγῃ ζύμην, ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἡ ψυχὴ ἐκείνη ἐξ Ἰσραήλ. Ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἄνθρωπος ἔνεκεν ζύμης· καὶ ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς ὁ χρηματίζων τοὺς νόμους, ὡς ὁλοθρεύει μοιχὸν, ὡς ὁλοθρεύει πόρνον, ὡς ὁλοθρεύει παιδοφθόρον, οὕτως ὁλοθρεύει τὸν ἔχοντα ζύμην ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ τῶν ἀζύμων ἡμέρᾳ. Τοῦτο κατὰ Θεόν ἐστι; τοῦτο κατὰ νόμον τὸν οὐράνιόν ἐστιν; Ἀλλ' εἶποιμι ἂν ὅτι ἐὰν ἔχῃς ζύμην πονηρίας, καὶ μὴ ἐξολοθρεύσῃς πᾶσαν ζύμην κακίας ἀπὸ τοῦ ἡγεμονικοῦ σου· αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ἡ ἀληθινὴ οἰκία σου· ὁ Θεὸς τῶν ὅλων νομοθετεῖ ἐξολοθρευθῆναί σε μὴ ἀποβαλόντα τὴν ζύμην τὴν παλαιὰν ἀπὸ σεαυτοῦ. Χρὴ γάρ σε ἐλθόντα εἰς τὸν καιρὸν τῶν νέων, νέον γενόμενον μηδὲν ἔχειν ἀρχαῖον. Τὰ ἀρχαῖα παρῆλθε, καὶ τὰ ἐξῆς. Ὄρα πῶς ἔδει ἑορτάζειν ἐν μηνὶ τῶν νέων τὴν ἑορτὴν τῶν ἀζύμων. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Την Ἐξοδον Source: Migne PG 12.284d-285a

Everyone who eats leaven, his soul will be cut off from Israel... 1 A man shall be cut off on account of leaven, and with the God of all who gives His law, as perishes the adulterer and the whore and the corrupter of boys, so perishes the one who has leaven in his house on the day of unleavened bread. Is this worthy of God? Is this consonant with the heavenly laws? But I would say that if you have the leaven of wickedness and you do not cut off every leaven of wickedness from your leading faculty, reason, for this is your true house, the God of all ordains that you be cut off, since you are not rid of the old leaven. 2 For it is necessary for your coming to the new age, that you be made new and have nothing of the old. 'Old things have passed away.' 3 See, then, how it is fitting that the celebration of the feast of Unleavened Bread is in the month of new things. 4 Origen, On Exodus, Fragment 1 Exod 12.15 2 1 Cor 5.7 3 2 Cor 5.17 4 Jewish New Year

The Feast Of All Saints

Kalendis Novembris solemnitas omnium sanctorum. Ecce, venerande pater Arne, habes designatam solemnitatem omnium sanctorum, sicut diximus. Quam continue in mente retineas et semper anniversario tempore colere non desistas; adtendens illud et intente considerans, quoniam, si Helias, unus ex illis in vetere testamento, oratione sua, dum voluit, claudere caelum potuit praevaricatoribus et aperire conversis, quanto magis omnes sancti in novo testamento? ubi eis specialiter et patenter claves regni caelestis commissae sunt, et claudere caelum possunt incredulis et aperire credentibus, si intima dilectione honorificantur a fidelibus et coluntur glorificatione eis condigna. Quod ut fieri digne possit a nobis, lumen verum, quod inluminat omnem hominem, Christus Iesus inluminet corda nostra, et pax Dei, quae exsuperat omnem sensum, per intercessionem omnium sanctorum eius, custodiat ea usque in diem aeternitatis. Hanc solemnitatem sanctissimam tribus diebus ieiunando, orando, missas canendo, et elimosinas dando pro invicem sincera devotione precedamus. Alcuinus, Epistola XCII,  Ad Arnonem Archiepiscopum Source: Migne PL 100 296a-b

The Kalends of November is the solemnity of All Saints. See, venerable father Arno, that you have a solemnity established for all the saints, as we have said. Keep it ever in mind and never cease to celebrate it on that date every year; attending to it and intently considering it, seeing that if Elijah, one of those of the Old Testament, with his prayer, as long as he wished, could shut heaven to sinners, and open it to the converted, 1 how much more can all the saints in the New Testament? For to them specially and manifestly have been entrusted the keys of the heavenly kingdom, and they can shut the heavens to unbelievers and open them to believers, if they are honoured with inward devotion by the faithful and are revered with the glorification appropriate to them. And that we may become worthy that this may be done appropriately by us, may the true light that illuminates every man, 2 Jesus Christ, illuminate our hearts, and may the peace of God, which exceeds all understanding, 3 through the intercession of all His saints, guard it until the last day. Let us precede this most holy solemnity by fasting for three days, praying, singing Masses, and giving alms for one another with sincere devotion. Alcuin of York, from Letter 92, To Arno The Archbishop 1 3 Kings 17 2 Jn 1.9 3 Phillip 4.7

The Giving Of Gifts

Adoraturi occurramus omnes, et muneribus sacris Deum regemque virgineo processisse fateamur ex templo: offeramus munera, quia nescenti regi semper publica paratur oblatio, offeramus munera, quia indevotus satis est vacuus adorator. Hoc probat magus, qui onustus auro, succensus thure, sacratus myrrha, Christi cunabulis inclinatur. Quale est, si quod fecit magus, non faciat Christianus? Quale est, si ad gaudium nascentis Christi fleat pauper, captivus gemat, hospes lamentetur, ejulet peregrinus? Festa coelestia Judaeus decimis semper honoravit, Christianus quid de se sentit, si vel centesimis non honorat? Fratres, ne quis me hoc dicere existimet declamantis studio, non dolentis affectu. Doleo, certe doleo, quando lego Christi cunabula magos rigasse auro, et video altare corporis Christi Christianos vacuum reliquisse et in tempore hoc praesertim, quando se pauperum fames vasta, quando se fundit turba lamentabilis captivorum. Non habeo nemo dicat, quando Deus ex eo quod habes, non ex eo quod non habes, quaerit: quando duo aera viduae in acceptum dignanter ascribit. Devoti simus Creatori, ut nobis devota sit creatura. Proximorum nostorum sustentemus angustias, ut a nostris liberemur angustiis. Repleamus altare Dei, ut nostra horrea repleat fructuum plenitudo. Certe si non damus, quia non accipimus non queramur. Sanctus Petrus Chrysologus, Sermo CIII, De Filio Viduae Excitato a Mortuis, deque Corporum Resurrectione Source: Migne PL 52 489b-490a

Let us all hurry to offer adoration, and with holy gifts let us acknowledge that our God and King has come forth from the temple of the Virgin. Let us offer gifts because a public offering is always made for the birth of a king. Let us offer gifts because utterly irreverent is the one who adores with empty hands. The Magi give proof of this, they who were weighed down with gold, flaming with frankincense, hallowed with myrrh, when they bowed down before the cradle of Christ. What shall we say if what the Magi did the Christian does not? What shall we say if during the joy of Christ's birth the poor man weeps, the captive groans, the guest laments, the wanderer wails? The Jews always honored the heavenly feasts with a tenth of his possessions; what does a Christian think about himself if he does not give honour even with a hundredth? Brothers, do not think I say because of some some passion of declamation and not because of a feeling of grief, I grieve, certainly I grieve, when I read that the Magi inundated Christ's cradle with gold and I see the altar of Christ's body empty left empty, and at this time especially when the hunger of the poor is so grave, when so lamentable a crowd of captives has poured forth. 1 Let no one say that he has nothing, when God is asking  for what you do have, not for what you do not, when He approved of the widow's two copper coins. 2 Let us be devoted to the Creator that created things be devoted to us. Let us support our neighbours in their tribulations so that we may be freed from our tribulations. Let us fill the altar of God so that a bountiful harvest may fill our barns. Certainly if we do not give, not receiving we should not complain. Saint Peter Chrysologus, from Sermon 103, On The Son of the Widow Raised from the Dead and the Resurrection of the Body 1 Possibly the depredations of the Huns 2 Mk 12.41-44, Lk 21.1-4

Feasts And Charity

Ad hanc invitabat, qui stans clamabat, Si quis sitit, veniat ad me et bibat, et flumina de ventre ejus fluent aquae vivae. Hoc, inquit Evangelista, dixit de spiritu, quem accepturi erant credentes in eum. Ecce, quia non bibunt hoc vinum, sive hanc aquam, nisi credentes in eum, sicut non comedunt illum panem, nisi qui triduo sustinent eum: sustineamus et comedamus; credamus et bibamus et comedamus, ut amici efficiamur; bibamus, ut charitate charissimi facti inebriemur. Charitas etenim sicut vinum miscetur, maxime ubi sapientia mensam ponit, vinum miscet, et ad convivium parvulos vocat. Sola namque invitatur humilitas ad convivium sapientiae, ubi panis est veritas, vinum charitas; charitas quoque velut aqua effunditur, ubi ad ablutionem conceditur. Hic ordo nimirum congruus est, ut accessurus ad mensam, prius manus lavet. Lavamini, inquit, mundi estote. Et alibi: Si laverit Dominus sordem filiarum Sion, in spiritu judicii et spiritu ardoris. Hoc desiderans Propheta, orat: Amplius lava me, Domine, ab iniquitate mea, et a peccato meo munda me. Et alibi: Lavabo inter innocentes manus meas, et circumdabo altare tuum, Domine. Altare Domini mensa est, unde manducamus et bibimus carnem Christi, qui vere est cibus, et sanguinem euis, qui vere est potus. Baptismus abluit, altare pascit; sed sine charitate, quae fructus est, neutrum proficit. Charitas ergo totum efficit, sine qua non valet quidquid fit. Charitas ergo est aqua, quae levat; vinum, quod inebriat. Lavat a vitiis, inebriat virtutibus. Lavat inquinatos amore hujus mundi, inebriat mundatos amore Dei. Lavat sordidato amore sui, inebriat purgatos amore proximi. Charitas autem Spiritus est, quia Spiritus est charitas. Itaque veritas cibat, charitas potat, virtus corroborat. Veritas Filius, charitas Spiritus, Pater virtus. Per veritatem et charitatem, quae ad nos propter nos missae sunt, perveniemus ad virtutem, quando ad Patrem. Pater autem omnimodam collaturus est satietatem, sicut scriptum est, Satiabor, cum apparuerit gloria tua Isaac, Cisterciensis Abbas, Sermo XLIV In Die Pentecotes II Source: Migne PL 194. 1840

To this He invited, He who standing cried out, 'If someone thirst, let him come to me and drink' and 'the waters of life shall flow from his stomach.' 1 Here the evangelist speaks of the Spirit, which they receive who believe in Him. And, behold, they do not drink this wine, or this water, unless they believe in Him, as they do not eat the bread unless for three days they have endured with Him; let us endure and let us eat. Let us believe and let us drink and let us eat that we be friends; let us drink that we are intoxicated with the love that makes beloved. Love indeed is mixed like wine, especially when wisdom sets the table, there wine is mixed and the little ones are called to the feast. For only the humble are invited to the feast of wisdom, where is the true bread and the wine of love, wine that is poured out like water, when the washing has been done. And this order that one come to table with washed hands is indeed fitting. 'Be washed and be clean,' it says. 2 And elsewhere, 'If the Lord shall have washed the filth from the daughters of Sion, in a spirit of judgement and in a spirit of love.' 3 Desiring this the Prophet prays, 'Lord, wash me completely from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.' 4 And again: 'I shall wash my hands among the innocent and I shall circle around your altar, O Lord.' 5 The altar is the table of Christ where we shall eat and drink, the flesh of Christ, who is the true food, and His blood, which is truly the drink. Baptism has cleansed, the altar feeds, but without charity, which is the fruit, there is no benefit. Charity, therefore, does all, without which we are able to do nothing. Charity, then, is the water which cleanses, and the wine which intoxicates. It washes from vice, it intoxicates to virtue. It washes the iniquitous from the love of this world, it intoxicates the clean with the love of God. It washes those who are dirty from self love, it inebriates the pure with the love of neighbour. Charity is the Spirit, because the Spirit is charity. Therefore truth feeds, charity gives the drink, virtue strengthens. The truth is the Son, charity is the Spirit, the Father is virtue. By truth and charity, which to us and for us have been sent, we shall come to virtue, to the Father. And being gathered to the Father is the satiety of all things, as it is written, 'I shall be satisfied when your glory appears.' 6 Isaac of Stella, from Sermon 44, For Pentecost II 1 Jn 7. 37-38 2 Isai 1.16   3 Isai 4. 4 4 Ps 50.4 5 Ps 25.6 6 Ps 16.15

Peace And Feasts

Melius quidem fuerat, fratres charissimi, si pater et magister noster communis imperitiam nostram latere permitteret, nec publicaret penuriam, quae in nobis hactenus velamento propriae verecundiae tegitur. Melius fuerat, ut qui tam copiose abundat in spiritualibus doctrinae divitiis, de navicula pauperis nequaquam tenuis verbi vectigal exigeret. Quid enim aut egenus divitibus, aut peregrinus civibus, aut agrestis et ignarus studiosis conferat? Tamen quoniam jussis parere cogimur, eadem nos humilitatis ratio, quae excusare videtur, ad dicendum cogit, cogit ad obediendum. Quid igitur est, o religiosa plebs Domini, quod vobis quamvis pauperes, quamvis ineruditissimi, attamen decenter offerimus? Pacem sine dubio, quam Dominus noster Jesus Christus ingredientes nos offerre omni domui jubet: unde et nos in principio salutationus nostrae pacem vobis a Domino exoravimus, quae et habenda semper est, et semper oranda; non illa infida et instabilis hujus mundi pax, quae vel pro commodis quaeritur, vel pro timore servatur: sed pax Christi, quae secundum sententiam apostoli Paui, superat omnem mentem, et credentium corda custodit; pax quae charitatis fecundis nuritur uberibus; pax alumna fidei, columna justitiae; pax futurae spei pignus idoneum; pax quae praesentes sociat, absentes invitat; pax quae terrena coelestibus et divinis humana conciliat; sic enim dicit Apostolus: Quod Dominus noster Jesus Christus pacificavit per sanguinem suum, non solum quae in terris sunt, sed quae in caelis. Haec ergo vobis, charissimi, pro viribus pauperis viatici, peregrinus viator exposuit, exspectans magis una vobsicum apud mensam potentis magistri affluentiibus, et copiosis dapibus saginari. Deus autem pacis, qui coelestibus terrena conjunxit, concedat nobis eadem sapere in alterutrum, et plena unanimitate audere, per Christum Dominum nostrum, per quem est Deo Patri omnipotenti gloria in saecula saeculorum. Amen. Sanctus Petrus Chrysologus, Sermo CXXXVIII Source: Migne PL 52.572

Better it would have been, dear brothers, if our common father and teacher had allowed us to hide our inexperience and not proclaimed our penury, which in us is covered by the veil of our own modesty. Better it would have been that he who so abounds in the wealth of spiritual teaching had not demanded a tax of little words from the vessel of a poor man. For what has a needy man to gives to the rich, or a wanderer to settled citizens, or a rustic and ignorant fellow to the learned? However because we are obliged to obey commands, the sense of our own humility, which seems to excuse us, rather forces us to speech and demands of us obedience. What then is it, O pious people of the Lord, that although poor and unlearned we may decently offer to you? Peace it is, without doubt, the peace which our Lord Jesus Christ exhorted us to offer on entering every house, 1 whence even we in the the beginning of our greeting prayed for the peace of the Lord to be with you, which we should always have and which we should always entreat. But let it be the peace of Christ, which according to the understanding of the Apostle Paul, surpasses all understanding and guards the hearts of the faithful. 2 The peace which is fed by breasts of flourishing charity, the peace which is raised by faith and is the column of righteousness, the peace which is fit to be the pledge of future hope, the peace which binds us to those present and summons those absent, the peace which calls together earth and heaven. For the Apostle says that our Lord Jesus Christ has brought peace through His blood, not only on the earth, but in heaven. 3 Thus these things to you, beloved, as the pittance of a poor man, a walker on the way has set out, hoping that one more with you, at the overflowing table of a great teacher, may feast on copious dishes. For the God of peace, who joins earth to heaven, has given it to us to know the same bond with one another, and to dare to be joined in full unanimity, through Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom is glory to God the Father omnipotent forever. Amen. Saint Peter Chrysologus, Sermon 138 1 Lk 10 2 Philipp 4.7 3 Colos 1.20

Feasts And Wisdom

Ἔσφαξεν τὰ ἑαυτῆς θύματα ἐκέρασεν εἰς κρατῆρα τὸν ἑαυτῆς οἶνον καὶ ἡτοιμάσατο τὴν ἑαυτῆς τράπεζαν. Ἐκκλινάτω, ἵνα φρόνησιν λάβῃ· ῥώννυται γὰρ ὁ ἀτελής ὑπὸ τῶν τῆς σοφίας λόγων καὶ μυστηρίων. Ἔλθατε φάγετε τῶν ἐμῶν ἄρτων καὶ πίετε οἶνον ὃν ἐκέρασα ὑμῖν. Ἡ αὑτὴ τροφὴ καὶ κρέα ὀνομάζεται καὶ ἄρτος καὶ γάλα καὶ οἶνος. Πλὴν οἱ ἄφρονες ὡς ἄρτου αὐτῶν μεταλαμβάνειν λέγονται καὶ ὡς οἴνου κεκερασμένου· εἰ δὲ τοῦτο πῶς νοήσομεν· Ἄρτον ἀγγέλων ἔφαγεν ἄνθρωπος; Ἄρτον δέ μοι νόει τὰς στερεὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ οἶνον, τὴν ἐκ μελέτης τῶν θείων Γραφῶν ἐπιγνωσιν αὐτοῦ· ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ τὸ θεῖον σῶμα καὶ τίμιον αἷμα αυτοῦ. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Παροιμιας

Her sacrifices prepared, her wine mixed in bowls, her table spread. 1 Let him turn aside, I say, who would partake of wisdom; for the imperfect are strengthened by words of wisdom and the mysteries. Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mixed for you;  2  The same food is named flesh and bread and milk and wine. Truly the unwise, they say, take to their own bread and mix their own wine. And if this is so, how do we understand: 'Man ate the bread of angels?' 3 Now grasp my bread as the lasting commands of God, and the wine as the knowledge of God from meditation on the Divine Scriptures, and likewise with his divine body and precious blood. Didymus the Blind, On Proverbs, fragment  1 Prov 9.2  2 Prov 9.5  3 Ps 77.25

The Teaching Of The Transfiguration

Nam post sex dies, Petrus, Jacobus et Johannes assumuntur seorsum, et in excelso monte consistunt. Ipsisque inspectantibus Dominus transfiguratur, et toto claritatis suae habitu circumsplendet. Et in hoc quidem facti genere, servatur et ratio et numerus, et exemplum. Nam post dies sex, gloriae dominicae habitus ostenditur: sex millium scilicet annorum temporibus evolutis, regni coelestis honor praefiguratur. Tribusque assumptis, de trium origine, Sem, Cham, et Japhet, futura electio populi ostenditur. Quod autem Moyses et ex omni sanctorum numero assistunt; medius inter legem et prophetas Christus in regno est; cum his enim Israel, quibus testibus praedictus est, judicabit: simulque ut et humanis corporibus decreta esse resurrectionis gloria doceretur, cum quando Moyses conspicabilis astitisset. Ipse autem Dominus fit nive ac sole candidior, supra opinionem scilicet nostram coelestis luminis splendore conspicuus. Petro autem, ut tria illic tabernacula fierent offerenti, nihil respondetur: nondum enim ut in hac gloria consisteretur erat tempus.  Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis, In Evangelium Matthaei Commentarius, Cap XVII

After six days, Peter, James and John were taken up and stood together on a high mountain. With these looking on the Lord was transfigured and all his clothing was surrounded with brightness. And it was done in this way that it might serve reason, number and example. For after six days the Lord was shown in glory by his garments of the lordly state, the completion of six thousand years prefiguring the honor of the kingdom of heaven. And three were taken up to show, from the threefold origin of Shem, Ham and Japhet, the future election of the people. That Moses and another from all the number of the holy stood by, is Christ in his kingdom among the law and the prophets; and with these even Israel, whose testimonies spoke of him, shall be judged, and at the same time Moses openly standing by teaches the decree of the glory of the resurrection of human bodies. The Lord himself was made brighter than snow or sun, exceeding the splendor of our vision of the celestial lights. When Peter offered to make three tabernacles, there was no response; it was not yet time to establish this glory. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, from the Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Matthew, Ch 17

Transfiguration and Resurrection

Ἡ ἐν τῷ ὅρει μεταμόρφωσις τοῦ Δεσπότου ὑμῶν καὶ Σωτῆρος, τὴν ἐκ νεκρῶν ἐξανάστασιν ἡμῶν προεδήλου, ἦντινα καὶ φυλάττειν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς οἱ θεατι προσετάτοντο μέχρι τῆς αὐτοῦ ἀναστάσεως, ὡς τότε πιστὴν φανησομένην, οἶα τῷ ἔργῳ ὁρωμένην. Ἡ δὲ Μωσέως καὶ Ἡλίου παρουσία, τὴν ζώτων καὶ νεκρῶν ἐμαρτύρησεν αὐτῷ δεσποτείαν. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβλίον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολή ΣΛΘ', Αλφιῳ Πρεσβυτερῳ

The transfiguration of our Lord and Saviour on the mount is a foreshowing of our resurrection from the dead, which those who saw were to keep within themselves until his resurrection, so that the revelation of faith be in such a work seen. And the presence of Moses and Elijah bore witness to the Lord of the living and the dead. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 239, to the Priest Alphius

The Real Presence

Διηγήσατο ὁ ἀββᾶς Δανιὴλ ὁ Φαρανίτης, ὅτι εἶπεν ὁ Πατὴρ ἡμῶν ἀββᾶς Ἀρσένιος περί τινος Σκητιώτου, ὅτι ἧν πρακτικὸς μέγας, ἀφελὴς δὲ εἰς τὴν πίστιν· καὶ ἐσφὰλλετο διὰ ἰδιωτείαν· καὶ ἔλεγεν· Οὐκ ἔστι φύσει ὁ ἄρτος ὄν λαμβάνομεν σῶμα Χριστοῦ, ἀλλ' ἀντίτυπον. Καὶ ἤκουσαν δύο γέροντες ὅτι λέγει τὸν λόγον τοῦτον, καὶ γινώσκοντες μέγαν αὐτὸν ὄντα τῷ Βιῳ, ἐλογίσαντο ὅτι ἐν ἀκακίᾳ καὶ ἀφελότητι λέγει, καὶ ἦλθον πρὸς αὐτὸν, καὶ λέγουσιν αὐτῳ· Ἀββᾶ, λόγον ἠκούσαμεν περὶ τινὸς ἄπιστον, ὅτι λέγει ὅτι ὁ ἄρτος ὄν μεταλαμβάνομεν, οὐκ ἔστι φύσει σῶμα Χριστοῦ, ἀλλ' ἀντίτυπόν ἐστι. Λέγει ὁ γέρων· Ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ τοῦτο λέγων. Οἱ δὲ παρεκάλουν αὐτὸν λέγοντες· Μὴ οὕτως κρατήσῃς, ἀββᾶ, ἀλλ' ὡς παρέδωκεν ἡ καθολικὴ Ἐκκλησία. Ἡμεῖς γὰρ πιστεύομεν, ὅτι αὐτὸς ὁ ἄρτος σῶμα ἐστι τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ τὸ ποτήριον αὐτό ἐστι τὸ αἶμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ, κατὰ ἀλήθειαν, καὶ οὐ κατ' ἀντίτυπον. Ἀλλ' ὥσπερ ἐν ἀρχῇ χοῦν λαβὼν ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ἔπλασε τὸν ἀνθρωπον κατ' εἰκόνα αὐτοῦ, καὶ οὐδεὶς δύναται εἰπεῖν ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν εἰκὼν Θεοῦ, εἰ καὶ ἀκατάληπτος· οὕτως πιστεύομεν ὅτι κατὰ ἀλήθειαν σῶμα ἐστι Χριστοῦ. Ὁ δὲ γέρων ἔφη· Ἐὰν μὴ πεισθῶ ἀπὸ πράγματος, οὐ πληροφοροῦμαι. Οἱ δὲ εἴπον πρὸς αὐτόν· Δεηθῶμεν τοῠ Θεοῦ τὴν ἑβδομαδα ταύτην περὶ τοῦ μυστηρίου τούτου, καὶ πιστεύομεν ὅτι ὁ Θεὸς ἀποκαλύπτει ἡμῖν. Ὁ δὲ γέρων μετὰ χαρᾶς ἐδέξατο τὸν λόγον· καὶ ἐδέετο τοῦ Θεοῦ, λέγων· Κύριε, σὺ γινώσκεις ὅτι οὐ κατὰ κακίαν ἀπιστῶ· ἀλλ' ὅπως μὴ ἐν ἀγνωσίᾳ πλανηθῶ, ἀποκάλυψόν μοι, Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστὲ. Ἀπελθόντεσς δὲ οἱ γέροντες εἰς τὰ κελλία ἑαυτῶν, παρεκάλουν τὸν Θεὸν καὶ αὐτοὶ, λέγοντες· Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστὲ, ἀποκάλυψον τῷ γέροντι τὸ μυστήριον τοῦτο, ἵνα πιστεύσῃ, καὶ μὴ ἀπολέσῃ τὸν κόπον αὐτοῦ. Καὶ εἰσήκουσεν ὁ Θεὸς ἀμφοτέρων. Καὶ πληρωθείσης τῆς ἑβδομάδος, ἦλθον τῇ Κυριακῇ εἰς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ ἔστησαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ οἱ τρεῖς μόνοις ὡς παιδίον. Καὶ ὡς ἐξέτεινεν ὁ πρεσβύτερος τὴν χεῖρα κλάσαι τὸν ἄρτον, ἰδοὺ ἄγγελος Κυρίου κατῆλθεν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ ἔχων μάχαιραν, καὶ ἔθυσε τὸ παιδίον, καὶ ἐκένωσε  τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸ ποτήριον. Ὡς δὲ ἔκλασεν ὁ πρεσβύτερος εἰς μικρὰ μέρη τὸν ἄρτον, καὶ ὁ ἀγγελος ἔκοπτεν ἐκ τοῦ παιδίου μικρὰ μέρη. Καὶ ὡς προσῆλθον λαβεῖν ἐκ τῶν ἁγίων, ἐδόθη τῷ γέροντι μόνῳ κρέας ἡματωμένον· καὶ ἔκραξε λέγων· Πιστεύω, Κύριε, ὁτι ὁ ἄρτος σῶμα σού ἐστι, καὶ τὸ ποτήριον αἷμά σού ἐστι. Καὶ εὐθέως ἐγένετο τὸ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ κρέας, ἄρτος κατὰ τὸ μυστήριον· καὶ μετέλαβεν εὐχαριστῶν τῷ Θεῷ. Καὶ λέγουσιν αύτῷ οἱ γέροντες· Ὁ Θεὸς οἶδε τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην φύσιν, ὅτι οὐ δύναται φαγεῖν κρέα ὠμὰ, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μετεποίησε τὸ σῶμα εἰς ἄρτον, καὶ τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ εἰς οἶνον, τοῖς πίστει δεχομένοις. Καὶ ηὐχαρίστησαν τῷ Θεῷ περὶ τοῦ γεροντος, ὅτι οὐκ ἀφῆκεν ἀπολέσθαι τοὺς κόπους αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀπῆλθον οἱ τρεῖς μετὰ χαρᾶς εἰς τὰ κελλία αὐτῶν. ᾽Αποφθεγματα των ἀγιων γεροντων, Παλλαδιος

Father Daniel the Pharanite said, 'Our Father Arsenius told us of a man of Scetis, one of great deeds and simple faith, and yet on account of his naivete he was deceived, for he said, 'The bread is not really the body of Christ, but a symbol.’ Two elders hearing he had said this and aware that he was upright in his way of life reasoned that he had not spoken this through malice but through simplicity, and they came to him and said to him, 'Father, we have heard a faithless proposition from someone who says that the bread which we receive is not really the body of Christ, but a symbol.' The old man said, 'It is I who said that.' And the old men exhorted him saying, 'Do not hold to this, Father, but rather to what the Catholic Church hands down. We believe that the bread itself is the body of Christ and that the cup itself is the blood of Christ, that is it real and not a symbol. For as in the beginning He took dust from the earth and formed man in His image, no one being able to say that it is not the image of God, even if it is incomprehensible, thus we believe the bread is really the body of Christ.' The old man said, 'If i am not been persuaded by the deed, I shall not be fully assured.' So they said to him, 'Let us pray to God about this mystery throughout the whole of this week and we believe that God will reveal it to us.' The old man received this saying with joy and he prayed to God saying, 'Lord, you know that this is not on account of malice, so that I may not err through ignorance, reveal it to me, Lord Jesus Christ.' The old men went away to their own cells and they also called on God, saying, 'Lord Jesus Christ, reveal the mystery to the old man, that he may believe and not lose his labours.' And God heard the prayers of both. At the end of the week, on Sunday, they came to church and they there appeared to these three alone, as it were, a little child. And when the priest stretched out his hand to break the bread, behold an angel of the Lord came down from heaven with a sword and pierced the child and poured the child’s blood into the chalice. And when the priest broke the bread into small pieces, the angel also cut the little child into pieces. When they approached to receive the sacraments, to the old man only was given the bloody flesh, and he cried out saying, ' I believe, Lord, that this bread is your body and this cup is your blood.' Immediately the flesh which was in his hand became bread, according to the mystery, and he took it, giving thanks to God. The old men said to him, 'God knows human nature, that man cannot eat raw flesh and that is why he has changed his body into bread and his blood into wine, for those who receive it in faith.' And they gave thanks to God for the old man, because he had not been allowed to lose his labours, and the three went away with joy to their own cells.' Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Palladius of Galatia

The Trinity And Division

Simplices enim quique, ne dixerim imprudentes et idiotae, quae maior semper credentium pars est, quoniam et ipsa regula fidei a pluribus diis saeculi ad unicum et verum deum transfert, non intellegentes unicum quidem sed cum sua oeconomia esse credendum, expavescunt ad oeconomiam. Numerum et dispositionem trinitatis divisionem praesumunt unitatis, quando unitas ex semetipsa derivans trinitatem non destruatur ab illa sed administretur. Itaque duos et tres iam iactitant a nobis praedicari, se vero unius dei cultores praesumunt, quasi non et unitas irrationaliter collecta haeresim faciat et trinitas rationaliter expensa veritatem constituat. Monarchiam, inquiunt, tenemus et ita sonum ipsum vocaliter exprimunt etiam Latini, et tam opifice ut putes illos tam bene intellegere monarchiam quam enuntiant; sed monarchiam sonare student Latini, oi0konomian  intellegere nolunt etiam Graeci. At ego, si quid utriusque linguae praecerpsi, monarchiam nihil aliud significare scio quam singulare et unicum imperium: non tamen praescribere monarchiam ideo quia unius sit eum cuius sit aut filium non habere aut ipsum se sibi filium fecisse aut monarchiam suam non per quos velit administrare. Atquin nullam dico dominationem ita unius sui esse, ita singularem, ita monarchiam, ut non etiam per alias proximas personas administretur quas ipsa prospexerit officiales sibi:  si vero et filius fuerit ei cuius monarchia sit, non statim dividi eam et monarchiam esse desinere si particeps eius adsumatur et filius, sed proinde illius esse principaliter a quo communicatur in filium, et dum illius est proinde monarchiam esse quae a duobus tam unitis continetur.  Igitur si et monarchia divina per tot legiones et exercitus angelorum administratur sicut scriptum est, Milies centies centena milia adsistebant ei et milies centena milia apparebant ei, nec ideo unius esse desiit, ut desinat monarchia esse quia per tanta milia virtutum procuratur,  quale est ut deus divisionem et dispersionem pati videatur in filio et in spiritu sancto secundum et tertium sortitis locum, tam consortibus substantiae patris, quas non patitur in tot angelorum numero et quidem tam alienorum a substantia Patris? membra et pignora et instrumenta et ipsam vim ac totum censum monarchiae eversionem deputas eius? non recte. Tertullianus, Adversus Praxeam

Certainly the simple, who I will not call unwise and unlearned, who always constitute the majority of the faithful, because the very rule of faith withdraws them from the world's plurality of gods to the one and true God, not understanding that though He is the One He must be believed in with His own economy, are troubled at this arrangement. The number and distribution of the Trinity they assume to be a division of unity when the unity which derives the Trinity out of its own self is not destroyed but actually supported by it. Thus they throw against us that two and three gods are preached by us while they believe themselves to be the true worshipers of the One God, as if the unity itself held irrationally was not productive of heresy, and the Trinity rationally contemplated constituted the truth. They say that we maintain the Monarchy, and as far as the sound is expressed, even Latins pronounce it in such a way that you would think their understanding of the Monarchy was as complete as their pronunciation, but while Latins take care to pronounce the Monarchy, Greeks are unwilling to understand the arrangement. But I, if I have grasped anything of either language, am sure that Monarchy means nothing other than single and individual rule; but even so, this monarchy does not prescribe, because it is of One, Him whose it is, either from having a Son, or from having made for Himself a Son, or from administering His monarchy by as He will. And further I say that no dominion belongs to one only, as his own, or is in such a sense singular, or is in such a sense a monarchy, as not also to be administered through others closely associated with it, and whom it has itself appointed as officials to itself, and if indeed there is a Son to Him whose monarchy it is, it does not instantly divide and cease to be a monarchy if the Son also be taken as a participant in it, but it is equally His by whom it is communicated to the Son, and being His it is quite as much a monarchy, since it is held together by two who are in unity. Therefore as the Divine Monarchy also is administered by so many legions and hosts of angels, as it is written: 'Thousand thousands ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him," 1 and since it has not because of this ceased to be of One so as no longer to be a monarchy because it is maintained by so many thousands of powers, how is it that God should seem to suffer division in the Son and in the Holy Spirit, who have the second and the third places assigned to them, partaking of the substance of the Father, when He does not so in the multitude of so many angels who are not of his substance? And do you consider that the actual members and the pledges and instruments of His might and the entire system of His monarchy, are the overthrow and of it? That is not right.  Tertullian, from Against Praxeas 1 Dan 7.10

An Enemy of Christmas Denounced

Plane nativitas a Gabriele adnuntiatur: quid illi cum angelo creatoris? et in virginis utero conceptus inducitur: quid illi cum propheta creatoris? odit moras, qui subito Christum de caelo deferebat. aufer hinc, inquit, molestos semper Caesaris census et diversoria angusta et sordidos pannos et dura praesepia: viderit angelica multitudo deum suum noctibus honorans: servent potius pecora pastores, et magi ne fatigentur de longinquo: dono illis aurum suum:  melior sit et Herodes ne Hieremias glorietur: sed nec circumcidatur infans, ne doleat, nec ad templum deferatur, ne parentes suos oneret sumptu oblationis, nec in manus tradatur Simeoni, ne senem moriturum exinde contristet: taceat et anus illa, ne fascinet puerum. his opinor consiliis tot originalia instrumenta Christi delere, Marcion, ausus es, ne caro eius probaretur. ex quo, oro te: exhibe auctoritatem: si propheta es praenuntia aliquid, si apostolus praedica publice, si apostolicus cum apostolis senti, si tantum Christianus es crede quod traditum est: si nihil istorum es, merito dixerim, morere. nam et mortuus es, qui non es Christianus, non credendo quod creditum Christianos facit. Tertullianus, De Carne Christi

Clearly the nativity is announced by Gabriel. But what is an angel of the Creator to this man? The conception in the virgin's womb is brought forth. But what is a prophet of the Creator to him? This fellow abhors delay, since suddenly he brings down Christ full grown from heaven. 'Away from here,' says he, 'with that troublesome census of Caesar, and the needy inn, and squalid swaddling cloths, and the rough stable.' He would rather see the angelic multitude which honored their Lord at night helping shepherds with their flocks, he would not let the Magi weary themselves with a long journey but would have their gold remain with them. Let Herod, too, improve, so that Jeremiah may not glory over him, let a babe not suffer circumcision and let him not be brought to the temple lest he burden his parents with the expense of the offering, nor let him be given into the hands Simeon, lest the old man be hurried to death by sadness, and let that old woman also hold her tongue lest she should bewitch the child. With these thoughts, I think you,O Marcion, would dare destroy the original records of Christ that His flesh might not be demonstrated. But, I beseech you, on what grounds is this done? Show me your authority. If you are a Prophet, pronounce something; if an Apostle, preach it in public; if a follower of the Apostles, think with the Apostles; if you are only a Christian, believe in that which has been handed down. If, however, you are none of these, then I would with reason say, die, but indeed you are dead who are no Christian, not believing in that which by being believed makes one Christian. Tertullian, On the Flesh of Christ

The Two Epiphanies

Epiphania Graece, Latine apparitio sive manifestatio vocatur. Eo enim die Christus sideris indicio Magis apparuit adorandus. Quod fuit figura primitiae credentium gentium. Quo die et Dominici baptismatis sacramentum et permutatae in vinum aquae, factorum per Dominum signorum principia extiterunt. Duae sunt autem epiphaniae: prima, in qua natus Christus pastoribus Hebraeorum angelo nuntiante apparuit; secunda, in qua ex gentium populis stella indice praesepis cunabula Magos adoraturos exhibuit. Sanctus Isidorus Hispalensis, Etymologiae, Lib 6.

What is named the Epiphany in Greek is called The Attendance or Manifestation in Latin. On this day the worshipful Christ appeared to the Magi who were guided by the star, which is a figure of the first gentile believers. On this day is also celebrated the Baptism of the Lord and the Changing of Water into Wine, the first signs made by the Lord. But really there are two Epiphanies, the first when Christ just born was shown to the shepherds of the Hebrews by the report of the angel, the second when he was shown in his manger of a crib to the star guided Magi of the gentile people. Saint Isidore of Seville, The Etymologies, Book 6

Death And The Transfiguration

Igitur postquam et tollendam crucem, et perdendam animam, et damno mundo commutandam vitae aeternitatem monuerat, conversus ad discipulos, ait aliquos ex his futuros, qui gustatui mortem non essent, donec filium hominis in regni sui gloria contuerentur. Ex conditione autem gustatus, tenuem quamdam fidelibus libationem mortis ostendit. Itaque res sequitur. Nam post sex dies, Petrus, Jacobus et Johannes assumuntur seorum, et excelso monte consistunt: ipsisque inspectantibus Dominus transfiguratur, et toto claritatis suae habitu circumsplendet.  Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis , In Evangelium Matthaei Commentarius

Therefore after the Lord had exhorted them to take up the cross and to lose their lives and exchange the loss of the world for eternal life, turning to His disciples He said that there would some among them who would not taste death until they had seen the Son of Man in the glory of His kingdom. In His state indeed he tasted it, showing to the faithful a certain slight libation of death. So the deed follows. For after six days Peter and James and John were taken apart and they stood on the high mountain, and the Lord was transfigured in their sight, in all His appearance shining with brightness. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, from the Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Matthew

Festive Advice

Τοιγαροῦν ἑορτάζωμεν, μὴ πανηγυρικῶς, ἀλλὰ θεϊκῶς· μὴ κοσμικῶς, ἀλλ' ὑπερκοσμίως· μὴ τὰ ἡμέτερα, ἀλλὰ τὰ τοῦ ἡμετέρου, μᾶλλον δὲ τὰ τοῦ Δεσπότου· μὴ τὰ τῆς ἀσθενείας, ἀλλὰ τὰ τῆς ἰατρείας· μὴ τὰ τῆς πλάσεως, ἀλλὰ τὰ τῆς ἀναπλάσεως. Ἔσται δὲ τοῦτο πῶς;Μὴ πρόθυρα στεφανώ σωμεν, μὴ χοροὺς συστησώμεθα, μὴ κοσμήσωμεν ἀγυιὰς, μὴ ὀφθαλμὸν ἑστιάσωμεν, μὴ ἀκοὴν καταυ λήσωμεν, μὴ ὄσφρησιν ἐκθηλύνωμεν, μὴ γεῦσιν κα ταπορνεύσωμεν, μὴ ἁφῇ χαρισώμεθα, ταῖς προχεί τοις εἰς κακίαν ὁδοῖς, καὶ εἰσόδοις τῆς ἁμαρτίας, μὴ ἐσθῆτι μαλακισθῶμεν, ἁπαλῇ τε καὶ περιῤῥεούσῃ, καὶ ἧς τὸ κάλλιστον ἀχρηστία, μὴ λίθων διαυγείαις, μὴ χρυσοῦ περιλάμψεσι, μὴ χρωμάτων σοφίσμασι ψευδομένων τὸ φυσικὸν κάλλος, καὶ κατὰ τῆς εἰκόνος ἐξευρημένων· μὴ κώμοις καὶ μέθαις, οἷς κοίτας καὶ ἀσελγείας οἶδα συνεζευγμένας· ἐπειδὴ κακῶν διδασκάλων κακὰ τὰ μαθήματα, μᾶλλον δὲ πονηρῶν σπερμάτων πονηρὰ τὰ γεώργια. Μὴ στιβάδας ὑψηλὰς πηξώμεθα σκηνοποιοῦντες τῇ γαστρὶ τὰ τῆς θρύ ψεως. Μὴ τιμήσωμεν οἴνων τοὺς ἀνθοσμίας, ὀψο ποιῶν μαγγανείας, μύρων πολυτελείας. Μὴ γῆ καὶ θάλασσα τὴν τιμίαν ἡμῖν κόπρον δωροφορείτωσαν·οὕτω γὰρ ἐγὼ τιμᾷν οἶδα τρυφήν. Μὴ ἄλλος ἄλλον ἀκρασίᾳ νικᾷν σπουδάζωμεν. Ἀκρασία γὰρ ἐμοὶ, πᾶν τὸ περιττὸν καὶ ὑπὲρ τὴν χρείαν· καὶ ταῦτα πεινώντων ἄλλων καὶ δεομένων, τῶν ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ πηλοῦ τε καὶ κράματος. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Εἰς τὰ Θεοφάνια

Let us not keep the Feast raucously, but in a reverently, not as the world does, but like that which transcends the world, not as something that is ours but as a thing of Ours, a thing of the Master, not a thing of weakness, but of health; no of creation, but of re-creation. And how shall this be? Let us not garland porches, nor adorn squares, nor prepare dances; let us not feast the eye, nor beguile the ear with tunes, nor charm with perfumes, nor prostitute the taste, nor indulge the touch, those roads so prone to evil and gateways for sin; let us not be soft in delicate and flowing cloth, whose beauty is its uselessness, nor with glitter of gems, nor with sheen of gold, nor with cleverness of colour that belies nature's beauty, against its nature fashioned; not in wildness and drunkenness, with which are mixed, I know well, licentiousness and trysts, for of evil teachers so are the lessons, or rather bad seeds give bad harvests. Let us not set up high beds, making tabernacles for the belly of what belongs to debauchery. Let us not honour bouquets of wines, the tricks of meat dressers, the great expense of unguents. Let not sea and land bring us as a gift their worthy dung, for it is thus that I have learned to value luxury; and let us not strive to outdo each other in intemperance; for to my mind such is superfluity and all which is beyond need. And all this while others hunger and lack, those who are of the same clay and soil. Saint Gregory Nazianzus, On The Theophany