Angels Ascending and Descending

Et dormiens vidit scalam subnixam, innitentem coelo, et angelos Dei ascendentes et descendentes. Porro scala Christus est, qui dixit: Ego sum via. Per hanc ascendunt, et descendunt angeli, in quibus significati sunt evangelistae, et praedicatores Christi. Ascendentes utique, cum ad intelligendam ejus supereminentissimam divinitatem excedunt universam creaturam, ut eum inveniant in principio verbum, Deum apud Deum, per quem facta sunt omnia. Descendentes autem, ut eum inveniant factum ex muliere, factum sub lege, ut eos qui sub lege erant redimeret. In illa enim scala a terra usque in coelum, a carne usque ad spiritum, carnales proficiendo, velut ascendendo, spirituales fiunt; ad quos lacte nutriendos etiam ipsi spirituales descendunt quodammodo, cum eis non possunt loqui, quasi spiritualibus, sed quasi carnalibus. Ipse est sursum in capite suo; ipse deorsum in corpore suo, quod est Ecclesia. Ipsum ergo scalam intelligimus, quia ipse dixit: Ego sum via. Ad ipsum ergo ascenditur, ut in excelsis intelligatur. Et ad ipsum descenditur, ut in membris suis parvulus nutriatur. Et per illum se erigunt, ut eum sublimiter spectent. Per ipsum etiam se humiliant, ut eum sublimiter ac temperanter annuntient. Sanctus Isidorus Hispalensis, Mysticorum Expositiones Sacramentorum Seu Quaestiones In Vetus Testamentum, In Genesin, Caput XXIV Source: Migne PL 83.258a-d

And sleeping he saw a ladder set on the earth, and the top of it touched heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending. 1 The ladder is Christ who said, 'I am the way,' 2 By this angels ascend and descend, in which are signified the evangelists and the preachers of Christ. They ascend when they bring every creature to the understanding of His supereminent Divinity, so that they find Him to be the Word in the Beginning, God with God, through whom all things were made. 3 And they descend so that they find Him born of a woman, under the law, so that He might redeem those who were under the law. 4 For in that ladder stretching from earth to heaven is the advance from the flesh to the spirit, when a carnal people advance on its ascent and becomes spiritual, and the spiritual descent is to those who are nourished on milk, when they cannot be spoken to as spiritual people but only as carnal people. 5 He is above as the head and He is below as the body, which is the Church. 6 We understand Him, then, as the ladder, because He said, 'I am the way.' And therefore to Him there is ascent in the understanding of high things. And in Him there is descent so that in His members the little one is nourished. And through Him they rise so that they look on Him sublimely, and indeed through Him they are lowered so that they preach sublimely and temperately. Saint Isidore of Seville, Expositions of Sacred Mysteries or Questions on the Old Testament, On Genesis, Chapter 24 1 Gen 28.12 2 Jn 14.16 3 Jn 1.1-3 4 Gal 4.4-5 5 1 Cor 3.2 6 Colos 1.18

Seeing The Face

Verumtamen iusti confitebuntur nomini tuo, et habitabunt recti cum vultu tuo. Designatur hoc debere fieri inter quaslibet temporis graves amarasque pressuras. Tunc enim magna virtus est laudare Dominum, quando se istius saeculi blandimenta subducunt. Bonus enim fuit Iob, cum Dominum dives colebat, sed quanto melior, dum eum sub multiplici afflictione laudabat! Tunc ergo amplius desideremus gratias agere, quando nos tentator conatur affligere. Facilius enim inimicus discedit, cum viderit excedere non posse quos deprimit. Nam vide quid sequitur, quia cum vultu eius habitare non desinunt, qui recti sunt. Visio infastidibilis atque perpetua illum semper videre, a quo se solet omnis rationabilis creatura reficere, sicut et in quintodecimo psalmo iam dictum est: Adimplebis me laetitia cum vultu tuo. Ille enim vultus praemiorum omnium munus est, nec potest esse cuiusquam bonitatis indignus, qui illum meruerit habere conspectum. Sed cum legatur: Nemo Deum vidit unquam, istud ad illud tempus referendum est, quando beati Dominum non per speculum, sed, ut ait Apostolus, facie ad faciem contuentur. Cassiodorus, Expositio In Psalterium, Psalmus CXXXIX Source: Migne PL 70.998c-d

Certainly they will rejoice in your name and the righteous will dwell with your face. 1 This speaks of those who have endured amid the heavy and bitter pressures of the time. For indeed it is a great virtue to praise the Lord when the allures of this world would corrupt, as Job was good when as a rich man he revered the Lord, but it was much better that he praised Him while he was suffering many afflictions. Therefore we should have greater desire to give thanks when the tempter tries to afflict us. For the enemy swiftly flees when he sees he cannot cast down those he presses on. Then see what follows, that those who are righteous shall not cease to dwell with His face. They shall always see an inexhaustible and endless vision of Him, in which every rational creature finds its rest, as it has already been said in the fifteenth Psalm, 'In joy you shall embrace me with your face.' 2 For that face is the greatest of all rewards, and it is not possible that anyone unworthy of this good shall merit to see it. But when we read: 'No one has seen the face of God,' 3 then what we have here in this Psalm must refer to that time when the blessed do not look on the Lord 'in a mirror' but, as the Apostle says, 'face to face'. 4 Cassiodorus, Commentary On The Psalms, from Psalm 139 1 Ps 139.14 2 Ps 15.11 3 Jn 1.18 4 1 Cor 13.12

Anthony's Vision

Εἶχε δὲ καὶ τοῦτο πάλιν χάρισμα. Ἐν γὰρ τῷ ὄρει κατὰ μόνας καθήμενος, εἴ ποτέ τι πρὸς ἑαυτὸν ζητῶν ἠπόρει, τοῦτο αὐτῷ παρὰ τῆς Προνοίας εὐχομένῳ ἀπεκαλύπτετο. Καὶ ἦν, κατὰ τὸ γεγραμμένον, θεοδίδακτος γενόμενος ὁ μακάριος. Μετὰ ταῦτα γοῦν διαλέξεως αὐτῷ ποτε γενομένης πρός τινας εἰσελθόν τας πρὸς αὐτὸν, περὶ τῆς διαγωγῆς τῆς ψυχῆς, καὶ ποῖος μετὰ ταῦτα αὐτῇ τόπος ἔσται, τῇ ἑξῆς νυκτὶ καλεῖ τις αὐτὸν ἄνωθεν, λέγων· Ἀντώνιε, ἀναστὰς ἔξελθε, καὶ βλέπε. Ἐξελθὼν τοίνυν, (ᾔδει γὰρ τίσιν ὑπακούειν ὀφείλει·) καὶ ἐθεώρησέ τινα μακρὸν ἀναβλέψας, ἀειδῆ καὶ φοβερὸν, ἑστῶτα καὶ φθάνοντα μέχρι τῶν νεφελῶν, καὶ ἀναβαίνοντάς τινας ὥσπερ ἐπτερωμένους· κἀκεῖνον ἐκτείνοντα τὰς χεῖρας· καὶ τοὺς μὲν κωλυομένους παρ' αὐτοῦ, τοὺς δὲ ὑπεριπταμένους, καὶ διελθόντας λοιπὸν, ἀμερίμνως ἀνάγεσθαι. Ἐπὶ μὲν οὖν τοῖς τοιούτοις ἔτριζε τοὺς ὀδόντας ὁ μακρὸς ἐκεῖνος· ἐπὶ δὲ τοῖς ἀποπίπτουσιν, ἔχαιρε. Καὶ εὐθὺς πρὸς Ἀντώνιον ἐγένετο φωνή· Νόει τὸ βλεπόμενον· καὶ διανοιχθείσης αὐτοῦ τῆς διανοίας, ἐνενόει τῶν ψυχῶν εἶναι τὴν πάροδον, καὶ τὸν ἑστῶ τα μακρὸν εἶναι τὸν ἐχθρὸν τὸν φθονοῦντα τοῖς πιστοῖς· καὶ τοὺς μὲν ὑπευθύνους αὐτῷ κρατοῦντα καὶ κωλύοντα διελθεῖν, τοὺς δὲ μὴ πεισθέντας αὐτῷ μὴ δυνάμενον κρατεῖν ὡς ὑπερβαίνοντας. Τοῦτο πάλιν ἑωρακὼς, καὶ ὥσπερ ὑπομιμνησκόμενος, μᾶλλον ἠγω νίζετο προκόπτειν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν καθ' ἡμέραν. Ταῦ τα δὲ οὐχ ἑκὼν ἀπήγγελλεν αὐτός· ἐν δὲ τῷ χρονίζειν ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς καὶ καθ' ἑαυτὸν θαυμάζειν, πυνθανο μένων τῶν συνόντων καὶ θλιβόντων αὐτὸν, ἠναγκάζε το λέγειν, ὡς πατὴρ οὐ δυνάμενος κρύπτειν τοῖς τέκνοις· ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡγούμενος, ὅτι τὸ μὲν αὐτοῦ σύνειδός ἐστι καθαρὸν, ἐκείνοις δὲ τὸ διήγημα γίνεται πρὸς ὠφέλειαν, μανθάνουσι τῆς ἀσκήσεως εἶναι καρπὸν ἀγαθὸν, τῶν τε πόνων πολλάκις παραμύθιον γίνεσθαι τὰς ὀπτασίας. Ἅγιος Ἀθανάσιος, Βίος καί Πολιτεία Τοῦ Ὅσῐος Παρτός Ἡμών Ἀντωνιοῦ Source: Migne PG 26.936c-937b

And again Anthony had this grace. For when he was sitting alone on the mountain, if he was ever in perplexity in his contemplations, it was revealed to him by Providence in prayer. He was that blessed man taught by God, as it is written. 1 After this, having discussed with certain men who had come to him the passing of the soul and what sort of things will happen to it after, the next night a voice from above called to him, saying, 'Antony, rise up, go out and look.' Having gone out, for he knew whom he should obey, and looking up, he saw a man standing there, one hideous and fearful and so tall that his height reached up to the clouds, and other men rose up as if they had wings. The figure stretched forth his hands and stopped some of those who were ascending, but others flew on above, and having passed on were free from care. Because of which the giant gnashed his teeth, but he rejoiced over those who fell back. And immediately a voice came to Antony, 'Understand what you see.' And his understanding was opened, and he understood that it was about the passing of souls, and that the great one who stood there was the enemy who envies the faithful. And those he seized and stopped from passing through were subject to him, but those he could not stop as they rose were not subservient to him. Having seen this, and as it were being reminded, he daily struggled to advance all the more towards those things which were ahead. He was not willing to speak about these visions, but as he spent much time in prayer and was amazed when those who were with him questioned him and pressed it upon him, he was obliged to speak of it, like a father who cannot hide things from his children. For he judged that as his conscience was clear, the account would be of benefit to them, that they might learn that discipline gave good fruit, and that visions were often the comfort of labours. Saint Athanasius, The Life of Saint Anthony 1 Isaiah 54.13, Jn 6.45

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

Turning The Mind To God

Felix ergo qui per abstersionem continuam phantasmatum et imaginum, ac per introversionem et inibi per sursum ductionem mentis in Deum, tandem aliquando obliviscitur phantasmatum quodammodo, ac per hoc consequentes operatur interius nudo ac simplici ac puro intellectu et affectu circa objectum simplicissimum Deum. Omnia igitur phantasmata, species, imagines, ac formas rerum omnium citra Deum a mente rejicias, ut in solo nudo intellectu et affectu ac voluntate tuum pendeat exercitium circa Deum intra te. Nempe finis omnium exercitiorum hic est, scilicet intendere et quiescere in Domino Deo intra te per purissimum intellectum, et devotissimum affectum sine phantasmatibus et implicationibus. Hujusmodi autem exercitium non fit in organis carneis, et sensibus exterioribus, sed per quod quis homo est: homo vero quis est intellectu et affectu. Et idcirco quamdiu homo cum phantasmatibus et sensibus ludit, et eis insistit, videtur nondum exisse motus et limites bestialitatis suae, hoc est, illius quod cum bestiis habet commune. Quia illae per phantasmata et per tales sensitivas seu sensibiles species cognoscunt et afficiuntur, et non aliter, eo quod altiorem vim animae non habeant. Secus est de homine, secundum intellectum et affectum et liberum arbitrium, ad Dei imaginem et similitudinem creato, quibus debet Deo immediate, pure et nude imprimi, et uniri, firmiterque inhaerere. Quamobrem diabolus diligentissime et maxime conatur impedire illud exercitium, quantum potest, ex quo est quodammodo praeambulum et initium vitae aeternae, invidens super hoc homini. Idcirco nititur semper mentem hominis alienare a Domino Deo, nunc per istas, nunc per illas tentationes seu passiones, nunc sollicitudine superflua et cura indiscreta, nunc turbatione et conversatione dissoluta, curiositateque irrationabili: nunc per studia librorum subtilium, colloquia aliena, rumores et novitatem: nunc per aspera, nunc per contraria, etc. Quae tamen etsi nonnumquam levia et tamquam nulla videantur peccata, tamen magna sunt impedimenta hujus sancti exercitii et operis. Et ideo, etiamsi utilia et necessaria visa fuerint, sive magna sive parva, ut noxia et perniciosa illico sunt rejicienda penitus, et a sensibus propellenda. Summopere igitur necessarium est, ut audita, visa, facta, et dicta, et caetera similia sine phantasmatibus, imaginibus et occupationibus recipiantur, nec etiam ex consequenti vel antea vel tunc super hoc phantasmata et implicationes formentur et nutriantur. Et ita quando phantasmata non venit ad memoriam et mentem, tunc non impedit hominem, sive in oratione, meditatione, et psalmodia, sive in alia quacumque operatione et exercitatione spirituali, nec rursum iterato occurret ei. Et sic expedite secureque te totum, etiam plene omnia et singula committe infallibili et certissimae divinae providentiae cum silentio et quiete, et ipse pugnabit pro te: et melius, honestius ac dulcius liberabit te et consolabitur, quam si tu semper die noctuque de hoc continue phantasiareris, et vana vagaque ac captiva mente fatue sic et sic, hinc et inde discurreres errabundus, necnon mente et corpore deficiens tempus perderes, et vires stulte ac irrationabiliter consumeres. Cuncta ergo et singula, undecumque et qualitercumque occurrentia ortum habeant, sic accipe cum taciturnitate et tranquillitate aequanimiter, quemadmodum de manu paternae divinaeque providentiae tibi venirent. Nuda igitur te a phantasmatibus omnibus rerum corporearum, juxta tui status et professionis exigentiam, ut nuda mente et sincere inhaereas ei cui te multipliciter et totaliter devovisti, ut nihil quodammodo possibile sit medii inter animam tuam et ipsum, ut pure fixeque fluere possis a vulneribus humanitatis in lumen suae divinitatis. Sanctus Albertus Magnus, De Adhaerendo Deo Source: here

Happy, therefore, is he who by continual removal of appearances and images, by turning within, and by the leading the mind above to God, eventually is rid of every thing of the imagination, and by this consequently works within, nakedly and simply, and with a pure intellect and intent, on the simplest of all objects, God. So cast out from the mind all appearances, objects, images and shapes of all things other than God, so that, with just naked understanding, intent and will, your exertions will be concerned with God Himself within you. For this is the end of all such exercises, that is, to turn the mind to and rest in the Lord God within you with a completely pure understanding and a completely devoted will, without appearances and entanglements. This sort of exercise is not performed by the fleshly organs nor by the exterior senses, but by that by which one is man; for a man is  understanding and will. Therefore, while a man yet plays with images and the senses, and is attached to them, he appears as one who has not yet come out from the impulses and limitations of his animality, that is, what he has in common with the beasts. For these know and are moved by sense impressions and sensible images, and not otherwise, since they do not possess the higher powers of the soul. But with man, created in the image and likeness of God, it is by understanding, will, and free choice, that he should be directly, purely and nakedly impressed and united with God, and firmly adhere to Him. For this reason the Devil most diligently and strenuously tries to hinder this practice, as much as he can, being envious of this in man, for it is a sort of prelude and beginning of eternal life. So he is always striving to estrange man's mind from the Lord God, now by one sort of temptations or passions, and now by another sort, now by superfluous worries and trifling cares, now by disturbing and dissolute conversation and mindless curiosity, now by the study of subtle books, irrelevant discussion, rumours and novelties, now by difficulties, now by opposition, etc. Which things though they may seem trivial enough and not sinful, yet they are a great impediment to this holy exercise and work. Therefore, even if they seem to be useful and necessary, whether great or small, they should be completely rejected as harmful and dangerous, and driven out of the senses. Above all, therefore, it is necessary that things heard, seen, done and said, and other similar things, should be received without apperances,  imagination, and preoccupation, and one should not let past or future associations, implications or constructs of the imagination form and feed. For when appearances do not come to the memory and mind, a man is not hindered, whether in prayer, meditation, or reciting psalms, or in whatever other practice or spiritual exercise, nor will they recur again. So without delay commit yourself confidently and wholly, each and every thing, to the unfailing and most reliable Divine providence, in silence and peace, and He will fight for you; and better, He will more fully and sweetly liberate you and comfort you , more than if you were to be imagining it it all the time, day and night, and you were wandering around frantically here and there with the vain and confused thoughts of your mind in bondage, nor will you exhaust your mind and body, wasting your time, and stupidly and irrationally consuming your strength. So accept everything, separately and in general, wherever it comes from and whatever origin it has, in the silence and peace of an undisturbed mind, as coming to you from a father’s hand and His Divine Providence. So strip yourself  of the images of all physical things, according to your state and profession, so that you can adhere to Him with a bare and honest mind, as you have vowed to do many times and utterly, that nothing whatever be able to come between your soul and Him, so that you are able to flow purely and immoveably from the wounds of His humanity into the light of His Divinity. Saint Albert The Great, On Cleaving to God

Three Visions

Quod autem non imaginaliter, sed proprie videtur, et non per corpus videtur, hoc ea visione videtur, quae omnes caeteras superat. Harum species atque differentias, quantum me Dominus adiuverit, explicare curabo. Ecce in hoc uno praecepto cum legitur: Diliges proximum tuum tamquam teipsum, tria genera visionum occurrunt: unum per oculos, quibus ipsae litterae videntur; alterum per spiritum hominis quo proximus et absens cogitatur; tertium per contuitum mentis, quo ipsa dilectio intellecta conspicitur. In his tribus generibus, illud primum manifestum est omnibus: in hoc enim videtur coelum et terra, et omnia quae in eis conspicua sunt oculis nostris. Nec illud alterum, quo absentia corporalia cogitantur, insinuare difficile est: ipsum quippe coelum et terram, et ea quae in eis videre possumus, etiam in tenebris constituti cogitamus; ubi nihil videntes oculis corporis, animo tamen corporales imagines intuemur, seu veras, sicut ipsa corpora vidimus, et memoria retinemus; seu fictas, sicut cogitatio formare potuerit. Aliter enim cogitamus Carthaginem quam novimus, aliter Alexandriam quam non novimus. Tertium vero illud quo dilectio intellecta conspicitur, eas res continet, quae non habent imagines sui similes, quae non sunt quod ipsae. Nam homo vel arbor vel sol, et quaecumque alia corpora, sive coelestia sive terrestria, et praesentia videntur in suis formis, et absentia cogitantur in imaginibus animo impressis; et faciunt duo genera visorum, unum per corporis sensus, alterum per spiritum, quo illae imagines continentur. Dilectio autem numquid aliter videtur praesens in specie qua est, et aliter absens in aliqua imagine sui simili? Non utique; sed quantum mente cerni potest, ab alio magis, ab alio minus ipsa cernitur: si autem aliquid corporalis imaginis cogitatur, non ipsa cernitur. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensi, De Genesi Ad Litteram, Liber XII Source: Migne PL 34.458-459

That which is not a matter of images, but is more properly seen, not being seen through the body, this is the vision which surpasses all other vision. And these different types, as much as the Lord shall help me, I will endeavour to explain. Observe it in this one command which reads: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' 1 The three sorts of vision are found here, one through the eyes, by which the letters themselves appear, another through the spirit of a man by which his neighbour, even if he is absent, is thought of, and the third through the attention of the mind by which love is grasped by the intellect. In these three kinds, the first is obvious to all, for by it appears the sky and the earth, and everything which in them is seen by our eyes. Nor is the second, by which absent bodies are thought, difficult to grasp, for certainly heaven and earth and the things which are in them which we able to see, we may think of even when placed in darkness, where nothing appears to the eyes of the body, but in the soul we may look upon corporeal images, whether they are true, when we have seen the bodies themselves and retained them in the memory, or fictive, as thought is able to fashion them. For we may think of the Carthage which we know, and on the other hand the Alexandria which we do not know. The third type is that by which love is considered by the intellect, which contains those things which do not have images like themselves, which are not as they are. For a man or a tree or the sun and whatever other thing is corporeal, whether of the heavens or the earth, being present appears in its forms, or being absent is thought of by means of the images impressed on the soul, and these are the two types of vision, one through the sense of the body, and the other through the spirit, by which their images are grasped. But love, does it appear present in its form and when absent have some image like it? Not so; but as much as it possible to discern it with the mind, by one man more, by another less, so it is discerned; but if something is thought through it’s corporeal image it is not discerned. Saint Augustine of Hippo, On Genesis To The Letter, Book 12 1 Mt 22.39, Lev 19.18

Seeing The Word

Sicut tradiderunt, inquit, nobis qui ab initio ipsi viderunt, et ministri fuerunt Verbi. Non congruit ista locutio, ut magis ministerium verbi visum quam auditum esse credamus. Sed quia non prolativum verbum, sed substantiale signatur Verbum illud quod caro factum est, et habitavit in nobis: non vulgare verbum, sed illud coeleste intelligamus, cui Apostoli ministrarunt. Et tamen in Exodo lectum est, quia populus videbat vocem Domini: et utique vox non videtur, sed auditur. Vox enim quid est, nisi sonus qui non oculis cernitur, sed aure percipitur? Verum altissimo ingenio voluit declarare Moyses, quia vox videtur Dei; interioris enim mentis videtur obtutu; in Evangelio autem non vox, sed illud quod voce praestantius est, Verbum videtur. Unde et Ioannes sanctus Evangelista: Quod erat, inquit, ab initio, quod audivimus, et quod vidimus, et oculis nostris perspeximus, et manus nostrae scrutatae sunt de Verbo vitae: et vita apparuit, et vidimus, et testamur, et annuntiamus vobis de vita, quae erat apud Patrem, et apparuit nobis. Vides ergo quod Verbum Dei et visum est apostolis, et auditum. Non solum enim secundum corpus viderunt Dominum, sed etiam secundum Verbum; viderunt enim Verbum, qui cum Moyse et Elia viderunt gloriam Verbi. Isti enim viderunt Iesum, qui in sua viderunt gloria; alii non viderunt, qui corpus tantummodo videre potuerunt; non enim corporalibus, sed spiritalibus oculis Iesus videtur. Denique Iudaei non viderunt eum; quia non videbant in spiritu. Vidit enim Abraham; quia scriptum est: Abraham diem meum vidit, et gavisus est. Vidit ergo eum Abraham, qui Dominum utique in corpore non videbat: sed qui vidit in spiritu, vidit in corpore: qui autem vidit in corpore, et non vidit in spiritu; nec in ipso vidit corpore, quod videbat. Vidit eum Esaias; et quia vidit in spiritu, vidit et in corpore. Denique Non habebat, inquit, speciem suam neque decorem. Non viderunt eum Iudaei; obcaecatum enim erat insipiens cor eorum. Ipse quoque non se posse a Iudaeis videri testificatur dicens: Duces caeci, liquantes culicem, camelum autem glutientes. Non vidit eum Pilatus: non viderunt illi, qui clamabant: Crucifige, crucifige eum; si enim vidissent, numquam Dominum maiestatis crucifixissent. Qui ergo Deum vidit, vidit Emmanuel, hoc est, vidit nobiscum Deum: qui autem nobiscum Deum non vidit, non potuit videre quem virgo peperit. Denique, qui non crediderunt Dei Filium, nec Filium virginis crediderunt. Quid est ergo Deum videre? Nolo me interroges, Evangelium interroga, ipsum Dominum interroga, immo docentem audi: Philippe, qui videt me, videt et Patrem qui me misit. Quomodo tu dicis: Ostende nobis Patrem? Non credis quia ego in Patre, et Pater in me est? Utique non corpus videtur in corpore, nec spiritus videtur in spiritu: sed solus ille Pater videtur in Filio, aut iste Filius videtur in Patre. Non enim dissimiles in dissimilibus videntur: sed ubi unitas operationis est atque virtutis, et Filius in Patre, et Pater videtur in Filio. Quae ego, inquit, opera facio, et ille facit. In operibus Patris Iesus videtur, in operibus Filii et Pater cernitur. Vidit Iesum qui Galilaeum illud mysterium, id est, ex aqua vinum factum vidit; quod nemo posset, nisi mundi Dominus elementa convertere. Video Iesum, quando lego quia caeco linivit oculos luto, et reddidit visum. Ipsum enim recognosco qui de luto finxit hominem, et ei vivendi spiritum, et videndi lumen infudit. Video Iesum, quando peccata condonat; nemo enim potest peccata dimittere, nisi solus Deus. Video Iesum, quando Lazarum suscitat: et non viderunt qui viderunt. Video Iesum, video etiam Patrem, quando oculos ad coelum erigo, ad maria converto, ad terram retorqueo: Invisibilia enim eius, per ea quae perfecta sunt intellecta, conspiciuntur. Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, Expositio Evangelii secundum Lucam, Liber I Source: Migne PL 15.1535a-1536c

'As they were given to us by those who, from the beginning, have themselves seen and served the Word.' 1 It does not befit that this passage should cause us to believe that speech is served rather than heard. It is not a spoken word, but a substantial Word that 'became flesh and dwelt among us'. 2 It is not, let us understand, of a common word, but of the heavenly Word that the Apostles were servants. And yet it is read in Exodus that 'the people saw the voice of the Lord.' 3 But it is clear that the voice is not seen but heard. What is the voice, unless a sound which is not discerned by the eyes, but it is percevied by the ear? Truly it is with profound thought that Moses determined to affirm that the voice of God is seen. It appears in the contemplation of the interior of the heart. But in the Gospel it is not a voice that is seen; it is what is superior to the voice, the Word. So Saint John the evangelist says, 'That which was from the beginning, which we have heard and seen, beheld with our eyes, and touched with our hands the Word of life; for the Life is manifested, and we have seen it, and we bear witness to it, and we announce to you the Life that was with the Father and manifested itself to us.' 4 You see, then, that the Word of God was seen as well as heard by the Apostles. They saw the Lord not only in His body but even as the Word; they saw the Word, who with Moses and Elijah saw the glory of the Word. 5 They saw Jesus, who saw Him in His glory, the others did not, who could only see His body. For it is not the eyes of the body but those of the soul that see Jesus. The Jews did not see him while seeing him. Abraham saw, for it is written, 'Abraham saw my day and rejoiced.' 6 So Abraham saw Him, he who yet did not see the Lord in the body, but he who saw in the spirit, saw in the body, however, he who saw in the body and did not see in the spirit, he did not see in the body what he saw. Isaiah saw Him and because he saw in the spirit, he saw also in the body. Thus he said, 'He had neither appearance nor beauty.' 7 The Jews did not see Him, 'Their foolish heart was blinded.' 8 He, Himself, testifies that the Jews could not see him: 'Blind guides, filtering the gnat and drinking down the camel.' 9 Pilate did not see Him. They did not see Him who shouted, 'Crucify him, crucify him!' 'For if they had seen, they would never have crucified the sovereign Lord.' 10 Therefore he who saw God, saw Emmanuel, that is, he saw God with us. Whoever has not seen God with us has not been able to see Him whom a Virgin gave birth to. So those who did not believe him Son of God did not believe him the son of a Virgin. What is it to see God? Do not ask me, ask the Gospel, ask the Lord Himself, or rather, listen to Him teaching: 'Philip, he who sees me sees the Father who sent me. How can you say: Show us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and that the Father is in me?.' 11 Not that a body in a body is seen, nor a spirit in a spirit; but this Father alone is is seen in the Son, as this Son is seen in the Father. They are not seen as dissimilar things in one another, but where there is unity of operation and activity, we see both the Son in the Father and the Father in the Son. 'The works that I do,' He says, 'He too does them.' 12 Jesus is seen in the works of the Father, and in the works of the Son the Father is seen. He has seen Jesus in the mystery He performed in Galilee, that is, when he has seen water made wine; 13 for no one but the Master of the world can transform the elements. I see Jesus when I read that He smeared the eyes of the blind man with mud and He restored his sight. 14 I recognize here the one who made the man from mud and gave him the breath of life, and infused the light to see. 15 I see Jesus when He forgives sins, for 'no one can forgive sins save God alone.' 16 I see Jesus when He raises Lazarus, and the eyewitnesses did not see. 17 I see Jesus, I see also the Father when I raise my eyes to the sky, when I turn them towards the sea, when I turn them back to the earth; because 'his invisible perfections are seen and grasped by means of created objects.' 18 Saint Ambrose, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Luke, Book 1 1 Lk 1.2 2 Jn 1.14 3 Exod 20.18 4 1 Jn 1.1- 5 Mt 17.3 6 Jn 8.56 7 Isaiah 53.2 8 Rom 1.21 9 Mt 23.24 10 1 Cor 2.8 11 Jn 14.9-10 12 Jn 5.19 13 Jn 2.9 14 Jn 9.6 15 Gen 2.7 16 Mk 2.6-7 17 Jn 9.44 18 Rom 1.20

Receiving The Sight Of God

Εἰ οὖν εὕρηκα χάριν ἐναντίον σου ἐμφάνισόν μοι σεαυτόν γνωστῶς ἴδω σε ὅπως ἂν ὦ εὑρηκὼς χάριν ἐναντίον σου καὶ ἵνα γνῶ ὅτι λαός σου τὸ ἔθνος τὸ μέγα τοῦτο. Τὸ γνωστῶς ὁρώμενον, εὔδηλον ὡς θεωρίᾳ μόνον, καὶ οὐκ αἰσθήσει καταλαμβάνεται. Ὥσπερ γὰρ καὶ ὀφθαλμὸς τῶν αἰσθητῶν ἀντιλαμβάνεται δι' ὁράσεως οὕτως ὁ νοῦς, διὰ γνώσεως, Θεοῦ θεωρίαν δέχεται. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Την Ἐξοδον Source: Migne PG 39.113c-d

'If then I have found grace before You show Yourself to me that seeing I know You, and find grace before Your eyes that I know that this great nation is Your people.' 1 By intellectual sight He is seen, clearly by that sight alone, and the senses do not grasp Him. For as the eye by its vision perceives sensible things, so the mind by knowledge receives the sight of God. Didymus the Blind, Commentary on Exodus, Fragment 1 Exod 33.13 LXX

Ecstacies And Judgements

εἴτε γὰρ ἐξέστημεν, θεῷ: εἴτε σωφρονοῦμεν, ὑμῖν.  Ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐπὶ τούτοις ἐλεγχέσθωσαν παρ' ὑμῶν, λέγει δὲ περὶ τῶν ψευδαποστόλων, ἡμεῖς δὲ ὑμῶν χάριν καὶ δι' ὑμᾶς ταῦτα πράττομεν· κἄν τε γὰρ ἔξω τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων γενόμενοι τῷ θεῷ ἐκστῶμεν, ἀλλ' οὖν σωφρονοῦμεν ὑμῖν, τῆς θείας ἐκστάσεως οὐ μανίαν ἀλλὰ νηφαλιότητα ἐχούσης. Οὐ προσεκτέον γὰρ τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν Φρυγῶν λέγουσι τοὺς ἀποστόλους καὶ προφήτας ἐξίστασθαι ὥστε παραπαίειν· παρηκολούθουν γὰρ οἷς ἔλεγον καὶ ἔπραττον, εἰ καί τινες ἄλλοι. Ἠπατήθησαν δὲ οἱ ἠλίθιοι ἐκ τῆς ὁμωνυμίας· οὐ γὰρ μόνον τὸ παραπαίειν καὶ παρακόπτειν σημαίνει ἡ ἐξέστη φωνή, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ἐκπλαγῆναι ἐπὶ θαυμασμῷ. Οὕτω γὰρ ἐξέστη Ἰσαὰκ ἔκστασιν μεγάλην, καὶ ἐκστήσονταί τινες ἐπὶ τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς αὐτοῦ, κατὰ τὸν προφήτην. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἄλλα τινα δηλοῦται ὑπὸ τῆς φωνῆς, ἐπιστήτω ὁ ἐντυγχάνων ταῖς γραφαῖς.  Δυδύμος του Ἀλεξανδρέως, Εἰς Την Δευτεραν Ἐπιστολήν Προς Κορινθίους, Ἐκλογή, Κεφ Ε' Migne PG 39.1702d-1703a

For if we are in an ecstasy, it is for God. If we are sober, it is for you. 1 So let them be proved by you concerning these things, and he speaks here of false apostles, but we for your sake do these things, and even if our mind leaps beyond human things to God, nevertheless we are sober when we turn to you, because Divine ecstasy is not madness but the possession of sobriety. Do not attend to those from Phrygia who call themselves apostles and prophets and when in ecstasy lose their minds, for even what they speak and do they know beforehand. And this sham for the simple he makes a homonym. For the word ecstasy not only signifies delirium or loss of control, but even an astonishment from admiration. For so Issac was shaken with a great ecstasy, 2 and not a few have experience of ecstasy in the Lord and His good things, 3 as the Prophet says. But even if there are other meanings to this word, let it be known what occurs in the Scriptures. Didymus the Blind, Fragment from a Commentary On The Second Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians, Chap 5 1 2 Cor 5.13 2 Gen 27.33 3 Hosea 3.5

Seeing God

Καὶ εἶδον τὸν τόπον οὗ εἱστήκει ἐκεῖ ὁ θεὸς τοῦ Ισραηλ καὶ τὰ ὑπὸ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ ὡσεὶ ἔργον πλίνθου σαπφείρου καὶ ὥσπερ εἶδος στερεώματος τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τῇ καθαριότητι. Δηλοῦται γὰρ και ἐν τῇ λέξει ταύτῃ, ὡς ἔνθα Θεοῦ παρουσία νόησιν ἔσχε, τόπον εἰρήκασιν εἴναι τῶν ποδῶν αὐτοῦ, βεβαίως ἰδρυμένων ἔνθα ἀρετὴ πρακική. Ἤ δηλοῦτυ, διὰ τῆς πλίνθου τῆς σαπφειρίνης, καὶ σοφία, ἤτις, διὰ τῶν νοητῶν θεωρία ὑπάρχειν, τῃ καθαριότητι παραβάλλεται. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Την Ἐξοδον Migne PG 39.1113c

And they saw the God of Israel with a pavement as of sapphire beneath His feet, and as bright as the firm heavens when they are clear. 1 It is manifest in this passage that here God's presence may be held in the mind when that place which is said to be beneath his feet is firmly established here with the practice of virtue. And it is clear that by the pavement of sapphire wisdom is signified, and intellectual contemplation is compared to the clear sky.  Didymus the Blind, Fragment on Exodus 1 Exodus 24.10

Sin And Seeing

Et omnis qui peccat non vidit eum, nec cognovit eum. Visionem dicit et cognitionem fidei, qua justi etiam in hac vita Deum videre delectantur, donec ad ipsam speciem apertae visionis ejus in futuro perveniant, de qua supra dicitur: Quonaim videbimus eum sicuti est. Omnis ergo qui peccat, non vidit eum, nec cognovit. Si enim gustasset et vidisset quam suavis est Dominus, nequaquam se peccando a videnda ejus gloria segregaret. Et in quantum justi memoriam abundantiae suavitatis ejus eructant, et in justitia ejus exsultant, in tantum se a peccatis abstinendo justitiae ejus incommutabili et incomparabili concordare satagunt. Sanctus Beda, In Epistolam Sancti Joannis Source: Migne PL 93 100d-101a

And everyone who sins does not see Him, nor has known Him. 1 He speaks of the vision and knowledge of faith, by which even in this life the righteous may delight in the seeing of God, until to the open sight of His face they come in the future, concerning which it is was said before, 'Because we shall see Him even as He is.' 2 Everyone who sins, then, does not see Him, nor has he known Him. Indeed if he had tasted and seen how sweet is the Lord, 3 he would never have been separated by his sinning from the vision of His glory. And insofar as the righteous burst forth with the memory of the abundance of His sweetness and exult in His righteousness, 4 so do they by abstaining from sins abound harmoniously in his changeless and incomparable righteousness. Saint Bede, Commentary On The First Letter of Saint John 1 1 Jn 3.6 2 1 Jn 3.2 3 Ps 33.9 4 Ps 144.7

Seeing God

Beati mundo corde quoniam ipsi Deum videbunt.   Appetitivum est omnibus, velle videre quod amant. Ideo post caetera sequitur congrue: Beati mundi corde, etc. Soli enim munidcordes Deum videbunt, et solo mundo corde videbitur Deus. Sed quid, rogo, fratres, tot, tandiu, et tantis egimus, si nondum cor mundavimus? Si mundavimus ad virtutem, mundandum est ad veritatem; si mundavimus ad diligendum, mundandum est ad videndum. Sanavimus quidem claudum, sed illuminandus est caecus. Duo enim sunt poenalia filiis Adam, ignorantia et difficultas, quarum altera oculos rationis claudit, altera quasi pedes animae ligat affectum. Communes passiones Propheta deplorans: Dereliquit me, inquit, virtus mea, et lumen oculorum meorum non est mecum. Virtus in affectu formatur, vel potius affectus ipse in virtute formatur. Rationi quidem veritas monstratur, sed ad ipsam videndam ab ipsa illustratur. Dominus itaque dum oculos mentis ad videndam veritatem purgat, quasi caecum illuminat. Unde et de munditia cordis sermo sequens texitur, non ut mundetur a vitiis, quae perversi amoris, sive inordinati affectus nomine censentur, sed a phantasiis, quae per corporeos sensus imbibuntur, et intus in imaginatione versantur, et tanquam nubeculae interpositae claritatem nobis solis occulunt, vel per ipsum solare corpus notius luminis fontem, ab ipso omnino remotae, nobis intercludunt, vel ad minus acumen obtundunt. Sicut enim in hoc visibile coelum si cui pervolandi facultas adforet, terra ei deserenda esset, et aquae, quae superiores esse feruntur quam terra: illae etiam leviores, quae mirabili arte suspenduntur, et nubes fiunt; sic nimirum qui ad pure incorporeum cernendum aciem mentis erigit, non solum omne corpus, vel corporis similitudinem, sed etiam cogitationum universam volubilitatem transcendat, necesse est. Quid miramini? Cum omnes has quas diximus nubes, vigilantia mentis et cordis puritate, imo postmanente omni cogitatione, pertransieritis, apparebit tandem nubes clara, nubes lucida, non jam turbida, non densa, non jam ignorantiae, sed sapientiae nubes. Tenebrae enim sunt in lumine, et multo magis in multo lumine: quod ipsam lucem, cum ingreditur suam incomprehensibilitatem, suam inaccessibilitatem, in qua habitat, suam denique pacem, quae exuperat omnem sensum, suscipiat ab oculis nostris: ut deinceps revelatione potius quam contemplatione de ea quid quam discatis, sicut sancti apostoli viris, qui astiterunt juxta illos in vestibus albis. Isaac, Cisterciensis Abbas, In festo omnium sanctorum, Sermo IV Source: Migne PL 194. 1701

'Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God.' 1 It is the desire of everyone that they wish to see what they love. Therefore after the others it rightly follows: 'Blessed are the pure in heart.' Only those who are pure in heart see God and only in the pure heart is God seen. But what, I ask, brothers, have we done so much, so many times, for so long, if we do not yet have a pure heart? If we have been cleansed to virtue, there is cleanliness to truth, if we are cleansed to loving, we are cleansed for seeing. Certainly we have healed lameness, but to be enlightened is for the blind. Two are the punishments given to the sons of Adam, ignorance and difficulty, one of which closes the eye of reason, the other which binds the feet of the soul. The common passions the Prophet deplores, saying, 'My strength has forsaken me, and the light of my eyes is not with me.' 2 Virtue is formed in disposition, or rather the disposition in virtue is formed. Truth is revealed to reason but for the seeing of it by truth it is lit. Thus the Lord, while he washes the eyes of the mind for the seeing of truth, also enlightens the blind man. Whence even concerning purity of heart the following word is given, not that there may be a cleansing from fault, which is reckoned by perverse love or inordinate passion, but from phantasies, which imbued by the corporeal senses, whirl within the imagination, and as clouds before the sun obscure it to us, as when that more notable fount of light is cut off by a body from it utterly remote, even when it covers it by the least part. For even in this visible heaven, if the power of elevation is acquired, by which the earth is forsaken, even water borne above the earth, a thing so light by wondrous art suspended, becomes clouds, and so indeed he who would direct the acuity of the mind to pure incorporeal discernment, must transcend not only every body, or likeness of body, but even every tribulation of thought. Why wonder? When you pass through all these clouds we have spoken of, with the vigilance of the mind and the purity of the heart passing beyond every thought, then shall appear at last bright clouds, sunlit clouds, not now turbid, nor dark, not clouds of ignorance, but of wisdom. And yet still dark they are in the light, and much more dark the more light there is, that light that when one enters is incomprehensible, inaccessible, in which He dwells, and then His peace, which exceeds every understanding, shall be grasped by our eyes, and then shall be revelation rather than the contemplation by which you learn these things, as was with the holy Apostles, when men in white robes stood by them. 3 Isaac of Stella, from the Fourth Sermon for the Feast of All Saints 1 Mt 5.8 2 Ps 37.11 3 Act 1.10

Visions of God

Τί λέγεις, εἰπέ μοι, Ἰωάννη; Θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακε πώποτε. Τί οὖν ποιήσομεν τοῖς προφήταις λέγουσιν ὅτι εἶδον τὸν Θεόν;  Ὁ μὲν γὰρ Ἡσαΐας φησίν·Εἶδον τὸν Κύριον καθήμενον ἐπὶ θρόνου ὑψηλοῦ καὶ ἐπηρμένου. Ὁ δὲ ∆ανιὴλ πάλιν· Εἶδον ἕως οὗ θρόνοι ἐτέθησαν καὶ ὁ παλαιὸς τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐκάθητο. Ὁ δὲ Μιχαίας· Εἶδον τὸν Κύριον τὸν Θεὸν τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ καθήμενον ἐπὶ τοῦ θρόνου αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἕτερος προφήτης πάλιν· Εἶδον τὸν Κύριον ἑστῶτα ἐπὶ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου καὶ εἶπέ μοι· πάταξον ἐπὶ τὸ ἱλαστήριον. Καὶ πολλὰς τοιαύτας ἔστι συνάγειν μαρτυρίας. Πῶς οὖν ὁ Ἰωάννης φησὶν ὅτι Θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακε πώποτε; Ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι τὴν ἀκριβῆ αὐτοῦ κατάληψιν καὶ τὴν τετρανωμένην γνῶσιν λέγει. Ὅτι γὰρ πάντα ἐκεῖνα συγκατάβασις ἦν καὶ ἀκραιφνῆ τὴν οὐσίαν οὐδεὶς εἶδεν ἐκείνων, δῆλον ἐκ τοῦ διαφόρως ἕκαστον ὁρᾶν. Ὁ γὰρ Θεὸς ἁπλοῦς καὶ ἀσύνθετος καὶ ἀσχημάτιστος· οὗτοι δὲ ἅπαντες σχήματα ἔβλεπον διάφορα. Τοῦτο γοῦν αὐτὸ δι' ἑτέρου προφήτου ἐμφαίνων πάλιν καὶ πείθων αὐτοὺς ὡς οὐκ ἀκριβῆ τὴν οὐσίαν εἶδον, ἔλεγεν· Ἐγὼ ὁράσεις ἐπλήθυνα καὶ ἐν χερσὶ προφητῶν ὡμοιώθην. Οὐκ αὐτὴν τὴν οὐσίαν ἔδειξα τὴν ἐμήν, ἀλλὰ συγκατέβην, φησί, πρὸς τὴν τῶν ὁρώντων ἀσθένειαν.   Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος Περὶ Ἀκαταληπτου, Ὁμιλὶα Δ'

Why do you say, tell me, John, 'No one has ever seen God? 1 What, then, shall we make of the Prophets saying that they saw God? For Isaiah said, 'I saw the Lord sitting on His high and exalted throne .' 2 And again Daniel: 'I saw until the thrones were placed, and the ancient of days sat.'  3 And Micah: 'I saw the God of Israel sitting on his throne,' 4 and again another Prophet: 'I saw the Lord standing on the altar and He said to me: Strike the mercy seat.' 5 And many such things may be gathered to give similar witness. How is it, then, that John says, 'No one has ever seen God?'  That you might learn that he speaks of a clear knowledge and a perfect comprehension of God. All those passage I just gave were instances of God's condescension, and that none of the Prophets saw the pure essence is clear from their different ways of seeing. God is simple, He is not composed of parts or forms, but all these Prophets saw different forms. Enlightenment is given through the mouth of another Prophet and persuasion that those other Prophets did not see the exact essence when he said: 'I have multiplied visions, and by the hand of the Prophets I was represented.' 6 That is, 'I did not show my very essence but I condescended according to the weakness of those who saw.' Saint John Chrysostom, On The Incomprehensible, Fourth Homily 1 1 Jn 4.12 2 Is 6.1 3 Dan 7.9 4 3 Kings 22.19 5 Amos 9.1 6 Hosea 12.10

Peter And The Animals

Ἐγένετο ἐπ' αὐτὸν ἔκστασις. Οἱ τὰς φύσεις εἰσάγοντες ετερόδεκτοι φασὶν ἀνεπιδέκτους εἶναι σωτηρίας ἀνθρώπους ἐκείνους, τοὺς διὰ φαυλότητα ἤθους κύνας καὶ χαίρους καλουμένους, οἶς τὸ ἅγιον διδόναι καὶ τοὺς μαργαρίτας τοὺς θείους ἀπεῖπεν ὁ Σωτήρ. Πρὸς τούτοις τοὺς φύσει κακοὺς λέγουσι τοὺς εἰρημένους λύκους ἃπραγας καὶ ἀλώπεκας, καὶ πάντας ἅπαξ ἁπλῶς τούς ὀνόμασιν ἀλόγων ζώων δηλουμένους. Ἐλεγκτέον οὖν αὐτους, ὡς οὐδεὶς ἐκείνων κατὰ φὺσιν, ἁλλὰ κατὰ πρόθεσίν ἐστι κακὸς, ἐκ τῆς ἐγκειμένης ὀπτασίας. Τὸν γὰρ Πέτρον διδάξαι βουλόμενος ὁ Θεὸς, μηδένα ἄνθρωπον παραιτεϊσθαι ὡς κιονὸν καὶ ἀκάθαρον ὄντα, σκεῦος ἐμφερές τὶ ὀθόνης ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανου τίσσαρσιν ἀραχαῖς καθῆκεν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἐν ᾠ ὑπῆρχα πάντα τὰ γένη τῶν ἀλογῶν ζώων, ἀφ' ὦν πτύσας φαγεῖν ὁ Πέτρος προσετάττετο. Ὁ δὲ ἀκμὴν ἐμμένων τῇ Ἰουδαϊκῇ συνηθείᾳ, αἰσθητὰ νομίσας τὰ ὁρώμενα παρῃτήσατο, εἰπὼν, κοινὸν ἢ ἀκάθαρτον μηδέποτε βεβρωκέναι. Ταῦτα αὐτοῦ εἰρηκότος, ὁ χρησμὸς πρὸς αὐτὸν· Ἅ ὁ Θεὸς ἐκαθάρισε, σὺ μὴ κοίνου. Ἀφ οὖ καὶ γνῶσιν λαβὼν, ὡς περὶ ἠθῶν ἀνθρώπων τούτων εἰρημένων, εἶπε δεδειχέναι αὐτῷ τὸν Θεὸν, ὡς οὐδεὶς κατὰ φύσιν ἀκάθαρτος ἀνθρώπων· δυὸ καὶ ἀνατιῥῥήτως ἀπαντῆσαι πρὸς τὸν Κορνήλιον, ὠφειληθῆναι θέλοντα σὺν παντὶ τῷ οἴκῳ τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν διδασκαλίαν. Ὅθεν ἐπιδέδεικται τὰ τετράποδα καὶ τὰ ἑρπετὰ καὶ τὰ πετεινὰ, ἀναφορὰν ἔχοντα εἰς τὰς ἀνθρώπων καταστάσεις ὑπὸ Θεοὺ χαρισθέντα· οὐ διὰ φύσιν, ἀντιπράττουσαν τὸ ἅγιον, τοὺς μαργαρίτος κεκώλυται κυσὶν ἢ χοίροις διδόναι, ἀλλὰ διὰ προαίρεσιν χειρίστην, ἤν καταλεῖψαι δυνατὸν μηκέται κύνα ἤ χοῖρον ὄντα. Ἡ Συροφοινίκισσα γοῦν γυνὴ διὰ πίστιν ἐκ κυνὸς ἄνθρωπος γέγονεν, ὅθεν καὶ τὸν ἄροτν τῶν τέκνων παρέσχεν αὐτῇ ὁ Ἰησοῦς. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Ἐις Τάς Πράξεις Τῶν Ἀποστόλων, Ἐκλογή Source: Migne PG 39.1675

He fell into a trance. 1 They who teach differently would have men of such natures that some are not able to be saved, those who through wretched behaviour are given the name of pigs and dogs, to whom the Saviour prohibits even the giving of holy things and divine pearls. 2 And they say that those who are evil in nature are rapacious wolves and foxes, and they are given the name of other irrational animals. But this is refuted by the present vision which will have nothing in its nature evil but in its intention. For when God wishes to teach Peter that no man must be rejected as impure and polluted, He sent a certain vessel of linen with four ends suspended from heaven to earth, in which were found all kinds of animals, and from these Peter, though he was averse, was commanded to eat. He was still then adhering to Jewish custom, and these things which appeared judging by bodily appearance only, he declined, saying, 'I have eaten nothing unclean or impure.' Having said this, the Divine voice said to him, 'What God has made clean shall not pollute you.' By which may be understood that God has spoken concerning the customs of men, that He show that no man in his own nature is unclean, and that therefore without hesitation Peter should go to Cornelius, who with his whole house was eager to seize the fruit of the Gospel teaching. So God showed four legged animals and reptiles, and birds, among which, by affinity, the diversity of man's character certainly falls. Thus not from nature is there repugnance for holy things and the prohibition of casting of pearls to dogs and pigs, but on account of depraved inclination, which even so is able to be overturned, that a man no longer be a dog or pig. Thus the Syrophoenician women by faith is made human from being a dog, whence Jesus gave to her the bread fit for children. 3 Didymus the Blind, Commentary on The Acts of the Apostles, Fragment 1 Acts 10.10 2 Mt 7.6 3 Mark 7.26

The Pure In Heart

Adest ecce gradus sextus: Beati, inquit, mundo corde, quia ipsi Deum videbunt. Plane jam mundo sunt corde, plane jam Deum videre poterunt, qui pauperes spiritu, qui mites, qui lamentati peccata, qui justitia refecti, qui misericordes, in adversariis quoque tam sincerum oculum cordis, et lucidum gerunt, ut sine aliqua malitiae luppitduine inaccessibilem Dei claritatem sine impedimento conscpiciant. Munditia enim cordis, et conscientiae puritas nullam nubem ad intuendum Dominum patietur. Sanctus Chromatius Aquileiensis, Sermo De Octo Beatitudinibus

So we come to the sixth step: Blessed, He says, are the pure in heart because they shall see God. 1 Clearly they are already pure in heart who already clearly see God, who are poor in spirit, who are meek, who have mourned sins, who have been restored with righteousness, who are merciful, who have so healthy and clear an eye of the heart that even in adversities, without any sickness of wickedness, they are able to look on the inaccessible light of God. For the cleanness of the heart and the purity of the conscience suffers no cloud to obscure the sight of God.   Saint Chromatius of Aquileia, On the Eight Beatitudes   1 Mt 5.8

Ascent and Paradise

Denique justi in paradisum saepe rapiuntur, sicut et Paulus raptus est in paradisum, et audivit verba ineffabilia. Et tu si a primo coelo ad secundum, a secundo ad tertium mentis tuae vigore rapiaris, hoc est, quod primum unusquisque homo est corporalis, secundo animalis, tertio spiritalis: si ita rapiaris ad tertium coelum, ut videas fulgorem gratiae spiritalis, animalis enim homo quae sunt spiritus Dei nescit, et ideo tertii coeli ascensio tibi est necessaria, ut rapiaris in paradisum: rapieris jam sine periculo, ut possis dijudicare omnia, quia spiritalis dijudicat omnia, ipse autem a nemine dijudicatur. Et fortasse quasi adhuc fragilis, audies verba ineffabilia quae non liceat homini loqui: et tunc quod acceperis reservato, et quod audieris custodito. Paulus apostolus custodiebat ne laberetur, vel alios certe faceret errare. Aut fortasse ideo dicit Paulus, quae non liceat homini loqui; quia erat adhuc in corpore constitutus, hoc est, videbat istius corporis passiones, videbat legem carnis suae repugnantem legi mentis suae. Hoc enim malo intelligi, ne videamur quemdam adhuc futuri periculi jactare terrorem. Si enim vel propter hanc vitam securitas, ut nullos praevaricationis post hanc futurae laqueos formidemus: ergo quicumque fuerit in paradiso ascensione virtutis audiet mysteria Dei arcana illa atque secreta: audiet dicentem Dominum tamquam latroni illi a scelere ad confessionem, et ad fidem a latrocinio revertenti: Hodie mecum eris in paradiso Sanctus Ambrosius Mediolanensis, De Paradiso, Caput XI

Hence the righteous are often caught up into Paradise, just as Paul 'was caught up into paradise and heard secret words that man may not repeat.' 1 And if from the first heaven to the second and from the second heaven to the third, by the vigor of your mind, you are caught up, this is how: each man is first of all corporeal, secondly of a sensual nature, thirdly he is spiritual, so if you are caught up to the third heaven you may behold the brilliance of spiritual grace, 'for the sensual man does not perceive the Spirit of God,' 2 and therefore the ascent into the third heaven is necessary for you in order that you may be caught up into Paradise. Now, without peril, you will be caught up, in order that you may be able to pass judgment on everything, because 'the spiritual man judges all things and he himself is judged by no man.' 3 And perhaps, although still weak, you will hear the ineffable words which it is not given to man to speak, and so what you receive keep, and what you hear guard. Paul the Apostle kept guard lest he slip and for a certainty make others err. Or perhaps Paul said 'that which it is not given to man to speak' 4 because he was yet in the body, that is, because he saw the passions of this body and because he saw the law of his flesh 'warring against the law of his mind.' 5 This I prefer to understand, lest we appear to cast off the terror of future danger, if on account of this security of life we do not fear the snares of sin in the future. Whoever, then, shall ascend into Paradise by virtue will hear those mysterious and secret words of God. He shall hear, too, the Lord speaking as to that repentant thief who was moved from crime to confession and turned from theft to faith, 'This day you will be with me in paradise.' 6 Saint Ambrose, from On Paradise, Chap 11 1 2 Cor 12:4.5 2 1 Cor 2:14 3 1 Cor 2:15  4 2 Cor 12:4 5 Rom 7:23  6 Lk 23:43

A Wife's Vision

Sedente autem eo pro tribunali, misit ad eum uxor ejus dicens: Nihil sit tibi, et justo illi. Multa enim passa sum hodie per visum propter eum.  Et Jesus quidem per invidiam traditus erat, et ita per invidiam manifestam, ut etiam Pilatus eam non ignoraret. Volunt autem evangelistae non praeterire rem divinae providentiae laudem Dei continentem, qui voluit per visum convertere Pilati uxorem, ut, quantum ad se, vetaret virum suum ut ne audeat contra Jesum proferre sententiam. Et visum quidem non exposuit Mattheus, tantum autem dixit quia multa passa erat per visum propter Jesum. Et ideo per visum passa est ne amplius pateretur: ut beatam fuisse dicamus Pilati uxorem, quae per visum passa est multa propter Jesum, et recepit per visum quod erat passura. Ex quo audebit quis dicere quoniam melius est recipere aliquem mala in visu quam recipere in vita. Quis enim non eligat per visum mala sua recipere in vita sua, nisi forte talia mereatur ut expediat ei acriora recipere in vita sua potius quam recipere leviora in visu? Consolatur enim et requiescit in sinibus Abrahae qui recepit mala in vita sua, et non haec mala quae recepit in visu suo; secundum quod et consolationem habebit. Utrum autem et initium habet conversionis ad Deum ex eo quod multa propter Jesum tuerat passa per visum, Deus scit: tamen continentur etiam hoc in Scripturis quibusdam non publicis. Et vide quia justum appelavit Jesum uxor Pilati, ne forte mysterium sit haec uxor Pilati Ecclesiae ex gentibus, quae aliquando quidem regebatur a Pilato, nunc autem jam non est sub eo propter fidem suam in Christo. Origenes, In Matthaeum, Tomus XVII,

Sitting on the tribunal his wife sent to him, saying, 'Do nothing to this righteous man. For much I have suffered today through a vision of him.' 1 And certainly Jesus was handed over on account of envy and through such manifest envy that even Pilate was not ignorant of it. The Gospel writers did not wish to pass over anything of the providence of God, who wished to convert the wife of Pilate through a vision, that through her, insofar as she was able, the husband be influenced not to dare give sentence against Jesus. Matthew does not expound the vision, only saying that she suffered much through her vision of Jesus. And therefore having suffered through a vision, and not anything more, as one blessed we shall call the wife of Pilate, she who through a vision suffered much on account of Christ, and received through a vision what she suffered. For one may say that it is better to receive something evil in a vision than in life. For who would not choose to receive evils in life through a dream, unless perhaps such things were merited and it benefit to receive them more bitterly in life rather than to receive them lightly in a vision? For he was consoled and rested in the lap of Abraham who received evils in his life and did not receive evil in a vision, according to which there shall be consolation. 2 Whether she had an immediate conversation to God on account of the many things of Jesus she suffered through her vision, God only knows; contained in the Scriptures are things which are not made public. And yet see that the wife of Pilate named Jesus righteous, lest perhaps it be a mystery why this wife of Pilate is of the church of the Gentiles, which for a time was ruled by Pilate, but already it is not beneath him on account of her faith in Christ. Origen, Commentary On Matthew, Book 17 1 Mt 27.19 2 Lk 16.22-23

Loins and Fire

Velut aspectus ignis intrinsecus per circuitum, a lumbis ejus et desuper; et a lumbis ejus usque deorsum vidi quasi speciem ignis splendentis in circuitu. Quid est quod Mediator Dei et hominum homo Christus Jesus a lumbis et desuper aspectum ignis intrinsecus per circuitum habere describitur, et a lumbis et deorsum speciem ignis splendentis in circuitu?  Investigandum namque est quare a lumbis et desuper ignem intrinsecus, nec tamen splendentem ignem habere narratur; a lumbis vero et deorsum habere ignis speciem dicitur, non tamen hunc habere intrinsecus memoratur, quia et splendentem et in circuitu hunc habere describitur. Quid enim lumborum nomine, nisi propago mortalitatis exprimitur? Propter quod etiam de Levi dicitur quia adhuc in lumbis patris erat cum Melchisedech occurrit Abrahae. De lumbis vero Abrahae virgo Maria exiit, in cujus utero Unigenitus Patris per Spiritum sanctum incarnari dignatus est. Ex qua incarnatione universo innotuit mundo Deus, sicut per Psalmistam dicitur: Accingere gladium tuum circa femur tuum, potentissime. Gladium etenim circa femur potentissimus sumpsit, quia sermo praedicationis illius ex incarnatione convaluit. Quid vero iste ignis designat, nisi ardorem sancti Spiritus, qui corda quae repleverit incendit? De quo ipsa Veritas dicit: Ignem veni mittere in terram. Quid est ergo quod in hoc aspectu hominis qui prophetae apparuit a lumbis superius intrinsecus per circuitum ignis ardet, a lumbis vero inferius non ignis intrinsecus, sed in circuitu resplendet, nisi quod ante incarnationem unigeniti Redemptoris nostri, sola intra se Judaea ardorem amoris ejus habuit; post incarnationem vero illius in circuitu ejus ignis resplenduit, quia in universo mundo gentibus claritatem sancti Spiritus effudit? Prius ergo ignis intrinsecus erat, sed splendor non erat, quia Spiritus sanctus in multis quidem patribus Judaeam replebat, sed ad notitiam gentium necdum ejus lumen emicuerat. A lumbis vero ejus et deorsum ignis in circuitu splendet, quia postquam de Virgine carnem sumpsit, in humano genere longe lateque sancti Spiritus dona dilatavit. Et notandum quod ignis iste a lumbis superius per circuitum esse describitur, non extrinsecus sed intrinsecus, quia amoris flamma, sicut dictum est, in electis atque spiritalibus viris ubique in suis finibus Judaeam replevit. Nec tamen exibat extrinsecus, quia sese in multitudinem gentium non dilatabat. Quae ardoris flamma visa est postmodum in circuitu splendere, quia per mundi cardines in universis gentibus omnipotentis Dei coepit amor excrescere. Sanctus Gregorius Magnus, In Ezechielem Prophetam, Liber Primus, Homilia VIII

Like the appearance of fire within all around from his loins and above, and from his loins and below I saw as an appearance of shining fire all around. 1 Why is the Mediator of God and men, the man Jesus Christ, described as having the appearance of fire within all around from the loins and above and from loins and below the appearance of fire shining around? For it must be considered why fire is within from the loins and above, not however it being named a shining fire, and then why from the loins and below it is said to have the appearance of fire, not however being said to be within but being described as shining all around. But what is given by the name of loins, unless is expressed mortal propagation? On account of which of Levi it is said that he was in the loins of his father when Melchisedech meets with Abraham 2 And from the loins of Abraham Mary came forth, in whose womb the Only Begotten of the Father by the Holy Spirit was worthy to become incarnate. From which incarnation God became known to the whole world, as the Psalmist says, 'Bind your blade around your thigh, O most powerful one.' 3 Certainly the most powerful one takes hold of the sword around the thigh, for the word of the preaching of Him from the incarnation grows strong. Why indeed is this designated fire unless it is the flame of the Holy Spirit who kindles the hearts which He fills? Concerning which the Truth Himself says, 'I have come to place fire on the earth.' 4 Why is it then that in the appearance of the man which appears to the Prophet that from the loins and above within fire all around burns, and from the loins below there is no fire within but all around it shines, unless that before the incarnation of the Only Begotten, Our Savior, only those in Judea had the fire of His love, and after the incarnation all around fire shone because in the whole world the splendor of the Holy Spirit poured out? Before, then, fire was within, but shining it was not, because the Holy Spirit filled many of the fathers of Judea but to the notice of the Gentiles it had not yet spread its light. From his loins and below the fire shone all around because after He took flesh from the Virgin, the gift of the Holy Spirit expanded among the human race far and wide. And let it be noted that this fire from the loins above and all around is described as not being without but within because the flame of love, as it is said, filled elect and spiritual men everywhere within the borders of Judea. It did not, however, go without, because into the multitude of the Gentiles it did not expand. Which flame of love is seen after shining all around, because to all the nations in all the directions of the world the love of the omnipotent God began to go forth. Saint Gregory the Great, On the Prophet Ezekiel, Book 1, Homily 8 1 Ez 1. 27 2 Heb 7.10 3 Ps 44.4 4 Lk. 12. 49