A Healthy Mind

...et invenerunt hominem sedentem, a quo daemonia exierant, vestitum ac sana mente. In continentia sapientiae. Mens enim est quae rerum rationes et veritates mensurat. Sana autem tunc est, quando id perfecte facere potest. Continentia autem, ut dicit Aristotcles, virtus est quae facit homincm permanere in mensura mentis, ita quod non abducitur violentia passionis et tentationis. Jerem. xvii, Sana me, Domine, et sanabor: salvum me fac, et salvus ero: quoniam laus mea tu es. Psal. cii: Qui sanat omnes infirmitates tuas. Ilaec sanitas mentis perficitur per continentiam passiones mensura sanae mentis refraenantem. Eccli. xv: Qui continens est justitiae, apprehendet illam, et obviabit illi quasi mater honorificala. Cibabit illum pane vitae et intellectus. Firmabilur in illo, et non flecletur: et continebit illum, et non confundetur. Sanctus Albertus Magnus Commentarium In Evangelium Lucam, Caput VIII Source: Here p572

'...and they found the man from whom the demons had been expelled, sitting and clothed and with a healthy mind. 1 A mind healthy in the continence of wisdom. For the mind is that which reckons the reason and the truth of things. A mind is healthy, then, when it is able to do that without fault. Continence, as Aristotle says, is a power which allows a man maintain the reckoning of his mind, 2 and thus it is not dragged off by violent passions and temptations. In the seventeenth chapter of Jeremiah, 'Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed. Save me and I shall be saved, because you are my praise.' In the fifty second Psalm, 'He who heals all your infirmities.' 3 The health of the mind is fashioned by continence restraining the passions from the reckoning of a healthy mind. In the fifteenth chapter of Ecclesiasticus, 'He who is continent by righteousness, he apprehends wisdom, and she comes to meet him as an honourable mother, who shall feed him with the bread of life and understanding. She shall be strengthened in him and not be bent, she will make him continent and he will not be confounded.' 4 Saint Albert The Great, Commentary On The Gospel of St Luke, Chapter 8 1 Lk 8.35 2 Aristot. Nic. Eth. 1145b 3 Jerem 17.14, Ps 52.3 4 Sirach 15.1-4

Eating Honey

Φάγε μέλι υἱέ ἀγαθὸν γὰρ κηρίον ἵνα γλυκανθῇ σου ὁ φάρυγξ. Oὕτως αἰσθήσῃ σοφίαν τῇ σῇ ψυχῇ ἐὰν γὰρ εὕρῃς ἔσται καλὴ ἡ τελευτή σου καὶ ἐλπίς σε οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψει. Ἐσθίει μέλι ὁ ἀπὸ τῶν θείων Γραφῶν ὠφελούμενος· ὁ δὲ ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἐκβάλλων τῶν πραγμάτων τοὺς λόγους, ἀφʼ ὧν εἰλήφασιν ἅγιοι προφῆται καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι, ἐν τῷ ποιεῖν τε καὶ διδάσκειν, τρώγει κηρίον· καὶ τὸ μὲν μέλι φαγεῖν, τοῦ βουλομένου παντός· τὸ δὲ κηρίον, μόνου τοῦ καθαροῦ· ἢ καὶ μέλι ῥητέον τὴν ἀλληγορίαν· κηρίον δὲ, τὴν ῥητὴν ἐπίσκεψιν καὶ ἱστορίαν, πρὸς τὸ ἔχειν τὸν ἀποκεκρυμμένον νοῦν καὶ βαθύτερον, ἔνεστι γὰρ τῷ κηρίῳ μέλι· φάρυγγα δὲ τὴν θρεπτικὴν τῆς ψυχῆς δύναμιν, δι' ἧς αἱ τροφαὶ παραπέμπονται εἰς τὴν κοιλίαν· ἐὰν οὖν ταῦτα κατορθώσῃς, τά τε κατὰ διάνοιαν, καὶ τὰ καθ' ἱστορίαν, ἔσονταί σοι αἰσθήσει τῆς σοφίας αὐτὰ τὰ σοφὰ δόγματα· ἐὰν γὰρ εὕρῃς τὸν πνευματικὸν τῆς Γραφῆς νοῦν, ἔσται καλὴ ἡ τελευτή σου, ὡς λεχθῆναι· Τίμιος ἐναντίον Κυρίου ὁ θάνατος τῶν ὁσίων αὐτοῦ· οὐκ ἀποβαλεῖς δὲ τὴν εἰς τὸ μέλλον ἐλπίδα. Μὴ προτιμήσῃς τὸν διάβολον τῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ δικαιοσύνης, ἢν οἱ δίκαιοι νομεύονται· μηδὲ ἀπατηθῇς μωρολογίαις θανατηφόροις χορτάσαι σου τὴν καρδίαν σου, ὅ ἐστι κοιλία. Μὴ ἕνεκεν ἡδονῆς προδῷς τὸν Θεόν· οὗτος γὰρ νομὴ δικαίου, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἐγκαταλείψῃ σε. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας, Κεφαλή KΔ´ Source: Migne PG 17.228a-c

Eat honey, O son, for it is good and the comb is most sweet in your throat. So is wise teaching to your soul, which when you find it, you shall have hope at the end, and your hope shall not perish. 1 He eats honey who is improved by the Divine Scriptures. And he who draws out from the account of things, derived from the holy prophets and the Apostles, he eats the comb in teaching and doing. To eat honey is more pleasing, but the comb is only for the pure. The honey is spoken of allegorically. So the comb is what we name speculation and investigation, which grasps the more hidden and deeper sense, and in the comb is the honey. The throat is the digestive faculty of the soul by which power food is sent to the stomach. If, then, you are rightly established in these things, things of understanding and investigation, you shall you grasp the wisdom of wise teaching. For if you find the spiritual understanding of Scripture, even your death will be a beautiful thing, as it says: 'Precious in the sight of God is the death of his holy ones.' 2 You shall not have lost hope for the future. Do not prefer the devil to the righteousness of God which feeds the righteous. Nor be deceived, that you fill your heart, which is like a stomach, with foolish and fatal teachings. Do not on account of pleasure be a traitor to God. He feeds the righteous and He shall not abandon you. Origen, On Proverbs, Chapter 24 1 Prov 24.13-14 2 Ps 115.15

Fixing The Heart

Serenus: Periculosae praesumptionis est, necdum rebus recte discussis, nec certe ratione collecta, de natura cujuslibet rei proponere, definire, ac de fragilitatis suae consideratione capere conjecturam, nec de statu et qualitate ipsius disciplinae vel de aliorum experientia proferre sententiam. Nec enim si quis ignarus natandi, sciens pondus corporis sui ferre aquarum liquorem non posse, experimento suae voluerit imperitiae definire neminem penitus posse liquidis elementis solida carne circumdatum sustineri, idcirco vera eius opinio iudicanda est, quam secundum experientiam suam visus est protulisse, cum hoc non solum non esse impossibile, sed etiam perfacile ab aliis fieri, ratione certissima et oculorum fide non dubia comprobetur. Νοῦς itaque, id est, mens, ἀεὶκινητὸς, καὶ πολὺκινητὸς, id est, semper mobilis, et multum mobilis definitur. Quod etiam in sapientia, quae dicitur Salomonis, scriptum est, Γηίνον οἴκημα βαρύνει νοῦν πολὺ φροντίζοντα, id est, Terrenum habitaculum aggravat mentem multa cogitantem. Haec igitur pro conditione naturae numquam potest otiosa consistere, sed necesse est eam, nisi provisum habuerit ubi suos exerceat motus, et in quibus iugiter occupetur, propria mobilitate discurrere, et per omnia volitare, donec longo exercitio, usuque assuefacta diuturno, quod vos incassum dicitis laborare, experiatur et discat quas memoriae suae materias debeat praeparare, erga quas circumagat indefessos volatus, et immorando robur acquirat, et ita praevaleat adversas inimici suggestiones, quibus distrahebatur, extrudere, atque in illo quem desiderat statu et qualitate durare. Non ergo hanc evagationem cordis nostri vel naturae humanae, vel Deo creatori eius, debemus ascribere. Vera est enim Scripturae sententia, quia Dominus hominem fecit rectum, et ipsi quaesierunt cogitationes malas. A nobis ergo earum qualitas pendet. Quia cogitatio bona, inquit, scientibus eam appropinquat, vir autem prudens inveniet eam. Quidquid autem ut inveniri possit nostrae prudentiae industriaeque subiectum est, si non fuerit inventum, sine dubio nostrae desidiae vel imprudentiae, non naturae vitio reputandum est. Cui sensui Psalmista quoque congruit, dicens: Beatus vir cuius est auxilium abs te, Domine, ascensiones in corde suo disposuit. Videtis ergo in nostra ditione consistere, ut sive ascensus, id est, pertingentes ad Deum cogitationes, sive descensus, ad terrena scilicet et carnalia corruentes, in nostris cordibus disponamus. Quae si non in nostra potestate consisterent, nec Pharisaeos Dominus increpasset: Quid cogitatis mala in cordibus vestris? Nec per prophetam praecepisset, dicens: Auferte malum cogitationum vestrarum ab oculis meis. Et: Usquequo morabuntur in te cogitationes noxiae? Nec in die iudicii earum qualitas, quemadmodum operum exigetur a nobis, ita per Isaiam Domino comminante, Ecce ego, inquit, venio ut congregem opera et cogitationes eorum cum omnibus gentibus et linguis. Sed nec condemnari quidem earum testimonio vel defendi in illo terribili atque metuendo examine, secundum beati Apostoli sententiam, meremur, ita dicentis, Inter se invicem cogitationibus accusantibus, aut etiam defendentibus, in die qua iudicabit Deus occulta hominum, secundum Evangelium meum. Sanctus Ioannes Cassianus, Collationes, Collatio VII, De Animae Mobilitate et Spiritalibus Nequitiis, Caput IV, Disputatio Senis de Statu Animae ac Virtute ejus Source: Migne PL 49.671c-673a

Serenus: It is dangerous presumption when things are not yet rightly discussed nor grasped with certain reason regarding the nature of whatever is proposed, to define it, and amid our own fragility, to make conjectures, without bringing forward the judgement of the state and quality of the practice itself and the experience of others. For if someone ignorant of swimming knew that the weight of his body could not be supported by water and he wished from the proof his inexperience provided to assert that no one composed of solid flesh could possibly be supported by the liquid element, we should not therefore judge his opinion to be true, which he seems to have put forward in accordance with his own experience, since it can be shown to be not merely possible but even extremely easily done by others, with the clearest proof and ocular demonstration allowing no doubt. Thus the νοῦς, that is, the mind, is defined as ἀεικίνητος καὶ πολυκίνητος, that is, ever shifting and shifting much. And indeed in the wisdom that is called Solomon's it has been written, καὶ γεῶδες σκῆνος βρίθει νοῦν πολυφρόντιδα, that is, 'And the earthly tabernacle weighs down the mind that thinks on many things.' 1 The mind, then, in accordance with its nature can never be idle, and unless provision is made for it to exercise its motions in what will continually occupy it, it must because of its restlessness wander and stray over all kinds of things, until accustomed by long practice and daily use, where you say that you have toiled without result, it attempts and learns what food for the memory it should prepare that will bring it back from its ceaseless fluttering about and give it strength to be still, which thus may succeed in driving away the hostile suggestion of the enemy by which it is distracted and drawn away from that state and condition it desires. We should not, therefore, ascribe this wandering inclination of our heart either to human nature or to God its Creator, for it is a true statement of Scripture, that 'God made man upright, and they have sought out many evil thoughts.' 2 Thus the quality of these thoughts depends on us, for it has been said that a good thought comes near to those that know it, but a prudent man will find it. For where anything is subject to our prudence and diligence so that it can be found, if it is not found we must attribute that to our own idleness or carelessness and not to a fault of our nature. The Psalmist also agrees with this understanding, saying, 'Blessed the man whose help is from you, in his heart he has disposed ascents.' 3 You see, therefore, that it is in our power to dispose our hearts either to ascents, that is, thoughts for God, or to descents, that is, thoughts that sink to carnal and earthly things. And if this was not in our power the Lord would not have rebuked the Pharisees with, 'Why do you think evil in your hearts?' Nor would He have commanded the prophet, saying, 'Take away the evil of your thoughts from my eyes,' and 'How long shall wicked thoughts remain in you?' Nor would the character of them as our works be taken into consideration on the day of judgment, as the Lord admonishes us through Isaiah, 'Behold, I come that I may gather together their works and thoughts with all peoples and tongues.' 4 Nor would it be right that we should be condemned or acquitted by their evidence in that terrible and dreadful examination. As the blessed Apostle says, 'Their thoughts between themselves accusing or defending one another, in the day when God shall judge the hidden things of men according to my Gospel.' 5 Saint John Cassian, Conferences, Conference 7, On Instability of Mind and Spiritual Wickedness, Chapter 4, A Discourse of the Elder on the State of the Soul and its Excellence 1 Wisdom 9.15 2 Eccl 7.30 3 Ps 83.6 4 Mt 9.4, Isaiah 1.16, Jerem 4.14 ,Isaiah 66.18 5 Rom 2.15-16

Study Wisdom

Ad sapientiae studiosam acquisitionem; Proverbiorum vigesimo septimo: Stude sapientie, fili mi. Filium vocat, quemcumque paterna affectione informat, sive sit iuvenis, sive senex. Augustinus: Ad discendum quod opus est nulla mihi aetas sera videri potest; quia, etsi senes magis docere deceat quam doceri, magis tamen decet eos discere, quam quid doceant ignorare. Stude, inquit, et hoc innuit vehementem diligentiam circa acquisitionem sapientiae adhibendam. Studium enim, ut dicit Tullis, est vehemens applicatio animi cum summa voluptate ad aliquid agendum. Haec autem vehemens animi applicatio requirit vacationem ab exterioribus occupationibus. Impar enim efficitur ad singula qui confusa mente dividitur ad multa, ut dicit Gergorius. Propter quod Ecclesiastici trigesimo octavo: Sapientiam scribe in tempore vacuitatus, id est vacationis ab opere exteriori; qui enim minoratur actu, scilicet exteriori, percipiet sapientiam, ut dicitur in eodem. Sanctus Bonaventura, Commentarius In Librum Sapientiae, Prooemium Source: Here, 358c

Concerning the studious acquisition of wisdom, it is said in the twenty seventh chapter of Proverbs, 'Study wisdom, my son.' 1 He names him a son whoever he shapes with fatherly love, whether he is a youth or an old man. Augustine says: 'It does not seem to me that old age should be an obstacle to learning, because even if it befits the old to teach rather than to be taught, yet it is more befitting to learn something than to be ignorant of what one should teach.' 2 'Study,' it says here, and this signifies attachment to a concentrated desire for the acquisition of wisdom. For as Cicero says, 'Studiousness is the concentrated application of the soul with great pleasure for the accomplishment of something.' 3 But this concentrated application of the soul requires leisure from exterior occupations, since flaws come into each thing when a confused mind is divided among many things, as Gregory says. 4 About which it says in the thirty eighth chapter of Ecclesiasticus: 'Write wisdom in a time of quiet.' 5 That is, when one has leisure from exterior work. And in the same place: 'For he who is less in deeds,' that is exterior ones, 'acquires wisdom.' Saint Bonaventura, Commentary On Wisdom, Introduction 1 Prov 27.11 2 Aug Epist 166.1 3 Circero Rhet 1.25 4 Greg Reg Past 1.4 5 Sirach 38.25

Knowing God

Confiteor tibi, Domine, Pater caeli et terrae, quia abscondisti haec a sapientibus et prudentibus, et revelasti ea parvulis... Qui sunt sapientes? Antiqui philosophi, et oratores, qui naturali sapientia literarum exercitatione exacuminati, de Dei natura quaerere contendebant, non Deum invenire desiderantes, sed altissima disserere cupientes, victi sunt ingenio, defecerunt sermone: in ultimo nihil se amplius invenire potuisse confessi sunt, nisi quia Deus incognoscibilis est. Et ut quid ergo tantum laborasti, si ignorans es, postquam requisisti, quemadmodum fueras, antequem quaereres? Sicut enim qui innavigabilem oceanum navigare se usurpat, dum non potest eum transire, necesse est, ut per eadem viam revertatur, unde ingressus est: sic et illi ab ignorantia coeperunt, et in ignorantia finierunt. O homo sapiens, magis autem insipiens! Deus invisibilis est, et quis potest videre,nisi ipse se videat? Serva ergo mandata Dei, sanctifica cor tuum, ita ut inhabitet Deus in te, et videas Deum. Magis autem non vides, sed Deus, qui est in te, videt te. Deus incomprehensibilis est. Quis enim potest comprehendere eum, nisi ipse se comprehendat? Serva ergo mandata Dei, sanctifica cor tuum, ita ut Deus habitet in te, et quotidie magis ac magis invenies Deum. Opus Imperfectum in Matthaeum, Homilia XXVIII Source: Migne PG 56.776

I confess to you Lord, Father of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and revealed them to little ones... 1 Who are the wise? The ancient philosophers and orators who with their natural wisdom exerted themselves in the exercise of letters and disputed in the enquiry of the nature of God, not wishing to find God but desiring to speak cleverly of high things, who were by their own minds overthrown, and cast down in their words, for in the end they confessed they were not able to find out anything more than that God was unknowable. And why, therefore, did you labour so greatly, if being ignorant, after you had ceased, you were as you were before you sought? For like a man who has thrust himself forward to navigate the unnavigable ocean which he is not able to cross, and he must return on the same way he went out, so it is that those who have begun from ignorance shall end in ignorance. O wise man, how much more unwise! God cannot be seen, and who can see Him unless He shall see Himself? Therefore keep the commandments of God, sanctify your heart, so that God may dwell in you, and you will see God, or rather you will not see but God who is in you shall see for you. God is unknowable and who is able to know him unless Him who knows Himself? Therefore keep the commandments of God, sanctify your heart, so that God might dwell in you and with every day that passes you will find God more and more. Opus Imperfectum on Matthew, from Homily 28 1 Mt 11.25

Heat and Blows

Διεσώθη ἀπὸ καύματος υἱὸς νοήμων ἀνεμόφθορος δὲ γίνεται ἐν ἀμήτῳ υἱὸς παράνομος. Ἀκούει ὁ φυσικὸς νοήμων, Ἡμέρας ὁ ἥλιος οὐ συγκαύσει σε, οὐδὲ ἡ σελήνη τὴν νύκτα. Τὰς βιωτικὰς φροντίδας καῦμα καλεῖ· τοὺς ὑπ' αὐτοῦ δὲ ξηραινομένους καλεῖ χόρτον· ὁ δὲ Σωτὴρ διὰ τῆς παραβολῆς τὰς θλίψεις δηλοῖ· τὰς κατὰ τοῦ λόγου δὲ καὶ τοὺς διωγμοὺς ἐκάλεσε καῦμα. Ὃς ἐκ χειλέων προφέρει σοφίαν ῥάβδῳ τύπτει ἄνδρα ἀκάρδιον Ὁ σοφὸς ἐπιτιμητικῷ λόγῳ εἰς αἴσθησιν ἄγει τὸν βαρυκάρδιον. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Παροιμιας, Κεφ' I’ Source: Migne PG 39.1633b

It is a son of ruinous thoughts who keeps himself from the heat, and in the harvest he is worthless. 1 Hear what the physician of the soul says, 'During the day the sun shall not scorch you, nor shall the moon at night.' 2 He calls worldly cares 'heat', and he who burns up in them 'grass'. And the Saviour in the parable speaks of tribulations, and He calls 'heat' those who are persecutors opposed to the sacred teaching. 3 He who sends forth wisdom from his lips strikes the thoughtless man with a rod. 4 With a word of rebuke the wise man drives a dull hearted man to sense. Didymus the Blind, Commentary On Proverbs, Chapter 10 1 Prov 10.5 LXX 2 Ps 120.6 3 Mt 13.5-6, 20-21 4 Prov 10.13 LXX

The Mustard Seed And Other Seeds

Simile est regnum coelorum grano sinapis etc. Regnum coelorum praesens Ecclesia dicitur, quae diversis figuris, non secundum se totam, sed secundum aliquam partem sui comparatur. Hic autem grano sinapis secundum fidem assimilatur, quod homo, id est Christus seminavit in agro, id est in cordibus credentium, quod minimum est omnibus seminibus. Fides enim nostra vilior omnibus doctrinis philosophicis videtur. Quid enim stultius sapientibus hujus mundi aestimabatur, quam in occisum et sepultum credere, visibilia contemnere, et invisibilibus iuhiare? Caetera autem semina, scilicet libri philosophorum excellere videntur, quia de maximarum rerum agunt subtilitate, et ornati sunt rhetorica compositione. Sed, ut ait Apostolus, quod infirmum est Dei, fortius est hominibus, ideo cum crescit in mente recipientis, et in toto mundo exaltatur, major apparet omnibus oleribus, et fit arbor, ita ut, etc. Scientiae philosophicae enim sunt olera, sed ad nullius utilitatis robur perveniunt. et ideo facile ex vanitate sua arescunt. Rami vero hujus arboris sunt partes fidei multiplices, in quibus habitant volucres coeli, id est animae fidelium delectantur et pascuntur, quae pennis virtutum ad coelestia volant. Unde dictum est: Quis dabit mihi pennas sicut columbae, et volabo, et requiescam? Anselmus Laudunensis, Enarrationes In Matthaeum, Caput XIII Source: Migne PL 162.1374d-1375b

The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed... 1 He speaks of the present Church by the use of different figures, for not in its totality but according to its different parts it has its comparisons. Here, then, the mustard seed is likened to faith, which a man, that is, Christ, sowed in a field, that is, in the hearts of the believers, and it is the smallest of all the seeds. Indeed our faith seems to be more valueless than all the teachings of the philosophers. What shall be judged more foolish by the wise of this world than to have belief in a man who was killed and buried, and to scorn visible things and to desire things unseen? And there are other seeds, that is, the books of the philosophers which seem to be excellent because they treat subtly of the greatest things and they are composed in an admirable style, but as the Apostle says, the weakness of God is stronger than men 2 therefore when our seed grows in the mind that receives it, it rises up amid the whole world, and it appears greater than all other herbs, and indeed is like a tree. The teachings of the philosophers are the other herbs, but the strength of their usefulness comes to nothing, and therefore on account of their vanity they wither away. But the branches of our tree are the many parts of the faith which with the wings of virtue fly off to heavenly things. Whence it has been said, 'Who shall give to me the wings of a dove, that I might fly away and be at peace?' 3 Anselm of Laon, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Chapter 6 1 Mt 13.31-32 2 1 Cor 1.25 3 Ps 54.7

Advancing In Wisdom

Νόμιζε μοι τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφίαν μητέρα τινὰ εἶναι, καὶ νῦν μὲν τῷ νηπίῳ τὸν μαστὸν ἐπιδιδοῦσαν, καὶ βοῶσαν, Καλὸν, καλον, τοῦτό γε, εἶθ' ὕστερον πρὸς τὴν στερεὰν τροφὴν τὸν παῖδα ἐλαύνουσαν, καὶ χολῇ τὸν μαστὸν περιχρίουσαν, καὶ κράζουσαν συνεχῶς, Σαπρὸν, σαπρὸν τοῦτό γε. Ἅγιος Νειλος, Βιβλιον Πρῶτον, Ἐπιστολὴ ΡΚϚ, Βενιαμιν Ἑβραιῳ Source: Migne PG 79.137a

Think, as I do, that the wisdom of God is something like a mother, who now gives her breast to the infant, saying, 'Good, this is good,' and later, so that the growing boy may take to solid food, she smears a bitter herb on the breast, and says to him, 'Bad, this is bad.' 1 Saint Nilus of Sinai, Book 1, Letter 126, To Benjamin the Hebrew 1 cf 1 Cor 3.1-2

The Words Of The Wise

Quare verba sapientium stimulis et clavis assimilantur? Sic enim dicit Salomon: Verba sapientium sicut stimuli, et quasi clavi in altum defixi? Aptissime verba sapientium, stimuis et clavis comparantur, qui peccatorum culpas nesciunt palpare, sed pungere. Qui enim sunt veraciter sapients, eorum procul dubio verba clavi sunt et stimuli, qui peccatores non blandimentis fovent, sed aspera increpatione redarguut, et secretas eorum conscientias quasi pungendo, ad lamenta et ad laborem excitant ut corrigantur. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput XII Source: Migne PL 172.345b-c

Why are the words of the wise compared to nails and goads, so that Solomon says, 'The words of the wise are like goads, and as nails hammered deeply within.'? 1 Most aptly are the words of the wise compared to goads and nails because they do not know how to indulge the faults of sinners, but they strike them. Without doubt the words of those who are truly wise are nails and goads, since they do not delight sinners with pleasant speech, but bitterly dispute with them, and as if striking the secrets of their conscience, they drive them to laments and toil so that they might improve themselves. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 12 1 Eccl 12.11

Wisdom Amid Good And Evil

In duobus servitur Deo, faciendo bonum et patiendo malum. In confessoribus remuneratur bona actio, in martyribus passio Ad agendum bonum necessaria est sapientia; ad tolerandum malum necessaria patientia. Sapientia ut bonum bene fiat; patientia, ne malum patiens malus fiat. Qui enum bonum facit in bona materia operatur, sed si bonum bene non facit, per malam formam bona materia deformatur. Bona est forma, ubi nec plus nec minus justo est. Si plus justo sit, peccatum est, si minus justo sit, delictum. Igitur qui bonum bene facit, quasi bonae materiae bonam formam imprimit. Ad tolerantiam autem mali patientia necessaria est, quia qui malo per impatientiam cedit, a bono recedit. Sicut enim malum quod est culpa faciendum non est, sic malum quod est poena patiendum est. Poena autem dolor est, dolor vero aliud non est nisi cum amittitur quod amatur; vel in abrenuntiatione culpae, cum peccatum quod prius delectabat relinquitur vel in abrenuntiatione possessionis propriae, cum terrena substantia quae foris possidebatur, deseritur, vel in abrenuntatione delectionis mundanae cum carnalium sensuum lascivia mortificatur. In omnibus his labor est, nec sine dolore quidquam horum fieri potest. Haec igitur est patientia sanctorum. Qui sustinentiam deserunt, apostatunt. Post ultimam abrenuntiationem, primo per vanitatem, quia mundanam jucunditatem ad voluptatem repetunt. Post secundam, secundo per cupiditatem, quia postpositas divitias mundi ad superfinitatem ambiunt. Post primam, tertio per iniquitatem, qua anteacta peccata et dimissa iterare praesumunt. Itaque patientia ad tolerantiam necessaria est, ne habeat homo per vanitatem in consilio impiorum, nec stet per cupiditatem in via peccatorum, nec sedeat per iniquitatem in cathedra pestilentia. Job ad mundi jucunditatem minime respexerat qui dicebat: Si vidi solem cum fulgeret, et lunam incedentem clare, ordine suo. Post divitias mundi apostatare David nos prohibet dicens: Noli aemulari in eo qui prosperatur in via sua. Post peccata dimissa apostatare ipse Dominus prohibet, dicens: Vade et amplius noli peccare. Et propheta: Observabo me ab iniquitate mea. Igitur homo accednes ad servitutem Dei stet in loco suo per patientiam, ut non cedat nec recedat. Operetur bonum pro adimplendo primo debito, patiatur malum pro expiando primo delicto. Nam ut faciat bonum? factus est homo, ut patiatur malum, fecit homo. Pro eo igitur quod factus est facit bonum, pro eo quod fecit patiur malum. Primus enim homo sic factus est ut proficeret de bone innocentiae, per bonum obedientiae, ad bonum gloriae. Sed mutans locum et innocentiam deserens, deficere coepit, et ire de malo iniquitatis per malum mortalitatis ad malum damnationis. Venit autem Salvator, et monstravit aliam viam, qua ad patriam revertatur homo, per bonum justitiae et malum poenae ad bonum gloriae. Hugo De Sancte Victore, Miscellanea, Liber I, Tit CVII, De sapientia in faciendo bono, et de patientia in tolerando malo Source: Migne PL 177.536c-537b

In two things there is service to God, the doing of good and the suffering of evil. In the good deed is reward for the faithful, in suffering for martyrs. Wisdom is necessary for the doing of good, patience for the endurance of evil. Wisdom so that the good may be done well, patience so that evil may not be suffered badly. He who does good works with good material but if he does not do good well he deforms the good material with bad form. The form is good when there is no more and no less than what is fitting. If there is too much it is an error, too little a fault. Therefore he who does good well, impresses a good form on good material. Now for the endurance of evil patience is necessary, because whoever falls into evil because of impatience, falls from the good. Thus as the evil which is culpable must not be done, so the evil which is a penalty must be endured. Punishment is sorrow, yet sorrow is nothing but the loss of what is loved, either in the renunciation of fault when the sin which once delighted is abandoned, or in the renunciation of one's possessions, when worldly substance, which was held exteriorly, is given up, or in the renunciation of worldly pleasure when the lust of corporeal sense is mortified. In all these there is toil, and they cannot be done without grief. This, then, is the patience of the saints, but he apostatizes who flees endurance. Now after this last renunciation mentioned first comes vanity, because a man again seeks worldly joys and pleasure. After the second renunciation, comes the desire for riches because the wealth of the world, opposing the infinite, surrounds one. After the first renunciation comes wickedness because of the thought of those sins formerly committed and a presumption of repeated forgiveness. Therefore patience for the sake of suffering is necessary, lest a man because of vanity receive the counsel of the wicked, and because of avarice stand in the way of sinners, and because of wickedness sit in the chair of pestilence. 1 Job hardly looked again to the joys of the world, saying, 'If I saw the sun when it blazed, and the moon when it shone...' 2 in their way. David prohibits us to apostatize after the wealth of the world when he says: 'Do not imitate him who prospers in his own way.' 3 The Lord prohibits apostasy after sin is forgiven when He says: 'Go and do not sin again.' 4 And the prophet says: 'I shall guard myself from my wickedness.' 5 Therefore let a man who comes to the service of God stand fast in his place by patience, so that he does not fall and turn away. Let him work good for the fulfilment of the first debt, and suffer evil for the expiation of the first sin. For man was made to do good, and that he suffers evil was the work of man. Therefore he does good because of Him who made him, and he suffers because of him who did evil. The first man was made to advance from the good of innocence in the good of obedience to the good of glory. But changing his place and losing innocence he began to fall, and to go from the evil of iniquity through the evil of mortality to the evil of damnation. But the Saviour came and showed another way, which returns a man to his fatherland through the good of righteousness and suffering the evil of the penalty to the good of glory. Hugh Of Saint Victor, Miscellanea, Book 1, Chapter 107, On wisdom in doing good and in the suffering of evil. 1 Ps 1.1 2 Job 31.26 3 Ps 36.7 4 Jn 8.11 5 Ps 17.24

Love And Knowledge

Ὡς μὲν οὖν ἀντακολουθοῦσιν ἀλλήλαις αἱ ἀρεταί, τί χρὴ λέγειν, ἐπιδεδειγμένου ἤδη ὡς πίστις μὲν ἐπὶ μετανοίᾳ ἐλπίδι τε, εὐλάβεια δὲ ἐπὶ πίστει, καὶ ἡ ἐν τούτοις ἐπιμονή τε καὶ ἄσκησις ἅμα μαθήσει συμπεραιοῦται εἰς ἀγάπην, ἣ δὲ τῇ γνώσει τελειοῦται; ἐκεῖνο δὲ ἐξ ἀνάγκης παρασημειωτέον ὡς μόνον τὸ θεῖον σοφὸν εἶναι φύσει νοεῖσθαι χρή· διὸ καὶ ἡ σοφία δύναμις θεοῦ ἡ διδάξασα τὴν ἀλήθειαν· κἀνταῦθάπου εἴληπται ἡ τελείωσις τῆς γνώσεως. Φιλεῖ δὲ καὶ ἀγαπᾷ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ὁ φιλόσοφος, ἐκ τοῦ θεράπων εἶναι γνήσιος δι' ἀγάπην ἤδη φίλος νομισθείς. Tαύτης δὲ ἀρχὴ τὸ θαυμάσαι τὰ πράγματα, ὡς Πλάτων ἐν Θεαιτήτῳ λέγει, καὶ Ματθίας ἐν ταῖς Παραδόσεσι παραινῶν θαύμασον τὰ παρόντα, βαθμὸν τοῦτον πρῶτον τῆς ἐπέκεινα γνώσεως ὑποτιθέμενος· ᾗ κἀν τῷ καθ' Ἑβραίους εὐαγγελίῳ "ὁ θαυμάσας βασιλεύσει" γέγραπται καὶ ὁ βασιλεύσας ἀναπαήσεται. Ἀδύνατον οὖν τὸν ἀμαθῆ, ἔστ' ἂν μένῃ ἀμαθής, φιλοσοφεῖν, τόν γε μὴ ἔννοιαν σοφίας εἰληφότα, φιλοσοφίας οὔσης ὀρέξεως τοῦ ὄντως ὄντος καὶ τῶν εἰς τοῦτο συντεινόντων μαθημάτων. Kἂν τὸ ποιεῖν καλῶς ᾖ τισιν ἐξησκημένον, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐπίστασθαι, ὡς χρηστέον καὶ ποιητέον, καὶ συνεκπονητέον, καθὸ καὶ ὁμοιοῦταί τις θεῷ, θεῷ λέγω τῷ σωτῆρι, θεραπεύων τὸν τῶν ὅλων θεὸν διὰ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως λόγου, δι' οὗ καθορᾶται τὰ κατ' ἀλήθειαν καλὰ καὶ δίκαια. Eὐσέβεια ἔστι πρᾶξις ἑπομένη καὶ ἀκόλουθος θεῷ. Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς, Στρωματεων, Λογος Β’, Κεφ' Θ’ Source: Migne PG 9.979c-981b

As, then, the virtues follow one another, what need to speak of that which has been demonstrated already, that faith hopes through repentance, and fear through faith, and patience and practice in these, along with learning, culminate in love, which is perfected by knowledge? But what one must note is that the Divine alone must be thought as wise by nature. Therefore wisdom also, which has taught the truth, is the power of God, and in it the perfection of knowledge is embraced. The philosopher loves and likes the truth, being now changed from being a true servant to being considered a friend on account of his love. 1 The beginning of knowledge is a wondering at objects, as Plato says is in his Theaetetus, 2 and Matthias exhorting us in the Traditions, says, 'Wonder at what is before you,' laying this down as the first foundation of further knowledge. So also in the Gospel to the Hebrews it is written, 'He that wonders shall reign, and he that has reigned shall rest.' It is impossible, therefore, for an ignorant man, while he remains ignorant, to philosophise, since he has no grasp of the idea of wisdom and philosophy, which is an effort to grasp that which truly is, and the studies that lead to that. Which is not done to make a man cultivated, but so that there might be knowledge of what is beneficial and how to act and labour, insofar as one has a likeness to God, I mean God the Saviour, by the service of the God of all things through the High Priest, the Word, through whom is seen what is in truth good and right, and piety is conduct suitable for following God. Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata, Book 2, Chapter 9 1 Jn 15.15 2 Plato Theat 155d

Lovers And Beloveds

Indica mihi quem diligit anima mea.... Alter est dilectus animae et dilector animae; alter dilectus carnis et dilector carnis. Christus dilectus animae est et dilector. Mundus dilectus carnis est et dilector. Dilector qui diligit; dilectus qui diligitur. In hoc probatur quod Christus dilector animae est, quia in oculis ejus nihil interest qualis species carnis, ubi anima pulchra est. Dilectus autem animae ideo ipse est, quia in perfruendo ipso anima delectatur. Tale etenim bonum est sapientia, quo perfrui nisi rationalis natura non potest. Sicut caro mundo perfruitur et delectatur, et oculus carnis hoc diligit quod capit; et qui amat speciem, amat et illa quae speciem commendant. Hugo De Sancte Victore, Miscellanea, Liber I, Tit CXXXI, De dilectore et dilecto duplici Source: Migne PL 177.549b-c

Show me the one whom my soul loves... 1 The beloved of the soul and the lover of the soul is one thing, and the beloved of the flesh and the lover of the flesh is another. Christ is the beloved of the soul and the lover. The world is the beloved of the flesh and its lover. The lover is he who loves, the beloved what is loved. In this it is proved that Christ is the lover of the soul, because in His eyes there is no value in the state of the flesh when the soul is beautiful. And He is the beloved of the soul because in Him the soul delights to have joy. Such a good is wisdom, which is enjoyed only if a rational nature is present. And the flesh takes joy in the world and it is charmed, and the eye of the flesh loves what it grasps, and he who loves appearance, loves those things which commend appearance. Hugh Of Saint Victor, Miscellanea, Book 1, Chapter 131, On The Two Types of Lover And Beloved 1 Song 1.6

Adversity And Wisdom

Quid est quod dicit: Calumnia conturbat sapientem, et perdit robur cordis ejus? Qui enim vere sapiens est, nulla turbatur calumnia, nec dejicitur adversitate. Sapiens in hoc loco non ille intelligens est qui perfectus et consummatus est in sapientia, sed qui jam coepit abere sapientiam, et tamen non est perfectus. Talem sapientiam calumnia hominum sive adversitas aliqua facile conturbat, et perdit vigorem ac fortiudinem animae illius quia, cum patienter non sustinet adversa, vexatur impatientia. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput VII Source: Migne PL 172.341c

Why is it that he says, 'Calumny troubles a wise man and drains the strength of his heart'? 1 Since he who is truly wise is not troubled by calumny, nor is he dejected by adversity. The wise man in this passage should not be understood as one who is perfect and flawless in wisdom, but as he who has just begun to acquire wisdom and is not yet perfect. Such wisdom is easily troubled by the calumny of men and adversity, and it drains the vigour and fortitude of that soul, because when the soul cannot patiently endure adverse things, it is distressed with impatience. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 7 1 Eccl 7.8

Troubled And Shaken

Turbati sunt, et commoti sunt sicut ebrius, et omnis sapientia eorum devortata est. De ipsis adhuc dicit de quibus superius ait, anima eorum in malis tabescebat. Turbati sunt, ad confusionem pertinet sensus; commoti sunt, ad iras protinus evomendas. Quapropter talium sapientiam dicit esse deglutitam, quia sapientia non potest nisi apud quietos et imperturbatos animos inveniri. Sapientia eorum bene de illis dicitur qui sibi ante videbantur esse doctores: sed eam constat esse deglutitam, quae perturbatis mentibus non praevalet apparere. His igitur exemplis monentur sacerdotes, ut Domino supplicent; quatenus cor eorum in humilitate consolidet, ne diabolicis tentationibus ventilentur. Cassiodorus, Expositio In Psalterium, Psalmus CVI Source: Migne PL 70.773b-c

They were troubled and shaken like a drunkard, and all their wisdom was devoured. 1 He still speaks of those of whom he said before: 'Their souls withered in wickedness.' That 'they were troubled,' pertains to confusion, and that they were shaken and immediately moved refers to anger. For which reason the wisdom of such men, he says, was gobbled up, because wisdom can be found only in quiet and untroubled souls. And it is well said that it is 'their wisdom,' for this is spoken of those who had seemed so learned to themselves, but since it is obvious that wisdom does not stand firm in troubled souls it befits them to be devoured. With these examples he warns priests to supplicate the Lord, that their hearts be set fast in humility, lest they be winnowed and thrown about by the trials of the devil. 2 Cassiodorus, Commentary On The Psalms, from Psalm 116 1 Ps 116.27 2 cf Lk 22.31-32

The Fountain Of The Gardens

Fons hortorum, malorum puteus aquarum viventium, quae fluunt impetu de Libano. Ostendit fructus, modo ponit unde ipse hortus habeat irrigationem, quasi diceret: In horto est fons, id est baptismus, vel divina sapientia: fons dico hortorum irrigans hortum ex Judaeis et hortum ex gentibus, et non talis fons qui possit cito evacuari, sed qui sit puteus, id est altus et profundus, quia quanto magis inquirit divina sapientia, tanto profundior invenitur. Profunda sunt ea quae, in baptismo significantur; puteus dico aquarum ex quo fluunt aquae, fluunt quidem ex divina sapientia aquae, quae lavant et mundas reddunt animas. Fluunt quoque ex baptismo aquae, id est dona Spiritus sancti, quae in baptismo recipiuntur. Aquarum dico viventium, id est animas vivificantium; quae currunt ad correctionem inferiorum de Libano, id est de majoribus et de perfectis qui sunt candidati in virtutibus. Fluunt dico et non parce, sed abundanter et impetuose. Anselmus Laudunensis, Enarrationes in Cantica canticorum, Caput IV Source: Migne PL 162.1209d-1210a

The fountain of the gardens, a well of living waters, which flow strongly from Mount Lebanon. 1 He shows the fruit, by the way of setting down how the garden is watered, as if he said, in the garden there is a fountain, that is, baptism, or Divine wisdom, a fount, I say, that waters the garden of gardens, the garden of the Jews and the garden of the Gentiles, and it is not a fountain that can be swiftly exhausted, but it is a well, that is, it is deep and rich, because the more that one seeks with Divine wisdom the more deeply one finds. Deep are the things which are signified by baptism, the well that I speak of, from which flow the water of waters, that flow from Divine wisdom, and they cleanse and fashion clean souls. The waters also flow from baptism, that is, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which are received in baptism. I speak of the living waters, that is, those which give life to the soul, which rush down from Mount Lebanon for the correction of lower things, that is, from greater things and from perfect things, which are resplendent with virtue. They flow, I say, and do not dry up, but they run abundantly and swiftly. Anselm of Laon, Commentary On The Song of Songs, Chapter 4 1 Song 4.15

Wisdom And Foolishness

Scriptum est: Quia mundus in Dei sapientia, per sapientiam Deum non congnovit: placuit Deo per stultitiam praedicationis salvos facere credentes. Mundus sapientiam habuit, per quam Deum non potuit cognoscere positum in sapientia sua. Sapientia mundi fuit ratio humana, secundum visibilium rerum naturam et elementa hujus mundi formata. Sapientia Dei fuit ejus ineffabilis majestas, et incomprehensibilis bonitas. Erat et prudentia mundi circa commoda carnis diligens circumspectio. Sapientia ergo mundi quae humana ratione incedit, negat fidem; prudentia autem mundi quae carnis tantum commoda quaere docet, et vitare incommoda, destruit bonam operationem. Propterea sapientiam mundi stultam reputat Deus, et prudentiam judicat inimicam, quoniam illa veritati adversatur, ista dilectioni. Propterea utramque destruxit Deus: sapientiam, per stultitiam; prudentiam, per insaniam. Quasi enim, stultitam quaedem Dei fuit secundum humanum sensum, quod ad abjecta et indigna sibi se humiliavit. Insania autem reputata, quod sine necessitate tam dura susinuit. Et tamen qui in sapientia sua cognosci non potuit, quasi in stultitia agnita est, quoniam qui in sua celesitudine manes non potuit comprehendi, in sua humilitatione coepit agnosci. Quasi enim in sua sapientia Deus fuit, quando in eo quod ipsum decere videbatur, permansit; sed ibi agnitus non est, donec quasi desipuit et indigna suscepit. Ibi autem sapientiam mundi destruxit, ubi se in eo quod stultum mundo videtur, demonstravit, ut disceret homo supra rationem mundi esse quod videbat in natura hominis Deum apparere. Deinde autem quasi per insania Deus prudentiam carnis evacuavit, quando contra ejus existimationem agens carnem suam, sine retractione ad poenas et tormenta exposuit, et sic eam ad incorruptionem resurrectionis eduxit, ostendens quod non parcendo, sed castigando et persequendo carnem servare oportet. Sic ergo quia in sapientia sua per sapientiam mundus non cognovit Deum, placuit Deo per stultitiam praedicationis salvos facere credentes. Stulta enim videbantur quae dicebantur, sed tamen per haec demonstrata magis sunt stulta quae probabantur et amabantur. Quae probabantur ratione stulta, et quae amabantur dilectione insana; illa sine veritate, ist sine utilitate. Stultum enim fuit supra carnis sensum veritatem Dei pertinaciter non recipere, et insania fruit propter carnis commodum detrimentum animae patienter sustinere. Hugo De Sancte Victore, Miscellanea, Liber I, Tit CXCVII De sapientia Dei et mundi Source: Migne PL 177.586a-587a

It is written, 'Because in the wisdom of God the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save believers.' 1 The world had its wisdom, through which, established in it own wisdom, it was unable to know God. The wisdom of the world was human reason which was fashioned for visible things and the elements of this world. The wisdom of God was His ineffable majesty and incomprehensible goodness. The prudence of the world was for the affectionate care of the flesh. Therefore the wisdom of the world that is given to human reason denies faith, for the prudence of the world teaches that one should seek only the comforts of the flesh and avoid its harm, whence it ruins good work. Therefore God reckons the wisdom of the world foolishness and judges prudence to be an enemy, since the former is averse to truth, the latter to love. Whence God overthrew both, wisdom by foolishness and prudence by madness. For according to human understanding it was by a certain foolishness of God that He lowered Himself to an abject and unworthy state. And it was reputed madness that without necessity He endured such trials as He did. And yet He who was not able to be known in His own wisdom, was as by foolishness known, because He who  in His heaven cannot be comprehended began to be known in His humiliation. For He was as God in His own wisdom when He seemed to do what befitted Him, but because of that He was not known, until He, as one acting unreasonably, took up an unworthy state. And thereby He destroyed the wisdom of the world when in what seemed foolish to the world He revealed Himself, so that man might learn of the reason beyond the world, since He saw God appear in the nature of man. Finally as by madness God emptied the flesh of prudence when against its judgement He took up the flesh and exposed Himself without excuse to punishment and torment, yet by that He led it to the incorruption of resurrection, showing that it is not by being spared but by beatings and persecution that one should care for the flesh. Therefore because in its own wisdom the world did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save believers. For what the preachers say seems foolish, yet by these things the things that men have approved and loved were demonstrated to be more foolish. What they approved in reason was foolish, and what they loved with delight was madness, for the former was without truth, the latter without usefulness. For it was foolish under the understanding of the flesh to stubbornly refuse the truth of God, and insane because of the advantage to the flesh to patiently suffer the ruin of the soul. Hugh Of Saint Victor, Miscellanea, Book 1, Chapter 197, On The Wisdom of God and the World 1 1 Cor 1.21

Wisdom Without Number

Καὶ τῆς συνέσεως αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀριθμός... Μὴ ζήτει τοίνυν πῶς καὶ τίνι τρόπῳ· καὶ γὰρ ἡ μεγαλωσύνη αὐτοῦ ἄπειρος. Διὰ τοῦτο ἔλεγε. Τῆς μεγαλωσύνης αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔστι πέρας. Ἀλλ' ὥσπερ ἡ μεγαλωσύνη ἄπειρος, οὕτω καὶ ἡ σύνεσις. Διὰ τοῦτο καὶ εἰπὼν, Μέγας ὁ Κύριος ἡμῶν, ἐπήγαγε· Καὶ τῆς συνέσεως αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀριθμός. Καὶ ἡ γνῶσις δὲ αὐτοῦ θαυμαστή· διὸ καὶ ἔλεγεν· Ἐθαυμαστώθη ἡ γνῶσίς σου ἐξ ἐμοῦ· ἐκραταιώθη, οὐ μὴ δύνωμαι πρὸς αὐτήν. Καὶ τὰ κρίματα δὲ αὐτοῦ πάλιν ἁνεξερεύνητα· διὸ καὶ ἔλεγε· Τὰ κρίματά σου ἄβυσσος πολλὴ. Ὅταν τοίνυν καὶ μέγας καὶ δυνατὸς ᾗ καὶ συνετὸς, μὴ περιεργάζου, πῶς ταῦτα ἔσται. Ἀμαλαμβάνων πραεῖς ὁ Κύριος, ταπεινῶν δὲ ἁμαρτωλοὺς ἕως γῆς. Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ λέγωσί τινες τῶν ἀνοήτων. Τί πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ὅτι τὰ ἄστα οἴδε μετὰ ἀκριβείας; λέγει καὶ τὴν ἐπ' ἀνθρώπων κηδεμονίαν οὕτω γενομένην· καὶ οὐκ εἶπε, βοηθῶν πραέσιν ὁ Κύριος, ἀλλ' ὅ πολλῷ μεῖζων, Ἀναλαμβάνων· ὠς περὶ πατρὸς φιλοστόρψου διαλεγόμενος. Τί δέ ἐστιν, Ἀναλαμβάνων; Ἀνακτώμενος, φέρων, διαβαστάζων. Εἶδες πάλιν ἐφ' ἐκάτερα τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ ἀπηρτισμένην, ἐπὶ τε τὸ αἵρειν τοὺς ταπεινοὺς, καὶ ταπεινοῦν τοὺς ἀπονενοημένους; Οὐχ ἀπλῶς δὲ ταπεινοῖ, ἀλλὰ καὶ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς ὑπερβολῆς· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ, Ἕως γῆς. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος Εἰς Τον ΡΜϚ´ Ψαλμον Source: Migne PG 55.476-477

And His wisdom is without number.... 1 Do not seek then how and in what way, for His greatness is without end. So it is said, 'His greatness has no end' 2 And as His greatness is without end, so even His wisdom, and therefore when he says, 'Great is our Lord,' he adds, 'and His wisdom is without number.' And His knowledge is indeed wonderous, therefore he said: 'Your knowledge is too wonderful for me, I am overcome, I cannot grasp it.' 3 And again His judgements are inscrutable, and therefore he has said: 'Your judgments are a great abyss.' 4 When, then, He is great and powerful and wise, do not meddle with how it could be. 'The Lord lifts up the meek, and He crushes down sinners into the earth.' 5 And this lest some say, 'What is it to us that he has flawless knowledge of all the stars?' 6 For he says that He has care for men. And he does not say 'The Lord brings aid to the meek,' but what is much greater,' He lifts them up,' as if he were speaking of a loving father. What is it 'To lift up?' To restore, to bear, to carry. You see again how His power is perfect in both ways? Certainly He lifts up the humble, but He also crushes down those who are mindless. Not only does He crush them down, but he does so utterly, which is expressed by: 'Into the earth.' Saint John Chrysostom, On The Psalms, from Psalm 146 1 Ps 146.5 2 Ps 144.3 3 Ps 138.6 4 Ps 35.7 5 Ps 146.6 6 Ps 146.4

Seeking And Finding

Quidam Christum quaesierunt , et non invenerunt. Quidam quaesierunt, et invenerunt, sed non retinuerunt, quia non quaesiverunt ut haberent, sed ut venderent. Quidam Christum quaesiverunt et invenerunt, et retinuerunt, quia non quaesiverunt ut venderent, sed ut possiderent. Primis dixit: Quo ego vado vos non potestis venire. Quaeretis me, et non invenietis, sed in peccatis vestris moriemini. Secundis dixit: Ego sum, si me quaeritis, sinite eos abire. Et injecerunt manus et tenuerunt eum. Tertiis dixite: Avete. Et accesserunt et tenuerunt pedes ejus. Primi quaesiverunt, et non invenerunt. Secundi vivum invenerunt, et inventum occiderunt. Tertii mortuum quaesiverunt, et vivum invenerunt. Sic multi sapientiam quaerunt, et non inveniunt, quia inutiles judicantur et abjiciuuntur. Alii sapientiam quaerunt et inveniunt, sed non diligunt, quia ad lucrum et laudem humanam adipiscendam eam exponunt, et prostituunt. Isti Christum vivum inveniunt, sed occidunt, quia ex hoc in eis sapientia moritur quod ejus dulcedine nullo amoris sensu perfruuntur. Alii mortuam quaerunt, et vivam inveniunt, quia dum eam ad hujus vitae usum non appetunt, verius intus ad illius dulcedinem et suavitatem pertingunt. Hi assumuntur ut eleventur et glorificentur Hugo De Sancte Victore, Miscellanea, Liber I, Tit XII Quod Christus et sapientia a diversis variis quaeruntur modis Source: Migne PL 177.484a-c

Some have sought Christ and not found Him. Some have sought and found but they did not retain because they did not seek that they might have but that they might sell. Some have sought Christ and found and retained, and that because they did not seek so that they might sell but that they might possess.To the first sort He says: 'Where I am going you are not able to come. You will seek me and not find me, but you will die in your sin.' 1 To the second He says 'I am. If you seek me, let them go. And they put their hands on Him and seized Him.' 2 To the third sort He says: 'Hail. And they approached and held His feet.' 3 The first have sought and have not found. The second have sought the living one and finding Him they slew Him. The third sought the dead one and found the living one. So it is that many seek wisdom and they do not find, because they are judged unworthy and cast off. Others seek wisdom and find it but they do not love it, because they use it only for material gain and human praise, and so they prostitute it. These sort find the living Christ and slay Him, because wisdom dies in them when with no sweetness of love they enjoy it in the mind. These shall be summoned to a heavy judgement and cast down. The others seek what is dead and find that which is living, because while they did not desire to put it to use for this life, then indeed within they touch on its sweetness and joyfulness. These are taken up, so that they might be lifted up and glorified. Hugh Of Saint Victor, Miscellanea, Book 1, Chapter 12, That Christ and wisdom are sought in different ways 1 Jn 7.33-34, 8.21 2 Jn 18.8 3 Mt 28.9

Revelation And Hiding

Ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ καιρῷ ἀποκριθεὶς ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν: ἐξομολογοῦμαί σοι, Πάτερ, Kύριε τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῆς γῆς, ὅτι ἔκρυψας ταῦτα ἀπὸ σοφῶν καὶ συνετῶν, καὶ ἀπεκάλυψας αὐτὰ νηπίοις. Ὅ λέγει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν· Ἐξομολογοῦμαι, ἀντὶ τοῦ Εὐχαριστῶ σοι, ὦ Πάτερ, ὅτι οἱ δοκοῦντες σοφοὶ καὶ ἔμπειροι εἶναι τῶν Γραφῶν Ἰουδαῖοι, ἠπείθησαν, οἱ δὲ ἀμαθεῖς καὶ νήπιοι ἐπίστευσαν καὶ ἔγνων τὰ μυστήρια. Ἀπέκρυψε δὲ τὰ μυστήρια ὁ Θεὸς απὸ τῶν δοκούντῶν εἶναι σοφῶν, οὐχ ὡς φθονῶν ἤ ὡς αἴτιος ἀγνωσίας, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ μὴ εἶναι ἀξίους, ἐξ αὐτοῦ τούτου τοῦ δοκεῖν ἑαυτοὺς εἶναι σοφούς· ὁ γὰρ δοκῶν ἑαυτὸν σοφὸν, καὶ θαῥῥων τῇ οἰκείᾳ γνώσει, οὐδὲ προσαλεῖται Θεόν. Καὶ λοιπὸν ὁ Θεὸς ὡς μὴ προσκαλούμενος οὐδὲ βοηθεῖ αὐτῷ, οὐδὲ ἀποκαλύπτει. Ἄλλως τε, ὁ Θεὸς μᾶλλον διὰ φιλανθρωπίαν οὐκ ἀποκαλύπτει τοῖς πολλοῖς τὰ μυστήρια, ἵνα μὴ πλεῖον κολασθῶσιν, ὡς μετὰ τὸ γνῶναι διαπτύσαντες. Θεοφύλακτος Αχρίδος, Ἑρμηνεία Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Ματθαιον , Κεφ ΙΑ' Source: Migne PG 123.256c-d

At that time Jesus answered and said, 'I confess to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden all these things from the wise and clever, and revealed them to little ones.' 1 He says, 'I confess,' that is, I give thanks to you, Father, that the Jews who seem to be wise to themselves and learned in the Scriptures, did not believe, but the uneducated and little ones believed and knew mysteries. For God hides mysteries from those who seem to be wise, not because He begrudges them, or that He is a cause of ignorance, but because they are not worthy, since they seem wise to themselves. But he who is wise to himself and he who is confident in his own knowledge does not call on God. And when one does not call on God, He does not aid, nor does He reveal anything. And besides this, God on account of His love of men does not reveal His mysteries to many, lest more be punished, scorning the things that they teach. Theophylact of Ochrid, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Matthew, Chapter 11 1 Mt 11.25

Delight And Giving

Delectare in Domino, et dabit tibi petitionem cordis tui. Delectatio et corporalis dicitur et spiritualis: illa nurit vitia, ista virtutes. Delectare cum dicit in Domino, suavem tibi vult esse ejus recordationem, ut ames quem times, ut desideres quem vereris, ut ambias quaerere quem pavesces. Sequitur: et dabit tibi petitionem cordis tui. Respice quia cordis dixit, non carnis, quod ad sapientiam solet referri. Cordis enim petitio est fides, charitas, intellectus Dei, et opera actuum bonorum.  Cassiodorus, Expositio In Psalterium, Psalmus XXXVI Source: Migne PL 70.258c-d

Delight in the Lord and He shall give to you the petition of your heart. 1 Delight can be spoken of the body and spirit. The former nourishes vices, the latter virtues. When he says delight in the Lord, he wishes that the memory of Him be sweet to you, that you love Him whom you fear, desire Him whom you are in awe of,  and that you aspire to seek Him whom you tremble at. It follows: 'And He shall give to you the petition of your heart.' See that he speaks of the heart that is not of the flesh, which is the customary way to refer to wisdom. For the petition of the heart is faith, charity and the understanding of God, and the works of good deeds. Cassiodorus, Commentary On The Psalms, from Psalm 36 1 Ps 36.4