Servants And Sons

Παρεμβαλεῖ ἄγγελος Κυρίου κύκλῳ τῶν φοβουμένων αὐτὸν, καὶ ῥύσεται αὐτους.  Ἡρμήνευσε τίνα λέγει τὸν πτὼχὸν, τὸν φοβούμενον τὸν Κύριον. Διότι ὁ φοβούμενος ἔτι ἔν τῇ τοῦ δούλου τάξει ἐστιν. Ὁ δὲ ὁ ὑπὸ τῆς ἀγάπης τετελευωμένος πρὸς τὴν τοῦ υἱοῦ λοιπὸν ἀξίαν ἀνέδραμε. Διόπερ ὁ μὲν δούλος καὶ πτωχὸς λέγεται, τῷ μηδὲν ἴδιον ἔχειν· ὁ δὲ υἱὸς ἤδη καὶ πλούσιος, τῷ κληρονόμος εἶναι τῶν πατρικῶν ἀγαθων. Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, Ὁμιλία Ἐις Τους Ψαλμούς, Εἰς Τον ΛΓ' Ψαλμον  Source: Migne PG 29.364a

The angel of the Lord He sets in a camp around those who fear Him and delivers them. 1 This is understood as being spoken to the poor man, the one who fears God. For which reason he who fears is yet in the rank of a servant, but he who is perfected by love has arisen to the dignity of a son. Whence the servant is named a poor man, for he has nothing of his own; the son, however, is rich because he is the inheritor of the goods of the father. Saint Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 33 1 Ps 33.8 2 Ps 33.7

Father And Son And Judgement

Pater enim non judicat quemquam, sed omne judicium dedit Filio... Pater non judicat quemquam, quia Patris persona hominem non suscepit, nec in judicio videbitur: sed sola Filii persona, in ea forma quae judicata est injuste, et juste judicabit vivos ac mortuos. Nec enim Filius persona videbitur in judicio in ea natura qua consubstantialis est Deo Patri, sed in ea qua consubstantialis est matri, et homo factus est. Ita intelligendum est: Pater non judicat quemquam, sed omne judicium dedit Filio; ac si diceretur: Patrem nemo videbit in judicio vivorum et mortuorum, sed omnes Filium; quia et filius hominis est, ut possit et ab impiis videri, cum et illi videbunt in quem pupugerunt. Quod ne conjicere potius quam aperte demonstrare videamur, proferimus ejusdem Domini certam manfiestamque sententam, qua ostendimus ipsam fuisse causam ut diceret: Pater non judicat quemquam, sed omne judicium dedit Filio, quia judex forma filii hominis apparebit. Quae forma non est Patris, sed Filii, nec Filii in qua aequalis est Patri, sed in qua minor est Patre: ut sit in judicio conspicuus bonis et malis. Alcuinus, Commentariorum in Joannem, Lib III, Cap X Source: Migne PL 100.810d-811b

The Father does not judge anyone, but all judgement is given to the Son. 1 The Father does not judge anyone, because the person of the Father did not assume man, nor in judgement shall He be seen, but only the person of the Son, in that form in which He was judged unjustly, and with justice He shall judge the living and the dead. For indeed the Son shall not be seen judgement in that nature by which he is consubstantial to God The Father, but in that which he is consubstantial with His mother, and was made man. Thus should it be understood: 'The Father judges no one but all judgement is given to the Son.' 1 As if it were said: 'No one sees the Father in the judgement of the living and the dead, but all see the Son, because He is the Son of Man, so He is able to be seen by the impious, when they shall look upon Him whom they have opposed.' And lest we seem to be guessing in this rather than openly demonstrating the matter, we bring forward the certain overt sentence of the same Lord, by which we show that it was for the same reason that He said: 'The Father does not judge anyone, all judgement is given to the Son,' 1 that is, because the judge shall appear in the form of the Son of Man, which form is not of the Father but of the Son; for not in this is there equality between the Son and the Father, but in this the Son is less than the Father, 2 so that in judgement He may be apparent to the good and the wicked. Alcuin of York, from The Commentary On The Gospel of Saint John, Book 3, Chapter 10 1 Jn 5.22 2 Jn 14.28

Fathers And Types Of Sons

Χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη ἀπὸ θεοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν καὶ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ  Καὶ τοῦτο δὲ λεκτέον, πατέρα ἑαυτῶν τὸν θεὸν εἰρηκότες οὐκέτι ἀδελφὸν ἀλλὰ κύριον ἑαυτῶν τὸν σωτῆρά φασιν, δεικνύντες ὅτι κἂν υἱοὶ θεοῦ γένωνται οἱ γενητοί, οὐδὲν ἧττον δοῦλοι μένουσι τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ δημιουργοῦ αὐτῶν τυγχάνοντος· μόνος γὰρ αὐτὸς ἀληθείᾳ καὶ οὐ θέσει υἱὸς ὢν θεοῦ δεσπότης ἐστὶ τῶν υἱοποιουμένων. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source:  Migne PG 39.1682b-c

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 1  And this also must be said, that they who call God their Father do not name the Saviour their brother but their Lord, so demonstrating themselves to be indeed created sons of God, and yet nevertheless  servants of Lord Jesus, who is their Creator. For He alone is not a son of God by adoption and so He is the Lord of those who are adopted. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1. 2 Cor 1.2

Caring For Thoughts

Μὴ καταφρονήσῃς ποτὲ ἐν λογισμῶν ἀμελείᾳ· ἀλάθητος γάρ ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς ἐπὶ πάσης ἐννοίας. Ἅγιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης, Περὶ Νόμου Πνευματικοῦ  Source: Migne PG 65 915d

Do not ever scorn to have care for your thoughts, for God is never forgetful of any one of them. Saint Mark The Ascetic, On The Spiritual Law.

Guarding Thoughts

Τὰ νοήματα τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου ὁ Κύριος καθάπερ πρόβατά τινα τῷ ἀγαθῷ ποιμένι τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ παρέδωκε· ̧ Κὰι γὰρ, φησί, σὺν τὸν αἰῶνα ἔδωκεν ἐν καρδίᾳ ἀυτοῦ,  συζεύξας αὐτῷ θυμὸν κὰι επιθυμίαν πρὸς βοήθειαν, ἵνα, διὰ μὲν τοῦ θυμου, φευγαδεύῃ τὰ τῶν λύκων νοήματα, διὰ δε τῆς ἐπιθυμίας στέργῃ τὰ πρόβατα, καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν ὑετῶν καὶ ἀνέμων πολλάκις βαλλόμενος· ἔδωκε πρὸς τούτοις καὶ νομὸν, ὅπως ποιμαίνῃ τὰ πρόβατα, καὶ τόπον χλόης, καὶ ὕδωρ ἀναπαύσεως καὶ ψαλτήριον καὶ κιθάραν καὶ ῥάβδον καὶ βακτηρίαν, ἵν' ἐκ ταύτης τῆς ποίμνης καὶ τραφῇ καὶ ἐνδύσηται καὶ χόρτον ὀρεινὸν συναγάγῃ· Τίς γὰρ, φησὶ, ποιμαίνει ποίμνην, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ γάλακτος τῆς ποίμνης οὐκ ἐσθίεις; Δεῖ οὖν τὸν ἀναχωροῦντα φυλάττειν νύκτωρ, καὶ μεθ´ ἡμέραν τοῦτο τὸ ποίμνιον, μήτι τῶν νοημάτων γένηται θηριάλωτον, ἢ λῃσταῖς περιπέσῃ, εἰ δὲ ἄρα τι τοιοῦτο συμβαίη κατὰ τὴν νάπην, εὐθέως ἐξαρπάζειν ἐκ τοῦ στόματος τοῦ λέοντος ἢ τῆς ἄρκτου. Γίνεται δὲ τὸ νόημα τὸ περὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ θηριάλωτον, εἰ μετὰ μίσους νέμοι τὸ ἐν ἡμῖν, καὶ τὸ περὶ τῆς γυναικὸς, εἰ μετ' αἰσχρᾶς ἐπιθυμίας στρέφοιτο παρ' ἡμῖν, καὶ τὸ τοῦ ἀργυρίου, καὶ τοῦ χρυσίου, εἰ μετὰ πλεονεξίας αὐλίζοιτο. Καὶ τὰ νοήματα τῶν ἁγίων χαρισμάτων, εἰ μετὰ κενοδοξίας κατὰ διάνοιαν βόσκοιτο· καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἄλλων δὲ νοημάτων ὡσαύτως συμβήσεται, κλεπτομένων τοῖς πάθεσιν.  Εὐάγριος ὁ Ποντικός, Περὶ διαφόρων πονηρῶν λογισμῶν Source: Migne PG 79 1220

The thoughts of this world the Lord gave to man as sheep to a good shepherd, for it is written, 'He has placed the world in his heart;' 1 yoking to him indignation and desire for aid, so that with the first he may drive away the thoughts of the wolves, and with desire he may care for the sheep, even though he is often buffeted by rain and winds. God also gave him pasture so that he may shepherd the sheep, as well as a verdant place and refreshing water, 2 and a harp and a lyre, and a rod and a staff, so that from these sheep he is fed and clothed and supplied with food on the mountain. For it is written, 'Does anyone feed a flock and not drink its milk?' 3 It is therefore necessary for the one who has withdrawn that he be on his guard night and day over his flock so that thoughts are neither caught by wild beasts nor fall to thieves; and if such a thing happen, in the wooded valley he must immediately snatch them from the mouth of the lion or the bear. 4 So it is that the thought of a brother becomes of the beast if it pastures what is within us in hatred; as regards a woman, if we turn away from ourselves to shameful desire; and as regards gold and silver, if we take up our dwelling with avarice. And the thoughts of the holy gifts are likewise seized if we mentally graze on vainglory, and the same happens in the case of other thoughts if they are stolen away by the passions. Evagrius Ponticus, On Various Evil Thoughts 1 Eccl. 3.11 2 Ps 23. 2  3 1 Cor. 9.7  4 1 Kings 7.35

Wisdom And Understanding

Τὸ στόμα μου λαλήσει σοφίαν, καὶ ἡ μελέτη τῆς καρδίας μου σύνεσιν. Κλινῶ εἰς παραβολὴν τὸ οὖς μου, ἀνοίξω ἐν ψαλτηρίῳ τὸ πρόβλημά μου.   Ταῦτα δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἀποστόλων δύναται λέγεσθαι. Παραβολὰς δὲ καλεῖ τοὺς αἰνιγματώδεις λόγους. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ Κύριος, παραβολικῶς τοῖς ὄχλοις διαλεγόμενος, τοῖς ἀποστόλοις κατ' οἶκον ταύτας διέλυε. Τούτῳ νυν ὁ χορὸς τὴν τοῦ Θεοῦ σοφίαν τὸν Χριστὸν ἐπὶ στόματος φέρων· Χριστὸς γὰρ Θεοῦ δύναμις καὶ Θεοῦ σοφία, ἐλέγετο· Τὸ στόμα μου λαλήσει σοφίαν. Τοῦτον γὰρ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἐκηρυττον. Ἠκονημένοι δὲ τὸν νοῦν, πάσας τοῦ Χριστοῦ συνίεσαν τὰς παραβολὰς καὶ πρὸ τῆς αὐτοῦ ἐρμηνείας. Διὸ μετὰ ταύτας ὁ μὲν Σωτὴρ ἔλεγε· Συνήκατε ταυτᾶ πάντα; Οἱ δὲ λέγουσιν αὐτῷ, ναι. Ἡ καρδία τοίνυν αὐτῶν ἐμελέτα συνέσεις, ἂς ἤνοιγον τοῖς μὴ παρακολουθεῖν δυναμένοις, τοῦ σωματικοῦ ὀργάνοῦ τῇ ἐνοικούσῃ πρὸς τοῦτο διακονοῦντος ψυχῇ. Τοῦτο γὰρ ἀντὶ ψαλτηρίου παρέλαβε πρὸς τὴν διὰ τούτων θείων ὕμνων ἀνάκρουσιν, ἐκάστου μέρους ἐπιστημονικῶς ἐν αὐτῷ κινουμένου. Εὐσέβιος ὁ Καισάρειος, Ὑπομνηματα Ἐις Τους ψαλμους, ψαλμος ΜΗ' Source:  Migne PG 23.429c-d

My mouth shall speak wisdom and the mediation of my heart prudence. I shall incline my ear to a parable and I shall open up on the harp my difficulty. 1 These things are able to be said about the Apostles. Parables are the voicing of obscure words. Certainly when the Lord spoke to the crowds in parables, afterward in the house he explained it to the Apostles. Therefore now for this the choir bears Christ the wisdom of God in their mouths, for Christ is named the power of God and the wisdom of God 2, thus it is said, 'My mouth shall speak wisdom.' For this they preached to all men. And when minds have been carefully instructed, they understand all the parables of Christ before He interprets them. For after these things the Saviour said, 'Do you understand all these things? And they said, yes.' 3 Therefore their hearts had meditated prudently and to those who were not able to follow, they opened them, with a corporeal instrument ministering to the soul within. For this the figure of the harp is used, the rhythm of divine songs, and the understanding of how each part moves. Eusebius of Caesarea, Commentary on the Psalms, Psalm 48 1 Ps 48.56 2 1 Cor 1.24 3 Mt 13.51

Disputing The Greatest

Ἐγένετο δὲ καὶ φιλονεικεία ἐν αὐτοῖς, τὸ, τίς αὐτῶν δοκεῖ εἶναι μείζων. Οἱ μέντοι μαθηταὶ ἀνθρωπινόν τι παθνότες, πεφιλονεικήκασι πρὸς ἀλλήλους, τίς ἄρα μείζων ἔσται ἐν αὐτοῖς, οὐκ ἀνεχομένων τάχα που τῶν τὴν δευτέραν ἐχόντων τάξιν τοῖς πρωτεύουσι παραχωρεῖν. Κεκίνηται δὲ τοῦτο καὶ γέγραπται πρὸς ὄνησιν ἡμετέραν· ἐπετίμα γὰρ παραχρῆμα Χριστὸς τῇ τοιᾄδε νόσῳ· τοῦτο δὲ ἦν ἡ ἀνόητος φιλοδοξία, ῥίζαν ἔχουσα τὴν ὑπεροψίαν. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ ᾐρθαι κατ' ἀρετὴν, τοῦ παντὸς ἄξιον λόγου· δεῖ δὲ τοὺς οὕτω διακειμένους μετρίῳ κεχρῆσθαι φρονήματι, καὶ παραχωρεῖν ἐξ ἀγάπης ἀδελφοῖς τὸ ἐν μείζοσιν εἴναι δοκεῖν. Τὸ γὰρ πεφυσημένον ἔχειν τὸ φρόνημα, παραπλησίους ὁρᾶσθαι ποιεῖ τοῖς τῶν ἐθνῶν ἡγουμένους, οἴς τὸ ὑπέρογκον φρόνημα φίλον ἀεί πώς ἐστιν· εὐεργέται γὰρ, φησὶ, καλοῦνται, τουτέστι, κολακεύονται παρὰ τῶν ὑποβεβηκότων. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ὡς ἔξω νόμων ἱερῶν ἐν τοιαύτις ἔστωσαν ἀῥῥωστίαις· παρ' ὑμῖν δὲ οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλ' ἔστω τὸ ὕψος ἐν ταπεινότητι. Ἅγιος Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας, Ἐξὴγησις Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λούκαν Εὐάγγελιον, Κεφα ΚΒ' Source: Migne PG 72.912c-d

And there was dissension among them, who was the greatest of them. 1 The disciples, suffering from humanity, contended among themselves, who was to be the greatest in the future, they perhaps who were second in order among them unwilling to cede to the first. However this troublesome dispute was written for our profit. For instantly Christ denounced their infirmity, He who had not care for the love of glory, of which the root is pride. For to be lifted up to virtue, is worthy of every praise, and thus a modest soul befits those who are set against this measure, who with fraternal love concede preeminence to one another. Certainly they who bear a bloated spirit seem to be like one of the princes of the nations who are ever accustomed to be haughty in mind, they who are named benefactors by the flattery of those they oppress. But these, as outside the sacred laws, and by this beset by sickness, be not as them, but be exalted in your humility. Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of Saint Luke, from Chapter 22 1 Lk 22.24

True Glory

Ἡ κόλαξ κομπαγωγία, ἡ ξηρὰ καὶ ἄψυχος ἔπαρσις, ἡ κενὴ καὶ ἐπίγειος δόξα, ἀρθήτω ἀφ' ἡμῶν. Ὁ γὰρ τῶν ἀρετῶν καὶ δοτὴρ καὶ ταμίας ὑπογραμμὸν ἡμῖν καταλιμπάνων, φησί· Δόξαν παρ' ἀνθρώπων οὐ ζητῶ. Θεοῦ γάρ ἐστι δόσις ἡ δόξα· εἰ καὶ οἱ ποιηταὶ τῶν ὀνομάτων τῇ ἐνταῦθα σκιᾷ τὴν κλῆσιν ἐκείνην ἐπίθηκαν. Ἅγιος Ἰσίδωρος Του Πηλουσιώτου, Βιβίον Α', Ἐπιστολὴ ΤΟΔ' Ὠριωνι Source: Migne PG 78.393d

The puffing up of flatters and dry and soulless pomp and empty and worldly glory, let us cast from us. For He who gives and guards the virtues left an example for us, using these words: 'I do not seek glory from men.' 1 For glory is the gift of God, even if the makers of words in this present shadow have imposed upon it. Saint Isidore of Pelusium, Book 1, Letter 374, To Orion 1 Jn 13.50

The Soul Abundant

Ἐγω δὲ εἶπα ἐν τῇ εὐθηνίᾷ μου· Οὐ μὴ σαλευθῶ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. Ὥωπερ πόλεώς ἐστιν εὐθηνία ἡ τῶν ὠνίων κατ' ἀγορὰν ἀφθονία, καὶ χώραν εὐθηνεῖσθαι λέγομεν τὴν πολλοὺς εὐφορήσασαν τοὺς καρπούς· οὕτω καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τίς ἐστιν εὐθηνία τῆς πεπληρωμένης παντοδαπῶν ἔργων· ἣν πρῶτον μὲν γεωργηθῆναι δεῖ φιλοπόνως, καὶ τότε ταῖς ἀφθόνοις τῶν οὐρανίων ὑδάτων ἐπιῥῥοίαις πιανθῆναι, ὥστε καρποφορῆσαι ἐν τριάκοντα, καὶ ἐν ἔξήκοντα, καὶ ἐν ἐκατὸν, καὶ τυχεῖν τῆς εὐλογίας τῆς λεγούσης· Εὐλογημέναι αἱ ἀποθῆκαι σου, καὶ τὰ εγκαταλείμματα σου. Ὁ οὖν αἰσθανόμενος τῆς ἑαυτοῦ βεβαιότητος, πεποιθότως ἐρεῖ, καὶ διαβεβαιώσεται μὴ περιτραπῆναι ὑπὸ τοῦ ἀνταγωνιζομένου, ὡς ἀργὸς πλήρης, ὄν εὐλόγησεν ὁ Κύριος Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, Ὁμιλία Ἐις Τους Ψαλμούς, Εἰς Τον ΚΘ' Ψαλμον  Source: Migne PG 29.316b

And I said in my abundance, I shall never be shaken... 1 As we name a city abundant on account of the goods offered for sale in its market, and a land also because of its yield of many fruits, so there is an abundance of the soul when it is full with every sort of work, which first indeed is farmed with much toil and then watered for fertility by the waters of heaven, that it produce fruit thirty fold, and sixty fold, and a hundredfold 2 and there by each thing comes that blessing saying, 'Blessed your granaries and your barns.' 3 He, then, who is aware of his constancy, may confidently say, and maintain it strongly, that he shall not be overthrown by the adversary, like a field in fullness which the Lord has blessed. Saint Basil of Caesarea, Homilies on the Psalms, from Psalm 29 1 Ps 29.7 2 Mt 13.8 3 Deut 28.5

The Apostolic Way

Ὁ κακουχίαν καὶ ἀτιμίαν ὑπὲρ ἀληθείας αἰρούμενος ἀποστολικὴν ὁδὸν πορεύεται, τὸν σταυρὸν ἄρας, καὶ τὴν ἄλυσιν περικείμενος. Ὁ δὲ ἐκτὸς τῶν δύο τούτων προσέχειν τῇ καρδίᾳ πειρώμενος, πλανᾶται κατὰ νοῦν, καὶ ἐμπίπτει εἰς πειρασμούς καὶ παγίδας τοῦ διαβόλου. Ἅγιος Μάρκος ὁ Ἐρημίτης, Περὶ Τῶν Οἰομένων Ἐξ Ἔργων Δικαιοῦσθαι Source:  Migne PG 65.953d-956a

He who receives abuse and shame for the sake of truth walks on the Apostolic way and bears the cross and wears the chain. And he who apart from these two things would direct his heart, his mind is deceived and he falls into the temptations and snares of the devil. Saint Mark The Ascetic, from On Those Who Think Themselves Justified By Works

Refusing The Eucharist

Auxit autem procellam huiusce perturbationis etiam mors Sabercti regis Orientalium Saxonum, qui ubi regna perennia petens tres suos filios, qui pagani perduraverant, regni temporalis heredes reliquit, coeperunt illi mox idolatriae, quam, vivente eo, aliquantulum intermisisse videbantur, palam servire, subiectisque populis idola colendi liberam dare licentiam. Cumque viderent pontificem, celebratis in ecclesia missarum sollemniis, eucharistiam populo dare, dicebant, ut vulgo fertur, ad eum barbara inflati stultitia: Quare non et nobis porrigis panem nitidum, quem et patri nostro Saba, sic namque eum appellare consuerant, dabas, et populo adhuc dare in ecclesia non desistis? Quibus ille respondebat: Si vultis ablui fonte illo salutari, quo pater vester ablutus est, potestis etiam panis sancti, cui ille participabat, esse participes; sin autem lavacrum vitae contemnitis, nullatenus valetis panem vitae percipere. At illi: Nolumus, inquiunt, fontem illum intrare, quia nec opus illo nos habere novimus, sed tamen pane illo refici volumus. Cumque diligenter ac saepe ab illo essent admoniti nequaquam ita fieri posse, ut absque purgatione sacrosancta quis oblationi sacrosanctae communicaret, ad ultimum furore commoti aiebant: Si non vis adsentire nobis in tam facili causa, quam petimus, non poteris iam in nostra provincia demorari. Et expulerunt eum, ac de suo regno cum suis abire iusserunt. Sancta Beda, Historiam Ecclesiasticam Gentis Anglorum, Liber II, Cap V Source: Migne PL 95.90b-c

The storm of this disturbance grew with the death of Sabert, king of the East Saxons, who seeking the eternal kingdom left to his three sons, still pagans, the inheritance of his temporal kingdom, and they immediately began openly to give themselves up to idolatry, which while he lived they had seemed somewhat to abandon, and they granted free licence to their subjects to serve idols. And when they saw the bishop, while he was celebrating Mass in the church, give the Eucharist to the people, puffed up with barbarous folly as they were, they said to him, as it is commonly reported, 'Why do you not give to us also that white bread, which you used to give to our father Saba,' for so they were accustomed to call him, 'and which you do not stop giving to the people in the church?' To which he answered, 'If you will be washed in that font of salvation, in which your father was washed, you may also have the holy Bread of which he partook; but if you scorn the water of life, you can in no way receive the bread of life.' They said to him, 'We will not enter into that font, because we know that we have no need of it, and yet we wish to be refreshed by that bread.' And when they were earnestly and frequently admonished by him that this could by no means be done, that no one without holy cleansing could receive the sacred oblation, at last, shaking with rage they said, 'If you will not agree with us in so trivial a matter concerning what we want, you shall not stay in our province any longer.' And they drove him out and commanded him and his associates to leave their kingdom. Saint Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People, Book 2, Chap 5

Communion And Judgement

Καὶ μεταμεληθήσῃ ἐπ' ἐσχάτων ἡνίκα ἂν κατατριβῶσιν σάρκες σώματός σου. Διὰ τῶν κακιῶν οἱ πονηροὶ κατατρίβουσι τὰς σάρκας τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ τὸ αἱμα καταναλίσκουσι, κοινὸν αὐτὸ ἡγησάμενοι· Ὁ τρώγων γάρ μου, φησὶ, τὴν σάρκα, καὶ πίνων μου τὸ αἷμα, ἔχει ζωὴν αἰώνιον, κἀγὼ ἀναστήσω αὐτὸν ἐν ἐσχάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ· ὁ δὲ ἀναξίως ἐσθίων τὸ σῶμα καὶ πίνων τὸ αἵμὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, κρίμα ἕαυτῷ ἐσθίει καὶ πίνει. Ὠριγένης, Ἐκλογαὶ Εἰς Παροιμίας, Κεφ' Ε' Source: Migne PG 13 173b-c

And at the end of your life you will groan when your flesh and body are consumed. 1 On account of evils the wicked waste the flesh of the Lord, and squander the blood, accounting it but a common thing.'For he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood, he has life eternal, and I shall raise him up on the last day.' 2 'But he who unworthily eats the body and drinks the blood of the Lord, judgement he gives on himself who eats and drinks.' 3 Origen, On Proverbs, Chap 5 1 Prov 5.11 2 Jn 6.54 3 1 Cor 11.29

Bread And Words

Scriptum est enim, inquit, non in solo pane vivit homo, sed in omni verbo quod procedit de ore Dei. Ubi non quasi Deus sua utitur potestate, sed quasi homo, ut homo disceret admodum pugnare Scripturarum potitur auctoritate. Et docet quod altera pars coeli sit, atque altera terrae. Idcirco non in solo pane, per quem non nisi exterior homo in commune cum pecoribus vivit, sed in omni verbo per quod interius angelis coaequaretur. Omne quippe verbum Deus charitas jure accipitur, in qua legis et prophetarum omnia pendent verba, sine qua nemo in Deo unquam vel cum Deo vivit. Quod bene Paulus insinuat: Et si quod est aliud mandatum, inquiens, in hoc verbo instauratur: Diliges proximum tuum tanquam teipsum. Ac si diceret, etsi est cibus alius quo pascatur interior homo, habeat aliquis charitatem, et omnibus abundabit bonis, quia fruitur illo verbo ad quod concurrunt universa. Nam in Christo Jesu Deus et homo erat; quisquis illo utitur verbo, charitate pascitur Dei et hominis, quia omnes in Christo diligit et veneratur ut membra Christi, et qui necdum sunt in Christo, curat ut ad eum perveniant, et compleantur omnia Christi membra. Alioquin si habeat omnia rerum verba, et compleat etiam reliqua quasi virtutum opera, factus est omnium reus, si non vixerit hoc omni verbo. Est autem hoc verbum generale omnium verborum, in quo pendent omnia verba, non qualiacunque, sed quae procedunt de ore Dei. Caeterum verba haereticorum et poetarum ac philosophorum, extra hoc verbum sunt, quia non sunt in charitate, neque Christo fruuntur, Patris videlicet Verbo, et ideo quae in Christo sunt omnino diligere nequeunt. Huic sane verbo Moyses intentus panem desiderare non potuit, illoque pastus Elias famem prolixioris inediae, omnino non sensit. Non enim qui hoc verbo vescitur panem terrenum, deliciis angelorum satiatus, inquirit. Sed et omnia Scripturarum sanctarum verba, cujuscunque enuntientur officio, sic quasi ex ore Dei sumantur, quia non ejus sunt a quo ex ministerio debite narrantur, sed Dei ex cujus ore procedunt. Quod si quidpiam doctor aliud voluerit interserere, quam quod in hoc omni verbo invenitur, quia non ex ore Dei profertur, neque ex charitate subsistit, tanquam venenum, tanquam virus lethiferum respuatur. Quandoquidem non humanis divina ministratur officiis, sed inimica, sed fraudulenta diabolicis suggerunter officiis. Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Liber III, Cap IV Source: Migne PL 120.192b-193a

'For it is written, He said, that man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word the proceeds from the mouth of God.' 1  Where He does not use His power as God but as a man it is so that man might learn how he is able to fight by the use of the authority of Scripture. And He teaches that there is one part of man that is of heaven and another of earth. Therefore one does not live on bread alone, by which lives only the exterior man which one has in common with beasts, but by every word by which the interior is made equal to angels. For every word of God is rightly understood as love, from which hang all the Law and the Prophets, without which no one is in God or lives with God. Which Paul well communicates: 'Whatever is the commandment, in this it begins: Love your neighbour as yourself.' 2 As if he said, Even if there is some bread which feeds the inner man, let him have some charity, and let him abound with every good, because he flourishes in that word all things run to. In Christ were God and man, and whoever uses this word, he is nourished by the love of God and man, because he loves all in Christ and he is venerated like a member of Christ, and they who are not yet in Christ, he cares that they come to Him, that they be perfected as a member of Christ. In other respects, if he has the words of all things, and he fills the rest as with the virtues of works, he is yet guilty of all things if he has not lived for all this with the Word. For this Word is the general word of all words, on which every word hangs, but not every sort, only that which proceeds from the mouth of God. For the words of heretics and the old poets and philosophers, are separate from this word, because they are not in love, nor do they profit by Christ, that is, by the word of the Father, and therefore they are unable to love what is in Christ. With this word Moses was able to go without bread, and by it Elijah, when a long famine blighted the fields, did not care for it. For indeed he who seeks this word does not eat the bread of earth, since he is filled with the joy of angels. But every word of Sacred Scripture, whatever is announced according to the office, they take up as if from the mouth of God, because the words are not his who narrates them as part of his service, but they proceed from the mouth of God. So if some teacher wished to insert something rather than this Word in which is found everything, because it does not proceed from the mouth of God, he would not stand in love, and it would be as a poison, and as a lethal venom that should be spat out. And whenever he attends to human offices, he does not do so for God but for the enemy, and they are fed with lies by the devil's offices.  Paschasius Radbertus, from the Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 4, Chap 10 1 Mt 4.4, Deut 8.3 2 Rom 13.9

Reasons Of Heaven And The World

Ac primum oportuerat homines religiosam divinarum rerum scientiam praeferentes, ubi evangelicae atque apostolicae praedicationis veritas praeferebat, callidae philosophiae tortuosas quaestiones abjicere, et sectari potius fidem quae in Deo est: quia sensum infirmum facile fidei suae praesidio sophisma syllogisticae interrogationis exueret, cum captiosa propositio responsionem simplicem, sibique secundum interrogationem rerum obsecundantem, ad ultimum jam sensus sui interrogatione spoliaret; ut quod professione amisisset, id jam conscientia non teneret. Quid enim tam necessario interrogationi obsecundabit, quam ut cum a nobis quaeratur, Esne aliquid antequam nascitur? In professione nostra sit, non fuisse ante quod nascitur? Neque enim aut in natura aut in necessitate est, ut quod est nascatur: cum nasci quid ob id tantum ut sit, non quia erat, necesse sit. Quod cum concessum fuerit a nobis, quia recte conceditur; exuti fidei conscientia capti jam impiis atque alienis studiis acquiescimus. Quod providens ante beatus Apostolus Paulus, sicuti frequenter ostendimus, ut caveremus admonuit, dicens: 'Videte ne quis vos spoliet per philosophiam et inanem deceptionem, secundnum traditionem hominum, secundum elementa mundi, et non secundum Christum, in quo inhabitat omnis plenitudo divinitatis corporaliter.' Cavendum igitur adversum philosophiam est, et humanarum traditionem non tam evitanda sunt studia, quam refutanda. Neque enim his ita concedendum est, quasi vincant potius quam fallant: quia nos Christum Dei virtutem et Dei sapientiam praedicantes, aequum est humanas doctrinas non tam diffugerem, quam refellere; et simpliciores, ne ab his spolientur, et obstruere et instruere. Nam cum possit omnia, in ea ipsa omnia sapienter Deus possit, nec virtuti ejus ratio, nec rationi virtus absistat; oportet eos, qui Christum praedicant mundo, irreligiosis mundi imperfectisque doctrinis per scientiam sapientis omnipotentiae contraire, secundum illud beati Apostoli dictum: Nostra enim arma non sunt carnalia, sed potentia Deo, ad destructionem munitionum, rationes destruentia; et omnem altitudinem elevatam adversus cognitionem Dei. Fidem non nudam Apostolus atque inopem rationis reliquit: quae quamvis potissima ad salutem sit, tamen nisi per doctrinam instruatur, habebit quidem inter adversa tutum refugiendi recessum, non etiam retinebit constantem obnitendi securitatem; eritque ut infirmibus sunt post fugam casta, non etiam ut castra habentibus adest interrita fortitudo. Contundendae sunt ergo insolentes adversum Deum disputationes, et destruenda rationum fallacium munimenta, et elevata ad impietatem ingenia conterenda nec carnalibus armis, sed spiritalibus; nec terrena doctrina, sed coelesti sapientia: ut quanta rerum divinarum humanarumque discretio est, tanta ultra terrena studia ratio coelestis excedat. Sanctus Hilarius Pictaviensis, De Trinitate, Liber XII Source: Migne PL 10.444b-445c

And first, men choosing a religious knowledge of Divine things, preferring the truth of the preaching of the Evangelists and Apostles, should have thrown aside the intricate questions of crafty philosophy and rather followed the faith which is in God, because the sophistry of a syllogistical question easily tears down from a weak mind the guard of faith, when with captious assertion the simple defender, inquiring into obscure things, is finally stripped by his own questioning of his meaning, so that he is obliged to profess what his mind no long holds. For what necessarily suits so well, when it is asked of us, 'Does anything exist before it is comes to be,' than the response by us that a thing was not before it came to be? For it is contrary both to nature and the necessities of reason that what is should then come to be, when a thing must come to be that it then exist, and not come to be because it was. But when we have admitted this, because it is rightly done, seized in the conscience of our faith we acquiesce in impious and strange pursuits. But the blessed Apostle Paul, foreseeing this, as we have often shown, warned us to be on our guard, saying: 'Take care lest any man despoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ, in whom dwells bodily all the fullness of the Godhead.' 1 Therefore we must be on our guard against philosophy and the traditions of men, not that we avoid such learning, but that we refute it. For it must not be conceded to these that we are conquered rather than deceived, for we who preach the power of Christ and the wisdom of God should not flee from the teachings of men, but rather refute them. And the more simple among us, lest they be despoiled by adversaries, we must hold back and teach. For when God is able to do all things, in His wisdom able to do all things wisely, since neither does His reason lack power nor his power reason, it befits those who preach Christ to the world that they face the irreligious and false teachings of the world with the knowledge of omnipotent wisdom, according to the saying of the blessed Apostle: 'For our weapons are not carnal but the power of God, for the destruction of strongholds, the pulling down of arguments and every high thing lifted up against the knowledge of God.' 2 The Apostle did not leave us a faith naked and poor of reason, yet although it may be most powerful for the attainment of salvation, even so, unless it is instilled by teaching, though it will have indeed a secure retreat to withdraw to among adversaries, it will not be a constantly secure resistance, it will be like a camp for the weak after flight, not like the undaunted courage of those who have a camp to hold. Thus we must crush the insolent arguments opposed to God, and cast down the strongholds of fallacious reasoning, and grind down the minds lifted up to impiety, with arms not carnal but spiritual, not with earthly teaching but with heavenly wisdom, for as much as Divine things differ from human, so much the reason of heaven exceeds earthly learning. Saint Hilary of Poitiers, On the Trinity, Book 12 1 Colos 2.8-9 2 2 Cor 10.4-5

Trinity And Gifts

Χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη. Ἐπεύχονται οἱ γράφοντες χάριν καὶ εἰρήνην ὑπαρχθῆναι Κορινθίοις ἀπὸ θεοῦ πατρὸς καὶ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τῆς αὐτῆς δηλονότι ἐκ πατρὸς καὶ υἱοῦ διδομένης δωρεᾶς· ὡς γὰρ τὰ ἔργα ἃ ποιεῖ ὁ πατήρ, ταῦτα ὁ υἱὸς ὁμοίως ὑφίστησιν, οὕτως ἃ δίδωσιν ὁ πατὴρ χαρίσματα, ὁ υἱὸς δωρεῖται· μία γὰρ χάρις καὶ εἰρήνη μία πρὸς τῆς τριάδος δίδοται.  Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Τὴν Δευτέραν Ἐπιστολήν Παύλου Πρὸς Κορινθίους Source: Migne PG 39.1682b

Grace And Peace to you. 1 Writing, he prays that grace and peace may be with the Corinthians from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, because clearly the same gift is given from the Father and the Son, for as the Father performs his work, similarly the Son does the same. 2 Thus what gifts the Father gives, so the Son gives the same; certainly one grace and one peace is given by the Trinity. Didymus the Blind, On The Second Letter of Paul to The Corinthians, Fragment 1 2 Cor 1.3 2 Jn 5.19