Paradise Lost And Gained

ΕΡΩΤ ΚΔ’ Τι δήποτε τὸν παράδεισον ἐφύτευσεν ὁ Θεὸς μέλλων ἐκεῖθεν τὸν Ἀδαμ διὰ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν εὐθὺς ἐξορίζειν; Πρῶτον οὐκ ἀνέχεται ἐκ προγνώσεως κατακρῖναι ὁ δεσπότης Θεός. Διὸ καὶ τὴν παράβασιν προορῶν, τῶν ἀγαθῶν αὐτῷ μεταδέδωκεν. Ἔπειτα καὶ γνῶναι αὐτὸν τὰς θείας δωρεὰς ἠβουλήθη· ἵνα τούτων στερηθεὶς μισήσῃ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν, ὡς τοσούτων αὐτὸν γυμνώσασαν ἀγαθῶν. Πρὸς δὲ τούτοις, ἔδει τὸν δίκαιον ἀγωνοθέτην τοῖς τῆς ἀρετῆς ἀθληταῖς προθεῖναι τῆς νίκης τὰ ἆθλα. Οὗ δὴ χάριν καὶ περὶ τῆς βασιλείας ἔφη· Δεῦτε, οἱ εὐλογημένοι τοῦ Πατρός μου, κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἠτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου. Θεοδώρητος Ἐπίσκοπος Κύρρος, Εἰς Τὴν Γένεσιν Source: Migne PG 80.121c

Question 24 Why did God plant the paradise from which he was soon going to expel Adam because of sin? 1 Firstly God is not accustomed to condemn from foreknowledge, whence foreseeing the transgression of Adam, He yet gave good things to him. He wished the man to know of the Divine benefactions so that being stripped of them he would deplore sin as that which had deprived him of such goods. Besides it befits the righteous athlete that he should exert himself in the virtues so that he might come to the rewards of victory. 2 Regarding which it is said of the kingdom, 'Come, blessed of my Father, and possess the kingdom which was prepared for you from the beginning of the world.' 3 Theodoret of Cyrrhus, Questions On Genesis 1 Gen 2.8 2 1 Cor 9.24-25 3 Mt 25.34

Caring For Oneself

Aἰδεῖσθε δὲ πλέον ὑµᾶς αὐτοὺς, καὶ τὴν πιστευθεῖσαν εἰκόνα, καὶ τὸν πιστεύσαντα, καὶ τὰ Χριστοῦ πάθη, καὶ τὰς ἐκεῖθεν ἐλπίδας, πίστιν µὲν ἔχοντες ἣν παρειλήφα τε, καὶ ᾗ συνετράφητε, µεθ' ἧς καὶ σώζεσθε, καὶ σώζειν ἄλλους πιστεύεσθε· οὐ γὰρ πολλῶν, εὖ ἴστε, τὸ ὑµέτερον καύχηµα. Τὸ δὲ εὐσεβὲς µὴ ἐν τῷ πολλάκις περὶ Θεοῦ λαλεῖν, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ τὰ πλείω σιγᾷν εἶναι τιθέµενοι· γλῶσσα γὰρ ὄλισθος ἀνθρώποις µὴ λόγῳ κυβερνωµένη· καὶ ἀκινδυνοτέραν ἀκοὴν ἀεὶ λόγου νοµίζοντες, ὥστε τι µανθάνειν ἥδιον, ἢ διδάσκειν περὶ Θεοῦ· τὴν µὲν ἀκριβεστέραν τούτων ἐξέτασιν τοῖς οἰκονόµοις τοῦ λόγου παραχωροῦντες· αὐτοὶ δὲ λόγῳ µὲν εὐσεβοῦντες ὀλίγα, ἔργῳ δὲ πλείονα, καὶ τῇ τηρήσει τῶν νόµων µᾶλλον ἢ τῷ θαυµάζειν τὸν νοµοθέτην, τὸ περὶ αὐτὸν φίλτρον ἐπιδεικνύµενοι, φεύγοντες κακίαν, διώκοντες ἀρετὴν, πνεύµατι ζῶντες, πνεύµατι στοιχοῦντες, τούτῳ τὴν γνῶσιν ἕλκοντες, ἐποικοδοµοῦντες τῷ θε µελίῳ τῆς πίστεως, µὴ ξύλον, µηδὲ χόρτον, µηδὲ καλάµην, ὕλην ἀσθενῆ καὶ ῥᾳδίως δαπανωµένην, ἡνίκα ἂν πυρὶ κρίνηται τὰ ἡµέτερα, ἢ καθαίρηται· ἀλλὰ χρυσὸν, ἄργυρον, λίθους τιµίους, τὰ µένοντα καὶ ἱστάµενα. Ταῦτα πράσσοιτε, καὶ τούτοις ἡµᾶς δοξά ζοιτε εἴτε παρόντες εἴτε ἀπόντες, εἴτε µεταποιούµενοι τῶν ἡµετέρων λόγων, εἴτε ἄλλο τι προτιµότερον ἄγοντες· καὶ γίνοισθε τέκνα Θεοῦ καθαρὰ καὶ ἀµώµητα, ἐν µέσῳ γενεᾶς σκολιᾶς καὶ διεστραµµένης· καὶ µὴ περιπλέκοιτο ὑµῖν τὰ τῶν κύκλῳ περιπατούντων ἀσεβῶν σχοινία, µηδὲ σειραῖς τῶν οἰκείων ἁµαρτιῶν περισφίγγοισθε, µηδὲ ταῖς βιωτικαῖς µερίµναις συµπνίγοιτο ὑµῖν ὁ λόγος, καὶ ἄκαρποι γίνοισθε· ἀλλ' ὁδῷ πορεύοισθε βασιλικῇ, µὴ ἐκκλίνοντες εἰς δεξιὰ, µηδὲ εἰς ἀριστερὰ, καὶ διὰ τῆς στενῆς ὡς πλατείας ὑπὸ τοῦ Πνεύµατος ὁδηγούµενοι. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, Λόγος Γʹ Source: Migne PG 35.524a-525a

Rather show perfect care for yourselves, and for the entrusted Image, 1 and Him who entrusted it, and the passion of Christ, and your hope from that, holding to the faith that you received, and in which you were nurtured and are being saved and which you trust to save others, for not many, be certain, have your boast. Do not account piety to be found in often speaking about God but for the larger part in silence, since the tongue is a dangerous thing to men if it is not governed by reason, 2 and think that listening is always less perilous than talking, just as learning about God is more pleasant than teaching. Leave the more painstaking enquiry into these things to those who are the stewards of the Word and yourselves worship a little in words but more by deeds, rather by keeping the Law than by wondering about the Lawgiver, showing your love for Him by fleeing from wickedness and pursuing virtue, and by living in the Spirit and walking in the Spirit, and drawing your knowledge from Him, and building on the foundation of the faith, not wood or hay or stubble, that are weak materials which will easily be spent when fire shall prove our works or destroy them, but gold and silver and precious stones, which will remain and endure. 3 May it be that you do these things and so give us glory, whether we are present or absent, whether you partake of our speeches or prefer to be doing something else, and may you be the children of God, pure and blameless in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, 4 and may you never be entangled in the snares of the wicked that go round about, or bound with the chain of your own sins. May the Word in you never be smothered with the cares of this life so that you become unfruitful, but may you walk in the King's Highway, turning aside neither to the right nor to the left, but led by the Spirit pass through the narrow gate. 5 Saint Gregory Nazianzus, from Oration 3 1 Gen1.27 2 James 3.1-12 3 1 Cor 3.12-15 4 Phil 2.15 5 Mark 4.19, Prov 4.27, Mt 7.13-14

The Vine

Ἀρκεῖ σου τῇ ὄψει καὶ ἄμπελος συνετῶς ὁραθεῖσα ὑπόμνησίν σοι τῆς φύσεως ἐμποιῆσαι. Μέμνησαι γὰρ δηλονότι τῆς τοῦ Κυρίου εἰκόνος, ὅτι ἄμπελον ἑαυτὸν λέγει, καὶ τὸν Πατέρα τὸν γεωργόν, καὶ τοὺς καθ᾿ ἕνα ἡμῶν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐμπεφυτευμένους τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ κλήματα προσηγόρευσε· καὶ προσκαλεῖται ἡμᾶς εἰς πολυκαρπίαν, ἵνα μὴ ἀχρηστίαν καταγνωσθέντες τῷ πυρὶ παραδοθῶμεν· καὶ οὐ παύεται πανταχοῦ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων ταῖς ἀμπέλοις ἐξομοιῶν. Ἀμπελὼν γὰρ ἐγενήθη τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ, φησίν, ἐν κέρατι, ἐν τόπῳ πίονι. Καὶ, Ἀμπελῶνα ἐφύτευσα, καὶ περιέθηκα φραγμόν. Τὰς ἀνθρωπίνας ψυχὰς δηλονότι λέγει τὸν ἀμπελῶνα, αἷς φραγμὸν περιέθηκε τὴν ἐκ τῶν προσταγμάτων ἀσφάλειαν, καὶ τὴν φυλακὴν τῶν ἀγγέλων. Παρεμβαλεῖ γὰρ ἄγγελος Κυρίου κύκλῳ τῶν φοβουμένων αὐτόν. Ἔπειτα καὶ οἱονεὶ χάρακας ἡμῖν παρακατέπηξε θέμενος ἐν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ πρῶτον ἀποστόλους, δεύτερον προφήτας, τρίτον διδασκάλους. Καὶ τοῖς τῶν παλαιῶν καὶ μακαρίων ἀνδρῶν ὑποδείγμασιν εἰς ὕψος ἡμῶν ἀνάγων τὰ φρονήματα, οὐκ ἀφῆκεν ἐρριμμένα χαμαὶ, καὶ τοῦ πατεῖσθαι ἄξια. Βούλεται δὲ ἡμᾶς καὶ οἱονεὶ ἕλιξί τισι ταῖς περιπλοκαῖς τῆς ἀγάπης τῶν πλησίον ἀντέχεσθαι, καὶ ἐπαναπαύεσθαι αὐτοῖς, ἵν᾿ ἀεὶ πρὸς τὸ ἄνω τὴν ὁρμὴν ἔχοντες, οἷόν τινες ἀναδενδράδες ταῖς κορυφαῖς τῶν ὑψηλοτάτων ἑαυτοὺς παρισάζωμεν. Ἀπαιτεῖ δὲ ἡμᾶς καὶ τὸ καταδέχεσθαι σκαπτομένους. Ἀποσκάπτεται δὲ ψυχὴ ἐν τῇ ἀποθέσει τῶν τοῦ κόσμου μεριμνῶν, αἳ βάρος εἰσὶ ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν. Ὥστε ὁ τὴν σαρκίνην ἀγάπην ἀποθέμενος, καὶ τὴν πρὸς τὰ χρήματα φιλίαν, ἢ τὴν περὶ τὸ δύστηνον δοξάριον τοῦτο πτόησιν ἀπόπτυστον καὶ εὐκαταφρόνητον ἡγησάμενος, ὥσπερ ἐσκάφη καὶ ἀνέπνευσεν ἀποσκευασάμενος τὸ μάταιον βάρος τοῦ γηΐνου φρονήματος. Δεῖ δέ, κατὰ τὸν λόγον τῆς παροιμίας, μηδὲ ὑλομανεῖν, τουτέστι, μὴ ἐπιδεικτικῶς πολιτεύεσθαι, μηδὲ τὸν παρὰ τῶν ἔξωθεν ἔπαινον θηρᾶσθαι, ἀλλ᾿ ἔγκαρπον εἶναι, τῷ ἀληθινῷ γεωργῷ τὴν ἐπίδειξιν τῶν ἔργων ταμιευόμενον. Σὺ δὲ καὶ Ὡς ἐλαία κατάκαρπος ἔσο ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, μηδέποτε γυμνούμενος τῆς ἐλπίδος, ἀλλ᾿ ἀεὶ θάλλουσαν ἔχων περὶ σεαυτὸν τὴν διὰ πίστεως σωτηρίαν. Οὕτω γὰρ τὸ ἀειθαλὲς τοῦ φυτοῦ μιμήσῃ, καὶ τὸ πολύκαρπον δὲ αὐτοῦ ζηλώσεις, ἄφθονον τὴν ἐλεημοσύνην ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ παρεχόμενος Ἅγιος Βασιλειος Καισαρείας, Εις Την ῾Εξαημερον, Ὁμιλὶα E' Source Migne PG 29.108b-109a

Let the sight of a vine, when observed by an understanding eye, remind you of your nature. Certainly you remember the image of the Lord where He calls Himself a vine and the Father the husbandman, and every one of us who are grafted by faith into the Church are the branches, and He exhorts us to produce fruits in abundance, lest our sterility be condemned and we are cast into the fire. 1 Indeed He constantly compares our souls to vines. 'My beloved,' He says, 'has a vineyard on a very fruitful hill,' and elsewhere, 'I planted a vineyard and fenced it all about.' 2 It is evident He calls human souls His vines, those souls whom He has fenced in with the security of His teaching and a guard of angels. The angel of the Lord encamps around those that fear Him. 3 Furthermore He has planted props for us, as it were, in establishing first Apostles, secondly prophets, and thirdly teachers in His Church. And in the lifting up of our thoughts by the example of the blessed ones of the past, He has not allowed us to trail along on the earth and be crushed under foot. He wishes that the embraces of love, like the tendrils of the vine, should attach us to our neighbour and make us rest on them, so that in our continual reaching to what is above we may be like vines which raise themselves to the tops of the tallest trees. And He also asks us to allow ourselves to be dug about, which is what the soul does when it casts off the cares of the world, that are a weight on our hearts. He, then, who is freed from carnal affection and from the love of riches, and is far from being dazzled by them, and disdains and despises such wretched vainglory, is, so to say, dug about, and finally breathes free from the vain weight of worldly thoughts. Nor must we, according to the sense of the parable, be heavy with too much wood, that is to say, live with ostentation, being pleased with the praise of the world, but we must bring forth fruits and keep the proof of our works for the farmer. Be, then, like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God, 4 never destitute of hope, but through faith decked with the bloom of salvation. Thus you will resemble the eternal verdure of this plant and will rival it in the giving of many fruits, if each day sees you giving abundantly in alms. Saint Basil of Caesarea, Hexameron, from Homily 5 1 John 15.1-6 2 Isaiah 5.1, Mt 21.33 3 Ps 33.8 4 Ps 51.10

Nothing New

Estne verum de quo dicatur, vide hoc novum est: jam fuit in saeculis, quae fuerunt ante nos. Apertius hoc Symmachus transtulit: Putasne est, qui possit dicere: Vide hoc novum est, et jam factum est in saeculo, quod fuit ante nos. Cum superioribus autem congruit quod nihil novum in mundo fiat: nec sit aliquis, qui possit existere, et dicere, ecce hoc novum est: siquidem omne quod se putaverit novum ostendere, jam in prioribus saeculis fuit. Nec putemus signa, atque prodigia, et multa, quae arbitrio Dei nova in mundo fiunt in prioribus saeculis esse jam facta, et locum invenire Epicurum, qui asserit per innumerabiles periodos eadam, et eisdem in locis, et per eosdem fieri. Alioquin et Judas crebro prodidit, et Christus passes est saepe pro nobis, et caetera quae facta sunt, et futura, in easdem similiter periodos revolventur. Sed dicendum, quod ex praescientia et praedestinatione Dei jam ea facta sint, quae futura sunt. Qui enim electi sunt in Christo ante constitutionem mundi, in prioribus saeculis jam fuerunt. Sanctus Hieronymous, Commentarius In Ecclesiasten, Caput I Source: Migne PL 23.1019b-1020a

It is not true, when it is said of something, 'See, this is new,' for it already was in the past which is behind us. 1 Symmachus more broadly translates this as: 'Do not think someone can say, 'See, this is new,' for it was done in the past, which is behind us.' This harmonises with what has been said, that there is nothing new in the world, nor is there someone who can consider it and say 'Behold, this is new,' because everything he claims to be new has been in the past. But let us not think that the signs and wonders, indeed very many of them, which the will of God has made in the world were already done in the past, turning to that passage in Epicurus which asserts that there are innumerable identical ages, and that things are done in the same place and by the same people, so that Judas has frequently betrayed, and Christ has often suffered for us, and so on with the rest of the things that were done, which likewise occur with the revolution of the ages. But it must be said that because of the prescience and predestination of God, these things were done which are yet in the future. For they who have been chosen in Christ before the beginning of the world, 2 were already so in the past. Saint Jerome, Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Chapter 1 1 Eccles 1.10 Vetus Latina 2 Mt 7.3-5

Forewarning and Improvement

Ἐτοίμασεν ἐν κρίσει τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ, καὶ αὐτὸς κρινεῖ τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐν διακαιοσύνῃ· κρινεῖ λαοὺς εν εὐθύτητι. Προτρέπει τὰ προκείμενα ἀναχωρῆσαι μὲν κακίας καὶ δυσσεβείας, προσελθεῖν δὲ ἀρετῇ καὶ εὐσεβείᾳ. Τίς γὰρ νοῦν ἔχων, πιστεύσας τοῖς οὕτως εἰρημένοις, οὐ φοβηθήσεται μὴ ὑποπέσῃ τῷ κρίνοντι ἐν δυκαιοσύνῃ καὶ εὐθύττι, διὰ πράξεις ψεκτὰς καὶ φρόνημα ἀσεβές; Οὕτω γὰρ κρίνοντος αὐτοῦ, ἀναπόδραστον τὸ κρῖμα ἔσται. Δίδυμος Αλεξανδρεύς, Εἰς Ψαλμούς, Ψαλμος Θ’ Source: Migne PG 39.1192c

He has prepared His throne for judgement, and He shall judge the orb of the earth fairly, He shall judge the people rightly. 1 He gives warning of these things so that we might turn from wickedness and impiety and seek the virtues. For he who is reasonable, if he believes in these things, shall he not fear that he might fall into a just and righteous hand for judgement of his vile deeds and wicked thoughts? For when He judges, the judgement will be inescapable. Didymus the Blind, Commentary on The Psalms, from Psalm 9 1 Ps 9.8

Reckoning The Slain

Tunc Herodes videns quod illusus esset a Magis, iratus est valde. Et mittens occidit omnes pueros qui erant in Bethlehem, et in omnibus finibus ejus, a bimatu et infra, secundum tempus quod exquisierat a Magis. Omnes igitur occidit, ut unus non effugeret. Sed quanti eorum essent,non facile repritur, etsi quorumdam traditio habeat juxta Apocalypsin Joannis centum quadraginta quator millia fuisse. Nam ibidem e omni tribu duodecim millia leguntur ascripti; hic vero ex Bethlehem atque ejus finibus omnes perhibentur occisi. Rursus alii asseverant per viginti locorum spati duo millia infantum occisos fuisse, ita ut in singulis locis centum perempti essent. Quod nos non astruimus. Quia quod in Scripturis sanctis non legimus, melius ignorare quam temere definire credimus. Hoc tantum ad praesens fatemur, quod Deum non lateant cui omnia vivunt, qui pro domino mortis dispendium subierunt. Sanctus Paschasius Radbertus Corbeiensis, Expositio In Evangelium Matthaei, Liber I, Caput II Source: Migne PL 120.142b

Then Herod seeing how he was deceived by the Magi was greatly angered, and he ordered all the young boys who were in Bethlehem to be killed, and in all the surrounding region, from two years and under, according to the time he had learnt from the Magi. 1 Therefore he killed them all, that not one might escape. But it is not easy to reckon how many there were, even if it is the custom of some to hold that according to the Apocalypse of John they were one hundred and forty four thousand. For there they read that it is written that from every tribe there were twelve thousand. But here it is said that all those from Bethlehem and all the surrounding region were killed. 2 Again others assert that in twenty places two thousand children were killed, so that in each place a hundred were slain. We cannot confirm this, because we think that it is better to confess ignorance of what is not told in the Holy Scriptures than to make bold statements. For the present this alone we will say, that they are not unknown to God, with whom they all live, all who have undergone the sentence of death for the Lord. 3 Saint Paschasius Radbertus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 1, Chapter 2 1 Mt 2.16 2 Apoc 7.5

Reasons For Killing

Tunc Herodes videns quomodo illusus esset a magis, iratus est valde, et mittens occidit omnes pueros, qui erant in Bethlehem et in omnibus finibus ejus, a bimatu et infra. Verisimile est ergo, quod postquam Herodi magi nihil renuntiaverunt, eum credere potuisse illos fallacis stellae visione deceptos, posteaquam non invenerunt quem natum putaverant, erubuisse ad se redire, atque ita eum, timore depulso, ab inquirendo ac persequendo puero quievisse. Cum ergo post purgationem matris ejus, in Jerusalem cum illo venissent, et ea gesta essent in templo, quae a Luca narrantur, quia verba Simeonis et Annae de illo prophetantium, cum coepissent ab eis qui audierant praedicari, ad pristinam intentionem revocatura erant animum regis, admonitus per somnum Joseph cum infante et matre ejus fugit in Aegyptum. Deinde vulgatis rebus, quae in templo dictae factaeque fuerant, Herodes a magis se sensit illusum, ac deinde ad Christi mortem cupiens pervenire multos infantes, sicut Matthaeus narrat, occidit in Bethlehem, et in omnibus finibus ejus, et hoc a bimatu et infra. Quia crudelitas animi per invidiam et furorem exardescens, modum in nullo tenuit, sed malitia omnes superare contendit. Nam non contenta est sola vastatione Bethlehem, sed et omnes simul ejus fines devastavit, nec etiam parvulae aetatis ullam misericordiam habuit, quin omnes a filio unius noctis usque ad filium duorum annorum pariter occidit. Rabanus Maurus, Commentariorum In Matthaeum, Liber I Source: Migne PL 107.762b-d

Then Herod, seeing how he was deceived by the Magi, was greatly angered, and he ordered all the young boys who were in Bethlehem to be killed, and in all the surrounding region, from two years and under. 1 It is therefore likely to be true that after the Magi had not reported back to Herod, that he thought that they had been deceived by their seeing of a misleading star, and after they had not found the boy whom they thought they would, they were too embarrassed to return to him, and thus he who was struck by fear because of the questions about the boy and the seeking of him, was placated. But after the purification of His mother, when they came with Him to Jerusalem, and those things happened in the temple about which Luke tells us, the words of Simeon and Anna making prophecy about Him, when these things began to be told by those who had heard them, the soul of the king was recalled to its former intention, and therefore Joseph was warned in a dream to flee with the child and his mother into Egypt. Then with the things that were said and done in the temple spreading abroad, Herod felt he had been made sport of by the Magi, and desiring the death of Christ, he decided to kill the many infants in Bethlehem of two years and under, and in all the surrounding region, as Matthew says. 2 Because the cruelty of a soul blazes up through envy and anger, he held to no moderation, but strove to overcome all things with evil. For he was not content with the devastation of Bethlehem alone, but at the same time even all the surrounding region, having no pity at all on the little ones, since he slew every one of them, from the son of one night, even to the son of two years. Rabanus Maurus, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Matthew, Book 1 1 Mt 2.16 2 cf Augustine De Consensu Evang 2.11

Successful Prayer

Et scimus quoniam audit nos quidquid petierimus. Multipliciter eadem quae praemiserat inculcat, ut nos ad orandum vivacius excitet. Sed manet objectio quam posuit, ut secundum voluntatem petaqmus nostri Conditoris. Quod bifariam potest accipi, ut scilicet et ea quae ipse vult rogemus, et tales ipsi quales esse nos desiderat ad rogandum veniamus. Quod est habere fidem quae per dilectionem operatur, et ante omnia meminisse illius evangelici mandati: Et cum stabitis ad ornandum, dimitte si quid habetis adversus aliquem, ut et Pater vester qui in coelis est dimittat vobis peccat vestra. Sanctus Beda, In I Epistolam Sancti Joannis, Caput V Source: Migne PL 93.117b

And we know that He hears us, whatever we ask...1 He inculcates the same thing he has set down many times, that we should eagerly rouse ourselves for prayer. But he also sets down an obstacle, that we should ask in accordance with the will of our Creator. It is possible to understand this in two parts, that is, that we should ask for the things which please Him, and we should come to be such things as He wishes us to be in our asking, which is to have faith that works through love, 2 and before everything to remember the commandment of His Gospel: 'And when you stand to pray, forgive whatever you have against anyone, as even your Father in heaven forgives you your sins.' 3 Saint Bede, Commentary on the First Letter of Saint John, Chapter 5 1 1 Jn 5.15 2 Galat 5.6 3 Mk 11.25

Anger And The Enemy

Positis genibus clamavit dicens: ne statuas illis hoc peccatcum. Ira vide quid noceat. Agnosce inimicam tuam: agnosce cum qua pugnas in theatro pectoris tui. Angustum theatrum; sed Deus spectat: ibi doma inimicam tuam. Vis videre quam sit ista vera tua inimica? Modo ostendo. Oraturus es Deum: ventura est hora ut dicas: Pater noster, qui es in coelis. Venturus es ad illum versum: Dimitte nobis debita nostra. Quid sequitur? Sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Ibi illa inimica stat contra te. Sepit viam orationis tuae: murum erigit, et non est qua transeas. Bene totum dixisti: Pater noster. Cucurrit: Dimitte nobis debita nostra. Et quid postea? Sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. En ipsa adversaria contradicit; nec ante velum, sed intus: in ipso secretario cordis tui, ibi tibi clamat, contradicit. Qualis inimica, fratres, quae contradicit? Sicut et nos dimittimus. Non permittitur ut saevias contra inimicum tuum: in istam saevias. Melior est qui vincit iram, quam qui capit civitatem, Scriptura dicit. Quod dixi modo, scriptum est: Melior est qui vincit iram, quam qui capit civitatem. Numquid non bellator imperator quando venit ad aliquos hostes, et invenit civitatem munitam, armatis instructam, optimam, adversantem sibi, si illam ceperit, si illam vicerit, si illam everterit, triumphos quaerit? Sicut autem narrat Scriptura: Melior est qui vincit iram, quam qui capit civitatem. In manu tua est. Non potes illam interimere, potes illam reprimere. Si fortis es, iram vince: et civitati parce. Video vos attentos, scio quam bene accepistis. Deus adsit certaminibus vestris, ut prosit vobis quod tanti Martyris agonem spectastis; ut quomodo vincentem vidistis et vincenti favistis, sic et vos in corde vestro vincatis. Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensi, Sermo CCCXV, In Solemnitate Stephani Martyris Source: Migne PL 38.1431

On his knees he cried out saying, 'Do not hold this sin against them..' 1 See how anger may harm. Know your enemy, know what you fight in the arena of your breast, It is an arena of strife, but God looks on, there subdue your enemy. You wish to see how this may be your true enemy? There is a way of showing it. When you pray to God, there shall come a time when you say: 'Our Father, who art in heaven.' Then you will come to that line: 'Forgive us our trespasses.' What follows? 'As we forgive those who trespass against us.' There that enemy stands against you. He encircles the path of your prayer. He raises up a wall and there is no way for you to go on. Well you have said, 'Our Father.' It follows, 'Forgive us our trespasses.' And after? 'As we forgive those who trespass against us.' Behold, your enemy disputes with you, not publicly but within, in that secret place of your heart, there he cries out against you, there he disputes with you. What is this enemy that disputes so, brothers? 'As we forgive.' It is not permitted for you to act savagely against an enemy, but against savagery you should be fierce. 'Better is he who conquers anger, than he who takes a city,' Scripture says. 2 What I have just said has been written: 'Better is he who conquers anger, than he who take a city.' Is it not that when an Emperor at war comes against some enemies, and he finds a city defended, and guarded with armed men, and well supplied, and set against him, if he shall take it, if he shall conquer it, if he shall overthrow it, he seeks out how to gain the victory? So Scripture speaks to us: 'Better is he who conquers anger, than he who takes a city.' It is in your hand. You are not able to destroy it, but you can overcome it. If you are strong, overcome anger, and spare a city. I see you are attentive. I know how well you understand. God stands near you in your trials, so that what you have seen of the trial of such a great martyr may be of benefit to you, that as you have seen him conquer, even you choose to conquer, and so in your hearts be victorious. Saint Augustine of Hippo, from Sermon 315, On The Feast Of Saint Stephen 1 Acts 7.60 2 Prov 16.32

Born In Bethlehem

Factum est autem cum essent ibi, impleti sunt dies ut pareret... Bene non solum propter indicium regii stemmatis, sed et propter nominis sacramentum Dominus in Bethleem nascitur. Bethleem namque domus panis interpretatur. Ipse namque est, qui ait: Ego sum panis vivus, qui de coelo descendi. Locus ergo in quo Dominus nasceretur domus panis ante vocatus est, quia futurum profecto erat ut ille ibi per materiam carnis appareret, qui electorum mentes interna satietate reficeret. Sed usque hodie, et usque ad consummationem saeculi, Dominus in Nazareth concipi, nasci in Bethleem non desinit, cum quilibet audientium, verbi flore suscepto, domum se aeterni panis efficit. Quotidie in utero virginali, hoc est in animo credentium per fidem concipitur, per baptisma gignitur. Quotidie Dei genitrix Ecclesia suum comitata doctorem, de rota mundanae conversationis quod Galilaea sonat, in civitatem Juda, confessionis, videlicet, et laudis ascendens, censum suae devotionis aeterno regi persolvit. Sanctus Beda, In Lucae Evangelium Expositio, Liber I, Caput II Source: Migne PL 92.330c

And it was while they were there that the days were fulfilled when she should give birth... 1 And this was good, for the Lord was born in Bethlehem not only as a sign of the lineage for the kingdom but even for the name of the sacrament. For Bethlehem translated means 'house of bread,' and He is the one who says, 'I am the bread of life that has come down from heaven.' 2 Therefore the place in which the Lord was to be born was called beforehand the house of bread, because undoubtedly in the future He was to appear there in the flesh, He who refreshes the souls of the elect with internal satisfaction. And even today, and even to the end of the ages, the Lord is conceived in Nazareth and born in Bethlehem, when anyone who hears and takes up the bloom of the word is himself fashioned into a house of the eternal bread. Every day in the virginal womb, that is, in the soul of the faithful, He is conceived by faith and grows by baptism. Every day the mother of God, His own Church, accompanied by the teacher, from the wheel of worldly activity, which is what Galilee means, going into a city of Judah, liberates in confession, with praise going up to the eternal kingdom from the treasury of devotion. Saint Bede, Commentary On The Gospel of Saint Luke, Book 1, Chapter 2 1 Lk 2.6 2 Jn 6.51

The Praise Of Angels

Dominus noster atque Salvator nascitur in Bethlehem, et multitudo coelestis exceritus laudat Deum et dicit: Gloria in excelsis Deo, et super terram pax hominibus bonae voluntatis. Haec autem loquitur multitudo coelestis exercitus, quia jam defecert praebere hominibus auxilium et videbat se opus quod sibi creditum fuerat, implere non posse absque eo qui vere salvare poterat, et praesules quoque ipsos juvare, ut homines salvarentur. Quomodo igitur scriptum est in Evangelio, quod quidam remis sulcantes mare adversus contrarios ventos jam fessi erant, et viginti quinque, sive triginta stadiis laborantes, portum tenere non poterant, et postea Dominus supervenit, et quiescere fecit fluctus tumentes, navemque cujus hinc inde latera tundebantur, ab imminenti discrimine liberavit: sic intellige quoniam et angeli volebant quidem hominibus praebere auxilium, et eis ab aegrotationibus suis tribuere sanitatem, quia omnes sunt apparitores spiritus in ministerium missi propter eos qui consecuti sunt salutem: qui quantum in suis viribus erat, adjuvabant homines. Videbant autem multo inferiorem suam esse medicinam, quam illorum cura poscebat. Porro ut de exemplo possis intelligere quod dicimus, vide mihi urbem in qua aegrotent plurimi, et medicorum frequens adhibeatur manus: sint diversa vulnera, quotidie in emortuam carnem serpens putredo penetret: et tamen medici qui adhibiti sunt ad curandum, nequeant alia ultra invenire medicamina, et artis suae scientia magnitudinem mali vincere; cum haec in talibus nacti sint, eveniat aliquis archiater qui habeat summam in arte notitiam, et illi qui prius sanare nequiverant cernentes magistri manu putredines cessare vulnerum, non invideant, non livore crucientur, sed in laudes erumpant archiatri, et praedicent Deum qui et sibi et aegrotantibus tantae scientiae hominem miserit. In hanc ergo similitudinem et multitudo exercitus angelorum audita est dicens: Gloria in excelsis Deo, et super terram pax in hominibus bonae voluntatis. Origenes, Homiliae in Lucam, Homilia XIII, Interprete Sancto Hieronymo Source: Migne PG 13.1830c-1831a

Our Lord and Saviour is born in Bethlehem and a multitude of the heavenly host praises God and says: 'Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth to men of good will.' 1 And the multitude of the heavenly host says this because it has wearied itself in giving help to men, and it saw that the labour which it believed to be its own cannot be completed without Him who truly can save, even Him who is also the master who helps them so that men might be saved. Recall how is it written in the Gospel that certain men plying the oars were wearied in their struggle against contrary winds, and they laboured for twenty five or thirty stades and were not able to reach port, and later the Lord intervened and quietened the churning waves of the sea that were beating at the sides of the boat, and freed them from their pressing plight. 2 So understand that the angels wished to help men and bring them from sickness to health, because 'they are all ministering spirits sent to minister to them who shall receive the inheritance of salvation,' 3 as much as it is in them to help men. But they saw how inferior their own medicine is for what the cure requires. Perhaps by an example you shall be able to understand what I am saying. Imagine a city in which there are many sick people and the hands of physicians are frequently employed. There are many wounds and every day the worm enters into dying bodies, and however much the physicians exert themselves in healing they can do no more than their art allows them and as their knowledge can prevail over the evil, and when into such a situation the chief physician comes, he who knows everything about the art, when they see the hand of the master close up the festering wounds of those who they were not able to heal before, they are not envious, they are not distressed by it, but they burst out in praise of the chief physician and tell of God who has sent a man of such great knowledge to them and the sick. In this way, then, hear the host of angels saying, 'Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth to men of good will.' Origen, Homilies on Luke, from Homily 13, Translated by Saint Jerome 1 Lk 2.13-14 2 Jn 6.19-21 3 Heb 1.14

Shepherds And Bishops

Καὶ ἐγένετο ὡς ἀπῆλθον ἀπ' αὐτῶν εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν οἱ ἄγγελοι, οἱ ποιμένες ἐλάλουν πρὸς ἀλλήλους: διέλθωμεν δὴ ἕως Βηθλέεμ καὶ ἴδωμεν τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο τὸ γεγονὸς ὃ ὁ Kύριος ἐγνώρισεν ἡμῖν. Kαὶ ἦλθαν σπεύσαντες, καὶ ἀνεῦραν τήν τε Μαριὰμ καὶ τὸν Ἰωσὴφ καὶ τὸ βρέφος κείμενον ἐν τῇ φάτνῃ: ἰδόντες δὲ ἐγνώρισαν περὶ τοῦ ῥήματος τοῦ λαληθέντος αὐτοῖς περὶ τοῦ παιδίου τούτου. Kαὶ πάντες οἱ ἀκούσαντες ἐθαύμασαν περὶ τῶν λαληθέντων ὑπὸ τῶν ποιμένων πρὸς αὐτούς. Οἱ ποιμένες οὗτοι σύμβολόν εἰσι τῶν πνευματικῶν ποιμένων, τῶν ἀρχιερέων· δεῖ οὖν τοὺς ἀρχιερῖς φυλάσσειν τὴν ποίμνην αὐτῶν καὶ ἀγραυλεῖν, τουτέστιν, ᾄδειν πνευματικά τινα, καὶ διδάσκειν τὸν λαὸν, καὶ οὕτως ἀξιωθήσονται θείων θεαμάτων καὶ ἀκουσμάτων. Βηθλεὲμ δὲ ἑρμηνεύεται οἶκος τοῦ ἄρτου· τίς δὲ ἄλλος ἐστὶν ὁ οἰκος τοῦ ἄρτου, ἤ ἡ Ἐκκλησία, ἐν ᾗ ὁ ἄρτος ἀπόκειται; Ἔργον οὖν ἐστι τοῖς λογικοῖς ποιμέσιν ἐπιζτεῖν οὐράνιον ἄρτον· καὶ μεθ' ὃ ἴδωσι τὸν ἄρτον, ὀφείλουσι καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις κηρύττειν· ὥσπερ καὶ οἱ ποιμένες ἰδόντες τὸ βρέφος, διελάλησαν καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις. Θεοφύλακτος Αχρίδος, Ἑρμηνεία Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λουκαν, Κεφαλὴ Β' Source: Migne PG 123.724c-725a

And after the angels departed from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, 'Let us go over to Bethlehem, and let us see this word that is come to pass, which the Lord has revealed to us.' And they went with all speed and found Mary and Joseph and the infant laying in the manger. And looking, they understood the word that had been spoken to them concerning this child. And all that heard, they wondered at the things that were told to them by the shepherds. 1 These shepherds are a figure of spiritual shepherds and spiritual leaders. Therefore bishops must guard their flock and dwell in the fields, that is, they must sing spiritually and teach the people, even so that they will become worthy of receiving heavenly visions and voices. Bethlehem means 'house of bread,' and what else is the house of bread but the Church in which the bread is placed? Thus the work of the rational shepherd is to seek the heavenly bread, which when they have looked upon, they are obliged to preach to others, just as the shepherds who having looked upon the infant, spoke of him to others. Theophylact of Ochrid, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint Luke, Chapter 2 1 Lk 2.15-20

Miracles And The Incarnation

Mirum non esse debet a Deo factum miraculum: mirum enim esset si homo fecisset. Magis gaudere quam mirari debemus, quia Dominus noster et salvator Iesus Christus homo factus est, quam quod divina inter homines Deus fecit. Plus est enim ad salutem nostram quod factus est propter homines, quam quod fecit inter homines: et plus est quod vitia sanavit animarum, quam quod sanavit languores corporum moriturorum. Sed quia ipsa anima non eum noverat a quo sananda erat, et oculos habebat in carne unde facta corporalia videret, nondum habebat sanos in corde, unde Deum latentem cognosceret; fecit quod videre poterat, ut sanaretur unde videre non poterat Sanctus Augustinus Hipponensi, In Evangelium Ionannis, Tractatus XVII Source: Migne PL 35.1527

It should not be a matter of wonder that God performed a miracle, for the wonder would be if man had done it. We should rejoice more than wonder that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was made man than that God performed Divine works among men. It is of greater importance for our salvation that He was made for men, than what He did among men. It is more important that He healed the faults of souls, than that He healed the infirmities of mortal bodies. But as the soul did not know Him who was to heal it, and had the eyes of flesh by which it saw corporeal deeds and not yet the healthy eyes of the heart with which it could recognise the hidden God, so He did what the soul was able to see, so that being healed it would see what it could not. Saint Augustine of Hippo, from Tractate 17 On The Gospel of St John

Grasping The Light

Item quaeritur de hoc quod dicitur: Tenebrae eam non comprehenderunt. Contra: Lux corporalis, dum lucet, et est praesens, non potest non videri; ergo a pari ratione videtur de luce spirituali et intellectu. Item quare dicitur de tenebris? Quia nullus etiam bonus eam comprehendit, cum sit incomprehensibilis. Respondeo: Dicendum quod non est simile de luce corporali et spirituali triplici de causa; tum ex parte motivi, quia corporalis se manifestat naturaliter, spiritualis vero voluntarie: tum ex parte oculi, quia oculus intellectus caecus est respectu unius, et tamen videt respectu alterius; sicut videmus, quod unius habet ignorantiam, alterius cognitionem, sic oculus infidelis caecus respectu Dei. Tertia ratio ex parte comparationis; quia aliqua proportio est oculi nostri ad lucem corporalem, sed lux spiritualis improportionabiliter excedit, et ideo lucem habitat inaccessibilem. Quod quaeritur de comprehensione dicendum, quod est comprehensio per inclusionem, sive terminationem, per apertam visionem, per fidei et caritatis adhaesionem. Primo modo a nullo, secundo modo a Beatis, tertio modo a Sanctis, nullo dictorum modorum a malignis. Ideo dicitur: Et tenebrae eam non comprehenderunt, id est, nec fide, nec amore adhaeserunt. Sanctus Bonaventura, Commentarius In Evangelium Ioannem, Caput I Source: Here, p250

Similarly one may enquire about this which is said: 'The darkness did not comprehend it.' 1 Against this: it impossible not to see material light when it shines and is present, therefore with equal reason it seems to be the case with the spiritual light and the intellect. Similarly why is this said of 'the darkness'? Because not even anything good comprehends the light when it is incomprehensible. I answer that it must be said that there is not this sort of similarity between material light and spiritual light for three reasons, from the part of motive because material light manifests itself naturally and the spiritual voluntarily, then from the part of the eyes, because the eye of the intellect may be blind in respect of one thing and yet see in respect of another thing, as we see that it is ignorant of one thing and has knowledge of another thing, and so the eye of the faithless man is blind with respect to God. The third reason comes from comparison, because though there is a certain proportion between our eyes and material light, yet the spiritual light exceeds all proportionality, and therefore dwells in inaccessible light. 2 One must then speak of what should be said regarding comprehension, that is, that comprehension may be by inclusion, or ending, or open vision, through an adherence in faith and love. The first way is open to no man, the second is the way of the blessed, the third is the way of the saints, and none of the ways mentioned are open to the wicked. Therefore it is said: 'And the darkness did not comprehend it,' that is, they did not adhere either in faith or in love. Saint Bonaventura, Commentary On The Gospel Of Saint John, Chapter 1 1 Jn 1.5 2 1 Tim 6.16

The Shadow And The Body

Ἰδοὺ εἶ καλός, ἀδελφιδός μου, καί γε ὡραῖος, πρὸς κλίνῃ ἡμῶν σύσκιος... Εἶτα ἐπήγαγε Πρὸς κλίνῃ ἡμῶν σύσκιος. τουτέστιν ἔγνω σε ἤτοι γνώσεται ἡ ἀνθρωπίνη φύσις σύσκιον τῇ οἰκονομίᾳ γενόμενον· ἦλθες γάρ φησι σὺ ὁ καλὸς ἀδελφιδός, ὁ ὡραῖος, πρὸς τῇ κλίνῃ ἡμῶν σύσκιος γενόμενος. Eἰ γὰρ μὴ συνεσκίασας αὐτὸς σεαυτὸν τὴν ἄκρατον τῆς θεότητος ἀκτῖνα συγκαλύψας τῇ τοῦ δούλου μορφῇ, τίς ἂν ὑπέστη σου τὴν ἐμφάνειαν; οὐδεὶς γὰρ ὄψεται πρόσωπον Kυρίου καὶ ζήσεται. ἦλθες τοίνυν ὁ ὡραῖος, ἀλλ’ ὡς χωροῦμεν δέξασθαι τοιοῦτος γενόμενος· Ἦλθες τὰς τῆς θεότητος ἀκτῖνας τῇ περιβολῇ συσκιάσας τοῦ σώματος. Πῶς γὰρ ἂν ἐχώρησε θνητὴ καὶ ἐπίκηρος φύσις τῇ ἀκηράτῳ καὶ ἀπροσίτῳ συζυγίᾳ συναρμοσθῆναι, εἰ μὴ τοῖς ἐν σκότῳ ζῶσιν ἡμῖν ἡ σκιὰ τοῦ σώματος πρὸς τὸ φῶς ἐμεσίτευσεν; Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Ἐξηγησις Του Αἰσματος Των Ἀσμάτων Ὁμιλία Δ’ Source: Migne PG 44.835c-d

Behold, you are fair, my kinsman, and glorious, in the shadow by our bed. 1 Finally she adds, 'in the shadow by our bed.' That is, 'I knew you, or human nature will know you, as the One who became shadowed by the Divine economy.' 'For you came,' she says, 'as the fair kinsman, the glorious one, who drew near to our bed in shadow. Since if you had not shadowed yourself, concealing the pure radiance of your Deity in the form of a slave, 2 who could have endured your appearing? For no one shall see the face of the Lord and live. 3 You, then, the glorious one, came in such a way that we could receive you. You came with the radiance of Divinity shadowed by the garment of a body.' For how could a mortal and perishable nature be adapted to live together with the imperishable and the inaccessible, unless the shadow of the body had mediated between us who live in darkness 4 and the Light? Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Commentary on The Song of Songs, from Homily 4 1 Song 1.15 2 Phil 2.7 3 Exodus 33.20 4 Isaiah 9.1