B634 Gregory Nazianzen, bishop, a sermon by the Saint
The baptism of Christ
Christ is bathed in light, let us also be bathed in light. Christ is
baptized; let us also go down with him, and rise with him.
John is baptizing when Jesus draws near. Perhaps he comes to sanctify
his baptizer; certainly he comes to bury sinful humanity in the waters.
He comes to sanctity the Jordan for our sake and in readiness for us he
who is spirit and flesh comes to begin a new creation through the Spirit
and water.
The Baptist protests; Jesus insists. Then John says: I ought to be
baptized by you. He is the lamp in the presence of the sun, the voice in
the presence of the Word, the friend in the presence of the Bridegroom,
the greatest of all born of woman in the presence of the firstborn of
all creation, the one who leapt in his mother's womb in the presence of
him who was adored in the womb, the forerunner and future forerunner in
the presence of him who has already come and is to come again. I ought
to be baptized by you; we should also add: and for you, for John is to
be baptized in blood, washed clean like Peter, not only by the washing
of his feet.
Jesus rises from the waters; the world rises with him. The heavens like
Paradise with its flaming sword, closed by Adam for himself and his
descendants, are rent open. The Spirit comes to him as to an equal,
bearing witness to his Godhead. A voice bears witness to him from
heaven, his place of origin. The Spirit descends in bodily form like the
dove that so long ago announced the ending of the flood and so gives
honor to the body that is one with God.
Today let us do honor to Christ's baptism and celebrate this feast in
holiness. Be cleansed entirely and continue to be cleansed. Nothing
gives such pleasure to God as the conversion and salvation of men, for
whom his every word and every revelation exist. He wants you to become a
living force for all mankind, lights shining in the world. You are to be
radiant lights as you stand beside Christ, the great light, bathed in
the glory of him who is the light of heaven. You are to enjoy more and
more the pure and dazzling light of the Trinity, as now you have
received---though not in its fullness---a ray of its splendor,
proceeding from the one God, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory
and power for ever and ever. Amen.
B161 Gregory Nazianzen, bishop, a sermon by the Saint
The marvel of the Incarnation
The very Son of God, older than the ages, the invisible, the
incomprehensible, the incorporeal, the beginning of beginning, the light
of light, the fountain of life and immortality, the image of the
archetype, the immovable seal, the perfect likeness, the definition and
word of the Father: he it is who comes to his own image and takes our
nature for the good of our nature, and unites himself to an intelligent
soul for the good of my soul, to purify like by like. He takes to
himself all that is human, except for sin. He was conceived by the
Virgin Mary, who had been first prepared in soul and body by the Spirit;
his coming to birth had to be treated with honor, virginity had to
receive new honor. He comes forth as God, in the human nature he has
taken, one being, made of two contrary elements,, flesh and spirit.
spirit gave divinity, flesh received it.
He who makes rich is made poor; he takes on the poverty of my flesh,
that I may gain the riches of his divinity. He who is full is made
empty; he is emptied for a brief space of his glory, that I may share in
his fullness. what is this wealth of goodness? What is this mystery that
surrounds me? I received the likeness of God, but failed to keep it. He
takes on my flesh, to bring salvation to the image, immortality to the
flesh. He enters into a second union with us, a union far more wonderful
than the first.
Holiness had to be brought to man by the humanity assumed by one who was
God, so that God might overcome the tyrant by force and so deliver us
and lead us back to himself through the mediation of his Son. The Son
arranged this for the honor of the Father, to whom the Son is clearly
obedient in all things.
The Good Shepherd, who lays down his life for the sheep, came in search
of the straying sheep to the mountains and hills on which you used to
offer sacrifice. When he found it, he took it on the shoulders that bore
the wood of the cross, and led it back to the life of heaven.
Christ, the light of all lights, follows John, the lamp that goes before
him. The Word of God follows the voice in the wilderness; the bridegroom
follows the bridegroom's friend, who prepares a worthy people for the
Lord by cleansing them by water in preparation for the Spirit.
We need God to take our flesh and die, that we might live. We have died
with him, that we may be purified. We have risen again with him, because
we have died with him. We have been glorified with him, because we have
risen again with him.
R825 Gregory of Nyssa, bishop, a sermon by the Saint
The firstborn of the new creation
The reign of life has begun, the tyranny of death is ended. A new birth
has taken place, a new life has come, a new order of existence has
appeared, our very nature has been transformed! This birth is not
brought about by human generation, by the will of man, or by the desire
of the flesh, but by God.
If you wonder how, I will explain in clear language. Faith is the womb
that conceives this new life, baptism the rebirth by which it is brought
forth into the light of day. The Church is its nurse; her teachings are
its milk, the bread from heaven is its food. It is brought to maturity
by the practice of virtue; it is wedded to wisdom; it gives birth to
hope. Its home is the kingdom; its rich inheritance the joys of
paradise; its end, not death, but the blessed and everlasting life
prepared for those who are worthy.
This is the day the Lord has made---a day far different from those made
when the world was first created and which are measured by the passage
of time. This is the beginning of a new creation. On this day, as the
prophet says, God makes a new heaven and a new earth. what is this new
heaven? you may ask. It is the firmament of our faith in Christ. What is
this new earth? A good heart, a heart like the earth, which drinks up
the rain that falls on it and yields a rich harvest.
In this new creation, purity of life is the sun, the virtues are the
stars, transparent goodness is the air, and the depths of the riches of
wisdom and knowledge, the sea. Sound doctrine, the divine teachings are
the grass and plants that feed God's flock, the people whom he
shepherds; the keeping of the commandments is the fruit borne by the
trees.
On this day is created the true man, the man made in the image and
likeness of God. For this day the Lord has made is the beginning of this
new world. Of this day the prophet says that it is not like other days,
nor is this night like other nights. But still we have not spoken of the
greatest gift it has brought us. This day destroyed the pangs of death
and brought to birth the firstborn of the dead.
I ascend to my Father and to your Father, to my God and to your God. O
what wonderful good news! He who for our sake became like us in order to
make us his brothers, now presents to his true Father his own humanity
in order to draw all his kindred up after him.
R752 Gregory the Great, pope, a homily on the Gospels by the Saint
Christ the good shepherd
I am the good shepherd. I know my own---by which I mean, I love
them---and my own know me. In plain words: those who love me are willing
to follow me, for anyone who does not love the truth has not yet come to
know it.
My dear brethren, you have heard the test we pastors have to undergo.
Turn now to consider how these words of our Lord imply a test for
yourselves also. Ask yourselves whether you belong to his flock, whether
you know him, whether the light of his truth shines in your minds. I
assure you that it is not by faith that you will come to know him, but
by love; not by mere conviction, but by action. John the evangelist is
my authority for this statement. He tells us that anyone who claims to
know God without keeping his commandments is a liar.
Consequently, the Lord immediately adds: As the Father knows me and I
know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep. Clearly he means
that laying down his life for his sheep gives evidence of his knowledge
of the Father and the Father's knowledge of him. In other words, by the
love with which he dies for his sheep he shows how greatly he loves his
Father.
Again he says: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them; they follow me,
and I give them eternal life. Shortly before this he had declared: If
anyone enters the sheepfold through me he shall be saved; he shall go
freely in and out and shall find good pasture. He will enter into a life
of faith; from faith he will go out to vision, from belief to
contemplation, and will graze in the good pastures of everlasting life.
So our Lord's sheep will finally reach their grazing ground where all
who follow him in simplicity of heart will feed on the green pastures of
eternity. These pastures are the spiritual joys of heaven. There the
elect look upon the face of God with unclouded vision and feast at the
banquet of life for ever more.
Beloved brothers, let us set out for these pastures where we shall keep
joyful festival with so many of our fellow citizens. May the thought of
their happiness urge us on! Let us stir up our hearts, rekindle our
faith, and long eagerly for what heaven has in store for us. To love
thus is to be already on our way. No matter what obstacles we encounter,
we must not allow them to turn us aside from the joy of that heavenly
feast. Anyone who is determined to reach his destination is not deterred
by the roughness of the road that leads to it. Nor must we allow the
charm of success to seduce us, or we shall be like a foolish traveler
who is so distracted by the pleasant meadows through which he is passing
that he forgets where he is going.
T1426 Gregory VII, pope, a letter by the Saint
The Church must be free, chaste and catholic
I beg and implore in the Lord Jesus, who redeemed us by his death, that by careful investigation you may become aware of the trials and distresses brought on me by the enemies of Christianity and understand why and how I endure them.
By God's will Mother Church placed me in my unworthiness (and God knows that I was unwilling, too) upon the apostolic throne, and with all my powers I have tried to see that the holy Church, the bride of God, our lady and mother, might return to the beauty which is rightly hers and remain free, chaste and catholic. But, because this so greatly displeases our ancient foe, he has armed his minions against us so that they might overturn all our efforts. What he has been unable to do from the days of Constantine the Great he now does against us and particularly against the Apostolic See. Do not be surprised that, as the time goes on, he will fight all the harder to wipe out the Christian religion.
But now, my dearest brothers, listen carefully to what I tell you. All those throughout the world who are numbered as Christian and who truly acknowledge the Christian faith know and believe that the blessed Peter, the prince of the apostles, is the father of all Christians and, after Christ, the first shepherd, and that the holy Roman Church is the mother and teacher of all the churches. Therefore, if you believe this and hold to it without hesitation, I ask you and enjoin upon you by Almighty God---I., your brother and your unworthy teacher as I am---to support and assist your father and your mother if you wish to have, through them, the remission of all your sins, along with blessing and grace in this world and in the life to come.
May almighty God, from whom all good things come, continually enlighten your minds and fill them with love for him and for your neighbor, so that by your devotion you may deserve to make this father and mother of whom I have spoken your debtors and enter without shame into their company. Amen.
T277 Gregory the Great, pope, the Moral Reflections on Job by the Saint
The law of the Lord is manifold
How must we interpret this law of God? How, if not by love? The love
that stamps the precepts of right-living on the mind and bids us put
them into practice. Listen to Truth speaking of this law: This is my
commandment, that you love one another. Listen to Paul: The whole law,
he declares, is summed up in love; and again: Help one another in your
troubles, and you will fulfill the Law of Christ. The law of
Christ---does anything other than love more fittingly describe it? Truly
we are keeping this law when, out of love, we go to the help of a
brother in trouble.
But we are told that this law is manifold. Why? Because love's lively
concern for others is reflected in all the virtues. It begins with two
commands, but it soon embraces many more. Paul gives a good summary of
its various aspects. Love is patient, he says, and kind; it is never
jealous or conceited; its conduct is blameless; it is not ambitious, not
selfish, not quick to take offense; it harbors no evil thoughts, does
not gloat over other people's sins, but is gladdened by an upright life.
The man ruled by this love shows his patience by bearing wrongs with
equanimity; his kindness by generously repaying good for evil. Jealousy
is foreign to him. It is impossible to envy worldly success when he has
no worldly desires. He is not conceited. The prizes he covets lie
within; outward blessings do not elate him. His conduct is blameless,
for he cannot do wrong in devoting himself entirely to love of God and
his neighbor. He is not ambitious. The welfare of his own soul is what
he cares about. Apart from that he seeks nothing. He is not selfish.
Unable to keep anything he has in this world, he is as indifferent to it
as if it were another's. Indeed, in his eyes nothing is his own but what
will be so always. He is not quick to take offense. Even under
provocation, thought of revenge never crosses his mind. The reward he
seeks' hereafter will be greater in proportion to his endurance. He
harbors no evil thoughts. Hatred is utterly rooted out of a heart whose
only love is goodness. Thoughts that defile a man can find no entry. He
does not gloat over other people's sins. No; an enemy's fall affords him
no delight, for loving all men, he longs for their salvation.
On the other hand, he is gladdened by an upright life. Since he loves
others as himself, he takes as much pleasure in whatever good he sees in
them as if the progress were his own. That is why this law of God is
manifold.
R257.htm Gregory the Great, pope, the Moral Reflections on Job by the Saint
The mystery of our new life in Christ
Holy Job is a type of the Church. At one time he speaks for the body, at another for the head. As he speaks of its members he is suddenly caught up to speak in the name of their head. So it is here, where he says: I have suffered this without sin on my hands, for my prayer to God was pure.
Christ suffered without sin on his hands, for he committed no sin and deceit was not found on his lips. Yet he suffered the pain of the cross for our redemption. His prayer to God was pure, his alone out of all mankind, for in the midst of his suffering he prayed for his persecutors: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.
Is it possible to offer, or even to imagine, a purer kind of prayer than that which shows mercy to one's torturers by making intercession for them? It was thanks to this kind of prayer that the frenzied persecutors who shed the blood of our Redeemer drank it afterward in faith and proclaimed him to be the son of God.
The text goes on fittingly to speak of Christ's blood: Earth, do not cover over my blood, do not let my cry find a hiding place in you. when man sinned, God had said: Earth you are, and to earth you will return. Earth does not cover over the blood of our Redeemer, for every sinner, as he drinks the blood that is the price of his redemption, offers praise and thanksgiving, and to the best of his power makes that blood known to all around him.
Earth has not hidden away his blood, for holy Church has preached in every corner of the world the mystery of its redemption.
Notice what follows: Do not let my cry find a hiding place in you. The blood that is drunk, the blood of redemption, is itself the cry of our Redeemer. Paul speaks of the sprinkled blood that calls out more eloquently than Abel's. Of Abel's blood Scripture had written: The voice of your brother's blood cries out to me from the earth. The blood of Jesus calls out more eloquently than Abel's, for the blood of Abel asked for the death of Cain the fratricide, while the blood of the Lord has asked for, and obtained, life for his persecutors.
If the sacrament of the Lord's passion is to work its effect in us, we must imitate what we receive and proclaim to mankind what we revere. The cry of the Lord finds a hiding place in us if our lips fail to speak of this, though our hearts believe in it. So that his cry may not lie concealed in us it remains for us all, each in his own measure, to make known to those around us the mystery of our new life in Christ.
B1436.htm Hilary, bishop, a treatise on Psalm 126 by the Saint
God builds and protects his city
Unless the Lord builds a house, the builders labor in vain. you are the temple of God. The Spirit of God dwells in you. This is the house and temple of God, full of his doctrine and his power, a dwelling place holy enough to house the heart of God. It is of this that the same inspired author is speaking, in the words: Your temple is holy, marvelous in its goodness. Man's holiness, justice and self-restraint constitute God's temple.
Such a temple must be built by God; if it were constructed by human effort, it would not last; it is not held together by resting on merely worldly teachings, nor will it be protected by our own vain efforts or anxious concern. We must build it and protect it in a different way. It must not have its foundations on earth or on sand that is unstable and treacherous. Its foundation must be rooted in the prophets and apostles.
It must be built up from living stones, held together by a cornerstone; an ever-increasing unity will make it grow into a perfect harmony, to the scale of Christ's body; its beauty and its charm are the adornment given to it by supernatural grace.
A house so built by God, that is, by God's guidance, will not collapse. Through the efforts of the individual faithful this house will grow into many houses, and thus will arise the blessed and spacious city of God.
For many years now God has been watching over this city, ever on the alert. He cared for Abraham in his wanderings; he rescued Isaac when he was about to be sacrificed; Jacob he enriched in his time of servitude; it is he who set Joseph over Egypt, after he had been sold into slavery; who supported Moses against Pharaoh; chose Joshua to lead his nation in war; rescued David from every peril and endowed Solomon with wisdom. He came to the aid of the prophets, he took. Elijah up to heaven, chose Elisha; fed Daniel, and stood by and refreshed the three young men in the fiery furnace. He told Joseph, through an angel, of his virginal conception, he strengthened Mary, and sent John ahead to prepare the way. He chose the apostles and prayed for them, saying to his Father: Father most holy, protect them. While I was with them, I kept them safe by the power of your name. Finally after his passion, he promised us his eternal, watchful protection, in the words: Behold, I am with you always until the end of the world.
Such is the never-failing protection given to this blessed and holy city, a city built for God, fashioned by the coming together of many, yet seen in each one of us. It is therefore the Lord who must build this city if it is to grow to its appointed size. A building just begun is not the perfect work; final perfection is brought about only in the very process of building.
R185 Hilary, bishop, a treatise on the psalms by the Saint
The meaning of "the fear of the Lord"
Blessed are those who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways. Notice that when Scripture speaks of the fear of the Lord it does not leave the phrase in isolation, as if it were a complete summary of faith. No, many things are added to it, or are presupposed by it. From these we may learn its meaning and excellence. In the book of Proverbs Solomon tells us: If you cry out for wisdom and raise your voice for understanding, if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord. We see here the difficult journey we must undertake before we can arrive at the fear of the Lord.
We must begin by crying out for wisdom. We must hand over to our
intellect the duty of making every decision. We must look for wisdom and
search for it. Then we must understand the fear of the Lord.
"Fear" is not to be taken in the sense that common usage gives it. Fear
in this ordinary sense is the trepidation our weak humanity feels when
it is afraid of suffering something it does not want to happen. we are
afraid, or are made afraid, because of a guilty conscience, the rights
of someone more powerful, an attack from one who is stronger, sickness,
encountering a wild beast, suffering evil in any form. This kind of fear
is not taught: it happens because we are weak. We do not have to learn
what we should fear: objects of fear bring their own terror with them.
But of the fear of the Lord this is what is written: Come, my children,
listen to me, I shall teach you the fear of the Lord. The fear of the
Lord has then to be learned because it can be taught. It does not lie in
terror, but in something that can be taught. It does not arise from the
fearfulness of our nature; it has to be acquired by obedience to the
commandments, by holiness of life and by knowledge of the truth.
For us the fear of God consists wholly in love, and perfect love of God
brings our fear of him to its perfection. Our love for God is entrusted
with its own responsibility: to observe his counsels, to obey his laws,
to trust his promises. Let us hear what Scripture says: And now, Israel,
what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear the Lord your God
and walk in all his ways and love him and keep his commandments with
your whole heart and your whole soul, so that it may be well for you?
The ways of the Lord are many, though he is himself the way. When he
speaks of himself he calls himself the way and shows us the reason why
he called himself the way: No one can come to the Father except through
me.
We must ask for these many ways, we must travel along these many ways,
to find the one that is good. That is, we shall find the one way of
eternal life through the guidance of many teachers. These ways are found
in the law, in the prophets, in the gospels, in the writings of the
apostles, in the different good works by which we fulfill the
commandments. Blessed are those who walk these ways in the fear of the
Lord.
T1301 Hilary, bishop, a treatise on the Trinity by the Saint
May I serve you by making you known
I am well aware, almighty God and Father, that in my life I owe you a most particular duty. It is to make my every thought and word speak of you.
In fact, you have conferred on me this gift of speech, and it can yield
no greater return than to be at your service. It is for making you known
as Father, the Father of the only-begotten God, and preaching this to
the world that knows you not and to the heretics who refuse to believe
in you.
In this matter the declaration of my intention is only of limited value.
For the rest, I need to pray for the gift of your help and your mercy.
As we spread our sails of trusting faith and public avowal before you,
fill them with the breath of your our Spirit, to drive us on as we begin
this course of proclaiming your truth. We have been promised, and he who
made the promise is trustworthy: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek,
and you will find; knock, and it will he opened to you.
Yes, in our poverty we will pray for our needs. We will study the
sayings of your prophets and apostles with unflagging attention, and
knock for admittance wherever the gift of understanding is safely kept.
But yours it is, Lord, to grant our petitions, to be present when we
seek you and to open when we knock.
There is an inertia in our nature that makes us dull; and in our attempt
to penetrate your truth we are held within the bounds of ignorance by
the weakness of our minds. Yet we do comprehend divine ideas by earnest
attention to your teaching and by obedience to the faith which carries
us beyond mere human apprehension.
So we trust in you to inspire the beginnings of this ambitious venture,
to strengthen its progress, and to call us into a partnership in the
spirit with the prophets and the apostles. To that end, may we grasp
precisely what they meant to say, taking each word in its real and
authentic sense. For we are about to say what they already have declared
as part of the mystery of revelation: that you are the eternal God, the
Father of the eternal, only-begotten God? that you are one and not born
from another; and that the Lord Jesus is also one, born of you from all
eternity. We must not proclaim a change in truth regarding the number of
gods. We must not deny that he is begotten of you who are the one God;
nor must we assert that he is other than the true God, born of you who
are truly God the Father.
Impart to us, then, the meaning of the words of Scripture and the light
to understand it, with reverence for the doctrine and confidence in its
truth. Grant that we may express what we believe. Through the prophets
and apostles we know about you, the one God the Father, and the one Lord
Jesus Christ. May we have the grace, in the face of heretics who deny
you, to honor you as God, who is not alone, and to proclaim this as
truth.
R997 Hilary, bishop, a treatise on the Trinity by the Saint
The Father's gift in Christ
Our Lord commanded us to baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. In baptism, then, we profess faith in the Creator, in the only-begotten Son and in the gift which is the Spirit. There is one Creator of all things, for in God there is one Father from whom all things have their being. And there is one only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom all things exist. And there is one Spirit, the gift who is in all. So all follow their due order, according to the proper operation of each: one power, which brings all things into being, one Son, through whom all things come to be, and one gift of perfect hope. Nothing is wanting to this flawless union: in Father, Son and Holy Spirit, there is infinity of endless being, perfect reflection of the divine image, and mutual enjoyment of the gift.
Our Lord has described the purpose of the Spirit's presence in us. Let
us listen to his words: I have yet many things to say to you, but you
cannot bear them now. It is to your advantage that I go away, if I go, I
will send you the Advocate. And also: I will ask the Father and he will
give you another Counselor to be with you for ever, the Spirit of truth.
He will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own
authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to
you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take
what is mine.
From among many of our Lord's sayings, these have been chosen to guide
our understanding, for they reveal to us the intention of the giver, the
nature of the gift and the condition for its reception. Since our weak
minds cannot comprehend the Father or the Son, we have been given the
Holy Spirit as our intermediary and advocate, to shed light on that hard
doctrine of our faith, the incarnation of God.
We receive the Spirit of truth so that we can know the things of God. In
order to grasp this, consider how useless the faculties of the human
body would become if they were denied their exercise. Our eyes cannot
fulfill their test without light, either natural or artificial; our ears
cannot react without sound vibrations, and in the absence of any odor
our nostrils are ignorant of their function. Not that these senses would
lose their own nature if they were not used; rather, they demand objects
of experience in order to function. It is the same with the human soul.
Unless it absorbs the gift of the Spirit through faith, the mind has the
ability to know God but lacks the light necessary for that knowledge.
This unique gift which is in Christ is offered in its fullness to
everyone. It is everywhere available, but it is given to each man in
proportion to his readiness to receive it. Its presence is the fuller,
the greater a man's desire to be worthy of it. This gift will remain
with us until the end of the world, and will be our comfort in the time
of waiting. By the favors it bestows, it is the pledge of our hope for
the future, the light of our minds, and the splendor that irradiates our
understanding.
R778 Hilary, bishop, a treatise on the Trinity by the Saint
The unity of the faithful in God through the incarnation of the Word and the sacrament of the Eucharist
We believe that the Word became flesh and that we receive his flesh in the Lord's Supper. How then can we fail to believe that he really dwells within us? When he became man, he actually clothed himself in our flesh, uniting it to himself for ever. In the sacrament of his body he actually gives us his own flesh, which he has united to his divinity. This is why we are all one, because the Father is in Christ, and Christ is in us. He is in us through his flesh and. we are in him. With him we form a unity which is in God.
The manner of our indwelling in him through the sacrament of his body
and blood is evident from the Lord's own words: This world will see me
no longer but you shall see me. Because I live you shall live also, for
I am in my Father, you are in me, and I am in you. If it had been a
question of a mere unity of will, why should he have given us this
explanation of the steps by which it is achieved? He is in the Father by
reason of his divine nature, we are in him by reason of his human birth,
and he is in us through the mystery of the sacraments. This, surely, is
what he wished us to believe; this is how he wanted us to understand the
perfect unity that is achieved through our Mediator, who lives in the
Father while we live in him, and who, while living in the Father, lives
also in us. This is how we attain to unity with the Father. Christ is in
very truth in the Father by his eternal generation; we are in very truth
in Christ, and he likewise is in us.
Christ himself bore witness to the reality of this unity when he said:
He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I in him. No
one will be in Christ unless Christ himself has been in him; Christ will
take to himself only the flesh of those who have received his flesh.
He had already explained the mystery of this perfect unity when he said:
As the living Father sent me and I draw life from the Father, so he who
eats my flesh will draw life from me. We draw life from his flesh just
as he draws life from the Father. Such comparisons aid our
understanding, since we can grasp a point more easily when we have an
analogy. And the point is that Christ is the wellspring of our life.
Since we who are in the flesh have Christ dwelling in us through his
flesh, we shall draw life from him in the same way as he draws life from
the Father.
B586 Hippolytus, priest, a sermon on the Epiphany attributed to the Saint
Water and the Spirit
That Jesus should come and be baptized by John is surely cause for amazement. To think of the infinite river that gladdens the city of God being bathed in a poor little stream of the eternal; the unfathomable fountainhead that gives life to all men being immersed in the shallow waters of this transient world! He who fills all creation, leaving no place devoid of his presence, he who is incomprehensible to the angels and hidden from the sight of man, came to be baptized because it was his will. And behold, the heavens opened and a voice said. "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.
The beloved Father begets love and spiritual light generates light
inaccessible. In his divine nature he is my only Son, though he was
known as the son of Joseph. This is my beloved Son. Though hungry
himself, he feeds thousands; though weary, he refreshes those who labor.
He has no place to lay his head yet holds all creation in his hand. By
his passion [inflicted on him by others], he frees us from the passions
[unleashed by our disobedience]; by receiving a blow on the cheek he
gives the world its liberty; by being pierced in the side he heals the
wound of Adam.
I ask you now to pay close attention, for I want to return to that
fountain of life and contemplate its healing waters at their source.
The Father of immortality sent his immortal Son and Word into the world;
he came to us men to cleanse us with water and the Spirit. To give us a
new birth that would make our bodies and souls immortal, he breathed
into us the spirit of life and armed us with incorruptibility. Now if we
become immortal, we shall also be divine; and if we become divine after
rebirth in baptism through water and the Holy Spirit, we shall also be
coheirs with Christ after the resurrection of the dead.
Therefore, in a herald's voice I cry: Let peoples of every nation come
and receive the immortality that flows from baptism. This is the water
that is linked to the Spirit, the water that irrigates Paradise, makes
the earth fertile, gives growth to plants, and brings forth living
creatures. In short, this is the water by which a man receives new birth
and life, the water in which even Christ was baptized, the water into
which the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove.
Whoever goes down into these waters of rebirth with faith renounces the
devil and pledges himself to Christ. He repudiates the enemy and
confesses that Christ is God, throws off his servitude, and is raised to
filial status. He comes up from baptism resplendent as the sun, radiant
in his purity, but above all, he comes as a son of God and a coheir with
Christ. To him and to his most holy and life-giving Spirit be glory and
power now and for ever. Amen.
B370 Hippolytus, priest, a treatise against the heresy of Noetus by the Saint
The manifestation of the hidden mystery
There is only one God, brethren, and we learn about him only from sacred Scripture. It is therefore our duty to become acquainted with what Scripture proclaims and to investigate its teachings thoroughly. we should believe them in the sense that the Father wills, thinking of the Son in the way the Father wills and accepting the teaching he wills to give us with regard to the Holy Spirit. Sacred Scripture is God's gift to us and it should be understood in the way that he intends: we should not do violence to it by interpreting it according to our own preconceived ideas.
God was all alone and nothing existed but himself when he determined to
create the world. He thought of it, willed it, spoke the word and so
made it. It came into being instantaneously, exactly as he had willed.
It is enough then for us to be aware of a single fact: nothing is
coeternal with God. Apart from God there was simply nothing else. Yet
although he was alone, he was manifold because he lacked neither reason,
wisdom, power nor counsel. All things were in him and he himself was
all. At a moment of his own choosing and in a manner determined by
himself, God manifested his Word, and through him he made the whole
universe.
When the Word was hidden within God himself he was invisible to the
created world, but God made him visible. First God gave utterance to his
voice, engendering light from light, and then he sent his own mind into
the world as its Lord. Visible before to God alone and not to the world,
God made him visible so that the world could be saved by seeing him.
This mind that entered our world was made known as the son of God. All
things came into being through him; but he alone is begotten by the
Father.
The Son gave us the law and the prophets, and he filled the prophets
with the Holy Spirit to compel them to speak out. Inspired by the
Father's power, they were to proclaim the Father's purpose and his will.
So the word was made manifest, as Saint John declares when, summing up
all the sayings of the prophets, he announces that this is the Word
through whom the whole universe was made. He says: In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Through him
all things came into being; not one thing was created without him. And
further on he adds: The world was made through him, and yet the world
did not know him. He entered his own creation, and his own did not
receive him.
B459 Hippolytus, priest, a treatise On the Refutation of All Heresies by the Saint
The Word made flesh makes man divine
Our faith is not founded upon empty words; nor are we carried away by mere caprice or beguiled by specious arguments. On the contrary, we put our faith in words spoken by the power of God, spoken by the Word himself at God's command. God wished to win men back from disobedience, not by using force to reduce him to slavery but by addressing to his free will a call to liberty.
The Word spoke first of all through the prophets, but because the
message was couched in such obscure language that it could be only dimly
apprehended, in the last days the Father sent the Word in person,
commanding him to show himself openly so that the world could see him
and be saved.
We know that by taking a body from the Virgin he refashioned our fallen
nature. We know that his manhood was of the same clay as our own; if
this were not so, he would hardly have been a teacher who could expect
to be imitated. If he were of a different substance from me, he would
surely not have ordered me to do as he did, when by my very nature I am
so weak. Such a demand could not be reconciled with his goodness and
justice.
No. He wanted us to consider him as no different from ourselves, and so
he worked, he was hungry and thirsty, he slept. Without protest he
endured his passion, he submitted to death and revealed his
resurrection. In all these ways he offered his own manhood as the
firstfruits of our race to keep us from losing heart when suffering
comes our way, and to make us look forward to receiving the same reward
as he did, since we know that we possess the same humanity.
When we have come to know the true God, both our bodies and our souls
will be immortal and incorruptible. We shall enter the kingdom of
heaven, because while we lived on earth we acknowledged heaven's King.
Friends of God and coheirs with Christ, we shall be subject to no evil
desires or inclinations, or to any affliction of body or soul, for we
shall have become divine. It was because of our human condition that God
allowed us to endure these things, but when we have been deified and
made immortal, God has promised us a share in his own attributes.
The saying "Know yourself" means therefore that we should recognize and
acknowledge in ourselves the God who made us in his own image, for if we
do this, we in turn will be recognized and acknowledged by our Maker. So
let us not be at enmity with ourselves, but change our way of life
without delay. For Christ who is God, exalted above all creation, has
taken away man's sin and has refashioned our fallen nature. In the
beginning God made man in his image and so gave proof of his love for
us. If we obey his holy commands and learn to imitate his goodness, we
shall be like him and he will honor us. God is not beggarly, and for the
sake of his own glory he has given us a share in his divinity.
R644 Homily, an ancient Easter homily by Pseudo-Chrysostom
The Spiritual Passover
The Passover we celebrate brings salvation to the whole human race beginning with the first man, who together with all others is saved and given life.
In an imperfect and transitory way, the types and images of the past
prefigured the perfect and eternal reality which has now been revealed.
The presence of what is represented makes the symbol obsolete: when the
king appears in person no one pays reverence to his statue.
How far the symbol falls short of the reality is seen from the fact that
the symbolic Passover celebrated the brief life of the firstborn of the
Jews, whereas the real Passover celebrates the eternal life of all
mankind. It is a small gain to escape death for a short time, only to
die soon afterward; it is a very different thing to escape death
altogether as we do through the sacrifice of Christ, our Passover.
Correctly understood, its very name shows why this is our greatest
feast. It is called the Passover because, when he was striking down the
firstborn, the destroying angel passed over the houses of the Hebrews,
but it is even more true to say that he passes over us, for he does so
once for all when we are raised up by Christ to eternal life.
If we think only of the true Passover and ask why it is that the time of
the Passover and the salvation of the firstborn is taken to be the
beginning of the year, the answer must surely be that the sacrifice of
the true Passover is for us the beginning of eternal life. Because it
revolves in cycles and never comes to an end, the year is a symbol of
eternity.
Christ, the sacrifice that was offered for us, is the father of the
world to come. He puts an end to our former life, and through the
regenerating waters of baptism in which we imitate his death and
resurrection, he gives us the beginning of a new life. The knowledge
that Christ is the Passover lamb who was sacrificed for us should make
us regard the moment of his immolation as the beginning of our own
lives. As far as we are concerned, Christ's immolation on our behalf
takes place when we become aware of this grace and understand the life
conferred on us by this sacrifice. Having once understood it, we should
enter upon this new life with all eagerness and never return to the old
one, which is now at an end. As Scripture says: We have died to
sin---how then can we continue to live in it?
R496 Homily, an ancient homily on Holy Saturday
The Lord descends into hell
Something strange is happening---there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.
He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly
desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death,
he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is
both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross,
the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the
first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to
everyone: "My Lord be with you all." Christ answered him: "And with your
spirit." He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: "Awake, O
sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light "
I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for
you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who
are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be
enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to
awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the
dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who
were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in
me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be
separated.
For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form
of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth
and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like
a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a
garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a
garden.
See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the
life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I
received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my
back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of
sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree,
for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree.
I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in
paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the
pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The
sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against
you.
Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly
paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone
you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life,
but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim
to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as
God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and
eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal
dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie
open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.
R582 Homily, an Easter homily by an ancient author
Christ the source of Resurrection and Life
Saint Paul rejoices in the knowledge that spiritual health has been restored to the human race. Death entered the world through Adam, he explains, but life has been given back to the world through Christ. Again he says: The first man, being from the earth, is earthly by nature; the second man is from heaven and is heavenly. As we have borne the image of the earthly man, the image of human nature grown old in sin, so let us bear the image of the heavenly man: human nature raised up, redeemed, restored and purified in Christ. We must hold fast to the salvation we have received. Christ was the firstfruits, says the Apostle; he is the source of resurrection and life. Those who belong to Christ will follow him. Modeling their lives on his purity, they will be secure in the hope of his resurrection and of enjoying with him the glory promised in heaven. Our Lord himself said so in the gospel: Whoever follows me will not perish, but will pass from death to life.
Thus the passion of our Savior is the salvation of mankind. The reason
why he desired to die for us was that he wanted us who believe in him to
live for ever.In the fullness of time it was his will to become what we
are, so that we might inherit the eternity he promised and live with him
for ever.
Here, then, is the grace conferred by these heavenly mysteries, the gift
which Easter brings, the most longed for feast of the year; here are the
beginnings of creatures newly formed: children born from the life-giving
font of holy Church, born anew with the simplicity of little ones, and
crying out with the evidence of a clean conscience. Chaste fathers and
inviolate mothers accompany this new family, countless in number, born
to new life through faith. As they emerge from the grace-giving womb of
the font, a blaze of candles burns brightly beneath the tree of faith.
The Easter festival brings the grace of holiness from heaven to men.
Through the repeated celebration of the sacred mysteries they receive
the spiritual nourishment of the sacraments. Fostered at the very heart
of holy Church, the fellowship of one community worships the one God,
adoring the triple name of his essential holiness, and together with the
prophet sings the psalm which belongs to this yearly festival: This is
the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad. And what is this
day? It is the Lord Jesus Christ himself, the author of light, who
brings the sunrise and the beginning of life, saying of himself: I am
the light of day; whoever walks in daylight does not stumble. That is to
say, whoever follows Christ in all things will come by this path to the
throne of eternal light.
Such was the prayer Christ made to the Father while he was still on
earth: Father, I desire that where I am they also may be, those who have
come to believe in me; and that as you are in me and I in you, so they
may abide in us.
R1005 Homily, a sermon by a sixth century African author
The Church in its unity speaks in the language of every nation
The disciples spoke in the language of every nation. At Pentecost God chose this means to indicate the presence of the Holy Spirit: whoever had received the Spirit spoke in every kind of tongue. We must realize, dear brothers, that this is the same Holy Spirit by whom love is poured out in our hearts. It was love that was to bring the Church of God together all over the world. And as individual men who received the Holy Spirit in those days could speak in all kinds of tongues, so today the Church, united by the Holy Spirit, speaks in the language of every people.
Therefore if somebody should say to one of us, "You have received the
Holy Spirit, why do you not speak in tongues?" his reply should be, "I
do indeed speak in the tongues of all men, because I belong to the body
of Christ, that is, the Church, and she speaks all languages. What else
did the presence of the Holy Spirit indicate at Pentecost, except that
God's Church was to speak in the language of every people?"
This was the way in which the Lord's promise was fulfilled: No one puts
new wine into old wineskins. New wine is put into fresh skins, and so
both are preserved. So when the disciples were heard speaking in all
kinds of languages, some people were not far wrong in saying: They have
been drinking too much new wine. The truth is that the disciples had now
become fresh wineskins, renewed and made holy by grace. The new wine of
the Holy Spirit filled them, so that their fervor brimmed over and they
spoke in manifold tongues. By this spectacular miracle they became a
sign of the Catholic Church, which embraces the language of every
nation.
Keep this feast, then, as members of the one body of Christ. It will be
no empty festival for you if you really live what you are celebrating.
For you are the members of that Church which the Lord acknowledges as
his own, being himself acknowledged by her, that same Church which he
fills with the Holy Spirit as she spreads throughout the world. He is
like a bridegroom who never loses sight of his own bride; no one could
ever deceive him by substituting some other woman.
To you men of all nations, then, who make up the Church of Christ, you,
the members of Christ, you, the body of Christ, you, the bride of
Christ---to all of you the Apostle addresses these words: Bear with one
another in love; do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit in
the bond of peace. Notice that when Paul urges us to bear with one
another, he bases his argument on love, and when he speaks of our hope
of unity, he emphasizes the bond of peace. This Church is the house of
God, built up of living stones, whose master is almighty God. It is his
delight to dwell here. Take care, then, that he never has the sorrow of
seeing it undermined by schism and collapsing in ruins.
G502 Homily written in the second century
Christ willed to save those who were perishing
Brethren, we ought to regard Jesus Christ as God and judge of the living and the dead. We should not hold our Savior in low esteem, for if we esteem him but little, we may hope to obtain but little from him. Moreover, people who hear these things and think them of small importance commit sin, and we ourselves sin if we do not realize what we have been called from, who has called us, and to what place, and how much suffering Jesus Christ endured on our account.
How then shall we repay him? What fruit can we bear that would be worthy
of what he has given us? For how many benefits are we not in his debt!
He has enlightened our minds; he has called us sons as a father does; he
saved us when we were about to perish. How then shall we praise him, how
repay him for his gifts? Spiritually blind, we worshiped stones and
pieces of wood, gold and silver and bronze, things made by men, and our
whole life was death. Darkness enfolded us, and nothing but gloom met
our eyes. Then, by his will, we escaped from the cloud that enveloped us
and recovered our sight. For he saw our many errors and the damnation
that awaited us, and knowing that apart from him we had no hope of
salvation, he pitied us, and in his mercy saved us. He called us when we
were not his people and willed us to become his people.
Rejoice, O barren woman who never bore a child; break into shouts of
joy, you who never knew a mother's pangs; for the deserted wife shall
have more children than she who has a husband. When he says: Rejoice,
barren woman who never bore a child, he is speaking of us, for our
Church was barren until children were given her. When he says: Break
into shouts of joy, you who never knew a mother's pangs, he means that
we should not grow weary like women in labor, but tirelessly and in all
simplicity offer our prayers to God. He declares that the deserted wife
shall have more children than she who has a husband, because faith has
now made our people who seemed to have been deserted by God more
numerous than those who were thought to possess him.
Another text says: I have come not to call the righteous but sinners to
repentance, for it is those who are perishing who must be saved. It is a
great and wonderful work to uphold those who are falling, rather than
those who already stand firm. Christ willed to save people who were in
danger of losing their souls, and he has been the salvation of many.
When we were on the point of perishing, he came and called us.