Zeno of Verona

Zeno of Verona: Book One

Tractates (Sermons and Discourses)

Tractate I. Faith

Summary (p. 55) – The essence of faith does not lie in knowledge of the law (the content of faith) or in its scientific proof, but in the willingness to believe, which arises from the will of man (Ch. 1). Knowledge of the law (the content of faith) is certainly of great value in many respects. It conveys God’s will to humanity, presents guidelines for conduct, and illustrates the wickedness of sin, etc. However, treatises on faith are not faith itself (Ch. 2).

The question of whether treatises on faith are justified, or whether there can be a faith of the treatise, may be answered as follows: a “treatise on faith” subjects faith to the art of “loquacity.” But even the “faith of the treatise” can contribute to the destruction of faith. There are numerous treatises and numerous formulas of faith. Since they differ, one must choose one among them. Accepting them all creates a plurality in faith, which stands in opposition to the ancient concept of faith (Ch. 3).

The essence of faith does not consist in the exposition of the content of faith, but in the willingness to believe. This willingness does not require supplementation through an exposition of the content of faith (p. 56). While such an exposition is not worthless, it is not faith itself, which cannot be gained or lost through exposition (Ch. 4).

Thus, a warning arises against attempting to investigate divine matters, especially the Godhead itself, through argumentation. Holy Scripture provides the opportunity to exercise understanding of the law. And whoever believes they possess the “faith of the Spirit” (charisma) should put its gifts into practice. However, the undertaking to explore the eternal divinity of the Son and the Holy Spirit borders on impiety. Scripture warns against this (Ch. 5). All such investigations lead to disputes, and disputes destroy both faith and love. Yet faith and love constitute true religiosity (Ch. 6).

This tractate finds its explanation in the widespread mistrust towards treatises on the Trinity, particularly against the many conflicting formulas of faith that had emerged in the last two decades of the Arian controversy. Already at the Synod of Antioch in 341, three formulations of the “Fides” had appeared, one of which later became a synodal formula. A few months later, at another synod also held in Antioch, a fourth formulation was adopted. This was followed by the various formulas of Sirmium from the years 351, 357, 358, and 359.

Hilary had spoken out in similar terms against the confusion that arose from these developments:
“Since the Synod of Nicaea, people have written only about faith. And while they dispute over words and anathematize one another, none remains a disciple of Christ.”

He felt compelled to justify his own explanations of faith formulas, saying that necessity had been imposed by the Arians. What should have remained concealed in the religious sensibility of the spirit (p. 57) was being exposed to the danger of human discussion. Likewise, Ambrose later objected multiple times to such investigations, declaring that one should rather fear than attempt to fathom the depths of the Godhead.

This tractate likely originates from the early years of Zeno’s activity, influenced by the aforementioned formulations. Despite the assumptions of editors Ballerini and Giuliari, who considered it more of a letter than a sermon, it may indeed be classified as a sermon. The form of address and the exhortation in the final chapter seem to suggest this.

1. The Greatest Blessing for the Christian Believer Is to Know the Essence of Faith

The distinctiveness and greatness of faith lie in the fact that it is not transmitted from one person to another but arises from one’s own will. If, as some believe, faith depends on the instruction of a teacher, then it will undoubtedly perish as soon as the teacher ceases his work or teaches differently. Furthermore, the transmission of the law (the content of faith) will be of no value unless faith already exists beforehand—faith that reverently receives this transmission, trusting both itself and the instruction, thereby ensuring its success. For to one who does not possess the will to believe, it cannot impart the fruit that the believer attains.

Thus, Abraham pleased God through his faith alone, without the law, while the Jewish people, despite possessing the law, displeased Him through their unbelief (p. 58). There can therefore be no doubt: the law cannot stand without faith, but faith can stand without the law. The countless multitudes who live very happily in simple innocence would still be under the dominion of death if only those who knew the law were deemed worthy of justification.

Now it is written:
“The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life;” (2 Corinthians 3:6) and
“We are not under the law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14).

This urges us to love God and serve Him alone in the mystery of the united Trinity, once received in faith—not on the basis of argumentation, not out of necessity, but from free will.

Thus, in my view, it is entirely clear that the simple and innocent are better off than those who engage in excessive reasoning. The simple person believes every word of God absolutely; the overly rational thinker, however, becomes a fool through excessive wisdom and entangles himself in his own vain speculations.

2. Now, Someone Might Say…

Now, someone might say: If this is so, then the law has no value for anyone. But that is not the case. The law does have value—indeed, it has great value.

Through the law, the will of God is made known to the nations; through the law, the doctrine of a heavenly way of life is summarized and upheld; through the law, every kind of sin is exposed in its wickedness, so that no one perishes out of ignorance. The law ceaselessly admonishes, so that no one may excuse their transgressions by claiming ignorance. At times with severity, at times with gentleness, it points toward reward or punishment, with the intention of giving each person what they choose for themselves, ensuring that what it enacts is carried out justly (p. 59).

It demands from those who approach it a declaration of their willingness to believe, since it cannot itself perceive their faith. And when it finds a deficiency in moral conduct, it immediately punishes the one it has instructed as a faithless person. In fact, it declares that it exists solely to establish the right of faith against unbelievers.

And finally: Remove sin, and the dominion of the law ceases! For it is written:
“The law is not given for the righteous, but for sinners.” (1 Timothy 1:9)

Since “the righteous shall live by faith,” (Romans 1:17) the unbeliever, in contrast, lives unrighteously.

Thus, the one who considers an exposition of the law (i.e., the content of faith) to be the same as faith itself is mistaken. He confuses two entirely different things. An exposition may develop the law in its content, but at the same time, it uproots faith—for faith ceases to exist the moment one seeks after it.

Furthermore, the law is common to all, whereas faith is the private matter of each individual. The law can always be derived from the Book of Genesis; faith, however, has its firm root solely in one’s free, personal decision. The law is passed from one person to another; faith perishes if it deviates even slightly from its standpoint. The law can only appeal to the conscience of man, but it cannot look within it; faith, however, cleanses the conscience to its very core, so that it does not feel guilty of any transgression, even in its innermost depths—for a person who does not fear their own conscience does not fear God either.

Moreover, the law is learned and taught only in fragments; it is never fully grasped in its entirety or retained in full in one’s memory. Each person presents arguments for it in accordance with their own mental disposition; all strive for it, but none fulfill it. It makes known the will of God, but not its origin or essence (p. 60).

3. Should We Accept a Treatise on Faith or the Faith of a Treatise?

From this, the question arises: Should we accept a treatise on faith, or the faith of a treatise? If we speak of a treatise on faith, we are greatly mistaken—for the essence of faith cannot submit to the art of loquacity (rhetoric), which only seeks to establish faith through its own efforts. That which requires supplementation from another source cannot claim perfection—and faith must claim perfection.

But if we begin to speak of the faith of a treatise, then there is no longer faith—neither ours, nor that of the treatise, nor that of its author. For while the treatise builds faith, it simultaneously destroys it through the very arguments with which it seeks to establish it. It gives nothing to anyone that they do not already possess; in fact, its investigation is more likely to result in the loss of what one previously had.

I also see that there are many treatises—their authors’ names testify to this (and if we were to disregard these names, perhaps there would be no disputes at all). And accordingly, there are also many faiths (faith formulas), entirely new ones, born out of a spirit of contention and quarreling. Since it is nearly impossible to find a true one among them, I suspect they have been put up for sale so that they do not lack followers.

But what should one choose from all of this? It is impossible to know or comprehend. That which has no firm foundation can never become a secure possession. Choosing one means rejecting another; accepting them all at once—so that one has more faith formulas than words—means, in the end, having nothing at all.

For the treatise that gave rise to these faith formulas—or even continues to generate them daily—can just as easily produce new ones in the future. And at the same time, it destroys these very formulas when, in its battle against opponents, it refutes and nullifies them with all the force of its arguments and reasoning (p. 61).

If, as is necessary, there is only one faith—the noble, ancient faith, which, as I recall, did not originate from a treatise, but predates even the law itself—this faith, which secured possession of God beforehand through belief in Him, which did not first learn to believe but had already put belief into action…

Then tell me, what good is this miserable invention of treatises?

It claims to prevent faith from perishing when it is poorly taught or understood due to a lack of instruction. But how disastrous this reasoning is will soon become evident.

4. Is Faith Based on Knowledge, Willingness, or Both?

I now ask: Is faith based on learned knowledge, on the willingness to believe, or on both?

If faith is based on learned knowledge, then those who cannot read have no faith—nor do those who can read, since even they cannot perfect their understanding and observance of the law through reasoning alone.

If faith is based on the willingness to believe, then it requires no explanation—for as soon as this faith is present, it is already complete by the very fact that one has believed. It can neither diminish nor increase.

But if faith consists of both knowledge and willingness, then the faith of the Patriarchs was only half-complete, and we must send them books containing our arguments so that they may attain perfection!

Oh, how pitiful is a faith that is constructed from words!

Oh, how fragile, if its limbs are daily torn apart by different arguments!

Oh, how defenseless, if it constantly requires the protection of kings, judges, and the wealthy—and what is even worse, sometimes even of pagans!

How disgraceful and unstable, when outsiders ridicule its judgments!

How illegitimate in its origins, if it does not even know whom to call its father!

How ridiculous, when in a dispute between two Christians, one calls the other an unbeliever if they fail to persuade him, but a believer if they succeed!

How deceptive, when it takes shape within factions!

How publicly scorned, when its mysteries become the subject of idle chatter among the uninitiated!

How arrogant, when it demands that its newfangled traditions be believed more than ancient truths, more than God Himself, who says:
“You reject the commandment of God and replace it with your own tradition!” (Mark 7:9)

I do not say this to deny the value of learned expositions—I say it so that everyone may understand that faith is something entirely different from a treatise about it. Faith cannot be given, recognized, or destroyed by a treatise.

Faith cannot be given—for if it could be given by words, it could also be taken away by words.

Faith cannot be recognized—for it may happen that someone professes one thing with their lips while harboring something else in their heart.

Faith cannot even be destroyed—for if it is true faith, it can be nothing other than what it is.

And since man has no power to see into the mysteries of faith, my brother, your speculations are useless, your disputes futile.

For indeed, the one whom you consider the most faithful among your own followers may be an unbeliever; and the one you call an unbeliever may in fact be faithful (p. 63).

Perhaps someone might consider themselves very devout because they are skilled in speaking, while in reality, the truly devout person is the one who does not overstrain their mental sharpness during the holy preaching. It has come to such an extent that some seek to create our faith through an insult to God. That this would happen, Solomon already predicted and also warned us to be cautious with the words: ‘Better is a man who lacks wisdom but fears God, than one who is overrich in wisdom but transgresses the law.’ And again, ‘You should not desire to be too wise, nor think beyond what is necessary.’ And similarly, Paul says: ‘Do not be proud, but fear!’

5. If This Is So, Why Do You Destroy the Law with the Law?

If this is so, why do you destroy the law through the law? Why do you dethrone faith under the pretense of faith? Why do you even seek to draw out the source of the Godhead with philosophical proofs?

If you wish to demonstrate your knowledge of the law, very well—illuminate the obscure passages in the readings! Show that the law does not contradict itself! Prove that everything it proclaims is credible!

For if you acknowledge only part of it but reject another, how can you demand faith in a law that you yourself declare untrustworthy by not believing it in its entirety?

But if you call the faith of the Spirit your own, then also display its power! Then command the mountains to move (Matthew 17:20). Then let the wildness of lions subside, and let their mouths caress you in admiration (Daniel 6:22). Let the swelling waves beneath your steps become motionless as marble, forming solid ground (Matthew 14:29).

Through the surging waves of the stormy sea, let a fish faithfully carry your faith like a vessel (cf. Jonah 1:17). Restrain the course of the sun and the moon with the reins of your prayer, from the prison that receives them at their setting (Joshua 10:12-13). Let the blazing fire of the fiery furnace be conquered in its nature, and let it, through you and with you, feel coolness (Daniel 3:25).

Call back the souls of the departed to the former homeland of life and revive them with your breath! Banish sickness from the afflicted, heal their infirmities! Rejoice in trials and sufferings for the name of the Lord!

When hardships come, show that you possess faith even the size of a mustard seed! (Matthew 17:20).

But if, instead, you recklessly pursue worldly fame under the guise of law and faith—if you dare to subject to investigation the eternal birth of the Son and the Holy Spirit from God, which, according to justice and according to its very nature, is incomparable and incomprehensible—if you seek to analyze, measure, and confine it with arguments, then I dare say nothing to you.

For it would be better to appear ignorant than to be impious.

Yet, I do have something that stands against you on my behalf:

The very law itself, through which you, perhaps more learned than I, seek to accuse me of sin, turns against you with power, refutes you, and defeats you.

For Solomon says:
“Do not seek what is too lofty for you, and do not attempt to fathom what is beyond your strength. Always be mindful only of what God has commanded you, and then you will not be overly curious about many of His works. For many have been led astray by their own presumption and have been trapped by the vanity of their minds.” (Sirach 3:21-24)

And similarly, Paul writes for the one who speculates too much:
“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and how inscrutable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord?” (Romans 11:33-34)

And yet you wish to probe into His very essence?

And in another place, he speaks plainly about this matter when instructing Timothy:
“I have urged you to command certain people not to teach false doctrines, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote controversies rather than the true knowledge of God that is grounded in faith. For the goal of the commandment is love, which comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and sincere faith.” (1 Timothy 1:3-5)

6.

If you are a servant of God, then avoid foolish and clumsy questions that only lead to disputes! A servant of God must not quarrel, for strife is the enemy of love and faith. And whoever loses these two can recognize neither the divine nor the human. Take this to heart if you possess religion! Guard it if you are truly God-fearing! Avoid disputing about what surpasses the limits of human understanding!

In a certain sense, whoever tries to prove God denies Him; for one only defends what is weak. And one who believes that God’s recognition is due to his own intellect can no longer hold God in reverence.

Moreover, this is the true greatness of faith: that a person serves God faithfully, that he places his trust in Him alone, that he understands that he bears the designation Fidelis (the believer) from Fidelitas (faithfulness) and Fiducia (trusting confidence); that he leads a blameless life; that he dares to know God only with a good conscience and not with idle talk, which in reality is the mother of sin; that he does not violate but rather honors the unity of the fullness of the power of the Trinity, which is grasped as one in spirit and as one in faith.

Treatise II: Hope, Faith, and Love

Summary
Hope, faith, and love form the foundations of Christian perfection.

First, hope proves to be a driving force in the life of every person, including every Christian (Chapter 1). However, hope is rooted in faith. Its significance is great, yet it always exists in connection with faith, as the example of Abraham demonstrates (Chapter 2). Faith is the most personal possession of man. Numerous examples from the Old and New Testaments testify to its efficacy (Chapter 3). The queen of all virtues is love. Without it, faith and hope lose their value. Love has advantages over them, and its influence extends to all things (Chapter 4). Even the world of animals and the elements follows a law of love. According to the Lord’s word, love is the greatest commandment and stands above the law (Chapter 5). Love surpasses hope, faith, and all virtues, as seen in the case of Judas, heresies, and even in Paul’s writings (Chapter 6). From this follows the duty to love God and one’s neighbor (Chapter 7). However, this love must not be confused with earthly, sensual love, whose consequences are very harmful and which is therefore rejected both by the wise of the world and by Holy Scripture (Chapter 8). True love belongs to God and comes from God. It prompted Him to create and redeem, manifests itself in all of life, and can even be called God Himself.

1. The Foundations of Christian Perfection

Three things form the foundations of Christian perfection: hope, faith, and love. They are so closely intertwined that one cannot exist without the other. What is the purpose of faith’s work if hope does not accompany it? And if faith is absent, how can hope arise? Both, however, cease when love is taken away from them. Faith cannot function without love, and hope cannot be effective without faith.

If, therefore, a Christian seeks to attain perfection, he must be firmly anchored in these three virtues. If even one is lacking, his work remains incomplete. Above all, we must keep our eyes fixed on hope for the things to come, for we clearly see that without it, even the things of the present cannot endure. Indeed, take away hope, and all humanity falls into stagnation. Remove hope, and all art and science cease. Take hope away, and everything vanishes.

For what reason does a child remain with a teacher if he does not hope to reap the fruit of knowledge? Why does a sailor entrust his vessel to the depths of the sea if he does not anticipate any profit or the longed-for harbor? Why does a soldier—let alone endure the hardships of icy winters and scorching summers—risk his very life if he does not carry within him the hope of future glory? Why does a farmer scatter his seed if he does not expect a harvest as the reward of his labor? And why does a Christian believe in Christ if he does not also believe that one day the time of eternal blessedness, promised to him by Christ, will come?

2. Hope Arises from Faith

Hope originates from faith; though it is directed toward the future, it remains dependent on faith. Where there is no faith, there is no hope. Faith is the foundation of hope, and hope is the glory of faith. The reward that hope anticipates is earned by faith. Faith struggles for hope, but the victory it gains belongs to itself.

Therefore, my brothers, we must cling firmly to hope and safeguard it with all our strength. It must be the focus of our courageous striving, for it is the unshakable foundation of our life, an impregnable fortress, and a mighty weapon against the assaults of the devil. It is an impenetrable shield for our soul, a concise summary of true knowledge of the law, the terror of evil spirits (demons), the strength of martyrs, the beauty of the Church—indeed, its protective wall—the servant of God the Father, the friend of Christ, and the companion of the Holy Spirit.

Hope rules over both present and future things: over the former, because it disregards them; over the latter, because it already claims them as its own in advance. And it does not need to fear that they might not come to pass, for it carries them within itself by its own power. This is expressed in the words: “Abraham, against hope, believed in hope, that he would become the father of many nations.”

To believe against hope means to believe in what seems impossible and appears to be beyond reach. Yet, through hope, the impossible becomes possible when the word of God is accepted without hesitation and with confident faith. For the Lord says: “Everything is possible for the one who believes.”

Thus, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” He was considered righteous because he was full of faith, for “the righteous shall live by faith.” He was faithful because he believed God. Had he not believed, he would neither have been righteous nor the father of many nations.

It is therefore clear that the essence of hope and faith is one and inseparably linked. If a person lacks either of these virtues, both perish.

3. Faith as Our Most Personal Possession

Faith is the most personal possession we have. For the Lord says, “Your faith has made you well.” And since faith belongs to us, we must safeguard it so that we may rightfully hope for that which is not yet ours. No one would entrust his wealth to a squanderer, nor would anyone grant the honor of triumph to a deserter, especially since it is written: “To him who has, more will be given in abundance; but to him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

It was faith, my brothers, that allowed Enoch to be taken up in the body, contrary to the laws of nature. It was faith that saved Noah when no one else survived to recount the event of the Flood. It was faith that brought Abraham into friendship with God. It was faith that made Isaac stand out among all others. It was faith that enabled Jacob to prevail in his struggle with God. It was faith that subjected Egypt to Joseph.

It was faith that turned the Red Sea into firm ground like glass for Moses. It was faith that, in response to Joshua’s request, held back the sun and the moon, disregarding the natural order of their course. It was faith that gave the unarmed David victory over the armed Goliath. It was faith that prevented Job from falling into despair amidst his numerous and immense sufferings. It was faith that became a physician to the blind Tobias. It was faith that shut the mouths of the lions before Daniel. It was faith that transformed the whale into a boat for Jonah.

It was faith alone that granted victory to the army of the Maccabean brothers. It was faith that turned the fiery flames into a cooling breeze for the three youths. It was faith that inspired Peter with the boldness to walk upon the sea. It was faith that empowered the apostles to heal many afflicted by infectious sores and leprosy, restoring them to pure skin.

Yes, it was faith, I say, that enabled them to make the blind see, the deaf hear, the mute speak, the lame walk, and the paralyzed regain the use of their limbs. It was faith that cast demons out of the possessed. It was faith that even commanded the dead to return from their graves, along with those who had mourned them in funeral processions—so much so that all marveled at how the tears of grief over loss were transformed into tears of joy.

4. The Supreme Virtue of Love

But, my brothers, to delve into every detail would take too long, especially since love asserts its superior rights. Love claims all virtues as its own in such a supreme degree that it rightfully stands as the queen of all virtues.

Faith may celebrate its victories, and hope may promise much and great things—but without love, neither has permanence. Faith cannot endure without loving itself, nor can hope persist without being loved.

Furthermore, faith benefits only the individual, whereas love benefits all. Faith does not labor in vain, yet love gives without expecting thanks. Faith does not extend to others, whereas love not only extends to another—it extends to the entire people. Faith belongs only to a few, but love belongs to all. Hope and faith are limited to a certain time, but love has no end; it grows at every moment, and the more love is shown to another, the greater the obligation to love becomes.

Love does not exist for personal gain—it does not flatter. Love does not seek honor—it is not ambitious. Love does not differentiate between male and female—for it regards both as one. Love is not temporary—for it is not fickle. Love is not jealous—for it knows nothing of envy. Love is not boastful—for it fosters humility. Love thinks no evil—for it is pure. Love does not become angry—for it patiently endures injustice. Love does not deceive—for it remains true to its word. Love asks for nothing—for it needs nothing beyond its own existence.

It is love that preserves peace and order among cities and nations. Love is what makes the swords of kings harmless in their presence. Love is what suppresses wars, eliminates disputes, causes men to relinquish legal claims, softens judicial sentences, uproots hatred, and extinguishes wrath. Love is what navigates the seas, encircles the world, and facilitates the necessary exchange between trading nations.

A brief word about love’s power: Whatever nature has denied to a place, love provides. It is love that, as marital love, unites two persons into one flesh through the sacred sacrament. It is love that grants humanity its very existence through birth. Thanks to love, a wife is cherished, children are well-nurtured, and fathers are true fathers. Love makes others dearer to us than we are to ourselves, even more than our closest friends. It is love that causes us to regard our slaves as children and, in turn, for them to honor us as their masters. Love compels us to show kindness not only to acquaintances or friends but even to strangers we have never met. Love ensures that we continue to learn about the virtues of those who have long passed, either from books about them or from the virtues recorded in books.

5. The Universal Power of Love

But why should I speak only of human relationships, as if love were limited to mankind alone? Do we not see that every species of living being demonstrates love through unity and companionship? Indeed, all their actions seem to be governed by a common inclination under love’s guidance, proving that this bond of friendship is established even by nature itself.

Consider how animals stand together in times of distress. Take, for example, the well-known and often-witnessed behavior of pigs in battle: If one of them is threatened by a fierce and predatory wolf, the others immediately rush to its aid. They will even risk their lives to defend their companion. With loud grunts, they disorient the attacker; they reveal their sharp tusks and use them as weapons in a coordinated defense. By acting together in love, they secure victory—something they could hardly achieve through strength alone.

Even the elements, though different in nature and opposed to one another, would long since have perished if they were not balanced by harmonizing forces, held together in an enduring bond of love. Indeed, nothing can be pleasant without love, peaceful without love, faithful without love, secure without love, or worthy of praise without love. Nothing can be united to God or attain perfection without love.

Finally, when asked which commandment of the holy law was the greatest, the Lord Himself declared:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

It is clear, then, that love constitutes the essence of all divine virtues and serves as their natural teacher. Though love can be learned from the law, it must take root in the heart of man to be brought to life. The law depends on love, but love does not depend on the law. For as Scripture says:

“The law was not given for the righteous, but for sinners.”

A sinner is one who does not have the love of God; therefore, he remains under the law, which brings about wrath. Some may argue that this means the law should be disregarded since it is unnecessary for the righteous and a burden for the sinner. But no, my brothers! The law deserves the highest honor—it is the mirror of truth, the fixed form of love itself. It takes what it has learned from the righteous and offers it as a guide for the unrighteous. It is glorious for both: for the righteous, it is a crown of honor; for the unrighteous, it is a call to reform.

6. The Supremacy of Love in Christianity

Thus, it is evident that the essence of Christianity is based more on love than on hope and faith. The case of Judas Iscariot makes this clear: he lost both hope and faith because love no longer remained in him. Likewise, heresies and schisms arise when faith and hope become inflated with pride and detach themselves from the foundation of love.

Paul affirms this when he writes:

“If I have all faith, so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And if I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.”

For love, my brothers, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.

Thus, God commands love above all else, for only love is capable of fulfilling what He requires.

7. The First Duty of Love

The first duty of love is to acknowledge with gratitude that it is to God alone that we owe our birth; to recognize that our very life is solely thanks to Him; to leave nothing in the depths of our hearts that we might attribute to any other source than His.

Only then, brothers, when God begins to dwell within us upon our invitation—issued in such reverence—or when we abide in Him (as John says: “God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him”), only then, brothers, do we return the love He has shown us in the proper way. For by this exchange, what belongs to Him becomes ours.

The second duty follows naturally: we must love our neighbor as ourselves, to the same degree. All the more so, because the bonds of shared kinship demand it. For the prophet says: “One God has created you. Is He not the Father of you all?”

Whoever still holds within himself the awareness of his noble origin loves his brother. He does not need the law to remind him that this love must not be violated in any way. Indeed, he loves his brother so much that he hates himself without him.

There is something even more remarkable: God created man in His image and likeness so that in contemplating this image, we might feel reverence for the true original. This truth extends so far that whatever good or evil we do to any person is counted as done to God Himself.

Not without reason does John, who understands the mysteries of the Lord most profoundly, say:

“If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ but hates his brother, he is a liar. For how can one love God, whom he has not seen, if he does not love his brother, whom he has seen?”

Let us therefore, brothers, engage in a noble contest of mutual love! Let us honor the image of God in man, thereby rendering due reverence to the original itself. We know that whoever harms the image also strikes at the original and thus brings destruction upon his own soul.

The proof of this is evident: if someone were to damage the portrait of a great king (who, after all, is still only a man), would he not be immediately condemned for sacrilege and punished with death? How much greater, then, must our caution be in matters concerning God, before whom even the forces of nature bow—forces that even earthly kings fear!

8. The Danger of False Love

However, it is necessary that each person recognizes the nature of true love, so that under its name, the rule of truth is not undermined.

There exists another kind of love that is utterly opposed to our salvation. It is fittingly portrayed in the form of a human figure, for it is subject to time and transience. In paintings, it is depicted as a child—because its seductive looseness does not subside even in old age. It appears naked—because its desire is shameless. It is shown with wings—because it swiftly seizes whatever its lust grasps. It carries arrows and torches—because its weapon is always armed with illicit, burning passions. It is blind—because, once enflamed, it disregards age, gender, appearance, status, and even the most sacred bonds of kinship.

This was the love that set Eve’s heart aflame with its torches. This was the love that struck Adam down with its arrows. This was the love that sought to compel Susanna either to yield to the sinful desire of the two elders or to face execution at her husband’s command. This was the love that tempted Joseph to violate another man’s wife; yet, even when it stripped him of his cloak, it could not strip him of his purity. This was the love that armed the Synagogue against itself and led it to ruin.

It is this false love that sows discord everywhere, spreading its madness in every place. It makes promises but does not keep them; it gives and then takes back. It is now sorrowful, now joyful, now humble, now proud, now drunken, now sober, now the accuser, now the accused. It laughs, it plays, it turns pale, it grows thin, it sighs, it rages, it yields. It attacks or deceives, and its flattery is worse than its rage. It never misses an opportunity to do harm.

Do you wish to understand how great an evil it is? It despises even its own offspring. Every day, the whole world overflows with the venom it has spilled. Because of its destructive pleasures, everything has fallen into corruption, so that the wise rightly consider it accursed.

And the Holy Scriptures command that we must not love anything that belongs to its domain. As John says:

“Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father, but from the world.”

And since the devil seizes the human heart through this false love in various ways—captivating and deceiving it—this love has come to be called Cupido (Cupid) by those enslaved to their desires.

9. The Source of True Love

Now we must consider: where does true love come from, where does it reside, and to whom is it primarily directed?

Above all, it belongs to the One who created man, who, as a gift of His eternal love, granted him His own image; who entrusted the earth to his care; who placed all elements and living creatures under his dominion; who appointed the years, seasons, months, nights, and days, along with the two radiant celestial bodies, to serve him in beneficial and pleasant succession.

And when man, seduced by the fatal sweetness of the false love previously described, had fallen into death and the underworld, it was true love that called him back to life through the sacrament of divine majesty—and not only that but also enriched him with a share in the heavenly kingdom.

10. The Power and Majesty of True Love

O Love, how kind you are! How rich! How mighty! He who lacks you has nothing!

You, O Love, made God become man. You compelled Him to humble Himself and to journey for a time far from His infinite majesty. You enclosed Him for nine months in the prison of the Virgin’s womb. You restored Eve in Mary. You renewed Adam in Christ. You prepared the holy cross to save a world already lost. You stripped death of its power by teaching God Himself to die.

It is your work that, even though God—the Son of the Almighty—was killed by men, neither the Father nor the Son was wrathful toward them.

You preserve the life of those destined for heaven when you grant peace, safeguard faith, protect innocence, foster truth, cherish patience, and keep hope ever before us. You unite people who differ in character, age, and status, forging them into one nature, one spirit, one body.

You will not allow the glorious martyrs to be shaken from their confession of the Christian name—not by torture, not by new forms of execution, not by rewards, not by friendships, not even by the anguish of familial love, which, in its searing pain, can be more tormenting than any torturer.

You are satisfied with being naked so that you may clothe the naked. For you, hunger becomes satisfaction when your bread is taken by a starving person. Your only wealth is what you freely give in mercy. You alone never hesitate when asked for help.

You extend your hand to the oppressed and suffering, even at your own expense. You are the eyes of the blind. You are the feet of the lame. You are the steadfast shield of widows. You take the place of parents for orphans—better than any parent could.

You never let your eyes be dry, for either mercy or joy prevents it. You love even your enemies in such a way that no one can tell the difference between them and your friends.

You bind heavenly mysteries with human affairs, and human affairs with heavenly mysteries. You uphold the divine. You reign in the Father. You obey in the Son. You rejoice in the Holy Spirit.

You are one in the three Persons and can never be separated. No slander of human cunning can touch you. Proceeding from the Father, you are poured out fully in the Son. And though you are poured out, you never depart from the Father.

Rightly are you called God, for you alone direct the power of the Trinity.

Treatise III. Justice

Summary
This treatise, drawing heavily from the writings of Lactantius, contrasts the common worldly concept of justice with Christian justice.

• Pagan philosophy and its adherents distinguish between civil and natural justice. However, in reality, they possess no true justice. They consider God’s justice as foolishness and label their own justice as wisdom, but upon closer examination, it is actually injustice (Chapter 1). This is a case of misnaming; their injustice is, in fact, folly, while true justice is wisdom. According to Holy Scripture, the wise should not boast of their wisdom, the strong of their strength, nor the rich of their wealth. These three—wisdom, strength, and greed—form the foundation of all vices and evils in the world (Chapter 2). The wisdom of this world is neither justice nor true wisdom (Chapter 3).
• True justice is the source of all virtues. It holds itself accountable only to God, seeks the welfare of others, and manifests in acts of love for one’s neighbor (Chapter 4). Even Christians sometimes adhere to worldly justice when they argue that, while it is wrong to steal another’s property, they must preserve their own. This principle leads to greed, which manifests in usury and indifference to the suffering of others (Chapter 5). The root of this issue is a false understanding of ownership—everything belongs to God and must be used for the benefit of others (Chapter 6). Excuses, such as concern for one’s children, are not justified according to Scripture (Chapter 7).

1.

Perhaps some of my learned listeners will laugh aloud when I, a man entirely uneducated and unskilled in rhetoric, dare to speak about justice—a subject that even outstanding men, despite their gifts and scholarship, have failed to define with certainty in their voluminous writings. But I do not care if anyone mocks me. In the Church of God, we do not seek polished speech but pure truth. And those who have strayed from the truth bear their own guilt, for they believed that the justice of God lay in the arts of eloquence. Unable to grasp its true essence—since this is only possible through divine wisdom, of which they have no knowledge—they claimed that there are two kinds of justice: civil and natural. The Apostle clearly alluded to these two when he wrote to the Romans: “For being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to the righteousness of God.” But since they reject the concept of a future life and focus only on what benefits them in this present existence, they substitute their false justice for true justice. In doing so, they lose both forms of justice, which they once held in their hands, right before their very eyes: they lose God’s justice, for they consider it foolishness, since it demands sacrificing oneself for the benefit of others—not only one’s wealth but, if necessary, even one’s life. And they lose their own justice, for even the greatest fool cannot deny that their so-called justice, falsely labeled as wisdom, is in reality injustice, as it is concerned only with self-interest, which inevitably leads to harming others.

2.

If these men had been able to recognize true justice—whose reward is immortality and which is concealed under the guise of supposed folly, so that it may be sought after with great effort and perseverance—they would have willingly chosen to be regarded as just fools rather than unjust wise men. Their deception is plain to see. They have not distorted the truth itself but merely its name, calling justice folly and injustice wisdom. If we restore the proper meanings to these terms, we find that injustice should rightly be called folly, and justice should be called wisdom. I will prove this continually through statements from the Holy Scriptures. It says: “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the foolishness of preaching to save those who believe.” And even more explicitly elsewhere: “If anyone among you thinks he is wise in this age, let him become a fool so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God.” And therefore, the same God spoke through the prophet: “Let not the wise boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty boast in his might, let not the rich boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this: that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness on the earth.”

With how few words He has summed up the entirety of human endeavor! For these three things—wisdom, strength, and greed—are the foundation of all vices, through which humanity, like a ship caught in violent storms, is constantly at risk of ruin. Worldly wisdom is full of arguments, cloaking falsehood in the ornament of eloquence, strengthening its voice with trumpet-like resonance and its tongue with the sharpness of a sword, thereby taking control of disputes and ruling over the masses with its speeches. Its judgments create not resolution but new conflicts; it corrupts morals and weakens discipline. It undermines law with law, and justice with its own rulings. Who does not see that all its actions have never been just nor can ever be just? Do you wish to know how unjust it is? It is restless unless it can turn truth into falsehood.

Furthermore, strength, which man shares with wild animals, finds all justice in violence. Whatever it can enforce with force, it deems as rightful. With no regard for what is called religion by God and man, it destroys a population along with its entire wealth, annihilating city and country with fire and sword. It is familiar with death as a friend and fears nothing. Whatever wisdom has gathered in diligent labor through its laws, it can scatter with a single strike, closing its eyes to the destruction. And thirdly comes greed, connected with wealth; its surplus seeks to increase the other two in a remarkable haste. The entire world becomes a battlefield for it; every age dedicates itself to its service. Ah, what injustice! And what blindness: It lives in all, and yet everyone complains about it, as if it were not so. It is accused—but still worshiped. It robs people of their lives—and finds love for it. It is indeed the invincible form of misfortune: wisdom bows to it, and strength serves it.

3.

Do you now see that the wisdom of this world is clearly not justice? But neither is it true wisdom. It is simply impossible for a truly wise person not to also be just, and equally impossible for someone who is truly just not to also be wise. The just person cannot be foolish, and the wise person cannot be unjust.

Even reason itself affirms this. For someone who is foolish does not know what is good and what is evil and, as a result, cannot discern what to reject and what to accept. Thus, he continually commits sins—which is the very opposite of justice.

The just person, on the other hand, remains free from all sin precisely because he has knowledge of what is good and what is evil, and this very knowledge is what constitutes wisdom. Therefore, it follows that a foolish person can never be just, and an unjust person can never be wise. And if a person, whether he considers himself wise or just, lacks one of these two qualities, then he is neither truly wise nor truly just, despite what the previously mentioned men have believed about themselves.

4.

I believe that the deception of the world has now been fully exposed. And since all people are more familiar with it than words can express, there is no need to dwell on it further. I will therefore now turn to true justice, the source and mother of all virtues.

More than anything else, true justice concerns itself with the interests of others and seeks to promote them; for it knows what is owed to God above all, seeks nothing for itself, and keeps nothing as its own except that which it faithfully administers according to His will, without drawing attention to itself. It exists entirely in public and is present in all spheres of life, yet in such a way that it prefers to be felt rather than to be openly associated with anyone. It is deeply concerned with remaining impartial, avoiding even the slightest reproach, and never growing weary in carrying out its duties.

It is justice that breaks the yoke of prisoners by ransoming them; it brings relief to those in prison and knows all too well the prison itself. Keeping watch in acts of compassionate care, it shares in the sickness of the afflicted. It cannot bear to leave abandoned corpses unburied and without proper covering. Forgetting its own needs, it quietly and generously scatters the seeds of love over poverty and suffering. It does not wait to be asked for help, nor does it seek any reward in return; to demand payment for its deeds would be a great loss, and to accept praise for them would be a fault.

Because it keeps nothing for itself, it surpasses greed in its blessed longing; for while greed takes possession of people, justice belongs to God. Listen now to how great its love and how profound its humility is, as it hastens toward its destined dwelling place, toward the victor’s palm that has been promised to it!

If someone takes it to court to claim its coat, it freely gives them its cloak as well. It is reviled, and yet it blesses; it is struck, and yet it gives thanks; it is slain, and yet it offers no resistance—indeed, it even prays to God for its murderers. Its one and only concern, the single thing it seeks to avoid at all costs, is owing anything to the world or suffering deservedly for any wrongdoing.

Those who have not read the divine Scriptures, or who, having read them, place no value on them, argue against justice by pointing to its simple, unrefined manner of speech—yet it is precisely this speech that conveys the message: “If you do not believe, you will not understand.” Such people regard this justice as foolishness and mock it as useless, for if it could enjoy the goods of this world yet refrains from doing so, they claim it is responsible for its own misfortune.

But they refuse to believe that the person who keeps God’s commandments and, out of duty, tramples upon worldly pleasures, will one day, when he is victorious, be freed from the bonds of the flesh and receive as his own the immeasurable joy of the promised immortality.

5.

But—what does it matter to us what they say? One of our own, a distinguished man, has declared: “God knows that the thoughts of men are foolish.” They should leave us to our foolishness and keep their wisdom to themselves. Indeed, among the adherents of such wisdom, I see almost all Christians, who already consider it perfect righteousness to protect their own property and not covet their neighbor’s possessions, while neglecting the command of true wisdom, which is expressed in the words: “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all that you have and give to the poor; take up your cross and follow me.” I do not know what one could argue against this. But this one thing I do know: there is not one among us who is not always striving to acquire more than he previously had. And if he desires this, then he acts entirely in the spirit of greed, which is an enemy of justice. Indeed, this is why the barns of a few are full of grain while the stomachs of very many remain empty. This is why the prices of food for the people are even worse than scarcity itself. This is why fraud, falsehood, robbery, disputes, and wars arise. Daily, people seek profit through the tears of their fellow men; the confiscation of another’s property is justified as business acumen; and the appropriation of others’ possessions is carried out under the pretext of protecting one’s own interests and economic prudence, using the most cunning arguments. So much so that anyone without a defender or of a harmless nature loses his property based on legal provisions. And this is worse than any act of violence. For what is taken by force can sometimes be regained, but what is taken through the application of legal provisions is lost forever. Whoever wishes may boast of such justice; but let him know that a person who enriches himself through the poverty of his neighbor is poorer than the poor man himself. Who would consider a person just, who values his wealth more than love? Who feeds moths, grain worms, and maggots while humans suffer from hunger and destitution? Who, in his miserable greed, not only refuses to share what he has with others but even denies it to himself?

6.

Of course—you will say: “But it is just if I keep what is mine, as long as I do not covet what belongs to another.” That is what the pagans used to say. But we will soon see how this is considered unjust in the eyes of God. First of all, my dear Christian, I would like to know what exactly is yours, given that for those who fear God, everything is common property? For it is written: “The multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul.” And among them, there was no distinction; “and they called nothing of their possessions their own, but everything was held in common,” just as day and the sun, night and rain, birth and death are common to all—things which, without exception, divine justice has equally distributed to all humanity. Under such conditions, a person who keeps for himself what could serve the good of many is undoubtedly not unlike a tyrant. What can be said of this? While daily a poor wretch perishes from oppression, hunger, and injustice, you gaze longingly at your gold, guard your silver, admire your fine clothing, and consider your extravagant and superfluous jewelry to be a most sacred thing—as if it were an idol! Sometimes, you adorn yourself with it, rich in public, richer still in your private chamber, without realizing that a person who does not come to the aid of a dying fellow human, despite having the means to do so, is practically his murderer. Oh, how often the murder of a human life is tied to the jewelry of an ornament-laden lady! If you were to convert just one of her jewels into money and distribute it among those in need, you would see in their relieved sighs just how many lives are affected—how many suffer because such jewelry was acquired at the cost of their poverty!

7.

Someone says: “I have children and must not deprive them of their possessions.” This is the excuse of unbelief, which the Holy Spirit does not accept, for He speaks through the prophets: “I was young and now I am old, and never have I seen a righteous man forsaken or his children begging for bread.” And elsewhere: “The rich have become poor and have suffered hunger, but those who seek the Lord will lack no good thing.”

This can easily be proven with an example. We recall the story in the Book of Kings: During a time of famine, when the entire people were perishing everywhere, a widow—who became famous for her deed—gave Elijah, at his request, the last of the food she had set aside for herself and her children. She did not give only a part of it but gave it all, choosing rather to die of hunger along with her children than to act against righteousness. But for this noble act, she received from God an unending supply of food that even the greatest hunger could not consume: however much was taken from it, it was replenished. The supply in her full containers remained constant; and whatever was removed to meet daily needs was always restored to its former abundance.

If you wish to be a good father, one who truly cares for his children and promotes their well-being, then, like Abraham, you must love God more than your children. By doing so, you will earn the right to call them your own—healthy, safe, and happy. It is foolishness, however, to think that you can secure their future with wealth, when you neither gave them birth, nor breathed a soul into them, nor can guarantee them health.

Therefore, even if it is late, cease your blasphemous words and acknowledge human frailty. At this very moment, while we speak, you do not know what might happen. Abandon the empty excuse, which is nothing but deception! It is in vain to cover greed with the pretense of love: it is in God’s power alone to ensure the happiness of the future.

Treatise IV: Chastity

Summary

This treatise celebrates the virtue of chastity with extensive use of rhetorical means.

Chastity is a virtue of such nobility that even its opponents recognize it as worthy of reverence. It is fundamental to the human race, but in a special sense, it is a Christian virtue (Chapter 1). Opposed to it is unchastity, which often disguises itself under the appearance of chastity to carry out its corrupting influence (Chapter 2). Unchastity knows how to adorn itself and is closely linked to idolatry (Chapter 3). It even destroys marriage from within (Chapter 4). Examples of chastity are given in the figures of the Egyptian Joseph (Chapter 5) and Susanna (Chapter 6). Chastity is portrayed as a queen among virtues and should be especially sought after as a glorification of God (Chapter 7).

1.

Whoever practices chastity quickly recognizes the greatness of its noble character; its power is so strong that even its opponents revere it. It is chastity that grants stability to the foundation of humanity; it is chastity that, in all its expressions, represents purity of feeling; it is chastity that safeguards the sacred rights of parents, spouses, and children. It manifests radiantly in both genders, is admirable in every stage of life, knows no uncertainty in any situation, remains true to itself, and always maintains a good conscience. It is completely independent of all else and has only one fear: that it might fail to be in reality what it is in principle.

In solitude—what adulterers see as an opportunity—it fears itself as its own judge. It dreads secrecy more than publicity. It detests the ruinous temptations of the flesh, which it sees as its enemy. And whatever the world offers it in the form of pleasure or favor, it entirely rejects, convinced that it possesses everything if it remains pure. It desires nothing impure in others, nor does it seek to awaken such desires in them. It remains unchanged in every place and at every time, more concerned with its honor than with its advantage.

Would you like to know wherein its happiness lies? It is loved by those who possess it—and it is loved by those who do not. And if even the pagans often praise it—though among them it can never truly be meritorious or genuine, since it remains subject to the dominion of the lustful plunderer—how much more must it be held in honor among the people of Christ, who serve the God that grants it inviolable holiness?

For if the Church is the Bride of Christ because she is chaste, if she was granted the honor of union in a heavenly marriage because she remained a virgin even after marriage, then surely we, who originate from this glorious union, must strive with all our might to prove the nobility of our lineage—not merely by claiming this relationship, but by faithfully resembling it.

With pride, I say it, dearest brothers: among you, the affirmation of such striving is manifested in a brilliant way, without a doubt. You show that you have God as your Father and that you wish to have Him forever, by cherishing chastity—a virtue in which God Himself dwells. I would not only say you love it, but that you glorify it through your exemplary conduct.

It is a great honor to glorify that which glorifies you, to preserve that which preserves you. Indeed, the praise given to you is equal to the praise of chastity itself: for chastity grants you holiness, and you offer it love. Through it, you are united with Christ—or rather, chastity, through you and with you, embraces Christ. Through it, you receive from God the Father whatever you ask; or rather, chastity, for which you labor unceasingly, ensures that it will never have to endure shame when presenting a petition.

Blessed is chastity when it manifests itself even in a playing child; even more blessed when, in adolescence, it successfully instills the fear of falling into sin; and most blessed when, in the strength of youth, it is able to extinguish the desires of the flesh. Even in old age, it remains honorable, though not as visibly present; for even if it remains victorious, it must share its victory crown with the coldness of aging. The struggle against desire recedes when, under the burden of increasing infirmities, even the limbs of the unchaste are forced into chastity.

2.

Now, let us speak briefly and openly about the furious activity of chastity’s opponent, which reveals its nature through the very terms used to describe it, making it easy to discern what must be pursued and what must be avoided. For, brothers, even under the guise of Christ’s name, the Antichrist seeks to present himself as chaste in order to deceive; he, too, carries with him the resounding word “chastity,” but the author of this so-called chastity reveals its true nature by the fruits it bears.

How madly does unchastity rage through humanity! With the burning stings of its desires, it entices the hearts of men into reckless pursuits driven by sensuality. It spares no gender, no age, no sacred duty—not even itself. For a person who violates another’s sense of shame has already abandoned his own. For unchastity, not a single night or day passes in purity; it is always sinking into the roaring torrent of its own filth, for its corrupt desire constantly rises, seeking fulfillment—whether in action or fantasy.

It either pays a price for pleasure or accepts payment itself; it seduces or allows itself to be seduced; it arouses love, only to soon transform it into hatred. It produces illegitimate heirs and, when it finally acknowledges its wrongdoing, excuses itself under the pretense of love for children. Yet, at the same time, it disowns its own offspring or withholds parental love from them. It refuses to believe that its actions are shameful, so long as its schemes succeed.

And yet, even in the midst of the pleasure it delights in—when it has succeeded in corrupting another’s chastity—it remains deeply unhappy. Indeed, after the act is completed, it loathes itself and the one whom it has led into disgrace. Many times, it has plunged peaceful nations into war; it has even brought the downfall of once-stable empires. It has led wives to betray their husbands through disgraceful and cruel deeds, celebrating these as victories. In its insane greed, it has devised ways to reward men with a prostitute’s wage—an arrangement so vile that even women would not accept it—thereby degrading human nature itself.

It has paid for its lust with the deaths of parents, children, husbands, and wives. At times, it has perverted the very concept of filial love through unnatural unions, persecuting the chaste while, in some cases, destroying the unchaste in a justly deserved fate. Yes, it gives birth to all evil—and even worse than all evils: it has become, among idols, a goddess, yet remains a mere servant to its worshipers.

In temples, it presents itself as an object of reverence; in theaters, as a source of entertainment; on the streets, as a public scandal; and in secret hiding places, ever ready for indulgence. In its eagerness to provoke, it allows neither tongue, eye, nor ear any rest. It jokes, hopes, entices, accepts, becomes jealous, rages, pleads, flares into anger, and sometimes achieves by force what it could not obtain through flattery. It constantly seeks variation in its sensual pleasures yet remains unsatisfied, for in the pursuit of enjoyment, it never attains true fulfillment.

It desires to commit acts that it fears might become publicly known. It dares everything in its effort to enslave everything to its service. It is a new kind of monstrosity: it hates chastity, yet at the same time demands to be considered what chastity truly is.

3.

Meanwhile, it adorns itself with extraordinary skill, striving to present an appearance that is not its own. It applies colors to itself and, with various artificial cosmetics from the hands of beautifiers, masks its true face under foreign features—not to be what nature made it, but what a fleeting whim suggests when it gazes into the mirror.

One moment, it enhances certain features; the next, it destroys what it once found pleasing; then, it alters them again, or even creates entirely new ones. Thus, through its own handiwork, it becomes a multi-headed Hydra of appearances, striding about with shameless boldness—because under its painted layers, it can no longer blush. It is a stranger to the love of its household, a stranger to the love of a husband, a stranger even to itself—for whatever constantly changes can neither be known nor be true.

Furthermore, it never loves God, for it knows that He is an enemy of its deeds. Instead, it is a slave of the devil, for it has claimed his kingdom as its own. Indeed, it has even created gods, bringing forth those through whom or in whose names the devil is worshiped—gods whose very acts reveal their origin.

It has elevated Jupiter to the highest god through countless, monstrous crimes. It has, worse than his stepmother, dishonored Hercules through the lust of Omphale—he, whom even a terrible horde of monsters could not overcome. It has exposed Venus to the entire world after her many adulteries, displaying her in full nakedness, attempting to conceal herself only with her empty hands—thus revealing not only the shame of her body but of her very soul.

There is no need to elaborate further. It would be inappropriate to dwell on the details—but it was necessary to illustrate the power of unchastity so that all may recognize how lust is intimately connected with idolatry. Yes, I declare: it turns the graves of the dead into temples, burial mounds into altars, corpses into idols, funeral rites into sacrificial festivals, and popular customs into religious ceremonies.

Thus, it has torn mankind away from the worship of God by persuading them—through flattery and temptation—that they must celebrate and imitate the vile deeds of depraved men.

4.

Yes, unchastity even goes so far as to awaken in married men—tragically, in contradiction to God’s law and justice—the notion that they have the so-called right to indulge in sensual pleasure with others besides their lawful wives. In doing so, it also robs their wives of their modesty, for these women, in their abandonment, in their desire for satisfaction, or even in their grief, may believe that by committing the same acts, they are merely imitating their husbands or exacting revenge.

This is why the Lord says in His commandments: “Whoever divorces his wife, except for the case of adultery, causes her to commit adultery.” What response can these dissolute husbands offer? They are deceived by the unjust permissiveness granted to them by human laws, and by their own willful ignorance, they fail to recognize true justice. They eagerly do what they refuse to tolerate from their wives.

They surrender themselves to the abhorrent pleasures of unlawful unions outside of marriage, and, dissatisfied with hidden places of disgrace, they sometimes—even more horrifying—indulge in their frenzied acts before the very eyes of their wives. These miserable men do not understand that, before the judgment seat of God, what is forbidden for women is also forbidden for men. As the Apostle Paul says: “The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise, the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.”

And since both are one flesh and together represent a mysterious image of divine creation—since the woman was made from man, and both are bound to one another by duty—and since they are equal under law and justice, then undoubtedly, either one who departs from the path of duty will be condemned to eternal torment at the dreadful judgment. But even those who remain unmarried will not escape punishment if they, seeking the freedom to sin more easily, purchase immoral pleasures for their lust. They fail to consider that everything conducted outside of lawful marriage is cursed and dishonorable. For a Christian, my brothers, there is no permissible path except to live either in chastity or in marriage.

5.

I now come to examples that are necessary for addressing this subject. Deeds hold greater weight than words, for they allow us to recognize both the vice of unchastity and the virtue of chastity in a single presented case.

Joseph, a Hebrew youth, renowned for his lineage, more renowned for his beauty, but most renowned for his purity of conduct, was the youngest of Jacob’s sons in age, but the eldest in wisdom. He was brought to Egypt through the envy of his brothers, sold into slavery by them. But there, he faced an even worse trial: the love of his master’s wife, which was far more dangerous to him than the hatred of his brothers.

For this woman, inflamed with wild and burning passion, contrived every possible excuse to seduce him into committing a shameful act. She sought to be alone with him, sought out secluded places where even those who are not tempted by lust might fall prey to violence against their will. But when she tried to carry out her intention and saw that neither caresses nor promises could sway him, she resorted to force, grasping him with her hands and attempting to ignite the fire of her own passion within him.

But Joseph left behind his garment, which she had torn from him in her desperate grasp, and fled naked from the den of unchastity. Yet he was clothed in the splendor of chastity. Though he was falsely accused and sentenced, God delivered him and raised him to honor. For in the end, he was justly made the second ruler of Egypt—he who had already been a noble king in the realm of purity.

6.

Susanna, too, a remarkable woman, offers a splendid example of chastity—a virtue that adorned her more beautifully than her natural, unadorned physical beauty. Two of the elders, though advanced in years, were united in their burning, criminal passion for her. And when they saw her, protected only by the wall of chastity (which is, in truth, the only eternal beauty), in the solitude of a garden of delight—where, they recalled, Eve had once been deceived by the author of their own wickedness—they devised their plan and sought to ensnare her with cunning, threatening her with the dreadful death prescribed for adulteresses caught in the act, unless she submitted and made herself guilty.

But Susanna was no Eve. She did not hesitate between sacrificing chastity or life; such wavering fear had no place in her. She called upon God, the sole witness of her pure conscience, and chose an honorable death over a disgraceful life, convinced that it was better to appear guilty before men than to be guilty before God.

Meanwhile, the elders—who had transformed from lustful pursuers into ruthless accusers—pressed their case against her. They magnified their crime by shifting the blame onto the innocent victim, thereby pronouncing their own condemnation. But—how outrageous!—people believed their old age, people believed their esteemed status. The adulterers triumphed; innocence was condemned.

Already Susanna, guiltless, was being led away to execution. Already the entire crowd cried out for her blood. Already her own family, overwhelmed by the sudden horror of the event, had bowed their heads in bitter grief and abandoned all hope of her defense. Even Susanna herself—now the object of universal disapproval, able to find satisfaction only in the testimony of her own conscience—longed for death, which would put an end to her shame.

Then suddenly, God—who is never deceived by lies—appeared through the person of the young Daniel. With a single stroke, he shattered the scheme of the wicked. Quickly, the true crime was revealed; the guilt fell upon its rightful perpetrators; the disgrace was lifted through the proclamation of innocence. Thus, chastity triumphed. Susanna, dragged to judgment by the lies of unchastity, was vindicated and avenged. Amidst great rejoicing, she was restored to her husband’s side.

7.

O Chastity! How must one admire you, who desire no other praise than that you are preserved, content with the sole adornment of a good conscience! You are blessed in virgins, strong in widows, faithful in the married, pure in priests, glorious in martyrs, radiant in angels—truly, in all, you are queen!

Never do you bow to the flesh, never to any law. You arise from free will, and yet, through the good of purity, you restore free will. For free will becomes a joy for you when you reap from it a harvest of thirtyfold, sixtyfold, or a hundredfold.

You are rich among the poor, richer still among the wealthy—yet you attain the highest perfection in all alike. You are the honor of the body, the treasure of the soul, the foundation, summit, and fruit of all virtues akin to you.

For a vow made to you, you are an unbreakable, eternal bond. Through you, the rightful fasts are observed. Through your recommendation, prayers are answered even before the lips speak them. You are the sacrifice pleasing to God. You are the temple that conforms to God’s law. You are the sanctuary where modesty dwells, into which corruption finds no entry.

Through you, the world is conquered, every kind of lust is slain, the devil is defeated. Through you, the Antichrist loses his terror, the Holy Spirit enters in, Christ is glorified, and God, the Almighty Father, is moved to mercy.

And in the end, the one who reaches the kingdom of bliss with you shall reign there forever.

Treatise V: Chastity

Summary

In early Christianity, chastity, particularly in the sense of virginity, was held in high esteem. Especially after the conditions of the 4th century allowed for an organized monastic expression of this ideal, nearly all Church Fathers expressed their high regard for it. One of its most ardent advocates was Zeno. He frequently addresses this topic (cf. Introduction) and has dedicated this treatise to it. From his fundamental perspective, he also dissuades from remarriage and takes particular issue with marriages to pagans.

The highest triumph of Christian virtue is the mastery of human nature. While advising against marriage is frowned upon in the world, what matters is the Apostle’s admonition (Ch. 1). A comparison of the conditions of a virgin with those of a married woman reveals advantages for the former in religious life; moreover, she is spared many difficulties (Ch. 2). The reference to Mary is misguided since she remained a virgin (Ch. 3). Widows, too, should not remarry, following the Apostle’s exhortation; the memory of their first husband also discourages it (Ch. 4). The reasons given for a second marriage, based on a young woman’s needs, are unconvincing. Even in marriage, circumstances can necessitate a long separation from the husband. Patience, a sober life, and contemplation of death—especially in relation to God—are remedies (Ch. 5). Particularly contemptible and reprehensible are the frequent marriages of older women. The warning against a second marriage also applies to men (Ch. 6). Even more severe reproach is reserved for marriages with pagans, as they bring numerous disadvantages for the woman, especially for her religious life, foremost among them the danger of falling into idolatry (Ch. 7–9).

1. The Triumph of Virtue Over Nature

If there is anyone among you, my brothers, who finds it difficult and unbearable that we speak confidently on a matter that seems almost contrary to nature, let him quickly calm himself; he should recognize that the highest triumph of virtue is to master nature itself. However, because passions always cloud the radiance of virtue, and because each person considers right what suits him (especially that which all nations cultivate as the object of their shared longing), anyone who advises against marriage is undoubtedly regarded as an enemy of humanity—or at least as a fool. But I do not fear what the public, in its hatred, may say about me.

For I do not condemn marriage, but I prefer what is better than marriage. I do so following the advice of the Apostle Paul, who says: “But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am. But if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.” (1 Corinthians 7:8-9). And in another place, he says: “I say this as a concession, not as a command. I wish that all men were even as I myself am.” (1 Corinthians 7:6-7).

Thus, marriage is good, but being consumed by passion is even worse. “All things are lawful, but not all things are beneficial.” (1 Corinthians 10:23). So examine yourself, my Christian, and choose what you will: the remedy or health itself!

2. The Difference Between a Virgin and a Married Woman

If it seems fitting, let us compare the difference between a virgin and a married woman. “The married woman is concerned with how she may please her husband; the virgin, how she may please God.” (1 Corinthians 7:34)

The former adorns herself with external ornaments, while the latter possesses a richer adornment, for she knows no foreign embellishments. The former is scented with various perfumes and fragrances, while the latter, more lovely than any meadow, exudes in joyful reverence for the one flower she calls her own—the fragrance of heaven itself. The former finds joy in her children, but the latter does not fear childlessness. The former delights in their tender caresses and watches with joy as they gradually grow, while the latter, in her renunciation and aversion to such things, does not bear the burden of nine months, does not have to worry about the uncertainty of childbirth, does not sigh in concern for the life of mother and child, and does not have to suffer the constant anxieties that come with it.

3. The Example of the Virgin Mary

But someone might object: Did not the Virgin Mary marry and give birth? Let her be as Mary—then I will agree. But Mary remained a virgin after her marriage, after her conception, and after her birth-giving. And finally, if there were anything better than virginity, then surely the Son of God would have granted it first and foremost to His mother. Yet He granted her the highest honor—that of divine virginity.

Therefore, remain in the state in which you were born and seek your glory in remaining a virgin! Preserve, bound by no law, the flower of virginity—the treasure of your faith! Be holy in body and spirit! Quench the desires of the flesh with your love for Christ!

I will not even speak of the glory of the resurrection, which you already claim for yourself even in this life, for the Lord says of it: “They will neither marry nor be given in marriage, but they will be like the angels in heaven.” (Matthew 22:30)

You will attain great happiness if you live for God in purity of conduct, free and not in servitude to a husband.

4. The Widow’s Desire for Remarriage

And you, widow, why do you desire a second marriage, when you see that the Apostle already imposes a restriction on the first? For it is he who says: “The time is short; from now on those who have wives should live as if they had none… for the form of this world is passing away.” (1 Corinthians 7:29, 31)

At the time when this command of the Apostle was given—four hundred or more years ago—people were still stronger in body, and Christians were still very few. Why, now that nearly the entire world is Christian and human vitality has diminished in this aging world, should I soften the harshness of truth with flattering words and not rather fully explain how perfectly the worship of God must be observed?

All the more so, since it is written in Solomon’s wisdom: “If your children increase, do not rejoice over them unless they have the fear of God; and do not take joy in their lives! Better is one child who fears God than a thousand godless children.” (Sirach 16:1-3)

Under such circumstances, I ask you, widow—you who are often as eager for marriage as an inexperienced young girl—did you lose a good husband or a bad one? Come now, answer!

If you lost a bad husband, yet still wish to marry again, then you deserve to be beaten by an even worse one. If you lost a good one, then preserve the seal of faithfulness to him! The one to whom you yourself bear witness as good does not deserve the dishonor you bring upon him by seeking another.

Where is that first day of marriage, which, in your longing for each other, seemed to both of you to pass more slowly than other days? Where is the solemn sacrifice of your precious virginity, which was so sweet to you both? Where is the love that, in a marriage of mutual respect and unity, does not die even when one partner outlives the other?

Are you not the woman who washed the lifeless body of your husband with your tears, dried it with your kisses, and covered it with the hair you cut off? Did you not bear the marks of grief on your cheeks, the bruises on your chest from striking yourself in sorrow, covered more in filthy ashes than in mourning garments? Yes, I say, were you not the one who shook heaven itself with your cries, declaring that you could not live a single moment longer after losing such a husband?

Were you not the one whose sighs, stifled by sorrow, whose breath, failing in agony, and whose body, collapsing to the ground, caused the mourners to wonder whether they should weep more for the dead man or for you, the dying widow?

If you now have thoughts of remarriage, then all of that was mere pretense!

And what is this now? Look—you return to your beauty treatments, you once again borrow the color from the cosmetic jar that you had so recently condemned! Look—you carefully groom your hair once more, you exchange the ashes of mourning for the powder of vanity! You conceal your tears beneath the black paint of antimony; you place golden chains around the neck you once wished to hang in despair. You consult the mirror like an oracle, wondering how best to ensnare a new suitor!

But no matter what you do—you will never be a virgin again.

And this I know: for one who changes their appearance and behavior for the sake of another, there is little left before they become a monstrosity.

5. The Flame of Youth and the Test of Fidelity

But you object: “I am driven by the heat of my youthful age.”

I believe you. But consider this:

You marry, and on the very next day some urgent cause—let us not even speak of human frailty or the many misfortunes of life—tears your husband from your side. He may be taken far away, as often happens, for ten years or even longer. What will you do?

Will you wait faithfully for his return, or will you seek some other remedy for your passion?

If you promise faithfulness, it is a deception; for you have already confessed that you will not be able to keep it. But if you seek a remedy, then surely there is only one: to extinguish the flames of your desire by imagining the sword of your husband.

Believe me, where patience prevails, where one lives soberly, where the fear of death is present, there is no place for lust. Therefore, set your faith and your fear in relation to God, for this serves truth and justice even better. And no matter how strong your passion may be, it will immediately be extinguished.

6. The Shame of Multiple Marriages in Old Age

But I linger on matters that are almost sacred, as if the sins that are truly worthy of condemnation had already been corrected. I am ashamed to say that, in the midst of a serious-minded people, one often sees old women newly married—women who have had nearly as many weddings as birthdays. These women are not urged to marry; rather, people wish for them to rest in peace, for they stand closer to the grave than to a bridal bed. And while they themselves perish in their lack of self-restraint, they also lead young girls into ruin through their lamentable example.

Where is the son, where is the husband, who can feel love for such women? These women violate the natural rights of kinship, cause the merits of their former husbands to be forgotten, flatter the living while weeping for the dead, and soon come to despise both their former children and their newly acquired ones—along with their husbands. And yet, they should reflect on what often happens in such frequent marriages: they end up with neither husband nor children.

The same applies to men. It is unnecessary to address them separately, for if “man and woman are one flesh,” (Genesis 2:24) then what is said to one applies to both.

I do not know what to do or where to turn. I see nothing I can boast of when exhorting pagans to convert to the divine and true religion. Should I praise the blessedness of virginity? The pagans have their virgins, too. Even if they are not truly blessed, they have them. If I urge them to the glorious struggle and victory of widowhood, they might mockingly reply that while our consecrated virgins and widows struggle for the great reward of immortality, theirs endure such struggles without any reward.

But there is one thing in which we surpass them: Christian women marry in a manner befitting their holiness. And yet—even here—they marry pagans! This cannot be said without great sorrow and grief.

7. The Condemnation of Marrying Pagans

What words, what rebuke could be severe enough to properly condemn such behavior? These women not only commit disgraceful acts, but they also add sacrilege to their shameful deeds: they give the members of Christ over to be possessed by the slaves of demons! (1 Corinthians 6:15) They open the temple of God to unbelievers (2 Corinthians 6:16), continually exposing even the holiest places to desecration. They mix the offerings, lose the light, and take delight in darkness, making their home not in a private dwelling, but in the very temples of idols!

Rightly do they perish, these women who, in ingratitude for Christ’s grace, voluntarily return to the death from which they had been rescued. For if the devil relentlessly pursues even those who do not seek him, what will he do when he is invited? If every door is opened for his destruction, and victory is handed to him without battle, without effort, will he not seize the woman who has willingly sought to become his servant?

Finally, consider what happens in the house—indeed, even in the very temples of these false gods. Christian woman, these things cannot take place without you. You are an unfortunate woman if you do not know what happens in your own house; but you are even more unfortunate if you do know.

8. The Conflict of Religious Practices in a Mixed Marriage

Let us consider a case that often occurs—when a festival of different religions falls on the same day, the day when you are supposed to go to church while he is to visit the temple. How will each of you prepare for your sacrifice? With what means? With what vessels? With what attendants?

Even if these things are done separately, it makes no difference. For they stem from the same starting point, return to the same point, and—even if not through direct mixing—become one through their connection with error.

And what should one say about the fact that his sacrifice is public, while yours is secret? His offering can be performed openly by anyone, while yours cannot even be witnessed by uninitiated Christians without committing sacrilege.

Ultimately, it is a pitiful existence when a woman cannot do what her husband desires and must assume that he will not let her do anything until he has given his own orders. And if his instructions are not followed, or if the outcome does not please him, then the whole house resounds with his anger, and God is blasphemed.

Perhaps he even seizes the vessel containing your offering, strikes you with it on the chest, disfigures your face, and in doing so, might even consider it a kindness if he merely forbids you from going to church.

And yet, it is even worse if you manage to please your husband, for one cannot please a sacrilegious man without committing sacrilege.

To put it briefly: Surely, at some point, your husband will return from the temple and tell you, whether you wish to hear it or not, the responses of the gods regarding your mutual well-being and life together. If their answers are terrifying, you, in distress and fear—while he remains indifferent—may find yourself making unlawful vows to these gods, as many others have done before you. Even women with Christian husbands—who were much worse—have done so, not as disciples of Eve, but as her teachers; for Eve surrendered to the devil because she was deceived, but these women do so willingly.

But if the responses are favorable and promising, then—surely—you will rejoice, and as a compliant wife, you will at least not refuse to grant him a kiss in gratitude for this “great” news, even if you do not offer it yourself.

9. The Danger of Sharing in Idolatry

Unfortunate woman, what are you doing? Madwoman, what are you rejoicing over?

This is not peace, but war. This is not a kiss, but a poison!

It is horrifying—you embrace limbs still tainted with the smoke of a burnt sacrificial animal; you press your flesh against his, absorbing the lingering fumes of the filthy altars. You jest, you caress, you give yourself to him.

And when a piece of the pagan sacrifice is given by a temple priest and brought into the house, do you not receive it, store it, and keep it safe? Moreover, you partake of food with your husband, sip with your lips the last drops from the cup he has offered you, and—through your wishes—almost consecrate the first sip of the next cup in advance.

Thus, you willingly and completely absorb the entire spirit of iniquity through your body. That wretched spirit dwells more fully in you than it does in the temple he left behind.

But if you resist and hold yourself back, your husband will suspect that it is not out of love for your divine religion, but out of longing for another man—an insult to his honor. He will twist the virtues of purity and faithfulness into a crime.

Is there any evil that a man, devoted to cruel and adulterous gods, will not suspect or commit?

Flee, then, O virgin! Flee, O widow! Avoid such marriages!

There is simply no excuse for you. If you cannot live in chastity, at least do not multiply your marriages! Otherwise, on the day of resurrection, amid the great number of husbands you have had, you will not even be able to determine whose wife you were.

Do not be a thief of God! Do not be a traitor to His law!

Why should you marry a pagan when you can marry a Christian?

Treatise VI. Patience
Summary

Like his predecessors Tertullian and Cyprian, Zeno has also made patience—understood as human steadfastness in suffering and perseverance in goodness in general—the subject of a treatise. The examples used and certain thoughts within the work reveal his reading of these earlier writers. Nevertheless, his approach remains independent.

Patience is the virtue toward which all other virtues strive and without which no virtue can exist. Its essence lies in overcoming oneself (Chapter 1). Even in nature, the necessity of patience is evident. It finds its expression in the movement of the sun and the stars, in the phenomena of the sea, in plant life, and in the animal kingdom (Chapter 2).

Only man is impatient. Impatience brings him great harm and has led to much misfortune. The fall of Adam, Cain’s fratricide, the sin of the Sodomites, and the ingratitude of the Jews can all be traced back to it (Chapter 3). Opposing it stands patience. Its blessings are demonstrated through examples such as Abel’s righteousness and Noah’s salvation from the flood (Chapter 4), the fortunate outcome of Isaac’s sacrifice by his father Abraham (Chapter 5), Jacob’s attainment of blessings and marital happiness and the elevation of his son Joseph (Chapter 6), and finally, the restoration of former happiness to the long-suffering Job.

A depiction of God’s patience itself, in connection with human examples, is not feasible. However, all patience proceeds from Him (Chapter 7). The treatise concludes with a praise of patience, which encompasses all things within itself (Chapter 8).

1.

Though the blessed life, for which mankind has always longed with burning desire, is pursued through many virtues, they all converge as if into a single harbor—the harbor of patience—without which one can neither hear, nor understand, nor learn, nor even teach. Indeed, patience is the focal point upon which all things turn. There is no doubt: hope, faith, justice, humility, chastity, integrity, harmony, love, all arts, and all abilities—even the very elements—cannot exist without its guidance and direction.

Patience is ever prepared—humble, cautious, wise, prudent, content in every situation, calm amid every storm. It does not let its cheerfulness be dimmed by mist. It knows no regret. It does not understand what strife is. It avoids all insults—or endures them. One may ask whether it should be considered incapable of suffering, for even when it has suffered something, it carries itself as if it had suffered nothing. To measure its full strength is impossible: for its victory consists in allowing itself to be overcome.

No force can dislodge it from its place—not hardship, not hunger, not nakedness, not persecution, not fear, not danger, not death, not tortures, which are harder to endure than death itself, not power, not ambition, not fortune. It remains unshakable at all times, held in perfect balance by a kind of exalted and divine moderation. Through its peaceful influence, it brings all restless souls to tranquility. And in order to overcome all things without great effort, it first overcomes itself.

The forces of nature could not be what they are: the elements would not endure continuously; the cycles of time would not return to their regular endpoints in accordance with their familiar order if patience, so to speak, did not watch over the proper course of things like a caring mother.

For however much the sun may alternately illuminate the opposite ends of the world with wondrous swiftness, it will never appear before the beloved, timid dawn. And what is even greater—it could not distribute itself evenly, not merely across twelve time periods, but even across twelve hours, if impatience were to hasten its course. And though the moon, which in its month-long cycle may seem to some to wander aimlessly, never extends the appearance that marks its age beyond its appointed time, nor shortens it—what else does this demonstrate but the disciplined patience, grounded in experience, which serves the order established by its Creator?

And though the sea, when whipped by storms, may surge and rage across its entire surface, though its foaming waves may shine like glass in every direction, rising to the heavens one moment and seeking the depths the next, though its menacing masses of raging waves may seem boundless—it nevertheless, after the spent recoil of its last breaker, as if recognizing the land’s right and avoiding its violation, collapses upon itself in marvelous patience. It is held back by the very waves that enclose it.

Patience grants both fertility and beauty to the green meadows, the ripening grain fields, the vine-laden branches, and the silvery olive trees. It does not permit the fruits of each season to ripen prematurely to the detriment of the others due to impatience. What is the meaning of the charming melodies of various birds? What do the cranes, skilled in their written formations in the sky, intend with their steeply rising flight? What do the countless wedge-shaped schools of diverse fish, graded by age under their leaders, signify? When they obey the order of the seasons, furrowing the waters in their stately, orderly rowing or cutting through the air—does this not show that they come patiently and depart patiently?

Only man is hasty, impatient, delighting in daily disorderly transformations. He longs for change, feeling miserable as the person he is. He fails to see that it borders on madness when the mind does not remain in its proper state. What is impatience but a fickle spirit that fights against itself with countless violent emotions—a spirit that is unfaithful even to itself? It is an action that is reckless, wavering, blind, thoughtless, and unstable, throwing itself entirely into ruin. It is an empty pursuit, an endeavor without meaning.

Impatience attacks everything too quickly and shatters all things in an instant. It is the mother of crimes, the teacher of curiosity, the height of recklessness, the originator and instructor of accursed evils. Because of it, from the beginning of the world, death has destroyed and continues to destroy the salvation of mankind.

Adam dwelled in the security of paradise, possessing dominion over the blessed earth and himself the most blessed among all. He lived in happiness for as long as he observed the royal command. But when he, in his misfortune, agreed to exchange patience for the deception of the envious serpent, when he tasted the fatally sweet apple from the forbidden tree—then he found tears, created for himself pain and grief, thorns and thistles. And after experiencing the turmoil of mortal toil himself, he left as an inheritance to his descendants the death that destroys all order.

And soon enough, human slaughter arose. It did not take long—Cain, impatient and envious of his brother’s offerings, thirsted for his death. Though God saw his deed, Cain became his brother’s murderer. He did not heed the warning voice that sought to restrain him but only hardened himself further until his evil act was completed and doubled by the shedding of blood.

The still-uninhabited world was astonished that it was already too small for two people. The elements were astounded that a man, created in the image and likeness of God, could be murdered—murdered by his own brother. The untainted earth blushed as it was stained with righteous blood. Only the wretched Cain rejoiced. And because he had no witnesses, he believed he had not committed the crime. Yet God had seen him. His conscience accused him. His brother’s blood became his accuser.

What shall I say of the impatience of the inhabitants of Sodom? There, where men were sinfully abused by men, a fire sent by God burned away the unnatural flames of their desire. A storm of fire and brimstone, rained down from heaven by God, destroyed in fierce judgment the alliance of depravity. The men—more wretched than those they corrupted—pursued strangers with the weapon of shame, violating them from behind.

The Jews grumbled loudly in their assemblies. They destroyed the altars of God even as they sought to express their worship. They killed their prophets in various ways. In their excessive passion, they even sought to stone Moses. They waged war against the Lord through every means, seeking to serve many gods and kings because, in their impatience, they could not bear to serve the one true God.

But enough examples of impatience! In my opinion, one should not deliberately emphasize what one wishes to suppress. All the more so because it is in the very nature of impatience that it never remains confined to its own sphere but instead spreads entirely into the public eye; that it thrives on being talked about; that it flares up here and there, blindly manifesting itself in various ways; but that it is defeated when silence dims the brilliance of its renown.

Let us now return to the virtue of patience, which, through its extraordinary power, has brought our ancestors glory and salvation for eternity! Abel is a martyr because he was righteous; and he is righteous because he was patient. From him, the martyrs have learned to endure, willingly suffering what they did not deserve.

Noah, believing in God’s word, knew that the flood, which would utterly destroy all flesh, was soon approaching, and he feared it. But he did not, in hasty panic, assemble the ark that he was commanded to build for the salvation of his household; nor did he undertake such a great task with the recklessness of a fool, rushing to complete it blindly. No—he built it patiently, furnished it patiently, and patiently populated it with various animals. He waited patiently for the appointed time to enter, to close the door. He deserved to be saved because, in the midst of the great fear that had seized the entire earth, he did not hurry to secure his own salvation.

Now I must mention the remarkable trial of Abraham—a trial that would have made him either godless if he disobeyed God’s command or cruel if he had slain his son. Yet he avoided both, because in carrying out his duty, he demonstrated an utterly unique and truly divine patience, balancing his love for God and his love for his son with perfect harmony. In hope, he did not withhold from God what he had received from Him against all hope.

He considered Isaac, his beloved son, as nothing, because in offering him to God, he was even sweeter to Him—and thus, in doing so, he secured him for himself. He prepared him for sacrifice, only to be spared from having to kill him. He acted with the firm conviction that he could not commit wrongdoing in carrying out an act commanded by God.

It was a spectacle both new and truly worthy of God! It is difficult to decide which of them displayed greater patience—the priest offering the sacrifice or the sacrifice itself. Neither the father, who was to carry out the execution, nor the son, who was to endure death, showed any change of expression. Their limbs did not tremble with fear. Their gaze was neither cast down nor darkened. Neither pleaded, neither trembled, neither stammered an excuse, neither showed distress.

So that it would not appear as a crime of child-murder, the son himself carried the wood upon which he was to be burned, while the father built the altar. The father drew the sword, the son bared his neck. With complete willingness, in obedience, and in order to keep all things sacred, what one had begun to offer was carried out with care and patience.

Despite the great terror that such an act would naturally evoke—not only in humans but even in nature—they remained serene. Emotion took a back seat to the son’s love for his father, and the father’s love for his son was overcome by his devotion to God. And for both of them, their faith became a blessing.

The sword, unhindered by any obstacle, hung suspended in mid-air—amazed that in this terrible sacrifice, it had not been an instrument of crime but of glory.

What does this mean? Behold—the horror is transformed into fidelity, the atrocity into a sacrament. The child-killer returns unstained by blood; the one who was to be sacrificed lives! Each bestows glory upon the other; each is an example of love; and for all time, they stand as a wondrous testimony of devotion to God.

Brothers, how happy the world would be if all men became “child-killers” in such a manner!

Through patience, Jacob gained both his father’s blessing and his brother’s favor. He overcame his anger in order to return safely one day; he entrusted his father’s household to God and departed in peace and reconciliation, ensuring that what he had obtained was deserved rather than deceitfully acquired. And lest anyone mistake this patience for cowardice and thereby diminish its brilliance, consider also the circumstances of his marriage: He accepted Leah as his wife, he faithfully fulfilled the agreed-upon years of service, and he willingly undertook all the tasks imposed by his father-in-law. Had he been impatient, he would not have served another term for Rachel after being deceived by his father-in-law’s cunning.

Similarly, Joseph displayed patience—when his brothers tore him away from the pasture; when he was cast into the pit; when he was sold into slavery under harsh conditions; when he was imprisoned; even more so when he sat upon the king’s throne; and most of all when he recognized his longed-for brothers. For where vanity is unable to restrain itself, he maintained self-control—even in the highest position of honor.

This is truly a heavenly patience, one that neither suffering nor prosperity nor emotions could shake from its steadfastness.

One can only imagine the wrath of the devil—whom one cannot bear even when he pretends to be pleasant—when he was allowed to test Job! Even more so because God granted him the power to use every weapon and means at his disposal in his deep-rooted and terrible malice to test the righteous man. Thus, the battle that was waged was both new and almost unbelievable. The devil fought as never before—but Job fought even stronger, precisely by ignoring him.

In an instant, the devil destroyed Job’s great and wealthy estate. In his extreme cruelty, he hastened to bury Job’s beloved children beneath the ruins of their home before even taking their lives, bringing the house crashing down in a violent storm. Finally, having stripped Job of all his wealth, he covered his body with severe sores, even allowing worms to infest his wounds, so that the external affliction might be joined with the inner suffering, leading to the ultimate torment of the dying man.

Yet Job, far stronger against himself, patiently endured all the devil’s attacks with calm expectation. In the end, he regained everything this war had taken from him—but in an even better state than before. Thus, his earlier happiness was not lost but merely transformed, precisely because he had placed no value on it.

I do not dare to mention here the patience of the Lord Himself—for it would be a great injustice to God to count Him among men. To offer Him mere praise would be unworthy, for no comparison could ever do Him justice. Since absolutely all the elect and the blessed attain their state through His grace, it would be disgraceful to offer Him praise if one cannot even properly honor His servants.

Ah, how I long to praise you more, O Patience, queen of all virtues—not merely in words, but through my very life! If only I were able! I know well that you take greater delight in the way you are lived, in your foundations, and in the advice you give, than in the meaningless chatter of others. You do not seek so much to multiply virtues as to perfect them.

You grant to virginity that its flower shall never fade, neither through sickness nor through time. You are the safest harbor for the grieving widow, who must weather the many storms of life’s changing seasons. You unite those who take upon themselves the sacred yoke of marriage, guiding their still-unaccustomed necks like an experienced charioteer with gentle reins, leading them toward a shared path of work and love.

You teach friendship to desire and reject the same things. You are the only and greatest comfort in slavery, often even bringing about its freedom. You show poverty that, in contentment with what is hers, she possesses all things when she endures all things.

You went before the prophets, preparing them for Christ. You bound the apostles in deep unity with Him. You are the mother and the crown of the martyrs, day by day.

You are the wall of faith, the fruit of hope, the soul of love. Like the binding of a braided crown, you tie together all people and all virtues into one glorious adornment.

Blessed—eternally blessed—is the one who always carries you within himself!

Treatise VII: Humility

Summary

The treatise provides an exegetical explanation of Psalm 130, verses 1 and 2. It contains four significant passages with strong, sometimes literal, borrowings from Hilary’s Commentary on the Psalms. Despite this, the assumption that the treatise is a sketch by Hilary himself should be rejected, as the editors Ballerini have also concluded. Apart from the manuscript evidence, the style reveals the authorship of Zeno, and the repeated use of direct address suggests that the work has the character of a sermon. With the title Humility on page 122, it fits into the broader discussion of other virtues. However, the treatise appears either incomplete or merely a sketch by Zeno, as it lacks the structured summary and concluding exhortation that characterize his more developed works.

The arguments of Greek philosophy go far beyond their proper limits. In their striving to gain knowledge of God, these ideas have even infiltrated the Church. According to the words of Holy Scripture, this is to be regarded as arrogance (Chapter 1). Psalm 130, however, promotes humility, particularly the humility of the heart. This humility is also taught by the Lord, especially in His incarnation (Chapter 2). Furthermore, the Psalm teaches humility of the eyes. The neglect of this leads to all sins of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (Chapter 3). The continuation of the Psalm in the next verse further commends humility. David, the author of the Psalm, serves as an example of this virtue (Chapter 4). The following verse demonstrates the practice of humility as the exaltation of the soul, which is illustrated by the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in the temple (Chapter 5).

1.

The wise men of Greece, as they wish to be regarded, are more than others prone to excessive speculation. In their idle pursuits, they have lifted up their hearts beyond what is right due to their overbold reasoning. When they elevate their words to the heavens, when they try to convince the world that God is whatever they wish Him to be, when they make others believe they comprehend the mysteries of nature, when they assign names to the stars, prescribe duties to the sun, dictate the course of the moon—when they especially demand that their pronouncements be taken as gospel truth—by this, they have brought ruin upon themselves and others.

For they have introduced their false notions, originating from their schools, even into the circles of the Church—though under different terminology and a new religious guise—as if the Church had ever been strengthened by such fantasies! As a result, now even within the Church, there are those who, filled with such delusional ideas, do not seek to worship God but to investigate Him. This is what unbelievers now do. But let us listen to what divine Scripture says about them:

“They have caused the truth to vanish among the children of men. They speak lies, each to his neighbor; their lips are full of deceit; they speak with a double heart. May the Lord destroy all deceitful lips and the boastful tongue of those who say: ‘Let us display the power of our tongues; our lips are our own—who is our master?’”

2.

The prophet avoided such pride of an arrogant heart when he spoke to the Lord: “Lord, my heart has not been lifted up.”But if it is written, “Man sees the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart,” does it not then seem presumptuous or at least unnecessary to present to God what He already knows? This is not the case. The prophet presents it, but for our sake. He desires that we imitate what he does and says. When he declares, “My heart has not been lifted up,” he teaches that the best sacrifice for God is a contrite heart.

Therefore, my brothers, in times of prosperity, one must not become haughty, but must constantly rein oneself in with the bridle of self-discipline, keeping within the bounds of humility. In this way, we may be found worthy to experience what Scripture says: “The Lord is near to those who are of a troubled heart and saves those who are humble in spirit.” And hear also the gracious words of promise with which the Lord Himself exhorts us:

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am meek and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Our Lord, brothers, is humble in heart. The ineffable power of His wisdom and strength manifests itself in an even more admirable way through His assumption of humanity—because He is so great and mighty, His condescension is all the more remarkable. Yet, a speculative man exalts his heart and seeks to grasp the heights of the Lord, while failing to follow Him in humility!

3.

It continues: The prophet says, “And my eyes have not been lifted up.” When it comes to the eyes, the matter is even more concerning. The pride of the heart affects only a few, but the pride of the eyes affects all. What John preached to his disciples is well known to everyone.

“Do not love the world,” he says, “nor the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him; for everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world.”

It is through the eyes that all plans are conceived, all actions undertaken, and all deeds accomplished, leading daily to sensuality, ambition, and greed in passionate outbreaks. Thus, both forms of arrogance are futile: the pride of the heart bears no fruit, and the pride of the eyes, which constantly shifts its gaze higher and higher from one object to another, loses everything it sees due to its fleeting inconstancy.

4.

Then follows: “Neither have I concerned myself with great matters, nor with things too marvelous for me.”

Now, the words of God are great, and He is also marvelous in exalted things. If the prophet would have been in danger had he engaged with such matters, how could he consider it a good deed on his part to avoid things with which he must necessarily engage?

Brothers, the following statement is connected to the previous one: he is speaking about worldly matters. When he says he has not involved himself with great and marvelous things, he does not mean things of God, but rather things that are considered great by men in this world. And when he adds “for me” (too great and marvelous), he reveals that he was never proud when he had the chance to be. For no one becomes arrogant more easily than one who is unexpectedly elevated to a high position.

David was small, unnoticed, and unknown in his father’s house, tending the sheep as a near-stranger. He grew up innocent among innocent creatures, and thus he was pleasing to God. He was anointed as king, inspired as a prophetic singer—but he did not become proud in his kingship, nor did he use his prophetic office to terrify anyone. He did not use his royal power to avenge insults he had suffered. He loved his enemies, spared his adversaries, and forgave his sons who sought to kill their own father. He even preferred to continue fearing his persecutor—his king—rather than kill him, though God had repeatedly delivered him into his hands.

David wished to remain grateful for the change in his status while preserving the office given to him by God, striving always to please Him. As a king, he was gentle; as a father, loving; as a prophet, humble. He had power over all things, yet he disregarded all things. He was not changed by the great and marvelous things of the world. In all circumstances, he remained the same: the gentle and humble shepherd.

5.

Then he added: “If I was not humbly minded, but instead lifted up my soul.”

Let us see whether the prophet contradicts himself by saying that he has lifted up his soul, while at the same time boasting that he has not lifted up his heart. He does not contradict himself, but rather demonstrates that the exaltation of the soul consists in overcoming greater struggles. For:

“Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

An exalted heart leads to the humiliation of the soul, while a restrained heart leads to the soul’s elevation.

The two men who illustrate the prophet’s words through their actions are the Pharisee and the tax collector in the temple. The Pharisee, in foolish presumption, raises his hands toward heaven—hands that have often been used for murder, often as instruments of robbery. He lifts his eyes with arrogance—eyes through whose temptation the world and its allurements arise. He speaks loudly with his tongue—a tongue never free from the venom of the serpent. And what is the height of his madness? He boasts of himself before God.

The tax collector, however, does not pray to God with individual parts of his body; he prays with his entire being. In his fear, he is entirely humble, confessing his sins. And as he repeatedly strikes his breast—out of which, according to the Lord’s word, all sins proceed—he chastises, so to speak, his heart with his own hand in an act of humility. He does not cry out loudly for the forgiveness of his sins but pleads in silence.

Now listen to what each one received: The one who expected everything left with nothing, while the one who dared not hope for anything left the temple justified.

Treatise VIII. Fear.

Summary:
Just like Treatise VII, this treatise is also connected to a verse from the Psalms. Psalm 127, verse 1, gives the preacher an opportunity to speak about fear, specifically the fear of God. This treatise, at least in three places, reveals the reading and use of St. Hilary’s explanations of this Psalm in his commentary on the Psalms.

Language has only one word for fear. However, there are two types of fear: natural fear and the fear of God. Natural fear manifests in various circumstances, the worst being the fear of a guilty (evil) conscience (Chapter 1). But the Psalmist promises happiness only to the one who fears God. Every being possesses some fear of God, but true happiness only comes when this fear arises not out of necessity but from religious devotion. This is the essential fear that we need (Chapter 2).

Daniel, Jonah, the apostles, Peter, and Thecla were filled with this fear. Other types of fear, when intensified, ultimately lead to a person’s death; but the fear of God, by contrast, makes him…

1.

The word fear, dearest brothers, is, in terms of wording, just a single word. But if one considers its meaning, fear must be distinguished from fear. There are, in fact, two types of fear: one is the fear of God, the other is natural fear. Natural fear arises within a person; the fear of God is learned and taught. It does not consist in trembling but is founded on instruction, as it is written: “Come, children, listen to me: I will teach you the fear of God.”

Natural fear is not something one has to learn; it overtakes us due to our weakness. For you do not artificially invoke fear before the object of your fear; rather, you fear that which you do not wish to happen to you. Such fear arises for various reasons: for example, when a guilty conscience stirs powerfully from the awareness of a sin; or when an enemy’s hand, threatening with a sword, puts one’s life in danger; or when a traveler encounters a snake on his path, poised to strike, its gleaming scales glowing, swollen with venom; or when a wild beast, raging with bloodlust, roars from close range, ready to pounce upon the fleeing man’s back; or when a ship has already lost its rudder and, groaning amidst the winds and waves battling against it, stands on the verge of shipwreck.

The worst of all these is the fear of conscience; for all the aforementioned dangers and similar ones pass once they have been survived. But the fear of conscience does not disappear.

Now let us see how to understand it when the prophet says, “Blessed are all who fear the Lord.” If all who fear the Lord are blessed, then there is no one who is not blessed. For there is no nation, no animal, in fact, no living being at all that does not fear God. But if we are suddenly struck with terror upon hearing noises because the very hinges of the world are shaking; if the sky resounds with an unprecedented, terrifying crash; if heavy clouds bring forth impenetrable darkness, and from it, flame after flame flashes like fiery serpents, sometimes even creating the illusion of interrupted daylight; if under the lightning’s glow, many things burst into flames; if the earth either quakes or collapses into itself within an opened crater—then in such a case, there can be no talk of blessedness, where fear arises only from necessity and not from religious devotion.

Let us therefore listen to what Scripture admonishes us: “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, and to keep His commandments with all your heart and with all your soul, that it may go well with you?” Do you see now that this kind of fear is necessary for us? It is the fear that is rooted in the love of God, that arises from free will, that finds its honor in recognizing God’s will, that steadfastly walks the path of all virtues, that faithfully obeys all commandments, that lives in innocence without external compulsion, and that cultivates righteousness in a special measure. This fear tirelessly seeks to fear nothing except God, whom it loves.

With the help of this fear of God, Daniel, unarmed, slew the dragon that terrified the people; and when thrown to the lions and facing death, he ate food—he who, when not in mortal danger, was accustomed to fasting. In this fear of the Lord, Jonah did not hesitate to surrender himself voluntarily to shipwreck; his fall was pitiful, but even more pitiful was his burial within the gaping mouth of the sea monster. Yet through this, he reached the shore he longed for before even seeing it with his eyes. He was happier in his grave than on his ship.

During prayer, the mountain trembled, but only the mountain shook—not the apostles. Peter was carried by the waves of the sea, yet he did not sink; he walked upon them. The depths of the sea recoiled from swallowing him, for he did not fear; yet, the sea did not completely deny its nature, lest he believe he had walked upon it with his own power.

Against Thekla, a bitter accuser drew the sword of his speech; the state laws, through their representatives, raged against her; wild beasts were driven to utmost fury against her, yet they showed themselves gentler than men. And to ensure that nothing was missing from this cruel and inhuman spectacle, sea monsters were also unleashed upon her. The virgin was stripped of all her garments, but instead was clothed in a radiant cloud. And while the spectators were seized with fear at so many preparations for her death, she herself, fearless, overcame every kind of terror.

Unharmed, as if she had the whole earth under her feet, she left the dreadful confines of the arena that was meant to bring her death—not as one to be pitied, but as one to be admired, a triumphant victor over the world. All had believed she would succumb to such great torments.

Behold, this is the fear that is necessary! It is the fear that seeks only one thing: to bring blessedness. It comes about through effort, not by chance; it arises from free will, not from necessity; it is rooted in the worship of God, not in guilt; it is a fear of God, not a fear of nature.

And do you wish to know its unique quality? All other kinds of fear, when intensified, ultimately lead those who suffer from them to death. But the fear of God intensifies only toward one goal: to make the one who possesses it immortal.

Treatise IX. Greed I.
Summary
The following three treatises deal with greed. They are likely not written in direct succession but at different times. However, due to their similarity, they have been compiled together by the editors under the same theme.

Treatise IX describes the spread of greed to the point that it is no longer even recognized as a crime. It is the root of all evil (Chapter 1). For greed, there are no obstacles and no considerations. Its consequences are terrible, though at times they also befall the greedy themselves (Chapter 2). Man should remember death (Chapter 3). The forms of greed are diverse (Chapter 4). Yet man does not consider the dangers of greed and the impending judgment. Furthermore, greed is incapable of providing true satisfaction (Chapter 5). The treatise concludes with a commendation of the audience and a vision of the heavenly Jerusalem, which possesses all treasures but knows no greed (Chapter 6).

It is no isolated or trivial crime, brothers, when someone—especially a Christian—is ensnared in the bonds of greed, blinded by the ominous darkness of a deep night, and miserably plunges into the deepest abyss. But because the whole world has been swept away by the consuming fire of this pestilential, unquenchable passion, greed has evidently ceased to be considered a crime; there is no one left to convict it as such. Wherever one looks, all people rush headlong in insatiable greed toward disgraceful gain; there is scarcely anyone left who would even for a moment rein it in with the bridle of justice.

Without rest or respite, greed surges forth, rages, fights, plunders, gathers up, hoards, clings tenaciously to its own possessions, covets what belongs to others, yet is never satisfied—neither with its own nor with what is taken from others, nor even with the whole world itself. It possesses everything and yet constantly complains of lack. As a result, it never achieves the fulfillment of its desires. The richer it becomes, the more miserable it feels; for it knows no rest and no contentment. Armed with right and wrong alike, using every means, form, and trickery, it rushes forward without regard for its own or another’s welfare. It has only one fear: that someone might have nothing for it to seize.

This is the reason why all nations collapse under wounds they have inflicted upon one another; why cities lament their ruin; why devastated fields cannot recover; why the seas are more dreadful because of pirates than because of their natural dangers. Roads are blocked by swords and drenched with human blood. Wills are read with astonishment, revealing completely unknown heirs. A deadly cup, offered by a supposed friend’s hand, mercilessly takes innocent lives.

A new kind of mad hatred leads to the burial of the unborn—not so much in their mother’s womb as in a coffin—so that they come neither to a rightful life nor a rightful death. Thus, the Apostle rightly says: “The root of all evil is greed.” Indeed, all the evils we have mentioned—and many more, indeed all evils that continuously arise everywhere, despite humanity’s attempts to condemn them—have greed as their mother and teacher. They originate from greed and are nourished by it. Thus, humanity swallows the camel and strains out the gnat; it shakes off the drops of crime but drinks from the very fountain from which the streams of crime flow—the fountain of greed.

For greed, neither rights, nor laws, nor any position of honor form an obstacle—for anything that can be bought and sold is not beyond its reach. Not even nobility is exempt, for greed grants credit for its sake, surrounds it with protection, and secures for itself a resplendent name through it. Not even inviolability or security—nothing is so untouchable that it cannot be violated, nothing so firm that it cannot be stormed—with money.

Neither blood relations nor friendship stand in its way; for no one is loved or hated for their own sake, but for their gold, their silver, their influence. This is ultimately the reason why we see that people who bear the cherished name of “brother” are more familiar with the sword than with themselves. It is the reason why wealthy parents forget the sacred title of “parent” and watch as their children, to the disgrace of both parties, turn to beggary and wander aimlessly through the land. It is the reason why children come to see their parents’ long life as a misfortune to themselves, laying violent hands upon nature itself, seizing their inheritance before its time, and forcing their parents to live for misery but to be dead for wealth.

It is horrifying! Why, wretched man, do you take what already belongs to you? And what will you do to a stranger if you are already so stingy with yourself? This is the most abominable of all abominations! As they plunder one another, pursue one another, and deceive one another, they justify the actions of their enemies, praise robbers, and excuse murderers. And yet they never become aware that even tomorrow is not in man’s power—indeed, not even the very day on which they carry out their deeds; for that which is always in flux leaves uncertain what the next moment will bring.

But they, blind though their eyes are open, expand their storehouses, consolidate lands, add forest to forest; and if they were to take possession of the entire world, they would still be dissatisfied that it has limits. To have a neighbor is, in their eyes, an offense. They build grand estates but remove tombstones—those who do not fear death, yet fear the reminder of it. And so it often happens that they are suddenly overtaken by death, left lying about, abandoned to dogs, birds, and wild beasts for food, scattered everywhere, devoted to destruction on all sides, with half-consumed bones, no longer possessing even a remnant of their own flesh.

Behold, this is the fate of the miser! He who once called vast wealth his own does not even have a small patch of earth for a burial mound. The renowned prophet rightly rebuked them when he said: “What has our pride profited us? And what has boasting in wealth brought us? All has passed away like a shadow.” And the Lord Himself has said: “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but suffers harm to his soul?”

So go on, insatiable man, and, in your pursuit of new methods, even compel the elements into the service of your cursed accumulation of ruinous wealth! Let your chambers shine in the splendor of multicolored objects made from precious gems, let the ground groan under the weight of hoarded silver, let your entire house, in its golden radiance, compete with the sun itself. Let the ladder of honors, which you have completely ascended, finally have nothing left to offer you—but still, you must remember that death fears neither wealth nor honors.

Oh, how blind is the mind of man! However different their paths, all are driven toward the same death! The poor seek after treasures they do not possess, believing their happiness lies in them; the rich live in the delusion that they lack the wealth they already own. In one, greed gradually takes hold; in the other, it revels in excess—but in both, it grows and never diminishes.

Yet, in a single moment, a small patch of earth makes them equal and fully content—something that all the wealth of gold and all the ambition in the world could never accomplish.

One man casts his money like a fishing line to reel in the wealth of others; and when it is tied up in outstanding debts, he does not cease to increase it through his dubious calculations, until he finally possesses a great sum—not merely the amount he originally lent, but an amount dictated by the tally of days and months, as well as by the count of his own fingers. Yet, despite all his business cunning, the usurer often loses everything if some misfortune—deceit, insolvency, flight, or death—snatches his debtor from his grasp. For it is the nature of greed to make a man even greedier; and often enough, it robs its victim of more than it grants him. Thus, it frequently happens that one who seeks to seize another’s property ends up, justly, losing his own.

Elsewhere, another man blocks travelers from the roads; he denies them access to the meadows, the forests, and the waters. And though much of these riches of nature remain unused, he still refuses them to men, while granting them freely to birds, serpents, and wild beasts. Surely, it is sheer madness to begrudge others the gifts of nature.

Yet another man hoards supplies of all things; he shrewdly waits for the right moment to sell, measures dishonestly, demands exorbitant prices, and swears he has nothing to sell—only to be begged and to wring the last penny from others’ throats. And if only the goods he sold were at least unadulterated! Moreover, he laments when the year is barren, but he laments even more when it is fruitful—at one time because he has too little to sell, at another because he is not the only one able to sell. Do you wish to know the extent of his blindness? He is angry at God if he is not always enriched at the expense of widespread sorrow. And so it must be: he who seeks gold finds a sword!

And yet, no one thinks of the frailty of man, no one considers an enemy, no one considers the tax collector, no one considers a thief, no one considers even a household member—who, through his knowledge of secrets, is more dangerous than all the others. No one considers the threatening flames of Judgment Day, through which we must all pass naked. Only one thing is worshiped—that of which it is written: “The gods of the heathens are gold and silver.” And for its sake, many are slain—or slay others.

I would truly like to know: what happiness does this great and mad passion contain? What does it bring to its servant? It does not reduce fever, it does not drive away sickness, it does not heal wounds, it does not soothe pain, it does not ward off death—rather, it hastens death even for the healthy! One can never eat or drink in peace. And yet, gold does not descend into the underworld with a thief. The only thing it does is push wretched eyes and deceived hearts into the wild frenzy of acquiring its accursed gleam—so that man does not lose his life in vain.

But, brothers, I have not spoken to the greedy—I have spoken about them. For if such a person were present, I would have spoken only by divine examples. But in you, faith and piety are always alive in a praiseworthy way, and they are capable of driving out greed. Therefore, you are not so much worthy of possessing gold and silver as you are worthy of being them. For you are the living gold of God; you are the silver of Christ; you are the wealth of the Holy Spirit. If you despise earthly metals, you will be independent of them altogether—your own life will be your treasure.

For you, that heavenly city has been prepared, the city built of gold, into which all may enter without hesitation. Twelve gates stand open, and countless dwellings have been made ready—no one needs to fear being without a place. And what a glorious reward will be ours when, by the growing number of the faithful, we fill the city of God to its very limits!

So be without worry! In this city, nothing is ever lacking, nothing is ever taken away by force, and nothing ever departs from its rightful place. All good and eternal things flow there in rich abundance. And most importantly: no one lacks, no one envies, no one steals, no one plunders, no one is outlawed, no one kills, no one is slain. All are happy, all are of one mind, all are forever equal. What belongs to one belongs to all; and what belongs to all belongs to each one.

And do you want to know the greatest joy of all? No one hides his garments, no one conceals his pearls, no one hoards his precious stones, no one hides his gold, no one his silver—and not a single soul fears theft.

Treatise X. Greed II.

Summary

This treatise follows similar lines of thought as the preceding one.

The editors Ballerini once sought to determine the exact time of composition (p. 139). They referred to the passage in Chapter 5: “But this does not apply to you, brothers. Your generosity is known in all provinces; the seed of your love is sown in almost all parts of the world. Many who have been redeemed by you, many who have been freed from the sentence of death, many who have been rescued from oppressive circumstances, give thanks to you.” They related these words to the Battle of Adrianople (378), whose consequences were mitigated by the charity of the people of Verona. Ambrose also refers to similar circumstances in De Officiis II, 15, 70 and II, 28, 136 (Dissertatio prima de S. Zenonis tractatibus eiusque aetate § 7). However, the words are too vague to be directly linked to the alleviation of the aftermath of the Battle of Adrianople. There is no direct mention of the hardships of war, and there were plenty of other opportunities in that time for acts of charity. According to accounts of Zeno’s life (Introduction), Zeno was no longer alive at that time. However, it is possible that the composition of this treatise belongs to the later period of Zeno’s life.

1.

If only all people could as easily free themselves from the love of avarice as they condemn it! But avarice is an enchantress, a sweet evil, and at the same time, a perpetual curse upon all humanity. To those who possess no wealth, she instills a burning desire for it; and to those who do possess it, she denies satisfaction. Thus, she drives all people into a storm of frenzied passion, so much so that one cannot determine in whom she burns more intensely.

She is like a fire that finds dry hay as fuel and does not cease until everything is completely consumed. Those in modest circumstances serve her through deception, the rich through their lack of self-restraint, judges through partiality, rhetoricians through corrupt and deceitful eloquence, kings through arrogance, merchants through fraud, the poor through idle desires, and priests of God through hypocritical hatred. All peoples and nations serve her through war. She rages madly across the world, ever devising new and various schemes.

She knows no rest—neither by day nor by night, neither in war nor in peace. She is never satisfied; indeed, the greater the gain, the more miserable she becomes. She is a unique form of evil, for she continually grows and knows no end. Neither parental love, nor the tenderness of children, nor the affection of spouses, nor the close bond of siblings, nor the rights of friendship, nor concern for helpless orphans, nor the harsh fate of widows, nor the misery of the poor, nor even the contemplation of God can break her. She flatters or harms all alike, however she can, merely to take from them whatever they may possess.

And indeed, whom would she spare, when she even drives herself to destruction for the sake of a wretched and shameful profit?

2.

Poor man! Why do you torment yourself with your burning and vain desire for gold and silver, burdening yourself with useless worries? Why do you amass great heaps of wealth? Why do you restlessly seek to hoard things out of needless concern, when they will ultimately be left behind—even while denying yourself enjoyment of them?

And yet, you complain of poverty—you, who do not even know what you truly possess! No matter what you do, you will take nothing with you into the afterlife. The things that belong to nature may be moved from one place to another, but they can never be truly taken away. In the end, even gold and silver, which are wrested from the depths of the earth through strenuous labor, are returned to the earth for safekeeping. Their possession is an illusionary joy, and their exposure always brings danger.

But there is no need to go into detail—all the harmful consequences are made clear by a single statement from the prophet: “The idols of the heathens are gold and silver.” From this, it is evident that whoever loves gold and silver not only worships gods but also imitates their ways and deeds. This is easy to prove, and we shall now see what our task is in light of this.

3.

My Christian, if the truth is to be told, you abhor gold and silver when they are used for idols, yet not when they are in your heart. You see that countless coins, minted in gold and silver, bear the images and insignia of kings, just as idols do in temples. The only difference is that in your house, they are smaller, while in the temple, they are larger. If you spend them, they are currency; if you hoard them, they are idols.

And you, servant of Christ—your rejection of idolatry is a deception. Believe me: you inwardly revere the idol if you do not cast aside its ornaments and images. You walk into God’s church adorned with gold, your entire body weighed down with various kinds of jewelry, bearing the burden of that cursed metal. You, who are ordinarily sensitive to every discomfort, suddenly find strength under the weight of your ornaments.

Indeed, so rigid is your attire that, even in prayer, you cannot bow, you cannot stretch out your hands, nor do you dare to cast your jeweled chest upon the ground. And when you make confession, you bow your neck—not in humility, but because of the weight upon it. You care more for your adornments than for your soul’s salvation.

What do you expect to obtain from God when your very prayers are made in the presence of the very things that provoke His wrath? Open the eyes of your heart, and you will see that your prayer is more an offense than a supplication.

And finally, brothers, a woman who does not fear Christ will not fear her husband either.

4.

From this arises the fact that husbands and wives, in complete contradiction to the sacred bond of marriage, pursue only their own interests—each one, of course, out of excessive love, striving for the other’s inheritance. From this arises the hatred of parents for their children and of children for their parents. From this arises the false friendship that flatters to the face but harbors no sincerity in the heart.

From this arises the tragic truth that humanity delights in its own downfall and destruction because it values wealth more than the soul. From this arises the collapse of justice, honor, piety, faith, and truth. From this arises the fact that God Himself must endure disgrace at every moment, as His commandments are scorned, and worldly vanity and the love of riches are preferred over Him.

For any man whose heart has once been filled with the insatiable fire of avarice will not hesitate to commit any sin, any crime, any disgrace, or any injustice.

5.

But this does not apply to you, brothers; your generosity is known in all provinces. The seed of your love is sown in almost all parts of the entire world. Many who have been redeemed by you, many who have been freed from the sentence of death through you, many who have been rescued from oppressive circumstances by you, give thanks to you.

Your home is open to all strangers. Among you, it has long been unheard of for either the living or the dead to be left without covering for their nakedness. The poor among us no longer even know what it means to beg for alms. Widows and the needy are already including you in their wills.

I could say even more in praise of your blessed deeds if you were not already my own people. But there is one thing I cannot remain silent about in my joy: by using your wealth to benefit the poor, you invest everything that is taken from avarice for yourselves, without fear of envy, and lay it up with interest. For what could be richer than a man whose debtor is God Himself—He who is blessed forever and ever!

Treatise XI. Greed III.

Summary
This very short treatise is either merely a compilation of some explanations related to a reading from the Holy Scriptures that preceded it in the divine service, or it serves as a sketch for a sermon. Alternatively, it may constitute the final chapter of a lost treatise, which, according to the summary, contained similar trains of thought as the preceding ones.

1.

Brothers! Rightly does God, as you have heard, hate greed. It is an unfathomable craving, a blind desire, a mad passion, a rapaciousness that knows no bounds, a tension that finds no rest, and it never reaches the goal of its desires because it knows no satisfaction. It breaks faith; it neglects love; it denies justice; it recognizes no emotions; it disregards divine rights; it nullifies human laws through sophistic arguments in order, if possible, to seize the whole world for itself. Do you wish to know what kind of evil it is? Surely, it directs its fury against the one who loves it even more than against others. But whoever overcomes it shall have eternal life.

Treatise XII. On Spirit and Body
Summary
The relationship between spirit and body was a topic of frequent discussion in early Christianity. The writings of Lactantius in his Divine Institutes (cf. e.g., II 12; III 12, VII 5, etc.) reveal this preoccupation. Zeno himself is often influenced by him. However, more than Lactantius, Zeno connects this question with the incarnation of the Son of God. He begins with an apparent contradiction between the Genesis account of the creation of man from earth and the mention of a “second heavenly man” in 1 Corinthians 15:47, as well as the mention of a “Son of Man who was already in heaven and descended from heaven” in John 3:13. He resolves this contradiction by referring to the Son of God, who was also the Son of Man. In the incarnation, he sees the operation of Providence, the significance of the union of body and soul, and the ultimate goal of humanity (Chapter 1).

In Chapter 2, he outlines the cause of the incarnation. At the conclusion of the creation of the world, God created man in His image, formed his body from earth, breathed a soul into him, and endowed him with sensory faculties and intellectual power. God gave him His command and granted him free will to choose between good and evil. The devil, in the form of a serpent, seduced him through the woman, bringing him and, through inheritance, the entire human race into ruin. Sickness and other evils afflict him in life. Ultimately, his body succumbs to death, but his soul to eternal punishment. Out of love for His image, the Son of God, the Creator of the world, descended from heaven, enclosed God within a man in the womb of the Virgin. He taught righteousness, took death upon Himself, and thus granted humanity access to immortality. The incarnation reveals Providence, suffering signifies the sacrament of salvation, and the resurrection reveals the ultimate goal of humanity (Chapter 3).

For the latter, it is important to know that man consists of two different elements—body and soul—and has two different forms of life: the physical life, which is natural and short, and the spiritual life, which comes from baptism and enjoys immortality. However, these two forms are in constant conflict (Chapter 4). The flesh invites, in enticing forms, to the enjoyment of life (Chapter 5). In contrast, the spirit obliges one to flee these pleasures and renounce the world (Chapter 6). Yet, the life of the spirit is more difficult because its goods are invisible, attainable only with effort, and belong to the future, while the goods of the flesh are more appealing to human nature, easily obtained, and tangible. Therefore, out of fear or lack of faith, preference is often given to the goods of the flesh (Chapter 7). But this is a deception for humanity, for the flesh and its charms are transient, ending with death and furthermore subject to the punishments of hell (Chapter 8). Only fools prefer the body over the soul. Christians strive for the better; and it lies within their free will to attain eternal reward or eternal punishment (Chapter 9).

1.

If someone, in striving to understand the contents of the holy law—or even to refute it—frequently turns to the reading of the Book of Genesis by Moses, he might perhaps—since we see daily that there are minds who delight in subtle disputes—pose a tricky question to us by appealing to a word of the Apostle, saying: “The first man was from the dust of the earth, the second man is from heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:47). He might argue that, according to the account in Genesis, there is no doubt that only one man was formed from the dust of the earth and that from his side the woman was taken as a companion in marriage; and from these two, the entire human race descended. However, there is no mention there of a heavenly man, and therefore one cannot teach that such a being was either created or born.

Additionally, another consideration arises afterward: it appears to be a contradiction and a folly that the second man is immortal, whereas the first man—who is mortal—should be the first, since immortality excludes the concept of time, while mortality includes it. And if, hypothetically, the first man were heavenly, why would he also need to be made from earth? A similar challenge could be raised against a passage from the Gospel using the same line of reasoning. For it is written: “No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man who was in heaven” (John 3:13). How could the Son of Man be born in heaven? Or whose son must he be to descend from heaven, since the dwelling place and nature of man are far removed from heaven?

Well then, my reader, let the meaning stand before you, and you will find the truth. The one who was in heaven descended from heaven; and the one who descended from heaven is the same one who also ascended, the Son of Man who was in heaven. He is called the Son of Man in name only, not in nature. The Lord did not take on flesh twice, but He had to be designated as the Son of Man because, even before the time He became one, He had already revealed through prefigurations and numerous prophecies what He intended to become. The title Son of God refers to His ineffable origin, while the title Son of Man refers to a mystery. I shall attempt, as if with a key, to unlock the hidden meaning of this mystery. Then everyone will easily recognize the operation of divine providence, the profound significance of the union of flesh and soul, and what constitutes the highest good of man.

2.

Brothers! God had already fashioned our world, so to speak, as a dwelling place for the future human race, equipping it on all sides with elements, natural resources, living beings, food, and various useful things, both great and small, so that its inhabitant would have no reason for complaint. He completed it with marvelous craftsmanship. Then, He created for Himself an image according to His likeness—an image endowed with sensory perception and intellectual power. He took dust from the earth, formed man, and breathed into him a soul from the source of His own spirit, through which we live. From the ground (humus), He gave him the name homo (man), as the very act of creation teaches—perhaps so that through contemplation of both the Creator and the material from which he was made, man might always revere and fear his Maker. And He placed under his dominion all the goods of the world. Since man had already been endowed with wisdom and sensory faculties and had also received explicit instruction concerning the commandment to choose between life and death, God entrusted him to his own free will.

But the envious slanderer—who, because he creeps unnoticed (sensim serpat), received the name Serpens (serpent)—in his abominable envy, knowing that he could not deceive man in his own form, sought to flatter him in another’s guise. Through the woman, he seduced him into violating God’s commandment and thus brought upon him a miserable death. And with him, in the same way, the entire human race fell, ruined by the inherited condition, doomed to destruction. No place remained for any consolation. As it is to this day, man—so long as he lives—is consumed by toil, sorrow, restlessness, pain, sickness, and suffering; and when he dies, the ever-consuming earth destroys his once-flourishing body. His soul, banished into the night of death, is tormented by the relentless underworld with the eternal punishment of an everlasting prison. Neither heaven nor hell had mercy on the image of God; Death, the ruler, had seized it entirely into his power.

3.

For a long time, this was how things were. Then the Son of God—He who had so skillfully created the world, whose wisdom knows no bounds, whose power is immeasurable—descended from heaven out of love for His image. He illuminated the hospitable dwelling of the Virgin’s womb with His radiance and enclosed divinity within a man. He took on the form and condition of a mortal man. He taught that righteousness brings immortality, confirming His commandments through miracles. Finally, He took upon Himself death so that, after overcoming it, He might rise again and, through the humanity He bore, bring mankind the hope of conquering death and open to them the path to the reward of immortality.

Thus, just as through the condemnation of one man, the sentence of condemnation passed upon all men, so also through the justification of One, justification for eternal life was extended to all. Do you now clearly see how divine providence is revealed in His assumption of humanity, how the mystery of redemption is hidden in His suffering, and how the highest good is found in His resurrection?

4.

In considering this final point, we must first recognize that human nature consists of two different and opposing elements, bound together in a discordant unity, and that the soul is enclosed within the outlines of the body. Because of this, God has assigned to us two types of life: one is the life into which we are born naturally, according to a law we share with animals—it is the bodily life, and therefore brief. The other is the life of the soul, which we must create for ourselves in this life through faith, drawn from the living source of the holy font of baptism. This is a noble and eternal life. For the soul, which overcomes the world by knowing and upholding true religion and true righteousness, must, as a reward for its labors, partake in the eternal blessedness of immortality.

Because of this, an ongoing internal struggle rages within man, as one part seeks to dominate the other. As the Apostle says: “The flesh desires against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other” (Galatians 5:17).

5.

The flesh, indulging entirely in pleasures and surrounded by the many gifts of this present world, promises great and immeasurable treasures. It displays them, offers them, bestows them freely, and flaunts its beauty. By borrowed colors, it daily gives its face a new and pleasing appearance, aided by the mirror that helps in its disguise. It is maintained through the refinement of the palate, made dazzlingly white by the bath, fragrant with perfumes, adorned in multicolored garments, covered entirely with jewelry. It is welcomed at lavish feasts, soaked in wine, decorated with gemstones, or crowned with flowers. It provokes with enticing glances and playful speech, is blind in its greed, inflamed by sensuality, and luxuriates in the feathery softness of a swelling, yielding bed. Given over to lust, it roams through groves, by springs, across meadows, in baths, in cities, and in the countryside.

Amidst all these sensual pleasures, it invites every generation, all people of every age, to desire it, with the well-known song: “Short and troubled is the time of our life, and there is no relief at the end of man. And no one has ever been known to return from the underworld. For we were born from nothing, and afterward we shall be as though we had never been, and from our end there is no return. It is sealed, and no one comes back” (Wisdom 2:1-5).

And later: “Therefore, come, let us enjoy the present goods, use creation while we are young! Let there be an abundance of fine wine and perfumes! Let no flower of spring remain unplucked! Let us crown ourselves with roses before they wither! Let there be no meadow that our desires do not wander through! Everywhere, let us leave traces of our joy! This is our portion, this our fate!” (Wisdom 2:6-9).

On the other hand, the spirit stands as a guide, rich in experience. He commands that all these worldly temptations be fled from, that one remain constantly prepared for battle, armed at all times, keeping careful watch, fortifying the camp on all sides, and bravely and unwaveringly defending the banners of the King. He commands endurance—of heat, cold, hunger, thirst, and all hardship—with patience. He commands the renunciation and disdain of the world, and even the embrace of death, which is followed by eternal blessedness, considering it more as the reward of victory than as death itself. In a significant proclamation, he preaches through the mouth of John:

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—does not come from the Father, but from the world. And the world is passing away, along with its desires. But whoever does the will of God remains forever, just as God remains forever.” (1 John 2:15-17)

But someone might object: If this is the nature of the spirit, why is it that he is so often defeated within himself? Above all, because humanity is more drawn to pleasure than to virtue. Then, because it loves enjoyment more than hard labor. Additionally, the goods of the flesh are readily available and require no effort to find. Humanity prefers to indulge in what is immediately accessible, even if it is insignificant, rather than in what is great but must be awaited in the future.

On the other hand, the goods of the spirit are not only invisible, requiring patience and expectation, but they also lie beyond the reach of sight, at such an unattainable height that no one can grasp them except through the greatest difficulty, immense effort, and many dangers. Furthermore, the flesh moves on the ground, from which man himself was formed; the spirit, however, is foreign to it. The flesh does not take merit into consideration, but indiscriminately bestows its gifts upon whoever is nearest, particularly upon the unworthy, in order to draw the masses to itself. The reward of the spirit, however, is never granted to anyone who has not first victoriously overcome the claims of death.

As a result, whether out of fear or lack of faith, people often prefer the present over the future, the inferior over the good, the transient over the enduring, the false over the true, and the temporal over the eternal.

Oh, how blind is the mind of man! Why do you allow yourself to be deceived by the fleeting illusion of present bodily things? Why do you force what is better (the spirit) to submit to what is worse? You know the Scripture: “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory is like the flower of the grass” (1 Peter 1:24). If you set your desires upon it, then recognize that you are thinking like a beast. Or do you love its strength? Every pain bends and breaks it. Or its beauty? It is a fragile and ever-changing thing, something that a single fever or some other accident can destroy.

Look at the eyes, which guard and guide the body—if struck, they fail and are extinguished. Does the body not then become a living corpse? Look at how a consumptive lung, exhausted by violent coughing, exposes all its owner’s bones in terrifying thinness—does not this fleshless, ghostly frame, even to itself, become an object of horror? There is no need to go into more detail. Look: a fatal illness casts the entire bodily structure onto a bed; look: the grip of death presses in from all sides—will not the very body, once the mistress of pleasures, soon become the prey of disease? And at last, death takes what remains, and afterward, the torments of hell are prepared for it! Then the revelry of the flesh is over, and all the adornment once lavished upon it for its beautification can no longer help the dead—unless it has not already been stripped from the living body by those who feign mourning.

Therefore, my brothers, “abstain, as true Christians, as strangers and pilgrims, from fleshly desires, which war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11). And do not let your mind be troubled because you do not understand the mystery and form of the spirit. For if you despise it simply because you do not see it, then by the same reasoning, you might also despise God, who is likewise invisible. For whoever does not love His image consequently hates the truth. This is why fools prefer the body over the soul, an idol over God.

But we—who have put off Adam and put on Christ (Colossians 3:9-10); we—who, under God’s own instruction, have learned what power, what end, and what reward the flesh has, and how it stands in relation to the soul; we—who know well that if the flesh triumphs, both body and soul perish, but if the soul triumphs, both are saved—we must strive for what is better, at the very least with no less zeal than we pursue what is evil. There is no excuse for anyone, especially since the choice is left to our free will, as the prophet says:

“Before man lie good and evil, death and life. Whatever he chooses shall be given to him” (Sirach 15:17).

There is no doubt: our will determines which side shall prevail, and at the resurrection, it will either share in eternal reward or suffer eternal punishment.

Treatise XIII. Circumcision

Summary
The treatise is linked to a reading from one of the Apostle Paul’s letters concerning circumcision. It is uncertain which passage on this topic is referenced (particularly Romans 2:25–29; 1 Corinthians 7:18–19; Galatians 5:2–6; Colossians 2:11; 3:9–11). Given the distinction made in the treatise between circumcision of the flesh and circumcision of the heart, Romans 2:25–29 seems most likely, or, based on the concluding statement, Colossians 2:11.

According to marginal notes later added to the oldest codex from Reims, the treatise was used as the ninth lesson in the choir prayers (likely in the cathedral church of Reims).

The external occasion for the sermon was likely the significant percentage of the Jewish population in Verona.

The treatise aims to demonstrate that physical circumcision in Judaism does not bring salvation; only spiritual circumcision, as given to Christians in baptism, has that power.

The Jews take pride in circumcision. It is a scar resulting from a circular wound inflicted with an iron instrument. However, this practice is of lesser significance than the self-mutilation of the priests of Cybele (Chapter 1). This form of circumcision is purely physical and even contradicts the Sabbath commandment (Chapter 2). That righteousness is not dependent on circumcision is evident from the fact that the Old Covenant already included numerous righteous individuals who were uncircumcised: Abel, Noah, Melchizedek, and others (Chapter 3). Even in Abraham’s case, circumcision was not the cause of his righteousness; he had already been declared righteous beforehand. In his circumcision, he merely provided a model for the physical nation of the Jews, while his righteousness served as a model for the Christian people (Chapter 4).

Circumcision does not bring salvation; rather, it merely indicates the location of the first sin (a sexual transgression) and serves as a reminder to avoid other sins. However, it offers no remedy for sin. It is of no benefit to women and is of no true value to men either, for circumcision must be of the heart. If the spirit is corrupt, then all the members of a person’s body can fall into sin (Chapter 5). Indeed, despite their circumcision, God still reproached the Jewish people for their transgressions. Even Moses himself demanded spiritual circumcision (Chapter 6). The second circumcision with stone knives, mentioned in Joshua, cannot serve as justification for the Jewish people either (Chapter 7). Joshua was a prefiguration of Christ, who performed the circumcision of the heart from sin through stone knives—that is, through Peter and the other apostles and disciples (Chapter 8).

When Christ Himself was circumcised, He did so because He had to be a son of David (Chapter 9). In contrast to physical circumcision, spiritual circumcision applies to both men and women. Just as the serpent gained entry through Eve’s ear, so too did Christ enter Mary through her ear (her faithful obedience) and healed the wounds of womanhood. Adam was healed through the crucified man. And just as Eve came forth from Adam’s side, so from the side of this man—through blood and water, that is, baptism and martyrdom—came forth the spiritual woman, the Church (Chapter 10).

All, both men and women, participate in this spiritual circumcision (baptism). It is effective at all times and in all places. It is no longer merely a symbol but its fulfillment. The integrity obtained through it should never again be lost by Christians (Chapter 11).

1.

It seems necessary to me, dearest brothers, to carefully explain the meaning of circumcision, which the blessed Apostle Paul mentions not only in the passage we have just heard but also multiple times elsewhere so that the Christian may come to the knowledge of the truth and the Jew to the recognition of his error. For the Jew often boasts at great length, claiming that circumcision is the distinction of his people, the power of the heavenly sacrament of salvation, the rightful originator of eternal life, and the means of eternal participation in the future kingdom; without it, he insists, no one can attain the knowledge of God.

I therefore consider it necessary first to provide a definition of what circumcision is so that one may rightfully understand its nature. Circumcision, brothers, is a circular scar resulting from a round wound inflicted by an iron instrument. If the Jew considers this a matter of pride—leaving aside other arguments—then the honor of one who, for the sake of his goddess (who is, in fact, an ancient harlot and a prostitute), does not merely cut off a small piece of skin from the same member but instead removes the entire organ completely to offer it to shameful mysteries, is even greater. For after receiving his sacrament, the Jew can still sin with this member, whereas the other can no longer do so.

2.

The Jew is now faced with the necessity of openly declaring whether he regards circumcision as a carnal or a spiritual matter. If he claims it is spiritual, why does he boast of the flesh? If he considers it carnal, then it can bring no benefit to the soul: “For flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.” Moreover, circumcision contradicts the commandment of the Sabbath, which the Jew emphasizes must not be violated under any circumstances by any work. Yet it often happens that a son is born to him on the Sabbath. If he does not circumcise the child on the eighth day according to the law—which means on the following Sabbath—then “the life of his child must be cut off from his people.”

Now, beloved brothers, he must decide what he wants: to perform the circumcision or to postpone it. If he performs the circumcision, he breaks the Sabbath. If he does not perform the circumcision, he renders the law of circumcision meaningless through the destruction of the innocent life; for it is only the eighth day—not the seventh nor the ninth—that has received the privilege of circumcision from God. Thus, it necessarily follows that both are rendered worthless if one of the two cannot be carried out.

3.

And what do you say to the fact that Abel was found righteous without such a wound? What do you say to the fact that Enoch was taken away unharmed? What do you say to the fact that Noah, though he was not circumcised, was appointed as heir and father of mankind through divine providence during the raging of the flood? What do you say to the fact that Melchizedek, the high priest who found special favor with God, did not bear this scar? What do you say to the fact that the people of Nineveh were saved by the mercy of God while still uncircumcised? Surely, God would have commanded all of these individuals to be circumcised if He had foreseen circumcision as necessary for their salvation, for those whom He loved. Surely, He would have formed Adam circumcised from the very beginning!

4.

But perhaps someone will object: Was Abraham a sinner because he was circumcised? Or was he righteous and did not need circumcision? Brothers! Abraham was a righteous man and was nevertheless circumcised. What does Holy Scripture say?

“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
Does it say, perhaps: Abraham was circumcised, and it was credited to him as righteousness? Since Abraham, like Enoch and the others, was justified while still uncircumcised and was only circumcised afterward, it is clear that circumcision was not necessary for Abraham. Rather, it was performed only as a distinguishing mark of the Jewish people, which was to become a carnal nation. Circumcision brought him no advantage, for he had already pleased God beforehand, not only afterward when he was circumcised; he did not receive the reward of circumcision but of the promise, which he had already earned while still uncircumcised.

Thus, it is evident that Abraham carried within himself the prototype of the twofold people: through the sign of circumcision, he represented the Jewish people; through the righteousness of his faith, he signified the Christian people.

5.

Moreover, there is something else to consider. Circumcision does not so much promise salvation; rather, it points to the place and cause of sin’s guilt. Because Adam used this member to pluck the forbidden fruit, he introduced the law of death for the human race. It was entirely necessary for God to give this sign to the lustful people: by marking the place of the inherited guilt from the first mother (through circumcision), they were to recognize that all other sins must also be avoided.

Then the Jew says: Christian, you have defeated yourself with your own words. It is precisely for this reason, he claims, that he possesses eternal life—because he knows that in circumcision, God has given him a unique remedy against death.

Brothers, the Jew would be right if this remedy could benefit both sexes. But since the greater guilt (that of Eve) remains, he must admit defeat if he does not seek the truth. For even if he could heal Adam, he still cannot heal Eve with this remedy, in whom the primary guilt surely lies.

And what then, if I clearly see that it does not benefit the man either? For the circular application of this sign depends on the power of the heart; if the heart is not purified through the sacrament of true circumcision, then the person concerned will be lost forever. For the flesh may bear an injury, but it cannot command the spirit; rather, the spirit, with royal authority, compels the body, which is subject to it, to fulfill the desires of its will in servitude. If the spirit is wicked, a person may commit as many crimes as he has bodily members.

9.

But perhaps someone might ask: Why then did he himself receive the sign of the flesh if it was not necessary for him? Listen, brothers, to the reason for this act! The one who came to restore life to humanity had to fulfill all the requirements of the Law in his human form, so that he would not be thought to be a mere apparition. He could not have been “the end of the Law” nor the true Christ if he had omitted anything that another could have accomplished for the salvation of mankind.

Furthermore, he was proclaimed as the Son of David according to the flesh; if he did not bear the sign of his paternal lineage, he would not have been the Son of David, nor could he have appeared as the Christ except as the Son of David. He was circumcised because he was promised to the Jews, and he was born with the foreskin because he was to bring salvation to the uncircumcised Gentiles for all time.

10.

Up to now, we have spoken of the first circumcision as the Jews practice it; now let us briefly discuss the second circumcision, which is ours. It possesses such great power that it begins with a woman—something impossible for the former. Indeed, from the woman who first sinned also comes the remedy of this circumcision.

Since the devil had crept into Eve through persuasion via her ear, wounding and killing her, so too did Christ enter Mary through her ear and cut away all the vices of the heart. By being born of a virgin, he healed the wound of womanhood. Here you have the sign of salvation! Weakness was followed by wholeness; birth was followed by virginity.

In a similar manner, Adam is circumcised through the cross of the Lord. And because through the woman—who alone had touched the fateful tree—both sexes had inherited death, so too did, in contrast, the whole of humanity receive life again through the man who hung upon the wood.

And so that the original state might appear to be fully restored, first the man on the cross was brought to completion through death; and after he had peacefully fallen asleep, from his side—though no rib was taken—there flowed, through the lance’s wound, a stream of water and blood, signifying baptism and martyrdom: the spiritual body of the spiritual woman, so that Adam might be restored through Christ and Eve through the Church.

11.

And with this sacrament, brothers, we—both men and women—are circumcised. Through this sign, which is not merely symbolic but a real sign of the Holy Spirit, we are received into the faith. Through this circumcision, we lose nothing; rather, we find that we gain heavenly growth. We do not shed blood in an empty ceremony, but we retain the blood of chastity, which we often spill in noble contest when we die for the Lord during times of persecution, thereby defeating the devil.

Finally, we cut away from ourselves that which we should never have had, that which we received as something the evil enemy inflicted upon humanity, as the Lord says:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while the people slept, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat.”

We necessarily uproot this through circumcision, so that, cleansed from the corrupting touch of destructive seed, we may remain pure in the fullness of the Father’s seed.

This circumcision is not bound by day or night, by time, by gender, by status, by place, or by lineage in granting salvation to mankind, but it is present in glory at all times and in all people.

• The first circumcision cuts the flesh, the second removes the defects of the soul.
• The first circumcision is performed with iron, the second by the Spirit.
• The first circumcision cuts only a part, the second circumcises the whole person.
• The first circumcision applies only to men, the second to both sexes.
• The first circumcision removes only the foreskin, a small piece of flesh, while the second removes the foreskin of all worldly desires.
• The first is slavishly bound to the eighth day, while the second serves all seasons, days, hours, and moments.
• The first circumcision cannot even help a dying child before or after the eighth day, whereas the second bestows its gift of salvation upon every person from the cradle of infancy to the last breath of life.
• The first rejoices in blood, the second in grace.
• The first in the image, the second in the reality.
• The first in loss, the second in gain.
• The first lives as a prisoner under the Law, while the second grants the freedom of good faith in Christ to all.

So strive, you who “have been circumcised with a circumcision not made by hands, in the removal of the flesh, but with the circumcision of our Lord Jesus Christ,” to ensure that your integrity is not mutilated! Strive so that, just as the spiritual foreskin of Adam and Eve’s original sins was removed, their nakedness does not return again to condemnation!

Strive so that the new man does not appear to bear anything of the Jew or the Gentile! For both are carnal, and both are unfruitful. There can be no doubt: Neither the foreskin nor circumcision is of any significance; for those who live in faith, only the observance of God’s will is necessary.

Treatise XIV. The Construction of the Spiritual Temple of God

Summary:
This treatise presents a sermon that Zeno delivered on the occasion of the consecration of a church in Verona, likely the first large church in the city. From the visible, completed structure, he transitions to the construction of the spiritual church, which, according to the words of the Apostle, “You are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you,” applies to the believing people themselves (p. 168). In connection with biblical descriptions of the Temple in Jerusalem and the heavenly Jerusalem, he outlines the nature and power of this spiritual temple-building.

The speaker expresses his desire to offer fitting praise for the newly completed structure. However, earthly temples also belong to Jews and pagans, and their temples are often even more magnificent (Ch. 1). Yet, earthly structures without devout worshippers are neither sufficient nor necessary. Within the earthly temple, the true temple must exist, as the Apostle refers to the believing people (Ch. 2). Its components are of a different nature than those of the Jewish temple. Its cornerstone is a stone (Christ). Within it flows an inexhaustible spring (Baptism). It is completed by the secretarium, the twelve gates, and the sign of the cross (Ch. 3). The builders receive a special reward in the spiritual gifts of Baptism and the Eucharist (Ch. 4). The virtues are the effective forces for erecting this temple. All ages and social classes participate in it (Ch. 5). May this spiritual building arise within the new church structure (Ch. 6).

1.

Dearest brothers, I would gladly make use of the language of triumph, so to speak, and by words of praise place a second keystone upon the high keystone of the new structure. But as good as it is to praise what belongs to God, that which one shares with pagans or Jews is not something unique. For they, too, could—if they were permitted (p. 169) or wished—build synagogues and erect temples to their gods, and perhaps even more splendid ones. But if one considers it rightly, in all these buildings, it is often more the builders who receive admiration than the priests.

Moreover, is there not in the whole Church of God either no or only very rarely a place of worship that could even remotely compare to the idol temples, which collapse upon themselves at the slightest tremor? And we also know that Solomon’s Temple was created as a magnificent structure, executed so that the observer did not know what to admire more—the grandeur, the craftsmanship, the furnishings, or the building materials. For all elements were so united in a single splendor that this transient, splendid structure was regarded as the rightful house of God. If this were the case, then our church could never compete with those mentioned in terms of beauty.

2.

But such earthly structures, which lack the presence of the called and devout worshiper, are explicitly declared by God as neither sufficient nor necessary for His honor when He says:

“Heaven is my throne, and the earth is the footstool of my feet. What house will you build for me? What place will serve as my resting place? All this my hand has made.” (Isaiah 66:1-2)

And in the Gospel, He speaks:

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who were sent to you! How often I wanted to gather your children, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. Behold, your house will be left to you desolate.” (Matthew 23:37-38)

And again:

“Not one stone will be left upon another in the temple that will not be thrown down.” (Matthew 24:2)

Thus, He rejects the temple, which was so immeasurably great, so magnificent, and so richly adorned, because within it, the true temple was not present. For this assembly of walls is merely a gathering place for men; the temple of God is the believing people, as the Apostle says:

“You are the temple of God, and the Holy Spirit dwells in you.” (1 Corinthians 3:16)

Yes, so it is. Just as lifeless idols are suited to temples that resemble them, so too does the living God require living temples. Only these temples manifest the unique and eternal spirit of God’s priests. And in this, we surpass Jews and pagans, or indeed all others. Incomparable and truly worthy of God is the glory that arises when, in unity of mind, in one faith, in harmonized devotion, each interceding for the other, both priest and temple (the believing people) turn to God.

Rejoice, brothers! Recognize your own construction in this new temple, whose space you have already made narrow by your wonderfully great number! For from the fact that the space can no longer contain you, one can see that your faith encompasses God.

3.

At the foundation of this entire building lies not, as in the Jewish temple, a multitude of stones, but rather a single, great, magnificent, precious, and unique stone, which alone bears the entire weight of the four-sided tower. This building is not supported by an overwhelming multitude of pillars of various kinds; for it is upheld by just seven alone. It is not accompanied by a bronze sea, for within it is the living sea of its eternally flowing spring—a sea that does not cause shipwrecks, but rather leads those who are shipwrecked to a blessed life.

It does not contain gold and silver; in its martyrs, it encompasses all true treasures. It does not require the light of windows, for within it, the eternal sun shines perpetually.

Three invaluable elements, united into a perfect whole, belong to it: a secret chamber, twelve ever-open gates, and a sign protecting it from every hostile attack, a sign that rises in the form of the letter Tau (T).

Oh, what a marvelous thing! This building is raised daily, consecrated daily. At every moment, it is adorned with blooming flowers, with various gemstones, with treasures and pearls. And because it is a living building, its only roof is the sky above it.

4.

I shall speak further about the reward and the daily provision that is distributed there. All receive equally a loaf of bread marked with the sign of the cross, water mixed with wine, salt, fire, oil, a simple tunic, and a denarius. Whoever receives it with joy and does not cast it away after receiving it, but perseveres in labor until the end, will, upon the completion of the tower’s construction, remain within it and call immeasurable riches his own.

5.

It is also necessary to highlight what takes place in this temple: The priest calls, faith opens the gate, simplicity provides the introduction, insight invites, truth convinces, fear keeps watch, discipline sets up boundaries, and abstinence restrains with a bridle. In distress, faith stands unwavering; in secrecy, modesty; in youth, innocence; in the midst of life, equanimity; at the end, patience.

Peace unites, love binds, care protects, justice distributes, charity offers gifts, purity intercedes, the Spirit pleads for the reward, hope sets it in prospect, and wisdom, as the mistress of the house, has already appointed it beforehand.

Rejoice, you elders: you are the foundations of this house!
Rejoice, you young men: you are its stones, better than those of diamond!
Rejoice, you children: you are the sweet and priceless pearls adorning the holy tower!
Rejoice, you married couples blessed with children: you are cutting gemstones, greater than you yourselves!
Rejoice, you widows: through the perfection of your virtue, you are spiritually bound in marriage to the cornerstone!
Rejoice, you virgins: all this glory is adorned by the honor of your youthful bloom!
Rejoice, you rich, who have truly become rich through frequent and just giving: the aforementioned eternal praise of God’s work is due to the honor of heaven that has been furthered through you!
Rejoice, you poor: through you and in you, the house of God has grown greater!
For in one sense, you are equal to all; in another, you surpass all measure by the greatness of your multitude—for there are few holy rich, but you form the greater number!

6.

These, beloved brothers, are your gifts of grace; these are the powers by which the spiritual Jerusalem is built, by which our place of holy prayer and the people are daily shaped by the providence of our God and Lord, Christ. This is our glorious task. This is the honor of all priests.

This mystery, this precious structure, this living building dedicated to God, is carried out in the flesh but brought to completion in the spirit. And God, the almighty Father, will grant that, just as we give thanks in His earthly dwelling place, we may do so in even greater measure in the heavenly kingdom with all the saints.

Treatise XV. The Three Kinds of Sacrifices

Summary
The title “The Three Kinds of Sacrifices” is found only in a late manuscript and in the oldest Venetian edition. In other manuscripts, the treatise is simply titled “Another Treatise,” while other editions label it “On the 49th Psalm.” The editors, the Ballerini brothers, and later Giuliari retained the title “The Three Kinds of Sacrifices” on page 176. This title has some justification, for although the treatise begins with the 49th Psalm and seeks in Chapter 1 to prove the divinity of Christ from verses 7 and 12 of this psalm, it then uses the verse: “Offer to God a sacrifice of praise and fulfill your vows to the Most High” (verse 12) as a basis for discussing the true Christian sacrifice.

The preacher distinguishes three kinds of sacrifices: those of the pagans, the Jews, and the Christians. The sacrifice of the pagans is both abhorrent and foolish because it is directed towards lifeless idols or demons (Chapter 2). The sacrifices of the Jews, as shown in passages from Holy Scripture, have also been rejected by God (Chapter 3). The sacrifice pleasing to God is that of the Christians, which was already hinted at by Malachi and is understood under the “sacrifice of praise”mentioned in the 49th Psalm (Chapter 4). The distinct nature of this sacrifice is that it is a spiritual offering. However, it must also be offered with a pure spirit (Chapter 5). Therefore, even a Christian’s sacrifice cannot be pleasing to God if they tolerate pagan sacrifices on their property, adhere to pagan customs, engage in immorality, anger, or hard-heartedness, or corrupt pure Christian doctrine with pagan elements. The treatise concludes with an exhortation to pure sacrifice (Chapter 6).

The work incorporates ideas from Tertullian (Adversus Judaeos) and the Institutes of Lactantius (Book VI, Chapter 23; Epitome of the Institutes, Chapter 53). It is also possible that the author utilized a now-lost explanation of the 49th Psalm from the Psalm commentary of Hilary of Poitiers.

The address “Novelle disce, Christiane” (Chapter 2) and “Dulcissimi flores mei” (Chapter 6) suggest that the treatise was originally delivered to newly baptized Christians. Its considerable length led the Ballerini (and Giuliari) to refrain from including it among the baptismal sermons collected in the second book, instead placing it in the first book. However, the preacher also uses other forms of address (Fratres dilectissimi, Christiani), and certain passages in Chapter 6 clearly address members of the congregation who had been Christians for a longer time. By emphasizing the distinction between the three types of sacrifices, the preacher may have specifically addressed the newly converted novelli Christiani, while referring to his entire audience as “dulcissimi flores”, a term a bishop might use for all his listeners, many of whom had come to Christianity through his teaching.

1. Dearest Brothers!

In every matter, it is the same: whoever does not know its external appearance and its inner foundation cannot grasp its truth. This was and still is the reason why the Jews—and even worse, the Christians who are no better than the Jews—do not believe that the Son of God is God.

I only wish that such people would be present for a short time and lend their ears to this reading. They should tell us who the God is who says: “Hear, my people, and I will speak; Israel, and I will testify against you: I am God, your God.” And further below: “The world is mine and all that fills it. Should I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God a sacrifice of praise and fulfill your vows to the Most High! And call upon me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver you, and you will glorify me.”

If the Father is the one speaking here, brothers, then who is the one to whom he shows such great honor? Who is the one whom he calls the Most High, when he alone is above whom no one stands higher? But if these are the words of the Son, spoken with all reverence toward his Father, then you must recognize how heavy are the chains of darkness in which the spirit of the unbelievers struggles in bondage.

2. He says: “Offer to God a sacrifice of praise!”

So that you, my newly baptized Christian, may not be led astray by an erroneous understanding, first and foremost, make it your own conviction that there are three kinds of sacrifices. One is abominable, the second is rejected, and the third is pure. The abominable sacrifice is that of the pagans, the rejected one is that of the Jews, and the pure one is that of the people of the Christians. But just as the sacrifice of the pagans is abominable, so too is it futile. Worthless people worship worthless figures, which, through the waste of gold and silver, have been shaped into whatever form, expression, or age by the guidance of a file’s tooth. What foolishness it is to offer sacrifice to them who know nothing of it; to light candles before them who cannot see; to burn incense for them who cannot inhale it; to direct prayers to them who cannot hear; to seek protection from them while an unrestrained thief steals without concern.

Rightly does God express his wrath against such things, as he says: “Do not follow foreign gods to serve them! Do not worship them, lest you provoke me to anger by the works of your hands, and I destroy you!” And what is meant by the works of human hands is explained by the Holy Spirit in the ninety-fifth Psalm, where it is written: “All the gods of the pagans are evil spirits (demons), but the Lord has made the heavens.” Likewise, in Deuteronomy: “They have sacrificed to evil spirits (demons) and not to God.” And so that no one may think they will go unpunished for such sacrilege, Scripture further states in the same place: “Whoever sacrifices to the gods and not to the Lord alone shall be cut off.” This is the divine judgment awaiting the pagans if they do not repent, for even they themselves acknowledge that they neither have a legitimate God nor a legitimate sacrifice.

3. Now learn that the sacrifices of the Jews have also been rejected by God

To them, he speaks in the book of Isaiah: “What use is the multitude of your sacrifices to me? I am full of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of lambs. I do not desire the blood of bulls and goats. Who has demanded this from your hands?” Similarly, the Holy Spirit proclaims through another prophet: “Gird yourselves and weep, O priests; mourn, all you who serve at the altar! For the grain offering and the sacrifice have been taken away from the house of your God.”

Much more could be said, but it is unnecessary to dwell on things that no longer exist at all.

4. Yet, one example must necessarily be mentioned

This shall prove that the sacrifice of the Jews is detested by God, while that of the Christians is pleasing to Him. The prophet Malachi writes: “I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord, and I do not accept the offering from your hand. For from the rising of the sun to its setting, my name is glorified among the Gentiles, and in every place, incense is offered to my name and a pure offering. For great is my name among the Gentiles, says the Lord.”

“Offer to God a sacrifice of praise!” He says, “Offer”—but to God, not to demons—“a sacrifice of praise,” not of reproach! “And fulfill your vows to the Most High!” All honor he attributes to the Father, from whom all things come. And when he continues: “Call upon me in your distress, and I will deliver you,” he expresses that he accomplishes all things through himself.

The phrase: “And you shall glorify me,” my brothers, must not be understood as though he wished to assert that the praise for his work belongs to him alone—he who, in the Gospel, says: “If I do not do the works of my Father, do not believe me; but if you will not believe me, believe my works and recognize that the Father is in me and I in him.” No, these words indicate the unity of majesty and express inseparable love; for the glory of the Son is also the glory of the Father, and the glory of the Father is the glory of both.

5. Now it is fitting to understand the nature of our sacrifice

This can easily be inferred from its opposite: If a physical sacrifice is suitable for physical gods, then a spiritual sacrifice is certainly necessary for the spiritual God. It is a sacrifice that does not come from the purse but from the heart; a sacrifice that does not consist of foul-smelling animals but of righteous conduct; a sacrifice that is not offered with bloodstained hands but with pure minds; a sacrifice that is not slain to die, but, like Isaac, is sacrificed so that it may live.

Thus, the Apostle Paul exhorts us in his words: “Offer your bodies as a living, holy, and pleasing sacrifice to God!” For only this is a sacrifice acceptable to God—when a pure soul offers itself to the Lord. And all other sacrifices are worthless if the spirit of the one offering is not pure, as Solomon says in Ecclesiasticus: “The Most High does not accept the gifts of the unrighteous.”

6. But now I ask you, Christians

Can a sacrifice from you truly be pleasing to God? You—who know every patch of land, every stone, and every bush on your neighbors’ estates—yet claim to be ignorant of the smoking shrines scattered across your own properties! In truth, you protect them by pretending not to know they exist.

The proof of this is obvious. You go to court daily to ensure that no one challenges your rights over temple property. But it is not only Christians of this kind who displease God. Also displeasing are those who roam among burial grounds; those who, before corpses already bearing the stench of decay, hold funeral feasts; those whose greed for indulgence in food and drink leads them to disreputable places, where, with bottles and cups, they fabricate their own martyrs.

Displeasing, too, are those who superstitiously observe certain days, turning white days into black Egyptian ones; those who practice augury and seek omens for their well-being in the forcibly torn entrails of animals; those who make the marital bond a burden, who trample upon marital love, and who, in order to conceal their secret shameful pleasures from the public, entrust the management of their household to subordinates—not out of trust, but out of a tendency toward sensuality.

Displeasing are those who violently force themselves upon public harlots, thereby showing themselves to be even more miserable than the women they exploit; those who, in anger, erupt into fury; those who gnash their teeth in disputes; those who devise slander; those who rob the poor, widows, and orphans of their last possessions; those who, without concern for following God, mix divine mysteries with worldly fables and, in doing so, lead others astray to their ruin.

Let each one consider carefully how he partakes in the sacrificial offering or how he presents it! If it is sacrilegious to offer an unworthy sacrifice to God, it is deadly to partake of it unworthily.

For thus says Scripture in the book of Leviticus:

“Anyone who is clean may eat the meat of the sacrifice. But if a person eats the meat of the peace offering that is for God while he is unclean, that soul shall be cut off from his people.”

And just as, my brothers, we must guard against such things, so too must we strive for what is good, what is pure, what is sincere, what is pious, what is holy—just as you do:

“That men may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

So then, my most beloved children, offer such sacrifices—those that the Holy Spirit gladly presents, those that the Father accepts, and those over whose acceptance the Son, our Master, rejoices through him who is blessed forever and ever!

Treatise XIV: On the Resurrection

Summary
The topic of the resurrection of the dead was widely discussed in early Christian literature and likely also in early Christian preaching. The objections raised against Zeno were probably of a popular nature, and his argumentation is also presented in a popular form. He largely drew his philosophical material from Tertullian (On the Resurrection of the Flesh) and Lactantius (Institutes Book VII), while most of his biblical references were taken from Cyprian’s Testimonia Book III, Chapter 58.

Whoever denies the resurrection thereby denies their future salvation. Such denial usually arises from fear of the future judgment due to committed crimes. It even contradicts the wisdom of this world, for even Plato spoke of immortality. How much more, then, is belief in the resurrection a duty for a Christian! (Chapter 1)

First, it must be demonstrated that souls do not perish with the decay of the body but are instead assigned to a place of punishment or peace. Only then can faith in the survival of the visible (the body) follow. The pagans, who do not believe in the latter, contradict themselves by believing that they must provide food offerings for their dead. Philosophers have primarily concerned themselves with the soul and, in refuting various theories, have upheld its immortality. Poets have gone even further, depicting the underworld as containing a place of torment for the wicked in Tartarus and a place for the good in Elysium (Chapter 2).

Christians have various proofs for the soul’s continued existence after death. One such proof comes from demoniacs, whose evil spirits often reveal themselves during exorcisms as the spirits of the deceased (Chapter 3). Even more convincing are the examples from Holy Scripture, such as the appearance of the spirit of the deceased Samuel before Saul, the appearance of Moses and Elijah at the Lord’s Transfiguration, and the dialogue between the rich man in hell and poor Lazarus in blessedness (Chapter 4). The Lord Himself promised Paradise to the repentant thief after death. Above all, Jesus Himself rose from the dead, thereby securing resurrection for the human nature He had assumed (Chapter 5).

Therefore, the excessive mourning for the dead, which is often found among Christians, is unjustified (Chapter 6). It is easier to restore something that has already existed than to create something entirely new. Indeed, it is in God’s nature to accomplish what seems impossible (Chapter 7). Examples from nature also demonstrate that life springs from death. Such examples include shooting stars, the setting and rising sun, and the phases of the moon (Chapter 8). A special example is the Phoenix (Chapter 9), as well as the seed that is sown in the earth and then sprouts (Chapter 10).

There is a distinction between the resurrection of the righteous and the unrighteous (Chapter 11). This leads to the question of the physical form of the resurrected bodies. In the resurrection, the flesh itself is not annihilated. Even on earth, it is purified through baptism and set toward its heavenly goal, proving itself capable of attaining blessedness through the gift of the Holy Spirit (Chapter 12). An analogy for this is the wild olive tree, which, through grafting, becomes a cultivated olive tree (Chapter 13).

The question of whether a person will still be recognizable if the flesh perishes is answered by stating that the flesh is merely a reflection of the soul; only what is unnecessary perishes, while the essential part is transformed but remains intact. As long as the righteous live, they remain in a state of trial. After death, eternal blessedness awaits them (Chapter 14).

1.

Whoever denies the resurrection thereby passes the sentence of death upon his own life. Why should a person deserve to see the happiness of the future when he openly rejects God’s omnipotence in wicked unbelief? But those who do this do so because of their evil deeds: they believe they will go unpunished because they commit their crimes in secret. If they realized that the Day of Judgment was near, they would undoubtedly despise the things of the present and believe in and fear the things of the future.

After all, there is no one so ignorant of worldly wisdom that he would dare to claim that the soul perishes along with the body, that the heavenly is doomed to the same destruction as the earthly. Even the wisest of the Greeks said that death is when the spirit is confined within the body like a prison and that true life is when the spirit is freed from this imprisonment and returns to the place from which it came. And if he, who did not know Christ, thought this way, why should the Christian doubt? He hears that there will be a resurrection, he believes in it, and he confidently assumes that it has been prepared for him by Christ.

First and foremost, it must now be proven that our souls do not dissolve along with the remnants of their bodies and the decay of their fleshly dwelling at the moment of death. Instead, depending on the nature of their deeds, some are sent to places of punishment, while others enjoy refreshment in places of rest. Only then can one believe that even what is visibly perishable (the body) will not completely perish but will rise again.

The pagans, who do not believe in the latter, still hasten to the graves with their unfortunate offerings and claim that their dead, whom they know to be resting in the silence of night, periodically demand food from them. In doing so, they bear witness to the truth of something they otherwise reject. The philosophers have spoken variously about the soul, but in their compelling demonstrations of its immortality, they refute the baseless assertions of Epicurus, Dicaearchus, and Democritus. The poets judge even more correctly when they assume a dual path in the underworld: one path leading the wicked to Tartarus and another leading the righteous to Elysium.

Furthermore, when they emphasize that in the afterlife, it is not so much the physical forms of the dead that are recognized, but rather their deeds, and that they inevitably receive their due reward according to what they brought with them from their actions in the world, they speak rightly:

“Each endures what he has deserved.”

But we, my brothers, who are not taught by mere speculation but by God Himself—who also provided proof of what He taught—are in a position not only to claim that the souls of the departed continue to exist but also to substantiate this with evident facts.

For the wandering unclean spirits of both sexes invade the house of the living body through cunning flattery or by force, seeking to make it their hiding place and bringing it into a dire captivity. But when the battlefield of divine combat is reached, and they are attacked with the weapon of the holy name, their identity becomes known, and one learns to pity the afflicted victim.

The possessed person suddenly loses color, their body is violently lifted by unnatural force, their eyeballs roll into a terrifying squint, their pale lips gnash as foamy masses gather between their teeth, and the demon groans, weeps, and trembles at the mention of the coming Day of Judgment. It wails as it is driven out, revealing its kind, confessing the time and place where it first launched its attack, naming its name and the time of its death, or making clear through signs who it is.

Thus, we often discover that these are individuals who, according to our recollection, persisted in idolatry and even met a violent end.

Now, answer me, you who claim that nothing remains of a person after death: How does this deceased individual, whom you once knew, speak through another? You might respond: “This is a deception of the demons.”

Then the proof becomes even more compelling—for if even deceivers bear witness to the truth, their testimony is all the more undeniable. But why should they, whose testimony is otherwise truthful, give false names? And what reason should they have for such a deception—one that leads those whom they intend for destruction to fear God, while bringing themselves no benefit at all?

One could only assume they were acting rightly if, by using a false name, they could maintain their hold on the possessed individual. But when they, through the invocation of God’s name, are compelled against their will to reveal who they are and then are cast out against their will, they are undoubtedly who they confess themselves to be.

Hear now other examples, and ones of even greater certainty. In the First Book of Kings, the distinguished priest Samuel, who had already been touched by the law of death, appears at the request of King Saul—not only manifesting himself unmistakably to him but also answering his questions and prophesying more freely in his state of death than he had in life. One might say of him: He departed more than he died.

Likewise, in the Gospel, Peter and the sons of Zebedee see Moses and Elijah standing with the Lord in His glory. They see them—those whom, due to the hindrance of the flesh, they could not have seen before—now in the freedom of the spirit. They could thus recognize that what appears to perish in this world with time remains preserved and intact in the treasury of nature.

Similarly, the greedy rich man in hell, separated from the bliss of the poor man by an immeasurable chasm, realizes too late—while begging for cooling relief in the flames—that Lazarus is the truly wealthy one. Though already dead, he pleads to be touched even by the mere tip of a finger from the one to whom he had refused alms during his lifetime. Now he hates what he once loved without reason; now he experiences that what he despised is in fact the better fate. He laments that none of his riches can provide him with a remedy against his tormenting punishment; indeed, he would willingly give up everything for even a moment’s relief—if only it were possible.

He at least wishes that his surviving brothers might receive a warning. He earnestly begs Father Abraham to send a messenger to instruct them on this most important matter. But Abraham replies: “They have Moses and the Prophets; if they do not believe them, they will not believe even one sent to them from here.” Thus, it is made clear that truth does not rest on the eyes of the flesh but on the faith of the believer.

Finally, the Lord Himself confirmed these examples when He spoke to one of the two robbers crucified beside Him—the one who believed in Him—saying: “Truly, truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Now, if a person who has died ceases to exist for all eternity, then the Lord has lied by promising Paradise to someone who, according to this belief, would from that point on be nothing. But if Jesus Himself had not risen, then the human nature He assumed would have perished as well. However, since He did rise, He has thereby provided an example for all of humanity. For this reason, God, in human form, willingly endured the dominion of death so that mankind might regain, through God, the right to immortality that had been lost.

Thus, the blessed Paul says: “Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who have fallen asleep, so that you do not grieve like those who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, then God will also bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in faith.” Likewise, God speaks through the prophet Ezekiel: “Behold, I will open your graves and bring you out of them and into the land of Israel. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live.”

But if all this is so, my fellow Christian, why do you not believe in the future resurrection? Why do you persistently mourn those who have passed from the ruin of this world into a better one? It is indeed a grave offense!

There is a mother—her garments torn, her hair disheveled, her cheeks bruised, her entire chest blue from repeated blows—raving in madness over the corpse of her lost child. She does not think of the Maccabean mother, who, in the cruel persecution of Antiochus, firmly hoped in the future resurrection and did not merely surrender her seven sons joyfully but, through her own exhortations, encouraged them to meet death. She was convinced in her faith that she had not given birth to them for the world but for God.

There is a wife—swearing that she cannot endure the loneliness after the death of her husband, lamenting that the bed they once shared now lies cold beside her. She bitterly accuses God of cruelty, disrupting the religious ceremonies in which the departed are customarily commended to God. Sometimes she bursts into expressions of grief that are inappropriate for such a sacred setting. She disfigures her garments with dust, embraces the lifeless body, covers it with countless kisses, and drenches it with tears. She washes the corpse with the flood of her weeping and covers it with the hair she has torn from her own head. Her wailing moves even those who were not personally affected by the loss to weep bitterly.

And the richer she is, the greater her sorrow—though often, shortly afterward (and if only it were just once!), she remarries. How such a thing can be excused, I do not understand. Are there not those who might ask: If there is a resurrection, why do you weep? And if you weep out of love for your husband, why do you remarry?

It is a shameful thing—to keep neither faith with one’s spouse nor belief in God. Such reproach applies to men as well.

7.
A Christian must therefore never doubt that the dead will be awakened to return to their former state and that, on the appointed day, they will be brought forth from the hidden place of nature before the face of God, just as each was received there according to his own condition. For the Apostle says: “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.”

For, my brothers, it is easier to restore something that already existed than to create something that never was before. If something did not exist before and now does, then how much more can it be again what it once was? This is precisely the customary manner of the almighty and skillful Creator of all things: to demonstrate the possibility of what seems impossible, to bring forth from nothing that which is, to shape nature without the aid of nature, to regard nothing as too difficult. The only thing He lacks is what He does not will to be. It is in the very nature of God to accomplish what man cannot believe.

8.
Moreover, not only human beings, but nearly everything lives by dying. I will mention only a few examples out of many, yet these few will serve as undeniable proof of all.

Stars suddenly fall from the heavens, leaving behind a streak of flames with a whitish light, and in the solemn manner of a funeral torch, they are led to their demise in a kind of burial procession. But if one searches for them in the direction where they fell, one finds that, according to the law of rekindled light, they have risen again to their original place.

The sun rises every day and, on the same day it rises, it sets. Yet it does not shrink in fear from its impending fate, nor does it delay its course, prolonging its hours and moments to extend its life even slightly. No, always faithful, always undaunted, it hastens toward the grave of its sister, the night, fully aware that it carries life within itself. If its setting were taken away, so too would be its rising.

Likewise, the moon, which reflects all the stages of human existence, first appears as a barely visible crescent, as if emerging from its cradle in infancy. Then, through gradual growth, it passes through childhood and youth, advancing in daily increase of age, fulfilling its duties in the world as it follows the winding path of its extended course.

But once it reaches full maturity, having brought the silver disk of its limited orbit to complete roundness through the golden fire of the blazing, light-bearing charioteer (the sun), it begins to wane, growing old little by little, until, consumed by the extremity of old age, it dies—only to be reborn again. Through the regular rekindling of the seed of its monthly fire, it connects its end back to its beginning.

9.
In a similar manner, the magnificent bird, the Phoenix, teaches the truth of the resurrection. It does not receive the nobility of its kind from parents, nor does it pass it on to offspring. It forms within itself both sexes, is its own object of marital love, and is itself gender, beginning, and end. It does not originate from sexual union, nor is it nourished by a foreign nurse. It does not die against its will, nor unprepared, but when the appointed time for its death arrives, it joyfully burns in flames that it has summoned itself.

But for the Phoenix, the grave becomes a nest, the glowing ashes a nurse, and the dust of its remains a seed for the renewal of its body, so that its day of death becomes its day of birth. For after a short time, it rises again from its solemn grave—not as a shadow, but in reality; not as a mere image, but as itself, the Phoenix; not as another, but as the same, though better than before.

Let the Christian conscience be ashamed! From so many and such great examples, you may recognize that one day you will again be what you are now—and yet you will be better than you are.

10.
Moreover, the seed of every grain also dies when it is cast into the earth, yet what is hidden within it comes to life again. It does not perish completely to its core but releases its generative power into the sprout. By breaking the husk of its former body—or rather by transferring it into the service of a better nature—it raises its fruitful head, adorned with green ears of grain, as if emerging from the underworld into the heights, to bear abundant fruit as a testimony to its enduring life.

Paul confirms this when he remarks: “Fool! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies.” And he adds: “So it is with the resurrection of the dead: the body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown as a natural body, it is raised as a spiritual body.”

I believe that by now, the truth of the resurrection must be clear to everyone.

11.
However, it is necessary to discuss the distinction between the resurrection of the righteous and the unrighteous. Otherwise, if the term “resurrection” is applied universally, the glory of Christian blessedness may seem diminished when mentioned alongside the resurrection of the wicked.

There are two kinds of resurrection. The first resurrection is that of the saints. At the first trumpet call of the King, they will be gathered together and will take triumphant possession of the promised kingdom of blessedness under the eternal reign of Christ.

The second resurrection, however, is that which assigns the godless, the sinners, and all unbelieving pagans to eternal punishment, as the Holy Spirit speaks in the Psalms:

“Therefore the wicked will not rise in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous; for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction.”

12.
From this, it follows that it is necessary for us to understand the nature of the body in which the person within us—who strives toward heaven—will reign. Not so that anyone, filled with an unattainable fleshly hope, may perish along with the flesh, of which the Apostle says: “Flesh and blood will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Indeed, I can already hear someone objecting: “If this is the case with the flesh, why do we then profess in the Church our belief in the forgiveness of sins and the resurrection of the flesh?” But, brothers, this seeming contradiction is easily resolved, and the nature of our future form becomes clear when we hold firmly to the uncorrupted faith. I will explain it in a few words.

As long as the flesh is influenced by the sinful temptations of this world and the darkness of destruction, it remains earthly and is in a wretched, weak, and pitiable state. But when, through the holy faith of the believer, it has been put to death in the life-giving baptism, it rises anew from the sacred fountain of the Father’s baptismal well—now pure, now free, now detached from the ways of this world, now victorious over death, now turned toward heaven. It no longer desires, I do not say merely the pursuits of the world, but even itself; it seeks truth, not appearance; it longs for the spiritual, not for what is merely sensory.

Of this, Paul speaks: “Not all flesh is the same: one kind is of humans, another of beasts, another of birds, another of fish. And there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies.” And when the flesh is impregnated by the seed of immortality—which even the wisest poet had an inkling of when he said:

“A fiery force animates that seed and a heavenly origin,”

—that is, when it is fertilized by the reception of the Holy Spirit, then it already becomes capable of bearing fruit before the resurrection. When the time of its dissolution and rightful restoration arrives, it can, according to its nature, justly receive what we believe.

And this matter is not uncertain. Just as the prince of unrighteousness, in his envy, through his seed, degraded the first-created humans from angels into mere men, so will the Lord, through the seed of the Holy Spirit, raise all who believe in Him from the dead and transform them into glorious angels.

13.
Let us illustrate this with a clear example, though no parable can have the same demonstrative force as reality.

The wild olive tree is naturally unfruitful and bitter. But when it is carefully pruned by the hand of a skilled farmer and grafted with a noble branch, it is nourished by that graft and, in turn, nourishes it. Eventually, it is wholly transformed by the rich flow of sap from the grafted branch—so much so that it becomes part of it and, in fact, itself becomes sap-filled. In producing new shoots, it fully assimilates into its adopted refinement and adorns itself with fresh branches. It is no longer merely a wild olive tree but an olive tree in truth.

One might say it marvels at itself—that, although it was an olive tree, it no longer is one in the same way.

Now, if a human being can bring about such a transformation in a tree—so that it becomes something it was not, yet remains what it is—how much more will God be able to raise man to what he once was before he sinned in Paradise?

The blessed Paul already expressed this metaphor beautifully when he said:

“Whoever sows to the flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but whoever sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.”

Likewise, the Lord Himself teaches this clearly when He says to the apostles:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat.”

14.
But perhaps someone may object: If the flesh perishes, how can one recognize the one who rises again?

Brothers, the flesh is, so to speak, a mirror filled with the image of the one who looks into it. It does not so much bear its own image as it reflects the image of the one who uses it. It displays as many expressions as the one whose likeness it carries within—whether sorrowful or joyful movements—an appearance to which Paul alludes when he says:

“For now we see through a mirror, in a puzzling manner; but then we shall see face to face.”

Undoubtedly, when our body is sown according to the law of death, it is not the essence, not the image of God that is destroyed, but only what is useless; what is necessary will be transformed, as it is written:

“For this perishable must put on imperishability, and this mortal must put on immortality.”

The garment of immortality will not be put on until this fleshly covering—this alluring poison of the soul—returns, according to the word of God, to the place from which it was taken. For thus God speaks to Adam:

“Cursed is the ground because of your works. In sorrow and sighing, you shall eat from it all the days of your life. It shall bring forth thorns and thistles for you, and you shall eat the fruit of the field. By the sweat of your brow, you shall eat your bread, until you return to the earth.”

And the Lord Himself, speaking in the form of the man He had assumed, says:

“My soul is sorrowful unto death.”

This statement is not so much an expression of fear as it is one of joy and instruction. For He who raised the dead, who had the power to give life and to take it again, could not possibly have feared anything.

No, He wished to teach that the righteous person, as long as he lives in this world, is always in distress, always under trial. But once he has tasted death—which people think they must fear—then the promised blessedness opens up to him in the realms of eternal glory, a blessedness that knows no more burdens of this world.

For thus speaks the holy David:

“Return, my soul, to your rest, for the Lord has dealt kindly with me. He has saved my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from falling. I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.”

This is the blessedness that awaits us, the grace that is prepared for us. Let us therefore live in such a way that, through the adornment of good works, we may be found pleasing to God the Father. May our Lord Christ, who is praised from eternity to eternity, help us to achieve this.

 

Zeno of Verona: Book Two

Tractates (Sermons and Discourses)

Introduction

The second book consists of 77 treatises, most of which are very short. In the manuscripts, they appear in a different order than in the edition by the Ballerini brothers and also in that of Giuliari. The Ballerini arranged them according to specific principles and, in some cases, gave them different titles. The first nine treatises, titled De genesi, De fide, De nativitate, and similar, discuss the eternal generation and consubstantiality of the Son with the Father, as well as the mystery of the Incarnation and birth of the Lord. These are mostly directed against the Arians. Treatises X–XVII consist of sermons on figures from the Old Testament, while Treatise XVIII, likely of earlier origin, is dedicated to the martyrdom of Arcadius.

The next eleven treatises are exegetical in nature, primarily explanations of Isaiah. Finally, in the last group (Treatises XXX–LXXVII), the editors have compiled the short speeches given before and after baptism, which were scattered throughout the manuscripts. Due to the brevity of the treatises, no summary is included.

Treatise I: On the Generation (of the Son). Against the Arians.

1.

People of a carnal mindset, most beloved brothers, do not strive to know the truth but rather seek to undermine it. They take offense whenever the Catholic Church praises God, the Son of God—who is the highest glory of the Father—as equal to the Father. Because of this, they disregard the foundations of the sacred law and, speaking in a misleading manner, remain entirely silent about God proceeding from God. Instead, they immediately take refuge in the common designations “Father” and “Son,” which can be grasped by reason alone.

They fail to recognize that from the very beginning of divine revelation, God presents Himself alongside God in both His divinity and His name, thereby excluding all human conceptions. For He says: “Let us make man in our image and likeness.” He did not say, “Make him in your image,” but rather, “Let us make him in our image,” so that the Son, who was to take on humanity in the future, might not appear to suffer any disadvantage.

Do you not see, brothers, how neither gives the other a command, and neither is uninvolved in the execution? O holy equality of the undivided Godhead, which alone is fully worthy! A man is created in the image and likeness of two, yet nothing in him indicates whether it comes from one or the other. And if the sacred equality cannot be distinguished in external works, how can God be considered lesser in His own being? For if you deny something to one of two who are indistinguishably alike in all things, you do not even know whom you are denying it to.

2.

But you say: The one who receives a command is lesser. No! From this, it cannot be concluded that he is lesser simply because he carries out the commands of the Father’s heart, from whom he proceeds. It is no less great to accomplish great things than to command great things.

Whatever has been spoken by the Father or can be spoken is not spoken without the Son, for the Son is the Word. And whatever has been done by the Son or can be done is not done without the approval of the Father; for the Son is not without the Father, as He Himself says: “If I do not do the works of the Father, do not believe me. But if you do not want to believe me, then believe the works, and recognize that the Father is in me and I am in Him.”

Thus, it is certain that what is encompassed together with the Holy Spirit is equal.

Treatise II. On the Generation (of the Son).

If someone does not completely overcome an enemy who is fighting against him, he will never be able to rejoice securely in his possession. Now, there are many who dare to claim that in the beginning, there was chaos—that is, an unformed, disordered mass in which nature was hidden, as if compressed within itself, remaining within itself. Then, they say, God separated this mass and formed the world from it, equipping it at the same time.

If, however, as these assertions claim, God did not create the matter He used but rather that it, like Himself, is eternal, then there are two principles—principles that are in opposition to one another. This necessarily leads us to the question of which of the two is the stronger: that which possesses sensory perception or that which lacks it. But who would doubt that the stronger is the one that perceives, that has understanding, that thinks, that moves, that is in motion, that has, with wondrous foresight, brought chaos itself to the point where it was no longer chaos? The one that separated its parts, distributed them rationally, adorned them with colors, determined their proportions, and assigned them to their respective functions.

Moreover, nothing that is subject to aging can be a principle; nothing that has become a wholly foreign work; nothing that does not rest upon its own power; nothing that is detached from its essence; nothing that is subject to change; nothing that is set in motion by an external force; nothing that can never attain awareness of what it is, what it was, or what it will be. Therefore, God alone is the principle—He who has given Himself His own origin from Himself. He alone is before all things and after all things, for everything is enclosed in His hand. What He is, He is from Himself. He alone is conscious of His greatness and nature. He alone is perfect, for nothing can be added to Him and nothing taken away. He alone is almighty, for He has brought forth all things from nothing, governs them with His power, and sustains them with His majesty. He alone is unchangeable and ever constant; for Himself, He does not know the concept of age. He alone is eternal, for He is the Lord of immortality.

This is our God, who manifests Himself as God. This is the Father, who, while remaining unchanged in His essence, wholly establishes Himself anew in the Son without diminishing Himself. Thus, the one rejoices in the other, in the fullness of the Holy Spirit, in the reflection of the original equality. It is, if one may use the comparison, like two seas that lean upon each other and are connected by a strait, which allows the tides of both to merge into one another: they are distinct in their individuality, in their location, and in their designation, and yet, it is only one power, one essence, one nature of flowing that is effective in the threefold depth of the waters.

And the unfathomable and communal vastness of the flood cannot be divided, for it overflows in rich streams from one into the other, belonging to both, yet not exclusively to either. They would lose something of their fullness and beauty if one were to take away the charm that each receives from the other through the same surging flood.

Treatise III. On the Eternal Generation of the Son

The Principle, dearest brethren, is undoubtedly Christ, our Lord, whom the Father, before all time, encompassed in the depths of His Holy Spirit—not without loving the Son, but without revealing Him. It is a mystery that cannot be fathomed, and no one knew of it except Him alone. Thus, that ineffable and incomprehensible Wisdom begets Wisdom, Omnipotence begets Omnipotence. From God proceeds God, from the Unbegotten the Only Begotten, from the Whole the Whole, from the True the True, from the Perfect the Perfect. He possesses everything from the Father and yet deprives the Father of nothing. He, who was already in the Father before He was begotten, comes to be begotten: like Him in all things, as the Father brought forth another Self from Himself, namely, from His unborn essence, in which He remains blessed for eternity, and begot a Son who possesses in the same manner all that He has, who is God, praised forever and ever.

Treatise IV. On the Eternal Generation of the Son of God

As Holy Scripture testifies, before all time, God existed—remaining one and the same, yet also another—insofar as He newly established His divine essence within Himself, being alone the Knower of His mystery. From His mouth proceeded the only-begotten Son, so that the world of things, which did not yet exist, might be made. He, who was first the noble inhabitant of His (the Father’s) heart, then had to enter into visible manifestation because He was called to create the earth and visit mankind—otherwise, He was entirely equal to the Father. For whatever the Father commanded to be created, the Son, through His marvelous working, brought into execution by His Word. And yet, speculative men seek to dishonor Him with their futile assertions. Poor souls, who do not understand that such speculations do not lead to knowledge but only to guilt!

Treatise V. On Faith or on the Eternal Generation of the Son of God

1.

The beginning, brothers, is undoubtedly Christ, our Lord. Before all time, the Father enclosed Him, as the God of blessed eternity, still holding both (Himself and the Son) together in the undivided fullness of the Holy Spirit, somehow hidden within His consciousness. He enclosed Him—not without loving Him as His Son, but without separating Him from Himself. Yet, in order to bring into execution the order of things that had been conceived, the ineffable power and incomprehensible wisdom caused the Word to go forth from their heart; omnipotence propagated itself. From God, God is begotten—He who has everything from the Father and yet takes nothing from Him. The one is the radiance of the other; the glory that each possesses is shared honor: what the Son possesses, the Father also possesses, and what the Father possesses is the property of both. The Father rejoices in the other ‘I’ that He has begotten from Himself. But it is sheer madness to speculate on how the begetting of the one who has proceeded forth was accomplished. For the Son imposes self-limitation upon Himself for the sake of created things, because the wretchedness of this world could not bear His majesty unveiled. When the Father commands that the world should come into being, this work is brought into execution by the Son through the Word. But how this is to be done, how great and of what kind it is to be—no one gives a command for that, no one asks about it: it would be an insult to the Father to assume that such instructions were necessary for the one who dwelt in the bosom of the Father and thus did not need to learn the perfection of His will, but possessed it Himself.

2.

And when the world was completed, man was finally formed from clay by the finger and hand of God. A creature was made, capable of movement but in no way conscious of itself. That it might become an image of God, God breathed into it the breath of life, making it a living soul. Thus, man receives a spirit that he likewise does not know; he does not see it enter, nor can he prevent its departure. And yet, someone believes he understands the mystery of God, though he does not even know the mystery of his own body? Therefore, my brothers, let us fear, love, and honor the God whom we have found! For this is why we were created and born. And those who do not possess Him should at least seek Him!

Treatise VI. On the Scripture Passage: “When He Delivers the Kingdom to God and the Father.”

1.

The divine Scripture does not contradict itself when it speaks of the Son of God; rather, it makes the necessary distinction between God and the man whom He assumed. If it were to refer to Him only as God, then His suffering and resurrection would no longer have any validity, and Christ would have accomplished nothing for the world. If, on the other hand, it were to refer to Him only as a man, as some believe—that He had His beginning in the womb of the Virgin—where would be the hope for future blessedness for the believer, since it is written: “Cursed is the man who places his hope in man”?

When Scripture refers to Him solely as God, it says in Genesis: “And God created man in His image and likeness,” and in the Psalms: “But God, our King, has worked salvation from of old in the midst of the earth.” Elsewhere, it states: “Your throne is established from of old; from eternity You are.”

Yet, when Scripture speaks of the One in whom God and man are united, it continues: “Say to the daughter of Zion: Behold, your King comes to you, righteous and a Savior, meek, and sitting upon a young donkey.” And again: “Lift up your gates, O you princes, and be lifted up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall enter.” Likewise, the Magi say: “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?”

2.

This One, my brothers, in whom divinity and humanity are united, is He whom the prophets foretold would come; He who was born in time according to the flesh; He who is exalted in the heights yet humbled on earth; the Father of ages, the Son of a Virgin; He who in Himself is immortal, yet chose to die for the sake of humanity; He who tasted death in order to conquer death; He who descended into the underworld to bring the dead back to life.

He is the Only Begotten, who proceeded from the Father before the world’s creation; He is “the Firstborn from the dead,” as the Apostle says, after many nations had perished. He is the One to whom “all power in heaven and on earth is given,” and to whom a new authority has been granted, as He Himself says: “I have glorified You on earth; I have finished the work that You have given Me to do. Glorify Me with Yourself, with the glory that I had with You before the world was.”

And at the resurrection, He declares: “All things have been delivered to Me by My Father.” This is the One who, being only God, descended from heaven, yet ascended clothed in flesh. And this is He, I say, of whom Paul speaks: “He who receives the kingdom reigns, and He will deliver it to God and the Father,” and so forth.

My Christian, why do you take offense at this, and why do you judge the divine mysteries of the order of salvation from a natural standpoint? If you think less of the Son because He will deliver the kingdom to the Father, then it would be an even greater belittlement of the Father if He were without a kingdom for a time. Moreover, we pray daily: “May the kingdom of the Father come to us,” and we hope for the kingdom of the Son as well! If neither of them were ruling, then there would be no kingdom in time. But if, even for a single moment, God’s rule were to cease, then the world and all existence would come to ruin.

Yet, as reason itself clearly states, this rule (of the Father and the Son) cannot possibly cease. It has been entrusted by the Lawgiver Himself to the man whom God assumed and to His appointed righteous ones, but not to God Himself nor to the eternal Ruler. This is all the more evident since the Gospel states: “The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom, there will be no end.” Similarly, Solomon, speaking of His servants, says: “Even though they have endured suffering before men, their hope is full of immortality. After enduring a little, they will receive great good, for God has tested them and found them worthy. Like gold in the furnace, He has refined them and accepted them as a burnt offering. In due time, He will visit them. They will sit in judgment over the nations and rule over the peoples, and the Lord will be their King forever.”

What then is to be said? If He will be King forever, then Paul has erred. But if He delivers the kingdom, then those who speak of His eternal rule are mistaken. Neither is the case. There is no contradiction, no error. Paul is speaking of the temporal kingdom of the man whom God assumed—of the kingdom in which He will come to judge the living and the dead. This is evident from the entire passage, which clearly states that Christ must reign with His saints until all dominion, authority, power, and strength are destroyed, His enemies are placed under His feet, and the final enemy—death—is abolished.

The statements of others, however, refer to the ruling authority in which the Son has reigned from eternity and will reign for eternity—where He neither receives a kingdom from the Father nor delivers one to Him. For He has always ruled with the Father, as He Himself says in John: “My kingdom is not of this world.” Paul expresses this even more clearly in these words: “But this you must know, that no immoral, impure, or greedy person—that is, an idolater—will have an inheritance in the kingdom of God and Christ.” By this, he makes it clear that the kingdom of the Father and the Son is one.

4.

Rightly, then, will the Son deliver His kingdom, for He Himself taught that a divided kingdom cannot stand. But, my brothers, this does not mean that the Father receives something He did not already possess, nor that the Son loses something by delivering it. The Father already possesses what He will receive, and the Son does not lose what He delivers. The Father possesses it fully, and the Son possesses it fully. It is the possession of one, yet belongs to both; and what one possesses, belongs equally to the other.

For the Lord says: “All that the Father has is mine;” and again: “Father, all that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine.” For the Father remains in the Son, and the Son remains in the Father. The Son is subject to the Father, but only in reverence, not in servitude; out of love, not out of compulsion; in an honorable manner—and at the same time, through Him, the Father is honored. Thus, He says: “I and the Father are one.”

Therefore, as stated, the Son is subject to the Father in obedience—not in subordination, but in reverence—and He retains with Him the one possession of the original eternal kingdom, the one essence of the same eternity and the same omnipotence, the one equality, the one power of exalted majesty in the one light, the one glory. If one diminishes the Son in any way, this is a dishonoring of the Father, whose fullness He possesses. There is nothing lesser in Him, for just as the Father can neither have more nor less, so also the Son cannot have more nor less. The one is poured into the fullness of the other, so that God is all in all—praised as Father in the Son, as Son in the Father, with the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Treatise VII. On the Birth of the Lord I.389

1.

There are indeed several sects that seek to degrade Christ in the most offensive manner with their talk, but three of them are, so to speak, the most prominent. Among them, two even pretend to offer reverence to him, though they would rather see him destroyed. One of these sects claims that Jesus Christ originated from the womb of the Virgin Mary, and was then elevated to God because of his righteousness, but was not born as such. The second sect is more moderate, but its error is deeper: it declares that the Son of God is indeed God, but that he did not proceed from the glory of the Father from eternity; rather, there was a time when he did not exist. The third sect, Judaism, is truly blind. For although it reads everywhere in its so-called law that two persons, the Father and the Son, are mentioned, it still denies to this day that God has a Son.

To all of them, the examples—or rather, the reasoning—that we will present will with one blow take away all the supports of their entire argumentation. Above all, the Christian people must necessarily know, if they are not to fall into error, that there are two births of our Lord Jesus Christ: the one in which he was born, and the other in which he was reborn. If the first took place spiritually and without a mother, then the second was bodily and without a father. The latter is of a wondrous nature, while the former is inexpressible, as the prophet says: “Who shall declare his generation?” Why it is inexpressible, we may recognize from the Word of the Father. For the Lord himself teaches us: “My heart has uttered a good word.” And in Solomon, he speaks of himself: “I proceeded from the mouth of the Most High before all creation.”

2.

Learn, then, O overly clever child of man, to recognize your place under such circumstances, and rein in your presumptuous tongue with the bridle of silence! It is sheer madness to formulate opinions about the mystery of the invisible and incomprehensible, to seek to examine his inner being precisely, when one cannot even make conjectures about his workings outwardly. For God is what he is, and he is not what man believes he can define him as. Listen, brothers, to what the Apostle John declares about him in his Gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; this was in the beginning with God.” It is a wonderful gift of truth that, though it can be analyzed, it does not lose its coherence.

For if the Word is in God and the Word is God, and thus the essence in which it resides is the same as the one who inhabits it, then there are indeed two persons and two designations, but only one essence of the original eternity and divinity, just as the Lord himself says: “I and the Father are one.” He did not say this to merge the two into one and mix them together, but to teach us that both possess the one almighty power of divinity and sovereignty. This is further emphasized by the words that follow: “All things were made through him, and without him nothing was made.”

3.

Now then, my good Christian, let us see how a span of time could be placed between the Father and the Son. For if it is due to time that one is subordinate to the other, and not due to their very nature, then, undoubtedly, it is as you wish: the created would be greater than God. But if Christ made creation out of nothing, and the concept of time itself originates only from what was created, then it is sheer absurdity to place the work temporally before the Creator.

Thus, the only difference between the two (Father and Son) is that they alone know each other. Therefore, in Isaiah, the Lord, the God of Hosts, speaks to the Son:
“Egypt is weary, and the trade of the Ethiopians. The Sabeans, men of great stature, will pass over to you, and they will be your servants, and they will follow you in chains, bow before you, and plead with you, saying: ‘Surely, God is in you, and there is no other God besides you.’”

And in the same spirit, Jeremiah declares:
“This is our God, and no other shall be accounted as God. He found the way of wisdom and revealed it to Jacob, his servant, and to Israel, his beloved. Afterward, he appeared on earth and lived among men.”

Let us also recognize him in this form through the word of the Holy Spirit, who says:
“And he is a man, and who shall know him?”

How he could be known under such conditions, Isaiah has revealed in these words:
“Hear then, O house of David: Your struggle is not small among men, for God will engage in the battle. Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive in her womb and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel. And the child shall eat butter and honey before he knows good or evil.”

He explains this sign in another place by referring to his forerunner with these words:
“Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who shall prepare your way before you.”

Who, my brothers, is this messenger if not John the Baptist? His preparation of the way is found in these words:
“The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight the paths of our God.”

4.

Let us now see what follows. Around the same time, two related women conceive—one against all hope, the other by the Word. One wonders at her conception, for she does not understand it; the other rejoices, for she knows. Elizabeth’s barren womb swells with joyful fertility, while Mary’s womb swells with Majesty. The former carries the herald within her; Mary carries the Judge.

Rejoice, O women, and recognize in this the elevation of your sex! The ancient guilt is abolished: behold, through you, we gain a connection with heaven! The elderly woman has borne the messenger; the virgin has borne God.

This is our God, who for a time laid aside his dignity, but not his power, out of love for mankind, whose form and creatureliness he wished to assume. Thus, it is said of him that he was an angel, a man, a child, a bridegroom, a giant; that he was crucified, buried, that he was the firstborn from the dead. Yes, this is he, who is all in all, because through him and in him is everything.

Brothers, do not be misled by the worldly and almost childish talk of reckless men. They fall into a grave error of their own making, believing that God became man not from God, but that a man became God. If they were thinking spiritually, they would praise him most precisely for what they consider his greatest weakness.

For he would no longer be the perfect God if there were something he wished to be but could not be.

And do you wish to know the truth in brief summary? He became what he was not, yet did not cease to be what he always was.

Treatise VIII. On the Birth of the Lord II

1.

The true knowledge of the ineffable mystery and the awe-inspiring majesty consists in recognizing God only as God and not inquiring into Him beyond seeking to know His will, without which one can neither serve Him rightly nor please Him. To go beyond this and make conjectures with vain arguments about the decree that God (the Father) made in His providence concerning God (the Son) is not reverence but madness. All the more so if, as some contentious minds believe, this decree places God in a subordinate relationship. For if one disregards, even slightly, the designations “Father” and “Son,” one can no longer discern which of the two should bear any diminishment—unless it affects both—since both share the one name, God.

So listen, my Christian, whether you are a newcomer to the faith or negligent, so that you may not be led astray by erroneous opinions! There are two births of our Lord Jesus Christ: one, into which you must not inquire, and another, which you may rightfully proclaim if you are able. The first birth of our Lord is reserved solely for the knowledge of the Father and the Son. And He who proceeded from the loving will of the Father’s mouth in mutual agreement possesses nothing that lies between Him and the Father, nor does anyone share in this knowledge. The second birth, however, took place in the flesh; and concerning this, we know that it was fulfilled precisely as numerous prophecies foretold.

2.

For at the appointed time, God, the Son of God, concealed His majesty for a while, left His heavenly throne, and made for Himself a dwelling in the womb of the predestined Virgin, which was like a temple. There, He entered in a hidden manner to bring forth a man; there, He willed to become what He had not yet been, while remaining what He was. He united Himself with a human body and formed Himself into a child. The body of Mary rose in glory—not through the fulfillment of marital duty, but through faith; not through the seed of man, but through the Word.

She knew nothing of the pains of a ten-month pregnancy, for she had conceived the Creator of the world; she did not give birth in pain, but in joy. It is a wondrous thing! Rejoicing, she brought forth a child who was older than all creation. And yet, the mother did not sigh in labor, though she had no experience in such matters. The child did not greet the world with tears, as is customary for those who enter a life of toil and suffering. The mother did not lie exhausted, pale, or weakened in body from the strain of childbirth. Nor was the Son defiled by any impurity, neither from the mother nor from Himself; for indeed, nothing unclean could adhere to Him who came to cleanse mankind from sin, filth, and blemish.

Even the purifications that, when delayed, can be dangerous, were not harmful to her maternal womb. Among young mothers, it is customary to apply warm compresses after birth; but, my brethren, she who was deemed worthy to receive the Savior of all souls into her womb had no need of such things. How great is the mystery of salvation! Mary conceived as a virgin without corruption, gave birth as a virgin after conception, and remained a virgin after childbirth.

The hand of the impure midwife who examined the mother ignited in flames as testimony that she remained untouched in her virginity even after giving birth; yet when she touched the child, the consuming fire was immediately extinguished. Thus, the healer who had inquisitively come for her own blessing, now in awe, beheld in the woman a virgin, and in the child, God. Rejoicing with great joy, she, who had come to heal, departed healed herself.

Thus, Christ allowed Himself to be born as a man in a manner no man can be born. He bore a body that shone entirely in His light, without shadow. He was lowly in the flesh, yet exalted in the majesty of His omnipotence. And He condescended to clothe Himself in flesh for this reason alone: that on the day of judgment, no one might use the flesh as an excuse.

Treatise IX. On the Birth and Majesty of the Lord

1.

According to the promise that God and His prophets had given—that at the appointed time He would send His Son as the Redeemer to mankind—when the time was fulfilled, He laid aside His glory for a while, though not His power, left heaven, and entered unnoticed as a chaste guest into the sanctuary of the virginal temple (womb), which had already been foretold as His dwelling place. There, He formed Himself as He willed to be. Indeed, in secret, He proceeded with the work He had long before decreed. Voluntarily, He rested in the blessed abode of chastity; and in the womb of the holy Virgin, He prepared for Himself a body to be born according to His counsel. Completely assuming the likeness of man, God concealed Himself in the covering of flesh; He, who moves through eternity, borrowed His human life from time.

What a wonder! Mary conceives from Him whom she gives birth to. Her maternal womb is filled by divine majesty, not by human seed; a Virgin encompasses Him whom the world and all its fullness cannot contain. During this time, her human organs nurture their own Creator into development, and the created work (Mary) clothes its own Maker in human form. Mary gives birth not in pain, but in joy. A Son is born without a father, yet not entirely the Son of the mother; for He owes His conception to Himself, and His birth is His gift to His mother. She herself marvels the most that such a Son has come forth from her; one would not believe that He was born from her if she had not remained a virgin both after conception and after birth.

2.

This is a new order of the world! Out of love for His image, God allows Himself to become a child that cries. He, who came to absolve the guilt of the whole world, allows Himself to be wrapped in swaddling clothes. He lets Himself be laid in the manger of a stable to signify that He will be both Shepherd and Pasture for the nations. He, whose eternity excludes the concept of age, submits Himself to the stages of life. Contrary to His divine consciousness, He takes upon Himself all sufferings as a weak man; He does this so that immortality may be granted to man, who was subject to the law of death.

For this is the power of God—that He can become what He is not, and yet remain what He is. He is our God, the eternally begotten Son of the eternal Father. He is both God and Man; for He stands between the Father and mankind, revealing in His weaknesses the reality of His flesh and in His miracles the reality of His majesty. He is our sun—the true Sun—who kindles the shining fires of the world, the brothers of the stars, and the radiant heavens with the fullness of His own light. He, who once set, has also risen again, never to set again.

Indeed, He is the one whom the crown of twelve stars—the twelve apostles—surrounds; the one whom, as He journeys through the whole world, not four mute beasts, but the four Gospels, in their life-giving proclamation, lead. The power inherent in His robe and His chariot is spoken of by the prophet when he says: “God will come like a fire, and His chariot will be like a whirlwind, to take vengeance in His wrath.”

Treatise X. On Abraham

1.

Beloved brothers! What a gift Abraham received from divine love, bearing witness to the facts narrated in the Old Testament. What a son his wife Sarah, who was not inferior to him, still bore him after a long life had already passed its course! Yet, after both of them had reached an advanced age, when all hope of offspring had been taken from them, they still deserved, as a substitute, a child born late in life. Their faith obtained what time had withdrawn; their devotion compelled what nature had denied. Abraham, chosen by God as our patriarch, received his only son in old age. There was nothing that caused the father greater concern, at an age when the years were already drawing toward their end, when time for raising a child was barely granted to him, and when, as an old man, death already stood near. But the first proof of godliness is to accept with joy what is given late and to find joy in the burden of responsibilities that come in the hardship of old age. For Sarah also laughed when, in her advanced years, she took upon herself the duties of youth. Thus, the child received his name from this event, and he would later prove that Abraham’s thoughts were consecrated to God.

2.

And this only son of the anxious old man, still a child, deserving even greater love and compassion, was demanded as a sacrifice. Had any bodily sickness afflicted him, or had the fate of human mortality overtaken him, the father, struck by such blows, would have barely been able to continue living had his son died at such a tender age. And this child, on whose life the love of both father and mother depended, was required as an offering for the testing of Abraham’s faith by the voice of God. “Abraham,” said God, “I will that you bring me a sacrifice upon the mountain with your son: this is the offering that is pleasing to me, this is the blood with which you shall appease me; he belongs at my altar, and I now command you to slay him.”

And Abraham, in his fear of God, showed no sorrow in his countenance, nor did grief overwhelm the father to tears; rather, he rejoiced and exulted. He had no fear that this would be counted as murder upon his son; rather, in his zeal to fulfill his reverence for God, this command filled him with joy. Thus, he prepared his son as a sacrifice and hastened to carry out the offering, lest any delay become a sin to him. At once, the necessary preparations for the holy act were made. They ascended the mountain. When all was arranged for the mysterious sacrifice, the son, no less joyful than the father, was led forth—he who was to be slain by his father’s own hand.

Before arriving at the mountain, he had asked his father where the sacrificial animal was that he would prepare and slaughter. The father, assured of the faith of his offspring, revealed to his son, in whom he had no doubt, what the Lord required of him and at the same time made known to him what he himself had promised the Lord. The son rejoiced in his believing father, for he himself possessed a very strong faith. He did not resist the death that the God who had given him life now commanded. The father, in turn, rejoiced at the joy of his son, and with gladness, he bound the hands of his only child, which the boy willingly offered for binding. He also tied his feet together, so that in the final moment of death, the one to be sacrificed might not resist in agitation. For despite his certainty, the good father feared that pain in the face of death might, in some measure, break through.

Brothers, oh, what a trusting fear of God this is! Oh, what a father, who directs himself only to the spirit, despising the body and death! Oh, what a father, who remembers so well his role as a servant of the Lord that he forgets that he is a father! What does being a father mean to him now? Behold, before his eyes lies his son, bound with ropes! Where are his tears? Where is the sorrow that normally accompanies human emotions? In the face of such a grievous fate for his son, he rejoices and exults; he triumphs because he has gained the Lord’s favor! And he soon receives the reward he deserves.

The preparations for carrying out the test ordained by God are already underway. He unsheathes the sword, and his armed right hand is already raised. But the voice of the One who had demanded the sacrifice intervenes. “Look backward,” says God, “and before you turn back, halt!” Behold, it is a great merit to have earned divine mercy under the weight of difficult circumstances. For when Abraham looked back, he found a sacrificial animal, which he could offer without harming anyone. With the same knife with which he was about to slay his son, he slaughtered the ram. He moved his hand away from the son and toward the lamb, still full of joy and jubilation.

The object of the sacrifice changed—but his expression did not. The joy with which he offered the ram was just as great as the joy with which he had been prepared to offer his son. Where such faith exists, there is no sorrow. In this sacrifice, only God felt compassion, and He Himself provided for another offering. For Abraham had passed the test with his son in such a way that, without asking for mercy, he nevertheless deserved it.

And now, brothers, let us see what is hidden in the Law, and let us seek a higher meaning. Abraham was not under the Law, and yet he alone fulfilled the Law. He, who was bound by no commandment of the Law, observed divine justice in its entirety. Even he who was destined for sacrifice could rejoice in this offering.

The ram remained caught in the thicket, entangled in the thorns, held fast by its head. It was he who was sacrificed to the Lord in place of Isaac. Him did Abraham offer; him was he commanded to sacrifice…

Treatise XI. On Abraham II.435

1.

For a previously intended virginity is not required, but neither is later remaining (marital) continence rejected. To confirm this, beloved, we have a holy guarantor, namely Abraham, who once had Isaac as his son. This is indeed a simple statement, but its meaning is manifold. For he was conceived, beloved, when his parents had already given up hope of having a son, according to the promise of God, when the bloom of youth and the procreative power of the father had already faded. He owed his conception not so much to his parents but to the divine promise. And in the last stages of their lives, a son opened the womb of Sarah, with that first word, to her who, having already reached a venerable old age, was regarded with the reverence due to a grandmother.

And this son, beloved, who came into the world in a manner that had already been deemed hopeless, to the astonishment of all, was, in the early years of his childhood, presented as an innocent martyr in sacrifice to God at His command and demand. As an unblemished offering, yet not an unprepared one, he was brought forth by his father, required by the Lord as a witness to his fear of God—yet not as a blood sacrifice, but as a sacrifice of salvation. To such glory does the fruit of a late birth attain, the blessing of a child who was no longer hoped for.

2.

Abraham’s wife, who did not know that she had conceived—for in the cold stillness of old age, she could no longer hope for a child from her womb, nor did she have the confidence that she could carry one—took on the duties of a mother after she had already forgotten the duties of a wife. And the birth took place at a time when the warmth of love had already left the organs of generation. And, beloved, the child in the womb, who owed his being to divine decree, was formed in a most wondrous manner, such as was never again to be expected. The age that had already passed returned to its starting point. From barrenness arose fertility to fulfill the word written by the prophet: “Rejoice, O barren one who did not bear; break forth and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the desolate one has many children!”

For behold, beloved, in Sarah, the nerves had shrunk due to age, the vitality of her blood had weakened, her veins had begun to dry out, her skin along with the organs beneath it had become brittle, a disfiguring pale pallor had nearly erased her human features, and there was no sensual desire left in her limbs. Her body retained nothing of its former strength. And yet—nothing was withheld from the child in her womb. She, whose age pointed to grandmotherhood, brought forth a birth to the honor of motherhood, although her pious heart wavered at the bewildering notion of motherly love. Her advanced age, in the moment when her womb bore a son, rather desired a grandson.

So she gave the son, whom she had borne against all expectation, contrary to time and nature, the name Isaac (ὅ γελός, ‘laughter’), so that joy might confirm what the frailty of age no longer dared to hope. A new love awakened in the parents for their son; his possession was all the more secure to them, since he was born by divine promise, all the sweeter since he had come late, all the more blessed since they had already given up hope. As the only child and at the same time the first in undivided love, he possessed the whole love of his father’s and mother’s hearts.

And now, after he had grown up under the hastened upbringing granted to him, he was to become a sacrifice for God, an object of a pious filicide for his parents.

3.

Behold, beloved, thus Abraham leads his son, who was born to him against all hope, to the altar at the Lord’s command, to offer him as a sacrifice. And for this sacrificial service, the sword is not lacking; as a father, so also should he be a priest. Just as great, according to the will of God, was the security of the son. When he looked around for the sacrificial animal in whose place he himself had been chosen, he inquired about it. But then his tender hands were bound in fetters. And so that he might not seem any less than the sacrificial lamb, the father also bound his feet with cords: otherwise, he might have become agitated and thus not been a pleasing sacrifice.

Yet, beloved, the suspicion of lacking fatherly love would be detestable and must not arise. Abraham gave precedence to God over his son, to the priesthood over fatherhood. He would not have believed he had love unless he had proven himself faithful. Therefore, beloved, he prepares himself fearlessly for the execution of the sacrifice. His spirit seeks confidently, and even more confidently does his hand seek the place for the wound. The sword, raised for slaughter, hovers in the air. Yet, the approach of death instills no sorrow in the boy: no trembling should betray his faith as weak.

Through this steadfastness—both of the one offering the sacrifice and of the one being sacrificed—the son earned his deliverance, for he cast aside all human fear. And as for faith, the father fulfilled his promise; and after the Lord had tested his will, He prevented the child’s slaughter.

4.

In his (Isaac’s) person, the revered birth of Christ is prefigured; yet the palace of the virgin’s womb is even more mysterious. It was made capable of bearing Him by the creative power of divine promise, even though it belonged to a body that was withering away. But against Him—who came forth from a heavenly conception, not from human seed, and who is undoubtedly the Lord—the Jews devised godless plots. And just as Isaac was led to the altar of sacrifice, though he was not to die, so too did the wicked drag Christ to the cross to be lifted up upon it, though He remained silent like a guilty man, grieving only over their blindness.

But since eternity cannot die, neither could the Lord after His burial. The Jews were left only with the outrage that their intent had been condemned, for they refused to recognize Him as Lord and believed that He was punished solely by their own schemes—He, whose belated adoration was already a crime in itself. In the cruelty of such an inhuman act, even the elements changed their form; and rather than the Jewish people coming to understanding, nature itself revealed the offense committed against God. From the Creator Himself, the horror at their furious act took its course.

The band of executioners gathered together, and the tips of their swords were pointed against the Invisible One who hung upon the cross. But, as has already been said, they reaped no fruit from their wicked act. Just as with Isaac, something else was sacrificed than what was brought to the altar, so too, in the sufferings of Christ, that which had sinned in Adam was atoned for through Christ.

Treatise XII. On Abraham III.455

Abraham was to become the father of many nations. He did not learn righteousness but fulfilled it from within himself. He was not influenced by visits to cities. He had no law; his life itself was law. He heard the command of God to depart, to leave his kindred and his land at the same time. And when he looked up thereafter, he saw three men with his eyes, ran toward them, bowed down with his face to the ground, and invited them to be his guests: “Rest under this great tree!”He had wheat flour kneaded, a calf slaughtered.

As a result, a son was promised to him from his rightful marriage—not because of his age, but because of his faith. Sarah conceived; without difficulty, she carried the burden, though she could scarcely walk. At an age when motherhood ceases, she learned to become a mother. Withered breasts displayed an abundance of mother’s milk, and from powerless old age, a very strong boy was nourished. For faith finds nothing difficult: it possesses as much as it believes.

Now Isaac, the only son, the hope of generations and nations, the starting point of so many events, still lay in the arms of his loving father. He embodied the entirety of his father’s love; as the only child, as the late-born, as the promised one of God, as the sole and final hope, he was to compensate for all the losses of the preceding barrenness.

Then came a moment in which Abraham’s faith was to prove stronger than even the trial of battle. He received the command to kill with the sword the limbs of his beloved son, whom he was accustomed to covering with kisses. What was his love to do? The execution of the command could not be delayed. Mother, you were better off when you were childless; your child was born for the sacrificial sword.

And yet, no one felt sorrow at such a fate, not even the mother who had given birth to him. No one mourned at the funeral of the still-living boy, and no one wept beforehand for the act of obedience demanded of the innocent child. Not even the father, lest it appear that he wavered if he shed tears. With controlled countenance, he led his son to the sacrificial altar in obedience. He drew the sword between himself and his son; his heart fought for his faith, but his face did not turn pale, nor did his hand tremble.

The son asked where the sacrificial animal was. And so that his tender youth would not perish, a voice pointed to one. Thus, the father had no need to carry out the slaughter, for God does not desire human blood. The God-fearing executioner sheathed his sword again. It was the father’s duty to raise it; it was God’s will to spare.

Neither the one who was to be sacrificed felt fear, nor did the one offering the sacrifice tremble. And the sacrifice did not fail to take place; it was merely changed. The father, rather than sparing his son, helped secure his salvation. For faith alone walks unharmed amidst swords, is treated as a friend among wild beasts, and finds coolness amid flames of fire.

To faith alone must we also give the highest place. And we must trust that we, who through faith are the sons of Abraham, shall one day also be received into his bosom.

Treatise XIII: The Dream of Jacob

1.

Truly, dearest brothers, the heart of a man who knows the dream of this man and the mysteries contained within it does not sleep. For prophecy always speaks in shifting images, yet the same meaning is found in all. Thus, Jacob bears within himself the image of Christ. Likewise, the stone upon which he rested his head, according to the account, is also such an image: for the head of man is Christ, who has also at times been called the cornerstone. The ladder symbolizes the two Testaments, which, composed of the evangelical precepts of the Gospels, lead those who believe in them and fulfill the will of God, as if ascending step by step towards heaven.

The Apostle John, in his Revelation, referred to this ladder as the double-edged sword with a handle, which he describes as proceeding from the mouth of God. The sword, in fact, is the Holy Spirit, which has a handle—that is, it possesses a single essence, power, divinity, majesty, and the will of the Father and the Son—but it has two edges, namely, the two Testaments. Through their royal admonitions, the faithful and God-fearing attain salvation, while the unbelievers and the unfaithful are punished.

This ladder was the same object that the prophet Isaiah saw as tongs; and he reported in his prophecy that with its (two) blades, one of the seraphim took a coal from the altar of God to burn and purify impure lips. By the impure lips, we must understand the two peoples—the Jews and the Gentiles—who were defiled by the sins of their former lives: the Jewish people had reviled and persecuted Christ, while the Gentiles had practiced polytheism and worshiped detestable idols. Now, as we see, through the confession of the name of Christ and by their contact with the coal, they have been melted together into one people.

For the melting together signifies purification and unity. The coal is the Word of God, the altar is the Law, and the tongs are the two Testaments, which uphold the faithful in their obligations but are painful to the unbelievers in their punishments.

2.

These tongs were also referred to as a writing pen by David when he said, “My tongue is like the pen of a swift writer.” For, brothers, the pen is split and has two parts, which unite at the top to form a fine point, so that together they produce a letter. But if one part is removed, the other is useless.

Likewise, there are two Testaments, which, in a similar manner, write one letter with two pen points—that is, in the dual expressions of the holy Law, they reveal Christ, the Son of God, for spiritual understanding. Without their mutual support, they cannot fulfill their function: just as the New Testament gives authentication to the Old, so the Old bears witness to the New, as it is written: “Once God has spoken, and I heard these two things.”

The Lord himself also explicitly mentions the ladder in the Gospel when he says to Peter: “Cast a hook into the sea, and the first fish that comes up, take it! And when you open its mouth, you will find two denarii; give one for me and one for you!”

The first fish represents Christ, who has risen from the dead; from his mouth have come forth the two denarii, that is, the two Testaments, which, in the glory of the Lord and in the fruitful labor of Peter—on whom he built his Church—were given for the salvation of two peoples. And there can be no doubt that the sea signifies the world and the hook signifies the preaching.

Just as the hook, when cast into the sea, signals the death of the fish, so too does the preaching of the Gospel, which is sent forth into the world, proclaim the death and return of the Lord, as it is written in the letter to the Corinthians: “You shall proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.”

“Open the mouth of the fish” means: you shall explain the mystery of the doctrine of salvation, or that which I have spoken in parables, to those who do not understand. Elsewhere, he made this even clearer to all his disciples, saying: “Go forth and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

“You shall give one for me and one for you” means: you shall preach my cross, but you shall also rejoice equally in the glory of your own cross.

3. The Material of the Ladder on Which the Lord Stood

We deduce the material of the ladder on which the Lord stood from a word of David, who says: “Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” The rod and staff are certainly the two Testaments, which are compared to wood either because, when used, the testament of the one who made it remains permanently and securely written down, or because they, though originating from different starting points, unite in one faith to proclaim that the Son of God had to be crucified.

And with full justification, they let Christ stand upon the ladder, because the history of the entire Holy Scripture came to fulfillment for his sake and through him as its author. Therefore, he also said to his disciples: “Every scribe who is trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old.”

The scribe, brothers, is the preacher; the householder is Christ; his treasures are the essence and will of the Father, which he possesses by virtue of his undiminished divinity; the old and the new are the two Testaments. You see correctly that the Lord undoubtedly also clothed them in the parable of the two denarii, intending the two denarii to be understood as his treasures and the two Testaments as the old and the new.

The Lord also mentions these two denarii when he speaks of the Samaritan who gave them to the innkeeper for the man who had been attacked by robbers. This last parable clearly reveals, to those who perceive spiritually, the mystery contained in Jacob’s ladder.

For in the man who was attacked, we recognize Adam; in the robbers, the devil and the lust of Eve; in the Samaritan, the Lord, of whom the Jews said: “He is a Samaritan and has a demon.” The innkeeper is the teacher of the Law; he receives the two denarii, that is, the salvific teachings of the two Testaments, and takes the man, who fell victim to the robbery of the devil, his angels, and this world, into the inn through the sacred sacrament—that is, into the Church, where the sheep of God find rest. There, he brings him healing through the daily medicine of preaching.

4. The Angels Ascending and Descending

When it is said that angels are ascending and descending, some interpret the ascending ones as angels of light and the descending ones as angels of darkness. But, dearest brothers, I find such an interpretation foolish and inappropriate.

For the fallen ones do not descend—since, as we know, after their sin they were never admitted into heaven again—nor do the angels of light ascend, for they have never dwelt on earth but have always had their abode in heaven.

I believe it is correct to understand “angels” here as humans. For the Lord speaks to them through the Holy Spirit: “You are gods, and all of you are sons of the Most High, but you shall die like men.”

And we also remember that John the Baptist was referred to in this manner: “Behold, I send my angel before you, who will prepare your way before you.”

Thus, it is clear that in prophetic language, both righteous and unrighteous men are generally called angels.

But from examples, we also recognize who the ascending and descending ones are.

• The descending ones are those who renounce the world but then return to it—those of whom the Lord says: “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” And again: “Remember Lot’s wife!” Likewise, the Apostle says: “Why do you turn back to the weak and miserable elements?”
• The ascending ones are the righteous, who, through their tested way of life, ascend daily in the glory of a spiritual ascent on the steps of obeying the divine commandments toward heaven. These are the ones whom the Apostle exhorts, saying: “If you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God!”

We can also understand it, brothers, as referring to the ministering angels, who, as we hear, served the Lord when he walked on earth. As he himself says: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

And indeed, this actually happened, as the Evangelist reports: “Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him.”

Thus, there can be no doubt that the angels of light and the righteous men share the same path to the heavenly heights.

5. Everything is United into the Final Outcome of a Single Fruit

Thus, everything unites into the final outcome of a single fruit. For although we see everything in a dual form, it all originates from a single root.

There are two Testaments, but the one who made them is only one. The writing pen is split, but the reed is only one. The tongs (or scissors) extend into two blades, but their bite is singular. The sword has two edges, but they are merely the two sides of one blade. There are two denarii, but in terms of value, they are considered a single coin. The ladder has two side rails and many steps, but the ascent is only one.

But, dearest brothers, do you wish to know what the steps signify? Listen:

Inclination, attentiveness, understanding, readiness for faith, fear, wisdom, sobriety, gentleness, moderation, chastity, piety, love, faith, truth, humility, gratitude, honor, modesty, patience, perseverance, and completion.

And the two side rails of the ladder are the two Testaments. But the ladder, in its true name, is called the Cross—for in the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ has brought all mysteries to fulfillment and completion. He has also restored Adam to the Father and opened the way to heaven for all who follow him.

Treatise XIV. On Judah

1.

Judah had three sons: Er, Onan, and Shelah. He took a wife named Tamar for his eldest son. But because the son walked wickedly before the Lord, he was, as the Holy Scripture reports, put to death by God. The father then commanded the second son to go to his brother’s wife and raise offspring for his brother; however, this son went to her but spilled his seed on the ground. Because this too was seen as evil in the eyes of God, he was condemned to the same death.

Out of fear that his third son might die in a similar manner, Judah used the boy’s youth as an excuse and told his daughter-in-law to remain as a widow in her father’s house until the son grew up and she could marry him. However, in the meantime, Judah’s wife died. After he had finished mourning, he set out to shear his sheep. When Tamar, who had seen that Shelah had grown up but had not been given to her as a husband, heard this, she took off her widow’s garments, dressed in light clothing, adorned herself, and positioned herself at a place where Judah would pass by.

When Judah saw the woman, he thought she was a prostitute, even though she had covered her face—thereby actually signaling the integrity of her chastity. He approached her, asked to be with her, and promised to send her a young goat. However, she requested a pledge for the fulfillment of his promise, being more satisfied with this than with the actual payment. She received from him his cord, his ring, and his staff. After their transaction was complete, she—who had undertaken this act not out of lust but as a kind of prophetic sign of the future—put her widow’s garments back on.

Meanwhile, the promised young goat was sent, but when inquiries were made about the prostitute, the people of the place responded that no such woman had ever been there. However, time passed, and Tamar’s body began to show signs of pregnancy. And now, observe the mysterious wonder! She, who had hidden her face, does not hide her body. Without any accuser providing evidence, it is reported that she, as a pregnant widow, is guilty of harlotry.

Her father-in-law, Judah, flew into a rage, ordering her to be brought out and burned. But she presented herself fearlessly, for she had not acted out of unchastity but, so to speak, as a prefiguration of what was to come. She then revealed that she was pregnant by the man whose cord, ring, and staff she possessed. When Judah recognized the situation, not only did he restrain his anger against her, but he even declared her justified.

2.

As far as one can understand this event, Judah serves as a representation, partly of the prophets, partly of the patriarchs and forefathers, who, for the sake of God’s justice, regarded all people as their children.

Thus, Er, the first son, represents the original people—the demigods, the mightiest men and kings—who, in their wild strength and unchecked desires, waged war and devastated the entire earth. They even claimed temples instead of houses for themselves, erected altars in their own names, and yet did not know what kind of grave they would one day find. They promised themselves heaven, though their actions would have made the earth blush with shame if that had been possible. In the end, they even declared themselves gods before God, though people of sound mind would not have deemed them worthy of being called men.

For these reasons, they were not only destroyed by God but also condemned to eternal judgment.

3. Onan, the Second Brother, Represents the Jewish People

Onan, the second brother, represents the Jewish people, who received the command to raise up the seed of their brother—not a seed that was rightly condemned by God, but rather to restore the other nations, which had been corrupted by the poisonous seed of the aforementioned idolatry, back to the worship of God through the example of a righteous life and the religious admonitions of the holy law. However, this people spilled their seed upon the earth.

Of course, not the seed of the flesh, but the seed of the heart. The seed of the heart is, namely, the Word of God, as the Lord says according to Luke:
“The meaning of the parable is this: The seed is the Word of God. … That which falls along the path represents those who hear the word, but then the devil comes and takes the word away from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.”

The earth symbolizes man and the idol, since God formed man from the earth, and man, in turn, made idols from the earth. The people spilled their seed on the earth, meaning they neglected the commandments of God and gave themselves over to idolatry. Therefore, they likewise received a similar condemnation from God in the present time. For if the one who, though merely a man, makes himself a god is reprehensible, how much more reprehensible is the one who worships a god that he himself has made?

4. Shelah, the Third Brother, Represents the New People from the Gentiles

Shelah, the third and youngest of the brothers, represents the new people that emerged from the Gentiles. Tamar represents the Church. Rightly, she was not given to him as a wife, for the people who, after the coming of Christ, would be reborn in the womb of the Church through the spiritual water of baptism were to become her sons, not her spouse.

Judah loses his wife, meaning that the faith of the synagogue perishes. But when it is said that he found comfort, this certainly refers to the hope in the coming of Christ, who not only comforted the prophets—who had been left desolate by the fall of the synagogue—but also refreshes all of us whenever we find ourselves in distress.

Judah goes to shear his sheep, meaning he seeks the fruits of good works from righteous people. When Tamar hears of this—she who was residing in her father’s house, meaning she was among the temples and the places of depravity, the spectacles of worldly pleasure (for the father of all who live such a corrupted life is clearly the devil, as the Lord rebukes the Jews: “You belong to your father the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires.”)—she removes her widow’s garments, meaning she abandons the unclean practices of an impure religion.

She puts on summer clothing. The summer garment, my brothers, is pure and allows for movement—it is easy to work in and can endure the heat of summer, which represents temptation. This certainly signifies the readiness of faith: whoever possesses it must live in purity and without hindrance.

She veils her face so as not to be recognized. This was necessary because the one who was to recognize her chastity, Christ, had not yet come. Her father-in-law does not recognize her, for the prophets were sent to the Jews, not to the Gentiles. He takes her for a harlot—and rightly so—for she served an idolatrous people.

He desires to be with her, because the Gentiles were more ready to believe in prophecy than the Jews, as the Lord says: “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.”

He promises her a young goat, which reveals the reward that sinners will receive for their sin. She refuses to accept it, for whoever has received the sacrament of the Trinity will in the future be numbered among the sheep, not the goats.

Finally, it is said that she requested and received his cord, ring, and staff. What does this signify?

• The cord, beloved brothers, is the Law, which, through its salutary exhortations, adorns not the neck but rather the heart of all believers with various virtues and graces.
• The staff, in its wooden form, foretells the mystery of the Lord’s suffering, as is clearly expressed in the Psalms: “Your rod and your staff comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows—how glorious it is!”
  • Certainly, my brothers, the cup signifies His blood, the table His body, the oil the grace of the Holy Spirit, and the staff and rod the Cross on which the Lord deigned to be hung in order to bring man—whose nature He assumed—into communion with God.
• The ring is the sign of faith, namely Christ Himself. Through the illumination of His majesty, we have received a seal and an imprint upon our souls. If we live in purity, we bear His image within us through the Holy Spirit as a safeguard for our salvation—and this we must preserve.

That Judah was with her was a sign of the mystery of the sacred union of believers. Tamar conceives in the womb, while the Church conceives in the heart—Tamar from physical seed, the Church from the Word.

A young goat is sent to her as a sign of temptation, for even those who follow righteousness must be tested. But ultimately, the prostitute who was sought is not found—for whoever is reborn through water and the Holy Spirit ceases to be what they once were and begins to be something new.

Thus, she puts on her widow’s garments again—not to repeat what she had done, but to mourn that she had done it. For no one, no matter how righteous, can be saved unless he repents, wipes away his past sins, and refrains from new ones.

Tamar is accused of having conceived through harlotry, just as the Church was accused by the Jewish elders of violating the Law—because she broke the Sabbath and rejected their traditions. But Tamar presents the cord, ring, and staff, and through the mystery of this threefold testimony, she frees herself from the impending punishment.

Likewise, the Church, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, not only extinguishes the flames of the present fire of the devil but also overcomes the fire of the coming Judgment Day.

Tamar departs justified—so too does the Church, glorified through the increase of your numbers and your faith. She will remain with Christ for all eternity, through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is praised with the Father and the Holy Spirit before time, in time, and forever.

Amen.

Treatise XV. On Job

1.

Dearest brothers! The narration of sacred history has come to us for reading so that we may, if possible, at least to some degree, imitate the ways of our forefathers, even if we are unable to emulate their virtues. For they lived in such great righteousness that it is already a kind of fortune merely to learn what they have done.

Thus, Job was a man, just and true, a man who kept himself away from all the temptations of this world—pure in his conduct, even purer in his heart—and at the same time so prudent and blameless that he was praised by God’s own testimony. It was therefore not undeserved that he, being blessed, led a blessed life. He possessed a splendid house, great wealth, and many children—something particularly welcome to parents—children of different sexes who loved one another. Daily, he offered sacrifices to God for all of them.

So strong was the wall of his purity and faith that surrounded him like a shield that the devil would not have dared to approach him had God not given him permission. And now, brothers, imagine how the devil raged when he was given the opportunity—he, whom one cannot even endure when he flatters. Thus begins a battle that has become famous. On one side, the devil, with all his weapons, raises a terrible clamor, summons his servants for assistance, lets his terrifying trumpet sound, ignites a raging fire in the hearts of robbers, and in repeated attacks, gradually lays siege to all the possessions of God’s servant. In a single moment, he destroys all of Job’s wealth with plundering, fire, and the sword.

On the other side stands Job, strong in his deeply rooted faith. Though shaken by so many tragic reports, he does not waver. He only praises God and preserves his true riches by counting his worldly goods as nothing… When the devil realizes that he has accomplished nothing despite such assaults, he unleashes the full fury of his wickedness upon Job’s children. As they sit together in harmony at their meal in the house, he suddenly shakes the four corners with all his might. The walls and ceilings collapse into a wild ruin, burying the holy company of siblings before they even have a chance to die. And so intent was the devil on destroying a father’s love that Job’s grief over this mass grave could not fully grasp his loss—he did not know whom to mourn first, whom to find first, to whom he should first perform the sorrowful duty of burial.

When the servant of God received this news, he tore his clothes—not to reproach God, but to engage in unrestrained battle with the enemy. Just as he had expressed his disdain for wealth in the loss of his possessions, so in the loss of his children he showed his fatherly heart, and when suffering befell his own body, he placed his righteousness in the background. For the enemy struck him with disease from head to toe; he was not merely afflicted with sores in certain places but had become entirely one single wound. Yet, in the midst of all this, he did not speak a single unjust word against God.

He neither listened to his wife, who urged him toward wrongdoing, nor yielded to his friends, who mocked him. Victorious over cruelty and wickedness, he sat on a foul-smelling heap of dung, filled with worms, as if he had suffered nothing, content only in the fear of God.

What a blessed man! By his marvelous patience, he has already earned God’s favor, has defeated the devil, has regained his health, and has not lost his possessions and children but exchanged them for others.

2.

As far as it can be understood, dearest brothers, Job was a foreshadowing of Christ. A brief comparison will illustrate the truth of this.

Job was declared righteous by God. Christ, however, is righteousness itself, the very source from which all who are blessed may drink. For it is written of Him: “The Sun of Righteousness shall rise upon you.” (Malachi 4:2)

Job was called truthful. But the Lord is the ultimate Truth itself, as He says in the Gospel: “I am the Way and the Truth.” (John 14:6)

Job was wealthy. But what is wealthier than the Lord? He, before whom all the rich are but servants, He, to whom the entire world belongs, as the most blessed David declares: “The earth is the Lord’s and all that fills it, the world and all who dwell in it.” (Psalm 24:1)

Job was tempted by the devil three times. Likewise, as the Evangelist reports, the devil attempted to tempt the Lord three times. (Matthew 4:1-11)

Job lost his possessions. The Lord abandoned His heavenly riches out of love for us and made Himself poor so that He might make us rich.

In his rage, the devil killed Job’s sons. And the sons of the Lord—the prophets—were murdered by the deluded Pharisees. (Matthew 23:31-37)

Job was afflicted with sores. And the Lord, having taken on flesh, was marred by the filth of the sins of all humanity.

Job’s wife urged him to sin. The synagogue, in turn, pressured the Lord to follow the corrupt traditions of the elders. (Mark 7:5-13)

Job’s friends mocked him, as the account relates. The Lord, too, was mocked by His priests and followers.

Job sat upon a heap of dung, full of worms. The Lord dwelt in the true heap of dung—that is, in the filth of this world—among men, who in reality are worms, filled with every kind of vice and passion.

Job regained his health and his possessions. And the Lord, after His resurrection, granted to those who believe in Him not only health but also immortality, (2 Timothy 1:10) and regained dominion over the whole world, as He Himself testifies: “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father.” (Matthew 11:27)

Job fathered new sons to replace the ones he had lost. The Lord, after the prophets, raised up the holy apostles as His sons. (Galatians 4:19)

Job passed away in peace. But the Lord is to be praised forever—before time, in time, and for all eternity.

Treatise XVI. On Susanna

How often in this corrupt world are various intrigues spun against praiseworthy people; how often do partisan accusations arise with slanders of all kinds against them; whatever a person with wicked intentions may devise against them, or whatever the devil may undertake: the righteous one should not be afraid, for God is with him.

Thus, Susanna, a noble Hebrew woman, an ornament of true chastity, became a teacher for women through the example of her purity. Susanna stood before the court, crushed by the lies of depraved false witnesses, yet upheld by the inner good testimony of her conscience—not so much as a guilty person awaiting her sentence, but as one consecrated to God, ready to die courageously for her chastity. And though the unjust sentence of the judges initially cast her down, the guiltlessness of her pure conscience lifted her up again. The awareness of her purity was enough for her: God is witness.

Her chastity did not concern itself with what the false witnesses testified against her, nor with the verdict of the deceived judges, nor even with how the devil sought to bring her to disgrace, after he had failed to shake the foundations of her modesty.

To execution did not walk a body guilty of adultery, for which aged men had burned with lustful desire, but a body that the devil had accused, yet virtue had protected, standing adorned in unblemished purity.

Then the Holy Spirit entered the holy youth Daniel and spoke through him as she was led to execution: “Return to the courtroom! For these men have borne false witness against her.” The people marvel that the condemned is recalled from her march to execution for a retrial. Fear seizes the false witnesses. The devil trembles as his schemes are exposed. The angels rejoice that, at last, suppressed truth finds its defense on earth.

The husband triumphs, for he has found his wife chaste. The whole family rejoices, for no slander can reproach them. And the devil rages, for he has succeeded in no way: he found neither the adultery that would have brought Susanna to disgrace had she been guilty, nor did he carry out the murder of the innocent, which he had planned.

Treatise XVII. On Jonah, the Prophet

1.

It is a principle of religion, instilled in man through reverence, to desire to know of God only what is permitted; just as one may search His testimonies only in the simplicity of the heart, so too may one not seek to fathom His mysteries out of curiosity. For who could know the causes and natural forces of our heavens and the things above? Who would dare to presume that he could discourse on the emptiness of our air, which, according to some, is corporeal? Who would have the audacity to claim knowledge of whether the earth is supported by water or whether the water is enclosed within the bosom of the earth?

Who will boast that he has comprehended the whisper of the air, the roaring of the winds, the swelling of the tide in the surging sea, and finally, even the work of the Lord’s creation and the counsel of God? The Apostle himself declares: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways! Who has known the mind of the Lord?”

Not out of pride in probing such things does the prophet cry: “Out of the depths I call to You, O Lord!” For he calls from the depths, that is, from his innermost being. He calls from the depths—but how much human misfortune surrounded him, sad and downcast! And he calls not with his voice but with his heart; not in loud cries, but in faith, knowing that God gladly hears him!

In a similar manner, Peter called from the depths and begged the Lord that he might walk upon the smooth waves of the deep sea and over the surface of the water, which affords no foothold to human steps, and where, as a fearful wanderer, he was about to sink—yet he was able to stride forward and, in the end, reached the shore safely.

Paul too called from the depths when, overwhelmed by misfortunes, which turned to his salvation, he endured dangers from robbers while traveling, dangers from robbers in cities, when he was scourged three times by the Jews, suffered three shipwrecks, when, without harm, he was pelted with a hailstorm of stones by the furious passion of his raging people, when he spent a day and a night in the depths of the sea—yet, by calling upon the Lord, he was safely delivered.

2.

In the same way, the prophet Jonah was sent by God to the inhabitants of Nineveh to proclaim to them the destruction that was imminent over the city; for the burden of sins that lay upon it was immense. But he fled in another direction and boarded a ship to sail to Tarshish. Then suddenly the sea foamed, whipped up by a mighty turmoil of contending winds; the white-crested waves, like towering mountains formed by the raging whirlpools, struck against the foaming coves of the resisting shores, threatening shipwreck at any moment.

The blows of the furious storm grew ever more frequent, the ropes whistled eerily, the yards groaned under the swelling of the sails, and the ship’s prow, meeting resistance on all sides, found no way forward. The sailors, full of anxiety, ran up and down, vainly trying to lighten the ship by throwing cargo overboard—though in truth, it was weighed down only by the burden of the prophet.

Then Jonah, whom this merciful storm alone had demanded as a sacrifice—for the lot had fallen upon him—was appointed to take upon himself the fate of the shipwrecked (to be cast into the sea). Or rather, he was transferred from a wooden ship to a living one. For after he was thrown into the sea, he was hospitably received into the maw of a sea creature. He who had slept on the ship now awakened in the belly of the fish.

And, O wonder! Three days after the shipwreck and his burial in the fish, he preaches to the inhabitants of Nineveh, bringing salvation to the city through terrifying prophecies that led them to faith.

3. Brothers, as far as the story can be understood, the ship is an image of the synagogue. Its bow represents the assembly of its priests, the sailors represent the scribes and Pharisees, and the casting away of the cargo signifies the rejection of the prophets and all holy men, whom the Jews expelled from the synagogue and murdered in an unworthy manner, to the detriment of their own salvation.

The raging storms are the kings (emperors) who, under the mournful sound of trumpets, under the terrible clash of weapons, and amid the pressures of raging battles everywhere, miserably scattered Judea across the whole world. Jonah, who slept in the ship, bore within himself the image of the mystery of salvation in the Lord. For the material of the ship symbolized the Cross, and his sleep signified the Passion.

The sea represents our turbulent world. Under its waves, we understand the nations of the Jews and the Gentiles, who in their vanity raged against God. The casting of lots declared that Jonah should be thrown into the sea; prophecy foretold that the Lord would suffer. And in both cases, it happened with their own will—Jonah’s due to his circumstances, the Lord’s out of love.

The fish undoubtedly signifies the underworld. Just as Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights, was then cast out, and went to the city of Nineveh, so too did the Lord rise from the underworld on the third day and, before ascending into heaven, go to the city of Jerusalem.

Nineveh, however, is an image of the Church, where our people, the Gentiles, have since taken up residence. It was not without reason that God called it the great city, for in the future, the nations of all peoples were to believe in Christ, and the entire world was to become one single city for God.

Finally, the actual events that brought salvation confirm this comparison, as they continue among us to this day. For, brothers, just as the destruction of Nineveh was announced to its inhabitants, they believed and feared. And the more certain they were that the Lord would not lie, the more willingly they relied on His mercy.

Immediately, they condemned the ways of their former life; for the sake of salvation, they no longer hurried, as they once did, to their mute idols. They no longer kindled unholy fires on foul-smelling altars, no longer burned incense, no longer poured out wine as libations, no longer sought omens in the still-warm, smoking entrails of animals taken from them after their unforeseen deaths.

They no longer tried to determine their fate through the varied flight patterns of birds in vain interpretations, seeking salvation founded upon feathers. Instead, they searched within their own hearts for the means of salvation and offered, in all devotion, their spirit humbled in complete contrition. They repented according to the law and thus made God merciful to them.

This is what we have done, and what we must continue to do, so that we may escape the temptations of the present age and the punishments of the future judgment through Christ, our Lord.

Treatise XVIII. On the Birthday of St. Arcadius on January 12 in Caesarea in Mauretania

1.

When we record the passion of the blessed martyr Arcadius in the annals on the occasion of his victory celebration, it forever rekindles the Christian’s zeal for the struggle for immortality. This has a dual value in uplifting religious sentiment: the people are inspired by the reward of heaven, and the merits of the martyr do not fall into oblivion.

But where is the one who could fully do justice in speech to the task of speaking about the victory palms and crown of this glorious martyrdom, when it seems as though in his single body so many martyrdoms occurred as he had limbs? The devil, ever the representative of ancient, deep-rooted hatred, had summoned his minions to take up arms against the people of the Lord and disturbed the whole family of God with the fury of an insatiable cruelty. He had declared war on God Himself through mankind and, in his deliberate wickedness, once again kindled throughout the world that baleful fire to consume the victims of accursed superstition.

This public impiety rose to the very rooftops; there was no place where blasphemy was not committed in the name of religion. The believers in Christ were compelled to attend vain and superstitious religious ceremonies and, in acknowledgment of these detestable rites, to pour out libations of sacrificial wine against God’s law, or to drag forth sacrificial animals adorned with wreaths, or to burn heavy-scented incense, or to divine favorable omens for the future from the yellowish fat and dark blood of the victims. By compelling such unlawful service, they sought to eradicate God from the hearts of Christians.

2.

The war was fought with great hardship, and the family of the Lord endured their trial before the eyes of heaven. But the blessed martyr Arcadius, though already destined for the crown, recoiled in horror at the sudden eruption of this blasphemous assault and delayed his struggle for a short time. When he saw the city thrown into turmoil by this disastrous affair and people being dragged one by one from all sides to witness the mournful spectacle, he renounced all his possessions, severed the last ties that bound him to the world, withdrew into seclusion, entrusted himself to the protection of solitude, and thus accomplished two things in accordance with his Christian principle: on one hand, he did not seem to stand too far from the battlefield, yet on the other, he felt strengthened by his flight, following the example of the commandment in the Gospel.

But suddenly, a band of officers burst into his hospitable refuge, as if seizing an enemy prize. They sought the swift capture of the servant of God. However, a relative of the blessed martyr, who happened to be staying under his roof, loudly and persistently insisted on Arcadius’ absence. But in their malicious intent, the officers now dragged this man off instead into a shameful imprisonment. The governor, a man of utmost cruelty, had him brought before him and then subjected to the harshest confinement.

Thus, the blessed Arcadius, as a pledge of his future glory, had already offered a token of the martyrdom he had chosen—by which he neither abandoned Christ nor his relative. Immediately, he could no longer endure remaining in hiding. He voluntarily presented himself to the judge and even excused his delay by explaining his earlier hesitation. But when the governor promised him immunity for his previous flight, on the condition that he, even if belatedly, now participate in the superstitious rites, the holy martyr burst forth against him with the words:

“What? Do you believe, most foolish of all judges, that the family of the Lord can be swayed by the fleeting advantages of this world or the sudden terror of an early death, when we know the Scripture confirmed by the Apostle: ‘For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain’? Devise even harsher torments for your punishments, for you have the power! Use even stronger means to inflame your fury! But no matter what you employ in the greatness of your torments, you will not be able to separate us from God!”

3.

Immediately, the judge, overcome with rage comparable to the venom of a viper, gave orders to the executioners not to proceed with the usual application of punishments, nor to follow the customary legal procedures used for ordinary criminals. The claws were too feeble, the blows of the leaded scourges seemed ineffective, the torture rack remained unused, and even the numerous strikes with rods were set aside in favor of a harsher punishment. A new, terrifying torment was devised, through which they believed they could defeat God in man.

“The hands shall be severed from the joints, the feet from the legs,” declared the judge. “Let him see himself as a living corpse!”

Foolish man! In your fury, you deceived yourself! There was still something left in this victim, dedicated to the Lord, that you could have cut off: you forgot to order the tongue to be severed, the very tongue that, in the struggle of martyrdom, is usually the first to confess the Lord.

Thus, Arkadius was finally led to the place that the righteous long for in their prayers—the place of execution—and there he stood, gazing toward heaven, undaunted, for he was under the eye of God. He had already bowed his neck, prepared to receive the coming blows; he had bared his throat for the imminent strike of the sword, believing that by submitting to a swift death, he might appease the insane cruelty of the judge.

But suddenly, he was ordered to stretch out his hands, to lay himself face down upon the bare ground, and to expose the ends of his feet. And behold, even in the midst of these torments, he was not idle: rather, under the tortures of the executioner, he was absorbed in contemplation, like one at prayer.

The frenzied executioner, meanwhile, raised his axe; and, marking with his eyes the points where the wounds would fall, he swung it in the air, ever keeping his gaze fixed on the fatal strike. But the hands of the martyr remained motionless—his confession was, so to speak, a binding force—and his fingers did not twitch in fear of their imminent destruction. So great was his steadfastness in devotion to God that he attained glory with his entire body prepared for suffering.

4.

As the executioner beheld the body before him, now surrendered to his will, a single stroke of his descending axe severed the connecting nerves and, as the bonds were torn apart, the joints of the body were wrenched loose. The severed hands leaped from the ground, and with them, a stream of blood gushed forth from the veins, which, after a brief pause, poured down upon them again.

Then, the backs of his knees and his calves were presented, and with the sword of that cruel villain, his feet were severed at the boundary of the soles, cutting them away from their natural connection to the body. Thus, the martyr was deprived of the service of his feet.

Only those who can count his sufferings can also count how often he bore witness for Christ; and one may recognize that just as the fury of the devil was manifested in this one body, so too was God’s triumph revealed just as greatly!

And in the midst of these torments, the life of the martyr persisted; again and again, a new extension was granted, snatching him once more from death. Thus, he was still alive, even as part of his body was already buried!

What a worthy end to his glorious death! Already on the verge of ascending to the heights of heaven, he sends the burdens of his body ahead of him and goes before even his own funeral procession.

To what can his confession be compared? It ranks among the number of the Maccabean brothers; it is equal to the resolve of Eleazar, matching his spirit and his determination. Arkadius, the blessed martyr, still dwells on earth, and yet he is already celebrated as a martyr in heaven!

Treatise XIX: On the Word of Genesis: “Let Us Make Man in Our Image and Likeness.”

Beloved brothers! Nothing is more necessary and fitting for a man who fears God than to come to know himself. It is a kind of madness when one who cannot even give an account of his own life seeks to comprehend the mystery of nature. The essence of nature cannot possibly be grasped through human conjectures; only He who created it knows it.

Let us therefore turn our attention to what concerns us directly—to what it means when God says, “Let us make man in our image and likeness.” And it is written, “God created man in the image and likeness of God.” But in another place, He says, “I am who I am, and I do not change.”

If this is so, in what way does man bear the image of God? His face is susceptible to suffering, subject to all kinds of change, and is altered at every moment by labor, age, sickness, anger, joy, and sorrow. Indeed, it assumes as many expressions as the emotions that affect him. Not a single day passes in which it remains entirely the same. If this is the case, do we then not bear the image of God? Yes, we do bear it fully, and it is most evident precisely because we, who bear it, do not recognize it. For the image of the incomprehensible God must necessarily be invisible.

As a result, it is inaccessible to the physical eye. It cannot be discovered either when it enters our body or when it departs from it; and yet, its power is so great that, though enclosed within its dwelling place as if by a fence, it illuminates everything it wishes at any moment.

We must not, therefore, understand the image of God as referring to our physical dwelling place, but rather as the spiritual image of the heavenly man. It is this image that the Lord bestows from the merciful abundance of His fullness upon those who believe in Him and are reborn through the heavenly birth.

Treatise XX: On the Same Word of Genesis

Beloved brothers, nothing is more necessary and fitting for a man who is born than to come to know himself. For it is a kind of madness when one who cannot even give an account of his own life seeks to comprehend the mystery of nature. The elements cannot be more beautifully and truthfully expressed in human words than they are in the way God created them or allowed them to appear.

Let us therefore turn our attention to what concerns us directly—to what it means when God says, “Let us make man in our image and likeness.” And it is written, “God created man in the image and likeness of God.” But in another place, He says, “I am who I am, and I do not change.”

If this is so, in what way does man bear the image of God? His face is subject to every change; it alters at every moment due to labor, age, sickness, joy, and sorrow. At times, it is disfigured by leanness, at other times swollen with excess fat; and it is so varied that no two people in the entire world have exactly the same appearance. Since this does not apply to God, do we then not bear His image?

Far be it, brothers! We bear His image fully, and it is most evident precisely because we, who bear it, do not recognize it. For the image of the incomprehensible God must necessarily be invisible.

As a result, it is inaccessible to mortal eyes. It cannot be seen when it enters the body, nor when it departs from it. And yet, its power is so great that, though enclosed within its dwelling place as if by a fence, it illuminates everything it wishes at any moment.

We must not, therefore, understand the image of God as referring to our physical dwelling place, but rather as the spiritual image of the heavenly man, which He bestows upon us from the merciful abundance of His fullness.

Paul clearly expresses this interpretation when he says: “As we have borne the image of the one made from dust, so shall we also bear the image of the heavenly one.” And those who bear this image in reverence, as the Apostles and the righteous have done, will not only bear the image but also God Himself. For it is likewise written: “You are the temple of God, and the Holy Spirit dwells in you.”

Treatise XXI: On the Hundredth Psalm

1.

People who engage only superficially with the holy law often fall into great error when they fail to consider the connection between statements or do not search deeply enough for their meaning.

Now, in the Psalm we are discussing, the prophet states: “I will sing of mercy and judgment to you, O Lord.” But how, then, can the Lord say in the Gospel: “Whoever believes in me will not be judged; and whoever does not believe is already judged”? In these words, He excludes the believers from judgment, while the unbelievers are, from the outset, excluded from judgment.

If neither party comes to judgment, then how will each receive their reward according to their deeds? If the wicked do not receive retribution for the evil deeds they have committed, then the righteous have no reason to labor in virtue.

No, it is not to be understood in the way that ignorant people suppose. The meaning and weight of this statement are clarified by the particular significance of the words themselves. It says: “Whoever believes in me will not be judged.”Quite rightly—why would a believer still need to be judged? A judgment is only necessary when there is doubt about the case. If there is no doubt, then no trial is needed.

For the same reason, unbelievers do not need to be judged; they are already condemned by their unbelief. Thus, a person already carries with them from this life either their crown or their punishment.

David expressed this view in his first Psalm when he wrote: “The wicked will not rise in judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.” In this statement, he characterizes the judgment of the entire human race in just a few words, grading distinctions according to merit. For the same difference that exists between the righteous and the sinner also exists between the sinner and the godless.

Thus, he leaves no judgment for the godless, for they are already condemned by their godlessness. As for sinners—who are indeed still subject to judgment—he deems them unworthy of participation in the assembly of the righteous, who will no longer be judged.

2.

If, therefore, the righteous are destined for eternal life and the godless for eternal punishment, and neither group faces any judicial examination, we must ask: Who, then, are those for whom a judgment is in store? And from whom can we learn this, if not from the Lord Himself, who continues His statement with the words: “This is the judgment: that the Light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light.”

With these words, He clearly refers to those wavering and uncertain Christians who stand between the devout and the godless—who do not fully align with either side because they refuse to break ties with both. They are not truly believers, for they retain elements of unbelief. Yet, they are not fully unbelievers either, for they bear the outward image of faith, since they profess God with their words but serve the world with their deeds.

They wish to know the law but refuse to keep its commandments. They venerate the saving sign (of the cross), yet they do not abandon the mysteries of demons. Fear of God keeps them within the Church, yet at the same time, the allure of the world draws them away. They do not become godless, for they hold the name of God in honor; but they are not truly devout, for they offend the worship-worthy Father by their wicked lives. They pray because they fear; they sin because they desire to.

Thus, their guilt is not fully determined, for where two opposing sides demand judgment, a ruling must weigh their attachment to each. As long as their wavering is unresolved, no rightful verdict can be rendered upon them.

Who, then, are those whose indecisiveness leaves them subject to judgment? Certainly, they are the ones whom the Apostle describes: “They knew God, yet they neither glorified Him nor gave thanks, but their thoughts were led astray by vain reasoning, and their hearts were darkened.” So much so that they loved darkness more than light, creation more than the Creator.

3.

Consequently, there are three types of judgment. The first is that of the righteous; as has been said, they will not only be exempt from judgment, but will themselves judge the world, according to the Apostle’s words: “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?”

The second is that of the godless; they will not undergo judgment because they are already condemned. Instead, they will perish, as Scripture says: “The way of the wicked leads to destruction.”

The third is that of sinners. For them, it is necessary to examine the hidden aspects of their wayward and wavering lives. The Apostle considers both cases when he says: “For those who have sinned without the Law will perish without the Law; and those who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law.”

Do you see now, brothers, the great difference between one who is already condemned and one who must still be judged? Even among men, who are often unjust, this distinction is observed. No master of a household holds a trial for a servant who has honestly and faithfully earned his wages; rather, he honors him like a son. Another servant, caught in the act of poisoning, adultery, murder, false witness, or fraud, he immediately hands over to the executioner—not for questioning, but for the swift infliction of the deserved punishment.

A third servant, however, who is caught in deceit yet attempts to justify himself with excuses, is held for investigation. His case is to be judged with due consideration of the harm done and the property preserved, so that an appropriate sentence may be given according to the extent of his guilt.

Thus, it will be as follows: To the righteous, the crown; to the sinners—if they have excuses or have repented—pardon; but to the godless, eternal punishment, through the Lord Jesus Christ, who is praised with the Holy Spirit forever and ever.

Treatise XXII: On Isaiah, Chapter I

1.

“Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the Lord speaks: I have brought up sons and raised them, but they have despised me!”

The opening words of this book proclaim to the world the great sin of the Jewish people and reveal the indignation and wrath of God when they are directed at others with the admonition to heed the word of God more attentively. Their guilt is not small when the word of God, which was always proclaimed among them, is now turned toward others.

Thus, the rejection of the Jews signifies the election of other peoples. For from the fact that others are urged to hear the word of God, it follows that Israel is considered rejected. By saying, “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth,” the prophet expresses that the Jews have refused to listen to him.

2.

“Hear,” he says, “O heavens, and give ear, O earth!” Did the prophet, by saying “Hear, O heavens and earth,” refer to the physical heaven and earth before us? Did he complain against them as if the heavens and the earth had never listened? Heaven and earth obey the command of the Lord—the heavens do not refuse to give rain, nor does the earth withhold its fruits.

This prophetic word was to be fulfilled in the last times before the coming of our Lord and Savior, who would not be heard by the Jewish people. But because the Apostles and the Gentiles would hear Him, He said, “Hear, O heavens and earth!” That the heavens here symbolize the Apostles is confirmed by a clear statement of the prophet: “I will look upon the heavens, the works of Your fingers.” Certainly, he is not speaking of the physical heavens above us, which he had always seen, but of the Apostles, whom he longed to see.

And elsewhere: “His power covered the heavens,” meaning that the Holy Spirit overshadowed and covered the Apostles to enable them to perform miracles. And again: “The heavens declare the glory of God.” Here too, he does not mean that the heavens above us speak—no one has ever heard them speak—but rather that he appointed the Apostles, and through their preaching, the glory of the Lord was proclaimed throughout the world.

That “earth” refers to people is proven by numerous prophetic statements. It is written: “Shout for joy, all the earth,” and in another place: “Hear, O earth, the words of my mouth!” Without a doubt, the prophets here meant the Gentiles, whose works had been worldly up to that time.

Therefore, when it says, “Hear, O heavens and earth,” it means that Christ the Lord, having been rejected by the Jews, would be heard by the Apostles and the Gentile nations.

3.

“I have brought up sons and raised them.”

This is the word of the Lord, in which He, through the mouth of the prophet, reproaches the unbelieving Jews, speaking of events even before they occurred. For it is God’s nature to know the past and foresee the future.

“I have brought up sons and raised them,” He says. The Jews, through their boundless unbelief, had incurred the deserved wrath of God. And just as great as the grace was that He had shown them in His love, so too would the punishment for their sin be great. It is evident that a son whom a father has loved most deeply, if he transgresses, is punished most severely. The greater the love a loving father has shown to his beloved son, the greater the punishment he demands when he is wronged.

If a beloved son does not repay love with love, he is cast out and receives a just sentence of punishment. And who can measure the enormity of the crime of a man whose impiety does not return the Father’s love in kind? If it is already a sin not to love a fellow man, how much greater is the sin of not loving God the Father?

Thus, the Jews are miserable and wretched—they who have despised God the Father, from whom they were begotten, without remembering the great honor bestowed upon them or recognizing the immense dignity granted to them.

For what could be more blessed than for God to condescend to grant men the honor of calling them His children? What greater grace than that His supreme majesty should deem human frailty worthy and precious in His sight?

“I have brought up sons,” He says. What sweetness is in these words when God Himself speaks them about men! And what wretchedness when such a Father is offended!

“I have brought up sons and raised them.” Yes, the Lord made Israel His sons when He chose Abraham, from whom they were to descend. He made them His sons in Egypt when their numbers grew from a few immigrants into a great nation. And He raised them when He led them “with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm” through the wilderness.

Israel was exalted when darkness and thick gloom covered all of Egypt for three days. Israel was exalted when, alone among the Egyptians, they were spared from all the plagues.

Israel was exalted when the Lord led them safely through the sea on dry ground. Israel was exalted when manna rained down from heaven each day in the wilderness and when water flowed from the rock.

Israel was exalted when the bitter water was made sweet by wood, foreshadowing how we would drink from the cross without the bitterness of paganism. Israel was exalted when it safely reached the Jordan from Mount Horeb.

What greater exaltation than when God spoke with them daily?

“But they have despised me.”

They dragged Him to the cross—the very cross by which they had once escaped Pharaoh!

And again it is written: “The daughter of Zion will be left desolate…”

Treatise XXIII. On Isaiah. II.589
As the text of the blessed Isaiah suggests, God is angry with the people of the Jews and speaks—lest they should still feel repentance—His judgment of punishment in public rebuke. For human sensibility, public exposure is worse than punishment. He calls them sons to instill in them the fear of rejection. He calls them exalted to frighten them from falling. He calls them despisers to bring them to the realization that the punishment of (eternal) torment threatens them.

Brothers, avoid with all your strength the imitation of such an example, and at the same time rejoice that you learn discipline from the punishments of others through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Treatise XXIV. On Isaiah. III.591
It is something terribly shocking, brothers, when the one who complains of an offense is also the one who could easily take revenge. But because it is more difficult for wise and honorable men to be publicly exposed in any way than to die, God pronounces His judgment of punishment in public rebuke over the people of the Jews, who had become utterly corrupted in their excess of burning sensuality.

In doing so, He calls upon heaven and earth as witnesses to make their guilt appear in its full magnitude: He calls them sons to make them fear rejection; He calls them exalted to make them fear the fall; He calls them despisers of His person to reveal them to the world as godless.

Brothers, it is a wretched guilt when no excuse can be found. And a son is truly reprehensible when a loving father condemns him and must condemn him against his own will.

Treatise XXV. On Isaiah. IV.592
Human language lacks the words to describe the godlessness of the people of the Jews, who, in the impatience of their hardened hearts, proved themselves more obstinate than the longsuffering of God. For their guilt is not a light one when the very One who could have immediately punished them complains about it.

But because death is regarded by the unbelievers as the essence of future punishment, and because what does not bring public disgrace is almost considered as if it never happened, He decided to rebuke them before heaven and earth as witnesses—so that they would be subject to the just judgment for their inexcusable and wicked actions.

And in the suffering of the Lord, this matter was fulfilled: the heavens lost their light in the middle of the day, and the earth, in violent trembling, lost its stability. From this, one can infer what awaits those for whose sake nature itself took upon itself the torment of punishment in the form of mourning for the dead.

Treatise XXVI. On Isaiah. V.594
The text of the divine prophecy reveals that the people of the Jews have lost every advocate for their salvation. According to this, in all cases, it is not strictness that speaks the judgment, venerable brothers, but fatherly love.

Yet no one can intercede for someone whom the most patient and mildest Father has rejected—not merely on the basis of an accusation, but after conviction by evidence. Therefore, He calls upon heaven and earth as witnesses to their wickedness: the earth, upon which all deeds take place; and the heaven, under whose gaze they are carried out.

He calls them sons to make their guilt appear in its full magnitude; He calls them exalted to highlight their ingratitude. He gives preference to the ox and the donkey, so that, if they should come to their senses, they may feel this comparison more deeply than the punishment itself.

Treatise XXVII. On Isaiah. VI.596

1.

What the prophet means when he demands that the old vineyard, which had been planted by the Lord in Egypt, should now develop into a new one is already explained by the title of the Psalm that was just read. It states: “To the end, for those who are transformed.”

The people of the Jews, who were called the Lord’s old vineyard, did indeed flourish, but unfortunately, their bloom was destroyed, and they were unable to bear fruit. Instead of fruit, they brought forth thorns; instead of grapes, wild berries. Because the Lord abhorred such barrenness, He planted, according to His will, another vineyard—the vineyard of our people—into which all the fruit, of which the prophet speaks, has now passed.

Forgive me, you blessed planters of the vineyard, you, its cultivators, as I give an account of the vineyard—if my negligence has in any way diminished your diligence!

2.

As you often recall in the best manner, a branch of a certain size is cut off as a seedling and planted into a pit, where it is nourished and sustained by the ever-present moisture of the soil. It is necessary to provide it with a wooden stake for support, by whose protection it can stand firm and grow upward.

Once it has grown into a full vine and has reached the height of the yoke, all its excessive branches are cut off with a pruning knife. The cleansed trunk is then fastened onto a framework, secured with knots so that it is not torn away by any force from the wood that supports it and guides it toward producing abundant fruit.

Each year, it drips with its own dew, shedding gentle tears that reveal it has absorbed the moisture of the must. Soon, the buds break open, and radiant leaves shoot forth; behind them, the fruits soon appear, inviting delight, nurtured in their growth and ripening by the heat of the sun, the rain showers, and the winds.

When the time of the grape harvest arrives, and the leafy adornment is blown away, the grapes are gathered everywhere, trampled in the winepress by the workers’ feet, then pressed and crushed between two boards with the greatest force until all sweetness is completely extracted.

Thus, the precious liquid is drunk by its own vintners and stored in the wine cellars of the master of the house, where, through aging, it further increases in quality.

As far as we, in our weakness, can provide a spiritual interpretation, the seedling that is cut to a specific size represents the competens (that is, the one desiring baptism), who has completed the prescribed number of examinations.

The pit into which he is planted must be understood as the holy font of baptism, which, as a truly mysterious remedy, receives men as the dead but then, when they are breathed upon, awakens them to life through its heavenly water. The wooden support that stretches and upholds the vine is a symbol of the Lord’s cross, without which the Christian simply cannot live or attain immortality.

When the vine is fastened to the trellis, this signifies the height of his path and journey toward heaven. It is secured with bonds when he is spiritually bound through the holy questions of renouncing the world and confessing the faith. The excess branches are cut away with the pruning knife—this means that all his sins are completely removed through immersion and the power of the Holy Spirit.

The cleansed trunk of the vine drips in a fruitful manner; even more blessedly, streams of heavenly teaching flow from the baptized when his eyes have burst open—that is, when they are spiritually enlightened. On the vine, leaves are followed by fruit, inviting the harvest; likewise, the Christian, through obedience to the divine admonitions placed before him, which bear within them the fruit of eternal life, is both protected and strengthened.

He reaches the yoke when he gives all his possessions to the poor, takes up his cross, and thus fulfills all righteousness, following Christ in complete freedom. The vine requires storms, sun, and rain to reach maturity—so too does the righteous person attain his crown through great and numerous trials of every kind.

And when the time of the grape harvest arrives—that is, the time of persecution—the grapes are torn off everywhere, meaning that all the saints are violently seized. They are brought to the winepress, that is, led to the place of execution. They are trampled by the workers, meaning they are overwhelmed with shame, mocked, and killed by their persecutors.

The juice of the grapes is finally pressed out under the weight of the winepress and the two boards until it is completely drained dry—so too, on the Day of Judgment, Christ will demand vengeance for the blood of the confessors according to the two tablets of the Law, down to the last penny.

The winepress workers drink from the very juice they have pressed—thus, it often happens that persecutors become believers in Christ and taste from the precious chalice which they had only shortly before spilled through their oppression.

The wine is stored in the cellar of the householder so that, through such preservation, it becomes even more precious—so too is the martyr received into the holy dwelling place of God, where, transformed from man into angel, he rejoices in the blessedness of eternal life.

Treatise XXVIII. On Isaiah. VII.605

Brothers, the wording of the reading at first raises an accusation of godlessness against the people of the Jews; but at the same time, it also serves as a warning to the Christian not to become the same. For the Jewish people are struck with fear so that the Christian may fear all the more; the former are chastised so that he may make progress. It is a simple way to attain blessedness when one learns from the bitter experience of another what one must avoid oneself. Brothers, there is no need for many words in this matter, but one must apply resolute care. And on this, hear a few words!

Whoever wishes to escape the wrath of God, which threatens all, must serve Him without guilt or fault. A discussion of the aforementioned vineyard would have to be extensive; but to examine it exhaustively in speech is prevented by the significance of the holy mysteries, which urge their fulfillment. However, so that the celebration may still be complete, hear a few words about it!

The old vineyard of the Lord was the synagogue. It was a vineyard that, with its wild shoots and disorderly branches, appeared unattractive; and because its foliage spread loosely everywhere in places of pleasure and worldly indulgence, it produced thorns instead of fruit, wild berries instead of grapes. Enraged by this unworthy state, the Lord left it to lie fallow and planted for Himself a new vineyard according to His will: this is the Mother Church. And He cultivates it through the labor of the priests, makes it fruitful through pious watering, binds it to the life-giving wood (of the cross), and teaches it to bring forth the richest harvest.

And this is why today, from your ranks, young vines that have been raised to the yoke, burning with the sweet juice of the ripening must, have filled the Lord’s wine cellar to the joy of all. And God, the Almighty Father, will grant that you too may grow in the increase of your faith, through the Lord Jesus Christ, who is praised with the Holy Spirit for all eternity.

Treatise XXIX. On Isaiah. VIII.606

Christ entered the world unnoticed in order to take away the devil’s opportunity to consider himself wise. He, who had deliberately deceived man, is now deliberately bound; just as man once could not recognize the devil in Paradise, so now the devil should not easily recognize Christ in the world.

Treatise XXX. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. I.608

Rejoice, brothers, in Christ! Hasten eagerly to receive heavenly gifts! Already, the eternal spring calls you in its healing warmth.

Our mother longs to give birth to you—not according to the law, as your earthly mothers once bore you; for they themselves groaned under the pains of childbirth and, weeping, brought you forth into this world, enslaved, wrapped in soiled swaddling clothes.

But this mother will not nourish you in foul-smelling cradles, but at the sacred altar’s threshold, filled with a pleasing fragrance—she herself rejoicing, causing you to rejoice as well; she herself heavenly and free, making you also free from all sin—through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Treatise XXXI. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. II.

Faster than I can say it, step now, brothers, into the heavenly gates!

And do not think that those who immerse you into the life-giving womb of the eternal waters confer any grace based on the appearance of a person. No, it is your own decision that brings about your new birth! And you know that the more one believes, the more he ennobles himself.

Remain steadfast in faith—cast off the old man with his foul-smelling rags of filth! And soon you will emerge, all made new, all clothed in white garments, all enriched by the grace of the Holy Spirit.

Treatise XXXII. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. III.

Why do you stand there, brothers? The fruitful wave has already conceived you through your faith, and through the holy mysteries, it desires to give you birth. Hasten, hasten as quickly as possible to the goal of your longing!

Already, the song of the festive hymn resounds; see, soon the joyful cries of the newborn can be heard! Behold, from a single mother’s womb, a whole glorious multitude emerges.

It is something new—that each one is born in a spiritual manner. Come now, hasten to the mother who feels no birth pangs, even when the children she bears are beyond counting! Come forth, enter in, you blessed ones, who shall all at once drink from this mother’s milk!

Treatise XXXIII. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. IV.

Why do you stand there, you who differ in origin, age, gender, and status, yet are soon to become one? Hasten to the fountain, the sweet womb of the mother, who remains ever a virgin!

There, through your faith, you are ennobled, knowing that as much as one has faith, so much shall he possess in blessedness. It is a wondrous, truly divine, most holy birth.

A birth in which the one who gives birth does not groan, and the one who is reborn knows nothing of weeping. This is renewal, this is resurrection, this is eternal life!

This is the mother of all, who unites us, who gathers us from all tribes and nations, and from now on makes us one body!

Treatise XXXIV. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. V.

Rejoice, brothers, you whom your faith now gives birth to! You who flee the world with its deceit, its guilt, its wounds, and its death, and who have turned to the majesty of the Father for help!

Hasten to the flood of the blessing-giving fountain—not with the swiftness of the feet, but with the swiftness of the spirit! Immerse yourselves steadfastly, for salvation will be yours if you emerge victorious in the blessed death of your old self.

Treatise XXXV. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. VI.

Hasten, brothers, hasten to cleanse yourselves well! Already, the flowing water, warmed by the Holy Spirit and by the sweetest fire, invites you with its gentle murmuring.

The bath attendant is already prepared, girded to offer you what is needed for anointing and drying, as well as the golden denarius, marked with the unity of a threefold imprint.

Rejoice, therefore! You will descend into the font naked, but you will rise again, first clothed in the heavenly garment of grace, then adorned in a white robe. And whoever does not stain this robe will inherit the kingdom of heaven through Christ our Lord.

Treatise XXXVI. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. VII.

Come, brothers, in whom burns the long-awaited fire of the blessed thirst, whom the sweet murmuring of the divine water calls! Come, hasten to the milk-flowing stream of the life-giving fountain!

Drink without hesitation and in strong draughts, reclining beneath the waves of the overflowing river for as long as you can! And with all your strength and devotion, fill your vessels, so that the water may always be sufficient for you.

For this you must know: it must not be poured out, nor can it be drawn a second time.

Treatise XXXVII. Invitation to the Baptismal Font. VIII.

Rise up, brothers, in whom burns the long-awaited fire of the blessed thirst! Hasten with the longing and swiftness of a deer to the milk-flowing stream of the life-giving fountain!

Drink in strong draughts, so that the water may always be sufficient for you!

For above all, you must know this: it must not be poured out, nor can it be drawn a second time.

Treatise XXXVIII. To the Newly Baptized (Neophytes) After Baptism. 1629

The chaste fasts have passed, which you have observed in full devotion for holy purification; the sweet vigils of the night have passed, which are illuminated most brightly by their own sun; it has passed, that your souls, in the hope of immortality, have risen in the life-giving bath of the fountain foaming like milk, from which you all—different in age, different in nation—have suddenly emerged as true brothers, suddenly as those born together. Thus, I urge you to celebrate the feast of such a birth with a joyful meal.

But not with a meal where the different courses compete for supremacy through the allure of flavors from added spices, where all too often the stomach, overloaded, suffers from crude and bitter vomiting, where the sweetness of your must is completely lost due to the unpleasant aftertaste of the worldly wine consumed the day before. No, partake instead of a heavenly, honorable, pure, wholesome, and never-ending meal. And take this meal with hunger for it, so that you may always be satisfied, always be blessed.

The Father of the household provides you from His storehouses, offering from His own table precious bread and precious wine. First, the three youths bring in the vegetables in unity, seasoning them with the salt of wisdom so that the taste may be refined. Christ pours in the oil, Moses, with commanded haste, prepares the one-year-old firstborn lamb, Abraham, in his faith, a firm and well-prepared calf. Isaac, innocent, carries the pot and the wood. Jacob patiently offers the various small livestock. Joseph, appointed as the measurer of grain, distributes the corn to all. And if anyone lacks something, Noah, the dweller of the ark, who has preserved all things, will not withhold it from him.

Peter, the fisherman, provides an abundance of fresh sea fish with wondrous seasoning. Tobias, the traveler, carefully procures and roasts the entrails of the river fish. John, the humble forerunner of the Lord, clothed in camel’s hair, brings honey and locusts from the wilderness. Paul delivers the provisions and warns that none should reproach another while eating. David, the royal shepherd, offers everyone silvery milk and cheese. Zacchaeus, without hesitation, distributes the gifts in fourfold measure.

But the Son of God, our God and Lord Jesus Christ, provides the sweetness. As the one who has already partaken of this meal before us has said: “How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey and honeycomb to my mouth.” And whoever, my brothers, believes this willingly, will find even richer nourishment. And if he pays heed to it, he will always satisfy both himself and others with all good things—through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Treatise XXXIX. To the Newly Baptized After Baptism. II.

Very rightly does the holy David say: “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven and whose sins are covered!”

For, brothers, he cannot be truly blessed who remains in his first birth, whom the blazing torch of his inflamed sins burns away at every moment; who carries with him the filth of his prison; who already feels the executioner before he even sees him; who already fears the very name of judge; who, as soon as any whisper reaches him, believes that he is being sought, that he is being discovered; who, even in security, cannot find joy, even if he has no accuser, no witness who knows of his deed; who cannot free himself from himself, because his conscience—more cruel than any executioner—never leaves the sinner.

In such a state of guilt, brothers, you have been until now. But now you have been thoroughly tested. To obtain forgiveness, you have kept careful watch over yourselves, and you have been judged in the best way possible. This is a new kind of judgment: when the guilty one excuses his wrongdoing, he is condemned; when he confesses it, he is acquitted.

How great is the power, how great the wisdom, how great the mercy of our Judge! Sinners of every kind hasten to Him, not to be punished, but so that they may live happily. For His merciful sword penetrates into the innermost being of the sinner, and with one and the same stroke, it slays the old man—while leaving the body itself untouched in its composition—creates a new man, and buries him in the element of the holy fountain.

And while the nature of all other waters is such that they take in men alive into their depths and return them as dead, this water of ours receives the dead and restores them to life; from mere living beings, they have become true men, and they will become angels from among men—so long as the advancement of their years does not alter their childlike purity.

Treatise XL. To the Newly Baptized After Baptism. III.

Brothers, let us rejoice in Christ and give thanks to the eternal Victor with hymns, on lyres, with timbrels, and in songs of praise—He who has made His promises to us eternal and has sent us, in His gentle retribution, as people commonly say, truly golden keys.

Yet these are not keys that, in a poor benefit to the criminal, merely receive him, spare his body, but cannot free his soul; that pass by sins as if they do not see them, neither removing them nor eliminating them but merely locking them away; that release the guilty just as they found him; that, even in the same case, offer no help to the one who wields them. No, our keys fully absolve everything they encounter, leaving nothing behind. They open all the chambers of the heart, carefully expel all sins, and then seal them again so that none of the wretched things that were cast out may return.

What a wondrous method, what wondrous blessedness! The offense is punished in the guilty one, yet he himself remains unharmed; that which should have brought death perishes within the man, but the man himself remains alive. Therefore, our confession requires no torture: without the labor of an executioner, the guilty confesses his transgression of his own accord, that he may thereby become guiltless.

It is a precious remission, brothers, granting both forgiveness and healing at once. For if one shows mercy to a poisoner, a murderer, an adulterer, a blasphemer, a temple robber, but does not heal his soul at the same time—I do not see how he has truly helped him.

How deep is the providence of our Redeemer! How unique is His majesty! How sweet His judgment! How necessary His condemnation! Man is put to death so that he may live. One does not see the One who kills, nor does one see His sword. And yet, in the one who is slain, no wound gapes open, no blood flows down, no pallor overtakes the face. He is the same—and yet he is not the same.

It appears to be the old dwelling, but the inhabitant is new, revealing to the unbeliever, through the unfolding of various virtues, the nobility of his (new) birth in the transformation of his life.

Preserve this bond! Remain in this childlike state throughout the course of your life! Guard yourselves with all your strength, so that you do not once again revive the memory of the former man, as he once was yours!

Treatise XLI. To the Newly Baptized After Baptism. IV.645

Rejoice, brothers in Christ, and diligently, bravely, and faithfully preserve the royal gift of remission that you have received. For all that you had incurred through your actions has been taken away; rejoice, for you are saved; you owe the world nothing more. You have been in great debt until now. But you have been thoroughly tested. In order to receive remission, you have kept careful watch over yourselves; you have been judged in the best manner.

It is a new kind of judgment: when the guilty one excuses his offense, he is condemned; when he confesses it, he is acquitted. Great is the manner, great the power, great the mercy of our Judge! Sinners of all kinds hasten to Him, seeking to be punished by Him so that they may live in blessedness. It is a wondrous manner—rather, a wondrous mystery! The offense is punished in the guilty one, yet he himself remains unharmed. That within a man which ought to die dies, and he himself remains alive.

Therefore, our confession requires no torture: without any crude executioner needing to exert himself, the guilty one voluntarily confesses his offenses in order to become guiltless. It is a precious thing, brothers—it grants honor and reward. Oh, how deep is the providence of our Redeemer! How unique His majesty! How sweet His judgment! How necessary His condemnation!

The man is put to death within the man so that he may live. One does not see the One who kills, nor does one see His sword. On the one put to death, no wound gapes open, no blood flows; the body of the dying one does not tremble, his complexion does not pale. It seems to be the same old dwelling, yet within it rejoices a new inhabitant, transformed in his life, ready to display to unbelievers the nobility of his (new) birth through the exercise of various virtues.

Treatise XLII. To the Newly Baptized After Baptism. V.

Greetings, brothers, who have been born in Christ today! Diligently, bravely, and faithfully preserve the royal gift of remission that you have received! For all that you had incurred through your actions has been taken away. Rejoice: you are saved. You owe the world nothing more.

Behold, no longer do the chains of the world weigh down or rattle upon your neck. No longer do bonds restrain your hands, nor do fetters press upon your feet. No terror startles you anymore, no stain darkens you. You once feared the witness to your deeds; now you no longer fear your own conscience. Your old self has been condemned for your salvation, so that you might thereafter be free. In the waves of the holy spring, he was buried, in order to be reborn within the womb of this grave and to taste the rights of resurrection.

Oh, how great is the providence of our God! Oh, how pure is the love of our good mother! She receives them, though they are different in origin, in gender, in age, in status; she puts them to death in hatred of their sins, like a stepmother, yet preserves them in love, like a true mother. And she does not restore the dead to life until they have completely purged the poison of their former being: she does not wish to give birth to something still infused with wicked elements.

And so that it may not seem as though she loves one more and another less, she grants all the same birth, the same milk, the same reward, the same dignity of the Holy Spirit. How beautiful and salutary it is, brothers, to admire one whom you recently mocked! The one whose corruption you once cursed, you now desire to imitate in his virtue. The one whose greed you once despised, you now marvel at as he gives away his wealth to the poor and needy. And finally, the one you once knew as a temple of idolatry is now, to your joy, a temple of God.

Blessed is he who always remembers that he has been reborn; more blessed is he who no longer remembers what he was before he was reborn; but most blessed of all is he who never changes his childlike devotion, even as time moves forward!

Treatise XLIII. To the Newly Baptized After Baptism. VI.
The Twelve Signs.

1.

Heavenly people, you new pledges in Christ, rejoice! But at the same time, be ever vigilant, lest you stain the radiance of your spiritual dawn today by any pact. For He cannot grant again what He has already given you.

Behold, children, youths, men, elders of both sexes: you were guilty, you were unclean by your worldly birth. Now you are free from all guilt, you are pure children. And what is particularly marvelous and delightful: you, though belonging to different stages of life, have suddenly, in a single moment, become of the same age. But I know your curiosity well. The old life still lays claim to its rights—but in the future, this must no longer be the case with you—and so you may ask me under what birth star, under what signs, you, who have come from different places, who are so many, so diverse, have been born anew by your one mother. Like children, I will indulge your request and briefly explain to you the mysteries of the holy horoscope.

So, brothers, this is how your rebirth has come to be. The First, who rejects no one that believes in Him, has received you. But not as a Ram, rather as a Lamb. With the snowy whiteness of His fleece, He has clothed your nakedness; mercifully, He has infused your wailing lips with His blessed milk.

Likewise, He does not judge as a Bull, with a defiant neck, a forehead betraying wildness, and threatening horns, but rather as the best, sweetest, most gentle Calf, admonishing you not to seek omens in the flight of birds, but rather to submit humbly to His yoke, to make the land of your flesh fruitful through self-discipline, and thus to bring a rich harvest of divine seed into the heavenly barns.

And likewise, He warns you through the Twins, namely the two Testaments that proclaim salvation, that above all, you must flee from idolatry, impurity, and greed. The latter is symbolized by the incurable Crab.

Our Lion, as Genesis testifies, is a young lion, whose sacred mysteries we have just celebrated: He lay down and slept to conquer death; He awoke for this very purpose—to grant us, as the gift of His resurrection, immortality.

Following Him in order is the Virgin, who in turn announces the Scales: from this, we must recognize that through the Son of God, who was clothed in flesh and came forth from the Virgin, equality and justice have been brought to the earth.

And whoever steadfastly upholds them and serves them faithfully, I will not call him a Scorpion; on the contrary, as the Lord says in the Gospel, he will trample upon all serpents with an uninjured heel.

But even the Devil himself he will not fear—he who is, in truth, the sharpest Archer, for he is armed with fiery darts of all kinds, constantly holding the hearts of all humanity in suspense. That is why the Apostle Paul says: “Put on the armor of God, so that you may stand firm against the schemes of the Devil. Take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the Evil One!”

At times, he sends upon the wretched the Goat, hideous in appearance; through the lead-colored lips of this smaller horned beast, he spews forth poison from his boiling veins and rages miserably in all the limbs of his captive, so that he perishes in trembling. He drives some into madness, others into frenzy, others into murder, others into adultery, others into sacrilege, others into blindness through greed. It would take too long to go into detail. He possesses countless and varied means of causing harm.

But without great difficulty, our Water-Bearer, overflowing with the water of salvation, is accustomed to destroying them all.

Following him necessarily are the Two Fish in One Sign: these represent the two peoples—Jews and Gentiles—who, living in the water of baptism, have been sealed into one people of Christ under a single sign.

Treatise XLIV. To the Newly Baptized after Baptism. VII.
On Easter Sunday, Concerning the Preparation of the Wheat

1.

Let us rejoice, brothers in Christ, and, having grown richer from the yield of such an abundant harvest, give praise and thanks to God, the Almighty Father! He has transformed weeds, darnel, burrs, and thorns into joyful grain; and this grain, having been carefully tended, has been purified, successfully ground by the blessed weight of the millstone, properly sifted, and, after the separation of all the bran, has become gleaming white flour with a marvelous radiance. It has not been corrupted by leaven; it has been softened with water and carefully kneaded. Salt has been added to it. It has been smoothed with good oil, further treated with the necessary procedures, and has thus become unleavened bread.

Yet the loaves you see here, which have been splendidly baked and give off such a pleasant fragrance, have not been prepared by an oven but by the font of baptism; not by human, but by divine fire. No wind has harmed them; no bitter smoke has penetrated them; no cold has made them brittle. And what is more—they have risen without leaven. Convince yourselves: they are not darkened; they are not overbaked; they are not burned; they are not doughy; they are not moldy. Their color is like milk; their taste is like milk.

2.

But perhaps some judge the baker unfavorably because some of the loaves seem smaller in size. Brothers, that does not concern me. For though I am poor, I hold my head high, and I know my faith. Let the workers who are with me speak whether they know anything against me. I rejoice in the gain, but I openly confess: I am not conscious of having committed any theft. But after all, you possess the old standard weight; you have a scale. Well then, weigh as you wish; weigh each one individually! You will find that none is underweight. They all weigh three pounds, stamped with the sacred imprint of the one scale; all are designated for the table.

Treatise XLV. On Easter Sunday. I.

The heir of the ages, the eternal day, has dawned: the day that rushes forward and backward in swift course, that revolves around the festive goal, and turns back upon itself—thus making from its end a new beginning, from its setting a new birth, in an endless cycle. With it, the sorrow of winter has been cast off; the spring wind, caressing, blows from the west; flowers, varied in kind, color, and fragrance, have sprung forth from one common birth; and everywhere, the green meadows exhale their sweet scent.

Then summer rises in jubilation, young yet abundant, the season that threshes the grain-laden sheaves into various heaps of blessed wheat. Following it comes the bountiful autumn, so that, as is necessary, the gift of bread may be joined with the joy of wine. Who does not see that all this aligns with the heavenly mysteries? For the barren, bleak, and sorrowful winter represents those who are devoted to idolatry, bound by the chains of worldly pleasures, given over to the desires of the flesh and the indulgence of the palate. Because they have loved the works of darkness, they are appointed by God to the long night—that is, to eternal death.

Spring, on the other hand, must be understood as the holy font of baptism: from its fruitful womb arise, not those sown by the west wind, but those planted by the Holy Spirit—varied in grace yet united in birth—the most glorious blossoms of the Church, who, in their saving faith, spread forth their divine fragrance: namely, our sweet children of baptism.

Summer, then, is the faithful people, angelic and pure; they steadfastly cling to the palm of their baptismal confession and, having been cleansed of the chaff of sin, seek to offer themselves as precious grain stored in the barns of God. Though they are already made fruitful by the baptismal font, they burn constantly with zeal for corresponding good works.

Autumn is the place of martyrdom. In it, not the blood of the vine is poured out, but the blood of the One who planted it; yet through the harvest of this precious death, eternal life is obtained.

The day itself corresponds to the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is all in all. He is the day that endures forever and has no night. The twelve hours serve Him in the Apostles, the twelve months in the Prophets. The four salvific seasons of the Gospels proclaim Him. To Him correspond fruits—not those that ripen once a year, but those that mature daily. These fruits are the hymn of praise to God from the believing nations, who spring forth from every seed of immortality unto eternity.

And in the light of this day, let us also walk forth; let us rejoice in faith and make ourselves pleasing through righteous conduct, so that we may be found worthy to attain eternal life—through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Treatise XLVI. On the Feast of Easter. II.

In its firmly established course, within the yearly cycle of time, adorned with its manifold graces, the day of salvation has arrived. It follows itself, it precedes itself; it is old and yet always young. The progenitor of the year and the offspring of the year, it goes before and follows the times and ages in endless succession. From its end, it creates for itself a beginning, yet it never departs from the cradle of its birth.

Indeed, it bears within itself the image of the Lord’s mystery of salvation. For in its setting, it commemorates His Passion; in its renewed rising, it celebrates His Resurrection; and through it, He also promises us the gift of future blessedness. Now, our catechumens are invited to this blessed descent. But it shall be granted to them that, submerged in the milky depths of the sacred waters, they too may rise anew with the new day and attain with us the glory of immortality.

Treatise XLVII. On the Feast of Easter. III.

The tireless runner, who in the course of time annually retraces the steps of his fleeting journey, the day of salvation, has arrived, adorned with the crown of manifold graces. It follows itself, it precedes itself; it is old and yet always young. The progenitor of the year and the offspring of the year, it goes before the times and yet follows them, scattering centuries in endless succession. From its end, it creates for itself a beginning.

Now, our catechumens are invited to this blessed descent. But today it shall be granted to them that, submerged in the milky depths of the sacred waters, they may rise anew with the new day, shining in its light, and that they may, together with us, remain steadfast on the path to immortality, ascending the way that leads on high—until the time of fulfillment, where each one shall rise to eternity.

Treatise XLVIII. On the Feast of Easter. IV.
Living through His death, revived in the nest of His grave, traversing the cycles of time in an unceasing course along the same path, the great day has arrived. It extends the months into seasons, the seasons into years, the years into centuries. Without delay, it advances to old age and yet does not depart from the cradle of its birth. Indeed, it bears the image of the mystery of the Lord’s salvation. For in its setting, it partakes in His suffering; in its revived rising, it celebrates His resurrection. And through it, He promises us also the resurrection to future blessedness.

Treatise XLIX. On the Feast of Easter. V.
The guide of the eternal chariot, which, in its annually prescribed cycle, turns its steps toward the final goal—the day of salvation—has arrived. It follows itself, it precedes itself, it is old and yet ever young. Parent of the year and offspring of the year, it goes before the times which it follows. To sow and accumulate centuries, it ever creates from its end a new beginning. This is the day on which, in a similar manner—yet only once—out of love for His humanity, our Creator, God, our Lord, set and rose again, never to set again. This, I say, is the day on which the darkness of death was torn apart; the day on which death was conquered; the day on which hell (the underworld) was forced to return to life those it had received as dead. May God, the Almighty Father, grant that we may celebrate this day always and everywhere, ever greater in faith, in number, and in love, together with our brothers!

Treatise L. On the Feast of Easter. VI.
In an unhesitating course, perpetuating its task for the world in an ever-returning cycle, always renewed through a setting that leads to rising again, ever bringing itself back to its path, the day of salvation has arrived. In its solemn mediation of the mystery of the Lord’s salvation, it is rich in all manner of gifts for all. For it grants to the pious priests their reward, to the ministers who follow them in rank, promotion, to the faithful, the fruit of immortality, to the penitents, healing, to the catechumens, the path of light, to the competent, the remission of all sins. Thus, it leads all who have gathered in the one grace of the body of Christ to the kingdom of heaven, through our Lord and Redeemer Jesus Christ, who is praised for all eternity.

Treatise LI. On the Feast of Easter. VII.
The great day has arrived. Encircling, it completes the swift course of the uninterrupted year until the cycles of the moons rise to twelve, on one and the same path—yet not on it and yet on it. It is ever renewed through its setting. It follows what has passed; it precedes what is to come. It is in every respect new, and yet in every respect old. It changes in every period of time, not in its essence, but in its number. It becomes the son of the hours and yet is the father of the centuries. This, brothers, is the day on which the whole world was redeemed by our Lord. This is the day on which, from heavenly seed, a new people came to life. This, I say, is the day that sets before our eyes the model of the resurrection. Yet we are more fortunate than it in its state. For it must always set in order to live. But the believer, who rises again through the second birth after his setting, will no longer be troubled by the terror of darkness (of setting).

Treatise LII. On the Feast of Easter. VIII.
In a glorious cycle, the holy day bends its course. It moves forward toward the completion of its work in the world, carried by the four-horse chariot of the seasons, enriched by the changing twelve moons on its uninterrupted journey. It knows no stopping, for its journey is immortality. One may doubt whether it moves forward or returns. For what has passed within it remains behind so that it may return again. It is a truly remarkable phenomenon! Again and again, it measures out the various time periods of countless centuries in due proportion. And yet, its path is always one and the same. Through this, it reminds us, brothers, to celebrate the sacred mysteries of the Lord’s passion and resurrection as one in thought and one in heart: through our Lord and Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Treatise LIII. On the Feast of Easter. IX.
Beloved brothers, the glorious day is here, the father of the centuries; rich in the produce of all kinds of fruits, it distributes, from its overflowing bosom, the gifts of the four seasons at every time, whenever one desires. For our catechumens, today marks the end of the winter of their sins. They shall rejoice in the oil that has been prepared for them. Also, today a gentle spring shall transform them into various flowers, each with a different gift of grace, as they, drenched by the wave of salvation, rejoice in the harvest of the radiant summer and begin to eat the new bread. It will not be long before the must of autumn awaits them; filled and intoxicated by it, they will glow with joy in the fire of the Holy Spirit for their salvation. And that this fire may never grow cold in any of us, may God, the Almighty Father, grant us.

Treatise LIV. On the Exodus (of the Israelites from Egypt).
As the divine reading testifies, Israel, the people of God, was held under a heavy yoke of captivity and severely oppressed by Pharaoh and his people. Then God commanded them to depart. Their leaders were Moses and Aaron; the way was shown by a pillar of cloud by day and by the same pillar as a pillar of fire by night. The sea divides; walls of water rise on the right and left, descending steeply, and to their amazement, the wave becomes firm ground. The people of God cross the sea on foot as if sailing across it. It is a wondrous event. The barbarians press forward in force along the path, but no rider and no ship can follow. Miriam strikes the tambourine with the women. A hymn of praise is sung. The people of God see themselves freed. The waves return and swallow the path along with the pursuers.

As far as it can be understood spiritually, Egypt represents this world. Pharaoh and his people are the devil and every spirit of unrighteousness. Israel is the people of Christ; they receive the command to depart, to strive toward what is to come. Moses and Aaron, in what they were, represented the priesthood, and in their duality, they signified the mystery of the two Testaments. The pillar that shows the way is Christ the Lord. When it appears in its dual form—both as a cloud and as fire—it expresses the two judgments: one is the judgment of water, which has already been fulfilled, and the other is the judgment of fire, which is yet to come. The sea symbolizes the sacred baptismal font. In it, by the same waters through which God’s servants find redemption, those who do not flee from their sins but carry them with them are destroyed. Miriam, who strikes the tambourine with the women, is the foreshadowing of the Church. For the Church, together with all the churches she has given birth to, sings the hymn of praise, strikes her breast—the true tambourine—and leads the people of Christ not into the wilderness but into heaven.

Treatise LV. On the Exodus.

Brothers, only those who understand the holy law spiritually can partake of its fruit. The Jews understand it only carnally and thus seek the Lamb, which is to be composed of a twofold nature, among their flocks of sheep, where they cannot find it; and so, they have lost the true Lamb, which they had already found. They did not understand that the phrase “from the goats” referred to His human nature, which was burdened with their sins, while the phrase “from the sheep” referred to the spirit of His majesty. Both, united in Christ, form the “lawful” Lamb.

He is the Lamb, brothers, of whom the Law says: “This is the Passover (Paschal) Lamb of the Lord,” and of whom the Apostle Paul likewise remarks: “Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed.” But why He allowed Himself to be offered was foretold by John the Baptist with the words: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who takes away the sins of the world!”

He was called the “firstborn Lamb” because He alone knows the age of the Father. He is the “one-year-old” (mature) Lamb because after Him, no other will come. He is the “eternal” Lamb because He was slain and yet was found alive again. He is the “spotless” Lamb because He alone is free from sin. He is the Lamb of salvation because through Him we overcome death. He is the “male” Lamb because He is the power of God. Indeed, I say, He is the perfect Lamb because in Him, the great High Priest is enclosed within His own sacrificial Lamb through the mystery of His love, and today, He has made man, whom He atoned for through His sacrifice, to be with God.

Treatise LVI. On the Exodus. III.

There is not enough time, brothers, to extract the true meaning from the symbol. But why, O Jew, do you still take pride in these historical books of yours, which are only monuments to your guilt? You were long a slave in Egypt, not because you suffered the fate of a stranger, but because you deserved it. You were delivered from there, but you did not escape by your own strength.

By day, a pillar of cloud led you, showing that you were blind. By night, it was a pillar of fire, warning you that one day you will burn. An angel went before you to guide your departure: even when God was with you, your ingratitude was meant to be revealed. You crossed the sea on foot, but on land, you suffered shipwreck. You drank water from the rock and ate manna from heaven, yet only so that later, when you were utterly impoverished, the memory of your former blessings would increase your bitter torment.

Treatise LVII. On the Exodus. IV.

Wondrous, dearest brothers, is the account from sacred history that has just been read. When the people of Israel languished under the heavy yoke of captivity and were being crushed in Egypt by the harshest demands of King Pharaoh, God’s mercy commanded them to depart under the leadership of Moses.

The way, which was unknown to them, was not shown by the disk of the sun by day, but by a pillar of cloud, nor by the light of the moon by night, but by a pillar of fire. When they then stood between the two elements, they must have felt terror at the prospect of perishing in an imminent death. Behind them, they were threatened by the pursuing Egyptians’ swords; before them, they were held back and trapped by the massive barrier of the sea. There were no ships in it, no means to cross.

Then suddenly, by God’s providence, the sea divided; the waters on the right and left formed towering walls, restrained as if by cold fear, like glass; and they waited until the people of God had passed through, only to become a sea again for the pursuers. The ungrateful Israel was thus led on a path where it needed to fear neither swords nor waves. It is a wondrous event. Covered in dust in the middle of the sea, they rejoiced when they looked around and saw that the triumph meant for them had perished in the shipwreck for their salvation.

The Jew proclaims this event proudly, brothers, and yet, in his madness, he still does not believe in God, who is praised for all eternity. Amen.

Treatise LVIII. On the Exodus, V.692

The time does not allow, brothers, to extract the true meaning from the image. But, Jew, why do you still wish to congratulate yourself on the marking of your guilt? You were long a slave in Egypt, but not due to fate, rather because you deserved it. You were rescued from there, but you did not escape by your own strength. By day, a pillar of cloud led you; it indicated that you were blind. By night, it was a pillar of fire; it was a sign that you would burn. An angel went ahead of your camp each time: so that you could not excuse your crime anywhere. You walked through the sea: in doing so, the flood, which drew back to the right and the left, testified that your feet were swift to shed blood. Then the wilderness received you. Now you realize where you have arrived. For surely you drank water from the rock and ate manna from heaven only so that you, wretched one, might come to understand what you were to lose!

Treatise LIX. On the Exodus, VI.694

Precisely what the Jews consider their fortune must be recognized as their misfortune. For I believe it is more bearable for an unfortunate person to always remain in his condition than to first be happy and then descend into the utmost misery. They boastfully proclaim that their fathers destroyed the people of Egypt during their flight; that God was the guide of their fathers; that He went before them on their journey; yet they do not see that afterward, He cast them away from His presence and threw them, along with their descendants, behind His back. The Red Sea, they say, was divided into two shores in the middle, and dikes rose up to the right and left, while the waves stood up high without losing their liquid nature. Nature, resisting itself, stood in astonishment when the path through the sea became dry. Between the waters, a shining land route appeared. But this path did not signify the merit of a heavenly people; rather, it foretold the ruin of an earthly people in their future scattering across the world. That is why He led them from there into the wilderness and urged them to heal the wounds of their detestable disposition, providing them with milk and honey. For weak and sickly as they were, He gave them the delicate manna dew; they were neither capable nor worthy of enjoying the firm, eternal bread of heaven. The rock made a spring gush forth for them; for later, as they deserved, they would drink dirty water from broken cisterns, as the word of the Lord says: “They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and have hewn for themselves broken cisterns that can hold no water.”
What hope can the unfortunate ones still have from this model if they have not even deserved to know its fulfillment—Jesus Christ, our Lord?

Treatise LX. On the Exodus, VII.698

How a Pharisee can lawfully celebrate the Passover, I do not understand. His towering and widely renowned temple has been laid waste in dreadful devastation, reduced to the ground, and lies buried in its ruins. The “seat of destruction,” which the priests occupied, has justly been shattered through the blasphemy of its representatives. The anointing horn has been emptied and no longer gives off the fragrance of sacred oil. The prophets testify that their feast days have turned into mourning, their songs of joy into laments. We hear that their bulls, rams, goats, and lambs have often been rejected by the Lord. What remains for him? Not even a mystery can he celebrate—he whose sacrifice, as you see, has been condemned by divine judgment through our Lord Jesus Christ, who is praised with the Father and the Holy Spirit for all eternity.

Treatise LXI. On the Exodus. VIII.701

The Jew claims to celebrate the lawful Passover. Yet, nothing remains for him from the old order of salvation but a story filled with vain hopes. The famous royal temple lies in ruins, leveled to the ground. The altars of God, along with their sacrifices, are destroyed, scattered to dust, and have vanished. The “seat of destruction,” which the priests occupied, has been shattered in accordance with its name. The Lamb of Salvation, which is described with the expressions “from the sheep” and “from the goats,” can no longer be found among the flocks. Its feast days and songs of joy have, according to the word of God, turned into lamentation and mourning. The proud city is enslaved. It slaughters endless flocks of sheep, but consumes them in bitterness. Brothers, who would not recognize that this is no Passover meal, but rather the foul banquet of a bloodthirsty robber?

Treatise LXII. On the Exodus. IX.706

The Pharisees claim that they celebrate the lawful Passover. Yet, along with the temple, which they considered supreme, they have also lost the high priesthood. They have also been robbed of the anointing horn (for the king). Circumcision, the sign of an impure spirit, contains within the inflicted wound a mark that foreshadows the impending judgment that will soon befall them. Every kind of sacrificial animal, along with its offering, is rejected. Their fasts, their feasts, all their celebrations are an abomination before God. If this is so—by whom, how, and why is the Passover still celebrated?

Furthermore, the lawful lamb, which they had found, they lost through their own guilt. Scripture describes it with the expressions: “from the sheep and from the goats”—”from the goats,” certainly because of the sinful nature it bore; “from the sheep,” because of the spirit of majesty. It is called the Firstborn Lamb, because before the Father, no one else was first. It is described as one-year-old (mature) because it is eternal. Unblemished, because it alone has no sin. The Lamb of Salvation, because it transformed death into life. For our sake, it was slain and lives; it was buried and is risen. It was regarded as a man, but was found to be God, glorious for all eternity.

Treatise LXIII. On the Exodus. X.709

If the Jews boast in the memory of an image that has lost its meaning, how much more should the Christian do so, who possesses not an image, but the truth itself? Recognize the reality and examine it carefully!

The Jews proclaim with praise that their ancestors, who languished under the heavy yoke of Pharaoh’s slavery and his retinue, were freed from Egypt. But for us, not only were our ancestors freed from the wrath of the devil and the violent throng of idols, but the entire race of Christians is continually delivered from the true Egypt—namely, this world.

Moses was the leader of the Jews; our leader is Christ the Lord. The Jews were guided by a pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire. We have been guided by the radiant divine words of the Old and New Testament, revealing to us the true Christ, the Lord, who says: “I am the Way and the Truth.”

The Jewish people crossed the Red Sea on dry ground while the waters, like towering cliffs, stood still on either side. But our sea brings shipwreck to those who enter it by their own desire—yet to their salvation! For in its fruitful waves, it immerses them, washing away all their sins, so that they become heavenly and no longer desire the earth.

The Jews, after crossing the sea, arrived in the wilderness. We, after baptism, enter Paradise. When the Jews hungered, manna rained down for them. But we can no longer hunger, for we always carry the heavenly bread as our nourishment. And when the Jews thirsted, water flowed from the rock into their cup. But whoever has drunk from the fountain of Christ will never thirst again for eternity.

To the Jews in the wilderness, the sweetness of milk and honey was offered. But to us, something far greater will be given—sweeter than honey, whiter than milk: the blessedness of eternal life in the Kingdom of God.

Treatise LXIV: On the Exodus XI.712

Why does the Pharisee boast in his vanity when he delights only in the shadow of a bygone time? He rejoices because he grew great in Egypt. But on the very soil of his homeland, he diminished. He may have been freed from the chains of captivity, but even to this day, he remains bound by the customs of raging barbarity. God may have been his guide, but that same God later cast him away from His presence. He may have attained a kingdom, but all the greater is his disgrace when, despite his royal dignity, he serves the Roman Empire. Do you wish to know how sacred he is? When he was united (as a people), the sea bore him up. Now, though scattered everywhere, the land itself can no longer bear him.

Treatise LXV: On the Exodus XII.713

How long will it still take, O Jew, until you shake off the darkness of your dull heart, until you come to understanding and admit that the pronouncements of the holy Law have already found their fulfillment in Christ? If you wish to celebrate a lawful Passover according to your own understanding, then you must, according to the prescription, seek out a lamb that is composed of different natures—“of lambs and of goats.” (p. 324) Your ancestors never found such a one in their flocks. Oh, if only you could find one! You deserve to undertake such a sacrifice, you who believe your salvation is founded on the entrails of an indeterminate animal. Indeed, you sacrifice many animals everywhere—it is a sign of your gluttony. You sacrifice them in various places—it is a sign of your futility. You eat them with bitterness (Exodus 12:8)—a sign of your wretchedness. I remain silent about the fact that a sacrifice rejected by the very One who ordained it is no remedy for an ungrateful person, but merely a reminder. But let me say at least this one thing: fulfill at least the other requirements of the Law as it is written: “Gird your loins! Put shoes on your feet! Take the staff in your hand!” (Exodus 12:11). Go into the wilderness if you wish to imitate your ancestors!

Treatise LXVI: On the Exodus XIII.716

Hear briefly, my Christian, that the Jews cannot celebrate a lawful Passover. Solomon’s Temple, destroyed by hostile devastation, lies buried in its ruins. Where then will they offer sacrifices? They have no more priests who can offer sacrifices for their salvation. Bulls, goats, rams, and lambs are abhorred by the Lord. With what will they sacrifice? They have abandoned the Lord and overthrown His altars. To whom will they offer sacrifices? They have only one thing left, and they cling to it: in order to satisfy their base desires even more, they plunge into common baths at every moment, always acting contrary to the Lord. (p. 325)

Treatise LXVII: On the Exodus XIV.718

Hear briefly that the Jews not only cannot celebrate a lawful Passover, but in fact, they have retained nothing at all of the true religion of God. The Temple of Solomon, which once made them proud, has fallen. They themselves have destroyed the altars of God. The Law and the Prophets were valid until John (the Baptist). Their priests are destined for mourning. The sacrifice has been taken from them. The anointing of kings has ceased. Circumcision has lost its significance. The Sabbath is diminished. New moons and feast days are despised. The Romans have conquered their kingdom. I believe nothing remains for them except that, in their ingratitude and contempt for the Lamb of salvation, they eat ordinary lambs with bitterness—bitter men themselves.

Treatise LXVIII: On the Exodus XV.719

Recognize, you experts of the Law, that the Jews cannot celebrate a lawful Passover, as God Himself has declared it. He calls their synagogue a den of robbers,720 their teaching chair a seat of corruption,721 their sacrifice a dog-like slaughter,722 their fasting an abomination,723 and their people a brood of vipers.724 What else they still presume to claim—I cannot judge: they are men who place their salvation in the death of slaughtered cattle, even though God, after their Exodus from Egypt, where they kept that Passover as a mere figure, spoke to them: “I am full of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of lambs; who has required this from your hands?”725
In any case, brethren, He took the Passover from them without hesitation when He rejected that for which they celebrate it. But, they may say, they still preserve the figure. No, not even that: one does not truly preserve a figure if one does not love its truth. However, there is one thing they do exhaustively: like ravenous wolves, they slaughter innocent lambs everywhere.

Treatise LXIX: On Daniel at the Passover.726

Awake, O Christian, shake off all the dullness of worldly slumber! Open the ear of your heart and learn strength from the (three) young men! But be careful not to misjudge why the flames withdrew from them! Thoughtful reflection reveals the true meaning. The One who today baptizes those who believe in Him with the Holy Spirit and fire727 was also present then in the mystery of His Trinity. For recognize that behind this event stands a mystery of salvation. The young men were cast into the furnace. As they submerged in the flames, the heat was immediately softened by invisible dew.728 Death withdrew and changed its purpose: those who kindled the fire were burned instead. For those who stood in the fire and sang hymns, the flames became a cooling breeze. God was praised by all creation.729 In the three young men, there was one Spirit, one power, one victory. Through punishment, life is made better. Had the king not first ordered them to be burned, he would never have been overcome with admiration for them.

Treatise LXX: On Daniel II.731

It is, dearest brothers, part of martyrdom itself that the martyrs feel no fear before their punishment.732 Just as the sorrowful contemplation of widespread cruelty can distract from the victor’s crown, so too does a courageous and perfect faith, and a person who suffers torture for it, bring forth pious desires. The three young men in their holy struggle kept their eyes fixed on God, not on the flames; on the future reward, not on the punishment. Only in this way were they able, amid the dreadful billows of raging fire, to triumph over the barbarian king, over all threats, and even over death itself. In doing so, they taught that the flames of fire are not stronger than holy men—through Jesus, the Lord, who is praised forever.

Treatise LXXI: On Daniel III.733

Whoever unwaveringly believes in the martyrdom of the young men can himself also attain martyrdom. So great was the force of their struggle that even the fire seemed to tremble before them. For at the command of the barbarian king, who had devised excessive cruelty against the three young men, the furnace was stoked with fuel beyond its usual measure, seven times over. I believe that, according to God’s providence, even this number has a spiritual meaning and is related to the mystery of the Trinity. And as the furnace was cooled by divine dew, they were not deprived of the grace of baptism. What a wondrous fire this was! What a spectacle, truly worthy of God! Those who hear of it are in awe. Those who stoked the fire were consumed. Those who were thrown into the fire emerged from the furnace sanctified and unharmed—through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Treatise LXXII: On Daniel IV.735

When a punishment is great, the glory that follows is often even greater. This applies especially to divine matters, where the blessed, through steadfast devotion, protect their faith more than their own lives. When I hear that the three young men were thrown into the fire, I first feel immense terror. But soon after, I wish I had been there with them, when I learn that, amid the flames, they were bathed in dew and sang a hymn to God unharmed. Such is the power and might of faith that, against its will, even the elements are compelled to serve those who keep it. Therefore, brothers, do not be terrified by the contemplation of this dreadful event! There is no longer any punishment to fear when the lives of those who stood in the flames were preserved, mocking the very fire itself.

Treatise LXXIII. On Daniel. V.736
Dearest brothers, this is a marvelous and most pleasing struggle to God that holy history here hands down to us: the struggle between faith and fire. Two things that were in opposition found unity through devotion to God. The faith that lived in the three youths did not fear punishment. They were thrown into the fiery furnace. When the blazing fire saw that they were united in strength, it reverently yielded to them. The burning flames consumed those who had stoked the fire, not those who stood within it. How wonderful is this event! How incomparable is the glory of God! Even the nature of so powerful an element bows before the mystery of the Trinity. Those who were believed to be destined to perish in the fire shone more blessedly amidst the flames than ever before.

Treatise LXXIV. On Daniel. VI.738
Listen, O Christian, with faithful heart to an event that has become marvelous and renowned as a model of every virtue! Here are three youths, truly Hebrews, who surpass the elderly in steadfastness and men in courage and valor. Equal to one another, armed by the mystery of their unity in threeness, strengthened by their one faith in the One, alike in composure, they have become renowned for their victory through suffering. A barbarian king commanded that they be burned because they refused to worship his statue. When they were thrown into the furnace of blazing fire, the ravenous flames reverently received them. The flames caressingly licked those who were wet with dew. It is a marvelous image! Within, there was coolness; without, there was burning. Within, a hymn of praise was sung; without, cries of lamentation were heard. How great is the power of God! Those who stoked the fire were consumed by it, while those who were thrown into it survived their burning and emerged from the furnace singing praises, through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Treatise LXXV. On Daniel. VII.742
Rejoice, O Christian, and fearlessly revere God if you do not wish to fear the flames of the devil! Behold: the youths, armed by the mystery (of the Trinity)—three in number but one in power—are unharmed by the flames that surrounded them in the crackling furnace. Standing in the fire, they sing a hymn of praise. Their steadfast faith shames the barbarian king. They see justice done upon those who sought to burn them. They behold God. Thus, death is transformed into life, fear into glory. Who would not desire to burn in such a way?

Treatise LXXVI. On Daniel. VIII.743
Three Hebrews, armed by the mystery of the sacred number, young in years but strong in firmly grounded faith, were brought to glory through the punishment to which they were condemned. Out of love for the divine religion, they refused to worship the king’s image, for they held the king himself in contempt. Enraged, he ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than usual. And so that no cruelty might be lacking, the fire was fed with pitch and flax, further inflaming it. The blazing flames caused even the heavens to redden with a fire foreign to them. Into this inferno, the innocent were cast. But there they found Him for whose sake they had been thrown in. Not flames, but dew received them; not punishment, but God’s merciful grace. O blessed punishment, from which complete unharmedness remains, followed by immortality and the crown of victory!

Treatise LXXVII. On Daniel. IX.745

Today, dearest brothers, I do not speak to you of the deeds and merits of men. I do not present to you Daniel, who did not tremble in the midst of roaring lions, their jaws open wide in greedy hunger for him, and who was nourished by the meal sent from heaven. Nor do I speak of Jonah, who, amidst the raging storms and the furious waves of the tempest-tossed sea, was safer in the belly of the fish than in the belly of the ship. Nor do I speak of the three youths, whom men believed would be consumed by fire, but who saw justice done upon those who had kindled the flames against them.

No, I speak of our Lord—of Him whom, O outrage! those who are far from Him revere, while His own followers—if one must say it—tear Him apart. I do so not armed with arguments such as those eagerly wielded by those who fabricate falsehoods against the truth, but with arguments of a heavenly nature: abundant in number, manifest, and uncorrupted. I do so that the learned may examine, the less instructed may be strengthened, the newcomers may learn, and those who seek to blaspheme—if possible, for their salvation, though belatedly—may come to their senses.