Augustine, Sermones 323-328 (Classis III, de Sanctis)

Sermon 323. Delivered after the booklet on Saint Stephen.

Chapter I. — 1. The imprecations of parents against their children, how much they are to be dreaded. By the mercy of God indeed, brethren, as is to be believed, all these brothers, whom the wrath of God struck together with a mother's blow, will at some time attain to the health of this one over whom we rejoice. Nevertheless let children learn to obey, let parents fear to be angry. It is written, The blessing of the father establishes the house of the children: the curse of the mother uproots the foundations (Ecclus. 3:11). Now these men are throughout the lands, not in the foundations of their native country: they present a spectacle everywhere, they display their punishment; they present their misery to the eyes, they terrify the pride of others. Learn, children, as Scripture says, to render the honour due to parents. But you too, parents, when you are offended, remember that you are parents. The mother prayed against her sons, she was heard; because God is truly just, because she had truly suffered injury. One of them had both [used] insulting words and laid hands [on her]; and the rest bore their mother's injury patiently, and did not answer one word on her behalf against their brother. The just God Who heard her praying heard her grieving. But what of that wretched woman? Was she not punished the more by the very thing in which she was heard the more quickly? Learn to ask this of God, where you need not fear to be heard.

Chapter II. — 2. Health not obtained for the two brothers at Ancona, so that it might be granted them at Hippo. On what occasion the shrine of Stephen at Ancona was built before the discovery of his body. But let us, brethren, take pains to render thanks to the Lord our God for that man who has been healed; and for that woman who is still held fast, let us pour out prayers. Let us bless God, that He has held us worthy to see this. For what are we, that I appeared to these people without knowing it? For they saw me, and I did not know it: and they were admonished to come to this city. Who am I? I am a man, one of many, not one of the great. And truly, that your Charity may hear, I greatly wonder, and rejoice that it has been granted to us: since this man could not be cured even at Ancona; nay, he could, but for our sake it was not done, since it could very easily have been done. For many know how many miracles take place through the most blessed martyr Stephen in this city. And hear something to wonder at: his shrine was there of old, and it is there still. But perhaps you say: His body had not yet appeared; whence was there a shrine there? The cause indeed is hidden: but what report has brought to us, I will not keep silent from your Charity. When Saint Stephen was being stoned, some innocent people also, and especially some of those who had already believed in Christ, were standing round: a stone is said to have struck him on the elbow, and, glancing off from there, to have come before a certain devout man. He took it up and kept it. He was a man from among the seafarers; the lot of his voyage brought him to the shore of Ancona, and it was revealed to him that that stone ought to be laid up there. He obeyed the revelation,

and he did what had been commanded: from that time there began to be a memorial of Saint Stephen there, and the rumour was that the arm of Saint Stephen is there, since people did not know what had happened. But the truth is understood to be that it was revealed there for this reason, that he might place there the stone which had been struck off the Martyr's elbow, because in Greek an elbow is called ankōn. But let those who know what miracles happen there teach us themselves. These miracles did not begin to happen there until after the body of Saint Stephen had appeared. See, this young man was not cured there, so that he might be kept for our eyes.

3. On the miracles done at Uzalis. At Uzalis, where my brother Evodius is bishop, inquire how great are the miracles that happen there, and you will find out. But passing over the others, I point out to you one which was done there, so that you may see how great the presence of majesty is there.

Chapter III. — A certain woman lost in her lap, while still a catechumen, her son who had suddenly fallen ill, whom she had not been able to help in spite of her haste; and crying out she said, My son has died a catechumen.

4. The shout of the people arising from the sudden cure of a girl. And while Augustine was saying these things, the people at the memorial of Saint Stephen began to cry out, Thanks be to God! Praise to Christ! Amid this continuous shouting the girl who had been cured was led to the apse. When she was seen, the people with joy and weeping, with no words put in between but only the noise put in between, prolonged their shouting for some while; and when silence had been made, Augustine the bishop said, It is written in the Psalm, I said, I will declare against myself my offence to the Lord my God, and Thou hast forgiven the impiety of my heart (Ps. 31:5). I said, I will declare: I have not yet declared: I said, I will declare, and Thou hast forgiven. I commended this wretched woman, or rather her who was once wretched, I commended her to your prayers. We purposed to pray, and we have been heard. Let our joy be thanksgiving. Mother Church was heard more quickly than that mother cursing [her children] to their ruin. Turning to the Lord, etc.

Sermon 324. In which Augustine completes the part of the immediately preceding sermon that was interrupted by a miracle.

A miracle done at Uzalis. Life restored to a little child who had died before baptism, so that he might receive the sacraments. Yesterday's sermon ought to be completed by us, which was interrupted by a greater joy. For I had determined, and had begun, to tell Your Charity why it seems to me that these brothers were directed by divine authority to this city, so that here in them the long-desired and long-awaited health might be fulfilled. And wishing to say this, I had first begun to commend to Your Charity the holy places in which they were not healed and from which they were directed to us. And I spoke of Ancona, a city of Italy; I had begun to speak of Uzalis, a city which is in Africa (it has as its bishop my brother Evodius, whom you know); because the fame of the same martyr and of his works had driven them to come to that city too. What could have been given there was not given, so that it might be given here, where it ought to be given. But when to recount briefly the divine works through the holy Martyr

I wished, setting aside the rest, I had resolved to say one thing: and as I was saying it, health having been restored to that girl, suddenly an uproar of joy broke out, and compelled us to end the sermon otherwise. So we know that such a miracle was done there among many others, which certainly cannot all be recounted. A certain woman lost in her lap her sick son, a catechumen, an infant still at the breast. When she saw him lost and irreparably gone, she began to weep for him more faithfully than as a mother. For she did not desire her son's life except in the world to come, and she lamented that this had been taken from her and had perished. Filled with an affection of trust, she took him up dead, and ran to the memorial of the blessed martyr Stephen, and began to demand her son from him, and to say: Holy martyr, you see that no consolation has remained to me. For I cannot say that my son has gone before, whom you know to have perished: for you see why I lament. Give back my son, that I may have him before the sight of the One who crowned you. While she prayed these and such things, with tears in a certain manner not asking but, as I said, demanding, her son came back to life. And because she had said, You know why I seek him, God wished also to show her true mind. At once she took him to the presbyters; he was baptized, he was sanctified, he was anointed, the hand was laid upon him, and with all the sacraments completed, he was taken up. And she escorted him with such a countenance as though she were escorting him not to the rest of the tomb but to the bosom of the martyr Stephen. The faithful heart of the woman was proved. Where, then, God worked such a miracle through His Martyr, could He not have cured these people there? And yet they have been directed here to us. Turning to the Lord, etc.

Sermon 325. On the Birthday of the Twenty Martyrs.

1. Why the solemnities of the martyrs were instituted. On the solemn day of the holy Martyrs a sermon is owed and must be rendered. As we are about to speak of the glory of the martyrs, about to speak briefly of the just cause of the martyrs, may the prayers of the martyrs help us. For by these solemnities Your Holiness ought to be reminded of this: first, that we should not think that we confer anything on the martyrs because we celebrate their most solemn days. They have no need of our festivities, because they rejoice in heaven with the Angels: but they rejoice together with us, not if we honour them, but if we imitate them. Although even the fact that we honour them profits us, not them. But to honour and not to imitate is nothing else than to flatter falsely. For this purpose, then, these festivities were established in the Church of Christ, that through them the congregation of the members of Christ might be admonished to imitate the martyrs of Christ. This is altogether the usefulness of this festivity; there is no other. If

indeed God is set before us as One to be imitated, human frailty answers that it is a great thing for it to imitate Him to Whom it cannot be compared. If next the example of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself is set before us for imitation, Who for this reason, though He was God, was clothed in mortal flesh, that He might commend a precept to men bearing mortal flesh and show them an example; of Whom also it is written, Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow His footsteps (1 Pet. 2:21): yet here too human frailty still answers, What likeness is there between me and Christ? He, though flesh, is nevertheless the Word made flesh. For the Word was made flesh, that He might dwell in us (John 1:14): He took on flesh, He did not lose the Word; He received what He was not, He did not lose what He was. For God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself (2 Cor. 5:19). What likeness then is there between me and Christ? To remove, therefore, all the excuses of faithless weakness, the martyrs have built us a paved road. For it had to be built of slabs of stone, on which we might walk secure. They made it with their blood, with their confessions. Finally, despising their own bodies, they spread their bodies like garments before Christ as He came to win the nations, sitting as it were upon that beast of burden (Matt. 21:7–8). Who is there who would be ashamed to say, I am unequal to God? Plainly unequal. I am unequal to Christ? Even to the mortal Christ unequal. Peter was what you are, Paul was what you are, the apostles and prophets were what you are. If it irks you to imitate the Lord, imitate your fellow servant. The column of servants has gone before; the excuse of the lazy has been taken away. Lastly he still says: I am unequal to Peter, I am unequal to Paul. Are you unequal to the truth? Rusticity is crowned, vanity is not excused. Lastly, are you unequal to boys? unequal to girls? unequal to Saint Valeriana? If it still irks you to follow, will you not cling to Victoria? For thus the series of the twenty holy martyrs was read out to us. It began with Bishop Fidentius, it closed with a faithful woman, Saint Victoria. The beginning from faith, the end at victory.

2. In martyrs it is not the punishment that is regarded, but the cause. He censures the false martyrs of the Donatists. See then, brethren: so celebrate the passions of the martyrs that you think of imitating the martyrs. They, that they might have a fruitful punishment, chose the cause. For they heeded the Lord saying, not, Blessed are they who suffer persecution; but, Blessed are they who suffer persecution for the sake of justice (Matt. 5:10). Choose the cause, and do not care about the punishment. But if you do not choose the cause, both here and in the future you will find punishment. Let not the tortures and punishments of evildoers, of the sacrilegious, of the enemies of peace and the foes of truth move you. For they do not die for the truth: rather they die so that the truth may not be proclaimed, that the truth may not be preached, that the truth may not be held, that unity may not be loved, that charity may not be cherished, that eternity may not be held. O worst of causes! therefore a fruitless punishment. Do you not notice, you who boast of your punishment, that there were three crosses when the Lord suffered? Between two robbers the Lord suffered: the punishment did not distinguish, but the cause distinguished.