PL 39 · cols. 2259–2263

Appendix to Augustine's Sermones: Sermones supposititii, Sermones 272-284

Sermons CCLXXIV–CCLXXV

6. Conclusio. Etiam et illud ante omnia cum grandi reverentia et timore recolere et retinere debemus, quod Dominus in Evangelio dixit: Si dimiseritis, inquit, hominibus peccata eorum, dimittet et vobis Pater vester caelestis peccata vestra: si non dimiseritis, nec Pater vester caelestis dimittet vobis peccata vestra (Matth. VI, 14). [In potestate nostra positum est, qualiter in die judicii judicemur. Unde nescio qua fronte indulgentiam peccatorum suorum ante tribunal Christi obtinere poterit, qui Deo praecipiente inimicis suis veniam dare non acquiescit.] Apostolus etiam praedicat dicens, Nemini malum pro malo reddentes. Benedicite persequentibus vos; benedicite, et nolite maledicere (Rom. XII, 17, 14): et iterum, Noli vinci a malo, sed vince in bono malum (Ibid., 21): et iterum, Non reddentes malum pro malo, nec maledictum pro maledicto, sed e contrario benedicentes (I Petr. III, 9). Beatus quoque evangelista Joannes, qui supra pectus Domini in coena recubuit, in Epistola sua ita nos admonet, dicens, Qui odit fratrem suum, homicida est; et scitis quia omnis homicida non habet in se vitam aeternam manentem (I Joan. III, 15): et iterum, Qui dicit se in lumine manere, et fratrem suum odit, in tenebris est, et in tenebris ambulat, et nescit quo vadat; quia tenebrae obcaecaverunt oculos ejus (Id. II, 11). Hoc loco fratrem omnem hominem debemus accipere. Dicit etiam ipse beatus Joannes, Si quis dixerit, Diligo Deum, et fratrem suum odit, mendax est: qui enim non diligit fratrem suum quem videt, Deum quem non videt quomodo potest diligere (Id. IV, 20)? Sed jam, si jubetis, ista sufficiant. Sunt enim innumerabilia tam in Novo quam in Veteri Testamento, quae causam, de qua loquimur, validissimis testimoniis confirmare videntur, quae omnia longum est ut nunc Charitatis vestrae auribus intimentur. Sed a sanctis animabus etiam parva pro magnis accipiuntur: quia et revera cui parva, sed tamen magna, non prosunt, plura prodesse nihil poterunt. Ergo, fratres charissimi, considerantes illud quod jam saepe dictum est, quia omnis lex uno sermone impletur in nobis, id est, Diliges proximum tuum sicut te ipsum; non solum amicos, sed etiam inimicos diligite [quia quicumque hoc implere nolunt, reliqua illis opera bona prodesse non poterunt. Et ideo ita omnibus inimicis vestris dimittite]; ut cum secura conscientia possitis in oratione dicere, Dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris (Matth. VI, 12). Quod ipse praestare dignetur, qui vivit et regnat in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

6. Conclusion. This too, before all things, we ought to recall and retain with great reverence and fear, what the Lord said in the Gospel: If you forgive men, He says, their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you your sins; if you do not forgive, neither will your heavenly Father forgive you your sins (Matt. 6:14). [It has been placed in our power how we shall be judged on the day of judgement. Hence I do not know with what face he will be able to obtain pardon for his sins before the tribunal of Christ who, though God commands it, does not consent to grant pardon to his enemies.] The Apostle also preaches, saying, Rendering to no one evil for evil. Bless those who persecute you; bless, and do not curse (Rom. 12:17, 14); and again, Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Rom. 12:21); and again, Not rendering evil for evil, nor curse for curse, but on the contrary blessing (1 Pet. 3:9). The blessed evangelist John also, who reclined upon the Lord's breast at the supper, admonishes us thus in his Epistle, saying, Whoever hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him (1 John 3:15); and again, He who says that he abides in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness, and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going; because the darkness has blinded his eyes (1 John 2:11). In this place we ought to understand every man as our brother. The same blessed John also says, If anyone says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar: for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see (1 John 4:20)? But now, if you please, let these things suffice. For there are innumerable things, in the New as well as in the Old Testament, which are seen to confirm with the most powerful testimonies the cause of which we are speaking, all of which it would take too long to bring now to the ears of your Charity. But by holy souls even small things are received as great: for indeed, to one whom the small things, which are nonetheless great, do not profit, more things will be able to profit nothing. Therefore, dearest brothers, considering what has already often been said, that the whole law is fulfilled in us in one word, that is, You shall love your neighbour as yourself, love not only your friends but also your enemies [because whoever are unwilling to fulfil this, their other good works will not be able to profit them. And therefore forgive all your enemies in such a way]; that with a secure conscience you may be able to say in prayer, Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors (Matt. 6:12). May He deign to grant this, Who lives and reigns for ages of ages. Amen.

SERMO CCLXXIV.

Sermon 274.

Admonitio ista continet quomodo pius et misericors Dominus in potestate nostra posuerit qualiter in die judicii judicemur, et quod unicum ac singulare medicamentum sit contra omnia peccata, et quod nullus unquam in veritate se poterit excusare quod non possit diligere inimicos suos.

This admonition contains how the kind and merciful Lord has placed in our power how we shall be judged on the day of judgement, and that there is one sole and singular remedy against all sins, and that no one will ever be able in truth to excuse himself on the ground that he cannot love his enemies.

1. Facilia cuique Deus providit medicamenta. Praecipua sunt duo eleemosynarum genera. Pius et misericors Dominus sciens fragilitatem gen⟨e⟩ris humani sine qualibuscumque peccatis praesentem vitam non posse transigere, talia medicamenta dignatus est providere, quae non solum divites, sed etiam pauperes possint peccatorum suorum vulneribus adhibere. Quae autem sunt ista medicamenta? Illa utique duo de quibus Dominus dixit, Date, et dabitur vobis, dimittite et dimittetur vobis (Luc. VI, 37 38). Date et dabitur vobis,

1. God has provided easy remedies for everyone. The two kinds of almsgiving are the chief ones. The kind and merciful Lord, knowing the frailty of the human race, that it cannot pass through the present life without sins of some kind, has deigned to provide such remedies as not only the rich but also the poor can apply to the wounds of their sins. And what are these remedies? Those two, surely, of which the Lord said, Give, and it will be given to you; forgive, and you will be forgiven (Luke 6:37–38). Give, and it will be given to you,

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Sic melius ex eodem Ms. [etiam.]

So, better, from the same manuscript. [etiam.]

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(2) ‹anchor: cui parva› · call in col 2259

Alias, pauca.

Otherwise, "pauca" (few things).

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(3) ‹anchor: vestris dimittite› · call in col 2259

Quae hic et supra ansulis includuntur, desiderantur in Mss.

The words enclosed here and above in square brackets are missing in the manuscripts.

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Homilia est Caesarii ex editis a Baluzio nona: quam insuper in Bibliotheca Patrum habebamus homiliae Eligii octavae insertam. De num. 1 vide Appendicis serm. 308, n. 1; 210, n. 5, et 225, n. 5: de num. 2, serm. 225, n. 6; 267, n. 2: de num. 3, serm. 107, n. 5: de num. 4, serm. 139, n. 2; 309, n. 4: de num. 6, Tractatum 18 in Joan.

It is a homily of Caesarius, the ninth of those edited by Baluze; we also had it in the Bibliotheca Patrum, inserted into Eligius's eighth homily. On no. 1 see Appendix sermon 308, no. 1; 210, no. 5, and 225, no. 5; on no. 2, sermon 225, no. 6; 267, no. 2; on no. 3, sermon 107, no. 5; on no. 4, sermon 139, no. 2; 309, no. 4; on no. 6, Tractate 18 on John.

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pertinet ad eleemosynam quae datur esurientibus, nudis atque captivis: Dimittite, et dimittetur vobis, pertinet ad eleemosynam per quam indulgetur omnibus inimicis. Si se pauper voluerit quisque excusare quod esurientem pascere, nudum vestire, captivum liberare non possit; nullatenus in veritate poterit dicere non posse suis inimicis vel adversariis indulgere, ut preces quas nobis judex peritus coelestis dictavit, securus in oratione dominica dicat, Dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris (Matth. VI, 12); et illam evangelicam sententiam sine aliquo metu audiat, Si dimiseritis hominibus peccata eorum, dimittet et vobis Pater vester coelestis peccata vestra: si autem non dimiseritis, nec Pater vester dimittet peccata vestra (Ibid., 14 et 15). Satis nobiscum delicate agitur, quando in nostra potestate ponitur qualiter in die judicii judicemur. Si dimiseritis, inquit, dimittetur vobis: si non dimiseritis, non dimittetur vobis.

pertains to the almsgiving that is given to the hungry, the naked and captives; Forgive, and it will be forgiven you, pertains to the almsgiving by which pardon is granted to all enemies. If anyone, being poor, wishes to excuse himself on the ground that he cannot feed the hungry, clothe the naked, or free the captive, he will by no means be able to say in truth that he cannot pardon his enemies or adversaries, so that he may say without anxiety in the Lord's Prayer the petitions which the skilled heavenly Judge has dictated to us, Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors (Matt. 6:12); and may hear without any fear that sentence of the Gospel, If you forgive men their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you your sins; but if you do not forgive, neither will your Father forgive your sins (ibid. 14-15). We are dealt with quite indulgently, when it is placed in our own power how we are to be judged on the day of judgement. If you forgive, He says, it will be forgiven you; if you do not forgive, it will not be forgiven you.

2. Inimico facile ignoscit memor quid Deo debeat. Ea porro debita aliter solvi nequeunt, nec excusari queunt non solventes. Sed dicit aliquis: Non possum indulgere inimicis meis. Si non habes peccatum quod tibi indulgeat Deus, licet tamen forte, potes dicere quod non velis indulgere proximo tuo. Si vero incomparabiliter plus peccasti tu Deo quam in te peccaverit homo; quare jubente Domino non dimittis parum, ut tibi Deus dignetur dimittere multum? Non enim praecepit vobis Deus jejunare plus quam potestis, et a vino vel a carnibus abstinere, vigiliis vos frequentius affligere, ad Orientem vel ad Occidentem cum infinitis laboribus vel periculis navigare; nihil horum nobis imponitur: sed hoc nobis jubetur, ut attentius arcam conscientiae nostrae considerantes, nullum hominem in hoc mundo odio habeamus, implentes illud quod ipse Dominus ait, Omnia quaecumque vultis ut faciant vobis homines, et vos facite eis similiter (Id. VII, 12). Et quia nullus est qui quod aut in Deum aut in hominem peccaverit, sibi dimitti non velit; quare non facimus aliis quod nobis fieri volumus: ut fiat in nobis illud quod ait Apostolus, Omnis lex in uno sermone impletur, Diliges proximum tuum sicut te ipsum (Galat. V, 14)? Unde opus est ut nosmetipsos minime falsa securitate decipiamus, credentes quod si noluerimus proximis nostris dimittere, peccatorum nostrorum indulgentiam mereamur accipere. Cum grandi enim tremore consideranda est illa terribilis et metuenda Domini nostri sententia, quam servus ille crudelis meruit audire: Serve male, debitum dimisi tibi, quoniam rogasti me; nonne ergo oportuit et te misereri conservo tuo, sicut et ego tui misertus sum? Et quid post haec? Tradidit eum tortoribus, donec redderet omne debitum. Et ut hoc etiam tardioribus insinuaret, adjecit: Sic et Pater meus coelestis faciet vobis, si non dimiseritis unusquisque fratri suo de cordibus vestris (Matth. XVIII, 32-35). Cum enim absque ullo labore corporis, si toto corde dimittimus fratribus nostris, possimus indulgentiam pro omnibus peccatis nostris promereri; quam excusationem in die judicii habere poterimus, si hoc quod ipso adjuvante facillime possumus, implere negligimus? Ubi sine dubio sententiam in nobis impleturus est Dominus noster; ut in quo judicio judicaverimus, in eo judicio judicetur de nobis; et secundum mensuram per quam proximis nostris indulgentiam dederimus, remittatur nobis (Id. VII, 2). Qui enim haec implere noluerit, ipse sibi januam divinae misericordiae claudit.

2. He readily pardons an enemy who remembers what he owes to God. Those debts, moreover, cannot be paid in any other way, nor can those who do not pay them be excused. But someone says: I cannot pardon my enemies. If you have no sin for God to pardon you, then perhaps it is nevertheless allowed: you can say that you are unwilling to pardon your neighbour. But if you have sinned incomparably more against God than a man has sinned against you, why, at the Lord's command, do you not forgive a little, so that God may deign to forgive you much? For God has not commanded you to fast more than you are able, and to abstain from wine or from meat, to afflict yourselves rather often with vigils, to sail to the East or to the West with endless labours or dangers; none of these things is imposed on us: but this is commanded us, that, examining more attentively the strongbox of our conscience, we should hold no man in this world in hatred, fulfilling that which the Lord Himself says, All things whatsoever you wish that men should do to you, do you also to them likewise (Matt. 7:12). And since there is no one who does not wish to have forgiven him whatever he has sinned either against God or against man, why do we not do to others what we wish to be done to us, so that there may be fulfilled in us that which the Apostle says, The whole law is fulfilled in one word, You shall love your neighbour as yourself (Gal. 5:14)? Hence it is necessary that we should by no means deceive ourselves with a false security, believing that if we are unwilling to forgive our neighbours we may deserve to receive pardon for our own sins. For with great trembling must that terrible and fearful sentence of our Lord be considered, which that cruel servant deserved to hear: Wicked servant, I forgave you the debt, because you asked me; ought you not then also to have had pity on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you? And what after this? He handed him over to the torturers, until he should pay back the whole debt. And to impress this even upon the slower-witted, He added: So also My heavenly Father will do to you, if you do not forgive, each one his brother, from your hearts (Matt. 18:32–35). For since without any labour of the body, if we forgive our brethren with our whole heart, we can merit pardon for all our sins, what excuse shall we be able to have on the day of judgement, if we neglect to fulfil this which, with His help, we can do most easily? There without doubt our Lord will fulfil the sentence upon us, that with what judgement we have judged, with that judgement judgement will be passed on us; and according to the measure by which we have granted pardon to our neighbours, it will be remitted to us (Matt. 7:2). For whoever is unwilling to fulfil these things shuts against himself the door of divine mercy.

3. Horum alia opera inania sunt. Quamlibet aliqua opera bona quisque fecerit, omnia evacuabuntur, ⟨si⟩ in eo charitas vera non fuerit, quae non solum ad amicos, sed etiam usque ad ipsos perveniat inimicos: quia non mentitur beatus Paulus apostolus, in quo Christus locutus est, dicens, Si distribuero in cibos pauperum omnes facultates meas, et si tradidero corpus meum ut ardeat, charitatem autem non habuero, nihil mihi prodest (I Cor. XIII, 3). Et quia radix omnium

3. Without these, other works are empty. However many good works anyone may have done, all will be made void if there is not in him true charity, which reaches not only to friends but even to enemies themselves: for blessed Paul the apostle, in whom Christ spoke, does not lie when he says, If I distribute all my possessions as food for the poor, and if I hand over my body to be burned, but do not have charity, it profits me nothing (1 Cor. 13:3). And since the root of all

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Forte, jurisperitus.

Perhaps "jurisperitus" (one learned in the law).

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malorum est cupiditas (I Tim. VI, 10), et radix omnium bonorum est charitas; quid prodest homini si mille ramos aut cum floribus aut cum pomis pulcherrimis et amoenissimis habeat, si radix in eo viva et vera non fuerit? Quomodo enim evulsa radice cupiditatis, omnes rami protinus arescunt et pereunt; ita qui per odium et iracundiam radicem in se charitatis exstinxerit, nihil in eo unde ad vitam aeternam perveniat remanebit.

of evils is cupidity (1 Tim. 6:10), and the root of all goods is charity; what does it profit a man if he has a thousand branches, whether with flowers or with the most beautiful and most delightful fruits, if the root in him is not living and true? For just as, when the root of cupidity has been torn out, all the branches at once wither and perish, so whoever through hatred and anger has extinguished the root of charity in himself, nothing will remain in him by which he may come to eternal life.

4. Eleemosynae inanes. Cur velit Deus eleemosynam fieri. Ille vero qui supradicta mala in corde servat, et credit se multis eleemosynis peccata ipsa posse redimere, audiat Dominum in Evangelio dicentem, Si offers munus tuum ad altare, et ibi recordatus fueris quia frater tuus habet aliquid adversum te, relinque ibi munus tuum, et vade prius reconciliari fratri tuo; et tunc veniens offeres munus tuum (Matth. V, 23, 24). Sententia ista evidenter ostendit, quod sacrificium offerre vel eleemosynam dare nihil proderit, nisi prius reconciliatio inimici praecesserit. Nam quod etiam orationem nostram Deus non velit audire, si odium voluerimus in corde servare, ipse in Evangelio dixit, Qui habet mandata mea haec et facit ea, ipse est qui diligit me (Joan. XIV, 21); et, Quid prodest quod dicitis mihi, Domine, Domine, et non facitis ea quae dico (Luc. VI, 46)? Quae sunt ista quae Dominus specialiter se dixisse asseruit? Illa utique quae ad pacem et concordiam pertinent: Diligite inimicos vestros, benefacite iis qui vos oderunt (Matth. V, 44); et illud, In hoc cognoscent omnes quia discipuli mei estis, si dilectionem habueritis ad invicem (Joan. XIII, 35). Nam si eleemosynas largius damus, et secundum Christi praecepta inimicis nostris non indulgemus; substantiam Deo offerimus, et animam nostram adversario subjugamus. Etiam videte si justa ac Deo placita possit esse ista divisio. Non enim tam res nostras, quam nos ipsos desiderat Deus. Nam quia nos scit multum amare terrenam substantiam, ideo vult sibi offerri quod amamus; ut secundum illius praeceptum, ubi praecesserit thesaurus noster, illuc sequatur et cor nostrum (Matth. VI, 21), et sacerdote dicente, Sursum corda, cum secura conscientia respondere possimus, nos habere ad Dominum.

4. Empty almsgiving. Why God wishes alms to be given. But let him who keeps the aforesaid evils in his heart, and believes that he can redeem those very sins by many alms, hear the Lord saying in the Gospel: If you offer your gift at the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there, and go first to be reconciled to your brother; and then coming you will offer your gift (Matt. 5:23–24). This sentence plainly shows that to offer sacrifice or to give alms will profit nothing unless reconciliation with the enemy has first gone before. For that God does not wish to hear even our prayer, if we choose to keep hatred in our heart, He Himself said in the Gospel: He who has these My commandments and does them, he it is who loves Me (John 14:21); and: What does it profit that you say to Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do the things that I say (Luke 6:46)? What are these things which the Lord declared that He had specially said? Surely those which pertain to peace and concord: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you (Matt. 5:44); and that saying: By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another (John 13:35). For if we give alms rather generously, and do not forgive our enemies according to the precepts of Christ, we offer our substance to God and subject our soul to the adversary. See too whether this division can be just and pleasing to God. For God desires not so much our possessions as ourselves. For because He knows that we greatly love earthly substance, He therefore wishes what we love to be offered to Him, so that, according to His precept, where our treasure has gone before, there our heart also may follow (Matt. 6:21), and, when the priest says, Lift up your hearts, we may be able to answer with a secure conscience that we have them to the Lord.

5. Recapitulatio. Quis enim non contremiscat illam, quam et frequenter suggessimus et jugiter insinuare debemus, beati Joannis apostoli sententiam? Qui, inquit, odit fratrem suum, homicida est (I Joan. III, 15): et iterum, Qui dicit se in luce esse, et fratrem suum odit, in tenebris est usque adhuc (Id. II, 9): et, Qui odit fratrem suum, in tenebris est, et in tenebris ambulat, et nescit quo eat; quoniam tenebrae obcaecaverunt oculos ejus (Ibid., 11). Et illud, Itinera eorum qui injuriam retinent malefacti, in morte. Et quia, secundum haec quae supra suggessimus, nulla nobis vel umbra alicujus excusationis remanet, totis viribus cum Dei adjutorio laboremus implere quod praecepit, ut mereamur accipere quae promisit. Et ut reliqua opera bona, quaecumque inspirante Deo facimus, non perdamus, charitatem velut matrem bonorum omnium fideliter Domino inspirante servemus. Et ut haec quae supra suggessimus, plenius et evidentius possitis agnoscere, parum aliquid de opere sancti Augustini ad rem de qua suggessimus pertinentem credidi adjungendum, quo manifestissime probetur nullum hominem posse Dei misericordiam promereri, qui duo praecepta charitatis contemnens, inimicis suis neglexerit toto corde dimittere.

5. Recapitulation. For who would not tremble at that sentence of the blessed apostle John, which we have both often urged and ought continually to instil? Whoever, he says, hates his brother is a murderer (1 John 3:15); and again: He who says that he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness even until now (ibid. 2:9); and: He who hates his brother is in darkness, and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes (ibid. 2:11). And that saying: The ways of those who retain the injury of a wrong done are in death. And since, according to these things which we have urged above, not even the shadow of any excuse remains to us, let us labour with all our strength, with the help of God, to fulfil what He has commanded, so that we may deserve to receive what He has promised. And so that we may not lose the rest of the good works, whatever we do by God's inspiration, let us faithfully keep charity, as the mother of all good things, by the Lord's inspiration. And so that you may recognize more fully and more plainly these things which we have urged above, I have thought that some small part of the work of Saint Augustine pertaining to the matter we have urged should be added, by which it may be most clearly proved that no man can merit God's mercy who, despising the two precepts of charity, has neglected to forgive his enemies with his whole heart.

6. Quadragenarii numeri mysterium. Languet qui duo minus habet. Dilectio Dei: dilectio proximi. Sanctus Augustinus episcopus, cum de illo paralytico, qui triginta et octo annos habebat in infirmitate sua, tractaret, sic ait: Quadragenario numero, fratres charissimi, cursus vitae nostrae et conversatio nostra in Scripturis divinis mystice designatur. Ideo enim et ante Pascha,

6. The mystery of the number forty. He languishes who has two fewer. The love of God: the love of neighbour. Saint Augustine the bishop, when he was treating of that paralytic who had been thirty-eight years in his infirmity, speaks thus: By the number forty, dearest brothers, the course of our life and our conduct are mystically signified in the divine Scriptures. For this reason too, before Pascha,

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Forte, arboris.

Perhaps "arboris" (of the tree).

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(2) ‹anchor: de qua suggessimus pertinentem› · call in col 2261

Melius profecto legeretur, pertinens. M.

It would certainly read better as "pertinens". M.

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quod praesentem vitam significat, quadraginta dierum jejunium observamus; ut Pascha, quod aeternae vitae imaginem gerit, cum gaudio celebrare possimus. Ideo et Moyses quadraginta diebus jejunavit (Exod. XXXIV, 28), et Elias similiter quadraginta (III Reg. XIX, 8), et Dominus ac Salvator noster quadragenarium jejunium consecravit (Matth. IV, 2); et in eremo populus Israeliticus quadraginta annis demoratus est, postquam meruit de Aegypto liberari (Deut. VIII, 2). Unde sicut videtis, fratres charissimi, quadragenarius iste numerus bonorum christianorum et sanctorum omnium figuram significare videtur. Languidus vero ille, de quo in Evangelio legimus quia jacebat, typum generis humani habere videbatur. Quod autem triginta et octo annos in languoribus positus erat, de illo quadragenario numero, quem supra diximus, duo minus habens: videamus qu⟨ae⟩ sunt ista duo quae deerant illi numero consecrato. Et quae erunt, fratres, nisi duo praecepta charitatis, dilectio videlicet Dei et dilectio proximi; quae duo talia sunt, ut sine ipsis reliqua nihil prosint? Et si quae sint opera bona, et virginitatem vel martyrium quis habeat, si ista duo, in quibus tota Lex pendet et Prophetae (Matth. XXII, 40), non habuerit, languidus et paralyticus jacet. Venit ergo Christus, et per gratiam Spiritus sancti exhibuit nobis ista duo, ut diligeremus Deum, diligeremus et proximum. Denique et pro illo qui inciderat in latrones duos denarios dedit (Luc. X, 35), et apud Samaritanos duos dies transegit (Joan. IV, 40), uti eos in charitate Dei et proximi confirmaret. Et vidua illa, in typum Ecclesiae, duo aera misit in gazophylacium (Luc. XXI, 2), et Dominus ad praedicandum charitatem binos discipulos destinavit (Id. X, 1). Ista enim duo, ut diximus, ante adventum Christi humanum genus habere non meruit. Attendite, fratres, quia et Dominus duo dixit, illa utique ei deesse videbantur: Surge, tolle grabatum tuum (Joan. V, 8). Ista duo languidus ille minus habebat. Quid est, Surge, nisi, Dominum dilige? Omnis enim qui Deum diligit, sursum cor habet. Et quid est hoc, Tolle grabatum tuum; nisi, Dilige proximum tuum? quae dilectio proximi in portando grabatum designatur. Apostolus dixit, Invicem onera vestra portate, et sic adimplebitis legem Christi (Galat. VI, 2). Si ergo praeventus fuerit in aliquo frater tuus, portetur a te; et si tu praeventus fueris, sustineat te. Ergo surge, dilige Deum, et tolle grabatum tuum. Dilige proximum tuum, id est porta onus in quo requiescas. Ista duo humano generi necessaria erant. Sed habere ea in se omnino non poterant; quia charitas Dei diffusa est in cordibus nostris, non ex nobis, sed per Spiritum sanctum, qui datus est nobis (Rom. V, 5): ipso adjuvante qui vivit et regnat in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

which signifies the present life, we observe a fast of forty days, so that we may be able to celebrate with joy the Pascha which bears the image of eternal life. For this reason Moses also fasted forty days (Exod. 34:28), and Elijah likewise forty (1 Kgs. 19:8), and our Lord and Saviour consecrated a forty-day fast (Matt. 4:2); and in the desert the people of Israel tarried forty years, after they had been found worthy to be freed from Egypt (Deut. 8:2). Hence, as you see, dearest brothers, this number forty seems to signify the figure of good Christians and of all the saints. But that sick man, of whom we read in the Gospel that he lay there, seemed to bear the type of the human race. As for his having lain in infirmities for thirty-eight years, having two fewer than that number forty which we mentioned above: let us see what are those two which were lacking to that consecrated number. And what will they be, brothers, but the two precepts of charity, namely love of God and love of neighbour; which two are such that without them the rest profit nothing? And if a man has whatever good works there may be, and virginity or martyrdom, yet does not have these two, on which the whole Law depends and the Prophets (Matt. 22:40), he lies sick and paralysed. Christ therefore came, and through the grace of the Holy Spirit He displayed to us these two, that we should love God and should love our neighbour also. Indeed, for that man who had fallen among robbers He gave two denarii (Luke 10:35), and among the Samaritans He spent two days (John 4:40), in order to confirm them in the love of God and of neighbour. And that widow, as a type of the Church, cast two coins into the treasury (Luke 21:2), and the Lord sent out the disciples two by two to preach charity (ibid. 10:1). For these two, as we have said, the human race was not found worthy to have before the coming of Christ. Observe, brothers, that the Lord also spoke two things, which indeed seemed to be lacking to him: Rise, take up your bed (John 5:8). These two that sick man had wanting. What is Rise, if not, Love the Lord? For everyone who loves God has his heart on high. And what is this, Take up your bed, if not, Love your neighbour? which love of neighbour is designated in the carrying of the bed. The Apostle said, Bear one another's burdens, and so you will fulfil the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2). If therefore your brother has been overtaken in any fault, let him be carried by you; and if you have been overtaken, let him support you. Therefore rise, love God, and take up your bed. Love your neighbour, that is, carry the burden in which you may find rest. These two were necessary for the human race. But they could not in any way have them of themselves; for the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts, not from ourselves, but through the Holy Spirit, Who has been given to us (Rom. 5:5): by the help of Him Who lives and reigns for ages of ages. Amen.

SERMO CCLXXV. Quare sancti viri et justi in hoc saeculo in peccatoribus vindicaverint.

Sermon 275. Why holy and just men in this world took vengeance upon sinners.

1. Cur in veteri Lege peccata corporaliter punita. Ira Moysi sine iracundia. Ardet zelo Dei, et dilectione populi. Idem de Phinees sentiendum. Judicia Dei, fratres charissimi, plerumque sunt occulta, nunquam tamen injusta. Et quia in Lege de quibusdam peccatoribus legimus a sanctis viris in praesenti saeculo vindicatum; qua ratione factum sit, subtilissima fidei puritate debemus aspicere. Quia enim in Veteri Testamento peccata puniri corporaliter videbantur, omnibus praebebantur exempla, quoties aliquibus irrogabantur digna supplicia. Quod tamen non quisque ut voluisset de populo secundum suam iracundiam exercebat;

1. Why in the old Law sins were punished bodily. The anger of Moses without wrath. He burns with zeal for God and with love of the people. The same is to be thought of Phinehas. The judgements of God, dearest brothers, are often hidden, yet never unjust. And since we read in the Law that vengeance was taken upon certain sinners by holy men in the present world, we ought to examine with the most discerning purity of faith for what reason this was done. For since in the Old Testament sins were seen to be punished bodily, examples were offered to all whenever fitting punishments were inflicted on some. Yet it was not anyone of the people who carried this out as he wished, according to his own wrath;

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(1) ‹anchor: discipulos destinavit› · call in col 2262

Eligius, et Dominus ad praedicandum bipertita charitate discipulos destinavit.

Eligius: "and the Lord sent the disciples out to preach with a twofold charity."

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(a) ‹anchor: illa utique ei› · call in col 2262

Forte, quae.

Perhaps "quae" (which).

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(b) ‹anchor: SERMO CCLXXV› · call in col 2262

Alias, ex Vignerianis 38.

Formerly no. 38 of the Vignier sermons.

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In manuscriptis tribuitur Caesario, estque inter Homilias ipsius nomine a Stephano Baluzio vulgatas postrema. De num. 1 vide Appendicis serm. 15, n. 3, et 34, n. 1: de num. 3 et 4, serm. 41, nn. 1, 2

In the manuscripts it is ascribed to Caesarius, and it is the last of the homilies published under his name by Étienne Baluze. On no. 1 see Appendix sermon 15, no. 3, and 34, no. 1; on nos. 3 and 4, sermon 41, nos. 1, 2.

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sed praepositi vel judices, ut caeteri metum haberent, justissime vindicabant. Denique beatus ille Moyses, de quo legimus quod mitis fuerit super omnes homines (Num. XII, 3), descendens de monte, quia populum idolis sacrificasse cognovit, tria millia de populo jussit interfici (Exod. XXXII, 27); non ut iracundiae suae satisfaceret, sed ut Dei injuriam vindicaret; et ut caeteri videntes, nunquam talia peccata exercere praesumerent. Et ut intelligamus quo animo hoc fieri jusserit, regressus ad Dominum supplicavit, dicens: Si non dimiseris populo tuo peccatum suum, dele me de libro tuo quem scripsisti (Ibid., 32). Ecce veram et integram charitatem. Paucos interfici jussit, ut sexcenta millia, exceptis mulieribus et parvulis, liberaret; quia nisi ille zelo Dei commotus in paucos vindicasset, cunctos Dei justitia perdidisset. Beatus quoque sacerdos Phinees unum de principibus cum alienigena concumbentem manu propria gladio interfecit. Et quo animo hoc egerit, Dominus ipse testimonium dedit, dicens: Phinees zelo meo commotus placavit iram meam, ut non disperderem populum meum (Num. XXV, 11). Hoc enim fecit Phinees non carnali odio, sed zelo et amore divino; non ut se vindicaret, sed ut populum de Dei iracundia liberaret.

but the overseers or judges, so that the rest might be afraid, punished it most justly. Indeed that blessed Moses, of whom we read that he was meek above all men (Num. 12:3), when he came down from the mountain, because he learned that the people had sacrificed to idols, ordered three thousand of the people to be killed (Exod. 32:27); not to satisfy his own anger, but to avenge the wrong done to God, and so that the rest, seeing it, would never presume to commit such sins. And so that we may understand with what mind he ordered this to be done, he went back to the Lord and made supplication, saying: If Thou will not forgive Thy people their sin, blot me out of Thy book which Thou wrote (ibid. 32). Behold true and complete charity. He ordered a few to be killed in order to set free six hundred thousand, not counting women and little children; for unless he, moved by zeal for God, had punished a few, the justice of God would have destroyed all. The blessed priest Phinehas likewise killed with a sword in his own hand one of the princes as he lay with a foreign woman. And with what mind he did this the Lord Himself bore witness, saying: Phinehas, moved by My zeal, has appeased My wrath, so that I did not destroy My people (Num. 25:11). For Phinehas did this not from carnal hatred, but from zeal and divine love; not to avenge himself, but to free the people from the wrath of God.

2. Nec alius Eliae animus, et dum milites igne coelesti consumuntur, et dum sacerdotes occidi jubet, utpote actus Spiritu sancto. Quam rem et beatum etiam Eliam fecisse cognoscimus: ad quem cum superbissimus et sacrilegus rex quinquagenarium cum suis militibus destinasset, mandans ei ut ad se venire deberet; beatus Elias dolens de perditione populi sui, quem impius ad idola colenda persuaserat, in Spiritu sancto dixit ut descenderet ignis de coelo, et consumeret eos, ut istis percussis in corpore, alii sanarentur in corde. Sed quia nihil apud eos medicamentum spirituale praevaluit, etiam et alium quinquagenarium, qui et ipse cum superbia venerat, Spiritus sanctus per os Eliae cum suis interfici jussit. Quam rem qua pietate Spiritus sanctus, vel quo animo Elias fecerit, humilitas illius quinquagenarii, qui tertio loco venit, ostendit (IV Reg. I, 9-14). In quo evidenter agnovimus, quod si se prius humiliasset fragilitas humana, statim indulgentiam dedisset divina misericordia. Neque enim credendum est quod illi ideo ad Eliam missi fuerint, ut illum interficerent, sed potius ut ad regem vocarent. Et ideo beatus Elias non iracundiae suae satisfecit, sed Dei potius injuriam vindicavit. Hoc etiam de sacerdotibus idolorum de monte Carmelo exercuit, quando omnes interfici jussit (III Reg. XVIII, 40); scilicet ut falsa religio cum suis exstincta doctoribus verae religioni locum in humanis cordibus daret. Quod totum beatus Elias non sua virtute, sed potentia sancti Spiritus exercuisse credendus est. Denique si vis scire solus ipse Elias qualis fuerit, quando eum paulisper sancti Spiritus gratia, ut eum probaret, deseruit, unius meretricis minas ferre non potuit, sed fugit in deserto viam quadraginta dierum. Ille ergo, qui suppeditante gratia Dei per Spiritum sanctum coelum verbo clauserat, et ultrices flammas de supernis venire fecerat, unius meretriculae sermones sustinere non potuit. Hoc ideo dixi, ut agnoscamus quia totum illud non tam Elias, quam Spiritus sanctus exercuit per Eliam. Et ideo nefas est credere quod beatus Elias in his quos fecit interfici, se voluerit vindicare.

2. Nor was the mind of Elijah any different, both when the soldiers are consumed by fire from heaven and when he orders the priests to be slain, inasmuch as he was moved by the Holy Spirit. We know that the blessed Elijah also did this: when a most proud and sacrilegious king had sent to him a captain of fifty with his soldiers, commanding him that he must come to him, the blessed Elijah, grieving over the perdition of his people, whom the impious man had persuaded to worship idols, said in the Holy Spirit that fire should come down from heaven and consume them, so that, these being struck in the body, others might be healed in the heart. But because no spiritual medicine prevailed at all among them, the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of Elijah, ordered yet another captain of fifty, who had likewise come with pride, to be killed together with his men. With what devotion the Holy Spirit did this, or with what mind Elijah did it, the humility of that captain of fifty who came in the third place shows (2 Kgs. 1:9–14). In this we have clearly recognized that, if human frailty had humbled itself first, divine mercy would at once have granted pardon. For it is not to be believed that those men were sent to Elijah in order to kill him, but rather in order to summon him to the king. And therefore the blessed Elijah did not satisfy his own anger, but rather avenged the wrong done to God. He did this also with the priests of the idols from Mount Carmel, when he ordered them all to be killed (1 Kgs. 18:40); namely so that false religion, extinguished together with its teachers, might give place to true religion in human hearts. All of which the blessed Elijah must be believed to have done not by his own virtue but by the power of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, if you wish to know what Elijah was on his own, when the grace of the Holy Spirit left him for a little while in order to test him, he could not bear the threats of a single harlot, but fled into the desert a journey of forty days. He, then, who with the grace of God supplying it through the Holy Spirit had shut heaven by a word, and had made avenging flames come from on high, could not endure the words of one little harlot. I have said this so that we may recognize that it was not so much Elijah as the Holy Spirit through Elijah who did all that. And therefore it is wicked to believe that the blessed Elijah, in those whom he had killed, wished to avenge himself.

3. Elisaeus irrisus quid repraesentet. Cur vindictam petierit. Hoc etiam de beato Elisaeo sentire debemus, cui cum luxuriantes pueri clamarent, Ascende, calve; ascende, calve (IV Reg. II, 23); Spiritus sanctus qui in ipso habitabat, imperavit ut ascenderent duo ursi, et lacerarent quadraginta duos pueros. Quod licet in

3. What the mocked Elisha represents. Why he sought vengeance. We ought to think the same of the blessed Elisha also: when wanton boys were shouting at him, Go up, baldhead; go up, baldhead (2 Kgs. 2:23), the Holy Spirit who dwelt in him commanded that two bears should come up and tear forty-two boys. Which, although in

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Ms. collegii Claromontani: Ecce vera et integra charitate paucos interfici jussit.

The manuscript of the Collège de Clermont: "See, with true and whole charity he ordered a few to be put to death."

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In eodem Ms., ut non disperderem universum populum meum.

In the same manuscript: "that I might not destroy all my people."

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(3) ‹anchor: de monte Carmelo exercuit› · call in col 2263

In eodem Ms., in monte Carmelo.

In the same manuscript: "in monte Carmelo" (on Mount Carmel).

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