HOMILY X
A expiat [the heart], and takes away the heavy load of sins, causes the conscience to breathe again, and prepares it to taste with great pleasure of the Lord’s body. Justly, therefore, did the blessed Paul say: "Obey your leaders and submit to them; for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account" (Heb. 13:17). You indeed are concerned for your own affairs, and if these are well-ordered, you concern yourself no further with the rest; but the priest, even if he manages his own life well, if he does not have a diligent care for yours, will go to hell along with the wicked; and often, not being betrayed by his own sins, he perishes because of the sins of others. But since we have more severely rebuked those who partake of the divine mysteries unworthily, it is necessary to turn our discourse also to you who minister, that you may dispense these gifts with much diligence; for no small punishment awaits you. For if, knowing someone to be wicked, you permit him to partake of this table, his blood will be required at your hands. Whether he be a general, or a prefecture, or even he himself who is surrounded by the diadem, if he approaches unworthily, prevent him: you have greater authority than he. Take care lest you provoke the Lord, by not cleansing this body. Do not hand a sword instead of food; but even if he comes because of weakness to receive, do not fear to prevent him. Fear the Lord God, not man. If you fear man, you will be mocked by him, and you will provoke the Lord; but if you fear God, you will be both venerable to men and dear to them yourself. But if you yourself do not dare, bring him to me; I will not endure to let these things be done, I would sooner fail in soul than dispense the Lord’s blood unworthily; and I would shed my own blood before I would dispense such a tremendous blood in a manner that is not fitting. For it is much better to be deprived of life for the sake of God, than to be deprived of God for the sake of life. To whom be glory, power, now and for ever and ever. Amen.
B
HOMILY X
For what reason did God not destroy the enemy from the beginning, after he had deceived [mankind]? If he ruled by force, this would be a significant question; but if this power has been taken away from him, and he only persuades, and to obey or not is in our power, why do you take away the occasion for praise and strike away the material for our crowns? Furthermore, if He left him, knowing that he would overcome all, not even so should one despair; for his victory happens through us, as we succumb of our own will, not by force: but if many have already been superior, and many truly will be so hereafter, why do you deprive those to be honored with victory of such a prize? But all will not be superior to him. Yet it is much more just that the generous should receive opportunities in which they may prove their virtue; and that those who are not such should be punished for their own sloth, rather than that the former should be harmed on account of the latter. For the evil [man], even if he suffers injury, does not suffer it from the adversary, but from his own sloth: which the multitude of those who overcome demonstrates. Truly then the good would have been attacked by the snares of the bad, if they did not have where they might exercise their fortitude. But in this way, they could also blame the formation of the mouth and eyes: for with these, many desire what they ought not, and fall into adultery; others speak against Him and utter pernicious decrees. Was it then necessary that men be made without tongue and eyes? Therefore we shall also amputate hands and feet: for the former are full of blood, and the latter run toward wickedness. And moreover, even the ears, because they receive vain hearing and transmit the depravity of doctrines into the mind: and if these, [why not] also food and drink, and heaven and earth and sea, and the choir of stars? For where will these be useful, if he for whom they were made is so miserably mutilated? Do you see the laughter and absurdity into which the argument is necessarily led? The devil is evil to himself, not to us: for we, if we will, enjoy many good things through him, as if they were fruits, even while he is unwilling and resistant: and the miracle in this will be greater, and the kindness of God more abundant. For that men should become better, this bites the devil even by itself and afflicts him with pain: but when this is brought about for us even through him, he cannot bear the humiliation. Unless God, some say, had allowed it, the devil could not have attacked, nor could he have deceived man from the beginning. What then shall we say to these things? Naturally, if this had not happened, [we] could not have known how much good Adam had, nor would he ever have retreated from that arrogance. For when he rated himself so highly as to hope that he would even become a god, what would he not have dared if he were not checked by restraint? But let us suppose the devil had not given counsel; would he not, because of this lack of action, have been able to sin? By no means: for he who was so easily persuaded by the woman, even if the devil had not been, would soon have fallen into sin by himself. For he who so easily admitted deception from another, he, even before he was deceived, was affected in a slothful and soft manner: for the adversary could not have prevailed so much, if he had conversed with a sober and vigilant soul. And for what reason did God give such a command to Adam, when He knew he would sin? Because giving the command is a work of greater care than not giving it. For let Adam have a purpose so languid, as the end showed he had; and let him receive no command, but let him continue to live delicately: would weakness and sloth from such a remission have promoted him to a worse or a better state? But it is manifest to all, that living without care, he would have fallen into extreme wickedness. For since he, who could not yet hope for immortality, but knew that this hope was still something sublime, was exalted to such insolence and arrogance that he hoped he would be a god, and this when he saw nowhere that he who promised these things was faithful: whither would his arrogance have progressed, if he had possessed a firm immortality? And why would he not have sinned? When would he have obeyed God? For he who, after receiving the command, so greatly despised Him who had given him the command; if he had heard nothing at all from Him, perhaps he would even have been ignorant that he had a master. If no one of the wicked were punished here, neither C
nor would any of the good be honored, many who disbelieve in the doctrine of the resurrection would flee from virtue as the cause of evils, and would pursue wickedness as the purveyor of goods. But if, on the other hand, everyone here received exactly according to their deserts, they would have deemed the doctrine of the judgment to be superfluous and false. In order, therefore, that neither the former should disbelieve, nor that the great and common A multitude should become more worthless by becoming contemptuous, He also executes judgment here upon many of those who sin, and recompenses some of those who act rightly; by not doing this to all, He confirms the doctrine of the judgment, and by punishing some even before the judgment, He rouses those who are sleeping a deep sleep. For from the punishing of the wicked, many are roused by the fear of suffering the same things; and from not having everyone here receive according to their desert, they are forced to reason that this is stored up for another time. For this reason God did not immediately destroy Cain when he sinned, so that through him all who came after might be disciplined, and become better through the rebuke given to him. For it was not equal to hear that Cain, having slain his brother, died, and to see the slayer paying the penalty. For at that time, even if it might have been disbelieved because of the excess of hatred, now, appearing and being present, and making many witnesses of his punishment for a long time, he rendered the fact manifest and credible both to those then and to those ever after. B Besides, if God had killed him immediately, He would not have given him any term for penitence and improvement; at that time, however, living in trembling and fear, if he was not too senseless, and a beast rather than a man, he would have gained much from this life. Aside from these things, He brought about for him a lighter future punishment through this present punishment. For the painful things or punishments brought upon us by God in the present life cut off no small part of the torments there. For this reason God is not accustomed to punish all who are deserving of the same punishments together, so that those left behind may become better through the calamities of the others; yet He often punishes all together, as in the case of the flood, so that they might be prevented from advancing further in wickedness, and those after them might gain more from them; the leaven, as one might say, and the basis of the evils having been removed from the midst along with those who dared them, so that they might not have so many teachers of worthlessness. For if, even without an example, men could easily find evils, what would they have done with many prompting them to wicked actions? This, therefore, is the only thing one must be persuaded of, that all things are managed for us by God in a way that is profitable; and one should no longer seek the manner, nor be vexed or disheartened through ignorance. C For it is neither possible to know these things, nor profitable: the one due to our being mortal, the other due to our being quickly prone to insanity. For God desires that even those who do not believe in Him be saved by changing; as He Himself says: *I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance* (Matt. 9: 13). And when, even after enjoying such great care, they do not wish to become better, and to discern the truth, not even then does He abandon them; but since they willingly deprived themselves of the heavenly life, He provides them at least with all that belongs to the present life, making His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and raining on the just and the unjust, and providing all other things that contribute to the sustenance of the present life. And if He exercises such providence for His enemies, how will He overlook those who believe in Him and serve Him according to their ability? And for what reason did the devil not vanish from the midst? Let there be one antagonist; let there be also two athletes about to wrestle against him; and of these two athletes, let one be corrupted, neglected, weakened, and enervated by gluttony; but let the other be diligent, in good condition, spending time in wrestling schools, in many gymnasia, showing all diligence concerning the contest. If, therefore, you remove the antagonist, D which of these have you harmed? Is it the slothful and negligent one, or the diligent one who has labored so much? It is clear that it is the diligent one. For the one is aided by the withdrawal of the antagonist, while the slothful one, if the antagonist remains, is no longer harmed because of the diligent one; for he fell because of his own sloth. Therefore, he who is weak in his will and neglected and slothful falls quickly even if the devil is not present, and casts himself into many abysses of wickedness. And if we come to our own members, we shall find that these too are causes of ruin, if we do not keep watch, not because of their own nature, but because of our own sloth. Consider: The eye was given so that, by seeing creation, you might glorify the Creator and Master; but, if you do not use the eye well, it becomes a cause of adultery for you. The tongue was given so that you might hymn and speak well of the Maker; but, if you are not careful, it becomes a cause of blasphemy and obscene speech for you. Hands were given so that you might lift them up to prayer; but, if you are not sober, you extend them toward greed. Feet were given so that you might run to good works; but, if you are negligent, you will have wicked deeds through them. You see that it harms the weak in all respects, and casts even the saving remedies into death, not because of their own nature, but because of his weakness. The mere sight of God is enough to destroy the wicked; for if the presence of the saints makes the strength of the demons weak, much more so does the presence of God. When we see disorder and confusion of affairs, let us not blame God, nor think that they are without providence; for the true disorder and confusion is not the course of affairs, but the mind that is so disposed, which, even if it enjoys myriads of good order, until it corrects the disorder and confusion within itself, will have no benefit from the good order in events; but just as an eye that is ill, even in the clearest noon, will see darkness, and one thing instead of another, and will have no advantage from the ray of light; but one that is healthy and strong, even in the evening will be able to guide the body with safety: so too the eye of our mind, as long as it is strong, even if it sees what seems to be in disorder, will judge them to be good; but when it is corrupted, even if one takes it up to heaven itself, and shows it much order there, it will condemn it as having much disorder and confusion. For this reason God does not demand an accounting of all things in this life, so that you may not despair of the resurrection, and lose hope of the judgment, as if everyone were giving an account here; nor does He let all go unpunished, so that you may not again think that all things are without providence. If anyone disbelieves in the resurrection, let him consider how many things God created out of nothing, and let him accept also...
A the necessary proof of that. For He took earth and kneaded it and made man—earth, I say, which was not before. How, then, was earth made man? And how was it, that which was not, brought into being? What foundation does it have? And what is after the earth? And what again is after that? How, indeed, were all the infinite kinds of irrational creatures produced from it, and of seeds, and of plants? For this is more difficult than the resurrection. It is not an equal thing to kindle again an extinguished lamp, and to show fire where none at all appeared; nor is it equal to repair a collapsed house, and to produce that which did not exist at all. For there, if nothing else, the material was present; here, however, not even the substance was visible. B Therefore, He did that which seemed to us more difficult first, in order that from it He might provide a proof of that which is easier. And in our own birth, is not a small amount of raw and indistinct semen injected into the uterus that receives it? Whence, then, is such an efformation of a living being? What of the corn? Is not a naked grain cast into the earth? After it is cast, does it not rot? Whence, then, the ears and the beards, the stalks and all the other things? Does not a small grain of fig, having often fallen into the earth, produce roots, and branches, and fruit? Do you therefore accept any of these, and yet not curiously scrutinize them, while you demand from God alone an account of the forming of our body? And how do such people deserve pardon? C And for the sake of what did God leave the devil—who is so wicked—in order that he might trip us up? That, while we were compelled by fear and were awaiting the aggression of the enemy, we might exhibit much watchfulness and continuous sobriety. And what is it to you, to wonder if He left the devil for this reason? For since He was concerned for our salvation, and was rousing our sloth, and preparing the material for crowns, He prepared hell itself for this reason, that the fear of torment and the gravity of punishment might compel us toward the kingdom. If, therefore, you have done some good and have not received its reward here, do not be troubled: with increase, in the future time, the retribution for these things awaits you. And if you have done some evil and have not paid the penalty, do not trust: for there the penalty awaits you, if you have not changed and become better. D You are in a tumult and you bear it impatiently, and you fill all things with perturbation, when you see many flourishing in wickedness and having things well and easily and enjoying present things, and you are pained at the patience of God. What are you doing? Tell me: how many lie in wait and infest the roads? How many break through walls? How many destroyed many with deadly poisons? Do we therefore accuse the judge for these things? Not at all. For if, having caught these, he were to dismiss them from judgment, and were to punish indeed the one who had suffered, but were to honor and dismiss crowned the one who had done it, he would be truly worthy of accusation and the extreme charges: but when they have not yet been handed over to judgment, do you yourself mount the prosecution and prematurely condemn? Think of the actions of your life, oh man; enter into your own conscience, and not only will you not praise your own judgment, but you will even change your opinion, and you will embrace the meekness of so benign a Lord, and you will be grateful for the patience, admiring the tolerance of injuries in Him. For if everyone were to weigh the punishment of sins the moment they were committed, it could not be that our race would not have been removed long ago. Let us not, therefore, brethren, fall: for we do not care for our own salvation as much as He who made us; nor are we as concerned that we suffer nothing adverse as is He who bestowed upon us our soul, God. For God does not always leave men in calamities, so that they do not succumb; nor in peace, so that they do not become more sluggish; but by vicissitudes He varies their salvation. For if a ship does not persist without a pilot, but is easily submerged; how could the world have lasted so long, if no one were steering it? And that I may say nothing excessive, imagine the world to be a ship, the earth to be the keel, the heaven its sail, men the passengers, the sea the subject depth: how, then, for so long a time has a shipwreck not occurred? Leave a ship, therefore, one day without a pilot and sailors, and you will immediately see it submerged. But the world has suffered nothing of the sort, although it has lasted for five thousand and far more years. And why do I speak of a ship? One has built a small hut among the vines, and after collecting the fruit has abandoned it, and often it has not lasted two days, but it is dissolved and quickly laid low. A Shall, therefore, a hut be unable to stand unless there be one who looks after it; and such a work, so beautiful and so admirable, how will it remain stable for so long a time without any providence? Consider for me the beauty of the heaven, how long a time it has lasted and has not been obscured; consider for me the power of the earth, how its womb for so long a time has not failed from bearing; consider for me the fountains, how they gush forth and have not failed from the time they were created; consider for me the sea, how, receiving so many rivers, it has not exceeded its measure. Rightly is it said of each of the things that have been mentioned: