When the sacred lesson was read just now, we heard the Lord say to blessed Abraham: ‘Leave your country, your kinsfolk and your father’s house.’¹ Now everything which was written in the Old Testament, dearly beloved, provided a type and image of the New Testament. As the Apostle says: ‘Now all these things happened to them as a type, and they were written for our correction, upon whom the final age of the world has come.’² Therefore, if what happened corporally in Abraham was written for us, we will see it fulfilled spiritually in us if we live piously and...

(1) Dearly beloved, we have heard the Scriptures saying: ‘The Lord spoke to Abraham and said: “Bring me a heifer three years old, a she-goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove and a young pigeon.” He brought him all these and cut them in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but the birds he did not cut in two. Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, but Abraham drove them off. As the sun was setting, Abraham fell into a deep sleep; and terror came upon him, a great darkness. Now when the...

(1) I have frequently admonished your charity, dearly beloved, that in the lessons which are read in church these days you should not only pay attention to what we know is meant by the letter, but removing the veil of the letter should devoutly seek the life-giving spirit. Thus, indeed, the Apostle says: ‘The letter kills, but the spirit gives life.’¹ The unfortunate Jews and still more unfortunate heretics, while they only look to the sound of the letter, thus remain dead without its vivifying spirit. Let us listen to the Apostle when he says that: ‘All these things happened...

(1) That lesson in which we read that blessed Abraham offered his son Isaac as a holocaust is not read in the right order during the days of Lent, dearly beloved, because as you know it is reserved for the vigil of Easter due to the mystery of the Lord’s Passion. Since at that time there is no opportunity to say anything about it, we will now, if you wish, briefly suggest an explanation of it to your heart. Under the Lord’s inspiration we shall do so to the best of our ability as the fathers have discussed it.

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(1) When the sacred lesson was read a little while ago, we heard that blessed Abraham called his servant and said to him: ‘Put your hand under my thigh that I may adjure you by the God of heaven and of earth, not to obtain a wife for my son from the daughters of this region,’¹ and that he obediently placed his hand under his thigh and swore to him. Indeed, brethren, all these things which are read in the Old Testament, if we are willing to accept them only according to the letter, will bring us little or no...

(1) If we wanted to make known to the ears of your charity an explanation of Sacred Scripture in the same order and language in which the holy fathers expressed it, the food of doctrine could reach only a few scholarly souls, while the remaining crowd of people would remain hungry. For this reason I humbly beg you that learned ears be content to hear with patience these simple words, provided that all of the Lord’s flock can receive spiritual nourishment, as I said, from this homely, prosaic sermon. Since inexperienced, simple souls cannot rise to the height of scholars,...

(1) When the lesson was read just now, dearly beloved, we heard that in reply to holy Rebecca’s plea Isaac called his son Jacob and told him to proceed to Mesopotamia of Syria and take a wife from there. Jacob departed in humble obedience to his father and on the way came to a certain place where he put a stone under his head and went to sleep. In his slumber he saw a ladder extending to heaven with angels of God ascending and descending by it, while the Lord leaned on the ladder and said to him: Jacob, Jacob,...

(1) We have frequently mentioned to your charity, dearly beloved, that blessed Jacob was a type and figure of our Lord and Savior. Moreover, how Christ was to come into the world to be joined to the Church was prefigured also in blessed Jacob when he traveled into a distant country to choose a wife. Therefore, blessed Jacob, as you have heard, went into Mesopotamia to take a wife. When he had come to a certain well, he saw Rachel coming with her father’s sheep; after he recognized her as his cousin he kissed her as soon as the flock...

(1) As often as lessons from the Old Testament are read to you, dearly beloved, you should not only heed what is said in word, but also what is understood and perceived in spirit as I have frequently advised. The Apostle also calls our attention to this when he says: ‘The letter kills, but the spirit gives life.’¹ Now all these things which are read in the Old Testament, as the Apostle says: ‘happened to them as a type, and they were written for us.’² When the Christian people devoutly come to church, of what benefit is it that they...

(1) It is written concerning blessed Joseph, dearly beloved, that his brothers envied him and, therefore, ‘could not even greet him.’¹ It is true, beloved brethren, that so dangerous is the disease of envy that it cannot even spare brothers, not to mention strangers. Indeed, at the very beginning of the world Cain, a wicked brother, killed the just Abel through envy. Holy and faithful Joseph, then, was shown to be a more just servant of the Lord because of his tribulations. Through envy he was first sold by his brothers to the Ismaelites as a slave, and after having...

(1) In blessed Jacob and in his holy son Joseph, dearly beloved, one who notices carefully realizes that God did a very wonderful thing. First of all, I do not think it was without reason that the Lord who had deigned to show Himself so often to blessed Jacob, refused for so many years to indicate to him that his son Joseph was still alive, but allowed him to be consumed with long affliction. Anyone who believes that this happened without a definite, clear reason should consider this: Although situated so near, neither was his son Joseph permitted to send...

(1) What we saved for your charity from yesterday’s sermon on blessed Joseph now attentively hear in quiet and silence, as you usually do.

(2) In order that blessed Joseph might rule the kingdom of Egypt with admirable wisdom, dearly beloved, he first controlled himself. Although he was handsome and imposing in appearance, he did not tum the beauty of his countenance to the injury of another, but kept it for his own credit. He judged that he would be still finer if proven more distinguished in this way, not by the loss of his chastity, but by the cultivation...

(1) Sacred Scripture mentions a few facts to us concerning the blessed patriarch Joseph, and we also try to say a few words, as though offering you crumbs from huge loaves. For this reason it is written in the Gospel: ‘For even the dogs eat of the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.’¹ Even if crumbs from a great feast do not satisfy, they do feed a man. When we first come to believe, we are fed with the apostolic precepts as with crumbs; but when we have progressed in faith, then an abundance of heavenly bread is received...

(1) We have heard in the lesson which was read, dearly beloved, that ‘When Joseph was dead, the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful and prolific, and they sprang up like grass.’¹ What does this mean, brethren? As long as Joseph lived the children of Israel are not recorded to have increased or multiplied very much, but after he died they are said to have sprung up like the grass. Surely, they should have increased and multiplied more when they were under the patronage and protection of Joseph. These words were prefigured in that Joseph, dearly beloved; but in our Joseph, that...

(1) We have heard in the sacred lesson which was read to us, dearly beloved, that after holy Moses was born he was put into a basket made of bulrushes and thrown into the sedges of a river because of fear of Pharaoh. If we notice carefully, dearly beloved, we realize that just like blessed Isaac, Joseph, and Jacob, so also Moses represented a type of Christ. Moreover, consider still more attentively and you will see what great mysteries were prefigured in him. Moses was born of a Jewish woman and adopted by the daughter of Pharaoh. Now Pharaoh’s daughter...

(1) Great, indeed, are the sacraments of God’s mysteries, dearly beloved, and like a kind of covering; although we cannot explain them all, still we mention briefly to your charity whatever we can. It was not without reason, beloved brethren, nor without the signification of some secret that there was a flame in the bush: ‘And the bush was not consumed.’¹ Indeed, the bush was a genus of thorns; what the earth has produced for sinful man cannot be put in any kind of praise, for it was first said to man when he sinned: ‘Thorns and thistles shall the...

(1) In the divine lessons which were read to us during these last days, we heard the Lord command Moses to go a three days’ journey into the desert and with all the people to sacrifice to the Lord. Let us see, dearly beloved, what it is that Moses said: ‘We will go a three days’ journey in the desert, that we may offer sacrifice to the Lord, our God.’¹ Moses truly desired this, but Pharaoh contradicted him and did not want the sons of Israel to go far away. The prince of this world did not want the Lord’s...

(1) Although we should at all times devoutly listen to the word of God with great longing, dearly beloved, in these days especially we should dwell upon the divine lessons and think more carefully of the salvation of our soul. Although the Christian people are harassed throughout the year by many waves of vice through the devil’s cunning, still at the approach of the paschal solemnity he is wont to arm himself with even greater violence against the faithful, striving to prick and disturb our hearts with the goads of more serious sins. Just as in those days king Pharao...

(1) When Moses came into Egypt, dearly beloved, and brought a rod to scourge and chastise Egypt with the ten plagues, he is understood as the law. This law was given to the world to punish and correct it with ten plagues, that is, by the ten commandments which are contained in the decalogue. Since, moreover, Moses could be understood as the law, the Lord said in the Gospel: ‘They have Moses and the Prophets,’¹ that is, the law and the prophets. However, the rod by which Egypt is subdued and Pharaoh overcome, afforded an image of the cross of...

(1) Beloved brethren, our Lord and Savior like a spiritual physician has provided remedies for our souls by revealing the truths which lie hidden under the covering of words, in order that we may understand what we should love and what guard against. Therefore, consider, dearly beloved, that the number of the precepts of God’s law seems to be equalled by the number of plagues whereby Egypt was struck. Just as there are ten precepts of the law by which the people are admonished to worship God, so we read of ten plagues which afflicted the pride of the Egyptians....

(1) It is not without reason, dearest brethren, that the number of the commands of God’s law² seems to be equalled by the number of plagues whereby Egypt was struck. Just as there are ten precepts of the law by which the people are admonished to worship God, so we read of ten plagues which afflicted the pride of the Egyptians. For this reason, let us consider why ten commandments are mentioned there and ten plagues here. Doubtless, it is because there are remedies in the former for the wounds in the latter; it was necessary for the healing of...

(1) As often as that lesson is read in which we have frequently heard that the Lord hardened the heart of Pharao dearly beloved, it is wont to create anxiety, not only in the laity, but even in some of the clergy. Some people say within themselves: Why is that wickedness imputed to Pharao, when the Lord is mentioned to have hardened his heart? Since on this subject the exceedingly foul Manichaeans with wicked fury are wont to rebuke the writings of the Old Testament, I exhort you, beloved brethren, to listen carefully. Althoug it is not as much as...

(1) When the divine lesson was read yesterday, dearly beloved, we heard that after the crossing of the Red Sea the children of Israel came to Mara, that is, to bitter water. The people could not drink the water because it was bitter, and, therefore, the Lord showed blessed Moses a tree which he cast into the water and it became sweet. Certainly, it is strange that He showed Moses a tree which he threw into the water to make it sweet. Just as if God could not have made the water to make its sweet. Just as if God...

(1) ‘All who want to live piously in Christ suffer persecution,’¹ says the Apostle, and they are attacked by the enemy. For this reason, with Christ’s help, everyone who travels the journey of this life should be armed unceasingly and always stand in camp. So if you want to be constantly vigilant so that you may know you serve in the Lord’s camp, observe what the same Apostle says: ‘No one serving as God’s soldier entangles himself in worldly affairs, that he may please him whose approval he has secured.’² If you serve in such a way that you are...

(1) The mystery of the Christian religion, dearly beloved, is not something new or lately discovered by men, but was divinely consecrated from the very beginning of the world and promised throughout all ages by the words of all the prophets. The fact that the synagogue first existed and then later the Church, and that the Church would have greater glory than the synagogue, is very clearly contained in all the books of Scripture. Moreover, this idea is known to have been shown, not once or twice or three times, but very frequently in the writings of the Old Testament....

(1) When the sacred lesson was read just now, dearly beloved, we heard the Lord say: ‘If you live in accordance with my precepts and are careful to observe my commandments, I will give you rain in due season.’¹ If we faithfully and diligently pay attention to it, brethren, everything which was promised corporally to the Jews is fulfilled spiritually in us; for all the blessings of God which they received on earth, we have obtained in our souls through the grace of Baptism. Therefore, with His help, let us labor with all our strength, so that we may be...

(1) When the divine lesson was read just now, we heard the Lord say to Moses: ‘Send men to reconnoiter the land of Chanaan, which I am giving the Israelites. You shall send one man from each ancestral tribe.’¹ After they had been sent out, ‘They reached the valley of the cluster of grapes,’² and looked at it. ‘And they cut down a branch and a cluster of grapes, and carried it upon a pole; they took also with them pomegranates and figs,’³ in order that they might show the fruitfulness of the land and the quality of the fruits....

(1) When the sacred lesson was read just now, we heard that at the time when the twelve spies were sent to view the land of promise, two of them brought back on a lever to the children of Israel a bunch of grapes of wonderful size. Those two men can be understood in many ways, dearly beloved, for they are not unfittingly believed to have signified both the two testaments and the two precepts whereby God and the neighbor are loved. They can, likewise, be understood both historically and allegorically. That they were a type of the two testaments,...

(1) As we heard in the lesson which was read to us just now, dearly beloved, twelve scouts from the children of Israel were sent to view the land which had been promised to them. After forty days they returned, bringing back varied reports. Ten of them sent the people into despair, with the result that they wanted to get rid of Moses, choose another leader, and return into Egypt. However, the other two men brought good reports and encouraged the people to remain loyal, saying: ‘If the Lord loves us, he will bring us into this land.’¹ Now the...

(1) Those forty years we heard about when the sacred lesson was read just now, dearly beloved, occurred when the children of Israel lingered in the desert on very long paths of the road, and portrayed the difficult, arduous labors of human miseries in the present life. Because of the numerous sins which abound in this life, no more than two men out of six hundred thousand entered the promised land. As the Lord Himself said to the unbelieving people: ‘Since you grumbled against me you shall not enter the land which I promised on oath to your fathers: but...

(1) When the divine lesson was read just now, dearly beloved, we heard that our Lord told Moses to forge the censers in which those haughty, rebellious men had offered incense, beat them fiat, and fasten them to the altar as a sign of the rebellious and proud. ‘Because the sinners have consecrated the censers at the cost of their lives,’ said the Lord, ‘have them hammered into plates to cover the altar, because in being presented before the Lord they have become sacred.’¹ By this figure it seems to have been shown that those censers which Scripture calls brazen...

(1) Every leader of a tribe of people has a rod, for no man can rule people unless he possesses one. For this reason the Apostle Paul who was a leader of the people said: ‘What is your wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and in the spirit of meekness?’¹ Therefore, all the princes of the tribes must have rods, but there is only one true high priest, as Scripture says, of whom the high priest Aaron presented a figure. For this reason his rod blossomed. Just as Aaron’s rod sprouted among the Jewish...

(1) In the lesson which was read to us, dearly beloved, we heard about the time when the people were destroyed in the desert by serpents or basilisks, because of the pride of the Jews and their murmuring against the Lord. Moreover, the Lord commanded Moses to make a brazen serpent and hang it on a tree, so that anyone who had been struck might look on it and be healed from death. Although this serpent seems to be quite wonderful, dearly beloved, still it prefigured the Incarnation of the Lord. Perhaps this thought might seem difficult to some men,...

(1) When the divine lesson was read, dearly beloved, we heard: ‘The children of Israel moved on and encamped in the plains of Moab, near the Jordan over against Jericho, and as Balac the son of Sepphor saw it,’¹ and so forth. All the other details which are recorded concerning Balaam and his ass are historically full of difficulty, but their inner meaning is still more difficult. In fact, I do not know whether it will be easy to explain just the historical ideas. However, with God’s help, we will briefly relate whatever we can. A war threatens you, King...

(1) In the lessons which were read to us on Tuesday, we heard that, at the death of Moses, Josue received the rule. After crossing the Jordan, the people of Chanaan were driven out or killed, and their lands given into the possession of the children of Israel. As often as these lessons of the Old Testament are read, dearly beloved, pagans and especially the most wicked Manichaeans are wont to blaspheme and say with impious lips: What was the justice of God in removing the children of Israel from the land of Egypt by force, and afterwards driving...

(1) As we have frequently mentioned to your charity, dearly beloved, Moses is understood, not only to have typified Christ, but also to have prefigured the law. In truth, when our Lord was transfigured on the mountain, Moses and Elias were talking with Him, and in those two men were signified the law and the prophets. At the death of Moses, Josue received the rule; and when the law ended, our true Lord Jesus obtained the rule of the whole world. Therefore, Josue who typified the Lord said to the people when he came to the Jordan: ‘Prepare your provisions...

(1) The lesson which was read to us just now, dearly beloved, does not so much preach to us the exploits of the son of Nun, as depict the mysteries of our Lord Jesus Christ, for He it is who received the rule after the death of Moses. Therefore, Moses died and Josue governed; the old law ceased, and the true Josue or Jesus ruled. Thus, indeed, the evangelist testifies: ‘Until John came, there were the Law and the Prophets.’¹ Moreover, that Moses is considered as the law we read in the Gospel: ‘They have Moses and the Prophets,’² that...

(1) Listen in silence and quiet and with attentive heart to the meaning of those nations which had first ruled in the land of promise. Before Adam sinned our body and soul was a land of promise, but afterwards it became the land of the Chanaanites. What had been the dwelling of virtues became the cave of robbers, for when the virtues were driven out, vices reigned in us. However, now at the coming of our Lord Jesus, let us hasten with His help to expel from us the opposing nations. If we do not remove anger, we cannot give...

(1) Yesterday, dearly beloved, we heard that when Gedeon, the son of Joas, was beating the grain of wheat with a rod under an oak tree, he merited to hear an angel promise that he would deliver God’s people from the power of their enemies. It is no wonder that he was chosen for a special grace, when by the predestined mystery of the future incarnation he was even then seated under the shade of the cross of holy and venerable wisdom. He was bringing the tangible grains of a fruitful field out of their concealment, separating choice holy men...

(1) Many very obscure sacred mysteries are contained in the lesson which was read to us, dearly beloved, and since they cannot be explained in brief, for this reason alone we wanted the morning psalms to be finished on time, lest the rather lengthy sermon weary you. Moreover, since you are going to leave church at the usual hour, listen in silence and quiet and with attentive mind to what needs to be said, as you usually do.

(2) The strength which Samson possessed, dearly beloved, came from the grace of God rather than by nature, for if he had...

(1) In the lesson which was read to us, dearly beloved, we heard, and in a way beheld with the eyes of our heart, how Samson in his exceedingly great strength killed a lion alone and unarmed. Then after some time he found honey in the lion’s mouth, ate some, and offered it to his parents. Many of the fathers have spoken a great deal about this lion, beloved brethren, and all of them have said what is fitting and in accord with the facts. Some have said that the lion prefigured Christ our Lord. Truly, this is very appropriate,...

(1) In the part of the lesson which was read to us at Vespers, beloved brethren, we read how that cruel and wicked woman, the exceedingly rude and haughty Dalila, through false and poisonous flattery shaved the head of her husband, afterwards handing him over to the Philistines to be mocked. According to history the wickedness of that evil woman was completely vented upon him, but let us be on our guard as far as we can, dearly beloved, lest we suffer spiritually what Samson endured physically. The rational sense in us is understood as the man, while the flesh...

(1) In Sacred Scripture, dearly beloved, one and the same person can have a different signification, depending upon the time and situation. When blessed Isaac was offered by his father, as your holiness knows very well, he prefigured Christ the Lord; but when he blessed his son Jacob and sent him to Mesopotamia to find a wife, Jacob typified Christ, while Isaac was an image of God the Father. Then, again, blessed Jacob who was a figure of Christ, when he took a wife prefigured God the Father in loving blessed Joseph more than all his sons. Moreover, he made...

(1) When the lesson from the Book of Kings was read just now, we heard about the plague of God which raged among the Jewish people. As the angel of the Lord who was striking them stood near the threshing floor of Areuna the Jebusite, the Lord said to him: Stretch out your hand over Jerusalem, so that I may destroy it. ‘And when the angel had stretched out his hand, the Lord had pity on the affliction, and said to the angel that slew the people: It is enough: now hold thy hand’;¹ and the plague desisted from the...

(1) The lesson to be read at Vespers, dearly beloved, concerns the two harlots who came for the decision of Solomon; one of them who was not only dissolute but also cruel and wicked, shouted to the king that he should command the infant to be cut in two. Now if you willingly listen, we would like to mention to the ears of your charity what the holy fathers have explained about the matter. The woman who cried out that the boy should be kept whole represented a type of the Catholic Church; the other cruel and impious woman who...

(1) I have frequently admonished you, beloved brethren, that in the lessons which are read to us on these days we should not follow the killing letter and leave the vivifying spirit, for as the Apostle says: ‘The letter kills, but the spirit gives life.’¹ If we want to understand only what is literally said, we will derive little or almost no edification from the sacred lessons. Indeed, all the things which are read were a type and image of the future; they were prefigured in the Jews, and fulfilled in us by the gift of God’s grace. Blessed Elias...

(1) As often as the lesson of blessed Elias is read to us, dearly beloved, see to it as well as you can that no spark of doubt or reproach arouses you and consumes the field of your heart with evil suspicion, by instilling some unfortunate error of the Manichaeans. These wretched men are wont to censure the writings of the Old Testament saying: How was it just for blessed Elias to burn two captains with their soldiers by means of fire brought down from heaven? How justly and mercifully this was done, dearly beloved, we want to indicate briefly...

(1) I have frequently suggested to your charity that in the lessons which are read in church we should not only heed what we have heard read according to the letter, but should rather consider what is to be understood spiritually. Now, since the text which was read is about blessed Eliseus, through the goodness of God your piety knows that blessed Eliseus himself represents a type of our Lord and Savior. This fact is proven by many evident testimonies of the wonders which we read he performed, while your charity has heard it also in the text which was...

(1) When the divine lesson was read, we heard that as blessed Eliseus passed, boys mocked him shouting: ‘Go up, bald head’;¹ and for this reason at the prayer of Eliseus ‘there came forth two bears out of the forest, and tore of them two and forty boys,’² As enemies of God and of their own souls, the exceedingly foul Manichaeans, who not only refuse to accept the writings of the Old Testament, but even presume to blaspheme with raging lips, are wont to say: What great cruelty that was in Eliseus, to cause forty-two boys to be torn to...

(1) Just as we said concerning blessed Elias that he typified our Lord and Savior, dearly beloved, so we assert with confidence and assurance that holy Eliseus was an image of our Savior. As you heard in the sacred lesson, a certain widow cried to blessed Elise us, beseeching him with tearful voice: ‘My husband is dead, and behold the creditors are come and want to take away my sons:’¹ Thereupon, he asked her what she had in the house. The woman replied: ‘As the Lord liveth, I have nothing but a little oil, to anoint me:’² Then Eliseus said:...

(1) We have frequently mentioned to your charity, beloved brethren, that blessed Eliseus typified our Lord and Savior; moreover, his disciple Giezi is not unfittingly understood to have prefigured the traitor Judas or the Jewish people. Just as Giezi served blessed Eliseus in such a way that he might acquire money, so Judas kept close to our Lord and Savior in order that he might commit fraud and amass earthly riches. Indeed, it is written in the Gospel concerning him: ‘He was a thief, and holding the purse, used to take what was put in it.’¹ Now Giezi, who could...

(1) When the divine lesson was read now, dearly beloved, we heard that as blessed Eliseus was going to the River Jordan with the sons of the prophets to cut some wood, an axe fell into the water, and the man from whose hand it slipped cried out to blessed Eliseus: ‘Alas, my lord, for this was borrowed.’¹ After this blessed Eliseus threw a piece of wood into the place where the axe had fallen, and the iron swam. Eliseus typified our Lord and Savior, dearly beloved, as we have frequently mentioned to your charity. Moreover, in the boy who...

(1) In the lesson which was read to us, dearly beloved, we heard that God’s most glorious athlete fought admirably against the very cunning enemy. According to what the Apostle says, we have merited not without great wonder to hear and in a way to behold with the eyes of faith a worthy ‘Spectacle to God, to his angels, and to men.’¹ Indeed, we saw blessed Job bravely and happily struggling, not only against the happiness of the world, but also against poverty, exceedingly harsh sufferings, and the loss of his children. When he was wealthy, he despised no man;...

(1) So holy was blessed Job, concerning whom yesterday’s lesson was read to us, dearly beloved, that in him was fulfilled what the Holy Ghost said in a psalm: ‘Sing praise to the Lord with the harp and melodious song.’² Do not assume words alone, but also works; so that we should not only sing, but also work with our hands. If a man both sings and works, he sings praise on the psaltery and the harp. One who sings on the psaltery sings divine words from heaven, while the one who works with his hands performs human works. Extend...

(1) Dearly beloved, with the psalmist we frequently chant the verse in which detractors are struck with a spiritual sword; for thus he speaks: ‘You sit speaking against your brother; against your mother’s son you spread rumors.’¹ When he says ‘you sit,’ he wants to show that the slander was not in passing, nor was he overtaken by surprise and thus spoke evil of his neighbors. ‘You sit,’ that is, at leisure, as if unoccupied for the very purpose of discrediting your neighbor. ‘When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?’² Let no one deceive himself with...

(1) As often as you know that some of our sons under vain persuasion or harmful love run to mad, bloody, or shameful spectacles, as if to something good, dearly beloved, you who through the goodness of God despise dissolute and cruel amusements ought to rebuke them and pray to God for them more often. Truly, you know that they are going to vanity and false mad desires, neglecting that to which they have been called. If perchance they shudder at the circus for some reason, they immediately sign themselves, and bearing the cross on their forehead stand there whence...

(1) The divine word admonishes us through the prophet, dearly beloved: ‘Make vows to the Lord, your God, and fulfill them.’¹ Therefore, each one should vow and pay what he can. Do not vow and then not pay, but let each one vow and pay what he can. Do not be slothful in vowing, for then you will not fulfill it with all your strength. You will fail if you trust in yourself, but if you rely on Him to whom you vow, vow and you will pay with assurance. ‘Make vows to the Lord, your God, and fulfill them,...

(1) Dearly beloved, that psalm which is recited at about the twelfth hour throughout the world, both in churches and monasteries, is so well known to almost all men that the majority of them keep it in mind. However, because this is not to be understood according to the letter, we wish, as far as possible, to make known briefly to the ears of your charity what the ancient fathers thought about it.

(2) As you know, that psalm contains the words: ‘The sun knows the hour of its setting. You bring darkness, and it is night.’¹ What man, though...

(1) We have frequently sung with your charity, dearly beloved, the psalm in which the Holy Ghost through blessed David makes known to us a remarkable end. Thus, indeed, he speaks: ‘I see that all fulfillment has its limits; broad indeed is your command:’¹ What did he see? Are we to think he ascended the top of a very high mountain, looked with very keen eyes and saw the orbit of the earth and the globe of the whole world, for this reason saying: ‘I see that all fulfillment has its limits’? If this is praiseworthy, let us ask the...

(1) I beseech you, dearly beloved, that according to your custom you devoutly receive in silence and repose the words which are preached to you. When, with God’s help, my mind is able to conceive some thoughts in explanation of Sacred Scripture, it desires to find a spiritual nest in your hearts. Therefore, with fervor strive like most pious turtle-doves to foster the divine words of the Holy Ghost in the nest of your heart. Do not allow the seed of God’s word to freeze in you through the coldness of your sins, according to what is written: ‘Iniquity will...

(1) The Catholic Church was not only preached after the coming of our Lord and Savior, beloved brethren, but from the beginning of the world, it was designated by many figures and rather hidden mysteries. Indeed, in holy Abel the Catholic Church existed, in Noe, in Abraham, in Isaac, in Jacob, and in the other saintly people before the advent of our Lord and Savior. Truly, Solomon says of her: ‘Who shall find a worthy wife?’¹ What does he mean: ‘Who shall find’? Here, we should understand the difficulty, not the impossibility, of finding her. That valiant woman is the...

(1) We read in Sacred Scripture, dearly beloved, that: ‘Happy the rich man who turns not aside after gain!’¹ ‘He could have sinned but did not, could have done evil but would not:’² Well, then, brethren, let us question our own consciences and see whether we despise avarice in such a way that we may be sharers in that beatitude. Perhaps someone will reflect and say: I do not steal or commit acts of violence; I never commit robbery or keep what belongs to another. Maybe you never did so because no one was willing to entrust anything to you,...

(1) We have read, dearly beloved, that: ‘Happy the rich man who turns not aside after gain!’¹ ‘He could have sinned but did not, could have done evil but would not.’² ‘Who is he, that we may praise him? he, of all his kindred, has done wonders.’³ Now at this point someone may reflect and say: Who can be found like this? Far be it from us to despair that there is such a man, or rather not such a man but such men. However, men who are inexperienced and ignorant of God’s justice cry out and say: Behold many...

(1) Many times before, beloved brethren, it has been prophesied concerning our Lord and Savior: ‘He grew up like a sapling, like a shoot from the parched earth:’¹ Why like a root? Because ‘there was in him no stately bearing:’² He suffered, was humiliated, and spit upon, He had no beauty. He appeared as a man, although He was God. Now in the same way, a root is not beautiful, but possesses within it the force of beauty. . . Listen, brethren, and consider the mercy of God. You notice a beautiful tree that is pleasing, green with foliage, rich in...

(1) At the time when blessed Jona preached destruction to the city of Ninive, dearly beloved, what kind of feeling do you suppose that holy man had at the sight of those people with perfect compunction hastening to the remedies of repentance and so devoutly trusting in the mercy of God? No doubt, the more he rejoiced over the Assyrians, the more he was troubled at his own people. As often as he praised the Ninivites, he presently mourned for the sons of Abraham. The race of Chanaan advanced, while the seed of Jacob strayed; what foolish circumcision lost there,...

(1) When the Gospel passage was read, dearly beloved, we heard: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’¹ The kingdom of heaven is Christ, who is generally acknowledged to be the judge of good and evil, the discerner of all motives. Therefore, let us anticipate God in the confession of sin, and before the last judgment let us correct all the errors of our soul. Indeed, there is the risk of danger if a soul does not know how to amend its sin by some kind of remedy. We ought to do penance, especially when we realize that...

(1) Your charity has frequently heard in Sacred Scripture, beloved brethren, in what danger priests are situated if they are unwilling to fulfill what the Apostle enjoins: ‘Preach the word, be urgent in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, entreat with all patience and teaching.’² So heavy a weight hangs over our necks, to whom it is said: ‘If you do not dissuade the wicked from his wicked conduct, I will hold you responsible for his death.’³ For this reason it is necessary for us to rebuke, either in secret or in public, those who are careless. Now if the...

(1) It seems to me that the Gospel lesson which was read to us just now, beloved brethren, cannot be understood according to the letter. Therefore, with God’s help, let us ask how we may arrive at the spiritual meaning of it. For thus the Lord speaks: ‘Take heed not to do your good before men, in order to be seen by them’;² and again: ‘When thou givest alms, do not let thy left hand know what thy right hand is doing, so that thy alms may be given in secret.’³ How can we accept this according to the letter,...

(1) You have recited what you believe, you have heard for what you should pray. Surely, you could not invoke one in whom you did not believe, as the Apostle says: ‘How are they to call upon him in whom they have not believed?’¹ For this reason you first learned the Creed. Here is a rule of your faith which is both short and long: short in the number of words, long because of the weight of thoughts. Moreover, this prayer, which you received today to be kept and recited for eight days, was spoken by our Lord Himself to...

(1) When the Gospel was read just now we heard the Lord say: ‘Do not judge, that you may not be judged. For with what judgment you judge, you shall be judged.’² What does this mean, brethren, when the Lord Himself said in another place of the Gospel: ‘Judge not by appearances, but give just judgment,’³ and elsewhere it is said: ‘render true judgment’?⁴ The divine lesson cannot contradict itself, but it requires prudent understanding. In human life, dearly beloved, there are some things which are reasonably criticized, but there are certain things which are not judged without sin. For...

(1) When the Gospel was read, beloved brethren, you heard the Lord mention two paths: the one terrible and to be feared, the other very desirable and to be followed. By the one, the just are lifted up into heaven after short labor, while on the other, lovers of the world after brief pleasure are dragged into hell. ‘Enter by the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many there are who enter that way. How close the gate and narrow the way that leads to life! And few there...

(1) I am sure, dearest brethren, that your holy charity cannot be ignorant of the fact that our father, Adam, was placed in the midst of the delights of paradise. Under the devil’s persuasion, however, he despised the precepts of God and was cast into the miseries of this world, as though from a higher place to a lower one. For this reason paradise is celestial, while this world is hell; but a different hell is the one in which sinners and the wicked are plunged after death. For that there are two hells the prophet clearly indicates when he...

(1) We have a sermon for you, beloved brethren, on what you heard in the Gospel: ‘Close and narrow is the way that leads to life; wide and broad the way that leads to death,’¹ or in other words, on the earthly sojourn of Christians.

If temporal necessities permitted it, beloved brethren, we would want to visit you, not only once a year, but even a second or a third time, in order that we might satisfy at the same time both your and our longing for the sight of you. However, what our wills desire temporal necessities do not...

(1) Our Lord has deigned to give us a great assurance, beloved brethren, when He says in the Gospel: ‘Where two or three are gathered together for my sake, there am I in the midst of them.’² If He condescends to be present among two or three, how much more so when all the people are gathered in church with pious devotion, the body of the Church united with Christ its Head in a society of harmonious members? ‘Where two or three,’ He says, ‘are gathered together for my sake,’ Now since a congregation pertains to many people, we must...

(1) When the Gospel was read, dearest brethren, we heard the Lord say: ‘If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.’ Who is there, brethren, who does not want life? And yet who is there who wishes to keep the commandments? If you are unwilling to keep the commandments, why do you seek life? If you are slothful in the work, why do you hasten to the reward? That rich young man said that he had kept the commandments, and he heard still greater commands: ‘If thou wilt be perfect, one thing is lacking to thee: sell all that...

(1) We ought to know and to understand, dearest brethren, that for Christians tribulation can never be lacking as long as they live in this body. For thus the Apostle also attests, as you have heard, when he says: ‘All who want to live piously in Christ suffer persecution’;² and again: ‘Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.’³ Days of tribulation, and of even still greater tribulations are going to come. They will come, as Scripture says, and as the days pass trials will be increased. Let no one promise himself what the Gospel does not promise,...

(1) In the lesson which was read to us, beloved brethren, we heard the Lord say: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like ten virgins who took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom and the bride.’¹ If we understand this only literally, it seems to be too harsh and difficult. Far be it from our thoughts that out of the household even of the Christian poor so small a number reaches eternal life. Because this should by no means be understood according to the letter, since in reality the Lord Himself said it was a parable, let us...

(1) In the Gospel passage which was read to us concerning the ten virgins, beloved brethren, it is said: ‘All the virgins trimmed their lamps.’¹ Now the foolish virgins did not have oil ready with their lamps: ‘While the wise did take oil in their vessels. Then as the bridegroom was long in coming, they all became drowsy and slept. And at midnight a great cry arose, “Behold, the bridegroom is coming, go forth to meet him!” Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.’² When the lamps of the foolish virgins were extinguished, they asked the others who...

(1) When the Gospel text was read just now, dearest brethren, we heard the Lord say: ‘Come, blessed, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’² In order that you may be able to hear this word and to escape from the evil hearing, endeavor with all your strength and by the grace of God to read this divine lesson frequently in your homes and to listen to it in church willingly and obediently. For just as desirable as is that word whereby it is said to the merciful: ‘Come, blessed, receive the kingdom,’ so dreadful...

(1) When the Gospel was read, we heard that word which is at the same time both terrible and desirable, the sentence of our Lord which is equally dreadful and desirable. It is terrible because of what He says: ‘Depart from me, accursed ones, into the everlasting fire’;¹ it is desirable because of the words: ‘Come, blessed, receive the kingdom.’² Who would not at the same time tremble and rejoice upon hearing these words: rejoice, because Christ deigns to promise a kingdom to Christians who are His servants; tremble, because He threatens sinners with eternal fire? I beseech you, brethren,...

(1) When the Gospel was read we heard that word which is at the same time both terrible and desirable, the sentence of our Lord which is equally dreadful and desirable. It is terrible because of what He says: ‘Depart from me, accursed ones, into the everlasting fire’;¹ ...

Now as the holy prophet Daniel says: ‘O king, take my advice; atone for your sins by good deeds,’⁸ you will knock at the door of heaven in vain if you neglect it. Oh soul, which dwells within the frail walls of the flesh, watch, pray, knock, and seek: watch by...

(1) It seems difficult, dearest brethren, and it is considered as harsh that the Lord commanded in the Gospel: ‘If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself.’² However, what He commands is not difficult, since He helps to effect what He commands. True, indeed, is what is said in the psalm: ‘According to the words of your lips I have kept the ways of the law,’³ and also true is what He Himself said: ‘For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.’⁴ Charity makes whatever is difficult in the precepts light. We know that this is...

(1) When the Gospel was read, dearest brethren, we heard that our Lord said to His disciples and to the multitudes: ‘The good man from the good treasure of his heart brings forth that which is good; and the evil man from the evil treasure of his heart brings forth that which is evil. For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.’² If we notice carefully, brethren, Christ our Lord indicated two kinds or two locations of treasures: good treasure in the good heart, and evil treasure in an evil heart. For this reason, brethren, let us...

(1) When the Gospel was read, dearest brethren, we heard that our Lord said to the multitudes . .. (this sermon continues like the preceding one as far as the end of #3).

(4) Therefore, beloved brethren, if a man under Christ’s inspiration does not possess the wine of justice, the oil of mercy, the sweetness of charity, the lard of devotion, the spices of chastity, and the burnt-offering of patience, by the testimony of Christ he is found to be naked and an exile, a stranger to His domain. If a man first despises the gift of grace, he...

(1) When the Gospel lesson was read, dearest brethren, we heard our Lord and Savior expound a parable concerning the sin of the first man. ‘A certain man,’ He said, ‘was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell in with robbers, who stripped him.’² That man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho was Adam. He went down from Jerusalem to Jericho: that is, he came from paradise into the world. Jerusalem is interpreted as a vision of peace, but Jericho typified this world. Now Jericho presents a figure of the world because it is interpreted as...

(1) The condition of our misery and the mercy of God, brethren, are so arranged that the time for joy is preceded by a time of sadness. In other words, the time of sadness comes first, and the time for joy later; first, there is the time for labor, and then the time of rest; first is the time of calamity, and later the time of good fortune. If we first labor in the world by performing good deeds, then afterwards when the Lord repays, we may reach the kingdom, according to what the Apostle says: ‘Through many tribulations we...

(1) In the Gospel passage which was just read, beloved brethren, we heard that a certain man had two sons, and one of them asked his father for his share of the property, and when he had received it, he wasted it with harlots. That man to whom the two sons belong is understood as God the Father. In his two sons are designated two people, the elder people, the Jews, and the younger Gentiles. The elder son, that is, the Jewish people, are said to have stayed with the father always because of the fact that they received the...

(1) When the Gospel was read just now, dearly beloved, we heard a parable about the rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and Lazarus who was full of ulcers. If we pay attention only with the eyes of the body, we long for the adornments and delicacies of that rich man, while we shudder at the poverty and misery of Lazarus; but if we look with the eyes of the heart, we have to struggle with Lazarus for a short time in order that we may be able to avoid the eternal fire of that rich...

(1) ‘There was a certain rich man who used to clothe himself in purple and fine linen, and who feasted every day in splendid fashion,’¹ and other words of the Gospel may be accepted allegorically in this way. That rich man typified the Jews who boasted about their own merits: ‘Ignorant of the justice of God and wishing to establish their own.’² The purple and fine linen are the dignity of the kingdom, for thus it is written in the Gospel concerning the Jews: ‘And the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and will be given to...

(1) When the Gospel was read we heard the Lord say: ‘The kingdom of God is within you.’ Now He knew that not everyone would be able to understand what He said in the words: ‘The kingdom of God is within you.’ So for this reason, as if He were questioned by someone, He explained and added to it, saying: ‘The kingdom of God does not consist in food and drink, but in justice and peace and joy.’² I exhort you, dearest brethren, let us examine our consciences to see whether we have the kingdom of God reserved within the...

(1) When the divine lesson was read just now, dearest brethren, we heard the Evangelist say: ‘On the third day a marriage took place at Cana of Galilee.’¹ The third day is the mystery of the Trinity, while the miracles of the nuptials are the mysteries of heavenly joys. It was both a nuptial day and a feast for this reason, because the Church after the Redemption was joined to the spouse who was coming: to that spouse, I say, whom all the ages from the beginning of the world had promised. It is He who came down to earth...

(1) As to the fact that when the Gospel was read just now, dearest brethren, you heard that on the third day a marriage took place and water was changed into wine, let us see what that marriage was. Our gain or re-instatement is shown in the nuptial vows and feast, just as in another place the return of the younger son was received with music and dancing. Now the six water-jars are the six ages of this world which prefigured the just and typified our Lord, and they take two or three measures each because they contain within them...

(1) As we have occasionally indicated to your charity, dearest brethren, those six water-jars which the Gospel passage just mentioned and the water of which was changed into wine, prefigured the six ages of this world. As you usually hear, one age was completed from Adam to Noe, the second was from Noe to Abraham, as the Gospel mentions the third extended from Abraham to David, the fourth lasted from David to the transmigration to Babylon, the fifth extended from the transmigration to Babylon until John the Baptist, and the sixth age has been going on from John the Baptist...

(1) In the Gospel lesson the holy evangelist has shown us most abundantly that our Lord Jesus Christ assumed the weakness of the human race. Indeed, when he said that the Lord came: ‘To a town of Samaria called Sichar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph, and Jacob’s well was there,’ he added: ‘wearied as he was from the journey, Jesus was sitting at the well.’¹ Our Lord Jesus Christ came to the field which holy Jacob had left to his son, Joseph. I do not think that this field was left to Joseph as much...

(1) The passage of the holy Gospel which speaks about the pool of Siloe, beloved brethren, addresses us in particular, because we are freed from all the listlessness of sin through the grace of Baptism. Just as that paralytic whom the Lord cured was weak in all his members so that he could accomplish no good act, so before the coming of our Lord the entire human race was weakened interiorly in soul by the paralysis of sin. Before the coming of the Savior, the human race was so feeble that it could do nothing that was connected with faith...

(1) When the Gospel was read just now, dearest brethren, we heard that Jesus gave sight to the man who was blind from birth. Why do you wonder? Jesus is the Savior. If Jesus is the Savior, He did something in keeping with His name, for by His kindness He restored what He had given to a lesser degree in the womb. Now when He made his eyes less powerful, surely He did not make a mistake, but He deferred it for the miracle. Do you perhaps say to me: How do you know this? We have heard it from...

(1) When the divine lesson was read just now, brethren, we heard the Lord say: ‘He who loves his life, loses it.’ What the Apostle says seems, as it were, to be contrary to this thought: ‘No one ever hated his own flesh.’² Therefore, if there is no one who hates his own flesh, how much more so is it that there is no one who hates his own soul? Surely, the soul is much preferred to the body, since it is the inhabitant, while the body is the dwelling. Moreover, the soul is in domination, while the body serves;...

(1) Here is a word of our Lord: ‘My peace I give to you, my peace I leave with you.’¹ As we are about to speak of peace, let us first see what the holy rewards of peace are. Peace, indeed, is serenity of mind, tranquillity of soul, simplicity of heart, the bond of love, the fellowship of charity. This it is which removes hatred, settles wars, restrains wrath, tramples upon pride, loves the humble, pacifies the discordant, makes enemies agree. For it is pleasing to everyone. It does not seek what belongs to another or consider anything as its...

(1) Some men are wont to ask, concerning the Gospel text which was read to us, dearest brethren, how our Lord and Savior could appear to His disciples when the doors were closed. Some are so stirred by this fact that they almost run into danger by summoning the judgments of their own reasoning against the divine miracles. For thus they argue: If there was a body, there was also flesh, and if flesh, bones, too. Now if what hung on the cross arose from the grave, how could it enter through closed doors? If it was not possible, they...

(1) When the text from the Acts of the Apostles was read just now, we heard that blessed ‘Peter went to the upper room about the sixth hour; but he got very hungry, and wanted something to eat. But while the disciples were getting it ready, he fell into an ecstasy, and saw a large vessel like a great sheet, weighed down at the four corners and let down from heaven; and in it were all the four-footed beasts and creeping things of the earth. And a voice from heaven sounded, “Peter, kill and eat.” But he said, “Lord, thou...

(1) Where or how original sin is contracted, dearest brethren, how we continually suffer disturbances because of it, and how, with God’s help, we can overcome the evil desires which are planted in us, the blessed Apostle clearly shows us, when Christ speaks through him: ‘I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind and making me prisoner to the law of sin that is in my members.’¹ This law was born at the time when the former law was transgressed; it was born, I repeat, when the former law was despised. What is the...

(1) We have frequently heard the blessed Apostle Paul, dearest brethren, as he admonishes us in a salutary way and says: ‘Laying aside the works of darkness, put on the armor of light.’ What does it mean to lay aside the works of darkness, except to renounce the devil, his pomps and his angels? And what does it mean: ‘Put on the armor of light,’ except believe in God the Father almighty? However, let us first examine who or what the devil is, dearly beloved, and what his pomps are which we renounce when we lay aside the works of...

(1) In the Gospel text which was read to us a little while ago, dearest brethren, we heard the Apostle say: ‘Other foundation no one can lay, but that which has been laid, which is Christ Jesus. But if anyone builds upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw—the work of each will be made manifest, for the day of the Lord will declare it, since the day is to be revealed in fire. The fire will assay the quality of everyone’s work: if his work abides which he has built thereon, he will receive reward; if...

(1) When the divine lesson was read just now, dearest brethren, we heard the Apostle say: ‘Put away lying and speak truth each one with his neighbor.’² Let no one think that truth is to be spoken with a Christian, and lying with a pagan. Speak the truth with your neighbor. Every man is your neighbor: anyone who was born of Adam and Eve with you is your neighbor. We are all neighbors in the condition of our earthly birth, but otherwise we are brothers in that hope of a blessed inheritance. You ought to think that every man is...

(1) When the lesson was read you heard the Apostle telling us, or rather we all heard him say: ‘See to it that you walk with care: not as unwise but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil.’³ Two things make days evil, brethren, wickedness and misery. Days are called evil because of the wickedness and the misery of men. However, those days, as far as refers to the space of hours, have been arranged, take their turns, and tell the times. ‘The sun rises and the sun goes down’;⁴ again it rises and...

(1) In order to recommend to us the sweetness of true and perfect charity, dearest brethren, the blessed Apostle Paul explained to us the bitterness of carnal desires. Like a very skilled spiritual physician, he shows what we ought to avoid and what we should seek. Since ‘Covetousness is the root of all evils,’¹ and charity is the root of all good things, both cannot exist together at the same time. Unless the one is torn out by the roots, the other cannot be planted. A man attempts to cut off the branches to no purpose, if he does not...

(1) If you notice carefully, dearest brethren, you realize that all priests of the Lord, not only bishops, but even the clergy and ministers of the churches, are in great danger. The Holy Spirit even bears witness to this truth when He says: ‘Cry out full-throated and unsparingly, lift up your voice like a trumpet blast; tell my people their wickedness’;¹ and again: ‘If you do not speak out to dissuade the wicked man from his wicked conduct, I will hold you responsible for his death.’² The Apostle also says about them: ‘Obey your superiors and be subject to them,...

(1) In the Gospel text we heard that the servants and friends of God ‘of whom the world was not worthy’¹ suffered indignities and glorious calamities by the power of faith, as the divine word says: ‘Others had experience of mockery and stripes, yes, even of chains and prisons. They were stoned, they were sawed asunder, they were put to death by the sword.’² Therefore, we read that some were tortured in prisons, while others, as the persecution acquired strength, were overcome by the whirling of a cruel storm and were struck with hard showers of rocks. Still others had...

(1) In many places of Sacred Scripture the Holy Spirit advises us to speak to you about harmony between brothers, and for this reason anyone who has a quarrel against another should end it, lest he be finished. Do not despise these words, my brethren. For this life is constantly in danger in the midst of so many and such great temptations, and it prays that it may not be overwhelmed. Mortal and fleeting as it is, no just man can live in it without some kind of sins, but there is one remedy by which we may live, and...

(1) In his epistle blessed John the Evangelist, dearest brethren, has not only given us consolation, but he has also inspired solicitude and fear. There is comfort, indeed, if we are willing to fulfill the things which he preaches about charity; but there ought to be intolerable fear if we neglect to fulfill them. For thus he says: ‘Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God,’ Who is there who does not believe that Jesus is the Christ? Whoever does not live in the way which Christ commanded. For many say: I believe; and they think...