Sedulius Paschal Work, Book 2

Paschal Work, Book 2	Paschale Operis, Liber Secundus
That most wicked serpent had expelled the first man from the flower-filled abode of paradise through deceitful schemes, and had made him taste hidden death with the allure of a pleasant flavor, soon finding it bitter; nor did he alone suffer the penalty of divine wrath as the sole violator of the command, but from him the human progeny, coming forth, succumbed to the condition of prolonged death—alas, the spouse cruel and harmful, or was that serpent more treacherous, that murderous serpent? But you, spouse, also cruel and harmful, alas! Only two had been eternal, after which as the origin began to grow, then perished, and in giving birth to disaster from the seed, took on losses. What did those numerous days and the multiple what did the happy spans of life, exceeding nine hundred years, avail, and seeing in the waning lineage of descendants, of his own kind, foreign blood now, when the fate of human condition in the final unrecoverable hours of the ultimate course was occupied, though late, it nevertheless did not avoid destruction, and life being short through long ages, nothing lasting that was confined by an end would lament, nor to this evil would any hope promise a remedy to come, but the merit of the first earth-born would engulf all the later generations of the seed through a greedy maw, unless that pious creator and founder of all, to whom it is inherent to pour forgiveness on sins rather than to threaten punishment, would deign to raise again the structure of His work, weak from its own foundation, through the same stone, lest the image, which had been made in the likeness of God, would be considered dissimilar in living from death, and would grant the gift of venial indulgence, and prevent the teeth of children from being stunned by the fruits that the parents had devoured unripe, and would give, most gentle and appeased, that from whence death was contracted through sin, from there life might be nourished by piety, immense and like a sweet and most soft rose born from a thorny sod, not to harm the mother whom the grace of delight obscures, thus from the stock of the guilty Eve, Mary, coming with holy light, the virgin following would wash away the filth of the first virgin, so that because the former nature, contaminated by vices, had been subject to the condition of harsh death, with Christ born, man also through man might be reborn through Christ, intending to set aside the original stain of the old body by renewal.	Expulerat serpens ille nequissimus de paradisi sede florigera I primogenitum dolosis artibus uirum et inlecebris blandi saporis absconditam mortem gustare fecerat mox amaram nec indignationis diuinae sententiam solus praecepti temerator uitae damno susceperat sed ab ipso ueniens humana progenies longae mortis fuerat condicioni succumbens heu coniunx crudelis et noxia an ille magis draco perfidus homicida ille draco perfidus homicida sed tu coniunx quoque crudelis et noxia pro dolor duo tantum fuerant aeterni postquam crescere coepit origo tunc periit clademque parturiens a semine detrimenta suscepit quid illa tempestate numerosa dies ac multiplex quid felicibus uitae spatiis nongentos proderat annos excedere nepotumque decima senescente progenie sui generis externum sanguinem iam uidere cum sors humanae condicionis extrema inreparabilis horae supremis cursibus occupata licet serum nequaquam tamen declinaret interitum longamque temporum per aetatem uita breuis existens nihil esse diutinum quod fine clauderetur ingemeret nec huic malo remedium spes ulla promitteret adfuturum sed primi terrigenae meritum sepulchrale cunctas postremi quoque germinis nationes auida passim fauce sorberet nisi pius ille rerum creator et conditor cui proprium est ueniam delictis infundere quam poenaliter inminere fabricam sui operis ab ipso debilem fundamento firmius per eundem rursus lapidem dignaretur erigere ne uidelicet imago quae ad similitudinem Dei facta fuerat uiuens dissimilis haberetur ex morte munusque uenialis indulgentiae largiretur ac pomis quae parentes acerba uorauerant filiorum obstupere dentes arceret donaretque mitissimus ac placatus ut unde mortem peccata contraxerant inde uitam pietas renutriret inmensa ac uelut rosa suauis atque mollissima de spinoso cespite nascitur nil laesura matrem quam gratia iucunditatis obscurat ita de stirpe nocentis Euae Maria sacro ueniente cum lumine primae uirginis luem sequens uirgo dilueret ut quia prior natura uitiis inquinata durae necis fuerat condicioni subiecta nascente Christo per hominem homo quoque possit renasci per Christum originalis maculae foeditatem uetusti corporis innouatione positurus.
After this, when the prophetic voice had foretold repeatedly, and Gabriel the archangel had announced his presence to Mary, soon in the womb of the believing girl, the faithful conception of the word remained inspired, and the celestial offspring lay hidden under the law of being born, which allowed all things to be born by her nod; the virgin's womb swelled and her body, untouched, marveled at the fecundity of her own viscera, promising great assistance to the world, the mystery of a feminine birth without a man, when nourished in the womb stretched tight, the innards of the father, the mother soon to be.	Haec postquam prophetica saepius uox praedixit et Gabrihel archangelus Mariae iam praesentia nuntiauit mox puellae credentis in utero fidelis uerbi mansit adspirata conceptio prolesque siderea nascendi sub lege delituit quae cuncta suo nasci nutu concessit tumebant uirginis sinus et fecunditatem suorum uiscerum corpus mirabatur intactum grande mundo spondebat auxilium feminei partus sine uiro mysterium quando nullius maculae naeuo fuscata tenso nutriebat uentre praecordia genitoris genetrix mox futura.
Meanwhile, the ninth month had passed, and the immortal light of the tenth was shining; and the promise of spiritual grace was made clear by the virginal conception, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, that is, dwelt in man, whose flesh He deigned to wear. For the infant was both small and great, small in body but exalted in deity. Flowing through the pure chastity of the hospitable temple, He did not harm the body upon leaving, which He had not harmed when He arrived. This is truly the secret of divine generation; the testimony of the virginal birth is shown, who, guarding the modesty of the mother, entered the closed womb and was conceived and created. Then, that clarity of the new light filled the bounds of the entire world, what joy to heaven, what brilliance shone forth when Christ, with the splendor of a star, like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, proceeded from Mary's womb, whose divine form seemed to shine with grace so that the Davidic psalm pronounces thus: "You are the most handsome of the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips," etc. Well, indeed, he is defined as beautiful among the sons of men because, although he took on the image of human incarnation and often called Himself the Son of Man in evangelical proclamation, we were marred by original sin, which He did not have, who purified us with the purity of His birth. O merciful and gentle kindness for salvation, lest the yoke of prolonged servitude for the condition of sin should press upon us, the Lord took on the limbs of a servant. Let us hear the voice of Paul the Apostle saying: "He emptied Himself and took on the form of a servant," etc., and He who clothes all things from the origin of the world in swaddling clothes allowed His own limbs to be wrapped, and to whom the heavens are too small, the earth lacks, the sea's wave is not enough, remained full in a small child's body, God lying in a manger.	Nonus interea mensis effluxerat et decimi lumen inmortale radiabat claruitque fetu uirgineo spiritalis gratiae manifesta promissio et uerbum caro factum est et habitauit in nobis id est habitauit in homine cuius se dignatus est carne uestire infans namque paruus ac maximus membris scilicet exiguus deitate praecelsus per hospitalis templi sinceram defluens castitatem non laesit corpus abscedens quod non laeserat cum uenisset uere diuinae generationis est hoc secretum testis uirginis partus ostenditur qui materni pudoris custos ingressus clausis uisceribus et conceptus est et creatus quae nouae lucis illa tunc claritas mundi totius oras impleuit quae caelo laetitia quis ille nitor effulsit cum Christus splendore sidereo uelut sponsus procedens de thalamo suo Mariae processit ex utero cuius ita species diuina uidebatur gratia praenitere ut Dauiticus ipsum psalmus ita pronuntiet speciosus forma prae filiis hominum diffusa est gratia in labiis tuis et cetera bene autem prae filiis hominum speciosum forma definiuit quia licet humanae susceperit incarnationis effigiem filiumque hominis in euangelica praedicatione saepe se dixerit peccatum nos tamen originale foedauerat quod ipse non habuit qui suae nos natiuitatis puritate mundauit o pietas clemens et facilis ad salutem ne nos iugum diuturnae premeret seruitutis pro condicione peccati Dominus serui membra suscepit audiamus uocem Pauli dicentis Apostoli semet ipsum exinaniuit et formam serui suscepit et cetera quique cuncta uestit ab origine mundi nascentia pannis inuolui sua passus est membra et cui caeli paruus est limes terra deficit maris unda non sufficit plenus mansit in corpore puerili modico Deus recubans in praesepi.
Hail, most excellent parent, consecrated by the childbirth of such a great king, who thus continually reigns over the heavens and the underworlds, so that His empire, power, and name know neither beginning nor end; you who are notably honored by the blessedness of the womb are proven both mother and virgin, no woman is found who equally matches you, none who has preceded or will follow your glory, alone pleasing uniquely to Christ, compared to no one by example.	Salue parens optima tanti regis puerperio consecrata qui supernis ita iugiter dominatur et infernis ut eius imperium potestas et nomen nec initium nouerit habere nec finem quae beati uentris honore conspicuo simul et mater esse probaris et uirgo cui nulla penitus aequalis femina reperitur quae tuum decus similiter praecesserit aut sequatur sola placens singulariter Christo nulli compararis exemplo.
Then, with the joy of angelic discourse, the shepherds, who were the first to keep their flock during the night watches, recognized the born Lord, so that the shepherd of the world might be made known to the shepherds, and among the flocks, the lamb born would appear. Therefore, as the Gospel word testifies, proclaiming thus: "And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will.'" This shows the faithful assertion of the Evangelist concerning whose kingdom it is spoken of here, when the multitude of the heavenly host praises God in Christ so that, although the creation was human due to the condition of the mother, yet the shared communion with the deity demonstrates the Father to be known in the Son. Therefore, they said, "Glory to God in the highest," indeed, the glory of God remained in the highest, from whence Christ coming did not depart, "and on earth peace to men of good will." It is to be believed that "earth" refers to men, from whom we are, formed by the Lord who, reproving Adam, said, "For you are dust, and to dust you shall return." For then our earth deserved peace after that deadly war which fell when Christ assumed the earth of our flesh. For if in this place we should consider "earth" to mean fields and mountains, what peace can it have, or battles, the silent and sluggish masses against men? Therefore, that peace specifically descended upon those whom it found capable of good will, so that where it saw the endeavor of a sincere intention, the searcher of kidneys and hearts might be pleased to establish the dwelling of His abode. Peace is thus the better rationale of judgment against the spirit of the flesh, not to favor conflict, but to continuously preserve both matters in harmonious purity with the domination of the spirit. We should not distrust the weakness of the flesh so much that we seem to despair of heavenly help, for the Almighty Lord Jesus Christ, proven as the mediator of God and man, removes the excuse of our bodily frailty, seeking only the perfection of good work in our will, preserving it to His majesty. For the apostolic doctrine thus explains, saying, "The desire to do good is with me, but I do not find the ability to perform it," because, indeed, it is our part to want to do good; God's part is to perform, who pours His peace upon men of good will. The divine word then continues, saying:	Tunc angelici iucunditate sermonis pastores primi gregem suum nocturnis uigiliis reseruantes natum Dominum cognouerunt ut et pastoribus pastor mundi claresceret et inter greges agnus genitus appareret igitur ut euangelicus sermo testatur ita pronuntians et subito facta est cum angelo multitudo militiae caelestis laudantium Deum et dicentium gloria in altissimis Deo et in terra pax hominibus bonae uoluntatis ostendit Euangelistae fidelis assertio de cuius ageretur hic regno quando caelestis militae multitudo Deum laudat in Christo ut licet humana fuerit pro matris condicione creatio deitatis tamen una communio Patrem cognosci demonstret in Filio dicebant ergo gloria in altissimis Deo utique in altissimis gloria Dei permansit unde Christus ueniens non recessit et in terra pax hominibus bonae uoluntatis terram credendum est homines nuncupari de qua sumus Domino fabricante plasmati qui Adam increpans dixit quia terra es et in terram ibis tunc enim terra nostra pacem meruit post illud bellum ferale quo cecidit quando Christus terram nostrae carnis adsumpsit nam si terram in hoc loco campos arbitremur dictos et montes quam pacem potest habere uel praelia muta moles et pigra in homines ergo specialiter pax illa descendit quos bonae uoluntatis capaces inuenerit ut ubi studium sinceri propositi renum scrutator et cordis esse conspexerit illic domicilium suae delectetur instruere mansionis pax est enim et ratio melioris arbitrii contra spiritum carnis non fauere certamini sed utramque materiem concordi iugiter puritate cum spiritus dominatione seruare nec debemus tantum de carnis inbecillitate diffidere ut de caelesti uideamur auxilio desperare omnipotens enim Dominus Iesus Christus qui Dei mediator et hominis adprobatur ut excusationem nobis corporeae fragilitatis auferret studium nostrae tantum uoluntatis inquirens perfectionem boni operis suae maiestati seruauit apostolica namque doctrina sic explicat dicens uelle adiacet mihi perficere autem bonum non inuenio quia uidelicet nostrum est bonum uelle Dei perficere qui pacem suam hominibus bonae uoluntatis infundit diuinus deinde sermo prosequitur dicens:
Therefore, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east and have come to worship him." Hearing this, King Herod was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And gathering all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’" Then Herod secretly called the magi and learned from them the time of the star which had appeared to them. And sending them to Bethlehem, he said, "Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him." Thus, in accordance with the scriptures, the birth of Christ shone forth from the east, because it fulfills what is indicated in the prayer of Zechariah: "The dawn from on high has visited us." For a similar theme is contained in the Psalm of David, "He has set his tabernacle in the sun," etc. By the sun, indeed, he signifies the east, from which region the day always arises. What then, Herod, do you cunningly contrive, why do you insanely rage? You profess Christ with your tongue but persecute Him in your heart, and you disguise your gloomy and darkly clouded mind with the serenity of a pleasant face. For you command that Christ be sought not to be worshipped with the religion you feign but to be killed with the plots you devise. You err greatly and are deceived, believing that He who first reigns in the royal seat might succeed you, who neither fully succeeds nor departs, but eternally possesses the throne of His majesty, and you disregard and neglect the law of the Law, threatening your kingdoms to the King of kings. This guilt lacks words, this treachery lacks an excuse. For you try to extinguish Him whom you had promised to worship. Perhaps you would have sinned less if you had not sought Christ at all, so that by pursuing Him only as an unknown man, you might not also appear sacrilegious to an offended God. Had you not read in the Davidic song thus warning, "Do not touch my anointed ones, and do my prophets no harm"? Therefore, since it is necessary to obey divine precept so that neither His anointed nor the prophets endure anything of malignity because it is a great sin to treat those consecrated with spiritual anointment with contempt, what name shall this crime have, to try to kill the very Lord Christ, from whom the anointed are named, the very true prophet from whom true prophecy descends, with your sly plots? Should you not have followed David, who served the commands of the Lord, who, when he entered the cave where Saul was hiding and was compelled to kill him, thus responded: "Far be it from me that I should do this thing to my lord, the anointed of the Lord, to stretch out my hand against him, for he is the anointed of the Lord." And indeed, he spared an enemy who wished to kill him, but you plot against the Lord who was born for the salvation of the world. Even if no old examples moved you to remember, at least for this, you should have laid down the weapons of parricidal intent, not to cast down the power of the scepter you wield, pursuing the author of the anointing. Lest the bloody treachery of your name depart satiated from such a great crime under the honor of a heavenly cross, but by the crime of your people to hell, which you, Herod, vainly raging, devise, another will see.	Cum ergo natus esset Iesus in Bethleem Iudae in diebus Herodis regis ecce magi ab oriente uenerunt Hierosolimam dicentes ubi est qui natus est rex Iudaeorum uidimus enim stellam eius in oriente et uenimus adorare eum audiens autem Herodes rex turbatus est et omnis Hierosolima cum illo et congregans omnes principes sacerdotum et scribas populi sciscitabatur ab eis ubi Christus nasceretur at illi dixerunt in Bethleem Iudae sic enim scriptum est per prophetam et tu Bethleem terra Iuda nequaquam minima es in principibus Iuda ex te enim exiet dux qui regat populum meum Israhel tunc Herodes clam uocatis magis didicit ab eis tempus stellae quae apparuit eis et mittens eos in Bethleem dixit ite et interrogate diligenter de puero et cum inueneritis renuntiate mihi ut et ego ueniens adorem eum conuenienter scripturarum sanctioni concordans Christi natiuitas ab oriente fulgebat quia implet quod Zachariae designat oratio uisitauit nos oriens ex alto nam et Dauiticus similia continet psalmus in sole posuit tabernaculum suum et cetera per solem uero significat orientem de qua regione semper oritur dies quid igitur Herodes astutius furis quid dementer insanis Christum siquidem lingua profiteris corde persequeris mentemque tetram et nebulosae caliginis obscuritate damnatam iucundi uultus serenitate dissimulas Christum namque mandas inquiri non adorandum religione quam fingis sed necandum fraudibus quas moliris erras nimis et falleris illum credens tibi succedere qui regia primus dominatur in sede qui nec succedit penitus nec decedit sed aeternus solium suae possidet maiestatis legemque legis ac neglegis qui regi regum tua regna minitaris caret uerbis haec culpa caret excusatione perfidia hunc enim conaris extinguere quem te promiseras adorare minus forte deliqueras si de Christo nihil quaereres quatenus homicida tantum uelut ignotum hominem persequendo non etiam sacrilegus esse Deo uidereris offenso nonne legeras eum Dauitico cantico sic monentem nolite tangere christos meos et in prophetis meis nolite malignari cum ergo diuinae praeceptioni parere necesse sit ut neque christi eius neque prophetae maligna quicquam inprobitate sustineant quia uidelicet spiritali consecratos unguento nefas grande sit contumeliose tractari quale nomen habebit hoc crimen ut ipsum Dominum Christum a quo christi sunt nuncupati ipsum uerum prophetam a quo uerax prophetia descendit tuis ambias dolis interfici nonne Dauid mandatis Domini seruientem debuisti sectari qui Saul in speluncam qua latebat ingressum dum cogeretur extinguere ita respondit absit a me omnino hoc mihi non contingat a Domino si fecero uerbum istud Domino meo christo Domini mei ut inferam manum meam in eum quoniam christus Domini hic est et ille quidem pepercit inimico se uolenti perimere tu autem insidiaris Domino qui mundi natus est ad salutem quodsi nullis ut immemor ueterum tangebaris exemplis ob hoc saltim parricidalis conatus debueras arma relinquere ne sceptri quod gerebas deiceres potestatem qui unctus agnosceris persequens unctionis auctorem ne tamen nominis tui cruenta perfidia tanti sceleris a satietate discedat sub honore crucis aetherio sed crimine tuae gentis inferno quod frustra saeuiens tu moliris Herodes alius post uidebit.
Therefore, following the Gospel, it says in this chapter: "When they had heard the king, they went on their way, and behold, the star that they had seen in the east went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And entering the house, they found the child with Mary his mother, and falling down they worshiped him. And opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh." What does it mean that the star that they had seen should go before them, except that by observing the guidance of the small star, they might find the source of full light? They worshiped, however, because they truly came to worship what Herod, by lying, did not merit to obtain. For it is not granted to worship God except to true worshipers, as our Lord himself spoke to the Samaritan woman, saying, "You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father seeks such as these to worship him." Therefore, although the words of the Lord’s teaching are manifest and open, that God is not worshiped except in truth, we must still more diligently scrutinize the force of the saying, "The hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth." I think, therefore, according to the sense that the Lord grants to my capacity, that by the indication of the present time in which He openly showed Himself to the world, He said the Father was to be worshiped in Himself. Thus, He disclosed in the following discourses, saying, "All judgment has been given to the Son, so that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father." Truly magnificent, after he said, "in spirit," he added, "and truth," because those who bear the Spirit of God follow truth, deceit accompanies the alien. Another mystery is revealed in the persona of these magi; through them, indeed, as Gentiles and strangers entering into His presence, our Lord Jesus Christ showed the grace of the future law, that He had already prepared access for all nations to come to Him. For thus He is known to have spoken both through His prophets and through Himself; indeed, although through the prophets He often predicted this, yet by the testimony of David He explained, "The Lord said to me, 'You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will give you the nations as your heritage and the ends of the earth as your possession.'" He said, "nations as your heritage," because by the grace of the new testament, the Lord was prepared to be acquired. But He Himself in the Gospel, as a good shepherd, thus promised, "I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock and one shepherd." Nor should we believe that the devotion of the gifts lacked divine guidance; for by those variously significant offerings, the power of Christ was declared. Let us inquire more closely what gold signifies, undoubtedly such excellent material and the brilliance of metallic luster, as befitting a king, is mentioned as brought to this king. But in this king, we acknowledge a dual substance; for Christ reigns spiritually in the heavens and was born carnally as the king of the Jews. However, the gift of frankincense, because it profited by religious offerings, that incense was given to Christ as to God. Myrrh, indeed, because it is suitable for burying bodies, is given to the one about to die in the flesh for burial to honor Him. The offering of the threefold quantity itself proclaimed the worship of the Catholic doctrine; from the number indeed, God Almighty, who sees the present, past, and future and always remains, has stayed continuously and will remain, of the triple power in His deity, in the course of time of all things laid the foundation, although the present always consists under His eyes, who neither accepted the old age of antiquity nor the growth of youth, but who always is the same, does not cease to be; for the name of His power, when Moses diligently inquired to announce to the people of Israel from the flame of the non-burning bush, issued this, "I am who I am," and said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" In the Gospel, likewise, to the Jews setting themselves above Abraham by antiquity, He said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." See the distinction of both substances, discerning God and man. About Abraham, He said, "before he was," about Himself He did not say, "I was," but "I am," because to be of divinity is not to have been, which, always existing in living eternity, neither arises from beginnings nor is explained by ends; for time is from God, not God from time.	Euangelicum ergo sequens ait ita capitulum qui cum audissent regem abierunt et ecce stella quam uiderant in oriente antecedebat eos usque dum ueniens staret supra ubi erat puer uidentes autem stellam gauisi sunt gaudio magno ualde et intrantes domum inuenerunt puerum cum Maria matre eius et procidentes adorauerunt eum et apertis thesauris suis obtulerunt ei munera aurum tus et myrram quid est hoc ut praecederet eos stella quam uiderant nisi ut ducatum parui sideris intuentes materiem pleni luminis inuenirent adorauerunt autem quia uere uenerant adorare quod Herodes se mentiendo facturum non meruit obtinere nisi enim ueris adoratoribus Deum non conceditur adorare sicut ipse Dominus noster ad Samaritanam mulierem locutus est dicens uos adoratis quod nescitis nos adoramus quod scimus quia salus ex Iudaeis est sed uenit hora et nunc est quando ueri adoratores adorabunt Patrem in spiritu et ueritate nam et Pater tales quaerit qui adorent eum licet ergo Dominicae uerba doctrinae manifesta sint et aperta quod Deum nisi ueritas non adoret debemus tamen uim sermonis diligentius perscrutari quid sit uenit hora et nunc est quando ueri adoratores adorabunt Patrem in spiritu et ueritate arbitror itaque iuxta sensum quem meae Dominus paruitati largitur quod per significationem praesentis temporis quo se palam mundo monstrauit in se Patrem dixerit adorari sic enim sequentibus patefecit alloquiis dicens iudicium omne dedit Filio ut omnes honorificent Filium sicut honorificant Patrem magnifice uero postquam dixit in spiritu adiecit et ueritate quoniam spiritum Dei gerentes ueritas sequitur alienum fallacia comitatur declaratur et aliud in hac magorum persona mysterium per illos namque gentiles et aduenas ad se Dominus noster Iesus Christus ingressos gratiam futurae legis ostendit quod omnibus ad se gentibus ueniendi aditum iam pararit ita enim et per prophetas suos et per se ipsum noscitur elocutus per prophetas quidem licet saepius ista praedixerit Dauitico tamen testimonio sic explanauit Dominus dixit ad me Filius meus es tu ego hodie genui te postula a me et dabo tibi gentes hereditatem tuam et possessionem tuam terminos terrae mirabilem gentes hereditatem dixit quia per noui gratiam testamenti Domino parabatur adquiri per se autem ipsum in euangelio tam quam bonus pastor ita promisit et alias oues habeo quae non sunt ex hoc ouili et illas oportet me adducere et uocem meam audient et fiet unum ouile et unus pastor nec deuotionem munerum diuino caruisse nutu credamus nam per illas species merito uariae significationis oblatas Christi potentia patuit declarata aurum namque diligentius inquiramus quid pronuntiet adtributum sine dubio tam praeclara materies et opulentia metallici splendoris inradians utpote regi memoratur inlata sed et in hoc rege duplicem fatemur esse substantiam Christus enim et spiritaliter regnat in caelis et carnaliter natus est rex Iudaeis turis autem munus quia religioso libamini illud olim proficiebat incensum Christo datur ut Deo myrra uero quia tumulandis est apta corporibus humanam morituro per carnem sepulchralem traditur ad honorem ipsa quoque trinae quantitatis oblatio cultum catholici dogmatis pronuntiabat ex numero quippe Deus omnipotens qui praesentia praeterita conspicit ac futura semperque manet mansit iugiter ac manebit triplicis in sua deitate uirtutis in eorum temporum cursu rerum omnium posuit fundamentum quamquam praesentia sub eius oculis semper uniuersa consistant qui nec uetustatis senium nec iuuentutis suscepit incrementum sed qui semper quod est idem esse non desinit nam potestatis suae nomen excelsum Moysi sollicite perquirenti ut Israhel populo nuntiaret de flamma rubi non ardentis hoc edidit ego sum qui sum et dixit sic dices ad filios Israhel qui est misit me ad uos in euangelio nihilominus ad Iudaeos Abraham sibimet praeponentes antiquitate sic inquit amen amen dico uobis antequam Abraham fieret ego uide distantiam utriusque substantiae Deum discernentem et hominem de Abraham dixit antequam fieret de se ipso non dixit ego fui sed ego sum quoniam diuinitatis esse est non fuisse quae uiua semper aeternitate consistens nec initiis oritur nec terminis explicatur tempus enim a Deo est non Deus a tempore.
Therefore, the reading continues, and having received a warning in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by another route. We must therefore imitate the faithful actions of the magi, and just as they believed in a dream, let us now believe in the clearest of visions, so that we who have deserved to find Christ shining forth with the sign of the cross and to worship him, and to offer from the treasures of our heart the threefold gifts of praise, should now by no means return to the prince of this world who had previously deceived us, but leaving the former path, let us proceed through the secret paths of him who directs our steps to the heavenly homeland of the trusting.	Lectionis itaque sermo prosequitur et responso accepto in somnis ne redirent ad Herodem per aliam uiam regressi sunt in regionem suam debemus igitur imitari nos etiam magorum facta fidelia et sicut illi somnio crediderunt nos euidentissimis aspectibus iam credamus quatenus qui Christum signo crucis praelucente repertum meruimus adorare eidemque de thesauris nostri cordis munera trinae laudis offerre iam minime reuertamur ad huius mundi principem qui nos ante seduxerat deceptorem sed priorem semitam relinquentes per illius callis secreta pergamus qui ad caelestem patriam gressus dirigit confidentum.
Then such events are narrated in sequence: then Herod, seeing that he had been tricked by the magi, was very angry, and sent and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its borders from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the magi. Therefore, the magi, whom he had believed to be deceived, having tricked him, the impious king, precipitated by anger, made public—if it is appropriate to call him a king who neither held piety nor restrained his own spirits but was like a most fierce and bloody lion to whom if a tender lamb could have been torn away would unleash ferocious assaults on the whole flock of little blood, and gnaw and tear and shred and extinguish the most tender flock. Standing afar, the most miserable mothers call out in vain to their already lost offspring, shaking the empty air with frequent bleatings. Thus, Herod, spurred on by Christ, did not cease to crush the groups of little ones with bloodstained tyranny. What crime, I ask, did the simple crowd succumb to death for? Why those who were just born are now deemed worthy of punishment? It is madness in the bloody king, not reason, who, hostile from the first cries and undertaking to commit innumerable atrocities, slaughtered thousands of children of one age and simultaneously bereaved so many mothers with a single mourning. One mother, tearing out her hair, distressed by the ugliness of the loss, was scratching her bare scalp; another, with her cheeks wet from tearful rains, was scoring them with the violence of her nails; another was beating her chest with bloodstained blows, the unhappy mother, no longer a mother, falling over the cold corpse of her only child, through the severed veins of the breasts, was pouring out a supply of milk mixed with blood. No one can set forth the so varied and so multiple images of that calamity where pain was present in diverse types of lamentations, not diverse. What was your feeling, or the intention of your mind, not now tyrant but butcher, what roars were you belching forth when ignited, observing from the high fortress the wounds of innocent children, you would see a vast sea of tears collected by the flood among the slaughtered infants who are certain to have fallen but not perished; although Christ was absent, he could not be away, who always engaged in the dangers of the saints, feels the torments inflicted on others’ bodies for himself through a pious motion.	Dehinc talia per ordinem gesta narrantur tunc Herodes uidens quoniam inlusus esset a magis iratus est ualde et mittens occidit omnes pueros qui erant in Bethleem et in omnibus finibus eius a bimatu et infra secundum tempus quod exquisierat a magis igitur a magis quos crediderat inludendos inlusus dissimulatos motus ira praecipiti rex impius publicauit si regem dici conueniat qui nec pietatem tenuit nec suos regens animos temperauit sed tamquam leo saeuissimus et cruentus cui si tener quiuerit forsan agnus auferri in totum parui sanguinis gregem impetus ferinos exercet pecusque mollissimum mandit lacerat decerpit extinguit stant eminus fetae miserrimae pignora uocantes frustra iam perdita crebrisque balatibus inanes auras exagitant sic Herodes Christo stimu latus ablato paruulorum cateruas elidere sanguinulenta non destitit tyrannide quonam rogo crimine simplex morti turba succumbit cur qui uixdum modo sunt geniti digni sunt iam puniri furor est in cruento rege non ratio qui primis uagitibus inimicus et innumerum patrare nefas adgressus puerilis milia mactauit aetatis unoque luctu tot simul genetrices orbauit haec effusam uultibus comam miseranda dilacerans crinalis damni foeditate nudum uerticem sauciabat illa madidas lacrimosis imbribus genas unguium proteruitate sulcabat duris alia pectus sanguinulenta uerberibus infelix mater nec iam mater super unici gelidum corruens cadauer extincti per abscisas uberum uenas lactis copiam cum cruore fundebat nemo calamitatis illius tam uarias tamque multiplices potest imagines expedire ubi diuersis generibus lamentorum dolor aderat non diuersus quis tibi sensus quaeue fuerit mentis intentio non iam tyranne sed lanio quos fremitus eructabas accensus cum insontium uulnera paruulorum ex arce summa prospiciens uastum pelagus lacrimarum cerneres inundatione collectum inter necatos tamen infantes quos occubuisse certum est non perisse quamquam Christus afuerit absens esse non potuit qui periculis sanctorum semper insertus alienis pro se corporibus inrogata pio motu sentit ipse supplicia.
And as he advanced in age, carrying two years over ten, of which number he had drawn the quantity from flesh, namely temporal age, running through by human reason, he revealed himself wiser than the elders in wisdom, a master to the masters in teaching, as the manifest interpreter of his law, to show how much greater he was.	Cumque iam aetate proficiens annos duos gereret supra decem cuius numeri de carne traxerat quantitatem aeuum scilicet temporale humana ratione percurrens senioribus seniorem sese prudentia magistris magistrum pandebat esse doctrina ut legis suae manifestus interpres quantus esset inferior demonstraret.
Nor after a long delay of times, what can be of times which, in their swift course, have not yet come and are already departing, as the evangelist indicates that Jesus himself was about thirty years old, as he was thought to be the son of Joseph, very excellently both words 'about' and 'thought' preserved his divinity. For just as he seemed about thirty years old when he is eternal, so he was thought to be the son of Joseph when he was born from a virgin. Then he approached the Jordan to be baptized, seeking what he had come to give, to be washed who had come to wash. John the Baptist, seeing him whom he had sensed in his mother's womb while he hid, now aware of the coming Christ, exercised the gift of prophecy, although he could not speak, descended from the temporary silence of a mute father, he began to proclaim and say, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." When he says "takes away," he shows that he does not possess what he takes away, which indeed he took not to bear it himself but to destroy it, as we suddenly see the darkness of night blindness infused by the rising of the radiant day, and yet the light does not lose the grace of its brightness by the touch of the darkness it shakes off. Thus, the Lord Jesus Christ, taking on the sins of humanity, did not hold them but dispelled them, for as fire clarifies metals by consuming their dirt, so he, the good craftsman, cleansed us from the original contagion with his flame. Then, untainted, he entered the waters and washed our filth in himself, having nothing of his own to wash, and finally, by the majesty of his holy body, he purified and blessed the very waters, enhancing the reputation of the gushing torrent with the honor of the Lord's baptism. The waters felt the tremendous presence of deity; the sea withdrew from the shore, the river returned to its source, about which the prophet, singing these things, indicates, "The sea saw and fled; Jordan was turned back." What is it, sea, that you fled, and you, Jordan, why were you turned back?	Nec post longam temporum moram quaenam potest esse temporibus quae uolucri cursu fugacia nondum ueniunt iam recedunt ut euangelista significat ipse lesus erat quasi annorum triginta ut putabatur filius Ioseph praeclare nimis utrumque uerbum quasi et putabatur diuinitati seruauit sicut enim quasi triginta uidebatur annorum cum sit aeternus ita Ioseph filius putabatur cum sit ex uirgine procreatus tunc Iordanis ad fluenta baptizandus accessit expetens quod uenerat ut donaret abluendus qui uenerat abluere hunc Iohannes Baptista conspiciens quem matris in utero senserat dum lateret iam Christi conscius adfuturi prophetiae munus exercens licet loqui non posset s tamquam muti patris a silentio temporali descendens proclamare coepit et dicere ecce Agnus Dei qui tollit peccatum mundi cum dicit tollit ostendit eum non habere quod tollit quod quidem tulit non ut ipse gereret sed ut ipse deperderet sicut tenebris nocturnae caecitatis ortum radiantis diei subito uidemus infundi nec tamen caliginis tactu quam decutit splendoris sui gratiam lux amittit ita Dominus Iesus Christus humani generis delicta suscipiens non tenuit sed fugauit nam ut ignis metalla sordium consumptione clarificat ita nos ab originali contagione sua bonus opifex flamma mundauit tunc inmaculatus aquas ingressus in se nostram lauauit inluuiem nihil habens proprium quod lauaret ipsos denique latices sacri corporis maiestate purificans beauit gurgitis famam honorem Dominici baptismatis consecutam senserunt tremendam deitatis undae praesentiam pontus recessit a litore fluuius remeauit in fontem de quibus propheta cantitans haec designat mare uidit et fugit Iordanis conuersus est retrorsum quid est mare quia fugisti et tu Iordanis quia conuersus es retrorsum.
Therefore, the text of the gospel reading continues thus: but after being baptized, he immediately came up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove coming upon him, and behold, a voice from the heavens saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Let us consider more attentively how much mystery is revealed even in this place. After the Lord ascended from the water after being baptized, the heavens were opened immediately. How were they opened immediately with Christ, for whom above the stars is always home, the heaven seems never to be closed? But I suppose, as much as his piety deigns to aspire to my senses, that then the heavens were opened when the Lord ascended from the water after being baptized, that he might teach by his merciful examples to man, whose image he assumed, that the kingdoms of heaven are then revealed when one has deserved to be drenched by the consecration of spiritual water. But that the Spirit of God descended upon him in the form of a dove shows how great his goodness, gentleness, simplicity, through a bird having no bitterness of gall. And lest he be physically unseen, God is asserted by the voice of the Father, saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." This remarkable affection of love contains the full firmness of catholic doctrine and pronounces one power of the Father and the Son. For charity, which consists in God, does not depart from the spirit of likeness and equality, for he who commanded by his law, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' taught that there should be no distance between the loving and the beloved. For also in the subsequent word that he added, "in whom I am well pleased," it is understood to have explained the power of one deity in common. For it is more to have said 'I am well pleased' than 'I pleased,' because 'I am well pleased' is a word of congruence and is seen to adhere to two persons, which is why the heavenly voice expressed it, that both the Father in the Son and the Son seem to have been well pleased in the Father, for even by the very gathering together of the Paternal voice, the Son's baptism, or the Spirit flying down, the trinity shone from one God, who does not deserve to exist who has not counted the unity.	Euangelicae lectionis ergo textus ita prosequitur baptizatus autem confestim ascendit de aqua et ecce saperti sunt caeli et uidit Spiritum Dei descendentem sicut columbam uenientem super se et ecce uox de caelis dicens hic est Filius meus dilectus in quo mihi bene conplacui consideremus attentius quantum reueletur et in hoc loco mysterium postquam enim Dominus de aqua baptizatus ascendit mox aperti sunt caeli quomodo mox aperti cum Christo cui super sidera semper est domus numquam caelum uideatur obclusum sed arbitror quantum pietas eius meis sensibus adspirare dignatur quod ideo tunc aperti sunt caeli quando Dominus ab aqua baptizatus ascendit ut suis misericors doceret exemplis homini cuius effigiem sumpsit caelorum regna tunc pandi cum meruerit spiritalis aquae consecratione perfundi quod autem Spiritus Dei super eum in specie columbae descendit ostenditur quanta sit eius bonitas mansuetudo simplicitas per uolucrem fellis amaritudinem non habentem et ne corporaliter uisus esse nesciretur Deus uoce Patris asseritur dicentis hic est Filius meus dilectus in quo mihi conplacui praeclarus iste dilectionis affectus plenam catholici dogmatis continet firmitatem unamque Patris et Filii pronuntiat esse uirtutem. caritas enim quae in Deo consistit a similitudinis et aequalitatis spiritu non recèdit nam qui dixit sui lege mandati diliges proximum tuum tamquam te ipsum docuit diligentis et dilecti nullam fieri oportere distantiam nam et in sequenti uerbo quod addidit in quo mihi conplacui intellegitur potestatem unius deitatis explanasse communem plus est enim conplacui dixisse quam placui quia conplacui conuenientiae uerbum est et geminae cernitur adhaerere personae quod ideo uox caelestis expressit ut et Pater in Filio et Filius conplacuisse uideatur in Patre nam et ipso tam Paternae uocis quam Filii baptismatis uel Spiritus aduolantis congregato consortio trinitas uno fulsit ex Deo quo dignus non meretur existere qui non numerauerit uni tatem.
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." Therefore, he was tempted by the devil, always the enemy of faith. For no one scrutinizes a thing made evident to themselves unless filled with deceitful skill, they do not believe in the known truth, just as the devil himself, who after recognizing Jesus as the Son of God by the clarity of the paternal word, and fearing his unique power after forty days and nights of not eating—although Moses and Elijah had similarly sustained fasting for so many days and nights, but he knew these had done so with external support, although by their own merit. Jesus, he saw, performed this by his own power, and suddenly seized the most vain hope of foolish temptation, because the Lord was hungry and he dared not approach the divinity unless he saw it mixed with man. Soon, plotting ancient snares of food, he raised wicked tricks of deceit, showing the accustomed, and the serpent said, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread," as if he could not do this, who continually performs such a work, producing crops from the rocky bowels of the earth, pregnant with frugal sustenance and dense with the bounty of harvests, providing abundant food from the fecundity of stones. But the unique wisdom preferred to despise the glory of the miraculous deed, so as not to admit a repetition of the temptation. For God accepts those who believe and excludes those who tempt. For the people of Israel are read to have offended God primarily because, having forgotten his benefits, they dared to tempt him, and with desperation, they demanded a feast, about which both Moses in his books did not keep silent about their disbelief, and David, briefly mentioning, explained, "They tempted God in their hearts by asking for food for their souls, and spoke ill of God, saying, 'Can God prepare a table in the desert?' and so on. For what can be difficult for him who, for the immense possibility of all things, is called omnipotent?" Therefore, the Lord responded to Satan, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" A very fitting and competent response was given to the enemy, for to the one asking if he were the Son of God, he responded as a man, that he might rather be overcome by him whom he seemed to have attacked. Upon hearing this, broken and weak, yet he did not put down the weapons of audacity, and the devil led him and showed him all the kingdoms of the earth in a moment of time and said to him, "I will give you all this power and glory, for it has been given to me, and to whomever I wish I give it. Therefore, if you worship before me, all shall be yours." What wonder if the wretched one spoke perverse things, who, not walking the straight paths, took on the form of a twisted serpent, considering Christ to be touched by greed for a fragile and perishable kingdom, who rather had come to bestow strength and eternity, or that he, who had come to teach that worldly riches perish, should deign to acquire secular riches and worship a monster thrown down from heaven, to whom the throne is heaven, the earth a footstool, the whole world in obedience, whom no one dares to look at and all powers praise with subdued voices above the stars. But again, the Lord confounds him with such a response, saying, "It is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.'" Still, he is seen to respond from the human person, deigning not to subjugate the weak rebel by the power of greater might, although even this word's envious viper-like hostility, struck by the encounter of God, had not yet laid aside the character of rashness, but, confident in the triple shaking of tongues, against the victorious hand of the Trinity, he raises his wounded head a third time. Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'on their hands, they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.'" Oh how much blindness and darkness always dominate in the black breast, and the mind, obscure with the darkness of its own malignity, does not know how to keep deceit undetected. Behold, saying, "If you are the Son of God," he shows that he does not know this, while asking he admits, "He has commanded his angels concerning you," he confesses this to be he whom he sees, but using the ambiguity of varied speech, found to be a liar and a dissembler, he is approved in his own arts, not only of deceit but also of folly. For what could be more inept than to believe that he, although from the high summit of the temple's pinnacle and the height of the lofty pinnacle, should fear a precipitous leap, who seemed to walk plainly on earth from the highest arch of the heavens, about whom shouting David says, "He bowed the heavens and came down," containing the lowest and not leaving the highest. Therefore, speaking thus, the divine voice struck the failing audacity, "It is written, 'You shall not tempt the Lord your God.'" Here the Lord and God himself, now revealing himself, thus prohibits further attempts by the tempter, admonishing us by his examples, the pious teacher, that the spirit of ancient malignity undoubtedly lies under human virtues where God is infused into the simplicity of a pure heart.	Tunc Iesus ductus est in desertum a spiritu ut temptaretur a diabolo et cum ieiunasset quadraginta diebus et quadraginta noctibus postea esuriit et accedens ad eum temptator dixit ei si Filius Dei es dic ut lapides isti panes fiant igitur temptabatur a diabolo fidei semper inimico nemo enim manifestam sibi rem discutit nisi qui fallaci plenus ingenio compertae ueritati non credit sicut ipse diabolus qui postea quam Iesum paterni claritate sermonis Dei Filium esse cognouit eiusdemque potentiam singularem quadraginta diebus et quadraginta noctibus nihil uescentis expauit licet Moyses similiter et Helias totidem dierum sustinuerint noctiumque ieiunium sed illos alieno fultos auxilio quamquam suo merito nouerat haec fecisse Iesum propria cernebat operari uirtute spem repente uanissimam stultae temptationis arripuit quia Dominus esuriuit nec audebat adgredi diuinitatem nisi mixtum uideret hominem mox antiquas molitus insidias ciborum inprobos dolos fallacia suscitauit adsueta demonstransque lapides suas magis epulas serpens ait si filius Dei es dic ut lapides isti panes fiant quasi non posset hoc facere qui tale iugiter opus exercens de saxeis terrae uisceribus producit segetem frugali uictu praegnantem et spicea messium densitate cautis nutrimento crescente panis uberem cibum de lapidum fecunditate largitur sed maluit sapientia singularis gloriam mirabilis facti contemnere ne repetitionem temptationis admitteret Deus enim credentes suscipit temptantes excludit nam populus Israhel ob hoc legitur Deum offendisse quam maxime quia beneficiorum eius oblitus temptare ausus est eum ut cum desperatione peteret epulatum de quorum et Moyses in libris suis incredulitate non tacuit et Dauid ita memorans breuiter explanauit et temptauerunt Deum in cordibus suis ut peterent escas animabus suis et male locuti sunt de Deo et dixerunt numquid poterit Deus parare mensam in deserto et cetera quid enim illi potest esse difficile qui pro inmensa rerum omnium possibilitate uocatur omnipotens respondens ergo Dominus Satanae sic dixit scriptum est non in solo pane uiuit homo sed in omni uerbo quod procedit de ore Dei apta nimis et competens data est inimico responsio nam percunctanti si filius Dei esset uelut homo respondit quatenus per eum potius uinceretur quem uidebatur adgressus quo audito fractus et debilis arma tamen audaciae non deponit et duxit illum diabolus et ostendit illi omnia regna orbis terrae in momento temporis et ait ei tibi dabo potestatem hanc uniuersam et gloriam illorum quia mihi tradita sunt et cui uolo do illa tu ergo si adoraueris coram me erunt tua omnia quid mirum si peruersa locutus est miser qui ne rectas uias incederet serpentis torti sumpsit effigiem regni fragilis et caduci Christum aestimans cupiditate contingi qui ualidum potius et aeternum suis uenerat conlaturus aut ille diuitias dignaretur saeculares adquirere qui docere uenerat perirent monstrumque caelo deiectum adoraret cui thronus est caelum terra subpedaneum mundus omnis obsequium quem nullus audet aspicere et cunctae submissis uocibus laudant super sidera potestates at iterum Dominus eum tali responsione confundit dicens scriptum est Dominum Deum tuum adorabis et illi soli seruies adhuc ex humana cernitur respondere persona dedignatus scilicet infirmum rebellem uirtute maioris potentiae subiugare licet huius quoque uerbi liuor ille uipereus congressione deiectus nondum posuerit temeritatis ingenium sed trisulca linguarum uibratione confidens contra uictricem Trinitatis manum tertio caput erigit sauciatum tunc assumpsit eum diabolus in sanctam ciuitatem et statuit eum supra pinnaculum templi et dixit ei si filius Dei es mitte te deorsum scriptum est enim quia angelis suis mandauit de te et in manibus tollent te ne forte offendas ad lapidem pedem tuum o quantum caecitatis atque caliginis nigro semper dominatur in pectore mensque tenebris propriae malignitatis obscura nescit indeprehensam custodire fallaciam ecce dicens si filius Dei es ostendit hoc se nescire cum quaerit dicens iterum angelis suis mandauit de te confitetur hunc esse quem cernit sed ancipitis usus uarietate sermonis simulator ac dissimulator inuentus mendax suis artibus adprobatur nec solius fallaciae sed etiam stultitiae domus est cor malignum quid enim poterit ineptius repperiri quam ut illum crederet licet alta sublimis templi fastigia et cacumen excelsi pinnaculi saltu formidare prae cipiti qui ut planis uideretur in terris de summa caelorum arce descendit de quo clamans Dauid dicit et inclinauit caelos et descendit simul humillima continens et altissima non relinquens igitur deficientis audaciam sic eloquens perculit uox diuina scriptum est non temptabis Dominum Deum tuum hic Dominum Deumque sese iam pandens tales ergo ultra conatus adsumere prohibet temptatorem suis nos ammonens pius doctor exemplis spiritum uetustae malignitatis artificem illic humanis procul dubio subiacere uirtutibus ubi fuerit Deus simplicitati puri cordis infusus.
Therefore, the instruction of the reading says that then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him. It seems to me, as I judge in this retreat of the fleeing devil and the subsequent angelic ministry, to declare a certain image of Paschal glory by preceding signs. For just as, after the temptations were overcome and the devil was driven away, the angels provided ministry to the Savior, so, after the insults of the Jews and the pains of the blessed passion of the cross were despised, and the devil's fruit, death, was trampled, he rose from the dead, was carried to the stars, and Christ is adored by angels in heaven with the usual command of majesty.	Ait ergo lectionis instructio tunc reliquit eum diabolus et ecce angeli accesserunt et ministrabant ei uidetur ut arbitror in hoc diaboli fugientis abscessu et ministerio consequenter angelico quandam paschalis gloriae declarare praecedentibus signis imaginem nam sicut uictis temptationibus depulsoque diabolo praebuerunt angeli ministerium Saluatori sic contumeliis Iudaeorum et poenis beata crucis passione contemptis ipsaque diaboli fructu morte calcata surrexit ab inferis euectus est astris et consueto maiestatis imperio Christus ab angelis adoratur in caelo.
From there, he associated with himself some disciples from fishermen, who were henceforth to fish for human souls, which, following the slippery joy of the world, wandered through uncertain paths of the swaying bridge, wavering through voluptuous slips on wandering courses. And such he reconciled to eternal life, whom neither noble lineage by birth of earthly nobility could inflate nor the brilliance of learned eloquence could raise with the glory of vain chatter, but whom the holy institution of a simple life would make conspicuous by too much pride in humility, now made near to heaven. For Almighty God chose rather the foolish things of the world and the weak, rejecting those things that seem wise and strong, because, as Paul the apostle, an excellent teacher, writes, "What is foolish of God is wiser than men, and what is weak of God is stronger than men." And he immediately said again, "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; and God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong; and the base things of the world and the despised, God chose, and the things that are not, as though they are, to destroy the things that are." Moreover, desiring to provide swift salvation mercifully, the Savior also established the mode of praying and the prayers, and the most pious judge briefly wants to be asked so that he may more quickly consent to the supplicant. Thus, he taught to pray, thus giving honor to his own Father, indeed for our nature, but for grace for men, bestowing his own unique prerogative to all as a granted gift.	Exin discipulos ex piscatoribus quosdam sibimet sociauit accitos humanas deinceps animas piscaturos quae lubricam sectantes mundi laetitiam tamquam natantes uias ponti fluctuantis incertas per uoluptuosos lapsus uagis cursibus errauerunt talesque uitae conciliauit aeternae quos nec generosa prosapies ortu terrenae nobilitatis inflaret nec nitor eruditae facundiae gloria uanae garrulitatis extolleret sed quos sanctum uitae simplicis institutum superba nimis humilitate conspicuos caelo faceret iam uicinos namque Deus omnipotens stulta mundi potius elegit et infirma rennuens quae sapientia uidentur et fortia quia sicut scribit Paulus apostolus doctor egregius quod stultum est Dei sapientius est hominibus et inbecille Dei fortius est hominibus et confestim iterum dixit quae stulta sunt huius mundi elegit Deus ut confundat sapientes et infirma mundi elegit Deus ut confundat fortia et ignobilia et contemptibilia mundi elegit Deus et quae non Sunt tamquam quae sunt ut ea quae sunt destrueret quin etiam salutem celerem misericors cupiens adhibere Saluator orandi quoque modum precesque constituit iudexque piissimus breuiter uult rogari quo citius annuat supplicanti sic orandum ergo docuit patrem suum scilicet pro natura nostrum uero pro gratia honorem proprium largitus hominibus ut quod solus habet egregium cunctis donaret indultum.
OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN, who reigns perpetually in the heavens, whose name we dare to call the Father, first we must note that the gift of such a great blessing is attributed not separately to each individual, but communally to all. For although one might be remote from others and dwell secretly in secluded places, each one should implore the Lord with the words of this prayer, not saying "My Father" but "Our Father," because this term is due solely to Christ, whose father is properly God. Although this is inscribed in all the gospels, in that place specifically, the Lord Jesus himself taught his singular power distinct from common mix, where he comforted the disciples saying, "I go to my Father and your Father." What he said as "my" he rightly claimed for his special glory, and what he said as "your" he revealed as a general grace commonly to all. And since it is written, "Let earthly things teach you about heavenly," let us make some comparison here, so that from human we may grasp divine. Let us suppose, therefore, a noble man who has an only son and some servants; can there be, because he is called the head of the household, an equal condition of love at his side between the servants and the son, when the son himself is proven to be lord of all? Thus, we use this prayer, not Christ, since with this supplication we also beseech him who with the father is one Lord, coeternal. Therefore, saying "our father," we confess that we all exist as brothers in him, whose name's affection we must not spurn by expulsion of mutual charity, nor follow the monuments of original hatred, by which Cain, the shedder of his brother's blood, became the originator of parricidal stain. Rather, fervent with the spirit of gentleness, let us put aside carnal wickedness of oldness and rejoice, clad in the new man, lest when works degenerate from heavenly to earthly, we seem unworthy of such a father, who with Christ as our guide has received us born into sacred adoption.	PATER NOSTER QVI ES IN CAELIS qui caelorum perpetem regnatorem patris audemus nomine nuncupare primum debemus aduertere non separatim singulis sed communiter uniuersis donum tanti muneris adtributum nam quamuis semotus a ceteris et secretioribus habitans latenter in locis Dominum quilibet uerbis huius orationis imploret non inquiet Pater meus sed Pater noster quoniam soli Christo debetur hoc uerbum cuius proprie pater est Deus quamquam enim in omnibus euangeliis hoc habeatur adscriptum in illo tamen euidenter Dominus Iesus ipse capitulo iuris sui potentiam singularem docuit a populari permixtione discretam ubi discipulos confortabat haec alloquens uado ad Patrem meum et Patrem uestrum quod ait meum hanc sibi specialem gloriam congrue uindicauit quod ait uestrum generalem gratiam communiter cunctis esse patefecit et quoniam scriptum est doceant uos terrena quae sunt caelestia similitudinem faciamus hic aliquam ut ex humanis diuina capiamus ponamus igitur quempiam nobilem uirum cui Filius unicus et aliquanti sint famuli numquid ob hoc quia pater familias adpellatur potest apud eum seruorum ac filii par dilectionis esse condicio cum et ipse filius dominus probetur esse cunctorum nos igitur utimur hac oratione non Christus quoniam prece huius supplicationis ipsum quoque deposcimus qui cum patre unus est Dominus coaeternus dicentes igitur pater noster confitemur nos omnes in ipso fratres existere cuius nominis non debemus affectum mutuae caritatis expulsione contemnere nec originalis odii monumenta sectari quo Cain germani sanguinis fusor parricidalis maculae factus est inchoator sed mansueti spiritus igne feruentes carnalis ponamus nequitiam uetustatis et nouo homine gratulemur induti ne cum coeperint a caelestibus opera degenerare terrena tanto patre uideamur indigni qui Christo nos duce sacra natos adoptione suscepit.
HALLOWED BE THY NAME, a sanctification which can be considered whereby the Lord, who sanctifies all, may himself be hallowed, except that we prepare for his entry a pious, gentle, peaceful, and chaste heart, so that, delighted with such a dwelling, he might work in us an increase of his sanctification, as our Lord Jesus Christ himself recalls having been glorified in his disciples, who always shone with the clear light of divinity. For in the Gospel according to John, praying for his disciples among various things he pursued, he says, "And I have been glorified in them," precisely because he found his glory in them. Where, therefore, he finds signs of his sanctification, he declares his sanctification there. For that most gentle piety without measure declares that it grants to itself whatever it bears fruit in its servants. Likewise, the understanding is shown and as he commands himself to be blessed when he rather blesses all things. For the general hymn proclaims that the Lord be blessed by every creature in order, as sung by the three youths in the furnace.	SANCTIFICETVR NOMEN TVVM sanctificatio quae potest aestimari qua Dominus sanctificari ualeat qui cuncta sanctificat nisi ut cor pium mite placidum castum ad eius praeparemus ingressum quatenus tali domicilio delectatus sanctificationis suae in nobis operetur augmentum quemadmodum ipse Dominus noster Iesus Christus in discipulis se clarificatum esse memorat qui clara semper diuinitatis luce fulgebat nam in euangelio secundum Iohannem pro discipulis supplicat patri inter diuersa quae prosecutus est uerba sic inquit et clari ficatus sum in eis scilicet quia claritatem suam in eis inuenit ubi ergo et sanctificationis suae signa reppererit sanctificare se ibidem dicit pietas enim illa sine modo mitissima sibi conferri pronuntiat quicquid suis famulis ipsa fructificat similis itaque sensus ostenditur et ut se benedici praecipiat cum ipse potius uniuersa benedicat namque trium puerorum in camino canentium ab omni creatura per ordinem benedicendum Dominum generalis hymnus exclamat.
THY KINGDOM COME, we pray for the kingdom of the ruler who never ceases to reign, to punish the deceitful prince of this world for his presumed tyranny, and alone, who alone is, to demonstrate his own dominion, neither conscious of death nor to be consumed by times. For the time of that light is a day continuous without night, where the mightiest soldier, having adored Christ, after various battles of the world and emerging victorious, will rejoice with the crown adorning the hair of the blessed head, the honor of perpetual nobility.	ADVENIAT REGNVM TVVM regnum aduenire deposcimus regnatoris qui regnare non desinit ut fallacem huius mundi principem pro praesumpta puniat tyrannide solusque qui solus est suum demonstret imperium nec morti conscium nec temporibus consumendum nescit etenim tempus lucis illius dies nocte continuus ubi fortissimus miles adorato Christo diuersa mundi post praelia uictor existens caesariem beati capitis ornatura perpetuae nobilitatis gratulabitur iam corona.
THY WILL BE DONE, ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN, it seems here too that the sense of continuity is to be understood in that we must continually day and night implore through prayers that His will be fulfilled in heaven and on earth, He who nowhere permits wickedness. Where the devil, cast down from heaven, nor should he infest the earth, nor should the savage serpent assault our earthly body's substance, as if concreted from clay, as food for its voracity, and entwine us in the worst persuasions with scaly binds, and ambush until by deadly poisons, it consumes our miserable life by licking. Therefore, we should incessantly implore the Lord to likewise protect the soul and flesh within us, for we are part of heaven and also from the earth we exist as seed.	FIAT VOLVNTAS TVA SICVT IN CAELO ET IN TERRA praecedentis et hic continentiae sensus uidetur intellegi quod iugibus dies noctesque precibus debeamus exposcere ut illius caelum terramque uoluntas adimpleat qui nusquam uult esse nequitiam quo deiectum caelo diabolum nec terrae patiatur infestum nec terrenam corporis nostri substantiam tamquam limo concretam saeuus coluber ut escam suae uoracitatis inuadat ac pessimis nos suasionibus inuolutos squamosis nexibus amplectatur et ambiat donec letalibus uenenis inebrians miserabilem uitam lambendo consumat ideoque Dominum deprecemur assidue ut animam in nobis pariter tueatur et carnem altera namque caeli pars sumus altera terrae semen existimus.
GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD, to those asking for daily sustenance, a threefold sense of understanding opens, although the divine scriptures should be observed by all accordingly. Literally, we seem to ask for the bread of the grain for eating, and morally, as servants, we pray to the Lord that we may deserve the daily grain, while knowing that both forms of reasoning come from spiritual discipline. For this reason, we are commanded to ask for daily sustenance so that we do not reserve anything for tomorrow, appearing to doubt divine piety, which yet is proven so laborious and arduous that only a few rare men can maintain such a rule. For the Lord Himself, faithful in all, who led the children of Israel out of Egypt through many years in the barren wilderness, sparing only with Sabbath food, governed daily meals. He promised this also to us, if faith does not fail, committing in the evangelical sayings, addressing His disciples among other teachings, "Do not be anxious for tomorrow; for tomorrow will be anxious for itself." If we wish to understand more fully the spiritual words we are discussing, we will feel that this bread is the divine word, whose substantial doctrine, if the mind remains even a little vacant or fasting, will endure great hunger. Indeed, there is no small distance between spiritual and bodily feasts. We are never instructed to refuse the former, while eating the latter more sparingly is healthful abstinence, there it becomes vital greed. Finally, David, meditating on the Lord's law day and night, declares happiness in these words: "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful, but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night." For this meditation very much satiates and delights as the sweetness of thick honey, which, although it quickly fills the eating belly, its nectar-like sweetness is never found disagreeable by nature. Let us hear also what the same prophet says: "How sweet are your words to my taste, O Lord, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb to my mouth." He perfectly defined the words of the law as food, saying they are sweet to the mouth, not to the ears, and that honey and the honeycomb are administered to the mouth, not to the hearing. For even the deaf, who are least helped by hearing, are filled through the office of the mouth by reading heavenly commands. Similarly, the Apostle to the Corinthians showed by his letter that spiritual feasts are teaching, saying, "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual, but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk, not with solid food; for you were not yet able. Who would doubt or question, please, that all these things are figuratively spiritual, for neither were they infants nor did they take nourishment of milk from the apostle, which even a fool might think, but they were beginning to draw the words of the law and gradually be imbued with divine teachings, to drink like infants the beginnings of milk. It befits us to know that as nourishing food is good teaching, so harmful is malign teaching. Therefore, the Lord warned the disciples to particularly beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, knowing that the virus of sour doctrine could corrupt the richness of all sweetness with a small touch, since according to what the same Apostle Paul says, "A little leaven leavens the whole lump." For although we may believe the body of our Lord Jesus Christ to be this bread, from a spiritual reason it is by no means known to deviate, especially since such eating or such speech is given not to any Gentiles, not to any Jews, but solely to Christians divinely taught.	PANEM NOSTRVM COTIDIANVM DA NOBIS HODIE panis alimoniam cotidiani petentibus tripartitus intellegentiae sensus aperitur quamquam scripturas diuinas sic oporteat omnes aduerti ergo et secundum litteram specialiter frumentarii germinis panem uescendi uidemur gratia postulare et moraliter ut serui Dominum deprecamur quo diurnam consequi mereamur annonam dum tamen utriusque rationis formam de spiritali nouerimus procedere disciplina ob hoc enim epulas uictuales cotidie iubemur exposcere ne quid in crastinum reseruantes de diuina cernamur dubitare pietate quod tamen ita laboriosum probatur et arduum ut a paucis uiris atque raris simis talis queat regula custodiri namque Dominus ipse fidelis in omnibus qui filios Israhel productos ex Aegypto per annos in eremi sterilitate quam plurimos sabbatico tantum cibo parcentes cotidianis dapibus gubernauit hoc et nobis si fides non deficiat se daturum euangelicis sermonibus compromisit alloquens suos ita discipulos inter alia quae docebat nolite ergo solliciti esse in crastinum crastinus enim dies sollicitus erit sibi ipse si uero plenius spiritaliter dicta de quibus loquimur uelimus agnoscere sentiemus hunc panem diuinum esse sermonem cuius substantiali doctrina si uacans animus uel paululum ieiunus remanet magnae famis penuriam sustinebit distantia siquidem non pusilla inter spiritales epulas et corporales existit has etenim parcius edere illas numquam praecipimur recusare hic abstinentia salubris illic auiditas fit uitalis denique Dauid meditationem Dominicae legis exercenti die ac nocte beatitudinem his uerbis praedicat inhaerere beatus uir qui non abiit in consilio impiorum et in uia peccatorum non stetit et in cathedra pestilentiae non sedit sed in lege Domini uoluntas eius et in lege eius meditabitur die ac nocte haec enim meditatio nimium saturat et delectat tamquam mellis crassi dulcedo quae licet aluum cito uescentis adimpleat nectarea tamen suauitate naturae numquam probatur horrere audiamus hinc etiam idem propheta quid dicat quam dulcia faucibus meis eloquia tua Domine super mel et fauum ori meo perfecte uerba legis cibum definiuit intellegi cum faucibus dulcia dicit esse non auribus et super mel et fauum ori non auditui ministrari nam et surdi quibus auditus minime suffragatur praeceptis caelestibus per oris officium legentes implentur similiter et apostolus ad Corinthios usus epistola manifestauit spiritales epulas esse doctrinam dicens et ego fratres non potui uobis loqui quasi spiritalibus sed quasi carnalibus quasi infantibus in Christo lac uobis potum dedi non cibum nondum enim poteratis quis dubitet quaeso uel ambigat haec omnia spiritaliter figurata neque enim fuisse illos infantes aut lactis ab apostolo nutrimenta sumpsisse uel stultus poterit aliquis arbitrari sed incipientes uerba legis haurire ac paulatim diuinis imbui institutis lactea uelut infantes bibere primordia scire nos conuenit quia sicut salutaris cibus est bona doctrina sic noxius est maligna ideo Dominus discipulos ammonebat a fermento Pharisaeorum et Sadducaeorum specialiter se cauere sciens acidi dogmatis uirus totius dulcedinis ubertatem paruo tactu corrumpere quoniam secundum quod ait idem Paulus apostolus modicum fermenti totam massam corrumpit nam etsi corpus Domini nostri Iesu Christi magis esse credamus hunc panem ab spiritali nihilominus ratione nequaquam noscitur declinare maxime quia talis epulatio uel talis oratio nulli gentilium nulli Iudaeorum nisi solis diuinitus traditur Christianis.
AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS, AS WE ALSO HAVE FORGIVEN OUR DEBTORS If we measure the wishes of our petition more carefully, we recognize that forgiveness should be granted to us or denied based on our own examples, for we are commanded by the Lord to hope for what we have been seen to forgive a fellow servant, being bound by the same condition of being debtors as we neither wish to be nor desire to have others in debt. For in the person of others we are either absolved or bound. If it seems uncertain about which debtors this refers to, we must consider the matter of a weak excuse, and whether perhaps in fault or money or in whatever matter you, brother, have been accused, relax it, for we too are shown by frequent presumptions of sins and dishonest handling of monetary amounts to be entangled in many bonds before God. Whoever has been inhuman to the needy as his ability is weighed, denies God what is His, swearing away His infinite mercy, which so protects the plight of the wretched that whatever generous dispensation is given to the poor, He testifies to have profited Himself. Even in the vows we make, having received divine blessings, we exist as debtors until we pay them with faithful mind. Therefore, what has been said about monetary debts should also be felt about other kinds of sins and various obligations by which we are held bound by eternal judgment, knowing this is why the comparison of a treasury to sins is made, because the root of all evils is greed, without whose corrupt seed scarcely any crimes are generated in the world. Here one commits murder to snatch what he covets from an innocent; another, tempted by a reward, becomes a false witness; some are driven to the debasement of adulterous commerce by the lure of vile redemption; others stain themselves with theft, others deny a deposit. There are many more similar crimes, always accompanied by the hungry love of gold, yet hardly any crime is admitted where the service of money does not assist. Therefore, having received the gift of divine piety and having obtained the impunity of heavenly forgiveness, let us not deny what we have received to one another, lest, having been absolved of greater debts, when we do not settle small ones, we are again entangled in the greatest chains. And soon that merciful Lord, the giver not the exactor of debt, who forgave us ten thousand talents, if He perceives us to strangle a fellow servant over a hundred denarii, may order us to be handed over to cruel torturers, demanding everything and thrown into prison custody, not to be allowed to leave until we pay all up to the last quadrans lost.	ET DIMITTE NOBIS DEBITA NOSTRA SICVT ET NOS DIMITTIMVS DEBITORIBVS NOSTRIS Si diligentius petitionis nostrae uota metiamur uel tribuendam nobis indulgentiam uel negandam propriis dinoscimus exemplis hoc enim sperare iubemur a Domino quod cernimur dimisisse conseruo quippe quos sponsio paris eadem condicionis adstringit ut debitores sicut esse nolumus ita nec habere cupiamus in aliorum namque personis aut absoluimur aut ligamur quodsi putatur incertum de quibus debitoribus hic agatur ponenda est excusationis infirmae materies et seu fortassis in culpa siue pecunia uel in quocumque tibi frater reus fuerit hoc relaxa nam et nos tam delictorum crebra praesumptio quam pecuniariae quantitatis inhonesta tractatio plurimis ostendit apud Deum nexibus inuolutos quisquis enim prout facultas uirium ponderatur egenti fuerit inhumanus Deo quae sua sunt infitiatus abiurat cuius pietas infinita miserorum sic tuetur angustias ut quicquid pauperi dispensatio benigna largitur sibi profecisse testetur in uotis etiam quae promittimus diuina beneficia consecuti debitores existimus donec ea fideli mente soluamus haec igitur quae de pecuniariis dicta sunt debitis etiam de ceteris peccatorum generibus ac diuersis quibus aeterno iudicio tenemur obstricti sentire nos conuenit scientes ob hoc aerariam similitudinem flagitiis comparatam quoniam radix omnium malorum est auaritia sine cuius semine uitioso nulla propemodum scelera generantur in mundo hic homicidium perpetrat ut innocenti quod affectauit eripiat alter praemio sollicitatus accepto mendacis testimonii fit iurator nonnullos ad lenocinium adulterini commercii coetus foedae redemptionis inpellit alii furto se maculant alii depositum negant sunt istis et plura similia quibus amica semper fames auri conmilitat nullum tamen facile crimen admittitur cui pecuniae ministerium minime suffragatur igitur diuinae pietatis munus indepti et inpunitatem caelestis indulgentiae consecuti quod accepimus inuicem non negemus ne maioribus absoluti cum parua non resoluimus maximis iterum uinculis inplicemur moxque Dominus ille misericors donator debiti non exactor qui talentorum nobis decem milia relaxauit si propter denarios centum senserit nos strangulare conseruum saeuis tradi tortoribus cuncta iubeat exigendo inque carceralem detrusi custodiam penitus egredi non sinamur donec luamus uniuersa usque ad modum ultimi quadrantis amissa.
AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION not that the Lord, who is the path of light and the way of peace, leads anyone into the snares of temptation, but those who do not heed divine warnings, He allows to enter when He leaves them, for all who follow the slippery enticements of the world, enclosed in nets of delicious luxury, seek the sweet destruction, abandoned by the Lord who loves pure virtue, continue to enter wherever voluptuous temptation has dragged them. From this, therefore, let us strive to withdraw our foot back, rather crushing the narrow path which, by a narrow trail, unknown to many, leads steeply to the gate of the heavenly kingdoms.	ET NE NOS INDVCAS IN TEMPTATIONEM non quod Dominus qui lucis uia pacis est semita in laqueos quemquam temptationis inducat sed abhorrens diuinis monitis non parentes cum eos deserit introire permittit omnes enim qui lubrica sectantes mundi contagia retibus deliciosis inclusi luxus blandae perditionis affectant a Domino qui purae uirtutis amator est derelicti pergunt ingredi qua se temptatio uoluptuosa pertraxerit ab hac igitur pedem retro nitamur abducere semitam potius conterentes angustam quae tenui calle multis incognita caelestium regnorum subit arduam latenter ad portam.
BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL when we pray to be delivered from evil, we confess it is good whom we ask to deliver us, and not unjustly is he who delivers to be followed, he who slays to be fled, for by this through good fruits is the tree of life, by the bad the root of ancient transgression. For the fruit is understood as declared by the gospel reading, where the Lord, opening the various minds of different people, commanded each to be recognized from his fruits, that is, from his works, saying, "By their fruits you shall know them." For as great a distance as heaven is separated from earth, fire from waters, light from darkness, peace from wars, life nevertheless from tombs, so by such a great removal of distance are goods distinguished from evils. For always a double choice serves our deliberation's discretion, by which we either hold the right path or the left, not unaware or doubtful, the right path being that of the just in the bosom of Father Abraham rejoicing, the left however appointed to the deep torments of the impious. Hence no one through such great chaos and the immense bulk of a sheer mass is able to cross over the danger. This, therefore, is the freedom we desire, that if we are deemed worthy to be sheep and lambs of the highest shepherd, we deserve to escape the fierce bites of the wolf and pluck a life now secure through the sweetest pastures of Christ, rich with the pleasantness of abundant flowers.	SED LIBERA NOS A MALO cum liberari nos a malo deprecamur bonum esse quem petimus ut nos liberet confitemur nec inmerito sectandus iste qui liberat ille fugiendus est qui trucidat in hoc enim per bonos fructus arbor est uitae in illo per malos radix praeuaricationis antiquae actus namque fructus intellegi euangelica lectio declarauit ubi Dominus uarias diuersorum mentes aperiens ex suis quemque fructibus id est ex operibus iussit agnosci dicens ex fructibus eorum cognoscetis eos siquidem quanta distantia caelum separatur a terris ignis ab aquis lumen a tenebris pax a bellis uita nihilominus a sepulchris tantum magnae remotionis abscessu longius bona discernuntur a malis duplex etenim semper electio deliberationis nostrae famulatur arbitrio quo uel dextrum teneamus tramitem uel sinistrum non ignari uel dubii dextram semitam esse iustorum in Abrahae Patri archae sinu laetantium laeuam uero profundis impiorum suppliciis deputatam unde nullus ad alterum per tam grande chaos et abruptae molis inmensum ualeat transmeare periculum haec est igitur nobis libertas optabilis ut oues et agni summi pastoris si fuerimus digni censeri toruos mereamur lupi morsus euadere atque suauissima Christi per pascua largi floris amoenitate gratissima uitam carpere iam securam.

Early Thomas Aquinas contra the Immaculate Conception

Thomas Aquinas is one of the most notable theologians of the medieval period.  One of Thomas' earlier works was his commentary on Peter Lombard's Sentences.  At Sentences, III, D3, Q1, Thomas considers "the Sanctification of the Blessed Virgin," and specifically, "Concerning the first question, two things are to be looked into: first, the time of her sanctification; [and] second, its effects." 

Article 1 asks whether Mary was sanctified "before her conception was completed."  Thomas then considers multiple question-ettes (questinculae).  

In his "Response to Quaestinucula 1," he concludes that "it should be said that there is no way she could have been sanctified in her parents, nor even in the very act of her conception."

In his "Response to Quaestincula 2," he concludes that "it should be said that the Blessed Virgin’s sanctification could not have occurred in a becoming way before the infusion of her soul, because she was not yet capable of grace, but also not in the very instant of its infusion, such that by grace infused into her at that time she would be preserved from incurring original sin. For Christ was unique in the human race in not needing redemption, for he is our head, but all share in needing to be redeemed through him. Now, this could not be if any other soul were found that had never been infected by the original stain. And therefore this was not granted to the Blessed Virgin or anyone other than Christ."

In his "Response to Quaestincula 3," he concludes that "it should be said that the Blessed Virgin was sanctified before her birth from the womb, which can be gathered from the fact that she above all the other saints was most pure from sin, as the text states, as the chosen mother of divine Wisdom, in which no defilement occurs, as it says in Wisdom 7:22. Whence, since this purity may be found to have existed in some people such that they were cleansed before their birth from the womb—such as John the Baptist, of whom we read in Luke 1:15, he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb; and Jeremiah, of whom it says, before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you (Jer 1:5)—one should not doubt that this was bestowed on the Mother of God in a much more excellent way."

So, Thomas' position is fairly straightforward in that he he says she was sanctified in the womb before birth, but after the infusion of her soul into her formed body.  This contrasts with what was later defined to be dogma of the immaculate conception.

Responding to Elijah Yassi's use of Theoteknos of Livias in support of the Immaculate Conception

The following is an approximately 20 second clip from Elijah Yassi's opening argument (the second speech for the side in favor of the immaculate conception).  All my references to Daley and his introduction to and translation of Theoteknos of Livias sermon are from On the Dormition of Mary (Popular Patristic Series, no. 18, St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1998).  

The above still is taken from the presentation slides being shown.  The following is a transcript of what Elijah Yassi said (bracket is shown on the slide, but the word was simply read as-is): 

So, Theoteknos says, "For she was begotten like the Cherubim from pure and spotless [clay]. For while she was still in the loins of her father Joachim her mother and Anna received a message from a Holy Angel who said to her your seed shall be spoken of throughout all the world'." And this is uh a sixth Century work um where it talks about Mary having a spotless seed.

As far as I could tell, this quotation was provided in Elijah's speech and then never directly mentioned again throughout the debate.  At most, as far as I could tell, there were occasional references to the word "spotless," and some broad brush claims about the fathers.

The Detailed Rebuttal

1. The General Irrelevance of the Quotation to the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception

There is no mention here of Mary experiencing a privilege that was singular, or that Mary was "most blessed," or that she was preserved from the stain of original sin, nor are the merits of Jesus mentioned or alluded to.

2. Theoteknos is not a "Church Father"

We do not know whether Theoteknos was orthodox or heterodox, mostly because all that we really know about him is that he is attributed this work and is identified with the small town of Livias, which was near Jericho.  One assumes that the reason for taking this attribution as genuine is that he is otherwise unknown.  One challenge to this theory, however, comes from the ascription of this work, in two Arabic copies, to Theophile of Landra.  While Livias is a known town, Landra is not, which makes its citation even less suspect of invention.

  

Brian E. Daley, S.J., in his introduction to his translation, On the Dormition of Mary, p. 13, writes: "Roughly contemporary with John of Thessalonica's homily, it seems, is a shorter sermon attributed to an otherwise unknown Palestinian bishop, Theoteknos of Livias." Daley goes on to point out that Livias was a "small city across the Jordan from Jericho, at the foot of Mt. Nebo (today Tel er-Ramah)." (p. 13) Daley later explains that this sermon is "not mentioned in other ancient sources and known to us only from one badly damaged manuscript at St. Catherine's monastery ...."(p. 14)  

Daley's statement seems to be mistaken.  As I've pointed out in a separate post (link to post), there are actually two Arabic manuscripts of this sermon.

3. Probably Seventh Century (or later) not Sixth Century

Daley explains, p. 14, "[Livias] disappears from the extant lists of Christian sees after the Muslim invasions of the 630s. Theoteknos's homily, which has the early seventh-century feature of locating Mary's house and the place of her death on Mount Sion ...." 

Unfortunately, even this seventh-century dating is potentially too early, if the "Livias" attribution is not correct, which does not appear to have been carefully studied.  If the correct location is Landra (a know unknown town), the dating may still be around the same time (with the disappearance of the town due, one might surmise, to the Islamic expansion), or could be somewhat later.

In this post, I stick with the Theoteknos attribution, without concluding that it is correct.

Stephen J. Shoemaker, The Ancient Traditions of the Virgin Mary's Dormition and Assumption (2003), p. 65 states (footnotes omitted):

Another atypical narrative probably from the period here under consideration is the homily on the Dormition by Theoteknos of Livias. In Greek the text is known only from a single manuscript, edited by Wenger in his volume on the early Byzantine Dormition traditions, although there is also an Arabic version, still unedited, from which Wenger has completed several lacunae. The homily's author is identified as an otherwise unknown bishop, Theoteknos, who lived in the small town of Livias, at the foot of Mount Nebo, just across the Jordan river from Jericho. Since there ceased to be a bishopric in Livias sometime before 649, we may be fairly certain that Theoteknos delivered his homily sometime before this year, perhaps around the turn of the seventh century, if not slightly earlier.

Shoemaker's more precise statement seems to be correct, although the recent work mentioned in my separate post (link to post) has moved the study of the Arabic in the right direction.

4. Complimenting Mary vs. the Immaculate Conception

Theoteknos has lofty words to describe and praise Mary.  He first introduces her as "Mary, the holy Mother of God," (p. 71) and shortly afterwards describes her as "that spotless, holy one who never knew marital union" (p. 71), "she who had become wider than the heavens and higher than the cherubim was to receive the palm of reward to which she had been called, and to be taken up into heaven." (p. 71)

On the other hand, Theoteknos states (p. 71):

His purpose was that the power of the Prince of Evil should be destroyed through her by whom he had deceived us, and that through her all women should find freedom from the curse that bound them; "for she shall be saved through childbearing," as the Apostle says. (1 Tim 2:15)

This wording is hard to reconcile with the Immaculate Conception dogma, because it seems to imply that Mary remained in unity with Eve and was under the curse and under the power of the Prince of Evil, which power and curse was then broken and destroyed through Mary's conception and birth of Jesus, in some way further connected with her own death and resurrection.

At least in Daley's translation (which I have been unable to check), the power and curse were not destroyed "for her" but "through her."  This is a significant difference for the dogma of the immaculate conception, because it implies Mary was under the power and curse but escaped them, leading the way for the rest of womanhood.

This comes from Daley's section [1], which is then followed by section [2], which starts with the quotation Elijah Yassi offered.

5. The Quotation: a Contextual Analysis

The quotation in question is provided thus by Daley (p 72, endnotes, p. 81, double-bracket is my substitute for what seems to be a confusing attempt to partially transliterate the Greek):

[2.] She was begotten like the cherubim, from pure and spotless [clay].[EN3] For while she was still in the loins of her father Joachim, her mother Anna received a message from a holy angel, who said to her, "Your seed shall be spoken of throughout all the world."[EN4] Therefore Anna brought her to the temple of the Lord as an offering.[EN5] And during all her time there, the maiden stood alongside Christ the king, "at his right hand, splendidly clothed in a robe of gold," as the prophet says: "Listen, daughter, and see, and incline your ear; forget your people and your father's house. The king desires your beauty; he is your Lord--pay homage to him." (Ps. 44:10-13)

She was found worthy of unspeakable joy, which the prophets had foretold for her; her heart was penetrated both by a sword (Lk 2:35) and by joy. When she considered her conception [of Jesus] without seed, and the divine overshadowing, and [when she thought of] his human career--of how the invisible one had become visible, how the incomprehensible one shared her nature and reclined with publicans, stood before Pilate like a slave and was nailed to a cross and sealed in a tomb--and was in great confusion at the thought, surely a sword did pass through her soul. But joy filled her at his resurrection from the dead... and his ascension... and at the thought that the flesh that had come forth from her own womb, without seed, now sits enthroned with the Father; and this joy is great, and gladness has taken hold of the blameless one.

EN3. "Clay" here is conjectural, reading [[πηλοῦ]] for a lost word in the manuscript beginning with [[π]].

EN4. This is a quotation from the Protoevangelium of James 4.1. The whole paragraph on Mary's birth is inspired, in fact, by the Protoevangelium.

EN5. See Protoevangelium 7.1f.

For comparison, I offer the following translation of sections 4 and 7 of the Protoevangelium of James:

4. And, behold, an angel of the Lord stood by, saying: Anna, Anna, the Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive, and shall bring forth; and your seed shall be spoken of in all the world. And Anna said: As the Lord my God lives, if I beget either male or female, I will bring it as a gift to the Lord my God; and it shall minister to Him in holy things all the days of its life. 1 Samuel 1:11 And, behold, two angels came, saying to her: Behold, Joachim your husband is coming with his flocks. For an angel of the Lord went down to him, saying: Joachim, Joachim, the Lord God has heard your prayer. Go down hence; for, behold, your wife Anna shall conceive. And Joachim went down and called his shepherds, saying: Bring me hither ten she-lambs without spot or blemish, and they shall be for the Lord my God; and bring me twelve tender calves, and they shall be for the priests and the elders; and a hundred goats for all the people. And, behold, Joachim came with his flocks; and Anna stood by the gate, and saw Joachim coming, and she ran and hung upon his neck, saying: Now I know that the Lord God has blessed me exceedingly; for, behold the widow no longer a widow, and I the childless shall conceive. And Joachim rested the first day in his house.

...

7. And her months were added to the child. And the child was two years old, and Joachim said: Let us take her up to the temple of the Lord, that we may pay the vow that we have vowed, lest perchance the Lord send to us, and our offering be not received. And Anna said: Let us wait for the third year, in order that the child may not seek for father or mother. And Joachim said: So let us wait. And the child was three years old, and Joachim said: Invite the daughters of the Hebrews that are undefiled, and let them take each a lamp, and let them stand with the lamps burning, that the child may not turn back, and her heart be captivated from the temple of the Lord. And they did so until they went up into the temple of the Lord. And the priest received her, and kissed her, and blessed her, saying: The Lord has magnified your name in all generations. In you, on the last of the days, the Lord will manifest His redemption to the sons of Israel. And he set her down upon the third step of the altar, and the Lord God sent grace upon her; and she danced with her feet, and all the house of Israel loved her.

5.1 The Question of "Clay"

While I appreciate the effort to provide a suitable word starting with π (the letter "pi"), a more obvious choice would be father (πατήρ) or a related word like "fatherhood/paternity" (also starts with "pi")  After all, in the Protoevangelium of James, Joachim is characterized as being purified through the offering of sacrifices etc.  

The Arabic seems to have gone with clay, although it seems at least potentially possible that the Arabic was based on the same manuscript, and consequently was faced with the same gap-filling.

Nevertheless, we should consider the real possibility that the Greek original was "clay," given the Arabic translation that exists.

5.2 The "Begotten like the Cherubim"

This is an obscure saying.  It is reminiscent of Jesus' answer to the Sadducees, which explained that those in heaven "neither marry, nor are given in marriage" (Matthew 22:30, Mark 12:25, Luke 20:35) but instead "are as the angels of God in heaven" (Matthew 22:30) or "are as the angels which are in heaven" (Mark 12:25) or "are equal unto the angels" (Luke 20:36).  Presumably, the reasoning chain is that angels in heaven reproduce without the impure sexual thoughts (and possibly also without physical coupling at all) associated in the late patristic mind with the way humans normally reproduce.

Another option would make this an obscure allusion to the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, in which birds were made of clay.  This seems less likely at least from the standpoint that no other parallels to that apocryphal work have been noted.

Wenger's French translation of this passage declares, "She was born [pure and immaculate, like the cherubim]." (L'Assomption dans la Tradition Byzantine, p. 275)

The Greek, however, merely has the following:

Ginetai is usually translated as "become."  In the context, "ek p..." would seem to refer to Mary father, not clay.  Wenger argues that Ginetai can refer to "born" or "conceived," but acknowledges the challenges of saying that she was born or conceived cherubically.  Wenger argues that the "pure and spotless" that follows must refer to Mary, not Joachim, claiming that there is no reason they would apply to Joachim.  On the contrary, however, in the Protoevangelium of James, which this sermon draws from, Joachim's righteousness is a point of concern for the author, so it should not be ruled out.

The understanding of Mary becoming cherubic could be a reference to her early life, but could be an introduction to her entire life, culminating in her ascension (or if you prefer, assumption) into heaven.

5.3 The Loins of Joachim

Theoteknos seems ready to acknowledge Joachim as the actual biological father of Mary, with the emphasis being (as in the Protoevangelium of James) on his purification before her conception.  Her presence in his loins hints at a traducianist understanding, which - of course - is incompatible with the dogma of the immaculate conception.  On the other hand, it could simply be Theoteknos using the Biblical phrasing applied to Levi by the author of Hebrews, or the like, without having a specific conception model in mind.  

5.4 Famous Seed 

In the debate, the quotation, "Your seed shall be spoken of throughout all the world," was taken as having some alleged relevance to the immaculate conception.  I don't see the connection.  The statement, directly taken from the Protoevangelium of James, only means that Mary (Anna's seed) will be famous world-wide.  That's all it means in the source, and it seems to be all that is meant in Theoteknos as well.  The link between the famous seed and the temple is best explained by the connection provided in the Protoevangelium of James, which makes Anna like Hannah in offering up her offspring to God as a gift.

Elijah's characterization of "spotless seed" seems to be a blending of the characterization of her father (or mother, if the clay of her mother's womb is what is intended) and the famous seed.  I cannot see justification for such an interpretation.

5.5 Sword Penetrating Her Heart

While Theoteknos (or minimally Daley's translation thereof) softens a seeming criticism of Mary, nevertheless Theoteknos does attribute to her "great confusion" and associates that with the sword piercing her heart.  One can hardly see "great confusion" as a virtue, and it seems to represent at least in some way a very minor criticism of Mary.  Whether or not Theoteknos would specifically identify such "great confusion" as a sin, it seems to be a kind of moral failing that is inconsistent with the dogma of the immaculate conception. 

Pilar González Casado, as part of his doctoral thesis (Complutensian University of Madrid, 2013) has translated the Arabic to Spanish (pp. 529-36) as mentioned in my separate post (link to post).  In the Arabic, the sword is described as being one of "doubt."  This would certainly be consistent with a wide swath of ancient writers.

Conclusion

As you may have already deduced, I did not find the argument from Theoteknos to be very persuasive.  While the quoted portion may not be inconsistent