Sermon 120

SERMO 120

ABOUT THE SAME WORDS OF JOHN (1, 1-3):
"In the beginning was the Word," etc.

The Word of God incomprehensible revealed in the Gospel.

The beginning of the Gospel of John: In the beginning was the Word. Thus it began, he saw this, and transcending the whole creation, mountains, air, heavens, stars, Thrones, Dominions, Principalities, Powers, all Angels, all Archangels, transcending all things, in the beginning he saw the Word, and drank. He saw above all creation, he drank from the breast of the Lord. For he is John the holy evangelist, who Jesus especially loved; so that he would lean on his breast. There was this secret, that it would be drunk from there, which would be belched out in the Gospel. Happy are those who hear and understand. Those who, and even if they do not understand, believe are of the subsequent happiness. For how great it is to see the Word of God, who could explain it with human words?

The Word of God is everywhere whole.

Lift up your hearts, my brothers; as much as you can, lift them up; whatever occurs to you through the imagination of any body, reject it. If the Word of God occurs to you, however you think about the light of this sun, no matter how much you spread it, no matter how much you extend it, set no boundaries for its light in your thought; compared to the Word of God, it is nothing. Whatever the soul thinks that is such, is less in part than in whole. Think of the Word as whole everywhere. Understand what I say; as much as I can, I confine myself through my limitations for you. Understand what I say. Behold this light from heaven, which is called by the name of the sun, when it proceeds, it illuminates the lands, unfolds the day, makes forms, and distinguishes colors. A great good, a great gift of God to all mortals; its works magnify Him. If the sun is so beautiful, what is more beautiful than the Maker of the sun? And yet see, brothers; behold it spreads its rays through the entire earth; it penetrates open places, closed ones resist; it sends its light through windows, can it also through walls? Everything is open to the Word of God, nothing is hidden from the Word of God. See another difference, how far the creature, especially the corporeal, is from the Creator. When the sun is in the East, it is not in the West. Indeed, its light poured out from that great body extends to the West; but it itself is not there. When it begins to set, then it is there. When it rises, it is in the East; when it sets, it is in the West. Through these two works of its own, it gave names to places. Because when it rises in the East towards the East, it made the East to be called; because when it sets in the West towards the West, it made the West to be called. It appears nowhere at night. Is the Word of God like this? Is it that when it is in the East, it is not in the West, or when it is in the West, it is not in the East? Or does it sometimes leave the lands and goes under the lands, or behind the lands? It is whole everywhere. Who explains this with words? Who sees this? With what proof will I prove to you what I say? I speak as a man, I speak to men; I speak as a weak one to weaker ones. And yet, my brothers, I dare to say what I say to you, either through a glass darkly, or in a riddle, somehow I see, somehow I understand and in my heart I have a word about this matter. But it seeks to come out to you, and it does not find a worthy vehicle. The vehicle of the word is the sound of the voice. What I say within myself, I seek to say to you, and words fail. For I wish to speak of the Word of God. What kind of Word, what great Word? All things were made through it. Look at the works, and be in awe of the Worker. All things were made through it.

The excellence of the divine word is to be understood from the property of the human word. Newly baptized in white garments.

Return with me, human frailty, therefore return. Let us comprehend human understanding itself, if we can. We are humans, and we who speak, speak to humans, and emit the sound of our voice. We convey the sound of our voice to the ears of humans, and through the sound of our voice and somehow the understanding is put into the heart through the ear. Thus, let us express what we can, as we can, and comprehend this. But if we are not able to comprehend this either, what are we to speak of? Behold, you hear me: I make a word. If someone were to go out from here and be questioned outside about what is happening here, he would respond: The Bishop is making a word. I make a word about the Word. But what kind of word, and about what kind of Word? A mortal word, about an immortal Word; a mutable word, about an immutable Word; a transient word, about an eternal Word. Yet consider my word. For I had said to you: The Word of God is wholly everywhere. Behold, I make a word for you; what I say reaches everyone. For what I say to reach everyone, did you have to divide what I say? If I were to feed you, desiring to fill not your mind but your belly, and I placed bread before you so you could be filled; wouldn't you divide my bread among yourselves? Could my bread reach each one of you? If it reached one, the others would have nothing. Behold, I speak, and you all have it. It is little because you all have it; and you all have it entirely. The whole reaches everyone, the whole to individuals. O miracles of my word! What then is the Word of God? Listen to another thing. I said: What I said proceeded to you and did not depart from me. It reached you, yet it wasn't separated from me. Before I said it, I had it, and you did not have it; I said it, and you began to have it and I lost nothing. O miracle of my word! What then is the Word of God? From small things, infer great things. Consider earthly things, praise heavenly things. I am a creature, you are creatures; and so many miracles happen from my word in my heart, in my mouth, in my voice, in your ears, in your hearts. What is the Creator? O Lord, hear us. Make us, for you have made us. Make us good, for you made us enlightened humans. Those who are washed, enlightened, hear your word through me. For those who are enlightened by your grace stand before you. This is the day the Lord has made. But let them labor for this, let them pray for this, so that when these days have passed, they do not become darkness, but remain the light of God's miracles and blessings.