Sermon 229J
Sermon 229/J
TREATISE ON THE FOURTH WEDNESDAY OF EASTER
Against the Manicheans, the flesh of Christ was true.
The Lord Christ deigned to persuade with many and various proofs that His resurrection was certain and true, for building faith, and expelling unbelief from the heart, and removing all doubt about His resurrection. It would not have sufficed to present Himself to be seen by the eyes if He had not also presented Himself to be touched by the hands. What many impious and heretical Manichaeans suspect and believe about Christ, that He was not true flesh, but was a spirit having the appearance of flesh, not to instruct faith, but to deceive the eyes; that He was not a man, but was thought to be; that He was not flesh, but seemed to be so; what therefore the Manichaeans believe, and have made a dogma, and have established an error, this first thought arose in the hearts of the Apostles. And indeed those Manichaeans never believed Jesus to have been a man; they fear to give flesh to the Word, and do not fear to attribute falsehood to the truth. He has true flesh, by which truth shows falsehood, and builds truth in the hearts of men. Therefore, they never believed that the Lord Jesus Christ was a man; but the disciples knew a man, with whom they had been conversing for such a long time. They saw Him walking, sitting, sleeping, eating, drinking; they knew everything, they knew He sat tired by the well. From this long conversation, they knew the true man; but after He had died, what they knew, when they believed that this could be resurrected, that could die? Therefore, He appeared to their eyes as such as they knew Him; and not believing that true flesh could rise from the tomb on the third day, they thought they saw a spirit. This error of the Apostles is a sect of the Manichaeans.
Christ has lost the fruit of his passion if there is no truth of the resurrection.
They are accustomed, however, when these things are objected to them, to respond thus: What harm do we believe, since we believe that Christ was a spirit of God? We believe in the spirit, we do not believe in the flesh: the spirit is better than the flesh. We believe in what is better; we do not wish to believe in what is worse. What harm do we do? If there is nothing harmful in this speech, let Jesus leave His disciples in this error. What harm did they believe? And the disciples believed Christ to be a spirit; for they did not think that He was the one, but a spirit. Let the Lord dismiss them, affirm to them what they have believed rightly; finding them in falsehood, He should not teach them the truth. Hear what harm it is to believe thus. Hear the Lord. Do you think you are in peril from a minor illness? Listen to the doctor's verdict. What the disciples thought they were seeing—a spirit—you think too, Manichean. The doctor came to the disciples then: He found them believing what you now believe. If He left them uncured, err confidently; but if He deigned to heal them, why do you delight in being sick? Hear the Lord: Why are you troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your heart? What kind of thoughts surely, if not false, morbid, pernicious ones? For Christ has lost the fruit of His passion if there is no truth in the resurrection. Why are you troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your heart? As a good farmer would say: What I planted there, I will find; not the thorns, which I did not plant. Faith descended into your heart, because it is from above; but these thoughts did not descend from above, but arose like bad weeds in the heart itself. But He does not leave it, He uproots the weeds that were born badly, He clears the field, He sows the good. For indeed He says, why are you troubled? because they were troubled, not orderly. Why do thoughts arise in your heart? See my hands and my feet. If it is little to see, touch; you do not believe your eyes, believe your hands. Touch, and see, because a spirit does not have bones and flesh, as you see I have.
Christ was seen, touched, and furthermore ate with his disciples.
And while they were still trembling with joy. And they rejoiced, and they doubted: and they saw, and they touched, and they scarcely believed. Great is the dignity of grace upon us; we neither saw, nor touched, and we believed. But to them, while they were still trembling with joy, he said: Do you have anything here to eat? Or do you then believe that I live, if I dine with you? They offered him what they had, a piece of broiled fish. Broiled fish signifies martyrdom, faith tested by fire. Why then a part? Because if I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. So make the whole body as if of martyrs; some suffer from love, others suffer from boastfulness. Take away the part of boastfulness, the part of love. This is the food of Christ, give Christ his part; Christ loves martyrs, who have suffered for love. He ate, and he himself was, he himself who was seen and hanged; he who was seen, he was touched, food was provided to him, he himself was taking and eating before the eyes of the disciples; and all these things were insufficient. Pardon them, Apostles, still hard after these things. But their correction is our edification; see what the Lord followed, how he took away all doubts. He was seen, he was touched, he ate: certainly, it was he.
The truth of the resurrection from the argument of the Scriptures.
Nevertheless, so that it might not seem that he trifled with human understanding in any way, he sent his hands to the Scriptures. Let the pagans say whatever they want: He was a Magus, he could show himself. But was the Magus before he was born able to prophesy about himself from the Scriptures? See, that which you see was foreseen beforehand, and what you perceive was foretold beforehand. Hear, daughter, and see. O holy Church, listen and see: hear the predictions, see the fulfillments. The head which persuaded was the Lord Christ; it was the head of the Church that persuaded by showing himself alive, true, whole, and certain, and led believers to faith. What then did he say of the Scriptures? Do you not know that it was necessary to fulfill all that was written in the Law and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning me? Then he opened their understanding, so they might comprehend the Scriptures. And he said to them: Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead on the third day. Behold, it is done as it was written; behold, it is fulfilled as it was predicted; behold, it is shown as it was read. Hear the words, perceive the deeds; full truth, certain faith; now let heretical deceit perish. Behold, thus it is written: Thus it was necessary, what? For Christ to suffer, it was foretold. To rise from the dead on the third day, it was foretold. The Jews had read these things: they read, but they did not see; and so that others might believe, they stumbled over the stone lying there. For if they had known, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory; if they had never crucified the Lord of glory, the nations would not have believed in the one born and having suffered. Therefore, those disciples were separated from the Jews, whose hearts were closed so they might not understand the Scriptures, by the grace of the Lord. O Apostle, O Peter, O Matthew, O Thomas, O others, who indeed distinguishes you? Perhaps you say: My faith. , if he did not give, because you would not have it. Your faith distinguishes you. But what do you have that you did not receive? But if you received it, why do you boast, as though you did not receive it? Behold grace, behold it rises, behold it shows itself to the eyes of the Apostles who did not deign to show themselves to the eyes of the Jews. Behold, he presents himself to be seen by the eyes, presents himself to be touched by the hands. It is not enough: read, he recalls the Scriptures. And this is not enough: he opens the understanding so that you might understand what you read.
The Church is announced as spread through all nations.
He persuaded himself to be the head. What about us? What about the body? Christ is the head, the Church is the body; the Apostles saw the head, but they did not see the future Church. Pay attention: they saw the head, touched the head, embraced the head, conversed with the head; they did not see the future Church. Therefore, what about us? In a certain way, in those wedding tablets, both the groom and the bride ought to have been named and expressed. But because he has already shown the groom, and was silent about the bride, half of the wedding is missing. Let the heavenly vows be fulfilled: the groom has appeared, let the bride also appear; he is present, she is future; he in the resurrection, she in the preaching; let him be seen, let her be believed. How has he been seen? See that a spirit does not have bones and flesh, as you see that I have. Then he opened their minds. It was necessary for Christ to suffer, and to rise again on the third day. Now we see the Lord, now we know the Lord, we touch, hear and believe in the Lord; what about the Church? Repentance and remission of sins must be preached in his name. Where? How far? Let not something foreign come out from this corner and substitute itself for your own. Where? How far? Through all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Behold, you have heard the Church designated. When the disciples were hearing these things, they did not see the Church throughout all nations; they saw one thing, believed another; they saw the head, believed in the body. We see the body, let us believe in the head.