Sermon 313A
Sermon 313
Held at Carthage at the table of the blessed martyr Cyprian
On His Birth, the 18th day before the Kalends of October
Two things make the way of Christians narrow.
The holy solemnity of the most blessed martyr, which has gathered us in the name of the Lord, demands something to be said about the merits and glory of such a martyr: but nothing can be said worthily; for human language could perhaps suffice to speak of his virtues and glory, if he himself had wished to praise himself. Nevertheless, let us praise him more with devotion than with ability, or rather let us praise the Lord in him; the Lord in him, and him in the Lord. For what would he be without the Lord, as the voice of the martyrs from the Psalm was heard when it was read just now: Our help is in the name of the Lord. If the help of all of us is in the name of the Lord, how much more of the martyrs! Where the fight is greater, greater help is necessary. For there are two things that make the way of Christians narrow: the rejection of pleasure, and the endurance of suffering. You conquer, whoever battles. If you overcome what pleases and frightens. I say, you conquer, Christian, whoever battles, if you overcome what pleases and frightens. One thing that pleases, another that frightens. It concerns the glory of the martyrs. It is easy to celebrate the solemnities of the martyrs; it is difficult to imitate the sufferings of the martyrs.
The gates of desire and fear. The dual meaning of the name of the world. Good and bad habits are made only by good or bad loves. How great are the evils of triple concupiscence.
Narrow and difficult, as I began to say, is the way of Christians for two reasons: contempt for pleasure and endurance of suffering. Therefore, whoever contends, let him know that he contends with the whole world; and contending with the whole world, let him conquer these two, and he conquers the world. Let him conquer whatever entices, let him conquer whatever threatens; for pleasure is false, punishment fleeting. If you wish to enter through the narrow gate, close the gates of desire and fear; for by these the tempter attempts to overthrow the soul. By the door of desire, he tempts with promises; by the door of fear, he tempts with threats. There is something to desire so that you do not desire these things; there is something to fear so that you do not fear these things. Let desire not be taken away but changed; let fear not be extinguished, but transferred to another. What did you desire when you yielded to the flattering world? What did you desire? The pleasure of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the ambition of the age. I do not know what kind of three-headed dog this is from hell. But listen to the apostle John, who was leaning on the Lord's chest and in the Gospel belched what he drank at the feast of Christ; hear him saying: Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him; for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Therefore, heaven and earth are called the world. He does not blame the world itself who says: Do not love the world; for he who blames this world blames the maker of the world. Hear the world named twice in the same place under different meanings. It was said of the Lord Christ: He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not know him. The world was made through him: Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth. The world was made through him: I lift my eyes to the mountains, from where help will come to me. My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. This world was made by God, and the world did not know him. Which world did not know him? The lover of the world, the admirer of the work, the despiser of the maker. Let your love migrate: break the bonds from the creature, tie it to the Creator. Change your love, change your fear; for nothing makes habits good or bad except good or bad loves. A great man, someone might say, is good and great. How, I ask? He knows many things. I ask what he loves, not what he knows. Therefore, do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him: For all that is in the world - certainly in the lovers of the world - what are in the lovers of the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. In the lust of the flesh is pleasure; in the lust of the eyes is curiosity; in the pride of life is arrogance. Whoever conquers these three, nothing at all remains to be conquered in desire. Many branches, but a triple root. How many evils the desire for carnal pleasure has, how many evils it causes! From there come adulteries, fornications; from there come luxuries, drunkenness; from there comes whatever illicitly titillates the senses and penetrates the mind with poisonous pleasure, enslaves the mind to the flesh, drives out the ruler from the stronghold, and subjects the commander to the servant. And what right thing can a man do when perverse within himself?
Against theatrical spectacles.
What evils are brought about by base curiosity, the vain desire of the eyes, the greed for frivolous spectacles, the madness of stadiums, with no reward for the conflicts of contests! Charioteers compete for some prize; for what prize do the people quarrel over the charioteers? But it delights to see the charioteer, the hunter, the actor. Does shameful pleasure so please the honorable? Change also the desire for spectacles; the Church offers your mind more honorable and revered spectacles. Just now, the passion of blessed Cyprian was being read; we were hearing with our ear, seeing with our mind, watching him compete, fearing somewhat for his danger, but hoping for God's assistance. Finally, do you wish to know quickly what the difference is between our spectacles and those of the theater? We, as far as sound mind prevails in us, desire to imitate the martyrs whom we watch; we, I say, desire to imitate the holy martyrs whom we watch competing. Honestly, spectator, when you watch in the theaters, you would be insane if you dared to imitate whom you love. Behold, I watch Cyprian, I love Cyprian. If you get angry, curse me, and say: “May you be such.” I watch, I am delighted, as much as I can embrace with the arms of my mind: I see the competitor, I rejoice in the victor. Get angry, as I said, and say to me: “May you be such!” See if I do not embrace, see if I do not desire, see if I do not wish, see if I cannot say I am unworthy, yet I cannot refuse to flee and turn away. You watch, you delight, you love. Do not get angry if I say: “May you be such!” But I refrain, I do not say; acknowledge a friend, change spectacles with me. Let us love those whom we are not ashamed of; let us love those whom we wish to imitate, as far as we can. But is the one who is watched infamous; the one who watches honest? Let the desire of the buyer cease, and there will be no shame for sale. By watching infamy, you confirm it. Why provoke what you accuse? I wonder if the infamy of your loved ones does not stain you. But let it not stain you, let your honesty remain unblemished, if it can, spectator of lusts, buyer of shameful pleasures. Do I dare to prohibit spectacles? I dare to prohibit, I certainly dare; this place gives me confidence, and He who placed me in this place. The holy martyr was able to endure raging pagans; should I not dare to instruct Christian listeners? Should I fear silent offenses when he despised open rages? I will certainly speak: I will surely be convicted in the hearts of the listeners if I speak falsely. The ancient Roman discipline did very well, very well indeed, which assigned every kind of actor to an infamous place. No honor for them in the court, not even in the plebeian tribe; removed from the respectable on all sides, set up for sale to the respectable. What have you removed from the court for dignity, and placed for yourself in the theater for pleasure? Let your pleasure be in harmony with your dignity. And the poor souls themselves are enslaved to the voices of the spectators, the desires of the spectators, the insane pleasures of the spectators. Remove all these things, they are freed; he who does not wish to watch shows mercy to them.
The opinion of C. Sallustius is praised.
These things are said about the lust of the eyes. How much evil the ambition of the world holds! There is all pride: and what is worse than pride? Hear the sentence of the Lord: God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Therefore, the ambition of the world is also wicked. Someone might say: Without it, the powers of the world cannot function. They certainly can. Some author of theirs said: Each blames the authors for their affairs. They certainly can. A ruler is placed in power; let him rule himself, and he has ruled. But does the human mind proceed to arrogance? Let arrogance be restrained: let him recognize that he is a human, who judges another human. The dignity is different, but the fragility itself is common. Whoever thinks this piously and sanctly, and has power, does not proceed to arrogance. Cyprian overcame all these things. For what did he not overcome, who disdained life itself, overflowing with all temptations? The judge threatened him with death; he confessed Christ, ready to die for Christ. When death comes, no ambition remains, no curiosity of the eyes, no craving for dirty and carnal pleasures; one despised life, and all things are overcome.
Indeed, Cyprian was made an altar to God.
Therefore let the blessed one be praised in the Lord. When could this happen, if the Lord had not helped? When could he conquer, if the spectator, who was preparing the crown for the victor, had not supplied strength to the struggler? He indeed rejoices and he rejoices for us, not for himself, when he is praised in the Lord. For he is very gentle, and it is written: My soul shall rejoice in the Lord; let the gentle hear and be glad. He was gentle: he wishes his soul to be praised in the Lord. Let his soul be praised in the Lord. Let his body also be honored, because precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. Let it be celebrated reverently, as by Christians it should be celebrated. For we do not set up an altar, as to a god, to Cyprian, but we made Cyprian an altar to the true God.