Sermon 328
SERMO 328
On the Birthday of the Martyrs.
Christ first, having suffered, gave to martyrs the power to suffer.
In the Psalm we said to our Lord God: Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints. Precious is the death of the holy martyrs; for their price is the blood of their Lord. For He suffered by His own passion, because they were to suffer after Him. He went before, and many followed. For the way was indeed very rough; but He made it smooth, when He Himself passed over it before all. Therefore, the others did not fear to pass, because He passed first. For He died, and His disciples were terrified. He rose again, and took away their fear, and gave them love. For when Christ died, the disciples trembled, and thought that He had perished. When they followed, there you see the grace of God. Then the thief believed, when the disciples trembled. For there was one thief on the cross with Him, and so believed in Him, that he said: Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom. Who was teaching him, except the One who was hanging beside him? For He was fixed at his side; but He dwelt in his heart.
How are martyrs truthful, if every man is a liar? Martyr in Greek, Witness in Latin.
In this psalm, however, where we said: "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints," it is also written what you have heard: "I said in my ecstasy, 'Every man is a liar.'"
What do we say, brothers? Every man is a liar. Were the martyrs therefore also liars? If the martyrs were truthful, how is it true: Every man is a liar? Scripture says: Every man is a liar. If we say the martyrs were truthful, we make Scripture a liar. But if Scripture says the truth, that every man is a liar, then were the martyrs liars? How then do we show that both Scripture is truthful and the martyrs were truthful? Could it be that the martyrs were not men? But if they were men, how is it true: Every man is a liar? What then shall we do? We shall labor to show you that Scripture is true, and every man a liar; and that the martyrs were truthful because they died for the truth. For they are martyrs because they suffered for the truth. Martyr is a Greek word, and in Latin it is called Witness. If they were true witnesses, they spoke the truth; and by speaking the truth they received crowns. But if they were false witnesses, which is far from the case, they went not to crowns but to punishments, because it is written: A false witness shall not be unpunished. Therefore let us show that they were truthful. They already showed themselves to be truthful when they were willing to die for the truth. How then is Scripture truthful, which says: Every man is a liar? Let us ask our Lord Jesus Christ; and he himself will solve this question for us. From where will he solve it for us? From the Gospel, from which just now we were speaking, when it was being read to you.
True martyrs, because in them the Spirit of God spoke.
For you have heard, when the Gospel was being read, that the Lord Jesus said to the martyrs: When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. For if you speak, you speak falsely: for every man is a liar. Therefore the Lord Himself saw that every man is a liar, and so He gave His Spirit to the martyrs; so that they would not speak on their own, but His Spirit would speak through them: so that they would not be liars, but truthful. Behold why they were truthful; because it was not they who spoke, but His Spirit. And now what we speak to you, if we speak of our own accord, we lie. But if what we say to you are the words of the Spirit of God, then they are true. And you, make progress: do not wish to speak on your own part, if you wish to speak the truth; that you may not remain human liars, but become truth-speaking children of God.
To suffer for the truth is of the martyrs; to suffer for falsehood, even of the impious. Let a good cause of suffering be chosen.
All heretics also suffer for falsehood, not for truth: because they lie against Christ himself. All pagans, impious whatever they suffer, suffer for falsehood. Therefore, let no one exalt himself and boast about suffering, but first let him show the truth of his words. You show the punishment, I seek the cause. You say, I suffered: I ask why you suffered. For if we only consider sufferings, even robbers would be crowned. Does he dare to say: I suffered so much and so much? Why? Because it is said to him: Because of your evil deeds; therefore, you had an evil punishment, because you first had an evil cause. If it is glorious to suffer; even the devil himself could boast. See how much he suffers, whose temples everywhere are overthrown, whose idols everywhere are broken, whose priests and possessed are everywhere slain. Can he say: I am a martyr, because I suffer so much! Therefore, let the man of God first choose for himself the cause, and safely approach the punishment. Because if he approaches punishment for a good cause, after the punishment he will also receive the crown.
The certainty of the future judgment. The resurrection of each with their cause. Harsher punishments for the condemned after the resurrection.
Therefore, the righteous will be in eternal memory, and will not fear bad news. For the judge of all the living and the dead is coming, as we read in the Gospel. And it is true, because those things which we now see did not exist when they were foretold as future. What you see now is the name of Christ being preached among all nations, people turning to one God, idols being abandoned, demons being abandoned, temples being overthrown, images being shattered; all these things did not yet exist, yet they were foretold, and now they are seen. Therefore, in the Scriptures where these things, which we now see, are written (they were written then when they were not seen, but were promised as future), we read about things that have not yet come. For the day of judgment has not yet come, the resurrection of the dead has not yet come, He who was first to be judged has not yet come to judge. Judged unjustly, He will judge justly. Deferring power, showing patience when He wishes. Therefore, He will come, and just as He promised to come with His angels, so He will come and appear in glory to all, even to those resurrected.
For each one will be resurrected with their cause. For as one is received into the prison upon dying, so they proceed to the judge in the same state. Now is the time to settle one's cause, as once enclosed, they cannot. Therefore, those who have good causes are received into rest: however, those who have bad causes are received into punishment. But they will endure greater punishments when they have been resurrected: in comparison with which, the ones that the souls of wicked men endure after death are like the dreams of those tormented in their sleep. For their souls suffer, their flesh does not suffer. However, a greater torment is if one is tortured while awake.
Therefore, when all have risen and appeared before the just judge, as he himself predicted, he will separate them as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats: he will place the goats on the left, but the sheep on the right. And he will say to those who are on the right: Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. At this voice the right ones rejoice, the just rejoice. But to those who are on the left, he will say: Go into eternal fire with the devil and his angels. From this evil hearing, the just will not fear.
The blessedness and glory of the martyrs are greater after the resurrection.
The fruits of their deeds not yet received, the holy martyrs are blessed now, for their souls are with Christ. But what is prepared for them in the resurrection, who can express in words? What eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man, what God has prepared for those who love Him. If the great goods that the faithful are going to receive cannot be explained by words; not without reason such rewards are prepared for those who have fought for the truth even unto blood. The world did not allure them, terror did not break them, torments did not conquer them, blandishments did not deceive them. Their bodies themselves will have great adornments, in which they suffered great torments.
The punishment does not make a martyr, but the cause. A great thief was crucified with Christ.
But if we love them, let us imitate them so that we first choose a good cause and for the sake of a good cause endure whatever troubles may come in this world with an even mind. For many have not chosen the cause and died for a bad cause as evil. They lost their patience because they did not hold onto wisdom. It is not punishment that makes a martyr, but the cause. For if punishment made a martyr, then a thief when he is killed is a martyr. Do you want to know that it is not the punishment but the cause that makes a martyr? Consider those three crosses where the Lord was crucified in the midst of two thieves. The punishment was equal, but the cause separated those whom the punishment joined. One of those thieves, while hanging, believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. And he said first to his peer—for the other thief, his peer, insulted the Lord Jesus Christ and said to him: "Save yourself if you are the Son of God"—and the other thief said to his peer: "Do you not fear God, we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." Oh to confess! Because if he confessed, he was not hanging there without reason! Then he said to the Lord Christ: "Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom." What faith! He whom he saw crucified, he also hoped would reign. The thief did not disdain the common punishment in Christ. He saw him dying like himself and hoped he would reign over him. This thief was great! He took the kingdom of heaven by force. Where did he learn this? He was robbing at the throat, brought to the judge, received a sentence, from throat to judge, from judge to cross. Where did he learn what he said, unless there was a teacher nearby who taught him? For the Lord Christ, the teacher of all, was hanging beside him and teaching in his breast. Why did I say this, brothers? Because it is not punishment but the cause that makes a martyr. There were three crosses. Equal punishment but the cause is different. One to be damned, the other to be saved, in the middle the condemner and Savior. One he punished, the other he absolved. That cross was a tribunal.
To love the martyrs is to imitate their faith and patience. Conquer what you feel inside, and those who plot against you outside are conquered.
Therefore, brothers, let us strive while we live to hold true faith, to be in the true Church of God, to lead a good life, if we love the martyrs, so that having a good cause we may be able to imitate them. But let no one say, "I cannot be a martyr because there is no persecution now." Temptations do not cease. The struggle and the crown are prepared. When, perhaps? Behold, as I mention something—for it is too long to recount all the situations in which the Christian soul is tempted and with God’s help conquers and makes great victories, unseen by anyone, enclosed in the body; it fights in the heart, is crowned in the heart but by Him who sees in the heart—behold therefore as I say something: perhaps one of you is sick. As human reasons are, how many are in peril! And they come to the one who lies in bed and say to him or perform bindings or some unknown characters, and he is tempted and is told, "Do this and that." – Whoever does all these things perishes with the devil because all these things are not sacraments of angels but machinations of demons. – Therefore whoever despises these and sometimes hears, "Unless you do these things you will die," but answers him, "It is better for me to die than to do this," lies in bed and undergoes martyrdom. Lying in bed weary and exhausted with fevers, he cannot move himself and wrestles. He does not move his limbs and with the arms of faith strangles the lion about which the apostle Peter says: Do you not know that your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. He described the devil like a roaring lion prowling and looking to take or harm something from the fold. He does not cease. Never until the end does he abstain from his ambushes. Therefore, if our adversary does not sleep, we fight daily. And we do not see our adversary himself and we conquer. Why do we not see him? Because we feel internally from where he wants to conquer us and we subdue it. You do not see your enemy the devil but you feel your avarice in you. You do not see the devil your enemy but you feel your lust in you. You do not see the devil your enemy but you feel your anger in you. Conquer what you feel within and those who ambush from outside are conquered. Therefore, this is to love the martyrs, this is to celebrate the days of the martyrs with devoted piety, not to indulge in wine but to imitate their faith and patience.