Sermon 335

SERMO 335

On the Birth of the Martyrs

The voices of the holy martyrs. The martyrs overcame delights and pains.

Since it is the day of the holy martyrs, what could please us more to speak about, than their glory? May the Lord of the martyrs help us, because he is their crown. We heard the blessed apostle Paul preaching with the voice of the martyrs: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? This is the voice of the martyrs: Shall tribulation? or distress? or persecution? or famine? or nakedness? or peril? or sword? As it is written, For your sake we are put to death all the day long, we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. But in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. This is the voice of the martyrs, to endure everything, and presume nothing of themselves, to love him who is glorified in his own: that the one who glories, may glory in the Lord. They also knew that which we sang a little before: Rejoice in the Lord, and be glad, righteous ones. If the righteous rejoice in the Lord, the unrighteous know not how to rejoice except in the world. But this is the first front to be conquered: first pleasures must be overcome, and then pains. How can one overcome a raging world, who cannot overcome a flattering world? The world flatters, promising honors, riches, pleasures: the world threatens, by intending pains, deprivations, humiliations. He who does not scorn what the world promises, how can he overcome what it threatens? Riches have their pleasure: who does not know this? But justice has more pleasure. Delight in riches with justice: but if such a critical temptation arises, that these two things come into temptation, riches and justice, and you cannot have both, but if you reach out for riches, it is necessary to lose justice; if you reach out for justice, let the riches perish: now choose, now fight; now let us see if you have not sung in vain: Rejoice in the Lord, and be glad, righteous ones: now let us see if you have not heard in vain: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Indeed, he left out all the things the world flatters with; and wanted to remind you, to whom the world flatters. Why? Because he was foretelling the contests of the martyrs, those contests, of course, where they conquered persecution, hunger, thirst, deprivation, ignominy, at the end the fear of death and the most fierce enemy.

Martyrs are distinguished not by their suffering, but by their love. The greedy man is a martyr for gold.

But see, brothers, because the entire art is made by Christ. The Apostle admonishes us to prefer the love of Christ over the world. How many distresses do those who want to seize others' possessions endure? Persecution, he says? Even this does not break them. Greed is terrified, the greedy seize and fear punishment, they burn for plunder. Many even suffer hunger while they acquire and make profits, to whom we command to fast, and they excuse themselves with their stomach. They have leisure all day to count coins, and they sleep fasting. Nakedness, he says? What can I say about nakedness? Every day merchants escape shipwreck naked and again sail into danger. Why do men risk themselves daily, if not for the sake of acquiring riches? Even the sword does not stop them. It is a capital crime to falsely claim an inheritance, and yet the inheritance is diminished. If, therefore, temporal greed earns this, why should not the inheritance of Christ also earn it? The greedy man says in his heart, who perhaps does not dare to speak with his tongue: Who will separate us from the greed for gold? Tribulation? or distress? or persecution? Even the greedy can say to gold: For your sake we are killed all day long. Thus the holy martyrs rightly say in the Psalm: Judge me, O God, and distinguish my cause from the ungodly nation. Distinguish, he says, my tribulation: the greedy also are troubled. Distinguish my distresses: the greedy also suffer distress. Distinguish my persecutions: the greedy also are persecuted. Distinguish my hunger: the greedy also hunger for acquiring gold. Distinguish my nakedness: the greedy also are stripped for gold. Distinguish my death: the greedy also die for gold. What does it mean to distinguish my cause? For your sake we are put to death all day long. They for gold, we for you. The punishment is similar, but the cause is different. Where the cause is different, there the victory is certain. If therefore we consider the cause, we love the festivities of the martyrs. Let us love in them not the passions, but the causes of the passions. For if we love only the passions, we will find many who suffer worse in evil causes. But let us consider the cause, let us regard the cross of Christ: there was Christ, and there were also thieves. Similar punishment, but different cause. One thief believed, the other blasphemed. The Lord judged as from a tribunal between both: condemned the one who blasphemed to hell, led the other with Him to paradise. Why this? Because even if the punishment was equal, the cause was unequal. Therefore choose the causes of the martyrs, if you wish to reach the palms of the martyrs.