Sermon 335K

SERMON 335/K

ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE BISHOP'S BURIAL

Death is a certain intermediate thing.

This solemnity, my brothers, is in honor of God because of the servant of God. For when a servant is rightly honored, he is honored in the name of his Lord. Blessed therefore... the servant of God, today has laid down the burden of the flesh and committed the flesh to the earth to rise again. The earth has been returned to the earth, the spirit to the Spirit of God. Such also is the laying down of the body for each man as it was in the body. For death is a certain intermediate thing, which by itself is neither good nor evil; indeed, on the coming last day of this life, it discerned and separated the two things that were joined, the invisible soul from the visible flesh, the sensing soul from the flesh in which the soul senses, since the flesh without the soul senses nothing. Therefore, these two things joined, very unlike in themselves, the soul and the flesh, when separated make death. Therefore, death, which separates and divides these two, by itself does not seem to be either good or evil, but it is good for the good and evil for the evil.

One thing is good, another is necessary. Life is to be loved, judgment is to be feared.

You have heard the Apostle saying: What I shall choose I do not know. I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better; but to remain in the flesh is necessary on your account. One thing is good, another thing is necessary. Good has the name of goodness, necessary has the name of necessity. If all were learned, what need would there be for the Apostle Paul to be kept longer in this life? But because there were many to be built up, the architect was kept, who knew most expertly how to place Christ as the foundation in the hearts of believers. Thus also the blessed one... dispensed the word and sacrament of God as long as the Lord willed. But when it pleased the father of the household to call his servant out of the earthen dwelling and transfer him to heaven, the earthen house itself was commended to the earth, and the earthen house itself awaits the resurrection when it will see the Creator. For the day will come, as the Lord says, when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and those who have done good will come out to the resurrection of life, but those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. Life is to be loved, judgment to be feared. Here choose what you love, avoid what you fear; for no one avoids judgment by fearing, but by living well. For what good is it to fear and live badly? If you live badly and fear, will you come to what you love, but escape what you fear?

This life is a theater for God watching. Behold, as David did to signify grace.

Here, then, is the contest, this life is a theater watched by God: here is the fight, here is the conflict with all vices and especially with the prince of vices, as with Goliath. For the devil challenges the soul to single combat. He is defeated when he stands, but in the name of the Lord, not in the strength of the warrior. Therefore, whatever evil and unlawful thing is suggested to your heart, whatever malign desire arises against your mind from your flesh, these are the enemy's weapons, who provokes you to single combat. Remember that you are fighting. The enemy is invisible, but your protector is also invisible. You do not see with whom you are struggling, but you believe in him by whom you are protected. And if you have the eyes of faith, you see him too: for every faithful person sees with the eyes of faith the adversary provoking daily. But with what will you fight? With what, do you think? Behold, as David did. From the river he selected five smooth stones. The river is the transition of temporal things: in this transition of temporal things, the human soul received the law from God. And since the law is primarily contained in the five books of Moses, he selected five stones from the river. Therefore they are called smooth, because the one who used them was smooth, because he was gentle, because he was meek, because he was submissive: For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. But what does the law profit if there is no grace?

Wisdom adapted itself to our little ones.

For this reason, he placed the five stones in a bucket of milk because milk signifies grace, as it is freely given. The woman consumes food: what is necessary for the sustenance of the body transforms into the juice that nourishes the flesh, while other excesses are expelled through their specific pathways; the juice of the milk flows to the breasts to feed the hungry infants freely. For the mother has full breasts and seeks lips to which she might pour the milk, and if no one sucks the milk, it burdens the mother. Similarly, the saints of God have hearts full of God's grace: they seek those to whom they can impart it. And see what the Lord himself did in order to feed us like infants. His wisdom, which none of us could comprehend with our minds, being strong food, suitable for angels as they sustain themselves on it, men, however, cannot use such food because they are weak. What then did God do but what a loving mother would? Since a tiny infant cannot take solid food, the mother transforms the solidity of the food into flesh and in a manner of speaking incarnates it to make it suitable for the infant. Thus, God incarnated the Word to make it suitable for us little ones. Behold the solid food: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. This solidity is consumed by angels: they are nourished and refreshed by it and it does not diminish. Which of us could approach, with the weakness of this mind and body, to consume what is stated here: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not comprehended it? What human weakness can approach this solidity? What of our frailty can grasp it? But do not fear, o crowd of little ones! The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

David went forth to battle armed with grace.

Therefore, to signify this grace, the servant of God placed five stones in the bucket, which he usually used to receive milk when milking, and he proceeded to the fight armed with grace, and was invincible so much as he was faithful. He cursed in his gods, this one did not reply with curses to the curse, but he spoke, this one presumed. Those were worthy to be cursed, our God worthy to be presumed upon. With one stone, he struck down such an immense and terrible enemy. He received it on the forehead, and he fell, where he did not have the sign of grace. David ran, stood over the fallen but not yet completely extinct - he was lying down but still somewhat alive - and with the enemy's own sword he killed the remnants of his life. And this signifies something. My brothers, in the first dispensation of our Lord Jesus Christ as of that spiritual David who came from the lineage of David, the enemy received it on the forehead, and was struck down. All the superstition of the nations lay down, which could not thereafter raise itself against the Church of God, because even when it arose, it was worked against, but it was crowned with martyrdom. Then, with the Church advancing, because that great sword or spear, that is, the immense sword that Goliath carried, the eloquence of this age which subdued many minds to itself, many servants of God learned that eloquence, so that Goliath could be killed with his own sword. How eloquent Saint Cyprian was, how his sword shone in his letters. It is Goliath’s sword, but already wrested from the fallen to kill the enemy. With that eloquence, we fight Goliath daily, and may it be given to us that, having killed him, we triumph. But he fights daily from his remnants in the hearts of men: we, in the name of the Lord, may we overcome him.

Do not be negligent in fighting, but neither be proud in presuming.

No one, my brothers, no one ought to fight with any vice in his heart and presume about himself. Do not be negligent in fighting, but neither be proud in presuming. Whatever it is that moves you, whether from ignorance or from desire, come to the battle, do not be sluggish, but call upon the One who watches, who helps those who labor. Thus you conquer. Otherwise, you do not conquer because you do not conquer. For did David win? Attend to his words and see that he did not conquer. For he said: The battle is God's. What does it mean to say: The battle is God's, except: God fights through me? He uses me as his vessel; He himself overthrows the enemy, He himself liberates the people, He himself gives glory, not to us but to His name. By fighting and confessing Him thus, we securely end this life, and with the struggle ended, we rest in the bosom of holy quiet, where the blessed rest..., indeed after grievous struggles, indeed after admirable battles. For man fights, sometimes with another man not seeing. For another man does not see in your heart what thoughts you endure, under what suggestions you are endangered, by what desires you are spurred. Some flatter, some threaten: it must be feared lest you be taken by flatterers, lest you be broken by those who threaten. In this struggle what remains except to say: In the name of the Lord my God I will overcome him; in this struggle what remains except to say: Not to us, Lord, not to us, but to Your name give glory? If you hold these things, having the law in the vessel of milk, you will be invincible. Whatever opposes you will easily be overthrown, so that He who set up the struggle for you may watch those who contend and help those who labor and crown those who conquer.