Sermon 360A

SERMON 360/A "Salvator noster, fratres carissimi, non verbo tantum, sed etiam opere nos aedificare voluit, ut non praedicendo solum, sed et operando doceret quid facere deberemus. Nam fere dum aliquid operatur et miraculum facit, quidquid geritur actio, praedicatur mysterium. Ante diem passionis suae discipulorum pedes lavit: qui idcirco non duo, vel tres, sed duodecim discipulorum pedes lavit, et singillatim unusquisque in memoriam faciens istud exemplum, vobis, dilectissimi, debitores caritatis Iesu exhibere debet quod didicit."

Treatise of Saint Augustine the Bishop
on the testimonies of the Scriptures
against the Donatists and against the Pagans

The fathers heard, we see.

The promises of God created faith in our parents, the gifts of God have fulfilled faith in us. In them, it was promised to us, in us, it has been rendered to them as well. There are two senses of the body through which faith enters: hearing and sight. They heard, we see. But even in us, they see, and we heard in them. That is why God also speaks to the Church herself: Listen, daughter, and see. Listen, he says, and see, and forget your people and your father's house, for the king desires your beauty. What king? He follows and says: Because he is your God. What then is this and how great is the dignity of the woman to whom the king is God and whom God is the husband? Listen, he says, and see, and forget your people and your father's house. He fixes something in memory, so that he may remove something from memory. For she was under another father and among another people. Indeed, the Lord was saying to the unbelieving and to those still in darkness: You are from your father the devil. The people of the godless are indeed the sons of the devil, and the crowd, belonging as members to the lost head. She is commanded to forget this father's house and this people by hearing and seeing, so that she may also respond to her faithful from another psalm: As we have heard, so we have seen.

God forgave us our sins, granted us all good things.

It was heard from our fathers: In your seed all nations will be blessed. This seems to us, because it is fulfilled in us. It was heard: There will be the root of Jesse, and one who will rise to rule the nations, in him the nations will hope. From Jesse, David; from David, the offspring of Christ. The root of Jesse, Christ reigns among the nations, in him the nations hope. The provincials of the king and the servants of the dominant one and coheirs of the brother hope in their king. This, just as it is woven into the variety of the queen's garment, so it is clear to our eyes and faith. For it was said of this queen: The queen stood at your right hand in gold embroidered clothing, surrounded by variety. What is the variety of the garment? The multitude of languages. The Latins speak differently, the Greeks differently, the Punics differently, the Hebrews differently, the Syrians differently, the Indians differently, the Cappadocians differently, the Egyptians differently. Variety in color, unity in the fabric. For many colors, enclosed in the unity of the fabric, depict, not tear apart. Variety of languages, but not a variety of doctrines. Variety of speech, but unity of charity. And how does the Apostle say: This is our boast, the testimony of our conscience, where the eyes of God are, where his sight is, to whom we have pleased, except that, when we were sinners, by forgiving us what displeased us, he granted us what pleases us? Because this has been done so that we could, by his gift, not by our merit, say with the Apostle and from the Apostle: This is our boast, the testimony of our conscience, therefore it is said of that queen: All the beauty of the king's daughter is within. She is adorned externally with a garment to the face, formed internally by faith for salvation. From where, if not by hearing and seeing, to whom it was said: Hear, daughter, and see, so that she might respond, as we have said, and harmonize and in some way resonate with all her members: As we have heard, so we have seen?

"Gideon sought the present thing, he foretold the future."

The world was bare of Christians and dry with the lack of grace. One people worshiping God, born from the seed of Abraham by flesh and a series of generations; in which people there were many saints, prophets, righteous ones, patriarchs, our fathers; there was grace in worshiping God, and merit for deserving, and hope for receiving reward. And this one nation was among all nations, with the whole world lacking this grace. We have come to our times: that one nation remained dry from this grace, and the world was irrigated. How this was prefigured among our fathers, take it. After I state the resolution, I propose that the resolved matter be resolved as it usually is. Therefore, now after this preface, when I speak, excuse me. It is written in the book of Judges that Gideon, going to battle and fighting for the homeland against foreigners, asked for a sign. It seemed he was asking for a sign for the present matter, but that sign did not fit the present matter. He asked for the present thing, he foretold the future. What indeed did he ask? Take it. He asked God to place a fleece of wool on the threshing floor, in which fleece he wanted to find rain, so that the fleece would be wet, and the whole threshing floor dry. He asked for another sign and said to God: “Lord, do not let your anger be kindled against me. I will ask yet another thing and try again on the fleece. This I ask, that the whole threshing floor be wet, and the fleece dry.” He received; the next day he found the fleece dry, the threshing floor irrigated. The threshing floor is the world, in the fleece the Jewish people. The whole world was empty of this grace, therefore the threshing floor was dry. This grace was among the Jewish people, but in the fleece. What is in the fleece? Not in the manifestation of faith, but in the cloud of secrecy, it was in secret, not in the open. It was not to be shown to appear, but to be expressed to flow. The fleece was pressed, and the basin filled with water. Not in vain the basin. Indeed, the basin is called from washing feet, that is from washing feet, as pelvis, which washes feet. Therefore, even the expression of the fleece flowed Christ. For Christ, commending humility, washed the disciples' feet in the basin. Now therefore the fleece is dry; Christ was pressed out of it. Truly he was pressed out because he was cast out through pressures. For the tenants said, “This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.” And they killed him, it said, and cast him out of the city. The pressed fleece, they sent out the water. Yet from that pressed humility, he took those he wanted, and he went to the nations, to fulfill another sign: with the dry fleece, he irrigated the threshing floor. And this faith is not in the cloud of the fleece, but in open manifestation: it is preached to all, known by all. It has the sacrament in secrecy, the word in public. As these were said, so they are; as promised, so they are given. As we heard, so we saw, for it was said to us in unity: Hear, daughter, and see.

The book of Scriptures reveals the crime of heretics.

But indeed, heretics, separated from the structure of this world, neither want to hear what they read nor see what they know. We have been invited to the wedding; we have praised the bride and commended her from divine testimonies. We commended ourselves to ourselves, or rather the Lord commends us to all. For He has promised, He has exhibited. Let them open their eyes and see what they have heard. You hear with me, see with me. Or rather, what is worse, you both hear with me and see with me and are not with me. Therefore, brothers, what is there to wonder at if pagans do not want to hold what they scorn, when Donatists do not want to believe what they read? A pagan wanted to throw my codex into the flame, he detested the very Scripture, he persecuted the very Scripture. Why wonder if he grieves to see what he wanted to burn? But you, heretic, you claim to have saved this codex from the flame. Recognize it when it is brought forth, hear it when it is read. Surely it is in this codex: In your seed all nations will be blessed. Surely you did not want these letters to burn. Why then have you burned with the desire for dissension over them? Why, I ask, unless because you lie, unless because you say you saved what you handed over? Let us not inquire into ancient things that were done: let the codex itself be brought forth, let it, saved from the flame, judge between us. Let us see who belongs to the eternal flame, who handed over the codex to the temporal flame. Both he who dared to burn and he who dared to hand over wanted it to perish, but it did not perish. It was saved, it is safe: it is brought forth. You ask by whom it was handed over, you ask by whom it was saved? Let it be brought forth, let it be read. Whoever believed did not hand over. Do you want to see how dear that Scripture is to me? It is read, and I follow. Do you want to see how hateful it is to you? It is read, and you resist, you oppose, you alienate the hearing. Since you have no ears in your heart, you have closed your heart; the Scripture knocks which you say you saved, and you do not open. If you truly saved that codex, your chest is better than your heart. But far be it that I should believe you saved what I see you refuse when read. You want to contrive my crime from the saved codex, I show your crime from the read codex. If the pagan does not believe, he hates what I read; you, who do not want to seem to have been led to impiety by the pagan, have surpassed the pagan in impiety. He hates and rejects, you hold and deny. You say I burned the testament, while you see me holding the inheritance; you say you saved the testament, while you have made yourself disinherited. I bring forth the testament, I read the testament: you do not want me to bring it forth, you bring it forth. Let it be brought forth by you, what is read for me. You bring it forth, you hold it, you open it, see, read. The hands of the holder, the eyes of the seer, the tongue of the utterer fight for me. From you, against you, I conduct my cause. He who recites the codex in your assembly, he is your reader, my witness. But these hear and see, those neither hear nor see. Let us pass from these and leave them, if it is possible without the zeal of animosity, to think about their own impiety.

The faith of Christians has rejecters, but it has God as its approver.

The remaining pagans, however, remain thus so that our faith still has rejectors, so that God may have a tester. Let them be addressed and know that what is happening was written before it occurred and was foretold that it would happen; let them not be dismayed that what they do not want is happening, but let them believe that what God promised would happen is happening. They would want their will to be done, but God chose to fulfill His promise. Let them not be angry. He is better, I think, He is more powerful. No matter how proud they are, God is greater. Therefore, limited by the constraints of time, we have excerpted a few things from the Holy Scriptures on how the prophets foretold in certain times that idols would be removed, and this has been fulfilled, just as they foretold that the Church would be spread throughout the whole world, and so it has been fulfilled. Therefore, let us not be too angry with the pagans for not wanting to believe about the idols, since heretics do not want to believe about the Church. Both see, yet both do not believe; however, some neglect, others read. It is not as much a crime for the pagans not to believe what they neglect as it is for the heretics not to believe what they read. But even the pagans, by the very fact that what was foretold is fulfilled, ought to recognize the foreteller and the fulfiller. Therefore, receive what has been said about this matter.

The worship of idols is condemned in the Book of Wisdom.

In the book of Wisdom, it is written thus: Therefore there shall be a regard even for the idols of the nations. For God did not look for a long time on the idols that were worshipped for a long time, and on the sacrifices made to idols. He who always sees, at some point condescends to look. He saw with patience, he regarded with vengeance. He says there shall be a regard for the idols of the nations, because they were made from God's creations to incite hatred. For they provoke God with the creations of God. How do they provoke God with the creations? For a craftsman made a god, but God made wood. A goldsmith made an idol, but God made gold. Why do you make out of his creation something that he would detest; out of God's creation, you shape something that he would detest? You should shape well what he would love. You want to put your own image in wood, take the image of God into yourself. Why do you erase inwardly and carve outwardly? He says, the creations of God were made to provoke hatred, and as trials for the souls of men, and as a snare for the feet of the foolish. For the beginning of fornication is the seeking of idols. If a woman having many husbands is praised, let also the soul worshipping many gods be praised. If a woman is an adulteress through true husbands, how much more is a soul through false gods? For the beginning of fornication is the seeking of idols, and their invention is the corruption of life. Behold how he declared, let us see what he predicted: For they were neither from the beginning nor will they be forever.

The prophet Zechariah foretells the end of idols.

The holy prophet Zacharias also says: On that day. See what he says, and recognize the day. Indeed, he sets the day for the time, as the Apostle says: Behold, now is the acceptable time, behold, now is the day of salvation. What then does Zacharias say? On that day there shall be an open place for the house of David. This is what I was saying is enclosed in the fleece, open on the threshing floor. There shall be an open place, there shall be a manifest Church. What does it mean there shall be an open place? A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. There shall be an open place for the house of David. And on that day, the Lord will exterminate the names of idols from the earth, and there will be no mention of them at all. Let the pagans hear these things. Let them see what is happening as foretold. If they love divination, let them acknowledge divinity. Why do they go to a deluded astrologer to consult about one man - who says more false than true things by chance, who makes an occasion in falsehoods? Why then does one want to hear an astrologer speak about one man? Let him hear God predicting about humankind. From the earth, the names of idols are erased, the names of Christians are written in heaven.

The same is announced in the book of Isaiah.

Isaiah also says: "The arrogance of man shall be humbled and brought down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted on that day, and all the works of their hands shall be hidden, taking refuge in caves and in the fissures of rocks. See if it is not, see if it does not come to pass, see if Scripture lies. As if we sought idols and did not wish to make the worshippers of idols worshippers of God, they hide in the earth, they hide in caves, they hide in the clefts of the rock. Wherever they hide, they shall be found out when their hearts are overturned. How many perverse people have hidden their false gods, and having been corrected have brought them to light. For indeed, we see two kinds of people in the Church, or rather, one kind inside the Church and the other kind close to the Church, those who hide and those who reject and bring forth. God predicted both kinds. You have heard about the kind who hide; listen about the kind who reveal and cast away, in the same chapter, in a single testimony of Isaiah: ‘The Lord alone shall be exalted on that day, and all the works of human hands shall be hidden, in caves and in the clefts of rocks and in the fissures of the earth, from the face of the fear of the Lord, from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.’ What does it mean to shake the earth? To terrify earthly men. Therefore, we say that anyone bold who fears has been shattered by fear. No wonder the earth fears, for heaven thunders. The thunders are in the prophetic Scriptures. Therefore, they will hide. What about the others? They too will hide from fear, but from a better fear. Those hide from fear of the laws, these from fear of the divine law, reveal and cast away. Both have fear, but some progress from fear, others fallback. We heard about those who hide; let us hear about the other kind. For on that day, a man will throw away his silver and gold abominations which they made. It is a wonder to see gold and silver being cast away: piety casts out what impiety loves. They throw away their silver and gold abominations they made to worship. They hide vain and harmful things, those cast them away: the abomination, however, is removed. Let it be removed, and oh that it might be removed from the hearts of earthly men as it is from the places of the earth. By the hand of his servants, God removes these things from places, by his own hand from hearts.

Jeremiah said that the utility of idols was nonexistent.

Let us also listen to Jeremiah. Although I mentioned this yesterday as well, it is so sweet that it should be repeated today—indeed, we cannot grow weary of it—: "Lord, my strength and my help and my refuge in the day of troubles." No longer is my refuge stone and wood, no longer gold and silver, the works of human hands. No, he says, I do not flee to those who cannot flee: for they have feet but do not walk. "Lord, my refuge in the day of troubles," in the day of temptations, in the day of this labor, in the day of frail life, in the day of sighs from the longing for the heavenly Jerusalem. For as long as we are not where we desire to be, it is the day of troubles. We rejoice in hope, not yet in reality. Thus it is also in another psalm: "You have led me for You have become my hope." Our hope is on the way, when he leads. And how is he a refuge? "A tower of strength from the face of the enemy." What then about idols, what was to become of them? "To you," he says, "nations will come from the ends of the earth and say: 'How our fathers possessed lies!' " How great the admiration of the sons for the errors of their fathers, as if they were saying: "How wise were our elders, how did they worship these things, how did they bow their integrity before wood and stones, how did they forsake Him who made them to possess the vain things they made, how our fathers possessed lies?" What are those lies? Idols, and there is no utility in them. For to the avaricious, some lies may sometimes seem useful; and the merchant swears to sell more dearly, swears by profit to acquire, lies by profit to acquire, lies by the idol to perish. There is no utility in those lies if we consider true and healthy benefit. But even that is something that seems to men, that is presumed by the unskilled. Here, what do you expend to hire a craftsman, you expend to feed, you expend to decorate, you expend to place, you expend to sacrifice? You expend everything to gain nothing, lose much to perish.

Let the idols perish from the earth and from under the sky.

Also Jeremiah: Do not walk according to the ways of the nations. Hey, my brothers, let none of you defend idols. Every defender of idols is close to the worshiper. Do not walk according to the ways of the nations, and do not be afraid of the signs of heaven, because their appearance terrifies them. Because it is lawful for the nations to fear the signs of heaven, that is, to choose the days when you set out, when a wife is married, when weapons are set up and when another is cut down, because their laws are vain. And now listen about idols: Wood is cut down from the forest, the work of a craftsman and the casting of silver. He seems to say a familiar thing, but he is too deaf to whom he speaks. He wakes him up as if from sleep, to see with his heart what he sees with his eyes. The work of a craftsman and the casting, adorned with silver and gold, they have set them with hammers and nails, and they will not move. For by themselves they will not move: those mobile in body carry the immobile. Those mobile in body would not carry the immobile if they were immobile in heart. They have set them with hammers and nails, and they will not move. Silver is engraved. And it is added: They shall not walk. Gold from Tharsis and Ophaz will come - precious and great gold -, and the hands of craftsmen, all the work of craftsmen, they shall dress them in blue and purple. Lifted up they shall be taken, because they do not enter. Do not fear them, because they do not harm, and there is no good in them. Thus you shall say to them. What shall we say to them? Gods who did not make heaven and earth shall perish from the earth and from under heaven. What does it mean that you thus say to them? You are Christians, you hear the prophet: thus say to them, do not be silent. Gods who did not make heaven and earth shall perish from the earth and from under this heaven. Will it be from heaven, where they never were? Let those worshipers also heed these predictions, let them heed and believe. Let these perish from under heaven, let those be written in heaven. Certainly thus you say to them; do not be seduced by those who say: “Neither worship nor mock.” Rather, receive, Christian, the prophet; rather hear God through the prophet: You shall say to them: Gods who did not make heaven and earth shall perish from the earth and from under this heaven. And as if he said: “Whom shall I worship when they have perished?” God made heaven and earth by His power. Why do you want to worship the earth, when you are made of earth and on the earth and in the earth? You have God founding the earth. He has not departed from you by works, nor is He alien from heart. He made what you tread, He made what you look up to, He is the one in whom you believe. God made the earth by His power, He founded the world by His wisdom. Surely the one who said: God made the earth by His power, He founded the world by His wisdom — did not speak of Christ? Listen to the Apostle Paul: Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God. He stretched the heaven and the multitude of waters in the heaven and brought out the clouds from the end of the earth, made lightning into rain, and brought out light from his treasuries. Every man has become foolish by his knowledge, and every craftsman is confounded by his carved images, because they have cast lies, there is no spirit in them. They are vain, a work of illusions, in the time of their visitation they shall perish. False gods perish, but you have not remained without the true God if you are the younger son of Jacob, to whom the elder serves. False gods perish, hold on to the true one. For listen to what follows: Jacob's portion is not like that. These vain, these false gods shall perish, but the portion of Jacob does not perish. The portion of Jacob: the inheritance of Jacob. The inheritance of Jacob that God gives, or is it God Himself? I dare to say it is God Himself. I take a psalm, the sentence is clear: Lord, you are my portion and inheritance. Jacob's portion is not like that, because He who formed all things, He is his inheritance, the Lord is His name.

We fear a jealous God, let us preserve the chastity of the mind.

We have heard the predictions of what will happen to idols; let us hear the commandments concerning what should be done against idols. No one should say: "Surely idols are destined to perish: let Him destroy them. Why do you break them?" But God wished to destroy them through those whom He did not wish to perish. And He will bring you, it is said, to the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Canaanite, the Girgashite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, and He will cast them out. You shall not worship their gods nor serve them. You shall not act according to their works, but you shall surely overthrow and break their idols. And again: Behold, I will drive out before you the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, the Girgashite, and the Jebusite. Do not make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, lest they become a snare among you. You shall tear down their altars and break their sacred pillars and cut down their groves. For you shall not worship other gods. For the Lord is a jealous God; His name is Jealous. Hear, brothers, you shudder because it is said: The Lord is jealous. O soul of the Church, O that bride, you fear a jealous husband: keep chastity.