De puellarum custodia et absconsione.
The Scriptural Charge to Guard Daughters
The chapter opens by transitioning from the education of sons to the guarding of daughters, drawing on Sirach 42 to warn fathers that youthful vulnerability demands vigilant custody, lest daughters fall into sexual sin, abortion, or infanticide.
That covers the education of sons, following that passage from Ecclesiasticus quoted above: 'You have sons; instruct them, etc.' What follows concerns the education of daughters, on which the same text adds: 'You have daughters; guard their bodies, and do not show them a cheerful face.' Guard their bodies, I say, in girlish youth, which is prone to wantonness — that is to say — — so that they are not led about everywhere to dances or spectacles or banquets, but are kept under guard at home, lest by wandering they desire or are desired, according to that passage of Ecclesiasticus 42: 'A father's daughter is hidden away in watchfulness, and the anxiety over her robs him of sleep; lest perhaps in her adolescence she be made an adulteress, and when living with a husband become hateful; lest she be defiled in her virginity and found pregnant in her father's house; lest when living with a husband she transgress, or certainly be made barren' — that is to say — — through procuring her own barrenness, or the smothering of offspring, or through excessive frequency of lying together. Hence Jerome to Eustochium: 'You see,' he says, 'very many widows who, before they were brides, concealed a wretched conscience, lying only in their garment — whom, unless the swelling of the womb or the crying of infants betrayed them, they walk with head held high and feet at play.' Others, however, offer up barrenness and commit the murder of a man's unborn offspring. Some, when they perceive they have conceived, meditate poisons for abortion, and frequently they themselves die in the act — guilty of three crimes — and so are led down to the underworld: by homicide against themselves, by adultery against Christ, by parricide against a son not yet born.
The Irreparable Loss of Chastity
Citing Ovid and Amos 5:2, the author teaches that once chastity is lost it cannot be restored, likening the fallen virgin to Israel who has fallen and will not rise again.
So says Jerome. Furthermore, as Ovid says in his Book of Letters: Once chastity is violated, no skill can restore it.
The Consequences of a Daughter's Disgrace
Drawing on Amos, Sirach, Proverbs, and Deuteronomy, the author unfolds the threefold penalty a fallen daughter brings: disgrace to her parents, divorce by her husband, and the sentence of death under Mosaic law.
Hence it is also read in Amos 5: 'She has fallen and will not rise again — the virgin of Israel.'✦ And indeed, if she is found pregnant in her father's house — as was said above — she brings disgrace on her parents and deserves to be divorced by her husband; she also brings on herself the sentence of death by judgment.✦ On the first point, it is said in Ecclesiasticus 22: 'A prudent daughter is an inheritance to her husband, for the one who shames him becomes a disgrace to her parent.' And rightly is she called an inheritance to her husband — that is, as it were, an inheritance given to him by the Lord, according to that saying of Proverbs.✦ 19: 'House and riches are given by parents, but a prudent wife is properly from the Lord.'✦ Therefore he loves her as a good inheritance and does not dismiss her except through death. On the contrary, the one who shames him — that is to say — — making him blush over the lost seal of her virginity — becomes a disgrace to the parent, who — that is — He raised her in his own house badly and carelessly, and so her husband now and then sends her back to him — and not without insult. And this is — namely, divorce by a husband. Hence the same passage adds the following about both of them: 'The bold daughter confounds her father and her husband, and by both she will be dishonored.' On the third point, namely, On the judgment of death, it is said in Deuteronomy 22: 'If virginity is not found in the girl by the husband, she shall be cast out beyond the doors of her father's house and shall be stoned with stones, because she has done wickedness in Israel, so as to commit fornication in the house of her father, and you shall remove the evil from your midst.'✦ Therefore the natural father of his daughter ought to guard against all these things, as far as it lies within him. Hence the same passage further adds: 'Over a wanton daughter' — that is, one prone to lust on account of the heat of her age — 'strengthen your guard, lest at any time she bring you into disgrace, through slander in the city and reproach from the people, and confound you in the multitude of the people.'✦
The Fragility of a Woman's Reputation
Jerome's image of modesty as a delicate flower is joined with Ambrose's teaching that Mary was betrothed precisely to protect her reputation, showing that a woman's honor is easily destroyed without the safeguard of marital authority.
For as Jerome says to Salvinia: 'A woman's reputation for modesty is a delicate thing among women, like a flower — . . it quickly withers at the slightest breeze — . . especially when youth is complicit and the authority of a husband is lacking, whose protection is a wife's safeguard.' For this reason also among other causes, as Ambrose says on Luke, book two, 'the virgin Mary was betrothed to Joseph —
Christ's Birth and the Protection of Mary's Honor
Ambrose teaches that the Lord preferred others to doubt His birth rather than His mother's modesty, and that He guarded Mary's reputation so that no maiden would be left under sinister suspicion.
. . Do not violate the purity of virginity, lest the disgrace of it be burned away — a disgrace to which the nourishing corruption would seem to display its mark. For the Lord preferred that some should doubt His own birth rather than doubt the modesty of His mother, because He knew that a maiden's sense of shame is tender and her reputation for modesty is slippery, and He did not think the credibility of His own birth should be established through injuries to His mother's honor. . . Nor did He wish to leave maidens living under a sinister opinion the veil of an excuse, because the mother of the Lord would also seem to be defamed. These are the words of Ambrose.
Scriptural Warnings and the Nature of Fornication
The author urges parents to discipline their daughters, citing Sirach 26 and 22 on guarding against corrupting company, and Paul's teaching in 1 Corinthians 6:18 that fornication is sin against one's own body.
And so Scripture rightly warns parents to guard their virgin daughter carefully and to raise her with discipline, lest she loosen the reins of self-restraint or pleasure, or through some opportunity bring disgrace on herself and her parents. Hence it is also said in the same book of Ecclesiasticus, chapter 26: 'In a daughter who does not turn herself away,' chapter from the company of young men and pimps, 'a firm guard, lest finding an opportunity she abuse herself,' chapter by fornicating. For fornication is the abuse or mistreatment of one's own body, according to that saying of the Apostle in First Corinthians.✦ 6: 'Whoever fornicates sins against his own body.'✦ Concerning this it is also said again in Ecclesiasticus, chapter 22: 'A foolish daughter,' that is, undisciplined and dissolute, 'will come to diminishment,' chapter1
Dinah's Warning and Mary's Example
The contrast between Dinah who went out and was violated and the hidden virgin Mary who was kept under parental watch illustrates the peril of public exposure and the blessing of seclusion.
of her own honor and her parents'. An example of this is found in Genesis 34, concerning Dinah, who went out to see the women of the region and on that occasion was violated by Shechem, the son of Hamor.2 Such is the woman who is talkative and restless, impatient of quiet, unable to keep still in the house on her own feet — but now abroad, now in the streets, now lurking at the corners — of whom it is read in Proverbs. 7. Hence Jerome also says to Eustochium: 'There are certain women who walk conspicuously through public places and, with the stealthy glances of their eyes, draw crowds of young men after them; and any woman they see who is pale and sad, they call wretched and a Manichean.'3 On the other hand, the example of a disciplined and hidden virgin — that is, a concealed one — is found in the most blessed Virgin Mary, of whom it is read in Isaiah 7: 'Behold, a virgin shall conceive,' etc.✦ Where, as Jerome says, 'in the Hebrew, alma is used instead of virgin' — which in Greek is called apocripha, and in Latin, 'a hidden virgin,' that is to say, a concealed one. She who had never been exposed to the gaze of any man, but had been kept under the diligent watch of her parents.
Mary's Solitude and the Hidden Life
Jerome and Ambrose together show that Mary's virtue was preserved in solitude: the angel found her alone, she feared a man's approach, and after conception she withdrew to the hill country to avoid public gaze.
Jerome himself, in his letter to Oceanus, says: 'The angel found Mary alone in the inner chambers, not with a beloved companion' — that is, with a lover — 'speaking.'✦ And she was afraid of a man's entering; that's why she was troubled by his words.✦ You then, who are a furnace of wickedness — why do you want to be greeted by a man more often? So far, Jerome. For this reason, too, the blessed virgin, after her conception, went away in haste into the hill country —✦ so as not to expose herself to public view. Hence Ambrose, on Luke, book 1: 'The angel came to her,' he says, 'because she was alone —'✦ whom no man would approach. . . found in the inner chambers. . . And so she was troubled at his words.✦ For it is the nature of virgins to tremble and to fear every approach of a man, and to be wary of all the addresses of men. Let women, then, learn to imitate the resolve of modesty.
Practical Counsel for Holy Women
The author exhorts women to imitate Mary's modesty, avoid wanton speech, and refrain from running about in public, drawing on Ambrose's observation that Mary was slow to leave the house and quick to return.
. . Learn, maiden, to avoid wanton speech. Even Mary was awed by the angel's greeting.✦ . . And after her conception she went away in haste into the hill country.✦ . . because it doesn't know the slow workings of the Holy Spirit by grace. From this, you holy women, also learn: . . don't run about through other people's houses, don't linger in the streets, don't strike up conversations with just anyone in public. Mary, indeed, was late in leaving the house, quick in public, and in the end stayed with Elizabeth.✦ .
Sarah, Solitude, and Vigilance in Upbringing
The virgin Sarah's prayer in Tobit and Jerome's image of finding desert solitude in a city complement Ambrose's note that Mary stayed three months with Elizabeth to avoid public attention, while Jerome warns parents to guard daughters from slander.
. For three months — not because another's house would have delighted her, but because being seen frequently in public would have been displeasing. This is Ambrose. There is another example in the virgin Sarah, who in the book of Tobit is read to have said: 'You know, Lord, that I have never desired a husband, and I have kept my soul clean from every desire.' I have never associated myself with those at play, nor have I made myself a companion of those who walk in frivolity. From this, Jerome also sets forth an example, writing to Marcella about the little she-ass: 'Our little she-ass,' he says, 'healthy in body and healthier in spirit, finds delight in solitude and discovers the desert of monks in a turbulent city.' On account of all this, Jerome says to Athala about the upbringing of a daughter: 'If you are anxious and prudent, so that your daughter is not struck by the tongue of a viper, why do you not with the same care provide that she is not struck by the hammer of the whole earth?'✦✦ .
Guarding Daughters from Public Danger
The chapter closes with Jerome's practical counsels: daughters should not go out unattended, should avoid crowds of young men, should rarely appear in public, and should shun households of spiritual peril, since a lustful mind cloaks desire in noble pursuits.
. So when Dina goes out, it shouldn't be to look at the women of a foreign region, nor should she be playful with her feet or let her dresses drag along the ground.✦ . . She should never go out in public without you, and she should not visit the basilicas of the martyrs or the churches without her mother, and no young man should be crowding around her with flattering smiles. The same author, writing to the virgin Eustochium: 'Let her going out in public be rare,' he says. 'Let the martyrs lodge their complaints against you in your own room.' You'll never lack a reason to go out, if you're always ready to leave whenever it's necessary. Again, the same author, in a letter to a mother and daughter: 'What need is there for you to be involved in, or to stay in, that house, where every day you must either perish or come out on top?' . . . It's safer not to be able to perish than to be near danger and not perish. . . A lustful mind pursues honorable things more ardently, and imagines what is not permitted more sweetly. These are Jerome's words.
Read the original Latin
Hec de erudicione filiorum, iuxta illud uerbum ecclesiastici superius propositum: ‘Filij tibi sunt, erudi illos etc.’ Sequitur de filiarum erudicione de qua ibidem subiungitur: ‘Filie tibi sunt, serua corpus illarum et non ostendas hilarem faciem tuam ad illas.’ Serua, inquam, corpus illarum in etate puellari que prona est lasciuie, sc. ut non passim ad choreas uel spectacula uel conuiuia euagentur, sed in domo custodiantur, ne uagantes concupiscant uel concupiscantur, iuxta illud ecclesiastici xlii: ‘filia patris abscondita est uigilia, et sollicitudo eius auffert et sompnum, ne forte in adolescencia sua adultera efficiatur et cum uiro conmorata odibilis fiat, ne quando polluatur in uirginitate sua et in paternis suis grauida inueniatur, ne cum uiro conmorata transgrediatur aut certe sterilis efficiatur,’ sc. per ipsius sterilitatis procuracionem vel prolis suffocacionem uel per nimiam concubitus frequentacionem. unde Jeronimus ad eustochium: ‘videas,’ inquit, ‘plerasque viduas antequam nuptas infelicem conscienciam mentitas tantum ueste protegere quas nisi tumor uteri uel infantum vagitus prodiderit erecta ceruice et ludentibus pedibus incedunt. Alie uero sterilitatem prebent et necdum sati hominis homicidium faciunt. Nonnulle, cum se senserint concepisse, de scelere abortiua uenena meditantur et frequenter ipse conmortue trium criminum ree sic ad inferos perducuntur, homicide sui, adultere christi, neddum nati filij parricide.’
Hec Jeronimus. Ceterum, ut dicit ouidius in libro epistolarum:
nulla reparabilis arte lesa pudicicia est.
unde et legitur in amos v: ‘Cecidit, non adiciet, ut resurgat uirgo israel.’ Et siquidem in paternis suis, ut dictum est, inueniatur grauida, parentibus acquirit opprobrium et a uiro meretur repudium, sibi quoque legem mortis iudicium. De primo dicitur in ecclesiastico xxii: ‘Filia prudens est hereditas uiro suo, nam que confundit, in contumelia fit genitoris.’ Et recte dicitur hereditas uiro, id est quasi hereditas sibi data a domino, secundum illud prouerb. xix: ‘Domus et diuicie dantur a parentibus, a domino autem proprie uxor prudens.’ Ideoque diligit eam quasi bonam hereditatem, nec dimittit eam nisi per mortem. Econtrario, illa que confundit eum, sc. faciens eum erubescere propter amissum signaculum uirginitatis, in contumelia fit genitoris, qui sc.
eam in domo propria male ac negligenter erudiuit et custodiuit, ideoque uir eam aliquando non sine contumelia ei remittit. Et hoc est sc. a uiro repudium. unde de utroque ibidem subiungitur: ‘Patrem et uirum confundit audax et ab utrisque inhonorabitur.’ De tercio, sc. mortis iudicio dicitur in deuteronomio xxii: ‘Si a uiro non est in puella uirginitas inuenta, extra fores domus patris eicietur et lapidibus obruetur, quia fecit nephas in israel, ut fornicaretur in domo patris sui, et auferes malum de medio tui.’ Hec igitur omnia debet pater carnalis filie sue, quantum in ipso est precauere. unde adhuc ibidem subiungitur: ‘Super filiam luxuriosam,’ id est ad luxuriam propter etatis feruorem pronam, ‘confirma custodiam, ne quando faciat te in opprobrium uenire a detractione in ciuitate et obieccione plebis et confundat te in multitudine populi.’
ut enim dicit Jeronimus ad saluiniam: ‘Tenera res est in feminis pudicicie fama, quasi flos . . . ad leuem cito marcescit auram . . . maxime, ubi consentit etas et maritalis deest auctoritas, cuius umbra tutamen uxoris est.’ propter hoc etiam inter alias causas, ut dicit ambrosius super lucam libro iio, ‘desponsata fuit ioseph uirgo maria .
. . ne temerate uirginitatis ureretur infamia cui grauis aluus corruptele uideretur insigne preferre. Maluit enim dominus aliquos de ortu suo quam de matris pudore dubitare, quia sciebat teneram esse uirginis uerecundiam et lubricam pudoris famam, nec putauit ortus sui fidem matris iniuriis astruendam . . . nec uoluit uirginibus sinistra opinione uiuentibus uelamen excusacionis relinqui, quod infamata quoque uideretur mater domini.’ Hec ambrosius.
Ideoque recte scriptura parentes solicite filiam uirginem custodire monet ac cum disciplina nutrire, ne lasciuie uel uoluptati frena relaxet uel aliqua occasione sibi atque parentibus causam infamie prestet. Hinc etiam dicitur in eodem libro ecclesiastico, sc. xxvi: ‘In filia non auertente se,’ sc. a iuuenum ac lenonum consorcio, ‘firma custodiam, ne inuenta occasione abutatur se,’ sc. fornicando. Nam fornicacio est proprii corporis abusus uel abusio, iuxta illud apostoli Ia ad corinth. vi: ‘Qui fornicatur, in corpus suum peccat.’ De hoc eciam dicitur iterum in ecclesiastico xxii: ‘Filia fatua,’ id est indisciplinata et dissoluta, ‘in deminoracione fiet,’ sc.
honoris sui atque parentum. Super hoc exemplum habetur in genesi xxxiiii de dina que, ut uideret mulieres regionis, egressa est et hac occasione a sychem, filio emor, corrupta est. Talis est mulier garrula et uaga, quietis impaciens, nec ualens in domo consistere pedibus suis, sed nunc foris, nunc in plateis, nunc iuxta angulos insidians, de qua legitur in prouerb. vii. unde et Jeronimus ad eustochium: ‘Quedam,’ inquit, ‘sunt que per publicum notabiliter incedunt ac furtiuis oculorum nutibus adholescencium greges post se trahunt et quam pallentem ac tristem uiderint miseram et manicheam uocant.’ Econtra uero de uirgine disciplinata et apocripha, id est abscondita, habetur exemplum in beatissima uirgine maria de qua legitur in ysaia vii: ‘Ecce uirgo concipiet etc. ,’ ubi, sicut dicit Jeronimus, ‘pro uirgine habetur in hebreo alma,’ quod grece dicitur apocripha et ‘latine uirgo abscondita, videl. que nunquam aspectibus uiri patuerat, sed magna parentum diligencia custodita sit.’
unde idem Jeronimus in epistola ad occeanum: ‘Mariam,’ inquit, ‘angelus in penetralibus solam, non cum agapeta,’ id est amasio, ‘loquentem inuenit. Et illa virilem introitum formidauit, unde turbata est in sermone eius. Tu ergo que fornax es malicie, quid a uiro desideras frequencius salutari?’ Hec Jeronimus. propter hoc eciam uirgo beata post conceptum abiit cum festinacione in montana, sc. ne publicis aspectibus se exponeret. unde ambrosius super lucam libro i: ‘Ingressus est, inquit, ad eam angelus, quia solam, sc. quam nullus adiret uirorum .
. . repperit in penetralibus . . . Hinc et turbata est in sermone illius. Trepidare namque uirginum est et ad omnes ingressus pauere uiri, omnesque uirorum affatus uereri. Discant ergo mulieres propositum pudoris imitari .
. . disce, uirgo, uerborum uitare lasciuiam. maria eciam uerebatur angeli salutacionem . . . Et post conceptum abiit cum festinacione in montana, . .
. quia nescit tarda molimina spiritus sancti gracia. Hinc etiam discite, uos, sancte mulieres, . . . non circumcurrere per domos alienas, non in plateis morari, non aliquos in publico miscere sermones. Maria siquidem in domo sera, in publico festina, denique mansit aput helyzabeth . .
. tribus mensibus, non quia domus eam aliena delectaret, sed quia frequenter in publico uideri displiceret.’ Hec ambrosius. Aliud est exemplum in sara uirgine que in thobia iiii legitur dixisse: ‘Tu scis, domine, quod nunquam concupiui uirum et mundam seruaui animam meam ab omni concupiscencia. Nunquam cum ludentibus miscui me, neque cum hiis qui in leuitate ambulant, participem me prebui.’ Hinc eciam exemplum ponit Jeronimus assellam scribens in epistola ad marcellam: ‘assella,’ inquit, ‘nostra corpore sana et sanior animo solitudinem delicias ponit et in urbe turbida monachorum heremum inuenit.’ Propter hec omnia dicit ieronimus ad atletham de institucione filie: ‘Si sollicita es ac prudens, ne filia tua percuciatur a lingua uipere, cur non eadem cura prouideas, ne percuciatur a malleo uniuerse terre . .
. ne igitur cum dina egrediatur, ut regionis aliene mulieres uideat, ne pedibus ludat, ne tunicas trahat . . . nunquam absque te in publicum procedat, basilicas quoque martyrum et ecclesias sine matre non adeat, nec ullus ei iuuenis circumnatus arrideat.’ Idem ad eustochium uirginem: ‘Rarus,’ inquit, ‘in publicum sit egressus; martyres tibi querantur in cubiculo. Nunquam deerit causa prodeundi, si semper, quando necesse est, processura sis.’ Iterum idem in epistola ad matrem et filiam: ‘Quid tibi,’ ait, ‘necesse est in ea domo uersari uel manere in qua necesse cotidie habeas aut perire aut uincere?
. . . Securius est perire non posse quam iuxta periculum non perire . . . libidinosa mens ardencius honesta prosequitur et quod non licet, dulcius suspicatur.’ Hec Jeronimus.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Amos.5.2 — The virgin of Israel has fallen, she will not rise again; she is forsaken on her land, with no one to raise her up.
- ↩Deut.22.20-Deut.22.21 — But if this charge is true, and no evidence of the young woman's virginity is found, Deut.22.21 — Then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones so that she dies, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by playing the harlot in her father's house. So you shall purge the evil from among you.
- ↩Prov.19.14 — A house and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the LORD.
- ↩Prov.19.14 — A house and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the LORD.
- ↩Deut.22.13-Deut.22.21 — If a man takes a wife and goes in to her and then hates her, Deut.22.14 — and he charges her with shameful deeds and brings a bad name upon her, saying, "I took this woman and approached her, but I did not find proof of her virginity." Deut.22.15 — Then the father and mother of the young woman shall take and bring out the evidence of her virginity to the elders of the city at the gate. Deut.22.16 — And the father of the young woman will say to the elders, 'I gave my daughter to this man as his wife, and he has rejected her, Deut.22.17 — And behold, he has brought charges, saying, 'I have not found your daughter to be a virgin,' and yet these are the evidences of my daughter's virginity.' And they shall spread the garment before the elders of the city. Deut.22.18 — Then the elders of that city shall take the man and discipline him. Deut.22.19 — And they shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give them to the father of the young woman, because he has brought a bad name upon a virgin of Israel. And she shall be his wife; he is not able to send her away all his days. Deut.22.20 — But if this charge is true, and no evidence of the young woman's virginity is found, Deut.22.21 — Then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones so that she dies, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by playing the harlot in her father's house. So you shall purge the evil from among you.
- ↩Deut.22.13-Deut.22.21 — If a man takes a wife and goes in to her and then hates her, Deut.22.14 — and he charges her with shameful deeds and brings a bad name upon her, saying, "I took this woman and approached her, but I did not find proof of her virginity." Deut.22.15 — Then the father and mother of the young woman shall take and bring out the evidence of her virginity to the elders of the city at the gate. Deut.22.16 — And the father of the young woman will say to the elders, 'I gave my daughter to this man as his wife, and he has rejected her, Deut.22.17 — And behold, he has brought charges, saying, 'I have not found your daughter to be a virgin,' and yet these are the evidences of my daughter's virginity.' And they shall spread the garment before the elders of the city. Deut.22.18 — Then the elders of that city shall take the man and discipline him. Deut.22.19 — And they shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give them to the father of the young woman, because he has brought a bad name upon a virgin of Israel. And she shall be his wife; he is not able to send her away all his days. Deut.22.20 — But if this charge is true, and no evidence of the young woman's virginity is found, Deut.22.21 — Then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her with stones so that she dies, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by playing the harlot in her father's house. So you shall purge the evil from among you.
- ↩1Cor.6.18 — Flee sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.
- ↩1Cor.6.18 — Flee sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.
- ↩Isa.7.14 — Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: Look, the young woman will conceive and bear a son, and she will call his name Immanuel.
- ↩Luke.1.26-Luke.1.38 — In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee whose name was Nazareth, Luke.1.27 — to a virgin pledged in marriage to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. Luke.1.28 — And coming to her, he said, 'Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.' Luke.1.29 — But she was troubled at his message, and she kept pondering what sort of greeting this might be. Luke.1.30 — And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Luke.1.31 — And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. Luke.1.32 — He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David. Luke.1.33 — And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. Luke.1.34 — But Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I have not known a man?" Luke.1.35 — And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore also the one to be born will be called Son of God." Luke.1.36 — And behold, Elizabeth your kinswoman—she too has conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren. Luke.1.37 — For nothing will be impossible with God. Luke.1.38 — And Mary said, 'Behold, the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.' And the angel departed from her.
- ↩Luke.1.29-Luke.1.30 — But she was troubled at his message, and she kept pondering what sort of greeting this might be. Luke.1.30 — And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
- ↩Luke.1.39 — In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah.
- ↩Luke.1.26-Luke.1.28 — In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee whose name was Nazareth, Luke.1.27 — to a virgin pledged in marriage to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. Luke.1.28 — And coming to her, he said, 'Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.'
- ↩Luke.1.29 — But she was troubled at his message, and she kept pondering what sort of greeting this might be.
- ↩Luke.1.29 — But she was troubled at his message, and she kept pondering what sort of greeting this might be.
- ↩Luke.1.39 — In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah.
- ↩Luke.1.39-Luke.1.56 — In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah. Luke.1.40 — and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth Luke.1.41 — And it came to pass, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Luke.1.42 — And she cried out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb." Luke.1.43 — And why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? Luke.1.44 — For behold, as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. Luke.1.45 — And blessed is she who believed that there will be a fulfillment of the things spoken to her from the Lord. Luke.1.46 — And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, Luke.1.47 — and my spirit rejoiced in God my Savior Luke.1.48 — For he has looked upon the lowliness of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed. Luke.1.49 — for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Luke.1.50 — And his mercy is for generations and generations upon those who fear him. Luke.1.51 — He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. Luke.1.52 — He has brought down rulers from their thrones and lifted up the lowly. Luke.1.53 — He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. Luke.1.54 — He has helped his servant Israel, remembering mercy Luke.1.55 — just as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever. Luke.1.56 — And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home.
- ↩Ps.140.3 — They devise evil in their hearts; every day they stir up wars.
- ↩Jer.23.29 — Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD, and like a hammer that shatters rock?
- ↩Gen.34.1 — And Dinah, the daughter of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.
Notes
- 1 ↩deminoracione is a rare word; rendered as 'diminishment' to capture the sense of loss of honor/standing
- 2 ↩The Latin ut + subjunctive (ut uideret) is ambiguous between purpose ('in order to see') and result ('so that she saw'); the purpose reading is preferred here, but the result reading is also plausible.
- 3 ↩Manicheam is used here as a term of reproach, not in its strict doctrinal sense.
De eruditione filiorum nobilium (On the Education of Noble Children) companion
Formation starts with the parents' own practice
Model a daily devotional habit your children can see — Chosen Portion makes it a free 10-minute routine.
Vincent taught that children are formed by the daily practices of their household; Chosen Portion gives parents the daily devotional practice that anchors that household rhythm.
- A short daily devotional you can read before the kids wake up
- Family-friendly portions from the same historic tradition Vincent drew on
- Build a visible 30-day habit your children can imitate