Sermonis in monie continuatio De nan thesaari:(^ando in terra, sed in €<xlo
Treasures in Heaven
The Lord commands us to store our treasures in heaven, where they are incorruptible, rather than on earth where they are subject to decay and theft.
Then, teaching a perfect contempt for earthly things for God's sake, he forbids us from putting our treasure in danger, so we don't store it up on earth, where rust—the corrosion of metal—consumes it (referring to the corruption of artificial wealth like gold, silver, and other metals); where the moth—the worm—destroys it (referring to the corruption of natural wealth like grain, wine, clothing, and similar things); and where thieves break in and steal. He says this because of precious stones, which, although they cannot rust or be eaten by worms, can still be taken by thieves. But woe to us, because we do the exact opposite! Hence Chrysostom says: "What can I say about that command where we are told not to store up treasure on earth? Which, perhaps, only a few actually do." The rest, however, have heard the command as if it were the opposite, as if they were told, 'Store up treasure on earth by all means,' and so, abandoning heaven, they cling to the earth and go mad trying to accumulate money. So says Chrysostom. He then adds an admonition about storing treasure in a safe place, so that we might store it in heaven, where no rust destroys it, because there is no aging there; nor any moth, because there is no susceptibility to decay there; and where thieves do not break in or steal, because there is no violence or fraud there. The best way to store up treasure is to use temporal and transitory goods for pious purposes, thus exchanging them for spiritual, eternal, and incorruptible goods. Therefore, let's not store up the gains of earthly things on earth, where what is stored fails and is lost, and from where we are destined to depart; instead, let's store up the rewards of our merits in heaven, where what is stored is preserved and kept, and where we are destined to remain forever. Hence Jerome says: "It is foolish not to store up treasure where you are going to depart, and not to send it ahead to where you are going to live forever." Therefore, place your wealth where you have your true home. As Gregory says: "The righteous don't bother to build or store up treasure here, where they know they're only pilgrims and guests; for those who want to find joy in what is their own refuse to be happy in what belongs to another." Chrysostom says: "Whoever stores up treasures on earth has nothing to hope for in heaven; why, then, would he look toward heaven, where he has nothing stored away?" That is Chrysostom. Since everyone wants to reach the place where they know their treasures are kept, blessed is the one who has stored their treasures in heaven, so that they may always keep their mind there, and always strive toward it with all their strength and longing; for, as it is written: 'Where your treasure is—that is, the thing you love and desire—there is your heart and your affection also.' It's necessary that wherever the treasure of your love has gone first, the affection of your thoughts must follow. For, as Augustine says, love is the soul's weight; it carries the soul wherever it goes, and the soul is more truly where it loves than where it gives life. Fulgentius says: "So, if we want to store up treasure in heaven, let us love heavenly things." If you want to know where you're storing your treasure, look at what you love; if you want to know what you love, look at what you think about. In this way, you'll come to recognize your treasure by your love, and understand your love through the judgment of your own thoughts. That is why, as Gregory says, the heart is divided into as many parts as there are things it loves. Hence Chrysostom says: "Do not store up treasures on earth; for you are gathering them for moths, worms, and thieves." But even if you escape these dangers, you won't entirely escape having your heart enslaved and fixed on lower things; having your intellect reduced to the sickness of this servitude is far more difficult than living in a prison. You'll suffer no small loss by being fixed on lower things, becoming a slave instead of a free person, falling away from heavenly goods, and being unable to think of anything exalted. Because of this, even the Gentiles don't believe what we say, for they want proof of the future in our actions, not in our words. But now, when they see us building splendid houses, buying fields, and preparing baths and pleasant gardens, they refuse to believe that we are preparing for the perfection of another city. They say that if this were true, we would sell everything we possess and send it on ahead. Considering these things, therefore, let us break the chains of such a great error.
The Single Eye and Two Masters
A pure intention is the lamp of the soul, and one cannot serve both God and Mammon simultaneously.
Anyone who serves money is bound by present shackles and prepared for future ones. But anyone free from this craving will possess both kinds of freedom. Chrysostom says: 'To attain this, we must break the heavy yoke of greed and be lifted up to the heights of heaven.' Hence Anselm also says: 'Let the world become worthless to you, and let all carnal love grow foul.' Don't forget that you are in this world, since you have shifted your purpose toward those who are in heaven and live for God: for where your treasure is, there your heart will be. Do not lock your soul—which can never fly up to heaven with the weight of coins—inside your cheap purse along with silver idols. But this... according to Jerome, should not be understood only as the treasure of money, but universally as all pleasures and possessions, etc. The glutton's god is his belly; the pleasure-seeker's treasure is his feasts; the lustful person's is his shameful desire; the greedy person's is his money. The same must be understood for others: everyone serves the vice by which they are conquered, and they have their heart where their treasure is. Following this turning of the heart toward a love of passions and such things, there follows an aversion from God. If, therefore, it is in heaven, it is clean, because heavenly things are clean; but if it is wallowing in the earth—that is, if it acts in any way to gain earthly things—how can it be clean? Hence Augustine says: 'Something becomes soiled when it is mixed with an inferior nature, even if in its own kind it is not soiled; for just as gold is soiled if it is mixed with pure silver, so too our soul is soiled by the desire for earthly things, even though earthly things in their own kind are clean.' Therefore, as Richard says: 'Whatever you desire in the world, whatever you fear in the world, willingly spend it for the sake of the freedom of your heart.' For, as Augustine says, whoever stores up treasure for themselves in heaven ought to despise the whole world. And so that the fear of lacking life's necessities doesn't creep in, He then excludes the distrust that could arise from our own condition, saying: "Do not be afraid, little flock"—that is, the gathering of the humble—"for it has pleased your Father." He gives you the heavenly kingdom, not because of your merits, but out of His own pure generosity and divine goodness. It's as if He were saying: Since the kingdom of heaven is prepared for you, you ought to worry very little about earthly things. For no one to whom the kingdom of life is promised, in which every sufficiency is found, should distrust that they'll have the necessities of life. They're called a "flock" because of their obedience to the faith; they're called "little" because of their devotion to voluntary poverty and humility, through which one arrives at the possession of the heavenly kingdom. Or, the flock of the elect is called "little" in comparison to the greater number of the reprobate, because... few were the faithful in comparison to the unfaithful, and few are the elect in comparison to the reprobate. If only I, too, might deserve to be among those few, or even the least of them, and to receive the kingdom with them! One also reaches the abundance of the kingdom through the supererogation of counsels, by which one moves toward perfection; and so he adds, saying: "Sell what you possess," even the things you need, "and give alms," which is the way to that same kingdom. "Make for yourselves purses"—that is, storehouses for your goods and places to deposit the reward of your almsgiving—"that do not grow old and fail," namely, by placing your alms into the hands of the poor, who carry your money through enemies and thieves to a safe place so that you don't lose it, a treasure that does not fail in the heavens and in eternity. For the reward of almsgiving remains forever in heaven. For the fruit. Almsgiving increases merits, which are a treasure that does not fail in the homeland. And if through almsgiving we have a treasure of merits in heaven, our heart should long for it there and await the treasure of rewards. Next, he teaches them about having a simple eye, something we must attend to in every one of our actions. Hence he says: "The lamp of your body is your eye." This is a metaphor where the 'moral body' represents the sum of your actions, just as a physical body is a collection of various limbs. Therefore, just as a physical eye guides the whole body and directs its limbs in their work, so the moral eye—your intention—governs your whole moral body and directs your various actions toward their end. Therefore it is added: 'If your eye is simple'—that is, if your intention is upright, without any fold of pretense or error—'your whole body will be bright,' meaning the collection of your actions will be good and meritorious, even if it doesn't appear so to others, provided that the actions themselves are good by nature, or at least indifferent and lawful; otherwise, they wouldn't fall under an upright intention. Hence Seneca says: 'It makes no difference with what intention you do what is vicious to have done, because deeds are seen, but the mind is not.' But if your eye is evil—that is, if your intention is perverse—your whole body will be dark. This means the sum of your actions will be obscured by sin and evil, even if the actions themselves are good by nature and appear upright to others, because a work that is good by nature is made evil by a perverse intention. See to it, therefore, that your intention is not perverse, because through it all good things are corrupted. If, therefore, the light that is in you is darkness—that is, if an action that is good by nature, which is like a light, is made evil because of a lack of good intention—how great will that darkness be? It’s as if he were saying: it’s much worse, because if a bad intention accompanies an action that is already bad by nature—which is a kind of darkness—it’s far worse than the first. For when things that are bad in themselves are also done with a bad intention, then there is a double darkness: that of the wicked intention and that of the wicked action. It's not what a person does that we should consider, but with what heart they do it; we must first labor for the purity of our intention, because without it, the work that follows is worth nothing. Therefore, if you do something good with a good intention, having no trace of dark thought in your conscience, your action is also illuminated, whatever the outcome may be; and it will illuminate you—that is, it will make you bright and shining, here with the splendor of grace, and in the future with the splendor of glory. And if someone else benefits from something you do without a right and clean intention, it is how you acted that is held against you, not how it turned out for them. Therefore, take care that the very intention of your heart, which is the light of the soul, is not darkened by the fog of vices, so that a simple eye may make your whole body bright; to the extent that whatever you do, you do for the sake of God, and so that it may return to the place from which graces flow, and flow out again. And because someone desiring to attain both earthly and heavenly things might say that one can have a right and simple intention to do good for the sake of both temporal things and God, he removes this by the example of the two opposing masters, because no one can serve two masters—that is, masters who are contrary, disparate, and not placed one above the other. For, as Bede says: "One cannot love both transitory and eternal things at the same time." And Augustine says, "A single eye cannot look toward heaven and earth at the same time." Cyprian also says, "The love of the world and the love of God cannot dwell together in one heart, just as eyes cannot look at heaven and earth at the same time." The Philosopher says in his book on animals, "Birds close their eyes with their lower eyelid, but heavy animals with their upper eyelid." By birds, we understand spiritual people who close their eyes to lower and earthly things; by heavy animals, we understand worldly people who have their eyes closed to heavenly things and open to earthly and secular ones. According to Chrysostom, he speaks of two masters who command contrary things; but those who command the same thing are not many, but one, for harmony makes many into one. These masters whom one cannot serve at the same time are vices and virtues, heavenly things and earthly things, God and the devil, the flesh and the spirit; for they command contrary things, and therefore it follows that one must abandon the one and obey the other. And so, as if to clarify, he adds, "You cannot serve God and Mammon." Mammon is said in Syriac to mean riches in Latin; Mammon is the name of the demon who presides over riches and tempts people with the vice of greed. This doesn't mean riches are under his control so that he can give or take them away, except when God permits, but that he uses them to deceive and ensnare people with the traps he sets within riches. And although a person cannot serve God and wealth, they can still serve while having wealth. For whoever serves wealth is truly serving the one who tempts and deceives through the desire for it. The person who serves wealth is the one who loves it for its own sake as their ultimate goal, or who acquires it greedily, or keeps it stingily and guards it like a slave. But the person who spends wealth on pious works doesn't serve wealth; rather, wealth serves them, because they distribute it like a master and use it for works of virtue as if it were a tool. For just as wealth is an obstacle to the wicked, so it is an aid to virtue for the upright. Hence Chrysostom says: "Two masters are therefore set before us: God and Mammon—that is, the devil, who is the author of Mammon." The one calls us to mercy, the other to greed; the one to life, the other to death; the one to salvation, the other to destruction. Which of the two should we obey? Certainly to the one who invites us to life, not to the one who drags us to death. What could be more terrible than to be said to fall away from the service of Christ because of money? Or what is more desirable than to be able, by despising money, to be joined to Him with your whole mind and love? That is what Chrysostom says. Although no one can serve two masters, many foolish people still try to defy this impossibility, just like the nations mentioned in the Book of Kings who supposedly feared God yet still served idols. You have to understand that it’s impossible to love riches for their own sake and God for His own sake, treating both as an ultimate end, so that you could be called a servant of both. However, it is possible to desire one thing in order to reach another, such as desiring riches for the sake of God. A physical action, therefore, can be directed toward a temporary goal, provided that this temporary thing is ultimately directed toward God. But if, in your actions, you make God the immediate goal and a temporary thing the ultimate goal, that is completely perverse. Whatever is sought for the sake of something else is inferior to that for which it is sought. Therefore, it is perfectly acceptable to have two goals—a temporary one and an eternal one—and to place one under the other, so that what is eternal remains the ultimate goal; for a single intention informs many actions.
Trusting Divine Providence
We are encouraged to abandon anxious care for food and clothing, trusting that the Father who feeds the birds and clothes the lilies will provide for His children.
Different ends, whose purpose can be referred to another, are not to be made. After this, he concludes by leading us not to be anxious about food and clothing—the things that are necessary—speaking to his disciples, whom he invites especially to a contempt for the world. For these things are said specifically to the Apostles, to their successors, and to all others who desire to reach the highest peak of perfection; for such people have no anxiety about earthly goods, because having food and clothing, they are content with these. All these things are said here to remove from the preachers of the Gospel any unnecessary anxiety about necessities regarding their present life. So, in case they ask, 'How will we be able to live if we have given everything away?' Therefore, inferring his intent from what was said before, he adds: 'Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious'—with a superfluous and disordered anxiety—'about your soul,' that is, the animal life which is sustained by food, 'what you will eat or drink, nor about your body, what you will wear.' It is as if he were saying: 'If you want to serve God, you must renounce Mammon in the form of excessive anxiety about temporal things.' He doesn't say: 'Do not labor, do not take care, do not seek food, or drink, or clothing'; but rather: 'Do not be anxious.' In this way, he forbids the vicious anxiety that disturbs the mind and draws it away from eternal things, or calls it back, while still allowing for what is necessary. Hence Bede says: 'We are commanded not to be anxious about what we eat, and because we prepare our bread by the sweat of our brow, labor is to be exercised, but anxiety is to be avoided.' Hence also Chrysostom: 'Bread is to be acquired not by spiritual anxieties, but by bodily labors; it abounds for those who labor as a reward for their diligence, with God providing, and it is taken away from the negligent as a punishment, with God withholding.' Also, He doesn't say: 'So that you may eat or drink, or be clothed'; but rather, 'what you may eat, or drink, or be clothed with.' For eating, drinking, and being clothed is necessary for the sustenance of nature; but to be anxious about luxury or pleasure belongs to the vice of gluttony, or vainglory, or even greed. Where, according to Bede, he seems to be in error who, having rejected common food and clothing, seeks for himself more luxurious or more austere things than those with whom he leads his life. Spiritually, therefore, in eating we can understand the gluttonous; in clothing, the vainglorious; and in both, the greedy. Hence it says elsewhere: 'There was a certain rich man, in whom was greed: he was clothed in purple and fine linen, in whom was vanity: and he feasted every day in splendor, in whom was gluttony.' Therefore, whoever you are—having rejected the glory of the world to serve God—do not be anxious about your life regarding food and clothing, because it is vanity to be anxious for these things. The Lord confirms our hope by descending from the greater to the lesser, proving from the greater that no one should be anxious about such things. For if the greater gift is given out of love, the lesser will surely be given in necessity; but God has given us the greater benefits, namely the soul and the body, therefore he will give the lesser, namely food and clothing. For the soul was not created for the sake of food, nor the body for the sake of clothing; rather, it is the other way around. Therefore, the soul should not be anxious, lest it fail to receive what was created for its sake. Chrysostom says, "If God did not want to preserve what exists, He would not have created it; but because He Himself established that the soul should be sustained by food and the body by clothing, He Himself provides both." So says Chrysostom. Therefore, the One who gave us life without our own anxious effort will also provide, without that same anxious effort, the things that sustain that life; it's foolish, then, to lose the greater thing—the soul or the body—for the sake of the lesser, namely, food or clothing. Next, he provides proof for each individually—specifically, for food and clothing. First, regarding food: he confirms our hope by moving from the lesser to the greater, using the lesser to persuade us of the greater. He uses the example of irrational creatures—the birds of the sky, that is, the air in which they fly—because they don't sow or reap to get food, nor do they gather it into barns to store it, and yet the heavenly Father feeds them for man's sake without any great anxiety on their part; therefore, he feeds humans, who are much dearer to him, without any unnecessary anxiety on their part. A rational creature, like a human being, carries more weight and value before God than irrational things like birds, because animals were made for the sake of man, and the end is nobler than the things that exist for the sake of that end. Just as God feeds the birds with a care suited to their nature, he feeds humans with a care suited to their nature, which is governed by the rule of right reason, provided they strive to fulfill what he commands. For just as it is the nature of birds to live in the way already mentioned, it is the nature of man to live according to the dictates of right reason; it follows that he ought to seek with moderate care those things that nature did not provide for him, such as necessary food and clothing. Hence, he doesn't say of the birds that they don't fly to the grain and the pastures, because he doesn't forbid labor and foresight, but rather anxiety and greed. As Chrysostom says: God made all birds for the sake of man, but he made man for the sake of himself. If, then, He provides for animals for the sake of man, how could He not provide for man for His own sake? Next, the concern of the testament where the likeness of the lilies is found. He then offers proof regarding clothing and provides a double example. The first is about what is within man—the size of his body, which God gives without any effort on his part; this is clear because, no matter how much someone worries about growing, he cannot add a single cubit to his height. Since, therefore, clothing is appropriate in greater or lesser measure according to one's physical size, and that size is given to him without his own effort, it follows that suitable clothing will be given to him without his own superfluous worry. The second example is taken from what is outside man—namely, from things that grow from the earth, like lilies and herbs—because they grow without any effort of their own and are clothed by God according to their nature. That is why it says they don't labor to adorn themselves with colors, nor do they spin—that is, weave—to make themselves clothing, and yet they are perfectly clothed by God’s providence, dressed in such precious colors. For the color itself is a covering for the flowers that excels all the colors of garments and surpasses any royal ornament. He proves this because Solomon, even though he was a most powerful king, was not as well-dressed as they are; for although art may imitate nature, the works of art do not attain the perfection of the works of nature. Hence Jerome says: "And in truth, what silk, what royal purple, what weaver's art can compare to the flowers? What is as red as a rose?" What is as white as a lily? The purple of the violet is not surpassed by murex-dye, as judged by the eyes rather than by words. Hence Chrysostom also says: "Why did He clothe even the grasses with such beauty, if not to demonstrate His own wisdom and the superabundance of His power, so that we might learn of His glory from every side?" For it isn't only the heavens that declare the glory of God, but the earth as well—so says Chrysostom. From this he concludes that God sufficiently clothes man without superfluous anxiety, saying: "If God so beautifully clothes the grass of the field—which exists today, that is, in the present, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven (that is, it is cast or placed into the fire, because in some lands they use straw and such things instead of wood to heat an oven)—and adorns it with such varied colors, forms, and grace, how much more will He clothe you, you of little faith, without superfluous anxiety?" It is as if to say: If God takes such care of flowers that are born only to be seen and then perish, how much more does He care for human beings, who are made in the image of God and called to eternal things. He calls those who are overly anxious 'of little faith,' because such excessive anxiety comes from a lack of faith, though a rational and moderate concern does not. In a moral sense, according to the Gloss, it's not unfair to compare the saints to birds; because they have nothing in this world and don't labor, they look down on earthly things through contemplation alone and seek after heavenly ones, already becoming like the angels. See how three things are commended in the saints: voluntary poverty, because they have nothing; the quiet or holy idleness of contemplation, because they don't labor; and the lifting of the mind to things above, because they seek eternal things. Therefore, by the birds of the air, we can understand those contemplative men who don't sow, reap, or gather into barns by entangling themselves in worldly business, and the Lord cares for them by providing what is necessary. By the lilies of the field, however, we can understand those who are truly chaste, because of the brightness of their purity and the fragrance of their virtue in which they grow—not so much by their own labor as by the gift of God; they are to be considered for the sake of praise and imitation, both in the growth of good action, in the quiet of holy contemplation, and in the beauty of an honest life. With this instruction, let's not lose heart over our needs, because God will provide for us in due time, provided we do what He commands. For if we lack faith regarding temporal things, how will we hope for eternal ones? Faith doesn't fear hunger. A weak faith, which isn't even certain about the smallest things, shouldn't hope for eternal ones. Anyone who understands what a human being is won't despair of God; but anyone who despairs of God doesn't know what a human being is, because God is in the human, and the human is in God. Whoever places their hope in created things despairs of the Creator. Therefore, as Anselm says: Don't let the barrenness of future times terrify you, and don't let the fear of future hunger cast down your soul, but let your whole trust hang upon Him who feeds the birds and clothes the lilies. Let Him be your storehouse, your pantry, your purse, your riches, your delights; let Him alone be everything to you in all things. And here the Lord sets out three goods that God has given to man: namely, the soul, the body, and possessions.
Seeking the Kingdom First
The believer is called to prioritize the kingdom of God and His justice, leaving the anxieties of tomorrow to the providence of God.
The soul must be subject to its superior—that is, to God—by obeying Him; the body must be subject to its superior—that is, the soul—by complying with it; and possessions must be subject to their superiors—that is, to God, so they may be distributed to the poor; to the soul, so they may be loved with discernment; and to the body, so that what it needs may be provided. But the wealthy pervert this order: they don't subject themselves to God, because they give nothing to the poor; they don't subject themselves to the soul, because they love their possessions wrongly; and they don't subject themselves to the body, because they indulge it foolishly. Then, to drive home more firmly what was said above, he repeats and adds: 'Do not be anxious, saying: What shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or what shall we wear?' According to Chrysostom, the command 'do not be anxious' doesn't mean 'do not work,' but 'do not be troubled in your mind by worldly things,' for it's possible for someone to be working and yet not be anxious.✦ And according to the same author: 'If we ought not to be anxious about necessities, what punishment will those deserve who don't sleep for the sake of superfluities, and who seize what belongs to others?' I say, don't be anxious about these things. For the Gentiles—that is, the pagans—seek all these things, namely those pertaining to food and clothing, with excessive and vicious anxiety; by denying God's providence over human affairs, they are immoderately anxious about such things, and their entire effort is consumed by the present life, having no care at all for the future, nor any confidence in the promise of eternal things. Or, these Gentiles—that is, worldly people—seek all these things with immoderate and excessive anxiety, because they seek present goods more than future ones; and therefore such anxiety makes them like unbelievers. For what more does a believer have than a pagan, whose unbelief troubles his mind and wears him out with the cares of this life? But, alas! Many of us pursue the things of this world even more than the Gentiles do. You don't need to go after these things—I mean, you don't need to go after them with such anxiety. Your Father knows you need all these things—the necessities for your journey—because He doesn't close His heart to His good children. Without them, you can neither live nor serve God, and He certainly provides them unless your own lack of faith gets in the way. No loving father fails to provide what his children need when he knows they are in want. Because He is a Father, He wants to; because He is heavenly, He has the power to. If He has the power and the will, He will undoubtedly give what is best for our salvation. Rabanus asks, "What king doesn't provide the food due to his devoted soldiers?" What master doesn't provide food for his servants? What father doesn't give his children food? Chrysostom adds, "He didn't just say 'God knows,' but 'Your Father knows,' to lead them into a greater hope." If He is a Father—and such a Father—He cannot abandon His children in their deepest troubles, since even human fathers wouldn't allow such things. It is entirely clear that God knows nature itself and is its Creator. Since He created it this way, He looks after its needs even more than you do, constrained as you are by such necessities. It was His will that nature should endure this need. He won't stand against you in the things he has decided you need, nor will he cheat you out of the necessities of life—so says Chrysostom. Augustine adds: "The heavenly Physician knows what he is going to give us for our comfort, and what he is going to withhold for our training; for a man doesn't withhold food from his beast without a reason." If, therefore, he knows—as has been said—and he wills it because he is a Father, and he has the power because he is omnipotent, then there is no reason to fear that he won't provide for us—so says Augustine. It's worth noting that we sometimes suffer a lack of life's necessities for several reasons: first, because of the merit of our sins; second, to exercise our virtue; third, because of the persistence of our own greed—for excessive anxiety that we might run out of necessities often causes us to run out of them; fourth, because of human excess, for it's fitting that those of us who seek what's superfluous should sometimes go without what's necessary; fifth, because of the abuse of temporal things, for it's fitting that whoever misuses God's creation should sometimes have it taken away when they need it; sixth, because of ingratitude, for it's fitting that someone who has been ungrateful should be deprived of God's blessings; and the seventh reason is so that we might believe that God provides us with temporal things, and that they don't come from us or as a debt owed to us by God, for by taking them away, He shows that He alone is Lord.1 The Lord forbids the anxiety of the faithless and fear, but He permits the anxiety of providence and labor. He forbids disordered and superfluous anxiety, through which spiritual goods are hindered and postponed; but He permits moderate and necessary anxiety, according to the rule of right reason, since it is a part of prudence. Otherwise, it would follow that a person would be testing God if they expected all necessary things from Him while omitting what ought to be done in this human way. Therefore, since there can be a twofold love of temporal things—regarding what is superfluous or what is necessary—the Lord forbids hoarding in the first case, and in the second, He forbids suffocating anxiety. It should be noted that there is a threefold anxiety. The first is natural, more accurately called the labor and care of providence; it is granted to a person so they don't test God, provided that God is preferred above all things. This is why it was said to Adam, "By the sweat of your face you shall eat your bread," and it is clear from the Gospel that the Lord kept a money box. The second is of guilt, which consists in the quantity of things when they are acquired beyond necessity; and avarice brings forth and accompanies this anxiety, as does luxury in the quality and elegance of things, and also in an overly anxious provision for necessities, from which follows a negligence of spiritual things; and this anxiety is entirely forbidden because it is judged to be vicious. The third is of grace, which consists in works of justice and compassion for one's neighbor. As the Apostle says, "My daily pressure is the concern for all the churches"; this concern is commanded because it's recognized as belonging to charity. The first kind is tolerable; the second, blameworthy; the third, commendable. The kingdom of God, of course, is to be sought by grace. Finally, he concludes what a person should be concerned about: eternal things, not earthly ones. And this implies a threefold good: heavenly, spiritual, and temporal. The first is the good of glory; the second, of grace; the third, of fortune. The first is the greatest; the second, less; the third, the least. Therefore, the first should be in our intention as our reward; the second, in our actions as our merit; the third, as an addition, as our sustenance. Therefore, the first should be in our intention as our reward; the second, in our actions as our merit; the third, as an addition, as our sustenance. He says, "Don't be anxious about seeking temporal things." Instead, seek the kingdom of God—that is, eternal life and heavenly goods—first in your intention and affection, and especially above all other things, primarily as the happiness of all your actions and as the ultimate end that is desirable in itself; and so that there is no error in your seeking, seek the justice of God second, as the right way and the means by which the kingdom of God is earned, by following his commandments and the works of justice; and third, seek the things necessary for your life, all these temporal things, the entirety of which he placed in three categories, namely food, drink, and clothing, which will be added to you as you cooperate, work together, and maintain the right kind of concern, because just as the fruit of the earth is withheld on account of evil works, so it is added on account of good works. However, if these present things are taken away, it is for your training and testing. If they are taken away entirely, they earn you the crown of martyrdom; if they are given, it is for your consolation and for giving thanks. For all things work together for good for those who love God; the heavenly physician knows what is more expedient for us. Therefore, because the first is said in relation to the second, it is clear that it does not exclude all concern for the necessities of life; rather, it shows that we must be concerned primarily with spiritual things and secondarily with temporal things, because temporal things will be added to us—that is, they will follow without any hindrance on our part—so that we are not turned away from the former while we seek the latter, or so that we do not set up two ends for ourselves. According to Augustine, when he said, "Seek first the kingdom of God," he meant that temporal things are to be sought later—not in time, but in dignity. The former is sought as a good, the latter as something necessary for the sake of that good. This is what it means to seek the kingdom of God first and temporal things later: to place the former in the first position and the latter in the second. We seek temporal things so that we may have the kingdom of God, not the other way around. This clearly shows that we shouldn't desire temporal things so much that we feel compelled to do good works for their sake, even though they are necessary; instead, we are instructed to do whatever we do for the sake of the kingdom of God. Therefore, when we do any good work, let's not focus on temporal things, but on eternal ones, and let's seek the kingdom of God first in our intentions and affections. The early saints sought the kingdom of God first, and for that reason, God added the kingdom of the world to them, as in the time of Constantine. Today, however, many seek the kingdom of the world first and foremost rather than God's, and they are more anxious about earthly things and riches than about souls and the Church. Therefore, they should fear that in gaining the kingdom of the world, they might lose the kingdom of God. Next, he forbids us to worry about tomorrow and the future, saying: "Do not be anxious about tomorrow," which means, do not be anxious about the future by inordinately anticipating the worry that is due to future time, and by bringing forward into today the care that belongs to tomorrow. As Jerome says, he allows us to be concerned about present things, but forbids us to worry about future ones. It’s enough for us to think about the present; let’s leave the future, which is uncertain, to God. Peter Cantor says: "Above, he forbade the sinful anxiety about present things, which are, after all, only for one year; for we sow, reap, and gather once a year, which is why they are called 'present' things. But here, he forbids anxiety about future things, such as those that come after a year." For it is not fitting to be anxious about those things that divine providence provides. If, therefore, your planning extends beyond a year, it turns into sinful anxiety; like the abbot who stored up grain for three years. We consider such people wise today, even though they act against the Lord's prohibition, since he allows us to be concerned only with the present. Such people also distrust God, and because of this, they are most miserable—so says Peter Cantor. And so Chrysostom says: "As for what is said about not worrying about tomorrow, I know of no one who can hear that and keep it completely." For even though we aren't commanded to pray for these things, we spend all our energy on them, and we are consumed by thinking about each one of them. But the amount of care we show for things that concern the body is the same amount of neglect we have for spiritual things—or rather, even more. So says Chrysostom. The Lord doesn't want us to be anxious about the future as if we were certain of a future life, because we aren't even certain or secure about the present. Anselm says: "Imagine you're going to die today, and you won't worry about tomorrow." And Seneca adds: "Every day should be ordered as if it were your last." It's enough, then, for us to focus on the present; let's leave the care of uncertain future things to God. For tomorrow will worry about itself—that is, it brings its own anxiety with it—because the future time will have its own anxiety, one that is fitting and owed to it. It's clear that as time changes, various things arise that need to be done, and it's enough to worry about them when their hour comes. It's as if he were saying: when tomorrow arrives, you'll worry about it then, and not before. Just as I don't forbid today's anxiety, I don't forbid tomorrow's, once that day has arrived. And according to this, in the aforementioned, the word "anxious" refers to the restlessness of greed, which must always be avoided; here, it refers to the discernment of providence, which should be held regarding present things, not future ones. So, let the present day be anxious only for itself and nothing else: "For the day's own trouble is enough." This means that for any given time, there is labor and fatigue, calamity and contrition, pain and sadness, affliction and distress, anxiety and care. Therefore, "trouble" is used here not to mean the evil of sin we commit, but the evil of the punishment we suffer. In the state of innocence, after all, man wouldn't have needed such anxiety. It is as if to say: the mind doesn't need to labor to obtain the necessities of life or to anticipate the day, because the day on which it is necessary to take what is needed is sufficient for that purpose; since it has its own anxiety, there is no need to add more. Why, then, would you want to add trouble to trouble, labor to labor, and care to care? Therefore, "trouble" is not used here to mean malice, but to mean labor and misery. We are accustomed to saying, "We have suffered many troubles today," when we are worn out by some great labor or misery. Hence Chrysostom says: "Here, he calls it 'trouble,' not malice, but misery and labor." Just as when it says elsewhere, "If there is evil in the city that the Lord has not made," it doesn't mean greed, robbery, or anything of that sort; rather, it refers to the scourges sent by God, of which He speaks again through the Prophet: "I am the Lord, who makes peace and creates evil." He didn't intend for "evil" to be understood here as malice, but rather as plagues, famines, and other things of this kind that most people consider evils. So here, too, He used "evil" to mean affliction, saying: "Each day has enough trouble of its own." For nothing brings such pain to the soul as anxiety and worry—so says Chrysostom. Therefore, it isn't labor and foresight that are condemned, but the worry that suffocates the mind. And so, as Augustine says: "In this place, we must be very careful that when we see a servant of God providing for what is necessary for himself or for those entrusted to him, we don't judge him to be acting against the Lord's commands or to be anxious about tomorrow." For, even the Lord Himself, whom the angels served, deigned to carry a money bag to set an example and to instruct the Church, so that no one would be scandalized by it. Again, it's clear enough that our Lord doesn't disapprove of someone providing for these things in a human way; but He does disapprove if someone serves God for the sake of these things, so that in his work he looks not to the kingdom of God, but to the acquisition of these things. This entire command reduces to this rule: we should keep the kingdom of God in mind even while providing for these things. In the service of the kingdom of God, however, we shouldn't be thinking of these things; rather, with a simple heart, we must do good to all solely for the sake of the kingdom of God, and not, in this work, be thinking of a reward of temporal things, either alone or alongside the kingdom of God.
A Prayer for Detachment
A concluding prayer asking for the grace to prioritize eternal merits over earthly gains and to trust in God's providence.
Even if they should sometimes be lacking—which God often allows for our own training—they don't just fail to weaken our resolve; as Augustine says, they actually confirm it once it's been tested. PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, help me not to store up the gains of this world on earth, but rather the rewards of merit in heaven. And because no one can serve two masters due to the conflict of their demands, free me from the dominion and slavery of the world, the flesh, and the devil, so that I may look toward heavenly contemplations rather than earthly ones. Add to the stature of my nature the cubit of grace in the present and of glory in the future, so that I may consider the lilies of the field—the devout of the Church, covered in the brightness of virtue—rather than the hay of the rich, who are to be cast into the furnace of hell.✦✦ May I seek above all the kingdom of God and His justice, so that with the provision of temporal things, I may arrive at the kingdom of heaven along the path of virtue.✦ Amen.
Read the original Latin
Dcindc docens perfectum contemptum terrenorum propter Deum, ponit prohibitionem de coliocando thesaurum in pericuio, ne scilicet thesaurizemus m ierra, ubi cerugo, id est ceris rubigo, consumit, et in hoc tangitur corruptio divitiarum artificialium, ut auri et argenti, ac cetcrorum metallorum; et tinea, id est vermis, demolitur, et in hoc tangitur corruptio divitiarum naturaliumy ut bladi, vini, vestimentorum et consimilium; ubifures effodiunt et furantur^ hoc dicit propter lapides pretiosos, qui licet non possint rubiginari, nec a vermibus corrodi, tamen possunt a latronibus tolli. Sed vae nobis, quia totum contrarium facimus ! Unde Chrysostomus : « Quid dicam de illo mandato quo jubemur non thesaurizare super terramV Quod forte quidem faciunt pauci. Ceteri vero quasi e contrario audierunt praeceptum, et quasi dictum sit ad eos, thesaurizate omnimodis super terras, ita relinquentes coelum, adhaerent terrae, et insaniunt erga pecuniam congregandam : » haec Chrysostomus, Deinde subdit admonitionem de thesauro rcponendo in tuto, ut scilicet thezaurizemus in coslo, ubi nec cerugo demolitur, quia ibi nulla vetustas, nec tinea, quia ibi nulla passibilitas, et ubi fures non effodiunt, nec furantur, quia ibi nulla violentia vel fraus. Excellentissimus modus thesaurizandi est quando bona temporalia et transitoria in pios usus consumuntur, et sic in bona spiritualia et seterna, et per consequen^ incorruptibilia commutantur. Non ergo thesaurizemus in terra emolumenta terrenorum, ubi recondita deficiunt et perduntur, et unde sumus exituri, sed in ccelo praemia meritorum, ubi recondita proiiciunt et scrvantur, etubi semper sumus mansuri. Unde Hievonymus : a Stultitia est illic non thesaurum reponere unde exiturus es, et illuc non praemittere ubi semper victurus es. IIluc ergo substantiam tuam colloca, ubi patriam habes.
» Unde et Gregorius : a Justi hic aedificare et thesaurizare negligunt, ubi peregrinos et hospites se esse cognoscunt; nam qui in propriis gaudere desiderant, in alieno felices esse recusant. » Unde Chrysostomus : « Qjai enim collocat thesauros in terra, non habet quod speret in coelo, utquid ergo aspiciet in coelum, ubi nihil repositum habet? » haec Chrysostomus. 2 — Quia vero unusquisque illuc pervenire desiderat, ubi suas divitias reconditas esse cognoscit, beatus est qui divitias suas in coelo reposuit, ut semper ibi mentem habeat, semperque illuc omnibus viribus et desiderio tendat, quia ut subditur : Ubi enim est thesaurus tuus, id est res a te amata et desiderata, ibi est et cor tuum et affectus tuus. Necesse est enim ut quo praecessit dilectionis thesaurus, illuc et cogitationis sequatur afiPectus. Nam, 2>tcandMmAugustinum, amor est animae pondus, portans eam quocunque ipse fertur et anima verius est ubi amat quam ubi animat. Unde Fulgentius : a Ut ergo in coelis thesaurizemus, coelestia diligamus. Vis noscere ubi thesaurizas, attende quod amas; vis noscere quod smas, attende quod cogitas.
Ita fiet ut thesaurum tuum ex tuo amore cognoscas, et amorem tuum judicio tuae cogitationis intelligas. » Et ideo, ut ' dicit Gregorius, in tot partes cor dividitur, quot sunt ea quae diliguntur. Unde et Chrysostomus : « Ne thesaurizaveris thesauros in terra; tineee enim et vermibus et furi^ bus ea congregas. Si autem et haec effugeris nocumenta, et nihii horum erit, in servitutem redactum esse cor tuum et aflfixum esse inferioribus omnino non effugies, in servitutem redactum esse intellectum aegritudine hac multo difficilius est quam habitare carcerem. Non parvam sustinebis jacturam inferioribus alSixus, et servus pro libero factus, et a coelestibus bonis cadens, et nil excelsorum cogitare potens ; propter hoc et Gentiles non credunt his quae a nobis dicuntur, de actibus enim non de sermonibus nostris futurorum volunt habere documentum. Nunc vero cum videant aedificari a nobis splendidas domos, agros emi, balnea atque hortorum amoenitates parari, nolunt credere quod ad alterius nos urbis perfectionem paremus. Si enim, inquiunt, verum esset istud, vendentes prorsus cuncta quae possident illuc, profecto praemitterent. Haec igitur considerantes, vincula tanti abrumpamus erroris.
Qui enim pecuniae servit, et praesentibus compedibus stringitur, et futuris paratur. Qui vero istius cupiditatis immunis est, utraque libertate potietur. Quam ut consequamur gravissimum avaritiae conterentes jugum ad coeli fastigia sublevemur i » haec Chrysostomus. Unde et Anselmus : a Vilescat tibi mundus, omnis amor carnalis sordeat. Nesclas te esse in hoc mundo, quoniam ad illos qui in coelo sunt et Deo vivunt tuum transtulisti propositum : ubi esi thesaurus tuus, ibi esi cor tuum ; noli cum argenteis simulacris vili marsupio tuo tuum includere animum, qui nunquam cum nummorum pondere poterit transvolare ad ccelum. » Hoc autem. secundum Hieronymum, non tantum intelligendum est de thesauro pecimiae, sed universaliter de cunctis voluptatibus ac possessionibus, etc. Gulosi Deus venter est, luxuriosi thesaurus epulae sunt, lascivi lubrica amatoris libido, avari pecunia; et sic intelligendum est in aliis : huic enim servit vitio unusquisque quo vincitur, et ibi habet cor, ubi thesaurum, et ad hanc conversionem cordis, ad amorem passionum et rerum hujusmodi, sequitur aversio a Deo.
Si ergo in coelo est, mundum est, quia munda sunt coelestia; si autem in terra volutatur, id est si quid agat ut terrena consequatur, quomodo mundum est? Unde Augustinus : a Sordescit aliquid, cum inferiori naturae miscetur, quamvis in suo genere non sordidetur; quia etiam de puro argento sordldatur aurum si misceatur, ita et animus noster terrenorum cupiditate sordescit, quamvis terrena in suo genere munda sint. » Igitur, ut ait Richardus : « Quaecunque in muhdo concupiscis, quaecunque in mundo metuis, impende libenter pro libertate cordis. » Quia, ut dicit Augustinus, totum mundum debet coritemnere qui sibi thesaurizat in coelo.
Et ne timor subrepat diflEdentiae habendi vitae necessaria, consequenter excludit diflfidentiam quae nasci posset exconditione pro pria, dicens : Noliie timere, pusiU lus grex, id est congregatio humilium, quia complacuit Patri vestro. coelesti, dare vobis regnum, non quidem ob merita vestra, sed ex mera liberalitate et bonitate sua divina. Quasi diceret : Ex quo regnum coelorum paratum est vobis, parum debetis curare de terrenis. Non enim de vitae necessariis debet diffidere cui regnum vitae promittitur, in quo omnis sufficientia habetur. Dicitur autem grex, propter fidei obedientiam : pusillus, propter voluntariae paupertatis et humilitatis devotionem, qua pervenitur ad coelestis regni possessionem. Vel pusillus dicitur grex electorum, respectu majoris numeri reproborum, quia. pauci erant fideles respectu infidelium, et pauci sunt electi, respectu reproborum. Utinam et ego merear de illis paucis vel minimus esse, et cum eis regnum percipere !
Pervenitur etiam ad regni opulentiam per consiliorum supererogationem, quibus itur ad perfectionem, et ideo subjungit, dicens : Vendiie qiue possidetls, etiam necessaria, et date eleemosynam, quae ad idem regnum via est : facite vobis sacculos, id est repositaria bonorum, et loca ad reponendum mercedem eleemosynarum vestrarum, qui non veterascunt, et deficiunt, scilicet reponendo eleemosynam in manus pauperum, qui vobis per hostes, et fures transeuntibus pecuniam vestram usque ad locum tutum portent, ne eam amittatis, thesaurum non deficientem in coslis, et aeternis;. quia merces eleemosynae in aeternum manet in coelis. Nam fiructus. eleemosynae auget merita, quae sunt thesaurus indeficiens in patria. Et si per eleemosynam habemus in coelo thesaurum meritorum, ibi cor nostrum suspiret et exspectet thesaurum praemiorum.
Deinde docet eos de oculo simplici habendo, quod attendere debemus in omni opere nostro. Unde ait : Lucerna corporis tui est oculus tuus. Hic est locutio metaphorica, qua corpus morale hic accipitur pro congerie operationum, sicut corpus materiale est quaedam aggregatio membrorum diversorum, et ideo sicut ocuius materialis regit totum corpus materiale, et dirigit membra ad operandum; sic oculus moralis, scilicet intentio, regit totum corpus morale, et dirigit varias operationes in finem. Ideo subditur : Si oculus iuus fuerit simplex, id est intentio recta sine plica simulationis et erroris, iotum corpus tuum lucidum erit, id est congeries operationum tuarum erit bona et meritoria» etiamsi non ita hominibus videatur; dum tamen operationes sint bonae de genere, vel saltem indifferentes et licitae, aliler non caderent sub recta intentione. Unde Seneca : « Nihil interest quo animo facias quod vitiosum est fecisse, quia facta cernuntur, animus non videtur. » Si autem oculus tuus nequam fuerit, id est intentio perversa, totum corpus tenebrosum erit, id est congeries operationum obscura per peccatum et mala, etiamsi operationes sint bonae de genere et hominibus videantur rectae, quia opus bonum de genere eflBcitur malum ex perversa intentione. Vide ergo ne intentio tua sit perversa, quia per hoc corrumperentur omnia bona. Si ergo lumen quod in te est, tenebrce sunt, id est si actio bona de genere, quae est quasi quoddam lumen, efficitur mala, propter defectum intentionis bonae, ipscs tenebrce quantce erunt?
Quasi diceret : Multo magis, quia actio mala de genere, quae est quasi quaedam tenebrae, si cum hoc superveniat intentio mala, est multo deterior quam prima. Quando enim quae per se mala sunt, etiam cum mala intentione fiunt, tunc duplex obtenebratio est : et pravae intentionis, et pravae operationis. Non ergo quid quisque, sed quo animo faciat considerandum, et primo circa puritatem intentionis laborandum est, quia sine ipsa opus sequens nihil valet. Itaque si bonum bona intentione feceris, non habens in tua conscientia aliquam pactem tenebrosae cogitationis, illuminatur etiam factum tuum, qualemcumque exitum habuerit, et illuminabit te, id est splendidum et fiilgidum reddet, hic splendore gratiae, et in futuro splendore gloriae. Et si bene alicui proveniat quod tu non recta et munda intentione facis, quomodo tu feceris tibi imputatur, non quomodo illi provenerit. Igitur cave ne ipsa cordis intentio, quae lumen est animae, vitiorum caligine fuscetur, ut oculus simplex totum corpus faciat lucidum; quatenus quidquid feceris, facias propter Deum, et ad locum unde exeunt gratiae redeant, et iterum fluant. 6 — Et quia aliquis cupiens assequi terrena et coelestia posset dicere, quod recta et simplex potest esse intentio, ut quis agat et propter temporalia et propter Deum bona quae agit, hoc removet exemplo duorum contrariorum dominorum, quia nemo potest servire duobus dominis, scilicet contrariis et disparatis, et non superaltematim positis. Nam, ut ait Beda : a Non valet simul transitoria et aeterna diligere.
» Et Augustinus : a Unus oculus non potest videre in coelo et in terra. » Unde et Cyprianus : « Mundi amor et Dei pariter in uno habitare non possunt, quemadmodum oculi coelum et terram nequaquam conspiciunt. » Sic autem dicit Philosophus in libro de animalibus : a Aves claudunt oculos cum palpebra inferiori, animalia vero grossa cum palpebra superiori. » Per aves intelliguntur viri spirituales, qui ad inferiora et terrena oculos claudunt; per animalia vero grossa intelliguntur viri mundani, qui habent oculos clausos ad ccelestia, et apertos ad terrena et secularia. Secundum Chrysostomum, duos dominos dicit qui contraria injungunt, plures autem idem injungentes, non sunt plures, sed unum ; nam concordia muitos facit unum. Isti domini quibus non potest simul serviri, sunt vitia et virtutes, ccelestia et terrestria, Deus et diabolus, caro et spiritus; nam ad contraria injungunt, et ideo consequens est ut unum deserat, et alteri obtemperet. Unde quasi declarando subjungit : Non poiestis Deo servire, et mammonce. Mammona mammonce Syriace , dicitur divitice Latine ; et Mammon Mammonis nomen est daemonis, qui praeest divitiis , et tentat de vitio cupiditatis, non quod in ejus ditione sint divitiae, ut dare eas possit, vel auferre, nisi quando Deus permittit ; sed quod his utatur ad decipiendum et irretiendum homines laqueis, quos in divitiis praetendit.
Et licet homo non possit servire Deo et divitiis, potest tamen servirc cum divitiis. Divitiis enim qui servit, illi utique servit qui de cupiditate divitiarum tentat et decepit. Ille autem divitiis servit qui eas propter se, et ut finem ultimum diligit, aut qui eas cupide acquirit, vel avare retinet et ut servus custodit; ille autem qui in operibus piis divitias expendit, non servit divitiis, sed magis divitiae serviunt ei, quiaeas distribuit ut Dominus, et eis utitur ad opera virtutum sicut instrumentis. Nam,secundum -4m^ro5f imi^sicut divitiae sunt impedimenta improbis ; ita probis sunt adjumenta virtutis. Unde Chrysostomus : « Duo ergo sunt nobis domini propositi, Deus et Mammona, id estdiabolus, qui mammonae est auctor. Ille nos ad misericordiam provocat, hic ad avaritiam; ille ad vitam, hic ad mortem; ille ad salutem, hic ad perditionem. Cui de duobus obtemperare debemus ? Ei utique qui nos ad vitam invitat, non ei qui nos trahit ad mortem.
Quid enim terribilius est, quam si propter pecunias a Christi servitio dicamur excidere ; vel desiderabilius, quam si despectu pecuniarum tota illi possumus mente et dilectione conjungi ? » haec Chrysostomus. Et cum nuUo modo possit quis duobus dominis servire, multi tamen fatui conantur contra hanc impossibilitatem , similes illis de quibus in libro Regum dicitur, quod fuerunt gentes Deum timentes, et nihilominus idolis servientes. Et sciendum quod diligere divitias propter se, et Deum propter se, et utrumque ut finem ultimum, ut in hoc servus utriusque dicatur, est impossibile ; licet possit unum in ordine ad aliud appetere, puta divitias propter Deum. Actio ergo corporalis potest referri ad finem temporalem , dummodo postea illud temporale referatur ad Deum. Si autem in actionibus finis proximus ponatur Deus, et finis ultimus temporale, perversissimum est. Quaecunque enim res propter aliud aliquid quaeritur, inferior est quam id propter quod quaeritur. Unde bene licet constituere duos fines, scilicet temporalem et aetcrnum, et finem sub fine ponere, ut illud quod est aeternum finis ultimus sit; quia una intentio multos actus informat.
Diversi vero fines, quorum anus sit ad alium referibilis, non sunt faciendi. 7 — Post hoc concludeudo inducit, ut de victu et vestitu quae necessaria sunt non sollicitemur , loquens ad discipulos suos , quos Ispecialiter ad mundi contemptum invitat : haec enim specialiter dicuntur Apostolis, eorumque successoribus, et ceteris omnibus qui ad summum perfectionis culmen attingere cupiunt, nam talibus nulla terrenorum bonorum soUicitudo est, quia habentes victum et vestitum his contenti sunt. Haec omnia dicuntur hic ad tollendum a pradicatoribus Evangelii sollicitudinem superfluam de necessariis, quantum ad praesentem vitam. Unde ne dicerent, qualiter poterimus vivere si omnia abjecerimus? Idcirco inferendo intentum suum ex praemissis subjungit : Ideo dico vobis, ne solUciti sitis, sollicitudine superflua et inordinata, animce vestrce, id est vitae animali, quae cibo sustentatur, quid manducetis, vel bibatis, neque corport vestro quid induamini, Quasi diceret : Si vultis Deo servire, oportet renunties mammonae in nimia temporalium sollicitudine. Non ait : Ne laboretis, ne curetis, ne quaeratis de cibo, aut potu, aut vestimento ; sed : Ne solliciti sitis, ut vitiosam soUicitudinem prohibeat, quae mentem perturbat, et ab aetemis retrahit, seu revocat ; et ut necessarium concedat. Unde Beda : a Praecipitur nobis ne solliciti simus quid comedamus, et quia in «udore vultus praeparamus nobis panem, labor exercendus est, sollicitudo praecavenda. » Unde et Chrysosiomus : « Non enim sollicitudinibus spiritualibus , sed laboribus corporalibus acquirendus est panis, qui laborantibus pro praemio diligentiae, Deo praestante, abundat, et negligentibus pro poena , Deo feclente, subducitur.
» Item non ait : Ut manducetis vel bibatis, aut induamini ; sed quid manducetis, vel hibatis, aut induamini. Manducare namque ac bibere, et indui, necessarium est ad sustentationem naturae ; sollicitari vero circa sumptuositatem, vel delectationem, ad vitium pertinet gnlae, aut vanae gloriae, vel etiam avaritiae Ubi, secundum Bedam, vidctur argoi qui spreto victn et vestitu communi, lautiora sibt, vel austeriora, prae his cum quibiK vitam ducunt, alimenta vel indumenta requirunt. Spiritualiter ergo in manducatione, possumus inteHigere gulosos; in induitione, vane gloriosos; in utroque avaros. Unde alibi : Erai quidam dives, in quo cupiditas : qui induebatur purpura et bysso, in quo vanitas : et epulabaiur quoiidie splendide, in quo gulosistas. Noli ergo quicunque es qui mundi gloriam sprevisti, ac Deo servire elegisti, noli, inquam, sollicitus esse vitae tuae de victu et vestitu, quia vanum est pro his esse sollicitum. Unde confirmat spem nostram Dominus, primo de majori ad minus descendens, et probat a majori neminem esse sollicitum circa hujusmodi. Si enim majus donabile datur ex amore , et minus dabitur saltem in necessitate ; sed Deus dedit nobis majora ben^cia, scilicet animam et corpus, ergo dabit et minora, scilicet victum et vestitum. Non cnim anima propter escam creata est, nec corpus propter vestimentum, sed magis e contra est factum, ideo non sit sollicitus animus, ne percipiat quod propter se creatum est.
Unde Chrysostomus : « Nisi' Deus vellet conservare quod est , ipsum non creasset, quia vero ipse constituit ut anima cibo, et corpus indumento conservetur, ideo ipse utrumque tribuit : » haec Chrysostomus, Qui ergo dedit sine sollicitudine nostra vitam, dabit sine solKcitudine nostra superflua, etiam illud unde regatur vita ; fatuus est ergo qui propter minus, scilicet escam, aut vestimentum, perdit majus, scilidet animam vel corpus.
Deindc probat singulariter de utroque, scilicet cibo et vestimento. Et primo de cibo, de quo confirmat spem nostram a minori ad nrajus ascendens, et ex minori majus persuadens. Et ponit exemplum de irrationabilibus creaturis, scilicet volatilibus coeli, id est aeris, in quo volitant, quia, non serunij neque meiunt, scilicet ad cibum acquirendum ; neque congregant in horrea, scilicet ad conservandum, et Pater coelestis pascit illa, propter homines, sine sollicitudine eorum magna; ergo multo magis pascit homines, qui sunt chariores, sine sollicitudine eorum superflua. Rationale enim animal, sicut et homo, majoris est ponderis €t pretii coram Deo quam irrationabilia, sicut sunt aves, quia animalia facta sunt propter hominem , finis autem est nobilior his quae sunt ad finem. Sicut ergo Deus pascit aves cum sollicitudine convenienti suae naturae, sic pascit homines cum sollicitudine convenienti eorum naturae, quae est secundum regulam rationis rectae , si tamen ea quae praecipit studeant implere. Quia sicut natura avium est praedicto modo vivere, sic natura hominis est vivere secundum dictamen rationis rectae, ad quod sequitur ipsum debere sollicitudine moderata ad quaerendum ea quae non dedit sibi natura, ut cibum et vestimentum necessarium. Unde non dicit de avibus , non volant ad grana et ad pascua, quia non prohibet laborem et providentiam , sed sollicitudinem et avaritiam. Ubi Chrysosiomus : tc Omnia volatilia fecit Deus propter hominem, hominem autem propter seipsum.
Si ergo animalibus ministrat propter hominem, quomodo non homini ministrat propter seipsum?» 9 Deinde sollicitudo testimenti UBi LiLioRUM siMiLiTUDo. — Deiude probat de vestimento , et ponit duplex exemplum. Primum est de eo quod est intra hominem magnitudine corporis, quam dat Deus sine sollicitudine ipsius; quodexhocpatet,quia quantumcunque aliquis sollicitetur de augmentatione sua, non potest addere ad staiuram suam cubiium unum. Cum igitur vestimentum competat majus vel minus secundum quantitatem corporalem, et quantitas datur ei sine sollicitudine sua, per consequens vestimentum conveniens dabitur ei sine sollicitudine sua superflua. Secundum exemplum sumitur ex eo quod est extra hominem, scilicet ex terrae nascentibus, ut liliis et herbis, quia sine sua sollicitudine crescunt, et secundum suam quantitatem a Deo vestiuntur, propter quod dicit : non laborant, ad ornandum se coloribus, neque nent, id est filant, ad faciendum sibi veslimentum, et tamen optime vestiuntur Dei providentia , tam pretiosis coloribus induta. Ipse enim color operimentum est florum qui omnes excellit colores vestium, et regale excellit ornamentum. Quod probat quia Salomon, licet fuerit rex potentissimus, tamen non fuit ita bene vestitus, quia licet ars imitetur naturam, tamen opera artis non assequuntur perfectionem operum naturae.
Unde Hieronymus : « Et revera, quod sericum, quae regum purpura, quae pictura textricum potest floribus comparari 'i Quid ita rubet ut rosa ? Quid ita candet ut lilium ? Violae vero purpuram nullo modo superari murice oculorum magis quam sermonum judicium est. r> Unde et Chrysostomus : a Cur vero tanto etiam herbas decore vestivit, ut suam scilicet sapientiam demonstret, et superabundantiam virtutis, xrt undique ejus gloriam discamus. Non enim soli cceli enarrant gloriam Dei; sed et terra : » haec Chtysostomus. Et ex hoc concludit quod Deus sufl&cienter vestit hominem absque sollicitudine superflua, dicens : Si autem fenum, id est herbam, agri, quod hodie est, id est in praesenti, et cras m clibanum mittir tur, id est in fumo mittitur seu ponitur, quia in quibusdam terris loco lignorum utuntur stipulis et talibus ad calefaciendum furnum, Deus sic pulchre et variis coloribus et fonnis vestit, et venustate adornat, quanto magis vos minimcs fi" dei, scilicet sine sollicitudine superflua vestiet ? Quasi diceret : Si de floribus qui nati sunt tantummodo ut videantur et pereant tantam Deus curam gerit, quanto magis de hominibus, qui ad imaginem Dei sunt facti, et ad aeterna vocajti. Vocat autem eos qui nimis sollicitantur, modicce fidei, quia ex defectu fidei procedit talis sollicitudo superflua, non autem soUicitudo rationalis et moderata.
Moraliter, secundum Glossam, Sancti non immerito avibus comparantur , qui nihil in mundo habentes, nec laboranles, sola contemplatione terrena despiciunt, coelestia petunt, jam Angelis similes. Ecce quod commendantur in Sanctis tria, scilicet : paupertas voluntaria, quia nihil habentes ; contemplationis quies sive otiositas sancta, quia non laborantes j mentis elevatio ad supema, quia aeterna petunt. Per volatilia ergo coeli intelligi possunt viri contemplativi qui non serunt, neque metunt, neque congregant in horrea, se negotiis secularibus implicando, et Dominus pro eis sollicitatur necessaria ministrando. Per lilia vero agri intelligi possunt vere casti, quia propter candorem munditiae, et propter odorem virtutis in quibus crescunt, non tam suo labore quam Dei dono ; qui considerandi sunt ad laudandum et imitandum, et incremento bonae actionis, et in quiete sanctae contemplationis, et in decore honestae conversationis.
Ex his ergo instructi non diflidamus de necessariis, quia tempore opportuno Deus providebit nobis de illis, si tamen ea quae praecipit faciamus. Si enim de temporalibus diffidimus, quomodo aeterna sperabimus V Fides famem non timet. Modica fides, quae nec de minimo certa est, nedum aeterna non speret. Qui intelligit quid est homo, non desperat de Deo ; qui autem desperat de Deo, nescit quid est homo; quia Deus in homine, et homo in Deo. De Creatore desperat, qui in creaturis spem ponit. Igitur, ut ait Ansel^ mus : a Non te futuri temporis sterilitas terreat, non futurae famis timor memtem tuam dejiciat, sed ex ipso tota fiducia tua pendeat, qui aves pascit et lilia vestit. Ipse sit horreum tuum, ipse apotecha, ipse marsupium tuum, ipse divitiae tuae, ipse deliciae tuae ; solus sit tibi omnia in omnibus. Et ponit hic Dominus tria bona quae Deus homini dedit, scilicet : animam, corpus, et res.
Anima debet subjici superiori, scilicet Deo, sibi obediendo ; et corpus suo superiori, id est animae, sibi obtemperando ; et res suis superioribus, scilicet Deo, ut pauperibusdistribuantur, et animae, ut discrete diligantur, et corpori, ut sibi necessaria ministrentur. Sed istum ordinem pervertunt divites, qui non subjiciuntur Deo, quia pauperibus nihil tribuunt; nec animae, quia res inique diligunt ; nec corpori, quia illud fatue afficiunt. » Deinde ad inculcandum arctius quod supra dictum est, repetens, subjungit : Nolite ergo 50//1citi esse dicentes : Quid manduca-bimus, aut quid bibemus, aut quo operiemur 9 Secundum Chrysosio^ mum, quod dicitur : nolite solliciti esse, non idem est quod nolite operari , sed nolite rebus mundanis mente alfligi : contigit enim aliquem operantem nihil sollicitum esse. Et secundum eumdem : « Si pro necessariis non oportet esse soilicitos, qua poena digni erunt, qui pro superfluis non dormiunt, et aliena rapiunt. Nolite, inquam, de his solliciti esse. Hcec enim omnia, scilicet ad victum et vestimentum pertinentia Gentes, id est Gentiles, inquirunt, cum soUicitudine nimia et vitiosa, quae divinam providentiam circa actus humanos negantes, circa talia immoderate sollicitantur, quorum videlicet erga praesentem vitam studium omne consumitur, quibus nulla prorsus cura est futurorum, nec confidentia de promissione setemorum. Vel, hcec omnia Gentes, id est homines mundani, cum soUicitudine immoderata et nimia, inquirunt, quia magis bona praesentia quam futura quaerunt ; et ideo talis soUicitudo facit eos infidelibus similes. Quid enim amplius habet fidelis a gentili, cujus infidelitas animum sollicitat, et curis hujus vitae fatigat 1 Sed, heu !
multi ex nobis ea quae mundi sunt, magis quam Gentes inquirunt. Vos ergo haec quaerere non est necesse, quaerere, inquam, cum sollicitudine.
Scit enim Pater vester, qui viscera non claudit bonis filiis, quia his omnibus indigetis, scilicet in via necessariis ; sine his enim neque vivere, neque Deo servire potestis, quae utique ipse dat, nisi infidelitas vestra avertat. Quia non est pater pius qui non tribuit necessaria filiis, indigentiam sibi notam patientibus, et quia Pater est, vult ; et quia coelestis, potest ; si autem potest, et vult, sine dubio donabit quod nobis expediat ad salutem. » Unde Rabanus : « Quis rex militibus devotis debitam non procurat alimoniam ? Quis dominus famulis suis non ministrat cibaria? Quis pater non dat filiis alimentum ? » Unde et Chrysostomus : « Non dixit, novit Deus ; sed, novit Pater vester, ut eos in majorem spem ducat. Si enim Pater est, et Pater talis non poterit despicere filios in ultimis malis, cum utique neque homines patres existentes haec suslineant. Est enim omnino clarum quod Deus naturam ipsam novit, et ejus creator existit, quique illam talem formando creavit, indigentiam quoque ejus magis prospiciat quam tuipse qui ejusmodi necessitatibus coarctaris; nam ipsi utique sic placuit, ut hanc indigentiam natura pateretur.
Nequaquam erit ergo contrarius in his quibus ei opus esse decrevit, aut necessariarum eam rerum perceptione fraudabit : » haec Chrysostomus, Unde etiam Augustinus : « Scit coelestis medicus quid nobis daturus est ad consolationem, quidve subtracturus sit ad exercitationem : non enim homo jumento suo cibaria subtrahit sine causa. Si ergo scit ut dictum est, et vult, quia Pater, et potest, quia omnipotens; ergo nec est timendum quin provideat nobis : » haec Augusiinus.
Notandum autem quod ex pluribus causis aliquando patimur penuriam in vitae necessariis : prima est ex merito peccatorum nostrorum ; secunda est causa exercendae virtutis ; tertia est ex importunitate nostrae avaritiae, nimia namque sollicitudo, ne deficiant necessaria, facit ut aliquando deficiant ; quarta est humana superfluitas, dignum est enim ut qui superflua quaerimus , aliquando necessariis careamus ; quinta est abusus temporalium, qui enim creatura Dei abutitur, dignum est ut aliquando ad necessitatem ei tollatur ; sexta est ingraC^JO titudo, dignum est quod beneficiis Dei privetur qui ingratus exstitit ; septima causa est ut credamus Deum nobis praebere temporalia, et non esse a nobis, yel ex debito nobis tribui a Deo : ea enim subtrahendo ostendit quod ipse sit Dominus.
Prohibct ergo Dominus sollicitudinem difiBdentis et timorem, sed permittit sollicitudinem providentiae et laborem. Prohibet sollicitudinem deordinatam et superfluam, per quam impediuntur et postponuntur bona spiritualia ; sed permittit soUicitudinem moderatam et necessariam, secimdum regulam rationis rectae, cum sit pars prudentias ; aliter sequeretur quod homo tentaret Deum, si exspectaret ab eo omnia oecessaria, omittendo quod debet fieri circa haec via humana. Igitur cum duplex possit esse amor rerum temporalium, scilicet respectu superflui, ¥el respectu necessarii, contxa primum prohibet Dominus thesaurizationem ; contra secundum prohibet praefocantem soUicitudinem. Ubi notandum quod triplex est sollicitudo. Prima est naturae, quae verius labor et cura dicitur provldentiae, qus homini ne Deum tentet conceditur, ut tamen omnibus Deus prceferatur. Unde et Adae dictum est : In labore et sudore vultus itd mesceris pane tuo : et Dominum loculos habuisse patet ex Evangelio. — Secimda est culpae, quae consistit in quantitate rerum, cum supra necessitatem acquinmtur; et hanc sollicitudinem parit «et comitatur avaritia, in qualitate etiam et lauticia rerum quam comitatur luxuria, in nimis quoque anxia necessarionmi provisione ex qua sequitur spiritualium negligentia ; et haec sollicitudo omnino prohibetur, quia vitiosa judicatur. •* Tertia est giatiae, quse conststit in operibus justitiae, et proximi compassione.
Unde Apostolus : Instantia mea quotidiaua est sollicitudo omnium Ec— clesiarum, haec sollicitudo praecipitur, quia ad charitalsm pertinere dignoscitim Prima est tolerabilis ; secunda, vituperabilis ; tertia, commendabilis. i5 Regxum "Dsi, sciLiCET m graTIA QUfRENDUK EST. — Tandem conchidit de quo debet homo esse sollicitus, quia de aetemis, non de terrenis. £t implicat hic triplex bonum, scilicet coeleste,. spirituale, et tefloporale. Primum est bonum gloriae ; secundum, gratiae ; teitium, fortunae. Primum est maximum ; secundum, minus ; tertium , minimum. Ideo primum debet esse in intentione, sicut praemium ; secimdum, in operatione, tanquam meritum ; tertium, in adjectione, tanquam sustentamentum.
Ita, inquit, nolite solliciti esse circa temporalia quaerenda;. sed primum intentione et afTectione, ac praecipue prae omnibus^ aliis et principaliter tanquam beatitudinem omnium actionum, et ultimum finem, qui est per se appetibile, qucerite regnum Dei, id est vitam aeternam et x:oelestia bona; et ne sit error in quaerendo, secundo tanquam rectam viam, et id per quod meretur obtineri regnum Dei, quaerite justitiam Dei , sequendo ejus praecepta, etiam justitiae opera ; et tertio ad vitae necessaria vobis, hcec omnia, scilicet temporalia, quorum universitatem in tribus posuit, scilicet in cibo,. potu, et vestimento, adjicientur, sciBcet, vobis, cooperantibus et collaborantibus, ac sollicitudinem modo habentibus, quia sicut proptef mala opera fructus terra^ subducitur, ^c propter bona opera adjicitur. Verumtamen si praesentia subtrahuntur^ ad exercitationem est et probationem, ac etiam penitus subtracta, martyrii promerentur coronam ; si vero dantur, ad consolationem est , et gratiarum actionem. Quia, diligentibus Deum omnia cooperantur in bonim; scit enim medicus coelestis quid magis expediat nobis. Igitur quia primum reiative dicitur ad secundum, patet quod non excludit soUicitudinem omnino circa necessaria vitae; sed ostendit quod principaliter debemus soUicitari de spiritualibus, et secundario de temporalibus, quia temporalia adjicientur nobis^ id est consequentur sine ullo nostro impedimento, ne cum ista quaerimus, illinc avertamur, aut ne duos fines constituamus. Nam, secundum Augustinum, cum dixit ; Qucerite primum regnum Dei, significavit temporale posterius quaerendum, non tempore, sed dignitate; illud tanquam bonum, hoc tanquam necessarium propter illud bonum. Hoc est primum quaerere regnum Dei, et posterius temporale, id est hoc priore loco ponere, et illud posteriore, scilicet ut ideo quaeramus temporale, ut habeamus regnum Dei, et non e converso.
Aperte enim ostendit non temporalia sic esse appetenda, ut propter ipsa benefacere debeamus, licetsint necessaria; sed quaecunque facimus , propter regniim Dei facere instruimur. Ergo cum aliquid boni operamur, non temporalia, sed aeterna cogitemus, et primum intentione et affectione regnum Dei quaeramus. Sancti primitivi quaesierunt primo regnum Dei, et ideo Deus adjecit eis regnum mundi, scilicet tempore Constantini ; sed hodie a multis primo et prafcipue quaeritur regnum mundi magis quam Dei, et magis solliciti sunt pro terrenis et divitiis, quam pro animabus et Ecclesiis, et ideo timendum est eis, ne cum regno mundi amittant regnum Dei.
Deindc vetat cogitare de crastino et futuro, dicens : Nolite ergo solliciti esse in crasti" num, id est in futurum, sollicitu^ dinem scilicet futuro tempori debitam inordinate praeoccupando, et curam, quae incumbit diei crastino,, in diem hodiernum anticipando. De praesentibus ergo, ut ait Hieronymus, concessit debere esse sollicitos, qui futura prohibet cogitare. Sufficit enim nobis praesentis temporis cogitatio; futura, quae incerta simt^ relinquamus Deo. Ubi Petrus Catt" tor : a Supra prohibuit sollidtudinem vitiosam de praesentibus quae scilicet sunt unius anni ; semel enim in anno serimus, metimus, et colligimus , unde et praesentia quasi dicuntur; hic autem prohibet soUicitudinem de futuris , ut de his quae post annum veniunt. De his enim quae procurat divina ordinatio, non convenit soUicitari. Si ergo providentia tua ultra annum extenditur, jam in vitiosam sollicitudinem vertitur; ut abbatis, qui usque in tertium annum reservavit annonam. Cujusmodi homines modo reputamus sapientes, cum tamen veniant contra Domini prohibitum, qui concedit tantum curam praesentium. Tales etiam de Deo diffidunt, et ob hoc miserrimi sunt : 5) haec Petrus Cantor.
Unde ' et Chrysostomus : a Quod autem dictum est nolite cogitare de crastino, scio ego nec audire aliquem, nec omnino servare. Cum enim neque orare pro his jubeamur, nos omne studium erga haec expendimus, et de his singulis cogitando consumimur. Sed quantam in his quae ad corpus sunt curam ostendimus, tantam in spiritualibus habemus incuriam, imo longe etiam majorem : » haec Chrysostomus, Non vult autem Dominus de futuro nos esse soUicitos, tanquam certi de fiitura yita simus, quia neque de praesenti certi et securi sumus. Unde Ansdmus : « Puta te quotidie moriturum, et de crastino non cogitabis. » Unde et Seneca : « Omnis dies sicut ultima est ordinanda. » Sufl&cit ergo nobis praesentis cogitatio temporis; futurorum curam, quae incerta est, relinquamus. Crastinus enim dies sollicitus erit sibiipsi, id est ipse affert sollicitudinem suam secum , quia tempus futurum habebit sollicitudinem 8uam, sibi congruam et debitam, sicut patet quod ex vkriatione temporis occurrunt varia fienda, de quibus sufiQcit tunc sollicitari cum venerit eorum hora. Ac si dicat : Cum fiiturus dies advenerit, de ipso curabitis , et non ante ; sicut enim hodiernam sollicitudinem non interdico , ita nec crastinam , postquam crastinus dies advenerit.
Et secundum hoc in praedictis, hoc nomen soUiciius dicit anxietatem avaritiae, quae semper est fugienda : hic discretioncm providentiae, quae de praesentibus non de futuris est habenda. Sit ergo hodiernus dies de se sollicitus tantummodo, et non de alio : Sufficit enim diei malitia sua, id est cuilibet tempori labor et £atigatio, calamitas et contritio, dolor et tristitia, afflictio et angustia, sollicitudo et cura. Unde malitia hic dicitur, non maium culpae quod^ agimus, sed malum poenae quod patimur. In statu enim innocentiae non indiguissct homo tali sollicitudine ; ac si dicat : Non oportet quod laboret cogitatus ad habendum vitae necessaria, diemque praeveniat, quia ad hoc sufficit dies quo necessaria sumere oporteat; cum enim pro se suam habeat sollicitudinem, non oportet addere aliam. Cur ergo ma* litiam malitiae, laborem labori, curam curae superaddere velis ? Non itaque pro malignitate ponitur hic malitia, sed pro labore et miseria. Sic enim dicere solemus, multa mala hodie passi sumus, quando aliquo magno labore vel miseria fatigamur. Unde Chrysostomus : a Malitiam vero hic non malignitatem vocat, sed miseriam et laborem.
Sicut enim cum alibi dicit : Si erit malum in civitate quam Dominus non fecit, non avaritiam significat , ac rapinas , nec talium quidquam aliud omnino ; sed eas profecto plagas quae divinitus inferuntur, de quibus rursus loquitur per Prophetam : Ego Dominus faciens pacem, et creans malum» Neque enim hic malitiam voluit intelligi; sed pestilentias profecto et fames, ceteraque hujusmodi quae mala esse putantur a plurimis ; ita hic quoque malitiam pro afflictione posuit, dicens : Sufficit diei maliiia sua. Nihil enim ita dolorem infert animae, ut sollicitudo et cura : » haec Chrysostomus. Itaque non labor et providentia damnatur, sed mentem praefocans cura. Et ideo, ut dicit Augustinus : « Hoc loco vehementer cavendum est, ne cum viderimus aliquem servum Dei providere, ne ista necessaria sibi, vel sibi commissis desint, judicemus eum contra praecepta Domini facere, et de crastino sollicitum esse. Nano. et ipse Dominus cui ministrabant Angeli, propter exemplum et ad informandam Ecclesiam , loculos habere dignatus est, ne quis in hoc scandalum pateretur. Et iterum satis apparet Dominum nostrum non hoc improbare , si quis humano more ista procuret ; sed si quis propter ista Deo militet, ut in operibus sui non regnum Dei, sed istorum acquisitionem intueatur. Ad hanc ergo regulam hoc totum praeceptum redigit, ut etiam in istorum provisione regnum Dei cogitemus; in militia vero regni Dei ista non cogitemus, et simplici corde tantumxnodo propter regnum Dei debemus operari bonum ad omnes; non autem in hac operatione, vel solam, vel cum regno Dei mercedem temporalium cogitare.
Ita enim etiam si aliquando defuerint, quod plerumque propter exercitationem nostram Deus sinit, non solum non debilitant propositum nostrum, sed etiam examinatum propositum confirmant : » hsec Augustinus. ORATIO Domine Jesu Christe, fac me non thesaurizare in terra emolumenta terrenorum, sed in coelo praemia meritorum; et quia nemo potest duobus dominis servire per contrarietatem obsequiorum, libera me a dominio et servitute mundi, carnis et diaboli, ut respiciam contemplationes coelestes, non terrenas; adjice ad staturam naturae meae cubitum gratiae in praesenti, et gloriae in futuro, ut considerem lilia agri, devotos Ecclesiae, cooperlos virtutum candore, potiusqiiam fenum divites secuU mittendos in clibanum gehennae. Quaeram praecipue regnum Dei et justitiam ejus, ut cum viatico temporalium "per viam virtutum perveniam ad regnum coelorum. Amen.
Scripture echoes
- ↩Matt.6.31 — Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'
- ↩Matt.6.27 — And which of you by being anxious can add a single cubit to his lifespan?
- ↩Matt.6.28 — And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they do not toil, nor do they spin.
- ↩Matt.6.33 — But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Notes
- 1 ↩The Latin 'ingraC^JO titudo' is a clear typographical error for 'ingratitudo'.
The Life of Christ (Vita Christi) companion
A prayer for every moment, already on your phone
Chosen Portion puts a curated historic prayer in front of you each day — so the words are there before the moment arrives.
Chosen Portion is the digital descendant of the carried prayer book: the short daily prayers this collection preserves, delivered one a day to your pocket.
- One short, memorable prayer delivered daily — build your repertoire a card at a time
- Prayers matched to real situations: fear, gratitude, decisions, grief, sleep
- Save favourites into your personal pocket collection you can open anywhere