De probatica piscina et paralytico
The Feast and the Pool
Jesus visits Jerusalem for the feast and reveals the mystery of the sheep pool as a figure of Baptism.
I. The Feast of Newness. After this was a Jewish feast day, namely Pentecost, and this was the feast of new things, because on this solemnity of the month the first fruits of the harvest were offered; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Here it should be noted that among the Jews there were three principal feasts on which everyone was required to go up to the place established by God, as the temple was at that time: the feast of Unleavened Bread, the feast of Weeks, and the feast of Tabernacles. The first solemnity. The feast of Unleavened Bread, which was called the Phase or Pascha, took place annually in the first month—that is, in March—to commemorate the benefit of the liberation from Egypt, because 'Phase' is interpreted as 'passing over.' We celebrate this feast spiritually when, having put aside our vices, we pass over to virtues. The second feast, the feast of Weeks—or Pentecost—took place in memory of the Law, which was given on the fiftieth day after the departure from Egypt; we celebrate this feast when we obey the laws. The third feast, namely the feast of Tabernacles, which is the Scenopegia, took place to commemorate the divine benefit of protection and guidance through the desert, where they lived in tabernacles under the shade of branches, to signify that He led them through the arid land of the desert to the land of promise; we celebrate this feast when we pass through this world as pilgrims, and in so passing, we ought to have green branches and go from virtue to virtue and make progress. The Lord went up to the Jewish feast days, celebrating the solemnities as a man among men and observing the feast days with them so He wouldn't appear to oppose the Law. He did this to announce the doctrine of the faith to the people gathering from everywhere, to impart it, reveal the mystery of salvation, and show the light of truth; and so that He might manifest His power and draw them through doctrine and signs. In Jerusalem, near the temple, there was a sheep pool that collected rainwater dripping from the temple and its buildings. It was called a pool—though it's usually said to be the opposite, since a pool is a hollow place that collects water without fish—and it was called 'probatica' in Latin (from the Greek 'probaton,' meaning sheep), as if to say 'sheep-pool,' 'sheep-pen,' or 'special place.' This is because the ministers, the Nethinim who were the temple water-carriers, would first wash the entrails and carcasses of animals—especially sheep, which were mostly offered in sacrifices—in this water before placing them in the basins in the priests' courtyard. The author explains the Hebrew name, saying it's called 'Bethsaida,' which means 'house of sheep' or 'special place,' because the animal bodies lay there in the portico until the ministers washed them. It had five porticoes and entrances all around, allowing the ministers to descend to the water from many places to wash the sacrificial offerings. In these porticoes lay a great multitude of the sick—the blind, the lame, the withered, and others with infirmities—waiting for the water to move. The reason is this: the Angel of the Lord would descend into the pool from time to time—that is, at various intervals—and the water would be stirred by the Angel's descent, which gave the water its healing power. One sick person, specifically the one who first entered the pool after the water was stirred, was made whole, regardless of their infirmity. Because it was uncertain when the Angel would descend to stir the water, the sick lay there continually to be ready. They are called 'languishing' because they had been weakened for a long time by their infirmities, since 'languor' is a lingering distress. Some explain the Angel's descent and the miracle by suggesting that the wood of the Lord's Cross was in the pool, and that these events occurred because of its presence and the reverence due to it. They claim it floated there as the water stirred at a fitting time—namely, as the Passion of Christ approached—thereby showing that human nature was to be healed of the disease of sin by the wood of the Lord's Cross. Since this is not supported by authority, it is better to say that the pool received its reverence from both the event itself and the mystery. The event was twofold: it came from the washing of the priests and the sacrificial offerings, and from the hospitality shown to the poor who were received there. The mystery, however, lies in the Holy Spirit's desire to show the dignity of the figurative offerings, on account of the dignity of the Passion of Christ which they signified. Therefore, the Angel visited that place and the water was stirred, so that the infirm might know from the movement of the water that the grace of healing was present. It was stirred and troubled with a strong motion because what had been left over from the washing of the holy flesh was mixed from the bottom with the water of sanctification and healing, so that Baptism might be signified as mixed with the Passion of Christ, who was about to exhibit perfect spiritual healing. The Lord therefore wished to show in this pool a clear figure of Baptism, which corresponded to Baptism in its cleansing and healing through the hidden power of God at the motion of the Angel. Just as Baptism, under a physical element, cleanses the soul by the hidden power of the Word, it sometimes also heals the body miraculously. However, because it is a figure, it falls short of what it represents; therefore, that pool healed only the body, and at one time it healed only one sick person. Baptism, however, reaches the soul and heals everyone who comes to it, unless they place an obstacle in the way. This pool, therefore, which healed infirmities by an invisible power, appeared before the Baptism of Christ to signify the power of this Baptism. It had five porches—that is, entrances—through which the Law, the Prophets, the Hagiographa, the Gospel, and the Apostolic teaching are signified; for these five make mention of Christ’s Baptism, providing an entrance to it, as it were—the first three figuratively, the other two demonstratively. The angel descending into the pool signifies Christ, who is called the Angel of Great Counsel. For He Himself, by descending into the Jordan, gave regenerative power to the waters through the touch of His most holy flesh. But because divine power isn't bound to sacraments, the sick man we are discussing here wasn't healed by descending into the pool, but by the word of Christ when He said to him: 'Rise, take up your bed, and walk.' Many sick people were there, but only one was healed, because only the one who remains in the unity of faith and of the Church, which worships one God, is justified; for there is one Lord, one faith, one Baptism. Woe, therefore, to those who hate unity and create divisions among people.
The Healing of the Paralytic
Jesus heals a long-suffering paralytic, teaching him to rise, carry his mat, and walk in virtue.
There was a man there, a paralytic, lying on a mat, who had been in his infirmity for thirty-eight years. . This shows the patience of the infirm man; he waited for years to be rescued and didn't give up, and because of this, he appeared more worthy of being healed. For he had fallen into this infirmity because of a previous sin and had been punished for a long time; and because he had patiently endured the penalty, it was fitting that he be helped. Because of this, the Lord saw him not only with the eye of the body but also with the eye of mercy, and said to him, "Do you want to be made well?" It was as if He were saying, "It is in your will; because you were the cause of your own infirmity through sin, turn your will from sin toward Me, as to the Author of salvation, and you will be healed." He doesn't ask as if doubting his will, but to raise him into the hope of health, for which he was already almost despairing, and to stir up his desire more, because through this he is made more worthy to receive the gift of God. The infirm man answered Him, showing his desire: "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; for while I am coming, another steps down before me." It was as if he were saying: "I have a great desire and a good will, but my helplessness is so great that I have no one to help me or carry me; and I am so weak that I cannot get there as quickly as the others." For a sinner is stripped of all human help, and sin itself brings this about in a person, because it takes away the communion of the saints through which he ought to have help from another, and it wounds the very nature through which he ought to have help within himself. The paralytic was saying this because he saw Jesus as strong and capable of carrying him, and he would have considered it a great thing if Jesus had been willing to serve him in this way; but Jesus immediately bestowed upon him a greater benefit, namely, perfect health. It follows that Jesus said to him, "Stand up, restored to health; pick up your mat, restored to your former strength; and walk," to declare the divine miracle. In Syriac, 'mat' comes from 'graba', which means 'head', because it is a portable bed where only the head has something underneath it, and only the head rests on the bedding, as poor, infirm people are accustomed to have. And he was made healthy immediately, because divine power is infinite and works in an instant; whereas health that is restored by the power of nature happens over time and is not acquired in an instant; and he picked up, or carried, his mat and walked, as a sign of restored strength. In this way, the penitent carries the burden of the sin in which he previously rested when he endures the penance enjoined upon him for that sin; and he walks, not just with the stride of the body, but with the progress of virtue. For the mat on which the sinner lies is the delight of sin, because as long as a person is carried by this mat, or cannot rise from it, he is infirm; but when he rises from it and carries it, then it is a sign of perfect healing. But, alas! People are often hindered from carrying their mat because of the habit of sin. Thus, the miracle was performed both inwardly in the soul and outwardly in the body. He commanded him literally to rise, take up his mat, and walk, to show that perfect health had been restored to the man. For in all His miracles, the Lord performed a perfect work according to the best of nature itself, just as He made perfect wine from water, because the works of God are perfect. Nevertheless, He commanded these three things in the justification of the sinner: first, that they rise by turning away from sins; second, that they take up their mat by bearing the burden of penance for them; third, that they walk by progressing in goodness, from good to better, and going from strength to strength. Consider that this invalid had been waiting for thirty-eight years, yet he didn't despair. In this, an example of patience is given to sinners, showing they should persevere in prayer with the hope of obtaining salvation from Him who says: 'Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you.' Hence Chrysostom says: 'The patience of the paralytic is shown; for remaining here for thirty-eight years, and seeing others healed year after year while he himself remained held by his illness, he did not withdraw, nor did he despair.' And certainly, it wasn't just the sadness of the past but also the despair of the future that was enough to drive him away from this place, had he not been patient. Back then, his infirmity was an obstacle to anyone wanting to be healed; now, however, everyone is able to approach. It isn't an angel who stirs the water, but the Master of the angels who works all things. There is no reason now to say, 'I have no one to help me,' or to say, 'While I am coming down, someone else gets there before me.' Even if the whole world were to come, grace is not used up, nor is its action finished; it remains the same as it was before. Just as the sun's rays light up every day and are not consumed, nor does its light grow any less from being shared so generously, so too, and even more so, the action of the Spirit is not diminished in any way by the multitude of those who partake of it. And again: 'Let us be ashamed, beloved, and let us groan over our great laziness.' The paralytic waited for thirty-eight years, and he didn't obtain what he wanted, and he couldn't get it—not through any negligence of his own, but because he was hindered by others and forced to endure violence; yet he didn't grow sluggish. But if we spend ten days asking for something with great zeal and don't get it, we stop trying with the same intensity. We wait on people for such a long time, struggling and suffering, and often end up losing hope entirely; yet we cannot bring ourselves to wait on our merciful Master with decent zeal, even though we are certain to receive a reward far greater than any of our labors! And how worthy is this prayer? If there were nothing else to gain, wouldn't this very act—simply speaking to Him continually—be enough? But you say, "Constant prayer is hard work." And what grace would it be for you to receive a reward for it, if this task weren't hard work? As Chrysostom says, the soul is more affectionately disposed toward the things for which it has labored. Consider also that just as the Lord asked the sick man if he wanted to be made well, so He will not give us salvation without our own consent. A person easily obtains mercy from God, provided he wants it and doesn't place an obstacle in the way. Therefore, sinners are inexcusable for not consenting to the will of the Lord and to their own salvation, because, as Augustine says: "He who created you without you will not justify you without you."
Moral and Spiritual Meaning
The author provides a moral interpretation of the infirmities and the healing as a call to spiritual progress.
The moral meaning behind the healing of the paralytic. Morally speaking, the sheep pool—the place where sheep were washed before being offered as a sacrifice to God—represents a holy and religious life. In it, the soul is washed; it must be a sheep through its innocence, so that it may be offered to the Lord through good works. This pool has five porches, which represent the five bodily senses through which all our actions are carried out or developed. Yet in these porches—that is, in our senses—there is a great multitude of the infirm, because the corruption of the bodily senses is manifold. For as many illicit desires as you have in any sense, that is how many infirmities you harbor in that same sense. The water in which the infirm were healed signifies compunction, while the angel who stirred the water signifies the Holy Spirit. The angel of the Lord would descend into the pool, the water would be stirred, and the infirm person would be healed; just so, the Holy Spirit descends into us as often as He stirs up grace within us. Through compunction, our soul or sense is healed from whatever infirmity of corruption holds it back. Regarding this: the diversity of the illness marks these aforementioned infirmities. For every sin happens either through inertia and laziness, or through ignorance, or through human weakness, or through deliberate malice, or through long-standing habit. Those who sin through inertia and laziness are the languid ones, who languish because of a lack and deficiency of grace and goodness. Those who sin through ignorance are understood as the blind, because they are blind who do not have the light of faith, or who know neither the Lord nor His commandments. Those who sin through human weakness are understood as the lame; for the lame are those who do not have a firm step and do not direct their steps in the path of justice and good works, or who cannot perform what they see they should. Those who sin through malice are understood as the withered; for such people are dried up from the moisture of grace and good will. Indeed, they are withered if, whatever they do, they act without the richness of charity, or if they don't reach out their hands in good action or in the giving of alms. Those who sin through long-standing habit are understood as the infirm man who had been in his infirmity for thirty-eight years. The reason he healed this man who had been ill for so long, rather than someone who was blind, lame, or withered, is to show that if God sometimes justifies a person who has sinned through long-standing habit, no one else who has sinned should despair—whether they've sinned through laziness, like the sluggish; through ignorance, like the blind; through weakness, like the lame; or through malice, like the withered. The fact that only one person is healed from the crowd of the sick signifies that few are saved from the multitude of those who are called. The man who had been ill rises, carries his mat home, and walks. This means that when the soul rises from its vices and lifts itself up from lethargy and bad habits, once its sins have been forgiven, it returns to guarding its inner life along with the body itself, so that it doesn't admit anything again that might cause it to be wounded. Walking from virtue to virtue and progressing in good works, it hastens toward the vision of God.
Conflict over the Sabbath
The Jews challenge the legality of the healing on the Sabbath, leading to a confrontation with the healed man and Jesus.
It was the Sabbath when these things happened, a day on which it isn't lawful to do servile work. So those Jews who had seen him healed said, "It's the Sabbath, a day of rest; because of the Law's prohibition, it isn't lawful for you to carry your mat." It was as if they were saying, "If the healing couldn't wait, did the work really have to be ordered?" That's how bad advisors talk: "It's a feast day; you aren't allowed to fast or do penance." They were wrong, because physical tasks done for the worship and honor of God can be lawfully performed on the Sabbath, just as priests worked physically in the temple—decorating it, washing and sacrificing offerings, and doing similar things. Likewise, carrying that mat was for the glory of a divine miracle, just as today those who are freed from prison carry their chains publicly as a sign of their miraculous liberation. But this healed man defends himself differently; by pointing his critics to the Author of his health and invoking the Author of the Lord's Law, he answered them, "The one who made me whole—and by doing so showed he has divine power—he, being of such authority and virtue, told me, 'Pick up your mat and walk,' and I had to obey him." It was as if he were saying, "He who healed me by divine power commanded me with that same power and authority; consequently, I am bound to obey him who is so great and who bestowed such a benefit upon me, and I am no transgressor." For why should I not accept a command from the one from whom I received my health? He doesn't give in to his opponents, nor is he afraid to speak up for the One who made him whole. But who is there today, or where can you find someone, who would stand up for Him against the cruelty of leaders or the risk of personal loss? And because they couldn't find fault with the man who had been healed—since he was effectively defending himself by pointing to the One who healed him—they tried instead to find fault with Christ for doing the healing; they didn't question Him with any good intention to learn, but with a malicious heart, hoping to destroy Him. Their own words reveal this malice of theirs; for when the Lord had healed the invalid and ordered him to pick up his mat, they ignored the first, undeniable sign of divine power, and instead brought up the other matter, which looked like a violation of the Law, questioning him and saying, "Who is this man who told you, 'Pick up your mat and walk'?" It was as if they were saying, "He's a bad man for giving such orders." They don't find fault with the gift of healing, but with the carrying of the mat; and in this way, they found something they could at least outwardly criticize, rather than anything they could praise. In this same way, evil people who act maliciously against someone frequently notice and dwell on things in others that they can criticize and accuse, rather than things they could praise and use for building others up. If they see anything good, they stay silent; but if they see any evil, they make it known, and sometimes they even twist the good into something bad. Chrysostom says: "Let us see what a great evil envy is, and how it blinds the eyes of the soul to the salvation of the one who has been captured by it." The envious don't truly care about salvation, and they are worse than wild beasts. Wild beasts are armed against us either because they are hungry or because they have been provoked by us first. These people, even while doing good, often act as benefactors to those who are doing wrong. They are therefore more difficult than wild beasts; they are on par with demons, and perhaps even worse. While demons have an inexpiable hatred toward us, they don't plot against their own kind. These people, however, have no respect for the communion of nature, nor do they spare themselves; for before they harm those they envy, they torment their own souls, filling them with nothing but empty and vain turmoil and sadness. This passion is far worse than fornication or adultery. Those sins stop with the person who commits them, but the envy of a tyrant destroys entire churches and harms the whole world. This is the mother of murder: it killed Cain’s brother, and in the same way, it set Jacob against Esau, the brothers against Joseph, and the devil against all mankind. It is certainly more difficult for others; for even if you show mercy, even if you keep watch, even if you fast, you have become more sordid than everyone else by envying your brother—so says Chrysostom. But the man who had been healed didn't know who Jesus was—that is, his family and homeland—even though he recognized him by his person and presence; and because he had been sick for so long, he was ignorant of both the deeds of Christ and his reputation.
The Witness of the Father and the Son
Jesus finds the man again, warns him against relapse, and defends His divine authority and works against the accusations of the Jews.
Jesus, however, not wanting to boast about the miracle, withdrew from the crowd gathered in that place, allowing his action to be examined by them so that, in his absence, the testimony might be beyond suspicion; he also gave an example of not seeking praise and favor from people for good works, and of sometimes avoiding the company of those who want to find fault, and of fleeing the eyes of the envious in our works, so that envy might not grow in them because of this. Afterward, once the miracle was known and the crowd had dispersed, Jesus found him in the temple, because he was frequenting that place of prayer to give thanks for the health he had received. While in the crowd, he didn't recognize Jesus, but later he found and recognized him in the temple. In this, we are mystically taught that Jesus isn't easily found in a crowd or in the whirlwind of worldly cares, but in the spiritual secret and in the temple of the heart, which God deigns to inhabit. Hence Chrysostom says: "He found him in the temple, which is a sign of the greatest religious discipline." He didn't retreat to marketplaces or wander aimlessly; nor did he give himself over to pleasure, negligence, or relaxation, but spent his time in the temple. He didn't recognize Jesus in the crowd; he recognized him in the temple, in a sacred place. Hence also Augustine: "It is difficult to see Jesus in the crowd." Our mind requires a certain solitude. God is seen in a certain solitude of intention. “The crowd has noise; this vision desires secrecy,” says Augustine. In this, therefore, we are given to understand that if we wish to know the grace of the Creator and come to the vision of Him, we must flee the crowd of wayward thoughts and affections, avoid the gatherings of wicked people, and flee to the temple of our heart and to interior prayer—that is, to the secret place of a clean conscience—so that we may strive to make ourselves a temple of God, which God deigns to visit. And in which He deigns to remain. Ivare? And He said to him, instructing him for the caution of future things: “See, you have been made whole by the benefit of God; now do not—that is, do not wish to—sin anymore,” which means, have a firm will not to sin, because every sin proceeds from the will as from a root. Then He sets forth and shows how dangerous a relapse into sin is, saying: “Lest something worse happen to you, either here or in the future,” because in one who relapses, the last things become worse than the first. And this danger is considered: first, on the part of God, because one who relapses sins gravely out of ingratitude, and therefore is punished more severely by God; second, it is considered on the part of the devil, because just as a soldier who has once lost a fortress, if he later recovers it, fortifies it more strongly and guards it more cautiously, so the devil more strongly fortifies the one who relapses, because he places seven more wicked spirits there and drags him to all seven deadly sins; third, it is considered on the part of the man, because one who relapses falls more easily into sin later, for now, out of a certain bad habit, he considers sinning to be nothing. In these words, the Lord implies that the paralytic was suffering because of his sins, and that his infirmity had been inflicted upon him because of them. Chrysostom says, "Here we learn that this sickness was born in him from his sins." Since we are often insensitive when our soul is sick, yet we do everything we can to be freed from infirmity if our body suffers even a minor injury, God punishes the body for the things the soul has done wrong. We also learn that if we endure a heavy penalty for past sins and then fall into the same ones again, we'll suffer even more severely. This is fitting, for whoever isn't made better by punishment, but remains insensitive and contemptuous, will be led to greater torment. If, however, not everyone is punished here for their sins, let's not be overconfident; the fact that we suffer nothing here for our sins is a sign of a greater punishment hereafter. We must therefore be careful not to remain hardened in sin by despising God in our punishments, or, once healed by the Lord, not to fall back into sin like the ungrateful. We must avoid this, lest because of our contempt or ingratitude, something worse happens to us, or because we have become worse, we are handed over to a heavier punishment here or in the future. Jesus, therefore, healed the paralytic both outwardly in his body and inwardly in his mind, warning him not to sin again and incur a more severe judgment. It is as if He were saying, "Your previous sin has been forgiven, so don't make yourself more guilty by sinning again." Who could ever count the wonderful and great works of the Lord, crafted for all His purposes—works He created both for the sake of His own praise and for the use of our needs? God saw everything He had made, and it was very good; He hates nothing of what He has made. He hates, pursues, and destroys only sin, which is nothing. So, while He created all things in six days with just a word, He labored for more than thirty years in this world to destroy sin. This alone is what displeases Him, what offends the eyes of His majesty, and what makes Him—who is gentle and sweet—seem harsh and stern to us; this is what turned an angel into a devil, a friend into an enemy, a free person into a slave, an incorruptible being into one who is mortal and corrupt, a blessed one into a miserable one, an exile and outcast into a wanderer, and a child of God into a child of the devil; this is what must never be left unpunished. Then the man went away to make known the power of Christ, telling the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. Notice how, once his mind was healed, he recognized the Lord through faith; and having known Him, he didn't hesitate to proclaim Him. Hence Augustine says: "Now, once that man saw Jesus and recognized Him as the author of his salvation, he was not lazy in evangelizing what he had seen." He, therefore, announced salvation so that others might follow, but they, on the contrary, persecuted him. From this it follows: For this reason they persecuted Jesus, as a violator of the divine Law, because He did this on the Sabbath, acting against God who rested on that day, thinking that absolutely nothing should be done on the Sabbath, but that one should refrain from all human work, no matter how useful or divine it might be. They misunderstood the Sabbath, because they thought it was a sin to heal a man on the Sabbath and to practice piety and mercy. The Jews persecuted Christ, twisting His good work into evil, and they still have many followers who frequently harass the servants of Christ because of their good work. When, therefore, they argued with Him and murmured about the fact that He was working on the Sabbath, He excused Himself and answered them: "My Father, who is in heaven, although He ceased on the Sabbath from all work of creation, arrangement, and adornment, yet He works even now by governing and restoring what is corrupted in His work, and by propagating it; and by this He does not break the Sabbath. Therefore, when I also work, restoring and repairing what is corrupt, and healing the infirm, I do not break the Sabbath; but in working, I conform Myself to the Father, and just as in the beginning I worked with Him in creating, arranging, and adorning, so I do even now." It is as if He were saying: My Father didn't just work for the first six days, as you think, creating and bringing forth new creatures, from which He rested on the seventh day; rather, He works continuously even now, and will always work until the end, preserving and governing things so that what has been created might endure. For God not only made all things, but He also preserves in being what He has made, so that they don't fail; if He were to withdraw Himself from things and not hold them with the hand of His governance, all things would tend toward nothingness and dissolve, just as they were made from nothing. Thus, God should be understood to have rested from all His works in such a way that He no longer creates any new creature, but not so that He ceased to sustain and govern those already created; with Him, I also have worked and continue to work in all things, because I am the Word of the Father, through whom all things were made and are preserved in being. Therefore, what I do is good; nor is it any wonder if I heal a man on the Sabbath, I who, as God, am always working all things with the Father. For in nothing that happens is my work absent from the work of the Father; rather, I work in all things together with the Father, since the divine power does nothing except through His wisdom. If, therefore, you presume to criticize me for anything that has been done through me, then criticize God the Father as well, who works with me; you boast of being His chosen people. Augustine says: "Just as the Father and the Son are inseparable, so the works of the Father and the Son are inseparable; not only of the Father and the Son, but also of the Holy Spirit. Just as there is equality and inseparability of the Persons, so also the works are inseparable." So says Augustine. Hence, the works of the whole Trinity are said to be undivided, that is, common; because whatever is done by power is also moderated by wisdom and established by goodness. Therefore, in the things we do, or when we pray for God to act, we rightly make a commemoration of the Trinity, saying: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; or: In the name of the Holy Trinity. And of the undivided Trinity, so that just as the operation of the Persons is one and inseparable, so too their invocation must be inseparable. And in this way, Christ is excused for working on the Sabbath. But because this excuse implied that Christ is equal to God the Father, they persecuted him all the more for it as a blasphemer—since blasphemy is a greater sin and is punished more severely under the Law than breaking the Sabbath. Hence it is added: Therefore, they sought to kill him all the more—that is, with a more eager mind and more fervent zeal than they had previously for the work of the Sabbath—because he not only appeared to them to be breaking the Sabbath, but also called God his own Father, who is natural and consubstantial with him, not as we do, who call him Father by adoption; he was making himself equal to God and showing himself to be equal to God through the equality of nature and power, which they claimed was blasphemy. For since they thought he was only a man, they accused him of committing robbery by making himself equal to God, as if he were not, when in reality he was, because he is born equal to him by nature. Indeed, there were two crimes in the Law punished by death: the crime of breaking the Sabbath, and the greater crime of blasphemy. They accused him of both, and for that reason they sought to kill him. And because he excused himself regarding the first, he consequently excuses himself regarding the second, proving himself to be the Son of God and equal to the Father. And so that the Jews wouldn't say, "We don't believe you," for no one testifying for himself is worthy of faith, he brings forward multiple testimonies to confirm his claim: namely, John, his works, the Father himself, and the Scriptures. He says, therefore. "If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true"—that is, it isn't effective by your way of thinking, even though in itself it is most effective. Therefore, according to Chrysostom, what he says is not 'true'—not in terms of his own dignity, but he was speaking in terms of their suspicion. Note, then, that there are four witnesses to the testimony, because four things can be found in testimony: the demonstration of truth, the confirmation of truth, the immobility of truth, and the very truth of truth itself. The demonstration was made through John; for John himself, to whom the Jews sent and whom they considered more trustworthy than anyone else, bore witness—not to himself, but to the Truth, Christ, as a friend of the truth. The confirmation was made through mighty works; for he gave sight to the blind, opened ears, loosened the tongues of the mute, drove out demons, and raised the dead—these works bore witness to Christ. The immobility was evident through the attestation of the Father, who bore witness to Christ; for the voice of the Father was heard at the Baptism and on the mountain, when Christ himself was transfigured. The truth was shown through the Scriptures, which could not lie because they proceeded from the Spirit of truth; for the Scriptures of the Law, which were given through Moses and the Prophets, bear witness to Christ. And thus, based on these four things that support every testimony of truth, these four testimonies are accepted.
The Danger of Vain Glory
Jesus rebukes the Jews for their unbelief, which stems from their pride and desire for human glory rather than the glory of God.
Even though they were guided and bound by so many undeniable testimonies, they still refused to believe in him. So he says: 'And you don't want to come to me'—that is, through faith—'you don't want to believe in me and seek true salvation from me, solely because of the malice of your own will.' Nothing else hinders you except the hatred you've conceived against me. You don't want, I say, to believe in me so that you might have life, now in hope and in the future in reality, which is held through faith formed by love. Thus, neither does the truth convince you, nor does the promise of life draw you. Then he rebukes their hardness and slowness to believe, saying: 'I have come in the name of, and for the honor of, my Father, so that the Father might be glorified through me,' which is clear from the aforementioned testimonies. 'And you haven't accepted me, nor do you believe in me, but rather you persecute me, because you don't have the love of God.' And from this, the punishment for your sin will be this: because you will accept another—that is, the Antichrist coming in his own name, who doesn't have the aforementioned testimonies and who seeks his own glory—in place of Christ and the true God, so that, according to the Apostle, those who refused to believe the truth might believe a lie. It is as if to say: 'Because you didn't accept me—that is, because you didn't believe that I am the Christ—this punishment will be inflicted upon you, that, being deceived, you will receive the Antichrist in place of Christ.' Through this, it is argued that the Jews will be the first to convert to the Antichrist. For the Jews will receive the Antichrist in the end and will build a temple for him, because he will have himself circumcised and will claim that he is the one promised to them; and they will cling to him until his falsity is exposed by Enoch and Elijah. According to Augustine, the Antichrist will attempt to restore the ceremonies of the Law in order to dissolve the Gospel; this is what will persuade the Jews to receive him in place of Christ. The cause of this unbelief. Next, he explains their lack of faith: because they accepted human glory from one another—chasing after human favor out of pride—they didn't seek the glory that comes from God alone, which is the humility that constitutes true glory, or the glory of heaven. They don't fail to believe because the truth isn't clear, but because pride blinds them—a pride that longs to be praised and to exalt itself above others. The reason they couldn't believe in Christ was that, while their proud minds craved glory and praise and wanted to exalt themselves above others, they considered it inglorious and shameful to believe in a Christ who appeared abject and poor; therefore, they couldn't believe in him. But the person who can believe in him is the one who has a humble heart, seeks only the glory of God, and longs to please him alone. From this, it's clear that empty glory is very dangerous. Hence Chrysostom says: "Nothing so deforms the soul as desiring earthly glory; for it's not possible for someone who loves this glory to seek the glory of the Crucified." Tullius also says that we must avoid the glory of men, which takes away the freedom of the soul; for this, every person of great spirit should contend. And therefore, according to the Gloss, boasting and the ambition for human praise—which craves to be esteemed for what it is—is a great vice. It has nothing in itself, and it seeks its own glory, not God's. On the other hand, humility is a great virtue; it considers itself nothing, seeks only the glory of God, and desires to please Him alone. This is also the reason why we don't fulfill God's commands: because we aren't humble, but proud and ambitious, presuming on our own industry and strength, so that we can't be humbled to fulfill them. Or perhaps this is what hindered the Jews from faith in Christ in part, because they were looking only for—and still look for—the glory and temporal exaltation to be given to them through the Messiah. But they saw Christ as poor and rejected, so they didn't accept Him; they weren't paying attention to the writings of the Prophets, which speak of His poverty and rejection. However, the glory and exaltation promised through Christ is a heavenly glory they didn't understand. Because they didn't seek the glory that comes from God alone, they remained in unbelief. Only someone who seeks God's glory rather than their own can believe in the poor and rejected Christ. Regarding the vice of vain and human glory, Bede says this: 'This vice cannot be better guarded against than by returning to our own consciences and considering that we are dust; and if we find any good in ourselves, we should ascribe it not to ourselves, but to God.' And as Chrysostom says: Let us flee from empty glory with all our might. And you ask, how will we overcome it? If we look toward the other glory that is from heaven, from which this present glory forces us to turn away. What hope of salvation will we have, then, when we are ordered to be strangers to the things that are here, and yet we are strangers to the things of heaven and to those things that are there? What could be worse than this lack of feeling, when day by day we hear about judgment and the kingdom, yet we imitate those who lived in the time of Noah and in Sodom, waiting to learn everything through the experience of events? And surely for this reason all those things were written, so that if anyone believes in the future, he might receive a clear demonstration of the future from the things that have already been done. Understanding these things—both the past and the future—let us at least take a breath from this difficult servitude and give some thought to the soul, so that we may possess the goods of both the present and the future: so says Chrysostom. PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, heal me, who am weak and badly troubled by a long-standing illness, and paralyzed by the long-term burden of my body; grant that I may rise by turning away from sin, and take up my mat by carrying the burden of penance for it, and walk by progressing in goodness, and from good to better, and by going from strength to strength. Also, having been made whole by your kindness, let me strive to abstain from sins from now on, so that nothing worse may happen to me, either here or in the future. Grant me also, good Jesus, that by following You in Your humility, I may despise human and earthly glory, and that I may not desire to be praised or exalted above others, but rather seek Your glory alone and strive to please You alone. Amen.
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i Festa JuMEOitiw. — Post hmc erat dies festus Judaorum, scilicet Pentecostes, et hoc erat fiestum novorum, quia in hac solemnitate mensis primitivorum oiferebantur priraitiae frugum; et ascendit Jesus Jerosolymawt, Hic notandum quod apud Judaeo* erant praecipue tria festa, in quibus debebat quilibet asoendere ad locum statutum a Deo, sicut erat tunc templum, scilicet : in solemnitate Azymorum,in soiemnitate Hebdomadarum, ct solemnitate Tabernaculorum. Primasolemnitas. scilicet Azymorum, quae vocabatur Phase, vel Pascha, fiebat annuatim in primo roense, hoc est in martio, ad commemorandum beneficium liberationis de ^Egypto, quia Pbase interpretatur transitus; istud festum spiritualiter celebramus, quandojam, dimisste vitiis, ad virtutes transimus. — Secundum festum, scilicet Hebdomadarum, hocest Pentecostes, fiebat in memoriam Legis datae quae data fuit quinquagesima die ab exitu de iEgypto; hoc festum nos celebramus, cum legibus obtemperamus. — Tertium festum, scilicet Tabernaculorum, hoc est Scenopegia, fiebat ad rememorandum divinum beneficium protectionis, et deductionis per desertum, ubi in tabernaculis habUaverunt, sub umbra ramorum, ad signandum quod per aridam terram deserti eos duxerit ad terram promissionis; hoc festum nos celebramu6, quando per hunc mundum quasi peregrini transimus, et sic transeundo virides ramos habere, et de virtute in virtutem ire et proficere debemus. Ad dies festos Judaeorum Dominus ascendit homo cum hominibus solemnitates celebrans, et cum eis dies restos agens, ne Legi contrarius videretur. , et ut populis undique tunc confluentibus* fidei doctrinam annuntiaret, et impartiretur, salutisque mysterium panderet, et veritatis lumen ostenderet; ac virtutem suam manifestaret, et eos per doctrinam et signa attraheret.
Erat autem in Jerusalem, juxta templum, probatica piscina, in qua aquae pluviales a templo et aedificiis templi stillantes colligebantur. Et dicebarur piscma, qwia aqua non hafeens pisces m aliqua concavitate collecta, ettam piscina, quasi per contrarium dici solet; et a xp66oxov Graece, quod est ovis Latine, dicebatur probaticm, quasi ovina seu oviaria vel peculialis, quia ministri, scilicet Nathinaei, qui aquae bajuli in templo erant, exta et cadavera pecudum, et praecipue ovium quae ut plurimum in sacrificirs offerebantur, in ea ad sacrificium primo lavabant, et postea in luteribus in atrio sacerdotum exisfentibus ponebant. Cujus interpretationem ponit in Hebraico, dicens : qui cognominatur Hebrake Bethsaida, id est domus pecorum , seu peculialis , quia ibi corpora pecorum in porticu jacebant, donec lavarentur a ministris. Et habebat quinque portious, et aditus in circuitu, ut per plura loca possent ministri ad aquam descendere, et inde hostias abluene. In his, scilicet porticibus, jacebat, in casulit et locis ad quiescendum paratts, magna multitudo languentium, ccecorum, claudorum, aridorum, et aliorum infirmorum, exspectanthtm aquar motum.
Et SUbditur causa : Angelus autem Domini secundum tempus aliquod, id est in diversis temporibus per interpolationem, descendebat in piscinam, et movebatur aqua, ex descensu Angeli qui dabat virtutem sanativam aquse itli; et sanus fiebat, unus infirmus, scilicet qud prior descendebat in piscinam post aquce ab Angelo motionem, a quacunque detinebatur infirmitate. Quia enira incertum erat tempus quo Angelus m piscinam descenderet, et aqua moveri debebat, ideo languentes continue ibi jacebant ut parati essent; dicuntur autem languentes, diu ex quacunque infirmitate mfirmati , quia languor est kmgus angor. Causa vero descensus Angeli et ipsius miraculi assignatur a quibusdam dicerrtibus quod in piscina fuit lignum Dorninicae crucis, et propter ejus praesentiam et reverentiam fiebant ista; quod ibi per aquae motionem enatavit tempore convenienti, 6cilicet appropmquante Passione Christu Per hoc tiam ostendebatur quod natura humana a morbo peccati per lignum Dominicae crucis erat sananda. Et quia hoc auctoritate non probatur, ideo potius est dicendum quod piscina reverentiam accepit, tum a facto, tum a mysterio. A facto autem duplici, scilicet : ab ablutione sacerdotum et hostiarum, et ab hospitalitate pauperum ibi receptorum. A mysterio autem, quia ibi Spiritus Sanctus dignitatem figuralium hostiarum ostendere voluit, propter dignitatem Passionis Christi, quae in eis significata fuit; et ideo Angelus locum illum visitavit, et raovebatur aqua, ut ir/firmi ex ipso aquae motu scirent gratiam curationis adesse. Movebatur aufera forti motu et turbabatur, quia a fundo commiscebatur quod relictum fait ex ablutione de carnibus samctis cum aqua sanctificationis et curationis, ut Baptismu6 significaretur commixtus cum Passione Christi qui curationem splrttualem perfectam fuit exhibiturus. Voluit ergo Dominus expressam -figuram Baptismi in hac piscina ostendere, quae conveniebat cum Baptismo in mundando et sanando virtute occulta Dei ad motionem Angeli; aicut Baptismus sub sensibili elemento mundat animam virtute 'Occulta verbi, et aliquando cum hoc^^sanat corpus miraculose.
Verumtamen quia figura est, defich a figurato ; ideo ista piscina non sanabat nisi corpus; et una vice non sanabat nisi unum languidum. Baptismua autem pertingit ad animam, et sanat omnes quotquot veniunt ad ipsum, nisi ponant impedimentum. Haec itaque piscina sanans infirmitates, invisibili virtute apparuit ante Baptismum Christi, ad signandum virtutem hujus Baptismi, quinque porticus habens, id est aditus per quos signantur Lex, Prophetae, Agiographa, Evangelium, et Apostolica doctrina : haec enim quinque mentionem faciunt de Christi Baptismate, quasi ad ipsum praebentes aditum, tria prima figurative, duo alia exhibitive. Per Angelum descendentem in piscinam, signatur Christus, qui dicitur, magni consilii Angelus. Ipse enim descendens in Jordane vim regenerativam ciedit aquis tactu sanctissimae carnis suae. Sed quoniam divina virtus non alligatur sacramentis; ideo ad hoc significandum languidus iste de quo hic agitur non fuit sanatus per descensum in piscinam; sed per Christi sermonem, cum ei dixit : Surge, tolle grabatum tuum, et ambula. Multi erant ibi infirmi, sed unus sanabatur; quia solus in unitate fidei et Ecclesiae, quae unum Deum colit , consistens , justificatur : Unus enim Dominus, una fides, unum Baptisma. Vae ergo illis qui unitatem odiunt, et in hominibus partes faciunt.
Erat autem ibi, quidam homo, paralyticus, jacens in grabato, et triginta octo annos habens in infirmitate sua. . In quo ostenditur infirmi patientia, qui tot annis exspectavit eripi, et non desistebat; et per hoc dignior ad sanandum apparebat. Iste enim propter peccatum praecedens infirmitatem incurrerat, et diu punitus fuerat; et quia poenam patienter sustinuerat, ideo dignum erat ut ei subveniretur. Propter quod Dominus non solum oculo corporis, sed etiam miserationis eum videns, dixit ei : Vis sanus fieri? Quasi diceret : In voluntate tua est; quia tu tibi per peccatum fuisti causa infirmitatis, et ideo voluntatem ad me a peccato converte, sicut ad Auctorem salutis, et curaberis. Non petit quasi dubitans de voluntate; sed ut eum erigat in spem sanitatis, de qua jam quasi desperabat ; et ut magis excitet desiderium ejus, quia per hoc dignior efficitur accipere Dei donum. Responditei languidus, osten dens suum desiderium : Domine, hominem non habeo, ut, cum turbata fuerit aqua, mittat me in piscina ; dum enim venio ego, alius ante me descendit.
Quasi diceret : Multum desidero et bene habeo voluntatem, sed inopia tanta est quod non habeo adjuvantem et portantem; et ego tam debilis sum, quod ita cito sicut alii venire non possum. Peccator enim omni destituitur auxilio humano, et hoc quidem facit peccatum in homine ipso, quia tollit communionem Sanctorum, per quam deberet habere adjutorium ab alio ; et vulnerat ipsam naturam , per quam deberet habere auxilium ,in seipso. Hoc autem dicebat paralyticus, quia videbat Jesum fortem et aptum ad portandum eum, et magnum reputaret, si in hoc ei servire vellet; sed statim contulit ei majus beneficium, videlicet sanitatem perfectam. Unde sequitur : Dixit ei Jesus : Surge, restitutus sanitati , tolle grabatum tuum , restitutus pristino vigori, et ambula, ad declarationem divini miraculi. Grabatum Syriace dicitur a graba, quod est caput, quia est lectus portabilis, in quo tantum capiti aliquid substratum est, et solum caput in stramento requiescit, sicut pauperes infirmi habere solent. Et statim sanus factus est, quia divina virtus infinita est, et in instanti operatur; sanitas autem quae virtute naturae restituitur, in tempore est, et non in instanti acquiritur; et sustulit y seu portavit grabatum suum et ambulabat, in signum restitutae virtutis. Et sic portat pcenitens onus peccati in quo prius requievit, quando injunctam sibi pro peccato poenitentiam suffert ; et ambulat, sicut gradu corporis, ita profectu virtutis. Grabatum enim, in quo jacet peccator, est peccati delectatio, quia quandiu homo portatur ab isto grabato, vel de eo surgere non potest, infirmus est; sed cum surgit de eo et portat eum, tunc est perfectae curationis signum.
Sed, heu ! multoties impeditur homo ne portet grabatum suum, propter peccati consuetudinem. Sic ergo factum est miraculum, et intus in anima, et exterius in corpore. Ad Iitteram quippe praecepit ut surgeret , et tolleret grabatum et ambularet; ut ostenderet perfectam sanitatem homini restitutam. In omnibus enim miraculis, secundum ipsius naturae optimum, Doirinus opus fecit perfectum ; sicut de aqua perfectum fecit vinum , quia Dei perfecta sunt opera. Nihilominus tamen haec tria in justificatione praecepit peccatoris : primo, quod surgat, recedendo a peccatis ; secundo, ut tollat grabatum, portando onus pcenitentiae pro eo; tertio, ut ambulet, proficiendo in bonum, et de bono in melius, et eundo de virtute in virtutem. 5 — Considera hic quod triginta octo annos iste infirmus habebat, et tamen non desperabat ; in quo peccatoribus exemplum datur patientiae, et ut perserveranter instent orationi cum spe salutis consequendae ab eo qui ait : Petite et dabitur vobis, qu&rite et invenietis , pulsate et aperietur vobis. Unde Chrysostomus : « Ostenditur patientia paralytici; triginta enim et octo annos manens hic, et secundum unumquemque annum alios quidem erutos videns, seipsum vero detentum aegritudine, neque ita recedit, neque desperavit.
Et nimirum non solum praeteritorum tristitia, sed et futurorum desperatio, sufficiens erat eum, nisi patiens esset, abigere ab hoc loco. Sed tunc quidem infirmitas impedimentum volenti curari fiebat; nunc autem potens unusquisque est accedere. Non enim Angelus est qui turbat, sed Angelorum Dominator qui omnia operatur. Non est nunc dicere : laborantem hominem non habeo, non est dicere : dum ego descendere venio , alius ante me descendit; sed et si orbis terrarum universus veniat, gratia non consumitur, neque actio finitur, sed simul manet, et talis qualisante hoc; et sicut solares radii per unamquainque illuminant diem, et non consumuntur, neque a muita largitione minor ejus fit lux, ita et multo magis Spiritus actio in nullo minuitur a multitudine eorum qui potiuntur ea. » "Et iterum : « Erubescamus dilecti et ingemiscamus in multa desidia. Triginta et octo annos habebat assistens paralyticus, et non potitus est his quae volebat, et non potiebatur, non a propria negligentia, sed praepeditus ab aliis, et vim patiens; et neque ita torpebat. Nos autem si decem diebus assiderimus studiose pro aliquo rogantes, et non potiti fuerimus, negligimus de reliquo eodem uti studio. Et hominibus tanto quidem assidemus tempore militantes, et afflicti, et in fine multoties ab ipsa spe excidentes ; Dominatori vero clementi, ubi omnino est recipere retributionem multo majorem laboribus, non sustinemus assidere cum decenti studio!
Et quanto haec supplicatio digna? Et l 7 si nihil suscipere esset, hoc ipsum, scilicet continue ei loqui, nonne inre? Sed laboriosum, ais, continua oratio. Et quae tibi gratia utique esset, ut ejus rei susciperes mercedem, si ndn laboriosa haec res esset? Quoniam circa illa magis anima affectuose disponitur , pro quibus laboravit : » haec Chrysostomus. Considera etiam quod sicut Dominus requisivit infirmum, si yellet sanus fieri; ita nobis sine nostro consensu salutem non dabit. Et faciliter consequitur homo veniam a Deo, dummodo velit, et obicem non ponat. Et ideo inexcusabiles sunt peccatores voluntati Domini, et suae saluti non consentientes, quia, ut ait Augustinus : « Qui creavit te sine te, non justificabit te sine te.
» 6 Sensus moralis sanationis paralytici. — Moraliter probatica piscina, id est ovilis in qua oves lavabantur , quae in sacrificio Deo offerebantur , conversationem designat sanctam , et religiosam ; in qua lavatur anima, quae ovis debet esse per innocentiam, ut offeratur Domino per operationem bonam. Habet ista piscina quinque porticus, propter quinque sensus corporis , per quos omnis nostra actio ad effectum , seu profectum ducitur. In his autem, id est sensibus nostris,;<icef multitudo magna languentium, quia multiplex est corruptio sensuum corporalium. Quotquot enim in aliquo sensu illicitos appetitus quis habet, tot in eodem sensu languentes continet. Aqua in quam languidi sanabantur significat compunctionem ; Angelus vero qui movebat aquam, Spiritum Sanctum. Angelus Domini descendebat in piscinam , et movebatur aqua, et sanabatur infirmus; sic Spiritus Sanctus quoties in nos descendit, et in nobis excitat gratiam APUT LXXVIII. compunctionis, sanatur noster animus, vel sensus a quacunque detinetur infirmitate corruptionis.
Circa. istos infirmos praedictos notatur morbi diversitas. Omne enim peccatum, aut fit per inertiam et desidiam, aut per ignorantiam, aut per infirmitatem humanam , aut per certam malitiam, aut per consuetudinem longam. Illi qui peccant per inertiam et desidiam, sunt languidi qui languent propter inopiam et defectum gratiae et boni. Illi qui peccant per ignorantiam intelliguntur per caecos, quia caeci sunt qui lumen fidei non habent, vel qui nec Dominum nec ejus mandata cognoscunt. II li qui peccant per infirmitatem humanam , intelliguntur per claudos; claudi enim sunt qui firmum gressum non habent, et in semita justitiae ac bonorum operum gressus non dirigunt, vel qui quae vident operari non possunt. 111 i qui peccant per malitiam, intelliguntur per aridos ; tales enim arefacti sunt ab humore gratiae et voluntatis bonae r nam aridi sunt, qui, quidquid agant, sine pinguedine caritatis sunt et operantur, vel qui in bona actione, vel eleemosynarum largitione manus non porrigunt. Uli quf peccant per consuetudinem inveteratam, intelliguntur per infirmum qui triginta octo annos in infirmitate sua habebat.
Ideo autem potius sanavit istum inveteratum, quam aliquem caecum, claudum, vel aridum, ad innuendum quod si Deus aliquando justificat hominem, qui peccavit per consuetudinem longam, non debet desperare aliquis qui peccavit, aut per desidiam, ut languidus ; aut per ignorantiam, ut caecus; aut per infirmitatem, ut claudus ; aut per malitiam, ut aridus. Quod autem unus tantum sanatur de multitudine languidorum, signat quod pauci satvantur de nsoltitudine vocatorum. Qui languerat surgit, ac grabatum domi reportat €t ambulat, cum anima a vitiis surgens, et a torpore ac prava consuetudine se erigens, peccatorum remissione curata se ad internam sui custodiam cum ipso corpore refert, ne quid iterum unde feriatur admittat, ac de virtute in virtutem ambulans, et in bono opere proficiens, usque ad visionem Dei festinat.
Erat autem sabbatum in die illo, quando fiebant ista, in quo non est licitum opera facere servilia. Dicebant ergo Jud&i illi qui sanatus fuerat : Sabbatum est, id est dies feriatus, non licet tibi, propter Legis prohibitionem, tollere grabatum tuum. Quasi dicerent : Si sanitas non erat differenda, numquid et opus fuerat imperandum r Sic dicunt mali consiliarii : Festum est, non licet tibi jejunare, aut poenitentiam facere. Isti falsum dicebant, quia opera corporalia quae ad cultum et honorem Dei sunt, in sabbato licite fieri possunt; sicut sacerdotes corporaliter operabantur in templo, ipsum templum ornando, hostias lavando et immolando, et consimilia faciendo. Similiter portatio illius grabati erat ad magnificentiam divini miraculi; sicut et modo illi qui de carceribus et hujusmodi liberantur, portant compedes suos publice ad manifestationem suae liberationis miraculosae. Sed tamen aliter se excusat iste sanatus, quia Auctorem sanitatis suae objiciens calnmniantibus et Auctorem Dominicae Legis praetendens, respondit eis, dicens : Qui me sanum fecit, et per hoc se' divinam virtutem habere ostendit, ille, tantae "auctoritatis et virtutis, mihi dixit : Tolle grabatum tuum et ambula, et huic obediendum fuit. Quasi diceret : Ille qui me divina virtute sanavit, eadem virtute et auctoritate mihi praecepit, et per consequens sibi, qui tantus est et beneficium mihi tale contulit, obedire teneor, nec sum transgressor. Quare enim non acciperem jussionem a quo acceperam sanitatem?
Non cedit adversariis, nec timet praedicare eum qui ipsum sanum fecit. Sed quis, vel ubi est qui nunc contra saevitiam principum, vel damnum proprium eum praedicet? Et quia curatum hominem, qui per curantem se convenienter excusabat, calumniari non poterant, ideo, Christum curantem calumniari nitentes, quaerebant de eo, non quidem bona intentione ut proficerent, sed maligno animo, ut perderent.
Et hanc eorum malitiam ipsorum verba manifestant; cum enim Dominus et sanaverit languidum, et tolli jusserit grabatum ; primum virtutis divinae ostensivum et irrefragabiie signum subticent, et aliud, quod transgre&sio Legis videbatur, replicant, interrogando eum, dicentes : Quis est ille homo qui tibi dixit : Tolle grabatum tuum, et ambula ? Quasi dicerent : Malus homo est, qui talia praecepit. Non calumniantur de collatione salutis, sed de portatione lecti ; et sic accipiebant quod possent saltem apparenter reprehendere, non quod poterant laudare. Sic mali homines et malitiose contra aliquem agentes frequenter notant et considerant in aliis x quod possint reprehendere et accusare ; non quod possint laudare, et ad aedificationem trahere. Si quid boni ui eis vident, tacent ; et mala si qua vident, manifestant; et quandoque etiam bonum in malum convertunt. Ubi Chrysostomus :*« Videamus quantum livor malum, et quallter animae oculos excaecat, adversus ejus qui captus est salutem. Invidi enim proprie rationem non faciunt salutis, et feris sunt deteriores. Illae quidem aut ibco indigentes, aut prius a nobis exacerbatae adversus nos armantur.
Hi vero et benefacientes multoties his quae sunt injusta facientium benefactores disposuerunt. Igitur feris quidem hi sunt difficiliores ; daemonibus pares, fortassis autem illis deteriores. Illi enim ad nos quidem inexpiabilem habent inimicitiam ; his autem quibus sunt ejusdem generis, non insidiantur. Hi vero neque communionem naturae verecundantur, neque sibiipsis parcunt ; prius enim quam eorum quibus invident, suas ipsorum animas torquent, tumultu omni et tristitia implentes eas vane et inaniter. Haec passio, et fornicatione et adulterio multum est deterior. Nam haec quidem usque ad t eum qui egit stant; livor vero tyranni Ecclesias integras evertit, et orbem terrarum universum laesit. Haec homicidii mater est : interfecit fratrem Cain, ita Jacob Esau, ita Joseph fratres, ita homines universos diabolus. Et nimirum aliis est diflicilior; etsi enim miserearis, etsi vigiles, etsi jejunes, omnibus sordidior factus es invidens fratri : » haec Chrysostomus.
Is autem qui sanus fuerat effectus, nesciebat,\d& Jesu, quis esset, scilicet genere et patria, licet sciret in persona et praesentia ; et quia diu languidus jacuerat, ideo et facta Christi, et ejus famam ignorabat.
Jesus autem, nolens se jactare de miraculo, declinavit a turba constituta in loco, permittens ab ipsis suum factum examinari, ut, eo absente, testimonium fieret insuspicabile , dans quoque exemplum non quaerendi in bonis operibus laudem et favorem hominum, ac declinandi aliquando consortia calumniari voJentium, et fugiendi oculos invidorum in operibus nostris, ne ex hoc invidia crescat in eis. Postea, propalato miraculo et soluta turba, invenit eum Jesus in templo, quia ad agendum gratias de sanitate sibi collata frequentabat templum, quod est locus ad orandum. In turba positus non cognovit Jesum, sed post in templo invenit et oognovit eum. In quo mystice datur intelligi quod Jesus in multitudine hominum, et in turbine curarum temporalium de facili non invenitur; sed in spirituali secreto, et in templo cordis, quod Deus inhabitare dignatur. Unde Chrysosiomus : « Invenit eum in templo, quod maximae religionis est signum. Non enim secessit ad nundinas et circuitiones ; neque voluptati aut negligentiae et remissioni dedit seipsum, sed in templo conversabatur. Jesum in turba non cognoscebat; cognovit in templo, in loco sacrato. » Unde et Augustinus : « Difficile est in turba videre Jesum.
Solitudo quaedam necessaria est menti nostrae. Quadam solitudine intentionis videtur Deus. Turba strepitum habet, visio ista secretum desiderat : » haec Augustinus. In hoc ergo datur nobis intelligi, quia, si gratiam Con ditoris cognoscere et ad ejus visionem venire volumus, fugienda est turba cogitationum et affectuum pravorum, declinanda sunt conven- • ticula hominum malorum, et fu- * giendum est ad templum cordis nostri, et internae orationis, id est ad secretum mundae conscientiae, ut nosipsos templum Dei studeamus facere, qvfos Deus invisere . et in quibus manere dignetur. Ivare ? — Et dixit ei, instruens eum ad cautelam futurorum : Ecce sanus factus es, Dei beneficio, jam noli, id est non yelis, peccare, de cetero, hoc est, habe voluntatem firmam non peccandi, quia omne peccatum ex voluntate, sicut ex radice, procedit. Deinde ponit et ostendit quam periculosa sit recidivatio in peccatum, dicens : Ne dcterius aliquid tibi contingat, vel hic, vel in futuro, quia in recidivante novissima fiunt pejora prioribus, Et istud periculum attenditur : primo ex parte Dei, quia recidivans graviter peccat, propter ingratitudinem, et ideo a Deo gravius punitur; secundo attenditur ex parte diaboli, quia sicut miles castrum quod semel perdidit, si postea illud recuperat, fortius munit, et cautius custodit, sic diabolus fortius munit recidivantem, quia scptem spiritus nequiores se ibi ponit, et ad omnia septem peccata mortalia ipsum trahit; tertio attenditur ex parte hominis, quia recidivans facilius postea in peccatum cadit, jam enim, ex quadam mala consuetudine, peccare pro nihiio ducit.
In his ergo verbis suis innuit Dominus, quod propter peccata paralyticus languebat; et quod infirmitas illa propter peccata inflicta fuerat. Unde Chrysostomus : « Ubi discimus quod ex peccatis ei nata est haec aegritudo. Quia enim saepius anima in nobis aegrotante, insensibiliter nos habemus; corpus autem, si parvam susceperit laesionem, omne facimus studium ut ab infirmitateliberemur; propterea Deus punit corpus pro his quae anima deliquit. » Cum his et iliud discimus, quod si gravem sustineamus poenam pro prioribus peccatis, deinde in eadem inciderimus, graviora patiemur ; et hoc decenter, qui enim neque supplicio factus est melior, ut insensibilis de reliquo et contemptor, ad majus ducetur tormentum. Si autem hic non omnes pro peccatis torquentur, non confidamus; nihil enim nos hic pati pro peccatis, signum est majoris illic supplicii. Cavere ergo debemus, ne Deum in poenis contemnendo, tanquam indurati, in peccato permaneamus; vel sanati a Domino, tanquam ingrati, in peccatum relabamur; ne propter contemptum vel ingratitudinem deterius nobis contingat, vel quia deteriores efficeremur, vel graviori supplicio hic, vel in futuro traderemur. Jesus ergo sicut exterius corpore, sic interius mente paralyticum sanavit, praemonens ne iterum peccaret, et gravius judicium incurreret. Quasi diceret : Praecedens peccatum est tibi dimissum, ne iterum peccando constituas te magis reum.
Quis enumerare sufficiat mira et magna opera Domini, exquisita in omnes voluntates ejus; quae in materiam laudis suae, et in usum necessitatis nostrae creavit? Vidit Deus cuncta quoe fecerat; et erant valde bona, et nihil odit eorum quae fecit. Solum peccatum, quod nihil est, odit, persequitur, et destruit. Unde cum sex diebus solo verbo cuncta creavit ; annis plusquam triginta ad destruendum peccatum in mundo laboravit. Hoc solum est quod ei displicet, quod oculos majestatis ejus offendit, quod ipsum mitem et suavem, nobis asperum et durum reddit ; hoc est quod de Angelo diabolum fecit, de amico inimicum, de libero servum, de incorrupto mortalem et corruptum, de beato miserum, de dve exsulem et ejectum, de filio Dei filium diaboli ; hoc est quod nunquam impunitum est relinquendum.
Tunc abiit ille homo, ad pubiicandum Christi virtutem ; et nuntiavit Judceis, quia Jesus esset qui fecit eum sanum. Ecce nunc in mente sanatus fide cognovit Dominum ; et, eo noto, non est piger in annuntiando illum. Unde Augustinus : « Nunc autem ille posteaquam vidit Jesum et cognovit eum salutis suae auctorem, non fuit piger in evangelizando quae viderat. Iste ergo nuntiavit salutem ut sequatur, sed illi e contra persequuntur. » Unde sequitur : Propterea persequebantur Judan Jesum, tanquam violatorem Legis divinae; quia hac faciebat in sabbato, agens contra Deum, qui requievit in eo, opinantes quod nihil penitus esset in sabbato faciendum, sed ab omni opere hominum vacandum, quantumcunque sit utile et divinum. Male de sabbato intelligebant, quia hominem in sabbato curare, ac pietatem et misericordiam exercere, peccatum esse putabant. Judaei persequebantur Christum, opus ejus bonum pervertentes in malum, et adhuc multos habent sequaces, frequenter servos Christi propter opus bonum molestantes. Cum ergo arguerent eum, et murmurarent de hoc quod in sabbato operabatur, excusans se, respondit eis : Pater meus, qui est in coelis, quamvis in sabbato cessaverit ab omni opere creationis, dispositionis et ornatus; tamen usque modo operatur gubernando et instaurando quod corrumpitur in opere, et propagando, et per hoc non solvit sabbatum ; ergo cum et ego operor, restaurans et reparans corrupta, et sanans infirma, non solvo sabbatum ; sed in operando, me Patri conformo, et sicut in principio creando, disponendo et ornando operatus sum cum ipso, ita facio et modo.
Ac si dicat : Non tantum sex diebus primis, ut putatis, operatus est Pater meus, creaturas novas condendo et psoducendo, a quibus requievit die septima; sed usque modo, et semper usque in finem continue operatur, in esse conservando et gubernando, ut condita permaneant. Non solum enim Deus omnia fecit ; sed et facta, ne deficiant, in esse conservat, ita quod si se rebus subtraheret, et eas manu regiminis non retineret, sicut de nihilo facta sunt, sic in nihilum universa tenderent et defluerent. Unde sic Deus intelligendus est requievisse ab omnibus operibus suis, ut jam nullam novam creaturam conderet, non ut conditas continere et gubernare cessaret ; cum quo in cunctis pariter et ego, operatus sum et opcror, quia sum Verbum Patris, per quod omnia facta sunt, et conservantur in esse; et ergo bonum est quod ago ; nec mirum si hominem in sabbato sano, qui Deus cum Patre omnia semper operor. In nullis enim quae fiunt, operatio mea deest operationi Patris; sed in omnibus simul ego cum Patre operor, cum divina potentia nihil nisi per sapientiam suam faciat. Si ergo me in aliquo quod per me factum sit reprehendere praesumitis, reprehendite et Deum Patrem, pariter mecum operantem; cujus vos populum peculiarem esse jactatis. Ubi Augnstinus : « Quomodo ipse Pater et Filius inseparabiles sunt, sic et opera Patris et Filii inseparabilia sunt; non tantum Patris et Filii, sed etiam Spirhus Sancti ; sicut aequalitas et inseparabilitas est personarum, ita etiam opera inseparabilia sunt : » haec Augustinus. Hinc autem totius Trinitatis opera indivisa, id est communia esse dicuntur ; quia quidquid potentia geritur, idem sapientia moderatur, et bonitate conditur. Unde bene in his quae facimus, vel Deum facere exoramus, commemorationem Trinitatis facimus, dicentes : In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti; vel : Jn nomine sancta?
et vndividuee Trinitatis, ut sicut personarum indivisa est operatio , sic et earum sit inseparabilis invocatio. Et sic Christus excusatur in sabbato operando.
Sed quia ex hac excusatione sequitur quod Christus sit aequalis Deo Patri, ideo ex hoc verbo magis persequebantur eum tanquam blasphemum, qui blasphemia majus peccatum est, et acrius punitur in Lege, quam violatio sabbati. Unde subditur : Propterea ergo magis, id est avidiori animo et ferventiori xelo, quam prius pro opere sabbati, qucerebant Judaei mterficere eum; quia non solum, ut eis apparebat, solvebat sabbatum, sed et Patrem suum, naturalem et sibi consubstantialem, dicebat Deum, non ut nos, qui adoptati patrem vocamus eum ; aequalem se faciens et ostendens Deo per aequalitatem naturae et potestatis, quod illi blasphemiam esse dicebant. Cum enim eum tantummodo hominem putarent, imponunt ei quod rapinam faciat, se aequalem faciens Deo, quasi non esset, cum revera esset taiis, quia ipse per naturam natus est ei aequalis. Duo quippe crimina in Lege morte punita fuerunt, scilicet crimen soiutionis sabbati, et magis crimen biasphemiae. Et haec duo ei imponebant, et propterea eum occidere quaerebant. Et quia excusavit se de primo, ( consequenter excusat se de secundo, probans se esse Filium Dei et aequalem Patri. Et ne Judaei dicerent : Tibi non credimus, nullus enim sibi testans dignus est fide, ideo ad confirmationem propositi multiplex inducit testimonium, scilicet : Joannis, et operum, ac ipsius Patris, et Seripturarum. Dicit ergo .
: Si ego iestimonium perhibeo de me ipso; testimonium meum non est verum, id est efficax, secundum reputationem vestram, quamvis in se sit efficacissimum. Unde , secundum Chrysostomum, hoc quod ciicit, non est verum, non quantum ad dignitatem suam, sed quantum ad illorum suspicionem loquebatur. I 3 — Nota ergo quod in testimonio sunt quatuor testes filii, quia in testimonio possunt quatuor reperiri, scilicet : veritatis demonstratio, veritatis confirmatio, veritatis immobilitas, et ipsa veritatis veritas. Demonstratio autem fiebat per Joannem; ipse enim Joannes ad quem Judaei miserunt, et quem magis omnibus fide dignum putabant, testimonium perhibuit, non sibi, sed Veritati Christo, sicut amicus veritatis. Confirmatio fiebat per opera fortissima ; quod enim caecos iliuminavit, aures aperuit, ora mutorum resolvit, daernonia fugavit, mortuos ressuscitavit; haec opera testimonium Christo perhibebant. Immobilitas patebat per attestationem Patris, qui testimonium perhibuit de Christo; quia vox Patris audita est in Baptismo, et in monte, ipso Christo transfigurato. Veritas autem ostendebatur ex Scripturis, quae mentiri non poterant, eo quod a Spiritu veritatis processerunt; Scripturae enim Legis, quae datae sunt per Moysen et Prophetas, perhibent de Christo testimonium. Et sic penes haec quatuor, quae omne testimonium veritatis fulciunt, ista quatuor testimonia accipiuntur.
Et quamvis essent per tot incontradicibilia inducti et conjuncti testimonia, tamen noiebant credere in eum. Unde dicit : Et non vultis venire ad me, s^cilicet per fidem, id est non vultis credere in me, et a me quaerere veram salutem, ex sola malitia vestrae voluntatis, quia nihil aliud impedit vos, nisi odium contra me conceptum a vobis; non vultis, inquam, credere in me, ut vitam astemam habeatis, nunc in spe, et in futuro in re, quae habetur per fidem formatam cari7H tate; ita nec veritas vos convincit : nec promissio vitae vos trahit. Deinde redarguit eorum duritiam et tarditatem ad credendum, dicens : Ego veni in nomine, et ad honorem, Patris mei, ut per me Pater glorificetur, quod patet per proedicta testimonia : et non accepistis me, nec in me creditis, sed magis persequimini, quia dilectionem Dei non habetis. Et inde poena peccati vobis haec erit : quia alium, id est Antichristum in nomine suo venientem, id est non habentem praedicta testimonia et suam gloriam propriam quaerentem accipietis pro Christo et vero Deo, ut, secundum Apostolum, credant mendacio, qui noluerunt credere veritati. Quasi dicat : Quia non accepistis me, id est quia non credidistis me esse Christum, haec poena infligetur vobis, ut decepti pro Christo Antichristum recipiatis. Per hoc arguitur quod Judaei primi erunt qui ad Antichristum convertentur. Judaei enim in fine Antichristum recipient, et templum ei facient, quia faciet se circumcidi, et dicet se eis promissum; et ei adhaerebunt quousque ejus falsitas detegatur per Henoch et Eliam. Secundum Augustinum, Antichristus ceremonias Legis tentabit restaurare, ut Evangelium solvat; quae res Judaeos eum pro Christo recipere suadebit.
i5 Causa hujus incredulitatis. — Deinde causam infidelitatis eorum subdit, quia gloriam humanam ab invicem accipientes, et acceptantes, id est ex superbia humanum favorem captantes, gloriam qua> a solo Deo~est, id est humilitatem quae est vera gloria, vel gloriam coelestem non quaerebant. Non ergo, quia non est aperta veritas non credunt; sed quia superbia eos excaecat, quae laudari, et se super alios efferre desiderat. Ideo enim in Christum credere non poterant, quia cum superba mens eorum gloriam et laudem appeteret, et sese super alios efferret, reputabant inglorium et dedecus in Christum credere, qui abjectus et pauper videbatur, et ideo ei credere non poterant ; sed ille in eum credere potest, qui cor habens humile, solius Dei gloriam quaerit, et ei placere appetit. Ex quo apparet quod multum periculosa est inanis gloria. Unde Chrysostomus : « Nihil ita deformat animam, sicut gloriam desiderare terrenam; non enim est possibile qui hanc gloriam amat, gloriam quaerere Crucifixi. » Unde dicit et Tullius y quod carenda est hominum gloria, quae aufert animi libertatem; pro qua magnanimis viris omnis debet esse contentio. Et ideo, secundum Glossam, magnum vitium est jactantia et humanae laudis ambitio , quae de se aestimari appetit quod.
in se non habet, et gloriam suam, non Dei quaerit. E contra vero, magna virtus est humilitas, quae se nihil reputat, et solius Dei gloriam quaerit, eique soli placere appetit. Haec est etiam causa cur mandata Dei non impleamus, quia non humiles, sed superbi et ambitiosi sumus, praesumentes de industria et viribus nostris, ut ad ea implenda nequaquam humiliari possimus. Vel hoc impedivit Judaeos a fide Christi in parte, quia solum attendebant, et adhuc intendunt ad gloriam et 'exaltationem temporalem, dandam eis per Messiam. Videbant autem Christum pauperem et abjectum, et ideo non receperunt eum; non attendentes Scripturas Prophetarum, quae de ejus paupertate et abjectione loquuntur. Gloria autem et exaltatio, quae per Christum danda promittitur, illa est gloria coelestis, quam non intelligebant; et ideo gloriam quae a solo Deo est, non quaerebant, et propter hoc in infidglitate permanserunt. Ipse solus potest Christo pauperi et abjecto credere, qui non propriam, sed Dei gloriam quaerit. Ubi de vitio vanae et humanae gloriae sic dicit Beda : u Hoc autem vitium caveri melius non potest, quam ut ad conscientias nostras redeamus, nosque pulverem esse consideremus ; et si quid boni nobis inesse deprehendamus, non nobis, sed Deo adscribamus : » haec Beda.
Ubi et ChrysostQtnus : a Vanam gloriam fugiamus omni studio. Et qualiter eam superabimus, ais ? Si ad aliam respexerimus gloriam quae ex coelis est, a qua ejicere nos haec cogit. Quae igitur nobis spes erit salutis, cum jussi esse ab his exteri, quae hic sunt; exteri a coelis sumus, et eorum quae illic sunt? Quid hac insensibilitate deterius fiet unquam, cum secundum unamquamque diem, ea quae judicii, ea quae regni audientes, eos qui sub Noe et in Sodomis erant, imitemur experientia rerum exspectantes omnia discere ? Et nimirum propter hoc omnia illa scripta sunt, ut si quis de futuris credit, ab his quae facta sunt manifestam et de futuris demonstrationem accipiat. Haec igitur intelligentes, et praeterita et futura, parum saltem respiremus a difficili hac servitute, et aliquam animae faciamus rationem , ut et praesentibus et futuris potiamur bonis : » haec Chrysostomus. ORATIO Domine Jesu Christe, sana me languidum longo languore male vexatum, et paralyticum diutino corpore boni gravatum ; da mihi ut surgam recedendo a peccato, ac tollam grabatum portando onus poenitentiae pro eo, et ambulem proficiendo in bonum, et de bono in melius, et eundo de virtute in virtutem; samis quoque factus, tuo beneficio studeam a peccatis abstinere de cetero, ne deterius mihi aliquid contingat, vel hic, vel in futuro.
Da mihi etiam, bone Jesu, ut, te humilem sequens, humanam et terrenam gloriam contemnam, ac laudari et me super alios efferri non cupiam; sed tui solius gloriam quaeram, et tibi soli placere appetam. Amen.
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