Sermons on the Liturgical Year (Victorine Texts in Translation) (English and Latin Edition) (Victorine Texts in Translation: Exegesis, Theology and Spirituality from the Abbey of St Victor, 8) 9782503577210, 2503577210

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Sermon s for t h e L i t urgi cal Ye ar

VICTORINE TEXTS IN TRANSLATION Exegesis, Theology and Spirituality from the Abbey of St Victor

8 Grover A. Zinn Editor in Chief Hugh Feiss, OSB Managing Editor Editorial Board Boyd Taylor Coolman, Dale M. Coulter, Christopher P. Evans, Franklin T. Harkins, Frans van Liere

Sermons for the Liturgical Year A Selection of Works of Hugh, Achard, Richard Maurice, Walter, and Godfrey of St Victor, Absalom of Springiersbach, and of Maurice de Sully

Hugh Feiss, OSB ed.

F

© 2018, Brepols Publishers n.v., Turnhout, Belgium. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher. D/2018/0095/237 ISBN 978-2-503-57721-0 e-ISBN 978-2-503-57722-7 DOI 10.1484/M.VTT-EB.5.113981 ISSN 2507-1912 e-ISSN 2507-1920 Printed in the EU on acid-free paper.

Chapter room of St. Augustine’s, Bristol Pen and ink drawing by Jane Castelan Buccola (The Monastery of the Ascension, Jerome, Idaho)

For Saira Terriquez and Stephanie Vera, Heidemaire Petersen and Allison Lusk, Fr. Stephan MacPherson and Deacon Jason Batalden, Luke Scheiff and Anna Holdorf and Bob Fritsch Si, se puede, por la gracia del Señor.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

11 Preface 13 Acknowledgments 15 Abbreviations



27 General Introduction Prelude Hugh of St Victor



81 Sermons of Hugh of St Victor



83 Miscellanea 1.52: On the False Consolation of the World



87 Miscellanea 1.91: Go from Your Land and Your Kin. Sermon to the Brethren

97 Miscellanea 1.99: On Gratitude for Benefits God Gives / On Passing Judgment on Oneself and One’s Neighbor 105 Miscellanea 1.113: On Recalling the Feasts of the Saints Advent and Christmas Season 111 Godfrey of St Victor: Sermon for the First Sunday of the Advent of the Lord 133 Godfrey of St Victor: Sermon for Advent 153 Absalom of Springiersbach: Sermon 4: On the Advent of the Lord 167 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 5: On the Advent of the Lord 173 Godfrey of St Victor: Sermon on the Birth of the Lord 193 Walter of St Victor: Sermon 12: On the Birthday of the Lord

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Table O f C ontents

209 Absalom of Springiersbach: Sermon 10: On the Epiphany of the Lord 221 Walter of St Victor: Sermon 18: On the Epiphany Feast of the Purification 239 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 41: On the Purification of Blessed Mary, Ever Virgin. Concerning Purification of the Mind 247 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 42: On the Purification of Blessed Mary. Concerning Purification of the Church Lent and the Easter Season 257 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 43: On Septuagesima or at Another Time of Penance: concerning Seeds of Virtue to Be Planted in Us, and Roots of Vice to Be Cast out, with an Explanatory Parable Taken from the Delights of Paradise 265 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 89: On the First Sunday of Lent 271 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 44: In the Middle of Lent: concerning Jerusalem, Taken through Allegory for the Holy Church 285 Absalom of Springiersbach: Sermon 18: In Lent, Laetare 297 Absalom of Springiersbach: Sermon 25: On the Passion of the Lord 307 Anonymous of St Victor: Sermon 3: Of the Triple Glorification on the Holy Cross 317 Walter of St Victor: Sermon 2: On the Paschal Solemnity 327 Maurice of St Victor: Sermon 3: On the Ascension 337 Walter of St Victor: Sermon 8: On the Holy Spirit

Table O f C ontents



9

Interlude After Easter and Pentecost, Maurice de Sully 349 Maurice de Sully: Old French Sermons for the Liturgical Year 353 Sermon 18: Third Sunday after Easter 361 Sermon 20: Fifth Sunday after Easter 365 Sermon 31: Ninth Sunday after Pentecost 369 Sermon 32: Tenth Sunday after Pentecost 375 Sermon 38: Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost Feasts of Saints 385 Achard of St Victor: Sermon 9: On the Solemnity of St Augustine 401 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 81: On the Feast of St Gregory, about the Lampstand described in Exodus 25 413 Maurice of St Victor: Sermon 1: On the Solemnity of Blessed Victor 421 Richard of St Victor: Three Sermons on the Feast of St Michael 439 Walter of St Victor: Sermon 11: On All Saints 457 Walter of St Victor: Sermon 19: On the Feast of All Saints It Is Finished 473 Richard of St Victor: Sermones centum 100: On the Feast of the Holy Cross 479 Bibliography

PREFACE It seems pretty clear that, until now, most Christians received most of their catechesis in Christianity through sermons. Hence, preachers such as Augustine, Maximus of Turin, Caesarius of Arles, Gregory, and Bede made the effort to collect and preserve their sermons or homilies, so that others could use them as models, or read them to others or to themselves. The Carolingians compiled homiliaries for preachers and readers. In their turn, the Victorines of the twelfth century were great promoters of preaching and provided collections of sermons for other preachers or readers. Maurice de Sully, the bishop of Paris (1160–96), worked with Victorine material when he saw to the compilation of a collection of sermons for the liturgical year, a collection that was made available to clergy in both Latin and Old French. The Victorines clearly valued carefully prepared sermons. The captationes benevolentiae with which some of their sermons are prefaced indicate Victorine preachers regarded their fellow canons as a discriminating and critical audience who were expecting doctrinal content, moral exhortation, and good literary style. However, their collections of sermons, Richard’s Sermones centum, the collection of sermons by Achard, Walter, and other canons of St Victor that Jean Châtillon edited, as well as the sermon collections of Godfrey of St Victor and Absalom of Springiersbach also indicate that the Victorines wanted to share their sermons with other readers and preachers. Richard’s Liber exceptionum seems to have been an aid for preachers preparing sermons, and even provided them with twenty-seven model sermons. Many of the Miscellanea of Hugh of St Victor seem to be ideas or sketches for sermons. For these reasons, Victorine sermons are worthy of study as monuments to a key genre of Christian instruction. These Victorine authors lived in a pivotal moment when sermon practice and theory was moving toward the university sermon. The Victorines already made use of distinctions and other features of the university sermons, and sometimes their sermons reflected current theological debates. However, they retained the emphasis on practical application and devotion

12

P reface

that characterized the models they inherited from the early Christian preachers and the Carolingians. It is striking that the sermons surviving from the twelfth-century Victorines seem to have been originally intended for members of their own congregations of canons regular. It is equally striking that many, perhaps most of them, were delivered not at Mass but in chapter meetings on feast days. Few Victorine sermons for ordinary Sundays survive. We simply do not know how often or in what style the Victorines preached to the laity. Perhaps the closest we can come to knowing that is to read the cycle of parochial sermons prepared by Maurice de Sully. This is volume 8 of the series Victorine Texts in Translation. The remaining volumes (5, 9, and 10) are in progress now, and we look forward to completing the series soon. The Victorines were clearly important in the history of theology and they made big contributions to the renaissance and renewal that characterized the long twelfth century. Hence, they are important to historians. However, the Victorines did not write for historians, but for devout Christians. They lived at a time of rapid change, were immersed and at home in what tradition presented to them, and were attuned to the changes that were going on around them in society and the Church. Their writings can serve as models for Christians experiencing similar far-reaching societal changes today. Even apart from that, the style and content of their sermons have something to offer to twenty-first-century readers. Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB, managing editor Victorine Texts in Translation

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Although this book more than others in the Victorine Texts in Translation (VTT) series is the work of a single person, it would never have been completed were it not for the help of many. Ronald Pepin translated a number of the Latin sermons and María Rebbert translated Maurice de Sully’s Old French sermons. Both of them offered invaluable advise and support. The sermons of Achard of St Victor are well represented elsewhere in VTT so only one sermon of his is translated in this volume. Nicole Reibe, an expert on Achard of St Victor, helped with the introduction to that sermon on St Augustine. A most important contribution to the book came from Lucy Stamm who meticulously copy-edited every page of it. The members of the editorial board of VTT then gave the text a final vetting. Margaret Jennings, with whom I have been collaborating on VTT 10, died on 25 August 2016, before she could vet the Introduction. She was, however, able to advise me regarding the artes predicandi. Her expertise and guidance will be sorely missed. The errors, inconsistencies, and infelicities that remain in spite of my colleagues’ efforts are the author’s responsibility. Big books (and little ones) come to be only if there is a place to write them and support for the project. The translations in this book were done during Christmastimes of quiet retreat at St Joseph’s Church, in Unity, Oregon, in the early morning hours at St John’s Catholic Student Center at Idaho State University, and at the Monastery of the Ascension in Jerome, Idaho. My fellow monks there have given me the space and time needed for this project and for work on other volumes of VTT. To all of these colleagues and to Luc Jocqué of Brepols and others whose work on the Victorines has enriched our understanding of the Abbey of St Victor in Paris and the theology of its members, I am very grateful. Thanks also to Jane Castelan Buccola who gave us permission to use her pen-and-ink drawing of the chapter house at the former Victorine abbey of St Augustine, Bristol, as the frontispiece for this book. The beauty of that room, where twelfth-century Victorines preached, is tangible evidence of the respect they had for the Word of God.

ABBREVIATIONS GENERAL ABBREVIATIONS ABR ACW AHDLMA BGPTMA BV CCCM CCL CF CS CSEL CV Denz.-Hün.

DMT

American Benedictine Review (1950–). Ancient Christian Writers (Westminster, MD: Newman Press; New York, NY: Paulist, 1946–). Archives d’histoire doctrinale et littéraire du moyen âge (Paris: Vrin, 1926–). Beiträge zur Geschichte der Philosophie [und Theologie] des Mittelalters (Münster i. W.: Aschendorff, 1891–). Bibliotheca Victorina (Turnhout: Brepols, 1991–). Corpus Christianorum, Continuatio Mediaeualis (Turnhout: Brepols, 1967–). Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina (Turnhout: Brepols, 1954–). Cistercian Fathers (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 1970–). Cistercian Studies (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 1970–). Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum (Vienna: Tempsky, 1866–). Corpus Victorinum (Münster: Aschendorff, 2007–). Kompendium der Glaubensbekenntnisse und kirchlichen Lehrentscheidungen. Lateinisch-Deutsch: Enchiridion Symbolorum, Definitionum et Declarationum de Rebus Fidei et Morum. 3rd ed., ed. and tr. Peter Hünermann (Freiburg: Herder, 2009). Tr. Compendium of creeds, definitions, and declarations on matters of faith and morals, ed.  Robert Fastiggi (San  Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2012). Dallas Medieval Texts and Translations (Leuven: Peeters, 2002–).

16 DS FOC GCS

JTS LCL LoF

MS NABRE NPNF Oeuvre 1 Oeuvre 2 PL

PG RBen RTAM SBO

A bbreviations

Dictionnaire de spiritualité (Paris: Letouzey et Ané, 1937–). The Fathers of the Church (Washington, DC: CUA Press, 1947–). Die griechischen christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei Jahrhunderte (Berlin and Leipzig: Hinrichsche Buchhandlung, 1897–). Journal of Theological Studies (London/Oxford: 1900–). Loeb Classical Library (Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press, 1911–). A Library of fathers of the Holy Catholic Church, anterior to the division of the East and West: translated by members of the English Church (ed. E. B. Pusey, J. H. Newman, J. Keble and C. Marriott [Oxford: J. H. Parker, 1838–81]). Mediaeval Studies (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1939–). New American Bible. Revised Edition (2010). Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers (New York, 1887–92; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978). L’oeuvre de Hugues de Saint-Victor, ed. Feiss and Sicard, tr. Poirel, Rochais, and Sicard. L’oeuvre de Hugues de Saint-Victor, vol.  2, ed. and tr. Jollès. Patrologiae cursus completus sive bibliotheca universalis, integra, uniformis, commoda, oeconomica, omnium ss. Patrum, doctorum scriptorumque ecclesiasticorum qui ab aevo apostolico ad Innocentii III tempora floruerunt… series Latina, ed. J.-P. Migne, 221 vols. (Paris: Migne, 1844–64). Patrologiae cursus completus… series graeca, ed. J. P. Migne (Paris: Migne, 1857–76). Revue Bénédictine (Maredsous, 1885–). Recherches de théologie ancienne et médiévale (Louvain, 1929–). Sancti Bernardi Opera, ed. J. Leclercq, C. H. Talbot, and H. M. Rochais, 9 vols. (Rome: Editiones Cistercienses 1957–98).

A bbreviations

SC TPMA VTT WSA



17

Sources Chrétiennes (Paris: Cerf, 1942–). Textes philosophiques du Moyen Âge (Paris: J.  Vrin, 1958–). Victorine Texts in Translation (Turnhout: Brepols, 2010–). Works of Saint Augustine (New York: New City Press, 1990–).

VICTORINE AUTHORS Achard of St Victor Unitate

Discretione

Frag. Serm.

De unitate Dei et pluralitate creaturarum, ed. Martineau. [On  the Unity of God and the Plurality of Creatures, tr. Feiss]. De discretione animae, spiritus et mentis, ed. Morin, ed. Häring [On the Distinction of Soul, Spirit, and Mind, tr. Feiss]. “Fragments inédits d’authenticité douteuse.” Sermons inédits, ed. Châtillon, 245–55. Sermons inédits, ed. Châtillon [Sermons, tr. Feiss].

Adam of St Victor Sequentiae

Les sequences d’Adam de Saint-Victor [ed. and tr. Grosfillier, BV 20; ed. and tr. Mousseau, DMT 18].

Guarinus of St Victor Ep. Epistulae. PL 196.1387D–1398B; PL 200.1373B–1374B.

Garnerus (Garnier) of St Victor Gregorianum Gregorianum. PL 193.12–426.

18

A bbreviations

Godfrey of St Victor Fons philosophiae

Fons philosophiae, ed. Michaud-Quantin [The Fountain of Philosophy, tr. Feiss, VTT 3:389–426]. Microcosmus Microcosmus, ed. Delhaye [partial tr. Feiss, VTT 3]. Sermones Sermones. Paris Bibliothèque Mazarine, MS  lat. 1002 (18  sermons), and Paris Bibliothèque nationale de France MS  lat. 14515, 14881 (12  sermons), 14948 fols  41r–43r (1  sermon: Vidi acquam egredientem de latere dextro) [Unpublished and untranslated except Sermo de nativitate BM, ed. Beumer, tr. Feiss, VTT 4; Sermo in generali capitulo, ed. Riedlinger; Sermo in die omnium sanctorum, ed. Delhaye; Sermon for the First Sunday of Advent, Sermon for Advent, Sermon on the Birth of the Lord, tr. Feiss, VTT 8].

Hugh of St Victor Archa Noe

De archa Noe (De arca Noe morali), ed. Sicard, CCCM 176 [Ark of Noah; partial tr. Religious of CSMV]. Arrha De arrha animae, ed. Sicard, Oeuvre 1.211–300, tr. Feiss, VTT 2:183–232. Didasc. Didascalicon, ed. Buttimer [tr. Harkins, VTT 3:81–202]. Diligens Diligens scrutator sacri eloquii [The Diligent Examiner, tr. Van Liere, VTT 3:231–48]. Eulogium Eulogium sponsi et sponsae (De amore sponsi ad sponsum), PL  176.987–94 [Praise of the Bridegroom, tr. Feiss, VTT 2:125–36]. In Hier. coel. Super Hierarchiam Dionisii, ed. Poirel, CCCM  178. PL  175.923–1154 [Commentary on the Celestial Hierarchy]. Libellus Libellus de formatione arche (De arca Noe mystica), ed. Sicard, CCCM 176 [The Mystic Ark, tr. Rudolph]. Sacr. dial. De sacramentis dialogus, PL 176.17–42 [Dialogue on the Sacraments]. Sacr. De sacramentis christianae fidei, ed. Berndt. PL 176.73– 618 [On  the Sacraments of the Christian Faith, tr. Deferrari, partial tr. VTT 3:253–68].

A bbreviations

Script.

Vanitate



19

De scripturis et scriptoribus sacris, PL  175.9–28 [On  Sacred Scripture and its Authors, tr.  Van Liere, VTT 3:215–30]. De vanitate rerum mundarum, ed. Giraud, CCCM 269 [tr. (partial) Religious of CSMV].

Maurice of St Victor Serm.

Sermones inediti triginta sex, ed. Châtillon, CCCM 30 [Sermons, partial tr. Feiss, VTT 8].

Richard of St Victor XII patr. Ad me clamat

Adn. Ps. Apoc. Arca Moys.

Diff. sac.

Emman. Erud. Exterm.

De duodecim patriarchis (Benjamin Minor), ed. Châtillon [tr. Zinn, Twelve Patriarchs, 51–147]. Ad me clamat ex Seir, ed. J. Ribaillier, Richard de SaintVictor, Opuscules théologiques, TPMA 15 (Paris: J. Vrin, 1967): 256–80 [He Calls to Me from Seir, tr. Feiss and Coulter, VTT 6:227-258]. Mysticae adnotationes in Psalmos, PL  196.265–402 [Mystical Notes on the Psalms]. In Apocalypsim, PL 196.683–888 [On the Apocalypse, tr. (partial) Kraebel, VTT 3:327–70]. De arca Moysi (De arca mystica; Benjamin major), ed. Grosfillier [Ark of Moses, tr. Zinn, Twelve Patriarchs, 149–343]. De differentia sacrificii Abrahae a sacrificio Beatae Mariae Virginis, PL  196.1043–60 [The  Difference between the Sacrifices of Abraham and Mary]. De Emmanuele, PL 196.601–66 [On Emmanuel, tr. Van Liere, VTT 6:347–440]. De eruditione hominis interioris, PL  196.1229–1366 [Instruction of the Interior Person]. De exterminatione mali et promotione boni, PL 196.1073– 1116 (Lo sterminio del male, tr. Daniele Racca, Biblioteca dell’Anima 10 [Turin: Il leone verde, 1999]).

20 LE Misit Her. Quat. grad.

Serm. cent. Statu

Super exiit Trin. Vis. Ezech.

A bbreviations

Liber exceptionum, ed. Châtillon [Book of Notes]. Misit Herodes rex manus, PL 141.277–306 [Herod the King]. De quatuor gradibus violentae caritatis, ed. and tr. G. Dumeige [On the Four Degrees of Violent Love, partially translated Claire Kirchberger, Selected Writings, 213–33; tr. A. Kraebel, VTT 2:261–300]. Sermones centum, PL  177.899–1210 [One Hundred Sermons]. De statu interioris hominis post lapsum, ed. Ribaillier [On the State of the Interior Man, tr. Evans, VTT 4:241– 314]. Super exiit edictum or De tribus processionibus, ed. Châtillon and Tulloch [On the Three Processions]. De Trinitate, ed. Ribaillier and ed. Salet [On the Trinity, tr. Evans, VTT 1:209–382]. In visionem Ezechielis, PL 196.527–606 [The Vision of Ezekiel]. Walter of St Victor

Serm.

Sermones inediti triginta sex, ed. Châtillon, CCCM 30 [Sermons, partial tr. Feiss, VTT 8].

Contra quatuor

Contra quatuor labyrinthos Franciae, ed. Glorieux. Writings Associated with St Victor

Liber ordinis Necrologium

Liber ordinis Sancti Victoris Parisiensis, ed. Jocqué and Milis, CCCM 61. Necrologium abbatiae Sancti Victoris Parisiensis, ed. Vones-Liebenstein and Seifert, CV. OTHER AUTHORS: PATRISTIC Ambrose

De officiis

De officiis ministrorum, PL 16.23–184.

A bbreviations



21

Augustine Cat. rud.

De catechizandis rudibus, ed. Combes and Farges [tr. Hill]. Civ. Dei De civitate Dei, ed. Dombart and Kalb, CCL  47–48 [The City of God, tr. Dyson]. Conf. Confessiones, ed. and tr.  O’Donnell [Confessions, tr. Chadwick]. De mor. eccl. De moribus ecclesiae catholicae, ed. Roland-Gosselin [On  the Catholic and the Manichean Way of Life, tr. Teske]. Div. quaest. 83 De diversis quaestionibus LXXXIII, ed. Mutzenbecher, CCL  44A; PL  40.11–100 [Responses to Miscellaneous Questions, tr. Ramsey]. Doc. Chr. De doctrina Christiana, ed. Martin, CCL  32 [On Christian Doctrine, tr. Hill]. En. Ps. Enarrationes in Psalmos, ed. Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 38–40 [Expositions of the Psalms, tr. Boulding]. Ench. Enchiridion ad Laurentium de fide spe et caritate, ed. J. Rivière. Ed. Evans, CCL 46 [The Enchiridion on Faith, Hope, and Love, tr. Harbert; tr. Arand]. Ep. Epistulae, ed. Goldbacher. CSEL 34, 44. 57. PL 33 [Letters, tr. Teske]. Jo. ev. tr. In Johannis evangelium tractatus, ed. Willems, CCL 36 [Tractates on the Gospel of John, tr. Rettig]. Lib. arb. De libero arbitrio, ed. Green, CCL 29 [The Problem of Free Choice, tr. Pontifex]. Retract. Retractationes, ed. Mutzenbecher, CCL 57; Revisions ed. and tr. G. Bardy; PL 32.581–655 [Retractions, tr. Bogan]. Serm. Sermones, PL 38–39 [Sermons, tr. Hill]. Trin. De Trinitate, ed. Mountain and Glorie, CCL 50, 50A [On the Trinity, tr. Hill].

Bede Hom. ev.

Homiliae evangelii, ed. Hurst, CCL 122 [Homilies on the Gospels, tr. Martin and Hurst].

22 In Luc. In Marc.

A bbreviations

Lucae evangelium expositio, ed. Hurst, CCL 120. In Marci evangelium expositio, ed. Hurst, CCL  120; PL 92.131–300.

Benedict RB

Benedict’s Rule, ed. and tr.  Kardong; RB80, ed. and tr. Fry.

Boethius Cons.

Theological Tractates. The Consolation of Philosophy, ed. and tr. Stewart, LCL.

Caesarius of Arles Serm.

Sermones, ed. Morin, CCL  103, 104 [Sermons, tr. Mueller]

Cassian Inc.

De incarnatione; PL 50.9–337.

Gregory the Great Dialogues Dialogues, ed. de Vogüé, SC 251, 260, 265 [tr. Zimmerman]. Hom. ev. Homiliae in Evangelia, ed. Étaix, et al., CCL 76, SC 485, 522; PL 76.1075–1312 [Forty Gospel Homilies, tr. Hurst]. Hom. Ez. Homiliae in Hiezechielem, ed. and tr. Morel, SC 327, 360. In Ezek. Homiliarum in Ezechielem Prophetam (Adriaen, CCL 142 [Turnhout: Brepols, 1971]).

A bbreviations

Mor.

Reg. past.



23

Moralia in Job, ed. Adriaen, CCL  143, 143A, 143B, PL 75.509–1162. [Morals on the Book of Job, tr. Library of the Fathers; Moral Reflections on the Book of Job, tr. Kerns]. Règle pastorale, ed. Judic, Rommel and Morel, SC 382 [Pastoral Care, tr.  Davis; Book of Pastoral Care, tr. Demacopoulos].

Isidore of Seville Etym.

Etymologiarum sive Originum Libri  XX, ed. Lindsay [Etymologies, tr. Barney, et al.].

Jerome Heb. nom. In Matt.

Liber interpretationis Hebraicorum nominum, ed. P. de Lagarde, CCL 72. Commentarium in Evangelium Matthei, ed. Hurst and Adriaen, CCL 77, 77A, PL 26.15–218.

OTHER AUTHORS: MEDIEVAL Anonymous Alleg. in ep. Pauli Allegoriae in epistolas Pauli, PL 175.879D–918D. Apol. de Verbo Apologia de Verbo incarnato, ed. Häring. Quaest in ep. Pauli Quaestiones et decisiones in epistolas D.  Pauli, PL 174.431B–634A. Sum. sent.

Summa sententiarum, PL 176.41C–174A.

Alan of Lille Ars praed.

Ars praedicandi. PL 210.109–95 [The Art of Preaching, tr. Evans, CS 23].

24

A bbreviations

Anselm of Canterbury Cur Deus homo

Cur Deus homo, ed. Roques SC 91 [Why God Became Man, tr. Fairweather in Davies and Evans]. De inc. Verbi De incarnatione verbi, ed. Schmitt [On the Incarnation of the Word, tr. Regan in Davies and Evans]. Monologion Monologion, ed. Schmitt [tr. Harrison, in Davies and Evans]. Oratio Orationes, ed. Schmitt (Opera Omnia; tr.  Benedicta Ward, The Prayers and Meditations of St  Anselm [Baltimore: Penguin, 1973]).

Bernard of Clairvaux Conv. ad cler. SCC

De conversione ad clericos sermo seu liber [On Conversion: A Sermon to Clerics, tr. Saïd]. Sermones super Cantica Canticorum, ed. Leclercq, Talbot, Rochais, SBO  1–2 [On the Song of Songs, tr. Walsh and Edmonds].

Maurice de Sully Sermons Sermons, ed. C. A. Robson [tr. (partial), Rebbert, VTT 8].

Peter Lombard Collect. In Ps. Sent.

Collectanea in epistolas Pauli, PL 191.1095–192.519. Commentaria in Psalmos Davidicos, PL 191.61B–1296. Sententiae in IV Libris Distinctae, ed. Quaracchi, (1916); ed. Brady (1971–81) [Sentences, tr. Silano].

A bbreviations



25

Ranulf (Ranulph) Higden Ars componendi

Spec. cur.

Ars componendi sermones, tr. Margaret Jennings and Sally  A. Wilson, Dallas Medieval Texts and Trans­ lations 2 (Leuven: Peeters, 2003). Speculum curatorum, ed. and tr. Cross and Jennings. DMT 13.

Rhaban Maur Judith

In librum Judith, PL 109.539–92.

Simon of Tournai Inst.

Institutiones in Sacram Paginam, Dist. 7.1–67, ed. Evans.

Thomas Aquinas ST

Summa theologiae, ed. Caramello [tr.  Fathers of the English Dominican Province].

GENERAL INTRODUCTION The twelfth-century preachers at the Abbey of St Victor in Paris developed a style of preaching that drew upon a millennium-long tradition that developed among the followers of Jesus, who were sent to proclaim the Gospel to the whole world. Preaching is difficult to define. One description is “to proclaim… a word from God, to present publicly the good news, to deliver a religious discourse related directly or indirectly to a text of Scripture.”1 The gist of Jesus’ own preaching is described at the beginning of the Gospel of Mark: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe the Gospel.”2 Luke describes Jesus’ first sermon as a discourse on Isaiah 61:1–2 about good news to the poor, release to prisoners and the oppressed, sight to the blind, and a year acceptable to the Lord.3 Matthew groups Jesus’ teaching into five lengthy sermons. John’s gospel includes Jesus’ discourses on himself as shepherd and bread of life as well as a long farewell address at the Last Supper.4 In the gospel accounts, Jesus uses parables that are short, pithy stories that capture interest and encourage reflection and application to one’s own life. The earliest Christians preached the good news about Jesus, the crucified and risen Lord. In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke offers sample sermons by Peter, Stephen, and Paul, which speak also of repentance and forgiveness of sin in fulfilment of the expectations of the Jewish Scriptures.5 Paul thought of himself as someone commissioned to preach.6 His letters contain reminders to his congregations of the message he had preached to them.7 In his preaching he hands on to others what was handed on to him.8 There are some grounds for dis1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Fred B. Craddock, “Preaching,” Anchor Bible Dictionary (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 5:451. Mark 1:5. Luke 4:18. John 6; 10; 14–17. Luke 24:27; Acts 2:14–36; 3:12–26; 7:1–53; 13:16–41; 17:22–31; 20:18–35. 1 Cor 1:17; 9:16. 1 Cor 15:1. 1 Cor 15:3; 11:23.

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G eneral I ntroduction

tinguishing preaching and teaching in the New Testament,9 but it is not possible to draw a sharp line. “Teaching” can be used to describe further instruction given to those who have accepted the proclamation of the gospel.10 In twenty-first-century Christian parlance, a homily is distinguished from a sermon. A homily is “that form of preaching which flows from and immediately follows the scriptural readings of the liturgy and leads to the celebration of the sacraments.”11 By contrast, a sermon is not necessarily related to the biblical readings of the liturgy and is generally given outside of a liturgical setting. This distinction is foreshadowed in Origen (d. ad 254) who distinguished logos or sermon, a discourse following the conventions of classical rhetoric, and a homily or tractatus, which was less formal and expounded the meaning and import of a biblical text in a popular fashion. It seems to be the latter that Justin Martyr (d. ad 165) refers to when in a description of the Eucharist he writes that, after the biblical texts were read, the presider orally admonished those present to imitate the example of what they had heard.12 “The sermon represented the central literary genre in the lives of European Christians and Jews during the Middle Ages.”13 Although the sermon as a genre is not so respected or central today, it seems safe to say that sermons delivered in the context of liturgical worship are, and perhaps always have been, the most important vehicle by which Christian belief is handed on. The homily or sermon is an exercise of the art of rhetoric, that combination of wisdom and communication that aims to instruct, delight, and persuade. The Victorine preachers employed a distinctive form of rhetoric, which, capturing the attention of the audience by literary artistry, sought to inculcate the teaching of truth (doctrina veritatis) and the discipline of virtue (disciplina virtutis). It is their mastery of rhetoric, theological depth, moral insight, and sincerity that made them eminent preachers. A sermon or homily mediates between the teaching of Christ, brought from the past to the present by Scripture 9 10 11 12 13

Matt 9:35; Rom 12:6–7; Eph 4:1. Craddock, “Preaching,” 452–53. Robert  P. Waznak, “Homily,” New Dictionary of Sacramental Worship, ed.  Peter  E. Fink (­Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1990), 552. Waznak, “Homily,” 552–58. Beverly Mayne Kienzle, “Introduction,” The Sermon, ed. Beverly Mayne Kienzle, Typologie des sources du Moyen Âge occidental, 81–83 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2000), 143.

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and tradition, and the contemporary world, represented both by the preacher and his audience. The concerns of the present interrogate Scripture and tradition, and vice versa. The Victorines were immersed in the Christian Scriptures and tradition, to which they added their own traditions that were rooted in the experience and example of their founders and the theology and teaching of Hugh of St Victor.14 In regard to the sermons of the Victorines and other texts of medieval preachers, it is difficult to know the relationship between the texts that we have and what was actually delivered in oral form. Written sermons could be prepared beforehand, then delivered orally and/ or read publicly or privately; written sermons could be transcriptions taken down during the oral delivery of a sermon, or reworkings by the preacher of what he first delivered orally; or written sermons may have never been delivered by their author or perhaps by anyone.15 To appreciate the Victorines’ preaching, knowledge of the theory and practice of preaching that preceded and shaped them is useful. What follows is a sketch of the homiletic tradition within which the Victorines devoted themselves to preaching. It begins with the two early Latin Christian authors whose sermons and writings about preaching were most influential on Latin preachers up to the Fourth Lateran Council (1215): Augustine and Gregory the Great. Then the biblical commentaries and homiliaries of the Carolingian period will be examined. Starting with Guibert of Nogent and Alan of Lille, in the twelfth century, medieval authors began to write guidebooks to the art of preaching. In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, works in this genre, the artes praedicandi, proliferated. One such, Ranulph Higden’s, can serve as an example of these, which show where the art of the sermon went after the rise of the universities. ST AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO (D. AD 430)

St Augustine exerted an incalculable influence on Victorine life, thought, and preaching. The Victorines followed his Rule, celebrated his feast, read and listened to his writings, and assimilated his ideas and much of his worldview. Three aspects of his influence deserve atten14 15

C. Colt Anderson, Christian Eloquence: Contemporary Doctrinal Preaching (Chicago/Mundelein: Hillenbrand Books, 2005), 1–16. Kienzle, “Introduction,” 168–71.

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tion here. First, his sermons served as examples. He is thought to have delivered more than 8,000 sermons. Of these more than 600 survive and constitute a significant part of his voluminous surviving writings. Second, there is the content of his sermons and his other writings, which shaped Victorine thought. Finally, there is his teaching about the role and tasks of the preacher. The second and third topics can be illustrated by the first and fourth books of his On Christian Instruction. Example Augustine preached many of his sermons in Hippo Regius, a seaport in North Africa, where Catholics and Donatists vied for ecclesiastical supremacy. Many of his listeners were not particularly devout. They frequented theaters and games; violence and vendettas stalked their streets. They appreciated a good preacher, and Augustine was a great preacher. If they recognized an allusion or liked an idea they cheered or clapped, although Augustine thought that a better indication of a successful sermon was tears or, even better, implementation of the preacher’s exhortation to act. F. van der Meer writes: Everyone who reads a number of his sermons will come away with the same impression as many of his day [and of the twelfth century] did, for no words from the pulpit have ever so fully come from the heart or combined that quality with such brilliance as did the words spoken by this one man in this remote corner of Africa.16

The brilliance of his preaching cannot be captured by notes or dictation taken by stenographers, though often that is all that survives. Augustine had been preaching for almost forty years, and speaking in public for over fifty, when near the end of his life, in 426, he added the fourth book, about communicating the Christian faith, to his On Christian Instruction. This book portrays Augustine’s ideal preacher, an ideal that Augustine strove with remarkable success to attain. Augustine spoke to communicate clearly, without fancy words. He wove together the plain, moderate, and grand styles that the classical theorists of oratory had distinguished. Sometimes, he picked the texts he explained; at other times, they were given him. Many of the ser16

Frederik van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop (New York: Harper and Row, 1961), 412. In addition to Van der Meer’s excellent portrayal of Augustine’s preaching, see Peter Brown, Augustine of Hippo (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1969), 244–69, and Hughes Oliphant Old, The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church, 2: The Patristic Age (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1998), 425–57.

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mons contained in his great sermon series on the Psalms, the Gospel of John, and the First Epistle of John, were written down beforehand, but most of his other sermons were improvised. He usually cited the Bible from memory. Augustine recognized that the biblical writers did not aim to observe the rules of classical oratory or dazzle with elaborate periods or elegiac prose. Neither does he. He wants to communicate with the ordinary people who come to church. Even today, an ordinary person can open his sermons On First John and be enthralled by the message Augustine conveys. Augustine’s outline, if any, is carefully hidden; his exordium is brief. He expounds a subject as long as his audience is interested; then he moves on or abruptly finishes. For the most part, he gives talks, not orations. He is very much in tune with his audience; he comments on their reactions and adjusts to them. He speaks much more often of “we” than of “you.” He chooses words that his audience can understand, even though he had a learned vocabulary at his fingertips. He excelled at brief, telling examples, pithy sayings, word play, and etymologies, many of which are not to twenty-first-century taste, but seem to have delighted his audience. For example, Adam’s name contained the whole world, because its letters are the first letters of the Greek names for the four winds.17 Augustine also liked to insert rhymed prose, a trait the Victorines shared. For example, Christus descendit, inferi patuerunt; Christus ascendit, superna claruerunt. Christus in ligno, insultent furentes, Christus in sepulchro, mentiantur custodientes. Christus in inferno, visitentur quiescentes. Christus in coelo, credant omnes gentes.18 Christ descended, the netherworld lay open; Christ ascended, the heavens glowed. Christ on the wood, let the rabid despise, Christ in the grave, let the guards tell lies. Christ in the netherworld, let those resting be visited. Christ in heaven, let all peoples believe. 17

18

Jo. ev. tr. 9.14 (Willems, CCL 36, 98); 10.12 (Willems, CCL 36, 108); En. Ps. 95.15.1–11 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 39, 1352). These four winds are anatole, dysis, arkton, mesembria. On them, see Hugh of St Victor, Libellus 2 (Sicard, CCL 178, 128; tr. Rudolf, 416). G. Morin, Sancti Augustini, Sermons post Maurinos reperti (Rome: Tipografia Poliglotta Vaticana, 1930), 391, cited by F. van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop, 425–26.

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Again, in a simile taken up by the Victorines, Augustine says that Christians who make resolutions but never keep them are like crows that call “cras, cras” (“tomorrow, tomorrow”).19 F. van der Meer finds that in his sermons Augustine weaves together three casts of thought: proclamation of biblical truth, allegorical exegesis, and the memory of classical thought.20 The three combine with a certain amount of tension, which adds dynamism to his sermons. In explaining the Scriptures, Augustine proceeds like the grammarians did in expounding Virgil. He concentrates on individual verses and seldom refers to the wider context of the biblical book. As we shall see, the Victorines usually do the same. Every word of Scripture can lead him to other texts and images, most often those found in the Psalms. The words of Scripture have many senses and levels of meaning, all intended by the Holy Spirit who inspires the reader or preacher to find them. Augustine reminds his readers that they must begin with the literal sense before taking flight in allegory. Allegory itself is, in Van der Meer’s words, “a form of intellectual reasoning on a nonintellectual basis”21 by symbols and typologies. God deliberately placed puzzling passages in Scripture to spark interest and exercise ingenuity. Content Augustine’s sermons cover the same great themes that he treats in his major works. The first book of On Christian Instruction refers to many of them: the primacy of love; earthly and heavenly love; the happiness and rest found in God; the image of God in human beings; the wretchedness that results from sin; restorative grace; the appearance of the Son of God in human form; the unity and holiness of the Church; the beauty, truth, and wisdom of God; the story of salvation divided into six ages; contemplation; and Christ the inner teacher, which relativizes the importance of the human teacher, who can do no more than point toward the knowledge that only Christ can bestow.22 Augustine begins On Christian Instruction by saying that all study of Sacred Scripture has two purposes: understanding and communication. Human instruction is an arduous task, but understanding Scrip19 20 21 22

Van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop, 426, with reference to Serm. 82.14; Serm. 224.4; see Walter of St Victor, Sermon 18, On the Epiphany, note 97, below. Van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop, 438–49. Van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop, 449. Van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop, 434, 450.

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ture increases when it is shared (1.1.1).23 All teaching concerns things (res) and signs. Things are learned through signs. However, things of themselves can be signs, though not all are, and, of course, all signs are themselves things (1.2.2). In the study of things and signs, the liberal arts and philosophy are useful tools (2.16.23–26; 2.41.62). Some things are meant to be enjoyed, other to be used, and still others to be used and enjoyed (1.3.3). Enjoyment consists in clinging to something lovingly for its own sake. We are on a journey to our homeland where enjoyment is found; we are tempted to pin our hopes for enjoyment on the journey rather than on the destination (1.4.4). The Trinity, one God in three equal divine persons, is what is to be enjoyed. God is not fully expressible; he is that “than which nothing is better or more sublime” (1.5.5–7.7). God is unchangeable, wise, life itself (1.8.8–1.9.9). To know and perceive the living Truth, our minds must be perfected; divine Wisdom, which is everywhere, can be seen not only with our weak inner eye, but also with the eyes of the flesh. The Word became flesh, while remaining who he eternally was, and applied the ointment of humility to our swelling pride, restoring us to life by dying (1.10.10–1.14.13). Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension are models for our death and resurrection in the Church and at the end of the world. The Church is Christ’s body and bride. It has many parts bound together by love. We are on the way, traveling not by feet, but by affections. In the Church, Christ forgives us and restores us (1.15.14–1.21.19). Only God is to be loved solely for his own sake, because only God is or can be eternally enjoyed. We should love others and ourselves for the sake of the unchangeable one whom we are to enjoy. To want to lord it over other human beings is “intolerable pride.” In this life, the soul strives to discipline the body to good habits, caring for it in a prudent way. There is no need for a commandment to love ourselves or our bodies; we do so naturally (1.22.20–1.25.26). There is a twofold command to love God (above us) and neighbor (equal to us). Love must be ordered. Every human being as human is to be loved for God’s sake. All should be loved equally, but one can be of service only to those to whom one is most closely connected. The goal is that all—friends and enemies alike—should love God and in loving him find their eternal bliss (1.26.27–29.30). So, the sum of all 23

The references in Teaching Christianity will be put in the text in parentheses: the text of De doctrina christiana is that edited by Joseph Martin in CCL 32 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1962), 1–167; tr. Edmund Hill, Teaching Christianity, WSA I/11 (Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 1996).

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that Scripture teaches is love of God and neighbor. Love presupposes faith, and faith and love establish hope. In heaven, faith and hope will fall away, but love will increase (1.35.37–1.40.44). Theory In the fourth book of On Christian Instruction, Augustine turns his attention to how to communicate the truths one has learned from the study of the Bible. By then, he had perfected his own method and style for giving sermons and on the basis of his experience he wishes to instruct others. He writes that rhetorical skills are valuable; they enable one to persuade others either to truth or falsehood. Those who wish to communicate or defend the truth need such skills. However, in this work Augustine does not intend to teach rhetoric. To study rhetoric is a young man’s work; besides, with a combination of good oral and written models, natural ability, and practice, someone can be an effective communicator of God’s word even without formal training in rhetoric (4.1.1–4.3.5). The Christian interpretation of the Scriptures has three objectives regarding teaching what is good and dissuading from what is bad: to win over the hostile, stir up the slack, and instruct the ignorant. With receptive audiences, the plain, narrative style serves for instruction and proof. If hearers need to be moved to act rather than to be instructed, one needs to implore, rebuke, stir, or dissuade; for that, the embellishments of eloquence are very helpful (4.4.6–4.6.8). The biblical authors were both wise and excellent. Paul and Amos are examples. After analyzing Amos 6:1–6, Augustine concludes that there are more examples of eloquence that could still be discovered in the passage. However, “the good listener will not so much be instructed by its being diligently analyzed as fired by its being passionately recited.”24 Though God has deliberately left some things obscure in the Scriptures, those who explain the Bible should aim above all at being understood with all the clarity that they can achieve. They have a captive audience and a pastoral purpose. Books can be put down; conversations allow for back and forth, and in them one can explain something obscure until it is understood. It is not so with sermons. The speaker should be attentive to his audience. As long as they appear eager, he should continue on the topic. When they have understood, he should 24

Doc. Chr. 4.7.21 (Martin, 131; ed. Hill, 212).

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move on. Unfortunately, those who recite sermons they have memorized do not have this flexibility (4.8.22–4.11.26). There are, an eloquent man (Cicero) said, three aims of eloquence, that is, to teach, to delight, and to sway.25 Clarity is necessary for teaching; delight to hold an audience’s attention; suasion to move someone to act. The three styles, plain, middling, and grand serve these three functions respectively, but in a sermon all of them will be interwoven (4.12.27–4.14.31). “That man therefore will be eloquent who, in order to teach, can talk about minor matters calmly; in order to delight, about middling matters moderately; in order to sway, about great matters grandly” (4.17.34). To be successful, the preacher needs more than eloquence: he needs to pray for himself and his listeners (4.15.32–4.16.33), and he needs to practice what he preaches (4.27.59–4.28.61). These two qualifications for a preacher will be reiterated many times by later theorists. Some people cannot think up or write down anything to say, but they can speak clearly and well. If they need to preach, they should offer the people what others have written well and wisely. They should pray for those who have produced what they are going to use, and pray that they will deliver it well, and afterward give thanks if the sermon went successfully. Implicit in this advice, as in the examples that Augustine gives from Amos, Paul, Cyprian, and Ambrose, is the presence of the Church as an interpretative community transmitting truth across generations.26 Conclusion Augustine’s enormously influential work On Christian Instruction has been criticized both for being too dismissive of classical rhetoric and for uncritically adopting it. That Augustine can be criticized for these contradictory reasons may be the result of some ambivalence of his own toward the rhetorical culture in which he had been trained. Eloquence is necessary, and he seeks to demonstrate that the biblical authors illustrate the rules of classical rhetoric, but he is glad they did not always do so. Carol Harrison, who explores these tensions, finds the

25 26

See Van der Meer, Augustine the Bishop, 409–10. Brian Stock, Augustine the Reader (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1996), 192.

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key to Augustine’s rhetorical theory in his conviction that the goal of Christian oratory is “to inspire love of, and the practice of the truth.”27 If truth is beautiful; if beauty is delightful; if delight is the way in which God chooses to orient the fallen will toward Himself, there is nothing artificial, arbitrary, or misleading, superfluous or decadent about describing Scripture as a work of literature or using rhetoric to preach.28

As it is love that led God to give human beings the Scriptures, so it is love that moves human beings to preach these Scriptures to other human beings, and the content of the Scripture is love. Hence, Whoever thinks that he has understood the Divine Scriptures or any part of them in such a way that it does not build up the twofold love of God and our neighbor does not yet understand at all.29

The influence of On Christian Instruction at St Victor was pervasive. The Victorines certainly agreed with Augustine that the goal of Christian learning was the love of God and neighbor, and that in this world we are travelers on the way to our true home. They agreed that the Scriptures are a guide for the journey, with multiple meanings, because not only the words of Scripture, but also the things they describe have meaning. They agreed that biblical interpretation must begin with the literal sense, but that there are other spiritual senses, which reveal truth about Christ, the Church, and the sacraments, and teach Christians how to live, so that they may reach the Trinity, the only reality to be loved and enjoyed for its own sake. The Victorines saw human knowledge not only as instrumental for understanding the Bible, but also as helping human beings gain the necessities of mortal life. They also were committed to sharing with others through compassion and preaching what they knew of God’s Word, a commitment they could have derived from Book Four of On Christian Instruction, but which was certainly driven home to them by the life and teaching of Gregory the Great.

27

28 29

Carol Harrison, “The Rhetoric of Scripture and Preaching: Classical Decadence or Christian Aesthetic?” Augustine and his Critics, ed. Robert Dodaro and George Lawless (New York: Routledge, 2000), 222. Harrison, “Rhetoric of Scripture,” 224. Augustine, Doc. Chr. 1.36.40 (Martin, CCL 32, 29), cited by Michael Signer, “From Theory to Practice: The De doctrina christiana and the Exegesis of Andrew of St Victor,” Reading and Wisdom: The De doctrina christiana of Augustine in the Middle Ages, ed. Edward D. English (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1995), 93.

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GREGORY THE GREAT (D. 604)

Gregory became pope in 590 against his wishes. By then he was about fifty years old. He came from a wealthy, aristocratic family and had served briefly as prefect of Rome, become a monk at the monastery of St Andrew located on family property in Rome, and served as papal representative in Constantinople (579–85), after which he returned to his monastery. Without exaggeration, Hughes Oliphant Old writes that Gregory “gave the West an appreciation of true leadership, both spiritual and terrestrial, both political and religious, and at the center of that was his deep understanding of the office of preacher.”30 When he took up his ministry as bishop of Rome, Gregory had considerable experience as a spiritual leader and deep insight into the workings of the human heart. He had come to think of the Church as having three categories of members: (1) rectores = praedicatores = pastores, (2) continentes, (3) boni coniugati (leaders = preachers = pastors, ascetics, and married people). Those in the first category have the most difficult task, because they must combine a life of prayer with the manifold responsibilities of spiritual governance.31 Not without reason, Gregory thought that the times in which he lived were barbarous. He grew up during the Gothic wars (535–52) waged by Belisarius, which aimed to bring Italy again under the control of Constantinople. The city of Rome experienced siege, occupation, plague, flood, and famine. In 568 the Lombards entered Italy, and they and the Byzantines struggled for ascendancy. These disasters seemed like forerunners of the End. The sense of impending doom might have tempted some to slack off, but it aroused in Gregory a sense of urgency to free captives, welcome and care for refugees, help the sick, promote church reform where needed, and urge all to compunction and communion. Gregory was nurtured by the Augustine’s expositions of the Gospel of St John and the Psalms and his other sermons. He also knew Augustine’s doctrinal works, though perhaps only through excerpts. 30 31

Hughes Oliphant Old, The Reading and Preaching, 2:426. Gregory, Mor. 1.14.20 (ed. Robert Gillet, Grégoire le Grand, Morales sur Job, 1.1–2, SC 32bis [Paris: Cerf, 1989], 194; tr. Brian Kerns, Gregory the Great, Moral Reflections on the Book of Job, 1, CS 249 [Collegeville: Cistercian Publications, 2014], 88); Hom. Ez. 2.4.5, ed. Charles Morel, Grégoire le Grand, Homélies sur Ézékiel 2, SC 360 (Paris: Cerf, 1990), 192; George E. Demacopoulos, Gregory the Great: Ascetic, Pastor, and First Man of Rome (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame, 2015), 57–61.

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Although Gregory confesses to little knowledge of Greek, he also cites Origen and Gregory of Nazianzus, whom he mentions by name in the Pastoral Rule,32 referring several times to Gregory’s Second Oration, which aimed to justify its author’s reluctance to take on the duties of a bishop. Gregory’s description of the governance of souls as “the art of arts” was inspired by the same source.33 In the first years of his papal ministry, Gregory produced two works that had enormous influence on the theory and practice of preaching throughout the Middle Ages, and particularly at St Victor, where his feast was celebrated and his writings were read in the dining room and elsewhere. The Pastoral Rule teaches how to preach and what sort of person the preacher must be. The forty Sermons on the Gospel show how Gregory himself applied his theory in preaching. Theory By the time that Gregory wrote the Pastoral Rule and the Sermons on the Gospel, he had already thought about preaching. In his Moral Interpretation of Job, he wrote: The perfect is not someone who neglects what he should do because of his delight in contemplation or someone who relegates contemplation to second place because of the pressing need for action. Thus, Abraham buried his wife in a double tomb after her death: for every preacher who is really perfect places his soul in the tomb of the desires of the present life, under the protection of good actions and of contemplation, in such a way that under the protection of the active and contemplate life, it is insensible to fleshly concupiscence, although previously his soul felt the desires of the world and lived exposed to death. That is why the redeemer of the human race performed miracles in settlements during the day and spent the night on the mountain, devoting his time to prayer. By doing so he prompted perfect preachers on the one hand not to abandon completely the active life for the love of contemplation and on the other hand not to despise the joys of contemplation by spending too much time in action. In the quiet

32

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Reg. Past. 3, prol. (Gregoire le Grand, Régle Pastorale 2, ed. Bruno Judic, Floribert Rommel, and Charles Morel, SC 382 [Paris: Cerf, 1992], 258; tr. Henry Davis, Gregory the Great, Pastoral Care, ACW 11 [Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1950], 89). There are five references to Gregory of Nazianzus’ Second Oration in the Pastoral Rule (see the introduction to Davis’ translation, 13–14). The citation from Gregory Nazianzus describing the government of souls as the “art of arts” is in Pastoral Rule 1.1 (tr. Davis, 21).

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of contemplation they draw up from the source what they will do to profit their neighbor in presenting the word to him.34

The Pastoral Rule is divided into four unequal parts. The first part describes the difficulties and duties of the pastoral office. The second part tells what the life of a good pastor should be. The third and by far the longest part offers guidance on how to preach and teach to many different kinds of people. The fourth part reminds the pastor or preacher to remember his own infirmities.35 In Part One, Gregory rebukes those who are unqualified but eager to teach and to rule. They are supposed to teach with humility, yet their ambition is evidence of pride. Good pastors teach what they know not just from study but also by living (1.1–40). On the other hand, those who have the virtue and skills should not decline the pastoral office when invited to it. They should imitate the Only-Begotten Son who came from the Father to humankind (1.5–6). This idea was very important to the Victorines, who felt that those gifted with contemplation should not just rest in it, but minister to others out of compassion, just as Jesus did. Gregory describes thus the person fit for pastoral office: He, therefore, must devote himself entirely to setting an example of living. He must die to all passions of the flesh and lead a spiritual life. He must not be concerned about worldly prosperity or fear adversity. He must desire only what is interior. He must be a man whose aims are not thwarted by bodily frailty or by any contumacy of the spirit. He is not led to covet the goods of others, but is bounteous in giving of his own. He is quickly moved by a compassionate heart to forgive, yet never so diverted from perfect rectitude as to forgive beyond what is proper. He does no unlawful acts himself, but deplores those of others as if they were his own. In the affection of his own heart he sympathizes with the frailties of others and likewise rejoices in the good of neighbor, as if it were his own. In all that he does he sets an example so inspiring to all others that he has no cause to be ashamed. He so studies to 34

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Mor. 6.37.56 (here translated from the French in Grégoire le Grand, Homélies sur l’Évangile, ed. Raymond Étaix, Charles Morel, and Bruno Judic, SC 485 [Paris: Cerf, 2005], 32; tr. Kerns, 80–81). For the theory of preaching and pastoral leadership in the Pastoral Rule, see Anderson, Christian Eloquence, 56–75. This outline is summarized in the Letter to John of Ravenna that prefaces the Pastoral Rule (tr. Davis, 20–21). Drawing especially on Gregory’s Homilies on Ezekiel, Old, Reading and Preaching, 2:440–54, summarizes Gregory’s theology of the Word under three headings: The Authority of the Word of God, The Graciousness of the Word of God, and The Inspiration of the Word of God.

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live as to be able to water the dry hearts of others with the streams of instruction he imparts. By his practice and experience of prayer he has learned already that he can obtain from the Lord what he asks for.36

Gregory begins Part Two, on the interior and exterior life of the pastor, with a summary, which he then elaborates: The conduct of a prelate should so far surpass the conduct of the people, as the life of a pastor sets him apart from his flock. For one who is so regarded that the people are called his flock must carefully consider how necessary it is for him to maintain a life of rectitude. It is necessary, therefore, that he should be pure in thought, exemplary in conduct, discreet in keeping silence, profitable in speech, in sympathy a near neighbor to everyone, in contemplation superior to all others, a humble companion to those who lead good lives, upright in his zeal for righteousness against the vices of sinners. He must not be remiss in his care for the inner life by preoccupation with the external; nor must he in his solicitude for what is internal fail to give attention to the external.37

Book Three is by far the longest section of the Pastoral Rule. Gregory of Nazianzus taught that because the same exhortation is not suitable for all, the teacher or preacher must so shape his discourse to speak to individuals with very different needs. The preacher must give the same doctrine to all, but not the same exhortation. Guided by this principle, Gregory the Great describes dozens of situations in which the preacher addresses audiences of contrasting people; e.g., young and old, married and unmarried, gluttonous and abstemious. Thus, the poor who are refined in the furnace of poverty should be consoled, while the rich are to be warned not to be proud or to seek consolation in this life rather than in the next. The poor should be shown that they do have riches, but the rich are to be warned they cannot keep their wealth forever. On the other hand, some rich people are humble and some poor people are proud. Sometimes, too, the rich must be admonished indirectly as Nathan admonished David about his treatment of Uriah.38 Those who give away their possessions are to be warned not to be proud or feel superior to those to whom they give temporal goods. They should also 36

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Reg. past. 1.10 (tr. Davis, 38–39, slightly modified in light of St Gregory the Great, The Book of Pastoral Rule, tr. George E. Demacopoulos, Popular Patristics Series 34 [Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2007], 43). Tr. Davis, 45, modified in light of tr. Demacopoulos, 49. Reg. past. 3.2 (ed. and tr. Judic, Rommel, and Morel, SC 382, 268–72; tr. Davis, 92–95).

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be discerning in what they give and to whom. They should not seek praise but should be cheerful givers. On the other hand, those who aim at seizing what belongs to others are to be reminded of Jesus’ warnings in Matthew 25 about those who fail to feed or clothe Him in the poor. How much worse it will be for those who actually rob others of their food and possessions. Those who want to pile up wealth should be reminded of Jesus’ warnings to the rich and about how fleeting this life is.39 Other admonitions are suitable for those who, although they do not take what belongs to others, do not share their own, and for those who share but also despoil.40 In the brief Book Four, Gregory warns pastors not to become proud of their success as preachers. They should remember their own imperfections. Gregory ends by doing exactly that. He confesses, Here I, who am still tossed about by the waves of sin, have been directing others to the shore of perfection. But in the shipwreck of this life, I implore you to buoy me up with the plank of your prayers, so that, since my weight is sinking me down, you may lift me up with the hand of your merit.41

Practice As was stated earlier, in the early years of his service as bishop of Rome, Gregory wrote two books to guide pastors and preachers, the Pastoral Rule and Forty Sermons on the Gospels. Prior to that he had written two lengthy expositions of the books of Ezekiel and Job, the contents of which show up in the Victorine sermons; for example, in Richard’s sermon for the Feast of St Gregory. During the first four years of his papacy, Gregory wrote and/or delivered forty homilies that he then corrected and collected for circulation.42 Gregory’s homilies are carefully thought out but apparently straightforward explanations (expositiones) and exhortations (admonitiones) regarding Christian life, delivered to the people of Rome gathered at 39 40 41

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Reg. past. 3.20 (ed. and tr. Judic, Rommel, and Morel, SC 382, 382–93; tr. Davis, 152–58). Reg. past. 3.21 (ed. and tr. Judic, Rommel, and Morel, SC 382, 394–401; tr. Davis, 158–62). Reg. past. 4 (ed. and tr. Judic, Rommel, and Morel, SC 382, 531; tr. Davis, 237): “qui adhuc in delictorum fluctibus versor. Sed in huius quaeso vitae naufragio orationis tuae me tabula sustine, ut quia pondus proprium deprimi, tui meriti manus me levet.” For a recent summary of findings on the organization and production of this collection, see the foreword by Bruno Judic to Grégoire le Grand, Homélies sur l’Évangile, ed. and tr. Raymond Étaix, Charles Morel, Georges Blanc, and Bruno Judic, 2 vols., SC 485, 522 (Paris: Cerf, 2005, 2008), 2:7–11.

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stational churches for the great Christian feasts and the commemorations of saints and martyrs. Gregory’s style is simple, like that employed by St Augustine in his sermons to his people. He makes a few clear points as he comments on the gospel text line by line, citing other biblical passages to interpret the text he is explaining. Gregory sometimes inserts passages found in his Moralia and the Pastoral Rule. In the Pastoral Rule, Gregory observed that examples could be more effective than words alone.43 In keeping with this observation, he sometimes uses exempla, short anecdotes to illustrate a point he wishes to make. The Victorines were not inclined to use exempla, but exempla from Gregory often appear in the exempla collections that became very popular in the thirteenth century.44 Living the Gospel is both a precondition and a consequence of the good news. Generally, Gregory moves from doctrine to exhortation, and the latter is often infused with a monastic flavor and an urgency inspired by a strong eschatological emphasis. Two examples will illustrate the style and content of Gregory’s Forty Sermons on the Gospel.45 Like the other homilies in the collection, his very brief Christmas homily begins with the Gospel reading itself, Luke 2:1–14. Gregory’s introductions often speak to the setting and circumstances in which he is preaching. In this case, it is Christmas, on which day it is customary to celebrate Mass three times, and so his sermon will be particularly short. Sometimes he refers to his health, as in Homily 21, where he says that has caused him to address the people using texts he has dictated. However, when he has been feeling sick and cannot deliver the address himself, he has noticed that people are less inclined to listen when a sermon is read. So this time, at Easter, he is going to address them in person, rather than read his sermon or have 43

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Reg. past. 3.6 (ed. and tr. Judic, Rommel, Blanc, and Morel, 286–87; tr. Davis, 102–03). One example, about two blood brothers who entered his monastery in Rome, Gregory used three times: Hom. ev. 19.7 (ed. and tr. Étaix, Morel, Blanc, and Judic, SC 485, 436–41; tr. David Hurst, Gregory the Great, Forty Gospel Homilies, CS 123 [Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1990] [Sermon 11; Hurst uses a different numbering system], 83–85); 38.16 (ed. and tr. Étaix, Morel, Blanc, and Judic, SC 485, 486–89; tr. Hurst, 354–55); Dialogues 4.40.2–5 (Grégoire le Grand, Dialogues, ed. Adalbert de Vogüé, tr. Paul Antin, SC 265 [Paris: Cerf, 1980], 140–43; tr. Odo Zimmerman, Saint Gregory the Great, Dialogues, FOC 39 [New York: Fathers of the Church, 1959], 244–46). Maurice de Sully uses an exemplum in his Sermon 18 for Easter that is translated later in this volume. Old, Reading and Preaching, 2:429, does not think Gregory had much responsibility for the popularity of exempla in the later Middle Ages. Anderson, Christian Eloquence, 76–92, discusses Gregory’s Homilies briefly and offers a translation of Homily One as an example.

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it read.46 At other times, he begins without any introduction, usually by referring to a question the gospel reading raises. Why was Christ born when the world was being enrolled? It was because he came to enroll his elect in eternity. He who is the living bread from heaven was born in Bethlehem, which means house of bread. He was not born at home in Nazareth, to show that the Son of God was coming into a place that was not his native and eternal abode. He was born in a manger, because he came to feed us with the hay of his body and change the hay of our bodies into wheat. The angel appeared to the shepherds as they watched, signifying the grace that is bestowed by God on good shepherds of his flock. The angels sang out because once Christ was born the angels who had disowned sinful humanity once more regarded us as fellow citizens. They, whom human beings had once worshipped, now worshipped a human being who was God above them. Therefore, since God has become a human being like us, let us not defile our dignity by letting envy, pride, anger, or the search for pleasure seize our minds. Homily 40 is much longer than Gregory’s Christmas sermon. It treats of the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19–31). Gregory begins by saying that one should begin with the literal meaning, and then proceed to the allegorical sense. However, since in this gospel the literal meaning refers to morality, he will begin with the allegory. Moreover, people tend to remember best what they hear last. Gregory thinks the rich man and Lazarus represented the Jews and the Gentiles. The dog represents preachers and teachers who heal our wounds with their tongues by their preaching or when we confess our sins. Smooth tongues might also stand for flatterers. “Lazarus” means “helped.” Abraham’s bosom stands for repose with the Father. Unbelievers who keep the words of the Law in their mouths but do not act on them will be burnt by them. Sinners long for physical pleasure (as the rich man longs for cooling water), whereas the just know that the good things of this life are of little worth compared to the heavenly good they still desire. Because the Jews did not believe the spiritual meaning of Moses’ words, they did not believe in the One who rose from the dead. Turning to the moral implications, Gregory says that because it commands wholesome thoughts and generous deeds, the New Testament is more demanding than the Old Testament. The reference to the Rich Man’s purple clothing is a warning against fine and costly 46

Hom. ev. 21.1 (ed. and tr. Étaix, Morel, Blanc, and Judic, SC 522, 28–29; tr. Hurst, 157).

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clothing, which panders to vainglory. God refers to Lazarus by name, whereas it is usually rich people who are singled out by name. Lazarus is right at the Rich Man’s door, so the rich man has no excuse to ignore Lazarus’ need. Think, too, of the temptations that the poor man experienced by seeing the luxury of the rich man. These were a God-given opportunity to increase his merit. The rich man may have wanted cold water for his tongue because at rich banquets such as he enjoyed daily there is much talking and so for that reason his tongue was being punished. Moreover, when God addresses the rich man suffering in hell, he refers to his wealth. Rich people should be afraid that the wealth they receive in this life is their only reward, perhaps even a reward for evil deeds. If someone is wealthy, he must be solicitous for the poor, whose poverty may be a gift from God. After death, the just in heaven will be filled with mercy, but respecting the Creator’s justice, they can have no compassion for the wicked in hell. The wicked in hell are suffering punishment for their sin and, like the Rich Man, are tormented by knowledge that those dear to them will suffer the same fate. The righteous, seeing the torments of the unjust, are all the more grateful to God that He has saved them from those torments. Therefore, Gregory urges his audience to take care of the poor who can become intercessors on their behalf. They should give alms to needy people, no matter what the poor have done. One may counsel them, but not despise them. “We must honor them all, and you must humble yourself before everyone, inasmuch as you do not know who among them may be Christ.” Gregory illustrates this with an exemplum47 that was well known to his fellow priest and monk, Speciosus, who, he notes, is present. He concludes by urging his hearers not to put too much value on honors and things, but to honor the poor and consider them all as friends of God. Those who have more should share with the poor so that in the end the poor will deign to share what they have with them. Finally, Gregory prays that God will address to his hearers’ hearts what Gregory is addressing to their ears. Gregory is very much in touch with his hearers. He refers to the setting, to himself, and to his audience. He proceeds from doctrine to morality. He expounds doctrine by using question, contrast, and 47

For a brief introduction to the exemplum, see Phyllis Roberts, “The ‘Ars praedicandi’ and the Medieval Sermon,” Preacher, Sermon and Audience in the Middle Ages, ed. Carolyn Muessig, A New History of the Sermon 3 (Leiden: Brill, 2002), 52–54.

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etymology; he finds verbal or conceptual links to other parts of the Bible. In Homily 40, he illustrates how in one sermon he tries to speak to both the poor and the wealthy. The morality he inculcates is directed toward sharing with those in need and avoiding the capital sins, which are interior attitudes before they become outward acts. In the same sermon, he illustrates his abiding awareness of how transitory is life on earth and how imminent is the Judgment, and his belief that God’s providence will bring good out of evil and suffering. The Influence of Gregory’s Gospel Homilies Gregory’s Homilies on the Gospels had great influence.48 There are more than 450 complete or partial manuscripts of them, including a sixth- or seventh-century papyrus fragment of the first homily. Gregory’s colleague, Paterus, compiled a collection of Gregory’s works arranged according to the books of the Bible. In 613, Isidore of Seville mentions Gregory’s homilies in his De viris illustribus, 27, but says he has not seen them. Bede mentioned them in his Ecclesiastical History, 21. Bede used Gregory’s homilies in his biblical commentaries; a number of excerpts from the two sermons just analyzed appear in Bede’s Commentary on Luke.49 Bede composed fifty sermons. With one exception, he commented only on gospel passages on which Gregory had not preached. EARLY MEDIEVAL AND CAROLINGIAN PREACHERS AND HOMILIARIES

The two centuries following the birth of St Bede (672/3–735) were particularly noteworthy not so much for innovations in preaching as for the compilation of sermons in homiliaries and the production of commentaries that served as sources for sermon writers, then and for centuries afterwards.

48 49

For what follows, see Étaix, Morel, Blanc, and Judic, SC 485, 51–88; cf. Old, Reading and Preaching, 2:426–27. Hurst identifies these passages in the notes to his translation of Gregory’s Forty Gospel Homilies and in the index to his edition of Bede’s In Lucae Evangelium expositio, CCL 120 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1960), 677.

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The Gospel Sermons of Bede Bede, benefitting from a good library, drew on Augustine, Jerome, and Gregory in composing his sermons and commentaries. He lived in a time and place far removed from the world of the Bible, and relied on authors such as these to help him write his many commentaries, which made the Scriptures accessible to his readers. Richard of St Victor drew heavily on Bede’s biblical commentaries in his Liber exceptionum, which in turn was widely influential.50 Bede’s own cycle of fifty homilies on the Gospels is, like Gregory’s forty homilies, divided into two books. The first book runs from Advent into Lent and the second book runs from Lent to Pentecost, then adds sermons on John the Baptist, several apostles, and two sermons for the dedication of a church. The sermons seem to have been arranged and edited to serve the needs of other preachers and perhaps for inclusion in a homiliary. They concentrate on the preparation for and celebration of Christmas and Easter.51 The content of the homilies is very similar to that of the commentaries: both seek to promote virtue, prayer, and peace. Holder writes: the standard pattern for each homily is a reference to “the gospel reading we have just heard” and an examination of what classical rhetoricians called the “circumstances” of a historical event (who, what, when, where, and why), followed by a verse-by-verse exposition of the text that leads to a hortatory conclusion in which the preacher invites the listeners to apply the gospel lessons to their own lives and a final doxology. Allegorical interpretations of biblical names, places, objects, and events yield spiritual insights with universal applicability; there are very few topical references. Bede’s interest as a preacher is in the great themes of pride and humility, sin and grace, promise and fulfillment, the uncertainty of judgment, and the hope of heaven in the life to come.52

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Richard de Saint-Victor, Liber exceptionum, ed. Jean Châtillon, TPMA 5 (Paris: Vrin, 1958), 539–40. Old, Reading and Preaching, 3:120–26; Benedicta Ward, The Venerable Bede, CS 169 (Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1998), 41–87. For Bede’s Gospel homilies, see Bede the Venerable, Homilies on the Gospels, Book One: Advent to Lent, tr. Lawrence T. Martin and David Hurst, CS 110 (Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1991), and Homilies on the Gospels, Book Two: Lent to the Dedication of the Church, tr. Lawrence T. Martin and David Hurst, CS 111 (Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1991); The Venerable Bede: On the Song of Songs and Selected Writings, tr. Arthur Holder (New York: Paulist Press, 2011), 253–77. Holder, Venerable Bede, 30.

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Lectionaries and Homiliaries From the time of Leo the Great (d. 461) to the time of Bede, the lectionary developed into a relatively fixed cycle of readings for Sundays and feasts. Pope Leo was a master of classical oratory. The 100 or so sermons of his that survive were given on important feast days of the temporal cycle of the liturgical year and on some of the feasts of saints. For Christmas, Holy Week, Easter, and Pentecost, there were obvious readings that became traditional. Meanwhile, certain books of the Bible came to be associated with certain times for the year, such as Isaiah during Advent, Job during Lent, Jeremiah and Lamentations for the days before Easter, or the Acts of the Apostles between Easter and Pentecost. This association of Biblical books with certain times of the year occurred in the monastic night office (Godfrey of St Victor refers in his sermons to what biblical books were read at the night office during what parts of the year), but it also influenced the selection of readings for Mass. As specific readings gradually were assigned to each Sunday and feast, a fixed lectionary developed. Thus, the lectionary of Würzburg (c. 575) contains 255 epistle readings drawn from the Old Testament, the New Testament epistles, Acts, and Revelation. There are still no fixed readings for the Sundays between Pentecost and Advent, but a selection of 40 readings from the Pauline letters is provided without being assigned to any specific day. In Gregory the Great’s time, the Sundays of Pentecost were assigned specific readings. Thereafter, those fixed readings were the objects of liturgical preaching.53 Charlemagne encouraged both the spread of the Benedictine Rule and preaching. Carolingian legislation and imperial directives urged that bishops and priests have copies of Gregory’s Pastoral Rule and Homilies on the Gospel. Inventories of church goods indicate that these directives were followed. There were to be sermons at every Sunday Mass. To make this possible, Alcuin (d. 804) was given the task of regularizing the lectionary according to the usage of the Church of Rome, although the lectionary that resulted had many adaptations to Gallic usages.54 Once the lectionary was established, Paul Warnefrid, known as Paul the Deacon, prepared a homiliary keyed to the lectionary. Paul sought a reliable text of the Roman homiliary and searched patristic writings for 53 54

Old, Reading and Preaching, 3:143–84. Old, Reading and Preaching, 3:188–97; Thomas N. Hall, “The Early Medieval Sermon,” in Kienzle, The Sermon, 220–27.

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sermons or selections from commentaries that could provide sermons for the Sundays that heretofore had not had homilies assigned to them. Paul produced a collection of 244 sermons, sometimes offering two or three options for a single day. Augustine, Leo the Great, and Maximus of Turin (first half of the fifth century)55 are prominent contributors to Paul’s lectionary. He included 32 of Gregory’s homilies, and later expansions of his homiliary added most of the rest of Gregory’s sermons. Bede’s homilies provided nearly one-fourth of the readings. Origen, Chrysostom, and Isidore are represented.56 Other Carolingian preachers also compiled homiliaries. Rhaban Maur (d. c. 856), studied under Alcuin, taught at Fulda, and became abbot there before becoming archbishop of Mainz. He made two collections of sermons for the liturgical year designed for preaching to the people. His sermons present the Christian faith in relation to the mysteries or feasts of the liturgical year, and draw from those mysteries moral guidelines for Christians. Haimo of Auxerre (d. c. 855), another Benedictine abbot, also wrote scriptural commentaries and a homiliary, which gathered texts from earlier writers that could help preachers. Unlike Rhaban Maur, he provides sermons for all the Sundays of the year.57 These homiliaries solidified a tradition that lasts until today. Although the lectionary was thoroughly revised and expanded after Vatican II so that the homiliaries no longer fit the assigned readings, the sermons that these compilers gathered are often included in the Office of Readings in the Roman Breviary. Having the same cycle of Mass readings every year did somewhat limit the range of preaching. While the lectionary enriched preaching by putting pericopes from different parts of the Bible in juxtaposition, it also took the passages out of their context in the biblical book from which they were taken. As we shall see, the Victorines, whose sermons are almost exclusively connected with feast days, seem to have preached not at Mass but in the chapter room. They could therefore choose to preach on passages from the Divine Office rather than from the lectionary and this gave them the 55

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Almut Mutzenbecher published a critical edition of Maximus’ sermons, Maximi Episcopi Tavinensis collectionem sermonum antiquam nonnullis sermonibus extravagantibus adiectis, CCL 23 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1962). For English translations, see The Sermons of St Maximus of Turin, tr. Boniface Ramsey, ACW 50 (New York: Newman Press, 1989). Old, Reading and Preaching, 3:198–200. Old, Reading and Preaching, 3:200–18; Hall, “The Early Medieval Sermon,” Kienzle, The Sermon, 219–27.

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opportunity to preach on more biblical texts, though often they confined themselves to allegorizing on just a few words. On the other hand, the sermons in the homiliaries or sermon collections were available for use at the night office, in the dining room, and for private reading. The Early Medieval Sermon Thomas Hall defined the early medieval (pre-twelfth-century) homily: A written text marked for oral public delivery within a liturgical setting, usually by means of a direct address to the audience, and/or by the quotation of a scriptural pericope at the beginning of the text as a basis of exposition, and/or by the use of a benediction at the homily’s end.58

Whether such texts were ever delivered by the author often cannot be determined, but the text has an imagined if not a real audience, which is usually addressed as fratres carissimi or fratres et sorores. The audience is referred to by the use of second-person or first-person plural at the beginning and end and occasionally during the course of the homily. The benediction and/or doxology at the end of the sermon was introduced by Caesarius of Arles (d. 543), who used them to end most of his 236 Sermones ad populos, which were widely used and imitated.59 As will be obvious, the twelfth-century Victorine preachers follow this model very closely. ARTES PRAEDICANDI: ON HOW TO COMPOSE A SERMON

The twelfth century, in which the abbey of St Victor was founded and in which the writers whose sermons are included in this collection lived and preached, saw the beginning of a new genre of guidelines for preachers, the ars praedicandi. Rather than compendia of existing sermons, they offer theoretical guidelines for composing new ones. Here it will suffice to mention the two earliest examples of, or immediate predecessors of, the artes praedicandi. These two works were contemporaneous with the Victorine preachers translated here. Then a 58 59

Thomas N. Hall, “The Early Medieval Sermon,” Kienzle, The Sermon, 206, with the surrounding discussion, 203–19. Sancti Caesarii Arelatensis Sermones, ed. Germain Morin, 2 vols., editio altera, CCL 103–04 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1953); Caesarius of Arles, Sermons, tr. Mary Madeleine Mueller, FOC 31, 47, 66 (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America: 1956, 1964, 1973).

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look at an excellent example of the genre from the fourteenth century will show how sermon theory developed after the Victorines. This will help locate the Victorine sermons in the developing theory about the construction and delivery of sermons. Guibert of Nogent (d. 1124) Guibert was born at Clermont in 1053 and died at the monastery of St Mary at Nogent-sous-Coucy near Laon, where he was abbot from 1104 until his death in 1124. He wrote biblical commentaries, treatises, a book on relics, a history of the First Crusade, and a partially autobiographical Monodiae. The work that deserves attention here is Quo ordine sermo fieri debeat, which Guibert attached as a kind of introduction to his Moralia Geneseos.60 Guibert describes it in the Monodiae: I proposed to undertake a moral commentary on the beginning of Genesis, namely the hexaemeron. I prefaced to this commentary a rather brief treatise on how a sermon should be made.61

This brief treatise reads like a justification for Guibert’s boldness in undertaking to do for the first part of Genesis what Gregory the Great had done for Job in his Moralia. The Quo ordine falls into three parts: the duty and motivation for preaching; guidelines for preachers; and sources of content for sermons and the ways in which they should be presented. Guibert begins with the statement: “It is very dangerous for someone who has the office of preaching to stop teaching. Just as it is damnable to give example of depravity, so someone who does not wish to heal sinners by teaching is close to damnation.”62 There are various reasons why people either preach for the wrong reasons, neglect their duty to instruct others, or preach ineffectively: pride, envy or jealousy 60

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Ed. R. B. C. Huygens, CCCM 127 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1993), 47–63. Much of the work is translated in Early Medieval Theology, ed. and tr. George E. McCracken and Allen Cabaniss, Library of Christian Classics (1957; Louisville: Westminster/John Knox, 2006), 283–99, but their translation is based on the earlier edition of Luc d’Achery, reprinted in PL 156.21–32. Guibert de Nogent, Autobiographie, ed. E.-R. Labande, Les classiques de l’histoire de France au Moyen Âge 34 (Paris: Société d’Édition “Les Belles Lettres,” 1981), 142, cited by Huygens, CCCM 127, 7: “Propositum autem habui ut initia Geneseos, exaemeron scilicet, commentari moraliter aggrederer. Cui commento preposui tractatum satis mediocrem qualiter sermo fieri oporteat.” Quo ordine, ed. Huygens, 47: “Valde periculosum est a doctrina cessare, cui officium pertinet predicandi. Sicut enim damnabile est exempla pravitatis ostendere ita etiam damnationi proximum esse constat eum, qui peccantes non vult docendo sanare.”

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of others’ goodness and knowledge, laziness, and the lack of a pastoral charge, which they think excuses them from benefitting their community by preaching. By contrast to these people who do wrong or are unwilling to do right, “let we, who have achieved some knowledge of Sacred Scripture, speak from God, that is, with God as the origin of all our discourse, and before God, seeking to please no one but God alone by the sermon we weave together.”63 One should preach from a pure conscience and a contrite heart. Prayer should precede speaking so that a burning heart may inflame the hearts of one’s listeners. A verbose sermon irritates rather than instructs; it is not remembered. What is presented to less educated people should be easier and simpler, but some more profound things should be mixed in to challenge the learned. Simple stories please some people; subtle references to the Old Testament capture the attention of others. The stories should be adorned with the colors of rhetoric.64 Addressing the preacher, Guibert lists the four senses of Scripture, which are like the wheels on which the Sacred Page travels, and illustrates them with the fourfold meaning of “Jerusalem.” It is less likely to confuse people and more likely to help them if the preacher concentrates on the moral meaning. Everyone can understand what is said about virtues and vices by referring to the book of his own heart. To find material on the interior life, one should consult Gregory’s Moralia and Cassian’s Conferences. One should ponder one’s own experience of temptation, virtue, and vice before preaching about them. One should mix simple exhortation with more subtle teaching to keep the attention of the both the simple and the more educated. The words of Scripture, such as “rock,” “foundation,” and “gold” have many meanings, which can be explored and presented by examples and reasoning. The preacher should not be afraid to look for new meanings of words and things. Finally, he should remember that sincere preaching, which seeks only the instruction and salvation of the hearers without regard to the glory or remuneration of the preacher, is the most effective.65 In the final section of his treatise, Guibert turns his attention to the sources of material available to preachers and how to present them. 63

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Quo ordine, ed. Huygens, 48: “Loquamur itaque quicunque sacrae paginae notitiam adepti sumus sicut ex deo, hoc est deum totius nostri tractatus habentes originem, et coram deo, nulli preter deo soli ex nostri sermonis contextione placere querentes.” Quo ordine, ed. Huygens, 48–53. Quo ordine, ed. Huygens, 53–60.

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People living bestial lives will not be deterred by sermons on heaven and hell. A thief is more likely to be deterred by being reminded of punishments he will receive if he is caught. To address those in the throes of lust, one should develop the saying of Boethius, “What shall I say of lustful pleasures? The yearning for them is full of anxiety; their satisfaction full of regret.”66 Preachers should present examples that illustrate these miseries. Guibert concludes: Let no one think that in this undertaking we are trying to do something unprecedented; know that if according to the poet “it was permitted and always will be / to produce speech stamped with today’s seal,”67 how much more is it allowed to all those learned in knowledge of the Sacred Page, provided they adhere to the faith and the rules of the ancient interpreters, to investigate the richness of the Scriptures through various meanings.68

Guibert’s insistence on the duty of those qualified to preach and teach was a conviction shared by the Victorines, who preached and insisted on the duty of other clergy to preach. They likewise agreed that prayer was the soil that nourished good preaching, and they mixed doctrinal reflection with moral exhortation, in part to keep the attention of the educated canons to whom their sermons were addressed. The Victorines were perhaps less bold in asserting their right to offer new allegorical interpretations, but their homiletic practice agrees with Guibert’s conviction that the moral sense of Scripture was the one to emphasize in preaching. They agreed also that, to convey the moral meaning, self-knowledge and experience are very important. Like his, their theology and preaching, drew heavily on Gregory the Great. Alan of Lille (d. 1203) Alan of Lille was born in the 1120s. He was known as the “Universal Doctor” because of the range of his interests and writings as philoso66

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Quo ordine, ed. Huygens, 61, citing Cons. 3. Pr. 7.1 (ed. H. F. Stewart, Boethius, The Theological Tractates; The Consolation of Philosophy, Loeb [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1962], 250–51). Horace, Ars poetica, 58–59, ed. H. Rushon Fairclough, Horace, Satires, Epistles and Ars poetica, LCL 194 (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2005), 454–55, who translates “words stamped with the mint-mark of the day.” Quo ordine, ed. Huygens, 63: “Nec nos res novas moliri in hoc quisquam existimet, sciens quia, si secundum poetam ‘licuit semperque licebit / signatum presente nota producere nomen,’ multo magis liceat omnibus sacrae paginae scientia doctis, salva fide et iuxta veterum regulas interpretum, Scripturaum per sensus varios disquirere ubertatem. Dicamus igitur.”

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pher, theologian, teacher, preacher, and poet. In spite of this, little is known of his life. The dedications of his Contra haereticos and his Distinctiones dictionum theologicarum and other evidence indicate that he spent time at Montpellier. There are strong indications that he taught at Paris and had connections with Simon of Tournai and Thierry of Chartres. He may have been a Benedictine for a time; he died at Cîteaux.69 Alan’s Ars praedicandi survives in over 90 manuscripts. Because it was a practical work, it was sometimes carelessly copied or interpolated. It seems that Alan may have composed the work during his time in Paris, and then added to it later in his life when his interests were primarily pastoral. Some manuscripts end at chapter 30. The longer versions have 67 chapters. These chapters can be divided into four unequal groups: (1) Introduction: the theory of the art of preaching (chap. 1) (2) subject matter for preaching (chap. 2–37), which in turn is subdivided into (a) bad things people should avoid (chap. 2–11) (b) virtues (chap. 12–37) (3) what is required of the preacher (chap. 38) (4) the different audiences to whom sermons are given (chap. 39–47) The Liber sermonum, a group of 27 sermons de tempore and de sanctis, is attached to Alan’s Ars praedicandi in some manuscripts. These sermons may have been meant to serve as examples. Some of them appear independently of the Ars. There are over 65 additional sermons that can be credibly assigned to Alan of Lille.70

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These are the conclusions of Marie-Thérèse d’Alverny who examined the scattered biographical evidence for Alan in her Alain de Lille. Textes inédits, Études de philosophie médiévale 52 (Paris: Vrin, 1965), 11–29. Dominique Poirel, “Alain de Lille, hériter de l’école de Saint Victor?” in Alain de Lille, Le docteur universel, ed. Jean-Luc Solère, Anca Vasiliu, and Alain Galonnier, Rencontres de philosophie médiévale 12 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2005), 59–82, shows that Alan’s division of the sciences in his Regulae theologice is dependent on Hugh’s division of the sciences in the Didascalicon, but Alan does not share the Victorine embrace of a unified educational program designed to restore the image of God in the human being. Alan certainly knew Hugh’s Commentary on the Celestial Hierarchy, for he follows Hugh in adding a third hierarchy to two described by Pseudo-Dionysius. Overall, however, the connections between Alan and St Victor do not seem to have been close. In the same collection, Françoise Hudry, “Mais qui était donc Alain de Lille?” 107–24, presents evidence to show that Alan de Lille was English, identical with Alan of Canterbury-Tewksbury, who was educated at St Victor from 1148 to 1155, and spent most of his life in England. D’Alverny, Alain de Lille, Textes inédits, 109–19; Alan of Lille, The Art of Preaching, tr. Gillian R. Evans, CS 23 (Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 1981), 3–11; Jean Longère,

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There are some interesting connections with St Victor. Richard of St Victor inserted into his Liber exceptionum 27 sermons, which he seems to have intended to serve as examples. At least one manuscript of the Liber exceptionum interpolates some sermons of Alan de Lille. Alan wrote sermons for the feasts of St Augustine71 and St Victor.72 Alan begins with a preface that allegorizes seven rungs of Jacob’s ladder as seven stages by which one progresses from the beginnings of faith to full development of the perfect man: confession; prayer for grace; thanksgiving for grace received; careful study of Scriptures to preserve the gift of grace; asking someone more learned if one comes across something in Scripture that is not clear; expounding Scripture to others; and preaching.73 Chapter One defines preaching and then explains the parts of the definition. “Preaching is an open and public instruction in faith and behavior, whose purpose is the forming of men; it derives from the path of reason and from the fountainhead of the ‘authorities.’”74 Preaching should keep to a middle way; it should be not too embroidered, but not colorless either.75 After a swipe at the secret teaching of heretics, Alan notes that one can preach by the spoken word, by the written word, and by deed. Preaching should derive from Scripture, especially Paul, the Gospels, the Psalms, and the Wisdom Books. The preacher must win the good will of his hearers through his own obvious humility, purity of intention, and helpful subject matter. He should explain that he will speak briefly, and not as someone better or wiser. Sometimes the great will not speak so little ones must. The text should not be too obscure or difficult. He should not preach too fast; he may cite additional authorities, and he may occasionally insert sayings of pagan writers. When people are deeply moved, he should slow down

71 72 73 74 75

Oeuves oratoires de maîtres parisiens à xiie siècle, 2 vols. (Paris: Études Augustiniennes, 1975), 1:25–27; 2:24–28. D’Alverny edits one in Texts inédits, 262–67, which seems to have been delivered to a community of canons regular; Longère, Oeuvres oratoires, 2:17 n. 158. D’Alverny, Textes inédits, 120–21. Evans, Art, 15–16. It seems most convenient and helpful to cite Evans’ translation, which has good notes. Evans gives the columns in Migne in the margins. Evans, Art, 16–17. Alan seems to be referring to the three styles of classical rhetoric, which figured prominently in Augustine’s On Christian Instruction. As Evans notes, colorless is a pun referring to the colores of rhetoric.

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a bit, but not too much. Teaching by examples is a familiar method, as what follows will show.76 Alan devotes the next two chapters to despising the world and despising oneself, citing many Scriptural references, but also Boethius, Seneca, and Statius. Those seeking to despise themselves should remember their conception, birth, the struggles of life, and the certainty of death; they should ponder that they are worms and the food of worms; dust to dust, flesh to carrion. They should realize there are no grounds for taking pride in learning and noble lineage. Pleasure, wealth, and fine clothes are as much enemies to a person as they are friends. They should consult the book of knowledge, the book of experience, and the book of conscience. Multiple mirrors help them to know themselves. There are three external mirrors, Scripture, nature, and creation, and three internal mirrors, reason, senses, and flesh. They should employ three other mirrors as well: providence, by being aware of dangers that threaten; circumspection, to keep in the virtuous middle; and wariness about virtue masquerading as vice. Alan then offers authorities, examples, and distinctions regarding the seven deadly sins, before returning to despising worldly fears (chap. 11) and (again) the world (chap. 12). After that he turns to virtues (chap. 13–25, including the four cardinal virtues) and sins of speech (chap. 26–28), before exhorting to prayer (chap. 29), confession of sins (chap. 30–32), and wholesome practices (chap. 33–37). Prelates should preach (chap. 38), which requires of them learning and good living. After expounding on this theme, Alan returns to those who do not take up their duty of preaching: Some hide in a handkerchief the talent of divine wisdom that has been committed to them—that is, those who out of idleness do not wish to preach. Some hide it in the dung heap—that is, those who in their deeds contradict their own words. Others hide it in the mud—that is, those who hide the word out of envy.77

In the final section of his treatise, Alan considers the audience of preaching. After some general remarks (chap. 39), he devotes separate chapters to various professions and vocations (chap. 40–44) and to people of different marital states (chap. 45–47). Preaching should be directed to the faithful who desire to hear the word of God. Parables are 76 77

Evans, Art, 16–21. Evans, Art, 145.

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suitable for the young, the mysteries of the Kingdom of God for adults. Like a physician, a preacher should offer different remedial admonitions to different people. He should urge the poor to find God in their poverty, and the rich to give alms and despise wealth. Then he summarizes what he has said about the categories of persons he considers in chapters 40–47. Alan’s Ars praedicandi is traditional, personal, and trailblazing. It is traditional insofar as much of his initial discussion can be found in Guibert’s Quo ordine and earlier authors: preaching is an important duty for those qualified, as Guibert insisted; it requires study and a lifestyle that accords with the behavior that is being inculcated. The emphasis on adapting what one preaches to the needs and educational level of one’s hearers is also traditional; it is found in Augustine and Gregory’s Pastoral Rule. By Alan’s time, treatises on virtues and vices were plentiful. Alan’s Ars praedicandi also reflects his own personal interests: he wrote a biblical dictionary, Distinctiones dictionum theologicarum, which resembles the information he gives in chapters 3–37, as well as treatises De virtutibus and De vitiis. His excursus on heretics in chapter 1 reflects both his own involvement in opposing the Cathars and his treatise De fide catholica, sive Quadripertita… contra haeritcos.78 Alan’s Ars praedicandi is also innovative: while Guibert wrote to explain and justify his Moralia on Genesis, Alan’s work is a manual on preaching: what it is; suggestions for content drawn from biblical authorities; what sort of person a preacher should be and how he should present himself and his material; how to adapt preaching to various social groups; and, in the long version, model sermons. Following Alan, whose Ars praedicandi is the only such work late-twelfth-century Victorines could have known, there came a succession of such manuals. It will suffice to look at a fairly late and clearly presented example in order to see where Victorine preaching fit in the development of the sermon exemplified by these manuals. Ranulf Higden (d. 1364) Ranulf Higden was a monk of the Benedictine Abbey of St Werburgh in Chester. The monastery, like many in the wake of the Black Death, was not an exemplary religious community. Ranulf was the au78

For further information on these works, see D’Alverny, “Textes inédits.”

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thor of an influential world chronicle, the Polychronicon.79 He was also a churchman concerned about the quality of pastoral care provided by the clergy, for whom he wrote a Speculum curatorum (Mirror for Curates) comprising three books devoted to the Commandments, Capital Sins, and Sacraments.80 Higden’s Ars componendi sermones (c. 1345) will serve as a good example of the artes praedicandi. The Ars componendi sermones of Ranulph Higden gives vibrant medieval life to the trite “last but not least.”… The text is chronologically last among the arts of preaching… Yet its position is decidedly fortunate since Ranulph was able to incorporate the clarifications in theory developed by his predecessors as well as avoid the structural infelicities which characterized earlier treatises. Consequently, his Ars componendi sermones is arguably the most practical and user-friendly of the many artes praedicandi which were composed between 1220 and 1350.81

Margaret Jennings writes that the artes predicandi arose from the convergence of three currents. The first was the tradition of homiletic theory and practice described above. The second current was the study of Ciceronian rhetoric that encouraged an interest in dispositio, that is, the ordering of a speech: exordium, narration, division, confirmation, refutation, and peroration. The rhetorical theory of the Ciceronian writings shaped the Artes dictaminis, which appeared beginning in the twelfth century and set down rules for letter writing.82 The third 79 80 81

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Published in nine volumes in the Rolls Series, 1865–86. Ranulf Hidgen, Speculum curatorum, ed. and tr. Eugene Joseph Crook and Margaret Jennings, Dallas Medieval Texts and Translations, 13.1–3 (Walpole, MA: Peeters, 2012–). Ranulph Higden, Ars componendi sermones, tr. Margaret Jennings and Sally A. Wilson, Dallas Medieval Texts and Translations 2 (Leuven: Peeters, 2003), 1, which has a helpful bibliography, 24–27. The Jennings and Wilson translation is based on The Ars componendi sermones of Ranulph Higden, ed. Margaret Jennings (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1991). It is the English translation that will be used here. Thanks to Margaret Jennings for the advice she gave me about Ranulf Higden and his work. See, for example, the work on letter writing by an anonymous author from Bologna translated in James J. Murphy, Three Medieval Rhetorical Arts (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1971). In the same book, Murphy translates Robert de Basevorn’s ars predicandi. Hugh of St Victor produced what is, in effect, an ars orandi, using the same classical rhetorical tradition: De virtute orandi, ed. Hugh Feiss, in L’œuvre de Hugues de Saint-Victor 1, Sous la règle saint Augustin (Turnhout: Brepols, 1997), 126–61; tr. Hugh Feiss, VTT 4:331–43, with discussion of the rhetoric of prayer, 322–25; Karin Ganss, “Affectivity and Knowledge Lead to Devotion to God: A Historical and Theological Study of Hugh of St Victor’s De virtute orandi,” in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): 422−68. How much monks were involved in preaching is a complex question. For evidence from England,

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current was the study of grammar, which seems to have influenced the emergence of distinctiones, such as those of Alan of Lille and Garnier of St Victor’s Gregorianum, which schematized and illustrated the meaning of words in the Bible.83 When sermons began to focus on just a few words—as Victorine sermons often did—books of distinctiones were a useful aid.84 The fusing of these currents into the new form of preaching described in the artes praedicandi occurred in university settings. It happened simultaneously with the emphasis on evangelizing the laity that appeared in the Third Council of the Lateran (1179). Enhanced pastoral care for the laity was promoted by Peter the Chanter and his circle in Paris and legislated in the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215.85 The new orders, particularly the Dominicans and Franciscans, were committed to preaching to the laity. These technical treatises reflected and regulated the preaching practice in university settings but, later, simplified versions discussing preaching to the people were composed.86 The nature of the sermon form they describe is clear from the various names it was given: modern, university, thematic, or scholastic. Over 250 such artes praedicandi survive; only 10% are available in modern editions, and only about fifteen have been translated into English.87 The artes praedi-

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84 85

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see Joan Greatex, “Benedictine Sermons: Preparation and Practice in the English Monastic Cathedral Cloisters,” and Patrick J. Horner, “Benedictines and Preaching: The Pastoralia in Late Medieval England: A Preliminary Inquiry,” in Medieval Monastic Preaching, ed. Carolyn Muessig (Leiden: Brill, 1998), 257–78 and 279–92, respectively. On biblical distinctiones and other forms of “sermon aids” such as florilegia and similitudines, see Roberts, “Ars predicandi,” 55–61. Other types of “sermon aids” included collections of model sermons and glossed bibles. Jennings, ed., Higden, Ars componendi, 1–13. Roberts, “The ‘Ars praedicandi,’” 44–45. Two pioneers of the artes predicandi were Alexander of Ashby, De modo predicandi (c. 1200) and Thomas Chobhan (d. c. 1235), Summa de arte praedicandi (between 1210 and 1215). Roberts, “The Ars praedicandi,” 51, lists some of these. One example Roberts offers is Henry of Hesse’s De arte praedicandi, ed. Harry Caplan, “‘Henry of Hesse’ and the Art of Preaching,” Proceedings of the Modern Language Association of America, 48/2 (June, 1933): 345–359. It is brief and clear, and distinguishes the old form of preaching from the new form; in presenting the latter, it does not seem to be noticeably focused on the needs of a lay audience. Siegfried Wenzel, The Art of Preaching: Five Medieval Texts and Translations (Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America, 2013), 256–59, lists the available editions and translations and, in this book, provides editions and translations of five more. Several artes (e.g., Thomas Waleys, De modo componendi sermons, and Robert of Basevorn, Forma praedicandi) were published in Th. Charland, Artes praedicandi (Ottawa: Publications de l’Institut d’études médiévales d’Ottawa; Paris: Vrin, 1936). One interesting example of the genre is described and edited by Siegfried Wenzel, “A Dominican (?) Ars praedicandi in Sermon Form,” in Siegried Wenzel, Of Sins and Sermons, Synthema 10 (Leuven: Peeters, 2015), 383–411.

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candi laid out a dispositio for the sermon, emphasized the importance of the preacher’s own lifestyle and the need to adapt a sermon to the audiences. Sometimes they discussed techniques of delivery. Siegfried Wenzel identifies the major features of the sermons described in the artes praedicandi: they concerned a (brief) biblical text, and divisions of the sermon were also supported by biblical authorities; the sermons are constructed according to a logical plan; and the text must be graced with elegance and beauty, with eloquentia. Ranulph Higden skillfully selected and organized the content of his predecessors in his Ars componendi sermones.88 In his preface, he says that a theme—the biblical statement that is the subject of the sermon— should be complete and independent, in effect, a complete sentence. It should also be appropriate, capable of being applied to the subject about which one intends to preach. Three things are required of the preacher: correct intention, holiness of life, and aptitude for public speaking. The sermon itself should have a relevant theme, correct division, and useful development. The purpose of preaching is to inspire the preacher, edify the listeners, and venerate God. The material cause is words that announce virtues, vices, punishment, and joys. The efficient cause is God and the preacher. The formal cause, the theme, division, and development (chap. 1). As he develops these ideas in the rest of his treatise, Higden cites many biblical and patristic authorities (Gregory the Great is prominent among them). Here these are omitted, because the aim is to present the gist of his presentation. The correct intention is to glorify God, edify others, and teach the truth. Sometimes, simple speech works best for these purposes; vacuous stories and buffoonery are never appropriate (chap. 2). The preacher’s behavior must match his teaching (chap. 3). The preacher needs to be able to speak loudly, fluently, and at an appropriate time with words, modulation, and gestures that fit his topic (chap. 4). The sermon’s content, manner and duration must be adapted to the capacity of the audience (chap. 5). Returning to the suitability of the theme, Ranulph elaborates that it should be clear rather than obscure, be relevant to the chosen topic 88

Wenzel, The Art of Preaching, 246–55, shows how the various treatises on the ars predicandi influenced each other and sometimes were collected in anthologies, and how one of the treatises that he edits and translates, Quamvis [de sermonibus faciendis], was used by Ranulf Higden in the composition of his treatise.

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(e.g., Sunday, feast day, particular event), be from the exact wording of a biblical text (the Victorines sometimes chose other texts from the liturgy), be divisible into not more than three parts, allow for real and verbal concordance with other texts, and be such that from it a protheme can be derived. The protheme usually is explicated in such a way that it refers to the qualifications of the preacher (holy life, solid knowledge, appropriate manner of speaking), the audience (eagerness to hear, retention in memory, doing what is retained), and the lessons of the sermon. It also asks for divine help. So, the three requisites for a sermon are God’s interior teaching, a listener obedient to the words, and instruction itself (chap. 6–11). After the theme and protheme have been proposed, a prayer should be derived from them asking God’s grace (chap. 12). Uttered near the beginning of the sermon, the prayer should help win over the audience. There are various acceptable ways to gain their attention: propose something unusual, subtle, and curious; explain the cause for some obscure saying; frighten with a terrible exemplum; tell how those who willingly hear the word of God are rewarded (chap. 13). After the prayer, the theme should be restated, citing the biblical book and chapter. The introduction can be made in many ways: through scripture; argument; an example; a simile from nature, art, or history; a proverb; the writing of a saint; or a philosophic or poetic text (chap. 14). There are a number of rules for divisions: (a) they should be made according to the significance of the words in the theme, but not by the same words or synonyms of them. Thus, “A wise servant is favored by the king” (Proverbs 14:35) may not be divided by perfection of wisdom because of “wise,” humility of serving because of “servant,” and favor of the divine because of “favor.” However, it could be said that these three words point to the perfection of reason, submission of spirit, and the pleasure of the divine being. (b) The authorities that confirm each member of the division should obviously refer to it. (c) The division should follow the order of the words in the theme. (d) The division should respect the nature of the theme, whether it be narrating, threatening, or promising. (e) Every significant word must be divided, so that two significant ideas are not combined under one division. However, the theme can consist of one word, which is then divided. (f) Each division of the theme can be divided into two, three, or four parts. (g) A theme may be divided according to verbs or according to nouns in the same case (chap. 15). After stating the principal division, one may add a secondary division, called a “key” that clarifies the parts

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of the first division. Authorities must be added for the keys (chap. 16). Amplification (dilatio) of the sermon is accomplished through subdivision of the parts and through exposition of the cited authority. For example, one can amplify by reasoning, examples, parallel biblical passages, the properties of something referred to in a metaphor, the four senses of Scripture, causes and effects, and digression. In expounding the Scripture, do not contradict the literal meaning of the text or the articles of faith. A sermon should not contain more than three figures of speech, three stories, or three exempla (chap. 20). A sermon is given rhetorical “color” through similar word endings or through a similar syllabic pattern (two devices at which the Victorines were extremely adept) (chap. 21). To the Victorines we will now turn, first with an introduction to the Victorines whose sermons are represented in this volume, and then with reflections on the nature of the Victorine sermon. THE VICTORINE PREACHERS

Hugh of St Victor (d. 1141) Hugh of St Victor is the wellspring from which twelfth-century thinking and preaching at St Victor flowed. His ideas and images, such as the three eyes, the three evils or vitia of ignorance, concupiscence, and need, the remedy of the first two of these by doctrina veritatis and disciplina virtutis, the attribution of the essential attributes of power, wisdom, and kindness to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit respectively, his concern for a schema that orders and divides human knowledge, and many facets of his Christology, lived on in the sermons and writings of the canons regular at St Victor. Hugh was born in Saxony, perhaps of a noble family, and entered the monastery of Saint-Pancratius at Hamersleben sometime after its foundation in 1108. He traveled with his uncle, also named Hugh, to Paris and entered St Victor by 1115. Shortly after that, he began teaching and writing the first of his many works that have come down to us. When he arrived at Paris, he already had an extensive education, which seems to have included the study of Pseudo-Dionysius.89 Hugh’s 89

There is a copious literature on Hugh’s ethnic origins and the chronology of his works. The information in this paragraph is drawn from Dominique Poirel, “Hugo Saxo. Les origines germaniques de la pensée d’Hugues de Saint-Victor,” Francia, 33/1 (2006): 163–74; Dominique

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influence at St Victor and beyond was expedited by a collected edition of his works prepared in the decade after his death by Abbot Gilduin (d. 1155). The necrology of the abbey declares, “His works that he wrote in our midst, shining because of the eloquence, subtlety and sublimity of his ideas, wondrously testify” to his incomparable wisdom.90 Hugh of St Victor did not leave behind a collection of sermons.91 Some of his Miscellanea, Book I, appear to be, in effect, distinctiones that could have served the composition of sermons. Other texts in Miscellanea, Book I, appear to be notes, texts, or transcripts of sermons. Here, four of these sermon-like texts are translated. They serve as a prelude to the sermons that follow and as reminder that the Victorine sermon tradition would not exist were it not for Hugh of St Victor. Achard of St Victor (d. 1170 or 1171) Achard of St Victor was probably of Anglo-Norman parentage. He succeeded Gilduin (1115–55) as Abbot of St Victor in 1155, and seems to have been active as a magister in the schools of Paris for a decade

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Poirel, Hugues de Saint-Victor, Initiations au Moyen Âge (Paris: Cerf, 1998); Rainer Berndt, “The Writings of Hugh of St Victor: An Author and His Contexts,” in Ugo di San Vittore, Atti del XLVII Convegno storico internazaionale, Todi, 10–12 ottobre 2010, Centro Italiano di Studi sul Basso Medioevo-Accademia Tudertina Todi, New Series 24 (Spoleto: Centro Italiano di Studi sull’Alto Medioevo, 2011), 1–20. In English, there are three recent books, two by members of the editorial board of Victorine Texts in Translation: Boyd Taylor Coolman, The Theology of Hugh of St Victor: An Interpretation (New York: Cambridge, 2010); Franklin T. Harkins, Reading and the Work of Restoration: History and Scripture in the Theology of Hugh of St Victor, Mediaeval Law and Theology 8 (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 2009); Paul Rorem, Hugh of Saint Victor, Great Medieval Thinkers (New York: Oxford, 2009), who divides Hugh’s works into categories and analyzes each work. Necrologium abbatiae Sancti Victoris Parisiensis, ed. Ursula Vones-Liebenstein and Monika Seifert, Corpus Victorinum, Opera recollecta 1 (Münster: Ascendorff, 2012), 105: “Quod libri eius, quos hic apud nos dictavit, eloquentia, subtilitate et sententiarum sublimitate fulgentes mirabiliter protestantur.” There is a collection of 206 “sermons” that, according to Ralf M. W. Stammberger, “The Liber Sermonum Hugonis: The Discovery of a New Work by Hugh of Saint Victor,” Medieval Sermon Studies 52 (2008): 63–71, is found complete in four manuscripts and incomplete in three others. All but one of these manuscripts come from Austria. Monasteries in Austria and southern Germany were important points of diffusion for Hugh’s works outside of northern France. Of the texts in this collection, 132 are included in the Miscellanea and are all genuine works of Hugh. The other 74 works may be Hugh’s as well. Patrice Sicard, Iter Victorinum, La tradition manuscrite des oeuvres de Hugues et de Richard de Saint-Victor, Biblioteca Victorina 24 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 623, in a section entitled “Oeuvres d’authenticité douteuse,” thinks it premature to speak of any specific sermons of Hugh of St Victor and is skeptical of Stammberger’s suggestion that this “Liber sermonum” was the fourth book of Gilduin’s edition of Hugh’s works.

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or more before that. His works were not published until the twentieth century. They include a dense and intriguing treatise commonly known as De unitate Dei et pluralitate creaturarum,92 and another De discretione animae, spiritus et mentis.93 Of particular interest here are his fifteen sermons, which achieved considerable circulation inside and outside the community, often in conjunction with the sermons of Godfrey, Walter, and other Victorines, who not infrequently cite Achard’s sermons in their own.94 Achard became bishop of Avranches in 1161. Because Achard’s sermons are all available in English in the complete translation of his Works and several of them have also appeared in other volumes of the Victorine Texts in Translation,95 he will be represented in this volume by just two sermons, Sermon 9: On the Solemnity of St Augustine, and Sermon 1: On the Nativity of the Lord, which will be analyzed later in this introduction. Achard can be regarded as the first representative of the Victorine form of sermon; his sermons influenced both the style and the content of his successors. Richard of St Victor (d. 1173) The seventeenth-century Victorine, Jean of Toulouse, reports that Richard was a scotus, entered St Victor during the abbacy of Gilduin, and studied under Hugh of St Victor. He was a magister. Much of his work originated in preaching, either to the entire community in the chapter meeting, or to a portion of them (e.g., the novices). He was subprior of the community by 1159, and prior from 1162. He must have 92

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L’unité de Dieu et la pluralitaté des creatures: De unitate Dei et pluralitate creturarum, ed. and tr. Emmanuel Martineau, Fontes et Paginae (1983; Caen: Presses Universitaires de Caen, 2013). Ed. G. Morin, “Un traité inédit d’Achard de Saint-Victor,” in Aus der Geisteswelt des Mittel­ alters, BGPTM, Supplementband 3, vol. 1 (Münster: Aschendorff, 1935), 251–62; ed. with attribution to Gilbert de la Porrée, by N. M. Hâring, “Gilbert of Poitiers, Author of the De discretione animae, spiritus et mentis commonly attributed to Achard of Saint-Victor,” Mediaeval Studies 22 (1960), 174–91. Jean Châtillon, “Sermons et prédicateurs victorins de la seconde moitié du xiie siècle,” AHDLMA 32 (1965) (Paris: Vrin, 1966), 7–66; Achard de Saint-Victor, Sermons inédits, ed. Jean Châtillon, TPMA 17 (Paris: Vrin, 1970). The sermons and treatises are translated in Achard of St Victor, Works, tr. Hugh Feiss, CS 165 (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 2001). See Jean Châtillon, Théologie, spiritualité et métaphysique dans l’oeuvre oratoire d’Achard de SaintVictor, Études de philosophie médiévale 58 (Paris: Vrin, 1969). See also several of the chapters in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018). Achard of Saint-Victor, Sermon 5: On the Sunday of the Palm Branches (VTT 2:245–60); Achard of Saint-Victor, Sermon 13: On the Dedication of a Church (VTT 4:75–130); Achard of Saint-Victor, Sermon 4: On the Resurrection (VTT 7:215−26).

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been highly regarded, since many of his works are addressed to people who requested his opinions. While he was prior, he was involved with the controversy surrounding Thomas Becket, and he lived through the tumultuous abbacy of the unworthy Ernise (1162–72) who, like Richard and Richard’s contemporaries, Andrew of St Victor and Achard, was also from the British Isles.96 Richard produced a large body of works, many of them originating in sermons of some sort. There exists complete in one manuscript and incomplete (91 sermons) in another, a collection of 100 sermons (Sermones centum) that is attributed to Richard in these manuscripts, both written at St Victor. It is generally assumed—and will be assumed here—that all 100 sermons are his. He includes the first twenty-seven of those sermons as a block, and all (Serm. cent. 28–30, 88–90) or part of several others in what seems to be an early work, the much-copied Liber exceptionum (Book of Notes), which was intended as an introductory text for readers (and, I think, preachers) of the Bible.97 The one complete manuscript of the Sermones centum has an introduction that is reproduced in the edition in the Patrologia latina, 177.899–902. It is worth citing in its entirety since it expresses how the Victorines regarded the reading and communication of the Word of God: Since, as Scripture testifies, the word of God is a lamp for our feet and a light for our paths,98 insofar as we may, we must direct our effort in every way possible to reading, meditating, hearing, speaking and writing the words of Sacred Scripture. This is especially incumbent on us, dearly beloved brothers, companions in the cloister, who have renounced the turmoil of action and delivered ourselves to the quiet of serving only contemplation. Blessed Mary, the sister of Martha, provides us with an obvious example of this virtue. While her sister 96

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The bibliography for Richard of St Victor is very extensive. During the last half century, many of his works have appeared in critical editions, and there are several books about him. A good starting point is Jean Châtillon, “Richard de Saint-Victor” DS (Paris: 1987), 13:593–654. Hideki Nakamura, “Amor invisibilium” Die Liebe im Denken Richards von Sankt Viktor († 1173), CV, Instrumenta 5 (Münster: Aschendorff, 2001) is an excellent study of Richard’s most important works with generous bibliography. In English, there is a study by a member of the editorial board of Victorine Texts in Translation: Dale Coulter, Per visibilia ad invisbilia: Theological Method in Richard of St Victor (d. 1173), BV 19 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2006). See the introduction to the Liber exceptionum, ed. Jean Châtillon, TPMA 5 (Paris: Vrin, 1958), 7–96, and Châtillon’s preliminary study, “Le contenu, l’authenticité et la date du Liber exceptionum de des Sermones centum de Richard de Saint-Victor,” Revue du moyen âge latin 4 (1948): 343–66. Ps 118:5.

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was busy with frequent service, we read that, as the Lord testified, Mary chose the better part, at the feet of the Lord, with ears attentive, thirsting for the words of the one who was speaking. Many hold this praiseworthy and wondrous virtue in contempt. We hear that some of them, who could have received joys with the understanding divinely given them in the Scriptures, fell into such filth and expanse of vices and behavior that their soul was nauseated by the Word of God and loathed spiritual food. They advanced all the way to the gates of death so that they seemed to be regarded as Egyptians rather than Israelites, and citizens of Babylon rather than of Jerusalem. We see others, conscientious in their study, who have by the co-working grace of Christ gone from depravity to such goodness of virtues and uprightness of behavior that in them one clearly recognizes that the Scripture is fulfilled that says, The Lord sent out his word and healed them, and snatched them from ruin.99 Let us all therefore rouse ourselves to read the Word of God, those who are more learned also to speak it, and those less learned to hear it, so that then in us may be fulfilled what is written: In teachings glorify the Lord.100 And because I have collected certain specimens from the densely flowering field of divine Scripture, it has seemed proper to me to set them before you in this sermon so that you will be able to exercise your mind on them. One should know, however, that we ought not devote all our time to readings, because according to Solomon, all things have their time and all things pass through the spans allotted them.101 There is therefore a time for reading and a time for meditating. There is a time for inquiring after the truth to enrich understanding, and there is a time for exercising virtue so that one’s affectivity may be healed. There is a time for doing good work to help one’s neighbor. There is a time for praying, a time for singing, a time for taking part in the divine offices, and a time for taking care of any necessity. Like bees collecting honey from different flowers, we must collect from all of these the savor of internal sweetness and consume the sweet honeycomb of justice by living in a holy manner.102 99 100 101 102

Ps 106:20. Isa 24:15. Eccles 3:1. “Cum, Scriptura teste, lucerna sit pedibus nostris verbum Dei et lumen semitis, modis omnibus sacrae Scripturae verbis legendis, meditandis, audiendis, dicendis scribendisque, prout licet, studium impendere debemus, praesertim, nos fratres charissimii, sociique claustrales, qui actionis turbationibus abrenuntiavimus, et solius praestandae contemplationis quieti nos mancipavimus. Cujus virtutis evidentissimum beata Maria, soror Marthae, nobis praebet exemplum, quae, sorore circa frequens ministerium satagente, secus pedes Domini, auribus intentis, sitiendo verba loquentis, optimam partem, Domino teste, legitur elegisse: cujus laudabilem mirabilemque virtutem multi contemnunt. Ex quibus nonnullos, qui intellectu sibi caelitus dato in Scripturis gaudia capere potuissent, ad tantam audimus vitiorum et

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This introduction has the ring of the exordium for a sermo addressed to novices that Richard is putting to a new use. At places, it exemplifies that rhythm and rhyme at which the Victorines excelled. It inculcates the virtuous actions and decorum that they believed led to interior transformation. It urges the disciplined and balanced use of time that medieval claustrals sought. It puts the study of Scripture at the center of their concerns and claims for them the mantle of contemplation. From the collection of one hundred sermons that this texts prefaces, some that pertain to the liturgical year will be presented and translated here.103 Maurice de Sully (Bishop of Paris, 1160–96) Maurice de Sully was not a canon regular, although he retired to St Victor and was buried there. He was a magister in Paris before becoming bishop.104 His interest in preaching is clear from the large number of his Latin sermons that survive, along with a series of 64 sermons in Old French and Latin that were written to serve as models for the sermons given at Mass in parish churches. Five of these are included here to illustrate what sorts of homilies were given in parishes in the

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morum foeditatem enormitatemque delapsos, ut anima eorum verbum Dei nauseante et spiritalem escam abominante, usque at portas mortis appropinquarent, et inter Aegyptios magis quam inter Israelites, interque cives Babylonis magis quam Jerusalem viderentur reputandi. Vidimus et alios, solertia sui studii, cooperante gratia Christi, ad tantam virtutum bonitatem, honestatemque morum de pravitate pervenisse, ut in ipsis luce clarius agnosceretur impletum quo scriptum est: Misit Dominus verbum suum, et sanavit eos, et eripuit eos de interitionibus eorum (Psal cvi). Omnes igitur ad legendum verbum Dei promovemur, sed eruditiores etiam ad loquendum, minus autem docti ad audiendum, ut et in nobis perficiatur quod scriptum est: In doctrinis glorificate Dominum (Isa. xxiv). Et quoniam quaedam vobis de florentissimo divinae Scripturae agro documenta dudum collegi, visum est mihi in hoc sermone ea tempus pronostrum [sic] lectionibus debemus impendere, quia secundum Salomonem omnia tempus habent et suis spatiis transeunt universa (Eccle. v). Est ergo et tempus legendi, et est tempus meditandi. Est tempus veritatem inquirendi ut erudiatur sensus, et est tempus virtutem exercendi ut sanetur affectus; et est tempus bonis operis exhibendi ut aduvetur proximus. Est tempus orandi, et est tempus cantandi, tempus divinis officiis assistendi, et tempus cuilibet rei necessariae intendi. Ex quibus omnibus, velut apes mel de diversis floribus, debemus internae suavitatis dulcedinem nobis colligere, mellifluumque justitiae favum sancte vivendo consummare.” Several of Richard’s sermons have been introduced and translated elsewhere in Victorine Texts in Translation: Richard of Saint-Victor, Sermon 4: Ave Stella Maris, VTT 4:483–504; Richard of Saint-Victor, Sermon 70: On the Day of Pentecost, VTT 6:469–74. Necrologium abbatiae Sancti Victoris, 254. For more on Maurice de Sully, see the introduction to his sermons below, and the discussion of him in my chapter on “Pastoral Ministry” in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): 147−83. Maurice de Sully’s Sermon 35: For the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost was published in VTT 6:469–73.

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environs of twelfth-century Paris. Maurice’s sermons also provide examples of sermons for the Sundays of what is known as Ordinary Time. By contrast, most surviving Victorine sermons are festal sermons addressed to the canons assembled in the chapter room at St Victor. There is another reason, besides contemporaneity and contrast, for including examples of Maurice’s sermons here: Richard of St Victor’s Liber exceptionum was an important source for Maurice’s Old French sermons. Walter of St Victor (d. 1180) Like so many of his confreres, Walter was from the British Isles. He entered the Abbey of St Victor during the abbacy of Gilduin. He succeeded Richard as subprior sometime after 1162, and as prior after 1173. Around 1177 or 1178, he wrote an uncirculated pamphlet, Contra quatuor labyrinthos Franciae, which sharply criticized the theology of Peter Abelard, Peter Lombard, Peter of Poitiers, and Gilbert de la Porrée. Its editor, Palémon Glorieux described it as a bad piece of work and a bad deed.105 Twenty-one of Walter’s sermons, which circulated with a collection that also included sermons by other Victorines, as well as some anonymous sermons that may well be by Walter, were edited for the first time by Jean Châtillon, Galteri a Sancto Victore et quorundam aliorum, Sermones inediti triginta sex, CCCM 30 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1975). These sermons by Walter and others can be taken as manifesting the fully developed form of the Victorine sermon as well as the Victorine preachers’ respect for their predecessors (in particular, the theology of Hugh of St Victor and the sermons of Achard of St Victor). Six of Walter’s sermon are translated in this volume, along with one of the anonymous sermons and two attributed to the otherwise unidentified Maurice of St Victor.106 Godfrey of St Victor (d. after 1194) According to autobiographical references in his Fons philosophiae,107 beginning about 1140 Godfrey studied the arts in Paris with Adam of 105

106 107

Palémon Glorieux, “Mauvaise action et mauvais travail: Le Contra quatuor labyrinthos Franciae,” RTAM 21 (1954): 179–93; “Le Contra quatuor labyrinthos Franciae de Gauthier de Saint-Victor,” ed. Palémon Glorieux, AHDLMA 19 (1952) (Paris: Vrin, 1953): 187–355. Walter of St Victor’s Sermon 6: On the Feast of the Purification is translated in VTT 6:461–68. Fons philosophiae, ed. Pierre Michaud-Quantin, Analecta Mediaevalia Namurcensia 8 (Namur: Godenne, 1956); The Fountain of Philosophy, tr. Hugh Feiss, VTT 3:373–425.

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Balsham on the Petit-Pont. About a decade later, he seems to have taken up the study of theology (with perhaps a detour to study law in Bologna). Then, around the age of thirty, he entered the Abbey of St Victor about 1155. At some point, he was assigned to a community, probably a dependent priory, away from St Victor. He was not happy in his exile, but after a time he returned to the abbey where he held the important office of armarius, which immersed him in the preparation and celebration of the liturgy. That involvement is very obvious in his sermons.108 Thirty-two of his sermons survive, all but one of those in collections that he prepared. Except for that one sermon, his sermons do not seem to have been copied elsewhere.109 Only a very few of Godfrey’s sermons have been edited. Those included in this volume are all translated from the collection of his sermons that he himself assembled in Paris, Bibliotheque Mazarine, MS lat. 1002.110 Absalom of Springiersbach (d. c. 1204) Absalom of Springiersbach is a little studied figure.111 In 1534, Daniel Shilling, Abbot of Springiersbach, published fifty-one of his sermons; his edition was reprinted in the Patrologia latina, 211.13–294. Absalom seems to have born in the region of Trier, and become a canon regular 108

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Philippe Delhaye, Le microcosmus de Godefroy de Saint-Victor. Étude théologique (Lille: Facultés Catholiques; Gembloux: J. Duculot, 1951), 231–43, edits the end of a sermon, De omnibus sanctis et specialiter de sancto Victore (Maz. 1002, fol. 137v), and another sermon, In die omnium sanctorum (Maz. 1002, fols 137v–143v). See Philippe Delhaye, “Les sermons de Godefroy de Saint-Victor,” RTAM 21 (1954): 194–210. In VTT 4:511–14, the introduction to a translation of two poems occurring at the end of Mazarine 1002 (fols 232r–237r) that are attributed to Godfrey considers the question of his authorship of the Planctus ante nescia. In VTT 4:532–34, the introduction to Walter’s Sermon 6: On the Purification, questions the narrative proposed by Delhaye that Walter was responsible for Godfrey being exiled from St Victor. In VTT 3:380–82, the introduction to the translation of Godfrey’s Fons philosophiae questions the accuracy of some of the autobiographical details in that work. Mazarine 1002 is remarkable for two self-portraits of Godfrey, which emphasize his selfidentity as a preacher: see Hugh Feiss, “Preaching by Word and Example,” From Knowledge to Beatitude: St Victor, Twelfth-Century Theology and Beyond. Essays in Honor of Grover A. Zinn, Jr., ed. E. Ann Matter and Lesley Smith (Notre Dame, IN; University of Notre Dame Press, 2013), 178. See also the frontispiece to VTT 2. Michael Embach, “Die ‘Sermones festivales’ des Absalom von Springiersbach: Ein Werk der viktorinisch geprägten Predigtliteratur,” Kurtrierisches Jahrbuch 50 (2010): 149–65, contains a wealth of bibliographic information. See Gabriele Ziegler, Augustinus als Vorbild der Predigt des Absalon von Springiersbach, Cassiciacum 47 (Würzburg: Augustinus Verlag, 1998); Pierre Courcelle, “La culture antique d’Absalon de Saint-Victor,” Journal des Savants (année 1972), 270–91.

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at St Victor in Paris before becoming Abbot of Springiersbach about 1193–96. Caesarius of Heisterbach (c. 1180–1240) reports: Magister Absalom, an honorable and educated man, a canon in the church of St Victor in Paris, some years ago was chosen abbot in Springiersbach, a monastery in the diocese of Trier. Before Absalom came to this monastery for which he had been chosen, one of the brothers saw in a night vision that a burning candle had entered the monastery and relighted with his light the snuffed-out candles that all of the brothers held in their hands. The interpretation of this vision was that he would come to restore the lax discipline. Made abbot, he introduced the honorable customs that he had learned in his own monastery. Among other things he commanded that the brothers of his congregation as well as the sisters subject to him as well as their prior, would all abstain from eating meat.112

The Bishop of Trier called Absalom from St Victor to reform Springiersbach. Absalom’s thought and preaching was informed by the example of St Augustine.113 He admired Hugh of St Victor greatly and had received the comprehensive education that Hugh prescribed as preparatory to the study of the Scriptures. He often referred to Gregory the Great.114 Despite the shortness of his abbacy at Springiersbach, he was revered and buried in the abbey church. The story of Absalom of Springiersbach is complicated, because an Abbot Absalom was abbot at St Victor from 1198 to 1203, when he died. Whether they were the same person is not clear.115 Absalom gave his sermons to a community of claustrals, though whether at St Victor or Springiersbach is not clear. The tone of the sermons translated here suggests that the young members of his audience were tempted to pursue secular or university learning. Absalom warns them against this though, somewhat ironically, he was impregnated with classical literature and not infrequently cited it. He urges his audience of canons to remain true to their calling and gaze upon spiritual truth with the eye of the intellect and with eye of the affect stir up devotion.116 112

113 114 115 116

Caesarius von Heisterbach, Dialogus Miraculorum 4.89, ed. and tr. Nikolaus Nösges and Horst Schneider, Fontes Christiani 86/2 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2009), 2:894–95. Embach, “Sermones,” 150, refers to this text. This is the subject of Ziegler’s study. Absalom, Serm. 30 (PL 211.183CD). Embach, “Sermones,” 152–54. Embach, “Sermones,” 154–57; see Courcelle, “Culture.”

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“THE” VICTORINE SERMON

It is difficult to pinpoint what exactly a Victorine sermon is; there is probably no typical Victorine sermon.117 The first sermon in the collected sermons of the first Victorine whose sermons, identified as such, have come down to us, is Achard of St Victor’s Sermon 1, On the Nativity of the Lord.118 Here we will translate and analyze it section by section, with an eye to structure, sources, content, audience and purpose. In its emphasis on doctrine (allegory) rather than morality (tropology) it is atypical of Victorine sermons, but it is typical in other ways: in its density of Scriptural quotation, its predilection for the spiritual senses, its rhetorical style, its audience, and its locale. [Exordium] On the birthday of Emmanuel, it is fitting that we be refreshed by His food, which is butter and honey. The world is sufficiently stocked with these two, but as signifying, not signified, material not spiritual. Indeed the world abounds with the opposites of spiritual things, namely sterility and bitterness, sterility in works, bitterness in behavior. Sterility is contrary to the richness and fecundity of butter; bitterness is opposed to the sweetness of honey. Few abound in the spiritual things signified because few eat of the food of Emmanuel, a food that grows in the eating but decreases when one fasts from it. Emmanuel is interpreted as God is with us,119 that is, God in our nature. He is God and human; He possesses natural unity with God the Father, with Whom He is one in nature; He also has unity with His Virgin Mother and with the rest of humankind, with whom He is one in the nature of humankind. He is homoousios with the Father, and He is homoousios with His mother, that is, consubstantial with both. However, that natural unity that He has with the Father is greater and much more excellent than that which He has with the rest of humankind, for it is divine, without any distinction of accidents. Although some distance is understood to exist 117

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Mark Zier, “Sermons of the Twelfth Century Schoolmasters and Canons,” Kienzle, The Sermon, 325–51; Jean Longère, La prédication médiévale (Paris: Études Augustiniennes, 1983), 63–67; Old, Reading and Preaching, 3:306–22 (on Richard of St Victor); Hugh Feiss, “Pastoral Ministry,” in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): 147−83. Achard de Saint-Victor, Sermo 1: in Natali Domini, Sermons inédits, ed. Châtillon, 24–35. Although there is a translation in Hugh Feiss, Works, 93–105, the sermon will be newly translated here. Of course, that this sermon is numbered “Sermo 1” in the modern edition does not imply that it is the oldest of Achard’s sermons. Matt 1:23.

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among the persons, it is very subtle and finely drawn because it occurs only according to the relations that do not indicate what the persons are like in themselves but how they are related to another. For example, “Father” does not indicate what this Person is in Himself, but how He is related to the Son, because He is His source and principle. There is the no composition of parts, no diversity of forms, no variation of accidents, and therefore the highest unity, where there is no diversity of natures, no diversity of wills. However, the unity He has with human beings occurs with a variation of accidents. Whence there is much greater difference of accidents there than there is congruence of substances. Thus, two human beings, although one in nature, nevertheless are said to be more diverse than they are one, because their difference is greater than their congruence.120

The opening words of the sermon refer to Christmas: “on the birthday of Emmanuel,” as does the title in several manuscripts. Some of Achard’s sermons (Sermones 13, 14, 15) are veritable treatises, which in their present form must have been intended for public or private reading rather than oral delivery. This sermon for Christmas could have been a lecture before it was turned into a sermon, or it could have been a sermon to which Achard gave a strongly doctrinal slant when he reworked it, or perhaps it was carefully written just as it is to be delivered as a sermon. In any case, it seems too polished to be notes for or of a sermon. That is true of all of the sermons in this volume, though among the Miscellanea of Hugh and the short writings of Richard of St Victor there may be sermon notes.121 Achard’s sermons usually do not have a prefatory exordium or captatio benevolentiae, whereas Walter, like the author of the anonymous Serm. 1.1 (ed. Châtillon, Sermons inédits, 24–25; tr. Feiss, Works, 97–98). Recent critical editions of the works of Hugh and Richard of St Victor have made it clear that many of them exist in several versions that probably go back to their authors. Since requests were made to St Victor for texts of the works of Hugh and Richard (and perhaps others) when they were still alive, they may have retouched their work before responding to a new request. Jean Châtillon reflects on this process in his introduction to Trois opuscules spirituels de Richard de Saint-Victor (Paris: Études Augustiniennes, 1986), 19–32, and in introductions to each of the three works he edits there. For other examples of stages in the development of Victorine texts, see Hugonis de Sancto Victore, De vanitate rerum mundanarum. Dialogus de vanitate mundi, ed. Cédric Giraud, CCCM 269 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 127–30; 289–92; Hugonis de Sancto Victore, De archa Noe. Libellus de formatione arche, ed. Patrice Sicard, CCCM 176 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2001), *147–*195, *251–*255, *271–*277; Hugonis de Sancto Victore, De tribus diebus, ed. Dominique Poirel, CCCM 177 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2002), 210*–220*, 239*–250*; Hugonis de Sancto Victore, Super Hierarchiam Dionisii, CCCM 178 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 315–17; Richard de Saint-Victor, Les douze patriarches ou Benjamin minor, ed. Jean Châtillon, Monique Duchet-Suchaux, and Jean Longère, SC 419 (Paris: Cerf, 1997), 61–72.

120 20 121

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Victorine sermons associated in the manuscripts with his, was a master of that rhetorical device. Achard uses it at the beginning of his Sermon 9: On the Solemnity of St Augustine, which is included in this volume. He also provides a kind of exordium to the three sermons, which in their current forms are treatises: Sermon 13: On the Dedication of a Church, Sermon 14: On the Feast of All Saints, and Sermon 15: For the First Sunday of Lent, which begins: “Jesus was led into the desert by the Spirit. It is sufficient to read no further in the text: there is no need to go further than this in the present sermon.” In Sermon 15, Achard is preaching on the Sunday Gospel, but in his sermon that goes on for 45 pages in the critical edition, he never goes beyond this one sentence. Achard, like the other Victorines, usually begins by stating the biblical text, often just a sentence, on which he is going to preach. In this Christmas sermon, the text is presupposed rather than stated: “Behold a virgin will conceive and will bear a son, and his name will be called Emmanuel. He will eat butter and honey so that he knows how to refuse evil and choose the good.”122 The first sentence in this quotation was frequently cited in the Christmas liturgy, both as the Introit at Mass and in the Divine Office. Victorine sermons usually were given in the chapter room, rather than at Mass, and so could be about a text from the Office rather than Mass, or even from some other non-liturgical biblical text. That may be the case here. In any case, this very doctrinal sermon seems more suited to an extra-liturgical or para-liturgical setting such as a chapter meeting. The theme, which Achard states first, is that the food of Emmanuel is butter and honey. In the terminology that would soon become standard in artes praedicandi, the protheme, which will be Achard’s concern in paragraphs 2–4, is “Emmanuel, God with us.” Although the Victorines were great champions of preaching, and many of them were masters of the art, they did not present theories of preaching. Nevertheless, in many of their sermons they foreshadowed the “new” or “university” style of preaching, which discussed a verse rather than an entire liturgical reading, and wove together more than one biblical “authority.” Achard is the most theological of the Victorine preachers. Whereas many Victorine sermons pass quickly from the doctrinal or allegori122

Isa 7:14–15. As Châtillon (Sermons inédits, 24 n. 1) notes, the Victorines often allude to these two verses: Hugh of St Victor, De cibo Emmanuelis (PL 177.477–81); Pseudo-Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 3.64 (PL 177.675); Richard of St Victor, Emman. (PL 196.623–28); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 3.4 (Châtillon, 51–52; tr. Feiss, Works, 114–18); and, in this volume, Godfrey of St Victor, Sermon 3, Christmas.

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cal sense to the moral meaning that is their primary interest, in this sermon Achard focuses almost exclusively on the doctrinal sense, and specifically on Christology. He was involved in the life of the schools and his sermons and treatises reflect the debates and concerns that occupied the teachers and students in Paris. At the time he wrote, Christology was very much at issue,123 and he often refers to Christological matters. He and the later Victorine preachers are loyal defenders of a series of ideas such as the homo assumptus and the “auctoritas” that declared that whatever the Son of God had by nature the Son of Man had by grace. The double homoousios goes back to the anti-Nestorian polemics of the early fifth century and was enshrined in the decrees of the Council of Chalcedon (451).124 The rest of the paragraph derives from the Platonic idea, taken up by Boethius and by some twelfthcentury thinkers after him, that human beings share one nature, but are numerically distinguished as individuals by accidents.125 Achard does not indicate his audience; he does not even refer to them as “my dearly beloved brothers,” as many Victorine sermons do. One has the impression that he is talking to an educated audience who may be confused by various Christological theories and debates, and he is very concerned that they not be influenced by erroneous ideas. Hence, his target audience (real or imagined) might be the younger members of the community or even extern students there. He aims for clarity, not persuasive eloquence, but he slips into the rhymed prose at which the Victorines excelled:126 sed significativis non significatis, materialibus non spiritualibus, videlicet, sterilitate et amaritudine, 123

124 125 126

For Victorine Christology and its setting, see VTT 7 and well as the chapter on it by Christopher Evans in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): 298−327. Denz.-Hün. ET 109, #301; Sermons inédits, ed. Châtillon, 24–25 n. 3. Boethius, De Trinitate, ed. E. K. Rand, LCL 6. Châtillon, ed., 25 n. 4, gives further references. See Roger Baron, “Le style de Hugues de Saint-Victor,” Études sur Hugues de Saint-Victor (n.p.: Desclée de Brouwer, 1963), 91–120; L. Negri, “Lettura stilistica di Ugo di San Vittore,” Convivium 14 (1956): 129–40; P.  Bourgain, “Existe-t-il en littérature un style victorin?” L’École de Saint-Victor de Paris. Influence et rayonnement du Moyen Âge à l’époque moderne, ed. D. Poirel, Bibliotheca Victorina 22 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2010), 41–55; Cédric Giraud, “Du silence à la parole: le latin spirituel d’Hugues de Saint-Victor dans le De vanitate mundi,” AHDLMA 77 (2010): 7–28; Jean-Yves Tillette, “Y a-t-il une esthétique littéraire Victorine?” Les écoles de pensée de xiie siècle et la littérature romane (oc et oïl), ed. Valérie Fasseur and Jean-René Valette, Bibliothèque d’histoire culturelle du Moyen Âge 17 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2016), 123–37.

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sterilitate operum et amartitudine morum… qui cibus in edendo crescit, et in jejunando decrescit. Ibi enim nulla partium est compositio, nulla formarum diversitas, nulla accidentium variatio, ideoque summa unitas.

In other places, the Victorines prefer three-membered divisions with rhyme, but in this paragraph, Achard sticks with two-membered ones. [Part One: Three Questions Regarding the Emmanuel] One could see in the next three paragraphs (2–4) a unified protheme, which is concerned with the identity of Emmanuel, although it is not explicitly identified as such. Each paragraph answers a question about the Incarnate Son, Emmanuel. Question One: “Why [and how] is the Son called ‘God with us’ rather than the Father and the Holy Spirit, for wherever the Son is there the Father and the Holy Spirit are as well?” Achard’s answer is fairly dense. Underlying it is the principle that the works of God ad extra are common to the three persons of the Trinity. Achard begins by saying it is true that wherever the Son is through the infusion of grace and the bestowal of gifts, there the Father and Holy Spirit are as well. However, “the Son has a specific, singular and special mode of presence in our nature, which He united to Himself personally, that is, so that what assumes and what is assumed are one Person: because what is diverse in nature is not distinguished in power.”127 The Incarnation is brought about by the working of all the persons of the Trinity, but only the Son becomes Incarnate. Only the Son came out to us and also into us, that is, into a participation in our nature, so that He became a human being. He came out into our exile in order to lead us into His homeland. Question Two: Why was it the Son who became incarnate, rather than the Father or the Holy Spirit? Achard’s answer begins with a Scriptural citation: “Who is suitable for this?” (2 Corinthians 11:16), which is taken out of context but states the question he wishes to treat. The Son was suitable because He is the brightness shining from the eternal light (light from light) and so was suitable to enlighten human ignorance 127

“Ubicumque Filius est per infusionem et donorum largitionem, ibi Pater and Spiritus sanctus per eamdem gratie infusionem et donorum largitionem. Filius tamen quodam singlari et speciali modo est in nostra natura, quam sibi personaliter univit sic, videlicet, ut assumptum et assumens essent una persona, quod enim diversum est in natura, indifferens est in potentia.”

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and save human beings from error.128 As Son, He was suitable to lead us as adopted sons into His inheritance.129 As image of the Father, He was suitable to restore in us the image and likeness of God. The image was not destroyed insofar as it was inherent in human nature, but insofar as it was grace it was destroyed.130 Humanity was the man who fell into the hands of robbers and was wounded, then restored by the Good Samaritan who is Christ, the incarnate image of the Father.131 Finally, it was fitting that the Son, as Word of God, come to save humanity, which was deaf to the truth and mute in confessing it. All the disabilities of humankind come down to two: ignorance and weakness, the lack of truth and virtue, and who better to repair these disabilities than He who was the virtue and the wisdom of God?132 Question Three: How does incarnate Son take us to the Father? A child is born to us, a son is given us.133 The Son of God became a human boy. Through His humanity, one goes to his divinity: through faith in the Incarnation, one reaches contemplation of his divinity. Here again, Achard displays his mastery of rhymed prose and his acquaintance with Christian tradition and rhetoric: per puerum venitur ad filium, per humanitatem ad divinitatem, per fidem incarnationis ad contemplationem deitatis, per butyri pinguedinem ad mellis dulcedinem, per justitiam ad beatitudinem, per meritum venitur ad premium, per viam ad patriam. Through the boy one comes to the Son, through the humanity to the divinity, through faith in the Incarnation to contemplation of the Divinity, through the richness of butter to the sweetness of honey, 128

129 130 131

132 133

Anselm, De inc. Verbi 10 (Schmitt, 2.27–28; tr. Richard Regan, in Anselm of Canterbury, The Major Works, ed. Brian Davies and G. R. Evans, Oxford World Classics [New York: Oxford University Press, 1998], 252). Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 2.1.2 (PL 176.372C). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.4–5 (Châtillon, 105–06; tr. Feiss, Works, 68, and in this volume); Serm. 13.32 (Châtillon, 164–65; tr. Feiss, Works, 248–49); Châtillon, Théologie, 159–65. On Christ the Good Samaritan, see Richard of St Victor, LE 2.12.5 (ed. Châtillon, 464–66; tr. Feiss, VTT 6:446–74, with discussion regarding this idea in Richard’s Serm. cent. 70 and Maurice de Sully’s Old French Serm. 35). 1 Cor 1:18, 21. The Latin word “virtus” means both power and virtue. Isa 9:6. This text was very often used as an Introit or verse for the Mass or Office of Christmas and the Octave of Christmas (Feast of the Circumcision); see Cantus database g00553, 006576a 007840b, 008175, at cantusindex.org.

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through justice to beatitude, through merit to reward, through the way to the homeland.

He fulfilled his mission completely, nobis humiliter ministrando, cecos illuminando, leprosos mundando, mortuos resuscitando omnes infirmitates nostras curando. by humbly ministering to us, by illumining the blind, by cleansing lepers, by raising dead people, by curing all our infirmities.

This reference to Christ’s mission is also a reminder to his hearers of what he did for them: He was sold for thirty pieces of silver sed non sub peccato, sed pro peccato, non suo, sed nostro. but not under sin, but for sin, not his, but ours.

In these paragraphs, Achard is advocating what he considers to be sound Christology, but he does so in such a way that he reminds his audience that they are sinners standing in the need of grace. Throughout his sermons, Christology and the indispensability of grace are two preoccupations of Achard. The other Victorines may not be so focused on these two themes, but Christology and grace remain prominent in their writings. Achard is in obliquo reminding his educated listeners of their absolute need for the grace of Christ that has justified them (justitia originalis) and the grace of Christ by which they are able to act justly (justitia actualis). In the final two paragraphs, Achard becomes even more emphatic about the need for grace. [Part Two: Butter and Honey] In paragraphs 5 and 6, Achard returns to the theme announced in the first paragraph and mentioned again in the fourth paragraph just

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cited. Butter, which is less sweet, stands for the testimony of a good conscience, which is required for the taste of interior sweetness and the foretaste of divine contemplation symbolized by honey. By these two, butter and honey, people are refreshed with Christ and in Christ, and He in us and in Himself. Voicing the Victorines’ insistence on the fullness of Christ’s knowledge, Achard says that Christ fully enjoyed divine contemplation in His mind from the moment of his conception.134 Christ’s humanity had by grace whatever power, wisdom, and goodness His divinity had by nature.135 Father and Son are one, not in person but in nature. In Christ, the man assumed and the Word assuming are one, not in nature but in person. Each saint who adheres to God through faith and love is one with God, not in nature or in person, but in justice and glory.136 In the deepest roots of his consciousness (principale mentis), Christ’s beatitude was never lessened, even though at various times during his life there was variation in his spirit, soul, and flesh.137 Endowed with the fullness of virtue, Christ was refreshed by the testimony of a good conscience. By His love and virtue He merited many things for human beings, to whom He assigned His merits.138 No one can merit future glory without the merits of Christ; but Christ’s merits confer sufficient merits for salvation even for little children and those who do not have time to do good deeds, and those who have time to act but have insufficient merits.139 No creature, but only the 134 135

136

137

138 139

Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 2.1.6 (PL 176.383D). See Achard of St Victor, Serm. 4.5 (Châtillon, 59–61; tr. Feiss, Works, 131–33, and VTT 7). Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 2.1.6 (PL 176.383–89); De sapientia animae Christi (PL 176.855B); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 4.5 (Châtillon; 59–61; tr. Feiss, Works, 131–33); 5.1 (Châtillon 67; tr. Feiss, Works, 140–41); 14.3 (Châtillon, 175; tr. Feiss, Works, 263); 15.26 (Châtillon, 230; tr. Feiss, Works, 335). This adage appears first in a letter of Walter of Montagne to Hugh of St Victor; see Jean Châtillon, “Quidquid convenit Filio Dei per naturam covnenit Filio hominis per gratiam,” in Divinitas 11 (1967): 715–29 (= Miscellanea André Combes [Rome: Università Lateranense; Paris: Vrin, 1967], 2:319–31; reprinted in Jean Châtillon, D’Isidore de Séville à saint Thomas d’Aquin: Études d’histoire et de théologie [London: Variorum, 1985]). Achard, Serm. 1.5 (Châtillon, 33): “Pater et Filius unum sunt, non in persona, sed in natura; homo assumptus et Verbum assumens unum sunt, non in natura, sed in persona; et quilibet sanctorum Deo adherens per fidem et dilectionem unum est cum Deo, non in natura vel in persona, sed in justitia et gloria.” For the distinction between mens, spiritus, and anima, see Achard’s treatise, “De discretion animae, spiritual et mentis,” 21–35 (ed. Häring, Mediaeval Studies, 22 [1960]: 178–82; tr. Feiss, Works, 361–64). In Serm. 3.4 (Châtillon, 51–52; tr. Feiss, Works, 118–19), an Advent sermon, Achard makes the same point about Christ’s unchanging enjoyment of the vision of God throughout His life and uses the image of butter and honey as an illustration. Achard of St Victor, Serm. 3.3 (Châtillon, 50–51; tr. Feiss, Works, 116–17). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 3.1 (Châtillon, 43–45; tr. Feiss, Works, 111–13); Serm. 11.3 (Châtillon, 119–20; tr. Feiss, Works, 89–90).

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Lion of Judah, could have taken away sins and conferred eternal life.140 “May He through the merits of His flesh lead us to the enjoyment of His Godhead.” [Ending Benediction] Many Victorine sermons end with a benediction and/or invocation of God. Sometimes this final sentence follows from what went before. Achard has been insisting that it is only by the merits of Christ that human beings can be saved; so, he prays that by His merits Christ may lead us to contemplation of His divinity. This has a twofold anagogic thrust. A partial and preliminary “contemplation of His divinity” is possible in this life; it will be complete for the saints in the next life. These concluding prayers remind the hearers of the substance of the sermon, but at the same time turn their attention to what lies beyond this world and beyond these and any words.

140

Achard of St Victor, Serm. 3.3 (Châtillon, 50–51; tr. Feiss, Works, 116–17).

PRELUDE HUGH OF ST VICTOR

SERMONS OF HUGH OF ST VICTOR Although, at this point anyway, it is difficult to assign “sermons” of Hugh to a specific liturgical setting or feast, it seems worthwhile to include, as a kind of prelude to this collection of Victorine sermons on the Liturgical Year, four examples of texts of Hugh of St Victor that appear to be what today would be called sermons. There is no evidence that Hugh collected his sermons and left them for posterity. However, scattered through the Miscellanea printed in volume 177 of the Patrologia latina are texts that are recognizable as sermons: expositions of biblical or liturgical texts that both inform and exhort, that refer to the audience as fratres, and that end with a benediction calling on Christ to help the preacher and his audience to put into practice the teaching of the biblical text and to lead them to eternal life. Other parts of the Miscellanea are short comments on biblical or theological topics that may have been intended to serve as starting points for sermons or were notes from sermons heard. As was indicated in the general introduction, there is a collection of 200 or 206 sermones identified by Ralf M. W. Stammberger as complete in four manuscripts and incomplete in three others, all but one of which come from Austria. Monasteries in Austria and South Germany were important points for the diffusion of Hugh’s works outside of France. Of the texts in this collection, 132 are included in the Miscellanea, and all of them are genuine works of Hugh. Stammberger thinks it likely that the other 74 works in these manuscripts are also Hugh’s. As a glimpse at the contents of this collection shows, many of the items in it are clearly not “sermons,” but letters, treatises, and so forth. Of the sermons that follow, two (Misc. 1.52 and Misc. 1.91) are included in the collection of Hugh’s “sermones” identified by Stammberger, and two are not (Misc. 1.99 and Misc. 1.113). The incipits of these four texts and the titles assigned them in the Patrologia latina are as follows: 1.52: Vae vobis, divites, qui habetis nunc consolationes vestras (“De falsitate consolationis mundanae”)

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1.91: Exi de terra tua et de cognatione tua (“Sermo ad fratres”) 1.99: Popule meus, memento, quaeso, quid cogitaverit Balac rex Moab (“De gratitudine beneficiorum Dei et de judicio de se et proximo faciendo”) 1.113: Ex magna, fratres charissimi, Salvatoris nostri pietate agitur (“De festis sanctorum recolendis”)

MISCELLANEA 1.52: ON THE FALSE CONSOLATION OF THE WORLD INTRODUCTION

The concluding sentence of this brief text indicates that it was addressed to the community. Luke 6:24 does not seem to have been used as a gospel reading on a Sunday or Feast of the Liturgical Year.1 Hugh tells his fellow canons that they should develop a taste for the sweetness of the one true good, and not seek consolation in other kinds of sweetness. This is a variation on Hugh’s theology of love. The human heart is made for love, and if it does not love God, who alone can satisfy it, it will seek other loves, which in the end will prove disappointing. Another typical Victorine element in the sermon is the division of the spiritual life into stages. In this case, the soul begins at peace, graced with the taste of her true good. When that taste is taken away, she searches for consolation in external goods. She finds them and forgets about her true good. There comes a time, though, when her senses will no longer offer her access to the pleasures of the world and those pleasures can no longer enter through the senses. She will fall into desperation and damnation, and she will be too exhausted to repent before she dies and unable to do so afterward. Therefore, now is the time to abandon external pleasures and seek the sweetness of the Lord.

1

Likewise, Richard of St Victor does not comment on Luke 6:24 in the Liber exceptionum.

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TRANSLATION

1. Woe to you rich, who have your consolations now.1 If the rational soul has true wisdom, she has a taste for nothing but the true good. She has no other good but the true good. This is the only thing in which she should rejoice in its abundance, and in which she should be consoled in its lack. Therefore, whether she is in abundance or want, she does well to rejoice and be consoled by it, provided she suffers no want of it either in times of abundance or in times of want. 2. She experiences a first evil when it is taken away and she suffers its loss, so that she does not have it. Then a second evil befalls her, so that she is consoled by some other good and no longer seeks it. Having lost the interior good, the soul goes out to external goods that are alien to her and makes a pact with the pleasures of the world. Then she returns and brings them to herself so that she can fornicate with them in the hidden place of her heart, rest upon them, and find consolation in them, and not pay attention to the absence of her good because she beholds abundance and consolation in alien goods. The soul, now abandoned by her own good, does not recognize its abandonment because she has the alien companionship of the delights of this world, which enter her through the senses of her flesh or when she goes out to them. 3. However, when these doorways of the carnal senses begin to close, the passage by which they go to meet each other is no longer open. Then the company of vanity will be kept away, and the exterior world will be kept outside so that it may not enter, and the soul, enclosed within, may not go out. The soul will come to the gates of the eyes and find them closed, so she cannot go out by sight. She will turn to the gates of the ears and find them blocked, so she cannot go out by hearing. Then she will scurry to access the other senses and there will be no passageway, because the bars of perpetual death, with unbending strength and immovable chains, forever close the doors of the senses to their former mingling.2 4. Then the wretched soul will find herself alone in this sad parting and, turning herself around, will begin to seek that companion Who is within and cannot be kept out; but she will not be able to have His companionship in her desolation because she did not seek Him in her consolation. Then, unhappy, she will fall in desperation upon herself and in damnation beneath herself; and she will open herself to rush headlong into the deep and, when it receives her, the way upward will be closed permanently and the way down will be opened, so that she

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falls endlessly and does not rise. And then, for the first time, she will recognize that what was said is true: Woe to the solitary person; when she falls, she has no one to lift her up.3 5. Hence, He said: Pray that your flight not be in winter or on the Sabbath.4 What is winter if not the torpor of death? What is the Sabbath if not the time of perpetual lack of occupation after death? Winter takes away the possibility of walking about, and the Sabbath takes away the freedom to do so. The person restricted by the torpor of imminent death is blocked from correcting his ways, and after death no repentance is accepted. Here, he is weighed down so he does not do his former deeds; there, he is bound so he does not escape imminent damnation. Here there is heavy correction, there the impossibility of purification. 6. For these reasons, it is good to flee the coming wrath5 before you begin to feel it is imminent. Otherwise, your willing may be less effective because not expressed in deeds, or your sorrow useless because it does not lead to positive change. Let the soul, now placed in the company of strangers, think about how she cannot always remain with them, and let her choose in the meantime that companion Who, when all else has been taken way, keeps faith with those who love Him and never withdraws in time of anguish. If it seems hard now to reject all the allurements of the world for love of Him, let her listen to Him giving consolation as He says, Am I not better for you than ten sons?6 What, then? Is the world sweet, but God is not? Certainly not! My spirit is sweeter than honey, and my inheritance better than honey and the honeycomb.7 Therefore, brothers, if you begin to taste this sweetness, you will not love false sweetness, nor will you feel real bitterness.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Luke 6:24. Cicero, De divinatione 1.34.74, ed.  and tr.  William Armistead Falconer, LCL  154 (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1992), 304. Eccles 4:10. Matt 24:20. Matt 3:7; Luke 3:7. 1 Kings (1 Sam) 1:8. Sir 24:27 (Vulg).

MISCELLANEA 1.91: GO FROM YOUR LAND AND YOUR KIN. SERMON TO THE BRETHREN INTRODUCTION

This text, which is clearly a sermon of some kind, occurs in the first book of the Miscellanea.1 It is not easy to assign it to a specific season or day. Genesis 12:1, which provides the subject of the sermon, was the first in a series of nine antiphons used at Matins on Quinquagesima Sunday (the Sunday before Ash Wednesday), and so that could have been the occasion for the sermon.2 The sermon flows smoothly from one idea to the next. It can be outlined as follows: 1. Introduction: The brothers know the Scriptures and their power, not just by knowledge, but also by experience. 2–4. Knowledge of Christ’s risen majesty and his suffering flesh. 5–6. What someone needs to leave behind to achieve intimacy with Christ. 7. Milk and honey stand for knowing Christ’s humanity through the senses, and his divinity through the mind. In paragraph 7, Hugh argues for the fittingness of the Incarnation. If God had not assumed human flesh, human beings would always bear the reproach that, though they could know God with their minds, they could not know God through the senses of their flesh. This would be a cause of despondency and reproach to them. This notion does not appear in Hugh’s surprisingly brief discussion of Christ’s redeeming work in De sacramentis 1.8.1–10.3 There, he sees God’s mercy at work in granting humanity a time for repentance, help1 2 3

Misc. 1.91 (PL 177.521A–523C). Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 63. Sacr. 1.8.1–10 (Berndt, 194–201; PL 176.305C–312A; tr. Deferrari, 141–48). Hugh treats the reasons for the Incarnation in Sacr. 2.1, On the Incarnation of the Word, but there he focuses on the divine and human natures being related to each other in Christ.

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ing humanity to recognize its need, and giving humanity counsel (1–3). This, Hugh follows with his version of the “strife of the daughters of God” (4), in which he spells out the roles of God, humanity, and the devil, and the interplay of justice and mercy in the drama of human redemption.4 The devil unjustly holds humans in bondage, but humans deserve the bondage in which they find themselves. Since humanity was incapable of helping itself, God acted mercifully by sending Christ so that Christ could then redeem humanity justly. Very succinctly, invoking symmetry between the sin and its remedy, affirming the identity of Creator and Redeemer, and alluding to the involvement of the Trinity, Hugh considers “Why God Became Human” (6): So, God became man to liberate man, whom he had made, so that the Creator of man and the Redeemer of man were the same. The Son was sent to show his assent to the adoption made by his Father. Wisdom came to conquer wickedness, so that the enemy who had conquered by cunning would be conquered by good sense.5

Christ took up our nature and offered it, and we are made participants in that offering through faith (7). Hugh then explains, in Augustinian terms, that it is just that God redeems sinners from the mass of the human race, and if He does not redeem some that is just also (7–9). God could have justly willed to accomplish human redemption in some other way (10). This treatment of the redemption in De sacramentis focuses on the interplay of justice and mercy. It does not speak of the divine concern for human sensibility as a factor in human redemption. However, such considerations do appear prominently in Richard of St Victor’s Ad me clamat. Richard of St Victor also argued from God’s sensibility about humanity’s feelings and dignity in his arguments for the fittingness of redemption by the death of the Incarnate Son. He proceeds in four steps. First of all, satisfaction was necessary for two reasons. First, because of sin humanity could no longer in justice reach heavenly happiness. The restoration of humanity’s former dignity required that this possibility of beatitude be restored. If humanity had been redeemed solely through God’s mercy, without any consideration for justice, the devil 4 5

See note 8 below. Sacr. 1.8.6 (ed. Berndt, 100; tr. Deferrari, 146): “Cur Deus homo. Factus est itaque deus homo, ut hominem quem fecerat, liberaret, ut idem esset creator hominis et redemptor. Missus itaque filius ut in adoptione paterna assensum suum demonstraret. Venit sapientia ut vinceret malitiam, ut hostis qui astutia vicerat prudentia vinceretur.”

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would have been able to flaunt in humanity’s face the fact that human beings had no just claim to what had been restored to them, and that, therefore, they had not been fully restored to their former dignity. Secondly, if humanity had been restored without making any satisfaction for its sin, humanity’s conscience would not have been set at ease. Now, the pride humanity can take in the satisfaction made by Christ on its behalf outweighs the shame humanity previously felt. “O happy fault!” These two arguments show that if no satisfaction had been made, humanity would not have been restored to its former dignity. The next question is why this satisfaction took the form it did.6 Richard thought that there should be symmetry between the fault and the satisfaction offered for it. On this basis, he argued that the satisfaction had to be made by a divine person: the sin of man is a proud rebellion of the lowest of rational beings against the highest Being; the reparation must therefore be made by a humbling of the highest Being toward the lowest. Hence, the redeemer must be a person of the Trinity. To support the same conclusion, Richard gave a second argument, which once again appealed to human dignity. To justify and give happiness to humanity is a greater thing than to create humanity. If a creature could bring humanity’s justification, it would mean that to be created a human being was not the great dignity that, in fact, it is.7 Richard’s third step is to argue that satisfaction had to be made by a human being. He gives four reasons. First, if one cannot make satisfaction oneself, it is in accord with justice that a blood relative do so. What is not done by a human being would not affect human beings. Hence, humanity’s redemption required a human redeemer. Secondly, and here again Richard invokes symmetry, humanity incurred the debt of death by disobedience. It was required then that the expiation of the debt should be by someone whose obedience to God led him to undergo an undeserved death. Hence, justice required a redeemer who was mortal yet just, and hence not liable to the sentence of death. 6

7

Ad me clamat 8 (Ribaillier, 267–68; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:238–39). This discussion of Ad me clamat is drawn from Hugh Feiss, “Learning and the Ascent to God in Richard of St Victor” (STD diss., Rome: Pontifical Athenaeum of Sant’Anselmo, 1976), chapter 3. Ribaillier, Ad me clamat, 246, notes a neoplatonic element in this argument. Richard introduces into Anselm’s framework the ideas of harmony and the hierarchy of being. Richard also invokes the principle: “contraria contrariis curantur” (Ad me clamat, 11, ed. Ribaillier, 271; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:241). For background on this principle, see the literature cited by Ribaillier, Ad me clamat, 281 n. 3. The principle about contraries is also invoked in the commentary In Joelem, included among the works of Hugh of St Victor (PL 175.356C), but probably not by him.

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Thirdly, the De gemino paschate adds a deceptively simple clarification about why the redeeming work of Christ took the form of death on the cross. The redemption is to be understood in terms of justice and mercy. Christ could have liberated humanity by a single word, but he preferred to act by means of justice rather than power, that is, by overcoming sin and death through his own death, though he was not under the sentence of death. Mercy is involved insofar as Christ was obedient unto death solely out of love and compassion.8 Hence, the redeemer, in order to be suitable to his task, had to be both God and a just human being. This conclusion is confirmed by a fourth argument, one with a triadic structure that Richard favors. A genuine and perfect mediator between God and humanity should have something in common with both. The most perfect mediator would share the natures of both.9 In the fourth and final step of his reflections, Richard gives three reasons why the Son was the divine person who became the incarnate Savior.10 His first argument is rather involved, not to say forced. The Father is the one to whom satisfaction is to be given. If the Holy Spirit were to become incarnate to save us, people might remain doubtful about the efficacy of the redemption, thinking in human terms that the Son (with an apparent preeminence over the Spirit) was one with the Father in demanding satisfaction. Further, the divine person with a mediating position in the Trinity is the most suitable mediator between God and man.11 A second line of reasoning appeals to symmetry. As was already noted, by presumption humanity wished to ascend to be like God. To be symmetrical with this sinful presumption, the mode of reparation had to be such that the redeemer came down from the likeness of God to the likeness of fallen humanity. It is the Son who is called image (imago) and form (figura) of the Father. The Holy Spirit 8

9 10 11

De gemino paschate 2 (PL 196.1069AC). The relationships among justice and mercy, power and peace, truth and kindness, in the working out of the redemption were of theological and dramatic interest. The theme crystallized around texts such as Ps 84(85):11: Misericordia et veritas obviaverunt sibi, iustitia et pax osculatae sunt (“Mercy and justice have met; justice and peace have kissed”) and Ps 44(45):5: procede et regna propter veritatem et mansuetudinem et iustitiam Et deducet te mirabiliter dextera tua (“advance and reign on behalf of truth, gentleness and justice”). Examples of this theme, “the strife of the daughters of God,” include Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.8.1, 4 (PL 176.305CD, 308AC); Misc. 2.63 (PL 177.623B–625D); Misc. 3.29 (PL 177.651AC); St Bernard, In Annunciatione Domini, Sermo 1 (SBO 5:13–29); Sententiae, ser. 3, n. 23 (SBO 6:80–82). For some secondary literature, see VTT 4:124 n. 6; Godfrey of St Victor, Sermon for the First Sunday of Advent, below, n. 45. Ad me clamat 8 (Ribaillier, 268–69; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:238–40). Hugh of St Victor considers this question in Sacr. 2.1.1. Ad me clamat 9 (Ribaillier, 269–70; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:240–41).

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is not the Image of the Father. Moreover, the Spirit is not “born” of the Father, so there would be no symmetry between his procession in the Trinity and his human birth.12 Thirdly, the original sin was an attempt to gain divine knowledge by stealth. As such, it was in a special way an affront to the Son, who is the Wisdom of the Father. It was fitting that the forgiveness for humanity’s stupidity should be gained by divine Wisdom, that contraries be cured by contraries.13 In formulating these succinctly presented reasons why the Son of God became incarnate, Richard was much influenced by the method and arguments of St Anselm’s Cur Deus homo. Nevertheless, Richard’s ideas here have some noteworthy features. First, his arguments make repeated references to human feelings and psychology, so much so that God’s sensitivity to these feelings looms at least as large as concern for divine honor. Secondly, the devil only enters the argument as a potential heckler should humanity have been restored by sheer mercy. There is no question here of any rights of the devil, nor is there mention of human beings filling up the number of the blessed, diminished by the fall of the angels. As Ribaillier noted, Richard here views the dealings between God and human beings as person-to-person relationships.14 12 13

14





Ad me clamat 10 (Ribaillier, 270; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:241). Ad me clamat 11 (Ribaillier, 270–71; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:241–42). Richard seldom refers elsewhere to the issues he discusses in these chapters of Ad me clamat. The preface to In Joelem (Wilmart, 277.52) states simply that “incarnacio proprie respectat ad filium” (“Incarnation properly concerns the Son”). Opuscules théologiques, ed.  Ribaillier, 242–43, 249–51. Richard is an exception to Brian McGuire’s generalization that from about 1150 to 1220 Anselm’s thought was without influence in Paris. In “Man and the Devil,” 20–23, 40, he contrasts Anselm’s “humanistic” theology of the redemption with the more traditional one endorsed by “the school of Laon” and Peter Lombard, which gave some place to the devil’s rights over mankind. Cf. Longère, Oeuvres oratoires, 1:65–180, especially 65–69. Richard does give some place to the rights of the devil in Apoc. 4.2 (PL 196.801C, 802B): “Istud autem praelium in exordio sanctae Ecclesiae describitur factum et visum, quia tunc diabolo dominandi jus antiquum quod in homine per culpam possederat, per gratiam Redemptoris est ablatum”; “Terra significat illos malos qui in uno aliquo et singulari vitio pertinaciter stant, mare vero eos qui per diversorum amaritudinem vitiorum fluctuant. Ad quod utrosque diabolus descendit, quia in ipsis potestatem dominandi accepit”; cf. De Emmanuele 1.21 (PL 196.633AB). In light of passages in Richard’s Apoc., D. E. De Clerck, “Questions de sotériologie médiévale,” RTAM 13 (1946): 150–84, interprets Richard’s reference to the devil in Ad me clamat 8 as referring to the rights of the devil, but this does not seem to be Richard’s point. Jean Rivière, The Doctrine of the Atonement: A Historical Essay, tr. Luigi Cappadelta (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner, 1909), 2:85–87, agrees with my interpretation. He summarizes this element of Richard’s argument as follows: “if he was restored to his lost inheritance out of simple mercy he would not have profited thereby. For the devil could always taunt him with possessing things to which he had no right. Even supposing there were no devil, man’s own

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There are few more eloquent expressions of twelfth-century Christian humanism than Richard’s assertion that the Son of God became incarnate “for the greater glory of fallen human beings.”15 This sermon anticipates that divine sensitivity toward human beings.



15

conscience would reproach him, and shame him, with the recollection of the unrepaired fault.” De Clerck seems to have drawn his references to Richard from Rivière’s Le dogme de la rédemption au début du moyen âge. For Anselm’s influence on Richard and other twelfth-century theologians, see also S. Vanni Rovighi, “Notes sur l’influence de saint Anselme au xiie siècle,” Cahiers de civilization médiévale 7 (1964): 423–37; 8 (1965): 43–58; R. Grégoire, Bruno de Segni (Spoleto: Centro italiano di studi sull’alto medioevo, 1965), 201–70; G. R. Evans, “St Anselm and St Bruno of Segni: the Common Ground,” Journal of Ecclesiastical History 29 (1978): 129–44; Ott, Untersuchungen, 602, 611; O. González, “Sobre las fuentes de Ricardo de San Víctor y su influjo en San Buenaventura,” La Ciudad de Dios 176 (1963): 590–93; G. R. Evans, Anselm and a New Generation (Oxford: Clarendon, 1980). Ad me clamat 11 (Ribaillier, 271; tr. Coulter and Feiss, VTT 6:241–42): “Ad majorem igitur lapsi hominis gloriam ut possit resurgere per justitiam.”

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TRANSLATION

1. Go from your land and your kin and the house of your father and come into the land that I will show you.1 Brothers, because we are speaking to people who know the law of God, our sermon (sermo) to you is not teaching (doctrina), but exhortation. You know the Scriptures and their power (virtutem). The power of the word (verbi) is the experience of the reality, and the efficacy of speech (sermonis) is the production of a deed. You, therefore, do not wander in ignorance of the Scriptures and their power. You know the Scriptures through studious reading, their power by the discipline of deeds. You know the Scriptures by hearing Christ speaking; you know their power by imitating Christ’s action. In His words, you have found the understanding of the Scriptures, in His deeds their power. You know Christ not only by hearing, but also by experience. 2. You know Him not only according to the flesh, but also in majesty. If we knew Christ according to the flesh, the Apostle says, we know him so no longer.2 You have experienced Christ in both ways: you know Him both according to the flesh and in majesty. You used to know Him according to the flesh; now you know Him in majesty. Christ according to the flesh is Christ in His Passion; Christ in majesty is Christ in His Resurrection. You experienced Christ on the Cross by feeling compassion. You will experience Christ in majesty by rising with Him. 3. You are that spouse and that beloved who knew her Beloved, and having the experience, said: My beloved is a sachet of myrrh for me:3 this is Christ according to the flesh. My beloved is a cluster of henna:4 this is Christ in majesty. The sachet of myrrh is Christ in His Passion; the cluster of henna is Christ in His Resurrection. The sachet of myrrh is the bitterness of the Passion. The cluster of henna is the sweetness of the Resurrection. The sachet of myrrh is the multitude of sufferings; the cluster of henna is the abundance of joys. The former makes bitter; the latter inebriates. Nonetheless, you have placed a sachet of myrrh between your breasts, because you have received the Passion of Christ with joy and love. You bear the suffering of Christ not only in your body but also in your heart, because you have accepted imitation of His Passion by the love of your mind. 4. You have known Christ according to the flesh, but you no longer know Him thus,5 because what is in His Passion is passing, but what is in His Resurrection is permanent. You have known and no longer know because He presses on; so, the sorrow of the Passion, which

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you received when you felt compassion in the flesh, may pass, and He presses on so that the joy of the Resurrection, which you perceived by rising together with Him in your mind, may be consummated. He presses on, so the sorrow of the Passion may pass, but He does not press on so that the love of the one suffering may pass. Passion passes from the flesh, but love does not pass from the heart. Therefore, the sachet of myrrh will remain between your breasts.6 The heart is there, and where the heart is, there is love, and where love is, there is the dwelling of the beloved. 5. Therefore, brothers, you who are the spouse beloved by Christ have the sachet of myrrh, the suffering Christ, and the cluster of henna, the rising Christ. Therefore, you have no need to be taught about Him. He teaches you, because his anointing teaches you about all things,7 and His word, which sounds in your ears, gives the savor of wisdom (sapit) in your hearts. Our words are not sufficient for your instruction,8 but His word passes through us to you so that His grace flows back from you to us. This is His word to you, which is spoken on your account: Go from your land, etc.9 It had already been spoken earlier, and He wished that what He had said be spoken to you, so that you might also know that what was said pertains to you. There was then one to whom it was said, but it pertained to this One in Whom you are one, of Whom it is written: One is my friend, my dove, my perfect.10 He was then a stranger who was in a foreign place and was called to leave it to become a neighbor, a beloved, and a friend. Indeed, he was already beloved then, because the One Who called him loved him. However, he was not a friend, because he did not love the One Whom he did not know. Therefore, he was not loved because he was a stranger, but because he was going to be a neighbor and friend. He was then in Ur of the Chaldeans, that is, in the fire and the burning of the demons,11 which is the desire and pleasure of earthly things. The fire darkened him and made him black, so that he was not lovable. Therefore, he was called, so that he could go out of the fire and come into the place of cool refreshment, be whitened and become bright, so he would not always be hateful. 6. Therefore, He said: Go from your land and from your kin, and from the house of your father, and come into the land that I will show you.12 To go from one’s land is to leave behind earthly goods that are possessed exteriorly. To go from one’s kin is to renounce the vices that have arisen in us and with us. To go from the house of one’s father is to have scorned all things for God and then to deny oneself. The house

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of our father is our heart, because our father dwells in us. Our first father was the devil, according to the birth by which we were born. Our second father is God, according to the birth by which we have been reborn. Both fathers wish to dwell in their children: the devil in children of wrath, God in children of grace. Therefore, when we were in Ur of the Chaldeans, our heart was the house of the devil, because then he dwelt in us. We were all sons of Beor,13 which means dwelling in a skin. This father cannot dwell anywhere but in a skin, because he loves the hearts of carnal people, and he rests only in them, because they are wise in the things of the flesh and walk according to the flesh.14 This skin is the home of our first father, from which we are ordered to depart, that is, to leave behind our heart and its bad desires. To leave our heart is to go away from its desires, to travel away from them, so that we do not consent to be where they are but, with a plan for holiness, we stretch toward the land that God will show us. At first, we cast off what was ours for God’s sake, then we also leave behind ourselves. Finally, the Lord will show us the land of vision in which Lord Himself is seen. 7. The Lord has set up for His children a promised land flowing with milk and honey, with milk in contemplation of His humanity, and with honey in contemplation of His divinity.15 Moreover, God is to be given honor, so that in Himself He may make the whole human race happy,16 so the whole turning of the human being may be toward Him, and all the love of the human being may be in Him. However, if God were the Creator of humankind, and God were not human, there would be in Him what could be seen by the perception of the mind, but there would not be what could be perceived by the perception of the body.17 He would then hear by the sense of the flesh the unending reproach of his Creator’s absence, and he would in his despondency always wander among creatures without attaining his Creator. So that the perception of man’s flesh would not bear this disgrace in perpetuity and always deservedly be asked, Where is your God?18 if he were never admitted to contemplate his Creator, the Creator assumed flesh. This was seen by the sense of the flesh through the flesh, so that the milk of contemplation of His flesh would be food for the flesh, and the honey in the contemplation of His divinity would be food for the mind. And he went out and in and found pasture:19 pasture outside in the flesh of the Savior, and pasture inside in the divinity of the Creator. And the one Savior and Creator would be one joy, in the milk of the flesh and the honey of the divinity. And this, etc. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19

Gen 12:1. Here, as elsewhere, only words that are cited exactly from the Vulgate are italicized. 2 Cor 5:16. Song 1:12. Song 1:13. Botrus cyperi: Douai-Rheims translates “cluster of cypress”; NABRE (1:14) has “cluster of henna.” Botrus means “grape,” hence, it seems, the reference to inebriation several sentences later. The Latin cyperos and cypirus did not mean cypress, but a plant, and by the Middle Ages at least, specifically the plant from which henna is derived. Henna is a plant with white, scented flowers (Lawsonia inermis) and many cosmetic applications. 2 Cor 5:16. Song 1:12. 1 John 2:27. Reading doctrinam vestram instead of doctrinam nostram. Gen 12:1. Song 6:8. Jerome, Heb. nom. 15, 3: “Ur ignis aut lumen” (“Ur means fire or light”); 22, 4: “Chaldaei quasi daemonia vel quasi ubera aut feroces” (“Chaldeans means like demons or like breasts or ferocious”). Gen 12:1. Jerome, Heb. nom. 3, 25: “Beor in pelle” (“Beor means in a skin”). Rom 8:5, 4. Richard of St Victor develops the metaphor of milk and honey in his treatise On the Four Degrees of Violent Love, 30–31 (VTT 2:288), and also in his On Emmanuel, 21–23 (VTT 6:425–28). “totum hominem in se beatificaret”: it could also mean “make the whole human being happy in Himself.” Reading corporis for corpus. Mic 7:10. John 10:9.

MISCELLANEA 1.99: ON GRATITUDE FOR BENEFITS GOD GIVES / ON PASSING JUDGMENT ON ONESELF AND ONE’S NEIGHBOR INTRODUCTION

This text1 comments on Micah 6:5–8. It begins with a brief historical exposition of Balaam’s prophesying at the behest of Balak, King of Moab (par. 1). Next comes the allegorical meaning of that story: God protects his chosen ones against the devil and the vain people who plot against them. Christians should express their gratitude for this protection (par. 2). However, his listeners are thinking, “How can I express my thanks adequately? What can I give to God?” (par. 3: Micah 6:6–7). The continuation of Micah’s text (Micah 6:8) provides a threepronged answer to these questions: make just judgments, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God. This threefold response is offered to the Triune God. To the three persons of the Trinity are attributed pastoral care, discernment, and charity, respectively, though one must be careful not to think that these attributes belong exclusively to one or the other person (par. 4). The sermon ends with a discussion of these three expressions of thanksgiving, giving special emphasis to the first (par. 5), and then saying briefly that just judgment should be shown in merciful action, stemming from love rather than fear. Our accomplishment of this threefold expression of thanksgiving is made possible by the Trinity working in us (par. 6). The sermon expresses two of the key features of Victorine theology. One is a keen interest in the theology of the Trinity, which Hugh explored in De tribus diebus. Both Achard of St Victor, De unitate Dei et pluralitate creaturarum, and Richard of St Victor, De Trinitate, later wrote very important works on the Trinity. Secondly, the sermon emphasizes the role of grace: our expressions of gratitude for the providential care of God are themselves the results of the Trinity working 1

PL 177.529A–532B.

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in us. This role of grace and the mystical presence and action of God within the soul are constants of Victorine thought and sermons. Also pervasive in Victorine sermons are tricolons (three-membered, “trinitarian” divisions—a favorite device of St Bernard as well), and the Augustinian notion that human beings are created as the image and likeness of God and are most like the Trinity when they express that image in act. The texts in the Miscellanea are presented without any context. However, one might speculate—somewhat wildly—that this sermon comes from the late 1130s, after Prior Thomas had been murdered and the controversy regarding the attribution of the essential attributes of God (such as power, wisdom, and goodness) to different person of the Trinity had died down. Hugh warns listeners or readers not to make inappropriate attributions, but he is not defensive about attributing essential attributes to the individual persons (what later would be called appropriation). The author’s discussion about persecution of good people by the devil and vain people could refer to the conflict over church reform that led to the murder of Prior Thomas. In any case, as is his wont, Hugh names no names, but mentions greed, excess in the use of temporal things, and malice toward good people.

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TRANSLATION

1. My people remember, I ask you, what Balak, King of Moab, was thinking, and what Balaam, son of Beor, answered him, from Shittim to Gilgal, so you may know the justice of the Lord.1 Balak, the King of Moab, hired Balaam, a soothsayer, with a bribe to curse the children of Israel. However, the Lord did not allow him to curse His people, to whom a hereditary blessing had been promised. Since a man’s curse could not harm him whom God had blessed, when the prophet’s curse was turned into a blessing, it showed clearly what the grace of God is now doing spiritually in His chosen ones. For the Apostle says, we know that all things work together to the good for those who love God, who are called saints according to His plan.2 2. The wicked prophet wanted to curse God’s people, but he was forced against his will to bless because, by God’s arrangement, the evil things that reprobates inflict on good people work together for their salvation. Therefore, the Lord speaks concerning His people through the prophet, and calls to mind earlier benefits, saying, My people, remember, I ask you, what Balak, King of Moab, was thinking and what Balaam, son of Beor answered him, from Shittim to Gilgal, so that you may know the justice of the Lord.3 Blush with shame, wretched man. You should never forget that God has loved you so much that not only did He not permit the curse of your enemies to harm you, but He also changed it into a blessing for you. Truly, when the One Who granted you these goods asks you to remember them, what does it show if, having received such great benefits, you still remained ungrateful and unmindful? However, if the ungrateful Jew did not wish to remember the benefits of God, you, O Christian, should at least be careful never to forget the good things that have been presented to you. Take care, I say, and take even more care, since it will be worse if you persist in your ingratitude. It is obvious that you have received greater benefits from God than he did. You, too, have an enemy, Balak, who ceaselessly persecutes you and is constantly pondering hostile plots. He is afraid that perhaps he is not able by his own strength to subvert you, so with the offer of a bribe he invites a greedy prophet to curse you. Balak is interpreted as “crushing.”4 He is Satan, our adversary and worst enemy. When we have been prostrated and crushed by him, we are healed and raised up by Him of Whom the Psalm sings: The Lord raises up the crushed; the Lord loves the just.5 This Balak is king of Moab, which is interpreted as “from the father,”6 namely, of those to whom the Lord

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says in the Gospel: You are from your father the devil.7 This one plots harmful things against us, as Paul the Apostle, speaking to certain of his disciples about him, said: that we not be beset by Satan.8 We are not ignorant of his plans. To him, as he is plotting against us and seeking advice to overthrow us, Balaam (interpreted as “a vain people,” that is, [a people] of iniquities) answers (that is, submitting to his will) and is in complete agreement with his savagery about overthrowing and ruining us. Balaam (that is, “the vain people”) is son of Beor (which signifies “in a skin,” so that one understands “of an inhabitant”),9 that is, the son of some devil through imitation, by oppressing us with him, and persecuting us with a wicked hatred. The devil dwells in a skin, that is, in a carnal heart, because he finds rest only in them because the impulse of carnal desire, loosening them from the constancy and rigor of the virtues, enervates them through base desires. Whenever Balaam, son of Beor, is shown to be responding to what Balak is considering for our destruction, solicitude is to be understood.10 From Shittim to Gilgal11 is to be understood as going in circles and going around seeking a place of cursing. Shittim is understood as “thorn,”12 and Gilgal as “wallowing place.”13 This is the way of vain people, a circle of errors, namely, their wallowing place, that is, solicitude and pleasure: solicitude, through which they strive to acquire the transitory things of this world, pleasure, through which they befoul themselves by using the things they acquire immoderately and unlawfully. Thus, from Shittim to Gilgal, a vain people, by answering to the wicked king, persecutes the faithful because all wicked people, by acquiring temporal things through greed and using what they have acquired through lack of moderation, serve the devil and are aroused to persecute the good. Therefore, the wicked are allowed to rage against the good to show they cannot succeed. The more their wickedness is shown to be useless, the more the grace and mercy of God toward us is made clear. This is what follows: 3. So you may know the justice or the mercy of the Lord.14 This is as if to say, “therefore, they were partially let loose,” so that you would recognize danger; “therefore, they were restrained,” so you could understand from where comes your defense. Since you have received such great benefits, what now remains for you except to give thanks and to answer worthy things in return to your Savior and Protector?15 Now, if a vain people answers their king who is plotting the destruction of the good, what about a faithful and chosen people? By obeying and serving, should they not respond much more to their King, Who liberates and saves the good? Perhaps you will say, what can I offer the Lord

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that is worthy? Will I bend the knee to God most high? Will I offer him holocausts or yearling calves? Can God be pleased by thousands of rams or by many thousands of fat goats?16 All these things are foreign to me, and therefore they cannot be worthy recompense for my salvation. However, perhaps I can make satisfaction if I give my firstborn for my sin, the fruit of my womb for the sin of my soul.17 However, these are outside me, though they proceed from me, and if I hold back myself even if I have given everything except myself, I will not yet have fully retired the debt. Therefore, what will I do? What will I give? What will return to the Lord all He has given to me? 4. I will show you, O man, what is good and what God asks of you: to make judgment, to love mercy, and to walk carefully with your God.18 These are the three things you must offer because God, Who is Trinity, cannot worthily be appeased except by a threefold sacrifice. Therefore, offer judgment to the Son, the Judge. Offer mercy to the Holy Spirit, Who is Charity. Offer care to the Father. To wisdom pertains discernment; to charity, loving-kindness; to paternity, care. However, offer in such a way that in the discernment of gifts you never divide the unity of the Trinity,19 nor in the participation of the gifts you confuse the Trinity of the Unity. Rather, give to each one what is His and, at the same time, give to the One what pertains to each. If you judge justly, you honor the just Judge. If you love mercy, you venerate with an acceptable sacrifice the One Who loves kindly. If you always walk carefully in the fear of God, you reconcile to you the heavenly Father, Whom you offended by your sins. 5. Now hear what kind of judgment you are commanded to make. The first judgment you are to make concerns yourself; the next is between you and your neighbor; and the third concerns your neighbor. You must be strict in the judgment you make about yourself. In the judgment you make between yourself and your neighbor, you must be just in the judgment you make about your neighbor, you must be kind. Your must judge yourself in the following way. Consider carefully what you do and do not do, what you should do and what you should not do. Next, by comparing these to each other, weigh whether what you do and what you should do are the same, and whether what you do not do and what you should not do are the same. If you find that it is so, rejoice. If, however, you are troubled that what you do and what you should not do are the same, or that what you do not do and what you should do are the same, be afraid. You should judge in the following way between your neighbor and you. See what you do to your

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neighbor and what your neighbor does to you. If he does you good, and you return good to him, you are not bad. If he does you evil, and you return him evil, you are not good. If he does you good and you return evil to him, you are bad. If he does you evil and you return him good, you are good. You should judge concerning your neighbor in this way: see whether whatever he does is certainly good or doubtfully good, or certainly bad or doubtfully bad. If it is certainly good, judge what is small to be bigger. If it is doubtfully good, think that it is truly good. If it is certainly evil, judge that what is great is small, and what is small is smaller. If it is doubtfully evil, think that it is good. This is true judgment, good judgment, judgment pleasing to God. If you offer this in sacrifice, not only by discerning but also by doing, you will appease His wrath and gain His mercy. 6. Next, there follows, love mercy,20 not only to do, but also to love. He who is compassionate with a feeling of loving-kindness21 does more than he who is merciful out of duty to the commandment. It is necessary, therefore, that you make a judgment so that what you discern rightly you complete by doing; then, that you love mercy so that you do the good you do, not out of fear, but out of love. Then, go carefully,22 so that you do not fail to merit to receive the good that you do not yet have or lose the good you do have. In these three, you cooperate with the Trinity at work in you. Wisdom illumines you to the recognition of the truth; charity inflames you to the desire of goodness; the Father guides in you what He created so it does not perish. Through illuminating Wisdom co-lighting with you, you discern wisely; through flowing Charity co-burning with you, you are merciful; through the Father’s providence co-guarding with you, you keep guard over yourself.23 Through the Trinity co-working with a trinity, you are made an image of the Trinity. You offer yourself as a true sacrifice to God when you are reformed to His likeness. Which, etc. Amen.24

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NOTES 1

2 3 4

5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19

20 21 22 23

24

Micah 6:5. The context of this passage is God’s case against his people. God asks the rhetorical question, “My people, what have I done to you?” God asks them to remember their encounter with Balak and Balaam during their wandering in the wilderness (Num 22–24). The Israelites ask some rhetorical questions of their own about what they can do to restore their broken relationship with God (Micah 6:6–7). God then answers: “you have been told, O mortal, what is good… to do justice and to love goodness and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). Rom 8:28. Micah 6:5. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 16.19): “Balac lingens vel elidens sive involvens. Balaam vanus populus sive praecipitans eos vel sine populo. Beor in pelle”; 26.2: “Balac elidens”; 80.14: “Balaam vanus populus. Balac elidens.” “Elidens” can also mean “tearing out.” Ps 145:8. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 8.17): “Moab de patre”; 14.6: “Moab de patre.” John 8:44. 2 Cor 2:11. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 16.24–27): “Balaam sine populo vel absque substantia eorum sive in eis. Beor in pelle.” Here the text seems corrupt: instead of “cum infertur,” I read “cura subinfertur” from 2 Pet 1:5: “vos autem curam omnem subinferentes.” Micah 6:5. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 15.2): “Settim spinarum.” Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 22.23), “Galgal, rota sive revelatio.” Hugh gives as its meaning “volutabrum.” Micah 6:5. “Salvatori tuo atque protectori”: In the Vulgate, “protector” is often paired with “helper” (“adjutor”): Ps 27:7; 32:20; 39:18; 113:17, 18, 19, etc. Micah 6:6–7. Micah 6:7. Micah 6:8. That the phrase “discernment of gifts” corresponds to a term often used in later spirituality seems to be a coincidence. Hugh is thinking that one should be careful in assigning operations ad extra to a specified divine person. Hugh explored this issue in De tribus diebus; it is discussed in the general introduction to VTT 1 and, in that volume, in the introduction to On the Three Days. Micah 6:8. The Latin is “qui affectu pietatis compatitur.” Hugh analyzes the various affects in De virtute orandi, which is translated and discussed in VTT 4. Micah 6:8. Hugh’s terms, reminiscent of the many compound verbs beginning in “syn” (with) that Paul coins and uses, are collucentem, coardentem, contuentem. The prefix “co-” therefore seems to be more than just an intensifier. As often in Victorine and other sermons of the time, Hugh ends with a prayer: “Which [may the Lord grant us]. Amen.”

MISCELLANEA 1.113: ON RECALLING THE FEASTS OF THE SAINTS INTRODUCTION

This is a short sermon that could be used on any saint’s day.1 It offers several reasons for celebrating the feast days of the saints. From these celebrations, we learn to imitate their virtues and share in their joys. Remembrance of the saints’ temptations and sins cautions against sin, consoles and encourages Christians in their sufferings, and spurs them to trust in God’s mercy when, like some of them, Christians have fallen into serious sin. The joy Christians find in lovingly remembering the saints now, when they are wayfarers, will give way to full and simultaneous joy with the saints in heaven. In a surprising ending, Hugh says that as God deigns to refresh you (vos reficere) with the feasts of the saints, so you should repay or refresh God (ipsum reficiatis) by imitation of the saints.2 This sermon evokes several leitmotifs of Victorine writings. It contrasts the evils we commit, which bring guilt (culpa), with the physical evils we suffer, which bring penance and correction (poena). It contrasts the difficulties of life on earth now with the joys of heaven then. It holds in tension human misery (miseria) and divine mercy (misericordia). The sermon is very unusual in that it does not expound a biblical text. It aims to explain not a text but a liturgical practice. It conveys something of the atmosphere of a feast day at the Abbey of St Victor. After listing the benefits that come from commemorating the saints, it sees the celebration of their feasts as an act of charity and a respite. Charity never ceases, for it is stronger than death, and our love of the saints will carry us to share with them eternal rest.

1 2

This text is translated from PL 177.540D–541D. “reficere”: can mean both refresh and repay.

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TRANSLATION

1. Dearly beloved brothers, it is by the great loving-kindness of our Savior that we are enjoined to recall the merits of the saints with festive gladness because, by this, our God exhorts us to imitate their victories and admits us to participation in their joys. He invites us to imitation of their virtues to correct our wickedness, and to participation in their joys to console our misery. These are our two evils: one that we do, the other that we suffer. One evil is in the soul and leads to corruption through sin; the other evil is in the body and leads to correction through punishment. As a remedy against both, our Savior offers the remembrance of His saints. When we think about what they have done, we are moved to imitation of their good works. When we consider what they have received, we are consoled through participation in their joys. The first instruction occurs when through their patience we are strengthened for endurance; the second, when through their temptations we are taught caution; the third, when in their correction after sin we are raised to hope. Because we see that after a fall into serious sin they have risen through penitence and now are with the Lord God in such great glory, we should never despair of God’s mercy.1 Because we also read that the ancient enemy presumed even against the chosen of God, we have no doubt that we should guard against his treachery with great care. Afterward, when we recall how those who have done good things bore such great evils for God’s sake, we are openly shown how much we, who have done evil things, must be patient in adversities. 2. There is another fruit that the memory of the saints offers devout minds. When we gaze upon their joys in congratulation, we are also consoled in our misery by the fact that charity in us is pregnant with joy. Thus, we first rejoice for them, so that later we may also rejoice with them. First, we rejoice on their behalf through love of neighbor in which our merit is established, then we rejoice with them in the love of God where our reward is kept. It is therefore fitting that, as we said above, we who now rejoice on their account later will rejoice with them, so that the first joy is consolation on the way, and the second will be complete exultation in our homeland. Therefore, this joy is our festival in which, after the labor and sorrow of our works, we now have a chance to catch our breath somewhat, at certain intervals of time, until we receive its fullness in eternity. Here, we recall the memory of certain saints at certain times; there, we will always have the vision of all the saints without any interval of time. Here, like nursing babes, we

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receive consolation partially, drop by drop, when we separate the feasts of individual saints by intervals of time; there, complete and simultaneous fullness will flood into the perfect when, to all those present, God will be all in all.2 Providentially, then, brothers, just as God has deigned to refresh us by the examples of the saints, so you should give back to Him through imitation of the saints. May He deign to grant us this, etc.

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NOTES 1 2

“nequaquam de Dei misericordia desperandum esse”: Cf. RB 4.74, ed. Kardong, 80–81 (the last of the 74 tools of good works): “Et de Dei misericordia numquam desperare.” 1 Cor 15:28.

ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS SEASON

GODFREY OF ST VICTOR SERMON FOR THE FIRST SUNDAY OF THE ADVENT OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

As the general introduction to this volume explained, Godfrey collected his sermons in a manuscript version that remained in the abbey library at St Victor for more than 500 years, but there is no evidence that the sermons were ever read outside the abbey. We do not know whether the written sermons Godfrey carefully crafted and preserved in the manuscript were ever given in an oral form, though Godfrey gives the impression that they were. As it exists, this sermon would have been very long. Godfrey indicates as much by rather arbitrarily dividing it in half. As he explains, Godfrey’s text was from the responsory to the first reading of the first nocturn of the office for the First Sunday of Advent.1 The responsory is woven together with images and phrases from several biblical texts: Isaiah 52:8–10; Job 36:25; Ezekiel 43:1–2; Jeremiah 30:10; Ezekiel 38:9, 16; 1 Samuel 9:17.2 It is very clear from this sermon, and some of those that follow it in Godfrey’s collection, that Godfrey was what today would be called a liturgist. Godfrey was armarius at the abbey, which made him responsible for organizing the liturgy and setting up the books. He was very conscious of what was sung and read at the liturgical offices and thought about them. His sermon refers to the invitatory with which the office began, to those who sang the responsory, to its elaborate melody, and to its three-part structure. In its opening lines, this sermon also refers to the inscriptions that Godfrey placed in his self-portrait on the frontispiece to the manu1

2

The antiphon occurs in earlier office books, e.g., Chiavenna, Tesoro della Collegiata di S. Lorenzo, Museo Capitolare, s. c. fol. 4 (Cantus inventory, #006129), and in Paris, BnF, MS lat. 1085 (from St Martial, c. ad 960; Cantus inventory, #600149). It was used at Salisbury Cathedral and exists in several musical versions, including one by Palestrina. See the discussion of responsories in en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Responsory, which makes clear the three-part structure to which Godfrey refers. Philip H. Pfatteicher, Journey into the Heart of God (New York: Oxford, 2011), 35–36.

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script (reproduced as the frontispiece to VTT 2). It is inscribed with a statement from Isaiah 21:8: “Super speculam domini sum stans iugiter per diem, et super custodiam meam sum stans totis noctibus” (“I am standing on the watchtower of the Lord continuously throughout the day, and I am standing on my guard every night”). Another inscription, by his head, reads “speculator castrorum dei” (“watchman of the camps of God”). The banderole down his robe reads, “Aspicio canens, aspiciens cano” (“I look out singing, and looking out I sing”). Godfrey clearly crafted the frontispiece with the first sermon in mind, or vice versa. He was conscious of the Victorine tradition, which included a commitment to preaching and to improving the pastoral care and instruction provided to the laity by the clergy. He was a watchman among other watchmen, proclaiming the word of the Lord. This sense of the Victorine tradition is clear in the content of the sermon as well. Godfrey is not a speculative thinker like Achard and Richard, but his sermon is full of references to the ideas of his predecessors at the abbey. Here are some examples. In par. 7, he gives a variation on the three vitia (sinful inclinations) that sin inflicted on human nature. Hugh spoke of ignorance, moral weakness, and physical necessity and mortality. Godfrey speaks of ignorance, ill will, and moral powerlessness. Like his Victorine predecessors, he uses the analogy of light and warmth to describe these, although unlike them he also uses an analogy from the astronomy of his time, which seems to have been an abiding interest of his (par. 7). From these three results of original sin, Godfrey moves easily into another triad that Hugh made a staple of Victorine thinking and preaching: the three ages of natural law, written law, and grace (par. 10). From there he moves to the Trinity (par. 11). Echoing Richard of St Victor, he quotes the authority, “where there is love there is vision” (par. 14). He develops the different regions of likeness and unlikeness distinguished by Achard of St Victor (par. 17–21). His discussion of power, truth, and mercy rings the changes on the notions of divine power, wisdom, and goodness introduced into Victorine thinking by Hugh of St Victor’s On the Three Days. The first part of Godfrey’s sermon is clearly outlined in the first paragraph. It takes the form of a series of questions and answers: 1. Whose voice is speaking? God and his appointed watchmen. (par. 2–5) 2. Why the pleasing, prolonged melody? (par. 6–13) a. What night? What is lacking in mortal life. (par. 6–9) b. What office? The night office. (par. 9–11)

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c. Why the melody? God’s graciousness. (par. 11–12) 3. Whence is he looking? From afar. (par. 13) 4. From what point is he looking? From the camp of God, on the way. (par. 14) 5. What does he see coming? The power of God. (par. 15) 6. The interplay of truth, mercy, and power in the unfolding of the stages of salvation history: a. Natural law (mercy: the wish to do good), written law (truth: the knowledge how), and power (the capacity or power to act according to the truth and mercy given). (par. 16–17) b. The four regions: beatitude, likeness, unlikeness, grief. (par. 18) c. The watchman on the border of likeness and unlikeness. (par. 19) d. Truth accompanied by mercy, and truth harrowing hell. (par. 20–22) e. Judgment. (par. 23) f. The urgency now, and heaven then. (par. 24)

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TRANSLATION

Looking from afar, behold, I see the power of God coming and a cloud covering the whole earth. [Come and meet him and say, “Tell us if you are he who is to reign in the people of Israel.”]1 [Part One] 1. Dearest brothers, this first word (vox) is the responsory to the first lesson of the Night Office of this day. Since it is distinguished by a pleasing melody repeated with a threefold verse, and finished with a “Glory to the Father,” one should not think that this happens without great mystery. Let us ask, then, whose voice (vox) this is, and what is the reason for the pleasing, prolonged melody. Then, we inquire who is the one looking out, whence and whither he looks, and what he sees. 2. First, then, let us see whose voice this is. This voice is the voice of your scouts, O Sion, that is, O encampment of God. Sion is interpreted as “observation”2 and signifies the encampment of God, just as Jerusalem is interpreted as “vision of peace” and signifies the city of God.3 For God has His city; He has His camp: a triumphant city, a fighting encampment, even though one is often used for the other, but incorrectly. He has a city from the time when, after the creation of the angels when the apostate angels were hurled down by pride, the rest of the angels were confirmed through grace in the love of their Creator and were firmly established in the lasting and blessed city of God in heaven. He has an encampment from the time when, from the mass of the human race ruined by the deceit of the apostate angel, He chose some through grace, who as avengers of their ancestral and their own blood would war against the enemies of their race and, when these had been mightily overcome, would pass over finally in triumph to the city of the blessed angels. God knew already then, or rather He foreknew from eternity, how many of those who, though made of muddy matter, were going to battle mightily against the enemies of their race and were going to do many things gloriously to the confusion of those who, though they had nothing of muddy matter, had sinned. 3. Therefore, reducing to nothing the sin of the reprobates, both humans and demons, who were perishing by their own choice, He arranged to build a blessed city for Himself from only the elect, both human beings and angels. He assigned the latter to be joined in eternal joy and the former to eternal torment in order to commend His good in

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the latter and His justice in the former but, in both, His omnipotence. In fact, because the entire mass4 of the human race had sinned in the same way, the justice of God required that all people be punished in the same way, so that no evil should remain unpunished, but not immediately and eternally (although they deserved it), but in time, lest a place for penitence seem to be denied to anyone. Therefore, it is necessary that all men, both the elect and the reprobate, be punished uniformly in regard to original sin. Hence, once they had been cast out from paradise, both were allotted the same place and time for penitence, so that no one could allege against God that He was dealing with him more harshly if the one going to do penance had been separated from the rest, although he was not separate in merit. They have, I say, been allotted the same place (i.e., this valley of weeping,5 this region of unlikeness)6 and the same time (that is, the space of this mortal life)—a place for punishment, a time for penitence; a place in which sins are punished, a time in which sins are ended; a place of exile, a time of redress—provided they abuse neither the place nor the time and that they follow the grace placed before all in common. Therefore, both have been thrown into this necessity of penitence; some make virtue for themselves out of this necessity, others make impiety for themselves out of this necessity, and they are divided in their opinions and their choices. On this account and by merits, the elect are divided from the reprobate, the good from the bad. While the latter disdain grace and add actual transgression to the first original transgression, the former by the grace of God, which they have followed as much as they can, lament the first transgression and subsequent ones, if they have added any, and so make satisfaction. So, it comes about that those who were still undivided in place were sharply divided, not only by opinions and choices but also by their lots and merits, and the latter pass to the lot of God, while the former pass to the lot of the devil. 4. However, because the world had long since been put under the malignant one, a large amount of chaff went to the devil, and just a little grain to God.7 For the measuring lines fell for the Lord on outstanding things8 but for the devil on many things, but both were then still mixed together in place. The first distribution of measuring lines is measured through origins, as in Abel and Cain. The second is made through families, as in Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and to their families, by contrast to the families of all other nations. The third is made through peoples, as in the people of Israel over against the Egyptian people. In the people of Israel, the encampment of God was first

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not only signified but also begun, as God ordered His people to depart from the midst of the wicked, and His elect to take up not only spiritual arms but also material ones against the reprobates, to set up battle lines not just figuratively but actually, and to establish encampments and live in tents. Already then, the Spirit of God was teaching them interiorly that they have no lasting city here and to seek a future one.9 From then to the present day, the encampments of God have been set up and multiplied throughout the world. Now there are as many in this world as there are cloisters and churches of those devoutly serving God. As those who have followed have been taught by the example of their predecessors, their struggle is not against just flesh and blood, but against the spirits of wickedness in the heavenly places,10 with whom they will have to fight continuously until the end of the world, because the Lord wanted His encampments to last that long, until the merits and number of the elect are completed on earth11 and the number and sins of reprobate sinners also. 5. However, in the midst of this time, the assault of the enemies on the encampments of God is so continuous that there is silence in heaven for only an hour or even a half hour.12 For this reason, the merciful Lord took care to put watchmen in His camps, by whose diligence the enemies would be held off and His soldiers would be rested. First, He gave Himself to them as a watchman, just as the Prophet says, if the Lord did not guard the city, in vain did he keep watch who guarded it13 (undoubtedly with the name “city” he incorrectly signifies an encampment). And again, Behold, he who guards Israel will neither doze nor sleep,14 where, so you will not understand someone besides the Lord, he immediately adds, the Lord guards you, the Lord is your protector.15 The Lord says of Himself in Isaiah, I am standing on the watchtower continuously by day16 and, still more clearly, He adds about Himself, and upon my watch I am standing every night.17 Then He also set up other watchmen for them, chosen from among themselves, men outstanding for their life and knowledge. They, placed on the high watchtower of virtues, fortified the camp against incursions of enemies and, by their foresight, announced to them future things, both evil and good: evil as a caution, good as a consolation. It is not that He alone was not sufficient to do these things for them, but so that, by providing both Himself and others, they might advance farther. About these, the Lord says to Ezekiel, Son of man, I have given you as a watchman for the house of Israel,18 which, although it seems to be said to only one man, is rightly understood as said to the whole order of the watchmen of

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the encampments of God. Dearly beloved brothers, the voice of these watchmen, foretelling and agreeing as though it were of one person, is this voice that we proposed from the beginning. 6. Now we need to look at the reason for the pleasant and prolonged melody in this voice. To better explain this, we should first note what is that night in which the first voice resounds after the first reading of the Office, then what is the Night Office of that night, what are the readings and responsories of that Office, and then, finally, what is the melody of this responsory, a melody so pleasant and prolonged, repeated with a threefold verse, and finally finished with “Glory to the Father.” 7. Beloved, this night is constituted by what is lacking in this mortal life of ours. It is rightly called night because, through it and in it, human nature, first created serene and shining by God, is sadly, miserably, completely beclouded. The things lacking in this night are three; conflated into one, they make its darkness almost palpable. Its first lack is ignorance; its second is ill will; its third, powerlessness.19 Because of the first, one does not know; because of the second, one does not choose; because of the third, one is not capable of good. The first is the privation of brightness; the second is the privation of warmth; the third is the privation of inward vigor. These three lacks, caused by the interposition of the earth, are our hemisphere, and they cut off from us the true sun, God. As in the visible heaven there are two hemispheres, which alternately are illumined by the presence of the visible sun and, in its absence, obscured by the interposition of this visible and dark earth, so indeed in the invisible heaven, that is, in the rational creature, there are two hemispheres, the human and angelic natures, illumined by the invisible sun, that is, by God, Who when present illumines but, where absent, is obscured by the interposition of earthiness, that is, our sins. Sadly, our true Sun receded from our hemisphere, that is, from human nature, when it sinned, and it departs to the other hemisphere, that is, to the nature of angels, which has not sinned. So, wretched, we fall into the triple lack of this night, that is, of mortal life, where we are deprived of the brightness, warmth, and energy of the true sun, and we neither know, nor want, nor can have or do the good for which or in which we have been created. This happens irremediably to all those who sleep during this whole night or, certainly, those who are drunk. Those who sleep in this night sleep; those who are drunk in this night are drunk. Such are all reprobates in this life either those sluggish in doing good, or those drunk on the delights of earthly goods and, because of this, eternally condemned to these lacks. To these, the Night Office

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of this night is completely irrelevant. Only the encampment of God exercises this Office. Concerning this, some things are now to be said. 8. It is the army of God’s soldiers, in the night of this world, who do not, as though asleep, forget where they are and who are not drunk from earthly pleasures, but rise in the middle of the night and, taught by a certain divine art, run back and forth in the darkness of this night, drawing fire from the rock. I am speaking of that Rock that is coming to send fire on the earth,20 and not only wants it to burn, but also to light those laboring in His encampment in this night, until the day dawns and the shadows give way. For a long time in this night, they knock at the door of a friend, until He arises and gives them three loaves,21 that is, three virtues, faith, hope, and charity. By the first, faith, they are illumined; by the second, hope, they are strengthened; and by the third, charity, they are inflamed. Not only are they refreshed as though by bread, but also, as though by the Spirit’s fire divinely received, they are illumined, strengthened and inflamed as much as is needed in the darkness of this night. 9. This is beautifully signified at the beginning of this Night Office when, by the invitatory that proceeds, the soldiers of God rouse themselves to be vigilant and invite themselves to pray. So no one among them will sleep, they repeat it in quick succession, insistent in prayer,22 whether opportunely or not opportunely,23 until they are granted what they ask.24 Then, they divide the Office they have begun into three nocturns because of three Gospel vigils of the night that the Lord recalled as He said: blessed are those servants who will be found watching in them.25 However, they also subdivided these three nocturns into three threes, namely psalmodies, readings, and responses. These three, like remedies, are opposed to the three already mentioned lacks of this night: psalmody, which signifies doing, to the lack of power; readings, which signify doctrine, to the defect of ignorance; and the sweetness of responsories to the bitterness of wickedness. However, the three nocturns can also be conveniently fitted to the three times in which the encampments of God are engaged in warfare, that is, the time of the natural law, the time of the written law, and the time of the Gospel law;26 and, as was said, in each of these times these remedies are opposed to the previously mentioned lacks. Insofar as something more noteworthy occurs regarding the reading than the others, we need to inquire what are the lessons of this Office through these three times and who are the readers. When the matter has been carefully examined, we find three readings and the same number of readers for the first nocturn, that is, of the natural law, and so also for the second and

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third nocturns. The first readers are God, nature, and a human being; the readings are divine revelation, the discovery of reason, and human tradition. The second nocturn also has three readers: the Law Giver, the Psalmist, and the prophet, and three readings: the law, psalms, and prophecies. The third, too, has three readers: Christ, the Apostle, and the apostolic man, and three readings: the Gospel, the writings of the Apostle, and the writings of apostolic men. 10. In order to return to the first reading and its reader, because the reader is the teacher, and the reading is teaching, so to speak, rightly God Himself read the first reading of this Night Office, when He first deigned to reveal to His elect the wholesome teaching of faith that is in it. What man would have read this reading to man and persuaded man of this faith that God is three and one, given that every assertion of it is far beyond reason27 unless God had deigned to reveal it at the time of the natural law to His chosen one, Abraham, when he saw three and adored one.28 The world did not hear this reading; the Philosopher scrutinizing nature did not penetrate it, for he was not present with the elect of God at this Night Office, and therefore he perished with his wisdom. Only the elect of God heard it and understood what they heard, and loved what they understood. Therefore, they merited salvation from God, the teacher, because no other could have taught it, nor could they have learned it from someone else, nor could they have found salvation by another way. Furthermore, nature, by the keenness of reason, discovered and read the second reading of this first nocturn written in the book of its heart, saying, “What you do not wish done to yourself do not do to another,”29 and many other beneficial lessons of this nature, in which the second salvation consisted. Although the world read them in part, it did not find salvation in them because it neglected the first reading. A human being reads the third reading to a human being when a human being hands on to another what would lead him and others to salvation, as when Abraham instituted the law of circumcision of the flesh for his sons. Abraham received this by divine command but not by divine revelation, because it was neither above reason nor according to nature, although it was salutary for his time because it flowed from the fount of divine precept. Now we have examined these three readings and readers of the first nocturn, there is no need to pursue many things about the remaining readings of the other two nocturns, because they are clear in themselves, and we are turning our attention to other things.

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11. Now we need to look at what we proposed above, that is, why the first lesson is answered by the so very pretty, prolonged melody. The reason for this is now evident if the graciousness and loving-kindness of the reader, and the usefulness of the reading, are considered. Who, I say, can worthily estimate how great was His graciousness, how great His loving-kindness, that God deigned to reveal Himself to humankind, to sinful humanity, to humanity lost and completely unworthy of His grace, so that this humanity would not perish? Again, if the usefulness of the reading is considered, who can worthily judge what great joy the devout listener conceived from this reading, from which he learns that his Lord and God is one and three. From the “one,” he grasps that he is not the servant of any God but one, and that he is unjustly pressed under the yoke of domination of another, and in every way must strive to be able to shake off the yoke of unjust servitude. From the “three,” he grasps that the one same God, his Lord, is supremely good, wise, and strong, and from His goodness he conceives the hope of pardon, from His wisdom the hope of illumination, and from His power the hope of his liberation.30 What wonder if a wretch, placed in this valley of tears, gladdened by these things conceived in his mind, bursts forth in a voice of exultation, saying, Looking from afar, etc., and most of all the watchman of the camps of God who from his office of watching quickly notices these things and, announcing them with joy to the rest, calls out and arouses all to help one another. 12. Hence it is, that a prelate of the church, who has the office of watchman in the camps of God, begins this responsory singing with a loud voice, while the rest singing together finish it with their voices. And this is the reason for the pleasant, prolonged melody. Indeed, it is the reason that the watchman, who was singing out these things, was gazing at this coming joy of his from afar, which is signified in the prolongation of the responsory, either to communicate to all the elect three times what is made known in the threefold repetition of the verse, or to consummate in the eternal praise of the blessed Trinity what is beautifully signified by the final conclusion, “Glory to the Father.” [Part Two] Here the Sermon Can Be Divided31 13. From the preceding, it is clear who this one looking out is, namely, the order of the watchmen of the camp of God. Now, according to our plan, it remains to see the whence, whither, and what of his gaze.

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The whence of his looking out is indicated by the adverb that is added when he says, “from afar.” However, this adverb can be conveniently connected with the participle that follows, that is, “coming,” so that the sense is: “Behold, I see one coming from afar.” From this, the whither of the one looking out is also indicated. However, neither is fully specified. It is desirable, therefore, to determine this more fully and to express how far this watchman sees. Regarding this, the first thing to note is that things can be understood to be “afar” in several ways, for some things are far distant in space, others in time, others in status, and others in nature. East and west are distant spatially; the beginning of the world is distant from its end temporally. In status, the just man is distant from the unjust, the good from the bad, the reprobate from the elect, and the wretched from the blessed. By nature, God is distant from humanity, and the body is distant from the soul. Even if body and soul or God and man are conjoined in place or person, they are nevertheless distant in nature. Hence, even when someone sees them fully connected, he certainly sees from afar. He is proven to have seen from afar in all these ways, but we will call to mind those ways that are more applicable to this present context. 14. It is commonly said, and it is true, that “where there is love there is vision,”32 and the Lord says in the Gospel, where your treasure is there is your heart.33 The one who was looking at these things was looking from the camp of God; in fact, as was said, the watchman of the camp of God was the one looking at these things. But he did this in the day of his mortality, in the place of his pilgrimage,34 when he was situated in the state of misery. He longed to get out of the evils he was in, and he directed the eye of his mind35 to what he loved, that is, to the day of his resurrection, to the place of his homeland, to the state of his beatitude. It was divinely given him to see something of these things that he desired. He saw the power of God coming, and he could not contain himself for joy, but shouted out, and said, “Gazing from afar, behold, I see the power of God coming.” This joy of his had some sorrow mixed with it because he was located at a distance and saw the power coming from afar. So, behold, you have what this one looking out saw, the power of God, and whence, from the day, place, and state of his misery, and whither, to the day, place, and state of his beatitude. 15. However, it is very noteworthy that he says he sees from afar, not from very far and not from extremely far, and that he says that he sees coming the power of God, not God’s wisdom or goodness. The phrase “coming power” seems to present matter for alarm rather than joy, but

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for the wicked rather than the good. However, this man was from the camp of God and so was not alarmed by the word “power,” but rather was gladdened, for it was the only thing he desired. He knew that goodness and wisdom had come long since, because either he had already experienced this or he knew it was written, God sent his mercy and his truth, etc.,36 and, elsewhere, Mercy and truth will go before your face.37 He was only waiting for the coming of power. Because it seemed to be delaying too long, so that it even seemed to sleep, in another place he prays, saying, Stir up your power and come,38 and, as if the long delay is wearing him out, he says, “Lord, why does your power sleep so long? Stir it up, because it is time, and come with it.39 I am waiting for it alone because I have already experienced that your mercy and your truth have come. I ask, let me experience your power also.” Perhaps someone asks where mercy and truth have been sent and where power has not yet arrived. 16. The authority mentioned earlier specifies where, when it adds: He snatched my soul from the midst of the lions’ cubs where I slept uneasily.40 Here, he expresses openly whither he had arrived, and where mercy had come to seek him, that is, in the middle of the lions’ cubs, where he slept uneasily. As Augustine testifies in explaining this verse, the lions are the greater demons41 going around roaring and seeking whom they may devour.42 The lions’ cubs are minor demons, who seek from God food for themselves,43 so that they can feed on the sins of men, but they receive nothing unless allowed by God. All people in general had arrived in the middle of these through the sin of the first man, because everyone seemed to be reckoned for the lot of the demons until the mercy of God, which was sent to him, touched him and woke up him who was asleep, that is, oblivious of himself, and disturbed, as though drunk and unaware of what he was doing. He touched him, I say, saying, Rise, you who sleep, and go with me to meet the truth coming to you, and Christ will enlighten you.44 Only mercy did this, not power. It says that, while the reprobate remained in his slumber, each elect, waking up after having been touched and awakened by mercy, began to go with mercy and to hurry to meet truth as it came. Then the first mercy carried the wretch, who was led out from the midst of the lions’ cubs, to truth as it came, that is, by grace it made him believe the truth. It is fulfilled that mercy and truth met each other45 to bring assistance to the wretched one; that is, by mercy giving him to wish the good (this occurred during the time of the natural law) and, by the other, that is truth, giving him to know the good (this occurred dur-

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ing the time of the written law). Thus, the law of nature through grace could turn the bad will of the sinner into a good will, and the law of the letter through grace could illumine the darkness of his ignorance, as it is written, Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my paths.46 However, neither gave him the capability for good that only the law of grace conveyed because both the law of nature and the law of the letter led no one to what is perfect. This one, looking out while situated in the time of the law of the letter and having experienced mercy and truth already sent to him, had received the will for the good and knowledge of the good, but he still lacked the capability. All he still lacked for himself was the power. However, because it was still far off and its time had not arrived, it was given him meanwhile for his consolation at least to see coming from afar what he could not yet have, so that either he would be consoled by what he saw or set alight in his desire for it. 17. However, the reason that he saw it coming from afar, and not from very far or from extremely far, is that, in this region of unlikeness in which he was still partly situated, there are three deficiencies of good that we recalled above, that is, not to will, not to know, and not to be capable of doing good for merit or obtaining it as a reward. By these three lacks, a person is unlike the just or the blessed. This man had left behind two of these, but he was still in the third: he is as distant in status from the good as the powerless is from the powerful. This was the one that was afar, but it would have been very distant if he neither was able nor knew, and extremely far if he did not know, was incapable, and did not will. Therefore, I said that by these three deficiencies someone is unlike the just and the blessed because, not only the sinner but the just, however just he is, labors under these defects as long as he is still situated on the way.47 What just person on the way so wants and knows and can do the good or obtain it so that he cannot lose it, that is, what just person is immutably just or what just person is so just that thence he is blessed? Therefore, every just person has the will, knowledge, and capability of good in one regard, and does not have it in another regard. He has it as regards merit, but he does not have it as regards reward. He has it imperfectly, and he has it changeably, so that he needs to stretch toward it by virtue so that he will not lose what he has, which he has as merit. Hence, an angel or a saintly fellow citizen of an angel is in possession of these things in heaven unchangeably, and has it so totally that, as a result, he is not just but blessed, and so has these as a reward. Therefore, both the just and the sinner suffer these lacks in this life, but in different ways because the sinner lacks the

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good things completely, but the just lacks them in part. However, when what is perfect comes, then, as the Apostle has said, what is partial will cease,48 not only in knowledge, as he says, but also in willing and power, as reason convinces. 18. It is desirable here, as evidence of the things we are saying, to distinguish four regions. Of these, the first and highest is the region of beatitude; under it, the second is the region of likeness; under the second is the third, the region of unlikeness; the fourth and lowest is the region of grief. The first is the higher heaven; the second is the lower heaven; the third is the upper netherworld; the fourth is the lower netherworld. The first is the homeland of life; the second is the road of life; the third is the road of death; the fourth is the prison of death. In the first, one has the aforesaid goods perfectly; in the second, partially; in the third, one lacks them in part; in the fourth, they are perfectly lacking. The angels and saints in the homeland are confirmed in willing, knowledge, and capability of the good. The just on the way have the beginning of them. Similarly, the unjust on the way have the beginning of their lack. The damned are obdurate in their lack in the lower netherworld. The first pertains to the blessed, the second to the just, the third to the unjust, and the fourth to the damned. There is, indeed, still another region, which can be called the region of repentance, in which the souls of the just suffer purgatorial pains.49 However, since we don’t know where it is, whether it is above, below, it was not to be counted among these. 19. This watchman had been set on the border of the two middle regions, and from there he could look out both ways at good things and bad, and gaze at both in himself. However, he had already seen the evils of the wicked from the lower part in which he had been and from which, after having received a good will, he had been liberated through mercy already sent from the higher heaven to the upper netherworld. This occurred in the time of the natural law. He had seen that he had been led through the guidance of the same mercy to the truth, as it was already beginning to come into that same region, and he saw that he had been endowed by it with the light of knowledge. This occurred in the time of the written law. 20. Now, indeed, gazing upward toward the higher regions of the just and blessed, he saw the good things that were going to come to him or to his own. He saw Mercy and Truth, who came from the lower region of unlikeness, to which they had descended, as was said. They were entering the camp of God, which at that time was established on

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the border of the two middle regions where, as was said, this watchman was. When they had come into the middle of the camp, Mercy ordered that a very white horse be led out from the middle of the camp and saddled, and she personally placed Truth upon it.50 Finally, when this had been done, Power, which he saw above, coming from afar, was present and gave a bow to Truth sitting on the horse. Power placed a crown on her head. Immediately, she who was sitting on the horse, with Mercy and Power accompanying her, goes out conquering in order to conquer.51 All these things, though they were seen here, this one looking out does not recall here. However, elsewhere he is not silent when, in the Apocalypse, after the first seal is opened, in virtue of his office, the watchman likewise says, I saw, and behold, a white horse, and the one who was sitting upon it had a bow, and a crown was given him, and conquering he went out to conquer.52 21. He went out first, I say, into that region of unlikeness that was below, that is, into the world placed under the malignant one, and He conquered it, after the mighty arrows of His words and miracles had assaulted it. Not content with that, He went out mightily into the lower hell and not only conquered its prince but also bound him. Then, crowned with victory, He went back to the upper regions. All this occurred when, through the mercy of God, Truth personally came in the purest flesh, without any original or actual spot of sin as though placed on a very white horse.53 Thus, the dispensation of the Lord’s Incarnation was begun, with no or little sign of divine power apparent in it, until finally, in the thirtieth year of His life, the Lord went into the world through preaching. The Lord’s power, which hitherto had been hidden, assisted Him. Having received the bow of Sacred Scripture, which consisted of two Testaments, as though of wood and string, with their most effective teaching, as though with certain very sharp arrows, alone He mightily vanquished the world. In the same bow, He prepared His apostles, who were to be vessels of death54 for some, that is, the Jews, and vessels of life for others, that is, the gentiles. Although the true Sun, Christ, showed this power of His partially, then, a little later, He hid it from human eyes in His Passion. Then, when His soul was going out from His body, when it turned aside into the netherworld as if into the lower hemisphere, He penetrated all the more sharply the inhabitants of that place, that is, the sinful angels, since their leader, Satan, thought that he had destroyed Him in His Passion. There, that ancient enemy certainly experienced His power after His death, power that he was not able to experience while He was alive. During the three

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days the Lord stayed there, He so cast light on every corner of hell that He left nothing shady there unpunished, nothing light not cheered. Through the three-hour eclipse of the natural sun during His Passion,55 He had beautifully signified His three-day sojourn in that place. Then, about to return to the heights, He left no small signs of His power in the netherworld, when He bound its strong one in his house and took away as many of his belongings as He wished.56 To those above, He brought signs of His power that were not less, when powerfully conveying those same spoils, and, revivifying wonderfully His flesh, crowned with the glory of immortality and impassibility, surrounded with the ranks of the saints, He returned a glorious victor to His camp. Showing plainly to all that same glory of His, staying among them and going in and out through closed doors57 whenever He wished, finally, while they watched, He ascended most powerfully to the heavens,58 where He now rules as Lord at the right hand of the Father. If for a time He hid His power from the unbelieving, He has not ceased to show it to the faithful according to circumstances. 22. After this one looking out saw and announced these works of power that came long after mercy and truth, he directs his sight toward still more distant things and announces to the camp the things he sees, saying, “[I see] a cloud covering the whole earth.” It is important to note here that this one looking out was focusing his eyes most of all on beholding the power of God. Up to this point, he has seen certain particular works of His exhibited in the time of grace, and he has announced in His first advent what those things are like by which the Lord came powerfully to assault and save the world, to raise up from the dead and exalt as head of the Church the man Christ,59 and to free certain of His elect from the jaws of the netherworld. 23. Now he announces in the camp a certain final work of His, and, as it were, the summation of all His works, namely, the general judgment by which the Lord, Who will come at the end of time, will judge one by one all the reprobates, both demons and men. Then, He is going to show His power in the superlative degree to all who have disdained the salvation offered them in previous times. This is what he says: “a cloud covering the earth.” “I see,” he says, “a cloud covering the whole earth.” After the joyous things to come that he had announced to his own, rightly he also announces sad things to come to the same enemies, so that by both he can make them more cautious readers. For what wise person, having heard of a danger that is common to his enemy and to himself, does not become more cautious? Who, having heard that he

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has escaped on the same day in which his enemy perished, does not become happier? When, therefore, he says, “I have seen a cloud covering the whole earth,” by the name “earth” he signifies earthly people, that is, those who so cling to earthly things through love that they become inseparably glued not just to earthly things but to the earth itself. This is what properly characterizes the reprobates. Even if some of the elect cling to earthly things for a time, because they are visited by grace, at sometime they will raise their head to heaven and, having despised earthly things, will become not earth but heaven. By the phrase “cloud that covers the whole earth,” he designates a certain general judgment, that is “eternal darkness,” by which all the reprobates were enveloped, both demons and men, all in body as well as in soul. Even if reprobates are to be punished individually with diverse punishments, some lesser and others greater as their merits require, nevertheless this punishment will be common to all, greater by far to the extent that it is common. This was the only thing he wished to recall, while other things were left unsaid because it was not possible for him to enumerate all. 24. However, I think this is the reason why he wished to signify punishment by the name “cloud,” namely, because every sin no matter how great, if it is not neglected in this life, can be dissolved like a cloud. If it is neglected and not corrected in this life, it will turn into eternal night for the sinner. Because all of the reprobates will neglect this, they will make for themselves indelible darkness from the dissolvable cloud. So, to warn all, both reprobates and elect, not to become negligent in this life about their sins, he calls it a “cloud.” He implies that this same cloud can become night. It is as if he were saying to all, “Now, indeed, you can blow your sins away as easily as a cloud, but if you do not want to do this here, then, when the eternal night has come, there will be no way you will be able to do so. What now is a fault for you will be a punishment, and what now is a dissolvable cloud will then be indelible darkness.” And this cloud will completely cover the entire world, that is, all the reprobates. However, heaven, that is, the elect from the earth who have become heaven, will be imbued with eternal light. May He Who will be their eternal light, Jesus Christ, our Lord, Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit as God for all ages of ages, deign to number us in their lot. Amen.

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NOTES 1

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This sermon is translated from the Latin text in Paris, Bibliothèque Mazarine, ms. lat. 1002, fols 1r–9v. The Latin text was edited by Hugh Feiss and corrected by Christopher Evans, whose expert help is gratefully acknowledged. The continuation of the liturgical text set in brackets is not in the manuscript Paris Mazarine ms. lat. 1002, but was included in the responsory on which Godfrey is commenting. In the second part of the sermon, Godfrey answers the question it raises. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 39.25, CCL 72, 121; CCL 72, 25–26): “Sion specula vel speculator sive scopulus” (“Sion: a watchtower or watchman or crag”). Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 50.9, CCL 72, 121); Augustine, Cat. rud. 20.36–37 (G. Combès and Farges, Œuvres de saint Augustin 11 [Paris: Desclée De Brouwer, 1949], 36–38; tr. W. Harmless, Augustine in His Own Words [Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2010], 320–21). Delhaye, Le Micrologus, 230–31, refers to William Durandus, Rationale divinorum officiorum 1.1.4 ([Lyon, 1568], 4; tr. Thibodeau, The Rationale divinorum officiorum of William Durand of Mende, Records of Western Civilization [New York: Columbia University Press, 2007], 12): “Dicitur enim praesens ecclesia Syon eo quod ab hac peregrinatione longe posita promissionem rerum coelestium speculatur; et ideo Syon, id est speculatio, nomen accepit. Pro futura vero patria et pace Hierusalem vocatur: nam Hierusalem pacis visio interpretatur” (“The present church is called ‘Sion,’ because placed far away it looks from this pilgrimage at the promise of heavenly things, and so she receives the name of ‘Sion,’ that is, ‘looking.’ Because of her fatherland and its peace she is called Jerusalem, because ‘Jerusalem’ is interpreted as ‘vision of peace’”). “massa”: lump, mass. The term occurs in Rom 9:20–21 and the idea that the human race became a “lump” of perdition became a theme in the writings of St Augustine. See Paula Fredriksen, “Massa,” Augustine through the Ages: An Encyclopedia, ed. Allan D. Fitzgerald (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 545–47. See, for example, Ench. 8.27 (ed. J. Rivière, Exposés généraux de la foi, Œuvres de saint Augustin 9 [Paris: Desclée de Brouwer, 1947], 152; tr. Louis Arand, Faith, Hope and Charity, ACW 3 [Westminster, MD: Newman Bookshop, 1947], 35); 23.92 (Rivière, 266; tr.  Arand, 87); 25.99 (Rivière, 280; tr.  Arand, 93); 28.107 (Rivière, 298; tr. Arand, 101–02); see Rivière, 345–46 n. 13; Arand, 122 n. 65, 127 n. 117. The influence of Augustine’s later, pessimistic theology of sin and grace is very palpable in this part of Godfrey’s sermon. “vallem plorationis”: Godfrey uses this expression again later in the sermon. For it, see Ps 83:7: “in valle lacrimarum”; cf.  the Marian hymn, Salve Regina: “in hac lacrimarum valle”; Augustine, En. Ps. 83.10.11 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 39, 1155–58); Conf. 4.12.19 (O’Donnell 1:40; tr.  Chadwick, 64): “in convalle plorationis”; 9.2.2 (O’Donnell 1:103; tr. Chadwick, 156): “a convalle plorationis.” “regio dissimilitudinis”: Richard of St  Victor, Exterm. 1.1 (PL  196.1073D); LE  2.7.33 (Châtillon, 338.6–7); Adn. Ps. 28 (PL 196.313B); Adn. Ps. 84 (PL 196.328D); Pseudo-Richard, In Nahum (PL 96.720A); Jonas of St Victor, Epistola (PL 196.1388C); Godfrey of St Victor, Microcosmus 43–45 (Delhaye, especially 65.3ff); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.4 (Châtillon, 105–06); 13.32 (Châtillon, 164–66); Frag.  14 (Châtillon, 257); Maurice of St  Victor, Serm. 3.3 (Châtillon, 213.80–85); Anonymous of St Victor, Serm. 7.3–5 (Châtillon, 277– 79); Absalom of St  Victor, Serm.  7 (PL  211.49BC); Serm.  16 (PL  211.100 BC); Serm.  40 (PL 211.230A); Peter Comestor, Serm. 39 (PL 171.539D). The theme has been much studied: A. E. Taylor, “Regio dissimilitudinis,” AHDLMA 9 (1934): 305–06; F. Châtillon, “Regio dissimilitudinis,” in Mélanges Podechard (Lyon: Facultés catholiques, 1945), 85–102; É. Gilson, “Regio dissimilitudinis de Platon à saint Bernard de Clairvaux,” MS 9 (1947): 108–30; É. Gilson, “Sur l’office de saint Augustin,” MS 13 (1951): 233–34; M.-M. Lebreton, “André Gide et la regio dissimilitudinis,” RMAL 4  (1948): 66; J.-C.  Didier, “Pour la fiche regio

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dissimilitudinis,” Mélanges de science religieuse 8  (1951): 205–10; G.  Dumeige, “Dissemblance (regio dissimilitudinis),” DS 3:1330–46; J. Châtillon, “Les régions de la dissemblance et de la ressemblance selon Achard de Saint-Victor,” Recherches augustiniennes 2 (1962): 237–50; P. Courcelle, “Tradition néoplatonicienne et traditions chrétiennes de la ‘region de dissemblance’ (Plato, Politique 273d),” AHDLMA 24 (1957): 5–33; P. Courcelle, “Témoins nouveaux de la ‘région de dissemblance’ (Platon, Politique 273d),” Bibliothèque de l’École de chartes 118 (1960): 20–36; P. Courcelle, Recherches sur les Confessions de saint Augustin, rev. ed. (Paris: E. Boccard, 1968), 405–40, 635, n. 62 bis [Maurice of St Victor, Sermon 3, On the Ascension]; P. Courcelle, “Treize textes nouveaux sur la ‘région de dissemblance’ (Platon, Politique, 273d),” Revue des études augustiniennes 16 (1970): 271–281; P. Courcelle, Connais-toi toi-même: de Socrate à saint Bernard (Paris: Études Augustiniennes, 1975), 2:519–30. See below, 387 (n11). Cf. Matt 3:12; 13:30; Luke 3:17. Ps 15:6. Heb 13:14. Eph 6:12. Regarding the idea that the number of the elect is correlated with the number of fallen angels, see Anselm, Cur Deus homo 1.16–18 (Roques, SC 91, 282–309 [Paris: Cerf, 1969], with discussion and references, 126–30). Rev 8:1. Ps 126:1. Ps 120:4. Ps 120:5. Isa 21:8. Isa 21:8. Ezek 33:7. On the three lacks (defectus), see Hugh of St Victor, Didasc. 6.14 (Buttimer, 130; tr. Harkins, VTT  3:179); Sacr. 1.8.1 (Berndt, 194; tr.  Deferrari, 141–42); Richard of St  Victor, LE  1.1 (Châtillon, 105; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:300–01): “Sunt tria mala principalia… ignorantia, concupiscentia, infirmitas” (“There are three evils… ignorance, disordered desire, weakness”); Emman. 2.26 (PL 196.660D–661A); Adn. Ps. 121 (PL 196.365); Statu, prol (Ribaillier, 61): “Tria haec interioris hominis sunt vitia, quae, cum consensum alliciunt, transeunt in peccata.” (“These are three inclinations to sin of the interior man, which when the elicit consent, become sins”); Pseudo-Richard of St Victor, In Joelem (PL 175.333C). See J. Taylor, tr. Didascalicon, 226 n. 3; L. M. De Rijk, “Some Notes on the Twelfth-Century Topic of the Three (Four) Human Evils and of Science, Virtue and Techniques as their Remedies,” Vivarium 5 (1967): 8–15. Luke 12:49. Luke 11:5–8. Rom 12:12. 2 Tim 4:2. The invitatory, consisting of Psalm 94 interspersed with an antiphon began the night office. See RB 9.3 (Kardong, 171–73). As its name implies and as Godfrey observes, it served as an invitation to prayer. Luke 12:37–39. For these three times and laws, see Hugh of St Victor, Script. 17 (PL 175.24B; tr. Van Liere, 229); Sacr. dial. (PL 176.32AB); Archa Noe 4.9 (Sicard, 115.13–119); Libellus 3 (Sicard, 132– 38); Sacr. 1.8.3 (PL 176.307BD; tr. Deferrari, 143); Sacr. 1.8.11 (PL 176.312D; tr. Deferrari, 149); Richard of St Victor, LE 1.4.1 (Châtillon, 129); J. Ehlers, Hugo von St Viktor, 127–55; Harkins, Reading, 6, 213.

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G odfrey of S t   V ictor “supra rationem”: see Richard of St Victor, Arca Moys. 4.1–3 (Aris, [86]–[89]; tr. Zinn, 259– 63); cf. Achard of St Victor, Serm. 15.27 (Châtillon, 231; tr. Feiss, Works, 336), which refers to nature rather than to reason. Gen 18:2: “tres vidit et unum adoravit.” See Hilary, Trin. 4.25 (tr. NPNF 9.78); Augustine, Trin. 2.11.20 (Mountain and Glorie, CCL  50, 106; tr.  Hill, 111–12); Poissy Antiphonal (www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/MMDB); G.  J.  M. Bartelink, “Tres vidit, unum adoravit, formule trinitaire,” Revue des études augustiniennes 30 (1984): 24–29; Marie-Odile Boulnois, “‘Trois hommes et un Seigneur’: lectures trinitaires de la théophanie de Mambré dans l’exégèse et l’iconographie,” Studia Patristica, vol. 39, ed. F. Young, M. Edwards, and P. Parvis (Leuven: Peeters, 2006), 193–202. “quod tibi fieri non vis, alii ne feceris”: see Tob 4:16: “Quod ab alio odis fieri tibi vide ne alteri tu aliquando facias” (“See that you do not sometime do to another what you hate to be done to you by someone else”). Kant’s first formulation of the categorical imperative approximates this adage. Matt 7:11 gives the positive counterpart. For the appropriation of these three attributes to the persons of the Trinity, see VTT  1: Introduction, 28–35, and Hugh of St Victor, On the Three Days, Introduction, 55–58, and Richard of St Victor, On the Trinity 6.15, 335–36 and 379 nn. 532–34. The rest of the rubric is illegible. “ubi amor, ibi oculus”: Richard of St Victor wrote in XII patr. 13 (Châtillon, 126; tr. Zinn, 65–66): “Ubi amor, ibi oculus. Libenter aspicimus quem multum diligimus. Nulli dubium quia qui potuit invisiblia diligere, quin velit statim cognoscere, et per intelligentiam videre, et quanto plus crescit Judas affectus videlicet diligendi, tanto amplius in Rachel fervet desiderium pariendi, hoc est, studium cognoscendi” (“Where there is love, there is sight. We gladly gaze upon someone whom we love much. There is no doubt whether someone who was able to love invisible things wanted to know immediately and to see through insight. The more Judah, that is, the feeling of love, grows, the more Rachel burns with desire to give birth, that is, zeal for knowing”). St Thomas Aquinas cites this text in his Scriptum super Sententias Magistri Petri Lombardi, 3. Distr. 35, qu. 1, art. 2 (ed. M. F. Moos [Paris: P. Lethielleux, 1933]). On love as a source of vision, see Augustine, De moribus ecclesiae 1.17.31 (Roland-Gosselin, 184–85); Div. quaest. 83 71.5 (Mutzenbecher, CCL 43A [Turnhout: Brepols, 1975], 204–05); Jo. ev. tr. 96.4 (Willems, 571.1–9); Gregory, Mor. 6.37.58 (Adriaen, 328–29); Mor. 10.8.13 (Adriaen, 546); Mor. 22.4.6 (Adriaen, 1096); Hom. ev. 1.14.4 (PL 76.1129B); Hom. ev. 2.27.4 (PL 76.1206–07); In Ezek. 2.5.17 (Adriaen, CCL 142 [Turnhout: Brepols, 1971], 364–65); In Ezek. 2.9.10 (Adriaen, 364.16–365.35); Hugh of St  Victor, In  Eccl. 1 (PL 175.118AC); Bernard, SCC 67.8 (Leclercq, SBO 2:193.29–194.1); Conv. Ad cler. 13.25 (Leclercq, SBO 4:99.17–100.1); Gilson, Mystical Theology, 147–52; J.-M. Déchanet, “Amor ipse intellectus est. La doctrine de l’amour-intellection chez Guillaume de Saint Thierry,” RMAL 1 (1945): 349–74, with references to William’s writings. Matt 6:21. Ruth 1:7; cf. Ps 118:54; Gen 28:4. “oculus mentis”: For this phrase, see, for example, Richard of St  Victor, Misit Her. 13 (PL 141.295A); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 4.6 (Châtillon, 36.114–15); Serm. 11.12 (Châtillon, 103.369). Ps 56:4. Ps 88:15. Ps 79:3. Ps 79:3. Ps 56:5. Godfrey probably had in mind En. Ps. 103.3.22 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 40, 1517–18). Discussing this Psalm verse in En.  Ps. 56.10 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL  39, 700–01), ­Augustine applies “lions’ cubs” to the Jewish people and “lions” to their leaders. 1 Pet 5:8.

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Ps 103:21. Eph 5:14. Ps 84:11. This text was the springboard for the medieval allegory of “The Daughters of God,” Mercy, Truth, Justice, and Peace, who lobbied God regarding the fate of the human race. Godfrey is going to elaborate the allegory in his own way in what follows. The four personified “daughters” are feminine nouns and will be translated “she.” For other examples, see Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.8.1, 4 (PL 176.305CD, 308AC); Misc. 2.63 (PL  177.623B–625D); Misc. 3.29 (PL  177.651AC); Bernard, Sermo  1 in Annunciatione Domini (Leclercq, SBO 5:13–19); Sent. ser.  3, n.  23 (Leclercq, SBO 6:80–82); PseudoAdam of St Victor, Salve die dierum gloria 13–14 (Wrangham, 1:64–65): “Dei virtus et sapientia, / temperavit iram clementia” (“The power and wisdom of God; kindness tempered wrath”); Hope Traver, The Four Daughters of God: A Study of the Versions of this Allegory (Philadelphia: John C. Winston, 1907), reviewed by R. Ramsay in Modern Language Notes 24/3 (1909): 91–94; J. Rivière, Le dogme de la rédemption au début du moyen âge (Paris: J. Vrin, 1934), 309–62; J. Leclercq, “Nouveau témoin du ‘conflit des Filles de Dieu,’” RBen 58 (1948): 110–24; E.  Mäder, Der Streit der Töchter Gottes (Bern: Lang, 1971); B. McGuire “Man and the Devil in Medieval Theology and Culture,” CIMALG 18 (1976): 61–63. Ps 118:5. Godfrey here and later on in the sermon evokes a distinction, made by Augustine and philosophers before him and common by Godfrey’s time, between those who are on the way (in via) and those who have reached their heavenly homeland (in patria). See, for example, Cicero, Somnium Scipionis (ed. Sally Davis and Gilbert Lawall, Cicero’s Somnium Scipionis [White Plains, NY: Longman, 1988]): “cole et pietatem, quae cum magna in parentibus et propinquis, tum in patria maxima est. Ea vita via est in caelum” (“cultivate loyalty, which is both great in relatives and neighbors and greatest in the homeland. This life is the way to heaven”); Augustine, Doc. Chr. 1.3.3–4.4, 10.10–11.11 (Martin, CCL, 32, 8, 12; tr. Hill, 107–08, 110–11; see Harmless, Augustine in His Own Words, 167–68, with references on 168 nn. 32–33); En. Ps. 66.5 (Dekkers and Fraipoint, CCL 39, 862); Richard of St Victor, Serm. cent. 84 (PL 177.1166D): “liberat a malo, exaltat in bono; liberat in via, exaltat in patria. Liberat per gratiam; exaltat per gloriam” (“he frees from evil, he exalts in good; he frees on the way, he exalts in the homeland; he frees through grace, he exalts through glory”); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 11.1 (Châtillon, 94.40–41): “mansiones iustitiae sunt bona viae, mansiones gloriae sunt bona patriae” (“the dwelling places of justice are the goods of the way; the dwelling places of glory are the goods of the homeland”). 1 Cor 13:10. Hugh of St  Victor, Sacr. 1.8.2 (PL  176.306C–307A; tr.  Deferrari, 142–43), also lists five ­places hierarchically arranged: heaven, paradise, the world, purgatory ­below the world, hell. See also, Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. dial. (PL 176.27D–28C); Sicard, Diagrammes, 76–80, 126–27; Harkins, Reading, 214–15. In the background of Godfrey’s vision of the white horse seem to lie sections of the book of Zechariah. Zech 1:7–13 mentions four horses—one of them white—that patrol the earth. Zech 6:1–8 describes four chariots, one pulled by white horses. In the following verses, 6:9–15, two crowns are fashioned; one is for the high priest Joshua; the other is stored in the temple for a future king. Rev 6:2; cf. Rev 19:11. Rev 6:2; cf.  Rev 19:11. On the symbolism of Rev 6:2 and its reference to Zechariah 1:8, see E. Lupieri, A Commentary on the Apocalypse of John (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006), 142–43. That is, without any stain of original or actual sin. Ps 7:14. Matt 27:45.

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G odfrey of S t   V ictor Matt 12:29; Mark 3:27. Throughout this section, Godfrey is elaborating a Christ-Victor theology of redemption, in which after his death Christ goes unrecognized into the netherworld and liberates the souls of the just who had been kept there by the devil. Godfrey does not, however, refer to any “rights of the devil,” an idea that led Anselm of Canterbury to reject this scenario in the Cur Deus homo. John 20:26. Acts 1:9. Eph 5:23.

GODFREY OF ST VICTOR SERMON FOR ADVENT INTRODUCTION

Like Godfrey’s first sermon on Advent, this is the sermon of an armarius (both liturgist and librarian), whose task it was to arrange the liturgy and set out the liturgical books. He has a feel for the seasons of the year, from solstice to solstice, and for the liturgical seasons as well: Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Purification, Pentecost, Trinity, and Ordinary Time. He knows what biblical readings are assigned for the night office of each season and what antiphons are sung at Christmas, and he has ideas about why they are so assigned. This is also the work of a man who is familiar with pagan literature and the quadrivium. The literal foundation of the sermon is the annual variation of the angle of the sun that results in gradual changes in the amount of light and darkness from solstice to solstice. Godfrey’s audience includes the younger members of the community (par. 14), who (perhaps with others in the audience) do not know how to explore the deep meaning of Scripture. By precept, his audience is entitled to the ministry of the Word of God on this day (par. 1). The sermon as we have it is long and complex. It may be (1) a polished revision of a sermon originally given orally, or (2) the original sermon as delivered, or (3) it may never have been pronounced orally at all, so that its only intended audience consists of those who would read or hear read the sermon in the manuscript version Godfrey prepared. Whoever constituted the intended audience, they must have been educated people. There is no reason to think they were not the canons of St Victor. Godfrey begins by explaining that the verse, Night has advanced, but the day will approach,1 while not uttered by its author with reference to 1

Rom 13:12. Weber, et al, Biblia sacra vulgata, 1975, give the text as “Nox praecessit dies autem adpropiavit,” but cite as a variant for the last word, “adpropinquavit.” In the Bible, both verbs are in a past tense; Godfrey’s use of the future tense of this verb in the citation accommodates it to use during Advent.

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Christ’s advent, is legitimately applied in the liturgy to Christ during Advent.2 He then explains the literal, scientific meaning of the night has advanced, the day will approach (par. 2). Next, he explains the allegorical meaning, the application of the seasons of the year, of night and day, and the liturgical year to the whole human race together (par. 3–13). This admits of several applications. He follows this with a tropological interpretation that applies it to good and bad people (par. 14–25). He ends with two paragraphs about contemplation and action that point to the life of heaven, and concludes with a benediction. Godfrey follows Hugh of St Victor’s threefold division of the Scripture, whereby what today are called the deuterocanonical books are not included in the canon. By the time he wrote this sermon, Godfrey was well versed in the contents of the liturgical books. He refers to human infirmity. These two facts, along with his effort to collect his sermons for posterity, might suggest he was an old man. The sermon is long and fairly complex. It may be outlined as follows: Introduction (par. 1) A. Literal Interpretation (par. 2) B. Allegorical Interpretation 1. The divisions of Salvation History a. Night: from Adam to the Law; from the Law to Christ’s birth (par. 3) b. Dawn: Christ’s comings (par. 4–8) 2. Divisions of Salvation History by the Church Year and the seasons a. Summer solstice to winter solstice (par. 8) b. Winter solstice to Feast of the Purification (par. 9) 3. Biblical readings at the Night Office a. Pentecost–Trinity (summer solstice): illumined by first creation b. Ordinary time: i. First watch: Kings and Wisdom (par. 10) 2

The verse that Godfrey explicates in his sermon was widely used as an antiphon on the First Sunday of Advent (and, much less frequently, on other Sundays of Advent or as a versicle or other liturgical text). See the Cantus Index to Medieval Chants (http://cantusindex.org/ id/003967). Godfrey almost seems a bit irritated by the frequency with which this verse occurred in the Advent liturgy.

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ii. Second watch: Job and deuterocanonical books (par. 11) iii. Third watch: Ezekiel, Daniel, Twelve Minor Prophets, Isaiah c. Christmas to Purification: Second coming, heaven (par. 13) C. Tropological Interpretation (par. 14) 1. The Night of the sinner and the Day of the just (par. 15–16) 2. Night and Day of both sinner and just a. Body and soul (par. 17) b. Ignorance and knowledge (par. 18) c. Prosperity and adversity (par. 19) d. Falsehood and truth (par. 20) 1. Night and day of the sinner (par. 21) 2. Night and day of the just a. Imperfect (par. 22) b. Perfect (par. 23–25) The following translation is made from the Latin text in Paris, Mazarine, MS lat. 1002, fols 10r–17r.

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TRANSLATION

1. It is customary in this time, which is usually called the Advent of the Lord, to frequently recite in our ears the Apostle’s statement: Night has advanced, but the day will approach, etc.1 Although its author did not utter this statement with respect to this season, one should not therefore think that this usage happens inappropriately. In fact, we find that many other statements of Sacred Scripture uttered by their authors with another application are fittingly accommodated to something else. Thus, the usage of the Church also not inappropriately accommodates specifically to the Lenten season the statement of the Apostle: Behold, now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation,2 which the author uttered referring generally to the total period of time that has passed or will pass from the Incarnation of the Lord to the end of the world. So also, what Jeremiah wrote—Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,3 etc.—which the Prophet uttered either literally (ad litteram) about himself or mystically about Christ, ecclesiastical usage not nonsensically refers to Blessed John the Baptist. So also, that other prophecy of Jeremiah, A voice has been heard in Ramah and much weeping and mourning,4 etc., although the author uttered it regarding something far different, the blessed evangelist Matthew for the sake of his argument fittingly referred it to the slaughter of the Holy Innocents. Many more examples of this kind would be at hand, if multiplying evidence in obvious matters did not seem pointless. Therefore, because the said statement is rightly applied to the current season, we are disposed to expound something about this to your charity, to you who by precept are today owed the ministry of the Word, and who do not know how to investigate the depths of Scripture. Thus, what by daily use is, as it were, put before our door may offer itself to us further, and it will not be necessary to wrest it laboriously from the secret depths of Scripture. 2. Therefore, the blessed Apostle said, Night has advanced, but the day will approach.5 Secular seasons have their night and their day. Indeed, Divine Providence, which has not allowed anything to happen in creatures that is fortuitous or without order, not only ordered the times of the nights and days to occur in an alternating pattern, but it also arranged that, within set boundaries of the year at times the nights are longer and the days shorter or vice versa. Those who have applied themselves with greater effort to the studies of nature have a better knowledge of the cause and natural reason for this arrangement. They say that when the circular route of the sun expands to the east and

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lengthens beyond the cone of the earth, moving away from our land6 and its presence and splendor are withdrawn from us by the interposing bulge of the earth, its heat also diminishes and so the nights and days become wintry. By contrast, when the circular motion of the sun is rising to the west, which is our territory, and is approaching the cone of the earth of our zone, and the bulge of the earth now is not interposed, the presence of the sun is shown us, the temperature rises, and so the summer nights and days emerge. Why we now recall these things will be clearer from what follows. 3. Just as the megacosm, that is, this greater and sensible world, has its alternations of nights and days, so also, to be sure, does the microcosm, namely this lesser world, that is, the human being, have its nights and days,7 whether according to allegorical or tropological investigation. Indeed, according to the allegorical meaning, there is one night and one day of the entire human race, which is, as it were, one general microcosm. This day and night is in addition to that first day of its creation, namely, the light of knowing in which man was created, which was very short in respect to what followed and not worthy of the name “day,” if it were not truer to call it a wintry day, that is, one that passes by very speedily and passes over into a very unstable (mobilicissimum), cold, long, and truly wintry night. I say it is very obscure (obscurissimam) because it is wrapped in the dense darkness of ignorance; very cold, because ravaged by the horrible ice of unbelief; very long, because lasting till now and not to cease until the end of the world. This is that great and miserable night of the whole human race into which wretched man fell from his first beginning as into a horrible prison,8 and lying there prostrate could not lift himself until the time of the given Law. This is because, struck by a fearful blindness of mind and at the same time burdened by infirmity, he did not see how he would walk unless, insofar as by the life and teaching of some elect people, as if from certain stars shining faintly in the firmament during the nocturnal darkness, something from the heavenly lights glimmered for wretched man. Blessed Job cursed this night: Perish the day on which I was born and the night in which it was said a human being has been conceived.9 He says, Perish the night in which it was said a human being has been conceived, that is, perish the blindness of the night of the mind through which a human being, that is, a sinner, has been driven out from the light of justice into the belly of corrupt nature and, there, is growing badly because conceived into a life of sin. Perish also the day, that is, the false hope of attaining divinity, through which, from

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the belly of evil thinking, I, who first was created in the light of virtue, have been born into the light and manifestation of the worst activity. The Prophet, sighing from within this night for that light, said, My soul desired you in the night,10 as if he had said, “Lord, my soul longs for You, the light, but she labors still immersed in the darkness of this night.” Therefore, as we said, from the beginning of this fall to the time of the given Law, the sinner lay as though prostrate in the prison of the night of this earth. However, by the mercy of God, from the time of the given Law, when the lamp of the divine Word was ministered to him, little by little he raised himself toward its light, still feeble as long as the darkness lasted, and stumbling and tottering somehow all the way to the time of the Lord’s Incarnation. The Prophet is a witness to this when he says, your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my paths.11 It is as if he said, “I am impeded by the darkness of the night, but somehow I will advance to the lamp of Your Law.” 4. Then, from the time of the Incarnation, when this night is already moving to its end and the dawn of approaching day is glowing, there is not yet the presence of the sun, which will only be displayed to be blessed after this life, but instead a certain clear light, a presence of the sun, namely, the dawn, the golden hour that is the Lord’s flesh, bright as a ray of the sun, covering the whole world with a very serene light, so that, with the thickness of the nighttime darkness scattered, man, now standing erect, with faith in the Incarnation providing him a serene light and directing his steps, may now walk upright to the sure light and no loner wander unless led astray by his own wicked impulses. Whence the Prophet says, A people who were walking in the dark have seen a great light; for those who were dwelling in the region of the shadow of death a light has arisen.12 He says that light has risen for them, not day, because only the future life will be full day. 5. However, here someone will say to me, “How do you say that the time of the Lord’s Incarnation is not day, when the prophets, the apostles, and other saints, and even the Lord Himself in the Gospel, call this time ‘day’”? Thus, the Prophet, turning his gaze on this time, says, On that day the mountains will rain down sweetness,13 and again, Behold, the day will come and I will raise a just seed,14 says the Lord, and the Apostle says, Now is the acceptable time. Behold, now is the day of salvation.15 In the Gospel, the Lord says, Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day, and he saw it and rejoiced.16 Although this statement can fittingly be understood regarding that day of eternity of the Word of God, nevertheless, it is more usually taken as referring to the temporal day

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of the Redeemer, in Whom Abraham exulted more spiritually. This is because, although God is to be loved above all things for creating us, He is more especially to be loved for re-creating us. Therefore, although it is established by so many and so important authorities that the time of the Lord’s Incarnation is called “day,” how do you say it is not the day? 6. Know, therefore, that the time of the Lord’s Incarnation is called “day” by anticipation,17 just as dawn is usually said to be day by the same rhetorical figure, not because dawn really is the day, or part of the day and not rather of the night, but because of true hope, the most certain hope, of the day that is near. In the morning, it is not really day yet, before the rising of the sun, until the globe of the sun, emerging from the lower hemisphere, sits above our horizon, although already the air is glowing with the first light of the sun as it advances, just as, on the contrary, in the evening, before the sun having slipped down from the upper hemisphere lies hidden, it is still day, since the western part of the sky is still illumined by the remains of its light. Otherwise, the day of the summer solstice would not have eighteen hours, three times as many as its night, but would exceed it by almost four times, and the day of the winter solstice would not be exceeded by its night by the factor of three, although the usual authority claims both that the day of the summer solstice has eighteen hours and the night six, and, on the contrary, the day of the winter solstice has six hours and the night eighteen, so that the twenty-four hours of the natural day are completed.18 Therefore, just as the dawn is not really day although, by the rhetorical figure of anticipation, it is called “day” because, by the fact that it is illumined by the day that is coming soon, it is very similar to it, so indeed the time of the Lord’s Incarnation is not really day, although by the same figure it is commonly called “day” because the heaven of our minds, that is, its superior part, already illumined by God by the coming light of the sun of justice, is very like it, so that, in respect to the past darkness, it can fittingly be called “day.” The blessed Apostle having seen this day when he said, The night has advanced,19 fittingly did not add that the day has come but that it has approached, indicating, that is, that it was still in the middle of the time of dawn, as if he had said, Night has indeed already advanced with the most certain hope but, while its last part lingers, that is, the dawn, it is still not day, but it is approaching; that is, the real night, the darkness of the night, has passed because, with the coming of the Savior, the old unbelief of the nations has passed, but it is not yet the day because the Judge has not yet appeared.

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7. Therefore, for the reason just stated, all of this present life of the whole human race is a kind of cold winter’s night, but the future eternity is one, long, serene, and warm summer day for the elect: serene because of the splendor of divine contemplation, and warm with the fervor of perfect love.20 Therefore, the holy Apostle truthfully uttered the statement here discussed about the whole of the Lord’s Incarnation as the dawn, which, however, as has been said, ecclesiastical usage refers not unfittingly to the present time. How this happens now needs to be seen. 8. Notice that, according to ecclesiastical custom and decree, certain parts of this year that we spoke about earlier are representative of night and day. Thus, the part of the year that runs from the summer solstice to the winter solstice represents the long night of this life of temporal nights and days, that is, a night varied with many times of prosperities and adversities. The remaining time, from the winter solstice to the day of the Purification, represents the dawn of the Lord’s Incarnation, which for some but not for so many is confused by a variety of days and nights. The one day of the Purification, which no night interrupts or ends—indeed that night, the whole subsequent time to the Octave of Pentecost, has a different explanation that does not pertain to this mystery—denotes the one day of eternity, which is not mixed with or bounded by any night. Regarding this, the Prophet says, better one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere.21 9. It is not without merit that the whole rationale of this time is as follows. The space between the summer solstice and the winter solstice, beginning with the longest day and the shortest night and ending in the shortest day and the longest night, clearly represents the first state of the human race, from the day of its creation to the time of the Lord’s Incarnation, which began as though from the great day of the human soul, illumined by the light of divine knowing, and the short night of the human body, not corrupted by darkness of any sort of infirmity, and, on the contrary, died away miserably in the longest night of the human body, now laboring under multiple weaknesses, and the shortest night of the human soul, whose gift of heavenly light was almost completely extinguished. The remaining time, from the winter solstice to the day of the Purification, clearly shows the second state of the human race like the dawn, growing again little by little from great darkness into day. The day of the Purification itself, having no night following it, beautifully points to the final state of the human race, which is not to be closed off by any night.

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10. However, if someone wants to investigate this more closely, perhaps he will find in these things still greater fittingness. Ecclesiastical usage, not haphazardly, but thoughtfully arranged during these parts of the year speaks clearly to us about the mysteries of things. Thus, in the summer solstice or Octave of Pentecost, which are almost always the same, that is, when man has been established in the clear light of this his first creation, the joyful Church resounds with the praises of the Creator Trinity but, soon after the solstice, as though man were advancing into the night after the Fall of sin, the face and voice of the church change and the mournful is added to the joyous when the books of Kings and the wars of the brave are assigned22 for reading, as if spoken to strengthen a person in this first watch of the night for the wars of temptations. Behold, you have tumbled down through the Fall of sin from day into night, in which you are to be engaged in wars with temptation. You have the examples of strong men who stood fast manfully in wars. You, too, are to stand manfully. Learn to be strong amid adversities, to come out on top in wars with evil impulses, so that you can rise from this darkness to the pristine light. However, because examples are less persuasive than arguments, the books of Solomon, the books of the Wisdom that is the true light of the soul, are added. Helped by these as if by arguments, a person learns amid the darkness not to despair of His light and to long for it with all his strength, even though it is distant. 11. Then there follows, as it were, the second watch of the night, which can be called “evening stillness,”23 in which everything grows still in the face of the weariness of the night that deepens more and more for those growing weary and sleepy, almost nothing of the Law of God is repeated in the Church, and all canonical Scripture is removed from the usage and mouth of the Church, except for Job. It is not without a great mystery that Job alone of the canonical Scriptures is read then to be presented as an example of patience to man as he labors very hard. Job, placed in the deepest tribulation, as in the middle of the night, is found to be uniquely unconquered. Certain others read then, such as Tobit, Judith, Esther, and the books of Maccabees, are certainly not of the canonical Scripture24 because now, after the equinox, night conquers day, and, as if extinguishing the light of heaven and with the sun of justice closed off longer by the interposition of our worldliness as by a kind of bulge in the earth, captive man, silent regarding the Law of God, has grown mute.

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12. Finally, when the dead and inactive hour of this night has completely run its course, it is succeeded by the third watch, which is called “cock crowing.” In it, the crowing of the cocks rouses drowsy humanity and now announces the joy of the light to come; that is, the prophetic books are presented for reading in the Church of God. To be sure, the older prophets25 were our cocks as they sang beforehand to us of the advent of the coming light. However, because the first crowing of the cocks is still rather sparse, a single prophet is first assigned for reading. This is Ezekiel, in Babylon, still far removed from the light, that is, positioned at the River Chebar, and a more obscure and less certain herald of the coming light. Then, soon, as if the crowing of the cocks were in a crescendo, Daniel and also the twelve prophets step forth as not undistinguished cocks and heralds of the nearby day, but also Isaiah, a noble prophet, who is a more melodious cock than the others and a more certain herald of the advancing light. This advances at the present time, as the crowing of the cocks becomes more frequent, so that the Church resounds with all their voices. 13. Because this present time represents not only the first advent but also the second, not only the voices of ancient cocks but also those of more recent ones resound more often in the Church. So it is that, at this season, as often as the statement of the Apostle, that we began with, is recited in our ears, it is a message not of the dawn but of the day that is coming near, when it says, the night has advanced, and day has approached.26 And again, be patient and strengthen your hearts because the advent of the Lord has approached.27 Finally, when that light arrives in the fourth watch of the night, no longer just the messengers of the light but the whole Church, receiving the long desired light, is jubilant with joy, saying, The light will shine today upon us,28 etc., and again, Today the true light has descended for us from heaven,29 and likewise, One sent from the citadel of the Father has descended from heaven,30 etc., The light and beauty of the entire structure of the world,31 and likewise, the light has risen upon us.32 The whole, jubilant Church, I say, resounds these things and, in tandem with the increase of light, with increasing joy she urges all to rise, adding on the Epiphany, Arise to shine Jerusalem because your light has come,33 etc., and so, until the day of the Purification, she exults with the great joy of the coming light. To be sure, the one day of the Purification, which has no night following it, rightly represents the day of eternity. On it, the Blessed Virgin is purified and the Church is cleansed from spot and wrinkle.34 On it, little wax lights, the light of the night, as it were, are brought to the diurnal light, that

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is, to the brightness of souls is brought the brightness of bodies; now, indeed, it is joined to them as the wax of fragile things, but then, as the spirit of agile ones.35 On that day the Lord is presented in His temple; that is, at this time His divinity and humanity are manifested to all those chosen for eternal life.36 14. To this point, we have pursued the meaning of night and day according to the allegorical interpretation with reference to the whole human race at the same time. Now, as we are going to pursue according to tropology the meaning of night and day for individual people, we want our more junior brothers37 to listen to us more diligently, because perhaps it might be useful38 for them to know something of the things that are said. Therefore, according to tropology, the distinction between the day and the night of the human mind is multiple: one is the night of the sinner and the day of the just; another is the night and day of both the sinner and the just; another is the night and day of the sinner; another is the night and day of the just, and of this there is one of the imperfect and another of the perfect. Indeed, both can be written sometimes in hideous letters and sometimes in golden ones, that is, taken at one time in a good sense and in another in a bad sense. 15. The night of the sinner can be taken intransitively39 as a creature, and then the sense is the night of the sinner, that is, the night that is the sinner. Likewise, by contrast, the day of the just, that is, the just person, is day. Hence, the Apostle: You were once darkness, but now light in the Lord.40 These can also be taken transitively: the night of the sinner, that is, the dark life of the sinner, and the day of the just, that is, the bright life of the just. Hence, in Job it is said of the reprobates: They will incur darkness through the day and will feel their way at midday as though it were night.41 Through the day, that is, he says, through the glorious way of the life of the just, reprobates incur darkness when, envying just persons’ benefits, they grow darker and darker in their sins, and as if it were in the night they feel their way at midday when they hesitate about those who are of a glorious life, as if about sinners. Thus, the Jews were feeling their way at midday when, doubting regarding Christ’s glorious way of life and miracles, they said, If you are Christ, tell us openly,42 because You are hidden, You are dark, Show yourself to the world.43 16. This night comes first in all men, because all are born sinners, but day does not follow in all. There are some who are born in the night and, persisting in the night, die in it, such as Jews, pagans, and heretics. There are some who are born in the night, but advance in the day and are confirmed in the day, such as the Christian elect. There are some

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who, although they are born in the night and advance in the day, often still experience changes back and forth of nights and days, when they sin frequently and frequently repent. Of these latter, some finally by the grace of God at their end are just44 and in the day. Others, destitute of grace by God’s just judgment, at their end are enclosed in the night. Behold, in this sense “night” is written in both hideous and gold letters, but since both pertain to the sinner and to the just, what happens is in many ways taken without distinction. 17. There is the night and day of both the sinner and the just, such as body and soul, or knowledge and ignorance, or prosperity and adversity, or truth and falsehood. Soul and body are called night and day from what we stated above, where it was said that man was created in a short night and a long day, because the soul was alight with much knowledge of God and the body was not yet diminished by any corruption. There was to be sure a night of the soul with respect to God Himself, but a short one because humanity was not yet corrupted. Afterward, however, by the corruption of sin, the body became the greatest night and the soul the shortest day because, although it fell into the darkness of ignorance, it retained a little of the light of reason.45 18. That ignorance and knowledge can be called night is shown from Job, where it is said that his friends, hearing he had been tested, came to console him and sat with him on the ground for seven days and seven nights,46 because heretics, who are signified by the name of “friends of Job,” while pretending humility seem to stoop down to the faithful, both in what they understand and in what they do not understand. However, they do this not to enhance but to harm, that is, so that they stealthily pour in the poison of their wickedness. In the earlier parts of the same book, this is stated about this day: The children of Job went and had banquets in their homes, each in his own day.47 Those are the doctors of the Church, spiritual children of Christ established throughout the individual churches, in which they serve the spiritual food of faithful souls to people, each in his own day, that is, in what has been allotted to him by the gift of knowledge. Sadly, dearest brothers, in this time of dawn, that is, the time of the Lord’s Incarnation, this day is still interpolated with much darkness because, although now the bright light of faith shines out for the world, much of the blindness of human judgment nevertheless still remains, and not only do we judge others’ consciences, but also we do not judge our own when we do not discern whether we are worthy of grace or hatred. Hence comes that grave and invincible error of human judgment by which light is put for darkness

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and darkness for light. While not discerning the merits of persons or actions, human blindness judges not only that what is good is bad and vice versa, but also judges recklessly that a good person is bad. What is worse, even if on occasion it is secure is discerning the merits of things, human malice still does not hesitate to pass judgment on the darkness of another’s conscience while it does not think that it itself appears erroneous. O how much one should wish that to human blindness, knowing this its own darkness and sighing for its light, would come that full day that illumines the hidden things of darkness and reveals the counsels of hearts.48 19. Many places in Scripture refer to the day and night of prosperity and adversity. Thus, it says in the Psalm, Lord God of my salvation, I have called before You in the day and the night,49 in prosperous circumstances and adversities, and again, I will call through the day, and you will not hear, and at night, not to my folly.50 Likewise, in another place, in the day God enjoined his mercy and at night his canticle.51 Thus, in the day, that is, in prosperous circumstances, we learn whence we may praise God in adversity, for amid prosperous circumstances the commandments of God are to be examined and, having consolation from them, amid adversities we may praise God. Again, in Job it says this about this night and day, they go inside the houses in the dark, just as they had agreed among themselves in the day.52 This is to be understood regarding heretics and wicked people who in the darkness and the night of adversity enter houses, that is, they corrupt the consciences of the simple just as they had agreed among themselves in the day, because as long as prosperous things go well for people, they do not presume to pour forth the poison of their wickedness. However, during that time, they secretly agree among themselves about the opportune time to pour it forth, making wicked plans and making poisons that they will supply in their own time. This day and this night are common to the good and the evil, but the good disdain the night and are wary of the day when they are both always fearful about being raised up by prosperity and do not fear being pushed down by adversity, because they know temporal burdens work together for the good.53 20. Those things, that we have expounded above in another sense, can be understood as the authoritative meaning regarding the night and day of falsehood and truth. They will encounter darkness through the day and they will feel their way at midday as though it were night.54 There are those for whom truth gives birth to hatred. These certainly run into the darkness of deceit because of their hatred of the truth and,

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turning their hearing away from the truth, they turn to fables. Just as in the night of lies so in midday, that is, they trip over plain truth when they want to be stroked by the deceptive allurements of flatteries, rather than be stung by truthful reproofs of their vices. 21. We have spoken about the night and day that pertain to both the sinner and the just. Now, then, let us talk only about the night and day of the sinner. The night and day of only the sinner are crafty concealment of sin or its shameless display. The first of these two pertains to hypocrites, who conceal the mind of a wolf under the pelt of a sheep. The second befits mimes and boasters and other nasty people who are happy when they act wickedly and exult in the worst things and proclaim their sin like the people of Sodom.55 To them it is said, Why do you glory in malice, you who are powerful in wickedness,56 and immediately there is added, He thought up injustice all day, and with your tongue as with a sharp knife you fashioned deception.57 These always meet with the opposite intentions. One of them, while he does not fear to commit sin, is afraid to incur the shameful name of boaster; he always walks in the night like a thief. By contrast, the other, while he fears the name of hypocrite, like someone from Sodom proclaims his sin, and judges as hypocrites all those who do not do this. Whoever you are who walk guilelessly, imitate neither of them lest on account of the hypocrite, from whom you want to seem different, you cast off your sheepskin, or, on account of the boaster, putting off your white clothing you put on a mask so that, in his judgment, you may elude the name of hypocrite. This night is that nighttime fear58 as regards lighter sins, or the business that walks in the darkness59 as regards more serious sins. The day is an arrow flying in the day,60 or the midday demons who are not feared by the one who dwells in the help of the Most High and abides in the protection of the God of heaven.61 22. Now, dearly beloved, let us speak about the night and day of the just. However, since the imperfect just person is one thing and the perfect another, let the day and night of the imperfect be discussed first. The night and day of the imperfect are either temptation or, after the temptation, the confusion of the conquered tempter and the consolation of the tempted. Alternatively, the night and day that we are now discussing are hidden and manifest or lighter and graver temptation. Therefore, from combining these four there is a fourfold division: one is lighter and hidden, another is lighter and manifest, another is grave and hidden, and another grave and manifest, as appears from the previous example. However, someone says to me, “Is it the case that only

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the just are tempted, so that this night and this day are only said of the just?” I reply that, although temptation is the hostile testing of another’s will rather than of one’s own, the just person is said more properly to be tempted if the tempter does not know his intention and, in the encounter, experiences opposition. Nor does he work in encountering the sinner, because he is not unaware that he will be inclined to consent to his suggestions. When on his own he immediately follows him as a captive as he pulls him along, he no longer tests how he may be captured. Of this night, Elihu speaks thus in Job: Do not prolong this night that peoples may ascend in place of stronger ones.62 This is as if to say, if you are tempted drive the tempter from you quickly, and do not allow a hidden temptation to linger in you because delay brings danger. Thus it happens that peoples ascend in place of stronger ones, that is, low-class and unruly movements begin to rule in you once manly and rational movements have been expelled, and thus by a certain lengthy pretext the enemy claims possession of you for himself. 23. It remains now for us to speak of the night and day of the perfect. It is indeed the same night and day of the perfect as of the imperfect, that is, temptation that is either hidden or manifest. However, it is more troublesome for the perfect regarding one kind of temptation and more tranquil regarding another. There are two kinds of temptation, intrinsic and extrinsic: intrinsic is by an enemy of one’s household, that is, from the flesh or from oneself; extrinsic is from the world or from the devil. The extrinsic temptation is more troublesome to the perfect; the more someone strives for difficult things, the more he is assaulted by the world and the devil. Intrinsic temptation is more tranquil for the perfect. I refer to the perfect with reference to the virtue of fortitude. There are as many kinds of virtues as there are, in these same people, perfections and imperfections. Each of the virtues has its stages. It is not absurd to call simply perfect whoever reaches the summit in any one of them. Otherwise, no one on the way (in via) would be found perfect, because no one here attains at the same time the sum of all the virtues. Nor is it necessary that someone who is perfect in one also be perfect in the rest, although it is necessary that someone perfect in one have made a beginning in the rest. Otherwise, he has not made even a beginning in that virtue in which he has been thought to be perfect. Thus far,63 therefore, the virtues are connected. Hence, as we said, someone perfect in regard to the virtue of fortitude has more tranquil intrinsic temptation because just as he has the struggle from himself and in himself so, with the help of grace, he also has victory in the bat-

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tle from himself. On the other hand, he has more troubling extrinsic temptation because, as he is not assaulted from within himself, so it is not from himself that he rejoices over the victory. 24. There is another kind of night and day in which, in this life only, the perfect person is engaged at alternating times, namely action and contemplation. The action I mean is that which does not collect superfluous things but even distributes necessities, which gains not earthly but heavenly wealth, which sweats not to garner riches but to distribute alms, which does not impoverish widows and orphans but sustains them, which does not punish offenders but liberates them, which does not make people sick but heals them, which does not kill the living but brings life to the dying, and, finally, which occupies itself not with evil works but with good ones. The contemplation I mean is not that which dreams the vain fictions of philosophy but one that illumines the secrets of the true Faith, which penetrates the depths not of earthly things but of heavenly ones, which weighs not the mass of the earth but the gravity of guilt, which commends the connection not of the elements but of minds, which investigates not the movements and stopping places of the stars but the dwellings of the blessed in heaven, and, finally, which does not explore the nature of things by philosophizing but procurs the grace of God by contemplating. 25. Bleary-eyed Leah and beautiful Rachel, anxious Martha and quiet Mary, beautifully signify this kind of night and day. The book of Genesis elegantly signifies this kind of night when it tells how one night Leah bought the embrace of her husband from her sister and joint-wife with a portion of mandrakes.64 Leah, for the price of the mandrakes, that is, for the outlay of good reputation, drew away men of virtues suitable for herself but more dedicated to the embraces of beautiful Rachel, that is, to the study of wisdom, for one night, that is, in the laborious and agitated activity of this life. She drew them away from those embraces and, when they were joined to her, caused them to engender many fruits of goods works. The embrace of Rachel, that is, comprehension of true wisdom, is more rare in the night of this life, until this night passes and the full day fully arrives.65 May He Who is the true day from day, Who now comes in the flesh as our Redeemer and is going to come in majesty as our Judge to judge the living and the dead and the world by fire,66 deign to hasten there us who long for Him.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

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19 20

21 22

23

24

Rom 13:12. 2 Cor 6:2. Jer 1:5. Matt 2:18; cf. Jer 31:15. Rom 13:12. The text is erased and amended in the margin; I am not sure of the reading. On these terms “microcosmus” and “megacosmus,” see Godfrey of St Victor, Microcosmus 2 (Delhaye, 31–32), 80–83 (Delhaye, 92–96), 201 (Delhaye, 221–22), 235–36 (Delhaye, 256– 59); Delhaye, Le Microcosmus, 137–74; Rudolf Allers, “Microcosmus from Anaximander to Paracelsus,” Traditio 2 (1944): 319–407. There is an adjective modifying “prison.” It seems to be “interrimum,” a word I cannot identify. Job 3:3. Isa 26:9. Ps 118:5. Isa 9:2. Joel 3:18. Jer 23:5. 2 Cor 6:2. John 8:56. “per anticipationem”: “anticipatio” was another name for “prolepsis,” the literary device of foreseeing and forestalling objections, which is what Godfrey did by posing the question he is answering. However, by the term “anticipatio” he refers to a slightly different literary figure, whereby some point in a process is given the name of the completed result. See Richard A. Lanham, A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms, 2nd ed. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991), 120–21. For these astronomical observations, see, for example, Martianus Capella, The Marriage of Philology and Mercury 7, [872]–[878], tr. W. H. Stahl, R. Johnson, and E. L. Burge, Martianus Capella and the Seven Liberal Arts, 2 vols., Records of Western Civilization (New York: Columbia University Press, 1977), 2:338–41. Rom 13:12. See Hugh Feiss, OSB, “Heaven in the Theology of Hugh, Achard, and Richard of St Victor,” in Imagining Heaven in the Middle Ages, ed.  Jan Swango Emerson and Hugh Feiss, OSB, Garland Medieval Casebooks 27 (New York: Garland, 2000), 152. Ps 83:11. “ponuntur”: In developing his ideas about the Scriptural readings assigned for the liturgical year, Godfrey will several times use this word and its compounds “deponuntur” and “reponuntur.” One can see in this choice of words a reference to the actual practice at Vigils, when the biblical book to be read was literally placed on the podium for the use of the reader, perhaps by the armarius, an office that Godfrey held for some time at St Victor. “conticinum”: late evening when all becomes still, from “conticesco,” “to become still.” See Macrobius, Saturnalia 1.3.12, ed. and tr. Robert A Kaster, LCL 510 (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2011), 28–29. Godfrey here says that what today are called the “deuterocanonical” books are not part of the canon of Scripture. On this subject among the Victorines, see VTT 3:38–40, 257–58, and note also Richard of St Victor, LE 1.2.9 (Châtillon, 119–121; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:316–17), who follows Hugh and like Godfrey excludes the “deuterocanonical” books from the canon of Scriptures. This exclusion is much influenced by St Jerome: see Frans van Liere, An Introduction to the Medieval Bible (New York: Cambridge, 2014), 60–61.

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29

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32 33 34 35

36

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38 39

40

41 42 43 44 45

G odfrey of S t   V ictor The books of Kings and other “historical books” placed after the Pentateuch in the Bible were called the “older prophets.” See Richard of St Victor, LE 1.2.9 (Châtillon, 120.10–16; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:326–17), who includes in this category Joshua, Judges, and the four books of Kings (today: 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings). Rom 13:12. Jas 5:8. This verse was and still is used as the opening part of the Introit at the Dawn Mass of Christmas. It is conflated from Isa 9:2, 6 and Luke 2:32. The part quoted by Godfrey seems to depend in part on the Old Latin version. See Cantus Index 501009 (http://cantus.org/ id/501009). This antiphon was used very widely in the Christmas liturgy, although with the reading “true peace” (“vera pax”) rather than “true light” (“vera lux”). See Cantus 006959 (http:// cantusindex.org/id/006959). It was also used as a responsory at Matins (see Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 381). This antiphon appears with a number of variations as a versicle or response in the Christmas liturgy: see Cantus 006103 (http://cantusindex.org/id/006103). It was the third response at Matins in the Sarum rite. This text appears in connection with the previous antiphon in Cantus 006411 (http://cantusindex.org/id/006411): “Descendit de caelis missus ab arce patris introivit per aurem virginis in regionem nostram indutus stolam purpuream et exivit per auream portam lux et decus universae fabricae mundi.” This is a Christmas antiphon or responsory: “Lux orta est super nos quia hodie natus est salvator alleluia.” It is Cantus 003652 (http://cantusindex.org/id/003652). This is another Christmas antiphon or responsory: Cantus 006574 (http://cantusindex.org/ id/006574). Eph 5:27. On “agility” as a property of the risen body, see the introduction to Maurice de Sully, Sermons 40 (Robson, 203–04, commenting on the text on 160); he refers to Richard of St Victor, LE 2.10.10 (Châtillon, 396 = Serm. cent. 10, PL 177.920D). However, these texts mention swiftness (velox), not agility. See Peter Lombard, Sent. 4.44.3 (Quaracchi [1916], 1001; tr. Silano, 4:240). Lombard speaks of “facilitas.” In later theology, “agilitas” was one of the four characteristics of the risen bodies of the saints. Regarding the Feast of the Purification, see the introduction and translation of Walter of St Victor, Sermon 6: On the Feast of the Purification, VTT 4:529–50, as well as the two sermons of Richard of St Victor on the Purification translated in this volume. “fratribus iunioribus”: As noted in the introduction, this may be a clue to Godfrey’s audience; see par.  1, where Godfrey refers to those who do not know how to investigate the depths of Sacred Scripture. The verb seems to be “uterterit.” “intransitive”: the examples Godfrey gives are genitives of apposition; for “transitive,” used two sentences below this, Godfrey gives as an example a subjective genitive, in which the genitive indicates the subject of the act or state, rather than its object. See George J. Adler, A Practical Grammar of the Latin Language (Boston: Sanborn, Carter, Bazin, 1858), 373–74. Eph 5:8. According to O’Donnell, Confessions 3:347–48, this verse forms a leitmotif of Book 13 of Augustine’s Confessions; the formatio of the human being described in Book 12 (Gen 1:3: “fiat lux”) is paralleled by the process of conversio described in Book 13. Job 5:14. John 10:24. John 7:4. There is a word here that is partially obliterated in the manuscript. This notion that fallen humanity retained at least a spark of reason is central to Victorine anthropology. See, for example, Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.10.2 (PL 176.329C; tr. Deferrari,

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167); Sacr. 1.6.13–15 (PL 176.271A–272C; tr. Deferrari, 102–04); In Hier. coel. 3.2 (Poirel, 472–73) (PL 175.976A); Lament. 2.1 (Lucy Gabrielle McGuinness, A Study and Edition of Hugh of St  Victor’s Commentary on Lamentations [PhD  thesis, King’s College London, 1997], 322–23; PL 175.270BC); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.12.5 (Châtillon, 464–65); Serm. cent. 70 (PL 177.1120C; tr. Feiss, VTT 6:464), and Maurice de Sully, Sermons 35 (Robson, 154; tr. Feiss, VTT 6:472). Job 2:11–13. Job 1:4. 1 Cor 4:5. Ps 87:2. Ps 21:3. Ps 41:9. Job 24:16. Rom 8:28. Job 5:14. Isa 3:9: “et peccatum suum quasi Sodomae praedicaverunt nec absconderunt” (“and they proclaimed their sin and did not hide it, just like Sodom”). Ps 51:3. Ps 51:4. Ps 90:5. Ps 90:6. Ps 90:6. Ps 90:1. Job 36:20. “adeo”: “thus far.” This might also be read as “a deo” (“by God”). Gen 30:14–16. The allegorical reading that made Mary and Martha, and Rachel and Leah, stand for contemplation and action was a commonplace by Godfrey’s time. See Giles Constable, Three Studies in Medieval Religious and Social Thought (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998), 1–141. Richard refers to Leah and Rachel briefly as standing for action and contemplation in LE 2.2.12 (Châtillon, 241.36–39, 242.57–58). The details of Godfrey’s paragraph are noteworthy: he defines what he means by this often ill-defined pair of terms; he does not denigrate either Leah or the action she symbolizes; and he recognizes that contemplation is a rare gift in this life. On this, see Hugh Feiss, “Prayer and Work: The Example of Robert of Chaise-Dieu (d. 1067),” ABR 67 (2016): 399–418. Richard of St Victor’s On the Twelve Patriarchs is a minutely developed allegory on the virtues that are symbolized by the children of Leah, Rachel, and their respective handmaids. Here, Godfrey echoes the responsory used in the Office and burial rites for the Dead: “Libera me, Domine, de morte aeterna in die illa tremenda, quando coeli movendi sunt et terra, dum veneris iudicare saeculum per ignem.”

ABSALOM OF SPRINGIERSBACH SERMON 4: ON THE ADVENT OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

The text from which Absalom begins is a Psalm verse about God’s descent like rain on a fleece.1 He refers to the kinds of fleece (nature, sin, and grace) and various ways in which God descends on them like rain (par. 1–3). Before taking up his main theme, Absalom says a prayer to God, in which he asks God’s mercy and judgment (par. 4). Absalom begins the body of his sermon, which deals with four descents of God to humankind, by saying his aim is to store in the memory the recollection of God’s kindnesses and our iniquities (par. 5). The division into four descents and various subdivisions of them are designed to serve this purpose, though a twenty-first-century reader might be more bewildered than helped by the rapid succession of subdivisions. Absalom mentions memory also in paragraphs 4, 7, and 8, showing that facilitating memory is his intent. The four descents that structure the sermon are liberation from Egypt, teaching in the desert, consolation in battle, and judgment of merits. Egypt stands for the sirens of fleshly desire, greed, and arrogant pride. The threat of eternal punishment strikes fear in the heart of the slave in Egypt. This leads to contrition (par. 6–7). The second descent of God to the soul occurs when she is in the cloister, where she can sing and meditate on God’s law. This descent has four components: (1) humbled by recollection of her sins, (2) afflicted with ascetical practices, (3) made gentle through discipline, (4) she is moved to act with true love. Absalom elaborates on this with a complicated metaphor about two double doors (par. 8–11). The third descent is God’s consolation, which the claustral needs in his struggle against the temptations to seek something other than God, such as riches, honor, or the study of literature and philosophy, for example, the writings of Cicero, Plato, or Aristotle. Christ will not 1

Ps 71:6. The sermon is in PL 211.31C–38B.

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allow them to find consolations in such things (par. 12–14). Claustrals should venerate Christ’s Advent, when he took up our weaknesses and consoled us, so we can act with security during his final coming and scrutiny: his fourth descent (par. 15). This is clearly a sermon to people who have embraced life in the cloister. They converted from a worldly life, in thrall to honor, riches, and pleasure, and now must struggle against the temptation to return to that life or to the schools. Absalom urges them to look ahead to Christ’s final coming and to find their consolation in Christ and not in the things they have left behind. Absalom’s pointed rejection of reading classical literature and philosophy seems at odds with his own citations of Virgil and Boethius, and a reference to Homer. Absalom, in fact, frequently cites classical authors throughout his sermons.2 His exhortation to resist temptations to pursue literature and philosophy, some place outside the cloister, suggests that such temptations were not rare among the canons he was addressing in this sermon.

2

Pierre Courcelle, “La culture antique d’Absalon de Saint-Victor,” Journal des Savants (Année 1972): 270–91.

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TRANSLATION

He will descend like rain on a fleece and like raindrops dripping upon the earth.1 1. The Prophet of God, wishing to bring consolation to us in our spiritual misery, consolation to those who were sitting in darkness and the shadow of death,2 chooses to promise hope. He does so because, without hope of future liberation to ease the weight of misery, an overlong captivity could send us into despair. Opening to us the manner of our visitation, he breaks out in a voice of exultation and joy, saying, He will descend like rain on a fleece.3 2. Therefore, let us first look at the varieties of fleece, because there is a fleece of birth, a fleece of the old, and a fleece of the new. We have the fleece of birth from nature, the fleece of the old from sin (culpa), and the fleece of the new from grace. Where it says, and again my skin will surround me,4 understand the fleece of nature. Similarly, when it says in Jeremiah, he made my skin and my flesh old,5 understand the fleece of sin. Also, in the Song of Songs, the Holy Spirit, signifying the fleece of newness, says, I am dark, but beautiful, daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the fleeces of Solomon.6 She compares herself to the tents of Kedar because of the blackness of vices (vitiorum); she compares herself to the fleeces of Solomon because of the adornment of virtues. 3. He will descend, it says, like rain on a fleece, like raindrops dripping on the earth.7 Rain on a fleece first wets the wool, then cleanses it, and then whitens it beyond what nature provides. Therefore, the Son of God descends like rain on a fleece when, visiting our nature through grace, He cleanses us from our old stain and really clothes us with new apparel. He descends, it says, like rain on a fleece, etc.8 Rain cleanses by the force of the water, dew tempers the morning, and rainfall wets the ground with individual drops. Thus, the Son of God descends like raindrops dripping on the earth9 when, in various times and temptations, He pours the consolation of grace into our minds. Whence the Prophet David also explains the consolation of beginners when he says, in His raindrops the budding plant will rejoice.10 4. He shall descend, it says, like rain on a fleece.11 There are four principal descents of God to humanity that we can construe from the testimony of Sacred Scripture: those of (1) liberation, (2) teaching, (3) consolation, and (4) examination. By the first, we are freed from Egypt;

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by the second, we are taught in the desert; by the third, we are strengthened in battle; by the fourth, the merits of each are judged. Dearly beloved brothers, if there is anyone among us who has a living heart and strives to imitate the Spirit of God rather than the spirit of man, his prudent mind will surely find in these grounds for fear, and also grounds in which, raised by the consolation of hope, he may recognize the time of mercy and the day of his visitation. Who, noting that God descends to earth for the salvation of humankind, could despair? Or who was ever secure while awaiting so terrible a judgment? O how cautiously, how thoughtfully, should one walk where one and the same Lord is a strong defender for salvation and such a strict judge for examining what sort of work each did. So, Lord, when I remember Your mercies that are for eternity,12 I say, it is good for me to cling to God and to put my hope in the Lord God.13 However, when I turn my attention to the judgment, I am disposed to be hidden in the netherworld until Your fury has passed.14 If, however, You set a time for me when You will remember me, it is because mercy surpasses judgment.15 Let us flee to the Lord of the servant, to the redeemer of the captive, to the consoler of the wretched, saying with the prophet, Remember, Lord, what happened to us, turn Your gaze and regard our disgrace.16 You freed us from Egypt, and we murmured saying, Would that we had died in Egypt while we were sitting over pots of meat.17 You gave us the law, and we said, depart from us, we do not want knowledge of Your ways.18 You come to us through grace to loose us from our sins. However, ungrateful for Your benefits, we say, who is this who even forgives sins?19 We can do nothing without You. Nevertheless, we refuse to follow You, to be with You. 5. If it is agreeable, let us pursue the topic of those four descents of God to humanity that we mentioned above, and store up God’s kindnesses and our iniquities more deeply in the interior of our memory. It says, looking, I saw the affliction of My people in Egypt, and I descended to free them.20 If we wish to return to the moral understanding (intelligentiam), Egypt is the carnal life of people taking care of the flesh and its desires. Since a body that is corrupted weighs down the soul, and earthly dwelling depresses the sense of one who thinks about many things,21 one who is overcome by vices and evil desires (concupiscentiis) while he is in this mortal body is surely compelled to serve in mud, brick, and straw.22 There comes from Egypt a certain female warrior who is called Fleshly Desire. She says, “It is good to enjoy pleasures and make use of good things. Who was ever an enemy of his nature? Who ever hated his own flesh?”23 The wretched soul responds, “I am here;

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you have indicated rightly.” “Ah,” says Greed, “collect silver, expand the coffers, live frugally, and possess many things, for you are worth as much as you have.” The wretched soul answers, “I have done all these things from my youth.”24 And Pride says, “Ascend this exceedingly high mountain,25 grab weapons and a shield, and rise up to help me.26 Let us strive to disdain lesser people, oppress our peers, and disparage our betters. The simple will not pay attention, the long-suffering will not rise up, the wise will dissemble, and the rebellious will not prevail.” In answer you reply, “Behold, I am hurrying, I am hastening, I will follow you wherever you go.”27 What miserable servitude! The Egyptians come and say to our soul, “Bow down so we can pass.” We show obedience without delay.28 Either we will not refuse or we cannot. 6. Perhaps, these are the three cities that the sons of Israel built for Pharaoh. The first is called Raamses, the second, Pithom,29 the third, Heliopolis.30 Raamses is interpreted to mean “the movement of the moth,”31 Pithom “mouth” or “depth of the abyss,”32 and Heliopolis “city of the sun.” So, by “Raamses” understand “avarice,” which is forbidden in the place where it says, do not store up treasures for yourselves on earth, where moth and rust destroy, thieves dig and rob.33 By “Pithom,” which means “mouth” or “deep,” carnal desires and other passions are forbidden. About them Scripture says, because the wicked, when he comes to the depths of the vices, is disdainful.34 Take “Heliopolis,” which means “city of the sun,” to stand for pride, which with its companion vainglory, wants to shine far and wide and to ceaselessly burn others by pulling them down and displacing them. 7. Who will free us from this servitude? It says, if the Son has freed us, we will be truly free.35 However, the heart of Pharaoh is hardened,36 and he will not let us go, unless an angel strikes, unless by a strong hand.37 Wanting to snatch us out from the hands of most wicked men, He sends His angel to strike the firstborn of Egypt,38 that is, fear, which, together with accusation of conscience, threatens the penalty of eternal punishment. And which of you, says fear, could live with devouring flame? Who will remain with everlasting fires?39 When, therefore, the fear of eternal punishment recalls his bad ways to the memory of the sinning soul, immediately with the sword of contrition it kills the firstborn, that is, the evil deeds done in the past. Perhaps this is the angel who aroused Peter by striking him on the side and said, Get up quickly!40 The angel comes to Peter, which is interpreted to mean “recognizing,” since anyone recognizing his sins is struck with fear of punishment. He strikes him on the side, when he compels him to

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abandon past pleasures in which he seemed to be resting. He says, “Get up, man,” as if to say, Now is the hour for you to rise from sleep.41 Get up, you who sleep,42 so you will not be damned with the wicked at the coming of the judge. 8. Every faithful soul who has been liberated from Egypt by the striking angel has need of a second descent of God, by which He writes in his heart the pure law of the Lord, which converts souls,43 and teaches him to run the way of the Lord’s commandments,44 so that he does not by various circuitous paths of error return again to Egypt, that is, into the sea and waves of vices. Hence, it was prohibited even to Moses, which means “taken up and saved from the waters,”45 even though the law of the Lord was given to him. The commandments and discipline of God are certainly useful to someone who, having been converted from his ways, detests his worst vices and, disdaining to serve Pharaoh, tries to extinguish carnal desires in himself. However, so that this law may be free from disturbance, it is given not in Egypt, but in the desert, that is, in the cloister, in a place of holy religion, where those snatched from this world sing in the spirit and sing in their minds as well, and pondering his testimonies,46 meditate on the law of God day and night.47 However, this descent of God to humanity occurs in fog, in thunder, in lightning, in fire.48 In fog: recollection of sins; in thunder: affliction of sins; in lightning: terror of discord and revolt; in fire: the feeling of brotherly love. So, in the fog, He teaches us to be humbled by recollection of sins; in thunder, to be afflicted for those sins with hunger, thirst, vigils, and fasts; in lightning, to take up the way and discipline of religion in fear and gentleness; in fire, to implement these same things with the true zeal of love (charitatis). Surely in these four every way of religion is contained: in interior contrition, in exterior affliction, in a gentle way of life, and in the bond of fraternal charity. 9. Hence it is that Abraham, going to immolate his son, is reported to have carried fire and a sword with him.49 By the sword, which cuts with both edges, we can understand interior and exterior penitence. Interior penitence cuts through contrition of heart, exterior penitence through chastening the body. Similarly, two things are found in fire: brightness and heat.50 One can understand brightness as a gentle way of living, regarding which it is said, let your light shine before people.51 Heat can be understood as the ardor of heavenly love. Someone who wants to offer himself to God carries a sacrifice with him, namely fire and the sword, so that he can correct himself with the sword, and guard and nurture the peace of his neighbor with the fire. These are the guards set

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over Jerusalem,52 who all day and night do not stop53 praising the name of the Lord. These four guards are assigned to this our city, namely, sorrow in the heart, labor in the body, gentleness in our way of life, and love (amor) in affection (dilectione) toward heavenly things.54 Sorrow guards faithfully, labor manfully, gentleness pleasingly, and love (charitas) confidently. 10. In this Jerusalem of ours, there are two towers strongly fortified with squared stones at the bottom and then built up. One is called the tower of fortitude, the other, the house of peace.55 The first is watchful; the second is peaceful. Martha holds the first, Mary the second. Hence, the Lord said, Martha, Martha, you are anxious and disturbed about many things.56 You are anxious because of work, disturbed by sorrow. If the guard of this tower is Martha, without doubt it is guarded by sorrow and labor: sorrow in contrition of heart, labor shown in good works. Mary does not have any cares57 because she leaves serving to her sister alone. Listen to what Scripture says, Mary sat at home.58 She sat quietly; she sat free of care, quiet through the virtue of gentleness, secure through the virtue of charity: without care, indeed, because perfect charity casts out fear.59 There are four little doorways placed at the entrance to the Temple, about which the history of Kings speaks.60 They are arranged as follows, so that two doors would form one double door, and the two are joined together, so that if by chance it seemed right to open them in some way while disclosing the fact, one could double the other. Sorrow and labor constitute one double door; they are so connected that seldom if ever are they separated. The other double door is constructed of love (charitate) and gentleness, so that gentleness is born of love. The double door formed from labor and sorrow is joined by the bond of fortitude, for unless there is fortitude of mind, labor is sometimes separated from interior contrition. The bond of patience connects the other one, formed by gentleness and love, because unless patience is present, gentleness sometimes separates from love. These doors swing on the hinge of humility. They are closed by the bolt of discretion, so that because of humility they guard against boasting, and because of discretion they do not admit intemperance or foolishness. The door turns on humility, is durable because of fortitude, measurable because of discretion, praiseworthy for patience, circumspect because of sorrow, solid by labor, bright by love, easy-opening because of gentleness.61 11. It says, he made two doors of fir wood, and each was double and opened with folding leaves.62 A fir tree, it is said, is a tree with a beauti-

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ful top, tall in extent, and with limbs spread all around. Therefore, the doors should be of fir wood, that is, beautiful in the spirit of joyousness, tall in forbearance, wide in loving-kindness (pietate) or compassion for neighbors. 12. Once the law of the Lord has been accepted in holy profession, the third descent of God to humanity, which we call the descent of consolation, is necessary. Our need for its protection is greater as the struggle with the adversary is fiercer. When a new soldier of Christ believes that he is secure, and now enters vigorously on the way of his resolve, assaults by strong foes arise against him on all sides. Everywhere they block the way of flight and hurl the sharpest weapons, which affect not only the body but also the soul. That all too desirable hope for abundance of riches presents itself. The frequent and highly insistent memory of letters rushes upon him, and those secular and pleasurable recreations and carnal temptations also plague him. In this dangerous storm, the wisdom of God comes to us by comforting us with the grace of consolation and illumining us with knowledge of the truth. In the midst of this storm, she comforts the fainthearted, consoles the despairing, renews the lagging, and ministers the power of faith to the one progressing, as it is written of her: she does not break the bruised reed, and she does not extinguish the smoking wick.63 13. So, listen, you who are already separated from the world, who know the vow of Jacob to God,64 who are drawn in different directions by temptations, who are delighted by what you think was the happiness of your past life, whom the harshness of holy religion terrifies. Hear, I say, what the Lord God speaks to you, because in my reckoning, He will speak peace to His people.65 First, I want you to place before your gaze silver, gold, and fancy clothes, and other things that delight human curiosity,66 and examine them not with your carnal eye, but with your intellectual eye, because if you do so you will find not consolations, but rather the greatest desolations. What happiness can be found in what is acquired with labor, possessed with fear, and lost with sorrow? Hence, someone seeking true happiness ironically exclaimed: “O excellent riches of things; after you have acquired them, you cease to be secure.”67 Remember the rich man in the Gospel who was preparing to expand his storehouses. To him it was said, Fool, tonight they will take your soul from you, and to whom will these things you have gathered belong?68 And so it happened. The Prophet David said of those who love the glory of this world, the just will have dominion over them in the morning, and their help will grow old in the netherworld from their

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glory.69 According to the measure of that glory, the glory of this world that they wielded, when they have been assigned among the dead by the just judgment of God, they will receive agonizing torments in the netherworld.70 Hence, when two very skilled philosophers wished to signify figuratively the glory of this world and the whole way of life that is in Christ, one of them described a tree having a golden bough at the entrance to hell,71 and the other dreamt of a golden chain hanging down from heaven to earth.72 What does the golden branch refer to if not the beauty and glory of this world, which is said to be at the entrance to hell, because by their love of this world their loves are sent over into hell? Therefore, let every seed of Israel fear to touch this tree, because “the descent of Avernus is easy.” However, “to draw back one’s step and go to the higher air,” this is labor, this is groaning.73 But the other wished by the golden chain to signify the life of the saints, which, established on earth, is joined only to heavenly things by holy meditation and pious devotion; as the Apostle says, Our way of life is in heaven.74 If religious men are placed on earth, they are connected by stages of virtues and good works as though by a golden chain. 14. If love of literature has tempted you, first recall that uneducated people often gain heaven, and experts with knowledge of literature many times descend to the depths of hell. The one who speaks to you wants to know whether, in this desire of yours, you aim at the goal of vanity or the knowledge of truth. If you set vanity as your goal, you are mistaken and deceive yourself, since you are to be assigned with those who, although they had known God, did not glorify Him as God,75 and therefore became foolish and perished in their vanities.76 However, if through knowledge you try to inquire into truth, in this also you err and deceive yourself, and while with Pilate you are asking what is truth?77 you have in fact discovered truth. He says, I am the way, the truth, and the life.78 The Prophet says, blessed is he whom You teach, O Lord, and You taught him about Your law.79 It is He Who teaches a person knowledge,80 not through empty philosophy,81 or in the learned words of human wisdom, but in the Spirit of God.82 He writes the divine law in the book of the heart.83 Even if you seek true wisdom, that is, holy wisdom, the exercise of prayer will reveal that to you better than will zeal for reading. Perhaps you will be delighted by the eloquence of Cicero, the wisdom of Plato, the cleverness of Aristotle, who renders wise men unknowing and fools expert.84 What agreement is there between Christ and Belial?85 Take these things out of here, and do not

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make the house of your Father into a house of business.86 The spirit of Christ does not rule where the spirit of Aristotle dominates.87 15. Christ, Who has snatched us from the world,88 will not allow us to be strengthened by this kind of consolation, to be tried beyond that of which we are capable,89 lest, when we have placed our hand to the plow, we look back and become unworthy of the Kingdom of God.90 Therefore, dearly beloved brothers, fortified on the right and on the left by works of justice, let us prepare the way of the Lord,91 let us make straight the paths of our God in this wilderness,92 and running the way of His commandments,93 we will stretch toward what lies ahead.94 Going from virtue to virtue, we will merit to see the God of gods in Sion.95 Let us not be ungrateful to Him Who brought freedom from Egypt, that is, from the present world. Let us keep the law that He taught us in the desert, that is, in this earthly paradise, namely, the monastery.96 Let us venerate the advent of our visitation, when He took to Himself our weaknesses, that is, He consoled us in our every tribulation and distress, so that we can with security await that last coming and scrutiny, when the Son of Man will come in great power and majesty.97 May Jesus Christ, our judge, creator and redeemer, Whose reign and rule remain forever, deign to grant us this. Amen.

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NOTES 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41

Ps 71:6. “descendet sicut pluvia in vellus et sicut stillicidia stillantia super terram” (DouaiRheims [1950]: “He shall come down like rain upon the fleece; and as showers falling gently upon the earth”). Three words in this quotation are noteworthy: “stillicidia”: liquid falling drop by drop, dripping, drips; “stillantia”: things that drip or trickle; “vellus”: fleece, wool shorn off, a sheep skin with wool on it, hide, wool, snowflakes. Ps 106:10; cf. Luke 1:79. Ps 71:6. Job 19:26. Lam 3:4. Song 1:4. Ps 71:6. Ps 71:6. Ps 71:6. Ps 64:11. This and Ps 71:6 are the only places where the word “stillicidium” (plural: “stillicidia”) appears in the Vulgate Bible. The Douai-Rheims translation reads: “It shall spring up (‘germinans’) and rejoice in its showers.” Ps 71:6. Ps 24:6. Ps 72:28. Job 14:13b. This dictum, drawn from James 2:13, was widely quoted in the Middle Ages; for example, Thomas Aquinas, ST 1.21.3 ad 2 (Caramello, 123); Ancren Riwle 9 (ed. James Morton, Camden Society, 57 [London: Camden Society, 1853], 332). As it stands, Absalom’s entire phrase is not a sentence, so I supplied “it is.” Lam 5:1. Exod 16:3, condensed. Job 21:14; cf. Wis 3:11. Luke 7:49; cf. Luke 5:21. Acts 7:34; cf. Exod 3:7–8. Wis 9:15. Jdt 5:11; Exod 5:7–8. Eph 5:29. Luke 18:21. Matt 4:8. Ps 34:2, 23. Matt 8:19. RB 5.1 (Kardong, 102–03). For these two cities, see Exod 1:11. Cf. Gen 41:45. Jerome, Heb. Nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 71.30). Jerome, Heb. Nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 75.6–7). Matt 6:19. Prov 18:3. John 8:36. Exod 7:13, 22; 8:19, 32. Exod 6:1. Exod 12:12. Isa 33:14. Acts 12:7. Rom 12:11; RB prol. 8 (Kardong, 1, 3).

164 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54

55

56 57

58 59 60 61

62

63 64 65 66

A bsalom of Springiersbach Eph 5:14. Ps 18:8. Ps 118:32. Jerome, Heb. Nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 76.1–2). Ps 118:2. Ps 1:2. Cf. Exod 19:9; Deut 4:11; Heb 12:18. Gen 22:6. See Walter of St Victor, Sermon 18, Epiphany, note 12, elsewhere in this volume. Matt 5:16. Isa 62:6. Acts 20:31. In this paragraph, Absalom, like other Victorines and St Augustine, uses “amor,” “dilectio,” and “caritas” interchangeably. See VTT 2:51–52, 62–63, 72–74 nn., 76, 92, 107, 140 n. 2, 148 n.  1, 152, 157, 213, 218, 229 n.  3, 231 n.  43, 248–49, 273. See also Kyle  P. Hubbard, “­Augustine on Human Love for God: Agape, Eros, or Philia,” American Catholic Philoso­ phical Quarterly 86 (2012): 204–07, for further references. In her complex allegory on “The History of Salvation Symbolized as a Building” in Scivias, Book 3, Hildegard of Bingen speaks of several towers and of the virtues situated in them, among which are peace (Scivias 3.6.5 [Führkötter and Carlevaris, CCCM 43A, 437; tr. Hart, 391]) and fortitude (Scivias 3.9.26,  28 [Führkötter and Carlevaris, CCCM  43A, 540–42; tr. Hart, 466–68]). The impulses of Hildegard and Absalom to use an imaginary building to give moral guidance are very similar. Luke 10:41. “curae”: “cura” means to have a charge or responsibility; care; solicitude; concern. The next sentence says that Mary is “secura,” that is, “sine cura” (“without cares”). At the end of the sermon, Absalom wishes that he and his readers may await the final coming or descent of Christ “securely.” Earlier in this paragraph, Absalom said the tower of fortitude is “curiosa” (“watchful”). John 11:20. 1 John 4:18. 3 (1) Kings 6:31–34. The imagery of the two double doors seems obscure but the moral meaning is clear. One can picture a Gothic church with two towers at the west end. One tower is under the patronage of Martha: it is the tower of fortitude. The other tower, under the patronage of Mary, is the house of peace. There are four doors that lead into the church, two at the base of each tower. The doors under the tower of fortitude are sorrow and labor; they are joined together by fortitude. The doors under the house of peace are gentleness and charity; they are joined by patience. These doors swing on the hinge of humility and are locked by the bolt of discretion. 3  (1) Kings 6:34. This translation of “se invicem tenens aperiebatur” is that in DouaiRheims. NABRE has “the two doors were of fir wood, each door consisting of two panels hinged together.” Isa 42:3; Matt 12:20. The subject here is “wisdom,” which may be a personification of divine activity, or Christ, or both. Gen 28:20–22; cf. Ps 132:2. Ps 84:9. “curiositas”: Dictionaries give equivalents such as “curiosity,” “desire to know,” “inquisitiveness,” “superstition.” Often in Christian Latin, as here, “curiositas” has a negative connotation, implying idle or unhealthy curiosity akin to the sort of inquisitiveness that leads to useless surfing of the Internet, what 1 John 2:16 and then Augustine call “concupiscence of the eyes.” Cf. Conf. 10.35.54 (O’Donnell, 1:140; tr. Chadwick, 211); De vera religione 19.52

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67 68 69 70 71

72 73

74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84

85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96

97



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(K.-D. Daur, CCL 32, 221); 52.101 (Daur, 252); J. J. O’Donnell, Confessions, 3 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon, 1992): 2:150–51; 3:223–24. Boethius, Cons. 2.5. (ed. and tr. H. F. Stewart, The Theological Tractates; The Consolation of Philosophy, LCL [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1962], 204.103–04). Luke 12:20. Ps 48:15. Bar 3:11. Virgil, Aeneid, 6.183–211, 405–10 (ed. and tr. H. Rushton Fairclough, rev. G. P. Goold, Virgil, Eclogues, Georgics, Aeneid  I–VI, LCL  63 [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006], 544–47, 560–61). Homer, Iliad 8.18. Virgil, Aeneid, 3.441–44 (Fairclough and Goold, 400–01); 6.126–29 (Fairclough and Goold, 540–41). Avernus, a crater near Cumae, west of Naples, was considered to be the gate of hell. See also, Ovid, Metamorphoses, 5.533–71 (ed. and tr. Frank Justus Miller, rev. G. P. Goold, LCL  42 [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1977], 274–77); 14.101–53 (ed.  and tr.  Miller and Goold, LCL  43 [1984], 306–11; tr.  A.  D. Melville, Oxford World’s Classics [New York: Oxford University Press, 1986], 115–16, 328–29). Phil 3:20. Rom 1:21. Rom 1:19–21 is very frequently cited by the Victorines. See, for example, VTT 1:95 n. 2. Ps 77:33. John 18:38. John 14:6. Ps 93:12. Ps 93:10. Col. 2:8. 1 Cor 2:13. Jer 31:33; Heb 10:16. B. Hauréau (who identified Absalom, abbot of St Victor, with Absalom, the Victorine abbot of Springiersbach), cites this phrase from BnF lat. 14525 fol. 127, in Histoire de la philosophie scolastique (Laval: Jamin, 1879), 2:71 n. 2 Cor 6:15. John 2:16. I have emended the text from “damnatur” to “dominatur,” following the transcription of Hauréau, Histoire, 71 n. Cf. Gal 1:4. 1 Cor 10:13. Luke 9:62. Above, Absalom presented the image of someone assaulted from all sides. Now he tells his audience that they are fortified on both the right and the left. Isa 40:3; Mal 3:1; Matt 3:3. Isa 40:3; Matt 3:3. Ps 118:32; RB prol. 49 (Kardong, 3, 5). Phil 3:13. Ps 83:8. On this image of the monastery as desert and paradise, see Megan Cassidy-Welch, Monastic Spaces and their Meanings: Thirteenth-Century English Cistercian Monasteries, Medieval Church Studies 1 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2001), 65–71, with bibliography 67 n. 51. Matt 24:30.

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 5: ON THE ADVENT OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

This brief sermon never returns to the verse it begins with, though it does elaborate on its message: prepare to meet the Lord who is coming.1 The first paragraph explains that all times and spaces are inherently sacred, but some are said to be more sacred because of what happens there (par. 1). Advent is one such time. So, with the help of grace, Christians should prepare their hearts to welcome Christ. To do so is like cleaning a house, which Richard describes in realistic ways. The house is the soul, to which one should return to examine oneself through self-examination after having wandered outside and there fallen into sin (par. 2). Richard then goes through the steps of house cleaning, one by one. This involves freeing oneself from the webs of pride, of which Richard mentions six kinds, and throwing out mire and old straw by compunction, confession, and satisfaction, which will result in a good reputation (par. 3). After this Christmas cleaning, Christians should then exercise the color-coded virtues of faith, hope, charity, humility, patience, and cleanness (par. 4). The next steps are to perform good works and to nurture the soul through Scriptural reading and meditation. Finally, Christians should express their joy at Christ’s coming. Richard ends with a summary of the eight points of his allegory to impress them in his audience’s memory, and a final benediction. This is a characteristically Victorine theme: the stages by which a person moves from sin to holiness (here, “cleanness”). Most of their teaching on the Christian life can be attached to these stages.2 In the 1

2

The sermon is translated from LE 2.10.5 (ed. Châtillon, 385–87); it is also found in PL 177.911B– 913A, where it is given the title, “On the Advent of the Law.” For a similar use of the metaphor of house cleaning, see Serm. Cent. 41, below, pp. 239–46. I discussed this in chapter 4 of my doctoral dissertation, Learning and the Ascent to God in Richard of St Victor (Rome: Pontifical Athenaeum Sant’Anselmo, 1979).

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context of Advent, this is the path by which one travels to meet the Lord who comes. However, in this sermon, Richard does not include meeting the Lord in contemplation. Richard does not identify his audience. It would not have been helpful to urge illiterate people to read Scripture and sing psalms. However, these exhortations might have been applicable to a prosperous urban congregation who could afford fancy wall hangings to keep out drafts. On the other hand, the entire sermon is in the first-person plural, and four times the preacher refers to his audience as brothers. The sermon is included in the Liber exceptionum, which seems to have been a kind of handbook for training preachers. Perhaps this sermon was included in it because it could easily have been adapted to even illiterate lay audiences.

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TRANSLATION

1. Be prepared, O Israel, to meet the Lord, for he comes.1 Dearly beloved brothers, just as every place is sacred, insofar as it is a place, so every time is sacred, insofar as it is a time. Nevertheless, we sometimes say that this place is bad in comparison to another place and that this time is bad in comparison to another time, and again, that this place is good in comparison to another place and that this time is good in comparison to another time. However, we say none of these things about a place or a time, but about the things that happen in a place or a time. So, just as one place is said to be less sacred because of a fault committed there, and another is said to be more sacred because of the grace at work there, so one time is said to be less sacred because of some wickedness done in it, and another is called more sacred because of some religious activity performed in it. Still, every time is sacred insofar as it is a time, and every place is sacred insofar as it is a place. 2. Brothers, it is now the time of the Lord’s advent, in which we should be prepared through some special religious observance. It is the time in which the God-man comes to humankind on behalf of humankind2 in order to redeem, free, justify, and beatify: to redeem from guilt, free from punishment, justify through grace, and beatify through glory.3 Therefore, in this so sacred time, we ought to devote ourselves to doing good abundantly by His grace. Certainly, if a king deigned to come to us and stay with us, we would diligently prepare ourselves and our household to receive him. So, brothers, let us who perhaps still serve slavish works outside, strive to enter the house of our heart, open its windows, examine there what is suitable and what is not suitable, remove the spider webs, clean the floor with brooms, throw out the mire and the chaff, cover what we have cleaned with fresh rushes, aromatic herbs, and scented flowers, decorate the walls with hangings, clothe ourselves in festive garments, begin a solemn feast, and then exult with joyful songs at His arrival. If we have been outside ourselves in servile works, that is, in sins, let us return to our heart, as the Prophet teaches when he says, Sinners, return to your heart.4 3. The windows of this house are the spiritual senses through which divine knowledge shines on us and illumines the inward places of our mind. Let us open these windows through careful examination,5 so that we can discern there what is good and what is bad. Let us keep the good and throw out the evil. The spider webs, which are gossamer and hang up high, signify the pride of the human mind: one person is prideful

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because of his noble lineage, another because of his flowering beauty, another because of his great strength, another because of his accumulated possessions, another because of his haughty power, and another because of the greater privilege of heavenly grace bestowed upon him. However, whoever is proud weaves, so to speak, empty spider webs up high. Brothers, let us bring down these webs by pushing down pride, as the Apostle commands when he says, Do not think lofty thoughts, but be afraid.6 Let us also clean the floor of our mind, tossing out the mire and straw. Mire soils, straw flies by [in the wind], and so mire signifies uncleanness and straw vainglory. Let us throw out both of them through compunction of heart and confession of the mouth. Then, as if by a kind of rush, let us cover the floor of our hearts through the satisfaction of penance, so that nothing of our past earthly and carnal life will show. As David says, blessed are those whose evil deeds are forgiven, whose sins are covered over.7 Let us also have sweet-smelling herbs and redolent flowers through good reputation, so that we can say with the Apostle, we are the good odor of Christ in every place.8 4. The various hangings correspond to different virtues. We must stretch them out by the exercise of the virtues. One hanging is green, another blue, another yellow, another black, another red, another white. Green specifies faith; blue, hope; yellow, charity; black, humility; red, patience; white, cleanness. The green hanging signifies faith, because just as, when something sprouts up from the ground greenness is the first thing that strikes the senses, so faith is the first of all the virtues. It is, I mean, first in order, not in dignity. Charity precedes all the other virtues in dignity; without it, the others are of no benefit. The blue hanging stands for the hope of heavenly things, because it displays in itself the color of heaven and of very pure air. A yellow hanging signifies charity, because yellow resembles a flame. A black hanging indicates humility, because it always presents itself with the blackness of its sins. A red hanging signifies long-suffering, because sometimes it is reddened with the blood of martyrdom. A white hanging stands for cleanness, because it always gleams without any soiling. 5. The fancier clothes designate good works, for as beautiful clothes adorn a person externally before others, so good works proclaim and commend someone as just and holy. Nothing about us is more glorious, more precious, more praiseworthy, or more useful than these clothes. Let us strive to put them on if we wish to be glorious at the coming of the Lord. We must prepare food by very frequent and attentive reading of Scripture and meditation on it. The soul is strengthened through this

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food; it is fattened by it, and through it receives strength for good work. It leads to flawless perfection. At His advent we must manifest the rejoicing in our hearts, as it is written: Bless our God, O nations, and make heard the voice of his praise.9 So let us take care; let us take care to open the windows of this house by turning our mind to examining, to taking away the spider webs by repressing pride, to sweeping away the dust by confession of sin, to covering with rushes by making penitential satisfaction, to expanding the hangings across the walls by the exercise of virtues, to putting on expensive clothes by exhibiting good works, to preparing food through reading and meditation of Sacred Scripture, and to singing a song by repeating divine praise. Thus, we will hasten to meet the Lord so that we may deserve to be visited by Him, Who lives and reigns.

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NOTES 1

2

3

4 5

6 7 8 9

Amos 4:12; Ps 97:9. This text was used as an antiphon at Lauds for the Saturday after 17 December (Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 366), and at other times during Advent. See Cantus 004217, http://cantusindex.org/id/004217. This is an instance of “homo” that loses something in an inclusive-language translation, because the word “homo” means both a human being and humanity in general. Jesus is the God-man come to man for the sake of man (“Deus homo venit ad hominem pro homine”). This sequence of redeem/free, justify, and glorify, in various permutations, is frequently found in Victorine sermons and twelfth-century theology generally. Richard’s Latin is rhymed: “Redimendo de culpa, liberando de poena, justificando per gratiam, beatificando per gloriam.” Isa 46:8. “circumspectionem”: This word means looking about or ahead, but for Richard, like “discretio,” it can suggest taking a good look at oneself. See, for example, Richard of St  Victor, XII patr. 87 (Châtillon, 337; tr. Zinn, 146); Exterm. 3.15 (PL 196.1111AB); Erud. 2.18 (PL 196.1317A); Erud. 1.7 (PL 196.1243A). Rom 11:20. Ps 31:1. 2 Cor 2:15, 14. Ps 65:8.

GODFREY OF ST VICTOR SERMON ON THE BIRTH OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

The overarching metaphor of this Christmas sermon is feasting. Godfrey begins by saying that listeners have been fasting for forty days and they deserve a great feast. Godfrey is a poor man, so he cannot offer them that. But Christ himself became a poor, humble baby on this day and it is at his table they all are gathered. Godfrey ends his opening captatio by asking that Christ, who deigned to become the milk of infants will deign to fill them with heavenly honey that satisfies every desire (par. 1–2). The Scriptures associate Christ with butter, honey, and honey in the comb, which Godfrey designates as the three dishes he serves his listeners (par. 3). Honey is the Eternal Word (par. 5–13), butter is the incarnate Word (par. 14–22), and honey in the comb is his presence among us (par. 23–31). Godfrey finds these three aspects of Christ designated in the texts of the three Masses for Christmas day (par. 4). After this introduction Godfrey develops his thoughts on the three different ways in which the Word exists: eternally in the heart of the Father, incarnate in the womb of his mother, and spiritually within the hearts of believers. Godfrey’s allegorizing can seem tedious, but if we attend closely to the honey and butter he serves up, there are some things to savor in each of the three sections of his sermon. The first section (par. 5–13) begins with a prayer to the eternal Word (par. 5). Godfrey refers to the partial glimpses the pagans had of the Trinity (par. 6) and analyzes whether it is suitable to apply the terms “Word” and “Son” to the second person of the Trinity. This discussion leads him into questions of grammar, in which Godfrey shows his respect for and familiarity with the liberal arts and pagan philosophy. In the second section (par. 14–22), he discusses the theology of the incarnation. For this, his primary terminology is not that of “homo assumptus” (the human nature assumed by the Word), which was fa-

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vored by Victorines before him, but “dominicus homo” (lordly human being), an unusual term sometimes employed by the Fathers. Godfrey expounds on the nature of the humanity of Christ by referring to the properties of milk: its fluidity (Christ underwent change, particularly in his affects), whiteness, sweetness, and aptness to serve as food for infants and small children. In the final section (par. 23–31), Godfrey distinguishes between two states of Christ: as born of Mary and as head of the Church. The allegorical application of “honey comb” is the ecclesial body of Christ. Here Gordfrey conveys a deep feeling for the corporate nature of Christian existence. Souls are born into Christ through the Word, directly inspired in their minds (maternal) and/or proclaimed from without (paternal). Discussion of the latter provides him with an opportunity to expound on the importance of preaching (par. 25). The other, tropological application of “honeycomb” is to the birth of Christ in the soul of the individual Christian. No one can be perfectly virtuous in this life, but that is not a cause for worry, because the Body of Christ has the perfection of virtues (par. 31). Knowledge needs to be enlivened with virtue, as the body is vivified by the soul (par. 28). The trajectory of holiness begins with openness to belief, and proceeds through reception of the Word in faith, quickening through love, and culminates in expression in works (par. 29). Young faith needs to be protected by a cradle whose sides are the cardinal virtues. Then it can be fed with solid food as it advances toward the full stature of Christ (par. 30–31). This translation is based on the Latin text in Paris, Bibliothèque Mazarine, MS lat. 1002, fols 17r–25v.

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TRANSLATION

1. To be sure, the general joy of the great solemnity and the singular greatness of the solemn joy required that the rich and splendid tables of the one feasting be set up by which one hungry because of the long forty-day fast1 may be not only sufficiently but even very sumptuously refreshed, and minds wearied by fasting may be restored to their original vigor by an abundance and splendor of spiritual nourishment. However, behold, my brothers and lords, you have sat down at the table of a poor man in whose house there is no bread. You are going to get up not only not satisfied, but even fasting. Why did you want to do this? To be sure, you do not want to abandon your custom, for you have learned to disdain even the delights you do have so that you cannot be accused of gluttony. This is a matter of humility not fearfulness, self-restraint not greed, honor not want. In fact, you have tables that are sufficiently and abundantly rich, that as often as there is need you also share with others; at none of these have you cared to sit down today. Just as today you have courteously sat down at the table of a poor man, so I ask that following the custom for a poor person you will accept graciously whatever has been set before you, and if there has been any fault in the foodstuff or in the preparation, you will accept it with an unruffled spirit. You have imposed on a poor man the necessity of serving you; it is necessary that you show forbearance toward the effort of the servant. If anything is done less well, you may blame yourselves. 2. Nevertheless, it is not entirely unfitting that it happens this way today. Indeed, this table is not ours, but that of the infant Christ. Today He does nothing powerfully, but instead He acts humbly. He Who is rich becomes poor, He Who was noble becomes needy, He Who was great becomes small, He Who was Lord becomes a servant, He Who was lofty becomes humble, He Who was immovable becomes fragile, He Who was strong becomes weak, He Who was the highest becomes the lowest, He Who was powerful becomes powerless, He Who thundered becomes squalling and, finally, He Who was Creator becomes a creature and He Who was God becomes man. So, what wonder if the servant humbles himself today with his lord when the Lord did this after the pattern of a servant? 3. Therefore, because the presider at this table is the boy Jesus and the Lord, Whose food according to the Prophet is butter and honey so that he may know how to reject evil and choose good,2 butter and honey are served to you, because it is not fitting that the guests of the Lord

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eat more sumptuously than the lord of the table. We will, I say, place before you butter and honey in the Word Incarnate: honey because of the Word, butter because incarnate; honey because from heaven, butter because from earth; honey because from the Spirit, butter because from the flesh. Therefore, there is this statement: the Word has become flesh and dwelt among us.3 Hence, we prepare for you three dishes, the first of honey, the second of butter, and the third also of honey; the first of pure honey, the second of fresh butter, and the third of honey hidden in the honeycomb;4 that is, first, the Word in Himself, second, as He became incarnate, and third, as He dwelt among us. Thus, there are three begettings of the Word: the first from His Father’s heart; the second from His mother’s body; and the third from the human heart. The first is eternal, the second temporal but in the flesh; and the third is also temporal but spiritual. The first is ineffable, the second admirable, and the third desirable. 4. These three are to be put before you, so that, so to speak, to these three dishes correspond the three acts, which it is customary to celebrate solemnly today in all the Church:5 the first Mass refers to the first, the second to the second, and the third to the third. In the first, we venerate the eternal begetting of the Word; in the second, the temporal, but corporeal begetting; in the third, the temporal but spiritual begetting. Whence, in the first, one sings, the Lord said to me, you are my son, today I have begotten you,6 that is, eternally. And again, from the womb before the daystar I have begotten you,7 that is, from My heart before all time. In the second, light shall shine upon us today,8 namely, when the Son of God is coming in the flesh, and again, blessed is he who comes,9 etc., and again, The Lord reigns, he is clothed in glory.10 In the third, that Gospel trumpet blows whose sound goes forth into all the earth.11 Thus, the Word is begotten spiritually in the hearts of all believers, especially because it is sung with jubilation. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God,12 which can only be understood of the temporal and spiritual begetting of the Word. If it referred to the first coming of Christ, then not all the ends of earth saw the Savior bodily. 5. Because it is uttered first of the Word, let us humbly implore God, that very Word, that He deign to provide us with words worthy of Him. O Word, without Whom nothing is said, wisdom without which nothing is savored,13 truth without which nothing is known, light without which nothing is seen, warmth without which nothing is warmed, life without which nothing is felt, power without which nothing is moved, touch the dead that he may live, the drowsy that he may wake up, the

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cold that he may warm up, the blind that he may see, the dim-witted that he may understand, the man without taste that he may savor, the mute that he may open his mouth and be able to speak. Give me to speak of Your truth, give me to speak of Your will, give me to speak of You what pleases You, give me to speak of You what is helpful to me and to others. 6. Let us, then, first say what this Word is. The Word is God,14 God from God,15 Son of the Father,16 it is the power of God, and it is the wisdom of God,17 the mind of the Father. It is not only the faithful who make a distinction in Person between the mind of God and God; the first prophets of the nations seem to have made such a distinction when they called the Father to agathon and the mind of God the nous.18 However, they did not discover the third Person, the Holy Spirit. Thus, according to Exodus, Pharaoh’s magicians failed at the third sign of Moses,19 because the wise ones of this world had not understood the Holy Spirit through Whom that sign had come about spiritually, although a certain one asserts that they had understood this also in so far as they proclaimed the soul of the world, namely what gives life to the earthly structure of this great body.20 7. Hence, they think that the Apostle also has said that the invisible things of God understood through the things that have been made are seen21 and again that although they had known God they had not glorified him as God, etc.22 How did they know God if they did not understand about the Trinity of Persons, or how were the invisible things of God, which not in vain are expressed in terms of Person, beheld through the things that have been made, that is, through creatures, if there was no understanding of the Three Persons? Therefore, as we saw, the Word of God is not a voiced statement that passes with the utterance of the Word, but a concept of the mind, eternal, fixed, and unchanging, comprehending with certain and eternal reason the number, weight, and measure23 of all knowable and utterable things, in such a way that all things lived in it before they lived in themselves. Hence, that wonderful eagle,24 which had fixed the eyes of its mind on the Word of God as in a ray of the sun, testifies, saying, what was made in him was life,25 as if to say, whatever created thing there is now lived in Him even before it was created, not because they were eternally, but because they existed eternally for the eternal reason. Although with other words, the natural philosopher also taught this in former times, asserting that ideas, that is, exemplary forms of things, were eternally preconceived in the divine mind, the totality of which he also called

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the archetypal world, that is, the fundamental pattern of this sensible26 world. Just as a physical builder who is about to construct a box or house conceives its form beforehand in his mind and following this model of it executes his work, so from eternity this sensible (that is, perceptible to the senses) world was always, with whatever things are in it, conceived beforehand in the divine mind. This preconception was its exemplar, that is, the archetypal world. Therefore, this Word, whether it is called word, or power (virtus) of God, or wisdom or mind of God, is one and the same. 8. However, one can see in a marvelous way why it is called “Word.” According to the etymology of the grammarians, “word” (verbum) comes from the beating (verbatu) of air that originates only from a vocal utterance. How, then, can a concept of the divine mind be said to be a word, when a concept of the human mind not yet vocally uttered, although it is to be uttered in its own right, cannot yet properly be called a word, unless under that rhetorical figure by which the thing figuring is posited for the thing figured? It seems to me that, to this, one might answer that if the Word of God were never going to be uttered either in speech or in the flesh, it could not properly be said to be a “word.” However, seeing from eternity that sometime it would be uttered, not only vocally by the mouth of the prophets but in the flesh as much as vocally, that it would beat sinners with the scourge of its voice,27 and that it would drive away, by the banner of both its voice and the Cross, the wickedness28 of this air29 with a marvelous prophecy, the Holy Spirit most rightly wished to foresee this name for it. Just as, according to the natural philosopher, the existence of the human word is threefold, so the being or begetting of this divine word is threefold, as was said earlier. As the human utterance is in the mind, in the utterance, and in writing, so the divine word is born or is from eternity in the divine mind; it is born once in the human flesh as though in utterance; and it is born often in a human mind, just as though written on the skin of a dead animal. 9. But it can also be seen still more wondrously why this word is called the Son. Although it is clear that the name “son” is masculine both in utterance and signification, in God there is no gender. It is puzzling how the name of “son” is suitable for it, especially when it has other names, feminine or neuter in utterance but not also by signification, such as power, wisdom, mind, word, and so forth.30 Moreover, what formerly the philosophers called the mind of God, the mystic poets, trying to conceal the mystery of such a great reality, lest sacred

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divine things be naked to the crowd, covering the divine reality with what seemed to them to be an honorable veil, proclaimed not a son but a daughter, namely Pallas, born from the head of Jove without a mother,31 signifying by this nothing else than the philosophers then or the faithful now assert about the wisdom of the Father. 10. However, maybe someone here will answer that one should predicate those names that we spoke of earlier—power, wisdom, mind—of the divine essence rather than of a Person, or that there is some name that would predicate only relation and would be more consistent with the Father’s name. However, it was necessary that the name of daughter not be referred to it, lest either we return to ancient tales or we prove to dishonor the divine offspring. If, indeed, the feminine sex is always more insignificant than the masculine, then even the woman most excellent in her gender cannot attain the dignity of the male gender. However, to this, one can say on the contrary: neither the name of son nor the name of daughter ought to have been referred to the Father, lest in any way there should erroneously be some hint about genders in God, since the name “offspring” is sufficient relative to the name of father or parent, without indicating any gender since it is feminine by utterance but not also by signification because it is suitable for both genders.32 11. Let us say here, without prejudice to a better opinion, that what we think about it is similar to what we said about the Word: that if the Son of God had not had to take up a masculine human being, the name that would have been appropriate to Him would not have been “son,” but “offspring.” However, the Holy Spirit, Who foresaw from eternity that in time He was to take up humanity, and specifically masculine humanity, because He neither ought nor should have taken up feminine humanity, both beautifully and properly provided for Him the name of “Son,” so that He Who was going to be truly “son of man” would truly be called Son of God, lest it be thought that there was a Divine Person and a human one, since there were different natures. 12. Having said this regarding what the Word is, let us now say of His begetting in a few words what we know. It is written, who will tell of his begetting?33 Therefore, it is necessary that we say a few things about that we know about it: that it is, and that it is eternal, how reason demonstrates this and authority hands it on, but about how it happens we are completely ignorant. This belongs not to the journey, but to the home destination, not to the wretched, but to the blessed. Therefore, we confidently tell that it is and is eternal, but we cannot tell the way

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it happens. Therefore, the begetting of the Word occurs and it occurs eternally, but no speech can tell how it occurs. Whether we put it thus: that the Word of God has been begotten, or thus—that the Word of God is begotten from eternity, or thus—that the Word of God will be begotten eternally, we cannot at all say how it really occurs. Every verb has a temporal co-signification, and the beginning of the Word of God is not temporal. Whence, one cannot properly say “has been begotten,” lest the begetting seem to be in the past; nor can one properly say “is being begotten” lest it seem not yet complete, nor can one properly say “will be begotten,” lest it seem that it has not yet begun. However, it is necessary to say each of these: “has been begotten” lest His “going to be begotten” seem incomplete, and “is being begotten” lest it seem past, and “will be begotten” lest it seem to have passed away. However, as often as any one of these is enunciated, the temporal co-signification is removed from the verb, as happens when a participle changes into a noun. 13. Nor should we be surprised that something similar can be found in the Creator and the creature. Look at the sun and its ray. The sun begets the ray, and the ray is begotten from the sun. The sun has begotten the ray; the ray has been begotten by the sun. The sun will beget the ray; the ray will be begotten by the sun. That it is being begotten does not mean that it has not been begotten. That is, it will be begotten does not mean that it is not being begotten. That it is begotten does not mean that it will not been begotten. Nor is the sun prior to the ray, which it has begotten, begets, and will beget. Nor is the ray later because it has been begotten, or is begotten, or will be begotten. As they will cease to be at the same time, if they cease to be, so they began to be at the same time. Hence, they began in such a way that if one is eternal, both are; however, the sun is not from the ray, but the ray is from the sun, which precedes not temporally, but causally. The same thing occurs in the soul and reason. So, it is not surprising that it is said that something is in the Creator that is also found in creatures because, by His wondrous goodness, the Creator endowed His more excellent creatures with His likeness, so that He Who cannot be seen in Himself could be known in them; and to the rational creature, tending toward its good, He would demonstrate both in itself and in another creature what he should profitably believe in his Creator. 14. Brothers, we have proposed to you these few things about the heavenly honey. The other things that could be proposed about this you have more abundantly on the tables of the rich, that you have at hand

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in generous measure. Now let us come to the theme of fresh butter, that is, of the Incarnate One. You know that butter is the fat of milk or indeed fat milk. Milk is a very pure, very white, very good-tasting liquid, squeezed only from the breasts of a mother, naturally suited to the nurture of infants.34 If the infant is growing up, it serves the use of the growing child also. All these things properly and only fit the lordly human35 Who is born for us today. He alone is the purest, whitest, sweetest-tasting liquid, squeezed from the breasts of His mother alone, naturally suited for the nurture of infants, which as the infant grows is of much use to growing children. Let us see how. 15. He has it in common with all the sons of Adam that He is liquid. He, like all the sons of Adam, is born transient and mutable in both body and soul, just like a flowing liquid. In body: from state to state, as by being born He flowed from the womb of His mother into this world; from one age to another as by growing up He proceeded from infancy to boyhood, from boyhood to adolescence, from adolescence to young adulthood.36 Likewise, according to His body, having received our inner organs, He could perish from hunger, thirst, cold, heat, watchings, fasts, and other bodily troubles. Likewise, according to the body He was changeable from place to place, from quantity to quantity, from quality to quality, for example, from health to sickness, and finally from life to death. Hence it is that, having fallen into the hands of His persecutors, He slipped from their hands into His Passion, from His Passion into death, from death into burial (as if by living He flowed down to where His changeableness came to a stop, as if a living spring flowing from the earth had no place further to go beyond the place to where it had flowed down); when rising from the dead, He wished to stop the flux of mortality in Himself. Thus far, the things concerning the body. 16. Regarding the soul: He was changeable concerning happiness, sadness, anger, calm, hate, and love. I mean good hate, perfect hate, regarding which He Himself spoke through the psalmist: I have hated them with a perfect hatred.37 He had a perfect, implacable hated against the impious, when impiety steadfastly put itself in opposition to virtue, and virtue continuously and invincibly resisted impiety, and He, rising in opposition, set Himself as a wall for the house of Israel.38 Whence, zeal for your house consumes me.39 Hence, unsparingly and without dissemblance, He sharply rebuked the Pharisees and impious, saying, Woe to you scribes and Pharisees,40 who strain out the gnat and swallow the camel,41 who tithe on mint and rue and every herb,42 who circle the sea and the desert to make one proselyte, and when you have made one he

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becomes doubly a son of hell.43 You bind heavy, unbearable burdens, but you do not choose to move them with even one finger,44 and many other things of this sort.45 It would be surprising if these were not words of perfect and implacable hatred. There are those who, while they seem to be both just and meek, become neither, while they permit themselves easily to be drawn into consent to evil either through ignorance, or through negligence, or through weakness, having the appearance of compassion; or when they have no other excuse they cloak their consent under the name of tolerance, not knowing that tolerance of this sort is not virtue if it is constant, if it is automatic, and finally, if it is not well considered. 17. To be sure, it was necessary or fitting to have these kinds of mental affects to, as it were, prove His true humanity. Even that lordly man was variable. I say, “it was fitting” because of ignorance or any other defect of soul that was not fitting to so lordly a man. Just as one is to believe that no virtue was lacking to the soul of Christ, so no knowledge was lacking either. However, this does not mean that His soul was God—although only God knows all things—because it had by grace what God has by nature.46 To have something through grace and to have something by nature are two very different things. Hence, just as from the inheritance of our penalty that man was fluid like liquid, so from the absence of our guilt He was most pure. So while like water He flowed down through all the manifold filth of this world, nevertheless like a ray of the sun He carried with Him nothing from the filth of this world, because, although He had flesh like our sinful flesh,47 He was not sinful, and if He carried the sack48 He did not have the deserts of the sack, because it was quickly cut, as He Himself said, You have cut open my sackcloth.49 Therefore, He was truly clean because He contracted none of the guilt that came originally, and He was most clean because in His action He committed nothing sinful. He alone entered this world clean.50 He traveled through the world clean. He left this world clean, something that could never happen to anyone else. Therefore, by this difference He was far away from all human change. 18. The One, Who because He lacked all guilt was the cleanest, was also the whitest in virtue of having every virtue. Clothed with virtue as though with elegance of beauty and girded with fortitude,51 He descended onto the field of this world as our champion,52 both strong and beautiful. For someone who had come to fight against a strong, armed opponent, it was necessary that, just as He had through innocence the possibility of being conquered, He was also provided with the badges of

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the beauty of arms and so had the means by which He could conquer. He had accepted a cause in which, acting as an agent, He was not to rest even if the adversary did. I am speaking of the cause of a corrupt servant, deceitfully taken away by a public enemy whose position as the one in possession seemed better inasmuch as with the help of lasting and peaceful possession he could always safely keep silent, unless an accusation was brought against him or violence inflicted on him. Thus the wretched servant, given up to unjust servitude, would never return to his true master. It therefore pleased the master who was fetching back his servant not to use power, but rather wisdom and justice. He prepares to proceed onto the battlefield adorned with such insignias that with them He could elude not so much the strength of His adversary as his cunning, and confound a foe not so much powerful as proud. 19. The Prophet, already long ago seeing this beauty advancing, exulted, saying, He exulted like a bridegroom proceeding from his bridal chamber, like a giant, etc.,53 and again, Beautiful in appearance beyond the sons of humans, etc.,54 and a little afterward there is added, with your beauty and appearance, advance, proceed prosperously, and reign,55 and in another place, the Lord reigns; he is clothed in beauty.56 Another prophet proclaimed Him clothed in linens.57 Another said, with a white cloud,58 or riding on a white horse.59 The bride in the Song of love declared that his beauty was like that of Lebanon,60 which is interpreted as “whitening,” and in another place, she also asserts that He is not only white, but ruddy: My beloved is white and ruddy chosen among thousands,61 especially because a mixture of riches is usually more pleasing. He is not only most white by the whiteness of His inborn beauty after the fashion of milk or the lily, He is also ruddy like a rose and white like linen,62 through the labors of the suffering inflicted on Him. 20. He Who appeared most white to His enemies so that they might be thrown into confusion by His appearance, or to His friends so they might glory in His appearance,63 also showed Himself most sweet-tasting as He was in Himself, although He did not taste that way to them because to the sick even sweet things are bitter,64 and sweet-tasting also to His friends in whom flowed either the honey or milk of heavenly teaching so that they were refreshed by His sweetness and delighted by His sweet taste. Whence the bride in the Song says, I sat in the shade of the one whom I had desired and his fruit was sweet-tasting in my throat.65 Therefore, that lordly man is rightly called a liquid, florid through the penalty. but most pure through innocence, most white by the possession of all virtues, but sweetest-tasting through the singular grace of

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teaching, and thus most truly a milky liquid pressed from the breasts of His mother alone, which therefore because it is suitable only for Him. This no one of the faithful doubts who believes Him to be Christ, born only of His Virgin Mother’s most abounding faith, by which she believed the angel who spoke to her and was filled with the inpouring of the Holy Spirit by which she was completely liquefied by love, as the bride says as a foreshadowing (sub typo) of her in the Song: My soul was liquefied as my beloved was speaking.66 Struck a startling blow in all her innards at the voice of the angel, she wondrously provided the material of the Lord’s body like a coagulation of the purest milk taken from her body alone. 21. We have said truly, “like a coagulation of purest milk,” because it was naturally suitable nurture for little children. He, Who in His divinity is solid food for angels or perfect and contemplative human beings, deigned to become in His humanity the milk of infants, that is, of all human beings, who in comparison to the blessed angels are considered infants, or of those recently born in the Faith, of whom it is said, seek milk like newborn babes,67 or the milk of simple souls not able to grasp the deep mysteries of divinity. About these mysteries, I have given you milk, drink not food, because in many cases He granted this abundant milk of infants to growing children. As the use of milk is threefold—it is either consumed as a liquid in its natural state, or hardened into a lump of cheese, or butter—so, strikingly, the use of the lordly man is threefold, while each faithful soul either is fed by the example of His still mortal life as by pure liquid milk, or by all her desire raised to Him Who is now immortal and abiding, or daily nourished on the altar by the banquet of the mystery of His flesh, as by a kind of rich butter when He is eaten not only sacramentally, but also spiritually, the only way that nourishes. I say He nourishes with the fat of spiritual grace. Hence, it is also excellently called “Eucharist,” because of the excelling spiritual fattening, that is, gladdening that is abundantly received by spiritually chewing it. 22. Indeed, principally because of this use of the lordly man, the Prophet no longer calls Him butter, but beautifully names Him a mountain of butter, saying, the mountain of God is a fat mountain, and he adds, a coagulated mountain, a fat mountain, why do you coagulated mountains gaze with suspicion.68 This lordly man is truly a mountain at the summit of the mountains,69 fat and coagulated, coagulated by a uniquely heaped up fatness of spiritual grace, which He either received without measure or distributes to His own in the measure He wishes.

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Hence, no mountain, that is, no eminent saints could be compared to Him, although each of them is coagulated with a big heap of graces. This butter is rightly called new, either because the birth of such a human being is unheard of, or because through it the old age of the human race is renewed. For since there are two Adams, fathers of the human race, the earlier of them miserably brought upon his race the neediness of guilt and punishment, while the later one happily brought to His race the newness of both grace and glory. 23. Behold, of the three things proposed, you already have two, that is, what was proposed about liquid honey and new butter. Now we come to the third thing proposed, that is, honey deposited in the comb. Honey deposited in the comb is the Word born in the human heart. Just as a honeycomb is a container for honey, so the human heart is a room for the Word. As the honeycomb is wax but is so filled with honey that it is not possible to tell whether it is wax because of the wonderful artistry of the bees arranging it and dividing its honey among different tiny cells, so, just so, the human heart is like wax by nature and prone to be bent in both directions, either to virtue or to vice. After it is once infused with the sweetness of heavenly wisdom through the wondrous working of grace, it so divides the honey of perceived sweetness through the various cells of virtues that no wax can then be seen in it, but it seems to be nothing but honey. Therefore, because honey is hidden in a honeycomb whenever the Word of God is begotten in the human heart, we can give signification to the word “begetting” in two ways, either according to allegory in the whole body of the Church or according to tropology in the mind of each chosen soul. 24. First, let us explain the meaning according to allegory. That it may be more understandable, let us offer a preliminary consideration, namely that Christ is said to be man in two ways, referring either to him whom the Son of God united to Himself in unity of person, who today is born bodily of the Virgin, regarding which we spoke above, or referring to the one who is signified by this, who although He is in himself a certain whole, while from another point of view he is a part, namely, the man Christ generally, of which the Person of Christ is the head, while the body is the Church. Each of the elect is an individual member of that body. In this way, the whole Church is said to be the one bride of God. That lordly man born bodily of the Virgin is not the bridegroom of that bride, but rather a portion of his body, or he is the Son of God united to her through fleshly union. According to this latter mode, the Apostle speaks to certain ones to be incorporated into

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this man, saying, little children, to whom I give birth again until Christ is formed in you.70 That human being Who is personally Christ, Who was sitting at the right hand of the Father when the Apostle said this, was not unformed so that He needed to be formed in those to whom the Apostle was speaking, but rather the spiritual Christ, that is, the spiritual body of Christ, that is, the Church, needed to be formed in them, or rather they in it, so that it is by hypallage,71 and the meaning is “until Christ is formed in you,” that is, “you are formed in Christ.” In the same way, it is usually said regarding the excommunicated and heretics that they have been cut off from the body of Christ and again incorporated in it when they are reconnected to the Church. This human being Christ consists, so to speak, of body, soul and Word, that is, from the gathering of all the souls of the elect as by a kind of body of many members, not yet perfect, but to be perfected when the number of the elect will be completed. And so the Apostle says, we will all run toward one perfect man, in the measure of the full age of Christ,72 signifying Him about Whom we speak, Christ, from the Word as by a soul and by the multitude of the elect souls, as though a body still to be completed, regarding which the very Person of Christ will say to these who will be at His right: You have given me to eat, come, blessed;73 and to those on the left, you did not give me, go, accursed.74 25. Therefore in this body, that is, the totality of the souls of the elect, the Word is begotten temporally, and as was said, the human being Christ is born, I say, temporally, not eternally, generally not personally, spiritually not bodily, either through internal inspiration or also through external proclamation. Therefore, according to this manner of begetting the Word, Christ has not only a temporal mother, but also a universal temporal father, that is, the order of preachers and doctors from the beginning of the world until its end, predicting the truth of the same as future, or proclaiming it as present and carrying the living seed of the Word and sowing it in the hearts of listening believers as in a kind of mother’s womb. There it is born through the ministry of zealous preaching, as through a kind of paternal seed, and through the support of devout listening, as through a maternal seed. As a result, from these two, as from the mixing of paternal and maternal seeds, Christ is conceived spiritually and chastely. Because, I say, Joseph, that good father of the Lord also signifies a father, not in truth, but in common opinion, not only in opinion but also in signification, for this reason the Lord wished to have, besides other offspring that are symbolized by fathers, this temporal father, with a temporal mother to signify that

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according to this mode of His begetting, He had to be born both from paternal and maternal seed. 26. Therefore, according to the stated mode of begetting the Word, Christ was not born temporally for the first or last time when He was born bodily only from the Virgin Mother, for on the contrary from the first elect to the last He does not stop being begotten, even in those who conceive with chaste faith through interior inspiration, alone with no support externally from preaching, as though begetting through maternal seed alone. In those who conceive Him chastely also through the ministry of external preaching along with devout listening, as though by both seeds, that is, paternal and maternal, He is begotten, and once conceived nurtured through catechetical instruction, as if in the womb of His mother. In this time of revealed grace he is born through the regeneration of baptism, as formerly in the time of the Law he was born through the mystic renewal of circumcision, and even before the time of the given Law through some other devotion that was pleasing to God with reference to the times then. In these ways, from then to the time of the last elect, He does not cease to be born and nurtured until His whole body appears in the light and grows up into the perfect man. 27. Now let us come to that begetting of the Word that occurs according to tropology. You know, brothers, that as He is called the Word of God, He is the wisdom of God. Therefore, the Word of God is born in a chosen soul when his heart is imbued with divine wisdom. In this life, filled with such great darkness of ignorance and vices, the soul cannot become perfect as long as she is wretchedly clothed with the skin of mortality, which does not let her extend herself so that the book of God can be fully inscribed in her. Meanwhile, it nevertheless happens that insofar as Wisdom itself bent down, wishing to write with His finger on the ground,75 He offered Himself to this wayfarer not to enjoy but for use on the way, and granted to the one walking blindly in the darkness the use of the light insofar as it seemed necessary for him until, at last brought to the homeland of light, he could be filled with blessed enjoyment of it. 28. Although this wisdom is completely simple in itself, when it is begotten in the soul in some way it consists of two things, namely, knowledge and virtue, so that this wisdom can be called, as it were, savory knowledge according to the etymology of the word; or rather, by definition, wisdom can be described as knowledge flavored with the taste of virtue. Then it becomes, as it were, a kind of food for the soul, and the savor of the food is virtue. This applies to no earthly or human

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science, because although truth is in each of them, true virtue is in none of them. Therefore, as I said, the wisdom of God in the soul consists, as it were, of these two, knowledge and virtue, so that knowledge is, as it were, the subject, and virtue, as it were, the substantial form of the subject, so that, I say, knowledge becomes like a body that is vivified, and virtue like a soul that vivifies, because certainly virtue does not subsist without knowledge nor is knowledge alive without virtue. 29. Knowledge begins through faith, but, I say, through a faith that is not yet to be called virtue but is a kind of credulity, because, as a certain wise person said, it is necessary that the learner not be incredulous.76 Through this, therefore, the Word of God, whether inspired only internally or also preached extrinsically, is conceived in the soul so that it begins to be from that point on, and is nurtured by hope so that it becomes strong and grows. Afterward, it is enlivened by love so that it is alive and then begins to be virtue, and it advances through the same love until it proceeds into the light by giving birth to good work, and what has already lived within the mind also appears alive outside. 30. Then the guardian and nurse of humility is to be added, with the aid of whose service it is guarded from the corruption of pride or any other plague, so that its tenderness is not prematurely destroyed and its infancy is protected, and it is nurtured in good works, as though more and more, day by day.77 Also, it is located as though in the cradle of the four cardinal virtues extending out on four feet, so it will not crash to the ground. It is enclosed on the right and left by these protective walls of virtue as by the sides of a cradle, that is, on the left by prudence and fortitude—prudence so that it will not choose evil things, and fortitude so it will not be afraid; on the right by temperance and justice—temperance lest sweet things corrupt it, justice so that just things please it. In this cradle, it is fed with the milk of history and morality until finally, after the age of two, that is, the acquisition of understanding and action or the twofold love of God and neighbor, as it grows it is weaned and led forth to be fed more delicious food at the father’s table, that is, to Holy Scripture from which the order of teachers, like the father of Jesus, feeds the older sons with the more solid food of allegory and anagogy. It is led on to be nurtuered with more delicious food and growing in this nurture to the measure of the fullness of the age of Christ, it advances in both knowledge and virtue. This is indeed the manner and order of being begotten, nurtured, reared, and advanced to the perfect age in the soul of the Son of God.

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31. To be sure, it is not the case that this manner can be adhered to in all elect souls or that a soul cannot be saved without this perfection. There are some elect souls, in whom the Son of God is begotten and nurtured, but who do not advance to the summit of the virtues. Although in them He does not reach this perfection, He does not perish in them, because one who is not perfected in them does attain to perfect manhood in the total body of the Church of which they are truly members. Therefore, these members do not perish because, although they are not perfect, they are given life by the life of the perfect body.78 However, there are some members of this body who are held completely to this perfection of the body, so that in its totality it will not be found less perfect if it should have no perfect member. These are spiritual men, the loftiest men, and especially the prelates of the churches, perfect not only in great virtues but also in wide-ranging knowledge, so that the now-adult Son of God, and He in the souls subject to Him, becomes suitable to beget a unique offspring. Thus, from many, as it were, the one Christ in the total body of the Church is the perfect man. Christ is begotten from knowledge, as from a spiritual body, and from virtue, as if quickened by a soul, because from these two, as has been said, as from a soul and body, Christ the Wisdom of God exists and is completed in the soul. 32. We have now greatly prolonged the hour of this repast, while out of reverence for so great a feast we have tried to multiply the presentation of the three dishes by subdividing their presentation. Now, already refreshed somewhat and ready to rise to give thanks, we ask that He Who deigned today to become the milk of infants, deign to fill us in the company of the citizens of heaven with His heavenly honey, which is already their satiety, satisfying without cloying, and feasting for ages of ages. Amen.

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NOTES 1

2 3 4

5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12

13

14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

This must refer to St Martin’s fast, which extended from 12 November (St Martin of Tours’ feast day) until Christmas. This fast is mentioned in the 1221 Franciscan Rule for Penitents, chapter 3, paragraph 9 in the version at http://www.franciscanthirdorderpenitents.com (accessed 12 April 2016). I have corrected “fames” to “fame.” Isa 7:15, 22; cf. 2 Kings (2 Sam) 17:29; Job 20:17. John 1:14. Cf. Judg 14:8; Song 5:1; Luke 24:42 Vulg. Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 1.2 (PL 177.477B–481B) is entitled “De cibo Emmanuelis, de quo scriptum est: Butyrum et mel comedet, etc.” (“On the food of Emmanuel, regarding which it is written, He will eat butter and honey”). Misc. 1.2 interprets butter (which contains a taste of bitterness) as good works, honey as contemplation. It applies this primarily to Christ, but also to the Christian. On this metaphor, see also above Absalom of Springiersbach, Sermon 4, On Advent, n. 5. As Josef Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr (Munich: Huebner, 1963), 386–87, explains, the custom of celebrating three Masses on Christmas—at midnight, dawn, and during the day— goes back at least to the time of Gregory the Great, who mentions the custom in a Christmas homily: Hom. ev. 8 (Étaix, Morel, and Judic, SC 485, 214; tr. Hurst, CS 123, 50). Ps 2:7. Ps 109:3. Ambrosian chant, introit: “Quia natus est nobis dominus.” Ps 117:26; Matt 21:9. Ps 92:1. Ps 18:5. “Viderunt omnes fines terrae salutare Dei nostri” (Ps 97:3c) was a traditional chant, associated with Christmas, that underwent various musical elaborations. The text continued: “Jubilate Deo omnis terra” (Ps 97:4a). “Notum fecit Dominus salutare suum; ante conspectum gentium revelavit justitiam suam” (Ps 97:2). See the Cantus database, g00554 and g00554a (http://cantusindex.org/id/g00554, accessed 12 April 2016). “sapitur”: sapere to taste physically or intellectually, to be wise. Godfrey uses the word in the physical sense later in this paragraph, and then will suggest that sapientia, the noun derived from it, means scientia (knowledge) savored with virtue. John 1:1. Creed of the First Council of Constantinople (381), Denz.-Hün. ET, 65, #150. Gloria of the Mass, Daily Roman Missal (Woodridge, IL: Midwest Theological Forum, 2013), 718–19. 1 Cor 1:24. Godfrey is referring to the Good or One and the Nous or Mind, the transcendent realities of Middle Platonism and Neoplatonism. Cf. Hugh of St Victor, Didasc. 1.10 (Buttimer, 18; tr. Franklin, VTT 3:92–93 and 186 n. 51). Exod 8:18–19. These verses refer to “the finger of God,” a common designation for the Holy Spirit in Christian theology. Godfrey is referring to the world soul that Plato posited in his Timaeus and several twelfthcentury thinkers incorporated into their philosophies. Rom 1:20. Rom 1:21. Wis 11:21. An eagle was widely used as a symbol for John the Evangelist. John 1:3–4. “sensilis”: this is an unusual word, found in Lucretius (see C. Lewis and C. Short, A Latin Dictionary [Oxford: Clarendon, 1955], 1670) and Chalcidius (A. Blaise, Dictionnaire Latin-

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31

32 33 34

35

36

37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46

47



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Français des auteurs chrétiens [Turnhout: Brepols, 1954], 752), that Godfrey uses several times throughout his writings. In the next sentence, Godfrey gives a definition of the term. Acts 22:25; cf. Eph 6:12. Eph 6:12. Eph 2:2. The point is that there are a number of words used of the Second Person of the Trinity that in Latin are grammatically neuter or feminine, even though they do not imply that what they refer to is gendered. Pallas is the Greek Athena (Minerva in Latin). She was the goddess of wisdom. In classical mythology, she was born fully formed from the head of Jupiter (Jove). See, for example, Ovid, Metamorphoses 4.800, ed. Frank Justus Miller and G. P. Goold, LCL 42 (Cambridge, MA; Harvard University Press, 1977), 234. “proles”: offspring, progeny, is feminine grammatically but refers to offspring without indicating their gender. Acts 8:33. It is almost possible to feel Godfrey taking pride in this definition, which indicates genus (liquid), identifies three qualities (very pure, very white, very good-tasting), and refers to the efficient cause (mother’s breast) and final cause (nurture of infants). In any case, he is going to refer to the three qualities throughout this section: “mundissimus,” “candidissimus,” “dulcissimus.” “dominico homini”: lordly human (dominicus homo) is a way of referring to Christ that occurs in some post-Nicene Fathers, where it could mean either Christ glorified (either in the divine foreknowledge or after the Resurrection) or simply the incarnate Christ. For the patristic use of the term, see Alois Grillmeier, “Jesus Christ, the Kyriakos Anthropos,” Theological Studies 38 (1977): 275–93, and “Ho Kyriakos anthropos. Eine Studie zu einer christologischen Bezeichnung der Väterzeit,” Traditio 33 (1977): 1–63. The term could have come to Godfrey, who uses it a number of times in this sermon, either through Cassian or through St Augustine: Augustine, De sermo in Monte 2.6.20 (PL 34.1278; tr. Denis Kavanagh, Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, FOC 11 [New York: Fathers of the Church, 1951], 128); Retract. 1.19.8, ed. Bardy, 394–95; Cassian, De incarnatione 6.22 (PL 50.185A, with note from the commentator, Alardus Gazaeus [Allart Gazet]). The ages that Godfrey mentions are infantia, pueritia, adolescentia, iuventus. Misc. 1.82 (PL  177.517CD) gives six: infantia, pueritia, adolescentia, iuventus, virilis aetas, senectus. The same list is found in Isidore, Etym. 11.2 (ed. Lindsay [Oxford, 1911]) available at http:// www.thelatinlibrary.com/isidore.html; tr. Barney, et al., 240–43. See William Shakespeare, As You Like It, Act 2, Scene 7. Ps 138:22. Ezek 13:5. John 2:17; Ps 68:10. Matt 23:13, 15, 23. Matt 23:24. Luke 11:42; cf. Matt 23:23. Matt 23:15. Matt 23:4; cf. Luke 11:46. Mark 7:13. On this typically Victorine dictum, see Jean Châtillon, “‘Quidquid convenit Filio Dei per naturam convenit filio hominis per gratiam,’ À  propos de Jean de Ripa, Determinationes, I, 4, 4” in Miscellanea André Combes (Rome: Università Lateranense/Paris: J. Vrin, 1967), 2:319–31, reprinted in Jean Châtillon, D’Isidore de Séville à saint Thomas d’Aquin: études d’histoire et de théologie (London: Variorum Reprints, 1985), chap. 11. “carni peccatrici”: sinful flesh; cf. Rom 6:12; 8:3 (carnis peccati). On this phrase, see C. E. B. Cranfield, A  Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans (London: T. and T. Clark, 1975, 2004), 1:380 n. 1.

192 48 49 50 51 52

53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71

72 73 74 75 76

77

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G odfrey of S t   V ictor “saccus”: sack, bag; in Christian usage, a garment of sackcloth. Here, Godfrey seems to have in mind human nature, or the human body. Ps 29:12. A play on the words mundus (clean), mundus (world). Ps 44:3–4. “athleta noster”: see Thomas Aquinas, ST 3.41, art. 1, ad 2 (ed.  Caramello, 3:232), citing Origen, On Luke, Hom. 31, super 4:9 (PG 13.1879B; tr. Joseph Lienhard, Homilies on Luke, FOC 94 [Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1996], 125): “sequatur [Christus] eum [Diabolum] ad tentationem quasi athleta sponte procedens” (“Let him follow him to the test like an athlete willingly advancing”). Ps 18:6. Ps 44:3. Ps 44:5. Ps 92:1. Ezek 9:3. Cf. Rev 14:14; Matt 17:5. Rev 6:2; 19:11. Song 5:15; cf. VTT  2:122–34, especially 134 n.  15; VTT  4:90–99, 122 n.  76; Richard of St Victor, Super Ps 128, par. 11 (VTT 5, forthcoming). Song 5:10. Cf. Rev 16:6. Mark 9:2. Cf.  St  Thomas Aquinas, ST 1.17, art. 2 (Caramello, 1:101; tr.  English Dominicans, 1:97): “infirmis dulcia amara esse videntur” (“to the sick sweet things seem to be bitter”). Song 2:3. Song 5:6. 1 Pet 2:2. Ps 67:16–17; see Achard of St Victor, Serm. 5.2 (Châtillon, 69; tr. Feiss, VTT 2:254), where the puzzling descriptions of the mountain are rendered “stout” and “many-peaked.” Isa 2:2. Gal 4:19. Hypallage is a technical term of rhetoric, meaning (1) metonymy, when one word is substituted by another closely associated with it, or (2) a change “by which a word, instead of agreeing with the case it logically qualifies is made to agree grammatically with another case” (Richard A. Lanham, A Handlist of Rhetorical Terms, 2nd ed. [Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991], 66). Eph 4:13. Matt 25:34–35. Matt 25:41–42. John 8:6. For the term “incredibilis,” see Augustine, Civ. Dei, 21.1 (Dombart and Kalb, CCL 48 [1955], 758.11; tr. Dyson, 1044): “cum illam poenam non debere esse incredibilem demonstravero…” (“when I have demonstrated that such punishment ought not be unbelievable”). However, Augustine uses the term “incredibilis” in the sense of “unbelievable” rather than “unbelieving.” Godfrey’s point seems to be that unless a learner has a certain docility or openness to believe what he is taught, he will be incapable of learning or coming to genuine faith. 2 Cor 4:16; Augustine, Trin. 4.3.5 (Mountain and Glorie, 165; tr. Hill, 155): “bonisque moribus augetur et roboratur de die in diem cum magis magisque renovatur interior homo” (“and he is increased and strengthened in good habits from day to day when the interior man is renewed more and more”). Here, as elsewhere, Godfrey shows an appreciation for the holiness of ordinary, sincere Christians.

WALTER OF ST VICTOR SERMON 12: ON THE BIRTHDAY OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

It has fallen to Walter of St Victor to give the Christmas sermon at the morning chapter.1 His text is John 1:1–14, the gospel reading for the Mass during the day on Christmas. Walter was very skilled at crafting introductions to his sermons, in which he acknowledged the feelings of his listeners and his own inadequacy. Some of this is rhetorical embellishment, but he does seem to feel inadequate and perhaps defensive. In the introduction to this Christmas sermon he says he does not know what is in their hearts, but he is embarrassed to display his own lack of skill before others. He elaborates on this theme in an interesting way. The seniors who by wisdom and holiness could give edifying sermons are retired. Hence, young members must take over the duty of preaching in the chapter meeting or the custom will die out. That the seniors are tired is natural; a diminution of bodily heat leads to a decline in energy (par. 1). Perhaps we can date the sermon to sometime after 1170, when Hugh had been dead for thirty years, Achard had been absent for a decade, and Walter, Richard, and their contemporaries were now old men. The community had been through the turmoil of Ernisius’ abbacy. His successor, Abbot Guarinus (1172–93) wrote to Pope Alexander III in response to a request by Cardinal Giovanni Pinzuti of Naples2 that some canons of St Victor be sent to the church of St Peter ad aram in Naples. Cardinal Pinzuti was a Neapolitan who had come to Paris and made his profession at St Victor. He was made a cardinal by Adrian IV in 1155. He had undertaken the reform of the church of San Pietro ad aram in Naples.

1 2

This sermon is translated from the Latin text edited by Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 104–14. On this personage, see Châtillon, Théologie, spiritualité, 80, notes 95 and 96.

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In 1164 he had begun a rebuilding project there. Now he asked that some canons of St Victor be sent to the church. Guarinus explained: Those religious whose renown for virtue gave fame to our church and whose counsel guided us are now for the most part dead and few replacements have appeared. Against our will, a number of respected and educated people, who could have benefited our church and brought it honor, were refused admittance by my predecessor when they sincerely applied. The house is tired of disturbances, weighed down with debts, stripped of its temporal goods, and spiritually wounded. I am hemmed in by worries, young in age and younger still in religious profession. What will happen if I am forced to give up those who, by their help and advice, should help me in my new position? If I lose the eyes that should give me the light of advice and help, it could easily happen that I will falter at the very beginning and not be able to bear the burden and care of the community by myself. However, whatever your authority decrees should be done, I will implement with all my strength.3

In the course of the sermon, Walter develops a Christology as he goes through the beginning of John’s gospel phrase by phrase. In John’s declaration, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,4 he finds the key analogy between the divine Word and the human word to be that they are manifestations. God’s eternal Word and his created word, the universe, are united in the “Abbreviated Word”5 of Jesus, who is to be read inside 3

4 5

PL 200.1373D–1374A: “Denique illi religiosi quorum quodam testimonio religionis nostra magnificabatur ecclesia et consilio regebatur, majori jam obierunt ex parte, paucique surrexerunt post eos. Plures enim venerabiles et litteratae personae quae possent Ecclesiae esse profectui et honori, cum devote flagitarent ingressum, nolente vel simulante praedecessore meo, nobis invitis, repulsae. Domus quoque perturbationibus fatigata, oppressa debitis, bonis temporalibus nuda, et in spiritualibus aliquantulum laesa; et si inter tot curarum angustias paucos quos inveni, qui me adjuvando et consulendo supportare debent in hac novitate maxime cum sim aetate juvenis, religione junior, cogor dimittere, et oculos qui mihi in via religionis et disciplinae consilii et auxilii lumen debent praestare, perdidero, de facili profecto errare continget, nec solus onus et providentiam domus portare potero: quidquid tamen exinde faciendum decreverit vestra auctoritas, prosequar ego pro viribus.” See also the correspondence between Guarinus and the cardinal among the Epistolae of Guarinus: Ep. 4 (PL 196.1389C–1390C); Ep. 11 (PL 196.1394B–1395A). Perhaps Guarinus’ plea about the toll that death had taken at St Victor included especially Prior Richard and Odo, the former abbot of St Geneviève, both of whom died shortly after he took office; cf. Bonnard, Histoire, 1:248–49. The texts of his correspondence with Pope Alexander and Cardinal John of Naples are also in Martène, Ampl. coll. 6:255–58, 260–61. See Robert-Henri Bautier, “Les origines et les premiers développements de l’abbaye Saint-Victor de Paris,” in L’abbaye parisienne de Saint-Victor au Moyen Âge, BV 1 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1991), 51. John 1:14. This traditional phrase was the title of Peter the Chanter’s lengthy treatise, Verbum abbreviatum, one version of which has been edited by Monique Boutry, Petri Cantoris Parisiensis,

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and out, in his divinity and in his flesh, that is, in his humanity subject to suffering and death (par. 2–6). Jesus came to dwell among us so that he might dwell in us, provided we have faith and love, faith that works through love by the impetus of the Holy Spirit (par. 7–8). And we have seen his glory as of the only-begotten of the Father.6 Jesus is the firstborn and only-begotten Son, both of the Father and of Mary. In addition to these two begettings there is a third, when the Word is born in human hearts. Citing Augustine regarding the “man assumed,” the characteristic formulation of Victorine Christology,7 he says that the same grace granted to Christ’s sinless humanity frees us from sin (par. 9). Full of grace and truth,8 a grace that fulfills the promise of God and so proves that promise true, or one may interpret this phrase to mean that in the “man assumed” is the fullness of grace, and in the Word assuming is the fullness of truth, and in both is the fullness of glory. To be admitted to the contemplation of that glory one must have a pure mind and genuine love, the purity of Mary and the love of the Holy Spirit. Then one will conceive the Wisdom of God. When that happens, one must remain humble (par. 10). Walter’s exposition of John 1:14 is linked together by a chain of words and ideas that form bridges between the sections: (1) The senior members of the community are tired, which is typical of people whose body heat has grown cold. (2) At a cold, dark time of human history and of the year, the Word became flesh. (3–4) The Son of God is called the Word because he manifests the Father by his eternal generation from the Father and by becoming flesh. (5) These are joined and abbreviated in the Word made flesh, who illumines, heals, and satisfies. (6) The Word made flesh heals the sight of the three eyes of contemplation, reason, and the flesh. (7) To accomplish this, the Word took on the sufferings and mortal flesh of fallen humanity. Only the humble and peaceful receive him. (8) To receive his peace, one must follow the impetus of the Holy Spirit in faith working through love. (9) Those who have faith and charity see the glory of the only-begotten and firstborn of the Father and Mary. Christians are begotten of God: the grace that caused his Incarnation causes our rebirth; his Resurrection has brought about the regeneration of his flesh and will do the same for ours (10). Let us pray 6 7

8

Verbum adbreviatum, Textus conflatus, CCCM 196 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2004). John 1:14. See the article on Victorine Christology by Christopher P. Evans, in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018), 298–327. John 1:14.

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together for the grace we need to achieve purity of mind (Mary) and genuine love (Holy Spirit), which are prerequisites for contemplation.

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TRANSLATION

1. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.1 Brothers, when I am compelled to speak to you with this kind of address, I do not know what is going on with you in your hearts. However, I do know about myself, that I am embarrassed because I am forced to make known to others my lack of competence. The elders among you,2 praiseworthy in life, tested in knowledge, having their senses exercised in discerning between good and evil3 and therefore suitable to instruct others, have now completely omitted sermons for common edification. Hence, it is necessary that either the custom of speaking in chapter be postponed or abandoned, or that younger men undertake it, particularly those who are fervent in spirit and proficient in word, that those who have been tested like silver are excluded,4 that is, so that those who are ready and eager in speech may stand out, appear, and be manifest,5 so that Scripture may be fulfilled: In place of your fathers, sons are born to you.6 For the rest, let the younger ones like good sons succeed their fathers; let them take the place of the elders who now as though worn out and exhausted have chosen to be silent. And no wonder! In old people the natural heat diminishes, and the diminishment of heat is usually the cause of languor, and languor is the cause of inactivity and laziness. Whence it is written, the lazy person does not wish to plow because of the cold.7 As the nature of things shows, excessive coldness is usually accompanied by excessive obscurity and mental dullness. 2. Notice how with the lack of sun we experience the depth and extent of the cold. In summertime, because of the nearness of the sun, we have two benefits: light and heat.8 When man was in paradise, he was, as it were, in the summer and in the southern land in the midday light;9 the sun was near him and he enjoyed its splendor and warmth. However, from the time he sinned, he left the light and immediately after that he walked in darkness, until he arrived in the land of the North, and his way became dark, slippery, and cold:10 dark through ignorance, slippery through desire, cold through wickedness. Therefore, he walked in darkness, but he did not see his darkness. The one who is in the dark sees neither the darkness nor the light. However, the one who is in the light sees both the light and the darkness. He does not see darkness by the dark and light by the light, but by the light he sees not just the light, but both the light and the dark. Therefore, the dark grew until it became so thick and dense that one could hit against it,11 and thus

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humankind finally began to recognize its darkness by hitting against it, even though previously it could not recognize it by sight. Then, finally, it recognized that it was miserable and unhappy and unable to return whence it had come. It exclaimed, My strength has failed and the light of my eyes is not with me.12 Moreover, it despaired of salvation. Then to all those clinging to the middle of the silence, the all-powerful Word of God came from his royal throne.13 Then God, because of the great love with which he loved us, sent his Son.14 Then the true light arose in the darkness;15 then the sun of justice reached its rising.16 It is written, The sun knew its setting;17 and if it knew its setting it also knew its rising, not only eternal, but also temporal. The sun knew its setting,18 that is, the sacrament of His Passion, its time and hour; He knew its rising also, that is, the sacrament of His birth and its time and hour.19 It was not without reason that the Only-Begotten of God wished to be born of the Virgin at such a time, namely, in the middle of winter, when there was plenty of darkness and cold, in order to put to flight the darkness by His splendor, and to drive out the great cold by His warmth. Hence, He Himself said, “I am the light come into the world. Whoever believes in me will not remain in darkness”20 and, elsewhere, I have come to send fire on the earth, and what do I wish except that it burn.21 3. At this time, a child is born for us, and a son is given to us.22 At this time, therefore, the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.23 When it says, In the beginning was the Word,24 and By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,25 and The Word became flesh,26 by “word” is understood the Only-Begotten of God, Who is coeternal with the Father and hence utterly immutable. Hence, one can ask why He than Whom nothing is more immutable is called “word,” that is, by an appellation than which nothing is more changeable. A word is properly suited to an utterance; by its mutability an utterance transcends the mutability of time. Even time, though it is always in motion, nevertheless delays as it passes by, but an utterance when it begins to be ceases to be. Then, why is the Only-Begotten of God called the Word? One should know that whenever the names of things or utterances are transferred to signify the divine essence or to express one of the Persons in the Trinity, one should carefully note the property according to which the transfer is made. The first and principal property of the word is to make manifest, and it is according to this property that the appellation “word” is transferred to designate the Son of God, through Whom every manifestation of truth occurs. He is not said to be simply the “Word,” but “the Word of the Father,” because the Father, invis-

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ible, hidden, and concealed in Himself, becomes known through the Son. Hence, He Himself said, No one knows the Father but the Son, and the one to whom the Son has wished to reveal him.27 This indicates why He is called Word, or image, or form, or splendor. These are nouns that indicate that something makes manifest. 4. The first and full manifestation is the eternal generation of the Son. And what is the generation of the Son if not the bringing forth of the divine Word? And what is the bringing forth of the divine Word if not the full and perfect manifestation of the Father? The secondary manifestation of the Father is the creation of the world: The invisible things of God are perceived from the creation of the world, through the things that have been made.28 Hence, the world is not unfittingly said to be a word. Not only the universe, but also each creature can be called a word, because by its beauty, as if by a kind of voice, it praises and reveals God. Behold, two words: the Word begotten and the word made; the first is, in a way, a conception of the mind; the second, something brought forth by the voice; the first is invisible, the second visible; the first is measureless, the second, short and tiny; the first offers a complete showing, the second, a partial one. By bringing forth the First Word, the Father manifests Himself to the supercelestial beings and angelic spirits, who are capable of hearing the Word of God. By bringing forth the second word, He made Himself such that He could be manifest to human beings, who are not capable of the first word, especially after the Fall. Thus, the first word was incomprehensible to a human being, the second, insufficient. So that humanity would not always remain a stranger to the knowledge of God and so forever be deprived of salvation, it pleased God to make one word of the two words, of the begotten Word and the made word. Thus, He made of the immeasurable Word and of the short and tiny word an abbreviated and perfected word.29 He abbreviated the immeasurable Word because God became a human being;30 He perfected the tiny and short word because man became God. Such was the union of humanity and divinity that He made God man and man God.31 Thus, He made one abbreviated and perfected book from two books. 5. The books of the Old and New Testament and of the blessed Augustine and the other doctors are many, but none of them contains all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God,32 not even all of them together. This is one book, containing in itself all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.33 This book is written on the inside and the outside;34 outside on the humanity, inside on the divinity; written on

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the outside, it contains all the treasures of knowledge; written on the inside, it contains all the treasures of wisdom. All the knowledge that we have of the Incarnation of the Word is brought forth from the treasures of knowledge; all the knowledge we possess of the eternal generation of the Word is put forth from the treasures of wisdom. Therefore, let us read this book outside and inside; outside for imitation, inside for contemplation; outside for justification, inside for beatitude. This book illumines, heals, and satisfies. It illumines perfectly by teaching about all things,35 and it leads into all truth.36 It heals all weariness and every infirmity,37 not only of bodies, but also of souls. It satisfies with an overflowing of delights,38 especially the richness of butter and the sweetness of honey. Read on the outside, it satisfies with the richness of butter; read on the inside, it satisfies with the sweetness of honey. Hence, He is also called Emmanuel, and the food of Emmanuel is butter and honey. He eats this food, and with this food He satisfies others who read Him. Hence, it is written, everyone who is left in Jerusalem will eat butter and honey.39 This word teaches what we need to be like if we wish to be sated with the good of Emmanuel, namely, that when others are led into captivity in Babylon, that is, into the confusion of vices, we may remain in Jerusalem, that is, in the vision of peace.40 6. That He perfectly illumines we have from the Gospel, where one reads that the Lord Jesus spit on the ground and made mud41 with which He illumined the eyes of the man born blind. This deed contains a great sacrament of salvation. What does the saliva that descends from Jesus’ head mean if not the wisdom of God, which says: I went forth from the mouth of the most high, the first born before every creature.42 From this saliva of heavenly wisdom and from the earth of our nature comes the eye salve by which the eyes of the man born blind are healed.43 What does the man born blind signify if not the human race?44 Every human being is blind from birth45 with respect to the eye of the mind. The eye is threefold: the eye of contemplation, the eye of reason, and the eye of the flesh. By the eye of contemplation, one sees God and the things that are in God; by the eye of reason, one sees the mind and the things that are in the mind; by the eye of the flesh, one sees the world and the things that are in the world. The eye of contemplation is completely destroyed by sin; the eye of reason has become bleary; and the eye of the flesh is open to desire.46 The interior eyes, the eyes of the heart, are healed by faith in the Incarnate Word. The eyes of the blind Scribes and Pharisees were not healed by this salve, for they saw Him without seeing Him. By their own choice, the foolish philosophers were not

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healed by this medicine; they wished to be justified by their own free choice. By the medicine of this salve, Peter was healed. He said, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. And we have believed and we have known that you are Christ, the Son of God,47 and elsewhere, there is no other name under heaven in which we must be saved.48 In truth, He is the savior of the world; in truth, there is no other name in which there is salvation.49 There is no other salve for our eyes; there is no other medicine for our wounds. This medicine healed all those who have been healed from the beginning of the world. Without faith in the Incarnate Word, there is no hope of salvation. Hence, David says, He sent his word and healed us.50 It was for this that the Word became flesh,51 that is, a human being. The part is put for the whole when it says, the Word became flesh, as Augustine says.52 However, someone might object what need caused the Evangelist to name the part when he meant not the part but the whole, for the part is put for the whole when the part is named but not meant. If he wished not the part but the whole to be understood, why did he not use the name that applied to the whole? One should know that “man” (homo) signifies our nature and not the corruption of our nature, whereas “flesh” refers not only to our nature, but also to the corruption of our nature. Hence, to show that the Word became not only man, but also man capable of suffering and death, he said “flesh” rather than “man.” 7. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.53 Truly blessed and happy are those who can say, The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.54 Therefore, He became flesh in order to dwell in us. However, before He dwelt in us, He dwelt among us, because he was seen on earth and lived with men.55 He dwelt among men as long as He stood outside, as long as He knocked outside,56 and among the whole Jewish people few opened to Him as He knocked, few received Him, few led Him in because he came unto his own, and his own did not receive him.57 Hence, He rightly said, Foxes have dens, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has no place where he may rest his head.58 As He came then in the flesh to dwell among us, so now He comes in spirit to dwell in us59 and, as then He was received by few, so now He stands outside and knocks60 that it may be opened to Him. However, very few receive Him and lead Him into the house of their mother and the bedchamber of their parent.61 Hence, it can be said of the present generation also, Foxes have dens and birds nests, but the Son of Man scarcely has a place to lay his head.62 By foxes one can understand deceit, which has its dens among hypocrites. Just as sophists desire not to be but to seem

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wise, so hypocrites do not desire to be but to seem religious, just, and good. They have the appearance of piety, but they renounce its virtue. In my opinion, there are many more hypocrites in the present time than sophists. By birds, one can understand demons who build nests in proud and ambitious minds, in the tops of trees, as it were. In these people the Son of Man has no place to lay his head,63 because He Who is lofty dwells only in the humble and peaceful, because his place is made in peace.64 8. The true peace in which Christ dwells does not exist where there is no love, where there is no good will. Hence, the angels sing, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to people of good will.65 In truth, this cannot exist where the true faith of Christ is not present. Hence, the Apostle: Christ dwells in your hearts through faith.66 This faith by which Christ dwells in us is certitude regarding invisible goods. Where there is doubt and hesitation, there is no certitude, and thus there is not that faith of which Truth says, when the Son of Man comes, do you think he will find faith on the earth?67 In fact, when He has come He will find faith, but in few. Similarly, if He comes now, He will find faith, but I would say He will find in few that faith that works through love,68 which conquers the world,69 and is not conquered by the world. But see how few there are in this time who conquer the world, and how many there are who are conquered by the world and, what is worse, by flesh itself. And as it is written regarding the holy living beings, where the impulse was, there the spirits went,70 so carnal people follow the impulse of the flesh. By the impulse of the spirit we understand the vehemence of heavenly desire, and by the impulse of the flesh the vehemence of carnal desire. As those who follow the impulse of the spirit are rapt into heaven, so those who follow the impulse of the flesh are engrossed by the earth. Indeed, they descend alive into hell.71 Moreover, they taunt others who are falling. They do not lament with them or empathize with them; they do not burn with the fire of compassion. Where now is Rachel weeping for her children?72 She is either dead or too worn out by her weeping. Is it not the case now that because of the abundance of iniquity the charity of many, indeed of almost all, has grown cold?73 Look at the world full of Christians, but in such a great multitude who worships God in spirit and in truth?74 At this time, how many are the hypocrites, the proud, the boastful, the ambitious, the greedy, the foulmouthed, fornicators, adulterers, and the unclean?75 Christ does not dwell in all these, because God is light and there is no darkness in him.76 Christ is the life, and so those in whom He dwells are enlivened. Christ

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is light, by which those in whom He dwells are enlightened, so that they can contemplate the glory of God with unveiled face.77 Hence, he adds: 9. And we have seen his glory.78 What glory? The glory as of the onlybegotten of the Father.79 That Christ is proclaimed the only-begotten of the Father shows that He is equal to Him. In the universe of all things, only Christ has being only from the Father. Every creature is a work of the entire Trinity. The Holy Spirit has existence from the Father, but not only from the Father, but also from the Son. Only the Son has existence from the Father alone, and therefore He is called His only-begotten.80 Not only only-begotten, but also first-begotten.81 The Son is not called the first-begotten because the Father begot other sons after Him, but because He begot none before Him. And, as He is the only-begotten and the first-begotten of the Father according to divinity, so He is the only-begotten and first-begotten of His Virgin Mother according to His humanity. See how by both nativities, divine and human, eternal and temporal, Christ is only-begotten, and thus according to neither does He have brothers. However, in fact, He does have brothers. According to which begetting? According to that of which the Apostle speaks: So that he may be the firstborn of many brothers.82 But again, what is this? This is what the archangel Gabriel says: What is born in her is from the Holy Spirit.83 That divine and eternal nativity is not from the Holy Spirit, but from the Father alone. Nor can this be said about that human and temporal nativity, which was going to occur from the Virgin. One should know that the man assumed by the Word was, right from His conception, made by grace the only-begotten and by nature Son of God, not adopted, to Whom was given the fullness of grace at His conception.84 Hence, Augustine says that this grace was made in some way natural for the man assumed, not because it was from His substance, but because it was bestowed from the very beginning of His conception.85 In accord with this generation, we are made His brothers when we are regenerated by water and the Holy Spirit.86 Hence, Augustine says that that same grace, by which He is made man so that He will never have any sin, becomes in us the remission of sin.87 By the same grace, through which He is made Christ, we are made Christians. According to this generation in our Head, our nature is reborn according to the Spirit. This same nature of ours is regenerated according to the flesh in the Head in His Resurrection, when He became incapable of suffering or death. The Resurrection of Christ is a kind of regeneration for Him, but we will also be made His brothers when we too rise again, which will be our communal resurrection and regeneration.

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10. There are, therefore, two births of Christ and two regenerations. By the first, He is the firstborn of all creation,88 by the second He is the firstborn of the Virgin,89 by the third He is the firstborn of many brothers90 and, according to the fourth, He is the firstborn of the dead.91 See how Christ holds primacy in all things as head and source of all.92 The first is spoken of when it is said, as of the firstborn of the Father,93 the third when there is added, full of grace and truth.94 By grace and truth the same thing is understood, some say, so that the meaning is this: In Whom truly dwelt grace in its fullness, as in this passage: The law was given through Moses, grace and truth came to be through Jesus Christ.95 There, he calls the redemption of the human race “grace,” which, because it has its origin from the promise of God, is called truth. In the bestowal of grace, the promise of God is fulfilled, and in this God shows Himself to be truthful. Or, one can distinguish between the fullness of grace and the fullness of truth. Christ is God and man. In the man assumed is the fullness of grace; in the Word assuming is the fullness of truth, that is, of the divine nature. In both, there is the fullness of glory. From the fullness of grace, we receive in the present the grace of justification; in the future, we will receive beatitude from the fullness of glory. The Lord will give grace and glory. Let us therefore approach him with confidence. Let us approach His throne of grace with the fullness of faith,96 that is, Him in Whom grace reigns and triumphs. From the plentitude given as grace, let each one ask for the grace that he most needs. Let him ask in faith, without hesitation, expecting goodness from the Lord.97 However, let us all ask together for purity of mind and true love. The Only-Begotten of God commends these two virtues to us by being born of the Virgin and being conceived by the Holy Spirit. That He was born from the Virgin commends purity to us; that He was conceived by the Holy Spirit commends love to us. 11. Let us see, therefore, how from purity of mind, as from the Virgin, the Son of God, the Wisdom of God,98 is born, and how from love, as from the Holy Spirit, He is conceived. Purity of mind is cleanness of heart, purity of purities, cleanness of cleannesses, like virgin of virgins. For this virgin to conceive the Son of God, that she conceive contemplation of God, it is necessary that love fill her and the Holy Spirit make her fecund. Then filled and made fecund, she is rapt by the lure of love and internal sweetness to heavenly things and breaks forth into contemplation.99 Note, however, that the Mother of God, before conception, in conception, and after conception, was and remained a virgin. So you, too, brother, if already you have conceived the Wisdom

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of God through purity of mind and love, should keep your virginity, that is, purity of mind. Do not accept corruption of your mind, namely, the spirit of pride and vainglory. Nevertheless, know that after the Blessed Virgin conceived the Son of God, she did not immediately give birth, but waited during the normal time of pregnancy.100 So you, too, if you have recently conceived the Son of God, should not give birth immediately. Do not go public about it, so you will not cause an abortion. Await the proper time, until Christ is formed,101 that is, you are formed in Him and perfected in wisdom. Then you will be able safely to speak wisdom among the wise and join spiritual things to spiritual things.102 In this birth of wisdom, do not forget that the Mother of God was a virgin in childbirth and remained a virgin after giving birth, so that you too may retain simplicity and humility by speaking wisdom among the perfect and, after you have spoken, not becoming haughty, knowing that a little yeast corrupts the whole lump103 of virtues. If vainglory has corrupted you, immediately the Holy Spirit, from Whom you conceived, and the Son, Whom you conceived, will withdraw from you, will leave you. May the Lord Jesus, Who is born of the Virgin and conceived by the Holy Spirit,104 give us purity of heart and true love so that we may see our King in his glory.105

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30 31

32 33 34 35 36

John 1:14. 1 Pet 5:1. Heb 5:14. Ps 67:31, in the Old Latin version. See Augustine, En.  Ps. 67.39 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 39, 896). Augustine, En. Ps. 67.39 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 39, 896): “ut excludantur ii qui probati sunt argento, id est, qui probati sunt eloquiis Domini. Eloquia Domini, eloquia casta, argentum igne probatum tellae (Ps 11:7). Nam excludantur dictum est, quod ait ille manifesti fiant (1 Cor 11:19)” (“so that those who have been tested like silver are excluded, that is, those who are tested by the words of the Lord. The words of the Lord are pure, silver tested by fire in a furnace. For it says, they are excluded, he said, so that they may become manifest”). Ps 44:17. Prov 20:4. Achard of St  Victor, Serm. 2.1 (Châtillon, 37; tr.  Feiss, Works, 149); Walter of St  Victor, Serm. 3.2 (Châtillon, 27). Isa 18:4. Ps 34:6. On the characteristics of the different compass points and their associated winds, see Hugh of St Victor, Libellus 4 (Sicard, CCCM 176, 130–48; tr. Rudolph, 437–59). Exod 10:21. Ps 37:11; “defecit”: see Achard of St Victor, Serm. 1.3 (Châtillon, 30; tr. Feiss, Works, 101); Serm. 3.2 (Châtillon, 48; Feiss, Works, 115); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 21.4 (Châtillon, 179). Wis 18:14–15; Antiphon for Christmas; Introit for Sunday after Christmas. Gal 4:4 from the epistle reading for the Sunday after Christmas; Eph 2:4. Ps 111:4. Mal 4:2. Ps 103:19. Ps 103:19. Augustine, En. Ps. 103.3.21 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 40, 1517). John 12:46. Luke 12:49. Response and verse for Christmas; Introit for Christmas Mass during the day; Isa 9:6. John 1:14. John 1:1. Ps 32:6. John 1:14. Matt 11:27. Rom 1:20, 19. This is one of the Victorines’ favorite Scriptural texts. See the Scriptural indexes to VTT 1, VTT 3, and VTT 4; Absalom of Springiersbach, Sermon 4, On the Advent of the Lord, above, n. 75. Rom 9:28. Alleg. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom (PL  175.894B); Peter the Chanter, Verbum abbreviatum  1 (PL 205.54). Augustine, Trin. 1.13.28 (Mountain and Glorie, CCL  50, 69.6–7); cited by many authors including Achard of St  Victor, Serm.  1.5 (Châtillon, 33; tr.  Feiss, Works, 103); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 16.3 (Châtillon, 138); Serm. 21.6 (Châtillon, 181). Col. 2:3. Col. 2:3. Rev 5:1; Ezek 2:9. 1 John 2:27. John 16:13.

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40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52

53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78

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Matt 4:23. Job 22:26; Eccles 2:1; 2:25; Song 8:5; Isa 66:11; 2 Pet 2:13. Isa 7:22; cf.  Hugh of St  Victor, De cibo Emmanuelis (PL  177.477B–481B); Pseudo-Hugh of St  Victor, Misc. 3.64 (PL  177.675A); Achard of St  Victor, Serm. 1.5,  6 (Châtillon, 24, 31, 34; tr. Feiss, Works, 102–04); Serm. 3.4 (Châtillon, 51; tr. Feiss, Works, 118–19); Richard of St Victor, De Emmanuele 1.14–16, 2.21–24 (PL 196.623–28, 655–59; tr. Van Liere, VTT 6:384–89, 425–30); Godfrey of St Victor, Sermon 3, On the Birth of the Lord, above, passim. Jerome, Heb. Nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72), Babylon: 63.13–14; Jerusalem: 50.9, 62.5, 74.17–18; 75.23. John 9:6. Sir 24:5. Gregory, Mor. 8.30.49 (PL 75.832C; tr. Morals on the Book of Job, LoF, 1:455–56). Augustine, Jo. ev. tr. 44.1 (Willems, CCL 36, 301); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.14.13 (Châtillon, 510). John 9:1. Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 3 (PL 175.976A); Sacr. 1.10.2 (PL 176.329C–330A; tr. Deferrari, 167); Richard of St Victor, Serm. cent. 35 (PL 177.983BC); VTT 1:101 n. 92. John 6:69–70; Matt 16:16. Acts 4:12. John 4:42. Ps 106:20. John 1:14. Civ.  Dei, 14.2.1 (Dombart and Kalb, CCL  48, 415); Jo. ev. tr.  69.3 (Willems, CCL  36, 501); 121.1 (Willems, CCL 36, 665); Ench. 10.34 (Evans, CCL 46, 63); Div. quest. 83, 80.2 (PL 40.94). John 1:14. John 1:14. Bar 3:38; Phil 2:7. Rev 3:20. John 1:11. Luke 9:58; Matt 8:20. Achard, Serm. 3.1 (Châtillon, 44–45; tr. Feiss, Works, 111–12). Rev 3:20. Song 3:4. Luke 9:58; Matt 8:20. Luke 9:58; Matt 8:20. Ps 75:3. Luke 2:14; Ordinary of the Mass. Eph 3:17. Luke 18:8. Gal 5:6. 1 John 5:4. Ezek 1:12. Num 16:33. Matt 2:18; Jer 31:15. Matt 24:12. John 4:23. 1 Cor 5:11; 6:9–10. 1 John 1:5. 2 Cor 3:18. John 1:14.

79 80 81 82 83 84

85 86 87

88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105

John 1:14. John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9. Rom 8:29; Col. 1:15, 18. Rom 8:29. Matt 1:20. The gospel simply says an angel said these words to Joseph. The archangel Gabriel appeared to Mary. This sentence is largely identical with the anonymous, but Victorine, Quaest. in ep. Paul, ad  Phil, q.  11 (PL  175.579). See Peter Lombard, Sent. 3.18.3 (Quaracchi [1916], 630–32; tr. Silano, 3:74–75). For further references, see Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 111 n. Augustine, Ench. 12.40 (Evans, CCL  46, 72); Cf.  Peter Lombard, Sent. 3.4.2 (Quaracchi [1916], 564; tr. Silano, 3:15–16). John 3:5. Augustine, De praedestinatione sanctorum 15:31 (PL  44.982): “Ea gratia fit ab initio fidei suae homo quicumque christianus, qua gratia homo ille ab initio suo factus est Christus” (“The grace by which any human being becomes a Christian from the beginning of his faith is the same grace by which that human being from its beginning became Christ”). Col. 1:15. Luke 2:7. Rom 8:29. Col. 1:18. “principium”: beginning, source. John 1:14. John 1:14. John 1:17. Heb 4:16; 10:22. Acts 11:12; Wis 1:1. 1 Cor 1:24, 30. To this point, par. 11 has drawn from Achard, Serm. 14.22 (Châtillon, 194; tr. Feiss, Works, 287–88). Luke 1:57 regarding Elizabeth; Luke 2:6. Gal 4:19. 1 Cor 2:13. 1 Cor 5:6. Apostles’ Creed (Denz.-Hün. ET 26–27, #30). Isa 33:17; Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.22 (Châtillon, 194; tr. Feiss, Works, 288).

ABSALOM OF SPRINGIERSBACH SERMON 10: ON THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

This sermon is more complex than might appear at first reading.1 It is also freighted with Scriptural allusions. Absalom sees three mysteries connected with the feast: the star, the adoration of the Magi, and Christ’s baptism.2 Following Hugh of St  Victor’s conviction that the qualities of the things referred to by the words of the Scriptures have meaning, Absalom singles out aspects of the water, into which Christ descended and which He sanctified. These become the basis of the moral teaching of this sermon, which is Absalom’s primary concern. All this is evident in the outline of the sermon: Introduction (par. 1–2): The three aspects of the Epiphany: Appearance of the star: the power of the Godhead Adoration of the Magi: Christ’s humanity and love of humanity Baptism of Christ: restoration of innocence through water: wet = carnality; wandering = vanity; cold = malice 1. The power and severity of God in the Old Testament (par. 3) 2. The humility and gentleness of Christ (par. 4) 3. The restoration of innocence: a. Innocence vs. carnality: (i) the slide from pleasure into sinful thoughts, consent to acts, habits, contempt (par. 5–6); (ii) the need to struggle against sinful thoughts (examples: Abraham and Paul) (par. 7)

1 2

Sermo 10: In Epiphania Domini (PL 211:63B–68B). Absalom does not discuss the changing of water into wine at the wedding feast at Cana, which from an early date was associated with the celebration of the Baptism of Christ. For this association, see Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 407–10, and the hymn Hostis Herodes impie (which is constituted by the sections H, I, and K from Sedulius’ hymn, A solis ortus cardine).

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b. Peace and concord vs. pride: (i) peace and harmony and their benefits; examples from the animal world (par. 8–9) c. Love vs. malice: (i) four steps: contrition, virtuous activity, contemplation, perseverance; (ii) until we comprehend with all the saints (par. 10) As in his Sermon 4 for Advent, Absalom exhorts his “dearly beloved brothers” (par. 2, 6), that, though they have put their hand to the plow and accepted the gentle yoke and light burden of Christ,3 their lives must include struggle against sin, especially sinful pleasure, prideful attitudes that disrupt community peace, and evil intent, the opposite of which is heartfelt love of God and neighbor, from which nothing can separate them until they comprehend that love with all the saints in heaven.

3

This metaphor must have been a powerful one. In medieval agriculture, the plowman’s job was very physically taxing, and Jesus’ metaphor asks his followers not only to be plowmen, but also the beasts that pulled the plow.

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TRANSLATION

The Lord has made known His salvation; in the sight of the nations He has revealed His justice.1 1. Dearly beloved brothers, Mother Church calls today’s solemnity “The Feast of the Appearing,”2 because today, by the guidance of a star, God the Father wished to make His salvation, that is, His Son, known, and because the Son Himself offered Himself humble and wrapped in swaddling clothes to those Magi to be adored,3 and because a dove descending upon Him in the Jordan revealed Him to be the Son of God.4 In the first appearing, He attracted by something new; in the second, He informed by an example of humility; in the third, that is, in His baptism, He sanctified for the necessary sacrament. Do you wish to see to what the appearing attracted? The new star aroused wonder, wonder aroused devotion, devotion aroused obedience, and obedience prepared for worship. The second appearing, which occurred in a house, conferred good measure, pressed down, shaken together and overflowing5 in our heart, because the One Who first bestowed life there taught how to live rightly. What a great form of humility He showed you, when the King and Son of the King,6 accepting the form of a servant, emptied Himself.7 How great do you think was His love8 when for the sake of sinners He chose to show Himself so wretched, so despised? 2. Pay attention to each one of these. Just as, by the rising of a new star, the power and splendor of the Godhead is shown, so when the infant presents Himself to the eyes of the Magi, the humility and love of His humanity is shown. Surely, the ordering of our salvation required this deed to conquer pride by humility, to free captive man by love, to despoil the greedy enemy with power, to glorify the miserable by splendor. Thus, He taught you by humility, healed you with love, protected you with power, and in the future will glorify you with splendor. The third appearing was in the Jordan, when the King came to the soldier, the Word to the herald, the Lord to the servant, the Bridegroom to the groomsman.9 And why is this? It is so that, conferring regenerative power on the waters, He would restore innocence to fallen man through the remission of sins, confer justice through the inpouring of grace, and sanctify through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. If He bestows all these things on us through the beneficial act of the sacrament, what will He grant us by the triumphant act of His Passion? In the one, He prepared for the journey to heaven; in the other He opened the

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doors of heaven. However, because maybe this is not by the power of the sacrament, but solely by the power of the Passion, perhaps someone will ask, “Why did He wish to put power in the waters of this sacrament?” If it meets with your pleasure, for the time being, leaving aside all other explanations, we can assign this one: water is found to be wet, cold, and wandering. In that it is wet, it is a figure of the sin of carnality; in that it is wandering, of the sin of vanity; in that it is cold, of the sin of malice or evil. If someone wants to look closely, every kind of actual sin is found in these three kinds. You see, therefore, how reasonably this was arranged so that water, which in its properties was a figure of every kind of sin, once the Holy Spirit sanctified it at the touch of the Lord’s body, would cleanse every kind of sin.10 3. You have, then, how the Lord made known His salvation: first by the disclosure of the star; second, when the Magi adored Him in the house; third, when He was baptized in the Jordan by His servant. Thus did the Lord make known His salvation.11 Therefore, the Father first made Himself known, and afterward He made known His salvation. First, God the Father, exceedingly severe, wanted to become known through fearful things. Afterward, making known His Son, He tempered the threats and terrors with the gentleness of grace. God the Father was made known to our first parents in a grave rebuke, saying to one, The earth is cursed in your work,12 and to the other, You will bear children in sorrow.13 He was also made known to the children of Israel through signs and prodigies, when lightning appeared at the giving of the Law and thunder was heard.14 He was also made known to the prophets through visions and dreams. Everywhere, there was terror, everywhere threat. First, to Adam and Eve there was the pronouncement of a severe sentence. Second, to the children of Israel there was a precept without a helping grace. The Law never led anyone to perfection15 because the commandment had no helping grace. Third, in the prophets there was the obscure promise of a savior. Hence, it is said of the obscurity of the prophets, His shade covered the mountains, and his tree branches the cedars of God.16 The mountains are the prophets, because of the greatness of the revelation, the shade, the veil of the letter, because of its obscurity. Therefore, shade covered the mountains of God, when the shell of its obscurity impeded the understanding of prophecy.17 There follows, and his tree branches the cedars of God. Branches, because of their lack of usefulness, are the legal observances; cedars, the lofty promises made to the fathers.18 Therefore, branches covered the cedars of God when the shadows of legal observance hid the truth

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of God’s promise. You see, therefore, how and to what extent there were everywhere warnings, terrors, and obscurities. Thus, God the Father appeared to the Egyptians in blood,19 to Jacob in a struggle,20 to Moses in fire,21 and to Elijah in a whirlwind.22 4. Finally, at the end of time God made known His salvation, not with a rod of wrath but in a spirit of gentleness. How? He preached pardon (indulgentiam) and remission of sins to prisoners.23 Whence, it is said, in the sight of the nations he revealed his justice.24 Whose is this “his”? It is the “His” of the Father, or the “His” of salvation, that is, of the Son. The latter revealed his justice in the sight of the nations25 by having innocence in what regarded Himself, peace toward His neighbor, and devotion or love toward God.26 Do you wish to see someone innocent? Behold, I have walked in my innocence.27 Do you wish to see someone who is at peace with his neighbor? I leave you peace, my peace I give you.28 Do you wish to see a devoted person? And having entered into his struggle, he prayed more earnestly.29 Jesus began first to do these things, and then to teach, when in the sight of the nations He chose to reveal his justice.30 5. But what can be the innocence of man, since he is dust and ashes?31 I speak to myself about myself. How will I keep innocence and see fairness,32 when I have been wounded so often by the darts of concupiscence, distracted by envy, and destroyed by vainglory? How often have I scandalized my brother by a sign, pulled him down by a word, and saddened him by a deed? Still, to me as to the rest, it is said, Keep innocence and see fairness.33 6. Therefore, dearly beloved brothers, our innocence must be not to lack sin, but to be not enslaved to sin. Whoever desires sin is a servant of sin;34 every mortal sin is obedience to our adversary. Therefore, you, a good man, who have put your hand to the plow35 and accepted the gentle yoke of the Lord and His light burden,36 you, I say, need to fight if you wish to rejoice over innocence. If, by chance, carnal concupiscence has attacked your soul, remember the Scripture that says, “because death is positioned at the gate of pleasure.”37 Indeed, when the ancient enemy has opened the door of the heart to unlawful pleasure, he is then confident about the fruit of the whole tree, whose root has been wounded with the poison of base pleasure. As the prophetic voice says, Blood touches blood,38 so one sin attracts and induces further sin. When base thinking first strikes the mind, as if from outside, pleasure follows. When this comes to light, it sometimes makes slack even a manly mind. In the third place, consent weakens; in the fourth, action

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stains; in the fifth, habit binds; and in the sixth, contempt hurls down. These are the steps by which, with an easy descent, one arrives at the gates of death. Indeed, “easy is the descent of Avernus.”39 Therefore, if you wish to avoid danger, stand firm when feeling delight. 7. Pay careful attention to how Abraham struggled, how Paul stood firm in temptation. This injury can reach not only the imperfect, but also the perfect. Why do you think it is written that, while Abraham enjoyed conversation with the angels, Sarah laughed in the tent, but when the angel corrected her, she merited the promise of a son?40 Abraham enjoys the conversation of the angels as often as a loving (pius) mind turns to prayer and rests in holy desire. Meanwhile, however, Sarah laughs at the door of the tent when the flesh opposing the spirit excites unlawful pleasures, which, when corrected later, receives the promise regarding a son, because once the flesh has been refrained by the spirit, the body too will receive its reward in the future. As the prophets say, my heart and my flesh have exulted in the living God.41 So also, when he had been snatched from the danger of the sea, a snake attacked Paul on the land, but quickly noticing the danger, he shook his hand away from the beast, and when he had done that, he escaped the poison.42 Who do you think Paul is, who is freed from the sea, if not the good claustral who has been snatched from the wickedness of the world and, when he wishes to put wood into the fire, from that very wood a snake comes out? When he wishes to consume with the fire of love his earlier evils, that recollection of evils generates temptation. What, then, should he do? He must quickly shake his hand, that is, refuse to consent to the deed urged by the wicked suggestion. What else? If you wish to keep your innocence perpetual by following (innitens) Christ’s footsteps, you must be in disharmony not only with the flesh, but also with other vices.43 8. What shall I say about peace and concord? There are two things in particular that should beckon us to peace and harmony, that is, the greatness of the recompense and consideration of lesser things. Regarding the greatness of the recompense, it is said, blessed are the peacemakers because they will be called children of God.44 What is greater than this promise? If children, then heirs.45 Consideration of inferior things should draw us, so that we, who wish to be peacemakers according to the example our Redeemer, may at least take to ourselves a form of life from irrational animals for, although all other things maintain concord by a certain law of nature, only man, by being proud, contrary to peace brings insults to his Creator. O pride, greatest of sins, a death-

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dealing plague, a singular evil. From you is the beginning of all sin.46 In you even those redeemed by Christ’s blood, or almost all of them, suffer relapse.47 Any other evil is exercised to bring about bad deeds, but you lie in ambush for good deeds so that they are ruined. Just as a twig grafted onto a trunk draws all the moisture of the earth and all the vigor of the tree to itself and reduces the fruit of the whole tree to itself, so whatever good works you do, if it is a shoot of pride, corrupts the whole mass.48 First, then, the ant leaves a living example of peace and harmony when by a certain natural love (charitate) it relieves its companion, who is by chance more weighed down than is right, lest burdened by a great weight beyond its strength its tiny body give out. So, with a sort of kindness, cranes rest the one who is in the front of their elegantly arranged ordering, who as it were bears the force of the wind, when they place him further back and away from the force of the wind, and as it were protect it under their wings.49 So, when a herd of deer wants to move to a new location, each one puts its head on the back of another, so that the one going at the front supports all, and the one at the back seems to be supported by all. Following each other in this way and bearing one another’s burdens in this way, they fulfill the law of Christ.50 Let us conform ourselves on this point to the animals of the earth, so that what our impenitent heart does not wish to accept as a benefit of its Creator it can at least find to its confusion in a lesser thing.51 However, you wish to be admonished by the example of your Savior. Hear Him saying, What had been lost I will seek, what had been rejected I will bring back, what is broken I will bind up, what is sick I will heal,52 and Isaiah declares about Him: Behold your Savior comes and his recompense with him.53 9. Therefore, dearly beloved brothers, admonished by so many examples and invited by such a recompense, let us not be prideful over our virtue, let us not lift up the shame of another’s infirmity, let us not draw out zeal for hostile detraction. Consideration of one’s own virtue does not want company, the shame of another’s infirmity gives birth to contempt, the poison of detraction festers into hatred. Let us learn to be humble by God’s beneficences, compassionate toward others’ infirmities, and consoling in the Lord to those who are despairing, so that thus we can live in a house united in conduct. Behold, we now have something regarding keeping innocence and also something about peace and harmony. 10. The third thing to be spoken about was love of God, in which is the consummation of all virtue. So to the one who wanted to possess

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eternal life, the Lord indicated the first commandment of love when He said, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength (virtute), and with all your mind.54 Do this, says the Lord, and you will live.55 See how in this life, heart, soul, strength, and mind are four things: by the heart, we are ground down because of sins; by the soul, we are vivified; by virtue (virtute), we are exercised; by our mind, we are lifted up. The one who loves God with all his heart, who weeps for his sins with all the feeling of his heart, also strikes it, leaving nothing unshaken, according to the counsel of the prophet: Pour out your heart like water before the Lord.56 Just as when water is poured out nothing remains in the container, so where there is true contrition nothing must remain hidden in the conscience. Likewise, the one who loves God with all his strength devotes himself to good works with all his strength, by not beginning without forethought, by not acting halfheartedly, by not leaving things out carelessly, lest by chance what he began with the spirit be completed in the flesh. In the person of these people, it is said, they ascend up to the heavens and descend to the abyss.57 The one who loves God with all his mind turns himself to the things of God with all the desire of his mind as if, after having trodden under foot everything earthly, he has been made higher than the earth. However, not all take hold of this word. He loves God with all his soul, who perseveres in a holy way of life as long as he lives, for we live by the soul, as I have already said. These are the four steps by which we ascend to God, for a contrite heart frees from sin, virtuous activity assuages offense to God, the raising up of the mind or contemplation strengthens with a taste of sweetness, and perseverance in good confirms, so that neither angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor hunger, nor the sword, nor the present, nor the deep, nor any creature can separate us from the love of God,58 until we will comprehend with all the saints,59 where He lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, through all ages. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2

3 4

5 6 7 8

9

10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Ps 97:2. “apparitio”: “domestic service,” is a rare word in classical Latin (see C. Lewis and C. Short, A Latin Dictionary [Oxford: Clarendon, 1955 {1879}], 141), which became commonly used in Latin Christianity to mean “appearing.” For examples, see Albert Blaise, Dictionnaire Latin-Français des auteurs Chrétiens (Turnhout: Brepols, 1954), 90. Matt 2:1–12. Matt 3:13–17. Absalom here takes note of the Trinitarian framework of the Baptism of Christ. He does not, however, expound the usual three components of the Epiphany, because he substitutes the star for the more usual turning of water into wine at Cana. Luke 6:38. Ps 71:2. Phil 2:7. “charitatem”: In this paragraph and the next, for “love” Absalom always uses “charitas,” not “amor” or “dilectio,” perhaps because it is God or Christ who is doing the loving. Throughout the sermon he favors “charitas,” but he does use “dilectio.” On these terms, see this sermon, below, n. 26, and above, Absalom of Springiersbach, Sermon 4, On the Advent, n. 54. See the first antiphon for Morning Prayer, Feast of the Lord’s Baptism, in the current Liturgy of the Hours: “The soldier baptizes the king, the slave his lord.” A medieval antiphon (Cantus 001553) used on the Octave of Epiphany declared: “Baptizat miles regem servus dominum suum Joannes salvatorem aqua Jordanis stupuit columba protestatur paterna vox audita est hic est filius meus” (“The soldier baptizes the king, the servant his Lord, John the Savior; the water of the Jordan is amazed, the dove testifies, the Father’s voice is heard: ‘this is my son’”). See http://cantusindex.org/id/001553. Absalom answers the imaginary questioner with a response rooted in Hugh of St Victor’s theory that the things that Scripture describes in the words of the letter have, in their turn, further meaning based on their properties. Hence, Christ instituted water baptism because water has three theologically relevant properties that express the meaning of the sacrament. However, Absalom does not separate efficacy from symbolism, for he says that water, having these properties and having sanctified, “would cleanse every kind of sin.” What Absalom does not do is explain the connection between the sign and the causal efficacy. Ps 97:2. Gen 3:17. Gen 3:16. Exod 19:16–19. Heb 7:19. Ps 79:11. “involucrum”: this word, like “velamen litterae” (veil of the letter) and shade or “umbra” (shadow), were common terms in medieval literary theory and practice, which distinguished the external covering (“involucrum,” “integumentum,” “cortex,” “pallium”) from the interior meaning (“nux,” “medulla,” “nucleus,” “granum”). See, for example, D. W. Robertson, “Some Medieval Literary Terminology with Special Reference to Chrétien de Troyes,” Studies in Philology 48 (1951): 676–77. “altitudines promissionum patribus factae”: literally, “the heights of the promises made to the fathers.” Grammatically, “factae” modifies “altititudines.” Exod 7:14–21. Gen 32:24–31. Exod 3:2–6. 4 (2) Kings 2:1–11. Isa 61:1; Luke 4:18. Absalom specifies that the favor given to prisoners is remission of sins. Ps 97:2.

218 25 26

27 28 29 30

31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43

44 45 46

47 48

49 50 51

A bsalom of Springiersbach Ps 97:2. These three will be the topics of the remainder of the sermon. The phrase “devotionem sive dilectionem ad Deum” is interesting. In classical Latin, “sive” usually had a disjunctive sense, either one or the other (Lewis and Short, Latin Dictionary, 1713–14), but here it seems to have a conjunctive sense, and/or, since Absalom would hardly be saying one should have either devotion or love. By pairing “devotio” and “dilectio,” Absalom adds a nuance of choice to “devotion” and of heartfeltness or warmth to the idea of “dilectio,” which is the noun corresponding to the verb (diligere) in the twofold Gospel command to love God and neighbor. The implication is that love of God is a complex intention that includes both obedience to a command and positive feeling. It is interesting also that nowhere in this sermon does Absalom use the word “amor,” the most general Latin word for love. On the Victorine notion of love, see VTT 2. Ps 25:1. John 14:27. Luke 22:43. Ps 97:2. In two of the three immediately preceding Scriptural quotations, Absalom, continuing a practice exemplified in Augustine’s Explanations of the Psalms (Enarrationes in Psalmos), treats the Psalms as words spoken by Christ in the same way that the citation from John conveys Christ’s words. The rationale for this is that if Jesus is the Word of God who inspired the Psalmist to write, then the Psalmist’s words are Jesus’ words. One might also note that Jesus may have prayed the Psalms (as he does, for example, in Matt 27:46) with the same familiarity that a medieval monk did. Gen 18:27; Job 42:6. Ps 36:37. Ps 36:37; NRSV: Ps 37:37: “Mark the blameless, and behold the upright.” Rom 6:16. Luke 9:62. Matt 11:30. RB 7.24 (Kardong, 130, 133): “mors secus introitum delectationis posita est”; cf. Isa 5:14. Hos 4:2. Virgil, Aeneid, 6.126 (Fairclough and Goold, LCL 63, 540). Gen 18:9–15. Ps 83:3. Acts 28:3–5. The first two verbs are in the present tense in Latin. Here, by introducing the notion of disharmony (“discordiam”), Absalom makes a sudden rhetorical transition to the second major theme of this section, harmony (“pacem et concordiam”) with one’s neighbor. Matt 5:9. Rom 8:17. Sir 10:14(13): “initium superbiae hominis apostatare a Deo” (“the beginning of human pride is to fall off from God”; NRSV: “the beginning of pride is sin”). St Augustine often alluded to this verse; see John Cavadini, “Pride,” Augustine through the Ages, ed. Fitzgerald, 680. The PL has “in te etiam Christi sanguine redempti aut poenae omnes paciuntur recidivum.” I have emended “poenae” to “pene” and “recidivum” to “recidivi” and translated it that way. “massa”: Rom 9:20–21; Gal 5:9; 1  Cor  5:6. This, too, was an important term in Augustine’s writings and theology: see Paula Fredriksen, “Massa,” Augustine through the Ages, ed. Fitzgerald, 545–47. Ps 90:4; Ps 16:8. Gal 6:2. Pliny, Natural History, 8.50, reports that deer support each other in the way Absalom describes when they are swimming across a body of water, and that they trade places in the way Absalom writes that cranes do. Isidore of Seville, Etym. 12.1.18–22 (ed. Lindsay, online,

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tr. Barney, et al., 248), has the same account as Absalom. In fact, Absalom is interpreting the behavior of animals anthropomorphically. He does not attribute consciously altruistic motivations to them, but describes behaviors (some mythical, others observable) that if done by humans would be altruistic. In contemporary biological theory, governed by the Darwinian notion that behaviors are adopted because they promote the survival of an individual’s genes, actions are deemed “altruistic” if what an individual does to the detriment of its own fitness for survival serves the survival of the genes of its cohort or species. Today, perhaps, there is a tendency to interpret human behavior in animal terms, rather than vice versa. Ezek 34:16. Isa 62:11. Deut 6:5; Luke 10:27; Matt 22:37. Luke 10:28. Lam 2:19. Rom 10:6–7. Absalom here conflates Romans 8:35 and 8:38–39. Eph 3:18.

WALTER OF ST VICTOR SERMON 18: ON THE EPIPHANY INTRODUCTION

This sermon begins with a striking introduction, followed by an exposition of some key Christian beliefs, from which Walter derives moral implications. Walter’s captatio benevolentiae has some bite to it; it ran the risk of eliciting malevolence. He says that some people react angrily to a preacher who speaks the truth, while others exalt the speaker. Toward those who present the first reaction, one needs patience; in the face of the latter, one needs humility. Walter has little of either. He is also out of touch with modern fashion, so he doubts any good will come from his sermon (par. 1). A preacher who reproaches both prelates and their subjects will be expelled or silenced, unless the hearers have great patience and charity. We who treat preachers this way are like rotten, swollen limbs. If they are touched with a slight criticism, pus flows out in a flood of anger and blasphemy (par. 2). John the Baptist is a model preacher, because he had the necessary qualities: charity and the ability to teach by word and example. His preaching countered ignorance; his baptism bridled unruly desire. However, he could only act externally; it is God who enlightens and cleanses internally (par. 3). In the primarily doctrinal paragraphs 4–8 that follow, Walter speaks of the omnipresence and simplicity of God (par. 4). The Holy Spirit was fully present by grace in the humanity assumed by the Word from the moment of its conception. The Spirit’s descent upon Christ in the form of a dove mystically signifies what happens to us when by baptism we are reborn and made children of the Father, members of Christ, and a temple of the Holy Spirit (par. 5). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ and his body; the Spirit makes the Church alive and united, with one Lord, one faith, one body, whose members are one another. All should speak of Christ in language faithful to Scripture (par. 6). Walter criticizes “Christological nihilism” and those who deny that in the Trinity substance gives birth to substance. He exhorts the brothers, who are

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sons of mother Church, members of Christ, and anointed by the Spirit, to remain in the true faith (par. 7). In the more tropological second half of the sermon, Walter says that those who are filled with the Spirit should be innocent as lambs, doves, and children, and live in harmony (par. 8). Though innocent as lambs, they should be wise, with eyes fixed on Christ (par. 9). Christ baptized the members of the Church in water and the Spirit, cleansing them from sin and filling them with grace, and in the future he will glorify them (par. 10). Christ gave Himself to them in the Incarnation, and gave Himself for them on the Cross. He sent us the Spirit, made us children of God, and gave us such dignity that we have Him as our head (par. 11). The way of salvation is narrow at the beginning, but it opens out into the courtyards of the Lord and the breadth and sweetness of charity. At first one cries with the longing like a dove, which contrasts with the caw of a crow, which (recalling the rotten flesh of par. 2) it utters when it can find rotten flesh into which to sink its beak (par. 12). So, let us enkindle in our hearts longing for eternal life, by praying, reading, and meditating. May Christ lead us there. In this sermon, there is sound theology interwoven with moral exhortation. However, Walter seems to expect a poor reception from the brothers he is addressing. His polemics against what he takes to be an erroneous Christological position are harsh, although perhaps not harsher than was usual in the theological controversies of his day. The metaphor of puncturing rotten flesh that occurs at the beginning and the end is attention getting. One wonders what his listeners thought of it. One can imagine that Walter gave this sermon during his time as subprior under Abbot Ernisius to a community in crisis, or to a dependent priory where he was sent to bring order.

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TRANSLATION

1. He who sent me to baptize in water said to me: “The one upon whom you see the Holy Spirit descending like a dove is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.”1 Brothers, truth that is heard without danger is not preached without danger. There are some for whom a truthful discourse is burdensome and the scent of death.2 There are in truth others for whom it is pleasing and acceptable and the scent of life,3 a sweet scent.4 The former, who hear the word of truth disagreeably and die because of its good scent, trample the shiniest pearls of heavenly discourse,5 and beyond that they gnaw to pieces with the teeth of malice the herald of truth. On the other hand, those who revive because of the good scent exalt with praises not only the truth, but also the one who proclaims it. Behold a twofold danger! From the left the danger of censure threatens, from the right the danger of pride. Against these two dangers a twofold virtue is needed. The shield of patience6 is to be set against the danger of censure; the firmness of humility is required against the danger of pride. Knowing that I have little or no humility or patience, I am afraid to put my hand to the fire. I am fearful of entering the furnace, lest I be burned from the right and from the left. Perhaps those who enjoin this office upon us do not take into account these dangers, or if they advert to them, they treat us very harshly when they force it on us who do not want to do it, since no great utility will come to our hearers from our discourse, because it is not measured by the fashions of modern people.7 2. When we consider our weakness and the impatience of others, we do not reproach even the obvious sins of transgressors, because no one wants to be reproached, no one wants to be reprimanded; no one wants to be censured. Subjects like it when the sins of prelates are freely reproached. However, if someone, moved by zeal for the house of the Lord,8 having set aside all fear and respect for persons,9 begins from the sanctuary of God to pour out his vial into the sun that is, onto prelates by openly reproaching their sins, and then onto the earth,10 that is, onto subjects by reproaching their faults, who will hear these reproaches, who will accept them patiently? Do not all say with one voice: “He is crazy, he is raving. Bind him, hold him, and let him be cast out of the community or put him in perpetual silence.” What is the source of such impatience, if not a lack of charity? Charity is patient, charity bears all.11 Where there is great charity, there is great patience, as was the case in the martyrs. Where there is less charity, there is less

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patience, as in the confessors; where there is little or no charity, there is little or no patience, as in us. We are like rotten, decayed, swollen members; if anyone touches them with a slight rebuke, immediately pus oozes out, and there erupts a plague of anger, rage, and blasphemy. The preacher has to be of good repute and to have some authority to be bold enough to reproach the sins of others. Three things procure authority: dignity, holiness, and wisdom; dignity of honor, holiness of lifestyle, and wisdom of divine contemplation. I, however, have little wisdom, less holiness, and no dignity, and so no authority. Hence, my discourse is spit out, disdained, and blown away. And this is not undeserved. I have not yet ascended upon the lofty mountain; nevertheless, I presume to evangelize Sion.12 3. The herald of truth needs to ascend not just upon a mountain, but upon a lofty mountain, that is, he needs not only to be great, but also to be greater than the great ones. Such was blessed John the Baptist, whom the Lord anticipated with His grace and established, promoted, and perfected, making him into a burning, shining lamp. He was burning within through charity and shining by the word of his teaching and the example of his life.13 In him, a pattern has been given for the preachers of the New Testament and the dispensers of the Mysteries of God.14 Whence two duties are enjoined on him: the office of preaching and the office of baptizing, to counter the two troubles of the human race, namely, ignorance and unruly desire (concupiscentiam). The office of preaching is given against the darkness of ignorance, and the office of baptizing is given against the pollution of unruly desire. What and how much he could do in both offices he briefly indicates, when he says, I am the voice of one crying in the desert,15 and I baptize you in water.16 So, what is the meaning of I am the voice of one crying in the desert, if not that in preaching I am capable only of this, namely, to use my voice, which impacts your ears with the sound of words, but I cannot enlighten you within. What is the meaning of I baptize you in water if not that I can only touch your bodies externally with water, but I cannot cleanse within. The words of the Apostle agree with this statement, when he says, I have planted; Apollo has watered; but God has given the increase.17 What does I have planted mean if not that I am the voice of one crying in the desert. And what does Apollo has watered mean, if not I baptize you in water, but God gives the increase by enlightening and sanctifying inwardly. Behold how great are John and Paul. However, they did not think great things, but humble things, about themselves, because they had been enlightened to know themselves. We are noth-

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ing, and nevertheless we think great things about ourselves because we are blind, with a film over our eyes. 4. The one who sent me to baptize in water said to me: The one upon whom you will see, etc.18 Some less instructed people understand the descent of the Holy Spirit and the mission of the Son also in a less than sound way. What they hear from Truth Itself, I have gone out from the Father and come into the world,19 they understand to mean that He was first with the Father and not in the world, and when He went out from the Father, He abandoned the Father and went away from the Father, and when He came into the world, He came to a place where He had not been before. This improper understanding (intelligentia) should be eliminated from every faithful heart; these people do not take into account the immensity of God. God, since He is boundless, is in every place, filling every place. Therefore, He cannot go from place to place, as though He were leaving one place and occupying another. Not only is He in every place because He is boundless, but He is also completely everywhere because He is simple. It is the nature of simplicity that wherever it is, it is there completely. So, since God is boundless and simple, it follows that He is completely everywhere. When it is said that He is completely everywhere, this is not to proclaim that He has parts. Rather, by this it is denied that He has parts, because if He had parts, He would not be completely everywhere.20 Nor when it is said that He is completely everywhere should this be understood that He pours Himself into every creature in His plenitude, but rather He is completely everywhere in Himself; that is, where He is, He is there in His totality. 5. This is what we must understand regarding the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. What is the mission of the Son but His taking up of the form of a servant? What is the descent of the Holy Spirit if not a symbolic representation and mystical signifying? He did not move in Himself when He descended as a dove, because He remains always unmoved in Himself. Nor did He begin to be in the Lord in a way that He was not in Him before. He is given to us who do not have Him, and to those who have Him so that they have Him more. He was not given to the Lord as though He did not have Him, nor to Him having Him so that He could have Him more fully, because He was given to Him in fullness at His conception. As the Father was with the Son in majesty, and in the humanity assumed by the inpouring of grace, so also was the Holy Spirit. However, only the Son was in Him by a personal union, so that He alone, and not the Father or the Holy Spirit, is

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called Emmanuel, that is, God with us.21 The descent of the Holy Spirit is indeed an instance of mystical signifying. When He showed Himself visibly in such a form above the Lord at His baptism, He indicated what happens in us invisibly when we are reborn in Christ, since the Son was baptized not for His own sake, as if He needed some remedy, but so that He might offer us an example of humility and confer a saving remedy.22 The Father Himself thundered, This is my Son, etc.,23 showing thereby that we are made His sons in virtue of this great sacrament. Consider how great is the dignity of this sacrament, which the Son Himself thus commended by receiving it, the Spirit commended by showing Himself, and the Father commended by thundering. Thus, by its power we are made members of Christ,24 a temple of the Holy Spirit,25 and sons of God.26 Beyond that, heaven, which was closed because of sin (culpam), is opened to us. 6. The Holy Spirit did not descend without a great mystery; He came not in the form of a crow, or of a kite or some other species, but only in the appearance of a dove. It is written in the Song of Songs of the dove: One is my dove, one for its mother.27 The dove is understood as the Church. The Church is the body of Christ; the Spirit is the Spirit of Christ.28 It is fitting, therefore, that the Spirit appear as a dove and not as some other species, because the Spirit of Christ is only in the Body of Christ, and the Body of Christ lives only from the Spirit of Christ, just as my body lives only from my spirit and your body lives only from your spirit. In the Body of Christ one finds nothing dead, and apart from it nothing is alive.29 The Apostle invites us to the unity of Christ’s Body when he says, be careful to maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.30 By unity of spirit he refers to that unity that the Spirit effects in the Body of Christ, which is the Church,31 whose bond of unity is peace. He invites us to that unity, when he says, One body and one spirit,32 as if to say, “Therefore, we must maintain unity of spirit,”33 because we are one body and one spirit: one body with our neighbor and one spirit with God, one body by serving one another, one spirit by wanting the same thing. We are one body by the joining of many members, and one spirit dwells in us. Therefore, we must maintain unity of spirit, because we have one Lord, and one Faith, and one Baptism.34 We should not disagree because of a diversity of lords, because we have one Lord, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Those who have different lords sometimes are disunited because of their lack of a common lord. There are also some who have the same lord, but he does not remain one for long, but changes almost every moment.

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Now he is happy, now sad, now just, and now unjust. However, our Lord is one in such a way that He stays one and the same always. And one faith: we are all required to believe the same thing, just as we are also required to say the same thing. It is not fitting for us to disagree in faith or the confession of faith. So, let the integrity of faith be pure and sincere in the heart, and let the confession of faith with the mouth also be pure and sincere, because it is believed in the heart unto justice, and confession with the mouth is done unto salvation.35 If we cannot fully understand all the things that are to be believed, let us at least keep that usage and form of speaking that the holy fathers have handed on to us in the Scriptures, especially when the discourse concerns the Incarnation of the Word or His eternal generation, just as boys are first taught to know how to form proper words and then are to be taught to understand the words they speak. 7. Behold, every day I hear in church that Christ is perfect man, subsisting from a rational soul and human flesh, and likewise that he is from the substance of the Father, born before all ages.36 Many speak out against this form of speaking, saying that Christ is not anything insofar as He is human,37 nor is He born from the substance of the Father, although the saints say in many places that the Divine essence gave birth to the Divine essence, and nature gave birth to nature, and substance to substance, just as God gave birth to God and a Person to a Person.38 It is no wonder that those whose hands are leprous have leprous tongues. There is a certain flying leprosy,39 which passes from member to member. What wonder, then, if those who live badly think in a depraved manner? Blind guides of the blind,40 they prefer the arguments of human reason, or rather its fictions, to the most solid authorities of the holy fathers. All these, like a reed staff,41 are smashed on the rock of faith. That statement of Truth is true that says of the solidity of faith that the gates of the netherworld will not prevail against it,42 and my sheep hear my voice and do not follow a stranger.43 Also true is what the Apostle said, the foundation of God stands firm, having this seal: The Lord knows his own.44 However, brothers, you, the sheep of the Lord, sons of the dove, sons of Mother Church, members of Christ, whom the anointing itself teaches about all things,45 remain in unity because we have one Lord, one faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of all.46 One baptism, that is, it has the same power and efficacy no matter who confers it, because there is One Who acts47 interiorly through different ministers without any difference.

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8. Many glory in having the Holy Spirit, when in fact they do not have Him. The nature of the dove teaches us to recognize those in whom the Holy Spirit exists. For the dove is simple, without any bitterness; it does not live by pillage; it groans out of love.48 Thus, the Holy Spirit dwells in those who are simple, without the poison49 of any wickedness, groaning from love and the deferring of the life to come, and in those who are in harmony, keeping true peace and love between themselves, as signified by the kisses of doves. Scripture commends this innocent simplicity to us by the lamb and the child. Thus, the Lord Himself is called the Lamb of God50 because of His all-encompassing innocence. He said to Peter regarding those like Him, feed my lambs.51 He is also called the shepherd of the sheep.52 The faithful are called the sheep of his pasture.53 It is a command of the Law that each day the priests offer two lambs, one in the morning and the other in the evening.54 People begin to work in the morning, so morning refers to the beginning of the action, just as evening is understood as its end. So, to offer two lambs is nothing else than to begin the works of innocence and carry them through to the end. This is a continual sacrifice,55 because God always requires the virtue of innocence of us. It is also signified by a child, as in the passage, Behold, I and my children,56 and in the Gospel, Let the little ones come to me, for such is the Kingdom of Heaven,57 and elsewhere: Unless you are converted and become like this little child, you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.58 9. Therefore, if we wish to belong to the Lord’s flock, let us be like lambs. If we wish to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, let us be little children in regard to wickedness,59 not in regard to wisdom. If we want the Holy Spirit to descend on us and remain in us, let us be simple like a dove, but also prudent as serpents.60 The particular prudence of the serpent is that it watches out for its head.61 Let us, therefore, guard with all care our Head, in which is our life, namely Christ, Who is the wisdom of God.62 Let us have our eyes always fixed on this head, according to the passage: The eyes of the wise man are on his head.63 If anyone has torn his eyes from this head he necessarily becomes blind. However, someone will say, “The head is now in heaven; it is not necessary that I guard it.” Let him hear what the Apostle says, Christ dwells in your hearts through faith.64 The faith of Christ in your heart is Christ in your heart. Therefore, let us keep this head unhurt and whole, because in this head is our life, for the just man lives from faith.65 Let us, I say, guard this head, as he did who said, I have kept the faith,66 like a prudent servant. That our simplicity not be cold, it is necessary that we also be

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fervent in spirit.67 Hence, the Holy Spirit appeared above the Apostles in fire.68 The nurturing Spirit shows Himself in fiery tongues because, in truth, this fervor of spirit should be not only in the heart, but also in the mouth, so that we may admonish sinners and inflame those who are cold. There are some who carry an alien fire in their mouth, who like a snake bite stealthily. Their fire is not heavenly, but hellish, not bright but cloudy, because he who acts wickedly hates the light.69 10. He who sent me to baptize, etc.70 John baptized only in water, as a man; Jesus baptized in water and the Holy Spirit, as man and God.71 To baptize in the Spirit is to cleanse from all stain of sin, and beyond that to confer grace. The Lord Jesus baptizing in the spirit first dumps out bitterness, then He pours in sweetness. First, He cleans the vessels that are hearts; then, after they have been cleaned, He fills them. Hence, the Apostle says, Christ loved the Church and handed himself over for her in order to sanctify her, cleansing her with a bath of water in the word of life, to present her glorious, having no spot or wrinkle.72 Consider the order and force of the words: He loved and handed over. A great indication of great love! What did that handing over confer on her? Listen! First, He cleansed her from every pollution of sin, then He sanctified her by conferring gifts on her, and finally in the future He presented her to Himself as glorious, that is, gleaming in mind and body and adorned with a twofold garment, having no spot in her flesh and no wrinkle in her mind.73 All this [happened] not from works of justice that we have done; rather, in accord with his great mercy he saved us through the bath of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit whom he poured into us abundantly,74 that is, through the bath of rebirth through which we, who were previously children of perdition, are reborn as children of adoption. Through the Holy Spirit given us in this Sacrament, when what was old is taken off, we are daily renewed in the knowledge and love of God. He poured the Spirit into us abundantly, that is, for the remission of all sins and an abundance of virtues.75 Through the remission of sins we are snatched from the power of darkness, and by the abundance of virtues we are transferred into the Kingdom of the Son of God.76 Through the remission of sins, we begin not to be what we were; through the abundance of virtues, we begin to be what we were not. 11. Gaze with me on the surpassing love of the knowledge of Christ,77 by which He not only became man, but also, having become man, chose to die for us. First He gave Himself to us, and then He gave Himself for us; to us through His Incarnation, for us through His Passion, He sent His Spirit into our hearts.78 He promised the vision of the Father;

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He conferred the power by which we are made children of God.79 He granted such dignity that we have Him as our Head,80 and we are His members and heirs of eternal life.81 Although He was omnipotent, what more could He give us? This dignity, to be assumed by the Word of God into the unity of His Person, is not granted to the angelic nature. Let us return what thanks we can for so great a grace, because we cannot offer worthy thanks. Let us not be ungrateful. Let no one pollute the blood of Christ, the blood of the New Testament, the blood by which he is sanctified. Let no one insult the Holy Spirit.82 I tell you that someone who has contempt for the Son of God now glorified, now raised above every dignity of supercelestial essences and situated on the throne of the Father’s glory, deserves much worse torments than those deserved by the Jews who through ignorance crucified Him while was still in a mortal state. We now know the truth,83 and therefore we will be without excuse if we have disdained so great a salvation.84 12. Both ways are presented to us, both the one that leads to the left and the one that leads to the right: wide and broad is the way that leads to perdition, and narrow is the way that leads to life.85 The way of salvation is indeed narrow at the beginning, that is, for beginners, as though in a doorway, because it is begun by fear of hell and mortification of vices that do not happen without bitterness. Afterward, however, when someone has passed through the door and is now set in the courtyards of the Lord,86 he meets the breadth of charity and the gentleness of internal sweetness through which what previously seemed bitter becomes pleasant. Then, for the first time, he uttered the cry of the dove. What is the cry of the dove? Woe is me, that my sojourn is prolonged,87 and When will I come, when will I appear before the face of the Lord,88 and I want to be loosed and to be with Christ,89 and Come, Lord Jesus,90 come, show your face,91 my soul refuses to be consoled, I remembered the Lord and rejoiced.92 Every soul devoted to God and wounded by love93 and by languishing love,94 finds nothing under the sun95 by which he is consoled. Only the memory of God delights the soul whose whole desire is to be before God.96 A crow has a very different cry. The crow cries when there are no carcasses in whose rot he can immerse his beak. The crow cries when he is told to leave the body. Then he shouts and says, “Not today, but tomorrow, not today, but tomorrow.”97 The dove does not cry “tomorrow,” but “today,” when it is warned to leave its prison.98 Therefore, let each one see what he loves and so he will understand whence he is what he is, crow or dove.

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13. Brothers, let all our striving and the whole intent of our mind be to mortify the sick affect of the flesh and to tear the mind from the desires (concupiscentiis) of the world and to enkindle our hearts in the love of eternal life. This is done by constancy in prayer, reading, and meditation.99 May He who is above all things, God blessed for ever,100 deign to lead us to that life in which no one dies, no one is born, no one is hungry, no one is thirsty, no one fears an enemy, and no one loses a friend, in which there is eternal satiety and highest beatitude. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15

16 17 18 19 20

21

22

John 1:33, 32: a text used on the Octave of Epiphany at the gospel. This sermon is translated from Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 150–60. 2 Cor 2:16. 2 Cor 2:16. See Gen 8:21; Exod 29:41; Sir 35:8; Eph 5:2. See Matt 7:6. “patientia”: This word comes from the verb “patior,” to undergo, suffer, bear. Hence, it means patience, but with the connotation of bearing injury or suffering. Walter here seems to be referring to changing fashions in sermon composition (and perhaps delivery) that he has not adopted. See his remarks at the beginning of his Sermo 9.1 (Châtillon, 71–72), and Anonymous of St Victor, Serm. 7.12 (Chatillon, 276–77). See Ps 68:10; John 2:17. Ezek 9:6. Rev 16:2. 1 Cor 13:4, 7. Isa 40:9. The image of illuminating and warming fire is pervasive in Victorine authors: see, for example, Christopher Evans, VTT  7, General Introduction, passim; Walter of St  Victor, Serm. 3.2 (Châtillon, 27–28); 5.2 (Châtillon, 40–41); 8.8 (Châtillon, 69); 14.7 (Châtillon, 127); 21.9 (Châtillon, 184); Richard of St  Victor, LE  1.1.1 (Châtillon, 104  = Serm. cent. 70 [PL 177.1119CD; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:299]); XII patr. 29 (PL 196.20CD; tr. Zinn, 82); Adn. Ps. 118 (PL 196.348CD); Adn. Ps. 90 (PL 196.395A); Apoc. 6.4 (PL 196.850AB); Quat. grad.  32 (Dumeige 159.18–27; tr.  Kraebel, VTT  2:289); Diff. sac. (PL  196.1056D); Serm. cent. 48 (PL 177.1030C); Statu 35 (Ribaillier, 104; tr. Evans, VTT 4:284); Arca Moys. 5.6–8 (Grosfillier, 522–53; tr. Zinn, 317–22). Following Châtillon, who corrected the “ministeriorum” of the manuscripts to “musteriorum”; cf. 1 Cor 4:1. Matt 3:3; Mark 1:3; Luke 3:4; John 1:23; cf.  Isa 40:3. Cf.  Achard of St  Victor, Serm.  1.3 (Châtillon, 30; tr. Feiss, Works, 100–01); Châtillon, Théologie, 107 n. 67; Richard of St Victor, LE 1.1.3 (Châtillon, 105; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:300–01). Matt 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:31. 1 Cor 3:6. From this point on, Walter’s text is found printed among the works of Richard of St Victor in PL 196.1013A5–1018C. John 1:33. John 16:27–28. Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 152 n., points out that the previous three sentences parallel the Apologia de Verbo incarnato 44, ed. N. Häring, Franciscan Studies 16 (1956): 128. See also Anselm, Monologion 14, 17, 20–23 (ed. Schmitt, 1:27–28, 31–32, 35–42; tr. Simon Harrison, in Davies and Evans, 26, 30, 33–40); Hugh of St Victor, Tribus diebus 2.1 (Poirel 6; tr. Feiss, VTT  1:62); Thomas Aquinas, ST 1.3, 7–8 (Caramello, 1:19–20; tr.  English Dominicans, 1:19–20). Matt 1:23; Achard, Serm. 1.2 (Châtillon, 25–27; tr.  Feiss, Works, 98–99). This passage illustrates two characteristics of Victorine Christology: the paradigm according to which the Son of God assumed a human nature (homo assumptus) and the tendency to maximalize the knowledge and perfection of Christ’s humanity right from the moment of his conception. These two characteristics are illustrated and discussed in VTT 7. “remedium”: In Victorine terminology, the three evils (mala) or “vices” (vitia) that result from original sin—ignorance, concupiscence, and weakness—have three remedies—wisdom, virtue, and necessities. See Hugh of St Victor, Didasc. 6.14 (Buttimer, 130; = Appen-

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28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37

38

39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48

49 50 51 52 53 54



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dix A, tr. Harkins, VTT 3:178–79); Richard of St Victor, LE 1.1.3–4 (Châtillon, 105; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:300–01). Matt 3:17; Luke 3:22. 1 Cor 6:15; 12:27; Eph 5:30. On the metaphor of “members of Christ,” see James D. G. Dunn, The Theology of Paul the Apostle (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998), 390–411; 533–52. 1 Cor 3:16–17; 6:19; cf. 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:21. Rom 8:14–17; Gal 3:26; 4:5; Eph 1:5; Phil 2:15. Song 6:8. Walter is citing a variant that has “matri” (“for its mother”); the Biblia sacra iuxta vulgatam versionem, ed.  Robert Weber (Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1994) has “matris” (“of its mother”). The Douai-Rheims version translates the latter: “One is my dove, my perfect one is but one, she is the only one of her mother.” Gregory, In Ezek. 2.4.15 (ed. Adriaen, CCL 142, 269); Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 2.4 (PL 193.73); cf. Eph 1:23; Col. 1:24. See Walter of St Victor, Serm. 3 (Châtillon, 30). Eph 4:3. Col. 1:24. Eph 4:4. Eph 4:3. Eph 4:3–5. Rom 10:10. The “Pseudo-Athanasian Creed,” Quicumque vult (Denz.-Hün. ET 40–41, #76). The Victorines were united in their opposition to the ideas that Christ was not anything insofar as human and that in the Trinity substance did not give birth to substance. Christological nihilism was opposed by Achard of St Victor, Serm. 4.6 (Châtillon, 61–62; tr. Feiss, Works, 133) and Walter of St Victor in Contra quatuor (Glorieux, 201–02) and Serm. 21.5 (Châtillon, 180–81), and condemned by Alexander III in 1177. See Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 155 n., and Théologie, 203–06; Clare Monagle, Orthodoxy and Controversy in TwelfthCentury Religious Discourse (Turnhout: Brepols, 2013); Christopher Evans, VTT 7. See Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 155 n., who cites as holding this position Richard of St Victor, Trin. 6.22 (Ribaillier, 258–60; tr. Evans, VTT 1:345–47), who in this case differs sharply with Peter Lombard (Sent. 1.5.1 [Grottaferrata, 1971]: 80–87; tr. Silano, 1:3–36). For helpful discussions of the issues, see the complementary note to G.  Salet’s edition of Richard of St Victor, Trin., 504–07, and Evans, VTT 1:380–82, nn. 572–84. Lev 13:57. Matt 15:14; Achard, Serm. 4.6 (Châtillon, 62; tr. Feiss, Works, 133). Ezek 29:6. Matt 16:18. John 10:16, 5. 2 Tim 2:19. 1 John 2:27. Eph 4:5–6. Either because of his theme, or because the text occurred in the liturgy associated with the Epiphany, in the rest of the sermon Walter will often cite Eph 4:1–5. 1 Cor 12:11. Hugh of Fouilloy, De bestiis (avibus) 1.11 (PL 177.19); Gregory, Mor. 1.2.2 (Gillet, SC 32bis, 176–79 [PL  75.529D]; tr.  Anonymous, LoF, 33); Garnerus of St  Victor, Gregorianum 2.3 (PL 193.71B). “felle”: this same word was translated as “pillage” in the previous sentence. John 1:29. John 21:15–17. John 10:2. Ps 99:3; 73:1. Exod 29:38–39.

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62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93

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Walter of S t   V ictor Ezek 46:14; cf. Dan 8:11–13; 11:31; 12:11. Isa 8:18; Heb 2:13; Luke 11:7. Mark 10:14; Luke 18:16. Matt 18:3. 1 Cor 14:20. Matt 10:16. See Glossa ordinaria in Matt 10:16 (Venetiis, 1603), 5:194: “Serpentis astutia est, quod toto corpore caput in quo vita est occultat et protegit” (“The prudence of the serpent is that with his entire body it hides and protects it head”); Henry of St  Victor, Serm.  1.3 (Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 192). Master Henry is an otherwise unknown person, very likely a Victorine, since this sermon circulated with the sermons of Achard and Walter. In the Necrology of St Victor (ed. Vones-Liebenstein and Seifert, 228), there is an entry on 9 August, “Obiit Henricus sacerdos, noster canonicus.” 1 Cor 1:24. Eccles 2:14. Eph 3:17. Gal 3:11; cf. Hab 2:4; Rom 1:17; Heb 10:38. 2 Tim 4:7. Rom 12:11. Acts 2:3. John 3:20. John 1:33. John 1:26, 33; 3:5. Eph 5:25–27. The Latin text that Walter cites reflects the wording of the Vetus latina. See Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 175 n. Cf. Walter of St Victor, Serm. 10.4 (Châtillon, 87); Serm. 14.5 (Châtillon, 1125); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.2 (Châtillon, 174; tr. Feiss, Works, 262). Titus 3:5–6. Peter Lombard, Collect. ad Titus 3.1–15 (PL 192.393B). Col. 1:13. Eph 3:19. Gal 4:6. John 1:12. Eph 5:23, 30. 1 Pet 3:22. Heb 10:29. John 8:32; 1 Tim 4:3. Rom 1:20; 2:1. Matt 7:13–14. Ps 115:19; 83:3; 133:1; 134:2, etc. Ps 119:5; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 19.9 (Châtillon, 167). Ps 41:3. Phil 1:23. Rev 22:20. Ps 79:4, 8, 20. Ps 76:3–4. Song 2:5; 5:8; Augustine, En.  Ps. 37.5 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL  37, 386); Richard of St Victor, Quat. grad. 1–2 (Dumeige, 127; tr. Kraebel, VTT 2:275); A. Cabassut, “Blessure d’amour,” DS 1:1727–28. Song 2:5; 5:8. In his work On the Four Stages of Violent Charity, Richard specifies that in the third stage love makes one languid. See Quat. grad.  4 (Dumeige, 129; tr.  Kraebel, VTT  2:275–76); 11  (Dumeige, 137; tr.  Kraebel, VTT  2:279); 41  (Dumeige, 169–71;

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98

99 100



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tr. Kraebel, VTT 2:293); cf. Richard of St Victor, Statu 1.11–12 (Ribaillier, 75–76; tr. Evans, VTT 4:262). Eccles 1:10. Ps 37:10. The word tomorrow, “cras,” sounded like the croak of a crow. See for example, the Aberdeen Bestiary, fol. 37r (http://www.abdn.ac.uk/bestiary/ms24/f. 37r): “Corvus sive corax nomen a sono gutturis habet quod voce coracinet” (“The crow or raven gets its name from the sound that its throat makes when it caws”); cf. Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 2.7 (PL 193.76B–79B), which, however, does not exploit this commonplace. On the topos of “the body as prison,” see P. Courcelle, “Tradition platonicienne et traditions chrétiennes du corps-prison (Phédon 62b; Cratyle 400C),” Revue des études latines 43, Année 1965 (1966): 404–43; Achard of St Victor, Serm. 6.3 (Châtillon, 77–78; tr. Feiss, Works, 162). These three interrelated exercises often occur together in Victorine writings: VTT  2:87, 308–09 n. 20, 333; VTT 4:31, 41. Rom 9:5.

FEAST OF THE PURIFICATION

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 41: ON THE PURIFICATION OF BLESSED MARY, EVER VIRGIN. CONCERNING PURIFICATION OF THE MIND INTRODUCTION

The liturgical celebration on 2 February, called in the twelfth century the Feast of the Purification, was a very important marker in the liturgical year and in its own right a celebration of Mary’s purification after childbirth, the meeting of the Holy Family with the aged Simeon and Anna in the temple, the presentation of the Lord, all marked with a procession because of which the day became known also as Candlemas. Walter of St Victor’s sermon for the Feast of the Purification, which was introduced and translated in VTT 4,1 draws on these different facets of the liturgical celebration, before offering a tropological application that resembles this sermon of Richard of St Victor, which is on the opening line of the first reading for the feast, Malachi 3:1. The idea of a building—a house, temple, or church—is very common in Christian literature generally, and in the Victorines particularly. Patrice Sicard includes a richly nuanced discussion of the topos or type in his article on “Mystical Experience in Hugh of St Victor: Principles, Foundations, and Types.”2 Here, it will be enough to comment on the use that Richard makes of the image, and the theology of conversion that he elaborates from it. Richard begins with the event commemorated in the feast: Mary brings Jesus to the temple. That event symbolized the many ways in which Jesus comes to his temple, the ways in which grace instructs or transforms the Christian. These lead him to the central image of the 1 2

Walter of St Victor, “Sermon 6, On the Purification,” intro. Hugh Feiss, tr. Vanessa Butterfield, VTT 4:531–50. Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018), 491-507.

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sermon: a house, which stands for the house of God, which indeed each Christian is. However, having received the grace by which Christ comes to them, some Christians become a den of demons, a desecrated temple. Richard wants the reader to visualize vividly this abandoned dwelling, which could be his own self. Drawing on biblical images he imagines spider webs everywhere, muck on the walls, and mud on the floor. Wild creatures—owls, pelicans, bitterns, ibis, kites, and ravens—roost there; hedgehogs have dens in it. It is overgrown with thistles and nettles, and devilish mythological creatures, such as satyrs, sirens, centaurs, and sorceresses. The precise mix of animals is not very realistic, and mixing them with the mythological stand-ins for the devil is not very complementary to the animals and birds in question, but the picture is compelling. Richard seems, here and elsewhere, to have personal experience or interest in the rural life led by the overwhelming majority of people in his time. The sermon tells the process of cleaning up the house: some cleaning ladies attack the filth with great energy. All the rubble and muck is piled up in the front room, then pushed outside the house. One can imagine entering a decrepit, old farmhouse in twelfthor twenty-first-century Europe and finding something eerily similar.3 Adopting a strategy popular among the Victorines, Richard spells out the stages of conversion. He does so by describing a heavenly cleaning crew consisting of virtues, who are sent ahead to clean up the house so Christ can enter there: 1. Consideration of guilt leading to a plea for helpers. 2. A waiting woman sent from heaven: consideration of punishment (a brief elaboration of the punishments of hell). 3–4. Two attendants sent from court to help: grief (dolor, from consideration of past guilt) and fear (timor, of future punishments). 5. Discerning moderation (discretio) is then sent to moderate the zeal of grief and fear. 6. Remorse (compunctio) is a strong solvent to dissolve the accumulated grime. 7. Confession, who opens the door to virtues and good works, and the Lord himself (to return to his temple). 3

There is a fine narrative of a very similar reclamation of an abandoned farmhouse in presentday France in Dave Goulson, A Buzz in the Meadow: The Natural History of a French Farm (New York: Picador, 2014). See above, p. 167.

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These virtuous activities are directed against illicit pleasures of the flesh and pride, vices encouraged in the sinner by demons and profligate people. However, Richard does not dwell on the specifics of vice, but is content to picture sin in general as muck defiling the person. Before his final benediction, Richard concludes his sermon with a sentence that is both exhortation and anagogy: “Ah, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from any stains of flesh and spirit… so that through our good way of life (bonam conversationem), and through the better way of life of conversion (meliorem conversionis conversationem), we may do and bear the things we will rejoice over in eternity.”4 From the sinner’s initial recognition of his guilt, there is a strong sense that one cannot be freed from sin by one’s own effort alone. Life in Christ is grace, growth in that life is grace, and restoration to that life is even greater grace. If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a heavenly band of virtues to restore a sinner to divine life, virtue, and good deeds.

4

This translation differs somewhat from that of Prof. Pepin below.

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TRANSLATION BY RONALD E. PEPIN

The Lord whom you seek shall come to his temple, and the Angel of the Testament whom you desire.1 1. Brothers, the temple of God is holy, which you are.2 The Lord comes to this temple in diverse ways. Indeed, He comes through the contemplation of all creation. He comes through the reading of Scripture. He comes through the working of miracles. He comes through the preaching of His precepts. He comes through inspiration within. He comes through adversity; He comes through prosperity. He comes by rebuking3 evil deeds. He comes by performing good deeds. He comes by dispelling evil. He comes by conferring good. He comes through recognition of the truth. He comes through love of virtue. And indeed, He is in His temple through grace, but He comes to the same temple through greater grace, so that He might give grace for grace,4 so that the just man might render justice still further and the saint might be sanctified still further, because to everyone that has, it shall be given, and he shall abound.5 2. However, after we have received grace, it is relinquished by those who sin willingly, as the Lord Himself says to the Jews: it is no longer His house, but our wilderness.6 And as He says through the prophecy of Jeremiah: His inheritance has become to him like a hyena’s den,7 and His house, which we were, which ought to be a house of prayer, since in our hearts we ought to adore Him and fear Him, has become a den of thieves.8 That is, it has become a habitation of demons who desecrate us through stealthy temptations and who draw us toward illicit pleasures. Moreover, when the Lord rises up again to show mercy on Sion, since it is his time for showing mercy, for the time has come,9 then He sends a vigorous servant to His flock to prepare His way before Him, so that after the temple that was contaminated and desecrated has been cleansed and sanctified, the Lord Whom we seek and the Angel of the Testament whom we desire10 might come immediately to it. The Lord is power; the angel is grace: Lord in the fact that He deigned to create us; angel in the fact that He deigned to redeem us. 3. Therefore, of all the servants and officials of the heavenly court, contemplation of guilt is sent ahead as a guardian and protectress and first empress and cleanser of the Lord’s temple, to cleanse it of all impurities and through this cleansing to adorn it fittingly, just like the

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bridal chamber of the truly heavenly king. And so, after contemplation or recognition of guilt has entered, it sees that gentiles have entered God’s sanctuary, though He had commanded that they not go into His church. It sees the temple and all its necessary objects defiled and overthrown, contaminated and desecrated, its roof above with its beams and timbers and paneled ceilings covered with spiders’ webs, that is, the mind with its senses, dispositions, and virtues entirely covered by the vanity of swelling pride. But it sees the place below, that is, the flesh, strewn with the mud of excess, its central walls, that is, speech and actions, mucked and befouled from top to bottom by the filth of vices. 4. Wild beasts rest there, ostriches dwell there, hairy ones11 shall dance there, where also owls shall answer one another on their houses, and sirens in the temples of pleasure. Thorns and nettles have sprung up, and the thistle in its fortresses. And the house of the Lord has become the den of dragons and the pasture of ostriches. Unicorns go down with them, and bulls with the mighty. No one passes through it, because the pelican and the bittern and the ibis and the raven dwell there. Demons run to meet ass-centaurs, and the hairy one cries out, one to another. The sorceress lies down there and finds rest for herself there, and the hedgehog has its hole and feeds its young and digs around them and fosters them in its shade. There, the kites are gathered, one to another. There the raven is on the lintel, and the burr and the thistle over the altars. 5. Nothing else is intimated by all these signs except the Christian sinner, corrupted inwardly and outwardly either by the temptations of cruel demons or the counsels of profligate people, and now assigned not to the dwelling of the Lord, but rather to the dwelling of demons. Observing these things, the recognition or the consideration of guilt groans and languishes, having no consoler, finding no consolation. It does not presume to take up alone the burden of such great distress, recalling the words of Solomon, where he says: It is better that two be together than one, for they have the advantage of their association. If one has fallen, the other will support him. Woe to him who is alone, for when he has fallen he has no one to lift him up. And if two sleep together they will be warmed by one another. How will one alone be warmed? And if someone has prevailed against one, two will withstand him.12 6. For all these reasons, this virtue placed before others, which we call consideration of guilt, calls upon God, the ruler of all13 that He might deign to render assistance to it to carry out such great service. And so, a certain waiting woman is sent to it from heaven who, while

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an action of this kind is carried out, always attends it. This is consideration of punishment, and she is commanded to hasten her work and to hurry to prepare the Lord’s house before His arrival. Gliding down from heaven into the human heart, she sees the sinner’s wage that he has earned, and that now must be paid. Indeed, the wage of sin is death,14 and death everlasting. She sees the cruel torments, the heat of fires and cold of snow, the hunger and thirst, the terrors and torturers, the darkness, worms, and similar torments, if there are any.15 Therefore, while consideration of guilt on this side, and consideration of punishment on that side, skillfully direct attention to things to be done in all circumstances, each according to its own office, they wisely observe that in no way are their own strengths alone sufficient to complete this activity properly. 7. Thus, two attendants of the heavenly court, who are vigorous and full of virtue, are sent to them. These are grief and fear, sent not only to accompany them in carrying out this work, but also accustomed to obey them. Consideration of guilt imposes grief with regard to past sin, but consideration16 of punishment imposes fear with regard to future torment. Knowing how to inflict heavy toil on themselves, grief and fear take up their work with sprigs and brooms, and rave like bacchants within the walls with such great frenzy (if it is proper to speak so) that unless the mistress and governess of all, temperate discretion, should rush to help as quickly as possible, they might not only now turn the whole house upside down to seek what was lost,17 but rather they might wreck it to destroy what had stood firm and saved. While they ought to work to bring about the correction of the sinner, he is sometimes almost thrown into despair, unable to bear their violent impulse. Therefore, discretion is sent. Approaching swiftly, after the bridle of her moderation has been affirmed, she restrains, moderates, directs, and governs those raging ones. 8. And so, with all of these working together and helping each other in turn, all the filth in the Lord’s house, which had been produced either through thought or speech or action, is heaped up and gathered into a single manure pile in the middle of the heart, so that after divine counsel and aid have been received, it might be removed in some way. Then, God renews the miracles of old: the rock of the heart is struck, and the waters flow in abundance.18 For, in the sixth place, remorse is sent into the human heart to presignify the completion of the work. Arising from the bottom of the heart by its own impulse, this remorse raises up the horrible mass and dissolves it. And with the others ap-

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plying their hands, by the total strength of all, it is pushed toward the door to be shoved out.19 9. Then at last is the sevenfold grace of the Holy Spirit shown to be present. In the seventh place, a porter20 is appointed, that is, confession. When she arrives and opens her mouth that had been long silent and blocked by the devil, that entire, abominable heap is turned out of doors. And so, after these things have been carried out, that is, after vices and sins have been expelled, virtues and good works succeed them by hereditary right. By all these virtues and good works, the Lord’s house is adorned and cleansed in preparation for His entry, and it is made ready, and furnished most fittingly. And the Lord comes straightway to His holy temple, the Lord Whom we seek and the Angel of the Testament21 whom we desire. And so, the holy solemnity of the Purification is celebrated with such great joy, That there might be joy not only among men, but truly among the angels of God in heaven over one sinner doing penance, more than over ninety-nine just who have no need of penance.22 10. Ah, dearest brothers, let us cleanse ourselves of all wickedness of flesh and spirit, so that we might be without a stain and without a wrinkle,23 so that through our good manner of living and through a better way of behaving in our conversion, we might bear in time24 these things that we shall rejoice over in eternity. May Jesus Christ, our Lord, Who is blessed forever, deign to grant this to us. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Mal 3:1. This sermon is Sermones centum 41 (PL 177.1006C–1009B). 1 Cor 3:17. Comminando: This verb means “threaten” or “rebuke”; for the latter, see Mark 4:39: comminatus est vento, “He rebuked the wind.” John 1:16. Luke 19:26. Matt 23:38: “Behold, your house shall be left to you desolate.” Jer 12:8: The Vulgate has quasi leo in silva, “as a lion in the forest.” Matt 21:13. Ps 101:14. Mal 3:1. These may be satyrs. This passage closely paraphrases verses and vocabulary in Isa 13:21 and 34:14, and Zeph 2:14. Eccles 4:9–12. The phrase omnium rector is found in Esther 15:5. An allusion to Rom 6:23. Catalogues of the torments of Hell are common in monastic sermons and treatises of the Middle Ages. See Ronald E. Pepin, “Novem species poenae: the Doctrine of Nine Torments,” Latomus 47 (July–September, 1988): 668–74. Peccatum (sin) and consideratio (consideration) are misspelled in the Latin text. ad querendum quod erat perditum: see Luke 15:8; 19:10. This is an allusion to Exod 17:6. Here the homilist puns on pellitur and expellitur. Ostiaria; thus, the feminine pronouns in the next sentence. Mal 3:1. Luke 15:7. Eph 5:27. Often in his sermons, Richard contrasts our temporal life (in tempore) with life everlasting (in aeternitate).

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 42: ON THE PURIFICATION OF BLESSED MARY. CONCERNING PURIFICATION OF THE CHURCH INTRODUCTION

This sermon continues the commentary on Malachi 3:2–3 begun in Sermones centum 41. The heading in the PL suggests that, whereas the Sermo 41 was about individual purification (tropology), this sermon is more concerned with the purification of the Church universal or the local church—presumably the Church of St Victor—to whom Richard was preaching. To some extent, this is true insofar as Richard addresses himself to the “brothers” collectively. However, his point is that individuals should purify their lives in order to avoid purification or punishment after death. In taking this tack, Richard explores the idea of purgation. Christ purified holy Church by the grace of redemption that brought justification. However, Richard assumes, people will fall back into sin: Christ then punishes their sins according to their gravity, purifying them so that those washed in baptism might be restored to cleanliness (par. 1). Comparing this purification to the processes used in refining metal, Richard sees the difficulties of life, and particularly the disciplines of claustral life, as ways by which Christ purifies his people of worldly attachments, which are the cause or residue of sinful acts. By this process, the image of God is to be refurbished in them (par. 2–3). The Lord wishes to refine them as gold and silver; in the process, iron, brass, tin, and lead are byproducts, which can symbolize imperfect goodness or can be taken to stand for evil attitudes (par. 4–5). Richard elaborates on a positive meaning of tin: when someone imitates imperfectly the virtues of more perfect persons, his virtue is a less shiny version of their brightness, just as tin shines with a brilliance that mimics in an imperfect way the sheen

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of silver (par. 5). This notion of imitating the virtues of more perfect confreres was a key idea in Victorine discipline and observance.1 Richard, however, here singles out the abbot’s teaching by word and example (par. 6). Richard’s discussion of the need for purgation and purification leads him to a discussion of purification after death. In fact, he indicates that Christ effects after-death purification at the judgment (par. 7). So, in his final paragraph, after commenting on the text 1 Corinthians 3:11–15, an important text in the development of the doctrine of purgatory (par. 8), Richards exhorts his hearers in a text that has an anagogic orientation: let us strive… now according to our strength to be perfectly corrected by the Lord through His mercy, so that the judge Who is coming and Who will judge the world by fire with His judicial sentence, by which even certain of the elect will proceed to be purged and refined, might not find anything that ought to be consumed by fire, but that we might deserve to be crowned by Him then with a perfect reward for our perfect merit (par. 9).2

One thing that distinguishes medieval people from us is that, living in a preindustrial world, they knew better where things came from, how they were made, and how they worked. This is reflected in Richard’s surprising statement, “After metal has been refined in a furnace, as we often see, it is conveyed and transferred by some utensil to an

1

2

Caroline Walker Bynum, Docere verbo et exemplo: An Aspect of Twelfth-Century Spirituality, Harvard Theological Studies 31 (Missoula: Scholars Press, 1979); C. Stephen Jaeger, The Envy of Angels (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994), 244–68, and the articles by Juliet Mousseau and C. Stephen Jaeger in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): resp. 55−78 and 79−112. Richard was writing at a time when after-death purification was very much to the fore: otherworld-journey accounts were proliferating, and theologians were giving the Western Christian understanding of after-death purification sharper definition. There are excellent sketches of this development and its background in Joseph Ratzinger, Eschatology: Death and Eternal Life, tr. Michael Waldstein, ed. Aidan Nichols (Washington, DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1988), 218–33; Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd  ed., F.  L. Cross and E.  A. Livingstone (New  York: Oxford University Press, 1997), 1349–50. See also Jacques Le Goff, The Birth of Purgatory (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1984). Like Richard, Ratzinger emphasizes after-death purification as a meeting with Christ.

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earthen mold.”3 What served as a familiar comparison for Richard’s readers is obscure to us: few today know much about the processes by which metals are refined and cast now, and of course even fewer know about the medieval processes. Fortunately, Richard’s message is still clear.

3

The process of smelting metals, particularly in minting coins, served Hugh and Richard of St Victor to describe the refashioning of the image and likeness of God in fallen humanity: Hugh of St Victor, Libellus 5 (Sicard, CCCM 176, 149–50; tr. Rudolph, 463–65); Misc. 1.173 (PL 177.572A); Richard of St Victor, Quat. Grad. 40–41 (Dumeige, 168–69; tr. Kraebel, VTT 2:292–93); the origin of the metaphor seems to be Augustine, En. Ps. 95.15 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 39, 1352–53).

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TRANSLATION BY RONALD E. PEPIN

He is like a refining fire and like the fuller’s herb. And he will sit refining and cleansing the silver, and he will cleanse the sons of Levi. And he will purify them like gold and like silver, and they will offer sacrifice to the Lord in justice.1 1. Most dearly beloved brothers: coming to His temple, that is, visiting the holy Church through the dispensation of His Incarnation, so that He might present it to Himself without the stain of excess and without the wrinkle of malice,2 our Savior cleansed it of all wickedness of flesh and spirit through the grace of redemption and the dispensation of justification. This grace, or this effect, is very clearly indicated, understood, and expressed where the Prophet predicts: He will sit refining and cleansing… the sons of Levi. For where he says, He will sit, it shows His assiduous intention of saving us. But where refining is added, it shows the anguish of our tribulation. Moreover, where He will cleanse the sons of Levi is then introduced, it shows the effect of our justification. He is like a refining fire, like the fuller’s herb.3 The Lord is like a fire consuming wood, hay, and straw,4 because He grievously punishes grievous sins.5 He is also like the fuller’s herb, because He restores cleanliness to what has been washed, while slightly punishing slighter sins. 2. And he will cleanse the sons of Levi, and he will purify them like gold and like silver.6 By the sons of Levi, priestly dignity is understood. And if priests must be cleansed and purified, what should be said about the rest when judgment begins from the house of God, and he will purify them? After metal has been refined in a furnace, as we often see, it is conveyed and transferred by some utensil to an earthen mold that we can call a “spoon” in the vernacular, so that with this placed in between, the coals might not pass through together with the metal. By this and through this, the metal must be poured into another vessel or some other utensil and shaped by a craftsman, such as an ironworker. All of this is fulfilled in this spiritual cleansing. For concerning spiritual refining, it is written: Tribulation produces patience, and patience proof.7 And in the Gospel, the Lord says: In the world you will have distress.8 Moreover, what He says pertains to purifying: Narrow is the way that leads to life.9 And also: Strive to enter through the narrow gate.10 3. Indeed, he is not a little constrained, who hears on one side, What you do not want done to you, do not to another,11 and on the

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other side, Whatever you would that men do to you, you do the same to them.12 Moreover, one who prevents himself from thinking about all that is pleasing, unless it is according to God, goes by a strait way and is strained through a narrow opening. Concerning instruction or training, the Apostle says thus: Beholding the glory of the Lord after his face has been revealed, we are all transformed into the same image from glory to glory as if by the spirit of the Lord.13 In fact, refined through tribulation and purified through strict discipline, which at the present time seems to be not a thing of joy but of sorrow, we who have corrupted it miserably within ourselves by living perversely receive within ourselves the purity and beauty of the divine image. And by the dignity of our status, it is transferred from a vessel of reproach to a vessel of glory.14 4. He will purify them, he says, like gold and silver.15 Whatever is in the gold, that is, our understanding, and in the silver, that is, our speech, is mixed together with bronze, tin, and lead; it is melted down in God’s forge, and purified through the strictness of discipline that it might be Tested by the fire, purged from the earth, refined seven times.16 Furthermore, dearest brothers, it very often happens that those who are sent into the furnace of holy purification to be proved are not proved, but disapproved.17 Thus Isaiah says to the people of Israel: Your silver is turned into dross.18 Thus Ezechiel says: Sons of man, the house of Israel has become dross to me.19 All of these, the bronze and tin, the iron and lead, have become the dross of silver in the midst of the furnace. Thus, the Lord says to Jeremiah: I have set you as a strong prover20 among my people, and knowing them, you will prove their way. All these princes turn aside, walking deceitfully; they are brass and iron; they are all corrupted. The bellows has failed, the lead is consumed in the fire, the refiner has refined in vain, for their wicked deeds are not consumed. Call them base silver, because the Lord has rejected them.21 5. Yet, sometimes brass, iron, tin, and lead can be taken in a good sense. For brass, since it makes sounds, suitably signifies the sound of preaching. Also, iron signifies the virtue of severity, since by it justice is accustomed to be enforced. And if tin is not silver, yet it can represent the imitation of any virtue or good work, since from a distance they seem to bear a likeness to each other in their silver color or radiance. For when someone sees the brilliance of any virtue shine in another, even if he cannot equal that person in the same virtue, yet he seems like tin because he strives to imitate that one as much as he can. However far off the likeness of silver is, yet he seems to be adorned by a kind of imitation of it. Lead, because it is heavy, signifies seriousness. But

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in this place, all of these elements can be taken, not in a good sense, but in a bad sense. And so, on account of the melody of its clanging, bronze can signify pleasing adulation. Iron represents cruelty, because cruel and unjust homicides often occur by means of this metal. By its heaviness, lead indicates sluggishness. Tin represents pretense of virtue. Dross, which is the offscouring of metal, signifies any vice. 6. Brothers, so that we might not be bronze through our adulation, nor iron through our cruelty, nor lead through our sluggishness or tin through our pretense, and not dross through any vice, let us dreadfully fear what Jeremiah said: The bellows has failed, the lead is consumed in the fire, the refiner has refined in vain, for their wicked deeds are not consumed. Call them base silver, because the Lord has rejected them.22 We should dread all these things terribly. For indeed, we who are in religious life, we especially are in the smelter of the furnace. In fact, for us the cloister is a smelter in which we ought to be purged of our sins and proved like gold in a furnace through weariness, silence, reading, meditation, prayer, fasting, vigils, and severity of discipline. The refiner is our prelate, who works continuously to correct us. The bellows is his word and example. Dearest brothers, let us fear that his work for us is in vain, while we remain incorrigible and refuse to be corrected by him. Let us fear to be called base silver. Let us fear to be rejected by the Lord. 7. Thus it is, that Job says concerning the reprobate and the proud: God has given him a place for penance, and he abuses it unto pride.23 Therefore, let us fear to be proud in this place of humility, since pride is the beginning of sin.24 Let us put before the eyes of our mind the words of today’s prophetic reading, which are contained above, where he says about the Lord: Who will be able to think of the day of his coming? And who will stand to see him? For he is like a refining fire and like the fuller’s herb.25 Indeed, the One Who comes and refines and cleanses the elect through His mercy in time, at the end of time will come and refine the uncleansed through His judgment. Thus, it is written: Mercy and judgment I shall sing to you, Lord.26 Now mercy, then judgment, for the imperfect elect who are not cleansed before the judgment will be perfectly cleansed at the judgment. 8. Thus, the Apostle says: For another foundation no one can lay but that which is laid. Now if anyone should build upon this foundation, gold and silver and precious stones—as clearly he is thinking only of these which are the things of God, such as the perfect do—wood, hay and stubble—while he thinks separately of these which are of the world, which one is not able to lack without sorrow, as the imperfect do—each

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one’s work will be manifest.27 When? On the day of judgment. For the day of the Lord—that is, the day of judgment—will declare it, because it will be revealed in fire, and the fire will prove every man’s work, what sort it is. If any man’s work abides—understand “whole” work—he will receive a reward of perfection. If any man’s works burn—namely, in that part which he thought of as being things of the world—he will suffer loss—clearly, of imperfection and of burning, but he himself will be saved, yet so as by fire.28 9. Dearest Brothers, let us strive and let us busy ourselves now according to our strengths to be perfectly corrected by the Lord through His mercy, so that the judge Who is coming and Who will judge the world by fire with His judicial sentence, by which even certain of the elect will proceed to be purged and refined, might not find what ought to be consumed by fire, but that we might deserve to be crowned29 by Him then with a perfect reward for our perfect merit. May He deign to grant this to us, et cetera.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29

Mal 3:2–3. This sermon is translated from Sermones centum 42 (PL 177.1009B–1012B). Eph 5:27. Mal 3:2. 1 Cor 3:12–13. The author underscores his point with the modifiers graviter and gravia. Mal 3:3. Rom 5:3–4. John 16:33. Matt 7:14. Luke 13:24. Tob 4:16. Matt 7:12. 2 Cor 3:18. There is an echo here of Rom 9:21. The word “dignity” in this sentence must be dignitas or dignatio in Latin, not dignitatie as in the PL text. Mal 3:3. Ps 11:7. The author puns here on probere and reprobere. Isa 1:22. Ezek 22:18. Jer 6:27. Jeremiah’s words are probatorem dedi, not probatorum dedi as in the PL text. “Prover” could be translated as “quality controller,” but “prover” keeps the link to the verb “prove.” Jer 6:27–30. Jer 6:29–30. Job 24:23. Sir 10:15. Mal 3:2. Ps 100:1. 1 Cor 3:11–13. 1 Cor 3:14–15. There is a pun in the Latin here on cremari and coronari.

LENT AND THE EASTER SEASON

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 43: ON SEPTUAGESIMA OR AT ANOTHER TIME OF PENANCE: CONCERNING SEEDS OF VIRTUE TO BE PLANTED IN US, AND ROOTS OF VICE TO BE CAST OUT, WITH AN EXPLANATORY PARABLE TAKEN FROM THE DELIGHTS OF PARADISE INTRODUCTION

This sermon is a tropological interpretation of Genesis 2:15 and texts related to it in the second creation account in Genesis 2:4–3:34.1 Genesis was read in the night office of Septuagesima, and the fourth responsory was Genesis  2:15.2 Richard’s sermon is a description of what makes for the peace and happiness of a good conscience and what can destroy it. As the biblical Paradise was luxurious with plants and animals, this sermon is luxurious, perhaps even overgrown, with the moral states represented by those plants and animals. Here is an outline: A. The plants and animals of paradise symbolize a good conscience (par. 1–5) fons flumina

spring four rivers

grace gratia spiritalis 4 cardinal virtues principales ­virtutes

natatilia

swimming creatures

hard good work

1 2

bona opera

This sermon is translated from Sermones centum 43, PL 177.1012B–1015B. Joseph Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 58.

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ambulatilia

animals walking

increase in justice

volatilia volatus

bird flight

contemplation

cantus

bird song

arbores

flowers & fruits

olea vitis ficulnea

olive vine fig

lignum scien. lignum vitae palma

Tree of ­Knowledge Tree of Life palm

rosa

rose

lilium viola

lily violet

justitiae ­incrementum

contemplatio divina praise and thanks laus et gratiarum actio beauty & reputation mercy wisdom/Christ sweetness & delight obedience

decor et opinio

fraternal charity victory

charitas victoria

passion/compassion chastity humility

passio vel ­compassio castitas humilitas

misericordia sapientia dulcor et suavitas obedientia

B. The plants that symbolize evils in the mind of the wicked (par. 6–8) 1. Two general categories of evil inclinations urticae nettles evil desires of vitia carnis flesh spinae thorns prickings of vices vitia cordis 2. Specific vices tribuli

thistles

spinae vepres rubi lappa circuta

thorns briars bramble bushes burrs hemlock

perverse bitterness rancor of heart contentions savage cruelty stubbornness vainglory & bad reputation

amaritudo prava cordis rancor contentiones crudelitas tenacitas inanis gloria; mala opinio

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C. Conclusion 1. Summary So, this Paradise is given to human beings to keep through circumspection (circumspectio custodire) and to tend by effort (viribus exerceamus). We must be on guard so the devil (serpent) does not seduce the flesh (Eve) with delight in earthly things, and then the flesh draw the spirit (Adam) to consent to sin, which banishes a good conscience (par. 9).

2. Exhortation Let us tend (exerceamus) and keep (custodiamus) our mind (mens) and conscience (conscientia) in the face of temptation so that we may glory in them for eternity (par. 10).

There are some things in this sermon that will not appeal to most readers. It is very static; like a leaflet listing the birds and plants one might find in a wildlife sanctuary. It also includes the association of Eve with the flesh and Adam with the spirit. Its message is somewhat obvious: cultivate virtues, avoid sins, and you will enjoy the peace of a good conscience, though that is a truism of which perhaps twelfth-century people, no less than twenty-first-century readers, might need a reminder. How would one listen to such a sermon? Perhaps by imagining Paradise by forming a garden in one’s imagination. Here is the central spring from which flow four rivers. In this quadrant are the animals, in that one are the trees, and in the third one are the flowers. In the fourth quadrant, overgrown and tangled, are plants that can hurt a person. Attaching their symbolic meaning to each, one has a list to guide one’s self-examination and perhaps pinpoint why one does not have the joy and peace of a good conscience. Most of the occupants of Richard’s paradise garden are trees and plants that he could assume his readers would know first hand and be able to visualize. The symbolic meanings he assigns to them were not unfamiliar. For example, Garnerus of St Victor’s Gregorianum, Book 9, discusses all the kinds of trees that Richard lists: the palm (c. 4), the olive (c. 9), thorns (c. 13), the fig (c. 14), and the vine (c. 15), giving several interpretations of each. In Book 14, Garnerus includes discussions of the lily (c. 2) and nettles (c. 8).3 3

Garnerus’ work is found in PL 193.23–426: palm (335CD), olive (337CD), thorns [spinae] (339B–341A), fig (341AD), vine (341D–342C), lily (421C–422B), nettles (424BD).

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TRANSLATION BY RONALD E. PEPIN

The Lord God took the man whom he had formed and placed him in the paradise of pleasure.1 1. Dearest brothers, examining these words figuratively, that is, allegorically, we say that a man is formed by God when he is justified, and he is put into paradise when he is established in secure pleasantness, or in the pleasant security of a good conscience.2 Indeed, what do we understand better, by the paradise full of pleasure, than the human mind full of security coming from the confidence of a good conscience? For a secure mind is like a continual feast.3 Thus, we understand, by that earthly glory of paradise, nothing more correctly than the good conscience of a just man. About this, even the Apostle says, our glory is the testimony of our conscience.4 Also, what should I have declared to be more suitably represented by the most blessed repose of that place than tranquility of mind and inner peace? Concerning this peace, Baruch says to the people not walking in the way of God, but in the pathless way of the devil, If you had walked in the way of God, you would surely have dwelt in peace on earth.5 For, if our first parents had kept the Creator’s command in paradise, they would have rested forever in the dwelling of His peace. So also now, whoever keeps God’s commands with a perfect heart rests in the security of innermost peace, with fear of evil taken away. 2. Moreover, not only does the earthly paradise, with its pleasure, security, peace, and glory signify the spiritual blessings of our good conscience, but it also suitably represents those blessings in the flowing of its spring and rivers; in its multitude of creatures swimming and walking, and winged ones flying to the sky and singing sweetly; in the manifold fruits of different trees, and also in the beauty of all the blooming flowers. For the spring of paradise signifies spiritual grace in us. The four rivers signify the practice of the four principal virtues.6 The swimming creatures represent the laborious performance of good work, because fish in the water labor in their swimming, tossed here and there by waves. Those walking signify the increase and perfection of justice in us. Those flying signify divine contemplation through their flying; through their song they signify praise and the graces we say.7 Also, the trees in their manifold fruits and the various flowers in their beauty represent the beneficial seemliness and expectation of virtues

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in us. The olive tree signifies mercy, as can be understood from the different pages of Sacred Scripture. Moreover, olea is the name of this tree, whose fruit is called oliva. Hence we have the distich of a certain versifier: Olea is the name of the tree, oliva the name of the fruit. The liquid pressed out is oleum; its dregs are amurca.8 3. The vine signifies wisdom. In fact, Christ, Who is the wisdom of God, said: I am the true vine.9 But also, wine10 taken in moderation sharpens our intellect. The fig tree, on account of the sweetness and agreeableness of its fruit, denotes inner sweetness and delightfulness. Concerning this, it is written: O how good and sweet is your spirit, Lord, in all things!11 And Wisdom says, my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb.12 And about its sweetness, the Psalmist says, they shall talk of the memory of the abundance of your sweetness.13 And about delightfulness: How sweet are your words to my throat, above honey to my mouth.14 4. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil represents obedience. In fact, if we observe obedience, we find good; if we overstep it, evil. Truly, the tree of life is charity. For the tree of life would have kept the life of the man sound, safe, and deathless forever if he had been able to eat of its goodness forever. Thus also, this was written about Adam after he sinned: Lest perhaps he should put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever, the Lord God sent him out of the paradise of pleasure.15 Therefore, just as the tree of life would have kept the human body deathless, as was said above, so also while we have charity, it keeps the human spirit free from the death of sin. 5. The palm is customarily borne by the hands of victors, and so it signifies victory. Furthermore, by its fragrance, any sweet-smelling tree indicates a good reputation. So also, by its redness, a rose represents passion or compassion. By its whiteness, a lily represents chastity. By the bending of its little flower and its head down low, the violet represents humility. You should not be amazed if the trees named above are said to be in the earthly paradise, or even any animals or flying creatures. For concerning the trees, it is written: The Lord God had planted a paradise of pleasure from the beginning, in which he placed the man whom he had formed. And the Lord God brought forth from the ground, namely, of paradise, every kind of tree, beautiful to see and sweet to eat of, and also the tree of life in the midst of paradise, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.16

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Indeed, when it is said that every kind of tree, beautiful to see and sweet to eat of, was in paradise, no tree seems to have been wanting. And concerning the animals and flying creatures, after the Lord placed Adam in paradise, it is written thus: After he had formed all the animals of the earth and the flying creatures of the sky, the Lord God brought them to Adam to see what he would call them.17 It seems one should not believe that Adam would seek them far beyond paradise if he had wanted to use their service, but would have them nearby. 6. And so, the mind of the just is known to be joined to, filled with, and surrounded by the mystical riches and delights described above. The mind of the wicked, without conscience, is very different from this. As Paul says, their mind and their conscience are defiled.18 Thus Solomon says, I passed through the field of the lazy man and through the vineyard of the foolish man. And behold, nettles filled the whole place, and thorns covered its surface, and the wall of stones was torn down.19 As if he were saying: “I have considered the life of the negligent man and his mind, which nettles and thorns fill, because in the heart of a negligent man spring forth itching, earthly desires, and prickings20 of vices, and this destroys the fortress of virtues.” Moreover, not only do the nettles and thorns that are described here arise in the field of the lazy man and the vineyard of the foolish man, but many useless shrubs and harmful plants as well, namely, thistles, briars, bramble bushes, burrs, hemlocks, and many like these. 7. Thus, because thistles do not have hard prickers and do not injure greatly in wounding us, they rightly represent the tribulation of any perverse bitterness. Thorns, which have harder stingers and which puncture more sharply, suitably represent more serious rancor of heart. Also, since briars cause wounds by lacerating us, they aptly signify the provocation and schism of quarrels and contentions. Yet again, bramble bushes, which have very hard prickers and which very painfully cause wounds and bleeding, represent the savage character of cruelty. Since it often burns the fingers of one touching it, a nettle signifies lust. Burrs represent stubbornness, because they cling stubbornly21 to clothes and hair when they are thrown on them. Finally, the hemlock, since it is hollow and empty inside, and foul smelling outside, represents vainglory and evil rumor. Moreover, all the vices of the flesh and the heart are signified by the nettles and thorns that Solomon specified above singly and by name. Lust, which is represented by the nettles, can signify all vices of the flesh; but rancor, which is meant by the thorns, can signify all vices of the heart.22

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8. Dearest brothers, let us not have these in the garden of our delights. I say, let there be no thistles through any tribulation of perverse bitterness, even very slight tribulation; no thorns, through rancor; no briars, through irritation; no bramble bushes, which men also call scorpions, through cruelty. Let there be no nettles, through lust; no burrs, through stubbornness; no hemlocks, through foul reputation; and finally, not any useless shrub or harmful herb, through any vice. But certainly, let there be in our paradise the olive tree, through mercy; the vine, through wisdom; the fig tree, through inner sweetness; the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, through obedience; the tree of life, through fraternal charity; the palm, through victory; and any sweetsmelling tree, through good reputation. Let there be in it the rose, through passion or, surely, compassion; the lily, through chastity; the violet, through humility; and finally, every good tree and every most beautiful flower, through the fruit bearing, beauty, and good reputation of every virtue. 9. Dearest brothers, let us tend to this paradise with all our strength. Let us keep it with all diligence. Let us tend it by our work. Let us keep it with our circumspection, since it is written: That he might tend it and keep it.23 Indeed, let us fear, lest the serpent should come, offer fruit, seduce the Eve in us, corrupt the Adam, and cause him to be banished from paradise. Thus, the Apostle says, I fear lest, as the serpent seduced Eve by his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted and fall from the simplicity that is in Christ.24 The serpent is the devil, Eve is the flesh, the fruit is delight in earthly things. Moreover, even as the serpent deceived Eve with fruit, so does the devil entice and seduce our senseless flesh with earthly delight. And just as Eve induced Adam to eat the fruit, so sometimes our flesh draws the spirit to consent to sin. And so each is banished from paradise, that is, from the state of goodness, because the spirit is afflicted by a bad conscience, and the flesh is punished by pain. 10. Therefore, most beloved brothers, let us not only tend to our mind and our conscience, but let us also keep them, for the tempter will not be lacking, nor will temptation be lacking. And so, let us tend to them and keep them in time, so that we might glory in them in eternity. May Jesus Christ, our Lord, deign to grant this, Who is God, blessed forever. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Gen 2:15. Here the author achieves a nice rhetorical balance between secura jucunditate and jucunda securitate. Prov 15:15. 2 Cor 1:12. Bar 3:13. The Vulgate text here reads in pace sempiterna, “in peace forever.” The cardinal virtues are justice, prudence, temperance, and fortitude. They came into the Bible from Hellenistic philosophy by way of Wisdom 8:7: “sobrietatem enim et sapientiam docet et iustitiam et virtutem.” The more usual names are prudentia, justitia, fortitudo, and temperantia. The phrase actiones gratiarum means “acts of gratitude,” but also refers to the grace or thanks offered before meals. I have not yet found the source of these verses. John 15:1. Vinum (wine) is derived from vitis (vine). Wis 12:1. Sir 24:27. Ps 144:7. Ps 118:103. Gen 3:22–23. Gen 2:8–9. Gen 2:19. Titus 1:15. Prov 24:30–31. Prurientia (itching) and punctiones (prickings) in this sentence retain the imagery of nettles and thorns, introduced above. These words often have sexual overtones. Tenacitas and tenaciter have negative connotations here. There is a pun here on carnis (of the flesh) and cordis (of the heart). Gen 2:15. 2 Cor 11:3.

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 89: ON THE FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT INTRODUCTION

One can understand why this was a sermon for the first Sunday of Lent.1 The story of Christ’s temptations (Matthew 4:1–11) was read on that Sunday. The second lesson for the Mass on the following Wednesday of Ember Week was 1 Kings 19:3–8. Both texts refer to temptations and to a forty-day fast. This sermon is an elaboration of the story told of Elijah in 1 Kings 19:3–9 and, although it makes no reference to Christ’s temptations or fast, they cannot have been far from the listeners’ minds. The fourfold division of temptations concerns two variables: whether one knows that the object of the temptation is bad for him, and how strong the temptation is. Richard does not draw any moral lessons or principles from this twofold distinction, but he evidently felt it was important to emphasize it by a rather tedious repetition. In later terms, perhaps one could say that the first distinction about knowledge of the badness of the object concerns the knowledge needed to make a responsible decision, whereas the second might be construed to refer to how voluntary the act was and how free, and so how culpable.

1

Serm. cent. 89: In prima Dominica Quadragesimae, PL 177.1179A–1181C.

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TRANSLATION

1. Frightened by the threats of Jezebel, he left his servant behind and traveled a day’s journey into the desert and sat under a juniper tree.1 Holy men with their spirits uplifted are rapt to the heights. However, as long as they are in this life, they are pushed back by temptations so they will not become proud. Hence it is that, although Elijah had advanced in so many virtues,2 he later fled Jezebel who, although she was queen, was just an insignificant woman. He who raised the dead, foresaw what was going to happen, and did other remarkable things, was struck with fear and fled death at the hand of a woman, and sought death at the hand of God but did not receive it. In the virtues of Elijah, the presence of God prevailed. In his weaknesses, he realized what he could do on his own. There, he showed what he had received; here, he guarded what he had received. It was shown in miracles; it was kept in weaknesses. 2. Elijah, the prophet of the Lord, renowned for his life and miracles symbolizes faith. Ahab, the impious king, the opponent of the Lord and His commands, signifies the devil, who is king over all the children of pride,3 and rules them in sinful works. Jezebel, the shameless woman and perennial enemy of Elijah, stands for the fleshly uncleanness, which always persecutes the just person and is enemy to his actions. Elijah is the faithful person who is sometimes frightened, although he has previously been outstanding in virtues and many good works. He destroyed the prophets of Baal, that is, all infidelity, and drove heretical depravity from his heart, and merited that rain, that is, grace be given him from heaven. Nevertheless, he fears her threats, lest Jezebel, that is, wantonness, have an opportunity to kill him. He obeys the apostolic counsel that says, Flee fornication.4 The one who leaves behind worldly habit and lifestyle and goes into the desert and assumes the habit of religion flees fornication. The desert is the spiritual life and the life of religion, because it is deserted by many and inhabited by few. 3. Elijah sent away his young servant and entered the desert alone,5 because it is right that a faithful person entering a spiritual way of life desert all childish, vain, and silly things. Let him not do anything childish in eating, drinking, speaking, and his other actions. By the juniper tree, under which Elijah sat down,6 we can signify the harshness of orders of monks, canons regular, or any other professed religious. It seems that profession in any order, like a juniper tree, has certain sharp spines, namely, cultivation of the cloister, the tedium of silence, fear of one’s prelate, the discipline of the chapter, abstinence in food,

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and other things, if there are any like these, that can puncture by their sharp structures. There are other sharp stickers on this juniper, namely sharp and constant temptations, that puncture the tenderness of the soul like spines. 4. There are four kinds of temptations. One is lightweight and hidden, another is lightweight and manifest; another is strong7 and hidden, and another is strong and manifest. A lightweight and hidden temptation occurs when someone is lightly tempted, but does not yet understand whether what he wants is good for him. For example, when someone is lightly tempted regarding some office or prelacy. The temptation is lightweight, because he is lightly tempted, and hidden because he does not know whether what he desires is good for him. A temptation is lightweight and manifest whenever someone is lightly tempted and he is clearly tempted to something evil. For example, when someone is lightly tempted to fornication, it is a lightweight temptation because he is lightly tempted; it is manifest, because it is manifestly something evil. A temptation is strong and hidden when someone is heavily tempted but does not know whether what he is tempted to do is harmful to him. For example, when someone is strongly tempted about a prelacy or some other ministerial office, the temptation is strong because he is strongly tempted, and hidden because he does not know that the deceit of the devil is lurking there. The devil tempts a person to this with regard to pride so that through his elevation he may more readily fall into damnation. A temptation is strong and manifest when someone is strongly tempted and he is clearly being tempted to evil. For example, someone is strongly tempted to fornication. The temptation is strong because he is strongly tempted; it is manifest because it clearly concerns something evil. 5. The Psalmist gives a good description of these four kinds of temptations when he says: You will not fear nighttime terrors or the arrow flying in the daytime, nor the trouble walking around at night, or the noonday assault of the demon.8 Nocturnal fear is a lightweight and hidden temptation: fear, because it is lightweight, nocturnal, because it is hidden. An arrow flying by day is a lightweight and manifest temptation: a flying arrow, because it is lightweight, in the daytime, because it is manifest. Trouble walking around in the dark is a strong and hidden temptation: trouble, because it is a strong temptation, walking in the dark, because it is hidden. The assault of the noonday devil is a strong and manifest temptation: an assault of the devil, because it is strong, noonday, because it is manifest. These, then, are the modes of this

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juniper, namely, these stickers of the order, because like stickers they puncture softness of souls (animorum) and sometimes mangle them. It is not because the order is wicked, but because the devil punctures the just more sharply through temptations when he sees him passing to higher and more secret things through the habit and life of the order. 6. Rightly, then, according to what has been said above, the order is compared to a juniper, when it is shown to puncture with various severities and temptations. Elijah comes to this juniper9 when some just person, fleeing worldly things, submits himself to the severity of some order. He asks that his soul die10 when he longs to die to the world inwardly, but finds sleep that he does not seek. That is, often a religious, fatigued by various temptations and adversities of the spiritual way of life, grows slack in progress in virtues and good works. The angel guardian and prod for Elijah11 is the prelate who guards and urges on the faithful soul who is subject to him. When he sees Elijah, the soul entrusted to him, sleeping under the juniper tree, that is, growing slack in the order, he immediately wakes him up and gives him food and drink.12 This happens when he urges him to better things and teaches him about the more difficult things of Sacred Scriptures, which are signified by food, and the easier ones, which are symbolized by drink. For his part, Elijah has been awakened, and eats and drinks, when a subject who is admonished by the speaker’s words patiently submits and does not contradict the things that are said. 7. However, he goes to sleep again,13 because sometimes a subject, experiencing many tiring things, again goes slack after the first admonition and instruction. Hence, Elijah is awakened and fed by the angel a second time, when the subject is again admonished and instructed through a prudent and faithful prelate. He says, rise, eat, there is a long way remaining for you.14 It is as if he said, “If you trust in the order only, you should know it is of no benefit to have left the world bodily and exist in the sight of people clothed only in the habit of religion. Strive to go further by virtues and to support your neighbor by works of mercy. Read, meditate, sing psalms, pray, and act.15 There is a long way remaining for you,16 because so far you have advanced a little, and you have to go much farther.” 8. Elijah then ate and drank and traveled on the strength of that food forty days and forty nights all the way to the mountain of the Lord.17 This occurs when the subject, again well strengthened and instructed by repeated teaching, advances in prosperity as in the daytime and in adversity as in the night through the exercise of virtues and the per-

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formance of good works, perfects the square of the Gospels and the decade of the Law, and comes to the lofty spiritual heights. There, he is rightly said to stand at the entrance of the cave18 when he is ready, whenever the Lord calls him, to leave the flesh. May Jesus Christ deign to grant us this, etc.

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NOTES 1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

3 (1) Kings 19:4. virtutibus: virtues, virtuous deeds, powers, acts of power. Job 41:25. According to Jerome, Heb. nom., Ahab means “brother of one’s father” (Lagarde, 41, 3), Elijah means “God the Lord” (Lagarde, 42, 5) and Jezebel means “cohabitant” or “vain flux” (Lagarde, 42, 11). 1 Cor 6:18. 3 (1) Kings 19:3. 3 (1) Kings 19:4. gravis: heavy, strong, great, and grave. Richard here seems to have in mind the force of the temptation, not the gravity of the sinful act. Ps 90:5–6. 3 (1) Kings 19:4. 3 (1) Kings 19:4. 3 (1) Kings 19:5. 3 (1) Kings 19:6. 3 (1) Kings 19:6. 3 (1) Kings 19:7. This is a fairly standard list of activities, but unusual in not mentioning contemplation. For lists such as this, see VTT 2:87–89, 308–09 n. 20, 333. 3 (1) Kings 19:7. 3 (1) Kings 19:8. 3 (1) Kings 19:9.

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 44: IN THE MIDDLE OF LENT: CONCERNING JERUSALEM. TAKEN THROUGH ALLEGORY FOR THE HOLY CHURCH INTRODUCTION

This sermon begins with a lyrical evocation of the mystical nature of the Church as the New Jerusalem, the flawless Spouse of God and the Lamb, and a Great Sacrament.1 The Church exists in heaven and earth; here on earth, she is a pilgrim; in heaven, she is in her eternal home; yet in both cases, she is wed to Christ. Here, is the time of grace, which is hers through sharing in Christ’s fullness; there, is eternal glory. She is the mother of all. Isaiah’s call to “Rejoice!” is directed to the Church on earth to console it during her long pilgrimage (par. 1–5). This vision of the Church underlay the zeal of the early Victorines to reform the Church, particularly through preaching and the sacraments. Richard proceeds to turn that zeal on his own community. When it is for a good cause and lived well, community is a cause of joy. Such a community of the baptized gives joy to Mother Church. However, Richard then turns to the ways in which cliques can sour and undermine Christian community. He gives a very realistic picture of the kinds of activities that such cliques engage in: they speak ill of members of the community who are absent; they machinate evil. They are proud, frivolous, mouthy, lewd, and seditious. Such cliques certainly are not called together by the Lord (par. 5–6). After this brief but very vivid and realistic description of cliques, and how they undercut the health and joy of community life, Richard exhorts his hearers to form and maintain a community that is one in faith, love, the exercise of virtues, and the performance of good 1

This sermon is translated from Sermones centum 44 (PL 177.1015B–1019D).

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works—a concise summary of the Victorine understanding of community. The community or gathering they wish requires more diligence than communities of lay Christians (par. 7). There are six places in which the Victorines must make and maintain community: the refectory (dining room), work, cloister, choir, dormitory, and chapter. Richard describes what is done in each of these and how that contributes to the health of the community. In the refectory, they are fed with bodily food and the spiritual food of holy reading. In labor, they acquire three things: wholesome occupation, healthy exercise, and things they need. In the cloister, they have the benefits of silence and peace, and in that peace they profit from reading, meditation, devotion, prayer, contemplation, and compunction.2 In the cloister, the canons profit from the instruction, admonitions, and example of the leaders (majorum) of the abbey. In choir, the canons learn from the readings and, with psalms, hymns, and canticles, they join the angels in praising God. In the dormitory, the canons benefit from bodily rest, pleasant dreams, and time for prayer. Finally, there is the chapter room, where the canons meet to amend their faults (par. 8–9). Richard devotes the rest of his sermon (par. 10–13, almost 30%) to the chapter or capitulum. Although not mentioned in the Rule of Benedict, by Richard’s time the chapter meeting was a taken-for-granted fixture in religious communities and was assigned its own space, the chapter room. Most of the sermons in this volume were delivered in a chapter room.3 The daily chapter meeting, as described in the Liber ordinis, the Victorine customary, had several components.4 The abbot has a signal sounded, and the canons assemble and process to the chapter room, where they are assigned seating that corresponds to their place in choir. All except the sick are to attend. Someone then reads out the 2

3 4

When Victorines give such a list, they usually put it in this logical order: reading, meditation, prayer, virtuous activity, contemplation, compassionate service (in preaching, writing, and so forth). According to Hugh of St Victor’s De virtute orandi, devotion is the very heart of prayer, so it is not surprising to see it associated with oratio in this list. The Victorines often put compunction as a component of the process of conversion that leads to a serious embrace of Christian practices. However, it can also be their result. Richard is urging his listeners and readers to compunction so that they will reform and redouble their efforts at community life. It is interesting that often the best-preserved part of ruined monasteries is the chapter room. Liber ordinis Sancti Victoris Parisiensis, 33, ed. Luc Jocqué and Ludo Milis, CCCM 61 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1984), 153–63. On the ordering of Victorine life in Liber ordinis, see C. Stephen Jaeger, The Envy of Angels: Cathedral Schools and Social Ideals in Medieval Europe, 950–1200 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994), 244–68; and Luc Jocqué, “Les structures de la population claustrale dans l’ordre de Saint-Victor au xiie siècle. Un essai d’analyse du ‘Liber ordinis’” in L’abbaye parisienne, ed. Jean Longère, BV 1, 53–95.

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calendar and the saints of the day. After a prayer, the reader receives a blessing and reads from the rule, and on a feast day and during Eastertime the gospel of the day is read. Then the necrology is read and the dead are commemorated. Then, if there is to be a sermon, the abbot gives it or indicates who is to do it. Then the conversi and guests are led out, and the abbot says, “Let us order the service of the church.” The armarius then assigns roles for the liturgy. When the armarius is finished, the abbot says, “Let us talk about the ordering of your life” (Loquimini de ordine vestro). This is the part of the meeting that Richard is concerned about in his sermon. Those who volunteer to confess their faults come before the abbot and ask pardon. They do so in this order: those with weekly tasks, those assigned to duties, those coming from outside the monastery (perhaps because assigned elsewhere), those who have been bled, the sick, those who voluntarily confess a fault. The Liber ordinis specifies that one should not confess hidden faults in chapter. Even those who have been absent from an hour of the divine office with permission should state that, because the rest of the community may not know they had permission. Those who were absent from choir without permission confess their fault. When all who confess their faults voluntarily are finished, the officials called circatores5 call out (clamant) others for faults they have observed. When they are finished, others in the community call out others’ faults. When someone’s name is called out, he goes before the abbot and stands patiently there. When he hears the accusation, if he recognizes he is culpable, he immediately asks pardon. If he does not, he can say he does not remember doing what his brother said he did. However, if someone saw or heard him do it, they can say so. No one is to call out someone who has called him out. There are other regulations; for example, one cannot call out the whole community or half of the choir. There follow instructions on how beatings are to be administered, if they are. What is said or done in chapter is not to be spoken of outside. After this, the abbot can make announcements, and outsiders can come in to say something (sermonem). Greetings from outside are reported, and those who request it are entered into the book of prayer intentions. In these things, there are special provisions 5

On circatores, see Hugh Feiss, “Circatores in the Ordo of St Victor,” in The Medieval Monastery, Medieval Studies at Minnesota 2, ed. Andrew MacLeish (St Cloud, MN: North Star, 1988), 53–58, and “Circatores: From Benedict of Nursia to Humbert of Romans,” ABR 40 (1989): 346–78.

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for kings, bishops, and abbots. When all the business is finished, the community recites psalms and then processes to the cloister. Richard’s discussion of the chapter indicates that it did not always function as it should. Some members of the community reacted violently against any attempt to correct them. The superior needs to be firm with them, assigning stiff penances. If they won’t accept these, they should be expelled from the community, but compassionately not cruelly, so they won’t continue to harm the community through poisonous associations. Others, by contrast, humbly acknowledge their faults and accept correction. Still others humbly accept even unjust accusations. Those who angrily oppose correction are like the blaspheming thief at the crucifixion; those who accept correction for their faults are like the good thief; those who do not argue with false accusations are like Christ himself. Richard ends with an impassioned plea that his hearers come together (simul) in all six places of community activity and, there, be “of one mind in faith, charity, and action.” Let us make this a community in time, so that we may be joined to the heavenly community of the just in eternity. May God grant us this (par. 14). Two questions are in order. First, why is there so much detailed ceremonial in the chapter meeting, and indeed in all the locales of community life, and why was scrutiny of external observance such a prominent part of the chapter meeting? Part of the answer is that the Victorines were convinced that outward deportment both fostered and expressed inward virtue. They were committed to what C. Stephen Jaeger termed “humanism,” a life of good manners and expansive sympathy, that developed from the tenth century till the end of the twelfth. Learning and living a disciplined life of virtue (disciplina virtutis) had inseparable inner and outer components.6 The second question is why did Richard include this spirited defense of community life, condemnation of cliques, and insistence on submission to the discipline of the chapter? It is very likely that he had in mind the situation at St Victor under the undisciplined abbot, Ernisius (1161–72), whose career is a perfect illustration of the first sort of canon Richard describes, who refuses correction (even from the 6

It is very difficult for twenty-first-century people to appreciate this point of view. Someone who does seem to be in tune with it is Michael Casey, an Australian Trappist, in his commentary on the fourth chapter of the Rule of St Benedict, Seventy-Four Tools for Good Living (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2014).

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Pope), is finally expelled, and then continues to embarrass and disturb the members of the Abbey and Order of Saint-Victor.7 To his confreres living in the turmoil of Ernisius’ abbacy, Richard offers an inspiring picture of the inner nature and glory of the Church as a model for their own community life, and then urges them to accept correction and undertake conversion when they need to.

7

See Dietrich Lohrmann, “Ernis, abbé de Saint-Victor (1161–72), Rapports avec Rome, affaires financières,” in L’abbaye parisienne, ed. Jean Longère, BV 1, 183–91. Ernisius succeeded Blessed Achard as abbot, and Richard was prior of the abbey during most of Ernisius’ abbacy.

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TRANSLATION BY RONALD E. PEPIN

Rejoice, Jerusalem, and come together all you who love her.1 1. Dearest brothers, Jerusalem is the holy city, and the holy city is the holy Church, which is the bride of God, just as Holy Scripture bears witness, declaring in the Apocalypse through a holy angel speaking to John, Come, I shall show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he took me up in spirit to a great and high mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God.2 And the Apostle says, Husbands, love your wives as Christ also loved the Church and delivered himself up for it that he might sanctify it, cleansing it by the basin of water in the word of life, that he might present to himself a glorious Church, not having stain or wrinkle or anything of this kind, but that it might be holy and unblemished. So also husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.3 And after a few verses: This is a great sacrament. But I speak in Christ and in the Church.4 2. Moreover, rightly is the holy Church said to come down out of heaven, since Every best gift and every perfect gift, by which Christ, the Bridegroom of the Church, justifies it by cleansing it of every stain and wrinkle,5 is coming down from the Father of lights.6 The Church is also said to have the glory7 of God, since the glory that its Bridegroom has by nature, He gives to the Church through grace; not through the fullness of grace, but through sharing in the fullness.8 And indeed, this holy Church is partly in heaven, partly in the world. There, as in its homeland; here, as in exile. There, ruling; here, sojourning. And the nuptials are celebrated in both places: here, in faith; there, in contemplation. Here, in hope; there, in fact. For now we see through a glass in obscurity, but then face to face. Now we know in part, but then we shall know just as we are known; when that which is perfect has come, that which is in part shall be made void.9 Here, the wine of grace is served at the nuptials; there, the wine of glory is served. The wine of grace is pledged to justification; the wine of glory, to beatitude.10 3. And although we might thus distinguish the holy Church according to different states, namely, of faith and of actual sight; of hope and of the thing itself; of justification and of beatitude; of grace and of glory; as a daughter in exile, a mother in the kingdom, as it is written: “But that Jerusalem that is above is free,” namely, free from temptations, tribulations, and mortality, which is the mother of us all,11 although,

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I say, we might thus distinguish, yet she is the one wife of the Lamb, the bride of Christ, as is written: One is my dove, my perfect one.12 One in predestination, not yet one in glorification. A dove in purity of simplicity, perfect in consummation of virtue. And so, these words that we placed at the beginning, Rejoice, Jerusalem, and come together all you who love her,13 which are words of consolation, do not seem spoken to that Jerusalem that is now glorified above in the kingdom with the Bridegroom, but to that one which is still sojourning far from the sight of it in the misery of the present age. 4. Rejoice, Jerusalem!14 It is as if this were being said by way of consolation to one sojourning: Jerusalem, you who are still sojourning in the world, harassed by persecutions, weighed down by mortality, rejoice in your adversity, knowing that Although our outward man is corrupted, yet the inner man is renewed day by day. For that part of our tribulation which is at present momentary and light works in us an eternal weight of glory beyond measure in its sublimity while we contemplate not things which are seen, but things which are not seen.15 Rejoice, because the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared to the glory to come that shall be revealed in us.16 Rejoice, therefore, for the days in which you are humbled, the years in which you see evils, because the more intense the fight, the greater the crown. 5. And come together all you who love her.17 Brothers, a coming together, whenever it happens rightly and honorably, is a source of exultation, an occasion of joy and an incentive to gladness, especially in this place or activity in which sons are urged to come together, to rejoice with our mother; our mother, I say, who gave birth to them in baptism and nourished them with the sweet instruction of the divine testaments just like with the milk of her breasts. However, when a gathering takes place for perpetrating evil, the outcome often becomes the cause of many evils. And concerning a coming together of this kind, Paul says thus: When you come together in one place, it is not now to eat the Lord’s Supper. For each one takes first his own supper to eat, and one indeed is hungry and another is drunk. And, after a few words: In this do I praise you? I praise you not.18 Thus, finally, to those coming together the Lord says through the Psalmist: I shall not gather together their meetings for bloodshed.19 6. It is characteristic of impious men to separate themselves from the assembly of the just and to make an association or associations among themselves, so that gathered together in groups of two or three, they might strive for nothing other than to speak ill of the way of life

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of those who are not present, or to carp at others, or even to plot some perverse deeds to their own ruin. Moreover, associations of this kind come about in many ways, or rather, there are manifold associations of this kind. For indeed, some are associations of vanity, as are those of people acting frivolously; some are of loquacity, as are those of people uttering idle words, and words that are superfluous, scurrilous, and shameful. There are also other associations of detraction, others of contention, others of dissension, others of feasting and drinking, others of lechery and indecency, and finally, others of any depravity at all. 7. Therefore, dearest brothers, let us by no means make associations as the impious do because if we make associations of bloodshed, that is, for perpetrating sins, we shall not be gathered together by the Lord, as you are aware. But let us come together to reflect mutually, according to the words of the Apostle: To the provocation of charity and of good works, not forsaking our assembly, as is the custom for certain ones.20 Let us come together, so that we might all live side by side in one faith, in one love, in one practice of virtues, in one performance of good works. But since gatherings together of this kind by all Christians, even laymen and married persons, are generally needed in some way, let us who live in a community come together more diligently and more specifically, so that by doing this we might surpass their merit, as is just, and receive from the Lord a loftier reward. 8. And so, there are six places in which we ought to come together and to hold an assembly: in the refectory, in our work, in the cloister, in the choir, in the dormitory, and in chapter. When we come together in the refectory, we acquire a double benefit21 because there the body and the spirit are refreshed: the body by food, the spirit by divine words. In our work, we acquire a triple benefit, for there we have the benefit of honorable occupation, the benefit of exercise, the benefit of usefulness. We have the benefit of occupation because, while we are intent on our work, we do not stray toward useless activities. In the same place, we receive the benefit of exercise, by which we are made healthier. We have also the benefit of usefulness, because our work in the Lord is not in vain. In the cloister, we welcome the benefit of peace and silence. About this, it is written: The work of justice will be peace and the cultivation of justice will be silence and security forever. And my people will sit in the beauty of peace and in the tabernacles of trust, and in opulent rest.22 In the cloister, we also have the benefit of reading and meditation, the benefit of devotion and prayer, the benefit of contemplation and com-

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punction. There, we are instructed by the precepts of our elders, we are informed by their examples, and we are incited by their warnings.23 9. In the choir, we also have the benefit of instruction through recitations and readings.24 Certainly, we have the benefit of divine praise in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.25 By the benefit of divine praise, we are truly united to the angels when we perform on earth the Office that they finish in heaven, and that which is written is fulfilled equally through them and through us: His praise is above heaven and earth.26 In the dormitory, we surely obtain the benefit of bodily rest. Likewise, there are those who there gain not only rest of the body, but also a taste27 of spiritual good. In fact, sometimes their mind senses there an inner sweetness in sleeping that it cannot sense in staying awake. Also, in that same place, certain ones find other benefits and usefulness in staying awake, in praying, in weeping over their sins, and in them is fulfilled the saying of David: I shall wash my bed every night; with my tears I shall drench my couch.28 Finally, we come together in chapter to amend our negligences and transgressions. 10. Therefore, all who are willing to submit to correction and emendation ought to be present at chapter. Yet there are certain men in religious life who, like stallions grown fat and frisky, and not submitting to the hand of the hostler wiping away their dung and taking care of them, do not allow themselves to be reproached, even about the least things. But like untamed horses, they very violently rage against their masters who ought to chastise and correct them, or to cleanse them of their sins. And indeed, seized by a frenzy of impatience, they rave against them with biting attacks of threats and insults. Moreover, what a holy prelate, who is the Lord’s hosteler, ought to do about such men the Psalmist declares, where he said: With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near to you.29 The lesser and greater precepts of God are represented by the bit and bridle. Therefore, those who do not reasonably and willingly obey reasonable chastisements should be firmly bound by the authority of divine precepts, like horses and mules by bit and bridle. For, as the Apostle says, all divinely inspired Scripture is useful for teaching, for reproving, for correcting, for instructing in justice, so that the man of God might be perfect, furnished for every good work.30 11. However, there are certain horses of such great ferocity and impatience that they can in no way be restrained by bit or bridle while they are being shoed or cared for. A twitch31 is put around the lip of horses of this kind, that is, of those fettered for shoeing, so that they are kept quiet by this constraint. This is suitably done to certain ones,

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figuratively, because on account of their excessive insolence, their food and drink is lessened, or unbroken silence is imposed on them. Indeed, the stubbornness of the proud must be broken by a stern sentence, lest if we have pity on the impious one, he might not learn to do justice and, acting wickedly in the land of the saints, he might not see the glory of the Lord,32 if not more: Let him be handed over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh.33 This means, let the one resisting and contrary be handed over in the flesh to his very harsh sentence, so that with distress alone giving understanding to his hearing,34 his spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord.35 Clearly, if he has refused to accept this sentence, even if he has not left the community, let him be cast out. Let this not happen in a cruel way, but compassionately, lest he harm many more through noxious contact. Brothers, we do not say these things to deny that we must tolerate the weakness of the less perfect, but in the house of God, judgment must be so carried out, justice must be so carried out, that the pride of the insolent is not tolerated in any way, or the weakness of the imperfect is not overburdened. 12. Through the grace of God, there are also others in religious life like nags or asses that bear burdens and work hard. Accused by others, or even lying prostrate of their own accord over their negligences, they voluntarily ask for pardon, and they amend them humbly and patiently. There are also others in the house of God who are enriched by heavenly grace: even after they are unjustly accused, they happily prostrate themselves and silently accept these injustices for Christ. Now to those voluntarily amending their faults, just as to those patiently accepting injustices, that word of the Psalmist is suited, where he says, for I am ready for scourges,36 and elsewhere, I am become as a beast before you, and I am always with you. You have held my right hand, and you have led me according to your will.37 13. Yet, they alone obtain grace before God who, unjustly scourged, accept injustices silently. Hence Peter said: This is thankworthy, if for conscience toward God anyone endures sorrows, suffering unjustly. For what glory is it if you have been buffeted and endure sorrows while sinning? But if you suffer patiently while doing good works, this is thankworthy before God. For unto this you are called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving to you an example, that you might follow his footsteps. He committed no sin, nor was guile found in his mouth. When he was being reviled, he did not revile; when he was suffering, he did not threaten, but handed himself over to one judging him unjustly.38 Therefore, the first ones, as long as they remain uncorrected, hang on the cross of the

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blaspheming thief.39 The second group, when they are corrected, hang on the cross of the thief asking pardon. The third group, who endure injustice for the sake of God alone, hang on the cross of Christ suffering innocently. To the first ones, guilt is ascribed because of their pride, if they are unwilling to be corrected. To the second group, pardon is granted because of their humility. For the third group, grace is increased because of their innocence. 14. And so, dearest brothers, let us come together in chapter so that we might correct our faults, in fact, that we might accept injustice done to us. Let us avoid cliques,40 but let us come together. Let us come together so that we might be of one mind in faith, charity, and labor; in believing rightly, loving sincerely, living holily. Let us come together in the refectory by eating together; in labor by carrying out together what pertains to it; in the cloister by sitting together; in the choir by chanting together; in the dormitory by resting together; in chapter by correcting our faults. Let us come together in time, so that in eternity we might deserve to be joined to the assembly of the blessed. May He deign to grant us this, etc.

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NOTES 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Isa 66:10. This verse from Isaiah formed part of the Introit for the 4th Sunday of Lent, known as “Laetare (‘Rejoice!’) Sunday” because of this Introit. See Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 90, 92. The Latin for “come together” is “conventum facite.” This takes on special significance for Richard, since “conventum” was another name for religious community (abbey, monastery, priory). In paragraphs five and six, he contrasts this with the diminutive forms, “conventiculum” and “conventicula,” a small gathering and, more especially, a clique. Since conventum could be used for any gathering or association of people, Richard says that in religious congregations, such as the ones he is addressing in the sermon, the effort to gather together and make community should be more diligent. Rev 21:9–11. Eph 5:25–28. Eph 5:32. Eph 5:27. James 1:17. Claritas is needed in the Latin, not charitas as printed in the text. Victorine Christology held that what the Son of God had by his divine nature was imparted to his human nature by grace. The application here is a bit different: Christ, as Son of God, had the fullness of divine glory; he gives that glory to the Church by grace, not the fullness of grace, but a participation in the fullness. Richard seems to assume an intermediate step: Christ’s human nature had the fullness of glory by grace. See Jean Châtillon, “Quidquid convenit Filio Dei,” D’Isidore de Séville, 319–31. 1 Cor 13:12, 10. These contrasts between here and there, then and now, most of them deriving from St Augustine, were frequently invoked by the twelfth-century Victorines. On them, see François Châtillon, “Hic, ibi, interim,” Revue d’ascétique et de mystique 25 (1949): 194–99. Gal 4:26. The PL text mistakenly cites this verse as coming from Galatians 6. Song 6:8. Isa 66:10. Isa 66:10. 2 Cor 4:16–18. Rom 8:18. Isa 66:10. 1 Cor 11:20–22. Ps 15:4. Heb 10:24–25. Fructus literally means “fruit.” The homilist underscores the “fruit” or “benefit” by repeating the term 16 times in this passage. Isa 32:17–18. In the translation, I have retained the triadic parallelism of instruimur, informamur, and incitamur. Information by the example of senior members of the community is an important part of Victorine formation in the canonical life and its observances. A literal translation would be “recitations of readings.” There is an allusion here to Eph 5:19. Ps 148:14. Gustus (taste) preserves the imagery of fructus (fruit). See note 21 above. Ps 6:7. Ps 31:9. 2 Tim 3:16–17. The term used here is broie, a French word meaning “barnacle” or “horse bray,” a type of bit or twitch for the mouth of a restive horse or ass, used to curb the animal.

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Isa 26:10. 1 Cor 5:5. There is a clear echo here of Isaiah 28:19. 1 Cor 5:5. Ps 37:18. Ps 72:23–24. 1 Pet 2:19–23. Luke 23:33–43 relates the story of the thieves crucified with Jesus. “The first ones” in this sentence refers to those described above who refuse correction. Conventicula: the associations or gatherings for ill purposes described above.

ABSALOM OF SPRINGIERSBACH SERMON 18: IN LENT, LAETARE INTRODUCTION

This sermon is an excellent example of an extended word-by-word exposition of a single verse of Scripture: The beginning of a human being’s life is water and bread and clothing and a house covering his shame.1 Absalom gives an allegorical interpretation of each of five nouns in the sentence: beginning (par. 2), water (par. 3–6), bread (par. 7–12), clothing (par. 13–14), and house (par. 15–17). He touches on the literal sense when he mentions that there are two ways to understand the waters of the firmament (par. 5). He describes how the various kinds of bread are produced, and allegorizes on the details of the process. As he identifies the different kinds, sources, and functions of water, bread, clothing, and shelter, he uses them as symbols of Christian virtues and practice. It is Laetare Sunday, as he indicates at the beginning (par. 1), so he urges asceticism and virtue; he offers encouragement and speaks of consolation. Absalom makes few references to doctrine, after mentioning the sin of Adam (par. 2), which he uses as the basis of an impassioned direct address in the grand style to his audience of canons regular, whose cloister is a place of shelter (par. 2). Like Hugh of St Victor and the Victorines generally, he sees a very close connection between external discipline and internal virtue. He ends with an anagogical evocation of heaven (echoing the one in par. 1) and a prayer that “Christ will lead us there” (par. 17). Absalom may have chosen this text directly from the Bible; it was not a usual liturgical text. He concludes his discussion of water with the requisites for an authentic fast: moderate appetite, simple food, moderate quantities, at the proper time (par. 6). He cautions that not everyone who enters Lent with a contrite heart and good resolutions progresses until Easter (par. 6). He uses bread baked over ashes to allude to human mortality, 1

Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 29:21: “initium vitae aqua et panis et vestimentum et domus protegens turpitudinem.” The sermon is printed in PL 211.108A–113C.

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perhaps referring obliquely to Genesis 3:19: Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return. A very noticeable theme of this sermon is consolation. Michael Casey, a modern Australian Trappist who shares Absalom’s interest in human psychology and his conviction that outer discipline and inner virtue are inseparable, writes: “‘Consolation’ must be one of the most beautiful words in our language; even its sound bespeaks a sustained softness that soothes and comforts. It is the kindness of human solidarity gratuitously given to those who need it most.”2 We should bear rebuke and slander patiently. Instead of striking at the others who do us wrong, we should feel compassion, knowing that we are weak just as they are. By extending compassion to others, we temper the pain of their tribulations (par. 7). Because they are members of the same body, Christians should support one another from the depths of compassion (par. 9). When we extend compassion to others, we mirror God’s consolations. We need those consolations from the beginning to the end of a devout life (par. 10). One tastes these consolations in deeply felt prayer, meditation, and exultation in the promise of beatitude, even when they are mixed with sorrow. Compassion for one’s neighbor offers him the oil of consolation. On Laetare Sunday, the Church tells her children: Be consoled because soon you will feast with your brothers and sisters in heaven (par. 12). Humility is a presupposition of compassionate service to one’s neighbor. Humility is difficult, but there is consolation in the promise of God’s reward (par. 14). When canons offer consolation to one another, it promotes peace in the community, which is another concern of Absalom in this sermon. Humility, “contempt of self,” is the foundation of reverence for others. It wards off jealousy and discord because it makes one ready to honor, serve, and obey all others. The discipline of the cloister brings peace to the heart of the individual and to the community as well (par. 15). In all of this, Absalom is in tune with the spirit of the liturgy for Laetare Sunday, when, in the midst of Lent and its rigors, the canons join the Church in singing the Introit: “Rejoice, Jerusalem, and all who love her. Be joyful, all who were in mourning; exult and be satisfied at her consoling breast.”3

2 3

Michael Casey, Seventy-Four Tools for Good Living (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2014), 63. Cf. Isa 66:10–11. Cantus g00776, at http://cantusindex.org/id/g00776.

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TRANSLATION

1. The beginning of a human being’s life is water and bread and clothing and a house covering his shame.1 What is this, my brothers and dearest lords? What is it that you wish to do? Why have you, to your own detriment, appointed a man of uncircumcised heart and lips2 to be the dispenser of the word of God?3 I am not a physician of souls and the bread of God’s word is not in my house,4 especially bread to be put before you, who are accustomed to be refreshed with sweet, spiritual bread. Besides, the observances of the sacred season in which we recall not only our calamity but also our liberation and joy would require living and effective speech penetrating all the way to the division of soul and spirit.5 In this season, the appearance of the Church is changed both in worship and in the variety of divine service. Both in the frequency of weeping and the general practice of fasting we remember our misery, sighing as though from captivity because through our first parent we fell. However, in that a voice breaks out in cry of exaltation and joy, as from exile, saying, “Rejoice, Jerusalem, come together all who love her,”6 it is a recalling of that joy that we await after the labors of the pilgrimage, when we will be transported into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.7 Therefore, although I am not suitable for this, let me, excused by obedience and helped by your prayers, say something for the season. 2. Let me take, as the beginning of what I am to say, the beginning of our calamity. Why, O Adam, O lost human (homo), did you put upon yourself and upon your children such a great sin? Why did you come from the delights of paradise8 into these abodes of exile? Truly, although you were in honor, you did not understand, because in the garden of delight9 everything you wanted came to you. Behold, work tortures you, fasting wastes you, servitude oppresses you, sorrow burns you, danger troubles you, and, in the end, death finishes you. Listen, then, O son of man, to counsel, how you who received a death sentence in Adam may return to life. 3. The beginning of human life is water, bread, and clothing.10 Water and bread are food that in every way is suitable for fasting and penitence. However, there are certain nighttime waters quite opposed to those who wish to begin a good life. Regarding them, the bridegroom in the Song of Songs complains when he says, my head is full of dew and my locks with drops of the night.11 This dew or drops of the night signify feelings of carnal desires. There is another water of the sea, salty

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and undrinkable, that does not give life. The Prophet says of it, your way is in the sea, and your paths in many waters.12 This is the bitterness of wicked activity. 4. However, let us look at other, healthful waters that bubble up from below from channels in the earth; likewise, at other waters that come from above, that is, descend from the clouds of the sky to the earth. There is a third sort of waters, that, set in places above the skies, do not reach us. The first waters, which bubble up from the earth, signify tears of penitence, because when a sinner recalls his evils, how he was always intent on earthly activities and not on God,13 that he lived wholly for the world, it happens that sometimes, anticipated by the grace of God, he is pierced with compunction.14 Then, when he washes away his past sins with tears, he is, as it were, bringing forth a spring of water from the depths of the earth. There, waters are the beginning of a human being’s life.15 5. For the second kind of waters, which rain down from the clouds to the earth, we take the examples of the holy way of life that reach us from just men, because when sinners try to be conformed to their life by acting rightly, it is as though water descends from the heights of the clouds all the way to earth. By the third waters, which are above the earth, we understand the abundance of joy of which the Psalmist says, I will be saturated when your glory appears.16 These are unknown on earth. Indeed, eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has there arisen in the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love Him.17 However, perhaps to someone the historical sense seems to be that the firmament containing these waters is porous (porosum), and through its pores (poros) drops of dew reach the earth, and this dew not unfittingly symbolizes (figurat) devotion of mind, which is a foretaste of the future life. Thus, as dew is sometimes a symbol of sin, as we said above, it can also be taken in a good sense, as in this passage: May God give you an abundance from the dew of heaven and from the richness of the earth.18 6. Of these three waters, the first moistens, the second washes, and the third inebriates. We see that many are somewhat moistened by the waters of penitence through contrition of heart, but are not washed by the second waters through zeal for good works. Therefore, they are not inebriated through reaching glory by the third waters, which are above the heavens. Behold: lovers of the world, who have been drawn in some way by this sacred time of observance and are somewhat stung by compunction because of the character of the season. However, when

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they must redeem their sins with fasting, prayer, and alms,19 they are conquered by their depraved habits and return to their earlier sins. For the whole time of fasting, their mind is in the cooking pots, and if they fast once in the day, they make up for it at the times of eating, by anticipating the hour of dinner, by eating immoderately, by the artistry of fancy food, and by excessive appetite. These are the four attendants of gourmandizing20 or gluttony, by which the merit of fasting is lessened or even made completely useless. Bodily fasting thus must observe these four things: the hour of the fast, temperate abstinence, moderate [food] preparation, and measured appetite. Someone who is fasting needs to consider whether he lacks any of these, because if so this is not the fasting that the Lord chose,21 but rather the left is mixed with the right22 by fasting for the stomach rather than for temperance. So now we have something about water, which is the beginning of human life, but where is the bread?23 7. He wrote that the beginning of human life is water and bread.24 We find four basic (authentica) kinds of bread in Sacred Scripture: first, the bread baked under ashes that Elijah ate in the desert.25 Likewise, there are others that Moses distinguishes in Leviticus, namely, bread baked in a pan,26 bread roasted on a griddle,27 and thirdly, that fried in oil in a frying pan.28 Because of the ashes, bread baked under ashes signifies remembering death; bread cooked on a griddle signifies bearing tribulation; bread in a pan, where the pan is placed between the fire and the bread, indicates compassionate feeling because when we are connected to the tragedies of others by a feeling of compassion we temper the fire of their tribulation like the interposed pan. The fourth bread, fried in oil, indicates the sweetness of divine consolation. 8. The bread baked under ashes, that is, recalling death, is very necessary to the penitent. By it, in all his doings he remembers his last things, how sudden and unpredictable death is, how changeable is life, how uncertain is the hour, so that the memory of death always cuts off the pleasures that the world serves up. 9. Similarly, the second bread, which is cooked in a bread pan, and the third, which is roasted on a griddle, pertain to living rightly, that is, to bearing tribulation and feeling compassion. Everyone who wishes to live rightly should strive not to change the state of his mind by impatience because of injuries inflicted, so that he can also reach down to the injuries of others through feeling compassion. Therefore, if a word of rebuke, if the whip of correction, if the spear of slander or reproach passes through you, you may bear it patiently, because our momentary

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and light tribulation in the present will work in us an immeasurable weight of eternal glory on high.29 Woe, says Scripture, to those who have lost their forbearance.30 Whoever has not been able to bear with wicked people patiently gives witness by his impatience that he is not good. Do you want to hear about the feeling of compassion? The Apostle says, who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is tempted, and I do not burn?31 Learn, O human, in the members of your body that support one another how you should support the need of your neighbor from the depths of compassion. If one of your members labors under a weakness, will the eye deny it sight in serving it, or the ear, hearing, or the hand, service?32 Certainly not! Therefore, go and do likewise to your neighbor.33 We are, as the Apostle says, members of one another.34 10. The fourth bread, which is fried, is the sweetness of divine consolation, which is necessary not only at the beginning of a good life, but also at its end, as you and other holy men who taste how sweet the Lord is know well. O delicate bread, O sweetest bread, who may grant that my soul may be refreshed by you, so that the hunger of the inner man may be satisfied in the one who eats you? You are that bread that strengthens the heart of a person.35 Let us turn our attention now to the things that constitute this spiritual bread, namely, the sweetness of divine consolation. 11. Clearly, it consists of the devotion of holy prayer, of meditation on divine reading, and in the promise of eternal happiness. For what can be sweeter to a person than to knock at the heavens with deeply felt prayer (orationis affectu), to penetrate heavenly mysteries with holy meditation, and to exult in the promise of beatitude? The first is baked under ashes without oil, because it is all a struggle. The second, which is baked in a pan, and the third, which is placed on a griddle, are partly of oil, because as the Lawgiver says, this must be smeared with oil.36 Bearing tribulation has part joy and part grief, as it written about the apostles, because they went from before the council rejoicing that they were held worthy to suffer abuse for the name of Christ.37 Likewise, compassion for a neighbor has the oil of consolation. One is not compassionate who does not console if he can. The last kind of bread is moistened inside and out with oil, because what the sweetness of divine consolation pours in is completely pleasing to the palate. 12. The Church that is still battling on earth consoles herself meanwhile with prayer, meditation, and the hope of the promise, which she has not yet attained. However, the heavenly Jerusalem, namely, the saints who reign with God, already eat this bread because they have

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attained the joy of eternity. Recalling that, on this day the voice of the Church exults, singing a song of joy, when it says, Rejoice, Jerusalem, and come together all you who love her.38 It is as if she said to her children, Be consoled, my people,39 because in just a little while you will feast with your brothers, and you will be filled from the breasts of your consolation.40 So now we have water and bread. 13. The third item is clothing, because the beginning of human life is water and bread and clothing.41 If I am not mistaken, this clothing is the perfection of humility. Clothing is necessary for all sorts of reasons: it covers nakedness; it wards off inclement cold; it nurtures warmth. Certainly, among all the kinds of evils nothing more exposes our weakness than the wind of excessive pride. The protection of humility covers this nudity when it effects in a person contempt of self,42 so that he does not think himself exalted, so that he judges himself inferior to all, so that not only by speech, but also by hearing, countenance, and attitude he is always his own accuser, declaring in word and deed, I am a worm and not a human being, the reproach of men, the discard of the people.43 This garment wards off inclement cold, that is, the seed-plot of jealousy and discord, because by it a man despises himself and reverences his neighbor, so that he is prepared for service to all. He thinks that all precede him in the dignity of their merits, and so inclement cold is removed from their midst when, through reverence for his neighbor, with zealous compliance, he subjects himself to the will of all. Thus, someone said, “compliance produces friends, truth produces hatred.”44 This clothing nurtures warmth through fear of God. As Scripture says, “it belongs to good minds to acknowledge faults, that is, to be afraid where they are not.”45 As a man is always fearful in God’s sight, lest by interposing some fault he offend Him to Whom he hurries to be joined with all the longing of his heart, so it happens that while he fears to offend Him Whom he loves, his mind is strengthened and grows more and more in the fervor of its love. Therefore, this garment, protector of humility, has these three: contempt of self, reverence for neighbor, fear of God. 14. Perhaps, it will seem harsh to someone to show himself humble and despised by all, but in this there is consolation because, as the Apostle says, the present discipline is not joy but misery, but in the future it will receive a most peaceful reward.46 Certainly, as Scripture says, when Rachel gave birth, as her soul was departing, because of her pain she called her son “Benoni,” that is, “Son of My Pain.” His father called him “Benjamin,” that is, “Son of My Right Hand.”47 To be sure, Rachel,

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that is, every soul seeing God through holy desire, does not without pain produce the fruit of good works, which God the Father calls “The Son of His Right Hand” because of that consolation they will receive in eternity, which is signified by the right hand.48 Therefore, not only water and bread, but also clothing is the very advantageous beginning of a good life. 15. There is a fourth, namely, a house protecting one’s shame.49 This shame seems great: for water cannot completely remove it, nor clothing totally cover it, so that the size of a house is needed so this shame can be covered. This shame, which one garment is not enough to cover, is not in one part of the human body. Rather, it is so spread out that it leaves nothing sound from the sole of the foot to the top of the head. It is the corruption of sins. Job laments this shame, saying, my flesh is clothed in festering, with stains of dust.50 How clothed? Completely surrounded: the foot offends by going, the ear by hearing, the hand by activity, the tongue in word, sight in viewing vanities, to the point that we can say with the pagan (gentili), “There is no place left in us for a new wound.”51 This is indeed a heavy yoke52 upon the sons of Adam from the day of their birth to the day of their burial.53 Why was I received on someone’s knee, why nursed by breasts? Now I would be silently asleep, and in my sleep I would rest with kings and consuls, and as though a concealed stillborn or those conceived who do not see the light, I would not be.54 What shall I say? We have an illness; it is necessary to seek a remedy. We see that this house is necessary, so it can cover this shame. It is, if I am not mistaken, the claustral discipline of the way of life that not only measures and rules the conscience of the heart, but also all the activities of the outer man. For example, silence informs the tongue; the cloister, the feet; obedience, the hand; solitude, sight; and divine speech, hearing. As a result, in holy men (viris)55 everything is done with discipline outside and with peace within. What brightness is in fire, stillness in the air, tranquility in the sea, pleasantness in the earth; discipline is in the community and peace is in the heart. 16. The foundation of this house is the beginners; the laws, the laborers; the roof, those who contemplate. Do not those who convert from an evil way of life and receive the form of religious life truly lay down a foundation? Likewise those who labor on the walls, who, after they have begun by firm action, manfully support the administration, foresight, and governance of the work of their Church not only in bodily matters but also in spiritual ones. Contemplatives, who wash their feet with the bride and do not want to stand up lest they soil them,56

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complete the roof. They stand before God, free from earthly occupations, and they serve Him in spirit and mind, meditating on His law day and night.57 17. Behold, dearly beloved brothers, the dove, that is, any weak person, has found a home for herself, and the turtledove a nest for herself, where she can put her chicks,58 that is, a spiritual nest. In this house, the sick person takes custody of his illness and the hale person guards his health.59 This house is granted to mortals in the present as a remedy until, in the future, we will enter joyfully into the house not made by hands, which is in heaven,60 when He will hide us in the hidden place of His countenance, away from the disturbance of men and will protect us in His tent from tongues in conflict.61 May Jesus Christ, our King, humble man and sublime God, Whose reign and rule remain forever, lead us there. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39

Sir 29:21: For “beginning” (“initium”) NRSV has “necessities,” and for “covering his shame” (“protegens turpitudinem ejus”) NRSV has “to assure privacy.” Isa 6:5; Jer 9:26; Exod 6:30; Rom 2:29. Titus 1:9; 1 Pet 4:11; 1 Cor 4:1–2. Isa 3:7 (“non est medicus”). Heb 4:12. Isa 66:10; Introit for Laetare Sunday. Rom 8:21. Guided by the Latin, which parallels the previous sentence (“in eo vero quod vox … prorumpit … memoria est”), I have here changed the punctuation and paragraph division of the text. Gen 2:15 (“in horto voluptatis”). Gen 3:23 (“de paradiso voluptatis”). Sir 29:21. Song 5:2. Ps 76:20. “nil Deo”: This does not fit well grammatically, and it could also go with the following clause. Perhaps “nil” should be “non.” “Compunction”: comes from the verb “compungo,” which means to pierce. Sir 29:21. Ps 16:15. 1 Cor 2:9. Gen 27:28. In the geography of ancient Israel, dew was an important source of moisture. The three traditional Lenten activities, based on Matt 6:1–18. “gastrimargiae”: belly + side [dishes]. Isa 58:5–6. “Left” and “right” may mean “improper” and “proper.” Here, there is probably a reference to Matt 6:3: “Let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing” and Matt 25:33. See paragraph 14, below. Sir 29:21. Sir 29:21. 3  (1) Kings 19:6. The four kinds of bread that Absalom distinguishes are “subcinericius” (cooked under hot ashes); “coctus in clibano” (cooked in a bread pan); “assatus in craticula” (roasted on a griddle); “frixus oleo in sartagine” (fried in oil on a frying pan). For a more extensive allegorizing of many kinds of bread mentioned in the Bible, see Peter of Celle, De panibus (PL 202.929–1046); Hugh Feiss, “Food for the Soul: The Reading and Writing of Peter of Celle’s De Panibus (On Breads),” ABR 66 (2015):171–98. Lev 2:4. Lev 2:6–7. Lev 2:5. 2 Cor 4:17. Sir 2:16. 2 Cor 11:29. 1 Cor 12:14–22. Luke 10:37. Rom 12:5. Ps 103:15. Lev 2:5–7. Acts 5:41. Isa 66:10. Isa 40:1.

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43 44 45

46 47 48 49 50 51

52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59

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Isa 66:11. Sir 29:21. “contemptus sui”: a common phrase in medieval religious writing that can strike modern ears as indicating an unwholesome disparagement of the self. The related theme, “contemptus mundi,” was often invoked in classical Greco-Roman writings and then in Latin Christianity. Here, Absalom is paraphrasing the Rule of Benedict 7:51–52 (RB, 198–201), which also cites Ps 21:7. This is the seventh of the twelve steps of humility that Benedict distinguishes. “Obsequium amicos, veritas odium parit.” Terence, Andria 1.1.68, tr. John Sargeaunt, LCL (Cambridge, MA; Harvard University Press, 1976), 10–11. “Bonarum mentium est ibi culpas agnoscere, hoc est timere ubi non sunt.” This authority is not from Scripture, but from Gregory the Great, Registrum epistolarum 64 (PL 77.1195). It was cited, for example, by St Thomas Aquinas, ST 2–2, q. 113.1, obj. 2 (Caramello, 2:526; tr. Fathers of the English Dominican Province, 2:1674). Heb 12:11. Gen 35:18. For the meanings of the names given Rachel’s son, see Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 3.23–24). Matt 25:33–34. Sir 29:21. Job 7:5. “Non habet in nobis jam nova plaga locum.” This is a slightly adapted version of the last line of Ovid’s Letters from Pontus, Book  4, Eleg.  16, of which a translation can be found at http://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/OvidExPontoBkFour.htm (accessed Feb. 3, 2016): “So, Envy, stop reviling one exiled from his country, / stop scattering my ashes about, you, cruel one. / I’ve lost everything: only my life remains, / to grant me feeling and the stuff of sorrow. / Where’s the joy in stabbing your steel into my dead flesh? / There’s no place left where I can be dealt fresh wounds.” Cf. Matt 11:30. Sir 40:1; cf. 3 (1) Kings 12:4, 10, 14. Job 3:12–16. Here, as in Sermon 25.1, Absalom uses “vir” (male human being) instead of the more usual “homo” (human being). This may be because he is addressing an all-male audience. Song 5:3. Ps 1:2. Ps 83:4. “et infirmus [sanat] morbum, et incolumis sanitatem custodit”: The text seems to need emendation. However, rather than add “sanat” (“heals”) as does the Patrologia latina, I translate “custodit” both as “take custody of ” and “guards.” 2 Cor 5:1. Ps 30:21.

ABSALOM OF SPRINGIERSBACH SERMON 25: ON THE PASSION OF THE LORD INTRODUCTION

This sermon expounds Ezekiel 2:9–10, one phrase at a time: I saw and behold a hand stretched out to me that held a book, and it opened it before me. It was written on both sides inside and out, and there had been written in it lamentations, song, and woe. 1. Book: sufficient for all; a song of seven notes; closed but now opened (par. 1–4). 2. Written inside and out: its inner meaning understood by those whose book of conscience is clear, rather than by those who devote all their energy to vain philosophy (par. 5–7). 3. Lamentations, song, and woe (par. 8). The occasion of the sermon is not stated, but the editor of Absalom’s works, Abbot Daniel Schilling of Springiersbach, places this sermon after sermons on the Annunciation and Palm Sunday, so it may have been written for Holy Week. The verse on which Absalom comments does not appear in the Cantus Index or in Pascher’s Das liturgische Jahr. In the sermon, Absalom returns to some of the themes of Sermon 18: consolation, perseverance, the wisdom and discipline of the cloister contrasted with the pursuit of worldly knowledge (par. 3, 6). These are topics he feels his listeners and readers needed to consider. The audience is a group of claustrals, probably canons regular. When, in 1534, Daniel Schilling published Absalom’s sermons from a manuscript at Douai (from the Benedictine monastery of Anchin), he may have felt his own community needed to listen to Absalom’s message, but he—and probably Absalom—had a wider audience in mind. His publisher (Joannes Gymnicus, Cologne) certainly thought so, when in his cover letter to Abbot Schilling he wrote that he hoped other abbots would study Absalom’s sermons in preference to worldly activities, and learn from that a purer form of Latin theology, superior to barbarous

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sophistry. In fact, the publisher is sure that Absalom himself watched protectively over the publication of his sermons.1 The sermon sees in Christ a book, the text of which the Christian should inscribe in the book of his conscience (par. 1–2). There are seven notes in the melody of Christ’s life that one should think about (par. 3). What was vaguely foretold of Christ before the Incarnation is now unsealed (par. 4). The wounds inscribed on Christ’s flesh can be read at three levels: the letter, the meaning, and the message. The letter is the historical passion of Christ; the meaning is the imitation of the Lord’s passion; the message is our redemption, which is embraced with purity of faith, loving devotion, and contemplation (par. 5). Hence, simple people who share Christ’s sufferings can understand them better than wealthy people. This book is better understood by the mind’s feeling than by the intellect. In an interesting reference to manuscript production, Absalom asks what good it is to make manuscripts of the Psalms with an illumination of David playing the harp, or the prophets with an illumination of Daniel confronting the old men in Susanna’s garden, if one neglects the book of one’s conscience (par. 6–7). Therefore, Absalom says, you should take the narrow way of asceticism and discipline. By that way one avoids Hell and, in good living, finds consolation that will be fulfilled when all the saints know Christ as they are known by him (par. 7–9).

1

PL 211.11–14.

S ermon 2 5 : On the Passion of the Lord

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TRANSLATION

He stretched before me a book, which had been written on the inside and the outside, and in it had been written lamentations, song, and woe.1 1. Dear brothers, you who have received the Spirit of adoption of sons, and have put on our Lord Jesus Christ by a holy way of life, retain in your memory and your conduct that every action of Christ is our reading. For this reason, in Himself He is rightly referred to by the name “book,” because in Him we must read the form of our life. A man holy2 and poor in spirit, whose heart was on fire about Jesus, would better expound the storyline (seriem) of this book, which contains the entire history of our reparation, because someone who lives more religiously understands it better. It is not those who pronounce the tender (pium) name of the Lord Jesus with the tips of their lips, but those who attain to His loving-kindness (pietatem)3 by their life and conduct who are worthy to read this book. However, since I am not allowed to be silent, and I do not know how to speak,4 let the Lord God speak in me, and let the key of David,5 which can open the book and loosen its seals,6 open up its mysteries. 2. So, the book that has been mentioned is Christ. In the Apocalypse, it is said of Him: I saw at the right of the One sitting on the throne a book that was written inside and out, sealed with seven seals.7 Concerning this, it is also said in Daniel, in that time your people will be saved, everyone who will have been found in the book, and many of these who sleep in the dust of the earth will wake up.8 This is a book sufficient for all. This is the book of which Ezekiel said, he opened the book before me, etc.9 To the extent that it offers reading to the delight of the delicate, it also offers exercise for the studious. To the extent that the ineffable union of God and man belongs to this book,10 it ascends, as it were, like seven royal voices from the bottom to the top; so, just as humility raises human beings all the way to God, the loftiness of God bends down all the way to the humility of humankind. 3. Do you wish to hear the seven sounds (sonos) of this song (cantus)?11 Recall how humble, how despised Christ appeared when He was born, and that song renders you a humble sound. Recall how meek and loving He showed Himself in word and deed, and it renders you a sweet sound. Recall to memory what great signs and deeds of power12 He showed, and you will hear a subtle sound. Recall to memory that He joined human and angelic nature in one love (charitate) because He

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reunited man to God, and you hear a harmonious sound. If you recall how He was afflicted with taunts, stabbed with wounds, crowned with thorns, and finally nailed to the Cross, that song will render you a deep sound. However, when, after death was conquered by the power of divinity, He rose from the dead, this song renders a high sound. When He ascended victorious into heaven, it rendered an extremely high song. Indeed, this song is not proposed for the delicate of the world, but for the delicate of God, who are delighted by meditating on such things, as if delighting in all riches. Reading this book is nonetheless necessary. It does not teach how to harmonize the decrees of Gratian, nor to weigh the laws of Justinian, nor to breathe out the subtlety of sophistries, nor always to learn and never to progress. Instead, it teaches how to recognize faults, to sigh for pardon, to set one’s behavior in order, to order one’s life, to seek salvation, to find God. 4. This reading is now clear, but it was not always thus. This book was once sealed, once closed, but now it is open.13 Before the Incarnation of Christ this book had been sealed with seven seals, because its promise still had been wrapped in certain obscurities, so that none, or at most a few, could know the mystery of the Incarnation.14 What else but a kind of seal were those personal deliverances of the patriarchs, angelic apparitions, offerings of sacrifices, images of revelations, all of which prefigured Christ actually or by similitude? If you add to these the obscurities of the Scriptures, the delay of the promise, and despair about the fulfillment of truth, you will find a total of seven seals by which this book was sealed before the Incarnation. With the Incarnation of Christ this book appeared, but it was kept closed, because the power of His divinity did not appear openly because it was overshadowed by the weakness of His human nature. Although He was said to be a prophet powerful in deed and word,15 they thought this was not ascribed to divine power but to the merits of the virtues of a holy man. If they had known it, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory.16 Finally, in His Passion this book was opened, and the everlasting power and divinity that lay hidden in His humanity began to burst outside, when creatures felt the authority of their Creator and rocks were split, the earth trembled, and the veil of the Temple was cut from top to bottom. When the haircloth fabric by which the sun of true light was covered was thrown back, that sun began to shine with its power in such a way that it poured out its rays in all directions and illumined not only those who sat in darkness and the shadow of death,17 but it also poured the light of faith into the hearts

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of many unbelievers. Hence, when that centurion in the Gospel saw the wonders that were happening, he shouted, saying, truly this was the Son of God.18 5. After this book was opened in the Passion, its writing19 began to be read. However, it was written inside and out.20 The interior writing was the Word of God, Who was written in the flesh of Christ by the working of the Holy Spirit. The exterior writing was what impious persecutors inscribed on His body with injuries and wounds, the outpouring of His blood, and the ignominy of the Cross, not with golden but with horrible letters. From then on, this writing was read, but not all understood it. Like other writings, this writing had three levels: the letter, the plain meaning (sensum), and the message (sententiam).21 To speak first of the exterior writings: its letter is the historical Passion of the Lord; its plain meaning, which is gathered from the letter, is the imitation of the Lord’s Passion; its message, which is pondered in accord with the plain meaning, is the fruit of our redemption. The one who holds to the Lord’s Passion only by faith and not by doing is a boy, who reads but does not understand. The one who imitates the Passion of Christ with patience, and labors for the name of Jesus22 by keeping to the hard roads, reads this writing and progresses by understanding it. The one who perseveres to the end by bearing the yoke of the Lord’s Cross understands this writing perfectly. Similarly, the interior writing has these three things. Its letter is the purity of faith regarding the Word of God. Its plain meaning is the feeling of loving devotion. Its message is the joy of divine contemplation. The reading of this writing is especially suitable for the perfect, whose way of life is in heaven,23 and who having disdained earthly consolation are aflame with love of heavenly goods. Moreover, we see something wondrous happen regarding this writing, because here the boy teaches the old man; the foolish, the wise; the stammering, the fluent; the disciple, the master; the illiterate, the literate. Behold some vile little man, a poor little woman, who control their flesh with haircloth, mortify it every day with vigils and fasts, distribute to the poor bread, which they search for by hand and skill, and in no way draw back from the footsteps of the Lord’s Passion, while, by contrast, nobles and the wise of this world waste their days in the luxury of wealth, in an abundance of pleasure, and in human desires, so far removed from the Cross of the Lord that they regard as only miserable those who faithfully imitate the misery of the Lord’s Passion. 6. Who do you think has a better understanding of these writings about which we have spoken? In my estimation, it is those who are

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moved by them in a better way, who comprehend them better by feeling than by understanding. Now, however, it will be more useful to consider whether any of the books that we read is written according to the pattern of the Book of Life, because what is committed to writing is sometimes looked at more frequently and better committed to memory. Not inappropriately would I call “books” all the consciences of the just, which are well formed by the virtues of Christ, because in them a certain image of the virtues of the Lord Jesus is represented. Of these books it says in Daniel, the court sat and the books were opened.24 And elsewhere, hear, O Israel, the commandments25 of your God and write them in your heart as in a book.26 The Prophet says, the law of his God is in his heart.27 These books are written according to the Book of Life because from his fullness we have all received,28 and whatever good or grace we see in us, all of it is drawn off from Him to us, like a stream from a spring. Let each one see if the book of his conscience is properly written, well punctuated with virtues, lest that forger who was a liar from the beginning superimpose some blemish of sin in the writing of the truth. If you are tormented by hate or spite, your book is erroneous. If you burn with ambition or greed, your book is erroneous. If you are polluted with any bodily impurity, your book is erroneous. In fact, whatever you find in yourself contrary to Christ regard as a defect in your book. Therefore, O Christian, carefully inspect the book of your conscience and inscribe it with the virtues of your Savior, so that you may always have present in your heart Him Whose likeness of innocence you strive to retain through a clean conscience. What good does it do to decorate so carefully, and correct with so much work, the books we keep in a storage place, while we leave uncorrected the book of conscience from which life proceeds? We see that in the psalms of David many paint a cithara player with precious colors and in the prophets, paint certain old men whom Daniel was supposed to venerate;29 they make precious codices sprinkled with gold letters, and leave the book of conscience still neglected, still soiled, because the Holy Spirit does not deign to dwell in it30 with the light of grace. 7. There are others who, having cast off the living knowledge of Christ, give themselves over to secular philosophy with all their energy, and, lest anything be wanting in their task, they follow it with a certain speedy retinue and impose it to be carried on people’s shoulders. Recall that vehicle of philosophy, which they committed to be carried by two boys, who are Labor and Love, and by the same number of girls, who

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are Sleeplessness31 and Care. By this they signify that one can arrive at knowledge of philosophy only by labor and love, sleeplessness and care. O fruitless labor, O mistaken love; O stupid sleeplessness, O superfluous care. Labor is truly fruitless, if it is relieved by no rest; love is erring, if it is lit by no spiritual fire; sleeplessness is stupid, if nothing useful results; care is superfluous, if accompanied by no security.32 Wretched soul, tell what solace of spirit there is in all these things, what support of good, what cause of salvation. Therefore, repair your conscience, gaze on the Book of Life, so that it may teach you what you find lacking in yourself. There, you will find words of consolation,33 words of eternal life, that may lead you back to the way of salvation from which you have wandered on the wide roads34 of this world. 8. Since in that book are written lamentations, song, and woe, each of these has its words by which it speaks to you for fear, correction, or consolation. Lamentations pertain to imitation of the Lord’s Passion, song to His glorious Resurrection, and woe to the judgment at the final retribution. In “lamentations” you will find rough words that pertain to the works of penitence, such as to eat your bread in the sweat of your brow.35 Like water, pour out your heart before God:36 afflict yourself with lament and groaning, and, by vexing37 your body, reduce your body to servitude, and do other things of this kind by which a person imitates the Cross of our Lord in this mortal body. In “woe” are found certain terrible words, which are weeping and gnashing of teeth,38 bitter flames, deep darkness, cruel tortures, and other kinds of torments, which have been prepared for the devil and his angels.39 “Song” speaks consoling words, joyous words that are full of the absolution of guilt, restoration of grace, return from exile, gathering of the Kingdom, fellowship with God, gaining of eternity. Therefore, if you are still a sinner and you are still lying putrefied with Lazarus40 in the tomb of a biting conscience, read these terrible words that pertain to woe so that, at least struck by the terror of punishments, you may recover from your faults. If, in fact, because of fruitful contrition you feel compunction for your sins, turn your gaze to the rough words that you will find in lamentations, so that by works of penitence you may give satisfaction to God, Whom you have offended. However, if you are already justified by good works, turn your attention to the consoling words, which pertain to song; they are proposed in the present life for consolation and in the future life for full enjoyment. 9. Thus, let every imitator of Christ, for whom it is good to cling to Christ, be so engaged with the Book of Life41 that, having evaded

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the punishments of hell through many tribulations42 and the narrow way,43 he moves toward the life in which, once what is partial has been emptied out,44 all the saints, understanding perfectly the Book of Life, will know Christ as they are known by Him.45 May Jesus Christ lead us to this knowledge of Him, Whose reign and dominion remain forever. Amen.

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NOTES 1

2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11

12

13 14

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

22 23 24 25

Ezek 2:9–10. The word translated as “song” is “carmen,” which can mean a number of things, including “prophecy” and “lyric.” The Douai-Rheims version translates it as “canticles.” Absalom interprets it to mean something joyful, in contrast to the other two words, “lamentations” and “woe.” “aliquis sanctus vir”: unusually, Absalom uses the word “vir,” “male,” rather than “homo,” human being/humanity. See Absalom, Sermon 18.15, elsewhere in this volume. In keeping with his theme of Jesus as a book on which to pattern one’s life, Absalom says that the tender name of Jesus should be manifest in the tenderness of one worthy to read this book. It is impossible to capture in translation all the nuances of these two words. The adjective “pius” means “dutiful,” “devout,” “conscientious,” “affectionate,” “tender,” and “grateful.” Jer 1:6. Isa 22:22; Rev 3:7. Rev 5:2, 9. Rev 5:1. Dan 12:1–2. Ezek 2:9. “Quantus libri istius ineffabilis illa unio Dei et hominis”: The first four words of this clause seem untranslatable as they stand. It is here conjectured that the first word should be “quantum.” Absalom seems to be referring to the musical scale, which in the Middle Ages had seven notes. That such an analogy occurred to him is indicative of the breadth of his training in the liberal arts. “signis et virtutibus”: See Acts 2:22 (“virtutibus et prodigiis et signis”). This is a good translation of the semeia kai dunameis that in the Gospels refer to what later generations of Christians called “miracles.” “Virtutibus” could also be translated “virtues.” Rev 5:1, 5, 9. Whether and how many Old Testament people foreknew the Incarnation was a topic discussed by theologians in the twelfth century. See, for example, Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.10.4 and 6 (PL 176.332B–333D, 335A–339D). See also Hugh of St Victor, Libellus 2 (Sicard, 127; tr. Rudolph, 41) regarding the longitudinal lines on the Ark of Noah as Hugh depicted it. There were people under the law of grace, who believed in Christ, in all three of the ages of humankind (Adam to Moses; Moses to Christ; Christ to the end of the world). See, for example, the discussion in Franklin T. Harkins, Reading and the Work of Restoration (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 2009), 240–53. Luke 24:19. 1 Cor 2:8. Luke 1:79. Matt 27:54. Here and in the following section the word “scriptura” is translated as “writing,” since it is used to refer to a form of writing other than the Sacred Scriptures of the Bible. Ezek 2:9. “littera, sensus, sententia”: These three terms distinguish three levels at which one can read a text. See Hugh of St Victor, Didasc. 6.9–11 (Buttimer, 126–29; tr. Harkins, VTT 6:175–78, where the three terms are translated as “letter,” “sense,” “meaning”); Dale Coulter, Per Visibilia ad Invisibilia: Theological Method in Richard of St Victor (d. 1173), BV 19 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2006), 76–81. Patience and perseverance to the end are frequent themes in Absalom’s sermons. Phil 3:20. Dan 7:10. Bar 3:9.

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30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

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Prov 7:3. Ps 36:31. John 1:16. Daniel 13. Here the Patrologia latina’s “caniele” is corrected to “Daniele.” The reference is to the two old men who tried to seduce Susanna. Daniel brought about their conviction. The use of “venerandos” to describe them is ironic. “illam”: the antecedent of “it” is “conscience.” “vigilia”: this word had a Christian meaning as the name of the night hour of Divine Office and more generally as a term for keeping vigil in prayer. “comitatur”: This echoes the “comitatu” (“retinue”) mentioned earlier in the paragraph. On consolation, see the next paragraph and Absalom, Sermon 18, elsewhere in this volume. Matt 7:13. Gen 3:19. Lam 2:19. “maceratio”: the fundamental meaning of this word is steeping or marinating. Matt 8:12; Luke 13:28; etc. Matt 25:41. John 11:39. On the connection of Lazarus with penitence in patristic and medieval exegesis, see Susan R. Kramer, Sin Interiority and Selfhood in the Twelfth-Century West, Studies and Texts 200 (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 2015), 25–54; see Maurice de Sully, Sermon 38 for the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, below. John 20:30; Phil 4:3; Rev 1:11; 21:27. Jdt 8:22, 23; Ps 70:20; Acts 14:21. Matt 7:13–14. 1 Cor 13:10. 1 Cor 13:12.

ANONYMOUS OF ST VICTOR SERMON 3: ON THE TRIPLE GLORIFICATION ON THE HOLY CROSS INTRODUCTION

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross began in Jerusalem. After the finding of the true cross early in the fourth century, a basilica was built on Golgotha. At the dedication ceremony, the cross was displayed for veneration. The dedication feast thereafter was connected with a commemoration of the finding of the cross and its veneration. As relics of the cross were distributed throughout the East, the ritual of veneration also spread. When in the seventh century the feast came to Rome, it was associated with the recovery of the cross from the Persians under the Emperor Heraclius (610–41). When the local liturgies of Gaul and Spain were Romanized in the middle of the eighth century, the feast was introduced into Gaul. The date of the feast (14 September) and its name (“exaltation”) were the same as in the East. As the feast spread in the West outside of Rome, the veneration of the relics of the cross disappeared from its celebration. Amalarius of Metz (d. 850/52), commenting on the Good Friday liturgy, wrote that the cross can be adored in itself quite apart from any relic of it.1 Gradually, the focus of the feast shifted from the elevation of the cross to the elevation of the crucified, a theme expressed from the beginning in the biblical readings associated with the feast: Psalm 93, 96; Philippians 2; John 3; John 12. In the early Roman, Frankish, and Hispanic liturgical texts, the cross is a glorious cross, the place of Christ’s triumph and glorification, by which salvation came to humankind. By ad1000, the texts for the feast were fixed. Only in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries did the focus shift decisively from Christ the Victor over death to Christ the suffering and dying Man of Sorrows. This shift in sensitivity did not result in a 1

On the Liturgy 1.14, ed. and tr. Eric Knibbs, Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2014), 1:174–75.

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change in the liturgical texts for the feast, which thus remain a witness to an earlier Christological sensibility.2 The anonymous Victorine who composed this sermon3 takes as his text Galatians 6:14, which was the usual text for the introit of the Mass for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Philippians 2:8–9, which the sermon cites several times, was the epistle reading at the Mass. Both of these texts were used in the Holy Week liturgies as well. The author’s theme, that there are three aspects of the cross for which Christians should glory—remedy, example, and mystery—could apply to Lent or Holy Week as well as to the Feast of the Exaltation. The reference to Christ’s final words on the cross and to the harrowing of hell, could suggest a Holy Week setting, but the title “glorificatio” suggests the theology of the Feast of the Holy Cross.4 As the footnotes to the translation indicate, the author of this sermon makes use of several of Achard of St Victor’s sermons and there are parallels to sermons of Walter of St Victor as well. Similar references to other Victorines are found in Walter of St Victor’s sermons, one indication that he may be the author of this sermon. The preacher’s text is Galatians 6:14: Far be it from me to glory, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world is crucified to me and I to the world. He divides his sermon into two parts, corresponding to the two parts of the quotation. First, he thinks of three ways in which one might glory in the sacrament of the cross (par. 1): as remedy, example, and mystery (par. 2). He then considers these three aspects of the cross successively (par. 2–4). In the second part, he considers the need to die to the world, the flesh, and the devil (par. 5). This requires a death to self-will (par. 5–6), an acceptance of the wholesome but bitter things of life, and the avoidance of the poisonous sweetness the world offers (par. 7). One must run toward the joy that lies ahead, despising the disdain of others that following Christ can bring upon oneself (par. 8), but also praying for one’s adversaries (par. 9), like Christ whose prayer for forgiveness for those who crucified Him was like a song that stunned creation and moved God to forgive sins, so that in the end all on earth, below the earth, and in heaven bend the knee before Christ the Lord in the glory of God the Father (par. 9). Thus, from the opening to the closing Scriptural citations, the sermon moves from glory to glory. 2 3 4

Louis van Tongeren, Exaltation of the Cross: Toward the Origins of the Feast of the Cross and the Meaning of the Cross in Early Medieval Liturgy (Leuven: Peeters, 2000), especially 275–84. Ed. Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 250–55. Van Tongeren, Exaltation, 154–61.

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TRANSLATION

1. Far be it from me to glory, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world is crucified to me and I to the world.1 The sacrament of the Lord’s Passion is great and deep; it seems foolish to the wise of this world, but what is God’s foolishness, in the estimate of human beings, is wiser2 than they can be or understand. This is a sacrament that has been hidden from the wise and clever of this world and revealed to the little ones.3 Would that we, too, would be little ones, not in wisdom, but in wickedness, so that He would deign to reveal this sacrament also to us, and we could also glory with the Apostle in its revelation and say: Far be it from me to glory, except in the cross of the Lord, etc.4 2. There are three things for which one should glory in the Cross: remedy, example, and mystery. By remedy, we refer to the merit of Christ’s Passion and death. For Christ, Who was free from every sin, the one free among the dead, owed nothing to death but, nevertheless, because of the measureless love with which he loved us,5 in obedience to the Father, underwent a death to which He was not obligated for us who are obligated to death.6 Thus He merited much and granted that merit to us so that He would do for us what He would have done for Himself if He had needed it.7 His merit was so great that is sufficed for the salvation of all. The extent of merit is usually measured by the amount of love from which it is comes. Therefore, since the love of Christ was measureless, so the merit of His death was measureless. If all the saints, however many there have been since the beginning of the world and will be until the end of time, were free from all sin and died for justice, the death of them all would not merit as much as the one death of the Savior, undergone just once. I will say still more. If all the Angels, Dominations, Thrones, Cherubim, and Seraphim were incarnate and became mortal and died for truth, justice, or lovingkindness, the merit of all could not equal the merit of Christ. It was enough in itself not only for the redemption of the entire world, but also, if there were infinite worlds and all of them believed in Christ, it would have sufficed for the salvation of all. Paul contemplated this incomparable treasury of our salvation and said: Far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,8 that is, far be it from me that I judge myself worthy of glory and salvation apart from the virtue, effectiveness, and merit of the Lord’s Passion. In this remedy is our only hope because there is no other name under heaven in which we

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must be saved.9 This remedy suffices for the salvation of little children and those who have no time to act.10 3. For those who can act, it is required that, in addition to remedy, there follows example, because Christ has suffered for us so that we may follow in his footsteps.11 Hence, the Apostle: We exhort you, brothers, lest you receive the grace of God in vain.12 He calls grace this remedy that is Christ’s death. Someone who does not wish to act well when he can receives grace in vain. Therefore, glory in the Cross as an example, that is, imitate Him with joy, like the Apostle who glories in tribulations,13 and the apostles who left the presence of the council rejoicing because they were held worthy to suffer disgrace for the sake of Jesus’ name.14 It is necessary to imitate the example of the Passion not only to retain the remedy but also to increase the crown. Each one will receive his own wage according to his labor,15 and what a man sows he reaps.16 Let each one pay attention into what land he sows what seed, because the one who sows in the flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, and the one who sows in the spirit will reap incorruption from the spirit,17 and the one who sows sparsely will also reap sparsely, while the one who sows in blessings will also reap from blessings.18 Let all contention be far away from us because fire will test what sort of work each one does.19 4. We call the mystery of this word its mystical significance. This wood is shaped like a quadrangle. The quadrangle of the Cross signifies a kind of invisible quadrangle of charity, of which the Apostle said: Rooted and based in love, you are able to comprehend with all the saints what are its width and length, what are its height and depth.20 The breadth of love is that it extends to enemies, which is symbolized by the breadth of the Cross. The length of love is that it perseveres to the end, which is symbolized by the length of the Cross. The height of love is that it does all things for God, for the hope of eternal beatitude. The depth of love is that it ascribes nothing to human merit, but everything to the grace and mercy of God, Whose causes and reasons and judgments we cannot comprehend.21 This depth has no bottom, so that the Apostle, speaking of the choice of Jacob and the rejection of Esau, exclaims: O the depth of the riches of the wisdom and the knowledge of God, how incomprehensible are his judgments.22 Those who are not rooted and based in love23 cannot comprehend this quadrangle of love. They cannot know it perfectly; darkness does not comprehend the light.24 One is rooted through love of neighbor; one is based through love of God. One becomes a good tree through love of neighbor; one becomes the house of God, the dwelling and temple of God, through

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love of God. The love of neighbor appears outwardly in action; the love of God lies hidden in the heart. See what pleasing fruits the tree of brotherly love bears. It expands its branches in every direction. To its superiors, it shows reverence and obedience; to its inferiors, providence and care; to those who are on the right by some accomplishment, it offers congratulations; to those who are the left because of some deficiency and trial, it offers compassion. To those who precede it, it offers imitation; to those who follow it, it offers exhortation.25 Those who see this quadrangle in themselves can, not undeservedly, glory in the mystery of the Cross, just as those who have a sound faith and are reborn in Christ can very worthily rejoice in the remedy of the Cross. Those who bear the marks of Jesus in their body can glory in the example of the Cross. There are, therefore, three things for which one should glory in the Cross: remedy pertains to faith, example to action, mystery to love. These three, faith, action, and love, are required as necessary for salvation. Paul says of faith: Without faith it is impossible to please God.26 Regarding works, James writes that without them faith is dead.27 The Apostle says of love: If I hand over my body to be burned, but I do not have love, it does me no good.28 5. Far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world is crucified to me and I to the world.29 Through the grace of Christ, the world, that is, the base desires of the world, are crucified, put to death, and extinguished, so that they will not rule in me or dominate me, nor drag me after them; and I to the world, through the evils that I bear. Just as Paul desired nothing in the world, so the world, that is, the lovers of the world, saw nothing to want in Paul. Paul saw nothing in the world except concupiscence of the flesh, and concupiscence of the eyes, and pride of life, all of which he denounced.30 In particular, in order to gain Christ,31 he judged riches, honors, and dignities to be so much manure. On the other hand, the world saw nothing in Christ but persecutions, troubles, hunger and thirst, nakedness,32 and such things, all of which it does not love, but flees. Therefore, the world was crucified to Paul through contempt of the world,33 and Paul was crucified to the world through his endurance of suffering. 6. The Lord urges that the world be crucified to us and in us, and we to the world, saying, Whoever wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, that is, let him crucify the world in himself, and take up his cross,34 that is, crucify himself to the world. Therefore, to crucify the world to oneself and deny oneself are the same things, and to crucify oneself to

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the world and take up the cross are the same thing. It is difficult to leave behind the objects of our willing, that is, the things we want, but much more difficult to deny oneself, that is, to leave behind one’s own willing. Nevertheless, this is necessary if we wish to follow Christ. The soldier of Christ must leave behind his own will for the will of another,35 not only the bad for the good, but also one’s own good for the good of another, not only the lesser good for the greater good, but one good for another equal good. Sometimes, it is even advantageous to leave behind one’s own greater good for the lesser good of another, and this will not be a lesser good but a greater good.36 The one who imitates Christ must set his own will not only for the will of his superior, but also for the will of an equal or even an inferior. To leave behind one’s own will for the will of someone greater is the good will of God. To leave behind one’s own will for the will of an equal, this is the will of God well pleased; to cut off one’s own will for the will of an inferior is the perfect will of God.37 7. And let him take up his cross,38 that is, let him suffer bitter things and hard things for the sake of justice and truth. This is the discipline of Christ: to flee the joys of the present life and to live austerely. The prudence of the flesh is to turn away from all hard things and all bitter things and to seek after the sweet and pleasing. Therefore, here there is need for wisdom so we will not be deceived by the seductive world. One needs to know that the glory of the world is like a sweet poison. The discipline of the Christian religion is like a bitter drink. Hence it is that thoughtless people, who are neither wise nor understanding, and do not look ahead to the last things, flee the healthy drink because of its bitterness and so are not healed. They drink with great eagerness the poison because of its sweetness, and so they die. The disciples of Christ, who have learned the truth in Him, flee the sweet drink because of the poison mixed into it, and manfully take the bitter drink because of the health that follows from it. 8. Let us therefore run with patience for this prize set before us, keeping our eyes on the author of our faith, Jesus, who for the joy set before him, despising shame, endured the cross.39 For the joy set before him, because the crowds wanted to grab Him and make Him king,40 but He fled. He did not want the kingdom of this world. He taught and informed us to flee dignities and honors in the present, not only because all of these vanish like smoke but also because, in them, poison is lurking beneath the honey. He endured the cross, not only to bestow a remedy but also to offer an example. He did what He invited others to do. He was not like the scribes and Pharisees, talkers but not doers,41

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nor like those prelates who bind up unbearable burdens and impose them on people’s shoulders, but do not want to touch them with their finger.42 Despising shame,43 when almost the entire kingdom of the Jews had come together for the Passover solemnity,44 in the sight of all, He bore death and the like. Thus, He despised shame, by which He taught us to despise shame, to despise contempt, and to have contempt for contempt, as He had earlier taught us with words, when He said: Whoever is ashamed of me and my teachings before men, I will be ashamed of before my Father.45 Usually, when the weak see others advanced to honors and dignities while they as it were lie at the bottom, they have contempt for themselves, especially if in the sight of others they hold a humble, wretched, and abject place. However, as a result of imitating Christ and in conformity to Him, they ought not feel this contempt, but rather they should glory in their position. The more someone is humble and cast down for Christ in the present, the higher he will be in the future. Let the humble brother glory in his exaltation.46 However, if someone is proud and haughty and, in this, similar to the devil and conformed to him, let him be despised. Thus did Christ, for the sake of the joy ahead, despising shame.47 9. Here is David, who was skilled in playing the cithara, playing on his cithara, teaching us how to play the cithara.48 You well know, brothers, in a cithara a string is stretched between pieces of wood, but in order to sound right it is first dried. Thus, our David, Who sings to the accompaniment of His cithara, dried the string of His flesh in the desert in the heat of the sun, fasting for forty days and forty nights.49 Now that it was well dried out, He stretched it and touched the string with the hand of love, and put forth a song of love, a word of compassion, a sound of mercy, saying, Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing.50 O how great is the kindness of Jesus most kind, Who at such a time prayed so kindly for His malicious enemies.51 He also touched a higher string when He cried out with a loud voice, saying, Father into your hands I commend my spirit, and saying this52 with his head bent down, he gave back his spirit.53 The sound of this piercing shout is heard in the world, in hell, and in heaven. Even things devoid of sensation sensed it: the curtain for the temple sensed it and was torn; the rocks sensed it and were split;54 the infernal gates heard and were broken; the infernal power and principalities heard it and were flattened. Abraham and the other just, who were kept in the infernal regions because of original sin, heard it and, when their chains had been broken, were freed, and thus they received freedom and the

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ability to go out and ascend to the heavenly regions. The sun heard and was darkened.55 The angels heard and were stunned; and when the voice sounded above the firmament that was situated above their heads, they stood and stretched their wings downward,56 that is, they felt humble. The sound reached even to God’s ears and, appeased by it, He forgave every offense of those for whom Jesus prayed. Thus, the sound of the shout was heard in heaven, on earth, and in hell, so that at the name of Jesus every knee is bent, of those in heaven, on earth, and in the netherworld, and every tongue confesses that Jesus is Lord in the glory of God the Father.57 To this may Jesus, the Son of God, deign to lead us. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

Gal 6:14. 1 Cor 1:20, 25. Matt 11:25. Gal 6:14. Eph 2:4. Phil 2:8. “for us … needed it”: This clause is found almost word for word in Achard of St  Victor, Serm. 1.6 (Châtillon, 34; tr. Feiss, Works, 104); see Achard of St Victor, Serm. 3.1 (Châtillon, 44; tr. Feiss, Works, 112); Serm. 11.3 (Châtillon, 119; tr. Feiss, Works, 89), and Walter of St Victor, Serm. 1.5 (Châtillon, 14). Gal 6:14. Acts 4:12. “little children … act”: This is found word for word in Achard of St Victor, Serm. 1.6 (Châtillon, 34; tr. Feiss, Works, 105); see also Walter of St Victor, Serm. 1.5 (Châtillon, 14). 1 Pet 2:21. 2 Cor 6:1. Rom 5:3. Acts 5:41. 1 Cor 3:8. Gal 6:8. Gal 6:8. 2 Cor 9:6. 1 Cor 3:13. Eph 3:17–18. To this point, this paragraph parallels Anonymous of St Victor, Serm. 6.3 (Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 271). Rom 11:33. Eph 3:17. John 1:5. “To its superiors… exhortation”: this corresponds to Achard of St  Victor, Serm. 13.28 (Châtillon, 161; tr. Feiss, Works, 242). Similar thoughts about a square or rectangle of love occur in Godfrey of St Victor’s Microcosmus; see Feiss, VTT 2:308–10. Heb 11:6. Jas 2:17. 1 Cor 13:3. Gal 6:14. 1 John 2:16. Phil 3:8. Rom 8:35. See Walter of St Victor, Serm. 3.4 (Châtillon, 30); Serm. 16.6 (Châtillon, 141–42). Matt 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23. “To leave behind … of another”: see Achard of St Victor, Serm. 15.12 (Châtillon, 212–13; tr. Feiss, Works, 313–14). “not only the lesser good … but a greater good”: Achard, Serm. 15.12 (Châtillon, 213; tr. Feiss, Works, 315). “his own will not only … perfect will of God”: Achard, Serm. 15.12 (Châtillon, 213; tr. Feiss, Works, 315). Matt 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23. Heb 12:1–2. John 6:15.

316 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51

52 53 54 55 56 57

A nonymous of S t   V ictor Matt 23:2–3; Jas 1:22. Matt 23:4; Luke 11:46. Heb 12:2. John 11:55. Luke 9:26; Matt 10:33. Jas 1:9. Heb 12:2. Rev 14:2. Matt 4:1–2; Mark 1:13; Luke 4:1–2. Luke 23:34. benignitas benignissimi: see Richard of St  Victor, Trin. 3.18 (Ribaillier, 153; tr.  Evans, VTT 1:262) and the comments of Boyd Taylor Coolman on this term in Hugh of St Victor’s Sententiae divinitatis and Richard’s De Trinitate: VTT 1:35–36, 38, 46–47. “Benignitas” occurs in four more places in the De  Trinitate: 5.24 (Ribaillier, 241; tr.  Evans, 262); 6.11 (Ribaillier, 241; tr.  Evans, 330); 6.13 (Ribaillier, 244; tr.  Evans, 333); 6.21 (Ribaillier, 258; tr. Evans, 344). Luke 23:46. John 19:30. Matt 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45. Luke 23:45. Ezek 1:25–26. Phil 2:10–11.

WALTER OF ST VICTOR SERMON 2: ON THE PASCHAL SOLEMNITY INTRODUCTION

In this sermon, Walter’s declaration of unworthiness to preach and his diffidence in the presence of his wiser listeners is shorter than his usual introductions and less original.1 It also leads seamlessly into the text he announces at the beginning and will cite again in the last paragraph: Christ died for our sins and rose for our justification,2 a very condensed Christian creed. This sermon shows that Walter was engaged with the theological world of the second half of the twelfth century. He presents and argues for several positions that were contended then. Thus, in paragraph two, Walter gives four different interpretations regarding the sin that Christ condemned in the flesh: (1) the devil, the author of sin; (2) the kindling wood of sin that theologians call concupiscence; (3) the sacrifice for sin; and (4) any disorder or deprivation of justice.3 As Châtillon explains in his notes, opinion (2) was associated with the disciples of Anselm of Laon and William of Champeaux, who identified original sin with concupiscence or an innate tendency toward sin (vitium). This idea is found in Hugh of St Victor, On the Sacraments, 1.7.28: “If one asks what is original sin in us, it is understood to be the corruption or tendency toward evil that we bear from our birth, through ignorance in our mind and concupiscence in our flesh.”4 Opinion (4) was that 1

2 3 4

Sermo 2, in sollempnitate paschali (ed. Châtillon, 19–25). Châtillon notes (Sermones inediti, 238–39) that the opening of Walter’s Sermo 2 is very like the opening of two anonymous sermons (Sermo 7 and Sermo 8) that are found in the manuscripts that contain Walter’s sermons. This is one indication among several that Walter is the author of some or all of the eight anonymous sermons that Châtillon edited in Sermones inediti, 235–90. In spite of, or perhaps to add irony to, his declaration of inadequacy, Walter proceeds in the rest of his opening paragraph to give a dazzling display of familiarity with the Scriptures. Rom 4:25. Rom 8:3–4. Sacr. 1.7.28 (PL 176.299A): “Si ergo quaeritur quid sit originale peccatum in nobis intelligitur corruptio sive vitium quod nascendo trahimus per ignorantiam in mente per concupiscentiam in carne” (tr. Deferrari, 134). See Odon Lottin, Psychologie et morale aux xiie et

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of Achard of St Victor, who taught that original sin consisted only of the deprivation of original justice.5 These theological positions do not elicit any polemics from Walter. He seems satisfied with listing various opinions regarding the sin from which Christ liberated us. At the beginning of paragraph four, Walter refers to the traditional imagery of the harrowing of hell, when Christ descended into hell to rescue the just of the Old Testament. When they exited “hell’s mouth,” they journeyed to the bosom or lap of God the Father, of which the bosom of Abraham6 was a symbol. On another point, Walter argues strongly for a Victorine position that not all theologians shared. Walter endorses the authority that says that in Christ was the plenitude of power, wisdom, and goodness, because as man he had by grace all that as God he had by nature. After Walter cites this authority, he launches into a sharp attack on those who disagree with it, because he believes that it is inseparable from the belief that Christ was fully and truly both God and man (par. 5).7 In paragraph 6, Walter returns to the faith in Christ’s resurrection that he says brings salvation. By such faith, one puts off the old man liable to guilt and punishment and puts on the new man endowed with justification and destined for full liberation and glory in the future. Walter rejoices in the belief that we are destined for glory, a word he repeats four times in the final paragraph.

5 6 7

xiiie siècles 4 (Gembloux: J. Duculot, 1954), 54, 65; Anonymous, Summa sententiarum 3.11 (PL 176.107A). Châtillon, Théologie et spiritualité, 167–68; Alleg. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom 5.13 (PL 175.887A); Lottin, Psychologie et morale, 4:81. Luke 16:22–23. See Châtillon, “Quidquid convenit Filio Dei,” Châtillon, D’Isidore de Séville, 319–31; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 7.4 (Châtillon, 59); Serm. 16.3 (Châtillon, 138); Serm. 22.6 (Châtillon, 181).

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TRANSLATION

1. Christ has died for our sins and risen for our justification.1 You know, my dearly beloved brethren, that I have not yet attained to this manner of speaking. I am very afraid to give you a sermon on such a solemnity, especially as I am so unskilled in both speaking and knowledge. You are wise and spiritual; you do not need any teaching or exhortation because your one teacher is Christ,2 Whose anointing teaches you about all things.3 Bear with a little of my foolishness, but also support me.4 I prefer to seem foolish, rather than to be found disobedient and rebellious, for I have confidence in Him who makes light shine from the darkness,5 Who gives sight to the blind,6 and opens the mouths of the mute, Who gives voice and wisdom, Whom no adversaries of the truth can resist,7 who died for our sins and rose for our justification.8 He died to snatch us from the power of darkness, that is, of the demons, of the vices of ignorance and infidelity, to all of which we were given before the death of the Savior, and to transfer us into the realm of His brightness so that we may belong to His kingdom.9 He died to destroy him who held the dominion of death, that is, the devil,10 and to lead us from prison, that is, from the lake in which there is no water.11 He died to erase the record of the decree that was against us and contrary to us, which He took from our midst and affixed to the cross; despoiling princes and powers, he confidently made a public declaration and triumphed over them himself.12 He calls a “decree” the divine command that our first parents transgressed in paradise.13 Its transgression He calls the record, namely, the original sin that was opposed to us, harmful to us, and crucifying us, allowing no one to enter into life, but dragging all to death. However, God the Father did not constrain his mercies in his wrath.14 Compassionate and condoling with us, with fatherly affection, he sent his Son in the likeness of sinful flesh; he condemned sin regarding sin, so that the justification of the Law would be fulfilled in us.15 2. He sent his Son, that is, He made Him visible, after He had taken up the form of a servant while keeping the form of God.16 In the likeness of sinful flesh, that is, not in sinful flesh, but like it, not in fault, but in penalty,17 namely in the capacity to suffer and die. In the flesh he condemned sin regarding sin, that is, the devil, the author of sin, regarding sin, that is, for the sin he committed against the flesh of Christ. Alternatively, he condemned sin, that is, the kindling wood of sin that resulted from the sin of the first parents, handed on in their flesh. Or again, he condemned every actual sin, regarding sin, that is, because He

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became a sacrifice for sin. The name “sin” sometimes designates the devil, who is the author of sin, and sometimes the kindling wood of sin, and sometimes the sacrifice for sin, and sometimes any disorder and the loss of justice. He condemned the devil and the kindling wood of sin and every actual sin, but in different ways. He condemned the devil, not by reducing him to nothing, but by conquering him, binding, and throwing him outside. He condemned actual sin in regard to the act, the guilt, and the attraction. These are the three ways in which sin is remitted. Sometimes, one abandons the act of some sin, but not the guilt, as when someone abandons the act of fornication, but does not repent his guilt, which is remitted by confession of the heart, confession of the mouth, and a work of satisfaction.18 Sometimes even after the remittance of guilt there remains a certain unhealthy attraction that is gradually expelled by the exercise of virtues and by the feeling of devotion. 3. The kindling wood of sin,19 or original sin, an innate tendency to sin, concupiscence, the law of our members,20 an unhealthy attraction, weakness of nature, and the tyrant who lives in our members— original sin is called by all these names and others beside. It is remitted by Baptism entirely as regards guilt, and weakened and lessened regarding attraction;21 it remains according to act, as actual sin is often abandoned according to act but remains according to guilt. From it, as from a root, arise the first movements, which are propassions, which are not imputed to those who are in Christ.22 Hence the Prophet says, also in your name we spurn those rising against us,23 and the Apostle says, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,24 even though they feel within themselves these first movements, which are called “propassions,” provided they do not consent by going after their concupiscences,25 by doing the flesh’s desires.26 Also, if you have lived according to the flesh, you will die.27 However, they are imputed unto eternal damnation to pagans and Jews who are not reborn in Christ. From the same root, there arise the secondary movements that are called “passions,” namely, evil pleasures, which are sin, but venial. From it also proceed the third movements, namely consent, and the fourth, exterior movements of action, both of which, consent and deed, are mortal. Hence, it says in the Law, I am jealous, punishing the sins of fathers to the third and fourth generations,28 as though He did not punish the first generation of the first movements or the second of the second, but did punish the third of consent and the fourth of action. We must contain the first movements so that they do not advance and expand into the

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second, the second so they do not expand into the third, in accord with what David said, blessed is he who will take their infants and bash them on the rock,29 that is, on Christ. Through faith in Him and imitation of Him our members are to be mortified,30 so sin does not reign.31 4. Therefore, he condemned sin regarding sin, so that the justification of the Law would be fulfilled in us,32 that is, the justification that the Law commanded and promised, but did not confer. Notice the twofold effect of the Lord’s Incarnation: the condemnation of sin and the fulfillment of the Law. In the condemnation of sin, you understand mercy, in the fulfillment of the Law, grace. All mercy is grace, but not the reverse. The grace given to the angels is not mercy, but only grace. Where there is no misery, there is no mercy.33 Therefore, the statement he condemned sin regarding sin34 is the same as, He erased the record of the decree, which He took from our midst, that is, from what was common, so that humanity would not fear it, or the devil make accusation, affixing it to the cross,35 that is, by dying He destroyed death,36 according to the prophecy, I will be your death, O death, and I will be your sting, O hell.37 He stung hell, but He did not completely swallow it; that is, He led out from it not all who were there, but only His own, despoiling the infernal princes and powers; that is, He led out Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the others who believed that He was to come, that is, with great confidence and hope of victory.38 Hence, the Prophet: He led out his people in exultation and his chosen in happiness.39 Who could tell how great was the joy of those who had ascended from darkness to light, from slavery to freedom, from punishment to glory, from the mouth of the savage dragon to the bosom of their loving father? 5. Therefore, he died for our sins and rose for our justification,40 that is, to justify us by faith in His Resurrection, which is the foundation of our whole religion. Hence, the Apostle, leaving everything else aside, locates the whole cause of salvation in it, saying, if you have believed in your heart and confessed with your mouth that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.41 The other articles of faith rest on this one as the foundation of foundations. If one holds it, one holds the others; if it is not held, one does not hold the others, either. Hence, the pagans and the Jews, who do not have faith in the Resurrection, do not have faith in the Passion. To believe that Christ died is to have faith in the Passion, which is to believe that in a human being the Lord of Glory was crucified,42 to believe that in Him Who suffered were all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge,43 that is, the full and perfect knowledge of all things, because in him dwelt all the fullness of divinity,44 that is, all the

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fullness of power, knowledge, and goodness,45 for to Him the Father did not measure out the Spirit.46 If He does not have all power, as some dare to say,47 He is not omnipotent; if He is not omnipotent, He is not God. The true Catholic faith is that God is man and man is God, and when God became man, man also became God, “not by the change of divinity into the flesh, but by the assumption of the humanity into God.”48 In the Incarnation of the Word, the Godhead is not changed or converted into humanity or vice versa, and from the two natures there is not made a third, but man is ineffably united to God in such a way that He has through grace all that God has by His nature.49 Hence, Augustine says, “so great is the union” of the two natures in Christ that He is said to be “wholly God and wholly man, and both God-man and man-God.”50 When some read this with obtuse hearts, because they cannot comprehend it with human reason, they do not want to believe it. Therefore, it is clear that their faith has no merit with God, “because faith to which human reason offers proof has no merit,”51 that is, the faith of those who do not want to believe what they cannot understand by human reason has no merit. Hence, because swelling pride befogs them, their waters are turned into blood,52 that is, by the merit of their pride they are handed over to a reprobate understanding.53 Since they are brutes and do not have the spirit of God,54 what wonder is it if they are ignorant of the things of God? Just as no one knows the things of a man except the spirit of a man within him, so no one knows the things that are of God except the Spirit of God.55 That they do not have the Spirit of God is clear because they love the world and the things that are in it, but if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.56 6. However, you, brothers, are not from among Egyptians, whose waters were turned into blood,57 but from among the Hebrews, whose waters the Lord Jesus turned into wine,58 that is, into spiritual understanding. Just as carnal people understand not only carnal things in a carnal way, but also spiritual things carnally and not spiritually, so spiritual men apprehend spiritually not only spiritual things but they also understand carnal things not carnally but spiritually. Scripture says, son, you have sought wisdom; observe the commandments and God will grant it to you.59 Therefore, through observance of the commandments, one comes to understand secret truths. If anyone among the unlearned is incapable of attaining them, let him hold to faith in the Resurrection, and he will be saved. According to the word of the Apostle, if you believe in your heart that he raised him from the dead, you will be saved.60 Therefore, He died for our sins and rose for our jus-

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tification,61 so that having set aside the old image, we might put on the image of the new, so that as we bore the image of the earthly, we might bear the image of the heavenly.62 The image of the old consists of two things, guilt and punishment,63 and so the image of the new consists in two things contrary to these, namely, justice and glory. As the old can be put aside in the present in regard to guilt, especially the mortal sort, but not in regard to punishment, so the new can be put in the present in regard to justice, but not in regard to glory. In the future, when what is mortal puts on immortality, and what is corruptible puts on incorruptibility, punishment in all its forms will be set aside. Then what has been written will be spoken: death is swallowed up in victory,64 and glory will be complete. Then, adorned with the double stole,65 the saints will shine.66 Then they will see the king in his beauty,67 light in light,68 the Father in the Son,69 when the Son Himself hands over the kingdom to his God and Father,70 that is, He will lead the Church in which He now reigns to the vision of the Father. Then He will lead us into the true land of promise that flows with milk and honey.71 Going from contemplation of the humanity through the perception of the flesh, and going into contemplation of the divinity through the perception of reason, we will find pasture,72 and our joy will be full,73 and no one will take it from us.74 May the Lord Jesus deign to grant us this. Amen.

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NOTES 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35

Rom 4:25. This text was used as a versicle on the Friday and Saturday of Easter Week (Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 182–83). It appears with variations in a number of places in the Cantus Index (see 200831, 508002, 006699b, 600356a). Matt 23:10. John 14:26. 2 Cor 11:1. 2 Cor 4:6. Ps 145:8. Luke 21:15. Rom 4:25. Col 1:13. Heb 2:14. Zech 9:11. Col 2:14–15. Quaest. in ep. Pauli, ad Col, q. 11 (PL 175.584B). Ps 76:10; Achard, Serm. 3.3 (Châtillon, 48; tr.  Feiss, Works, 115); 13.5 (Châtillon, 150; tr. Feiss, Works, 228); 15.1 (Châtillon, 200; tr. Feiss, Works, 299). Rom 8:3–4. Phil 2:6–7. “non in culpa, sed in poena”: see Walter of St Victor, Serm. 1.7 (Châtillon, 18) and Simon of Tournai, Institutiones in sacram paginam 7.10 (ed. and tr. Christopher P. Evans, Magister Simon of Tournai, Institutiones in Sacram Paginam, dist. 7.1–67, “On the Incarnation,” Studies and Texts, Mediaeval Law and Theology [Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, forthcoming]). Walter of St Victor, Serm. 1.3 (Châtillon, 12; tr. Feiss, Works, 100). Walter of St Victor, Serm. 8.3 (Châtillon, 74; tr. Feiss, Works, 77–78). Rom 7:23. Walter of St Victor, Serm. 1.3 (Châtillon, 12; tr. Feiss, Works, 100–01). Jerome, In Matt. 1.5.28 (Hurst and Adriaen, CCL 77, 30–31); Peter Lombard, Sent. 3.15.2 (Quaracchi [1916], 616–17; tr. Silano, 3:62); Robert of Melun, Sent. 1, p. 3, 3, ed. R. M. Martin and R.  M. Gallet, Œuvres de Robert de Melun 3.2, Spicilegium sacrum lovaniense 25 (Louvain: Spicilegium sacrum lovaniense, 1952), 27; Simon of Tournai, Inst., dist. 7.43 (Evans, forthcoming); Alan of Lille, Regulae 105 (ed. N. Häring, “Magister Alanus de Insulis: Regulae caelestis Iuris,” AHDLMA 48 [1981]: 97–226, here 210); R. Blomme, La doctrine du péché dans les écoles théologiques de la première motié du xiie siècle (Louvain: Publications universitaires de Louvain, 1958), 26–46. Ps 43:6. Rom 8:1. Sir 18:30. Rom 13:14. Rom 8:13. Exod 20:5. Ps 136:9. Col 3:5. Rom 6:12. Rom 8:3–4. Walter’s discussion of mercy and grace draws on Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.4 (Châtillon, 176–77; tr. Feiss, Works, 265). Rom 8:3–4. Col 2:14.

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39 40 41 42 43 44 45

46 47

48 49 50

51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61



325

Cantus Index #002223 (http://cantusindex.org/id/002223), an antiphon for Easter; Roman Missal (2008), Easter Preface I, and Memorial Acclamation. Hos 13:14. Col 2:15. On the faith of the just of the Old Testament, see Absalom of St Victor, Serm. 25.4, elsewhere in this volume. The idea that at his death Christ descended into “hell” to free the just of the Old Testament from captivity to the devil and lead them to heaven (= the harrowing of hell) appears in some apocryphal writings. It found its way into the Apostles Creed and was often represented in medieval art and drama. The basis for this idea is found in New Testament passages such as 1 Pet 3:19–20; 4:6; Eph 4:8–10. The harrowing of hell is found in the anonymous sermon that is the second reading for the Office of Readings on Holy Saturday in the Catholic Church. One dramatic version is to be found in The Liturgical Dramas for Holy Week at Barking Abbey, ed. and tr. Anne Bagnall Yardley and Jesse D. Mann, Medieval Feminist Forum, Subsidia Series, vol.  3, 2014, Medieval Texts in Translation  1, accessed 13  September 2016, at http://ir.uiowa.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article  = 1985&context = mff. Ps 104:43. Rom 4:25. Rom 10:9. 1 Cor 2:8. Col 2:3. Col 2:9. On the fullness of power, knowledge or wisdom, and goodness in Christ as man, see Hugh of St  Victor, Sacr. 2.1.6 (PL  176.383D; tr.  Deferrari, 219); Achard, Serm.  1.5 (Châtillon, 32–33; tr. Feiss, Works, 102–03); 4.5 (Châtillon, 60; tr. Feiss, Works, 131–33); Quaest. in ep. Pauli, ad Col, q. 9 (PL 175.583CD); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 21.6 (Châtillon, 181). John 3:34. Abelard, according to the Council of Sens (Denz.-Hün., #721 [ET 232]); Anonymous, Sum. sent. 1.16 (PL 176.74D–75A); Peter Lombard, Sent. 3.13.1 (Quaracchi [1916], 608; tr. Silano, 54–55). The creed Quicumque vult (Denz.-Hün. ET 40, #76); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 7.4 (Châtillon, 59); Serm. 26.5 (Châtillon, 181). On this, Jean Châtillon, “Quidquid convenit Filio Dei,” D’Isidore de Séville, 319–31; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 7.4 (Châtillon, 59); 16.3 (Châtillon, 138); 21.6 (Châtillon, 181). With various attributions or none, this text is cited by Sum. sent. 1.15 (PL 176.71C); Peter Lombard, Collect. ad Rom (PL 191.1307); Robert of Melun, Quest. de epist. Pauli, in Rom 1.3 (ed. R. M. Martin, Œuvres de Robert de Melun 2 [Louvain, 1938], 11); Simon of Tournai, Disputationes 81 (ed. J. Warichez, Louvain: Spicilegium sacrum lovaniense 12 [Louvain: Spicilegium sacrum lovaniense, 1932]), 237; Apologia de Verbo incarnato 9 (ed. N. M. Häring, Franciscan Studies 16 [1956], 113). The source of text may be Augustine, Trin. 4.21.31 (Mountain and Glorie, CCL 50, 203.43–204.46). Gregory, Hom. ev. 2.26.1 (Étaix, Blanc, Judic, SC 522, 136–37 [PL 76.1197]). Ps 104:29. Rom 1:28. Jude 19; 1 Cor 2:14. 1 Cor 2:11. 1 John 2:15. Exod 7:17, echoing the quotation from Ps 104:29 above. John 2:1–11. Sir 1:33; see Achard of St Victor, Serm. 7.2 (Châtillon, 85; tr. Feiss, Works, 172, where “fili,” is wrongly translated as plural). Rom 10:9. Rom 4:25.

326 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74

Walter of S t   V ictor 1 Cor 15:49. See above, par. 2. 1 Cor 15:53, 54. This refers to the double immortality of body and soul; see Achard, Serm. 7.4 (Châtillon, 91 n. 34). Matt 13:43; Wis 3:7; Achard of St Victor, Serm. 7.4 (Châtillon, 91; tr. Feiss, Works, 175). Ps 92:1. Ps 35:10. John 10:38; 14:9–11. 1 Cor 15:24. Exod 3:8, 17; 13:5, etc. John 10:9: “pascua”: pasture, a word suggestive of “pasca”: the feast or lamb of Passover. John 16:24. John 16:22.

MAURICE OF ST VICTOR SERMON 3: ON THE ASCENSION INTRODUCTION

The Victorine sermon collection that Jean Châtillon edited contains six sermons by Magister Maurice, two of them for the feast of St Victor, and one each for St Augustine, the Ascension, the solemnity of any martyr, and a sermo communis.1 One of the sermons for St Victor is translated in this volume. We do not know the identity of Maurice who gave this sermon. The Necrology of St Victor has two commemorations for someone named Maurice on 26 July: “The solemn anniversary of Maurice, archdeacon of Paris and our canon, by whose benefaction we have 40 pounds,” and “Maurice a priest, our professed canon.”2 These could be the same person. The editors give his death date as 1203.3 The only other Maurice in the necrology who could have written the sermon is Master Maurice de Sully, bishop of Paris (1160–96).4 Châtillon offered evidence to show that Maurice de Sully did not write these sermons: they do not occur in collections of his works; the Maurice who wrote these sermons was a professed canon who addressed his confreres in the first-person plural; he quotes from the liturgy for the feasts of St Augustine and St Victor as they were celebrated at St Victor. Maurice de Sully was closely associated with the Abbey of St Victor and spent the last months of his life at the abbey and was buried there, but he could hardly have preached two (or perhaps three) sermons on St Victor during those few months. Moreover, the Victorine copyists of these sermons would certainly have identified the bishop of Paris as their author, if he had been such.5 1

2 3 4 5

Sermones inediti CCCM, 201–31. For more about the collection and manuscripts that contain this sermon, see Châtillon, “Sermons et prédicateurs victorins de la second moitié du xiie siècle,” AHDMLA 32 (1965) [Paris: Vrin, 1966], 7–60. Necrologium, ed. Vones-Liebenstein and Seifert, CV, 217. Necrologium, 26 July, ed. Vones-Liebenstein and Seifert, 394. Necrologium, ed. Vones-Liebenstein and Seifert, 394: his commemoration and benefactions, and his mother and nephew. Sermones inediti, 197–99.

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Maurice, the archdeacon of Paris, is a somewhat more likely candidate. He seems to have kept his office as archdeacon of Paris until 1196, and so if he gave these sermons it would have to have been after that and before his death in 1203. That would make the composition of the sermons very close in time to the date at which the earliest manuscripts of the collection in which they are found were completed. It is also possible that the other Maurice mentioned on 26 July in the necrology wrote the sermons. He comes after Maurice the archdeacon and so probably died after him, but he could have been professed many years before 1196. However, the necrology does not give this other Maurice the title “Master,” but he is referred to as “our professed,” and the archdeacon is not.6 Whoever was the author, his sermon is short and clear. Apart from a brief reference to the grim situation of the first Adam and his progeny (par. 1), he seems to be a positive and cheerful person. He speaks of the “eye of the vulture,” and refers it to Christ’s work of redemption, but without focusing on the plight of fallen humanity (par. 2). Instead, he says that “the distant region” is heaven to which Christ ascended with money in his wallet, that is, our reward in his body. Instead of speaking of what sin did to the eyes of reason and contemplation, he speaks of the lights of nature, grace, and doctrine. He refers to the mathematical Trinity, formulated by Thierry of Chartres, an idea developed by Achard of St Victor and Alan of Lille, and referred to by Adam, Richard, and Walter of St Victor, and then taken up by Nicholas of Cusa.7 Some of Maurice’s ideas are characteristically Victorine: homo assumptus Christology (par. 2); the twofold birth of Christ (par. 3); the blindness of the Jews to the mysteries of Christ (par. 2); in Scripture, things as well as words have meaning (par. 4); the Church as Christ’s body and Bride, born from the blood and water flowing from his side (par. 1, 4); number symbolism (par. 5). However, Maurice includes less moral exhortation than is usual in Victorine sermons and concentrates on doctrines: the Trinity, the twofold nature of Christ, the mysteries of Christ’s birth, passion and resurrection, and Ascension. The moral implications of these doctrines are implied rather than elaborated. 6 7

Sermones inediti, 199–200. See David Albertson, Mathematical Theologies: Nicholas of Cusa and the Legacy of Thierry of Chartres, Oxford Studies in Historical Theology (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014), and the articles by Albertson and Feiss in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018), resp. 353−86 and 328−52.

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TRANSLATION

1. The sun rises and sets, and again returns to its place.1 It falls to me to say something regarding a certain solemnity, of the Lord’s Ascension, as befits not your capacity but my insignificance, as I propose to say something about a glorious and renowned gift granted by God to human nature, which on this day is raised beyond the heavens and elevated so far that it is seated with the Father’s majesty. As was said to the first man, you are earth and to earth you shall go,2 so that even his posterity, apostate, vitiated, and corrupted in its root, both went into the rot of the earth in its body and into the abyss of hell in its soul. They were as much of the earth as he was,3 so to the Second Man and those who are His it is said, You are heaven and You will go into heaven. They are heavenly just as he is.4 O Christian, do not put off following Christ, as a member its Head, and a soldier its King, and if you are sluggish and slow, say with great feeling, Good Jesus, stretch out your hand to me,5 draw me after you,6 for where the corpse is there the eagles will gather.7 2. This so wondrous transport of our nature was announced long before by many proclamations of the prophets. David, who stands out among the rest, proclaims God ascends amid joyful shouting (in jubilatione).8 This joyful shouting (jubilus) is an ineffable joy that cannot be uttered but should not remain silent.9 The God-man therefore ascends amid joyful shouting, that is, amid the ineffable joy of the apostles gazing upon their Lord and Master going to heaven. The noteworthy cause of this joy was that, by the Savior’s promise, they were sure that after a little while they were going to follow Him. Jesus had predicted, It is your gain that I am going, for if I go, I will prepare a place for you, and I will come again to you and take you to myself.10 Who will not rejoice and exult and break forth in a joyful shout, when he hears Truth itself promise him such magnificent things. In another place, he says, Lord, how wonderful is your name; you were known before only in Judea but now in the whole world.11 Why? Because your greatness is raised above the heavens.12 A passage in the Gospel is in harmony with this: Father, glorify me, that your Son may glorify you.13 Job, a hearer of God’s word, foreseeing from long before by the spirit of prophecy the mystery of the Ascension, said, He did not know the path of the bird nor has he seen the eye of the vulture.14 He was speaking of the Jewish people, unbelieving and blind, who did not know the mystery of the Lord’s Incarnation, Resurrection, and Ascension. He said, path, not the wide and spacious way that leads to perdition, but the narrow and difficult way that leads

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to salvation,15 which Jesus showed us and proposed for us to imitate. The word bird signifies the Lord Himself, Who today ascends above the heavens and, flying on the wings of the winds,16 penetrates the inner places of heaven. There follows, and he has not seen the eye of the vulture.17 It is said that the vulture, remaining stationary high in the air, from far away senses a corpse lying below and descends to it at great speed.18 This property refers to the Son of God, Who remaining stationary in the heights of the Father’s majesty sees, with the eye of loving-kindness, a dead body, the human race, lying in the depths of sin. To raise it up from death, He Himself also undergoes death in the flesh assumed. That people did not see His eye, that is, His intent, which was our liberation and restoration. 3. Moreover, what I proposed at the beginning, the sun rises and sets and again returns to its place,19 is consistent with the authorities already mentioned. The Son of God, the Lord Jesus, Who is eternal and from the eternal One, is born from the Father, God from God, sun from the sun, light from light,20 and in accordance with this rising knows no setting. The One Who never was not, according to this birth, was born in time from a virgin mother, that is, while not losing the nature of divinity by which He was consubstantial with the Father,21 receiving the nature of humanity by which He became consubstantial with His mother in accord with which He was born and after which He arrived at the sunset of death,22 having been made obedient even unto death.23 However, He did not remain long in death, but immediately He returned to his place,24 because the one who ascends above the sunset—the Lord is his name.25 It says, he ascends above the sunset,26 namely, by dying He destroyed death,27 conquering the author of death, and, gloriously triumphing, He took His dominion from his midst. Hence, he is given the name that is above all names,28 because not in name but by His own dominion, the name Lord is his.29 Understanding this, Paul calls Him the Lord of glory, saying, if they had known, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory.30 So that the testimonies of the Lord may be measureless, in greater confirmation of the same thing, in the person of the Church or of any faithful soul, it is written, my man went into a distant region,31 carrying with him money in a wallet, and he will return on the day of the full moon.32 Who is this man? Christ, the charming spouse, Who did not marry a cast-off woman, or a prostitute, but a virgin. This virginal Spouse went into a distant region,33 that is, He ascended into heaven, a region very distant from humanity residing in a region of unlikeness,34 bearing with Him our

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money, particularly, that is, the firmness of faith, the anchor of hope, constancy of all the virtues. In a wallet, he says. A wallet is a place in which one puts and keeps money. Then what is this wallet if not the body of the Lord, in which are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, for in him dwells the fullness of divinity.35 He will return at the full moon, that is, at the end of time, when the number of the elect has been completed.36 The moon signifies the present Church, which now increases and decreases.37 He will return, I say, at the judgment, to render to each according to his work.38 His advent should be much feared, so that He will not find us unprepared. 4. It is not to be passed over in silence that not only are the Lord’s words mystical, but so also are His deeds and His journeys.39 It is not devoid of mystery that the Lord ascended from the Mount of Olives,40 on the side on which Bethany was built, quietly, on the fortieth day of His Resurrection,41 or that this place of the Ascension was fifteen stadia from the place of His Passion.42 The Mount of Olives was earlier called the “Mount of the Three Lights.” On the temple side, it had the light of the lamp; on the other side, it had the light of the rising sun; and on itself, it had the light of the olive tree that was growing on it.43 By the light of the lamp, because of the Jews who were worshippers of the one God, the Father is understood, to Whom unity is often referred in Sacred Scripture. Hence, it is said, “In the Father, unity, in the Son equality, in the Holy Spirit, the connection of unity and equality.”44 By the light of the sun is understood Jesus Christ, the true sun of justice,45 Who by the inpouring of Himself illumines not only the world, but also human hearts. Regarding this, it is said, Sunrise is His name,46 and also, Rising from on high.47 Not unfittingly, the light of the olive tree symbolizes the Holy Spirit, Who is customarily called “Anointing.”48 There is also in us a threefold light: the light of nature, the light of grace, and the light of doctrine. The light of nature is common to all, both good and bad. Regarding it, one reads, God made humanity in his image and likeness.49 However, the light of grace is granted only to the faithful in Baptism. The light of doctrine is granted only to those who, like us, more than others have received as a gift knowledge of the divine law. Hence, we need to be more afraid that we do not receive the grace of God in vain.50 To whom more is entrusted, from him more will be required.51 Therefore, the Lord ascends from the Mount of the Three Lights, showing that no one can follow Him except through faith in the Trinity, and hinting that He is the mountain about Whom it is written, And the mountain of the house of the Lord will be prepared on the summit of the mountains,52

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and a bumpy mountain, a fat mountain, a mountain on which God is pleased to dwell.53 To show to His followers that they should not be in the lower regions, but ascend to the heights of virtues, it says, on the mountain I will make your soul saved.54 On the side of this mountain was built Bethany, which is interpreted as “house of obedience.”55 This symbolizes the present Church, constructed in the side of Christ that is, from the sacraments that flowed from His side, namely, by water of cleansing and blood of redemption.56 5. That He ascended on the fortieth day57 is not without mystery. Forty consists of four times ten. Ten stands for the Decalogue, four stands for the teaching of the Gospels or the four principal virtues.58 He lived on earth for that length of time after the Resurrection for our instruction and information,59 appearing with many proofs to the apostles,60 taking from their midst every occasion for doubt and confirming this word that He spoke, Behold, I am with you all days until the consummation of the world.61 This is symbolized by the number four because of the four parts of time. It is as if He had said, as I have shown you My bodily presence for forty days, so I will not withdraw the presence of My divinity, nor will I depart, nor will I leave you orphans.62 The more distant His humanity becomes, the closer becomes His divinity.63 He says, it is to your benefit that I go.64 He ascends to reward the obedience of those turned to Him, just as He descended to heal the disobedience of those who were turned away. However, before He ascended, He ate with His disciples to prove by the act of eating that He had true flesh.65 The place of His Ascension was fifteen stadia from the place of the Passion.66 This number is the sum of eight and seven. Seven refers to the Sabbath of the mind, that is, to the rest that the soul has for the interval when it has left the body; eight is a figure for the future resurrection of the flesh.67 Therefore, one does not arrive at repose for the mind or to the resurrection of the flesh except through faith and the power of the Lord’s Passion. To this, may Christ Jesus lead us. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21

22

23 24 25 26

Eccles 1:5. The sermon is translated from Sermones inediti, ed. Jean Châtillon, CCCM 30, 211–16. Gen 3:19 (Vetus latina). 1 Cor 15:48. 1 Cor 15:48. Sir 7:36; 15:17. Song 1:3. Matt 24:28; Luke 17:37. Ps 46:6: this text from the Roman Psalter was used as a responsory for the Ascension. See Pascher, Das  liturgische Jahr, 228, 230, 232; Cantus ##004490, 006123, g01080, g01082 (http://cantusindex.org). In Medieval chant, the jubilus was a long melismatic melody sung on the last syllable of the alleluia. St Augustine wrote in En. Ps. 32.1.8 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 38, 254): “Quid est in jubilatione canere? Intellegere, verbis explicare non posse quod canitur corde. Etenim illi qui cantant, sive in messe, sive in vinea, sive in aliquo opere ferventi, cum coeperint in verbis canticorum exsultare laetitia, veluti impleti tanta laetitia, ut eam verbis explicare non possint, avertunt se a syllabis verborum, et eunt in sonum iubilationis. Iubilus sonus quidam est significans cor parturire quod dicere non potest.” (“What is it to sing with jubilation? To understand that words cannot express what is sung in the heart. So, those who sing, in the harvest, or the vineyard, or in some other engaging work, when they have begun to exult with joy in words of songs, as though filled with so great joy that they cannot express it with words, turn from the syllables of words, and then go to the sound of jubilation. The jubilus is a kind of sound signifying that the heart is bringing forth what cannot be said.”) Peter Lombard, In Ps. 88 (PL 191.823D) or In Ps. 46 (PL 191.456); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 16.5 (Châtillon, 141, 151–53). John 16:7 and 14:3. Ps 8:2, 10. Ps 8:2. John 17:1, 5. Job 28:7. Matt 7:13–14. Ps 17:11. Job 28:7. On this comparison of Christ to the vulture, see Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 2.13 (PL 193.83C–84A); Hugh of Fouilloy, De bestiis, 1.38 (PL 177.39D–40A); Aberdeen Bestiary, fols 44v–45v (www.abdn.ac.uk/bestiary/, accessed 17 November 2012). Eccles 1:5. Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed (Denz.-Hün. ET 65, #150). Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed (Denz.-Hün. ET 65, #150); Second Council of Constantinople II Sess. 8.2 (June, 553), Canon 8 (Denz.-Hün. ET 151, #429–30); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 1.1 (Châtillon, 24.13–14; Feiss, Works, 98); Walter of St Victor, Contra quatuor 1.4 (Glorieux, 206). “ad occasum”: “occasus” meant “the setting (of the sun),” “west” (where the sun set), and “death.” Maurice probably has all three meanings in mind here. In the translation that follows, I will favor “sunset.” Similarly, “born” (ortus), which occurs in the same clause, can also mean the “rising (of the sun)” and “east.” Phil 2:8. Eccles 1:5. Ps 67:5. Ps 67:5.

334 27

28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39

40 41 42

43 44

45 46 47 48

49 50

M aurice of S t   V ictor Châtillon relates this phrase to an Easter preface. The same phrase occurs in a memorial acclamation that was included in the English-language version of the Roman Catholic Sacramentary (Collegeville: Liturgical Press [1974], 512). This phrase was not found in the Latin original of that Sacramentary and it is not included in the Roman Missal of 2011. Phil 2:9. Ps 67:5. 1 Cor 2:8. Luke 15:13; 19:12. Prov 7:19–20. Luke 15:13; 19:12. Godfrey of St Victor, Sermon 1, First Sunday of Advent, elsewhere in this volume. Col. 2:3, 9. Godfrey of St Victor, Sermon 1.23, First Sunday of Advent, elsewhere in this volume. On the comparison of the Church to the waxing and waning moon, see Origen, In Genesim homiliae 1.5–7 (PG 12.150–51); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.1.5 (Châtillon, 225). Matt 16:27; Rom 2:6. Hugh of St  Victor, Didasc. 5.3 (Buttimer, 96–97; tr.  Harkins VTT  3:151–52); Script.  14 (PL  175.20D–21C; tr.  Van Liere, VTT  3:225–26); Sacr.  1. Prol.  5 (PL  176.185AB; tr.  Van Liere, VTT  3:264); Harkins, Reading, 150–59; Richard of St  Victor, LE  2.1.5 (Châtillon, 116–17; tr. Feiss, VTT 3:312–13). Acts 1:12. Acts 1:3. John 11:18. A stadium was a Roman measurement of distance. It was 125 passus, that is, 625 Roman feet, which is 607 feet in modern American measurement, or slightly less than a furlong. Pseudo-Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 4.121 (PL 177.745AB). Augustine, Doc. Chr. 1.5.5. (Martin, CCL 32, 9.15–16; tr. Hill, WSA I/11); Walter of St Victor, Serm.  5 (Châtillon, 43.101–44.103, with literature cited in the note); Jean Châtillon, “Unitas, aequalitas, concordia vel connexio: Recherches sur les origines de la théorie thomiste des appropriations (Sum. Theol. I, q. 39, art. 7–8),” in Thomas Aquinas 1274–1974 Commemorative Studies, ed. Armand Maurer, 3 vols. (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1974), 1:337–70, reprinted with the same pagination in Jean Chátillon, D’Isidore de Séville à saint Thomas d’Aquin (London: Variorum, 1985); Pascal Massie, “The Metaphysics of Primary Plurality in Achard of Saint Victor,” The Saint Anselm Journal 5.2 (Spring 2008), 1–18; David Albertson, “Achard of St  Victor (d.  1171) and the Eclipse of the Arithmetic Model of the Trinity,” Traditio 67 (2012): 101–44; Davd Albertson, Mathematical Theologies: Nicholas of Cusa and the Legacy of Thierry of Chartres, Oxford Studies in Histoircal Theology (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014); David Albertson, “The Beauty of the Trinity: Achard of St  Victor as a Forgotten Precursor of Nicholas of Cusa,” to appear in Aktuelle Fragen in Cusanus-Forschung, Mitteilungen und Forschungsbeiträge der CusanusGesellschaft 34, ed. Walter A. Euler (Münster: 2016), 3–20; Hugh Feiss, “Achard of St Victor: Toward a Triune Metaphysics” (Forthcoming). Mal 4:2. Zech 6:12; cf. Pseudo-Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 4.121 (PL 177.745AB). Luke 1:78. “unctio”: see 1 John 2:20, 27; the hymn Veni Creator, Spiritus (attributed to the ninth-century writer, Rhabanus Maurus), strophe 2: “spiritalis unctio.” From this word to “… knowledge of the divine law,” the text is also found in Pseudo-Hugh of St  Victor, Misc. 4.121 (PL 177.745AB). Gen 1:27. 2 Cor 6:1.

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52 53

54 55 56

57 58 59

60 61 62 63

64 65 66 67



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Luke 12:48. Walter of St  Victor, Serm. 10.8 (Châtillon, 91.192); Serm. 11.3 (Châtillon, 96.108–09). On this formulation of Luke’s verse, see Damian Bracken, “Juniors Teaching Elders: Columbanus, Rome, and Spiritual Authority,” Roma Felix: Formation and Reflections of Medieval Rome, ed. Eamon Ó’Carragáin and Carol Neuman de Vegvar (Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2007), 271–72. Mic 4:1. Ps 67:16–17: “mons coagulatus, mons pinguis”: In the Douai-Rheims this was translated as “a curdled mountain, a fat mountain,” suggesting it is fruitful and rich. NABRE has “rugged mountain, mountain of Bashan.” Gen 19:17. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 60, CCL 72, 135.26–27). The image of the Church born of the water and blood flowing from the side of Christ is derived from Gen 2:21 and John 19:34. See Hugh of St Victor, Archa Noe 1.4 (Sicard, 25.35–37; tr. Religious of C.S.M.V., Hugh of St Victor, Selected Spiritual Writings [New York: Harper and Row, 1962], 65); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.2 (Châtillon, 174.1; tr. Feiss, Works, 261); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.1.8 (Châtillon, 226–27); Godfrey of St Victor, Sermo de nativitate BM (Beumer, 253.23–26; tr. Feiss, VTT 4:410). Acts 1:3. Gregory, Hom. ev. 1.16.5 (Étaix, Morel, and Judic, SC 485, 354; PL 76.1137AB); Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 1.13 (PL 193.52C); 15.4 (PL 193.444B). Bar 3:38; “informationem”: the meaning in classical Latin is “representation,” “sketch,” “explanation.” The idea here is that Christ stayed on earth to give his disciples a form or pattern to shape them. Acts 1:3. Matt 28:20. John 14:18. This is a puzzling statement. One can wonder how Jesus’ divinity could be more present? Would it be more theologically correct to speak of the withdrawal of his ordinary physical presence leading to a more intense presence of his risen and glorified humanity? John 16:7. Luke 24:41–43; Acts 1:4. John 11:18. Gregory, Hom. Ez. 2.4.2 (Morel, SC 360, 180–85; PL 76.973B).

WALTER OF ST VICTOR SERMON 8: ON THE HOLY SPIRIT INTRODUCTION

Walter begins this sermon without any captatio benevolentiae or reference to his own inadequacy. The Scriptural point of reference for the sermon is Romans 8:15: you have not received a spirit of servitude, but you have received a spirit of adoption. Walter turns his attention directly to the feast of Pentecost only at paragraph 8. Before that, he makes these theological points. (1) The Spirit acts in time, but remains one and invisible in eternity; the Spirit is uni- and multi-form. (2) That the gift of the Spirit is said to be sevenfold symbolizes his role in body and soul. (3) As power is referred to the Father and wisdom to the Son, so goodness is referred to the Holy Spirit, Who brings what the Father has created through the Son to perfection. Three kinds of causes—formal, judicial, and final—are attributed to the persons of the Trinity by appropriation. (4) The Holy Spirit is both the spirit of adoption and the spirit of servile fear, but in different ways. To distinguish them, one must ask whether something is the cause of something else, or only the occasion, and then distinguish what it does from what it does not do. (5) To receive the Spirit without qualification, one must love. (6) The New Law, written in minds and hearts, makes new and perfects by enlightening with truth and warming with love. (7) Walter then discusses the nature, function, and kinds of symbols. (8) The fullness that the Son has by nature, His humanity has by grace. We have and will receive a share in that grace. In this sermon (par. 1–2, 7), as in his other sermons, Walter makes extensive use of the sermons of Achard of St Victor and Hugh of St Victor’s Commentary on the Celestial Hierarchy of Pseudo-Dionysius. Unlike most of Walter’s sermons, there is little moral exhortation in this one. Most of the sermon is doctrinal, until the final paragraph where Walter prays that the Spirit will lead his audience and him to rest, the sight of God, and eternal praise and jubilation.

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TRANSLATION

1. You have not received a spirit of servitude, but you have received a spirit of adoption.1 May the grace of the Holy Spirit be with us. The Holy Spirit is a creative power, governing all things and conserving them in being. Although always remaining immobile, the Spirit comes into us in such a way that He does not go away from Himself.2 So He moves without moving. He moves without disturbance in Himself, but in compassion for us; He moves without agitating Himself, but gathering us; He moves without emptying Himself, but filling us.3 Although the Holy Spirit is in Himself one, simple, and uniform, He presents Himself in varied and multiple ways to be participated in by the faithful in whom He pours Himself out according to the manner and measure of each one.4 In that multiple participation and varied distribution of one and the same supreme good consists the beauty and loveliness of the house of God.5 Because of this multiple participation of the Holy Spirit, a varied way of speaking about the Holy Spirit arises, so that while He is uni-form, in the Sacred Page He is proclaimed septi-form.6 The Spirit is therefore simple and manifold, simple in essence,7 manifold in what He does.8 Isaiah the Prophet indicated this simple multiplicity and manifold simplicity when he said, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and fortitude, the spirit of knowledge and piety, and of fear.9 In the repetition of the one name he understood the supreme simplicity of the divine essence, while by wisdom and understanding, counsel and fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear, he showed multiple participation in the supreme simplicity. Therefore, as has been said, He is simple and multiple, uniform and septiform. He is not proclaimed to be septiform only because of these seven gifts, as if there were these and no others, but rather He is said to be septiform to show that He is the author of the whole. The number “seven” is frequently used to indicate the whole, as in the Apocalypse, where one reads that the lamb had seven horns and seven eyes.10 What is a horn, if not strength? What is understood by an eye, if not wisdom? Thus, what is it to be seven horns and seven eyes, if not to possess all power and wisdom? Because the totality of created things is constituted by either body or spirit, or what is proper to one or the other, and “three” matches spirit because of its threefold power, and “four” fits with the body because of the four elements, “seven,” which consists of both, is rightly dedicated to the Holy Spirit, as to the author of both body and soul.

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2. This also points to the fact that He is the perfector and finisher of all things. Who of you does not know that power refers specially to the Father, wisdom to the Son, and goodness to the Holy Spirit?11 Power regards the creation of all things, wisdom their governance, and goodness the consummation of all things. The rational creature contemplates these three things regarding his Creator and in wonder at them proclaims, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Sabaoth.12 Holy in power, holy in wisdom, holy in goodness; holy in the creation of all things, holy in the governance of all things, holy in the consummation of all things;13 holy from whom are all things, holy through whom are all things, holy in whom are all things;14 holy in the formal causes, holy in the judicial causes, holy in the final causes; holy in the causes according to which things came to be, holy in the causes through which things came to be, holy in the causes for which things came to be; holy in the arrangements, holy in the ways, holy in the counsels.15 To these three kinds of causes correspond the three that follow: Lord, God, Sabaoth. “God” corresponds to creation, “Lord” to governance, “Sabaoth,” that is, “of virtues,” to consummation. In the creation of things is their beginning, in governance their advancement, in virtues their consummation.16 When we say the works of the Trinity are indivisible, it is a profession of the supreme unity; when we refer certain things specially to the individual persons, it is a profession of the Trinity.17 3. Therefore, as was already said, the Holy Spirit is simple and multiple, uniform and septiform. The Apostle suggests this simple multiplicity, saying, you have not received the spirit of servitude again in fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption.18 He makes a distinction between the spirit of fear and the spirit of adoption, not as between one thing and another in essence, but as between one thing and another in use and effect. The Holy Spirit, identical in essence, is called the spirit of servitude and the spirit of adoption, but in different contexts. When He makes use of the fear of punishment, He is called the spirit of fear; when He bestows love, He is called the spirit of adoption. The spirit of adoption is good, and servile fear is also good. Sometimes this fear is said to be bad, or to have a bad effect, when it restrains the hand but not the mind. Of these two, one is good and the other bad. It is good to restrain the hand from a bad deed, and this is an effect of servile fear. Not to restrain the mind from evil is not anything, it is not the effect of this fear.19 Therefore, when it says servile fear restrains the hand and not the mind,20 this shows what it does and does not do. It is not said to be bad fear for what it does, but for what it does not do, namely, it does not

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expel malice,21 just as the Old Testament is called “old” because it does not take away what was old. Regarding this, the Apostle says that it is not devoid of guilt because it does not take away guilt,22 and God is said to harden someone23 or hand him over to the desires of his heart, or into disgraceful passion, or into a debased understanding, not by doing anything, but by not acting.24 It is partially similar, though not completely so, that although the spiritual law is good and holy, nevertheless the Apostle says that it works anger,25 and that it is the law of death26 and a killing letter.27 It is good and holy and it is spiritual by what it is and by its cause; it works anger and it kills accidentally. Thus, the Apostle speaks not only of the odor of life, with reference to the cause, but also of the odor of death as occurring on occasion.28 There are many things similar to this, all of which are to be interpreted in the same manner. Whenever something is said of something, one should see whether it is said or exists with reference to a cause or accidentally, or from what it does or from what it does not do. 4. You have not received a spirit of servitude, but you have received a spirit of adoption.29 Let no one say: if the spirit of servitude and the spirit of adoption are one and the same, whoever receives the spirit of servitude receives also the spirit of adoption and, the other way around, whoever receives the spirit of adoption also receives the spirit of servitude. To receive the spirit of servitude is not to receive the spirit without qualification, but to receive it according to a specific use and effect. Similarly, to receive the spirit of adoption is to receive according to a specific use and effect. Because this effect can be had and is had without the other one, someone can receive the spirit of servitude and not the spirit of adoption. No one is said to have the Holy Spirit without qualification if he does not have Him by adoption, that is, affection and love, through which we are made adopted children. Therefore, the Apostle declares: the ones who are led by the Spirit of God, these are the children of God.30 Only those who have love are led by the Spirit of God: these alone are children of God, members of Christ, and a temple of the Holy Spirit.31 5. You have not received a spirit of servitude, but you have received a spirit of adoption.32 The people of the Law received a spirit of servitude at the giving of the Law when, by the working of the Holy Spirit, they were struck with a servile fear, which made them serve out of fear of punishment.33 However, in the bestowal of the New Law, the spirit of adoption is given to men of grace when, through the Holy Spirit, love of God and neighbor was poured into them. See the distance between

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the Old Testament and the New, between Law and grace. There, a spirit of servitude, here, a spirit of adoption; there servitude, here liberty; there fear, here love; there the killing letter, here the vivifying spirit; there the figure, here the truth; there a shadow, here the body; there the promise of temporal things, here the promise of eternal ones. The former was written on stone tablets, the latter in the minds and hearts of the faithful,34 as long ago had been promised through Jeremiah the prophet, saying: I will bring to completion a new covenant with the house of Judah and the house of Israel, by writing my laws in their minds and in their hearts.35 6. I will bring to completion, that is, bringing to completion, I will give a new covenant that makes new and by making new brings to completion. The first covenant neither made new nor brought to completion. He adds what constitutes making new and bringing to completion. By writing my law in their minds and their hearts: in their minds by understanding truth, in their hearts by the affect of loving; understanding against ignorance, love against base desire. The garment of the old state, with which the first human being clothed us, was woven of ignorance and base desire. Therefore, these two make new: knowledge of the truth and love of virtue,36 and they bring these things to completion. Among all the things that God bestows on the rational creature, none are greater than these two, because knowledge illumines and love satisfies. If we are enlightened and not satisfied, we indeed have a great good but not a perfect one. Likewise, if we are satisfied and not enlightened, in a similar way we have a great good but not one that is complete. However, if we are satisfied and enlightened, we possess the perfect good. Isaiah says of the completion of the New Law: The Lord will make an abbreviated and perfecting word upon the earth.37 Regarding the same law, Moses says, in Your right hand a flaming law.38 Fire lights up and heats up. So the law of grace enlightens through understanding and heats through love. It illumines things written in minds; it warms things written in hearts.39 The capacity for truth in us is called the mind; the capacity for love is called the heart: the two are called reason and will, or understanding and affect. The new law is said to be in the right hand because of its promise of eternal things, which are signified by the right, just as the Mosaic law can be said to have been in the left hand because of the promise of temporal things, which are indicated by the left. Hence, Solomon declares: His left hand is under my head, his right hand embraces me.40 Therefore, the Holy Spirit, Who is the finger of God,41 wrote the fiery law in the

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minds and hearts of the Apostles. To give this law, He Who is invisible fire appeared in visible fire. 7. Here it happened that the Holy Spirit appeared above the Lord at His baptism, in the form of a dove, above Him at the Transfiguration in a cloud, and above the Apostles in fire. These figures and signs in which God manifests Himself to us in the present are called symbols. The Sacred Page is full of them; knowledge of them is necessary for showing invisible things.42 Of all these symbols, some are called likenesses and are drawn from visible things, such as the sun, fire,43 light, radiance, and things like these; other likenesses are drawn from incorporeal things such as mind (mens), reason (ratio),44 soul (animus), and others of this kind. Others are unlikenesses and drawn from corporeal things, such as a worm,45 bear, and such things. Other unlikenesses are drawn from incorporeal things such as rage, anger,46 sorrow, and penitence.47 In all of these, however, it is necessary to distinguish between sign and signified, between figure and truth, between symbol and symbolized. Thus, similar symbols are not called similar symbols as though they had no dissimilarity, but because of their greater excellence. Likewise, dissimilar symbols are not called dissimilar as though they have no similarity with invisible things; if they had no likeness to them, they would not signify them. Thus, likenesses have some unlikeness, and unlikenesses have some likeness with reference to the things of which they are a symbol.48 8. Let us come to the symbols of the present day. The Holy Spirit appeared in tongues of fire.49 Notice the two symbols: fire and tongue. These two kinds of things are set forth here to signify spiritual things. Fire in this context is a figure of the perfection of divine knowledge and divine love; the tongue, a figure of the expression in speech of wisdom and knowledge.50 First, they loved God, but still not perfectly. Today, the heavens are made firm,51 the Apostles themselves are made solid and clothed with power from on high.52 Today, the Holy Spirit, like the rushing of a river, gives joy to the city of God.53 The same Holy Spirit is completely sweet, completely gentle, as He Himself testifies, saying, my spirit is sweeter than honey.54 He is a fountain of life,55 a living fountain, a life-giving fountain, a fountain proceeding from life, a fountain conferring life to those on whom He is poured out. He is the fountain of gardens, a watering of the churches, a well of living waters that flow down from Lebanon.56 He is the oil of gladness giving us joy,57 the oil of exultation making us exult in Christ.58 He is the ointment, Whose fullness was on our head,59 that is, in Christ, to Whom the Spirit was given

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without measure,60 the ointment that today descends on Aaron’s beard,61 onto the Apostles who this day received the first fruits of the Spirit.62 Would that a drop of this ointment might descend on us as though to the hem of the garment.63 I said that the fullness of this ointment was in Christ, our Head, in Whom was all the fullness:64 the fullness of grace, the fullness of the divine nature, and the fullness of glory. In the man assumed was the fullness of grace, in the Word assuming the fullness of nature, in both the fullness of glory.65 And of his fullness we have already received,66 and we will receive again: grace from the fullness of grace, and glory from the fullness of glory, according to this saying: The Lord will give grace and glory.67 We have already received grace from the fullness of grace for justification; in the future, we will receive glory for beatitude. 9. Let us ask the Father to deign to send the Spirit of His Son into our hearts; let us also ask the Son that He also deign to fulfill His promise in us. And because the Holy Spirit is God, blowing where he wills,68 dividing to each as he wills,69 for the choice of His will let us all say, let each of us say, “Come, Creator Spirit, visit the minds of Your people.”70 Let us sing with our voice, let us say with all the devotion of our mind, “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful.”71 You have already come to make us faithful; come again to make us blessed. You have come so that with You as the source and by Your gift we may glory in the hope of the children of God.72 Come again, so we may glory in that reality itself. Come, perfect what you have done in us.73 It is Yours to confer, solidify, perfect, and bring to completion. The Father has already created; the Son has redeemed. Do what is Yours. Come and lead us into all truth,74 to enjoyment of the supreme good, to the vision of the Father, to the overflowing of all delights,75 to the joy of all joys, so that there we can rest and see, see and praise,76 where the morning stars praise God and all the children of God are jubilant.77 To that jubilation,78 may our Lord Jesus Christ deign to lead us; He is the way, the truth, and the life.79

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20

21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36

Rom 8:15. Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 2/1 (Poirel, 417–18; PL 175.937D). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 2/1 (Poirel, 417; PL 175.937C, almost word for word). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 2/1 (Poirel, 414–15; PL 175.935D). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 2/1 (Poirel, 427; PL 175.943D). Isa 11:2–3. Adam of St Victor, Simplex in essentia (Grosfillier, 340–43; ed. and tr. Mousseau, 100–02; tr. Mousseau, VTT 2:240–42). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 4.1 (Châtillon, 56; tr. Feiss, Works, 126); Serm. 13:32 (Châtillon, 165; tr. Feiss, Works, 248); Discretione 7 (Häring, 175; tr. Feiss, 358). Isa 11:2–3. Rev 5:6. Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 15.6 (PL 193.448B–450A). Walter of St Victor, Serm. 5.5 (Châtillon, 43). On this use of the term “special,” see J. Ribaillier, ed. Richard of St Victor, Opuscules, 172–73, and for the background of the attribution of these essential attributes to specific persons of the Trinity, see VTT 2:28–42, 55–58. Isa 6:3; Rev 4:8. This sentence thus far is taken almost verbatim from Achard, Serm. 14:21 (Châtillon, 193; tr. Feiss, Works, 287). Rom 11:36 in a version found, for example, in Augustine, Trin. 1.6.12 (Mountain and Glorie, CCL 50, 41), and often in his works. Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.20–21 (Châtillon, 183, 192; tr. Feiss, Works, 285–87); Quaest. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom, q. 278 (PL 175.500); Achard, Unitate 2.20 (Martineau, 192; tr. Feiss, 475–76); Châtillon, Théologie, 284–89. Achard of St Victor, Serm. 13.21 (Châtillon, 193; tr. Feiss, Works, 287). Achard, Serm. 13.3 (Châtillon, 136; tr. Feiss, Works, 209–10). Rom 8:15. Quaest. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom, q. 195 (PL 175.479CD). This authoritative opinion was often referred to, although sometimes “law” was substituted for “servile fear.” For example, Quaest. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom, q. 195 (PL 175.479C); Alleg. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom 8.15 (PL 175.890B); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.17 (Châtillon, 189; tr. Feiss, Works, 283). Sir 1:27. Heb 8:7; cf. 10:4. Rom 9:18. Rom 1:24, 26, 28. Rom 4:15. “Works anger” is the Douai-Rheims translation of “iram operatur,” which is ambiguous: it could mean “cause anger” or “act angrily.” NABRE has “produces wrath,” and NRSV has “brings wrath.” Rom 7:5–6. 2 Cor 3:6. 2 Cor 2:15–16. Rom 8:15. Rom 8:14. 1 Cor 6:15, 19. Rom 8:15. Peter Lombard, Collect. ad Rom 8:15 (PL 191.1439AB). 2 Cor 3:3, 2. Heb 8:8–10; 10:16; Jer 31:31, 33. “doctrina veritatis et disciplina virtutis”: a favorite theme of Victorine authors. Here, Walter is giving variations on that theme.

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42 43

44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70

71 72 73 74 75



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Rom 9:28; Isa 10:23. Deut 33:2. John 5:35; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 3.2 (Châtillon, 27). Song 2:6; 8:3. Walter of St Victor, Serm. 3.1 (Châtillon, 26); Serm. 7.2 (Châtillon, 58.50–53). The idea of the Spirit as the finger of God is formed by the combination of Luke 11:20 and Matt 12:28. See, for example, Augustine, Trin. 2.5.26 (Mountain and Glorie, CCL 50, 114; tr. Hill, 115); the Veni creator Spiritus, strophe 3: “Tu septiformis munere, dextrae Dei tu digitus” (Hymn for First Vespers Pentecost, Liturgia Horarum iuxta ritum romanum [Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1977], 2:795); Richard of St  Victor, Trin. 6.9 (Ribaillier, 237; tr.  Evans, VTT 1:327); Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 5.30 (PL 193.200C). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 2/1 (Poirel, 423; PL 175.941B). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 3 (PL 175.959D); 3/2 (Poirel, 465; PL 175.971C); 3/2 (Poirel, 488–89; PL  175.985C–986A); 9/14 (Poirel, 687–88; PL 175.1131D–1132A), 10/15 (Poirel 694–95; PL 175.1140AD). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 3/2 (Poirel, 465; PL 175.971C). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 3/2 (Poirel, 489–90; PL 175.986BD). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 3/2 (Poirel, 481–82; PL 175.980C–982C). Hugh of St Victor, In Hier. coel. 3/2 (Poirel, 465). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.4 (Châtillon, 106; tr. Feiss, Works, 67–68); Richard of St Victor, Trin. 6.1 (Ribaillier, 228; tr. Evans, 319). Acts 2:3. 1 Cor 12:8. Ps 32:6. Luke 24:49. Ps 45:5. Sir 24:27. Ps 35:10; Prov 13:14; 14:27; 16:22; Sir 21:16. Song 4:15. Ps 44:8. Heb 1:9. Ps 132:2. John 3:34. Ps 132:2. Rom 8:23. Ps 132:2. Col 2:9. Walter of St Victor, Serm. 12.10 (Châtillon, 113), translated elsewhere in this volume. John 1:16. Ps 83:12. John 3:8. 1 Cor 12:11. Veni creator Spiritus, strophe 1, lines 1–2: “Veni, creator Spiritus, / mentes tuorum visita” (Hymn for First Vespers Pentecost, Liturgia Horarum ixuta ritum romanum [Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1977], 2:795). Antiphon for Pentecost, Cantus 005327 (http://cantusindex.org/id/005327). Rom 5:2. Ps 67:29. John 16:13. Job 22:26; Ps 61:11; Sir 2:1; 2:25; Song 8:5; Isa 66:11; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 5.7 (Châtillon, 46).

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Walter of S t   V ictor Augustine, Civ. Dei 22.30 (Dombart and Kalb, CCL 48, 866; tr. Dyson, 1182): “Ibi vacabimus et videbimus, videbimus et amabimus, amabimus et laudabimus” (“There we will rest and see, see and love, love and praise”), cited by Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 2.18.22 (PL 176.618B). Job 38:7. “jubilum”: a term used to refer to long, wordless chants, especially on the final a of alleluia. John 14:6.

INTERLUDE AFTER EASTER AND PENTECOST, MAURICE DE SULLY

MAURICE DE SULLY OLD FRENCH SERMONS FOR THE LITURGICAL YEAR INTRODUCTION

Maurice de Sully was born about 1120 at Sully-sur-Loire. His family was of humble means, which may go some way toward explaining Maurice’s concern for preaching to ordinary people in the vernacular. He studied in Paris and, in 1147, he became a cleric. He was a deacon and canon by 1150. After serving as archdeacon of Paris for a year, he was chosen bishop of Paris in 1160.1 Throughout his episcopate, he was closely related with the Abbey of St Victor. He died there in 1196 and was buried in the choir of the abbey church in a tomb with an epitaph by Étienne of Tournai.2 While bishop, Maurice undertook a reorganization of his diocese and began the construction of his cathedral of Notre Dame as part of a rebuilding of the diocesan complex, which included the bishop’s quarters, those of the diocesan canons, and the Hôtel-Dieu.3 Maurice de Sully left behind a large number of Latin sermons that are still to be edited. Jean Longère, who has studied the manuscripts of the sermons intensively, concludes that Maurice composed a collection of seventy-one sermons for the Sundays and feasts of the liturgical year. These are divided into three parts, each of which has an introduction: Part I (Sermons 1–28), begins with an exhortation to preachers to preach, a short sermon on the creed, and a lengthy text on the Our Father (taken from Richard of St Victor, LE 2.11.5–13, ed. Châtillon, 447–55). The prologue addressed to preachers is drawn from 1

2 3

Jean Longère, “Maurice de Sully, l’évêque de Paris (1160–1196), le prédicateur,” in Notre-Dame de Paris: Un manifeste chrétien (1160–1230), ed. Michel Lemoine, Actes du Colloque organisé à l’Institut de France, le vendredi 12 décembre 2003, Rencontres médiévales européenees 4 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2004), 27. Longère, “Maurice de Sully,” 29–30. Longère, “Maurice de Sully,” 34–45; Alain Erlande-Brandenburg, “Le grand dessein de Maurice de Sully (1160),” in Notre-Dame de Paris, ed. Lemoine, 71–92.

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Gregory the Great as well as Richard of St Victor.4 There follow twentyfive sermons for the liturgical year from 1 January to Pentecost. Part II (Sermons 29–58) begins with a short prologue (Sermon 29), followed by sermons for the Sundays after Pentecost (Sermons 30–53), Advent, and Christmas. Part III (Sermons 59–71), which also begins with a short prologue, has sermons for the saints and particular feasts (Trinity, Dedication, Purification, John the Baptist, Peter and Paul, Assumption, St Michael, All Saints). The eight families of manuscripts that contain these collections all include additional sermons. With this collection, Maurice provided his clergy with one of the books that, as he said in the first sermon, every parish priest should have.5 Many of Maurice’s sermons exist in both Latin and Old French. Usually the Old French versions are longer because they paraphrase the biblical texts at greater length. The French versions are more lively and practical. Which version is earlier is not certain, though the manuscripts of the Latin versions are certainly earlier. Who did the French version, which is more than a simple translation, is not known. It could have been Maurice de Sully himself, a Victorine, or someone else. Nor is it certain whether the sermons were first delivered and then published, or the other way around. Whatever the answers to these questions, Maurice’s anthology provided a model sermon for almost every Sunday and major feast day of the liturgical year. The collection was intended for a double public: priests, to help them preach sermons, and the laity who heard those sermons. The success of the Old French version of the collection, compared to that of other Old French sermons of which only one or two copies remain, is accounted for by the stature of its author and the quality of the sermons themselves. In a letter of 1201, Pope Innocent III attests to Maurice de Sully’s reputation as a preacher: “Chaplains went to the diocesan synods… to hear the

4

5

Longère, “Maurice de Sully,” 46, citing Gregory the Great, Dialogues 4.31 (PL 77.369–72) and Richard of St Victor, LE 2.10.23 (Châtillon, 418–23), a sermon that constitutes the last third of Maurice’s prologue (Sermon 1). Longère, “Maurice de Sully,” 45–47. Longère refers to another smaller collection of twenty sermons, present in fewer manuscripts, and addressed to a clerical audience, that develops its chosen texts allegorically and at length. Several manuscripts explicitly assign these sermons to Maurice de Sully, but Longère, who earlier attributed them to “Pseudo-Maurice,” remains hesitant to regard them as certainly Maurice’s. On this, see Longère, “Maurice de Sully,” 50–51; Jean Longère, Les sermons latins de Maurice de Sully, évêque de Paris († 1196): Contribution à l’histoire de la tradition manuscrite, Instrumenta patristica 16 (Dordrecht: Kluwer, 1988), 265–306.

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sermons of Maurice, sometime bishop of Paris, who was expert in the office of preaching.”6 Maurice’s sermon collection was intended to promote preaching to the laity, and so they are simple and practical. The composer of the French version (Maurice or someone else) was very concerned to explain elements of the gospel stories that he thought the people would not understand. For example, in Sermon 45, for the Twentythird Sunday after Pentecost, “Render to Caesar,” he specifies that the name and effigy of the emperor were imprinted on the denarius and gives a definition of “a hypocrite.” If he does not credit his readers with great mental acumen, he also does not have high expectations of their religious observance. In Sermon 16, for the First Sunday after Easter, the Latin text expresses pleasure that many of the faithful have gone to confession and communion for Easter and so escaped the power of the devil. The French version adds that this does not mean that they should stop listening to sermons. To such a public, the Latin version, and even more the French one, give concrete suggestions about performing good works, such as giving alms and observing the proper mean between wearing sumptuous clothes and not wearing enough clothes to stay healthy. The French version also reinforces the need to respect the established order.7 In keeping with the purpose and intended lay audience, Maurice de Sully’s sermons are short and have what Michel Zink termed a “Victorine format,”8 which proceeds from the historical, through the allegorical, to the moral or tropological. In his simplest sermon form, Maurice de Sully paraphrases the gospel passage, gives it an allegorical explanation, and concludes with a moral exhortation that flows from the passage. In the sermons translated here, this pattern in most obvious in Sermon 32, where in paragraph one the three-part outline of the sermon 6

7

8

For this citation from Innocent III and this discussion of Maurice de Sully’s sermon collection in Old French, see Michel Zink, La prédication en langue romane avant 1300 (Paris: Honoré Champion, 1982), 32–36, 144–46; Longère, “Maurice de Sully,” 48–50. Manuscripts of the Latin versions of Maurice’s sermons show that in some cases literate laity used the Latin sermons as devotional reading. Zink, La prédication, 172–80. Longère studies the content of Maurice’s sermons in more detail, in “Maurice de Sully,” 51–66, identifying the themes: Christ and the Church, imitation of Christ, and virtues and vices, particularly sexual sin, pride, and avarice. These themes are prominent in other sermons of the time: see Jean Longère, Oeuvres oratoires de maîtres parisiens au xiie siècle. Étude historique et doctrinale, 2 vols. (Paris: Études augustiniennes, 1975). In fact, Victorine sermons almost never follow this three-step outline as simply and clearly as Maurice de Sully does in sermons in the Old French collection.

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is made explicit. In Sermon 18, the translator inserts an exemplum from a Celtic fairy tale between the allegorical and moral sections.9 One question broached and tentatively answered in the affirmative in VTT 6 is whether Maurice de Sully collaborated with Richard of St Victor in the composition of his sermon collection. If Maurice de Sully first compiled his collection of sermons for the use of his clergy between 1160 and 1173, the Liber exceptionum would very probably have been available. If, as I think, the Liber exceptionum is a manual, one intended purpose of which was to be a resource for preachers, then Maurice de Sully, who had a close connection with the Abbey of St Victor, was likely to make use of it in composing his own collection. Jean Châtillon found that the LE was the source for at least nineteen of Maurice’s sermons. Here is a list of those sermons in Robson’s edition, with the source in Book II of LE on which it depends in parentheses: 4 (13.18), 10 (13.18), 12 (11.4), 14 (10.24 and 27), 16 (10.24), 23 (13.8), 27 (10.3), 35 (12.5), 38 (11.4), 39 (14.7), 40 (10.10), 42 (13.29 and 10.7), 43 (14.15), 53 (10.14), 57 (11.9), 60 (10.3 and 12.6), 62 (12.9), 63 (13.2), 64 (13.1).10 The introductions to the translations of Maurice de Sully’s Old French sermons that follow will be on the alert for borrowings from Richard of St Victor. Maurice de Sully’s sermons are what in modern parlance are called homilies. Their text is almost always the gospel reading for the day and the homily explains the text verse by verse in its entirely. This contrasts with most of the Victorine sermons translated in this volume and the other volumes of VTT. The sermons of the Victorines are seldom homilies in this sense, but sermons. Their text is more often than not a text other than the gospel. They usually concern only one or two verses, or even only several words, drawn from the liturgy of the day, but not usually from one of the Mass readings. Unlike Maurice’s sermons, they were not given in church during Mass, but in the chapter room, and not to a lay audience, but to an educated community of canons, who could be presumed to be fluent in Latin and steeped in the Christian faith, the Scriptures, and current theology.11 9 10 11

Zink, Prédication, 221–26. Châtillon, ed., LE, 86 note 3. Chrysogonus Waddell concluded that the Cistercians who contemporaneously with these Victorine sermons heard similar sermons in similar circumstances in their monasteries were so steeped in the Scriptures and the ancient commentaries on the Bible that they would have picked up subtle allusions: see his “The Liturgical Dimension of Twelfth-Century Cistercian Preaching” in Medieval Monastic Preaching, ed. Carolyn Muessig, Brill’s Studies in Intellectual History 90 (Leiden: Brill, 1998), 335–49.

SERMON 18: THIRD SUNDAY AFTER EASTER INTRODUCTION

The Gospel for this Sunday was John 16:16–22.1 In the sermon, John 16:20–22 functions something like a refrain; these verses are repeated three times. The epistle for this Sunday was 1 Peter 2:11–19. It begins by saying that Christians are strangers and aliens in the world and so should keep away from worldly desires. This is the theme of the sermon. A woman in labor forgets the pain of childbirth for the joy of having a child. When Jesus dies, his apostles will be sad but the world will rejoice. However, they will later rejoice at his Resurrection and Ascension and on Pentecost, but the world will be sad. Christians should follow this pattern. They should reject worldly joys, and evil pleasures, because of the infinitely greater joy that is to come. The next sermon, 19, takes as its text John 16:5–6, the beginning of the Gospel reading for the Fourth Sunday after Easter.2 There, Maurice makes the same point. When one of a pair of turtledoves dies, the other does not find a new mate. So, while Christians mourn the absence of their Lord, they should not seek another love in the passing pleasures of this world, but keep their hearts set on the joys that are to come.3 How great that joy will be, Maurice illustrates by retelling a Celtic myth, which he inserts between what are usually the second and third parts of his sermon: the allegorical interpretation and the moral application. The mythic exemplum that he tells is found elsewhere in several forms.4 The Voyage of Bran, Son of Ferbal is an excellent example: The Irish hero Bran and his men undertake a sea voyage to the fairy otherworld. After what seems like a year in this paradise, one of the men wishes to return to Ireland. Not realizing that their stay has in fact lasted hundreds of years, the whole company sets out for Ire1 2 3 4

Robson, Maurice of Sully, 122–28; Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 212. Robson, Maurice of Sully, 128–30; Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 217. This is a frequent theme in Victorine sermons. See, for example, in this volume, Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 1.52. On the afterlife of this story of the monk and the angel, see Robson, Maurice, 201 n. 10.

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land. They have been warned, however, not to touch land in Ireland. The one who wanted to return jumps out of the boat and immediately turns into a pile of ashes, as if he had been dead for many years. The others converse from the boat with a group of Irishmen on land, who say they only know of Bran, son of Ferbal, from ancient legend. Bran recounts his adventures to them and leaves, never to be seen again.5 According to Cross and Slover, this tale is usually ascribed to the eighth century. The Adventures of Connla the Fair also recounts a voyage to the otherworld, to which the hero is invited by a beautiful woman. Here, however, he leaves to live forever in the otherworld with no return.6 Cross and Slover point out that such immrama or voyage tales seem to have spread throughout Europe and may appear in ecclesiastical as well as secular versions such as The Voyage of Bran. Some authorities believe the ecclesiastical versions may precede the secular ones.7 Celtic lore began to appear in many works in the second half of the twelfth century. Henry II’s interest in Wales and Ireland led to the Latin works of Gerald of Wales on the history and lore of those countries. One also finds Old French and Anglo-Norman lays and romances drawing upon the motifs of Celtic literature. Marie de France, also writing at the court of Henry II of England, recounts, in her AngloNorman lay “Lanval,” the story of a hero who ends up leaving with an otherworldly woman, presumably to live forever in her land. Marie claims to have heard her tales from travelling Breton minstrels. An anonymous lay of “Guingamor” from the very end of the twelfth century, written in the dialect of the Île de France with traces of Picard and Norman, recounts a similar story. A knight leaves with a fairy for her land and, returning home after what he believes were three days of feasting, learns that his uncle, the king, died three hundred years before and his castle has long since fallen into ruin. He recounts his adventure to a woodcutter. However, as he prepares to return to the otherworld he picks and eats an apple, whereupon he becomes old and decrepit, falling from his horse. Two fairy maidens come to bring him back to his beloved.8

5 6 7 8

English translation available in Tom Peete Cross and Clark Harris Slover, Ancient Irish Tales (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1936), 588–95. English translation in Cross and Slover, 488–90. Cross and Slover, 588. Prudence Mary O’Hara Tobin, Les lais anonymes des xiie et xiiie siècles: édition critique de quelques lais bretons (Geneva: Droz, 1976), 130–31.

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Richard of St Victor did not devote a section of the Liber exceptionum to John 16. However, he does elaborate on the metaphor of the woman in labor (John 16:21) in Serm. cent. 18 = LE 409–10. There, his main theme is that Christians must be mothers who give birth to Christ through four stages: conception, gestation, childbirth, and joy at the birth of a child. That joy symbolizes the joy of heaven. In the second half of that sermon, Richard allegorizes on the parts of a stained-glass window.

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TRANSLATION BY MARÍA REBBERT

1. Sermon for the Third Sunday after Easter. When a woman gives birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come; but when she has given birth to a son, she no longer remembers her suffering, because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world.1 Our Lord, Who was well aware that the hearts of His apostles were sad and troubled concerning His Passion, comforted them, as the Gospel for today tells us, and said to them on Holy Thursday, the evening before His Passion: “Truly I say to you, you will weep and the world will rejoice.”2 He calls “the world” those who love the world more than God and who love the joy and pleasure of this world more than the glory of God. “You will weep,” says Our Lord to His apostles, “and the world will rejoice; but do not be frightened, for your sorrow will be changed to joy, and to such a joy that you will never lose it, nor will anyone be able to take it from you.”3 He told them a parable about the sadness and pain and tribulation that they would have in this world, and about the joy that they would afterward have in the next life. He said to them: “When a woman is about to give birth, she is sad and distressed about the suffering that she expects to undergo from her child. Yet when she has given birth and sees her child, she no longer remembers her suffering because of joy at the birth of her child. Thus it is now with you: you are sad, but your sorrow will be changed into joy, into a joy that you will never lose.”4 Just as He told them, thus it happened to them. For they were sad at His Passion, which He suffered the next day, and were in great distress until the third day when they saw Him raised from death, and the day of the Ascension when they saw Him ascend into heaven, and Pentecost when He sent them the Holy Spirit. Then was sorrow changed into joy; and likewise when, at the end of their lives, He drew them from the sorrow of this world into His glory, then truly was their sorrow changed into joy, into a joy such that they will never lose it. 2. Lords, follow the example of the apostles: let us weep for our sins; if they come to us, let us bear misfortune, frustrations, and losses well in this life for the love of God; let us despise the vain joy of the world, the evil pleasures that delight those who love the world and who do not await nor seek to have any other joy except that which one sees with the eyes of the body. If we wish to win the joy of heaven, we must abandon evil joy. As Holy Scripture says, he who wishes to be friends with the world becomes the enemy of God.5 Let us despise, then, vain earthly

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joy in order to have the true joy of heaven, to have that good that eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man ever imagined,6 so great it is. And so, that you love it more, and more willingly seek it, we will tell you a beautiful parable about it. 3. There was a good man in religious orders who often prayed to God that He allow him to see and that He show him something of the great joy and sweetness that He keeps for those who love Him. Our Lord God heard him. For once, at dawn, as he was seated in the cloister of the abbey, God sent him an angel in the form of a bird, which sat before him; and as he looked at that angel, which he did not know was an angel but thought was a bird, he so focused his eyes on its beauty that he forgot everything he had seen before that moment. He got up to capture the bird, which he desired greatly; but as he approached it, the bird flew a little further away and the good man followed it. Why should I tell you a longer story? To make a long story short: the bird drew the good man after him, until it seemed to the man that he was in a beautiful wood outside his abbey; and as it seemed to him that he was before the bird, he made his way toward the bird to seize it, but then the bird flew to a tree and began to sing so very sweetly that he had never heard anything so sweet. The good man stood there looking at the beauty of the bird and listening to the sweetness of its song so attentively that he forgot everything earthly. When the bird had sung as much as he wished, he beat his wings and flew off. The good man began to come to himself at the hour of noon; and when he had come to himself, he said: “My God! I’m not saying my Office today: how will I ever make it up today?” And as he looked at his abbey, he didn’t recognize it but everything seemed to him all turned around. “My God,” he said, “where am I? Isn’t this then my abbey, from which I went out this morning?” He came to the door and called, “Porter, open.” The porter came to the door and when he saw the good man, he did not recognize him, but asked him who he was. “I am,” he said, “a monk from within here and wish to enter.” “You,” said the porter, “are not a monk from within here. I have never seen you before. And if you are from here, when did you go out?” “This morning,” said the monk, “and I want to come in.” “From within here,” said the porter, “no monk has gone out today. You, I do not recognize as a monk from here.” The good man was completely bewildered, and so responded, “Let me speak to the porter of the abbey,” and he named another porter. “You seem to me,” said the porter, “a man who is not at all in his right mind, making yourself a monk of this abbey. I am the only porter here and I have never seen

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you before.” “Indeed, I am of this abbey;” said the good man, “is this then not the abbey of Saint So-and-So?” and he named the patron saint of the church. “Yes,” said the porter. “Then I am a monk from within;” said the good man, “have the abbot and the prior come, so I can speak with them.” The abbot and the prior came to the door, and when he saw them, he did not recognize them, and they did not know him. “Whom do you want to see?” they asked the good man. “I am asking for the abbot and the prior of the abbey, to whom I wish to speak.” “We are they,” they said. “You are not they, for I have never seen you before.” Then the good man was completely bewildered, for he did not know them nor did they know him. “What abbot and what prior are you looking for?” asked the abbot, “And whom do you know within?” “I am asking for an abbot and a prior who are thus named”—he named a prior and an abbot who were thus called—“and I know,” he said, “So-and-So, Soand-So, and So-and-So.” And when they heard him, they recognized the names of those whom he had named. “Good Sir,” they said, “they died three hundred years ago. Now think about where you have been, and where you are coming from, and what you are asking for.” Then the good man recognized the marvel that God had done for him, and how by His angel He had led him out of the abbey, and by the beauty of the angel and by the sweetness of his song had shown the good man as much as He wished of the joy that the friends of the Lord God have in heaven; and he marveled greatly that he had looked at and listened to the bird for three hundred years, but, because of the great delight that he had had, it didn’t seem to him that more time had passed than from morning to noon, and he wondered that in three hundred years he had not aged at all, nor worn out his clothes, nor worn through his shoes. 4. Lords, observe and listen to how great is the beauty and sweetness that God gives to His friends in heaven if the beauty of that angel, who appeared in the form of a bird, and its song’s sweetness, were so great that he looked at it and listened to it for three hundred years, but thought he had only looked and listened for no more than half a day. Lords, let us bear suffering, let us despise the joys of this world, let us merit the goods of heaven as did the apostles, just as the Lord God told them to in today’s Gospel. For if we share in the work, we will share in the pay, quod nobis prestare dignetur…

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6

John 16:20 Latin. John 16:20. John 16:20, 22. John 16:21–22. Jas 4:4. 1 Cor 2:9.



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SERMON 20: FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER INTRODUCTION

The sermon begins by explaining Jesus’ teaching in the Gospel reading for this Sunday (John 16:23–30): whatever his disciples ask the Father in his name, he will give them. The Epistle for the Sunday (James 1:22–27) exhorts listeners to put what they hear into action. In the first paragraph, Maurice specifies three conditions under which the Father will grant what is asked in Jesus’ name: (1) that what we request is for our benefit and salvation, because Jesus’ name means “savior”; (2) that the petitioner is such that he should be heard, that is, devoid of vice; (3) that his mortal sins do not get in the way. In the second paragraph, the homilist reinforces the message by expounding a passage from Luke’s gospel (11:5–13) about persistence in prayer. This gospel was read on the Rogation Days that followed: the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday between the Fifth Sunday after Easter and Ascension Thursday.1 The homilist’s interest is not the Ascension, but the Rogation Days. He explains their origin: St Mamert established these days of penance to ask God to save the people from plagues.2 The homilist lists, in hierarchic order, categories of people to be prayed for during the Rogation Days, as well as some dangers, above all sin, from which his listeners should ask to be delivered.

1 2

Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 224. This sermon is translated from Robson, Maurice of Sully, 131–32. For the ancient sources regarding Mamert’s introduction of the Rogation Days before Ascension Thursday, see Francis Merschman, “Rogation Days,” The Catholic Encyclopedia, 16 vols. (New York: Encyclopedia Press, 1913), 13:110–11. It is surprising that Maurice does not mention the procession associated with the Rogation Days that preceded the Ascension nor the feast of the Ascension itself. Richard of St Victor refers to the Ascension Day procession in Super exiit edictum seu De tribus processionibus, ed. Jean Châtillon, Richard de Saint-Victor, Sermons et opuscules spirituels inédits 1 (Bruges: Desclée de Brouwer, 1951), and associates it with the culmination of the spiritual journey in contemplation. See Châtillon’s comments, li–liii, lxvii–lxxix.

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TRANSLATION BY MARÍA REBBERT

1. Sermon for the Fifth Sunday after Easter. Amen, amen, I say to you, if you ask the Father anything in My name, He will give it to you.1 Our Lord God assures us, by the words of today’s Gospel, of His pity and of His great mercy; for God said this: if we wish to ask Him for anything that will be to our benefit and our salvation, it will be given to us very willingly. The Son of God, by that flesh that He took in my lady Holy Mary, said this to His apostles; and where He said it to His apostles, truly He said it to us and to all those who believe in Him: If you ask anything of My Father in My name, He will give it to you.2 As a man, He is indeed called Jesus, Jesus interpretatur salvator, Jesus in our vulgar tongue is “Savior.”3 Someone prays in the name of Jesus, that is, in the name of the Savior, asking Him for that which pertains to his salvation. He who asks such a thing of the Father, provided that he be such that he should be heard, and provided that his sins do not get in his way, will certainly have what he requests. However, if he is in mortal sin, or full of covetousness or any vice by which he is separated from God, his prayer will not be heard until he be reconciled; for holy Scripture says this: that the prayer of one who does not want to hear the law of God is execrable.4 Whoever, then, wants anything from God, should ask Him in the name of Jesus, in the name of the Savior: that is, he must ask for that which is for the salvation of his soul and will be for his good, and that he be such himself that God the Father wishes to hear him; then he can be certain and sure that he will receive what he asks. 2. For, as God said in the Gospel, if someone had a friend and went to him at midnight and said to him, “Friend, a friend of mine has come and I have nothing to give him; get up and loan me three loaves of bread.” And the one inside said, “Leave me alone! I am in bed and my children as well; I cannot get up now nor give you what you are asking.” And if the one outside greatly importuned him, the one inside would indeed get up and, although he did not do it for their friendship, he would do it because of the annoyance that the one outside was causing him. He would get up and give him as many loaves as he wanted.5 Thus should we pray to God: we should pray to Him ardently, we should pursue Him closely. Then He will hear you, then He will give you what you need. And if any of you, thus said God, asked his father for bread, would his father give him a rock in place of bread? And if he asked him for a fish, would he give him a serpent instead of a fish, or a scorpion for an egg?6 For such

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a father who would do this to his son would give proof of an evil nature. Si ergo cum sitis mali scitis bona dare filiis vestris, quanto magis, etc. And if you, said Our Lord, who are evil, and who cannot live without sin, if you, from such good things as you have, give to your sons, what do you think, then, of your heavenly Father: will He not give a good spirit and good grace and a good heart to those who ask Him sincerely?7 3. Now, lords, let us ask God and pray for ourselves and for all of Christendom, for the ordained of Holy Church, for the princes of the earth, and for the whole people of the Lord God. For now is the time to pray to God; now is the time to fast; now, this week, are the Rogation Days established by my lord Saint Mamert, in order to remove the plagues that God had sent among his people, and God heard him and removed the danger. Following the example of my lord Saint Mamert, let us fast these three days that are coming; let us now pray to God that He defend His people from wars, from tempests, from evil beasts, from droughts, from floods, from famine, from mortality, from every peril, and especially from sin, and that He grant us to do such works that we may be worthy of His kingdom, quod nobis prestare dignetur.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

John 16:23 Latin. John 16:23 Old French. Luke 1:31, 68; 2:21. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 18.26; 74.15: “Iesu salvator”). Prov 28:9. Luke 11:5–8. The last word of the quotation, is emended from “vaudrait” to “vudrait.” Luke 11:11–12. Luke 11:13. Note the alliteration: sitis mala scitis dare filiis. The Vulgate has nostis rather than scitis.

SERMON 31: NINTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST INTRODUCTION

Maurice first expounds the Gospel reading, the Parable of the Dishonest Steward, verse by verse, with some elaborations that seem aimed to make the story more vivid for the hearers.1 At the end of his exposition, the lord of the Parable becomes the Lord Jesus, who draws a moral from it about the use of riches. Then, in the second paragraph, the homilist gives a tropological interpretation, in which the owner is God, the steward is every Christian, and the estate is the goods with which God has endowed the Christian. He should use the gifts of God to good effect, but if he has not done that, he should make satisfaction through almsgiving. Almsgiving, and the prayers of the poor who receive the alms, will bring us (in the last paragraph Maurice switches to the first-person plural) forgiveness and eternal life. Richard of St Victor’s explanation of this parable in Liber exceptionum 2.14.1 is more creative and elaborate. He begins by spelling out the terms of the allegory: the rich man is God; the estate is human nature; the steward is the spirit; the farmworkers are human understanding, affect, sense, and appetite; the goods of the rich man are God’s gifts and the things that we have by nature and grace. On the estate, there are various animals, buildings, fields, and plows, which stand for various virtues. It is a wonderful estate, full of good things. Even at their worst, people cannot squander all the good God has placed there, because they always have a glimmer of the truth. When they have sinned, they need to sit down, write a charter of debt, consider their sin, and, by easing the debt, attain forgiveness of sin. The human spirit should lessen the debts of his understanding, affectivity, sense, and appetites by penitence, so that at the end God will praise his prudence.

1

Translated from Robson, Maurice of Sully, 148–49.

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TRANSLATION BY MARÍA REBBERT

1. Sermon on the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost. A certain rich man had a steward, who was reported to him for squandering his goods.1 Our Lord God speaks to us in today’s Gospel, and shows us, by an example, that we must preserve the good that He has put in us and, if we have not preserved it as we should, He shows us how we should behave toward Him and become better. There was a good man who had a steward who was responsible for one of his cities; but the good man heard that the steward had laid waste his property and destroyed it. So, the good man spoke to him and said: Give me an account of your stewardship: I no longer wish you to be my steward.2 When the steward heard this, he was very angry about it, and very unhappy, so he thought hard about what he could do, and how he could support himself and provide for himself. What will I do, he said, when my Lord takes my stewardship from me? How will I support myself? I will not be able to bear the labor to earn my bread and I am ashamed to beg. I know indeed, he said, what I will do.3 I will act in this way toward the men of my lord: I will excuse their debts so that they will welcome me into their houses and will help me when I have lost my office.4 So, he called one of his lord’s debtors and said to him: What do you owe to my lord? He replied, I owe him one hundred barrels of oil. The steward said, take your contract and write fifty. And then, indeed, he called another debtor and said to him: And you, how much do you owe my lord? One hundred baskets of wheat. The steward said: Take your charter and write eighty. Thus, the steward indeed released his lord’s debtors from their debts, because he wanted them to treat him well when he lost his stewardship. And when the lord heard what the steward had done, he praised him because he had behaved so prudently, even though he had not been honorable.5 For Our Lord says that the children of this world—that is, those who love this world—are wiser in their generation than are the children of light,6 who are the children of God. For it is certain that those who love this world are more prudent than those who do not care about this world and simply seek to win the goods of the next world. And when Our Lord had recounted the parable of this steward, He then said: And to you I say, make yourself friends and win friends with your wealth,7 so that they may receive you in lasting homes when you die. This means nothing other than: “Help the poor with your riches, so that by this you will be safe when you die.”

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2. Now, let us see what this Gospel signifies; let us see what the good man signifies and what the steward signifies. The good man signifies God, Our Lord; the steward signifies Christians; the city signifies the goods that God has put in Christians. For, just as the steward must safeguard the city of his lord and all that pertains to it, so the Christian must safeguard himself and all the goods that God has put in him. He must keep watch over his soul, and his body and its members, his words and his works, that they be good. And he must keep them and maintain and multiply them for God’s service. And if he does this, then he is safeguarding well the city of his Lord, and he is a good steward. But if he misuses the wisdom and strength God has given him for sin and shame, then he is wasting and scattering the goods of his Lord. Then he must do just as the steward did who won friends with his master’s money: that is, with such earthly goods as God has given him, he should do good to the poor and they will receive him in everlasting homes. For by the alms that he gives, and by the prayer that they will make to God for him, he will have eternal life.8 3. Lords, thus should we all be stewards, thus should we all multiply God’s riches in ourselves, and in others as much as we can. And if we have wasted God’s riches and have harmed ourselves by leading a bad life, let us make reparation by alms. Indeed, all will be forgiven us and we will have everlasting joy, quod…

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Luke 16:1. Luke 16:2. Luke 16:3–4. Luke 16:4. Luke 16:5–8. Luke 16:8. Luke 16:9. On the origin and development of Christian thinking about efficacy of alms for salvation, see Gary A. Anderson, Charity: The Place of the Poor in the Biblical Tradition (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2013); Peter Brown, “Through the Eye of a Needle”: Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 340–550 ad (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2012); Peter Brown, The Ransom of the Soul: Afterlife and Wealth in Early Western Christianity (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2015).

SERMON 32: TENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST INTRODUCTION

Like many others in Maurice’s collection, this sermon on the Lament for Jerusalem is organized in three steps: the Gospel story in its literal meaning, an explanation of its tropological meaning, and an exhortation (“This word I will tell you first and explain its meaning to you afterward”). Both Maurice’s exposition and that of Richard of St Victor are faithful to the exegetical tradition stemming particularly from Gregory the Great. There does not seem to be anything to suggest that Maurice depended directly on Richard. One feature of the traditional interpretation of this pericope of Jesus weeping over Jerusalem is in the punctuation of the first sentence. In Gregory the Great’s comments on this passage in his Homilies of the Gospels, 39.2,1 et tu was followed by a period because, Gregory explained, one must supply “fleveras”: “if you had known [you would have wept].” Gregory thinks the Gospel text then begins a new sentence: “And indeed on this your day the things that are for your peace.” This, Gregory says, means that since Jerusalem gave itself to pleasure and did not look ahead to future evil, in its day it had the things that could be for its immediate peace only. If Jerusalem had thought about those future evils, its current pleasures would not have brought it peace. Maurice’s interpretation at the beginning of paragraph 1 follows Gregory’s interpretation closely. Richard of St Victor’s treatment of the story in Liber exceptionum 2.12.10 begins with the same quotation ending in et tu, and proceeds in much the same way.2 Unlike Gregory and Maurice, Richard does not mention the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans. He explains that reprobates should be weeping, but they are not; instead they have their day in their evil pleasures, blissfully unaware of the punishments. However, the day will come when their enemies, the 1 2

Grégoire le Grand, Hom. ev. 2, ed. Étaix, Blanc, and Judic, SC 522, 498. Ed. Châtillon, 485–86.

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demons, will surround them; their wicked thoughts will be tumbled down, so that not one stands upon another. Meanwhile, God visits them by precept, whipping, and miracle, but in their pride they are contemptuous.

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TRANSLATION BY MARÍA REBBERT

1. When Jesus had approached Jerusalem, seeing the city he wept over it, saying: If you had known, you also…1 A word was said in today’s Gospel before you, which has very great meaning and is very beneficial for saving your souls. This word I will tell you first and explain its meaning to you afterward. So, take care how you listen and that you profit from it for the salvation of your souls. This is what today’s Gospel recounts: that Our Lord God once approached the city of Jerusalem and, when He came near the city, He began to weep and said: If you knew the evil that is to come to you, and that your enemies will come and will attack all around you, and will press upon your sons within you and upon you yourself, and will raze you to the ground because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.2 “If you knew all this,” said Our Lord to Jerusalem, “you would weep, but nevertheless you pass your days now in peace. Yet, if you knew what is going to happen to you, you would weep.” Just as Our Lord said to the city, thus it happened. For after the Passion of Our Lord, the Romans came and attacked the city of Jerusalem and so starved the people that a woman ate her child for lack of bread, and they destroyed the walls and attacked the city and the temple, and starved the people so that some died during the siege, which lasted four years. Others they killed when they took the city. And the third group they took captive and carried off: their descendants are still scattered throughout Christendom. And this happened to the people of Jerusalem because they did not recognize God’s visit to them, when He came into the world in the flesh to redeem them from the pains of hell.3 2. Now hear what this means: Jerusalem signifies in this Gospel the soul that is in a state of sin and, in the midst of its sins, passes its time with great joy. It does not foresee the pains that it deserves. And its enemies are the devils who will come on the day of its death and will destroy it, if it does not safeguard itself and amend its ways. For we have this on the authority of Holy Scripture: that when wicked men die, the devils come for their souls and evict them from their bodies and take them captive to hell. And we priests, who stand in the place of God on earth, if we were as wise and as good as we should be, we should weep for such a soul; we should call to it and we should say what Our Lord said to the city of Jerusalem: “If you knew what you deserve, and if you knew the ills and the pain that you will truly have—if you do not reform and become better, for the devils will come on the last day for

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you if you do not reform—you would weep.” Thus should we weep for the sinner, thus should we cry out to see whether we might call back any from the damnation that they deserve. 3. Now you have heard the holy Gospel and what it means. Look at yourselves and the kind of life you are leading, that you may not be in a state of sin on account of which you will be damned, and so that you will not be condemned, as we are always telling you. And make yourselves such to serve God and to love God that you may be worthy to be in His eternal glory, quod nobis prestare dignetur, etc.

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NOTES 1 2 3

Robson, Maurice of Sully, 149–50. Luke 19:41–42. Luke 19:41–44. Hom. ev. 39.3, SC 522, ed. Étaix, Blanc, and Judic, SC 522, 497. According to Robson, Maurice of Sully, 202 n.  32.3, medieval commentators on the text usually followed Gregory’s punctuation and interpretation.

SERMON 38: SIXTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST INTRODUCTION

Paragraphs 1, 2, 4 of this sermon on the Raising of the Son of the Widow of Nain follow Maurice’s usual sequence of paraphrase, allegorical interpretation, and tropological exhortation. In paragraph 2, Maurice specifies that the damned are buried and entombed in hell. In all four paragraphs, Maurice is drawing on traditional interpretations.1 Of particular interest is the third paragraph, which at first glance seems like an insertion. It derives from a passage that Bede attached to his explanation of the raising of the daughter of Jairus,2 the miracle story to which it was also attached in the Glossa ordinaria.3 Bede wrote:4 1 2 3

4

The sermon is translated from Robson, Maurice of Sully, 157–59. Mark 5:22–24, 35–43. The connection between the three resuscitation miracles of Jesus in the gospels and different states of sinners goes back to St Augustine. He connected the girl in the house with secret sins, which he said were to be healed in secret, the man cured at the gate with sins committed in act, and Lazarus with habitual sins. Augustine’s interpretation was gradually modified over time so that his idea that secret sins need not (or even cannot) be expressed to and forgiven by a human mediator was gradually altered. On this, see Susan R. Kramer, Sin, Interiority, and Selfhood in the Twelfth-Century West, Studies and Texts 200 (Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 2015), 25–54. In Marci evangelium expositio 2.5 (Hurst, CCL 120, 500–01; PL 92.183C–184B): “Nam juxta moralem intellectum, tres illi mortui quos Salvator in corporibus suscitavit, tria genera resurrectionis animarum significant. Siquidem nonnulli consensum malae delectationi praebendo, latente tantum cogitatione peccati sibi mortem consciscunt. Sed tales se vivificare significans Salvator, resuscitavit filiam archisinagogi nondum foras elatam, sed in domo mortuam, quasi vitium secreto in corde tegentem. Alii non solum noxiae delectationi consentiendo, sed et ipsum malum quo delectantur explendo, mortuum suum quasi extra portas efferunt. Et hos se si paeniteant, resuscitare demonstrans, suscitavit juvenem filium viduae extra portas civitatis elatum, et reddidit matri suae, quia resipiscentem a peccati tenebris animam unitati restituit Ecclesiae. Quidam vero non solum cogitando, vel faciendo illicita, sed et ipsa peccandi consuetudine se, quasi sepeliendo corrumpunt. Verum nec ad hos erigendos minor fit virtus et gratia Salvatoris, si tamen adsint cogitationes sollicitae, quae super eorum salute velut devotae Christo sorores invigilant. Nam ad hoc intimandum, resuscitavit Lazarum quatuor dies in monumento habentem, et sorore attestante jam fetentem, quia nimirum pessima noxios actus solet fama comitari. Notandum autem, quod quanto gravior animae mors ingruerit, tanto acrior necesse est, ut resurgere mereatur, paenitentis fervor insistat. Nam leviores et cotidiani erratus levioris paenitentiae possunt remedio cu-

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According to the moral understanding, the three people whom the Savior raised from the dead signify three kinds of resuscitation of souls. Some give consent to evil pleasure, but this thinking of sin lies hidden: they keep their death to themselves. The Savior, signifying that he gives life to such people, resuscitated the daughter of the synagogue leader before she was carried outside, and while she was still dead in the house, signifying sin hiding in the heart. Others, not only consenting to harmful pleasure, but also completing the evil action, carry the dead outside the gate, so to speak. Showing that these are resuscitated if they repent, he raised a youth, the son of a widow, after he had been carried outside the gates of the city, and returned him to his mother because he restored the soul reviving from the darkness of sin to the unity of the Church. Others corrupt themselves, burying themselves, as it were, not only by thinking or doing forbidden things, but also by a habit of sinning. The power and grace of the Lord for raising these was not less, even if there were solicitous thoughts present that kept watch over their salvation, like the solicitous sisters who were with Christ. To intimate this, he resuscitated Lazarus, who had spent four days in the tomb and, as his sister testified, was rotting,5 because a terrible reputation accompanies harmful actions. One should note that the deeper the soul falls into death, the more urgent it is that the penitent devote himself to penitence in order to merit to rise again; for lighter and daily faults can be cured by the remedy of a lighter penance. To show that this is a hidden way, the Lord resuscitated the girl lying dead in her room with a gentle and brief statement: Girl, arise!6 Because of the ease with which she was to be resuscitated, he had denied that she was already dead. However, to revive the deceased young man taken outside, he corroborated with several words that he should arise:

5 6

rari. Quod occulte nolens ostendere Dominus, iacentem in conclavi mortuam facillima ac brevissima voce resuscitat dicens: Puella, surge. Quam etiam ob facilitatem resuscitandi jam mortuam fuisse negaverat. Delatum autem foras juvenem mortuum, pluribus ut reviviscere debeat dictis corroborat, cum ait: Juvenis, tibi dico, surge. Quatriduanus vero mortuus, ut longa prementis sepulcri claustra evadere posset. Fremuit spiritu Jesus, turbavit seipsum, lacrymas fudit, rursum fremuit, ac magna voce clamavit: Lazare, veni foras. Et sic tandem qui erat desperatus, discusso tenebrarum pondere, vitae lucique redditur. Sed et hoc notandum, quod quia publica noxa publico eget remedio, levia autem peccata leviori et secreta queunt paenitentia deleri, puella in domo jacens paucis arbitris exsurgit, eisdemque vehementer ut nemini id manifestent praecipitur. Iuvenis extra portam turba multa comitante atque intuente, suscitatur. Lazarus de monumento vocatus, in tantum populis innotuit, ut ob eorum qui videre testimonium, plurimae Domino turbae cum palmis occurrerent.” Bede’s account was summarized as a marginal gloss in the Glossa ordinaria’s rather sketchy treatment of Mark 5: Bibliorum sacrorum cum glossa ordinaria, 5:538. John 11:1–44. Mark 5:41.

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Young man, I say to you, arise!7 So that the one dead four days could get out of his long imprisonment in the oppressive tomb, Jesus groaned in spirit, was upset, poured forth tears, groaned again, and with a loud voice shouted: Lazarus, come out.8 And thus, for one who had long ago given up, the weight of darkness was shattered, and he was returned to life and light. This is to be noted: public harm requires a public remedy, but lighter sins can be eliminated by a lighter, secret penance. The girl lying in the house arose with few witnesses, and he sternly commanded them not to tell anyone about it. The young man was raised up outside the gate, in the presence of a great crowd looking on. Lazarus, called from the tomb, became known to so many people that, because of the testimony of those who had seen him, many crowds came to meet the Lord with palm branches.9

In Liber exceptionum, 2.12.19, Richard of St Victor also attaches a paragraph to the miracle of the raising of Jairus’ daughter, “On the Three Dead People Resuscitated by the Lord”: We read in the words of the sacred Gospel that the Lord resuscitated three dead people: a girl in a house, a youth in a field, and Lazarus in a tomb. The three dead people stand for three kinds of sinners. The dead in the house are people who, without showing it in their works, are still keeping concealed in their hearts the wickedness they have conceived. Those in the field are people who, through their action in the open and perceptible to the senses, show the sin conceived through consent. Those in the tomb are people who, rotted through long-standing habit, also corrupt others through their infamy. The resuscitation of the dead is the justification of sinners. The less one has been made dead through sin, the more easily he is raised through grace; one corrupted by less evil is cleansed by doing less penance in satisfaction. Hence the Lord, with few witnesses in attendance, is said to have raised by his word alone the girl who had recently died and was lying at home. On the other hand, it is said that in raising Lazarus, who was four days in the tomb, he groaned loudly, was upset, wept, and shouted with a loud voice, not because the resuscitation of Lazarus was not just as easy for the Lord as was the resuscitation of the girl, but because the deeds of the Lord are exemplars of other things.10 7 8 9 10

Luke 7:14. John 11:33, 35, 38, 43. John 11:45; 12:9, 12 ff. Ed. Châtillon, 475–76: “Legimus in verbis sacri Evangelii quod Dominus tres mortuos suscitaverit: puellam in domo, juvenem in agro, Lazarum in monumento. Tres mortui tria genera peccatorum designant: mortui namque sunt in domo, qui sine demonstratione operis conceptam nequitiam adhuc in corde servant; in agro sunt, qui culpam per consensum

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Because Maurice’s sermon is in Old French, it is difficult to be sure whether he followed Bede or Richard or some other source (such as the Glossa ordinaria). However, his sermon follows very closely the outline of the paragraph in Richard’s Liber exceptionum: God incarnate (Bede says “the Savior”) raised three people from death during the time he was on earth: a young girl, a young man, and Lazarus. These three signify three kinds of sinners: those harboring evil thoughts; those who act on their evil desires; and those like Lazarus who, from long habit of sin, have a stinky reputation. Lesser sins require lesser penances. Maurice may well have used Richard’s paragraph as his outline, as his choice of “God” as the agent of the resuscitations suggests he did. In any case, Maurice made two subtle changes that seem to reflect a kindly pastoral intent. Those symbolized by the girl not only do not wish to reveal their sinful desire, they are unable to. Perhaps, by this, Maurice meant to encourage people who were ashamed of their sin to find someone to talk to for help. Secondly, Bede had simply commented that habitual sinners generally have a bad reputation; Richard specifies that their ill repute can corrupt others, whereas Maurice says their lives horrify others.

conceptam in sensuum propatulo per operationem demonstrant; in monumento sunt, qui diuturna consuetudine fedati per infamiam suam etiam alios depravant. Resuscitatio mortuorum justificatio est peccatorum, et tanto levius quisque resuscitatur per gratiam, quanto minus mortificatus est per culpam; tantoque minori purgatur penitentie satisfactione, quanto minori depravatus exstitit iniquitate. Unde et Dominus, paucis arbitris adhibitis, solo verbo puellam in domo jacentem recenter mortuam resuscitasse legitur, resuscitando vero Lazarum in monumento quatriduanum fremuisse, turbatus fuisse, lacrimasse, voce magna clamasse perhibetur, non quod Domino tam facilis non fuerit resuscitatio Lazari sicut resucitatio puelle, sed Domini facta aliarum rerum sunt exempla.”

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TRANSLATION BY MARÍA REBBERT

1. Sermon on the Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost. Jesus went into a town called Nain, and His disciples went with Him.1 The Gospel for today tells us that Our Lord God, at the time when He was on earth in the flesh, came once to a city called Nain, and His disciples and a great crowd with Him. And when He was approaching the gate of the city, they were carrying a dead man to bury him, the son of a widow who had no other children. And the inhabitants of the city were going with her to help bury her son. And when Our Lord saw this, He had pity on her, and told her not to cry, and approached the dead man and touched the coffin; and those who were carrying it stopped. Our Lord called to the dead man, and said to him: Young man, arise. And he who was dead got up and began to speak; and He gave him to his mother. Those who were there all had great joy and all glorified God and said that a great prophet had come to earth and that God had visited His people.2 2. This is the great miracle that today’s Gospel recounts for us. Now hear what it means. The widow represents Holy Church. Her son who was dead signifies bad Christians who are in sin, for sin is death; sinners are the dead man. Just as death kills the body, likewise sin kills the soul. The coffin where the dead man was lying signifies the bad habits in which sinners lie. The pallbearers are the devils who, with great noise, take for burial the evil man who has died by his sin. The cemetery where they take him is most ugly and hideous and filthy and awful, for it represents hell. In hell are buried and entombed the bad Christians, just as we read about the rich man before whose door lay the leper, who wished to satisfy his hunger with the crumbs that fell from his table but no one gave him any.3 To this cemetery, the devils carry the wicked man to put him there forever. Lords, there are many of these dead in the world: there are many of those who lie dead in sin and whom the devils carry to hell; for they carry some to hell by lust, others by covetousness, and others by various mortal sins; and Holy Church weeps for the loss of such men. People cry for the death of the body, for the death of their friends; but when they see them die the death of the soul, that is, by the sins they commit by which they are separated from God, Who is the life of the soul, it is no great matter at all to them. When a man has a fine son and he sees that he is sick in body, then he is very sad; but when he sees that he is in mortal sin, such as fornication or adultery or another mortal sin, he does not care but, on the contrary, sometimes he

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considers it a great deed. Why is this? It is because he does not have the eyes of the heart as he has the eyes of the body, and thus cannot see the things that pertain to the soul as he sees those that concern the body. For if he were attentive to what his son deserves by his wickedness, he would weep for the death of the soul of his son and would rebuke him so that he would not deserve the pains of hell, the fire that will never be quenched.4 Good people, let us cry for the death of souls more than for the death of the body. Let us cry with Holy Church for the sinners whom the devils carry off by an evil path and draw toward the fire of hell. Let us pray to God that He resuscitate them from the sins in which they are lying dead and by which they are cut off from God, Who is the life of the soul. The soul is the life of the body, and God is the life of the soul.5 When the soul departs, the body falls; when God, Who is its life and its happiness, leaves the soul because of its sin, the soul indeed dies. 3. We see that God raised three people from death during the time He was on earth in the flesh: He brought a young girl back to life, the daughter of a leader of a synagogue, and He brought her back to life while her body was still in the house of her father; He also raised from death the young man about whom today’s Gospel speaks, who was being carried out of (dehors) the gates of the city to be buried; and He raised from death my lord Saint Lazarus, who had already lain in the tomb for four days. These three, whom Our Lord God raised from death, signify three kinds of sinners, whom God calls to health by His grace. The young girl signifies those whose hearts are darkened and who are separated from God by the concealment of an evil desire. They do not wish nor are they able to reveal outwardly by word what they are like, indeed what they are like by an evil desire. An evil desire within a man is just like the young girl who was dead in her father’s house. The young man who was resurrected within (dedens) the gate of the city signifies those who have an evil desire that is outwardly visible and act on it openly. Saint Lazarus, who had lain in the sepulcher for four days, signifies those who have been in sin for a long time and who are in sin just as if they stank, because everyone is horrified by the wicked life that they have long led. And Our Lord raises up the girl in her father’s house, the young man outside the city gate, and Saint Lazarus in the sepulcher, when He turns the one from his evildoing, the other from his evil desire, and the other from his evil habit in which he has rotted and has lain for a long time. 4. Good people, look at yourselves, whether you are alive or dead through sin; if you are dead, allow God to give you life and pray that

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He give you to do such works in this mortal life, that you may have eternal life, quod nobis prestare dignetur, etc.

NOTES 1 2 3 4 5

Luke 7:11–16 Latin. Robson, Maurice, 157–59. This paragraph is a close paraphrase of Luke 7:11–16. Luke 16:19–31. Luke 3:17; Matt 3:12. Augustine, Civ. Dei, 19.26 (ed. Dombart and Kalb, CCL 48, 696): “Quocirca ut vita carnis anima est, ita beata vita hominis Deus” (“As the soul is the life of the flesh, so God is the blessed life of a human being”).

FEASTS OF SAINTS

ACHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMON 9: ON THE SOLEMNITY OF ST AUGUSTINE INTRODUCTION

The canons regular of St Victor followed the Rule of St Augustine. Their theology was steeped in Augustine’s thought. They read, heard, and pondered his writings. He was father, teacher, model, and inspiration for them. Annually, they celebrated his feast. The Victorines of the twelfth century have left us eight sermons on St Augustine: one anonymous, one each by Achard, Absalom, Maurice, and Godfrey, and a series of three by Richard of St Victor. Of these, Achard’s is very likely the oldest; it influenced some of the others, so it will be discussed first, then the other sermons will be outlined, and some conclusions drawn. This introduction is much longer than those for other individual sermons translated in this volume, but it seems justified: first, because Achard’s sermons, all of which have been translated and many of which have been retranslated in the other volumes of Victorine Texts in Translation, are represented in this volume by only one sermon; and second, because the Victorine sermons on St Augustine cast some light on the understanding the Victorines had of themselves as followers of St Augustine.1 Achard’s Sermon and Augustine’s Confessions Typically, each of Achard’s sermons develops a central image, such as an interior cathedral,2 or a specific biblical pericope, such as the

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The introduction will consider the presence of St Augustine’s Confessions in Achard’s sermon (Nicole Reibe), the other Victorine sermons for the Feast of St Augustine, and the composite image of St Augustine that emerges from these Victrorine sermons (Feiss). Achard of St Victor, “Sermon 13: [Second] Sermon for the Dedication of a Church” in Achard of St Victor: Works, tr. Feiss, 207–53.

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Triumphal Entry3 or the Transfiguration,4 into a meditation on Christology, theological anthropology, or spiritual progress. Yet, Sermon 9: On the Solemnity of St Augustine is an odd text, laced with seemingly disparate biblical quotes and lacking a discernable theological core; but it is also one of Achard’s richest, touching on many of his recurrent theological and spiritual themes and full of allusions to one of his primary influences: St Augustine of Hippo. The goal of this section of the introduction is to foreground Achard’s use of Augustine’s Confessions as a way of organizing and explaining the variety of biblical images, theological points, and literary devices found in the sermon. Confessions: The Textual Connection Within Achard’s sermon there are three textual references to Augustine’s Confessions. In the opening paragraph, Achard confesses that he has a “peculiar curiosity and restlessness of my spirit”5 and that this restlessness causes him to turn away from the things of God and to leave his home in God. By using a variation of “inquietum,” Achard echoes Augustine’s famous prayer that “our heart is restless until it rests in you,”6 thus placing himself in Augustine’s position. As if to summarize Augustine’s narrative of worldly dissatisfaction, Achard writes that his spirit, “while it should be resting within, staying at home, and spending time on the things of God, wanders outside, restless and unstable, running here and there.”7 By utilizing similar vocabulary and placement, Achard effectively signals to his audience that the sermon, given on Augustine’s feast day, would not be about Augustine, but would be a re-presentation of Confessions. The second reference to Augustine is quite explicit. In section four of his sermon, Achard writes, “In a region of unlikeness, I say, in which

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Achard of St Victor, Serm. 5 (Châtillon, 67–72; tr. Feiss, Works, 140–46). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 12 (Châtillon, 122–30; tr. Feiss, Works, 191–200). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.1 (Châtillon, 101: “precipua curiositas et inquietudo spiritus mei”; tr. Feiss, Works, 65). Augustine, Conf. 1.1.1 (O’Donnell, 3: “tu excites, ut laudare te delectet, quia fecisti nos ad te et inquietum est cor nostrum donec requiescat in te”; tr. Chadwick, 3: “you stir man to take pleasure in praising you, because you have made us for yourself and our heart is restless until it rests in you”). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.1 (Châtillon, 101–02: “cum deberet intus quiescere domique residere et his que Dei sunt vacare, foris vagatur, mobilis et instabilis, hue ac illuc discurrens”; tr. Feiss, Works, 65).

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Augustine found himself far from God,”8 referencing the region of unlikeness mentioned in Confessions VII, 10.16,9 which itself is a reference to Plato’s “abyss of unlikeness” from the Statesman, which is the threat of creation’s self-destruction and chaos. In Confessions, the region of unlikeness represents the spiritual and moral separation between Augustine and God and is connected to the far-off country, “regionem longinquam,” of Luke 15’s Prodigal Son. In commenting on the Prodigal Son in Confessions, Book I, 18, Augustine writes that the prodigal “departed from you by his lustful affection, that is, by his darkened affection; and, as such, darkened affection is what it means to be far from your face.”10 The Augustinian region of unlikeness is therefore a reference to the individual’s willful turning away from God that leads to self-destruction.11 To tease out the drama of the individual’s fall, Achard posits an elaborate region of unlikeness. Achard expands upon Augustine’s singular region of unlikeness and divides it into three progressive regions of unlikeness: nature, guilt, and punishment. The first region, that of nature, uses Augustine’s notion of participation12 to describe that humans are like God in that they exist and contribute to the total good, but are always more unlike God because creatures can never equal their creator. Following Augustine’s use of spatial language to describe moral difference, Achard defines the second and third of the regions in moral terms. In the second region of unlikeness, that of guilt or fault, Achard draws parallels between the region of guilt and the faraway country of the Prodigal Son: “this is that distant region in which the prodigal son squandered his substance with prostitutes by wanton living. This region, where pigs are fed, is slimy and full of manure.”13 This reference 8 9 10

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Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.4 (Châtillon, 105: “In regione, inquam, dissimilitudinis, invenit se Augustinus longe esse a Deo”; tr. Feiss Works, 67). O’Donnell, 82; “et inveni longe me esse a te in regione dissimilitudinis”; tr. Chadwick, 123: “And I found myself far from you ‘in a region of unlikeness.’” O’Donnell, 14: “in affectu ergo libidinoso, id enim est tenebroso, atque id est longe a vultu tuo”; tr. Chadwick, 20: “To live there in lustful passion is to live in darkness and to be far from your face.” For more on the Platonic background of the region of dissimilitude, see James Wetzel, “Life in Unlikeness: The Materiality of Augustine’s Conversion,” The Journal of Religion 91 (2011): 43–63; Margaret W. Ferguson, “Saint Augustine’s Region of Unlikeness: The Crossing of Exile and Language,” The Georgia Review 29 (Winter 1975): 69–94; and the note to Serm. 9.4 below. Gerald Bonner, “Augustine’s Conception of Deification,” Journal of Theological Studies 37 (1986): 373. In the article, Bonner states that Augustine “uses the word participatio to explain that man exists by participating in God, who is both Being and the source of Being.” See above 128 (n6). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.5 (Châtillon, 106–07: “Hec est regio illa longinqua, in qua filius prodigus, luxuriose vivendo, cum meretricibus dissipaverat substantiam suam. In hac regione pascuntur porci, que est lutosa et fece plena”; tr. Feiss, Works, 69).

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to Luke 15 is enlightening, for it makes explicit Augustine’s connection between the “regio dissimilitudinis” and the Prodigal’s “regionem longinquam.” The uncleanness of the “regionem longinquam” is echoed by the “unclean spirits” populating the region of guilt. Unclean spirits seek to further the self-destruction of the inhabitants of the region of guilt by presenting as virtue the world’s order, marked by drunkenness, impurity, and envy. To emphasize the chaotic, disordered movement in the region of guilt, Achard appropriates the apocalyptic red, black, and pale horses from Revelation 6. Each of the horses carries riders to different types of vices, emphasizing the inherent active-passive tension in sin: an individual willingly chooses to sin, but once the sin is committed, the individual can feel as if she is passively taken away by the sin. To represent the accidental or sporadic rejection of sin, Achard includes the white horse. Just as an individual without the aid of grace can never return to God, the white horse bears its riders toward God, but never actually out of the region of guilt. The unclean spirits and apocalyptic horses, as the army and cavalry of the world, hem individuals into the region of guilt, effectively representing the same situation in which the young Augustine found himself, despite his futile attempts to find peace in the early books of Confessions. The third region of unlikeness, punishment, awaits those who dwelt in the region of unlikeness by guilt during their lifetimes. While his description of the region is sparse in Sermon 9, Achard elaborated upon the just nature of punishment in his Sermons 3 and 14. He saw sinners’ punishments as fitting for they are “deserving of punishment and wrath because they did evil”14 and “by sinning, humanity was made a slave of sin and, by the just judgment of God, handed over to the power of the devil.”15 Humans are enslaved by their own disorder. They are both perpetrators and victims of chaos. Left to themselves, their telos is the region of unlikeness by punishment. Just as at the beginning of the sermon Achard invokes the beginning of Confessions, so the middle section of Sermon 9, the region of unlikeness, structurally corresponds to Confessions. In each of the authors’ respective works, the region of unlikeness is placed at the midpoint. Achard’s replication of placement is not merely incidental or coincidental. In Confes14 15

Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14 (Châtillon, 177: “dignus est pena et ira eo quod fecit mala”; tr. Feiss, Works, 266). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 3.2 (Châtillon, 46: “Sic ergo homo peccando factus est servus peccati, et justo Dei judicio traditus est in potestatem diaboli”; tr. Feiss, Works, 113).

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sions, Augustine precedes his discussion of the region of unlikeness with his discussion of Platonic philosophy imagined as Egyptian gold among Egyptian captivity and idolatry. Immediately before he quotes Augustine at the start of section four, Achard ends section three with a reference to Egypt: “These horses take it to a far country, a region of unlikeness, the region of Egypt, and do not bring it back from there. These horses serve Pharaoh and his army.”16 Here Achard not only connects the Augustinian themes of the region of unlikeness, the “longinquam regionem,” and Egypt, but also replicates the structure of the Confessions.17 The last Augustinian reference comes, fittingly, at the end. Achard ends his sermon with a prayer to the Trinity: “Above all these regions of likeness is the region of the supreme and uncreated Trinity, where likeness is equality itself, and equality is unity itself. May the divine Majesty, triune and one, lead us to contemplate that unity. Amen.”18 The final chapter of Confessions Book 13 is a vision of contemplation: As for ourselves, we see the things you have made because they are. But they are because you see them. We see outwardly that they are, and inwardly that they are good. But you saw them made when you saw that it was right to make them… What man can enable this human mind to understand this? Which angel can interpret it to an angel? What angel can help a human to grasp it? Only you can be asked, only you can be begged, only on your door can we knock. Yes, indeed, that is how it is received, how it is found, how the door is opened.19

The contemplation of the Trinity that Achard longs for is what Augustine describes. Book 13 of Confessions contemplates the relationship 16

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Serm. 9.3 (Châtillon, 105: “equos … qui eum lacerant et dilaniant, et in longinquam regionem, in regionem dissimilitudinis, in regionem Egyptiorum, ducunt nec reducunt. Hi etenim equi Pharaoni et exercitui ejus deserviunt”; tr. Feiss, Works, 67). Achard may also have been influenced by Bernard of Clairvaux and William of St Thierry, who both wrote on the regio dissimilitudinis. William of St Thierry explicitly linked the region of dissimilitude to Egypt. For a fuller exploration, see Mette B. Bruun, Parables: Bernard of Clairvaux’s Mapping of Spiritual Topography (Leiden: Brill, 2007), 182–202. Serm. 9.6 (Châtillon, 107: “Super has autem regiones similitudinis est regio summe et increate Trinitatis, ubi similitudo est ipsa equalitas, et equalitas ipsa unitas. Ad quam unitatem contemplandam nos perducat divinea majestas, trina et una. Amen”; tr. Feiss, Works, 70). This conclusion refers to the “mathematical trinity,” an important idea in Achard’s De unitate et pluralitate. For a discussion of this, see Feiss, “Victorines on the Trinity,” in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): 328−52, where further bibliography is provided, particularly to the studies of David Albertson. The idea derives from a passage in Augustine’s De doctrina christiana 1.5.5. Augustine, Conf. 13.37.53 (O’Donnell, 204; tr. Chadwick, 304–05).

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between creation and the Trinity and asserts that creation subsists in God’s goodness.20 The likeness that Achard appeals to in his final prayer is the source of the relationship between God and creation. This likeness is perfect unity and perfect equality in the Trinity. For Achard, as for Augustine, the relationship between creation and God leads to contemplation of the Trinity. With these three textual references and their parallel placements, Achard broadcasts to his audience his sermon’s dependence upon and continuation of Augustine’s Confessions. Achard’s Rhetoric While Achard faithfully incorporates Augustinian theology and adheres to the broad structure of Confessions, he also utilizes similar rhetorical elements, albeit not always in the same manner. In availing himself of Augustine’s rhetoric, but infusing it with his own theological content, Achard demonstrates his sensitive reading of Confessions and his own theological prowess. In both the Confessions and Sermon 9, the author is the pilgrim figure, who is on a journey back to God. At the beginning of Confessions, we find Augustine the narrator reflecting back on his life, pointing to decisive moments, people, and ideas that gradually lead him to intellectual and spiritual conversion and baptism. While it is his story, there are universal elements woven throughout the narrative. In Books 10–13, Augustine the narrator moves beyond his personal narrative and investigates memory, time, and creation. Augustine progressively moves well beyond himself to the very origin and telos of all creation and time. Through his thirteen books, Augustine leads his audience on a meditative assent from Thagaste to the Trinity. Achard’s Sermon 9 presents Achard’s individual journey, which soon broadens out to every person’s journey through life, and ends, as we previously discussed, with looking up toward the Trinity. Achard’s sermon starts with his own confession; “Since I must fill the place of the sage, I must become foolish. I have not prepared as I should have, and I have not foreseen in a fitting way words of exhortation appropriate for your brotherhood and suitable to the solemnity of our great father Augustine.”21 Achard, like Augustine, presents his earlier self as a kind of wayward spirit. Achard quickly moves on to the universal condition 20 21

Augustine, Conf. 13.2.2 (O’Donnell, 184; tr. Chadwick, 273–74). Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.1 (Châtillon, 101: “Quoniam oportet me implere locum sapientis, oportet me insipientem fieri. Non quidem ut oportuit me preparavi, non ut decuit sermonem

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of fallen man, describing humanity’s internal disorder and the human tendency to be distracted by the vanities of the world and inattentive to the lasting things of God, which are only accessed through a return to the inner self. As with Augustine, waywardness occupies much space in the text. Finally, the place of rest for all pilgrims is contemplation of the Trinity. For both authors, the rhetorical humility of the initially autobiographical narrator gives way to the narrator representing a kind of universal experience of restlessness and eventual hope in the Trinity. Within his narrative journey Augustine places chiastic symbols, where people or objects mentioned in the earlier books and associated with Augustine’s sin are paired with later events as points of grace. For example, the pear tree in Book 2 is chiastically paired with the fig tree in Book 8 where Augustine hears the call to “take and read.” Achard uses the same method of chiastic pairings, but instead of using people and objects, he uses places, namely, regions of likeness to oppose the regions of unlikeness. As noted previously, Achard expands Augustine’s region of unlikeness, but he also creates chiastic counterpoints to the regions of unlikeness through the development of regions of likeness; each region of likeness marks the pilgrim’s progressively increasing participation in the divine life. When an individual progresses in the Christian life, he does not leave the previous region(s) behind, but builds upon them. A person is able to move from one region to the next when one mode of participation is fulfilled in a way that acts as a foundation for the next region. Through the addition of the regions of likeness, Achard incorporates his spirituality of participation, which is Augustinian in character, into an already Augustinian framework. Achard “reported a threefold participation of the spiritual creation in its creator, according to nature [creation], according to righteousness, according to beatitude, and that these distinctions corresponded in an exact manner to… the three regions of likeness according to nature, according to grace, and according to glory.”22 The first region, nature, is the same region previously discussed as the first region of unlikeness: participation in God due to existence. The region of righteousness is built upon

22

exhortationis mihi previdi vestre fraternitati convenientem atque sollempnitati tanti patris nostri Augustini congruentem”; tr. Feiss, Works, 65). Jean Châtillon, Théologie, Spiritualité et métaphysique dan l’oeuvre oratoire d’Achard de SaintVictor (Paris: J. Vrin, 1969), 156. “Fait état d’une triple participation de la créature spirituelle à son créateur, selon la création, selon la justification et selon la béatification, et que cette distinction correspond d’une manière très exacte … les trois régions de la ressemblance selon la nature, selon la grâce et selon la gloire” (translation mine).

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the region of nature and “consists in usefulness brought about by an act implementing the power of understanding, loving, and embracing. This region is much worthier and more Godlike than the previous natural region, which consisted in potentiality only.”23 As opposed to the worldly preoccupations of the region of guilt, the pilgrim in the region of righteousness properly uses his will to love, understand, and embrace God. The third region of likeness is that of beatitude, “which consists in the full and thoroughly pleasant enjoyment of truth itself, fully understood, loved, and embraced.” Instead of the punishment of the third region of unlikeness, the region of beatitude is characterized by the transcendent joy of being in God’s presence. Achard creates a spiritual map; in Sermon 15, he subdivides the region of righteousness into seven deserts, each of which corresponds to a stage of spiritual ascent. Through the addition of the regions of likeness, Achard produces his own chiastic structure, using spatial terms instead of Augustine’s symbols and contrasting relationships, infusing the work with his own understanding of spiritual progress. By reading Sermon 9 as a retelling of Augustine’s Confessions, albeit with some different imagery, the sermon as a whole comes into focus. Augustine’s story of conversion and grace sets the framework for Achard to present the universal Christian struggle to exit the region of unlikeness and to move closer to God through the regions of likeness. By utilizing explicit references, subtle structural mirroring, and personally enacting the opening of Confessions, Achard reveals himself to be not only a keen reader of Augustine, but also an intriguing contributor to the Augustinian tradition. The Feast of St Augustine in Victorine Sermons The sermon on St Augustine by an anonymous Victorine takes as its starting point the same antiphon from the liturgy that Achard used: “Augustine found himself far from God, in a region of unlikeness.”24 The author says that his audience has heard many sermons on St Augustine, and so he cannot say anything new, but he does not need to because the word of God, rather than being new, makes new. Augustine was far from 23

24

Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.5 (Châtillon, 106: “consistit in usu, actu potentie intelligendi et diligendi et apprehendendi ad executionem. Que predicta regione naturali, que in sola potentia consistit, multo dignior et Deo similior”; tr. Feiss, Works, 68–69). Sermo 7, in Festivitate Sancti Augustini, ed. Jean Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 276–82; I have analyzed this sermon at length in the chapter on Victorine ministries of preaching and confession in Feiss and Mousseau (eds), A Companion to the Abbey of Saint Victor in Paris, Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 78 (Leiden: Brill, 2018): 147−83.

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God because he was proud of his attainments in worldly learning. By God’s illumination, he came to himself and realized his condition. There are three regions of unlikeness to God: nature (which is also a region of likeness), fault, and penalty. Augustine came to realize that he was in the region of fault, and was transferred by God to the region of grace by a process of conversion that required his active involvement. Enlightened, he became a source of light for others. His teachings are like a large spring: abundant, cleansing, and thirst quenching. His books flowed out like a river to gladden the city of God. He sold everything and bought a field that bears fruits in which the blessed will find unalloyed enjoyment. Richard of St Victor’s sermons on Augustine do not say very much about the saint. Sermones centum 2525 is a generic sermon about the symbolism of hyssop for the cleansing of sin, but it explicitly says that the symbolism applies to “Augustine, whose solemnity we are celebrating today” (950B). Sermones centum 8426 is also generic. St Augustine, who is celebrated as eminent in the company of prelates and teachers, taught his disciples and flock most perfectly and established them in the service of God (1166BC). This sermon comments on Tobit 13:19–23, and concludes: “Now, dearly beloved, let us see if we are of the blessed father Augustine, that is, imitators of him as we should be. Let us heed whether we love the Word of God, by reading, meditating, pondering, and preaching the example he has left us according to the grace given us, whether we imitate his most honorable religious life by living in a holy way with all our strength” (1169AB). Sermones centum 9927 expounds on Psalm 44(45):2, “‘My soul has uttered a good word.’ These words certainly apply to Augustine, whose solemnities we are celebrating this day. He never ceased preaching the word of God in the Church right up until his final illness. He ascribed his good life to Christ, not to himself. So ‘we sing of him on this his solemnity because, filled with the spirit of the prophets and apostles, he made the mystic things they preached reach us’” (1205BC). Citing the first word of the version of the Rule of St Augustine observed at St Victor, he concludes: “St Augustine, or rather the Holy Spirit, said, with his tongue filled with grace: ‘Before all things, let God be loved, and then our neighbor.’ Then in what follows he commands many things regarding continence, obedience, and communion, which are especially contained in our profession. Let us see whether 25 26 27

PL 177.949D–951B. PL 177.1166A–1169B. PL 177.1205B–1206D.

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these words of the blessed man have grown strong in us. If so, then we have no doubt that the Holy Spirit has worked in us through his words.” Maurice of St Victor’s sermon on Augustine28 comments on a slightly modified version of Leviticus 2:1–2: “A soul offering [a grain] sacrifice will be like its offering. She will pour oil and frankincense upon it and take it to the sons of Aaron the priest.” This interesting sermon begins by saying that the mysteries in this authoritative text have been written, expounded, and preached by the holy teachers among whom, after the apostles, St Augustine is preeminent. He was called from darkness to light and became a shining light in the Church. At this point the sermon becomes generic. There are six things in this biblical verse that apply to the Scriptures and its expositors: (1) authority (oil), the grace of the Holy Spirit, inspiring belief and preaching, especially in Christian teachers, (2) the dignity of the human being’s rational soul (sacrifice), (3) fineness (fine flour), Christ, the grain of wheat from which is made the fine flour of Sacred Scripture, (4) the heavenly bread, ground on the millstones of literal and spiritual (allegory, tropology, anagogy) meaning, to which is added the water of natural intelligence and the exercise of virtue and conscientious meditation, then cooked in the bread-making grill of memory, (5) devotion (frankincense), devout prayer to avoid pride and maintain (6) humility (presenting the offering to the priests), in imitation of Christ who was both priest and sacrifice. Returning at the end to St Augustine, Maurice says that all the faithful are Christ’s children, including apostolic men outstanding in virtue and teaching, such as Augustine and Jerome, who exchanged letters, Ambrose, and St Paul. They commend one faith, one message, and one voice of praise to God. To the vision of God, may Christ lead us through the merits and prayers of blessed Augustine. Godfrey of St Victor had a strong sense of his calling as a canon regular under the Rule of St Augustine. His sermon on St Augustine remains unpublished, but Delhaye has given us its opening lines: “A certain man setting out on a journey called his servants and entrusted to them his possessions. Dearly beloved brothers, this parable is not unsuitably proclaimed in the ears of the Church today, when that great father and pastor of the universal Church of God, Augustine, like a faithful and prudent servant, faithfully and prudently trading with the talents the Lord entrusted to him, merited to enter into the joys of his Lord.”29 28 29

Sermo 6, de Sancto Augustino, ed. Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 226–31. Philippe Delhaye, “Les sermons de Godefroy de Saint-Victor: leur tradition manuscrite,” RTAM 21 (1954): 194–210.

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Absalom of Springiersbach’s sermon on St Augustine30 begins from Job 1:14: “the oxen were plowing, and the asses were pasturing next to them.” If the sower is Christ, the seed the word of God, and the soil human hearts, then the oxen are teachers of the Church like Augustine. The resemblance consists in four things: the teachers provide meat, by humane treatment for all kinds of people; hide, by guarding and exhibiting a disciplined way of life; a horn, by strictness; and fertilizer, by just rebuke. They are bound to the plow of evangelical teaching by four bonds of wisdom: love of holiness, zeal for justice, humility in prosperity, and constancy in adversity. They can make even unpromising soil fertile, but must not be seduced by the pretty flowers of this world. Augustine possessed all of these properties. He ruminated on four kinds of writings, and then spoke what he learned: natural (the liberal arts), juridical (rhetoric), speculative (the truth of the divine law), and disciplinary (religious life). The first two are handmaids to the second two. Of those who imitate Augustine some live rightly, but are not learned; others learn all sorts of arcane knowledge, but do not live rightly or know themselves; others know and live rightly. He concludes by urging his listeners to remember they are mortal, rational animals, recognize the dignity they have because made in the image of God, and so wisely choose Christ, the truth and the life, who awaits in eternal beatitude. The Augustine of the Sermons: Convert, Teacher, Guide, and Model The Augustine we meet in these sermons on his feast day is above all a teacher, a preeminent doctor of the Church, who by his writings and his preaching bequeathed a legacy of wisdom to the Church. He is also the author of a rule of life, which the Victorines have received from him, but the sermons evidence no need to insist on the uniqueness of that way of life vis-à-vis either monks or secular canons. They seem confident and not defensive. Augustine is a convert who passed from darkness to light, from unlikeness to likeness, from sin to grace, and so his life is a light to the Church. The canons of St Victor who hear or read these sermons are urged to imitate Augustine’s holiness, reading, writing, and preaching, and to live according to the rule of life and example he has given them. To aid them in this, they have Augustine as their intercessor. 30

Sermon 46 on St Augustine (PL 211.260C–265C).

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TRANSLATION

1. Because I must fulfill the role of wise man, I must become a fool. I have not prepared as I should have, nor have I given the forethought that was proper for a sermon of exhortation appropriate for your brotherhood and the solemnity of our great father Augustine. The cause of this unpreparedness is the rash curiosity and restlessness of my spirit, which, when it should be resting within, staying at home, and devoting its time to the things that are God’s, wanders outside, moving around, unstable, running here and there. In a moment and the blink of an eye,1 when I have mounted the horse of birth, it is led out and brought back through different regions and various provinces, now to these battles and now to those. If eventually, after long circuitous paths of error, it returns inside to itself, it still does not give attention and consideration to the things that are within, but thinks back over exterior things, if not in themselves, at least in their images. While it is intent on such things, it is forgetful of itself; it does not pay attention to the war that is being waged against it, both within and without. Instead, it is wretchedly secure in the middle of the battle, and so its enemy finds it naked and defenseless. 2. The flesh, which according to the law and order of nature should serve the spirit, now resists, opposes, and contradicts it. It plagues and disturbs, now through sensation and now through sensual inclination. The spirit is even separated and divided in itself and from itself. The will withdraws from reason and contradicts it in many matters. As a result, we do not immediately choose with our will everything that we approve with our reason. Sometimes, willing is at odds with willing. When, sometimes, part of us wants something and part does not, there is an intimate and domestic battle, and so all the more dangerous. From an opposite region and side, the world itself stands in battle array against my spirit with an army of prosperity and adversity. With prosperity, it softens my spirit, sapping its vigor and raising it on the wind of pride; through adversity, it breaks it and pushes it down. There is yet a third war of unclean spirits, terrible and horrible, that threatens. Our struggle is not only against flesh and blood, but also against the rulers of this world, that is, of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in the heavens.2 The assaults of these spirits are greatly to be feared, since they are invisible, most wicked, and full of every deceit and treachery. It is not for some small cause that they go to war against us, but for an eternal inheritance, not to acquire it for themselves, but to deprive us

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of it, because they want to have us as companions in their misery. As if it were positioned securely within so many battle lines, neglecting its own salvation, our spirit wanders unarmed and naked in the midst of its enemies. Its whole intent ought to be, with the help of God, to call all things back to the order of the original creation, to mortify its members that are upon the earth,3 and to crucify the flesh with all its vices and worldly desires,4 so that the flesh would serve in subjection to the spirit, and the world itself, which has been made for humankind, would, in accord with God’s original arrangement, cooperate with humankind for what is good in such a way that it would extinguish all the fiery spears of the most wicked enemy.5 3. How awful! God in His laws is held in contempt, the spirit is walked on by the feet of its handmaid, seduced by the deceits of the enemy, dragged away by the vanities of the world, thrown outside, and led far away. Those horses mentioned in the Apocalypse, namely, the red, black, and pale ones, are always on the ready. The red horse carries my spirit to every sort of battle, rages, contentions, and things like that; the black horse carries it to gluttony and drunkenness; the pale horse takes it to hypocrisy and pretense. The red horse takes it through hard, harsh places;6 the black horse, through dirty and putrid ones; the pale horse, through difficult and steep ones; the red horse, through places of wickedness and perversity; the black one, through places of carnal concupiscence; the pale horse, through places of vainglory. My spirit very seldom or never mounts the white horse, about which it is written that he went out as a victor to conquer.7 Those who mount this horse of innocence conquer and are not conquered; those who mount the other three are conquered and do not conquer. If, however, it sometimes happens that my spirit does mount the white horse, it does not stay there long, but instead loves the horses of vanity that mangle and dismember it and lead it away into a far distant region, into a region of unlikeness, into the region of the Egyptians—and do not lead it back. These horses serve Pharaoh and his army.8 4. In a region, I say, of unlikeness, in which Augustine found himself to be far from God.9 There are three regions of unlikeness: one of nature, the second of guilt, and the third of punishment. There are three regions of likeness: the first of nature, the second of justice, and the third of the blessed life. Every creature is like its origin insofar as it is, insofar as it is included in some species, and insofar as it contributes something useful to the good of the totality. Therefore, everything that exists is like that from which it is on account of being, beautiful being, and good

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being, or on account of essence, beauty, and the utility of goodness. Therefore, every creature has within it the image and vestige of the supreme Trinity. According to being, it reflects the Father; according to beauty, the Son; according to utility, the Holy Spirit. In the rational spirit, there is also an image that is much more eminent and lofty than the image just mentioned.10 Besides that general image, which is in all things, the rational creature has within itself a specific kind of image insofar as it can understand Him from Whom it is, and love Him once He is understood, and apprehend Him once He is loved, either toward realization or toward enjoyment: to realization, that it may be just; to enjoyment, that it may be blessed. Hence, only a rational creature is said to be made to the likeness or image of God,11 not because no other creature has any image of God in it, but because the rational creature has such a noble and excellent image of his Creator, such as no other nature inferior to it contains. This natural likeness is in each, but the region is in all of them, together. To this region of likeness is opposed a region of unlikeness of the same kind, that is, unlikeness of nature. Everything that exists is much more unlike than like to Him from Whom it originates; nor can anything, however much it approaches Him through likeness, be equal to Him. 5. The region of justice is brought about by understanding, loving, and apprehending toward realization. It is much worthier and more God-like than the natural region just discussed, which consists only in a power. This is not because it is in many, since it is in fewer, for the number of those who exist is greater than the number of the just, but because, beside the power, this involves the use and act of that same power. The likeness of justice is in each of the just; the region is in all of them, together. To it is opposed the region of unlikeness that results from guilt, that is much farther from God than are the regions of nature or punishment, since whatever is, except for sin, has some likeness with God. Even punishment has some likeness with God, either because it is just or happens by the just judgment of God, or because a nature is such from God that such a thing cannot be applied to another kind of thing without it suffering, like a finger put into a fire. This is that fardistant region in which the prodigal son, by living in vice, squandered his wealth with prostitutes.12 Pigs feed in this region, which is muddy and full of manure. This is the region of darkness in which Augustine found himself when the light dawned for him in this darkness. 6. The region of beatitude that consists in the full, utterly pleasant enjoyment of truth itself, fully understood, loved, and apprehended, is

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much greater, worthier, and closer to God than the two already mentioned. It is greater than the previous one, although it has fewer inhabitants; there are more just than there are blessed. In fact, if blessedness could be had without justice, those who are now blessed would choose to be just rather than blessed, if they had to choose one or the other, because through justice the will of God is fulfilled in us, whereas through beatitude our will is fulfilled in God. Just as the will of God is to be put before the human will, so, if beatitude could be had without justice, one should choose to be just rather than to be blessed. Finally, as was said of the others, the likeness of beatitude is in each; the region is in all of them, together. To this region is opposed that region of unlikeness that is called the region of punishment. However, beyond these regions of likeness is the region of the supreme and uncreated Trinity, where likeness is equality itself and equality is unity itself. May the Divine Majesty, Three and One, lead us to the contemplation of that unity. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12

1 Cor 15:52. Eph 6:12. Col. 3:5. Gal 5:24. Eph 6:16. RB 58.8, ed. Kardong, 462–43. Rev 6:2. Exod 14:3–8. First Response of the First Nocturn of Matins for the Feast of St Augustine as celebrated at St Victor. The theme of “region of unlikeness” is evoked frequently in Victorine writings. See 128 (n6), 387 (n11). Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.11.13 (PL 176.211B). Gen 1:26. Luke 15:30.

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 81: ON THE FEAST OF ST GREGORY, ABOUT THE LAMPSTAND DESCRIBED IN EXODUS 25 INTRODUCTION

This sermon1 is an exposition, literal, doctrinal, and moral mixed together, and then anagogic, of the description of the seven-branched lampstand or menorah of Exodus 25:3–39. Although the description of the menorah in the Vulgate version from which Richard worked is not always clear, he seems to have had in mind a fairly accurate picture of what the menorah looked like. The New American Bible Revised Edition2 translation of this passage can serve as an orientation to what Richard was describing: You shall make a menorah of pure beaten gold—its shaft and branches—with its cups and knobs and petals springing directly from it. Six branches are to extend from its side, three branches on one side, and three on the other. On one branch there are to be three cups, shaped like almond blossoms, each with its knob and petals; and so for the six branches that extend from the menorah. On the menorah there are to be four cups, shaped like almond blossoms, with their knobs and petals… Their rods and branches shall so spring from it that the whole will form a single piece of pure beaten gold. You shall then make seven lamps for it and so set up the lamps that they give their light on the space in front of the menorah. These, as well as the trimming shears and trays, must be of pure gold. Use a talent of pure gold for the menorah and all these utensils.

The notes to this translation suggest that on the shaft one of the four ornaments was at the top and each of the other three were below one of the sets of side branches. On each branch, one set of ornaments was at 1 2

Richard of St Victor, Sermones centum 81 (PL 177.1156B–1160A). New American Bible Revised Edition (Charlotte, NC: St Benedict Press, 2010), 103.

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the top and the other two along the length of the branch. The lamps were probably shaped like small boats with the wick turned toward the front of the menorah. The trays were receptacles for burnt-out wicks. The decorative elements consisted of cups like almond blossoms (Vulgate: “like nuts”), knobs (Vulgate: “little balls”), and petals (Vulgate: “lilies”). Evidently, the knob or “little ball” was the ovary at the base of the flower. Not many Victorine sermons for the feast days of specific saints survive. That Gregory the Great (c. 540–604) deserved a feast and a sermon indicates his high status at St Victor. His writings were extremely influential in the twelfth century, and nowhere more so than at St Victor. Multiple copies of his Dialogues, Homilies on the Gospel and on Ezekiel, Morals of Job, and Pastoral Rule survive from the abbey library.3 Garnier of St Victor fashioned an encyclopedic reference book, the Gregorianum, from Gregory’s writings.4 Richard himself refers to Gregory by name in several places. Quoting Hugh of St Victor, Richard includes Gregory by name among those early Christian writers whose works have quasi-canonical status.5 In another sermon, he refers to Gregory as the authority on the moral meaning of Sacred Scripture.6 In still another sermon, he mentions Gregory as one of four holy priests who bore witness by their preaching.7 In his treatise On the Instruction of the Interior Person, Richard cites Gregory as an authority on biblical interpretation.8 So, it is not surprising that Richard’s collection of 100 sermons would include one on Gregory the Great. At first glance, the sermon seems odd. Richard refers to Gregory only twice, at the beginning and the end of the sermon, saying, “Blessed Gregory, whose solemnities we venerate today.”9 Richard makes no mention of any details about Gregory’s life, deeds, or virtues. One might conclude that the sermon is boilerplate, in which the references to Gregory could be replaced by the name of any other holy pastor and preacher. However, that would be a mistake. Richard’s sermon 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Gilbert Ouy, Les manuscrits de l’abbaye de Saint-Victor, 2 vols., BV 10–11 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1999), 2:284. Garnier of St Victor, Gregorianum (PL 193.23A–462A). LE 1.2.9 (Châtillon, 120) = Hugh of St Victor, Didasc. 4.2 (Buttimer 72; tr. Harkins, 135); see Script. 6 (PL 175.16B; tr. Van Liere, 219). LE 2.10.10 (Châtillon, 395.25) = Serm. cent. 10 (PL 177.920C). Serm. cent. 60 (PL 177.1085BC): Jerome, Gregory, Augustine, and Ambrose are considered to be the four great Latin Fathers. Erud. 2.9 (PL 196.1307D). Par. 1: “beatus Gregorius cujus hodie solemnia colimus” and par. 15: “beatus Gregorius cujus hodie solemnia celebramus.”

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on Gregory is from beginning to end a tribute to the saint because its allegorical exposition of the menorah is an elaboration of a passage in Gregory’s Homilies on Ezekiel. Here is the Gregory text on the menorah described in Exodus 25: Because the wheel builds up in every direction, it runs in circular fashion. Whence it was written in the law: You will make a lampstand hammered from purest gold, its shaft and rods, cups and little balls and the lilies extending from it.10 Whom does the lampstand designate if not the Redeemer of the human race? Into the nature of humanity, he infused the light of divinity in order to become the lampstand of the world, so that in his light every sinner would see in what darkness he lay. Because he received our nature without any sin, he orders the lampstand of the tent to be made from purest gold. It is a pounded object produced by hammering, because our Redeemer, who from his conception and birth was perfect God and man, bore the sorrows of his sufferings and thus arrived at the glory of his resurrection. However, in regard to the virtues of his soul he had nothing in which he could grow… In his members, which we are, he does advance daily by blows, because when we are hammered and afflicted so that we merit being his body, he advances. Of his body, it is written: From him the whole body supported and constructed with joints and ligaments attains growth that is of God…11 When pastors and doctors are joined to [the martyrs] by good works, it is like the hands joined to the arms… The shaft of the same lampstand must be understood to be the Church itself, which is his body, because she remains free amidst so many adversities. The rods that extend from the shaft are preachers who send sweet music, a new song, into the world. The cups are the minds of their listeners that are filled with the wine of knowledge by holy preachers. The little balls are the impetus of preaching. A ball rolls in every direction. Preaching that cannot be held back by adversity, or elevated by prosperity, is a sphere because it is strong in adversities and humble in prosperity; it has no corner of fear or elation. It cannot be stopped… There follows that verdant homeland that renews itself with holy souls, that is, eternal flowers. The little balls pertain to labor, the lilies to reward.12 10 11 12

Exod 25:31; cf. 37:17. Col. 2:19. Hom. Ez. 1.6.8–9 (Morel, 204–08): “Quia vero undique aedificat, quasi per circulum rota currit. Unde et in lege scriptum est: Facies et candelabrum ductile de auro mundissimo, hastile eius et calamos, scyphos et sphaerulas ac lilia ex ipso procedentia (Exod 25:31). Quis in candelabro nisi Redemptor humani generis designatur? Qui in natura humanitatis infulsit lumine divinitatis, ut mundi candelabrum fieret, quatenus in eius lumine omnis peccator in quibus iaceret tenebris videret. Qui pro eo quod naturam nostram sine culpa suscepit, candelabrum tabernaculi ex auro purissimo fieri iubetur. Ductile autem feriendo producitur, quia et Redemptor noster qui ex conceptione et nativitate perfectus Deus et homo exstitit, passionum

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A comparison of Gregory’s text with paragraphs 3–8 of Richard’s sermon makes obvious Richard’s indebtedness to Gregory. Richard uses Gregory’s interpretation as a template. They both see in the hammering of the gold a symbol of suffering. Both men emphasize the importance of preachers, symbolized by the rods, and preaching, whose effectiveness they see symbolized in the tendency of a ball to keep rolling (volubilitas) whether in adversity or prosperity. Both think of the rods as reeds through which preachers blow to sound a new song. They also agree that the lilies refer to heavenly reward. On the other hand, there are differences. Both approaches are Christological, and both authors take time to make Christological points. Gregory sees the lampstand as Christ and the shaft as the Church, and Richard reverses this. Both emphasize the moral perfection of Christ. Gregory thinks in terms of the Body of Christ, which is the Church in all its members and actions, that is, the whole lampstand. Christ, the shaft, sustains the entire structure. Richard, by contrast, thinks of the lampstand as Christ. Gregory explains that Christ, the Redeemer, is fully God and fully man. He suffered in his physical body while on earth, but he could not grow in virtues through his sufferings. Now, however, he suffers and grows in the members of his risen body, the Church. Richard does not use the image of Christ’s body at all; he alludes to the image of Christ the vine stock, or shaft, and emphasizes that Christ has the fullness of grace, in which all in the Church participate. Richard’s exposition of the meaning of the menorah is several times longer than Gregory’s. One reason is that Richard goes on to dolores pertulit, et sic ad resurrectionis gloriam pervenit. Ex auro ergo mundissimo ductile candelabrum fuit, quia et peccatum non habuit, et tamen eius corpus per passionis contumelias ad immortalitatem profecit. Nam iuxta virtutes animae quo percussionibus potuisset proficere, omnino non habuit. In membis autem suis, quae nos sumus, cotidie percussionibus proficit, quia dum nos tundimur et afficimur ut eius corpus esse mereamur, ipse proficit. De cuius corpore scriptum est: Ex quo totum corpus per nexus et coniunctiones subministratum et constructum crescit in augmentum Dei (Col. 2:19)… Quibus [martyribus] dum pastores et doctores subiuncti sunt per bona opera manus brachiis inhaeserunt… Hastile vero eiusdem candelabra ipsa Ecclesia debet intelligi, quae corpus eius est, quia inter tot adversa libera stat. Calami autem qui de hastili prodeunt, praedicatores sunt, qui dulcem sonum mundo ediderunt, videlicet canticum novum. Scyphi autem vino repleri solent. Quid ergo mentes auditorum nisi scyphi sunt, quae a sanctis praedicatoribus vino scientiae replentur? Sphaerula autem quid est aliud nisi volubilitas praedicationis? Sphaera enim ex omni parte volvitur. Et praedicatio, quae nec adversitate retineri potest, nec prosperitatibus elevatur, sphaera est, quia est et inter adversa fortis, et inter prospera humilis, nec timoris angulum, nec elationis. In cursu ergo suo figi non valet, quia per cuncta se volubiliter trahit… Illa virens patria sequitur, quae animabus sanctis, id est floribus vernat aeternis. Sphaerulae ergo ad laborem pertinent, lilia ad retributionem.”

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discuss the snuffers and the places where the snuffed wicks were put. However, the principal reason that his exposition is longer is that he incorporates ideas that Gregory expresses later in Homilies on Ezekiel 2.4.4–5, which the French editor of Gregory’s text entitles “the riches of the number three.”13 For example, in his sermon, Richard mentions Trinitarian symbolism several times (par. 1, 3, 8), while Gregory does not refer to the Trinity in his paragraph on the lampstand but, as one would expect, he does refer to it several times in this discussion of the number three.14 Richard (par. 11) writes that the twofold commandment to love God and neighbor will remain for eternity; in Homilies on Ezekiel 2.4.3 Gregory says that, if the gate of the temple signifies the preacher, the two cubits signify how preaching presents the twofold commandment of love.15 Richard takes several other points from Gregory’s discussion of the meaning of the number three and weaves them into his commentary on the lampstand. Following Paul’s letter to the Romans 2:14–16, 6:14–15, 9:27, Augustine in a number of places distinguishes three ages: before the Law, under the Law, and under grace. Hugh of St Victor refers frequently to the simple division of three ages of salvation history, before the Law, under the Law, and under grace, and the idea plays an important role both in On the Sacraments and in his treatises on the Ark of Noah.16 Elsewhere, Richard mentions the threefold division of salvation and other more elaborate divisions that he found in Hugh’s Chronicon.17 However, Gregory elaborates on this distinction: Because there were three divisions of the ancient fathers, there follow also three divisions of the new ones under grace. The older people had fathers before the Law, and then in the Law, and later the prophets. In the new people, first the first fruits of the Jews believed, and then the fullness of the nations followed in the faith, and finally, at the end of the world, the rest of the Jews are saved.18 13 14 15 16

17 18

Hom. Ez. 2.4–5 (Morel, 2:190–95). Hom. Ez. 2.4.4 (Morel, 2:190 lines 8, 9, 14). Hom. Ez. 2.4.3 (Morel, 2:188–91). For example, Archa Noe 1.5 (Sicard 23–24); 4.9 (Sicard, 114); Libellus 3 (Sicard, 132–38; tr. Rudolph, 422–30); Sacr. dial. (PL 176.32BD, 37A–40B); Vanitate 2 (PL 176.717AC); Script. 17 (PL 175.243BC); Sacr. 1.8.11 (Berndt, 203–04); 1.11 (Berndt, 243–49); 1.12 (Berndt, 251–69); Misc. 1.66 (PL  177.505D–506A). See Rudolph, The Mystic Ark, 421–34; Ehlers, Hugo von ­St ­Viktor, 136–55. LE 1.4.1 (Châtillon, 129). Hom. Ez. 2.4.5 (Morel, 2:192): “Quia tres patrum veterum distinctiones fuerunt, tres quoque novorum sub gratia sequuntur. Vetus quippe populus habuit patres ante legem, ac deinde in

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This sermon (par. 8) seems to be the only place Richard uses this sixfold division elaborated by Gregory. In the same paragraphs of his Homilies on Ezekiel, Gregory develops another threefold distinction that Richard (par. 8) refers to in his sermon: preachers, celibate, and married, symbolized by Moses, Daniel, and Job: Whether in the Old or the New Testament, there were the orders of preachers, continents, and good married people. Whence the same prophet earlier spoke of three men he saw freed: Noah, Daniel, and Job. In these three are signified preachers, the continent, and the married.19

Gregory often spoke of the relationship between action and contemplation. His interest in this was theoretical and personal because he was a monk who had to leave the quiet of his monastery to serve the Church as diplomat and pope. Richard (par. 4) gives the gist of Gregory’s thought: a mixed life combining good action and contemplation of God is an ideal for which to strive.20 If Gregory was both the subject matter and the source of most of this sermon, there is a hint about its recipients. Richard says (par. 10), “We have often said that seven signifies totality.” His point must be that his hearers or listeners must have heard him say this many times. That is an indication that this sermon was addressed to his fellow canons at St Victor.

19

20

lege, et postmodum propehtas. In novo autem populo prius Hebraeorum primitiae crediderunt, postmodum plenitudo gentium in fide secuta est, ac deinde in fine saeculi Hebraeorum reliquiae salvantur.” Hom. Ez. 2.4.5 (Morel, 192). In Hom. Ezek. 2.4.6 (Morel, 194–96), Gregory discusses in what sense the rewards that these three orders of Christians will receive will be the same and different. This threefold division appears in different variations in Augustine, Civ. Dei 15.26 (Dombart and Kalb, CCL 48, 494): “coniugalis,” “vidualis,” “virginalis”; Gregory, Mor. 1.14.20 (Adriaen, CCL 143, 34); Mor. 32.30.35 (Adriaen, CCL 143B, 1656), and Hugh of St Victor, Libellus 4 (Sicard, 140; tr. Rudolph, 436 with note 201): “coniugati,” “continentes,” “virgines” and “utentes mundo,” “fugientes mundo,” “obliti mundum”; Arrha 7 (Sicard, 268; tr. Feiss, VTT  2:222): “tres ordinum fidelium: coniugatorum, continentium, rectorum vel virginum.” See Rudolph, Mystic Ark, 185–90, 316–26; Louis-Marie Gantier, “Le pape et l’évêque dans l’ecclésiologie monastique d’Abbon de Fleury (vers 950–1004)” in Church, Society and ­Monasticism, ed. E. López-Tello García and B. S. Zorzi, Studia Anselmiana 146, Analecta Monastica 9 (Rome: Pontificio Ateneo S. Anselmo, 2009), 143–46. Cuthbert Butler, Western Mysticism, 3rd ed. (London: Constable, 1967), 65–92, and especially Bernard McGinn, The Growth of Mysticism, The Presence of God 2 (New York: Crossroad 1994), 171–86.

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TRANSLATION

1. No one lights a lamp and puts it in a hidden place or under a measure, but upon a lampstand so that those who come in see the light.1 The lampstand is the Church; Blessed Gregory, whose solemn commemoration we honor today, is the lamp. The lampstand is the Church, because a lampstand is pounded out with hammers and made into a lighting instrument. Holy Church, proven by trials and beaten out by the blows (tunsionibus)2 of persecution, burns with the fire of heavenly wisdom and shines with the work of love. A lampstand is made firm on three feet; the Church is founded on the faith of the Holy Trinity. 2. We read in Exodus that the Lord spoke to Moses directing him regarding the making of a lampstand: You will make a lampstand beaten out of pure gold: its shaft and branches, the cups, little balls, and lilies extending from it. Six branches will go out from its sides, three on one side and three on the other. Three cups will be on each branch, in the form of nuts, and little balls, and lilies. This is to be a work of six branches, which are to go out from the shaft. On the lampstand itself there will be four cups like nuts, and little balls on each, and lilies. Therefore, the little balls and the branches will extend out from it, all of them hammered from purest gold. And you will also make seven lamps and place them upon the lampstand, so that they give light from opposite sides. Make snuffers also, and when the things that are snuffed off are extinguished, let them be of purest gold. The total weight of the lampstand with all its parts will be a talent of purest gold.3 3. Holy Church, therefore, is a lampstand of hammered gold. It is a lampstand because it is founded on the faith of the holy and undivided Trinity and established to contain true and divine light. Hammered, because it is extended through the course and extent of time by blows of persecutions, to the increases of virtues and growth of the faithful. Golden, because shining with the brightness of inward love. The lampstand, and the things that were proceeding from it were hammered, because those who wish to live devoutly in Christ suffer persecution.4 They were golden, because it has been demonstrated that they shone by all the justice of the saints, or by the flame of perfect love, or by the light of wisdom.5 4. By the shaft of the lampstand, which is very strong, large, and interior, and not only straight but upright, was fittingly understood men in Holy Church who are very strong in works, understanding, or virtues, dedicated to what is within, upright and elevated on high to

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contemplate heavenly things, and not turned aside to right or left to deal with exterior matters. These are those who are foremost and best in the divine eyes; they have chosen the best part that will not be taken from them.6 5. Whence, they are commanded to make on the shaft of the lampstand four cups, little balls, and lilies, since in the description of the branches extending out from it only three cups, little balls, and lilies are present, so that by this the merits of contemplatives are shown to exceed the life of active people. Or again, by the shaft, which is the strongest, principal, and central part of the lampstand, from which the rest extend and in which they have their foundation, we can understand Christ, Who is the strength, principle, and foundation of all the saints, and is in the middle of them as He Himself testifies: When two are gathered in my name there am I in the midst of them.7 They truly proceed from Him, because they receive from Him whatever good they do. Hence what He says, I am the vine and you are the branches.8 It is as if He were saying, “I am the shaft, and you are the branches. Just as branches cannot bear fruit unless they are on the vine, and just as a rod cannot stretch out to support a lamp unless it stays on the shaft of the lampstand, so unless you remain in Me you cannot bear the light of truth and faith.” 6. Christ, then, is the shaft; the other things that extend from the shaft are all the faithful. On the shaft are four of the cups and other things that are mentioned next, while on the rods there are only three, so that by this it will be clear that the good that is in Christ in its fullness cannot be in the faithful, except through participation in His fullness. The rods, which extend out from the shaft and were the most important elements of the lampstand after the shaft, are the holy Apostles and all preachers. They are rightly called rods, because they are full of the divine Spirit.9 When they preach the sacred faith to us, they softly sound a new song. The Psalmist sings about their song when he says that their sound goes out to all the earth and to the ends of the world their words.10 They are described as being six, so that the number six indicates their perfection. Six is a perfect number, either because God completed the world in six days or because six consists of its parts.11 7. Just as the rods signify preachers, so the cups designate listeners. When cups12 are filled with wine, the cups rightly symbolize hearers of the word. Moreover, as more liquid is poured into some cups and less into others, so in preaching more heavenly grace is poured into some listeners and less into others, to each according to the measure of

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his faith13 and the measure of Christ’s gift.14 When the cups, that is, the listeners, are filled with spiritual wine and inebriated, they are strongly animated to do good work. Hence, immediately something is added about the little balls. For spheres, which roll swiftly, designate people who are speedy in good work. Every part of a little ball rolls, and the perfect action of the just is not slowed by adversity or sped up by prosperity. It is strong amid adversities and humble amid prosperity; it has no corner of fear or exaltation. Lilies designate heavenly remuneration: through their verdure they symbolize unfading eternity, through their brightness the beauty of immortality. Therefore, the rods, cups, and little balls pertain to working, lilies to remuneration. 8. The rods proceeded from the shaft, three on one side, three on the other, because, before the incarnation of Christ, in the time of natural law, and in the time of written law, and in the time of the prophets, there were saints who mystically represented the faith of the Trinity. After His incarnation, they exist in the time of the primitive Church, in the time of our election from among the nations, and in the last time when the rest of Israel will be converted, which also proclaims the same faith.15 Each rod is described as having cups, little balls, and lilies, because both under ancient and under modern preachers, in each of the indicated eras, there were faithful thirsting for a drink of grace, running on God’s way by their action, hoping for the unending verdure16 of eternity and the incorruptible brightness of immortality. On each of the rods there were three cups, little balls, and lilies to indicate that at all times there were clergy, unmarried, and married people, who in Ezekiel are symbolized by Noah, Daniel, and Job.17 They are directed to shape the cups like a nut, which has a hard shell and a sweet kernel, so that this will show that sweetness is sometimes acquired through difficulty, but when once acquired it is very flavorful, very much loved. 9. If anyone asks18 how the shaft, which signifies Christ, contained the cups, little balls, and lilies, let him wisely note that Christ not only grants to His elect knowledge, exercise, and reward of virtues, but also shows in Himself the figure of a cup, since He declared that He was full of the Holy Spirit, and the figure of a sphere, since he exulted like a giant to run his course,19 and the figure of a lily as well, when He was glorified in the Father’s presence. The topmost, the supreme cup, little ball, and lily stand higher on the shaft above the rods, because the gifts that God granted to Christ transcend any manner of human capability. To each of us is given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.20 In him, however, dwelt bodily all the fullness of divinity.21

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10. The seven lamps that are placed on the lampstand to shine from both sides are prelates, who as directors of the Church shine from each side when they present the light of justice to sinners by word and example, when they bring healing to the contrite of heart and preach pardon to captives. We have often said that seven signifies totality.22 The snuffers where the things that have been snuffed out are extinguished are made of purest gold.23 11. There are some things in the Scriptures that are to be observed perpetually in this life and in the future, such as you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart.24 There are other things that people are commanded to observe during the time of this life, so that in the future a reward can be granted, such as make friends for yourselves with the mammon of iniquity so that they may receive you into eternal dwellings.25 There are other things that the Lord ordered to be kept in the Old Testament, but now in the light of the Gospel are observed not according to the letter but according to the mystic sense, such as the rites of sacrifices, and other things like that. When the Apostles preached that they were finished and were to be observed only spiritually, the lamp wicks of the lampstand were wiped clean so that restored they would shine better, because understood more sublimely, they could present the light of teaching more fully. To this restoration pertains what is written: You shall cast out the old when the new comes on.26 And elsewhere: Behold! I make all things new.27 12. It is clear that before the Passion, the Apostles abolished the Sabbath, and after the Ascension of the Lord and the coming of the Holy Spirit, they completely abolished the sacrifices of the Law. Likewise, mortal life is ended and immortal life succeeds it: for the most part, the works and gifts of light that we make use of now will cease, so that eternal rewards in the presence of the divine vision may succeed them. Prophecies will disappear, tongues will cease, and knowledge will be destroyed.28 The words of Holy Scripture that testify that these things will happen are the golden snuffers, because they are distinguished by the hope of future brightness. The vessels in which the things snuffed off are extinguished are the hearts of the saints in whom these changes occur. They, too, are golden because they gleam with the light of wisdom and the flame of love. 13. Finally, the total weight of the lampstand with all its vessels was a talent of purest gold. Everything God does He does in number, weight, and measure.29 These three can have the same spiritual signification according to the spiritual understanding. To this weight or measure

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pertains what was said above, to each one is grace given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.30 To this measure, only Christ is an exception, for to Him pertains what is written, God does not give his Spirit according to a measure.31 As was shown above, Christ has the fullness of the grace that is divided to others according to measure. 14. By the lampstand, we understand the Church; by the shaft, Christ; by the rods, preachers; by the lilies, rewards;32 by the lamps, prelates; by the snuffers, the words of Sacred Scripture that bear witness that certain works and virtues are sometimes eliminated; by the vessels in which the things snuffed off are extinguished, the hearts of the saints in which these things are eliminated; by the weight of the lampstand, the measure of the gift, merit, or prize. The talent, which is the greatest measure of weight,33 signifies perfection. 15. Therefore, this blessed lamp, Gregory, whose solemnity we celebrate today, was placed on a lampstand, not just in any place, but on the top, and he sheds his rays farther and wider insofar as he is placed higher. The lamp shines for us with diverse rays, with excellent rays, with bright rays. It shines for us with virtues; it shines for us with deeds; it shines for us with words; it shines for us with miracles. It shines with the harshest religious observance (religio); it shines with the most fragrant reputation. It shines by merit; it shines by reward. 16. And now, you who are dearest to us, let us go to the rays of this lamp so that, deviating from devious things, and proceeding on the path of justice, we may come to the supreme joys. Which may He grant us, etc.

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NOTES 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

33

Luke 11:33; “modius” was a Roman measure for grain and, as it is here, the basket-like device used to do measuring. Cf. Hugh of St Victor, Diligens 2.3 (Stammberger, 275; tr. Van Liere, VTT 3:235). See the hymn Urbs beata from the seventh or eighth century, sung on feasts for the dedication of a church: “tunsionibus, pressuris, expoliti lapides.” Exod 25:31–34, 36–39. 2 Tim 3:12. On the symbolism of gold, see Garnier of St Victor, Gregorianum 8.1 (PL 193.303D–306C). Luke 10:42. Matt 18:20. John 15:5. “calamus” the word translated as “rod” can mean a hollow reed, which could be used like a whistle or flute to make music. On various meanings of “calamus,” see Garnier of St Victor, Gregorianum 14.11 (PL 193.425C–427B). He does not mention using them to make music or a new song. Ps 18:5. 6 = 1 + 2 +3. See Garnier of St Victor, Gregorianum 15.5 (PL 193.445C). Reading “scyphi” for “scyphis.” Rom 12:3. Eph 4:7. On the conversion of the Jews, see Rom 9–11. Hugh of St Victor divided the history of salvation into six ages, five before Christ and one after, and into three periods: before the law, under the law, and under grace, in all of which there were holy people: Hugh of St Victor, Libellus 2–3 (Sicard, 131–38; tr. Rudolph, 421–30). Both authors give additional references. Here “virorum” is corrected to “virorem.” Ezek 14:14. The Latin is “rectores, continentes, coniugatos,” which could mean “chaste, married clergy,” but rather refers to the three states of life in the Church, which Gregory the Great thought these three men designated, as “predicatores/rectores, continentes, coniugati.” This interpretation appears several times in St Augustine, and occurs repeatedly in Gregory, e.g., Hom. Ez. 1.8.10 (Morel, SC327, 288–90). See the introduction to this sermon, n. 19. Here “quae” is amended to “quaerit.” Ps 18:6. Eph 4:7. Col. 2:9. Garnier of St Victor, Gregorianum 15.6 (PL 193.448A). Exod 25:38. Matt 22:37. Luke 16:9. Lev 26:10. Rev 21:5. 1 Cor 13:8. That is, lesser gifts or charisms will no longer be needed, but love will last forever. Wis 11:21. Eph 4:7. John 3:34. Garnier of St  Victor, Gregorianum 14.2 (PL  193.421C): “Lilii nomine candor aeternae ­patriae designatur.” The rest of this entry is a quotation of Gregory’s commentary on the menorah in Hom. Ezek. 1.6.8–9, cited above. Hugh of St Victor, Diligens 2.21 (Stammberger, 274; tr. Van Liere, 234); Garnier of St Victor’s entry on “talents” in Gregorinaum 8.3 (PL 193.307D–308A) does not discuss its literal meaning as a unit of measure or monetary value.

MAURICE OF ST VICTOR SERMON 1: ON THE SOLEMNITY OF BLESSED VICTOR INTRODUCTION

At St Victor, the feast of St Victor was a solemnity, a feast of the highest order. The Abbey of St Victor was located on the site of a chapel dedicated to St Victor. Hugh of St Victor must have arrived there about 1115. The necrology of the abbey says that his uncle, also named Hugh, an archdeacon of the church of Halberstadt, followed him to St Victor. Constant Mews conjectures that if the new abbey church at St Victor was begun during the time of Bishop Guibert (1116–23), then the relics may have been brought to Paris from Marseilles only after there was a place worthy to house them. The building project was funded at least in part by Hugh, the former archdeacon.1 The hymn Ex radice caritatis2 remembers the transferal of the relics, though it does not specify who transported them. The transferal of relics would have required the support of the king and the Church.3 According to Gregory of Tours and Venantius Fortunatus, St Victor’s tomb was a very popular pilgrimage place by the sixth century. The saint may have been an officer in the army of Maximian (284–305). He was denounced as a Christian, tortured, and beheaded. He converted three of his guards, and they also were executed. This story has not been given much credence for its historical content but, at the site of the later monastery, excavations have revealed some tombs and an early 1 2

3

Necrologium, 5 May (Vones-Liebenstein and Seifert, 166–67). “Pars istius nobis data, / per fideles est allata / ab urbe Massilia. // Cuius prius spiritali, nunc ipsius corporali / fruimur presentia” (Grosfillier, 357; tr. Mousseau, 116–17). A second Victorine sequence in honor of St Victor recalls the legend of his martyrdom: Ecce dies triumphalis (Grosfillier, 380–83; tr. Mousseau, 138–43). Constant J. Mews, “Memories of William of Champeaux: The Necrology and Early Years of Saint-Victor,” in Legitur in necrologio victorino: Studien zum Nekrolog der Abtei Saint-Victor zu Paris, ed. Anette Löffler and Björn Gebert, CV, Instrumenta 7 (Münster: Aschendorff, 2015), 76–77. On the earlier buildings at St Victor, see Robert-Henri Bautier, “Les origines et les premiers développements de l’abbaye Saint-Victor de Paris,” in L’abbaye parisienne, 23–52; Jean-Pierre Willesme, “L’abbaye Saint-Victor de Paris: L’église et les bâtiments, des origines à la Révolution,” in L’abbaye parisienne, 97–115.

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Christian building beneath the remains of a sixth-century building.4 Tradition holds that Cassian founded a men’s and a women’s monastery when he came to Marseilles around 415. The Saracens destroyed the monasteries in the eighth or ninth century. The men’s monastery was refounded as a Benedictine abbey in ad 977. It quickly became a center of monastic reform, particularly in the south of France and in Spain. A relationship with St Victor of Marseilles would have been attractive to the reform-minded canons of St Victor. There are at least seven sermons by Victorines preached on this feast day. Maurice of St Victor, who seems to have flourished around ad 1200, is credited with two of them. In Sermon 1, translated here, he takes as his text a passage from the Apocalypse: to the one conquering I will give hidden manna. Maurice first connects the idea of conquering with fighting a foe, being victorious, and being crowned. The foe is threefold: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Manna is historical, simple (the Eucharist), or hidden (the delights of heaven). Manna nourishes us on our way to the promised land of heaven, which is a place of inexpressible delight. The sermon is recognizably Victorine in its structure, style, and reference to profession as a canon regular. The person or biography of Victor is not in view; his name is all that the author needs or refers to. In his second and somewhat longer sermon about St Victor, Maurice uses as his text 1 John 5:4: “this is the victory which conquers the world, our faith.”5 As in his first sermon on St Victor, Maurice emphasizes that victory is the gift of God, not a human achievement. Victory belongs to faith, God’s first gift to a human being, given independently of human merit. Our faith that works through love grows like a mustard seed. It overcomes the world, both in its material sense through miracle, and in its negative moral sense, which includes the wisdom of the world, the secular power, and the hardheartedness of unbelievers, which are overcome by preaching, patience, and miracles respectively. Gideon is a symbol of these, particularly of preaching. Thus, in the second sermon, Maurice develops a biblical text in a typically Victorine way, ending with a reference to preaching as a way in which faith overcomes the world. St Victor himself is not mentioned, apart from his name, which occasioned the quotation from the first letter of John upon which Maurice elaborates. 4

5

“St Victor” [21 July] in Butler’s Lives of the Saints, New Full Edition, July, ed. Peter Doyle (Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2000), 161–62; Jean-Claude Moulinier, “Saint Victor de Marseille. De l’histoire à la légende,” in L’abbaye parisienne, 13–21. Sermo 2: De sancto Victore (Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 205–10).

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TRANSLATION

1. To the one conquering I will give hidden manna.1 It is fitting that, on the solemnity of the glorious martyr Blessed Victor, one has the word “victory” often on his lips. The martyrdom of the saints is put before us as an example so that we may imitate them according to our measure, so that we may fight with those fighting, and fighting we may conquer, and conquering we may be crowned. The Lord urges us to imitate them now; He does so sometimes by example and sometimes by reward. He exhorts us by example in this passage: Have confidence; I have conquered the world.2 Because I have conquered, you also will conquer through Me, as you put all your trust and hope in Me. He urges us with a reward, where He says, Father I wish that where I am, there my servant may also be.3 Just as the life of a person is from the person or in the person, so a person’s victory is not from the person or in the person, but from God, Who says to you while you are silent: I will fight; war and victory are the Lord’s. As Jeremiah says, Cursed is the one who puts his trust in a human being and leans his arm on flesh; blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.4 Also, David says, the Lord is my strength,5 and elsewhere, in the Lord we will act powerfully,6 and in another place, blessed is the Lord God, who trains my hands for battle.7 No one who is placed in the battle presumes on himself; he trusts in God alone, Who gives strength to the one fighting and a crown to the one conquering. It is not the battle but its end that wins the crown. Hence, the Apostle writes: Unless someone struggles according to the rule, he will not be crowned,8 that is, according to the terms of the struggle and the law of the fight, so that according to the law of the fight and the terms of the struggle, through victorious perseverance, he strives toward the crown of glory.9 The crown is not given without victory, just as victory is not given without a fight, and just as there is no fight without an adversary. Therefore, a contestant needs an adversary whom he fights, as blessed Victor, the illustrious athlete of God, fought against Maximian and conquered him and gloriously triumphed.10 2. We are obliged to a threefold battle, against the flesh, the world, and the devil,11 who attacks us sometimes through himself, sometimes through the world, and sometimes through the flesh. This triple struggle is discussed with sufficient care elsewhere. For now, it is enough to remember that in many places in Holy Scripture there is mention of these three, as in the canonical letter of John, where it says, Whatever is in the world is either concupiscence of the flesh, concupiscence of the

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eyes, or pride of life.12 It is the same thing to fight against the flesh and to fight against concupiscence of the flesh, just as it is the same thing to fight against the world and against the concupiscence of the eyes, which is also called idle curiosity.13 It is also the same thing to fight against the devil and against pride. These three things are referred to in the Psalm as beasts of the field, and birds of the air, and fish of the sea.14 By beasts of the field, one understands the desires of the flesh; by birds of the air, pride; and by fish of the sea, idle curiosity. The Apostle refers to these same things in various places. Regarding the first, he says, I chastise my body,15 that is, the flesh and the corruption of the flesh. Of the second, he says, Let it not be that I glory in myself, unless in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.16 Regarding the third, our struggle is not against flesh and blood, because he has conquered these, but against the princes and powers of this darkness, against the rulers of this world.17 Entering into a new army by our profession, we are armed against these three particularly, when we promise chastity, the common life, and obedience. We are fortified against the corruption of the flesh by chastity. We declare war on the world by dispossession of property and the promise of the common life. If we are doing the work of obedience by poverty of spirit, to which is joined humility, we will have no fear of the impetus of pride. As pride is the first thing those departing from God run into, so it remains the last thing that those returning to God must conquer. 3. Now that it has been shown by Whose work and against what enemy we must fight, we need to see what is promised to the one who fights and wins. To the one conquering, He says, I will give hidden manna.18 Hidden manna is one thing, simple manna is another. One is promised to the one fighting, the other to the one conquering. According to the historical sense, manna was that food that the Lord gave to the children of Israel in the desert. By it, they were fed for forty years, until they came to the inhabitable land19 and ate of the fruits of the land.20 It is said that in the mouth of each person, it tasted as he wanted it to.21 Manna derives its name from “mahu,” which is interpreted to mean, “What is this?” For when the children of Israel saw the physical manna, they wondered and rejoiced at it, and said, mahu, mahu, that is, What is this? What is this?22 This manna signifies the Sacrament of the Altar, the true body and blood of Christ, which is given to those fighting so that they will not grow weak on the way,23 especially because some of them have come from a long distance.24 This mystic manna, which is called “simple,” tastes in each one’s mouth as he wants, because if you

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are tempted by concupiscence of the flesh, or by the concupiscence of the eyes, or by ambition, or in some other way, if you approach worthily to receive this manna, you will receive a remedy. Thus, it tastes in your mouth however you want it to, filling your every desire and conferring a saving remedy. We are fed by this manna for forty years,25 that is, for the entire span of the present life, while we, who exist from the four elements, are armed with the Decalogue against the four evil impulses.26 And in the desert of this world, where like true children of Israel we do not have a fixed residence or a lasting city,27 we frequently change our residence by passing from virtue to virtue, until we reach the true land of promise, the inhabitable land.28 The present life is not an inhabitable land, but a deserted and waterless land,29 full of brambles, thorns, thistles, and reptiles beyond numbering.30 Amid such unsuitable things, there is no security, no safe delaying31 in an uninhabitable land,32 which no man sows and no person inhabits.33 4. Let us then hurry away from here to the land of the living,34 which flows with milk and honey.35 When we come to it we will no longer be given simple manna; we will no longer receive the body and blood of Christ in the Sacrament, because then we will eat of the fruits of the earth, especially the fruits of the palm tree. To us, as people who are conquering, will be given the hidden manna36 as a reward, not as a remedy, but as an all-encompassing glory. The prophet says of this hidden manna, truly you are a hidden God,37 and David says, how great is the multitude of your sweetness, Lord, which you have hidden from those who are fearful.38 Therefore, the hidden sweetness, the hidden God, and the hidden manna are the same, that inexpressible good, which eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it arisen in the heart of man, that God has prepared for those who love him,39 which He has promised to His faithful ones. Hence the Prophet says, his covenant is that he is manifested to them,40 that is, this is His promise to manifest Himself, as He Himself said, I will manifest myself,41 which will happen when He proclaims plainly to us regarding the Father,42 and, when all darkness has been taken away, we will see light in the light,43 the king in his glory.44 In that vision there will be full joy, ineffable rejoicing, all-encompassing delight, eternal loveliness, all delights to overflowing,45 eternal beatitude, the fount and origin of life,46 and inexpressible jubilation of praise and exultation, whose sweetness and agreeableness no one fully knows who has not received them, which we know better by report than by experience. May the Lord Jesus, Who is praiseworthy and glorious forever in His saints, lead us to experience it by the merits of blessed Victor.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13

14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36

Rev 2:17. I have tried to consistently distinguish “vincens,” the one conquering, from “victor,” the (a) victor. John 16:33. John 17:24; 12:26. Jer 17:5, 7. Ps 139:8; 17:2; 42:2; 117:14. Ps 59:14; 107:14. Ps 143:1. 2 Tim 2:5. 1 Pet 5:4; 1 Thes 2:19. This sentence echoes several antiphons for the office of St Victor. This very common Christian idea is frequent in the Victorines. See, for example, Richard of St  Victor, LE  2.10.22 (Châtillon, 415); 2.11.11 (Châtillon, 454–55); Serm. cent.  43 (PL 177.1015AB; translated elsewhere in this volume); Adn. Ps. 28 (PL 196.318B); Anonymous of St Victor, Serm. 2.5 (Châtillon, 248). 1 John 2:16. curiositas: This word had a technical meaning of inordinate desire for knowledge, particularly knowledge derived from the senses. Hence, I  translate it as “idle curiosity.” See N.  Joseph Torchia, “Curiosity,” in Augustine through the Ages, ed.  Allan  D. Fitzgerald (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999), 259–61. Richard of St Victor lists curiositas among four disorders of man’s moral life: iniquitas, voluptas, curiositas, vanitas. Variations of this schema are found, for example, in Richard of St Victor, Adn. Ps. 28 (PL 196.312D); Serm. cent. 74 (PL  177.1134D–1135A). This schema is particularly frequent in the three commentaries on the minor prophets: In Joelem (PL 175.344BC; 347C; 370D–371A), In Abdiam (PL  175.381B; 383B; 393C; 394D; 395D), In  Nahum  3–5 (PL  96.711C–712B), which are doubtfully ascribed to Richard of St  Victor. See also Anonymous of St  Victor, Serm.  1.1 (Châtillon, 241.5–6); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 9.1 (Châtillon, 101 and the footnote there). Ps 8:8–9. 1 Cor 9:27. Gal 6:14. Eph 6:12. Rev 2:17. Exod 16:35. Num 13:21. Wis 16:21; Maurice of St Victor, Serm. 5.3 (Châtillon, 225). Exod 16:15. Matt 15:32; Mark 8:3. Mark 8:3. Exod 16:35. See Maurice of St Victor, Serm. 3.5 (Châtillon, 215, translated elsewhere in this volume). Heb 13:14. Num 33:1–56. Ps 62:3. Ps 39:13. Exod 12:39. Jer 17:6. Jer 2:6. Ps 26:13; 51:7; 141:6; Isa 53:8; Jer 11:19. Exod 3:8; Num 13:28. Rev 2:17.

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Isa 45:15. Ps 30:20. 1 Cor 2:9; Isa 64:4. Ps 24:14. John 14:21. John 16:25. Ps 35:10. Isa 33:17. Job 22:26; Sir 2:12; Song 8:5. Ps 35:10; Prov 13:14; Sir 21:16.



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RICHARD OF ST VICTOR THREE SERMONS ON THE FEAST OF ST MICHAEL INTRODUCTION

The book of Judith is a fairly late Jewish work, written most likely in the Hasmonean period. It exists in several versions. The Latin version in the Vulgate is based on a sometimes elegant Greek version. The Greek version may derive from an Aramaic original but, if so, it was composed anew and not merely translated. The Book of Judith is not included in the King James or later non-Catholic Bible translations, except as an “apocryphal” work. It is a fictional story, which teaches that there is one, transcendent, merciful God, who will protect the Israelites, whom the author urges to be steadfast in their opposition to Gentile oppression.1 In this series of three sermons, Richard of St Victor comments primarily on the liturgical poem uttered by Judith at the beginning of the last chapter of the book, which in the New American Bible Revised Edition reads (the bracketed parts refer to Richard’s three sermons and the verse numbers): [Sermon I: Judith 15:11–12, 16:1–2] For thirty days all the people plundered the camp, giving Judith the tent of Holofernes, with all his silver, his beds, his dishes, and all his furniture… And Judith sang: “Strike up a song to my God with tambourines, sing to the Lord with cymbals; Improvise for him a new song, exalt and acclaim his name. For the Lord is a God who crushes wars;

1

Toni Craven, “Judith,” The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, ed. Raymond E. Brown, Joseph A. Fitzmyer, and Roland E. Murphy (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1990), 572–75; Deborah Levine Gera, Judith, Commentaries on Early Jewish Literature (Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013).

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he sets his encampment among his people; he delivered me from the hands of my pursuers.”

[Sermon II: Judith 16:3–6] “The Assyrian came from the mountains of the north, with myriads of his forces he came; Their numbers blocked the wadis, their cavalry covered the hills. He threatened to burn my territory, put my youths to the sword. Dash my infants to the ground, seize my children as plunder, and carry off my virgins as spoil. “But the Lord Almighty thwarted them, by the hand of a female! Not by youths was their champion struck down, nor did Titans bring him low, nor did tall giants attack him; But Judith, the daughter of Merari, by the beauty of her face brought him down.”

[Sermon III: Judith 16:7–13] “She took off her widow’s garb to raise up the afflicted in Israel. She anointed her face with fragrant oil; fixed her hair with a diadem, and put on a linen robe to beguile him. Her sandals ravished his eyes, her beauty captivated his mind, the sword cut through his neck! “The Persians trembled at her boldness, the Medes were daunted at her daring. When my lowly ones shouted, and my weak ones cried out, The enemy was terrified, screamed and took to flight. Sons of maidservants pierced them through; wounded them like deserters’ children. They perished before the ranks of my Lord. “I will sing a new song to my God.”

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Modern scholars think that verses 6–10 definitely refer to Judith. In Carey Moore’s estimate, these verses are the most effective, vivid (vv. 6, 10), detailed (vv. 7–8) and ironical (vv. 5, 6, 9). Scholars are divided about whether these verses (and the poem as a whole) were penned by the author of the book or incorporated into the book from a preexisting text that was dependent on the canticle of Moses in Exodus (15:1–19).2 These sermons read like a biblical commentary, with large passages broken down into lemmas, which are commented on one by one. Each sermon begins with a commentary on verses of Judith 16, and then moves to St Michael. The first sermon comments on passages about St Michael in Daniel and the Apocalypse. In the second two sermons, Michael is only mentioned in the last few lines. So, it is quite possible that the preacher, having to speak on the solemnity of St Michael, chose to adapt a biblical commentary of Judith that he had at hand or was working on. One nexus between Judith and Michael is that, allegorically interpreted, Judith was fighting against the devil, and Michael does the same thing. Liturgically, the Book of Judith was read at the night office during the week following the fourth Sunday of September, within or near which occurred the feast of St Michael (29 September).3 Although early Christian writers refer to the Book of Judith, there is not enough Patristic commentary to justify its inclusion in the volume of the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture devoted to the Apocrypha.4 There are a number of possible sources from which Richard could have drawn ideas for this sermon. One of these is his discussion of “mysteries contained in the Book of Judith” in his Liber exceptionum.5 There: Nebuchadnezzar is the devil in his pride, Holofernes stands for the Antichrist. Persecutors and heretics are prominent. Judith signifies the Church, which praises God in all her works. Christ sends out his apostles to preach. Until Christ’s final coming, the Church prays and fasts. Judith’s beauty is the Church’s exercise of virtues and performance of good works. Holofernes’ desire for Judith signifies the persecutors who wish to corrupt the Church. Judith, like the Church, was not cor2

3 4 5

Carey E. Moore, Judith, Anchor Bible 40 (Garden City, NJ: Doubleday, 1985), 252–57. The story of Judith contains similarities also with the story of the widow Jael’s killing of Sisera, the general of the army of the Canaanite king, Jabin. Two versions of that story appear in Judges 4:16–22 and 5:24–27. Joseph Pascher, Das liturgische Jahr, 295, 304–05, 690–91. Apocrypha, ed. Sever J. Voicu, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture 15 (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2010), xxi, xxv. LE 2.9.3 (Châtillon, 365–71).

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rupted by living among pagans. As Judith cut off Holofernes’ head with his own dagger, so the Church destroys her enemies through their own malice. As Judith celebrated her victory with those connected with her, so the Church will celebrate with the angels. In that section of the Liber exceptionum, Richard draws on two sources: Rhaban Maur’s Commentary on the Book of Judith6 and the Glossa ordinaria.7 Rhaban Maur writes that good works and praise should be in harmony. The Assyrian is the devil; his ministers are unclean angels, or pagans, or Jews, or heretics. Mountains stand for pride, the north for the coldness of infidelity, the blocked torrents for persecutions, and the covered valleys for pride’s oppression of the humble. Without the aid of grace, human power (e.g., that of the sons of Titan) does not conquer Satan. The Persians are tempters; the Medes, fearful. The references in Glossa ordinaria on the Book of Judith are sparse. The gold of Holofernes is wisdom; his silver, eloquence; his garments, all the members of Christ; the tambourines are mortification of the flesh; the cymbals are the good works or the lips of spiritual people. Exultation occurs in the heart, invocation in the mind. The Lord’s camp is the Church. The Assyrian is the devil; the mountains, pride; the north, infidelity; valleys, the humble; the territory or boundaries, the possessions of the Church; the youth, those strong in faith and works; and captivity, vices. The garments that Judith takes off are the works of “the old man.” Her headband is fear and hope. Persians are tempters; the Medes, liars. The new song to the Lord is the preaching to others. It seems, then, that though Richard’s three sermons on the Feast of St Michael draw on traditional allegorizations of the Book of Judith,8 these sermons do not cite or depend in a detailed way on his Liber exceptionum or on its sources in the Glossa ordinaria and the Commentary on Judith by Rhaban Maur. Among the sermons of Maurice de Sul-

6 7 8

In librum Judith 16 (PL 109.581A–592C). Bibliorum sacrorum cum glossa ordinaria (Venice: 1603), 2:1603–06. Jerome does not cite the book of Judith in his Book on the Interpretation of Hebrew Names (Liber interpretationis Hebraicorum nominum, ed.  Paul de Lagarde, CCL  72 [Turnhout: Brepols, 1959]), but some of the principal proper names in Judith’s canticle do appear in his book: Assyrian (Lagarde, 2, 21): directing, or blessed, or proceeding or arguing; Merari (Lagarde, 8, 27): bitter or bitterness; Nineveh (Lagarde, 9, 5): beautiful, or seed of beauty; Nebuchadnezzar (Lagarde, 46, 28): prophecy of a small flask or prophesying a sign of that sort or sitting in recognition of narrowness. For Jerome’s interpretation of other names in Judith’s song—Assyrian, Medes, and Persians—see the notes to Sermon 3 below.

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ly are an Old French9 and a Latin10 sermon for the feast of St Michael, neither of which seems closely dependent on Richard or his sources. The first twenty-seven sermons of the Sermones centum are included in Richard of St Victor’s Liber exceptionum. These sermons seem to be included in the Liber exceptionum as model sermons. The same purpose may be the reason for the existence of the Sermones centum. The preoccupation of Richard, and indeed of the Victorines generally, with preaching is evident in these sermons for St Michael’s feast, which several times go out of their way to mention preaching.11

9 10 11

Sermon 58 (Robson, 183–84). Jean Longère, Les sermons latins de Maurice de Sully, 377. See 85.4, 9; 86. 4; 87.2, 4, 9.

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TRANSLATIONS

Sermones centum 85: On the Solemnity of St Michael Sermon 1, from the History of the Book of Judith 1. The history of Judith1 is well known: how she killed Holofernes, the leader of the army of the Assyrians, who in that same history is called Nebuchadnezzar and is presented as reigning in Nineveh. When victory was achieved and the spoils of the enemies collected, the children of Israel gave to Judith all the things that proved to belong to Holofernes—gold, silver, clothes, jewels, and all kinds of coverings. All the people rejoiced with the women, virgins, and youths, on organs and citharas. Then Judith sang this canticle to the Lord: Strike up timbrels for the Lord. Make music to the Lord with cymbals; sing him a new psalm; exult and invoke his name. The Lord crushes wars. The Lord is his name. He put his camp in the middle of his people to snatch us from the hand of our enemies.2 2. Judith signifies the Church; Nebuchadnezzar, the devil; Nineveh, the world; Holofernes, a very hardy prince of the demons, or a realm of gentiles who are hostile to the Church. Judith cut off Holofernes’ head with his sword, because Holy Church confounds the pride of any hostile enemy by his own wickedness. When the wily enemy plots evil against the Church or any holy soul, and she with the help of grace escapes his malice, his malice is turned back on himself and he is killed by it. Hence, with reference to his maliciousness against the upright Susanna, the impious priest is told: Rightly this lie is directed at your own head.3 Again, it is written: Wickedness has lied to itself.4 It is just that any impious person be forced to undergo what he has attempted against a just person. All who take up the sword perish by sword.5 3. The spoils of the Assyrians6 signify wisdom, eloquence, certain works and virtues, and the gentiles’ discipline of good behavior. All of these display things that are usefully imitated. Gold signifies wisdom; silver, eloquence; clothing, good works; jewels, virtues; varied coverings, the ornaments of good works. The children of Israel take these from their enemies, and Judith allots them, when all the faithful put these into practice and refer them to the praise and zeal of the Church. In this way, as the people of God were departing from Egypt, they took away its spoils with which they constructed the tabernacle. So, too, the just of the Old Testament consecrated to the service of the temple that which they carried away from their enemies.

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4. All the peoples were rejoicing with the women, virgins, and youth on organs and citharas.7 Women are those who act with maternal affection toward others, whom they bear and feed with the word of teaching. Paul was a woman or mother when he said, little children, I give birth to you again, until Christ is formed in you.8 Virgins are those who rest from the task of preaching, so they think about the things of God and not about the things that pertain to their neighbor, and concern themselves only with how they can please God by being holy in mind and body.9 Youths are those who do not grow old through any good work; rather, their youth is renewed like an eagle’s,10 and even if their exterior deteriorates, their interior is renewed day by day.11 With all of these, the faithful exult. The interior joy, which they have from their spiritual victory, they display outwardly with organs, that is, with spiritual songs, and citharas, that is, good works. To produce sound, organs are filled with wind and thereby they signify songs full of the Holy Spirit. Citharas, by contrast, produce sound by being touched with the hand, and so they signify good works. 5. Strike up timbrels for the Lord; make music to the Lord with cymbals; sing him a new song.12 In this song, Holy Church gives thanks for the victory achieved, and she instructs her faithful when they sing it to God. Notice, brothers, so that you can discern from those words: praise in the mouth of a sinner is not pleasing,13 for he is a slave to the urging of his flesh.14 Those who are slaves to revelry and drunkenness and debauchery and wantonness,15 and neglect to put right their flesh through abstinence and continence, cannot fittingly give thanks to God. A timbrel, which is made from dried, stretched skin, expresses affliction of the flesh. Cymbals, which sound when struck together, signify our lips. When we strike them together in singing, we give forth the sound of divine praise. Let the timbrels go first so that the cymbals will sing out well, that is, let us first cleanse ourselves perfectly through affliction, so that then we may sing out the praise of God in a fitting and acceptable way. “Psalm,” that is, “from playing on a stringed instrument” [psallendo] or from psallo in Greek, that is, to touch, signifies the effect of good works. Begin by correcting the flesh, make music with cymbals to God by praising Him with your lips, sing a new psalm by your action. 6. Exult and call upon his name.16 Exult over the good things that you have received; call upon Him for the things yet to be received. The Lord obliterating battles; Lord is his name,17 for strength is from heaven because He has conquered the world.18 The Lord is his name.19 Here “only” is understood because, although there are many other lords, He alone is lord more excellently and unchangeably.

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7. Who put his camp in the middle of his people to snatch us from the hand of our enemies.20 This is the cause of victory; this is the cause of divine praise: God has put his camp in the middle of his people. But what is this camp, if not an army of angels? Jacob had met them; he said of them: This is the camp of God.21 He put his camp in the middle of his people because, as Paul said: All ministering spirits have been sent to minister for those who receive the inheritance of salvation.22 8. Hence, blessed Michael, whose solemnity we celebrate today, is presented in the Apocalypse as having fought against the dragon with his angels and conquered them, whence it says: A great battle occurred in heaven. Michael and his angels were fighting against the dragon, and the dragon was fighting and his angels with him, but they did not prevail. Their place is no longer found in heaven.23 Although all ministering spirits, that is, angels, are believed to have been sent to minister for those who receive the inheritance of salvation,24 Michael is mentioned in the battle by name and described as the leader of the rest, just as in the Old Testament he is remembered as the leader of the Israelite people, that is, of the people seeing God.25 9. And a great battle occurred in heaven.26 This is as if to say: Do not fear, faithful ones, even though the demons rage against you by bringing temptations and stirring up persecutions, for the Church has great supports against all their efforts, not only the lessons of the holy teachers and preachers, but also the support of the angels. And a great battle occurred, because fierce and long, in heaven, that is, in Holy Church, as long as she is held back in the world. 10. Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought with his angels,27 but the former did so by helping the Church, and the latter by assaulting her; the former by healthy suggestions, the latter with poisonous counsels; the dragon and his angels by assaulting the army of the good, Michael and his angels by containing their assault. And they did not prevail,28 that is, the dragon and his angels did not succeed in taking away the support of the holy spirits. 11. And their place was no longer found in heaven,29 that is, in Holy Church, that they might take justice away from her or be able to draw her toward sin. For, even if someone among the Church’s faithful (we are speaking of those who by the divine design are called saints), by permission of divine providence and the wicked suggestion of the devil, at some time falls into sin, the devil is in no way victorious because of this, but is conquered because, for those predestined to life, even evil works together for good.30 This occurs not so much by the power of the

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raging adversary as by the ordering and provident arrangement of God, Who permits it as a caution to the fallen who rise again. Therefore, the devil and his angels no longer have a place in heaven, that is, in the Church of such people, because he cannot subdue those who know heavenly goods with a true heart and are predestined to attain them. They cannot draw them at will into sin nor keep them there as long as they want. Rather, this happens by divine permission. Their place is driven back to earth, that is, to those who love earthly things and are disdainful of meriting heavenly goods. Hence, it rightly continues: And that great dragon is cast down, the ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who seduces the whole world, and he is cast upon the earth and his angels are sent with him.31 He is a dragon by the fire of envy, great through swelling pride, a serpent by wily cleverness, and ancient by being long accustomed to sinning. 12. Now, therefore, you who are most dear to us, because Michael and his angels fight with us on our behalf, and more are with us than with them,32 for there is no numbering the soldiers of God, for thousands of thousands were serving him, and the hundred thousands were at his side,33 let us act manfully against this dragon who is symbolized by the king of the Assyrians, and by crushing his pride let us cut off his head and, with victory achieved, may we merit to enter joyfully into the heavenly Jerusalem with our Judith. May Jesus Christ deign to grant us this. Amen. Sermones centum 86: On the Feast of St Michael Sermon 2, likewise from the Book of Judith34 1. The Assyrian came from the mountains, from the mountains on the north, in the multitude of his strength. His multitude stopped up the torrents, and their horses covered the valleys. He said he was going to burn my territories,35 kill my youth with the sword, and give my children for booty and my virgins into captivity. However, the almighty Lord killed him and handed him into the hands of a woman, and confounded him.36 2. The Assyrian came from the mountains,37 that is, from the swellings of his pride, by which in the beginning he wished to become equal to God, and which he now wishes presented to humankind. Mountains are sometimes given a good meaning, as in I raised my eyes to the mountains, whence will come help for me,38 and when it is said of the inhabitants of Jerusalem that there are mountains around it.39 But, here, what follows shows that it must be taken only in a bad sense. And

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from the mountains on the north, as the Lord says, every evil will spread out.40 What sort of evil do we correctly understand by the north, which is cold, if not sin? Hence, it is said, regarding Jerusalem, that it made its wickedness cold, like a cistern makes its water cold.41 Therefore, the Assyrian came from the mountains on the north42 when the devil out of proud malice and malicious pride bursts forth to persecute the just. 3. He came in the multitude of his strength43 because, in order to complete his wickedness, he gathers the totality of demons and malicious human beings. 4. It says, His multitude stopped up the torrents, and his horses covered the valleys.44 The multitude of the devil consists of the demons; the horses, which they ride, are persecutors. The torrents are preachers who teach; the valleys are humble listeners. The demons keep them from the office of preaching when, by any kind of impediment, they block up the torrents to keep them from pouring water for the faithful. Their horses block up the valleys when persecutors oppress the humble. It is a great scourge when streams of preaching are taken away by diabolical persecutions and humble listeners are oppressed by the persecutions of the impious. But what the devil intends as a detriment turns into an advantage for the elect as the outcome demonstrates, for it is written: God will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear, but he will give a happy outcome along with temptation so that you can bear it.45 5. He said he was going to burn my territories, kill my youth with the sword, and give my children for booty and my virgins into captivity.46 By the boundaries of the Church, we understand those who are weaker; by the youth, those who are stronger; by children, those beginning; by virgins, those perfect in continence or living in virginity and thinking about the things of God and how they may please God better.47 The devil threatens those on the boundaries, that is, those on the outer edge and the weak, whom he is going to burn through lust of the flesh, as if by an easy assault. The youth, that is, those who are stronger, whom he knows he cannot conquer without a stronger assault, he is going to kill through wickedness of heart. But he threatens to give children, that is, beginners, as booty so they will not grow in what is good. Virgins he will send into captivity so that, by it and the chains of sin, they will not ascend higher to the summit of perfection. The devil threatens great things but, by the grace of God, by the help of angelic spirits, he is shamefully cheated of his desire. 6. For there follows: The almighty Lord killed him and handed him into the hands of a woman and confounded him.48 The almighty Lord

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kills the devil because, by the presence of his power or in some other way, He checks his depraved will; certainly, God turns to His own just will the evil that the devil, by his evil will, is preparing to commit with God’s permission. 7. By the assertions of many passages of Sacred Scripture, it is most certain that the ministry of angels often brings this about. In this matter, blessed Michael, whose solemnities we celebrate today, with all his angels and as leader of the people of God, by God’s arrangement fights for the people of God mightily, and powerfully expels the ancient enemy from the confines of the Church. However, whatever God does Himself, or through angels or in some other way in this spiritual warfare, the Church attributes by her praise completely to His grace. After it is rightly said, God killed him, it is immediately added, and handed him into the hands of a woman.49 Holy Church calls herself a woman, because she bears spiritual children for God, and certainly because, in this war and in all she does, she recognizes that without God she is weak and useless. 8. And confounded him.50 No wonder it causes the devil great confusion that he is now daily vanquished by weak souls, when he gloried in having conquered our first parents where they were established in innocence. Thus was he conquered by blessed Job, who was stripped of all his things, deprived of his sons and daughters, struck with a very bad ulcer, given wicked advice by his wife, severely afflicted by his friends, and put on a manure pile. This victory is a great confounding of the devil and a great cause of glory to the Church. 9. Hence, there is added, The powerful one did not fall at the hands of youth, nor did the sons of Titan strike him, nor did tall giants impose themselves on him, but Judith, the daughter of Merari, destroyed him by the beauty of her face.51 By youth, we understand the strong and audacious; by the sons of Titan, that is, of the sun, the noble and the distinguished; by giants, the powerful and lofty. Such people do not punish the ancient enemy, but rather die through him. God does not choose such as these for the battle. Did he choose Alexander the Great or Caesar Augustus to destroy, through them, the pride of the devil and throw down the glory of the world? Not at all! What kind of people then? They are the weak, the baseborn, the unwise, who are rightly symbolized by a woman. Hence, Paul said to the Corinthians: Look to your calling, brothers, that is, apostles, through whom you and others have been called to the faith, because God did not choose many wise according to the flesh, nor many powerful, nor many noble; rather, God

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chose the foolish things of the world in order to confound the wise, and God chose the weak things of the world to confound the strong. God chose the baseborn and contemptible of the world and the things that are not to destroy the things that are.52 10. Take note of the woman, Judith. In what way is she the daughter of Merari, that is, of bitterness? Listen! Until this hour, we are hungry, we are thirsty, and we are mocked, and we are struck with blows, and we are unsteady and we labor working with our hands. We are cursed and we bless. We suffer persecution, and we put up with it. We are blasphemed and we entreat. Up to this moment, we have become like the trash of this world, the sweepings of all.53 Although these things can be understood of the other faithful also, it seems that they should be understood of the apostles in a special and more excellent way. Above all, the beauty of the apostles and apostolic men, that is, the glory of their virtues, good works and miracles, destroyed and put to death the devil in the elect. 11. Therefore, dearly beloved, let us imitate Judith, by loving chastity, by being in control of the flesh by fasts that tame it, by praying to God devoutly, by being ready for His mercy, by humbling our souls before Him, so that we merit to imitate her by slaying the enemy and by obtaining victory. With St Michael and his angels as our support, we exercise great confidence. As we sing on his solemnity: the sea is agitated; the earth trembles whenever the archangel descends from heaven. The sea is the demons; the earth is reprobate human beings. The sea is the demons, because bitter, tumultuous, and restless. The earth is reprobate human beings, not so much because they are taken from the earth and are going to return to earth, but because they hold heavenly things in contempt and are concerned only with earthly ones. Truly, when Michael descends from heaven, the sea is agitated and the earth trembles because, struck with terror, the demons are restrained from tempting and base people are restrained from persecuting, while the faithful are set free. Let us take part faithfully in the battle, so that having achieved victory we may be enriched with a crown. May Jesus Christ deign to grant us this. Amen. Sermones centum 87: On the Feast of St Michael Sermon 3, from the same Book of Judith 1. She took off her widow’s garments and clothed herself with a garment of joy in the exultation of the children of Israel. She anointed her face with ointment. She gathered her locks with a headband… to deceive

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him. Her sandals caught his eyes. Her beauty made his mind a captive. She cut off his head with a dagger. The Persians are horrified at her constancy, and the Medes at her boldness. Then the camp of the Assyrians wailed when my humble ones appeared, languishing with thirst. The children of the girls pierced them, and they killed them like fleeing children. They perished in battle before the face of my Lord. Let us sing a hymn to the Lord. Let us sing a new hymn to our God.54 At the end of the previous sermon it was said that Judith destroyed her enemy and killed him with the beauty of her face.55 Now with these words she describes one by one the enhancements of her beauty, with which she subverted his heart. 2. She took off her widow’s garments and clothed herself with a garment of joy.56 Holy Church was a widow from when the first parent sinned until Christ came into the world. During that whole time, it was clothed with the garments of widowhood, that is, with sorrow and the spirit of mourning. When Christ came in the flesh, she was clothed with garments of joy, that is, with the oil of gladness and the cloak of glory. Hence, Christ, speaking through Isaiah, said: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to proclaim to the meek in order to heal the contrite of heart, and to preach pardon to prisoners, and freedom to captives, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord and a day of vengeance for our God, to console those in mourning and put up a fortification on Zion for those who are mourning, and give them a crown in place of ashes, a mantle of praise in place of the spirit of grief.57 Thus, Holy Church puts on her garments, which are referred to here as garments of joy, so that it may be understood to be referring to a nuptial garment, that is, charity, when in the time of grace she is renewed by new actions. 3. And this is in the exultation of the children of Israel,58 that is, of all of those who see God not only with the eye of belief, but also with the eye of charity.59 She anointed her face with ointment,60 by receiving sacred chrism. She gathered her locks in a headband, that is, her thoughts under the constraint of divine fear, in order to deceive him.61 In this, the devil was wondrously deceived because, when he saw that the faithful feared divine judgment, he thought he would better hold them back from good action because of their faintheartedness or at least rush them into despair. 4. Her sandals caught his eyes.62 Sandals are coverings for the feet, by which Holy Church is given footwear in preparation for the gospel of peace. Her sandals caught the eyes of the ancient enemy because the words of sacred preaching especially inflame his mind to corrupt Holy

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Church. The more he sees the number of believers grow, the more he is stirred up; he works to diminish it by corrupting it if he can and, by corrupting it, to diminish it. 5. Her beauty made his soul captive.63 Through beauty, that is, through the total organization of the Church, the soul of the devil is captured, because when he sees her virtues and good works, his depraved will is so bound and tied in its project that it cannot cease from its depraved suggestions until she overcomes it. 6. Hence, there follows, She cut off his head with a dagger.64 As was already said above, the devil is killed with his own sword when his wickedness, which rages against the Church to corrupt it, is condemned by conscience. As it is written in Esther, Haman prepared a gibbet on which to hang Mordecai, but Mordecai was freed, and Haman died suspended from that same wood.65 7. The Persians were horrified at her constancy and the Medes at her boldness.66 Persians are interpreted as tempters,67 the Medes as liars.68 The tempters are hostile spirits; the liars are false Christians. Therefore, the Persians and the Medes are horrified by the constancy of Holy Church, because demons and reprobate humans are thrown into a stupor when they see the virtue and victory of Holy Church. 8. Then the camp of the Assyrians wailed because my humble ones appeared, languishing with thirst.69 Assyrians are interpreted as those directing,70 signifying heretics who are most rightly judged to direct themselves and their followers in their depraved dogma. They also have a camp in which they dwell, because they struggle against the Church with their depraved arguments. The camp wails at the victory of the Church when heretics, in their sorrow, shout out their falsified opinion. The humble people of Holy Church suffer from serious thirst when the demons, depraved men, and, especially, heretics persecute it. Meanwhile, they are, so to speak, hidden. They are afraid of being corrupted by the depravity of heretics and so do not presume to show themselves outside the Church. They do not safely drink the streams of doctrine, whenever they are afraid of tasting in them the heretics’ wormwood. When victory has been achieved, they show themselves openly wherever they investigate and discover Sacred Scripture without any suspicion of depravity. When these people show themselves, the heretics are greatly saddened, because they see that these are the victors while they themselves are vanquished. 9. The children of the girls, that is, of the Church, pierce them,71 because they pierce their depraved assertions with the arrows of preach-

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ing. They kill them like fleeing children, because they kill them like weak, fearful, and languishing people in flight. Wickedness has no place to stand in the sight of goodness. Resist the devil and he will flee you.72 10. They perished in the battle before the face of my Lord. Let us sing to our God.73 She now attributes victory to the Lord for a third time, and thus shows herself to be a worshipper of the Trinity. The first time she describes this victory of the Lord is when she says, He placed his tent in the middle of the people.74 The second time is when she said, the almighty Lord taught him.75 The third time is here, where she says, they perished in the battle before the face of my Lord.76 11. Therefore, you who are most dear to us, because in this spiritual battle the camp of God, that is, angelic support, is in the middle of his people, and blessed Michael fights with his angels on our behalf, let us act confidently and not be afraid. We have not received the spirit of servitude once again in fear, but we have received the spirit of adoption of sons, in whom we cry: Abba, Father.77 We have not approached a tangible and accessible78 fire, a whirlwind, darkness, and storm, the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, which when the people heard it they excused themselves lest it be addressed to them,… but we have approached Mount Zion, and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and a company of many thousands of angels and the Church of the firstborn, who are written in heaven, and God, the judge of all, and the spirits of the perfected just, and Jesus, the mediator of the New Covenant, and a sprinkling of blood more eloquent than Abel’s.79 12. Let us therefore stand bravely in the battle, confident of victory. And when it is achieved, let us sing a hymn with our Judith. Let us sing a new hymn to our God.80 Let us sing, because we have been freed from evil. Let us sing because we have been enriched with something beneficial. Let us sing because we have received grace. Let us sing because we hope for glory. May Jesus Christ our Lord deign to grant it to us, Who is blessed forever. Amen.

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NOTES 1

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3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37

This sermon is translated from Sermones centum 85 (PL 177.1169B–1172B). It will be followed here by Sermones centum 86 and 87 on the same topic, which come after it in PL 177. “Historia,” translated here as “history” could also be translated as “story” or “the historical sense.” The latter seems ruled out because, after the first sentence, Richard pays little attention to the historical sense and does not note that many of the historical “facts” of the story do not match what the rest of the Old Testament tells us. Jdt 16:1–4. The first part of this sermon elaborates on these verses and some at the end of chapter 15; the last part of the sermon interprets Rev 12. A timbrel resembles a tambourine. Dan 13:59. Ps 26:12. Matt 26:52. Jdt 15:13. Jdt 15:15. Gal 4:19. For an elaboration on Paul as mother, see St Anselm, Oratio 10 (Schmitt, Opera Omnia, 3:33–41; tr. Benedicta Ward, The Prayers and Meditations of St Anselm [Baltimore: Penguin, 1973], 141–56). Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Our Mother Saint Paul (Louisville: Westminster/john Knox, 2007). 1 Cor 7:32–34. Ps 102:5. 2 Cor 4:16. Jdt 16:2. Sir 15:9. See 1 Pet 2:11; Gal 5:13. Rom 13:13; cf. Augustine, Conf. 8.12.29 (O’Donnell, 101; tr. Chadwick, 153). Jdt 16:2. Jdt 16:3. John 16:33. Jdt 16:3. Jdt 16:4. Gen 32:2. Heb 1:14. Rev 12:7–8. Heb 1:14. Dan 10:13; 12:1. “Israel” means “one who sees God”: Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 13, 21; 63, 22). Rev 12:7. Rev 12:7. Rev 12:8. Rev 12:8. Rom 8:28. Rev 12:9. 4 (2) Kings 6:16; 2 Chr 32:7. Dan 7:10. Richard of St Victor, Serm. cent. 86 (PL 177.1172C–1175A). fines: means boundaries or the territory encircled by boundaries. Richard will make use of both meanings in his commentary. Jdt 16:5–7. The Latin is a bit rugged, but the meaning is clear. A few manuscripts of the Vulgate have confodit (pierced or ran through) instead of confudit (confounded). Jdt 16:5b.

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Ps 120:1. On the symbolism of mountains in the Bible, see Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 6.6 (PL 193.252D–256), where a number of meanings, both positive and negative, are discussed. Ps 124:2. Jer 1:14. Jer 6:7. Jdt 16:5. Jdt 16:5. Jdt 16:5. 1 Cor 10:13. Jdt 16:6. 1 Cor 7:34. Jdt 16:7. Jdt 16:7. Jdt 16:7. Jdt 16:8. 1 Cor 1:26–28. 1 Cor 4:11–13. Jdt 16:9–15. Jdt 16:7–8. Jdt 16:9. Isa 61:1–3. Jdt 16:9. The Latin in the PL reads non solum oculo crudelitatis, sed et oculo dilectionis. I have corrected crudelitatis to credulitatis. Jdt 16:10. Jdt 16:10. Jdt 16:11. Jdt 16:11. Jdt 16:11. Esth 5:9–14; 7:9–10; 8:7. Jdt 16:12. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 56, 18). Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 70, 2) has mensurantes or mensurati, that is, measuring or measured. Rhaban Maur had metuentes, fearful. Jdt 16:13. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 2, 16–17). Jdt 16:14. Jas 4:7. Jdt 16:14–15. Jdt 16:4. Jdt 16:7. Jdt 16:14. Rom 8:15. The Vulgate has tractabilem [add: montem] et accensibilem [accessibilem] ignem: “a tangible and burning fire,” but among the variants for this sentence are the words in brackets. Heb 12:18–19, 22–24. Jdt 16:15.

WALTER OF ST VICTOR SERMON 11: ON ALL SAINTS INTRODUCTION

In this sermon, Walter weaves together doctrine and practice, drawing on traditional ideas and presenting them in nonpolemical ways meant to elicit not just assent but action. Each of the Beatitudes is one of the dwelling places in the Father’s house. Walter discusses most of these, but not the final ones in Matthew 5:10–11 that expand on blessed are those who are persecuted.1 The opening paragraph is an indirect captatio benevolentiae. Human teaching is subordinate to the teaching of God. Nevertheless, one should listen to human messengers whom God sends. Grace has the primacy in Christian discourse. Still in the first paragraph, Walter, in a way that is both Augustinian and Victorine, distinguishes a twofold house of God: hic/nunc justitia via merita peregrinatio

ibi/tunc gloria victoria praemia beatitudo

On the Feast of All Saints, this eschatological tension between now and then, here and there, is particularly evident, especially in the Beatitudes of Matthew’s gospel, which are the subject of Walter’s sermon. Apropos of Blessed are the poor in spirit,2 Walter makes two points of interpretation. This beatitude refers to voluntary poverty, which is a blessing, by contrast to the misery of involuntary deprivation. The emphasis is on spirit: blessed are the humble of heart, by contrast to 1

2

In this way, there are seven beatitudes to match the seven petitions of the Our Father, the seven corporal works of mercy, and so forth. See Hugh of St Victor, De quinque septenis (Baron, 101–19; tr. Benson, VTT 4:351–68); Septem donis (Baron, 122–33; tr. Benson, VTT 4:369–79); Garnerus of St Victor, Gregorianum 15.6 (PL 193.448A–450A). Matt 5:3.

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those filled with the spirits of the world, the flesh, and the devil. The human spirit must choose between these and the Spirit of God (par. 2). Christ is the example of a humble spirit, not because he has any sin or imperfection to acknowledge, but because he recognized that all he had in his humanity was a grace of God. He showed his gratitude by serving the weak out of compassion (par. 3). The blessed meek3 are those who do not hold grudges against those who have injured them. They taste the sweetness of God, provided they are not filled with the bitterness of worldly pleasure. They dwell within, in the land of the living (par. 4). Those who mourn4 for their sins or out of longing for heaven are blessed insofar as tears of love are sweet. But later they will enjoy eternal blessedness (par. 5). Walter is particularly interested in those who hunger and thirst for justice,5 who fulfill the divine will rather than just mourn in longing for beatitude, which even the unjust can do. Perhaps Walter did not like spiritual whiners: it is better to strive to be transformed by grace than to lament. The joy of heaven will perfect desire with perfect satiety (par. 6). Blessed are the merciful.6 Wanting in justice, we need God’s mercy, which is expressed in God’s predestining, calling, justifying, and glorifying. No one receives mercy from God who is not merciful to his neighbor by forgiving him and giving him blessings, though doing so with respect for justice and truth (par. 7–8). To be among the pure of heart,7 is to be free not just of impure acts and choices, but also from impure thoughts and imaginings. Purity of heart frees the mind and illumines it with the clarity of divine knowledge. It heals one’s affectivity from any stain and infuses it with love. This is a basic principle of Victorine theology: true teaching (doctrina veritatis) and the practice of virtue (disciplina [or amor] virtutis) are inseparable in Christian living8 (par. 9). Human beings need to 3 4 5 6 7 8

Matt 5:4. Matt 5:5. Matt 5:6. Matt 5:7. Matt 5:8. For this principle in Hugh of St Victor, see Harkins, Reading, 112–36; Achard of St Victor, Serm. 13:34 (Châtillon, 168; tr. Feiss, Works, 252); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 1.4 (PL 196.705CD); 1.5 (PL  196.718D): “studium sapientiae/desiderium justitiae”; XII  patr.  1 (Châtillon, 90; tr.  Zinn, 53 [PL  196.1B]): “veritas/bonitas,” “doctrina veritatis/disciplina virtutis”; Arca Moys. 3.24 (Grosfillier, 344; tr. Zinn, 256 [PL 196.133CD]); Serm. cent. 41 (PL 177.1006D); 48 (PL 177.1030A): “inquisitio veritatis/amor virtutis”; 49 (PL 177.1034D): “oculus cognitionis/ oculus dilectionis”; Erud. 1.4 (PL 196.1237B); LE 2.11.4 (Châtillon, 443, 445); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 3.1 (Châtillon, 27); 3.4 (Châtillon, 29); Anonymous of St Victor, Serm. 5.4 (Châtil-

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make peace9 with God, self, and neighbor. Pride destroyed this threefold peace. Peace with neighbors is fostered by the natural precept expressed in the positive and negative formulations of the Golden Rule. Peace with God results from being one spirit with God. Peace with oneself comes from subjugating impulse to reason. Then one is conformed to God, a child of God, who is peace (par. 10). In his conclusion, Walter returns to the idea of dwelling places that he mentioned briefly in the first paragraph. The Beatitudes are seven dwellings of justice; they are also seven dwellings of glory, promised at the end of each of them. People will have different capacities to share in the divine brightness, but the joy of all will be complete, because the joy of all will be the joy of each, and the joy of each will be the joy of all. This idea, rooted in the corporate nature of life in Christ, is central to the teaching of Hugh of St Victor’s The Betrothal-Gift of the Soul. The darkness in which the damned will dwell is the opposite of this joy. Walter’s final prayer and benediction is that Jesus save us from the darkness and lead us from the delights of justice to the dwellings of glory (par. 11–12).

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lon, 265); 6.1 (Châtillon, 270); 6.10 (Châtillon, 275); Pseudo-Richard of St Victor, In Joelem (PL 175.334C). Matt 5:9.

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TRANSLATION

1. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.1 No one has anything that he has not received.2 No one can give to another except what has been given him. In fact, it is not in any human being’s power to give to another what he has received and what has been given him without the cooperation of the One from whom he has received it. Only God gives the increase.3 He and no one else opens and no one closes, closes and no one opens.4 From Him alone is all illumination of truth and every movement (affectio) of a good will. Saying this, I do not make void all human teaching, nor do I proclaim that exhortation is useless, but I distinguish between human and divine working. The Apostle says that we are helpers of God.5 In the days of his flesh,6 Jesus sent ahead before His face two messengers to every town7 to which He was going to come.8 So, too, now the power of God and the wisdom of God9 send messengers before His face, namely, teaching and exhortation:10 teaching prepares the way of wisdom, exhortation prepares the way of power and love.11 Sometimes, the Lord precedes His messengers; sometimes, He accompanies them; and sometimes, He follows them. He precedes them when on His own, without the ministry of human beings or angels, He illumines and enflames someone inside. There are certain ones, capable of receiving the divine word, powerful enough to hear God’s word, who have ears for hearing,12 interior ears, ears of the heart. Such was the one who said, I will hear what the Lord God says to me,13 and those to whom the Apostle John spoke, saying, His anointing teaches you about everything,14 and you do not need the teaching of human beings. He accompanies these messengers when a human being speaks exteriorly and God teaches interiorly and illumines minds and enflames hearts. Sometimes, He follows, when a human being speaks and is not understood, because God does not work with him. Afterward, however, on His own, the Wisdom of God on His own imprints on a person’s heart the force of the discourse that is heard. As often as these messengers are sent to us, let us hear them with all eagerness,15 even if we seem to be wise and holy. It will be given to the one who has in abundance,16 but especially when truth itself through itself speaks to us, as in the present short reading:17 In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.18 The house of God is the assembly of the just, all the saints in whom God dwells by justice and glory, in the present through justice, in the future through glory. In this house, there are many dwellings of justice and many dwellings of glory. The dwellings

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of justice are the goods of the way; the dwellings of glory are the goods of the homeland (patria). The dwellings of justice are merits; the dwellings of glory are rewards. The dwellings of justice are the goods of the spirit (animi); the dwellings of glory are the goods of God. We need to go through the dwellings of justice while we go as pilgrims in the body.19 It will be for us to remain in the dwellings of glory in eternal beatitude. In the Gospel, the Lord says of the dwellings of justice: Blessed are the poor in spirit, because theirs is the kingdom of heaven, and so forth, to blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called children of God.20 2. Blessed are the poor in spirit because, and so forth.21 “Spirit” is often put for “will.” Therefore, blessed are the poor in spirit, that is, by willing, not by necessity.22 Those who disdain the riches of this world and choose voluntary poverty because of hope of future glory are blessed in hope. However, those who are poor by necessity are not blessed, but miserable and unhappy, deprived of spiritual and bodily goods. However, there are others who explain these words differently and more profoundly, but whether more truly I do not presume to judge. They say that the poor in spirit are those who have a poor spirit, that is, the humble of heart.23 There are certain people who are rich in spirit or in spirits, who have many spirits and glory in them. There is the spirit of the devil, the spirit of the world, the spirit of the flesh, the spirit of a human being that is in him,24 and the Spirit of God.25 The spirit of the devil is the spirit of iniquity. The spirit of the world is the spirit of vanity. The spirit of the flesh is the spirit of dissoluteness. These three spirits are always bad; they cannot be good. The Spirit of God is always good; it cannot be bad. The spirit of a human being is good by its creation, to be sure, but when it adheres to evil spirits it too is made evil, and when it adheres to a good spirit its lot is with goodness. Those who have within them the spirit of iniquity, and the spirit of vanity, and the spirit of dissoluteness are rich in spirits and, over and above that, they trust too much in their own spirit. However, the poor in spirit are those who cast from themselves the spirit of the devil, the spirit of the world, and the spirit of the flesh, and moreover do not trust in their own spirit, but rather, like poor people and beggars, knock at the door of divine mercy asking for the good spirit26 from their most good Father. The Lord invites us to this virtue when He says, Learn from me because I am meek and humble of heart.27 3. We should see what and of what sort is that humility of heart that the Lord had and proposed for us to imitate. Humility customarily is born from considering sin. Hence, David said, Before I was humble,

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I deserted.28 However, the Lord committed no sin and deceit was not found in His mouth.29 Whence He said, Who will accuse me of sin?30 Therefore, He did not have this kind of humility. There is another kind of humility that arises from considering imperfection, when someone is humbled when he sees that he has few good things and these are imperfect. However, the Lord did not have a few good things, but all of them, and not imperfect, but the fullness of all of them, for in Him dwells the entire fullness of divinity31 and all the treasures of God’s wisdom and knowledge.32 He Himself testifies to this, when He says, I and the Father are one,33 and I am the light of the world,34 and the true vine,35 and you can do nothing without me.36 Therefore, the Lord could not be humbled by consideration of any imperfection. For our part, we can and should be humbled in both ways, both from consideration of our sins, which are many and great, and by consideration of our imperfection, for we have a few good things and those we have are imperfect. What, then, is the humility that the Lord had and that He left for us to imitate? It is a third kind of humility, which occurs when someone recognizes that all the good that he has he has received,37 but he does not exalt himself for that reason, nor does he look down on those who do not have the same gifts. Rather, he gives thanks to God with great devotion and out of love serves the weak. The Lord Jesus had this degree of humility according to His humanity, according to which He received every good that He had. He did not become proud because of this, nor did He despise others, and before all others He devoutly gave thanks to God and served the weak out of great compassion. He invited us to this humility, saying, Learn from me because I am meek and humble of heart,38 thereby fulfilling that saying, The greater you are, humble yourself in all things.39 He was greater than all, and therefore He humbled Himself40 before all others, knowing more will be required from one to whom more has been entrusted.41 Brother, you who read42 these things, if you have received greater grace than your brother, do not exalt yourself and look down on others; instead, be more afraid. The One Who gave more to you requires more of you. Recognize that the gift that you received was given to you not only for yourself, but also for others whom you are bound to serve, just as the eye does not see for itself alone, but for the whole body.43 Therefore, blessed are the poor in spirit, because theirs is the kingdom of heaven,44 not because they have merited to deserve such a reward,45 but because it pleased God to give such as them His glory. Hence, the Lord says, do not be afraid little flock because it has pleased your Father to give you the kingdom.46

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4. Blessed are the meek for they will possess the land.47 The meek are mild and tractable. They do not return evil for evil,48 but conquer evil with goodness.49 These are people who are not interiorly upset by the grudge and rage of anger because of injury or abuse inflicted on them. In them dwells the spirit of truth, which the world cannot receive.50 Hence, the Lord says, upon whom does my spirit rest, if not upon the humble and meek?51 The Holy Spirit not only dwells, but also rests in these. They rest in Him to Whom they cling with loving affection (per pium affectum) and, by clinging to Him like bees hanging from a honeycomb, suck sweetness and delight. The Holy Spirit is completely sweet and totally delightful,52 according to that saying, my spirit is sweeter than honey.53 They cannot cling to sweetness without tasting sweetness. The Prophet says of this sweetness: In your sweetness you have provided for the poor one, O God.54 In this, it is indicated that no one can taste this sweetness if he is not poor in spirit or an inhabitant of this first dwelling, if he does not first pour out the bitterness of worldly pleasure. The world has its sweetness, which it provides only to the rich. God, on the other hand, has His sweetness, which He provides only for the poor in spirit, the humble of heart, the one dead to this world. The meek, therefore, live inside; they are dead outside, where they do not live or perceive, but rather are insensible. For this reason, the meek are not sorry about the loss of temporal things. On the contrary, the lovers of this world are dead inside and live outside; to be sure, where they live, they perceive; but where they are dead, they are insensible. Therefore, blessed are the meek, for they will possess the land.55 Which? The land of the living,56 the land of promise,57 a good and spacious land,58 a land flowing with milk and honey,59 that is, eternal beatitude, which the word “land” signifies by its stability. 5. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.60 From the joy of sweetness to the sadness of mourning seems to be a descent rather than an ascent. Therefore, it is worth the effort to distinguish between mourning and mourning. According to the Apostle, there is twofold sadness, namely, the sadness of the world and sadness that is according to God.61 Sadness of the world occurs when someone is sad over the loss of temporal things, when someone is sad not because he sinned but because others know about his sin, not because by sinning he deprived himself of the life, which is God, but because he has appeared vile and contemptible in people’s eyes. The sadness that is according to God occurs when someone is sorry and contrite of heart because of his sins. This twofold sadness engenders twofold mourning.

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Likewise, the mourning that results from memory of sins and fear of Gehenna is called the lower water supply,62 and this mourning seems to pertain more to the first mansion than to the third. There is also the mourning that arises from love and the delay of future glory, and this mourning is said to be the upper water supply;63 it pertains to the third dwelling. Those who mourn with this lament are blessed, because they will be consoled,64 not only in the future, but also in the present, for tears that result from love are sweet. However, they will be consoled especially in the future, when God will wipe away every tear from the eyes of the saints.65 6. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice.66 Here, likewise, there seems not to be an ascent from the third to the fourth dwelling, but a descent. Those who live in the third mansion not only desire future glory, but also they even mourn because of their extreme desire for it. However, those who are in the fourth dwelling do not mourn; they hunger and thirst for justice.67 Not everything that appears is true. See, therefore, the generosity of justice: through justice, the will of God is fulfilled in us; through glory, our will is fulfilled in God. Is not fulfilling the divine will much greater in dignity than fulfilling a human will? Therefore, it is a greater thing to hunger and thirst for justice than to lament out of desire for our heavenly homeland. It is also clear from this that to wish for beatitude suits not only the good but also the wicked, but to thirst and hunger for justice belongs only to the good. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.68 He does not say “Blessed are the just,” but “those who hunger and thirst for justice.” After sin, a human being cannot have full and perfect justice, nor can one ever love and desire justice, except through grace. Hence, God first gives a human being the grace to hunger and thirst for justice; then He reckons it as justice that, through grace, he hungers and thirsts for justice; that is, for love of justice, He gives a person as great a reward as would deservedly (condigne) be given to perfect justice. Hence it is written, Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as justice:69 to believe Him, that is, to be considered a friend and intimate of God,70 as if one had no carnal concupiscence within oneself and loved God with all one’s heart, all one’s soul, and all one’s mind.71 Humanity would have had this perfection if it had not sinned, and it will have it in the future. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for justice.72 We love very much that for which we hunger and that for which we thirst. However, we do not simultaneously hunger and thirst for an earthly object. We hunger for food; we thirst for drink. So, what is it to hunger and thirst

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for justice if not to love and desire it above all earthly things? Whoever loves something else more, or even equally, does not hunger and thirst for justice, and therefore is not an occupant of this fourth dwelling. Therefore, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice for they will be satisfied,73 not only in the enjoyment of the highest good, but also in the fulfillment of justice achieved. Therefore, we await new heavens and a new earth and His promise in which justice will dwell.74 Justice does not dwell on this earth; in fact, the earth is full of wickedness75 and, because of the abundance of wickedness, the love of almost all has grown cold.76 Therefore, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, especially in this time when there is no saint,77 because they will be satisfied.78 In that satiety, there will be not disgust but desire. Nor will there be anxiety in the desire, but only perfect satiety. What then will be satiety in desire and desire in satiety, but complete joy,79 where there is nothing evil and the fullness of good. 7. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.80 Because we do not have perfect and complete justice, or even conditional and putative justice, by necessity we require the mercy of God so that through it we may attain what we cannot demand through justice. The general mercy of God is that conferred indiscriminately on the good and the wicked. Of it, the Prophet says: You will save men and beasts, Lord, so you have multiplied your mercy, O God,81 and elsewhere: The earth is full of the mercy of God.82 Special or salvific grace or mercy is given only to those preordained to life. This is fourfold according to what is written: I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will bestow mercy on the one to whom I will be merciful.83 I will have mercy, by calling on whom I have mercy, by predestining; and I will bestow mercy, by glorifying and beatifying, on the one to whom I will be merciful by justifying.84 Whence the Apostle: Those he predestined he also called, and those he called he also justified, and those he justified he also glorified.85 He predestined those who did not yet exist, solely out of mercy; He called those who were turned away; He justified those who were corrupted; and He made blessed those who were mortal.86 No one is worthy of this mercy of God unless he has been merciful. The mercy that a human being owes to his neighbor consists in remission of sins and the bestowal of blessings. Whence Truth declares: Forgive and you will be forgiven, give and it shall be given to you.87 8. In the works of mercy we must hold to justice, just as in the works of justice we must not abandon mercy, so that we may be imitators of Him of Whom it is written: All the ways of the Lord are mercy and

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truth.88 These two things, mercy and truth, come together in all the works of God. However, in some, mercy is manifest and justice hidden, while in others justice is manifest and mercy is hidden. That this is true is evident from the Lord’s words, for He says, I came into the world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who see might become blind.89 Notice that He says that judgment is both: the humble will be enlightened, and the proud blinded. Mercy is manifest in the enlightening of those who do not see, and justice is manifest in the blinding of those who do see, but in both there is both judgment and mercy. Therefore, let us be merciful because we are just, and be just because we are merciful, because mercy without justice is not mercy but misery and dissoluteness, and truth without mercy is not truth but severity. Whence David says: Mercy and truth met.90 There are many things that could happen through mercy if justice permitted it, and there are many things that could happen through justice if mercy permitted it. So that mercy may not become dissolute, justice needs to connect with it, and so that justice does not become severe and cruel, mercy needs to connect with it. Otherwise, if someone has done a work of mercy unjustly, he is told, the work of the olive tree will be deceptive,91 that is, the work of mercy that you do against justice will not render the reward it promised for you. If, however, we have been merciful as it is prescribed then we will be able to hope securely in the mercy of God, as did he who said: Like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God, I have hoped in the mercy of God,92 which is to say, I have shown mercy to others, and therefore I have hoped securely in God’s mercy. 9. Blessed are the pure of heart, because they will see God.93 Purity of the flesh is one thing, purity of will another, and purity of heart still another. Purity of the flesh is to abstain from exterior impurity and illicit action; purity of will is to abstain from all illicit consent; purity of heart is purity of mind, namely, to keep oneself from impure thoughts. This is that purity of purities to which the Apostle invites us, when he says: Have peace and holiness, without which no one will see God.94 The will is cleansed and purified through the preceding active virtues.95 However, the heart and purity of mind are cleansed by the brightness of divine knowing in this sixth dwelling place, and both eyes of the interior person, understanding and affectivity (affectio), are made serene. Thus, at last, the human being who was created on the sixth day is reformed in the sixth dwelling, not only in image but also in likeness. The human being is made in the image of God in that he is made with the capacity for divine knowledge, and in the likeness of God in that

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he is made capable of divine love.96 That in us which is capable of divine knowledge is sometimes called reason, sometimes understanding (intellectus), sometimes image, and sometimes mind (mens).97 That in us which is capable of love is sometimes said to be the will, sometimes affect,98 sometimes likeness, and sometimes heart. Christ, Who is the power and wisdom of God,99 heals and reforms both insofar as He has become for us wisdom and justice.100 He becomes justice for us in that He not only heals our affectivity from every stain of infection, but also inflames it with the fire of love. Christ has become wisdom for us in that He not only cleanses our understanding from the darkness of all error, but also illumines it with the clarity of divine knowledge. Purity of heart consists in these two things; namely, the fire of love and clarity of knowledge. 10. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.101 Man needs to have peace with God,102 peace in himself, and peace with his neighbor.103 Before sin, he had this threefold peace. He had peace with God, to Whom he clung through contemplation. He had peace in himself, because there was no contradiction between reason and will or between will and the flesh. He had peace with his neighbor, whom he loved as himself.104 However, because man rose up against God through pride,105 he lost peace between himself and God. As a result of losing that peace, he experienced contradiction in himself between his reason and his will, and between his will and his flesh. He did not preserve with his neighbor the peace that he lost in himself. Therefore, now if he wants to have peace with God or in himself, man is ordered to maintain peace with his neighbor. That cannot happen unless he observes these two precepts of the natural law: Do not do to another what you do not wish to be done to you,106 and whatever you want people to do to you, you should also do to them.107 In these two is contained the justice that a man owes his neighbor. Now, where there is justice, there is also peace, because justice and peace have kissed.108 Through this peace, a man merits peace with God and peace with himself. A man has peace with God when it is good and delightful for him to cling to God109 so that he becomes one spirit with Him.110 He who is careful to maintain unity of spirit in the bond of peace has peace with his neighbor.111 He has peace within himself, at least between his will and his reason, when he subjects all illicit movements to the command of reason. For the present, there is no full and perfect peace between his flesh and his will, because the flesh lusts against the spirit,112 but in saintly men (viris) the flesh, the daughter of Babylon, the lover of confusion,113

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is held captive and forced to serve reason, although unwillingly. Blessed, therefore, are the peacemakers, because they will be called children of God,114 that is, like and conformed [to God]. He dwells in peace; indeed, He is the peace that surpasses all understanding.115 11. As there are seven dwellings of justice, so there are seven dwellings of glory that the Lord distinguishes in this same sermon. The first is called the kingdom; the second, possession of the earth; the third, consolation; the fourth, satiety; the fifth, receiving mercy; the sixth, the vision of God; the seventh, filiation, that is, similarity in form. The Apostle speaks about the difference between these dwellings: Star differs from star in brightness, and the resurrection of the dead will be thus.116 Elsewhere, it says about these: “In different brightness there will be equal joy.”117 However, someone says, will not that brightness be the joy? Then, if the brightness is different, how will the joy be equal?118 Will not the same be equal and unequal? The difference in brightness comes into consideration in that some contemplate God more closely and more sublimely than others, and enjoy the highest good more intensively. In this unequal (dispari), there will be equal (par) joy. I do not say “equal” (par) in the sense of absolutely equal (aequale), but in the sense of something shared (commune), because God will be seen by all. One denarius will be given to all, all will drink from a single spring, all will eat from one bread of life, and the joy of all will be the joy of each, and the joy of each will be the joy of all.119 Matthew will love the crown of Peter for Peter’s sake as much as for his own. 12. The Lord speaks of the brightness of these luminous dwellings: The just shall shine like the sun in their Father’s kingdom.120 That visible sun illumines the entire world and fills it with great brightness.121 What great serenity there will be where so many suns will shine. What brightness, where the sun of justice122 shines in its power. The true light will be seen in the true light.123 The children of light124 build these exceedingly bright dwellings for themselves in the present from the gold of divine contemplation, from the silver of brotherly love, and from the precious stones of incorruptible good works,125 just as from the works of darkness126 the children of darkness build dwellings for themselves that are filthy and murky. In them, will be the undying worm and the inextinguishable fire,127 only the deepest misery where nothing will be heard but weeping and gnashing of teeth,128 groaning and sorrow.129 Those miserable people who are burned here with the fire of vices will be tortured there with the fire of torments. Unhappy people, they will not remain in these miseries, but will go from snow water to excessive

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heat.130 In my opinion, this transition will be not a solace but a greater torture. There, all there will be is the greatest evil and no good, no place of mitigation, no hope of getting out. It is the highest prudence always to have these torments before the eyes of one’s mind and to avoid them with all one’s strength. May Jesus free us from these torments and lead us through the dwellings of justice to the dwellings of glory.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

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18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

John 14:2. This sermon is translated from Châtillon, ed., Sermones inediti, CCCM 30, 93– 103. 1 Cor 4:7. 1 Cor 3:6–7. Rev 3:7. 1 Cor 3:9. Heb 5:7. “castellum”: see Achard of St Victor, Serm. 5.4 (Châtillon, 70.9–10 and n. 39; tr. Feiss, Works, 141–43). Luke 9:52; 10:1. 1 Cor 1:24. 1 Tim 4:13. Walter here mentions three divine attributes—power, wisdom, and love—that Hugh of St  Victor, the Victorines, and theologians generally since Hugh have appropriated to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. On these, see the general introduction to VTT 1 and De tribus diebus, which is translated in VTT 1. Matt 11:15. Ps 84:9. 1 John 2:27. Acts 17:11. Matt 13:12; 25:29; Mark 4:25; Luke 8:18; 19:26. “capitulum”: “little chapter,” a quasi-technical term for the short reading in the day hours of the Divine Office. The monastic “chapter meeting” was named after the short reading (“capitulum”) from the Rule of Benedict that was read at community meetings. John 14:2. This citation forms an inclusio with the opening citation and thus marks off the introductory section of the sermon. 2 Cor 5:6. Matt 5:3–9. This passage was the Gospel reading for the Feast of All Saints. Matt 5:3. On this, see Jerome, In Matt. 5.3 (Hurst and Adriaen, CCL 77, 24.425–30). Augustine, De sermone in Monte 1.1.3 (Mutzenbecher, CCL 35, 4.65–67); 1.4.11 (Mutzen­ becher, CCL 35, 10.197–98); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.11.4 (Châtillon, 443.1–4). 1 Cor 2:11. Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 1.130 (PL 177.549A). Luke 11:13. Matt 11:29. Ps 118:67. 1 Pet 2:22; Isa 53:9. John 8:46. Col. 2:9; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 2.5 (Châtillon, 23.129–30). This verse is a key text in the Victorines’ expansive view of Christ’s human knowledge and power. Col. 2:3. John 10:30. John 8:12. John 15:1. John 15:5. 1 Cor 4:7. Matt 11:29. Sir 3:20. Phil 2:8.

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See Augustine, Ep. 194 (Goldbacher, CSEL 57, 195.9); Robert of Melun, Quest. de divina pagina 83, ed. R. M. Martin, Oeuvres de Robert de Melun, vol. 1 (Louvain, 1932), 44; Walter of St Victor, Serm. 10.8 (Châtillon, 91.192, with note); Maurice of St Victor, Serm. 3.4 (Châtillon, 215.120–21). “Frater, qui legis”: This phrase with “you” in the singular may indicate that Walter prepared this sermon for individual reading. 1 Cor 12:21. Matt 5:3. “meritum condignum habeant”: “condignus” could carry the connotation of having been earned or deserved. See Thomas Aquinas, ST 1–2.114.3 (Caramello, 1:567–68 with further references; tr. Fathers of the English Dominican Province, 1:1155–56). Luke 12:32. Matt 5:4. Rom 12:17. Rom 12:21. John 14:17. Isa 11:2. Wis 12:1. Sir 24:27. Ps 67:11. Matt 5:4. Ps 26:13; 141:6. Heb 11:9. Exod 3:8. Exod 3:8; 3:17. Matt 5:5. 2 Cor 7:10. Josh 15:19; Judg 1:15. Josh 15:19; Judg 1:15. Matt 5:5. Rev 7:17; 21:4. Matt 5:6. Matt 5:6. Matt 5:6. Jas 2:23; cf. Rom 4:3; Gen 15:6. Jas 2:23. Deut 6:5; Matt 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27. Matt 5:6. Matt 5:6. 2 Pet 3:13. Gen 6:11; Ezek 7:23. Matt 24:12. Ps 11:2. Matt 5:6. John 16:24. Matt 5:7. Ps 35:7–8. Ps 32:5. Rom 9:15; Exod 33:19. This commentary on the four parts of the biblical citation is based on Peter Lombard, Collect. ad Rom 9.14–15 (PL 191.1459C); see also Collect. in ep. Pauli, ad Rom. 8.30 (PL 191.1451A, which lists “predestinatio,” “vocatio,” “justificatio,” and “magnficatio”).

454 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96

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Walter of S t   V ictor Rom 8:30. This sentence is derived from Peter Lombard, Collect. in ep. Pauli ad Rom. 8.30 (PL 191.1451B). Luke 6:37–38. Ps 24:10. John 9:39. Ps 84:11. Hab 3:17. Douai-Rheims has “the labor of the olive tree shall fail.” Ps 51:10. Matt 5:8. Heb 12:14; see Walter, Serm. 6.2 (Châtillon, 48.40); Serm. 14.5 (Châtillon, 125.25). On purity of heart, see VTT 2:122n, 235–36. “virtutes activas”: Walter likely means through living out the beatitudes already discussed. Gen 1:26; 5:1; 9:6; Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.6.2 (PL 176.264D; tr. Deferrari, 95); Achard of St  Victor, Serm. 15.11 (Châtillon, 211; tr.  Feiss, Works, 312–13); Richard of St  Victor, LE  1.1 (Châtillon, 104; tr.  Feiss, VTT  3:299–300); 2.12.5 (Châtillon, 464); Serm. cent. 70 (PL 177.1119CD; tr. Feiss, VTT 6:463); Walter of St Victor, Serm. 3.3 (Châtillon, 29.118–20). To this list, one might add “animus” and “intelligentia.” As in English (knowledge, understanding, reason, mind, intelligence), the exact meaning of these different terms is difficult to pin down; some of them (e.g., “ratio,” “intellectus”) can refer to the agent of knowing or to what is known. “affectus”: see the index entries in VTT  2:388. The study of the emotions in medieval thought is a vibrant subject, and the meaning of “affectus” is a key element in it. See, for example, the comments by Marsha Dutton, in the volume she edited, A Companion to Aelred of Rievaulx (1110–1167), Brill’s Companions to the Christian Tradition 76 (Leiden: Brill, 2017), 11, and “affectus” in the index to the volume, 350. 1 Cor 1:24. 1 Cor 1:30. Matt 5:9. Rom 5:1. Ps 27:3. For this entire sentence, see Ps.-Hugh of St Victor, Misc. 5.15 (PL 177.757B). Matt 19:19; 22:39; Mark 12:31; 12:33; Luke 10:27. Deut 17:13. Tob 4:16; Jerome, In Matt. 21.28 (Hurst and Adriaen, CCL  77, 194.1512–13); Augustine, En. Ps. 35.1 (Dekkers and Fraipont, CCL 38, 322.34); Hugh of St Victor, Sacr. 1.12.4 (PL 176.351D; tr. Deferrari, 191); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.3.5 (Châtillon, 253.2–4). Luke 6:31; Hugh of St  Victor, Sacr. 1.12.4 (PL  176.351D; tr.  Deferrari, 191); Richard of St Victor, LE 2.3.5 (Châtillon, 253.2–4); Abelard, Commentaria in Epistolam Pauli ad Romanos I and IV (ed. Eligius-Marie Buytaert, CCCM 11, 84.282–84; 86.352–254; 282.79–280; 291.176–79). Ps 84:11. Ps 72:28. 1 Cor 6:17. Eph 4:3. Gal 5:17. Ps 136:8; Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 3.18; 72.20–21). Jerome gives “confusion” or “transfer,” but not “lover of confusion” (“amatrix confusionis”). Matt 5:9. Phil 4:7. 1 Cor 15:41–42. This is an authoritative statement often cited in the twelfth century, e.g., Peter Lombard, Collect. ad 1  Cor  15.28 (PL  191.1681D); Anonymous, Quaest. in ep. Pauli, 1  Cor, q.  136

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(PL  175.541B); Simon of Tournai, Disputationes  I, q.  1 (ed.  J.  Warichez [Louvain, 1932], 20.20). The saying may derive from Augustine, Jo. ev. tr. 67.2 (R. Willems, CCL 36, 496.23– 25): “Tamquam stellae sancti diversas mansiones diversae claritatis, tamquam in caelo, sortiuntur in regno” (“Like the stars in the heavens, the saints are allotted different dwellings of different splendor in the kingdom”). Anonymous, Quaest. in ep. Pauli, 1 Cor, q. 136 (PL 175.541B). Augustine, Jo. ev. tr. 77.2 (CCL 36, 496.25–28); Robert of Melun, Quaest. in ep. Pauli, ad I Cor 15:28 (Martin, 227.23–228.3). Hugh of St  Victor makes an analogous argument in Arrha 65, 67 (Sicard, 277–81; tr.  Feiss, 225–27). This emphasis on sharing and rejoicing in each other’s gifts is an indication of how corporate was the Victorine understanding of Christian existence. Matt 13:43. Achard of St Victor, Serm. 2.1 (Châtillon, 37.3–44; tr. Feiss, Works, 149–50). Mal 4:2. Ps 35:10. John 12:36. 1 Cor 3:12. Eph 5:11; cf. John 3:19. Isa 66:24; Mark 9:43, 47; Achard of St Victor, Serm. 2.2 (Châtillon, 38.23; tr. Feiss, Works, 151). Matt 8:12. Isa 35:10. Job 24:19.

WALTER OF ST VICTOR SERMON 19: ON THE FEAST OF ALL SAINTS INTRODUCTION

Walter of St Victor’s second lengthy sermon for the Feast of All Saints takes as its starting point the epistle of the day.1 Like his Sermon 11, this one works through the biblical text line by line. Since the list of the 144,000 sealed, 12,000 for each tribe of Israel, does not offer much variety at the literal level, Walter resorts to etymology, consulting Jerome, Isidore, and Richard of St Victor on the meaning of the names of Jacob’s twelve sons. Walter uses the format of “preaching by distinction,” which the introduction to this volume indicated became widely used in the later Middle Ages.2 The opening paragraph is not a captatio benevolentiae or declaration of unworthiness, but a rationale for studying the names of the twelve sons of Jacob. These names are found on the breastplate and ephod, which stand for the faith and patience of God’s holy ones (par. 1). The twelve sons signify virtues regarding love of God and love of neighbor. The first four are about love of God (par. 2–6): Judah Reuben Gad Asher

confession of one’s guilt and God’s mercy discernment of good and evil action, and action inspired by Christ, Scripture, saints hope of beatitude

In his discussion of the remaining eight sons of Jacob, love and service of neighbor will be a recurring theme. One does not ascend the mountain of God alone, but with others. However, since this is a sermon for the Feast of All Saints, there is a strong tug toward eschato1 2

Sermo 19, In Festo Omnium Sanctorum (Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 161–70). In addition to the sources mentioned in the Introduction, see Frans van Liere, An Introduction to the Medieval Bible (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2014), 230–31, and Mark Zier, “Preaching by Distinction: Peter Comestor and the Communication of the Gospel,” Ephimerides liturgicae 105 (1991): 301–29.

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logical reflection that sometimes trumps the theme of love of neighbor. In the final paragraph Walter returns to contemplation, particularly that of the saints in heaven (par. 7–14): Nephtali Manasseh Simeon Levi Issachar Zebulun Joseph Benjamin

teaching others the way of salvation forgetting harmful things, remembering good ones salutary grief: for sins, compassion, longing for heaven perfection beyond the commandments desire for the highest reward those strong by the indwelling of God knowledge of truth and love of virtue attracting others lovers of eternal life, who die to sin, world, self-will

Walter ends his sermon with a reference to Jacob’s ladder, which he surmises was constructed of these twelve steps of virtue and adds a brief prayer that Jesus, the saint of saints, lead us to their company.3 One wonders what Walter’s listeners or readers thought of Walter’s struggle to make a coherent discourse out of the etymologies of the names of Jacob’s son. Did they find it inventive, or coherent, or helpful?4

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The image of Jacob’s ladder was commonly used by monastic authors to describe stages on the spiritual journey. Thus, in RB 7 St Benedict, following the Rule of the Master, distinguishes twelve steps of humility (Kardong, 129–68, who discusses [162–65] the ten degrees of humility identified by Cassian, then expanded to twelve by The Rule of the Master, and adopted by the Rule of Benedict). See also John Climacus, The Ladder of Divine Ascent, tr. Colm Luibheid, Classics of Western Spirituality (New York: Paulist Press, 1982); Fiona J. Griffiths, The Garden of Delights: Reform and Renaissance for Women in the Twelfth Century (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2007), 205–07. Frans van Liere, who provided a very useful critique of this translation, thought the sermon sounded like a college writing assignment and wondered why the sermon was included.

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TRANSLATION

1. From the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand sealed.1 The divine word admonishes us to be imitators of those who by faith and patience will inherit the promises,2 that is, those who will steadfastly possess eternal beatitude by the merit of their faith and patience. It aptly connects faith and patience, neither of which brings salvation without the other. Faith is a decoration of the breast, and patience is elegance and beauty on the shoulders on which we place burdens. Hence, the Lord commanded Moses that among the other pontifical vestments he should make for Aaron a breastplate and an ephod.3 The breastplate was a decoration of the breast; the ephod was an accouterment for the shoulders. By the breastplate is understood faith and wisdom; by the ephod, the activity and patience that are necessary in labors. On the breastplate were twelve precious stones, on which were carved the twelve names of the sons of Israel;4 the same twelve names were carved on the ephod.5 What is it to carry on one’s chest or shoulders the names of the children of Israel, if not to imitate the faith and patience of the saints? Hence, the Apostle says, keep in mind6 those who have gone before you, and seeing the outcome of their way of life, also imitate their faith.7 2. John the Apostle indicates the same thing to us, saying, from the tribe of Judah twelve thousand sealed, etc.8 Judah is interpreted to mean “confessing.”9 There are two things we must confess in accusing ourselves, namely, sin and guilt (reatum); sin, because we did not do what we should and did what we should not. We must confess guilt, namely, that we are unworthy of grace and glory. We are unworthy of grace so good things are not conferred on us in the present; we are unworthy of glory so we will not be crowned in the future. Moreover, we are worthy of wrath and punishment: worthy of wrath, so good things are taken from us; worthy of punishment, so evil things are inflicted on us.10 In praise of God, we ought to confess His mercy and His grace: mercy by which we are freed, grace by which we live.11 This twofold confession must occur not just with the mouth but also in the heart; then it will truly bring holiness. As it is written, when Israel left Egypt, the house of Jacob from a barbarous people: Judah was made holy; Israel was made powerful.12 Egypt is interpreted as “darkness,”13 Israel as “seeing God,”14 Jacob as “supplanter,”15 and the barbarous people as a multitude of sins. Therefore, Israel went out from Egypt, that is, the enlightened one went out from darkness. To leave worldly desires16 behind and renounce them is a work of fortitude. Therefore, Jacob, indicating

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fortitude, goes out from a barbarous people. Thus, when some new athlete goes out from Egypt and from a barbarous people by renouncing impiety and worldly desires,17 it becomes sanctification for Judah. He is taught and informed about the fruit and usefulness of confession and is sent to his prelate to confess all his sins and so he is sanctified. However, so that he will persevere and not return to his vomit,18 Israel was made powerful. God is not seen in just one way, and so Israel is not said in just one way. God is seen through faith, through contemplation, and through sight. Therefore, when it is said that Israel was made powerful, the way of contemplation is understood. Contemplation of the truth confirms and strengthens the sanctified. Those who disdain contemplation quickly fall into vices. 3. This is beautifully illustrated (figuratam) in Samson. As long as he had the hair of his head, the Philistines could not conquer him.19 However, because it was cut off, he was immediately captured and blinded, and then put at the millstone.20 The hair of the head is understood as acuteness of contemplation. The Philistines, interpreted as “those falling by a drink,”21 are understood as the demons, who fall by a drink, that is, make us fall and intoxicate us with a cup of vices. Their wine is the bitter drink of serpents, the incurable poison of asps.22 Whomever these Philistines seduce is immediately deprived of contemplation and put to the millstone, that is, the round of temporal things. Thus, the one leaving from Egypt through confession is sanctified and confirmed in good through contemplation, and so from the tribe of Judah he is sealed. The seal is threefold: first, of the creation, second of rebirth, and third of perfection, as it is written, the light of your face is sealed upon us, Lord.23 The light of your face, that is, your image, is sealed, that is impressed like the likeness of a seal, upon us, that is, on our superior part, that is, on our mind. When God created man in his image and likeness,24 He sealed him and distinguished him. Regarding the seal of redemption, the Apostle said, Do not sadden the Spirit, namely, in whom you have been sealed on the day of redemption,25 that is, on the day of baptism, on which the power and effect of redemption are conferred on us. Regarding the seal of perfection, the Groom says to the bride, “put me as a seal upon your heart, put me as a seal on your arm,26 so that My memory, love (amor), and fondness (dilectio) do not recede from your heart. Put me as a seal on your arm, so that in your every work you will follow Me, imitate Me, and thus you will be conformed to Me, and that conformity to Me will be your perfection.” The first seal distinguishes rational creatures from those that are not capable

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of reason. The second distinguishes the faithful from unbelievers; the third, the perfect from the imperfect. In my estimation, it is the third seal that is in view when it says, from the tribe of Judah twelve thousand sealed.27 Twelve refers to universality, a thousand to perfection.28 Thus, fittingly, those who are signed with the sign of perfection belong to the universality of the perfect. 4. From the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand sealed.29 Reuben is interpreted as “seeing children.”30 By children, we understand works. We must not only be doing good works, but we must also consider them, whether these works are good or bad, whether works of light or dark, whether they are informed by love,31 whether they are directed to the proper end, whether for God alone and not for vainglory. Many work great deeds, and because they are not diligent about what they do, they lose all the fruit. Whence in Genesis it is written, God placed man in paradise to work and to guard,32 because without this guarding it would lack fruit. Also, David says, the turtledove finds a nest where she places her chicks.33 By the turtledove, we understand the flesh, by the chicks, works, which are placed in the nest of faith so they will not be walked on: in accord with this passage, All his works are in faith,34 and John, in the Apocalypse, The dragon was standing before the woman who was about to give birth to a baby boy, so that when she had given birth he would immediately devour her son.35 The woman is the Church or the faithful soul who bears a baby boy, that is, who does manly, vigorous, robust works; the dragon is the devil, who is working in secret to corrupt in some way every good that we do. Therefore, there is need for cautious and careful scrutiny, so we do not lose the good that we do. The one who examines his works so diligently is sealed from the tribe of Judah, and so belongs to the totality of the perfect. 5. From the tribe of Gad twelve thousand sealed.36 Gad is interpreted as “cinched up.”37 We gird ourselves when we are going to fight, are about to serve, or are going to make something. What does it mean to be “cinched up,” if not to be armed and fortified in the face of a multifaceted battle38 that is threatening us? Listen to how Sacred Scripture arms and fortifies us. It says, Son, as you come to serve the Lord stand in fear and justice, prepare your soul for temptation.39 What is it to prepare the soul for temptation, but to recall what great things all the saints suffered, to mull over in one’s mind the testimonies of Scripture, by which we are instructed and taught how great the virtue of patience is, and most of all to keep in mind continuously the example of the Lord’s Passion. Whence the Apostle Peter writes, Therefore, since Christ suffered

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in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same thinking.40 Whoever is formed by such a great example and is prepared and ready to bear injuries is cinched up, fortified, and armed. He can say, my heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready.41 My heart is ready to disdain all earthly happiness; likewise, my heart is ready to bear every torment. A person such as this is sealed from the tribe of Gad,42 and so belongs to the twelve thousand, that is, to the totality of the perfect. 6. From the tribe of Asher twelve thousand sealed.43 Asher is interpreted as “blessed.”44 However, who is blessed amid the miseries and temptations of which this life is full? Actually, no one, except in hope: For we have been saved in hope.45 The one who is called blessed does all good things to gain future beatitude and nothing for the world or for vainglory. For confession, working, and patience are of no value unless they are referred to the required end. Hence, on the basis of your disposition give a name to your work.46 No work is worthy of eternal beatitude unless it is done with a pure and sincere intention. Therefore, whoever for the sake of eternal beatitude confesses, does good things, and suffers evil is sealed from the tribe of Asher,47 and so belongs to the number of the perfect. Through these four a squared stone is shaped, a living stone,48 a stone apt and suitable for placing in the spiritual building. Through these four a person is proven to be a lover of God.49 7. However, we have a commandment that whoever loves God is to love his neighbor also.50 From the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand sealed.51 Naphtali is interpreted as “wideness.”52 Through the steps discussed above, a person ascends on high53 through a narrow passage, as it were fleeing up a mountain, in order to save his soul. Now like a good tree, like a fruitful olive tree54 he spread his branches,55 according to this passage: Spread the place for your tent.56 See to it that your neighbor dwells with you and ascends with you. Whence the Apostle says, pay attention to yourself and to doctrine.57 Pay attention to yourself so that you live rightly, and to doctrine, so you rightly teach others the way of salvation. Doing this you will cause both yourself and those who hear you58 to be saved, and you will fulfill that commandment, you will love your neighbor as yourself.59 Just as you save your soul through confession, work, patience and a pure intention, so be solicitous about the salvation of your neighbor and instruct him regarding confession, discerning action, and the virtue of patience and simplicity of heart, and thus you will be sealed from the tribe of Naphtali and reach perfection. 8. From the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand sealed.60 Manasseh is interpreted as “forgetting.”61 There are multiple ways of forgetting. There

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is forgetting God, which is very bad. There is forgetting sin in regard to guilt, which occurs when someone sins gravely but immediately hands over his guilt to forgetfulness and does not recognize that he is guilty, which is ruinous. There is forgetting of sin in regard to the act and the willing, which occurs when someone hands over his sin to forgetting, so that he neither does it nor wills it, and this is good forgetting. There is forgetting of temporal things, when someone regards all the fleeting things of earth as filth,62 and this is useful forgetting. There is forgetting of injury inflicted, whence it says in the Law, Do not be mindful of the injury of your citizens,63 and elsewhere, Vengeance is mine, and I will repay,64 says the Lord. There is forgetting of earlier merits, not because they are bad, but because they are insufficient. Whence the Apostle says, forgetting the things that are behind, I stretch forward to those that are ahead.65 Therefore, whoever forgets all the things whose memory is destructive is sealed from the tribe of Manasseh, perfect in his way. 9. From the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand sealed.66 Simeon is interpreted as “sadness.”67 Sadness is of various kinds. There is the sadness of the world,68 when someone is overly saddened by the loss of temporal goods, or when someone is sad, not because he sinned or because he offended God and deprived himself of true life, but because by sinning he appeared vile and despicable in the sight of other people. This is a sadness that brings death.69 There is another, healthy sadness, when someone is sorry he sinned and offended God and by his fault made himself unworthy of life.70 There is sadness that comes from the loving-kindness of compassion, when someone commiserates and is compassionate regarding another’s sufferings, saying with the Apostle, who is weak and I am not weak, who is scandalized and I do not burn?71 There is the sadness that occurs when someone is sad and sorrowing because of the delay of heaven, saying, woe is me, because my sojourn is extended,72 and when will I come and appear before the face of God.73 The first sadness comes from love of the world, the second from fear of God, the third from love of neighbor, and the fourth from love of God. Whoever is sorrowful because of a sadness proceeding from love is sealed from the tribe of Simeon and is truly spiritual, holding the seventh place dedicated to the Holy Spirit.74 The Holy Spirit effects such sadness. Whence the Apostle said, do not sadden the Holy Spirit, Who is said to be saddened for this reason, because He makes those in whom He dwells sad through love because of the downfall of others. 10. From the tribe of Levi twelve thousand sealed.75 Levi is interpreted as “added.”76 Levi did not receive an inheritance among his brothers;77

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rather, God was his inheritance. Hence, he could say, the measuring lines have fallen on excellent things for me; truly my inheritance is excellent for me.78 The one who possesses the Lord truly does have an excellent inheritance. The rest of the children of Israel gave tithes to God.79 Levi lived from their tithes.80 What is it to return tithes to God? It is to attribute to Him the perfection of all good and the complete consummation of the virtues. To live from tithes is to rejoice and delight in works of perfection. Others barely fulfill the commandments, but Levi puts his hand to the counsels. To the rest it is said, when you have done all the things which are commanded you, say that we are useless servants.81 To Levi it is said, if you have paid more, I will repay you when I return.82 To the others, Do not steal;83 to Levi, Go, and sell all that you have and give to the poor.84 Because Levi added many things beyond the common and general state, he was added to the community of those who inhabit the higher dwelling place. Levi is directed not only toward the riches of the glorious inheritance85 that will be for all the saints in common, but also to the supereminent greatness of the power of God,86 which will be in the perfect alone. He advances not only to a crown, but also to a crown above a crown. Those who are like this know that they are sealed from the tribe of Levi; they not only recognize themselves as perfect, but as more perfect than the perfect. 11. From the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand sealed.87 Issachar is interpreted as “reward.”88 Is he to be called a hired worker (mercenarius), deriving as he does his name from reward (mercede)? The Lord says, the hired worker sees the wolf coming and flees.89 One should know that reward is twofold: temporal and eternal. Someone who seeks temporal reward for the good that he does is a hired worker. The one who strives for an eternal reward is a son. This was what he was seeking who said, behold we left everything and followed you, what then will there be for us?90 Likewise, the one who said, I have inclined my heart to do your justifications forever, because of the reward.91 This Issachar, therefore, does not seek just any kind of reward, but the company of the angels, indeed, equality not with the lower ones, but with the highest, which is indicated by this, that he holds the ninth place.92 Whoever is worn out by an ineffable desire for a reward of such a kind and magnitude is sealed from the tribe of Issachar and his perfection. 12. From the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand sealed.93 Zebulun is interpreted as “dwelling place of strength.”94 This name is suitable for those in whom God, Who is the highest strength, dwells, and by dwelling strengthens, so that they are the strength, pillar, and firmament of

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others. They truly say and can say, the Lord is our strength.95 These are a dwelling place of strength, a fortified place,96 a house of refuge,97 a tower of strength,98 the tower of David, which is built with ramparts, a thousand shields hang from it, all the armor of the strong.99 These are the temple of God, the house of God, the city of God, a tower built over the mind, greater than the great, more sublime than the sublime. Those who see themselves as such know that they are sealed with a seal of great perfection. 13. From the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand sealed.100 Joseph is interpreted as “increase.”101 This really is suitable for those who both increase in themselves and increase others because they advance in themselves and cause others to advance, not only through increase of virtues but also in the number of the faithful. Whence Jacob said, a growing son, Joseph, a growing son.102 These are renewed in the spirit of their mind,103 that is, in mind and spirit, in mind through knowledge of truth, in spirit through love of virtue.104 And they renew others by their life and teaching, by word and example, just as some are corrupted by the desires of error and corrupt others, err and cause others to err, fail and draw others toward failure, and can be called a loss. Therefore, those who walk in the way of virtues and draw others after them, who always are growing and making others grow, are sealed from the tribe of Joseph and perfected with great perfection. 14. From the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand sealed.105 Benjamin is interpreted as “son of the right hand.”106 By the right is understood eternal life. Therefore, the son of the right hand is called a lover or possessor of eternal life; in the present state, a lover only, but in what is to come, also a possessor. When someone is said to be a child of this one or that one, it is not always understood in the same way, as when someone is called a child of Abraham,107 a child of grace, a child of God,108 a child of Sion109 or Jerusalem,110 a child of Gehenna,111 a child of Babylon,112 a son of his right hand. A child of Abraham, that is, an imitator of Abraham, namely, someone who is just through faith; a child of grace, that is, born through grace and not through nature; a child of God, that is, like God; a child of Sion or Jerusalem, that is, a lover of contemplation or peace; a child of Gehenna, though not a lover of it because who loves eternal punishment? A child of Gehenna is so called because he owes and deserves such a punishment; similarly, someone worthy of eternal life is called a son of the right hand. However, someone will say that, according to this, all those mentioned so far can be called sons of the right hand, because all are worthy of the right side. Well, it is

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true that they all are lovers of eternal life and so worthy of glory, but the one who holds the twelfth place because of the excellence of his holiness obtains the shared name as though it were his own. Just as some are called sons of distrust,113 because they are distrustful regarding future glory, or because we are distrustful about them because they live shamelessly and make their damnation known to themselves and others, so these, by living in a more holy way than others do, make their election known and evident to all. The Prophet says of their excellence, There is Benjamin, a youth, in ecstasy of mind.114 Youth conveys newness, the fervor of love, and, especially, humility; ecstasy of mind conveys the heights of divine contemplation. That Rachel at the birth of Benjamin was in danger and even died115 fits with this understanding (intelligentiae) by which he is called son, that is, possessor, of his right hand. No one can possess eternal life except after death and through death. No true lover reaches eternal life, unless he first dies to sin, the world, and his own will. In my opinion the ladder that Jacob116 saw consists of these twelve steps of virtue.117 All the saints have ascended to heavenly joys by this ladder. Whence also the passage, There the tribes ascend, the tribes of Israel.118 May the saint of saints, Jesus, the Son of God, deign to lead us to their company. Amen.

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NOTES 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36

Rev 7:5. Rev 7:5–8 was the epistle reading for the Feast of All Saints. For spelling of the names of Jacob’s sons (the names of the tribes of Israel), the New Revised Standard Version is followed. Heb 6:12. Exod 28:2–4. Exod 28:15–21. Exod 28:9–12. Eph 2:11; Col. 4:18. Heb 13:7. Rev 7:5. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 67.19); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.10 (ed. W. M. Lindsay [Oxford, 1911], online: http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/isidore.html, accessed 4  August 2016; tr. Barney, et al., 165–66); Richard of St Victor, XII patr. 11.6 (Châtillon, 118–22; tr. Zinn, 63); Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.5 (Châtillon, 178; tr. Feiss, Works, 267–68). “Two things … inflicted on us” is with a few changes a quotation from Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.5 (Châtillon, 177–78; tr. Feiss, Works, 266). This sentence is also derived from Achard of St Victor, Serm. 14.4 (Châtillon, 176; tr. Feiss, Works, 265). Ps 113:2: The last part of the verse is odd: “facta est Judea sanctificatio eius, Israel potestas eius.” The translation offered seems to reflect the way Walter understood it. Exod 10:21. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 75.21); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.6 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 165). Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 67.19); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.5 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 165); cf. Gen 27:36. Titus 2:12. Titus 2:12. Prov 26:11; 2 Pet 2:22. Judg 14–16. Judg 16:19–21. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 66.12–13). Deut 32:33. Ps 4:7. Gen 1:26–27. Eph 4:30. Song 8:6. Rev 7:5. Gregory, Mor. 10.31.52 (PL 75.950D); twelve (“duodenarius”); a thousand (“millenarius”): Mor. 9.3.3 (PL 75.860A); 22.20.50 (Adriaen, CCL 143A, 1129; PL 76.243D); 35.16.41 (Adriaen, CCL 143B, 1802–03; PL 76.773A). Rev 7:5. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 71.2); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.7 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 165). VTT 2:54–55. Thomas Aquinas, ST 2–2.23.8 (Caramello, 2:116–17; tr. English Dominicans, 2:1274–75). Gen 2:15. Ps 83:4. Ps 32:4. Rev 12:4. Rev 7:5.

468 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44

45 46

47 48 49

50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73

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Gen 49:19. The same phrase occurs in Achard of St Victor, Serm. 2.2 (Châtillon, 38.15; tr. Feiss, Works, 150). Sir 2:1. 1 Pet 4:1. Ps 56:8. Rev 7:5. Rev 7:6. Gen 30:13; Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL  72, 61.7–8); Isidore, Etym.  7.7.16 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 166); Richard of St Victor, XII patr. 25 (Châtillon, 158; PL 196.17C; tr. Zinn, 78). Rom 8:24. “Ex affectu tuo impone nomen operi tuo”: This authoritative aphorism derives from St Ambrose, De officiis, 1.30.147 (PL 16.66A) and was often cited by twelfth-century authors. For references, see Châtillon, Sermones inediti, 165 nn. 141–42. Rev 7:6. 1 Pet 2:4–5. Thus far, on the basis of the allegorical meaning of the names of four of Jacob’s sons, Walter has traced four steps by which one grows in the love of God: confession, work, patience, and pure intention. He introduces the next paragraph with a reference to the love of neighbor. Up till now, Godfrey has drawn his allegorical interpretation of the names of Jacob’s sons from Jerome’s Book on the Interpretation of Hebrew Names, Isidore’s Etymologies, and Richard of St Victor’s On the Twelve Patriarchs. From this point, Godfrey begins to draw his allegorical interpretation also from Richard of St Victor’s commentary On the Apocalypse. Lev 19:18; Deut 6:5; Matt 22:37–39; Mark 12:30–31; Luke 10:27; cf. 1 John 4:20. Rev 7:6. Alcuin, In Apoc. 4.7.5 (PL 100.1131B); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772C). Ps 67:19. Ps 51:10. Isa 6:13. Isa 54:2. 1 Tim 4:16. 1 Tim 4:16. Matt 19:19; 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27. Rev 7:6. Gen 41:51; Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL  72, 69.27); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.20 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 166); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772C). Phil 3:8. Lev 19:18. Rom 12:19; Heb 10:30. Phil 3:13. Rev 7:7. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, 141.25); Alcuin, In Apoc. 4.7.5 (PL  100.1131C); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772D); Anonymous of St Victor, Serm. 4.9 (Châtillon, 261.25). 2 Cor 7:10. 2 Cor 7:10. Châtillon refers to Job 30:2. 2 Cor 11:29. Ps 119:5; cf.  Walter of St  Victor, Serm. 18.12 (Châtillon, 159.314–15) where this and the ­following Scriptural passage are cited. Ps 41:3.

S ermon 1 9 : On the F east of A ll S aints 74

75 76

77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88

89 90 91 92 93 94

95 96 97 98 99 100 101

102 103 104 105 106

107

 469

Simeon is the seventh tribe in the list in Rev 7. The connection Walter makes between him and the Holy Spirit is very probably through the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. On these, see Hugh of St Victor, Quinque sept. 1 (Baron, 102; tr. Benson, VTT 4:361); Septem donis (Baron, 120–33; tr. Benson, VTT 4:375–80). Rev 7:7. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 68.7–8); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.9 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 165); Richard of St Victor, XII patr. 10 (Châtillon, 114–17; Zinn, 62); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772D). Num 18:20; Josh 13:14, 32. Ps 15:6. Exod 22:29; Lev 27:30–32. Num 18:21. Luke 17:10. Luke 10:35. Exod 20:15; Lev 19:11; Matt 19:18; Mark 10:19; Luke 18:20. Matt 19:21; Mark 10:21; Luke 12:33. Rom 9:23; Eph 3:16; Phil 4:19. Eph 1:19. Rev 7:7. Gen 30:18; Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 67.19–20); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.11 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 166); Richard of St Victor, XII patr. 36.16 (Châtillon, 192–93; tr. Zinn, 91); 40 (Châtillon, 206–11; tr. Zinn, 97); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772D). John 10:12. Matt 19:27; Mark 10:28; Luke 18:28. Ps 118:12. Issachar is ninth in the list of the tribes in Rev 7. Traditionally, there was a hierarchy of nine kinds or choirs of angels. Rev 7:8. “habitaculum fortitudinis”: Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 73.29); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.12 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 165); Richard of St Victor, XII patr. 40 (Châtillon, 206–07; tr. Zinn, 96); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772D). Here “dwelling place” is “habitaculum,” not the “mansio” of, for example, Walter’s Serm. 11, which is also for the Feast of All Saints, but takes as its text John 14:2: “In the house of my Father, there are many dwelling places” (“mansiones”). “Fortitudinis” can mean both the cardinal virtue of “fortitude” or, more generally, “strength.” Exod 15:2; Ps 17:2; 117:14; Isa 12:2; Jer 16:19. Ps 70:3. Ps 30:3. Ps 60:4. Song 4:4. Rev 7:8. Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL 72, 67.20); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.17 (Lindsay; tr. Barney, et al., 165); Richard of St  Victor, XII  patr.  68 (Châtillon, 286–89; tr.  Zinn, 125–26); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.772D). Gen 49:22. Eph 4:23. See Walter of St Victor, Sermon 11, 440 (n8). Rev 7:8. Gen 35:18; Jerome, Heb. nom. (Lagarde, CCL  72, 62.24); Isidore, Etym. 7.7.19 (Lindsay; Barney, et al., 166); Richard of St Victor, Apoc. 2.9 (PL 196.773A). Here “filius” clearly means “son.” In what follows, it will be translated as “child.” Luke 19:9; 3:8; Matt 3:9; John 8:37, 39; Gal 3:7.

470 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117

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Matt 5:9; John 1:12; Rom 5:2; 8:14, 16, 19; Gal 3:26; Phil 2:15. Ps 149:2; Isa 66:8; Lam 4:2; Joel 2:23; Zech 9:13. Joel 3:6; Matt 23:37. Matt 23:15. Ezek 23:15, 23. Eph 2:2; 5:6. Ps 67:28; Richard of St Victor, XII patr. 1 (Châtillon, 90–91; Zinn, 53). Gen 35:16–19. Gen 28:12. In this sermon, Walter has traced a trajectory of growth in virtue based on interpretation of the names of the sons of Jacob and the tribes of Israel. In doing so, he has retraced a path that is like a ladder with twelve rungs. The same theme was covered at much greater length by Richard of St Victor in On the Twelve Patriarchs. Like Richard’s treatise, Walter’s sermon culminates in the birth of Benjamin, the death of Rachel, and contemplation. Ps 121:4.

IT IS FINISHED

RICHARD OF ST VICTOR SERMONES CENTUM 100: ON THE FEAST OF THE HOLY CROSS INTRODUCTION

For this sermon Richard of St Victor takes as his theme Jesus’ final words from the cross in John 19:30: “Cum ergo accepisset Iesus acetum dixit consummatum est et inclinato capite tradidit spiritum” (“When Jesus had accepted the vinegar he said, it is finished, and inclining his head he handed over his spirit”). This verse was used on Good Friday and on other days of Holy Week, but does not seem to have been associated with the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. The phrase runs through the sermon like a refrain. It ends most paragraphs.1 As is often the case in John, there are many levels of meaning to this statement. “Consummatum est” can be translated in various ways: “It is perfected.” “It is finished.” “It is consummated.” “It is done.” “It is ended.” Richard makes use of all these nuances, and it has seemed best to indicate that by translating the phrase variously, according to context. The reader will have no trouble detecting its presence in the varied translations. Richard also comments on the next sentence in John’s gospel: “He handed over (tradidit) his spirit.” However, Richard changes the verb to “he sends out” (emisit). By doing this, he evokes Psalm 103(04):30: You will send out (emittes) your spirit and they will be created, and you will renew the face of the earth. Thus, Richard hints at the connection between the Paschal Mystery of Jesus’ dying and rising and the sending of the Spirit. If it were not obvious anyway, these subtle plays on Latin words make it clear that the sermon was meant for delivery or for pondering in Latin. There is only one complete manuscript of the Sermones 1

For its use during Holy Week, see Cantus #001970 (http://cantusindex.org/id/001970). That Richard’s sermon does not refer explicitly to the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross may be because he is writing this sermon to conclude the Sermones centum, and so focuses on “consummatum est,” which, though it may not have been connected with the Feast, refers to Jesus on the Cross.

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centum, so it is difficult to know what the purpose of the collection was or how it was used. This final sermon, which consummates, ends, and perfects the collection, maintains the form of a sermon addressed to a group of “dearly beloved.” However, the sermon may have been written, and the collection was likely gathered, for meditative reading. Richard weaves together the historical and allegorical (doctrinal) senses throughout most of the sermon. In paragraphs 8 and 9 he inserts references to the moral (tropological) application, and from paragraph 6 on he speaks of the glory with which the justice that Christ’s cross brings the world will be crowned (anagogical). Most of all, this sermon is a resounding declaration that Christ is the center of the Scriptures. The deeds of the Old Testament are antetypes of the life, death on the cross, and resurrection of Christ. The prophecies of Moses and David and Isaiah are fulfilled in him. The passive voice of the verb, consummatum est, is suggestive of divine agency, of God bringing to perfection and completion in Christ his plan for human history. The resonances of the expression “Consummatum est” are not lost on commentators today. Pope Benedict XVI, who aimed to synthesize critical-historical methods with a more theological, meditative, and literary reading of the Bible, wrote: In John’s account, Jesus’ last words are: “It is finished.” In the Greek text, the word (tetélestai) points back to the very beginning of the Passion narrative, to the episode of the washing of the feet, which the evangelist introduces by observing that Jesus loved his own “to the end” (telos) (John 13:1). This “end,” the ne plus ultra of loving, is now attained in the moment of death. He has truly gone right to the end, to the very limit and even beyond that limit. He has accomplished the utter fullness of love—he has given himself.2

Pope Benedict goes on to note that in the Torah this same Greek word sometimes means “consecration.” Perhaps, then, in light of John 17:19, one can see this self-consecration to God as an element in Jesus’ handing over of himself right to the end.

2

Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth. Part Two: Holy Week (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2011), 223.

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TRANSLATION

1. When Jesus had accepted the vinegar, he said: “It is consummated.” And inclining his head, He sent out his spirit.1 The words set before you, dearly beloved, are short but lofty. They describe for us the consummation of our redemption. In the death of Christ are completed all the foreshadowings of the ancient prefigurings that point to it,2 and all the oracles prophesizing it. Hence, the Lord Himself said to the Apostles: Behold we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things will be fulfilled which have been written through the prophets about the Son of Man.3 It is consummated.4 2. In the death of Christ, in its typological meaning, is the perfection of God’s formation of Eve from the side of the sleeping Adam,5 for it symbolized that Holy Church would be redeemed by the blood flowing from the side of the dead Christ.6 Cain’s murder of his brother Abel out of jealousy7 finds its consummation when out of jealousy the Jewish people handed Christ over to Pilate to be crucified.8 In the mystical sense, that Abraham, having piled up a stack of wood, placed his son upon the altar to offer him to God9 was fulfilled when the human race offered on the Cross, Christ, Who was born of it according to the flesh. That by the killing of the paschal lamb God freed the children of Israel from slavery to the Egyptians10 was perfected because it indicated that the spiritual Israelite would be snatched from the yoke of the demons by the death of Christ. That Moses sweetened the bitter waters with a piece of wood11 and drew water from the rock12 was perfected because it pointed to how Christ by the bitterness of His death for us turned the harshness of the Law to sweetness and made flow from Himself, the true rock, spiritual streams.13 The scapegoat that bore the sins of the people into the desert14 is perfected because Christ Who bore our sins was its form. That the woman of Zarephath gathered two pieces of wood15 was perfected because it expressed that the Gentiles later received faith in the Passion of Christ. That at the wedding of Tobit the angel Raphael bound the demon with an extract of fish gall16 was perfected because it indicated that Christ, having drunk bitter gall17 and undergone a bitter death, conquered the devil. 3. The prophecies of the prophets are also fulfilled. What Moses said, cursed is he who hangs on a tree,18 was fulfilled. Hence, the Apostle says that Christ has become a curse for us.19 What David said is fulfilled: They gave me gall to eat and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.20 The prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: I have struck him because of

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the sins of my people,21 and likewise, He was offered because he chose to be.22 Brothers, many foreshadowings and the prophets’ proclamations prefiguring and foretelling the death of Christ are fulfilled. Indeed, who could enumerate and disentangle all of them? Therefore, it is consummated.23 4. Whatever needed to happen before the death of Christ was perfected in the death of Christ. Thus, the death of Christ is the restoration of life for us; the death of Christ is divine reconciliation for us. The death of Christ is the removal of guilt; the death of Christ is the bestowal of justice. The death of Christ bars up hell; the death of Christ unbars heaven. The death of Christ is the destruction of punishment; the death of Christ is the recovery of glory. Therefore, it is consummated.24 5. Whatever pertains to the destruction of evil is completed. Whatever pertains to the consummation of good is completed. Whatever just Simeon predicted is fulfilled.25 What Caiaphas, reprobate though he was, prophesied is fulfilled.26 Whatever Judas, deserving of detestation, promised the Pharisees is fulfilled.27 Whatever Pilate, the unjust judge, unjustly decreed to happen, is consummated.28 The Law is perfected. Prophecy is fulfilled. The angel’s announcement is fulfilled.29 What the just hoped for in the world is consummated. What they afterward awaited in the netherworld is fulfilled. That they merited heaven by living30 in a holy way is fulfilled. Therefore, it is consummated.31 6. Through grace, justice is perfected in us; through justice, glory is to be perfected. Justice is perfected in its effect; glory is to be perfected in us by its cause. All those truly believing in Christ are already just, in effect. They are blessed in the cause, but finally will be blessed in their effect. With reference to Christ, Paul speaks of the cause of glory thus: Once perfected he was made the cause of eternal salvation for all who obey him.32 As he says elsewhere, If the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Jesus from the dead will give life to our mortal bodies through his spirit indwelling in us.33 Therefore, it is well said that when Christ had received the vinegar, He said, it is finished.34 7. And inclining his head He sent out his spirit.35 The taste of vinegar signifies the bitterness of death, the inclination of His head, the willing acceptance of humility. The sending out of His spirit is the consummation of human redemption. In the death of Christ, therefore, all things are perfected: in the present, justice is perfected; and in the future, glory will be consummated. When? When this corruptible puts

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on incorruptibility, and this mortal puts on immortality.36 When Christ your life appears, you will then appear with him in glory.37 8. Truly, dearly beloved, because we cannot adequately describe or worthily praise the Passion of Christ, the redemption of the human race, let us turn our pen to ourselves and see whether we follow Christ in our measure by bearing bad things. Because today we celebrate the solemnities of the Holy Cross and remember the Lord’s Passion, it seems right that we admonish each other about patience.38 If we suffer with, we will reign with,39 and if we have been sharers in his sufferings, we will at the same time be sharers in His consolations.40 The bride, paying close attention to this, says: My beloved is a sachet of myrrh for me; he will rest between my breasts.41 Let us struggle then to enter by the narrow gate, to go up by the tight and arduous way, because nowhere else is there access to justice or ascent to glory. 9. Dearly beloved, we have finished the one-hundredth sermon in this book, and we think the book itself is consummated by this sermon. Let us strive to perfect the things that are in this sermon and book by believing, hoping, and loving, so that we may deserve to reach heavenly glory. May Jesus Christ our Lord deign to grant us this, for He is God, blessed forever. Amen.

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NOTES 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41

John 19:30. What follows is a translation of Serm. cent. 100 (PL 177.1207A–1210A). The antecedent could be “death” or “redemption.” The latter seems to fit the sense better. Matt 20:18–19; cf. Luke 18:31. John 19:30. Gen 2:21–22. John 19:34. Gen 4:5–8. Matt 27:18. Gen 22:9. Exod 12:3–8. Exod 15:23–25. Exod 17:3–6. John 4:6–15. Lev 16:20–22. 3 (1) Kings 17:12. Tob 8:1–2. Matt 27:34. Deut 21:23. Gal 3:13. Ps 68:22. Isa 53:8. Isa 53:7. John 19:30. John 19:30. Luke 2:25–35. John 11:49–52. Matt 26:24–25, 47–48. Matt 27:22–26. Luke 1:26–38. Reading vivendo for videndo. John 19:30. Heb 5:9. Rom 8:11: “our” and “us” may be misreadings for the Scriptural “your” and “you.” John 19:30. John 19:30. 1 Cor 15:53. Col. 3:4. Patientia (patience, endurance), like passio (suffering, undergoing), comes from pati (to suffer, undergo, endure, bear with). Rom 8:17. 2 Cor 1:7. Song 1:12. This quote, which at first reading seems like an abrupt intrusion, may recall John  13:23–25 or it may have been suggested by the narrowness mentioned in the next sentence, or it may refer to justice and glory.

BIBLIOGRAPHY BIBLES Biblia sacra cum glossa ordinaria quidem a Strabo Fulgensi collecta… cum illa Nicolai Lyrani. Ed. Paul Bergensis, Matthias Döring, François Feuerardent, Jacques de Cuilly, and Jean Dadré. 6 vols. Venice: Apud Iuntas, 1603. Biblia sacra iuxta vulgatam versionem. Ed. Robert Weber. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1975, 1994. Holy Bible. Translated from the Latin Vulgate. The Douay Version of the Old Testament (1609). The  Confraternity Edition of the New Testament. New York: P. J. Kenedy, 1950. New American Bible Revised Edition. Charlotte, NC: Saint Benedict Press, 2010. The Vulgate Bible. Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library. 6 vols. in 7. Ed. Swift Edgar and Angela M. Kinney. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2010–13. New Revised Standard Version. N.p.: Thomas Nelson, 1989.

LITURGICAL BOOKS Daily Roman Missal. Woodbridge, IL: Midwest Theological Forum, 2013. Liturgia Horarum iuxta ritum romanum. 4  vols. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1977. Roman Missal. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 2011. Sacramentary approved for use in the Dioceses of the United States of America. Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1974.

PRIMARY SOURCES

Classical Authors Cicero, Somnium Scipionis. Ed. Sally Davis and Gilbert Lawall. White Plains, NY: Longman, 1988.

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_____________. De divinatione. Ed. and tr.  William Armistead Falconer. LCL  154. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1992. Horace. Satires, Epistles and Ars poetica. Ed. H. Rushon Fairclough. LCL 194. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2005. Macrobius. Saturnalia. Ed. and tr. Robert A Kaster. LCL 510–11. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2011. Martianus Capella. The Marriage of Philology and Mercury. Tr. W. H. Stahl, R. Johnson, and E. L. Burge. Martianus Capella and the Seven Liberal Arts. 2 vols. Records of Western Civilization. New York: Columbia University Press, 1977. Ovid. Metamorphoses. Ed. and tr.  Frank Justus Miller, G.  P. Goold. 2  vols. LCL 42, 43. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1977, 1984. Tr.  A.  D. Melville. Oxford World’s Classics. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986. _____________. Epistulae ex Ponto. Letters from Pontus. http://www. thelatinlibrary.com/ovid.html. Translation: http://www. poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/Ovidexilehome. htm. Pliny. Natural History. Ed. and tr. H. Rackham, W. H. S. Jones, D. E. Eichholz. 10 vols. LCL. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1938. Terrence. The Lady of Andros. The Self-Tormentor. The Eunuch. Ed. and tr.  John Sargeaunt. LCL  22. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1986.

Patristic Authors Ambrose. De officiis. PL 16.23–184. Augustine. Confessiones. Confessions. Ed. and tr.  J.  J. O’Donnell, 3  vols. New York: Oxford, 1992. Tr. Henry Chadwick. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. _____________. De catechizandis rudibus. Ed.  G. Combès and Farges. Oeuvres de saint Augustin 11. Paris: Desclée De Brouwer, 1949. The  First Catechetical Instruction. Tr.  Joseph  P. Christopher. ACW 2. Westminster, MD: Newman, 1946. ____________. De civitate Dei. Ed. Dombart and Kalb. CCL  48. Turnhout: Brepols, 1955. Tr. R. W. Dyson. New York: Cambridge, 1988. ____________. De diversis quaestionibus LXXXIII. Ed. Almut Mutzenbecher. CCL  44A. Turnhout: Brepols, 1975. PL  40.11–100.

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Responses to Miscellaneous Questions. Tr. Boniface Ramsey. WSA I/12. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2009. ____________. De doctrina christiana. Ed. Joseph Martin. CCL 32. Turnhout: Brepols, 1962. Teaching Christianity. Tr.  Edmund Hill. WSA I/11. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 1996. ____________. De moribus ecclesiae. De moribus ecclesiae catholicae et de moribus Manichaeorum. Ed.  Roland-Gosselin. Oeuvres de saint Augustin. Paris: Desclée De Brouwer, 1936. On the Catholic and the Manichean Way of Life. Tr. Roland Teske. WSA III/9. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2006. ____________. De praedestinatione sanctorum. PL  44.939–92. Four AntiPelagian Writings. Tr.  John  A. Mourant and William  J. Collinge. FOC  86. Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2001. ____________. De sermo in Monte. Ed. A. Mutzenbecher. CCL 35. PL 34.1229– 1308. Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount. Tr. Denis Kavanagh. FOC 11. New York: Fathers of the Church, 1951. ____________. De Trinitate. Ed. W. J. Mountain and F. Glorie. CCL 50, 50A. Turnhout: Brepols, 1968. The Trinity. Tr.  Edmund Hill. WSA I/5. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 1991. ____________. De vera religione. CCL  32. Ed.  K.-D.  Daur and J.  Martin. Turnhout: Brepols, 1962. PL  34.121–72. On Christian Belief. Tr. Edmund Hill. WSA I/8. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2005. ____________. Enarrationes in Psalmos. Ed.  E. Dekkers and J.  Fraipont. CCL 39. Turnhout: Brepols, 1956. PL 36.67–1027. Sermons. Tr.  Maria Boulding. WSA  III/17. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2001. ____________. Enchiridion ad Laurentium de fide spe et caritate. Ed. M. Evans. CCL 46. Turnhout: Brepols, 1969. Faith, Hope and Charity. Westminster,  MD: Newman, 1947. Tr.  Louis  A. Arand. Exposés généraux de la foi: De fide et symbolo. Enchiridion. Ed. and tr. Jean Rivière. Paris: Desclée De Brouwer, 1947. On Christian Belief. Tr.  Bruce Harbert. WSA I/8. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 2005. ____________. Epistulae. Ed.  Alois Goldbacher. CSEL 34, 44, 57. Vienna: F.  Tempsky, 1895. Reprint, New  York: Johnson Reprint Corp., 1970. Letters of St  Augustine. 6  vols. Tr.  Ludwig Schopp, Wilfrid Parsons, Robert B. Eno. FOC 12, 18, 20, 30, 32, 81. Washington,  DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 1953–2014.

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giques/Gembloux: J. Ducolot, 1951. Pp. 133–43. Sermo de nativitate BM. Ed. J. Beumer. “Die Parallele Maria-Kirche nach einem ungedruckten Sermo des Gottfried von St Viktor.” RTAM 27 (1960): 248–66. Tr. Feiss. VTT 4:485– 504. Sermo in generali capitulo. Ed.  H. Riedlinger. Die  Makellosigkeit der Kirche in den Lateinischen Hoheliedkommentaren des Mittelalters. BGPTMA  38/3. Münster: Aschendorff, 1958. Pp. 188–93. Sermon 1, First Sunday of Advent, Sermon 2, For Advent, Sermon 3, On the Birth of the Lord. Tr. Hugh Feiss. VTT 8, above. Hugh of St Victor. De archa Noe. Ed. Patrice Sicard. CCCM 176. Turnhout: Brepols, 2001. ____________. De arrha animae. Ed.  Sicard. Oeuvre 1.211–300. Tr.  Feiss. VTT 2:183–232. ____________. De quinque septenis. Ed. Baron. Six opuscules spirituels. SC 155. Paris: Cerf, 1969. Pp. 101–19. Tr. Benson. VTT 4:351–68. ____________. De sacramentis christianae fidei. Ed. R. Berndt. CV: Textus historici  1. Münster: Aschendorff, 2008. PL  176.73–618. Tr. Roy Deferrari. On the Sacraments of the Christian Faith (De sacramentis) of Hugh of Saint Victor. The Medieval Academy of America Publications 58. Cambridge: The Medieval Academy of America, 1951. ____________. De sacramentis dialogus. PL 176.17–42. ____________. De sapientia animae Christi. PL 176.845C–856D. ____________. De scripturis et scriptoribus sacris. PL 175.9–28. Tr. Frans van Liere. VTT 3:215–30. ____________. De tribus diebus. Ed. Dominique Poirel. CCCM 177. Turn­ hout: Brepols, 2002. Tr. Hugh Feiss. VTT 1:49–102. ____________. De vanitate rerum mundanarum. Ed.  Cédric Giraud. CCCM  269. Turnhout: Brepols, 2015. Tr. (partial) A  Religious of CSMV. Selected Spiritual Writings. New York: Harper and Row, 1962. Pp. 157–82. ____________. De virtute orandi. Ed. Hugh Feiss. Oeuvre 1.126–71. Tr. Hugh Feiss. VTT 4:331–43. ____________. Dialogus de vanitate mundi. Ed. Cédric Giraud. CCCM 269. Turnhout: Brepols, 2015. ____________. Didascalicon: De studio legendi. Ed.  Charles Henry But­ timer. The Catholic University of America, Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Latin,  10. Washington,  DC: The  Catholic University Press, 1939. Tr.  Jerome Taylor.

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The  Didascalicon of Hugh of Saint Victor: A  Medieval Guide to the Arts. New York: Columbia University Press, 1961. Tr. Franklin T. Harkins. VTT 3:81–202. ____________. In Salomonis Ecclesiasten homiliae 19. PL 175.113B–256C. ____________. Libellus de formatione arche. Ed. P. Sicard. CCCM 176.21–62. Turnhout: Brepols, 2001. Tr. Conrad Rudolph. The Mystic Ark. New Cambridge University Press, 2013. Pp. 397–502. ____________. Miscellanea. PL 177.469B–900C. ____________. Super Ierarchiam Dionisii. Ed. Dominique Poirel. CCCM 178. Turnhout: Brepols, 2015. PL 175.923–1154. ____________. Septem donis. Ed.  Baron. SCC 155. Pp.  122–33. Tr.  Benson. VTT 4:369–79. Jonas of St Victor. Epistola. PL 196.1388BC. Liber ordinis Sancti Victoris Parisiensis. Ed.  Luc Jocqué and Ludo Milis. CCCM 61. Turnhout: Brepols, 1984. Maurice of Saint Victor. Galteri a Sancto Victore et quorumdam aliorum: Sermones inediti triginta sex. Ed.  Jean Châtillon. CCCM 30. Turnhout: Brepols, 1975. Pp. 197–231. Necrologium abbatiae Sancti Victoris Parisiensis. Ed.  Ursula VonesLiebenstein and Monika Seifert. Corpus Victorinum, Opera recollecta 1. Münster: Ascendorff, 2012. Richard of Saint Victor. De  XII patriarchis. Ed.  Jean Châtillon. Les  douze patriarches ou Benaimin minor. SC 419. Paris: Cerf, 1997. PL 196.63–190. The Twelve Patriarchs, The Mystical Ark, and Book Three on the Trinity. Tr.  Grover  A. Zinn. The Classics of Western Spirituality. New York: Paulist Press, 1979. Pp. 51–147. ____________. Ad me clamat ex Seir. Richard de Saint-Victor, Opuscules théologiques. Ed. Jean Ribaillier. TPMA 15. Paris: J. Vrin, 1967. Tr. Feiss and Coulter. VTT 6:227-258. ____________. De arca Moysi. L’oeuvre de Richard de Saint-Victor. 1:  De contemplatione (Beniamin maior). Ed.  Jean Grosfillier. Turnhout: Brepols, 2013.  The  Twelve  Patriarchs,  The Mystical Ark, and Book Three on the Trinity. Tr. Grover A. Zinn. The  Classics of Western Spirituality. New  York: Paulist Press, 1979. Pp. 149–370. ____________. De differentia sacrificii Abrahae a sacrificio Beatae Mariae Virginis. PL 196.1043–60. ____________. De Emmanuele. PL  196.601–66. Tr.  Frans van Liere. VTT 6:347–440.

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____________. De eruditione hominis interioris. PL 196.1229–1366. ____________. De exterminatione mali et promotione boni. PL  196.1073– 1116. Lo sterminio del male. Tr. Daniele Racca. Biblioteca dell’Anima 10. Turin: Il leone verde, 1999. ____________. De missione Spiritus sancti sermo. PL 196.1017–32. ____________. De quatuor gradibus violentae caritatis. Ed.  and tr.  G.  Dumeige. On the Four Degrees of Violent Love. Partially translated Claire Kirchberger. Selected Writings. Pp. 213–33. Tr. A. Kraebel. VTT 2:261–300. ____________. De statu interioris hominis post lapsum. Ed. Jean Ribaillier. AHDLMA 42 (1967): 61–128. Tr. C. Evans. VTT 4:294. ____________. De Trinitate. Ed.  Jean Ribaillier. TPMA  6. Paris: J.  Vrin, 1958. Ed.  G.  Salet. La Trinité. SC  67. Paris: Vrin, 1959. Tr. Christopher Evans. VTT 1:209–382. ____________. In Apocalypsim. PL 196.683–888. Tr. (partial) A. B. Kraebel. VTT 3:327–70. ____________. Liber Exceptionum. Ed.  Jean Châtillon. TPMA  5. Paris: J. Vrin, 1958. Tr. (partial) Hugh Feiss. VTT 3:297–319. ____________. Misit Herodes rex manus. PL 141.277–306. ____________. Mysticae adnotationes in Psalmos. PL  196.265–404. Tr. C. Evans. VTT 4:196–282. ____________. Sermones centum. PL 177.899–1210. ____________. Sermo in die pasche. PL 196.1059–74. ____________. Super exiit edictum or De tribus processionibus. Ed.  Jean Châtillon and W.-J.  Tulloch. Sermons et opuscules spirituels inédits: L’édit d’Alexandre ou Les trois processions. Paris: Desclée de Brouwer, 1951. Walter of St  Victor. Contra quatuor labyrinthos Franciae. Ed.  Palémon Glorieux. “Le  Contra quatuor labyrinthos Franciae de Gauthier de Saint-Victor.” AHDLMA  19 (1952). Paris: Vrin, 1953. Pp. 187–355. ____________. Sermones. Ed.  Jean Châtillon. Galteri a Sancto Victore et quorundam aliorum. Sermones inediti triginta sex. CCCM 30. Turnhout: Brepols, 1975. Pp. 3–186.

Other Medieval Authors Alan of Lille, Regulae caelestis Iuris. Ed.  N. Häring. “Magister Alanus de Insulis: Regulae caelestis Iuris.” AHDLMA 48 [1981]: 97– 226.

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INDICES

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

OLD TESTAMENT Genesis 1:3 150 (n96) 1:26 400 (n11), 454 (n96) 1:26–27 467 (n24) 1:27 334 (n49) 2:8–9 264 (n16) 2:15 264 (n1), 264 (n23),  294 (n8), 467 (n32) 2:19 264 (n17) 2:21–22 478 (n5) 3:16 217 (n13) 3:17 217 (n12) 3:19 333 (n2) 3:22–23 264 (n15) 6:11 453 (n75) 8:21 232 (n4) 9:6 454 (n96) 12:1 96 (n1), 96 (n9), 96 (n12) 18:2 130 (n28) 18:9–15 218 (n96) 18:27 218 (n31) 19:17 335 (n54) 22:6 164 (n51) 22:9 478 (n9) 27:28 194 (n18) 27:36 467 (n15) 28:4 130 (n34) 28:12 470 (n116) 28:20–22 164 (n64) 30:13 468 (n44) 30:14 151 (n64) 30:18 469 (n88) 32:2 436 (n21) 32:24–31 217 (n20)

35:16–19 35:18 41:15 49:19 49:22

470 (n15) 295 (n47), 469 (n106) 163 (n30), 468 (n61) 468 (n37) 469 (n102)

Exodus 1:11 163 (n29) 3:2–6 217 (n21) 3:7–8 163 (n20) 3:8 326 (71), 418 (n35),  453 (n58), 453 (n59) 3:17 326 (n71), 453 (n59) 5:7–8 163 (n22) 6:1 163 (n37) 7:13 163 (n36) 17:14–21 217 (n19) 17:17 325 (n57) 7:22 163 (n36) 8:18–19 190 (n19) 8:19 163 (n36) 8:22 163 (n36) 10:2 205 (n11) 10:21 467 (n13) 12:2 163 (n8) 12:3–8 479 (n10) 12:39 418 (n31) 13:5 326 (n71) 14:3–8 400 (n8) 15:1–19423 15:2 469 (n95) 15:23–25 478 (n11) 16:3 163 (n17) 16:35 418 (n19), 418 (n25)

506 17:3–6 17:6 19:9 19:16–19 20:5 20:15 22:29 25:3–39 25: 31–34 25:38 25:36–39 28:2–4 28:9–12 28:15–21 29:38–39 29:41 33:19

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

478 (n12) 246 (n18) 164 (n48) 212 (n14) 324 (n28) 469 (n53) 469 (n79) 401, 403 412 (n3) 412 (n23) 412 (n3) 467 (n3) 467 (n3) 467 (n4) 233 (n54) 232 (n4) 453 (n83)

Leviticus 2:1–2394 2:4 294 (n26) 2:5 294 (n25) 2:5–7 294 (n36) 2:6–7 294 (n27) 13:5–7 233 (n39) 16:20–21 478 (n14) 19:11 469 (n83) 19:18 468 (n50), 468 (n63) 26:10 412 (n26) Numbers 13:21 13:28 16:33 18:20 18:21 33:1–12 Deuteronomy 4:11 6:5  17:13 21:23 32:33 33:2

418 (n20) 418 (n35) 206 (n71) 469 (n77) 469 (n80) 418 (n28) 164 (n48) 219 (n54), 453 (n71), 468 (n50) 454 (n105) 478 (n18) 467 (n22) 345 (n38)

Joshua 13:14 13:32 15:19

469 (n77) 469 (n77) 453 (n62), 453 (n63)

Judges 1:15 14–16 14:8 16:19–21

453 (n62), 453 (n63) 467 (n19) 190 (n4) 467 (n20)

Ruth 1:7

130 (n34)

1 Kings (1 Sam) 1:8

86 (n6)

2 Kings (2 Sam) 17:29

190 (n2)

3 (1) Kings 6:31–34 164 (n60) 6:34 164 (n62) 12:4 295 (n53) 12:10 295 (n53) 12:14 295 (n53) 17:12 478 (n15) 19:3 270 (n5) 19:3–8265 19:4 270 (n1), 270 (n6),  270 (n9), 270 (n10) 19:5 270 (n11) 19:6 270 (n12), 270 (n13),  294 (n25) 19:7 270 (n14), 270 (n16) 19:8 270 (n17) 19:9 270 (n18) 4 (2) Kings 2:1–11 6:16

217 (n22) 436 (n32)

2 Chronicles 32:7

436 (n32)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

Tobit 4:16  8:1–2

130 (n29), 254 (n11), 454 (n106) 479 (n16)

Judith 5:11 163 (n22) 8:22 306 (n42) 8:23 306 (n42) 15:11–12421 16:1–2421 16:1–4 436 (n2) 16:2 436 (n12), 436 (n16) 16:3 436 (n17), 436 (n19) 16:3–6422 16:4 436 (n20), 436 (n37),  437 (n74) 16:5 437 (n42), 437 (n43),  437 (n44) 16:6 437 (n46) 16:7 437 (n48), 437 (n49),  437 (n50), 437 (n51),  437 (n75) 16:7–8 437 (n55) 16:7–9422 16:7–13422 16:9 422, 437 (n56), 437 (n58) 16:9–15 437 (n54) 16:10 422, 437 (n60), 437 (n61) 16:11 437 (n62), 437 (n63),  437 (n64) 16:12 437 (n66) 16:13 437 (n69) 16:14 437 (n71), 437 (n76) 16:14–15 437 (n73) 16:15 437 (n80) Esther 5:9–14 7:9–10 8:7 15:5 Job

1:4

437 (n65) 437 (n65) 437 (n65) 246 (n13) 151 (n47)



507

1:14395 2:11–13 151 (n46) 3:3 149 (n9) 3:12–16 295 (n54) 5:14 150 (n41), 151 (n54) 7:5 295 (n50) 14:13 163 (n14) 19:26 163 (n4) 20:17 190 (n2) 21:14 163 (n18) 22:26 206 (n26), 345 (n75),  419 (n45) 24:16 151 (n52) 24:19 455 (n130) 24:23 254 (n23) 28:7 333 (n14), 333 (n17) 30:2 468 (n79) 36:20 151 (n62) 38:7 346 (n77) 41:25 270 (n3) 42:6 218 (n31) Psalms 1:2 2:7 4:7 6:7 7:13 8:2 8:8–9 8:10 8:20 11:2 11:7 15:4 15:6 16:5 16:8 17:1 17:2 18:5 18:6 18:8 21:3 21:7

164 (n47), 295 (n57) 190 (n6) 467 (n23) 282 (n28) 131 (n54) 333 (n11), 333 (n12) 418 (n14) 333 (n11) 234 (n91) 453 (n76) 254 (n16) 282 (n19) 129 (n8), 469 (n78) 294 (n16) 218 (n49) 333 (n16) 418 (n5), 412 (n19) 412 (n10) 192 (n53), 412 (n19) 164 (n43) 151 (n50) 295 (n43)

508

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

24:6 163 (n12) 24:10 454 (n85) 24:14 419 (n40) 25:1 218 (n27) 26:12 436 (n4) 26:13 418 (n34) 27:3 454 (n103) 27:7 103 (n15) 29:12 192 (n49) 30:3 469 (n97) 30:20 419 (n38) 30:21 295 (n61) 31:1 172 (n7) 32:4 467 (n34) 31:9 282 (n29) 32:5 453 (n82) 32:6 205 (n25), 345 (n51) 32:20 105 (n15) 34:2 163 (n26) 34:6 205 (n10) 34:23 163 (n24) 35:7–8 453 (n81) 35:10 326 (n68), 345 (n55),  419 (n43), 419 (n46),  455 (n123) 36:31 306 (n37) 36:37 218 (n32), 218 (n33) 37:10 235 (n96) 37:18 283 (n36) 39:8 103 (n15) 39:13 418 (n30) 41:3 254 (n88), 468 (n73) 41:9 151 (n51) 42:2 418 (n5) 43:6 324 (n23) 44:2393 44:3 192 (n54) 44:3–4 192 (n51) 44:8 345 (n57) 44:5 90 (n6), 192 (n55) 44:17 205 (n6) 45:5 345 (n53) 46:6 333 (n8) 48:15 165 (n69) 51:3 151 (n56)

51:4 151 (n57) 51:7 418 (n34) 51:10 454 (n92), 468 (n54) 56:4 130 (n36) 56:5 130 (n40) 56:8 468 (n41) 59:14 418 (n6) 60:4 469 (n98) 61:11 345 (n75) 62:13 418 (n29) 64:11 163 (n10) 65;8 172 (n9) 67:5 333 (n25), 333 (n26),  334 (n29) 67:11 453 (n54) 67:16–17 192 (n68), 335 (n53) 67:19 468 (n53) 67:28 470 (n114) 67:29 345 (n73) 67:31 205 (n4) 68:10 191 (n39), 232 (n8) 68:22 478 (n20) 70:20 306 (n42) 71:2 217 (n6) 71:6 163 (n1), 163 (n3), 163 (n7),  163 (n8), 163 (n9), 163 (n11) 72:23–24 283 (n37) 72:28 163 (n131), 454 (n109) 73:1 233 (n53) 75:3 206 (n64) 76:3–4 234 (n92) 76:10 324 (n14) 77:33 165 (n76) 79:3 130 (n38), 130 (n39) 79:4 234 (n91) 79:11 217 (n16) 80:11 131 (n45) 83:3 218 (n41) 83:4 295 (n54), 467 (n33) 83:7 128 (n5) 83:8 165 (n95) 83:11 149 (n19), 149 (n21),  454 (n108) 84:9 164 (n65), 452 (n13) 84:11 90 (n6), 454 (n90)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

87:2 151 (n49) 88:15 130 (n37) 90:1 151 (n61) 90:4 218 (n49) 90:5 151 (n58) 90:5–6 270 (n8) 90:6 151 (n59), 151 (n60) 92:1 190 (n10), 192 (n56),  326 (n67) 93:10 165 (n80) 93:12 165 (n79) 97:2 190 (n12), 217 (n1), 217 (n11),  217 (n24), 218 (n25) 97:3 190 (n12) 97:4 190 (n12) 97:9 172 (n1) 99:3 253 (n53) 100:1 254 (n26) 101:14 246 (n9) 102:5 436 (n10) 103:15 294 (n36) 103:17, 18, 19 103 (n15) 103:19 205 (n17), 205 (n18) 103:21 131 (n43) 103:30473 104:29 325 (n52) 104:43 325 (n39) 106:10 163 (n2) 106:20 65 (n99), 206 (n50) 107:14 418 (n6) 111:4 205 (n15) 113:2 467 (n12) 115.19 234 (n86) 117.14 418 (n5), 469 (n95) 117:26 190 (n9) 118:2 164 (n46) 118:12 469 (n91) 118:32 165 (n93) 118:54 130 (n34) 118:67 452 (n28) 118:103 264 (n14) 119:5 233 (n87), 468 (n72) 120:1 437 (n38) 120:4 129 (n14) 120:5 129 (n15)

 509

121:4 124:2 126:1 132:2  133:1 134:2 136:9 138:22 139:8 141:6 143:1 144:7 145:8 148:14 149:2

470 (n118) 437 (n39) 129 (n13) 164 (n63), 345 (n59), 345 (n61). 345 (n63) 234 (n86) 234 (n86) 324 (n29) 191 (n37) 419 (n5) 418 (n34) 418 (n7) 264 (n13) 103 (n5), 324 (n6) 282 (n26) 470 (n109)

Proverbs 7:3 7:19–20 13:14 14:27 15:15 16:22 18:3 20:4 24:30–31 26:11 28:9

306 (n26) 334 (n32) 345 (n55), 419 (n46) 345 (n55) 264 (n3) 345 (n55) 163 (n34) 205 (n7) 264 (n1) 467 (n18) 364 (n3)

Ecclesiastes 1:5 333 (nl), 333 (n19), 333 (n24) 1:10 235 (n95) 2:1 206 (n38) 2:4 237 (n63) 2:25 206 (n38) 3:1 65 (n101) 4:9–12 246 (n12) 4:10 86 (n3) Song of Songs 1:3 1:4 1:12 2:3

333 (n6) 163 (6) 96 (n4), 478 (n42) 192 (n65)

510

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

2:5 2:6 3:4 4:4 4:15 5:2 5:6 5:8  5:10 5:15 6:8  8:3 8:5  8:6

234 (n93), 234 (n94) 345 (n40) 206 (n61) 469 (n99) 345 (n56) 294 (n11) 192 (n66) 190 (n4), 234 (n93), 234 (n94) 192 (n61) 192 (n60) 96 (n10), 233 (n27), 282 (n12) 345 (n40) 206 (n38), 345 (n75), 419 (n45) 467 (n26)

Wisdom 1:1 1:22 3:7 3:11 9:15 11:21 12:1 16:21 18:1415

207 (n97) 254 (n18) 326 (n66) 163 (n18) 163 (n21) 190 (n23), 412 (n29) 264 (n11), 453 (n52) 418 (n21) 205 (n13)

Sirach 1:27 1:33 2:1 2;16 2:25 3:20 7:36 10:14 10:15 15:9 15:17 18:30 21:16 24:5

344 (n21) 325 (n59) 345 (n75), 468 (n29) 294 (n30) 345 (n75) 452 (n39) 333 (n5) 218 (n46) 254 (n24) 436 (n13) 333 (n5) 324 (n25) 345 (n55), 419 (n46) 206 (n42)

24:27  29:21    35:8 40:1

86 (n7), 264 (n12), 345 (n54), 453 (n53) 285 (n1), 294 (n1), 294 (n10), 294 (n15), 294 (n23), 294 (n24), 295 (n41), 295 (n49) 232 (n4) 295 (n53)

Isaiah 2:12 3:7 3:9 5:14 6:3 6:5 6:13 7:14–15 7:15 7:22 8:18 9:2 9:6 10:23 11:2 11:2–3 12:2 13:21 18:4 21:8 22:22 24:15 26:9 26:10 28:19 32:17–18 33:14 33:17 34:13 35:10 40:1 40:3  40:9 42:3

192 (n69) 294 (n2) 151 (n55) 218 (n37) 344 (n12) 294 (n2) 468 (n55) 72 (n122) 190 (n2) 208 (n.38) 234 (n56) 149 (n12), 150 (n28) 75 (n133), 150 (n28) 345 (n37) 453 (n51) 344 (n6), 344 (n9) 469 (95) 246 (n11) 205 (n9) 129 (n16), 129 (n17) 305 (n5) 65 (n100) 149 (n10) 283 (n32) 283 (n34) 282 (n22) 163 (n39) 207 (n105), 419 (n44) 246 (n13) 455 (n129) 294 (n39) 165 (n91), 165 (n92), 232 (n15) 232 (n12) 164 (n63)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

45:11 46:8 53:7 53:9 54:2 61:1 61:1–3 62:6 62:11 64:4 66:8 66:10   66:10–11 66:11  66:24

419 (n37) 172 (n4) 478 (n22) 452 (n29) 468 (n56) 217 (n23) 437 (n57) 164 (n52) 219 (n53) 419 (n39) 470 (n109) 282 (n1), 282 (n13), 282 (n14), 282 (n17), 294 (n6), 294 (n38) 286 (n3) 206 (n38), 295 (n40), 345 (n75) 455 (n127)

Jeremiah 1:5 1:6 1:14 2:6 6:7 6:27 6:27–30 6:29–30 9:26 12:8 16:9 17:5 17:6 17:7 23:5 31:15 31:31 31:33

149 (n3) 305 (n4) 437 (n40) 418 (n33) 437 (n41) 254 (n20) 254 (n21) 254 (n22) 294 (n2) 246 (n7) 469 (n95) 418 (n4) 418 (n32) 418 (n4) 149 (n14) 149 (n4) 344 (n35) 165 (n82), 344 (n35)

Lamentations 2:9 3:4 4:2 5:1

219 (n56) 163 (n5) 470 (n109) 163 (n16)

Baruch 3:9 3:11 3:14 3:38



511

305 (n25) 165 (n70) 264 (n5) 206 (n55)

Ezekiel 1:12 1:25–26 2:9  2:9–10 7:23 9:3 9:6 13:5 14:14 22:18 23:15 23:27 29:6 33:7 34:16 46:14

206 (n70) 316 (n56) 205 (n34), 305 (n9), 305 (n20) 305 (n1) 453 (n75) 192 (n57) 232 (n9) 191 (n38) 412 (n17) 254 (n19) 470 (n112) 470 (n112) 233 (n41) 129 (n18) 219 (n52) 234 (n55)

Daniel 7:10 8:11–13 10:31 11:31 12:1 12:1–2 12:11 13 13:59

305 (n24), 436 (n33) 234 (n55) 436 (n25)] 234 (n55) 436 (n25) 305 (n8) 234 (n55) 306 (n29) 436 (n3)

Hosea 3:17 4:2 13:14 Joel

2:23 3:6 3:18

454 (n91) 218 (n38) 325 (n3) 470 (n109) 470 (n110) 149 (n13)

512

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

Amos 4:12

172 (n1)

Micah 4:1

335 (n52)

Zechariah 1:7–13 1:8 2:14 6:1–8 6:9–15 6:12 9:11 9:13

131 (n50) 131 (n52) 246 (n11) 131 (n50) 131 (n50) 333 (n46) 324 (n11) 470 (n109)

Malachi 3:1 3:2 3:2–3 3:3  3:41 4:2  6:5 6:6–7 6:7 6:8  7:10

246 (n10), 246 (n21) 254 (n3), 254 (n25) 254 (n1) 165 (n91), 333 (n45), 455 (n122) 246 (n1) 205 (n16), 333 (n45), 455 (n122) 103 (n1), 103 (n3) 103 (n1), 103 (n16) 103 (n17) 103 (n1), 103 (n18), 103 (n20), 103 (n22) 94 (n18)

NEW TESTAMENT Matthew 1:8 232 (n16) 1:20 207 (n83) 1:23 232 (n21) 2:1–12 217 (n3) 2:8 149 (n4) 2:18 206 (n72) 3:2 381 (n4) 3:3 165 (n91), 165 (n92),  232 (n15) 3:7 86 (n5) 3:9 469 (107) 3:12 129 (n7) 3:13–17 217 (n4) 3:17 233 (n23) 4:1–2 316 (n49) 4:1–11265 4:8 163 (n25) 4:23 206 (n37) 5:3 439, 452 (n20), 453 (n44) 5:3–9 452 (n20) 5:4 440, 453 (n60), 453 (n64) 5:6 440, 453 (n66), 453 (n67),  453 (n68), 453 (n72),  453 (n73), 453 (n78) 5:7 440, 454 (n93)

5:8 5:9

440, 454 (n93) 218 (n44), 441, 454 (n101),  454 (n114), 470 (n108) 5:10–11439 5:16 164 (n51) 6:1–18 294 (n10) 6:19 163 (n33) 6:21 130 (n33) 7:6 232 (n5) 7:11 130 (n29) 7:12 254 (n12) 7:13 306 (n34) 7:13–14 234 (n85), 306 (43),  333 (n15) 7:14 254 (n9) 8:12 306 (38), 455 (n128) 8;19 163 (n27) 8:20 206 (n58), 206 (n62),  206 (n63) 9:35 28 (n1) 10:16 234 (n60) 10:33 316 (n45) 11:10 295 (n52) 11:15 452 (n12) 11:25 315 (n3) 11:27 205 (n27)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

11:30 11:49 12:20 12:29 13:12 13:30 13:43 15:14 15:32 16:12 16:16 16:18 16:24 17:5 18:3 18:20 19:1 19:18 19:19 19:19 19:27 20:18–19 21:9 21:13 22:37 22:37 22:37–39 22:39 23:4 23:10 23:13 23:15 23:23 23:24 23:28 23:37 23:38 24:12 24:20 24:28 24:30 25:29 25:33 25:33–34 25:41

164 (n63) 205 (n21), 452 (n38) 164 (n63) 132 (n56) 452 (n16) 129 (n7) 326 (n66), 455 (n120) 233 (n40) 418 (n23) 233 (n42) 206 (n47) 233 (n42) 315 (n34), 315 (n38) 192 (n58) 234 (n58) 412 (n7) 469 (n84) 469 (n83) 454 (n104) 468 (n59) 469 (n90) 478 (n3) 190 (n9) 246 (n8) 219 (n54) 412 (n24), 453 (n71) 468 (n50) 454 (n104), 468 (n5) 191 (n44), 316 (n42) 324 (n2) 191 (n40), 191 (n43) 191 (n40), 470 (n111) 191 (n40), 316 (n41) 191 (n41) 246 (n6) 470 (n110) 246 (n6) 206 (n73), 453 (n76) 86 (n4) 333 (n7) 165 (n97) 452 (n16) 294 (n22) 192 (n73), 295 (n48) 306 (n39)

25:41–42 26:24–25 26:47–48 26:52 27:18 27:22–26 27:34 27:34–35 27:41 27:45 27:54 28:20



513

192 (n74) 478 (n27) 478 (n27) 436 (n5) 478 (n8) 478 (n28) 478 (n17) 192 (n73) 316 (n54) 131 (n55) 305 (n18) 335 (n61)

Mark 1:3 1:5 1:8 1:13 3:9 3:27 4:25 5:22–24 5:35–43 5:41 7:13 8:3 8:34 9:2 9:43 9:47 10:14 10:19 10:21 10:28 12:30 12:31 15:38

232 (n15) 27 (n2) 232 (n16) 316 (n49) 469 (n167) 132 (n56) 452 (n16) 375 (n2) 375 (n2) 376 (n6) 191 (n45) 418 (n23), 418 (n24) 315 (n34), 315 (n38) 192 (n63) 455 (n43) 455 (n47) 234 (n57) 469 (n83) 469 (n84) 469 (n90) 453 (n71) 454 (n104), 468 (n59) 316 (n54)

Luke 1:26–38 1:31 1:57 1:68 1:78 1:79

478 (n29) 364 (n31) 163 (n2) 364 (n3) 334 (n47) 163 (n2)

514

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

2:6 207 (n100) 2:7 207 (n89) 2:14 206 (n65), 305 (n17) 2:21 364 (n3) 2:25–35 478 (n25) 2:32 150 (n28), 233 (n23) 3:4 232 (n15) 3:7 86 (n5) 3:8 469 (n107) 3:17 129 (n7), 381 (n3) 4:1–2 316 (n49) 4:18 27 (n3) 5:21 163 (n19) 6:24 83, 86 (n1) 6:37–38 454 (n87) 6:38 217 (n5) 7:11–16 381 (n1), 381 (n2) 7:19–31 381 (n3) 7:49 163 (n19) 8:18 452 (n16) 8:34 315 (n38) 9:23 315 (n34), 315 (n38) 9:36 316 (n42) 9:52 452 (n8) 9:58 206 (n58), 206 (n62), (n63) 9:62 165 (n90), 218 (n55) 10:27 453 (n71), 454 (n104),  468 (n50), 468 (n59) 10:28 219 (n55) 10:35 469 (n82) 10:37 294 (n33) 10:41 164 (n56) 10:42 412 (n6) 11:5–8 129 (n21), 364 (n5) 11:11–12 364 (n6) 11:13 364 (n7), 452 (n26) 11:17 233 (n56) 11:33 412 (n1) 11:42 191 (n42) 11:46 191 (n46), 316 (n42) 12:20 165 (n68) 12:33 469 (n84) 12:37–39 129 (n25) 12:48 335 (n51)

12:49 13:24 13:28 15:7 15:8 15:13 15:30 16:1 16:2 16:3–4 16:4 16:5–8 16:8 16:9 16:22–23 17:10 18:8 18:16 18:20 18:21 18:28 18:31 19:9 19:10 19:12 19:26 19:41–44 21:15 22:43 23:33–43 23:34 23:45 23:46 24:19 24:41–43 24:42 24:49 John 1:1 1:5 1:12

129 (n20), 205 (n21) 254 (n10) 306 (n38) 246 (n22) 246 (n17) 334 (n31), 344 (n33) 400 (n12) 368 (n1) 368 (n2) 268 (n3) 368 (n4) 368 (n5) 368 (n6) 368 (n7), 412 (n25) 318 (n6) 469 (n81) 206 (n67) 234 (n57) 469 (n83) 163 (n24) 459 (n90) 474 (n2) 469 (n107) 246 (n17) 334 (n31), 334 (n33) 246 (n5) 373 (n2) 324 (n7) 218 (n29) 283 (n39) 316 (n50) 316 (n54), 316 (n55) 316 (n52) 305 (n15) 355 (n65) 190 (n4) 345 (n52) 190 (n4), 205 (n24) 305 (n24) 234 (n79)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

1:14       1:16  1:17 1:18 1:20 1:23 1:26 1:27 1:29 1:31 1:32 1:33  2:1–11 2:16 2:17 3:5 3:16 3:18 3:19 3:20 3:34  4:5–6 4:6–15 6:15 6:69–70 7:4 7:8 8:6 8:12 8:22 8:36 8:37 8:46 8:48 9:1 9:6

190 (n3), 194 (n4), 195 (n6), 205 (n1), 205 (n23), 205 (n26), 206 (n53), 206 (n54). 207 (n78), 207 (n79), 207 (80), 207 (n93), 207 (n94) 246 (n4), 306 (n28), 345 (n66) 207 (n95) 207 (n80) 334 (n48) 232 (n15) 234 (n71) 334 (n48) 233 (n50) 232 (n16), 232 (n18) 232 (n1) 232 (n1), 234 (n70), 234 (n71) 325 (n58) 165 (n86) 232 (n8) 234 (n71) 207 (n80) 207 (n80) 455 (n126) 234 (n69) 325 (n46), 345 (n60), 412 (n31) 478 (n7) 476 (n13) 315 (n40) 106 (n47) 150 (n43) 345 (n68) 192 (n75) 452 (n34) 234 (n83) 163 (n35) 469 (n107) 452 (n30) 103 (n7) 206 (n45) 206 (n41)



515

9:39 454 (n89) 9:52 452 (n8) 10:1 452 (n8) 10:5 233 (n43) 10:9 96 (n19), 326 (n72) 10:12 469 (n89) 10:16 233 (n43) 10:24 150 (n42) 10:30 452 (n33) 10:38 326 (n69) 11:1–14 376 (n5) 11:18 334 (n42), 335 (n60) 11:20 164 (n58) 11:33 377 (n8) 11:35 377 (n8) 11:38 377 (n8) 11:39 306 (n39) 11:43 377 (n8) 11:45 377 (n9) 11:55 316 (n44) 11:49–52 477 (n26) 12:9 377 (n9) 12:12ff. 377 (n9) 12:26 418 (n3) 12:36 455 (n124) 12:46 205 (n20) 13:23–25 477 (n411) 14:2 452 (n1), 469 (n94) 14:3 333 (n10) 14:6 165 (n78), 346 (n79) 14:9–11 326 (n69) 14:17 453 (n50) 14:18 335 (n62) 14:21 419 (n41) 14:26 324 (n3) 14:27 268 (n28) 15:1 264 (n9), 452 (n35) 15:5 412 (n8), 452 (n36) 16:7 333 (n10), 335 (64) 16:13 206 (n36), 345 (n74) 16:16–22353 16:20 359 (n1), 359 (n2),  359 (n3) 16:20–21353 16:21–22 359 (n4)

516

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

16:22 16:22 16:23 16:24 16:25 16:27–28 16:33  17:1 17:5 17:24 18:38 19:30    19:34 20:16 20:30 21:15–17 Acts 1:3



1:4 1:9 1:12 2:3 2:14–16 2:17 2:22 3:12–26 4:12 5:41 7:1–53 7:34 8:33 8:56 11:12 12:7 13:12 13:16–41 14:21 17:11 17:22–31

359 (n3) 326 (n74) 364 (n1), 364 (n2) 326 (n73), 453 (n79) 419 (n42) 232 (n19) 254 (n8), 418 (n2), 436 (n18) 333 (n13) 333 (n13) 418 (n3) 165 (n77) 316 (n53), 478 (n1), 478 (n4), 478 (n23), 478 (n24), 478 (n31), 478 (n34), 478 (n35) 478 (n6) 132 (n57) 306 (n41) 233 (n51) 334 (n41), 335 (n57), 335 (n60) 335 (n65) 132 (n58) 334 (n40) 234 (n68), 345 (n49) 27 (n5) 191 (n39) 305 (n12) 27 (n5) 315 (n9) 294 (n37), 315 (n14) 27 (n5) 163 (n20) 191 (n33) 149 (n16) 207 (n97) 163 (n40) 133 (n1) 27 (n5) 306 (n42) 452 (n15) 27 (n5)

20:18–39 20:31 22:25 28:3–4

27 (n5) 104 (n53) 191 (n27) 218 (n42)

Romans 1:9 205 (n28) 1:20 190 (n21), 205 (n28),  234 (n21) 1:21 165 (n75), 190 (n22),  190 (n23) 1:24 344 (n24) 1:26 344 (n24) 1:28 325 (n53), 344 (n24) 2:1 234 (n84) 2:29 294 (n2) 4:3 453 (n69) 4:15 344 (n25) 4:25 317 (n2), 324 (n1), 324 (n8),  325 (n40), 325 (n60) 5:1 454 (n102) 5:2 70 (n108), 345 (n72) 5:3 315 (n13) 5:3–4 254 (n7) 5:35 345 (n39) 6:12 191 (n47), 324 (n31) 6:16 217 (n34) 7:5–6 344 (n20) 8:1 324 (n24) 8:3 191 (n47) 8:3–4 317 (n3), 324 (n15),  324 (32), 324 (n34) 8:4 96 (n14) 8:5 96 (n14) 8:11 478 (n33) 8:13 324 (n27) 8:14 344 (n30), 470 (n108) 8:14–17 233 (n26) 8:15 344 (n1), 344 (n18),  344 (n29), 344 (n30),  344 (n32), 437 (n77) 8:16 470 (n108) 8:17 218 (n45), 478 (n39) 8:18 282 (n16) 8:19 470 (n108)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

8:21 294 (n7) 8:23 345 (n62) 8:24 468 (n45) 8:28 103 (n2), 151 (n53)  436 (n30) 8:29 207 (n81), 207 (n82) 8:30 454 (n85) 8:35 219 (n58), 315 (n32) 8:38–39 219 (n58) 9–11 412 (n15) 9:5 235 (n100) 9:15 453 (n83) 9:18 344 (n23) 9:20–21 218 (n48) 9:23 469 (n85) 9:28 205 (n29), 345 (n37) 10:6–7 219 (n57) 10:9 325 (n41), 325 (n60) 10:10 233 (n35) 11:20 172 (n6) 11:33 315 (n22) 11:36 344 (n14) 12:3 412 (n13) 12:5 294 (n34) 12:6–7 28 (n9) 12:11 163 (n41), 233 (n67) 12:12 129 (n22) 12:17 453 (n48) 12:19 468 (n64) 12:21 453 (n49) 13:12 149 (n1), 149 (n5),  149 (n19), 150 (n26) 13:13 436 (n15) 13:14 324 (n26) 16:16–22353 1 Corinthians 1:17 1:18 1:20 1:21 1:24  1:26–28 1:30

27 (n6) 75 (n152) 315 (n2) 75 (n152) 207 (n98), 234 (n62), 452 (n9), 454 (n99) 473 (n52) 207 (n98), 454 (n100)

2:8 2:9



 2:11 2:13 2:14 3:6 3:6–7 3:8 3:9 3:11–13 3:12 3:12–13 3:13 3:14–15 3:16–17 3:17 3:18 4:1 4:4 4:4 4:7 4:11–13 4:19 5:5 5:6 5:11 6:9–10 6:15 6:17 6:19 7:32–34 7:34 9:16 9:21 9:27 10:13 11:20–22 11:23 12:8 12:11 12:21 12:27 13:3



517

305 (n16), 315 (n42), 334 (n30) 244 (n17), 359 (n6), 419 (n39) 325 (n55), 452 (n24) 165 (n82), 207 (n102) 324 (n54) 232 (n17) 452 (n3) 315 (n15) 452 (n5) 254 (n27) 455 (n125) 254 (n4) 315 (n19) 254 (n28) 253 (n25) 246 (n2) 206 (n77) 232 (n14) 205 (n14) 151 (n48) 452 (n2), 452 (n37) 437 (n53) 192 (n70) 283 (n33), 283 (n35) 207 (n60), 218 (n48) 206 (n75) 206 (n75) 233 (n24), 344 (n31) 454 (n110) 233 (n25), 344 (n31) 436 (n9) 437 (n47) 27 (n6) 254 (n14) 418 (n15) 165 (n89), 437 (n45) 282 (n18) 27 (n8) 345 (n50) 233 (n47), 345 (n69) 452 (n43) 233 (n24) 315 (n28)

518

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

13:4 13:7 13:8 13:10 13:12 14:20 15:1 15:3 15:24 15:28 15:41–42 15:48 15:49 15:52 15:53 15:54

232 (n11) 232 (n11) 412 (n28) 31 (n48), 306 (n44) 282 (n9), 306 (n45) 234 (n59) 27 (n7) 27 (n8) 326 (n70) 108 (n2) 454 (n116) 333 (n3), 333 (n4) 326 (n42) 400 (n1) 326 (n64), 478 (n36) 326 (n64)

2 Corinthians 1:7 1:12 2:14 2:15 2:15–16 2:16 3:2 3:3 3:6 3:8 3:18 4:6 4:16 4:16–18 4:17 5:1 5:6 5:16 6:1 6:2 6:15 6:16 7:2 7:10 9:6 11:1 11:3

478 (n40) 264 (n4) 172 (n8) 172 (n8) 344 (n28) 232 (n2), 232 (n3) 344 (n34) 344 (n34) 344 (n27) 254 (n13) 206 (n77) 324 (n5) 192 (n77), 436 (n1) 282 (n15) 294 (n24) 295 (n60) 42 (n19) 96 (n2), 96 (n5) 315 (n12), 334 (n50) 149 (n2), 149 (n15) 165 (n85) 232 (n25) 453 (n61) 468 (n68), 468 (n69) 315 (n18) 324 (n4) 264 (n24)

11:29 12:14–22

294 (n31), 468 (n71) 294 (n32)

Galatians 1:4 165 (n88) 3:7 469 (n107) 3:11 234 (n65) 3:13 478 (n19) 3:26 233 (n26), 470 (n108) 4:6 234 (n78) 4:19 207 (n101), 436 (n8) 4:26 282 (n11) 5:6 206 (n68) 5:9 218 (n48) 5:17 454 (n112) 5:24 400 (n4) 5:25–28 282 (n3) 5:32 282 (n4) 6:2 218 (n50) 6:8 315 (n16) 6:14 315 (n1), 315 (n3), 315 (n8),  315 (n29), 418 (n14) Ephesians 1:5 1:19 1:23 2:2 2:4 2:11 2:21 3:16 3:17  3:17–18 3:18 3:19 4:1 4:3  4:3–5 4:4 4:5–6 4:7 

233 (n26) 469 (n86) 233 (n28) 191 (n29), 440 (n113) 315 (n5) 467 (n6) 233 (n25) 469 (n85) 206 (n66), 234 (n64), 315 (n22) 315 (n20) 219 (n59) 234 (n77) 28 (n1) 233 (n30), 233 (n33), 454 (n111) 233 (n34) 233 (n32) 233 (n46) 412 (n14), 412 (n20), 412 (n30)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

4:13 4:23 5:2 5:6 5:11 5:14 5:19 5:23 5:25–27 5:27  5:29 5:30 6:12   6:16

192 (n72) 469 (n103) 232 (n4) 470 (n113) 455 (n126) 131 (n44), 164 (n42) 282 (n25) 234 (n80) 234 (n72) 150 (n34), 246 (n23), 254 (n2) 163 (n23) 233 (n24), 234 (n80) 129 (n10), 191 (n27), 191 (n28), 400 (n2), 400 (n17) 400 (n5)

Philippians 1:23 2:5 2:6–7 2:7 2:8  2:9 2:10–11 2:15 3:8 3:13 3:20 4:3 4:7 4:19

234 (n89) 233 (n26) 324 (n16) 206 (n55), 217 (n7) 315 (n6), 333 (n23), 452 (n40) 334 (n28) 316 (n57) 470 (n108) 315 (n31), 468 (n62) 165 (n94) 165 (n74), 305 (n23) 306 (n41) 454 (n115) 469 (n85)

Colossians 1:13 1:15 1:18 1:24 2:3   2:8

234 (n76), 324 (n9) 207 (n81), 207 (n88) 207 (n81), 207 (n91) 233 (n31) 205 (n32), 205 (n33), 325 (n43), 333 (n35), 452 (n32) 165 (n81)

2:9

 2:14 2:14–15 2:15 2:19 3:4 3:5 3:13 4:18

1 Thessalonians 2:19 1 Timothy 4:3 4:13 4:16 2 Timothy 2:5 2:19 3:12 3:16–17 4:2 4:7



519

325 (n44), 333 (n35), 412 (n21), 452 (n31) 324 (n35) 324 (n12) 324 (n38) 403 (n21) 478 (n37) 324 (n30), 400 (n3) 468 (n65) 467 (n6) 418 (n9) 234 (n83) 452 (n10) 468 (n57), 468 (n58) 418 (n8) 233 (n44) 412 (n4) 282 (n30) 129 (n24) 234 (n16)

Titus 1:15 2:12 3:5–6

264 (n18) 467 (n16), 467 (n17) 234 (n74)

Hebrews 1:9 1:14 2:13 2:14 2:16 4:12 4:16 5:7 5:9 5:14 6:12 7:19

345 (n58) 436 (n22), 436 (n24) 234 (n36) 325 (n10) 215 (n28) 294 (n5) 207 (n96) 452 (n6) 478 (n32) 205 (n3) 467 (n2) 217 (n15)

520

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

8:7 8:8–10 10:4 10:16 10:22 10:24–25 10:29 10:30 11:6 11:9 12:1–2 12:2 12:11 12:14 12:18 12:18–19 12:22–24 13:7 13:14 James 1:9 1:17 1:22 2:17 2:23 4:4 4:7 5:8

344 (n22) 344 (n35) 344 (n22) 165 (n83), 344 (n35) 207 (n96) 282 (n20) 233 (n83) 468 (n64) 305 (n26) 453 (n57) 315 (n39) 316 (n43), 316 (n47) 295 (n46) 454 (n94) 164 (n48) 437 (n79) 437 (n79) 467 (n7) 129 (n9), 418 (n27) 316 (n46) 282 (n6) 316 (n41) 315 (n27) 453 (n69), 453 (n70) 359 (n8) 437 (n72) 150 (n27)

1 Peter 2:2 192 (n67) 2:4–7 468 (n48) 2:11 436 (n14) 2:11–19353 2:19–23 283 (n38) 2:21 315 (n11) 2:22 452 (n29) 3:22 234 (n81) 4:1 468 (n40) 5:1 205 (n2) 5:4 418 (n9) 5:8 130 (n42)

2 Peter 1:5 2:13 2:22 3:13

103 (n10) 206 (n38) 467 (n18) 453 (n74)

1 John 1:5 2:6 2:15 2:17 2:27  4:9 4:18 4:20 5:4

206 (n76) 418 (n12) 325 (n56) 96 (n7) 205 (n35), 233 (n45), 452 (n14) 207 (n80) 164 (n59) 468 (n50) 206 (n69)

Jude 19 Revelation 1:11 2:17  3:7 3:20 4:8 5:1  5:2 5:6 5:9 6:2  7:5   7:5–8 7:6  7:7  7:8 7:17

325 (n54) 306 (n41) 418 (n1), 418 (n18), 418 (n36) 305 (n5), 452 (n4) 206 (n56), 206 (n60) 344 (n12) 205 (n34), 305 (n4), 305 (n13) 305 (n6) 344 (n10) 305 (n6), 305 (n13) 131 (n51), 131 (n52), 192 (n59), 400 (n7) 467 (n1), 467 (n8), 467 (n27), 467 (n29), 467 (n36), 468 (n42) 467 (n1) 468 (n43), 468 (n47), 468 (n51), 468 (n60) 468 (n66), 469 (n75), 469 (n87) 469 (n100), 469 (n105) 453 (n65)

INDEX OF SCRIPTURE REFERENCES

8:1 11:6 12:4 12:7 12:7–8 12:8 12:9 14:2 14:14

129 (n12) 315 (n26) 467 (n35) 436 (n26), 436 (n27) 436 (n23) 436 (n28), 436 (n29) 436 (n31) 316 (n48) 192 (n58)

16:2 16:16 19:11  21:4 21:5 21:9–11 21:27 22:20



521

232 (n10) 192 (n62) 131 (n51), 131 (n52), 192 (n59) 453 (n65) 412 (n27) 282 (n2) 306 (n41) 234 (n90)

INDEX OF ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL AUTHORS

VICTORINE AUTHORS Absalom of Springiersbach Sermones 4 205 (28), 190 (n4) 7 128 (n6), 400 (n9) 16 400 (n9) 18 305 (n2), 306 (n33) 25 295 (n25), 325 (n38) 30 69 (n114) 40 128 (n6), 400 (n9) 46395 Achard of St Victor De discretione animae, spiritus et mentis 7 344 (n8) 21–35 77 (n137) De unitate Dei et pluralitate creaturarum 2.20 344 (n15) Sermones 170–78 1.1 333 (n21) 1.2 232 (n21) 1.3 205 (n12) 1.5 77 (n136), 205 (n31),  205 (n39), 325 (n45) 1.6 206 (n39), 315 (n7),  315 (n10) 2.1 205 (n8), 455 (n121) 2.2 455 (n127), 468 (n38) 3.1 77 (n136), 206 (n59),  315 (n7)

3.2 3.3

205 (n12), 388 (n15) 77 (n130), 78 (n140),  324 (n14) 3.4 72 (n122), 77 (n137),  206 (n39) 3.5 324 (n24) 4.1 344 (n8) 4.5 77 (n135), 325 (n45) 4.6 233 (n37), 233 (n40) 5385–86 5.1 77 (n135) 5.2 193 (n68) 5.4 452 (n7) 6.3 235 (n98) 7.2 325 (n59) 7.4 326 (n65), 326 (n66) 9.1 386 (n5), 386 (n7),  390 (n21), 418 (n13) 9.3 389 (n16) 9.4 128 (n6), 345 (n48),  387 (n5) 9.4–5 75 (n130) 9.5 387 (n13), 392 (n23) 9.6 389 (n18) 11.3 77 (n139), 315 (n7) 12386 13385 13.5 324 (n14) 13.21 344 (n16) 13.28 315 (n25) 13.32 75 (n13), 128 (n6),  344 (n8)

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

13.34 14 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.17 14.20–21 14.22 15.1 15.11 15.12 15.26 15.27

440 (n8) 388 (n14) 234 (n73), 335 (n56) 77 (n135) 324 (n33), 467 (n11) 467 (n9), 467 (n10) 344 (n20) 344 (n13) 207 (n99), 207 (n105) 324 (n14) 454 (n94) 315 (n35), 315 (n36) 77 (n135) 130 (n27)

Adam of St Victor Ex radice unitatis 403 Simplex in essentia  344 (n7) Anonymous of St Victor Sermones 1.1 418 (n13) 2.5 418 (n11) 4.9 468 (n67) 5.4 440 (n8) 6.1 440 (n8) 6.3 315 (n21) 6.10 440 (n8) 7 392 (n24), 392–93 7.3–5 128 (n6), 400 (n9) 7.12 232 (n7) Garnerus of St Victor Gregorianum 1.13 2.3 2.4 2.7 2.13 5.30 6.6 8.1 8.3

355 (n58) 233 (n48) 233 (n28) 235 (n97) 333 (n18) 345 (n41) 437 (n3) 412 (n5) 412 (n35)



523

9.4259 9.9259 9.13259 9.14259 9.15259 14.2 259, 412 (n32) 14.8259 14.11 412 (n9) 15.4 335 (n58 15.5 412 (n11) 15.6 344 (n10), 412 (n23),  439 (n1) Gilduin of St Victor Liber ordinis 33

272 (n4)

Godfrey of St Victor Sermones First Sunday Advent  90 (n8), 334 (n34), 334 (n56) On the Nativity  335 (n56) On St Augustine 394 Microcosmus 2 149 (n7) 43–45 128 (n6), 400 (n9) Guarinus of St Victor Epistolae 3 11 Henry of St Victor Sermones 1.3 Hugh of St. Victor De archa Noe 1.4 1.5 4.9 De arrha animae 7

104 (n5) 194 (n5)

234 (n61)

335 (n56) 405 (n10) 129 (n26) 406 (n19)

524

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

65 455 (n119) 67 455 (n119) De cibo Emmanuelis (=Miscellanea 1.2)  72 (n122), 190 (n4), 206 (39) De quinque septenis 1 469 (n74) De sacramentis christianae fidei 1 Prol 5 334 (n39) 1.6.2 454 (n96) 1.6.13–15 150–151 (n45) 1.7.28 317 (n4) 1.8.1 87 (n3), 90 (n8),  129 (n19), 131 (n45),  405 (n16) 1.8.2 131 (n49) 1.8.3 129 (n26) 1.8.4 131 (n45) 1.8.6 88 (n5) 1.8.11 129 (n26) 1.10.2 150 (n45), 206 (n46) 1.10.4 305 (n14) 1.10.6 305 (n140 1.11 405 (n16) 1.11.13 400 (n10) 1.12.4 454 (n106), 454 (n107) 2.1 87 (n3) 2.1.1 90 (n100) 2.1.2 75 (n129) 2.1.6 77 (n134), 325 (n45) De sacramentis dialogus  129 (n26), 131 (n49), 405 (n161) De scripturis et scriptoribus 6 402 (n5) 14 334 (n39) 17 129 (n26), 405 (n16) De tribus diebus 2.1 232 (n20) De vanitate 2 405 (n16) Didascalicon 1.10 190 (n18) 4.2 402 (n5) 5.3 344 (n39) 6.9–11 305 (n21) 6.14 129 (n19), 232 (n22)

Diligens scrutator 2.3 412 (n1) 2.21 412 (n33) In Ecclesiasten homiliae 1 130 (n32) In Threnos Jeremiae 2.1 151 (n45) Libellus 2 31 (n17) 2–3 412 (n15) 3 129 (n26), 405 (n10) 4 205 (n6), 406 (n19) 5 249 (n3) Miscellanea 1.52 353 (n3) 1.66 405 (n16) 1.82 191 (n36) 1.130 452 (n25) 2.63 90 (n8), 131 (n45) Septem donis  469 (n74) Super Hierarchiam Dionisii 2/1 344 (n2), 344 (n3),  344 (n4), 344 (n5),  345 (n42) 3/2 151 (n45), 206 (n46),  345 (n43), 345 (n44),  345 (n46), 345 (n47) Jonas of St Victor Epistola  128 (n6), 400 (n9) Maurice of St Victor Sermones 2414 3.3 128 (n6), 400 (n9) 3.5 418 (n26) 6394 Pseudo-Adam of St Victor Salve die dierum gloria 13–14 251 (n45)

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

Pseudo-Hugo of St Victor In Joelem  89 (n7), 81 (n13), 129 (n79),  418 (n13), 440 (n8) Miscellanea 3.29 90 (n8), 131 (n45) 3.64 72 (n122), 206 (n39) 4.121 334 (n43), 334 (n46) 5.72 400 (n9) Pseudo-Richard of St Victor In Abdiam  418 (n17) In Nahum  118 (n6), 400 (n9), 418 (n13) Richard of St Victor XII Patriarchae (Benjamin minor) 1 440 (n8), 479 (n114) 10 469 (n76) 11 467 (n9) 13 130 (n32) 25 468 (n44) 29 232 (n13) 36 469 (n88) 37 172 (n5) 40 469 (n94) 68 409 (101) Ad me clamat ex Seir 8 90 (n9), 91 (n17) 9 90 (n11) 10 91 (n12) 11 89 (n7), 91 (n13), 92 (n15) Adnotationes in Psalms 28 400 (n9), 418 (n11),  418 (n13) 84 128 (n6), 400 (n9) 90 232 (n13) 104 400 (n9) 121 129 (n19) Arca Moysis (Benjamin major) 3.24 440 (n8) 4.13 130 (n24) 5.6–8 232 (n13) 5.8 400 (n9)



525

De differentia sacrificii  232 (n13) De Emmanuele  72 (n122) 1.14–16 206 (n39) 2.21–24 206 (n39 2.26 129 (n19) De eruditione 1.4 440 (n8) 2.9 402 (n8) 2.18 172 (n5) De exterminatione 1.1 128 (n6), 400 (n1) 3.15 172 (n5) De gemino paschate 2 90 (n8) De statu interioris hominis Prol 129 (n19) 1.11–12 235 (n94) 35 232 (n13) In Apocalypsin 1.4 440 (n8) 2.9 468 (n52), 468 (n63),  468 (n67), 469 (n76),  469 (n88), 469 (n94),  469 (n101), 469 (n106) 4.2 91 (n15) 6.4 343 (n13) Liber exceptionum 1.1 129 (n19), 454 (n46) 1.1.1 232 (n13) 1.1.3 232 (n15) 1.2.9 149 (n24), 150 (n25) 1.3.4 233 (n22) 1.4.1 129 (n26), 405 (n16),  405 (n17) 2.1.5 234 (n37), 234 (n38) 2.1.8 335 (n56) 2.2.12 151 (n65) 2.3.5 454 (n106) 2.7.33 128 (n6), 400 (n9) 2.9.3 423 (n5) 2.10.10 150 (n35), 402 (n6) 2.10.22 418 (n11) 2.11.4 440 (n81), 452 (n25)

526

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

2.11.11 418 (n110) 2.12.5 75 (n131), 151 (n45),  454 (n96) 2.12.9377–378 2.14.13 206 (n44) Misit Herodes 13 130 (n35) Quatuor gradibus violentae caritatis 1 234 (n94) 11 234 (n94) 30–31 96 (n15) 32 232 (n13) 40–41 249 (n3) 41 234 (n14) Sermones centum Intro 65–66 (n102) 25393 35 206 (n46) 41 440 (n8) 43 418 (n11) 48 232 (n13), 440 (n8) 49 440 (n8) 60 402 (n7) 70 151 (n45), 232 (n13),  454 (n96) 74 418 (n13) 81.1 402 (n9) 8.13 400 (n97) 84 131 (n45), 393 85.1 425 (n11) 85.9 425 (n11) 86.4 425 (n11) 87.2 425 (n11) 87.4 425 (n11) 87.9 425 (n11) 99393–394 Tractatus super Psalmos 128.1 192 (n6) Walter of St Victor Contra quatuor labyrinthos 1.4 333 (n21) Sermones 1.3 324 (n18), 324 (n21) 1.5 315 (n7), 315 (n10)

1.7 2.5 3 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 4.6 5.2 5.5 5.7 6 6.2 7.2 7.4



 8.3 8.8 9.1 10.4 10.8 11.1 11.3 11.12 12.10 14.5 14.7 16.3  16.5 16.6 18 18.2 19.9 21.4 21.5 21.6 21.9 22.6

324 (n17) 452 (n31) 233 (n29) 345 (n43), 440 (n8) 205 (n8), 232 (n13), 345 (n39) 454 (n96) 315 (n33), 440 (n8) 130 (n35) 232 (n13) 344 (n11) 395 (n75) 150 (n36), 439 (n1) 454 (n94) 345 (n41) 318 (n7), 325 (n48), 325 (n99) 324 (n19) 232 (n13) 232 (n7) 234 (n73) 335 (n51), 453 (n41) 131 (n45) 334 (n51) 130 (n35) 345 (n65) 234 (n73), 454 (n94) 232 (n13) 205 (n31), 318 (n7), 325 (n49) 333 (n9) 315 (n33) 164 (n50) 468 (n72) 234 (n8) 205 (n12) 233 (n37) 205 (n41), 325 (n45) 232 (n13) 318 (n7)

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S



527

CLASSICAL AUTHORS Cicero De divinatione 1.34–3 Somnium Scipionis 

131 (n45)

Homer Iliad 

165 (n67)

Horace Ars poetica 58–59

86 (n2)

52 (n67)

Martianus Capella De nuptiis Philologiae 7

Ovid Epistulae ex Ponto 4.16 Metamorphoses 4.800 5.533–71 14.101–53

191 (n31) 165 (n75) 165 (n73)

Virgil Aeneid 6.126 6.183–211 6.405–10

218 (n39) 165 (n71) 164 (n71)

295 (n51)

149 (n18)

EARLY AND MEDIEVAL CHRISTIAN AUTHORS Anonymous Aberdeen Bestiary f. 37r 255 (n97) f. 44v–45v 333 (n1) Allegoriae in epistolas Pauli ad Romanos 5.13 318 (n5) 8.15 344 (n2) 9.28 205 (n30) Ancrene Riwle 9 153 (n15) Apologia de Verbo incarnato 9 325 (n50) 44 232 (n19) Franciscan Rule for Penitents 3.9 190 (n1) Glossa ordinaria In Judith 16 424 (n6) In Marc. 5 376 (n4) In Matth. 10.16 234 (n62)

Necrologium Sancti Victoris  327, 413 (n1) Quaestiones in epistolas Pauli Ad Rom. q. 195 344 (n19) Ad Rom. q. 195 344 (n20) Ad Rom. q. 278 344 (n15) Ad 1 Cor. q. 136 454–55 (n117),  455 (n118) Ad Col. q. 9 325 (n45) Ad Col. q. 11 324 (n13) Summa sententiarum 1.15 325 (n50) 1.16 325 (n47) 3.11 318 (n4) Alan of Lille Ars praedicandi 54–56 Regulae 105 324 (n22)

528

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

Alcuin of York In Apocalypsin 4.7.5 468 (n52), 468 (n67) Amalarius of Metz De ecclesiastico officio 1.14307 Ambrose of Milan De officiis 1.30.147 Anselm of Bec Cur Deus homo 1.16–18 De Verbo incarnato 10 Monologion 14 17 20–23

468 (n46)

129 (n11) 75 (n128) 232 (n20) 231 (n20) 232 (n20)

Augustine of Hippo Confessiones 1.1.1 386 (n6) 1.18 307 (n10) 4.12.19 128 (n5) 7.10.16387 8.12.29 436 (n15) 9.2.2 128 (n5) 10.35.54 164 (n66) 13 150 (n40) 13.2.2 390 (n20) 13.37.53 389 (n19) De catechizandis rudibus 20.36–37 128 (n3) De civitate Dei 14.2.1 206 (n52) 15.26 406 (n19) 19.26 381 (n4) 21.1 192 (n76) 22.20 346 (n76) De diversis quaestionibus 83 71.5 130 (n32) 80.2 206 (n52)

De doctrina christiana Books 1–4 33–36 1.3.3–4.4 131 (n47) 1.10.10 131 (n45) 1.10.11 131 (n45) 1.36.40 36 (n29) 1.5.5 334 (n44), 389 (n18) 4.7.21 34 (n24) De moribus ecclesiae 1.17.31 130 (n32) De predestinatione sanctorum 5.31 207 (n87) De Trinitate 1.6.12 344 (n14) 1.13.38 205 (n31) 2.5.26 345 (n41) 2.11.20 130 (n28) 4.3.5 192 (n77) 4.21.31 325 (n50) 6.15 130 (n30) De sermone in Monte 1.1.1 452 (n25) 1.4.11 452 (n25) 2.6.20 191 (n35) De vera religione 19:52 164–65 (n66) Enarrationes in Psalmos 32.1.8 333 (n8) 35.1 454 (n106) 37.5 234 (n93) 56.10 130 (n41) 66.15 131 (n47) 67.39 205 (n4) 77.2 455 (n119) 83.10.11 128 (n5) 95.15 31 (n14), 249 (n3) 103.3.21 205 (n19) 103.5.22 130 (n41) Enchiridion 8.27 128 (n4) 10.34 206 (n52) 12.40 207 (n85) 23.92 128 (n4) 25.99 128 (n9) 28.107 128 (n9)

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

Epistulae 194 453 (n41) In Joannis evangelium tractatus 9.14 31 (n1) 10.12 31 (n17) 44.1 206 (n44) 67.2 455 (n117) 69.3 206 (n52) 96.14 130 (n32) 121.1 206 (n52) Sermones 82.14 32 (n19) 224.4 32 (n19) Retractationes 1.189 191 (n35) Bede the Venerable In Marci evangelium 375–376 Bernard of Clairvaux Sermones In Annunciatione 1 90 (8),  131 (n45) De conversione ad clericos 13.25  130 (n32) In Canticum Canticorum 67.8  130 (n32) Sententiae 3.23 90 (n8), 131 (n45) Boethius De consolatione philosophiae 2.5 165 (n5) 3 Pr 7.1 52 (n66) Caesarius of Heisterbach Dialogus miraculorum  69 (n112) Cassian De Incarnatione 6.22

191 (n35)



529

Creeds Apostles’ Creed 207 (n154) I Constantinople 190 (n15),  333 (n20), (n21) Quicumque vult 233 (n360),  325 (n41) Durandus Rationale 1.14

128 (n3)

Gregory I Dialogi 4.40.2–5 42 (n43) Homiliae in evangelia 1.14.4 130 (n32) 1.16.5 335 (n58) 2.26.1 325 (n51) 2.27.4 130 (n32) 8 190 (n50) 19.7 42 (n43) 21.1 43 (n46) 38.16 42 (n43) 39.3 373 (n3) 4043–44 Homiliae in Hiezechielem 1.6.8–9 403–404 (n12),  412 (n32) 1.8.10 412 (n17) 2.4.2 335 (n67) 2.4.3 405 (n15) 2.4.4 405 (n14) 2.4.4–5 405 (n13) 2.4.5 37 (n31) 2.4.15 232 (n28), 405 (n18),  206 (n19) 2.5.17 130 (n32) 2.9.10 130 (n32) Moralia in Job 1.2.2 233 (n48) 1.14.20 37 (n31), 406 (n19) 6.37.5638–39 6.37.58 130 (n32) 8.30.49 206 (n43) 9.33 467 (n28)

530

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

10.8.13 130 (n32) 10.31.51 467 (n28) 22.4.6 130 (n32) 32.30.35 406 (n19) 35.16.41 467 (n28) Registrum epistolarum 64 295 (n45) Regula pastoralis 38–41 Guibert of Nogent Quo ordine 47 50 (n62) 48 51 (n65) 48–6351–52 Hildegard of Bingen Scivias 3.6.5 3.9.26 3.9.29

164 (n55) 164 (n55) 164 (n55)

Hugh of Fouilloy De bestiis 1.11 1.38

239 (n48) 333 (n18)

Isidore of Seville Etymologiae 7.7.5 7.7.6 7.7.7 7.7.9 7.7.10 7.7.11 7.7.12 7.7.16 7.7.17 7.7.19 7.7.20 11.2 12.1.18–22

467 (n15) 467 (n14) 467 (n30) 469 (n76) 467 (n9) 469 (n88) 469 (n94) 468 (n44) 469 (n181) 469 (n106 468 (n61) 191 (n36) 218 (n51)

Jerome Commentarii in evangelium Matthaei 1.5.28 324 (n22) 5.3 452 (n22) 21.28 454 (n106) Liber interpretationis Hebraicorm nominum 2.16–17 437 (n70) 2.21 424 (n4) 3:18 454 (n113) 3.25 96 (n13) 8.17 103 (n6) 8.27 424 (n8) 9.5 424 (n8) 13.21 436 (n25) 14.6 103 (n6) 15.2 103 (n12) 15.3 96 (n11) 16.19 103 (n4) 16.24–27 103 (n9) 22.23 103 (n13) 26.2 103 (n4) 31.25 128 (n2) 41.3 270 (n3) 42.5 270 (n3) 42.11 270 (n3) 46.14 234 (n55) 46.28 424 (n8) 50.9 128 (n3), 206 (n40) 56.18 437 (n67) 61.7–8 468 (n44) 62.24 469 (n106) 63.13–14 206 (n40) 66.12–13 467 (n21) 67.19 467 (n9), 467 (n15) 67.19–20 469 (n88) 67.20 469 (n101) 68.7–8 469 (n78) 69.27 468 (n61) 70.2 437 (n68) 71.2 467 (n3) 71.30 163 (n31) 72.20–21 454 (n113) 73.29 469 (n94) 74.17–18 206 (n40)

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

75.6–7 75.21 75.23 76.1–2 80.14 141.25

163 (n32) 467 (n14), 467 (n15) 206 (n40) 164 (n45) 103 (n4) 468 (n67)

Maurice de Sully Sermons 35 38 40 58 Origen In Genesim homiliae 1.5–7 In Lucam homiliae 31

151 (n45) 306 (n40) 150 (n35) 424 (n9)

334 (n37) 192 (n52)

Peter Abelard Commentaria in Epistolam Pauli ad Romanos 1 454 (n107) Peter the Chanter Verbum abbreviatum 1

205 (n30)

Peter Comestor Sermones 128 (n6), 400 (n9) Peter Lombard Collectanea Ad Rom. Ad Rom. 8.15 Ad Rom. 8.30  Ad Rom. 9.14–15 Ad 1 Cor. 15.28 Ad Tit. 3.1–15 In Psalmos 

325 (n50) 344 (n33) 453 (n84), 454 (n86) 453 (n84) 44 (n117) 234 (n75) 333 (n9)



531

Sententiae 1.5.1 3.13.1 3.15.2 3.18.3 3.4.2 4.44.3

233 (n38) 325 (n45) 324 (n22) 207 (n4) 207 (n85) 150 (n35)

Ranulf Higden Ars componendi sermones 

57, 59–61

Robert of Melun Sententiae 1.3.3 324 (n22) Quaestiones in epistolas Pauli Ad Rom. 1.3 325 (n56) Ad 1 Cor. 15.20 455 (n119) Quaestiones de divina pagina 83 453 (n41) Rule of Benedict Prol 8 Prol 49 4.74 5.1 7 7.24 7.51–52 9:3 58.8

163 (n41) 165 (n93) 108 (n1) 163 (n28) 458 (n3) 218 (n37) 295 (n43) 129 (n24) 400 (n6)

Simon of Tournai Disputationes 11 455 (n117) Institutiones in Sacram Paginam 7.10 324 (n17) 7.43 324 (n22) Thomas Aquinas Scriptum super Sententias 3 Sent. 35.1.2 Summa theologiae 1.3.7–8 1.17.2

130 (n32) 232 (n20) 192 (n69)

532

I N D E X O F A N C I E N T A N D M E D I EVA L AU T HO R S

1.21.3 ad2 1–2.114.3 2–2.23.8

163 (n15) 453 (n45) 467 (n31)

2–2.113.1 3.46.1 ad2

295 (n45) 192 (n52)

SUBJECT INDEX

3: 405, 409 4: 332, 338 7: 332, 3338, 306, 407, 410 8: 332 10: 332 12: 461, 467 (n28) 15: 332 40: 331, 332 50: 331 1000: 461, 467 (n28) abbey, six places in 272, 278–79, 281, administration 292 Abraham 119, 130 (n28), 214, 465, 475 Absalom of Springiersbach, 68–69, 165 (n84), Sermon 4 153–65, Sermon 10 209–19, Sermon 18 285–95, Sermon 25 297–306, Sermon 46 399 Achard of St Victor 62–63, 308, 328, Sermon 1 70–78, Sermon 9 385–400, Sermon 13 72, Sermon 14 72, Sermon 15 72 action and contemplation 38–39, 148–49, 159, 202, 406 Adam and Eve 212, 259–63, 287 Adventures of Connla the Fair, 354 affectus 449, 454 (n98), 468 (n46) ages of man 191 (n36) Alan of Lille, 52–56, 328 Alcuin 47 alms 44, 367, 368 (n8), 465 Amalarius of Metz, 301

Ambrose of Milan 402 anagogy 78 angels 117, 121 (n11), 207, 309, 314, 358, 328, 431 animals 240, 243, 257–62 Anonymous of St Victor: Sermon 3 307–16, Sermon 7 392–93 Anselm of Bec, 92 (n14), 129 (n11) anticipatio 149 (n7) ants 72 archetypes 177–78 armarius 111, 133 artes praedicandi, 49, 58–59, Guibert of Nogent, 50–52, Alan of Lille, 52–56, Ralph Higden, 56–61 Asher 462, 468 (n44) Assyrians 434, 437 (n70) astronomy, 112, 117, 136–39, 149 (n18) Augustine: Confessions 385–92, De doctrina christiana, 32–36, sermons as examples 30–32, sermons content 32–34, sermon theory 34, Rule, 393, 394, Victorine sermons about 392–96 Babylon 449. 454 (n113) Balaam 97, 99–100, 103 (n4) Balek 97, 99–100, 103 (n4), (n9) Baptism, 212, 217 (n10), 222, 224–29, 320, 331, 460 beatitude, 203, 239, 276, 298–99, 417, 461 Beatitudes 439–55

534

SU B J E C T I N D E X

beauty 169, 338, 358, 433 Bede 46, 375–77 Benjamin 241–42, 295 (n47), 465–66, 469 (n105) Beor 97, 99–100 Bethany 331–32 birds 190 (n24), 240, 243, 330, 357 book 297 bread 289–90, 294 (n25) butter 70, 72, 76–77, 176, 181–85, 199. 206 (n39) Caesarius of Arles 49 captatio benevolentiae 71–72, 173, 196, 222, 319, 396 causes 337, 339 chapter meeting 272–74, 279–81, 452 (n17) Christ: acts in sacraments 227, ascension 126, 329–35, athelete 192 (n52), baptism 211, 217 (n4), 226, 342, beatitude 77, begettings 176, 179–80, 195, 203, 328, 330, book 298, consubstantial 330, contemplation of God 77 (n137), creator 162, death 475–76, descent 125–26, 332, dominicus homo 174, 181–84, 191 (n35), Emmanuel, 70, 226; events of his life 299–300, faith in 203, 329, flesh 206, 313, 319, 332, fullness of knowledge, power, and grace 88–92, 182, 191 (n46), 232 (n21), 282 (n8), 318, 325 (n45), (n49), 331, 404, 409, 411, fully human, 227, God 293, Good Samaritan 175 (n131), grace 202, 221, 322, 337, 343, head of Church 185, 323, 329, 343, homo assumptus 73, 202, 232 (n21), 326, 328, 343, homoousios 70, 74, humility 175, 211, 440, 444, Image of the Father 90–91, Jesus 362, 364 (n3), judge 126, 162, 331, kindness 313, king 329, knowledge 77, 182, 321, light 197, Lord 330, mediation of his

humanity 75–76, 78, 95, 313, medicine 200, merits 77–78, 309, milk 181–85, mutable in his humanity 181, nativity 43, 70–78, nature gave birth to nature 227, Old Testament types 475, passion 93, 125, 211, 300, 309, 321, 332, 356, prayer to, 176–77, prophecies of 475–76, raises the dead 375–81, redeemer 167, resurrection 93, 125–26, 202, 319, savior 362, Son 178–79, Son of Man 162, teacher 319, transfiguration 342, Verbum abbreviatum 198, victor 125, 132 (n26), vine 261, 404, 408, virtues 182–85, vulture 328–30, 333 (n18), why the Son incarnate 74–75, 78, 87 (n3), 90, Word 93, 177–78, 197–98, wounded side 322 Christian life, stages of 54, 83–86, 157, 169–70, 174, 188, 216, 230, 390–92 Christological nihilism 221, 227, 233 (n37) Church: beauty 434, body of Christ 185–89, 222, 226, 233 (n24), 404, born from Christ’s side 332, 335 (n56), 475, earthly/heavenly 236–37, Holy Spirit in 221, 226, lampstand 434, moon 331, mother 277, New Jerusalem 271, 276, people of God 363, purification of 250, sacrament 271, 276, spouse 271, 276, three kinds of members 37, 406, 409, 412 (n17), unity 226–27 circatores 273 (n3) cliques 277–78 clothing 170–71, 291–92, 351 compassion 160, 201, 215, 289–90, 440 compunction 170, 272, 278–79, 288, 294 (n14). 303 concupiscence 213, 311, 317, 446 confession 170, 320, 459–60 conscience 55, 89, 262–63, 292, 298, 302

SU B J E C T I N D E X

consolation 160–62, 286, 288, 290, 303 contemplation 216, 260, 272, 277, 292, 389–90, 408, 460 (see action and contemplation) contempt: of contempt 313, of self 55, 292, 294 (n42), 313, of world 55, 127, 294 (n42), 311, 356 contraries 89 (n7) contrition 216, 303 creation 198 cross 90, 310–11 crow 32, 222, 230, 235 (n97) curiositas 164 (n6), 386 (n5), 416, 418 cypress 96 (n4) Daughters of God 88, 90 (n8), 131 (n45) day and night 133–51 death 84–86, 99–100, 289 demons (devil) 91, 93, 114, 122–26, 242, 246, 263, 319, 370, 371 396–97, 426, 429–34, 460 descent: of Christ, 125–26, of God 153–62 desert 162, 165 (n96), 417 desire 156, 158, 230–31, 262, 353, 440, 459 devotion 211, 214, 218 (n26) dignity of humanity 88–89 discernment (discretio) 103 (n19), 244 discipline of the cloister 58, 247, 251–53, 266–68, 292, 416 dispositio 57, 59 distinctiones 58 dove 226–28, 230, 253 dwellings of God 114 Elijah 213, 266, 268–69 eloquence 35, 426 Ernisius, abbot, 193, 222, 274–75 Eucharist 184, 416–17 evils 106, 129 (n19) Exaltation of the Cross, 307 examples (exempla)42–44, 55, 60, 310, 352



535

experience 55, 87, 93 eye 130 (n35), 199, 437 (n59) faith 201, 227, 322, 325 (n38), articles of 321 faith, hope and charity 170, 188, 474 fasting 175, 190 (n1), 289, 432 fear 102, 156, 157–58, 244, 266, 339–40 feasting 175 flesh 191 (n47), 200–201, 262, 264 (n22), 396–97, 427 forgetting 402–403 fortitude 461–62 Gad 462, 467 (n37) Garnerus of St Victor 259 Gerald of Wales 354 Gilgal 97, 99–100, 103 (n13) glory 161, 308–09, 314, 318, 323, 442, 476 Glossa ordinaria 424 God: father 94–95, glory 308, 309, 314, 318, 323, 442, 476 immensity 225, providence 102, 136, 429, simplicity 225, teacher 119 Godfrey of St Victor 67–68, 111–12, Sermon 1 112–32, Sermon 2 134–51, Sermon 3 173–92, Sermon for St Augustine 394 gold 410, 412 (n5) Golden Rule 130 (n29), 449, 454 (n106), (n107) good works 170–71, 260, 288, 409, 426–27, 462 grace 76, 97–98, 115, 310, 321, 442, 446 Gratian 300 gratitude 97–103, 230, 264 (n7) Gregory I (pope) 37–47, 369, 401–406 Gregory of Nazianzus 38 Guarinus of St Victor 193–94 Guibert of Nogent 50–56 guilt 243, 320, 322, 324 (n17), 403 Haimo of Auxerre 48 harrowing of hell 318, 321

536

SU B J E C T I N D E X

heaven 126–27, 149 (n20), 211–12, 290–91, 293, 304, 343, 397, 417, 450–51 hell 126–27, 375, 450–51 henna 93, 96 (n4) Henry of Hesse 58 (n86) Henry of St Victor 234 (n61) heretics 144–45, 423, 434 hic/ibi 106–107, 282 (n10), 439 Holofernes 424 Holy Cross (feast of) 307–308 Holy Spirit 177, 221, 225–29, 467, finger of God 341, 345 (n41), fire 341, fountain 341, ointment 341–42, prayer to 343, sevenfold gift 245, 337–38, uniform and multiform 337–28 homiliaries 47–49 homily 28, 352 honey 65, 70, 85, 95, 96 (n15), 173–85, 199, 312–13, 323, 342, 417 hope 462 horse 131 (n6), 397 housecleaning 169–72, 239–46 Hugh of St Victor, 29, 57, 61–62, Miscellenea 62, Miscellanea 1.52 83–86, Miscellanea 1.91 87–89, Miscellanea 1.99 97–103, Miscellanea 1.113 105–108 humanism 91–92 humility 159, 170, 175, 226, 291–92, 439–40, 443–44 hypallage 192 (n71) hypocrite 146, 200–201, 351 image and likeness 75, 98, 102, 331, 378, 448–49, 460 imitation 252 immortality 121, 326 (n65) impassibility 121 indwelling 98, 187, 211, 226, 228, 246, 464–65 innocence 213 intention 462 Israel 436 (n25), 459, 467 (n14) Issachar 464, 469 (n88)

Jacob 213, 457, 459, 467 (n15) ladder of 458 Jairus 329–31 Jerome, St 402 Jerusalem 128 (n3), 276, 371 Jews 329, 331, 412 (n15) Joseph (patriarch) 465269 (n100) joy (jubilus, jubilatio), 106, 175, 277, 288 (n1), 329, 333 (n8), 343, 346 (n72), 356, 441, 417, 433, 441, 450, 454–45 (n117) Judah 459–60 judgment 101–102, 144, 162, 252–53 Judith: book 421–23, symbol of the church 426 justice and justification 76, 89–90, 115, 162, 203, 213, 250, 260, 276, 317, 319, 398, 440–42, 446–48, 453 (n84), 476 Justin Martyr 28 kindness 313, 316 (n51) knowledge and love 28, 341, 344 (n56), 440–41, 465 lamb 228 lamentation 303 law 212–13, 340 Lazarus 303, 306 (n40), 375–81 lectionary 47–48 Levi 463–64, 468 (76) light: and dark 133–51, 196–97, and warmth 112, 236 (n13) liturgical year 133 love, 159, 337: and vision 121, 130 (n32), fourfold 310–11, 315 (n25), law of 340–41, of Christ 94, of God 215–16, 217 (n8), 372, of God and neighbor 33–34, 36, 106, 399, 410, 462, terms for 164 (n54) Magi 211 Mamaert, St 361, 363 manna 414, 416–17 Manasseh 462–63, 468 (n61)

SU B J E C T I N D E X

Marie de France, 354 Martha and Mary 148–49, 151 (n65) martyrdom 170 massa 115. 351 Maurice de Sully 66–67, 349–52, Sermon 18 353–59, Sermon 19 353, Sermon 20 353–59, Sermon 31 365–68, Sermon 32 352, 369–73, Sermon 45 351 Maurice of St Victor 327–28, Sermon 1 412–19, Sermon 2 414, Sermon 3 327–35, Sermon 6 394 Maximus of Turin 48 Medes 434, 437 (n68) meek 445 menorah 402–12 mercy 66, 91, 100, 102, 106, 108 (n1), 321, and truth 113, 122, 124–25, 440, 447–48 Michael, St 423–37 microcosm/megacosm 137, 149 (n7) milk 95, 96 (n15), 323, 417 mirror 55 misery 106 Moab 99, 103 (n9) Moses 158, 164 (n45), 475 Mount of Olives 331 mountains 335 (n53), 437 (n38) mourning 445–46, 463 music 299–300, 305 (n11), 313, 427, 435 myrrh 93 mythological creatures 242 Nain, widow of 399 Naphtali 462, 468 (n52) Nebuchadnezzar 426 new 341 Nineveh 424 night: and day 111–29, 134–35 night office 111–29 olive 261, 263, 448 Origen 28



537

Pallas Athena 191 (n32) Paradise 260–63 Paschal lamb 479 passions 320 patience 223–24, 232 (n60), 312, 477, 478 (n38) Paul, St 214, 224, 427, 436 (n8) Paul the Deacon 47 peace 213–15, 218 (n43), 260, 369, 441, 449 penance 115, 170, 303, 365 perfection 460–l62, 464 persecutors 43, 423 perseverance 216, 415 Persians 434, 437 Pharaoh 157 plants 257–58 Platonism 190 (n18) poverty 439, 443 power, wisdom, goodness 112, 117, 120, 124–25, 130, 338, 344 (n11), 452 (n11) praise of God 346 (n76), 427–28 prayer 57, 102–103 (n24), 361, 365, 367 preaching 186–87, 327, 388, 394, 414, 433, adaptation to audience 31, 34, 40–41, 5, 55, by example 39, 41, 59, definition 27, 54, duty 38, 41, 50–52, 65, humility required 41, 50, 54, 223, 394, motives for 52, 59, of Augustine, 29–36, 393–94, of early Christians 27, of Jesus 27, of John the Baptist 221, 224, 425, of Victorines 46, 52, prayer required 35, 51, 394, reception 223, 408–409, sources 51–52 predestination 447, 453 (n84) prelate 120 221, 223, 268, 410 pride 169–70, 204, 214–15, 429–30 prison 108, 235 (n96) propassions 320, 324 (n22) prosperity and adversity 145 prose, rhymed 31, 36, 40, 72–76 psalms 218 (n30) punishment 244, 323

538

SU B J E C T I N D E X

purgation 124, 247–48, 251 Purification, feast of 140–43, 150 (n36) purity 440, 448 Raamses and Pithom 157, 163 (n29), (n31), (n32) Ralph Higden 56–61 reading 171, 270 (n15), 272, 278, 290, 393 redemption 88–92 refining metal 247–54 region of unlikeness 113, 128 (n6), 328, 330, 386–89, 393, 397 remorse 244 Reuben 461, 467 (n30) revelation 212 Rhaban Maur 48, 424, 437 (n68) rhetoric 28, 35–36, 54 (n75), 357, 390–91 Richard of St. Victor 54, 63–64, 328, Ad me clamat, 88–92, Liber exceptionum 64–65, 67, 352, 369, 377, 423–24; Sermones centum 4 66 (n103), Sermones centum 5 267–72, Sermones centum 18 355, Sermones centum 25 389, Sermones centum 41–43 239–64, Sermones centum 44 271–83, Sermones centum 70 66 (n103), Sermones centum 89 265–70, Sermones centum 99 399, Sermones centum 100 473–78 Rich Man and Lazarus 43–44 riches 365–67 risen body 150 (n35) Robert Basevorn 58 (n57) Rogation days 361, 363 saints 105–7, 415 Samson 460 Sarah 214 satisfaction 320 Scripture 125: accommodation 136, 149 (n24), canon 134, 141, importance 64–65, 83, letter and spirit, 341, 410, littera, sensus, sententia 301, power

93, reading 170–71, senses 32, 36, 51, 134, 328, 394, 436 (n1), 474, use at night office 134–35, 141–48 Schilling, Daniel 297 seal, 460 secular learning 153–54, 160–61, 302–303 sermon: definition 28, division 60, early medieval 49, Old French, styles 221, 350–52, theme and protheme 60, 72, university 58–59, Victorine 52, 70–78, 351–52, 385–95 servitude 339–40 Shittim 97–100, 103 (n12) Simeon (patriarch), 463, 468 (n61) simplicity 228 sin 106, 131 (n53), 212, 379–80, 463, actual 320, and grace 155, boasting about 147, original 11, 112, 143, 317–18, remission 229, 320, stages in 213–14, 320, 378 Sion 128 (n2) soul and body 104 space, sacred 167–69 spiritual senses 169–70 St Victor of Paris, necrology, 62 (n90), 66 (n104) star 211–12 symbols 337–42 sweetness 83–8, 183, 192 (n64), 230, 264, 312, 358, 417, 440, 445, 475 teaching 98, 248 temple of God 242, 465 temptation 146–47, 267–68 Thomas of St Victor 88 three ages 112, 124–35, 137–38, 405, 409 time 167, 169, 282 Tobit 475 tradition 289–90 Trinity 33, 70–71, 97–98, 102, 112, 119–20, 177, 202, 225, 339. 435, mathematical 328, 331, 334 (n44), 389–90, 399 trees 159–60, 212–13, 258–62

SU B J E C T I N D E X

use (uti) 33 via/patria 106, 131 (n47) vices (vitia) 112, 118, 123–24, 157, 180, 232–33 (n22), 251–52, 258, 262 Victor, St 413–19 virgin 430 virtue (virtus) 55, 75 (n132), 147–48, 170, 189, 215, 244, 257, 260–61, 264, (n4), 270 (n2), 426, 449. 454 (n95) Voyage of Bran, 353–54 vulture 328–30 Walter of St Victor, 67, 300, 328, Sermon 2 317–26, Sermon 4 239, Sermon 6 67 (n106), Sermon 8



539

337–45, Sermon 11 439–55, Sermon 12 193–207, Sermon 18 221–35, Sermon 19 457–70, Sermon 20 317–26 watchman 116 Waleys, Thomas 58 (n87) water 212, 287 Wedding at Cana 209 (n2) will 312 winds 31 (n17) wisdom (sapientia) 102, 187–88, 190 (n13) world, flesh, and devil 330, 396, 414–16, 418 (n11), 493 Zebulon 464–65, 469 (n94)