238

EPHES. nourishes.

IV. 17.

Vanity of worshipping water.

But

And why not at that rate the scythe as well, and the hands of the husbandman? Prove to me that the sun alone nourishes, and needs nothing, neither earth, nor water, nor tillage; but let the seeds be sown, and let him shed forth his rays, and produce the ears of corn. now if this work be not his alone, but that of the rains also, wherefore is not the water a god also? But of this I speak not yet. Why is not the earth too a god, and why not the dung, and the spade? Shall we then, tell me, worship all? Alas, what trifling! And indeed rather might the ear of corn be produced without sun, than without earth and water; and so with plants and all other things. Were there no earth, none of these things could ever appear. And if any one, as children and women do, were to put some earth into a pot, and to fill up the pot with a quantity of dung, and to place it under the roof, plants, though they may be weak ones, will be produced from it. So that the contribution of the earth and of the dung is greater, and these therefore we ought to worship rather than the sun. He requires the sky, he requires the air, he requires these waters, to prevent his doing harm, to be as bridles to curb the fierceness of his power, and to restrain him from letting loose his rays over the world, like a furious horse. And now tell me, where is this our god at night? Whither has he taken his departure? For this is not like a god, to be circumscribed and limited. This is in fact the property of bodies only. But, say they, there is moreover a certain power residing in him, and he has motion. Is this power then, I pray you, itself God? Why then is it insufficient in itself, and why does it not restrain the fire? For again, I come to the same argument. But what is that power? Is it productive of light, or does it by the sun give light, though of itself possessing none of these qualities? If so, then is the sun superior to it. How far shall we unwind this maze?

Again, what is water? is not that too, they say, a god? This again is a matter of truly absurd disputation. Is that not a god, they say, which we make use of for so many purposes? And so again in like manner of the earth. Truly is this in the vanity of their mind, having their understanding darkened. But these words he is now using concerning life and con

Heathen take tales of hell as a fable, gods' excesses as a pattern. 239

XII.

duct. The Greeks are fornicators, and adulterers. Of course. HOMIL. They who paint to themselves such gods as these, will have all their works consistent; and if they can but escape the eyes of men, there is no one to restrain them. For what will avail the argument of a resurrection, if it appear to them a mere fable? Yea, and what that of the torments of hell:they too are but a fable. And mark the Satanic notion. When they are told of gods who are fornicators, they deny that these are fables, but believe them. Yet whenever any shall discourse to them of punishment,' these,' they say, are poets, men who turn every thing into fable, that man's happy condition may be on all sides overturned.'

But the philosophers, it is said, discovered something truly grand, and far better than these. How? They who introduced fate, and who tell us that nothing is providential, and that there is no one to care for any thing, but that all things consist of atoms? Or, others again who say that God is a body? or who, tell me, are they? Are they those who would turn the souls of men into those of dogs, and would persuade mankind that one was once a dog, and a lion, and a fish? How long will ye go on and never cease trifling, having the understanding darkened? for they say and do all things as though they were in the dark, both in those things which concern doctrine, and those which concern life and conduct; for the man who is in darkness sees none of the things which lie before him, but oftentimes when he sees a rope, he will take it for a live serpent"; or again, if he is caught by a hedge, he will think that a man or an evil spirit has hold of him, and great is the alarm, and great the perturbation. Such as these are the things they fear. They were afraid, it saith, where Ps.53,6. no fear was; but the things which they ought to fear, these they fear not. But just as children in their nurses' arms thrust their hands incautiously into the fire, and boldly into the candle also, and yet are scared at a man clothed in sackcloth; just so these Greeks, as if they were really always children, (as some one also amongst themselves has said, the Greeks are always children,) fear those that are no sins, such as filthiness of the body, the pollution 8 This was the instance in the h The Egyptian priest to Solon. Schools. vid. Sextus Empiricus, Pyrrh. Plat. Tim. p. 22. B. Hypot. 1. 33.

IV. 17.

240

ensue.

Heathen superstitions.

And

EPHES. of a funeral', a bed, or the keeping of days, and the like: whereas those which are really sins, unnatural lust, adultery, fornication, of these they make no account at all. No, you may see a man washing himself from the pollution of a dead body, but from dead works, never; and, again, spending much zeal in the pursuit of riches, and yet supposing the whole is undone by the crowing of a single cock. darkened are they in their understanding. Their soul is filled with all sorts of terrors. For instance: 'Such a person,' one will say, ( was the first who met me, as I was going out of the house;' of course ten thousand evils must certainly At another time, the wretch of a servant in giving me my shoes, held out the left shoe first,'-terrible mishaps and mischiefs! I myself in coming out set forth with the left foot foremost;' and this too is a token of misfortune. these are the evils in the house. Then, as I go out, my right eye shoots up from beneath. This is a sure sign of tears. Again the women, when the reeds strike against the standards, and ring, or when they themselves are scratched by the shuttle, turn this also into a sign. And again, when they strike the web with the shuttle, and do it with some vehemence, and then the reeds on the top from the intensity of the blow strike against the standards and ring, this again they make a sign, and ten thousand things besides as ridiculous. And so if an ass should bray, or a cock should crow, or a man should sneeze, or whatever else may happen, like men bound with ten thousand claims, as I was saying, like men confined in the dark, they suspect every thing, and are more slavish than all the slaves in the world.

But let it not be so with us. But scorning all these things, as men living in the light, and having our conversation in Heaven, and having nothing in common with earth, let us regard but one thing as terrible, that is, sin, and offending against God. And if there be not this, let us scorn all the rest, and him that brought them in, the Devil. And now for these things let us give thanks to God. Let us be diligent,

1 Vid. Theophr. Charact. xvi. gì duodamovías; Guther. de Jure Manium in Græv. Thes. 12. 1175. Hes. Opp. et D. 765, 899.

k Vid. Plin. N. H. 2. 7. Juv. Sat. 6. 579. These and like superstitions are

condemned also by Clem. Alex. Strom. vii. 4. p. 842-844. S. Cyril of Jerus. iv. 37. and S. Aust. de Doctr. Christ. ii. 20, 21. See also S. Chrysost. ad Illum. Catech. ii. 5.

XII.

not only that we ourselves be never caught by this slavery, HOMIL. but if any of those who are dear to us have been caught, let us break his bonds asunder, let us release him from this most bitter and contemptible captivity, let us make him free and unshackled for his course toward Heaven, let us raise up his flagging wings, and teach him to be wise for life and doctrine's sake. Let us give thanks to God for all things. Let us beseech Him that we be not found unworthy of the gifts bestowed upon us, and let us ourselves withal endeavour to contribute our own part, that we may teach not only by speaking, but by acting also. For thus shall we be able to attain His unnumbered blessings, which God grant we may all attain, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, with Whom, to the Father and the Holy Ghost together, be glory, might, and honour, now, henceforth, and for ever and ever. Amen.

R

HOMILY XIII.

IV. 17.

EPHES. CHAP. iv. 17—19. This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling, have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

These words are not addressed to the Ephesians only, but are now addressed also to you; and that, not from me, but from Paul; or rather, neither from me nor from Paul, but from the grace of the Spirit. And we then ought so to feel, as though that grace itself were uttering them. And now hear what he saith. This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart. If then it is ignorance, if it is blindness, why blame it? if a man is ignorant, it were just, not that he should be ill-treated for it, nor be blamed, but that he should be informed of those things, of which he is ignorant. But mark how at once he cuts them off from all excuse. Who being past feeling, saith he, have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness; but ye have not so learned Christ. Here he shews us, that the cause of their blindness was their way of life, and that their life was the consequence of their own indolence and want of feeling.

Who being past feeling, saith he, have given themselves

over.