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spot where the LORD had been cruci- | A Homily of S. Augustine the Bishop. fied outside the gate, that former Jerusalem, as it is said, has been overthrown utterly.

Lesson VIII.

To which also is added the fault for which the punishment of its overthrow was brought upon it: Because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation. For the Creator of men through the mystery of His incarnation deigned to visit her; but she remembered not His fear and love. Whence also the Prophet for the rebuke of the heart of man brings the birds of heaven for a testimony, while he saith: The stork in the

heaven knoweth her appointed times;

and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the LORD.

Lesson IX.

Serm. 36 on the Word of the LORD. The Pharisee might at least say, 1 am not as many men. What meaneth he then, when he saith, Other men, but all besides himself? I, he says, am just, the rest are sinners. I am not as other men, unjust, extortioners, adulterers. And behold the publican standing near gives occasion for greater pride. As this publican, he says. I, he says, am alone; he belongs to the rest: I am not, he says, such as he is, on account of my righteous deeds, by means of which I am not

wicked.

Lesson VIII.

I FAST twice in the week, I give

tithes of all that I possess. What has he asked of GOD? Search among his words, you will find nothing. He went up to pray; felt no desire of asking God, but of praising himself. Not asking GoD, but praising himself,

FOR the Redeemer wept beforehand is a small part of his conduct; be

the ruin of the faithless city, which that city herself knew not should .come upon her. For to her it is justly said by the weeping LORD: If thou hadst known, even thou, He implies, wouldest have wept; who now, because thou knowest not what is threatening, rejoicest. Whence also it is added: Even at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy

peace. For when she was giving herself up to carnal delights, and foresaw not the coming evils, she had in her day the things which might have been for her peace.

ELEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY. Lesson of the Holy Gospel according to S. Luke.

Lesson VII. Chap. xviii.

AT that time: JESUS spoke this parable to certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee, the other a Publican. And that which follows.

sides this, he insults him that did ask. The publican on the contrary stood afar off, and yet he really drew near to GOD. The conscience of his heart drove him to a distance, his piety brought him near. The publican stood afar off, but the LORD listened to him nigh at hand. Lesson IX.

FOR though the LORD be high, yet

bath He respect unto the lowly; as for the proud, such as was that Pharisee, He beholdeth them afar off. Things that are lifted up He oversees from afar, but He does not overlook them. Hear now the humility of his conduct that he stood afar off; of the publican. It is a small part he did not even lift up so much as his eyes to heaven; that he might be

looked upon, he looked not himself; he dared not to look upwards; conscience weighed him down, hope raised him up. And further; he smote upon his breast. He exacted punishment from himself. Therefore the LORD spared the penitent. He

smote upon his breast, saying, LORD, be merciful to me a sinner. Behold one who entreats. Why marvellest thou that GoD pardons, when he himself confesseth?

TWELFTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY. Lesson of the Holy Gospel according to S. Mark.

Lesson VII. Chap. vii.

AT that time: JESUS, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis. And that which follows.

A Homily of S. Gregory the Pope. Homily 10. Book 1. on Ezekiel. What meaneth it that GOD, the Creator of all things, when He willed to heal the deaf and the dumb, put His fingers into his ears, and spit, and touched his tongue? What is signified by the fingers of the Redeemer but the gifts of the HOLY SPIRIT? Whence in another place, when He had cast out a devil, He said, If I with the finger of GOD cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of GOD is come upon you: Concerning which another Evangelist describes Him as saying, If I cast out devils by the SPIRIT of GOD, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. From both of which places we gather that the SPIRIT is called the finger. Therefore to put the fingers in the ears is, through the gifts of the HOLY SPIRIT, to open the mind of the deaf to obedience.

Lesson VIII.

AND what is it, that He spit and

touched his tongue? The spittle from the mouth of the Redeemer signifies to us wisdom received in divine discourse. For the spittle flows down from the head into the mouth. Whilst therefore our tongue is touched by that wisdom, which is He Himself, it is forthwith directed to words of preaching. And He, looking up to heaven, sighed; not because He considered it necessary to sigh, Who

gave what He required; but He taught us to sigh unto Him Who rules in heaven; so that our ears should be opened through the gift of the HOLY SPIRIT, and our tongue loosed for words of preaching through the spittle of His mouth; that is, through the knowledge of divine discourse.

Lesson IX.

AND to him is afterwards said and straightway his ears were opened, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened: and the string of his tongue was loosed. In which we must notice that, on account of his ears being shut, it is said, Be opened. But when the ears of any one's heart are opened to obey, afterwards without doubt the string of his tongue also is loosed, that he may declare that the good deeds which he has done himself are to be done by

others.

Whence it is well added; And he spake plain. For he speaks plain who has first by obedience done those things which by speech he urges others to do.

THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY. Lesson of the Holy Gospel according to S. Luke.

Lesson VII. Chap. x.

AT that time: JESUS said to His

disciples, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see. For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them. And that which follows.

A Homily of Venerable Bede, the
Priest.

Book 3. Chap. 43. on S. Luke 10. NOT the eyes of the Scribes and

Pharisees, who saw only the body of the LORD, but those eyes are blessed, which can perceive His mysteries, of which it is said: And Thou hast revealed them to babes. Blessed are the eyes of the babes to whom the SoN deigned to veal both Himself and the FATHER. Abraham rejoiced to see the day of

re

Book 2 on Evang. Quest. Chap. 40.

CHRIST; and he saw it, and was glad. | A Homily of S. Augustine the Bishop. The glory of the LORD was seen also by Isaiah, and Micah, and many other prophets, who also on that account are called Seers; but all these, beholding it from afar, and welcoming it, saw it as in a mirror, and in an enigma.

Lesson VIII.

BUT the Apostles having the very presence of the LORD, and eating with Him, and learning whatever they desired by means of questions, had no need of being taught by Angels or various kinds of visions. But those whom Luke calls many prophets and kings, Matthew more clearly calls prophets and righteous men; for they are great kings, because they have known how not to fall under the assaults of temptations by yielding, but to gain the rule over them by mastering them.

Lesson IX.

AND behold a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted Him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? The lawyer who, tempting the LORD, questioned Him about eternal life, took occasion, it seems to me, of tempting Him concerning His own words, where He says: Rejoice, because your names are written in heaven. But by that very temptation he declares how true was that confession of the LORD which He addressed to the FATHER; That Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.

FOURTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY. Lesson of the Holy Gospel according to S. Luke.

Lesson VII. Chap. xvii.

Concerning the ten lepers whom the LORD thus cleansed, when He said, Go, shew yourselves to the priests: we may ask, why He sent them to the priests, that when they went they might be cleansed? For we do not find that He sent any of those on

whom he bestowed bodily blessings to the priests except lepers. For He had cleansed him from leprosy to whom He said, Go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded for a testimony unto them. We have to inquire therefore what leprosy signifies: for they who were set free from it are said to be cleansed, not healed. For it is a blemish in colour: not in the health or soundness of the senses and limbs.

Lesson VIII.

BY lepers therefore we may not unfittingly understand those, who,

not having the knowledge of the true faith, profess various erroneous doctrines. For they do not conceal their ignorance, but proclaim it abroad as the highest wisdom, and make a display of it with boasting words. Moreover there is no false doctrine which has not some truth mingled with it. When true things appear therefore, mixed up in a disorderly manner with false, in a single discourse or narration of a man, as in the colour of a single body; they staining the bodies of men as it were represent a leprosy, streaking and with true and false dyes.

Lesson IX.

NOW these lepers must be so

shunned by the Church, that, if it may be done, being removed very far off they may with a loud cry call upon CHRIST; as those ten stood afar off,

AT that time: As JESUS went to and lifted up their voice, saying, Jerusalem, He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as He entered into a certain village there met Him ten men that were lepers. And that which follows.

JESUS, Teacher, have mercy upon us. Now by their calling Him Teacher, by which name no one called upon the LORD for bodily healing, I think it is plainly implied

that leprosy is the false doctrine which | and our thoughts bent aside to obtain the Good Teacher wipes away.

FIFTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY. Lesson of the Holy Gospel according to S. Matthew.

Lesson VII. Chap. vi.

AT that time: JESUS said to His disciples: No man can serve two masters. And that which follows.

A Homily of S. Augustine the Bishop.

Book 2. on the Sermon on the Mount.

No

man can serve two masters. To this particular statement we must refer what He expounds as the conclusion when He says: For either

he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will endure the one and despise the other. Which words we must diligently consider, for the next shews who are the two masters, when He says: Ye cannot serve GOD and mammon. Mammon is the name given to riches among the Hebrews: which coincides with the Phoenician name, for gain, in the Phoenician tongue, is called mammon.

Lesson VIII.

them, when we are doing something as it were out of compassion; that is, lest, when we wish to appear to be consulting the interest of another, we should be intent upon our own profit rather than his advantage; and therefore we should not be seeming to ourselves to sin, because those things which we wish to obtain are not

superfluities, but necessaries.

SIXTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY.

Lesson of the Holy Gospel according

to S. Luke.

Lesson VII. Chap. vii.
AT that time: JESUS went into a

city called Nain, and many of His
disciples went with Him, and much
people. And that which follows.
A Homily of S. Augustine the Bishop.
Sermon 44. on the word of the LORD.

The mother who was a widow rejoiced over that young man raised to life again; Mother Church rejoices over men daily raised in spirit. iudeed was dead as to his body; but they in mind. His death, being visible, was bewailed with the outward

He

token of grief; their death, being invisible, was neither inquired after nor was it seen. He sought after them, Who knew that they were dead; He alone Who could cause them to live knew that they were dead. For if He had not come to raise the dead, the Apostle would not say, Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and CHRIST shall give thee light.

BUT he who serves mammon verily serves him, who, being set over these earthly things, in right of his perversity, is called by the LORD the Prince of this world. Either then a man will hate the one and love the other, that is, GOD; or he will endure the one and despise the other; for whoever serves mammon will endure a hard and pernicious master: since, being caught in the snare of his own lust, he is subjected to the devil, and loves him not. For what man is there who loves the devil? Yet neverthe-thousands invisibly. But who knows were visibly raised by the LORD;

less he endures him.

Lesson IX.

THEREFORE, He says, I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on; lest perhaps, though superfluities be not sought for, our heart may become double for the sake of very necessaries,

Lesson VIII.

WE find that three dead persons

how many dead persons He raised
visibly? For all the things that He
John spake
did are not written.
thus; There are also many other
things which JEsus did, the which, if
they should be written, every one, I
suppose that even the world itself
could not contain the books that should
be written. There are therefore many

others who without doubt were raised; but not without cause are three mentioned. For our LORD JESUS CHRIST Would have those things which He performed after a bodily manner understood after a spiritual manner also; He did not perform miracles merely for the sake of performing them, but that those things which He performed might be full of wonder to the beholders, and full of truth to those who understood them.

Lesson IX.

As one who beholds letters in a beautifully written manuscript, yet knows not how to read, praises the hand of the scribe, admiring the fairly formed letters; but what they mean, what those letters signify, he knows not, and praises them with his eyes, but perceives them not with his mind. But another both praises the execution and perceives the meaning; he, to wit, who can not only see, which is common to all, but also can read, which he who has not learnt cannot do. So, they who beheld the miracles of CHRIST without understanding what they meant, and what in a certain manner they hinted to those who understood them, wondered only at their performance; but the others both wondered at their performance and attained to the understanding of them. Such ought we to be in the school of CHRIST.

SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY. Lesson of the Holy Gospel according

to S. Luke.

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flesh weighed down the powers of the soul and quenched the ardour of the Spirit. Then humility is taught, when at that marriage feast the desire of the highest place is forbidden; gently however; in order that an exhortation to kindness might remove the harshness of restraint, and reason might avail to the performance of the exhortation, and correction might amend the disposition. To this correction, as it were in closest neighbourhood, is united kindness, which is defined

thus in the laying down of the LORD'S sentence, if it be shewn towards the poor and the feeble: for to be hospitable to those who will recompense you is proof of a covetous disposition. Lesson VII.

THE grace of despising riches is recommended in the last place, as the reward bestowed on a soldier who has served his full time in war; because neither he, who, intent upon things below, buys for himself earthly possessions, can obtain the kingdom of heaven; since the LORD says, Sell all that thou hast, and follow me; nor can he who buys oxen, since Elisha slew and divided among the people the oxen that he had; and he who has married a wife cares for the things which are of the world, not the things which are of GOD. Not that marriage is blamed, but chastity is called to higher honour, Since the unmarried woman and the widow cares for the things of the

LORD, that she may be holy both in body and spirit.

Lesson IX.

BU UT that we may return into favour, as with widows, so now also with wives, we do not decline the opinion which very many follow in supposing

that three classes of men are excluded from partaking of that great supper; Gentiles, Jews, Heretics. And therefore the Apostle says we must flee covetousness, lest being entangled after the manner of Gentiles in iniquity, wickedness, unchastity, covet

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