Afterfeast of the Nativity of Christ

And they came to Capernaum. When they were in the house, he asked them, "What were you discussing on the way?" But they kept silent. For they had been disputing among themselves on the way about who was the greatest. The disciples' dispute seems to have arisen about primacy because they had seen Peter, James, and John taken apart onto a mountain, and it was believed that some secret had been entrusted to them there. But also, to Peter, according to what Matthew narrates, the keys of the kingdom of heaven were promised, and the Church of the Lord was to be built upon the rock of faith from which he had taken his name. Therefore, they were questioning whether those three, or Peter alone among all the apostles, was preeminent.

(ubi sup.) The reason why the dispute concerning the chief place arose amongst the disciples seems to have been, that Peter, James, and John, were led apart from the rest into the mountain, and that something secret was there entrusted to them, also that the keys of the kingdom of heaven were promised to Peter, according to Matthew.

Where it is to be observed, that the disciples disputed by the way concerning the chief place, but Christ Himself sat down to teach humility; for princes toil while the humble repose.

Capernaum means the city of consolation, and agrees with the former sentence, which He had spoken: And after that he is killed, he shall arise the third day. There follows: And being in the house he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way? But they held their peace.

It was fit also that they should dispute concerning the chief place by the way; the dispute is like the place where it is held; for lofty station is only entered upon to be quitted: as long as a man keeps it, it is slippery, and it is uncertain at what stage, that is, on what day, it will end.

The disciples, still having human thoughts, were arguing among themselves about which of them was greater and more honored by Christ.

And sitting down, he called the twelve and said to them, "If anyone wants to be first among you, he will be the last of all and the servant of all." And taking a child, he set him in the midst of them. And embracing him, he said to them, "Whoever receives one such child in my name, receives me. Seeing the disciples' thoughts, the Lord heals the desire for glory by the struggle for humility and warns that primacy is not to be sought: first he gives a gentle command of humility, and then he teaches by the example of childlike innocence. For he said, "Whoever receives one such child in my name, receives me;" either simply Christ's poor, he shows are to be received by those who intend to be greater for his honor's sake, or certainly he advises that they themselves be without malice like little children so that they preserve simplicity without arrogance, charity without envy, and devotion without anger. But in embracing the child, he signifies that the humble are worthy of his embrace and love, and such people, when they fulfill what he has commanded: "Learn from me, because I am gentle and humble of heart" (Matthew 11), can rightly boast and say: "His left hand is under my head, and his right hand will embrace me" (Song of Songs 2). Now well did he add, after saying, "Whoever receives one such child," "in my name," so that clearly the form of virtue, which, with nature as their guide, a child observes, they themselves might follow for the name of Christ, with the help of rational industry. But since he taught that he is received in children, clearly as the head in his members, he added and said:

(ubi sup.) Seeing however the thoughts of the disciples, the Lord takes care to heal the desire of glory by humility; for He first, by simply commanding humility, admonishes them that a high station was not to be aimed at. Wherefore it goes on: And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.

Let vanity be unknown among you. Let simplicity and harmony and a guileless attitude weld the community together. Let each remind himself that he is not only subordinate to the brother at his side, but to all. If he knows this, he will truly be a disciple of Christ.

If you are in love with precedence and the highest honor, pursue the things in last place, pursue being the least valued of all, pursue being the lowliest of all, pursue being the smallest of all, pursue placing yourselves behind others.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) The disciples indeed wished to receive honour at the hands of the Lord; they also had a desire to be made great by Christ, for the greater a man is, the more worthy of honour he becomes, for which reason He did not throw an obstacle in the way of that desire, but brought in humility.

But the Lord, although He does not forbid the aspiration toward greater honor (for He commands us to desire the higher degrees), nevertheless does not permit us to seize primacy from others; on the contrary, He wants us to attain exaltation through humility.

For His wish is not that we should usurp for ourselves chief places, but that we should attain to lofty heights by lowliness.

"And whoever receives me, does not receive me, but him who sent me." Wanting himself to be believed as such and as great as the Father is. "So much so," he said, "is there no difference between me and him that whoever receives me, also receives him who sent me."

(ubi sup.) By which, He either simply shows, that those who would become greater must receive the poor of Christ in honour of Him, or He would persuade them to be in malice children, to keep simplicity without arrogance, charity without envy, devotedness without anger. Again, by taking the child into His arms, He implies that the lowly are worthy of His embrace and love. He adds also, In my name, that they might, with the fixed purpose of reason, follow for His name's sake that mould of virtue to which the child keeps, with nature for his guide. And because He taught that He Himself was received in children, lest it should be thought that there was nothing in Him but what was seen, he added, And whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but Him that sent me; thus wishing, that we should believe Him to be of the same nature and of equal greatness with His Father.

You will not dismiss a brother who has entered your house without prayer.-"Have you seen," says Scripture, "a brother? you have seen your Lord; "-especially "a stranger," lest perhaps he be "an angel." But again, when received yourself by brethren, you will not make earthly refreshments prior to heavenly, for your faith will forthwith be judged. Or else how will you-according to the precept-say, "Peace to this house," unless you exchange mutual peace with them who are in the house?

See, how great is humility, for it wins for itself the indwelling of the Father, and of the Son, and also of the Holy Ghost.

We ought not be disturbed because some who do not belong or do not yet belong to this temple, that is, among whom God does not or does not yet dwell, perform some works of power, as happened to the one who cast out devils in the name of Christ. Although he was not a follower of Christ, Christ ordered that he be allowed to continue because it gave a valuable testimony of his name to many.… The centurion Cornelius also saw the angel that was sent to him to say that his prayers had been heard and his alms accepted, even before he was incorporated into this temple by regeneration.

Some who are intent on severe disciplinary principles which admonish us to rebuke the restless, not to give what is holy to dogs, to consider a despiser of the church as a heathen, to cut off from the unified structure of the body the member which causes scandal, so disturb the peace of the church that they try to separate the wheat from the chaff before the proper time. Blinded by this error, they are themselves separated instead from the unity of Christ.

(ubi sup.) By which He shows that no one is to be driven away from that partial goodness which he possesses already, but rather to be stirred up to that which he has not as yet obtained.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) It was not from jealousy or envy, however, that John wished to forbid him who cast out devils, but because he wished that all, who called on the name of the Lord, should follow Christ, and be one body with His disciples. But the Lord, however unworthy they who perform the miracles may be, incites others by their means to believe on Him, and induces themselves by this unspeakable grace to become better. Wherefore there follows: But Jesus said, Forbid him not.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) In conformity to this, He shows that he is not to be forbidden, adding immediately after, For there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. He says lightly, to meet the case of those who fell into heresy, such as were Simon and Menander, and Cerinthusk; not that they did miracles in the name of Christ, but by their deceptions had the appearance of doing them. But these others, though they do not follow us, cannot however set themselves to say any thing against us, because they honour My name by working miracles.

What then does the Savior say? He did not allow John to forbid the one performing signs: "Do not forbid him," He says, "for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me." That is, how will the one who acquires glory for himself through My name and performs miracles by invoking Me speak evil of Me? It appears that the Lord contradicts Himself, for in another place He says, "He who is not with Me is against Me" (Mt. 12:30). But those words were spoken concerning demons, who strive to draw those who belong to God away from Him and scatter God's possession, whereas here the words concern people who through others working miracles are brought to God.

For how can he speak evil of Me, who draws glory from My name, and works miracles by the invocation of this very name. There follows, For he that is not against you is on your part.

Both declarations are true: that "he who is not with me is against me, and he that gathers not with me scatters abroad"; and also the injunction, "Forbid him not; for he that is not against you is for you."13 This means that one fittingly shares in the worshiping community insofar as one stands with the whole church, and not against it. Yet those same individuals must be reproached for separating themselves from the church, wherever their gathering inadvertently becomes a scattering. If then one seeks reconciliation with the church, one does not need to receive what one already possesses, but merely needs to be set aright on those points at which one had gone astray.

This is the principle on which the whole church acts, not condemning common sacraments among heretics; for in these they are with us, and they are not against us. But she condemns and forbids division and separation, or any sentiment adverse to peace and truth. For in this respect they are against us, precisely because they are not with us, in the sense that and due to the fact that in not gathering with us, they are consequently scattering.

We must take care that this saying of the Lord appear not to be contrary to that, where He says, He who is not with me is against me. (Luke 11:23) Or will any one say that the difference lies in that here He says to His disciples, For he that is not against you is on your part, but in the other He speaks of Himself, He who is not with me is against me? As if indeed it were possiblel that he who is joined to Christ's disciples, who are as His members, should not be with Him. How if it were so, could it be true that he that receiveth you receiveth me? (Matt. 10:40) Or how is he not against Him, who is against His disciples? Where then will be that saying, He who despiseth you, despiseth me? But surely what is implied is, that a man is not with Him in as far as he is against Him, and is not against Him in as far as he is with Him. For instance, he who worked miracles in the name of Christ, and yet did not join himself to the body of His disciples, in as far as he worked the miracles in His name, was with them, and was not against them: again, in that he did not join their society, he was not with them, and was against them. But because they forbade his doing that in which he was with them, the Lord said unto them, Forbid him not; for they ought to have forbidden his being without their society, and thus to have persuaded him of the unity of the Church, but they should not have forbidden that in which he was with them, that is, his commendation of the name of their Lord and Master by the expulsion of devils. Thus the Church Catholic does not disapprove in heretics the sacraments, which are common, but she blames their division, or some opinion of theirs adverse to peace and to truth; for in this they are against us.

This happens in the history of every Christian movement, beginning with the ministry of Christ Himself. At first it is welcome to all who have no special reason for opposing it: at this stage he who is not against it is for it. What men notice is its difference from those aspects of the world which they already dislike. But later on, as the real meaning of the Christian claim becomes apparent, its demand for total surrender, the sheer chasm between Nature and Supernature, men are increasingly "offended." Dislike, terror, and finally hatred succeed: none who will not give it what it asks (and it asks all) can endure it: all who are not with it are against it.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) Or else, this is said of those who believe on Him, but nevertheless do not follow Him from the looseness of their lives. Again, it is said of devils, who try to separate all from God, and to disperse His congregation.

By which He shows, that he of whom John had spoken was not so far separated from the fellowship of the disciples, as to reject it, as a heretic, but as men are wont to hang back from receiving the Sacraments of Christ, and yet favour the Christian name, so as even to succour Christians, and do them service only because they are Christians. Of these He says they shall not lose their reward; not that they ought already to think themselves secure on account of this good will which they have towards Christians, without being washed with His baptism, and incorporated in His unity, but that they are already so guided by the mercy of God, as also to attain to these, and thus to go away from this life in security.

For whoever gives you a cup of cold water to drink because you belong to Christ, truly I tell you, he will not lose his reward (Psalm 140). We read in the prophet David: To excuse excuses in sins, that many presented quasi-just excuses for their sins, so that they seem to sin out of necessity what they willfully commit. The Lord, the searcher of hearts and minds, who foresees future thoughts in each individual, had said: Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. Someone could argue and say: I am hindered by poverty, my meager state restrains me so that I cannot practice hospitality. And He dispels this excuse by the simplest precept, that we should wholeheartedly offer a cup of water, and this cold, according to Matthew. He says cold water, not hot, so that the opportunity of poverty and shortage of firewood in heating would not be sought as an excuse. The Apostle instructs similarly to the Galatians: Let him who is taught the word share all good things with him who teaches (Gal. 6). And he encourages disciples towards the refreshment of their teachers. And because anyone could plead poverty and evade the command, he solves the imminent question before proposing it by saying: Do not be deceived; God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows, that he will also reap (Ibid.).

God never asks his servants to do what is impossible. The love and goodness of his Godhead is revealed as richly available. It is poured out like water upon all. God furnishes to each person according to his will the ability to do something good. None of those seeking to be saved will be lacking in this ability, given by the one who said: "whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ, will by no means lose his reward."

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) And that no man may allege poverty, He mentions that, of which none can be destitute, that is, a cup of cold water, for which also he will obtain a reward; for it is not the value of the gift, but the dignity of those who receive it, and the feelings of the giver, which makes a work worthy of reward.

I, He says, not only do not forbid the one who performs miracles in My name, but if anyone gives you anything, even the very least, for My sake and not for the sake of worldly people, even that person will not lose his reward. And He spoke of the cup of water with people in mind who make excuses of poverty. If, He says, you give even a cup of water — and nothing less than this is possible — even this will not be lost to you. Thus, if you honor one of these little ones, you please God; and if you cause one of these little ones to stumble, you have sinned: it would be better for you to have a millstone (a donkey-driven millstone) hung around your neck. By this He expresses that in such a case we shall be subjected to the most severe punishment. The Lord pointed to a physical torment in order to frighten us by this visible example.

Not only will I not forbid him who works miracles in My name, but also whosoever shall give you the smallest thing for My name's sake, and shall receive you, not on account of human and worldly favour, but from love to Me, shall not lose his reward.