St Thomas Sunday

(ubi sup.) This He speaks not from the Deity coeternal with the Father, but from the Humanity which He took upon Him, according to which He was made a little lower than the Angels. (Heb. 2:9.)

(Ver. 18.) And Jesus came to them and spoke, saying: All power has been given to me in heaven and on earth. The power was given to him who was recently crucified, who was buried in a tomb, who had been dead, and who later rose again. Power has been given in heaven and on earth, so that he who previously reigned in heaven may now reign on earth through the faith of believers.

"Jesus approached them and said, 'All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me.' " This authority was given to one who had just been crucified, buried in a tomb, laid dead and afterwards had arisen. Authority was given to him in both heaven and earth so that he who once reigned in heaven might also reign on earth through the faith of his believers.

Power is given to Him, Who but a little before was crucified, Who was buried, but Who afterwards rose again.

Power is given in heaven and in earth, that He who before reigned in heaven, should now reign on earth by the faith of the believers.

What then saith He unto them, when He seeth them? "All power is given unto me in heaven and on earth." Again He speaketh to them more after the manner of man, for they had not yet received the spirit, which was able to raise them on high.

(Serm. 80.) The Son of God conveyed to the Son of the Virgin, the God to the Man, the Deity to the Flesh, that which He had ever together with the Father.

The disciples then, when they saw Him, knew the Lord; and worshipped Him, bowing their faces to the ground. And He their affectionate and merciful Master, that He might take away all doubtfulness from their hearts, coming to them, strengthened them in their belief; as it follows, And Jesus came and spake to them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

What the Psalmist says of the Lord at His rising again, Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands (Ps. 8:6.), this the Lord now says of Himself, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. And here it is to be noted, that even before His resurrection the Angels knew that they were subjected to the man Christ. Christ then desiring that it should be also known to men that all power was committed to Him in heaven and in earth, sent preachers to make known the word of life to all nations; whence it follows, Go ye therefore, and teach all nations.

In which lowering of His condition He received from the Father a dispensation in those very respects which you blame as human; from the very beginning learning, even then, (that state of a) man which He was destined in the end to become. It is He who descends, He who interrogates, He who demands, He who swears.

Jesus said to them, "All authority has been given unto Me in heaven and on earth." This means, "As God and Creator I have always had authority over all things." "For all things are Thy servants," as David says to God (Ps. 118:91). "But I did not yet have man's voluntary submission. Now I shall have this as well. For all things shall be subjected unto Me, since by means of the cross I have conquered him who had the power of death." Submission is of two kinds: the one is involuntary, inasmuch as we are all the servants of God even unwillingly, as are the demons themselves. The other is voluntary, as seen in Paul who voluntarily became a servant of Christ. Formerly it was as if the Saviour had authority over all things in half measure only, that is, He received only the involuntary submission of all. But after the cross, when the knowledge of God has been divulged to all, and all who submitted to Him did so freely of their own will, Christ rightly says, "Now have I received all authority. Previously My authority was in part, as they served Me only involuntarily in that I was their Creator. But now that men serve Me with knowledge as well, total and complete authority has been given unto Me." By whom was it given to Him? By Himself alone and by His own humility. For if He had not humbled Himself and engaged the adversary by means of the cross, He would not have saved us. So the words "Authority has been given unto Me" you must understand as follows: "By My own struggles and fierce contests I have saved mankind who have become My lot and a special people." The Lord, therefore, has authority on earth because all the earth has acknowledged Him; and He has authority in heaven because the reward of those who believe in Him, as well as the place where they shall live, is in the heavens. In yet another sense does He have authority in heaven: since human nature which formerly had been condemned is now fundamentally joined to God the Word, human nature itself sits in heaven and is worshipped by the angels. He rightly says that "All authority has been given unto Me in heaven," for human nature which had formerly been servile, now in Christ rules over all things. Considering both interpretations, then, you may understand Christ's words "All authority has been given unto Me" as follows: taking the words to have been spoken by God the Word, "All authority has been given unto Me in that those who formerly served Me with involuntary submission now also voluntarily acknowledge Me as God." But taking the words to have been spoken by human nature, understand them thus: "I, the human nature that was formerly condemned, am now God because of the unconfused union with the Son of God, and therefore I have received authority over all things, so that I am worshipped by the angels in heaven, and glorified in all the ends of the earth."

And Jesus coming, spoke to them. Here the instruction given by Christ is set forth. And three things are to be considered. First he announces his power; second, he enjoins the office; third, he promises future assistance. The second is at going therefore, teach all nations; the third is at behold I am with you all days. He says therefore and Jesus coming, spoke to them. The disciples were divided, because some held him in reverence, while others doubted; therefore they needed both, namely that he should manifest himself and that he should strengthen them. So he came to the whole people; Isa. 9:2: the people of the Gentiles, that walked in darkness, have seen a great light. Likewise he announced his power: all power is given to me in heaven and in earth. And, as Jerome says, power was given to him who had previously been crucified by the people. The power of God is nothing other than omnipotence; and this was not given to Christ, because it does not befit Christ according to his humanity. But something befits him both according as he is man and according as he is God: hence in Christ, according as he is man, there is knowledge, will, and free choice, and likewise according as he is God. Therefore in Christ there is a twofold will, namely created and uncreated. Hence it can be argued that there is a twofold power, and a twofold knowledge, etc. The question is therefore, why, just as all knowledge is communicated to him, is not omnipotence also? The reason is this. Knowledge and cognition proceed according to an assimilation of the knower to the thing known, because it suffices that the species of the things known be in the knower in some manner, either so that he knows through his essence, or so that they are infused, or so that they are received from things: however they may be, they suffice for knowledge; therefore it is not necessary that the essence be the essence of all things, but that it be capable of receiving all things. But this is to be of infinite receptivity, like prime matter. Active power, however, follows upon act, because to the extent that something is in act, to that extent it has the power to act; therefore whoever has active omnipotence has the power for the act of all things. But this can only be because he has infinite power, which does not befit Christ insofar as he is man, but only insofar as he is God. What then does it mean that all power is given to me in heaven and in earth? It should be noted, according to Hilary, that the giving can be understood either with respect to the divinity, because the Father from eternity communicated his essence to the Son; and because his essence is his power, therefore from eternity he gave his power; or it can also be referred to Christ according to his humanity. But it must be understood that the humanity of Christ received something by the grace of the union, and these are all the things that are proper to God; but it received something consequent upon the union, such as the fullness of grace and things of this kind, which is as it were the effect of the union; John 1:14: we saw him as the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. In all those things, therefore, that are in Christ by the grace of the union, it is not necessary that all things be spoken of according to a duality, but in the other things that are consequent upon it. Hence I say that the power was given, not because another power was given, but it was given insofar as it is united to the Word, as belonging to the Son of God by nature, but to Christ by the grace of the union. But why does he say after the resurrection, all power is given to me, rather than before the resurrection? It must be said that in Scripture something is said to come about when it first becomes known: so therefore before the resurrection his omnipotence was not so manifested, although he possessed it; but then it was most fully manifested, when he was able to convert the whole world. We can also say otherwise, that power signifies a certain honor of authority, as when we speak of men in positions of power; and so power is understood here. Now it is certain that Christ, who from eternity had the kingdom of the world as the Son of God, received the exercise of it from the resurrection; as if to say: now I am in possession. Concerning this it is found in Dan. 7:26: judgment shall sit, that his power may be taken away, and be broken in pieces, and perish even to the end. And that the kingdom, and power, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven may be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all kings shall serve him, and shall obey him. Hence a certain actual authority is understood: as if a son were raised to the exercise of the power which he had by nature; Apoc. 5:12: the Lamb that was slain is worthy to receive power and divinity.

('Beda; in Hom.' non occ.) He who before His Passion had said, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, (Matt. 10:5.) now, when rising from the dead, says, Go and teach all nations. Hereby let the Jews be put to silence, who say that Christ's coming is to be for their salvation only. Let the Donatists also blush, who, desiring to confine Christ to one place, have said that He is in Africa only, and not in other countries.

In order for someone to be baptized truly and fully, there is required the expression of the vocal form instituted by the Lord, which is this: I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen: without omission of any word and without insertion of any word, without transposition of the aforesaid order and without alteration of the prescribed name.

Since the power that restores us is the power of the whole Trinity, which holy mother Church believes in the mind, confesses in word, and professes in sign, under the distinction and property, order and natural origin of the three persons: hence it is that for the expression of these things in the Sacrament which is the first of all Sacraments, and in which this power operates firstly and principally, there ought to be an expression of the Trinity in a distinct, proper, and ordered naming, as regards the common form, although in the time of the primitive Church it could be done in the name of Christ, in which the understanding of the Trinity is enclosed.

There is generation as of a son by his father, and here are present all the aforesaid conditions except one, that of light, which is coeternal duration, and which is to be supposed in the generation of the Son of God. And the name eternal generation is applied to this final instance, the generation of the Son by the Father. And Christ confirmed this very point when He said: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." He did not say, "In the name of light and brightness." These, then, are the eleven stars worshiping Joseph, the most comely son, that is, the eleven noble conditions mentioned above; but the twelfth, eternal coexistence, is found in the Son of God.

The first mode first and principally fixes its gaze upon being itself, saying that He Who Is is the primary name of God. The second mode fixes its gaze upon the good itself, saying that this is the primary name of God. The first pertains especially to the Old Testament, which above all proclaims the unity of the divine essence; whence it was said to Moses: I am who I am; the second pertains to the New, which determines the plurality of persons, baptizing in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Therefore our master Christ, wishing to raise the young man who had kept the Law to evangelical perfection, principally and precisely attributed the name of goodness to God. No one, he said, is good but God alone. Damascene therefore, following Moses, says that He Who Is is the primary name of God; Dionysius, following Christ, says that the good is the primary name of God.

In the New Testament testimony is given, but explicitly, both in Sacraments and in express teachings. For the first of the Sacraments, which is baptism, according to what is written in the last chapter of Matthew, must be performed in the express invocation of the divine Trinity. For there it is said: Teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: on account of which in that foundational Sacrament the character of the Trinity is imprinted.

You know that in space you can move in three ways—to left or right, backwards or forwards, up or down. Every direction is either one of these three or a compromise between them. They are called the three Dimensions. Now notice this. If you are using only one dimension, you could draw only a straight line. If you are using two, you could draw a figure: say, a square. And a square is made up of four straight lines. Now a step further. If you have three dimensions, you can then build what we call a solid body: say, a cube—a thing like a dice or a lump of sugar. And a cube is made up of six squares.

Do you see the point? A world of one dimension would be a straight line. In a two-dimensional world, you still get straight lines, but many lines make one figure. In a three-dimensional world, you still get figures but many figures make one solid body. In other words, as you advance to more real and more complicated levels, you do not leave behind you the things you found on the simpler levels: you still have them, but combined in new ways—in ways you could not imagine if you knew only the simpler levels.

Now the Christian account of God involves just the same principle. The human level is a simple and rather empty level. On the human level one person is one being, and any two persons are two separate beings—just as, in two dimensions (say on a flat sheet of paper) one square is one figure, and any two squares are two separate figures. On the Divine level you still find personalities; but up there you find them combined in new ways which we, who do not live on that level, cannot imagine. In God's dimension, so to speak, you find a being who is three Persons while remaining one Being, just as a cube is six squares while remaining one cube. Of course we cannot fully conceive a Being like that: just as, if we were so made that we perceived only two dimensions in space we could never properly imagine a cube. But we can get a sort of faint notion of it. And when we do, we are then, for the first time in our lives, getting some positive idea, however faint, of something super-personal—something more than a person. It is something we could never have guessed, and yet, once we have been told, one almost feels one ought to have been able to guess it because it fits in so well with all the things we know already.

Go ye, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, speaking indeed of one name, but distinguishing them into three Persons.

Palladius said, 'The soul which is being trained according to the will of Christ should either be earnest in learning what it does not know, or should publicly teach what it does know. If it wants to do neither, though it could, it is mad. The first step on the road away from God is contempt for teaching, that is, not to want to give food to the soul that truly wants it.'

And concerning baptism, thus baptize ye: Having first said all these things, baptize into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in living water. But if thou have not living water, baptize into other water; and if thou canst not in cold, in warm. But if thou have not either, pour out water thrice upon the head into the name of Father and Son and Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let the baptizer fast, and the baptized, and whatever others can; but thou shalt order the baptized to fast one or two days before.

(de Trin. ii. 1 &c.) For what part of the salvation of men is there that is not contained in this Sacrament? All things are full and perfect, as proceeding from Him who is full and perfect. The nature of His relation is expressed in the title Father; but He is nothing but Father; for not after the manner of men does He derive from somewhat else that He is Father, being Himself Unbegotten, Eternal, and having the source of His being in Himself, known to none, save the Son. The Son is the Offspring of the Unbegotten, One of the One, True of the True, Living of the Living, Perfect of the Perfect, Strength of Strength, Wisdom of Wisdom, Glory of Glory; the Image of the Unseen God, the Form of the Unbegotten Father. Neither can the Holy Spirit be separated from the confession of the Father and the Son. And this consolation of our longing desires is absent from no place. He is the pledge of our hope in the effects of His gifts, He is the light of our minds, He shines in our souls. These things as the heretics cannot change, they introduce into them their human explanations. As Sabellius who identifies the Father with the Son, thinking the distinction to be made rather in name than in person, and setting forth one and the same Person as both Father and Son. As Ebion, who deriving the beginning of His existence from Mary, makes Him not Man of God, but God of man. As the Arians, who derive the form, the power, and the wisdom of God out of nothing, and in time. What wonder then that men should have diverse opinions about the Holy Spirit, who thus rashly after their own pleasure create and change the Son, by whom that Spirit is bestowed?

(Verse 19.) Therefore, go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. First they teach all nations, then they immerse the instructed ones in water. For it cannot be that the body receives the sacrament of baptism unless the soul has first embraced the truth with faith. But they are baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, so that there may be one divinity among them, one bestowal: and the name of the Trinity is one God.

" 'Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.' " First they teach all nations; then they baptize those they have taught with water, for the body is not able to receive the sacrament of baptism before the soul has received the truth of the faith. They were baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit so that the three who are one in divinity might also be one in giving themselves. The name of the Trinity is the name of the one God.

They first then teach all nations, and when taught dip them in water. For it may not be that the body receive the sacrament of Baptism, unless the soul first receive the truth of the Faith. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, that they whose Godhead is one should be conferred at once, to name this Trinity, being to name One God.

(Didymi Lib. ii. de Spir. Sanct.) And though some one there may be of so averse a spirit as to undertake to baptize in such sort as to omit one of these names, therein contradicting Christ Who ordained this for a law, his baptism will effect nothing; those who are baptized by him will not be at all delivered from their sins. From these words we gather how undivided is the substance of the Trinity, that the Father is verily the Father of the Son, and the Son verily the Son of the Father, and the Holy Spirit the Spirit of both the Father and the Son, and also the Spirit of wisdom and of truth, that is, of the Son of God. This then is the salvation of them that believe, and in this Trinity is wrought the perfect communication of ecclesiastical discipline.

"Go ye, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you;" giving the one charge with a view to doctrine, the other concerning commandments. And of the Jews He makes no mention, neither brings forward what had been done, nor upbraids Peter with his denial, nor any one of the others with their flight, but having put into their hands a summary of the doctrine, that expressed by the form of baptism, commands them to pour forth over the whole world.

(Serm. 80.) Thus all nations are created a second time to salvation by that one and the same Power, which created them to being.

The Passover affords a more than usually solemn day for baptism; when, withal, the Lord's passion, in which we are baptized, was completed. Nor will it be incongruous to interpret figuratively the fact that, when the Lord was about to celebrate the last Passover, He said to the disciples who were sent to make preparation, "You will meet a man bearing water." He points out the place for celebrating the Passover by the sign of water. After that, Pentecost is a most joyous space for conferring baptisms; wherein, too, the resurrection of the Lord was repeatedly proved among the disciples [Acts 1:3], and the hope of the advent of the Lord indirectly pointed to, in that, at that time, when He had been received back into the heavens [Acts 1:9], the angels told the apostles that "He would so come, as He had withal ascended into the heavens;" [Acts 1:11] at Pentecost, of course. But, moreover, when Jeremiah says, "And I will gather them together from the extremities of the land in the feast-day," he signifies the day of the Passover and of Pentecost, which is properly a "feast-day." However, every day is the Lord's; every hour, every time, is apt for baptism: if there is a difference in the solemnity, distinction there is none in the grace.

Again, in the Pslams, David says: "Bring to God, ye countries of the nations"-undoubtedly because "unto every land" the preaching of the apostles had to "go out" -"bring to God fame and honour; bring to God the sacrifices of His name: take up victims and enter into His courts.

It is only at the last that He instructs them to "go and teach all nations, and baptize them," when they were so soon to receive "the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, who should guide them into all the truth.

Accordingly, after one of these had been struck off, He commanded the eleven others, on His departure to the Father, to "go and teach all nations, who were to be baptized into the Father, and into the Son, and into the Holy Ghost." Immediately, therefore, so did the apostles, whom this designation indicates as "the sent.

Even to the last He taught us (the same truth of His mission), when He sent forth His apostles to preach His gospel "among all nations; " for He thus fulfilled the psalm: "Their sound is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.

For the law of baptizing has been imposed, and the formula prescribed: "Go," He saith, "teach the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." The comparison with this law of that definition, "Unless a man have been reborn of water and Spirit, he shall not enter into the kingdom of the heavens," has tied faith to the necessity of baptism.

He no longer sends His disciples to the Jews alone, but since He has received authority over all, and has sanctified all human nature in Himself, it is right that He sends them to all the nations, commanding the disciples to baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Let Arius then be put to shame because Christ did not say to baptize "in the names," but "in the name," for the name of the Three is one, the Godhead, and the Three are one God. And let Sabellius be put to shame because the Lord spoke of Three Persons, and not, as that man prattles, of one person having three names, at times called the Father, at times, the Son, and at times, the Holy Spirit. But the Three Persons have one Name, which is God.

Going therefore, teach all nations. Here he enjoins the office; and he enjoins a threefold office. First, of teaching; second, of baptizing; third, the office of instructing as regards morals. He says therefore going therefore, teach all nations. And this follows logically; as if to say: all power has been given to me by God, so that not only the Jews but also the Gentiles may be converted to me; therefore, because the time has come, going, teach all nations. John 20:21: as the Father hath sent me, I also send you. And Luke 22:29: I dispose to you, as my Father hath disposed to me, a kingdom. And he says going therefore, teach; because this is the first thing in which one must be instructed, namely in faith, because without faith it is impossible to please God, Heb. 11:6. And from this it became established in the Church that one first catechizes those to be baptized, i.e., instructs them in the faith. And, having received the power, he sends them to all nations; and this is what he says, teach all nations. Isa. 49:6: I have given thee to be the light of the Gentiles, that thou mayst be my salvation even to the farthest part of the earth. And after they have been taught the faith, he gives the office of baptizing. Baptizing them, etc.; as if to say: he who is promoted to a dignity must first be informed of the dignity, so that reverence may be had for him afterwards. Gal. 3:27: as many of you as have been baptized in Christ have put on Christ. But what is the form of Baptism? In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. In Christ there are two things, humanity and divinity. The humanity is the way, not the end; John 14:6: I am the way, the truth, and the life: the truth, as the end of the contemplative life; the life, as the end of the active life. I do not will that you remain in the way, namely in the humanity, but that you pass beyond to the divinity. Therefore it was necessary that two things be signified, the humanity and the divinity. Through Baptism, the humanity; Rom. 6:4: for we are buried together with him by Baptism into death. And through the form of the words, the divinity, so that sanctification is through the divinity. And therefore he says in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And the reason is that through Baptism regeneration takes place, and in regeneration three things are required. First, to whom it is made; second, through whom; third, by what means. To whom, namely to God the Father, as the Apostle says in Rom. 8:29: whom he foreknew, he also predestinated to be made conformable to the image of his Son. And John 1:12: he gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in his name. Through whom, because through the Son; Gal. 4:4: God sent his Son (...) that we might receive the adoption of sons, because through adoption we are sons in relation to the natural Son. Likewise, by what means, because we have received the gift of the Holy Spirit; Rom. 8:15: you have not received the spirit of bondage again in fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption of sons of God. Therefore it was necessary to make mention of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And these were present in Christ's Baptism, because there was the Son through whom, the Father from whom, and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. And he says in the name, i.e., in the invocation of the name, or in the power of the name, because it has power; Jer. 14:9: thou, O Lord, art among us, and thy name is called upon us; forsake us not. Likewise he says in the name, not 'in the names,' and the heresies are confounded which do not posit a distinction in that he says in the name of the Father and of the Son. But Arius is confounded by the fact that he says in the singular, in the name. It should be noted that in the primitive Church baptism was administered in the name of Christ, and this was so that the name might be made venerable. But would it suffice now? I believe not, because the explicit invocation of the Trinity is required. In Christ the Trinity is implicitly contained. So therefore he leads them to be instructed for Baptism. But against this, the Apostle says that God sent him not to baptize, but to evangelize; but to baptize through others, just as Christ did not baptize, but his disciples.

('Beda in Hom.' non occ.) It is made a question how He says here, I am with you, John 16:5. when we read elsewhere that He said, I go unto him that sent me. What is said of His human nature is distinct from what is said of His divine nature. He is going to His Father in His human nature, He abides with His disciples in that form in which He is equal with the Father. When He says, to the end of the world, He expresses the infinite by the finite; for He who remains in this present world with His elect, protecting them, the same will continue with them after the end, rewarding them.

Because it accords with the time of grace that the Sacrament of communion and love should not merely signify communion and love, but also inflame unto the same; and because that which most inflames us to mutual love and most unites the members is the unity of the Head, from whom through the diffusive, unitive, and transformative power of love mutual love flows into us: hence it is that in this Sacrament of the Eucharist is contained the true body of Christ and immaculate flesh, as diffusing itself to us and uniting us to one another and transforming us into itself through the most ardent charity, by which he gave himself to us and offered himself for us and restored himself to us and remains with us even unto the end of the world.

"These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you." When would He not abide with them, who, about to ascend to heaven, promises, saying: "Behold, I am with you all days even to the consummation of the world"? But the incarnate Word both abides and departs: He departs in body, He abides in divinity. He declares therefore that He then abided with them, because He who was always present by invisible power was already departing from corporeal sight.

(Verse 20) Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. The main order: He commanded the apostles to first teach all nations, then to immerse them in the sacrament of faith, and after faith and baptism, to command what should be observed. And lest we think that what has been commanded is light and few, he added: All things whatsoever I have commanded you. So that whoever believes, who has been baptized in the Trinity, may do all the things that are commanded.

And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age. He who promises to be with his disciples until the end of the age, and shows them that they will always be victorious, and that he will never leave those who believe in him. But he who promises his presence until the end of the world, does not ignore the day when he knows he will be with the apostles.

" 'Teach them to observe all that I have commanded you.' " What a marvelous sequence this is. He commanded the apostles first to teach all nations and then to baptize them in the sacrament of faith and then, after faith and baptism, to teach them to observe all that he had commanded. Lest we think these commandments of little consequence or few in number, he added "all that I have commanded you," so that those who were to believe and be baptized in the Trinity would observe everything they had been taught.

Observe the order of these injunctions. He bids the Apostles first to teach all nations, then to wash them with the sacrament of faith, and after faith and baptism then to teach them what things they ought to observe; Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.

He then who promises that He will be with His disciples to the end of the world, shows both that they shall live for ever, and that He will never depart from those that believe.

And with regard to our having Him really always with us, He saith, "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." From all which it is evident, that for no other object was this said, but that the rebuke of the disciples might not wither the faith of the woman, just then budding.

After that, because he had enjoined on them great things, to raise their courage, He says, "Lo! I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." Seest thou His own proper power again? Seest thou how those other things also were spoken for condescension? And not with those men only did He promise to be, but also with all that believe after them. For plainly the apostles were not to remain here unto "the end of the world;" but he speaks to the believers as to one body. For tell me not, saith He, of the difficulty of the things: for "I am with you," who make all things easy. This He said to the prophets also in the Old Testament continually, as well to Jeremiah objecting his youth, as to Moses and Ezekiel shrinking from the office, "I am with you," this here also to these men. And mark, I pray thee, the excellence of these, for the others, when sent to one nation, often excused themselves, but these said nothing of the sort, though sent to the world. And He reminds them also of the consummation, that He may draw them on more, and that they may look not at the present dangers only, but also at the good things to come that are without end.

"For the irksome things, saith He, that ye will undergo are finished together with the present life, since at least even this world itself shall come to an end, but the good things which ye shall enjoy remain immortal, as I have often told you before." Thus having invigorated and roused their minds, by the remembrance of that day, He sent them forth. For that day to them that live in good works is to be desired, even as on the other hand to those in sin, it is terrible as to the condemned.

(Serm. 72. 3.) For by ascending into heaven He does not desert His adopted; but from above strengthens to endurance, those whom He invites upwards to glory. Of which glory may Christ make us partakers, Who is the King of glory, God blessed for ever, AMEN.

For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. (James 2:26.)

Hence we understand that to the end of the world shall not be wanting those who shall be worthy of the Divine indwelling.

Because it is not sufficient only to be baptized, but one must also labor to do good after his baptism, Christ then says, "Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you; not just two or three, but all My commandments." Let us tremble then, brethren, when we realize that if even one thing is lacking in us, we are not perfect servants of Christ, for we are required to keep all the commandments. See that the Lord's words contain those two essentials of Christianity: theology and active virtue. For by saying that it is necessary to baptize in the name of the Trinity, He handed down to us theology. And by saying that it is also necessary to teach the keeping of the commandments, He guides us in the way of active virtue. Since He is sending them out among the Gentiles to face death and danger, He gives them courage by saying, "Fear not, for I will be with you until the end of the age." See also how He mentioned the end so as to arouse in them disdain for these calamities. Do not be downcast, He says, for all things will have an end, both worldly sorrows and worldly joys. Do not be oppressed by sorrows for they will pass, and do not be deceived by good things, for they, too, will come to an end. His promise to be with them was not made only to the apostles, but to all His disciples. For of course the apostles would not live unto the end. He makes this promise even to us, and to those after us, not that He would be with us until the end, and then after the end He would depart from us - far from it! For it is rather from that moment on that He will be with us ever more clearly and distinctly. For the word "until," wherever it occurs in Scripture, does not exclude the things that come after. Giving thanks, therefore, to the Lord Who is with us here, and provides us with every good thing, and again will be with us more perfectly after the end, here let us end the explanation. For to Him is due all thanksgiving, glory, and honor unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. But does it suffice for salvation to believe and to be baptized? No; rather, instruction in morals is also required; therefore he says teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. Ps. 118:4: thou hast commanded thy commandments to be kept most diligently. And he says whatsoever I have commanded, not 'what I have counseled.' Hence above, 10:27: what I say to you, I say to all. Then he sets forth the third point: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world. Here he promises assistance; and it answers those who say: you command us to teach all men, but we are not sufficient. Do not fear, because I am with you. And note that just as the commandment is set forth as passing to all, so also the assistance; because he promises it to the apostles and to others carrying out a similar task. Hence he himself, praying to the Father, says: and not for them only do I pray, namely the disciples, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me. Hence he promises to all in common; John 14:12: he that believeth in me, the works that I do, he also shall do, and greater than these shall he do. Likewise, for all time; hence he says all days, even to the consummation of the world. He does not say this as though after that he would not be with us, except until the consummation of the world, but because then we will be in consummation in glory; Apoc. 21:3: behold the tabernacle of God with men, and he will dwell with them. And they shall be his people, and God himself with them shall be their God. Hence also in Isa. 7:14 it is said that his name shall be called Emmanuel, which is interpreted 'God with us,' even to the consummation of the world; as if to say: the generation of the faithful is stronger than the world. For the world will not perish until all things are accomplished, i.e., until the Church of the faithful is consummated and the number of the elect is completed by God, unto life everlasting, to whom is honor and power through infinite ages of ages. Amen.

But since you have repeatedly asked me what I thought about the resurrection of bodies and the future functions of the members in that incorruptibility and immortality, listen briefly to what could with the Lord's help be further discussed. We must hold most firmly that point on which the statement of the holy Scripture is truthful and clear, namely, that these visible and earthly bodies that are now called natural will be spiritual in the resurrection of the faithful and righteous. But I do not know how the character of a spiritual body, unknown as it is to us, can be either comprehended or taught. Certainly there will be no corruption in them, and for this reason they will not then need this corruptible food that they now need. They will, nonetheless, be able to take and really consume such food, not out of need. Otherwise, the Lord would not have taken food after his resurrection. And he offered us an example of bodily resurrection so that the apostle says of him, "If the dead will not rise, neither has Christ risen." When he appeared with all the members of his body and used their functions, he also displayed the places of his wounds. I have always taken these as scars, not as actual wounds, and saw them as the result of his power, not of some necessity. He revealed the ease of this power, especially when he either showed himself in another form or appeared as his real self to the disciples gathered in the house when the doors were closed.

"Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples, I have seen the Lord, and He hath spoken these things unto me. Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus, and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when He had so said, He showed unto them His hands and His side." For nails had pierced His hands, a spear had laid open His side: and there the marks of the wounds are preserved for healing the hearts of the doubting. But the shutting of doors presented no obstacle to the matter of His body, wherein Godhead resided. He indeed could enter without their being opened, by whose birth the virginity of His mother remained inviolate.

(Serm. cx. et cl. Pasch. aliquid simile.) Some are strongly indisposed to believe this miracle, and argue thus: If the same body rose again, which hung upon the Cross, how could that body enter through shut doors? But if thou comprehendest the mode, it is no miracle: when reason fails, then is faith edified.

(Tr. cxx) The shut door did not hinder the body, wherein Divinity resided. He could enter without open doors, who was born without a violation of His mother's virginity.

Wherein is shown the infirmity of the Apostles. They assembled with doors shut, through that same fear of the Jews, which had before scattered them: Came Jesus, and stood in the midst. He came in the evening, because they would be the most afraid at that time.

Concerning this central position, John writes: "When it was late, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, 'Peace be to you!'" He is showing two things here, the loftiness of the state of glory, in that, being impassible and immortal, He entered as God while the doors were closed; later, He showed them His hands and side and forced Thomas to confess: "My Lord and my God!" Consider the progression. First He entered as God while the doors were closed: this is the major proposition. Then He proposed the minor by showing them His hands and His side. Finally, He wrested out the conclusion so that Thomas confessed: "My Lord and my God!"

When therefore it was late that day. Above he treated the manifestation of the Lord made to the women; here he treats the manifestation made to the disciples. And there are in this part three sections according to three manifestations, which are distinguished with respect to the mode of manifesting and with respect to the reason: with respect to mode, for the first is through sight, the second through touch, the third through taste; for first he showed himself, second, he offered himself to be touched, third, he ate. With respect to the reason also for manifesting: for the first was to remove the unbelief of all the disciples; the second, to remove the unbelief of Thomas; the third, however, for the confirmation of love in Peter.

First, therefore, is touched upon the gathering of the disciples, which was both on account of the time, because it was late, and on account of the Jews, who were persecuting them: therefore he says: When therefore it was late that day, namely the Lord's day, on which he appeared to Magdalene, the first of the Sabbaths, because in those days the Jews were keeping the sabbath, eating unleavened bread; and the doors were shut, for their protection, whence: where the disciples were gathered together for fear of the Jews: therefore they had come together in one place with the doors shut, and through this they were worthy for the Lord to appear to them, according to that saying in Matthew 18: "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them."

When they were thus, Jesus came and stood in the midst. Here is noted the appearance of the Lord: therefore he stood in the midst, so that he might be seen by all: therefore he stood in the midst, to show that he is the Mediator and Reconciler: above in chapter 1: "But there has stood in the midst of you one whom you do not know," was said to the Jews. For he himself, as is said in Ephesians 2, "is our peace, who has made both one."

And he said to them: Peace be to you. Here is noted the gracious address, in which address he strengthened them; whence in the last chapter of Luke: "He said to them: Peace be to you; it is I, do not be afraid." Whence Chrysostom: "By his voice he steadied their wavering mind, saying: Peace be to you: that is, do not be troubled"; in the last chapter of Philippians: "The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts."

You ask me and say, If he entered through closed doors, where is the bulk of his body? And I reply, If he walked on the sea, where was the weight of his body? But he [walked on the sea] as the Lord. Did he, then, because he arose, cease to be the Lord? What about the fact that he also made Peter walk upon the sea? What divinity could do in the one, faith fulfilled in the other. Christ was able to do it, and Peter could because Christ willed it. Therefore, when you begin to examine the reasonableness of miracles by your human senses, fear that you may lose your faith. Do you not know that nothing is impossible for God? So when anyone tells you, If he entered through closed doors there was no body, answer him on the contrary, No, if he was touched there was body, and if he ate there was a body. The one thing he did by a miracle, the other by nature.

On the selfsame day on which He had appeared unto Mary, and discoursed with her, He also showed Himself to the holy disciples, who dreaded the intolerable attacks of the impious Jews, and were, on that account, collected together in a certain house. For it was not likely that they who had been so instructed, and had often been bidden to make haste to escape from the wrath of their would-be murderers, would be found lacking in proper prudence. Christ miraculously appears unto them. For while the doors were shut, as the Apostle says, Christ unexpectedly stood in the midst, by His ineffable Divine power rising superior to the chain of cause and effect, and showing Himself able to dispense with the design and method appropriate to His action. For let no man say, "How did the Lord, Whose Body was of solid Flesh, enter without let or hindrance, though the doors were shut?" but rather let him reflect that the Evangelist is not here speaking of one of ourselves, but rather of Him Who is enthroned by the side of God the Father, and Who easily doth whatsoever He will. For He that was by Nature the true God, was of necessity not subject unto the sequences of cause and effect, as are the creatures that owe their being to Him; but rather does He exercise Lordship over necessity itself, and due and appropriate methods of performance. For how did He make the sea afford a footing unto His Feet, and walk thereon as upon dry land, though we are not so framed that we can tread upon the paths of the sea? And how did He perform the rest of His marvellous works with God-like power? All these things, you will say, surpass man's understanding. Put this miracle of Christ side by side with the rest, and do not, following the opinion of certain men, who, in the folly of their hearts, have been led astray to judge falsely, imagine on account of this very occurrence that Christ rose again without His human Body, wholly bereft thereof, and severed from the Temple that He had taken on Himself. For if thou canst not understand the working of God's ineffable Nature, why dost thou not rather cry out against the infirmity of man's reason ----for that would be the wiser course----and then silently acquiesce in the limit prescribed to you by the Creator? For in rejecting the conclusion of wisdom, thou doest |667 wrong to the great mystery of the Resurrection, on which all our reliance is fixed. For remember the exclamation of Paul: If the dead are not raised, neither hath Christ been raised: and if Christ hath not been raised, your faith is vain, and ye are yet in your sins. And again: Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we witnessed of God that He raised up Christ: Whom He raised not up, if so be that the dead are not raised. For what can be raised up save that which is fallen? or what restored to life, save that which is bowed down in death? And how shall we expect to rise again, if so be that Christ raised not up His own Temple, making Himself, for us, the Firstfruits of them which are asleep, and the Firstborn from the dead? Or how shall this mortal put on immortality, if, as some think, it be lost in total annihilation? For how shall it escape this fate if it have no hope of a new life? Do not, then, swerve from orthodoxy in the faith, because a miracle was accomplished; but rather be wise, and add this to the other marvellous works that Christ did.

For observe how, by unexpectedly entering when the doors were shut, Christ showed, once more, that He was by Nature God, and no other than He Who had erewhile dwelt among them; and also, by laying bare the wounded Side of His Body, and by showing the print of the nails, He gave us complete satisfaction that He had raised that Temple of His Body which had hung upon the Cross, and had restored to life that Body which He had worn, thereby subduing death, which is due to all flesh, inasmuch as He was by Nature Life and God. What need, then, was there for Him to show them His Hands and Side, if, as some perversely think, He did not rise again with His Body? And, if He wished His disciples not to entertain this idea concerning Him, why did He not rather appear in another form, and, disdaining the likeness of flesh, conjure up other thoughts in their minds'? But, as it is, He thought it of so great importance that they should be convinced of the Resurrection of His Body, that, when the time even seemed to call Him to change His Body into some form of ineffable and surpassing Majesty, He resolved in His Providence to appear once more as He had been of old, that He might not be thought to be wearing any other form than that in which also He had suffered crucifixion. For that our eyes could not have endured the glory of the holy Body, if Christ had chosen to reveal it unto the disciples before He ascended to the Father, is easily to be inferred, when we reflect upon His transfiguration on the Mount before the holy disciples. For the blessed Matthew the Evangelist writes, that Jesus took Peter, and James, and John, and went up into the mountain, and was transfigured before them: and His Face did shine as lightning, and His garments became white as snow, and they could not endure the sight, but fell on their faces. Very appropriately, then, our Lord Jesus Christ, as He had not yet transformed the Temple of His Body into its due and proper majesty, still appeared in His original shape, not wishing the belief in the Resurrection to be transferred to another form or body than that which He had received from the Holy Virgin, in which also He was crucified, and died, according to the Scripture, the power of death extending only over Flesh, from which also it was driven forth. For if His Body, after death, did not rise again, what sort of death was vanquished, and in what way was the power of corruption weakened? For it could not be by the death of a single rational being, or soul, or angel, or even the very Word of God. When, then, the power of death has reference only to that which is doomed by nature to corruption, with this it is that the power of the Resurrection is concerned, and with this alone, in order that the dominion of the lord of this world might be taken away. The entry of our Lord through the closed doors must be classed, by men of wisdom, with the other miracles that He wrought. He then greeted His holy disciples. Peace be unto you, He says; meaning by peace, Himself. For while Christ is present among men it follows that the tranquillity of their minds is assured unto them. Paul also declared that this boon is granted to those who believe on Him, when he says: The peace of Christ, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts; meaning by the peace of Christ which passeth all understanding nothing else than His Spirit, of Which if any man partake he shall be filled with everything that is good.

By his unexpected entry through closed doors Christ proved once more that by nature he was God and also that he was none other than the one who had lived among them. By showing his wounded side and the marks of the nails, he convinced us beyond a doubt that he had raised the temple of his body, the very body that had hung on the cross. He restored that body that he had worn, destroying death's power over all flesh, for as God, he was life itself. Why would he need to show them his hands and side if, as some perversely think, he did not rise again bodily? And if the goal was not to have the disciples think about him in this way, why not appear in another form and, disdaining any likeness of the flesh, conjure up other thoughts in their minds? But he obviously thought it was that important to convince them of the resurrection of his body that, even when events would have seemed to call for him to change the mode of his body into some more ineffable and surpassing majesty, he nonetheless resolved in his providence to appear once more as he had been in the past [i.e., in the flesh] so that they might realize he was wearing no other form than the one in which he had suffered crucifixion. Our eyes could not have endured the glory of his holy body, if he had chosen to reveal it to his disciples before he ascended to the Father. Anyone who reflects on the transfiguration will easily infer this is the case.… since, it says, they could not endure the sight but fell on their faces.

When Christ greeted his holy disciples with the words "peace be with you," by peace he meant himself, for Christ's presence always brings tranquility of soul. This is the grace Paul desired for believers when he wrote, "The peace of Christ which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds." The peace of Christ which passes all understanding is in fact the Spirit of Christ, who fills those who share in him with every blessing.

He did not remain in death's power. The wounds that his body had received from the iron of the nails and spear offered no impediment to his rising again. After his resurrection he showed himself whenever he wanted to his disciples. When he wished to be present with them, he was in their midst without being seen, needing no entrance through open doors.… All of these occurrences, and whatever other similar facts we know about his life, require no further argument to show that they are signs of deity and of a sublime and supreme power.

The first question of this Gospel reading strikes the mind: how was the Lord's body truly real after the resurrection, if it could enter to the disciples through closed doors? But we must understand that if divine operation is comprehended by reason, it is not wondrous; nor does faith have merit when human reason provides proof. But these very works of our Redeemer, which cannot at all be understood from themselves, must be weighed by another of his operations, so that more wondrous deeds may lend credence to wondrous things. For that body of the Lord entered to the disciples through closed doors—the same body which, at his birth, came forth to human eyes from the closed womb of the Virgin. What wonder is it then if, after his resurrection, he who will now live forever entered through closed doors, when he who came to die went forth from the Virgin's unopened womb?

Since then it was likely that the disciples on hearing these things would either not believe the woman, or, believing, would grieve that He had not deemed them worthy of the vision, though He promised to meet them in Galilee; in order that they might not by dwelling on this be unsettled, He let not a single day pass, but having brought them to a state of longing, by their knowledge that He was risen, and by what they heard from the woman, when they were thirsting to see Him, and were greatly afraid, (which thing itself especially made their yearning greater,) He then, when it was evening, presented Himself before them, and that very marvelously. And why did He appear in the "evening"? Because it was probable that they would then especially be very fearful. But the marvel was, why they did not suppose Him to be an apparition; for He entered, "when the doors were shut," and suddenly. The chief cause was, that the woman beforehand had wrought great faith in them; besides, He showed His countenance to them dear and mild. He came not by day, in order that all might be collected together. For great was the amazement; for neither did He knock at the door but all at once stood in the midst, and showed His side and His hands. At the same time also by His Voice He smoothed their tossing thought, by saying, "Peace be unto you." That is, "Be not troubled"; at the same time reminding them of the word which He spake to them before the Crucifixion, "My peace I leave unto you"; and again, "In me ye have peace, but in the world ye shall have tribulation."

Through his greeting of peace he breathes on them and bestows tranquility as well as a sharing in the Holy Spirit.

It was evening more by grief than by time. It was evening for minds darkened by the somber cloud of grief and sadness because although the report of the resurrection had given the slight glimmer of twilight, nevertheless the Lord had not yet shone through with his light in all its brilliance.

The extent of their terror and the disquiet caused by such an atrocity had simultaneously locked the house and the hearts of the disciples and had so completely prevented light from having any access that for their senses, overwhelmed more and more by grief, the murkiness of night increased and became more pervasive. No darkness of night can be compared with the gloom of grief and fear because they are incapable of being tempered by any light of either consolation or counsel.

When Mary announced this to the disciples, it was natural that they either did not believe her, or, having believed, regretted that they were not deemed worthy to see Him themselves. Therefore He appears to them on that very day, since they, on the one hand, having heard from the woman that He had risen, thirsted to see Him themselves, and on the other hand, feared the Jews and for that reason desired all the more to see this sole consolation for them. He comes "in the evening" so that they would have time to gather all together. He comes "when the doors were shut" in order to show that He also rose in the same way, when the stone lay upon the tomb. One might wonder how they did not take Him for a ghost? But first of all, the woman who had preceded them produced in them a strong faith. Then, He appeared to them in a gentle form and by His very voice calmed their troubled thoughts, saying "Peace to you," that is, do not be troubled. By this He reminds them of the word which He said to them before His suffering: "My peace I give to you" (John 14:27). It is worth knowing why He appears to the disciples not in Galilee, but in Jerusalem. For Matthew (Matt. 26:32) and Mark (Mark 14:28) say that He promised to see them in Galilee. How then does He appear in Jerusalem? Some answer: "So what? He did not say that I will see you only in Galilee and not in Jerusalem. Therefore, this is an abundance of love, not an occasion for accusation of falsehood." Then one can say that He promises to appear in Galilee to all the disciples, but in Jerusalem He appeared only to those belonging to the Twelve. Thus, there is no disagreement here. For in Galilee He appeared to all, and in Jerusalem to the Twelve. And since the appearances were many, some evangelists described some appearances, and others described others. Sometimes two evangelists also report the same thing, but what one has said in abbreviated form, the other supplements.

Or because He waited till all were assembled: and with shut doors, that he might show how that in the very same way he had risen again, i. e. with the stone lying on the scpulchre.

2523 Having described how Christ appeared to the holy women, the Evangelist now tells of his appearance to the apostles: first, his appearance at Jerusalem before all except Thomas; secondly, his appearance when Thomas was present (v 26); thirdly, the events near the Sea of Tiberias (ch 21). Three things are done regarding the first: first, we see our Lord appear; secondly, we see a duty imposed on the apostles, I send you; thirdly, our Lord gives them a spiritual gift, Receive the Holy Spirit. He does three things about the first: he mentions the circumstances of Christ's appearance; secondly, the details of the appearance, (v 19); thirdly, the result of this, the disciples were glad.

The Evangelist mentions four circumstances in our Lord's appearance to the disciples. First, he mentions the time of day, on the evening; secondly, what day it was, of that day, thirdly, the condition of the place, the doors being shut; and fourthly, the state of the disciples, where the disciples were gathered together for fear of the Jews.

2524 The time of our Lord's appearance was in the evening; and there were two literal reasons for this. First, he wanted to appear when they were all together; consequently, he waited until evening, so that those who had been at various places during the day would be found together in the evening, when they gathered together. Secondly, our Lord appeared to strengthen and comfort them. And so he chose a time when they would be more afraid and in need of comfort and strength; this was in the evening: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Ps 46:1).

There is also a mystical reason: for at the end of the world our Lord will appear to the faithful in the middle of the night when the cry is heard that the bridegroom is coming to reward them. "And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to the steward, 'Call the laborers and pay them their wages' (Mt 20:8).

2525 The day Christ appeared was the very day on which he arose, for it was the evening of that day, the first day of the week, Sunday. We saw this day mentioned in (20:1).

From the Gospels we can see that our Lord appeared five times on that day: Once to Magdalene alone (which we just considered v 14), and again to her when she was returning to the disciples with the other women, when they approached and held our Lord's feet [Mt 28:9]. The third time was to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Lk 24:13). The fourth time was to Simon Peter; but how, when or where he appeared we do not know, but just that he appeared: "The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon" (Lk 24:34). The fifth time was when he appeared to all the disciples together in the evening, as John mentions here (v 19).

This is the reason why we sing: "This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Ps 118:24). We can also understand from these events that on the day of the general resurrection Christ will appear openly to all women, sinners, pilgrims, apostles and apostolic men, because "Every eye will see him, every one who pierced him" (Rev 1:7).

2526 The place is described as having the doors shut. The literal reason for this being that it was late, during the night, and also for fear of the Jews. From Christ's point of view the doors were shut so he could show them his power by entering through closed doors.

2527 Regarding this point, some say that to enter through closed doors is a property of the glorified body. They say that due to some inherent property in a glorified body, it can be simultaneously present in the same place as another body. Thus, this is accomplished without a miracle. But this position cannot stand, for the fact that a non‑glorified human body cannot be simultaneously in the same place as another body is due to its very nature. Consequently, if the glorified body has an inherent ability to be in a place occupied at the same time by another body, it must be because it lacks the property which now prevents this in the case of a non‑glorified body. But this latter property cannot be separated or destroyed from a body, since it is not a mathematical bulk, as they say, but the very dimensions of the quantified body through which it has a local position. Thus the Philosopher, when he argues against those who posit ideas and matter, asserts that even on the assumption that the entire region above the earth is a vacuum, no sense‑perceptible body could exist there in the same place as another body because of their quantitative dimensions. Now no property of a glorified body can remove the dimensions from a body and have it still remain a body. Thus we should say that Christ did this miraculously, by the power of his divinity, and that whenever something similar happens with the saints, it is miraculous and requires a new miracle. Augustine and Gregory teach this explicitly. Augustine says: "Do you want to know how Christ could enter through closed doors? If you understood how, it would not be a miracle. Where reason falls, faith instructs." And he adds: "He was able to enter with the doors shut, who was born without his mother's virginity being taken away." So, just as Christ's leaving the womb of his virgin mother was a miracle of his divine power, so was his entering through closed doors.

2528 In the mystical interpretation we can understand that Christ appears to us when our doors, that is, our external senses, are closed in prayer: "But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door" (Mt 6:6). It is also a reminder that at the end of the world those who are prepared will be admitted to the marriage feast, and then the door will be shut (Mt 25:10).

2529 We should imitate the conduct of the apostles, for they are described as gathered together. This too is not without its mystery: for Christ came when they were united together, and the Holy Spirit descended on them when they were united together, because Christ and the Holy Spirit are present only to those who are united in charity: "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Mt 18:20).

2530 Now three things are mentioned about the appearance of Christ: the way he showed himself; the greeting he gave them; and the way he gave them definite evidence of his real presence.

2531 Christ showed that he was present with them beyond any doubt because Jesus came and stood among them. Jesus came, personally, as he had promised: "I go away, and I will come to you" (14:28). And he stood among them, so that each one could recognize him with certainty. Thus the Jews who did not know him are blamed "Among you stands one whom you do not know" (1:26). Again, Jesus stood among them, the disciples, to show that he was human like them: "with a garland of brethren around him, he was like a young cedar on Lebanon" (Sir 50:12). Again, he stood among them, lowering himself, for he lived among them as one of them: "If they make you master of the feast, do not exalt yourself; be among them as one of them" (Sir 32:1); "I am among you as one who serves" (Lk 22:27). Also, he wanted to show that we ought to stand among the virtues: "This is the way, walk in it; do not turn asde to the right or to the left" [Is 30:21]. One who goes beyond the middle road of virtue goes to the right; one who falls short of the middle road goes to the left.

2532 He greets them with the words, Peace be with you. It was necessary to say this because their peace was disturbed in many ways. Their peace with God was troubled; they had sinned against him, some by denying him, others by running away: "You will all fall away because of me this night; for it is written, 'I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered'" (Mt 26:31). To cure this Jesus offers them the peace of reconciliation with God: "We were reconciled to God by the death of his Son" (Rom 5:10), which he accomplished by his suffering. Their peace with themselves was disturbed because they were depressed and hesitant in their faith. And he offers his peace to cure this: "Great peace have those who love your law" (Ps 119:165). Their peace with others was disturbed because they were being persecuted by the Jews. And to this he says, Peace be with you, to counter the persecution of the Jews: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you" (14:27).

"As the Father hath sent me," He adds, "even so send I you." We know the Son to be equal to the Father; but here we recognize the words of the Mediator. For He exhibits Himself as occupying a middle position when He says, He me, and I you.

(Tr. cxxi) We have learnt that the Son is equal to the Father: here He shows Himself Mediator; He Me, and I you.

A repetition is a confirmation: whether He repeats it because the grace of love is twofold, or because He it is who made of twain one.

He said therefore to them again. Here, consequent upon the manifestation, the mission of the disciples is touched upon, in which the Evangelist indicates three things that the Lord conferred upon the disciples being sent, namely fitness, authority and power: fitness, when he granted peace: whence he says: He said therefore to them again: Peace be to you, that is, tranquility, without which no one is fit to be sent to persecutions. Whence Chrysostom: "Because they had an unconquerable battle against the Jews, therefore he says again: Peace be to you, giving consolation equal to the battle." He also conferred authority, when he sends them: whence he says: As the Father sent me, I also send you, that is, just as I did not come of myself, but was sent, and therefore came with authority: so I send you, giving you authority: whence Romans 10: "How shall they preach unless they are sent?" Whence also Isaiah, chapter 6, sought this authority when he said: "Here am I, Lord; send me"; on the contrary, concerning the false prophets, Jeremiah 23: "They ran, and I did not send them; I did not speak to them," etc. He also conferred power, when he bestowed the Holy Spirit.

But it is manifest where and by whom remission of sins can be given; to wit, that which is given in baptism. For first of all the Lord gave that power to Peter, upon whom He built the Church, and whence He appointed and showed the source of unity-the power, namely, that whatsoever he loosed on earth should be loosed in heaven. And after the resurrection, also, He speaks to the apostles, saying, "As the Father hath sent me, even so I send you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith, unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained." Whence we perceive that only they who are set over the Church and established in the Gospel law, and in the ordinance of the Lord, are allowed to baptize and to give remission of sins; but that without, nothing can either be bound or loosed, where there is none who can either bind or loose anything.

For since in baptism every one has his own sins remitted, the Lord proves and declares in His Gospel that sins can only be put away by those who have the Holy Spirit. For after His resurrection, sending forth His disciples, He speaks to them, and says, "As the Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose soever sins ye remit, they shall be remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they shall be retained." In which place He shows, that he alone can baptize and give remission of sins who has the Holy Spirit. Moreover, John, who was to baptize Christ our Lord Himself, previously received the Holy Ghost while he was yet in his mother's womb, that it might be certain and manifest that none can baptize save those who have the Holy Spirit. Therefore those who patronize heretics or schismatics must answer us whether they have or have not the Holy Ghost. If they have, why are hands imposed on those who are baptized among them when they come to us, that they may receive the Holy Ghost, since He must surely have been received there, where if He was He could be given? But if heretics and schismatics baptized without have not the Holy Spirit, and therefore hands are imposed on them among us, that here may be received what there neither is nor can be given; it is plain, also, that remission of sins cannot be given by those who, it is certain, have not the Holy Spirit. And therefore, in order that, according to the divine arrangement and the evangelical truth, they may be able to obtain remission of sins, and to be sanctified, and to become temples of God, they must all absolutely be baptized with the baptism of the Church who come from adversaries and antichrists to the Church of Christ.

If any one consider and examine these things, there is no need for lengthened discussion and arguments. There is easy proof for faith in a short summary of the truth. The Lord speaks to Peter, saying, "I say unto thee, that thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound also in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." And again to the same He says, after His resurrection, "Feed nay sheep." And although to all the apostles, after His resurrection, He gives an equal power, and says, "As the Father hath sent me, even so send I you: Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they shall be remitted unto him; and whose soever sins ye retain, they shall be retained; " yet, that He might set forth unity, He arranged by His authority the origin of that unity, as beginning from one. Assuredly the rest of the apostles were also the same as was Peter, endowed with a like partnership both of honour and power; but the beginning proceeds from unity. Which one Church, also, the Holy Spirit in the Song of Songs designated in the person of our Lord, and says, "My dove, my spotless one, is but one. She is the only one of her mother, elect of her that bare her." Does he who does not hold this unity of the Church think that he holds the faith? Does he who strives against and resists the Church trust that he is in the Church, when moreover the blessed Apostle Paul teaches the same thing, and sets forth the sacrament of unity, saying, "There is one body and one spirit, one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God?"

Hereby our Lord Jesus Christ ordained the disciples to be guides and teachers of the world, and to be ministers of His Divine mysteries, and also bade them, for the time was now come, like lights to illuminate and enlighten, not merely the country of Judaea, according to the limit of the commandment of the Law, which extended from Dan even unto Beersheba, according to the Scripture, but rather also all under the sun, and men scattered throughout all lands, wheresoever they dwelt. The saying of Paul, therefore, is true: No man taketh the honour unto himself, but he that is called of God. For our Lord Jesus Christ called into His most glorious apostleship, before all others, His own disciples, and firmly fixed the whole earth, which was well-nigh tottering and in the act of falling, pointing out, as God, men to be props thereof who were well able to support it. Therefore, also, He thus spake by the mouth of the Psalmist, concerning the earth and the Apostles: I have fixed the pillars of it; for the blessed disciples were as the pillars and ground of the truth, whom also He says that He sent forth, even as the Father had sent Him; showing at the same time the dignity of their apostle-ship, and the incomparable honour of the power vouchsafed unto them, and also in all likelihood suggesting the method of life the Apostles were to follow. For if He thought it meet that He should send forth His own disciples, even as the Father had sent Him, was it not necessary for those who were destined to imitate His mission to ascertain what the Father sent forth the Son for to do? In divers ways, then, expounding unto us the character of His own mission, He said in one place: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance; and again: They that are whole have no need of a physician; but they that are sick: and again, in another place: For I am come down from heaven, not to do Mine own Will, but the Will of Him That sent Me; and yet once more: For God sent not His Son into the world to judge the world; but that the world should be saved through Him. Summing up, therefore, in a few words the character of their mission, He says that He sent them even as the Father had sent Him, that they might know thereby that they were bound to call sinners to repentance, and to minister to those who were in evil plight, whether of body or soul, and in all their dealings upon earth, not in any wise to follow their own will, but the Will of Him That sent them, and to save the world by their teaching, so far as was possible. And in truth we shall find the holy disciples eager to show the utmost zeal in performing all these things; and it is not difficult for any one to satisfy himself of this, who has once turned his attention to the Acts of the Apostles, and the words of the holy Paul.

Christ says that he sent the apostles even as the Father had sent him, that they might fully comprehend their mission: to call sinners to repentance and to minister to those who were caught up in evil, whether of body or soul. In all their dealings on this earth, they were not in any way to follow their own will but the will of him who sent them. They were also called to save the world by their teaching, so far as was possible. And in truth we shall find that holy disciples were eager to show the utmost enthusiasm in performing all these things. It is not difficult for people to see this, if they give their attention to the Acts of the Apostles and the words of the holy Paul.

He said to them: Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I also send you. That is, as God the Father sent me who am God, so I who am man send you who are men. The Father sent the Son, whom he appointed to become incarnate for the redemption of the human race. He willed him to come into the world unto suffering, yet nevertheless he loved the Son whom he sent unto suffering. The Lord sends his chosen apostles into the world not to worldly joys, but, just as he himself was sent, unto sufferings. Since therefore the Son is loved by the Father and yet is sent unto suffering, so also the disciples are loved by the Lord, who nevertheless are sent into the world unto suffering. And so it is said: As the Father has sent me, so I also send you, that is, I love you with that same love when I send you among the offenses of persecutors, with which love the Father loves me, whom he caused to come to endure sufferings. Although "sent" can also be understood according to his divine nature. For the Son is said to be sent by the Father by the very fact that he is begotten by the Father. For the Son declares that he himself sends the Holy Spirit also, who, though coequal with the Father and the Son, nevertheless was not incarnate, saying: When the Paraclete comes, whom I will send to you from the Father. For if "to be sent" ought to be understood only as "to become incarnate," the Holy Spirit would without doubt in no way be said to be sent, since he was in no way incarnate. But his being sent is that very procession by which he proceeds from the Father and the Son. Just as therefore the Spirit is said to be sent because he proceeds, so also the Son is not unfittingly said to be sent because he is begotten.

(Hom. xxii. in Evang.) The Father sent the Son, appointed Him to the work of redemption. He says therefore, As My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you; i. e. I love you, now that I send you to persecution, with the same love wherewith My Father loved Me, when He sent Me to My sufferings.

(Hom. lxxxvi) All these things brought them to a most confident faith. As they were in endless war with the Jews, He says again, Then said Jesus unto them again, Peace be unto you.

(Hom. lxxxvi. 3) At the same time He shows the efficacy of the cross, by which He undoes all evil things, and gives all good things; which is peace. To the women above there was announced joy; for that sex was in sorrow, and had received the curse, In sorrow shalt thou bring forth. (Gen. 3:16) All hindrances then being removed, and every thing made straight, (πατωρθωται.) he adds, As My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you.

What does this repetition in bestowing peace mean, except that he wants the tranquility that he had announced to their minds individually also to be kept collectively among them by granting peace repeatedly? He knew, at any rate, that they were going to have far from insignificant struggles in the future stemming from his delay, with one boasting that he had persevered in faith and another in grief because he had doubted. … Peter denies, John flees, Thomas doubts, all forsake him: unless Christ had granted forgiveness for these transgressions by his peace, even Peter, who was the first in rank of all of them, would have been considered inferior and undeserving of his subsequent elevation to the primacy.

The mention of his having been sent does not diminish him as Son but declares that what he wants to be understood here is not the power of the one who sends but the charity of the one who has been sent. This is why he says, "Just as the Father," not the Lord, "has sent me, so I send you." In other words, I send you no longer with the authority of a Master but with all the affection of someone who loves you. I send you to endure hunger, to suffer the burden of chains, to the squalor of prison, to bear all kinds of punishments and to undergo bitter death for all: all of which charity, and not power, enjoins on human minds.

And since they had an irreconcilable war with the Jews, He again says to them: "Peace." Just as He said to the women: "Rejoice" (Matt. 28:9), because their sex was in sorrow, so to the disciples He gives "peace" because of the war which they had with them and which all will have. Thus, it is fitting for women to rejoice, because they are condemned to give birth in sorrow, and for men to be at peace because of the war for the cause of preaching. He shows at the same time the good consequences of the Cross as well; this is peace. And since peace was acquired through the Cross, I am sending you to preach. And for their consolation and encouragement He says: "As the Father has sent Me, so I also send you." You are taking upon yourselves My work; therefore be vigilant, for I will be with you. Note the sovereign authority. He did not say "I will beseech My Father, and He will send you," but rather "I am sending you."

2535 Now he charges the apostles with their ministry: first, he grants them the bond of peace; secondly, he charges them, as the Father has sent me.

2536 Jesus said to them again, Peace be with you. He said this to counter a twofold anxiety. The first time he said, Peace be with you, was to combat the anxiety caused by the Jews; but when he said the second time, Peace be with you, this was to deal with the anxiety to come from the Gentiles: "In me you may have peace... in the world you have tribulation" (16:33). He said this because they were about to be sent to the Gentiles.

2537 Accordingly, Jesus immediately enjoins them, As the Father has sent me, even so I send you. This shows that he is the intermediary between us and God: "There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (1 Tim 2:5). This was a source of strength for the disciples: for they recognized the authority of Christ, and knew that he was sending them by divine authority. They were also strengthened because they recognized their own dignity, the dignity of being apostles; for an apostle is one who is sent. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you: that is, as the Father, who loves me, sent me into the world to suffer for the salvation of the faithful ‑ "For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him" (3:17) ‑ so I, who love you, send you to undergo suffering for my name ‑ "I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves" (Mt 10:16).

Christ is the true Son, and so when we receive the Spirit, we are made sons. For it says; 'you did not receive the spirit of slavery leading you back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adopted sonship' [Romans 8:15]. But when we are made sons in the Spirit, it is clear that we are called children of God in Christ... And when the Spirit is given to us-the Saviour said: 'Receive the Holy Spirit' (John 20:22)- God [The Father] is in us... But when God is in us, the Son is also in us. For the Lord Himself said: 'I and the Father will come and make our home with him' [John 14:23]. Next, the Son is life-for He said: 'I am the life' [John 14:6]- and so we are said to be given life in the Spirit... But when we are given life in the Spirit, Christ Himself is said to live in us. For it says: 'I am crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.' [Galatians 2:19-20]. - "Letters to Separion On the Spirit, Letter 1, Chapter 19"

...but to the disciples shewing His Godhead and His majesty, and intimating that He was not inferior but equal to the Spirit, He gave the Spirit and said, 'Receive ye the Holy Ghost,' and 'I send Him,' and 'He shall glorify Me,' and 'Whatsoever He heareth, that He shall speak.' As then in this place the Lord Himself, the Giver of the Spirit, does not refuse to say that through the Spirit He casts out demons, as man; in like manner He the same, the Giver of the Spirit, refused not to say, 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me,' in respect of His having become flesh, as John hath said; that it might be shewn in both these particulars, that we are they who need the Spirit's grace in our sanctification, and again who are unable to cast out demons without the Spirit's power. Through whom then and from whom behoved it that the Spirit should be given but through the Son, whose also the Spirit is? and when were we enabled to receive It, except when the Word became man?

But the reason why, after his resurrection, he both gave the Holy Spirit, first on earth, and afterward sent him from heaven, is in my judgment this: that "love is shed abroad in our hearts," by that gift itself, whereby we love God and our neighbors, according to those two commandments, "on which hang all the law and the prophets." And Jesus Christ signified this by giving them the Holy Spirit once on earth because of the love of our neighbor and a second time from heaven because of the love of God. And if some other reason may perhaps be given for this double gift of the Holy Spirit, at any rate we ought not to doubt that the same Holy Spirit was given when Jesus breathed on them, of whom he says, "Go, baptize all nations in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," where this Trinity is especially commended to us. It is therefore he who was also given from heaven on the day of Pentecost, that is, ten days after the Lord ascended into heaven.

"And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." By breathing on them He signified that the Holy Spirit was the Spirit, not of the Father alone, but likewise His own.

(iv. de Trin. c. xx) That corporeal breath was not the substance of the Holy Ghost, but to show, by meet symbol, that the Holy Ghost proceeded not only from the Father, but the Son. For who would be so mad as to say, that it was one Spirit which He gave by breathing, and another which He sent after His ascension?

And hence the bride, although otherwise so audacious, does not dare to say: "Let him kiss me with his mouth," for she knows that this is the prerogative of the Father alone. What she does ask for is something less: "Let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth." Do you wish to see the newly-chosen bride receiving this unprecedented kiss, given not by the mouth but by the kiss of the mouth? Then look at Jesus in the presence of his Apostles: "He breathed on them," according to St John, "and he said: 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'" That favor, given to the newly-chosen Church, was indeed a kiss. That? you say. That corporeal breathing? O no, but rather the invisible Spirit, who is so bestowed in that breath of the Lord that he is understood to proceed from him equally as from the Father, truly the kiss that is common both to him who kisses and to him who is kissed. Hence the bride is satisfied to receive the kiss of the Bridegroom, though she be not kissed with his mouth. For her it is no mean or contemptible thing to be kissed by the kiss, because it is nothing less than the gift of the Holy Spirit. If, as is properly understood, the Father is he who kisses, the Son he who is kissed, then it cannot be wrong to see in the kiss the Holy Spirit, for he is the imperturbable peace of the Father and the Son, their unshakable bond, their undivided love, their indivisible unity.

When he had said this, he breathed on them. Augustine: "By breathing he signified that the Holy Spirit is not of the Father alone, but also his own." And he said to them: Receive the Holy Spirit, that is, the gift of the Holy Spirit, not for all things, but for remitting sins: and in this he conferred the power of the keys.

Question. Concerning what he says: Receive the Holy Spirit. For it seems that he ought not yet to have given them the Holy Spirit, because it is said above in the sixteenth chapter: If I do not go away, the Paraclete will not come to you: therefore if he had not yet ascended, he ought not yet to have given the Holy Spirit. I respond: It must be said that the Holy Spirit is said to be received or given, not by reason of essence, but of effect. Therefore the disciples had the Holy Spirit before the passion, but for the working of their own salvation, which is through grace; they had him after the passion before the ascension for the remission of sins: they had him after the ascension for the proclamation of our faith: and therefore they were then confirmed, and the Holy Spirit descended in tongues of fire.

Question. To whom is it said in the plural, Receive the Holy Spirit? It seems that it is said to many. On the contrary: Matthew 16: I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, the Lord said to Peter: therefore it seems that the power of remitting sins was specially in Peter, but here it seems that it was in all. And it must be said that the power of remitting or the power of loosing was given to all the Apostles: nevertheless the fullness of power was given more specially to Peter and his successors, as to the prince and head of all the Apostles. Because, therefore, he was the head, it is said in Matthew: To you I will give: but because the others were partakers of his power, therefore it is said: Receive, etc.

But what is the greatness of his error, and what the depth of his blindness, who says that remission of sins can be granted in the synagogues of heretics, and does not abide on the foundation of the one Church which was once based by Christ upon the rock, may be perceived from this, that Christ said to Peter alone, "Whatsoever thou shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." And again, in the Gospel, when Christ breathed on the apostles alone, saying, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost: whose soever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them, and whose soever sins ye retain they are retained." Therefore the power of remitting sins was given to the apostles, and to the churches which they, sent by Christ, established, and to the bishops who succeeded to them by vicarious ordination. But the enemies of the one Catholic Church in which we are, and the adversaries of us who have succeeded the apostles, asserting for themselves, in opposition to us, unlawful priesthoods, and setting up profane altars, what else are they than Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, profane with a like wickedness, and about to suffer the same punishments which they did, as well as those who agree with them, just as their partners and abettors perished with a like death to theirs?

After dignifying the holy Apostles with the glorious distinction of the apostleship, and appointing them ministers and priests of the Divine Altar, as I have just said, He at once sanctifies them by vouchsafing His Spirit unto them, through the outward sign of His Breath, that we might be firmly convinced that the Holy Spirit is not alien to the Son, but Consubstantial with Him, and through Him proceeding from the Father; He shows that the gift of the Spirit necessarily attends those who are ordained by Him to be Apostles of God. And why? Because they could have done nothing pleasing unto God, and could not have triumphed over the snares of sin, if they had not been clothed with power from on high, and been transformed into something other than they were before. Therefore, also, it was said to one of old time: The Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt be turned into another man; and the Prophet Isaiah also declared that those who waited upon the Lord should renew their strength. The wise Paul, too, when he says that he surpassed some in his labours, that is, in the deeds of an Apostle, adds at once: Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Besides, we say this, that the disciples would never at all have understood the mystery that is in Christ, nor have been true guides in this knowledge, if they had not advanced in the light of the Spirit to a revelation of things which surpass man's reason and understanding, a revelation which is able to point out to them the heights to which they were bound to ascend; for no man can say Jesus is Lord, as Paul says, but in the Holy Spirit. As, then, they were destined to proclaim that Jesus was the Lord, that is, to preach that He was God and Lord of necessity, therefore they received the grace of the Holy Spirit in immediate connection with the office of apostleship, Christ granting Him unto them, not ministering to the desires of another, but rather vouchsafing Him of Himself; for the Spirit could only come down unto us from the Father through the Son. The old and written Law, however, which contained shadows and types of the reality, ordained that the appointment of priests should be performed in a more physical way, so to say, and that their appointment should be attended with more outward display. For the blessed Moses, by God's command, bade Aaron and the Levites wash themselves with water: then he slew the ram of consecration and anointed with the blood the tip of Aaron's right ear, as is written, and also put of the blood upon the thumb of the right hand, and upon the big toe of the right foot, giving an outline and type, as in a picture, of the mystery concerning Christ. For in the presence here of water and blood, the instruments of sanctification, how can there be any question that in an obscure type an outline was given of the fair beauty of the reality? Our Lord Jesus Christ, transforming into the power of truth the figure of the Law, consecrates through Himself the ministers of the Divine Altar. For He is the Lamb of consecration, and He consecrates by actual sanctification, making men partakers in His Nature, through participation in the Spirit, and in some sort strengthening the nature of man into a power and glory that is superhuman.

And there can be no doubt that the explanation I have here given can be proved not to err from the truth. But, perhaps, someone will come and say as follows, with a praiseworthy desire for knowledge, it may be, putting to us the question, "Where then, and when, did the Saviour's disciples receive the grace of the Spirit? When the Saviour appeared unto them in the house, immediately after the Resurrection, and breathed upon them, saying: Receive ye the Holy Ghost; or in the days of the holy Pentecost, when, as they were again assembled together in one place, suddenly there came from heaven a sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind. And there appeared unto them tongues parting asunder, like as of fire; and it sat upon each one of them. And they began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance?" For either, such an one will say, we must suppose that a double grace was given unto them, or we must remain in ignorance of the occasion on which they, in fact, became partakers in the Holy Spirit; if indeed our Saviour's saying, and that which is written in the Acts of the holy Apostles, is found to be true. And, indeed, the question may well excite our perplexity, especially as Christ Himself said: It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away the Comforter cannot come unto you; but when I depart, I will send Him unto you; for the inquirer will perhaps go on to say, "The Truth, that is, Christ, cannot lie. When, then, He said in plain words that the Comforter would not come unto the disciples unless He were taken up unto the Father, but of a surety He would send Him then, when He was in heaven at His side; how, then, can He be supposed to grant the gift of the Spirit, though His journey from hence was not yet accomplished?" Still, though the inquiry is very obscure, and very likely to cause perplexity, it yet allows of an appropriate solution, when we remember our faith that Christ is not as one of ourselves, but rather is God, and of God, and so exercises dominion over His own Words, and moulds them to suit His purposes.

For He proclaimed that He would send down to us from heaven the Comforter, when He was ascended to God the Father; and this, indeed, He did, when He had gone away to the Father, and vouchsafed to shed forth the Spirit abundantly upon all who were willing to receive it. For any man could receive it, through faith, that is, and Holy Baptism; and then was fulfilled that which was spoken by the voice of the Prophet: I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh. But it was necessary that the Son should appear as co-operating with the Father in granting the Spirit; it was necessary that those who believed on Him should understand that He is the Power of the Father, That has created this whole world, and called man out of nothing into being. For God the Father, at the beginning, by His own Word, took of the dust of the ground, as is written, and fashioned the animal, that is man, and endowed him with a soul, according to His Will, and illuminated him with a share of His own Spirit; for He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, as is written. And when it came to pass that through disobedience man fell under the power of death, and lost his ancient honour, God the Father built him up and restored him to newness of life, through the Son, as at the beginning. And how did the Son restore him? By the death of His own Flesh He slew death, and brought the race of man back again into incorruption; for Christ rose again for us. In order, then, that we might learn that He it was Who at the beginning created our nature, and sealed us with the Holy Spirit, our Saviour again grants the Spirit, through the outward sign of His Breath, to the holy disciples, as being the firstfruits of renewed nature. For Moses writes concerning our creation of old, that God breathed into man's nostrils the breath of life. As, then, at the beginning, man was formed and came into being, so likewise is he renewed; and as he was then formed in the Image of his Creator, so likewise now, by participation in the Spirit, is he transformed into the Likeness of his Maker. For that the Spirit impresses the Saviour's Image on the hearts of those who receive Him surely does not admit of question; for Paul plainly exhorteth those who had fallen through weakness into observance of the Law, in the words: My little children, of whom I am again in travail until Christ be formed in you. For he says that Christ will not be formed in them save by partaking of the Holy Spirit, and living according to the law of the Gospel. Therefore, as in the firstfruits of creation, which is made regenerate into incorruption and glory and into the Image of God, Christ establishes anew His own Spirit in His disciples. For it was necessary that we should also perceive this truth, namely, that He brings down and grants the Spirit unto us. Therefore, also, He said: All things, whatsoever the Father hath, are Mine. And as the Father hath, of Himself and in Himself, His own Spirit, so also the Son hath the Spirit in Himself, because He is Consubstantial with Him, and essentially proceeded from Him, having by Nature in Himself all the attributes of His Father.

From the following fact we can prove that, many as were the actions that He repeatedly promised us that He would perform in due season, He even in part anticipated the appointed time in the performance of them, for our edification, that we might be fully convinced that whatsoever He has spoken will assuredly come to pass. He declared that He would raise up the dead, and bring back again to life those who are lying in the earth and in tombs. The hour cometh, He says, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done ill, unto the resurrection of judgment. And, desiring to satisfy us that He could readily accomplish this, He taught, saying: I am the Resurrection and the Life. But, inasmuch as the vastness of the miracle made it difficult of belief that the dead could ever be restored to life, He anticipated to our profit the time of the Resurrection, and gave us a sign by raising Lazarus and the widow's son and the daughter of Jairus. And what else besides? As He said that full of glory would be the resurrection of the Saints, for then, He says, shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father, in order that here again He might be believed to speak truth, He granted the sight thereof before the time to the disciples. For He took Peter and James and John, and went up into the mountain, and was transfigured before them: and His Face did shine as lightning, and His garments became white as snow. Just as, then, although He promised to accomplish these things in their season, yet He performed the works in part and with a limited scope even out of due time, as an earnest and foretaste of that which was expected to come to pass and to affect the whole world, so doing in order that faith in Him might not be shaken; even so, likewise, after having said that He would send the Comforter to us when He went away to the Father, and having fixed this occasion for granting this grace universally, He performed in the persons of His disciples the first instalment, as it were, of the promise, for the many just and sufficient reasons we have previously given.

They, therefore, partook of the Holy Spirit when He breathed on them, saying, Receive ye the Holy Ghost; for it were impossible for Christ to lie, and He would never have said "Receive" without giving; but in the days of Holy Pentecost, when God more openly proclaimed His grace, and manifested the stablishment of the Holy Spirit in their hearts, there appeared unto them tongues through flame, not signifying the beginning of the gift of the Spirit in their hearts, but rather having reference to the time when they were first endowed with the gift of languages. It is written, indeed, that they began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Note, that they began to speak, not to receive sanctification, and that the gift of divers tongues came down upon them; and this was the working of the Spirit that was in them. For just as the Father spake from heaven, and bare witness to His Son, saying, This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased; and did this to satisfy the minds of those who heard, uttering, or causing to be uttered, a sound as of some instrument which fell upon the ear; even so, also, in the case of the holy disciples He made the manifestation of the grace given them more public, sending down upon them tongues as of fire, and causing the descent of the Holy Spirit to resemble the sound of the rushing of a mighty wind. And that this very portent was given unto the Jews by way of a sign, you will readily see, if you listen to God, the Lord of all, saying by the mouth of the |678 Prophet: By men of strange tongues, and by the lips of strangers, will I speak unto this people, and yet will they not believe. And to the intent that we might believe that the blessed disciples did, in fact, partake of the Holy Spirit, and were from henceforth honoured with the grace of Christ from above, and that they were able to expound the truth, and that the glory of their apostleship was worthy all admiration, witness being borne thereto by the gift from on high, therefore it was that fire came down in the form of tongues.

I think, indeed, that I have here said enough to accurately explain the meaning of the passage; but, inasmuch as we are bound to take every precaution in our treatise, that no stumblingblock spring up to offend the brethren through the carping spirit of any amongst us, let us make this addition to what we have said, and refute the vain talk that we may expect will be started. We shall find, then, in the passage that follows, the words: Thomas, called Didymus, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. How, then, someone may not unreasonably inquire, if he were away, was he in fact made partaker in the Holy Spirit when the Saviour appeared unto the disciples and breathed on them, saying: Receive ye the Holy Ghost? We reply that the power of the Spirit pervaded every man who received grace, and fulfilled the aim of the Lord Who gave Him unto them; and Christ gave the Spirit not to some only but to all the disciples. Therefore, if any were absent, they also received Him, the munificence of the Giver not being confined to those only who were present, but extending to the entire company of the holy Apostles. And that this interpretation is not strained, or our idea extravagant, we may convince you from Holy Writ itself, bringing forward as a proof a passage in the Books of Moses. The Lord God commanded the all-wise Moses to select elders, to the number of seventy, from the assembly of the Jews, and plainly declared: I will take of the Spirit which is upon thee and will put it upon them. Moses, as he was bidden, brought them together, and fulfilled the Divine decree. Two only of the men who were included in the number of the seventy elders were left behind, and remained in the assembly, to wit, Eldad and Medad. Then when God put upon them all the Divine Spirit, as He had promised, those whom Moses had collected together immediately received grace, and prophesied; but none the less also the two who were in the assembly prophesied, and, in fact, the grace from above came upon them first. Nay, further, Joshua, that was called the son of Nun, who was the constant attendant of Moses, not understanding at once the meaning of the mystery, but thinking that after the manner of Dathan and Abiram they were rivals in the art of prophecy to those whom Moses had brought together, said unto him: Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp; my lord Moses, forbid them. And what answered that truly wise and great man, seeing in his wisdom the working of the grace given unto them, and the power of the Spirit? Enviest thou for my sake? Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them! Observe how he rebukes the saying of Joshua, who knew not what had been done. Would that, he says, the Spirit were given to all the people! Nay, this will indeed come to pass in due season, when the Lord, that is, Christ, will grant unto them His Spirit; breathing upon His holy Apostles as upon the firstfruits of those whose due it is to receive Him, and saying: Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Then, if Thomas were absent, he was not cut off from receiving the Spirit, for the Spirit pervaded all whose due it was to receive Him, and who were included among the number of His honoured disciples.

The Son, sharing the same nature as God the Father, has the Spirit in the same manner that the Father would be understood to have the Spirit. In other words, the Spirit is not something added or which comes from without, for it would be naïve—even insane—to hold such an opinion. But God the Father has the Spirit, just as each one of us has our own breath within us that pours forth from the innermost parts of the body. This is why Christ physically breathed on his disciples, showing that as the breath proceeds physically from the human mouth, so too does Christ, in a manner befitting God, pour forth the [Spirit] from the divine essence.

This was the second time he breathed on human beings—his first breath having been stifled through willful sins. … But though he bestowed his grace then, he was to lavish it yet more bountifully. And he says to them, I am ready to give it even now, but the vessel cannot yet hold it. For awhile therefore receive as much grace as you can bear. And look forward for yet more. "But stay in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high." Receive it in part now. Then, you shall wear it in its fullness. For the one who receives often possesses only a part of the gift. But the one who is clothed is completely enfolded by his robe.

[Christ's disciples] were able to receive [the Spirit] on three occasions: before he was glorified by the passion, after he was glorified by the resurrection and after his ascension.… Now the first of these manifests him—the healing of the sick and casting out of evil spirits and so does that breathing on them after the resurrection, which was clearly a divine inspiration. And so too the present distribution of the fiery tongues. But the first manifested him indistinctly, the second more expressly, this present one more perfectly, since he is no longer present only in energy but … substantially, associating with us and dwelling in us.

When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them: Receive the Holy Spirit. We must ask why it is that our Lord gave the Holy Spirit once while standing on earth, and once while presiding from heaven? For in no other place is the giving of the Holy Spirit openly shown, except now when it is received through breathing, and afterward when, coming from heaven, it is demonstrated in various tongues. Why then is it first given to the disciples on earth, and afterward sent from heaven, unless because there are two precepts of charity, namely the love of God and the love of neighbor? The Spirit is given on earth so that the neighbor may be loved; the Spirit is given from heaven so that God may be loved. Therefore, just as there is one charity and two precepts, so there is one Spirit and two givings. First from the Lord standing on earth, afterward from heaven, because in the love of neighbor one learns how to arrive at the love of God. Hence the same John says: He who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see? And indeed the same Holy Spirit was previously in the minds of the disciples for faith, but nevertheless he was not given by manifest giving except after the resurrection. Hence it is also written: The Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified. Hence also it is said through Moses: They sucked honey from the rock, and oil from the solid rock. For nothing of this kind is read according to history, if the whole sequence of the Old Testament is reviewed. Nowhere did that people suck honey from the rock, nowhere oil. But because according to Paul's words: The rock was Christ, they sucked honey from the rock who saw the deeds and miracles of our same Redeemer. But they sucked oil from the solid rock, because by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit after his resurrection they deserved to be anointed. Therefore, as it were, the weak rock gave honey, when the Lord, still mortal, showed to his disciples the sweetness of his miracles. But the solid rock poured forth oil, because, after his resurrection now made impassible, through the breathing of the Spirit he sent forth the gift of holy anointing.

(Hom. xxvi.) But why is He first given to the disciples on earth, and afterwards sent from heaven? Because there are two commandments of love, to love God, and to love our neighbour. The spirit to love our neighbour is given on earth, the spirit to love God is given from heaven. As then love is one, and there are two commandments; so the Spirit is one, and there are two gifts of the Spirit. And the first is given by our Lord while yet upon earth, the second from heaven, because by the love of our neighbour we learn how to arrive at the love of God.

The sacred books acknowledge with regard to Christ, that as He is the Son of man, so is the same Being not a [mere] man; and as He is flesh, so is He also spirit, and the Word of God, and God. And as He was born of Mary in the last times, so did He also proceed from God as the First-begotten of every creature; and as He hungered, so did He satisfy [others]; and as He thirsted, so did He of old cause the Jews to drink, for the "Rock was Christ" Himself: thus does Jesus now give to His believing people power to drink spiritual waters, which spring up to life eternal. And as He was the son of David, so was He also the Lord of David. And as He was from Abraham, so did He also exist before Abraham. And as He was the servant of God, so is He the Son of God, and Lord of the universe. And as He was spit upon ignominiously, so also did He breathe the Holy Spirit into His disciples. And as He was saddened, so also did He give joy to His people. And as He was capable of being handled and touched, so again did He, in a non-apprehensible form, pass through the midst of those who sought to injure Him, and entered without impediment through closed doors. And as He slept, so did He also rule the sea, the winds, and the storms. And as He suffered, so also is He alive, and life-giving, and healing all our infirmity. And as He died, so is He also the Resurrection of the dead. He suffered shame on earth, while He is higher than all glory and praise in heaven; who, "though He was crucified through weakness, yet He liveth by divine power;" who "descended into the lower parts of the earth," and who "ascended up above the heavens;" for whom a manger sufficed, yet who filled all things; who was dead, yet who liveth for ever and ever. Amen.

"He breathed on them, and said, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them, and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained." As a king sending forth governors, gives power to cast into prison and to deliver from it, so in sending these forth, Christ investeth them with the same power. But how saith He, "If I go not away, He will not come," and yet giveth them the Spirit? Some say that He gave not the Spirit, but rendered them fit to receive It, by breathing on them. For if Daniel when he saw an Angel was afraid, what would not they have suffered when they received that unspeakable Gift, unless He had first made them learners? Wherefore He said not, "Ye have received the Holy Ghost," but, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." Yet one will not be wrong in asserting that they then also received some spiritual power and grace; not so as to raise the dead, or to work miracles, but so as to remit sins. For the gifts of the Spirit are of different kinds; wherefore He added, "Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them," showing what kind of power He was giving. But in the other case, after forty days, they received the power of working miracles. Wherefore He saith, "Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea." And witnesses they became by means of miracles, for unspeakable is the grace of the Spirit and multiform the gift.

But this comes to pass, that thou mayest learn that the gift and the power of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, is One. For things which appear to be peculiar to the Father, these are seen also to belong to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. "How then," saith some one, "doth none come to the Son, except the Father draw him?" Why, this very thing is shown to belong to the Son also. "I," He saith, "am the Way: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me." And observe that it belongeth to the Spirit also; for "No man can call Jesus Christ Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." Again, we see that the Apostles were given to the Church at one time by the Father, at another by the Son, at another by the Holy Ghost, and that the "diversities of gifts" belong to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

Whose soever sins ye remit, are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained."

With these words he teaches them the identity of the giver and the distributor of all these goods. His "breathing" convinces them to have no doubt about this because the body was created in the beginning as immobile and inanimate but then received life, which it did not have in itself when the soul entered into it through "breathing," as the blessed Moses said. After Jesus breathed for the first time, he mentioned the Spirit in order to show that, as then nothing prevented the body from living even though it did not by nature possess [life], which the soul by entering gave it, so now they had to believe that the body of human beings was made imperishable through resurrection, because the Spirit who gives it this strength is powerful. Therefore he said to them, You must truly believe in what has been said to you and must have no doubts about the resurrection. You must not reject the honor of the apostolate because you are scared of being sent as messengers of a new doctrine into the world. You will indeed receive the effect of the Spirit, which, at the right time, will confer on you resurrection and immortality.Through the Spirit, you will receive in this life an amazing, supernatural strength to perform unheard-of miracles by a mere word. You will be able to face easily any afflictions that may befall you because of those who oppose your preaching. And even though there were many other things to be accomplished in them through the Spirit, without mentioning them, he mentioned the most important argument of all. Here, he says, is what will clearly demonstrate to you the strength of the Spirit. Indeed, as soon as you receive it, you will be able to absolve the sins of whomever you want, as well as to pronounce a sentence of condemnation against anyone. If you, who are human, after receiving the gift of the Spirit, will be able to do all those things that are of God—indeed, only he has the power to judge—I leave to you to consider what the effectiveness of the Spirit is. Once you have received it, you must no longer doubt.

He breathes and gives them the Holy Spirit. Now He imparts to them not the perfect gift of the Holy Spirit, for He will give them that at Pentecost, but makes them capable of receiving the Spirit. For the words "receive the Holy Spirit" mean the same as: be ready to receive the Spirit.

2538 Jesus makes them adequate for their task by giving them the Holy Spirit, "God, who has qualified us to be ministers of a new covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit" (2 Cor 3:6). In this giving of the Spirit, he first grants them a sign of this gift, which is, that he breathed on them. We see something like this in Genesis (2:7), when God "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life," of natural life, which the first man corrupted, but Christ repaired this by giving the Holy Spirit. We should not suppose that this breath of Christ was the Holy Spirit; it was a sign of the Spirit. So Augustine says, in The Trinity: "This bodily breath was not the substance of the Holy Spirit, but a fitting sign that the Holy Spirit proceeds not just from the Father but also from the Son."

2539 Notice that the Holy Spirit was sent over Christ, first, in the appearance of a dove, at his baptism (1:32), and then in the appearance of a cloud, at his transfiguration (Mt 17:5). The reason for this is that the grace of Christ, which is given by the Holy Spirit, was to be distributed to us by being proliferated through the sacraments. Consequently, at Christ's baptism the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, which is an animal known for its proliferation. And since the grace of Christ comes through teaching, the Spirit descended in a luminous cloud, and Christ is seen to be a Teacher, "Listen to him" (Mt 17:5). The Spirit descended over the apostles the first time through a breath to indicate the proliferation of grace through the sacraments, whose ministers they were. Thus Christ said, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Mt 28:19). The second time the Spirit descended on them in tongues of fire to indicate the proliferation of grace through teaching; and so we read in Acts (2:4) that right after they were filled with the Holy Spirit they began to speak.

2540 We see the words used when the Spirit was given, Receive the Holy Spirit. But did they receive the Holy Spirit then? It seems not, for since Christ had not yet ascended, it was not fitting that he give gifts to us. Indeed, according to Chrysostom, there were some who said that Christ did not give them the Holy Spirit at that time, but prepared them for the future giving of the Spirit at Pentecost. They were brought to this opinion because Daniel (10:8) could not endure his sight of an angel, and so these disciples could not have endured the coming of the Holy Spirit unless they had been prepared. But Chrysostom himself says that the Holy Spirit was given to the disciples, not for all tasks in general, but for a specific task, that is, to forgive sin. Augustine and Gregory say that the Holy Spirit has two precepts of love: love of God and of neighbor. Therefore, the Holy Spirit was given the first time on earth to indicate the precept of the love of neighbor; and the Spirit was given the second time from heaven to indicate the precept of the love of God.

They affirm that they are showing great reverence for God, to whom alone they reserve the power of forgiving sins. But in truth no one does him greater injury than those who choose to prune his commandments and reject the office entrusted to them. For the Lord Jesus himself said in the Gospel, "Receive the Holy Spirit; whoever's sins you forgive they are forgiven to them, and whoever's sins you retain, they are retained." Who is it that honors him most, the one who obeys his bidding or the one who rejects it?The church holds fast its obedience on either side by both retaining and remitting sin. Heresy is on the one side cruel and on the other disobedient. It wishes to bind what it will not loosen and will not loosen what it has bound, whereby it condemns itself by its own sentence. For the Lord willed that the power of binding and of loosing should be the same, and he sanctioned each by a similar condition. So whoever does not have the power to loose does not have the power to bind. For as, according to the Lord's word, the one who has the power to bind also has the power to loose, their teaching destroys itself, inasmuch as those who deny that they have the power of loosing ought also to deny that of binding. For how can the one be allowed and the other disallowed? It is plain and evident that either each is allowed or each is disallowed in the case of those to whom each has been given. Each is allowed to the church; neither is allowed to heresy. For this power has been entrusted to priests alone. It is only right, therefore, that the church, which has true priests, claims it. Heresy, which does not have the priests of God, cannot claim it. And by not claiming this power heresy pronounces its own sentence, that not possessing priests it cannot claim priestly power.

"Whose soever sins," He continues, "ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever ye retain, they are retained." The Church's love, which is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, discharges the sins of all who are partakers with itself, but retains the sins of those who have no participation therein. Therefore it is, that after saying "Receive ye the Holy Ghost," He straightway added this regarding the remission and retention of sins.

(Tr. cxxi. 3) The love of the Church, which is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, remits the sins of those who partake of it; but retains the sins of those who do not. Where then He has said, Receive ye the Holy Ghost, He instantly makes mention of the remission and retaining of sins.

Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, that is, those whom you shall loose are loosed: and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained, that is, those whom you shall bind are bound: Matthew 16: "Whatever you shall bind upon earth shall be bound also in heaven: and whatever you shall loose upon earth shall be loosed also in heaven."

Question. Concerning the power conferred upon the disciples. For it is said: Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, etc. On the contrary: Isaiah 43: I am he who blots out your iniquities for my own sake: therefore it belongs to God alone to forgive sins. Likewise, Matthew 9: But that you may know that the Son of man has power on earth to forgive sins, he said to the paralytic: Arise, etc.: therefore it belongs to the same power to forgive sins and to cure the incurable. But that belongs to infinite power and to Christ-man and God alone: therefore also to forgive sins. It is therefore asked how it belongs differently to God, to Christ-man, and to the priest. Likewise, concerning what is added: Whose sins you shall retain, they are retained: therefore it seems that priests can close to us the entrance of the kingdom. I respond: It must be said that in sin two things are considered, namely guilt and the debt of punishment; to forgive guilt belongs to God alone effectively, because it belongs to him alone to give grace, which blots out guilt: meritoriously it belongs to Christ-man: but dispositively it belongs to the priest, because he does that which, once done, God forgives, namely by conferring the Sacraments. But there is another remission with respect to punishment, and over this the priest has power, once the remission of guilt has been made, as does Christ-man; but the power of Christ-man is one of excellence and universal, while the power of the priest is ministerial and participative. And these powers are ordered, because the priest has no effect in remitting punishment except through the passion of Christ, nor again is the passion of Christ conferred upon anyone except him whose guilt God forgives. To the objection that our salvation is in the hand of the priest: it must be said that this power is to be understood as operative when the key does not err. But the key errs either when it looses one whom God has not vivified, or when it binds less than one ought to be bound. Whence Gregory says: "The disciples loose the living one whom the Master had raised from the dead. For if the disciples were to loose a dead man, they would reveal a stench rather than power."

Question. Since the Lord said only to the eleven: Receive the Holy Spirit; whose sins you shall remit, etc.: it seems that not all priests have this power, but only those who hold the place of the Apostles, such as bishops, not simple priests. Likewise, Gregory seems to say this, that "those who obtain the office of governance receive the authority of loosing and binding." To this it must be said that there are two ways of binding and loosing: either in the penitential forum, or in the judicial forum. The first way belongs to presbyters by reason of their order; the second way belongs to bishops and other superiors by reason of their dignity. Whence Hugh of Saint Victor says: "One is the binding by which the ministers of the Church bind those who truly repent with the obligation of enjoined satisfaction, and another is that by which those who sin intolerably are bound with the chain of anathema."

Question. The heretics object from the fact that it is first said: Receive the Holy Spirit: and afterward: Whose sins you shall remit etc., that no priest has the power of binding and loosing unless he has the Holy Spirit dwelling within him: therefore wicked priests do not absolve, nor even the Supreme Pontiff, if he is wicked. And if this is so, then our salvation is in peril. To this there are multiple responses. For some say that the Holy Spirit is given first, and afterward the execution of the power of loosing, because loosing or remission does not take place except in the charity of the Church; whence they say that it is not necessary that the priest have charity, but it suffices that he at least be in the Church. Others respond that there are two ways of loosing, namely by merit and by office and by office alone. For one to loose by merit, it is necessary that he have the Holy Spirit: but for one to loose by office, it is not required. That the Lord first gives the Holy Spirit is so that one may worthily carry out the office, or to signify that without the grace of the Holy Spirit remission of sins is not given. But it is not required that this grace be in the priest, but in the Sacraments. It can also be said in another way, that the Holy Spirit is said to be given when his gifts are given. There are therefore certain gifts that are from the Holy Spirit and with the Holy Spirit and never without him, such as charity. And there are others that are from the Holy Spirit and never with the Holy Spirit, such as servile fear. And there are others that are both from the Holy Spirit and can be with the Holy Spirit and without him, and such are characters. And because the power of confecting and binding and loosing are of this kind, they remain both in the just and in the unjust; and this was brought about by divine dispensation, so that the sin of the prelate would not prejudice the subject.

On that passage in Matthew 16, Whatsoever you shall bind, etc., the Gloss says: "The other Apostles indeed have the same judiciary power, to whom after the resurrection he says: Receive the Holy Spirit: whose sins you shall remit," etc. The Apostles are thus said to have the same judiciary power, that is, a similar one: but from this it does not follow that they had an equal one, but it is a figure of speech from a change of the predicate, because similitude consists in quality, but equality in quantity.

Christ, when He gave the Spirit unto them, said: Whosesoever sins ye forgive, they are forgiven; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained; though only the living God is able and powerful to grant unto sinners remission of sins; for whom could it befit to pardon the transgressions that sinners have committed against the Divine Law, save the Lawgiver Himself? You may, if you choose, see the meaning of the saying from the analogy of human affairs. Who has authority to meddle with the decrees of earthly monarchs, and who tries to undo that which has been ordained by the will and judgment of rulers, save only someone who is invested with regal honour and dignity? Therefore, wise was the saying, Insolent is he who saith unto the king, Thou breakest the law. In what way, then, and in what sense did the Saviour invest His disciples with the dignity which befits the Nature of God alone? The Word that is in the Father cannot err; and this He did, and whatsoever He doeth, He doeth well. For He thought it meet that they who have once been endued with the Spirit of Him Who is God and Lord, should have power also to remit or retain the sins of whomsoever they would, the Holy Spirit That dwelt in them remitting or retaining them according to His Will, though the deed were done through human instrumentality.

They who have the Spirit of God remit or retain sins in two ways, as I think. For they invite to Baptism those to whom this sacrament is already due from the purity of their lives, and their tried adherence to the faith; and they hinder and exclude others who are not as yet worthy of the Divine grace. And in another sense, also, they remit and retain sins, by. rebuking erring children of the Church, and granting pardon to those who repent; just as, also, Paul gave up him that had committed fornication at Corinth, for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved, and admitted him again into fellowship, that he might not be swallowed up with his overmuch sorrow, as he says in his letter. When, then, the Spirit of Christ dwelling in our hearts doeth things which befit God alone, surely He is the living God, invested with the glorious dignity of the Divine Nature, and having power over sacred laws.

After dignifying the holy Apostles with the glorious distinction of the apostleship, and appointing them ministers and priests of the Divine Altar, as I have just said, He at once sanctifies them by vouchsafing His Spirit unto them, through the outward sign of His Breath, that we might be firmly convinced that the Holy Spirit is not alien to the Son, but Consubstantial with Him, and through Him proceeding from the Father; He shows that the gift of the Spirit necessarily attends those who are ordained by Him to be Apostles of God. And why? Because they could have done nothing pleasing unto God, and could not have triumphed over the snares of sin, if they had not been clothed with power from on high, and been transformed into something other than they were before. Therefore, also, it was said to one of old time: The Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee, and thou shalt be turned into another man; and the Prophet Isaiah also declared that those who waited upon the Lord should renew their strength. The wise Paul, too, when he says that he surpassed some in his labours, that is, in the deeds of an Apostle, adds at once: Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Besides, we say this, that the disciples would never at all have understood the mystery that is in Christ, nor have been true guides in this knowledge, if they had not advanced in the light of the Spirit to a revelation of things which surpass man's reason and understanding, a revelation which is able to point out to them the heights to which they were bound to ascend; for no man can say Jesus is Lord, as Paul says, but in the Holy Spirit. As, then, they were destined to proclaim that Jesus was the Lord, that is, to preach that He was God and Lord of necessity, therefore they received the grace of the Holy Spirit in immediate connexion with the office of apostleship, Christ granting Him unto them, not ministering to the desires of another, but rather vouchsafing Him of Himself; for the Spirit could only come down unto us from the Father through the Son. ... Our Lord Jesus Christ, transforming into the power of truth the figure of the Law, consecrates through Himself the ministers of the Divine Altar. For He is the Lamb of consecration, and He consecrates by actual sanctification, making men partakers in His Nature, through participation in the Spirit, and in some sort strengthening the nature of man into a power and glory that is superhuman.

Of this oil it is said through the prophet: "The yoke shall decay because of the oil." For we were held under the yoke of demonic dominion, but we have been anointed with the oil of the Holy Spirit. And because the grace of liberty has anointed us, the yoke of demonic dominion has rotted away, as Paul attests when he says: "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." But it should be known that those who first received the Holy Spirit, so that they themselves might live innocently and benefit some through preaching, received Him openly after the Lord's resurrection so that they might benefit not a few but many. Hence in this very giving of the Spirit it is said: "Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained." It is pleasing to observe to what height of glory those disciples were led, who were called to such great burdens of humility. Behold, not only do they become secure concerning themselves, but they also receive the power of releasing another's bond; and they obtain the principality of the heavenly judgment, so that in place of God they retain sins for some and release them for others. Thus, thus it was fitting that they be raised up by God, who had consented to be humbled so greatly for God's sake. Behold, those who fear the strict judgment of God become judges of souls; and they condemn or free others, who feared that they themselves would be condemned.

Of these, certainly, the bishops now hold the place in the Church. Those who obtain the rank of governance receive the authority of binding and loosing. Great is the honor, but heavy is the burden of this honor. For it is hard that one who does not know how to maintain the governance of his own life should become a judge of another's life. And it very often happens that one holds the place of judgment whose life does not at all accord with the place. And it often occurs that he either condemns the innocent, or, being himself bound, looses others. Often in loosing and binding his subjects he follows the impulse of his own will rather than the merits of the cases. Whence it happens that he deprives himself of this very power of binding and loosing who exercises it according to his own wishes rather than according to the conduct of his subjects. It often happens that a Pastor is moved by hatred or favor toward any neighbor; but those who follow their own hatreds or favor in the cases of their subjects cannot judge worthily concerning their subjects. Whence it is rightly said through the prophet: They were putting to death souls that do not die, and giving life to souls that do not live. For he puts to death one who is not dying who condemns the just. And he strives to give life to one who will not live who attempts to absolve the guilty from punishment.

Therefore the causes must be weighed, and then the power of binding and loosing must be exercised. It must be seen what fault preceded, or what repentance followed after the fault, so that those whom almighty God visits through the grace of compunction, the sentence of the pastor may absolve. For then the absolution of the one presiding is true, when it follows the judgment of the internal Judge. This is well signified by that resurrection of the man dead four days, which demonstrates that the Lord first called and gave life to the dead man, saying: "Lazarus, come forth"; and afterward he who had come forth alive was loosed by the disciples, as it is written: "And when he who had been bound with wrappings had come forth, then he said to the disciples: Loose him, and let him go." Behold, the disciples loose him now living, whom the Master had raised from the dead. For if the disciples had loosed Lazarus while dead, they would have shown forth a stench rather than power. From this consideration it must be observed that we ought to loose through pastoral authority those whom we recognize our Author vivifies through resurrecting grace. This vivification, indeed, before the work of righteousness is already recognized in the very confession of sin. Hence to this same dead Lazarus it is by no means said "Come back to life," but "Come forth." For every sinner, while he hides his fault within his conscience, lies hidden within, is concealed in his own inner chambers. But the dead man comes forth when the sinner voluntarily confesses his iniquities. Therefore it is said to Lazarus, "Come forth." As if it were openly said to anyone dead in fault: Why do you hide your guilt within your conscience? Come forth now through confession, you who lie hidden within yourself through denial. Let the dead man therefore come forth, that is, let the sinner confess his fault. And let the disciples loose him as he comes forth, so that the pastors of the Church may remove the punishment from him who deserved it, since he was not ashamed to confess what he did. These things I have said briefly concerning the order of loosing, so that the pastors of the Church may strive to loose or bind with great moderation. But whether the pastor binds justly or unjustly, nevertheless the sentence of the pastor is to be feared by the flock, lest he who is subject, even when he is perhaps bound unjustly, may deserve the very sentence of his binding from another fault. Therefore let the pastor fear to absolve or to bind indiscreetly. But let him who is under the hand of the pastor fear to be bound even unjustly; nor let him rashly criticize the judgment of his pastor, lest even if he was bound unjustly, through the very pride of arrogant criticism a fault that did not exist may come to be.

(Hom. xxvi.) We must understand that those who first received the Holy Ghost, for innocence of life in themselves, and preaching to a few others, received it openly after the resurrection, that they might profit not a few only, but many. The disciples who were called to such works of humility, to what a height of glory are they led! Lo, not only have they salvation for themselves, but are admitted to the powers of the supreme Judgment-seat; so that, in the place of God, they retain some men's sins, and remit others. Their place in the Church, the Bishops now hold; who receive the authority to bind, when they are admitted to the rank of government. Great the honour, but heavy the burden of the place. It is ill if one who knows not how to govern his own life, shall be judge of another's.

But you say the church was founded on Peter, although elsewhere the same is attributed to all the apostles, and they all receive the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and the strength of the church depends on them all alike, yet one among the twelve is chosen so that when a head has been appointed, there may be no occasion for schism.

For if any one will consider how great a thing it is for one, being a man, and compassed with flesh and blood, to be enabled to draw nigh to that blessed and pure nature, he will then clearly see what great honor the grace of the Spirit has vouchsafed to priests; since by their agency these rites are celebrated, and others nowise inferior to these both in respect of our dignity and our salvation. For they who inhabit the earth and make their abode there are entrusted with the administration of things which are in Heaven, and have received an authority which God has not given to angels or archangels. For it has not been said to them, "Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven." They who rule on earth have indeed authority to bind, but only the body: whereas this binding lays hold of the soul and penetrates the heavens; and what priests do here below God ratifies above, and the Master confirms the sentence of his servants. For indeed what is it but all manner of heavenly authority which He has given them when He says, "Whose sins ye remit they are remitted, and whose sins ye retain they are retained?" What authority could be greater than this? "The Father hath committed all judgment to the Son?" But I see it all put into the hands of these men by the Son. For they have been conducted to this dignity as if they were already translated to Heaven, and had transcended human nature, and were released from the passions to which we are liable. Moreover, if a king should bestow this honor upon any of his subjects, authorizing him to cast into prison whom he pleased and to release them again, he becomes an object of envy and respect to all men; but he who has received from God an authority as much greater as heaven is more precious than earth, and souls more precious than bodies, seems to some to have received so small an honor that they are actually able to imagine that one of those who have been entrusted with these things will despise the gift. Away with such madness! For transparent madness it is to despise so great a dignity, without which it is not possible to obtain either our own salvation, or the good things which have been promised to us. For if no one can enter into the kingdom of Heaven except he be regenerate through water and the Spirit, and he who does not eat the flesh of the Lord and drink His blood is excluded from eternal life, and if all these things are accomplished only by means of those holy hands, I mean the hands of the priest, how will any one, without these, be able to escape the fire of hell, or to win those crowns which are reserved for the victorious?

Let us then do all we can to have the Holy Spirit with ourselves, and let us treat with much honor those into whose hands its operation hath been committed. For great is the dignity of the priests. "Whosesoever sins," it saith, "ye remit, they are remitted unto them"; wherefore also Paul saith, "Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves." And hold them very exceedingly in honor; for thou indeed carest about thine own affairs, and if thou orderest them well, thou givest no account for others, but the priest even if he rightly order his own life, if he have not an anxious care for thine, yea and that of all those around him, will depart with the wicked into hell; and often when not betrayed by his own conduct, he perishes by yours, if he have not rightly performed all his part. Knowing therefore the greatness of the danger, give them a large share of your goodwill; which Paul also implied when he said, "For they watch for your souls," and not simply so, but, "as they that shall give account."

Consider the person inspired by Jesus as the apostles were and who can be known by his fruits as someone who has received the Holy Spirit and become spiritual by being led by the Spirit as a son of God to do everything by reason. This person forgives whatever God forgives and retains sins that cannot be healed, serving God like the prophets by speaking not his own words but those of the divine will. So he, too, serves God, who alone has authority to forgive.

Hence the power of loosing and of binding committed to Peter had nothing to do with the capital sins of believers; and if the Lord had given him a precept that he must grant pardon to a brother sinning against him even "seventy times sevenfold," of course He would have commanded him to "bind"-that is, to "retain" -nothing subsequently, unless perchance such (sins) as one may have committed against the Lord, not against a brother.

What truly wonderful gifts! Indeed, it does not only give the power over the elements and the faculty to make signs and wonders but also concedes that God may name them [judges], and therefore the servants receive from him the authority that is proper to him. The prerogative to absolve and retain sins only belongs to God, and the Jews sometimes raised this objection with the Savior, saying, "Who can forgive sins but God alone?" The Lord generously gave this authority to those who honored him.

One could also say that He gave them a certain authority and spiritual grace, only not to raise the dead and perform miracles, but to forgive sins. Therefore He also added: "Whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven," showing that He gave them this particular kind of spiritual gift—the forgiveness of sins. But after His ascension, the Spirit Himself descended and abundantly granted them the power to work miracles and every other gift. Note, if you will, the dignity of priests — it is Divine. For to forgive sins is the work of God. Thus, they must be honored as God. Even if they were unworthy, what of it? They are ministers of Divine gifts, and grace acts through them, just as it once spoke through Balaam's donkey (Num. 22:28–30). Therefore, our unworthiness does not hinder grace. And since grace is bestowed through priests, they must be honored.

2541 Thirdly, we see the fruit of the gift, If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. This forgiving of sins is a fitting effect of the Holy Spirit. This is so because the Holy Spirit is charity, love, and through the Holy Spirit love is given to us: "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us" (Rom 5:5). Now it is only through love that sins are forgiven, for "Love covers all offenses" (Prv 10:12); "Love covers a multitude of sins" (1 Pet 4:8).

2542 We can ask here why we read, If you forgive the sins of any, for only God forgives sins? Some say that only God forgives the sin, while the priest absolves only from the debt of punishment, and pronounces the person free from the stain of sin. This is not true: for the sacrament of Penance, since it is a sacrament of the New Law, gives grace, as does Baptism. Now in the sacrament of Baptism, the priest baptizes as an instrument, and yet he confers grace. It is similar in the sacrament of Penance, the priest absolves from the sin and the punishment as a minister and sacramentally, insofar as he administers the sacrament in which sins are forgiven. The statement that God alone forgives sins authoritatively is true. So also, only God baptizes, but the priest is the minister, as was said.

2543 Another question arises from the statements, Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. It seems from this that one who does not have the Holy Spirit cannot forgive sins. We should say about this that if the forgiveness of sins was the personal work of the priest, that is, that he did this by his own power, he could not sanctify anyone unless he himself were holy. But the forgiveness of sins is the personal work of God, who forgives sins by his own power and authority. The priest is only the instrument. Therefore, just as a master, through his servant and minister, whether good or bad, can accomplish what he wills, so our Lord, through his ministers, even if they are evil, can confer the sacraments, in which grace is given.

2544 Again, there is a question about, If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. We should say, as we already did, that in the sacraments the priest acts as a minister: "This is how one should regard us, as servants [ministers] of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God" (1 Cor 4:1). Thus, in the same way that God forgives and retains sins, so also does the priest. Now God forgives sins by giving grace, and he is said to retain by not giving grace because of some obstacle in the one who is to receive it. So also the minister forgives sins, insofar as he dispenses a sacrament of the Church, and he retains insofar as he accounts someone unworthy to receive the sacrament.

(in Serm. Tap. ad Cat. ii. 8.) You ask; If He entered by the shut door, where is the nature of His body? (ubi est modus corporis.) And I reply; If He walked on the sea, where is the weight of His body? The Lord did that as the Lord; and did He, after His resurrection, cease to be the Lord?

And after eight days. Here the second manifestation of the Lord is treated, made for the purpose of removing the unbelief of Thomas. The congregation of the disciples is touched upon when it says: After eight days, that is, after the resurrection and the first appearance: again his disciples were within, in the same house, at rest from tumult; and Thomas with them; and thus, because they were together and were within, they were disposed to see the Lord, according to that passage in Matthew 18: "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am in their midst."

Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst. Here the appearance of the Lord is touched upon: whence coming he stood in the midst, so that there would be no one who did not see him. And he said to them: Peace be to you. Here is noted the address of the Lord. This manner of speaking manifested him, because he had been accustomed to greet thus, wishing peace, and he had taught his disciples to greet in this way: Matthew 10: "Into whatever house you enter, first say: Peace be to this house."

Question. Concerning what he says: Jesus came, the doors being shut. For if He came for this purpose, that He might be recognized through the touch of Thomas, it seems that in the very manner of His coming He would weaken the faith which He was establishing: because, just as a spirit cannot be touched, so neither can that which can be touched enter through closed doors; and therefore the whole thing could seem illusory. Some respond that Christ had to show not only that He had a body in which He suffered, but also a divine body, that is, one united to the Divinity. And to show that it was divine, He came through closed doors. Whence Augustine: "Closed doors did not stand in the way of the mass of the body where the Divinity was. For He was able to enter without them being opened, He at whose birth the virginity of His Mother remained inviolate." But others respond that by this He did not show that He had a divine body, but a glorified one: because this was not proper to Him alone, but to all glorified bodies. And Augustine's words are to be understood through the argument from the lesser, and thus Gregory expounds it: "What wonder if, through closed doors, He entered after His resurrection, He who, coming before, went forth without the womb of the Virgin being opened?" And thus he argues through the argument from the lesser. Therefore, to the argument it must be replied that He had to prove that it was the same body in such a way that He also showed it to be glorified.

With good reason, then, are we accustomed to have sacred meetings in churches on the eighth day. And, to adopt the language of allegory, as the idea necessarily demands, we indeed close the doors, but Christ still visits us and appears to us all, both invisibly as God and visibly in the body. He allows us to touch his holy flesh and gives it to us. For through the grace of God we are admitted to partake of the blessed Eucharist, receiving Christ into our hands, to the intent that we may firmly believe that he did in truth raise up the temple of his body.… Participation in the divine mysteries, in addition to filling us with divine blessedness, is a true confession and memorial of Christ's dying and rising again for us and for our sake. Let us, therefore, after touching Christ's body, avoid all unbelief in him as utter ruin and rather be found well grounded in the full assurance of faith.

The Lord came again, and offered his side to the unbelieving disciple to touch, showed his hands, and by displaying the scar of his wounds, healed the wound of that man's unbelief. What, dearest brothers, what do you observe in these things? Do you think it happened by chance that this chosen disciple was absent then, but coming later heard, hearing doubted, doubting touched, touching believed? This did not happen by chance, but by divine dispensation. For heavenly mercy acted in a wondrous way so that the doubting disciple, while he touched the wounds of flesh in his master, might heal in us the wounds of unbelief. For the unbelief of Thomas profited us more for faith than the faith of the believing disciples, because while he is brought back to faith by touching, our mind, all doubt set aside, is strengthened in faith. For thus the Lord permitted his disciple to doubt after his resurrection, yet did not abandon him in his doubt, just as before his birth he willed Mary to have a spouse, who nevertheless did not attain to marriage with her. For thus the doubting and touching disciple became a witness of the true resurrection, just as the spouse had been the guardian of the mother's perfect virginity.

The Lord stoops to the level even of our feeble understanding. He works a miracle of his invisible power in order to satisfy the doubts of unbelieving minds. Explain, my critic, the ways of heaven—explain his action if you can. The disciples were in a closed room. They had met and held their assembly in secret since the passion of the Lord. The Lord presents himself to strengthen the faith of Thomas by meeting his challenge. He gives him his body to feel, his wounds to handle. He, indeed, who would be recognized as having suffered wounds must necessarily produce the body in which those wounds were received. I ask at what point in the walls of that closed house the Lord bodily entered. The apostle has recorded the circumstances with careful precision: "Jesus came when the doors were shut and stood in the midst." Did he penetrate through bricks and mortar or through stout woodwork—substances whose very nature it is to bar progress? For there he stood in bodily presence; there was no suspicion of deceit. Let the eye of your mind follow his path as he enters. Let your intellectual vision accompany him as he passes into that closed dwelling. There is no breach in the walls; no door has been unbarred. Yet, see how he stands in the midst whose might no barrier can resist. You are a critic of things invisible; I ask you to explain a visible event. Everything remains firm as it was. No body is capable of insinuating itself through the interstices of wood and stone. The body of the Lord does not disperse itself, to come together again after a disappearance. Yet where does the one who is standing in their midst come from? Your senses and your words are powerless to account for it. The fact is certain, but it lies beyond the region of human explanation. If, as you say, our account of the divine birth is a lie, then prove that this account of the Lord's entrance is a fiction. If we assume that an event did not happen, because we cannot discover how it was done, we make the limits of our understanding into the limits of reality. But the certainty of the evidence proves the falsehood of our contradiction. The Lord did stand in a closed house in the midst of the disciples; the Son was born of the Father. Deny not that he stood, because your puny wits cannot ascertain how he came there; renounce instead a disbelief in God the only-begotten and perfect Son of God the unbegotten and perfect Father that is based only on the incapacity of sense and speech to comprehend.

The sacred books acknowledge with regard to Christ, that as He is the Son of man, so is the same Being not a [mere] man; and as He is flesh, so is He also spirit, and the Word of God, and God. And as He was born of Mary in the last times, so did He also proceed from God as the First-begotten of every creature; and as He hungered, so did He satisfy [others]; and as He thirsted, so did He of old cause the Jews to drink, for the "Rock was Christ" Himself: thus does Jesus now give to His believing people power to drink spiritual waters, which spring up to life eternal. And as He was the son of David, so was He also the Lord of David. And as He was from Abraham, so did He also exist before Abraham. And as He was the servant of God, so is He the Son of God, and Lord of the universe. And as He was spit upon ignominiously, so also did He breathe the Holy Spirit into His disciples. And as He was saddened, so also did He give joy to His people. And as He was capable of being handled and touched, so again did He, in a non-apprehensible form, pass through the midst of those who sought to injure Him, and entered without impediment through closed doors. And as He slept, so did He also rule the sea, the winds, and the storms. And as He suffered, so also is He alive, and life-giving, and healing all our infirmity. And as He died, so is He also the Resurrection of the dead. He suffered shame on earth, while He is higher than all glory and praise in heaven; who, "though He was crucified through weakness, yet He liveth by divine power;" who "descended into the lower parts of the earth," and who "ascended up above the heavens;" for whom a manger sufficed, yet who filled all things; who was dead, yet who liveth for ever and ever. Amen.

And why doth He not appear to him straightway, instead of "after eight days"? In order that being in the mean time continually instructed by the disciples, and hearing the same thing, he might be inflamed to more eager desire, and be more ready to believe for the future. But whence knew he that His side had been opened? From having heard it from the disciples. How then did he believe partly, and partly not believe? Because this thing was very strange and wonderful. But observe, I pray you, the truthfulness of the disciples, how they hide no faults, either their own or others', but record them with great veracity.

After these points, Celsus proceeds to bring against the Gospel narrative a charge which is not to be lightly passed over, saying that "if Jesus desired to show that his power was really divine, he ought to have appeared to those who had ill-treated him, and to him who had condemned him, and to all men universally." For it appears to us also to be true, according to the Gospel account, that He was not seen after His resurrection in the same manner as He used formerly to show Himself — publicly, and to all men. But it is recorded in the Acts, that "being seen during forty days," He expounded to His disciples "the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." [Acts 1:3] And in the Gospels it is not stated that He was always with them; but that on one occasion He appeared in their midst, after eight days, when the doors were shut [John 20:26], and on another in some similar fashion. And Paul also, in the concluding portions of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, in reference to His not having publicly appeared as He did in the period before He suffered, writes as follows: "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: after that He was seen of above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain unto the present time, but some are fallen asleep. After that He was seen of James, then of all the apostles. And last of all He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time." [1 Corinthians 15:3-8] I am of opinion now that the statements in this passage contain some great and wonderful mysteries, which are beyond the grasp not merely of the great multitude of ordinary believers, but even of those who are far advanced (in Christian knowledge), and that in them the reason would be explained why He did not show Himself, after His resurrection from the dead, in the same manner as before that event.

For what reason does the Lord appear to him not immediately, but after eight days? So that he, heeding the instruction of his fellow disciples and hearing the same thing, would be inflamed with greater desire and become firmer in faith for the future.

2551 Now the Evangelist presents our Lord's second appearance. It was to all the disciples, including Thomas. First, he mentions Christ appearing; secondly, we see that Thomas is now convinced; thirdly, the Evangelist comments on what he has included in his gospel (30). He does three things about the first: the time of Christ's appearance is mentioned; then to whom he appeared; and thirdly, the way he came (v 26).

2552 The time was eight days later, that is, from the day of our Lord's resurrection, on the evening of which he first appeared. One literal reason for mentioning the time was so that the Evangelist could show that although Christ had appeared frequently to the disciples, he did not remain with them continually, since he had not arisen to the same kind of life, just as we will not rise to the same kind of life: "All the days of my service I would wait, till my release should come" [Job 14:14]. A reason for the delay was so that Thomas, hearing about our Lord's first appearance from the disciples, would develop a stronger desire and become more disposed to believe. A mystical reason for our Lord's appearance after eight days is that this indicates how he will appear to us in glory [as immortal, etc.]: "When he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is" (1 Jn 3:2). He will appear to us in the eighth age, which is the age of those who have risen from the dead.

2553 The Evangelist shows to whom he appeared when he says, his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. We should note that Thomas was the only one who needed this appearance of Christ, but even so our Lord did not appear to him alone, but to the group. This shows that it is not very pleasing to God to exist in isolation, but it is to live in a unity of charity with others: "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Mt 18:20). Those to whom Christ appears [in this life] are not all gathered into one group, and this present assembly of the disciples did not include every such one. But in the future all will be gathered together, and no one absent: "Wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together" (Mt 24:28); "He will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other" (Mt 24:31).

2554 He shows the way Christ appeared by saying, The doors were shut, but Jesus came and stood among them, and said, Peace be with you. This was explained before. The Evangelist notes three things here. First, how Christ came, the doors were shut. As Augustine says, this was done miraculously, by the same power which enabled him to walk on the water. Secondly, where he stood, among them, so he could be seen by all, as was fitting. Thirdly, we see what he said, Peace be with you, that is, the peace coming from reconciliation, reconciliation with God, which Jesus said had now been accomplished: "We were reconciled to God by the death of his Son" (Rom 5:10); "making peace by the blood of his cross" (Col 1:20). Jesus also announced to them the future peace of eternity and immortality, which he had promised them: "He makes peace in your borders" (Ps 147:14); and also the peace of charity and unity, which he commanded them to maintain: "Be at peace with one another" (Mk 9:49).

The love we bear for the blessed martyrs causes us—how, I do not know—to desire to see in the heavenly kingdom the marks that they received for the name of Christ. And possibly we shall see them. For this will not be a deformity but a mark of honor and will add luster to their appearance as well as a spiritual (if not a bodily) beauty.… For even though the blemishes of the body will not be found in any resurrected body, the evidences of virtue can hardly be called blemishes.

"But Thomas, one of the twelve, who is called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe. And after eight days, again His disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith He to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and put it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. Thomas answered and said unto Him, My Lord and my God." He saw and touched the man, and acknowledged the God whom he neither saw nor touched; but by the means of what he saw and touched, he now put far away from him every doubt, and believed the other. "Jesus saith unto him, Because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed." He saith not, Thou hast touched me, but, "Thou hast seen me," because sight is a kind of general sense. For sight is also habitually named in connection with the other four senses: as when we say, Listen, and see how well it sounds; smell it, and see how well it smells; taste it, and see how well it savors; touch it, and see how hot it is. Everywhere has the word, See, made itself heard, although sight, properly speaking, is allowed to belong only to the eyes. Hence here also the Lord Himself says, "Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands:" and what else does He mean but, Touch and see? And yet he had no eyes in his finger. Whether therefore it was by looking, or also by touching, "Because thou hast seen me," He says, "thou hast believed." Although it may be affirmed that the disciple dared not so to touch, when He offered Himself for the purpose; for it is not written, And Thomas touched Him. But whether it was by gazing only, or also by touching that he saw and believed, what follows rather proclaims and commends the faith of the Gentiles: "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." He made use of words in the past tense, as One who, in His predestinating purpose, knew what was future, as if it had already taken place.

(de Symb. ad Cat. ii. 8) He might, had He pleased, have wiped all spot and trace of wound from His glorified body; but He had reasons for retaining them. He showed them to Thomas, who would not believe except he saw and touched; and He will show them to His enemies, not to say, as He did to Thomas, Because thou hast seen, thou hast believed, but to convict them: Behold the Man whom ye crucified, see the wounds which ye inflicted, recognise the side which ye pierced, that it was by you, and for you, that it was opened, and yet ye cannot enter there.

(xxii. Civ. Dei, xix) We are, as I know not how, afflicted with such love for the blessed martyrs, that we would wish in that kingdom to see on their bodies the marks of those wounds which they have borne for Christ's sake. And perhaps we shall see them; for they will not have deformity, but dignity, and, though on the body, shine forth not with bodily, but with spiritual beauty (virtutis). Nor yet, if any of the limbs of martyrs have been cut off, shall they therefore appear without them in the resurrection of the dead; for it is said, There shall not an hair of your head perish. But if it be fit that in that new world, the traces of glorious wounds should still be preserved on the immortal flesh, in the places where the limbs were cut off there, though those same limbs withal be not lost but restored, shall the wounds appear. For though all the blemishes of the body shall then be no more, yet the evidences of virtue are not to be called blemishes.

Then he says to Thomas. Here is noted his offering of himself to be touched. For since Thomas had said: "Unless I put my finger into the place of the nails," etc., therefore the Lord says to him: Put your finger here and see my hands. Because he had also said: "Unless I put my hand into his side"; therefore the Lord says to him: And bring your hand and put it into my side. And because he had also said: Unless I do this, "I will not believe"; therefore the Lord says: And be not unbelieving, but faithful: since in all things I have satisfied your will. Whence Gregory says: "It was brought about by divine dispensation that the chosen disciple was then absent when the Lord appeared to the others; but coming afterward he would hear, hearing he would doubt, doubting he would touch, touching he would believe." Habakkuk 2: "But he who is unbelieving, his soul shall not be right in himself; but my just one shall live by faith."

Question. Concerning what He says: Put your finger here and place your hand in my side. From this it seems that the body of Christ was wounded; but if so, it was not glorified. Likewise, if you say that the scars remained, it seems that it does not have full glory, because that is more perfectly healed in which no traces of imperfection remain; therefore it seems that the body of Christ was not perfectly glorified. If you say that they remained only for the sake of the disciples, then it seems that they were not true but false scars. Augustine responds in the book On Six Solutions against the Pagans: "Let those who have proposed these questions know," he says, "that Christ showed the disciples not wounds but scars, which would then be false if no wounds had preceded them; nor are they from inability to heal, since they were left by divine dispensation and the art of the best physician." Augustine gives the example of a wounded soldier who does not wish to be healed by the physician without the marks of his wounds remaining. Moreover, the reason why they were preserved was threefold, as Victor says: "Thus," he says, "He preserved the scars of the wounds not from inability to heal, but that He might bear about forever the triumph of His victory; and to establish faith in the resurrection, that He might demonstrate that the same body which dies rises again; and that to those redeemed by His death, He might indicate how mercifully they were helped, by setting forth and showing the signs of that same death." A fourth reason could be given: for the confusion of the damned; whence Apocalypse 1: Every eye shall see Him, and those who pierced Him.

Question. Concerning what he says: And put your hand into my side, etc. — Therefore the body of Christ was palpable; but, as Gregory says, "everything palpable is corruptible": therefore that body was corruptible. If you say, as Chrysostom says, that "this was of condescension, what was being done"; then it is objected: because if to be touched is against the nature of a glorified body, then it is manifest that in this he was not showing that he had a glorified body, but rather one not glorified. And it is answered that this argument does not hold, because by entering through closed doors he showed it to be glorious, but through touch he showed it to be the same body that had suffered. It can nevertheless be said otherwise, that just as something is visible in two ways — in one way, because it cannot escape sight, like a stone; in another way, because, although it can escape notice, it can also affect the sense — the first is in a certain way of weakness and belongs to a non-glorious body, the second is of power and belongs to a glorious body — so to be touched because it cannot escape touch is in a certain way of weakness and of a non-glorious body; but to be touched because it arrests the pressure of the hand as something solid, which indeed can by its own power pass through the hand, this is of great power. And this was in the glorious body, and especially in the body of Christ.

Question. Concerning what he says: Be not unbelieving, but faithful. Gregory objects: "Since Paul says in Hebrews 11: Faith is the evidence of things not appearing: faith is of those things which cannot appear; for things that appear do not have faith but recognition: therefore if Thomas saw the Lord, he no longer had faith but knowledge." Gregory and Augustine respond that "he saw one thing and believed another: he saw a man and confessed God: whence he says: My Lord and my God." But then it is objected: because at least he saw him whom he had previously seen dead: therefore he knew the resurrection; he did not believe it. Likewise, Thomas did not believe except because he saw: therefore "human reason provided the proof for his faith": therefore "his faith had no merit." I respond: It must be said that because the Apostles knew of the deceptions of demons, they could have supposed that everything Christ was doing was from some spirit in an assumed body; and hence it was that some even doubted. And therefore I say that through that vision there was no certain knowledge, nor did they have through those showings compelling arguments which would remove the merit of faith, but only persuasive ones, which assist a weak mind not yet established in the faith.

That Christ is God. In Genesis: "And God said unto Jacob, Arise, and go up to the place of Bethel, and dwell there; and make there an altar to that God who appeared unto thee when thou reddest from the face of thy brother Esau." Also in Isaiah: "Thus saith the Lord, the God of Sabaoth, Egypt is wearied; and the merchandise of the Ethiopians, and the tall men of the Sabeans, shall pass over unto Thee, and shall be Thy servants; and shall walk after Thee bound with chains; and shall worship Thee, and shall pray to Thee, because God is in Thee, and there is no other God beside Thee. For Thou art God, and we knew it not, O God of Israel, our Saviour. They shall all be confounded and fear who oppose Thee, and shall fall into confusion." Likewise in the same: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight the paths of our God. Every channel shall be filled up, and every mountain and bill shall be made low, and all crooked places shall be made straight, and rough places plain; and the glory of the Lord shall be seen, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God, because the Lord hath spoken it." Moreover, in Jeremiah: This is our God, and no other shall be esteemed beside Him, who hath found all the way of knowledge, and hath given it to Jacob His son, and to Israel His beloved. After this He was seen upon earth, and He conversed with men." Also in Zechariah God says: "And they shall cross over through the narrow sea, and they shall smite the waves in the sea, and they shall dry up all the depths of the rivers; and all the haughtiness of the Assyrians shall be confounded, and the sceptre of Egypt shall be taken away. And I will strengthen them in the Lord their God, and in His name shall they glory, saith the Lord." Moreover, in Hosea the Lord saith: "I will not do according to the anger of mine indignation, I will not allow Ephraim to be destroyed: for I am God, and there is not a holy man in thee: and I will not enter into the city; I will go after God." Also in the forty-fourth Psalm: "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity: wherefore God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows." So, too, in the forty-fifth Psalm: "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, and I will be exalted in the earth." Also in the eighty-first Psalm: "They have not known, neither have they understood: they will walk on in darkness." Also in the sixty-seventh Psalm: "Sing unto God, sing praises unto His name: make a way for Him who goeth up into the west: God is His name." Also in the Gospel according to John: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word." Also in the same: "The Lord said to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands: and be not faithless, but believing. Thomas answered and said unto Him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they who have not seen, and yet have believed." Also Paul to the Romans: "I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren and my kindred according to the flesh: who are Israel-ires: whose are the adoption, and the glory, and the covenant, and the appointment of the law, and the service (of God), and the promises; whose are the fathers, of whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is God over all, blessed for evermore." Also in the Apocalypse: "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end I will give to him that is athirst, of the fountain of living water freely. He that overcometh shall possess these things, and their inheritance; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son." Also in the eighty-first Psalm: "God stood in the congregation of gods, and judging gods in the midst." And again in the same place: "I have said, Ye are gods; and ye are all the children of the Highest: but ye shall die like men." But if they who have been righteous, and have obeyed the divine precepts, may be called gods, how much more is Christ, the Son of God, God! Thus He Himself says in the Gospel according to John: "Is it not written in the law, that I said, Ye are gods? If He called them gods to whom the word of God was given, and the Scripture cannot be relaxed, do ye say to Him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world, that thou blasphemest, because I said, I am the Son of God? But if I do not the works of my Father, believe me not; but if I do, and ye will not believe me, believe the works, and know that the Father is in me, and I in Him." Also in the Gospel according to Matthew: "And ye shall call His name Emmanuel, which is, being interpreted, God with us."

Let the attentive reader call to mind that our Lord repulsed Mary Magdalene from touching Him, saying plainly: Touch Me not, for I am not yet ascended unto the Father. Yet He allows Thomas to touch His Side, and to feel with his fingers the print of the nails. We have already explained why our Lord did this, but none the less will we call back to mind the reason, briefly recapitulating what we said. For not yet had the time arrived for Mary to touch Him, because she had not yet been sanctified by the grace of the Holy Spirit; for while Christ was yet in our midst, and had not yet ascended to the Father in heaven, it was impossible to see the descent of the Comforter fully accomplished among men. It was meet, however, for Thomas to touch Him, as he, as well as the rest, had been enriched with the Spirit. For, as we said before, he was not on account of his absence without his share in the Spirit. For the munificence of the Giver reached unto him also, when the boon was granted to the entire company of the holy disciples.

I think we ought also to investigate the following question. Thomas felt our Saviour's Side, and found the wounds made by the soldier's spear, and saw the print of the nails. Then how was it, someone may inquire, that the marks of corruption were apparent in an incorruptible Body? For the abiding trace of the holes bored through the Hands and Side, and the marks of wounds and punctures made by steel, affords proof of physical corruption, though the true and incontrovertible fact that Christ's Body was transformed into incorrup-tion points to a necessary discarding of all the results of corruption, together with corruption itself. For will any man who is lame, at the Resurrection have a maimed foot or limb? And if any man have lost the sight of his eyes in this life, will he be raised again blind? How then, someone may say, can we have shaken off the yoke of corruption, if its results still remain and rule over our members? It is essential, I think, to inquire into this question; and this we say, with reference to the difficulties raised by the passage. We are as far as possible anxious to assent to the contention that at the time of the resurrection there will be no remnant of adventitious corruption left in us, but, as the wise Paul said concerning this body of ours, that which is sown in weakness is raised in power, and that which is sown in dishonour is raised in glory. And what can we expect the resurrection of this body in power and glory to be, if it does not imply that it will cast off all the weakness and dishonour of corruption and disease, and return to its original purity? For the human body was not made for death and corruption. But, inasmuch as Thomas required this proof for his perfect satisfaction, our Lord Jesus Christ, of necessity, therefore, in order to leave no excuse for our want of faith, appears even as he sought to see Him; for even when He ascended into heaven itself, and made known the meaning of the mystery concerning Himself to the rulers, principalities, and powers above, and to those who commanded the legions of angels, He appeared also unto them in this same guise that they might believe that in very truth the Word That was of the Father, and in the Father, became Man for our sake, and that they might know that such was His care for His creatures that He died for our salvation. And, in order to make the meaning of my explanation clearer to my hearers, I will add the very words spoken by the mouth of Isaiah on this subject. He saith: Who is This That cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bosra? They who raise this shout, I mean the cry: Who is This That cometh from Edom? that is, from the earth, are angels and rational powers, for they are marvelling at the Lord ascending into heaven. And, seeing Him almost, as it were, dyed in His own Blood, they say unto Him, not yet apprehending the mystery: Why is Thy apparel red, and why are Thy garments like him that treadeth in the wine-vats? For they compare the colour of the blood to new wine, lately trodden in the press. And what saith Christ unto them? First, in order that He may be known to be the living God, He saith: I speak righteousness; using the word speak, instead of "teach." And most assuredly. He that teacheth righteousness must be a Lawgiver, and if a Lawgiver, surely also God. Then say the angels unto Him, as Christ showeth them the marks of the nails: What are these wounds in Thy Hands? and the Lord answereth: Those with which I was wounded in the house of My beloved. For Israel was the house that the Lord loved, and Israel smote Him with nails and spear. For the outrages of the soldiers may justly be ascribed unto the Jews, for they brought the Lord to His death. Therefore, when He wished to satisfy the holy angels that He was, in fact, a Man, and that He had undergone the Cross for us, and that He was risen again to life from the dead, Christ was not content with mere words, but showed unto them the marks of His suffering. What is there to astonish us in the fact, that when He desired to rid the blessed Thomas of his unbelief He showed the print of the nails, appearing unto him, contrary to expectation, for the advantage of all men, and to the intent that we might believe without question that the mystery of the Resurrection was actually accomplished, no other body being raised but that which suffered death?

If, like a Thomas, you were left out when the disciples were assembled to whom Christ shows himself, when you do see him do not be faithless. And if you do not believe, then believe those who tell you. And if you cannot believe them either, then have confidence in the print of the nails.

Once he had accustomed people to seeing the miracle of resurrection in other bodies, he confirmed his word in his own humanity. You already received a glimpse of that word working in others—those who were about to die, the child who had just ceased to live, the young man at the edge of the grave, the putrefying corpse, all alike restored by one command to life.… Now look at him whose hands were pierced with nails, look at him whose side was transfixed with a spear. Pass your fingers through the print of the nails, thrust your hand into the spear wound. You could surely guess how far within your hand would reach by the breadth of the external scar since the wound that gives admission to the hand shows to what depth the iron entered. If he then has been raised, well may we utter the apostle's exclamation, "How do some say that there is no resurrection of the dead?" Since, then, every prediction of the Lord is shown to be true by the testimony of events—in fact, we not only learned this from his words but also received the proof in his deeds from the very same people who returned to life by resurrection—what other occasion is left for those who do not believe? Let us rather bid farewell to those who pervert our simple faith by "philosophy and vain deceit." Let us instead hold on to our confession [of the resurrection] in its purity, a confession that we have learned through the gracious words of the prophet, "You shall take away their breath, and they shall fail and turn to dust. You shall then send forth your Spirit, and they shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth."

The Lord came again, and offered his side to the unbelieving disciple to touch, showed his hands, and by displaying the scar of his wounds, healed the wound of that man's unbelief. What, dearest brothers, what do you observe in these things? Do you think it happened by chance that this chosen disciple was absent then, but coming later heard, hearing doubted, doubting touched, touching believed? This did not happen by chance, but by divine dispensation. For heavenly mercy acted in a wondrous way so that the doubting disciple, while he touched the wounds of flesh in his master, might heal in us the wounds of unbelief. For the unbelief of Thomas profited us more for faith than the faith of the believing disciples, because while he is brought back to faith by touching, our mind, all doubt set aside, is strengthened in faith. For thus the Lord permitted his disciple to doubt after his resurrection, yet did not abandon him in his doubt, just as before his birth he willed Mary to have a spouse, who nevertheless did not attain to marriage with her. For thus the doubting and touching disciple became a witness of the true resurrection, just as the spouse had been the guardian of the mother's perfect virginity.

(Hom. xxvi.) Our Lord gave that flesh to be touched which He had introduced through shut doors: wherein two wonderful, and, according to human reason, contradictory things appear, viz. that after the resurrection He had a body incorruptible, and yet palpable. For that which is palpable must be corruptible, and that which is incorruptible must be impalpable. But He showed Himself incorruptible and yet palpable, to prove that His body after His resurrection was the same in nature as before, but different in glory.

(Mor. xii. 31) Our body also in that resurrection to glory will be subtle by means of the action of the Spirit, but palpable by its true nature, not, as Eutychius says, impalpable, and subtler than the winds and the air.

He calls Him, then, "the first-fruits of them that sleep," as the "first-begotten of the dead." For He, having risen, and being desirous to show that that same (body) had been raised which had also died, when His disciples were in doubt, called Thomas to Him, and said, "Reach hither; handle me, and see: for a spirit hath not bone and flesh, as ye see me have."

In calling Him the first-fruits, he testified to that which we have said, viz., that the Saviour, taking to Himself the flesh out of the same lump, raised this same flesh, and made it the first-fruits of the flesh of the righteous, in order that all we who have believed in the hope of the Risen One may have the resurrection in expectation.

And I know that He was possessed of a body not only in His being born and crucified, but I also know that He was so after His resurrection, and believe that He is so now. When, for instance, He came to those who were with Peter, He said to them, "Lay hold, handle Me, and see that I am not an incorporeal spirit." "For a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me have." And He says to Thomas, "Reach hither thy finger into the print of the nails, and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side; " and immediately they believed that He was Christ. Wherefore Thomas also says to Him, "My Lord, and my God." And on this account also did they despise death, for it were too little to say, indignities and stripes. Nor was this all; but also after He had shown Himself to them, that He had risen indeed, and not in appearance only, He both ate and drank with them during forty entire days. And thus was He, with the flesh, received up in their sight unto Him that sent Him, being with that same flesh to come again, accompanied by glory and power. For, say the [holy] oracles, "This same Jesus, who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come, in like manner as ye have seen Him go unto heaven." But if they say that He will come at the end of the world without a body, how shall those "see Him that pierced Him," and when they recognise Him, "mourn for themselves? " For incorporeal beings have neither form nor figure, nor the aspect of an animal possessed of shape, because their nature is in itself simple.

After the resurrection we shall have the same members that we now use, the same flesh and blood and bones, for it is not the nature of these that is condemned in Holy Scripture but their works.… The true confession of the resurrection declares that the flesh will be glorious, but without destroying its reality. And so, when the apostle says, "This [flesh] is corruptible and mortal," his words denote this very body, in other words, the flesh that was then seen. But when he further adds that it "puts on incorruption and immortality," he is not saying that what was put on [i.e., the clothing] does away with the body that it adorns in glory. Rather, it makes that body glorious that previously lacked glory. When the more worthless robe of mortality and weakness is laid aside, then we can be clothed with the gold of immortality and the blessedness of strength as well as virtue.

Jesus again presenteth himself to them, and waiteth not to be requested by Thomas, nor to hear any such thing, but before he had spoken, Himself prevented him, and fulfilled his desire; showing that even when he spake those words to the disciples, He was present. For He used the same words, and in a manner conveying a sharp rebuke, and instruction for the future. For having said, "Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side"; He added, "And be not faithless, but believing."

Seest thou that his doubt proceeded from unbelief? But it was before he had received the Spirit; after that, it was no longer so, but, for the future, they were perfected.

It is worth enquiring, how an incorruptible body showed the prints of the nails, and was tangible by a mortal hand. But be not thou disturbed; what took place was a matter of condescension. For that which was so subtle and light as to enter in when the doors were shut, was free from all density; but this marvel was shown, that the Resurrection might be believed, and that men might know that it was the Crucified One Himself, and that another rose not in His stead. On this account He arose bearing the signs of the Cross, and on this account He eateth. At least the Apostles everywhere made this a sign of the Resurrection, saying, "We, who did eat and drink with Him." As therefore when we see Him walking on the waves before the Crucifixion, we do not say, that that body is of a different nature, but of our own; so after the Resurrection, when we see Him with the prints of the nails, we will no more say, that he is therefore corruptible. For He exhibited these appearances on account of the disciple.

Who protected the hand of the disciple, then, That was not melted when he approached The fiery side of the Lord? Who gave it daring and strength to probe The flaming bone? Certainly the side was examined. For unless the side had supplied abundant power, How could a right hand of clay have touched The sufferings which had shaken What is above and what is below? It was grace itself that was given to Thomas By Christ to touch his side and to cry out, "You are our Lord and God."

Truly the bramble bush which endured fire Was burned but not consumed. Because of the hand of Thomas I believe the story of Moses. For, though his hand was perishable and thorny, It was not burned When it touched the side that was like burning flame. Then fire came upon the bramble bush, But now, the thorny one raced to the fire; And God himself looked on, Guarding both. And so I believe. And so I will praise the one who is both God and man, as I cry, "You are our Lord and God."

For truly the boundary line of faith Was circumscribed for me By the hand of Thomas. For when he touched Christ He became like the pen Of a rapid-writing scribe That writes for the faithful. Faith gushes forth from it. The robber drank and became sober again from it. The disciples watered their hearts from it. Thomas drained the knowledge that he sought from it, For he drank first and then offered a draught To many who have a little doubt. He persuades them to say, "You are our Lord and God."

Marcion chose to believe that Jesus was a phantom, denying to him the reality of a perfect body. Now, not even to his apostles was his nature ever a matter of deception. He was truly both seen and heard on the mount. True and real was the draught of wine at the marriage of [Cana in] Galilee. True and real also was the touch of the then believing Thomas. Read the testimony of John: "That which we have seen, which we have heard, which we have looked on with our eyes and our hands have handled, of the Word of life." False, of course, and deceptive must have been that testimony, if the witness of our eyes and ears and hands by nature is a lie.

He was truly both seen and heard upon the mount; true and real was the draught of that wine at the marriage of (Cana in) Galilee; true and real also was the touch of the then believing Thomas. Read the testimony of John: "That which we have seen, which we have heard, which we have looked upon with our eyes, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life.

Before the passion he predicted his bodily death each time, saying that he would be handed over to the high priest's followers and proclaiming the trophy of the cross. But after the passion, when he rose from the dead on the third day and, since the disciples doubted that he had been raised, he appeared to them in his actual body. [He] declares that he has real flesh with bones, presents his wounded side to their eyes and shows them the marks of the nails.

The Lord, wishing to show that He was with them even when Thomas was speaking words of his unbelief before his fellow disciples, does not wait until He hears something similar from him, but Himself fulfills in advance what Thomas desired, and uses his own words. And observe, first He speaks with reproach: "Reach here your hand," but then He instructs: "Be not faithless, but believing." From this it is clear that the doubt arose from unbelief, and therefore it is in vain that some speak in defense of Thomas, saying that he was slow to believe due to his thoroughness. For behold, the Lord calls him unfaithful. In what way did the incorruptible body turn out to have wounds and was tangible to a human hand? All this was an act of condescension. For the body that entered through closed doors, and was therefore subtle and light, was free from all coarseness. But to give assurance of the resurrection, the Lord shows it as such, and for this reason rose having the marks of the cross and wounds. Likewise, that He also ate, He ate not out of bodily necessity, but for the confirmation of the resurrection. Therefore, just as before the crucifixion, walking on the waves (Mark 6:48), He had a body of no different nature, so also now He shows it as tangible and having wounds. Nevertheless, although it is tangible and visible, it is incorruptible. For this is shown for confirmation, and not out of necessity or the law of the body. For everything eaten enters into the stomach and is changed (Matt. 15:17), which in Christ's case, after the resurrection, did not occur; but what was eaten, received only for the confirmation of the resurrection, was consumed by a certain invisible and Divine power. Notice also how for one person – Thomas – the Lord did not refuse to condescend and show His side, in order to save one unbelieving soul, so we too must not despise anyone, not even the least.

2555 Now the Evangelist shows how the doubting disciple was rescued and persuaded. Here we see a second sign of God's pity, which is that he quickly comes to help his elect even though they fall. Indeed, the elect fall at times, just like the reprobate. But there is a difference: the reprobate are crushed, but the Lord quickly puts his hand under the elect so they can rise up: "When a just person falls he will not be crushed, for the Lord will put his hand under him" [Ps 37:27]; "When I thought, 'My foot slips,' your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up" (Ps 94:18). And so our Lord quickly puts his hand under the fallen Thomas so that when Thomas said, Unless I see... I will not believe, our Lord rescues him, saying, Put your finger here. Three things are mentioned here: first, our Lord shows his wounds; secondly, we see Thomas' profession; and thirdly, his slowness to believe is reproved.

2556 Regarding the first, note that Thomas laid down his own conditions for believing, which were that he see and feel Christ's wounds, as was said. If these conditions were met, he promised to believe. So our Lord, helping him by the presence of his divinity, rescued him by meeting these conditions. First, we see the conditions being met; secondly Thomas is asked to keep his promise (v 27).

2557 One condition was that he feel the wounds, so Christ said, Put your finger here. A problem arises here because there can be no defects in a glorified body, and wounds are defects. How then can there be wounds in the body of Christ? Augustine answers this in this book, On the Creed, when he says: "Christ could have removed all traces of his wounds from his risen and glorified body, but he had reasons for retaining them. First, to show them to Thomas, who would not believe unless he touched and saw. Again, he will use them to rebuke unbelievers and sinners at the judgment. He will not say to them, as he did to Thomas, 'Because you have seen me, you have believed,' but rather, to convict them, 'Behold the man you have crucified, the wounds you have inflicted. Look at the side you have pierced. It was opened for your sake, and you refused to enter.'"

2558 Another question on this point is whether or not the traces of the martyrs' wounds will remain on their bodies. Augustine, in his The City of God (22), answers this in a similar manner, saying they will remain, not as a disfigurement but like a great ornamental beauty. He says "These wounds in their body will not be a deformity, but a dignity. And although on their bodies, they will radiate not a bodily but a spiritual beauty. Of course, the martyrs who suffered amputation or decapitation will not appear in the resurrection without their hands and members ‑ for they too have been told that not a hair of their head would perish. Indeed, even though their members were mutilated or cut off, they will be restored, yet the traces of their wounds will remain."

2559 Gregory asks how the Lord could offer his body to be touched because it was incorruptible, for what is incorruptible cannot be touched. "Christ being raised from the dead will never die again" (Rom 6:9). The heretic, Eutyches, was influenced by this to say that the body of Christ and the bodies of all those who rise will not be touchable, but fine and spiritual, like the wind or a breath. But since this is contrary to what our Lord said - "Handle me, and see; for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see that I have" (Lk 24:39) ‑ our Lord showed that he was incorruptible and touchable to demonstrate that his body after his resurrection was of the same nature as before, and what had been corruptible had now put on incorruption (1 Cor 15:53). It was the same in nature, but with a different glory: for what had been heavy and lowly arose in glory and subtlety, as the effect of spiritual power.

2560 Our Lord continued, saying, see my hands, which hung on the cross, and put out your hand, and place it in my side, which was pierced by the spear, and realize that I am the same person who had hung upon the cross. As for the mystical interpretation, a finger signifies knowledge, and a hand signifies our works. Thus when Thomas is told to put his finger and hand into the wounds of Christ, we are being told to use our knowledge and works for the service of Christ: "But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Gal 6:14).

2561 Our Lord holds Thomas to his promise saying, do not be faithless, but believing: "Be faithful unto death" (Rev 2:10).

There are some … who think a blessed life is impossible in this body, weak and fragile as it is. For we have to suffer pain and grief, weeping, illness—all in this body.… It is not a blessing to be in the midst of suffering. But it is a blessing to be victorious over it and not to be bullied by the power of temporal pain. Suppose that things come that are considered terrible because of the grief they cause, such as blindness, exile, hunger, violation of a daughter, loss of children. Who will deny that Isaac was blessed, who did not see in his old age, and yet gave blessings with his benediction? Was not Jacob blessed who, leaving his father's house, endured exile as a shepherd for pay, and mourned for the violated chastity of his daughter and suffered hunger? Were they not blessed on whose good faith God received witness, as it is written: "The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob"? A wretched thing is slavery, but Joseph was not wretched. In fact, clearly he was blessed when, while a slave, he checked the lusts of his mistress. What shall I say of holy David, who bewailed the death of three sons, and, what was even worse than this, his daughter's incestuous connection? How could he be unblessed from whom the author of blessedness himself sprung who has made many blessed? For "blessed are they who have not seen yet have believed." All these felt their own weakness, but they bravely prevailed over it. What can we think of as more wretched than holy Job, either in the burning of his house, or the instantaneous death of his ten sons or his bodily pains? Was he less blessed than if he had not endured those things whereby he really showed himself approved?It is true that in these sufferings there is something bitter and that we cannot use mind over matter to hide this pain. I should not deny that the sea is deep because in shore it is shallow, or that the sky is clear because sometimes it is covered with clouds, or that the earth is fruitful because in some places there is only barren ground or that the crops are rich and full because they sometimes have wild oats mingled with them. So, too, count it as true that the harvest of a happy conscience may be mingled with some bitter feelings of grief. In the sheaves of the whole of a blessed life, if by chance any misfortune or bitterness has crept in, is it not as though the wild oats were hidden or as though the bitterness of the tares was concealed by the sweet scent of the corn?

For, though one of the chosen and holy twelve, yet he was an Israelite, of the Lord's nation, that Thomas who desired to put his fingers into the places of the wounds. The Lord censured him just as He did this ruler. To the ruler He said, "Except ye see signs and wonders, ye believe not;" and to Thomas He said, "Because thou hast seen, thou hast believed." He had come to the Galileans after the Samaritans, who had believed His word, before whom He wrought no miracles, whom He without anxiety quickly left, strong in faith, because by the presence of His divinity He had not left them.

Now, then, when the Lord said to Thomas, "Come, reach hither thy hand, and be not faithless, but believing;" and he, having touched the places of the wounds, exclaimed, and said, "My Lord, and my God;" he is chided, and has it said to him, "Because thou hast seen, thou hast believed." Why, but "because a prophet has no honor in his own country?" But since this Prophet has honor among strangers, what follows? "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."

We are the persons here foretold; and that which the Lord by anticipation praised, He has deigned to fulfill even in us. They saw Him, who crucified Him, and touched Him with their hands, and thus a few believed; we have not seen nor handled Him, we have heard and believed. May it be our lot, that the blessedness which He has promised may be made good in us: both here, because we have been preferred to His own country; and in the world to come, because we have been grafted in instead of the branches that were broken off!

(Tr. cxxi) He saith not, Hast touched me, but, hast seen me; the sight being a kind of general sense, and put in the place often of the other four senses; as when we say, Hear, and see how well it sounds; smell, and see how sweet it smells; taste, and see how well it tastes; touch, and see how warm it is. Wherefore also our Lord says, Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands. What is this but, Touch and see? And yet he had not eyes in his finger. He refers them both to seeing and to touching, when He says, Because thou hast seen, thou hast believed. Although it might be said, that the disciple did not dare to touch, what was offered to be touched.

He uses the past tense, the future to His knowledge having already taken place by His own predestination.

The third certainty derives from an intellectual vision combined with bodily vision. This occurred in the minds of the apostles. What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked upon and our hands have handled, the Word of Life. And we announce to you nothing else than what we have seen. Wherefore Thomas wanted to touch, and was told: "Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed."

Jesus says to him. Here the faith of those who were built up through hearing is commended, and is preferred to the faith of Thomas, which came through presence and sight: and therefore he says: Because you have seen me, Thomas, you have believed: blessed are those who have not seen and have believed: because such faith was of greater freedom and had more of its own. Chrysostom: "When someone says: now I would wish to be in those times and to see Christ working wonders: let him consider that blessed are those who have not seen and have believed"; First Peter 1: "Whom though you have not seen, you love: in whom also now, not seeing, you believe."

Question. Concerning what he says: Because you have seen me, Thomas, you have believed. It seems that he ought to have said: because you have touched me, since it had not sufficed him that he should see. To this Augustine responds in two ways: either because sight is truly understood as touch, since sight is commonly called sense; or because Thomas did not dare to touch. Whence he says: "He did not say you have touched, but you have seen, since sight is in a certain way a general sense; although it could be said that the disciple did not dare to touch."

He who believeth then the divine Scriptures with sure judgment, receives in the voice of God, who bestowed the Scripture, a demonstration that cannot be impugned. Faith, then, is not established by demonstration. "Blessed therefore those who, not having seen, yet have believed." ...Now the followers of Basilides regard faith as natural, as they also refer it to choice, [representing it] as finding ideas by intellectual comprehension without demonstration; while the followers of Valentinus assign faith to us, the simple, but will have it that knowledge springs up in their own selves (who are saved by nature) through the advantage of a germ of superior excellence, saying that it is as far removed from faith as the spiritual is from the animal. Further, the followers of Basilides say that faith as well as choice is proper according to every interval; and that in consequence of the supramundane selection mundane faith accompanies all nature, and that the free gift of faith is comformable to the hope of each. Faith, then, is no longer the direct result of free choice, if it is a natural advantage.

This saying of the Saviour is very pertinent and we may derive the greatest profit therefrom. For hereby He showed His great care for our souls; for He is good, and willeth that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, according to the Scripture. What is here said may not unlikely excite surprise. It was, indeed, necessary for Him to be long-suffering, as was His wont, with Thomas, who uttered that saying, and also with the other disciples with him, who thought that He was a spirit or apparition; and also to exhibit, as He very readily did for universal satisfaction, the print of the nails and His pierced Side; and also, contrary to use and need, to partake of food, that no plea for their unbelief might be left to those who sought to gain the benefits of His death. But it was also essential to have regard to the security of our faith. It was necessary also to have another end in view, namely, that those who should come at the last times should not easily be drawn into unbelief. For it was likely that some should err from the straight path, and from ignorance, practising a spurious kind of caution, refuse to accept the resurrection of the dead, and put themselves forward, and say unto us, like that unbelieving disciple: Except I shall see in His Hands the print of the nails, and put my hand into His Side, I will not believe. What sufficient means of satisfying them would there have been, Christ being no longer on earth but having ascended into heaven? And would they not have been, at times, thought to be justified in thus speaking, when they appeared to be imitating therein the disciple of the Saviour, and, considering it a noble thing not to believe off-hand, but rather to require more for their complete assurance, claimed for themselves the sight that was shown to the holy disciples? Christ, therefore, restrains men from such an inclination, and keeps them from falling. For being truly God, He knew well the malicious designs of the devil and his practice to deceive. And, therefore, He declares that blessed are they who believe without seeing, for they are surely worthy of admiration. And why? Because unquestioning belief is due to what lies before our eyes, for there is nothing at all to raise doubt in us. But if a man accept what he has not seen, and believe that to be true which the words of his instructor in mysteries have brought to his ears, then he honours with praiseworthy faith Him that is preached. Blessed, therefore, shall be the lot of every man that believeth through the voice of the holy Apostles, which were eye-witnesses of Christ's actions, and ministers of the Word, as Luke says. To them must we hearken if we are enamoured of life eternal, and cherish in our hearts the desire to abide in the mansions above.

Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen me, Thomas, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe." These words were wonderfully pertinent, and they can be of very great help to us. They demonstrate once again how much he cares for our souls, for he is good, and as Scripture says, "He wants everyone to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." Even so, this saying of his may surprise us. As always, Christ had to be patient with Thomas when he said he would not believe and with the other disciples too when they thought they were seeing a ghost. Because of his desire to convince the whole world, he most willingly showed them the marks of the nails and the wound in his side. Because he wanted those who needed such signs as a support for their faith to have no possible reason for doubt, he even took food, although he had no need for it.… But when anyone accepts what he has not seen, believing on the word of his teacher, the faith by which he honors the one his teacher proclaims to him is worthy of great praise. Blessed, therefore, is everyone who believes the message of the holy apostles who, as Luke says, were eyewitnesses of Christ's actions and ministers of the word. If we desire eternal life and long for a dwelling place in heaven, we must listen to them.

If nobody has any right to judge of Spiritualism except a man who has been to a séance, the results, logically speaking, are rather serious: it would almost seem as if nobody had any right to judge of Christianity who had not been to the first meeting at Pentecost. Which would be dreadful. I conceive myself capable of forming my opinion of Spiritualism without seeing spirits, just as I form my opinion of the Japanese War without seeing the Japanese, or my opinion of American millionaires without (thank God) seeing an American millionaire. Blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed: a passage which some have considered as a prophecy of modern journalism.

"Man," I said, "who are you that you should not believe in fairy tales? It is much easier to believe in Blue Beard than to believe in you. A blue beard is a misfortune; but there are green ties which are sins. It is far easier to believe in a million fairy tales than to believe in one man who does not like fairy tales. I would rather kiss Grimm instead of a Bible and swear to all his stories as if they were thirty-nine articles than say seriously and out of my heart that there can be such a man as you; that you are not some temptation of the devil or some delusion from the void. Look at these plain, homely, practical words. 'The Dragon's Grandmother,' that is all right; that is rational almost to the verge of rationalism. If there was a dragon, he had a grandmother. But you--you had no grandmother! If you had known one, she would have taught you to love fairy tales. You had no father, you had no mother; no natural causes can explain you. You cannot be. I believe many things which I have not seen; but of such things as you it may be said, 'Blessed is he that has seen and yet has disbelieved.'"

Truths turn into dogmas the instant that they are disputed. Thus every man who utters a doubt defines a religion. And the scepticism of our time does not really destroy the beliefs, rather it creates them; gives them their limits and their plain and defiant shape. We who are Liberals once held Liberalism lightly as a truism. Now it has been disputed, and we hold it fiercely as a faith. We who believe in patriotism once thought patriotism to be reasonable, and thought little more about it. Now we know it to be unreasonable, and know it to be right. We who are Christians never knew the great philosophic common sense which inheres in that mystery until the anti-Christian writers pointed it out to us. The great march of mental destruction will go on. Everything will be denied. Everything will become a creed. It is a reasonable position to deny the stones in the street; it will be a religious dogma to assert them. It is a rational thesis that we are all in a dream; it will be a mystical sanity to say that we are all awake. Fires will be kindled to testify that two and two make four. Swords will be drawn to prove that leaves are green in summer. We shall be left defending, not only the incredible virtues and sanities of human life, but something more incredible still, this huge impossible universe which stares us in the face. We shall fight for visible prodigies as if they were invisible. We shall look on the impossible grass and the skies with a strange courage. We shall be of those who have seen and yet have believed.

What greatly gladdens is what follows: "Blessed are they who have not seen and have believed." In this saying, we are indeed specially marked out, we who retain in our minds Him whom we have not seen in the flesh. We are marked out—but only if we follow our faith with works. For he truly believes who practices by his deeds what he believes. In contrast to these, concerning those who hold faith in name only, Paul says: "They profess that they know God, but in their deeds they deny Him." Hence James says: "Faith without works is dead." Hence the Lord says to blessed Job concerning the ancient enemy of the human race: "He will swallow up a river and not wonder, and he has confidence that the Jordan will flow into his mouth." For who is signified by the river except the flow of the human race? For this race flows from origin to end, and, as if in the manner of water, runs its course from the flux of the flesh until its appointed end. What is signified by the Jordan except the pattern of the baptized? For since the very Author of our redemption deigned to be baptized in the river Jordan, the multitude of those who are held within the sacrament of baptism is rightly expressed by the name Jordan. Therefore the ancient enemy of the human race swallowed up the river, because from the beginning of the world until the coming of the Redeemer, with scarcely a few elect escaping, he drew the human race into the belly of his malice. Of him it is rightly said: "He will swallow up a river and not wonder," because he does not consider it a great thing when he seizes unbelievers. But what is added is very grave: "And he has confidence that the Jordan will flow into his mouth," because after he seized all the unbelievers from the beginning of the world, he still presumes that he can receive even the faithful. For by the mouth of pestilent persuasion he daily devours those in whose case a wicked life is at variance with the confession of faith.

(Hom. xxvi.) But when the Apostle says, Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, (Heb. 11:1) it is plain that things which are seen, are objects not of faith, but of knowledge. Why then is it said to Thomas who saw and touched, Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed? Because he saw one thing, believed another; saw the man, confessed the God. But what follows is very gladdening; Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. In which sentence we are specially included, who have not seen Him with the eye, but retain Him in the mind, provided we only develope our faith in good works. For he only really believes, who practises what he believes.

For this is of faith, to receive things not seen; since, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." And here He pronounceth blessed not the disciples only, but those also who after them should believe. "Yet," saith some one, "the disciples saw and believed." Yes, but they sought nothing of the kind, but from the proof of the napkins, they straightway received the word concerning the Resurrection, and before they saw the body, exhibited all faith. When therefore any one in the present day say, "I would that I had lived in those times, and had seen Christ working miracles," let them reflect, that, "Blessed are they who have not seen, and yet have believed."

Blessed are those who, when grace is withdrawn, find no consolation in themselves but only continuing tribulation and thick darkness, and yet they do not despair. Rather, strengthened by faith, they endure courageously, convinced that they do indeed see him who is invisible.

It is the strength of great minds and the light of firmly faithful souls unhesitatingly to believe what is not seen with the bodily sight and to focus your affections where you cannot direct your gaze. And from where should this godliness spring up in our hearts or how should someone be justified by faith, if our salvation rested on those things only that lie beneath our eyes? And so, our Lord said to Thomas, who seemed to doubt Christ's resurrection until he had tested by sight and touched the traces of his passion in his very flesh, "because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

Well, be it so; only let the same hope flow on from them to us! For if to them who saw, and therefore believed, such fruit then accrued to the operations of the flesh and the soul, how much more to us! For more "blessed," says Christ, "are they who have not seen, and yet have believed; " since, even if the resurrection of the flesh must be denied to them, it must at any rate be a fitting boon to us, who are the more blessed.

The Lord, showing us that faith consists in accepting the invisible, says: "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." Here He hints at the disciples who touched neither the wound from the nails nor the side, yet believed, and not at them alone, but also at those who would come to believe afterward. He said this not in order to deprive Thomas of blessedness, but to comfort those who had not seen. For many say: "Blessed are the eyes that saw the Lord." He comforts such people, saying that there is greater blessedness in not seeing and yet believing.

2563 Our Lord reproaches Thomas for being slow to believe, because you have seen me, Thomas, you have believed; and then he praises the others for being quick to believe.

2564 Because you have seen me, Thomas, you have believed. There is a problem here: for since faith is the substance of the things we hope for, the conviction about things that are not seen (Heb 11:1), why does our Lord say, because you have seen me you have believed? We should say in answer that Thomas saw one thing and believed another. He saw the man and the wounds, and from these he believed in the divinity of the one who had arisen.

2565 There is a second question. Because Thomas said that he would not believe unless he saw and touched, and our Lord was willing for him to see and touch, it seems our Lord should have replied, "because you have seen and touched me you have believed." One can say, with Augustine, that we use the sense of sight for any of the senses. We say, "See how warm it is"; "See how it sounds"; "See how it tastes and smells." So our Lord said, Put your finger here, and see, not because the finger can see, but as meaning, "Touch and perceive." So Christ says here, because you have seen me, that is, because you have perceived through touch. Or, one could say that Thomas became flustered when he saw Christ's wounds and scars, and before he touched Christ with his finger he believed and said, My Lord and my God. For Gregory, Thomas did touch Christ, but did not profess his faith until he saw [the wounds].

2566 When Christ said, Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed, he was praising the readiness of others to believe; and this applies especially to us. He says, "have believed" rather than "shall believe" because of the certitude [of his knowledge].

Luke seems to say the contrary: "Blessed are the eyes which see what you see" (Lk 10:23). Thus, those who have seen are more blessed that those who have not seen. I answer that blessedness is of two kinds. One is the actual state of blessedness, which consists in God's reward, where the better one sees the happier, the more blessed, he is. In this respect, the eyes that see are blessed, because this is the reward of grace. The other blessedness is the hoped‑for blessedness, which is based on one's merits. And in this case the more one can merit the more blessed he is. And, the one who believes and does not see, merits more than one who believes when he sees.