2 Apodosis of the Dormition of the Theotokos

And it came to pass in those days, etc. The Savior received baptism from John for three reasons. First, because He was born a man, He might fulfill all righteousness and humility of the law. Second, that by His baptism He might approve the baptism of John. Third, that sanctifying the water of Jordan, through the descent of the dove, He might show the coming of the Holy Spirit in the washing of believers.

(in Marc. i. 4) He was baptized, that by being baptized Himself He might show His approval of John's baptisme, and that, by sanctifying the waters of Jordan through the descent of the dove, He might show the coming of the Holy Ghost in the laver of believers.

As man he was baptized, but he absolved sins as God. He needed no purifying rites himself—his purpose was to hallow water.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) Forasmuch as He was ordaining a new baptism, He came to the baptism of John, which, in respect of His own baptism, was incomplete, but different from the Jewish baptism, as being between both. He did this that He might show, by the nature of His baptism, that He was not baptized for the remission of sins, nor as wanting the reception of the Holy Ghost: for the baptism of John was destitute of both these. But He was baptized that He might be made known to all, that they might believe on Him and fulfil all righteousness, which is keeping of the commandments: for it had been commanded to men that they should submit to the Prophet's baptism.

Mark the Evangelist, like a hart, longing after the fountains of water, leaps forward over places, smooth and steep; and, as a bee laden with honey, he sips the tops of the flowers. Wherefore he hath shown us in his narrative Jesus coming from Nazareth, saying, And it came to pass in those days, &c.

Morally also it may be interpreted; we also, drawn aside from the fleeting world by the smell and purity of flowers, run with the young maidens after the bridegroom, (v. Cant. 1:2. 3.) and are washed in the sacrament of baptism, from the two fountains of the love of God, and of our neighbour, by the grace of remission, and mounting up by hope gaze upon heavenly mysteries with the eyes of a clean heart. Then we receive in a contrite and lowly spirit, with simplicity of heart, the Holy Spirit, who comes down to the meek, and abides in us, by a never-failing charity. And the voice of the Lord from heaven is directed to us the beloved of God; Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God; (Matt. 5:9) and then the Father, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, is well-pleased with us, when we are made one spirit with God.

In fact, they say that Jesus Christ descended, that is, that the dove came down on Jesus; and, since the dove is styled by the Greek name peristera/-(peristera), it has in itself this number DCCCI.

Jesus does not come to baptism for the remission of sins, for He committed no sin, nor for the receiving of the Holy Spirit, for how could John's baptism bestow the Spirit when it did not cleanse sins, as I have said? Nor does He go to be baptized for repentance, since He was "greater than the Baptist himself" (Matt. 11:11). So then, why does He come? Without doubt, so that John might proclaim Him to the people. Since many had gathered there, He was pleased to come so that it might be witnessed before many who He is, and also in order to fulfill "all righteousness," that is, all the commandments of the Law. Since obedience to the baptizing prophet, as one sent from God, was also a commandment, Christ fulfills this commandment as well.

Christ descended, and John stood who was baptizing, and behold, as if a dove the Holy Spirit descended. It was not a dove that descended, but as if a dove. Remember what I said: Christ took on flesh, not like flesh; but he took on the truth of that flesh, true flesh Christ took on: But the Holy Spirit did not descend in the truth of a dove, but in the likeness of a dove from heaven. Therefore, John saw and believed.

Christ descended, the Holy Spirit descended as well. Why did Christ descend first, and then the Holy Spirit, when the form and use of baptism require that the font be consecrated before and then the one to be baptized descends? For when the priest first enters, he performs the exorcism according to the nature of water, then he offers the invocation and prayer, so that the font may be sanctified and the presence of the eternal Trinity may be present: but Christ descended before, and then the Spirit followed. By what reasoning? So that the Lord Jesus Himself would not appear to need the mystery of sanctification, but rather that He Himself would sanctify, and that the Spirit would sanctify as well.

Those who receive the baptism of Christ need not seek the baptism of John. Those who received the baptism of John did indeed seek the baptism of Christ.… No baptism was necessary for Christ, but he freely received the baptism of a servant (John) to draw us toward his baptism.

Why did the Son of God appear as a man and the Holy Spirit as a dove? Because the Son of God came to show humanity a pattern for living, whereas the Holy Spirit made his appearance to bestow the gift which enables excellent living. Moreover, both appearances surely came in a visible manner for the sake of carnal eyes. For we must pass by degrees through the visible sacraments from those things which are seen with the physical eyes to those things which are understood spiritually by the mind. For human words make a sound and then pass away. But when the divine Word is expressed, that which is signified by the words does not pass away.

The dove is not for sale; it is given gratis. Hence it is called grace.

The image of a dove is placed before us by God so that we may learn the simplicity favored by him. So let us meditate on the nature of the dove, that from each one of its features of innocence we may learn the principles of a more becoming life. The dove is a stranger to malice. So may all bitterness, anger and indignation be taken away from us, together with all malice. The dove injures nothing with its mouth or talons, nor does it nourish itself or its young on tiny mice or grubs, as do almost all smaller birds. Let us see that our teeth are not weapons and arrows.

And immediately ascending out of the water He saw the heavens opened, etc. The mystery of the Trinity is demonstrated in the baptism of the Lord. The Lord is baptized, the Spirit descends in the form of a dove, and the voice of the Father bearing witness to the Son is heard. The heavens are opened, not by the unbinding of elements, but by spiritual eyes, with which Ezekiel too at the beginning of his book recalls them as opened. Also, a dove sat upon Jesus' head, lest anyone should think that the voice of the Father was made to John, and not to the Lord. Rightly did it say: And the Spirit like a dove descending, and added, and remaining on Him. For this indeed is the special gift conferred upon the Mediator of God and men, that the Holy Spirit, once filling Him, should never depart but remain perpetual in Him. For to His faithful, for the performance of notable virtues and miracles, the grace of the Spirit is sometimes given, sometimes withdrawn. Yet it is never absent to them for the work of piety and justice, for maintaining the love of God and neighbor. Hence of that Spirit it is promised, the Lord saying to them: You know Him because He will remain with you and be in you (John 14). But in the Lord particularly, the Spirit remains always, not as in His elect according to the measure of faith, but as John says: We have seen His glory, the glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1). But the Spirit remains in Him, not from the time only when He was baptized in the Jordan, but rather from the time when He was conceived in the virginal womb. For that the Spirit appeared to descend upon Him at His baptism was a sign of the spiritual grace to be conferred upon us in baptism, to those regenerated from water and the Spirit for the remission of sins, the fuller grace of the same Spirit is customarily given by the heavenly imposition of the bishop's hand. Also, the fact that He saw the heavens opened after baptism, was done for our benefit, by which the gate of the heavenly kingdom is opened through the washing of the regenerating water, which was closed to the whole human race, with cherubim and a flaming sword interposed, when the first parents sinned and were driven from paradise. For this flame is quenched for each faithful person, when he is dipped into the vital waters. He is reconciled to the angelic spirits, when he returns to the peace of his Creator, so that if he keeps the sacraments of faith with a pure heart and body, he may soon, loosed from the flesh, enter the heavenly kingdom. Otherwise, how then were the heavens opened to the Lord, who, when He became man and dwelt with us on earth, equally contained heaven and earth by divine power? But also, the paternal voice was revealed from heaven: You are My beloved Son, in You I am well pleased, not teaching the Son what He did not know, but showing to us what we should believe: that He who came to be baptized with others by John was indeed the true Son of God; not only the Lord of John but of the whole world, and therefore truly able to baptize in the Holy Spirit. The same voice also taught us that by the water of purification and the Spirit of sanctification we could be made sons of God. For as many as received Him, He gave them power to become sons of God (John 1). Also, the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, because it is a very simple animal, and alien to the malice of gall, to figuratively suggest to us that He seeks simple hearts, and does not deign to dwell in impure minds, as was Simon to whom Peter said: You have neither part nor lot in this matter; for I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity (Acts 8).

(in Marc. i. 4) And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Holy Spirit like a dove descending, and resting upon him. But the heavens are opened, not by the unclosing of the elements, but to the eyes of the spirit, to which Ezekiel in the beginning of his book relates that they were opened; (Ezek. 1.) or this His seeing the heavens opened after baptism was done for our sakes, to whom the door of the kingdom of heaven is opened by the laver of regeneration.

(ubi sup.) This event also, in which the Holy Ghost was seen to come down upon baptism, was a sign of spiritual grace to be given to us in baptism.

(ubi sup.) Well indeed in the shape of a dove did the Holy Ghost come down, for it is an animal of great simplicity, and far removed from the malice of gall, that in a figure He might show us that He looks out for simple hearts, and deigns not to dwell in the minds of the wicked.

To appear denotes a sensible effect with express signification, as the Holy Spirit appeared in a dove. And since, just as the divine persons are distinct, so they can be distinctly signified both by signs and by names, therefore any person can appear by itself, and apparition can belong to all, whether together or to any one by itself. Whence that the Holy Spirit is said to have appeared in tongues of fire and in a dove, this is not on account of a new bond or a special effect, but on account of the union which exists between the thing signified and the sign specially and by manner and origin assigned to it.

And stretching forth slowly his right hand, which seemed both to tremble and to rejoice, John baptized the Lord. Then his detractors who were present, with those in the vicinity and those from a distance, connived together, and spoke among themselves asking: "Was John then superior to Jesus? Was it without cause that we thought John greater, and does not his very baptism attest this? Is not he who baptizes presented as the greater, and he who is baptized as the less important?" But just as they, in their ignorance of the mystery of the divine economy, babbled about with each other, the holy One who alone is Lord spoke. He who by nature is the Father of the only begotten (who alone was begotten in unblemished fashion) instantly rectified their blunted imaginations. He opened the gates of the heavens and sent down the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, lighting upon the head of Jesus, pointing him out right there as the new Noah, even the maker of Noah, and the good pilot of the nature which is in shipwreck. And he himself calls with clear voice out of heaven, and says: "This is my beloved Son,"—Jesus, not John: the One baptized, and not the one baptizing; the One who was begotten of me before all time, and not the one who was begotten of Zechariah; the One who was born of Mary after the flesh, and not the one who was brought forth by Elizabeth beyond all expectation; the One who was the fruit of the virginity which he yet preserved intact, not the one who was the shoot from a sterility removed; the One who had his encounter with you, and not the one brought up in the wilderness. This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: my Son, of the same substance with myself, and not of a different; of the same essence with me according to what is unseen, and of the same essence with you according to what is seen, yet without sin.

Do you see, beloved, how many and how great blessings we would have lost if the Lord had yielded to the exhortation of John and declined baptism? For the heavens had been shut before this. The region above was inaccessible. We might descend to the lower parts, but not ascend to the upper. So it happened not only that the Lord was being baptized—he also was making new the old creation. He was bringing the alienated under the scepter of adoption. For straightway "the heavens were opened to him." A reconciliation took place between the visible and the invisible. The celestial orders were filled with joy, the diseases of earth were healed, secret things made known, those at enmity restored to amity. For you have heard the word of the Evangelist, saying, "The heavens were opened to him," on account of three wonders. At the baptism of Christ the Bridegroom, it was fitting that the heavenly chamber should open its glorious gates. So when the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, and the Father's voice spread everywhere, it was fitting that "the gates of heaven should be lifted up."

But why in the form of a dove? The dove is a gentle and pure creature. Since then the Spirit, too, is "a Spirit of gentleness," he appears in the form of a dove, reminding us of Noah, to whom, when once a common disaster had overtaken the whole world and humanity was in danger of perishing, the dove appeared as a sign of deliverance from the tempest, and bearing an olive branch, published the good tidings of a serene presence over the whole world. All these things were given as a type of things to come.… In this case the dove also appeared, not bearing an olive branch, but pointing to our Deliverer from all evils, bringing hope filled with grace. For this dove does not simply lead one family out of an ark, but the whole world toward heaven at her appearing. And instead of a branch of peace from an olive tree, she conveys the possibility of adoption for all the world's offspring in common.

A dove—a tame, innocent and simple bird. Hence we are taught to copy the innocence of doves.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) Or else, that from heaven sanctification might be given to men, and earthly things be joined to heavenly. But the Holy Spirit is said to have descended upon Him, not as if He then first came to Him, for He never had left Him; but that He might show forth the Christ, Who was preached by John, and point Him out to all, as it were by the finger of faith.

But this is the anointing of Christ according to the flesh, namely, the Holy Ghost, of which anointing it is said, God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. (Ps. 45:8)

Again, the Holy Ghost came down in the shape of a dove, because in the Canticles it is sung of the Church: (Cant. passim.) My bride, my love, my beloved, my dove. Bride in the Patriarchs, love in the Prophets, near of kin in Joseph and Mary, beloved in John the Baptist, dove in Christ and His Apostles: to whom it is said, Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. (Mat. 10:16)

The Holy Spirit came in the form of a dove in order that the nature of the Holy Spirit might be made plain by means of a creature of utter simplicity and innocence. For the dove's body has no gall in it. So after the deluge, by which the iniquity of the old world was purged away, after, so to speak, the baptism of the world, the dove as herald proclaimed to the earth the tempering of the wrath of heaven—sent forth from the ark and returning with an olive branch, which is a sign of peace among the nations.

The Spirit descends not because Christ had need of this (for by nature He abides in Him), but so that you might know that the Holy Spirit descends upon you also at baptism. And the heavens are opened so that we might know that they are opened for us also when we are baptized.

These words are not to be understood, when we speak of God, as when we speak of bodies. The generation of the Son is incomprehensible, the Father begets without changing his nature. Yet this begottenness is of himself. In ages inconceivably remote the true God has begotten one who is truly God.

The Trinity appears very clearly: the Father in the voice, the Son in the man, the Spirit in the dove.

In the Scripture many details are mentioned distinguishably of each of the triune Persons individually, such as cannot be said of them jointly, even though they are inseparably together, as when they are made manifest by corporeal sounds. So in certain passages of Scripture and through certain created beings they are shown separately and successively, as the Father in the voice which is heard: "Thou art my Son," and the Son in the human nature which he took from the Virgin, and the Holy Spirit in the physical appearance of a dove. These are mentioned distinguishably, it is true, but they do not prove that the Three are separated. To explicate this, we take as an example the unity of our memory, our understanding, our will. Although we list these distinguishably, individually and in their various functions, there is nothing we do or say which proceeds from one of them without the other two. However, we are not to think that these three faculties are compared to the Trinity so as to resemble it at every point, for a comparison is never given such importance in an argument that it exactly fits the thing to which it is compared. Besides, when can any likeness in a created being be applied to the Creator?

Whichever of the Evangelists may have preserved for us the words as they were literally uttered by the heavenly voice, the others have varied the terms only with the object of setting forth the same sense more familiarly, so that what is thus given by all of them might be understood as if the expression were: In You I have set my good pleasure; that is to say, by You I am doing what is my pleasure.

(de Cons. Ev. ii. 14) Wherefore Matthew relates that the voice said, This is my beloved Son; for he wished to show that the words, This is My Son, were in fact said, that thus the persons who heard it might know that He, and not another, was the Son of God. But, if you ask, which of these two sounded forth in that voice, take which you will, only remember, that the Evangelists, though not relating the same form of speaking, relate the same meaning. And that God delighted Himself in His Son, we are reminded in these words, In thee I am well pleased.

(ubi sup.) Now the Dove sat on the head of Jesus, lest any one should think that the voice of the Father was addressed to John and not to Christ. And well did he add, abiding on Him; for this is peculiar to Christ, that the Holy Ghost once filling Him should never leave Him. For sometimes to His faithful disciples the grace of the Spirit is conferred for signs of virtue, and for the working of miracles, sometimes it is taken away; though for the working of piety and righteousness, for the preservation of love to God and to one's neighbour, the grace of the Spirit is never absent. But the voice of the Father showed, that He Himself, who came to John to be baptized with the others, was the very Son of God, willing to baptize with the Holy Spirit, whence there follows, And there came a voice from heaven, Thou art my beloved Son, in thee I am well pleased. Not that this informed the Son Himself of a thing of which He was ignorant, but it shows to us what we ought to believe.

(ubi sup.) The same voice has taught us, that we also, by the water of cleansing, and by the Spirit of sanctification, may be made the sons of God. The mystery of the Trinity also is shown forth in the baptism; the Son is baptized, the Spirit comes down in the shape of a dove, the voice of the Father bearing witness to the Son is heard.

Today the Source of all the graces of baptism comes himself to be baptized in the river Jordan, there to make himself known to the world. Seeing him approach, John stretches out his hand to hold him back, protesting: Lord, by your own baptism you sanctify all others; yours is the true baptism, the source of perfect holiness. How can you wish to submit to mine? But the Lord replies, I wish it to be so. Come and baptize me. Do as I wish, for surely you cannot refuse me. Why do you hesitate, why are you so afraid? Do you not realize that the baptism I ask for is mine by every right? By my baptism the waters will be sanctified, receiving from me fire and the Holy Spirit.… See the hosts of heaven hushed and still, as the all-holy Bridegroom goes down into the Jordan. No sooner is he baptized than he comes up from the waters, his splendor shining forth over the earth. The gates of heaven are opened, and the Father's voice is heard: "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." All who are present stand in awe as they watch the Spirit descend to bear witness to him. O come all you peoples, worship him! Praise to you, Lord, for your glorious epiphany which brings joy to us all! The whole world has become radiant with the light of your manifestation.

For this reason did the Father send down the Holy Spirit from heaven upon the One who was baptized.… For what reason? That the faithfulness of the Father's voice might be made known.… Listen to the Father's voice: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." This is he who is named the son of Joseph, who according to the divine essence is my only begotten. "This is my beloved Son," yes, none other than the One who himself becomes hungry, yet feeds countless numbers. He is my Son who himself becomes weary, yet gives rest to the weary. He has no place to lay his head, yet bears up all things in his hand. He suffers, yet heals sufferings. He is beaten, yet confers liberty upon the world. He is pierced in his side, yet repairs the side of Adam.

Again, the Holy Spirit camedown in the shape of a dove, because in the Canticles it is sung of the Church: "My bride, my love, my beloved, my dove. "Bride" in the Patriarchs, "love" in the Prophets, "near of kin" in Joseph and Mary, "beloved" in John the Baptist, "dove" in Christ and His Apostles: to whom it is said, "Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." . Morally also it may be interpreted; we also, drawn aside from the fleeting world by the smell and purity of flowers, run with the young maidens after the bridegroom, and are washed in the sacrament of baptism, from the two fountains of the love of God, and of our neighbour, by the grace of remission, and mounting up by hope gaze upon heavenly mysteries with the eyes of a clean heart. Then we receive in a contrite and lowly spirit, with simplicity of heart, the Holy Spirit, who comes down to the meek, and abides in us, by the never-failing charity. And the voice of the Lord from heaven is directed to us the beloved of God; "Blessed are the peacemakers, forthey shall be called the sons of God;" and then the Father, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, is well-pleased with us, when we are made one spirit with God.

In the Jordan the Trinity was manifested to humanity. The Father bore witness, the Son received witness, and the Holy Spirit gave confirmation.

This is spoken to him by God, with whom all time is today. For there is no evening with God, as I see it, and there is no morning—nothing but time that stretches out, along with his unbeginning and unseen life. The day is today with him in which the Son was begotten. Thus the beginning of his birth is not to be found, as neither is the day of it.

At the descent of the Holy Spirit, the testimony was immediately spoken as well. Since the Father spoke from above, "You are My Son," then, lest the hearers suppose that He was speaking of John, the Spirit descends upon Jesus, showing that this was said of Him.

And immediately the Spirit drove him out into the desert, etc. Similarly, Matthew, after describing the Lord's baptism and the voice from the heavens saying, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," immediately added: "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil" (Matt. IV). However, lest anyone come into doubt as to by which spirit he was led or driven into the desert, Luke first wrote that Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan; and then he added: "And was led by the Spirit into the desert," so that it might not be thought that the unclean spirit had prevailed against him, who, full of the Holy Spirit, went about where he wished and did what he wished. The forty days and nights during which he was tempted represent the entire time of this age, during which his members, namely, the holy Church, are never ceased to be tempted. For the world is divided into four parts, in which we serve the Lord. There are also ten commandments, by whose observance we, serving the Lord, strive against the unceasing malice of the enemy. Ten times four make forty. Therefore, the whole time of our military service is aptly contained in the number of forty days and nights. Thus, the Lord, after being baptized, is driven by the Spirit into the desert and is tempted by Satan, to provide a model of life for his faithful, who, after the remission of sins received in baptism, should not only be prepared to perform works of virtue, but also to endure persecution for righteousness' sake. He thus withdraws into the desert to teach us to forsake the allurements of the world and the company of the wicked, and to serve the divine commandments in all things. He is tempted alone by the devil to signify that all who desire to live piously in Christ suffer persecution, and that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God (Acts XIV). He is tempted for forty days and forty nights to indicate that as long as we live here serving the Lord, whether favorable times entice us (which corresponds to the days), or adversities strike us (which corresponds to the figures of the night), the adversary, who walks through the whole world, is always present attempting to hinder our journey. And he was with the wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. He dwells among the beasts as a man, but uses the ministry of angels as God. So too, when we, in the desert of holy conversation, endure the bestial behaviors of men with a pure mind, we merit the ministry of angels, by whose service we are transferred from the body to eternal joys in heaven.

(in Marc. i. 5) And that no one might doubt, by what spirit he said that Christ was driven into the wilderness, Luke has on purpose premised, that Jesus being full of the Spirit returned from Jordan, (Luke 4:12) and then has added, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness; lest the evil spirit should be thought to have any power over Him, who, being full of the Holy Spirit, departed whither He was willing to go, and did what He was willing to do.

(ubi sup.) But He retires into the desert that He may teach us that, leaving the allurements of the world, and the company of the wicked, we should in all things obey the Divine commands. He is left alone and tempted by the devil, that He might teach us, that all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution; (2 Tim. 3:12) whence it follows, And he was in the wilderness forty days and forty nights, and was tempted of Satan. But He was tempted forty days and forty nights, that He might show us, that as long as we live here and serve God, whether prosperity smile upon us, which is meant by the day, or adversity smite us, which agrees with the figure of night, at all times our adversary is at hand, who ceases not to trouble our way by temptations. For the forty days and forty nights imply the whole time of this world, for the globe in which we are serving God is divided into four quarters. Again, there are Ten Commandments, by observing which we fight against our enemy, but four times ten are forty. There follows, and he was with the wild beasts.

(ubi sup.) Consider also that Christ dwells among the wild beasts as man, but, as God, uses the ministry of Angels. Thus, when in the solitude of a holy life we bear with unpolluted mind the bestial manners of men, we merit to have the ministry of Angels, by whom, when freed from the body, we shall be transferred to everlasting happiness.

It is often doubted by some by what spirit Jesus was led into the desert. This question is properly understood if we believe he was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit, so that his own Spirit would lead him there, where the evil spirit would then find him to tempt him.

Therefore it is not unworthy of our Redeemer that he willed to be tempted, he who had come to be killed. For it was just that he should overcome our temptations by his temptations, just as he had come to conquer our death by his death.

But we should know that temptation occurs in three ways: by suggestion, by delight, and by consent. And when we are tempted, we frequently fall into delight or even into consent, because having been propagated from the sin of the flesh, we bear within ourselves that from which we endure struggles. But God, who was incarnate in the womb of a Virgin and came into the world without sin, tolerated no contradiction within himself. Therefore he could be tempted through suggestion, but the delight of sin did not bite his mind. And so all that diabolical temptation was external, not internal.

You see how the Spirit led him, not into a city or public arena, but into a wilderness. In this desolate place, the Spirit extended the devil an occasion to test him, not only by hunger, but also by loneliness, for it is there most especially that the devil assails us, when he sees us left alone and by ourselves. In this same way did he also confront Eve in the beginning, having caught her alone and apart from her husband.

(Hom in Matt. xiii) Because all that Christ did and suffered was for our teaching, He began after His baptism to dwell in the wilderness, and fought against the devil, that every baptized person might patiently sustain greater temptations after His baptism, nor be troubled, as if this which happened to Him was contrary to His expectation, but might bear up against all things, and come off conqueror. For although God allows that we should be tempted for many other reasons, yet for this cause also He allows it, that we may know, that man when tempted is placed in a station of greater honour. For the Devil approaches not save where he has beheld one set in a place of greater honour; and therefore it is said, And immediately the Spirit drove him into the wilderness. And the reason why He does not simply say, that He went into the wilderness, but was driven, is, that thou mayest understand that it was done according to the word of Divine Providence. By which also He shows, that no man should thrust himself into temptation, but that those who from some other state are as it were driven into temptation, remain conquerors.

(in Mat. Hom. xiii) But the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness, because He designed to provoke the devil to tempt Him, and thus gave Him an opportunity not only by hunger, but also by the place. For then most of all does the devil thrust himself in, when he sees men remaining solitary.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) But He says this to show of what nature was the wilderness, for it was impassable by man and full of wild beasts. It goes on; and angels ministered unto him. For after temptation, and a victory against the devil, He worked the salvation of man. And thus the Apostle says, Angels are sent to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation. (Heb. 1:14) We must also observe, that to those who conquer in temptation angels stand near and minister.

Morally also it may be interpreted; we also, drawn aside from the fleeting world by the smell and purity of flowers, run with the young maidens after the bridegroom, (v. Cant. 1:2. 3.) and are washed in the sacrament of baptism, from the two fountains of the love of God, and of our neighbour, by the grace of remission, and mounting up by hope gaze upon heavenly mysteries with the eyes of a clean heart. Then we receive in a contrite and lowly spirit, with simplicity of heart, the Holy Spirit, who comes down to the meek, and abides in us, by a never-failing charity. And the voice of the Lord from heaven is directed to us the beloved of God; Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God; (Matt. 5:9) and then the Father, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, is well-pleased with us, when we are made one spirit with God.

Or, then the beasts dwell with us in peace, as in the ark clean animals with the unclean, when the flesh lusts not against the spirit. After this, ministering Angels are sent to us, that they may give answers and comforts to hearts that watch.

Teaching us not to despair when we fall into temptations after baptism, the Lord goes to the mountain to be tempted, or rather, He does not go of His own accord but is led by the Holy Spirit, showing through this that we too should not throw ourselves into temptations but accept them when they come upon us.

The ancient enemy raised himself against the first man, our parent, in three temptations, because he tempted him with gluttony, vainglory, and avarice; but by tempting he overcame him, because he subjected him to himself through consent. But by the same means by which he overthrew the first man, by those same means he was overcome when he tempted the second man, so that he might depart from our hearts, captured at the very entrance by which he had entered and held us.

But it should be noted what follows: that when the devil departed, angels ministered to him. By this, what else is shown but both natures in one person? For he is man whom the devil tempts, and he is the same God to whom angels minister. Let us therefore recognize our nature in him, for unless the devil perceived him to be man, he would not have tempted him. Let us venerate his divinity in him, for unless he were God above all things, angels would in no way minister to him.

Wherefore I allow that the evil one exists, because my Teacher, who spoke the truth in all things, has frequently asserted that he exists. For instance, then, he acknowledges that he conversed with Him, and tempted Him for forty days.

He goes to the mountain so that, because of the desolation of the place, the devil might take courage and be able to approach Him, for he usually attacks when he sees that we are alone. The place of temptation was so wild that beasts abounded there in great numbers. The angels began to minister to Him only after He had defeated the tempter. All of this is set forth more fully in the Gospel of Matthew.

After John had been arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God, etc. With John having been arrested, it was appropriate that he himself began to preach. With the law ceasing, consequently the Gospel arises. If, however, the Savior preaches the same things which John the Baptist had previously said, he shows himself to be the son of the same God, of whom that one is a prophet. Let no one think, however, that the tradition of John into prison happened immediately after the forty-day fast and the temptation of the Lord. For anyone who has read the Gospel of John will find that before his arrest the Lord both taught and performed many miracles. After all, you have in his Gospel: "This beginning of miracles Jesus did in Cana of Galilee" (John 2). And again: "For John was not yet cast into prison" (John 3). They say, moreover, that when John read the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, he indeed approved of the text of the history and confirmed them as speaking the truth, but maintained that they narrated the history of only one year, in which he also suffered, after the imprisonment of John. Therefore, passing over the year whose events had been expounded by the three, he narrated the deeds of the previous time, before John was shut up in prison, as it will be clear to those who carefully read the four volumes of the Gospels. This matter also resolves the discordance that seemed to be with John compared to the others. When Mark had stated that Jesus came into Galilee preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God, he added and said: And saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel." The time is fulfilled, he says. Namely, that which the Apostle says: "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem those who were under the law" (Galatians 4). Therefore, the times are fulfilled, repent. How long it has been since this has been proclaimed, and may it someday be heard: The times are fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has drawn near! Repent and believe in the Gospel. Renounce dead works, believe in the living God. What does it profit to believe without good works? It was not the merit of good works that brought you to faith, but faith begins, so that good works might follow.

(ubi sup.) John being put in prison, fitly does the Lord begin to preach: wherefore there follows, Preaching the Gospel, &c. For when the Law ceases, the Gospel arises in its steps.

(ubi sup.) Let no one, however, suppose that the putting of John in prison took place immediately after the forty days' temptation and the fast of the Lord; for whosoever reads the Gospel of John will find, that the Lord taught many things before the putting of John in prison, and also did many miracles; for you have in his Gospel, This beginning of miracles did Jesus; (John 2:11) and afterwards, for John was not yet cast into prison. (John 3:24) Now it is said, that when John read the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, he approved indeed the text of the history, and affirmed that they had spoken truth, but said that they had composed the history of only one year after John was cast into prison, in which year also he suffered. Passing over then the year of which the transactions had been published by the three others, he related the events of the former period, before John was cast into prison. When therefore Mark had said that Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, he subjoins, saying, Since the time is fulfilled, &c.

(ubi sup.) Repent, therefore, and believe; that is, renounce dead works; for of what use is believing without good works? The merit of good works does not, however, bring to faith, but faith begins, that good works may follow.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. 1 Marc.) The Evangelist Mark follows Matthew in his order, and therefore after having said that Angels minister, he subjoins, But after that John was put into prison, Jesus came, &c. After the temptation and the ministry of Angels, He goes back into Galilee, teaching us not to resist the violence of evil men.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) He retired also that He might keep Himself for teaching and for healing, before He suffered, and after fulfilling all these things, might become obedient unto death.

(Vict. Ant. Cat. in Marc.) Since then the time was fulfilled, when the fulness of time was come, and God sent his Son, it was fitting that the race of man should obtain the last dispensation of God. And therefore he says, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. (Orig. in Matt. tom. x. 14. v. Orig. de Orat. 25, 26. in Matt. t. 12 14). But the kingdom of God is essentially the same as the kingdom of heaven, though they differ in idea. For by the kingdom of God is to be understood that in which God reigns; (non occ. v. Chrys, in Matt. Hom. 19. in c. 6:9.). and this in truth is in the region of the living, where, seeing God face to face, they will abide in the good things now promised to them; whether by this region one chooses to understand Love, or some other confirmatione of those who put on the likeness of things above, which are signified by the heavens. () For it is clear enough that the kingdom of God is confined neither by place nor by time.

Or, then the beasts dwell with us in peace, as in the ark clean animals with the unclean, when the flesh lusts not against the spirit. After this, ministering Angels are sent to us, that they may give answers and comforts to hearts that watch.

When the shadow ceases, the truth comes on; first, John in prison, the Law in Judæa; then, Jesus in Galilee, Paul among the Gentiles preaching the Gospel of the kingdom. For to an earthly kingdom succeeds poverty, to the poverty of Christians is given an everlasting kingdom; but earthly honour is like the foam of water, or smoke, or sleep.

For he must repent, who would keep close to eternal good, that is, to the kingdom of God. For he who would have the kernel, breaks the shell; the sweetness of the apple makes up for the bitterness of its root; the hope of gain makes the dangers of the sea pleasant; the hope of health takes away from the painfulness of medicine. They are able worthily to proclaim the preaching of Christ who have deserved to attain to the reward of forgiveness; and therefore after He has said, Repent, He subjoins, and believe the Gospel. For unless ye have believed, ye shall not understand.

Hearing that John had been delivered into prison, Jesus withdraws into Galilee, in order to show us as well that we must not throw ourselves into temptations, but avoid them, and when we fall into them, endure them.

And to show us that in persecutions we ought to retire, and not to await them; but when we fall into them, we must sustain them.

Or else, the Lord means that the time of the Law is completed; as if He said, Up to this time the Law was at work; from this time the kingdom of God will work, that is, a conversation according to the Gospel, which is with reason likened to the kingdom of heaven. For when you see a man clothed in flesh living according to the Gospel, do you not say that he has the kingdom of heaven, which is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost? (Rom. 14:17) The next word is, Repent.

The Lord had a body. And just as he deigned to assume a physical body for our sake, so also did he deign to be hungry and thirsty. As a result of the fact that he deigned to be hungry and thirsty, he condescended to be fed by those he himself enriched. He condescended to be received as a guest, not from need but from favor.Martha was busy satisfying the needs of those who were hungry and thirsty. With deep concern, she prepared what the Holy of Holies and his saints would eat and drink in her house. It was an important but transitory work. It will not always be necessary to eat and drink, will it? When we cling to the most pure and perfect Goodness, serving will not be a necessity.

(Ser. 103.) But the Lord, who came to his own, and his own received him not, (John 1:12.) was received as a guest, for it follows, And a certain woman named Martha received him into her house, &c. as strangers are accustomed to be received. But still a servant received her Lord, the sick her Saviour, the creature her Creator. But if any should say, "O blessed are they who have been thought worthy to receive Christ into their houses," grieve not thou, for He says, For inasmuch as ye have done it to the least of my brethren, ye have done it unto me. (Matt. 25:40.) But taking the form of a servant, He wished therein to be fed by servants, by reason of His condescension, not His condition. He had a body in which He was hungry and thirsty, but when He was hungry in the desert, Angels ministered to Him. (Matt. 4:11.) In wishing therefore to be fed, He came Himself to the feeder.

Now every work and word of our Savior is a rule of piety and virtue For to this enddid He put on our body, that as much as we can we might imitate His conversation. It is foolish also to take food for the support of the body, and thereby in return to hurt the body, and to hinder it in the performance of the divine command. If then a poor man come, let him receive a model and example of moderation in food, and let us not prepare our own tables for their sakes, who wish to live luxuriously. For the life of the Christian is uniform, ever tending to one object, namely, the glory of God. But the life of those who are without is manifold and vacillating, changed about at will. And how in truth can you, when you set your table before your brother with profusion of meats, and for the pleasure of feasting sake, accuse him of luxury, and revile him as a glutton, censuring his indulgence in that which you yourself afford him? Our Lord did not commend Martha when busied about much serving.

It happened, as they were going, that he entered a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister named Mary. This reading is beautifully connected to the preceding one. For as that one designates love of God and neighbor through words and parables, this one designates it through deeds and truth. These two beloved sisters of the Lord demonstrate the two spiritual lives by which the present holy Church is exercised. Indeed, Martha represents the active life, by which we are united to our neighbor in charity; Mary represents the contemplative life, by which we long for the love of God. For the active life is to give bread to the hungry, to teach the ignorant the word of wisdom, to correct the erring, to bring back the proud to the way of humility, to take care of the sick, to dispense what is expedient to each one, and to foresee how those entrusted to us may be able to subsist. The contemplative life, however, is to retain the love of God and neighbor with the whole mind, but to rest from external action, adhering solely to the desire of the Creator, so that one no longer wishes to act but, having cast aside all cares, the soul burns with the desire to behold the face of its Creator, so that it regrets to bear the burden of the corruptible flesh and with all its desires aspires to join the hymnic choirs of angels, to be mixed with the heavenly citizens, to rejoice in the eternal incorruption in the sight of God.

The love of God and our neighbour, which was contained above in words and parables, is here set forth in very deed and reality; for it is said, Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village.

For the instruction of the disciples, a human example is subjoined, set forth in a twofold manner.

Now it came to pass, as they went, etc. After he handed down a form of living through the divine precept, here secondly he hands it down through a human example. Whence the Gloss of Bede: "Having given a discourse on the love of God and neighbor, he supplies an example of each." For here is introduced literally an example of perfection, an example of the active and contemplative life, and a comparison of the two. Whence this part has two parts: in the first of which there is set forth a rational comparison; and in the second there is added a judicial determination, at the place: And the Lord answering said to her. Concerning the rational comparison, however, four things are introduced: the first is the fellowship of the divine presence, the second is the leisure of the contemplative life, the third is the exercise of the active life, the fourth is the dispute between the two.

First, therefore, as regards the fellowship of the divine presence, it is said: Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain town, either for the sake of preaching the kingdom of God, according to what is said above in the eighth chapter: "He journeyed through cities and towns, preaching and evangelizing the kingdom of God"; or for the sake of seeking lodging, according to what is said above in the ninth chapter, that when the Samaritans were unwilling to receive him and his disciples as guests, they "departed to another town." Concerning this town it is stated more explicitly in John 11: "There was a certain man who was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, of the town of Mary and Martha, his sisters." In this town, I say, he found lodging.

On account of which it is added: And a certain woman, Martha by name, received him into her house, namely, as one who was poor and needy. Hence to such persons he will say that word at the judgment in Matthew 25: "I was a stranger, and you took me in," namely, to those like Martha, such as Job was, of whom it is said in the thirty-first chapter: "The stranger did not remain outside, and my door was open to the traveler." And in that lodging he was present bodily, just as he is present to those in the active and contemplative lives spiritually, according to that word of Revelation 3: "I stand at the door and knock: if anyone shall open to me, I will enter in to him and will sup with him"; because in Proverbs 8 it is said: "My delights are to be with the sons of men"; and conversely, whence Wisdom 8: "Entering into my house, I shall find rest with her: for her conversation has no bitterness, nor her company any weariness."

By His own example then He teaches His disciples how they ought to behave in the houses of those who receive them, namely, when they come to a house, they should not remain idle, but rather fill the minds of those who receive them with sacred and divine teaching. But let those who make ready the house, go to meet their guests gladly and earnestly, for two reasons. First, indeed, they will be edified by the teaching of those whom they receive; next also they will receive the reward of charity.

To cling always to God and to the things of God—this must be our major effort, this must be the road that the heart follows unswervingly. Any diversion, however impressive, must be regarded as secondary, low-grade and certainly dangerous. Martha and Mary provide a most beautiful scriptural paradigm of this outlook and of this mode of activity. In looking after the Lord and his disciples, Martha did a very holy service. Mary, however, was intent on the spiritual teaching of Jesus, and she stayed by his feet, which she kissed and anointed with the oil of her good faith.… In saying "Mary chose the good portion," he was saying nothing about Martha, and in no way was he giving the appearance of criticizing her. Still, by praising Mary he was saying that the other was a step below her. Again, by saying "it will not be taken away from her," he was showing that Martha's role could be taken away from her, since the service of the body can only last as long as the human being is there, whereas the zeal of Mary can never end.

The name of which village Luke indeed here omits, but John mentions, calling it Bethany. (John 11.)

Great is the good that comes from hospitality, as Martha showed, and it should not be neglected; but an even greater good is to attend to spiritual discourse. For by the former the body is nourished, but by the latter the soul is given life.

What was Mary enjoying while she was listening? What was she eating? What was she drinking? Do you know? Let's ask the Lord, who keeps such a splendid table for his own people, let's ask him. "Blessed," he says, "are those who are hungry and thirsty for justice, because they shall be satisfied." It was from this wellspring, from this storehouse of justice, that Mary, seated at the Lord's feet, was in her hunger receiving some crumbs. You see, the Lord was giving her then as much as she was able to take. But as for the whole amount, which he was going to give at his table of the future, not even the disciples, not even the apostles themselves, were able to take in at the time when he said to them, "I still have many things to say to you, but you are unable to hear them now." ...What was Mary enjoying? What was she eating? I'm persistent on this point, because I'm enjoying it too. I will venture to say that she was eating the one she was listening to. I mean, if she was eating truth, didn't he say himself, "I am the truth"? What more can I say? He was being eaten, because he was the Bread. "I," he said, "am the bread who came down from heaven." This is the bread which nourishes and never diminishes.

Martha then, setting about and preparing to feed our Lord, was occupied in serving; but Mary her sister chose rather to be fed by the Lord, for it follows, And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.

(ubi sup.) Now as was her humility in sitting at His feet, so much the more did she receive from Him. For the waters pour down to the lowest part of the valley, but flow away from the rising of the hill.

And she also, sitting beside the feet of the Lord, listened to His word, but Martha was distracted by frequent ministering. No one doubts that these things suit both lives. And the uniform perfection of the contemplative life is indeed to have a mind stripped of all earthly things, and, as much as human weakness allows, to unite with Christ. But the frequent ministry of active life is taught by the Master of the nations, who in the numerous statements of his Epistles, recounts his labors by land and sea for Christ, his dangers. In which, also commending the visions and revelations of the Lord, he signifies that he was also completed in the speculative virtue, which is imitable by very few. Hence he says: For whether we are beside ourselves, it is to God; or whether we are sober, it is for your cause (II Cor. V).

Second, with regard to the leisure of the contemplative life, he adds: And she had a sister, named Mary, who was perfect in the leisure of contemplation; whence it is added: Who also, sitting at the feet of the Lord, heard his word. This indeed was the leisure of this woman: to attend to the Lord, to be at rest, to sit, and to be silent. Whence it is said in John eleven that "Mary sat at home," and this at his feet: because, in Deuteronomy thirty-three, "those who approach his feet shall receive of his teaching." By sitting at his feet is understood humility, which ought to be in contemplative persons so that they may abound in the fruits of devotion, according to that verse of the Psalm: "Who sends forth springs in the valleys," etc. But he who so sits as a humble person is watered by the tears of compunction, according to that passage of Jeremiah fifteen: "I sat alone, because you have filled me with bitterness"; and that is the office of the contemplative soul, namely to devote oneself to the tears of compunction and devotion. Whence this Mary, the exemplar of contemplation, is always described as it were weeping: above, namely in chapter seven, where it is said that "standing behind at the feet of the Lord, she began to wash his feet with tears," etc.; and in John eleven, where it is said that "Mary, when she had come where Jesus was, seeing him, fell at his feet. Jesus therefore, when he had seen her weeping, groaned in spirit"; and in John twenty: "Mary stood at the tomb outside, weeping." And the first are tears of compunction; the second, of compulsion; the third, of devotion, which contemplatives ought to have, sitting at the feet of the Lord.

Mary came and sat at his feet. This was as though she were sitting on firm ground at the feet of him who had forgiven the sinful woman her sins. She had put on a crown in order to enter into the kingdom of the Firstborn. She had chosen the better portion, the Benefactor, the Messiah himself. This will never be taken away from her. Martha's love was more fervent than Mary's, for before he had arrived there, she was ready to serve him. "Do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?" When he came to raise Lazarus to life, she ran and came out first.

Something of the same thing may be said about the incident of Martha and Mary; which has been interpreted in retrospect and from the inside by the mystics of the Christian contemplative life. But it was not at all an obvious view of it; and most moralists, ancient and modern, could be trusted to make a rush for the obvious. What torrents of effortless eloquence would have flowed from them to swell any slight superiority on the part of Martha; what splendid sermons about the Joy of Service and the Gospel of Work and the World Left Better Than We Found It, and generally all the ten thousand platitudes that can be uttered in favour of taking trouble--by people who need take no trouble to utter them. If in Mary the mystic and child of love Christ was guarding the seed of something more subtle, who was likely to understand it at the time? Nobody else could have seen Clare and Catherine and Teresa shining above the little roof at Bethany.

(6. Mor. c. 18.) Or by Mary who sat and heard our Lord's words, is signified the contemplative life; by Martha engaged in more outward services, the active life. Now Martha's care is not blamed, but Mary is praised, for great are the rewards of an active life, but those of a contemplative are far better. Hence Mary's part it is said will never be taken away from her, for the works of an active life pass away with the body, but the joys of the contemplative life the rather begin to increase from the end.

It is not said of Mary simply that she sat near Jesus, but at His feet, to show her diligence, stedfastness, and zeal, in hearing, and the great reverence which she had for our Lord.

"Sat at Jesus' feet and listened to His word." By the feet one can understand active virtue, for they signify movement and walking. And sitting is a sign of immobility. So whoever sits at the feet of Jesus, that is, whoever becomes firmly established in active virtue and through imitation of the walking and life of Jesus is strengthened in it, that person after this arrives at the hearing of divine utterances or at contemplation. Since Mary also first sat down, and then listened to the words.

(ubi sup.) Martha was well engaged in ministering to the bodily wants or wishes of our Lord, as of one who was mortal, but He who was clothed in mortal flesh; in the beginning was the Word. Behold then what Mary heard, The Word was made flesh. Behold then Him to whom Martha ministered. The one was labouring, the other at rest. But yet Martha, when much troubled in her occupation and business of serving, interrupted our Lord, and complained of her sister. For it follows, And said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? For Mary was absorbed in the sweetness of our Lord's words; Martha was preparing a feast for our Lord, in whose feast Mary was now rejoicing. While then she was listening with delight to those sweet words, and was feeding on them with the deepest affection, our Lord was interrupted by her sister. What must we suppose was her alarm, lest the Lord should say to her, "Rise, and help thy sister?" Our Lord therefore, who was not at a loss, for He had shewn He was the Lord, answered as follows, And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha. The repetition of the name is a mark of love, or perhaps of drawing the attention, that she should listen more earnestly. When twice called, she hears, Thou art troubled about many things, that is, thou art busied about many things. For man wishes to meet with something when he is serving, and can not; and thus between seeking what is wanting and preparing what is at hand, the mind is distracted. For if Martha had been sufficient of herself, she would not have required the aid of her sister. There are many, there are diverse things, which are carnal, temporal, but one is preferred to many. For one is not from many, but many from one. Hence it follows, But one thing is needful. Mary wished to be occupied about one, according to that, It is good for me to cling close unto the Lord. (Ps. 73:28.) The Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, are one. To this one he does not bring us, unless we being many have one heart. (Acts 4:32.)

(Const. Mon. c. 1.) Now every work and word of our Saviour is a rule of piety and virtue. For to this end did He put on our body, that as much as we can we might imitate His conversation.

(in reg. fus. int. 19.) It is foolish also to take food for the support of the body, and thereby in return to hurt the body, and to hinder it in the performance of the divine command. If then a poor man come, let him receive a model and example of moderation in food, and let us not prepare our own tables for their sakes, who wish to live luxuriously. For the life of the Christian is uniform, ever tending to one object, namely, the glory of God. But the life of those who are without is manifold and vacillating, changed about at will. And how in truth canst thou, when thou settest thy table before thy brother with profusion of meats, and for the pleasure of feasting sake, accuse him of luxury, and revile him as a glutton, censuring his indulgence in that which thou thyself affordest him? Our Lord did not commend Martha when busied about much serving.

And she stood and said: Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her therefore to help me. He speaks from the perspective of those who, still ignorant of divine contemplation, consider that the work of brotherly love alone is pleasing to God, and therefore think that all who wish to be devoted to Christ should be bound to this. And it is well described that Martha stood while Mary sat beside the feet of the Lord, because the active life toils in laborious struggle, while the contemplative life, with the tumults of vices pacified, enjoys the desired repose of the mind in Christ.

Third, with regard to the exercise of the active life, it is added: But Martha was busy about much serving; and this as a good active person, avoiding idleness, according to the counsel of the Wise Man, in Ecclesiastes nine: "Whatever your hand is able to do, work diligently, because neither work nor reason nor wisdom nor knowledge shall be in the netherworld, to which you hasten." Martha always did this; whence it is said in John twelve that "Jesus came to Bethany; and they made a supper for him there, and Martha served." And note that it says she was busy, that is, she was doing enough, about much serving, to show that in her work there was at once perfection and due measure, according to the counsel of blessed Peter, in Second Peter one: "Brothers, be the more diligent, that by good works you may make your calling and election sure." For the work of ministry is that which most pleases the Lord, and in which one most imitates Christ, as is said below in chapter twenty-two: "But I am in your midst as one who serves"; and again in Matthew twenty: "The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve." Whence such ministry is pleasing and honorable before God and worthy of reward, according to that passage of John twelve: "If anyone serves me, my Father will honor him," etc.

Fourth, as to the dispute between the two, he adds: Who stood and said: Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Here the industrious Martha complains about the idle Mary, as though she could not alone bear the weight of labor, according to what Moses complained to the Lord in Numbers 11: "I cannot alone sustain all this people, because it is heavy for me." So also Martha, on account of the heaviness of the burden, sought Mary's help, knowing that what is said in Galatians 6 pertains to the law of Christ: "Bear one another's burdens." Therefore she confidently sought Christ's judgment, that she might obtain her sister's help.

For which reason she adds: Tell her therefore to help me, that she might act according to the counsel of the Apostle in Galatians 5: "Through the charity of the Spirit, serve one another"; and in Ephesians 4: "Bearing with one another in charity."

In this dispute Mary is silent; and Gregory gives the reason for this: "Mary does not respond, but as one at leisure commits her cause to the Judge. For if she were preparing a word of response, she would relax her attention to listening." For it is not for contemplatives to contend, but rather to be silent and to listen and to meditate, according to that passage in Lamentations 3: "He shall sit alone and be silent"; whence Job 4: "Moreover, a hidden word was spoken to me, and as if by stealth I received the veins of its whisper." But Mary loses nothing by being silent, because the Lord takes up her cause by defending it. Whence Bernard: "Everywhere the Lord answers for Mary, whether when she is reproached by the Pharisee, above in chapter seven, or when she is accused by her sister, as here, or when by the disciples, as is said in Matthew 26."

Now Martha sometimes complains by placing her own office above others, and then it is blameworthy. Whence the Gloss: "Martha speaks in the person of those who, still ignorant of divine contemplation, say that only the work of fraternal love, which they have learned, is pleasing to God, and therefore think that all who wish to be devoted to Christ should be bound to this work." — Sometimes she complains by preferring Mary's leisure. Whence Bernard: "Do you think that in the house in which Christ is received, the voice of murmuring is heard?" And he adds: "Happy the house and blessed the congregation in which Martha complains about Mary." And the reason for this is that the contemplative life is to be chosen for its own sake without complaint, but Martha, that is, the active life, is to be sustained out of necessity. Whence Jacob chose Rachel, but as was necessary, he first received Leah, as is said in Genesis 29.

It is therefore permissible for Martha to complain in order to be like Mary, because this is of humility; but if she complains about the fact that she is not helped, this is of weakness; but if she complains about the fact that Mary at some time wishes to help, and she herself does not wish it, this is of impiety, because such a complaint impedes the law of charity.

When certain brethren have received God, they will not be anxious about much service, nor ask for those things which are not in their hands, and are beyond their needs. For every where and in every thing that which is superfluous is burdensome. For it begets weariness in those who are wishing to bestow it, while the guests feel that they are the cause of trouble.

Note also the prudence of the Lord. He said nothing to Martha before He received from her an occasion for reproof. But when she attempted to draw her sister away from listening, then the Lord, taking the occasion, reproves her. For hospitality is praiseworthy only so long as it does not distract and draw us away from what is more needful; but when it begins to hinder us in the most important matters, then it is right to prefer the hearing of divine things to it.

Our Lord does not then forbid hospitality, but the troubling about many things, that is to say, hurry and anxiety. And mark the wisdom of our Lord, in that at first He said nothing to Martha, but when she sought to tear away her sister from hearing, then the Lord took occasion to reprove her. For hospitality is ever honoured as long as it keeps us to necessary things. But when it begins to hinder us from attending to what is of more importance, then it is plain that the hearing of the divine word is the more honourable.

Mary was more blessed in accepting the faith of Christ than in conceiving the flesh of Christ. To someone who said, "Blessed is the womb that bore you," he replied, "Rather, blessed are they who hear the word of God and keep it."Finally, for his brothers, his relatives according to the flesh who did not believe in him, of what advantage was that relationship? Even her maternal relationship would have done Mary no good unless she had borne Christ more happily in her heart than in her flesh.

It happened that, as he was saying these things, a certain woman from the crowd lifted up her voice and said to him: "Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you." This woman is shown to be of great devotion and faith, who, while the scribes and Pharisees were testing and blaspheming the Lord, recognized his incarnation with such sincerity above all, confessed with such confidence, as to confound the calumny of the present nobles and the perfidy of future heretics. For just as the Jews then, by blaspheming the works of the Holy Spirit, denied the true and consubstantial Son of God to the Father, so later heretics, by denying that Mary, ever a virgin, ministered the material of flesh to the only-begotten God born from human members by the operation of the Holy Spirit's power, said that the Son of Man should not be confessed as truly consubstantial to his mother. But if the flesh of the Word of God, born according to the flesh, is proclaimed foreign to the flesh of the virgin mother, the womb that bore him and the breasts that nursed him are blessed in vain. For by what logic is he believed to have been nourished by her milk, whose seed is denied to be conceived? Since both liquids are proven, according to the natural philosophers, to emanate from the origin of one and the same source. Unless perhaps it is thought that the virgin could supply the material of her flesh to nourish the Son of God in the flesh through a lesser and familiar miracle, but could not do so for the incarnation through a greater and unusual miracle. But the Apostle counters this opinion, saying: "God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law" (Gal. IV). Nor should we listen to those who believe it should be read as "born of a woman, made under the law," but rather, "made of a woman." For conceived from the virgin's womb, he drew flesh not from nothing, not from elsewhere, but from maternal flesh. Otherwise, he could not truly be called the Son of Man, who would not have originated from a human. And so, in these words spoken against Eutyches, let us lift up our voice with the Catholic Church, of which this woman was a type, lifting up our minds from the midst of the crowds, and let us say to the Savior: "Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that nursed you" (Luke XI). For truly blessed is the mother, who, as someone said, gave birth to the childbearing King. Who holds heaven and earth through the ages, whose divinity and eternal embrace encompasses all things, his empire remaining without end; who, with a blessed womb, having the joys of a mother with the honor of virginity, has neither been seen to have a first like her nor having a second to follow her.

While the Scribes and Pharisees were tempting our Lord, and uttering blasphemies against Him, a certain woman with great boldness confessed His incarnation, as it follows, And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, &c. by which she refutes both the calumnies of the rulers present, and the unbelief of future heretics. For as then by blaspheming the works of the Holy Spirit, the Jews denied the true Son of God, so in after times the heretics, by denying that the Evervirgin Mary, by the cooperating power of the Holy Spirit, ministered of the substance of her flesh to the birth of the only-begotten Son, have said, that we ought not to confess Him who was the Son of man to be truly of the same substance with the Father. But if the flesh of the Word of God, who was born according to the flesh, is declared alien to the flesh of His Virgin Mother, what cause is there why the womb which bare Him and the paps which gave Him suck are pronounced blessed? By what reasoning do they suppose Him to be nourished by her milk, from whose seed they deny Him to be conceived? Whereas according to the physicians, from one and the same fountain both streams are proved to flow. But the woman pronounces blessed not only her who was thought worthy to give birth from her body to the Word of God, but those also who have desired by the hearing of faith spiritually to conceive the same Word, and by diligence in good works, either in their own or the hearts of their neighbours, to bring it forth and nourish it; for it follows, But he said, Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.

But she was the mother of God, and therefore indeed blessed, in that she was made the temporal minister of the Word becoming incarnate; yet therefore much more blessed that she remained the eternal keeper of the same ever to be beloved Word. But this expression startles the wise men of the Jews, who sought not to hear and keep the word of God, but to deny and blaspheme it.

In Luke: "A certain woman from the crowd, raising her voice, said to him: Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that nursed you." And Jesus said: "Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it."

Not only is she blessed who conceived and nursed him, but also those who follow her. And who are they? Those who hear the word of God and fulfill it. Eve, having transgressed the commandment of God, destroyed the house which God had prepared for us unto salvation; but the wise woman built the house and restored our salvation.

And it came to pass, etc. After the expression of Jewish fraud and the reprobation of the expressed fraud, the Evangelist here adds the commendation of open truth. And this indeed was fitting, so that, with the truth made manifest, Truth itself manifesting itself might be praised openly before the whole multitude. In the description of this commendation, three things are introduced: the first is the condition of the praising person, the second is the expression of divine praise, the third is the approbation of the expressed praise.

First, therefore, as regards the condition of the praising person, he says: And it came to pass, as he spoke these things, namely for the confutation of falsehood: a certain woman from the crowd, lifting up her voice, said to him, for the commendation of truth and the confutation of the Pharisees: in which a twofold condition is noted in the praising person, namely courage and lowliness. Courage is noted in this, that she lifted up her voice, according to that passage of Isaiah 40: "Lift up your voice with strength, lift it up, fear not"; lowliness in this, that a certain woman, not named nor noble, but from the crowd, so that that word of the Psalm might be fulfilled: "The poor and needy shall praise your name." From which it is apparent that the praiser of the divine name ought not to be timid, so as not to dare to praise, nor puffed up, so as to blush at praising, but courageous and humble. Whence, while some were silent from fear, and some blasphemed from pride and swelling: this humble and courageous woman neither was silent with the timid nor reviled with the blasphemers: whence in the Gloss: "With great confidence among blasphemers she confesses the Son of God." Therefore that word of Matthew 15 could be said to her: "O woman, great is your faith," which namely has so greatly strengthened you, since it is said in the last chapter of Proverbs: "Who shall find a strong woman?" In you is verified that word of Ecclesiasticus 26: "Eternal foundations upon solid rock, and the commandments of God in the heart of a holy woman."

Second, as regards the expression of divine praise, it is added: Blessed is the womb that bore you; in which she praises Christ the Son of God, extolling the proclamation of his praise from the blessedness of the Mother: as if to say, blessed is the woman who bore so good a son. And rightly so, because it was fitting for the female sex to praise thus, and not only women, but indeed also men. For above in chapter one the Virgin said: "From henceforth all generations shall call me blessed."

And note that she declares blessed the womb of the Virgin, and this because she carried the Son of God for nine months and six days, which are reckoned as one month: Wisdom 7: "In the womb of my mother I was made flesh in a time of ten months." Whence in praise of the Virgin it is said in Song of Songs 7: "Your womb is like a heap of wheat", because Christ was a grain of wheat, according to what is said in John 12: and with this wheat her womb was filled, and therefore blessed on account of three privileges: because, as Bernard says, "she was made fruitful without corruption, pregnant without heaviness, and a mother without pain"; Isaiah, the last chapter: "Who has ever heard such a thing? And who has seen the like of this"? — Or on account of three miracles. The first is the conjunction of infinitely distant things. For there God was made man: the Creator, a creature: the immense, small: the Word, an infant: the Eternal, temporal, according to that saying in John 1: "And the Word was made flesh"; and Jeremiah 31: "The Lord will create a new thing upon the earth: a woman shall encompass a man". The second miracle is that he who made the womb was made in the womb: whence in the Psalm: "Glorious things are said of you, O city of God"; and afterwards: "A man is born in her, and the Most High himself founded her". Concerning this can be expounded that passage from Sirach 43: "A wondrous vessel, the work of the Most High". The third miracle, that he who contains all things is contained in this womb; he is held there, "whom the whole world cannot hold". Whence the Church sings: "Because him whom the heavens could not contain, you bore in your lap"; whence Isaiah 45: "Truly you are a hidden God".

Nor does she declare the Virgin blessed only on account of the carrying, but the breasts on account of the nursing, when she adds: And the breasts which you sucked, blessed, namely: from which it is given to understand that the most blessed one was nursed from the breasts of the Virgin alone. This was prefigured in Moses, who, as it is said, refused to be nursed by an Egyptian woman: and therefore a Hebrew woman was sought, namely his own mother, as is said in Exodus 2. Now this prefigures the Virgin Mary, at whose breasts Christ nursed, according to that passage in Song of Songs 8: "Who will give you to me as my brother, nursing at the breasts of my mother" etc. Now she joined these two together so that it might be shown that the Virgin Mary was the true and perfect mother of Christ, because she not only bore him but also nourished him: and just as she truly nourished him, so she truly bore him: and in this is refuted, as is said in the Gloss, the impiety of the Manicheans and others who say that he brought with him an ethereal body. Whence Bede: "From the same source flows both milk for nourishing and seed for begetting children. Therefore from the seed of the Virgin, according to the physicians, he who could be nourished by her milk could also be conceived".

"Blessed is the womb that bore you." He took blessedness from the one who bore him and gave it to those who were worshiping him. It was with Mary for a certain time, but it would be with those who worshiped him for eternity. "Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it."

Knowing therefore these things, let us neither pride ourselves on children that are of good report, unless we have their virtue; nor upon noble fathers, unless we be like them in disposition. For it is possible, both that he who begat a man should not be his father, and that he who did not beget him should be. Therefore in another place also, when some woman had said, "Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked;" He said not, "The womb bare me not, neither did I suck the paps," but this, "Yea rather, blessed are they that do the will of my Father." Seest thou how on every occasion He denies not the affinity by nature, but adds that by virtue?

Now, as Marcion was apprehensive that a belief of the fleshly body would also involve a belief of birth, undoubtedly He who seemed to be man was believed to be verily and indeed born. For a certain woman had exclaimed, "Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked!" And how else could they have said that His mother and His brethren were standing without? But we shall see more of this in the proper place. Surely, when He also proclaimed Himself as the Son of man, He, without doubt, confessed that He had been born.

Besides, how could His kingdom be still standing, with its boundaries, and laws, and functions, whom, even if the whole world were left entire to Him, Marcion's god could possibly seem to have overcome as "the stronger than He," if it were not in consequence of His law that even Marcionites were constantly dying, by returning in their dissolution to the ground, and were so often admonished by even a scorpion, that the Creator had by no means been overcome? "A (certain) mother of the company exclaims, `Blessed is the womb that bare Thee, and the paps which Thou hast sucked; 'but the Lord said, `Yea, rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.'" Now He had in precisely similar terms rejected His mother or His brethren, whilst preferring those who heard and obeyed God.

But there is also another view of the case: in the abjured mother there is a figure of the synagogue, as well as of the Jews in the unbelieving brethren. In their person Israel remained outside, whilst the new disciples who kept close to Christ within, hearing and believing, represented the Church, which He called mother in a preferable sense and a worthier brotherhood, with the repudiation of the carnal relationship. It was in just the same sense, indeed, that He also replied to that exclamation (of a certain woman), not denying His mother's "womb and paps," but designating those as more "blessed who hear the word of God."

While the Pharisees and scribes disparage the miracles of the Lord, a woman, a guileless and simple person, glorifies Him. Where are those who say that the Lord appeared in mere semblance? For behold the testimony that He was even nursed at the breast!