I by the finger of God cast out devils

St Luke Chapter XI : Verses 14-26

Contents

• Luke xi. Verses 14-26.  Douay-Rheims (Challoner) text & Latin text (Vulgate)
• Douay-Rheims 1582 text
• Annotations based on the Great Commentary

Luke xi. Verses 14-26.

Others tempting, asked of Him a sign from heaven.
J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

14 And he was casting out a devil, and the same was dumb: and when he had cast out the devil, the dumb spoke: and the multitudes were in admiration at it:

Et erat ejiciens dæmonium, et illud erat mutum. Et cum ejecisset daemonium, locutus est mutus, et admiratæ sunt turbæ.

15 But some of them said: He casteth out devils by Beelzebub, the prince of devils.

Quidam autem ex eis dixerunt : In Beelzebub principe dæmoniorum ejicit dæmonia.

16 And others tempting, asked of him a sign from heaven.

Et alii tentantes, signum de cælo quærebant ab eo.

17 But he seeing their thoughts, said to them: Every kingdom divided against itself, shall be brought to desolation, and house upon house shall fall.

Ipse autem ut vidit cogitationes eorum, dixit eis : Omne regnum in seipsum divisum desolabitur, et domus supra domum cadet.

18 And if Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because you say, that through Beelzebub I cast out devils.

Si autem et Satanas in seipsum divisus est, quomodo stabit regnum ejus? quia dicitis in Beelzebub me ejicere dæmonia.

19 Now if I cast out devils by Beelzebub; by whom do your children cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.

Si autem ego in Beelzebub ejicio dæmonia : filii vestri in quo ejiciunt? ideo ipsi judices vestri erunt.

20 But if I by the finger of God cast out devils; doubtless the kingdom of God is come upon you.

Porro si in digito Dei ejicio dæmonia : profecto pervenit in vos regnum Dei.

21 When a strong man armed keepeth his court, those things are in peace which he possesseth.

Cum fortis armatus custodit atrium suum, in pace sunt ea quæ possidet.

22 But if a stronger than he come upon him, and overcome him; he will take away all his armour wherein he trusted, and will distribute his spoils.

Si autem fortior eo superveniens vicerit eum, universa arma ejus auferet, in quibus confidebat, et spolia ejus distribuet.

23 He that is not with me, is against me; and he that gathereth not with me, scattereth.

Qui non est mecum, contra me est : et qui non colligit mecum, dispergit.

24 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through places without water, seeking rest; and not finding, he saith: I will return into my house whence I came out.

Cum immundus spiritus exierit de homine, ambulat per loca inaquosa, quærens requiem : et non inveniens dicit : Revertar in domum meam unde exivi.

25 And when he is come, he findeth it swept and garnished.

Et cum venerit, invenit eam scopis mundatam, et ornatam.

26 Then he goeth and taketh with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and entering in they dwell there. And the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.

Tunc vadit, et assumit septem alios spiritus secum, nequiores se, et ingressi habitant ibi. Et fiunt novissima hominis illius pejora prioribus.

Douay-Rheims : 1582 text

14. And he was caſting out a Diuel, and that was dumme. And when he had caſt out the Diuel, the dumme ſpake: and the multitudes marueled.

15. And certaine of them ſaid: In Beel-zebub the prince of Diuels he caſteth out Diuels.
16. And other tempting, asked of him a ſigne from Heauen.
17. But he ſeeing their cogitations, ſaid to them: Euery Kingdom deuided against itſelf, ſhal be made deſolate, and houſe vpon houſe, ſhal fal.
18. And if Satan alſo be deuided againſt himſelf, how ſhal his Kingdom ſtand? becauſe you ſay that in Beel-zebub I doe cast out Diuels.
19. And if I in Beel-zebub caſt out Diuels: your children, in whom doe they caſt out? therfore they ſhal be your iudges.
20. But if I in the finger of God doe caſt out Diuels; surely the Kingdom of God is come vpon you.
21. When the ſtrong armed keepeth his court, those things are in peace that he poſſeſſeth.

22. But if a ſtronger then he come vpon him and ouercome him; he wil take away his whole armour wherein he truſted, and wil distribute his ſpoiles.
23. He that is not with me, is against me: and he that gathereth not with me, ſcattereth.
24. When the vncleane ſpirit ſhal depart out of a man, he wandereth through places without water, ſeeking rest. And not finding, he ſaith, I wil returne into my houſe whence I departed.
25. And when he is come, he findeth it ſwept with a beſome, and trimmed.
26. Then he goeth and taketh ſeuen other ſpirits worse then himſelf, and entring in they dwel there. And the laſt of that man be made worſe then the first.

 

Annotations

[The following text is based on the Great Commentary on Chapter xii of St Matthew's Gospel, but retaining the verse numbers from St Luke's Gospel]

 

    14. And he was casting out a devil, and the same was dumb: whence S. Augustine (L. 2 de Consens. Evang. sec. 37) is of opinion that Luke is speaking of another demoniac; but Luke does not say that he was not blind. Now the man was not blind and dumb from birth, or by disease, as Abul. and Barradi think, but was deprived of the use of his eyes and ears through the demoniacal possession. The demon, therefore, had not made him blind, nor taken away the faculty of speech, but only hindered the exercise of both. Whence, when the demon was cast out, without any other miraculous operation, the man began both to speak and to see. Thus S. Chrysostom, Enthym., Lyra, Jansen, Maldonatus. Hear S. Chrysostom: “O pestiferous craft of the devil! he seized upon, and obstructed both the ways,—sight and hearing—by which the man might believe.” Hence S. Luke says that demon was dumb, &c., in its effects, because it made the man dumb whom it possessed. There was, then, in this miracle a threefold effect. For, as S. Jerome says, “In this one man three signs were wrought at one and the same time; the blind sees, the dumb speaks, the possessed of the devils is delivered.”

    Tropologically: S. Jerome says, “What was then done literally is daily fulfilled in the conversion of believers, that, when the devil has been driven out, they may first behold the light of faith, and then open their mouths to speak the praises of God.” Then S. Augustine says, “He, having a devil, is blind and dumb, who does not believe: and he is a slave of the devil, who does not understand, and does not confess the true faith, or who does not give praise to God.” (lib. 1. quæst. Evangel. q. 3.) The devil then makes men dumb lest they should confess their sins and expel their poison; lest they should praise God; lest they should instruct their neighbours: but Christ by His grace, looses their mouths to confess, to praise, to teach. Wisely saith S. Bernard (in Sententiis) 

“Why art thou ashamed to speak of thy sin, when thou wast not ashamed to do it? or why dost thou blush to confess to God, from whose eyes thou canst not be hid? And if thou art so grievously ashamed to expose thy sin to one man, a sinner himself, what wilt thou do in the day of judgment, when thy consciousness of guilt will be exposed to all?”

    and when he had cast out the devil, the dumb spoke: and the multitudes were in admiration at it, ἐξίσταντο, i.e., were astonished and admired so that they, as it were, were rapt out of themselves in an ecstasy, at seeing so many and so great miracles of Christ; wherefore they said, No Prophet hath done so many miracles as Jesus hath. Therefore He is greater than them all. Consequently, He is the Son of David, the Messiah promised to David, whom we are all eagerly expecting.

    15. But some of them said: He casteth out devils by Beelzebub, the prince of devils. The Pharisees were so blinded by their envy and hatred of Christ, that when they could not deny His miracles so clearly attested, they slanderously said, that they were magical, and not wrought by power of God, but by Beelzebub. They made Christ to be a magician who had a familiar demon, by whose power He wrought miracles.

    18. And if Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand? because you say, that through Beelzebub I cast out devils. It means the kingdom of Satan upon earth could not stand, if Satan, i.e., one devil were constantly to rise up against another devil, and fight with him, so that the inferior should be continually striving to cast out his superior from men. Thus you, O ye Scribes, behold Me, continually and assiduously, with hostility punish the devils, and expel them from the souls and bodies of men. Therefore, not by the help of Beelzebub, but by the power of God, I cast them out, Neither indeed is Beelzebub so foolish as to send the devils who are subject to him, to drive out one the other. For by so doing he would destroy his and their kingdom. So also mutinous soldiers, when they rebel against their prince are closely and intimately united among themselves, for they know, if they should disagree, they would easily be overthrown by their prince. 

    I have spoken of Christ’s hostility to the devils; because Apollonius of Tyana, as Philostratus testifies in his life, and magicians cast out devils, but by collusion with them, that they may entice men to sorcerers, and to sorcery, i.e., fellowship with the devil. But Christ proves by what follows, that He had no fellowship with the devil. I spoke also of habitual warfare; for frequently strife and battle will arise among the devils for the possession of a man. An aged priest, worthy of credit, who had discharged the office of exorcist for many years and expelled devils at Rome, once told me he had seen with his eyes, and heard with his ears, two men possessed with devils, contending and fighting with one another, in the Church of S. Matthew. The devil who possessed one of the men was of a higher order and superior to the other; and he wished to cast out the other devil, as an inferior, from the man whom he possessed. But the inferior devil resisted, and greatly abused his superior; and among other things, he said to him, “Thou art an infernal devil, and by the just judgment of God being banished to hell, art far more heavily punished than I am, who am not an infernal devil, but am permitted to live here in the air, because I did not rebel against God as thou didst, but only clave and consented to Lucifer, as a subject to my superior.” But such things as this are very uncommon and are succeeded by peace, even as these two devils after a short time laid aside their contention, and rested, and held their peace. For although those who are damned, and the devils, burn with pride, wrath, and hatred one against another, and quarrel, and tear one another in hell like dogs; nevertheless, on earth they must agree among themselves, in order that they may establish their kingdom and dominion over men.

    19. Now if I cast out devils by Beelzebub, by whom do your children cast them out? This is Christ’s second proof, by which He shows, that he cast out devils by the help of God not of Satan, By your children, in the first place, SS. Hilar., Chrys., Theoph., Enthym. understand, your Apostles, for they were sons of the Jews. These writers think that this happened after Christ sent forth the Apostles, when the Apostles, by the help of Christ, cast out devils, and wrought many miracles. But it is more probable that this happened before the mission of the Apostles. Hence it is better to understand by your children, Jewish exorcists, who, by the method handed down by Solomon, expelled demons. (See Joseph. Lib. 8, cap. 2.) Such exorcists were the seven sons of Sceva, a chief of the priests (Act. xix.14). So Jansen, Tolet, and others.

    Therefore they shall be your judges. In the day of judgment, they shall, by their deeds, condemn you, because ye have passed so perverted a judgment upon Me, namely that they have cast out devils by the help of God, but I by the assistance of Satan; although ye behold far greater proofs of the presence and operation of God in Me, than in your own exorcists. For who of them has healed so many sick, and raised so many dead persons as I have done? Who of them has preached such sublime and Divine doctrine as I preach? Therefore shall the Queen of Sheba and the Ninevites, by their faith and repentance in the day of judgment condemn the unbelieving Jews.

    20. But if I by the finger of God cast out devils &c. If I by the power of God and the Holy Ghost not of Beelzebub, cast out devils, then that is true (and the Holy Ghost himself manifestly attests it by his concurrence) which I and John Baptist have put forward as the head and sum of our preaching—the kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Ye see the kingdom of the devil by Me everywhere destroyed by My words, and by what I effect in the bodies and souls of men: and thus God’s kingdom is begun by grace. This is what John says (1 Epist. iii. 8), In this the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil. For as S. Leo says, “Those nails which pierced the Lord’s hands and feet inflicted eternal wounds upon the devil; and the punishment of His holy limbs was the death of the hostile powers.”

    21. When a strong man armed keepeth his court, those things are in peace which he possesseth.  

    22. But if a stronger than he come upon him, and overcome him; he will take away all his armour wherein he trusted, and will distribute his spoils. A new reason is here given, the third, whereby Christ proves that He casts out devils by the help of God, not of Beelzebub. The argument is drawn from a comparison, thus: As he who attacks the castle of any strong or valiant man, like Samson or Hercules, to spoil it, is not able to accomplish it unless he first vanquish and bind the strong man; so in like manner, I Christ, who spoil the kingdom of Satan by leading sinners, his subjects, to repentance and salvation, must needs overcome and bind Satan himself; for, otherwise, he would not allow this spoliation. Satan therefore is My enemy, and has been overthrown by Me. He is not My friend or ally in casting out demons, as ye calumniously assert. 

    The strong man then, in this passage, is the devil; the house is the world; the vessels are his arms; his goods, his instruments. The arms of the devil are fraud and deceit by which he entiees men to sin; his arms are wealth, honours, riches. They are also inferior demons and wicked men, says S. Chrysostom. These the devil makes use of against us, to tempt and vex us. His goods are the souls of sinners, and the bodies of the possessed; yea the souls of the fathers detained in Limbus before Christ. All these Christ took away from the devil, and bound him in hell.

    Moreover, the devil is here called a strong man, because he goeth about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, as S. Peter saith. Job (xl and xli) depicts his strength and might under the figures of Behemoth and Leviathan. By the strong man understand Lucifer, the prince of the devils, the antagonist of Christ and S. Michael. For Lucifer, being conquered by Christ on the Cross, was thrust down to hell, that there he should remain, personally bound, until the day of judgment. Then he will be loosed for a little space, as John says (Apoc. xx.). Nevertheless, Lucifer is so bound in hell, that he is not only able to go forth himself, but even by means of his demons, whom he sends forth into the world. Yet he is not able to hurt men as much as he was before. For Christ has greatly restrained and diminished the power and might of the demons. S. Anthony was taught this by long experience, as S. Athanas. testifies in his Life. “The devil,” he says, “was hooked by the Lord, like a dragon, by the hook of the Cross; and was taken in a drag-net, and was bound like a fugitive slave, and his lips were perforated by a ring and a bracelet, and he is not permitted to devour any of the faithful. Now, like a wretched sparrow, he is made sport of by Christ; now he groans at his companions, being trodden like serpents and scorpions under the heels of Christians. He who boasted that he drank up every sea, he who pretended that he held the world in the hollow of his hand, lo! he is conquered by you; lo! he is not able to prevent my entering the lists against him.” And he confirms this by the devil’s own con fession (cap. 20). “I saw,” he said, “a man of enormous height, whose head reached unto Heaven. When I asked him who he was, he said, I am Satan. And I, What seekest thou here? He answered, Why do all Christian people curse me? I answered, Hast thou not read, ‘Because the swords of the enemy have failed at the end, and thou hast destroyed their cities?’ (Vulg.) He said, Lo, now have I no place, I possess no city, I have no arms: the name of Christ sounds throughout all nations and all provinces, and the wilderness is peopled with choirs of monks. Let them, I beseech you, look at themselves, and not wound me without cause.”

    23. He that is not with me, is against me; and he that gathereth not with me, scattereth. First, SS. Hilary, Jerome, Chrysostom, Theophylact expound of the strong man, i.e., the devil The devil is not with Me, in such manner that he is against Me: and the things which I gather, he strives to disperse. This, therefore, is a fourth argument of Christ against the Scribes. Its force is as follows: They whose works are contrary, are themselves contrary. But My works and the devil’s are contrary; therefore, I and he are contrary to each other. For, as S. Jerome says, “He, the devil, desires to hold captive the souls of men, but the Lord to deliver them. He preaches idolatry, Christ, the knowledge of the one God; the one draws to vice, the other recals to virtue. How, then, can they have agreement between themselves, whose works are contrary?”

    2. You may take the passage more simply with S. Chrysostom, with an application to the Pharisees, thus: As when a sedition arises in a kingdom or city, and one part rises against another part, so that evil-disposed men endeavour to seize upon the commonwealth, and spoil it, as Catiline with his fellow-conspirators did at Rome; then it is necessary for good citizens to defend the state, and he who does not, but desires to be neutral, is looked upon as an enemy and a companion of the seditious: because, under those circumstances, all citizens are bound to help the city or republic with all their might. Thus, in like manner, I, who have proclaimed universal war with Satan, that I may expel him from his dominion over the world, look upon all men as it were citizens of the world, as subjects of Me, their true Prince. If, therefore, they are not with Me in this war, and if they do not fight under My banner, they are contrary to Me, and My enemies, and, as such, I shall treat them, and punish them. Such, therefore, are you, O ye Pharisees, who ought above all, as my subjects, and better instructed than other men, to receive Me as the Messiah, the Christ prophesied of in your law and the prophets, and to commend Me as such to the people; notwithstanding, ye are secretly My adversaries, and openly ye dissimulate as though ye were judges appointed to make inquisition concerning My life and doctrine.

    Thus this saying of Christ is not opposed to what He says in Luke ix. 50—He who is not against you, is on your part: for there He is speaking of one who is really in doctrinal agreement with the Apostles, and therefore is with them and for them, although for some just reason he does not profess as much openly.

    24. When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through places without water, seeking rest; and not finding, he saith: I will return into my house whence I came out.

    25. And when he is come, he findeth it swept and garnished.

 Observe, Christ still continues to treat of the subject of demoniacal possession: for the possessed, whom He healed, were corporeally possessed by a demon, but the Scribes and the Jews, who reviled Christ’s miracles, were spiritually possessed. Christ here speaks parabolically, after the manner of the Syrians. The meaning is: As a man who is an exile wanders through arid and desert places, so the devil when driven by the law of God from man, that is to say, from you, O ye Jews, who were the people of God, amongst whom God dwelt, and manifested Himself by prophecies and miracles, wanders through desert places, and seeks rest. But when he cannot find it save in man, and when he sees that ye despise God’s grace, which I offer you, then he eagerly returns to you as to a house that is empty and swept, as to a place prepared and adorned for him. 

    26. Then he goeth and taketh with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and entering in they dwell there. And the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.

    Then he takes seven, i.e., many other companions, more wicked than himself, and they joyfully inhabit that house, i.e., your souls; and that they may not be again expelled, and that they may make you more wicked, with that object in view they cause you to blaspheme Me, My doctrine, and My miracles, and to say that I cast out devils by Beelzebub, and that ye may at length crucify Me, which is of all wickedness the chief and the greatest. Wherefore God will punish you with utter destruction by Titus, and will cause you to be without God, without Messiah, without law, or temple, or sacrifice, and without faith—yea, that ye shall think your own perfidy and blindness to be the true faith and the true light.

    Moreover, the house, that is the soul, is empty, because it is without God, and devoid of His grace. It is swept with besoms  because all virtue, piety and goodness have been driven out of it, and the poison of impurity has been scattered in it, and the tapestry of pride hung about it. For such adornment as this is the adornment of uncleanness, and is pleasing to the devil who delights in nothing but what is impure and filthy.

    Again, the devils are driven by God and His Saints into desert places, that they may not injure men. Thus Raphael bound Asmodeus in the deserts of Upper Egypt. (Tobit viii.) So also Isaiah says, (Isaiah xiii and xxxiv) that Babylon should be wasted and rendered a desert; and that hairy creatures, Satyrs and Onoccntauri, i.e. demons in the shape of goats and monsters should dwell there. But the devil does not find rest in such places, for, as Abul. says, “The devil cannot rest, because he shall be tormented eternally, but he seeks the rest of his own evil will: for he is envious, and loves to injure men: and when he is able to injure them he rests after a fashion.” He acts thus, partly from envy, because he grudges man the happiness of heaven, from which he himself has fallen; partly from hatred of God: and because he cannot injure God himself, he would injure man who is God’s creature and image, that he may thus, as far as he can, do an injury to God.

    Mystically, dry places are the souls of the Gentiles, in which, by the grace of Christ, the moisture of concupiscence is dried up. Hear S. Jerome, 

“The unclean spirit went forth from the Jews, when they received the law, and being driven from them, walked in the wilderness of the Gentiles. But when the Gentiles had believed in the Lord—finding no place among them, the devil said, I will go back to the Jews.”

    And the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. This is the end and scope of the parable. Christ shows that relapsing into sin is worse than falling into it at first; even as a relapse into a disease of the body is worse than the original disease. S. Augustine says (Epist. 137), “I confess unfeignedly, before the Lord our God, who is the witness of my soul, from the time when I began to serve God, that I have not found any who have made greater progress in religion than those in monasteries. So too, in like manner, I have never found worse men than those who have fallen, being monks. And this is why I believe it has been written in the Apocalypse (ch. xxii) ‘He that is just, let him become more just; and he that is filthy, let him become more filthy.’ ” Thus Lucifer, who was the most fair of all the angels, became the worst of the devils. So too Judas, from an Apostle, became an Apostate, and the betrayer of Christ. So also Nestorius, Eutyches, Pelagius, Arius, and in our time Luther, Calvin, and the rest, their companions, from monks and priests, became apostates and heresiarchs. As it is commonly said, the best wine makes the sourest vinegar.”

+       +        +

The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

Lord, teach us to pray

St Luke Chapter XI : Verses 1-13

Contents

• Luke xi. Verses 1-13.  Douay-Rheims (Challoner) text & Latin text (Vulgate)
• Douay-Rheims 1582 text
• Annotations based on the Great Commentary

Luke xi. Verses 1-13.

When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be thy name.
J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

1 And it came to pass, that as he was in a certain place praying, when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him: Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.

Et factum est : cum esset in quodam loco orans, ut cessavit, dixit unus ex discipulis ejus ad eum : Domine, doce nos orare, sicut docuit et Joannes discipulos suos.

2 And he said to them: When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come.

Et ait illis : Cum oratis, dicite : Pater, sanctificetur nomen tuum. Adveniat regnum tuum.

3 Give us this day our daily bread.

Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie.

4 And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.

Et dimitte nobis peccata nostra, siquidem et ipsi dimittimus omni debenti nobis. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem.

5 And he said to them: Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go to him at midnight, and shall say to him: Friend, lend me three loaves,

Et ait ad illos : Quis vestrum habebit amicum, et ibit ad illum media nocte, et dicet illi : Amice, commoda mihi tres panes,

6 Because a friend of mine is come off his journey to me, and I have not what to set before him.

quoniam amicus meus venit de via ad me, et non habeo quod ponam ante illum,

7 And he from within should answer, and say: Trouble me not, the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.

et ille de intus respondens dicat : Noli mihi molestus esse, jam ostrium clausum est, et pueri mei mecum sunt in cubili : non possum surgere, et dare tibi.

8 Yet if he shall continue knocking, I say to you, although he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend; yet, because of his importunity, he will rise, and give him as many as he needeth.

Et si ille perseveraverit pulsans : dico vobis, etsi non dabit illi surgens eo quod amicus ejus sit, propter improbitatem tamen ejus surget, et dabit illi quotquot habet necessarios.

9 And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and you shall find: knock, and it shall be opened to you.

Et ego dico vobis : Petite, et dabitur vobis; quaerite, et invenietis; pulsate, et aperietur vobis.

10 For every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.

Omnis enim qui petit, accipit : et qui quaerit, invenit : et pulsanti aperietur.

11 And which of you, if he ask his father bread, will he give him a stone? or a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

Quis autem ex vobis patrem petit panem, numquid lapidem dabit illi? aut piscem, numquid pro pisce serpentem dabit illi?

12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he reach him a scorpion?

aut si petierit ovum, numquid porriget illi scorpionem?

13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father from heaven give the good Spirit to them that ask him?

Si ergo vos, cum sitis mali, nostis bona data dare filiis vestris : quanto magis Pater vester de caelo dabit spiritum bonum petentibus se?

Douay-Rheims : 1582 text

1. AND it came to paſſe, when he was in a certaine place praying, as he ceaſed, one of his Diſciples ſaid to him: Lord teach vs to pray, as Iohn alſo taught his Diſciples.

2. And he ſaid to them: When you pray, say, FATHER, ſanctified be thy name. Thy Kingdom come,
3. Our daily bread giue vs this day,
4. and forgiue vs our ſinnes, for becauſe our ſelues alſo doe forgiue euery one that is in debt to vs. And lead vs not into temptation.
5. And he ſaid to them: Which of you ſhal haue a freind, and ſhal goe to him at midnight, and ſhal say to him, Freind, lend me three loaues,
6. becauſe a freind of mine is come out of his way to me, and I haue not what ſet before him:
7. and he from within anſwering ſaith: Trouble me not, now the doore is ſhut, and my children are with me in bed; I can not riſe and giue thee.
8. And if he ſhal perſeuer knocking, I ſay to you, although he wil not riſe and giue him as many as he needeth.
9. ⋮ And I ſay to you, Aſke, and it ſhal be giuen you: ſeeke, and you ſhal find: knock, and it ſhal be opened to you.
10. For euery one that asſketh, receiueth: and he that ſeeketh, findeth: and to him that knocketh, it ſhal be opened.

11. And which of you if he aſke his father bread, wil he giue him a ſtone? or a fiſh, wil he for a fiſh giue him a ſerpent?
12. Or if he aſke an egge, wil he reach him a ſcorpion?
13. If you then being naught, know how to giue good guiftes to your children, how much more wil your father from Heauen giue the good Spirit to them that aſke him?

 

Annotations

    2. When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. S. Matthew adds this prayer to the sermon on the mount, whilst S. Luke places it at a later period. Either, therefore, Christ taught His disciples this prayer on two separate occasions, or S. Matthew added it to the sermon on the mount, in order to make that sermon a complete summary of evangelical doctrine.

    Here we may observe, that S. Matthew makes this prayer consist of seven petitions, but S. Luke of five. The latter evangelist unites two, because they are contained in the others. Hence, because S. Luke omits the last petition, “deliver us from evil,” the Pelagians argued that although we might pray against being led into temptation, we ought not to pray for deliverance from evil.

    5. And he said to them: Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go to him at midnight, and shall say to him: Friend, lend me three loaves

    at midnight, i.e. at a most inconvenient time.

    Christ puts forth this parable to teach His disciples not to be disheartened, nor to cease to pray because their petitions are unanswered, but to persevere, for if they do this, God will listen to their prayers and grant them their requests.

    6. Because a friend of mine is come off his journey to me, and I have not what to set before him. My friend, hungry and wearied with his journey, seeks refreshment, and I have nothing to set before him.

    7. And he from within should answer, and say: Trouble me not, the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. He makes excuse that he cannot wake his children from their sleep and disturb his household.

    8. I say to you, although he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend; yet, because of his importunity, he will rise, and give him as many as he needeth.

    importunity—ἀναίδειαν, i.e., impudence, used as the Latin word impudens—e.g., labor impudens (i.e. unceasing labour) omnia vincit.

    Here S. Augustine asks, “Why because of his importunity? Because he continued to knock and did not go away because his request was denied him. He who was unwilling to give what his friend had need of, gave at last because the other continued his demands. Much more then will God who in His goodness bids us make known our requests to Him, and is displeased with those who seek Him not, grant our requests.”

    God wills that we should continue instant in prayer, and is pleased with our “importunity,” for persistent prayer is “violence pleasing to God.” Tertullian.

    9. And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and you shall find: knock, and it shall be opened to you. 

Cf. Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and you shall find: knock, and it shall be opened to you.  8 For every one that asketh, receiveth: and he that seeketh, findeth: and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. (See S. Matt. vii. 7.)

    12. Or if he shall ask an egg, will he reach him a scorpion? This verse is omitted by S. Matthew. An egg, because of the nourishment it contains.

[The following text is based on the commentary on St Matthew's Gospel, vii. 7 et seq.]

    9. Ask, and it shall be given you:, &c. He returns to the subject of prayer, of which He had begun to treat. Ask, viz., from God, by prayer, those things about which I have been teaching, such as are necessary for you, but arduous and difficult, and especially the things which I have laid down to be looked for in the Lord’s Prayer. For to it Luke refers these words (xi. 9). Observe, these three words, ask, seek, knock, mean the same thing, that is, earnest prayer. To ask signifies confidence in prayer as a prime requisite; to seek signifies zeal and diligence, for he who seeks for anything, applies the whole vigour of his mind to obtain what he seeks. To knock means perseverance.

    Christ then signifies that we must pray faithfully, diligently, ardently, and perseveringly. So S. Augustine, who says that ask refers to praying for strength, by which we may be able to fulfil the commandments of God: seek, that we may find the truth: knock, that heaven may be opened unto us.

    To this we may add the words of S. Chrysostom. 

“Ask,” he says, “in supplications, praying night and day: seek by zeal and labours, for heaven is not given to the slothful: knock in prayers, in fastings, and almsgiving, for he who knocks at a door knocks with his hand.”

    Again, these three words denote increasing earnestness in prayer. When anything is asked for, it is first spoken for; by-and-by, if no answer be given, we cry out; if calling out do not suffice, we seek for some other means of gaining attention, we apply our mouth to some chink in the door by which our voices may be made to reach the master of the house: if that too fail, we beat at the door, until we gain a hearing. Hence Remigius thus expounds, 

“We ask by praying; we seek by living well; we knock by persevering.” Others, “Ask by faith, seek by hope, knock by charity.”

 Lastly, Climacus (Gradu 28) says, Ask by striving, seek by obedience, knock by long-suffering.

    Mystically, S. Bernard (in Scala Claustralium): 

“Seek by reading, and ye shall find in meditation: knock in prayer, and it shall be opened to you in contemplation. Reading offers solid food to the mouth, meditation masticates it, reason gives it flavour, contemplation is the very sweetness itself which pleases and refreshes.”

He then defines these four processes. 

“Meditation is a studious action of the mind, which under the guidance of right reason searches out the knowledge of hidden truth: contemplation is the elevation of a mind depending upon God, and tasting the joys of eternal sweetness. Reading searches, meditation finds, contemplation feeds, prayer asks.”

    10. For every one that asketh, receiveth &c. Elegantly and truly says S. Augustine, or whoever was the author of lib. de Salutar. Monitis, (c. 28), “The prayer of the righteous is the key of heaven. Prayer ascends, God’s mercy descends.” The same S. Augustine (lib. senten. apud Prospr. Sent. 87), says, “The physician knows best what is good for the sick man. Therefore God sometimes in mercy hears not.” Again he says (ad Paulinum, Epist. 43), “The Lord often denies what we wish for, that he may give us what we would rather, in the end.” And the Gloss says, “God does not deny Himself to those who ask, for He voluntarily offered Himself to those who asked not for him. And those who seek shall find Him: for He gave Himself to those who sought Him not, that He might be found of them: and He will open to those who knock, for He it is who crieth out, ‘Behold, I stand at the gate, and knock. If any man shall hear my voice, and open to me the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.’ ” (Rev. iii. 20)

    11. And which of you, if he ask, &c. The force of the or in this verse is, that God is more liberal than man. It, as it were, compares God and man, and shows the superiority of God to man.

    or a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?, &c. For a serpent has the appearance and form of a fish, so that it might be deceitfully substituted for a fish, though only by an enemy, not by a father. He says the same thing that He said in the previous verse, but by a still more striking similitude. For if a father gave a stone to a child who asked him for bread, he would only give him a useless and uneatable thing; but if he gave him a serpent when he asked for a fish, he would give him not only a useless but a noxious and poisonous thing. Thus Christ speaks of what is a moral impossibility.

    13. If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father from heaven give the good Spirit to them that ask him? 

    being evil: i.e. “by the natural propensity to evil, which ye have contracted in your nature by sin.” So S. Jerome. “Also by your own will and actions.” Whence it is plain that these words were spoken to the people generally, not to the Apostles. For the Apostles were good, but among the multitude there were many who were evil and entangled in vices. S. Chrysostom was of another opinion: “In comparison with God,” he says, “all appear evil, even the good, as in comparison with the sun all things, even such as are light, appear dark.”

    the good Spirit. For all good things are given by the grace of the Holy Spirit, says Remigius. By good things understand true and solid goods which lead to blessedness. Whence S. Augustine says, “Gold and silver are good, not because they make thee good, but because thou mayest do good with them.”

+       +        +

The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

But one thing is necessary; Mary hath chosen the best part.

St Luke Chapter X : Verses 38-42

Contents

• Luke x. 38-42.  Douay-Rheims (Challoner) text & Latin text (Vulgate)
• Douay-Rheims 1582 text
• Annotations based on the Great Commentary

Luke x. 38-42.

Mary, who sitting also at the Lord's feet, heard his word.
J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

38 Now it came to pass as they went, that he entered into a certain town: and a certain woman named Martha, received him into her house.

Factum est autem, dum irent, et ipse intravit in quoddam castellum : et mulier quædam, Martha nomine, excepit illum in domum suam,

39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sitting also at the Lord's feet, heard his word.

et huic erat soror nomine Maria, quæ etiam sedens secus pedes Domini, audiebat verbum illius.

40 But Martha was busy about much serving. Who stood and said: Lord, hast thou no care that my sister hath left me alone to serve? speak to her therefore, that she help me.

Martha autem satagebat circa frequens ministerium : quæ stetit, et ait : Domine, non est tibi curæ quod soror mea reliquit me solam ministrare? dic ergo illi ut me adjuvet.

41 And the Lord answering, said to her: Martha, Martha, thou art careful, and art troubled about many things:

Et respondens dixit illis Dominus : Martha, Martha, sollicita es, et turbaris erga plurima,

42 But one thing is necessary. Mary hath chosen the best part, which shall not be taken away from her.

porro unum est necessarium. Maria optimam partem elegit, quæ non auferetur ab ea.

Douay-Rheims : 1582 text

38. ⋮And it came to paſſe as they went, and he entred into a certaine towne; and a certaine woman named Martha, receiued him into her houſe,

39. and ſhe had a ſiſter called Marie. Who ſitting also at our Lords feete, heard his word.
40. But Martha was buſie about much ſeruice. Who ſtood and ſaid: Lord, haſt thou no care that my ſiſter hath left me alone to ſerue? ſpeake to her therfore, that ſhe help me.
41. And our Lord anſwering ſaid to her: Martha, Martha, thou art careful, and art troubled about many things.
42. But one thing is neceſſarie, Marie hath choſen the beſt part which ſhal not be taken away from her.

 

Annotations

    38. Now it came to pass as they went, that he entered into a certain town: and a certain woman named Martha, received him into her house. As they went preaching the Gospel, v. 1. “A certain town:” probably Bethany, where Martha dwelt.

    The servant, says S. Augustine, by reason of His condescension, not His condition, received her Lord, the sick the Saviour, the creature the Creator, one to be fed in spirit, Him who must be fed in the flesh.

    The hospitality of Martha is praised, for she received Jesus, who was hated by the chief priests and scribes, and in receiving Him she received God, who blessed her and her house, and after death received her into glory.

    Thus Abraham entertained angels unawares. And hospitality do not forget; for by this some, being not aware of it, have entertained angels. See Heb. xiii. 2.

    Hence Christ appeared to Martha as she lay dying, and as a reward for her hospitality invited her to His heavenly kingdom, and it is added on the authority of S. Antonine, that the Lord Himself was present at her burial. Thus He honours those who honour Him.

    39. And she had a sister called Mary, surnamed Magdalene. They were sisters, says S. Augustin, not only by their parentage but in religion, for both were followers of Christ, and both served Him present in the flesh—blessed in such a guest.

    who sitting also at the Lord's feet, heard his word. At the very time when Mary might have been assisting her sister in her household cares, she was sitting at Jesus feet showing her diligence and zeal in hearing, and the great reverence which she had for Christ.

    As by sitting at Jesus’ feet she had made the better choice, says S. Augustine, so she received the greater benefit. For water collects in the low-lying valleys, but flows down the acclivities of the hills.

    heard his word. Christ here teaches His disciples how they ought to behave in the houses of those who receive them, for, says S. Chrysostom (S. Cyril in the Catena), “They should not remain idle, but rather fill the minds of those who receive them with heavenly doctrine.” That no time may be without fruit, but that they may everywhere sow the seeds of religion, and excite men to virtue and to the love of God. Thus did Peter Faber, the first companion of S. Ignatius Loyola, who spent his whole life in journeying amongst his fellowmen, and in his will left us this salutary advice, that when we enter a house we should recite the hours, or take part in religious discourses, to show the reality of our profession. For thus a stop is put to improper conversation, and religion is the gainer. Thus he more than once by his discourse moved those whom he was entertaining to repentance, and received from them confession of their sins. Thus also did S. Francis Xavier, who sailed throughout the East, and won converts as much by his life as by his preaching.

    40. But Martha was busy about much serving., περιεσπᾶτο περί πολλὴν διακονίαν, was drawn aside and distracted, i.e. was anxious that nothing should be wanting for the entertainment of such a guest. Hence the Arabic, Martha was diligently serving to the utmost of her power.

    Who stood and said: Lord, hast thou no care that my sister hath left me alone to serve? speak to her therefore, that she help me. Came to Him: Greek, ἐπιστᾶσα, standing by Him.

    hast thou no care? Does not it displease you? Arabic.

    Martha spoke thus partly from her wish that all things should be properly prepared for Christ, partly from her knowledge of His consideration and kindness. Lord, my sister sees me overwhelmed with care because of my desire to honour Thee, and yet does nothing to assist me. Out of kindness to me, bid her, therefore, share my labour. She will obey Thy word, but will not, I know, listen to my request.

    41. And the Lord answering, said to her: Martha, Martha, thou art careful, and art troubled about many things: The repetition of her name, says S. Augustin, “is a sign of affection, or perhaps of a desire to arrest her attention more particularly to what He was about to say. For she was so entirely engrossed by her household cares, that His words might have been unheeded had she not been specially addressed by name.” S. Augustin adds, “Mary made no reply, because she preferred to commit her cause to her Judge, and knew that Christ would, as He was wont, stand by her and support her. Hence Christ, who was appealed to as Judge, became her Advocate.” Interlinear Gloss.

    thou art careful, and art troubled about many things. Thou desirest to prepare many things for me, whereas I need but few. Emmanuel Sa and all the others translate τυρβάζή, thou art confused, but the better rendering is, thou art troubled. For those who are anxious about many things experience much perturbation of mind—hence too much care and anxiety is the sign of excessive love or fear, and so they who love honour or riches, or any other thing too much, fear lest they may lose what they love, and become perturbed and anxious.

    42. But one thing is needful. The Greek has ἑνὸς δέ ἐστιν χρεία; this “one thing” Christ places in opposition to the “many things” about which Martha was troubled.

    What then is this one thing which is needful? Luther, Bullinger, Melancthon, and other like innovators answer, Faith, i.e. to hear the Gospel and to believe in it. For this is what the Magdalene did. Hence they think that faith only is necessary for salvation. Only believe, they say, that you are saved through the merits of Christ, and you will assuredly obtain your salvation. But such a faith is rash and delusive. For blasphemers and evildoers might possess it. Hence, in addition to faith, hope, charity, and good works are necessary for salvation, as is clear from S. Matt. xix. 17, 1 Cor. 13, and Holy Scripture generally, and from the example of the Magdalene herself, who not only heard, but was obedient to the word of the Lord. See S. Luke vii. 43.

    The truer and more orthodox interpretation seems to be that of those who understand by “one thing” one kind of food. Thou art anxious, Martha, to place before me many dishes, but to no purpose, for I require but one. I want not a rich banquet, but only ordinary food, for I am temperate, and a lover of humble fare. I do not blame, but praise your desire to do Me honour, yet I warn you not to be over careful for the things of this life, nor to call your sister away from hearing My words. So Theophylact, S. Gregory, and others.

    Hear also S. Basil: “There is need of few things, or rather of but one. Of few things as far as preparations are concerned, but of one object for the supply of our need;” and Titus, “We came not hither to fill ourselves with superfluous food, for nature is content with little.” Similarly Theophylact says, “One thing is needful: we must eat something, but we need not varieties of food,” i.e. according to the Arabic version, “That which is necessary for us we can easily obtain.”

    2. But in a higher sense, the one thing needful is the love of God, and the desire of salvation. This was the good part which Mary had chosen; and therefore, explaining the one thing needful, Christ goes on to say, “Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her.”

    The meaning is, therefore, this: Thou, Martha, art troubled about many things, but I exhort thee to devote thyself to one thing alone, to seek to please God, and Him only, in every action of thy life, and to do everything out of love towards Him. So, not attempting that which thou art unable to perform, thou wilt be enabled to serve God quietly and without fear, and to accomplish whatsoever He would have thee to do. Bede, Euthymius, and others.

    Hence S. Augustine and S. Gregory say, “This one thing is the end and chief good of men, on which their minds should be ever fixed;” and Cassian says, “The one thing needful is a mind which, regardless of all else, is fixed on God alone, and rejoices in the contemplation of His perfections.” For although divine contemplation is not necessary for salvation it is necessary for the perfection of those who are united to God by a holy life. So the Psalmist says, Ps. xxvi. 4, “One thing I have asked of the Lord, this will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. That I may see the delight of the Lord, and may visit his temple..” And S. Paul, Phil. iii. 13, 14, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended. But one thing I do: forgetting the things that are behind, and stretching forth myself to those that are before,  I press towards the mark, to the prize of the supernal vocation of God in Christ Jesus.” And again, Esther xiv. 18, “And that thy handmaid hath never rejoiced, since I was brought hither unto this day, but in thee, O Lord, the God of Abraham.”—Douay. For Christ saith, S. John xvii. 3, “Now this is eternal life: That they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

    Wherefore, when S. Ægidius, a very holy man, one of the first followers of S. Francis, was asked the way to holiness and perfection, he answered, “Una uni.” Let your whole mind be entirely given up to God, and one with Him. For unity is contrary to division, and God is one. Wherefore let him who seeks God return to unity with Him, for God must be sought by conformity of will, and by the union of the intellect and affections. S. Bernard (serm. 7 in Cant.)

    Hence S. Augustine (lib. 11, 18 De Ordine.) proves by induction that all things tend to one, because, as he shows, “Unity or singleness is the first fruit of God, who is the first essential and uncreated unity, the origin and fount of all other unities;” and in a later chapter he dwells upon the beauty of unity.

    In short, the one thing needful is God. All other things contingent and immaterial, created by the good pleasure of God out of nothing; and as, to quote the proverb, he who pursues two hares catches neither, so he who strives to please God and the world fails to attain either object.

    Figuratively, this “one thing” is to be acquired by meditation and prayer, for thus men are brought into communion with God. Hence he who would lead a religious life should seek this one thing only, so as to be thereby drawn into union with the Almighty. S. Dionysius and Climacus. “A monk is one who always has his soul lifted up to God; one who prays at all times, at all places, and on all occasions;” and S. Chrysostom says, “Prayer is the heart and soul of a perfect and religious life;” and S. Bonaventura (De perfectione vitæ, chap. 5), declares that “If any one who has taken the vows of a religious life omits frequent prayer, his soul is dead within him, or in other words he is like a body without a soul, having the outward form and religion, but lacking its inward grace.” And again, “Without abundant prayer religion becomes languid and weak. Why, unhappy spirit, dost thou wander through many places, seeking rest and finding none? Set thy affections on Him, of whom are all things, and in Him thou wilt rest happy and content. For He will satisfy thee with good things, and give thee to drink out of His pleasures as out of a river.”

    Hear also what Epictetus says to Arrian: “All first principles must, as if the world were turned upside down, return to one—all beauty, truth, and everything which is good, to one origin—everything divine to one God, all unity to the Triune.” For unity, the beginning of things, goodness, truth and God are the same, and therefore one. Hence we read, Cant. ii.16, “My beloved to me, and I to him who feedeth among the lilies,” for the Bride makes entire surrender of herself to her spouse; and so the saints desire to put off the flesh, that their souls may be united with God. So S. Paul was willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord (2 Cor. v. 8); and Simeon, “Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, O Lord, according to thy word in peace; ” and the Psalmist, “Woe is me, that my sojourning is prolonged! I have dwelt with the inhabitants of Cedar:” Ps. cxix. 5.

    S. Basil speaks of some who abhorred this life, as if it were a dark prison, and with difficulty restrained their desire (ὁργαῖς) for release, because their hearts were filled with the love of God, and eager to gaze upon the divine perfections: they longed for the time when they might for ever contemplate the loving-kindness of the Lord.

    So this blessed rest is to the wise a time of working, and the mind which has once been absorbed in the contemplation of the divinity, sustains itself on God and is sustained by Him.

    Wherefore David says, Ps. xli. 2-3, “As the hart panteth after the fountains of water; so my soul panteth after thee, O God.  My soul hath thirsted after the strong living God; when shall I come and appear before the face of God?”

    Symbolically, unity is the beginning and end of all numbers, for every number commences and ends in it—whilst it is independent and indivisible.

    So God is the beginning and ending of all things, And he said to me: It is done. I am Alpha and Omega; the beginning and the end. To him that thirsteth, I will give of the fountain of the water of life, freely.  (Rev. xxi. 6), who shutteth and openeth all things, before whom and after whom there is nothing. Who was from all eternity, through whom and by whom all things exist. Hence Plato says, “All things spring from the divine unity, and retain the trace of their origin, by means of which they are recalled to this unity, and perfected in it;” and considers unity to be God, in whom all things exist as branches from the root.

    Again, where sin is there is division; but where virtue, there oneness—where love, there unity. Therefore let him who seeks after virtue love one thing, and seek also for unity. For Christ, the teacher of unity, wills to join us together in one Church and unite us to Himself.

    For unity imparts holiness to the mind, health to the body, peace and concord to countries and households, in short, all the virtue and strength of a nation arises out of its oneness with itself. But division is the cause of discord, schism, war, and countless ills. Hence Plato (De Repub. lib. v.) says, The worst evil which can befall a state is division, and its highest good subjection, if subjection makes it again one.

    Hence S. Augustine says of the heavenly life, “There will be there no grudging because of unequal love, for one love will reign supreme in all;” and S. Gregory, “So great a love there unites all, that each rejoices that another rather than himself has received a blessing.” Life therefore reigns in love, i.e. in union; but death in hatred, i.e. in division.

    Mary hath chosen the best part, which shall not be taken away from her. The Syriac and Arabic add “to herself”—hath taken to herself. The Greek word ἀγαθὴν implies excellence, hence the Vulgate gives optimam. For Christ commends the one sister more than the other. “Thou, Martha, hast chosen well, but Mary better. Thou hast not chosen a bad part, but she a better.” S. Augustine. “Behold, Martha is not blamed, but Mary is praised.” Bede. And again, S. Augustin (serm. 27 De Verbis Domini), “Can we imagine that Martha was blamed for being intent on hospitable cares? How could she be rightly blamed for rejoicing over such a guest?” So also Ambrose and Cassian (Collat. i., chap. 8).

    Theophylact explains, “By the action of the one, the body is nourished; by the action of the other the soul receives life.” And Euthymius, “It is good to be hospitable, but it is better to hear the word of God, for the one is of the body, the other of the spirit.”

    S. Augustin gives another figurative interpretation: “Why was Mary’s the better part? Because she preferred the one thing to many. Many things were created, but there was but one Creator, and if the things created were very good, how excellent must He be who created them.”

    There are three persons in the Godhead, and these three are one, so the nearer you approach to perfect unity, the nigher you draw to God; and Christ Himself prays the Father that His disciples “may be one, as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us.” And again, “The glory which thou gavest Me have I given them; that they may be one, even as We are one.” See S. John xvii. 21 et seq.

    Hence to choose the good part, is to give up all care of earthly things, and to devote oneself entirely to the service of God.

    Hear Richard de S. Victor on Cant. viii: “Mary chose the better part, because she saw that the contemplation and the love of God included all things; but her sister was occupied about things which, though many, are limited to this world: hence by comparison Martha was troubled about few things. But the one thing necessary, and to be preferred before all, is to love God with the whole heart, and to show love and charity to all men.” And Suarez (De Oratione Mentali) says, “Mary made the better choice, because mental prayer brings about blessedness in this life, because it is the commencement of that beatific vision which will be the happiness of the saints in heaven.”

    Hence the joy of Magdalene was real and lasting. So S. Bernard says, “It is impossible to enjoy here on earth a sweet and happy life, since the earth itself is subject to constant change; but there is a joy lasting in its happiness, which arises out of a pure conscience. For the mind which is purified from earthly affections and entirely fixed on the contemplation of heavenly things, fears no threatenings, knows no fear, conceives no false hopes, but, void of all offence, rests in perfect peace.” Hugo Victorinus accounts for this perfect peace thus: “A conscience is quiet and void of offence when it is kindly affectioned to all, and bears ill-will to none: when it regards a friend with kindness, an enemy with patience, and seeks to do good, if possible, to all men.”

    Allusion is here made, says Maldonatus, to the manner in which the ancients divided an inheritance. It was customary for the eldest son to divide the property into as many parts as might be requisite, and for his brothers to have the first choice, so as to ensure an equal division. Seneca (lib. vi., Declamatio 3).

    Thus Christ was the inheritance, which Martha as the elder sister divided into two parts, to hear Christ and to serve Him. Mary the younger chose the better part, i.e. to hear the words of Christ, for the Hebrew (חלק), chelec, i.e. part, in Scripture signifies the lot of one’s inheritance. Thus, “The Lord is my portion,” Lam. 3:4. See also Psalm 16:5.

    But the active and the contemplative life combined tend to perfection, for the one controls and directs the other. So Christ taught the people by day, but was wont to spend whole nights in prayer, and following his example thus did also the Baptist and the Apostles.

    42. which shall not be taken away from her. Because to hear, like Mary, the word of God, and to meditate thereon, is spiritual food which will support the soul until it comes to appear in the eternal presence; but to minister, as Martha, is to choose that part which endures but for this present life. S. Augustin and others. Hence S. Gregory: “The part which Mary chose will never be taken away from her, because a contemplative life is unlike an active life, its joys gain strength from death.”

    Hear also S. Augustin: “That which thou hast chosen, Martha, will be taken from thee, that something better may be given. For in place of labour thou shalt have rest. Thou hast not yet reached thy journey’s end, but thy sister is in the haven.” And a little before he says, “Martha was troubled how she might feed the Lord, Mary anxious to be fed by Him.” And again, “Carefulness for many things passes away, but the love of one thing lasts for ever.” And Laurentius Justinianus says, “An active life is an anxious one, but a life of contemplation possesses a lasting joy. The one obtains a kingdom, while the other perceives only. In the one the world is despised, in the other God will be manifest, for ‘And my people shall sit in the beauty of peace, and in the tabernacles of confidence, and in wealthy rest.’ ” Isaiah 32:18.

    Again S. Gregory writes, “The active life ends with this world; for in the next who can give bread to the hungry where there is no hunger—or drink to the thirsty where there is no thirst. But the contemplative life begins here on earth, to be perfected in heaven; for the fire of divine love which is kindled here, burns brighter in the presence of God, who is its object.”

    See also Cassian, who says amongst other things, “In the future world all will pass from the many distractions of life and from actual work, to be absorbed in the love of God and in the contemplation of the Deity.”

    Observe, as against Calvin, that Martha is the type of the active life, and that Mary, sitting silently at Jesus’ feet, insensible to what was going on around because of her rapt attention to the words of Christ, a type of the contemplative. S. Bernard and others.

    But what is contemplation? S. Augustin (or whoever else may be the author of the treatise De Spiritu et Animo) answers, “It is the joyful admiration of a manifest truth.” But S. Bernard defines contemplation as “the uplifting of the mind to God, whereby we gain a forestate of the joys of happiness eternal.” Others again say, “It is the sure intuition of the soul or its undoubted apprehension of the truth.” But Gerson, following Hugo, says, “It is to be dead to all carnal desires, and to taste how sweet the Lord is. As David rejoiced in the living God (Ps. LXXXIII. 9), and declared God to be his portion for ever: ” For what have I in heaven? and besides thee what do I desire upon earth? For thee my flesh and my heart hath fainted away: thou art the God of my heart, and the God that is my portion for ever.  Ps. LXXII. 25-6.

    S. Gregory also (hom. 14 in Ezek.) thus describes the duties of each kind of life:—“The active life consists in giving bread to the hungry, in teaching the ignorant, reclaiming those who are in error, caring for the sick, and in ministering to the necessities of all, specially to the necessities of those committed to our trust. But he who would lead a life of contemplation must ever keep in mind the love of God and of his neighbour, and refraining from acting on this love, look with the longing expectation of a heart wholly fixed on heaven for the glory which shall be revealed.”

    Hence S. Thomas says, “The contemplative life, although mainly intellectual, originates in the affections, inasmuch as it springs out of the love of God, and the end of such a life is like the beginning, for delight at the sight of that which we love increases our love for it.”

    The contemplative life therefore causes a man to rise superior to the world, its trials and temptations, and to count all things as valueless in comparison with God, and gives perfect peace, because, S. Bernard says, “God wrapt all things in a holy calm, and to gaze on Him is to be at rest.” But this life of contemplation is preceded by an active life of mortification and self-denial, for as the fruit follows after the flower, so from a monk does a man become a hermit. Therefore S. Basil and other ascetics say that the monastic life is a fitting preparation for that life of contemplation to which the hermits are devoted.

    And so the Church has rightly appointed this portion of scripture to be read on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin because she rendered to Christ the service both of Martha and of Mary, and chose that good part, of which she will never be deprived.

+       +        +

The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

The good Samaritan

St Luke Chapter X : Verses 25-37

Contents

• Luke x. 25-37.  Douay-Rheims (Challoner) text & Latin text (Vulgate)
• Douay-Rheims 1582 text
• Annotations based on the Great Commentary

Luke x. 25-37.

A Samaritan ... was moved with compassion.
J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

25 And behold a certain lawyer stood up, tempting him, and saying, Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?

Et ecce quidam legisperitus surrexit tentans illum, et dicens : Magister, quid faciendo vitam æternam possidebo?

26 But he said to him: What is written in the law? how readest thou?

At ille dixit ad eum : In lege quid scriptum est? quomodo legis?

27 He answering, said: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind: and thy neighbour as thyself.

Ille respondens dixit : Diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo, et ex tota anima tua, et ex omnibus virtutibus tuis, et ex omni mente tua : et proximum tuum sicut teipsum.

28 And he said to him: Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

Dixitque illi : Recte respondisti : hoc fac, et vives.

29 But he willing to justify himself, said to Jesus: And who is my neighbour?

Ille autem volens justificare seipsum, dixit ad Jesum : Et quis est meus proximus?

30 And Jesus answering, said: A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, who also stripped him, and having wounded him went away, leaving him half dead.

Suscipiens autem Jesus, dixit : Homo quidam descendebat ab Jerusalem in Jericho, et incidit in latrones, qui etiam despoliaverunt eum : et plagis impositis abierunt semivivo relicto.

31 And it chanced, that a certain priest went down the same way: and seeing him, passed by.

Accidit autem ut sacerdos quidam descenderet eadem via : et viso illo præterivit.

32 In like manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, passed by.

Similiter et Levita, cum esset secus locum, et videret eum, pertransiit.

33 But a certain Samaritan being on his journey, came near him; and seeing him, was moved with compassion.

Samaritanus autem quidam iter faciens, venit secus eum : et videns eum, misericordia motus est.

34 And going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine: and setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

Et appropians alligavit vulnera ejus, infundens oleum et vinum : et imponens illum in jumentum suum, duxit in stabulum, et curam ejus egit.

35 And the next day he took out two pence, and gave to the host, and said: Take care of him; and whatsoever thou shalt spend over and above, I, at my return, will repay thee.

Et altera die protulit duos denarios, et dedit stabulario, et ait : Curam illius habe : et quodcumque supererogaveris, ego cum rediero reddam tibi.

36 Which of these three, in thy opinion, was neighbour to him that fell among the robbers?

Quis horum trium videtur tibi proximus fuisse illi, qui incidit in latrones?

37 But he said: He that shewed mercy to him. And Jesus said to him: Go, and do thou in like manner.

At ille dixit : Qui fecit misericordiam in illum. Et ait illi Jesus : Vade, et tu fac similiter.

Douay-Rheims : 1582 text

25. And behold a certaine lawyer stood vp, tempting him and saying: Maiſter, by doing of what thing ſhal I poſſeſſe life euerlaſting?

26. But he ſaid to him: In the law what is written? how readeſt thou?
27. He anſwering ſaid: Thou shalt loue the Lord thy God with thy whole hart, and with thy whole ſoule, and with al thy ſtrength, and with al thy mind: and thy neighbour as thy ſelf.
28. And he ſaid to him: Thou haſt anſwered right, this doe and thou ſhalt liue.
29. But he deſirous to iuſtifie himſelf, ſaid to IESVS: And who is my neighbour?
30. And IESVS taking it, ſaid: A certaine man went downe from Hieruſalem into Iericho, and fel among theeues, who alſo ſpoiled him, and giuing him woundes went away leauing him halfe-dead.
31. And it chanced that a certaine Prieſt went downe the ſame way; and ſeeing him, paſſed by.

32. In like manner alſo a Leuite, when he was neere the place, and ſaw him, paſſed by.

33. But a certaine Samaritane going his iourney, came neere him; and ſeeing him, was moued with mercie.
34. And going vnto him, bound his woundes, powring in oile and wine: and ſetting him vpon his owne beast, brought him into an inne, and tooke care of him.
35. And the next day he tooke forth two pence, and gaue to the hoſt, and ſaid: Haue care of him; and whatſoeuer thou ſhalt ſupererogate, I at my returne wil repay thee.
36. Which of theſe three in hty opinion was neighbour to him that fel among theeues?
37. But he ſaid: He that did mercie vpon him. And IESVS ſaid to him: Goe, and doe thou in like manner.

 

Annotations

    25. And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up. “What ought I to do to obtain eternal life?” This lawyer is not the same as the one mentioned by S. Matt. xxii. 35, as is clear from the circumstances there recorded.

    tempting him. He asked the question, not for any good motive, but with the design of tempting Christ to give some answer concerning Himself or His doctrine, which might lay Him open to the charge of being a breaker or a despiser of the law. Toletus.

    29. But he, willing to justify himself. To justify himself, i.e. to show himself to be more just than others. “Show me any one who comes nigh me in righteousness, who is as just and upright as I am. Such an one you will scarcely find.” So Titus, Euthymius, and Isidore of Pelusium, who think that the lawyer spoke with the pride and arrogance of a Pharisee.

    “He thought,” says Isidore, “that the neighbour of a righteous man must be righteous, and the neighbour of an exalted man one of high degree. Show me some one so great as to be worthy to be compared with me.”

    But the answer of Christ proved the contrary, as is clear from a consideration of the passage. For when this lawyer heard Christ commend the answer he had given, his purpose changed, and his aversion turned into love and reverence for the Lord. Hence he earnestly asked, Who is my neighbour? that by loving him he might fulfil the law.

    Hence, “willing to justify himself,” means that he wished to show his love for that which was right, that he was anxious out of an awakened conscience to understand and learn the law of God, in order that he might fulfil its precepts. Toletus, Jansenius, and others.

    And who is my neighbour? There was much questioning amongst the scribes concerning this, and much error. For because it is written, Lev. xix. 18, “Thou shalt love thy friend as thyself.” (רע rea), they inferred the contrary, “thou shalt hate thy enemy,” i.e. the Gentile, every one not a Jew: an error which Christ corrected, S. Matt. v. 43.

    Hence the scribes thought that the Jew alone, as a worshipper of the one true God, and of the same religion and race, could be a friend, or a neighbour, and even of their countrymen only those who were faithful in their observance of the law, were to be loved or to be held in honour.

    Well, therefore, might this lawyer ask, Who is my neighbour? I love all my countrymen who walk uprightly, and regard them as my neighbours, but are there others whom I ought to love? Christ answers that all men are our neighbours, because they partake of the same life, the same grace, the same salvation through Christ, the same sacraments, the same vocation and calling, and are journeying with us to the same eternity of happiness.

    Every man, therefore, is our “rea,” our friend and our fellow; or in the Greek πλητίος, near to us, from πελαζω or πλάω, I draw nigh, which is more forcibly rendered in Latin by “proximus,” because we are “proximi,” next or nearest to each other in a direct sense by virtue of the life we live in common with them, and the blessings which we enjoy.

    But by proximus Cicero and the Latins understood vicinissimus, i.e. neighbour in the strictest sense. Hence Isidore (lib. x. etymol.) We call him the nearest to us, who is next of kin; and Cicero (lib. 11 De legibus), “Whatever is best, that we must look upon as next or nigh unto God.” But now all men are our neighbours by creation, and by their redemption and calling in Christ.

    Figuratively. The word “neighbour” is suggestive of the tenderest affection and love, such as that of brother for brother, or of a son for his father, for no one comes between them, inasmuch as there is no higher relationship; yet there are degrees of this love, for we must love our father more than our brother, and our brother more than any more distant relation, for amongst our nearest of kin one is nearer to us than another, and therefore more to be loved.

    30. And Jesus answering said. Taking up or continuing His discourse. Euthymius. i.e. answering the lawyer, and explaining fully and clearly to whom “neighbour” applied.

    A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, A Jew, S. Augustine says; and an inhabitant of the holy city. Bede.

    The parable is founded on incidents of at that time frequent occurrence, and is therefore a true history. For, as S. Jerome observes, between Jerusalem and Jericho was a place infested with robbers, called in the Hebrew tongue Adommim, or rather Addammim, i.e. red or bloody, because of the blood which was shed there. So Adrichomius describes Adommim as a place infamous even in later times for robberies and murders, terrible to behold, and so dangerous that no one dared to pass through it without an escort.

    There the Samaritan met with this man who, like many another traveller, had been grievously wounded by robbers. The place itself lay four leagues to the west of Jericho, and was situated on the confines of Judah and Benjamin. A fort had been built there, and garrisoned with soldiers, for the protection of travellers. Close by was a large cavern, and the country round was hilly, so that robbers could see from afar the approaching wayfarer, and lie in ambush to attack him. Hence in Joshua xv. 7 the place is called the going up to Adommim.

    who also stripped him, and having wounded him went away, leaving him half dead. Stripped him of his raiment, money, and all that he had, and left him half dead by the wayside, where he would have died of his wounds had no one come to succour him. For it is the custom of robbers, in order to avoid detection, to murder their victims. The Syriac version makes the meaning clear. “They wounded him, and left him when there was scarce any life remaining in him.”

    31. And it chanced, that a certain priest went down the same way: and seeing him, passed by. By chance, humanly speaking, but really by the providence of God, for all things are foreordained by Him. Passed by on the other side, “ἀντιπαρῆλθεν.” The priest, terrified at his appearance, turned away from him, and went by on the other side. Christ here draws attention to the perversity of the priests of that day, who were zealous in carrying out all the outward observances of the law, but were utterly wanting in true religion and in showing mercy and pity. For this priest left his fellow-countryman and neighbour in his direst distress without even a word of consolation or comfort.

    32. In like manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, passed by. The Levite amongst the Jews, like the deacons in the Church, assisted the priest in his ministrations. He was therefore of one mind with the priest, for as the priest so is the Levite, as the prelate so the deacon, as the master so the servant, as the teacher so the disciple. And so he also passed by on the other side.

    33. But a certain Samaritan being on his journey, came near him; and seeing him, was moved with compassion. A Samaritan one of an entirely different race and religion, and therefore, as a heretic and schismatic, more hateful to the Jews than any other of the Gentiles. Yet this despised Samaritan had pity on the poor traveller who had been abandoned by both priest and Levite. Hence we learn that not only our friends but also our enemies are our neighbours, and Christ holds up this Samaritan as an example of brotherly kindness and love, because he had compassion on one who was hateful to himself and his people.

    34. And going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine: and setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. Went to him, got off the horse or the ass on which he was riding, and poured into the wounds the oil and wine which he carried with him as refreshment for the way.

    The order is inverted. He first, in accordance with the practice of the physicians of that day, washed the wounds with wine; for wine (1.) removes the coagulated blood; (2.) arrests corruption; (3.) closes the wound and strengthens the nerves against the effects of the bruises.

    Then he anointed the wounds with oil—(1.) To sooth their smart; (2.) to allay the pain; and (3.) to help forward the cure.

    Hence S. Gregory says (lib. xx. chap. 8, Moral.), By wine we may understand the gnawings of conscience; by oil the healing influences of religion—and so mildness must be mingled with severity if we would heal the wounds of the soul, and rescue sinners from the power of sin. But S. Chrysostom considers the wine to be the blood of the Passion, the oil the unction wherewith we are anointed, i.e. the unction of the Holy Spirit. Interlinear Gloss.

    and setting him upon his own beast,  On his ass. Syriac.

Allegorically. S. Augustin explains the beast to mean the flesh of Christ, and to be set thereon, to believe in the incarnation. S. Ambrose says, He places us on His beast whilst He bears our sins; and Theophylact, He made us to be His members and partakers of His body.

    brought him to an inn,  εἰς πανδοχεῖον, in stabulum. Vulgate. The resting-place built for the accommodation of all—the stabulum, where travellers stopped or stood to rest.

    and took care of him. Providing everything which his case required.

    35. And the next day he took out two pence, —i.e. not two pence in the ordinary signification of the words, but sufficient to supply the wants of the wounded man until his return. S. Augustine says, “The two pence are the two precepts of love, which the apostles received for the evangelising of the world, or the promise of this life, and of that which is to come.”

    and gave to the host, and said: Take care of him; and whatsoever thou shalt spend over and above, I, at my return, will repay thee., &c. Learn hence how great was the love of the Samaritan, for he provided everything that was needful for the poor traveller’s cure.

    Allegorically. The traveller is Adam wounded, and all but dead in trespasses and sins. For Adam went from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell from grace into the power of Satan. For the thieves are the evil spirits who tempted Adam and Eve to sin, and corrupted the souls of all with the lust of concupiscence. The priest and Levite represent the ancient law, which was unable to remedy the consequences of Adam’s fall.

    The Samaritan is Christ, by whom men are rescued from sin and promised salvation. The beast is his human nature, to which the divine is united, and on which it is carried and borne. The inn is the Church, which receives all believers. The wine is the blood of Christ, by which we are cleansed from sin. The oil represents his mercy and pity. The host, who is the head of the inn, i.e. of the Church, is S. Peter. So S. Ambrose, Origen, and the Fathers.

    Hear also Origen more particularly: 

“A certain preacher thus interprets the parable. The man who went down from Jerusalem is Adam. Jerusalem is Paradise, Jericho the world. The thieves are the powers which are against us. The priest is the law, the Levite, the prophets. The Samaritan is Christ. The beast whereon he sat, the body of the Lord, i.e. His humanity. The inn the Church. By the two pieces of money we may understand the Father and the Son, and by the host, the head of the Church, him to whom its governance is committed. The return of the Samaritan is the second coming of the Lord;” 

and this interpretation seems reasonable and true.

    Again the Fathers and Theologians teach from this parable that Adam was stripped of those gifts and good things which were of grace, but wounded in those things which were of nature, not indeed in his nature pure and incorrupt, for nature is the same after sin as before, but in his nature stablished by grace, cleansed and renewed by justification imputed by God. For in a nature of this kind all the appetites and passions as well as the lust of concupiscence are subjected to the understanding, so that a man does not wish or desire anything but that which is right. For deprived through sin of original justification we experience in ourselves, unwittingly and contrary to our will, evil desires. This is the wound which nature has received.

    36. Which of these three, in thy opinion, was neighbour to him that fell among the robbers? The true meaning of the passage is this, Which of these three seems to thee to have acted as neighbour to the wounded man? and in this sense it was understood by the lawyer who answered, “He that showed mercy upon him.” Christ asked the lawyer which of the three by his actions showed that he looked upon the wounded man as a neighbour. For neighbour is a correlative term, and a man can only be a neighbour to a neighbour, just as a man can only be compassionate to one who needs pity.

    Hence Christ indicates the one by the other, and thus answers the lawyer’s inquiry. Christ inverted His answer, in order to give an example of the perfection of brotherly love, so that the lawyer and all men might learn to imitate the Samaritan. Hence Jesus said, “Go and do thou likewise,” v. 37.

    So also in the parable of the two debtors, Christ asks, “Which of them will love him most?” See chap. vii. 42. S. Augustin, Bede, and all the Fathers.

    37. But he said: He that shewed mercy to him. And Jesus said to him: Go, and do thou in like manner. Hereby we understand, says S. Augustine, “that he is our neighbour to whomsoever we must show compassion, if he need it, and would have shown it if he had needed it.” Hence it follows that even he who must in turn show us this duty is our neighbour. For the name of neighbour relates to something else, nor can any one be a neighbour except to a neighbour.

    Hence it is clear that to no one, not even to our enemy, is mercy to be denied. And S. Augustin very appositely adds, “What more remote than God from men? For God possesses two perfections, righteousness and immortality. But man two evils, sin and death. God was made man, and so like unto us, yet not like us, for He was without sin, and by bearing the punishment, but not the guilt of sin, He abolished both the guilt and the punishment.”

    Isidore of Pelusium assigns the cause. Relationship is reckoned according to nature, not virtue; in essence, not by worth; by compassion, not by place; by the manner of treatment, not by neighbourhood. For we must account him as a neighbour who is most in need of our aid, and be willing at once to render him help.

+       +        +

The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.