Беседа 10

Spoken to the people in the Church of St. Apostle Peter on the day of his martyrdom. Reading the Holy Gospel: Matthew 2.1–12. Matthew 2.1–12. When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem and said: Where is he who has been born King of the Jews? for we saw His star in the east and came to worship Him. Hearing this, King Herod became alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him. And, having gathered all the high priests and scribes of the people, he asked them: where should Christ be born? And they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written through the prophet: and you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are no less than the rulers of Judah, for from you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel. Then Herod, secretly calling the wise men, found out from them the time of the appearance of the star and, sending them to Bethlehem, he said: go, carefully scout about the Child, and when you find him, notify me, so that I too can go and worship Him. After listening to the king, they left. [And] behold, the star that they saw in the east was walking before them, when it finally came and stood over the place where the Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with great joy, and entering the house, they saw the Child with Mary His Mother, and, falling down, they worshiped Him; and having opened their treasures, they brought Him gifts: gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having received a revelation in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by a different route. 1. In the Gospel reading, you, beloved brethren, heard that after the birth of the King of Heaven, the earthly king was confused, precisely because the earthly heights are confused when the heavenly heights are revealed. But we need to ask, what does it mean that, after the birth of the Redeemer, an Angel appeared to the shepherds in Judea, and from the East it was not an Angel, but a star that brought the Magi to worship Him? - This is precisely because the Jews, as having reason, had to be preached by a rational being, that is, an Angel; and the pagans, as having no understanding, are brought to the knowledge of the Lord not by the voice, but by signs. Therefore, through Paul it is said: “prophecy is not given to the unbelievers, but to those who believe,... but signs are not to those who believe, but to the unbelievers” (1 Cor 14.22), therefore, prophecies are given to these, as to the faithful, but not to believers, and to these, signs are given, as to those who do not believe, but not to the faithful. And it is remarkable that our Redeemer, when He was already of full age, was preached to the same pagans by the Apostles, but about a minor, and not yet speaking according to the structure of the human body, the star proclaimed to the pagans, because the order of reason demanded precisely that the preachers of the Lord who was already speaking should also be known to us to speak, and that the still unspeaking should be preached by the dumb elements. 2. But with all the signs that were revealed either during the birth of the Lord or His death, we need to consider what was the bitterness in the hearts of some Jews, who did not recognize Him either by the gift of Prophecy or by miracles. Because all the elements testified that their Culprit had come. In order to say something about them according to human use, the heavens recognized Him as God, because they immediately sent a star. The sea recognized it, because under its feet it became passable. The earth recognized because it was shaken at the time of His death. The sun recognized because it hid the rays of its light. The rocks and walls were recognized because they fell apart at the time of His death. Hell recognized because it released the dead it contained. - And despite this, the hearts of unbelieving Jews still do not recognize Him as Lord, about whom all the insensitive elements have testified, and being harder than rocks, they do not want to disintegrate to repentance and refuse to confess Him about whom, as we said, all the elements (either by signs or by disintegration) cried out that He is God. To increase their condemnation, they knew long in advance that He would be born Whom they despised by birth. And they not only knew what would be born, but also where it would be born. For, at the request of Herod, they indicate the place of birth of Him (the Redeemer), which indication is confirmed by the importance of Scripture. And they bring evidence that shows that Bethlehem has the honor of the birth (in it) of a new Leader, so that this very knowledge of theirs will serve as evidence of condemnation for them, and for us as an aid to faith. These (Jews) were well represented by Isaac when he blessed his son Jacob (Gen. 27.28 et seq.); He, blind with his eyes and prophesying, does not see his son in front of him, for whom he sees so much in the future, precisely because the Jewish people, full of the spirit of prophecy and blind, did not recognize in the present the One about whom they predicted much in the future. 3. But upon learning of the birth of our King, Herod turns to cunning means so as not to lose his earthly kingdom. He demands that it be announced to him where the Child is, pretends that he wants to worship Him in order to destroy Him. But what does human malice mean before the counsel of God? – For it is written: “There is no wisdom, and there is no understanding, and there is no counsel contrary to the Lord” (Proverbs 21.30). For the star that appears brings the Magi; they find the born King, bring gifts and in a dream receive instructions not to return to Herod; and in this way it is done that Herod cannot find Jesus, whom he is looking for. – By his (Herod’s) personality, who else is designated, if not a hypocrite, who, feigning seeking, never deserves to find the Lord. 4. But meanwhile, you need to know that the Priscillian heretics think that every person is born under the determination of the stars, and in confirmation of their error they cite the fact that a new star appeared when the Lord appeared in the flesh, and they claim that it was His destiny. But if we weigh the words of the Gospel that speak about this very star: “and it stood over the place where the Child was” - then it was not the Child that flowed to the star, but the star that flowed to the Child; if one can say, it was not the star that was the fate of the Baby, but the Baby who appeared was the fate of the star. But the hearts of believers must be alien to the idea that there is some kind of destiny. For the life of people is controlled by the one Creator who created it. For man was not made for the stars, but the stars were created for man. And if a star is called the fate of a person, then a person is prohibited from fulfilling his very duties. It is known that when Jacob, coming out of the womb, held on to the heel of the first brother with his hand (Gen. 25.26), the first absolutely could not come out except with the beginning of the coming out and the next one after him; and despite the fact that at the same time, at the same moment, the mother gave birth to both, the quality of life of both was not the same. 5. But to this astrologers usually answer that the power of the constellation lies in the emphasis on the point. On the contrary, we say that the slowness of birth is great. Consequently, if the constellation in the emphasis on the point changes, then it will be necessary that they allow as many destinies as there are members of those being born. – Also, astrologers usually think that whoever is born under the sign of Aquarius gets his destiny in this life to be a fisherman. But Getulia, as you know, has no fishermen. Therefore, who can say that no one is born under the sign of Aquarius where there is absolutely no fisherman? – They also claim that those born under the sign of Libra are bankers; and they do not know the bankers of the provinces of many nations. Consequently, they must necessarily admit that either this sign is not in them, or it absolutely does not have a fatal effect. In the land of the Persians and Franks, kings come from a line of descent; at their birth, who will count how many are born at the same moments of hours and times from a slave state? - And yet the sons of kings, born under the same star with slaves, are elevated to the kingdom, while slaves born at the same time as them die in slavery. – We said this briefly about the star, so as not to seem that we ignored the insoluble stupidity of astrologers. 6. But the wise men brought “gold, frankincense and myrrh.” For gold befitted the King, and frankincense was used in sacrifices to God, and myrrh was used to embalm the bodies of the dead. Consequently, the Magi also preach the One Whom they worship with mysterious gifts: with gold - the King, Lebanon - God, myrrh - who has to die. But there are some heretics who believe that this is God, but do not at all believe that He reigns everywhere. They truly bring Lebanon to Him, but they do not yet want to bring gold. And there are some who recognize Him as King, but do not recognize Him as God. These are the ones who bring Him gold, but do not want to bring Lebanon. And there are some who recognize Him as both God and King, but deny His taking on mortal flesh. These are the ones who bring Him gold and frankincense, but do not want to bring myrrh, for the mortality He accepted. So, we will bring gold to the born Lord in order to recognize Him as reigning everywhere; Let us bring Lebanon, so that we may believe that He who appeared as God in time existed before time; Let us bring myrrh, because we believe that He who, according to His Divinity, is not subject to suffering, was mortal in our flesh. Although gold, Lebanon and myrrh may mean something else. For gold signifies wisdom, according to the testimony of Solomon, who says: “The desired treasure and the fat are in the house of the wise” (Proverbs 21.20). Lebanon expresses that which ignites the power of prayer to God, according to the testimony of the Psalmist, who says: “Let my prayer be like incense before Thy face, the lifting of my hands like the evening sacrifice” (Ps 140.2). But myrrh represents the mortification of our flesh, which is why the Holy Church says about her ascetics who fight for God to the point of death: “Myrrh was dripping from my hands” (Song 5.5). So, we bring gold to the born King if, at His sight, we shine with the clarity of the highest wisdom. We offer Lebanon if we burn carnal thoughts on the altar of the heart with holy, prayerful efforts, so that we can be fragrant with a desire for heavenly things pleasing to God. We bring myrrh if we mortify carnal vices by abstinence. For myrrh, as we said, prevents the rotting of dead flesh. And that dead flesh rots, this means that this mortal body is given over to the influence of luxury, since about some through the Prophet it is said: “The draft animals rotted in their dung” (Joel 1.17 - Latin translation). Because the rotting of draft animals in their dung means the end of the life of carnal people in the stench of luxury. Consequently, we offer myrrh to God when, with the seasoning of abstinence, we preserve this mortal body from the rotting of luxury. 7. But the Magi inspire us with something great by the fact that they return to their country by a different route. For what they do by instruction, thereby truly instills in us what we should do. Our country is a paradise, to which, according to the knowledge of Jesus, we are forbidden to return the way we are going. For we left the country with our pride, disobedience, addiction to visible things, eating forbidden food, and to return to it we need: crying, obedience, contempt for visible things and curbing the desires of the flesh. Consequently, we return to our country in a different way, because, having departed from the joys of heaven through pleasures, we are called back to them through sobs. Therefore, it is necessary, beloved brethren, that we always with fear and always with caution present before the eyes of our hearts, on the one hand, the guilt of our actions, on the other, the determination of the final decision of our fate. Let us think about how the Righteous Judge will come, Who threatens judgment, but hides it, reveals horrors to sinners, and yet still refrains from them, and delays his speedy coming in order to find less of those who will need to be condemned. Let us punish the guilt with tears and, in the voice of the Psalmist, “let us stand before His face with praise, and let us shout to Him in songs” (Ps 94.2). So, let no lie of pleasure deceive us, let no vain joy lead us astray. For the Judge is near, Who said: “Woe to you who are now full! for you will hunger” (Luke 6.25). That is why Solomon says: “And the end of joy is sorrow” (Proverbs 14.13). That’s why he says again: “I said about laughter: “stupidity,” and about fun: “What does it do?”" (Why are you deceiving in vain) (Eccl. 2.2). And again he says: “The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, and the heart of fools in the house of joy” (Eccl. 7.5). So, let us fear the commandments of God, if we truly glorify the triumph of God. For a sacrifice pleasing to God consists in contrition for sins, according to the testimony of the Psalmist, who says: “a sacrifice to God is a contrite spirit” (Ps 50:19). Our past sins were washed away upon receiving Baptism, and yet after Baptism we committed many of them, but we cannot be washed from them again with the water of Baptism. So, since we have defiled our lives even after Baptism, we will baptize our conscience with tears, because, returning to our country by another way, we, who left it delighted with blessings, must return to it saddened by disasters, with the assistance of our Lord, Jesus Christ, to Whom belongs honor and glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit always, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen. You might be interested in: