Беседа 9

About love and about the blind man regaining his sight 1. Not long before this, brethren, the apostle, when his epistle was being read, spoke to us about love, and this is how he portrays it to us, that without it all the other, even great, gifts of God are not at all useful. When she is, she does not remain alone. So, let us give your love a word of love. One is divine love, the other is human. And there are other types of human things that are allowed, and others that are not allowed. I will try to tell you about these three kinds of love (charitatibus vel dilectionibus, because it has two names among the Latins, but in Greek it is called by one word αγάπη), if the Lord helps me. So, my first duty, as I said, is to point out that there is divine and human love, and that human love is twofold: permitted and unlawful. First I will talk about permissible human love, which is not prohibited; then - about human love, which is condemned, and, finally, about Divine love, which leads us to bliss. 2. To put it briefly, permitted love is when a husband loves his wife, and unauthorized love is when he loves a harlot or someone else’s wife. In places of entertainment and on the streets, illicit love is held in high esteem when they love harlots. In the house of God, in His church, in the city of Christ, in the body of Christ, love for a harlot leads the lover to hell. Use permitted love; she is human, but still, as I said, permitted. Not only is it permitted in the form of a concession, but it is so permitted that if it is not made, it is reproached, and it is offered in the form of advice. So, let it be permissible for you to love your wives, your children, your friends, to love your citizens. All these names have the character of necessity and, as it were, some attraction of love. But you know that such love can also be among the wicked, i.e. among pagans, Jews and heretics. Who among them does not love his wife, children, brothers, relatives, neighbors, friends, etc.? This is precisely human love. Hence, if someone is so cruel that he defends the human capacity of love in himself and does not love his sons, does not love his wife, he has no right to be considered among people. True, he who loves his sons does not deserve praise, but he who does not love them deserves condemnation. Let such a person pay attention to the fact that even animals love their children, adders love children, tigers love, lions love. There is no animal that does not caress its children. Although some of the animals frighten people, they nevertheless cherish their children. A lion roars among the forests, and no one passes by him. But then he enters his cave, where he has cubs, and leaves the fury of his savagery, leaves it, as it were, outside, does not enter there with it. Therefore, whoever does not love his children becomes even worse than a lion. This love is natural and therefore permitted. 3. But beware of illicit love. You are members of Christ and His body. Listen to the apostle and be afraid. He could not have said it more expressively, more powerfully, or more vividly than when he said: “Shall I therefore take away the members of Christ, that I may make them the members of a harlot?” And, having said this, he further says: “Or do you not know that he who has sex with a harlot becomes one body with her.” Then, he gives evidence from Scripture, which says that “[the two] will be one flesh” (1 Cor. 6:15–16 and Gen. 2:24). This was said about a husband and wife by inspiration from above, but only regarding what is permissible, what is permissible, what is honest, but not about what is shameful, what is prohibited and worthy of condemnation from common sense. Just as in the permitted union of husband and wife the two become one flesh, so it is in the unlawful union of a harlot and an adulterer. If this is so, then let it frighten you, let it make you shudder what is said: “Shall I therefore take away the members of Christ, that I may make them the members of a harlot?” Remember the members of Christ, you, Christian, but do not look for the members of Christ in others, keep them in yourself, because you were bought by the blood of Christ. “Shall I therefore take away the members of Christ to make them members of a harlot?” He who does not fear these words does not fear God. 4. I ardently, ardently beg you about this, my brethren. Suppose, what is not, namely, that the Lord promised such impunity and said: “Whoever does this, I will have mercy, I will not condemn him.” Let us assume that the Lord said so. But even with the promise of this impunity, who will dare to take away the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? He will not do this if he has a third love - Divine, because I named three types of love. I promised to tell you about three kinds, as far as God will help me: about the human permitted, about the other human - unlawful and, finally, about the highest love - Divine. Let us question this Divine love, put before it those two kinds of love and say: this is permitted human love, with which people love their wives, daughters and others, due to certain natural attractions. But another love is illicit, when they love harlots, other people’s maids, other people’s daughters, not wooed or betrothed, when they love someone else’s wife. Here are two loves before you. Which one of them would you like to be with? If you want to remain with the one who is permitted, you will not have communication with the one who is not permitted. Let no one say: “I want to have both.” If you want to have both, giving place to love for a harlot, you are insulting the love that dwells in you - the highest love. And I think that if you are a married man and love a harlot, you do not let her into your house so that she can live there with your wife. You don't get to that point; looking for darkness, looking for closed places. You don’t want to reveal your shame. But even those who do not have wives and have, as it were, more rights to love harlots (therefore I say: as if - quasi - that they too will suffer condemnation if they belong to the society of believers), I think that even a young man who does not yet have a wife, if he loves a harlot, still does not allow her to live with his sister or mother, so as not to offend their modesty, so as not to humiliate the nobility of his family. So, if you do not allow the harlot, the one you love, to live with your mother or sister, so as not to humiliate, as I said, the nobility of your blood, will you allow love for the harlot to dwell in your heart along with love for God, and insult the blood of Christ? 5. Love God. There is nothing better than Him. You love silver because it is better than iron and copper. Love gold more, because it is better than silver. Love even more precious stones, because they surpass the price of gold. Finally, love this light, of which anyone who is afraid of death is afraid to lose it. Love, I say, this light, why the man who shouted after Jesus desired it with such strong passion: “Have mercy on me, Son of David!” (Luke 18:38–39). The blind man shouted as Christ passed by. He was afraid that He might pass by and leave him without healing. And how did you shout? He was not silent even when the crowd held him back. He defeated the enemy and held the Savior. When the crowd interrupted him and held him back, Christ stopped, called him and said: “What do you want from Me? - God! so that I can see the light. - See it! your faith has saved you” (Luke 18:41–42). Love Christ too. Seek the light that is Christ. If that blind man sought the light of the body, how much more should you seek the light of your heart? Let us cry to Him not with our voices, but with our life. Let's live well. Let us despise the world. Let everything that is transitory be counted as nothing for you. Let them begin to reproach us when we live as if out of sympathy for us the people of this century, who love the earth, who chase after dust, who do not think at all about heavenly things, who inhale with soul and body all sorts of free trends - they will, without a doubt, reproach us and say if they see that we despise all this human, earthly things: “Why do you endure? Why are you being stupid? The crowd prevented the blind man from shouting. There are also many Christians who prevent people from living like Christians, since that crowd was also with Christ and prevented the person calling on Christ, seeking light from Him, from receiving benefits from Him. There are such Christians. But we will try to overcome them, we will lead a good life, and let this very good life be our cry to Christ. He will stop because he is always with us (quia stat). 6. The great mystery is that Christ was passing by when the blind man cried out to Him, but when He healed, He stopped. Let the passing of Christ motivate us to cry out to Him more diligently. What does passing by Christ signify? Whatever He endured for us in time is all His passing by. He was born, and this has passed, since now He is no longer born. It grew - but is it really growing now? He fed on the Mother's breasts - but is he really still feeding? I used sleep when I was tired - is it really possible that I still use it now? He ate food and drank water - but is he really doing this now? Finally, he was captured, bound, subjected to blows, crowned with thorns, received blows on the cheeks, was spat on, was hanged on a tree, killed, pierced by a spear and buried was resurrected - in all these events, Jesus seemed to pass by. Then He ascended into heaven and sat down on the right side of God the Father - this is where Jesus stood. Cry out to Him as much as you can; only when you call on Him will He enlighten. However, in relation to what is said: “and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1), of course, Christ stopped, because in this respect He was unchanged. The flesh endured and suffered a lot through His passage, but the Word remained unchanged. It is with this Word that the heart is enlightened, because with this same Word the flesh that He (Christ) received is glorified. If you take away the Word, what then will the flesh represent? the same as yours. And only then does the flesh of Christ become worthy of glorification, when “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). Let us cry out to Christ and lead a good life. 7. Love your children, love your wives, at least during this life (saeculariter). But one must love according to Christ, have care for them according to God, and nothing else than to love Christ in them and hate in them the state in which they would not want to have Christ. This is precisely Divine love. What benefit do they have from your transient, fleeting love? Therefore, when you love humanly, you still love Christ more. I am not saying that you should not love your wife, but love Christ more. I’m not saying not to love your father or children, but love Christ more. Listen to Him, do not think that these are my words: “Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37). Aren't you afraid when you hear: “You are not worthy of Me”? The one about whom Christ says: “is not worthy of Me” will not be with Him. And whoever is not with Him, where will he be? If you don’t love to be with Him, be afraid to be left without Him. Why? Because you will be with the devil if you are not with Christ. But where will the devil be? Listen to the Lord Himself, who says: “Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). If you are not aroused by the fire of the word of God, fear the fire of hell. If you do not want to be among the angels of God, be afraid to be among the angels of the devil. If you do not want to be in the kingdom, be afraid, lest you end up in the furnace of a blazing fire, unquenchable, eternal. Let there be fear in you first and then love. Let fear be your guide; let it not remain in you, but lead you to love, as if to some kind of teacher. You might be interested in: