About the sacraments

In the treatise “On the Sacraments” (about 391), much attention is paid to the external aspects of the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist. The work contains prayers and formulas for the rites of the sacraments, excerpts from the Eucharistic canon, as well as an interpretation of the Lord's Prayer. This makes it a valuable source on the history of the liturgy. The 6 conversations that make up the treatise correspond to the 6 days of Bright Week. The solemn rites of initiation began on the eve of Easter, on Holy Saturday, in the evening (Conversation 1, Chapter 2). The treatise talks about performing the rite of “opening” (apertio) of the lips and ears, pre-baptismal anointing and renunciation of the devil. Baptism is a supernatural gift, therefore it is necessary that, through attention to the words and speeches of the bishop, the lips of the candidate are opened, and he is able to respond, that is, to renounce the devil and confess his faith. It is also necessary that his nostrils should be opened so that he can smell the fragrance of eternal life. This was followed by the consecration of water, confession of faith, Baptism (in the name of the Holy Trinity, with three times immersion in the font). Then - the sacrament of Confirmation, after which the 13th chapter from the Gospel of John was read. Then followed the ritual of ablution - the bishop took off his clothes and washed the newly baptized feet. This was done not only as a sign of respect, humility and obedience, but also in order to eliminate hereditary sins (Conversation 3, chapter 5). The neophytes dressed in white robes and received the “spiritual seal”, i.e. virtues of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, reason, advice, strength, knowledge, piety, holy fear (Conversation 3, chapter 8). Then Christians began the sacrament of the Eucharist for the first time. In his speech, the author uses the stories of the Old Testament as illustrations and symbols of the Christian sacraments. He shows that the Christian sacraments are not only more holy, but also more ancient than the sacraments of the Jews (Conversation 1, chapter 11). The announcement ends with instructions in prayer and a detailed explanation of the petitions of the Lord's Prayer. *The title of the work in Latin is De sacramentis. 1. 1. I begin a conversation about the sacraments that you have received, but the contents of which should not have been discussed before 1. For a Christian, the main thing is faith. That is why in Rome those who have been baptized are called faithful. And our father Abraham was justified by faith, and not by works 2. So, you were baptized, you believed. I cannot judge this differently, for you would not have been called to grace if Christ had not considered you worthy of His grace. 2. So, what did we do on Saturday? 3 Of course, “rejection”. These mysteries were performed when the priest 4 touched your ears and nostrils. What does this mean? In the Gospel, our Lord Jesus Christ, when a deaf and dumb man was brought to Him, 5 touched his ears and lips, his ears because he was deaf, his lips because he was dumb, and said: Ephphatha. This Hebrew word means: Open (Mark 7:34). That is why the priest touched your ears, so that your ears would be opened for the words and speeches of the priest. 3. But you say to me: “Why nostrils?” Then, since the man was dumb, the Lord touched his lips, so that he who was unable to speak about the heavenly mysteries would receive the gift of speech from Christ. Plus there was a man there! Here women also receive baptism, but the purity of the slave is not the same as the Lord 6 - and what comparison can there be if the Lord forgives sins, and the slave receives forgiveness of sins? - therefore, because of the grace bestowed by this action and service, the bishop touches not the lips, but the nostrils. Why nostrils? So that you receive the fragrance of eternal love 7 and say: We are the aroma of Christ to God (2 Cor. 2:15), as the holy Apostle said, and so that you are filled with the aroma of faith and piety 8. 2. 4. We have come to the source. You entered, you were anointed. Think about who you saw, what you said, think and remember everything exactly! A Levite stood before you, and an elder stood before you. You have been anointed as the athlete of Christ 9 who intends to fight against this world. You spoke openly about your struggle in the competition. He who fights has something to hope for: where there is competition, there is a crown 10. You are fighting in this age, but you are crowned by Christ, and for the competition in this age you receive a crown. And although the reward is in heaven, it must be earned here 11. 5. When you were asked: “Do you renounce the devil and his works?” – what did you answer? “I renounce.” “Do you renounce this world and its pleasures?” What did you say? “I renounce.” Remember your words and never forget the consequences of your commitment. If you borrow money from someone, you give him a receipt. You are bound by obligations and if you refuse to fulfill them, the lender forces you. If you object, you go to court, and there your own guarantee incriminates you. 6. Think about where and to whom you made promises. You saw the Levite, but he is a servant of Christ. You saw him serving before the altar. Therefore, your receipt is kept not on earth, but in heaven. Think about where you receive heavenly ordinances. If the Body of Christ is here, then the angels are also present here. Where the body is, there are the eagles 12, you read in the Gospel. Where the Body of Christ is, there are eagles, which are in the habit of flying in order to avoid everything earthly and rush to the heavenly. Why am I saying this? Because all people who preach the gospel of Christ are also angels, and seem to be called to take the place of angels. 7. How? Listen. John the Baptist was born of a man and a woman. But know this, an angel too: Behold, I am sending My angel before Your face, and he will prepare Your way before You (Matthew 11:10). Listen to something else. The prophet Malachi says: For the lips of the priest keep knowledge and expect the law from his mouth, for he is the angel of God Almighty 13. This is said so that we can proclaim the glory of the priesthood and not attribute anything to personal merit. 8. So, you have renounced the world, you have renounced this age. Be careful! He who owes money always remembers his obligation. And you, who owe allegiance to Christ, keep faith, which is much more precious than money. After all, faith is eternal wealth, and money is temporary. Therefore, always remember what you promised, and you will be more careful. If you keep your word, you will keep your commitment. 3. 9. Then you came closer. You saw the source, you saw the priest above the source 14. I have no doubt that you could be overcome by the same feeling as that Naaman the Syrian, who, although he was cleansed, had previously doubted. Why? I'll tell you, listen. 10. You entered, you saw the water, you saw the priest, you saw the Levite. Did any of you by any chance say, “And that’s all?” Of course, this is all, truly all, where there is the fullness of integrity, the fullness of godliness, the fullness of grace, the fullness of sanctification. You saw what was accessible to your bodily eyes and human gaze, but you did not see what is happening, but only what is visible. The invisible is much more significant than the visible, because the visible is temporary, but the invisible is eternal (2 Cor. 4:18). 4. 11. So let us first of all talk about the following - be attentive to my words and meditate: We admire the mysteries of the Jews, which were given to our fathers. We are struck first by the antiquity of the sacraments, and then by the holiness which they convey. I guarantee that the Christian sacraments are more divine and older than the Jewish ones. 12. What is more significant than the passage of the Jewish people across the sea, so that we can now talk about baptism? However, the Jews who crossed the sea all died in the desert 15. The one who passes through this source, that is, from the earthly to the heavenly - after all, this is a transition, and therefore Easter, which means “his transition” 16, the transition from sin to life, from guilt to grace, from impurity to sanctification - whoever passes through this source does not die, but is resurrected 17. 5. 13. So Naaman was a leper 18. One girl said to his wife: “If my master wants to be cleansed, let him go to the land of Israel and there he will find someone who can cure him of leprosy.” She told her mistress, she told her husband, and Naaman told the king of Syria, who, being kind to Naaman, sent him to the king of Israel. The king of Israel heard that a leper had been sent to him for cleansing, and he tore his clothes. Then Elisha the prophet said to the king: “What is it that you tore the clothes, as if there is no God who can cleanse the leper? Send him to me." The king sent Naaman, and when he arrived, the prophet said to him: “Go, go down to the Jordan, immerse yourself, and you will be healthy.” 14. He began to think to himself and said: “Is that all? I came from Syria to the land of Judea, and they told me: “Go to the Jordan, immerse yourself, and you will be healthy.” It’s as if there are no better rivers in my homeland!” The servants said to him: “Sir, why don’t you fulfill the words of the prophet? Better do it, try it!” Then he went to the Jordan, immersed himself - and came out healthy 19. 15. What does this mean? You saw water, but not all water heals, but only that which has the grace of Christ. Element and sanctification, action and effectiveness are not the same thing. Action is inherent in water, and efficiency is inherent in the Holy Spirit. Water will not heal unless the Holy Spirit comes and sanctifies the water 20 . Our Lord Jesus Christ, as you read, establishing the method of baptism 21, came to John, and he said to Him: I must be baptized by You, and You come to me. Christ answered him: Grant it now, for it is fitting that in this way we should fulfill all righteousness (Matthew 3:14–15). Look, “all righteousness” is contained in baptism 22 . 16. So, why did Christ descend into the Jordan, if not to cleanse the flesh that He took from our nature? After all, there was no need for Christ to wash away his own sins, who did not create sin (1 Peter 2:22), but there was a need for us, who remain subject to sin. So, if baptism was established for our sake and its form was taught to us, 23 then this form was offered to our faith. 17. Christ descended into the Jordan, John stood nearby and baptized. And then the Holy Spirit descended like a dove. It was not a dove that descended, but “like a dove” 24. Remember what I said: Christ did not take on flesh “as if it were flesh,” but true flesh. Christ actually took on flesh 25 . The Holy Spirit descended from heaven in the form of a dove, not in a true dove, but in the form of a dove. Therefore John saw and believed. 18. Christ descended, and the Holy Spirit also descended. Why did Christ descend first, and then the Holy Spirit, while the usual form of baptism is such that the source is first sanctified and only then does the one who is to be baptized descend into it? – After all, first the priest enters, then he performs the prayer of prohibition 26 over the water element, then he offers a petition and prayer for the sanctification of the source and for the presence of the eternal Trinity. But Christ descended first, and then the Spirit. Why? So that it does not seem as if the Lord Jesus Himself needed the mystery of sanctification. But He sanctified Himself, and the Spirit also sanctified 27. 19. So, Christ descended into the water, the Holy Spirit also descended like a dove, and God the Father also spoke from heaven. You see the presence of the Trinity. 6. 20. The Apostle states that in the Red Sea there was a type of this baptism. He says: For our fathers... were all baptized in the cloud and in the sea (1 Cor. 10:2) and adds: And all this happened for them in a manner 28. For them it happened in an image, but for us it happens in reality 29. Then Moses held the rod, and the Jewish people were surrounded. On one side, armed Egyptians were advancing, and on the other side, the Jews were blocked by the sea. The Jews could neither cross the sea nor return back to the enemy. They began to grumble 30. 21. See that you are not indignant because they were heard. Although the Lord heard them, those who grumbled were not left without guilt. Your job, when you are in straitened circumstances, is to believe that you will get rid of it, and not to grumble; cry out, beg, and not make a plaintive cry. 22. Moses held the rod and led the Jewish people at night behind the pillar of light, and during the day behind the pillar of cloud 31 . Isn’t light the truth that sheds its radiance widely and freely? Isn’t the pillar of light Christ the Lord, Who dispersed the darkness of unbelief, and poured the light of truth and grace into the hearts of people? The pillar of cloud is the Holy Spirit. The people were at sea, a pillar of light went ahead, and a pillar of cloud followed, like the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit. You see that the Holy Spirit and water represent a picture of baptism here. 23. Also in the flood there was already an image of baptism, but there were no Jewish rites yet. Therefore, if the image of this baptism was before, now you see that the Christian sacraments are superior to the Jewish ones. 24. Meanwhile, due to the weakness of our voice and considering the time, let it be sufficient for today to draw the secrets from the sacred source. Tomorrow, if the Lord gives me the strength to speak at length, I will explain in more detail. It is necessary that your holiness have attentive ears and a well-disposed heart, so that what we can collect from the pages of the Scriptures and what we teach you, you can preserve, having the grace of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit - that Trinity, to Whom belongs the eternal kingdom from everlasting and now and ever and to all ages of ages. Amen. 1. 1. Yesterday we began to talk about how the flood also contained an image of baptism 32 . Why does the flood occur, in which sin is destroyed and the righteous are saved, if not to instill righteousness? Therefore, the Lord, seeing that human iniquities were growing, commanded the water to cover the tops of the mountains, and preserved the only righteous man with his descendants. And therefore in this flood all corruption of the flesh perished, and only one race and example of the righteous remained 33 . Is not the flood the same as baptism, by which all sins are washed away, and only the spirit and grace of the righteous are renewed? 34 2. There are many kinds of baptisms, but only one baptism, exclaims the apostle (Eph. 4:5). Why? There are "baptisms" 35 among the Gentiles, but this is not [real] baptism. These are washings that cannot be baptisms. The flesh is washed, but the guilt is not removed; rather, in such a washing, guilt is incurred. The Jews also had baptisms: some were not necessary, 36 while others were educational. And the image itself was useful for us, for it spoke the truth. 2. 3. What was read yesterday? 37 An angel, says [the evangelist], went down into the pool from time to time, and every time the angel went down, the water was troubled, and the first one who entered... was healed of his illness, no matter what he was possessed of (John 5:4). This represents an image of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 4. Why an angel? Because He Himself is an Angel of great counsel (Is.9:5); from time to time, because it was observed for the last hour, in order to hold the day at sunset itself and delay sunset 38. So, every time the angel descended, the waters were disturbed. You might say, “Why isn’t she outraged now?” Listen to why: signs are needed for unbelievers, but faith is sufficient for believers 39 . 5. The first one to enter was healed of every disease. What does first mean? Is the first understood by time or by merit? Understand it in two ways! If in terms of time, then the first one who entered and was healed first is spoken of more about the Jews than about the pagans. If - according to dignity, then the first one who entered was the one who had the fear of God, the desire for righteousness, the grace of mercy and in whom there was a love for purity, he was more likely to be healed. But at that time only one was saved. I say at that time, "in type" only the first one who entered was healed. How much greater is the grace of the Church, in which all who enter are saved! 6. But look at the mystery! Our Lord Jesus Christ came to the pool where many sick people lay. And in fact, many sick people lay where only one was cured. Then He said to the paralytic, “Come down.” He answered: I have no man (John 5:6–7). Look, when you receive baptism, where does baptism come from, if not from the Cross of Christ, if not from the death of Christ? 40 This is the whole mystery, for He suffered for you. In Him you are redeemed, in Him you are saved. 7. “I have no man,” he said. This means: since through man there is death and through man there is resurrection 41, then he who did not believe that our Lord Jesus Christ took flesh from the Virgin could not descend and could not be saved. The same one who was waiting for the Mediator between God and people, the Man Jesus 42, waiting for the One about whom it is said: And the Lord will send a Man who will save them (Is. 19:20), said: I have no man. That is why he deserved healing because he believed in His coming. However, he would be better and more perfect if he believed that He had already come, whose coming he expected in the future. 3. 8. Now let's look at the details. We said that the cleansing of the leper Naaman in the Jordan was a type of baptism. But wasn’t the captive girl a likeness of the Church and didn’t she represent Her image? 43 For the Gentiles were captives, they were in captivity. I am not talking about being in captivity to some hostile people, but I am talking about the worst captivity, when the devil and his servants cruelly rule and impose a yoke on captive sinners. 9. This means that here you have one baptism, in the flood - another 44, the third kind of baptism - when the fathers were baptized in the Red Sea 45, and the fourth kind - in the pool, when the water was troubled 46. Now I ask you, should you believe in the presence of the Trinity at baptism, which is performed in the Church by Christ? 47 4. 10. This is exactly what the Lord Jesus says in His Gospel to the apostles: Go baptize the nations in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). These are the words of the Savior. 11. Tell me, man: Elijah called fire from heaven, and the fire came down 48. Elisha called on the name of the Lord, and an iron ax emerged from the water, which had previously sunk in it. Here is another kind of baptism. Why? Because every person before baptism is like a heavy iron that sinks. But as soon as he accepts baptism, he no longer becomes like iron, but, like a light fruitful tree, rises to the surface. This means that here there is another type of baptism. They were cutting down a tree with an axe. The iron ax jumped off the ax handle and sank. The prophet's son did not know what to do; He only knew that he needed to turn to the prophet Elisha for help. Then the prophet threw a [piece of] wood into the water, and the iron surfaced 49 . So, you see that the Cross of Christ alleviates the infirmities of all people. 12. Here is another example (although we do not adhere to consistency; and who could, as the apostles said, describe all the works of Christ? 50): when Moses came into the desert, the people were thirsty. They came to the spring of Marah and wanted to drink. But as soon as they scooped up the water, they felt bitter and could not drink. So Moses threw the tree into the spring, and the water, which had previously been bitter, became sweet 51 . 13. Does this not mean that every creation that is subject to corruption is bitter water for all of us? Even if sometimes it is pleasant, even if sometimes it gives pleasure, it is bitter because it cannot remove sin. As soon as you drink, you will feel thirsty again. As soon as you drink a pleasant drink, you will again feel the bitterness. Water is bitter, but as soon as it accepts the Cross of Christ, as soon as it accepts the heavenly sacrament, it becomes sweet and pleasant. Indeed, sweet is the water in which guilt is destroyed. If the types of baptism had such great power, how much greater is the power of real baptism? 5. 14. Now let's consider the following. The priest comes, says a prayer over the source, calls on the name of the Father, the presence of the Son and the Holy Spirit, using heavenly words 52. The words are heavenly, for they are Christ's, so that we baptize in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). If, in response to the human word, to the calling of the saint, the presence of the Trinity appeared, then how much more does it appear where the eternal word operates? Do you want to know that the Spirit has come? You heard that He descended like a dove. Why is it like a dove? To call unbelievers to faith. First a sign was needed, afterwards there must be perfection. 15. Listen to something else. After the death of our Lord Jesus Christ, the apostles were in one place and prayed on the day of Pentecost. Suddenly there was a great noise, as if from a strong rushing wind, and divided tongues appeared like fire 53 . What does this mean if not the descent of the Holy Spirit? He wanted to reveal Himself to unbelievers even physically, that is, physically through a sign, and spiritually through a sacrament. So this is clear evidence of His coming. We are given the advantage of faith, since at first signs were performed for unbelievers, and now in the fullness of the Church the truth must no longer be comprehended by us through a sign, but through faith 54 . 6. 16. Let us now think about what we call baptism. You came to the source, you went down into it, you noticed the high priest, you saw the Levites, the presbyter, at the source. What is baptism? 17. In the beginning, the Lord our God created man so that if he did not taste sin, he would not die. [However] man sinned, became subject to death, and was expelled from paradise 55. But the Lord, Who wanted to preserve His good deeds, thwart all the machinations of the serpent and destroy everything damaged by it, first of all pronounced a sentence on man, making him subject to death: You are dust and to dust you will return (Gen. 3:19). It was a divine judgment, which it was not in human nature to reverse. A means was given for a person to die, but also to be resurrected. For what? So that what previously served as condemnation could also serve as a blessing. What is this if not death? You ask: “How?” And such that death, having appeared, sets a limit to sin. For when we die, we truly cease to sin 56 . It seemed that the sentence had been fulfilled, because man, who was created to live if he did not sin, began to die. Meanwhile, so that the eternal mercy of God would not cease - although a person died - Christ made possible the resurrection in order to restore the heavenly benefits that were lost by the deceit of the serpent. So, both one and the other are for our sake, because death is the end of sins, and resurrection is the restoration of nature. 18. Meanwhile, so that in this age the deceit and wiles of the devil would not prevail, baptism was instituted. Listen to what Scripture says about this baptism, or rather, the Son of God: The Pharisees, who did not want to be baptized with the baptism of John, rejected the will of God (Luke 7:30). This means that baptism is the will of God. How great is grace where the will of God is! 19. Listen. Indeed, in order to break the bonds of the devil in this century, a method was found in which a person died alive and was resurrected alive. What does "alive" mean? This means living a bodily life at the moment when he approaches the font and plunges into it. And where does water [come from], isn’t it from the earth? Thus the divine sentence is carried out without mortal stupor. It is because you are immersed that this sentence is fulfilled: You are dust and to dust you will return (Gen. 3:19). And after the sentence is executed, there is a reason for good deeds and help from above. So, water [comes] from the earth, but our natural state did not allow us to be covered with earth and rise from it. And then, it is not the earth that washes, but the water. Therefore, the font is like a burial. 7. 20. You were asked: “Do you believe in God the Father Almighty?” You answered: “I believe,” and you sank, that is, you were buried. You were asked a second time: “Do you believe in our Lord Jesus Christ and in His Cross?” You answered: “I believe,” and plunged in. And with this you were buried with Christ. And whoever is buried with Christ will also be resurrected with Christ 57. You were asked a third time: “Do you also believe in the Holy Spirit?” You answered: “I believe” - and immersed yourself for the third time, so that a threefold confession would free you from the repeated falls of your previous life 58 . 21. Finally, let's give you an example. The Holy Apostle Peter fell, it seems, due to the weakness of human nature, when he first denied during the suffering of the Lord. Later, in order to make amends and correct this fall, Christ asks Peter three times if he loves Christ. Then he says: You know, Lord, that I love You (John 21:17). He said this three times in order to be forgiven three times. 22. This is how the Father forgives sin, this is how the Son forgives, and this is how the Holy Spirit forgives. Do not be surprised that we are baptized in one name, that is, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19), for Christ spoke about one name, where there is one essence, one Divinity, one greatness. This is the name of which it is said: By which all must be saved (Acts 4:12). By this name you are all saved and returned to a life of grace. 23. The Apostle exclaims, as you heard in today’s reading, that everyone who receives baptism is baptized into the death of Jesus 59 . What does “into death” mean? This means that just as Christ died, so you must taste death. Just as Christ died to sin and lives for God, so you died to previous sinful temptations through the sacrament of Baptism and were resurrected by the grace of Christ. So, this is death, but not real bodily death, but its semblance. After all, when you dive, you perceive the likeness of death and burial. You accept the sacrament of His Cross, since Christ hung on the Cross, and [His] Body was nailed. But you, when you are crucified with Christ, you are connected with Christ, you are held by the nails of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that the devil cannot tear you away. Let the nail of Christ hold you, whom the weakness of human nature calls back! 24. So, you loaded up and approached the priest. What did he tell you? “God the Father Almighty,” he said, “who begot you again of water and the Spirit and forgave you your sins, Himself anoints you to eternal life.”60 Look what you have been anointed with: “eternal life,” as he said. Do not prefer this [temporary] life to the eternal life. If, for example, some enemy arises, if he wants to take away your faith, if he threatens death in order to seduce you, watch what you choose. Do not choose what you have not been anointed with, but choose what you have been anointed with, so that you may choose eternal life over temporary life. 1. 1. Yesterday we talked about the font, whose appearance is like a certain image of the grave into which we, believing in the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, descend, are immersed, and from which we rise, that is, we are resurrected. You also take myrrh, that is, fragrant oil, on your head. Why on the head? Because the mind of a wise man is in his head, said Solomon 61. Wisdom without grace bears no fruit. But as soon as she accepts grace, then her fruit becomes perfect. This is called rebirth. 2. What is revival? You know that in the Acts of the Apostles the verse contained in the second psalm: Thou art my Son, today have I begotten thee (Acts 13:33; Ps. 2:7), obviously refers to the resurrection [of Christ]. Because in the Acts of the Apostles, the holy Apostle Peter interpreted it this way, that when the Son rose from death, the voice of the Father proclaimed: You are My Son, today I have begotten You 62. That is why it is said that He is the firstborn from the dead (Col. 1:18). And what is resurrection if not a rising from death to life? It is exactly the same in baptism, since it is undoubtedly a likeness of death - when you are immersed, and a likeness of resurrection - when you rise [from the water]. Thus, according to the interpretation of the apostle, just as that rising from death was rebirth, so this rising from the font is rebirth 63. 3. “But why,” you say, “am I immersed in water?” Is that why you're confused? Is that why you have doubts? But we read: Let the earth produce fruit! And the earth brought forth fruit that sowed seed 64 . You read the same about the waters: Let waters produce living beings! And living beings came into being 65. So it was at the beginning of creation, but it was prepared for you that the water would regenerate you for grace, as it produced others for life. Imitate that fish, which, although it received the least grace, you must nevertheless marvel at it. She lives in the sea and swims on the waves, she lives in the sea and swims with the current. A storm is raging at sea, strong winds are raging, but the fish swims and does not drown, because they are in the habit of swimming. And for you this world is a sea. It has various currents, dangerous waves, fierce storms. And you be a fish, so that the waves of this world do not drown you 66. The Father speaks beautifully to the Son: Today I have begotten You, that is, when You redeemed people, when You called them into the Kingdom of Heaven, when You fulfilled My will, then You showed that You are My Son 67 . 4. You came out of the font. What happened next? You listened to the reading. The girded bishop - although the presbyters also perform this, the high priest begins the service - the girded high priest, as I said, washed your feet 68 . What is this secret? You heard that the Lord, when he washed the feet of the other disciples, came up to Peter, and Peter said to Him: Do you want to wash my feet? (John 13:6). That is: “Do you, Lord, wash the servant’s feet? Are you, Immaculate One, washing my feet? Do you, Creator of heaven, wash my feet?" You find it elsewhere too. He came to John and John said to Him: I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me? (Matthew 3:14). I am a sinner, and You came to the sinner, as if in order to wash away Your sins, You Who did not commit sin?” See the whole truth, see humility, see grace, see sanctification! If I do not wash your feet,” He said, “you will have no part with Me 69.” 5. We are well aware that the Roman Church does not have this custom, whose example and ritual we follow in everything 70. However, she does not have the custom of washing her feet. Think about it, maybe she abandoned it because of the large number [of those being baptized]. There are, however, those who say, trying to justify this, that this should not be done when performing the sacrament, that is, during baptism, when a person is reborn. In their opinion, one should wash one’s feet in the same way as one would do to a guest. However, there is a difference between humility and sanctification. In the end, listen that this is both a mystery and a sanctification: If I do not wash your feet, you will have no part with Me. I say this not to condemn others, but to prove the correctness of the service that I myself perform. I wish to follow the Roman Church in everything, however, we, like every person, have our own opinion. Therefore, what is observed more correctly elsewhere, we preserve more correctly. 6. We follow the Apostle Peter himself and are devoted to his piety. How does the Roman Church respond to this? In any case, the author of this statement for us is the Apostle Peter himself, who was a bishop of the Roman Church. Peter himself, when he said: Lord, not only the feet, but also the hands and the head (John 13:9). Look at the faith: his first refusal came out of humility, and his subsequent offer out of reverence and faith. 7. Since he said: hands and head, the Lord answered him: He who has washed does not need to wash again, let him only wash his feet 71. Why is this so? Because in baptism all guilt is washed away. So the guilt is removed. But since Adam was overthrown by the devil and the poison spread over his feet, therefore you wash your feet so that in that part of the body that fell into the serpent’s snare there would be greater protection through sanctification, so that later he could not knock you down. So you wash your feet to wash away the snake venom 72 . It is also useful for humility that, when performing the sacrament, we are not ashamed of what we avoid out of a sense of respect. 2. 8. Then follows the spiritual seal 73, which you heard about in the reading today, because after the font there is still something left for perfection to come, when the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the calling of the bishop, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and piety, the Spirit of holy fear (Is. 11: 2-3), as if the seven powers of the Spirit 74. 9. All virtues, of course, come from the Spirit, but these seem to be the main and most important. What is more important than piety, what is more important than the knowledge of God, what is more important than courage, what is more important than the advice of God, what is more important than the fear of God? Just as the fear of this world is weakness, so the fear of God is great strength. 10. These are the essence of the seven powers when you receive the seal 75. For, as the holy Apostle says, the wisdom of our Lord is manifold, and the wisdom of God is manifold (Eph. 3:10), he says. So is the Holy Spirit, Who has a variety of powers. Therefore He is called the God of hosts, 76 which can be attributed to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. But this is a subject for another conversation and for another occasion. 11. What comes after this? You can approach the altar. As you approach, you can see something you haven't seen before. This is a mystery that you read about in the Gospel, or at least heard about, if you haven’t read it. The blind man came before the Savior to be healed 77 . And the One who healed others with just one word and restored sight to the eyes with one command, however, in the book of the Gospel entitled “John”, who saw the great mysteries more than others, described them and explained them, He wanted to pre-depict this secret action in it. Although all the evangelists are holy, and all the apostles, except the traitor, are holy, yet St. John, who last wrote the Gospel, as a close friend, called and chosen by Christ, like a mighty trumpet, announced the eternal mysteries. Everything he said is a secret. Others say the blind man was healed. Matthew says so, Luke says so, Mark says so. What does John alone say? He took the mud and anointed his eyes and said to him: Go to Siloam. And he got up, went and washed, and came seeing 78 . 12. Turn to the eyes of your heart. With your bodily eyes you have seen what is bodily, but you have not yet been able to see what belongs to the sacraments with the eyes of your heart. When you gave your name, He took the dirt and anointed your eyes. What does it mean? So that you admit your sin, so that you test your conscience, so that you repent for your crimes, and therefore, so that you recognize the lot of the human race. Although the one who comes to Baptism does not [openly] confess his sins, he thereby makes a confession of all sins, because he asks for baptism in order to be justified, that is, in order to move from guilt to grace. 13. Don't think it's unnecessary. There are some - I know exactly one such person who, when we told him: “At your age, you should be baptized as soon as possible,” he answered: “Why should I be baptized? I have no sin. Have I committed a sin? He had no dirt because Christ did not anoint him, that is, did not open his eyes. After all, there is no person without sin. 14. Therefore, he who resorts to the baptism of Christ recognizes himself as a man. And He laid dirt on you, that is, He gave you a sense of shame, prudence, awareness of your own weakness, and said to you: “Go to Siloam.” What is Siloam? This means, says John, “sent” (John 9:7). That is: go to that font in which the Cross of the Lord Christ is proclaimed, 79 go to that font in which Christ atones for the sins of all people. 15. You went, washed, approached the altar, you began to see what you had not seen before, that is, thanks to the font of the Lord and the proclamation of the sufferings of the Lord, your eyes were opened. And you, who previously seemed like a man with a blind heart, began to see the light of the sacraments. So, beloved brothers, we have approached the altar, we have approached the study of a deeper subject. For this reason, time does not allow us to begin a full explanation of the subject, for it is too long a conversation. For today, let what has been said be enough. Tomorrow, if the Lord wills, we will talk about the sacraments themselves. 1. 1. In the Old Testament the priests were in the habit of often entering the first tabernacle. The high priest entered the second tabernacle once a year. This is clearly stated by the Apostle Paul in the Epistle to the Hebrews, recalling the events of the Old Testament. In the second tabernacle there was manna, Aaron's rod, which was dry and then blossomed again, and there was also an altar of incense. 2. Why does the apostle tell all this? So that you understand what the second tabernacle is, into which the priest led you, into which the high priest used to enter once a year, that is, into the baptistery, where the rod of Aaron 80 blossomed. Before it was dry, but then it blossomed 81: and you were dry, but began to blossom thanks to the life-giving moisture of the spring 82. You were dried up by sins, you were dried up by errors and crimes, but, being planted at sources of water (Ps. 1:3), you have already begun to bear fruit. 3. But you may say: “What does it have to do with the people that the withered priestly staff blossomed again?” But is not the people themselves the priesthood? To whom was it said by the Apostle Peter: You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9)? Everyone is anointed for the priesthood, everyone is anointed for the kingdom, but the kingdom is spiritual, and the priesthood is spiritual 83. 4. Also in the second tabernacle there was an altar of incense. Incense was burned on the incense altar. So you too are now the fragrance of Christ, you no longer have any filth of crime, no smell of grave sin. 2. 5. Then you had to approach the altar. You began to approach. The angels, looking at your approach, saw that human nature, which had previously been dark from the filth of sins, suddenly, as they saw, began to shine. Therefore they cried: Who is she that riseth up out of the wilderness white? ( Song 8:5 ). Even the angels are surprised. Do you want to know how surprised they are? Listen to the Apostle Peter, who says that what was intended for us is what angels also desire to see 84 . Listen again: neither eye has seen, nor ear has heard... what God has prepared for those who love Him (1 Cor. 2:9) 85. 6. Finally find out what you got! The holy prophet David saw this grace in prototype and desired to have it. Do you want to know how much he wanted her? Listen to him again: Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be clean; Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow (Ps. 50:9). Why? Because snow, although it is white, quickly turns black from any dirt and then disappears, but the grace that you have accepted will remain forever if you keep what you have accepted 86. 7. So you approached, filled with desire, because you saw such great grace, you approached, filled with desire, to the altar to receive this sacrament. Your soul says: And I will go to the altar of God, to God, who makes my youth glad (Ps. 42:4) 87. You have cast off your sinful oldness and put on grace-filled youth: the heavenly sacraments have granted this to you. Finally, listen to David, who says: Your youth will be renewed like an eagle (Ps. 102:5). You have become a noble eagle that soars into the sky and despises everything earthly. The altar is surrounded by noble eagles, because where the body is, there are eagles 88. The altar is an image of the Body, and the Body of Christ rests on the altar. You are eagles renewed by the washing away of sins. 3. 8. You approached the altar and saw the sacraments on the altar. You were surprised that it was only food, and ordinary and familiar food at that. 9. Perhaps someone will say: “God gave the Jews such great grace by raining manna from heaven 89 . Did He give His faithful something more? Has He given more to those to whom He promised more?” 10. Listen to what I say. The sacraments of Christians are older than the Jews. Christian sacraments are more divine than Jewish ones 90. How? Listen. When did the Jews appear? [They originated], of course, from Judah, that is, from the great-grandson of Abraham, or, if you want to understand it this way, then from the Law, that is, when they were worthy to receive “God’s rights” 91. So, during the time of Saint Moses, the Jews received their name from the great-grandson of Abraham. God then rained manna from heaven on the grumbling Jews. And for you, these [our] sacraments were foreshadowed in the time of Abraham, when he, having gathered three hundred and eighteen slaves born in his house, went pursuing the enemy and freed his nephew from captivity. As he was returning victorious, the priest Melchizedek came out to meet him and offered him bread and wine 92 . Who had bread and wine? Not Abraham. But from whom? In Melchizedek. This means that he is the establisher of the sacraments. And who is Melchizedek, who is called the king of righteousness, the king of peace (Heb. 7:2)? Who is He, the king of righteousness? And how can any man be the king of truth? So, who is the king of righteousness if not the righteousness of God itself? Who is God's peace and God's Wisdom 93? [Of course] He who could say: My peace I give to you, my peace I leave with you (John 14:27). 11. So, first of all, understand that the sacraments that you receive are older than all those sacraments that the Jews consider theirs, and that Christians began to exist earlier than the Jews, but we are by predestination, and they by name. 12. So Melchizedek offered bread and wine. Who is Melchizedek? Without a father, it is said, without a mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life (Heb. 7:3). This is found in the book of Hebrews. Without a father, it is said, and without a mother. You read that He is like the Son of God 94. The Son of God was born without a mother by a heavenly birth, for He was born only of God the Father, and, on the other hand, He was born without a father when He was born of a Virgin. After all, He did not come from the seed of a man, but was born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and was born from a virgin’s womb. Similar in everything to the Son of God, Melchizedek was also a priest, because Christ is a priest, to whom it is said: You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek (Ps. 109:4). 4. 13. Who is the institute of the sacraments if not the Lord Jesus? These sacraments come from heaven, for every decision [of God] is from heaven 95. Nevertheless, it is truly a great and divine miracle that God rained manna from heaven for the people, and the people ate without working. 14. Perhaps you will say: “This is my usual bread” 96. But this bread is bread only up to the mysterious words; when the time of consecration has come, from the bread he becomes the Flesh of Christ. Let us prove this: how that which is bread can be the Body of Christ. So, with what words and by whose speeches is sanctification accomplished? Lord Jesus. After all, everything else that is said first is said by the priest: praise is to God, a prayer is offered, a petition is offered for the people, for the kings, for everything else. But as soon as the time for performing the sacred sacrament approaches, the priest no longer uses his own words, but uses the words of Christ. Consequently, the word of Christ performs this sacrament 97. 15. What is this word of Christ? Undoubtedly, the one by whom all things were created. The Lord commanded - and the sky arose; The Lord commanded - and the earth came into being; The Lord commanded - and the seas became; The Lord commanded - and every creation came into being 98. So, you see how effective the word of Christ is. If in the word of the Lord Jesus there is such great power that something happened that did not exist before, then how much more effective is it in changing what exists, which already existed before, into something else! There was no sky, there was no sea, there was no earth, but listen to what David says: He spoke - and they appeared; He commanded - and they were created (Ps. 32:9; 149:5) 99. 16. So, I answer you: there was no Body of Christ before sanctification, but after sanctification, I tell you, it is already the Body of Christ. He said - and it appeared; He commanded - and it was created. You yourself existed before, but you were an old creation; and after you were sanctified, you became a new creation. Do you want to know how new this creation is? Everyone, it is said, is a new creation in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). 17. Listen now to how the word of Christ is in the habit of changing every creation and changes natural laws when it wants. You ask how? Listen. First of all, let's take His birth as an example. Usually a person is born from a husband and wife as a result of marital relations. But since the Lord willed, since He chose this sacrament, Christ was born from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin, that is, the Mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ (1 Tim. 2:5). So you see that contrary to the laws and order [of nature], Man was born of a Virgin. 18. Listen to something else. The Jewish people were pressed by the Egyptians, and the sea blocked the people's path. By divine command, Moses touched the water with his rod, and the waves parted, but, of course, not according to their natural custom, but by the grace of heavenly command 100. Listen again. The people were thirsty, they came to the source. The source was bitter. Saint Moses threw a tree into the source, and the source, which was previously bitter, became sweet, that is, he changed his natural custom, accepting the sweetness of grace 101. Listen to the fourth example. The ax fell into the water and, according to its custom, like an iron one, sank. Elisha threw the tree into the water, and the iron immediately became light and floated to the surface of the water, 102 contrary, of course, to the custom of iron, which is a heavier substance than the water element. 19. Really, from all that has been said, you cannot understand how effective the heavenly word is? If the heavenly word acted in an earthly source, if it acted in other things, then does it not act in the heavenly sacraments? So now you know that the bread becomes the Body of Christ. What about wine and water? It is poured into the cup, but becomes Blood through heavenly consecration. 20. But you may say: “I do not see the sight of Blood.” But this is Her likeness. After all, just as you accepted the likeness of death, in the same way you drink the likeness of the precious Blood, so that there is no horror at the sight of [real] blood, but so that [at the same time] the price of redemption is real. So now you know that what you receive is the Body of Christ. 5. 21. Do you want to know how sanctification is accomplished with heavenly words? Listen to what these words are. The priest says 103: “Make for us this offering acceptable, reasonable 104, favorable, which is the image of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the eve of His suffering, He took bread into His holy hands, raised His eyes to heaven, to You, Holy Father, Almighty God, having given thanks, He blessed, broke and taught it to His disciples and apostles, saying: Take and taste everything from it, for this is My Body, which will be broken for many.” 22. Listen carefully! “Likewise, after supper, on the eve of His suffering, He took the cup, raised His eyes to heaven, to You, Holy Father, Almighty God, having given thanks, He blessed it, and gave it to His disciples and apostles, saying: Take and drink from it, all of you, for this is My Blood” 105. Notice that all these words belong to the evangelist, up to the words Accept, Body or Blood, and then come the words of Christ: Accept and drink from it all, for this is My Blood. 23. Pay attention to one more detail. “He,” it is said, “on the eve of His suffering, took bread into His holy hands.” Before consecration it is bread, but when the words of Christ are spoken it is the Body of Christ. Finally, listen to what He says: Accept and taste everything from him, for this is My Body. Also, before the words of Christ are pronounced, the cup is filled with wine and water; after the words of Christ take effect, the Blood appears there, redeeming people. See how many ways the word of Christ can transform everything that exists! Finally, the Lord Jesus Himself testified to us that we receive His Body and Blood. Should we doubt His assurance and testimony? 24. Let us now return to what I was talking about. It is truly great and worthy of honor that for the Jews manna fell from heaven like rain. But think about what is higher - manna from heaven or the Body of Christ? Of course, the Body of Christ, Who is the Creator of heaven. Finally, the one who ate the manna died, and the one who eats this Body will receive remission of sins and will not die forever 106. 25. So, it is not in vain that you say “Amen”, recognizing in your heart that you accept the Body of Christ. Therefore, when you approach, the priest says to you: “The Body of Christ,” but you answer “Amen,” that is, “truly” 107. Let the heart keep what the mouth confesses! You know: this is the sacrament that was depicted earlier. 6. 26. Finally, find out how great this sacrament is! Look what He says: Whenever you do it, do it in remembrance of Me, until I come again 108. 27. The priest says: “So, remembering His glorious suffering, and resurrection from hell, and ascension into heaven, we offer You this immaculate Sacrifice, this reasonable Sacrifice, this bloodless Sacrifice, this holy Bread and Cup of eternal life, and we ask and pray, accept this offering on Your altar on high by the hands of Your angels, as You deigned to accept the gifts of the youth Your righteous Abel, and the sacrifice of our patriarch Abraham, and the sacrifice that the High Priest Melchizedek offered to You.” 28. So, “as often as you eat,” what did the apostle tell you? Every time we eat, we proclaim the death of the Lord 109. If we proclaim death, then we also proclaim the remission of sins. If, every time the Blood is shed, it is poured out for the remission of sins, then I must always accept it so that it always forgives my sins. I, who sin continually, must always have medicine. 29. Between then and today we have explained as much as we could. Tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday, if possible, we will talk about the structure of prayer. May the Lord our God preserve the grace bestowed upon you, and may He be pleased to fully enlighten your eyes, which He has opened, through His only begotten Son, King and Savior, the Lord our God, through whom and with whom to Him be praise, honor, glory, majesty, power with the Holy Spirit from all eternity, and now, and always, and to all ages of ages. Amen. 1. 1. Yesterday in our conversation we came to the study of the sacraments of the holy altar. We learned that these sacraments were foreshadowed in the time of Abraham, when Saint Melchizedek, who has neither beginning of days nor end, made a sacrifice 110. Listen, man, to what the Apostle Paul says in the Epistle to the Hebrews. Where are those who say that the Son of God exists in time? 111 It is said about Melchizedek that he has neither beginning of days nor end. If Melchizedek does not have a beginning of days, how could Christ have one? But the image is not greater than the truth. You see that He is the First and the Last (Rev. 1:17; 22:13). The first, because He is the Creator of everything, and the Last, not because the end will come for Him, but because He Himself will put an end to everything. 2. So, we said that a cup is supplied on the altar and bread is placed. What goes into the cup? Wine. What else? Water. But you tell me: “How can this be? Melchizedek brought wine and bread. What then does adding water mean? Listen, what's the point? 3. First of all, what was foreshadowed in the time of Moses? When the Jewish people were thirsty and grumbling because they could not find water, God commanded Moses to touch the rock with his rod 112 . Moses touched the rock, and it poured out a great stream of water, as the apostle says: They drank from the next rock, and the rock was Christ (1 Cor. 10:4) 113. The rock that followed the people was not motionless. Drink, too, so that Christ may accompany you too! Look at the mystery: “Moses” is the prophet, and the “rod” is the word of God. The priest “touches the rock” with the word of God, water is poured out, and God’s people drink. This means that the priest “touches” the cup, in the cup water pours out in abundance and rushes into eternal life 114. And the people of God, who have achieved Divine grace, drink. 4. Did you understand this? Listen to something else. During the suffering of the Lord, when Holy Saturday was approaching, and our Lord Jesus Christ and the robbers were still alive, soldiers were sent to kill them. When they arrived, they found our Lord Jesus Christ dead. Then one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and blood and water flowed out of His side 115. Why water? Why blood? Water to cleanse, blood to atone. Why from the side? Because where guilt comes from, grace comes from there. Guilt came through the woman, and grace through our Lord Jesus Christ 116. 2. 5. You approached the altar. The Lord Jesus calls you - or your soul, or the Church - and says: Let him kiss me with the kiss of His lips (Song.1:1). Do you want to take it to Christ? There is nothing more enjoyable! Do you want to go to your soul? There is nothing more joyful! 6. Let him kiss me. He sees that you are clean from all sin, for your sins have been washed away. Therefore He considers you worthy of the heavenly mysteries and invites you to the heavenly banquet: May He kiss me with the kiss of His lips. 8. Why? For your breasts are better than wine (Song. 1:1), that is, Your feelings, Your sacraments are better than wine, better than that wine in which, although there is a pleasant taste, fun and charm, it is the joy of this age, while in You there is spiritual joy. And then Solomon already represents the marriage of Christ and the Church, or spirit and flesh, or Spirit and soul 117. 9. And he added: Your name is like spilled ointment, therefore the maidens loved You and attracted You (Song.1:3-4). Who are these maidens, if not the souls of all those renewed by the Holy Spirit, who have cast off the decay of this body? 10. Draw us after You, we will run to the fragrance of Your garments (Song.1:4) 118. You see what he says: You cannot follow Christ unless He Himself draws you. Finally, so you know, He says: When I am exalted, I will draw everyone to Me (John 12:32). 11. The king brought me into His bed (Song. 1:4), in Greek: “into His storehouse” or “into His storehouse,” where there are pleasant drinks, fragrances, sweet honey, various fruits, various dishes, so that your meal would be decorated with numerous dishes. 3. 12. Now you have approached the altar, you have received the Body of Christ. Listen again about what sacraments you received. Listen to what Saint David says. He foresaw these mysteries in the Spirit, rejoiced and said that he lacked nothing. Why? Because the one who receives the Body of Christ will never hunger 119. 13. How many times have you heard the twenty-second psalm without understanding it! Look how well he approaches the heavenly mysteries! The Lord feeds me, and I will lack nothing; there, in a place of pasture, He settled me, by the water of rest He raised me, converted my soul. He brought me on the path of righteousness for His name's sake. Even if I walk in the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Your rod and your staff - they comforted me (Ps. 22:1-5). The rod is power, the staff is suffering, that is, this is the eternal Divinity of Christ, but also His bodily suffering: the Divinity created [man], and suffering redeemed [him]. You have prepared a table for me in the face of those who oppress me. You have anointed my head with oil, and Your cup makes me drink, how beautiful it is! (Ps. 22:5) 120. 14. You approached the altar, you accepted the grace of Christ, you received the heavenly sacraments. The Church rejoices over the redemption of many people. She spiritually rejoices, seeing a family in white robes next to her. This is stated in the Song of Songs. The jubilant [Church] invites Christ to a prepared feast, which seems worthy of a heavenly banquet. And therefore she says: My brother will come to his heirloom city, and let him eat the fruit of his trees (Song. 4:16) What kind of fruit-bearing trees are these? In Adam you became a dry tree, and now, by the grace of Christ, you, like fruitful trees, give forth young shoots 121. 15. The Lord Jesus willingly accepts the invitation and, answering His Church with heavenly dignity, says: I entered into My hillside... I gathered My myrrh with My spices, I ate My bread with My honey, I drank My wine with My milk. Eat,” he says, “and become drunk with wine, my brothers!” ( Song 5:1 ) 122 . 16. I gathered myrrh with my aromas: what kind of gathering is this? Find out what grapes are, and then you will understand what kind of harvest 123 is. It is said: You brought the grapes from Egypt (Ps. 79:9), that is, the people of God. You are the grapes, you are the grape harvest. You are planted like grapes, like a harvest you bear fruit. I gathered myrrh with My aromas, that is, for the fragrance that you received. 17. I ate my bread with my honey: you see, in this bread there is no bitterness, but complete sweetness. I drank My wine with My milk: you see, this is such a joy that is not darkened by any sinful dirt. After all, every time you drink [the Blood of Christ], you receive remission of sins and “drink” in the Spirit. The apostle also speaks about this: Do not get drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18). After all, the one who is drunk with wine staggers and walks unsteadily, but the one who is “drunk” with the Spirit is rooted in Christ. And this “intoxication” is wonderful because it produces sobriety of the soul 124. This is our brief overview of the sacraments. 4. 18. Now what remains for us [to explain] except prayer? 125 And do not consider knowledge of how to pray to be an unimportant virtue. The holy apostles said to the Lord Jesus: Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples. Then the Lord said the prayer: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and do not allow us to fall into temptation, but deliver us from evil (Luke 11:1-4; Matt. 6:9-13). Look how short the prayer is, but it is full of all kinds of virtues. How great is the grace of the first word! 19. O man, you did not dare to raise your face to heaven, you lowered your eyes to the ground, but suddenly you accepted the grace of Christ, and all your sins were forgiven. From a bad slave you became a good son. Therefore, boast not of your own works, but of the grace of Christ! By grace you have been saved, says the apostle (Eph. 2:5). And this is not insolence, but confidence. Praising what you have received is not arrogance, but piety. So, lift up your eyes to the Father, who gave birth to you through immersion in the font, to the Father, who redeemed you through His Son, and say: Our Father! This is good boldness, but in moderation. You address the Father as a son, but do not demand anything special for yourself. He is the Father in the proper sense of Christ alone, but for all of us He is the Father in the general sense, because He begat Him alone, and He created us. You too, by grace, say: Our Father, so that you may be worthy to be His son. Entrust yourself to the Church with [all] your thoughts and thoughts! 126 20. Our Father who art in heaven. What does it mean in heaven! Listen to what the Scripture says: High above all the heavens is the Lord 127 . And you will find everywhere that the Lord is above the heavens of heavens. As if angels and dominions were not in heaven! However, they are in those heavens about which it is said: The heavens proclaim the glory of God (Ps. 18:2). The sky is where the guilt has disappeared; heaven is where wickedness is powerless; heaven is where there is no mortal wound. 21. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. What does it mean: hallowed! As if we want the One who said: Be holy, for I am holy (Lev. 19:2) to be sanctified, as if our praise could add anything to His holiness! No, but let him be sanctified in us, that His sanctification may come to us. 22. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come: as if the Kingdom of God were not eternal! Jesus Himself says: For this purpose I was born (John 18:37) 128, but you say to the Father: Thy kingdom come, as if it had not come! But the Kingdom of God came when you received His grace. After all, He Himself said: The Kingdom of God is within you (Luke 17:21). 23. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us our daily bread today - everything has been reconciled by the Blood of Christ, both in heaven and on earth 129; the sky was sanctified, the devil was cast out. He lives where the person he deceived lives. Thy will be done, that is, may there be peace on earth, as well as in heaven. 24. Give us our daily bread today. I remember what I said when I explained the sacraments 130. I told you that before the words of Christ, the offering is called bread, but after the words of Christ are spoken, it is no longer called bread, but is called the Body. Why does the Lord's Prayer, which follows, say: our bread? Although He said bread, He called it ἐπιούσιον, that is, “daily.” This is not the bread that goes into the body, but it is the Bread of eternal life that sustains the essence of our soul. That is why in Greek it is called ἐπιούσιος. In Latin this Bread is called cottidianus, i.e. “everyday”, because the Greeks call the coming day - τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν ἡμέραν. It is obvious that what is said in both Latin and Greek is equally applicable. The Greek word conveys both meanings, but the Latin word indicates [only one]: “everyday.” 25. If this is everyday bread, then why do you take it once a year, as the Greeks in the East are in the habit of doing? 131 Every day, take what benefits you every day! Live in such a way that you are worthy to receive it every day! He who is not worthy to take it every day is not worthy to take it once a year! How Saint Job made a sacrifice every day for his sons, out of fear that they might have sinned in heart or word 132. Do you hear that every time a Sacrifice is offered, the Lord’s death, the Lord’s resurrection, the Lord’s ascension and forgiveness of sins are announced, 133 and you do not accept this Bread of Life every day? He who has a wound seeks a cure. The wound is our exposure to sin, the cure is a heavenly and venerable sacrament. 26. Give us our daily bread today. If you take it every day, then every day is “today” for you. If Christ is with you today, it means that He rises for you every day. How? You are My Son, today I have given birth to You (Ps. 2:7). This means that “today” is when Christ is resurrected. Yesterday and today He abides 134, says the Apostle Paul. And in another place he says: The night is past, and the day is near (Rom. 13:12). Yesterday night has passed, and today is approaching. 27. It follows: And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. What is debt if not sin? So, if you had not borrowed other people's money, you would not have felt the need. And therefore sin is imputed to you. You had money with which you were born rich. You were rich, being created in the image and likeness of God 135. You have lost what you had, that is, humility; while you were trying to defend your insolence, you lost money: you became naked like Adam. You borrowed from the devil something that was not needed at all. And therefore you, who were previously free in Christ, became a debtor to the devil. The enemy had your IOU, but the Lord nailed it to the Cross and destroyed it with His Blood. He canceled your debt and gave you back your freedom. 28. So, it is well said: And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. Look what you say: “As I forgive, so You forgive me.” If you yourself have forgiven, then it is appropriate to ask that you too be forgiven. If you do not forgive, then how can you turn to Him? 29. And do not allow us to fall into temptation, 136 but deliver us from the evil one. Look what it says here: “And do not let us fall into temptation which we cannot endure.” It is not said: “Do not lead into temptation,” but just as an athlete desires for himself such a test that human nature is capable of enduring, so let everyone be freed from the evil one, that is, from the enemy and from sin. 30. The Lord, who destroyed your sins and forgave your transgressions, is able to protect and preserve you from the enemy’s snares of the devil, so that the enemy, who is in the habit of generating sin, does not sneak up on you. But he who has entrusted himself to God is not afraid of the devil. After all, if God is for us, then who can be against us? (Rom.8:31). To Him be praise and glory from all eternity, and now, and always, and to all ages of ages. Amen. 1. 1. Just as our Lord Jesus Christ is the true Son of God, not like men - by grace, but as the Son of God, [born] from the essence of the Father 137, so is [His] Flesh true, as He Himself said, which we receive, and His Drink is true 138. 2. But you, perhaps, will say - as the disciples of Christ said then, having heard His words: Whoever does not eat My flesh and drink My Blood will not abide in Me and will not have eternal life 139 - perhaps you will say: “How can this be true [flesh]? On the contrary, I see a likeness, but I don’t see real blood.” 3. First of all, I have already told you about the words of Christ, which act in such a way that they can change and transform the state of things established by nature 140. Further: when the disciples heard the words of Christ that He would give His flesh to eat and His Blood to drink, they could not stand it and walked away 141, and only Peter said: “You have the words of eternal life (John 6:68). Where will I go from You? - but so that many do not say that they leave because of the horror of blood, and so that the grace of redemption is preserved, therefore you receive the sacraments in the likeness, but gain the grace and power of the true nature. 4. I am the living bread that came down from heaven (John 6:41), He says. However, the flesh did not come down from heaven; He took flesh on earth from the Virgin. How did the Bread come down from heaven, and the Bread live? Because one and the same Lord Jesus Christ participates in both the Divinity and the body 142, and you, accepting the Flesh, in this food partake of His Divine essence 143. 2. 5. So, you have learned about the sacraments, you have studied everything fully: that you were baptized in the name of the Trinity, that in everything that we have done, the mystery of the Trinity is contained 144. Everywhere the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit have one action, one sanctification, although there seem to be some peculiarities. 6. How? God anointed you, and the Lord sealed you and put the Holy Spirit in your heart 145. So, you have received the Holy Spirit into your heart. Listen to another thing: just as the Holy Spirit is in the heart, so is Christ in the heart 146. How? You find it in the Song of Songs. Christ says to the Church: Put Me as a seal on your heart, like a ring on your hand (Song.8:6) 147. 7. So you have been anointed by God, you have been sealed by Christ. How? You were sealed with the sign of His Cross, the sign of His suffering. You received the seal to become like Him, so that you would be raised in His image and live in His image, for He was crucified for [the destruction of] sin and lives for God. And your “old man,” immersed in the font, was crucified to sin, but rose again to God 148 . 8. Finally, in another place you find something special: God called you, in baptism you seemed to be crucified with Christ in a special way, further, there is as if [something] special when you receive the spiritual seal 149 . You see that there is a difference of Persons, but in Their connection is the whole mystery of the Trinity. 9. Next, what was read the day before yesterday, what did the apostle tell you about? Although the gifts are different, the Spirit is one and the same, and the ministries are different, but the Lord is one and the same, and the actions are different, but God is one and the same, working all things in all (1 Cor. 12:4-6). Everything, it is said, is produced by God. But it was also read about the Spirit of God: One and the same Spirit, dividing to everyone as He pleases (1 Cor. 12:11). Listen to what Scripture says: The Spirit divides according to His will, and not by command 150 . So, the Spirit gave you grace according to His desire, not under compulsion, especially because the Spirit of God is the Spirit of Christ. Remember: He is the Holy Spirit, He is the Spirit of God, He is the Spirit of Christ, He is the Spirit of the Paraclete 151. 10. Arians believe that they belittle the Holy Spirit when they call Him the Spirit Paraclete. What does Paraclete mean if not the Comforter? As if it was not read about the Father that He Himself is the God of comfort (2 Cor. 1:3)! So, you see: the Arians believe that they are belittling the Holy Spirit by the fact that their pious feeling proclaims the power of the eternal Father. 3. 11. Now listen to how we should pray. Prayer has many benefits. An important question is where you should pray. The Apostle says: I desire that men in every place say prayers, lifting up clean hands, without anger or reasoning (1 Tim. 2:8). And the Lord says in the Gospel: When you pray, go into your room and, having shut the door, pray to your Father (Matthew 6:6). Don't you think there is a contradiction between what the apostle says: “Pray in every place,” and what the Lord says: “Pray inside your room”? However, there is no contradiction. Let's resolve this issue. Then we'll talk about how you should begin your prayer, what order you should follow, what to add, what to refer to, how to end your prayer, and finally, what you should pray for. Let's talk about all this. 12. First of all, where should you pray? It seems that Paul is saying one thing and the Lord is saying something else. Could Paul teach anything contrary to the teachings of Christ? Of course not! Why? Because he is not an opponent of Christ, but His interpreter. He says: Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ (1 Cor. 11:1) 152. So what? You can pray everywhere and pray always in your room, your room is with you everywhere. Even if you were among pagans or Jews, your lonely place is with you everywhere. “Your room” is your mind. Although you are among the crowd, you keep your secret and solitary place in the inner man 153. 13. When you pray, go into your room. It is well said: Come in, so that you do not pray like the Jew, to whom it is said: This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me (Matthew 15:8) 154. Let your prayer come not only from your lips, but strive with all your soul, enter into the secret place of your heart, enter completely. Let not He Whom you wish to please find you a hypocrite. Let Him see that you are praying with all your heart, so that you, who pray with all your heart, may be worthy of being heard. 14. When you pray, go into your room. You will find this in another place: Go, my people, and enter your hiding places, hide yourself for a while, until the wrath of the Lord passes away (Is. 26:20). The Lord said this through the prophet. In the Gospel He says: When you pray, go into your room and, having closed the door, pray to your Father. 15. What does it mean: closing the door? What kind of door do we have? Listen, you have a door that you must close when you pray. - Oh, if only women could hear this! – You have already heard that Saint David taught you, saying: Set, O Lord, a guard over my lips, and a door to guard my lips (Ps. 140:3). And in another place the Apostle Paul speaks about the door: Let the door be open for me to speak, to proclaim the mystery of Christ (Col. 4:3). That is, when you pray, do not exclaim, do not pour out words, do not flaunt your prayer in front of the crowd. Pray in secret within yourself, being confident that He who sees everything and hears everything will be able to hear you in secret. And pray to your Father... in secret, for he who sees in secret (Matthew 6:6) hears your prayer. 4. 16. Let us ask the question: “What is the use of this, why should we pray in secret rather than shouting?” Listen. Let's take an example from ordinary life. If you are talking to someone who can hear well, you don't feel the need to resort to shouting. You speak quietly, in a calm voice. If you are talking to a deaf person, won't you start shouting so that he can hear you? This means that the one who shouts believes that otherwise, if he does not shout, God cannot hear him, and when he calls out to Him with exclamations, he belittles the power of God. But he who prays in silence shows his faith and confesses that God tests the heart and bowels 155 and that He hears your prayer before your lips utter it. 17. Let's see [further]! I wish that men would say prayers in every place (1 Tim. 2:8). Why did the apostle speak about men? Of course, prayer is common to both women and men. I don’t find an explanation, unless the holy apostle spoke about men for this reason, perhaps, so that women would not abuse the misunderstood words: in every place, and would not begin to exclaim everywhere, and we cannot tolerate such people in the Church 156. 18. I wish that in every place men, that is, those who can observe the instruction, say prayers, raising clean hands without anger and reasoning. What does it mean to raise clean hands! Should you, during your prayer, depict the Cross of the Lord in front of the pagans? 157 But this sign should inspire courage, not shame. However, you have the opportunity to pray without making gestures, but “lifting up” your actions. If you want to do your job, then you “raise up clean hands” in integrity 158. You do not lift them up every day: after you have raised them once, you do not need to lift them up again 159. 19. I wish that in every place men would say prayers, raising clean hands without anger or reasoning. Nothing could be more correct! Anger, it is said, destroys even the wise (Proverbs 15:1). Therefore, a Christian should always, as far as possible, suppress anger, especially when he begins to pray. Let not indignation trouble your soul, let no outburst of anger hinder your prayer. It is better to approach prayer with a calm heart. Why are you angry? Has the slave committed a crime? Do you begin to pray that your sins will be forgiven, but you yourself are indignant at others? So this is it - without anger. 5. 20. Now let's look at what it means: without reasoning 9. Very often a person begins to pray, immersed in business, or [during prayer] a miser thinks about money, another about profit, another about honors, another about the object of his passion, and everyone thinks that God can hear him. Therefore, when you pray, you must prefer what is divine to what is human. 21. “I wish,” says the Apostle Paul, “that women also pray, not boasting of their jewelry and pearls 160.” But the Apostle Peter also says: “The influence of a wife has great power: the good behavior of a wife can change the feelings of her unbelieving husband and turn him to the grace of Christ” 161. A woman's dignity, her chastity and good behavior can do what the words of a wise man usually do - call her husband to faith and piety. “So, let a woman’s adornment not be her hairstyle or braiding of her hair,” says the apostle, “but prayer from a pure heart, where there is a hidden person of the heart, who is always rich before God” 162. So, you know what your wealth is! In Christ your wealth is chastity and modesty, and your ornaments are faith, piety and charity. These are the treasures of righteousness, as the prophet mentions 163. 22. Then listen to how you should begin your prayer 164. Tell me, if you wanted to ask a person for something and started like this: “Give me what I ask!”, then wouldn’t such an appeal seem impertinent? And therefore, prayer should begin with the praise of God, since you are turning to Almighty God, for whom everything is possible and who wants to fulfill your request. Next comes prayer, as the apostle teaches, saying: First of all, I ask that prayers, petitions, supplications, and thanksgivings be made (1 Tim. 2:1). Therefore, the first [part] of the prayer should contain praise to God, the second - supplication, the third - petition, the fourth - thanksgiving. You should not start like a hungry person - with food, but with praising God. 23. Therefore, skillful orators adhere to the same rule in order to gain the favor of the judge: they begin with praise in order to win him over. Then, little by little, they begin to beg the judge to listen to them patiently. Thirdly, they begin to state their request, explaining what they want. Fourthly, 165 just as we began by praising God, so each of us should end with praise to God and thanksgiving to Him. 24. You will find this in the Lord's Prayer: Our Father who art in heaven (Luke 11:1–4; Matt. 6:9–13) 166. Praising God is calling Him Father; in this is the glorification of [His] goodness. The praise of God also lies in the fact that He dwells in heaven and not on earth. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, that is, may He sanctify His servants. After all, His name is sanctified in us when Christians are glorified. Therefore, hallowed be thy name is an expression of desire. Thy kingdom come. This is a petition for the Kingdom of Christ to be in everyone. If God reigns in us, then there can be no place for the enemy; Guilt does not reign, sin does not reign, but virtue reigns, chastity reigns, piety reigns 167. Next: Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us our daily bread today. This is the most important of all petitions. And forgive us our debts, it is said, just as we forgive the debts of our debtors. Therefore, take [this] daily 168 so that you may receive forgiveness of your debts daily. And do not let us fall into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. What comes next? Listen to what the priest says: “Through our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom and with whom be unto you honor, praise, glory, majesty and power, with the Holy Spirit from everlasting, and now, and always, and unto all the ages of ages. Amen". 25. Now something else. Although only one book of the Psalms of David has the merits of prayer that we spoke about above, all parts of the prayer are very often contained in one psalm, as we find them in the eighth psalm. It even begins like this: Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is Your name throughout all the earth! This is the first [part of] prayer. Then follows the prayer: For I will look to the heavens, the works of Your fingers (Ps. 8:4), that is, “I will look to the heavens”: to the moon and the stars, which You founded. He does not say “I will look at heaven,” but I will look at heaven, in which grace begins to shine with heavenly glory. The Prophet already hoped that this heaven would be given to those who had earned heavenly grace from the Lord 169. Then look at his petition: What is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You visit him? You have made him a little lower than the angels, You have crowned him with glory and honor, and You have set him over the works of Your hands. And further - thanksgiving: He put everything under his feet: all the sheep and oxen, and besides, the cattle of the field (Ps. 8:1-8) and so on. 26. [So] to the best of our understanding, we have taught you what we ourselves may not have been taught 170 and explained as best we could. Let your holiness, taught by priestly instructions, try to preserve what you have received, and may your prayer be accepted by God and your offering as a pure sacrifice. May He always see His seal in you, so that you yourself can achieve grace and receive a reward for virtues through our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be honor and glory, praise and eternity, from everlasting, and now, and always, and to all ages of ages. Amen. Wed: expl. symb. 9; myst. 2. 55. Many church writers speak about the ancient tradition of the Church, which forbade the disclosure of the contents of the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, as well as the order and meaning of the sacraments. See: eg. trad. apost. 21; Aug. serm. 232.7; loan. Chrysost. in Math. 23.3; Cyr. Hieros. procatech. 12; catech. 6.2; 18. etc. On Holy Saturday. In Milan, the sacrament of Baptism was performed once a year, on Easter night (see: sacr. 4. 2; exam. 1. 14; Hel. 34; Isaac. 35). St. Ambrose mentions all three degrees of the priesthood (sacr. 2. 16, etc.). The bishop is called both in its proper meaning – “bishop” (episcopus), and in the liturgical meaning – “priest” (sacerdos) and “high priest” (summus sacerdos). The bishop teaches the people and performs the sacraments (sacr. 2.24; 3.8; 6.26, etc.). The elders (presbyteri) act as his co-servants and as performers of the sacraments (sacr. 4. 14, 21, 27, etc.). Deacons are also called “Levites” in a symbolic sense. They serve before the altar, co-serve with the bishop during the sacraments and “preach the gospel of Christ” (sacr. 1. 4. 6). Based on Mal.2:7, the priests symbolize angels (sacr. 1. 6. 7; myst. 6). Important is the statement of St. Ambrose that the effectiveness of the sacraments does not depend on the personal dignity and merits of the clergyman (sacr. 1.6; myst. 6.27). Wed: paenit. 1. 5. 22: Expectat lacrymas nostras, ut profundat pietatem suam. Cp.: myst. 3. 4. In the Roman Catholic pre-Reform rite of Baptism, this rite was performed in a similar way, but the priest touched with a finger dipped in his own saliva, pronouncing different formulas for the ears and nostrils (see: Rituale Romanum. Tit. 1, sar. 2). In the modern rite of Ephphatha, saliva is not used; the priest touches the ears and lips of the catechumen, pronouncing the formula (see: Ordo Initiationis Christianae, 202). The whole body was anointed. Wed: Cyr. Hieros. catech. 2. 3; trad. apost. 21. According to B. Botte, in the Milanese rite the perfect formula of the sacrament of anointing of the sick (Anointing of Unction) retained traces of the formula of the ancient pre-baptismal anointing: Ungo te oleo sanctificato ut more militis unctus et praeparatus ad luctam aeris possis superare cateruas (see: Botte B. Introduction. P. 62, n. 2). Wed: Er. 43.4; exh. And. 91; off. 1. 16. 59. Wed: myst. 5–6. 8. Church writers called both the baptismal font and the sacrament of Baptism itself “the source” (fons) (Almazov, p. 5). Isidore of Seville, symbolically interpreting the steps of the baptismal font, calls it the source of all joys (Isid. Hisp. eccl. offic. 2. 25. 4. PL 83:821). See: Ex.14:1–15, 21; John 6:49. Transitus eius (“his passage”), i.e., probably, the passage of the destroying angel past the doors of the Jews in Egypt (see: Exodus 12:11–14, 22–27) or the passage of the Jews through the Red Sea (Exodus 14). The first is more correct from a historical and philological point of view, the second is more consistent with the thought of St. Ambrose. – Approx. ed. Wed: exam. 1. 14: Eo tempore Domini quotannis lesu Christi Pascha celebratur, hoc est, animarum transitus a uitiis ad uirtutem, a passionibus carnis ad gratiam sobrietatemque mentis, a malitiae nequitiaeque fermento ad ueritatem et sinceritatem. Wed: myst. 16–19. Bott, citing Missale ambrosianum duplex, c. 250, notes that in Milan 2 Kings 5:1–14 was the first reading of Bright Tuesday (see Botte V. Introduction. R. 67, paragraph 4). St. Ambrose repeatedly returns to the theme of the consecration of water (see: sacr. 1. 18; 2. 14; myst. 20, 22). We are talking about the external, ritual side of the sacrament of Baptism. Wed: apol. 44: Ad illud ergo perfectum tota intentione festinat, quo iustitia omnis impletur, quod est baptismatis sacramentum sicut ipse docet dominus Iesus. Cp.: interp. lob 2. 14: In Iordane baptisatus est Christus, quando formam lauacri salutaris istituit. Cp.: spirit. s. 3. 3: non enim columba, sed sicut columba descendit. Cp.: spirit. s. 3. 25: Nam sicut sanctificat pater, ita sanctificat et filius, sanctificat et spiritus. Lat. figura image (also typus, from the Greek τύπος) - here and further should be understood as a “type”, when, in accordance with the typological method of interpretation, certain Old Testament events are considered by the saint as pointing to other, New Testament events, which are considered as their fulfillment. – Approx. ed. Wed: sacr. 1. 23; myst. 10. 11. Wed: Luke 1:17. In Baptism, a person receives back the grace that he lost during the Fall (see: Adamov, pp. 302–303, 439). The word “baptism” – βάπτισμα (lat. baptisma) comes from βαπτίζω – to immerse, to wash. On ablutions among pagans and Jews, see: Almazov. pp. 1–29. Wed: Jesus. Joshua 10:12–14. The increase in the day during the battle with the Gibeonites, according to Origen, mysteriously points to the Lord Jesus Christ: He lengthens the day, pushing back the sunset, until the fullness of the pagans enters the Church, and Israel is saved; and shortens the days due to the increase of lawlessness, the cooling of love and the impoverishment of faith (Orig. in lesu Nau. 11. 2–3. PG 12:883–885). Later, the idea of ​​“slowing down” the coming of the Day of Judgment would become widespread in church writing (see: Adso Deruensis. Ep. ad Gerbergam reginam de ortu et tempore Antichristi // Sibyllinische Texte und Forschungen. München, 1898. S. 60–96). Wed: sacr. 2.20; myst. 28. Wed: .sacr. 1. 13–14: myst. 18. The sacraments are performed by God Himself through the clergy. Wed. spir. s. 1. 18: Non mundauit Damasus, non mundauit Petrus, non mundauit Ambrosius, non mundauit Gregorius; nostra enim seruitia, sed tua sunt sacramenta. Neque enim humanae opis est diuina conferre; sed tuum, domine, munus et patris est; paenit. I. 35: Omnia ergo dedit, sed nulla in his hominis potestas est, ubi diuini muneris gratia uiget. Wed: 1 Kings 18:38; myst. 26. Wed: myst. 51; 2 Kings 6:5–6. Compare: Exodus 15:22–25; myst. 14, 51. Wed: sacr. 1. 18; myst. 8. Wed: 1 Cor.14:22; Hebrews 11:3. Wed: myst. 28. The interrogative form with triple immersion is indicated by: trad. apost. 21; Cyr. Hieros. catech. 2. 4. There is also a hint in Tertullian (coron. 3). This form of baptism was preserved later (see: The Gelasian Sacramentary. Lib. I, cap. 46. P. 86–87). The mention of the Cross in the baptismal formula is a feature of the Ambrosian rite. The Western tradition is characterized by two post-baptismal anointings with myrrh: the first is “for eternal life”, the second is the “spiritual seal”. In Rome, the first anointing was performed by the presbyter, and the second by the bishop with the laying on of hands (see: The Gelasian Sacramentary. Lib. I, cap. 46. P. 86–87). In the second anointing, the newly baptized person was given the gift of the Holy Spirit (see: sacr. 3. 8; myst. 42). This tradition of anointing, together with the prayer quoted by St. Ambrose, remains in the Roman Catholic Church to this day. This is not a direct quote, but characteristic of St. Ambrose paraphrase. The saint uses Eccl. 2:14 in his writings when he speaks of “spiritual feelings” and virtues - intelligence, prudence, wisdom, prudence. Wed: myst. 30; expl. ps. 42, 60: Quid enim caput nisi in quo sensus sunt? Oculi enim sapientis in capite eius; expl. ps. 1, 28: sensus sapientis in capite eius. These words belong to St. ap. Pavel. Perhaps St. Ambrose confused them with the speech of St. ap. Peter on the day of Pentecost (see: Acts 2:24–31). – Approx. ed. Wed: exam. 5. 15–17: Piscis esto, O homo! exili super undas, o homo, quia piscis es. Non te opprimant saeculi istius fluctus. Cp.: expl. ps. 40. 35: Probasti te filium qui inplesli patris in omnibus uoluntatem. Wed: myst. 31–33. St. also speaks about washing the feet of the newly baptized. Maximus of Turin, however, he does not give a theological explanation of this rite, but only draws a moral lesson from it (Mach. Taurin. bapt. 3. PL 57:779). Turin was part of the diocese of Milan, and therefore the Ambrosian rite was preserved here (see: Botte V. Introduction, pp. 18–19). Wed: expl. ps. 48, 8. 9: Alia est iniquitas nostra, alia calcanei nostri, in quo Adam dente sepentis est uulneratus, et obnoxiam haereditatem successionis humanae suo uulnere dereliquit, ut omnes illo uulnere claudicemus. Vnde dominus discipulis pedes lauit, ut lauaret uenena serpentis... Meritoque dominus qui pro nobis uniuersa suscepit: Lauemus, inquit, et pedes, ut calcanei lubricum possimus auferre... Iniquitas ergo calcanei nostri praeuaricatio est Adae, per quam prolapsus est in contemptum et dissimulationem caelestium mandatorum. Similar thoughts are found in earlier church literature. Thus, Origen represents Adam as the “fifth” of all humanity, which was stung by the devil. And St. Cyprian of Carthage says that the Lord, having come, healed Adam’s wounds and cured him of the ancient snake poison (see: Adam. P. 307:310). Wed: sacr. 6. 6; myst. 41–42. At St. Ambrose “spiritual seal” is the sacrament of Confirmation, in Tertullian it is the sacrament of Baptism (Tert. pudic. 9; spect. 24) and confession of faith (Tert. spect. 24), in St. Cyprian of Carthage - the gift of the Holy Spirit (Cypr. epist. 73 (60). 9). Lat. uirtus means both "strength" and "virtue". If the first meaning is more applicable to God, then the second is more applicable to man. In this chapter, St. Ambrose clearly has both of these meanings in mind. – Approx. ed. Silence of St. Ambrose about the anointing of St. the world does not exclude the possibility of such anointing. Wed: trad. apost. 21. Wed: Ps.79:5, 8, 15, 20. Obviously, this is an allusion to the baptismal formula. Wed: sacr. 2.20; myst. 28. Wed: sacr. 1. 23: myst. 44–48. This etymology is based on a play on words: iudaei – ius dei. Wed: Luke 7:30; sacr. 2. 18. Undoubtedly, we are talking about ordinary, i.e., leavened bread. The tradition of using unleavened bread (unleavened bread) at Mass appears in the 9th century. and became ubiquitous in the 11th century. (see: Kunzler M. Liturgy of the Church. T. 2. M., 2001. P. 111). Wed: sacr. 4. 21–23; myst. 52, 54. It should be noted that, unlike other church writers of the 4th century. (St. Cyril of Jerusalem, St. John Chrysostom and some others), St. Ambrose does not mention "epiclesis", i.e. prayers of invoking the Holy Spirit for the Holy Gifts, but persistently repeats that their consecration occurs through the utterance of the so-called “institutional words” - the words of Christ at the Last Supper. – Approx. ed. See: 2 Kings 6:5–6; Wed sacr. 1.20; 2. 11–12; myst. 51. At St. Ambrose contains the earliest evidence of the text of the anaphora of the Roman rite (Roman Canon) (see: Zheltov M.S. Anaphora // Orthodox Encyclopedia. T. 2. M., 2001. P. 285). Lat. rationabilis (lit. "reasonable") here is the equivalent of the Greek. λογικός (verbal). Compare: Rom.12:1; 1 Peter 2:2. See: Matthew 26:26–28; Mark 14:22–24; Luke 22:17–22; 1 Corinthians 11:23–25. Wed: John 6:49, 59; myst. 47–48. Wed: myst. 54. This formula for communion is also attested in the Apostolic Constitutions (8.13), and is probably mentioned by Pope Cornelius (Cornel. Papa, epist. 3 // Mansi. T. 1. P. 828). Wed: 1 Cor.11:26; fid. 4. 124: Nos autem quotiescumque sacramenta sumimus, quae per sacrae orationis mysterium in carnem transfigurantur et sanguinem, mortem domini adnuntiamus: exc. fr. 2.46: Morte eius signamur, mortem eius orantes adnuntiamus, mortem eius offerentes praedicamus. Compare: Heb.7:3; sacr. 4.10. Cp.: myst. 46; fid. 1. 36: Ex tempore coepisse dicunt dei filium, cum conditor ipse sit temporum. This refers to the Arians who denied the eternity of the Son of God. – Approx. ed. Compare: Gen.3:6–13; John 1:17. Wed: 1 Thessalonians 5:23. In these words one should not see the doctrine of the tripartite nature of human nature. Like other Western writers, St. Ambrose always remains a dichotomist in the field of anthropology (see: Adamov, pp. 274–278). Wed. exh. u. 10, 68: In quo enim sumus? In animae subatantia et mentis uigore; epist. 30, 2: ...non duas animas, sed diuersas qualitates unius animae comprehensas esse arbitror. By “spirit” here we can understand both the human spirit, which constitutes the highest part of the soul, and God’s Spirit, which unites with the righteous soul. – Approx. ed. St. Ambrose uses the cognates uindemio (gather grapes), uindemia (gathering grapes), uinea (grapes). Compare: Cain et A. 1. 5. 19: Sed haec ebrietas sobrios facit: haec ebrietas gratiae, non temulentiae est; hymn Splendor paternae, gloriae, 21–23: Laeti bibamus sobriam / ebrietatem spiritus. The concept of “sober intoxication”, meaning the mystical state of union of the soul with God, St. Ambrose of Milan, like St. Gregory of Nyssa, borrows from Philo of Alexandria (see: Philo, opif., 71. 3; Mos. 1. 187. 5–6; prob. 13. 4–5; contempl. 89. 1). – Approx. ed. St. Ambrose explains the Lord's Prayer on Bright Week to the newly baptized, while in other Western Churches the Lord's Prayer was explained to the catechumens some time later, after the ritual of “transferring the Symbol” (see, for example: Aug. serm. 58. 13; 59. 1; 213. 8; The Gelasian Sacramentary. Lib. 1, cap. 36. P. 57–59). To explain the Lord's Prayer, St. Ambrose uses interpretations of Origen (see: Orig. orat. 222–230). Compare: Isaac 5, 46: ipse caritas est, non ex accidentibus habens caritatem, sed habens semper in substantia sua sicut regnum de quo dicit: Ego in hoc natus sum, fid. 2. 103: interrogatus a Pilato si ipse esset rex Iudaeorum ait: In hoc natus sum. This probably refers primarily to monks. – Approx. ed. We also find this form of the sixth petition of the Lord’s Prayer in other church writers: Tert. orat. 8; Cypr. orat. dom. 25; Aug. serm. 2.9. 30. This is one of the key provisions of the Nicene Creed (see: Symb. Nicaeni Conc. // Mansi. T. 2. P. 665–666). Wed: sacr. 4.15; myst. 50. Wed: incarn. 35: eo quod biformis geminaeque naturae unus sit consors diuinitatis et corporis. The idea that in the Eucharist there is communion not only of the human, but also of the Divine nature of Christ, which are inseparable from each other, is often found in Greek theology. See, for example, the prayer before St. communion attributed to St. To Simeon the New Theologian: “Communors of Thy Divinity have done unenviably.” However, this position about the participation of the Divine essence itself is more suitable for the Western theological tradition, in which the essence and energies in God were not distinguished; in the East, starting at least with the great Cappadocians, the communion with the Divine essence was considered absolutely impossible; only communion with Divine properties or energies was allowed. – Approx. ed. Wed: 2 Cor.1:21–22. The word “God” here, as often in patristic writing in general, means God the Father, while “Lord” means the Son of God. – Approx. ed. Wed: fid. 2. 47: negare non potestis scriptum esse: Spiritus ubi uult, spirat. Vbi uult, inquit, non “ubi iubetur”; spir. s. 2. 140: non ex praecepto... operatur spiritus, sed ex uoluntate. Greek παράκλητος means “intercessor”, “comforter”. – Approx. ed. Compare: Cain et A. 1. 35. 38: Cubiculum tuum, mentis arcanum animique secretum est. In hoc cubiculum tuum intra, hoc est, intra in alta praecordia, totus ingredere de corporis tui exteriori uestibulo et claude ostium tuum; Sed intellege non cubiculum conclusum parietibus, quo tua membra clauduntur, sed cubiculum quod in te est, in quo includuntur cogitationes tuae, in quo uersantur sensus tui. Hoc orationis tuae cubiculum ubique tecum est et ubique secretum est, cuius arbiter nullus est nisi solus deus; inst. u. 1.7; cubiculum tuum interiorum secretum est, cubiculum tuum conscientia tua est. Wed: uirgb. 3. 11: Maxima est uirtus tacendi praesertim in ecclesia... An quidquam est indignius, quam oracula diuina circumstrepi, ne audiantur, ne credantur, ne reuelentur; circumsonare sacramenta confusis uocibus, ut impediatur oratio pro salute deprompta omnium? On raising hands during prayer, see: Tert. orat. 14; Clym. Alex. strom. 6.28.5; 7.40.1; Orig. in Ex. 3. 3 ; Aug. enarr. ps. 62.13. Cp.: exp. ps. 118, 22. 8: Didicimus quid sit appropinquare orationem, hoc est eleuetur actibus nostris. Si eleuas actus tuos, eleuasti orationem tuam. Obviously, this gesture was performed during the sacrament of Baptism. It is noteworthy that the Byzantine rite of Baptism contains the raising of hands in renunciation of Satan (Oratio ad faciendum catechumenum / ΕΥΧΟΛΟΓΙΟΝ siue Rituale Graecorum. Opera R. P. lacobi Goar. Venetiis, 1730. P. 277; Trebnik. M., 1991. P. 32). Cp.: paenit. 2. 43: Tu quoque cum ad baptismum uenis, manus eleuare... moneris. Presumably, there is a lacuna in the text that contained the words: in laude desinere. Ergo – “to end with praise. So” (see: Botte V. Introduction. R. 151, paragraph 2). Wed: expl. ps. 43, 14: Non perfunctorius sermo est, ut dicas: Tu es ipse rex meus. Non quicunque hoc dicit, sed in quo dei regnum est, in quo autem regnat deus, utique in eo peccata non regnant; non enim deo regnum est commune cum crimine. It is not entirely clear what these words refer to; the Saint calls, on the one hand, to daily communion (see: sacr. 5. 23–26), and on the other, to daily prayer for the forgiveness of one’s own sins. Wed: off. 1. 4: docere uos coepi quod ipse non didici. See also: Paulin. Vita A., 6. You might be interested in: