Lectio altera |
---|
Ex Sermóne sancti Augustíni epíscopi De pastóribus (Sermo 46, 24-25. 27: CCL 41, 551-553) |
---|
In pascuis bonis pascam oves meas
Et edúcam eas de géntibus et cólligam eas de regiónibus et indúcam eas in terram eárum et pascam eas super montes Israel. Constítuit montes Israel, auctóres Scripturárum divinárum. Ibi páscite ut secúre pascátis. Quidquid inde audiéritis, hoc vobis bene sápiat; quidquid extra est, respúite. Ne errétis in nébula, audíte vocem pastóris. Collígite vos ad montes Scriptúræ sanctæ. Ibi sunt delíciæ cordis vestri, ibi nihil venenósum, nihil aliénum; ubérrima páscua sunt. Vos tantum sanæ veníte, sanæ pascímini in móntibus Israel.
Et in rivis et in omni habitatióne terræ. A móntibus enim, quos osténdimus, manavérunt rivi prædicatiónis evangélicæ, cum in omnem terram exívit sonus eórum, et facta est omnis habitátio terræ pascéndis óvibus læta atque fecúnda.
In páscuis bonis pascam eas, et in móntibus altis Israel. Et erunt stábula eárum illic, hoc est, ubi requiéscant, ubi dicant: «Bene est», ubi dicant: «Verum est, maniféstum est, non fállimur». Glória Dei requiéscent, tamquam in stábulis illis. Et dórmient, hoc est, requiéscent, et requiéscent in delíciis bonis.
Et in páscuis pínguibus pascéntur super montes Israel. Iam dixi montes Israel, montes bonos, quo levámus óculos, ut inde nobis auxílium véniat. Sed auxílium nostrum a Dómino, qui fecit cælum et terram. Ideo ne vel in móntibus bonis esset spes nostra, cum dixísset: Pascam oves meas super montes Israel, rursus ne tu remanéres in móntibus, subiécit statim: Ego pascam oves meas. Leva tu óculos tuos in montes, unde véniet auxílium tibi, sed atténde dicéntem: Ego pascam. Auxílium enim tuum a Dómino, qui fecit cælum et terram.
Claudit sic: Et pascam eas cum iudício. Vide quia sic solus pascit, cum iudício pascens. Quis enim homo iúdicat de hómine? Temeráriis iudíciis plena sunt ómnia. De quo desperavérimus súbito convértitur et fit óptimus. De quo multum præsumpsérimus súbito déficit et fit péssimus. Nec timor noster certus est, nec amor noster certus est.
Quid sit hódie quisque homo, vix novit ipse homo. Tamen utcúmque ipse quid hódie. Quid autem cras nec ipse. Pascit ergo ille cum iudício, dispértiens própria própriis: hæc istis, illa illis, débita eis quibus debétur, hoc aut illud. Novit enim quid agat. Cum iudício pascit, quos iudicátus redémit. Pascit ergo ipse cum iudício.
| Second Reading |
---|
St Augustine's sermon On Pastors |
---|
I shall feed my sheep on good pasture
I shall gather them together from foreign nations and bring them back to their own land. I shall pasture them on the mountains of Israel… As the mountains of Israel, he has set up the authors of the holy Scriptures. Feed on these and you will feed in safety. Whatever you hear from them will do you good; whatever you hear from elsewhere, spit it out. Listen to the voice of your shepherd lest you lose your way and wander into the mist. Gather together on the mountains of holy Scripture. There you will find the delight of your heart: nothing poisonous, nothing strange – the richest of pastures. Simply come in good health, and feed in good health on the mountains of Israel.
…In the ravines and in every inhabited place in the land. From these mountains of Scripture flow the streams of the gospel preaching, whose sound has gone forth into all the earth so that every inhabited place of the earth has become a rich and fertile pasture for the sheep.
I shall feed them in good pasturage; the high mountains of Israel will be their grazing ground. There will they rest. That is, where they will say, “It is good here,” where they will say, “It is true, it is clear, we are not deceived.” They will take their rest in the glory of God as in their own shelters. They will sleep and take their rest in the midst of delight.
They will browse in rich pastures on the mountains of Israel. I have already spoken of the mountains of Israel, the good mountains, the mountains to which we lift up our eyes so that help will come to us from them. But remember, our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. So to prevent us putting our hope in the mountains, as soon as he had said I shall pasture them on the mountains of Israel he added at once I shall feed my sheep. Yes, lift your eyes up to the mountains from which your help will come; but wait for him to say I shall feed. For your help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
And finally he says I shall feed them with judgement. Note that it is he alone who feeds them with judgement. For what man can judge another man? Wherever you look, you see rash judgements. Someone we have despaired of suddenly turns round and becomes the best of people. Someone of whom we have had high expectations suddenly fails and sinks into uselessness. There is no certainty in our foreboding, there is no certainty in our love.
Take any man. What is he today? He hardly knows himself. He has some slight idea, perhaps, of what he is today, but as for tomorrow – nothing. So the Lord feeds us all with judgement, distributing what is appropriate to each of us: this to one person, that to others, to each what they ought to have, one thing to one and another to another. For he knows what he is doing. He feeds us with judgement, us whom he redeemed after he had himself been judged. So he feeds us all with judgement.
|