Supplementa ad quaestiones ad Marinum

1. With the fear of the Jews pressing upon the disciples of the Savior, John indeed says that the disciples were gathered together in one house, with the doors closed because of the fear of the Jews. How did Peter and John go to the tomb? And this while a military guard was watching the place, as Matthew testified; for the custodia is a military unit. We will say in response to these things that the apostles went to the tomb boldly, having learned beforehand from Mary Magdalene that none of those guarding the place were present there, as was evident from the stone having been removed from the tomb; and it was removed in no other way than by the angel from heaven flashing upon the place with much light, and himself rolling away the stone, and frightening the guards, so that they nearly turned to stone from fear; and after this they naturally took flight, so that none of them remained, and the place was vacant for those arriving to behold the saving resurrection; for this was especially the reason for the angel's appearance. For it was not for the sake of the resurrection that he moved the stone, nor did he appear thus for the sake of the stone, but in order to drive away some, and to welcome those coming to behold, announcing the resurrection to them. Of these things Matthew is a witness, saying, "From fear of him the guards were shaken, and became as if dead.

For the Savior rose even before the angel arrived, and did not wait for the stone to be moved away, but while it still lay before the door, sealed with the seals of the high priests, and the guards were surrounding the place, he was invisible from the tomb, having accomplished his resurrection from the dead by divine power, at an hour which no one knew, and at a time which none of the evangelists marked; so that one might aptly say also of him this saying concerning the universal consummation spoken by him: "But concerning the day no one knows, not even the angels of God." Thus, then, the Savior himself, having become the firstfruits of the resurrection, at an hour which no one knew, had risen, escaping the notice of all, and had risen while the stone remained in its place. And the angel, a messenger of good things, was present to men, contributing nothing to the resurrection by his presence, but ministering the great things for the salvation of men; wherefore he also flashed in form, showing himself in white garments, and being the first to begin the saving resurrection. And just as when the sun rises, venomous reptiles and all beasts that love night and darkness flee, while men, as kindred of light, pursue it, so in the same way the angel, dazzling with the flashes of his light, drove away the enemies of truth and life, who are kin and friends of death; and to those who longed for the saving resurrection, he proclaimed this good news, providing them with convenient leisure through the expulsion of the guards.

Two signs, then, he provided for his own to see: the removal of the stone, the opening of the tomb door, and the flight of the guards. Having witnessed these, Mary Magdalene announced them to the disciples; and they, having learned these things from her, ran confidently, with nothing hindering them. 2. And how, since it was still dark, according to the evangelist John, did the two disciples see the interior of the tomb? For the same evangelist also indicated the hour, saying, "Early, while it was still dark," and that the two disciples saw the interior of the tomb: "For they entered," he says, "and believed." At the beginning of the day, the Scripture testified that it was still dark at the tomb; but nevertheless it was already early morning. Having seen this herself, Mary returns to the disciples; then an angel comes to them. In the intervening time after her first departure to the apostles, it was likely that the hour advanced; and when they in turn arrived at the tomb, the time increased even more, so that it was no longer dark, but already broad daylight, in which the said persons, standing outside the tomb, were able to discern the linens lying within; and much more so when they entered, the place being already illuminated by bright daylight. It seems to me that the linens lying within provide evidence that the body was not taken by men, as Mary supposed; for no one removing the body would leave the linens behind; nor would a thief ever wait until he had unrolled the linens and taken them.

At the same time, these things are indicative of the resurrection of the body from the dead. For God, who transforms the bodies of our humiliation so that they become conformed to the body of the glory of Christ, altered the body as an instrument of the power that dwelt in it, changing it toward the more divine, while the linen cloths, as superfluous and alien to the substance of the body, he let go. It seems to me that Peter and John went to the tomb at the time of clear day and bright light, so that, had they come by night and darkness, they might not be suspected of that which the chief priests falsely accused them, namely, that they came by night and stole. Therefore the men did not go by night, nor while darkness still remained, but when bright day was already shining. But if the Gospel says that the disciples were gathered together because of fear of the Jews, and then someone objects, saying, "How then did those who were shut in go to the tomb in broad daylight?" we shall reply that those dwelling in the city, in the midst of the Jews, were likely all shut up together in one house; but those who went to the tomb, being outside the city, were far from the fear of the Jews as well, passing to a deserted place and one empty of men. Perhaps also Peter and John, having become superior to fear, more boldly dared to go out of the house, while the others did not dare to do this, or only these, who are testified to have been deemed worthy of greater honor than the other apostles.

But how is it that in John, the disciples, having heard Mary, then went to the tomb and believed, while in Luke it is said that these words seemed to them like nonsense, and they disbelieved them? In John, Mary revealed the vision to the chosen among the apostles, Peter and John alone, as a secret; and they, again, concealing it from the other disciples, went alone to the tomb at a run, and having seen, they believed. And it was no wonder that the chosen among the apostles, having seen, believed, while the rest, to whom the women reported, not having received it by sight, disbelieved them. At any rate, when the Savior appeared to the disciples gathered together according to John, those who saw rejoiced; but Thomas, since he was not present and did not see, did not assent. And if he disbelieved the apostles, one would hardly blame the rest for disbelieving the women, not yet having seen. The Scripture presents much testing and precision on the part of the disciples, not readily assenting to the words of these, but holding back at first, until, having most fully and clearly recognized the truth, they could later say: "That which was from the beginning, which we heard, which we saw with our eyes, which we beheld, and our hands touched concerning the Word of life." The passage could also have another meaning. For one might say that the eleven did not believe the women who announced the resurrection of the Savior, as from hearing of the two men who appeared to them according to Luke,

among whom were Peter and John, who themselves had not believed. And when Mary, according to John, said, "They have taken my Lord from the tomb," the two disciples did not believe this very thing—that the Savior had been taken—until they came to the place and received it as fact. So when they entered the tomb and saw only the linens, but the body nowhere, then they believed; and in what did they believe, if not in Mary's statement that said, "They have taken my Lord?" Hence he adds next: "For they did not yet know the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead." 4. As to how, when two disciples came to the tomb according to John—Peter and John—Luke says only one met them, it might be resolved thus. Peter was always great in zeal, as when alone among the apostles he said to the Savior, "Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you"; and again, alone he deemed it worthy to step upon the waves; and alone he answered and said to him, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God"; wherefore he alone among the disciples hears, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah." Hence also he is the first to dare to enter the tomb, together with the other disciple whom Jesus loved, having come, according to John; but then, having learned from Mary Magdalene that the Lord's body had been taken from the tomb, he went together with the other disciple; then he withdrew with him, having seen the linens inside the tomb and having believed. But according to Luke, while the other disciples disbelieved, he alone again believes the women who said they had seen the angels that appeared.

For he did not disbelieve the testimonies of the women, but returned to the tomb alone; and again, having looked in, he saw only the linens, as before. Then he departed, marveling to himself at what had happened. And now he departed marveling at what had happened, but since he was great in zeal and displayed more eagerness than all, hastening and running about, and surveying the Savior everywhere with the open eyes of his soul, seeking and looking around everywhere, he did not fail of his hope, but was himself deemed worthy of his theophany. The same evangelist Luke is witness to this, proceeding further on and saying that the Lord truly rose and appeared to Simon. And the holy Apostle also bears witness, writing to the Corinthians, that "He appeared to Cephas, then to the eleven." And Cephas was Simon, who is also Peter, to whom, before the eleven, the Savior appeared alone to him alone, because of his surpassing zeal beyond all. 5. Someone might further inquire how, according to Matthew, Mary Magdalene together with her namesake is said to have seen one angel sitting outside the tomb on the stone, while according to John she sees two angels sitting inside the tomb, and according to Luke two men met the women, and according to Mark a young man was seen by them. The accounts in John and Matthew might receive a solution of this kind: I consider the narrative in John to precede that in Matthew, and that Mary Magdalene, having come first, saw the two angels sitting inside the tomb.

After this, she, along with the other Mary, having come again to the same place, saw the angel sitting on the stone. Or perhaps the angel in Matthew is one, and the time and place of the vision of the angel are different; and the angels who appeared to the women are different from him; likewise, the two angels in John who were seen inside the tomb are different from the one outside the tomb sitting on the stone in Matthew. For if Matthew, having said "late on the Sabbath," had also recorded one sitting on the stone before the door of the tomb, and John, preserving the same time and place, had said that at late on the Sabbath, before the door of the tomb, two were seen sitting on the stone, then one could truly accuse a discrepancy. And likewise, if Matthew, observing the early morning hour like John, had said that inside the tomb not two angels but one was seen, he would have seemed reasonably to write the opposite. But if the evangelists distinguished both the times and the manners, and the persons of the beholders, and the words of the angels, no one would reasonably blame a discrepancy in Scripture, each telling the truth according to the account of its own history, setting forth a narration of different events. But the angels in these evangelists, and the theophanies of the Savior after the resurrection, are borne only by these, as by superior ones who were both eyewitnesses and earwitnesses of the Savior himself, and they would preserve this sequence. But the two men in shining garments seen in Luke, because of the symbols of the feast;

And the young man in Mark, himself also clad in a white robe, seen on the right and not on the left, and who announces bright and favorable things to the women, would again be different persons, both from each other and from those in the first accounts. For this reason they did not even call them angels, since they also refrained from mentioning the appearances of the Savior, having yielded to Matthew and John, who are superior to themselves, the task of writing and recording the greater things. They themselves, narrating the secondary matters, and in time the events that occurred later after the memory of the first, passed over what was said by the eyewitnesses, but filled in what was left silent by them—things that were secondary and far inferior to the account of the former. Thus the Holy Spirit distributed the appropriate and fitting narratives to each. 6. The women in Luke, who came to the tomb at deep dawn bearing the spices they had prepared, would be different from those in Matthew and John. For it would not be reasonable that the Marys, who had already seen so much, would now for the first time bring spices, as if they had not yet learned of the resurrection. For clearly, through what he says, he shows that both those who appeared are different from those previously indicated, and the place where they appeared is different. For they were neither inside the tomb, as John taught, nor sitting on the stone, as the angel in Matthew; nor did Luke call them angels at all, but two men, yet also in shining garments, on account of the symbols of the feast. And their words to the women are also distinctive.

And the women were more numerous, but not the two Marys in Matthew, but simply those who had accompanied him from Galilee; these too were careless, not showing as much zeal as those who had endured through the night and remained at the tomb. For Matthew testifies to the Magdalene and the other Mary great steadfastness and perseverance, saying after his passion: "And Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb." But these sat opposite the tomb on the day of Preparation; therefore they see more quickly first the angel of good things, then the very author of life. The woman in John, she too first beholds the angels, and after them the Savior himself; they did not bring spices, nor were they engaged in that activity. The women who followed him from Galilee, many in number according to Luke, having returned on the day of Preparation, prepared the spices, since they had not yet learned anything about the resurrection. Therefore to these two men appear in shining garments and announce the resurrection. But the Savior did not appear to them, as he did to the woman in John and to those in Matthew; so it is fitting to consider the account as distinct. According to Mark, very early on the first day of the week, at sunrise, others again, these being different, come to the tomb at a different time, who also said

to themselves, "Who will roll away the stone for us?" And they come and find it rolled away, and entering they saw a young man. Here again in Luke it is men, not angels, just as now it is not called an angel but a young man. So that this narrative too is distinct, and the one seen is different, and the women who arrived are others, and the time likewise is after sunrise. If this time were also observed in Luke, one would reasonably demand the two men from him and the same words. But if Luke took the time before sunrise, it is natural that he records the two men seen then, not the young man. 7. Since there are four evangelists, there appear to be an equal number of visions recorded by them: four times, and those seen at each time are distinct; likewise the women who see are different; and the words spoken to them differ. For the first time was that called by Matthew late on the Sabbath; the fourth and last was that recorded by Mark at sunrise; the middle ones are those in John and Luke. Therefore those seen at each time are distinct. For late on the Sabbath, one angel from the tomb; after him, the Savior himself. Early, while it was still dark, two angels inside the tomb; after them, again the same Savior. At deep dawn, according to Luke, two other men, called men, not seen inside the tomb. Then after all, the young man, seen by those who arrived at sunrise.

If, then, all had spoken of one occasion and recorded the same place, but did not indicate the same appearances, one might reasonably have found fault. But if they distinguished the times and assigned to each time and place its own particular character, and accordingly recorded different visions, then it is consistent. As if all had mentioned one appearance and said that one angel was seen, or had unanimously spoken of two angels, or again of two men or one young man, and then varied the times or did not indicate the same places, it would be possible to find fault even so. But as it is, the account remains precise and beyond reproach, introducing visions that vary at different times and places, and again different observers of these: the first two are different from the second, and the third likewise different from the fourth. Immediately after the young man's conversation with the last women, whose names are not given, Mark adds: "And having heard, they fled and told no one, for they were afraid." These women, then, were of such a sort and so fearful, and exceedingly timid, as not even to be persuaded by the young man who said to them: "Go and tell his disciples and Peter, 'Behold, he goes before you into Galilee.'" For having heard these words, they did the opposite. But the women in Luke, having turned back from the tomb, reported all these things to the eleven. Likewise, the woman in John comes to the disciples reporting what she had seen.

Only those who came last of all in Mark, and truly arrived late, so as to arrive after sunrise, are deemed worthy neither to see the Savior, nor the angel who flashed like lightning, nor the two inside the tomb, nor the two men in Luke; they saw only a certain young man, clothed in a white garment, having seen the vision in proportion to the smallness of their understanding; and even having seen this one in white for the sake of the feast, they were nevertheless amazed—for Mark testified this to them, although nowhere in the earlier accounts is the amazement named. As for Mary Magdalene, who lingered and persevered, it is likely that she not only saw the first visions of those who appeared to her alone, but also the young man seen by the other women in Mark. You might say the same concerning the account in Luke, who, after the arrival of the many women and after the vision of the two men who appeared to them, relates, saying: "And turning back from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven;" to which he adds, "Now Mary Magdalene was there," and so forth. For it was not improbable that Mary Magdalene, having arrived long before and having remained steadfastly by the tomb, was found there when many women from Galilee came together to the tomb bearing spices, so that she too, along with the rest, saw the two men and heard their words; then she returned with the many and recounted to the eleven.

The passage can also be interpreted otherwise, assigning the first events to the women from Galilee—namely, the arrival at the tomb, the bringing of spices, the appearance of the two men to them, and the words of these men to them. The report to the eleven, then, was made not by them alone, but by all the women together, each relating what she had seen. Among these women, Mary Magdalene was also present, reporting to the disciples the things seen by her alone. 8. I also inquire into this: how it is that in Mark it is said that after the Sabbath had passed they prepared spices, while in Luke they did this before the Sabbath, on the very Friday. This question, intertwined with the previous ones, would receive a similar interpretation. We demonstrate that these are not the same women, but rather that some are those who before the Sabbath, on the very Friday on which the Savior suffered, were occupied with the burial, while others are those after the Sabbath. For Luke clearly testifies that these women did these things on the very day of the Passion, without mentioning any names of women, but simply saying "the women who had accompanied him from Galilee." Mark, however, records by name only three women who on their own took care of the spices, not on Friday, but after the Sabbath had passed. That these are different from those in Luke is shown by what follows. These women in Mark see the young man sitting on the right, who says to them: "Do not be afraid.

You seek Jesus the Nazarene; he has risen, he is not here.” But in Luke, two men stood before them in shining attire, and they utter different words, saying, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” and so forth. And the women in Mark, having heard, were to announce to the disciples what had been commanded; they told no one nothing. But the women in Luke, having gone, reported to the eleven. So from all this it is concluded that they are not the same women; therefore they did not do the recorded things at the same time. 9. “While they were speaking these things, Jesus himself stood in their midst, and says to them, ‘Peace to you.’” Here someone might be perplexed how, when the Lord appeared to the eleven disciples gathered together after the resurrection according to Luke and according to John, who recorded these things consistently, it is not recorded that he does or says the same things in both. That the two evangelists recorded the same apparition occurring at one and the same hour and day must first be demonstrated; this would become clear to you if you examine the Scripture carefully. For John, having said beforehand, “On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene comes announcing to the disciples that she has seen the Lord and that he said these things to her,” then adds in sequence, saying, “When evening came on that day, the disciples being gathered together, Jesus came, and stood in their midst and said, ‘Peace to you.’” So it is clear from these things that these events took place on the evening of that same Lord’s day of the resurrection.

the passages in John; and according to Luke the same day and hour will be found; for he himself says: "And on the first day of the week, at deep dawn, the women came to the tomb." Then subsequently, that having seen angels, they returned and reported to the disciples what they had beheld. And Peter, hastening to the tomb, meets them and sees the linen cloths; and these things happened at deep dawn on the resurrection day. And the Scripture, continuing, says next: "And behold, two of them on that same day were going to a village." These were the ones with Cleopas; with whom he entered Emmaus, took bread, blessed it, and giving it to them, became invisible. Then it adds: "And rising up, they returned at that same hour to Jerusalem, and found the eleven assembled." Then, while they were speaking, Jesus stood in their midst and says to them, "Peace to you," and so forth. It has therefore been shown also from Luke that it was the same day, and the same hour is established from the fact that on one day those with Cleopas went to Emmaus and from there returned to Jerusalem, evening having certainly already overtaken them; then the appearance occurred. Since therefore the same vision has appeared in both, come, let us see how different things are said by Luke to have been done and spoken by the Savior, and different things by John. Similarly, then, it is said in both that he stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace to you." But specifically in Luke it is added that they thought they were seeing a ghost, and so forth. But even if not so much is said in John, yet the following again agrees in both.

For in John, after "Peace to you," it is added, "And having said this, he showed them his hands and his side." The reason is not given in John, as if it had already been stated by Luke; and this reason was that they thought they were seeing a ghost. That John indeed testified that he showed them his hands and his side would be consistent with the one who also set forth the reason. Next after these things, Luke says, "And while they still disbelieved from joy and were marveling, he said to them, 'Do you have anything edible here?' And they gave him a portion of roasted fish." These things John did not record. Here one must pay attention to the fact that, as in the other cases, the Holy Spirit recorded through John the more solemn and divine deeds and teachings of our Savior, but recorded the more human things through the others, which indeed it has now done. For when the disciples saw the Savior, they thought they were not seeing him but a ghost, and they disbelieved him; and after he necessarily showed them his hands and feet, while they still disbelieved, having asked for something edible, he ate before them. These things, being more corporeal and accusing the apostles of much disbelief, and the Savior's own condescension in persuading them and clearly demonstrating that he was indeed himself, the Spirit suggested to Luke as to a more humble writer; but the better things and those indicative of divine power it set forth through John, who also writes next these things: "Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord;" and he said to them again, "Peace to you.

As the Father sent me, so I send you; and having said this, he breathed on them," and so forth. The account in both would have coherence if we consider that the events in Luke took place first, and then after those we connect the events in John. For while they were still disbelieving and asked for food, and not being satisfied with the eating of the fish, he also strengthens them with words, reminding them of his earlier teaching according to Luke. But when at last they were persuaded and fully assured that he was truly present, and were then filled with joy, at that time he gives them a second and different peace, better than the first, and commands them to be ready for the apostolate, virtually promising that they themselves would be like him through similar work. Then next and in sequence he breathes into them the Holy Spirit, as if they were in need of this for the promise that follows; and this was the ability to forgive sins through the power of the Holy Spirit. And thus from both evangelists a single common account will be completed, with what is said in Luke being passed over in silence in John, and what is committed to writing by John being reserved in silence in Luke; and with what is said in Luke coming first, and then what is in John being connected to those; and thus both preserve one meaning and one intention. So much for this. 10.

How, then, in Matthew an angel appeared to the women and commanded them to announce to his disciples that he had risen from the dead and was going before them into Galilee, and that they would see him there; and similarly in Mark the young man, whom they saw sitting on the right, said these things to the women. But in Luke, in Jerusalem itself, when the eleven disciples were gathered together and were relating to one another the events concerning his resurrection, he himself stood in their midst, conversed with them, and ate a portion of broiled fish before them. And according to John, again in Jerusalem itself, not once but twice he appeared to the eleven: first on the very day of the resurrection, in the evening, and then eight days later. How, then, according to Luke and John, did he appear so many times to the disciples in Jerusalem itself, while according to Mark and Matthew the same disciples are commanded through the women to go to Galilee, as if they would see him there, and not expecting to behold him in Jerusalem? Moreover, if the Gospel writing knew only the eleven disciples of the Saviour, and thus one might say that nothing is lacking in the account, if indeed, while healing his disciples who disbelieved the women’s announcements, he appeared to them once and again secretly while they were hiding in Jerusalem.

In Galilee, however, he no longer appeared secretly, nor only once or twice, nor to those confined by fear of the Jews, but with great boldness he made his theophany and demonstration of his divinity, presenting himself to them alive after his suffering, with many proofs, appearing for forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God, and living with them, as Luke says in the Acts. And this is the first solution. But since among the disciples some were the chosen and first, completing the chorus of the twelve, and there was a second order besides these, that of the seventy, concerning whom Luke says in the Gospel, "After these things the Lord also appointed seventy others," and besides these there were also many other acquaintances of the Savior, whom the holy Apostle also mentioned, saying, "Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers at once," and these too were deemed worthy of the name of disciples, to whom it was not possible for him to appear all together at the same time assembled in Jerusalem after the resurrection, it is reasonable that two of the evangelists, Luke and John, record that he appeared only to the eleven in Jerusalem. But the other two of these said that not only the eleven were commanded to hasten to Galilee, but simply all the disciples and brothers, both the Savior himself and his appearing angel, indicating all indefinitely and absolutely. The first solution is better and truer. Therefore, there were many and various appearances to the disciples after the resurrection.

And some say that he said these things, others that he said and did those things; and sometimes, when speaking about the main point, the second writer fills in what was omitted by the first. 11. But one might say: how is it that Matthew says the eleven, having gone to the mountain in Galilee, saw Jesus, while John, after the two appearances in Jerusalem, records that he appeared a third time not on the mountain of Galilee, but by the sea of Galilee? I agree that this is truly the third time the Savior appeared to the disciples: the first was on the very day of the resurrection, when Mary Magdalene saw him in the morning; and Luke also records this first appearance. The second was eight days later, that is, on the following Lord's Day, when the Savior appeared again and healed Thomas of his disbelief, showing him his side and his hands. And since they had been commanded to meet together in Galilee, the eleven were doing what was commanded along with the rest, and each of them was gathering, but the eleven were not yet assembled, but were still on the way; the third time, by the sea of Galilee, he appears not to the eleven, but only to the seven indicated by John: these were Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, the two sons of Zebedee, and two others from his disciples. So this third appearance truly occurred to these, when the eleven were not yet gathered.

Therefore, John, not precisely excluding the others from the vision of the Saviour, noted that after the first and second vision, the third was made by him only to those named, on the sea of Galilee. It is not unlikely that after these things he appeared a fourth and fifth time, and at other times and often; for this reason John does not circumscribe all the actions of the Saviour; but proceeding further he says, "And Jesus did many other things." At any rate, after this third appearance to the seven mentioned, you would not err in saying that the fourth vision is the one recorded by Matthew, which he wrote was made on the mountain to the eleven. And after these, you would not be mistaken in saying that he appeared at the same time to the eleven and the seventy gathered together. Paul also records that the Saviour was seen by even more than these after the resurrection, having learned this from others: "For he appeared, he says, to Cephas, then to the twelve, then to five hundred, then to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all, he says, to me." Do you see how many times and to how many he appeared after the resurrection? Thus he also appeared to those hiding in Jerusalem; and before them, to those with Cleopas going to Emmaus; and before all, to Simon among the men, and to Mary Magdalene among the women. Hence Luke in the Acts, since he showed himself many times to the disciples, carefully says that for forty days he appeared to them and lived with them, teaching lessons about the kingdom of God, and exhorted them to go to Jerusalem and there preach the word first to the Jews.

nor to depart from the city earlier, but to await the promise of the Father, concerning which we shall discuss a little later.