De turture seu de ecclesia sermo

A discourse on the turtledove, or on the Church. 1. The turtledove, lover of solitude, when she lies with her mate in the woods, calls to him, shaking the valleys with plaintive cooings, and having charmed her own male as he grazes near the waters, she urges him to make a swift flight; with one accord they build their nest on firm branches and fearlessly sit on their eggs, and from there they send forth their young. Some say the turtledove is fond of her husband and fond of purity; so that if it happens that her male is consumed by an eagle or hunted by a fowler, she does not mate with another male, but longs for him, awaits him, and dies with his memory. Hear, women, what chastity is found in birds. Therefore, those of you who bear the form of the turtledove in your countenance, imitate its chastity. Such is the all-holy Church. For her husband Christ having been crucified and ascended into the heavens, she does not mate with another man; but she longs for him, awaits him, and dies with his memory. But lest we seem, beloved, to be outside the Scriptures by mentioning the turtledove, let us also mention the Scriptures themselves. The blessed David bears witness and sings, saying: For even the sparrow found a house for itself, and the turtledove a nest for herself, where she will place her own young. And what sparrow does he mean? Surely the human being; for our soul, like a sparrow, was snatched from the snare of the hunters. And the Lord, wishing to show his disciples how much they differ from others in holiness, says to them: Do not fear.

You differ from many sparrows. For this reason Solomon also cried out, saying: “That she might be saved, like a gazelle from snares, and like a bird from a trap.” And again the divine voice: “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard, which a man took and sowed in his own field; it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows, it becomes larger than all the vegetables, so that all the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” For here too it likened the multitudinous races of men to birds. For a sparrow found a home for itself, and a turtledove a nest for itself, where she will place her own chicks. It likened the all-honored Church to a turtledove on account of the manifold gifts of wisdom. That the Church is adorned with variety, one may hear David saying: “All the glory of the king’s daughter is within, clothed in golden tassels, variegated.” For a sparrow found a home for itself, and a turtledove a nest for herself, where she will place her own chicks; that is, nurturing the newly enlightened children under the sturdy branches of the cross.

This turtle dove is also mentioned by Jeremiah, saying: “The turtle dove and the swallow of the field, the sparrows and the grasshoppers knew the time of their entering,” calling the turtle dove the all-holy Church, the swallow the philanthropic John, the grasshopper the eloquent Paul, the pipe of the Church. Concerning this turtle dove the Lord commands Abraham: “Take for me a three-year-old heifer, and a three-year-old ram, and a three-year-old goat, and a dove, and a turtle dove.” This turtle dove is also mentioned in the Song of Songs by Scripture, saying: “The voice of the turtle dove was heard in our land.” The voice of this turtle dove signifies to us that the heavenly spring, Christ, arrives from heaven. The voice of the turtle dove was heard in our land today. But let us hear the voice of this turtle dove, what songs it sings. “I am black and beautiful, daughters of Jerusalem. Do not look at me, because I am blackened, because the sun has looked askance at me.” I am black and beautiful: black, on account of the former transgression; beautiful, on account of the swift repentance. Black, on account of the mourning in the fault; beautiful, on account of the radiance in baptism. “I am black and beautiful, daughters of Jerusalem.” It calls the holy souls of the fathers daughters of Jerusalem. “I am black and beautiful,” the Church from the nations. “Do not look at me, you holy souls, do not gaze upon me, because I am blackened, because the sun of righteousness has looked askance at me,” on account of my former error. What sun looked askance at her? Not at all the one of which it says in Ecclesiastes, “The sun rises, and the sun sets, and draws to its place.

The sun of righteousness, Christ from Mary, rises for us in the flesh; dawn is his name; he set again when he descended upon the cross and into the underworld. The sun rises, and the sun sets, and draws to its place. When he ascended into the heavens, then he drew us. For when I am raised up, then I will draw all to myself. Concerning this sun of righteousness, Isaiah also speaks, saying: “In those days the sun of righteousness will rise, and healing in its wings.” For when the sun of righteousness, Christ, came, the woman with the issue of blood, touching the hem of his garment, dried up the streams of blood. “I am black but beautiful, daughters of Jerusalem.” If there is any soul here standing blackened by sin, let it not fear; only let it repent and say, “I am black but beautiful.” Even if it is at the last breath, even if it is the evening hour, let it not fear; let it repent with weeping. For weeping will lodge in the evening, and in the morning there will be rejoicing. Imitate King Hezekiah, who fell into illness and lay on his bed; hearing Isaiah say to him, “Set your house in order, for you are about to die and will not live,” he turned to the wall, bedewed his bed with tears of repentance, held back the sun, and immediately received fifteen years of life. If there is any catechumen here, let him repent, let him approach God, let him be baptized with water, let him be enlightened with the gaze.

If any faithful person here has sinned, let him wash his body with the water of tears and brighten his soul with the oil of good works. If you adorn yourself in this way, if you beautify her with your achievements, the divine word falls in love with you, touches your mind, draws you toward desire for God; and you too say, "Woe is me, I am wounded with love." For just as by an arrow, so by love are the souls of the saints wounded. Do you wish to hear this arrow speaking? Read Isaiah, and in him you will find how the arrow speaks: "And he set me as a chosen arrow," says the Word of God, "and hid me in his quiver." Wounded by this arrow, Jeremiah said to him: "But I did not grow weary following after you, and I did not long for the day of man." Wounded in his mind by this arrow, David said to him: "My soul clung behind you, and your right hand took hold of me." Wounded by this arrow, Peter said to Christ: "Lord, you know that I love you." Wounded by this arrow and bound together with Christ, Paul said: "Who will separate us from the love of Christ?" Wounded by this arrow, the all-honored Church said: "Woe is me, I am wounded with love." O sigh, gushing forth from the midst of the heart streams that love Christ; O sigh, drawing the heavenly bridegroom Christ to herself.

Therefore she says: "Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. I am betrothed to the heavenly bridegroom through the law and the prophets. I, the Church, who am betrothed from the nations, no longer wish through Moses, or through Isaiah, or through Jeremiah and the rest of the prophets, but let him come himself: I wish to speak with him mouth to mouth; let him come, let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. I hear Jeremiah saying about him: 'His heart is deep beyond all, and he is a man, and who will know him?' I long for him, I beseech him. Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. I hear Amos saying: 'Behold a man standing on an adamantine wall, and in his hand an adamant.' I seek him, let him come, let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. And just as a loving wife, when her husband is absent, leaning out through windows looks around for him, scans for him both on land and on sea; and if she sees a ship coming, she imagines her own husband there; and if she sees travelers coming from afar, she reckons her own husband to be there; for often, having met them, she inquires about her own husband: 'Tell me, where did you leave him, in what city or village, saying what or doing what, or when is he coming?'

3. In the same manner, the all-holy Church, constrained by a holy kiss and love, questions all the prophets, saying: "Have you seen him? Is he coming? Is he not coming? Is he in heaven? Does he pasture the ninety-nine unfaltering sheep in heaven, and does he not come to the straying sheep? Tell me, where does he shepherd, where does he rest, the one whom my soul has loved?" And the prophets, being questioned, speak through one, Isaiah, and say: "We have seen him; but if you await that one, we have seen him, and he had neither his form nor his beauty, but his form was dishonored and inferior to the sons of men." The all-holy bride Church answers: "That is he; I yearn for him, I seek him, I beseech him: Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth." Isaiah answers her: "If it is he, he is coming, and he comes with great might. Lord, Lord is coming, and his arm with authority. Behold his reward, and his work before him; and in his hand he will gather lambs, and he will comfort those with young.

She hears that Isaiah tells precisely about him and calls him a shepherd: "As a shepherd he will shepherd his flock, and in his hand he will gather the lambs, and he will comfort those with young." And she says to him: "Where does he pasture, where does he rest, the one whom my soul has loved?" Isaiah sends her to John, and John says to her: "A voice crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." She goes into the wilderness to John, seizes him, and asks: "Tell me, are you the Christ?" John answers: "I am not the Christ." And she says to him again: "If you are not the Christ, why do you baptize?" He answered again: "I am not the Christ; after me comes one stronger than I am, of whom I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandal." As he still delayed, she said: "Woe is me, I am wounded with love." Again John says to her: "Do not groan, stop, only wait a little." John sees the Lord approaching and says to her: "Stop, groan no more." From afar he points, extending his finger, and says: "Behold, the one you seek; behold, the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." Having heard "lamb" from John and "shepherd" from Isaiah, she wavers, saying to herself: "Whom then shall I believe? Shall I believe this one or Isaiah?" The Master sees that she wavered; he cries out and says: "I am the good shepherd." He resolves her doubt by this word.

She approaches the bridegroom, embraces him, and kisses him. And what is written in David is fulfilled: "Mercy and truth met, righteousness and peace kissed." So that we may learn more fully that the bride was joined to the bridegroom, and a spiritual marriage took place, and a wedding flute: John sings of him and says: "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, standing and hearing his voice, rejoices with joy because of the voice of the bridegroom. He must increase, but I must decrease." It was necessary, as in a wedding, that gifts be written for the bride: paper had to be sought, and a writer, and a reed. The paper is found with Isaiah. The Holy Spirit commands the writer and says: "Take for me a new, large volume, and write in it with a man's stylus." The reed was sought; it was found with David. For he says about himself: "My tongue is the reed of a swift-writing scribe, beautiful in form beyond the sons of men." This Church David adorns as a bridesmaid; he himself beautifies her, he himself admonishes and teaches her as a bridesmaid, or, as is customary for people to say, a paranymph. He instructs the bride: "See, child; listen, daughter, and see, and incline your ear, and forget your people; and the king will desire your beauty. Do not think that you are his equal. Listen, daughter, and see, and incline your ear, and forget your people; and the king will desire your beauty; for he is your Lord; and the daughters of Tyre will worship him with gifts.

If you listen to me, daughter, the rich men of the people of the land will entreat your face. It was necessary, then, to write also what was given by each of them: slaves and handmaidens. From Christ, slaves; from the bride, handmaidens. Christ gives the slaves. Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy come, slaves of Jesus Christ; they also demand the handmaidens from the bride. David dictates: "Virgins will be brought to the king behind her; those near her will be brought to you." The marriage takes place. The Lord comes mystically in Cana of Galilee. And "Cana" is interpreted as "creation of God"; and "creation of God" is the whole world. Here he celebrates the spiritual marriage; he comes to Cana of Galilee, and the entire chorus of saints arrives there. They offer gifts to the bridegroom, each according to his own ability, as at a wedding: Abraham the calf, his wife Sarah the hearth-cakes, Isaac the wood, Jacob the goats, Joseph provides grain, Moses holds a torch, Isaiah sings, and David dances. And since it was necessary that holy women also be present at such a marriage and that they sing, Esther comes, Judith adorns herself and beautifies herself, and Mary the sister of Moses takes the timbrel and says: "Let us sing to the Lord; for he has been gloriously glorified." And since it was necessary that, as at such a marriage, praises also be written down, Paul, praising the marriage, says: "Marriage is honorable in all things, and the bed is undefiled.

That he speaks concerning Christ and the Church, let him interpret himself: For what, he says, is written? "Because of this a man will leave his father and his mother, and will cleave to his wife, and the two will be one flesh." This mystery is great; but I say it with reference to Christ and the Church. Therefore, since he interprets it thus, let us not doubt, in Christ Jesus our Lord; to whom is the glory and the power, together with the Father who is without beginning, and his all-holy and life-giving Spirit, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.