In dictum Pauli Nolo vos ignorare

On the Apostolic Saying, "I do not wish you to be ignorant, brethren, that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea." 1. Sailors love most that part of the sea which is interspersed with frequent harbors and islands. For a harborless sea, even if it is calm, causes great fear to those sailing; but where there are anchorages, shores, and beaches stretching out on all sides, they sail with great safety. For even if they see the sea slightly stirred up, having a refuge nearby, they could find a very quick and easy deliverance from the impending evils. For this reason, not only when they are sailing near a harbor, but even when they are far off, they receive much encouragement from this sight. For it is not by chance that a mountain peak seen from afar, smoke rising up, and flocks of sheep grazing along the foothills are naturally able to revive their spirits. But when they come to the very mouth of the harbor, they enjoy complete joy. For then they lay aside the oar, wash their bodies, which have been pickled by the brine, with fresh water, and going out onto the beach and having a brief contact with the land with their bare bodies, they put aside all the hardship of the voyage. Just as those men, then, love most that part of the sea because of these frequent and continuous rests—

Thus also I especially love this season, not because we have been freed from winter, nor because we enjoy summer with the clear-blowing west wind, but because we have spiritual harbors continually succeeding one another—I mean the festivals of the holy martyrs. For harbors are not so restorative for sailors as the feasts of these saints are for the faithful. Harbors release sailors from the assault of sea waves and long rowing; but the memory of these saints is accustomed to snatch away from evil and unclean spirits, from improper thoughts, from the great storm arising in the soul, those who come to a martyr's festival. And if someone enters dragging some despondency from public or domestic affairs, he departs having laid it all aside, and becomes lighter and more buoyant, not putting down an oar nor rising from the tiller, but dissolving the heavy and varied burden of worldly grief, and receiving much joy in his soul. And you are witnesses to all this, you who yesterday reveled in the contests of the blessed Barlaam, and with great freedom leaped into his harbor, and washed off the brine of worldly cares, and returned home light from his narratives.

But behold, another festival of martyrs is again drawing near. Until we reach their harbor, come, let us imitate the sailors; and just as they, sailing the sea, sing, consoling their labor with song, so also let us, until we reach their harbor, stir up some spiritual words among ourselves, making the blessed Paul the leader of this good discourse, and following whichever path he commands. What path does he command us to follow? The path through the desert and the wonders that occurred there. For you heard him today crying out and saying: I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from a spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. But God was not pleased with the majority of them; for they were laid low in the desert. And these things became types for us, so that we might not be desirers of evils, as they also desired; nor become idolaters, as some of them did, as it is written: The people sat down to eat, and they rose up to play. Nor let us commit fornication, as some of them fornicated, and fell in one day, twenty-three thousand. Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them tempted, and perished by the serpents. Nor let us murmur, as some of them murmured, and perished by the destroyer.

And what is said seems clear, yet it provides no ordinary perplexity to those who attend to it. For it is worth investigating first, for what reason he himself recalled the ancient histories, from what sequence, while discussing things offered to idols, he fell into this narrative, bringing up the events in the desert. For that blessed man does not speak simply or at random, but with great coherence, preserving everywhere the consistency of what he says. For what reason, then, and from where did he fall into this history? He was rebuking those who entered the temples of idols simply and without examination, and who tasted of the polluted table, and touched things offered to idols; and having shown that they suffer a double harm from the matter, both striking the weak and becoming themselves partakers with demons, and having sufficiently humbled their pride through what was said before, and having taught that the faithful must look not only to their own interest but also to that of the many, wishing to intensify their fear, he reminds them of ancient narratives. For since those people thought highly of themselves, as faithful, and delivered from error, and deemed worthy of knowledge, and partakers of the secret mysteries, and called to the kingdom of heaven, wishing to show that these things are of no benefit unless a way of life accompanies such great grace, he instructs them from an ancient history.

2. But this very point again is full of much inquiry. Why does he not address them from the words of Christ that are set in the Gospel, nor remind them of Gehenna, and of the outer darkness, and of the venomous worm, and of the unending bonds, and of the fire prepared for the devil and his angels, and of the gnashing of teeth, and of the other unspeakable punishments? For if he wished to frighten them, he ought to have done this from the greater things, not from those in the desert. For those men, even if they were punished, were punished more mildly and temporarily, and in a single day; but these are about to be punished eternally and more severely. For what reason, then, did he frighten them from that source, and not remind them of the words of Christ? For he could have said to them: I do not wish you to be ignorant, brothers, of what laws Christ laid down concerning those who have faith but do not display an excellent life. For he cast out of the kingdom of heaven men who performed miracles and displayed prophecy, saying: Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not cast out demons in your name, and did we not prophesy in your name, and did we not perform many powers? And then I will confess to them, Depart from me, I do not know you, you who work lawlessness. And he shut the virgins out of the bridal chamber, not accusing them concerning faith and doctrines, but concerning a corrupt life and inhumanity and cruelty; and the one who wore filthy garments, because of this he was bound.

he cast out, not because they did not have right doctrines, but because their life was foul and unclean. And those whom he ordered to be carried into the fire prepared for the devil and his angels, he did not send there because they had fallen away from the faith, but because they never showed mercy to anyone. He could have reminded them of all these and similar things, and said: I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, that all these received baptism, partook of the mysteries, displayed great faith, and had perfect knowledge; but because they did not provide a life consonant with the faith, they were cast out of the kingdom and consigned to the fire. For what reason, then, did he not say these things, but leaving all this aside, speaks thus: I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, that all our fathers were under the cloud, and reminding them of Moses, while for the time being keeping silent about the things of grace? He does not do this simply or without some reason; for he was filled with great wisdom. But why, and for what reason? For two reasons: both wishing to reproach them more, and to show that there is great kinship between the Old Testament and the New. For since many people, some disbelieve in Gehenna and think there is no punishment, but that God has threatened these things simply for the sake of fear and discipline—the unending worm, the inextinguishable fire, the outer darkness—they cannot disbelieve what has already happened. For how could one say that what has happened did not happen?

For to those things that have not yet appeared, nor have come to pass, there are many who disbelieve; but for those that have happened and have reached their end, even if someone is utterly blameless and senseless, he will never be able, even if he wished, to disbelieve. From things that are very well agreed upon, and have an end, and of which many remnants remain, he wishes to convince them concerning the just judgment of God, all but saying: If you do not think there is a Gehenna, nor punishment and chastisement, but that God has simply threatened, then, having considered the past, believe also concerning the future. For if the same God is the one who administers both the former and the present, both the things of the Old and those of the grace, as indeed he is the same, what reason would there be that he punished and chastised those who sinned, but left us, who commit these same and much more grievous offenses than those, unpunished? I ask, therefore: Did the Jews commit fornication, and were they punished? Did they murmur, and were they chastised? It is absolutely necessary to agree. How then will the one who punished them overlook you who dare the same things? There would be no reason. But you did not pay the penalty here? For this very reason, believe that there is a Gehenna and punishment, because you did not pay the penalty here. For if there were not some punishment stored up afterwards, you would not have remained unpunished after daring the same things as those before. And so, when you take someone who is vain and dissolute, and displays great licentiousness, and he says to you that these things are a myth, that there is no punishment, nor Gehenna, but that God has simply threatened, wishing to frighten, say to him:

Man, you disbelieve in things to come because they are not visible, nor have they come into the open, nor do they lie before our eyes. But is it possible to disbelieve in things that have already happened and reached their end? Consider for me Sodom and Gomorrah. That land paid such a penalty for no other sin than that those who inhabited those cities introduced unlawful unions, lawless loves, and overturned the laws of nature from their foundations. How then would it be reasonable for God, who is the same then and now, to punish those sinners without any mercy, but to leave you, who sinned after them, who are worthy of much greater punishment and chastisement, inasmuch as you have enjoyed grace and were not even chastened by their punishments, unpunished? 3. For this reason, Paul, having said nothing about Gehenna for the time being, since for many the future is unbelievable, wishes to chasten them from things that have already happened and which had sufficient credibility. For even if future things are more fearful, yet for the more imperfect of men, past things are more credible, and these are accustomed to frighten them more than those. For this reason, he speaks to them from these things, which even the utterly shameless could not disbelieve. At the same time, he deals a mortal blow to Marcion, Mani, and all who suffer from the same things as those. For if the God of the Old and New Testaments is not the same, the one who admonished those things and is about to shape these, then you speak these things to me in vain, O Paul, and you instill no fear in your hearers.

For the hearer can say, "If that God is one and this God is another, then this one will not necessarily judge according to that one's opinion, nor is he bound by the same laws. What then, if the God of the Old Testament decided to punish and chastise everyone, why do you frighten and terrify me?" "I have another Master who will judge me." So if the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New were different, Paul would have done the opposite of what he intended; for he would not only have failed to frighten the hearer, but would have freed him from all anxiety and fear—something not even any ordinary and utterly foolish person would have suffered, let alone Paul, who is full of such wisdom. Hence it is clear that it is one and the same God who both struck down the Jews in the desert and will punish our sinners. For if he were not one (I will say the same thing again), he would not have frightened us about future things based on what that other had already done; but since he is the same, he introduced to them an irrefutable expectation of punishment, showing that one must be afraid and fearful. For the one who punished our fathers when they sinned will not spare us when we commit the same offenses. It is worthwhile to come to the very beginning of the narrative and examine each phrase with all precision. "I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers." He called the disciples "brothers," addressing them not by a title of rank but by a name of love. For he knew, he knew clearly, that nothing is equal to this, and that the greatest form of dignity is the form of love.

Let us first emulate this ourselves. Even if some among us are far inferior, let us call them by the names of service, not only free men but also slaves, not only the rich but also the poor, since Paul honored not only the wealthy among the Corinthians, nor only the free and distinguished, nor only the notable, but also private individuals, and servants, and absolutely everyone with this appellation. For in Christ Jesus there is no slave, no free man, no barbarian, no Scythian, no wise man, no unwise man, but every inequality of worldly worth is abolished. And what wonder is it that Paul called his fellow servants thus, when even his Master called our nature thus, saying: I will announce your name to my brothers, I will hymn you in the midst of the Church? Not only did he call us brothers, but he also wished to become our brother, and he became so by putting on our flesh and sharing our same nature. Therefore Paul, marveling at this very thing, said: For God does not take hold of angels, but takes hold of the seed of Abraham, whence he ought to be made like his brothers in all respects. And again: Since the children have partaken of flesh and blood, similarly he himself partook of the same. Hearing all these things, let us banish from our soul all arrogance, pride, and madness, and let us accomplish this with great zeal: to call our neighbors by names of service that also convey honor. For even if the achievement seems small and trivial, yet it is the cause of great goods.

Just as, on the contrary, the opposite has often produced many enmities, quarrels, and contentions. But we must examine not only this statement but also the one that follows with great precision; for he did not set this down simply either. For after saying, "I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers," he added, "that all our fathers." He did not say, "that the Jews," nor "those who came out of Egypt," but what? "All our fathers," at once displaying his own humility, that he did not deem kinship with them unworthy, though he was so far advanced in the matter of virtue, and at the same time checking the shameless tongue of those who slander the Old Testament. For if he had been hostile to it, he would not have recalled it by the more honorable names, when everything that happened then was subject to slander. "All." Nor did he set down this "all" simply or casually, but with great wisdom. For he did not say it once and then fall silent, but twice, thrice, and many times, so that you might learn that he did not toss these things out carelessly. For after saying, "that all our fathers were under the cloud," he added, "and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink.

You have heard how often he has set down "All." He would not have done this unless he wished to intimate some great and wonderful mystery. For if he were setting it down simply, it would have sufficed to say it once and be silent, and to speak thus: That our fathers were all under the cloud, and passed through the sea, and were baptized into Moses, and ate the same spiritual food, and drank the same spiritual drink. But now he did not speak thus, but by placing "All" in each of the events, he has opened for us no small door to his own intention, so that we may perceive his wisdom. For what reason, then, does he continually mention this word? He wishes to show that there is a great kinship of the Old to the New, and that these things were a type of those, and a shadow of what was to come. And first from this he shows the harmony. For wishing to show that, just as in the Church there is no distinction between slave and free, nor between stranger and citizen, nor between old and young, nor between wise and foolish, nor between private person and ruler, nor between woman and man, but every age, every rank, and each sex alike enter that font of waters, and whether one is a king or a beggar, they enjoy the same purifications; and this is especially the greatest proof of nobility among us, that we initiate alike the beggar and the one who wears the purple, and that one has nothing more than the other in respect of the mysteries; so also in the Old Testament he has continually set down "All.

Nor can you say that Moses passed through dry land, while the Jews passed through the sea, nor that the wealthy went by one road and the poorer by another, nor that the women were under the open air and the men under the cloud; but all passed through the sea, all under the cloud, and all into Moses. For since that crossing was a type of the future baptism, it was necessary that this first be typified among all things: that all should enjoy the same things, just as here all equally partake of the same things. And how, you say, can that be a type of the present? If you first learn what a type is and what truth is, then I will also render account to you on this point. 4. What then is shadow, and what is truth? Come, let us bring the argument to the images that painters draw. You have often seen a royal image colored with dark pigment, and then the painter drawing white lines and making a king, a royal throne, horses standing by, bodyguards, and enemies bound and lying prostrate. But while seeing these things

sketched. You neither know the whole nor are ignorant of the whole, but you know dimly that a man and a horse are depicted; what sort is the king and what sort the enemy, you do not know very precisely, until the truth of the colors comes and makes the vision clear and more distinct. Just as in that image you do not demand the whole before the truth of the colors, but even if you receive some dim knowledge of what is happening, you consider the sketch sufficiently complete; so also reckon with me concerning both the Old and the New, and do not demand from me the entire precision of the truth in the type; and we will be able to teach you how the Old had some kinship with the New, and that crossing with our baptism. There water, here water; a font here, and there a sea; all here enter into the waters, and there all; in this respect is the kinship. Do you wish to learn the truth of the colors? There they were delivered from Egypt through the sea, here from idolatry; and there Pharaoh was drowned, here the devil; there Egyptians were choked, here the old man of sins is buried. And see the kinship of type to truth, and the superiority of truth to type. For the type must neither be completely alienated from the truth, for then it would not be a type; nor again be made equal to the truth, for then it itself would be truth; but it must remain in its own proportion, neither possessing the whole of the truth nor having fallen away from the whole.

If it contains the whole, then it is again truth and the truth itself; but if it falls short of the whole, it can no longer be a type. Rather, one must hold one part and reserve the other for the truth. Do not, therefore, demand the whole from me in the case of the Old Testament, but if you receive even some small and dim hints, consider this a matter for contentment. Where, then, is the kinship of the type to the truth? That all were there, and all are here; that it was through water there, and it is through water here; that they were freed from servitude there, and we from servitude, but not the same servitude—they from that of the Egyptians, we from that of the demons; they from that of the barbarians, we from that which pertains to sin. They were led to freedom, and we also, but not to the same freedom—we to a far more splendid one. And if our things are greater and surpass theirs, do not be troubled. For this is especially characteristic of truth, that it has great superiority over the type, not opposition or conflict. What does it mean, "All were baptized into Moses"? And perhaps the saying is unclear; I will therefore try to make it clearer. There was a sea spread before the eyes of those people then, and they were commanded to cross by a strange and extraordinary path, which no one among men had ever traversed. They hesitated, shrank back, and were distressed. Moses crossed first, and then gave all the rest the ease to follow. This is what it means: "They were baptized into Moses"—trusting him, they thus took courage to set foot upon the waters, taking him as guide of the journey.

This also happened in the case of Christ; for having led us out of error, and freed us from idolatry, and guiding us toward the kingdom, he himself first began this road for us, first ascending into the heavens. Just as those men, trusting in Moses, dared to undertake the journey, so we, trusting in Christ, dare to undertake this departure. And that this is the meaning of "they were baptized into Moses" is clear from the history. For they were not baptized in the name of Moses. But if we not only have Jesus as our leader, but are also baptized in his name, while they were not baptized in the name of Moses, do not be troubled here either; for I said that the truth must have some great and ineffable superiority. Do you see in the case of baptism what is the type and what is the truth? Come, I will also show you the table and the communion of the mysteries sketched out there, if you do not demand the whole from me again, but examine what happened as is fitting to see in a sketch and in types. For after he spoke about the sea and the cloud and Moses, he added again: "And all ate the same spiritual food." Just as you, he says, ascending from the font of waters, run to the table, so those men, ascending from the sea, came to a new and extraordinary table, I mean the manna. And again, just as you have an extraordinary drink, the saving blood, so those men had an extraordinary nature of drink, not finding springs nor flowing rivers, but receiving a great abundance of waters from a hard and waterless rock.

For this very reason he also called it spiritual, not because it was such by nature, but because it became such by the manner of its provision. For it was not given to them according to the sequence of nature, but according to the activity of the God who commanded them. This is what he was also correcting when he said. For after he said, "And all drank the same spiritual drink," but it was water that was drunk, wishing to show that he called it spiritual for this reason, not because of the nature of the water, but because of the manner of its provision, he added, "For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them," and the rock was Christ. "It is not the nature of the stone," he says, "but the power of the active God that released those springs." 5. Here he also uprooted the heresy of Paul of Samosata completely. For if Christ was the one who was active in all those things, how can they say that he existed only from the time Mary bore him? For when the events in the desert appear to have taken place before Mary, and all those things were done by Christ according to Paul's statement, it is necessary that he existed before this birth and before these birth pangs; for surely one who does not exist would not be about to perform such wonderful and extraordinary things. And just as by saying that all passed through the sea, he revealed the nobility of the Church being prefigured from above, so by saying, "They ate the same spiritual food," he hinted at this same thing again. For just as in the Church the rich man does not have one body and the poor man another, nor does this one have one blood and that one another, so also then, the rich man did not receive one manna and the poor man another.

Nor did one partake of one spring and another of a lesser one; but just as now the same table, the same cup, the same food lies before all who enter here, so too then the same manna, the same spring lay before all. And what is truly remarkable and astonishing, some at that time attempted to gather more than was necessary, and they gained nothing from their greed. Indeed, as long as they honored equality, the manna remained manna; but when they desired to be greedy, their greed turned the manna into worms—and yet they did not do this at the expense of others, for they did not seize food from their neighbor to gather more themselves; nevertheless, because they desired more, they were condemned. For even if they wronged their neighbor in no way, they harmed themselves greatly, becoming accustomed to greed through this manner of gathering. Thus the same thing was both food and a lesson in the knowledge of God; it both nourished the body and educated the soul; and it not only nourished but also freed them from labors. For there was no need to yoke oxen, to draw a plow, to cut furrows, or to wait for a year; but they had their table improvised, fresh, new, and daily; and that evangelical precept—not to worry about tomorrow—taught them through deeds; for there was no benefit from such worry. If anyone gathered more, it was corrupted and destroyed, and the result was merely a proof of their greed.

Then, lest they think the rain followed the course of nature, on the Sabbath day nothing of the sort occurred, God teaching them both things: that on the earlier days He Himself was working this wondrous and extraordinary rain, and that on that day He held back for this reason, so that even unwillingly they might be taught to keep the Sabbath day idle. And not only in the matter of food, but also in clothing, in footwear, and in all other things, it was possible to see through the works themselves the commandments of the apostles being fulfilled. For they had no house, no table, no bed, no second garment, no shoes, God having so arranged it. See how great is the kinship of the Old with the New. For just as Christ later shaped the apostles in regard to necessities, so too among them the manner of their polity was regulated, and the whole creation was prepared for their service. And why did these things happen, one may ask? He was about to confine them to one place of the inhabited world, and to command them to serve Him there continuously, and to have neither temple nor altar erected elsewhere in the world, but to bring there both offerings and sacrifices, to celebrate festivals, to read the law, and to fulfill all the other things of that sanctity.

Lest, therefore, they think that his providence is confined to the prescribed manner of worship, and that he is a partial God, he anticipated and displayed his power in a foreign land, in Egypt, in the desert, where there was no one to worship, no one to adore; and contrary to expectations, creation served him, through what it did, persuading those who were ungrateful to him to acknowledge his original creation. For the sea drowned some and saved others; and the air at one time brought down hail and destroyed the barbarians, and at another brought down manna and nourished the Jews. Again, the earth at one time produced gnats for the punishment of enemies, and at another quails for the salvation of his own people. For those there was darkness by day, for these light by night. And the Egyptians, having the Nile flowing past, were destroyed by thirst and drought; while these, encamped in a dry and parched desert, enjoyed an abundance of water; and frogs overcame those, while not even the giants there could subdue these. 6. But why did the blessed Paul remind you of these things? For the reason I told you from the beginning, that you may learn that neither baptism, nor remission of sins, nor knowledge, nor participation in mysteries, nor the sacred table, nor the enjoyment of the body, nor the communion of the blood, nor any other of these things will be able to benefit us, unless we have a right life, a wonderful life, and one free from all sin.

For that he recalled these things for this reason, having set forth the type of baptism—that through the sea and the cloud—and the type of the mysteries—that through the manna and the rock—he prefigured in the Old Testament, and having said that "All ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink," he added, saying: "But God was not well pleased with the majority of them." After such and so great wonders, he says, God did not love them. But what? They were laid low in the desert. For what purpose, then, do you say these things to us, O Paul? These things became a type for us, so that we might not become desirers of evils, as they also desired, nor become idolaters, as some of them did, as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play." See the wisdom of Paul. He named the sin, he named the cause of the sin, he named the punishment for the sin, through all things instructing us to flee their imitation. The cause of the sin was gluttony: for the people sat down to eat and drink. The sin was the playing itself. Then the punishment, that they were laid low in the desert. Again, "Let us not commit fornication, as some of them fornicated." Here the cause of the

He did not set down the cause of the fornication, but the punishment. And what was this? Twenty-three thousand fell in one day. Why then did he not mention the pretext from which the fornication arose? To give the studious an opportunity to go to the history and learn the root of the evil. For this is a method of healing: to state from what the diseases arise and to apply remedies to the wounds. For this reason he says: All these things happened as types to them, and they were written for our admonition. So the one who did those things and punished the ungrateful, this one now admonishes us, not only through words but also through the deeds themselves, which is the greatest form of admonition. Do you see how he set up for those in the grace the one who did these things in the Old Testament as a teacher, showing that it is one and the same who both did those things and speaks these things through him? For if he were a stranger, he would not have called those things types of these, he would not have said that they were written for our admonition, he would not have set up for us as a teacher one whom he did not consider to be God, he would not have frightened us then by what was done by him, as if we were about to fall again into his hands. But now, showing that we are about to fall again into his hands, and that each people, both that one and this one, are governed by his laws, he recalled all those things and said that they were written for our admonition. Knowing these things, then, let us believe both in the past and in the future.

If there are some who do not believe in the future, let us lead them by the past to care for virtue, recounting the events concerning the Sodomites, speaking of the flood, recalling the events concerning Egypt, so that, disciplined by the punishments of others, they may both display an excellent life and accept the teaching about Gehenna and the resurrection. For even now, those who disbelieve in the judgment suffer this from no other source than a corrupt life and a wicked conscience. Therefore, if we cleanse ourselves of our sins, and educate ourselves by fear of the past, we will also persuade them to accept the teaching about the future. For just as evil doctrines are accustomed to introduce an impure life, so also a corrupt life has often given birth to wickedness of doctrines. So that this may not happen, let us, chanting these words to ourselves and to others, both maintain the right faith and display an excellent polity, since the argument has shown us from all sides that without this there is no benefit to us from right doctrines. May it be, by the prayers of the saints and of all the presidents, that we preserve intact the rightness of the doctrines which we received from above and from our ancestors, and add to it a life consistent with it, so that we may attain the promised goods, by the grace and philanthropy of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, power, honor, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.