Saint John Chrysostom on the Cross

Unspeakable is the power of the Cross. For that being actually in the midst of horrors, He should have shown Himself above all horrors; and being in the enemy's hold should have overcome; this comes of Infinite Power. For as in the case of the Three Children, their not entering the furnace would not have been so astonishing, as that having entered in they trampled upon the fire—and in the case of Jonah, it was a greater thing by far, after he had been swallowed by the fish, to suffer no harm from the monster, than if he had not been swallowed at all—so also in regard of Christ; His not dying would not have been so inconceivable, as that having died He should loose the bands of death. Say not then, why did He not help Himself on the Cross? for He was hastening on to close conflict with death himself. He descended not from the Cross, not because He could not, but because He would not. For Him Whom the tyranny of death restrained not, how could the nails of the Cross restrain?

Saint John Chrysostom, Commentary on the Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians

Saint Leo the Great on the Incarnation

The Solemnity of the Annunciation is observed today, transferred from 25 March because of Good Friday. The second reading of Matins today is from Pope St. Leo the Great. Reading some of his writings for patrology last semester, I gained an appreciation for the style in which he expresses the dogmas of the incarnation and hypostatic union with great clarity within his theological subtlety, an art I am gaining appreciation for as I struggle to write papers and exams on the Trinity this semester. 

Second reading

From a letter by Saint Leo the Great, pope

The mystery of man’s reconciliation with God

Lowliness is assured by majesty, weakness by power, mortality by eternity. To pay the debt of our sinful state, a nature that was incapable of suffering was joined to one that could suffer. Thus, in keeping with the healing that we needed, one and the same mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ, was able to die in one nature, and unable to die in the other.

He who is true God was therefore born in the complete and perfect nature of a true man, whole in his own nature, whole in ours. By our nature we mean what the Creator had fashioned in us from the beginning, and took to himself in order to restore it.

For in the Savior there was no trace of what the deceiver introduced and man, being misled, allowed to enter. It does not follow that because he submitted to sharing in our human weakness he therefore shared in our sins.

He took the nature of a servant without stain of sin, enlarging our humanity without diminishing his divinity. He emptied himself; though invisible he made himself visible, though Creator and Lord of all things he chose to be one of us mortal men. Yet this was the condescension of compassion, not the loss of omnipotence. So he who in the nature of God had created man, became in the nature of a servant, man himself.

Thus the Son of God enters this lowly world. He comes down from the throne of heaven, yet does not separate himself from the Father’s glory. He is born in a new condition, by a new birth.

He was born in a new condition, for, invisible in his own nature, he became visible in ours. Beyond our grasp, he chose to come within our grasp. Existing before time began, he began to exist at a moment in time. Lord of the universe, he hid his infinite glory and took the nature of a servant. Incapable of suffering as God, he did not refuse to be a man, capable of suffering. Immortal, he chose to be subject to the laws of death.

He who is true God is also true man. There is no falsehood in this unity as long as the lowliness of man and the pre-eminence of God coexist in mutual relationship.

As God does not change by his condescension, so man is not swallowed up by being exalted. Each nature exercises its own activity, in communion with the other. The Word does what is proper to the Word, the flesh fulfills what is proper to the flesh.

One nature is resplendent with miracles, the other falls victim to injuries. As the Word does not lose equality with the Father’s glory, so the flesh does not leave behind the nature of our race.

One and the same person — this must be said over and over again — is truly the Son of God and truly the son of man. He is God in virtue of the fact that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He is man in virtue of the fact that the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.

Good Annunciation Friday

What does the date of Christmas have to do with Good Friday? Good Friday is the reason that Christmas is observed on December 25.

There are many popular explanations for why Christmas is on December 25. These are mostly modern revisionist attempts to explain away the significance of Christian holy days and generally relate to supposed attempts to suppress or appropriate earlier pagan practices. For example, Christmas was supposedly meant to replace Saturnalia, but this Roman bacchanal began on December 17 and never extended later than December 23. Another popular myth propagated by Bill Maher in his "mockumentary" Religulous is that attempts to suppress the cult of Sol Invictus was the reason for fixing the date, but this is hard to believe because the cult of Sol Invictus dates from the late third century, well after Christmas was fixed, and Sol Invictus was on the day of the solstice, which is not December 25.

The reason for Christmas on December 25 is the date of Easter. Methods used to calculate the date of Easter in the early Church varied; some continued to observe 14 Nisan as the date of Easter based on the Jewish Passover feast whether or not it fell on a Sunday; in parts of the west such as Gaul, the date of Easter was fixed on March 27, a practice that continued right up to the 6th century, and therefore Good Friday was March 25. If you are aware of the temporal cycle of the Church's calendar, you probably know March 25 as the day that the Solemnity of the Annunciation is observed, and this is not by accident; a common belied in the ancient world was that a great man's date of death coincided with that of his birth or conception. The Fathers of the western Church used this common belief when they established March 25 as the date of commemoration for both the conception and death of Jesus.

There was a different method of calculation used in the east, but despite that the dates agree and March 25 and December 25 are also observed in the Byzantine Churches (although the Orthodox retain the Julian Calendar which is now 12 days behind). The reasoning was more theological: it was held that the day of the new creation (Resurrection) corresponded to the date of the first creation, and these also shared the date of the Incarnation. The understanding was that there is an inextricable connection between all the mysteries of salvation, beginning with creation and including all the mysteries of Christ. Therefore it was natural to celebrate the new creation annually with its cardinal mysteries of the Incarnation and Resurrection. (See Ratzinger, Spirit of the Liturgy, 106).

It is obvious that December is nine months after March, but what I learned in Patristics class last semester is that the date of birth was figured from the date of conception, not the other way around as the importance assumed by the second holy day in contemporary public awareness might have led me to assume.

Resurrection and Annunciation, details from opposite doors of the Isenheim Altarpiece, Matthias Grünewald, 1515.

This connection  between the feasts was lost later when the calculation of Easter was standardized for the most part (the calculation long continued to vary, not being fixed by a council until Nicaea in 325, which also explains the ancient Armenian observance of the Nativity and Theophany on 6 January because of a different Easter dating). Another reason the connection is lost is the later change that when 25 March falls within Holy Week, the Solemnity of the Annunciation is transferred to the second Monday of Easter. This preserves it as a separate celebration, which only makes sense if it is seen separately.

The Fathers of the Church intended that the whole mystery of Christ from Incarnation to Pasch be celebrated together and that they be seen as inextricably connected. Although this connection has been lost in all but historical record, the two coincide (at least formally) a few times a century when Easter falls on 27 March*, a unique occasion, especially in this Jubilee of Mercy, to reflect on the unity of history in Christ who makes all things new.

*This actually happened twice recently, 2005 and 2016, and will not recur until year 2157.

Station XIV: The Body of Jesus is Placed in the Tomb

Romans 6:3-5, 8, 10-11

Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection. If, then, we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. As to his death, he died to sin once and for all; as to his life, he lives for God. Consequently, you too must think of yourselves as [being] dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus.

Tissot, Jacques, 1836-1902. Jesus Carried to the Tomb.

Psalm 16:8-11

I keep the Lord always before me;
    with him at my right hand, I shall never be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, my soul rejoices;
    my body also dwells secure,
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
    nor let your devout one see the pit.
You will show me the path to life,
    abounding joy in your presence,
    the delights at your right hand forever.

John 12:24-26

"Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me."

Station XIII: The Body of Jesus is Removed from the Cross

Ezekiel 37:12-14

Thus says the Lord God: Look! I am going to open your graves; I will make you come up out of your graves, my people, and bring you back to the land of Israel. You shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and make you come up out of them, my people! I will put my spirit in you that you may come to life, and I will settle you in your land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord. I have spoken; I will do it—says the Lord.

Tissot, Jacques, 1836-1902. The Descent from the Cross.

Psalm 22:24-27

“You who fear the Lord, give praise!
    All descendants of Jacob, give honor;
    show reverence, all descendants of Israel!
For he has not spurned or disdained
    the misery of this poor wretch,
Did not turn away from me,
    but heard me when I cried out.
I will offer praise in the great assembly;
    my vows I will fulfill before those who fear him.
The poor will eat their fill;
    those who seek the Lord will offer praise.
    May your hearts enjoy life forever!”

Matthew 16:25

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Station XII: Jesus Dies on the Cross

Zechariah 12:10

 I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of mercy and supplication, so that when they look on him whom they have thrust through, they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and they will grieve for him as one grieves over a firstborn.

Psalm 142:2-8

With my own voice I cry to the Lord;

Tissot, Jacques, 1836-1902. The Death of Jesus.

    with my own voice I beseech the Lord.
Before him I pour out my complaint,
    tell of my distress in front of him.
When my spirit is faint within me,
    you know my path.
As I go along this path,
    they have hidden a trap for me.
I look to my right hand to see
    that there is no one willing to acknowledge me.
My escape has perished;
    no one cares for me.
I cry out to you, Lord,
    I say, You are my refuge,
    my portion in the land of the living.
Listen to my cry for help,
    for I am brought very low.
Rescue me from my pursuers,
    for they are too strong for me.
Lead my soul from prison,
    that I may give thanks to your name.
Then the righteous shall gather around me
    because you have been good to me.

John 15:12-17

No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.
This I command you: love one another.

Station XI: Jesus is Nailed to the Cross

Lamentations 1:12

Come, all who pass by the way,
    pay attention and see:
Is there any pain like my pain,
    which has been ruthlessly inflicted upon me,
With which the Lord has tormented me
    on the day of his blazing wrath?

Psalm 22:2, 8-9, 12

My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
    Why so far from my call for help,
    from my cries of anguish?
All who see me mock me;
    they curl their lips and jeer;
    they shake their heads at me:
“He relied on the Lord—let him deliver him;
    if he loves him, let him rescue him.”
Do not stay far from me,
    for trouble is near,
    and there is no one to help.

Matthew 5:43-48

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Tissot, Jacques, 1836-1902. The First Nail.

Station X: Jesus is Stripped of His Clothing

Isaiah 53:7-8

Tissot, Jacques, 1836-1902. Jesus Stripped of his Clothing.

Let the wicked forsake their way,
    and sinners their thoughts;
Let them turn to the Lord to find mercy;
    to our God, who is generous in forgiving.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    nor are your ways my ways—says Lord.

Psalm 22:17-22

Dogs surround me;
    a pack of evildoers closes in on me.
They have pierced my hands and my feet
    I can count all my bones.
They stare at me and gloat;
    they divide my garments among them;
    for my clothing they cast lots.
But you, Lord, do not stay far off;
    my strength, come quickly to help me.
Deliver my soul from the sword,
    my life from the grip of the dog.
Save me from the lion’s mouth,
    my poor life from the horns of wild bulls.

Matthew 20:25-28

“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom
for many.”

Station IX: Jesus Falls a Third Time

Isaiah 52:13-15

See, my servant shall prosper,
    he shall be raised high and greatly exalted.
Even as many were amazed at him—
    so marred were his features,
    beyond that of mortals
    his appearance, beyond that of human beings—
So shall he startle many nations,
    kings shall stand speechless;
For those who have not been told shall see,
    those who have not heard shall ponder it.

Psalm 71:14-16, 19-22

I will always hope in you
    and add to all your praise.
My mouth shall proclaim your just deeds,
    day after day your acts of deliverance,
    though I cannot number them all.
I will speak of the mighty works of the Lord;
    O God, I will tell of your singular justice.
do not forsake me, God,
That I may proclaim your might
    to all generations yet to come,
Your power and justice, God,
    [are] to the highest heaven.
You have done great things;
    O God, who is your equal?
Whatever bitter afflictions you sent me,
    you would turn and revive me.
From the watery depths of the earth
    once more raise me up.
Restore my honor;
    turn and comfort me,
That I may praise you with the lyre
    for your faithfulness, my God,
And sing to you with the harp,
    O Holy One of Israel!

John 10:14-15, 18

"I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep.
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again. This command I have received from my Father.”

Saint Joseph, the Just Man

I was assigned to write a post for the Oblate seminarians' blog this week, so I took the opportunity to explain a little of what the Solemnity of St. Joseph means to us.

This weekend we celebrate the Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of Mary and Patron of the Universal Church. It is an important day for Oblates of the Virgin Mary, and not just because of zeppole and cannoli; St. Joseph is the patron of our Congregation.

In the late 19th century, there was an entire decade when the Oblates had no new vocations. After struggling through tumultuous times during the foundation and early years of the Congregation, the relative political stability following the unification of Italy in 1870 brought little peace. The Church was under attack from the modernist movement that caused many to question the relevance of faith and morals and even reject them outright, and Pope Pius IX responded by naming St. Joseph, the protector of the Holy Family, Patron of the Universal Church in 1870. At the same time, the Oblates of the Virgin Mary also named St. Joseph patron and began asking his intercession for vocations. There was much doubt; after enduring 40 years of struggle and abuse at the hands of political authorities and socially influential figures, was the Oblate mission over? Was God doing something new at a time when it seemed the charism was needed more than ever? Well, St. Joseph came through and the rest is history.

As our Patron, St. Joseph is an important intercessor, but also a model of virtue. He is a man of obedience: he listened to what was spoken to him by God and acted accordingly (Matthew 1:24, 2:14, 2:21). In this St. Joseph is a model especially for us men in formation, when it is crucial to learn to listen to the voice of God in different ways- through spiritual movements, the discernment of superiors, the circumstances of community life- and to freely embrace his will.

I have personally experienced the important role of St. Joseph’s humble obedience in our Congregation’s works of accompaniment in spiritual direction and retreat ministry, both important for many people who are discerning the will of God in their lives. This ministry requires much preparation in spiritual and intellectual formation, which can seem like an endless uphill climb. But St. Joseph was a man of obedience before action. He is the Just Man because he sacrificed to God what was his due- the mind and heart that God has given to men for the custody of others. It is good for me to be reminded that before anything I study, practice, or preach, the only good I can really do for others is what God asks of me in ordinary daily life.