526 Chastity and Uncleanness compared as to Pleasure. HOMIL. under her tyrannical commands, the not being led and dragged XXXVII. about by her as a drudge, beaten, spit upon, smitten on the head; dost thou consider this to be a small pleasure, tell me? Nay, if one would accurately examine these things, and were able to gather into one their insults, complaints, everlasting quarrels, some arising from their tempers, some from their self-indulgence, their enmities, and all the rest, such as they only that feel them know;-he will find that there is no war but hath more truces than this wretched life of theirs. What pleasure then meanest thou, tell me? The temporary and brief enjoyment of lust? But this speedily doth strife overtake, and storms, and rage, and the same madness again. [6.] And these things have been said by us, as one would speak discoursing with licentious youths, who do not very patiently submit to hear our discourses of the kingdom and of hell. And now that we are bringing forward these topics also, it is not even possible to say how great is the pleasure of the continent; if one frame in one's own mind his crowns, his rewards, his converse with the angels, the proclaiming of him before the world, his boldness, those blessed and immortal hopes of his. "But lust hath a certain pleasure:" for this they are continually repeating: "neither can the continent continually go on contending with the tyranny of nature." Nay, but one shall find just the contrary result. For this violence and tumult is present with the unchaste rather: there being in his body a violent tempest, and no sea in a storm so grievously vexed as he; never withstanding his passion, but ever receiving blows from it; as the possessed, and they that aré continually rent in the midst by evil spirits. Whereas the temperate, like a noble champion continually giving blows to it, reaps the best of pleasures, and sweeter than ten thousand of that kind; and this victory and his good conscience, and those illustrious trophies, are ornaments for him continually to deck himself withal. As to the other, if after his lust he hath a little respite, it must be counted nothing. For again the storm comes on, and again there are waves. But he that commands himself doth not suffer this tumult to lay hold of him at all, nor the sea to arise, nor the wild beast to roar. And even if he Self-command more pleasurable than Incontinence. 527 14.40. endure some violence in the restraint of such an impulse, yet 1 COR. so doth the other also, continually receiving blows and stabs, and unable to endure the sting: and it is like as if there were a wild horse furious and struggling, and one should check with the bridle, and hold him in with all skill: while another giving him the rein to escape the trouble, were dragged along by him, and carried hither and thither. If I have spoken these things more plainly than is becoming, let no man blame me. For I desire not to make a brave shew by gravity of words, but to make my hearers grave. Therefore also the prophets spare no such words, wishing (4.) to extirpate the licentiousness of the Jews, but do even more nakedly inveigh against them, than we do now in the things we have spoken. For so a physician wishing to remove an ulcer, doth not consider how he may keep his hands clean, but how he may rid the patient of the ulcer; and he who would raise on high the lowly, first makes himself lowly; and he who seeks to slay the conspirator stains himself also with blood as well as the other, and this makes him the more brilliant. Since if one were to see a soldier returning from the war, stained with gore, and blood, and brains, he will not loathe him, nor turn from him on this account, but will even admire him the more. So then let us do, when we see any one returning, covered with blood after the slaughter of his evil desire, let us the more admire him, and become partakers of his battle and victory, and say to those who indulge this wild love, "shew us the pleasure you derive from lust; for the continent hath that which comes of his victory, but thou, none from any quarter. But if ye should mention that which is connected with the criminal act, yet the other is more manifest, and satisfactory. For thou hast from the enjoyment something brief and hardly apparent; but he from his conscience, hath both a greater, and enduring, and a sweeter joy. The company of a woman hath surely no such power as self-command, to preserve the soul undisturbed, and give it wings." Well then the continent man, as I said, thus evidently makes his pleasure out to us: but in thy case I see the dejection arising from defeat, but the pleasure, desiring to see, I find not. For what dost thou consider the XXXVII. Shall we say then, the time after HOMIL. moment of pleasure? That before the criminal action! Nay, it is not so, for it is a time of madness and delirium aud frenzy: to grind the teeth and be beside one's self, not being any pleasure: and if it were pleasure, it would not produce the same effects on you, which they who are in pain endure. For they who strike with their fists and are stricken, grind their teeth, and women in travail distracted with pains, do the same. So that this is no pleasure, but frenzy rather, and confusion, and tumult. this? Nay, neither is this. woman just delivered is in pleasure, but in release from certain pains. But this is not of course pleasure, but weakness rather and falling away: and there is a great interval between these two. What then is the time of pleasure, tell me? There is none. But if there be any, it is so brief, as not even to be apparent. At least, having zealously sought in a great many ways to detect and apprehend it, we have not been able. But the time of the chaste man's pleasure is not such, rather it is wide, and evident to all. Or rather, all his life is in pleasure, his conscience crowned, the waves laid, no disturbance from any quarter arising within him. Since then this man's life is more in pleasure, while the life spent in love of pleasure is in dejection and disquiets; let us flee from licentiousness, let us keep hold on chastity, that we may also obtain the good things to come, through the grace and mercy, &c. &c. HOMILY XXXVIII. 1 Cor. xv. 1, 2. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you concerning the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved1: by what in discourse I preached it unto you. λόγω εὐηγγε λισάμην HAVING finished the discourse of spiritual gifts, he passes v. to that which is of all most necessary, the argument of the resurrection. For in this too, they were greatly unsound. And as in men's bodies, when the fever lays actual hold of their solid parts, I mean the nerves and the veins and the primary elements, the mischief becomes incurable, unless it receive much attention; just so at that time also it was like to happen. Since to the very elements of godliness the mischief was proceeding. Wherefore also Paul uses great earnestness. For not of morals was his discourse henceforth, nor about one man's being a fornicator, another covetous, and another having his head covered; but about the very sum of all good things. For touching the resurrection itself they were at variance. Because, this being all our hope, against this point did the devil make a vehement stand, and at one time he was wholly subverting it, at another his word was that it was past already: which also Paul writing to Timothy, called a gangrene, I mean, this wicked doctrine, and those that brought it in he branded, saying, of whom is Hymenæus and Philetus, who concerning the faith have erred, saying, that the resurrection is past already, and overthrow the faith of some2. At one time then they said thus, 2 Tim. but at another that the body rises not again, but the purification of the soul is the resurrection. M m 2. 17. HOMIL. XXXVIII. δείαν. 14. 530 St. Paul's Course of Argument on the Resurrection: But these things that wicked dæmon persuaded them to say, not wishing to overturn the resurrection only, but also to shew that all the things done for our sakes are a fable. For if they were persuaded that there is no resurrection of bodies, after a little while he would have persuaded them that neither was Christ raised. And thereupon he would introduce also this in due course, that He had not come, nor had done what He did. For such is the craft of the devil. Wherefore also Paul 1 pro- calls it cunning craftiness', because he doth not straightEph. 4. way signify what he intends to effect, for fear of being detected, but dressing himself up in a mask of one kind, he fabricates arts of another kind: and, like a crafty enemy attacking a city with walls, he secretly undermines it from below so as thereby to be hardly guarded against, and to succeed in his endeavours. Therefore such snares on his part being continually detected, and these his crafty ambushes hunted out by this admirable and mighty man, he said, For 22 Cor. we are not ignorant of his devices. So also here he unfolds his whole guile, and points out all his stratagems, and whatsoever he would fain effect, Paul puts before us, with much exactness going over all. Yea, and therefore he put this head after the rest, both because it was very extremely necessary, and because it involves the whole of our condition. 2. 11. And observe his consideration: how first having secured his own, he then proceeds even beyond in his discourse, and them that are without he doth over and above reduce to silence. Now he secures his own, not by reasonings, but by things which had already happened, and which themselves had received, and believed to have taken place: a thing which was most of all apt to shame them, and capable of laying hold on them. Since if they were unwilling to believe after this, it was no longer Paul, but themselves they would disbelieve: which thing was a censure on those who had once for all received it, and changed their minds. For this cause then he begins also from hence, implying that he needs no other witnesses to prove his speaking truth, but those very persons who were deceived. [2.] But that what I say may become clearer, we must needs in what follows attend to the very words. What then are these? I declare unto you, brethren, saith he, the gospel |