21. Such, we may believe, was
that John the Monk, whom the elder Theodosius, the Emperor,
consulted concerning the issue of the civil war: seeing he had also
the gift of prophecy. For that not each several person has a
several one of those gifts, but that one man may have more gifts
than one, I make no question. This John, then, when once a certain
most religious woman desired to see him, and to obtain this did
through her husband make vehement entreaty, refused indeed this
request because he had never allowed this to women, but “Go,”
said he, “tell thy wife, she shall see me this night, but in her
sleep.” And so it came to pass: and he gave her advice, whatever
was meet to be given to a wedded believing woman. And she, on her
awaking, made known to her husband that she had seen a man of God,
such as he knew him to be, and what she had been told by him. The
person who learned this from them, reported it to me, a grave man
and a noble, and most worthy to be believed. But if I myself had
seen that holy monk, because (it is said) he was most patient in
hearing questions and most wise in answering, I would have sought
of him, as touching our question, whether he himself came to that
woman in sleep, that is to say, his spirit in the form of his body,
just as we dream that we see ourselves in the form of our own body;
or whether, while he himself was doing something else, or, if
asleep, was dreaming of something else, it was either
by an Angel or in some other way that such vision took place in the
woman’s dream; and that it would so be, as he promised, he
himself foreknew by the Spirit of prophecy revealing the same. For
if he was himself present to her in her dream, of course it was by
miraculous grace that he was enabled so to do, not by nature; and
by God’s gift, not by faculty of his own. But if, while he was
doing some other thing or sleeping and occupied with other sights,
the woman saw him in her sleep, then doubtless some such thing took
place, as that is which we read in the Acts of the Apostles, where
the Lord Jesus speaks to Ananias concerning Saul,2772
and
informs him that
Saul has seen Ananias coming unto him, while
Ananias himself wist not of it. The man of
God would make answer to
me of these things as the case might be, and then about the Martyrs
I should go on to ask of him, whether they be themselves present in
dreams, or in whatever other way to those who see them in what
shape they will; and above all when the
demons in men confess
themselves
tormented by the Martyrs, and ask them to spare them; or
whether these things be
wrought through angelic powers, to the
honor and commendation of the
Saints for men’s
profit, while
those are in
supreme rest, and wholly free for other
far better
sights, apart from us, and praying for us. For it chanced at Milan
at (the
tomb of) the holy Martyrs Protasius and Gervasius, that
Ambrose the
bishop, at that time living, being expressly named, in
like manner as were the dead whose names they were rehearsing, the
demons confessed him and besought him to spare them, he being the
while otherwise engaged, and when this was taking place, altogether
unwitting of it. Or whether indeed these things are
wrought,
somewhiles by very presence of the Martyrs, otherwhiles by that of
Angels; and whether it be possible, or by what tokens possible, for
us to discriminate these two cases; or whether to perceive and to
judge of these things none be able, but he which hath that
gift
through
God’s Spirit, “dividing unto every man severally as He
will:”
2773
the same
John, methinks, would
discourse to me of all these matters, as I
should wish; that either by his teaching I might
learn, and what I
should be told should know to be true and certain; or I should
believe what I knew not, upon his telling me what things he knew.
But if peradventure he should make answer out of holy Scripture,
and say, “Things higher than thou,
seek thou not; and things
stronger than thou, search thou not; but what the
Lord hath
commanded thee, of those things bethink thee alway:”
2774
this also
I should thankfully accept. For it is no
small gain if, when any
things are obscure and uncertain to us, and we not able to
comprehend them, it be at any rate clear and certain that we are
not to seek them; and what thing each one wishes to learn,
accounting it to be profitable that he should know it, he should
learn that it is no harm that he know it not.
E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
