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Lecture
V.
Of Faith.
Hebrews xi. 1, 2
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the
evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good
report.
1. How great a
dignity the Lord bestows on you in transferring you from the order of
Catechumens to that of the Faithful, the Apostle Paul shews, when he
affirms, God is faithful, by Whom ye were called into the fellowship
of His Son Jesus Christ755
. For since God
is called Faithful, thou also in receiving this title receivest a great
dignity. For as God is called Good, and Just, and Almighty, and
Maker of the Universe, so is He also called Faithful. Consider
therefore to what a dignity thou art rising, seeing thou art to become
partaker of a title of God756
| 756 See Procatechesis
6, and Index, Faithful. | .
2. Here then it is further required, that
each of you be found faithful in his conscience: for a
faithful man it is hard to find757
: not that
thou shouldest shew thy conscience to me, for thou art not to be
judged of man’s judgment758
; but that thou
shew the sincerity of thy faith to God, who trieth the reins and
hearts759
, and knoweth the
thoughts of men760
. A great thing
is a faithful man, being richest of all rich men. For to the
faithful man belongs the whole world of wealth761
| 761 This sentence is a
spurious addition to the text of the Septuagint, variously placed after
Prov. xvii. 4, and xvii. 6. The thought is there
completed by the antithesis, but to the faithless not even an
obol. The origin of the interpolation is unknown. | ,
in that he disdains and tramples on it. For they who in
appearance are rich, and have many possessions, are poor in soul:
since the more they gather, the more they pine with longing for what is
still lacking. But the faithful man, most strange paradox, in
poverty is rich: for knowing that we need only to have food
and raiment, and being therewith content762
,
he has trodden riches under foot.
3. Nor is it only among us, who bear the
name of Christ, that the dignity of faith is great763
| 763 It was a common objection of Pagan
philosophers that the Christian religion was not founded upon reason
but only on faith.
Cyril’s answer that faith is
necessary in the ordinary affairs of life is the same which Origen had
employed against Celsus (I. 11): “Why should it not be more
reasonable, since all human affairs are dependent upon faith, to
believe God rather than men? For who takes a voyage, or marries,
or begets children, or casts seeds into the ground, without believing
that better things will result, although the contrary might and
sometimes does happen?” See also Arnobius, adversus
Gentes, II. 8; and Hooker’s allusion to the scornful
reproach of Julian the Apostate, “The highest point of your
wisdom is believe” (Eccles. Pol. V. lxiii.
1.). | : but likewise all things that are
accomplished in the world, even by those who are aliens764
| 764 By “aliens from
the Church,” and “those who are without,” S. Cyril
here means Pagans: so Tertullian, de Idololatriâ, c.
xiv. But the latter term is applied to a Catechumen in
Procatechesis. c. 12, and was also a common description of
heretics: see Tertullian, de Baptismo, c. xv. | from the Church, are accomplished by
faith.
By faith the laws of marriage yoke together those
who have lived as strangers: and because of the faith in marriage
contracts a stranger is made partner of a stranger’s person and
possessions. By faith husbandry also is sustained, for he who
believes not that he shall receive a harvest endures not the
toils. By faith sea-faring men, trusting to the thinnest plank,
exchange that most solid element, the land, for the restless motion of
the waves, committing themselves to uncertain hopes, and carrying with
them a faith more sure than any anchor. By faith therefore most
of men’s affairs are held together: and not among us only
has there been this belief, but also, as I have said, among those who
are without765
| 765 By “aliens from
the Church,” and “those who are without,” S. Cyril
here means Pagans: so Tertullian, de Idololatriâ, c.
xiv. But the latter term is applied to a Catechumen in
Procatechesis. c. 12, and was also a common description of
heretics: see Tertullian, de Baptismo, c. xv. | . For if they
receive not the Scriptures, but bring forward certain doctrines of
their own, even these they accept by faith.
4. The lesson also which was read to-day
invites you to the true faith, by setting before you the way in which
you also must please God: for it affirms that without faith it
is impossible to please Him766
. For when will
a man resolve to serve God, unless he believes that He is a giver of
reward? When will a young woman choose a virgin life, or a
young man live soberly, if they believe not that for chastity there is
a crown that fadeth not away767
? Faith is
an eye that enlightens every conscience, and imparts understanding; for the Prophet
saith, And if ye believe not, ye shall not understand768
| 768 Is. vii. 9, according to the
Septuagint. But A.V. and R.V. both render: If ye will
not believe, surely ye shall not be established. | .
Faith stoppeth the mouths of lions769
, as in Daniel’s case: for the
Scripture saith concerning him, that Daniel was brought up out of
the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed
in his God770
. Is there
anything more fearful than the devil? Yet even against him we
have no other shield than faith771
, an impalpable
buckler against an unseen foe. For he sends forth divers arrows,
and shoots down in the dark night772
| 772 Ps. xi. 2, that they may shoot in
darkness at the upright in heart (R.V.). The Hebrew
word לפֶא,
signifying deep darkness (Job
iii. 6; x. 22) is vigorously
rendered by the Seventy σκοτομήνη,
which is explained by the Scholiast on Homer (Od. xiv. 457:
Νὺξ δ᾽
ἄρ᾽ ἐπῆλθε
κακὴ
σκοτομήνιος)
to be the deep darkness of the night preceding the new moon. | those
that watch not; but, since the enemy is unseen, we have faith as our
strong armour, according to the saying of the Apostle, In all things
taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all
the fiery darts of the wicked one773
. A fiery
dart of desire of base indulgence is often cast forth from the
devil: but faith, suggesting a picture of the judgment, cools
down the mind, and quenches the dart.
5. There is much to tell of faith, and the
whole day would not be time sufficient for us to describe it
fully. At present let us be content with Abraham only, as one of
the examples from the Old Testament, seeing that we have been made his
sons through faith. He was justified not only by works, but also
by faith774
| 774 James ii. 21. Casaubon omitted μόνον, which is
found in every ms., thus making the meaning to
be, “He was justified not by works but by faith,” which
directly contradicts the statement of S. James, and is inconsistent
with the following context in S. Cyril. | : for though he
did many things well, yet he was never called the friend of
God775
| 775 James ii. 23; 2 Chron. xx. 7; Is. xli. 8;
Gen. xv. 6. | , except when he believed. Moreover, his
every work was performed in faith. Through faith he left his
parents; left country, and place, and home through faith776
. In like manner, therefore, as he was
justified be thou justified also. In his body he was already dead
in regard to offspring, and Sarah his wife was now old, and there was
no hope left of having children. God promises the old man a
child, and Abraham without being weakened in faith, though he
considered his own body now as good as dead777
,
heeded not the weakness of his body, but the power of Him who promised,
because he counted Him faithful who had promised778
, and so beyond all expectation gained the
child from bodies as it were already dead. And when, after he had
gained his son, he was commanded to offer him up, although he had heard
the word, In Isaac shall thy seed be called779
,
he proceeded to offer up his son, his only son, to God, believing
that God is able to raise up even from the dead780
. And having bound his son, and laid him
on the wood, he did in purpose offer him, but by the goodness of God in
delivering to him a lamb instead of his child, he received his son
alive. Being faithful in these things, he was sealed for
righteousness, and received circumcision as a seal of the faith
which he had while he was in uncircumcision781
,
having received a promise that he should be the father of many
nations782
.
6. Let us see, then, how Abraham is the
father of many nations783
. Of Jews he is
confessedly the father, through succession according to the
flesh. But if we hold to the succession according to the flesh,
we shall be compelled to say that the oracle was false. For
according to the flesh he is no longer father of us all: but the
example of his faith makes us all sons of Abraham. How? and in
what manner? With men it is incredible that one should rise from
the dead; as in like manner it is incredible also that there should be
offspring from aged persons as good as dead. But when Christ is
preached as having been crucified on the tree, and as having died and
risen again, we believe it. By the likeness therefore of our
faith we are adopted into the sonship of Abraham. And then,
following upon our faith, we receive like him the spiritual seal, being
circumcised by the Holy Spirit through Baptism, not in the foreskin of
the body, but in the heart, according to Jeremiah, saying, And ye
shall be circumcised unto God in the foreskin of your
heart784
| 784 Jer. iv. 4: Circumcise yourselves to
the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart. The
Septuagint agrees closely with the Hebrew, but Cyril quotes freely from
memory. | : and according
to the Apostle, in the circumcision of Christ, having been buried
with Him in baptism, and the rest785
.
7. This faith if we keep we shall be free
from condemnation, and shall be adorned with all kinds of
virtues. For so great is the strength of faith, as even to buoy
men up in walking on the sea. Peter was a man like ourselves,
made up of flesh and blood, and living upon like food. But when
Jesus said, Come786
, he believed, and
walked upon the waters, and found his faith safer upon the waters than
any ground; and his heavy body was upheld by the buoyancy of his
faith. But though he had safe footing over the water as long as
he believed, yet when he doubted, at once he began to sink: for
as his faith gradually
relaxed, his body also was drawn down with it. And when He saw
his distress, Jesus who remedies the distresses of our souls, said,
O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt787
? And being nerved again by Him who
grasped his right hand, he had no sooner recovered his faith, than, led
by the hand of the Master, he resumed the same walking upon the
waters: for this the Gospel indirectly mentioned, saying, when
they were gone up into the ship788
. For it
says not that Peter swam across and went up, but gives us to understand
that, after returning the same distance that he went to meet Jesus, he
went up again into the ship.
8. Yea, so much power hath faith, that not
the believer only is saved, but some have been saved by others
believing. The paralytic in Capernaum was not a believer, but
they believed who brought him, and let him down through the
tiles789
: for the sick man’s soul shared
the sickness of his body. And think not that I accuse him without
cause: the Gospel itself says, when Jesus saw, not his
faith, but their faith, He saith to the sick of the palsy,
Arise790
! The bearers believed, and the sick of
the palsy enjoyed the blessing of the cure.
9. Wouldest thou see yet more surely that
some are saved by others’ faith? Lazarus died791
: one day had passed, and a second, and
a third: his sinews792
| 792 νεῦρα.
“Sinews” is the original meaning, the application to
“nerves,” as distinct organs of sensation, being later. | were decayed, and
corruption was preying already upon his body. How could one four
days dead believe, and entreat the Redeemer on his own behalf?
But what the dead man lacked was supplied by his true sisters.
For when the Lord was come, the sister fell down before Him, and when
He said, Where have ye laid him? and she had made answer,
Lord, by this time he stinketh; for he hath been four days dead,
the Lord said, If thou believe, thou shalt see the glory of God;
as much as saying, Supply thou the dead man’s lack of
faith: and the sisters’ faith had so much power, that it
recalled the dead from the gates of hell. Have then men by
believing, the one on behalf of the other, been able to raise793
| 793 For ἀναστῆναι,
retained by the Benedictine Editor and Reischl, read ἀναστῆσαι, with
Roe, Casaubon, and Alexandrides. | the dead, and shalt not thou, if thou believe
sincerely on thine own behalf, be much rather profited? Nay, even
if thou be faithless, or of little faith, the Lord is loving unto man;
He condescends to thee on thy repentance: only on thy part say
with honest mind, Lord, I believe, help thou mine
unbelief794
. But if thou
thinkest that thou really art faithful, but hast not yet the fulness of
faith, thou too hast need to say like the Apostles, Lord, increase
our faith795
: for some part
thou hast of thyself, but the greater part thou receivest from
Him.
10. For the name of Faith is in the form of
speech796
| 796 κατὰ τὴν
προσηγορίαν. Compare Aristotle, Categories, V. 30:
τῷ
σχήματι τῆς
προσηγορίας.
Cyril’s description of faith as twofold, and of dogmatic faith as
an assent (συγκατάθεσις)
of the soul to something as credible, seems to be derived from Clement
of Alexandria, Strom. II. c. 12. Compare by all means Pearson on
the Creed, Art. I. and his Notes a, b, c. | one, but has two distinct senses. For
there is one kind of faith, the dogmatic, involving an assent of the
soul on some particular point: and it is profitable to the soul,
as the Lord saith: He that heareth My words, and believeth Him
that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and cometh not into
judgment797
: and again,
He that believeth in the Son is not judged, but hath passed from
death unto life798
. Oh the great
loving-kindness of God! For the righteous were many years in
pleasing Him: but what they succeeded in gaining by many years of
well-pleasing799
| 799 εὐαρεστήσεως
, Bened. and Reischl, with best mss.
Milles and the earlier editions have ἐρευνήσεως,
“searching.” | , this Jesus now
bestows on thee in a single hour. For if thou shalt believe that
Jesus Christ is Lord, and that God raised Him from the dead, thou shalt
be saved, and shalt be transported into Paradise by Him who brought in
thither the robber. And doubt not whether it is possible; for He
who on this sacred Golgotha saved the robber after one single hour of
belief, the same shall save thee also on thy believing800
.
11. But there is a second kind of faith,
which is bestowed by Christ as a gift of grace. For to one is
given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, and to another the word of
knowledge according to the same Spirit: to another faith, by the
same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing801
. This faith then which is given of
grace from the Spirit is not merely doctrinal, but also worketh things
above man’s power. For whosoever hath this faith, shall
say to this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall
remove802
. For whenever
any one shall say this in faith, believing that it cometh to pass,
and shall not doubt in his heart, then receiveth he the
grace.
And of this faith it is said, If ye have faith
as a grain of mustard seed803
. For just as
the grain of mustard seed is small in size, but fiery in its operation,
and though sown in a small space has a circle of great branches, and
when grown up is able even to shelter the fowls804
; so,
likewise, faith in the swiftest moment works the greatest effects in
the soul. For,
when enlightened by faith, the soul hath visions of God, and as far as
is possible beholds God, and ranges round the bounds of the universe,
and before the end of this world already beholds the Judgment, and the
payment of the promised rewards. Have thou therefore that faith
in Him which cometh from thine own self, that thou mayest also receive
from Him that faith which worketh things above man805
| 805 S. Chrysostom
(Hom. xxix. in 1 Cor. xii. 9, 10) in like manner distinguishes dogmatic
faith from the faith which is “the mother of
miracles.” The former S. Cyril calls our own, not meaning
that God’s help is not needed for it, but because, as he has
shewn in § 10, it consists in the mind’s assent, and
voluntary approval of the doctrines set before it: but the latter
is a pure gift of grace working in man without his own help.
Compare Apostolic Constitutions, VIII. c. 1. | .
12. But in learning the Faith and in
professing it, acquire and keep that only, which is now
delivered806
| 806 This Lecture was
to be immediately followed by a first recitation of the Creed.
See Index, Creed. | to thee by the
Church, and which has been built up strongly out of all the
Scriptures. For since all cannot read the Scriptures, some being
hindered as to the knowledge of them by want of learning, and others by
a want of leisure, in order that the soul may not perish from
ignorance, we comprise the whole doctrine of the Faith in a few
lines. This summary I wish you both to commit to memory when I
recite it807
| 807 ἐπ᾽
αὐτῆς τῆς
λέξεως. “in ipsâ
lectione” (Milles): “ipsis verbis”
(Bened.): “in the very phrase” (R.W.C.). See below, note 4. | , and to rehearse it
with all diligence among yourselves, not writing it out on
paper808
| 808 Compare S. August.
Serm. ccxii., “At the delivery of the Creed,” and Index,
Creed. | , but engraving it by the memory upon your
heart809
| 809 Compare
Æschylus, Prometheus V. 789: ἣν
ἐγγράφου σὺ
μνήμοσιν
δέλτοις
φρενῶν. | , taking care while you rehearse it that no
Catechumen chance to overhear the things which have been delivered to
you. I wish you also to keep this as a provision810
| 810 ἐφόδιον,
Viaticum, i.e. provision for a journey, and here for the
journey through this life. It is applied metaphorically by other
Fathers (a) in this general sense, to the reading of Holy Scripture,
Prayer, and Baptism, and (b) in a special sense to the Holy Eucharist
when administered to the sick and dying, as a preparation for departure
to the life after death. Council of Nicæa (a.d. 325), Canon xiii. “With respect to the
dying, the old rule of the Church should continue to be observed, which
forbids that any one who is on the point of death should be deprived of
the last and most necessary viaticum (ἐφόδιον).” | through the whole course of your life, and
beside this to receive no other, neither if we ourselves should change
and contradict our present teaching, nor if an adverse angel,
transformed into an angel of light811
should wish to lead you astray. For though we or an angel from
heaven preach to you any other gospel than that ye have received, let
him be to you anathema812
. So for the
present listen while I simply say the Creed813
| 813 ἐπ᾽
αὐτῆς τῆς
λέξεως. (Bened.
Reischl. with best mss.).
ταύτης
τῆς λέξεως,
“this my recitation,” (Milles). | , and
commit it to memory; but at the proper season expect the confirmation
out of Holy Scripture of each part of the contents. For the
articles of the Faith were not composed as seemed good to men; but the
most important points collected out of all the Scripture make up one
complete teaching of the Faith. And just as the mustard seed in
one small grain contains many branches, so also this Faith has embraced
in few words all the knowledge of godliness in the Old and New
Testaments. Take heed then, brethren, and hold fast the
traditions814
which ye now receive,
and write them an the table of your heart815
.
13. Guard them with reverence, lest per
chance the enemy despoil any who have grown slack; or lest some heretic
pervert any of the truths delivered to you. For faith is like
putting money into the bank816
, even as we have now
done; but from you God requires the accounts of the deposit. I
charge you, as the Apostle saith, before God, who quickeneth all
things, and Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed the good
confession, that ye keep this faith which is committed to you,
without spot, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus
Christ817
. A treasure of
life has now been committed to thee, and the Master demandeth the
deposit at His appearing, which in His own times He shall shew, Who
is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of
lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in light which no man can
approach unto; Whom no man hath seen nor can see. To Whom be
glory, honour, and power818
for ever and
ever. Amen.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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