Letter 821: The spiritual life is a journey with a beginning, a middle, and an end.
What is the meaning of "On the second-first Sabbath"? The expression "on the second-first Sabbath," found in the Gospels, which you have asked to have explained to you as being obscure, hear now. It is called "second-first" because the Jews had a double reckoning of Sabbaths. The first Sabbath was that of the weekly cycle, on which all work was to cease. But there was also a Sabbath connected with the great feasts, which fell on different days of the week according to the year. When, therefore, a festival Sabbath coincided with or immediately followed the weekly Sabbath, it was called "second-first" — that is, the first of the second series, or the second in occurrence while being counted as the first of the feast. This was the day on which the disciples, passing through the grain fields, plucked and ate the ears of grain, and the Pharisees accused them of breaking the Sabbath. But the Lord, who is Lord of the Sabbath, showed them that human need takes precedence over ceremonial regulation, and that mercy is greater than sacrifice. For the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
Τί ἐστι τὸ, ε« Ἐν Σαδδάτῳ δευτεροπρώτῳ" » ἘΠ α ΣΑέδανα ψαδα Τὸ, «Ἔν Σαδθάτῳ δευτεροπρώτῳ (), » εἰρημένον ἐν τοῖς Εὐαγγελίοις, ἑρμηνευθῆναί σοι ὡς ἀσαφὲς παραχαλέσας, ἄχουε " Δευτερόπρωτον εἴρηται, ἐπειδὴ δεύτερον μὲν ἣν τοῦ Πάσχα, πρῶτον δὲ τῶν ᾿Αζύμων. γοβροΓο δηἰπὶ ΡΆΒΟΝΔ ἱπηπιοίδη , ΡοδιΓ ΑΖΥ- Ο Ἑσπέρας γὰρ θύοντες τὸ Πάσχα, τῇ ἑξῆς τὴν τῶν ζηογι πὶ [6δῖπ) «οἰ υγαυδπί, αὐοὰ αυϊάδιῃ ειΐδπηὶ ἀδυιϊαγορτγοίοη ἀρρο!θηηϊ, ργορίογοα υού, υἱ αἰχί, ἀΐα5 " ἀΐα Ῥαβοὶιδ ρυβιθγίοῦ ,, ΑΖΥ ΠΙΟγιη Ρυνυβ. Ουοάψια. θυ νϑγυῖη ), δγρυπιθο ἴἰπ δῖ, φιιοῦ δροϑβϑίοἱἹ μος ποιηΐπθ δεευβδϑιϊ βυῃϊ, δρίσαϑ νϑϊϊεγοηῖ δ τιϑιυσάγοηιϊ, ἤο6. Θιΐμι πι- ἰλχδὶ ἱειῆρογα βρίο πυϊδηΐ, δῖηυθ ΟἿ ΓΓιΟΙι), ἃς ᾿Ἰη6 . ἰδ ρι5 ἀδοόγδαπὶ ργοροηύδηι!, δὸ νεΐαι [μ]- ἐθιη διὶ ϑοολιν. Τογιὶο αυΐρρο ΑΖΥπιογυοὶ αἴα, πηϑπίρυ!υβ 4φιοᾳυς Ὠδ0 οὔοτγοθαίαγ. [ἃ οἱ ἃ ( - Ῥογα, 6ι οὐ [βϑείυπι , ρδγβρίουυπι ὁχ- δἰβιιι, ἰά φυοά ηιεΥῖδ. θιιοἀ , ϑαυθαῖο, ὀϊείυνη δαί, " ] ἰὰ πιΐγυπι ν᾽ δαίυγ. ϑαθθαίσηι δηΐ [δϑίυ τη οἵὴπ πιιπουραηῖ. Αὐ ργορίογρα ἠΐοσιιπ) οϑὶ, δ!) ιἃ ΒΔ) θαιογύπι), υοηΐδιν ἰηιογάθπι [] γί οϊ ρίυΠ, «0ὲ ( ἦι Πανοπιϑά δα Ὀυδίαν ποία δι, η0.6η) - δὐπιοάϊπη Οἰἰδηὶ δριὶ ᾿ ῥἰεγυπιαια σοι η4 . Νδην ουτη Ερίρ "δπῖ8, αυϊ οογη[ ϑδινϑίογὶβ παι ν Θοιηϊπίοο ἀΐθ οσοσυγτεῖι, ἀυρὶίσθπι ] 6πηπ δῖ6πὶ ΕΠ - εἷι, ἂς γδίυϊ ἰοϑίυπι ἰη [. άπ! αυοᾷὺθ ᾿ποῦῸ δρυὰ ᾿ΠΠοὁ [ (δδίυηι ἰὼ δ θδιὶ ἀΐθπι ἰη οἰ ἀἰ55εῖ, )Ὁ- υᾶϊὰ ΒΑ" δίογυμι νοσαυδιυν. ᾿Αζύμων ἐπανηγύριζον ἑορτὴν " ἣν χαὶ δευτερόπρω- τὸν ἐχάλουν " διὰ τὸ, ὡς ἔφην, δευτέραν μὲν εἶναι τοῦ Πάσχα, πρώτην δὲ τῶν ᾿Αζύμων. Καὶ ὅτι τοῦτ᾽ ἔστιν ἀληθὲς, δῆλον ἐκ τοῦ τοὺς; ἀποστόλους ἔγχε- χλῆσθαι ὡς τίλλοντας τοὺς στάχνας, χαὶ ἐσθίοντας. Ἐν ἐχείνῳ γὰρ τῷ χαιρῷ μόνῳ χαρηθδαροῦσιν οἱ ἀστάχυες, χαὶ χέχλινται ὑπὸ τοῦ χαρποῦ χαὶ τῆς πρὸς ἄμητον ὥρας, οἱονεὶ τὴν δρεπάνην ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτοὺς χαλοῦντες. Τῇ τρίτῃ γοῦν' ἡμέρᾳ τῶν ᾿Αζύμων, χαὶ τὸ δράγμα προσεφέρετο. Οὕτως χαὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ χαιροῦ, χαὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ γεγενημένου δῆλόν ἐστι τὸ ζητούμε- νον. Εἰ δὲ Σαδδάτῳ εἴρηται, μὴ θαυμάσῃς. Σάδ- θατον γὰρ πᾶσαν ἑορτὴν χαλοῦσι. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτ᾽ εἴ- ρηται Σάδθδατα σαδθάτων. Ἰ“πειδὴ ἔσθ᾽ ὅτε, ἣ ἡ ἀρχὴ τῆς πανηγύρεως, ἣ τὸ τέλος συνέπιπτε τῷ τῆς ἑδδομάδος Σαδδάτῳ, οἷον εἰπεῖν, χαὶ παρ᾽ ἡμῖν πολ- λάχις γίνεται. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ὅταν τὰ Θεοφάνια ἣ ἡ τοῦ Σωτῆρος χατὰ σάρχα γέννησις ἐν Κυριαχῇ ἀπαντή- σειε, ποιεῖ διπλῆν τὴν πανήγυριν, οἱονεὶ ἑορτὴν ἐν ἑορτῇ " οὕτω καὶ παρ᾽ αὐτοῖς, εἰ καὶ ἡ πανήγυρις τῷ Σαδθάτῳ συνέπιπτε, Σάδδατα σαδθδάτων ἐχαλεῖτο. ΥΑΒΙΕ ΓΕΟΤΙΟΝΕΒ ΕἸ ΝΟΤΕ. () δὲ ϑβδθθαιο ἀευϊογοργοῖο υἱάθβ αἰβριι δι] οηθ δοβορηΐ ϑοδι φαγὶ ". νι δὲ δππενάαί. [δι ρΟΓΜΠΙο ΡΙΑ', -- ΚΑΣΙΩ ΠΡΕΣΒΥΤΕΡΩ. Πολλοὶ τὴν τῶν πενήτων φροντίδα προττησάμενοι, εἰς τὸν ἴδιον χρηματισμὸν τελευτῶσιν. Οὖὗς οὐ χρὴ ζηλοῦν, ἀλλ᾽ ἢ διορθοῦν, ἢ ἐκ πολλοῦ τοῦ περιόντος ὡς λυμεῶνας φεύγειν. Ἐπιτρίδουσι γὰρ τὴν ἐκείνων πενίαν, ἣν θεραπεύειν ἐχρῆν.
Related Letters
The apostles, as students of wisdom and lovers of truth, saw the Savior paying attention to the blind man and...
The priesthood is a sacred trust, not a career.
You share my name, Isidoros, and I take that as a reason to write to you with particular care.
The apostle Paul addressed this clearly, Isidoros: Christians who drag their disputes before pagan courts have...
Those who imagine that contradicting things rightly said is a form of wisdom are only attaching infamy to themselves...