Letter 49: "It is honorable to proclaim the works of the Lord" [Tobit 12:7].

Paulinus to Macarius. To proclaim the works of the Lord is an honorable thing, and this was for me the occasion of this letter, because the affair of this householder Secundinianus, whom I commend to your fellowship of soul, cannot, as you will judge, be related without the glory and praise of the Lord. For just as He said in the Gospel: "My Father works even until now, and I work," so He acts even now, and the good Lord does not cease to rouse our faith by clear proofs of His truth and truly to challenge it. And so, appearing to us in diverse arguments, as it is written, God our Savior works for us on land and sea, and what He does in individuals He arranges for the faith and salvation of many. For see how admirable and proclaimable is the work that the Lord Jesus, with His holy angels, has wrought in one old man. For this is the case of the aforementioned friend and brother of ours, who is a man faithful in Christ. Last winter, having been compelled in Sardinia, along with the other shipowners, to take aboard grain to be conveyed to the public granaries by the service of his own ship, he, not having awaited the season of the usual sailing, sent off his laden vessel before the summer's mildness, under the pressure of public force. Immediately, as he related to me, in the nearby strait a storm arose and turned back from their appointed courses a fleet of many ships that had rashly cast off from harbor, and broke them on the shore. His ship, in a certain place on that island which they call Ad Pulvinos, they tried to secure with anchors, lest it likewise be dashed; but as the violence of that same winter prevailed and the cables broke, the terrified sailors lowered the boat, either to come to the aid of the ship by renewed and more firmly set anchors to hold it more strongly, or to snatch themselves, if they could, from the peril of the ship. But the storm is said to have at once swept them, with the fragile refuge of their little skiff, onto the rocks and to have overwhelmed them with the flooding waves. One out of the whole number of sailors, an old man assigned to bailing, whether forgetful from fear or as men despising a worthless life, they left behind. Meanwhile, deprived of sailors and anchors, the ship is carried off into the open sea. That old man, who had not known he was left behind, when he felt himself being tossed and rolled, emerges from the depths of the ship; he sees everything empty, sea on every side and on every side sky; and when both fear and danger were heaped upon the wretched man by his solitude, he passed six days and nights fasting. For his tears were bread to him day and night. Then, when he was already more desirous of death than of life and longed for an end of his torments through the soul's departure, the merciful and compassionate Lord deigned to draw near to him at close quarters and to revive him with the food of His word. He himself, still weeping, recounts the blessedness of his peril, and it cannot be heard without tears of the heart and joy of the spirit: how he was addressed when Christ approached, how he was strengthened as Christ encouraged him, how he was bidden to cut a tree, the cutting of which at that time was the ship's remedy; but what many and very strong men can scarcely do without danger to themselves and to the ship, he alone and feeble, not daring to undertake it, dared at God's word. Only twice, and lightly, as though touched rather than struck by an aged hand with the axe, the mast so leapt from its wound that, driven far out beyond the ship into the waves, it fell safely. Then in various offices, as the tossing of the sea and the rigging of a ship require, when either the topsail had to be set or the bilge needed to be emptied, called by the Lord by the name of Victor, he was bidden only to extend his hand, in the appearance of doing the work, to whatever task. For amid the many and varied graces of divine wonders concerning this old man, this gift of God too seems not to be passed over, that he even received a name, by which now he is reckoned both in regeneration and is written down both by men and by angels; for he was called Valgius by his gentile sign, who now is called Victor by the Lord, and he is victor in the Lord, who imposed on him by his own work a name fitting to himself, namely because both on the sea over the storms and shipwreck through the help of Christ, and lately on land through the same grace over his sins and the devil, he triumphed, so that, being wholly renewed in Christ, he might remain neither in his old name nor in his old self. Wondrous is the faith and ineffable the saving mercy of the Lord, who, if perchance the old man, sluggish with sleep, rose too slowly to do his tasks, both with a gentle hand patting him beforehand, lest he should wake in alarm, roused him by softly tweaking his ear, while the old man, leaning lightly into his first effort, immediately saw the tasks accomplished by angelic hands. He had scarcely touched the rope, as if to haul it, when already the topsail stood unfurled upon its yards, or made the ship's sails. The water taken in through the ship's cracks had tried to sink it, and after one or another draught of the small bailing-scoop, the moisture being drawn off and the ship dried, he had nothing to do, astonished that his labor was being plucked away from him without labor and his action forestalled by a hidden hand, if that can rightly be called hidden which furnished such manifest aid. But not even those workers were withdrawn from the simple eyes of that most innocent old man; for he often saw armed men, plainly soldiers from the army of heaven, keeping watch over the ship and administering every duty of the sailor's office. And indeed that ship befitted none but angel-sailors, whose helmsman was the governor of the world. For the Lord Himself sat at the stern, now gleaming in His own countenance, as He is described in the Apocalypse, and radiant of hair, now venerable in the face of His confessor and friend, my lord, our common patron Felix, just as is said in nautical usage, at the tillers, or rather in place of the tillers, which, together with the anchors and the sailors, the ship had lost on that shipwrecking shore, unhappy yet happily, so that in place of all its lost men and gear it gained either the Lord's martyr or the martyr's Lord. The old man, weeping for joy, relates that he was wont to lie down at the feet of Him who steered for him, now of the Lord, now of the martyr, even more intimately, as Christ himself drew him on, and that he had, on the sacred knees and bosom, the blessed pillow of the reclined head fragrant with divine breath of perfumes. Let us now doubt that the bosoms of the patriarchs lie open to those who are faithful servants in Christ, when His immense goodness then cherished even that catechumen in His own or in His saint's lap. For in His saint He Himself was present, He who said, as you know, to the Father: "I have given them the glory which you gave me, that they may be one, as we also are one. I in them, and you in me." And again to the apostles, in whom He spoke to His whole body: "Behold, I am with you all the days of my life, even to the consummation of the age." This His power proves to us daily by conspicuous miracles, working in the hand both of His apostles and of His martyrs, that we may believe the Son of God and our Lord Jesus, reigning in the heavens from the resurrection of the dead at the right hand of the Father, to be the Lord of the living, not of the dead. Therefore, when He cherished the old sailor in the likeness of His holy confessor, He Himself was present in His saint and soothed the weary and abandoned man with kindly addresses, and refreshed him no more with food than with His word, because He Himself is the true bread that came down from heaven to give food to all flesh. For in every man He loves His own work, and wills, as far as in Him lies, that every man be saved, because the giver of life made not death, and being wholly life He does not rejoice in the perdition of the living, He who prefers mercy to sacrifice, nor does He accept persons, He who made all, but judges according to merits, because God is judge. In short, this sailor was not the cheaper to Him here for the calamity of shipwreck nor for his old age and poverty; but by all these very things, for which his companions too had spurned him, he moved Christ and shook His inmost being. For His eyes ever look upon the poor man. Surely this poor man too cried out, and the Lord heard him; to whom perhaps the Lord even dictated prophetic words for his praying, and the very cause of his peril itself, so that he might cry out: "Save me, O God, for the waters have entered even to my soul. I have come into the depth of the sea; let not the tempest of water sink me, nor the deep swallow me up. Let your mercy speedily anticipate me, before I be fixed in the mire of the deep and the pit shut its mouth over me. Look upon me, for I am alone and poor; and I am become like a pelican of the wilderness, like a night-raven in the dwelling, and so in my ship like a single sparrow upon the roof." The Lord heard and had mercy on him and sent angels round about him, and it was made unto salvation. He commanded the storm, and it stood into a breeze. He rebuked the sea, and its waves were silent, and He led him through many waters, seeing the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep. He fed him with the fat of wheat, and as Christ conversed with him, he was satisfied as it were with honey out of the rock. He looked upon the humble, He who blessed the poor in spirit. He addressed the weeping man, He who promised consolation to those who mourn. And He who gives fullness to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, He Himself, who is bread and righteousness and the fountain of life, watering this man from Himself, fed him as he fainted, and pitied this man with no other tenderness than that with which, having given Himself up to the Father even to the death of the cross, He pitied every man tossed about in the sea of this world, because, namely, one man is a portion of the universe, and the universe is the form and cause of one man. Finally, governing not only the ship but also the very man for whose sake He was guarding the ship, and dispensing in him the distinct offices of flesh and spirit, He bade him rest secure by night and keep anxious watch by day, promising that He would keep watch for him while he slept and would cooperate with him while he watched. Surely in these words you will recognize the affection of the Lord, by which He ever so cherishes our hope that He does not relax our solicitude, so consults the weak flesh that the spirit does not cease to be ready. And therefore He permitted the weary old man to sleep thus, in such a way that He did not even remit to the old and tired man the security of the business of watching, lest, namely, he should be dissolved into idle sleeps and begin to sleep not only in body but also in mind. Fearing which, a certain holy man says: "Enlighten my eyes, O Lord, lest I ever sleep in death." For the torpor of minds is a falling near to death. And then the enemy will say: "I have prevailed against him," if sleep should oppress the eyes of the mind also. We recognize therefore that He Himself was present to the old man, He who said to His drowsing disciples: "Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation," and again said to the watchful, now secure of the vigor of those roused: "Sleep now and take your rest." Which indeed He teaches elsewhere was said not so much of bodily sleep as of the firmness of faith, saying: "Be steadfast, for I have overcome the world." For this is a man's true rest, if, steadfast in faith and secure from every enemy by the victory of Christ, he fully enjoys peace in oneness of soul; for He Himself is our rest, who is our peace and who keeps watch for us, that He may rest in us, and who now bids us keep watch for the sake of perpetual rest. The Lord Himself deigned to perform in this one old man these same gifts of His mercy which He wills to be wrought in the whole world; severe with gentleness, and not indulgent without the bridle of fear, He tweaked his ear to shake off the sleep of torpor, He offered His bosom to minister perpetual rest. Twenty-three days a man shut off not only from lands but also from men, the plaything of all the winds, an exile from all earth, a guest of various seas and an outcast from the human race, amid the waves and the beasts of the sea, in the wandering lodging of an errant ship, worn out by fastings, by old age, by fear -- I ask you, did he by his own nature endure? To whom, then, could it be obscure that God was in him? Whom did I call God? Was it not He who alone does wonders, who calls the things that are not as though they were? By whose aid the ship, set apart in the whole sea and propelling itself by an invisible helmsman as if empty and yet of heavy mass, with the man shut up inside its holds along with the grain, floated like that ark made pregnant by the seeds of the world in the flood, nor, though tossed, did it change its course with the tempests on the single sea. First, driven to the city, it saw the lighthouse of the Roman harbor; then it skirted Campania along great stretches, and, the whirlwinds having changed, it flew across to the shores of Africa, and again snatched from these it ran past Sicily, around which the seas, churned and eddying with frequent islands, as they say, and courses dangerous to ships even under a helmsman, amid the windings and obstacles of the islands, the leisurely old man passed by with so direct and unhindered a voyage that, as if a divine ship and wise by a spirit sent from heaven, it of its own accord shunned the things to be avoided, sought the things to be followed, and was usefully and skillfully turned through the necessary passages, until at last on the twenty-third day, God now showing mercy, it set the end of its wanderings and perils on the shores of Lucania. To which as it drew near, the eternal Lord, that His untiring goodness might work His wonders even to the term of the voyage He had undertaken, by the silent prompting of His inspiration sent fishermen, driven from the shore in two little boats, to meet it; who, catching sight of this ship from afar, at first fled in terror at the sight; for they themselves afterward related that it seemed to them full of armed men and a rival of a war-galley. Then, recalled at last by the loud and oft-repeated cries of our old man, having taken counsel among themselves and the Lord thus acting, they understood that there was nothing to be feared by them from that ship into which they were being called. They approached the vessel, and scarcely, with the old man protesting, did they believe with their own eyes that it was empty of soldiers, which they had seen densely crowded from afar; and having at last boarded the ship, where the old man received them, having taken them in, with a meal which he had prepared the day before at the Lord's bidding, and with abundant pay he satisfied and bestowed upon them with the plentiful loaves of the lost sailors. Glad with these wages, they led with their little skiffs the ship -- as if discharged from grievous war and crowned from the contest, since it had survived the shipwreck, victorious over winds and waves -- to their own harbor, with a tow-line going before. What would the vanity of those men have made of this ship, who, by the error with which they worship everything they invent, consecrated in fabulous writings the made ship of the unhappy Argonauts, and even now believe they see it in the sky and count it among the choirs of the stars? Nor with less madness do they venerate the ship that carried the dragon of Epidaurus as a serpent, the embodied phantasm of which they conveyed, the serpent itself mocking them. But let us flee from fictions and alien things, and let us not mingle the lies and poisons of those who perish with the light of our truth. We have our own ships, that we may more worthily use true and household examples. We have also the ark of Noah. We have also the ship of Tarshish and the ship of the Tarshish man. But that one, from which the avenging and guarding whale received the fugitive prophet of God, can be compared with this ship only insofar as it was imperiled before the casting of the lot; but the third ship agrees with my example in this, that it carried an apostle and martyr, and on his account and in him received Christ, or rather when it gave back to him the whole multitude of the ship that was to perish. Let us therefore set before ourselves in mind and discern with our understanding the most beautiful spectacle of the divine work, seeing one ship snatched from the shipwreck of many ships and of all the sailors, with one old man traversing various seas, alone on the deep and on it he alone. Now that ark of the flood, the image of the Church, will turn before our eyes, floating solidly over the submerged world, with the one face of the sea spread everywhere, amid the poured-out waters of heaven and the abyss, swimming over the whole world, whose image this ship bore in many ways on a smaller scale. For as that one was full of seeds of every kind, so this one too was full of various grains, in which, besides the public cargo, there were also many things from the wages and private stores of the sailors. That one carried one family for the restoration of the human race, and this one carried one man for the faith of many. To that one the dove brought the branch of peace; to this one the lamb displayed peace. Into that one the bird entered in the image of the Holy Spirit, and to this one Christ drew near through the image of His confessor. Let us look also upon the ship of Jonah; we shall see this one preserved by a more bountiful gift of the same power and by a greater miracle. For that one was preserved with all safe except one, this one with all lost except the one who remained. But this ship seems also to have imitated that whale, the harmless devourer of the living prophet, since it likewise carried through the depths of the sea a man shut up in its belly and set him forth on the shore unharmed, just as that beast, fasting from its prey, undigested, cast out from the prison-house of its spacious belly by enforced gulpings, poured him back to God, at whose bidding it had received him, and, the mystery of the saving passion being fulfilled, on the third day vomited him forth in the hope of resurrection. But more fortunate was the crowd of that other ship which was granted to the apostle, not indeed by their own merits; for they too deserved shipwreck, who had sailed in contempt of the apostle's counsel. But no less can we glory in this also among the divine works of the voyage, whose men, although a like advocate was lacking, yet in the single sailor the very God of the apostle was present as helmsman, and from this the ship deserved to be freed for the salvation of one innocent man, which that other ship, which had first received the vessel of election in chains, on account of the contempt and captivity of the apostle, condemned by the crime of the prison, did not deserve. But that company of the ship seems to me to have been freed also on account of the mystery of grace, that from the shipwreck of the condemned ship they should escape naked, namely that, freed from the former ship -- that is, from the sin of Adam's flesh -- and expiated by the very waves through which they escaped, and light of all the burdens which they had cast into the sea -- that is, the worldly baggage -- and stripped, as it were of sins, of the heavy and soaking garment of the old man weighed down by the waves, the whole and solid ship might receive them, which, exhibiting the full form of the faith of the Church, carried them safe into harbor and to Rome. In which likewise mystical arguments are formed. For the changed ship is life renewed in Christ, and the harbor of salvation, with Greece as witness, is the name of Roman virtue. Let us therefore bless God and exult in our God, who dwells on high and looks upon the humble, to whom it is well pleasing not in the strength of the horse nor in the tents of a man, but in the humble and in those who fear Him; and who, as He showed even in this old man, heals all the broken in heart and binds up their bruises. I chatter too much, brother. I feel it, but I ask you, bear with me yet in a few words. For I am pleased to ask: would you rather be affected by any dignity of this world than by this divine condescension of God, which this old man enjoyed? Do those seem to you more blessed who shine in purple, who sip from the gem-cup, who are stuffed with the toga and painted with the palm-embroidered robe, and who, lording it over their fellow-mortals and most often over their betters, are slaves of their lusts and of their possessions, insolent toward God concerning God's gifts, needy of Christ, rich in sin, barren of life, fruitful in death? What harm, I ask, did the bilge-bailer's role do to this old man, the cheapest among sailors, his poor garb and the sheepskin of the Sardinians? For he was clothed in stitched skins, when the Lord of hosts, the King of glory, both blessed him with His address and illumined him with His countenance and lulled him in His bosom, surely loving in him this very thing too, that he imitated the sheepskin of Elijah and the garb of the forerunner John in his bristly raiment. To see the king of this world more closely, and to be sprinkled even by his disdainful speech, a great part of the world thinks so blessed that, if it cannot obtain it otherwise, it buys it even at a loss, and, having gained it, becomes forgetful not only of men but even of itself. By how many is this man happier in dignity, whom the King of kings honored? By how many more noble in nobility, whom Christ acknowledged? By how many more opulent in riches, on whom so many good things of so many saints were equally conferred, that he saw Christ as did Israel, conversing with the King of heaven face to face like Moses, and reposing with almost the same familiarity in the bosom of Christ with which John reclined upon His breast, and finally that he received a new name like the friends of God, whom you know well among the patriarchs and the apostles? A little before I was asking you whether you would prefer to be endowed with this grace rather than with all the glory of this world; indeed I judge that the very rulers of these darknesses, if they should be deemed worthy to see it, would prefer the most blessed calamity of our old and poor man to their own wretched felicities and joys that are to be lamented forever. You may perhaps ask by what merits this old sailor, who had always dwelt in the darkness of ignorance and was as estranged from the works of righteousness as from the knowledge of the truth, seems to have obtained what is easily granted to very few laborers, although they have borne the weight and heat of the whole day from the morning watch until night. The apostle will surely answer you, that the graces and gifts of God are without repentance, and that not by works shall all flesh be justified. It is the time of grace, and faith is reckoned unto righteousness, because sons of Abraham are daily raised up from stones. For now is the acceptable time, now the day of salvation, in which we offer the sacrifices of peace and praise, and a sacrifice to God is a troubled spirit, and in man is the temple of God, and in the believing heart are the things of salvation, and in cleansed breasts the holy of holies. Wherefore He who does not spurn the troubled and humbled accepted our old man, a victim pleasing to Himself by his natural goods, in an odor of sweetness. For he is reported to have always been so pure of soul in his inborn simplicity that he knew not how to sin. Already in the old age of his extreme years, a child in body and a little one in malice, he bears the infancy not only of grace but also of mind. For lately, as I said above, he was reborn in Christ and dedicated to the Lord, through whom he escaped the waves of life, through whom the waters of death. Receive him therefore, glad in the Lord, as a good odor of Christ, as a lamb of the table of the new things, whom to your fellowship of soul I have sent across from the rude offspring of mother Church, unstained, with white fleece -- I, a shepherd of a small flock but a bestower of a great pledge, as a spiritual gift. For I judged no other more worthy of such a gift than you, who, according to the grace and working of God, would know both how to look upon him and to receive him. For I seem to see with what gladness, with what admiration, with what faith you will both hear of him and see him himself, when you reflect that angels sailed with him, that a martyr steered for him, that he slept in the bosom of Christ, that Christ tweaked his ear and imposed a name on him. I confess to you my affection: while I too much admire and love the so remarkable deeds of God in a man of our own time, I was almost cruel to the old man himself. For I so constantly handled his ear that I almost wore it away. I would also have wished to cut off even a part of one ear, were it not that in him the matter of the wound would have been for me a matter of pledge. For no other affection carries men to Jerusalem, except that they may see and touch the places in which Christ was bodily present, and may be able to declare of their own fruit: "We have entered into His tabernacles, and we have adored where His feet stood." Although a higher understanding too may here be held, yet the simple sense according to the letter, when the matter requires, is not to be abused. If, then, it is a religious desire to see the places in which Christ entered and suffered and rose again and whence He ascended, and to take and have from those very places at least a little dust, or from the very wood of the cross something like a small splinter, it is a blessing: consider how much greater and fuller a grace it is to behold a living old man, even as a testimony of divine truth. If the manger of His birth, if the river of His baptism, if the garden of the praying Master, if the hall of His judgment, if the column of His scourging, if the thorn of His crowning, if the wood of His hanging, if the rock of His burial, if the place of His resurrection and ascension is celebrated by the memory of the divine presence once there, and lifeless things, living proofs, confirm the ancient truth by present faith: how religiously is this man to be beheld, whom the word of God deigned to address, to whom Christ did not veil His divine face, to whom Christ showed now His martyr, now His very self, in whose living earth we see imprinted the footsteps of the Lord's body, if with faithful eyes and spiritual gaze we read over what in him the bosom of Christ, what His hand touched, and the white hair which often lay upon the Lord's knee, often grew warm at the Lord's bosom, often stroking it with our hand and often patting the little ear which the heavenly fingers drew, the Lord jesting. You have, my brother, my gift; consume it in the spirit of charity, and if you are nauseated by the bitterness of my loquacity, you will temper your distaste by the grace of the Lord and the sweetness of the heavenly history. But I know for certain that you will seek and desire something on which you may exert, toward this man, the charity by which you love Christ. The matter is at hand; do you direct the zeal of pious devotion, and with the whole affection of your faith assist the patron of this man, Secundinianus, to whom Christ omnipotent restored the ship, preserved for this man's salvation, when he already despaired. For you will be asserting the gift of Christ. Do not allow what God bestowed on him from the shipwreck to be snatched from Secundinianus by the envy of the devil through a wicked man, or, once snatched, to be denied him. He is said to be the procurator of a Christian man, our brother Postumianus, who, more greedy than the sea and playing the pirate on land without a pirate-skiff, seized this ship that had drifted onto the shore of the Bruttii, where the senator's estate is washed, and emptied it when captured; for even now it remains empty on that very shore, to attest the loss of a cargo vainly preserved on the deep and lost on land. Complaints about this brigandage have already often been laid before the provincial judge, but our Pharaoh hardened his heart -- perhaps that in him too wonders might be done -- and, being summoned through the officials, first rebelled by force, then fled to Rome. This necessity compelled my Secundinianus to journey to the city, and to travel by an overland route, with his single sailor. I do not doubt that our brother Postumianus will be moved both by your intervention and by his own faith and justice. Wherefore we ought to intervene with this moderation, which assuredly you will do, even if I should give no admonition, that with equal labor you defend and excuse to the excellent senator -- that is, the Christian man -- his accused man, in such a way that for the robber himself the gain of impunity may suffice, while we are content to receive God's gifts from Him.

XXXXVIIII. MACARIO PAVLINUS . Opera domini praedicare honorificum est, quae mihi causa huius epistolae fuit, quia patris familias huius, quem ad unanimitatem tuam prosequor, Secundiniani negotium, ut probabis, non potest sine domini gloria et laude narrari. sicut enim dixit in euangelio: pater meus adhuc operatur, et ego operor, ita et nunc facit, neque desinit bonus dominus fidem nostram euidentibus ueritatis suae excitare ac uere prouocare documentis. itaque in diuersis, ut scriptum est, argumentis apparens nobis saluator deus terra marique pro nobis operatur et quod in singulis agit multorum fidei salutique procurat. uide enim quam admirabile et praedicabile opus sit, quod Iesus dominus in uno sene cum angelis suis sanctis operatus est. haec enim causa est supradicti amici et fratris nostri, qui est uir in Christo fidelis. hieme superiore conpulsus in Sardinia cum ceteris quippe nauiculariis inuehendas fiscalibus horreis fruges ministerio propriae nauis accipere, non expectato tempore soliti commeatus ante aestiuam temperiem onustum nauigium ui publica urgente dimisit. ilico, ut mihi retulit, in proximo freto exorta tempestas temere de portu solutam multarum nauium classem a cursibus destinatis retorsit et fregit in litore. huius nauem in quodam eius insulae loco, quem Ad Puluinos uocant, ne similiter inlideretur, 7] Tob. 12, 7. 11] Ioh. 5, 17. 14] (Act. 1, 3). 1 burdigale dinamium 2 auernus alithium 4 dignissimus religionesque- 0 . — Paullini epistula ad Macarium inscr. 0 m. 2 Macario Paulinus om. 0 12 desinit v, desinet 0 13 nostram v, uestram 0 14 docimentis 0 25 exhorta 0 anchoris fundare conati sunt; sed hiemis eiusdem uiolentia praeualescente rumpentibus uinculis nautae exterriti scapham dit miserunt, uel ut naui fortius continendae renouatis et altius stabilitis anchoris subuenirent uel ut se ipsos, si possent, a discrimine nauis eriperent. sed illos statim cum fragili perfugio lembuli sui abripuisse in scopulos procella dicitur et superfusis fluctibus obruisse. unum ex omni numero nautarum senem sentinando deputatum uel metu inmemores uel ut uilem animam contemnentes relinquunt. interea destituta nautis et anchoris nauis aufertur in pelagus. Senex ille, qui nescierat se relictum, ut iactari uoluique sensit, ab intimo nauis emergit,. uacua omnia, mare undique et undique caelum uidet; cum et metum et periculum misero * solitudo cumularet, sex dies et noctes ieiunus condidit. fuerunt enim illi lacrimae panes die ac nocte. tum ipsum iam mortis quam uitae cupidiorem finemque poenarum animae exitu desiderantem misericors et miserator dominus adire comminus et uerbi cibo animare dignatus est. refert ipse adhuc lacrimans felicitatem periculi sui nec sine lacrimis cordis et gaudio spiritus audiri potest, ut conpellatus adeunte Christo, ut confortatus hortante sit, ut arborem iussus incideret, quam excidi in eo tempore remedium nauis erat; sed quod multi atque ualidissimi sine suo et nauis periculo facere uix possunt, solus et debilis arripere non audens dei uerbo ausus est. bis tantum et leuiter ut a senili manu tactus magis quam ictus securi malus ita prosiliuit a uulnere, ut longe extra nauem in undas expulsus tuto ceciderit. deinde uariis, ut marina iactatio et naualis instructio poscit, officiis, cum aut. artemone armari oportebat aut sentinam depleri necesse erat, nomine Victoris uocatus a domino porrigere tantum specie agendi manum ad quamlibet operam iubebatur. non enim in multa et uaria circa hunc senem mirabilium diuinorum gratia hoc 12] (Verg. Aen. m, 193). 14] Ps. 41, 4. 1 praeualiscente 0 2 scapham dimiserunt 0, scaphulam demiserunt v 3 renotatis 0 6 limbuli 0 arripuisse v 21 inciderit v 31 at 0 operam operam 0 quoque dei munus praetereundum uidetur, quod etiam nomen accepit, quo nunc et regeneratione censetur et ab hominibus et ab angelis scribitur; gentilicio enim signo Valgius uocabatur qui nunc Victor a domino dicitur, et est uictor in domino qui illi aptum opera in ipsum sua nomen inposuit, quia uidelicet et in mari de tempestatibus atque naufragio per adiutorium Christi et nuper in terra per eiusdem gratiam de peccatis et diabolo triumphauit, uidelicet ut totus in Christo nouandus neque in nomine neque in homine ueteri permaneret. Mira fides et ineffabilis pietas domini salutaris, qui senem, si forte somno piger lentius ad gerenda consurgeret, et molli manu ante praepalpans, ne trepidus expergefieret, uellicata blande auricula suscitauit, cum leuiter adnitens senex a primo statim conatu suo manibus angelicis res effectas uideret. uix rudentem quasi ducturus adtigerat, iam exsinuatum in contos suos siparum stabat uel nauis uela faciebat. aqua rimis nauis accepta mergere temptauerat, et post unum uel alterum breuis sentinaculi haustum umore destricta siccataque naui quod ageret non habebat, stupens laborem sibi sine labore praecerpi et actum suum occulta manu praeueniri, si bene occulta dicitur quae tam perspicuum praestabat auxilium. sed nec ipsi operatores simplicibus innocentissimi senis oculis subtrahebantur; nam saepe uidit armatos, uidelicet de exercitu caeli milites excubare nauigio et cuncta nautici muneris administrare. nec sane nauem illam nisi angeli nautae decebant, cui gubernaculum erat mundi gubernator. ipse enim dominus nunc suo uultu coruscus, ut in Apocalypsi describitur, et coma fulgidus, nunc confessoris et amici sui, domini mei, 12] (Verg. Ecl. VI, 3). 27] (Apoc. 1,14). 5 aptum opera in ipsum sua 0, ad opera sua id ipsum v 7 gratia 0 10 misera 0 salutaris 0, saluatoris v 13 leniter v 15 ducturum 0 adtigerat] cum uelum uideret add. v in contos suos: supparum Rosw., in cunctos suos si parum 0, in contos suos: si parum v 16 uel nauis uela Ov, uela nauis Sacch . aquam 0 18 haustum humore coni. Sacch., haustuum ore Ov districto 0 27 describitur Rosw., discribitur Ov 28 amici v, acimi 0 communis patroni Felicis ore uenerabilis in puppi sedebat, sicut nautico usu dicitur, ad temones uel potius pro temonibus, quos cum anchoris pariter et nautis in illo naufrago litore nauis amiserat, infelix feliciter, ut pro amissis omnibus uiris et armis suis aut domini martyrem aut dominum martyris obtineret. narrat gaudio lacrimans senex se ad ipsius pedes nunc domini, nunc martyris gubernantis sibi solitum procubare, etiam familiarius ipso adlectante, in genibus quoque ac sinibus sacris beatum et adflatibus diuinis odorum reclinati capitis puluinar habuisse. Dubitemus nunc patriarcharum sinus fidelibus in Christo seruis patere, cum inmensa eius bonitas etiam catechumenum tunc istum uel suo uel sancti sui fouerit gremio. nam et in sancto suo ipse aderat qui dixit, ut nosti, ad patrem: ego claritatem, quam dedisti mihi, dedi eis, ut unum sint, sicuti et nos unum. ego in eis, et tu in me. et iterum ad apostolos, in quibus uniuerso corpori suo dixit: ecce ego uobiscum sum omnibus diebus uitae meae usque ad consummationem saeculi. quod cotidie nobis in manu et apostolorum suorum et martyrum operante conspicuis uirtutibus potentia probat, ut credamus dei filium et dominum nostrum Iesum ex resurrectione mortuorum regnantem in caelis ad dexteram patris uiuorum esse dominum, non mortuorum. ergo cum et sancti sui confessoris effigie senem nautam fouebat, ipse aderat in sancto suo et fessum atque depositum blandis mulcebat adloquiis nec magis cibo quam uerbo reficiebat, quia ipse est uerus panis qui de caelo descendit dare escam omni carni. in omni enim homine opus suum diligit et omnem, quantum in ipso est, hominem saluum fieri uult, 14] Ioh. 17, 22. 17] Matth. 28, 20. 22] (Marc. 16, 19). 23] Matth. 22, 32; Marc. 12, 27. 27] Ioh. 6, 41. Ps. 135, 25. 29] I Tim. 2, 4. 2 timones 0 timonibus 0 9 beatum ex afflatibus diuinis odorem coni. Sacch . odorem v 12 caticuminum 0 16 unum] sumus add. v 18 uitae meae 0, om. v 19 in manu et] Immanuel coni. Grauius, bonus Emmanuel coni. Sacch . et] uel et 0 25 sanctos suos 0 quia mortem non fecit uitae dator et uita totus, nec laetatur in perditione uiuorum qui mauult misericordiam quam sacrificium nec personas accipit qui fecit omnes, sed pro meritis iudicat, quia deus iudex est. Denique non illi hic de calamitate naufragii neque de senio et egestate nauta uilior fuit; sed his omnibus, quibus eum et socii spreuerant, Christum mouit et uiscera uiscera concussit. oculi enim eius semper in pauperem respiciunt. profecto et iste pauper clamauit, et dominus exaudiuit eum. cui forsitan ad precandum etiam uoces propheticas dominus et ipsa periculi causa dictauerit, ut clamaret: saluum me fac, deus, quoniam intrauerunt aquae usque ad animam meam. ueni in altitudinem maris, non me demergat tempestas aquae, neque absorbeat me profundum. cito anticipet me misericordia tua, priusquam infigar in limo profundi et urgeat super me puteus os suum. respice in me, quoniam unicus et pauper sum ego, et factus sum similis pelicano solitudinis, sicut nycticorax in domicilio, et ita in naui mea sicut passer unicus super tectum. audiuit dominus et misertus est eius et misit angelos in circuitu eius, et factus est in salutem. imperauit procellae et stetit in auram. increpuit mare, et siluerunt fluctus eius, et deduxit eum in aquis multis, uidentem opera domini et miribilia eius in profundo. cibauit eum adipe frumenti, et conloquente Christo quasi de petra melle saturatus est. respexit humilem qui beauit pauperes spiritu. flentem adfatus est qui promisit lugentibus consolationem. et qui esurientibus et sitientibus iustitiam saturitatem dat, ipse 1] Sap. 1, 13. 2] (Matth. 9,13). 3] (Matth. 22,16; Marc. 12,14; Luc. 20, 21). 9] Ps. 33, 7. 12] Ps. 68, 2. 3. 13] Ps. 68,16. 15] Ps. 78, 8. 16] Ps. 68, 3. 16. 17] Ps. 24, 16. 20] Ps. 101, 7. 8. 22] Ps. 29, 11. 33, 8. Ps. 106, 29. 23] Ps. 105, 9. 24] Ps. 106, 24. 26] Ps. 80, 17. 27] (Matth. 5, 3). 6 iis v 8 concessit O1 10 forsitam 0 11 clamarit 0 14 dimergat 0 19 nocticorax 0 26 conloquentem 0 hunc deficientem qui panis et iustitia et fons uitae est de se ipse inrigans pauit, nec alia istum pietate quam omnem hominem in huius mundi pelago uolutantem dedita patri usque ad crucis mortem pietate miseratus est, quia uidelicet unus homo uniuersitatis portio et uniuersitas unius forma hominis et causa est. Denique non solum nauem sed ipsum quoque, cuius causa nauem tuebatur, regens et in eo discreta carnis et spiritus officia dispensans, noctu securum requiescere, die uigilare sollicitum iubebat, se pro dormiente uigilaturum et uigilanti cooperaturum esse promittens. nempe illum in his uerbis domini recognosces affectum, quo semper ita spem nostram fouet, ut sollicitudinem non relaxet, ita infirmae carni consulit, ut spiritus promptus esse non desinat. et ideo sic dormire permisit seni fesso, ut ne seni quidem et fatigato de uigilandi negotio securitatem remitteret, ne scilicet resolueretur in somnos inertes et inciperet non solum corpore sed et mente dormire. quod metuens quidam sanctus ait: inlumina oculos meos, domine, ne umquam obdormiam in mortem. uicina enim morti labes est torpor animorum. et tunc dicet inimicus: praeualui aduersus eum, si et mentis oculos somnus oppresserit. recognoscimus ergo ipsum seni adfuisse qui dixit dormitantibus suis: uigilate et orate, ut non ueniatis in temptationem, et iterum uigilantibus ait, iam scilicet excitatorum uigore securus: dormite iam et requiescite. quod quidem non magis de corporeo somno quam de fidei firmitate dictum alibi docet dicens: constantes estote, quia ego uici mundum. uera enim hominis haec requies est, si fide constans et uictoria Christi ab omni hoste securus pace unanime perfruatur: ipse enim quies nostra 18] Ps. 12, 4. 21] ib. 5. 23] Matth. 26, 41. 25] ib. 45. 27] Ioh. 16, 33. 30] Eph. 2, 14. 11 cooperaturum v, cum quo operaturum 0 iis v 13 fouet v, fauet 0 15 fatigato de uigilandi scripsi, fatigato sine uigilandi v, fatigatos euigilandi 0 27 fidei firmitate v, infirmitate 0, animi f. fort . 30 uuanimi (i. e . Christi) uel animi coni. Sacch . qui pax nobis est quique pro nobis uigilat, ut requiescat in nobis, et qui nunc uigilare nos pro quiete perpetua iubet. Ipse dominus haec eadem pietatis suae munera, quae toto uult agi mundo, in hoc sene uno agere dignatus est cum blandimento seuerus nec sine freno timoris indulgens aurem uellit, ut somnum torporis excuteret, sinum praebuit, ut quietem perpetuam ministraret. uiginti et tres dies homo non modo a terris sed et ab hominibus exclusus omnium uentorum ludibrium, omnis terrae exul, diuersi maris hospes et exsors generis humani, inter fluctus et beluas maris in uago erraticae nauis hospitio ieiuniis senio timore confectus, quaeso te, numquid natura sua perdurauit? cui ergo obscurum sit deum in illo fuisse? quem dixi deum? non qui facit mirabilia solus, qui uocat ea quae non sunt tamquam quae sint? cuius ope enabat toto nauis secreta pelago et inuisibili gubernatore quasi uacua et tamen graui mole se promouens, clausis intra cameras suas homine cum frugibus, uelut illa diluuio feta mundi seminibus arca fluebat nec uno mari iactata cursum cum tempestatibus inmutauit. Primo ad urbem acta Romani portus pharum uidit; deinde Campaniam longis tractibus legit mutatisque turbinibus in Africae litora transuolauit atque ab ipsis rursus abrepta Siciliam transcurrit, circa quam concita et uerticosa crebris, ut ferunt, insulis freta et periculosos etiam sub gubernatore nauibus cursus inter ambages et obices insularum tam directo otiosus senex inoffensoque nauigio praeteriuit, ut quasi diuina nauis et inmisso diuinitus spiritu sapiens sua sponte cauenda uitaret, sequenda peteret et utiliter ac perite per necessarios obitus flecteretur, uigesimo demum et tertio die miserante iam deo finem errorum atque discriminum in Lucanis positura 13] Ps. 71,18. 14] Rom. 4,17. 17] (Gen. 7,17). 7 et tres 0, tres v 10 uago v, uado 0 13 quem scripsi, quod 0, eum v non qui 0, qui v 14 ea quae 0 15 ope innabat toto nauis secura pelago coni. Bacch . 17 homine v, hominem 0 18 uno mari Itom., uno maiori Ov 20 farum 0 23 uertigosa 0 29 et om. v 30 deo 0, domino v litoribus. quibus propinquanti dominus aeternus, ut indefessa eius bonitas usque ad terminum susceptae sibi nauigationis operaretur mirabilia sua, tacito suae adspirationis instinctu conpulsos a littore duabus nauiculis piscatores obuiam misit, qui nauem hanc eminus conspicati primo aspectu territi refugerunt; plenam enim armatorum et liburnae aemulam sibi uisam ipsi postea retulerunt. deinde magnis et saepe repetitis senis nostri uocibus aliquando reuocati ratione secum habita et agente sic domino, nihil sibi ab ea naui timendum, in quam uocarentur, intellexerunt. accessere nauigio uacuumque militibus esse, quod longe stipatum uiderant, uix seni contestanti et ascensa tandem naui suis oculis crediderunt, ubi receptos senex prandio, quod pridie iussus a domino praepararat, excepit multaque mercede copiosis amissorum nautarum panibus saturauit atque donauit. quibus stipendiis laeti famulantibus lembulis suis quasi emeritam graui e bello et de certamine coronatam, quippe ut superstitem naufragii, uictricem uentorum et fluctuum nauem ad portum suum remulco praeeunte duxerunt. quid hac naui fecisset eorum uanitas, qui errore eo quo colunt omne quod fingunt factam Argonautarum infelicium puppem fabulosis litteris sacrauerunt atque etiam nunc in caelo uidere se credunt et inter astrorum choros numerant? nec minore dementia uectricem draconis Epidaurii nauem inludente ipso, cuius corporatum phantasma uexerunt, serpente uenerantur. Sed fugiamus a fictis et alienis neque mendacia et uenena pereuntium nostrae ueritatis lumini misceamus. sunt nobis nostrae naues, ut dignius ueris et domesticis utamur exemplis. habemus et arcam Noe. habemus et nauem Tharsi nauemque Tharsensis. sed illa, de qua dei fugitiuum prophetam ultor et custos cetus excepit, eatenus huic naui conparari potest, 28] (Gen. 7,15). (Ion. 1,8). (Act. 27, 6). 30] (Ion. 1, 4). 6 plenam v, lenam 0 11 seni Rostc., sene Ov 14 amisserum 0 15 limbolis 0 18 remulcho prae et in te duxerunt 0; em. v 18 quid 0, quid de v 23 epidaurii scripsi., epidaurio 0, epidauro v corporeum Rosw . 24 serpentem 0 27 ueris et v, et ueris 0, et uerius fort . 30 coetus 0 quatenus ante sortem periclitata est; tertia uero nauis exemplo meo congruit huic, quod apostolum et martyrem uexit propterque ipsum et in ipso Christum recepit, uel cum illi totam periturae nauis multitudinem redonauit. Proponamus ergo nobis animo et mente cernamus pulcherrimum diuini operis spectaculum, uidentes nauem unam de multarum nauium omniumque nautarum naufragio raptam, uno sene maria diuersa peragrante, solam in pelago et in ea solum. iam illa nobis arca diluuii ante oculos, ecclesiae imago, uersabitur, super orbem demersum una ubique diffusi maris facie inter effusas caeli et abyssi aquas solide toto innatans mundo, cuius ista imaginem multis modis in modulo minore gestauit. nam ut illa omnigenum seminum, sic et ista uariarum plena frugum fuit, cui praeter onus publicum plura etiam de stipendiis et peculiis nauticis inerant. illa unam familiam ad generis humani reparationem, et ista unum hominem ad multorum fidem uexit. illi pacis ramum columba detulit; huic pacem agnus exhibuit. illam in imaginem sancti spiritus ales intrauit, et hanc per imaginem confessoris sui Christus accessit. respiciamus et Ionae nauem, largiore hanc munere uirtutis eiusdem seruatam uidebimus et maiore miraculo. illa enim omnibus saluis praeter unum, ista omnibus amissis uno manente seruata est. sed et cetum illum prophetae uiuentis innocuum uoratorem uidetur haec nauis imitata, cum aeque utero suo clausum hominem per maris alta gestauerit et litori exposuerit incolumem, sicut illum indigestum ieiuna praedae suae belua iussis singultibus ab ergastulo spatiosi uentris excussum refudit deo, quo iubente susceperat, et mysterio salutiferae passionis expleto tertia die in spem resurrectionis euomuit. 3] (Act. 27, 24). 10] Gen. 7, 17. 13] (Gen. 6, 20). 16] (Gen. 7, 7; I Petro 3, 20). 17] (Gen. 8, 11). 18] (Gen. 8, 9). 24] (Ion. 2,1). 27] (Ion. 2, 11; Matth. 12, 39). 2 huic 0, hine v 8 sene maria v, seminaria 0 10 uersabitur r, uersabatur 0 dimersum 0, diuersum v 11 solidae 0 12 multis modis v, multimodis 0 23 coetum 0 29 expleto Col., expleta Ov Nauis uero illius turba felicior, quae apostolo condonata est, non suis quidem meritis; nam et ipsi naufragium meruerunt qui contempto apostoli consilio nauigarant. sed non minus et hoc possumus in diuinis operibus nauigio gloriari, cuius uiris quamquam defuerit similis aduocatus, tamen ipsi in unico nauta ipse apostoli deus adfuit gubernator, et quo pro unius innocentis salute meruit liberari, quod illa, quae uas electionis in uinculis prima susceperat, ob apostoli contemptum et captiuitatem carceris crimine damnata non meruit. illa uero nauis cohors mihi uidetur et propter gratiae mysterium liberata, ut de naufragio nauis addictae nudi euaderent, scilicet ut eos a prioris nauis id est ab Adae carnis peccato liberatos et ipsis per quos euaserant fluctibus expiatos atque omnium quas in mare abiecerant id est saecularium sarcinarum leues et undis quasi peccatis graui et madida ueteris hominis ueste nudatos integra et solida nauis acciperet, quae plenam fidei ecclesiae exhibens formam tutos in portum Romamque peruexit. in quibus similiter mystica argumenta formantur. nam mutata nauis nouata in Christo uita est, et portus salutis ecclesiae teste Graecia nomen est Romane uirtutis. benedicamus ergo deum et exultemus in deo nostro, qui in altis habitat et humilia respicit, cui non in uiribus equi neque (in) tabernaculis uiri, sed in humilibus et timentibus eum bene placitum est, et qui, ut in isto etiam sene ostendit, sanat omnes contritos corde et adligat contritiones eorum. Nimis garrio, frater. sentio, sed quaeso adhuc paucis feras me. interrogare enim libet, ullane te huius saeculi 1] (Act. 27, 24). 11] (I Petro 3, 21). 21] Ps. 112, 5. 23] Ps. 146,10. 25] Ps. 146,3. 4 et 0, ex v 5 in ipsi in 0 6 et quo] a quo uel a quo et coni. Sacch., atque fort . 7 salutem 0 10 et om. v 11 addictae 0, aditae v, epibatae coni. Sacch . 17 portum Bostv., portu Ov 19 nouata v, nonato 0 20 romane scripsi, romana 0, Roma v 22 in v, om. 0 24 et qui v, aequi 0 isto v, iusto 0 27 frater, ut sentio fort . 28 me v, mei 0 dignitate quam hac dei dignatione adfici malles, qua senex iste perfunctus est? beatioresne tibi uidentur qui purpura fulgent., qui gemma libant, toga farciuntur palmataque pinguntur, et hominibus conmortalibus ac plerisque melioribus dominantes cupiditatum ac rerum suarum serui sunt, de dei muneribus insolentes deo, Christo egentes, peccato diuites, uita steriles, morte fecundi? quid huic, quaeso, obfuit seni persona sentinatoris et in nautis uilissima, inops habitus et mastruca Sardorum? nam pellibus sutis uestiebatur, cum illum dominus uirtutum, rex gloriae et adloquio suo beabat et inluminabat adspectu et gremio sopiebat, profecto et id ipsum in eo diligens, quod Eliae meloten et praeuii Iohannis habitum ueste setigera imitabatur. regem saeculi uidere propius et eius uel fastidioso sermone respergi magna pars mundi tam beatum putat, ut si aliter non obtineat, etiam damnis emat atque adeptus non modo hominum sed et sui inmemor fiat. quantorum hic dignitate felicior quem rex regum honorauit? quantorum nobilitate nobilior quem Christus agnouit? quantorum diuitiis opulentior cui tanta tot sanctorum bona pariter conlata sunt, ut Christum uideret sicut Israel, cum caeli rege loqueretur facie ad faciem sicut Moyses et eadem propemodum familiaritate requiesceret in sinu Christi, qua Iohannes in pectore recumbebat, denique ut nouum nomen acciperet sicut amici dei, quos in patriarchis et in apostolis bene nosti. te ego paulo ante interrogabam, an huius gratia donari omni huius saeculi gloriae praeoptares; ipsos equidem rectores harum tenebrarum, si uidere mereantur, praelaturos arbitror beatissimam senis et inopis nostri calamitatem suis miseris felicitatibus et gaudiis perenne lugendis. 12] (IIII Reg. 1, 8; Matth. 3, 4; Marc. 1, 6). 20] (Gen. 32, 30; Num. 12, 8).. 22] (Ioh. 13, 23). 23] (Gen. 17, 5. 32, 28; Marc. 3, 16). 26] Eph. 6, 12. 3 libant scripsi, libunt Ov, bibunt Col . toga v, tota 0 farciuntur scripsi, faciuntur 0, fulciuntur v 8 mastruca Col., mastruga Of) 11 id v, in id 0 12 heliae 0 melotem 0 13 etigera 0 propius v, proprius 0 15 atq. 0, idque v 22 qua Col., quia 0 iohannis 0 26 praeoptaris Ov Quaeras forsitan, quibus hic meritis uetus nauita semper in tenebris ignorantiae demoratus et tam ab operibus iustitiae quam a scientia ueritatis alienus obtinuisse uideatur, quod paucissimis fere operariis, quamquam (a) custodia matutina usque in noctem totius diei pondus et aestum sustinuerint, facile conceditur. respondebit tibi apostolus profecto, quia sine paenitentia sunt gratiae et donationes dei et quia non ex operibus iustificabitur omnis caro. tempus est gratiae, et fides ad iustitiam deputatur, quia de lapidibus filii Abraham cotidie suscitantur. nunc enim tempus acceptum, nunc dies salutis, quo pacis et laudis hostias immolamus, et sacrificium deo spiritus contribulatus est, et in homine templum dei et in corde credenti salutaria et in defaecatis pectoribus sancta sanctorum. quare qui contribulatum et humiliatum non spernit ipse nostrum senem placitam sibi naturalibus bonis hostiam in odorem suauitatis accepit. nam ingenita simplicitate tam purus animi semper fuisse perhibetur, ut peccare nescierit. iam in extremae aetatis senecta puer corpore et malitia paruulus non solum gratiae sed et mentis infantiam gerit. nuper enim, ut supra dixi, renatus in Christo et domino dedicatus est, per quem (fluctus) uitae, per quem aquas mortis euasit. Accipe igitur eum laetus in domino ut bonum Christi odorem, ut agnum mensis nouorum, quem ad unanimitatem tuam de rudi matris ecclesiae fetu inmaculatum candente lanitio pastor exigui gregis sed magni pignoris munerator ut xenium spiritale transmisi. non enim alium tali munere 4] Ps. 129, 6. 5] (Matth. 20,12). 7] Rom. 11,29. 8] Rom. 3,20. 9] (Hatth. 3, 9). 10] II Cor. 6, 2. 12] Ps. 50, 19. 13] (II Cor. 6, 16). 15] Ps. 50,19. 17] (Eph. 5,2). 19] (I Cor. 14,20). 23] (II Cor. 2,15). 1 hic Col., huic Ov 3 a scientia r, ab scientiae 0 4 paucissimi fere operarii 0, paucissimis certe operariis v a v, om . 0 5 sustinuerint v, sustinuerit 0 6 nec facile fort . 8 operibus t opbribus 0 13 corde ex ore 0 15 contribulatum] cor contritum v 19 senecta v, senectam 0 corpore scripsi, corporis 0, om. v 22 fluptus addidi, om . 0, mala add. v 27 eienium 0, Euxenium v, Encaenium coni. Iurctus tali munere v, talium unere 0 nVIIII. Panlini Nol. epistulae. 26 digniorem putaui quam te, qui iuxta dei gratiam et operationem illum et adspicere et suscipere nouisses. uidere enim mihi uideor, qua gratulatione, qua admiratione, qua fide et auditurus de illo et uisurus ipsum sis, cum quo nauigasse angelos, cui martyrem gubernasse, quem in sinu Christi dormisse, cui Christum aurem uellicasse, nomen inposuisse reputaueris. fateor tibi affectionem meam, dum nimium tam insignia in nostri temporis homine dei gesta admiror et diligo, paene in ipsum senem fuisse crudelem. nam tam adsidue aurem ipsius retractaui, ut paene detriuerim. uoluissem quoque uel unius partem auris abscidere, nisi in illo uulneris quae mihi pignoris res fuisset. non enim alter affectus homines ad Hierosolymam rapit, nisi (ut) loca, in quibus corporaliter praesens fuit Christus, uideant atque contingant possintque et de suo fructu edicere: introiuimus in tabernacula eius et adorauimus ubi steterunt pedes eius. quamquam et altior ut hic intellectus habeatur, tamen et simplici sensu secundum litteram, cum res postulat, non abutendum est. si ergo religiosa cupiditas est loca uidere, in quibus Christus ingressus et passus est et resurrexit et unde conscendit, et aut de ipsis locis exiguum puluerem aut de ipso crucis ligno aliquid saltem festucae simile sumere et habere, benedictio est: considera quanto maior et plenior gratia sit uiuum senem uel testimonio diuinae ueritatis inspicere? si praesepe nati, si fluuius baptizati, si hortus (orantis) magistri, si atrium iudicati, si columna districti, si spina coronati, si lignum suspensi, si saxum sepulti, si locus resuscitati euectique memoria diuinae quondam praesentiae celebratur et ueterem ueritatem praesenti fide conprobant in rebus exanimis uiua documenta: quam religiose adspiciendus est hic, quem adloqui dei sermo dignatus est, cui se facies 15] Ps. 131, 7. 24] (Luc. 2, 7). (Matth. 3, 13). (Ioh. 18, 1). 25] (Marc. 15, 16). (Ioh. 19, 2). 26] (Ioh. 19, 17). (Marc. 15, 46). (Marc. 16, 6). 11 abscindere v 13 ut v, om. 0 16 ut hic scripsi, et hic Ov, ethicus coni. Rosw . 18 postolat 0 21 festucae simile v, fistuca e simili 0 25 orantis v, om. Q 28 fide v, fidei 0 29 examinis 0 docimenta 0\' diuina non texit, cui nunc martyrem suum, nunc semet ipsum Christus ostendit, in cuius uiuente terra dominici corporis uidemus inpressa uestigia, si fidelibus oculis et acie spiritali quod in eo sinus Christi, quod manus contigit perlegamus, et canitiem, quae saepe super domini genu iacuit, saepe domini sinu tepuit, nostra manu saepe mulcentes et auriculam saepe palpantes, quam caelestes digiti domino iocante traxerunt? Habes, mi frater, xenium meum, ede illud spiritu caritatis, et si loquacitatis meae amaritudine nauseaueris, de gratia domini et caelestis historiae suauitate fastidium temperabis. certo autem scio quaesiturum te et desideraturum aliquid, quo circa hunc hominem exeras caritatem, qua diligis Christum. subest materia; tu studium piae deuotionis intende et patrono huius Secundiniano, cui nauem Christus omnipotens pro huius salute seruatam iam desperanti reddidit, toto fidei tuae affectu adesto. munus enim Christi adseres. ne patiaris inuidia diaboli per hominem inprobum Secundiniano eripi uel iam ereptum negari quod illi de naufragio redonauit deus. procurator Christiani uiri, fratris nostri Postumiani, esse dicitur, qui eam nauem in Brutiorum litore, quo possessio senatoris adluitur, adlapsam auarior mari et sine myoparone piraticum in terra agens occupauit et captam uacuefecit; nam etiam nunc in ipso litore inanis manet, ut damnum oneris frustra in pelago seruati et in terra perditi contestetur. depositae iam saepe apud iudicem prouincialem super hoc latrocinio querelae, sed Pharao noster indurauit cor suum, forte ut in ipso mirabilia fiant, et conuentus per officia primo ui rebellauit, postea Romam profugit. haec Secundinianum meum necessitas ad urbem et itinere terreno peregrinari cum suo unico nauta coegit. non ambigo fratrem nostrum Postumianum et interuentu tuo et sua fide atque iustitia commouendum. quare hoc moderamine 4 sinus r, simus 0 7 iacente Col . domini iacenti coni. Sacch . 8 lenium Rosw., enxenium r, exenium O illum 0, ipsum r 9 amaritudine v, amaritudinem 0 12 exerceas v 15 effectu r 17 Secundiniano v, secundiano 0 19 postumniani 0 21 sine Rofnc., sene Or meo parone Ov piraticum coni. lac. Billius, piraticam Or 25 farao O 30 posthumianum r 26* interuenire debemus, quod profecto facies, etsi nullus admoneam, ut pari labore defendas et excuses optimo senatori id est Christiano uiro reum suum, ita ut praedoni ipsi sufficiat inpunitatis lucrum, nobis ab ipso dei munera recipere contentis.