THIRTEEN HOMILY. "Now the Lord God had a garden of delight in Eden toward the east, and there he placed the man whom he had formed. (Gen. II, 8.)

ANALYSIS.

St. Chrysostom rejoices at the eagerness of his hearers, and promises to answer them with fresh zeal. 2. He then briefly takes up the story of the formation of man; and refutes in passing the error of those who regarded the soul as a part of the divinity. - 3. Turning to the words of his text, he says that the word planted by Scripture, expresses that at the Lord's command there earth produced the various trees of the garden of delights; and he adds that Moses determines the place to confuse in advance the fables of some heretics. 4. The Lord placed the man there to enjoy all his beauties and all his pleasures, and forbade him to touch the fruit of the tree of life, to test his obedience, and to remind him of his dependence. .

1. Your eagerness and your ardor, your attention and your competition delight me with admiration; so, in spite of the feeling of my weakness, I propose to draw up every day for you the table of a spiritual feast. No doubt this table will be poor and frugal; but I trust your zeal, and I know that you will listen to my word with more joy than is shown for a rude and material meal. Indeed, do we not see that the appetite of the guests makes up for the frugality of the table and the poverty of the guest, so that a meager meal is eaten with great pleasure; On the contrary, if one brings only a feeble appetite to a sumptuous feast, the variety and abundance of food becomes useless, because no one can use it to the full? But here, by the grace of God, you are approaching this spiritual table full of fervor and pious greed, and I am no less eager to distribute the holy word to you, because I know you 'hear with a willing ear.

The plowman who has found a field fat and fertile, cultivates it with the greatest care; he works the soil, plows it and pulls out its thorns; he then sows it widely, and, full of confidence and hope, expects every day the development of the grain which he has entrusted to a fertile soil. However, he bases his calculations on the fertility of the soil, and is preparing to collect a hundredfold of what he sowed. It is so that by seeing each day your fervor increase, your eagerness increase (71) and your zeal develop, I conceive the best hopes; therefore, I am animated with a new ardor to instruct you, to advance somewhat your perfection, the glory of God and the honor of the Church. But let us first recall, please, the subject of our last interview, and then we will proceed to the explanation of the passage just read. Here is what I told you, and what I was developing to you at the end of our last lecture; it is necessary to return to it briefly: and God formed the man of the mud of the earth; and he poured on his face a breath of life, and the man became alive and animated.

Now I made you observe, as I still do at this moment, and as I will not cease to say, that God has given to man marks of extreme goodness; he took care of our salvation with special care, and he filled the man with the highest honors. Moreover, his word and his deeds have loudly declared that in his eyes the man was above all other creatures; so it will not be useless to return to this subject; for as the aromatics render more perfume, according as they are further kneaded, our holy Scriptures offer new and new meditations to our deep and multiplied meditations, and they present to our piety immense riches. And God formed the man of the mud of the earth. Notice here, I pray you, how much this language differs from the one God used to produce other creatures. He says, according to Moses: Let there be light, and there was light; Let the firmament be, that the waters gather, that luminous bodies are, that the earth produces the plants, that the waters produce the animals that swim, and that the earth gives birth to the living animals. Thus one word removed all creatures from nothing; but is it man? Moses said, And God formed man; this expression, which is proportionate to our weakness, also designates the mode of our creation and its superiority over earlier creations. For to speak a human language, she shows us the Lord forming the body of man with his own hands; Blessed Job, too, said: Your hands have formed me and they have shaped my body. (Job, X, 8.) There is no doubt that if God had commanded the earth to produce man, he would not have executed this order, but he wanted the very mode of our creation to be a lesson for us. humility, and that this memory keeps us in the dependence that suits our nature. This is why Moses so explicitly describes this creation, and tells us that God formed the man of the mud of the earth.

2. But also observe how much this mode of creation is honorable to us; for God did not take only earth to form man, but silt, dust, all that is most vile; and it is this mud and dust which, at his command, became the body of man. His word had previously drawn the earth from nothingness, and then he wanted some silt to be changed into the body of man. Also, is it with delight that I repeat this exclamation of the Psalmist: Who will tell the power of the Lord, and who will publish all the praises due to him? (Ps. CV, 2.) And indeed, to what degree of honor did he not elevate the man formed of the mud of the earth! and of what benefits does he not immediately satisfy him, thus giving him testimonies of a very special kindness! For, says the Scripture, God sprinkled a breath of life on the face of man; and he became alive and animated.

But here some fools who follow only their own reasonings, who have no thoughts worthy of God, and who do not understand the condescension of the language of Scripture, dare to assert that our soul is a portion of divinity. O madness! O madness! how many are the ways of perdition that the devil opens before his followers! For, see by what different paths they all run to their loss. Some rely on this word: God sprinkled a breath, and they conclude that our souls are a portion of divinity; and the others even say that after death the soul passes into the body of the most vile animals. What an extravagant and dangerous doctrine! it is because their reason, obscured by thick darkness, can not understand the meaning of Scripture; also, like the blind, they all fall in different precipices; for some elevate the soul above its dignity, and others lower it below.

If they want to give God a mouth because the Scripture says that he spread a breath of life on the face of the man, so they must also give him hands since the same Scripture says he formed the man. But it is better to hide such extravagances (72) than to expose oneself to holding a senseless language; Let us therefore avoid following these heretics in the multiplied paths of their errors, and attach ourselves to Scripture, which is self-explanatory; only the simplicity of its expressions should not stop us, because this simplicity has for cause only the weakness of our intelligence. Hey! how could the ear of man receive the word of God, if that word did not conform to his infirmity? Convinced of our helplessness and the truthfulness of God, we must interpret Scripture only in a sense worthy of it; that is why we must remove from God all ideas of limbs and bodily forms, and imagine nothing that would dishonor Him; for he is a simple, immaterial being, who does not fall under the senses; and if we give it a body and limbs, we will suddenly embark on the gross errors of paganism.

So when you read in Scripture that God formed man, lift yourself up to the idea of ​​that creative power that previously said that light is. And when you read again that God sprinkled on the face of man a breath of life, also think that this same God who had created the angels, spiritual intelligences, wanted to unite with the body of man, formed of the mud of the earth, a reasonable soul who moved the members of this body. And indeed, we can say that this body, the work par excellence of the Lord; lay on the earth as an instrument that needs to be touched. Yes, he was like a lyre waiting for a clever hand; and the soul, by imparting to these members a harmonious movement, makes them render sounds which are agreeable to the Creator. And God poured on the face of man a breath of life; and man became alive and animated. What does this word mean: he spread a breath of life? It teaches us that God unites to the body of man a living soul who communicated to him the life and the movement, and who used the members of this same body to exercise his own faculties.

3. But I come back again to the difference which exists between the creation of animals and that of this reasonable being which we call man. About the first, God had said, that the waters produce the animals that swim; and suddenly the waters gave birth to the fish. And so he said, let the earth produce living animals; but it is not so with man. At first his body was formed of the mud of the earth, and he then received a reasonable soul which gave him life and movement. So Moses says of animals: their life is in the blood. On the contrary, our soul is a spiritual and immortal substance, and it surpasses the body by the whole interval which separates a pure intelligence from a gross and gross body. But perhaps you will ask me this question: if the soul is nobler than the body, why was it created first, and soul last? Hey! do you not see, my dear brother, that this same order has been followed in creation? For the Lord first made heaven and earth, the sun and the moon, the animals and all other creatures, and then he formed the man who was to command them. Thus, in the creation of man, the body was formed first, and the soul the last, though it is nobler and more excellent.

Observe again that animals, being destined for the service of man, were to be created before him, so that he might first use them. And so the body was formed before the soul, so that from the moment it existed, by an act of the ineffable wisdom of the Lord, it could act by means of the body. And God, saith the scripture, planted a garden of delight in Eden toward the east, and there he placed the man whom he had formed. Oh ! how good and generous is the Lord to man! he had created the universe for him, and from the first moment of his existence he filled him with new blessings. For it was for him that he planted a garden of delights, in Eden, towards the East. But here, my dear brother, if one did not interpret these words in a sense worthy of God, one would fall into the abyss of extravagance. And indeed what will those who take literally and in a human sense say all that Scripture says about God? he planted a garden of delights: what! Did he need to beautify this garden to work the land, and to employ his care and industry? To God displease ! And this expression, the Lord planted, only signifies that at his command the earth produced the garden of delights that man was to inhabit. It is indeed for man that this garden was planted; and scripture expressly marks it. God, she says, planted a garden of delights in Eden, towards the east, and there he placed the man whom he had formed.

I also notice that Moses specifies the place where this garden was placed, to prevent the vain speeches of those who want to abuse our simplicity. They tell us that this garden was in heaven, and not on the earth, and we sell a thousand other similar fables. The extreme accuracy of the sacred historian could not prevent them from boasting of their eloquence and their wholly profane knowledge. So they dare to fight the Scripture, and to maintain that the earthly paradise did not exist on earth. It is thus that they adopt a sense quite contrary to that of the Scripture, and that they follow a road strewn with errors by hearing from heaven what is said of the earth. But in what abyss would they not have fallen if, by divine inspiration, Moses had not used a simple and familiar language? Doubtless the Scripture itself interprets its teachings, and gives no hold on error; but because many read it or listen to it less to seek the doctrine of salvation than the pleasure of the mind, they prefer the interpretations which flatter them to those which would instruct them. That is why I implore you to close your ear to all these seductive speeches, and to hear the Scripture only in accordance with the holy canons. So when she tells us that God planted a garden of delights on the east of Eden, give this word, my dear brother, a sense worthy of God, and believe that at the order of the Lord a garden was formed in the place that Scripture designates. For one can not, without a great danger for oneself and for his listeners, prefer his own interpretations to the true and real meaning of the divine Scriptures.

4. And God put there the man whom he had formed. See here how the Lord honored man from the first moment of his existence. He had created it out of paradise, but he introduced it immediately, in order to awaken in his heart the feeling of gratitude, and to make him appreciate the honor bestowed on him. He placed in heaven the man whom he had formed; This word: He put it, signifies that God commanded man to inhabit the earthly paradise, so that he might taste all the charms of this delightful abode, and show himself grateful to his benefactor. And in fact these kindnesses of the Lord were all gratuitous, since they warned in man to the slightest merit. So do not be surprised at this expression: he placed it, for the Scripture here, as always, uses a very human language, in order to make it more accessible and more useful. Thus, in speaking of the stars, she said previously that God placed them in the sky. Certainly, the sacred writer did not want us to believe that the stars are fixedly attached to the place they occupy, since they each have their rotational movement; he only proposed to teach us that the Lord commanded them to shine in the heavenly spaces, just as he commanded man to inhabit the earthly paradise.

And God, continues the Scripture, brought out from the earth all kinds of beautiful trees to see, and whose fruits were sweet to eat: and in the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the science of the good and bad. (Gen. II, 9) Behold, from the Lord a new blessing which is specially related to man. He destined for him the terrestrial paradise for habitation: so he brought out from the earth all kinds of trees whose appearance was pleasing to the eye, and the sweet fruit to taste. All kinds of trees, says the Scripture expressly, which were beautiful to see, that is to say, which rejoiced the eyes of men, and whose fruits were sweet to eat, that is to say which provided him with delicious food. Add further that the number and variety of these trees produced new charms for man; for you can not name a single species that is not there. But if the house of the man was so graceful, his life was no less admirable. He lived on the earth like an angel, and though clothed in a body he did not suffer the hard necessities. He was the king of creation, wearing the purple and the diadem; and among the abundance of all goods, he flowed in, the terrestrial paradise a sweet and free existence.

And in the middle of the garden were the tree of life, and the tree of the science of good and evil. After having taught us that at the Lord's command, the earth produced all kinds of beautiful trees in view and whose fruits were sweet to taste, Moses adds: that in the middle of the garden were the tree of life, and the tree of the science of good and evil. It is because the Creator, in his divine prescience, was not unaware that later on man would abuse his freedom and his (74) security. So he placed in the middle of paradise the tree of life, and the tree of the science of good and evil, because he proposed to defend its use to man. And the purpose of this defense was first to remind the man that God gave him by kindness and generosity the use of all the other trees, and then, that he was his Master, no less than that of all creatures. The mention of these two trees naturally leads to the mention of the four rivers which flowed from one and the same source, and which then divided into four branches, watered the various regions of the globe, and marked its separation.

But it is possible that here those who wish to speak only from their own wisdom maintain that these rivers were not true rivers, nor were they waters of real waters. Let them tell these reveries to listeners who listen to them too gullible; and for us, repel such men, and add no faith to their words. For we must firmly believe all that is contained in the divine Scriptures, and by attaching ourselves to their true meaning, we will print in our souls the sound and true doctrine. But we must also regulate our lives by their maxims, so that our morals bear witness to the sanctity of doctrine, and that doctrine is itself the rule of our morals. And indeed it is essential, if we want to avoid hell and win the sky, that we shine the double halo of an orthodox faith and irreproachable conduct. Hey! tell me, can we call useful the slender tree that is covered with leaves, and never crowns fruits? So are these orthodox Christians in their faith, and heretics in their conduct.

Moreover, Jesus Christ declares happy only the one who does and teaches. (Matthew V, 19.) For the teaching which is based on actions is much safer and much more persuasive than one which relies on vain words. And, in fact, silence and darkness do not prevent our good works from establishing our brothers, either by our examples or by their account of them. Moreover, we ourselves find a source of grace because, according to the measure of our strength, we are the cause that those who see us glorify the Lord. Thus the good examples of a Christian are so many languages ​​that multiply as infinitely to thank and praise the God of the universe. For not only do the witnesses of his life admire him, and glorify the Lord, but the strangers themselves, whatever may be the distance of the places which separate them; and the enemies, no less than the friends, are edified by his virtue, and venerate his eminent sanctity. Such, indeed, is the power of virtue, that it closes its mouth to its most obstinate opponents; and just as a weak eye can not endure the brightness of the sun, vice can not shamelessly contemplate virtue in the face, it is obliged to hide, and to confess defeat. Convinced of these truths, let us embrace the party of virtue, and to better regulate our life, and secure our salvation, carefully avoid even the slightest sins in our words and actions; for we will not fall into grave faults, if we are on guard against the least, and, with the help of grace, we may, advancing in age, also advance in holiness. In this way we will escape the sufferings of hell, and acquire the eternal goodness of heaven by the grace and mercy of Our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom we have with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Holy, glory, honor, and empire, now and for ever and ever. So be it.