Cyril
of Jerusalem
Lecture 18, Part B
“The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones.” — Ezekiel 37:1
Summary: St. Cyril continues discussion of the resurrection of human beings from the dead as well as its apologetic. So far, he has limited himself to natural law and Torah; now he turns to all the Prophets and Apostles for authority. Completing this topic, he concludes with an overview of the Church and its catholicity.
Preview: 13. “And whence in the beginning came man into being
at all…? Go [Samaritans] to the first book
of the Scripture, which even you receive; And
God formed man of the dust of the ground.[i] Is dust transformed into flesh, and shall not
flesh be again restored to flesh? … whence
the heavens … earth, and seas? … sun, and
moon, and stars? … waters … things which
fly and swim? … earth all its living things? Were so many myriads brought from nothing into
being, and shall we men, who bear God’s image, not be raised up? Truly this course is full of unbelief, and the
unbelievers are much to be condemned; when Abraham addresses the Lord as the Judge of all the earth[ii]….” 14. “These
questions, therefore, are for them, the unbelievers: but the words of the Prophets
are for us who believe. But since some who have also used the Prophets believe not
what is written, and allege against us that passage, The ungodly shall not rise up in judgment,[iii]
and, For if man go down to the grave he shall
come up no more,[iv]
and, The dead shall not praise You, O Lord[v] … For if it is said, that the ungodly shall not rise up in judgment,
this shows that they shall rise, not in judgment, but in condemnation…. And if it is said, The dead shall not praise You, O Lord, this shows, that since in this
life only is the appointed time for repentance and pardon…. Therefore the just then offer praise; but they
who have died in sins have no further season for confession.” 15. “Respecting
that passage, If a man go down to the grave,
he shall come up no more, observe what follows … He shall come up no more, neither shall he return to his own house.[vi]
… since the whole world shall pass away….
But they ought to have heard Job, saying, For there is hope of a tree; for if it be cut down, it will sprout again,
and the tender branch thereof will not cease.
For though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die
in the rocky ground; yet from the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth a
crop like a new plant. But man when he dies, is gone; and when mortal man falls,
is he no more?[vii] … since a tree falls and revives, shall not man,
for whom all trees were made, himself revive?
And that you may not suppose that I am forcing the words, read what follows
… For if a man die, he shall live again
… I will wait till I be made again; [viii]
… Who shall raise up on the earth my skin,
which endures these things.[ix] Esaias … says, The dead men shall rise again, and they that are in the tombs shall awake.[x] … Ezekiel … says … Behold I will open your graves, and bring you up out of your graves.[xi] Daniel says, Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall arise, some to everlasting
life, and some to everlasting shame.[xii] 16. “Many
Scriptures … testify of the Resurrection of the dead….” “We will make a passing mention of the raising
of Lazarus … and allude … to the widow’s son … [and] mention the ruler of the synagogue’s
daughter, and the rending of the rocks, and how there arose many bodies of the saints which slept[xiii]…. But specially be it remembered that Christ has been raised from the dead.[xiv] … in passing of Elias, and the widow’s son … of
Elisseus also, who raised the dead twice; once in his lifetime, and once after his
death. For when alive he wrought the resurrection
by means of his own soul.[xv] … though [the corpse of Elisseus] gave life, yet
continued itself among the dead.” “And let
us not foolishly disbelieve, as though this thing had not happened: for if handkerchiefs
and aprons, which are from without, touching the bodies of the diseased, raised
up the sick, how much more should the very body of the Prophet raise the dead?” 17. “We
might say [moree] … in detail … of each event: but as you have been already wearied
both by the … fast … and by [prayer vigils], let … [this] suffice for a while; …
words … were sown thinly, that you, … like richest ground, may in bearing fruit
increase them. But be it remembered, that
the Apostles also raised the dead … even though the wonders wrought by each have
not all been written.” “Remember … Paul …
How are the dead raised, and with what manner
of body do they come?[xvi] … how he says, For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised; how he called them
fools, who believed not; … and how he
wrote to the Thessalonians, But we would not
have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that you sorrow
not, even as the rest which have no hope,[xvii]
… that, And the dead in Christ shall rise
first.[xviii]” 18. “For this corruptible must put on incorruption,
and this mortal must put on immortality.[xix]” “… such as we cannot worthily speak of. Then
… shall the righteous shine forth as the sun,[xx]
and the moon, and as the brightness of the
firmament.[xxi]” 19. “We
shall be raised therefore, all with our bodies eternal [in two companies]” “God [will] assign this portion to either company;
for we do nothing without the body.” We sin
with the body; yet, with the body we also pray, keep chastity, and give alms. “Since then the body has been our minister in
all things, it shall also share with us in the future the fruits of the past.”[xxii] 20. “Therefore,
brethren, let us be careful of our bodies, nor misuse them as though not our own.”[xxiii] “The past wounds … God heals by Baptism; against
future ones let us one and all jointly guard ourselves, that we may keep this vestment
of the body pure, and may not … lose the salvation of heaven….” 21. “Thus
much … of the Resurrection of the dead; and now … [continuing] the profession of
the faith, and do you with all diligence pronounce it while I speak , and remember
it.” 22.
“And in one Baptism of repentance for the remission of sins; and in one
Holy Catholic Church; and in the resurrection of the flesh; and in eternal life.” “Now then let me finish what still remains to
be said for the Article, In one Holy Catholic Church….” 23. “It
is called Catholic then because it extends over all the world, from one end of the
earth to the other; and because it teaches universally and completely one and all
the doctrines which ought to come to men’s knowledge, concerning things both visible
and invisible, heavenly and earthly; and because it brings into subjection to godliness
the whole race of mankind, governors and governed, learned and unlearned; and because
it universally treats and heals the whole class of sins, which are committed by
soul or body, and possesses in itself every form of virtue which is named, both
in deeds and words, and in every kind of spiritual gifts.”[xxiv] 24. “And
it is rightly named (Ecclesia) because it calls forth and assembles together all
men … And make an assembly for all the
congregation at the door of the tabernacle of witness.[xxv] … the word assemble, is used for the first time in [Leviticus] at the time when
the Lord puts Aaron into the High-priesthood.” … the Lord [also] says to Moses, Assemble the people unto Me, and let them hear
My words, that they may learn to fear Me.[xxvi]
And … concerning the Tables, And on them were written all the words which
the Lord spoke with you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of
the Assembly[xxvii]….
The Psalmist also says, I will give thanks unto You, O Lord, in the great
Congregation; I will praise You among much people.[xxviii]
[i]
Genesis 2:7
[iii]
Psalms 1:5
[v]
Psalms 6:5; 115:17; Isaiah 38:18
[vii]
Job 14:7-10
[viii]
Job 14:14 Septuagint
[ix]
Job 19:23-27 Septuagint
[x]
Isaiah 26:19 Septuagint
[xi]
Ezekiel 37:12
[xii]
Daniel 12:2
[xv]
2 Kings 4:34; 2 Kings 13:21
[xviii]
1 Thessalonians 4:14-18
[xxii]
St. Cyril, here seems to deviate from his own rule, to say nothing without proof
from Scripture; so, part or all of this section may have been tampered with by others:
the voice of speculative theology putting words in St. Cyril’s mouth: words that
he may never have said. The beauty and glory
of St. Cyril, thus far, is that he has assiduously avoided speculative theology. It is strange that 1 Corinthians 3:6-15 was not
discussed here to alleviate any confusion.
As far as any assurance of the realities of heaven and hell, St. Cyril has
thoroughly discussed these elsewhere. Whether
the just and the reprobate are raised with different kinds of sensate bodies remains
unknown: Scripture appears to be silent on the matter.
[xxiii]
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
[xxiv]
We quote St. Cyril’s definition of catholicity in its entirety because it seems
unlike any definition we should form today.
It is we who have deviated from truth; it is unlikely to be St. Cyril’s
error.
[xxv]
Leviticus 8:3; Numbers 8:9
[xxvi]
Deuteronomy 4:10
[xxvii]
Deuteronomy 5:22; 9:10; 10:4
[xxviii]
Psalms 18:49; 22:22, 25; 35:18; 57:9; 108:3
No comments:
Post a Comment