PL 54 · cols. 163–167

Leo the Great, Sermons

Sermons X–XI

et paupere ipsius Jesu Christi Domini nostri persona sentitur, qui cum esset dives, sicut ait B. apostolus, pauper factus est, ut nos sua paupertate ditaret (II Cor. VIII, 9). Et ne deesse nobis sua praesentia videretur, ita humilitatis et gloriae suae temperavit mysterium, ut quem Regem et Dominum in majestate Patris adoramus, eumdem in suis pauperibus pasceremus, liberandi ob hoc in die mala a damnatione perpetua, et pro intellecti paupetris cura, coelestis consortiis inserendi.

[…] and the poor man the person of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself is perceived, Who, though He was rich, as the blessed Apostle says, became poor, that He might enrich us by His poverty (2 Cor. 8:9). And lest His presence should seem to be lacking to us, He so tempered the mystery of His humility and of His glory that Him Whom we adore as King and Lord in the majesty of the Father, the same we should feed in His poor, to be freed for this reason on the evil day from perpetual damnation, and, for the care of the poor man understood, to be grafted into the fellowship of heaven.

CAP. IV. — Ut autem in omnibus, dilectissimi, placeat Domino vestra devotio, etiam ad hanc vos hortamur industriam, ut Manichaeos ubicumque latentes vestris presbyteris publicetis. Magna est enim pietas prodere latebras impiorum, et ipsum in eis, cui serviunt, diabolum debellare. Contra istos enim, dilectissimi, omnem quidem orbem terrarum, et totam ubique Ecclesiam decet fidei arma arripere; sed vestra in hoc opere devotio debet excellere, qui in progenitoribus vestris Evangelium crucis Christi ab ipso beatissimorum apostolorum Petri et Pauli ore didicistis. Non sinantur latere homines, qui legem per Mosen datam, in qua Deus universitatis conditor ostenditur, recipiendam esse non credunt; prophetis, et sancto Spiritui contradicunt, psalmos Davidicos, qui per universalem Ecclesiam cum omni pietate cantantur, damnabili impietate ausi sunt refutare; Christi Domini nativitatem secundum carnem negant; passionem et resurrectionem ejus simulatam dicunt fuisse, non veram; baptismum regenerationis totius gratiae virtute dispoliant. Nihil est apud eos sanctum, nihil integrum, nihil verum. Cavendi sunt, ne cuiquam noceant; prodendi sunt, ne in aliqua civitatis nostrae parte consistant. Vobis, dilectissimi, ante tribunal Domini proderit. quod indicimus, quod rogamus. Dignum est enim, ut eleemosynarum sacrificio etiam hujus operis palma jungatur, auxiliante vobis per omnia Domino Jesu Christo, qui vivit et regnat in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

CHAP. IV. — And so that your devotion may please the Lord in all things, dearly beloved, we exhort you also to this diligence: that you make known to your priests the Manichaeans wherever they lie hidden. For it is great piety to lay bare the hiding places of the impious, and to vanquish in them the devil himself, whom they serve. Against these, indeed, dearly beloved, it befits the whole world and the whole Church everywhere to take up the arms of faith; but your devotion ought to excel in this work, you who in your forefathers learned the Gospel of the cross of Christ from the very mouth of the most blessed apostles Peter and Paul. Let those men not be suffered to lie hidden who do not believe that the law given through Moses, in which God is shown as the Creator of the universe, is to be received; they contradict the prophets and the Holy Spirit; they have dared with damnable impiety to reject the psalms of David, which are sung with all devotion throughout the universal Church; they deny the birth of Christ the Lord according to the flesh; they say that His passion and resurrection were feigned, not real; they strip the baptism of regeneration of the power of all its grace. With them nothing is holy, nothing whole, nothing true. They must be guarded against, lest they harm anyone; they must be exposed, lest they settle in any part of our city. It will profit you, dearly beloved, before the tribunal of the Lord, what we point out, what we ask. For it is fitting that to the sacrifice of alms the palm of this work also be joined, with the help of our Lord Jesus Christ in all things, Who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMO X [Al. IX].

SERMON X [Al. IX].

De Collectis V.

On the Collections, V.

Editors' notes and page, col. 163

Footnotes

(a) ‹qui cum esset dives,› · printed under col 163

Ita Vallicell. et codd. collect. 4 et 5. Alias, sicut dicit Apostolus, inops factus est.

So the Vallicellian and the codices of collections 4 and 5. Elsewhere, "sicut dicit Apostolus, inops factus est" [as the Apostle says, He became needy].

(b) ‹deesse nobis› · printed under col 163

Al., sui praesentia.

Others, "sui praesentia" [the presence of Himself].

Editio Antuerp. in margine, scutum. Vallic., corripere.

The Antwerp edition in the margin [has] "scutum" [the shield]. The Vallicellian, "corripere" [to seize].

(d) ‹prodendi sunt, ne› · printed under col 163

Praepositionem in, a Rainaudo et Quesnello omissam, ex caeteris editionibus et omnibus nostris codicibus restituimus.

The preposition "in", omitted by Raynaud and Quesnel, we have restored from the other editions and all our codices.

(e) ‹eleemosynarum sacrificio› · printed under col 163

Editi, et hujus, ac dein nobis pro vobis. Praetulimus lectionem codicis Vallicell., cum quo in voce vobis concinunt mss. collect. 5.

The printed editions [have] "et hujus", and then "nobis" for "vobis". We have preferred the reading of the Vallicellian codex, with which the manuscripts of collection 5 agree in the word "vobis".

Editors' prose

SYNOPSIS. — I. Collectarum consuetudine ab apostolis tradita juvari fideles. Opes non tam possidendae quam dispensandae a Deo traditae sunt. — II. Quam miseri qui opes suas in proprium tantummodo usum, non

SYNOPSIS. — I. The faithful are helped by the custom of collections handed down by the apostles. Riches have been given by God not so much to be possessed as to be dispensed. — II. How wretched are those who [spend] their riches only for their own use, not […]

Page

running head: 163 S. LEONIS MAGNI SERMONES. (spans cols 163–164)
marginal letters: A ‹et paupere ipsius›; B ‹dilectissimi, omnem quidem›; C ‹est apud eos sanctum›; D (beside the footnotes, line ‹(a) Ita Vallicell.›)
old-edition numerals: 34 before the caption ‹SERMO X›
signature: none
other: the caption SERMO X [Al. IX]. / De Collectis V. is printed within col 163 only (centred), followed by the editors' SYNOPSIS (italic), which runs on into col 164 (see n164). Footnotes (f), (g), (h) printed under col 163 belong to calls in col 164 (see n164).

PL 54:164

CAP. I. — Apostolicae traditionis, dilectissimi, instituta servantes, pastorali vos sollicitudine cohortamur, ut diem quem illi ab impiorum superstitione purgatum, misericordiae operibus consecrarunt, devotione religiosae consuetudinis celebremus, ostendentes apud nos auctoritatem Patrum vivere, eorumque doctrinam in nostra obedientia permanere. Quoniam sancta tantae constitutionis utilitas, non praeterito tantum tempori, sed etiam nostrae prospexit aetati, ut quod illis ad destructionem profuit vanitatum, hoc nobis proficeret ad incrementa virtutum. Quid autem tam aptum fidei, quid tam conveniens pietati, quam egentium juvare pauperiem, infirmorum curam recipere, fraternis necessitatibus subvenire, et conditionis propriae in aliorum labore meminisse? In quo opere, quantum quis possit, quantumque non possit, solus veraciter ille discernit, qui novit quid quibusque contulerit. Non solum enim spiritales opes et dona coelestia Deo donante capiuntur, sed etiam terrenae et corporeae facultates ex ipsius largitate proveniunt, ut merito rationem eorum quaesiturus sit, quae non magis possidenda tradidit, quam dispensanda commisit. Muneribus igitur Dei juste et sapienter utendum est, ne materia boni operis fiat causa peccati. Nam divitiae, quod ad ipsas species earum atque substantias pertinet bonae sunt, et humanae societati plurimum prosunt, cum a benevolis habentur et largis, nec illas aut luxuriosus prodigit, aut avarus abstrudit, ut tam pereant male conditae, quam insipienter expensae.

CHAP. I. — Keeping the institutions of apostolic tradition, dearly beloved, we exhort you with pastoral solicitude to celebrate with the devotion of religious custom the day which they, having cleansed it of the superstition of the impious, consecrated to works of mercy, showing that the authority of the Fathers lives among us and that their teaching abides in our obedience. For the holy usefulness of so great an institution has provided not only for past time but also for our age, so that what profited them for the destruction of vanities should profit us for the increase of virtues. And what is so fitting to faith, what so suited to piety, as to help the poverty of the needy, to take up the care of the sick, to relieve the necessities of the brethren, and in the toil of others to remember one's own condition? In this work He alone truly discerns how much each one can and how much he cannot, Who knows what He has bestowed on each. For not only are spiritual riches and heavenly gifts received by the gift of God, but earthly and bodily means also come from His bounty, so that He will rightly demand an account of those things which He did not so much hand over to be possessed as entrust to be dispensed. The gifts of God, therefore, must be used justly and wisely, lest the material of a good work become the cause of sin. For riches, as far as their outward forms and substance are concerned, are good, and are of the greatest use to human society when they are held by the kindly and generous, and neither the profligate squanders them nor the miser hides them away, so that they perish as much when badly stored as when foolishly spent.

CAP. II. — Quamvis autem laudabile sit intemperantiam fugere, et turpium voluptatum damna vitare, multique magnifici facultates suas dedignentur occulere, et in copia affluentes vilem atque sordentem horreant parcitatem, non est tamen talium aut felix abundantia, aut probanda frugalitas, si ipsis tantum propriae opes serviunt; si eorum bonis ulli juvantur pauperes, nulli foventur infirmi; si de magnarum abundantia facultatum non captivus redemptionem, non peregrinus solatium, non exsul sentit auxilium. Hujusmodi divites egentiores omnibus sunt egenis. Perdunt enim illos redditus quos possent

CHAP. II. — But although it is praiseworthy to flee intemperance and to avoid the losses of shameful pleasures, and many men of magnificence disdain to hide their means, and, abounding in plenty, shrink from mean and sordid parsimony, yet the abundance of such men is not happy, nor is their frugality to be approved, if their riches serve only themselves; if by their goods no poor are helped, no sick are cherished; if from the abundance of great means the captive feels no redemption, the stranger no solace, the exile no help. Rich men of this kind are needier than all the needy. For they lose those revenues which they could […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 164

Footnotes

(f) ‹Quoniam› · printed under col 163

Unus codex Vat., tanta sanctae devotionis utilitas.

One Vatican codex [reads] "tanta sanctae devotionis utilitas" [the usefulness of so great a holy devotion].

(g) ‹egentium juvare› · printed under col 163

Ita Vallic. cod. Alias, paupertatem.

So the Vallicellian codex. Elsewhere, "paupertatem".

(h) ‹quantum quis possit,› · printed under col 163, continued under col 164

Verba, quantumque non possit, desiderantur in cod. ms. Victorino Quesnelli, nec non in aliis nostris collect. 5.

The words "quantumque non possit" [and how much he cannot] are missing in Quesnel's manuscript codex of St Victor, and also in our others of collection 5.

(i) ‹quaesiturus sit,› · printed under col 164

Cod. Vallic., qui eas non magis porrigendas tradidit, quam dispensandas commisit. Sed in hanc lectionem paulo ante scribendum fuerat, earum, uti praefert editio Antuerp., quae tamen in caeteris vulgatam lectionem sequitur.

The Vallicellian codex [reads] "qui eas non magis porrigendas tradidit, quam dispensandas commisit" [Who did not so much hand them over to be held out as entrust them to be dispensed]. But for this reading "earum" should have been written a little before, as the Antwerp edition shows, which nevertheless follows the common reading in the rest.

(j) ‹peccati. Nam divitiae› · printed under col 164 (the note is lettered (f) in print)

Sic cum Quesnello nostri codices. Anteriores editiones: Nam divitiae quidem, quantum ad ipsas species, etc.

So our codices, with Quesnel. The earlier editions [read] "Nam divitiae quidem, quantum ad ipsas species", etc.

(k) ‹avarus› · printed under col 164

Cod. Vallic., obstruit. Paulo post idem cod., quam dissipentur expensae.

The Vallicellian codex [reads] "obstruit" [blocks up]. A little later the same codex [reads] "quam dissipentur expensae" [than when squandered in spending].

(l) ‹occulere, et› · printed under col 164

Ms. Vallicell. et unus Vat., cum prima editione, inter copias.

The Vallicellian manuscript and one Vatican, with the first edition, [read] "inter copias" [amid abundance].

(m) ‹abundantia, aut› · printed under col 164

Cod. Victorin, apud Quesnellum et nostri collect. 5, blanda frugalitas.

The St Victor codex in Quesnel and ours of collection 5 [read] "blanda frugalitas" [an agreeable frugality].

(n) ‹redditus quos› · printed under col 164, continued under col 165

Ita ex Vallic. Alias, possunt. Paulo post pro incubant editiones post primam, et ante Quesnellum, incumbunt.

So from the Vallicellian. Elsewhere, "possunt". A little later, for "incubant" the editions after the first and before Quesnel [read] "incumbunt".

Editors' prose

in pauperes expendunt. — III. Sine misericordia in pauperes, caeteras virtutes non prodesse. — IV. Fidem sine operibus mortuam esse, per charitatem vivificari. Eleemosynae ac temperantiae bona quae?

[…] spend [them] on the poor. — III. Without mercy towards the poor, the other virtues are of no profit. — IV. Faith without works is dead, and is brought to life through charity. What are the goods of almsgiving and of temperance?

Page

running head: S. LEONIS MAGNI SERMONES. 164 (spans cols 163–164)
marginal letters: A ‹in pauperes expendunt›; B ‹Quid autem tam aptum›; C ‹cum a benevolis habentur›; D (beside the footnotes, line ‹collect. 5.›)
old-edition numerals: 35 after ‹aut luxuriosus›
signature: none
other: the italic SYNOPSIS of Sermo X, begun in col 163, ends at the head of col 164. The note answering the call (j) is lettered (f) in print.

PL 54:165

habere perpetuos, et dum brevi nec semper libero incubant usui, nullo justitiae cibo, nulla misericordiae suavitate pascuntur; foris splendidi, intus obscuri; abundantes temporalium, inopes aeternorum: quia ipsi animas suas fame afficiunt et nuditate dehonestant, qui de iis quae terrenis horreis commendarunt, nihil thesauris coelestibus intulerunt.

[…] have [as] perpetual, and while they brood over a brief use, and one not always free, they are fed by no food of justice, by no sweetness of mercy; splendid without, dark within; abounding in temporal things, destitute of eternal ones: for they afflict their own souls with hunger and disgrace them with nakedness, who of the things they have committed to earthly barns have brought nothing into the heavenly treasuries.

Sed forte sunt aliqui divitum qui, licet nullis largitionibus pauperes Ecclesiae soleant adjuvare, alia tamen Dei mandata custodiunt, et inter diversa fidei et probitatis merita, veniabiliter sibi aestimant unam deesse virtutem. Verum haec tanta, ut sine illa caeterae, etsi sunt, prodesse non possint. Quamvis enim quis fidelis sit, et castus, et sobrius, et aliis majoribus ornatus insignibus; si misericors tamen non est, misericordiam non meretur: ait enim Dominus: Beati misericordes, quoniam ipsorum miserebitur Deus (Matth. V, 7). Cum autem venerit Filius hominis in majestate sua, et sederit in throno gloriae suae, et congregatis omnibus gentibus, bonorum et malorum fuerit facta discretio (Matth. XVI, 33), in quo laudabuntur qui ad dexteram stabunt, nisi in operibus benevolentiae et charitatis officiis, quae Jesus Christus sibi impensa reputabit? Quoniam qui naturam hominis suam fecit, in nullo se ab humana humilitate discrevit, Sinistris vero quid objicietur, nisi neglectus dilectionis, duritia inhumanitatis, et pauperibus misericordia denegata? quasi nec alias virtutes dextri, nec alias offensiones habeant sinistri. Sed illo magno summoque judicio tanti aestimabitur vel largitatis benignitas, vel tenacitatis impietas, ut pro plenitudine omnium virtutum, et pro summa omnium commissorum, et per unum bonum isti introducantur in regnum, et per unum malum illi in ignem mittantur aeternum.

But perhaps there are some of the rich who, although they are not accustomed to help the poor of the Church with any largesses, nevertheless keep the other commandments of God, and among the various merits of faith and uprightness reckon it pardonable that one virtue is lacking to them. But this [virtue is] so great that without it the others, even if they exist, cannot profit. For though a man be faithful, and chaste, and sober, and adorned with other greater distinctions, yet if he is not merciful he does not merit mercy: for the Lord says: Blessed are the merciful, for God will have mercy on them (Matt. 5:7). And when the Son of Man comes in His majesty, and sits on the throne of His glory, and, all nations having been gathered, the separation of the good and the wicked has been made (Matt. 16:33 [i.e. 25:31–33]), in what will those who stand at the right hand be praised, if not in the works of benevolence and the offices of charity, which Jesus Christ will reckon as spent on Himself? For He Who made the nature of man His own separated Himself in nothing from human lowliness. And what will be laid against those on the left, if not the neglect of love, the hardness of inhumanity, and mercy denied to the poor? As though those on the right had no other virtues, and those on the left no other offences. But in that great and supreme judgement the kindness of generosity or the impiety of tight-fistedness will be valued so highly that, in place of the fullness of all virtues and in place of the sum of all offences, through one good these will be brought into the kingdom, and through one evil those will be sent into the eternal fire.

Nemo igitur, dilectissimi, de ullis sibi bonae vitae meritis blandiatur, si illi defuerint opera charitatis; nec de sui corporis puritate securus sit, qui nulla eleemosynarum purificatione mundatur. Eleemosynae enim peccata delent (Eccli. III, 33), mortem perimunt, et poenam perpetui ignis exstinguunt. Sed qui

Let no one, therefore, dearly beloved, flatter himself on any merits of a good life if the works of charity are lacking to him; nor let him be secure about the purity of his body who is not cleansed by any purification of alms. For alms blot out sins (Sir. 3:33), destroy death, and extinguish the punishment of perpetual fire. But he who […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 165

Footnotes

(a) ‹justitiae cibo,› · printed under col 165

In ms. Vallic., nullius misericordiae.

In the Vallicellian manuscript, "nullius misericordiae" [of no mercy].

(b) ‹intus obscuri;› · printed under col 165

Idem cod., abundantes temporalibus, inopes aeternis.

The same codex, "abundantes temporalibus, inopes aeternis" [abounding in temporal things, destitute in eternal].

Qui nihil omnino aeternis horreis commendarunt, nihil thesauris, etc., in eodem cod. Vallicell.

"Qui nihil omnino aeternis horreis commendarunt, nihil thesauris" [who have committed nothing at all to the eternal barns, nothing to the treasuries], etc., in the same Vallicellian codex.

(d) ‹haec tanta› · printed under col 165

Laudatus Vall., post verbum est, addit secunda manu, virtus misericordiae. Est additamentum cujuspiam studiosi, quod a caeteris mss. abest. Mox pro etsi in eodem cod. etiamsi.

The Vallicellian cited above, after the word "est", adds in a second hand "virtus misericordiae" [the virtue of mercy]. It is the addition of some scholar, which is absent from the other manuscripts. Next, for "etsi" in the same codex, "etiamsi".

(e) ‹fidelis sit, et› · printed under col 165

Alias in mss. collect. 5, cantus. Mox aliis moribus pro aliis majoribus in cod. Vallic. nec non in edit. prima et Rainaudi.

Elsewhere, in the manuscripts of collection 5, "cantus". Next, "aliis moribus" [other habits] for "aliis majoribus" in the Vallicellian codex, and also in the first edition and Raynaud's.

(f) ‹misericordiam› · printed under col 165

Cod. Vallicell., non merebitur; ait enim Dominus: Beati misericordes, quoniam ipsi misericordiam consequentur.

The Vallicellian codex [reads] "non merebitur; ait enim Dominus: Beati misericordes, quoniam ipsi misericordiam consequentur" [he will not merit; for the Lord says: Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy].

(g) ‹in nullo se› · printed under col 165

Idem ms., ab humanitate discrevit.

The same manuscript, "ab humanitate discrevit" [separated from humanity].

(h) ‹sui corporis› · printed under col 165

Ita ex tribus codd. Vallic., Vat. et Bon., ac prima editione. Alias, qualitate.

So from three codices, the Vallicellian, the Vatican and the Bon., and the first edition. Elsewhere, "qualitate".

Page

running head: 165 SERMO … (the head spans cols 165–166; over col 166 it ends "…O XI.")
marginal letters: A ‹habere perpetuos›; B ‹non est, misericordiam›; C ‹mabitur vel largitatis›; D (beside the footnotes, line ‹(c) Qui nihil omnino›)
old-edition numerals: 36 after ‹humilitate discrevit,›
signature: none
other: the first footnote lines under col 165 ("bant editiones … incumbunt.") end note (n) of col 164. Note (i) printed under col 165 belongs to a call in col 166 (see n166). Note (d) speaks of the word "est" after "tanta", which is not printed in the text here.

PL 54:166

ab earum fructu fuerit vacuus, erit ab indulgentia retribuentis alienus, dicente Salomone: Qui obturat aures ne audiat imbecillum, et ipse vocabit Dominum, et non erit qui exaudiat eum. Unde et Tobias filium suum praeceptis pietatis instituens: Ex substantia, inquit, tua fac eleemosynam, et noli avertere faciem tuam ab illo paupere: ita fiet ut nec a te avertatur facies Dei (Tob. IV, 7). Haec virtus omnes facit utiles esse virtutes, quae ipsam quoque fidem, ex qua justus vivit (Habac. II, 4; Rom. I, 17; Galat. III, 11), et quae sine operibus mortua nominatur (Jac. II, 26), sui admixtione vivificat: quia sicut in fide est operum ratio, ita in operibus fidei fortitudo. Dum ergo tempus habemus, sicut ait Apostolus, operemur quod bonum est ad omnes, maxime autem ad domesticos fide (Galat. VI, 10). Bonum autem facientes non deficiamus, tempore enim suo metemus (Ibid., 9).

[…] has been empty of their fruit will be a stranger to the indulgence of the Rewarder, as Solomon says: He who stops his ears so as not to hear the weak, he too will call upon the Lord, and there will be none to hear him. Hence Tobias also, instructing his son in the precepts of piety, says: Of your substance give alms, and do not turn away your face from any poor man: so it will come about that the face of God is not turned away from you (Tob. 4:7). This virtue makes all virtues useful, for by its admixture it gives life even to faith itself, by which the just man lives (Hab. 2:4; Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11), and which without works is called dead (Jas. 2:26): because as in faith lies the reason of works, so in works lies the strength of faith. While therefore we have time, as the Apostle says, let us do what is good to all, but especially to those of the household of the faith (Gal. 6:10). And in doing good let us not grow weary, for in its own time we shall reap (ibid., 9).

Praesens itaque vita tempus est sationis, et dies retributionis tempus est messis, quando unusquisque seminum fructus secundum sationis suae percipiet quantitatem. De proventu autem istius segetis nemo falletur, quia animorum ibi magis quam impendiorum mensura taxabitur; et tantum reddent exigua de exiguis, quantum magna de magnis. Et ideo, dilectissimi, satisfiat apostolicis institutis. Et quia die Dominica prima est futura collectio, omnes vos devotioni voluntariae praeparate, ut unusquisque secundum sufficientiam suam habeat in sacratissima oblatione consortium. Exorabunt pro vobis et ipsae eleemosynae, et ii qui vestris muneribus juvabuntur; ut ad omne opus bonum idonei semper esse possitis, in Christo Jesu Domino nostro, qui vivit et regnat per infinita saecula saeculorum. Amen.

The present life, then, is the time of sowing, and the day of retribution is the time of harvest, when each will receive the fruits of his seeds according to the amount of his sowing. But no one will be deceived about the yield of that crop, because there the measure of dispositions rather than of outlays will be assessed; and small things from small means will return as much as great things from great. And therefore, dearly beloved, let the apostolic institutions be satisfied. And since the collection is to be on the first Lord's day, prepare yourselves, all of you, for a voluntary devotion, so that each according to his sufficiency may have a share in the most sacred offering. The alms themselves will intercede for you, and those who will be helped by your gifts; so that you may always be fit for every good work, in Christ Jesus our Lord, Who lives and reigns through infinite ages of ages. Amen.

SERMO XI [Al. X]

SERMON XI [Al. X]

De Collectis VI.

On the Collections, VI.

CAP. I. — Et divinis praeceptis, dilectissimi, et apostolicis didicimus institutis, omni homini inter vitae hujus discrimina constituto, misericordiam Dei miserendo esse quaerendam. Nam quae lapsos spes erigeret,

CHAP. I. — Both from the divine precepts, dearly beloved, and from the apostolic institutions we have learned that every man set amid the perils of this life must seek the mercy of God by showing mercy. For what hope would raise up the fallen,

Editors' notes and page, col. 166

Footnotes

(i) ‹et ipse› · printed under col 165

Editio Antuerpiensis cum ms. Vall., invocabit.

The Antwerp edition with the Vallicellian manuscript [reads] "invocabit" [will invoke].

(j) ‹sationis, et› · printed under col 166 (the note is lettered (i) in print)

Ex eodem codice adjecimus substantivum dies: quod desiderari videtur.

From the same codex we have added the noun "dies" [day], which seems to be wanted.

(k) ‹Et quia› · printed under col 166

Codex Victorinus Quesnelli et nostri collect. 5, cum ms. Vallic., die illo, pro die Dominica. Id autem in formulis frequens diem indicat, in quam pridie nonas Julias primus collectarum dies pro annorum varietate denuntiandus incideret. Retinuimus autem, die dominica, ut reliqui habent codices et omnes editiones, quia haec dies a Leone indicta praesumitur, cum hunc sermonem certo anno pronuntiarit.

Quesnel's St Victor codex and ours of collection 5, with the Vallicellian manuscript, [read] "die illo" [on that day] for "die Dominica". This, frequent in formularies, indicates the day on which, according to the variation of the years, the first day of the collections, to be announced on the day before the Nones of July, would fall. But we have kept "die dominica", as the other codices and all the editions have it, because this day is presumed to have been appointed by Leo, since he delivered this sermon in a particular year.

(l) ‹De Collectis VI.› · printed under col 166

Editus primum fuit Parisiis an. 1614, ex veteri Nicolai Fabri codice, qui postea Thuaneus, dein Colbertinus, nunc vero in Regia bibliotheca servatur. Inscribitur autem in eo codice: De Collectarum die. Porro notavit Antelmius diss. 6, de veris Oper. SS. Leonis et Prosperi num. 4, pag. 350, huic sermoni in eodem ms. Leonis nomen posteriori manu fuisse additum, quod prima manu aberat. Leoni autem jure tribuendum ostendimus in praefatione ad Sermones, num. 10.

It was first published at Paris in the year 1614, from the old codex of Nicolas Le Fèvre, which was afterwards de Thou's, then Colbert's, and is now kept in the Royal Library. In that codex it is titled: On the Day of the Collections. Further, Antelmi noted, in dissertation 6 on the genuine works of SS. Leo and Prosper, no. 4, p. 350, that in the same manuscript Leo's name was added to this sermon by a later hand, being absent in the first hand. But we have shown in the preface to the Sermons, no. 10, that it is rightly attributed to Leo.

Editors' prose

SYNOPSIS. — I. Quantum ultima sententia judicis nostri, misericordiae commendet opera. — II. Unde collectarum consuetudo originem traxerit in Ecclesia.

SYNOPSIS. — I. How greatly the final sentence of our Judge commends the works of mercy. — II. From what the custom of the collections took its origin in the Church.

Page

running head: …O XI. 166 (the head spans cols 165–166; only "SERMO" shows over 165, so its exact form is UNSURE)
marginal letters: A ‹ab earum fructu›; B ‹suo metemus›; C ‹nostro, qui vivit›; D (beside the footnotes, line ‹nonas Julias primus›)
old-edition numerals: 37 after ‹omnes vos›
signature: none
other: the caption SERMO XI [Al. X] / De Collectis VI. and the italic SYNOPSIS are printed within col 166 only (centred). The note answering the call (j) is lettered (i) in print. The column ends with the word "eri-", completed "geret" at the head of col 167; set whole here.

PL 54:167

quae vulneratos medicina sanaret, nisi eleemosynae solverent culpas, et necessitates pauperum fierent remedia delictorum? Unde quia dixerat Dominus: Beati misericordes, quia ipsorum miserebitur Deus (Matth. V, 7): omne illud examen quo majestate praesenti universum judicaturus est mundum, sub hac ostendit aequitate librandum, ut sola erga inopes operum qualitate discussa, et impiis ardere cum diabolo, et benignis paratum sit regnare cum Christo. Quae ibi in medium facta non venient? quae occulta non detegentur? quae conscientiae non patebunt? ubi vere nemo gloriabitur castum se habere cor, aut mundum se esse a peccato (Prov. XX, 9). Sed quoniam exaltabitur super judicium misericordia, et omnem retributionem justitiae transcendent dona clementiae, omnis vita mortalium, st cunctarum diversitas actionum sub unius regulae conditione taxabitur, ut nulla ibi commemoratio cujusquam facienda sit criminis, ubi confessione Creatoris opera fuerint inventa pietatis. Non ergo solum quod eis exprobrabitur fecerunt sinistri, nec quia humanitatis docebuntur extranei, aliorum peccatorum invenientur alieni; sed in multis rei ob hoc maxime damnabuntur, quod crimina sua nullis eleemosynis redemerunt. Cum enim durissimi cordis sit quacumque laborantium miseria non moveri, et habens auxiliandi copiam tam iniquus sit qui non juvit afflictum, quam qui oppressit infirmum, quae spes superest peccatori, qui nec ideo miseretur, ut misericordiam consequatur?

[…] what medicine would heal the wounded, unless alms loosed faults and the necessities of the poor became remedies for sins? Hence, because the Lord had said: Blessed are the merciful, for God will have mercy on them (Matt. 5:7), He showed that that whole examination by which, in His present majesty, He is to judge the entire world is to be weighed under this equity: that, the quality of works towards the needy alone having been examined, it is appointed both for the impious to burn with the devil and for the kind to reign with Christ. What deeds will not come into the open there? What hidden things will not be uncovered? What consciences will not lie exposed? where truly no one will boast that he has a chaste heart, or that he is clean from sin (Prov. 20:9). But since mercy will be exalted above judgement, and the gifts of clemency will surpass every retribution of justice, the whole life of mortals and the diversity of all their actions will be assessed under the condition of a single rule, so that no mention of any crime is to be made there, where, together with the confession of the Creator, works of goodness have been found. So those on the left have not done only what will be reproached to them, nor, because they will be shown to be strangers to humanity, will they be found free of other sins; but, guilty in many things, they will be condemned chiefly for this, that they redeemed their crimes by no alms. For since it belongs to a very hard heart not to be moved by any misery of those in distress, and he who has the means of helping and has not helped the afflicted is as unjust as he who has oppressed the weak, what hope remains for the sinner who does not show mercy even so that he may obtain mercy?

Primitus itaque, dilectissimi, sibi malus est, qui alteri bonus non est, et animae nocet suae, qui ut potest non succurrerit alienae. Una est divitum pauperumque natura, et inter caetera fragilitatis humanae, nulla est sanitatis tuta felicitas, quia quod aliqui possunt incidere, non est qui debeat non timere. Agnoscat se in quibuscumque hominibus mutabilis et caduca mortalitas, et pro conditione communi socialem generi suo reddat affectum; fleat cum flentibus, et cum dolentium gemitibus ingemiscat; communicet cum indigentibus copias suas; bene valente corporis ministerio, ad male jacentem inclinet se aegrotum: inter cibos suos numeret esurientium portionem, et in pallenti trementium nuditate se credat algere. Qui enim relevat temporalem

First of all, therefore, dearly beloved, he is bad to himself who is not good to another, and he harms his own soul who, as far as he can, has not succoured another's. The nature of rich and poor is one, and among the other [conditions] of human frailty the happiness of health is nowhere safe, because what some can fall into, there is no one who ought not to fear. Let mutable and perishable mortality recognize itself in all men whatever, and, in accordance with the common condition, render to its kind a fellow feeling; let it weep with those who weep, and groan with the groans of those in pain; let it share its abundance with the needy; with the service of a body in good health let it bend down to the sick man lying in distress: let it count among its own foods the portion of the hungry, and believe itself to be cold in the pallid nakedness of those who shiver. For he who relieves the temporal […]

Editors' notes and page, col. 167

Footnotes

(a) ‹pauperumque natura,› · printed under col 167

In editione Parisiensi an. 1671, quae est repetitio primae editionis hujus sermonis, sic legitur: Et inter caetera fragilitatis humanae mala. nulla est sanitatis tuta felicitas: quia quod alicui potest accidere, non est qui debeat non timere. Quamvis haec lectio sit melior, retinuimus tamen lectionem Quesnelli, quippe qui cum ipsum codicem consuluerit, lectionem ipsius codicis dedisse videtur, et rejecisse in marginem variantes editionum, quae alieno arbitrio ad sensum aptius eliciendum in textum videntur inductae. Ipse autem ne codicis lectionem in textu mutaret, satius duxit in margine annotare pro inter caetera legendum esse inter incerta, et pro sanitatis legendum forte divitis.

In the Paris edition of the year 1671, which is a repetition of the first edition of this sermon, it reads thus: "And among the other ills of human frailty, the happiness of health is nowhere safe: for what can befall anyone, there is no one who ought not to fear." Although this reading is better, we have nevertheless kept Quesnel's reading, since he, having consulted the codex itself, seems to have given the reading of that codex, and to have relegated to the margin the variants of the editions, which seem to have been brought into the text by another's judgement in order to draw out the sense more aptly. He himself, so as not to change the codex's reading in the text, thought it better to note in the margin that for "inter caetera" one should read "inter incerta" [among the uncertainties], and for "sanitatis" perhaps "divitis" [of the rich man].

(b) ‹copias suas;› · printed under col 167

Eadem editio Parisiensis, bene valentis, et melius.

The same Paris edition [reads] "bene valentis" [of one in good health], and better.