NPNF2-08. Basil: Letters and Select Works - Holy Bible Institute

“The Earth was Invisible and Unfinished.”“The earth was invisible and unfinished.” In saying “In the beginning God created theheavens and the earth,” the sacred writer passed over many things in silence, water, air, fireand the results from them, which, all forming in reality the true complement of the world,were, without doubt, made at the same time as the universe. By this silence, history wishesto train the activity or our intelligence, giving it a weak point for starting, to impel it to thediscovery of the truth. Thus, we are not told of the creation of water; but, as we are toldthat the earth was invisible, ask yourself what could have covered it, and prevented it frombeing seen? Fire could not conceal it. Fire brightens all about it, and spreads light ratherthan darkness around. No more was it air that enveloped the earth. Air by nature is of littledensity and transparent. It receives all kinds of visible object, and transmits them to thespectators. Only one supposition remains; that which floated on the surface of the earthwas water—the fluid essence which had not yet been confined to its own place. Thus theearth was not only invisible; it was still incomplete. Even today excessive damp is a hindranceto the productiveness of the earth. The same cause at the same time prevents it from beingseen, and from being complete, for the proper and natural adornment of the earth is itscompletion: corn waving in the valleys—meadows green with grass and rich with manycoloured flowers—fertile glades and hill-tops shaded by forests. Of all this nothing was yetproduced; the earth was in travail with it in virtue of the power that she had received fromthe Creator. But she was waiting for the appointed time and the divine order to bring forth.4. “Darkness was upon the face of the deep.” 1419 A new source for fables and mostimpious imaginations if one distorts the sense of these words at the will of one’s fancies.By “darkness” these wicked men do not understand what is meant in reality—air not ilquevous, parfait architecte et absolu formateur de tout ce qui est, vous aviez trouvé sous vos mains une matièrequi vous ótait co-éternelle, informe néamoins, et qui attendait de vous sa perfection! Aveugles, qui n’entendaientpas que d’être capable de forme, c’est deja quelque forme; c’est quelque perfection, que d’être capable de perfection;et si la matière avail d’elle-même ce commencement de perfection et de forme, elle en pouvait aussitôt avoird’ellemême l’entier accomplissement. “Aveugles, conducteurs d’aveugles, qui tombez dans le prêcipice, et y jetezceux qui vous suivent (St. Matthieu xv. 14), dites-mois qui a assujeti à Dieu ce qu’il n’a pas fait, ce qui est de soiaussi bien que Dieu, ce qui est indépendamment de Dieu même? Par où a-t-il trouvé prise sur ce qui lui estétranger et independant et sa puissance; et par quel art ou quel pouvoir se l’est-il soumis?…Mais qu’est-ce aprèstout que cette matière si parfait, qu’elle ait elle-même ce fond de son être; et si imparfaite, qu’elle attende sa perfectiond’un autre? Dieu aura fait l’accident et n’aura pas fait la substance? (Bossuet, Elévations sur les mystères, 3esemaine, 2e elevat.)1419 Gen. i. 2.268