1 Why is it an error to speak of the “Jesus of history” as distinct from the “Christ of faith”? 2 What must we never lose sight of when contemplating the various aspects of the mystery of Christ? 3 Who did Christ mysteriously unite Himself to by His Incarnation? Homily 66, 1–3, St. Augustine, ca. AD 354–AD 430 1. The Lord appeared to His disciples after His resurrection, as you have heard, and saluted them, saying, Peace be unto you. This is peace indeed, and the salutation of salvation: for the very word salutation has received its name from salvation. And what can be better than that Salvation Itself should salute man? For Christ is our Salvation. He is our Salvation, who was wounded for us, and fixed by nails to the tree, and being taken down from the tree, was laid in the sepulchre. And from the sepulchre He arose, with His wounds healed, His scars kept. For this He judged expedient for His disciples, that His scars should be kept, where by the wounds of their hearts might be healed. What wounds? The wounds of unbelief. For He appeared to their eyes, exhibiting real flesh, and they thought they saw a spirit. It is no light wound, this wound of the heart. Yea, they have made a malignant heresy who have abided in this wound. But do we suppose that the disciples had not been wounded, because they were so quickly healed? Only, Beloved, suppose, if they had continued in this wound, to think that the Body which had been buried, could not rise again, but that a spirit in the image of a body, deceived the eyes of men: if they had continued in this belief, yea, rather in this unbelief, not their wounds, but their death would have had to be bewailed. 2. But what said the Lord Jesus? Why are you troubled, and why do thoughts ascend into your hearts? If thoughts ascend into your heart, the thoughts come from the earth. But it is good for a man, not that a thought should ascend into his heart, but that his heart should itself ascend upwards, where the Apostle would have believers place their hearts, to whom he said, If you be risen with Christ, mind those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Seek those things which are above, not the things which are upon the earth. For you are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ your life shall appear, then shall you also appear with Him in glory. In what glory? The glory of the resurrection. In what glory? Hear the Apostle saying of this body, It is sown in dishonour, it shall rise in glory. This glory the Apostles were unwilling to assign to their Master, their Christ, their Lord: they did not believe that His Body could rise from the sepulchre: they thought Him to be a Spirit, though they saw His flesh, and they believed not their very eyes. Yet we believe them who preach but do not show Him. Lo, they believed not Christ who showed Himself to them. Malignant wound! Let the remedies for these scars come forth. Why are you troubled, and why do thoughts ascend into your hearts? See My hands and My feet, where I was fixed with the nails. Handle and see. But ye see, and yet do not see. Handle and see. What? That a spirit has not flesh and bones, as you see me have. When He had thus spoken, so it is written, He showed them His hands and His feet. 3. And while they were yet in hesitation, and wondered for joy. Now there was joy already, and yet hesitation continued. For a thing incredible had taken place, yet taken place it had. Is it at this day a thing incredible, that the Body of the Lord rose again from the sepulchre? The whole cleansed world has believed it; whoever has not believed it, has remained in his uncleanness. Yet at that time it was incredible: © Sophia Institute for Teachers Unit 3, Chapter 7: Evidence for Jesus’ Divinity 143
and persuasion was addressed not to the eyes only, but to the hands also, that by the bodily senses faith might descend into their heart, and that faith so descending into their heart might be preached throughout the world to them who neither saw nor touched, and yet without doubting believed. Have ye, says He, anything to eat? How much does the good Builder still to build up the edifice of faith? He did not hunger, yet He asked to eat. And He ate by an act of His power, not through necessity. So then let the disciples acknowledge the verity of His body, which the world has acknowledged at their preaching. 1 According to St. Augustine, why did Christ keep His scars after the Resurrection? 2 Based on what you read in the homily above, what do you think is the heresy of the Manicheans referenced by St. Augustine? 3 According to St. Augustine, what was the reason Christ asked His Apostles for food? 4 What struck you the most about this homily? Why? 144 Apologetics I: The Catholic Faith and Science © Magis Center
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