Catechesis XIII
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On the Crucifixion and Burial of Christ "Who would believe what we have heard? To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"l "Like a lamb led to the slaughter or a sheep before his shearers, he was silent and opened not his mouth."2
(1)' The Catholic Church glories in every action of Christ, but her glory of glories is the Cross. Knowing this, Paul says:
"But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ."3 It was a wonderful thing for the man blind from birth to receive his sight in SiIoe, but what is that compared to the blind of all the world? It was a marvel beyond nature for Lazarus to rise again after four days; there, with Lazarus, the grace stopped; what was it compared to the raising of all men from the tomb of sin? It was wonderful that five loaves should supply food for five thousand, but what was that compared to the feeding of those famishing in ignorance throughout the world? The release of the woman bound by Satan for eighteen years was a portent, but more wonderful was the release of all of us held fast in the meshes of our sins. The glory of the Cross has at one and the same time led into the light those blind through ignorance, has delivered all bound in sin, and redeemed all mankind.
(2) Do not wonder that the whole world was redeemed, for it was no mere man, but the Only-begotten Son of God lIsa. 53.1.
2 Ibid. 7.
3 Cf. Gal. 6.14.
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who died for it. The sin of one man, Adam, availed to bring death to the world; if by one man's offense death reigned for the world, why should not life reign all the more "from the justice of the one"?4 If Adam and Eve were cast out of paradise because of the tree from which they ate, should not believers more easily enter into paradise because of the Tree of Jesus? If the first man, fashioned out of the earth, brought universal death, shall not He who fashioned him, being the Life, bring everlasting life? If Phinees by his zeal in slaying the evildoer appeased the wrath of God, shall not Jesus, who slew no other, but "gave himself a ransom for all,"o take away God's wrath against man?
(3) Therefore let us not be ashamed of the Cross of our Savior, but rather glory in it; "for the doctrine of the cross" is "to the Jews a stumbling-block and to the Gentiles foolishness,"6 but to us salvation, "foolishness to those who perish but to those who are saved, that is, to us, it is the power of God.'" For as I said before, it was not a mere man who died for us, but the Son of God, God made man. If under Moses the lamb kept the destroyer away, did not "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world/'s all the more deliver us from our sins? The blood of a brute sheep accorded salvation; shall not the blood of the Only-begotten much more save us? If any man doubts the power of the Crucified, let him question the devils; if any man doubts words, let him believe the evident facts. Many have been crucified throughout the world, but of none of these are the demons afraid.
For these died because of their own sins, but Christ for the sins of others; for He "did not sin, neither was deceit found
4 Rom. 5.18. Though the sin of Adam brought the doom of physical death to man, the emphasis in this chapter is rather on the death of the soul, on original sin and the sins of mankind for which the sin of Adam paved the way.
5 Cf. I Tim. 2.6; on Phinees, Num. 25.7.
6 I Cor. 1.18, 23.
7 Ibid.
8 John 1.29.
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in his mouth."o It was not Peter, who could be suspected of partiality, who said this, but Isaia, who, though not present in the flesh, in spirit foresaw His coming in the flesh. But why do I bring only the prophet as a witness? Take the witness of Pilate himself, who passed judgment on Him, saying: "I find no guilt in this man";10 and when he delivered
Him up and washed his hands, he said: "I am innocent of the blood of this just man."ll There is also another witness to the sinlessness of Jesus in the robber, the first man to enter paradise; he rebuked his fellow and said: "'We are receiving what our deeds deserved: but this man has done nothing wrong,' for we were present, you and I, at His judgment."12
(4)' Jesus truly suffered for all men. For the Cross was no illusion; otherwise our redemption also is an illusion. His death was not imaginary; otherwise our salvation is an idle tale. If His death was imaginary, they were right who said:
"We have remembered how that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, 'After three days I will rise again.' "13 Therefore
His passion was real, for He was truly crucified, and we are not ashamed of it. He was crucified and we do not deny it, but rather do I glory in speaking of it. For if I should now deny it, Golgotha here, close to which we are now gathered, refutes me; the wood of the Cross, now distributed piecemeal from Jerusalem over all the world, refutes me. I confess the Cross, because I know of the Resurrection; had the Cross been the end, perhaps I would not have confessed it, but concealed both it and my Master; however, since the Cross was followed by the Resurrection, I am not ashamed to avow it.
9 1 Peter 2.22.
10 Luke 23.14.
11 Matt. 27.24.
12 Luke 23.41. That the two robbers were present at the judgment of Christ seems rather unlikely. Cyril assumes perhaps that they were condemned to be crucified at the same time as Christ.
13 Matt. 27.63.
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(5) Being in the flesh like other men, He was crucified, but not for sins men commit. He was not led to death for love of gain, for He was a teacher of poverty; He was not condemned for lust, for He said plainly: "Anyone who eVen looks with lust at a woman has already committed adultery with her";14 not for smiting or striking impetuously, for He turned the other cheek to the smiter; not for despising the Law, for He was the fulfiller of the Law; not for reviling a prophet, for He was proclaimed by the prophets; not for defrauding men of their hire, for He ministered freely, without recompense; not for sinning in word or deed or thought:
"Who did no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.
Who, when he was reviled, did not revile, when he suffered, did not threaten";15 who came to His passion, not unwillingly, but willingly; and if anyone even now should attempt to dissuade Him and say: "Far be it from thee, a Lord,"16 He will say again: "Get behind me, Satan."17
(6) Do you wish to be convinced that He came to His passion willingly? Others, ignorant of their fate, die against their will, but He foretold His passion: Behold, "the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified."18 Do you know why this Lover of man did not shun death? To prevent the whole world from perishing in its sins. "Behold we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed and crucified";19 and again: "He steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem."20 Would you know clearly that the Cross is a glory to Jesus? Listen to His words, not mine. Judas, grown ungrateful to the Master, was intent on betraying Him. Going forth from the table where he had drunk His cup of blessing, he sought, in return for that draught of salvation, to shed
14 Matt. 5.28.
15 1 Peter 2.22, 23.
16 Matt. 16.22.
17 Ibid. 23.
18 Matt. 26.2
19 Matt. 20.l8, 19.
20 Luke 9.51.
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just blood. "Who ate his bread lifted up his heel against him."21 He had just received the blessed gifts and at once he was plotting His death for the wages of betrayal.22 When he had been convicted and heard the words: "Thou has said it,"23 he went forth again; then Jesus said: "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified."24 Do you see how
He knew the Cross to be his own peculiar glory? If 1saia is not ashamed of being sawn asunder, shall Christ be ashamed of dying for the world? "Now is the Son of Man glorified";25 not that He lacked glory before, for He was glorified with the glory which He had before the creation of the world. As God He was glorified from eternity; now He was being glorified, having borne the crown of His patience. He did not give up His life perforce, nor was He put to death by violence, but of His own will. Hear what He says: "'I have the power to lay down my life, and I have the power to take it up again.'26 I yield it to My enemies of My own choice, for unless I willed it so, it could not be." He came, then, of His own free choice to His passion, rejoicing in His noble deed, smiling at the crown, cheered by the salvation of men;
He was not ashamed of the Cross, for it saved the world. It was no ordinary man who suffered, but God in man's nature, striving for the reward of His patience.
(7) The Jews, of course, ever ready to object and slow to believe, deny this; hence the prophet just read says: "Who would believe what we have heard?"27 The Persians believe but not the Hebrews. "They who have not been told of him
21 Cf. Ps. 40.10.
22 Cyril seems to imply that Judas had received the sacred species before he left the supper room.
23 Matt. 26.25.
24 John 12.23.
25 John 13.31.
26 John 10.18.
27 Isa. 53.1. The Benedictine editor has noted a close parallel between what follows to the end of the lecture and Rufinus' exposition of the same article of the Creed (Commentarius in Symbolum Apostolorum,
19 sqq.) and has no doubt that Rufinus borrowed freely from Cylil.
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shall see, and they who have not heard shall understand";28 yes, the people whose study is the Scriptures reject what they study. They answer: "Does the Lord then suffer? and did the hands of men prevail over His sovereignty?" Read the Lamentations, for in them Jeremia, lamenting you, has written what is worth a lament. He saw your ruin, he beheld your downfall; he bewailed the Jerusalem that then was, for that which now is shall not be bewailed.29 For that Jerusalem crucified Christ, but that which now is worships Him.
Therefore, lamenting he says: "The breath of our mouth, Christ the Lord is taken in our sins."3Q Do I invent what I say? You see he bears witness to the Christ seized by men.
What follows? Tell me, 0 prophet. But he says: "Of whom we said, under his shadow we shall live among the Gentiles."31
He indicates that the grace of life will no longer abide in Israel, but among the Gentiles.
(8) Since their denials are manifold, let us attempt to adduce, by the Lord's grace, a few testimonies concerning the passion, with the help of your prayers, and as the shortness of time allows. For everything that concerns Christ has been written; there is nothing doubtful, since nothing is unattested. All has been inscribed in prophetic records, clearly written, not on tablets of stone, but by the Holy Spirit. You have heard the Gospel's account of the deeds of Judas; ought you not to receive testimony of this? You have heard that His side was pierced by a spear; should you not see whether this also is written? You have heard that He was crucified in a garden; ought you not to see if this is written?
You have heard that He was sold for thirty pieces of silver; should you not learn what prophet said this? You have
28 Rom. 15.21.
29 By "the Jerusalem that then was" Cyril means the Jerusalem captured and destroyed by Titus and reduced to further ruin by Hadrian.
The boundaries of the later Jerusalem did not coincide with those of the old city.
30 Lam. 4.20 (Douay).
31 Cf. ibid.
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heard that He was given vinegar to drink; learn where even this is written. You have heard that His body was laid in a rock, and a stone placed thereon; should you not get testimony of this also from the prophet? You have" heard that He was buried; should you not see whether the circumstances of His burial were written down accurately? YolJ. have heard that He rose again; should you not see whether we are mocking you in teaching all this? "My speech and my preaching were not in the persuasive words of human wisdom."32 No sophistical artifices are being advanced, for sophistry is always unmasked; arguments and counterarguments cancel out. "But we preach a crucified Christ,"33 proclaimed beforehand by the prophets. Seal these testimonies, when you receive them, in your heart. But since they are many, and the time remaining is short, hear now, when you may, a few testimonies of greater moment; and taking these as a start, be diligent and seek out the rest. Let not your hand be stretched out merely to receive, but let it be ready to work. God bestows all things freely. "If any of you is wanting in wisdom, let him ask it of God who gives,"34 and he shall receive. Through your prayers may He grant utterance to us who speak, and faith to you who hear.
(9) Therefore let us seek the testimonies to Christ's passion.
For we have come together now not to make a speculative exposition of the Scriptures, but rather to be convinced of what we already believe. Previously you received from me testimonies concerning the coming of Jesus and His walking upon the sea; for it is written: "Through the sea was your way."35 You listened on another occasion to testimony of divers cures. I will now start with the beginning of the passion. Judas the traitor came and stood opposite Him, speaking words of peace but plotting enmity. Of him the 32 1 Cor. 2.4.
33 1 Cor. 1.23.
34 James 1.5.
35 Ps. 76.20.
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Psalmist says: "My friends and my neighbors have drawn near and stood against 'me."36 Again: "Their words are smoother than oil and the same are darts."37 "Hail, Rabbi,"38 and he delivered his master to death; he did not regard the words of His warning: "Judas, dost thou betray the Son of Man with a kiss?"39 For He had all but said: "Recollect your own name-Judas signifies confession-you have made your bargain, you have received the money, confess quickly." "0
God, whom I praise, be not silent, for they have opened wicked and treacherous mouths against me. They have spoken to me with lying tongues; and with words of hatred they have encompassed me."40 Some of the chief priests were present, and Christ was put in bonds before the gates of the city, as you heard recently, if you recall the exposition of the psalm designating the time and the place; how "they returned at evening, and suffered hunger like dogs and prowled about the city."41
(10) Harken now in regard to the thirty pieces of silver.
"And I will say to them, 'If it seems good to you, give me my wages, or refuse: "42 One recompense is due Me for curing the blind and the lame, and I receive another; instead of thanksgiving, dishonor, and instead of worship, insult. Do you see how Scripture foresaw all this? "And they counted out my wages, thirty pieces of silver."43 0 prophetic accuracy!
A great and unerring wisdom of the Holy Spirit! For he did not say ten, nor twenty, but thirty, exactly the right amount. Tell also what happened to this payment, 0 prophet!
Does he who received it keep it or does he give it back? And after its return what becomes of it? The prophet says: "So I 36 Cf. Ps. 37.12.
37 Ps. 54.22 (Douay).
38 Matt. 26.49.
39 Luke 22.48.
40 Ps. 108.1·3.
41 Cf. Ps. 58.7. The exposition of the psalm which Cyril refers to must have occurred in a homily not connected with the catechetical lectures.
42 Zach. 11.12 (Sept.).
43 Ibid.
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took the thirty pieces of silver, and I cast them into the house of the Lord, into the foundry."44 Compare with the prophecy the Gospel which says: "Judas repented and flung the pieces of silver into the temple, and withdrew."45
(11) Here I seek a precise explanation of the apparent discrepancy. They who disregard the prophets assert that the prophet says: "And I cast them into the house of the Lord, into the foundry," while the Gospel says: "And they gave them for the potter's field."46 Hear how both statements are true. Those conscientious Jews, of course, the chief priests of that time, seeing Judas repentant and saying: "I have sinned in betraying innocent blood," reply: "What is that to us? See to it thysel£."47 Does it then mean nothing to you, the crucifiers? Shall he who received the price of murder and returned it see to it, but you, the murderers, will not see to it? Then they say among themselves: "It is not lawful to put them into the corbona, because it is the price of blood."48 From your own mouths comes your condemnation. If the price is abominable, the deed also is abominable; but if in crucifying
Christ you fulfill justice, why do you not receive the price?
But the point of the inquiry was this, how there is no disagreement, when the Gospel on the one hand says "potter's field," but the prophet on the other hand says "foundry." The fact is that goldsmiths and coppersmiths are not the only craftsmen who have foundries, but potters too have foundries for their clay. For they sift the fine, rich and useful earth from the gravel, and setting aside the mass of impure matter, they first soften the clay with water, to work it more easily into the forms intended. Why do you wonder that the Gospel says plainly "potter's field," while the prophet spoke his prophecy in the form of an enigma, since prophecy is generally enigmatical?
44 Ibid. 13.
45 Matt. 27.3, 5.
46 Ibid. 10.
47 Ibid. 4.
48 Ibid. 6.
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(12) They bound Jesus and led Him to the hall of the high priest. Would you know and see that this also is written?
Isaia says: "Woe to their souls, because they have taken evil counsel against themselves, saying: 'Let us bind the just, for he is troublesome to us.' "49 Truly indeed "Woe to their souls"! Let us see how. Isaia was sawn asunder; yet after this the people was restored. Jeremia was cast into the mire of a dungeon, but the wound of the Jews was healed; for the sin was less, since it was against man. But when the Jews sinned, not against man, but against God become man, "Woe to their souls"!-"Let us bind the just"; but could He not have set Himself free, someone will say, He who freed Lazarus from the bonds of death after four days, and freed Peter from the iron fetters? Angels were ready at hand, saying:
"Let us break their fetters," but they hold back, because the Lord willed to suffer thus. Again He was led to the tribunal before the ancients; you have heard the testimony already:
"The Lord enters into judgment with his people's elders and princes."5o (13) The high priest questioned Him and after hearing the truth, tenses; and the wicked servant of wicked men gives
Him a blow; and that face, which had shone as the sun, endured to be struck by impious hands. Others come to spit in the face of Him who by spittle had cured the man blind from birth. Is this the return you make to the Lord? This people is stupid and foolish. The prophet in wonder says:
"Who would believe what we have heard?"51 For it was incredible that God, the Son of God, and the Arm of the Lord should suffer all this. But lest those to be saved disbelieve, the Holy Spirit predicts this in the person of Christ, who says (for He who then spoke these words afterwards fulfilled them): "I gave my back to those who beat me";52
49 Isa. 3.9, 10 (Sept.).
50 Isa. 3.14.
51 Isa.53.I.
52 Isa. 50.6.
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for Pilate scourged Him and delivered Him to be crucified; "and my cheeks to blows; and my face I did not shield from the shame of spittings";53 as though He were to say: "Though
I knew beforehand that they would strike Me, I did not even turn aside My cheek; for how could, I have nerved My disciples to undergo death for the truth, if I had been afraid? I said: 'He who loves his life shall lose it';54 if I had loved My life, how could I have taught this, not practicing what I taught?" He who was Himself God first endured these sufferings from men to make us men unashamed to endure like sufferings for Him. You see that the prophets have clearly foretold all this. To repeat, I omit further testimonies from Scripture for want of time; for if one were to track down each point, nothing concerning Christ would be left unattested.
(14) Having been bound, Christ went from Caiphas to Pilate; is this also written? Yes; "And having bound him, they led him away as a present to the King of Jarim."55 But some keen listener will object: "Pilate was not a king" (let us pass over for the time the main points of the inquiry)';
"How then, having bound Him, did they lead Him as a present to the king?" But read the Gospel; Pilate, hearing that He was from Galilee, sent Him to Herod; for Herod was then king and was present in Jerusalem. Notice the exactness of the prophet; for he says that He was sent as a present; for "Herod and Pilate became friends that very day; whereas previously they had been at enmity with each other."56 It was fitting that He, who was to restore peace between earth and heaven, should first put at peace the very men who condemned Him, for the Lord Himself was there
53 Ibid.
54 John 12.25.
55 Osee 10.6 (Sept.). The accommodation of the Old Testament text may seem strained, but Cyril had the example of Justin (Dialogue with Trypho 103) before him, and Rufinus after him drew the same parallel.
56 Luke 23.12.
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present, "who reconciles the hearts of the princes of the earth."57 Mark the exactness of the prophets, and their truth· ful testimony.
(15) Contemplate with awe the Lord being judged. He suffered Himself to be led and borne about by the soldiers.
Pilate sat in judgment, and He who sits at the right hand of the Father stood and was judged. The people whom he had freed from Egypt and often from other places kept shout· ing against Him: "Away with himl Away with himl Crucify himl"58 Why, 0 you Jews? Because He healed your blind? or because He made your lame to walk, and bestowed His other blessings? The prophet in astonishment speaks of this also: "At whom do you open wide your mouth and put out your tongue?"511 The Lord Himself says in the prophets: "My heritage has turned on me like a lion in the jungle; because she has roared against me, I treat her as an enemy."60 "I have not renounced them but they have renounced Me; therefore
I say: 'I abandon my house.' "61
(16)' When He was judged He held His peace, and Pilate was moved in His behalf and said: "Do you not hear what they testify against yoU?"62 It was not that he knew Him who was being judged, but he feared his wife's dream which had been reported to him. Jesus held His peace. The Psalmist says: "I am become like a man who neither hears nor has in his mouth a retort,"63 and again: "But I am like a deaf man, hearing not, like a dumb man who opens not his mouth."64
You have heard this before, if you recall.
(17) The soldiers who surrounded Him mock Him. Their Lord becomes their plaything, and their Master is made a 57 Cf. Job 12.24.
58 John 19.15.
59 Isa.57.4.
60 Jer. 12.8.
61 Ibid. 7.
62 Cf. Matt. 27.13.
63 Ps. 37.15.
64 Ibid. 14.
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mockery. "When they see me, they shake their heads."65 Yet the figure of the kingly state is there; though they mock Him, they bow the knee. The soldiers crucify Him after first putting on Him a purple garment; and they place a crown upon His head; what though it be of thorns? Every king is proclaimed by soldiers; it was fitting that Jesus also, in figure, be crowned by soldiers. For this reason Scripture says in the Canticles: "Daughters of Jerusalem, come forth and look upon King Solomon in the crown with which his mother has crowned him."66 But the crown was also a mystery, for it was a remission of sins, and release from the sentence of condemnation.
(18) Adam received the sentence: "Cursed be the earth in your works, thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to yoU."67 So Jesus assumes the thorns to remove the condemnation; so also He was buried in the earth, to have the earth which had been cursed receive a blessing instead of the curse.
At the time of the sin Adam and Eve clothed themselves with fig leaves; consequently Jesus made the fig tree the last of His signs. When He was about to go to His passion, He cursed the fig tree-not every fig tree, but that alone for the sake of the figure-saying: "May no one ever eat fruit of thee henceforward forever."68 Let the doom be canceled. Because of old they clothed themselves with fig leaves, He came at a season when fruit is not found on the tree. Who is unaware that in winter the fig tree does not bear fruit, but is clothed in leaves only? Was Jesus ignorant of that which all know?
No, but though He knew, He came as though He were seeking, not unaware that He would not find, but making the figurative curse apply only to the leaves.
(19) We have touched on the story of Paradise, and I am truly amazed at the verisimilitude of the types. In Paradise
65 Ps. 108.25.
66 Cant. 3.11.
67 Cf. Gen. 3.17.18.
68 Mark ll.H.
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(the garden of Eden) was the fall, and in a garden our salvation. From the tree came sin, and until the Tree sin lasted.
When the Lord was walking in Paradise in the afternoon Adam and Eve hid themselves; and in the afternoon the robber is brought into Paradise by the Lord. But some one will say: "You are inventing sophistries; show me from a prophet the Wood of the Cross; unless you produce testimony from a prophet, I am not convinced." Harken to Jeremia and be convinced: "I was as a meek lamb that is carried to be a victim; did I not know it?"69 (For read it thus as a question, as I have put it. For He who said: "You know that after two days the passover shall be here, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified,"70 did He not know?)
"I was as a meek lamb, that is carried to be a victim; did I not know it?" (What sort of lamb? Let John the Baptist interpret, when he says: "Behold the lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!"71) "They devised a wicked counsel against me, saying (was it that He who knew the counsels did not know their issue? And what did they say?):
'Come, and let us put wood on his bread.''' (If the Lord shall count you worthy, hereafter you shall learn that His body, according to the Gospel, bore the figure of bread.) "Come, and let us put wood on his bread, and cut him off from the land of the living." (Life is not cut off; why do you toil to no purpose?) "And let his name be remembered no more."72
Your counsel is vain; for before the sun His name abides in the Church. That it was truly Life which hung upon the Cross Moses declares, weeping: "And thy life shall hang before thine eyes; thou shalt fear night and day, neither shalt thou trust thy life."73 Apropos is the text just now read:
"Lord, who has believed what we have heard?"74
69 J er. 11.19 (Sept.).
70 Matt. 26.2.
7I John 1.29.
72 Jer. 11.19 (Sept.).
73 Deut. 2866 (Sept.).
74 Cf. Isa. 53.1. See above at n. 51.
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(20) The Cross was prefigured by Moses when he fixed the serpent on a pole; anyone bitten by the living serpent who looked upon the brazen serpent was saved by faith. Can salvation come from a brazen serpent, fixed on a cross, but not from the incarnate Son of God crucified? Life ever comes from wood. In the time of Noe the preservation of life came from a wooden ark. In Moses' time the sea, on beholding the figurative rod, gave way before him who struck it; could the rod of Moses be so mighty, and the Cross of the Savior powerless? I pass over most of the types for the sake of brevity.
In the time of Moses the wood sweetened the water; and the water from Jesus' side flowed upon the wood.
(21) The first signs under Moses were blood and water, and the last of all the signs of Jesus were the same. First
Moses changed the river into blood; and at the end Jesus discharged water with blood from His side. Perhaps it was because of the two utterances, one of His judge, the other of those who shouted against Him; or because of the believers and unbelievers. For Pilate said, "I am innocent," and washed his hands with water; they who shouted against Him said,
"His blood be on US";75 these two, then, came from His side, water perhaps for him who judged Him, but blood for them who shouted against Him. There is still another interpretation: the blood was for the Jews, the water for the Christians; for on the Jews, as plotters, came the sentence of condemnation, but to you who now believe, salvation comes by water.
Nothing has been done without purpose. Our fathers gave stilI another explanation. Since in the Gospels the power of salutary Baptism is twofold, one granted by water to those receiving the sacrament, but a second granted to holy martyrs in the time of persecution by blood, therefore blood and water came forth from the side of the savior to confirm the grace of confession made for Christ, whether in Baptism or on the occasion of martyrdom. There is still another reason
75 Matt. 27.24, 25.
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in regard to His side. The originator of sin was a woman, formed from the side of Adam; but when Jesus came to grant pardon freely to men and women alike, he was pierced in the side for woman's sake, to undo the sin.76
(22) Further inquiry will discover other reasons, but those given are enough, because of the shortness of the time and to avoid exhausting the attention of my hearers. Yet one should never grow weary of hearing about our crowned Lord, especially on this holy Golgotha. For others merely hear, but we see and touch. Therefore, let no one grow weary; take arms against the adversaries for the sake of the Cross itself; set up the faith of the Cross as a trophy against objectors. When you are to dispute with unbelievers concerning the Cross of Christ, first make with your hand the sign of the Cross of Christ, and the objector will be silenced. Do not be ashamed to confess the Cross. For angels glory in it, saying: We "know that you seek Jesus, who was crucified."77 Could you not have said, 0 angel, "I know you seek my Master?" But he says with confidence, "I know the Crucified." For the Cross is a crown, not a dishonor.
(23) Let us return to the proposed proof from the prophets.
The Lord was crucified; you have received the testimonies.
You see this place of Golgotha. With a cry of praise you assent. See that you never deny it in the time of persecution.
Let not the Cross be a joy to you merely in the time of peace, but keep the same faith during persecution. Do not be a friend of Jesus in the time of peace and His foe in the time of wars. You receive now the remission of your sins and the graces of the spiritual bounty of your King. When war comes, strive courageously for your King. Jesus, who did no sin, was crucified for you; will you not face crucifixion for Him in turn? You are not bestowing a favor, for you have first received; you are returning a favor, repaying the debt
76 This curious reason why the side of Christ was pierced (i.e. for woman's sake) is found in many ancient sources.
77 Matt. 28.5.
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to Him who was crucified for you on Golgotha. Golgotha is interpreted 'the place of a skull.' Who were they who prophetically named this spot Golgotha, where Christ the true
Head endured the Cross? As the Apostle says, "He is the image of the invisible God";78 and subsequently: "Again, he is the head of his body, the Church."79 Again: "The head of every man is Christ";8{l and "Who is the head of every Principality and Power."81 The Head suffered in "the place of the skull." 0 great and prophetic appellation! The very name all but reminds you, saying: "Think not of the Crucified as a mere man; He is 'the head of every Principality and Power.''' The Head which was crucified is the Head of all power and has the Father for His Head; for "the head of man is Christ; and the head of Christ is God."82
(24) Christ, then, was crucified for us; He was judged in the night, when it was cold, and therefore a fire of coals was laid. He was crucified at the third hour; and "from the sixth hour there was darkness until the ninth hour";83 but from the ninth hour there was light again. Are these details written down? Let us inquire. Zacharia says: "And it shall come to pass in that day, and there shall be no light, but cold and frost through one day, (the cold on account of which Peter warmed himself,) and that day shall be known to the Lord."84
(What? Did He not know the other days? There are many days, but "this is the day [of the Lord's patience 1 the Lord has made.")85 "And that day shall be known to the Lord, and not day nor night."86 What dark saying does the prophet utter? That day is neither day nor night. What then shall we call it? The Gospel interprets it, telling of the event. It was
78 Col. 1.15.
79 Ibid. 18.
80 1 Cor. 11.3.
81 Col. 2.10.
82 I Cor. 11.3.
83 Matt. 27.45.
84 Zach. 14.6,7 (Douay).
85 Ps. 117.24.
86 Zach. 14.6, 7 (Douay).
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not day, for the sun did not shine without interruption from rising to setting, but from the sixth hour to the ninth there was darkness. The darkness was interposed; but God called the darkness night. Therefore it was neither day nor night; for it was neither all light, so as to be called day, nor all darkness, so as to be called night; but after the ninth hour the sun shone forth. This also the prophet foretells; for after saying "not day nor night," he adds: "And in the time of the evening there shall be light."87 Do you see the exactness of the prophets? Do you see the truth of the events foretold?
(25) Do you seek at what hour exactly the sun failed?
Was it the fifth hour or the eighth or the tenth? Give the exact hour, 0 prophet, to the unheeding Jews; when did the sun set? The prophet Amos says: "On that day, says the Lord God, 1 will make the sun set at midday" (for there was darkness from the sixth hour) "and cover the earth with darkness in broad daylight."88 What season is this, 0 prophet, and what sort of day? "I will turn your feasts into mourning"89 (for it was in the Azymes that this event took place, and at the feast of the Pasch)'; then he says: "I will make them mourn as for an only son, and bring their day to a bitter end."90 For the day of Azymes and at the time of the feast the women mourned and wept, and the Apostles who had hidden themselves were overwhelmed with anguish. How wonderful the prophecy!
(26) But someone will say: "Give me still another sign; what other exact sign is there of the event?" Jesus was crucified, and He had but one tunic and one cloak. The soldiers cut the cloak into four parts and divided it among themselves; but the tunic was not cut, because, if it were cut, it would no longer be of any use; so lots were cast for it by the soldiers; they divided the cloak, but for the tunic they
87 Ibid.
88 Amos 8.9 (Sept.).
89 Ibid.
90 Ibid. 10.
ST. CYRIL OF JERUSALEM
cast lots. Is this also written about? They know, the zealous cantors of the Church, who imitate the angelic hosts and sing praises to God continually; they are counted worthy to sing psalms here on Golgotha, and to say: "They divide my garments among them and for my vesture they cast lotS."91
The "lots" were cast by the soldiers.
(27) Again, when He was judged by Pilate, He was clothed in red, for there "they put on him a scarlet cloak."92 Is this also written? Isaia says: "Who is this that comes from Edom, in crimson garments from Bosra?"93 (Who is that who for shame is clothed in scarlet? For Bosra among the Hebrews has such a meaning.) "Why is your apparel red, and your garments like those of the wine presser?"94 But He answers and says: "I have stretched out my hands all the day to an un· believing and rebellious people."95
(28) He stretched out His hands on the Cross to encompass the ends of the world; for this Golgotha is the very center of the earth. This is not my saying; it is a prophet who has said:
"You wrought salvation in the midst of the earth."96 He who by spiritual hands had established the heavens stretched out human hands; they were fastened with nails that when His humanity, which bore the sins of men, had been nailed to the tree and died, sin might die at the same time, and we might rise again in justice. For as through one man came death, so also through one Man came life; through one Man, that is, the Savior, dying of His own free choice; remember what He said: "I have power to lay my life down, and I have power to take it up again."97
(29) He suffered all this because He had come for the 91 Ps. 21.19; Matt. 27.35. It is quite possible that some of the candidates for Baptism were among the choir who sang the psalms.
92 Matt. 27.28.
93 Isa.63.1.
94 Ibid. 2.
95 Cf. Isa. 65.2.
96 Cf. Ps. 73.12 (Douay). This text surely has no geographical connota· tions; the accommodation of it to Golgotha is obviously forced.
97 John 10.18.
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salvation of all; yet the people returned Him an evil recompense. Jesus says, "I thirst,"IlS He who had brought forth water from the flinty rock for them; He asked fruit of the vine He had planted. What happens? This vine, of holy fathers by nature but of Sodom by inclination (for "they are a branch of Sodom's winestock, from the vineyards of Gomorra"),99 this vine offers to the Lord, when He was thirsty, a sponge filled with vinegar upon a reed. "They put gall in my food, and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink."loo See how clear was the prediction of the prophets.
But what sort of gall did they put in My mouth? "They gave him," it says, "wine mixed with myrrh."101 Myrrh is like gall in taste, and very bitter. "Is the Lord to be thus repaid by yoU?"102 Are these the offerings you make to your Master, o vine? Justly did Isaia bewail you of old, saying: "My friend had a vineyard on a fertile hillside";lo3 and (not to cite the whole) "I looked," he says, "for the crop of grapes";104 I thirsted for it to give wine; "but it brought forth thorns";105 for you see the crown with which I am wreathed. What shall
I now decree? "I will command the clouds not to send rain upon it."106 For the clouds, that is to say, the prophets, were taken away from them, and thereafter the prophets were in the Church; as Paul says: "Of the prophets, let two or three speak at a meeting, and let the rest act as judges."107 Again,
God gave in the Church "some men as apostles, and some as prophets."lo8 Agabus, who bound his own hands and feet, was a prophet.
98 John 19.28.
99 Deut. 32.33 (Sept.).
100 Ps.68.22.
101 Mark 15.23.
102 Deut. 32.6.
103 Isa. 5.1.
104 Ibid. 4.
105 I bid. 4 (Sept.).
106 Ibid. 6.
107 I Cor. 14.29.
108 Cf. Eph. 4.11. For Agabus cf. Acts, 21.10-11.
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(30) Of the robbers crucified with Him, it was said: "And he was reckoned among the wicked."lo9 Up to this time both were wicked, but one of them was wicked no longer. For one was wicked to the end, yielding not to salvation, and, though his hands were fastened, he struck blasphemously with his tongue. The Jews passing by wagged their heads, mocking the Crucified, and fulfilling the Scripture: "When they see me, they shake their heads."110
One robber joined in the reviling, but the other rebuked him; for the second robber it was the end of life and the beginning of restoration, the surrender of his soul, and the anticipation of salvation. After rebuking his fellow robber, he says: " 'Lord, remember me';l11 to You I direct my speech; never mind him, for the eyes of his understanding are blinded; but remember me. I do not say: 'Remember my deeds,' for I am afraid of these. Every man is well disposed to his fellow traveler; I am traveling with You towards death; remember me, your fellow wayfarer. I do not say:
'Remember me now,' but 'When thou comest into thy kingdom.' "112
(31) What power, 0 robber, enlightened you? Who taught you to worship that despised man crucified along with you? o Eternal Light, which illumines those lying in darkness!
Therefore he justly heard the words: "Be of good cheer,"not that your deeds should cause you to be of good cheer, but because the King is here, dispensing favors. The request was for something distant in time, but the grace was very speedy. "'Amen I say to thee, this day thou shalt be with me in paradise,'113 because this day you have heard My voice, and have not hardened your heart. Swiftly I passed sentence against Adam; swiftly I pardon you. To Adam it was said:
109 Mark 15.28; Isa. 53.12.
IIO Ps. 108.25.
I I I Luke 23.42.
112 Ibid.
113 Ibid. 43; in what follows d. Ps. 94.8.
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'For the day you eat of it, you must die';114 today you have been faithful; today will bring you salvation. The tree brought ruin to Adam; it shall bring you into paradise. Fear not the serpent; he shall not cast you out, for he has fallen from heaven. I say not to you, 'This day thou shalt depart: but 'This day thou shalt be with me.' "115 Take heart; you shall not be cast out. Fear not the flaming sword; it stands in awe of its Lord. 0 mighty and ineffable grace! The faithful
Abraham has not yet entered, but the robber enters! Moses and the prophets have not entered, but the lawless robber enters. Even before you Paul marvelled at this, saying:
"Where the offense has abounded, grace has abounded yet more."116 They who had borne the heat of the day had not yet entered; and he who came at the eleventh hour entered.
Let no one murmur against the Master of the house, for he says: "'Friend, I do you no injustice. Have I not a right to do what I choose'117 with my own? The robber has the will to do just deeds, but death prevents him; I wait not for the work only, but faith too I have accepted. I have come who feed my sheep 'among the lilies'; I have come to feed them in the gardens. I have found a sheep that was lost; I take it upon my shoulders. For he believes, since he has asked: 'I have gone astray like a lost sheep';l1S 'Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.' "119
(32) In the Canticles I sang of this garden of old to my spouse, and I said this to her: "I am come to my garden, my sister, my bride."120 ("Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden.")121 And what do You take from 1I4 Gen. 2.17.
115 Luke 23.43.
1I6 Rom. 5.20. It is difficult to understand just how the good thief anticipated the patriarchs and others awaiting the redemption, in entering into paradise.
1I7 Matt. 20.13, 15. liB Ps. lIB.176.
1I9 Luke 23.42.
120 Cant. 5.1.
121 John 19.41.
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there? "I have gathered my myrrh";122 for He drank wine mingled with myrrh, and vinegar; and having taken these,
He said: "It is consummated."123 The mystery has been accomplished; Scripture has been fulfilled; sins are forgiven. For "when Christ appeared as high priest of the good things to come, he entered once for all through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made by hands (that is, not of this creation), nor again by virtue of blood of goats and calves, but by virtue of his own blood; into the Holies, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkled ashes of a heifer sanctify the unclean unto the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ?"124 Again: "Since, then, brethren, we have confidence to enter the Holies in virtue of the blood of Christ, a new and living way which he inaugurated for us through the veil (this is, his flesh)."125 Because His flesh, His veil, was dishonored, the figurative veil of the temple was rent asunder, as it is written: "And behold the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom,"126 for not a particle of it was left. Since the Master said: "Behold, your house is left to you desolate,"127 the house itself was shattered.
(33) The Savior endured all this, "making peace through the blood of the cross, for all things whether in the heavens or on the earth."128 For we were enemies of God through sin, and God had decreed the death of the sinner. One of two things, therefore, was necessary, either that God, in His truth, should destroy all men, or that in His loving-kindness,
He should remit the sentence. But see the wisdom of God; He preserved the truth of His sentence and the exercise of His loving-kindness. Christ took our sins "in his body upon 122 Cant. 5.1.
123 John 19.30.
124 Reb. 9.10·14.
125 Reb. 10.19, 20.
126 Matt. 27.51.
127 Matt. 23.38.
128 Col. 1.20.
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the tree; that we, having died to sin," by His death "might live to justice."129 He who died for us was of no small worth;
He was no material sheep; He was no mere man; He was more than an angel, He was God made man. The iniquity of sinners was not as great as the justice of Him who died for them; the sins we committed were not as great as the justice
He wrought, who laid down His life for us; He laid it down when He willed, and took it up again when He willed. He did not lay down His life perforce, or yield up His spirit against His will, as you may learn from His words to His
Father: "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit."130 I commend it, to take it up again. "And having said this, he expired,"131 not for long, since He quickly rose again from the dead.
(34) The sun was darkened because of the Sun of Justice.
The rocks were rent, because of "the spiritual rock."132
Tombs were opened, and the dead arose, because of Him who was "free among the dead."133 He "sent forth his prisoners out of the pit, wherein there is no water."134 Do not be ashamed, then, of the Crucified, but say with confidence:
"He beareth our sins and carrieth our sorrows, and by his bruises we are healed."135 Let us not be ungrateful to our
Benefactor. Again: "For the wickedness of my people was he led to death; and I shall give the ungodly for his burial, and the rich for his death."136 And Paul says dearly: "that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures."137
(35) But we seek to know expressly where He was buried.
129 1 Peter 2.24.
130 Luke 23.16.
131 Ibid.
132 I Cor. lOA.
133 Ps.87.6 (Douay).
134 Cf. Zach. 9.11.
135 Cf. Isa. 53.1, 5.
136 Cf. ibid. 8, 9.
137 1 Cor. 15.3, 4.
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Was His tomb made with hands? Does it rise above the ground, like the tombs of kings? Was the sepulchre made of stones joined together? And what is laid upon it? Tell us exactly, 0 prophets, about his tomb also, where it lies, and where we shall look for it. But they answer: "Look upon the solid rock which you have hewn";138 look and see. You have in the Gospels: "In a rock-hewn tomb."139 What next? What kind of door has the sepulchre? Again the prophet says:
"They have ended my life in the pit, and they have laid a stone over me."140 I, who am "the chief corner stone, chosen, precious,"141 lie for a while within a stone, I, who am "a stone of stumbling"142 to the Jews, but of salvation to them that believe. The Tree of Life, then, was planted in the earth, to bring blessing for the earth, which had been cursed, and to bring release for the dead.
(36) Let us not be ashamed to confess the Crucified. Let the Cross, as our seal, be boldly made with our fingers upon our brow, and on all occasions; over the bread we eat, over the cups we drink; in our comings and in our goings; before sleep; on lying down and rising up; when we are on the way and when we are still. It is a powerful safeguard; it is without price, for the sake of the poor; without toil, because of the sick; for it is a grace from God, a badge of the faithful, and a terror to devils; for "he displayed them openly, leading them away in triumph by force of it."143 For when they see the Cross, they are reminded of the Crucified; they fear Him who has "smashed the heads of the dragons."144 Despise not the seal as a free gift, but rather for this reason honor your
Benefactor all the more.
(37) If ever you fall into disputation, and arguments fail 138 Isa. 51.1 (Sept.).
139 Luke 32.53.
140 Lam. 3.53 (Sept.).
141 1 Peter 2.6; Isa. 28.16.
142 1 Peter 2.8.
143 Col. 2.15.
144 Ps. 73.13.
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you, let your faith still remain unshaken. Rather become well informed and silence the Jews from the prophets and the Greeks from their own fables. The Greeks worship men struck by thunderbolts, but the bolt from heaven does not come at random. If they are not ashamed to worship men struck by lightning and abhorred by God, will you be ashamed to worship the beloved Son of God, who was crucified for you? I am ashamed to speak of their so-called gods, and I omit mention of them to save time, but let them that know speak out. Let the mouths of all heretics be stopped. If any man should say that the Cross is only an illusion, turn away from him. Abhor those who say that Christ was crucified in fancy only. For if He was crucified in fancy only, salvation is a fancy also, since our salvation comes from the Cross. If the Cross is a fancy, the Resurrection is a fancy also; and "if Christ has not risen we are still in our sins."145 If the Cross is a fancy, the Ascension also is a fancy; and if the Ascension is a fancy, then the second coming is likewise an illusion, and everything, finally, is unsubstantial.
(38) First, therefore, take as an indestructible foundation the Cross, and build upon it the rest of your faith. Do not deny the Crucified, for if you deny Him you have many to confute you. First Judas the traitor will confute you; for he who betrayed Him knew that He was condemned to death by the chief priests and the ancients. The thirty pieces of silver bear witness; Gethsemane bears witness, where the betrayal took place; not yet do I speak of the Mount of Olives, where they who were with Him that night were praying. The moon in the night bears witness; the day bears witness, and the failing sun, for it endured not to look upon the crime of the conspirators. The fire, where Peter stood and warmed himself, confounds you; if you deny the Cross, the eternal fire awaits you; I speak of harsh consequences that you may not experience them. Remember the swords
145 Cf. 1 Cor. 15.17.
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that came against Him in Gethsemane, that you may not feel the eternal sword. The house of Caiphas will convince you, which by its present desolation manifests the power of Him who once was judged in it.146 Caiphas himself will rise up against you in the day of judgment; the servant too who gave Jesus the blow will rise up, and those who bound Him, and those who led Him away. Herod and Pilate will rise up against you, all but saying: "Why do you deny Him who was maligned before us by the Jews, and who we knew well had done no wrong? For I, Pilate, then washed my hands." The false witnesses will rise up against you, and the soldiers who put the purple cloak upon Him, set the crown of thorns on His head, crucified Him on Golgotha, and cast lots for His tunic. Simon of Cyrene, who carried the Cross after Jesus, will confound you.
(39) Of the heavenly bodies the sun in eclipse will convict you; of the products of the earth the wine mingled with myrrh; of grass plants the reed; of herbs, the hyssop, of the products of the sea, the sponge; of trees, the wood of the Cross. Add the soldiers too, as I have said, who nailed Him to the Cross and cast lots for His vesture; the soldier who opened His side with a spear; the women who were then present; the veil of the temple then rent asunder; the pretori urn of Pilate, now desolate by the power of Him who was then crucified; this holy Golgotha rising on high and visible to this day, displaying even now how the rocks, because of Christ, were then rent; the sepulchre nearby, where He was laid; and the stone placed upon the door, which to this day lies next to the sepulchre; the angels who were then present; the women who worshipped Him after His resurrection; Peter and John, who ran to the sepulchre; and Thomas, who put his hand into His side, and his fingers
146 Apparently the site of the house of Caiphas and that of the pre· torium of Pilate (mentioned in chapter 39) were well known, though these buildings had been utterly destroyed. The pretorium is one of the best authenticated sites today.
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into the print of the nails. For it was for our sake that he touched them so carefully; for what you, who were not present, would have sought, he who was present did seek by God's dispensation.
(40) You have twelve Apostles witnesses of the Cross, and the whole earth, and the world of men who believe in Him who was crucified. Let your very presence here now persuade you of the power of the Crucified. For who brought you to this assembly? What soldiers? With what bonds were you constrained? What sentence drove you here now? No, it was the saving emblem of Jesus, the Cross, that has brought you all together. This reduced the Persians to bondage, and civilized the Scythians; this gave to the Egyptians, in place of cats and dogs and their manifold errors, the knowledge of God. To this day the Cross heals diseases, puts devils to flight, and overcomes the deceptions of philters and incantations.
(41) The Cross will appear again with Jesus from heaven;147 for His emblem will precede the King; and the Jews, seeing
Him whom they pierced, and recognizing by the Cross Him whom they dishonored, will repent and mourn (and they shall mourn tribe by tribe, for they shall repent then, when there shall be no time for repentance); and we shall glory, taking pride in the Cross, worshipping the Lord who was sent, and was crucified for us, worshipping also God the Father who sent Him, with the Holy Spirit; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
147 In Catechesis 15.22 Cyril speaks of a luminous cross preceding the second coming of Christ, and the development of thought is similar in both sections.