Homily I.

 1. It is right that any one beginning to narrate the formation of the world should begin with the good order which reigns in visible things. I am abou

 2. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” I stop struck with admiration at this thought. What shall I first say? Where shall I begin

 3. Do not then imagine, O man! that the visible world is without a beginning and because the celestial bodies move in a circular course, and it is di

 4. One day, doubtless, their terrible condemnation will be the greater for all this worldly wisdom, since, seeing so clearly into vain sciences, they

 5. It appears, indeed, that even before this world an order of things existed of which our mind can form an idea, but of which we can say nothing, bec

 6. Such being the different senses of the word beginning, see if we have not all the meanings here. You may know the epoch when the formation of this

 7. Among arts, some have in view production, some practice, others theory. The object of the last is the exercise of thought, that of the second, the

 8. “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” If we were to wish to discover the essence of each of the beings which are offered for our

 9. Do you suppose that a heavier body prevents the earth from falling into the abyss? Then you must consider that this support needs itself a support

 10. There are inquirers into nature who with a great display of words give reasons for the immobility of the earth. Placed, they say, in the middle of

 11. We might say the same thing of the heavens. With what a noise of words the sages of this world have discussed their nature! Some have said that he

 Homily II.

 1. In the few words which have occupied us this morning we have found such a depth of thought that we despair of penetrating further. If such is the f

 2. But the corrupters of the truth, who, incapable of submitting their reason to Holy Scripture, distort at will the meaning of the Holy Scriptures, p

 3. God created the heavens and the earth, but not only half —He created all the heavens and all the earth, creating the essence with the form. For He

 4. “Darkness was upon the face of the deep.” A new source for fables and most impious imaginations if one distorts the sense of these words at the wil

 5. Do not then go beyond yourself to seek for evil, and imagine that there is an original nature of wickedness. Each of us, let us acknowledge it, is

 6.  And the Spirit of God was borne upon the face of the waters  .

 7.  And God said, Let there be light  .

 8. “  And God called the light Day and the darkness he called Night  .”

 Homily III.

 1. We have now recounted the works of the first day, or rather of one day. Far be it from me indeed, to take from it the privilege it enjoys of having

 2. And God said “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” Yesterday we heard God’s decree,

 3. In the second place, does the firmament that is called heaven differ from the firmament that God made in the beginning? Are there two heavens? The

 4. “  And God said, let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and

 5. But let us continue our explanation: “  Let it divide the waters from the waters  .”

 6. Survey creation you will see the power of heat reigning over all that is born and perishes. On account of it comes all the water spread over the e

 7. Therefore we read: “  Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters  .” I have said what the wo

 8. “  And God called the firmament heaven  .”

 9. But as far as concerns the separation of the waters I am obliged to contest the opinion of certain writers in the Church who, under the shadow of h

 10. “  And God saw that it was good  .” God does not judge of the beauty of His work by the charm of the eyes, and He does not form the same idea of b

 Homily IV.

 1. There are towns where the inhabitants, from dawn to eve, feast their eyes on the tricks of innumerable conjurors. They are never tired of hearing d

 2. “  And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear, and it was so  .” And the water

 3. “Let the waters be gathered together.” It was ordered that it should be the natural property of water to flow, and in obedience to this order, the

 4. To say that the waters were gathered in one place indicates that previously they were scattered in many places. The mountains, intersected by deep

 5. And God said: “  Let the waters be gathered together unto one place and let the dry land appear  .” He did not say let the earth appear, so as not

 6. “  And God saw that it was good  .”

 7. Thus, in the eyes of God, the sea is good, because it makes the under current of moisture in the depths of the earth. It is good again, because fro

 Homily V.

 1. “  And God said Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself 

 2. “  Let the earth bring forth grass yielding seed after his kind  .” So that although some kind of grass is of service to animals, even their gain i

 3. Up to this point, the order in which plants shoot bears witness to their first arrangement. Every herb, every plant proceeds from a germ. If, like

 4. What shall I say? What shall I leave unsaid? In the rich treasures of creation it is difficult to select what is most precious the loss of what is

 5. “  Let the earth bring forth grass  .” What spontaneous provision is included in these words,—that which is present in the root, in the plant itsel

 6. “  Let the earth  ,” the Creator adds, “  bring forth the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself 

 7. But let us return to the examination of the ingenious contrivances of creation. How many trees then arose, some to give us their fruits, others to

 8. Plants reproduce themselves in so many different ways, that we can only touch upon the chief among them. As to fruits themselves, who could review

 9. But what need is there to continue, when in the same fig tree we have the most opposite flavours, as bitter in the sap as it is sweet in the fruit?

 10. “  Let the earth bring forth  .” This short command was in a moment a vast nature, an elaborate system. Swifter than thought it produced the count

 Homily VI.

 1. At the shows in the circus the spectator must join in the efforts of the athletes. This the laws of the show indicate, for they prescribe that all

 2. “  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to divide the day from the night  .”

 3. And let no one suppose it to be a thing incredible that the brightness of the light is one thing, and the body which is its material vehicle is ano

 4. “  And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years  .”

 5. But those who overstep the borders, making the words of Scripture their apology for the art of casting nativities, pretend that our lives depend up

 6. But what effects are produced? Such an one will have curly hair and bright eyes, because he is born under the Ram such is the appearance of a ram.

 7. They do not, however, stop here even our acts, where each one feels his will ruling, I mean, the practice of virtue or of vice, depend, according

 8. Let us return to the words which follow. “Let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years.” We have spoken about signs. By times, we u

 9. “  And God made two great lights  .”

 10. See again another evident proof of its greatness. Although the heaven may be full of stars without number, the light contributed by them all could

 11. On its variations depends also the condition of the air, as is proved by sudden disturbances which often come after the new moon, in the midst of

 Homily VII.

 1. “  And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life  ” after their kind, “  and fowl that may fly above the e

 2. “Let the waters bring forth moving creatures after their kind.” God caused to be born the firstlings of each species to serve as seeds for nature.

 3. The food of fish differs according to their species. Some feed on mud others eat sea weed others content themselves with the herbs that grow in w

 4. It is not thus with us. Why? Because we incessantly move the ancient landmarks which our fathers have set. We encroach, we add house to house, fiel

 5. I myself have seen these marvels, and I have admired the wisdom of God in all things. If beings deprived of reason are capable of thinking and of p

 6. Let husbands listen as well: here is a lesson for them. The viper vomits forth its venom in respect for marriage and you, will you not put aside t

 Homily VIII.

 1. And God said “  Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle and creeping things, and beast of the earth after his kind an

 2. “  Let the earth bring forth a living soul  .” Why did the earth produce a living soul? so that you may make a difference between the soul of cattl

 3. There are also innumerable kinds of birds. If we review them all, as we have partly done the fish, we shall find that under one name, the creatures

 4. What a variety, I have said, in the actions and lives of flying creatures. Some of these unreasoning creatures even have a government, if the featu

 5. How shall we make an exact review of all the peculiarities of the life of birds? During the night cranes keep watch in turn some sleep, others mak

 6. It is said that the turtle-dove, once separated from her mate, does not contract a new union, but remains in widowhood, in remembrance of her first

 7. “  Let the waters bring forth the moving creatures that have life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven  .” They r

 8. If we simply read the words of Scripture we find only a few short syllables. “Let the waters bring forth fowl that may fly above the earth in the o

 Homily IX.

 1. How did you like the fare of my morning’s discourse? It seemed to me that I had the good intentions of a poor giver of a feast, who, ambitious of h

 2. “  Let the earth bring forth the living creature  .”

 3. “  Let the earth bring forth the living creature  .” Thus when the soul of brutes appeared it was not concealed in the earth, but it was born by th

 4. Virtues exist in us also by nature, and the soul has affinity with them not by education, but by nature herself. We do not need lessons to hate ill

 5. But let us return to the spectacle of creation. The easiest animals to catch are the most productive. It is on account of this that hares and wild

 6. Beasts bear witness to the faith. Hast thou confidence in the Lord? “Thou shalt walk upon the asp and the basilisk and thou shalt trample under fee

8. “  And God called the firmament heaven .”  45  Gen. i. 8. The nature of right belongs to another, and the firmament only shares it on account of its resemblance to heaven. We often find the visible region called heaven, on account of the density and continuity of the air within our ken, and deriving its name “heaven” from the word which means to see.  46  The derivation of οὐρανός from ὁράω is imaginary. Aristotle (De Cœl i. 19, 9) derives it from ὅρος, a boundary. cf. ῾Ορίζων. The real root is the Skt. var=cover. M. Müller, Oxford Essays, 1856. It is of it that Scripture says, “The fowl of the air,”  47  Ps. viii. 8. “Fowl that may fly…in the open firmament of heaven;”  48  Gen. i. 20. and, elsewhere, “They mount up to heaven.”  49  Ps. cvii. 26. Moses, blessing the tribe of Joseph, desires for it the fruits and the dews of heaven, of the suns of summer and the conjunctions of the moon, and blessings from the tops of the mountains and from the everlasting hills,  50  cf. Deut. xxxiii. 13–15, LXX. in one word, from all which fertilises the earth. In the curses on Israel it is said, “And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass.”  51  Deut. xxviii. 23. What does this mean? It threatens him with a complete drought, with an absence of the aerial waters which cause the fruits of the earth to be brought forth and to grow.

Since, then, Scripture says that the dew or the rain falls from heaven, we understand that it is from those waters which have been ordered to occupy the higher regions. When the exhalations from the earth, gathered together in the heights of the air, are condensed under the pressure of the wind, this aerial moisture diffuses itself in vaporous and light clouds; then mingling again, it forms drops which fall, dragged down by their own weight; and this is the origin of rain. When water beaten by the violence of the wind, changes into foam, and passing through excessive cold quite freezes, it breaks the cloud, and falls as snow.  52  cf. Arist., Meteor. i. 9–12, Plutarch περὶ τῶν ἀρέσκ. etc. iii. 4. You can thus account for all the moist substances that the air suspends over our heads.

And do not let any one compare with the inquisitive discussions of philosophers upon the heavens, the simple and inartificial character of the utterances of the Spirit; as the beauty of chaste women surpasses that of a harlot,  53  Fialon quotes Hor., Ep. i. 18: “Ut matrona meretrici dispar erit atque Discolor.” so our arguments are superior to those of our opponents. They only seek to persuade by forced reasoning. With us truth presents itself naked and without artifice. But why torment ourselves to refute the errors of philosophers, when it is sufficient to produce their mutually contradictory books, and, as quiet spectators, to watch the war?  54  The well known “Per campos instructa, tua sine parte pericli suave etiam belli certamina magna tueri” (Lucr. ii. 5) may be an echo of some Greek lines in the preacher’s mind, just as the preceding “suave mari magno” is of Menander. For those thinkers are not less numerous, nor less celebrated, nor more sober in speech in fighting their adversaries, who say that the universe is being consumed by fire, and that from the seeds which remain in the ashes of the burnt world all is being brought to life again. Hence in the world there is destruction and palingenesis to infinity.  55  These Stoical atheists did also agree with the generality of the other Stoical theists in supposing a successive infinity of worlds generated and corrupted” (ἀπειρία κόσμων) “by reason of intervening periodical conflagrations.” Cudworth, I. iii. 23. All, equally far from the truth, find each on their side by-ways which lead them to error.

45 Gen. i. 8.
46 The derivation of οὐρανός from ὁράω is imaginary. Aristotle (De Cœl i. 19, 9) derives it from ὅρος, a boundary. cf. ῾Ορίζων. The real root is the Skt. var=cover. M. Müller, Oxford Essays, 1856.
47 Ps. viii. 8.
48 Gen. i. 20.
49 Ps. cvii. 26.
50 cf. Deut. xxxiii. 13–15, LXX.
51 Deut. xxviii. 23.
52 cf. Arist., Meteor. i. 9–12, Plutarch περὶ τῶν ἀρέσκ. etc. iii. 4.
53 Fialon quotes Hor., Ep. i. 18: “Ut matrona meretrici dispar erit atque Discolor.”
54 The well known “Per campos instructa, tua sine parte pericli suave etiam belli certamina magna tueri” (Lucr. ii. 5) may be an echo of some Greek lines in the preacher’s mind, just as the preceding “suave mari magno” is of Menander.
55 These Stoical atheists did also agree with the generality of the other Stoical theists in supposing a successive infinity of worlds generated and corrupted” (ἀπειρία κόσμων) “by reason of intervening periodical conflagrations.” Cudworth, I. iii. 23.

Καὶ ἐκάλεσεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸ στερέωμα οὐρανόν: ὡς κυρίως μὲν ἑτέρῳ τῆς προσηγορίας ἐφαρμοζούσης, καθ' ὁμοίωσιν δὲ καὶ τούτου μεταλαμβάνοντος τῆς κλήσεως. Τετηρήκαμεν δὲ πολλαχοῦ τὸν ὁρώμενον τόπον οὐρανὸν λεγόμενον (διὰ τὸ ναστὸν καὶ συνεχὲς τοῦ ἀέρος ἐναργῶς ἡμῶν ταῖς ὄψεσιν ὑποπίπτοντος, καὶ παρὰ τὸ ὁρᾶσθαι τῆς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ προσηγορίας ἀξιουμένου) ἐν οἷς φησι, Τὰ πετεινὰ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. Καὶ πάλιν: Τὰ πετόμενα κατὰ τὸ στερέωμα τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. Τοιοῦτόν ἐστι καὶ τὸ, Ἀναβαίνουσιν ἕως τῶν οὐρανῶν. Καὶ Μωϋσῆς εὐλογῶν τὴν φυλὴν τοῦ Ἰωσὴφ, ἀπὸ ὡρῶν οὐρανοῦ, καὶ δρόσου, καὶ ἀπὸ ἡλίου τροπῶν, καὶ συνόδων μηνῶν, καὶ ἀπὸ κορυφῆς ὀρέων καὶ βουνῶν ἀεννάων τὰς εὐλογίας δίδωσιν, ὡς τοῦ περὶ γῆν τόπου διὰ τῆς ἐν τούτοις εὐταξίας εὐθηνουμένου. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν ταῖς κατάραις τῷ Ἰσραὴλ, Ἔσται σοι, φησὶν, ὁ ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς οὐρανὸς χαλκοῦς. Τί τοῦτο λέγων; Τὴν παντελῆ ξηρασίαν καὶ ἐπίλειψιν τῶν ἀερίων ὑδάτων, δι' ὧν τῇ γῇ τὸ γόνιμον τῶν καρπῶν ἐνυπάρχει. Ὅταν οὖν ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ φέρεσθαι λέγῃ δρόσον ἢ ὑετὸν, περὶ ὑδάτων νοοῦμεν ὅσα τὴν ἄνω κατέχειν διατέτακται χώραν. Συναγομένων γὰρ τῶν ἀναθυμιάσεων περὶ τὸ ὕψος, καὶ πυκνουμένου τοῦ ἀέρος ταῖς ἐκ τῶν πνευμάτων πιλήσεσιν, ὅταν μὲν αἱ τέως ἀτμοειδῶς καὶ λεπτῶς ἐνεσπαρμέναι τῷ νέφει νοτίδες ἀλλήλαις προσχωρήσωσι, σταγόνες γίγνονται, τῷ βάρει τῶν συγκριθέντων φερόμεναι πρὸς τὸ κάτω: καὶ αὕτη ὑετοῦ γένεσις. Ὅταν δὲ τὸ ὑγρὸν ἐξαφρισθῇ, ταῖς βίαις τῶν ἀνέμων ἀνακοπὲν, εἶτα εἰς ἄκρον καταψυχθὲν ὅλον διόλου παγῇ, θραυομένου τοῦ νέφους, ἡ χιὼν καταφέρεται. Καὶ ὅλως, κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν λόγον, ἔξεστί σοι ὁρᾶν πᾶσαν τοῦ ὑγροῦ τὴν φύσιν περὶ τὸν ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς ἡμῶν ἀέρα συνισταμένην. Καὶ μηδεὶς τῇ περιεργίᾳ τῶν περὶ οὐρανοῦ φιλοσοφησάντων τὸ ἁπλοῦν καὶ ἀκατάσκευον τῶν πνευματικῶν λόγων παραβαλλέτω. Ὅσῳ γὰρ τὸ ἐν ταῖς σώφροσι κάλλος τοῦ ἑταιρικοῦ προτιμότερον, τοσοῦτον καὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων λόγων πρὸς τοὺς ἔξωθεν τὸ διάφορον. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ κατηναγκασμένον τὸ πιθανὸν τοῖς λόγοις ἐπάγουσιν: ἐνταῦθα δὲ γυμνὴ τεχνασμάτων ἡ ἀλήθεια πρόκειται. Καὶ τί δεῖ πράγματα ἔχειν ἡμᾶς τὸ ψευδὲς αὐτῶν διελέγχοντας, οἷς ἐξαρκεῖ τὰς αὐτῶν ἐκείνων βίβλους ἀλλήλαις ἀντιπαραθέντας ἐν ἡσυχίᾳ πολλῇ θεατὰς αὐτῶν τοῦ πολέμου καθῆσθαι; Οὔτε γὰρ ἀριθμῷ ἐλάττους, οὔτε ἀξιώματι ὑφειμένοι, πολυφωνίᾳ δὲ καὶ παρὰ πολὺ διαφέροντες πρὸς τὸν ἐναντίον αὐτοῖς ἀντικαθίστανται λόγον, οἱ τὸ πᾶν ἐκπυροῦσθαι λέγοντες, καὶ ἀναβιώσκεσθαι πάλιν ἐκ τῶν σπερματικῶν λόγων τῶν ἐναπομενόντων τοῖς ἐκπυρωθεῖσιν: ὅθεν καὶ ἀπείρους φθορὰς κόσμου καὶ παλιγγενεσίας εἰσάγουσιν. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐφ' ἑκάτερα τῆς ἀληθείας ἀποσχιζόμενοι, ἔνθεν καὶ ἔνθεν τὰς ἐπὶ τὴν πλάνην ἑαυτοῖς ἐκτροπὰς ἐξευρίσκουσιν.