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

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 beauty that we do. What He esteems beautiful is that which presents in its perfection all the fitness  61  καλον μὲν οὖν ἐστιν ὃ ἂν δ᾽ αὑτὸ αἱρετὸν ὂν ἐπαινετὸν ᾖ, ὃ ἂν ἀγαθὸν ὂν ἡδὺ ᾖ ὅτι ἀγαθόν. Arist., Rhet. i. 9. cf. E. Burke (On the Sublime and Beautiful, iii. § 6): “It is true that the infinitely wise and good creator has, of his bounty, frequently joined beauty to those things which he has made useful to us. But this does not prove that our idea of use and beauty are the same thing, or that they are in any way dependent on each other.” Dr. Johnson instances a painting on a coffee-cup as beautiful, but not useful. “Boswell,” Ann. 1772. St. Basil’s idea is in accord with that of Ruskin (Mod. P. chap. vi.). “In all high ideas of beauty it is more than probable that much of the pleasure depends on delicate and untraceable perception of fitness, propriety, and relation, which are purely intellectual, and through which we arrive at our noblest ideas of what is commonly and rightly called ‘intellectual beauty.’” of art, and that which tends to the usefulness of its end. He, then, who proposed to Himself a manifest design in His works, approved each one of them, as fulfilling its end in accordance with His creative purpose. A hand, an eye, or any portion of a statue lying apart from the rest, would look beautiful to no one. But if each be restored to its own place, the beauty of proportion, until now almost unperceived, would strike even the most uncultivated. But the artist, before uniting the parts of his work, distinguishes and recognises the beauty of each of them, thinking of the object that he has in view. It is thus that Scripture depicts to us the Supreme Artist, praising each one of His works; soon, when His work is complete, He will accord well deserved praise to the whole together. Let me here end my discourse on the second day, to allow my industrious hearers to examine what they have just heard. May their memory retain it for the profit of their soul; may they by careful meditation inwardly digest and benefit by what I say. As for those who live by their work, let me allow them to attend all day to their business, so that they may come, with a soul free from anxiety, to the banquet of my discourse in the evening. May God who, after having made such great things, put such weak words in my mouth, grant you the intelligence of His truth, so that you may raise yourselves from visible things to the invisible Being, and that the grandeur and beauty of creatures may give you a just idea of the Creator. For the visible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, and His power and divinity are eternal.  62  cf. Rom. i. 20. Thus earth, air, sky, water, day, night, all visible things, remind us of who is our Benefactor. We shall not therefore give occasion to sin, we shall not give place to the enemy within us, if by unbroken recollection we keep God ever dwelling in our hearts, to Whom be all glory and all adoration, now and for ever, world without end. Amen.

61 καλον μὲν οὖν ἐστιν ὃ ἂν δ᾽ αὑτὸ αἱρετὸν ὂν ἐπαινετὸν ᾖ, ὃ ἂν ἀγαθὸν ὂν ἡδὺ ᾖ ὅτι ἀγαθόν. Arist., Rhet. i. 9. cf. E. Burke (On the Sublime and Beautiful, iii. § 6): “It is true that the infinitely wise and good creator has, of his bounty, frequently joined beauty to those things which he has made useful to us. But this does not prove that our idea of use and beauty are the same thing, or that they are in any way dependent on each other.” Dr. Johnson instances a painting on a coffee-cup as beautiful, but not useful. “Boswell,” Ann. 1772. St. Basil’s idea is in accord with that of Ruskin (Mod. P. chap. vi.). “In all high ideas of beauty it is more than probable that much of the pleasure depends on delicate and untraceable perception of fitness, propriety, and relation, which are purely intellectual, and through which we arrive at our noblest ideas of what is commonly and rightly called ‘intellectual beauty.’”
62 cf. Rom. i. 20.

Καὶ εἶδεν ὁ Θεὸς ὅτι καλόν. Οὐχὶ ὀφθαλμοῖς Θεοῦ τέρψιν παρέχει τὰ παρ' αὐτοῦ γινόμενα, οὐδὲ τοιαύτη παρ' αὐτῷ ἡ ἀποδοχὴ τῶν καλῶν, οἵα καὶ παρ' ἡμῖν: ἀλλὰ καλὸν τὸ τῷ λόγῳ τῆς τέχνης ἐκτελεσθὲν, καὶ πρὸς τὴν τοῦ τέλους εὐχρηστίαν συντεῖνον. Ὁ τοίνυν ἐναργῆ τὸν σκοπὸν τῶν γινομένων προθέμενος, τὰ κατὰ μέρος γινόμενα ὡς συμπληρωτικὰ τοῦ τέλους, τοῖς τεχνικοῖς ἑαυτοῦ λόγοις ἐπελθὼν ἀπεδέξατο. Ἐπεὶ καὶ χεὶρ καθ' ἑαυτὴν, καὶ ὀφθαλμὸς ἰδίᾳ, καὶ ἕκαστον τῶν τοῦ ἀνδριάντος μελῶν διῃρημένως κείμενα, οὐκ ἂν φανείη καλὰ τῷ τυχόντι: πρὸς δὲ τὴν οἰκείαν τάξιν ἀποτεθέντα, τὸ ἐκ τῆς ἀναλογίας, ἐμφανὲς μόλις ποτὲ, καὶ τῷ ἰδιώτῃ παρέχεται γνώριμον. Ὁ μέντοι τεχνίτης καὶ πρὸ τῆς συνθέσεως οἶδε τὸ ἑκάστου καλὸν, καὶ ἐπαινεῖ τὰ καθ' ἕκαστον, πρὸς τὸ τέλος αὐτῶν ἐπαναφέρων τὴν ἔννοιαν. Τοιοῦτος οὖν δή τις καὶ νῦν ἔντεχνος ἐπαινέτης τῶν κατὰ μέρος ἔργων ὁ Θεὸς ἀναγέγραπται: μέλλει δὲ τὸν προσήκοντα ἔπαινον καὶ παντὶ ὁμοῦ τῷ κόσμῳ ἀπαρτισθέντι πληροῦν. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἐνταῦθα ἡμῖν οἱ περὶ τῆς δευτέρας ἡμέρας καταληξάτωσαν λόγοι, ὥστε τοῖς μὲν φιλοπόνοις ἀκροαταῖς καιρὸν παρασχεῖν τῆς ὧν ἤκουσαν ἐξετάσεως, ὥστε εἴ τι χρήσιμον ἐν αὐτοῖς, τοῦτο τῇ μνήμῃ συσχεῖν, καὶ διὰ τῆς φιλοπόνου μελέτης, οἷον διά τινος πέψεως, τὴν τῶν ὠφελίμων ἀνάδοσιν ἀναμεῖναι: τοῖς δὲ περὶ τὸν βίον ἀσχολουμένοις δοῦναι σχολὴν διὰ τοῦ μέσου χρόνου τὰς φροντίδας διαθεμένοις, καθαρᾷ μεριμνῶν τῇ ψυχῇ πρὸς τὴν ἑσπερινὴν τῶν λόγων ἑστίασιν ἀπαντῆσαι. Ὁ δὲ τὰ μεγάλα δημιουργήσας Θεὸς, καὶ τὰ μικρὰ ταῦτα λεχθῆναι οἰκονομήσας, δώῃ ὑμῖν σύνεσιν ἐν παντὶ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ἀληθείας, ἵν' ἐκ τῶν ὁρωμένων τὸν ἀόρατον ἐννοῆτε, καὶ ἐκ μεγέθους καὶ καλλονῆς τῶν κτισμάτων τὴν πρέπουσαν δόξαν περὶ τοῦ κτίσαντος ἡμᾶς ἀναλαμβάνητε. Τὰ γὰρ ἀόρατα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου τοῖς ποιήμασι νοούμενα καθορᾶται, ἥ τε ἀΐδιος αὐτοῦ δύναμις καὶ θειότης, ὥστε καὶ ἐν γῇ, καὶ ἐν ἀέρι, καὶ ἐν οὐρανῷ, καὶ ἐν ὕδατι, καὶ ἐν νυκτὶ, καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ, καὶ ἐν πᾶσι τοῖς ὁρωμένοις ἐναργῆ λαμβάνειν ἡμᾶς τοῦ εὐεργέτου τὰ ὑπομνήματα. Οὔτε γὰρ ἁμαρτίαις καιρόν τινα δώσομεν, οὔτε τῷ ἐχθρῷ τόπον ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν καταλείψομεν, διὰ τῆς συνεχοῦς μνήμης ἔνοικον ἔχοντες ἑαυτῶν τὸν Θεόν: ᾧ πᾶσα δόξα, καὶ προσκύνησις, νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ, καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.