37. But regard the troops of virgins, holy boys and girls: this kind hath been trained up in Thy Church: there for Thee it hath been budding from its mother’s breasts; for Thy Name it hath loosed its tongue to speak, Thy Name, as through the milk of its infancy, it hath had poured in and hath sucked, no one of this number can say, “I, who before was a blasphemer, and persecutor, and injurious, but I obtained mercy, in that I did in being ignorant, in unbelief.”106    1 Tim. i. 13 Yea more, that, which Thou commandedst not, but only didst set forth, for such as would, to seize, saying, “Whoso can receive, let him receive;” they have seized, they have vowed, and, for the sake of the kingdom of heaven, not for that Thou threatenedst, but for that Thou exhortedst, they have made themselves eunuchs.107    Matt. xix. 12 To these cry out, let these hear Thee, in that Thou art “meek and lowly of heart.” Let these, by how much they are great, by so much humble themselves in all things, that they may find grace before Thee. They are just: but they are not, are they, such as Thou, justifying the ungodly? They are chaste: but them in sins their mothers nurtured in their wombs.108    Ps. li. 5 They are holy, but Thou art also Holy of Holies. They are virgins, but they are not also born of virgins. They are wholly chaste both in spirit and in flesh: but they are not the Word made flesh.109    John i. 14 And yet let them learn, not from those unto whom Thou forgivest sins, but from Thee Thyself, The Lamb of God Who takest away the sins of the world,110    John i. 29 in that Thou art “meek and lowly of heart.”

37. Sed respice agmina virginum, puerorum puellarumque sanctarum: in Ecclesia tua eruditum est hoc genus; illic tibi a maternis uberibus pullulavit, in nomen tuum ad loquendum linguam solvit, nomen tuum velut lac infantiae suae suxit infusum. Non potest quisquam ex hoc numero dicere, Qui prius fui blasphemus et persecutor et injuriosus, sed misericordiam consecutus sum, quia ignorans feci in incredulitate (I Tim. I, 13): imo etiam quod non jussisti, sed tantummodo volentibus arripiendum proposuisti, dicens, Qui potest capere, capiat, arripuerunt, voverunt; et propter regnum coelorum se ipsos, non quia minatus es, sed quia hortatus es, castraverunt (Matth. XIX, 12).

CAPUT XXXVII.

Humilitatis exemplum in ipso Domino propositum virginibus. His inclama, hi te audiant, quoniam mitis es et humilis corde. Hi quanto magni sunt, tanto humilient se in omnibus, ut coram te inveniant gratiam. Justi sunt: sed numquid sicut tu justificans impium ? Casti sunt: sed eos in peccatis matres eorum in uteris aluerunt (Psal. L, 7). Sancti sunt: sed tu etiam sanctus sanctorum. Virgines sunt: sed nati etiam ex virginibus non sunt. Et spiritu et carne integri sunt: sed Verbum caro factum non sunt. Et tamen discant, non ab eis quibus peccata dimittis, sed a te ipso Agno Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi (Joan. I, 14, 29), quoniam mitis es et humilis corde.