St. Peter Chrysologus: Sermon 72b

 

 

Death takes cover, because it does not notice anything there that  is its own.

Why did the Origin of the universe, the Author of nature, will to be born, except that he willed to die? Why did God assume flesh with all its weakness, except that he chose to take on the indignities associated with the flesh? Why did the Lord of all creation enter the form of slavery except to endure all the indignities of slavery? The Judge chooses to be judged, the Advocate chooses to be put on trial, when he has endured being judged by reprobates. What need is there for him to suffer when he has both the capacity and the power to save? Or what is the reason then for him to die, when he has both the strength and the means to give life?

Behold we are now going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests, and they ill condemn him to death and they will hand him over to the gentiles and they will mock him and spit at him, and after three days he will rise.

We are going up to Jerusalem, and on the day of Passover, so that the entirety of the Jewish city would gather at the display of the Passion, at the public spectacle of his death, and at the scandal of the cross. An ordinary kind of passion is not sufficient, nor a private death, nor a regular kind of death, nor a death like any other death; the uniqueness of the Passion had to match the uniqueness of the Sufferer.

It was done so that the Creator of the world would die with the world as his witness; and so that the Lord of the world would be recognized by the world through his pain before he would be through his glory. The Peace of heaven is betrayed by the kiss of deceit, the One who holds all is held fast, the Bond of all is bound, the One who draws all is led forth, Truth is accused by falsehood, and the One for whom all things stand at his service, is made to stand trial; the Jews hand him over to the gentiles, the gentiles return him to the Jews; Pilate sends him to Herod, Herod sends him back to Pilate, and piety becomes the business of impiety, and holiness is brought to the market of cruelty. Forgiveness is beaten, Pardon is condemned, Majesty is mocked, Virtue is ridiculed; the Bestower of rain is drenched with spittle, the One who has arrayed the heavens is restrained by nails of iron, the Giver of honey is fed with gall, the One who makes springs of water flow is given vinegar to drink; and when there is no longer any punishment left, death takes cover, death hesitates, because it does not notice anything there that is its own.