THEOSISAugustine of Hippo
Look, a humble person prays loudly, making his appeal clear. This allows us to perceive his identity; indeed, could he be the one of whom the apostle speaks, “Though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be enriched”? (2 Corinthians 8:9) If it is He, why is He in poverty? In what way can one who cannot be seen be viewed as wealthy? Who could possibly possess more than the Creator of all riches, even those that do not constitute true wealth? Through Him, we acquire those riches—our capacities, memories, virtues, physical health, sensory perception, and the integrity of our bodily structure. When they are assured, even the impoverished can find enrichment. Through Him, we also gain the spiritual riches of faith, devotion, righteousness, love, purity, and good conduct, for no one possesses such virtues without Him who justifies the sinner. Behold, what treasures! How do we recognize such words from one so affluent? “I ate ashes as bread, and mixed my drink with weeping.” Has such immense wealth come to this? The peak of fortune seems exceedingly lofty, while this appears lowly. Yet, let us examine whether this poor figure is indeed He, for the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:14)
Consider also these words, “I am your servant, and the son of your servant.” Notice this servant—chaste, a virgin, and a mother; for He embraced our poverty when He assumed the form of a servant, emptying Himself, so that you might not fear His riches and hesitate to approach Him in your state of need. There He conformed to the likeness of a servant, there He took on our deprivation; thus He rendered Himself poor that we might be enriched. We are now beginning to grasp these truths about Him, yet we cannot boldly proclaim them...
Let Him add humility upon humility; let Him transform our lowly bodies to be like His; let Him be our Head while we are His members, so that the two may become one flesh. (Philippians 3:21) For He desires to regard us as His members. Even those who repent belong to His body. They are not separate from His Church, and He would not have designated the Church as His beloved if it were not true that “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2) Therefore, let us hear what the Head and the Body, the Bridegroom and the Bride, Christ and the Church—being one entity—pray together; the Word and the flesh are not one and the same, for the Father and the Word are one and the same; Christ and the Church constitute one entity, one complete person in His fullness...
Let us consider how Christ is poor in our midst, with us, and for us, as the very title indicates. Lastly, remember who I believe that poor figure to be; let us listen to His supplication and recognize His identity. Do not misinterpret anything that cannot be ascribed to His Head; this is why I prefaced my remarks, so that all you hear in this description may be understood as emanating from the weakness of the body, and recognize the voice of the members within the Head. The title is “The Prayer of the Suffering Man,” made when he was tormented and poured out his prayer before the Lord. This is the same poor figure who, in another context, states, “From the ends of the earth I will call upon Thee when my heart is in travail.” He suffers because He is also Christ, who, according to the Prophet, identifies Himself as both Bridegroom and Bride: “He hath put a diadem upon me as the bridegroom, and as a bride hath adorned me with jewels.” (Isaiah 61:10) He refers to Himself as both the Bridegroom and the Bride; for does this not indicate that the Bridegroom signifies the Head, and the Bride refers to the body? Thus they form a single voice, as they are one flesh. Let us listen and see ourselves represented in these words; and if we recognize that we are outside, let us strive to belong there.
“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my cry come unto Thee.” (Psalm 100:1) “Hear my prayer, Lord,” is synonymous with “Let my cry come unto Thee,” for the sentiment of the supplicant is emphasized through repetition. “Turn not away Thy face from me.” When was it that God turned away from His Son? When did the Father forsake Christ? But, due to the scarcity of my members, I plead that Thou wouldst not turn Thy face away from me; no matter which day I mourn, lend Thine ear to me. (Psalm 101:2)
You are troubled now, I am troubled; tomorrow may bring trouble, I am troubled; future generations, who will follow your descendants, are troubled, I am troubled; to the end of the age, any who are troubled in my body, I am troubled with them... Peter prayed, Paul prayed, the other Apostles prayed; the faithful prayed of old and will pray anew in the future, the faithful prayed during the times of persecution, the faithful pray now, and the faithful will continue in prayer for generations to come. I seek Your response soon, for I ask that which You are ready to provide. I do not request earthly matters, like an earthly man; instead, having been redeemed from past bondage, I yearn for the kingdom of heaven. “Hear me soon,” for it is only with such longing that You have declared, “Even while Thou speakest, I will say, Here am I.” (Isaiah 58:9) For what cause do you call? What sorrow do you express? What need do you have? O impoverished one, standing before the gates of the all-sufficient God, what desires compel your petition? From what need do you seek assistance? From what condition do you knock, hoping they may be opened to you?
“For my days have vanished like smoke.” (Psalm 100:3) O days! If there are days: for where there is day, there is light. My days, my times; hence, like smoke, could it emerge from the inflation of pride? ... Observe how smoke, akin to pride, rises, swells, and dissipates; thus it rightfully fades away, and does not endure. “And my bones are burnt as in a furnace.” My bones and strength are weighed down by sorrow and affliction. Where can Christ's body, the strength of His body, be compared to that of the holy apostles? And yet, do you see the burnt state of the bones? Who is offended, and I am not consumed? (2 Corinthians 11:29) They are brave, faithful interpreters and speakers of the Word, living as they proclaim, vocalizing as they comprehend; they appear courageous, yet all who take offense serve as a furnace to them. For love is present there, and even more so within the bones. The bones are concealed within all flesh and provide support to all flesh. But if any should encounter offense and jeopardize his soul, the bones suffer the burning proportionately...
Contemplate Adam, the progenitor of humankind. From him, how could misery not spread? From him, how could this inherited poverty not emerge? Let him, who once found despair in his body, now declare with hope, “My heart is afflicted and withered like grass.” (Psalm 101:4) This is deserved, for all flesh is like grass. (Isaiah 40:6) But how did this befall you? Because I abandoned my bread. For God commanded concerning bread. What is the bread for the soul? It was the serpent who tempted; the woman who erred, and he who reached for the forbidden fruit, (Genesis 3:6) forgot the command, and thus was his heart struck as he deserved, withering like grass, due to neglect of his nourishment. By neglecting his bread, he drinks poison: his heart is wounded and withered like grass...
Now consume that bread which you have forgotten. For that very Bread has come; in His body, you may recall the voice of your neglect, and cry out in your poverty for abundance. Now consume, for you are in His body, stating, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven.” (John 6:41) You have forgotten your sustenance; but after His crucifixion, all the ends of the earth will recall and turn to the Lord. After neglect, let remembrance awaken; let us consume bread from heaven, that we may live; not manna, for they ate it and perished; (John 6:49) that Bread of which it is said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” (Matthew 5:6)
“From the voice of my groaning my bones have cleaved to my flesh.” (Psalm 101:5) Many groan, and I also groan; I groan about this as it reveals their own wrongful actions. If one man loses a coin, he laments; yet when he loses faith, he does not grieve. I weigh money against faith and determine that there is greater reason to lament for one who does not groan as he ought, or does not groan at all. He engages in wrongdoing and rejoices. What gain does he realize, what loss? He gains wealth yet forfeits righteousness. For this reason, he who understands how to mourn, mourns; he who draws near to the Head, who adheres justly to the body of Christ, from this basis he laments. But the carnal do not mourn for this reason, and they manufacture their own groaning; and we cannot belittle them, whether they do not lament at all or lament for the wrong reasons. For we seek to correct them and when we cannot, we groan; and when we groan, we remain connected with them...
“I have become like a pelican in the wilderness and like an owl among the broken walls.” (Psalm 100:6) Here we encounter three birds and three locations: the pelican, the owl, and the sparrow; and these three places separately: the wilderness, the ruined walls, and the roof of the house. The pelican in the wilderness, the owl in the ruined walls, and the sparrow upon the roof of the house. First, we must clarify the significance of the pelican: born in an area that makes it unfamiliar to us. It comes from secluded places, notably by the river Nile in Egypt. Regardless of which bird it is, let us glean the psalm's wisdom about it: it is indicated to live in the wilderness. Why inquire into its form, limbs, voice, or habits? As long as the psalm mentions it, it is an isolated bird. The owl is a creature that prefers the night. Ruins or broken walls are structures without roofs or inhabitants; this is where the owl resides. Regarding roofs and sparrows, you are familiar with them. I thus identify a member of the body of Christ, a preacher of the Word, showing compassion to the weak, seeking the triumphs of Christ, and mindful of his future Lord. (Matthew 25:26)
Let us consider these three scenarios concerning His stewardship. Did such a one approach non-believers? He is a pelican in the wilderness. Has he reached the Christians and then drawn back? He is an owl among the broken walls; for he never abandons those engulfed in darkness, fabricating an earnest desire to find them too. Has he not approached the Christians under the house's roof, those who appear as though they have doubted the faith they possess, yet live earnestly in their beliefs? The sparrow calls out not to the wilderness, for they are Christians; nor amidst the broken walls, for they are not collapsed; but under the roof, as they are encompassed by flesh. The sparrow cries above the flesh and does not shrink from God’s commandments, nor does it succumb to carnal inclinations under the roof. “What you hear in the ear, preach on the rooftops.” (Matthew 10:27)
There are three birds and three places; one individual may embody all three birds, and three people may portray each bird individually; the three locations embody three distinct groups of people; however, the wilderness, the broken walls, and the roof of the house encapsulate three classes of souls.