THEOSISAugustine of Hippo
Who can adequately express the significance of these words? They are meant to be proclaimed rather than explained. What is it that you seek? What resembles your Lord? He is right in front of you. The wicked offered me fleeting pleasures, but not in accordance with Your commandments, O Lord. The oppressors insisted, ‘Bow to Saturn, bow to Mercury.’ But I refuse to worship idols, for who is like You, O Lord? They possess eyes yet cannot see; they have ears but do not hear. Lord, who is like You, who has fashioned an eye to see and an ear to hear? I will not worship the idols crafted by humans. Should I venerate a tree or a mountain—were they not also formed by a worker? And again, I ask, Lord, who is like You? You are the Creator of the earth, and worldly things are laid before me.
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Perhaps they would have me venerate the moon or the sun, which illuminates the day like a great lamp in the heavens. Yet, I boldly proclaim, Lord, who is like You? You created the moon and the stars; You made the sun to govern the day and brought forth the heavens as well. There are many unseen wonders that surpass earthly creations. Nevertheless, I may also hear, ‘Bow before the angels, bow before the angels.’ Yet once more, I respond, Lord, who is like You? Even the angels You have formed are nothing without Your presence. It is far better to possess You alongside them than to worship them and drift away from You.
O Body of Christ, Holy Church, let every part proclaim, Lord, who is like unto Thee? Even if the flesh falters under persecution, let your bones declare, Lord, who is like unto You? Of the righteous it is written, "The Lord keeps all their bones; not one of them shall be broken." How many righteous have suffered broken bones in persecution? Ultimately, the righteous shall live by faith, and Christ shall justify the ungodly. But how does He justify anyone if not the one who believes and confesses? For "with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses unto salvation." Therefore, that thief, though he was taken from his crime to the judge, and from the judge to the cross, was justified on the very cross: he believed in his heart and confessed with his mouth. For the Lord did not say to any unrighteous man who lingered in his sin, 'Today you shall be with me in paradise,' but rather his bones were broken. When the soldiers came to remove the bodies due to the approaching Sabbath, they found the Lord already dead, and His bones remained unbroken. Those who survived had their legs broken so that they would die from the agony and could be buried. Did one criminal who persisted in wickedness on the cross have his bones broken while another who believed in his heart and confessed with his mouth for salvation did not? Where is that which was proclaimed, "The Lord shall preserve all his bones; none of them shall be broken," save within the body of the Lord, where the term 'bones' is attributed to all the righteous, steadfast in heart, strong, unyielding to persecution or temptation, refusing to consent to wrongdoing?
Who rescues the poor from the hand of the mighty? Who delivers the needy from the oppressor? Who is the Deliverer if not the One who is powerful? Even that David will save the poor from the mighty. The devil was too strong for you and held you captive when you yielded to him. But what did the Strong One do? No one can enter the house of a strong man to plunder his belongings without first binding him. By His own Divine Power, the Most Blessed and Glorious One bound the devil, shedding all chains to block his path and deliver the poor and needy who had no helper. For who is your Helper but the Lord, to whom you declare, Lord, my Strength and my Redeemer? If you rely on your own strength, you will ultimately falter in your hopes; if you look to another, he will dominate you and offer no aid. Thus, seek only the One who redeemed you, who set you free, who shed His blood to liberate you, and who, from His servants, made you His siblings.