Sermon

I have found David, my servant, (Psalm 89:20.) et cetera. From these words we can learn four praiseworthy things of this holy bishop:

first, his wondrous election;

second, his unique consecration;

third, the effective execution of his task;

fourth, his immovable and firm stability.

His wondrous election is shown in the words: I have found David, my servant.

His special consecration is shown where it says: I have anointed him with my sacred oil.

The effective execution of his task is shown in the words: my hand will help him.

His stable firmness is shown where it says: and my arm will make him firm.

1. So let us take a look at what he says: I have found David, my servant. Here we can consider four things concerning the meaning of “finding”: it implies (1.1) rarity, (1.2) inquiry, (1.3) appearance, and (1.4) experimental proof.

1.1. First, I say that finding implies rarity, for we say of rare things that they are found; it would be ridiculous to say: “finding people on the Petit Pont.” (The Parvus Pons was one of the two bridges over the Seine in 13th-century Paris; it connected the banks with the Ile de la Cité (on which Notre Dame is situated), the very center of the city and thus very busy. This example is a clear sign that this sermon was delivered in Paris. It might have been on a Sunday or—since St. Nicholas was a very popular saint—on a weekday, probably when Thomas was Regent Master. Also the exact location is uncertain; P. A. Kwasniewski (in “A tale of Two Wonderworkers: St. Nicolas of Myra in the Writings and Life of St. Thomas Aquinas,” Angelicum 82 [2005]: 29, n. 40) suggests it might have been delivered to the Franciscans, in view of the reference to the stigmata of St. Francis (in 2.4).) Now, what is rare is said to be found, as in the question in Proverbs 31:10: a strong woman, who will find her? As if it says: “she is difficult to find,” for a woman is by nature soft and weak. (Cf. Commentary on 1 Timothy, at 2:9, ch. 2, lect. 2, n. 75: quia naturale est quod sicut mulieres sunt mollioris corporis quam viri, ita et debilioris rationis, “since it is natural for women to be softer of body than men, so too they are weaker in reason”; Commentary on the Politics, bk. 1, lect. 10. See also how Galatians 3:28 (in Christ there is no male or female) functions in, for example, ST I.93.6, ad 2; III.36.3; III.72.10, ad 3.)

1.2. Second, we speak of being found when things are sought after. Hence it is said in Proverbs 2:4–5: if you seek her as if she were money, you will find her, namely, divine knowledge. And the Gospel speaks of a woman who seeks a lost drachma, until she finds it (Luke 15:8–9).

1.3. Third, finding implies that it appears clearly to you. Thus we read in the Gospel: the kingdom of God is like a paterfamilias seeking a hidden treasure in a field, who, when he finds it, goes and sells all he has and buys that field (Matt 13:44). When a treasure is dug up from the earth and shown, then we call it found.

1.4. Fourth, finding implies experimental proof. When someone doubts about something and later on he knows it for sure, he says: “I have found (Or: “I have found out”: inveni.) that this is how it is.” And in this way Solomon says: I have found a woman more bitter than death (Eccl 7:26). (Note that Thomas’s audience consists of religious and religious-to-be; the attractiveness of women may be a threat to their life as religious; DR: Eccl 7:27.)

In these ways the Lord has found St. Nicholas.

Ad 1.1. First, he found in him something very rare, namely, a matured (Tempestivam: translated here as “matured” in view of the comparison made later with ripe fruits.) virtue that is rare in young men. (So Thomas is also critical towards the young men in his audience; in view of virtue and temptations they are certainly not presented as superior to women.) Thus it says in Proverbs: adolescence and pleasure are vain (Eccl 11:10 [Vg]). It is a rare characteristic (Cf. Persius, Satires 1.46; Juvenal, Satires 6.165; Horace, Satires, bk. 2, satire 2, line 26.) that a young man is not enslaved to vanity, (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on 2 Timothy, at 2:22, ch. 2, lect. 4, n. 79: haec sunt desideria vanitatum exteriorum, et carnalium voluptatum. Naturale est iuvenibus quod haec desiderent; “these desires are the pursuit of outward vanities and carnal pleasures, both of which young men naturally desire.”) and because St. Nicholas was preserving his sanctity in his youth, we say that he was found. For even as a little boy he tormented the body by fasting a lot. (Office of Saint Nicholas, antiphon 1, in Lauds.) In Hosea 9:10 we read: like unripe grapes in the desert I found the sons of Israel, as the first fruits of the fig tree. (The Hebrew text seems to make more sense: the grapes are ripe there.) Figs ripen later than other fruits, and if they ripen at the right time, they are called found. In this sense, boys who preserve their sanctity in their boyhood are called the first fruits of the fig tree and are called found—and that is pleasing to God. Hence we read in Micah 7:1: my soul has desired early-ripening figs. Fish of the season and fruits of the season are in great demand; so great is God’s demand that man carries the yoke of the Lord in his youth. Hence it says in Lamentations 3:27: it is good for a man to carry the yoke of the Lord from his adolescence, for (Prov 22:6) the adolescent will walk along his path; even when he is old he will not recede from it. (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on Lamentations, at 3:27, ch. 3, lect. 9, n. 53.) And even if such people leave the path of sanctity, they return more easily. (Cf. ST I-II.52.1, 53.2; with God’s help, ST I-II.114.7.)

Ad 1.2. Second, the Lord found in St. Nicholas what he is looking for. And what does the Lord seek? Certainly a devout mind. Thus it says in John 4:24: God is Spirit and he seeks those who worship him in spirit and truth. And why does the Lord seek a man with a devout mind? I say: someone who delights in living with someone else seeks someone who is the same. (ST II-II.25.6, obj. 5.) This also applies to God; since it is delightful to him to live [with someone] with a devout mind, he seeks [someone with] a devout mind. Hence it says: my delights are living with the sons and daughters of people (Prov 8:31). And in St. Nicholas God found a devout mind, since he was constantly in the church and in devout prayer. Therefore, it befits him what is said in Hosea 12:4: he implored him in Bethel in tears and he found him. Bethel is, in translation, “house of God.” (Jerome, Book of Interpretations of Hebrew Names, Genesis (CCSL 72:62; PL 23:819–20). Cf. Thomas’s explanation of John 2:16 on the question whether it is necessary to worship in a church: ST II-II.84.3. Obviously “house of God” is interpreted by Thomas in this instance as the church building; cf. John 2:16.) See also that it is rightly said, he found David, for David was in his boyhood great in power and virtue; (In view of Thomas’s following exposition, virtus is translated as “power and virtue.”) he killed a bear and a lion, and he was chosen in preference to his brothers, and he was also most devout. (Cf. 1 Samuel 17:34–36 (killing bear and lion), 16:12 (being chosen), and the Psalms (devotion).) The psalmist says: as with fat (That is, the part of the animal offered to God; cf. Leviticus 3:3–4; devotion is towards God: ST II-II.82.1; II-II.82.2, obj. 2.) and wealth—meaning: with devotion—my soul is filled (Ps 63:6). And in Sirach 47:2 we read: like the fat separated from the meat, so David was set apart from the sons and daughters of Israel. Also St. Nicholas was holy (Connotations of “holy” are, among others, “separated/set apart” (ST III.4.6) and “purely good” (ST I.36.1, ad 1): Hebrews 7:26.) in an eminent way.

Ad 1.3. Third, the Lord found in St. Nicholas something that shone clearly, namely, dedicated affection. What makes a man shine? I say that nothing makes a man so radiant as dedication and kindness to others (cf. Matt 5:16). God is hidden in himself. Still he is revealed to us through his works of kindness (cf. Rom 1:20). Hence it says in Sirach 44:10 about those who act with piety towards others: these are men of mercy, whose dedicated works have not been wanting, (Sirach 44:15.) and the Church proclaims their praises (Sir 44:8). And elsewhere we read: may the lips of many praise the man illustrious in handing out bread (Sir 31:28 [Vg]). St. Nicholas was to the highest extent compassionate and he felt deeply for the afflicted. And by a gift of gold he relieved the poverty of virgins. (A reference (which Thomas also makes in ST II-II.107.3, ad 4) to the story that by a generous gift of gold that Nicholas made to an impoverished family, three young girls were rescued from a life in the prostitution that was hanging over their heads.) Thus we read in Hosea 14:9 what applies to him as well: from me his fruit is found. (Ex me: the fruits of the Holy Spirit: ST I-II.70.3.) And because of this the Lord rightly says: I have found David, my servant. (Psalm 89:21.) A servant is someone who carries out the operation of the Lord. (Cf. the angels as servants of God in ST I.111–13.) The pre-eminent operation of the Lord is mercy, as the psalmist says: and his acts of mercy are over all his works (Ps 145:9). So a servant of the Lord is someone who tries to carry out his mercy towards the poor. The Apostle says: we are servants because of Jesus. (The expression propter Iesum, “because of Jesus,” is in Paul’s letters found only in 2 Corinthians 4:11 (“constantly we are handed over to death because of Jesus” or “for the sake of Jesus”). We find the expression servi Iesu (“servants of Jesus”) in Philippians 1:1, where St. Paul refers to himself and Timothy; cf. Philippians 2:5–8; 2 Corinthians 4:5.)

Ad 1.4. Fourth, the Lord found in St. Nicholas something proven by experience: faithfulness that is much sought-after. (Fidelitas, in terms of keeping the Lord’s word, being trustworthy, is first of all towards God, but also towards fellow human beings (ST I-II.100.5; II-II.88.3).) Thus the Apostle says: still it is sought-after among the managers, only that someone may be found faithful (1 Cor 4:2). And in Wisdom 3:6 we read: he has tested them and found them worthy of him. (Thomas distinguishes between temptations from the devil (which are aimed at leading us astray) and being put to the test by God (to make sure that we love him: Deut 13:4; cf. Matt 25:21, 23): ST I.114.2.) A servant ought to be faithful, so that he refers everything he has and does to God. Whether you pray, or do works of mercy, every good thing you do, you must refer to God. Hence it is said: he who is tested in it, (That is, in gold.) is found perfect (Sir 31:10). This is St. Nicholas and because of this it says: my servant. Yet, contrary to this, many do not serve the Lord but themselves. Thus the Apostle says: such people do not serve Christ, but their belly (Rom 16:18). If you do good in order to have allowances, you serve yourself, not God (cf. Matt 6:1).

A good bishop should not be like this, but he ought to be innocent as for himself (cf. Heb 7:26), devout in his relation to God, and merciful in his relation to his neighbors (Devotion to God and mercy towards neighbors: ST II-II.30.4, obj. 2, where Thomas cites 1 Timothy 4:8.) as well as faithful in everything and in respect of everything (Luke 16:10, 1 Tim 3:2–13).

2. Next is his consecration, which is mentioned where it says: I have anointed him with my sacred oil. We are to observe that the sanctification of bishops and some others is done with oil; there is hardly any sanctification in which oil is not used (cf. Exod 30:31–32, 40:9). In order to signify the power of oil, we must notice that we use oil for four purposes: (2.1) for the healing of a wound, (2.2) as the fuel of a light, (2.3) to season the taste, and (2.4) to soften. (Cf. Jerome, Tractates on the Psalms, on Psalm 127 (CCSL 78; PL 26:1293).)

First, I say, we use oil for healing. (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on Matthew, at 21:1, ch. 21, lect. 1, n. 1682: utile est ad sanandum dolores; Commentary on John, at 8:1, ch. 8, lect. 1, n. 1119: oleum sanativum est.) Isaiah 1:6 reads: injury, bruise, and swollen wound are neither bound up, nor healed by medicine, nor bathed with oil. (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on the Psalms, at 44:8, n. 455: oleum est fomentum ignis et caloris, “oil is kindling for fire and heat”; Commentary on Matthew*, at 21:1, ch. 21, lect. 1, n. 1682: item valet oleum ad lucernas accendendas. Dominus praecepit quod oleum lucidissimum offerretur ei; “similarly, oil is good for lighting an oil lamp. The Lord commanded that the clearest oil be offered to him.”)*

Second, we use oil as the fuel of a light. Hence we find a precept in Exodus 25:6 (and 35:9, 28) for the children of Israel to offer oil for the light to be made.

Third, we use oil to season food. (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on the Psalms, at 4:8, n. 24: oleum vero pro condimento accipitur, “oil is understood to stand for a condiment.”) Thus we read that King Solomon sent Hiram oil for meals (cf. 1 Kgs 5:11; cf. 2 Chr 2:10).

Fourth, I say that we use oil to soften. Thus it says: his words are smooth, more than oil (Ps 55:22).

2.1. First, I say that oil is used for the healing of a wound. By this we understand healing grace, as in Luke 10:34: (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on Matthew, at 21:1, ch. 21, lect. 1, n. 1682.) the Samaritan who wanted to take care of the injured man poured on wine and oil. (Thus the good Samaritan is an image of Christ.) The sick are anointed with oil, as James [instructs]: if someone among you gets sick, call for the presbyters of the Church, that they pray over him and anoint him with oil (Jas 5:14). And when St. Nicholas was anointed with the oil of healing grace—we say this because he was full of health (He was full (plenus) of it, so that he could pour it out for others; cf. ST III.7.10, referring to Ephesians 3:8–9.) and thus equipped to anoint others—it says that he poured out wine and oil, (Luke 10:34.) the wine of severe correction and the oil of mercy and comfort. (Wine of correction, for example, in Psalm 60:5 and Jeremiah 25:15–38. Oil of mercy because oil softens (see section 2.4); oil of comfort or strengthening; cf. Isaiah 61:1 and Luke 4:18; Aquinas, Catena Aurea on Luke, at 10:34, ch. 10, lect. 9: Ambrose: oleo fovet remissione peccati, sic vino compungit denuntiatione iudicii, “by oil he soothes by the remission of sin, as by wine he pricks to the heart by the denunciation of judgment”; Ambrose, Exposition on the Gospel of Luke, bk. 7, para. 75 (CCSL 14:239; PL 15:1718D); Gregory the Great, Morals on the Book of Job, bk. 20, ch. 5, para. 14 (CCSL 143A:1012; PL 76:143CD).)

2.2. Second, we use oil for light to be made, by which the study of wisdom is signified (cf. Ps 119:130, Prov 6:23). Concerning this oil it is said: may oil not be absent from your head (Eccl 9:8), and in Zechariah 4:14: these are the two sons of gleaming oil. Since oil is used as fuel of a light, prophets are anointed with oil (cf. Isa 61:1). (Cf. 1 Kings 19:16.)

2.3. Third, we use oil to season food, by which spiritual joy is signified. For tasteful ingredients make the seasoning; in the same way, spiritual joy makes it easier to do good works. For with sadness even ordinary work is difficult; with joy even hard work is easy (cf. Isa 12:3). The psalmist says: so that he makes his face cheerful with oil (Ps 104:15), (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on Matthew, at 21:1, ch. 21, lect. 1, n. 1682; Commentary on Hebrews, at 1:9, ch. 1, lect. 4, n. 65.) and: God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of joy before your companions (Ps 45:8). (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on John, at 8:1, ch. 8, lect. 1, n. 1119.) And Isaiah 61:3 reads: oil of mirth instead of mourning. (Cf. Aquinas, Commentary on Hebrews, at 1:9, ch. 1, lect. 4, n. 65.) Hence priests are anointed with oil (cf. Exod 28:41), namely, with the oil of joy. Thus it seems that spiritual joy belongs to those who are dedicated to the divine cult, as the Psalm reads: may your priests be clothed with gladness, et cetera. (This is a quotation from Psalm 132:9: your priests will be clothed with justice and your holy ones will exult, and/or from 2 Chronicles 6:41: may your priests, Lord God, be clothed with salvation, and your holy ones will be glad over good things.)

2.4. Fourth, we use oil to soften, by which mercy and kindness of heart are signified—and these were in St. Nicholas, for he was completely filled with mercy and devotion. In Deuteronomy 33:24 it says: may he be pleasing to his brothers; let him dip his foot in the oil. Oil spreads itself; mercy in a similar way. Oil flows; in a similar way mercy flows over all good works. (Cf. Bede, Homilies, bk. 1, homily 20 (CCSL 122:178: PL 94:106B); Alcuin, Commentary on John, bk. 4, ch. 19 (PL 100:853BC); Aquinas, Catena Aurea on John, at 8:1, ch. 8, lect. 1.) So, unless you have mercy, your works are nothing (cf. 1 Cor 13:1–3). Hence the Apostle says: devotion avails for all things (1 Tim 4:8b). (In ST I-II.68.7, ad 2, Thomas explains this verse as referring to good exterior works.) You ought to consider that in the future the marks of rewards will reflect in the bodies of the saints (cf. 1 Tim 4:8c) in accordance with the merits of the graces. Also, in our days the marks of the affection show, as we clearly see in St. Francis: the marks of Christ’s Passion were in [his body], because he was intensely affected by the Passion of Christ. Likewise, the marks of mercy reflect in St. Nicholas, for oil dripped from his tomb, (Office of Saint Nicholas, resp. 9, in Matins.) as a sign that he was a man of great mercy. Deuteronomy 32:13: so that he may cause honey to flow from the rock, and oil from the hardest stone. That belongs to a king. (See Sermon 5, Behold Your King, under sections 2.2.2–4.)

3. Then the execution of his task follows, when he says: my hands will help him, et cetera. (Psalm 89:22.) God does not have a physical hand, but his power is called his hand. (Hence, “the hand” of God is a metaphor: ST I.1.9; I.1.10, ad 3; I.3.1, ad 3. Virtus is translated as “power and virtue.”) See that God’s hand has helped him in four ways: (3.1) by drawing him to himself and tearing him away from evil things, (3.2) by leading him, (3.3) by comforting or strengthening him, and (3.4) by performing miracles.

3.1. First, I say: the hand of the Lord, that is, his power, has helped him, St. Nicholas, by drawing him to himself and tearing him away from evil things. The psalmist says: stretch out your hand from on high, and tear me away and rescue me from the many waters and from the hand of the sons of strangers (Ps 144:7).

3.2. Second, the hand of God has helped St. Nicholas by leading him. People who lead others usually take them by the hand. Thus the Lord leads the just ones by means of his power, as the psalmist says: let the wickedness of sinners be brought to nothing; yet the Lord leads the just one (Ps 7:10). Likewise, Isaiah 8:11 reads: he has instructed me by his strong hand, that I may not proceed on the path of this people.

3.3. Third, the hand of the Lord, that is, his power, has helped St. Nicholas by [comforting or] strengthening him. Thus it is said in Ezekiel 3:14: and the hand of the Lord was with me to strengthen me. He was greatly strengthened.

3.4. Fourth, the Lord’s hand, that is, his power, has helped St. Nicholas by working miracles. (For only the Lord works miracles; people who work his miracles are instruments of him: cf. ST I.105.7; I.110.4; I.114.4; II-II.178; and as for Christ, ST III.43; Sermon 21, Happy the Man, sections 3.2–3.) Thus we read in Acts 4:30: you will stretch out your hand, and signs and wonders occur in the name of your Son. St. Nicholas was filled with [the power to work] miracles. Who has ever sought the glory of the world and has received it like St. Nicholas, who was a poor bishop in Greece? (Myra, where St. Nicholas was bishop, is in southern Turkey; in St. Nicholas’s days, the language of the people living there was Greek.) The Lord has adorned him with miracles, because he was most merciful. Psalm 4:4 says: know that the Lord has made his saint work wonders. Mercy has made St. Nicholas wondrous, and the Lord has strengthened him until the achievement of the goal of eternal life. (The fourth point, Nicholas’s stable firmness, announced at the beginning of the Sermon, is missing in the manuscripts. Bataillon gives three possible reasons: (1) the copyist did not write it down or copy it, for example, because he became tired; or (2) Thomas never came to the fourth point (cf. Sermon 20, Happy the Nation Whose Lord Is Its God); or (3) the fourth point was discussed in the Evening Collation, which did not come down to us.) May he lead us to this, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives, et cetera.