Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 14.djvu/677

 THEOLOGY

617

THEOLOGY

mystical life is not merely a higher degree of the as- cetical life, but differs from it essentially, the mystical life being a special grace granted to the Christian without any immediate merit on his part.

F. Historical Derclopment of Asceticism. — (1) Holy Writ abounds in practical instructions for the life of Christian perfection. Christ himself has drawn its outlines both as to its negative and positive requirements. His imitation is the suijreme law (John, viii, 12; xii, 26), charity the first command- ment (Matt., x.\ii, 36-38; John, xv, 17); the right intention is that which imparts value to the exterior works (Matt., v-vii), while self-denial and the carrying of the cross are the conditions for His dis- cipleship (Matt., x, 38; xvi, 24; Mark, viii, 34; Luke, ix, 23; xiv, 27). Both by His own example (Matt., iv, 2) and His exhortations (Matt., xvii, 20; Mark, ix. 28) Christ recommended fasting. He inculcated sobriety, watchfulness, and prayer (Matt., xxiv, 42; XXV, 13; xxvi, 41; Mark, xiii, 37; xiv, 37). He pointed to poverty as a means of gaining the kingdom of heaven (Matt., vi, 19; xiii, 22; Luke, vi, 20; viii, 14; xii, 33; etc.) and counselled the rich youth to relinquish everything and to follow Ilim (Matt., xi.x, 21). That this was a counsel and not a strict command, given in view of the particular attachment of the youth to the things of this world, is shown by the very fact that the Master had twice said "keep the command- ments", and that he recommended the renunciation of all earthly goods only on the renewed inquiry after the means that lead to perfection (cf. Lutz, I.e., against the Protestants Th. Zahn, Bern, Weiss, Lemme, and others). Cehbacy for God's sake was praised by Christ as worthy of a special heavenly reward (Matt., xix, 12). Yet marriage is not con- demned, but the words, "All men take not this word, but they to whom it is given", imply that it is the ordinary state, celibacy for God's sake being merely a counsel. Indirectly, Chri.st also commended volun- tary obedience as a means for attaining the most intimate union with God (Matt., xviii, 4; xx, 22, 2.5). What Christ had outlined in his teachings the Apostles continued to develop. It is especially in St. Paul that we find the two elements of Christian asceticism brought out in well-defined terms: morti- fication of inordinate desires as the negative element (Rom., vi, 8, 13; II Cor., iv, 16; Gal., v, 24; Col., lii, 5), union with God in all our thoughts, words, and deeds (I Cor., x, 31; Gal., vi, 14; Col., iii, 3-17), and active love of God and our neighbour (Rom., viii, 3.5; I Cor., xiii, 3) as the positive element.

(2) Fathers and Doctors of the Church. — With Holy Writ as a basis, the Fathers and Doctors of the Church explained particular features of the Christian life in a more coherent and detailed manner. The Apostolic Fathers called the love of Clod and man the sun of Christian hfe, which, animating all virtues w'ith its vital rays, inspires contempt of the world, beneficence, immaculate purity, and self-sacrifice. The "Didache" (q. v.), which wa.s intended to serve as a manual for catechumens, thus describes the way of life: "First, thou shalt love God, who created thee; secondly, thou shalt love thy neighbour as thj'- self; whatever thou wishest that it should not be done to thee, do not to others." Following probably the "Didache", the so-called "Epistle of Barnabas", written at the end of the .second century, represents the Christian life under the figure of the two ways, that of light and that of darkness. Two Epistles, which purport to come from the pen of St. Clement, but were probably written in the third century, exalt the life of virginity, if grounded on the love of God and accompanied by the corresponding works, as heavenly, divine, and angelic. We also mention St. Ignatius of Antioch, of whose letters St. Polycarp says that they contain "faith and patience and all edification in the Lord", and the "Pastor" of Hermae,

who in the twelve commandments inculcates simplic- ity, truthfulness, chastity, meekness, patience, con- tinence, confidence in God, and perpetual struggle against concupiscence. With the third century the works on Christian asceticism begin to show a more scientific character. In the WTitings of Clement of Alexandria and Gregory the Great ("Moral.", XXXIII, c. xxvii; cf. also Cassian, "Coll.", IX, XV) there may be observed traces of the threefold degree which was afterwards systematically developed by Dionysius the Areopagite. In his "Stromata" Clement sets forth the full beauty and grandeur of "true philosophy". It is particularly remarkable that this author delineates, even in its details, what is now known as ethical culture, and that he endeav- ours to harmonize it with the example given by Christ. The life of the Christian is to be ruled in all things by temperance. Following out this idea, he discusses in a casuistic form food and drink, dress and love of finery, bodily exercises and social conduct. Begin- ning with the fourth century, a twofold line of thought is discernible in the works on Christian life: one specu- lative, laying stress on the union of the soul with God, the Alxsolute Truth and Goodness; the other practical, aiming principally at instruction in the practice of the Christian virtues. The speculative element prevailed in the mystical school, which owes its sys- tematic development to Pseudo-Dionysius and which reached its highest perfection in the fourteenth century. The practical element was emphasized in the ascetical school with St. Augustine as its chief representative, in whose footsteps followed Gregory the Great and St. Bernard.

It may suffice to detail the principal points on which the writers prior to the medieval-scholastic period dwelt in their instructions. On prayer we have the works of Macarius the Eg>iJtian (d. 385) and of TertuUian (d. after 220), who supplemented his treatise on prayer in general by an ex|)lanation of the Lord's Prayer. To these two must be added Cyprian of Carthage (d. 2.58), who wrote "De ora- tione dominica", and St. Chrysostom (d. 407). Penance and the spirit of penance were treated by TertuUian (De poenitentia), Chrysostom ("De compunctione cordis", "De pocnitentia"), and Cyril of Jerusalem (d. 386) in his second catechetical instruction. That the life of the Christian is a war- fare is amply illustrated in St. Augustine's (d. 430) "De agone christiano" and in his "Confessions". Chastity and virginity were treated by Methodius of Olympus (d. 311) in his "Convivium", a work in which ten virgins, discussing virginity, demonstrate the moral superiority of Christianity over the ethical tenets of pagan philosophy. The same subject is discussed by the following Fathers: C>-prian (d. 2.58); Gregory of Nyssa (d. 394) in his "De virginitate"; Ambrose (d. 397), the indefatigable eulogist and champion of the virginal life; Jerome in his " Adversus Helvidium de virginitate" and "Ad Eustachium"; Chrysostom (d. 407) in his "De virginitate", who, though extolling virginity as a heavenly life, yet recommends it only as a counsel; Augustine in his works "De continentia", "De virginitate", "Debono viduitatis".

On patience we have the works of Cypri.an, August- ine, and TertuUian's "De patientia", in which he .speaks of this virtue as an invalid might speak of health to console himself. Chrysostom's " De jejimio et eleemosyna" discusses fasting. Almsgiving and good works are encouraged in Cyprian's "De opere et eleemosynis" and in .Augustine's "De fide et operi- bus". The value of labour is explained in "De opere monachorum" by St. Augustine. Xor are treatises on the different" states of life wanting. Thus St. Augustine's "De bono conjugali" treats of the mar- ried state; his "De bono viduitatis" of widowhood. A frequent subject was the priesthood. Gregory of