Bibliography

B. IV (1960) 890.
Robert, A., Tournay, R., Feuillet, A. Le cantique des Cantiques. Paris:
Gabalda, 1963.
The Rule of Saint Benedict. Edited by Justin McCann. London: Burns
Oates, 1952.
St. Benedict's Rule for Monasteries. Tr. Leonard Doyle, Collegeville:
Liturgical Press, 1948.
Sancii Bernardi Opera, edd. J . Leclercq, C.H. Talbot, H.M. Rochais.
Rome: Editions Cistercienses, 1957-.
Sancti Bernardi Opera Omnia, ed. Jean Mabillon. Milan: Gnocchi,
1690, rpt. 1850-52.
Smalley, Beryl. The Study of the Bible in the Middle Ages. Oxford,
1952, 2nd ed.
Squire, Aelred. Aelred of Rievaulx: a study. London, SPCK, 1969.
Talbot, C.H. 'A Letter of Roger, Abbot of Byland'. ASOC 7 (1951)
219-221.
Valléry-Radot, Irénée. 'La Queste del Saint Graal'. Coll. 17 (1956)
3-20, 199-213, 321-332.
Van den Bosch, Amatus. 'Intelligence de la Foi chez Saint Bernard'.
Ci'teaux 8 (1957) 85-108.
Vandenbroucke, François. 'Direction spirituelle en Occident, au Moyen
Age'. DSp 3 (1957) 1083-1098.
Vuong-dinh-Lam, M. Jean. Doctrine Spirituelle de Gilbert de Hoyland,
d'après son Commentaire sur le Cantique des cantiques. Diss.,
Rome: Collegium Anselmeanum, 1963.
'Le Monastère: foyer de vie spirituelle d'après Gilbert de Hoy-
land', Coll. 26 (1964) 5-21.
'Les Observances Monastiques: instruments de vie spirituelle
d'après Gilbert de Hoyland', Coll. 26 (1964) 169-199.
'Gilbert de Hoyland', DSp 6 (1967) 371-374.
White, Terence Hanbury. The English Bestiary. New York: Putnam,
1960.
William of St Thierry. Exposition on the Song of Songs. CF 6.
Spencer, Mass., 1970.
Sermons on the Song of Songs, II

J V , V V

m l JM
 Monastic Studies Series

22

This series contains titles from monastic and ascetical writers

throughout the history of monasticism. Both Eastern and Western
Christian saints and ascetics are featured as the writers of these
classics of spirituality that explore various aspects of the cenobitic
and eremitic lifestyles. Ancient and contemporary exemplars of the
monastic ideal are the subjects and contributors to this series
dedicated to the benefits of religious orders.
Sermons on the Song of Songs,

By
Gilbert of Hoyland

Translated by
Lawrence C. Braceland SJ

1
gorgias press
2010
Gorgias Press LLC, 180 Centennial Ave., Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA
www.gorgiaspress.com
Copyright © 2010 by Gorgias Press LLC
Originally published in 1979
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright
Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise without the
prior written permission of Gorgias Press LLC.
2010

1
ISBN 978-1-60724-204-8

This book was first published under the same title by Cistercian
Publications, 1979.

Printed in the United States of America

 CONTENTS

SERMON 16 Swordsmen on the border 203

SERMON 17 The rich carriage 217
SERMON 18 Purification, belief, vision, imitation 227
SERMON 19 Foundation and crown 237
SERMON 20 Affective contemplation 249
SERMON 21 Wonder over his two natures 263
SERMON 22 The eyes of a dove 273
SERMON 23 Discernment of spirits 283
SERMON 24 Understanding and affection 297
SERMON 25 Personal progress 305
SERMON 26 Battlements of the word and of charity . . . . 315
SERMON 27 Rapturous feast and the milk of babes 329
SERMON 28 The incense of prayer 341
SERMON 29 Invited to a crown 349
SERMON 30 Union of minds and hearts 361
SERMON 31 Milk of babes 373
SERMON 32 The Fragrance of the Anointed 385

Abbreviations 397
Monachis Dominae Nostrae in pascua peregrinantibus

. 0 5 ifcfeial

Dominus regit me, et nihil mihi deerit:

in loco pascuae ibi me collocavit.
Super aquam refectionis educavit me,
A n i m a m meam convertit. Ps 2 2 : 1 - 3
 SERMON 16
SWORDSMEN ON THE BORDER

His little bed is guarded by the sword of the

word. 1. Christ is our Peacemaker and without
him our labor is in vain; thanks to him peace
abounds. 2. Peace was restored through Christ,
but not yet are we without anxiety. 3. The
spiritual require a strong guard, but should
distinguish true and false bravery. 4. Some are
skilled in the language of the court but not in
the language of Scripture. 5. A man of the
Gospel should speak the language of the Gos-
pel. 6. The word of God should be a sword
ready at his side. 7. Christ is the true Elisha and
the true Elijah. 8. The spiritually weak must
be cherished in the bosom of the Order until
Christ raises a dead brother to life. 9. The little
bed of Solomon surpasses all the little beds
of the Saints.

T H E L I T T L E B E D OF SOLOMON IS G U A R D E D
B Y S I X T Y OF THE B R A V E S T MEN OF I S R A E L ,
A L L E X P E R T S WITH SWORDS AND VETERANS
OF B A T T L E , EACH WITH HIS S W O R D AT HIS
THIGH A G A I N S T A L A R M S B Y N I G H T . * 1 *Sg 3:7-8

O
how gracefully the bride ascends, almost
without the burden of her body, wholly
free from the flesh which decays! What
bodily elements are hers, when she is
compared to smoke? What seeds of decay, when that
smoke coils up not from frail flesh but from

203
204 Gilbert of Hoyland

burning incense? Gracefully she ascends, someone

worthy of the bed of Solomon. I read that Esther
bathed and anointed herself to charm the royal
Est 2:12 embraces with the fragrance of her ointments.* This
bride, however, does not now use ointments to
please her Bridegroom; she has herself been dis-
solved into the fragrance of ointments. But all do
Mt 19:11 not understand this word;* all cannot enjoy these
delights. If all shared the joy, all would be dis-
appointed, whereas a pleasing variety and a devout
charity is assured because while one shares the joy,
another stands guard. The leisure of some is secure
and joyful, because it is safeguarded by the watchful-
ness of others. Therefore 'the bed of Solomon is
guarded by sixty of the bravest men of Israel'.
Our Solomon does not wish the tender delights of
his bed to be disturbed or its affections to be
lessened, let alone interrupted. He loves a peaceful
realm, for he is styled the Peacemaker. Who is
our Solomon but Jesus Christ? 'He himself is our
Eph 2:14 peace, because he made both regions one people.'*
He brought peace by his blood not only 'to every-
Col 1:20 thing on earth' but also 'to everything in heaven'.*
'The chastisement which brings us peace was laid
Is 53:5 upon him.'* He endured the chastisement we de-
served, in order to pour upon us the peace of
righteousness. He was punished; you were restored to
grace.
You also were punished, but your travail could
not beget peace for you. An unclean victim could
not cleanse the defiled, not even itself, let alone
others. Chastisement surely was inflicted on us but
that chastisement was not for our peace. The sen-
tence of death and suffering was passed on us but our
unrighteousness was not dismissed. Indeed you were
shackled at the decision of a judge b u t your guilt was
not remitted. Punishment there was but peace there
was not. O chastisement pitiful and severe, laid on the
children of Adam! You crush without protecting,
punish without purifying, consume without recon-
ciling; you consume the substance of the flesh, not
its guilt! What have you in common with peace?
 Sermon Sixteen 205

W h e n w i l l y o u b e s t o w peace, w h i l e y o u t r a f f i c w i t h
sin? W h e n w i l l y o u b e s t o w grace, f o r y o u d o n o t take
away guilt? 'Indeed righteousness and peace have
Ps 84:11. (Psalms
kissed each o t h e r . ' * follow the Vulgate
enumeration.)
' T h e chastisement w h i c h b r o u g h t us p e a c e ' was
laid u p o n h i m w h o b r o u g h t us the p e a c e f u l harvest
o f righteousness.* H e was called our o n l y S o l o m o n , Heb 12:11
our true P e a c e m a k e r , * because in his days righteous- Col 1:20
ness has risen u p o n us and an o v e r f l o w o f peace.* Ps 71:7
O v e r f l o w i n g i n d e e d is his peace. His peace n o t o n l y
s u f f i c e d t o wash a w a y the crimes o f the p a s t , * but Heb 2:17
w i l l o v e r f l o w f o r e v e r . His peace o v e r f l o w s until the
moon is n o m o r e , 2 until the l a b o r of our mortal
nature, changeable as the m o o n , is n o m o r e , until the
labor of our d e f e c t s , w h i c h w a x and w a n e , is n o
m o r e . O v e r f l o w i n g t r u l y is his peace, f o r it was n o t
meted o u t t o m a t c h our merit. M e r i t , i n d e e d , his
peace did n o t find b u t c o n f e r r e d . H o w is that peace
n o t o v e r f l o w i n g , w h i c h b o t h r e m i t t e d the o f f e n c e and
added t o the original grace? Peace was the possession
o f the first m a n in Paradise, so that he c o u l d n o t b e
led astray against his w i l l ; y e t he d i d n o t possess the
power by w h i c h he c o u l d a f t e r w a r d s b e l e d back
w h e n e v e r he w i l l e d . H e had grace e n o u g h t o avoid an
exit, but not the grace to reenter at will. Now
there is m o r e b o u n t i f u l peace in the grace o f Christ,
w h i c h after r e p e a t e d transgressions is f r e e l y o f f e r e d .
His peace d o e s n o t banish b u t recalls the repentant.
Overflowing surely is his peace, which cannot be
dried up b y any i n j u r y and is m o r e r e a d y t o pardon
than t o punish. T h i s peace, b e g i n n i n g w i t h the f o r -
giveness o f sins, o v e r f l o w s even t o the sharing o f the
divine nature, ' f o r one w h o clings' t o G o d 'is one
spirit w i t h h i m ' . * 3
2 P 1:4; 1 Co 6:17
2. You see h o w great is this f o u n t a i n o f expia-
tion, so that it m a y at last b e called n o t peace w i t h
G o d b u t rather u n i o n w i t h h i m . O blessed b o r d e r
where the intervening wall of enmity has been
removed! Blessed i n d e e d is the enclosure, but n o t y e t
secure. Our e n e m y still a t t e m p t s t o cross its borders,
t o breach its walls. In Christ w e possess peace w i t h
G o d the F a t h e r , b u t n o t y e t peace w i t h our c o m m o n
206 Gilbert ofHoyland

enemy. Christ's peace, however, will overflow until

the last personal enemy, death, is destroyed. In the
meanwhile, even if there is no peace with the foe,
there is protection against the foe. For Christ will be
our peace, 'when the Assyrian comes into our land
Mi 5:5 and sets f o o t ' on our borders.* The Assyrian can
infest the spiritual borders nearest to him but not
those further away; he can trample upon but he
cannot remain upon our borders. For Christ will
be our peace when the Assyrian tramples upon our
borders.
We have an inner border and an outer border; one
with God and another with the world, a border with
the spirit and a border with the flesh. And if to some
persons it has been said: 'You are not in the flesh
Rm 8:9 but in the spirit',* still they share a common
border with the flesh, thanks either to the nature of
their substance or to the care their flesh requires. The
enemy then, using our flesh as his camp, from his
vantage point infests the realm of the spirit and from
his neighboring fortress plans his assaults. But 'he will
be', yes, Christ will be 'our peace, when the Assyrian
Mi 5:6 tramples on our borders'.* He is our Solomon, our
peacemaker, who wins for us peace upon peace,
peace with the Father, peace from the foe. He will
Ps 147:14 'win peace on our borders'.* O frontier and frontier,
how much you differ from each other! With how
many joys you overflow, O inner frontier; but to
how many scandals you are open and subject,
O frontier! O boundary and boundary! h o w gladly
one of you is guarded but how laboriously the other
is governed! On both sides Christ is the central
boundary wall: for the outer border separating, for
the inner border uniting; beginning from the outer
border and perfecting to the inner border. 'For
Wisdom reaches mightily' f r o m this outer border to
that inner border, there 'ordering all things har-
Ws 8:1 moniously'.* That inner border is his little bed.
Therefore of the valiant woman is it said: 'From afar
Pr 31:10 and from the furthest borders is her value.'* 'It is her
value' for which the bridegroom puts himself in the
scales, against which he weighs himself, for which he
 Sermon Sixteen 207

prizes himself, w i t h which his yearning is satisfied. 4

What else is this b u t t h e embrace and the little bed of
the b r i d e g r o o m ? T h a t is the u l t i m a t e b o u n d a r y
b e y o n d which his yearning c a n n o t e x t e n d and our
faculty is insufficient t o c o m p r e h e n d . It is t h e b o r d e r
where y o u reach y o u r own limit, where you are ex-
hausted, w h e n y o u begin to be a n o t h e r , wholly in
Christ and Christ solely in y o u . O t r u e peace and full
peace, w h e n f r o m t h e k i n g d o m of G o d scandals will
be banished, w h e r e there will be n o dread on our
borders, w h e n there will n o t be an inner and an outer
b o r d e r b u t one b o r d e r only, the b o r d e r n a m e d above:
the b o r d e r of alliance and c o n f o r m i t y with G o d
alone, a b o r d e r e n j o y i n g t h e delights of his little bed
and n o t d e p e n d i n g on t h e sword.
3. But n o w , t h a t t h e j o y s of his little bed—how-
ever limited t h e y are—may n o t be disturbed, a strong
guard is needed indeed. T h e r e f o r e 'the b e d of Solo-
m o n is s u r r o u n d e d b y sixty of the bravest m e n of
Israel'. Even in the Gospel you r e a d : 'When a strong
man fully a r m e d guards his own court, his possessions
are in peace.'* Here a more a b u n d a n t guard is men- Lk 11:21
tioned, because m o r e a b u n d a n t is t h e grace of his lit-
tle bed t h a n t h e grace of t h e c o u r t and care for
his bride is greater t h a n care f o r his goods. Again, I
read of an angelic guard with a flaming sword set at
the gate of Paradise.* Is the little b e d of S o l o m o n n o t Gn 3:24
a kind of paradise? 'Ours is a little b e d of flowers.'* In Sg 1:15
Scripture, our S o l o m o n is a flower of t h e field; he is
the tree of life.* Truly such a little b e d is a paradise Sg 2:l;Pr 3:18
of delights. Do you see h o w a b o u n d i n g delights are
surrounded b y a close guard? F o r 'the b e d of Solo-
m o n is guarded b y sixty of the bravest m e n in
Israel'. I shall n o t say much n o w a b o u t t h e signifi-
cance of this n u m b e r , b u t it seems t o d e n o t e those
w h o excel in righteous deeds and in knowledge of the
Law. T h e y belong t o the bravest in Israel, w h o are
strong in f a i t h , w h o are steadfast in faith and act
manfully; they can do all things, b u t in him w h o
strengthens t h e m , Christ.* ph 14:3
He is perversely brave, w h o exalts himself against
the knowledge of G o d , * w h o against t h a t knowledge 2 Co 10:5
208 Gilbert of Hoyland

is unbending and stubborn, whose strength is the

strength of boulders and whose heart is of bronze, so
that not even hammering brings understanding to his
hearing. Such are those to whom Paul says: 'Are we
provoking the Lord to anger? Are we stronger than
1 Co 10:22 he?'* He does not belong to the bravest in Israel, who
when he is wounded feels no pain, when he is
scourged is insensitive, who remains impervious to all
the thrusts of the two-edged sword of the incisive
Heb 4:12 word* and takes pride in kicking against the goads of
Ac 9:5 wisdom.* Not such was Mary, whose soul, like
Lk 2:35 softest material, the sword transfixed.* As for me,
would that a valiant word might easily reach me;
would that its incisiveness might work through me.
Would that this sword might pierce my soul, that my
soul also might be turned into a sword to fight
Eph 6:12; Lam against the spiritual powers of evil.*
180, n. 66. ^ Why set your hand to deeds of bravery, you
who are not one of the bravest? Why join the guard,
when you do not shake off your lethargy? Why stand
guard by the bed, when you have no sword, or if
you possess the sword of the word, keep it on its
page, 5 not on your tongue? You do not hold in the
grasp of your tongue the versatile sword of God's
word. God's word is fluent, his spirit is fiery, b u t
somehow, contrary to its nature, it becomes sluggish
in your grasp. There it is sheathed and blunted,
though it is sharper and more penetrating than any
Heb 4:12 two-edged sword.* In your mouth the word is not
quick, it does not flow quickly; in your grasp it is not
versatile to suit the occasion, though in itself it is
more than a match for any engagement in spiritual
combat. Why usurp an office when you have no ex-
perience? The guards are 'all expert with swords and
Sg3:8 veterans of battle'.* Without reason do you bear the
sword, for you have insufficient skill in warfare, or if
you have learned to wage war, you make yourself
ready for worldly business more than for Christ's
business, you practise forensic law more than eccle-
siastical law, you are more clever in worldly combat
than in combat of the spirit.
The Prince of the Church wants a man of the
 Sermon Sixteen 209

Church who is ready, wants him ready to give

account of the faith and the hope which is in us.* If 1 P 3:15;G. adds:
you are lethargic and inexpert in these virtues, on ifffs'J/'g6'
what score can you boast that you have a ready
answer for questions of public law? In the mouth of
a cleric or of a monk sacred literature sounds much
more fitting than secular. Why do you wish to speak
Egyptian in Jerusalem? 6 That is not what Isaiah says:
'There will be five cities in the land of Egypt which
speak the language of Canaan,'* that is to say, be- Is 19:18
cause quite unversed in Hebrew, they might speak the
language nearest to Hebrew; because they could not
speak the holy tongue, they might speak one closely
related to the holy tongue. Why seek 'to speak half
in the language of Ashdod, when you ought to speak
the language of Judah'? So indeed, we read in
Esdras.* Speak the tongues not of men but of 2 Ezra (Nehemiah)
Angels.t You are indeed an angel of God, since you
profess the ministry of the sacred word. 'For the tl Co 13:1
lips of a priest guard knowledge and men will demand
the law from his mouth, for he is a messenger of the
Lord of hosts.'* Ml 2:7
5. Since you are a man of the Gospel, let yours
be wholly the language of the Gospel. Let your
speech then smack of the Law, the prophets, the
apostles; sharpen your tongue on their words; bor-
row from them weapons wielded for God to demolish
fortresses and to topple every sophistry exalting it-
self above the knowledge of God.* Let 'the sword of 2 Co 10:5
the spirit' be 'versatile' in your grasp,* a trusty Eph 6:17; Gn 3:24
servant for every task confronting you. Let your skill
in the sacred word not fail you, when the need of the
moment suddenly requires it. Let the word of power
and might be on your lips not in your notes, for
'the lips of a priest' not his notes 'should guard
knowledge'.* Take this 'purse full of money' with Ml 2:7
y o u : * 7 let the sword of the word be at your side, not Pr 7:20
in hiding; let it be the thing closest to yourself. Gird it
upon your thigh, that you may be powerful and
prompt both 'to encourage with sound doctrine' and
to refute adversaries.* 8 Let your sword not be Tt 1:9
beneath your thigh and do not subordinate the
210 Gilbert of Hoyland

s t u d y of t h e sacred w o r d t o p r u d e n c e o f t h e flesh.
Sg3:8 'Each with his sword at his thigh:'* to one
t e a c h e r is g r a n t e d t h e lesson of k n o w l e d g e , t o an-
o t h e r t h e lesson of w i s d o m , a n d t o each his o w n
1 Co 12:7-10 grace f r o m t h e spirit.* ' E a c h w i t h his s w o r d at his
t h i g h ' , so t h a t w h e r e t h e c h a n c e of assault exists,
there m a y be a greater recourse to the w o r d and more
f r e q u e n t w a r n i n g s . ' E a c h o n e w i t h his s w o r d at his
t h i g h ' , in o r d e r t h a t h e m a y b e t h e first t o c o r r e c t
2Tm3-16-lTm himself, to safeguard himself, to p u t himself on
5:22; 1 Co 14:29 trial.* Paul t e a c h e s y o u t o have y o u r s w o r d a t y o u r
thigh w h e n h e says: ' T a k e h e e d f o r y o u r s e l f , lest y o u
Ga 6:1 also be tempted.'* 'Each o n e w i t h his s w o r d at
his t h i g h , against a l a r m s b y n i g h t ' , against sudden
lapses, u n e x p e c t e d falls.
T h e a p o s t l e implies a k i n d of n o c t u r n a l alarm
w h e n h e says: 'If a n y m a n is c a u g h t o f f g u a r d in s o m e
Ga 6:1 w r o n g d o i n g . ' * F o r ' n o c t u r n a l ' m e a n s w h a t is u n e x -
p e c t e d a n d s u d d e n ; 'noctiftrnal' also m e a n s w h a t is
insidious. So Paul w a r n s : 'lest we b e o u t w i t t e d b y
2 Co 2:11 S a t a n ; f o r w e are n o t u n a w a r e of his wiles.'* In
a n o t h e r verse t h e s a m e Paul was afraid of a n o c t u r n a l
alarm: 'I a m a f r a i d ' , h e says, ' t h a t as t h e serpent
s e d u c e d Eve, so y o u r ideas m a y b e led a s t r a y f r o m
2 Co 11:3 t h e simplicity w h i c h is in C h r i s t . ' * G o o d is t h a t
simplicity, w h e r e y o u w h o 'cling t o Christ are o n e
1 Co 6:17 spirit with him'.*9 Simplicity exists w h e r e unity
exists. S i m p l i c i t y exists, if y o u live n o l o n g e r , b u t
Ga 2:20 Christ lives in y o u , * if t h e w i s d o m of G o d c o n s u m e s
y o u , if spiritual j o y a b s o r b s y o u a n d seeps i n t o y o u r
i n m o s t m a r r o w . A n d w h e r e is such s i m p l i c i t y save in
his little b e d ?
6. ' E a c h w i t h his s w o r d a t his t h i g h . ' ' A t his
t h i g h ' , n o t against t h e t h i g h b u t 'against a l a r m s b y
n i g h t ' , p e r h a p s b e c a u s e their struggle is n o t 'against
flesh a n d b l o o d ' d e n o t e d b y t h e t h i g h b u t 'against t h e
w o r l d rulers of this d a r k n e s s ' . A n d so 'against a l a r m s
b y n i g h t ' m e a n s against h o s t s o f evil spirits. 1 0 H o w
m u c h h a p p i e r a struggle fell t o y o u r l o t , f o r y o u are
carried in S o l o m o n ' s b e d ! Y o u struggle n o t against
carnal or even against spiritual w i c k e d n e s s , b u t w i t h
spiritual gladness, w i t h S o l o m o n w h o has first claim
 Sermon Sixteen 211

to the name of 'Peacemaker'. Therefore your wrest-

ling with him is the making of peace. Solomon not
only bears the name of Peacemaker but also personi-
fies Wisdom.
'Love Wisdom' he says, 'and she will embrace
you.' An embrace bears some resemblance to a
struggle. Embrace her 'that she may embrace you.
'You will be honored by her, when you have
embraced her', as Solomon says in Proverbs.* Em- Pr 4:8
brace the Word, treat the Word as if you were in his
little bed not as if in a duel. His little bed is no
place for drawn swords but for close embraces. Do
not arm yourself as a guard, lest you find yourself
on guard outside. Snug inside, reach for the Word,
not as a sword but as a spouse, that you may be
embraced b y the Word personally. 12 May you be
embraced by Truth in Person, and not wrestle
against errors and vices; leave this task and duty to
others. What business have you with wrangling,
whose whole concern ought to be with affections?
One who is a bride does not seek the task of argu-
ment and refutation but rather the freedom to
embrace. 1 3 Let others take their places around his
little bed; it is yours to enjoy his long-desired
embraces.
7. Why are we told nothing about the furnish-
ings of his little bed, nothing to suggest an inkling
of its delights? Perhaps this word is an ineffable word
and not licit for a human t o utter. One who
experiences this word understands it, but only
momentarily while the experience lasts, and not even
from memory can one fully recall past delights.
Scripture expressed what it could. It mentioned a
little bed and Solomon's little bed. One word is
Plautus, The
enough, but only for the wise!* I read both of Persian, 2:4:15
Solomon's throne and of his carriage, but of both as
displaying courtly trappings in keeping with a king's
1 K 10:18-20.
luxury.* Are we then to deduce that the little bed is See Miquel,
neglected? Far from it; but it was enough for the pp. 155-6.
writer who was addressing the bride to refer to his
'little bed'. For she will cherish nothing in the little
bed but the fact that it is his little bed and that it
212 Gilbert ofHoyland

provided the freedom to embrace her own Solomon.

You will find a wealth of hidden meanings in the
little beds throughout the text of Scripture, but
there is none to compare with the little bed of Solo-
mon. There is the bed which J o b spreads for himself
in darkness and the bed which David waters with his
Jb 1 7:13; Ps 6:7 tears.* There is the bed on which tKe sick man lies and
Mt 8:6; Mk 5:40 the bed from which the dead child rises.* Such was
the bed of Elisha; such was that of Elijah. Each
2 K 4-32 37- raised the dead son of their hostess from his little
1 K 17:17-23 bed.* Elisha stretched himself over the dead boy;
Elijah bowed over him. The one Christ is in each of
them. 'He emptied himself to take the form of a
Ph 2:7 servant',* and compressed the length of his eternity
into the shortness of a nature subject to time. He
expanded himself, when he bountifully poured his
holy Spirit into us. That mother's bosom could hug
her dead boy but could not restore his life. 'For the
Rm 12:3 letter kills, the Spirit gives life.'* But the true Elijah
carried the b o y to his upper room and drew him to an
understanding of the spirit. Cold was the bosom of
the letter and its understanding was unable to breathe
vital warmth. Good was the bed of Elijah for he
poured the warmth of life into the dead boy. 'The
Heb 10:38 just man lives by faith.'* That is why Elijah mea-
sured himself over the dead boy three times, that he
Rm 12:3. Mab: might
s confer a knowledge of the Trinity and 'appor-
Tnmtatis;Mi^ne: rr • i *
Trinitas. tion the measure of faith'.*
The Law mourns over the dead sense of the
letter, 1 4 the carnal sense, but Christ withdrew this
sense and restored the spiritual sense. He restored to
the letter a new and vital meaning which he might
recognize as truly his own, for he is the Elijah who
Mt 17:11-12 restored and made all things new.* Paul also says that
Ga 2:19-20 he is dead to the Law that he may live in Christ.* It is
good that you too should die not only t o tke old Law
but also to the old self, that he may give you life in
his bed, who bore our sins in his body in order that
IP 2:24 'dead to sin, we might live in righteousness'.* For
'what you sow is not given new life unless it first
1 Co 15:36 dies'.* We are all understood in the risen Christ and
Ac 2:32 therefore his Resurrection is a grace common to all.*
 Sermon Sixteen 213

But in the little bed of Solomon there is some parti-

cular grace reserved as a privilege for the bride alone.
8. Even now, good Jesus, if a son of our mother
be dead—I mean a son of this holy community,
this widow with whom (so to speak) you lodge—do
you restore him to life. That son is dead who is
crushed by the weight either of tedium or of despair,
who possesses no lively devotion, no fervor of spirit,
who although he does not abandon the precepts of
the Law and hides himself in the lap of the Rule,
none the less languishes in a cold and moribund af-
fection and feels no sweetness in our holy work. The
sorrowful countenance of the whole Order dis-
heartens him. He must be cherished in the soft and
womanly bosom of his mother, that he may not
become rebellious and 'be broken by excessive
sorrow'.* He should not be found outside the em- 2 Co 2:7
brace of his mother's bosom, lest perhaps the
true 1 6 Elijah should fail to take him to his upper
room. Consider those whom Christ raises to life;
everywhere he grants this gift, thanks to the tears of
women. So he raised the widow's son* and the Lk 7:12-15
brother of the holy women;* so at the prayers of her Jn 11:11-44
parents he raised their daughter.* Lk 8:49-55
Raise also this dead brother of ours, good Jesus,
from his mother's bosom. This outward observance See Lam 195
of our Rule leads no one to perfection.* Lead him to n. 167; 170, n. 5
the softer bed of a better hope, by which he may
draw near to God. Let him experience what he is
awaiting, 'for good is the Lord' to those who wait for
him, 'to the soul which seeks him'.* This experience Lm 3:25
of an hour brings gladness to the labors of many Miquel
seasons.* Then is restored to his mother the son she p. 156, n. 21.
had lost before, while she did not retain his affec-
tion but wept over his dead devotion. He returns to
us renewed, after you have clothed him with your-
self. You stretch yourself over him like this that you
may cover what is repulsive and clothe what is naked.
Good is the use of this little bed, which in a brief
hour injects a lively eagerness for the seasons to
come. There is greater grace in the little bed of Solo-
mon, for in it the bride, leaving her mother according
214 Gilbert of Hoyland

to the flesh, clings to her Beloved in an everlasting

1 Co 6:17 bond and becomes one spirit with him.*
9. Good then is the little bed in which there is
no languor except perhaps the languor of love, for it is
not concerned with weakness but with rejoicing.
Good is the little bed which is not watered by tears,
not spread in darkness, which has in it nothing
sorrowful, nothing dark, but is wholly light and glad-
ness, which need not be spread with brocaded cover-
lets from Egypt with which the heretical woman in
Pr 7:16 Proverbs spreads her little bed.* For the little bed of
Solomon has in it no imported ornament, no gaudy
painting, no worldly pomp; it is nothing but holy
pleasure and sound truth. Great and varied is the
meaning hidden in the little beds of holy men, but
the little bed of Solomon surpasses them all. 17 Even
the bride's little bed cannot stand comparison with
Solomon's. In her little bed she does not find the
Beloved whom she is seeking, so she rises and makes
her rounds until she reaches him. Hasten, daughter,
hasten, consecrated virgin, hasten to enter into his
retreat. Have no fear of the drawn swords surround-
ing it. Those swords, swords of the word, against the
thigh and against alarms by night, either transfix the
wantonness of the flesh or excise the cowardice of a
timid heart. This they do in others, but you they
wound more gently, that transfixed by perfect love
you may know nothing of alarms by night and may
have no blend of chilling fear, but may pass wholly
into the affection of burning love, for you have been
consecrated to the undivided practice of love and
destined to ascend to the place 18 of perfect love, the
couch of your Beloved, the little bed of the true Sol-
omon, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns for ever
See Lam 14, n. S3 and ever. Amen.*
 NOTES ON SERMON SIXTEEN

1. Although G. addresses one person throughout S 16, from S 17 one sees

that this sermon was intended for nuns literally or as a literary device. Mikkers,
p. 38, suggests that S 16, 17, 18, and perhaps 40 and 45:6 were intended for
nuns. One might argue that S 15-21, where G. discusses a choral unit in the Canti-
cle, Sg 3:6-11, was used by him in a series of talks to nuns; see 'Nuns in the
Audience of Gilbert of Hoyland' in a forthcoming volume of the subseries
Medieval Cistercian History (Kalamazoo Cistercian Studies Conference). On the
little bed, lectulus, see Lam 21, n. 92.
2. Ps 71:7; 'until the moon is no more', donee auferatur luna, in Mab. but
omitted by Migne; it is needed for what follows.
3. On S 16: 1, 2, 5, 9, see M.-Andre Fracheboud, 'Divinisation' DSp 3
(1957) 1407-8; Gilson, Mystical Theology, p. 229, n. 75, and History of Christian
Philosophy in the Middle Ages (N.Y.: Randon House, 1954) p. 633, n. 110.
4. Flor. and Migne may be right to omit the bracketed clause in this
sentence of Mab. Pretium eius est propter quod ipse se impendit, [quod ipse se
impendit,] quod ipse se aestimat, quo eius expletur aviditas.
5. Reading pagina, rather than vagina with Mab. and Migne; pagina is the
reading in several mss. e.g. Paris 9605, Troyes 410, and has G's humorous touch.
6. lingua aegyptia. On secular learning, see G. E2:2; Lam 177, n. 46.
7. Mab., Flor., mss. Paris 9605, Troyes 419: Sacculum pecuniae tolle
tecum, omitted by Migne.
8. Roger Sherman Loomis, 'The Grail, from Celtic Myth to Christian
Symbol', (N.Y., Columbia U.P., 1963) p. 189, in showing the influence of G. on
the Queste del Saint Graal, quotes three of the last four sentences and continues:
'Thus the symbolism of the sword was fixed by St Paul, and the obligation of the
Christian to hang it by his side was proclaimed by Abbot Gilbert.' See Bouton,
'Fiches Cisterciennes', pp. 225-8.
9. Mab. and ms. Troyes 410: es; Migne and ms. Paris 9605: est.
10. G. contra spirituales nequitias; Vulg. contra spirituals nequitiae.
11. G. Ama sapientiam et amplexabitur te; Vulg, Dilige earn et conserva-
bit te.
12. G. plays on oblecteris and oblucteris to the confusion of editors.
13. See Leclercq, 'Otia Monastica', 121:33.
14. De Lubac, Exegese, 11:142, n. 6, on sensum exstinctum litterae.
15. Conventus hujus sancti, see Lam 13, n. 46, 19, n. 79.
16. Reading perns with Migne, rather than vetus with Mab,
17. Mab: supergressus est universos lectulus Sahrrionis, nec, omitted in
Migne.
18. Mab: locum; Migne: lacum.

215
 SERMON 17
THE RICH CARRIAGE

The bride is carried in a rich carriage on her

way to her Solomon. 1. Solomon's carriage is
spiritual for it is inlaid with charity. 2. Every-
one should be a carriage for Christ, but not
everyone a preacher of the word. 3. Why be
vainglorious when you received from another
all you have? 4. Seek the good reputation of a
clear conscience, the good odor of Paul's
sanctity. 5. Virginal purity, especially that of
Mary, is suggested by the wood of Lebanon.
6. Vices make pure balsam rank; Satan is a
compounder of counterfeit balsam. 7-8. Learn
from the Scriptures and the Doctors the right
proportions for your perfume.

SOLOMON MADE HIMSELF A CARRIAGE FROM

THE W O O D O F L E B A N O N , HE M A D E ITS POSTS
OF SILVER, ITS C O U C H OF GOLD*1 Sg3:9

Y
ou heard, holy virgins, brides of Christ,
you heard in yesterday's sermon about the
little bed of your Solomon. In today's
sermon hasten to inquire further about the
hidden meaning of his carriage. You wish to direct all
interpretations of this Canticle to the exercise of
love and to apply them for your delight. You think

217
218 Gilbert of Hoyland

these songs w e r e w r i t t e n f o r y o u a l o n e . N o w o r d s
have a n y b o u q u e t of w i s d o m f o r y o u unless they
b l o s s o m w i t h a f f e c t i o n s o f love a n d e m i t t h e sweet
f r a g r a n c e of c h a r i t y . S o h e r e also y o u have a verse
w h i c h suggests t h e e n d e a r m e n t s of love; t h e divine
w o r d refers y o u t o his carriage. Y o u r Beloved d o e s
n o t allow y o u a n y p r e t e x t f o r sitting idle. P l e a s a n t
i n d e e d are t h e p r o m i s e d j o y s of his little b e d , b u t
possibly s o m e a n x i e t y a b o u t t h e d i f f i c u l t y of reach-
ing t h e m m i g h t still b e w h i s p e r e d a m o n g y o u . So
this t e x t describes for y o u in its fair v a r i e t y the
f u r n i s h i n g s of t h e sacred c o a c h , in w h i c h y o u are t o
b e carried t o his little b e d . Even o n y o u r j o u r n e y
y o u r B r i d e g r o o m h i m s e l f provides y o u w i t h delights.
This carriage is pleasing i n d e e d in its m a t e r i a l b u t
more pleasing in its m a k e r . F o r S o l o m o n is b o t h
designer and c r a f t s m a n f o r this carriage. 'King Solo-
mon m a d e himself a carriage f r o m t h e w o o d of
L e b a n o n . H e m a d e its p o s t s of silver, its c o u c h of
gold.' H e a r , d a u g h t e r , in w h a t a s p l e n d i d e q u i p a g e
y o u are carried t o his b e d . T h e B r i d e g r o o m d o e s n o t
leave y o u w i t h o u t a c o u c h , one of gold, p e r h a p s of
t h a t gold of w h i c h y o u r e a d t h a t 'his h e a d is t h e
Sg5:ll p u r e s t g o l d ' . * T h e c o u c h has m a n y uses, b u t all less
exalted than those of t h e little b e d . O n a c o u c h
w e a r y h o p e has a c o m f o r t a b l e s u p p o r t b u t in a b e d
h o p e yields t o e n j o y m e n t . In t h e f o r m e r t h e b r i d e ' s
desire is e n c o u r a g e d , in t h e l a t t e r she e n j o y s its
fruition. What luxury awaits y o u , do you think,
when you are conveyed in such splendor? Why
should I n o w with m a n y a reference m a k e a com-
plete inventory: the cedar wood, the wood of
L e b a n o n , t h e silver p o s t s ? T h e m a t e r i a l b e a u t y ring-
ing in o u r ears appeals t o us a n d its b e a u t y a p p l i e d
figuratively t e n d s t o suggest s o m e s p l e n d o r of t h e
spirit a n d of t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g a n d t o i n d i c a t e a
c o u c h f o r a h o l y soul. T h e c o n t e x t of t h e passage
d o e s n o t allow t h e s e w o r d s t o b e u n d e r s t o o d in a
m a t e r i a l sense, f o r w h y w o u l d t h e gold m e t a l b e
inlaid with charity? N o , every detail is spiritual,
because spiritual is t h a t love to which you are
invited b y a carriage f u r n i s h e d so elegantly.
 Sermon Seventeen 219

2. I c o u l d a p p l y these a n d similar f e a t u r e s of his

carriage a c c o r d i n g t o o u r i n t e r p r e t a t i o n . Let it b e
e n o u g h t o have dealt w i t h t h e m b r i e f l y either to
satisfy or t o a r o u s e y o u r eagerness. What? D o y o u
wish t h e s e songs t o serve y o u alone? L e t t h e y o u n g
girls b e f e d , let t h e m t u r n s o m e f e w verses t o their
o w n a d v a n t a g e . C h r i s t is a d e b t o r t o t h e wise a n d t o
t h e simple.* H e is n o w a y p o o r e r f o r y o u , if he is Rm 1:14
richer f o r o t h e r s in his o w n sense.* Be c o n t e n t w i t h Rm 14:5. See
t h e little b e d ; allow t h e use even of his carriage t o Sow ion, "Fiches
° Cisterciennes ,
assist t h e y o u n g e r g e n e r a t i o n . T h e grace of his little p. 239.
b e d is rarer, t h a t of t h e carriage is m o r e c o m m o n . In
t h e f o r m e r Christ is at r e s t ; in t h e l a t t e r h e is o n t h e
w a y . He grants himself t o y o u m o r e a b u n d a n t l y and.
w i t h special privileges, y e t he d o e s n o t f o r g e t o t h e r
m a i d e n s , even t h o u g h t h e y c a n n o t y e t reach your
stature.
Y o u also can share t h e m y s t e r y of t h e carriage and
play t h e role o f carriages, if y o u carry d o w n t o us, as
it w e r e , t h e B r i d e g r o o m w h o m y o u h o l d in cloister, if
y o u b r i n g p e a c e , if y o u a n n o u n c e g o o d tidings, if y o u is 52-7 See Lam
p r o c l a i m o u t w a r d l y t h e j o y s w h i c h y o u see w i t h i n . * 18, n. 78; 17, n. 6
Were t h e y n o t carriages f r o m w h o s e O f f i c e w e c h a n t
in t h e C h u r c h : 'carrying peace a n d e n l i g h t e n i n g their
fatherland?'2 B u t let n o one a s s u m e t h e o f f i c e of
preaching, 'let n o one t a k e t h e h o n o r t o h i m s e l f ' * Heb 5:4
unless he is called b y G o d . W h y set y o u r s e l f u p o n a
candlestick, w h e n you do not enlighten yourself?
Let h i m set y o u o n high w h o m a d e y o u a l a m p .
A s c e n d t h r o u g h h i m w h o lights y o u r l a m p .
According to our text, no one makes himself a
carriage, b u t S o l o m o n p e r s o n a l l y m a d e a carriage f o r
himself f r o m t h e w o o d of L e b a n o n . Y e t t h a t p e r s o n
is also a carriage w h o carries Christ n o t o n l y o n t h e
lips b u t also in t h e b o d y . ' G l o r i f y a n d carry Christ in
your body',* says Paul. Paul wishes Christ t o b e 1 Co 6:20
carried b y y o u , b u t p r o u d l y , n o t w i t h t e d i u m , n o t
w i t h c o m p l a i n t , n o t w i t h i n d i g n a t i o n and a wavering
resolution. Paul wants Him carried, not dragged. F o r
to anyone who drags h i m , Christ is b u r d e n s o m e :
c h a s t i t y is a b u r d e n , h u m i l i a t i o n is a b u r d e n , obedi-
ence is an onus, poverty is squalid. Y o u are a
220 Gilbert of Hoyland

m i s s h a p e n p o r t e r , if such is y o u r d e p o r t m e n t ! F a i t h
seems t o y o u a h e a v y r o d a n d p i e t y c u m b e r s o m e .
Y o u c a n n o t s a y : 'My Beloved is a s a c h e t of m y r r h
Sg 1 :12; Rm 11:
20; Qo 24:17; f o r m e . ' * So y o u r f a i t h seems t o y o u like a cart-load
Sg5:15
of h a y , f o r u n d e r its w e i g h t y o u c r e a k a n d g r o a n and
complain 'as a wagon creaks when loaded with
Am 2:13 h a y ' . * Christ is n o t a l o a d of h a y b u t a f l o w e r a n d a
f r u i t a n d t h e tree of life, a tree w h i c h gives f r u i t in
Gn 2:9;Ps 1:3. d u e s e a s o n * 3 a n d are y o u unwilling t o w a i t ? Blessed
Qo 10:17 are t h e y w h o eat in d u e season.* P a t i e n c e says P a u l , is
Heb 10:36;Lam n e e d e d if y o u are t o r e a p t h e p r o m i s e s . * T h e n c a r r y
198, n. 185. y o u r b u r d e n s in p a t i e n c e , yes, t h e b u r d e n s of p i e t y .
F o r p i e t y itself also has a p a r t in t h e p r o m i s e , as P a u l
1 Tm 4:8 writes t o T i m o t h y . *
3. Then c a r r y t h e image of h i m w h o is f r o m
h e a v e n a n d c a r r y his image p r o u d l y , f o r his b u r d e n is
Mt 11:30 light.* Be n o t an i g n o m i n i o u s s t u m b l i n g - b l o c k b u t a
p r o u d c o a c h such as King S o l o m o n m a d e f o r h i m s e l f .
Surprisingly, h o w e v e r , P a u l c a r e f u l l y distinguishes t h e
various virtues, so as first t o e x c l u d e t h e h o l l o w n e s s
of b o a s t i n g . ' F o r w h a t have y o u t h a t y o u d i d n o t
receive? If t h e n y o u received it, w h y d o y o u b o a s t as
1 Co 4:7 if it w e r e n o t a g i f t ? ' * If y o u are a carriage, y o u did
n o t m a k e y o u r s e l f b u t h e m a d e y o u . F o r ' K i n g Solo-
mon m a d e himself a carriage f r o m t h e w o o d of
L e b a n o n ' . A n d w h o m a d e t h e very w o o d ? D i d h e
n o t ? H e p l a n t e d t h e cedars of L e b a n o n . B u t if y o u are
a l o f t y c e d a r of L e b a n o n , ' d o n o t have l o f t y t h o u g h t s
b u t b e f e a r f u l ' lest p e r h a p s in y o u r e l a t i o n y o u b e
^ ^ u p r o o t e d f r o m t h e rp l a c e w h e r e y o u w e r e rp l a n t e d b7y
Rm 11:20; Qo 24: f . /
17; Sg 5:15 e l e c t i o n . * F o r y o u did n o t elect y o u r s e l t b u t h e
Eph4:12 elected y o u f o r t h e w o r k of .the m i n i s t r y . * H e c o n -
fers t h e o f f i c e of t h e m i n i s t r y , he c o n f e r s t h e grace
t o minister, t h a t is, b o t h t h e p o w e r a n d t h e h o n o r .
Recognize b y w h o m y o u w e r e p l a n t e d a n d l e t n o t t h e
r o o t of p r i d e a p p r o a c h y o u , so t h a t t h e h a n d of t h e
t e m p t e r m a y n o t stir y o u . L e t n o axe of t h e e n e m y b e
raised t o c u t y o u d o w n ; f o r n o t even his r a z o r is
1 S 1:11 raised over t h e h e a d of t h e saints.* He d a n c e s f o r j o y
at w h i s k i n g o f f f o r h i m s e l f a n y carriage o f G o d a n d at
felling trees of L e b a n o n f o r his o w n designs. In
Ezechiel he b r a y s his b r a g : 'I have sat o n t h e t h r o n e
 Sermon Seventeen 221

of G o d . ' * Take care lest t h r o u g h elation y o u b e Ezk 38:2

t r a n s f o r m e d f r o m a t h r o n e of r i g h t e o u s n e s s i n t o a
throne of pestilence* and a carriage of scandal. Ps 1:1
T a k e care lest t h r o u g h y o u e i t h e r b a d e x a m p l e or
evil gossip ' s p r e a d like a p l a g u e ' * t o t h e ruin of 2Tm2:17
m a n y . Be a carriage of G o d , t h a t y o u m a y carry his
image in y o u r s e l f and that through y o u 'he may
spread t h e f r a g r a n c e of his a c q u a i n t a n c e ' . * S u c h a 2 Co 2:14
carriage was P a u l , of w h o m t h e L o r d himself p r o -
claims: 'He is a c h o s e n i n s t r u m e n t of m i n e t o carry
my name.'* He elected Paul. He m a d e h i m his Ac 9:15
carriage.
4. 'King S o l o m o n m a d e himself a carriage f r o m
t h e w o o d o f L e b a n o n . ' This is c e d a r w o o d a n d b y its
o w n n a t u r e a n d b y t h e n a m e of its place of origin, it
portends s o m e t h i n g great. L e b a n o n means purity,
f o r its w o o d is i m p e r v i o u s t o c o r r u p t i o n ; as its sub-
s t a n c e d o e s n o t a d m i t d e c a y , so it e m i t s a m o s t deli-
cate f r a g r a n c e . T r u l y Paul was of L e b a n o n , f o r he
served G o d , as h e himself says, ' w i t h a clear c o n -
science'.* F o r w h a t is p u r e r t h a n a clear conscience? 2Tm 1:3
What is less s u b j e c t t o d e c a y t h a n o n e w h o m no
creature could separate f r o m t h e love of G o d ? * Rm 8:39
V i r t u e s of a m o m e n t w h i c h serve their brief h o u r ,
seem to me not so m u c h wood as p l a n t s w h i c h
q u i c k l y p e r i s h . * B u t in Paul was t h e i n c o r r u p t i b i l i t y Ps 36:2
of u n f l a g g i n g c h a r i t y . So he ' f o u g h t t h e g o o d f i g h t ,
finished the race', thenceforth looking for 'the crown
of r i g h t e o u s n e s s ' , * a c r o w n of sheaves w h o s e fra- 2Tm4:7
grance, close b y , h e a l r e a d y i n h a l e d . T h e n , as h e says,
he b r e a t h e d f o r t h a g o o d l y f r a g r a n c e , ' f r a g r a n c e f r o m
life t o life', t h e ' f r a g r a n c e of t h e k n o w l e d g e of G o d ' . * 2 Co 2:14-15
A g o o d f r a g r a n c e is a g o o d r e p u t a t i o n ; a g o o d fra-
grance is also a g o o d c o n s c i e n c e . T h e f o r m e r b r e a t h e s
its b o u q u e t f o r o t h e r s , t h e l a t t e r f o r itself. I n d e e d t h e
glory of t h e saints is t h e witness of their c o n s c i e n c e . * 2 Co 1:2
T h e f r u i t s o f f u t u r e b e a t i t u d e have a l r e a d y b e g u n t o
b r e a t h e their b o u q u e t for us in g o o d n e s s of life. A
g o o d f r a g r a n c e is rightly a d d e d t o f r e e d o m f r o m cor-
r u p t i o n , b u t c o n t r a r i w i s e d e c a y has a r a n k o d o r . T h e
m a n w h o sows in t h e flesh will r e a p f r o m t h e flesh
corruption* and f r o m corruption a putrid odor, just Ga 6:8
222 Gilbert of Hoyland

as f r o m i n t e g r i t y b r e a t h e s a sweet f r a g r a n c e .
5. R i g h t l y i n t e g r i t y has b e e n m e n t i o n e d , b e c a u s e
virginal p u r i t y seems t o b e i n d i c a t e d b y t h e w o o d of
Lebanon. Virginal continence also emits a good
f r a g r a n c e a n d it is e n j o y e d f o r ever. W h e t h e r or n o t
t h e y o k e of marriage will b e abolished or t h e desola-
t i o n of w i d o w s b e e n d e d , y e t t h e f r e e d o m a n d grace
See 1 Co 13:8 of virginal i n t e g r i t y will n e v e r pass a w a y , * f o r t h o s e
who neither marry nor are given in marriage are
Mt 22:30 a l r e a d y like t h e angels in h e a v e n . * Again in S c r i p t u r e
virginity is compared to Lebanon: 'Like uncut
f r a n k i n c e n s e of L e b a n o n I t u r n e d i n t o p e r f u m e a n d
Si 24:21 like pure b a l s a m was m y fragrance.'* Deservedly
described as L e b a n o n is t h e i m m a c u l a t e w o m b , t h e
w o m b u n d e f i l e d , u n t o u c h e d a n d u n c u t . U n c u t is t h e
womb whose integrity remains, the enclosure of
w h o s e c h a s t i t y has n o t b e e n u n s e a l e d . S u c h a w o m b
is a Lebanon through purity and u n c u t through
integrity. R i g h t l y is she called u n c u t , w h o is n o t
divided. W o u l d y o u h e a r of o n e w h o is c u t ? ' T h e
m a r r i e d w o m a n is a n x i o u s a b o u t t h e a f f a i r s o f t h e
world, h o w t o please h e r h u s b a n d , a n d so she is
d i v i d e d ' , divided i n d e e d b e t w e e n G o d a n d h e r h u s -
b a n d , a n d p e r h a p s n o t e q u a l l y divided b u t m o r e in-
clined towards her husband. 'But the unmarried
w o m a n or t h e virgin t h i n k s o n l y a b o u t t h e a f f a i r s of
1 Co 7:34 t h e L o r d ' , * h o w t o please G o d .
'Like u n c u t f r a n k i n c e n s e of L e b a n o n , I filled m y
Qo 24:21 dwellingplace w i t h fragrance.'* These words seem
t o b e l o n g especially t o t h e M o t h e r of t h e L o r d . She
was really t h e f r a n k i n c e n s e of L e b a n o n a n d L e b a n o n
u n c u t . She filled h e r dwelling-place w i t h f r a g r a n c e ,
h o l y virgins, a h e a v e n l y dwelling-place, a n angelic
dwelling-place, w h e n she filled y o u w i t h e x a m p l e s of
a virginal w a y o f life and inspired y o u w i t h t h e love of
p e r p e t u a l c h a s t i t y . A n d she e x p r e s s e d q u i t e clearly
t h e grace of h e r dwelling-place, w h i c h she says was
filled w i t h f r a g r a n c e . F o r w h a t is m o r e like p e r f u m e
t h a n a virginal dwelling-place? T h i s w a y of life has
n o t h i n g carnal a b o u t it, n o t h i n g w o r l d l y , b u t all is
h e a v e n l y , o t h e r w o r l d l y , 4 spiritual, a n d t h e r e f o r e like
perfume. But what kind of perfume? 'And my
 Sermon Seventeen 223

fragrance,' says the text, 'is like pure balsam.' Like

balsam that is pure, not rank, not adulterated. There
is a mixture which simulates balsam and is counter-
feit; and there is a mixture which although possessing
no similarity to balsam makes perfume rank. There
is then, to enumerate: balsam which is genuine and
unadulterated; balsam which although genuine is
adulterated; balsam which is neither genuine nor
unadulterated. The first is found in the perfect, the
last in those who are deceived; the central balsam in
those who although not deluded by any fallacy, lack
the grace of some virtue. Rightly then does she who
alone was full of grace say that her 'fragrance was like
pure balsam'.
6. Now if yours is the fragrance of virginity, of
persistent prayer, of fast and abstinence, yours is a
good fragrance, the fragrance of balsam. But if you
still suffer from the malady of impatience, if gossip,
fickle resolution, determination to do your own will,
moroseness, tedium—if any of these is reported in
you, your perfume is still mixed and you do not
breathe forth the fragrance of pure b a l s a m . * For a See Lam 176, n. 38
slight drop of some foreign element spoils the whole
essence of balsam. It is well with the person who
immediately brushes aside any drop of sadness which
may appear by chance or on a sudden. 'For in many
ways we all offend', says J a m e s . * F r o m a sudden Jm 3:2
fall, immediately corrected, no odor is noticeable;
malodor comes rather from a vice in which one
persists.
Perilous and poisonous is the mixture when some
vice is disguised as a virtue; even an angel of Satan
'appears as an angel of light',* and, as it were, makes 2 Co 11:14
poison smell like balsam. Satan is a compounder of
perfumes; buy no oil from him. Indeed he is not so
much a compounder as a confounder of ointments!
Consider J o b ' s words: 'He makes the sea bubble like a
cauldron; he churns the sea like ointment brought to ^ ^
a boiL'* Death is in his cauldron.t This cauldron f2K4:40
Jeremiah saw boiling, its contents tilting from the
north.* What sort of perfumer is he who pretends Jr 1:13
that from the cauldron of death issue the vapors of
224 Gilbert of Hoyland

life? What sort of perfumer is he who pretends that

the spout of a boiling cauldron pours steam from the
south, when through its spout evils are kindled upon
earth rather from the north? Either the son of a
prophet or surely a prophet himself has discerned
that death is in the cauldron and that its steam comes
from the north. Sulfurous is the steam which the
boiling cauldron of your flesh emits and do you
imagine you smell in it the fragrance of balsam?
If you haven't the skill yourself to discern
genuine from counterfeit balsam, come to the pro-
phets, come to the sons of prophets, the apostles,
who teach you the different kinds of mixtures and in
which cauldron death hides. Such is Paul, who dared
2 Co 2:11 to say: 'We are not ignorant of his wiles.'* If your
own hand is unable to procure genuine balsam for
you, let the saints teach you how to mix it. Nico-
demus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes about a
Jn 19:39; hundred weight and the Marys bought ointments.*
Mk 16:1
But Mary the Mother of the Lord does not so much
procure as breathe forth ointments, for she gave
birth to Christ himself who is anointed with the oil of
Ps44:8 gladness.* 'Like pure balsam,' says the text, 'is
my fragrance.'
7. If you are ignorant of the proportions in the
mixture, come to the doctors of the Church, to those
1 Tm3:15 who are like the pillars and the foundation of truth,*
the silver posts of the Lord's carriage and dispensers
Tt 1:7-9 of the holy word;* learn from them how to think of
the affairs of the Lord and how to be 'concerned for
1 Co 7:32 Christ that you may please him'.* Then you also will
have silver posts in yourself, if you are supported by
knowledge of both Testaments. That is why here,
after the wood of Lebanon, the inspired text refers to
the silver posts, that you may hold 'the mystery of
1 Tm 3:19; Lam faith in a pure conscience'.* 'The mystery of faith'
182, n. 74 which the sacred text sets before you is a text of
silver, in order that relying on the precepts of the
Gospels and of the apostles you may meditate on
them, cherish them, and compare them in your heart.
May you not allow the silver of the divine word to be
shut tight on some dusty shelf, there to become
 Sermon Seventeen 225

blurred and tarnished with the patina of neglect.

8. But we cannot now insert these pillars into
today's sermon. The logs of Lebanon preempted the
space in this tract and, allured by their perfume, our
sermon followed their fragrance further than I in-
tended. To you, Lord, I commend this Lebanon, this
noble Lebanon, this choir of virgins, this assembly of
consecrated women. Guard it, that it may not be cut
down and may remain uncut. Let integrity be
reserved for it and the purity of its chastity, for
Lebanon means purity. Let purity of intention be pre-
served that all may be holy in body and spirit. Safe-
guard this Lebanon, for you have consecrated its
wood as material for your carriage. Far from this
Lebanon be the threat of the prophet: 'Open your
gates, O Lebanon; let fire devour your cedars.'* Let Zcll-.l
these gates be barred to others but open to you. Be *rv 3-7
their key and their enclosure;* seal and unseal, f fRv 5:9
that they may welcome neither seal nor key other
than you, Christ Jesus, who are God blessed for
ever and ever. Amen.
 N O T E S ON S E R M O N SEVENTEEN

1. G . refers to this s e r m o n as a tractatus in par. 8, and in large part he

addresses one individual. His references to 'the little b e d ' , to ' S o l o m o n as Peace-
m a k e r ' a n d to the ' g o o d tidings' c o n f i r m his s t a t e m e n t that he u s e d S 16 the day
b e f o r e to the same audience of nuns, b u t wishes n o w t o include advice for the
y o u n g girls present. His a d a p t a t i o n s are evident in the first h a l f o f par. 1, a n d 2, in
the transition to 3, in one sentence o f 5, a n d in the final paragraph. See J e a n
Leclercq, ' L a premiere redaction des Sermones in Cantica de Gilbert de H o y l a n d ' ,
R Ben. 6 2 ( 1 9 5 2 ) 2 8 9 - 9 0 .
2. 'In the O f f i c e for apostles', M a b . F o r other liturgical t e x t s in G , see
S 3 2 : 7 , 3 3 : 8 , 4 0 : 4 a n d 6.
3. Reading lignum with Migne, mss. Paris 9 6 0 5 and T r o y e s 4 1 9 , rather
than signum with M a b .
4. For supermundanum, see M.-A. F r a c h e b o u d , 'Denys l ' A r é o p a g i t e : en
Occident, 3. Les Cistérciens', D S p 3 2 9 - 3 9 ; in c. 3 3 6 , the author lists the following
c o m p o u n d s : supereminens Idetitia, S 1 2 : 3 , 6 2 D ; supereminere sapientia, S 5:8,
3 6 C ; supereminere angelis, S 7 : 6 , 4 6 A ; supermundanum, S 1 7 : 5 , 9 0 B ; super-
pulchra, S 2 9 : 1 1 5 0 A . Ms. Paris 6 9 0 5 : supermundanum; T r o y e s 4 1 9 : super
mundanum.

226
 SERMON 18
PURIFICATION, BELIEF, VISION,
IMITATION

The bride is purified, believes, beholds, and

imitates. 1. The silver pillars are knowledge of
the faith and meditation on the Scriptures.
2. Vices turn the silver tongue of a virgin to
lead. 3. Silver pillars mean an orderly knowledge
of the faith, and the golden couch the vision
of truth in rapture. 4. How Lebanon, the silver
pillars, and the golden couch are steps leading
to contemplation, here a fleeting glimpse from
the rays of his Light. 5. One on whom He
sheds a ray of his light, changes from night
into day; the head of divine Majesty nowhere
reclines more readily than on the golden couch
of virginity. 6. Humility is won by following the
purple steps of the royal Christ.

KING SOLOMON MADE HIMSELF A CARRIAGE

FROM THE WOOD OF LEBANON. HE MADE ITS
PILLARS OF SILVER, ITS COUCH OF GOLD, ITS
STEPS OF P U R P L E * 1 Sg 3:9

I
n the w o o d of Lebanon was expressed for you
freedom f r o m corruption in the flesh and the
splendor of purity. Good indeed is chastity but
'what is not f r o m faith is sin'.* 'By faith', says Rm 14:23
Peter, 'God purified the hearts of the Gentiles.'* Ac 15:9
For chastity is not judged b y bodily continence
alone; it is esteemed much more for purity of heart.
'You are already made clean', says Jesus, 'by the
word which I have spoken to y o u . ' * G o o d is the Jn 15:3

227
228 Gilbert of Hoyland

word of faith which cleanses, and so in building his

carriage he inserts, after the wood of Lebanon, the
silver pillars and summons the mind of virginal
purity to meditation on the sacred word, the chaste
word, the word which is compared to chastened
Ps 11:7 silver.* Good are pillars anchored in the breast of
virgins, if they are supported by faithful knowledge
and frequent consideration of sacred Scripture. You
are a good Lebanon, if you have a clean heart,
cleansed of impure thoughts and thoughts of unbelief.
A great defilement of the spirit is the decay of
faith. If, however, a strong formation in faith
remains vigorous in you, you already hold one pillar.
not content
Ps 1-2- Lam 179 with this; add a second pillar:
nn. 57, 58, 59 meditate 'on the law of the Lord day and night'.*
Regard it as infidelity and fornication if your mind
turns away in the least from reflection on the faith.
Good pillars are the knowledge and remembrance of
the divine law and an upright belief in and mindful-
ness of the faith. You are a pillar if you are steadfast
in faith. You are a pillar of silver if you have been
schooled in the use of the divine word. 'Upright is the
work of the Lord', says the Psalmist, 'and all his
Ps 32:4 works are trustworthy.'* Good pillars are faith and
the word of faith. Let this word be ready in your
heart, for it is ready on your lips; let it be ready and
ever present in your heart. From the abundance of
Mt 12:34 the heart, words flow upon the lips.* 'Seven times a
Ps 118:164 day,' says the prophet, 'I have sung your praises.'*
You holy virgins, always sing his praises. Seven times,
of course, sing his praise according to the canonical
Ep 5-19-RB16-1 hours, a t times singing and chanting in your
Lam 173, n. 17 ' hearts.*
2. Let your tongues be of silver. They are of
silver, if they ring out Christ from the sacred page.
Let no lump of lead be put into your m o u t h . The
mouth is of lead which utters nothing refined,
nothing sharp, nothing from above, but is wholly
slack, wholly blunt, wholly from below, perhaps even
from the wicked. For wickedness sits in the talent of
Zc 5:7 lead.* Not of lead were the talents which the man in
the Gospel distributed to his servants when he went
 Sermon Eighteen 229

a b r o a d o n a j o u r n e y . * D o n o t t r a d e w i t h talents of Mt 25:14-15
l e a d ; let n o n e of t h e m b e f o u n d in y o u r treasure
chests. Listen t o Paul's advice: ' L e t n o evil talk c o m e
o u t of y o u r m o u t h b u t o n l y w h a t is g o o d f o r b u i l d i n g
t h e f a i t h . ' * ' F o r b u i l d i n g , ' h e says, n o t f o r t o p p l i n g Ep 4:29
'the f a i t h . A m o u t h of i r o n t o p p l e s t h e f a i t h , u n d e r -
m i n e s h o l y c o n v e r s a t i o n , is an engine of w a r , a seed-
b e d of strife, f o r it rings o u t c o m p l a i n t a n d b i t t e r -
ness.* Such a b e a s t is d e s c r i b e d in Daniel, w i t h iron Lam 17, n. 70
t e e t h and claws, m u n c h i n g a n d c r u n c h i n g all things.* Dn 7:7
L e t n o such b e a s t b e f o u n d a m o n g t h e little s h e e p 2
or r a t h e r a m o n g t h e f r i e n d s of t h e L o r d . * arnicas Domini.
In this virginal f l o c k let t h e r e b e n o v e n o m o u s , n o See Lam 17, n. 69
v i o l e n t b e a s t ; in this paradise let n o s e r p e n t ' s hiss b e
h e a r d . * V e n o m o u s w o r d s d o n o t b e f i t a virgin's lips. See Lam 19, n. 83
Individually, w h a t are y o u d o i n g ? W i t h y o u r lips
defiled w i t h f o u l w o r d s , will y o u p l a n t a kiss on t h e
lips of y o u r Beloved? He is ' t h e p u r i t y of e t e r n a l
light' a n d ' n o t h i n g d e f i l e d ' c o m e s i n t o c o n t a c t w i t h
him.* Remember that y o u r lips are d e d i c a t e d to Ws 7:26, 25
heavenly kisses a n d p r o p h e c i e s . C o n s i d e r it sacrilege
if y o u r lips u t t e r a n y t h i n g n o t s w e e t , n o t divine, n o t
f r o m t h e sacred page. ' B l o w t h e t r u m p e t at t h e n e w
m o o n ' , says t h e Psalm, ' o n t h e special d a y of y o u r
Ps 80:4. See
s o l e m n i t y . ' * F o r y o u every d a y s h o u l d b e s o l e m n , Leclercq, 'Otia
always a n e w m o o n , always a s a b b a t h . T h e r e f o r e let Monastica, '91:3 7;
Lam 10, n. 33
your lips b e like a t r u m p e t of b e a t e n silver;* a
Nb 10:2
t r u m p e t w h i c h s u m m o n s n o t t o s t r i f e b u t t o glad-
ness, c e l e b r a t i o n , spiritual canticles.
3. I d o n o t k n o w h o w our talk veered f r o m silver
pillars t o t r u m p e t s , e x c e p t t h a t o n e w h o s e lips a r e a
silver t r u m p e t is a sterling pillar in t h e h o u s e of t h e
L o r d . A g o o d pillar is one u p o n w h o m t h e w e a r y are
s u p p o r t e d . Y o u can c o n s u l t Isaiah: ' T h e L o r d has
given m e a l e a r n e d t o n g u e , t h a t I m a y k n o w h o w t o
s u p p o r t w i t h a w o r d one w h o has s l i p p e d . ' * The Is 50:4
t o n g u e of Christ J e s u s was o b v i o u s l y l e a r n e d as h e
p r o c l a i m e d peace a n d p r e a c h e d g o o d n e s s . ' A g e n t l e
tongue is a tree o f l i f e ' , * 'a pillar a n d prop of Pr 15:4
t r u t h . ' * D o y o u also, O virgin, c a r r y t h e image of 1 Tm 3:15
your Bridegroom f o r this p u r p o s e , that you may
have a l e a r n e d t o n g u e , a gentle t o n g u e , n o t e r r o n e o u s ,
230 Gilbert of Hoyland

n o t r a m b l i n g , n o t gossipy, b u t a t o n g u e w h i c h speaks
j u d i c i o u s l y , p r o f f e r s a w o r d of c o m f o r t , a t o n g u e
w h i c h is a pillar a n d p r o p ' f o r b u i l d i n g t h e f a i t h ' ,
w h e t h e r y o u r o w n or t h a t of a n o t h e r . L e t ' t h e w o r d
Rm 10:8 of f a i t h ' b e ' r e a d y o n y o u r lips a n d in y o u r h e a r t ' . *
W o u l d y o u h e a r a b o u t t h e silver pillar? ' T h e l a w
of his G o d is in his h e a r t ' — t h e r e is t h e silver; ' a n d his
Ps 36:31 steps will n o t slip'*—there is t h e pillar. R i g h t l y is o n e
a pillar, w h o c a n n o t b e t o p p l e d . 'By t h e w o r d of t h e
Ps 32:6 L o r d t h e h e a v e n s w e r e m a d e f i r m ' , * says t h e psalm-
ist. By this w o r d let t h e h e a r t of a virgin b e m a d e
f i r m , t h a t it m a y b e a h e a v e n , a t h r o n e of G o d , a n d
become a c o u c h of g o l d . In silver, u n d e r s t a n d an
o r d e r l y k n o w l e d g e of t h e f a i t h ; in gold, t h e brilliance
of u n d e r s t a n d i n g and t r u t h . This g o l d e n c o u c h is set
on posts of silver, f o r 'unless y o u have believed, y o u
Is 1:9 (LXX) will n o t u n d e r s t a n d ' . * I n s t r u c t i o n in t h e f a i t h p r o -
vides a s t e p t o w a r d s p u r i t y of u n d e r s t a n d i n g . O n this
f o u n d a t i o n rests t h e grace o f c o n t e m p l a t i o n . While
y o u m e d i t a t e w i t h f a i t h on t h e w o r d of G o d a n d b y
p a t i e n c e a n d t h e c o n s o l a t i o n of S c r i p t u r e raise y o u r -
self u p t o celestial h o p e , y o u s h o w t h a t y o u a r e a
pillar. T h e n y o u rise as a golden c o u c h , w h e n n a k e d
t r u t h w i t h o u t t h e c l o a k of s p e e c h , begins t o flash
Lam 182, n. 77 u p o n y o u in r a p t u r e . *
4. N o w review m o r e c a r e f u l l y t h e o r d e r l y p r o -
gress f r o m t h e w o o d of L e b a n o n t o t h e silver pillars
and the golden c o u c h . Clearly in L e b a n o n shines
p u r i t y of h e a r t ; in silver shines k n o w l e d g e of G o d ' s
L a w ; in gold or t h e m i n i s t r y of t h e w o r d shine t h e
sacred m y s t e r i e s . In L e b a n o n y o u cleanse t h e eye of
y o u r m i n d , in silver y o u observe, b u t in gold y o u p e r -
ceive; or if y o u p r e f e r , y o u are p u r i f i e d , y o u m e d i -
tate
Ps 95-6-Lam yoU contem
p l a t e - 'Praise an
d beauty', the
183, n. 77 psalmist says, 'are in his sight'.* In L e b a n o n b e a u t y is
p r o p o s e d t o y o u , in silver praise, in gold t h e sight of
t h e divine P r e s e n c e . H o w great is t h e grace of this
praise a n d b e a u t y , since it is w e l c o m e in t h e sight of
such M a j e s t y ! W o u l d y o u h e a r of this d i s t i n c t i o n in
a n o t h e r psalm? ' A clean h e a r t c r e a t e in m e , O G o d ,
and an u p r i g h t spirit r e n e w w i t h i n m e . Cast m e n o t
 Sermon Eighteen 231

from your face.'* You see how 'deep calls to *Ps 50:12-13
d e e p ' , t h o w d i f f e r e n t passages of S c r i p t u r e c h a n t in fps 41-g-de Lubac
harmony. R e f e r t h e first w o r d s t o t h e p u r i t y of Exegese, 1:349,
L e b a n o n : ' F o r blessed are t h e clean of h e a r t , b e c a u s e ^
t h e y shall see G o d . ' * R e f e r t h e s e c o n d t o t h e pillars Mt5:8
of silver: ' F o r t h e w o r d of t h e L o r d is u p r i g h t . ' * Ps 32:4
R e f e r t h e t h i r d t o t h e golden c o u c h , w h e r e t h e face
of t h e L o r d is clearly seen w i t h o u t a n y veil, and in
t h e gold gleams his r o y a l M a j e s t y ; t h a t is t o say,
t h e p s a l m i s t asks f o r t h e gift of a p u r i f i e d , an in-
structed and, so to speak, a dazzled spirit. In
L e b a n o n h e is p u r i f i e d , in silver he is i n s t r u c t e d , in
gold h e is d a z z l e d . F o r t h e vision o f a n y p u r i f i e d
m i n d is i n d e e d d a z z l e d in c o n t e m p l a t i o n and can sus-
tain f o r o n l y a m o m e n t t h e flashes of i n n e r enlighten-
ment.
In y o u r t u r n r e t r a c e t h e s e stages of progress, if
y o u aspire t o t h e grace of c o n t e m p l a t i o n . L e t n o t h i n g
d e f i l e d , let n o e l e m e n t of u n b e l i e f r e m a i n in y o u ,
t h a t t h e n a k e d t r u t h can flash u p o n y o u . First b e
cleansed, s e c o n d l y b e t r a i n e d , t h i r d l y b e c o n t e m p l a -
tive. Be cleansed f r o m t h e l a w of t h e flesh, be
t r a i n e d in t h e l a w of f a i t h , w a t c h a n d b e h o l d in t h e
law of p e r f e c t f r e e d o m , in t h e l a w of t h e Spirit. F o r
' w h e r e t h e Spirit of t h e L o r d is, t h e r e is f r e e d o m ' , * 2 Co 3:17
in t h a t l a w w h i c h is f r e e f r o m t h e veil of t h e l e t t e r , in
w h i c h t h e r e is place n e i t h e r f o r error n o r i g n o r a n c e
n o r riddles. Where e r r o r exists, it leads a s t r a y ; w h e r e
ignorance exists, it fails t o l e a d ; w h e r e riddles exist
t h o u g h t h e y lead, t h e y d o n o t lead all t h e w a y . B u t
t h e r e w h o w o u l d go astray? F o r t h e r e is t h e c o u c h ,
and r e p o s e , a n d t h e end of longings. W h o w o u l d
r e m a i n in i g n o r a n c e ? F o r t h e c o u c h is of gold a n d it
gleams in t h e light. W h a t riddle is t h e r e ? T h e e n d of
longings a n d t h e calm of t r u t h leave n o place f o r t h e
figurative language of riddles. There is nothing
c o u n t e r f e i t , n o t h i n g h i d d e n , n o t h i n g figurative. T h e r e
is gold a n d it gleams; t h e r e is t h e c o u c h and it c o m -
f o r t s ; g e n t l e is t h e c o m f o r t i n g b u t t h e hour is fleeting.
A n d t h a t flash of t h e g o l d e n c o u c h is c o m p a r e d t o
lightning. It takes place in a m o m e n t , in t h e t w i n k l i n g
of an e y e , as t h e last t r u m p e t calls. T h e last t r u m p e t
232 Gilbert of Hoyland

calls when truth is made known no longer by the

written page but by its own Presence, when man
Jo 6:45 becomes a pupil of God,* when after the discourses
of apostles and prophets, the Son of God, the Word
of the Father, speaks last of all in his own Person.
This trumpet cannot sound a hesitant note: it sum-
mons only to a solemnity, only at the new moon, and
at the dawning of a new day.
5. Do you 'blow for us on the trumpet', good
Jesus, 'at the new moon, at the festival of our
Ps 80:4 solemnity'.* Truly it is a festival, when you reveal
your divine Majesty. Nothing is more festal but
nothing is briefer. A day I call it; it is but an hour,
an hour truly festal and truly solemn. Reveal in us,
Ps 18:3 good Jesus, some hours of that eternal day.* You will
at once turn from night into day anyone to whom
you reveal the word of your light, for you are eternal
Ps 143:6 day. Flash upon us such lightning as this.* Anyone
on whom your lightning flashes becomes a flash of
lightning. Anyone on whom you shed a ray of your
light, you make like yourself. 'We shall be like him',
1 Jn3:2 says John, 'when he appears.'* Mountains which you
Ps 103:32 touch with such a ray do not smoulder but sparkle.*
They become golden, on whom your gold reflects.
Your head of finest gold does not discover a couch
of gold but where it reclines creates a couch of gold.
Then that verse of Luke is no longer appropriate:
'The Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.' Do
you see, Lord Jesus, how many golden couches you
have here? Never does the head of your Majesty
recline more gladly than on the golden bosom of
virginity. Look upon these virginal breasts, breasts
reserved for you. Upon these you frequently recline
and rest and sleep at midday, in some golden calm of
your clear light. Not here do foxes have their dens;
Lk 9:58 not here do birds of heaven build their nests.* This
couch is too solid for the crafty fox to be able to
burrow here. No room is left for heretical guile,
where clear truth flashes in the sky. It is too lofty
for either the crafty fox or the proud peacock to be
able to reach. 4 These things are hidden 'from the
Mt 11:25 wise and prudent and revealed to little ones',* who
 Sermon Eighteen 233

follow the lowly ascent, 'the purple a s c e n t ' , * and Sg3:10

t r e a d in t h e f o o t s t e p s o f t h e p a s s i o n o f C h r i s t . D e e p
p u r p l e is t h e a s c e n t w h i c h t h e b l o o d o f C h r i s t h a s
s e a l e d a n d t h e l o y a l t y o f his p a s s i o n d y e d p u r p l e .
6. But one should observe the way, the har-
m o n i o u s w a y , in w h i c h t h e silver pillars a n d t h e p u r -
ple s t e p s b l e n d t o g e t h e r . In t h e pillars y o u relish t h e
w i s d o m o f f a i t h ; in t h e a s c e n t y o u e m b r a c e it w i t h
h u m i l i t y . T h e pillars r e p r e s e n t m e d i t a t i o n , t h e a s c e n t
imitation. For the Kingdom of G o d exists not in
w o r d s a l o n e b u t in v i r t u e . W h a t will y o u s a y a b o u t
his e x a m p l e , i f y o u r e g a r d h u m i l i a t i o n as s e r v i t u d e ?
S h e is n o m a i d s e r v a n t w h o m t h e r o y a l p u r p l e en-
n o b l e s . P u r p l e i n d e e d is t h e e m b l e m o f r o y a l t y . If
y o u either disdain or dread these steps, observe that
t h e y are p u r p l e . H u m i l i t y w o r n f o r C h r i s t m a n i f e s t s a
royal dignity. B u t , O bride of Christ, tread the purple
s t e p s w i t h f e e t s n o w - w h i t e ! N o b l e is t h e p a t h w h i c h
y o u r B e l o v e d t r o d b e f o r e y o u . F o r h o w b e a u t i f u l are
the purple steps which Christ with sacred tread sealed
b e f o r e y o u w i t h his h o l y f e e t , f e e t t o w h i c h n o d u s t
a d h e r e d ! * Snow-white feet which he sealed with the Lk 10:11
i m p r i n t o f his B l o o d . P a s s i o n a t e l y r e t r a c e t h e s e f o o t -
steps! Slip f r o m y o u r feet the shoes o f the f l e s h ! * Ex 3:5
H o l y i n d e e d is t h e a s c e n t y o u p r e p a r e f o r y o u r s e l f .
Climb these steps b a r e f o o t and unshod. This purple
w a s d y e d not b y the b l o o d o f a shellfish b u t b y the
b l o o d o f C h r i s t . H e r e g l a d l y set y o u r f o o t , t h a t y o u r
f o o t m a y b e d y e d in t h e b l o o d o f C h r i s t . L e t n o t
the f o o t o f p r i d e o v e r t a k e y o u , if y o u w o u l d f o l l o w
the h u m b l e a s c e n t w h i c h is s e a l e d w i t h t h e s a c r e d
b l o o d o f y o u r B r i d e g r o o m . With this b l o o d d y e n o t
only your f o o t but also your hand and your head,
that y o u may ascend wholly purple, wholly royal
and wholly ennobled by the passion of Christ.
If y o u s h a r e his p a s s i o n , y o u s h a r e his K i n g d o m .
D o n o t t h i n k y o u r s e l f r e n o w n e d b y n o b l e b i r t h in t h e
w o r l d . Y o u will b e t h e m o r e a s e r f , i f y o u s h o w res-
p e c t f o r that, if y o u b o a s t o f y o u r g e n t i l i t y o f b i r t h t o
your Bridegroom, if because o f worldly p o m p you
prefer y o u r s e l f to others or s u p p o s e y o u are entitled
to s o m e privileged position. C o n t r a r y to the humility
234 Gilbert of Hoyland

of your resolve, you are stripping yourself of Christ's

glory, thanks to your family lineage, if you expect to
be ennobled b y anything else. Let his purple be
pomp enough for you, ascent enough, glory enough,
that 'you may glory only in the Cross of your Lord
Ga 6:14 Jesus Christ'.* The purple ascent will lead you to the
Jm 4:6;see couch of gold, for the grace of contemplation
Leclercq, 'Otta reserved to ^ humble and peaceful.* It is 'hidden
Monasttca, r

107:32 from the wise and prudent, to be revealed to little

tMt 11:25 ones'.t This purple is a great pledge of the love
which your Beloved offered you. Truly a great pledge
of love is his suffering unto death. 'Greater love than
this no man has, that he lay down his life for his
Jn 15:13 friends.'* Such was the pledge he offered; such a
pledge your own passion, your own humiliation
claims in turn. Let your memory recall what he en-
dured for you and how deeply he loved a bride for
whom he suffered such humiliation. Love him then
who first and foremost loved you so much more. Our
times no longer demand that you pour out your
blood. Pour out your soul, 'pour out your heart
Lm 2:19 like water'.* For though you surrender your body to
be burned, if you have not charity, what does it
1 Co 13:3 profit y o u ? * At the end of our text, as a climactic
bond of all the graces, charity is enthroned and the
centre is said to be inlaid with charity, as if with an
ornament, 'for the sake of the daughters of Jeru-
Sg3:10 salem'.*
 NOTES ON SERMON EIGHTEEN

1. G. seems to have composed S 18 for one individual and then to have

adapted it for a convent of nuns. He uses the plural of address in the first and
last sentences of par. 1, throughout par. 2, and in the last part of par. 5. In S 17,
given to nuns, he promised a talk on this subject. He ends S 18 without the usual
prayer and continues easily into S 19, just as he will end S 20 and continue into
S 21, so that S 18-19, and S 20-21, should be considered in pairs.
2. See White, 72-74 for sheep, and 165-7 for serpents.
3. See White 53-4 foxes, 149 for peacock's, G's superba volucris.

235
 SERMON 19
FOUNDATION AND CROWN

Charity is the foundation, center, and crown of

the virtues. 1. Charity is set in the center as a
gem common to all virtues and the crown of
the whole carriage. 2. Love ever new to match
the Lord's is like overflowing oil and like wine
ever fermenting. 3-4. Charity shares its posses-
sions without boasting, envy, detraction, or
calumny. 5-6. Charity casts out fear of punish-
ment, fear of giving o f f e n c e , but not reverential
fear. 7-8. What is reverential fear and how
does it d i f f e r from charity?

HE I N L A I D THE C E N T E R WITH C H A R I T Y FOR

THE SAKE OF THE DAUGHTERS OF JERU-
Sg 3:10

Y
ou desire to hear something new, but I
have no news except that love should
renew you. This commandment is the
news I give you;* nothing is more known Jo 13:34
to you yet nothing is more new. You are not un-
skilled and untried in this craft. This is your parti-
cular duty. Indeed you have been consecrated
especially for the commerce of love. According to
our text also, for your sake the center of Solomon's
carriage is said to be inlaid with charity. 'He inlaid
the center with charity', says the text, 'for the sake
of the daughters of Jerusalem.' As if by a special
perogative this verse has delegated to you the prac-
tice of love. 'Strive after the better gifts',* daughters 1 Co 12:31
of Jerusalem, but especially that you may love. Love
towers above every grace and in the description of

237
238 Gilbert of Hoyland

such a carriage c h a r i t y is p u t at t h e t o p as t h e c r o w n
a n d c u l m i n a t i o n of t h e o t h e r graces. M a n y graces are
e n u m e r a t e d in this carriage, b u t all c o m e t o a p e a k in
charity. Charity is t h e summit as c h a r i t y is the
foundation. That you may be 'rooted and grounded
Eph 3:17 in c h a r i t y ' , is Paul's p r a y e r . * C h a r i t y exists w i t h t h e
first graces, w i t h t h e last, a n d w i t h t h e graces inlaid
b e t w e e n . C h a r i t y initiates a n d c r o w n s a n d shares w i t h
t h e o t h e r g i f t s ; h e n c e it is set in t h e c e n t e r as a g e m
c o m m o n t o all a n d t h e c r o w n of t h e w h o l e carriage.
B o t h t h e c o l o r of p u r p l e a n d t h e gleam of gold w o u l d
b e duller, if n o t graced w i t h c h a r i t y . H o w great is its
grace, since it gives brilliance t o t h e very gold of c o n -
t e m p l a t i o n ! It is t h e c e n t e r a n d , as it w e r e , t h e m a r -
r o w of t h e o t h e r graces. N o o t h e r virtue is so inti-
m a t e , n o n e so p e n e t r a t e s a n d p e r m e a t e s t h e spirit a n d
so fills t h e n o o k s a n d c r a n n i e s of t h e h e a r t . L o v e
seeps i n t o t h e very m a r r o w of t h e spirit a n d f l o w s i n t o
its h i d d e n veins. ' C h a r i t y in t h e c e n t e r ' , says t h e
verse. It is a p t l y in t h e c e n t e r , since it is so i n t i m a t e .
Rm 13:10 T h e f u l n e s s of t h e l a w is c h a r i t y . * So t h e law is
e m p t y , if f o r s a k e n b y c h a r i t y . C h a r i t y is a n a r t e r y
w h i c h gives life t o t h e l a w a n d t o t h e o t h e r virtues.
T h e o t h e r s restrict themselves, as it w e r e , t o s o m e
p a r t ; c h a r i t y is c o m m o n t o every level. W h e t h e r y o u
are carried o u t of y o u r m i n d or w h e t h e r y o u r e t u r n
to your right senses, e v e r y w h e r e the practice of
c h a r i t y is b o t h necessary a n d p l e a s a n t . T h e d u t i e s of
the o t h e r graces are diversified a n d t h e y w o r k in
shifts, b u t t h e c o m m a n d of c h a r i t y , as it w e r e , h o l d s
t h e tiller w i t h o u t relief. 'If w e are carried o u t of o u r
m i n d , it is f o r G o d , a n d if we r e t u r n t o o u r r i g h t
2 Co 5:13-14 senses, t h e c h a r i t y of C h r i s t impels u s . ' * T h e c h a r i t y
of Christ, in m y o p i n i o n , really c o m p e l s y o u . T o w a r d s
w h a t d o e s it c o m p e l y o u ? T o w a r d s itself. O t h e r p e o p l e
Lam 14, n. 53 have o t h e r d u t i e s ; y o u r special f u n c t i o n is love.* L o v e
is a shameless c h a m p i o n of its o w n cause a n d love exer-
cises a g e n t l e t y r a n n y over its victims. Love is always
driving itself o n t o g r e a t e r heights.
1 Co 12:31 2. 'Strive t h e n f o r t h e b e t t e r g i f t s ' , * d a u g h t e r s of
J e r u s a l e m , b u t especially t h a t y o u m a y love. L e t this
striving ever i m p e l y o u f o r w a r d . L e t this c o m m a n d -
 Sermon Nineteen 239

m e n t ever b e n e w f o r y o u . A n d n e w it is, unless in

y o u r a f f e c t i o n s s w e e t J e s u s has g r o w n old. M a y he
always b e y o u n g in y o u a n d m a y t h e lapse of t i m e in
n o w a y lessen his grace. Yes, y o u r J e s u s is y o u n g
in y o u . H e is always n e w , b u t he is n o t a strange G o d .
T r u l y n e w is h e f o r w h o m y o u always sigh w i t h rest-
less love. In a w o r d , y o u have o n l y o n e longing, t h a t
he m a y please y o u ever m o r e ! H o w m u c h does o n e
please, when one cannot please enough? By no
m e a n s can y o u b e pleasing t o yourselves m o r e t h a n if
he is pleasing t o y o u .
He w a n t s y o u r spirit a n d seeks n o t h i n g else. Y o u r
spirit alone is s u f f i c i e n t , b u t o n l y if it is w h o l l y
s u r r e n d e r e d . Y o u r spirit alone is e n o u g h c o n s i d e r i n g
y o u r c a p a c i t y , b u t t o o little c o n s i d e r i n g his deserts.
If y o u c o m p a r e y o u r s e l f w i t h y o u r s e l f and m e a s u r e
y o u r s e l f in y o u r o w n scale, t o t a l s u r r e n d e r is e n o u g h ;
y e t if y o u p o u r y o u r s e l f o u t , n o t h i n g r e m a i n s f o r
y o u r s e l f . Whereas if y o u s h o u l d weigh y o u r s e l f b y his
m e a s u r e a n d , as it w e r e , set y o u r s e l f in his scales,
w h a t c o u n t e r w e i g h t will y o u have o p p o s i t e h i m ? If
y o u r love c h e c k s a n d restrains itself b e n e a t h your
c a p a c i t y it fails in t h e scale; even if it p o u r s itself
o u t t o c a p a c i t y , it is b u t slight. W h a t t h e n can y o u
d o ? A r e y o u t o strain y o u r s e l f b e y o n d y o u r c a p a c i t y
in a vain e f f o r t ? W h y n o t ? L o v e seeks n o cure for
t h e i m p o s s i b l e . N o tasks are great e n o u g h f o r love,
p r o v i d e d love itself has n o t b e c o m e l u k e w a r m . H o w
will love be miserly w i t h its o w n possessions, w h e n it
is t r u s t w o r t h y with another's? H o w will love be
prodigal in its duties, b u t miserly in itself? Love
spends n o t h i n g m o r e gladly t h a n itself; it can spend
n o t h i n g m o r e prodigally.
What p r o d i g a l i t y is greater t h a n w h e n n o t h i n g is
k e p t in reserve? L o v e boils over, d o e s n o t c o n t a i n it-
self, overflows itself, rivals i m m e n s i t y , while it k n o w s
n o t h o w to set a limit t o its a f f e c t i o n s . It is oil w h i c h
c a n n o t s t o p its f l o w until n o o t h e r c o n t a i n e r is avail-
able, e x c e p t t h a t n o t even then can it b e c h e c k e d . * 2K4-.6
Love s h o w s a c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of n e w w i n e w h i c h , b y fer-
m e n t i n g as it is b o r n a n d b y w a n t o n n e s s as it ages, b u b -
bles u p a n d o v e r f l o w s u n a b l e t o c o n t a i n itself, always
240 Gilbert of Hoyland

seething and fermenting with fresh affection. In its in-

firmity, love does not excuse but accuses itself. Nothing
is enough for love, nothing less than itself. Love cannot
be satisfied with itself and yet love can feed only on
itself; it is food delicious enough for itself. Love wants
nothing more than to love. What will a person give in
exchange for love? What will one give or what will one
receive? Nothingis imparted more graciously than love,
nothing is experienced more gently. Love is delicious
in desire and in enjoyment; love is delicious in j o y and
sorrow. Truly love is sweet and only love is sweet and
all love is sweet but no love exists to compare with
the love of Christ, for his beauty is above all beauty.
'Above all beauty', says Solomon, 'I have loved
Ws 7:10 Wisdom;'* How is he not handsome, who is the
Ws 7:26 'brightness of eternal light'?* 'My brother Jona-
2 S 1:26 than',* how lovable you are and how very handsome!
I intended to say 'Jesus', but from force of habit I
pronounced the name Jonathan. Yet this is a graceful
error, because it did express a grace. The error was in
name only, for in fact the real meaning of his name
was kept. 'Jonathan' means 'gift of a dove' and
designates one who is full of spiritual grace, the child
For the dove, see who has been given to us.* Whether I say Jonathan
Morson 162
White 144-5. or Jesus, I understand Jesus. H o w lovable are you, my
brother Jonathan, and how very handsome! Do you
think it presumption for me to call him brother?
These words echo not my rashness but his love. It
would be presumption had he himself not encouraged
my audacity. He himself assumed the character and
showed the affection of this relationship and accord-
ing to the apostle: 'He does not blush to call us
Heb 2:12 brothers.'* I f he does not blush, why should you not
also say confidently: 'my brother Jonathan', or if
you prefer to use his familiar name: my brother
Jesus, you are lovable and very handsome, 'you are
2 S 1:26 lovable beyond the love of women'!* Your desires
for Christ, holy women, burn with a restless and
passionate affection, but he is much more lovable
than he is loved by you.
1 Co 12:31 3. 'Strive then for the better gifts'*, but especially
that you may love. The text enumerates the w o o d of
 Sermon Nineteen 241

L e b a n o n , t h e silver pillars, t h e g o l d e n c a n o p y , t h e
•purple s t e p s a n d finally c r o w n s all w i t h c h a r i t y . W h a t
else c o u l d it d o ? 'I s h o w y o u ' , says St Paul, 'a still
m o r e e x c e l l e n t w a y . ' * G o o d i n d e e d are silver pillars 1 Co 12:31
a n d great s u r e l y is t h e grace of G o d ' s w o r d . B u t 'if I
s h o u l d s p e a k w i t h t h e t o n g u e s o f m e n a n d of angels
b u t have n o t c h a r i t y , I have b e c o m e like a clashing
c y m b a l ' , * r e l a y i n g t h e h o l l o w s o u n d of a voice w i t h o u t 1 Co 13:1
t h e f e e l i n g of c h a r i t y . M i g h t y is t h e glory o f t h e
g o l d e n c o u c h b y w h i c h y o u are t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e
secrets of t h e mysteries. But what f o l l o w s ? 'If I
s h o u l d u n d e r s t a n d t h e secrets of t h e m y s t e r i e s a n d
all k n o w l e d g e b u t have n o t c h a r i t y , I a m n o t h i n g . ' * 1 Co 13:2
D o y o u a s c e n d t h e p u r p l e steps a n d r e j o i c e in having
t h e e m b l e m o f C h r i s t ' s passion? ' B u t if I deliver m y
b o d y t o b e b u r n e d b u t have n o t c h a r i t y , it p r o f i t s m e
n o t h i n g ' , t h e a p o s t l e says.* 1 Co 13:3
' C h a r i t y is n o t p u f f e d u p , is n o t a m b i t i o u s , d o e s
n o t seek its o w n w a y ' * : it rejoices in t h e c e n t e r a n d 1 Co 13:4
has v o l u n t e e r e d its p r o p e r t y f o r c o m m o n use. F o r ' t h e
c e n t e r w a s inlaid w i t h c h a r i t y ' . 'It is n o t b o a s t f u l ' ,
says Paul, ' n o t a m b i t i o u s ' . F o r c h a r i t y k n o w s n o t h i n g
of p r i v a t e p r o p e r t y . It is n o t t h e w a y o f c h a r i t y t o
love t h e p r i v a t e p r o p e r t y it has or t o l o n g f o r w h a t it
has n o t . It d o e s n o t wish t o excel o t h e r s , n o r even t o
have a greater possession of g o o d n e s s itself. M a n y
acknowledge the weaknesses of their own merits.
Therefore entertaining no lofty opinion of them-
selves, t h o u g h t h e y are n o t b o a s t f u l , p e r h a p s t h e y are
a m b i t i o u s . T h o u g h t h e y have n o g r o u n d s f o r b o a s t -
fulness, b o a s t f u l e n o u g h is t h e i r desire t o have g r o u n d s
for b o a s t f u l n e s s . T h e s e also love t h e i r o w n excellence,
as l o n g as t h e y e i t h e r desire its r e a l i z a t i o n or m o p e
and pine b e c a u s e it can n o t b e realized. B u t c h a r i t y
does not make a travelling c o m p a n i o n of m o p i n g
e n v y ; c h a r i t y d o e s n o t seek w h a t is its o w n , so h o w
could it p u r l o i n w h a t belongs t o a n o t h e r ?
4. Why d o y o u wish t h r o u g h envy to r u i n an-
o t h e r ' s g o o d ? Will y o u a d d t o y o u r s e l f w h a t y o u t a k e
f r o m a n o t h e r ? P e r h a p s so, if it is m a t e r i a l w e a l t h y o u
steal. A m o n g p e r s o n s in cloister, I d o n o t f e a r r a p a -
city o f this k i n d . T h e r e is a m o r e s u b t l e k i n d of
242 Gilbert of Hoyland

r a p a c i t y r o o t e d in e n v y . W h y d o y o u n o t c o n s i d e r it
r a p a c i t y if y o u s p a r e s o m e o n e ' s p u r s e b u t steal his
g o o d n a m e ? Y o u d o n o t c o v e t his possessions b u t
y o u d o tear his r e p u t a t i o n t o shreds. W h a t gain d o e s
d e t r a c t i o n of a n o t h e r c o n f e r u p o n y o u ? If y o u c a r p
at g o o d qualities, w h a t a c c r u e s t o y o u f r o m t h a t ?
Perhaps on t h e m a n i f e s t t r u t h of a n o t h e r ' s virtue
y o u r t e e t h are b e i n g g r o u n d a w a y in y o u r mouth
after you sharpened t h e m for calumny. You dare not
g n a w a w a y at a n o t h e r a n d y e t y o u c a n n o t j o i n in his
praise. Because y o u n o longer c h e a t h i m of his r e p u -
t a t i o n b y y o u r w o r d s , are y o u t h e r e f o r e n o t r o b b i n g
h i m ? H o w is this n o t r o b b e r y , w h e n y o u defraud
e v i d e n t g o o d n e s s of its deserved t r i b u t e a n d w h e n
w i t h o u t spoiling b y f a l s e h o o d a n o t h e r ' s real w o r t h ,
you suppress it b y silence? A r e y o u i n t e r e s t e d in
h e a r i n g t h a t t h e r e is r o b b e r y even in m e r e evalua-
tion? ' H e did n o t regard it as r o b b e r y ' , says t h e
Ph 2:6 apostle, ' t h a t h e b e e q u a l t o G o d . ' * A fair e v a l u a t i o n
of a n o t h e r ' s g o o d qualities c a n n o t b e c o n c e i v e d in an
envious soul. F o r t h e envious soul r e f u s e s t o t h i n k
t h a t a n o t h e r is acting w e l l ; a l t h o u g h t h e e n v i o u s per-
son dare n o t o b j e c t o p e n l y , w i t h i n himself h e e i t h e r
ignores or m i n i m i z e s t h e o t h e r ' s m e r i t s . W h y is t h a t ,
if n o t b e c a u s e spite, while always t h i n k i n g o f its o w n
excellence, casts a s h a d o w over a n o t h e r ' s e x c e l l e n c e ?
'But c h a r i t y t h i n k s n o evil, does n o t rejoice over
i n e q u i t y ' a n d , if I m a y say so, over i n e q u a l i t y , ' b u t
1 Co 13:5-6 rejoice w i t h t h e t r u t h ' . * It d o e s n o t t h i n k o f p r i v a t e
gain; it rejoices in w h a t is in t h e c e n t e r a n d c o m m o n
t o all. It d o e s n o t seek its o w n i n t e r e s t s b u t t h o s e of
Christ J e s u s . In e v e r y o n e , it e i t h e r loves or desires His
glory. Christ is c o m m o n t o all, for h e is t h e Media-
1 Tm 2:5 t o r * a n d t h e r e f o r e things w h i c h are n o t in t h e c e n t e r
b u t c o n f i n e themselves t o a p a r t , are n o t his. 2 W h y
do you wish t h r o u g h spite t o restrict Christ t o a
part? D o y o u w a n t t h e grace of t h e Spirit t o b e
miserly? D o y o u w a n t his blessings r e s t r i c t e d t o y o u
alone? A l l o w t h e Spirit of t h e L o r d t o s p r e a d a n d
o v e r f l o w a n d p o u r itself o u t over all flesh a n d fill t h e
universe. D o n o t i m p r i s o n w i t h i n t h e n a r r o w limits
of y o u r h e a r t a g e n e r o s i t y w h i c h is c o m m o n t o all.
 Sermon Nineteen 243

T h e Spirit b e s t o w s his riches u p o n all,* and d o y o u Rm 10:12

a t t e m p t t o d i m i n i s h t h e a f f l u e n c e of grace a n d r e d u c e
its i m m e n s i t y t o p e t t i n e s s ? Christ scorns t h e miserly
c o n f i n e s of an envious h e a r t . His g o o d n e s s c a n n o t b e
held back by y o u r j e a l o u s y . His g o o d n e s s flows
f r e e l y ; its oil p o u r s itself n o t o n l y i n t o y o u b u t also
i n t o n e i g h b o r i n g vessels. I n s u r e t h a t t h e y b e y o u r s in
t u r n . T h e y will b e y o u r s surely, if y o u rejoice in t h e
common good.3 O t h e r w i s e y o u are e m p t y i n g y o u r
o w n s o u l o f oil a n d Christ t h e M e d i a t o r is n o n e t h e
less p o u r e d into o t h e r s . T h e r e f o r e h e wishes t h a t
w h a t b e l o n g s t o h i m s h o u l d b e in t h e c e n t e r . 'By this,'
he says, 'shall all m e n k n o w t h a t y o u a r e m y disciples,
if y o u have love f o r o n e a n o t h e r . ' * Jn 13:35
5. D o y o u see h o w c h a r i t y is t h e special e m b l e m
of discipleship in Christ a n d t h e singular m a r k of his
teaching? C o n s e q u e n t l y c h a r i t y is i n t r o d u c e d h e r e
in t h e final place as a n a d o r n m e n t o f t h e o t h e r graces.
'He inlaid t h e c e n t e r w i t h c h a r i t y . ' O h o w s o f t is t h e
inlay of c h a r i t y . C h a r i t y f o r o n e ' s n e i g h b o r k n o w s n o
spite; c h a r i t y towards the Lord knows no fear.
C h a r i t y involves n o p u n i s h m e n t but fear involves
p u n i s h m e n t ; t h e r e f o r e ' t h e r e is n o f e a r in c h a r i t y ,
while p e r f e c t c h a r i t y casts o u t f e a r ' . * F o r w h a t will 1 Jn4:18
c h a r i t y f e a r ? O l d o f f e n c e s ? B u t ' c h a r i t y covers a mul-
titude of sins'.* Will the w e a k n e s s of o n e ' s o w n 1 Pet 4:8
conscience f e a r lest it fall?* ' B u t love is s t r o n g as 1 Co 8:10-11
d e a t h . ' * C h a r i t y casts o u t b o t h k i n d s of f e a r . Y e t Sg8:6
n e i t h e r will p e r f e c t c h a r i t y f e a r t e m p o r a l h a r d s h i p s
for t h e sake of Christ. I n d e e d n o t even if h a r d s h i p s
are eternal can c o n s u m m a t e love b e w e a r i e d a n d g r o w
f a i n t . Love c a n n o t fail t o t a k e delight in such sweet-
ness, once love has experienced such sweetness.
C h a r i t y d o e s n o t love in o r d e r t o escape p e r d i t i o n ;
c h a r i t y p r e f e r s t o b e cast o u t a n d as a p u n i s h m e n t
perish f o r e t e r n i t y , r a t h e r t h a n t o h e d e p r i v e d of t h e
exercise of e t e r n a l love. F o r 'if a m a n s h o u l d give all
his property' f o r c h a r i t y , ' h e w o u l d regard it as
nothing'.* Sg8:7
T r u l y this i n l a y is s o f t , f o r even a m i d insults one
can rest u p o n it w i t h as m u c h delight as holiness.
G r a n t m e , g o o d J e s u s , t h a t u p o n this inlay I m a y b e
244 Gilbert ofHoyland

m i n d f u l of y o u a n d m e d i t a t e u p o n y o u in t h e night-
Ps 62:7 w a t c h e s . * S h e e r delight is t h e m e m o r y w h i c h love
inlays; w e l c o m e is the meditation which charity
Lam 186, n. 106 suggests.* F o r every t h o u g h t a b o u t Christ is delight-
ful and welcome. Love of one's neighbor involves
c o m p a s s i o n a n d s o m e t a s t e of fears, while it k n o w s
h o w t o grieve w i t h t h o s e w h o m o u r n . B u t in w h a t
w a y can y o u share m o u r n i n g over Christ? E v e n 'if h e
was c r u c i f i e d o u t of w e a k n e s s , y e t h e lives b y t h e
2 Co 13:4 p o w e r of G o d ' . * E v e r y w h e r e h e a f f o r d s y o u g r o u n d s
not for suffering b u t f o r rejoicing t o g e t h e r with
1 Co 13:6 h i m . * He is w h o l l y a t t r a c t i v e , w h o l l y inlaid w i t h long-
ing a n d c h a r i t y . F o r w h a t will y o u observe in C h r i s t ,
w h i c h d o e s n o t b o t h m a n i f e s t his c h a r i t y t o w a r d s us
a n d p r o m p t ours in r e t u r n ? He is w h o l l y a n entice-
m e n t t o c h a r i t y f o r us a n d a p r o v o c a t i o n t o love. H e
leaves n o place in himself f o r t h e s e n t i m e n t o f f e a r .
He w h o l l y desires t o b e loved, as h e w h o l l y deserves
t o b e loved. D o n o t l o o k b a c k u p o n t o r m e n t s , O vir-
gin, w h e n such great c h a r m s are set b e f o r e y o u in
y o u r B r i d e g r o o m . F e a r s h o u l d b e laid t o rest w h e r e
so m a n y signs of love c a t c h t h e eye. C h a r i t y disdains
all t r a f f i c w i t h f e a r ; c h a r i t y c a n n o t b e c o e r c e d , j u s t as
it c a n n o t b e c o n s t r a i n e d .
6. Therefore ' p e r f e c t c h a r i t y casts o u t f e a r ' as
1 Jo 4-18- useless a n d s u p e r f l u o u s , b u t n o t t h a t c h a s t e n e d f e a r
Ps 18:10 w h i c h e n d u r e s f o r e v e r a n d ever.* T h e r e is i n d e e d a
f e a r w h i c h c h a r i t y sends p a c k i n g , a f e a r w h i c h t r u t h
sends as a messenger, a n d a f e a r w h i c h b o t h c h a r i t y
and t r u t h send as a visitor. T h e first f e a r is c a u t i o u s ,
t h e s e c o n d is c h a s t e b u t d o e s n o t e n d u r e f o r e v e r a n d
ever, t h e t h i r d is b o t h c h a s t e and e n d u r i n g . T h e first
fears p u n i s h m e n t , t h e s e c o n d fears giving o f f e n c e , t h e
t h i r d is a r e v e r e n c e f u l l y l i b e r a t e d a n d c a r e f r e e . E v e n
t h e first fears giving o f f e n c e , b u t f o r f e a r of p u n i s h -
m e n t ; t h e s e c o n d fears giving o f f e n c e , b u t f o r f e a r
of giving o f f e n c e . I n d e e d j u s t i c e is s o m e h o w in-
sulted if, t h r o u g h f e a r of p u n i s h m e n t , j u s t i c e finds
favor. J u s t i c e in itself is s u f f i c i e n t l y deserving t o
attract men's attention t o itself a n d t o w i n their
affections. This fear then perfect charity banishes.
F o r h o w is c h a r i t y p e r f e c t , if it n e e d s t h e s p u r of f e a r
 Sermon Nineteen 245

to cultivate justice? Perfect love possesses the mind

without reservation, desirous that all the functions of
justice be delegated to itself alone. Fear is ice-cold
and drags its feet, content merely to escape punish-
ment. Love knows no aversion; it is fervent and
stretches forward to what lies ahead; fear is more
withdrawn and undertakes the obligations of justice
only under compulsion.
Perfect love owes all its action to justice alone,
leaving fear no claim upon justice. How could it be
otherwise? Does not justice win for itself enough
merit for every good work? Yes, Christ for us was
made justice.* What then? Does Christ not have in Rm 3:22;
himself sufficient endowment to be pleasing? Does he ^ Co
then also need another's assistance to be pleasing? If
we do not surrender to him for his own sake alone,
how will our love of him be perfect? I will love you,
good Jesus. I will love you, my strength, whom I
cannot love without your help and cannot love as
you deserve. May my endeavors be directed to you
without reserve and may they not be diverted and
distracted by any other affection. But even when
totally directed toward you, how feeble are our
endeavors! How then shall I weaken what is so feeble
even at full strength? May I be wholly carried to you
by my desires, good God. Draw me to yourself that
I may require no stimulus of fear and that perfect
charity may banish any recourse to fear.
7. What follows? Are eternal torments not to be
feared? Obviously they are to be feared and avoided
'for no one ever hated his own flesh'.* But a more Eph 5:20
passionate love of Christ does not need the motive of
fear to be attracted to justice. Such love fears nothing
so much as giving offence, precisely because it of-
fends, not because it will be punished. But this holds
true as long as human affairs hang in the balance, as
long as praise is not assured to man in his own life-
time. But when after his lifetime a man is introduced
to truth, thereafter fear of this kind will cease, giving
place to a third fear which though it succeeds the first
two is never superseded, since it endures for ever and
ever. The first fear then dreads lest it pay for its
246 Gilbert of Hoyland

rashness in giving o f f e n c e ; t h e s e c o n d d r e a d s lest in

its w e a k n e s s it give o f f e n c e ; t h e t h i r d has n o t h i n g t o
d r e a d . F o r w h a t is t o b e d r e a d e d b y c o m p l e t e h a p p i -
ness a n d c o n s u m m a t e c h a r i t y ?
This last fear springs f r o m t h e n u r s e r y of c h a r i t y .
I d a r e n o t a f f i r m y e t I dare n o t d e n y t h a t it is c h a r i t y .
F o r w h a t else b u t love is t h a t a f f e c t i o n t r y i n g t o b e ,
since it n o w k n o w s n o t t h e passion of f e a r ? H o w is
t h a t n o t love w h i c h a l r e a d y has a l m o s t ceased t o b e
f e a r ? What is t h e logic of a fear which dreads
n o t h i n g ? A f e a r so secure I w o u l d h o n o r w i t h t h e
n a m e love, e x c e p t t h a t G o d himself loves us in t h e
a f t e r l i f e , y e t in such M a j e s t y t h e r e is n o place f o r
fear. B u t in ourselves h o w shall t h a t f e a r b e dis-
t i n g u i s h e d f r o m c h a r i t y ? A n d in t h e a f t e r l i f e w h a t
else is f e a r i n g b u t n o t w a x i n g p r o u d against t h e L o r d
of m a j e s t y ? W h a t is t h a t f e a r b u t willing s u b j e c t i o n ,
obedience without coercion, reverence voluntarily
o f f e r e d ? H o w is t h a t f e a r , w h i c h is n o t a f r a i d of giving
o f f e n c e ? I n d e e d it is i n c a p a b l e of giving o f f e n c e . B u t
again, h o w is t h a t n o t f e a r , w h i c h d o e s n o t d a r e t o
give o f f e n c e ? So it seems in o n e r e s p e c t n o t t o b e
fear, b e c a u s e it has n o d r e a d of sin or d a n g e r , a n d in
a n o t h e r r e s p e c t t o b e f e a r , b e c a u s e it v e n t u r e s u p o n
n o t h i n g b o l d or rash.
W h a t is t h a t f e a r b u t h u m b l e r e v e r e n c e , o f f e r e d of
necessity b e c a u s e it is d u e b u t s u f f e r i n g n o c o n s t r a i n t
of necessity? O u r o b l i g a t i o n t o w o r s h i p exists b y
reason of o u r c r e a t u r e h o o d b u t o u r f r e e d o m t o love
d o e s n o t a d v e r t t o an obligation. W h a t is t h a t f e a r
b u t a lack of t e m e r i t y a n d negligence r a t h e r t h a n t h e
c o e r c i o n of obligation? D o y o u see h o w closely this
f e a r a p p r o x i m a t e s c h a r i t y ? It is a l m o s t b u t n o t q u i t e
c h a r i t y . It d i f f e r s f r o m c h a r i t y in its cause b u t it is
equal in its a f f e c t i o n . D o y o u ask f o r w h a t cause it
d i f f e r s ? It d i f f e r s b e c a u s e an i n f e r i o r c r e a t u r e m u s t
observe every n o d o f a M a j e s t y so great. This obliga-
t i o n is i n c u m b e n t u p o n y o u in j u s t i c e , b u t c h a r i t y
d o e s n o t l o o k t o t h a t m o t i v e ; c h a r i t y is carried a w a y
b y a d m i r a t i o n f o r t h e divine M a j e s t y w i t h o u t a glance
at its o w n l o w l y r a n k . T h e r e f o r e t h a t m o t i v e w h i c h
fear r e s p e c t s , c h a r i t y disregards, f o r c h a r i t y is c o m -
 Sermon Nineteen 247

pelled by more powerful motives.

8. In their motives then, fear and love differ,
though they are akin in obedience and freedom of
affection. So the first fear dreads punishment; the
second deprivation; the third dreads neither. The
first, perfect charity banishes; the second charity
tolerates for an interval; the third charity makes its
inseparable companion. This third fear, daughters of
Jerusalem, you must capture. Beware of the first,
which charity sends packing: 'He inlaid the center
with charity.' In mentioning the center he intends
the whole to be understood. Let charity inlay, let
charity clothe the center of your heart. This is your
wedding dress and this your dowry. If this is
demanded of a wedding guest, how much more will
be expected of a bride? Charity desires to occupy
ahead of time and possess all the corners of your
mind alone. Do not share them with a degenerate and
foreign affection. The inlay of charity is soft and
delicate; not even for an instant is it willing to be
offended by a disagreeable fear. 'For the sake of the
daughters of Jerusalem', our text continues. And
rightly, since 'peace is universal for those who love
your law'.* Ps 118:165
If anyone takes pride in grace conferred, how
much more should y o u ! For although it is granted
that the wealth of spiritual gifts is great, still charity
surpasses them all. Charity not only surpasses, it in-
cludes them all. Charity is both delightful and
wealthy. Then as the psalm states, it is 'amid the
chosen lots'* of the virtues and in the communion of Ps 67:14
spiritual graces that one sleeps on the inlay of char-
ity. Being in the center charity shares with all and
being better than all, draws all the virtues to a peak.
'Strive then for the better gifts',* daughters of 1 Co 12:31
Jerusalem, but especially that you may have charity
and have it more abundantly;* pass wholly into the 2 Co 2:4
affection of love, for wholly lovable is our Beloved,
Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns forever and ever.
Amen.
 NOTES ON SERMON NINETEEN

1. G. seems to have written this to one individual but to have adapted it

for a congregation o f nuns: vos . . . dedicatae, 1; sanctae mulieres, last sentence,
par. 2;vos, filiae Jerusalem, 8; Notice however: pro viribus tuis, par. 2; tibi, par. 3 ;
tu, par. 4 ; vides, par. 5; vides, par. 6.
2. On this par. see Lam 17, nn. 71, 7 2 ; 18, n. 77.
3. Read laetata for laetatus to agree with virgo at the end of par. 5,
despite Mab., Migne, mss Paris 9 6 0 5 and Troyes 4 1 9 .
4. Reading indicium for iudicium, with Migne, mss Paris 9 6 0 5 and
Troyes 4 1 9 .

248
 SERMON 20
AFFECTIVE CONTEMPLATION

The bride contemplates affectively his cross and

his crown. 1. The daughters of Sion are invited
to Solomon's wedding; 2. they are invited to
contemplation gradually; 3. the cloistered are
invited but must not go unescorted. 4. The
whole life of the Beloved is a passionate
invitation; 5. exhalted mysteries invite the
exalted; humbler mysteries, especially his pas-
sion, invite all. 6. The cross of his historical
body was also his crown; 7. the circle of
believers, especially the cloistered, must be a
crown not of thorns but of pure gold. 8. A
crown is a continuous circle in unity elevated
in hope; you are united in the flesh in this
circle of the Church, and she is united in the
Spirit with her Bridegroom. 9. Rejoice, O faith-
ful soul; rejoice, O chosen bride, with your
Bridegroom rejoicing in this espousal. 10. O
bridegroom, engrave these mysteries on our
stony hearts.

GO F O R T H AND BEHOLD KING SOLOMON IN

THE DIADEM WITH WHICH HIS MOTHER
C R O W N E D HIM ON T H E D A Y O F HIS W E D D I N G ,
ON T H E D A Y O F HIS G L A D N E S S OF H E A R T * 1 Sg3:ll

Y
ou have heard whither the daughters of
Sion have been invited, but you have not
yet heard whence they are bidden go forth.
That the text does not explain. Whence

249
250 Gilbert of Hoyland

t h e n is it? F r o m Sion? B u t ' t h e G o d of g o d s will b e

Ps 83:8 seen in S i o n ' . * N o t f r o m Sion t h e n are t h e d a u g h t e r s
called w h o m t h e t e x t s u m m o n s t o see G o d . A r e t h e y
s u m m o n e d p e r h a p s n o t t o t h e sight of G o d b u t t o see
'Solomon in the diadem with which his mother
c r o w n e d h i m ' ? T h e n t h e r e is n o d i f f i c u l t y in b i d d i n g a
daughter of Sion go forth from Sion. But was
Solomon n o t b o r n in Sion? T h e r e f o r e if t h e y are
s u m m o n e d f r o m Sion, t h e y are o n l y s u m m o n e d t o
Sion, f r o m t h e u p p e r Sion t o t h e l o w e r Sion. F o r it
Ps 86:5 seems2* neither worthy nor consistent that the
d a u g h t e r s of Sion s h o u l d d e p a r t f r o m Sion, especially
to see h i m w h o s e dwelling-place is in Sion a n d w h o
was b o r n t h e r e . 3 I r e m e m b e r t h e e x p l a n a t i o n of an
e l o q u e n t a n d l e a r n e d m a n w h e n t r e a t i n g this passage:
' T h o s e w h o are b i d d e n go f o r t h , seem t o b e in t h e
w r o n g p l a c e . ' 3 What h e said suited t h e o c c a s i o n well
e n o u g h ; he d i r e c t e d his c o m m e n t t o t h e a d v a n t a g e
of his a u d i e n c e . T o m e , h o w e v e r , t h e d a u g h t e r s t o
w h o m these w o r d s of e x h o r t a t i o n are a d d r e s s e d s e e m
t o b e well p l a c e d . W h e r e is t h a t y o u ask. U p o n t h e
g o l d e n c o u c h , t h e s u b j e c t of y e s t e r d a y ' s s e r m o n . It is
a d e l i g h t f u l place a n d p r o d u c t i v e of m o r e j o y f u l n e s s
t h a n h u m a n a f f e c t i o n can conceive. T h e excess of
delight e x h a u s t s itself a n d o v e r f l o w i n g p l e a s u r e d r a i n s
t h e spirit. T h i s j o y is i n t e r m i t t e n t ; it c a n n o t b e c o n -
t i n u o u s , b e c a u s e it is excessive. Y e t t h o s e i n t e r r u p -
t i o n s are g o o d , w h e n t h e r e is n o p a r t i n g f r o m t h e
B r i d e g r o o m . It is n o t given t o a n y o n e w h o is dwelling
in t h e flesh t o possess t h e golden c o u c h as a n inheri-
t a n c e . So t h e d a u g h t e r s of Sion are b i d d e n go f o r t h ,
but as if one cautioned them: 'Do not go too
far o f f . '

2. ' G o f o r t h ' , says t h e t e x t , ' a n d b e h o l d King

Solomon in the diadem with which his mother
crowned him.' The speaker does not wish the
d a u g h t e r s t o p a r t f r o m Christ, w h e t h e r t h e y experi-
ence a t r a n s p o r t of m i n d or w h e t h e r t h e y r e t u r n t o
2 Co 5:13 s o b r i e t y . * A g o o d s o b r i e t y is s i m p l i c i t y of f a i t h ,
f o r t h e gaze of t h e b e h o l d e r s can e n d u r e it a n d b e
e n c o u r a g e d b y it. H a p p y t h e one w h o in d e s c e n d i n g
is w e l c o m e d on this level of faith and w h o in
 Sermon Twenty 251

ascending begins on this level. Indeed this is the first

stage of c o n t e m p l a t i o n e n c o u n t e r e d b y those w h o are
ascending. Eagerness f o r c o n t e m p l a t i o n is good, b u t
knowledge is necessary. You are ready and robed t o
set o u t f o r that golden couch, a place designed for
c o n t e m p l a t i o n . I approve y o u r enthusiasm, b u t wait
while I s h o w y o u the steps and set the pace. T h e
golden c o u c h is a l o o k o u t and a very l o f t y l o o k o u t ,
soaring above all the clouds of earthly vapor. With
y o u r inexperience, w h y are you r e a d y t o make one
leap t o t h e t o p ? Get d o w n on y o u r hands a n d knees,
like t h e lizard.in Proverbs,* that y o u m a y learn t o Pr 30:28
f r e q u e n t the palace of King S o l o m o n . For the present
crawl, until y o u are swept upwards. F o r t h e psalm
says t h a t 'he has prepared ascents', n o t leaps, 'in his
heart'.* T h e t i m e will come, however, w h e n the Ps 83:6.
183, n. Lam

ascent will be changed i n t o a leap or rather into an

assumption. What are these ascents b u t purifications
of the mind? Hence they occur 'in the vale of
tears',* because transgressions washed w i t h tears are Ps 83:7.
193, Lam
n. 155
purged. H a p p y the one w h o has shed tears enough in
the little bed of his heart, w h o has l a m e n t e d enough,
whose sorrow has reached t h e brim, for whose con-
solation divine inspiration whispers t o s u m m o n him
f r o m the vale of tears, whose eye is n o t disturbed
by the f u r y of t h e J u d g e , t h a t he m a y bravely gaze
u p o n King S o l o m o n with tranquil c o u n t e n a n c e 'on
the day w h e n j o y gladdens his h e a r t ' .

3. 'Go f o r t h , daughters of Sion, and b e h o l d King

Solomon.' T h e y are indeed held w o r t h y of this joy-
ful vision w h o have cloistered themselves u n d e r a
penitential rule and confined themselves b y the
observance of discipline, 'whose soul refuses t o be
consoled'.* Would y o u learn h o w good seclusion is? Ps 76:3
'A garden enclosed, a f o u n t a i n sealed.'* 4 'Arise, Sg4:12
hasten, m y love, and come.'* Do y o u see n o w h o w he Sg 2:10
invites and calls his love, because she knows h o w to
cloister herself? But if y o u have been daughters
cloistered, refuse to c o m e f o r t h until Christ invites
y o u . Dinah came f o r t h u n e s c o r t e d ; she c a m e f o r t h t o
see n o t King S o l o m o n b u t the w o m e n of t h a t
district.* Y o u k n o w w h a t she f o u n d . As f o r y o u , Gn 34:1
252 Gilbert of Hoyland

r e f u s e t o go f o r t h , e x c e p t w h e n either t h e Bride-
g r o o m or his c o m p a n i o n s invite y o u . L a z a r u s c a m e
Jn 11:43-44 forth when t h e L o r d recalled h i m t o life.* N o a h
w e n t f o r t h f r o m t h e ark, a cloister w h i c h k e p t h i m
unharmed f r o m t h e billows of this w o r l d ; b u t he
disembarked w h e n the Lord opened the hatches for
Gn 8:16 h i m . * A b r a h a m e m i g r a t e d f r o m his o w n l a n d t o see
t h e l a n d of p r o m i s e ; b u t he e m i g r a t e d in o b e d i e n c e
Gn 12:1 t o a call.* Y o u also c o m e f o r t h , d a u g h t e r s of S i o n ,
invited t o t h e grace of a h a p p i e r vision. I m p r i s o n e d
and w o e f u l l y i m p r i s o n e d is o n e w h o n e i t h e r e n d e a -
vors n o r deserves t o c o m e f o r t h t o this blessed vision.
T o b e i m p r i s o n e d is t h e l o t of a slave; t o go f o r t h
is t h e l o t of t h e f r e e . In Paul's w o r d s , w h e n you
' t u r n t o t h e L o r d , t h e veil will b e r e m o v e d ' , t h e veil
of i g n o r a n c e and i g n o b i l i t y ; f o r ' t h e L o r d is t h e
Spirit. W h e r e t h e Spirit of t h e L o r d is, t h e r e is f r e e -
2 Co 3:16-17 d o m ' . * Where t h e r e is g r e a t e r a b u n d a n c e of spirit,
there is m o r e p l e n t i f u l f r e e d o m . W h a t e v e r is im-
p r i s o n e d a n d w r a p p e d in a w i n d i n g c l o t h has little
freedom to breathe.
4. G o f o r t h t h e n , d a u g h t e r s of Sion, t h a t w i t h
Paul y o u m a y b e able t o s a y : 'But w e all, w i t h faces
unveiled, r e f l e c t i n g as in a m i r r o r t h e g l o r y of t h e
2 Co 3:18 L o r d , are b e i n g t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o his very i m a g e . ' *
T h e vision of G o d is always t o b e w e l c o m e d w i t h
affection 1 . A n d t r u l y e f f e c t i v e a n d p a s s i o n a t e is t h e
vision of y o u r s e l f , g o o d J e s u s , w h i c h carries o f f t h e
a f f e c t i o n s of t h o s e w h o gaze u p o n it. D i d Moses n o t
s u f f e r s o m e gentle passion in his longing t o cross
Ex 3:3 over a n d see t h a t g r e a t vision?* W o u l d y o u like t o
h e a r h o w e f f e c t i v e it is? ' W h e n I a m l i f t e d u p f r o m
Jn 12:32 t h e e a r t h , I will d r a w all things t o m y s e l f . ' * But
w h e n y o u are h u m b l e d t o t h e e a r t h , d o y o u n o t d r a w
all spirits t o y o u r s e l f ? F o r m y p a r t , g o o d J e s u s , I d o
n o t await t h e glory of y o u r r e s u r r e c t i o n n o r save m y
w o n d e r f o r y o u r p o w e r as y o u a s c e n d i n t o h e a v e n ;
f r o m the very b e g i n n i n g of y o u r a n n u n c i a t i o n or of
y o u r n a t i v i t y t h e angelic voices ring in m y ears, t h e
n e w tale a m a z e s m e , a n d t h e u n w o n t e d light risen in
t h e d a r k n e s s sweeps m e t o w a r d s itself.
A n a k e d vision, o n e w h i c h d o e s n o t translate
 Sermon Twenty 253

itself into w o r t h y affections, should be l u m p e d with

ignorance and blindness. Would y o u w e l c o m e an
example of a f r u i t f u l vision? 'The islands saw and
trembled and t h e ends of the earth were amazed and
drew near', says Isaiah.* Y o u see w h a t a harvest of Is 41:5
virtues t h e vision of G o d begets: fear, a m a z e m e n t ,
love. 'They saw', says Isaiah, 'and t r e m b l e d ; t h e y
were a m a z e d a n d d r e w near.' 'They saw' y o u so as to
u n d e r s t a n d , ' t h e y t r e m b l e d ' so as t o revere y o u , 'they
were a m a z e d ' at the novelty, 'they d r e w near' in con-
f o r m i t y . Vision c o m p r e h e n d s , fear restrains, amaze-
m e n t stuns, drawing near seizes and unites. Yes, t h e y
draw near, w h o are e n f l a m e d with zeal. Fear h u m -
bles, a m a z e m e n t infatuates, as it were, b u t love
melds t h e spirit of t h e one w h o sees.
Vain is t h e vision and u n w o r t h y of the name of
c o n t e m p l a t i o n , which is not clothed in such affec-
tions. Or will y o u a d m i t 5 that he has a vision, w h o as
a result of his knowledge of t h e m y s t e r y does n o t
fear, is n o t amazed, is not on fire? T h e spirit is
sobered b y fear, absorbed in a m a z e m e n t , and b y
drawing near is engrafted and u n i t e d . T h e grace of
c o n t e m p l a t i o n is consistent with such virtues b u t
especially w i t h a m a z e m e n t and love. F o r in amaze-
m e n t and w o n d e r , t h e mind goes o u t of itself, b u t in
love it a p p r o a c h e s the divine. Nor should the value of
c o n t e m p l a t i o n be j u d g e d so m u c h b y its s u b j e c t -
m a t t e r as b y its m a n n e r . Both should be considered:
the kinds of t r u t h s t o be c o n t e m p l a t e d and t h e degree
of their affections. But it is m o r e satisfying t o be
m o r e deeply a f f e c t e d in c o n t e m p l a t i n g a less exalted
t r u t h than to be less affected in c o n t e m p l a t i n g a
higher t r u t h . This vision is h i d d e n ' f r o m the wise and
p r u d e n t ' and revealed ' t o little ones'.* Hence Isaiah Mt 11:25
says: 'The ends o f the earth were amazed and drew
near.'
5. What t h e h u m b l e are able to grasp, usually
arouses greater a f f e c t i o n s and conveys an admiration
and love of itself. 'When I am lifted u p f r o m the
earth', says the Lord, 'I will d r a w all things t o
myself.'* Everything in you, good Jesus, has a p o w e r Jn 12:32
of a t t r a c t i o n and stirs the t h o u g h t f u l t o a f f e c t i o n ;
254 Gilbert of Hoyland

b u t n o t all of us can reach all mysteries. E x a l t e d

mysteries are for the exalted only; h u m b l e r mysteries
are f o r all. What greater humility exists t h a n t o be
exalted on a cross? Of this also t h e L o r d says:
'When I am lifted u p f r o m the earth, I will d r a w all
Jn 12:32 things to m y s e l f . ' * Such humility does n o t fail t o
attract. But w h y n o t ? Who w o u l d n o t be filled w i t h
a m a z e m e n t and ecstasy at t h e mere t h o u g h t of this
event? Whose a f f e c t i o n w o u l d faith in this event n o t
exhaust and make giddy and render helpless? Here is a
scene easy t o c o n t e m p l a t e b u t a b o u n d i n g in grace.
T h e simplicity of such faith has less u n d e r s t a n d i n g
b u t a great incentive t o admiration and love. Here is a
scene accessible to all, which gives birth t o the
sweetest of transports. Do n o t disdain this scene for
c o n t e m p l a t i o n . It is n o t difficult t o recall and it is
rich in glory. 'Far be it f r o m m e t o glory', says Paul,
Ga 6:14 'except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.'* N o w
w h a t m o r e d o you wish t o h e a t ? T h e cross itself is the
Js 62:3 c r o w n of glory, the diadem of the k i n g d o m . * O n the
cross Christ t r i u m p h e d , despoiling princes and powers
and banishing the prince of this world. Glorious is the
vision of his t r i u m p h .
6. 'Go f o r t h , daughters of Sion, and b e h o l d King
Solomon in t h e diadem with which his m o t h e r
crowned him.' See t h e flesh which he t o o k f r o m t h e
h u m a n race, t r i u m p h i n g on the w o o d . H a p p y the
flesh which Christ t o o k t o himself not as a prison cell
b u t as a crown, f o r it served him n o t as a b u r d e n b u t
as a badge. All of us have been concealed in the flesh
as if in prison cells, shackled and enslaved t o t h e law
of sin. ' U n h a p p y m a n t h a t I a m ! ' says Paul. 'Who will
deliver m e f r o m the b o d y of this death? T h e grace of
Rm 7:24-25 G o d through Jesus Christ.'* F o r 'by sending his Son
in the likeness of sinful flesh as a sin offering, G o d
Rm 8:3 c o n d e m n e d sin in the flesh'.* A u t h e n t i c flesh in
Christ, n o t feeling t h e weight of sin, carried t o us
all the palm of victory over sin. Fittingly is his imacu-
late b o d y u n d e r s t o o d as a diadem, the b o d y of his
t r i u m p h , t h e b o d y of his h o n o r and glory, the b o d y
in whose b l o o d the hand-written b o n d of sin is
Col 2:14 b l o t t e d o u t , * the charter of justice and salvation
 Sermon Twenty 255

signed, and t h e w e d d i n g c o n t r a c t s settled. Scriptur-

ally, this is t h e day of b e t r o t h a l w h e n , rejecting t h e
ancient rites, Christ instituted t h e new sacraments of
the Church, w h e n as a sign of u n e n d i n g m a t r i m o n y
and nuptial u n i o n , a blending of b l o o d and water
flowed f r o m his side. T o d a y he gave t h e Synagogue a
writ of divorce a n d f r o m his f o r m e r spouse n o w full
of hate, he passed t o his later and beloved bride. He
passed f r o m an old t o a n e w bride, w h o m he
presented t o himself 'glorious, w i t h o u t spot or
wrinkle or any such blemish'.* The sign of her new- Eph 5:27
ness is t h a t she is w i t h o u t wrinkle. Christ s m o o t h e d
out t h e wrinkles of t h e letter and d r e w f o r t h t h e
newness within it. Why, O daughters of Sion and of
the Synagogue, d o y o u seek to restore the wrinkles
which Christ s m o o t h e d out? When the n e w super-
sede, w h y c o n t i n u e t o take pride in the old? 'Emerge,
daughters of Sion', f r o m the l a b y r i n t h of the letter,
f r o m an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n narrow and obscure. 'Emerge
and b e h o l d King S o l o m o n with the diadem with
which his m o t h e r crowned h i m . ' T h e incarnation
which y o u regard as c o n t u m e l y , for us is a crown.
Behold a t last h o w he blessed 'the c r o w n of the year
of his b o u n t y , h o w his fields have b e e n filled with
fruitfulness'.* ps 64:12
Behold the c r o w n ; b e h o l d also t h e harvest—a
q o w n of victory, a harvest of virtues. Whence comes
the harvest, if n o t because the grain of w h e a t fell into
the g r o u n d and died?* Again 'this is the victory Jn 12:24
which overcomes the world, our f a i t h ' . * A n d the host 1 Jn 5:4
of believers is itself a crown and an a d o r n m e n t for
Christ. ' Y o u shall be a crown of glory in the hand of
the L o r d ' , says Isaiah, 'and a diadem of the kingdom
in the h a n d of y o u r G o d . ' * D o y o u appropriate Is 62:3
these words to yourselves? Or is the n a m e of G o d n o t
blasphemed through you? 'Emerge, daughters of
Sion', and b e h o l d h o w glorious God is in his saints, in
the hope perhaps that this vision m a y provoke you to
emulation and make you pass from your loneliness t o
the c o m p a n i o n s h i p of t h e C h u r c h . Even if y o u were a
spouse a b a n d o n e d , now, however, Isaiah continues,
'you shall n o long er be called " f o r s a k e n " nor
256 Gilbert of Hoyland

Is 62:4 your land "desolate" '.*

7. But now let us cease addressing ourselves to
outsiders. Let us rather take pleasure ourselves in
beholding how the oases of the desert are already
growing fertile, how Christ in his Church wears a
crown of believers. 'What is our hope' and 'our crown
1 Th 2:19 of glory? Is it not you, before the Lord.'* If Paul says
this, should Christ not say it even more? 'As I live',
says the Lord, 'you shall be arrayed with them all as
Is 49:18 with an ornament.'* Have you noticed 6 how the
ranks of believers are described as an ornament of
Christ in the Church? Why are they not also a crown?
Above other ornaments, a crown manifests a striking
and brilliant dignity, for while other ornaments
are for the body, a crown is for the head. The
occasions on which the crown is worn enhance this
dignity; it is reserved for solemn festivals.
I see that your interest is at last aroused; now you
are referring to yourselves the interpretation of this
word. 7 In the right to a crown you already see your
own prerogative, because you are drawn together by
the profession of a purer life, schooled in its
practice, unflagging in enthusiasm for it and exultant
in its peace. 8 Rightly are they considered entitled to
the diadem who are no longer called to arms but
rather celebrate a triumph, whose 'joust is no longer
Eph 6-12 against flesh and blood', who no longer eye the head
Nb 21:7-9 of a serpent but adorn the head of Christ.* You are
Christ's crown and joy and therefore, as you have
begun, so stand firm, most dearly beloved, 'so stand
Ph 4:1 firm in the Lord' or rather so encircle the Lord.*
Yours is a lofty position; carry there no cheaper
1 Co 1:26 material. 'Consider your own calling';* consider to
what service you have been elevated. Do not weave
any 'hay, wood or straw' into the Lord's diadem,
nothing in a word which might either deserve or
1 Co 3:12-13 dread the fire.* Tangled thorns may be burnt in the
Is 33:12 fire.* 'Do not rival evildoers't or envy those who set
fPs 36:1 a crown of thorns on the hekd of our King. Such a
diadem brings not honor but horror. Christ has a
greater horror of harsh manners and sharp tongues
than of the pricks of thorns, especially in people
 Sermon Twenty 257

who have been called to the simplicity of silence, to

the commerce of charity, to the repose of leisure, to
the school of humility, to a vow of obedience and to
the bond of unity. 9 But it is not a good bond when
people plot together and form a ring to disparage
others, saying after the fashion of the Jews: Let us
do away with 'the just one, because he is obnoxious
to us and opposes our actions'.* But always court the Ws 2:12
blessing of peace from a good motive.* Ga 4:18
8. Then again the shape of a crown presents
some sign of unity. Not only should the material of a
crown be weighed but its shape also offers grounds for
attractive considerations. For the shape of a crown
not o'nly forms a continuous circle but also is some-
what elevated. Would you like an example of this
clinging together and this single elevation? 'The
believers', we read in Acts, 'had a single heart and a
single soul.'* What is the purpose of this unity? It is Ac 4:32
surely 'for the hope which is stored up' for us among
the heavenly.* Already then you have this con- Col 1:5
tinuous circle in unity and this elevation in hope.
Again the apostle says: 'Don the helmet of salva-
tion.'* Fittingly is mention made of a helmet, since Eph 6:17
it has some resemblance to a crown. Each is worn on
the head, one as a protection, the other as an orna-
ment. So there is nothing to prevent hope being
related to each 'for in hope we were saved'.* Let Rm 8:24
these succinct remarks about the shape of the crown
be sufficient. About its material, why do you ask?
For you know yourselves that a lofty position scorns
fragile and cheap material. It wants gold and precious
stones. Indeed 'you have placed upon his head a
crown of precious stones'.* Golden are the crowns of Ps 20:4
which you read in the Apocalypse.* The material is Rv 4:4
precious, whether it is solid gold or a mixture of gold
and gems. But the psalm seems to suggest some greater
measure of grace, because in omitting any mention of
gold, the psalm claims: 'You have placed upon his
head a crown of precious stones.'

But I intend to show you a still more excellent

material: 'A great sign appeared in heaven, a woman
clothed with the sun . . . and upon her head a crown
258 Gilbert of Hoyland

Rv 12:1 of twelve stars.'* T h u s y o u are s h o w n t h e choir of t h e

apostles i n their n u m b e r a n d s p l e n d o r , f o r ' t h o s e w h o
i n s t r u c t m a n y ' in w i s d o m 'shall shine like stars f o r
Dn 12:3 ages u n e n d i n g ' . * T h i s c r o w n of b r o t h e r s s t o o d in a
Lk 24:36 circle a r o u n d J e s u s , as L u k e w r o t e . * In t h e Apo-
calypse also are ' m a n y d i a d e m s on t h e h e a d ' of t h e
Rv 19:12 B r i d e g r o o m , * a c c o r d i n g t o t h e diversity o f graces a n d
degrees. B u t o n e is p r e - e m i n e n t , t h a t w i t h w h i c h he
Sg3:ll was c r o w n e d on his w e d d i n g d a y , * on t h e d a y o n
w h i c h he e s p o u s e d t h e C h u r c h a m o n g his disciples. He
e s p o u s e d h e r in f a i t h , h e e s p o u s e d h e r b y s e t t i n g in
t h e i r h e a r t s a n e a r n e s t a n d a pledge a n d t h e first
2 Co 1:22; f r u i t s of t h e Spirit.* A n espousal is likewise called a
Rm 8.23 sharing in t h e Spirit, w h e n a n y o n e clings t o G o d a n d
1 Co 6:17 t h e r e exists n o t t w o ' b u t o n e s p i r i t ' . * In s c r i p t u r a l
w o r d s , Christ also is t h e M a n w h o l e f t F a t h e r a n d
m o t h e r t o cling t o his w i f e , a n d t h e y b e c a m e t w o in
Cn 2:24; one f l e s h . * O blessed e x c h a n g e ! [O faithful soul],
Ep 5.31-2 yQU w e r e macJe w i t h t h e b r i d e in o n e flesh, a n d she
w a s m a d e w i t h t h e B r i d e g r o o m in o n e s p i r i t ! 1 0
9. H o w y o u o u g h t t o have r e j o i c e d over such a
wedding, f a i t h f u l soul! How you ought to have
Ps 75:11 r e j o i c e d a n d k e p t high h o l i d a y ! * Dress u p , dress u p
Is 52:1 in t h e r o b e s of y o u r g l o r y , h o l y c i t y , * b r i d e o f t h e
L a m b ; rejoice and b e glad, O Sion u n i t e d t o C h r i s t !
H o w will y o u n o t r e j o i c e while he h i m s e l f rejoices?
'The Bridegroom will r e j o i c e over t h e b r i d e ' , says
Is 62:5 Isaiah, ' a n d y o u r G o d will rejoice over y o u . ' * B u t
w i t h h o w m u c h j o y ? ' O n t h e d a y of his b e t h r o t h a l ' ,
says t h e Canticle, ' a n d o n t h e d a y of t h e gladness of
Sg3:ll his heart.'* No slight emotion of gladness was
intended, for the text mentioned the joy of his
h e a r t . D o I say gladness? It is sheer d e l i g h t . ' M y
delights', w e r e a d in P r o v e r b s , 'are t o b e w i t h t h e
Pr 8:31 c h i l d r e n of m e n . ' * H o w d e a r l y t h o s e j o y s cost y o u ,
g o o d J e s u s ! Y o u d o n o t w i n t h e m f r e e of cost, f o r
y o u p u r c h a s e d t h e m b y s u f f e r i n g in y o u r flesh. T h e r e -
fore the Canticle attributes this gladness to the
h e a r t alone.
It is an' insult t o t h e B r i d e g r o o m , if while h e
rejoices y o u d o n o t a p p l a u d f r o m y o u r h e a r t , d o n o t
c o n g r a t u l a t e h i m , a n d fail t o r e j o i c e w i t h h i m . It is
 Sermon Twenty 259

akin t o disdain or s c o r n n o t t o 'rejoice w i t h o n e w h o

rejoices'* particularly on t h e d a y of his w e d d i n g . Rm 12:15
Whose b e a u t y will c a p t i v a t e y o u r a f f e c t i o n if n o t his
w h o is ' h a n d s o m e in f o r m b e y o n d t h e c h i l d r e n o f
m e n ' ? * R e j o i c i n g , rejoice in t h e L o r d , * a n d let y o u r Ps 44:3
soul e x u l t in y o u r B r i d e g r o o m , in y o u r G o d ; f o r if h e ^
were not God—but a man and nothing more—how
m a n y e n t i c e m e n t s t o love w o u l d such a m a n y e t have
in h i m s e l f , e n d o w e d w i t h such a b u n d a n c e of graces?
F o r if y o u begin t o c o u n t his graces f r o m t h e m o -
ment of c o n c e p t i o n , he will s e e m t o y o u wholly
d e c k e d w i t h stars t o t h e limit of m a n ' s lot, n o t o n l y
in t h e u n i q u e n e s s b u t also in t h e e x c e l l e n c e of his
virtues, a m a n ' i n n o c e n t , u n d e f i l e d , set a p a r t f r o m
sinners', n o t t o m e n t i o n f o r t h e m o m e n t t h a t he
' b e c a m e e x a l t e d a b o v e t h e h e a v e n s ' , * b u t t h a t h e is Heb 1:26
able ' t o have c o m p a s s i o n o n o u r i n f i r m i t i e s , w a s tried
i n all things as we are, e x c e p t sin'.* G r a c e w a s p o u r e d Heb 4:15
o u t o n his lips,* m e r c y in his h e a r t , v i r t u e in his Lk 1:78
h a n d s ; * h e w a s w i t h o u t peer in his c o n d u c t , a p p r o a c h - 1 Ch 29:12
able in his 'talk; t h e r e was p r u d e n c e in his answers,* Lk 2:47
life in his w o r d s . What of t h e f a c t t h a t h e w a s c o n -
ceived b y f a i t h , b o r n o f a virgin, n o t s w a l l o w e d u p in
d e a t h b u t t a k e n u p in glory?

10. I say n o t h i n g n o w of t h e n u m b e r of believers

nor of t h e m e r i t s of t h e peoples w h o m h e u n i t e d w i t h
himself in f a i t h a n d c h a r i t y b y s e n d i n g t h e Spirit.* O Lam 7, nn. 10, 13
surely Christ is t h e ' d e e p m y s t e r y of godliness', t h e
goad o f love; h e was m a d e visible a n d t o r t u r e d in t h e
flesh, j u s t i f i e d in t h e spirit. H e a p p e a r e d to the
angels, was p r o c l a i m e d t o t h e gentiles, believed in b y
t h e w o r l d a n d t a k e n u p i n t o g l o r y ! * W h o will grant 1 Tm3:16
m e o f t e n t o h a v e discourse u p o n a n d r e c o u r s e to
these lines, a n d a t each a n d every degree of his vir-
tues a n d d e e d s t o a s k : ' L o r d , w h o is like y o u ? ' * Who Ps 34:10
will grant t h a t t h e s e w o r d s b e w r i t t e n in m y h e a r t ,
c u t w i t h a stylus, engraved as it w e r e o n granite never
t o b e e f f a c e d ? * A g o o d stylus is y o u r finger, O L o r d , Jb 19:23-24
t h e finger w i t h w h i c h y o u wrote on the ground
h i d d e n w o r d s , w o r d s w h o s e p o w e r accusers could
n o t b e a r . * B e n d d o w n , m y G o d , a n d carve o n m y Jn 8:6-9
h e a r t t h e tables of y o u r l a w . * S t o n y is m y h e a r t b u t Dt 10:1-4
260 Gilbert of Hoyland

hard rock forgets its nature at the impress of

your finger, ready to yield where you engrave.
Now we have already spoken at length about the
reason why the bride should rejoice and be glad on
the wedding day of her Beloved, the day of his heart's
gladness. There is great cause for rejoicing on this
day, such as to surpass the limits of man's heart and
affections. No extrinsic rejoicing need be introduced
here; sufficient for the day is its own rejoicing.
Gentle you are, O Lord, and your spirit, a loving
spirit, has been sent upon us. By faith and love you
join the souls of men to you with the affection of a
Bridegroom and you rejoice over their conversion.
Hard is the heart which robs itself of the grounds for
this rejoicing, minimizes its occasions, lessens its
reasons. O how shameless and ungrateful am I, if I
do not love such a one, so free from corruption and
moved by such compassion towards me, not subject
to necessity and steadfast in loving-kindness. I will
love you, sweet Lord, if not for myself, at least for
yourself, that I may satisfy your desire, afford you
grounds for delight, reasons for rejoicing on your
wedding day, the day of the gladness of your heart.
 NOTES ON SERMON T W E N T Y

1. The first four paragraphs seem to have been written for one individual;
par. 8 has the singular address, vis, habes, tibi, along with the plural. Adaptation is
evident in the first sentence o f par. 1, in vultis and videtis o f par. 4, while par. 5-7
have plurals o f address. The text and treatment would be appropriate for nuns;
confirmatory evidence from the text is ambiguous, for si conclusae estis, o f par. 3
could be an apostrophe to the daughters o f Sion, with an obvious allusion to
women or to men in cloister. The sic state, charissimi, is not conclusive, since it is
a scriptural quotation, and could include men and women. S 2 0 ends without the
usual prayer and flows smoothly into S 2 1 .
2. Reading videndum for vivendum with Migne, Paris, 9 6 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 .
3. Possibly G. refers to Bernard o f Clairvaux, whom in S 2 2 : 1 , G. calls
eruditus et eloquens, not unlike the preacher here who is disertus et eruditus.
Cornelius a Lapide 8 : 2 7 , quotes a written c o m m e n t o f Bernard on the verse G. is
discussing, which would fit G.'s description without being the words Gilbert
heard and quoted. G. quotes: Male locatae videntur quae jubentur egredi.
Bernard wrote: Egredimini de sensu carnis ad intellectum mentis, de servitude
carnalis concupiscentiae ad libertatem spiritualis intelligentiae. Egredimini de
terra vestra et de cognatione vestra et de domo patris vestri . . , (Sermo in epi-
phania Domini SBOp 4 : 3 0 2 )
4. See Bouton, 'Fiches Cisterciennes,' p. 2 3 9 .
5. diffinies, Flor., Mab., mss. Paris 6 9 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 ; d e f i n i e s , Migne.
6. Reading advertistis with mss. Paris 9 6 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 ; Mab. and Migne:
advertisti[ see L a m 1 3 , nn. 4 2 - 4 4 .
7. See B o u t o n , 'Fiches Cisterciens,' pp. 2 3 9 - 4 0 .
8. Leclercq, 'Otia Monastica' 9 3 : 4 8 .
9. Leclercq, 'Otia Monastica,' 9 3 : 4 7 and 4 9 , 1 1 9 : 2 5 ; L a m 10, n. 3 1 ; 17,
n. 6 9 ; 1 7 5 , n. 3 5 ; 1 7 6 , n. 4 0 .
10. O beatum commercium! facta es cum sponsa in came una, et ipsa cum
sponso in uno spiritu, Flor., Mab., Migne; for the first Adam becoming the first
Eve, see S 1 4 : 5 . G. does not express the vocative or nominative feminine subject
of facta es, which in the trans, is added in square brackets: [O faithful s o u l ] . This
faithful soul includes the individual addressed, the crown o f apostles, and the
Church, and is found in the next sentence, the first o f par. 9. Though the transla-
tor must take responsibility for this solution, I wish to acknowledge assistance
from Martinus Cawley OCSO, F . E . Crowe SJ, and R . A. F , MacKenzie SJ, who
steered me away from extravagant speculation.

261
 SERMON 21
WONDER O V E R HIS TWO N A T U R E S

With wonder the bride contemplates the two

natures in one Person. 1. Angels descend to
marvel at the mysteries of the Incarnation.
2. We can imitate the angels in reverence for
one who brings the good news. 3. Angels leave
the wine-cellar of heaven to wonder at the
inebriating chalice of the Incarnation, the
union of two natures in one Person. 4. Be jubi-
lant over his plenty; amazed at his prudence;
enamored of his piety. 5. His Church adorns,
encompasses, and crowns her Beloved. 6. There
is one day of the espousals, the crowning, and
the joy; in the heart of Christ is the place for
daughters of Jerusalem.

GO FORTH, DAUGHTERS OF SION, AND

BEHOLD KING SOLOMON IN THE DIADEM WITH
WHICH HIS MOTHER CROWNED HIM ON THE
DAY OF HIS BETROTHAL AND HIS JOYFUL-
NESS OF H E A R T * 1 Sg:ll

Y
ou also, O daughters of the heavenly Sion,
daughters of the Jerusalem which is in
heaven, I make bold confidently to invite
to rejoice at this vision. You are the true
and full daughters of Sion, for you 'always gaze u p o n
tiie face of the Father'.* You, I say, you hosts of Mt 18:10
many thousands of angels, you I invite and s u m m o n .
'Come f o r t h and b e h o l d ' ; come f o r t h f r o m the hidden
bosom of inmost vision, f r o m the mystery of light

263
264 Gilbert of Hoyland

1 Tm 6:16 inaccessible.* Our earth offers you a new spectacle,

for the Lord has wrought something new upon earth.
I am luring you from the eternal to the terrestrial.
This invitation is a surprise, but somehow the eternal
realities which in themselves are ever new and wonder-
ful show a newer and more wonderful brilliance in
the new reality wrought upon earth. 2
O blessed is this revolution in time and space,
which more fully renewed that ancient and eternal
revolution revealed to angels! The Lord 'will bring
about' something new upon earth: 'a woman will
Jr31:22 encompass a man'.* Who is this man? 'Behold a
Zc 6:12 man', says Zechariah, 'whose name is the Day-Star.'*
The Day-Star, the splendor of eternal light, is en-
compassed in the womb of a woman—yes, in a virginal
womb—and clothed in flesh. This is that revolution
which by the very excess of its novelty would now be
beggaring belief, if faith had not previously been
fostered by unprecedented signs. Amid so many mani-
fest testimonies of prophecies and prodigies in
Scripture, the wits of some have been so stunned by
this new wonder that as long as they reject faith in
this wonder they do not attune their belief to the
most unimpeachable evidence.
But why do I invite you to come forth, you
angels who everywhere anticipate and guide the
apostles themselves? Everywhere you are eager to
marvel at and proclaim this revolution. 3 An angel
Lk 1:26-38 announces to Mary the Lord's conception;* an angel
announces his birth to the shepherds. Indeed not
only to the shepherds but to the angels themselves an
angel seems to have made the announcement. One
proclaims, while the others applaud. 'There was with
the angel', says Luke, 'a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God and singing: Glory to God in the
Lk 2:8-14 highest.'* One announces what the others knew
equally well and yet they hear as something new and
recent what could not be unknown to them. O
blessed is this wonderful news which affords joy to
the hearing of angels and which makes them delight
in listening and, as it were, learning again f r o m
another what truth itself taught them from the
 Sermon Twenty-One 265

beginning! O h u m b l e and unwearied devotion, b o t h

t o w a r d s G o d a n d t o w a r d s one a n o t h e r !
2. Here is s o m e t h i n g and O! t h a t we h u m a n s
would b e h o l d it or rather hold it fast! What is it?
T h a t a f t e r t h e example of the angels w e w o u l d lend a
h u m b l e and attentive hearing t o a stranger's account,
even in m a t t e r s w h e r e we are n o t ignorant. N o t t h a t
he is a stranger w h o is f r o m G o d , unless we consider
ourselves strangers f r o m G o d . Even if he is a stranger,
his message f r o m G o d invests h i m w i t h a u t h o r i t y . To
have a distaste f o r w h a t is k n o w n is a sign either of
idle curiosity or of c o n t u m a c y . T h e angelic spirits
t o w h o m t h e m y s t e r y of the Incarnation was made
k n o w n f r o m the beginning do n o t w i t h h o l d their
w o n d e r at t h e revelation of this novelty, and their
longstanding knowledge rejoices and is overjoyed
not only at seeing b u t also at hearing t h e news. 'At
the end of the ages'* Christ came f o r t h ; t h e r e f o r e Dn 11:13
t h e y also c o m e f o r t h . His coming f o r t h is also f r o m
the days of e t e r n i t y . * But at t h e end of the ages, his Mi 5:2
coming f o r t h is f r o m the w o m b of t h e w o m a n w h o
encompassed h i m . T h e r e f o r e t h e daughters of the
heavenly Sion c o m e f o r t h , t o marvel at t h e realiza-
tion of w h a t t h e y always marvelled at in anti-
cipation.
There was an angel at t h e a n n u n c i a t i o n , * an Lk 1:26-38
angel at t h e nativity,* an angel at the b a p t i s m . t An *Lk 2:9-14
angel appeared t o Christ as he p r a y e d , * one was a ^jjj 22-43
witness of his resurrectionf and s t o o d b y at his tLk 24:4
ascension.* 4 What t r e m e n d o u s lovers, d o y o u not Ac 1.10
agree, are such eager heralds a n d such indefatigable
admirers! T h r o u g h all t h e stages of this m y s t e r y t h e y
gather r o u n d and o f f e r their h o m a g e of reverence,
their h o m a g e of acclamation; t h e y m a k e m e l o d y and
sing psalms t o t h e L o r d . * A n d all this veneration was Rv 5:11-12
openly displayed w i t h o u t a w o r d a b o u t w h a t is
hidden w i t h i n . * If t h e Lord w r o u g h t s o m e t h i n g new Sg4:l, 3
u p o n earth, still t h e fragrance of this w o n d e r f u l news
filled the heavens. 'A w o m a n will encompass a m a n '
as a c r o w n encompasses t h e head. F o r 'the head of
the Church is Christ',* H e is radiant indeed in the Eph 5:23
brilliance of G o d ' s glory and t h e impress of the
266 Gilbert of Hoyland

Heb 1:3 Father's substance,* but with the added dye, as it

were, and the inlaid coloring of our nature; while
he dims his own light, he increases the delight not
only of those who otherwise could not bear his light
but also of the angels on whom his splendor shines
in its purity.
3. However, I suggest that this very condescen-
sion which led him to become incarnate seems to have
brought some beauty to the dignity of his majesty.
For what is more attractive than the lowliness of the
Highest, the outpouring of Immensity, the Divine
become incarnate? What is more beautiful
than this exchange? Do I say exchange?
It seems to be rather an exchange o f oppor-
sites, the more beautiful to contemplate, the more
these opposites are not in conflict but in agreement
with each other. Wonderful in itself is the divine
Simplicity, but, if I may so express it, this new blend-
ing is much more wonderful because it is newer. I can-
not marvel enough at the art of this union nor, I
think, can the angels. Indeed they have greater
reason to wonder, for to them the pure Simplicity of
the divine nature made itself known with greater
clarity. That Simplicity is pure beyond comparison
and therefore makes this union more wonderful.
What is this union in which each nature preserves
its integrity? For neither does the one pass into the
other, nor from both does some third and new nature
result. What is new is that they come together in one
Person. The contemplation of each is a kind of wine
cellar. The angelic spirits were introduced into the
nectar-sweet cellar of eternal Majesty, or rather they
were stored there from the first moment of their
Dn 11:13 creation. Now at last 'at the end of the ages',* this
cellar of ours upon earth ferments with must of a
new kind. O plentiful stores, stores spilling over and
Ps 143:13 bubbling over from cask to c a s k ! * C o m e forth,
daughters o f Sion, from the cellar of nectar-pure
wine to this must, which wisdom has blended in a
Pr9:5. See T 6:4 new mixing b o w l . * O inebriating chalice, how spark-
ling you are and therefore how inebriating in your
splendor! The eternal stream poured into this new
 Sermon Twenty-One 267

chalice is b r o a c h e d with greater charity t h o u g h w i t h

t e m p e r a t e splendor, so that even love b e c o m e s intem-
perate. F o r w h o would m a k e himself t e m p e r a t e in
love, w h e n immeasurable Majesty t e m p e r e d itself t o
our capacity? O chalice, intoxicating the minds not
only of m e n b u t also of angels and drawing angels
away f r o m the c o n t e m p l a t i o n of u n d i l u t e d Divinity
t o c o n t e m p l a t e Y o u in this new blending!
'Come f o r t h , daughters of Sion', f r o m t h a t abun-
dance of pure wine t o this t e m p e r e d chalice. Come
f o r t h and taste h o w sweet t h e L o r d is.* Where y o u Ps 33:9; 1 P 2:3
are, the simple n a t u r e of divine sweetness is en-
visioned; here t h e e n j o y m e n t and p r o o f s of his sweet-
ness are set b e f o r e us. There he is seen in himself;
here in his a f f e c t i o n ; 5 in this latest b i r t h , he and his
affection are amazing and I k n o w n o t which I marvel
at more, the u n i o n of natures in one Person or t h e
reason for this union. Why are we amazed any
longer t h a t there are three Persons in the u n i t y of the
divine Essence? Be amazed n o w t h a t t w o natures
exist in their integrity in one Person. What exists
here t h a t is n o t delicious to c o n t e m p l a t e , that does
n o t move our a f f e c t i o n s ?
4. Then, t o c r o w n our w o n d e r , comes its cause.
It is a cause which does n o t lack the logical co-
herence of reason or t h e efficacy of salvation or the
grace of compassion. Do y o u wish t o hear w h a t is the
logical coherence? ' J u s t as all m e n die in A d a m , so
all m e n will be b r o u g h t to life in Christ',* and again 1 Co 15:22
Paul says: ' J u s t as b y one man's disobedience m a n y
were m a d e sinners, so b y one m a n ' s obedience m a n y
are m a d e righteous.'* What is m o r e logical? Great is Rm5:19
the logical sequence, b u t here, considering justifica-
tion, there is greater effectiveness; as Paul says:
'where sin a b o u n d e d , grace a b o u n d e d still m o r e . ' * Rm 5:20
Where sin existed, there t e m p t a t i o n and deceit inter-
vened; t h e r e f o r e the sin does n o t seem t o be wholly
deliberate. But in grace exists n o t h i n g which is n o t
planned, nothing which is n o t deliberate. H o w t h e n
are good things which are deliberate n o t m o r e
efficacious t h a n evils which are, as it were, partly
coerced? Well assuredly grace is efficacious and
268 Gilbert of Hoy land

ingenious. I know not which to admire more, the

ingenuity of adaptation or the efficacy of salvation.
Each aspect of this gratuity is pleasing, both the will
to save us and its effectiveness.
Add a third aspect too: the manner and plan.
Nothing is more full of affection than this good will.
What love is greater 'than to lay down one's life for
Jo'15:13 one's friends'?* But this he did for enemies. They
were not only enemies in themselves but also his
friends, because he loved them before the creation of
the world. What could be more fruitful than the
harvest of his good work? The generous outpouring
of the Spirit upon all flesh makes this sufficiently
clear. The outpouring o f the blood of Christ won for
us an outpouring o f the Spirit. Those whom he
washed in his blood, how could he not flood with his
holy Spirit? Hence he first washed them, that they
might be the ones whom afterwards the Spirit might
cleanse more deeply. In the logical order, what is more
consistent? I am embarrassed in considering this
mystery, because I know not which of three points I
should especially select for contemplation: his piety,
his prudence, or his plenty. These vie with one an-
other for our attention, and while we lean towards
one, we are tugged towards another. All three cajole
and wheedle me with varying affections. I am en-
amored, amazed, jubilant; jubilant over his plenty;
amazed at his prudence; enamored with the love his
piety spent upon me.
5. Why do I divide up their roles? These three are
mistaken for one another and in each there is frequent
confusion. For the manner, the appositeness and the
affection, or if you prefer other names, his prudence,
his plenty, his piety, these three I say, whether consi-
dered simultaneously or singly, draw my spirit to
themselves more quickly, captivate it longer, and
turn it to a kind of wonder and exultation. From the
variety o f such virtues, the faith o f Mother Church
wove his diadem. These virtues determine the specific
number, weight and measure of the diadem. In the
logic and sequence o f order is discerned the number
and the measure of agreement; in weight, the more
 Sermon Twenty-One 269

p o w e r f u l a f f e c t i o n of p i e t y . T r u l y p o w e r f u l is t h e
w e i g h t o f grace, f o r it d r a w s t h e i m m e n s e M a j e s t y
f r o m heaven t o e a r t h . T h i s I m m e n s i t y , i n c o m p a r a b l y
surpassing all c r e a t i o n , c o n f i n e d itself t o a limit, a
limit w h i c h e n a b l e d it t o r e a c h d o w n w a r d even t o
us. F o r this I m m e n s i t y d i d n o t s i m p l y e x t e n d itself
f u r t h e r in o u r d i r e c t i o n , as if it w e r e n o t coming
d o w n t o o u r level, b u t r a t h e r a c c o r d i n g t o o u r m e a -
sure it distills t o u s t h e gifts of t h e Spirit.
I u n d e r s t a n d a m e a s u r e i n t h e efficacy of these
gifts. F o r n o t a c c o r d i n g t o m e a s u r e is G o d ' s gift of
the Spirit6 b u t in m e a s u r e a n d against m e a s u r e : in
the measure o f grace, against t h e m e a s u r e of un-
r i g h t e o u s n e s s . F o r 'as sin a b o u n d e d , so grace a b o u n d -
ed still m o r e ' . * Or is m e a s u r e here not against Rm 5:20
measure? Surely against and above. For 'grace
abounded still m o r e ' . Was grace only above the
measure of sin? No indeed, not only above the
m e a s u r e of sin b u t also a b o v e t h e m e a s u r e of grace.
G r a c e a b o u n d s b o t h against and a b o v e t h e m e a s u r e
of unrighteousness, as grace abounds above the
m e a s u r e of grace b u t n o t against it. F o r w h e r e o n e
a b o u n d s , t h e o t h e r also m u s t necessarily a b o u n d still
m o r e , a n d m o r e a b u n d a n t gifts m u s t b e given t o o n e
who has in a b u n d a n c e . This m e a s u r e is a 'good
measure, pressed down and shaken together and
spilling o v e r ' . * T h e r e seems t o b e a spilling over, Lk 6:38
w h e n n o t o n l y necessities are s u p p l i e d b u t luxuries
are m u l t i p l i e d . A m o n g t h e gifts of t h e Spirit, s o m e
facilitate, s o m e t e a c h , s o m e delight or h e a l or a d o r n
or cheer. H o w d o graces so p l e n t i f u l n o t spill over?

But e n o u g h has n o w b e e n said a b o u t t h e n u m b e r ,

measure and weight of the diadem his mother
f a s h i o n e d f o r King S o l o m o n . F o r she invests h i m as it
w e r e w i t h a garland of glory, while she j o i n s t o g e t h e r
t h e h u m a n i t y h e a s s u m e d f r o m us a n d t h e divinity he
revealed t o us. Y o u see in w h a t a d o w r y of graces
this diadem consists. But w h a t connection has a
diadem with graces? 'Wisdom will give to your
head', says the Book of Proverbs, 'increases of
graces'.* T h e F a t h e r gives a n d t h e m o t h e r c r o w n s . Pr 4:9
She herself c r o w n s , b e c a u s e she believes, b e c a u s e she
270 Gilbert of Hoyland

e n c o m p a s s e s , b e c a u s e she c r o w n s as a M o t h e r . T h e
C h u r c h , g o o d J e s u s , a d o r n s y o u w i t h herself, c l o t h e s
Eph 6:15 y o u w i t h herself, shoes y o u w i t h h e r s e l f , * a n d w i t h
herself m a k e s a c r o w n f o r y o u r h e a d . Her s h o e i n g is
f o r t h e j o u r n e y , her c r o w n i n g f o r j o u r n e y ' s e n d . H e r e
is a surprising m e t a m o r p h o s i s , f o r a f t e r a n y a c c u m u -
l a t e d d u s t has b e e n s h a k e n o f f , shoes are t r a n s f o r m e d
Ezk 24:23 into a crown!*
6. ' O n t h e d a y of his b e t r o t h a l a n d his j o y f u l -
ness.' N o t i c e t h e o r d e r . O n e a n d t h e s a m e is t h e d a y of
his b e t r o t h a l a n d his c r o w n i n g . If y o u r e c o g n i z e this,
Jo 13:17 y o u are h a p p y if y o u observe it.* Y o u c h a n g e t h e
o r d e r , if y o u seek y o u r b e t r o t h a l b e f o r e y o u r c r o w n -
ing, if y o u w o u l d b e b o u n d t o Christ f o r p l e a s u r e a n d
r e p o s e b e f o r e y o u c o n q u e r w i t h Christ. S u c h is a
felicitous b u t a d i s o r d e r l y a n t i c i p a t i o n , if y o u c h o o s e
t o have t h e b r i d a l c h a m b e r f u r n i s h e d f o r y o u b e f o r e
y o u r t r i u m p h , if y o u claim j o y b e f o r e toil. O n l y o n e
d a y has b e e n a p p o i n t e d f o r t h e s e t h r e e : t h e d i a d e m ,
t h e b e t r o t h a l , a n d t h e j o y f u l n e s s of h e a r t . A n d w h a t
is t h e h e a r t of o u r S o l o m o n ? ' Y o u are t h e b o d y of
1 Co 12:27 C h r i s t ' , says Paul, ' a n d individually its members.'*
H a p p y i n d e e d is a n y m e m b e r w i t h this h e a d , b u t
w h o e v e r is his h e a r t is a m o n g t h e f o r e m o s t m e m b e r s .
Consider w h e t h e r t h a t p e r s o n is n o t t h e h e a r t w h o is
c h e r i s h e d in t h e ventricle o f G o d ' s secrets, in t h e vital
w a r m t h of his a f f e c t i o n s , in t h e c e n t e r of his designs.
Mt 15:19. Lam 9, F o r ' f r o m t h e h e a r t c o m e f o r t h designs', n o t a c t i o n s . *
nn. 24, 25 R i g h t l y t h e n is h e t h e h e a r t w h o is set in t h e c e n t e r
of spiritual t h o u g h t s , in t h e richness of graces, in a
k i n d of ventricle of t r u t h , in t h e w o m b of w i s d o m
whose symbol is Solomon. In effect, either the
C h u r c h or a n individual soul, b u t o n e a n d t h e s a m e , is
all t h r e e : c r o w n a n d h e a r t a n d b r i d e ; a c r o w n u p o n
his h e a d , a b r i d e f r o m his side, t h e h e a r t in his b r e a s t ;
t h e c r o w n on t o p , t h e b r i d e a t his right h a n d , t h e
h e a r t w i t h i n h i m . W h a t h e r e is n o t a r r a n g e d t o per-
f e c t i o n ? W h a t is n o t in readiness for a w e d d i n g f e a s t ?
G o h e n c e , o u r ' d a u g h t e r s of S i o n , a n d b e h o l d ' ,
that you also m a y pass i n t o t h e a f f e c t i o n of his
h e a r t , i n t o t h e grace of his b r i d e , i n t o t h e b e a u t y of
his d i a d e m . D o n o t t a k e p r i d e in a n e m p t y n a m e . Be
 Sermon Twenty-One 271

w h a t y o u a r e said t o b e , d a u g h t e r s of c o n t e m p l a t i o n .
Let y o u r p r a c t i c e b e a w i t n e s s of y o u r title. F o r t h e
d a y of y o u r b e t r o t h a l is a f e a s t d a y , o n e w o r t h y t o
w e l c o m e G o d , a n d it r e a c h e s f r o m o u r d a y t o o n e
m o r e festive still, a w e d d i n g d a y , a d a y on w h i c h n o
writ of divorce is given, n o s e p a r a t i o n i n t e r v e n e s , a
day on which the Bridegroom does not depart on the
longest j o u r n e y n o r even o n t h e s h o r t e s t , b u t on
which the B r i d e g r o o m , Christ J e s u s , r e m a i n s ever-
m o r e at h o m e , f o r h e lives and reigns w i t h G o d t h e
F a t h e r a n d t h e H o l y Spirit f o r ever a n d ever. A m e n . 7
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-ONE

1. No indication of G's audience occurs until vide and adde in par. 4,

with videtis towards the end of par. 5 ; the first half of par. 6 is in the second per-
son singular, the last third in the second person plural, addressed to nostrae filiae
Sion. What was probably written by G. for one individual shows adaptation, per-
haps for a final profession o f nuns.
2. Reading et mirabiliora with Mab., mss. Paris 6 9 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 ; Migne:
in mirabiliora.
3. Reading et admiratores with Mab., mss. Paris 6905, Troyes 4 1 9 ; Migne:
ad admiratores: see Lam 251, n. 53.
4. astiterunt; Mab, Migne, mss. Paris 6 9 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 : astat.
5. Reading affectu with Migne and Paris 6 9 0 5 ; Mab., Troyes 4 1 9 , Laon
59: effectu.
6. I have underlined efficacy and gift to bring out G.'s distinction, and
restored the negative to the t e x t o f J o 3 : 3 4 .
7. Bernard frequently refers to the angels in his Sermons on the Canticle
(SC 5, 7, 19, 27, 30, 31, 39, 4 1 , and so on); cf. E. Boissard, 'La doctrine des
anges chez S. Bernard,' S. Bernard Theologien, ASOC 9 (1953) 11-135, and
'S. Bernard et le Pseudo-Aréopagite', RTAM 26 (1959) 214-63. On angels, see
the article by Joseph Durr, 'Anges' in DSp 1 (1936) 580-625, and on 'Cor et
cordis affectus' see DSp 2 ( 1 9 5 3 ) 2 2 9 4 , article by Jean Châtillon.

272
 SERMON 22
THE EYES OF A DOVE

The Bride ascends to his vision and discerns

what is good. 1. The Bridegroom increases his
praise as the Canticle proceeds. 2. The bride
has the eyes of doves in her purity of intention.
3. She avoids evil intentions in her own actions
and a perverse interpretation in the actions of
others; prudence of the flesh and of the spirit
are incompatible. 4. She cannot judge herself
or another because of the graces and gifts
which lie hidden within. 5. The simplicity of a
dove is a mystery within. 6. Virtues are divided
into exterior, interior, and intimate. 7. Mys-
teries hidden from man should be treated
with reverence.

HOW BEAUTIFUL YOU A R E , MY L O V E , HOW

BEAUTIFUL! YOURS ARE THE EYES OF DOVES,
APART FROM WHAT LIES H I D D E N WITHIN.*1 Sg4:l

T
he Bridegroom is not afraid that she whose
beauty he extols for himself so vividly will
be puffed up with the gusts of his praises
and jettison her humility. Beneath a great
desire to please often lurks the fear of displeasing
and too intense a devotion lessens and robs one's
peace of conscience. What wonder is it, then, that
the Bridegroom compliments her on her beauty and
with flattering words calms her affections, which fear
has troubled? For why should any human soul not
fear its own ugliness, when it has been joined in

273
274 Gilbert of Hoyland

marriage with our S o l o m o n ? T h e bride heard t h a t in

the d e p t h of his glory he was m o r e h a n d s o m e t h a n
usual in his diadem, on t h e day of b e t r o t h a l and of
gladness of heart; so rightly she could fear rejection,
if she l o o k e d t o the cause of her ugliness and abjec-
tion. It was fitting t h e n that, once reassured, she
should take courage and t h a t the alacrity of m i n d
i m p a r t e d to her should suffuse her features w i t h a
lively w a r m t h . F o r cheerfulness of mind adds m o s t
to the fair c o u n t e n a n c e of all one's life and w o r k .
T h e r e f o r e t h e Bridegroom addresses his beloved in
this w a y : ' H o w fair y o u are, m y beloved!' A l m o s t
identical w o r d s were s p o k e n above in earlier verses:
'Behold y o u are fair, m y beloved, b e h o l d y o u are
Sgl:14 fair.'* T h e r e is little d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n 'Behold y o u
are fair' and 'How fair y o u are'. In each, her b e a u t y is
extolled and t h e repetition only proves that the
c o m p l i m e n t is deserved. But to the best of m y
knowledge a slight distinction is here suggested.
Where he says: 'Behold y o u are fair', he is concerned
only with b e a u t y , b u t here he alludes t o its sur-
passing quality: ' H o w fair y o u are, m y beloved, h o w
fair!' in the f o r m e r verse there is a simple recognition
of b e a u t y suddenly noticed, whereas here there is
w o n d e r at its surpassing quality. In t h e earlier verse
he acknowledges h o w b e a u t i f u l she is; here he
rejoices that she is so b e a u t i f u l . F o r this verse is
p r o n o u n c e d with the greater conviction and passion
of a mind surprised and the m a n n e r of speech
b e t r a y s the e m o t i o n of a mind overjoyed: ' H o w fair
y o u are, m y beloved, h o w fair!' Indeed as the Canticle
proceeds it is right that m o r e perfect verses b e sung
t o the bride. So m u c h f o r m y distinction b e t w e e n
similar s t a t e m e n t s . But the required i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of
the bride's b e a u t y has b e e n developed at length and
with accuracy in t h e p r o p e r place. W h e t h e r the
a u t h o r is m o r e r e m a r k a b l e f o r learning or f o r elo-
q u e n c e I k n o w n o t , b u t t h e m a t t e r in the pages of his
homilies it ill b e c o m e s m e t o t u r n over for discussion,
p a r d o n me, even w i t h m y little finger.
2. This m u c h , however, should b e carefully ob-
served, t h a t a f t e r a general c o m m e n d a t i o n of her
 Sermon Twenty-Two 275

beauty, when the Bridegroom is about to sketch her

individual features, he begins first with her eyes.
Wisely indeed since 'if the eye be simple, the whole
b o d y will be full of light'.* Therefore he compares Mt 6:22-23.
her eyes to those of doves so that, according to the Lam 195, n. 166.
teaching of the Gospel, he may show that 'his Mt 10-16 See
beloved is as simple as a dove'.* In fact, the simple Morson, 162-3,
eye of one's intention throws light on the whole b o d y White 144-5,
' ° ' o n the dove.
of one's work and insures that deeds which of
themselves could shine before men would shine „,. , , ^ , , , .
Mt 5:16, Mk 1:10,
before G o d . * F o r when a good deed shines out- Jo 1:32
wardly, but the spirit does not intend the goodness
of the deed, it is like a blind eye in a b o d y full of
light. The deeds themselves are sometimes good of
their kind and useful to others, but the goodness of
the deeds does not reflect on the doer because he
does not have a simple eye in performing them. They
are deeds of darkness, because they lack the light of a
pure intention. G o o d then is a simple eye, for it has
no share of darkness and makes bright the whole body
of man's behavior.
The eye is either wholly dark or wholly light, or it
has some admixture of darkness. It is wholly dark,
when it intends an evil deed for the sake of evil; it is
wholly light when it intends a good deed only for its
goodness. But when, in a good deed, the intention is
directed not only to the good but also to some other
end, or when, in a deed that is not good, the good
which was believed to be present is loved mistakenly,
to some extent the eye is clouded and is not clear
with unspoiled simplicity. What is to be said when
a good deed is alleged and not that good but some-
thing entirely different is intended? Shall that eye be
called wholly dark or to some extent clouded? To
me it seems rather to be wholly dark. For even if
some light is detected in the deed, still none is
recognized in the intention. But how is an intention
good which does not choose the good? Or how is it
simple, when it hides itself under the cloak of good?
In .the eyes of the bride, however, both are com-
mended, simplicity and spirituality. Therefore hers
are called the eyes of doves. Appropriately, too, in
276 Gilbert of Hoyland

his beloved does he first commend the light, that he

may show her resemblance to himself, for he is him-
Jn 8:12 self called the light of the world,* and in him there is
1 Jnl:5 no darkness.* In the creative work of the six days,
Gn 1:3 light is said to have been created first of all,* and
when the bride's beauty is portrayed, mention of
light is fittingly introduced in the first place.
3. 'Yours are the eyes o f doves.' Why do you
assume that you are the bride, when you know not
how to possess the eyes of a dove? However good
your deeds may have been, if your intention is not
pure, you congratulate yourself in vain on your
beauty. How are you beloved, when you are not
beautiful? But how are you not an enemy, you who
Ps 73:3, Ps 21:17 malign what is holy?* To malign what is holy
is to malign what is good, whether it is one's own or
that of another; you malign your own good when
you do not see goodness itself, and you malign
another's good when you entertain empty suspicions
of that good. A wrong intention and an unfavorable
interpretation—each is malicious, each is venomous,
each false, having nothing in common with the
nature of doves. The eyes o f doves are those which
neither wish to be deceived nor know how to deceive.
Do you not know that your Bridegroom is Truth?
Sg 2:13-14 How will he say to you: 'My dove, my beloved!'*
when you do not rejoice in simplicity? 3 Simplicity
is the beloved of truth; therefore truth consorts with
the simple. 4 In our text, the Bridegroom praises the
simplicity of his beloved with the words: 'Yours are
the eyes of doves'. Wide-eyed simplicity is good, for
it closes its eyes to pretence yet is not blind to the
truth. The dove is a 'rare bird on earth' 5 today and if
anywhere it flocks together in numbers, it is well
hidden, 'lurking in the clefts of the rock, in the nook
Sg 2:14; Sg 5:12 of a wall' and 'above streams of water'.*
darkened! Who does not pursue the crafty ways of
the world, who does not rejoice to profit from them
who would not love to master them, or
would not at least wish them to be attributed to
himself? Who is not.ashamed of dove-like eyes? Who
Is 34:15 does not boast o f having the eyes of a k i t e ? * 6 If
 Sermon Twenty-Two 277

y o u wish t o b e called Christ's b e l o v e d , w h y d o y o u

act w i t h ' t h e w i s d o m o f t h e flesh w h i c h is h o s t i l e t o
G o d ' ? * O r w h y d o y o u t r y t o purge t h e i r animosities, Rm 8:7
t h a t y o u m a y establish in y o u r s e l f b o t h t h e w i s d o m of
t h e flesh a n d t h e w i s d o m of t h e spirit? ' A little y e a s t
sours all t h e d o u g h . ' * W h a t will h a p p e n t h e n , w h e n 1 Co 5:6
t h e r e is m u c h yeast a n d little d o u g h ? W h a t fellow-
ship can t h e r e b e b e t w e e n t h e l a w of c o v e t o u s n e s s
a n d t h e l a w of c h a r i t y ? T h e f o r m e r s h o u l d n o t b e
associated with t h e l a t t e r , since greed c a n n o t be
s u b j e c t t o love.* F o r w i s d o m of t h e flesh is either Rm 8:7
opposed and hostile to the law of God or it
perishes a l t o g e t h e r a n d is n o u g h t ; it e i t h e r defies t h e
law of G o d or it dies. It can be c u t d o w n , so t h a t it
ceases t o exist a l t o g e t h e r ; it c a n n o t b e c u t d o w n t o
size, so as t o yield t o t h e law. Y o u are c h o o s i n g t h e n
t o have b o t h y o u r lips a n d y o u r heai;t p r a c t i s e d in
t h a t k i n d of w i s d o m w h i c h can b e n e i t h e r associated
w i t h n o r j o i n e d t o t h e law of G o d . ' W i s d o m of t h e
spirit is life a n d p e a c e . ' * W i s d o m o f t h e spirit is Rm 8:6
alive, for it enjoys both the present life and
t h e life t o c o m e . But w i s d o m of t h e flesh is operative
o n l y in t h e p r e s e n t life, d e s t i n e d t o have n o place in
the life to come. For neither need nor use for
covetousness exists in hell, b u t only crucifixion.7
The one wisdom is p e a c e , t h e other strife. A n d
peace is t o t h e p o i n t , f o r w h e n w i s d o m becomes
devoid of peace, wisdom b e c o m e s null a n d void.
Such wisdom Christ links w i t h t h e b e a u t y of t h e
bride. S u c h w i s d o m is p o r t r a y e d in h e r dove-like
eyes, f o r her w i s d o m r e f l e c t s s i m p l i c i t y a n d spiri-
t u a l i t y , b e c a u s e in t h e figure of a d o v e t h e h o l y
Spirit is usually understood.* Such simplicity is Mt 3:16, Jo
Lk 3:22, Mk 1:32
1:10,
n o t w o n t t o b e e m p t y , f o r m u c h h i d d e n grace lies
concealed within.

4. ' Y o u r s are t h e eyes of doves, a p a r t f r o m w h a t

lies h i d d e n w i t h i n . ' A great m y s t e r y is t h a t , u n q u e s -
t i o n a b l y great, w h i c h o p e n l y e i t h e r s h o u l d n o t b e
uttered or c o u l d n o t b e u t t e r e d ; n o r c o u l d it be
figuratively presented in a simile as o t h e r graces
are, b u t it is l e f t o n l y t o b e guessed at or i m a g i n e d b y
t h o s e w h o p e r h a p s have similar e x p e r i e n c e s . 8 'Apart
f r o m w h a t lies h i d d e n w i t h i n ' , as if t h e o t h e r graces
278 Gilbert of Hoyland

and gifts of t h e Spirit w e r e n o t w i t h i n . A n d h o w is

Ps 44:14 'all t h e g l o r y of t h e King's d a u g h t e r f r o m w i t h i n ' ? *
In o u r t e x t , t h o s e dove-like eyes are w i t h i n , w h e r e
simplicity o f f a i t h p u r i f i e s t h e h e a r t a n d gives light t o
t h e eyes of t h e h e a r t , w h e r e n o t o n l y t h e eye b u t t h e
Ac 15:9, Eph 1:18, w h o l e i n n e r self of t h e h e a r t is said t o b e h i d d e n , *
*P But a l t h o u g h all i n t e r i o r g l o r y is f r o m w i t h i n as f a r as
it is glory, a n d a l t h o u g h j u s t as in t h e o u t e r self so
in t h e inner self s o m e things are m o r e i n t i m a t e t h a n
others, hidden more deeply and known to the
Beloved a l o n e , p e r h a p s s o m e things are unknown
even t o t h e b r i d e herself a n d she is n o t f u l l y a w a r e
of t h e gifts divinely c o n f e r r e d u p o n h e r . W h a t d o e s it
m a t t e r , if their s u b l i m i t y b e h i d d e n , p r o v i d e d her
h u m i l i t y is preserved? Y o u r m y s t e r y is f o r y o u , g o o d
J e s u s , y o u r m y s t e r y is f o r y o u , a n d y o u a l o n e t a k e
Is 24:16, Si 29:24 your delight in the hidden gifts of the bride.*
W h y d o y o u n o t give us s o m e slight r e v e l a t i o n of t h a t
h i d d e n m y s t e r y ? W h y d o y o u n o t p r e s e n t figuratively
t h a t h i d d e n b e a u t y in w h i c h y o u delight? Y o u e n t i c e
us all t h e m o r e t o seek it w h e n y o u say t h a t it lies
hidden within; you provoke our curiosity all t h e
m o r e b y s h r o u d i n g so great a m y s t e r y in silence. By
y o u r silence y o u d r a w us all t h e m o r e . ' H o w great is
the e x t e n t of this s w e e t n e s s ' , w h i c h y o u consider
Ps 30:20 m u s t b e h i d d e n , as l o n g as y o u d o n o t e x p l a i n i t ! *
W h a t e v e r it is, it lies h i d d e n w i t h i n ; b u t f r o m these
hidden recesses breathes the sweetest fragrance.
S o m e h o w w h i l e I guess t h a t it is w o n d e r f u l l y s w e e t , I
a l r e a d y sense t h a t it is w o n d e r f u l l y s w e e t ; a l r e a d y t h e
affections have weighed what the understanding
c a n n o t pierce. T h i s is s t o r e d w i t h t h e b r i d e a n d sealed
in h e r t r e a s u r e c h e s t ; t h e Beloved a l o n e m a y e n t e r
t h e r e a n d u n r o l l t h e m y s t e r i e s of h e r h i d d e n g l o r y .
5. This m u c h h o w e v e r I d o say, t h a t it is n o t
easy t o d e f i n e a n y o n e ' s v i r t u e f r o m o u t w a r d indica-
tions. F o r often when the c o l o r s o n e carries are
ordinary, the mysteries within are extraordinary.
T h e r e f o r e w e s h o u l d so praise m a n i f e s t virtues as t o
add a f t e r each this o b s e r v a t i o n : 'apart f r o m that
w h i c h lies h i d d e n w i t h i n . ' In o u r t e x t , c o n s i d e r this
dove-like s i m p l i c i t y c o m m e n d e d in t h e b r i d e a n d of
 Sermon Twenty-Two 279

w h i c h w e are speaking. H o w g r a t i f y i n g , h o w gentle

and a g r e e a b l e it is in itself; y e t it has g r e a t e r treasures
s t o r e d w i t h i n a n d , so t o s p e a k , its very m a r r o w c o n -
tains a g e n t l e secret. D o y o u ask w h a t t h a t is? I have
already confessed, a n d if y o u wish t o hear it a
second time, I confess that I do not know. I could
r e c o m m e n d this d e v o u t simplicity t o y o u a n d e x h o r t
y o u t o e m u l a t e it, b e c a u s e it c o n t a i n s a n d p e r h a p s
b e s t o w s so i n e x p l i c a b l e a n d gentle a m y s t e r y . B u t if
I t r y t o u n r a v e l t h e m y s t e r y either b y e x p e r i e n c e or
by conjecture, I might perhaps reach something
hidden and concealed. But will t h a t b e w h a t the
Bridegroom mentions in so involved a w a y in his
praise of his beloved? No matte* what hidden
t r e a s u r e I shall b e able t o dig o u t , s o m e t h i n g will still
lie b u r i e d w i t h i n . It lies h i d d e n in d e e p d a r k n e s s and
is n o t accessible e i t h e r t o our p e n or t o o u r p u r s u i t . I
shall r e s p e c t t h e v e r y silence of so great a m y s t e r y .
F o r a l t h o u g h it has n o t b e e n g r a n t e d t o k n o w pre-
cisely w h a t it is b e c a u s e it is c l o a k e d in silence, t h e r e
is evidence e n o u g h t o believe it is s o m e t h i n g excep-
tionally gentle and pleasing to the Bridegroom.
T h o u g h its n a t u r e c a n n o t b e t r a c e d , its greatness can
b e guessed, if o n l y f r o m t h e f a c t t h a t it was n o t
p e r m i t t e d t o u t t e r a w o r d so h i d d e n .
6. However, that I may s e e m t o have s p o k e n
s o m e w o r d a n d n o t t o have b e e n w h o l l y silent—for
y o u insist o n this—listen t o w h a t I t h i n k can b e said
w i t h o u t c o n t r a d i c t i o n on this s u b j e c t ; w h e t h e r it fits
our t e x t is f o r y o u t o j u d g e . V i r t u e s b y t h e i r very
n a t u r e are l o c a t e d i n t e r i o r l y i n t h e spirit, b u t in
p r a c t i c e s o m e are d i r e c t e d t o w a r d s o u t w a r d things,
whereas some exercise their p o w e r i n t e r i o r l y . T h e
n a t u r e of t h e f o r m e r virtues resists t h e lures of t h e
flesh, while t h e n a t u r e of t h e l a t t e r e m b r a c e s the
secrets of spiritual delights. T h e f o r m e r n a t u r e either
flies from occasions of temptation or represses
w a n t o n a f f e c t i o n a n d m u s t toil at a j o u r n e y m a n ' s
j o b w h i c h , h o w e v e r necessary f o r t h e p r e s e n t , is n o n e
t h e less i r r i t a t i n g ; t h e l a t t e r e n j o y s an occupation
w h i c h o f f e r s n o t o n l y g r e a t e r r e w a r d b u t also g r e a t e r
distinction. While the former scans outward ap-
280 Gilbert of Hoy land

pearances with simple gaze and dove-like eye, it is

filled with loathing or scorn; the latter with more
searching gaze ranges through heavenly appearances
to catch more fire from these horizons. So we can
formulate some such distinction and say that some
virtues are outward, others more inward, others in-
most. For some withdraw themselves from things of
the flesh, others attend to things spiritual, while
others already attain some firstfruits. The first
restrain themselves from the world's charm which
they scorn; the second are still composing themselves
for what they spiritually desire; the last, or rather the
inmost, already enjoy what they eagerly desired.
O God of goodness, what light and delight exist in
those hidden recesses, what transport in those in-
ward depths! Would that such recesses might enclose
me, that I might sing the verse of the psalm: 'This
Ps 138:11 night is my illumination in my delights.'*
7. Look, now I have touched upon something
hidden at this last step and perhaps it is this or some-
thing similar which the Bridegroom intended. For the
rest I wish to bow before mysteries; for it is not right
Si 21:8 in a glib talk* to lay bare the secrets of prayer and
with the unhallowed hands of the tongue to unroll
the delicately wrapped scrolls of the Holy of holies
and to handle the hidden manna, stored in the golden
2 M 5:16. Lam urn, in the Ark, in the Holy of holies, that the inquisi-
172, n. 15 a n ( j j e s s wQjthy e y e m a y be kept from such a

vision, 9 the eye which knows not how to be dove-

what it is. And to what rather than to manna shall I
compare our secret? Manna is a sweet food from
heaven, but you see how secretly it is hidden in the
urn, in the Ark, in the Holy of holies, that the inquisi-
tive and less worthy eye may be kept from such a
vision, 8 the eye which knows not how to be dove-
like, which is not directed by devout belief and pure
intention. However we invite you, brethren: embrace
holy simplicity, repose cff mind, pure meditations,
free prayer, for in such vessels and so to speak, in the
ark of holy meditation and in the interior urn of
prayer, 1 0 there is set for us a divine nourishment and
that portion of glory of which we read: 'I shall be
 Sermon Twenty-Two 281

filled when your glory appears.'* May its plenitude Ps 16:15

confer upon us eternal life, through Jesus Christ, to
whom is honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-TWO

1. In par. 3, a long apostrophe in the second person singular, addresses the

Synagogue rather than an individual; the last three paragraphs are in the plural, to
his brethren probably: quaeritis . . . vultis . . . vobis . . . vos, par. 5; vos videritis,
par. 6;vos fratres, par. 7.
2. Bernard, SC 40, noted by Mab., specifically SC 40:4, and 45:1-3, 6; see
also William of St Thierry, Cant. S 1, St. 8:90, CF 6 (1970) 73-74.
3. Mab: quae simplicitate non gaudes? The clause is omitted by Migne.
4. Pr 3:32. See Jean Leclercq, 'The Monastic Tradition of Culture and
Studies', ABR 11 (1960) 121-129, on simplicity of heart.
5. Juvenal, 6:164; in his 'Legend of bad women', Juvenal speaks of a good
woman, rara avis in terris, a rare bird on earth, rare but real like a black swan.
Bernard (In circumcisione domini SBOp 4:291:7) says of discretion: omnino rara
ista avis est in terris. For the popularity of Juvenal in the Middle Ages, see
Friedlander's Essays on Juvenal, trans. John R. C. Martyn (Amsterdam: Hakkert,
1969) 54-57.
6. The kite, milvus, a thief; see White, p. 103.
7. Lk 16:24; Mab, mss Paris 9605, Troyes 419: opus\ Migne, opes.
8. See Miquel, p. 154.
9. Reading ab hujusmodi aspectu with Mab, mss Paris 9605, Troyes 419;
Migne: aspectus. Lam 84, n. 2.
10. See Leclercq, 'Otia Monastica', 112:53; for meditation and prayer as a
pair, see Lam 185, nn. 95, 101.

282
 SERMON 23
DISCERNMENT IN WISDOM

The bride ascends to His Wisdom and discerns

what is good. 1. /Is the eyes of the Church are
prophets, apostles, interpreters, teachers, how-
ever blind some moderns may be, so her locks
are the flocks of disciples. 2. The locks of the
Church cling to the head, which is a mount of
witness. 3. The daily life of the Cistercians is
a white martyrdom, a mount of witness to
Christ. 4. A religious without fruit is con-
demned by the fruit of those rooted in Christ.
5. The cairns of witness of the martyrs and
saints encourage our cowardice. 6. The teeth
of the Church are prelates who crop the vices of
others, though some others bite back. 7. Prel-
ates also break crusts for the weak, and must
be clean and without reproach. 8. Be washed
here in a pool of water rather than there in a
pool of fire; here let our chief business be
meditation, for there our only business will
be contemplation.

Y O U R H A I R IS L I K E A F L O C K O F G O A T S T H A T
H A V E C O M E UP F R O M M O U N T G I L E A D . Y O U R
TEETH ARE LIKE A FLOCK OF SHORN EWES
T H A T H A V E C O M E UP F R O M T H E W A S H I N G * 1 Sg4:12

T
hese compliments, as you well know, are
meant for the Church. The previous sermon
discussed her spiritual eyes. But since her
eyes are spiritual, are they also rare? See

283
284 Gilbert of Hoyland

how her whole body 'front and back is full of

Rv 4:6 eyes'.* Her eyes are the prophets, her eyes are the
apostles, for they either foresee the future or pro-
claim the past. Her eyes are the interpreters of
prophets and apostles and the teachers of the
peoples; thanks to their ministry, we see and discern
both the spiritual aids and the stumbling-blocks
of the soul.
But I know not whether all who hold the ministry
of the eye make good use of it. Blind leaders not only
Lk 6:39 of the blind* but also and more unworthily of those
who have eyes, do they not seem to possess the posi-
tion and the beauty of the eye but to lack its power?
Would that this lack were their only fault, that they
lacked the power of providing good things and were
blind to common gains, if only they were not crafty
for private profit. As it is, they are both blind and
cunning: blear-eyed toward the gains of the Church,
sharp-eyed toward their own gain. How is he the
eye of a dove, who does not serve the dove, does not
see for the dove, does not provide for the dove, who
does not lead but rather misleads the dove, the
Church, and so far as lies in him ensnares her by bad
example? Of such Paul says: 'All seek their own inter-
im 2:21 ests, not those of Jesus Christ.'* Such men occupy a
position and subvert it in practice. On the contrary,
others who do not hold the position of the eye by
promotion, usurp it by presumption. Their number is
legion. Among the number of disciples at this
moment, in your opinion, who does not in his own
judgement, as if presiding over a tribunal, criticize,
correct and chastise the actions of superiors? Such
fellows are no longer the eyes of the members but
the eyes of the eyes, as if the wings and feathers
on the body of a dove should wish to guide the line
Lam 16, nn. 65, 66 of vision of its eyes.*
I do not wish to press the point overmuch,
brethren, lest I should seem to be disturbing you. Be
Eph4:16 content with your lot.* In the dove's body nothing
whatever lacks its function, nothing lacks honor, and
whichever members are hidden possess the greatest
honor. In our text, even the locks of the bride have
 Sermon Twenty-Three 285

t h e i r o w n h o n o r . F o r if h e r eyes are h e r prelates,

what are meant by her locks b u t her disciples?
G o o d i n d e e d are her disciples, if like h e r l o c k s t h e y
s h o w t h e m s e l v e s m a n a g e a b l e , c o m p l i a n t t o every n o d
of their m a s t e r as t o a gust o f w i n d , g r a c e f u l a n d
r e f i n e d b y spiritual exercises,* a l m o s t w i t h o u t b o d y Lam 171, n. 3
and u t t e r l y w i t h o u t flesh, so insensitive t o every
insult t h a t t h e y d o n o t feel t h e snip o f a b a r b e r ' s
scissors! 2 T h e y e n d u r e t h e p a n g s of s u f f e r i n g o n l y if
they are plucked from the head to which they
b e l o n g ; f o r , d e a d t o pain in t h e rest of their b o d y ,
t h e y r e t a i n vital s e n s a t i o n o n l y at t h e p o i n t at w h i c h
t h e y are j o i n e d t o t h e h e a d f r o m w h i c h t h e y g r o w .
Because t h e y are close t o t h e b r a i n , w h e r e w i s d o m is
said t o have its a b o d e , t h e y strive, as it w e r e , t o e n t e r
i n t o its i n m o s t secrets. T o b e s u m m o n e d t o e x t e r n a l
cares o n w h a t e v e r p r e t e x t is f o r t h e m t o b e p u l l e d o u t
of t h e h e a d , as it w e r e , b y t h e very r o o t s . As for t h o s e
w h i c h d r o p f r o m t h e h e a d w i t h o u t a n y feeling of
pain, h o w c a n t h e y b e s u p p o s e d t o have b e e n b o r n or
rooted there?
2. T o see in t h e t e x t t h a t t h e b r i d e ' s hair d o e s n o t
d r o p o u t b u t grows o u t , hear w h a t f o l l o w s : ' Y o u r
hair is like a f l o c k o f g o a t s t h a t have c o m e u p f r o m
M o u n t G i l e a d . ' ' L i k e a f l o c k of g o a t s ' s e n t o u t t o
p a s t u r e o n a high p l a t e a u , t h e y are always c l a m b e r i n g
u p like g o a t s , 3 w i t h n o taste f o r l o f t y t h o u g h t s b u t
aware of t h e w e a k n e s s of t h e f l e s h . * F o r p r i d e falls Rm 11:20
of itself; h u m i l i t y rises.* T h e r e f o r e [ t h e y are] 'like RB 6:6-7
goats' b e c a u s e t h e y always seek t h e heights, while
keeping an eye on their i n f i r m i t i e s . A n d rightly
do they 'ascend f r o m M o u n t Gilead' and only on
' M o u n t G i l e a d ' , f o r it m e a n s t h e ' M o u n d of Witness'.
A n d w h o is t h a t b u t Christ, u p o n w h o m all t h e testi-
m o n i e s of t h e p r o p h e t s have b e e n piled, f o r t o h i m
t h e P r o p h e t s a n d J o h n and t h e F a t h e r a n d his o w n
w o r k s b e a r witness? This m o u n t is t h e h e a d o f t h e
Church.
D o n o t fall f r o m this m o u n t , if y o u a r e a hair.
W h y d o y o u t h r e a t e n t o b e s e p a r a t e d f r o m us a n d t o
b e p l u c k e d f r o m t h e f l o c k of t h e r e m a i n i n g locks?
Will y o u r fall inflict b a l d n e s s on t h e C h u r c h ? S h e
286 Gilbert ofHoyland

cannot suffer baldness, for her hairs are all num-

Mt 10:30 bered.* It was to the Synagogue that the threat was
made by Isaiah: 'Instead of curled locks there will be
Is 3:4 baldness.'* The locks of the Church are curled,
always recoiling to her head, encircling it in friendly
embrace, striving to enter the secrets of her head.
Therefore her hairs do not tumble from but ascend
from Mount Gilead, accumulating for their own imi-
tation ever greater examples of Christ's works. 5
Would that all my works might bear witness to the
1 Tm 5:10 faith which I have in Christ* and, heaped up by con-
stant progress, might build for me a mound of
ascent. How few stones of this witness I have assem-
Jos 24:27 bled for myself!* I fear indeed that I have even
gathered many for the opposite purpose. For consi-
der: do they not seem to you to have gathered evi-
dence not for the faith but against the faith, those
whose lives are such that they seem to belong to some
faith other than the christian? How many do we see
of whom it can rightly be said: these do not conduct
themselves as men who believe they were redeemed
by the blood of Christ, who hope for another life,
who fear the judgement to come, and who profess
that the precepts of the Gospel were at last given by
God? May but few such testimonies be discovered
near me; I would prefer that there were none, lest a
little leaven spoil the whole mound of faithful
Ga 5:9 works.*
3. Well, brothers, to boast a little of the common
store, since I cannot boast of my private store, if you
regard the order of your whole life and the round of
Lam 170, regular observance,* you will see that the mound of
6 good witness which you are building together is not
negligible. For starting with nocturnal vigils, which
with unwearying affection you savor as the first-fruits,
if from the beginning of the night watches you pour
Is 5:1 out your hearts like water in the sight of G o d , * if, I
say, you should wish to review in sequence from the
beginning the steps of your divine way of life, what
will you find there which does not speak of discipline,
is not in harmony with our faith, does not either
chasten the body or elevate the mind or guide the
 Sermon Twenty-Three 287

the mind once elevated?* At psalmody, how great is Lam 170, nn. 2, 3;
the discipline of the body! How much greater is the ^iZTn'lll
discipline of the mind, in some who do not allow the
mind to stray in the slightest way, or only in the
slightest way, from the meaning of the words! For
they either keep the mind tied to the very words of
the chant or release it for related but never for alien
themes. If the mind should stray—for the human
mind is prone to wander—with what a reproach they
at once correct it and exact of themselves a penalty
for this delay.
But not even the intervals at night between the
hours of common prayer are unoccupied. O God of
goodness, how unlike night is that hour of the night, Ps^jg.^ ^am
how that night is an illumination in delights!* Those 172, nn. 11, 12,
prayers are made in private but they make petition
for nothing private. The voice is indeed more sub-
dued but the mind is more intent and silent prayers
are full of inspiration. Often indeed passionate
prayer* outstrips the voice; it neither needs nor uses Lam 191, nn.
words, for it is borne on the wings of pure and ^^^'
full affection. Love alone, beating on the ears of the
Lord, disdains the sound of articulate words, which
though they spur the beginner only impede one
whose prayer is perfect. What follows after? At the
morning hours they take up their prayers afresh,
they flock to confession, and with modest but open
disclosure they wash away even the slightest faults.* Lam 193, n. 156
Not that they think it a slight fault, if they waver
from Christ in the least remembrance. Any possible
suggestion from the malice of their wily foe they
charge against themselves like judges biased against
themselves, while they consider it a fault of their own,
though they were only troubled by the vain effort of
another's deceit.
What of the daily manual labor, by which the
body is both sufficiently exercised and frugally fed?
Not they alone eat from their manual labor, but from
their slender reserve they share with the needy, that
they also may experience distress, provided others
have plenty. At some intervals they lighten their toil,
but in a weary body their affection is fervent. There
288 Gilbert of Hoyland

silent tears flow copiously, lament is heard, sighs

break forth, so that if perhaps those who sit near are
cold themselves, they may catch fire from the sparks
Lam 174 n. 26; of their neighbors.* What of their heeding the Lord
175 nn. 27, 31 when they take no thought for tomorrow nor even
for today, but cast all their care on the person in
charge of them, seeking no reward but the kingdom
of God? Now I had almost forgotten the daily chap-
ter; every single day they submit to the judgement of
the abbot for examination, as if brought before
Lam 194, n. 160 Christ's tribunal.* There each one is his own princi-
pal prosecutor, hastening to snatch from others the
opportunity of self-accusation.
What of their continual silence and their gravity of
demeanor? Does it not lend charm to their whole way
of life and clothe it, as it were, with the fair features
Lam 176, n. 37 of holiness?* Sleep itself bears witness to holiness,
nor does it fail to add its exhibit to such a pile of
evidence. For echoes of thought confess to Christ
when the body is submerged in sleep. How can vivid
phantasms of the whole day's proceedings fail to flit
before the eyes of the sleeper and keep watch in
his spirit?
4. Does it not seem to you that a great cairn
rather than a pile of evidence is raised here, for these
stones are not heaped indiscriminately but each is
placed in a fixed order and in its own good time. Has
this evidence not become all too trustworthy, because
Ps 92:5 'such holiness befits your house, O Lord'?* Would
that the roots of my heart might grow thick over this
cairn. The high mount of such a good life cannot be
barren. The site is high and fertile, such as the pro-
phet describes: 'My Beloved had a vineyard on a
Is 5:1. Lam 196, fertile hillside.'* Clearly a more plentiful yield of
169 fruit is good evidence of fertile soil, just as the
richness of the soil shows the poor quality of a tree
when, contrariwise, the tree lacks fruit. Or is that
tree not worthless which, occupying good soil,
produces no satisfactory fruits, does not even pro-
duce any blossoms of great expectation? Perhaps that
barren figtree which the Lord ordered to be cut
Lk 13:7 down,* was condemned by the fertile vineyards close
 Sermon Twenty-Three 289

at h a n d . It is i n i q u i t o u s f o r s o m e o n e p l a n t e d in a
h o l y w a y of life n o t t o p r o d u c e s o m e t h i n g h o l y a n d ,
alleging e x c u s e s , t o b e d i s h e a r t e n e d b y o t h e r s ' e x a m -
ple a n d t o plan in his h e a r t a d e s c e n t f r o m t h e place
whence others ascend. Let your own descent be
e n o u g h f o r y o u , if s u c h is y o u r c h a r a c t e r . Why t r y t o
pull d o w n t h e cairn of g o o d d e e d s w h i c h o t h e r s climb
w i t h eagerness? W h y t r y t o c h a n g e t h e regular observ-
ances, c o m p l a i n i n g b o t h of their n u m b e r a n d of their
strictness?* D o n o t h a m p e r t h o s e w h o are d o i n g well; Lam 170, n. 5;
if y o u can, c l i m b u p y o u r s e l f .
L e a r n of t h e h e i g h t a n d slope o f t h e m o u n t f r o m
which the saints ascended: The saints 'suffered
m o c k e r y a n d stripes a n d even chains a n d i m p r i s o n -
m e n t . T h e y b r e a t h e d t h e i r last, slain b y t h e s w o r d .
T h e y w e n t a b o u t in s h e e p s k i n a n d g o a t s ' h i d e , desti-
t u t e , a f f l i c t e d , ill-treated, w a n d e r i n g over deserts a n d
m o u n t a i n s , a n d in d e n s and caves of t h e e a r t h ; and all
t h e s e w e r e tried b y t h e w i t n e s s of f a i t h ' . * D o y o u see Heb 11:36-39
w i t h w h a t t o r t u r e t h e i r f a i t h was t e s t e d , w i t h w h a t Lam 198, n. 181
evidence it was t r i e d ? Is a n y t h i n g of t h e sort e i t h e r
a s k e d or l o o k e d f o r f r o m y o u ? Y e t y o u r acts of w i t -
ness h e r e , of a lesser k i n d , are t r u s t w o r t h y e n o u g h , all
the more trustworthy since t h e y w e r e n o t com-
m a n d e e r e d b y necessity b u t v o l u n t e e r e d b y f r e e will.
L e t f r e e will t h e n b e f r e e will, a n d let it rely o n t h e
right of its first f r e e d o m ; let it s h o w itself f r e e t o
progress, n o t regard itself f r e e t o regress. L e t it recog-
nize a d e b t t o necessity w i t h o u t feeling its y o k e . L e t
it b e f r e e in g o o d , a n d n o n e t h e less f r e e f o r g o o d ,
b o t h t h e g o o d n e s s a t h a n d and t h e g o o d n e s s a h e a d ;
b u t in w h a t lies b e h i n d , let it c o n s i d e r t h a t n o liberty
is a l l o w e d . * Ph3:13
Finally h e a r f r o m w h a t a m o u n t of w i t n e s s Paul
a s c e n d e d : ' T h e Spirit himself b e a r s w i t n e s s t o our
spirit t h a t w e are children of G o d . ' * W h a t a m o u n t in Rm 8:16
this o n e witness! B u t did H e never b e a r w i t n e s s o u t -
w a r d l y ? ' G o d b o r e witness b y signs a n d w o n d e r s ' , says
Paul, ' a n d various miracles, a n d b y gifts of t h e h o l y
Spirit d i s t r i b u t e d a c c o r d i n g t o his o w n will.'* T h o u g h Heb 2:4
f o u n d e d on so great a m e m o r i a l of virtues a n d a t t e s t -
ing graces, Paul a d m i t s : 'I d o n o t claim t h a t I have
290 Gilbert of Hoyland

the mastery already; but I do one thing: forgetting

what lies behind I strain forward to what lies
Ph 3:13 ahead.'* ' Let us also then, since we are surrounded
by such a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight
and the sin entangling us, and let us run with patience
the race set before us, looking to Jesus the author
and rewarder of faith, who for the joy set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame, and is en-
throned at the right hand of God. Consider him who
endured from sinners such hostility against himself,
that you may not grow weary or lose heart. For you
Heb 12:1-4 have not yet resisted even unto blood.'* For the
witness of those who shed their blood for the faith of
Christ is called witness in a privileged sense, that is
martyrdom. Consider first from what a mound of
stones the first martyr Stephen ascended t o Christ,
Ac 7:38; Whom all righteous souls also follow.*
Ac 22.20 'Like a flock of goats', says our text, 'that have
come up from Mount Gilead.' They carried the
treasure of faith in vessels of clay, but the loftiness
2 Co 4:7 of their courage was from God.* So they are
described as ascending, because savage tortures did
not so much break them as strengthen them to bear
witness with great courage. What spirit have these
men on earth, who cannot endure a single rebuke on
the part of their superiors, however light and friendly,
but at one rather severe word all the self-assured
firmness of their good resolution melts away? Their
witness, supported by so many trellises, can hardly
stand upright, and yet the martyrs' witness, assailed
by so many tortures, blossomed the more abun-
dantly. Did not every new torture but add to the
total of their testimony? Although they were
threatened with death the livelong day and
Ps 43:22 reckoned as sheep for the slaughter,* in everything
they conquered and, as it were, ascended on high
from Gilead, from the mount of martyrdom. For the
saints entered a contest to save not the life of the
body but the life of faith by which the just man
Rm 1:17 lives.* 6 Therefore they conquer in all things, for
their cause stands firm. For how do they not con-
quer, when either by perseverance in the confession
 Sermon Twenty-Three 291

of f a i t h t h e y have b e e n p r o m o t e d t o e t e r n i t y , or b y
p e r s u a s i o n have p r e p a r e d their p e r s e c u t o r s f o r t h e
truth? Although, as Scripture says, 'reckoned as
sheep f o r t h e s l a u g h t e r ' , w i t h harmless t e e t h , as it
w e r e , t h e y c r o p p e d their e n e m i e s f r o m t h e r o o t of
unbelief to store them in the living b o w e l s of
the Church.
6. Is this not the meaning of w h a t follows?
' Y o u r t e e t h ' , says t h e t e x t , 'are like a f l o c k of s h o r n
ewes.' Y o u n o t i c e w h a t sort of ewes t h e s e a r e : 7 t h e y
can indeed be shorn but their teeth cannot be
g r o u n d d o w n . T h e y can b e s l a u g h t e r e d b u t c a n n o t b e
s w a y e d . Or r a t h e r like t e e t h t h e y b r o k e their perse-
c u t o r s like crusts a n d , having s o f t e n e d t h e m with
words of unconquerable teaching, as if chewing
them w i t h their t e e t h , t h e y passed t h e m i n t o t h e
unity of t h e f a i t h f u l . * P e t e r was t o l d : 'Kill a n d Sg 7:9
eat.'* Even the teeth of Moses did not de- Ac 10:13
cay.* For their teeth are weapons and arrows: Dt 34:7
spiritual w e a p o n s p o w e r f u l in G o d t o d e m o l i s h f o r t i -
f i c a t i o n s . * Or are t h e t e e t h of t h e C h u r c h n o t t h e y of 2 Co 10:14;
w h o m t h e a p o s t l e says: 'If a n u n b e l i e v e r or o u t s i d e r Ps 56:5
s h o u l d e n t e r , h e is c o n v i c t e d b y all, h e is called t o
a c c o u n t b y all, t h e secrets of his h e a r t are disclosed,
and so, falling on his f a c e , h e will w o r s h i p G o d a n d
declare t h a t G o d is really a m o n g y o u . ' * 1 Co 14:24-5
D o n o t b e a f r a i d , b r o t h e r s , of a b i t e f r o m their
t e e t h ; t h e y are n o t a h o u n d ' s t e e t h b u t a s h e e p ' s
t e e t h , f o r t h e y are c o m p a r e d t o a f l o c k of s h o r n
ewes. In h o u n d s o n e prizes n o t t h e b i t e b u t the
b a r k . 8 'Silent h o u n d s ' , says Isaiah, ' u n a b l e t o b a r k ,
t h e y never have e n o u g h t o eat'*—as if Isaiah were Is 56:10
u p b r a i d i n g s o m e w a t c h m e n first f o r shirking t h e d u t y
of a w a t c h d o g t o b a y , and t h e n f o r b e i n g as h u n g r y as
h o u n d s ; u n a b l e t o b a r k , t h e y cease n o t t o b i t e . Such
are b a c k b i t e r s , d e t r a c t o r s , c a l u m n i a t o r s . W o u l d t h a t
even so t h e y w e r e satisfied w i t h b i t i n g a n d d e v o u r i n g
o n e a n o t h e r , a n d did n o t try t o b i t e t h e very t e e t h of
the s h o r n e w e s . 9 Does it n o t seem t o y o u t h a t her
t e a c h e r s and p r e l a t e s are t h e t e e t h of t h e C h u r c h , f o r
as if b y t h e n i b b l i n g of k i n d l y r e p r o o f , t h e y c h e c k ,
discern, e x p o s e a n d m e l l o w their s u b j e c t s for a b e t t e r
292 Cilbert of Hoyland

state of life? But if you are obdurate and cannot be

mellowed, why do you prepare to bite back? Or do
you not bite back, when you either speak evil in
secret or openly contradict? Why do you sharpen
tooth against tooth, a wicked tooth against a loyal
tooth? You can bite but you cannot devour. For
teachers and prelates are teeth, and they are both
hardy and firm; they do not fear detractors, remem-
bering with the prophet that they dwell among
Ezk 2:6 scorpions 10 and unbelievers* and that they are sent
Mt 10:6 like sheep among wolves* to change wolves 11 into
2 Co 1:6 sheep by reasonable tolerance and exhortation.*
Aptly are they called the teeth of 'shorn ewes',
because their bites should not be avoided, since for
their subjects they give the example of good works
like shorn fleece.
7. Yet teeth are considered useful not only for
cropping and checking the errors of others. They have
another more valuable use, if any are ready to masti-
cate the solid bread of heavenly food and to distin-
guish and discern the hidden meaning of more
sublime teaching, if any no longer need milk but
solid food and can somehow break and soften it and
by some seasoning either of exposition or of discus-
sion make it suitable for those who of themselves are
not ready for solid food and could assimilate only
milk. For they have, as it were, dentures for masticat-
ing more solid food, since they have faculties skilled
in the discernment of good from evil and indeed
even of one good from another, not only judging
between night and day but judging each and every
Rm 14:5 day.* Aptly too the text says they come up 'from
the washing', to prove them eager to cleanse the heart,
inasmuch as the knowledge of God has been promised
Mt 5:8 to the clean of heart.* You see how those who have to
crop and check the excesses of others must be
washed and irreproachable, how they must be
washed and clean of heart, who have to dispense
the nourishment of God's word and shake out the
hidden meanings of the more mysterious utterances,
and who must explore the inmost truths of wisdom
and digest its inner substance. 1 2
 Sermon Twenty-Three 293

8. ' Y o u r teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes.' Why

then like a flock? Assuredly because the teeth of t h e
Church d o n o t b u t t and a t t a c k one a n o t h e r b u t show
h a r m o n y and concord in simplicity and unity of
spirit. 'Like a flock of shorn ewes t h a t have come u p
f r o m the washing.' F o r p u t t i n g off the old self,* and Ep 4:22
relieved and cleansed of a superfluous b u r d e n , t h e y
climb the m o r e eagerly t o the heights. Surely the old
hair begins to be a b u r d e n w h e n the n e w fleece first
emerges, w h e n the winter has passed and t h e rains
are over and gone.* T h e r e f o r e if y o u still consider it Sg2:ll
necessary t o be w r a p p e d in the old and superfluous
fleece of trivialities and vanities, for y o u t h e winter
frosts of a f r o z e n m i n d have not yet passed away.
A p p r o p r i a t e l y t h e r e f o r e they have b e e n shorn and go
up f r o m the washing, as if having n o t h i n g of the old
b u r d e n or t h e mire.
Do y o u notice t h a t it is n o t enough f o r you t o be
shorn, t o be u n b u r d e n e d , t o b e c o m e washed a n d
new, unless y o u immediately rise and progress in
spirit, f o r y o u are renewed in spirit?* 'If we live by Ep 4:23
the spirit', says Paul, 'let us also walk in the spirit.'* Ga 5:25
If t h e n y o u i n t e n d t o rise, rise always f r o m t h e
washing ever new and clean. Each and every night
wash y o u r bed with tears.* Or if sin does n o t w r a p Lam 193, n. 155;
you r o u n d like night b u t flies b y like a cloud, none
the less wash each and every night, b l o t o u t with
y o u r tears the traces even of slight sins. F o r here in
the valley of tears is the place f o r washing. Why
gather dust, w h y p u t off the cleansing of sin until
the washing of the world t o c o m e ? H o w d o you
k n o w t h a t a p o o l of fire will n o t exist t h e r e rather
than a p o o l of water? F o r w h a t could easily be
washed out here, there is purified in a spirit n o t so
m u c h of m e r c y as of j u d g e m e n t and fire.
H a p p y is one w h o goes up f r o m this w o r l d n o t as
if f r o m the mire b u t as if f r o m the washing, w i t h no
need to wash a single t h i n g in himself f o r 'he is
wholly clean'.* Obviously he will be f o u n d w o r t h y Jo 13:10
to eat t h e b r e a d of angels with the glistening teeth
of his soul's faculties, n o longer the crust of grief b u t p i26-2-Pr 27-11
the b r e a d which gladdens t h e heart of m a n , * t h a t Laml72,n.l5.
294 Gilbert of Hoyland

b r e a d w h i c h t h e p r o p h e t m e a n t w h e n h e said: 'I shall

Ps 16:15 b e filled w h e n y o u r glory a p p e a r s . ' * J u s t so y o u r
glory n o u r i s h e s w h i l e it d o e s n o t a p p e a r , b u t re-
f r e s h e s w h e n it is revealed. N o w w h a t is t h e f u l l
revelation of this glory but true wisdom? When
w i s d o m invites us t o b a n q u e t u p o n itself, w i s d o m is
digested b y us o n l y w h e n w e m e d i t a t e on w i s d o m
as t h e life-giving delight a n d u n f a i l i n g r e f r e s h m e n t of
a p u r e m i n d . H e r e t h e n let us k e e p t h e f a c u l t i e s of
o u r spirit p u r i f i e d a n d s c h o o l e d , n o t n o w t o dis-
tinguish g o o d f r o m evil b u t o n l y t o perceive g o o d -
ness so great. Here let us o f t e n practise w h a t t h e r e
w e shall d o w i t h o u t i n t e r r u p t i o n ; let us f r e q u e n t l y
a n t i c i p a t e w h a t shall o c c u p y us u n c e a s i n g l y . H e r e let
this b e o u r chief business, w h i c h t h e r e will b e o u r
sole business. F o r t h e c o n t e m p l a t i o n of w i s d o m is
e t e r n a l r e f r e s h m e n t . N o t h i n g w h a t e v e r is r u m i n a t e d
w i t h m o r e savor b y t h e spiritual t e e t h of t h e soul
than that living Bread who says t o t h e Father:
'This is e t e r n a l life, t h a t t h e y s h o u l d k n o w y o u , t h e
Jn 17:3 t r u e G o d , and J e s u s C h r i s t w h o m y o u h a v e s e n t ' , *
w h o lives a n d reigns, G o d f o r ever a n d ever. A m e n .
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-THREE

1. G. addresses one person with some exceptions: e.g., Nostis and vos,
fratres, in par. 1; fratres mei . . . vestrae, in par. 3; audite and videte in par. 5;
fratres in par. 6.
2. G. seems t o i n t e n d a wry reference to abstinence and tonsure.
3. For goats, see Morson, 161, White, 40-43.
4. Pauphilet, in Etudes sur la 'Queste del Saint Graal' (Paris, 1921) 135-8,
showed that, according to Gn 3 6 : 4 7 - 5 2 , 'Galaad m e a n t " h e a p of t e s t i m o n y ' , and
that Isidore of Seville, Walafrid Strabo and t h e Venerable Bede c o n s t r u e d this
etymology as a reference to Christ. He clinched the m a t t e r b y q u o t i n g f r o m a
Cistercian work, the " S e r m o n s on the Canticles" of Gilbert of H o l l a n d ' . R. S.
Loomis, The Grail, from Celtic Myth to Christian Symbol (N.Y.: Columbia U.
Press, 1963) p. 179.
5. 'Here, then, the Synagogue or the Old Law is imagined as a bald
w o m a n , and the Church or the New L a w as a w o m a n a d o r n e d with l u x u r i a n t
tresses. It is n e x t to certain that this passage inspired the a u t h o r of Perlesvaus.'
R. S. Loomis, The Grail, 106-7. On the i m i t a t i o n of Christ in St Bernard, see
A. Van Den Bosch, 'Le Christ, Dieu devenu imitable d'apres S. Bernard',
COCR 22 (1960) 3 4 1 - 3 5 5 .
6. See Roger of Byland, Lac Parvulorum, R 18 below, Roger's vocation
letter t o G.
7. For sheep, see White 72-74.
8. For h o u n d s , see Morson, 153, White, 61-8.
9. Mss Paris 9 6 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 : temp ten t; M a b : tenent; Migne: tentent.
10. For t h e scorpion, see White, 192.
11. For the wolf, see Morson, 153, White, 56-61.
12. Perhaps an allusion to the vulture in the P r o m e t h e u s m y t h . Lam 179,
n. 55; 182-3, n. 76.

295
 SERMON 24
UNDERSTANDING AND AFFECTION

The bride bears twins, the light of under-

standing and the warmth of affection. 1. The
teeth of the bride help her understand and
digest the Scriptures. 2. But she bears twins,
both understanding and affection. 3. Her lips
are like charity, for they wound, they bind,
they are scarlet. 4. Such lips are praised for
prayer And exhortation. 5. The tongue can
enkindle aflame of hate or of love.

EACH ONE BEARS TWINS AND AMONG THEM

N O T O N E IS B A R R E N . Y O U R LIPS A R E L I K E A
SCARLET RIBBON AND YOUR SPEECH IS EN-
CHANTING.*1 Sg 4:2-3

I
n the previous sermon you heard praise for the
teeth of the bride. And rightly, for no small
measure of beauty is attributed to teeth if they
are white and evenly matched. Not only is
evenness pleasing in teeth but also usefulness. What
is the reason? How was John to devour the rolled-up
scroll proffered him by the angel in the Apocalypse,* Rv 10:9-11
without teeth fit for such food? An entire book seemed
to be tough food and therefore teeth were needed to
break the whole into small pieces and to soften what
was hard that it might be swallowed more easily. Sure-
ly a good tooth is a trained understanding which is
spiritual, which judges everything, examines every-
thing, chews on and 'scrutinizes everything, even the
abyss of God',* which chews even the very marrow Sg 7:9; 1 Co 2:10

297
298 Gilbert of Hoyland

of the rolled up scroll and consumes the vitals of

Ezk 3:3 wisdom.* 'The fool,' we read, 'folds his hands and
Qo 4:5 consumes his own vitals.'* That is gory food, carnal
food, food which perishes, or rather which destroys.
How much more appetizing and healthful [it is] to
consume the vitals of wisdom and the mysteries of
the sacred word. The word cannot be touched with
gory teeth but only with teeth washed and white,
Ws 7:26 because it is the 'brightness of eternal light'* and the
teeth of the Bridegroom himself are called 'whiter
Gn 49:12 than milk'.* Accordingly he praises in the bride teeth
like his own. 'Your teeth are like a flock of shorn
Sg4:l ewes which have come up from the washing'.* Any-
one must have mental faculties not only washed but
also freed, who intends them to scrutinize the
word of God.
2. 'Each bears twins and not one among them is
barren.' Barrenness is attributed to you, if you are
content with even a single offspring. If you have been
able to arrive at some holy understanding in the
Scriptures, you have already given birth to one off-
spring. This is a good, a giant step, but not enough
for a holy appreciation, if affection does not match it.
Barren is that understanding which is not paired with
a contemporary and kindred devotion. Everywhere
in the Scriptures, seed is sown for you, as it were,
from which you may conceive this twin offspring.
There all things are not only subtle but also sweet.
The command of the Lord is full of light and his
Ps 18:9;Ps 118: word full of fire.* Sterile in you is the word of God,
^ ' g L a m 181' so far as it fails to produce either light or fire. If you
see with your understanding but are still chilled with
icy feelings, is not the flaming power of God's word
considered barren and ineffective in you?
In Scripture the word is called fire, not only be-
cause it gives light but especially because it ignites.
'The word which goes forth from my mouth,' says
the Lord, 'shall not return to me empty but shall
Is 55:11 act . . . and achieve the end for which I sent it.'*
What is this end? You have it in the Gospel: 'I came
to cast fire upon the earth, and would that it were
Lk 12:49 already kindled.'* A seed is the word of God and in
 Sermon Twenty-Four 299

it, as y o u read in J o b , both light and heat are sown

over the earth.* But somehow light has blossomed Jb 38:24
more bountifully and men have loved light more
than the warmth of fervor, save that they m a y take
more pleasure in light, without embracing the very
source of the light. Or does it not seem to y o u that
fire which does not kindle has lost or unlearnt its
own nature? When y o u hear someone say boastfully:
'those words of sacred Scripture do not edify me',
what else does that person seem to y o u to be saying
but that 'the flaming Word has lost its effect upon
me; it neither enkindles, nor inflames, nor exerts
upon me any generative power'. His own sterility he
imputes to the word, which for its part grows and
bears fruit. What a glorious boast, brother, that the
word of God does not edify you, because you say
so! Perhaps the old sod in y o u has not been
plowed and harrowed and therefore a new crop
cannot be laid on top, cannot germinate, cannot
sprout.
Happy the man in whom the sap of worldly love
is dried up and its strength enfeebled; in him the
power of the flaming word does its work easily. The
word of God gives both light and warmth. Let
neither be robbed of its power in y o u . Conceive a
twin offspring from this seed. Barren is the womb
considered which is not pregnant with these twins.
'In Christ J e s u s neither circumcision has any value,
nor has uncircumcision, but only the faith which
works through love.'* Love is indeed a good off- Ga5:6
spring, since charity is listed among the fruits of the
Spirit. In Scripture, the twin offspring are like our
twofold charity. 'You shall love the Lord your God
with your whole heart and your whole soul and
your whole mind. This is the greatest and first
commandment. The second is like this: y o u shall
love your neighbor as yourself.' The former is the
first, the latter is the second; each is the greatest,
since the latter is like the former. Good and suffi-
cient are these twin offspring, since 'upon these
depend the whole Law and the Prophets'.* As Paul Mt 22:37-40
says: 'the purpose of the precept is charity', which
300 Gilbert of Hoyland

1 Tm 1:5; elsewhere he calls 'the bond of perfection'.*

3. Aptly t o o the text then refers to a b o n d of
scarlet, the source of the simile in praise of the bride's
lips: 'Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon', for her lips
are a bond and they glow red when they speak of
charity, such fruit of the w o m b . Charity conceived in
the heart, like a flaming fire dyes the lips with a red
hue when it bursts through their bonds. Warmth
f r o m on high, cast into the heart, lends a kindred
color to the lips. What else is meant by saying her
lips are as scarlet, except to show that her lips are
aflame because scarlet glows with the hue of fire. Her
lips no longer need purification with coals f r o m the
Is 6:6 altar nor cautery with outward fire.* For, already
ablaze f r o m an inward flame, her lips plant in others
the seed of fire from on high conceived in her w o m b .
Knowledge of salvation indeed they plant, the fiery
Lk 12:49 law which the Lord came to cast u p o n earth. *
Rightly called scarlet are the lips which cast this fire
not only u p o n earth b u t also u p to heaven. In our
text, they enkindle even the Lord of heaven. He
commends the scarlet lips precisely because they
are scarlet for him, because they seem fervent to him,
because he perceives t h e m on fire and because they
add fire to mutual charity. Here is a surprise: he him-
self is the fire, yet he catches fire f r o m our sparks.
Eph 6:17 But why not? The Word of God is also a sword,* and
none the less he is w o u n d e d . 'You have w o u n d e d m y
heart, sister, m y bride, you have w o u n d e d m y heart
Sg4:9 with one of your eyes.'* Likewise he is also the fire
and none the less he is set aflame. He is w o u n d e d by
an eye, he is set aflame by a lip, and he is even set in
bonds; that is why her lips are compared to a ribbon.
But charity is the wound, charity is the ribbon, char-
ity is scarlet. Do you see h o w piercing, h o w tenacious,
how fiery is charity?
In praying use lips like these, bind your Beloved to
your heart with the bond of memory as with a tena-
cious ribbon, fasten him, set him on fire with fervent
affection. How sweet if he should say, alluding to
^ L a m l 9 y o u : 'your speech is a passionate fire' and your
n. 137 Bridegroom loves it.* 'Kiss me with the kiss of your
 Sermon Twenty-Four 301

mouth',* for your lips are b e a u t i f u l as a scarlet Sgl:l

ribbon, yes, if t h e desire t o kiss is i m p l i e d in t h e
praise of h e r lips. He y e a r n s t h a t his lips b e im-
printed u p o n yours, that there be one m o u t h , one
pair o f lips a n d t h a t a f t e r this i m p r i n t h e m a y say t o
y o u : T h i s n o w is m o u t h of m y m o u t h a n d lips of m y
lips. T h e grace p o u r e d u p o n his lips f l o w s b a c k u p o n
y o u r s a n d f r o m his scarlet d y e y o u r lips also b e c o m e
scarlet. G o o d is t h e i m p r i n t which communicates
such grace t o t h e lips o f t h e bride. Please r e m e m b e r
t h a t t h e lips of w h i c h I a m s p e a k i n g n o w are n o t lips
of t h e flesh b u t lips of t h e spirit, i n m o s t lips of w h i c h
Paul s p e a k s : 'Sing a n d m a k e m e l o d y in y o u r h e a r t s t o
t h e L o r d . ' * If y o u are a b r i d e , y o u r lips m u s t b e Eph5:19
j o i n e d a n d e n k i n d l e d f o r this o n e p u r p o s e , to p l e a d
w i t h y o u r Beloved, t o converse w i t h h i m , t o sing t o
him, and y o u m a y say w i t h t h e p r o p h e t : ' M y lips will
e x u l t w h e n I sing t o y o u . ' * In c o n v e r s a t i o n so h o l y , Ps 7:25. Lam
let n o t h i n g b e l o o s e on y o u r lips a n d t h e n are t h e y
like a r i b b o n ; let n o t h i n g be chilling, a n d y o u have
lips of scarlet. W h o will grant m e , g o o d J e s u s , in h o l d -
ing converse w i t h y o u , t o have s u c h lips, so p r o m p t ,
so o p e n , so e n k i n d l e d , e n k i n d l e d a n d e x u l t a n t , so as
t o sing o n l y f o r y o u , t o sing o n l y of y o u ? W o u l d t h a t
m y lips w e r e s u c h t h a t t h r o u g h t h e f i n e c o n t i n u i t y
and f e r v e n t a f f e c t i o n of u n b r o k e n m e d i t a t i o n t h e y
m i g h t r e s e m b l e a b o n d of scarlet.

4. Lips of this kind C h r i s t c o m m e n d s in his

b r i d e , n o t o n l y f o r p r a y e r b u t also f o r e x h o r t a t i o n ,
that she 'may have power to exhort in sound
d o c t r i n e ' . * F o r lips w h i c h b i n d t h e m s e l v e s in collo- Ttl:9
quy w i t h h i m , rightly i n d e e d pour out and sow
k n o w l e d g e of salvation; if t h e y r e s o r t t o s w e e t and
f e r v e n t p r a y e r t o a r o u s e t h e h e a r t s of t h e i r hearers,
scarlet t h e y are, f o r t h e y cast fire. If h o w e v e r t h e y
e x h o r t at t h e s a m e t i m e as t h e y t e a c h and t e a c h w h a t
reflects sound doctrine, what harmonizes with the
c a n o n s o f t h e f a i t h , at last t h e y are like o u r r i b b o n ,
and the k n o w l e d g e t h e y d i s s e m i n a t e is n o t o n l y of
salvation b u t also a n u n b r e a k a b l e b o n d . * F o r w h a t Heb 7:16
is so self-consistent, so s t e a d f a s t , w o v e n i n t o s u c h an
unbreakable knot as ' t h e a c c o u n t of our faith'?* Rm 12:6
302 Gilbert of Hoyland

Paul gave s u c h i n s t r u c t i o n t o his disciple w h e n h e

1 Tm 4:13 said: 'Be diligent . . . in e x h o r t a t i o n a n d in t e a c h i n g ' . *
B u t even in o r d i n a r y c o n v e r s a t i o n , w h e r e m y s t e r i e s
of f a i t h are n o t f o r m a l l y t r e a t e d , in j u s t t h e s a m e w a y
y o u r lips are c o m p a r e d t o a scarlet r i b b o n , if y o u r
conversation is delicately measured, discreet,
restrained and colored with t h e pleasing b l u s h of
m o d e s t y , if b o t h f r e q u e n t l y and gladly it alludes
t o t h e cross of Christ. O blessed are t h e s e lips, t r u l y
w o r t h y b o t h of t h e kiss a n d t h e c o l l o q u y o f Christ!
lips so p u r e a n d so e n k i n d l e d , p u r e in t h e f a i t h a n d
enkindled in love! This e n k i n d l i n g is f r o m deep
within and f r o m the heights, drawing nothing f r o m
t h e abyss.
5. F o r t h e r e is a k i n d of e n k i n d l i n g w h i c h e r u p t s
f r o m t h e abyss. ' T h e t o n g u e , a t i n y m e m b e r , ' says
J a m e s , 'sets fire t o t h e w h o l e w h e e l o f o u r c r e a t i o n ,
Jm 3:5-6 itself c a t c h i n g fire f r o m G e h e n n a . ' * In w h a t good
sense can a t o n g u e so b a d l y i n f l a m e d k i n d l e a fire?
T h e u n s t a b l e w h e e l of c o r r u p t i o n f r o m o u r t w i s t e d
b i r t h rolls on its o w n t o o readily t o w a r d s evil a n d
p l u m m e t s h e a d l o n g b y its o w n i m p e t u s ; a n d w h a t
n e e d is t h e r e t o set on fire this w h e e l w h i c h c a n n o t
b e s t o p p e d , b u t of itself is p r o n e t o evil? In f a c t
S c r i p t u r e n o t e s c a r e f u l l y t h a t ' m a n ' s h e a r t is set o n
Gn 8:21 evil f r o m his y o u t h ' . * Set in m o t i o n f r o m its first
b i r t h t h e w h e e l c a n n o t c h a n g e its c o u r s e ; a n d d o y o u
w i t h an evil t o n g u e lash a n d i n f l a m e it f u r t h e r ? A n
evil t o n g u e seeks o p p o r t u n i t i e s for w r a t h a n d indig-
n a t i o n ; it e i t h e r f a b r i c a t e s false insults or exaggerates
real insults w h i c h it o u g h t t o have o v e r l o o k e d ; it mis-
c o n s t r u e s even d u t i f u l p e r f o r m a n c e as an o f f e n c e a n d
it uses t h e sparks of p o i s o n e d talk t o stir u p its o w n
Ws 2:2. Lam 17, heart.* Why with a wicked tongue apply such a
^ w i c k e d t o n g u e a p p l y such a f l a m e t o y o u r h e a r t ? F o r
t h e h e a r t let its o w n f l a m e b e e n o u g h , t h e h e a t of
carnal passion a n d t h e fever of i n n a t e fickleness b y
w h i c h y o u r h e a r t spins like a w h i r l i n g w h e e l . Y o u r
first b i r t h e n g e n d e r e d this f l a m e in y o u , b u t t h e grace
of r e b i r t h s t u n t s its g r o w t h . D o n o t a d d fire t o fire
a n d malice t o c o n c u p i s c e n c e . T h i s fire w h i c h you
v o m i t , y o u d r a w f r o m G e h e n n a . T h e n c e it begins a n d
 Sermon Twenty-Four 303

thither it rushes. 'The tongue is set on fire by-

Gehenna', says James.* This evil tongue is scarlet, Jm 3:6
but not a ribbon, for it does not bind but scatters. It
enkindles in a bad sense, because it severs what is
united, because such a flame rises from the abyss.
For 2 the flame 'which comes from above is pure,
peaceful, agreeing with the good'* and making others Jm 3:11
good. 'For a gentle word both multiplies friends and
mollifies enemies'.* Like fire it consumes fire. The Si 6:5
higher consumes the lower; fire from heaven consumes
fire from hell; a wise and pleasant word surpasses a
malicious word and a gentle word softens a harsh
one. Therefore the Bridegroom says: 'Your lips are
like a scarlet ribbon and your speech is enchanting.'
For only enchanting words befit the bride, words of
love, words which act as a delicate thread, words
which will enmesh and draw the Bridegroom with the
bonds of charity. 3 Happy the soul which knows how
to fasten the mesh of such enchanting words, with
which she may ensnare Jesus, bind the Word of the
Father with spiritual affections, envelop Christ as it
were with wooing words, delay and delight him with
loving talk, so that her speech may be pleasant to him
who has the words of eternal life and is the eternal
Word who lives and reigns with the Father and the
Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-FOUR

1. G. addresses one person throughout, save for the first word, audistis.
2. Reading Nam with Migne, mss. Paris 9 6 0 5 , Troyes 4 1 9 ; Mab: Non.
3. Ho 11:4, Pr 7 : 2 1 ; this passage seems reminiscent o f the Song of Demo-
docus in the eighth b o o k of the Odyssey.

304
 SERMON 25
PERSONAL PROGRESS

In her modesty the bride does not see her own

progress. 1. The countenance reflects the mind
and adds charm to the voice. 2. The bride's
modesty is praised. 3. Progress is hidden from
the individual. 4. The secrets of the bride are
hidden within. 5. Some have strange opinions
of religious life.

YOUR CHEEKS ARE LIKE BROKEN HALVES

OF A P O M E G R A N A T E A P A R T F R O M WHAT LIES
HIDDEN WITHIN YOU*1 Sg 4:3

H
ow tasty do you think are the cheeks of
the bride, which are edible, since they
have the charm of mellow fruit? In fact,
you may see even the bodily cheeks of
some person full of such pleasing charm that the
outer appearance can refresh the minds of the
beholders and1 feed them with the inner charm their
appearance suggests. 2 Beauty of countenance speaks
for the mind, and the face expresses interior affec-
tion.* You see how logically, after white teeth and 2 M 3:16
scarlet lips, the text refers to her cheeks. Cheeks are
closely related to lips and when lips are silent the
cheeks portray the secrets of the mind by a kind of
visible eloquence. Cheeks in turn adopt the function
of the voice itself and supplement or add charm to the
duty of the voice. However gentle and warm the
voice may be, a saucy face makes a charming voice
rasp; its levity lessens the seriousness of the message.

305
306 Gilbert of Hoyland

So the text adds that the demure ripeness of her

cheeks enhances the charm of her scarlet lips.
The text tacitly seems to imply some ripeness in
her cheeks, since it compares them to a fruit. Ripe-
ness is always appreciated in fruit. In previous
Sg 1:9 verses,* the Canticle described her cheeks as those of
a turtle dove, 3 because nothing wanton, nothing
frivolous, nothing petulant appears in her counte-
nance, but the warmth of her desires may bow down
her cheeks with a pleasing seriousness. Anxious
affections do not allow her face to grow wanton and
loving meditations banish all levity from her cheeks.
Indeed the turtle dove is a fretful bird, a mourning
dove. Such Paul wishes the virgin to be, so that she
1 Co 1:32 may be anxious 'to please God'* and in the habit of
saying: 'My soul has thirsted for God, the living
fountain; when shall I come and appear before the
Ps 41:3. Lam 186, face' of the Lord?* Does this not seem to you the
nn, 104, 106. voice of one in mourning? Sweet is your mourning,
which love has begotten. How are those cheeks not
solemn and mellow which affections of mourning
have fashioned?
These mournings are more than mournings; they
_ „. , T bear also the grace
6 of refreshment. 'You will feed us',
Ps 79:6. Lam
193, n. 153. says the psalmist, 'with the bread of tears.'* Our text
compares the bride's cheeks to a pomegranate,
because her solicitous and loving affection clothes
her countenance with a kindred mellowness and feeds
those who gaze on her. For the grace of her mind
mirrored in her face, as it were, refreshes those w h o
behold her, while she affects them gently and pours
into other minds her own passionate love. I cannot
fail to be pleasantly moved while in imagination I
sketch such a countenance, and her loving cheeks
when contemplated beget a similar affection in my-
self. How much more when they are seen! For sight is
more vivid than thought. Utterly beautiful are the
cheeks in which such charm is conspicuous, which a
welcome humility commends, for they are not puffed
up nor do they pout, but by some practice of disci-
pline have been trained to the composure of modest
humility.
 Sermon Twenty-Five 307

2. ' Y o u r c h e e k s are like b r o k e n halves of p o m e -

granate.' Does he not seem t o you t o have had
b r o k e n c h e e k s , w h o o f f e r e d t h e m t o t h e strikers a n d
t o t h o s e w h o p l u c k e d his b e a r d a n d d i d n o t t u r n
f r o m their s p i t t a l ? * G o o d i n d e e d is this b r e a k i n g b y Is 50:6
w h i c h his i n n e r v i r t u e b e g a n t o b e c o n s p i c u o u s a n d
t h e grace e n c l o s e d w i t h i n t h e r i n d of his flesh b e g a n
t o b r e a k o u t . S u c h surpassing d i g n i t y seems t o b e
b r o k e n , as it e m p t i e s itself o u t f o r t h e insults of t h e
passion, b u t t h r o u g h these b r o k e n pieces a c o r n u -
copia of salvation was p o u r e d o u t f o r us. If y o u also
fill u p in y o u r flesh w h a t is lacking t o Christ's s u f f e r -
ings,* if y o u b e a r t h e s t i g m a t a of C h r i s t J e s u s in y o u r Col 1:24
body,* Christ is a l r e a d y saying t o y o u t h a t ' y o u r Ga6:17
c h e e k s are like b r o k e n halves of a p o m e g r a n a t e ' . If
y o u r c h e e k s are b r o k e n a n d , as it w e r e , c r u c i f i e d , if
t h e y are t a m e d a n d t r a i n e d b y a f i x e d discipline, d o
t h e y n o t s e e m t o y o u like f r a g m e n t s of s o m e g o o d l y
f r u i t ? In a l a t e r c h a p t e r it is said of t h e B r i d e g r o o m :
'his c h e e k s are like b e d s of spices',* b e c a u s e t h e y are Sg 5:13
plowed and h a r r o w e d and raked for the cultivation
of spices.

So here also t h e t e x t says t h a t t h e b r i d e ' s c h e e k s

are like b r o k e n pieces of p o m e g r a n a t e . A n d g o o d is
t h e b r e a k i n g b y w h i c h d e a t h d o e s n o t e n t e r , b u t an
e x a m p l e of spiritual f r u i t is d i s p l a y e d . G o o d are t h e
cheeks, t h e n , w h i c h have b e e n so b r o k e n b y humilia-
tion t h a t t h e y d o n o t lose b u t r a t h e r p r o d u c e t h e
grace of i n n e r f r u i t . In o u r t e x t , t h e p o m e g r a n a t e
itself b y t h e r e d o f its rind also d e n o t e s t h e pleasing
reserve o f a m o d e s t c o u n t e n a n c e . O b v i o u s l y t h e finest
o r n a m e n t in t h e b r i d e of Christ is m o d e s t y . Like t h e
d a w n , m o d e s t y colors t h e b e g i n n i n g s o f all a c t i o n s
and e n h a n c e s t h e o t h e r virtues w i t h virginal reserve.
M o d e s t y d o e s n o t w a n t o n l y b o a s t of its blessings b u t
speaks sparingly, c o n t e n t w i t h a g e n t l e h i n t when
n e e d d e m a n d s . G o o d Jesus, w h a t m o d e s t y t h e r e is
e v e r y w h e r e in y o u r speech! H o w s p a r i n g y o u are in
your o w n praises, w h i c h y o u c o u l d h a v e a p p o s i t e l y
a r t i c u l a t e d as m u c h w i t h o u t loss of h u m i l i t y as w i t h -
o u t h a r m t o t h e t r u t h ! A n d w h e n h e e x p r e s s e d his
o w n blessings, still h e s u p p r e s s e d his o w n n a m e . He
308 Gilbert of Hoyland

could have spoken more fully, but to set the bride an

example, he himself assumed the color of modest
reserve.
I am not now promoting the modesty which
tinges the face with a visible blush, but that which
enhances the features of one's whole way o f life.
For as one's face has cheeks, so one's whole way of
life has similar features, in which nothing is more
pleasing than the color, if the character of every act
is redolent of humility, if it hides more in the heart
than it shows on the face. In our text also the Bride-
groom says: 'Your cheeks are like broken pieces of
pomegranate, apart from what lies hidden within
you.' G o o d are the cheeks which, as they present no
false front, so possess much hidden treasure, as they
offer nothing counterfeit, so do not squander their
reserve; they display less in appearance than their
inner reserve of virtue.
3. These qualities can be applied to the inner
cheeks of the soul which are upon the face of
conscience, where not man but G o d beholds. Each
one's conscience has as it were, a face of its own.
One's cheeks blush with the modest hue of humility,
if in one's heart one would not boast of good works,
would not exaggerate merits, would not consider
them outstanding but would be ashamed that they
are so trivial. For who will pride himself on having a
Pr 20:9 chaste heart?* If he has received this gift, how will he
1 Co 4:7 boast as if he had not received i t ? * Y e t who under-
stands the very gifts he has received? F o r if he does
Ps 18:13 not understand his f a u l t s , * how much less his gifts?
Gifts are from above, they come down from the
/TO 1:17; Father o f lights.* But 'no one except the Spirit of
see G. T5. q Q ( j c o m p r e h e n d s the thoughts of G o d ' . t Therefore
fl Co 2:11 if G o d reveals himself to anyone through his Spirit, it
is not so much the man himself who knows, as the
Spirit of G o d within him. 'We have received . . . the
Spirit which is from G o d ' , says Paul, 'that we might
1 Co 2:12 understand the gifts bestowed on us by G o d . ' * Does
this mean all gifts? Or if one could understand all
gifts, could one understand all gifts in every respect?
Not even one gift, I think, in its entirety; and if the
 Sermon Twenty-Five 309

gift were hidden in a scourge, one could not under-

stand that gift at all.* Jb 19:6
Conscience itself is profitably hidden from itself in
part, and an excessive love of making progress is it-
self ignorant of the advances of its own progress. In
our text not the fulness of virtues as of whole pome-
granates but only slices are said to appear in the
bride's cheeks, for what is on the cheeks is apparent.
And if one recognizes the grace of some virtue really
present within oneself, is one aware of its intensity,
its steadfastness, its perseverance? 'My frame was not
hidden from you', says the psalmist, 'when I was
being made in secret.'* Though it be hidden from me, Ps 138:15
it is not hidden from you, for your 'Spirit searches
everything' even what is hidden in me.* Would that I 1 Co 2:10
might have many such gifts hidden in me, known to
you, good Jesus, and stored among your treasures.
Perilous it is to store them in m y understanding;
therefore I entrust them more safely to yours. Yet it
it not so much I who entrust them to you as you
who do not entrust them to me. In your keeping you
cherish still more safely what you have made in
secret. Nor is so much perfection in the bride
allowed to be disclosed to her and to appear on her
cheeks in its fulness.
4. 'Thus are your cheeks, apart from what lies
hidden within y o u . ' * Some secrets are to be brought Sg6:6
to light at a suitable time and displayed on the face.
Meanwhile they lie hidden germinally, destined to
receive their full beauty in due time. Now therefore
you are a bride, but it is not yet apparent what you
will be.* In your opinion, who will be like Me when I 1 Jo 3:2
appear? Even now you have a partial likeness, be-
cause you know partially.* 'With face unveiled' you 1 Co 13:9
are 'already contemplating m y glory', but y e t y o u are
still 'being transformed from one degree of glory to
another'.* While you are being transformed, you do 2 Co 3:18
not yet possess wholly. To be transformed is to make
progress, but not yet to have been made perfect. Your
perfection, however, is not yet yours, but already my
eyes see it; with me you already are such as you will
be, O bride. Already you have been written in the
310 Gilbert of Hoyland

book of life and I have your portrait in my hands.

Your face is before me always; it shines bright before
me, though in you at present it is obscured. Already
I have found the drachma of my image in you, but it
is still coated with rust and its beauty is hidden.
Faith already glows on your cheeks and suffuses
them with the color of life, but the object of faith is
in hiding. That is why 'your cheeks are like broken
halves of a pomegranate, apart from what lies hidden
within you'. Pleasing enough is the countenance of
your faith, but you appear to me more praiseworthy
for what is hidden within you. The virtue of
patience, plain to see and as if on your cheeks, is
already pleasing enough, but I value you more
for the glory to come.
And truthfully, brothers, the sufferings—no, I do
not say sufferings, but even the endurance—of this
present time is 'not worth comparing with the glory
Rm 8:18 that is t o be revealed in us'.* Of that glory some
seeds have already been sown in us, which by a
hidden working are bringing themselves to maturity
and to the substance of a perfect fruit. This sub-
stance is at present hidden in us by a kind of grace
proper to seeds. 'My substance', says the psalmist, 'is
Ps 138:15 in the lower parts of the earth.'* Do you see where
he says his substance is hidden? 'In the lower parts of
the earth.' Luckily for him, his substance is not in the
lowest parts. Personally I understand that there are
some upper, some lower, and some lowest parts
of the earth. The upper parts are the very nature of
the human body; the lower parts are what is corrupt
in the same nature; the lowest parts are some iniquity
and fault proceeding from corruption and corrupting
nature still more. The prophet does not say that his
substance is in the lowest parts, precisely because that
spiritual grace (which for the prophet is the highest
substance) has no truck with iniquity; he says rather
'in the lower parts of the earth'. 'My substance',
because for its healing effect the grace of the Spirit is
hidden in the weakness of the flesh, and concealed
like leaven grace continues its work of healing until
2 Co 5:4 mortality is swallowed up by life.* For the lump of
 Sermon Twenty-Five 311

d o u g h s h o u l d n o t c o r r u p t t h e leaven b u t r a t h e r b e
c h a n g e d b y t h e leaven i n t o a similar flavor.* Ga 5:9
5. E l s e w h e r e t o o t h e psalmist also says: 'My sub-
s t a n c e is w i t h y o u . ' * T h e r e f o r e his s u b s t a n c e is b o t h Ps 38:8
in t h e l o w e r p a r t s of t h e e a r t h a n d w i t h t h e L o r d . It is
hidden in far distance places, in the heights of
h e a v e n a n d in t h e l o w e r p a r t s of e a r t h , in e t e r n i t y
a n d in i n f i r m i t y , t h e r e b y P r o v i d e n c e , h e r e b y grace
active w i t h i n . Good is t h e grace w h i c h so e f f e c t s
progress in virtue t h a t in t u r n it b r e a t h e s i n t o us a
taste f o r p e r f e c t i o n a n d divulges secrets h i d d e n f r o m
the beginning of the world,* hidden to the world and Ait 13:35
h i d d e n in G o d , w h e r e o u r 'life has b e e n h i d d e n w i t h
Christ'.* And truly 'great is t h e wealth of y o u r Col 3:3
s w e e t n e s s , O L o r d , w h i c h y o u have h i d d e n f r o m t h o s e
w h o f e a r y o u ' , * b u t n o t f r o m t h o s e w h o love y o u . So Ps 30:20
p e r h a p s this s w e e t n e s s d o e s n o t escape t h e a t t e n t i o n
of t h e b r i d e . * T h e s e very secrets b e l o n g t o t h e b r i d e , Tb 2:21
f o r of t h e m t h e B r i d e g r o o m says: ' S u c h are y o u r
c h e e k s , a p a r t f r o m w h a t lies h i d d e n w i t h i n y o u . '

T h i s s t a t e m e n t w a s m a d e t h e n n o t f o r h e r alone,
but for the bystanders, or even m o r e for those
s t a n d i n g far o f f a n d f o r t h o s e w h o s t a n d o p p o s e d , f o r
t h o s e w h o ' t h r o u g h f e a r r e t r e a t f r o m a h o l y w a y of
life a n d f o r t h o s e w h o t h r o u g h envy d e f a m e it.* Lam 13, n. 47.
S o m e a m o n g t h e m c o n s i d e r t h e h i d d e n life, t h e life
of t h e saints, e m p t y a n d w i t h o u t h o n o r . S o m e o t h e r s
w i t h o u t c o n s i d e r i n g it e m p t y , still r e g a r d its w h o l e
direction with utmost horror, for they dare not
entertain the suspicion t h a t its e n d i n g is w i t h o u t
h o n o r . * T h e f o r m e r c o n s i d e r religious life e m p t y , t h e Ws 5:4, Lam 14,
l a t t e r c o n s i d e r it b i t t e r . T h e f o r m e r d o n o t r e s p e c t it, "
the latter fear to draw near. Therefore the Bride-
g r o o m t o o k p a i n s t o h i n t d e l i c a t e l y a t t h e secrets of
t h e b r i d e , as if i n d i r e c t l y t o u c h i n g t h e envious and
attracting the t i m o r o u s , while giving s o m e veiled
i n t i m a t i o n of h e r i n m o s t delights as f o l l o w s : 'Such
are y o u r cheeks, a p a r t f r o m w h a t lies h i d d e n w i t h i n
you'; as if h e w e r e t o s a y : if o t h e r s also k n e w w i t h
w h a t h i d d e n t r e a s u r e s y o u r i n t e r i o r is filled, O b r i d e ,
h o w readily t h e y w o u l d r e c k o n all else as loss in
order to gain t h o s e t r e a s u r e s ! * H o w gladly t h e y Ph 3:7-8
312 Gilbert of Hoyland

would both forfeit the good and endure the evil to

becomes sharers in that hidden sweetness!
Now, however, hidden from their eyes is the sweet-
ness which intermittently bursts in upon holy souls in
secret. Agreeable indeed is this ebb and flow which
mitigates the hardships of many seasons, and not
negligible are these delights which flow into seasons
to come. Why do you fear want in seasons to come?
There are delights in the bride's secrets and abounding
delights. Now there is abundance in your towers, O
bride, for the text says: 'your neck is like the tower
Sg 4:4 of David',* and if her delights lie hidden, her virtue is
conspicuous. How is it not conspicuous, when it is
compared to a tower? But let us postpone this for
tomorrow's sermon, when we shall say about this
tower what the real David gives us, its author and our
tutor, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns for ever
and ever. Amen.
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-FIVE

1. G. is writing for one individual, though once, par. 4, he interjects

fratres. See also Sg 6:6.
2. Read internos with Mab., Paris 9605, Troyes 419; Migne: inter nos.
3. See Is 59:11; Bernard, SC 59:3-6; Morson, 162-3;White, 144-46.
4. desideriorum aestus dulci gravitate deiiciat, Mab; dejiciat, Migne.
5. Reading sponsae with mss. Paris 9605, Troyes 419; Mab. and Migne:
sponsi.
6. Reading with Mab: quamdam; mss Paris 9605, Troyes 419: quandam;
Migne: quadam.

313
 SERMON 26
BATTLEMENTS OF THE WORD
AND O F CHARITY

The bride is protected by battlements of the

word and of charity. 1. The bride is beautiful
and brave, free from the yoke of Adam for the
yoke of Christ. 2. To the yoke of Adam we add
yokes of oxen; the flame of concupiscence we
stoke with flames from its smithy. 3. The yoke
of Christ with its chrism breaks the yoke of
oxen and rots the knots of enslavement. 4. The
bride borrows from her Bridegroom to build
her tower of humility. 5. Against siege without
and famine within, charity is her rampart.
6. From charity spring solicitude, prudence
and wariness; the shields of charity are an
orderly life, the rule, and the word of God,
7. but especially the shield of the word of
God. 8. Charity has four shields: the shield of
faith, the shield of truth, the shield of good
will, the shield of the sacred word. 9. The bride
towers upwards in the ecstasy of contempla-
tion and bends to suckle her young.

YOUR NECK IS L I K E T H E T O W E R O F DAVID,

BUILT WITH BATTLEMENTS. A THOUSAND
S H I E L D S H A N G F R O M IT, A L L T H E A R M O R O F
VALIANT MEN*1

T
he Bridegroom at last discourses on brave
deeds to the bride and about the bride;
previously he spoke of her charms, for
instance: 'Your neck is like a jewelled

315
316 Gilbert ofHoyland

Sg 1:9 necklace'.* You have something similar in a psalm:

'The Lord has robed himself in beauty, he has robed
Ps 92:1 himself in strength.'* Good are these robes, one an
elegant mantle, the other a coat of mail. He placed
first the robe which seems more appropriate to the
bride. Now he addresses himself, as it were, to her
fortitude. The virtue of fortitude in the bride is as
much more precious as it is more rare. Rare it is
Pr 31:10 obviously, for who shall find a valiant woman?* And
if one can be found, still you, good Jesus, do not so
much find her valiant, as you come beforehand to
make her so. This very tower does not build itself,
but he builds it, without whom the builders labor
Ps 126:1 in vain.*
See how valiant he wishes her to be considered,
when he compares her to the tower of David. 'Your
neck', he says, 'is like the tower of David.' Do not
attribute inflexibility and hardness to this neck, for
these qualities cannot be matter for praise but rather
call down a curse. 'Cursed be their rage,' says the
Scripture, 'because it is stubborn, and their wrath
Gn 49:7 because it is hard.'* 'Your neck', says Isaiah, 'is an
Is 48:4 iron sinew.'* These statements are directed towards
condemnation, not elicited for commendation! Un-
bending obstinacy is wont to counterfeit the liberty
which I understand in these words: 'Your neck is like
the tower of David.'
Her neck is obviously free, unacquainted with the
state of slavery, as erect and as fortified as David's
tower. ! do not think this neck will be chafed by any
yoke of abject servility. 'Heavy is the yoke upon the
Si 40:1 children of Adam' from the day of their birth,* but
the bride no longer seems one of the daughters of
Adam. She has already exchanged her ancient birth
for the newness of regeneration, and now is un-
acquainted with the carnal Adam, for from him she
passed over to Christ; from him she has cleaved
to the second Adam and become one spirit with
1 Co 6:17 Him.* For this reason she is free, because 'where the
spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom' and 'the free-
c om
2 Co 3-17- ' Christ set us free', a freedom freely
Ga 4:31 given, not inborn.* For from their birth 'heavy
 Sermon Twenty-Six 317

is the yoke upon the children of A d a m ' . It is really

heavy, for this yoke kept that woman in the Gospel
bent double for eighteen years, not allowing her to
look u p , * utterly unlike the bride here, who has Lk 13:11
raised her neck like a tower towards heaven.
2. Heavy clearly was the yoke which the whole
human race, personified in this woman but bent
double, could not shake off. Mankind could not lay
aside the yoke and it did not cease to lay wrong
upon wrong and weakness upon weakness, and each
upon the other, in a fertile but most unfortunate
harvesting. Would y o u hear of mankind laying yoke
upon yoke? Hear on what pretext an invited guest
in the Gospel excused himself from the supper: 'I
have bought five yoke of o x e n ' . * O senseless soul, Lk 14:14
with so feeble a neck and a nape so chafed! One
yoke you bear which your corrupt birth imposed
on you, and are y o u buying more? Y o u need not pur-
chase what is freely yours by birth. Y o u are bidding
to buy others, while you cannot free your neck from
this which oppresses you. 'I have bought five yoke of
oxen', you say, and without ransom you cannot
shake o f f this yoke so heavy and so universal. Nor
can y o u yet a f f o r d the price of your redemption. Do
y o u not know with what a heavy yoke you are
harnessed? It cannot be lifted except b y the blood of
Christ. Y o u have plenty for buying more yokes but
not enough to redeem yourself from this. O wretched
riches of yours! Y o u are rich enough not to relieve
but to multiply the halters for your neck and to make
your fetters more galling.
Let that heavy yoke by which you are oppressed
be enough for you. This yoke, if you do not know, is
some compulsion to do wrong and an impossibility
of rising again. This yoke is an unreadiness for good
and a passion for evil. This yoke is both the wrong-
doing for which you are held liable to punishment
and the weakness by which y o u are dragged headlong
into vice. These are yours from your origin and
transmitted through procreation, and you increase
your load with burdens freely accepted! While
through the curiosity o f your five senses 2 you hasten
318 Gilbert of Hoyland

towards outward show, you stir up an inward flame

of concupiscence which can only be extinguished
by the blood of Christ. Concupiscence undisturbed
burns well enough, but stoked with fuel from with-
out concupiscence rages out of control. Here is a
double provocation: the corruption of nature and a
kind of curiosity probing to awaken it from without.
Here is a doubled nuisance: one's own impulse and an
enemy's assault; a doubled nuisance: the flame of
concupiscence and the bellows of its smithy.
3. 'I have bought five yoke of oxen.' 'Of oxen' is
aptly said, for the toil of curiosity galls dull minds. If
you want a yoke you have no need to bid for one.
Take upon yourself the yoke of Christ, a yoke not for
purchase, a pleasant yoke, not a ponderous yoke.
'For my yoke is gentle', says the Lord, 'and my
Mt 11:30 burden light.'* This yoke is not a yoke of oxen, since
Rm 12:1 it is a yoke of reason,* a yoke which does not impose
toil but procures rest. Observe also how he says this
yoke is light. For that previous one is heavy, which is
Si 40:1 'upon the children of Adam'* from the day of their
birth to the day of their death. Of what death, do
you think? To be sure, that of which Paul says: 'You
have died and your life is hidden with Christ in
Col 3:3 God.'* Good is this death which buries the old birth
and brings in a new birth. Good is this death which
swallows slavery and begets freedom. For the children
of this birth are free. Good is this ending, that while
discarding the old Adam, we may simultaneously
cast off his heavy yoke. This ending of the life of the
flesh breaks the yoke of our captivity; it can gall us
no longer but it rots from the effects of the oil from
the time we begin to be called by another name
and over us is invoked the name of the second Adam,
Sg 1:2 for his name is like oil poured out.*
Would you hear of both the breaking and the
rotting of this heavy yoke? 'He forgives all your sins,
Ps 102:3 he heals all your infirmities.'* Sin is pardoned
wholly, once for all; the yoke has been broken.
Infirmity is still being healed; the yoke is rotting.
In the text, what is rotting wastes away slowly, does
not disappear all at once. The resolve of the will can
 Sermon Twenty-Six 319

indeed be cut through and, as it were, broken, but

deep-rooted passion is not so much cut out as un-
learned. And when the impossibility of working out
our salvation is removed by grace, then, as it were,
the yoke of captivity is broken. But the difficulty in
achieving goodness still lingers; while the difficulty
is gradually being healed, its yoke is decaying. 'It will
rot', says Isaiah,* and he allows the implication Is 10:27
that, if not all at once, yet eventually it is to be con-
sumed by decay. What decays is surely destroyed!
How is he not free, whose yoke is either broken at
once or gradually destroyed? Both a yoke and a rope,
each when broken seems robbed of its purpose, for
neither can a broken yoke grievously oppress nor a
rotten rope firmly bind. Happy surely is the one
whose bonds have so rotted that they are useless,
whose chains hiive decayed and rotted from the
action of the oil.
4. But you will say: you had begun to talk about
the neck of the bride, why do you linger over a
yoke? What connection is there between the yoke and
the neck? I wish there were none! But in fact the
galling is intense. What is a yoke meant for, save the
neck? Yet not for the neck of the bride, since the
bonds have already been loosed from her neck and
she knows no constraint from the yoke of slavery.
'Your neck is like the tower of David', says the
Bridegroom. By this is indicated the most towering
liberty, liberty free of all oppression, yet not sheer
liberty with no fibre of strength; In a tower one ex-
pects not only height but also the strength of ram-
parts against the face of the foe. Freedom has indeed
been restored but security is not yet allowed you.
The snare of captivity has been broken.* The enemy Ps 123:7
seeks to trap you from another quarter; he has lost
his claim, but he has not abandoned the hope of
regaining it, nor his determination to attack. You
have been set free, but henceforth the responsibility
of guarding your freedom falls on you. Do not, even
in the slightest way, let your neck, surrendered to the
embraces of the Bridegroom, be exposed to any
degenerate yoke.
320 Gilbert of Hoyland

According to Luke, the father meeting his son at

his return fell upon his neck. Dear was the burden
and gentle the yoke though the son did not deserve
to bear or to feel it until, first restored to his right
mind, he broke with his state of slavery and so
Lk 15:20 returned to his father.* Your neck is upright; be
strong as the tower o f David, that you may say: 'I will
Ps 58:10 guard my strength for you.'* For he is David, he is
Solomon, Christ, that is, the power of God and the
1 Cor 1:24 wisdom of God.* You are his tower if you have no
lowly and feeble idea of him, provided your towering
ideas come from the power of God and not from
yourself. He is like a tower, not the tower of David
but a tower opposed to David who, 'puffed up with
the opinions of his own flesh', exalts 'himself in
Col 2:18; opposition to the knowledge of God'.* Lofty is this
2 Co 10.5 neck but wisdom tramples on the necks of the proud
Ezk 21:26; and lofty and exalts those o f the humble.*
Jb 5:12, Dt 33:29 Humility itself supplies the funds needed to build
the tower of the Gospel. Nor should one be em-
barrassed lest funds fail the bride, for they can be
borrowed liberally from the treasury of the Bride-
groom: 'Learn of me', he says, 'for I am meek and
Mt 11:29 humble of heart.'* Do you not yet understand how
humility supplies funds for the building o f the tower?
'The man who humbles himself', says the Lord, 'shall
Lk 14:11 be exalted.'* Aptly there was a hidden suggestion
about humility in a previous verse, where the Bride-
groom mentions what was hidden in the bride, since
it is a beautiful example o f humility to conceal the
Sg 4:3; see S 25:
1-2 above. praises o f one's merits.* If there he speaks of her
humility, here as a consequence he adds a note about
her loftiness. A tower founded upon humility cannot
be hidden long.
5. 'Your neck is like the tower of David.' Consi-
der the privilege of the bride. The apostle Peter
exhorts us to be built together 'into a spiritual
1 Pet 2:5 home',* but the bride is built not only into a home
but also into a tower. Paul wishes us to be built
Ep 2:22' together 'into a dwelling-place of God',* but the
bride, not satisfied with this, adds battlements also,
that her dwelling-place may be lofty and more
 Sermon Twenty-Six 321

secure. Perhaps hers is also one of those towers of

which it is said: 'Let peace be in your power and
plenty in your towers.'* It is altogether fitting that Ps 121:7
plenty be not lacking in a tower. Harsh is the need
because it is doubled when there is a siege without
and famine within. What does it profit that the en-
trances are all closed and barred, if famine, that
savage within, spreads universal grief?
Disaffection is an evil famine. The gates have been
closed and the outer approaches barred, if death
makes no entry through the windows of the senses
and if the probing of the rebellious senses does not
welcome provocation to evil from foreign imports.
If you 'spurn profit from extortion', if you 'stop
your ears from suggestions of murder', if you 'shut
your eyes to the sight of evil',* you are already Is 31:15
enclosed, already you dwell on the heights and your
elevation is a bastion of rocks. But is that enough? Of
what use is such a well-fortified height, if famine and
the cruel hunger of disaffection ravages what is with-
in? Of what uses is the solid and steep height of rock,
if no bread is there, if wells can run dry?
Good indeed is a stronghold, if rations hold out.
Good is a fortress of granite, if it be such that from
its hard substance honey and oil may be extracted.
And indeed the very hardness of observances and the
rock of discipline often pour full streams of oil, and
the somewhat stony rigor of our Order supplies
sweetness of devotion to the jowls of the mind. 3 In
the words of the Psalm: 'Let peace be in your power
and plenty in your towers', Jerusalem, but 'a plenty
for those who love you.'* Otherwise, one who does Ps 121:7
not love, though he be within, goes hungry none
the less.
But how shall there be want in this spiritual
tower, in the tower of David, in the neck of the
bride, through which in unending exchange the spirit
of life is drawn in and breathed out, the supply line
of the divine word is unbroken, and the breath of the
voice ever flows? How shall there be famine in the
neck through which an abundance of sweetness and
the word of goodness surges from the free fountain
322 Gilbert of Hoyland

of the heart? The neck seems to resemble both a

channel and a bond both between the heart and the
lips, and between the body and the head, and
between all four. In the neck is both a bond and a
way. What else is the bond to be, save charity, by
which the b o d y is joined to the head, the Church to
Christ? What else is the way of the spirit to be, save
charity? For this is 'the more excellent way', or rather
this is the spirit which comes and goes and returns to
its source, going back to the place of its birth.* On
1 Co 12:31; this depend the Law and the Prophetsf
'fMt 22-40 Therefore 'a thousand shields hang f r o m it'.
For every word of the Lord is a flaming shield and
the battlements themselves are related to speech. In a
later chapter we read: 'If she is a wall, let us build
Sg 8:9 upon it battlements of silver.'* Battlements are
usually of the same material as the tower and form
one body with it. And consider how charity supports
battlements of the same substance and body as itself.
Consider how there is inborn in charity a kind of
solicitude, prudence and watchful wariness to avoid or
repel assaults and stratagems of the foe. Battlements
have open crenels and closed merlons. Through the
crenels, charity detects ambushes; through the mer-
lons it diverts assaults; through the one charity
forsees, through the other it protects. Charity has
been built with such battlements because such solici-
tude, so strong and so prudent, is inborn in it. Charity
is a great support for itself. In fact love is strong as a
tower. It knows the opportunities for assault, knows
when there is need for retreat, but when there is no
possibility of retreat, it knows how to endure with
courage. Although it seems to have so much support
in itself, it does not refuse assistance from others.
Fortified with battlements, charity also takes up
shields. A good shield is an orderly way of life and a
law transmitted by men. Although this is not neces-
sary t o charity, it is not considered superfluous or
even burdensome. Charity is of the spirit; it needs
no law, yet it does not disdain law but uses it as law
should be used, being protected and not oppressed by
 Sermon Twenty-Six 323

law. A good shield also is meditation on the sacred

word, for 'every word' of the Lord 'is a flaming pr 30-5 Lam 182
shield'.* n. 71; n. 1 70.
7. Charity is not content with the spiritual
meditations which it begets itself and although it is
itself the law of the Lord, it meditates on the very
words of the Law; 4 thence it derives its credentials,
thence it guards and protects itself on Sion with a
manifold shield. 5 Although charity has within itself
the great witness of the Spirit,* still it seeks protec- 1 Jo 5:7-8.
tion for itself from the sacred writings. Good is the ^mM^n
protection which either the experience of charity
suggests or skill in the divine word transmits. In his
Epistle, Paul depicts for you some battlements of
charity: 'Charity is patient', he says, 'it is kind.' Read
through the entire passage about charity; does it not
seem to you that as many battlements rise up as the
distinct graces he lists? 'Charity is not jealous, does
not act perversely, is not boastful, is not ambitious;
charity does not insist on its own way, does not take
pleasure in wrongdoing but rejoices in the right', and
so forth as far as, 'charity never ends'.* 1 Co 13:4-8
Do you see with what a crown of battlements
charity is built? Do these battlements not seem to
form one body with charity and rise as it were from
its foundation? And yet these affections to which
charity, as it were, gives birth by its nature, educa-
tion directs, discipline governs, and practice exalts;
and this good originating with charity, this way of
life drawn up by experts, either encourages lest it
grow weak or inspires that it may grow strong. So
charity, not content with inward inspiration, hangs
in the memory the directives of sacred Scripture like
shields displayed on all sides. Behold the Bridegroom
himself, who is the mediator and negotiator between
men and God, as the neck communicates between
the body and the head, 'a tower of strength against
the enemy',* behold him I say, who though rich in Ps 60:4. Lam
shields of his own assumed the shields of Scripture
and, as it were, had recourse to its authority to check
with the shield of truth the wily assaults of a
malicious interpreter.
324 Gilbert of Hoyland

8. If you also are a mediator and a negotiator

between men and God, and like a neck join body and
head, let a thousand shields be buckled around you,
the manifold shields of the divine word. Let sacred
authority be ready at hand and for every engagement
let it be your patron, not only to satisfy yourself but
also t o enrich others. Be ready to render to everyone
who asks an account of the faith and hope that are in
1 P 3:15; to Peter's you.* He seems to demand an account of your faith,
words, G. adds: w j 1 Q t r i e s t Q pr r o m o t e i s contrary to the faith
[jtde etj spe, as '
in S 16:4. and to trespass upon it. A good shield therefore hangs
Lam 1 79. from your neck, if you are protected with the shield
of truth, the shield of good will, the shield of the
sacred word. You read of all these shields in the
Scriptures. But if you are also like a tower raised on
high by charity, if by the grace of contemplation, like
a neck rising about the rest of the body, you ap-
proach the Lord's head and are hidden in the secret
of his face, in the enclave of the Bridegroom, in the
bridal chamber of truth, do you not seem to be pro-
tected by an ornate shield?
I know not whether any shield is a greater
guarantee of protection than such an embrace of the
Na 2:3 Beloved. This is a fiery* shield and therefore it
extinguishes all the fiery shafts of the foe of foes,
and its fire devours fire. If the shield of faith
extinguishes those shafts, how much more is he
protected by the trusty shield of truth, who is
hidden in the warmth of its embrace? For meditation
upon truth is fervent, 6 and it extinguishes the evilly
enkindled suggestions of the enemy before they can
reach the mind. Between her embraces of the Bride-
groom and her duties of charity, there is no time for
the bride to be struck by stray shafts. 7 Such a shield
is a neat pendant from the neck of the bride because
love alone experiences the grace of so warm an em-
brace, love alone knows such transports and, making
the mind cleave to God, for a space fuses it into one
1 Co 6:17 spirit with him.* Blessed surely is the neck wherein
dwells the fiery word of the Lord, from which hangs
like a shield in delightful embrace the Word of the
Father, his truth and his power. Does he not seem to
 Sermon Twenty-Six 325

y o u d e l i g h t f u l l y p r o t e c t e d , w h o o n all sides b e f o r e
and behind is c r o w n e d and s u r r o u n d e d by such
shields?
F o r believers t h e r e is a t r u s t y peg, f r o m w h i c h
hang weapons of so m a n y d i f f e r e n t k i n d s . N e a t l y
t h e y h a n g f r o m t h e n e c k of c h a r i t y , since it is t h e
u n c t i o n w h i c h t e a c h e s us a n d suggests all things,* Jo 14:26
since u p o n it all graces are c o n f e r r e d , t o it all are
r e f e r r e d a n d b y its m e a s u r e all are c o n s i d e r e d a n d
w e i g h e d . ' A t h o u s a n d shields h a n g f r o m it, all t h e
a r m o r of valiant m e n . ' Surely this is t h e a r m o r of
Paul's i n v e n t o r y t o t h e E p h e s i a n s . * 'All t h e a r m o r of Ep 6:13-18
valiant m e n ' , t h a t is of lovers for 'love is s t r o n g as
death.'* What f o l l o w s ? Is o n l y t h e a r m o r o f t h e Sg 8:6
valiant t h e r e , a n d n o b r e a s t s f o r i n f a n t s ? If c h a r i t y
soars like a t o w e r , d o e s c h a r i t y n o t b e n d d o w n ? 'If
we are o u t o f o u r senses, it is f o r G o d ; if w e are in o u r
right mind, it is f o r y o u . T h e c h a r i t y of Christ
impels us.'* 2 Co 5:13-14
9. Y o u have h e a r d of t h e b r i d e o u t of h e r senses;
w o u l d y o u h e a r of her also w h e n she is in her r i g h t
senses a n d b e n d s d o w n ? ' Y o u r t w o b r e a s t s are like „ , _, _
Sg 4:5-6. See
t w o f a w n s , t w i n s of a gazelle.'* A g o o d t o w e r is t h e Morson, 161-2,
b r i d e ; on all sides she encloses herself w i t h t h e disci- White 42-3.
pline of an o r d e r e d life; and she has p e n d a n t f r o m h e r
n e c k a w e a l t h of shields in t h e t e a c h i n g s of S c r i p t u r e ,
and she rises t o t h e heights in h e r t r a n s p o r t s of c o n -
t e m p l a t i o n . Likewise h e r self-restraint is s t r o n g , h e r
t e a c h i n g reliable a n d h e r ecstasy h e a v e n l y ; y e t her
l o f t i n e s s has also l e a r n e d t o b e n d d o w n t o o u r level,
t h e richness o f h e r t e a c h i n g t o b e b r o u g h t d o w n t o
s o b r i e t y , h e r a u s t e r i t y t o m e l t , as it w e r e , i n t o t h e
sweetness o f s p i r i t u a l m i l k , * a n d t h e a r m o r of t h e 1 P 2:2
valiant t o b e t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o b r e a s t s f o r t h e w e a k .
Everywhere the charity of Christ prompts her,
s w e e p i n g h e r u p w a r d s to h i m s e l f a n d d r a w i n g her
d o w n w a r d s f o r his sake, b u t n o t d e t a i n i n g h e r over-
long before, to her delight, she h a s t e n s directly
towards ecstasy.
So t h e B r i d e g r o o m says: ' Y o u r b r e a s t s a r e like
two f a w n s , t w i n s o f a gazelle',* b e c a u s e she ever Sg4:5
gazes towards the mountains of h e r pastureland,
326 Gilbert of Hoyland

because her wonted refreshment lures and carries her

to the realm of her pastureland, because with graceful
leap she suddenly bounds towards the lilies of the
Bridegroom, whence delightfully nourished on the
juices of heavenly herbs, she repeatedly brings back
breasts filled for her young. But what must be
said about these breasts, ears perhaps weary and the
fleeting hour cannot now endure. There is now no
time for a drink of milk pressed from those breasts.
When the Lord, thanks to your prayers, offers more
plentiful leisure and more ample time, I shall not
refuse you the ministry of my lips, if he who grants
his affection will also grant the eloquence to praise
him, Christ Jesus, who with the Father and the Holy
Spirit lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
 NOTES TO SERMON TWENTY-SIX

1. Written for one person throughout.

2. On curiosity of the senses, see Lam 184, n. 92.
3. On disciplina here and in S 26:9, see Lam 170, nn. 3, 5.
4. Mab., mss. Paris 9605, Troyes 419: meditatur; Migne: mediatur.
Lam 185, n. 99.
5. Ps 19:3, 2, gives a basis for restoring the text to read: inde se de Sion
tuetur et multiplici protegit clypeo. Mab. and Migne read inde se (al. sensa)
tuetur; Dion reads: inde* tuetur; Vulg. reads: et de Sion tuetur te, withprotegat
te, in the preceding verse; mss. Paris 9605: sensa tuetur; Troyes 419: ? sensa
tuetur.
6. On meditatio veritatis see Lam 183, n. 78; on fervida meditatio,
Lam 185, n. 102.
7. Possibly a reminiscence of Vergil, Aeneid, 4:69-72.

327
 SERMON 27
RAPTUROUS FEAST
AND THE MILK OF BABES

The bride feasts on spiritual food to give milk

to her babes. 1. The Church, through Paul, gave
the milk of babes to both Jew and Gentile, for
her compassion cares and her adaptation cures.
2. Paul's example should be followed for true
eloquence. 3. The Church treats the fawns as
twins in grace, both Jew and Gentile. 4. Her
lilies are models of chastity and of the sacred
word. 5. The bride who feeds on the heights
feeds her twins from comely breasts. 6. The
vision and pleasures of pre-dawn give place to
eternal day. 7. In the repose of night, the fawns
are refreshed because they graze on delightful
lilies until daybreak.

YOUR TWO B R E A S T S A R E LIKE TWO FAWNS,

TWINS OF A G A Z E L L E , WHICH GRAZE AMID
THE LILIES, UNTIL THE DAY BREAKS AND
Sg 4:5-6

Y
ou see, brothers, how not even the breasts
of the bride are bereft of praise. Indeed
mention of breasts is frequent both else-
where and especially in these Songs. The
Bridegroom prefers breasts to wine,* compares them Sgl:l
to a cluster of grapes,* likens them to a Sg 7:7
tower,* and says in the passage now before us: 'Your Sg 8:10
two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle
which graze amid the lilies.' You see in how many
ways her breasts are praised. If the bride is a mother,
her breasts are a comely need for her maternal
bosom. Paul knew the need for breasts, when he
said: 'We become babes among you, like a nurse

329
330 Gilbert of Hoyland

1 Th 2:1 taking care of her children.'* Does he not seem to

you to have become like a fawn, who has become
like a babe? How did he foster his children like a
nurse, if he did not have breasts?
Like two fawns of a gazelle are the two sons of the
Church: one from circumcision, the other from the
Gentiles. Notice how Paul adapts his breasts to both.
'To the Jews I became as a Jew . . . ; to those outside
the Law . . . I have become all things to all, in order
1 Co 9:20-22; to gain all.'* Did he not adapt his breasts to these
ut omnes lucri- fawns when he became all things to all men? He be-
faciam ; Vulg:
ut o m n e s came all things to all men, not with the cunning of a
facerem salvos. hypocrite but with the affection of one who has
compassion and with the bearing of one who adapts
himself. In our context, he conformed himself to
both, now with the Jews abstaining from what was
lawful, now with the Gentiles partaking of what was
lawful, everywhere avoiding offence to either race
where no harm to the faith deterred him. He became
all things to all men, neither robbing the Jews of rites
still lawful at the beginning, nor forcing the Gentiles
into a mockery of the Jews. He became all things to
all men, according to the capacity of his hearers both
giving moral precepts and explaining mysteries. In
these two subjects he proferred as it were two
breasts, providing his babes with the milk of simpler
teaching.
Inner compassion does indeed possess breasts, but
adaptation exhibits them outwardly. Compassion
cares, but adaptation cures. For what does it profit
me, if you show only compassion and are unable to
adapt yourself to suit my weakness and, so to speak,
to my infancy? What does it profit me, if by your
feelings of compassion you make my cause your own,
but do not provide the care you ought? Both are
necessary, not only compassion but also some adapta-
tion of discipline and teaching. Compassion brings
your feelings into conformity, adaptation makes you
stoop to feed your babes with milk for their needs. In
neither way do holy teachers fail their hearers; they
become like their hearers both in the affection of
piety and in the practice of adaptation.
 Sermon Twenty-Seven 331

2. W o u l d t h a t t h o s e w h o are t o p r e a c h in t h e
assembly of t h e b r e t h r e n w o u l d a t t e n d t o this. T h e y
are b e n t o n g r a n d i l o q u e n c e r a t h e r t h a n o n relevance.
T h e y m a k e prodigies of t h e m s e l v e s a m o n g p e o p l e of
w e a k u n d e r s t a n d i n g w i t h o u t e f f e c t i n g their salvation.
T h e y b l u s h t o t e a c h h u m b l e a n d simple t r u t h s , lest
t h e y s h o u l d s e e m t o k n o w o n l y these. T h e y blush t o
have b r e a s t s , t o b a r e t h e b r e a s t , t o give m i l k t o their
b a b e s . W h a t d o e s this m e a n ? Did y o u t a k e y o u r place
in their m i d s t , filling a p u l p i t t h a t y o u m i g h t display
y o u r l e a r n i n g or t h a t y o u m i g h t give m i l k t o y o u r sub-
j e c t s in their t e n d e r i n f a n c y ? Y o u weave s u b t l e t i e s ;
t h e listeners m a r v e l at y o u r a r t ; t h e y praise y o u r elo-
quence. That is fair enough, provided they are
t o u c h e d b y grace, p r o v i d e d as y o u argue, t h e a f f e c -
t i o n s of y o u r listeners are m o v e d a n d their u n d e r -
standing instructed. Otherwise, why introduce
s u b j e c t s f o r e i g n t o t h e business in h a n d , w h i c h y o u r
hearers m a y not understand?

A great t r i b u t e t o e l o q u e n c e is t o p r o s e c u t e ex-
p e r t l y t h e case y o u have u n d e r t a k e n , t o r e f e r every-
t h i n g to its a d v a n t a g e , t o s u p p o r t t h e business in
h a n d . N o w h e r e will y o u give a m o r e o b v i o u s sign of
y o u r e l o q u e n c e t h a n if y o u develop o r d i n a r y m a t e r i a l
artistically. By t h e charm of y o u r talk y o u may
resurrect w h a t b y itself s e e m e d d e a d a n d , as it w e r e ,
t u r n t h o u g h t s t h a t w e n t begging i n t o n o b l e r ideas.
Pay less a t t e n t i o n to what suits y o u r style as a
m a n of l e t t e r s a n d m o r e t o w h a t t h e y s h o u l d hear
whom you are i n s t r u c t i n g . For why should they
f o l l o w a f t e r y o u , if y o u p r o m e n a d e over highways
and w o n d e r w a y s , I d o n o t say a b o v e y o u b u t above
t h o s e in t h e p e w ? * D o n o t b r o a c h a l o f t y s u b j e c t in a Ps 130:1
l o f t y style, b u t b e n d d o w n t o t h e h u m b l e . * Rm 11:20;
When y o u talk of sublime s u b j e c t s o u t o f due 12.16
season, w h a t else d o y o u seem t o desire b u t t h a t m e n
be s t r u c k d u m b b e f o r e y o u a l o n e a n d t h a t w h a t was
said of t h e Saviour be said of y o u : 'Never has a m a n
so s p o k e n ' ? * Y o u have c l i m b e d i n t o t h e p u l p i t t o Jn 7:46
e d i f y o t h e r s , n o t t o i n f l a t e y o u r s e l f ; t o fill o t h e r s , n o t
t o e m p t y y o u r s e l f , e x c e p t p e r h a p s in t h e w a y of t h e
Saviour 'emptied himself, taking the form of a
332 Gilbert of Hoyland

Ph 2:7 servant',* in order to nourish us for our salvation

with the milk of his flesh. A good imitator of his
Master, Paul does not conceal his breasts but boasts
of having them: 'As babes in Christ I gave you not
solid food but milk to drink', and likewise: 'I decided
to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and
1 Co 1:3; 2:2 him crucified.'* He knows for whom he is setting the
table and to whom he is proffering his breasts. So his
breasts are like those of a fawn because the breasts 2
of his teaching are softened, such as babes in Christ
can grasp.
3. Now you have heard what these fawns are and
why there are two. Would you know why they are
twins? Because in the faith there is no distinction
Rm 10:12 between a Jew and a Greek.* Your privileges of
merit are abolished and rebirth confers distinction on
no one, for rebirth absolves all alike. For all 'fall
short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace
Rm 3:23-24 as a gift'.* Faith ennobles both peoples alike but the
Jew thinks otherwise and in the kindness shown to
all he claims rights peculiar to himself. What wonder
if he seeks to be the first, when he sought to be the
only one? He cannot be the only-begotten; so he
strives to be at least the first-born. See how many
objections were brought against Peter in the Acts of
the Apostles, because he had visited uncircumcised
men and admitted them into the mysteries of the
Ac 11:1-18 faith.* See how Paul in the Epistle of the Romans
toils in the sweat of his brow against, the Jews, be-
cause in grace they claimed certain privileges of the
faith for themselves and tried to divide into classes
Rm 1-4 those whom one faith joined together.* They pre-
tended in Acts to be the only ones in grace, but in
Romans the highest in grace; they were unwilling to
admit to equality those whom they could not fail to
have as partners. But God made the Gentiles of one
body with Israel and sharers of both covenants, mak-
ing no distinction in any one, cleansing their hearts
Ac 15:9 by faith.*
So they are called twins, because faith does not
separate into classes those whom faith regenerates
without exception. Contrariwise, those who know
 Sermon Twenty-Seven 333

not how to be twins have been made nobodies, and

though once they occupied the first place at the ban-
quet, they no longer have even the last. This plan not
only applies to them but extends to all, so that no
one, whatever his rank, should envy another's partner-
ship or equality in grace. For who should allege
merits, where grace is entirely in giving? Events of
old must not sway the scale, where everything has
been made new. As newness of rebirth is suggested in
the fawns, so equality of rebirth is suggested in the
twins. Appropriately they are said to belong to a
gazelle, that is, to be children of the Church, espe-
cially because—like gazelles—they have keen vision.
Keen are the eyes of the Church, because she contem-
plates 'not what is seen but what is unseen'.* 2 Co 4:18
4. 'Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of
a gazelle, which graze amid the lilies', provided of
course they experience the grace of lilies, provided
for them lilies have the fragrance of lilies and do not
emit a rank odor. Good and pleasing is the fragrance
of a lily, yet the same lily for some has the perfume
of a lily, for others the malodor of wormwood. The
lily of the valley, the lily unique is Christ; lilies were
persons who imitated him. Hear what one of those
lilies says: 'We are the fair aroma of Christ, . . . to
some a fragrance from death to death, to others a
fragrance from life to life.'* You see how unique is 2 Co 2:15-16
that lily in which the fulness of all things good
breathed perfume, but to some seemed malodorous.
The latter turn bitter to sweet and darkness to light.
But he truly grazes amid lilies, who masters the
fragrance of lilies. Lilies are the models of chastity
which, not only in our day and in our presence but
also in times past and in distant places, breathe out
the fairest fragrance. Lilies are also holy words, in
which we scent the joys of eternal life and draw in
the breath of perfumes. With how many such lilies,
brothers, have you been surrounded! Though all the
children of the Church have been blessed, you have
been blessed more luxuriantly. For into your nostrils
at almost every moment the chaste utterances, now of
prophets, now of apostles, now of evangelists,
334 Gilbert of Hoyland

breathe forth like lilies, and their words and life are
perfumed with an enchanting aroma. For what lilies
could waft a sweeter scent, what lilies could rival
their fragrance? What perfume does Mary breathe
upon you, and John and Peter and the other men in
the Gospel, and what finally does Jesus himself, who
as no other both radiates fragrance in his own person
and alone is personally perceived in all others, how-
ever sweet-scented be their perfume!
His words waft a new aroma throughout the
world, as they disclose the mysteries of the Trinity,
the grace of Redemption, the largess of virtues, the
glory of the Resurrection, and when his words ex-
plain the goal of eternal life. 'You have the words of
Jn 6:69 eternal life', Peter says, 'to whom shall we go?'* Let
us also say the same, anointed with his sweet per-
fume. In you, O good Jesus, breathes the Godhead of
the Father who exists in you. In you breathes the
grace of the Spirit who anointed you. In you breathes
the virginity of your mother, in you the integrity of
your own flesh, in you the healing of our languor.
For us all these breathe their fragrant bouquet in you
and to whom else shall we go either in love or in
remembrance? Clearly wronged are such lilies, if any
alien odor should mingle with them to make their
perfume rank. Any malodor wafted to the nostrils of
the spirit may corrupt it, turn it to the world, and
make it hasten towards the stench of loathsome offal.
Clearly it is wrong, if to you vices smell sweeter than
lilies of virtues. He is squeamish indeed who does not
delight to feed upon milk and among lilies. For not
all milk is for babes. Does not all teaching, every
devout affection gently poured into the spirit, seem
to you to resemble milk? Whatever is easily and gently
sipped, resembles milk.
5. With such milk the breasts of the bride were
filled and so they are called 'like fawns', because in
them the consolation of the word and an abundance
of lively teaching is fresh and, as it were, ever new
and reborn. These breasts know nothing of crab-
Sg 1:1 bed age and therefore they are better than wine,* yet
not unlike must. 'Your breasts', says the Bridegroom,
 Sermon Twenty-Seven 335

'are like clusters of grapes',* having of cou-rse not the Sg 7:7

astringency of wine but the fresh sweetness of must.
Other breasts feed; these intoxicate. Rightly then her
breasts are like fawns, because they are not bruised
by crabbed age. Great is the comeliness of the bust of
the bride, if she has breasts unharmed, not a flabby
bust crushed in the Egypt of this world.* That is why Ezk 23:3, 21
she said: 'My breasts are a tower.'* Unassailable are Sg8:10
these breasts and teeming with plentiful milk, for
they have grown up like a tower. Good then are
breasts so distended, breasts of piety, twin breasts,
for piety possesses the consolation both of the
present life and of the life to come. Rejoice with great
joy, says Isaiah, that you may have milk and be satis-
fied by the breasts of her consolation, and when
you have been weaned from milk, you may feast
from the entrance to her glory.* Do you see whither Is 66:10-11,
the use of milk leads? That you may feast, says <l»oted loosely.
Isaiah, from the entrance of her glory. Or do the
breasts of the bride 3 not seem to you to feast from
the entrance of glory, when like fawns 'they graze
amid lilies until the day breaks and the shadows
vanish'?* With what sweetness do breasts so nourished Sg 2:1 7, 4:5
give suck, breasts filled from heaven because pastured
among the lilies of heaven. The mere fragrance of
lilies refreshes. Their perfume retains the flavor of
food, for their perfume is fruit of a kind: 'like a
vine', says Sirach, 'I yielded a fruit of sweet fra-
grance.'* See how wisdom counts her fragrance Si 24:23
among fruits. This is food of the spirit, having
nothing of the body, neither touched by the tooth
nor chewed with difficulty, but breathed in by the
spirit, flowing directly into the breasts themselves
and expanding the breasts. For why are they said to
be 'fragrant with the best ointments',* if not because Sgl:2
in them the breath drawn from the neighboring
lilies is fragrant, 'until the day breaks and the
shadows vanish'.

6. It is delicious indeed amid lilies t o a w a i t t h e

rising dawn. Perhaps day is a neighbor of these lilies,
and amid lilies often some wisp and mist of the day
is inhaled. Even the Bridegroom himself grazes amid
336 Gilbert of Hoyland

lilies, for he is himself the lily of the valleys and the

light of day. It is delicious then in grazing with him
to keep vigil for him, to be a sentinel amid the lilies
until daylight breaks. That moment of which we
speak, the psalmist indicates: 'I shall be content when
Ps 16:15 your glory appears.'* Then the true and eternal day
will break, when shadows vanish from the riddles
through which we now see. Many are the shadows
here: the shadow of delusion, the shadow of re-
freshment, the shadow of symbol. In the first slum-
bers the serpent, in the second the bride takes her
rest, in the third the Bridegroom lies hidden. Of the
Jb 40:16 first it is said: 'In shadow he slumbers';* of the
Sg 2:3 second: 'I sat in the shadow of him whom I desired';*
1 Co 2:1 and of the third: Wisdom is hidden in mystery.* All
these shadows will vanish before the breath of day:
the shadow of deceit, the shadow of faith and the
shadow of mystery. Then there will be no shadow,
because truth will be naked. Then therefore will
vanish the shadows which now loom high above us.
Do you wish to know how high? 'Its shadow has
Ps 79:11 covered the mountains.'*
A great mountain is Paul; yet he says he has been
covered by this shadow for he sees only in a mirror
1 Co 13:12 and in riddles.* A great mountain, yet he is easily
2 Co 12:2 transported 'to the third heaven'.* It was a happy
transport and much happier than the one by which
the mountain in the Gospel, at the apostles' bidding,
Mt 21:21 is cast into the sea.* A transport it was, because the
wisdom of God changed Paul's perception. There-
fore he was transported into the third heaven, the
heaven of pure understanding, from which shadows
and riddles have been exiled afar. Shadows are on a
lower level and somehow fall short of the man
transported to heaven. He was transported to heaven,
transported also to paradise. Heaven is the realm of
clear vision; paradise is the realm of pleasure. In a
beautiful way Paul is transported to both, since con-
templation which lacks either vision or pleasure is
only half complete. In our text, the bride seems to
be placed in some paradise of delights and pleasures,
for she 'grazes amid lilies until the day breaks'.
 Sermon Twenty-Seven 337

Before the day breaks, it is night. But this night seems

to possess something of the day: 'Night', says the
psalmist, 'is my illumination in my delights', 4 for
delights to some extent take the place of illumina-
tion. It is a most beautiful realm for contemplation,
where simple consideration of the faith sprinkles
the dew of heavenly and fragrant affections and
breathes in the grace of eternal light. These are not
the delights which blessed J o b mentions, when he
says of wisdom, that 'it is not found in the land of
those who live pleasantly'.* There is some share of Jb 28:13
wisdom in these delights. How is there not a share
of wisdom where truth itself, though not yet fully
understood but already believed, yields an agreeable
flavor? Spiritual delights themselves, once ex-
perienced, teach sufficiently both how much what
remains of them should be sought and how much
whatever impedes them should be set at naught.* Miquel, 153.
7. Three things should be noticed here: the
time, the action and the place. The time, night-time,
is a time of repose and freedom; the action is one of
refreshment, because the fawns graze; the place is
one of delight, because they graze amid lilies. With
good reason does one return to babes with teeming
breasts, when one so grazes, when one grazes in medi-
tation on the faith, most freely, most fruitfully, most
luxuriously. Do you think that 'Solomon in all his
glory',* was clad as the bride who 'grazes amid the Mt 6:29.
lilies'? How is she not gloriously clad, when she is Lam 183, n.
cushioned with lilies? For although a shadow dims his
Ibeauty, she senses his perfume, senses the fragrance
of his garments, and in these, as it were, she detects
the fame of wisdom, 'until day breaks and the
shadows vanish', that is until the day breaks, the day
with no ending.
As long as day and night alternate, shadows do not
seem to vanish fully as long as they have a role to
play. Where then have shadows disappeared? To be
sure, with the Father of light, with whom there is no
'shadow of change'.* Every change bears the sem- ]ml:17
blance of a shadow and while one change succeeds
another, it hides and overshadows in some way the
338 Gilbert of Hoyland

one which precedes. This then is the meaning of the

words: 'until day breaks and the shadows vanish',
that is, until the day breaks and high noon everlasting
brings all shadows to an end. They 'who graze amid
the lilies', says the Bridegroom, 'until day breaks and
the shadows vanish', means those who relish and
graze on the fragrance of wisdom, until the very
brightness of eternal light dawns. In lilies, both
qualities are praised, brightness and fragrance. Now
what else is fragrance but the grace of faith; and
what else is brightness but the glory of vision? By
night fragrance is perceived, but brightness is not seen
until daybreak, because brightness is the day itself
with no share of shadows. When that day breaks,
breasts will no longer be needed, for all will be taught
Jn 6:45 by the day itself.* Meantime then the breasts of the
bride are 'like two fawns . . . which graze amid lilies',
until day breaks from the day, Christ Jesus.
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-SEVEN

1. Except for two references to his brethren, Videtis, Fratres . . . Videtis,

in the first, and two in the fourth par., G. writes throughout to one individual.
For the gazelle or wild goat, see Morson, 161-62, White 42-43.
2. Mab. and Migne: verba (al. ubera); mss. Paris 9605, Troyes 419: ubera;
the poet in G. conflates the two subjects, ubera and verba through the allusions in
the rest of the sentence: emollita sunt, qualia in Christo capere possunt, since the
words emollita and parvuli suggest the lac parvulorum of many texts, e.g.
1 Co 3:2, but capere possunt suggest Mt 19:11, non omnes capiunt verbum istud.
3. Ms Paris 9605: sponsae; Mab. and Migne: sponsi.
4. On 'consideration' see Lam 185, n. 97.

339
 SERMON 28
THE INCENSE OF PRAYER

Purified, the lover's prayer rises like incense,

1. In community, one is refreshed by the per-
fumes of virtues. 2. The lilies of virtue are made
inviolate by mortification. 3. Christ, anointed
with myrrh, seeks the perfume of lilies on the
mountain of myrrh. 4. At Christ's approach, He
sets fire to our grains of incense. 5. Angels and
saints pour out the incense of ardent prayer.
6-7. Prayer purifies the soul until it becomes
like myrrh and incense.

I W I L L GO T O T H E M O U N T A I N O F M Y R R H A N D
THE HILL OF F R A N K I N C E N S E . YOU ARE ALL
F A I R , MY L O V E ; T H E R E IS N O F L A W IN Y O U .
C O M E W I T H ME F R O M L E B A N O N , MY BRIDE,
C O M E W I T H ME F R O M L E B A N O N . * 1 Sg4:6

' m W our breasts', says the Bridegroom, 'are

^LX like two fawns, twins of a gazelle'. You
I see how great is the charm of the bride;
she is small and in her breasts like a
young maiden. For what else does he mean but a
young maiden, when he compares her breasts to
fawns? Therefore she is both a mother and tiny, feed-
ing others and needing to be fed. And if anyone be
like Paul, still he has not yet given up childish ways,
for he still dwells in the flesh.* Even though he has 2 Co 13:11
plenty for others, still he considers that he has not
yet reached the goal.* He sees in a mirror, he sees in Ph 3:13
riddles;* then like a babe, like a fawn, he feeds in the 1 Co 13:12

341
342 Gilbert of Hoyland

shadow until the day breaks. In the shadow he feeds

but amid lilies.
Unhappy surely is the man who although placed
amid the lilies, amid the lilies of a holy community,
where on all sides various virtues yield their fragrance,
has not learned to perceive any sweet perfume, any-
thing resembling lilies. He is surely good and enjoys
the bride's privilege, within whom are born these
lilies of virtue, who feeds amid lilies, is refreshed
amid lilies, hungers for lilies. For blessed are they
who hunger and thirst for lilies o f justice, lilies of
Mt 5:6. Lam 13, chastity, lilies of all graces.* If it is blessed to hunger,
^ it is much more blessed to feed amid lilies. Even
hunger for virtues is itself nourishment and eagerness
Ac 17:11 is a delight.* Fragrance is food but it does not yet
Ps 16:15 satisfy. 'I shall be satisfied when your glory appears.'*
In our text, the glory, as it were, of the virtues them-
selves is still hidden. All you perceive is their fra-
grance. Concealed is their beauty but we hear of
their renown. Slight is the nourishment in renown, in
smoke, in fragrance; sweet it is but slight. We also
have already been satisfied, enriched, content with
no more than the fragrance o f virtues. Yet I wonder
whether we have even breathed their fragrance, if
eagerness for perfection does not allure us.
Sweet indeed is the scent of lilies but their sight is
an added charm. Sweet indeed is the scent o f lilies,
but that sweetness is slight if it is nothing but per-
fume. Here the text says: 'who graze amid lilies',
that is, 'in the midst of' but not 'upon' lilies, for they
sense their proximity without enjoying their sub-
stance. A meager practice of virtues is expressed in
fragrance, not a plentiful, solid and, as it were, a
full-bodied repast. For one who grazes is not re-
freshed in full measure, so the text does not say
'those who are refreshed' but 'those who graze amid
lilies until the day breaks'. Delightful, however, is the
anticipation of light amid the lilies. Notice also the
quality o f the lilies where the bride grazes: amid lilies
imperishable, lilies that never fester and lilies speci-
fically spiced with the myrrh of incorruptibility, for
Sg 5:13 myrrh means incorruption.*
 Sermon Twenty-Eight 343

2. A f t e r t h e lilies rightly is added the verse a b o u t

m y r r h , t o r e c o m m e n d to t h e bride lilies w h i c h endure
w i t h o u t d e c a y . 'I shall go', says the B r i d e g r o o m , 'for
m y o w n sake t o the m o u n t a i n o f m y r r h ' . 2 W h y is it,
good J e s u s , t h a t y o u r bride, y o u r beloved, waits in
one place while y o u go t o a n o t h e r ? D o e s she graze
and wait amid the lilies while y o u go t o t h e m o u n t a i n
o f m y r r h ? Why do y o u n o t go rather t o t h e lilies,
where the bride lingers 'until t h e day b r e a k s ' ? Or are
these lilies perhaps no strangers to, nor planted
far f r o m , the m o u n t a i n o f m y r r h , b u t instead arise
upon it? Such is indeed the f a c t ! N o w h e r e d o lilies
spring up m o r e profusely t h a n on a m o u n t a i n of
m y r r h ; n o w h e r e are t h e y b e t t e r k e p t f r o m harm. On a
m o u n t a i n o f m y r r h n o place is left either f o r corrup-
tion or for corruptibility, there on t h e m o u n t a i n o f
myrrh where all passions o f the flesh are m o r t i f i e d ,
where lilies o f c h a s t i t y and lilies o f t h e graces b o t h
spring up in purity and blossom unendingly.
S o also y o u n o t i c e t h a t b o t h amid lilies and on the
mountain of myrrh the bride has been placed
pleasantly e n o u g h . F o r the present passage expresses
the lilies f o r y o u ; the myrrh y o u can express for
y o u r s e l f b y i n t e r p r e t a t i o n . F o r h o w could t h e Bride-
g r o o m say he w o u l d go to a place o t h e r t h a n that
where he k n e w t h e beloved was? Indeed j u s t as she is
eagerly waiting, so is he ardently hastening. 'I will
go', he says, ' f o r m y own sake.' What t h e n ? D o e s he
n o t go f o r the sake o f the b r i d e ? Or does it f o l l o w
t h a t he goes o n l y f o r his own sake b e c a u s e he goes
towards the b r i d e ? 'I will go', then he says, 'for
m y o w n sake.' I will go for m y own sake; n o t o n l y for
hers will I go. It is n o t she alone w h o derives j o y from
m y arrival b u t t o m e n o less does m y arrival com-
m u n i c a t e her eagerness. S w e e t t o me, j o y f u l to me, is
m y visit to her. I go now for m y own sake. It profits
me t o go in this w a y ; it causes me delight; therefore
I go f o r m y own sake. Now a sweet fragrance breathes
for me irom the m o u n t a i n o f myrrh - , t W t e f o t « . 1 wLL
go allured b y the p e r f u m e . I will go for m y own
sake, b e c a u s e m y delight is t o tarry with t h e bride.
Is it so, good J e s u s , that y o u take pleasure f r o m
346 Gilbert of Hoyland

Rightly therefore is he a hill of incense who prays

1 Th5:17 without ceasing,* and what is more satisfying, with-
out slackening, who in prayer has nothing lax,
nothing meager but as the smoke from some great
forge billows forth, so he emits columns of billowing
aspirations and outpouring desires. Come then, good
Jesus, to the hills of incense; the mountains you
touch pour columns of smoke rich with the'incense
of prayer. What have our prayers, brothers, com-
parable to this? How quickly our incense becomes
stale! And somehow it hardly catches fire before it
goes out. Why is this? Undoubtedly because we have
collected for ourselves but a meager stock of incense.
5. For my part I consider as hills of incense the
angelic spirits and among men any who seek to rival
the angels, for their prayer like incense always rises in
Ps 140:2 the sight of God;* they generate most fragrant
clouds of devotion; from them billow cloud-racks of
heavenly affections. Blessed certainly is the priest who
offers so much incense that a veil of incense so
fragrant serves as his cloak and his cape. In the
Apocalypse you read of 'bowls full of incense which
Rv 5:8 are the prayers of the saints'.* And what is the
relationship between hills and bowls of incense? For
what bowl could contain a hill of incense? Good is a
bowl full of incense. But see something more than a
bowl is here. 'The smoke of incense rose', says the
text, 'from the hand of the angel' in the sight of the
Rv 8:4 Lord.*
But what hand can match a whole hill? What
hand, I ask, but your hand, good Jesus. For you
weigh the mountains and enclose the earth in your
palm, you 'weigh the mountains on scales, the hills
Is 40:12 in a balance'.* In your hand, O Lord, are all the
bounds of these hills and, if we may say so, in your
bosom. In the text, it is to your bosom that the
Ps 34:13 prayer of the saints is turned.* It enters into your
Rv 8:4 sight;* there it dwells; there it is changed; those who
pray are in you and you are in them. Consequently
'I will go for my own sake', you say, 'to the hills of
incense'. Come then, Lord; come and tarry not; come
and do not leap beyond these hills. What if the hills of
 Sermon Twenty-Eight 347

incense also leap towards you? Mobile are the

mountains of myrrh and the hills of incense, when
you approach. How are they not mobile, when they
melt, flow, billow, ascend from your hand like the
smoke of incense in the sight of the Lord? Go then
for your own sake to the hills of incense, where
incense is plentiful, where everything is incense, for
on the hill of incense nothing exists without incense.
This incense has been given for your sake; come then
to burn it in your sight.
6. 'I will go' for my sake 'to the mountain of
myrrh and to the hill of incense. Come from Le-
banon, come.' The reason for his going has already
been deduced; what is it but to invite, to enter and
to say 'Come'? 'Behold how good and how pleasant
it is'* to dwell on these hills to which the Word of Ps 132:1
God goes, which he revisits, from which he invites
the bride and invites her to a crown!* 'Come from Sg4:8
Lebanon', he says, 'come, you shall be crowned!'
Lebanon means 'whiteness'. What else but white with
snow from heaven? For snow, says Jeremiah, shall not
depart from Lebanon.* That is snow which falls from Jr 18:14
heaven, which drifts over the land, inebriates it and
makes it germinate. Blessed are the mountains upon
which this snow falls and the hills it covers. 'So shall
it be', says the Lord, 'with the word which issues
from my mouth; it will not return to me empty.'* Is 55:11
Does the word seem to you to return empty which
goes to the mountains of myrrh and the hills of
incense, which falls upon these mountains and covers
these hills? It knows not how to return empty. There-
fore he invites and says: 'Come from Lebanon,
come!' Or do you think the text has no hidden mean-
ing when after the mountains of myrrh and the hills
of incense the text mentions Lebanon? What makes
the spirit so clean and so white as the practice of
prayer? First indeed myrrh mortifies, then incense
purifies. For prayer will be unable to rise without
impurity, unless every malodor and stench of the
flesh has first been banned. In the anointing of myrrh,
the mind pulls itself together to concentrate into
some, indeed into total, unity; by the burning of
348 Gilbert of Hoy land

incense, the mind is guided and opened and pours it-

self out and fills the heavenly realms with the
fragrance of incense. There it blends and flows into
the free breath of truth and the soul which at first was
bound up in itself there becomes subtle, refined and
Lam 188-89, faint, hanging in air and looking on high.*
nn. 123, 124. p r a y e r f^fy«, ^ f u n c t i o n 0 f both myrrh and
incense. First it gathers and binds together into your-
self your affections when you pray; then it releases
them to transmit them to God. What is more like
myrrh, when there is such an outpouring towards
union with God? What is more like incense, when
there is such an effusion towards some perception of
God? Rightly is the bride called all fair and flawless,
when the ardor of prayer makes her incandescent,
j gy when the brightness of eternal light dyes her with its
nn. 123-126; color and makes her radiant.*
190, n. 132. 'You are all fair, my love; there is no flaw in you.'
'You are all fair', because you are wholly beautiful,
especially at this hour, the hour of prayer, the hour
of incense. 'You are all fair my love, you are all fair',
because you are wholly beloved and incandescent
with the sole affection of love. 'You are all fair and
without flaw', having no admixture of alien hue. 'Come
from Lebanon; come from Lebanon, come from Le-
banon!' 'Come from Lebanon' because you are with-
out flaw; 'come from Lebanon', because you are all
fair!' 'Come from Lebanon', because you are fully
cleansed. 'Come from Lebanon', wholly enlightened;
'come from Lebanon', free from fault; 'come from Le-
banon' bright with grace; 'come, you shall wear the crown'.
Utterly happy is one who from the Lebanon of
bright affection, from the hill of incense, from abun-
dance of intense prayer, is called to a crown. Happy is
the soul, I say, which at the hour of incense rises to
the Father, which without interval is called from
Lebanon to a crown, the crown of glory, with which
at the hour of passover he will reward the soul, her
just Judge and sweet Spouse, Jesus Christ with God
the Father for ever and ever. Amen.
 NOTES TO SERMON TWENTY-EIGHT

1. G. seems to write for one individual: vide in par. 1, advertis in par. 2,

Orantis . . . in te ipsum in par. 7; however he adapts for his brethren: Videtis in
par. 1, and fratres . . . nostrae . . . nostra . . . at the end of par. 4.
2. 'Vadam', inquit, 'mihi ad montem myrrhae'; Vulg. omits 'mihi'.

348A
 SERMON 29
INVITED TO A CROWN

The beloved is invited from Lebanon to a

crown, 1. The triple call is a sign of passionate
love for the bride's beauty. 2. At the hour of
prayer, the soul is all fair. 3. The power of love
is supreme. 4. Tribulation is preparation for a
crown. 5. The bride is called to the conversion
of the Gentiles. 6. From Lebanon she brings
mountainous peoples to Lebanon. 7. In com-
munities such people are found, not to the
Bride's despair but to her glory. 8. The bride's
example is to be imitated by those who
assume office.

WHOLLY BEAUTIFUL ARE YOU, MY LOVE,

AND WITHOUT BLEMISH. COME FROM LEBA-
N O N , MY B R I D E ; C O M E F R O M L E B A N O N . C O M E ,
YOU SHALL WEAR THE CROWN; COME FROM
THE PEAK OF AMANA AND THE CRESTS OF
SENIR AND HERMON, FROM THE LAIRS OF
LIONS AND THE MOUNTAINS OF L E O P A R D S . * 1 Sg 4:7-8

W
holly beautiful are you, my love, and
without blemish. Come from Lebanon,
Come, you shall wear the crown.' Who
will grant me to complete, as it were,
'this journey of three days'?* Who, I ask, will grant Gn 30:36;
me to travel this road with unwearied step? 'These Jon
roads are beautiful roads and these are paths of
peace',* to come from Lebanon to Lebanon, from Pr 3:17
Lebanon to a kingdom. For the bride called to a

349
350 Gilbert of Hoyland

crown seems invited to share in the kingship. Delight-

ful is this end of the road but no less delightful is the
journey. How could the road fail to delight, since it
knows no detour from Lebanon? This is no broad
way, this is no worldly way; neither can 'anyone
Is 35:8 defiled pass along it'.* It depends neither on man's
Rm 9:16 speed nor on his will but on the mercy of God.* Why
do I say mercy? I might have done better to say
God's longing. Does his triple call not express the
avowal of ardent longing? That he calls a third time is
a proof of his passionate affection.
Review in your mind earlier verses of this Canticle.
Nowhere will you find the beauty of the bride so
often invoked or so explicitly acclaimed. Three times
he calls, saying she is wholly beautiful. In earlier
verses of the Song you will find: 'Behold, you are
beautiful, my love. Behold, you are beautiful', and
again later: 'Oh how beautiful you are, my love!
Sg 1:14; 4:1 how beautiful you are!'* But in this third place he
proclaims her 'wholly beautiful'. In the earlier verses,
he either shows that she is beautiful or marvels that
she is so beautiful; he does not, however, avow pre-
cisely that she is wholly beautiful as in the present
verse: 'You are wholly beautiful, my love.' How is
she not wholly beautiful, when she is compared with
beauty and wholly compared with all beauty? How is
she not wholly beautiful, when into her flows the
Ws 7:26 limitless brightness of eternal light?* Truly she is
wholly beautiful and surpassing beautiful, when into
her at full tide pours all the beauty of the Lord. Yes,
his beauty is exalted above the stars but the mirror of
his beauty is in his bride. His mirror, we read, is in the
Ex 16:10; clouds of heaven.* As long as the bride is a cloud of
Rv 14:14 heaven, a cloud bright and airy, as it were, approach-
ing and enfolding the Sun, so long does the splendor
only of the Sun reflect in her and she remains the
mirror of his beauty.
2. Clearly then the bride is a cloud because she
enjoys the lightness of spiritual affection and the light
of understanding. As long as the spiritual soul by the
practice of prayer and contemplation is poised on
high like a bright and airy cloud, it is all the
 Sermon Twenty-Nine 351

while wholly beautiful because it is wholly beloved,

and without blemish because it has been changed into
the color of fervent charity. At the hour of prayer the
Bridegroom 'presents the bride to himself in splendor
without blemish or wrinkle',* cleansing her not so Eph5:27
much in his Blood as in his light. How is she not
wholly beautiful, in whom the splendor of divine
beauty is so clearly expressed?
What soul will you show me, which you would
dare to define as wholly beautiful, save at this hour
alone, when by the ardor of love it is rather dyed
than robed in the splendor of the Bridegroom? At
other times indeed the soul is reputed to be without
blemish when no fault is imputed. But at this moment
the remark that she is without blemish comes not
from indulgence but from love, from longing and
from devotion. What place is there for pardon where
the aspirations of charity are so ardent? Love needs
no indulgence, for everything is full of grace where
there is love and love alone. In our text now notice
how both offence is excluded and grace is com-
mended, grace alone. 'Wholly beautiful are you, my
love', he says, 'and without blemish.' Compliments of
this kind seem characteristic not of one who shows in-
dulgence but of one who is enamored, who is full of
love and admiration. Allured by her beauty, he desires
her presence, 'Come from Lebanon; come from Le-
banon, come, you shall wear the crown.' The repeated
invitation betrays his affection, manifests his longings.
3. Let others search for the hidden meaning of
the triple call and determine its degrees; for me it is
enough to marvel at the affection of the divine
Majesty for the human soul. This is enough but it is
quite beyond me. Would that I had nothing to do
but to wonder at the grace bestowed, ever rapt in
amazement, yet so that my aspirations' might match
my wonder and my love go hand in hand. For
affection deserves affection and deep calls to match-
ing deep in the roar of tumbling waterfalls.* Good Ps41:8
are the waterfalls which pour forth your affection,
good Jesus, and instil your love.
Love is not mute; it has a voice to use, for 'that
352 Gilbert ofHoyland

which holds all things together has knowledge of the

Ws 1:7 voice'.* This verse is written of the Spirit and you are
well aware what kinship, if not rather what identity,
exists between charity and the Spirit. Charity holds
all together because charity is the fulfilment of the
law. The Spirit speaks mysteries and openly speaks
the mysteries of love. 3 The Spirit himself bears wit-
Rm 8:16 ness to our spirit,* yes, and can pay a compliment.
The sound he makes is a feeling of love and longing
and has sighs like a voice. The very experience of
grace is certainly the fact that he speaks, that he in-
vites, that he calls, 'Come from Lebanon'.
He calls three times perhaps precisely because 'a
Qo 4:12 cable of three strands is difficult to break'.* A
tenacious cable indeed is love. Love lures by affec-
tion. For love, to chat is to charm. Nothing is more
tenacious than the bond of love; nothing is more
alluring. Hear how the law of God proclaims the
triple twining of this cable: 'You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart and all your soul and
Mt 22:37, Lam all your mind'*—as if to say: you shall love the Lord
^185 ft* 96' your God with the resolve of your heart, with the
living affection of your soul, with some full and
rational decision of your mind, that there may exist
in you a resolution to love which itself is determined
and discerning.
Good of course is an intention of the heart
devoted to God, but what if your intention be
sluggish, devoid of vitality and spirit? Good then is a
pure intention which fervent and tender affection
makes lively and spirited. This affection, which is
like the soul of a good resolution, meditation informs
if it is discreet and fosters if it is frequent. What is
richer for meriting the crown kept in reserve than
2 Tm 4:8 this cable of triple ply?* What better designed to
anticipate the crown by experience? Does this
triple love not seem to you to invite as it were
to call three times: 'Come'?
4. In our text the Bridegroom invites, as it were,
while he bestows both the boldness to merit and the
eagerness to experience the crown. 'Come from
Lebanon'; he calls. 'Come, you shall wear the crown.'
 Sermon Twenty-Nine 353

In t h e A p o c a l y p s e y o u r e a d , as it w e r e , of t h o s e
c o m i n g f r o m L e b a n o n : ' W h o are t h e s e , c l o t h e d in
w h i t e r o b e s , a n d w h e n c e have t h e y c o m e ? . . . T h e s e
are t h e y w h o have c o m e o u t of great t r i b u l a t i o n a n d
have w a s h e d t h e i r r o b e s and b l e a c h e d t h e m in t h e
blood of t h e Lamb.'* ' T h e y have b l e a c h e d their Rv 7:13-14
r o b e s in t h e b l o o d of t h e L a m b ' , yes, b o t h b y t h e
l o y a l t y o f their f a i t h a n d b y their w a y o f life, f o r in
their t r i b u l a t i o n t h e y f o l l o w this L a m b , w h o d i d n o t
o p e n his m o u t h w h e n he was b e i n g led t o slaughter
and was d u m b b e f o r e his s h e a r e r . * T h e y are n o t Is 53:7
d o w n c a s t or rebellious u n t i l t h e y e x c h a n g e j u d g m e n t
f o r v i c t o r y * a n d a c o n t e s t f o r a c r o w n , f o r o n l y he Is 42:4;Mt 12:20
will be crowned who observes the rules of the
contest.* 2 Tm 2:5. Reading
< >
Because the c r o w n is t h e issue o f t h e c o n t e s t , ^ ith<Mab quam<
^u
p e r h a p s h e invites his b e l o v e d t o a c r o w n in such a
w a y as t o e x p r e s s its r e a s o n , f o r h e says: ' Y o u shall
be crowned f r o m t h e peaks o f A m a n a a n d Senir,
f r o m t h e m o u n t a i n s of l e o p a r d s , f r o m t h e lairs of
lions.'* S o m e t h i n g rugged, s o m e t h i n g wild, s o m e - Sg4:8
t h i n g c r a f t y is c o n v e y e d b y their n a m e s or b y their
natures. So t h e b r i d e is said t o b e c r o w n e d a f t e r
these, b e c a u s e h e r t r i u m p h over t h e m provides t h e
reason f o r t h e c r o w n . F o r t h r o u g h e n d u r a n c e of tri-
b u l a t i o n he is c r o w n e d w h o f r o m great t r i b u l a t i o n
c o m e s m e e k , g e n t l e a n d like a l a m b , * w h o in t h e f i r e Jer 11:19
of c h a r i t y c o m e s i n c a n d e s c e n t b u t n o t c o n s u m e d , * Heb 12:29
not charred by any soot of impatience or com-
p l a i n t . * T h e s e are t h e y w h o c o m e f r o m L e b a n o n a n d Jdt 8:24; 25.
are c r o w n e d ' f r o m t h e p e a k s of A m a n a a n d Senir, Lam 16, n. 64.
from the lairs of lions, from the mountains of
leopards'. Through these trials indeed they are
c r o w n e d , w h o are t e s t e d b y trials of t h e s e k i n d s . D o
t h e y n o t g a t h e r 'grapes f r o m t h o r n s a n d figs f r o m
b r a m b l e s ' ? * ' T h i s slight m o m e n t a r y a f f l i c t i o n ' , says Mt 7:16
t h e apostle, 'is p r e p a r i n g f o r us an e t e r n a l w e i g h t of
glory beyond all c o m p a r i s o n . ' * T h e s u f f e r i n g s of 2 Co 4:17
the p r e s e n t t i m e ' , t h e n , p r e p a r e f o r b u t d o n o t c o m -
pare w i t h t h e f u t u r e c r o w n o f glory reserved f o r us.* Rm 8:18
Obviously m a t t e r for reward accumulates, w h e n amid
t h e m e r i t s o f f u l l i n t e g r i t y o n e is c h a s t e n e d b y various
354 Gilbert of Hoyland

sufferings. Most beautiful is the welding of the crown,

when purity of life and humble endurance of oppres-
sion cling together.
Great indeed is the weight of oppression, so per-
haps it has been expressed by the names of mountains.
Massive is their bulk, but faith incapable of being
overwhelmed rises above their bulk. Faith sets its
heel on the peaks of those mountains and strikes the
Hab3:13 very 'peak from the house of the godless'.* Rightly
therefore is the head itself crowned for it triumphs
over the head, because it both crushes the beginning
of temptations and does not yield to the violence of
tribulations. In everything, that is, like the head,
which is either the first or the greatest. So here take
'head' as if you were allowed to understand either the
source or the summit of the things symbolized by
these mountains. From the peak of Amana, from the
summit of Hermon and Senir, he is crowned who has
risen above an accumulation of wrongs and a mass of
tribulations which tower aloft against the humble
2 Co 10:5 knowledge of Christ.* But this mass seems to have
the less weight, the more everything inflated is
transitory.
5. In our text, although the mass is a mountain,
yet you find it written that 'the mountain falls and
Jb 14:18 crumbles and the rock is removed from its place'.*
And see how these mountains have crumbled, how
these mountains have been removed. They have been
removed because they have been changed. The
apostle shows that people, like mountains, were
moved and vanquished, for he says to them: 'Such
were some of you' once 'but you were washed, you
1 Co 6:11 were sanctified, you were justified',* by this washing
and cleansing which is brought about by the word of
faith. The 'pard' has been stripped of his stripes,
been made wholly without blemish, wholly of one
color, that is, of one faith and one way of life. Like
the 'pard' indeed seems the man who has been
painted with stripes of heretical dogma and no less
like the 'pard' is the man who is unlike himself,
wavering and inconstant and suddenly changing his
Jr 13:23 plans. For the 'pard', so to speak, wills and wills not.*
 Sermon Twenty-Nine 355

A p p l y this t o the conversion of t h e Gentiles and

y o u will u n d e r s t a n d at once h o w , b y unity of faith
and h o p e , those w h o have been converted t o the
Lord seem to have p u t on one color. T h e y stripped
o f f , y o u will notice, n o t only their alternating stripes,
b u t also their wildness; t h e y dwell n o t in the lairs of
lions, ' n o t in lairs of d e b a u c h e r y and licentiousness',
I m e a n , * b u t in lairs and gardens of p e r f u m e ; t t h e y
rest n o t in beds of wild beasts, n o t in beds defiled
b u t in beds of flowers. F o r the b e d of the bride and
Bridegroom is all flowers.* T h e bride does not seem Sgl:lS
to d e p a r t willingly f r o m L e b a n o n and f r o m J u d a h t o
pass over t o the Gentiles. For she leaves reluctantly;
t h o u g h called so o f t e n , she is loth t o a b a n d o n
Lebanpn in order to pass over t o M o u n t A m a n a , to
the peaks of Senir and H e r m o n . But b y her passing
she changes these barren m o u n t a i n s , these barbarous
m o u n t a i n s , into a L e b a n o n .
6. N o w examine t h e names of these m o u n t a i n s .
A m a n a m e a n s a 'vain' or a 'confining' people. Senir
means 'shaggy'. H e r m o n means ' a n a t h e m a ' . What
more vain t h a n that people whose very teachers
'made nonsense of logic' and 'claiming t o be philo-
sophers, b e c a m e fools'?* What m o r e confining t h a n Rm 1:21-22
t h e y w h o in despair surrendered t o i m p u r i t y ? * Con- Rm 1:24
fined indeed is t h e heart which limits the range of its
longings t o t h e goals of t e m p o r a l e n j o y m e n t , n o t
knowing h o w t o e x p a n d its h o p e t o things eternal.* 2 Co 6:11
What could be m o r e shaggy and u n k e m p t t h a n t h e y
w h o m t h e apostle calls 'heartless, implacable, moti-
vated b y malice and envy'?* Are these n o t t o be 2 Tm 3:3;Tt 3:3
reckoned as Senir? For H e r m o n means those w h o are
strangers t o t h e understanding of Christ, having no
h o p e of the promise,* n o t 'fellow citizens of the Eph 2:12
saints', n o t 'belonging to G o d ' s h o u s e h o l d ' , b u t al-
together ' w i t h o u t God in this w o r l d ' . * A n d this Eph 2:19;
indeed, O Gentiles, you were, b u t ' y o u have been 2:12.
washed, sanctified and justified in the n a m e of our
Lord Jesus'* and therefore f r o m y o u t h e bride is 1 Co 6:11
crowned f o r she glories in y o u r t r a n s f o r m a t i o n . G o o d
is t h a t t r a n s f o r m a t i o n b y which Senir is changed i n t o
Lebanon.
356 Gilbert of Hoyland

But Lebanon indeed, that earlier Jewish Lebanon,

now seems to be changed into Senir and Hermon.
Therefore, 'come from Lebanon', come and see, in
place of that lowly and short-lived Lebanon, how
many Lebanons rise in your honor. 'Lift up your eyes
Is 49:18 round about and see',* in your honor all the moun-
tains of this world must be changed into Lebanon. It
is obviously painful to see the losses and desolation of
your nation, but this pain is compensated for by an
exchange so profitable that the losses of one are
redeemed by a more abundant profit from many. 5 Do
not add delay to delay then, but come from a Leban-
on which now ceases to be Lebanon. Come that you
may be crowned for the faith and the conversion of
the Gentiles. Do you wish to interpret all these
mountains not as in J u d e a and among the Gentiles,
but only in the Church? This will not be a discordant
interpretation, if you choose to understand the mat-
ter in this sense. You will find here a Lebanon and an
Amana, a Senir and a Hermon. You will find here
mountains of 'pards' and lairs of lions.
7. Would that in this Lebanon of ours in this
holy community of monks, which both our profes-
sion and our way of life make charming and chaste,
in our Lebanon, I say, would that one could discern
neither the peak of Amana nor the crests of Senir
and Hermon. When you see in an assembly and con-
Col2'18 Lam 13 g^g^*011 saints someone exalting himself, puffed
n. 46; 18, n. 73. up with the wisdom of the flesh,* vain in his boast-
ing, interiorly and exteriorly irascible and cantank-
erous, fretful in the emptiness of idleness—for
idleness breeds frustration—when you see such a
man, what else are you discerning but the peak of
Amana with Lebanon? Nothing is more empty than
*acedia idleness, nothing more fretful than frustration,*
nothing more cantankerous than irascibility. For
Amana also means a 'vain' or 'fretful' people; there-
fore from Amana one comes to Senir, to a shaggy
and hairy race.
For where there is frustration, there is irasci-
bility. Where there is cantankerousness, there is
nothing gentle, nothing composed, nothing orderly,
 Sermon Twenty-Nine 357

but everything bristles and someone of such a charac-

ter is devoid of tact, without affection, full of
hostility and disaffection,* indeed anathematized, Rm 1:31;
which is the meaning of Mount Hermon. Such a Col 1.21
man is not of God's household, not a fellow citizen,
not even a resident alien or a guest,* and therefore no Eph 2:19
grace, no devotion pays him a visit. The Bridegroom
does not turn aside to visit him even in passing or stay
with him as a guest. But there dwell with him 'pards',
demons of striped and turncoat hides, and with him
lions make their lairs. They do not go out of their
way to hasten past but hold him fast and bed down
with him. But such characters should not be given up
in despair, for many of this>sort are predestined to be
ornaments of the Bridegroom. Therefore he says:
'Come, you shall be crowned from the peak of
Amana and from the crest of Senir.' 'Come', he
says, 'from Lebanon come.'
Consider whether the bride drags her feet in com-
ing from Lebanon, for she is called so often. Yet her
delay is caused not by contumacy but by caution.
For who is eager to depart from the brightness of
contemplation and from the serenity of inner repose
and purity? 7 To whom will it not be painful to with-
draw even for a moment from a place of d"elights?
Perhaps the gains expected amid disciples are attrac-
tive but the labor is painful. Though gains are desir-
able, still a fall is to be feared. I am suspicious of
gains when their outcome is uncertain, when danger
to my own salvation is imminent and the loss of
interior delight is certain. Why wonder if the bride
delays in coming, since it is both painful to leave
Lebanon and fearful to approach, those barbaric
mountains, the haunts of wild beasts? And perhaps
the bride's delay is a blow and a reproach to our
haste, for with excessive readiness and little fore-
thought, not weighing our capacities, we hasten to
enter upon the labors of authority, upon the pains of
anxious care and upon an occasion to stumble. Not
even awaiting the first invitation, as volunteers we
seize office for ourselves, either anticipating a call or
securing one by manipulation. When the charge is so
358 Gilbert of Hoyland

great, there should be neither heedless presumption

nor again obstinate fear.
8. In the light of our text, we may presume to
accept when Christ orders, when the Bridegroom
calls and promises abundant rewards, as in the present
verse: 'Come, you shall be crowned from the peak of
Amana, from the crests of Senir and Hermon, from
the lairs of lions, from the mountains of "pards".'
When subjects lay aside the barbarity of their
behavior, when from their lairs of 'debauchery and
licentiousness' they move to flower-decked and hon-
est lodgings and to gardens of perfumes, to lodgings
in which there are not growls but tears, to lodgings in
which there is not a battle of wits but compunction
of heart, when the cloak of blemished stripes is
removed and naked simplicity takes its place, when
behavior has been changed for the better by her
ministry, then understandably the bride is being wel-
comed for her crown. Fairly indeed is she crowned
thanks to such characters, for they now are changed
into an adornment though previously she abhorred
their behavior and now, as it were, in the ranks of
charity they cling together in unity, though pre-
viously they dwelt apart in disagreement, red in
tooth and claw.
Pleasing surely to the Bridegroom is this fellow-
ship in unity; perhaps this is why he proceeds to say
he has been 'wounded by one of her eyes, by one
hair of her neck', because, of course, she is his bride.
The explanation of this verse must be postponed to
another time. But it will be enough to give this advice
in conclusion, that if care for the progress of others
entices anyone to seek a higher rank, I do not dis-
suade him, as of course I do not persuade him. One
thought however I do urge upon you, whoever you
are with such a problem, that you emulate both the
delay and the purity of the bride, who is not content
to be called once or worthy to be called at all, except
from the Lebanon of a pure and snow-white con-
science, for only from Lebanon does Christ Jesus her
Bridegroom call his beloved to a crown, for he is God,
blessed for ever and ever. Amen.
 NOTES ON SERMON TWENTY-NINE

1. G. addresses one person throughout.

2. Rm 13:10. Lam quotes Gregory the Great, Horn. 30 in Ev. 1; PL 76:
1220B: Ipse Spiritus sanctus Amor est. See F. Vandenbrouke, 'L'action du
Saint-Esprit dans les âmes', DSp 4 (1961) 1309-10;P. Smulders, 'Saint Augustin:
le Saint-Esprit Charité', DSp 4 (1961) 1279-1283; J.M. Déchanet, Aux sources de
la spiritualité de Guillaume de Saint-Thierry (Bruges, 1940) 17 n. 4.
3. 1 Co 14:2; and for amatoria see Seneca, Ep Mor. 9:6, 'Hecato says,
"I can show you a philtre, amatorium, compounded without drugs, herbs, or any
witch's incantations; if you would be loved, love, si vis amari, ama".' Interest-
ingly the first two words in Gilbert are also found in this epistle: 'the affections
of lovers, affectus amantium', 9:11, SC 1:1.
4. Gilbert's pardus is striped like a tiger not spotted like a leopard. See
Morson, pp. 152-4, White, 13-14.
5. See G. Ep 1:2, where G. talks of recouping one's losses and uses the
language of Seneca, Ep Mor. 81:1.
6. Frustration = acedia; for the verb acedior see Si 6:26; 22:16; Migne,
mss Paris 9605, Troyes 419: tumore; Mab: timore. Lam 196, n. 174.
7. See Leclercq, 'Otia Monastica,' 119:21.

359
 SERMON 30
UNION OF MINDS AND HEARTS

The lover longs for union of minds and hearts.

1. The heart of the Bridegroom is wounded
with love; our love cannot repay his spend-
thrift love. 2. Affectionate love wounds the
heart of Jesus; every affectionate glance is a
wounding dart. 3. The eye is a pure intention
and the hair is attentive meditation. 4. Join
orderly meditation on Scripture to unity of
intention. 5. Her locks are believers in unity and
community. 6. The rending of her locks by
schism wounds the heart of her Beloved.
7. Divine Providence and human devotedness
are two sides of the same seal. 8. For unity,
bishops are deprived of temporal possessions;
for temporal possessions, the Pope is less severe
towards schismatics. 9. Jesus allows no middle
course, but when will he remove the gall and
pour oil into her wounds?

YOU HAVE WOUNDED MY HEART, SISTER,

MY B R I D E , Y O U HAVE WOUNDED MY HEART,
WITH O N E O F Y O U R E Y E S AND ONE H A I R OF
YOUR NECK.*1 Sg4:9

O
hard heart, O heart obstinately hard, if in
you these words do not beget wounds]
Insensate indeed is the heart which does
not feel deeply the force of these words,
which is not amazed at so much graciousness.* Why Sr 32:3
do I say 'graciousness'? It is even more. Yet how

361
362 Gilbert of Hoyland

great it would be, if it were merely graciousness!

Great indeed were the deed and full worthy of
wonder, if such Majesty merely bowed to grace
human infirmity with the titles of 'sister' and 'bride'.
In reality, however, it is not so much graciousness as
devotedness. But do you wish to hear the proof of his
avowed and prodigal affection? 'You have wounded
my heart', he says, 'sister, my bride, you have
wounded my heart.'
The wound in his heart denotes the vehemence of
his love. O heart truly tender, moved by such affec-
tion for us as to seek an exchange of love for love!
This is at once a relationship and an exchange; the
relationship is indicated by the titles sister and
bride; the exchange by the wound. Close is the rela-
tionship of a sister, that of a bride even closer; the
former is one of kinship, the latter one of love. Sister
indicates a unity of origin, but bride indicates union.
The bride is a sister because she shares the nature God
assumed, but she is a bride because she has been
assumed into the uniqueness of his person. These
titles obviously express a relationship, for they refer
either to nature or to grace. How much should she
love, when she knows she is covenanted with Christ
by such close kinship!
However much she loves, she does not simply love
but she returns love for love. In fact he first loved
1 Jn4:10 us.* However prodigally our love for him is spent, it
is not so much paid as repaid; it is a debt not a
benefaction. It cannot match the love already ex-
pended. And how can our love earn or deserve a
return, when it is not sufficient to repay in full? No,
O bride, you cannot make a full payment in return
to your Beloved! Yet he does not stop squandering
his love. What he spends on you has not yet been
fully repaid and yet he feels under an obligation.
Whatever love you repay him, he does not receive as a
debt but as a benefaction. He feels deeply that he has
been, as it were, challenged to love, when he con-
fesses that his heart has been wounded. 2
2. What marvel is this, brothers? Do you not
regard this soul as blessed which pierces and penetrates
 Sermon Thirty 363

the very heart of our Lord Jesus Christ b y its devout

affections? Sharp, and effective and truly violent is
the affection, good Jesus, which woos and wins your
affection! Strong and violent is the force of charity
which reaches and penetrates the very affection of
God and like an arrow transfixes his vital organs.* Pr 7:23
What wonder if 'the kingdom of heaven suffers
violence'!* The Lord himself bears the w o u n d of Mt 11:12
violent love.
But see b y what shafts he is w o u n d e d . 'You have
w o u n d e d m y heart', he says, 'with one of your eyes
and with one hair of your neck.' Do not hesitate,
O bride, to aim such weapons at your Spouse. Use
devout glances as darts. Do not act t o o remissly in the
engagement;* do not be content to w o u n d your 2M 12:14
Beloved once b u t pierce him with w o u n d after
w o u n d . * Happy are you if your arrows are fixed in Jb 16:15
h i m * and y o u r shafts of love d o battle in Christ, if Ps 37:3
your eye is fixed u p o n him unwearyingly. Good is the
w o u n d f r o m which power issues. A w o m a n touched
his h e m and Christ felt power go f o r t h f r o m him.* Lk 8:43-46
When his heart is not lightly touched b u t is w o u n d e d ,
h o w m u c h more does he feel grace flow f r o m him-
self? This w o u n d does not pass unfelt; therefore aim
at him the arrows of a pure gaze; regard him as a tar-
get set up for such arrows.
Such he welcomes with favor, for such are the
arrows he fires. He glanced at Peter, struck his heart
and pierced him t o repentance.* Tears give signs of a Lk 22:61-62
w o u n d e d heart. In that text, with a look of cle-
mency, he wounds that heart which he moves to
some affection for virtue. May he multiply such
wounds in me, f r o m the sole of m y f o o t t o the
crown of m y head, that there m a y be n o soundness
in me!* For n o sound health is there where there are Is 1:6
no wounds inflicted b y the loving gaze of Christ. One
gaze challenges another; therefore try to w o u n d him
with your view f r o m afar. Let your eyes be ever upon
the Lord,* t h a t he m a y be captured in the glances of Ps 24:15
your love,* t h a t he may be ensnared in your curls. Is 3:16
3. Yet he does not say 'with your eyes' or 'with
your hair' in the plural, b u t in the singular; 'You
364 Gilbert of Hoyland

have w o u n d e d m y h e a r t , sister, m y b r i d e , y o u have

w o u n d e d m y h e a r t w i t h o n e of y o u r eyes a n d w i t h
one hair of y o u r n e c k . ' If y o u have several e y e s , s h u t
all o t h e r s , t h a t y o u m a y rely on t h a t o n e o n l y w i t h
which you are w o n t a n d able t o gaze u p o n the
Beloved. T h o s e w h o w a n t a s h a r p e r view, c o c k o n e
eye, fix the other on the object and focus the open
eye f o r a m o r e reliable view in a direct line. Y o u r e y e
is o n e if it is p u r e ; it is one if it is n o t d i r e c t e d t o
m a n y o b j e c t s ; it is o n e if s o m e h o w it is s i m p l i f i e d
and focused u p o n and directed to one object, n o t
split, n o t w a n d e r i n g , n o t divided a m o n g m a n y ob-
j e c t s . Y o u r eye is o n e if y o u always view a n d f o c u s
o n o n e o b j e c t a n d o n t h a t a l o n e . In o u r t e x t , if it
is t h e e y e o f love, it is o n e . ' O n e t h i n g I have asked
of t h e L o r d ' , says t h e psalmist, 'this will I i m p l o r e ,
t h a t I m a y d w e l l in t h e h o u s e of t h e L o r d all t h e
d a y s of m y life, t h a t I m a y b e h o l d t h e b e a u t y of t h e
Ps 26:4. Lam 184, L o r d . ' * His eye was o n e , f o r it s o u g h t o n e o b j e c t a n d
nn. 93, 94. looked to one alone.

' A n d w i t h a hair of y o u r n e c k . ' It is n o t b e c o m i n g

t h a t locks s h o u l d s t r a y like lawless v a g a b o n d s a n d
t r a m p s in d i s a r r a y , b r u s h i n g against t h e e y e s . It is n o t
right t h a t w h i l e t h e e y e is f i x e d , t h e hair s h o u l d b e
disheveled. F o r t h e eye is i m p e d e d w h e n t h e hair
floats f r e e . If t h e eye is t a k e n t o m e a n t h e i n t e n t i o n ,
w h a t does t h e hair d e n o t e b u t t h o u g h t ? W o u l d y o u
have each of t h e t w o t o g e t h e r ; eyes a n d hair, i n t e n -
t i o n a n d m e d i t a t i o n ? T h e m a n ' w h o s e will is f i x e d o n
t h e l a w of t h e L o r d a n d w h o m e d i t a t e s o n it d a y a n d
Psl:2 n i g h t ' , * also possesses an eye at o n e in a c o n s i s t e n t
r e s o l u t i o n a n d hair a t o n e in m e d i t a t i o n . O t h e r w i s e if
y o u r a t t e n t i o n t o G o d is n o t c o n s i s t e n t a n d s i m p l e , if
your thoughts stray u n c o n t r o l l e d , t h e a n t i c s of a
w a n d e r i n g and u n d i s c i p l i n e d m i n d s t u n t h e e y e t r y -
ing t o f o c u s , s h o c k t h e d i r e c t line of vision f r o m its
purpose and shatter the heart. Let pure intention
have c o r r e s p o n d i n g t h o u g h t , t h o u g h t t h a t is o n e , j u s t
as t h e i n t e n t i o n is c o n s i s t e n t . F o r g o o d is t h e hair
w h i c h is n o t scraggly, n o t u n k e m p t , b u t g a t h e r e d i n t o
o n e a n d clinging t o t h e n e c k , yes, t h e n e c k of w h i c h
it is said: Y o u r n e c k is like a t o w e r , f r o m w h i c h h a n g
 Sermon Thirty 365

a thousand shields.* Sg 4:4. Lam 1 79,

4. Interpret this neck as sacred Scripture, through
which words flow to us, words which announce the
divine will. Consistently then a hair o f the neck is
interpreted as assiduous thought on the law o f God.
So it is said to be ' o f the neck' because all your thought,
all your interpretations and all your understanding
must not forestall God's word, but depend on and
progress from its direction. If, however, your locks be
divided and, as it were, torn and in total disarray,
though they cling to the neck, they neither please the
bridegroom nor wound his heart; they neither stir his
affection nor merit his grace.
He makes two demands: that your locks be united
and kept close to your neck, that they display both
good order and authority. For what does it profit
you, i f your meditations are upon the law o f God, i f
in themselves they are lawless? Thoughts are lawless
i f they are without order and become the sport o f the
winds. 'With one hair o f your neck', says the Bride-
groom. By the neck is understood the authority o f the
sacred word, for it shapes our thoughts; but by the
unity o f the hair is understood order. Now that order
is good, where the locks are gathered together and
brought into unity and into a unity which is not
taken away.* Or the Bridegroom says, 'with one Lk 10:42
hair o f your neck' precisely to indicate that the face
o f the bride is free and unveiled, fot hair is regarded
as a veil.* The Bridegroom then wa!nts in the bride a 1 Co 11:15
face without mask or veil to view the glory o f God
and to fix the eye o f contemplation without impedi-
ment; so he commends well-ordered locks drawn back
from the countenance to the.nape o f the neck.
5. Why are we applying this to one soul indivi-
dually? Let us extend our interpretation to the con-
dition o f the Church. For more pleasant is what
applies in common. In Scripture nothing is more
pleasing to the Bridegroom than the community, or
rather the unity o f believers 3 and the embrace of the
Church'. He gathered many qualities to eulogize his
bride and b y them showed his pleasure, but never has
he expressed the emotion o f shared j o y so much as
366 Gilbert of Hoyland

here, where the unity of both eye and hair 4 is called

to mind. How will his joy not be greatest where the
greatest commandment is observed? 'A new com-
mandment I give you', he says, 'that you love one
Jn 13:34 another as I have loved you.'*
The eyes of the Church are its doctors and he who
touches them touches the pupil of the eye of the
Lord. But its locks are the peoples who believe. In
each of the two is a unity pleasing to the Bridegroom.
'By this', he says, 'all men will know that you are my
Jn 13:35 disciples, if you have love for one another.'* The
accord of two or three makes their prayers achieve
Mt 18:20 their goal;* how much more the accord of the whole
Church in Christ? How does unity not achieve its
goal when it penetrates the very heart of the Lord?
'You have wounded my heart, sister, my bride, you
have wounded my heart with one of your eyes and
one hair of your neck.' For of all feminine adorn-
ment what more allures and moves the affection of a
1 Co 11:15, lover than hair well dressed?* But why are we trying
Si 26.21. t Q h e a p p r a i s es on the hair of the bride, combed and

arranged with winning gracefulness? Here lies an

ample subject for elegy rather than for eulogy.
6. In our day we see the locks of the bride piti-
fully torn out and cut off and the peoples of the
Church fighting among themselves for the Church.
Do you also see this, good Jesus, and does this rend-
ing not move you at all? Does so grievous a wound in
your bride not wound you? If her unity so wounds
your heart that you praise her, her disunity should so
wound you that you pity her. The harmony of unity
and uniformity moves you; let the dispersal of what
was united move you.
Your locks have been parted and separated from
one another, indeed against one another. Both sides
boast that they hang from the neck of the bride and,
boasting of their claim to her, try to tear others away
from her. 'The Lord knows those who are his' and
'let everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
2Tm2:19 depart from iniquity.'* Possessing this twin 'seal', as
1 Co 11:15 Paul calls it,* his bride remains steadfast amid
the wicked hands of those who on all sides pluck and
 Sermon Thirty 367

tear h e r a p a r t . T h e kings o f t h e e a r t h a n d its princes

have c o m e together against C h r i s t t h e L o r d * and Ps 2:2
against his b r i d e .
But t h e b r i d e k n o w s t h e B r i d e g r o o m , so t h a t she
f o l l o w s n o t a s t r a n g e r b u t her L o r d . She d o e s n o t fail
t o k n o w herself, n o r w h o s e b r i d e she is; t h e r e f o r e she
r e f u s e s t o d e s e r t or t o d e p a r t f o r t h e f l o c k s of h e r
companions. Although they were her companions,
t h e y are s u c h n o l o n g e r . T h e y have g o n e f r o m us b u t
t h e y d o n o t b e l o n g t o us. H o w are t h e y c o m p a n i o n s
w h e n t h e y are n o t f r i e n d s ? F o r t h e f r i e n d of t h e
B r i d e g r o o m s t a n d s a n d listens a n d w i t h j o y rejoices
at his v o i c e . * B u t t h e f l o c k s d o n o t listen or rejoice Jn3:29
at t h e voice of t h e B r i d e g r o o m b u t r a t h e r at t h e voice
of t h e R o m a n E m p e r o r . Unless (and this we have
m o r e reason t o a d m i t ) t h e y d o n o t so m u c h rejoice as
t r e m b l e at his roar. B u t ' t h e L o r d k n o w s t h o s e w h o
are his', not those w h o belong to the Emperor.
T h e r e f o r e t h e y c a n n o t b e m o v e d at t h e r o a r i n g of t h e
L i o n * b e c a u s e t h e y are held fast b y t h e i m m o v a b l e Pr 19:12
seal o f divine k n o w l e d g e .

7. A g o o d seal i n d e e d is t h e k n o w l e d g e of G o d ,
k n o w l e d g e w h i c h is in a c c o r d a n c e w i t h his p u r p o s e ,
according to which t h e saints have b e e n called.* 2Tml:9
D u r a b l e is this seal o f his k n o w l e d g e , b e c a u s e n o t h i n g
will b e e f f a c e d f r o m it. N o t o n l y is n o t h i n g lost t o it,
b u t it gives b i r t h t o t h o s e w h o are t o b e saved, it
predestines and s t a m p s t h o s e it wishes t o b e its
o w n . * It is a t w o f o l d seal, of divine p u r p o s e and Rm 8:29
h u m a n zeal, divine P r o v i d e n c e a n d h u m a n d e v o t e d -
ness. F o r c o n c e r n i n g d e v o t e d n e s s t h e a p o s t l e adds:
' A n d let e v e r y o n e w h o calls u p o n t h e n a m e of t h e
Lord depart from iniquity.'* 2 Tm 2:19
I n s p e c t t h e t w o p a r t s of this seal: t h e o n e of divine
grace only, t h e o t h e r b o t h of grace and of l i b e r t y ; t h e
f o r m e r of G o d ' s p u r p o s e , t h e l a t t e r of his assistance.
His assistance directs t h e w e a k choice of o u r l i b e r t y ;
f o r his p u r p o s e disposes b y p r e d e s t i n i n g . In his pur-
p o s e t h e L o r d k n o w s in his f o r e s i g h t t h o s e w h o are
his o w n ; in his assistance h e m a k e s this k n o w n t o us.
His p u r p o s e is t h e cause, his assistance its e f f e c t . His
purpose is unchangeable, his assistance can be
368 Gilbert of Hoyland

2 Tm 2:15 tested.* His purpose is the seal, his assistance its

impression. His purpose is the root, his assistance its
fruit; and by these fruits you will know those who
Mt 7:16; call upon the name of the Lord.* For in his good
2 Tm 2:19
pleasure he knows those who are his and plants them
that they may produce this fruit in abundance. For
this reason he says: 'Let everyone who calls upon the
2 Tm 2:19 name of the Lord depart from iniquity'.* Let the man
who claims that he belongs to the Lord not depart
from unity. Nor can anyone depart of those whom
divine knowledge has formed and strengthened.
In our text, not even a hair from the head of the
Church will perish. For all these hairs have been
Lk 12:7. ham 6, numbered,* all have been clasped with the seal of
predestining knowledge. This divine knowledge is
Rm 11:29; irrevocable;* therefore the foundation stands firm,
Heb 10.26. possessing the Lord's seal, the help of God's pur-
pose and the efforts of our free will. The locks
bound with this seal, no one will be able to tear from
the head of the bride. In your hand, O Lord, are all
the locks of the bride and no one will tear them from
your hand. Hold fast, good Jesus, those whom you
hold and gather again those whom you know; let
him who knows himself to be yours, who says 'I
belong to the Lord', who calls on the name of the
Lord, depart from iniquity, approach the unity of the
Church, the unity of head and body, that is let him
be a hair of the neck and a hair united.
8. Nothing so wounds the heart of the Bride-
groom, nothing so stirs his feelings and pierces his
spirit as the unity of the bride, and that unity safe-
guarded and, as it were, strengthened amid the
efforts of those who would disrupt it. Religious
bishops abandon their own sees and fly from city to
city to escape the persecutor. Men vowed to God,
both clerics and monks, afflicted with tribulations
and outrage, endure with joy the plundering of their
Heb 10-34 goods, knowing that they have 'a better and enduring
Lam 7, n. 11. property',* in the unity of fraternal and ecclesiastical
charity. For if a man gives the whole of his property
Sg 8:7 for charity, 'he will look upon it as nothing'.*
Some indeed buy back with gifts the freedom of
 Sermon Thirty 369

ecclesiastical communion. It is a good buy but a

disgraceful sale. Why do you sell what you yourself
condemn? If you regard as schismatics those who
have been separated from you, you should not have
been induced by money to allow them licence for
their error. If you regard it as schism, why continue
to sell for gifts the liberty to practise it? But if the
reality of ecclesiastical unity is with us, why do you
try to disrupt it? If you occupy the throne of Peter
by right of succession, why do you not maintain
Peter's sentence upon those whom you consider
schismatics? 'May your money', he says, 'go with
you to perdition.'* Yet now you say: Let your Ac 8:20
money be saved for me, but let your soul go to
perdition. For how is there not perdition where there
is separation from the unity of the body? 'Let the
babe be neither mine nor yours', said the woman,
'but let it be divided.'* So you even take money, IK 3:26
since you cannot take souls.
Take what you take. Take gifts for yourself; leave
souls to the Church. For she also seeks nothing but
souls. But let them disperse to you their bodily
goods, lest together with you they scatter the goods
of the soul. For he who does not gather with the
Church scatters. Quite significantly Christ says: 'He
who does not gather with me scatters.'* For gather- Lk 11:23
ing implies a plan of unity as scattering suggests
separation. The Church knows how to say with the
Bridegroom: 'He who is not with me is against
me.'* She leaves no middle course; either you gather Mt 12:30
with her or certainly you scatter; you are either with
her or against her. Whereas (they claim) you are wont
to say: If you do not wish to scatter with us, at least
do not gather with them. If you are not with me, at
least do not be against me. It is enough if you are
neither for us nor for our adversaries.5
9. But that is not what Jesus, our Joshua, says:
'Are you for us or for our adversaries'?* He leaves no Jos 5:13
middle course. 'Is there no balm in Gilead', O good
Jesus? Why therefore Lord, has the bruising of your
bride not been healed?* Why has her wound, her Jr 8:22
swollen sore not been bound up, or treated with
370 Gilbert of Hoyland

Is 1:6 medicine, or softened with oil?* Have you given your

beloved, O Lord, enough of the vinegar of sorrow to
Ps 59:5 drink?* When will you treat her with oil, your holy
oil? The oil of the sinner, however, will not fatten her.
Even the opposition boast that they have oil. What
else but oil do they continue to sell, while they
flatter, promise honors and offer gifts? Their oil is
not the healing of chrism but the rending of schism.
So their oil is like their wine. Their words and their
blows should be weighed in the same scale. My soul
refuses to be consoled from the breasts of their con-
Ps 6:3;Is 66:11 solation.* They have bared their breasts like jackals
Lm 4:3 and at them suckle their whelps,* not the children of
the Church.
For the Church has her own breasts. That is why
in the encomium of the bride there follows imme-
diately: 'How beautiful are your breasts, sister, my
bride.' Recall, Lord Jesus, your children who are
astray to the sweetness of this milk, that from the
mouths of sucklings you may elicit praise when you
have destroyed the foe and the victor. 6 Hasten then
Jb 23:7 and exchange judgment for victory,* in order that
those who call upon your name may dwell in unity,
because in this unity you send blessing and life for
Ps 132:3 ever and ever.* Amen.
 NOTES ON SERMON THIRTY

1. G. writes to his brethren, fratres, in the second person plural

throughout.
2. See Cor Jesus: Commentationes in Litteras Encyclicas 'Haurietis aquas,'
ed. Augustinus Bea, Hugo Rahner, Henri Rondet, Friedr. Schwendimann (Rome:
Herder, 1969). Bernard Leeming, in 'Consecration to the Sacred Heart' (I. 595-
656), quotes from par. 1-2 in this sermon, and adds a useful bibliography on this
devotion in England; Jean Leclercq, in 'Le Sacré Coeur dans la tradition bénédic-
tine au moyen age' (II. 3-28), likewise refers to these paragraphs, and notes that
G.'s comment on the bride's love, non amat, sed redamat, is found in Aelred of
Rievaulx (Sermones inediti, ed. C.H. Talbot [Rome 1952] 40) redamaret aman-
tem, and recur in the h y m n of the Sacred Heart, Quis non amatem redamet? For
the history of this devotion cf. A. Cabassut, 'Blessure d'amour,' in DSp (1937)
1727-1729, a n d a bibliography in Heart of the Saviour: A Symposium on Devotion
to the Sacred Heart, ed. Josef Stierli (Freiburg im Br.: Herder, 1958). See also A.
Hamon, 'Coeur Sacré', DSp 2 (1953) 1027: G. Dolan, 'Devotion to the Sacred
Heart in mediaeval England,' in Dublin Review 120 (1897) 373-385.
3. Ep 4:13. See de Lubac, 1 : 586, n. 5, 591, n. 7; 2 ' : 5 2 0 , n. 5 ; 2 2 : 8 7 ,
n. 1.
4. Migne, mss Paris 9605, Troyes 419: et luminis et crinis; Mab. omits
second et.
5. I owe the following comment to my colleague, Dean Lawrence Des-
mond: 'Mabillon connects this passage to the schism of 1130. Yet in that incident
no conflict occurred between Pope and Emperor, the latter indeed being one of
the more devoted of Innocent II's adherents. Rather, this section 6 must be read
along with section 8 which the learned Benedictine correctly interprets as having
to do with the later struggle between Frederick Barbarossa and Pope Alexander.
Because so many Cistercian colleagues were intimately involved in that context,
Gilbert's adumbrations are of special interest. Cistercian abbots were present at
the Council of Pavia but left hastily, when Victor was declared to be the legitimate
pontiff. Others of the Order approached Frederick in Milan in an attempt to
persuade him to withdraw his support of Victor. Subsequently, in General Chap-
ter, the white monks declared in favor of Alexander III, an action which
infuriated Frederick who, according to Helmhold, offered the monks of the Order
in his realm the choice of either recognizing Victor or of being exiled. A sys-
tematic persecution was undertaken, the intensity of which historians have not
agreed upon. The religious bishop alluded to by Gilbert may possibly be Conrad,
bishop of Lubeck and a former monk of Clairvaux who was deposed by Frederick
and fled to Clairvaux. Far from being intimidated other Cistercians were
instrumental in preventing the Emperor from obtaining support in both England
and France. The conclusion of the schism was mediated by Cistercian abbots

371
372 Notes

and the Emperor invited t o submit to Alexander by way of Abbot Pons of Clair-
vaux. For a synthetic picture of the Cistercian role in the imperium at this time,
see M. Preiss, Die Politische, Tätigkeit und Stellung der Zisterzienser in Schisma
1159-1177 (Halle, 1934); S. Mitterer, "Die Cisterzienser und der Kirchenstreit
zwischen Alexander III u n d Kaiser Frederick I", Cisterzienserchronik 34 (1922)
1-8, 21-26, 35-40.'
6. Unfortunately, we cannot date these paragraphs of G. on this schism
in the Church. All the time G. was abbot, there was schism in the Church, and
events described must have occurred in many places. Mabillon's note seems to
require careful refining: Non alius hie numero 8 pungi videtur, quam Alexander
III, cui objectus fuit a Friderico imperatore antipapa Victor. Hunc auctor
destructum cupit in fine sermonis, ubi 'ultorem' antea legebatur, non 'Victorem,'
quae genuina lectio est ex dodice Vallis-Clarae. See n o t e 5 above.
7. Ps 8:3, reading lactentium for lactantium, (though the change f r o m
'sucklings' to 'those w h o give suck,' would be in Gilbert's manner) and with
Mabillon, Victorem for ultorem, the Anti-pope Victor IV, though ultorem,
avenger, appears in the same verse of the Psalm, ut destruas inimicum et ultorem;
mss Paris 9605, Troyes 4 1 9 : lactentium . . . victorem, 'sucklings' and 'victor'.
 SERMON 31
MILK F O R BABES

The bride offers material and spiritual milk for

babes. 1-2. The bride experiences the ebb and
flow of action and contemplation. 3. Teachers
and prelates have twin breasts; kings and
princes the left breast of temporal assistance;
prelates and priests the right breast of consola-
tion; religious prelates have both breasts. 4. The
arts of women should be imitated in presenting
the word of God. 5. The gentleness of the
Gospel is more powerful than the harshness of
the Law. Novation and Pelagius are enemies of
the grace of God. 6-7. How the gentleness of
breasts are superior to the harshness of wine.

HOW B E A U T I F U L A R E Y O U R B R E A S T S , SISTER,
BETTER THAN WINE ARE YOUR BREASTS1* Sg4:10

373
374 Gilbert of Hoyland

G
ently now we must touch upon the breasts
of the bride. Though previously in more
than one passage they have been drawn
upon, still I know not whether their
meaning has been fully expressed. Perhaps even
touched upon lightly, they may yield us fresh
nourishment. Who would not run avidly and with
great expectation to the breasts which the Bride-
groom has been at such pains to praise? These are the
breasts from which Peter exhorts us to long for milk
1 P 2:3 like newborn babes.* And does the present compli-
ment not seem to amount to an invitation? 'How
beautiful are your breasts, sister, my bride.' Praise so
great was not poured out in a simple sentence without
emphasis. The very manner of expression manifests
the wonder and delight of the speaker.
But what is the reason for this order? Why, after
the eye and the hair, does he turn at once to the
breasts? Or why in her hair is unity praised and in her
breasts their plurality? To me in the previous verse
some transport of the mind and thought to God
seems to be indicated, but in the present verse
sobriety and temperance towards little ones. There
one thing is necessary; here solicitude and teaching
Lk 10:42, must be shared among many.* There the excess of
2 Co 8.1 fervent love, fixed on one target, well-aimed and pene-
trating, wounds the very breast of the feeloved; here
temperate teaching and sober words fill little ones, as
it were, with a drink of milk.
You see how no middle course is left in the eulogy
of the bride, but with Paul she either flies beyond
reason for God or bends down for our sake. 'Charity
2 Co 5:13-14 impels us', says Paul.* To what does it impel us? To
ecstasy? No, not to ascend in ecstasy but to descend
in charity. The former is the object of aspiration but
the latter of service; there is the highest affection of
one who knows no restraint but here is the highest
affection of self-restraint. Good is the order indeed: 2
there to draw from the fountain and here to be
drained; first to be inundated there and then to be
emptied here; to be intoxicated there and here to
intoxicate. Good is such an ebb and flow, if it be in
 Sermon Thirty-One 375

moderation.
2. By y o u r a r r a n g e m e n t , O L o r d , this a l t e r n a t i o n
persists, t h e a l t e r n a t i o n o f c o n t e m p l a t i o n a n d c o n -
s o l a t i o n . Is he n o t blessed, every m o m e n t of w h o s e
life is s p e n t e i t h e r in i n f l i c t i n g o n Christ w o u n d s of
c h a r i t y or in o f f e r i n g b r e a s t s of d e v o t i o n t o his sub-
jects? For my part, O Lord, whenever (if ever)
intoxicated f r o m t h e winecellar of y o u r h o u s e , I
seem to bring b a c k f r o m there distended breasts, they
are d r a i n e d b y so m a n y a n d such varied a n d p a i n f u l
c u r r e n t affairs t h a t s o o n t h e y are d r i e d u p , a l t h o u g h
previously they p o u r e d in a b u n d a n c e t h e milk of
e r u d i t i o n a n d of grace. H a p p y is he w h o b y s o m e
h o l y e x c h a n g e sustains such zeal in himself t h a t he
m a y e i t h e r p e n e t r a t e , so t o s p e a k , i n t o t h e very h e a r t
and consistory of wisdom or bring back thence
b r e a s t s o v e r f l o w i n g w i t h t h e a b u n d a n c e of w i s d o m ' s
delight.
She is clearly a b r i d e w h o k n o w s h o w t o achieve
s u c h a n a l t e r n a t i o n . T h e r e f o r e in h e r praises, a f t e r t h e
t r a n s p o r t of c o n t e m p l a t i o n , t h e b r e a s t s of consola-
tion and doctrine are a t o n c e i n t r o d u c e d : 'How
beautiful are your b r e a s t s ! ' P u r e is h e r eye and
b e a u t i f u l h e r b r e a s t s . Her eye b e l o n g s t o t h e Bride-
g r o o m , h e r b r e a s t s t o t h e c h i l d r e n of t h e B r i d e g r o o m .
T h e r e f o r e h e r eye is s p o k e n of in t h e singular, her
b r e a s t s in t h e plural. For the t e m p e r a t u r e of the
breasts m u s t vary to satisfy the different characters
t h e y n o u r i s h . See h o w Paul f o r t h e J e w s b e c a m e a
J e w , a n d f o r t h o s e o u t s i d e t h e L a w b e c a m e as one
o u t s i d e t h e L a w , a n d w e a k for t h e w e a k . * D o e s he 1 Co 9:20-22
n o t a d a p t as m a n y b r e a s t s as he has disciples w h e n he
t r a n s f o r m s himself i n t o so m a n y shapes? W h a t else
was his aim i n s u c h m a n i f o l d c h a n g e s of c h a r a c t e r
b u t t h a t his t e a c h i n g might b e instilled g e n t l y and
like milk i n t o t h e t e n d e r spirits of his hearers? He
seems t o a b o u n d in as m a n y b r e a s t s as are t h e w a y s in
w h i c h w i t h i n g e n i o u s art h e a d a p t e d h i m s e l f t o t h e
capacity of t h e w e a k . I b e c a m e in y o u r m i d s t like a
b a b e a m i d b a b e s , he said, 'like a n u r s e t a k i n g care of
her children'.*3 1 Th 2:7

3. N o w if y o u wish I shall p o i n t o u t f o r y o u t h e
376 Gilbert of Hoyland

two breasts of maternal piety. Indeed Paul himself

points them out, when he says that 'piety is of value
for everything, as it has' consolation 'for the present
1 Tm 4:8; life and for the life to come'.* With these twin breasts
promisstnem" 71 ' t le m a n
' occu ies
P ^ e place of teacher and father
Vulg. in the Church must be endowed for the good of his
subjects. With these breasts must he be equipped on
right and left, that those who are entrusted to him
may be given milk to drink and filled 'from the
Is 66:11 breasts of his consolation'.* Take one of these to be
the left, the other the right: the left, assistance in
temporal affairs; the right, in spiritual consolation:
'one who performs works of mercy with cheerful-
Rm 12:8 ness' and 'one who gives alms without guile'.*
According to the prince of the apostles, the man who
provides 'for the flock in his charge not under
IP 5:2 constraint but willingly',* offers the left breast, and
the Church is promised in the prophecy of Isaiah that
Is 60:16. Lam 7, she will be suckled 'at the breast of kings'.* 'At the
breast', says Isaiah, and not at the 'breasts', inasmuch
as it is for kings to foster the Church principally with
temporal goods, for this is her left breast, in which are
Pr3:16 'riches and glory'.* About the right breast, 4 Paul
lTh5:14 teaches us, 'encourage the fainthearted',* and 'con-
sole such a one, lest he be overwhelmed by excessive
2 Co 2:7 sorrow',* and again 'you who are spiritual, should
Ga 6:1 instruct' such a one 'in a spirit of gentleness'.* Now,
speaking figuratively, some by their office have only
the left breast, as those w h o m we mentioned above,
kings and princes. On some it devolves by virtue of
their office to offer mostly the right breast, as the
Lord's priests and teachers, whose lips guard knowl-
edge and from whom the law of the Lord is to be
M 2:7 sought.* For these reap rather material benefits from
the peoples subject to them, for whom they sow
1 Co 9:11 blessings of the spirit.*
But those who renounce all possessions, who bid
farewell to temporal goods, who surrender them-
selves and all their possessions to a monastery and
transfer copipletely to the jurisdiction of an abbot,
reserving to themselves for the future no responsi-
bility for themselves, they certainly are to be suckled
 Sermon Thirty-One 377

with the t w i n breasts of consolation. 5 T h e r e f o r e

those w h o are in charge of such persons should n o t
lack either breast, lest t h e y seem to have a b o s o m
multilated and m a i m e d , reduced b y d e f o r m i t y t o a
single breast. Those deprived of b o t h breasts, h o w -
ever, hold this office in t h e Church b o t h t o their own
injury a n d to t h e peril of others, lest perhaps t h e
t o n g u e of t h e suckling adhere to its palate* while his Lm 4:4
m o t h e r ' s breasts are dried up.* Obviously t h e praise Ho 9:14
given here t o t h e bride is n o t m e a n t f o r t h e m : ' H o w
b e a u t i f u l are y o u r breasts, sister, m y bride.' Notice
at the same time t h a t n o t all breasts are b e a u t i f u l , f o r
'praise is n o t b e a u t i f u l on t h e lips of a sinner',* and in Si 15:9
Proverbs: 'If sinners would suckle y o u , child, take n o
pleasure in t h e m . ' * See h o w the a u t h o r n o t only Prl:10
refuses t o recognize the breasts of s o m e people as
b e a u t i f u l b u t is even ready t o consider t h e m suspect.
T h e r e f o r e he c o m m e n d s those of t h e bride, that y o u
m a y k n o w well to which you should safely have
recourse.

4. ' H o w b e a u t i f u l are your breasts: b e t t e r t h a n

wine are y o u r breasts.' T w o qualities t h e Bridegroom
m e n t i o n s in his praise of her breasts: b e a u t y and
excellence. B e a u t y suits t h e lover; excellence suits an
i n f a n t . F o r w h a t does it m a t t e r t o an i n f a n t w h e t h e r
breasts are b e a u t i f u l , provided t h e y are breasts and
overflow w i t h wholesome milk? Their b e a u t y t h e n
he recalls f o r his own sake and their blessing of milk
for t h e sake of his children. Unless y o u have some
b e t t e r i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , apply their b e a u t y t o the
c h a r m of attractive behavior, and t h e rest of the
eulogy of her breasts to instruction and erudition.
Milk tastes sweeter t o babes, w h e n the nurse's life
lends charm t o the excellence of her teaching.
A n d if y o u wish t o hear s o m e spiritual and more
developed i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of their b e a u t y , I refer you
to the devices of w o m e n , w h o cultivate and develop
physical b e a u t y and have mastered this art. F o r what
are they m o r e anxious to avoid in embellishing the
b o s o m t h a n t h a t the breasts be overgrown or shape-
less and flabby, or o c c u p y the spaces of the b o s o m
itself? T h e r e f o r e t h e y constrain overgrown and f l a b b y
378 Gilbert of Hoy land

breasts with brassieres, artfully remedying the short-

comings of nature. Beautiful indeed are breasts which
are slightly prominent and are moderately distended;
neither raised too much nor level with the bosom, as
if pressed back but not pressed down, gently
restrained but not hanging loose.
Following this model, let him who must utter
good words, consoling words, 6 imitate the art and
care of women. Let him adopt restrained language;
let not the breasts of his words be sloppy or tumble
out in disorder. Let them not replace rather than
adorn, as it were, the bosom and consistory of the
mind. Let them not have more bulk than grace, more
flesh than milk. Let his discourse be pure and pru-
dent, as occasion demands. Here let piety approach
and observe the rhythm of beauty. Let the discourse
not have more in the mouth than in the breast, lest
the milk be spilt. The breasts should rise from the
bosom and cling there; the bosom should not be
merged into the breasts. From the abundance of the
Lk 6:45 heart let the mouth speak;* let it speak from that
abundance, not emptying itself entirely. The breasts
must be restrained lest they spill over in excess.
You may see some people stumble into banalities,
while they seek words of solace beyond what is
right. While they wish to cheer an audience bored to
death by long silence and glum from listlessness,
through the wantonness of a capricious tongue they
run on from useful comment to buffoonery and
either before or after some grains of wheat they sow a
Mt 13:25. great deal of cockle.* They speak to please and, as it
Lam 196, n. 173. js w r i t t e n ! bake the bread of doctrine in laughter,*
*Qo 10:19.
but a little while after the laughter they are without
bread, without the bread of the saving word. The
2 Co 4:2 word of God is not to be adulterated,* or corrupted
by an alien ingredient. Let it be satisfied with its own
breasts, those of the two Testaments. Let these, learnt
by heart, cling to your bosom; let them provide you
with discourse full, as it were, of the milk of consola-
tion; let them provide what others may imbibe. Let
the Scriptures burst from the very roots of your
bosom, that your message may not be affected but
 Sermon Thirty-One 379

uttered with pure heartfelt affection, as Horace says:

'If you wish me to weep, you must first show me
your tears.'* Let the affection of compassion and Ars Poetica 102-3
thanksgiving be born within you but let it flow
through the words of sacred Scripture as through
breasts to nourish your hearers. Let your feeling flow
modestly as befits a serious topic, with petulance
absent and serenity present. For it contributes to the
beauty of the breasts if they rise a little and are
slightly prominent, that they may have the required
authority but no trace of austerity.
5. Therefore her breasts are said to be 'better
than wine'. For so their praises continue imme-
diately: 'better than wine are your breasts'. Breasts of
grace, breasts of consolation, are better than the wine
of austerity and harshness, 7 because they are more
effective, better able to change sad and exasperated
feelings, and to strengthen weak and tender feelings.
They persuade more readily and encourage more
gently, for 'a gentle word both mollifies enemies and
multiplies friends'.* Gentle is the word of the Gos- Si 6:5
pel; harsh is the word of the Law. Notice also how a
gentle word changes the savage hearts of the Gentiles,
transforming, as it were, briny salt waves into the
flavor of milk. 'They shall drink the overflow of the
sea like milk.'* This was said of the apostles under Dt 33:19
the figures of Zabulon and Issachar. Today who is
tossed about in bitterness and disorder? Do not
despair, offer your breasts, provide milk; perhaps
tomorrow he himself will flow with milk. Who knows
that a little drop will not change the whole mass?
Yes, 'the Lord will give utterance with great power
to those who proclaim good tidings'.* Barren and Ps 67:12
weak is the severity of the Law; it commands without
grace and punishes without pardon; it lacks both
breasts. It contains a foreshadowing of these breasts
but it does not exhibit their reality. Remember that
you are a minister not of the Law but of the Gospel, a
minister of Jesus who in his passion rejected vinegar
and at the Supper the sourness of the old wine.
Novatian does not possess the breast of pardon
nor Pelagius that of grace. Pelagius proclaims the
380 Gilbert of Hoyland

blessings of a nature that has grown old and corrupt

and claims that nature suffices for justification; Nova-
tian denies the goodness of the divine nature while
he rejects repentance. Pelagius, so to speak, recalls
those who seek pardon, Novatian does not welcome
the repentant. Pelagius drinks a toast to antiquity,
Novatian to austerity. The teachings of Pelagius lack
the freshness of the milk of grace; the teachings of
Novatian its sweetness. 'In your sweetness', says the
psalmist, ' y o u have prepared food for the poor man,
Ps 67:11 O God.'* Pelagius is a rich man and does not need this
sweetness; it is inborn in him, not prepared for him!
Pelagius says, 'I have no need', and Novatian, 'I do
not indulge'! The one is exceedingly rich, the other
exceedingly harsh. 8
Prepare, O Lord, prepare in your sweetness for
your poor man, O God; do prepare, do repair, and
only in your sweetness. Great is the abundance of
sweetness which is imbibed from your breasts,
O Lord. How often after serious excesses have I
approached your breasts and pressed them insistently
and what store of milk I have drawn from them, O
Lord, you know! Where sin abounded, grace also
Rm 5:20 abounded.* It was enough for me t o reckon it as
wealth if I but deserved pardon and behold there was
also grace in plenty. I pressed one breast and both
gave milk in abundance. Therefore your bride, drink-
ing the milk of your grace and filled from the breasts
of your consolation, has learned for her part also to
offer her breasts rather than wine, for 'better than
wine are her breasts'. Wine turns to vinegar with age;
breasts pour out what is wholly new, wholly sweet.
According to Scripture, 'fear is cast out' and 'charity
ljn4:18; never comes to an end'.* This is his new command-
1 Co 13:8 ment, his ever fresh sweetness. Love cannot exist and
fail to be sweet.
6. 'Better than wine' then 'are your breasts.'
Wine is not bad, but breasts are better. Better indeed
they are, yet they do not escape an admixture of
wine. In the next chapter the Bridegroom will say: 'I
Sg5:l have drunk wine with my milk.'* It were better;
however, if one would drink milk alone and without
 Sermon Thirty-One 381

wine, f o r in wine there is terror, b u t in breasts t h e

gentle w o o i n g of compassion and grace. F o r although
wine can b e and usually is u n d e r s t o o d in a good
sense, here in c o m p a r i s o n with breasts wine seems t o
stand f o r s o m e t h i n g harsh and strong. Her breasts are
b e t t e r t h a n wine, because gentle and f r a t e r n a l com-
passion is b e t t e r t h a n t h e harsh and implacable feeling
of an indignant spirit. Those w h o are ' w i t h o u t affec-
t i o n ' , * Paul describes as n o t having breasts. A bride Rm 1:31
w h o clings t o her Bridegroom c a n n o t have a h u m a n
b o s o m deprived of t h e breasts of devotion. F o r t o h i m
belongs the breast-like m o u n t a i n , the curdled m o u n -
tain, the fertile m o u n t a i n , the p l u m p m o u n t a i n . * Ps 67:16
H o w will t h e bride, whose resolve is t o dwell on this
m o u n t a i n , * d r a w n o t h i n g f r o m such an a b u n d a n c e of Ps 67:17
milk? A n d if w e c a n n o t y e t dwell u n i n t e r r u p t e d l y on
this m o u n t a i n , let us r e t u r n t o it f r e q u e n t l y , let us
climb, let us b e inebriated with breasts. F o r so Scrip-
ture has it: ' L e t her breasts inebriate y o u at all times
and in her love delight c o n t i n u o u s l y . ' * See t o w h a t Pr 5:19
m e a n i n g he turns his interpretation of breasts: t o t h e
inebriation and t o the delights of love, 9

7. What need is there to delay longer in seeking

the p u r p o s e of breasts? Let us seek rather to be
inebriated t h r o u g h t h e m . F o r ' b e t t e r t h a n wine are
breasts', because ' y o u r mercy is b e t t e r t h a n life'.* Ps 62:4
Better is the a f f e c t i o n of love t h a n t h e affliction of
the flesh and a drink of the milk of spiritual renewal
is b e t t e r t h a n the wine of c o m p u n c t i o n . * In the wine Rm 7:6;Ps 59:5.
Lam
harsh things are b r o a c h e d a n d tasted, until t h e old
self is expelled and d e s t r o y e d ; in t h e milk, in the
newness of life,* we draw milk f r o m t h e w o o i n g of Rm 6:4
divine kindness, a sign n o t of r o u t b u t of refuge.
G o o d indeed is wine, b u t breasts are s w e e t e r ; g o o d is
c o m p u n c t i o n , b u t better is u n c t i o n . ' F o r t h e fragrance
of your o i n t m e n t s surpasses all p e r f u m e s . ' * I see that Sg4:10
y o u r readiness t o listen is n o w enkindled anew. Your
appetite has b e e n w h e t t e d b y the fragrance of the
bride's ointments. But t h r o u g h s o m e i m m o d e r a t e
hunger y o u desire this t h e m e t o b e a d d e d t o d a y to
that of the breasts; grant me a truce until m o r n i n g .
For t o d a y let the breasts suffice; t o m o r r o w let us
382 Gilbert of Hoyland

proceed to the ointments, if he grants fulfillment to

our prayers w h o is both the eulogist and the donor of
both breasts and ointments for his bride, J e s u s Christ,
w h o lives and reigns f o r ever and ever. A m e n .
 NOTES ON SERMON THIRTY-ONE

1. G. addresses one individual t h r o u g h o u t , except in the first sentence of

par. 3, the last sentence of par. 6, and t h r o u g h o u t par. 7. See Sg 1 : 1 , 3, 1 2 ; 4 : 5 ,
10; 7:3, 7, 8, 12; 8:1, 8, 10. I am e n d e b t e d t o Denis Farkasfalvy of O u r L a d y of
Dallas A b b e y , Irving, Texas, for m a n y suggestions in this s e r m o n .
2. Reading ordo for odor.
3. See Ac 1 9 : 2 4 - 3 5 ; G. m a y be alluding to the many-breasted statues of
Diana, and to the t r a n s f o r m a t i o n s of Proteus in Homer's Odyssey, 4 : 3 5 4 - 3 6 9 .
4. R e a d i n g D e dextra for Dextra with Mab.
5. RB 5 8 : 2 4 - 2 6 . Lam 17, nn. 67, 6 8 ; 20 n. 84; Lam refers to R B cc. 1-2.
6. Reading consolatoria for spiritualia, of some m a n u s c r i p t s ; see ' t h e
milk of c o n s o l a t i o n ' , par. 3, and ' t h e breasts of consolation', par. 5.
7. Reading duritiae for duritia. Lam 7, n . 15.
8. See Church History, Karl Bihlmeyer, rev. H e r m a n n Tiichle, trans.
V. E. Mills. (Westminster, Md.: N e w m a n , 1 9 5 8 ) 1:166-8, N o v a t i a n ; 281-4,
Pelagius.
9. Read deflectat with Flor. a n d Migne, for delectat of Mab. in last
sentence of par. 6.

383
 SERMON 32
THE FRAGRANCE OF THE ANOINTED

The bride is fragrant with the ointments of the

Anointed. 1. The bride has an abundant store of
ointments, though the funnel is too small for
large receptacles. 2. Wine, breasts and ointments
are compared mystically. 3. The flower of our
flesh quickly wilts and festers. 4. We are
anointed in baptism and in our hope of the
resurrection. 5. A twofold ointment is im-
passibility and patience; fraternal love is an
ointment preferable to prayer and sacrifice.
6. Charity is a twofold ointment, for God and
for neighbor; without charity, other virtues
have no perfume or fruit. 7. Mary's surpassing
love changes from perfume to ointment.
8. Prayer is incense, but contemplative union
is anointing.

B E T T E R T H A N WINE A R E Y O U R B R E A S T S AND
THE F R A G R A N C E OF Y O U R O I N T M E N T S SUR-
PASSES ALL PERFUMES* 1 Sg4:10

I have but a little oil and ointment, brothers, and

today do you bring vessels so large and so
empty? Do not be offended if I call your vessels
empty. I do not mean to imply that they are dry
but rather that they are capacious, inasmuch as your
faculties are keen and receptive. Who has enough to
fill such capacity? You are awaiting the ointments of
the bride, waiting to see what store of perfumes she
has, as if no attention should be paid to the funnel

385
386 Gilbert of Hoyland

through which they must flow to you. Her store is

indeed abundant but none the less consider the
capacity of your servant. Be it as you will; I will not
allege my incapacity lest you accuse me of failing to
keep my word. I shall distill the little oil I have into
your vast containers and may there be some Elisha to
command, whose power may grant a good yield to
2 K 4:1-7 our efforts.* And why not? Do not many Elishas sit
here, many prophets or at least children of prophets?
All these give orders. Even if they were inferior in
merit, their very number could suffice to take the
place of one great prophet.
I shall distill then something from what is left of
the ointments. For they were poured out, you
remember, sufficiently and in plenty at the beginning
of the book, and perhaps they have not yet been
Sg 1:3;Ps 74:9. drained to the dregs.* Now do I intend to draw off
SC 10-4?1<2-1 • t le
' ^ r e 8 s ' '- ) o n o t e x P e c t that of me, for I do not
10; 13:8; 15:5. make so bold. There is a well-stocked store of
ointments with the bride. There is no reason for you
to say: drain it, empty it out to the b o t t o m of her
Ps 136:7 store.* Would that by accident I might be stuck in
these dregs and not dip only my foot in the oil, as it
Dt 33:24. was written of Asher.* Brothers, if we do not deserve
to be plunged like the evangelist John into a cauldron
of oil, into an abundance of ointments, if we do not
deserve so plentiful an anointing, shall we despair of
even a dip or at least of a scent? For only a scent is
recommended here: 'And the fragrance of your oint-
ments', says the Bridegroom, 'surpasses all perfumes.'
Breasts serve to make you grow; ointments to secure
you from fainting. 'Better than wine are your breasts
and the fragrance of your ointments surpasses all per-
fumes.' And to link today's verse with yesterday's, let
us say that breasts belong to the tender, ointments
belong to the strong.
2. Let us compare these three, one with another:
wine, breasts and ointments. In wine is the decline of
the old man; in breasts the refreshment of the new
man; in ointments a kind of delight. Through wine
sensual perception is inebriated, lulled to sleep and
 Sermon Thirty-Two 387

o v e r p o w e r e d ; t h r o u g h t h e breast a new perception is

nourished; t h r o u g h o i n t m e n t s an adult perception
takes its delight. T h r o u g h t h e first the old m a n is
d e s t r o y e d ; through t h e second the n e w m a n is
r e f r e s h e d ; t h r o u g h t h e third a man already approach-
ing p e r f e c t i o n is moved b y ineffable j o y . Is it n o t a
good plan t h a t y o u should advance f r o m refresh-
m e n t t o delight, t h a t after the firstfruits of milk y o u
should advance t o the delights of o i n t m e n t s ? Even
f r o m the beginning of this Canticle b o t h of these,
o i n t m e n t s and breasts, have been recalled and linked
together in eulogies of the bride.* N o slight pleasure Sg 1:2-3
d o t h e y give him, since the Bridegroom reflects u p o n
t h e m so o f t e n in praise of his beloved, n o t being con-
t e n t t o have m e n t i o n e d t h e m once. Do y o u n o t t h i n k
he has b e e n delighted b y these praises which he
reviews w i t h such feeling and such f r e q u e n c y ?
There is s o m e t h i n g also y o u m a y apply to your-
self f r o m such care t o repeat their praises; regard this
repetition as an invitation to y o u . D o you also run in
the fragrance of these o i n t m e n t s , or rather insure
t h a t t h e y yield their fragrance in you t h a t you also
m a y be w o r t h y t o be told that 'the fragrance of y o u r
o i n t m e n t s surpasses all p e r f u m e s ' . May y o u hear this
verse n o t once only, b u t m a y the lips of y o u r Beloved
speak these praises to y o u again and again. Let the
o i n t m e n t s in y o u be fresh and, as it were, ever new.
Let t h e m n o t dry up, or grow arid, or be emptied
out. 'Oil p o u r e d o u t is t h e n a m e ' of t h e Beloved.* Sgl:2
But see that it be p o u r e d out even u n t o y o u , n o t out
of y o u . It is good if with t h e bride y o u m a y begin
f r o m o i n t m e n t s , b u t n o t good unless y o u end in
ointments. Otherwise Paul asks of y o u : 'Having begun
w i t h the Spirit, are y o u n o w ending w i t h t h e flesh?'* Ga 3:3
Y o u are well anointed, if y o u are a n o i n t e d with
the Spirit.
T h e r e f o r e be so a n o i n t e d t h a t y o u r flesh m a y be
changed t h r o u g h the oil. Let n o t t h e oil be changed
or diminished t h r o u g h your flesh. Let neither the oil
nor indeed the o i n t m e n t d e p a r t f r o m y o u r head, b u t
let it overflow and descend even t o y o u r feet, be-
cause in Christ Jesus b o t h head a n d feet are n o t so
388 Gilbert of Hoyland

much anointed as steeped in ointment. Let the oil

enter into your interior, let it be drunk into your very
affections, so that all that is carnal in you may be
changed thanks to the oil. For a time will come when
even the flesh will be changed thanks to the oil. One
there was 'anointed' and steeped in 'the oil of glad-
Ps 44:8 ness more than his fellows'.* He alone therefore was
able to say before the time of his Resurrection: 'My
Ps 103:24 flesh has been changed thanks to the oil.'* Rightly
did the flesh which was exempt from carnality anti-
cipate the hour of the general change. O desirable
Veni Creator hour, 'O sweet anointing',* when and through which
Spiritus, the flesh dissolved will ascend into incorruption! Yet
2nd stanza.
before that state why should the flesh not descend
1 Co 15:42, 53. into corruption?*
3. Yesterday you saw, brothers, you beheld with
tears in your eyes, wretched flesh changed, flesh
declining from corruptibility into corruption and
declining indeed slowly enough and lingering unable
to be wholly corrupted. 2 Corruption seemed to wish
to possess by inheritance the body it had occupied
and lest the body should cease to decay, corruption
did not allow it to become wholly putrescent. Cor-
ruption restrained its powers as if unwilling to con-
sume the substance quickly, that corruption might
infect the flesh the longer. For when the flesh
has been reduced to dust, what more can corruption
do? 'All flesh is grass and all its glory like the flower
of the field. The grass has withered and the flower has
Is 40:6-7 fallen.'* By these words the prophet expressed the
immediacy of life's disappearance. He showed how
easily the flesh, once blossoming like a flower with
vital warmth, beautiful as the colors of the rose, but
now plucked from the land of the living, withers
suddenly indeed but does not fester so quickly.
Therefore by comparing flesh with grass, he shows
the rapidity of the sudden change but does not ex-
press the horror of slow and festering corruption.
In that corpse you could see among the bones
which had once been covered, some laid bare, some
still not so much covered as defiled and wrapped in
decay. In that pitiful flesh, corruption inched its
 Sermon Thirty-Two 389

slow way along and 'reaching from end to end

mightily'* was destroying all parts without pity. I Ws 8:1
could also have said: it was disposing all parts of the
flesh,* for destruction was obeying the nod of God Ws 8:1
who disposes of the flesh! A pitiful change but a
beautiful plan, by which it pleased God that the
glory of the flesh should be brought to dust only
through decay. Let death rage, let corruption itself
rage and riot against human flesh; let it ravage the
flesh as much as it can, reduce it first to disease and
then to ashes, for corruption can reduce to ashes the
glory of the flesh, thus far and no further. Corruption
cannot reduce to nothingness, nor utterly consume,
nor possess in perpetuity, the glory of the flesh.
'Until the heavens are no more' the flesh 'will not
rise'* but none the less then it will rise. For then the Jb 14:12
Lord will pour out from his Spirit upon all flesh.* ]12:28
Then the flesh of the saints will be changed thanks to
the oil, because the Spirit of the Lord has anointed
their flesh. Indeed we shall all rise again but we shall
not all be changed.* 1 Co 15:51
4. O how great is the power of that ointment,
before the sight of which the yoke of so ancient a
corruption will decay and the flesh which was con-
sumed by tortures will return to the days of its
youth, a youth which will not yield when another age
succeeds. Wholly effective is the ointment through
which so ancient a wound will be healed* and such a Ho 14:5
hoary decay will be changed into incorruptible
health. This ointment is the property of the Church;
therefore her children are called Christians after her
Bridegroom Christ, whose name means 'the Anointed'.
And we have already received this ointment at
baptism. 3 As there it produced sanctification, so also
at the end of time it will produce that glorious
change, when the flesh will be changed thanks to the
oil. Who knows but that disease is meanwhile allowed
to riot that from the violence of the disease may be
shown the power of the remedy?
Aptly therefore is the fragrance of this ointment
commended, because though still from afar we sense
its pleasing fragrance. To counteract any desolation
390 Gilbert of Hoyland

which can affect the mind, what other antidote will

you substitute as effective as unshakable hope in the
resurrection to come and in that most blissful trans-
formation? The teaching of the Gentiles does not in-
clude belief in the resurrection and the tradition of
the Jews does not suggest its character. The former
do not believe; the latter entertain an opinion in-
complete and obscure concerning the spiritual glory
of the resurrection and the ensuing resemblance to
the angels. The Gentiles do not breathe the fragrance
of this ointment; the Jews do not breathe it pure and
clear but some other ointment in its place, one which
is adulterated. With the Church alone the fragrance of
this ointment exists pure and clear. So 'the fragrance
of her ointments surpasses all perfumes'.
5. Good ointments are impassibility and patience.
In virtue of the former the risen flesh will be
incapable of injury; through the latter the devout
mind remains uninjured amid provocation and insults.
Through the former we possess by inheritance the
land of our flesh with a quiet and unshaken right but
through the latter we possess the soul itself. 'In your
patience', says the Lord, 'you will possess your
Lk 21:19. souls.'* What else is your patience but some fra-
Cornelius a
Lapide, 8:69.
grance of future impassibility? There no evils are in-
flicted, while here, thanks to your patience as to
a soothing ointment, even evils inflicted are not felt.
Altogether effective and useful is the ointment which
amid assaults of the flesh both guards the soul f r o m
harm and supports it lest it weakens or falter or
be overburdened.
For my part I proclaim the usefulness of this oint-
ment, while you perhaps seek its pleasure. I shall not
be at a loss even here and 'shall show you a still more
1 Co 12:31 excellent' unction:* 'Count it all joy, brothers', says
]m 1:2 James, 'when you meet various trials.'* Does the
man who knows how to rejoice in adversity not seem
to you to be steeped in a more excellent ointment
than the man who has learned not to be saddened in
adversity? For the ointment by which sorrow is
banned is inferior to that by which joy is encouraged.
In Luke, the bride of Christ is bidden not only to
 Sermon Thirty-Two 391

tolerate her enemies but also to love them: 'Love

your enemies.'* Good then are her ointments, for Lk 6:35
they wreathe the sad with gladness and envelop
enemies with love. Yes, 'love is greater than all sacri-
fices and holocausts'.* Therefore 'the fragrance of Mk 12:33; G.
your ointments excels all perfumes'. holocaustomatibus:
holocautomatibus,
Good, of course, is the perfume of prayer and Vulg.
good is its incense; but hear what the Gospel prefers:
'If you are offering your gift at the altar', says the
Lord, 'and there remember that your brother has
something against you, leave your gift there before
the altar and go first to be reconciled with your
brother.'* You see plainly enough how the Lord Mt 5:23-24
prefers the ointment of reconciliation to the perfume
of prayer. What is reconciliation but a repeated setting
in harmony of discordant spirits? And about fraternal
harmony and charity the Psalm tells you: 'See how
good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell in
unity.'* This is 'the more excellent way' of which Ps 132:1
Paul speaks* as greater than other spiritual gifts, 1 Co 12:31;
greater than all perfumes. This ointment descends 13-1-13-
from the head 'to the beard' and 'to the hem of the
robe'.* For Christ our Head first loved us in order Ps 132:2
that we might love him.* 1 Jo 4:10
6. Therefore the bride also says she runs in the
fragrance of unction, that is, in the rivalry of love.
She does not say 'ointment' in the singular, but 'oint-
ments' in the plural because love is twofold: one
whereby we love him because he first loved us, the
other whereby we love one another as he also loved
us. We have from him the example and the gift of
both loves. For he both shows the way of love and
bestows the virtue of love. Therefore it is written: 'in
the fragrance of his ointments we shall run.'* Do not Sg 1:3
the bond, the kindness and the love of Father and
Son and the mutual embrace of both through the
Holy Spirit, envelop us with their pleasing fragrance
and invite us to a kindred rivalry, that we also may
be one as they are one?* Jo 17:21
Happy indeed the man who follows and runs in
the fragrance of that charity, that kindness, that love,
that unction. For the Spirit himself, as it were,
392 Gilbert of Hoyland

anoints through and through both o f those whom he

joins with so much sweetness o f love. Let us imitate
his unction, let us run in his fragrance. Fraternal
charity is a rival and a kind o f image o f that divine
and essential unity and, as it were, some reflection o f
that ointment and sweetness and mutual love. F o r
'see how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to
live in unity'! It is 'like ointment on the head which
Ps 132:1-2 descends' and so f o r t h . * Now would that from our
Head, which is above, some reflection o f that oint-
ment might fall upon us, that we also might deserve
to be told that 'the fragrance o f your ointments
surpasses all perfumes'.
Review in your mind the other virtues; consider
the value and the works o f each; nothing in them
breathes so sweet a fragrance as pure charity from the
heart. What fragrance do fasts breathe for you or
almsgiving, i f the aroma o f charity is absent from
them? What sweet scent would even chastity itself
and the endurance o f sufferings waft your way, were
they not rooted in charity? ' I f I give my body to be
burnt', says Paul, and if like burnt incense I wholly
melt in the fire, 'but have not charity, it profits me
2 Co 13:3 nothing'.* 5 That cannot be freely accepted which is
not offered with grace. Charity is the r o o t ; from
charity the other virtues sprout like branches and
therefore they must share its fruitfulness. O f what
use is the branch o f a good olive tree, if the fruitful-
ness and grace o f its root does not thrive in the
branch? So neither the virtues nor their works have
any value, i f the virtue o f charity and love does not
waft its fragrance through them.
7. What other perfume but love was breathed
through Mary, whose name was mentioned recently
in the Gospel? 'Many sins have been forgiven her',
says the Lord, 'because she has loved much.' 6 G o o d is
the fragrance o f this ointment, for its grace wholly
destroyed the stench o f inveterate corruption and
filled the whole house o f the Church with pleasing
Sg 1:11 sweetness. 'While the King was on his c o u c h ' , * she
broke a jar o f pure nard and 'poured it out upon his
head' as he reclined. 7 Now, that nard yielded and
 Sermon Thirty-Two 393

still yields a n d will yield its f r a g r a n c e t o t h e e n d of

t h e w o r l d . S h e set fire t o g o o d incense f o r Christ t h e
L o r d on t h e altar of h e r b r e a s t , as if her h e a r t w e r e
o i n t m e n t e m p t i e d o u t a n d m e l t e d b y t h e f l a m e of
c h a r i t y . W h e n h e r L o r d h a d b e e n b u r i e d , see h o w
d u t i f u l l y , h o w a s s i d u o u s l y she h a u n t s his t o m b . She
comes and goes, sees the angels, summons the
apostles, d o e s n o t d e p a r t t h o u g h t h e y d e p a r t . M y
h e a r t she says is a f l a m e ; I l o n g t o see m y G o d ; 'I seek
and I d o n o t f i n d h i m ' . * Sg 3:1
D o e s this a n x i o u s search of hers n o t seem t o y o u
t o b r e a t h e a f r a g r a n c e of rarest love? While these
w o r d s are b e i n g c h a n t e d in h e r m e m o r y , are even t h e
siAgers t h e m s e l v e s n o t likewise set a f l a m e ? In t h e
G o s p e l , even J e s u s h i m s e l f t h e o b j e c t of her longing,
scents t h e f r a g r a n c e of her o i n t m e n t a n d , as it w e r e ,
r u n s t o w a r d h e r in t h e f r a g r a n c e o f p a s s i o n a t e love.
W h y s h o u l d h e n o t h a s t e n gladly t o k i n d r e d o i n t -
m e n t s ? As if in t h e early m o r n i n g he h a s t e n s t o h e r
a n d 'rising at d a w n o n t h e first d a y of t h e w e e k h e
a p p e a r s first t o M a r y ' , * a n d a n o i n t s h e r ' w i t h t h e oil Mk 16:9
of gladness b e y o n d her f e l l o w s ' , * s h o w i n g her t h a t Ps 44:18
he was a l r e a d y risen in glory. N o w h e changes h e r
p e r f u m e i n t o o i n t m e n t s a n d t r a n s f o r m s h e r desires
i n t o delight.
8. T h e m a n w h o p r a y s a n d desires seems t o m e
t o o f f e r p e r f u m e . But h e is t h e n s t e e p e d in o i n t m e n t
w h e n h e gains access t o t h e o n e h e loves a n d takes
delight in his p r e s e n c e . It is g o o d i n d e e d t o p r a y a n d
t o l o n g f o r t h e L o r d b u t t o love h i m a n d h o l d h i m
and e n j o y h i m is b e t t e r . A n d , so t o s p e a k , w h e n y o u
have n o t h i n g it is g o o d t o b e g b u t it is b e t t e r t o eat. If
y o u can love s o m e o n e in his a b s e n c e , h o w much
m o r e w h e n he is p r e s e n t , w h e n h e grants y o u his
company, when sweet e x p e r i e n c e serves f o o d for
love. T h e n i n d e e d t h e soul is a n o i n t e d m o r e spiri-
tually a n d m o r e p r o f u s e l y w h e n it is m o r e closely
j o i n e d w i t h h i m w h o has b e e n a n o i n t e d w i t h spirit
and p o w e r . * T h e n especially t h e soul pleases t h e Ac 10:38. Lam
Beloved a n d b r e a t h e s f o r t h a s w e e t e r f r a g r a n c e , w h e n 157-8, and n. 28
it has b e e n w h o l l y p o u r e d i n t o h i m , w h e n clinging t o
h i m it is f r a g r a n t w i t h t h e o i n t m e n t of u n i o n , w i t h
394 Gilbert of Hoyland

that ointment which overflows from the Bridegroom

to the bride.
Pleasant altogether and sweet is the scent of this
dwelling together into one, 'like ointment on the
Ps 132:1-2 head, which descends', and so forth.* Therefore 'the
fragrance of her ointments surpasses all perfumes'.
And if the bride herself possesses other ointments,
none are like that which descends upon her especially
at this hour when she clings to her Beloved, when she
lingers between his breasts, when she lies in the con-
sistory of his heart. In our Canticle, 'when the king is
Sgl:ll on his couch',* then the bride's nard wafts its
fragrance, a good fragrance surpassing all perfumes,
the fragrance of the Bridegroom, or rather the
fragrance which is the Bridegroom. For he is the oint-
ment of his beloved, he is her fragrance, for he takes
pleasure for his own sake in his beloved, he diffuses
his fragrance through her. And may this ointment not
depart from our head and may the incense of its
fragrance ascend from our hearts for ever and ever.
Amen.
 NOTES TO SERMON THIRTY-TWO

1. G. a d d r e s s e s one individual, e x c e p t in par. 1, in the first s e n t e n c e o f

par. 2, a n d in the first s e n t e n c e o f par. 3 .
2. With p a r . 3 , c o m p a r e R o g e r ' s l e t t e r , R o 1 5 .
3. See J a c q u e s G u i l l e t , 'Esprit saint', DSp 4 ( 1 9 6 1 ) 1 2 5 3 - 4 .
4. R e a d i n g suavitas for suavitatis, with M a b . L a m 1 6 , n. 6 0 .
5. R e a d gratis suscipi with Migne.
6. L k 7 : 3 7 , 4 7 : Vulg. remittuntur; G . dimissa sunt, a verb a l s o in L k 7 : 4 7 ,
4 9 . L k leaves this peccatrix n a m e l e s s ; J n 1 2 : 3 in a parallel, n a m e s M a r y o f Be-
t h a n y . G. c o n f l a t e s t e x t s c o n c e r n i n g M a r y the sinner, M a r y o f B e t h a n y , a n d M a r y
o f M a g d a l a , f o r par. 7. T h e n e x t s e r m o n , S 3 3 , was delivered o n an E a s t e r S u n d a y ;
h e n c e one m i g h t s u p p o s e that S 3 2 was given on the T h u r s d a y a f t e r P a l m Sun-
d a y , w h e n L k 7 : 3 6 - 4 0 w a s read, or even on E a s t e r M o n d a y w h e n J n 1 2 : 1 - 8 w a s
r e a d . B u t L k 7 : 3 6 - 4 0 w a s also r e a d on J u l y 2 2 , the F e a s t o f M a r y M a g d a l e n e , a n d
liturgists a m o n g the m o n k s at Notre Dame des Prairies, M a n i t o b a , assure m e that
m a n y o f G i l b e r t ' s r e f l e c t i o n s are r e d o l e n t o f t e x t s in the Mass a n d O f f i c e o f this
F e a s t . T h e 2 n d n o c t u r n for t h e f e a s t is f r o m G r e g o r y the G r e a t , In Evan. Horn,
2 5 : 1 - 2 ; P L 7 6 : 1 1 8 9 - 9 0 : Quae a monumento Domini, etiam discipulis recedenti-
bus, non recedebat; exquirebat, quern non invenerat; flebat inquirendo, et amoris
sui igne succensa, ejus quern ablatum credidit, ardebat desiderio. 'Her a n x i o u s
s e a r c h ' is a p p r o p r i a t e ; i n d e e d the classical p a s s a g e in the C a n t i c l e w a s t h e l e s s o n at
Vigils, Sg 3 : 1 - 4 , a n d the epistle at t h e Mass for the F e a s t , Sg 3 : 2 - 5 , a n d 8 : 6 - 7 . 'In
her m e m o r y ' , Mt 2 6 : 3 a n d Mk 1 4 : 9 , w o u l d b e a p p r o p r i a t e f o r the F e a s t o f M a r y
M a g d a l e n e . ' S e t a f l a m e ' is a r e m i n i s c e n c e o f Sg 8 : 6 , the f o u r t h l e s s o n o f the
F e a s t . Whenever the s e r m o n was given, G . s e e m s in its p r e p a r a t i o n t o h a v e h a d in
m i n d the liturgy for the F e a s t o f M a r y M a g d a l e n e .
7. nardipistici, J o 1 2 : 3 ; s u p e r caput, Mt 2 6 : 7 , Mk 1 4 : 3 .

395
 ABBREVIATIONS

ABR American Benedictine Review. Newark, New Jersey, 1 9 5 0 - .

AS OC Analecta Sacri Ordinis Cisterciensis; Analecta Cisterciensia.
Rome, 1 9 4 5 -
CC Corpus Christianorum series. Turnhout, Belgium, 19 53-.
CF Cistercian Fathers Series. Spencer, Mass., Washington, D.C.,
Kalamazoo, Mich., Cistercian Publications, 1 9 7 0 - .
CS Cistercian Studies Series. Spencer, Mass., Washington, D.C.,
Kalamazoo, Mich., Cistercian Publications, 1 9 6 9 - .
CSt Cistercian Studies. Chimay, Belgium, 1 9 6 1 - .
Cîteaux: Commentarii cistercienses; Cîteaux in de Neder-
Cfteaux landen. Westmalle, Belgium, 1 9 5 0 - .
Collectanea o.c.r.; Collectanea cisterciensia. Rome, 1 9 3 4 - .
Coll.
De Lubac, Henri, Exégèse Médiéval. Paris, Aubier, 1959-64.
de Lubac Dictionnaire de Spiritualité, Paris, 1932-.
DSp Oeuvres Complètes de Saint Bernard, V : l - 3 1 9 , Latin text
Dion and French tr. of Gilbert of Hoyland, P. Dion. Paris:
Vivès, 1873.
E Epistle of Gilbert of Hoyland, cited by number and
paragraph.
Flor. Sermones super Cantica Canticorum, Editio princeps [of
Gilbert of Hoyland]. Florence, Nicolaus Laurenti, 1485.
G. Gilbert of Hoyland.
Gilson, Etienne, The Mystical Theology of Saint Bernard,
Gilson tr. A. H. C. Downes. London: Sheed and Ward, 1940.
M. Jean Vuong-dinh Lam, 'Le Monastère: Foyer de Vie
Lam Spirituelle d'après Gilbert de Hoyland' and 'Les obser-
vances monastiques: instruments de Vie Spirituelle d'après
Gilbert de Hoyland', Coll. 26 (1964) 5-21, 169-199.
Leclercq Leclercq, Jean, The Love of Learning and the Desire for
God: astudy of monastic culture, N.Y.: Fordham Press, 1961.
 Abbreviations

Miquel Miquel, Pierre, 'Les Caractères de l'expérience religieuse

d'après Gilbert de Hoyland', Coll. 27 (1965) 150-159.
Morson Morson, John, 'The English Cistercians and the Bestiary',
Bulletin of John Rylands Library 39 (1956) 146-172.
MS Mediaeval Studies. Toronto, 1939-.
R. Roger of Byland, 'Lac Parvulorum', ASOC 7 (1951)
218-231.
RAM Revue d'Ascétique et de Mystique. Toulouse, 1920-.
RB St. Benedict's Rule for Mçnasteries. Tr. Leonard Doyle,
Collegeville: Liturgical Press, 1948. La règle de S. Benoît.
Sources chrétiennes 181-183, ed. Adalbert de Vogué
(1972).
R. Ben. Revue Bénédictine. Maredsous, Belgium, 1899-1910; 1911-.
S Gilbert of Hoyland, Sermons on the Canticle, cited by
number and paragraph.
SAn Studia Anselmiana series. Rome, 1933-.
SBOp Sancti Bemardi Opera, ed. J . Leclercq, C. H. Talbot, H. M.
Rochais. Rome: Editiones Cistercienses, 1957-.
SC Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Song of Songs.
SBOp 1-2, tr. Kilian Walsh, The Works of Bernard of Clair-
vaux, CF 4, 7, [31, 4 0 ] .
SMC Studies in Medieval Culture. Kalamazoo, Mich., 1964-.
T Gilbert of Hoyland, Ascetical Treatise, cited by number
and paragraph.
Talbot Talbot, C. H., 'A Letter of Roger, Abbot of Byland',
ASOC 7 (1951) 218-231.
VCH The. Victoria History of the Counties of England, ed.
William Page. II, A History of Lincolnshire, 22. The Abbey
of Swineshead, pp. 145-46.
Vulg. Vulgate.
White White, Terence Hanbury, The English Bestiary. New York:
Putnam, 1960.

Psalms have been cited according to the Vulgate enumeration. Abbre-

viations and nomenclature conform to that of the Jerusalem Bible.
 A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

A Lapide, Cornelius. Commentanti in Scripturam Sacrarti, re-ed.,

Augustine Crampon. Paris: Vivès, 1860.
Blaise, Albert. Corpus Christianorum Continuatio Medieualis, Lexicon
Latinitatus Medii Aevi. Turnhout: Brepols, 1975.
Bouyer, Louis. The Cistercian Heritage, tr. Elizabeth A. Livingstone,
Westminister, Md.: Newman, 1958.
Buhot, Jacqueline. 'L'Abbaye Normande de Savigny'. Moyen Age, 46
(1936) 1-19, 104-121, 178-190, 249-272.
Cabussut, A., Olphe-Gaillard M., 'Cantique des cantiques au Moyen
A g e . ' D S p 2 (1953) 101-102.
'Une dévotion médiévale peu connue: la dévotion à Jésus notre
Mère'. RAM 25 (1949) 234-245.
Chatillon, Jean. 'Cordis Affectus au Moyen Age'. DSp 2 (1953)
2287-2300.
'Hic, ibi, interim'. RAM (1949) 194-199.
Cheney, C.R. 'Les Bibliothèques cisterciennes en Angleterre au Xlle
siècle'. Mélanges de Saint Bernard. Dijon (1953) 375-382.
Chenu, M.D. La théologie au douzième siècle. Paris, 1957.
Cloes, H. 'La systématisation théologique pendant la 1ère moitié de
Xlle siècle'. Ephemerides Theologicae 34 (1958) 277-328.
Colombas, G.M. 'Paradis et vie angélique, Le sens eschatologique de la
vocation chrétienne'. Spiritualité monastique. Paris, 1961.
Costello, Hilary, 'Gilbert of Hoyland'. Cîteaux 27 (1976) 109-121.
Déchanet, J.M. 'Amor ipse intellectus est'. Revue du Moyen Age Latin
1 (1945) 349-374.
'La contemplation au Xlle siècle'. DSp 2 (1953) 1948-66.
'Les fondements et les bases de la spiritualité bernardine'.
Cîteaux 4 (1953) 292-313.
De Clerck, E. 'Droits du démon et nécessité de la Rédemption'.
RTAM 14 (1947) 32-64.
 Bibliography

'Questions de sotériologie médiévale'. RTAM 13 (1946) 150-184.

Delatte, Paul. The Rule of Saint Benedict, tr. Justin McCann. London:
Burns and Oates, 1921.
Delfgaauw, P. 'An approach to saint Bernard's sermons on the Song of
songs'. Coll. 23 (1961) 148-161.
'La lumière de la charité chez S. Bernard'. Coll. 18 (1956),
42-69, 306-320.
De Lubac, H. Exégèse médiévale: Les quatre sens de l'Ecriture. Paris:
Aubier, Coll. 'Théologie', 1959-64.
Didier, J.C. 'L'ascension mystique et l'union mystique par l'Humanité
du Christ selon saint Bernard.' La vie spirituelle, Supplément 5
(1930) 140-155.
Dimier, A. 'Les concepts de moine et de vie monastique chez les
premiers Cisterciens'. Studia Monastica 1 (1959) 399-418.
'Ménagerie Cistercienne' and 'Héraldique Cistercienne'. Cîteaux
24 (1973) 5-30, 267-282.
'Observances monastiques'. ASOC 11 (1955) 149-198.
Dugdale, G. Monasticon Anglicanum. London: 1846-1855.
Dumeige, Gervais. 'Dissemblance'. DSp 3 (1957) 1330-43.
Dumont, C. 'L'équilibre humain de la vie cistercienne d'après le bien-
heureux Aelred de Rievaulx'. Coll. 18 (1956) 177-189.
Dumontier, M. Saint Bernard et la Bible. Paris, 1953.
Foreville, Raymonde, 'Gilbert de Sempringham'. DSp 6 (1967) 374-375.
Gilson, Etienne, The Christian Philosophy of Saint Augustine, tr.
L.E.M. Lynch. London: Gollancz, 1961.
History of Christian Philosophy in the Middle Ages, New York:
Random House, 1954.
The Mystical Theology of Saint Bernard. Tr. A. H. C. Downes.
London: Sheed and Ward, 1955.
Hallam, H. E. Settlement and Society. Cambridge U. Press, 1965.
Hallier, Amédée. The Monastic Theology of Aelred of Rievaulx,
tr. Columban Heaney, CS2. Spencer, Mass., 1969.
Hill, Bennet D. English Cistercian Monasteries and their patrons in the
Twelfth Century. Urbana: U. of Illinois Press, 1968.
Histoire Littéraire de la France. Edd. Benedictines of St. Maur and
L'Institut des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres. Paris: Imprimerie'
Nationale, 1733-19-; 'Gilbert de Hoylandia', 13 (1814) 461-69.
Ioannis de Forda. Super extremam partem cantici canticorum ser-
mones CXX, edd. Edmond Mikkers and H. Costello. CC Con-
tinuatio Mediaeualis 17-18. Turnhout: Brepols, 1970.
Javelet, Robert, 'Contemplation et vie contemplative aux VIe-XIIe
siècles'. DSp 2 (1953) 1929-1948.
 Bibliography

'Exercises spirituels dans le Haut Moyen Age'. DSp 4 (1961)

1905-1908.
'L'extase chez les spirituels du Xlle siècle'. DSp 4 (1961)
2113-2120.
'Image et Ressemblance aux l i e et 12e siècles'. DSp 7 (1971)
1425-1434.
'Intelligence et amour chez les auteurs spirituels du X l l e siècle'.
RAM 37 (1961) 273-290, 429-450.
Psychologie des auteurs spirituels du Xlle siècle. Strassbourg
1959.
Saint Bernard mystique. Paris, 1948.
Knowles, David. The English Mystical Tradition. New York: Harper
Torchbook, 1961.
The Episcopal Colleagues of Archbishop Thomas à Becket.
Cambridge University Press, 1951.
The Monastic Order in England. Cambridge University Press,
1950.
The Nature of Mysticism. New York: Hawthorne, 1966.
The Religious Orders in England, 3 vols. Cambridge University
Press, 1950.
Knowles, David, C.N.K. Brooke, Vera C.M. London, The Heads of
Religious Houses: England and Wales, 940-1216. Cambridge U.
Press, 1972.
Knowles, David and R. Neville Hadcock. Medieval Religious Houses in
England and Wales. New York: Longmans, Green, 1953.
Knowles, David, and J.K.S. St. Joseph. Monastic Sites from the Air.
Cambridge University Press, 1952.
Lambert, M. 'La date de l'affiliation de Savigny et de la Trappe à
l'Ordre de Citeaux'. Coll. 3 (1936) 231-233.
Lebreton, M. 'Christ and the christian faith according to St. Bernard'.
Cîteaux 12 (1961) 105-119.
'Recherches sur les principaux thèmes théologiques traités dans
les sermons du X l l è siècle'. RTAM 23 (1956) 5-18.
Leclercq, Jean. 'Disciplina'. DSp 3 (1957) 1291-1302.
'Les écrits de Geoffroy d'Auxerre, Appendices, II: La première
rédaction des Sermones in Cantica de Gilbert de Hoyland'. Revue
Bénédictine 62 (1952) 289-290.
'Ecrits monastiques sur la Bible aux Xle-XIIIe siècles'. MS 15
(1953) 95-106.
'Etudes sur le vocabulaire monastique du moyen âge', SAn 48
(1961).
'Le genre épistolaire au moyen âge'. Revue du Moyen Age latin,
 Bibliography

2 (1955).
The Love of Learning and the Desire of God, tr. Catherine
Misrahi. New York: Fordham University Press, 1961.
'Monachisme et pérégrination du IXe au Xlle siècle'. Studia
Monastica 3 (1961) 33-52.
Otia Monastica. SAn 51 (1963).
Leclercq, Jean, François Vandenbroucke, Louis Bouyer. The Spirituality
of the Middle Ages. London: Burns and Oates, 1968.
Lekai, Louis. The White Monks. Our Lady of Spring Bank, Okauchee.
Wis.: Cistercians, 1953.
The Cistercians: Ideals and Reality. Kent, Ohio: Kent State
Univ. Press, 1977.
Loomis, Roger Sherman. The Grail, from Celtic Myth to Christian
Symbol. New York: Columbia U. Press, 1963.
Marié, G. 'Familiarité avec Dieu, Courant bénédictin et cistercien'.
DS 5 (1962) 50-53.
Manrique, A. Annales Cistercienses, 4 vols. Lyons, 1642-1649.
Merton, L. 'Action and contemplation in St. Bernard', Coll. 15 (1953)
26-31, 203-216; 16 (1954) 105-121.
'La doctrine de l'image chez saint Bernard'. Ephemerides
Theologicae 23 (1947) 70-129.
'Le principe de l'ordination dans la théologie spirituelle de
S. Bernard'. Coll. 8 (1946) 178-216.
Mikkers, E. 'De vita et operibus Gilbert de Hoylandia'. Cîteaux 14
(1963) 33-43, 265-279.
'Les sermons inédits de Jean de Ford sur le Cantique des
cantiques'. Coll. 5 (1938) 250-261.
Miquel, Pierre. 'Les Caractères de l'Expérience Religieuse d'après
Gilbert de Hoyland'. Coll. 27 (1965) 150-159.
Morson, John. 'The English Cistercians and the Bestiary'. Bulletin of the
John Rylands Library 39 (1956) 146-170.
Migne, J.P., ed. Patrologia Graeca. Paris: 161 vols., 1857-1876. The
volume number precedes the colon; the column number follows it.
Patrologia Latina. Paris: 222 vols., 1841-1864. The volume
number precedes the colon; the column number follows it.
Prayers and Meditations of St. Anselm, tr. Benedicta Ward. Harmonds-
worth: Penguin, 1973.
Le règle de saint Benoît. Sources chrétiennes 181-183. Ed. Adalbert de
Vogûé. Paris: Cerf, 1972.
Reypens, Leonce. 'Connaissance mystique de Dieu, au 12e et 13e
siècles.' DSp 3 (1957) 829-901.
Riedlinger, H. 'Gilbert v. Hoyland.' Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche,