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The Confessions of St. Augustin In Thirteen Books

Chapter XIX.--All Men Should Become Lights in the Firmament of Heaven.

24. But first, "Wash you, make you clean;" ¹ put away iniquity from your souls, and from before mine eyes, that the dry land may appear. "Learn to do well; judge the fatherless; plead for the widow," ² that the earth may bring forth the green herb for meat, and the tree bearing fruit; ³ and come let us reason together, saith the Lord, ⁴ that there may be lights in the firmament of heaven, and that they may shine upon the earth. ⁵ That rich man asked of the good Master what he should do to attain eternal life. ⁶ Let the good Master, whom he thought a man, and nothing more, tell him (but He is "good" because He is God)--let Him tell him, that if he would "enter into life" he must "keep the commandments;" ⁷ let him banish from himself the bitterness of malice and wickedness; ⁸ let him not kill, nor commit adultery, nor steal, nor bear false witness; that the dry land may appear, and bud forth the honouring of father and mother, and the love of our neighbour. ⁹ All these, saith he, have I kept. ¹⁰ Whence, then, are there so many thorns, if the earth be fruitful? Go, root up the woody thicket of avarice; sell that thou hast, and be filled with fruit by giving to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and follow the Lord "if thou wilt be perfect," ¹¹ coupled with those amongst whom He speaketh wisdom, Who knoweth what to distribute to the day and to the night, that thou also mayest know it, that for thee also there may be lights in the firmament of heaven, which will not be unless thy heart be there; ¹² which likewise also will not be unless thy treasure be there, as thou hast heard from the good Master. But the barren earth was grieved, ¹³ and the thorns choked the word. ¹⁴

25. But you, "chosen generation, ¹⁵ you weak things of the world," who have forsaken all things that you might "follow the Lord," go after Him, and "confound the things which are mighty;" ¹⁶ go after Him, ye beautiful feet, ¹⁷ and shine in the firmament, ¹⁸ that the heavens may declare His glory, dividing between the light of the perfect, though not as of the angels, and the darkness of the little, though not despised ones. Shine over all the earth, and let the day, lightened by the sun, utter unto day the word of wisdom; and let night, shining by the moon, announce unto night the word of knowledge. ¹⁹ The moon and the stars shine for the night, but the night obscureth them not, since they illumine it in its degree. For behold God (as it were) saying, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven." There came suddenly a sound from heaven, as it had been the rushing of a mighty wind, and there appeared cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. ²⁰ And there were made lights in the firmament of heaven, having the word of life. ²¹ Run ye to and fro everywhere, ye holy fires, ye beautiful fires; for ye are the light of the world, ²² nor are ye put under a bushel. ²³ He to whom ye cleave is exalted, and hath exalted you. Run ye to and fro, and be known unto all nations.

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Confessiones

Caput 19

Sed prius lavamini, mundi estote auferte nequitiam ab animis vestris atque a conspectu oculorum meorum, ut appareat arida. discite bonum facere, iudicate pupillo et iustificate viduam, ut germinet terra herbam pabuli et lignum fructiferum, et venite, disputemus, dicit dominus, ut fiant luminaria in firmamento caeli, ut luceant super terram. quaerebat dives ille a magistro bono, quid faceret, ut vitam aeternam consequeretur: dicat ei magister bonus, quem putabat hominem et nihil amplius -- bonus est autem, quia deus est -- dicat ei, ut, si vult venire ad vitam, servet mandata, separet a se amaritudinem malitiae atque nequitiae, non occidat, non moechetur, non furetur, non falsum testimonium dicat, ut appareat arida et germinet honorem matris et patris et dilectionem proximi. feci, inquit, haec omnia. unde ergo tantae spinae, si terra fructifera est? vade, extirpa silvosa dumeta avaritiae, vende quae possides et implere frugibus dando pauperibus, et habebis thesaurum in caelis, et sequere dominum, si vis esse perfectus, eis sociatus, inter quos loquitur sapientiam ille, qui novit, quid distribuat diei et nocti, ut noris et tu, ut fiant et tibi luminaria in firmamento caeli: quod non fiet, nisi fuerit illic cor tuum; quod item non fiet, nisi fuerit illic thesaurus tuus, sicut audisti a magistro bono. sed contristata est terra sterilis, et spinae suffocaverunt verbum. Vos autem, genus electum in firmamento mundi, qui dimisistis omnia, ut sequeremini dominum, ite post eum et confundite fortia, ite post eum, speciosi pedes, et lucete in firmamento, ut caeli enarrent gloriam eius, dividentes inter lucem perfectorum, sed nondum sicut angelorum, et tenebras parvulorum, sed non desperatorum: lucete super omnem terram, et dies sole candens eructet diei verbum scientiae. luna et stellae nocti lucent, sed nox non obscurat eas, quoniam ipsae inluminant eam pro modulo eius. ecce enim tamquam deo dicente: fiant luminaria in firmamento caeli, factus est subito de caelo sonus, quasi ferretur flatus vehemens, et visae sunt linguae divisae quasi ignis, qui et insedit super unumquemque illorum, et facta sunt luminaria in firmamento caeli verbum vitae habentia. ubique discurrite, ignes sancti, ignes decori. vos enim estis lumen mundi nec estis sub modio. exaltatus est, cui adhaesistis et exaltavit vos. discurrite et innotescite omnibus gentibus.