COMMENT:
The Night
Office Second Reading provided an little recalled name of writer, Haymo of Halberstadt.
[A Word in Season, Readings for the Liturgy Hours VI].
The First Reading is Ephes
6:10-24 gives the subject, the Christian’s Armour.
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Bl. Haymo’s writes of “the machinations of the devil”, 6 refs of ‘devil’..
On the other hand, The Commentary of Ronald Knox (p.260) takes up the thread of the
even more specific Gnostic bias, the astro-theological slant. “Verse 12 is perhaps a final
allusion to the Gnostic or
semi-Gnostic teaching which had disturbed he peace of the Asiatic churches; ‘those
who have the mastery of the world’ recalls a title given to the Devil by the
(second-century) Gnostic leader Valentinus. “In order higher than ours” is
literally “in places above the heaven”; cf. Ephesians 1.3.
It is puzzling to find St. Apparently attributes
to diabolic powers a super-celestial sphere of influence; in 2.2 he has told
us that their domain is in the lower air. But he is concerned, here, to point
out that we are not striving against human enemies, but against immortal
spirits which belong, by right of origin, to the very highest order of created
beings.
. . .
St. Paul ranges ever wider geography and
theology.
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12 For our astruggle is not against 1bflesh and blood, but cagainst the rulers, against the powers, against the dworld forces of this edarkness, against the fspiritual forces of wickedness in gthe heavenly places.
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Lit blood and flesh
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Twenty First in Ordinary Time FRIDAY
First Reading Ephesians 6:10-24
Responsorv 1 Pt 5:8-9; Jas 4:7
Be on the alert - watch out! Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. + Stand up to him, strong in your faith.
V. Resist the devil and he will take flight. + Stand up ...
Second Reading From
a homily by Haymo of Halberstadt
Homily by
Haymo of Halberstadt, Hom. 2 in epp. Pauli: PL 118, 808-809
My brothers in faith and love, and
because we have one omnipotent God and Father, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Do not rely
upon your own strength, your own merits, or the power of the rulers of this
world, but be strong in the Lord and in
the power of his might.
Put on the armor of
God, so that you maybe able to stand against the wiles of the devil. The term armor includes everything needed for
battle, cuirass, helmet, shield, lance, javelins, and other similar equipment. By
the armor of God, however, we
must understand our Lord Jesus Christ, by whose protection all the elect are
defended, with whom they are clothed; as the same Apostle says elsewhere: All of you who were baptized into Christ have put on
Christ.
The elect put on Christ when with his help
they acquire the virtues of Christ. To say Put
on the armor of God is therefore the same as saying Put on the Lord Jesus Christ. In other
words, set yourselves to acquire all the virtues which you know to be his. For
example, he is just, truthful, patient, chaste, and gentle. He is called a lamb,
a lion and a calf. Clothe yourselves, then, in justice, truthfulness, patience,
love, cha stity, and gentleness. Be a lamb, that is, gentle; be a lion, that is,
strong in faith and good works opposing the devil; be a calf too, mortifying yourselves
with all your sins and unruly desires, so as
to be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For the devil
tries to trip us up in many ways. He lies in wait for us by evil suggestions; he
lies in wait for us through our carnal vices and the lure of evil pleasure; he lies
in wait for us through his servants, such as heretics, false brothers and sisters,
and pagans. But we must fight valiantly against them all to be sure of vanquishing
them.
And take the helmet of
salvation. A helmet is placed on the head to shield and protect all the bodily senses,
namely the sense of sight in the eyes, of hearing in the ears, of taste in the mouth,
of smell in the nose, and of touch in the whole head. What then are we to
understand by the helmet which, as we have said, protects all the bodily senses?
Our Lord Jesus Christ, and his protection. By the head we should understand the
mind, for just as the limbs are ruled by the head, so thoughts are governed by
the mind. Let us therefore place Christ on our head, that is, in our mind, to
protect it; let us remember him in the secrecy of our minds, placing our trust
in him instead of in ourselves, and he will guard all our senses so that our ancient
enemy the devil will be unable to harm them.
Take also the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God; that is to say, the teaching and knowledge
of the holy scriptures given us by the Spirit. It is called a sword because just
as a sword drives an enemy off, so by meditating on the divine scriptures given
us by the Holy Spirit, and seeking to do what they teach and avoid what they
forbid, we can defeat all the machinations of the devil.
Haymo, Bishop of Halberstadt, d. 853: B. Haymonis ... Historiae
ecclesiasticae, sive, De rervm christianarvm memoria, libri X. Correctius jam
atq́[ue] emendatius editi, cvra Joachimi Johannis Maderi. (Helmestadi
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