Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Feast of St Benedict: Psalm 118 Samech Pt 1



Today being the Feast of St Benedict (it’s a memorial only in Roman EF calendar, but a Solemnity in the Benedictine), I want to focus in on just one verse of today's stanza of Psalm 118, namely verse 116, which is the centerpiece of the Benedictine profession ceremony:

Súscipe me secúndum elóquium tuum, et vivam: et non confúndas me ab exspectatióne mea.

The Douay-Rheims translates the verse as ‘Uphold me according to your word, and I shall live, and let me not be confounded in my expectation’. Most Benedictine translations of the Rule, however, make it ‘Receive me O Lord and I shall live’, and that reflects a long exegetical tradition.

In the context of the Benedictine monastic profession ceremony, the verse is generally interpreted as a plea for God to accept the monk or nuns sacrifice, in the form of the renunciation of the world, and to give them the grace to persevere.

But it is applicable to all of us, for though only religious offer themselves as a total holocaust to the Lord, we are all, as Christians, called to offer ourselves to him, and all need his grace to persevere in our own proper vocation.

Monastic Profession ceremony

In the Rule of St Benedict, the profession ceremony involves the monk making his vows of ‘stability, fidelity to monastic life and obedience’. He then places a document setting out this promise on the altar.

The Rule continues:

“…and when he has placed it there, let the novice at once intone this verse: "Receive me, O Lord, according to Your word, and I shall live: and let me not be confounded in my hope" (Ps. 118[119]:116). Let the whole community answer this verse three times and add the "Glory be to the Father." Then let the novice prostrate himself at each one's feet, that they may pray for him. And from that day forward let him be counted as one of the community.”

The Monastic Profession ceremony is often regarded as a kind of second baptism, so one can perhaps see this verse as referring back to the reference to the oath sworn in the previous stanza, that firm commitment to do God’s will that we are all bound to by our baptism.

Doing anything under formal vow, however, elevates it to a more perfect offering (with consequent more serious consequences for breaking it), and thus makes it a referent point for us all in our daily struggles to stay on the path.

Accept and protect me

The Latin ‘Súscipe me’ is in fact rather ambiguous – it can mean either to receive/accept me or uphold/protect me

So is this a prayer for divine support or for divine acceptance?

In fact it can be interpreted as both, and we should take both meanings to heart.

St Alphonsus Liguori paraphrases the verse as “O Lord, take me under Thy protection, as Thou hast promised, that I may live to Thee; do not, I beseech Thee, permit me to fall into the confusion of being deprived of the help that I expect from Thee”.

But it can also mean on one side, to voluntarily take up or accept an obligation as a favour; and, on the other, to receive or accept: to take up a newborn child was to acknowledge them; or to adopt them as one’s own. Dom Delatte’s classic Commentary on the Benedictine Rule captures this double meaning in the context of the monastic profession ceremony saying: "Grant that I may be really 'given' and really 'received,' truly received because truly given, and that both of us may be able to keep our word.”

A prayer we can all make our own, and ask St Benedict to aid us with on this his feast day.

Text notes

116 Súscipe me secúndum elóquium tuum, et vivam: * et non confúndas me ab exspectatióne mea.
Uphold me according to your word, and I shall live: and let me not be confounded in my expectation.

suscipio, cepi, ceptum, ere 3 to guard, protect, uphold, support; receive, accept; to seize.
confundo, fiidi, fiisum, ere 3, to put or bring to shame, to discomfit, confound, disappoint
exspectatio – ionis f – hope, expectation

Súscipe me = Receive/accept me or Uphold/protect me

Suscipe can mean to support, sustain or defend, hence Cassiodorus explains it as: Now that they have routed the faithless and are cleansed of intimacy with wicked men, they ask to be supported by the Lord so that they can be saved by the promise of His word.

But it can also mean on one side, to voluntarily take up or accept an obligation as a favour; and, on the other, to receive or accept: to take up a newborn child was to acknowledge them; or to adopt them as one’s own.

Accordingly as the Swiss-American commentary on the ceremony points out, “the act of monastic profession is understood at least implicitly, as an oblation or sacrifice. In the suscipe the newly professed beg God to accept the offering which they make of themselves in response to his promise of eternal life (Mk. 10:28-30).”

secúndum elóquium tuum = according to your word

et vivam = and I will live (fut) or make me live (subj)

Opinions on the tense are split here – the RSV and Coverdale go with subjunctive; Douay-Rheims with future. The Greek is, on the face of it, a subjunctive, but both Brenton and NETS treat it as future tense. Cassiodorus continues: But when they say: I shall live, they speak of the time to come, for we do not truly live in this world where we sin in the frailty of the flesh. Their expectation was that in their great devotion they would encounter Christ's mercy. They ask that they realise this hope at the Judgment to come, so that they cannot be robbed of their expectation through misleading themselves and being confounded.

et non confúndas me = and [you may not (subj)] put me to shame/discomfort me = let me not be confounded/disappointed

ab exspectatióne mea = from my expectation/my hope

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Psalm 118(119) Nun (v105-112): The Christian life


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Today we pick up this Lenten series again with a look at the fourteenth stanza of Psalm 118, Nun, which in the traditional Benedictine Office marks the start of Monday Terce.

Here is the text of the stanza in the knox Vulgate and Douay-Rheims translations:

05 No lamp like thy word to guide my feet, to shew light on my path.
106 Never will I retract my oath to give thy just commands observance.
107 Nothing, Lord, but affliction, never the saving help thou didst promise me?
108 Nay, Lord, accept these vows of mine; teach me to do thy bidding.
109 Needs must I carry my life in my hands, yet am I ever mindful of thy law.
110 Nearly the snares of the wicked caught my feet, yet would I not swerve from thy obedience.
111 Now and ever thy covenant is my prize, is my heart’s comfort.
112 Now and ever to do thy will perfectly is my heart’s aim.

Vulgate
Douay-Rheims
105  Lucérna pédibus meis verbum tuum, * et lumen sémitis meis.
Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my paths.
106  Jurávi, et státui * custodíre judícia justítiæ tuæ.
106 I have sworn and am determined to keep the judgments of your justice.
107  Humiliátus sum usquequáque, Dómine: * vivífica me secúndum verbum tuum.
107 I have been humbled, O Lord, exceedingly: quicken me according to your word.
108  Voluntária oris mei beneplácita fac, Dómine: * et judícia tua doce me.
108 The free offerings of my mouth make acceptable, O Lord: and teach me your judgments.
109  Anima mea in mánibus meis semper: * et legem tuam non sum oblítus.
109 My soul is continually in my hands: and I have not forgotten your law.
110  Posuérunt peccatóres láqueum mihi: * et de mandátis tuis non errávi.
110 Sinners have laid a snare for me: but I have not erred from your precepts.
111  Hereditáte acquisívi testimónia tua in ætérnum: * quia exsultátio cordis mei sunt.
I have purchased your testimonies for an inheritance for ever: because they are the joy of my heart.
112  Inclinávi cor meum ad faciéndas justificatiónes tuas in ætérnum, * propter retributiónem.
I have inclined my heart to do your justifications for ever, for the reward.




Christ our light

Today’s section of the psalm starts with an image that was a favourite of the Fathers, and can be seen both as a reference to the Decalogue and the Incarnation alike:

Lucerna pedibus meis verbum tuum, et lumen semitis meis.
Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my paths.

Pope John Paul II commented on this verse that:

Man ventures on life's often dark journey, but all of a sudden the darkness is dispelled by the splendour of the Word of God. Psalm 19[18] compares the Law of God to the sun, when it says that "the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes" (19[18]: 9). Then in the Book of Proverbs it is reasserted that "the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light" (6: 23). Christ was also to present himself as a definitive revelation with exactly the same image: "I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (Jn 8: 12).

On being a lamp to the world

The verse is one we can apply to ourselves too, as Caesarius of Arles pointed out:

If we notice carefully, we will realize that what our Lord said to the blessed apostles also refers to us:
"You are the light of the world," he says, "and no one lights a lamp and puts it under a bushel but on the lampstand, so as to give light to all in the house."

He goes on to suggest that we all, but most especially priests, have a duty to speak out:

"Now, if the head's bodily eyes refuse to show the way to the rest of the members, the whole body walks in darkness. Similarly, if priests, who seem to have the function of eyes in the body of Christ the head, have been put on a lampstand in the church but are unwilling to shine in God's house and have ceased to show the light of doctrine to the whole church, it is to be feared that some of the people may become involved in the darkness of error and fall into some abyss of sin."

Through our baptism we are sworn

The second verse is also a crucial one to keep in mind:

Juravi et statui custodire judicia justitiæ tuæ.
I have sworn and am determined to keep the judgments of your justice.

The oath sworn here is often interpreted as our baptismal promises which, if made on our behalf as infants, we must take upon ourselves as adults and keep with the help of grace in order not to be foresworn. To do so, Cassiodorus tells us is to walk the path of saints:

"Their sacred devotion had enjoined upon themselves the decision to keep the Lord's judgments in each and every danger. The very word denotes its purpose, for iurare (swear) is iure orare, in other words, to plead what is right, so that one may not go astray and seek to renege on one's promise. This is how the saints swear, in other words, make firm decisions, for they have already been strengthened by the Lord's gift."

In fact this whole stanza then becomes a summary of the Christian life.

Drawn by the light of Christ (v105) we are bound to him by the promises of our baptism (v106) and our free commitment to the heritage he has gained for us and offered to us (v111).

We fall into sin, but through confession of our fault are revived (v107).

We struggle constantly with ourselves (v109) and the traps set by the devil (v 110).

We offer our sacrifices of praise (v108), and carry out the corporal and spiritual works of mercy (v110).

And in doing all this, we hope always for the joy of heaven at the end (v 112).

Verse by verse

105 Lucerna pedibus meis verbum tuum, et lumen semitis meis.
Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my paths.

lucerna, ae, f. a light, lamp.
pes, pedis, m. the foot
verbum, i, n., words
lumen, inis, n. light; in the hymns, brightness, splendor
semita, ae, f a path, way; course of life, action, conduct, or procedure.

Lucérna pédibus meis= a lamp to my feet

What is the lamp? It has variously been as the Decalogue, the law more broadly, and the guiding word that comes to us from the Word who is Christ.

verbum tuum =your word

Cf John 1

et lumen =and a light

This is familiar imagery: as Pope Benedict XVI has explained, “In the Biblical message, light is the most immediate image of God: He is total Radiance, Life, Truth, Light. During the Easter Vigil, the Church reads the account of creation as a prophecy. In the resurrection, we see the most sublime fulfilment of what this text describes as the beginning of all things. God says once again: “Let there be light!” The resurrection of Jesus is an eruption of light. Death is conquered, the tomb is thrown open. The Risen One himself is Light, the Light of the world. With the resurrection, the Lord’s day enters the nights of history. Beginning with the resurrection, God’s light spreads throughout the world and throughout history. Day dawns. This Light alone – Jesus Christ – is the true light, something more than the physical phenomenon of light. He is pure Light: God himself, who causes a new creation to be born in the midst of the old, transforming chaos into cosmos.”

sémitis meis= to my ways

What is the purpose of this light? The Pope continues: “In the Old Testament, the Torah was considered to be like the light coming from God for the world and for humanity. The Torah separates light from darkness within creation, that is to say, good from evil. It points out to humanity the right path to true life. It points out the good, it demonstrates the truth and it leads us towards love, which is the deepest meaning contained in the Torah. It is a “lamp” for our steps and a “light” for our path…Christ is the great Light from which all life originates. He enables us to recognize the glory of God from one end of the earth to the other. He points out our path. He is the Lord’s day which, as it grows, is gradually spreading throughout the earth. Now, living with him and for him, we can live in the light.” Easter Vigil 2009

106 Juravi et statui custodire judicia justitiæ tuæ.
I have sworn and am determined to keep the judgments of your justice.

juro, avi, atum, are, to swear, take an oath
statuo, ui, utum, ere 3 to set, place, establish. to change, still, calm;
custodio, ivi or li, itum, ire to guard, watch, keep; to maintain, to hold steadfastly.
judicium, i, n. judgment, decrees; law, commandment; the power, or faculty of judging wisely; justice.
justitia, ae, f justice, righteousness, innocence, piety, moral integrity

Jurávi et státui =I have sworn and I have established/determined/resolved

The commentaries suggest that this does not literally mean swearing an oath, but rather, as the second half of the phrase suggests, the firm resolution to follow the way lit for us by the Word. Haydock suggests that it can be seen as the promises binding us by virtue of our baptism.

custodíre judícia justítiæ tuæ = to guard the judgments of your justice/righteousness, or righteous judgments

Cassiodorus suggests that, in the light of the next verse, the judgments of his justice lie in “His exalting the humble, bringing low the proud, and relieving by the gift of His mercy those prostrated in humble satisfaction.”

107 Humiliatus sum usquequaque, Domine; vivifica me secundum verbum tuum.
I have been humbled, O Lord, exceedingly: quicken me according to your word.

humilio, avi, atum, are to humble, bring low.
usquequaque, adv., utterly, altogether, exceedingly.
vivifico, avi, atum, are (vivus and facio), to quicken, give life to, vivify.

Humiliátus sum usquequáque, Dómine = I have been humbled utterly O Lord

This is a recapitulation of the important message of the earlier picked up by St Benedict in his degrees of humility, and that echoes through so many of Monday’s psalms in the Benedictine Office: God humbles us that he might raise us up in new life, for pride is death. Bellarmine says: "I have been humbled;" persecuted and harassed by reason of my observance of the law; for "all who live piously in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution;"

vivífica me secúndum verbum tuum = revive me according to your word

Bellarmine continues: but do you, O Lord, "quicken me;" grant me, at last, that true life that will be free from all evils; "according to thy word;" according to the promise you made when you said, "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments."

108 Voluntaria oris mei beneplacita fac, Domine, et judicia tua doce me.
The free offerings of my mouth make acceptable, O Lord: and teach me your judgments
.

voluntarium  a free-will offering.
os, oris, n., the mouth.
beneplacitus, a, um well-pleasing, agreeable, acceptable

Voluntária oris mei =the freewill/voluntary offerings of my mouth

This can be interpreted either as a reference back to his promise to keep the Law, or, as St Augustine and others do, as referring to the sacrifices of praise that we offer through our prayers.

beneplácita fac, Dómine= make pleasing/acceptable O Lord

et judícia tua doce me =and your justice teach me

109 Anima mea in manibus meis semper, et legem tuam non sum oblitus.
My soul is continually in my hands: and I have not forgotten your law.

anima, ae,f soul
manus, us, f, the hand
semper, adv., ever, always, at all times.
obliviscor, oblitus sum, obllvisci to forget;

Anima mea=my soul

in mánibus meis semper=in my hands always

There is some debate over whether this should read instead ‘your hands’, but the neo-Vulgate sticks with my hands, that is it means my fate is in my hands – I can choose to ‘forget’ your law or remember it, to sin ro stay the course

et legem tuam =and your law

non sum oblítus = I have not forgotten

110 Posuerunt peccatores laqueum mihi, et de mandatis tuis non erravi.
Sinners have laid a snare for me: but I have not erred from your precepts.

pono, posui, itum, ere 3, to put, place, lay, set.
peccator, oris, m. a sinner, transgressor; the wicked, the godless.
laqueus, ei, m., a noose for capturing animals; a snare, trap
erro, avi, atum, are, to wander, stray, rove,

posuérunt peccatóres =sinners have set/laid

láqueum mihi=a snare/trap for me

Cassiodorus comments on the nature of the traps set for us:

"They have laid means they have stretched out and sprung; they could not have been merely laid idly. A snare without bait does not catch a bird; the more effective deceit is that which beguiles with something pleasant. The devil's snare was armed with thirty pieces of silver when it trapped Judas and choked him to death. It caught Saul by proud jealousy; it drew the noose tight on Cain through envy of his brother;and there are other examples of the devil's rage continually attacking the continuing life of this world, for in the forest of the world you find as many snares as you observe vices."

et de mandátis tuis= but your commandments

non errávi = I have not strayed (from)

111 Hæreditate acquisivi testimonia tua in æternum, quia exsultatio cordis mei sunt.
I have purchased your testimonies for an inheritance for ever: because they are the joy of my heart.

hereditas, atis, f. an inheritance, possession; the chosen people, the Israelites, the Church,
acquiro, quisivi, qulsitum, ere 3, to acquire, obtain
exsultatio, onis, f. joy, rejoicing, exultation
cor, cordis, n., the heart

Hereditáte acquisívi = I have acquired/obtained/purchased by/as an inheritance

The Greek verb is translated by two Latin ones to convey the nuances of its meaning: he didn’t just inherit it automatically, but purchased or acquired it deliberately.

testimónia tua in ætérnum = your testimonies forever

quia exsultátio =for the joy

cordis mei sunt =of my heart they are

=for/because they are the joy of my heart

Bellarmine paraphrases the verse as: "I have chosen your law as an everlasting inheritance, because it is most sweet and most agreeable to me, and the source of supreme joy and delight."

112 Inclinavi cor meum ad faciendas justificationes tuas in æternum, propter retributionem.
I have inclined my heart to do your justifications for ever, for the reward.

inclino, avi, atum, are, to bend, incline
propter, prep, with ace. In stating a cause: on account of, by reason of, because of, from, for, for the sake of.
retributio, onis, f. reward, recompense, requital, either as a reward or punishment

Inclinávi cor meum = I have inclined my heart

ad faciéndas justificatiónes tuas = to the doing/to do [of] your justifications

That is, the works of corporal and spiritual mercy according to Cassiodorus:

“Doing justifications means performing the Lord's commands with feelings of humility; breaking bread for the hungry, clothing the naked, sympathising with others' calamities, and the other activities which the Creator's devotion has deigned to recommend to the human race.”

in ætérnum =forever

Does the forever refer to the doing of your justifications or the reward? The text is ambiguous: St Jerome’s from the Hebrew version attaches it to the reward (which kind of makes sense); but the neo-Vulgate to the first phrase. But the choice to incline our hearts now to doing God’s will means that when we die that inclination is fixed forever, so it does make sense as the Douay-Rheims and others interpret it.

propter retributiónem = for the sake of the reward/requital/judgment

The neo-Vulgate changes this to ‘in finem’ or until the end. Either way, all it is saying is that our hope is the joy of heaven.

Scriptural and liturgical uses of the stanza

In the Roman Office it is said at Sunday Sext, and in the Liturgy of the Hours at Vespers.

NT references
Heb 13:15 (108);
RB cursus
Monday None (1)
Monastic feasts etc
-
Roman pre 1911
Sext throughout the week
Responsories
-
Roman post 1911
1911-62: Sunday Sext (7);  
Mass propers (EF)


And you can find the next part in this series here.

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Silence means...

Dear Readers,

Given I'm pausing in the series on Psalm 118 (119) for a few days given the various feasts we are enjoying, please consider taking this opportunity to provide any feedback on the series you might have so far!

Is it worth my while continuing to post the verse by verse notes in particular?  The lack of comment suggests not.

As formatting them does take a bit of time and effort, please do let me know if you are actually reading them and finding them helpful.

Are you finding it useful? 

Is it encouraging you to pray the psalm in Latin?

Or are you finding you disagree with my take on the verses?

Is there other information or formatting changes you would like to suggest?

I'm particularly interested in feedback on the verse by verse notes since they take time to compile that I could spend doing other things - so do let me know if the vocab lists for example too detailed, not inclusive enough, or useful?

Are the grammatical notes and comments on the text worthwhile continuing to include?

Are the phrase by phrase breakdowns helpful?

Are the quotes from commentaries etc helpful?

Any and all feedback on or offline is appreciated!

Friday, March 16, 2012

Psalm 118 (119) Mem (v97-104): When youth outshine their elders in wisdom

Today’s section of Psalm 118, Mem, brings us to the end of Sunday None in the traditional Benedictine Office, which is a good point to break for three days of our penitential regime due to the feasts of St Patrick and St Joseph either side of Laetare Sunday!

The text of the stanza

First in the Knox translation:

97 My delight, Lord, is in thy bidding; ever my thoughts return to it.
98 Musing still on thy commandments, I have grown more prudent than my enemies.
99 More wisdom have I than all my teachers, so well have I pondered thy decrees.
100 More learning have I than my elders, I that hold true to thy charge.
101 Mindful of thy warnings, I guide my steps clear of every evil path.
102 Meek under thy tuition, thy will I keep ever in view.
103 Meat most appetizing are thy promises; never was honey so sweet to my taste.
104 Made wise by thy law, I shun every path of evil-doing.

Vulgate
Douay-Rheims
97  Quómodo diléxi legem tuam, Dómine? * tota die meditátio mea est.
O how have I loved your law, O Lord! It is my meditation all the day.
98  Super inimícos meos prudéntem me fecísti mandato tuo: * quia in ætérnum mihi est.
98 Through your commandment, you have made me wiser than my enemies: for it is ever with me.
99  Super omnes docéntes me intelléxi: * quia testimónia tua meditátio mea est.
99 I have understood more than all my teachers: because your testimonies are my meditation.
100  Super senes intelléxi: * quia mandáta tua quæsívi.
100 I have had understanding above ancients: because I have sought your commandments.
101  Ab omni via mala prohíbui pedes meos: * ut custódiam verba tua.
101 I have restrained my feet from every evil way: that I may keep your words.
102  A judíciis tuis non declinávi: * quia tu legem posuísti mihi.
102 I have not declined from your judgments, because you have set me a law.
103  Quam dúlcia fáucibus meis elóquia tua, * super mel ori meo!
103 How sweet are your words to my palate! More than honey to my mouth.
104  A mandátis tuis intelléxi: * proptérea odívi omnem viam iniquitátis.
104 By your commandments I have had understanding: therefore have I hated every way of iniquity.


Age is not always synonymous with wisdom!

Today’s stanza can be seen as a response to the increasingly agitated demands from some of our elders (in body at least) for respect.  They lament the attitudes of the 'young fogeys' in the Church who reject the 'progressive' message being pushed by their elders and demand orthodoxy and orthopraxis instead.

In this stanza, however, the psalmist asserts that he is wiser than his enemies (v98), and understands more than his teachers (v99) and the elders (v100).  It is a reminder us that age does not always equate with wisdom!

At another level, it can also be interpreted as a reference to the superiority of the New Covenant to the Old.

Should we respect our elders?

There is, it is true, a certain sense of the proper order of things turned upside down when one looks at the Church today and see that younger people tend to me more conservative, interested in reclaiming the traditional liturgy and practices, while the older generation are still trying to live out those tired out 70s clichés such as "dialogue" to engage youth, inclusiveness, and other such fading mantras.

Normally we have a duty to respect our elders.  There are always exceptions to the normal order of things though, and in the stanza labelled starting with Mem in the Hebrew, the psalmist points out that age or position counts for nothing if it is not linked to the true wisdom that comes from following and loving the law, and hating sin.

And in their commentaries on it, the Fathers point to numerous Scriptural precedents for the psalmist's contention, including David himself (the probable author of the psalm), Samuel, Jeremiah, and of course Our Lord himself, teaching in the Temple at the age of twelve.

Cassiodorus says:
“Elders is the term which we use for those who excel in ripe wisdom and are considerably older than ourselves. Scripture says of them: Ask thy father, and he will declare to thee: thy elders, and they will tell thee. We also use elders for persons of mature age who are most inconstant in their tendency to vices; the gospel writes of them: The priests held counsel with the elders to put him to death. In this passage the people term as elders those hoary in body rather than in mind. They rightly say that they have understood more than these, for they venerated as their Creator one whom those others despised with sacrilegious minds. Often younger persons understand the divine Scriptures better than their elders…”

Hating sin

There is also a timely counter here, also, to the excessive inclusiveness advocated by so many of the older generation of ageing liberals in the verse:

propterea odivi omnem viam iniquitatis= therefore I have hated all the ways of iniquity

We often think that hatred is a bad thing, and usually it is.  But not when it comes to sin (as opposed to sinners), for St Augustine tells us:
“For it is needful that the love of righteousness should hate all iniquity: that love, which is so much the stronger, in proportion as the sweetness of a higher wisdom does inspire it, a wisdom given unto him who obeys God, and gets understanding from His commandments.”

It is not enough to avoid sin, St Robert Bellarmine, reminds us, we must detest it, be filled with a sense of horror at it:
“…from wisdom and prudence I acquired by constant meditation a law, I not only abstained from sin, but I even got a thorough hatred of all sinful actions. Such hatred is a wonderful preservative of the purity and sanctity of the soul, and generates great confidence in God, which leads to joy unspeakable, to a great peace and tranquility far and away beyond all the treasures and pleasures of this world.”

Christianity is an advance on Judaism

The Fathers also see this stanza as reaffirming that Christianity contains the fullness of truth, and is thus superior to Judaism. The Old Testament is of course all true: but it is only in the light of the New that it can be properly understood, as Cassiodorus points out:
“Certainly the new people had better understanding than the older Jewish people, for they happily accepted the Lord Christ who the Jews with mortal damage to themselves believed was to be despised.”

He actually sees the reference in verse 103 to the law being sweeter than honey as another allusion to this idea:
“Honey has particular reference to the Old Testament, the comb to the New; for though both are sweet, the taste of the comb is sweeter because it is enhanced by the greater attraction of its newness. Additionally, honey can be understood as the explicit teaching of wisdom, whereas the comb can represent that known to be stored in the depth, so to say, of the cells. Undoubtedly both are found in the divine Scriptures.”

In summary, then, Cassiodorus argues:
“The blessed people, who had made progress by the deepest meditation on the prophets and the gospel, is under this letter ushered in to maintain that they have understood the divine commands more than did their teachers and elders, and so they claim that the sweetness of the divine Scriptures, sweeter than honey and the comb, has sprung forth on their lips.”
A timely place indeed to leave this meditation on the psalm for a few days!

Verse by verse

97 Quomodo dilexi legem tuam, Domine! tota die meditatio mea est.
O how have I loved your law, O Lord! It is my meditation all the day.

quomodo, adv. interrog., how? in what manner? in what way?, how greatly!
diligo, lexi, lectum, ere 3 to love; to flatter, make pretence of loving.
totus a um all, the whole
dies, ei, m. and f fem. a day, the natural day
meditatio, onis, f thought, reflection, musing, meditation

Quomodo dilexi legem tuam, Domine! = How much have I loved your law O Lord,

tota die meditatio mea est = all [the] day [long] it is my meditation

In earlier verses, the speaker acted from fear; now he acts from love which spurs him to greater heights of constant meditation.

98 Super inimicos meos prudentem me fecisti mandato tuo, quia in æternum mihi est.
Through your commandment, you have made me wiser than my enemies: for it is ever with me.

super (as a comparative) than
inimicus, i, m., a foe, enemy
prudens, entis prop., foreseeing, foreknowing; wise.
facio, feci, factum, ere 3, to make, do, cause, bring to pass
quia, conj. for, because, that. truly, surely, indeed;
aeternus, a, um eternal. forever

Super inimicos meos = than my enemies

Cassiodorus suggests that: “These enemies are to be understood as the obdurate Jews, the heretics or the pagans, who have either failed totally to understand the Lord's commands, or are known to refuse to carry them out through misguided zeal.”

prudentem me fecisti = wiser you have made me

Cassiodorus continues: “The people say that they have been made wiser than these enemies because they both devotedly accepted the Lord's command and abided by it with genuine integrity. They added the cause of their becoming wiser than their enemies: Through thy command, for by obeying faithfully they undoubtedly rose above all who sinned. This is the truly blessed glory and kingship of the good, to rise above the proud, to excel worldly powers, and to abide with constant minds in holy humility.”

mandato tuo= through your commandments

Bellarmine suggests that: “The first advantage of the law is, that when a man reflects seriously on it, and observes it faithfully, it directs him what, how, when, and where he ought to speak and to do, or to be silent and take no action; a wisdom that is not enjoyed by the transgressors of the law, who have no regard for a rule, much in keeping with the first principles of rectitude.”

quia in æternum mihi est= because it [your commandments, law] is forever with me

ie I never forget the law because of my constant meditations on it.

99 Super omnes docentes me intellexi, quia testimonia tua meditatio mea est.
I have understood more than all my teachers: because your testimonies are my meditation

super +acc=above, upon, over, in, on
omnis, e, all, each, every; subst., all men, all things, everything
doceo, dociui, doctum, ere 2 to teach, instruct..
intelligo, lexi, lectum, ere 3 understand, give heed to something, to consider

Super omnes docentes me intellexi= I have understanding greater than all those teaching me

Scripture gives us a number of examples of the young outshining their elders in virtue, such as the prophet Jeremiah, who protests that he is but a boy when called and of course the shepherd boy David.

Cassiodorus also points to the examples of Jacob, Samuel and Daniel. But as St Augustine points out, this claim is best seen as fulfilled in Our Lord, teaching in the Temple at the age of twelve.

quia testimonia tua meditatio mea est= for your testimonies are my meditation

The essential message though is that it is not age per se that matters, but commitment to the law.

100 Super senes intellexi, quia mandata tua quæsivi.
I have had understanding above ancients: because I have sought your commandments

senex, senis, old, aged, advanced in years. Subst., an old man; wise men, senators, elders, chief men, magistrates
quaero, sivi, situm, ere 3, to seek, seek after; to will, desire, think upon. Of seeking God

Super senes intellexi= I have understood more than the elders

Certainly the new people had better understanding than the older Jewish people, for they happily accepted the Lord Christ who the Jews with mortal damage to themselves believed was to be despised.

quia mandata tua quæsivi= for I have sought your commandments

101 Ab omni via mala prohibui pedes meos, ut custodiam verba tua.
I have restrained my feet from every evil way: that I may keep your words.

malus, a, um, adj., bad, evil, wicked; grievous, sore, severe; subst., malum, i, n., evil, sin; woe, harm, misfortune.
prohibeo, ui, itum, ere 2 to restrain, hinder, hold in check; to keep, to guard.
pes, pedis, m. the foot
custodio, ivi or li, itum, ire to guard, watch, keep;to maintain, to hold steadfastly.

Ab omni via mala =from every evil way

prohibui pedes meos= I have restrained my feet

ut custodiam verba tua= in order to keep your words

Bellarmine notes that: “The third advantage of God's law is, that it causes us to avoid many sins…I took care not to walk in the paths of the wicked, who have no law but their own desires, the law of sin and of the flesh, and that, in order that "I may keep thy words," or your law, that pointed out a path in the very opposite direction.”

102 A judiciis tuis non declinavi, quia tu legem posuisti mihi.
I have not declined from your judgments, because you have set me a law

judicium, i, n. judgment, decrees; law, commandment; the power, or faculty of judging wisely; justice
declino, avi, atum, are, to turn aside; go astray.
pono, posui, itum, ere 3, to put, place, lay, set.

A judiciis tuis= from your judgments

non declinavi= I have not turned aside

quia tu legem posuisti mihi=for you have placed your law [before] to me

The MT Hebrew has ‘because you have taught me’. St Augustine sees this as that writing of the law on our souls by the Holy Spirit aimed at allowing us ‘not to fear it as a slave without love’, but rather to love it with a chaste fear as a son, and fear it with a chaste love’.

103 Quam dulcia faucibus meis eloquia tua! super mel ori meo.
How sweet are your words to my palate! More than honey to my mouth.

dulcis, e, sweet, agreeable to the palate; good, kind
fauces, mm,. pi. throat; jaws, palate
os, oris, n., the mouth.
mel, mellis, n. honey.

Quam dulcia = How much sweeter

faucibus meis = to my throat

eloquia tua = your words

super mel ori meo= than honey in my mouth

The sense of the verse is clear: God’s word is above all things, sweeter than money, worth more than silver and gold. One could ponder Revelation 10:9 here: So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll; and he said to me, "Take it and eat; it will be bitter to your stomach, but sweet as honey in your mouth."

104 A mandatis tuis intellexi; propterea odivi omnem viam iniquitatis.
By your commandments I have had understanding: therefore have I hated every way of iniquity

intelligo, lexi, lectum, ere 3 understand, give heed to something, to consider
propterea, adv., therefore, on that account, for that cause; but now
odi and odivi, odisse; other forms, odirem, odiens; to hate.
iniquitas, atis, f iniquity, injustice, sin.

A mandatis tuis intellexi= From your commandments I have understanding

St Augustine interprets this as the knowledge gained by following the commandments: “he says, that by obeying God's commandments he has arrived at the comprehension of those things which he had longed to know....These then are the words of the spiritual members of Christ, Through Your commandments I get understanding. For the body of Christ rightly says these words in those, to whom, while they keep the commandments, a richer knowledge of wisdom is given on account of this very keeping of the commandments.”

propterea odivi omnem viam iniquitatis= therefore I have hated all the ways of iniquity

Augustine continues: “For it is needful that the love of righteousness should hate all iniquity: that love, which is so much the stronger, in proportion as the sweetness of a higher wisdom does inspire it, a wisdom given unto him who obeys God, and gets understanding from His commandments.”

Similarly, Bellarmine says: “from wisdom and prudence I acquired by constant meditation a law, I not only abstained from sin, but I even got a thorough hatred of all sinful actions. Such hatred is a wonderful preservative of the purity and sanctity of the soul, and generates great confidence in God, which leads to joy unspeakable, to a great peace and tranquility far and away beyond all the treasures and pleasures of this world.”

Scriptural and liturgical uses of the stanza

NT references
Rev 10:9 (103)
RB cursus
Sunday None (3)
Monastic feasts etc
-
Roman pre 1911
Sext daily
Responsories
6006 (not in current use)
Roman post 1911
1911-62: Sunday Sext
Mass propers (EF)
Passion Sunday OF v (97)



And this series continues on here.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Psalm 118 (119) Lamed (v89-96): On reading the signs of the times

Today's stanza of Psalm 118 is Lamed.  In the Knox translation::

89 Lord, the word thou hast spoken stands ever unchanged as heaven.
90 Loyal to his promise, age after age, is he who made the enduring earth.
91 Long as time lasts, these shall stand, obeying thy decree, Master of all.
92 Lest I should sink in my affliction, thou hast given thy covenant to be my comfort.
93 Life-giving are thy commands, never by me forgotten.
94 Lend me thy aid, for thine I am, and thy bidding is all my quest.
95 Let sinners go about to destroy me, I wait on thy will.
96 Look where I may, all good things must end; only thy law is wide beyond measure.

And the Latina nd Douay Rheims:

Vulgate
Douay-Rheims
89  In ætérnum, Dómine,* verbum tuum pérmanet in cælo.
Forever, O Lord, your word stands firm in heaven.
90  In generatiónem et generatiónem véritas tua: * fundásti terram, et pérmanet.
90 Your truth unto all generations: you have founded the earth, and it continues.
91  Ordinatióne tua persevérat dies: * quóniam ómnia sérviunt tibi.
91 By your ordinance the day goes on: for all things serve you.
92  Nisi quod lex tua meditátio mea est: * tunc forte periíssem in humilitáte mea.
92 Unless your law had been my meditation, I had then perhaps perished in my abjection.
93  In ætérnum non oblivíscar justificatiónes tuas: * quia in ipsis vivificásti me.
93 Your justifications I will never forget: for by them you have given me life.
94  Tuus sum ego, salvum me fac: * quóniam justificatiónes tuas exquisívi.
94 I am yours, save me: for I have sought your justifications.
95  Me exspectavérunt peccatóres ut pérderent me: * testimónia tua intelléxi.
95 The wicked have waited for me to destroy me: but I have understood your testimonies.
96  Omnis consummatiónis vidi finem: * latum mandátum tuum nimis.
96 I have seen an end of all perfection: your commandment is exceeding broad


I am yours...

The central verse of today’s stanza of Psalm 118, Lamed, is I think, verse 94:

Tuus sum ego; salvum me fac: quoniam justificationes tuas exquisivi.
I am yours, save me: for I have sought your justifications.

Pope Benedict XVI has commented on this verse (in a speech to the Synod on Scripture) that:
"The Word of God is like a stairway that we can go up and, with Christ, even descend into the depths of His love. It is a stairway to reach the Word in the words. “I am yours”.
Signs of the times

How, specifically does God show us that stairway?  Cassiodorus’ commentary on the stanza gives us a little lesson on God's justifications as ‘reading the signs of the times’ that I think is worth reflecting on.

Reading the signs of the times is one of those expressions popularized by the aggorniamento (updating) school of spirit of Vatican IIism, used to justify changing anything and everything about the way the Church is structured and operates.

The Wikipedia entry on the term claims that it “dropped out of use in the 1970s”.  If only! 

God is eternal and unchanging

The second half of Psalm 118 (for we have reached the twelfth stanza) starts with a restatement of some of the attributes of God, namely that he is eternal, unchanging, our creator, and our sustainer (verses 89-91).

It then sets out man’s relationship to God as his creatures, saying: for all things serve you.

Yet despite the immutable nature of God’s law and the psalmists commitment to it, despite the fact that by definition we are God’s he still has to assert that he belongs to God, and plead for salvation (verse 94): for God has given man free will, and set the means for us to test our decision in this world in the form of those lying in wait to tempt us to fall (verse 95).

What saves us, the speaker asserts, is our memory of and meditation on God’s ‘justifications’, or testimonies (in the Septuagint the word used in verse 95 is marturia, from which the word martyr is derived).

God's testimonies

What then are these ‘justifications’ or testimonies?

Cassiodorus argues that the signs of the times are those events that point to our journey towards salvation:
“justifications are the understanding of the signs to come through events in time; the slaying of the spotless lamb at the Pasch, the jour­ney to salvation afforded by the Red Sea, the gaining of the promised land by the people led in by Joshua. It is clear that all these events offered indications of the perfection to come. So we must not in any way forget these justifications, which afforded us the initial bases of our faith; for no-one can acknowledge the favour of a gift unless he recalls how events were seen to have their beginning.”
The signs of the times, then, are arguably not, as some would have us believe, what we can learn from the secular world in the positive sense, but rather God’s providential actions that recall us to the correct path and offer salvation: natural events that remind us that God controls things not us, and that he punishes as well as rewards; the consequences of immoral laws such as no fault divorce that we constantly see exposed around us; the persecution of the good that remains a constant in so many societies around the world that are antagonistic to Christianity.

In the New Testament (Lk 11:29), Our Lord tells ‘an evil generation’ seeking a sign that the only one they shall be given is that of Jonah, usually interpreted as the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ.  In this psalm too, we are reminded that God’s truth endures from generation to generation for those with the eyes to see it. 

We too, should heed the message of that St Luke records from Our Lord’s discussion of ‘the signs of the times’: The men of Nineveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.” (Lk 11:32).

The face of Christ

Pope Benedict's comments on the verse 'I am yours', quoted above, continue:
"The word has a face, it is a person, Christ. Before we can say “I am yours”, He has already told us “I am yours”. The Letter to the Hebrews, quoting Psalm 39, says: “You gave me a body… Then I said, ‘Here I am, I am coming’”. The Lord prepared a body to come. With His incarnation He said: I am yours. And in baptism He said to me: I am yours. In the Holy Eucharist, He always repeats this: I am yours, so that we may answer: Lord, I am yours. In the path of the Word, entering the mystery of his incarnation, of His being among us, we wish to appropriate His being, expropriate our existence, giving ourselves to Him, He who gave Himself to us."

This is indeed the message of the final verse of this stanza, which concludes with a vision of the consummation of all, that is, Christ:

Omnis consummationis vidi finem, latum mandatum tuum nimis.
I have seen an end of all perfection: your commandment is exceeding broad

Verse by verse

89 In æternum, Domine, verbum tuum permanet in cælo.
Forever, O Lord, your word stands firm in heaven

aeternus, a, um eternal. forever
permaneo, mansi, mansum, ere 2, to remain, abide, continue, endure.
caelum, i, n., or caeli, orum, m.  heaven, the abode of God; the heavens as opposed to the earth; the air;

In æternum, Domine = Forever, O Lord

God is eternal.

verbum tuum permanet in cælo = your word endures in heaven

God is unchanging – standing in stark contrast to the conflicts, persecutions and disputes the psalmist has been chronicling in this world.   The point is, as Bellarmine notes that, “though it may not seem to stand firm on earth, when we see the just depressed, and the wicked exalted, still it stands quite firm in heaven; for God will certainly carry out anything he promised. He will cause the brief tribulation of the just to be turned into everlasting joy; and the short glory of the wicked to be turned into eternal disgrace and punish­ment.”

90. In generationem et generationem veritas tua; fundasti terram, et permanet
Your truth unto all generations: you have founded the earth, and it continues.

generatio, onis, f, a begetting, generating, generation "for ever and ever."
veritas, atis,  truth. grace, kindness ,goodness, fidelity to promises, Faithfulness
fundo, avi, atum, are to lay the foundation of, to found, establish
terra, ae, f the earth
permaneo, mansi, mansum, ere 2, to remain, abide, continue, endure.

In generationem et generationem veritas tua= From generation to generation your truth

St Augustine suggests that this tells us that God always preserves a faithful remnant: “the Truth of God was never absent in His saints, at one time fewer, at one time more in number, according as the times happened or shall happen to vary; or wishing two particular generations to be understood, one pertaining to the Law and the Prophets, another to the Gospel...”

fundasti terram, et permanet= you have founded/created/established the earth and it endures

God is creator.

91 Ordinatione tua perseverat dies, quoniam omnia serviunt tibi.
By your ordinance the day goes on: for all things serve you.

ordinatio, onis, f ordinance, decree.
persevero, avi, atum, are  to continue, remain constant.
dies, ei, m. and f fem.   a day, the natural day
quoniam, conj.,  for, because, since, seeing that, whereas.
omnis, e, all, each, every; subst., all men, all things, everything
servio, ivi, itum, ire  to serve, worship, to obey, do service to

Ordinatione tua perseverat dies = By your ordinance/command the day continues

God is the sustainer of all.  Britt notes that the Hebrew has ‘They (heaven and earth) abide this day according to Thine ordinances’.

quoniam omnia serviunt tibi= for all things serve you

And those who reject God’s service will be served justice at the end…

92 Nisi quod lex tua meditatio mea est, tunc forte periissem in humilitate mea.
Unless your law had been my meditation, I had then perhaps perished in my abjection

nisi,, if not, unless.
meditatio, onis, f thought, reflection, musing, meditation
tunc, adv. denoting a point of time which corresponds with another; then, at that time. as a subst
forte, adv. perhaps, perchance
pereo, li, ltum, ire,  to perish, come to naught, be lost;  stray, be lost.
humilitas, atis, f affliction, humiliation, wretchedness, misery

 Nisi quod lex tua meditatio mea est= Unless [that] your law is [were] my meditation

tunc forte periissem in humilitate mea= then perhaps I would have perished in my humiliation

Meditation on the law sustains us, preventing us from falling into sin.

93 In æternum non obliviscar justificationes tuas, quia in ipsis vivificasti me.
Your justifications I will never forget: for by them you have given me life.

aeternus, a, um eternal. forever
obliviscor, oblitus sum, oblivisci to forget
quia, conj. for, because, that. truly, surely, indeed
ipse, a, um, demon, pronoun., himself, herself, itself
vivifico, avi, atum, are to quicken, give life to, vivify.

In æternum non obliviscar justificationes tuas= I will not ever forget your justifications

quia in ipsis vivificasti me= for through them you have revived me

That is given me grace.

94 Tuus sum ego; salvum me fac: quoniam justificationes tuas exquisivi.
I am yours, save me: for I have sought your justifications.

salvum facere, to save, keep safe, preserve from harm
exquiro quaesivi itum ere 3, to seek, seek after

Tuus sum ego; salvum me fac = I, I am yours, save me

Earlier in the stanza it was asserted that all things serve God; all things belong to him who created them.  Yet we have free will, and so must make a special choice for God, an beg for his sustaining grace.

quoniam justificationes tuas exquisivi= for I have sought your justifications

All that is necessary is that we seek to do his will.

95 Me exspectaverunt peccatores ut perderent me; testimonia tua intellexi.
The wicked have waited for me to destroy me: but I have understood your testimonies.

exspecto, avi, atum, are,  to wait for a person or thing, to await, trust; to look for, expect
peccator, oris, m.  a sinner, transgressor; the wicked, the godless.
perdo, didi, ditum, ere 3, to destroy
intelligo, lexi, lectum, ere 3  understand, give heed to something, to consider

Me exspectaverunt peccatores me=Sinners have waited for me

Sinners lurk about, waiting for their moment to strike.

ut perderent= in order that they might destroy me:

testimonia tua intellexi= [but] I have understood your testimonies

But the psalmist has stood firm.

96 Omnis consummationis vidi finem, latum mandatum tuum nimis.
I have seen an end of all perfection: your commandment is exceeding broad.

omnis, e, all, each, every; subst., all men, all things, everything
consumatio –ionis f perfection, accomplishment, achievement; destruction; close, ending
video, vidi, visum, ere 2,  to see, behold; consider; experience, undergo, suffer, realize; keep watch, look for, meditate on
finis, is, m., a boundary, limit, border; territory; end, limit, termination
latus, a, um, broad, wide.
nimis, adv., exceedingly, greatly, beyond measure.

Omnis consummationis vidi finem= I have seen the end/limit of all perfection/consummation

Cassiodorus notes that: “Perfection is the full attainment of all virtues, and Christ is the end to this perfection. They rightly state that they have seen Him, for at that moment with enlightened minds they be­lieved that He would come.”

Alternatively, earthly perfection comes to an end; the law does not.

The phrase ‘in finem’ is used in the titles of many of the psalms, and invariably interpreted by the Fathers as a reference t the Resurrection or Second Coming of Christ.

latum mandatum tuum nimis= your commandment [is] exceedingly broad.

St Augustine interprets broad as follows: “Broad therefore is the commandment of charity, that twofold commandment, whereby we are enjoined to love God and our neighbour. But what is broader than that, on which hang all the Law and the Prophets?”

Pope Benedict takes this reflection a step further, saying:

“All human things, all the things we can invent, create, are finite. Even all human religious experiences are finite, showing one aspect of reality, because our being is finite and can only understand one part, a few elements: “latum praeceptum tuum nimis”. Only God is infinite. And therefore His Word too is universal and knows no boundaries. Coming into communion with the Word of God, we enter a communion of the Church that lives the Word of God. We do not enter into a small group, with the rules of a small group, but we go beyond our limitations. We go towards the depths, in the true grandeur of the only truth, the great truth of God. We are truly a part of what is universal…

Scriptural and liturgical uses of the psalm

NT references
Lk 21:33 (89-91)
RB cursus
Sunday None
Monastic feasts etc
-
Roman pre 1911
Daily Sext
Responsories
No 6889,
Mass propers (EF)
IN – Virgin martyr (95-6)



You can find the next part in this series here.