Maximus of Turin

In his own words on Matthew

• Matthew 3:1

  (Hom. in Joan. Bap. nat. 1.) Where neither a noisy mob would interrupt his preaching, and whither no unbelieving hearer would retire; but those only would hear, who sought to his preaching from motives of divine worship.

  Catena Aurea by Aquinas

• Matthew 3:4

  Indeed, when Christ's forerunner wore a coarse camel-hair garment, what else does it signify but that the coming Christ would be vested in the garb of a human body, thick with the coarseness of sinners, and that, girded with the skins of a most unclean animal, the Gentile people, he bore their very own deformity?

  SERMONS 88.3

• Matthew 3:4

  As for the leather belt, what else does it demonstrate but this fragile flesh of ours, trapped in the grip of vice before the coming of Christ and which, after his coming, was restrained by virtue? Before his coming this flesh was fat through dissipation. Now by abstention it is firmly held in place.

  SERMONS 88.3

• Matthew 4:4

  The Savior put down the devil's stratagem with a clever response. He does not do what the devil says, lest he seem to declare the glory of his power at his adversary's will, nor does he answer that it cannot be done, since he could not deny what he had often already done. Therefore he neither gives in to the devil's petition nor rejects his inquiry. He reserves for himself the manifestation of his power and counters his adversary's stratagem with eloquence. He therefore says to him, "Not by bread alone shall man live, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God"—that is, not by earthly bread or by material food, whereby you deceived Adam the first man, but by the word of God, which contains the food of heavenly life. The Word of God is Christ the Lord, as the Evangelist says: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God." So, whoever feeds on the word of Christ does not require earthly food, nor can one who feeds on the bread of the Savior desire the food of the world. The Lord has his own bread; indeed, the bread is the Savior himself, as he taught when he said, "I am the bread who came down from heaven." About this bread the prophet says, "And bread strengthens the human heart."

  SERMONS 51.2.32

• Matthew 8:19

  The scribe's declaration is prompt indeed, but proud. The Lord was on his way toward his final suffering, descent into hell and ascent into heaven. Is human frailty really prepared to follow him "wherever he goes"? This is more a foolish presumption than a confession of faith. Later the Lord would say to the apostle Peter, when he thought that he would follow the Savior in every circumstance: "Where I am going you are not able to follow me now." And when Peter obstinately insisted and said that death would not separate him from [Jesus], he heard that he would deny the Lord three times. In this he was censured, as it were, for his pride. Thus the one who promised, while confessing Christ, that he would not be separated from him by death is cut off from fellowship with him by a little maidservant's question.

  SERMONS 41.3.6

• Matthew 8:20

  Every Christian who wishes to hide his sins is spiritually a fox. For just as the fox lives in a hidden place because of its deceit, so also the sinner conceals himself in dens, guarding silence because of his knowledge of his sins. Just as the fox does not dare to manifest the deceitfulness of its deeds in the midst of society, so also the sinner is ashamed to confess the wickedness of his life in the midst of the church. One is a fox who sets up a snare for his neighbor, who daily strives to nibble away at others' property, steal their fruits and devour their animals and—what is common in our day—seize swine like wolves and not only chickens, as the foxes do. Although he is strong enough to live by his own labor, he prefers to take pillage like the madness of a wild beast.

  SERMONS 41.4

• Matthew 27:9-10

  This field then is this entire world, in which we who have been dispersed and scattered bear the fruit of good work for the Lord.Yet perhaps you would inquire of me, if the field is the world, who the potter might be who could have the ownership of the world. Unless I am mistaken, the potter is the one who made the vessels of our body from clay. Scripture says of him, "Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust from the earth." The potter is the one who, with the warmth of his own breath, made alive the slimy clay of our flesh and with fiery heat put together the fluid and earthly matter of our bodies. The potter, I say, is the one who fashioned us unto life with his own hands and who is refashioning us unto glory through his Christ. The apostle says, "We are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another." That is to say, we who from our previous condition have broken to pieces because of our own misdeeds are restored in a second birth through the loving kindness of this same potter. We who have been struck by death because of Adam's transgression rise anew through the grace of the Savior. Clearly this potter is the one of whom the blessed apostle says, "Will what is molded say to its molder?" And again, "Has the potter no right over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel for beauty and another for menial use?" For from the same clay of our body God preserves some persons for the kingdom on account of their individual merits and keeps others for punishment. The field of this potter, then, was bought with Christ's blood for travelers. For travelers, I say, who were without home or country and were cast about as exiles throughout the earth, rest is provided by the blood of Christ, so that those who have no possession in the world might have a burial place in Christ. Who do we say that these travelers are if not very devout Christians who, renouncing the world and possessing nothing in the world, rest in the blood of Christ? For the Christian who does not possess the world utterly possesses the Savior. Christ's burial place then is promised to travelers so that the one who preserves himself from fleshly vices like a traveler and stranger may merit Christ's rest. For what is Christ's burial place if not the Christian's rest? We therefore are travelers, in this world, and we sojourn in this life as passersby, as the apostle says: "While we are in this body we are away from the Lord." We are travelers, I say, and a burial place has been bought for us at the price of the Savior's blood. "We have been buried with him," the apostle says, "through baptism in his death." Baptism therefore is Christ's burial place for us, in which we die to sins, are buried to evil deeds and are restored to a renewed infancy, the conscience of the old person having been dissolved in us for the sake of another birth.

  SERMONS 59.3-4

• Matthew 27:13-14

  It might seem remarkable to you, brothers, that the Lord should be accused by the chief priests before the procurator Pilate and should be silent and that he should not refute their wickedness by his response, since indeed a defense which follows quickly is the only way to refute a persistent accusation. It might seem remarkable, I say, brothers, that the Savior should be accused and should remain silent. Silence is occasionally understood as avowal, for when a person does not wish to respond to what is asked of him he appears to confirm what is raised against him. Does the Lord then confirm his accusation by not speaking? Clearly he does not confirm his accusation by not speaking; rather he despises it by not refuting it. For one who needs no defense does well to keep silent, but let one who fears to be overcome defend himself and one who is afraid of being vanquished hasten to speak. When Christ is condemned, however, he also overcomes, and when he is judged he also vanquishes, as the prophet says: "that you should be justified in your words and should vanquish when you are judged." Why was it necessary for him therefore to speak before being judged, when for him judgment was a complete victory?

  SERMONS 57.1.19

• Matthew 27:24

  For Christ conquers when he is judged, because in this way he is proven innocent. Hence Pilate says, "I am innocent of the blood of this just man." It is a better case which is not defended and still is proved. It is a fuller righteousness that is not supplemented by words but is still supported by the truth. It must be that the tongue should keep silent when justice itself is present to itself. Let the human tongue keep silent in a good affair, inasmuch as it has also been accustomed to speak out in favor of bad causes. I do not want righteousness to be defended in the same manner that wickedness is usually excused. It is not by reason of speech but because of virtue that Christ vanquishes, for the Savior, who is wisdom, knows how to vanquish by keeping silent and how to overcome by not responding. Therefore he prefers to establish the truth of his case rather than to speak about it. What in fact would compel him to speak when silence is enough to conquer? But perhaps fear would compel him, lest he lose his life. Yet this was precisely the reason for his victory. He lost his own life in order to gain life for all; he preferred to be conquered in himself in order to be the victor in everyone.

  SERMONS 57.1