Caesarius, bishop of Arles, in his Sermon 47, a sermon against drunkenness, inveighs against those who drink to angels and saints, thinking they are honouring them. Written in Latin at Arles (southern Gaul), 503/542.
E07561
Literary - Sermons/Homilies
Caesarius of Arles
Caesarius of Arles, Sermon 47, Item ammonitio contra ebrietatis malum (Further admonition against the evil of drunkenness)
(5.) Illud vero quale est, quod iam transacto convivio et expleta siti, cum amplius bibere nec possint nec debeant, tunc quasi novelli, et qui ipsa hora supervenerint, diversis nominibus incipiunt bibere, non solum vivorum hominum, sed etiam angelorum et reliquorum antiquorum sanctorum, aestimantes quod maximum illius honorem inpendant, si se in illorum nominibus nimia ebrietate sepeliant: ignorantes quod nullus tam gravem iniuriam sanctis angelis vel sanctis hominibus agnoscitur inrogare, quam illi qui in eorum nominibus bibendo per ebrietatem suas animas probantur occidere.
'When the banquet is ended and their thirst satisfied, they cannot and should not drink any more. However, as if starting all over again, together with any people who may have arrived at that hour, they begin to drink to different names, not only of living men, but even of the angels and of other saints of old, thinking that they are paying them the highest honour by burying themselves in drunkenness in their name. They do not know that no one inflicts so serious an injury upon the holy angels or holy men as those who, by drinking in their name, seek to kill their own souls by drunkenness.’
Text: Morin 1953, 214.
Translation: Mueller 1956, 241, modified.
Feasting (eating, drinking, dancing, singing, bathing)
Source
After an early career as an ascetic monk, first at the island monastery of Lérins, Caesarius became bishop of Arles in 503, and held this post, through many political vicissitudes, until his death in 542 (for his Life see E06283).Caesarius acquired a considerable reputation as a preacher, delivering sermons in a straightforward style and language, with limited use of rhetorical effects; most of his sermons address issues of Christian morality and practice, and the handful that he delivered on the feast days of saints are often concerned with proper behaviour at their festivals. His sermons were popular, and are widely attested in the manuscript tradition.
Germain Morin, the most recent collector and editor of his sermons, attributed nearly 250, in whole or in part, to Caesarius; many, according to Morin, are reworkings of earlier sermons, with additions by Caesarius. Although Morin's attributions are not always certain, we have accepted them without question, since to look into this issue is beyond the scope of our project. Morin divided the sermons into five groups: sermons or admonitions on various topics (1-80), sermons on Scripture (81-186), seasonal sermons (187-213), sermons on the saints and feast days (214-232), and sermons to monks (233-238).
Discussion
For a discussion of this passage, where popular practice diverged from the ideals of high churchmen, see Klingshirn 1994, 198.We are grateful to Lucy Grig for drawing our attention to this sermon.
Bibliography
Edition:Morin, G., Sancti Caesarii Arelatensis sermones, pars prior (Corpus Christianorum, Series Latina 103; Turnhout: Brepols, 1953), 211-215.
Translations:
Mueller, M.M., Caesarius of Arles, Sermons, vol. 1 (Fathers of the Church 31; Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 1956), 238-243.
Delage, M.-J., Césaire d’Arles, Sermons au peuple, vol. 2 (Sources Chrétiennes 243; Paris: Cerf, 1978), 376-389.
Further reading:
Klingshirn, W.E., Caesarius of Arles: The Making of a Christian Community in Late Antique Gaul (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994).
Bryan Ward-Perkins
20/5/2019
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00518 | Saints, unnamed | Certain | S00723 | Angels, unnamed or name lost | Certain |
|---|
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