Monday, August 28 : Dorotheus of Gaza

The goodness of God, as I have often told you, has not forsaken those he created, but again urged him, again exhorted him. “Come to me,” he said, “all you who labor and are heavy burdened and I will refresh you” (Mt 11,28) – as much as to say, ‘See how you have to work! See the misery you have brought on yourself! See how you are tried by evil and your own unruliness. But come, change your ways… Live through lowliness of mind instead of going to your death through pretentious pride…’ See, brethren, what arrogance does? See what lowliness is able to do! What need was there for all these contortions? If from the beginning man had humbled himself and listened to God and obeyed his command, there would have been no fall. Again, after Adam had done wrong, God had given him a chance to repent and be forgiven and yet he kept on being stiff-necked and unrepentant. For God came to him and said: “Adam, where are you?” (Gn 3,9) as if to say: “From what glory are you come to this?… Why did you sin? Why did you go astray?” – as if urging him sharply to say, “Forgive me”. But there was no sign of change of humility. There was no sign of change of heart but rather the contrary. He replied: “The wife you gave me, deceived me” – mark you, not ‘my wife’ but “the wife you gave me”, as if to say, ‘this disaster you placed upon my head’! So it is, my brethren, when a man has not the guts to accuse himself, he does not scruple to accuse God himself. Then God came to Eve and said to her: “Why did you not keep the command I gave you?” as if saying, “If you would only say, ‘Forgive me’, to humble your soul and be forgiven.” And again… she only answered: “The Serpent deceived me!” (v.13) as if to say: “If the serpent did wrong, what concern is that to me?” What are you doing, you wretches? Kneel in repentance, acknowledge your fault, take pity on your nakedness. But neither the one nor the other stooped in self-accusation.
Roman Catholic Ordinary Calendar – rosary,team