771 discourse ii: the freely accepted bonds take a hold of Him, so that we may slip away from the hands of hell’s servants. He allowed Himself to be chained, in order that our chains may be cut asunder. He carried the crime of us all, as if neither Adam nor his unhappy posterity had offended God most grievously. Thus, for us all, He threw Himself before the divine justice, voluntarily making Himself guilty, while guilty of nothing. “Being born in the likeness of men” (Phil 2:7) in order that, as a man He may be seized, tortured, condemned, scourged, and killed for us. “Who for the joy that was set before [H]im endured the cross” (Heb 12:2), as the Teacher of the Gentiles astonishingly noted. “Teaching us,” as Gregory16 adds, “to hold prosperity in contempt and to fear it, and to love and to bear adversities for the sake of the truth.”17 For this is the liberty of the sons of God, freed from the slavery of the devil through the voluntary bondage of Christ. 5. I advance even further in this arena of our heavenly Hercules. Already He was seized; by then they had thrown the chains on the One arrested, when mindful of the loyalty sworn at the table, to confirm his words with deeds, the most zealous Peter — like another Theseus drew the sword from its sheath to protect his most beloved Teacher and to disperse the enemy with his weapon. Accordingly, he attacked Malchus, who was nearby (who was a slave of the high priest); he struck the ear, which despised the divine Teacher. He held back the rest of the bold attackers. Do you believe that Christ praised this act of defense? In fact, looking with severity upon the (as it were) importunate defender: “Put,” He was saying, “your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the chalice which the Father has given [M]e?” (Jn 18:11). When I hear the heavenly King saying these words, the heroic deed of Vladislaus Jagiellonian III comes to my mind. This most 16 This probably refers to St. Gregory the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church. Cf. Pesci, Benedetto, Gregorio I, Papa, detto Magno, ECat VI, 1112-1124. 17 The source of this text was not able to be found in the works of Gregory the Great. A text with similar sense was found in Homilia in Ezechielem Prophetam, Lib. II, n. 6: PL 76, 952.
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