angelic doctor 824 I did not wish that the praise of the Angelic Doctor, as great as it may be, should perish buried in the darkness of oblivion. Hence, with the kind permission of the author I have brought this into the light, that publicly in the sun this holy Oration about the Sun of Theologians may be enjoyed for all eternity. Therefore because of this benevolence you have heard the Orator himself, as well as his Oration, which having been prepared by me from the ears comes to your eyes, that you receive [it] earnestly I beg. ANGELIC DOCTOR Although your attendance, Learned Hearers, should delight me rather than confound me, and your assembly should give courage to me as I behold how select and pleasant it is; nevertheless the weight of the matter I have undertaken, entrusted to me by the requests of those who sweetly entreated me, overwhelms me. It is such that unless I were strengthened by a certain divine virtue, [my ability] would be insufficient, and I would succumb. For, as you know perfectly well, the dignity of the Angelic Doctor is so great, the copiousness of his virtues so innumerable, the ocean of his praises so vast, that here the dignity [of this man] exceeds all the power of eloquence, all the calculations of Arithmetic, the longest speech, and even the most sublime contemplation. And if anyone draws near to his knowledge and wisdom, this person will feel overwhelmed by a stupor, so that it is recognized, whether at first or later, that they do not know how to praise him. So what am I to do? What can I do, since I am trying to speak about the praises of a man who can never be praised enough, and who is among the extraordinary saints of his Order? I can do this, which some do: those who, when they cannot look directly at the sun with their eyes, cover them with their hands, so that in this way they can see at least some part of the light. This is how I will proceed with the brightest Sun among the Doctors. Unable
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