Vigils Reading

THE RESURRECTION OF THE FLESH

From a sermon by St Bernard of Clairvaux2

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At the first coming John the Baptist cries out like a herald— or rather, as his

herald— Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world! He

does not say ‘diseases of the body ’ or ‘vexations of the flesh’, but ‘sin’, which is a

disease of the soul and a corruption of the mind. Behold him who takes away the sins

of the world. [Take away] from where? From the hand, from the eye, from the

neck…from the very flesh on which it has been so deeply impressed. He takes sin

away from the hands when he wipes out the sins they have committed. He takes it

away from the eye when he purifies the purpose of the heart. He takes it from the neck

when he sets aside abusive domination, as is written: You have vanquished the rod of

their oppressor as on the day of Midian…

You grasp why Christ came and what a Christian’s purpose should be. For this

reason, O body, do not anticipate the time! You can hinder the soul’s salvation, you

cannot bring about your own… Let the soul work now for itself—or rather, you work

with it— because if you suffer with it you will also reign with it. To the degree you

hinder its restoration, you hinder your own, because you cannot be restored at all

until God sees his image re-formed in your soul. You have a noble guest, O flesh, noble

indeed, and your welfare depends entirely on its welfare. Honor so great a guest! You

are dwelling in your own land, but the soul is a pilgrim, an exile, lodging with you.

I ask you, if someone noble and powerful should want to lodge with them,

would any peasant not willingly sleep in some corner of the house— or under the

stairs or even in the ashes— giving up the best place to the guest, as is appropriate?

And you, therefore, do likewise. Take no notice of your own slights or inconvenience

so long as your guest can stay with you with honor. The honor is yours if for his sake

you meanwhile present yourself as being without honor.

And in case you look down on or undervalue your guest because it seems to

you to be a pilgrim and a stranger, think carefully about what you gain from the

presence of this guest. This is who grants sight to the eyes and hearing to the ears;

who supplies sound to the tongue, taste to the palate, movement to all your limbs…

Indeed… just as soon as the soul departs the tongue will fall silent, the eyes will see

nothing, the ears will go deaf, the whole body will stiffen, and the face will lose its

color. In a short time the whole corpse will decay and become putrid; all its

attractiveness will turn to corruption.

Why then do you distress and wound this guest for the sake of some transient

pleasure which you could not even experience except through it? Besides, if it confers

so much on you when it is an exile, estranged from its master’s face because of

hostilities, what all will it give you when it has been reconciled? Do not, O body, do

not impede this reconciliation; abundant glory is prepared for you from it. Patiently—

or rather, gladly— surrender yourself to everything. Omit nothing that seems capable

of furthering this reconciliation. Say to your guest: Your Lord will remember you and

restore you to your former position. Just remember me!… Then all our longings are

going to be fulfilled and the whole earth shall be filled with the majesty of the Lord.

To this glory, to this happiness, to this peace which surpasses all understanding may

he in his mercy lead us. May he not disappoint us in our expectation, he who is the

Saviour we expect Jesus Christ our Lord, who is over all, God blessed forever

2 Bernard of Clairvaux. Sermons for Advent and the Christmas Season. CF 51. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications,

2007. 36-40.5