¹ The Word, generously descending from heaven, is designed to nourish our hearts, provided we are receptive to its power, not merely through speaking, but also through attentive listening. Just as rain without soil fails to yield fruit, so does the Word require hearing to bear fruit, and hearing likewise requires the Word. Therefore, as the Word exerts its influence, open your ears willingly, and when you listen, purify yourselves from all malice and disbelief. Ill-will and unbelief are two grievous afflictions, both diametrically opposed to righteousness. Ill-will opposes charity, while unbelief challenges faith, much like bitterness contrasts with sweetness, darkness with light, evil with good, death with life, and falsehood with truth. Thus, those who abound in these vices that oppose virtue are in a sense spiritually dead; for those who harbor malice and disbelief detest charity and faith, and those who do so become adversaries of God.

² Therefore, my beloved brethren, be vigilant against malice and unbelief, for they stand as adversaries to righteousness. Instead, embrace faith and charity, the very virtues that have guided all the righteous from ancient times to the present, leading them to salvation. Let your charity be evident not merely in words but also in actions, particularly in enduring patience for the sake of God. Consider that the Lord Himself demonstrated His love for us not just through words but through actions, by offering Himself as the ransom for our salvation. Moreover, we were not brought into existence through mere speech, like the rest of creation, but also through action. God brought the world into being with a single word, but when it came to creating us, He employed both His word and His action. Merely speaking was insufficient; action followed His words. For instance, when God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness,” it was not merely a proclamation; it was followed by the act of forming man from the dust of the ground, shaping him according to God’s image and likeness. Then, God breathed life into him, and Adam became a living being.

³ When humanity later fell into sin, leading to death, it became imperative for that form to be recreated for salvation by the same Creator. The form lay decaying in the earth, while the life-giving breath, once infused into it, remained separated from the body in a dark realm known as Hades. Thus, there was a division between soul and body; the soul descended into the depths, while the body returned to dust, resulting in a significant separation between them. With the flesh decaying, the soul, disconnected, ceased its function. Just as a city crumbles when its king is imprisoned, an army disperses when its general is captured, or a ship sinks when its helmsman is lost, so too, when the soul is bound, the body deteriorates. Like a city without its ruler, the body disintegrates without its soul’s governance. Similar to an army losing its commander, individuals succumb to death when the soul departs. The soul, thus, acted as the ruler of the person, just as a king oversees a city, a general commands an army, or a helmsman guides a ship, as long as the body remains alive. However, once it became firmly bound to the body and entangled in deception, it lost its ability to govern. Consequently, it strayed from the righteous path and succumbed to temptations, engaging in acts of immorality, idolatry, and violence, thus tarnishing its true nature. Moreover, it eventually descended into the depths, where it was ensnared by the malevolent tempter. Previously, just as a king restores a damaged city, a general regroups a scattered army, and a sailor fixes a damaged ship, in the same manner, the soul used to provide sustenance to the body before the body decayed into dust, without itself being tightly bound. However, once the soul became bound, not by physical restraints but by sins, and thus became powerless to act, it departed from its body and descended into the underworld, becoming subservient to death and scorned by all.

⁴ After leaving paradise, humanity entered a realm marked by unrighteousness, characterized by fornication, adultery, and brutal murder. In this environment, destruction awaited; all elements seemed aligned against the newly arrived human, hastening his demise. Yet, despite the adversity, humans yearned for solace, aid, and respite. Reflecting on life’s moments, where could one find solace? In the womb? Hardly, as the womb resembled a state akin to death’s embrace. In infancy, suckling at the breast? Not even then did joy abound. Perhaps in maturity? In youth, the peril of temptation loomed large. Could it be in old age? No, for then the burden of time weighs heavily, with death’s shadow looming ever closer. Indeed, what is old age but the anticipation of death? Death knows no age or stature; it claims all—youth and age alike. So why does humanity suffer under this immense sorrow? Indeed, the sight of death breeds sorrow. In the lifeless form, we witness a changed countenance, a body void of vitality, wasted by time, voice silenced, skin cold, lying inert upon the ground, eyes hollow, limbs motionless, flesh decayed, veins still, bones bleached, joints dissolved, reduced to dust—the essence of the person extinguished. What, then, is humanity? A fleeting blossom, emerging unseen in the womb, flourishing in youth, only to wither in old age and fade into death.

⁵ But now, after all this enslavement to death and corruption of humanity, God has visited His creation, which He formed in His own image and likeness. He did this so that humanity would no longer be subject to death forever. Therefore, God sent His incorporeal Son from heaven to take on flesh in the Virgin’s womb, and in doing so, He became fully human like you, to save lost humanity and gather together all His scattered members. For when Christ joined human nature to His divine person, He reunited what death had scattered through the separation of body and soul. Christ suffered so that we might live eternally. Why else would Christ have died? Did He commit any crime deserving of death? Why did He take on flesh when He was already clothed in glory? And since He was God, why did He become man? Why, reigning in heaven, did He come down to earth and become incarnate in the Virgin’s womb? What necessity drove God to come to earth, to take on flesh, to be wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger, to be nourished by a mother’s milk, to be baptized by His servant, to be lifted up on the cross, to be buried in a tomb, and to rise again on the third day? What necessity, I ask, compelled Him to do all this? It becomes clear that He endured this shame for humanity’s sake, to free us from death, crying out, as the prophet foretold, “I have endured as a woman in labor.” Indeed, He suffered sorrow, humiliation, torment, even death and burial for our sake. As He Himself says through the prophet, “I went down into the deep.” And who caused Him to go down? The impious people. Behold, sons of men, behold the recompense Israel gave to Him! They killed their Benefactor, repaying evil for good, affliction for joy, and death for life. They nailed to the cross the One who had raised their dead, healed their crippled, cleansed their lepers, and given sight to their blind. Behold, sons of men! Behold, all people, these new wonders! They hung on a tree the One who stretched out the earth; they pierced with nails the One who laid the foundations of the world; they confined the One who encompasses the heavens; they bound the One who frees sinners; they gave vinegar to drink to the One who made them drink of righteousness; they fed Him with gall, the One who offered them the Bread of Life; they brought corruption to His hands and feet, the very hands and feet that healed theirs; they shut the eyes of the One who gave them sight; they placed in a tomb the One who raised their dead, both before His Passion and even while He hung on the cross.

⁶ When our Lord was hanging on the cross, the graves cracked open, the underworld was revealed, souls emerged, the deceased were revived, and many were sighted in Jerusalem while the significance of the cross unfolded. It was the moment when our Lord defeated death, ended hostility, subdued the forces of evil, and displayed the triumph of the cross. His body was raised on the cross, elevating humanity, and death was vanquished beneath the feet of flesh. The celestial beings marveled, angels were astounded, elements quaked, and every creature trembled witnessing this unprecedented event unfold in the universe. However, oblivious to the significance, the crowd mocked Christ. Even as the earth shook, mountains, valleys, and seas trembled, and all creation was struck with bewilderment. The celestial lights quivered in fear, the sun retreated, the moon vanished, stars dimmed their glow, and daylight faded. Astonished, an angel departed from the temple as the veil tore, shrouding the earth in darkness when its Lord breathed His last. Meanwhile, hell glowed with an unusual light, for there the Savior had descended. The Lord did not descend into hell in His body but in His Spirit. Truly, He is active everywhere, for while He raised the dead by His physical body, He was, by His Spirit, freeing their souls. As the Lord’s body hung on the cross, as mentioned, graves opened, and hell’s gates unlocked. The deceased regained life, souls returned to the world. This happened because the Lord conquered hell, defeated death, and humiliated the enemy. Thus, souls emerged from Hades, and the deceased walked the earth once more.

⁷ So, you grasp the immense impact of Christ’s death. Every creature, the elements, the earth itself, and even hell were unable to remain unaffected by His death. The Passion of Christ stirred up everything, causing turmoil and upheaval. Just as He once called Lazarus from the grave, Christ cried out, “Rise up, you dead, from your tombs and hiding places! For I, the Christ, grant you resurrection.” The earth couldn’t contain His body for long; it seemed to cry out in response: “Oh Lord, forgive my sins, spare me from Your anger, release me from the curse. I have been blessed with the blood of the righteous, yet I have failed to provide proper burial for the bodies of men, even Your own”. What is the meaning of this incredible mystery? Why did You descend to earth, if not for the sake of humanity, scattered across every corner where Your divine image is present? If you were to utter just one word, in an instant all bodies would stand before You. Now that You have descended to earth and have sought out Your own creation, take charge of mankind, your own handiwork. Restore what has been entrusted to You, reclaim Your likeness, Your Adam. Then, on the third day after His death, the Lord rose again, revealing to humanity the truth of the Trinity. At that moment, All peoples were redeemed through Christ. One faced judgment, and many thousands were forgiven. Furthermore, having taken on the likeness of the humans He saved, He ascended to the highest heavens to present before His Father not gold, silver, or precious stones, but the person He had fashioned in His own image and likeness. The Father, lifting Him to His right hand, has enthroned Him on high and appointed Him as the judge of nations, the commander of angelic armies, the guide of cherubim, the Son of the heavenly Jerusalem, the spouse of the Virgin, and the eternal King. Amen.