A Sermon by the Rev. James P. Cooper

Mitchellville – April 20, 2003

The story of Easter morning in John’s Gospel begins with the account of Mary Magdalene’s arrival at the tomb before dawn on Sunday morning.

(John 20:1-18) Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. {2} Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”

Instead of her intended peaceful time of reflection and mourning for a lost friend, she instead finds the tomb inexplicably open. We don’t know what she suspected may have happened, but it’s reasonable to guess that she was worried that their enemies, not satisfied with having Him crucified, had now come in the night to find new ways to hurt them. She ran for help, and soon came to Simon Peter and John who were, themselves, on their way to visit the tomb.

{3} Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. {4} So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. {5} And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in.

Traditionally it is held that “the other disciple” is John because he avoids calling himself by name throughout the gospel. In other places, such as the previous verse¹, he calls himself the “disciple whom Jesus loved.”

John arrives at the tomb first, but does not go in. He is able to see inside because the stone that covered the doorway has been moved to the side and as it is now dawn, there is enough light to see in. Notice how strongly the letter emphasizes that each disciple clearly saw the burial garments of Jesus left behind in the tomb, empty.

{6} Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, {7} and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself.

When Simon Peter arrives, moments behind John, he does not hesitate, but goes into the tomb itself. Such impulsive behaviour is typical of Peter. It’s recorded that he sees more details in the tomb, for he describes how the garments were in one place, but the linen cloth that had been on the head was in another place. Once Peter has gone in, John follows. His mind is finally catching up to the speeding events, and he understands what must have happened here. If their enemies had wanted to carry the body of Jesus away, there would have been no need or reason to remove the burial garments. But there they were. What other explanation could there be? Hear the following passage from the Arcana Coelestia:

AC 10825. It is well known in the Church that the Lord was conceived from Jehovah as the Father, so that from conception He was God, and also that He rose again with His whole body, for He left nothing in the tomb, as He also afterwards proved to the disciples when He said, See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; handle Me and see; for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see Me have (Luke 24:39). And although He was Man complete with flesh and bones, yet He entered through closed doors and after revealing Himself became invisible, John 20:19,26; Luke 24:31. In this respect He was different from anyone else, for everyone else’s spirit rises again but not the body. When therefore He said that He was not like a spirit He was saying that He was not like everyone else. From this it is now evident that even the Human within the Lord is Divine.

Even more specific is this supporting from the Last Judgment (Post.):

87. When I spoke with [certain spirits] citing something from the Word, I perceived a reverence emanating from them. As, for example, when I said that the Lord was conceived of Jehovah, and that for that reason He called Him Father, and that it is because of that that He is the Son of God, and that therefore the Divine is in Him; moreover, that the Lord could for that reason glorify His whole body, so that the element of the body which is cast off by those who are born of human parents and decays, in His case was glorified and became Divine from the Divine in Him, and He rose with it, leaving nothing in the tomb, differently from what happens in the case of any other person. They listened attentively, and said they were surprised that they had not heard such things before.

It is precisely because these things have not been heard before, because the Christian Church could not teach what it neither knew nor understood, that the Lord had to reveal these truths about His Glorification when the time was right, when their were people who were, at last, ready to receive them.

Continuing with the gospel’s account, we read:

{8} Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. {9} For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. {10} Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.

John “saw, and believed.” For years, literally, Jesus had been preparing them for this moment, but they were so focussed on their own goals, their own purposes that they were not able to really understand what He had meant. For John, at this moment, the truth about the Lord’s life crucifixion, and resurrection finally dawned. Then, seeing nothing else that they could do at the moment, or learn from an empty tomb, Peter and John went home. But Mary Magdalene was not satisfied so easily or quickly. In her grief and confusion, she remained at the tomb as the others left.

{11} But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. {12} And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

Moments after Peter and John leave, Mary enters the tomb herself. She sees something the other disciples did not: two angels in white garments sitting where the body of Jesus had lain. In the lesson from the Heavenly Doctrine, we read from Swedenborg’s description of how the Lord allowed him to experience resuscitation himself so that he could explain the process to us and take away our fear. What’s most interesting in the passage, however, is the description of two celestial angels sitting nearby, and keeping watch over the process, protecting and caring for the newly arrived spirit.

(HH 449) Then at first a communication of the pulse of the heart with the celestial kingdom was established, because that kingdom corresponds to the heart in man. Angels from that kingdom were seen, some at a distance, and two sitting near my head.

Mary’s spiritual eyes were certainly opened, or she would not have been able to see the angels at all (and it is interesting to note that this was not the case for either Peter or John). We might wonder if these two angles had been there to assist the Lord in some way in His own resuscitation, and they now had a part to play in bringing some peace to Mary Magdalene.

{13} Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

“Weeping” signifies that someone who is becoming spiritual, that is, who is beginning to lead their lives and make decisions based on rational, spiritual truth from the Word, comes to a point where they feel that their source of truth has been compromised or removed in some way (See AC 2689). Perhaps they have come into a situation that is unlike anything they have experienced before, and they feel inadequate to meet the challenges before them.

We all feel inadequate at times. We all come up against questions that we cannot answer. The angels ask Mary why she is weeping, and she says, in despair, that she has lost that thing which she loves the most, and does not know where to look for it. Of course, just like the rest of us, Mary is looking for the wrong thing! She is looking for the body of Jesus – but He is no longer there. How will she find her way? Who will guide her now?

{14} Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. {15} Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” {16} Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).

It is so comforting to have this picture drawn for us in the gospels. At the moment when she feels the most lost, devastated, is the moment when He reveals His near presence to her. The Lord is never closer than when we are fighting in temptation, and it is then that He draws near and holds us up with His own strong arm. When so doing, He is our teacher and our shepherd.

Mary, and the other disciples, have been seeking the body, the former Jesus who walked with them, teaching and healing, throughout the land. The life had become familiar, and pleasant. But now everything was changing, nothing was familiar! The temptation for Mary, as for all of us, was to cling to the old, familiar ways. But the sequence of events set in motion by the Lord’s own Divine Providence had moved on, and the old ways were no longer the right ways. The Lord needed something different from Mary and the rest of the disciples from now on. Would they be up to the challenge?

{17} Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'” {18} Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

Apocalypse Explained 899 speaks about the meaning of these passages:

AE 899 [14] As men rise again after death, therefore the Lord willed to undergo death and to rise again the third day, but to the end that He might put off everything human that He had from the mother and might put on the Divine Human; for everything human that the Lord took from the mother He rejected from Himself by temptations, and finally by death; and by putting on a Human from the Divine Itself that was in Him He glorified Himself, that is, made His Human Divine; therefore in heaven His death and burial do not mean death and burial, but the purification of His Human, and glorification. That this is so the Lord taught by this comparison with wheat falling into the earth, which must die that it may bear fruit. The same is involved in what the Lord said to Mary Magdalene: Touch Me not, for I am not yet ascended unto My Father (John 20:17). “To ascend to His Father” means the uniting of His Human with His Divine, the human from the mother being fully rejected.

We might wonder how we are supposed to respond to these profound, interior, and spiritual events. We can gain some insight into our appropriate response by seeing the various parts of this story as the way the different parts of our minds work.

Mary arrives at the tomb first, before dawn, while it is still dark. She represents the general affection for truth that we all have. It’s a gift from the Lord that enables us to love news, to love to hear new things, to be interested in the world around us. But, it’s “in the dark.” This affection enjoys raw information, and cannot make judgments about the relative value of the things that it knows. But, it is the place where we all begin.

The Peter and John arrive. Together they represent our faith. Our affection for truth leads us to acquire knowledges about the Lord and Religion. They are interesting to us, and we enjoy gathering all the facts and sorting them out into appropriate categories and using them to neatly answer certain questions. It’s a very useful foundation. Compared to the first state, there is the light of dawn to guide our thoughts, and in such a state we can even see the Lord’s garments – more interior truths than we have been able to see before. We may even believe that when we see those empty garments, we know everything there is to know and go home.

But happily, the Lord is working in secret ways within our minds to take that faith and move it to the next step. If we cooperate with Him by trying to obey those truths, we begin to have real charity in our lives that is conjoined to our faith. This is signified by Mary remaining behind, continuing to look into the tomb, and now seeing the angels. When faith is brought into life, when it looks towards serving the neighbour and the Lord, it opens communication with heaven, for heaven is a place of mutual love.

Finally, then, when we begin to enter into the life of heaven while here on earth, we learn the most important lesson of all: that we must not cling to the worldly and natural ideas about the Lord and religion, but instead our thoughts must be led to “ascend into heaven.”

We can study the sense of the letter all we want, and if we approach it from truth alone, all we will see is empty garments that only suggest the shape of the life that was within. But when we seek to understand the purpose of the Lord’s life on earth, when we try to see with our heart as well as with our eyes and look beyond the mere factual record, we can see far more. We can see the Lord as the eternally living King of Heaven. Amen.

Hear now the Word of the Lord as it is written in …

First Lesson: John 20:1-18

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. {2} Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” {3} Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. {4} So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first. {5} And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in. {6} Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there, {7} and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. {8} Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. {9} For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. {10} Then the disciples went away again to their own homes. {11} But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. {12} And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. {13} Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” {14} Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. {15} Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” {16} Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher). {17} Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'” {18} Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her. Amen.

Second Lesson: HH 449

As to the senses of the body I was brought into a state of insensibility, thus nearly into the state of the dying; but with the interior life and thought remaining unimpaired, in order that I might perceive and retain in the memory the things that happened to me, and that happen to those that are resuscitated from the dead. I perceived that the respiration of the body was almost wholly taken away; but the interior respiration of the spirit went on in connection with a slight and tacit respiration of the body. Then at first a communication of the pulse of the heart with the celestial kingdom was established, because that kingdom corresponds to the heart in man. Angels from that kingdom were seen, some at a distance, and two sitting near my head. Thus all my own affection was taken away although thought and perception continued. [2] I was in this state for some hours. Then the spirits that were around me withdrew, thinking that I was dead; and an aromatic odour like that of an embalmed body was perceived, for when the celestial angels are present everything pertaining to the corpse is perceived as aromatic, and when spirits perceive this they cannot approach; and in this way evil spirits are kept away from man’s spirit when he is being introduced into eternal life. The angels seated at my head were silent, merely sharing their thoughts with mine; and when their thoughts are received the angels know that the spirit of man is in a state in which it can be drawn forth from the body. This sharing of their thoughts was effected by looking into my face, for in this way in heaven thoughts are shared. [3] As my thought and perception continued, that I might know and remember how resuscitation is effected, I perceived the angels first tried to ascertain what my thought was, whether it was like the thought of those who are dying, which is usually about eternal life; also that they wished to keep my mind in that thought. Afterwards I was told that the spirit of man is held in its last thought when the body expires, until it returns to the thoughts that are from its general or ruling affection in the world. Especially was I permitted to see and feel that there was a pulling and drawing forth, as it were, of the interiors of my mind, thus of my spirit, from the body; and I was told that this is from the Lord, and that the resurrection is thus effected. Amen.

Third Lesson: AE 687:18

AE 687 [18] …These things seen were representative of the Lord’s glorification, and of introduction into heaven by Him; for the “stone” that was placed before the sepulchre, and that was rolled away by the angel, signifies Divine truth, thus the Word, which was closed up by the Jews, but opened by the Lord. And as a “sepulchre,” and pre-eminently the sepulchre where the Lord was, signifies in the spiritual sense resurrection and also regeneration, and “angels” signify in the Word Divine truth, therefore angels were seen sitting one at the head and the other at the feet; “the angel at the head” signifying Divine truth in things first, and “the angel at the feet” Divine truth in ultimates, both proceeding from the Lord; and when Divine truth is received regeneration is effected, and there is resurrection. Amen.

Here end the lessons. Blessed are they who hear the Word of God and keep it. Amen.

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¹ John 19:26, John 20:2, John 21:7, John 21:20

 

A Sermon by the Rev. James P. Cooper

A favourite hymn begins with the words, “The Lord in His righteousness judges the people” and then goes on to speak about a world that is peaceful and orderly because the Lord is recognized as its king, and it is ruled by His laws.

Tonight we have come here to be together with our friends and family and reflect on the events of the past twelve months. A year and a day ago, our homeland was a place of peace and prosperity. The terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, while they did not destroy the United States, have certainly served to make significant changes to our way of life, to take away much our sense of peace and security, some of our prosperity, and many of our personal freedoms. Their intention was to kill America, but they only managed to kill some Americans. Their intention was to change us, but it seems that we have changed in ways that no one would have guessed.

This tragedy was huge, and the effects of it continue. We all know people who were directly affected by the attacks. Members of this congregation were in the Pentagon that morning. Others of us knew people associated with the World Trade Center. A member of the Convention Church was on one of the airliners. It was personal. It was not just an attack on a way of life, or national entity, it was an attack on people and places that we knew and loved. The numbers of people killed, the low-tech but very effective methods used, the fact that many of the terrorists lived nearby, trained at the local airport, shopped in the local stores beside us – all these things together have fuelled a tremendous groundswell of righteousness indignation and fury.

It is now, as all the pain and the hurt and the anger are brought to mind that we need to reflect on deeper matters. Perhaps the greatest harm that we have suffered is to our spiritual states, because we have been sorely tempted to encourage and enjoy thoughts of anger and revenge and to encourage others in their “righteous anger.”

The Heavenly Doctrine of the New Church is quite clear and forthright in its many statements that we are to honour those who fulfill their duty to their nation and homeland by fiercely defending it from aggression. But at the same time it reminds us that even in battle we are to act from charity. We are to put our lives in the hands of the Lord when we go into battle, but when the battle is over, we are to treat our enemies with compassion. To fight an enemy in charity sounds impossible, but it is described, in part, by this passage from The Doctrine of Charity.

Charity 164: In his inner self he does not exult in the overthrow of his enemy, and in the honour of victory; but in the deliverance of his country and his people from the invasion of an enemy, and the destruction and ruin they would inflict.

There are those who go to war reluctantly, but are valiant in their defence and brave in battle. But there are others who use such times of chaos and disorder as an opportunity to act out their anger and hatred under the sanction of battle, and to plunder the goods of others.

DP 278:4 Concerning those who favour sins and therefore cannot know them. These are they who acknowledge God and worship Him according to the customary ceremonials, and who convince themselves that any evil which is a sin is not a sin; for they disguise it by fallacies and appearances, and so hide its Enormity. When they have done this they favour it, making it their familiar friend. It is said that those who acknowledge God do this, because others do not regard any evil as a sin, whereas every sin is an offence against God. But examples may illustrate this. A man does not regard evil as a sin who in his desire for wealth makes certain forms of fraud allowable, by reasons which he devises. The same is true of the man who justifies in himself the spirit of revenge against enemies around him, and who in time of war plunders those who are not his enemies (emphasis added).

The hells incited these people to act out their hatred for our country, our people, and our way of life. We cannot imagine that the hells went away satisfied with the destruction caused by the crashing planes. They are still with us, only now they are using our anger to attack us. We need to be careful, to examine our minds and hearts to make sure that we are not using these circumstances to excuse or even encourage us to take delight in thought of revenge.

A person, or a nation, when attacked for no apparent reason, first needs to defend himself. But then, when the danger of physical harm has passed, it is important to know what caused the attack. We all want to see that some good has come from this. If we, as a nation and as individuals, stop and ask ourselves honestly why is it, when we are trying so hard to be friendly and kind, that some people are so mad at us. If we can learn how to preserve our essential character and still be better neighbours, then good will be seen to have come from this.

The Lord teaches us, saying “My ways are not your ways.” We do not see the whole picture. We do not know what loves are in another person’s heart. We are forbidden to make judgments about the eternal lot of others. In spite of the fact that things may not always work out the way we expect, We have to trust in the Lord, and act from conscience in charity.

When we sing, “The Lord in His righteousness judges the people,” let us reflect that what we should be asking for is that the world to be governed by His righteousness, His all seeing and all knowing Divine Government. Only then will there be peace between nations, and in the minds and hearts of His people.

Let us close by remembering the selfless bravery of so many. There are those in other nations who only know us from what the popular TV shows are, or some of the other foolishness that we indulge in, and conclude from those things that the real people, the solid core of our nation are like the characters in the movies or on TV. If the events of September 11th taught us anything, it was that there are fine, brave men and women ready to lay down their lives for others in every walk of life, and in every city and town of this country. People who understand the real meaning of the life of charity, and the real meaning of the words, “love one another as I have loved you.”

(John 15:9-14) “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. {10} “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. {11} “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. {12} “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. {13} “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. {14} “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. Amen.

First Lesson: ISA 55

“Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters; And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without price. {2} Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance. {3} Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you; The sure mercies of David. {4} Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people, A leader and commander for the people. {5} Surely you shall call a nation you do not know, And nations who do not know you shall run to you, Because of the LORD your God, And the Holy One of Israel; For He has glorified you.” {6} Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. {7} Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. {8} “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. {9} “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. {10} “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, {11} So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. {12} “For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. {13} Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; And it shall be to the LORD for a name, For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

Second Lesson: JOH 14:23-27

{23} Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. {24} “He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me. {25} “These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. {26} “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. {27} “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Third Lesson: CHARITY 164 – 166

Charity in the Commander of an army. By the commander of an army is meant its highest officer, whether he be king or archduke, or one constituted commander who holds authority from them. If he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins, and if he acts sincerely, justly, and faithfully in the affairs of his generalship and command, he does goods of use, which are goods of charity. And as he perpetually meditates upon them, applies himself to and executes them, he becomes charity. If he is king or archduke, he does not love war, but peace; even in war he continually loves peace. He does not go to war except for the protection of his country, and thus is not an aggressor, but a defender. But afterwards, when war is begun, if so be that aggression is defence, he becomes also an aggressor. In battle, if he has not been born otherwise, he is brave and valiant; after battle he is mild and merciful. In battle he would fain be a lion; but after battle, a lamb. In his inner self he does not exult in the overthrow of his enemy, and in the honour of victory; but in the deliverance of his country and his people from the invasion of an enemy, and the destruction and ruin they would inflict. He acts prudently; cares faithfully for his army, as the father of a family for his children and servants; and loves them, everyone, according as he does his duty sincerely and valiantly; and many such things. Cunning, with him, is not cunning, but prudence.

Charity in the Officers under the Commander of an army. Everyone of them may become charity, that is, an angel of heaven, if he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins, and sincerely, justly, and faithfully performs the duty of his office. For thus they too do goods of use perpetually, which are of charity; for their minds are in them, and when the mind is perpetually in goods of use it becomes a form of charity. His country is his neighbour; in the spiritual idea, he is its defence and security from invasion and destruction. He does not falsely exult in what is of no merit; nor does he exult even in what is deserving. This he thinks ought to be; which makes him of contented mind, and not vainglorious. In war he loves the soldiers under him, according to their valour, sincerity, and obedience; is thoughtful for them, and desires their good as he does his own; for they are victims to the glory of his use. For officers have the glory of the use and the glory of the honour; the soldiers who are charities have the glory of the use, and not the glory of the honour. Other things with him are similar to those above mentioned pertaining to the commander of the army, for whom he acts, with a difference according to the extent of his command. I have seen such officers in a higher heaven, and I have seen officers who were not such in hell.

Charity in the Common Soldier. If he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins, and sincerely, justly, and faithfully does his duty, he also becomes charity; for as to this there is no distinction of persons. He is averse to unjust depredation; he abominates the wrongful effusion of blood. In battle it is another thing. There he is not averse to it; for he does not think of it, but of the enemy as an enemy, who desires his blood. When he hears the sound of the drum calling him to desist from the slaughter, his fury ceases. He looks upon his captives after victory as neighbours, according to the quality of their good. Before the battle he raises his mind to the Lord, and commits his life into His hand; and after he has done this, he lets his mind down from its elevation into the body and becomes brave; the thought of the Lord – which he is then unconscious of remaining still in his mind, above his bravery. And then if he dies, he dies in the Lord; if he lives, he lives in the Lord.