Eriugena, Homily on John 1.1-14

All things, therefore, that were made by the Word, live in him unchangeably and are life. In him all things exist neither by temporal intervals or places, nor as what is to come; but all are one in him, above all times and places, and subsist in him eternally.

Visible, invisible, corporeal, incorporeal, rational, irrational – heaven and earth, the abyss, and whatever is therein – in him all live and are life and subsist eternally. Even what seems to us to be without all vital movement lives in the Word.

And if you want to know how, or by what reason, all things that are made through the Word thus subsist vitally, causally, and in the same manner in him, consider examples chosen from created nature. Learn to know the maker from those things that are made in him and by him. “For the invisible things of him,” as the Apostle says, “are clearly understood by the intelligence, being understood from the things that are made.”

…Contemplate with your inner eye how in a master the many laws of an art or science are one; how they live in the spirit that disposes them. Contemplate how an infinite number of lines may subsist in a single point, and other similar examples drawn from nature.

From the contemplation of such as these, raised above all things by the wings of natural contemplation, illuminated and supported by divine grace, you will be able to penetrate by the keenness of your mind the secrets of the Word and, to the extent that it is granted to the human being who seeks signs of God, you will see how all things made by the Word live in the Word and are life: “For in him,” as the Sacred Scripture says, “We live and move and have our being.”

Translation Christopher Bamford, The Voice of the Eagle

The period of the Celtic Revival (ca 430-900 AD) is disappointingly short on literature like this – exegetical and contemplative, while at the same time sermonic. Eriugena (ca. 815-877), coming at the end of this period, represents a kind of culmination of the best of Celtic thinking and writing. Eriugena was a philosopher and theologian, not a missionary/scholar like Colum Cille or Columbanus. While other of his works, such as Periphyseon, are almost impenetrable, this sermon on John 1.1-14 merits repeated readings. Christopher Bamford’s compilation of meditations on this homily from John 1 shows us Eriugena at his best.

Eriugena’s purpose here is to exalt Christ by shedding light on His work of upholding the universe and all things in it by His Word of power (Heb. 1.3). The Word of God has created everything that exists, and He continues to sustain everything within Himself, in His power. The Word of God thus defines or explains everything, giving meaning, purpose, and place to all created things. The whole of creation – everything that exists in heaven and earth – exists and has its subsistence in Him. Every particle, atom, molecule, cell, and thing, every power and pattern, every force and flux, is what it is by the design and will and in the power of the Word of God.

Thus, by studying created things we can learn something about Him in Whom all things consist. Using our eyes and minds – “by the wings of natural contemplation” – we can draw a line of sight from created things, through the veil separating the seen from the unseen world, into the presence of the exalted Christ, and thus come to know, “to the extent that it is granted to the human being who seeks signs of God,” the secrets of the Word of God. At the same time, we must not stray from the Scriptures as the foundation on which all knowledge of God must be built, for, as Eriugena says a bit further on, “the eternal light reveals itself in a twofold manner through Scripture and through creature. Divine knowledge may be renewed in us in no other way, but through the letters of Scripture and the species of creature.” Again, “Observe the forms and beauties of sensible things, and comprehend the Word of God in them. If you do so, the truth will reveal to you in all such things only he who made them, outside of whom you have nothing to contemplate for he himself is all things.”

Just how dependent are we and all things on the power and good pleasure of this Word? “For just as in the case of one who speaks, when he stops speaking, his voice ceases and disappears, so also with the heavenly Father, should he stop speaking his Word, the effect of his Word – the created universe – would cease to subsist. For the continuous maintenance by substitution – the very continuance – of the created universe is the speech of God the Father, the eternal and unchangeable generation of his Word.”

Here is reason to wonder, adore, praise, and give unending thanks for the strength, mercy, and steadfast love of our glorious, exalted King!

For more insight to the legacy of the Celtic Christian period, order a copy of T. M.’s book, The Legacy of Patrick, from our online store.