Tuesday, August 23, 2022

Excerpts from Paschasius Radbertus, De corpore

Paschasius Radbertus (785-865), De corpore 8.61-74:

 

Learn that God is a spirit everywhere without place. Understand that these spiritual items, as if neither locally, nor even carnally, are carried in such a way before the sight (conspectum) of the divine majesty unto the sublime [altar]. Therefore, think that something is capable of being more sublime, since the substance of bread and wine are efficaciously commutated (commutator) interiorly into the flesh and blood of Christ; in this manner, just after the consecration (consecratio), just then the true flesh of Christ and veritable blood should be confessed and nothing other than the Christ, the bread from heaven, is surmised by believers. Do you or don’t you think that something else is the altar, whereat Christ the high priest places himself (adsistit), as much as it is his body through which and in which the vows of the faithful and faith of the faithful are offered to God? But if verily the body of Christ is that heavenly altar believed to be, then you shall immediately consider that the flesh and blood are not from somewhere else, just as you consider that you eat of the very body of Christ. (Christiaan Kappes, The Epiclesis Debate at the Council of Florence [Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre Dame Press, 2019], 307-8 n. 180)

 

De corpore 8.17-25:

 

Therefore, while someone may not think on anything further, he might not think verily about the presence (praesentiam) of the divine majesty, as much as things are visible. Nor should a poor soul understand that it is not at all the body of Christ, unless it is from his hand and by means of the sublime altar (sublime ara), where “Christ the high priest of future goods” (Heb 9:11) places himself (adsistit) on account of all people, and is received by right. Whence does the priest, when this (haec) begins to be immolated, say among other things: “Deign that this is offered (Iube haec perferri) through the hands of your angel unto your sublime altar in the sight (in conspectu) of your divine majesty.” You should think, O man, that you receive that item from somewhere else, as much as it is from the altar (altare), where there is consecrated (consecratur) what is more sublime (sublimius), transposed (transpositum) [to us]. (Ibid., 307 n. 179)