Introduction
St. Juan de Ávila (1499-1569) was an Andalusian priest and preacher, brought to new prominence upon being named a Doctor of the Church by the late Pope Benedict XVI on October 7, 2012. Though he tried to arrange a fraternal community of priests, little came of it outside his immediate circle, and, towards the end of his life, he started sending his interested disciples to the Jesuits. The majority of his work was focused on being a preacher, for which he was nicknamed the "Apostle of Andalusia." He was also the first rector of the University of Baeza, which became a model for Jesuit seminaries. His process of veneration was slow: declared Venerable in 1759 (during the investigation for which the Vatican misplaced manuscripts for dozens of his works), he was not beatified until 1894 and not canonized until 1970.
Being primarily a preacher, it is fitting that a large portion of his writings consists of sermons. Oddly, when many of these were originally published, shortly after his death, they were instead labelled "Treatises" (tratados). The most well-known of these is the set of "Treatises on the Most Holy Sacrament," consisting of many, many sermons given around the Feast of Corpus Christi. There were also groups of "treatises" related to Mary and the Coming of the Holy Spirit. The sermon begun below was originally published as the first treatise of a set of 10 on the feasts of Mary; in the critical edition of St. John's works, it is labelled Sermon 65.1. (There is another partial draft of this sermon, which is given the number 65.2.) I originally translated this sermon from an early edition, where it was labelled a "treatise": there are many textual differences between this and the critical edition of the text, which is taken from a manuscript. The version I have given below is the text of the original "treatise" edition, though I have broken it up with subheadings borrowed from the critical edition. Sources for both versions are given at the end.
First Treatise: On the Incarnation of the Son of God
Sermon 65.1: "This Business Is Full of Love"
Ecce ancilla Domini, fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum. (Lk 1:38)
[Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it done to me according to your word.]
Exordium: A Day of Good News
Today is the day of good news: if we are silent, a great fault will be ours. Today God became man for men; if He became a stone, what would the stones do today? What thanks they would give Him for such a great mercy and compassion!
The good news that such a day as today brought into the world was first made known to the most sacred Virgin Our Lady, and the true Mother of God. And because, each day that we preach, we say the salutation, asking grace for the Virgin, it is good that we should say it today, since, on such a day as today, it was said.
Gospel of the Annunciation
The holy Gospel recounts today this holy salutation and happy news. Missus est Angelus Gabriel a Deo [The Angel Gabriel was sent by God] (Lk 1:26). When God willed to perform mercy for the world, when He willed to show how far His love reached, I wandered, looking for what day it was, how to name it, and I could not find or know how to give a name to the day which is today. A day of such news, let us call it the day of the mercies of God. Bless the Lord, all His works (Dan 3:57). If we call it the day of the mercies of the world, it is so: if the day of the redemption of captives, it is so; if we call it the day of dispensation, it is so: if the day of giving great alms, it is so too. He Who knew and performed mercy, He knows what will make us understand the day which is today, and He makes us understand how great is the grace which the world received today, and He places it in our hearts, so that we would recognize it and give thanks.
When the time came for God to unfold His mercies in the world, the time to teach men how far it reached, when His mercy was extended—how far?—St. Ambrose says: “You who read this, see the letter and note the most holy mystery; married and pregnant, married with a man, and pregnant with God: married, and pregnant by the Holy Spirit: note so high a mystery.”1 Each one of our Christian Churches is married with one, and pregnant with other: married with the Prelate, with the Pastor, and pregnant with the other, Who is God eternal: married with man, and pregnant with God, Who is the Prelate, and the Preacher. Souls are married with Him, but there, within, Jesus Christ enters into his innards, and makes them fecund with His virtue and with His word, so that they produce salutary fruits. I do not know how to speak this holy mystery.
“I will hide” (says God) “this from your eyes, this which I do, this great secret no one will know how to speak, no understanding of flesh will reach it (cf. Is 6:10). I know it well, that, on that day, I will remove the ill of the earth, I will remove the sins of the world, I will wash all your stains (cf. Zac 3:9).” Glory be to You, Lord, forever.
The Prophet Daniel said the same thing about today: Consummetur prævaricatio, & finem accipiat peccatum, et deleatur iniquitas, & adducatur justitia sempiterna, & impleatur visio, & prophetia, & ungatur Sanctus Sanctorum (Dan 9:24): he said, that, at this time, the prevarication would be finished, sin would be removed, sempiternal justice would be brought, visions would be completed, when the Holy of Holies were anointed. Today, sin is removed and will be removed, and justice is given. Thus if, in every sermon, we say the salutation to the Virgin, today there is much more reason for it to be there than at any other time.
Since the time came in which God willed to give His mercy, and to teach how far the love which He has for men reached, God sent His messenger, an Archangel, with the embassy, so that he would go bring it to the Virgin. Thus Abraham did when he sent for a spouse for his son Isaac (Gen 24). God calls a Great One of His house, an Archangel, gives Him an embassy, which he goes to bring to a maiden betrothed with a man, whose name was Joseph, and her name was Mary. Oh, blessed be God, that there is a Nazareth, a province very low according to the world’s honor; there God sets His eyes, there the Archangel came, and knew well the house! He takes the figure of a man, enters into the house, finds the Virgin alone and in prayer, falls before her on his knees, there, very close to her, where there are signs unto today: a little marble where the Virgin was, and another were the Archangel was.2 He speaks to the Virgin, proposes his embassy to her, and says: Ave gratia plena, Dominus tecum (Lk 1:28): “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you, the Lord be with you (since all is good).” He greeted her as it was usual to greet at that time: “Peace be with you.” The Lord commanded him thus: “When you enter into another house, say: ‘Peace be in this house’” (cf. Lk 10:5). The Gloss says afterwards: “Whoever says peace, let him desire peace, and say all the goods together.”3 Peace be to you, Lady. Saint Luke says, “delight”: all is good. Delight be with you, peace be with you, since He Who will pacify, rejoice, and give delight to the world is coming to you. It is the reason that you should delight, it is the reason, Lady, that you should taste of the fruit that you will give to the world. May God maintain you, God hail you, full of grace, the Lord be with you. A great salutation was that, good news was it.
The blessed maiden was not fickle in belief, like Eve: she raised her eyes and her heart to God, and did not respond. She who is later troubled has virginal modesty. The Virgin saw a man before her, he said to her that she was full of grace, and that she was gracious, and he, praising, troubled her. There is nothing that so troubles the humble, and sounds more ill to her eyes, than to see herself praised. “What will this be? Is it of God, or is it not of God?” Good counsel. What fresh deceit will it be to think that the Holy Spirit comes to one, and for the evil spirit to come instead? And, for this reason, when you see yourself in doubt, ask for light from Our Lord so that you can recognize if that which comes to you is a good spirit, or an evil spirit; and so the Virgin responds nothing.
And as the Archangel saw her so troubled, he provided for her trouble, and said to her: “Ne timeas Maria, invenisti enim graciam apud Deum [Do not fear, Mary, for you have found grace with God] (Lk 1:30). This grace which I tell you is not here, in the eyes of men; I do not bring an embassy of men, I do not come on an ill behalf; the grace which I bring you is not of men, but of God.” Then God assured her. The Angel proposes his embassy: the greatest embassy, the greatest and highest which was ever given. Blessed the woman who thus heard, and the womb which thus received!
“Be attentive, maiden”—the Lord commands you to say—“Ecce concipies, & paries [Behold, you will conceive, & you will give birth] (Lk 1:31). Hear, Lady, these greatnesses: you will conceive and you will bear a Son, and He will be called Jesus, which is to say, ‘Savior.’ He will be great, and will be called Son of the Most High, and He will reign, and His kingdom will not have an end, forever.” Oh, blessed be she who gave us such a Son! He will be Great, and He will have, not that small kingdom of Judea, of a hundred leagues: see what a great kingdom, see what a kingdom of a hundred leagues will be given Him, the seat of David His Father, not that kingdom, but the one figured by it; for that kingdom of David was very small, this one [is] very large: that [kingdom] of David [was] temporal, this one [is] spiritual: that [kingdom] of David was ended, the other will never be ended. “The kingdom of David will be given Him, and He will reign in the house of Jacob forever.”
Why did he say “in the house of Jacob,” instead of in that of Abraham or of Isaac? Because, of those who descended from Abraham, Isaac was faithful, Ishmael unfaithful. Among those from Isaac, Jacob was faithful and a great friend of God, and Esau was evil: in the house and family of Jacob, all were faithful and believing. He will reign in the house of Jacob, to wit, among those who know God, among the good, and His kingdom will not be ended. What a gentle Messiah we were to have, who would reign a hundred years, and his kingdom would be ended, and then another would come! Our King and our Messiah will reign forever, and His kingdom will not be ended; just like there, where He is in heaven, here, He reigns and rules; here He maintains you, and defends you, and sustains, and raises grace and pardon of sins, and frees you from demons, consoles you in your labors, and, finally, gives you all goods.
The embassy of the Archangel continues, and says: “This One, your Son, will be called Son of the Most High.” “He will be called”: frasis Hebrea es [it is a Hebrew phrase], which intends to say the same as “He will be.”
What woman would not receive such a Son gladly, without asking nor doubting? Such is the contentment which the most holy Virgin has with regards to her virginity and purity that she responds to the Archangel: “How will this be? This frightens me.” O purity, how loved are you by the Virgin! O purest innards, how sealed in your heart is the love of virginity! Not without cause do you ask: “Angel, how will this be, since I do not know man?” It is not a word of incredulity. See that the Virgin has such love for her purity, that she does not truncate her virginity to become Mother of the Son of God. She does not say if she will or not, since she does not doubt it, but she says: “Teach me how it will be, since I have proposed and determined to not know man.” I have already said this other times, that this is worth as much as when we say here, “I do not eat meat,” I mean to say, “I have the intention to not eat meat for all my life.” “How am I to conceive? Has is this to be? Since I would not want to lose my purity, nor would I want to disobey God. Declare to me what I ask you, if my purity will be guarded, since I well know that for God all will be possible.” What an example for maidens! In all, she wants to do God’s pleasure. O blessed maiden, who does not dare to truncate her virginity to become Mother of the Son of God! How will this be?
The Angel responds that he does not know, that he is not the one who has to understand in this affair, that he comes as a messenger to negotiate, he comes on the part of God, since He Who will do it is the Holy Spirit, since He alone is Holy; “but the power and force of the Most High will overshadow you, will strain you, will teach you, will sustain you: since this matter is not so low that your forces would be enough for it; but the power and forces of the Most High will overshadow you.” (This is a Hebrew phrase.) “And, for this reason, that which will be born of you will be called Holy.” Not masculine, but neuter, so that you will know that He did not take on a person, but our nature. He will be the Son, not of Joseph, not of man, [but] the Son of the Most High, conceived by the Holy Spirit. As He is Holy, He cannot do anything which is not holy: He will be called Son of God. See, maiden, so that you would praise God, so that you would give Him many thanks and see His mercies,” says the Angel, “your relative Elizabeth, since she is old and wise (because you do not fear what I have told you), in her old age has conceived a son, so that you would know that there is nothing impossible with God, and, for this reason I reveal it to you: since that is possible, this too [is possible]. This is the Embassy; I hope for your response, and the Most Holy Trinity hopes for your consent: what do you respond?”
When the sacred Virgin hears the great mercies which the Angel promises her on behalf of God, assured by God that what He promises her will be done, on His part: knees bent, her eyes and heart fixed on heaven, she says humbly and with reverence: Ecce ancilla Domini, fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum [Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done to me according to Your word] (Lk 1:38). Here is the slave of the Lord, be it done in me according to Your word. In that moment, the divine Word entered into her innards, and the greatest work which was done, and will ever be done, was done. Then, why does she call herself a slave and abase herself? Thus God wills it, and this is the reason why men and angels, and archangels, exalt and confess her, who received such a Son and so abased herself, as Lady, and honor her, and hold her as such, and reverence her in the heavens and on earth: she who knew so well how to abase herself, and to receive the embassy on behalf of God.
The greatest delight did the Virgin receive today with this embassy, and so, now, each time that we say it to her, she is delighted: and, so that we would know how to greet her and recount these mysteries, we ask her that the spirit with which she heard it might raise us, so that we can know how to please her.
1The first publication of this sermon had no quotation marks; the critical edition ends the quote here. St. John seems to be very loosely paraphrasing St. Ambrose, Exposition of the Gospel of Luke II.1: “Indeed, divine mysteries lie hidden, nor is it easy, in accord with the Prophetic saying, for any man to be able to know the counsel of God, and yet, from certain facts and precepts of the Lord of Salvation, we can understand and be closer to this counsel, that she who was betrothed to a man was most powerfully chosen, so that she would give birth to God” (PL 15:1551D-1552D).
2 St. John never visited the Holy Land, as far as we know; he is probably reporting what he has heard about it.
3 The Glossa Ordinaria says, “Having described the various hospitalities of the house, He also teaches the pious what they should do in the cities: share in everything, separate from all society with the impious.” See Blblia sacra cum glossis interlineari et ordinaria et Nicolai Lyrani Postilla… (Venice, 1588), V:152.
Sources: Tercera parte de las obras del padre maestro Juan de Ávila... (Madrid: Pedro Madrigal, 1596), II:161-185.
Obras completas del B. Mtro. Juan de Ávila, ed. Luis Sala Balust (Madrid: La Editorial Católica, S.A., 1953), II:1004-1019.
Translation and Notes ©2024 Brandon P. Otto. Licensed via CC BY-NC. Feel free to redistribute non-commercially, as long as credit is given to the translator.
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