Tiago 2
Hilary of Arles · Comentário Patrístico (catena)
Tiago 2:2
What James says here applies not just to rings but to any sign of wealth, for the ring is meant to stand for a treasure house of riches. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:5
Some people say that this is meant to be a comfort to the poor whohave been thrown out of the houses of the rich or who dwell in inferior accommodations. Even if they are poor in material things, they may be rich in faith. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:7
This is the name of the God of Israel, which was invoked on your behalf in Egypt, as well as in your baptism. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:8
"Love your neighbor" means three different things. The first is corporal, that is, the literal sense of the words. The second is spiritual, according to which we love those close to us even though we may be absent from them. The third is contemplative, by which love itself is beheld. But we have to understand that one leads to another. The corporal inspires us to go on to the spiritual, and that in turn lifts us up to the contemplative. The spiritual may sometimes regress to the merely corporal, but the contemplative never fails us. The corporal and spiritual forms of love are common to human beings and have analogies in animals, but the contemplative is reserved for humans alone. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:9
It is a sin to show any class distinction among persons, for the law says: "You shall not be partial in judgment, you shall hear the small and the great alike." Jesus confirmed this when he said: "Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment." — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:11
Why does James choose these two commandments as his examples? Because they are the ones which deal most closely with loving and with hating one's neighbors. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:12
By the New Testament law everyone is born again, free and equal with one another. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:13
If you are merciful and lenient to the poor in your judgment, you will have nothing to fear from the judgment of God. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:15
These are the words of faith, spoken to those who know that there is only one God, who is the Father of all his children. True love has two sides to it—help for the body and help for the soul. Here James concentrates on the first of these because he is speaking especially to those who are rich. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:17
Works give life to faith, faith gives life to the soul, and the soul gives life to the body. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:19
Those who believe but who do not fear God are even worse than the devils. And those who believe and tremble but who do not practice what they preach are just like the devils. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES
Tiago 2:21
When Abraham went up the mountain to sacrifice Isaac, he took four things with him—a sword, fire, a heavy heart and a pile of wood. What does the fire stand for if not the suffering of Christ? What does the sword signify, if not death? What does the wood indicate, if not the cross? And what is the importance of Abraham's heavy heart, if it does not stand for the compassion of the Father and the angels as they beheld the death of Christ? Isaac was an earthly type of Christ and was offered up for us all. According to tradition this occurred on 25 March, the day on which the world was created, the day on which the last judgment will occur. The place where it happened was none other than the one which God would later choose for the site of his temple on Mount Zion, which is so called because Zion means "mirror of life," for it was there that Abraham saw as in a mirror the life which was to be revealed in the New Testament. — INTRODUCTORY TRACTATE ON THE LETTER OF JAMES