For he had reached such purity
that his flesh was in remarkable harmony
with his spirit
and his spirit with God.
As a result God ordained
that creation which serves its Maker
should be subject in an extraordinary way
to his will and command.

¹⁰ For, at another time when the servant of God was suffering from a severe illness at the hermitage of Sant'Urbano, he was feeling the weakness of his nature, and requested a drink of wine. He was told that there was no wine that they could give him; so he ordered some water and when it was brought, he blessed it with the sign of the cross. At once what had been brought as pure water became excellent wine; and what the poverty of a deserted place could not provide, the purity of the holy man obtained.

At its taste,
he immediately recovered with such ease,
that the newness of taste
and the renewal of health,
supernaturally renewing the tasted and the taster,
confirmed by a twofold witness,
that he had perfectly stripped away the old man
and put on the new.

¹¹ Not only did creation serve God's servant
at his nod,
but even the Creator's providence condescended everywhere
to his pleasure.

For one time when his body was weighed down by many forms of illness, he had a desire to hear some music to arouse the joy of his spirit. But since it seemed inappropriate that this should be done by a human ministry, the deference of angels came to indulge the holy man's pleasure. One night, as he was keeping vigil and meditating about the Lord, suddenly a lute was playing some wonderful harmony and a very sweet melody. No one was seen, but the changes in his hearing suggested that the lute player was moving back and forth from one place to another. With his spirit turned to God, there was such delight in that sweet sounding song, that he thought he had exchanged this world for the other.

 Previous

Next 

¹¹Quia enim ad tantam pervenerat puritatem,
ut caro spiritui
et spiritus Deo harmonia
mirabili concordarent,
divina ordinatione fiebat,
ut creatura Factori suo deserviens,
voluntati et imperio eius
mirabiliter subiaceret.

10 ¹Alio enim tempore, apud eremum sancti Urbani servo Dei aegritudine gravissima laborante, cum ipse naturae defectum sentiens, vini poculum postulasset, nihilque de vino, quod sibi dari posset, responderetur adesse, iussit aquam afferri et allatam, signo crucis edito benedixit. ²Mox vinum efficitur optimum quod fuerat aqua pura, et quod deserti loci paupertas non potuit, viri sancti puritas impetravit.

³Ad eius gustum
tanta protinus facilitate convaluit,
ut saporis novitas
et innovatio sanitatis,
gustabile ac gustantem supernaturaliter innovantes,
perrectam in ipso exspoliationem veteris hominis
et induitionem novi duplici attestatione firmarent.

11 ¹Non solum creatura servo Dei serviebat
ad nutum,
sed et Creatoris ubique providentia condescendebat
ad placitum.

²Cum enim tempore quodam, ex multarum infirmitatum concursu aggravato corpore, ad iucunditatem spiritus excitandam alicuius audiendi soni harmonici desiderium habuisset, nec id honestatis decentia per ministerium fieri pateretur humanum, affuit Angelorum obsequium ad viri sancti placitum adimplendum. ³Nocte etenim quadam, vigilante ipso et meditante de Domino, repente insonuit cithara quaedam, harmoniae mirabilis et suavissimae melodiae. ⁴Non videbatur aliquis, sed transitum et reditum citharoedi ipsa hinc inde auditus volubilitas innuebat. ⁵Spiritu in Deum directo tanta fuit in illo dulcisono carmine suavitate perfruitus, ut aliud se putaret saeculum commutasse.