Davide's Notes

Tomorrow I'm finally off to Italy to celebrate Christmas with relatives, and there will not be much blogging till January 8 or so. Merry Christmas (Buon Natale), then, to the readers of this blog, with the hope that 2005 is going to be a year of Peace.

But lest anybody thinks this post is out of context in the blog, here's a quote from Tertullian that I arbitrarily apply to Christmas (and Tertullian, by the way, like Irenaeus for that matter, did not include Christmas in his list of feasts):

But "let your works shine," saith He; but now all our shops and gates shine! [...] "The things which are Caesar's are to be rendered to Caesar." It is enough that He set in apposition thereto, "and to God the things which are God's." What things, then, are Caesar's? Those, to wit, about which the consultation was then held, whether the poll-tax should be furnished to Caesar or no. Therefore, too, the Lord demanded that the money should be shown Him, and inquired about the image, whose it was; and when He had heard it was Caesar's, said, "Render to Caesar what are Caesar's, and what are God's to God;" that is, the image of Caesar, which is on the coin, to Caesar, and the image of God, which is on man, to God; so as to render to Caesar indeed money, to God yourself. Otherwise, what will be God's, if all things are Caesar's? "Then," do you say, "the lamps before my doors, and the laurels on my posts are an honour to God?" [...]
Amid these reefs and inlets, amid these shallows and straits of idolatry, Faith, her sails filled by the Spirit of God, navigates; safe if cautious, secure if intently watchful. (On Idolatry, XV.XXIV)