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Objection 1: It would seem that Christ should not have taught all
things openly. For we read that He taught many things to His
disciples apart: as is seen clearly in the sermon at the Supper.
Wherefore He said: "That which you heard in the ear in the chambers
shall be preached on the housetops". Therefore He did not teach all
things openly.
Objection 2: Further, the depths of wisdom should not be expounded
save to the perfect, according to 1 Cor. 2:6: "We speak wisdom
among the perfect." Now Christ's doctrine contained the most
profound wisdom. Therefore it should not have been made known to the
imperfect crowd.
Objection 3: Further, it comes to the same, to hide the truth,
whether by saying nothing or by making use of a language that is
difficult to understand. Now Christ, by speaking to the multitudes a
language they would not understand, hid from them the truth that He
preached; since "without parables He did not speak to them" (Mt.
13:34). In the same way, therefore, He could have hidden it
from them by saying nothing at all.
On the contrary, He says Himself (Jn. 18:20): "In secret
I have spoken nothing."
I answer that, Anyone's doctrine may be hidden in three ways.
First, on the part of the intention of the teacher, who does not wish
to make his doctrine known to many, but rather to hide it. And this
may happen in two ways---sometimes through envy on the part of the
teacher, who desires to excel in his knowledge, wherefore he is
unwilling to communicate it to others. But this was not the case with
Christ, in whose person the following words are spoken (Wis.
7:13): "Which I have learned without guile, and communicate
without envy, and her riches I hide not." But sometimes this
happens through the vileness of the things taught; thus Augustine says
on Jn. 16:12: "There are some things so bad that no sort of
human modesty can bear them." Wherefore of heretical doctrine it is
written (Prov. 9:17): "Stolen waters are sweeter." Now,
Christ's doctrine is "not of error nor of uncleanness" (1 Thess.
2:3). Wherefore our Lord says (Mk. 4:21): "Doth a
candle," i.e. true and pure doctrine, "come in to be put under a
bushel?"
Secondly, doctrine is hidden because it is put before few. And
thus, again, did Christ teach nothing in secret: for He propounded
His entire doctrine either to the whole crowd or to His disciples
gathered together. Hence Augustine says on Jn. 18:20: "How
can it be said that He speaks in secret when He speaks before so many
men? . . . especially if what He says to few He wishes through
them to be made known to many?"
Thirdly, doctrine is hidden, as to the manner in which it is
propounded. And thus Christ spoke certain things in secret to the
crowds, by employing parables in teaching them spiritual mysteries
which they were either unable or unworthy to grasp: and yet it was
better for them to be instructed in the knowledge of spiritual things,
albeit hidden under the garb of parables, than to be deprived of it
altogether. Nevertheless our Lord expounded the open and unveiled
truth of these parables to His disciples, so that they might hand it
down to others worthy of it; according to 2 Tim. 2:2: "The
things which thou hast heard of me by many witnesses, the same command
to faithful men, who shall be fit to teach others." This is
foreshadowed, Num. 4, where the sons of Aaron are commanded to
wrap up the sacred vessels that were to be carried by the Levites.
Reply to Objection 1: As Hilary says, commenting on the passage
quoted, "we do not read that our Lord was wont to preach at night,
and expound His doctrine in the dark: but He says this because His
speech is darkness to the carnal-minded, and His words are night to
the unbeliever. His meaning, therefore, is that whatever He said we
also should say in the midst of unbelievers, by openly believing and
professing it."
Or, according to Jerome, He speaks comparatively---that is to
say, because He was instructing them in Judea, which was a small
place compared with the whole world, where Christ's doctrine was to
be published by the preaching of the apostles.
Reply to Objection 2: By His doctrine our Lord did not make known
all the depths of His wisdom, neither to the multitudes, nor,
indeed, to His disciples, to whom He said (Jn. 16:12):
"I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them
now." Yet whatever things out of His wisdom He judged it right to
make known to others, He expounded, not in secret, but openly;
although He was not understood by all. Hence Augustine says on Jn.
18:20: "We must understand this, 'I have spoken openly to the
world,' as though our Lord had said, 'Many have heard Me' . .
. and, again, it was not 'openly,' because they did not
understand."
Reply to Objection 3: As stated above, our Lord spoke to the
multitudes in parables, because they were neither able nor worthy to
receive the naked truth, which He revealed to His disciples.
And when it is said that "without parables He did not speak to
them," according to Chrysostom (Hom. xlvii in Matth.), we are
to understand this of that particular sermon, since on other occasions
He said many things to the multitude without parables. Or, as
Augustine says (De Qq. Evang., qu. xvii), this means, "not
that He spoke nothing literally, but that He scarcely ever spoke
without introducing a parable, although He also spoke some things in
the literal sense."
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