And a circle, great and golden of color, surrounds the head of that same face, since the Catholic faith spread throughout the whole [planet] earth, at the first dawn of an excellent rising splendor, the excellence of abundance of true charity is embraced by every devotion, where God in the humanity of His Son was redeeming man, and was confirming him by the infusion of the Holy Spirit, in such a way that one God may be recognized in Trinity, who without temporal beginning, before time, was God in divinity.
Nathaniel's Translation:
"...because the catholic faith, spread throughout the whole world and rising in the first dawn of exceptional brightness, embraces the excellence of true Love's abundance with every devotion, as when God redeemed man in the humanity of His Son and strengthened man through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. Thus is one God understood in Trinity, who who without temporal beginning, before the ages, was God in divinity."
Et circulus amplus aureique coloris caput eiusdem faciei circumdat, quia fides catholica per totum orbem terrarum diffusa, in prima aurora eximii fulgoris surgens, excellentiam largitatis verae charitatis omni devotione complectitur, ubi Deus in humanitate Filii sui hominem redemit, et per infusionem Spiritus sancti illum confirmavit, ita ut unus Deus in Trinitate cognoscatur, qui sine tempore initii ante aevum Deus in divinitate fuit.
Commentary:
The mystery of God, the mystery of Charity, is revealed to us through humanity - especially the Holy Humanity of the Word made flesh. St. Hildegard's vision, which is of human figures - a human face - speaks of the personal proximity of God to His creation, of Charity at the heart of the spread of the Catholic faith. This faith spread like a wildfire and shines like a golden crown upon the head of Charity, who continues to embrace fallen man. Man is embraced unto salvation in the arms of Christ the redeemer, man is embraced and elevated into the divine life from within by the Holy Spirit. In this way, man is engulfed in God, and the relationship he has with Him bears the mark of eternity. Man finds himself at the center of the inner-life of God, and encounters the eternal loving exchange between the divine persons.
The mystery of Charity is not the mystery of God loving man, or of man loving God - or even of man loving his neighbor or enemy. The mystery of Charity is the mystery of God loving God - and of man being invited into the heart of that love. We love the Father, because the Holy Spirit loves the Father and speaks to Him within us, from places in our spirit deeply beyond our understanding. The Son has healed our hearts, that they may be the way to the Father, that the Spirit may pour through our hearts with divine love for the Father. The contemplation and mystical union with the one God leads us to recognize Him in Trinity.
If I may offer the following alternative for the translation, which hopefully clarifies the complex syntax of Hildegard's exegesis of the circlet:
ReplyDelete"...because the catholic faith, spread throughout the whole world and rising in the first dawn of exceptional brightness, embraces the excellence of true Love's abundance with every devotion, as when God redeemed man in the humanity of His Son and strengthened man through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. Thus is one God understood in Trinity, who who without temporal beginning, before the ages, was God in divinity."
"First Dawn" is a frequent image in Hildegard's visions and refers to irruption of divinity into history in the Incarnation (see, for example, Vision II.1 in Scivias), the apostolic period of the Church that Hildegard uses as a model for reform (e.g. LDO III.5), and the Virgin Mary as matrix of the Incarnation (as in several of the songs in Symphonia).
A final note: aevum has no connection with "Eve" (in Latin, Eva), but is rather the term for "an age" -- it is found, for example, in the English words "primaeval" and "mediaeval" (to use the older, Anglicized spellings), meaning "first age" and "middle age".
As always Nathaniel, a huge thank you for following up with valuable translations and insights! I am very intrigued by the trifold significance of this "First Dawn" image: light of the first day, of the Creation - divine light; light of the first day of the "re-creation" the eighth day, the first day of the Church; and Mary as the dawn of the light of Christ's grace, the Immaculate Conception.
DeleteThank you as well for clarifying the point about "Eve," I will remove it from my translation. I saw it as a possible meaning of the word and didn't want to lose any subtle symbolism that might have been present.