Salvete Omnes!
Here's another hymn by Ambrose, the 'Aeterne rerum conditor'. Like the
'Splendor paternae gloriae', it is a hymn for daybreak, and like s.p.g. it
held its position in both the 'old' and 'new' (9th century) hymnals as an
office hymn for Lauds. Here's the first verse:
Aeterne rerum conditor,
noctem diemque qui regis
et temporum das tempora
ut alleves fastidium.
'Eternal creator of things'. 'conditor' is to become a word of some
theological significance. In classical Latin it means a maker, builder,
framer, establisher, founder, author, compiler. The verb 'condo' means to
found (e.g., a city), to make, construct, build.
Augustine has an interesting comment on the word:
Idem est 'condere' quod 'creare'; quamquam in Latinae linguae consuetudine
dicatur aliquando 'creare' pro eo quod est 'gignere'; sed graeca discernit.
Hoc enim dicimus creaturam quod illi 'ktisma' uel 'ktisin' uocant; et cum
sine ambiguitate loqui uolumus non dicimus 'creare' sed 'condere'
For the terms 'fashion' and 'create' mean one and the same thing; although
in the usage of the Latin tongue the phrase 'create' is employed at time
instead of what would be the strictly accurate word, 'beget'. But the Greek
language makes a distinction. For we call that 'creatura' (creature) which
they call 'ktisma' or 'ktisis'; and when we desire to speak without
ambiguity, we use not the word 'creare' (create), but the word 'condere'
(fashion, found).
(Augustine, De fide et symbolo, 5. Translation from Nicene & Post Nicene
Fathers, 1st series, vol 3, p. 324)
Augustine is searching for clarity particularly in relation to the Arians,
who were saying that the Son was a 'creature' of the Father. The ambiguity
of the terms 'creator, creare' gave some colour to their opinion. 'Creator'
can mean 'begetter'; Ovid uses it to mean 'Father' (Metamorphoses, 8,309).
'Creatrix' regularly means 'mother'. There were obviously occasions in
which it was better to avoid 'creator' in favour of 'conditor'.
'who rule the night and day,
and give - how would we translate 'temporum tempora', lit. 'times of times'?
- how about 'times and seasons'
that you may alleviate 'fastidium' - loathing, distaste, disgust - i.e. the
monotony one would suffer if there were no interchange of night and day and
the seasons of the year.
It seems to me that Ambrose has in mind Genesis 1:14, 'Dixit autem Deus:
Fiant luminaria in firmamento caeli, et dividant diem ac noctem, et sint in
signa et tempora, et dies et annos.'
- And God said, let there be lights in the firmament of heaven, and let them
divide day from night, and let them be for signs and seasons, and days and
years.
More tomorrow. The Supple Doctor.
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