ACC ~ Matthew 10 v5

AVOID THE UNENLIGHTENED

HILARY: They are warned to avoid the ways of the Gentiles, not because they were never going to be sent for the salvation of the Gentiles, but because they were to avoid the works and lifestyle of the unenlightened Gentiles. They were forbidden to enter the towns of the Samaritans. Yet, did he not cure the Samaritan woman? They were warned, moreover, not to go into the assemblies of heretics. [1] For heterodoxy does not differ at all from unenlightenment. Therefore they were being sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, who raged against him with the tongues and jaws of wolves and vipers. At any rate, the law was due to receive the special benefit of the gospel. The less excuse Israel had for its ungodly behavior, the more zeal it might have in heeding the warning. ON MATTHEW 10.3. [2]

[1] The Samaritans named in the Gospels are symbolic of heretics.

[2] SC 254:218.

GO NOWHERE AMONG THE GENTILES

JEROME: This passage is not contrary to the command given later: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” The former command was given before the resurrection and the latter after the resurrection. It was necessary to announce Christ’s first coming to the Jews, lest they have a good excuse for saying that the Lord rejected them because he had sent the apostles to the Gentiles and the Samaritans. In line with the metaphor, we who call ourselves Christians are advised not to walk in the ways of the Gentiles and heretics, for they have not only a separate religion but also a separate way of life. COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW 1.10.5-6. [1]

[1] CCL 77:65.

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