# Verified against Divinum Officium (Monastic Tridentinum 1617), live
# prayMatutinum query (2025-08-18). Matins reading for day 4 of the
# Assumption's own octave -- collapsed into one continuous reading per project
# convention. No English translation exists in the source at all for this
# reading; since it's prose, this English is a translation done for this
# project rather than left missing (2026-08 decision) -- draft, not verified
# against any source. The source's own English translation is used as-is,
# including gaps in its own punctuation (some older "oct"/"bmv"-suffixed
# variant files drop question marks entirely in places) -- not corrected here,
# since guessing where they belong isn't the same class of fix as an isolated
# single-character typo.
id: assumption-octave-day-4
source:
  la: "De Sermone sancti Joannis Damasceni"
  en: "From a Sermon of St. John Damascene"
text:
  la: |
    De Sermone sancti Joannis Damasceni Orat. 2 de Dormitione Deiparæ, n. 18 Ex antíqua accépimus traditióne, quod témpore gloriósæ dormitiónis beátæ Virginis, univérsi quidem sancti Apóstoli, qui orbem terræ ad salútem Géntium peragrábant, moménto témporis in sublíme eláti, convenérunt Jerosólymis. Cumque illic essent, eis vísio appáruit angélica, et audíta est psalmodía cæléstium Potestátum; et sic cum divína glória in manus Dei sanctam trádidit ánimam. Ejus autem corpus, quod Deum ineffábili quadam ratióne suscépit, cum angélica et apostólica hymnodía elátum, in lóculo fuit depósitum Gethsemane; quo in loco Angelórum cantus mansit tres dies contínuos.

    Post tres autem dies angélico cantu cessante, qui áderant Apóstoli (cum unus Thomas, qui abfúerat, post tértium diem venísset, et, quod Deum suscéperat, corpus adoráre voluísset), túmulum aperuérunt; sed omni ex parte sacrum ejus corpus nequáquam inveníre potuérunt. Cum ea autem tantum inveníssent, in quibus fúerat compósitum, et ineffabili, qui ex iis proficiscebátur, essent odóre repléti, lóculum clausérunt. Ejus mystérii obstupefácti miráculo, hoc solum cogitáre potuerunt, quod, cui plácuit ex María Vírgine carnem súmere, et hóminem fíeri et nasci, cum esset Deus Verbum, et Dóminus glóriæ, quique post partum incorrúptam servávit ejus virginitátem; eídem étiam plácuit, et ipsíus, postquam migrávit, immaculátum corpus, incorrúptum servátum, translatióne honoráre ante commúnem et universálem resurrectiónem.

    Aderant tunc cum Apóstolis sanctíssimus Timotheus, primus epíscopus Ephesiórum, et Dionysius Areopagíta, sicut ipse testátur in iis, quæ de beáto Hierótheo, qui ipse quoque tunc áderat, scripsit ad prædíctum Timótheum, sic dicens: Nam étiam apud ipsos a Deo afflátos Sacrórum antístites, quando nos quoque, ut nosti, et multi ex sanctis nostris frátribus, ad contuéndum corpus, quod Vitæ princípium dedit, et Deum suscépit, convenissémus (áderat autem et Dómini frater Jacóbus, et Petrus, supréma et antiquíssima theologórum súmmitas): et viso sacro córpore, plácuit ómnibus, prout quisque póterat, hymnis celebráre infínitam bonitátem divínæ poténtiæ.
  en: |
    We have received from ancient tradition that at the time of the glorious falling-asleep of the Blessed Virgin, all the holy Apostles, who were traveling through the world for the salvation of the nations, were caught up on high in a moment of time and gathered together at Jerusalem. And while they were there, an angelic vision appeared to them, and the psalmody of the heavenly Powers was heard; and thus, with divine glory, she delivered her holy soul into the hands of God. But her body, which had received God in some ineffable manner, was taken up with angelic and apostolic hymnody and laid in a tomb at Gethsemane; in which place the singing of the Angels continued for three whole days.

    But after three days, when the angelic singing had ceased, the Apostles who were present (since Thomas alone, who had been absent, arrived after the third day, and wished to adore the body which had received God) opened the tomb; but nowhere could they find her sacred body at all. And finding only those things in which it had been wrapped, and being filled with the ineffable fragrance that came forth from them, they closed the tomb again. Astonished at the wonder of this mystery, they could think of nothing but this: that he who was pleased to take flesh of the Virgin Mary, and to become man and be born, though he was God the Word and the Lord of glory, and who after her childbearing preserved her virginity incorrupt, was pleased also, after her passing, to honor her spotless body, kept incorrupt, with translation before the common and universal resurrection.

    There were present then with the Apostles the most holy Timothy, first Bishop of the Ephesians, and Dionysius the Areopagite, as he himself testifies in what he wrote to the aforesaid Timothy concerning the blessed Hierotheus, who was likewise present at that time, saying thus: For even among those God-inspired high priests of holy things, when we too, as thou knowest, together with many of our holy brethren, had come together to look upon the body which had given the beginning of Life and had received God (there being present also James, the brother of the Lord, and Peter, the highest and most ancient of theologians): and when the sacred body had been seen, it pleased all, each as he was able, to celebrate with hymns the infinite goodness of the divine power.
responsory:
  la: |
    ℟. Vidi speciósam sicut colúmbam, ascendéntem désuper rivos aquárum, cujus inæstimábilis odor erat nimis in vestiméntis ejus; * Et sicut dies verni circúmdabant eam flores rosárum et lília convállium. ℣. Quæ est ista quæ ascéndit per desértum sicut vírgula fumi ex aromátibus myrrhæ et thuris? ℟. Et sicut dies verni circúmdabant eam flores rosárum et lília convállium.
  en: |
    ℟. I saw her, when, fair like a dove, she winged her flight above the rivers of waters. The priceless savour of her perfumes hung heavy in her garments. * And about her it was as the flower of roses in the spring of the year, and lilies of the valleys. ℣. Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like a pillar of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense? ℟. And about her it was as the flower of roses in the spring of the year, and lilies of the valleys.
status:
  la: verified
  en: draft