Benedictus Nursinus, Vita Operaque [Ex Libro Dialogorum Sancti Gregorii Magni Excerpta] / Prolegomena

Tunc in conspectu viri Dei placuit ut in eodem loco terram foderent. Quam dum fodiendo altius pe- netrarent, aereum illic idolum fratres invenerunt. Quo ad horam casu in coquinam projecto, exire ignis repente visus est, atque in cunctorum mona- chorum oculis quia omne ejusdem coquinae aedificium consumeretur ostendit. Cumque Jaciendo aquam, et ignem quasi exstinguendo perstreperent, pulsatus eodem tumultu vir Dei advenit. Qui eumdem ignem in oculis fratrum esse, in suis vero non esse conside- rans, caput protinus in orationem flexit, et eos quos phantastico reperi(??)gne deludi, revocavit fratres, ut oculos suos signarent monuit, ut et sanum b illud coquinae aedificium assistere cernerent, et flammas quas antiquus hostis finxerat, non viderent.

Then, in the sight of the man of God, it was decided that they should dig the ground in that same place. As they went deeper by digging, the brothers found a bronze idol there. When this had been thrown for the moment, as it happened, into the kitchen, fire was suddenly seen to come out, and it appeared to the eyes of all the monks that the whole building of the kitchen was being consumed. And as they made a great noise throwing water and, as it were, putting out the fire, the man of God, roused by the same uproar, came. Perceiving that this fire was in the eyes of the brothers but not in his own, he at once bowed his head in prayer; and the brothers, whom he found deluded by a phantom fire, he called back [to themselves], and warned them to sign their eyes, so that they might both see that kitchen building standing unharmed and not see the flames which the ancient enemy had feigned.

Sed ad ea nunc redeam, quae ejus discipulis in li- bri hujus exordio praedictis referentibus agnovi. Qui- dam vir gravissima adversarii sui aemulatione labo- rabat, cujus ad hoc usque odium prorupit, ut ei ne- scienti in potu venenum daret. d Quod quamvis vitam auferre non valuit, cutis tamen colorem mutavit, ita ut diffu a in corpore ejus varietas leprae morem imitari videretur. Sed ad Dei hominem deductus sa- lutem pristinam citius recepit : nam mox ut eum contigit, omnem cutis illius varietatem fugavit.

But let me now return to the things I learned from the account of his disciples, named at the beginning of this book. A certain man was suffering from the most bitter rivalry of an adversary, whose hatred broke out to such a point that he gave him poison in a drink without his knowing. Though this could not take his life, it nevertheless changed the colour of his skin, so that a mottling spread over his body seemed to imitate the appearance of leprosy. But brought to the man of God, he quickly recovered his former health: for as soon as [Benedict] touched him, he drove away all the mottling of his skin.