eaven," He refused, as Matthew relates (12, 16).
Therefore it seems that neither in His death should He have worked
any miracles in the heavenly bodies.

_On the contrary,_ It is written (Luke 23:44, 45): "There was
darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour; and the sun was
darkened."

_I answer that,_ As stated above (Q. 43, A. 4) it behooved Christ's
miracles to be a sufficient proof of His Godhead. Now this is not so
sufficiently proved by changes wrought in the lower bodies, which
changes can be brought about by other causes, as it is by changes
wrought in the course of the heavenly bodies, which have been
established by God alone in an unchangeable order. This is what
Dionysius says in his epistle to Polycarp: "We must recognize that no
alteration can take place in the order end movement of the heavens
that is not caused by Him who made all and changes all by His word."
Therefore it was fitting that Christ should work miracles even in the
heavenly bodies.

Reply Obj. 1: Just as it is natural to the lower bodies to be moved
by the heavenly bodies, which are higher in the order of nature, so
is it natural to any creature whatsoever to be changed by God,
according to His will. Hence Augustine says (Contra Faust. xxvi;
quoted by the gloss on Rom. 11:24: "Contrary to nature thou wert
grafted," etc.): "God, the Creator and Author of all natures, does
nothing contrary to nature: for whatsoever He does in each thing,
that is its nature." Consequently the nature of a heavenly body is
not destroyed when God changes its course: but it would be if the
change were due to any other cause.

Reply Obj. 2: The order of the seasons was not disturbed by the
miracle worked by Christ. For, according to some, this gloom or
darkening of the sun, which occurred at the time of Christ's passion,
was caused by the sun withdrawing its rays, without any change in the
movement of the heavenly bodies, which measures the duration of the
seasons. Hence Jerome says on Matt. 27:45: "It seems as though the
'greater light' withdrew its rays, lest it should look on its Lord
hanging on the Cross, or bestow its radiancy on the impious
blasphemers." And this withdrawal of the rays is not to be understood
as though it were in the sun's power to send forth or withdraw its
rays: for it sheds its light, not from choice, but by nature, as
Dionysius says (Div. Nom. iv). But the sun is said to withdraw its
rays in so far as the Divine power caused t