Chapter 30: On days

5. The days are named from the gods (_dii_) whose names the Romans bestowed on certain heavenly bodies. They named the first day from Sol, which is the chief of the heavenly bodies just as this same day is the chief of all the days.

6. The second they named from Luna, which is next to Sol in splendor and size and borrows its light from it. The third they named from the star of Mars, which is called Pyrois; the fourth, from the star of Mercurius, which certain ones name Stilbon.

7. The fifth, from the star of Jupiter, which they call Phaeton; the sixth, from the star of Venus, which they call Lucifer, which has more light than all the other stars.

The seventh day, from the star of Saturnus, which being placed in the seventh heaven is said to complete its course in thirty years. And the heathen gave names to the days from the seven stars because they thought that some influence was active upon themselves through the same [stars], saying that they had life (_spiritus_) from Sol, body from Luna, ability and eloquence from Mercurius, pleasure from Venus, blood from Mars, self-control (_temperantia_) from Jupiter, and the humors from Saturn. Such indeed was the folly of the heathen who created such ridiculous imaginations. But among the Hebrews the first day is called _una Sabbati_, which among us is _dies Dominicus_, which the heathen have dedicated to Sol. The second day of the week is _secunda Sabbati_, which the heathen call _dies Lunae_; the third day of the week, _tertia Sabbati_, which they call _dies Martis_; the fourth day of the week, _quarta Sabbati_, which is called _Mercurii dies_ by the pagans; the fifth day of the week, _quinta Sabbati_, that is, fifth day from _dies Dominicus_, which among the heathen is called _dies Jovis_: the sixth day of the week, _sexta Sabbati_, which is called by them _dies Veneris_. The seventh from _dies Dominicus_ is _Sabbatum_, which the gentiles have devoted to Saturnus and have named _dies Saturni_. Sabbatum is translated from the Hebrew into the Latin as _requies_, because God rested on that day from all his works.

The ecclesiastical method of speaking the names of the days comes better from the lips of Christians; still, if custom should perchance influence anyone so that what he disapproves of in his heart comes forth from his mouth, let him know that all those from whom these days were named were men, and on account of certain services of a human sort (_mortalia_), since they were very powerful and were prominent in this world, divine honors were bestowed on them by their admirers, both in respect to the days and the stars, but first the stars were named after men and then the days were named after the stars.