The Life of Mary as Seen by the Mystics Page 18

  Jesus Himself planned all the details of the wedding festivities, deliberately combining serious considerations and spiritual instruction with the various entertainments. When He announced the program for the next few days, He explained that the guests were free to enjoy themselves in the traditional festive ways, but that they should also grow in wisdom as a result of their recreation.

  On the second day after His arrival, all of the guests—the men on one side and the women on the other—went out to a lovely meadow in which there were trees and a stream. Some of the guests walked up and down, talking together, while others played various games. Jesus organized a game in which the men, sitting in a circle on the ground, tossed different fruits to one another according to certain rules. As He watched them play, His expression was one of friendly seriousness, and several times He said a few well-chosen words which made a deep impression on the men and aroused their admiration. Later He distributed the prizes to the winners with fitting individual comments.

  While the younger guests competed at running and catching fruits tied to the branches of the trees, in another part of the field the women were playing a game with fruits as prizes, which the Blessed Virgin watched, sitting between the bride and the aunt of the groom.

  That evening Jesus preached in the temple before all the guests, who now numbered over one hundred. He spoke of pleasures which are permissible, of the motives with which one might indulge in them, of their limitations, and of the caution and restraints that must accompany them. Then He spoke of marriage, of the mutual obligations of husband and wife, of continence and chastity, and also of spiritual marriage. When He was through and all the guests had left, the bride and groom remained with Him, and He gave them some private instructions.

  Later in the evening, after a banquet, there was a dance. First the young couple danced alone, and then some of the guests joined them in a series of calm, rhythmical movements by which they formed various figures. None of the future Apostles took part, nor did the married women, but some of the disciples did. The whole atmosphere was one of quiet and restrained gaiety and good cheer.

  The wedding ceremony took place at nine o’clock the next morning. The bride was dressed and adorned by her maids and companions. Her costume was very similar to the one which Mary had worn on her wedding day. She also had a crown, but it was more richly decorated.

  In the solemn and colorful procession from the house of the bride to the temple, the young couple was accompanied by children carrying floral wreaths and playing musical instruments, as well as by all their relatives and guests. The ceremony was performed by the priests at the entrance to the temple. The Blessed Virgin had already presented the two rings to Jesus for His blessing, and now she gave them to the bride and groom, who exchanged the rings. The chief priest, taking up a sharp instrument, lightly cut the pair’s ring fingers and let flow into a cup filled with wine two drops of the groom’s blood and one of the bride’s. After the couple had drunk the wine, they destroyed the cup. After the ceremony clothes and other objects were distributed to the many poor persons who had gathered to see the wedding. And when the newly married couple returned to the festival hall, Jesus Himself welcomed them and said to them and to all the guests: “The Peace of the Lord and His Light be with you!”

  Before the banquet, Jesus organized another remarkable game for the men in the garden. He placed various flowers, plants, and fruits around a large table on which there was a pointer that rotated on a pivot until it stopped before the prize of the person who had twirled it. In this game which the men now began to play, nothing occurred by mere chance. Each prize somehow had a definite significance related to the qualities and faults of its winner. And as each of the players in turn won his particular prize, Jesus made a brief and profound comment. Yet the personal application of His words was grasped only by the man to whom they were directed. The others found in them merely some broadly edifying teaching. But the individual himself was deeply moved and felt that Jesus had indeed seen into the most secret thoughts of his heart and conscience.

  When the bridegroom won a very striking exotic fruit, Jesus spoke about marriage, chastity, and the hundredfold fruit which purity produces. And as the Master handed him his prize, the young man was stirred to the depths of his soul. He turned pale and, without anyone noticing it, he underwent a mystical purification in which he was supernaturally liberated from the unclean lusts of the flesh. At the same time the bride, who was sitting among the women at some distance, had a fainting spell and experienced something similar, while the Blessed Virgin held her in her arms and helped her to revive. Thereafter both the boy and the girl seemed definitely brighter and purer in appearance. The other disciples, after they had eaten the fruit which they won, felt their predominant passion awake and struggle for mastery within them, but when they used their will power and resisted the impulse, they conquered it and thereby became greatly strengthened against future temptations.

  When the game was over, everyone went in to the wedding feast in a spacious hall with three long, narrow tables at which the guests reclined, the women remaining apart from the men. Jesus had the seat of honor at the head of the middle table, with the relatives of the married couple. The groom served his guests, assisted by the steward and several servants, while his wife and some maids served the women.

  When the bridegroom brought the carving knife to Jesus, the Master reminded him that at the banquet when they were boys, after the Finding in the Temple, He had predicted that He would attend the youth’s wedding. The young husband now became very thoughtful as he recalled what Jesus had said then, for he had completely forgotten this incident of his childhood.

  Jesus gave the guests an instructive talk while carving the lamb. He spoke of the lamb being separated from the flock and led to be killed. Then He explained how, in the process of roasting, the flesh was purified by fire. The carving up of the parts, He said, symbolized the way in which the followers of the Lamb of God must leave those to whom they are attached by bonds of flesh and blood. While distributing the pieces of meat to the guests, who were eagerly listening to His instructions, He said that just as the lamb had been taken from its companions and had been put to death in order to provide food for many persons, so too he who wished to follow the Lamb of God must leave his home and neighborhood and family, and put his passions to death, for then he could become, through the Lamb of God, a source of spiritual food by which he could unite his fellow men with one another and with the Father of all in heaven.

  Throughout the banquet, as during the whole wedding celebration, Jesus was very cheerful, while taking every opportunity to give the guests helpful instruction. He also spoke about relaxations and pleasure at social gatherings, remarking that a bow must not remain bent all the time and that the soil must from time to time be refreshed by rain.

  During the festivities the Blessed Virgin had spoken only when she was asked a question or when it was really necessary. At all times she gave a good example to the women around her by remaining perfectly recollected and composed. In her Son’s presence she listened attentively to all that He said, and then she meditated on His words.

  During the banquet Jesus and His Mother ate some of the food, though with great moderation and without showing outwardly their unusual abstinence. Then, as the second course, consisting of bird meat, fish, honey, fruit, and pastry, was being served, Mary noticed that there was no more wine. She therefore immediately went to Jesus, who was instructing the guests, and whispered to Him:

  “They have no wine.”

  She also reminded Him that He had promised to supply the wine.

  The divine Saviour, who had just been speaking of His heavenly Father, replied aloud, with calm and loving, yet impersonal majesty:

  “What is that to you and to Me, Woman? My hour has not yet come.”

  Then Mary understood that Jesus was waiting for His eternal Father’s permission to perform His first great public miracle. Feeling entirely relieved of her anxi
ety for the guests, and trusting that Almighty God would reveal the Lord’s power at the right moment, she went to the worried servants and said to them with quiet modesty and confidence:

  “Do whatever He tells you.”

  Then, having done her part as intercessor for others, the Mother of God humbly returned to her place among the women.

  A moment later Jesus told the waiters to bring the water jars to Him and to turn them upside down. The servants brought in six large, stone jars which were so heavy when full that two men had to carry them. That they were now empty was evident when they were turned upside down. Then Jesus said to the waiters:

  “Fill the jars with water.”

  When the six jars, filled to the brim with water, were brought back from the well in a nearby cellar, Jesus arose, went to them, and blessed them. Then, returning to His seat at the table, He said to the servants:

  “Draw out now and take to the chief steward.”

  The men did as He commanded. When the chief steward, who had been absent from the hall momentarily and did not know where they had obtained the wine, drank what St. John, an eyewitness, called “the water after it had become wine,” he went to the bridegroom and exclaimed in surprise: “Every man first sets forth the good wine, and when they have drunk freely, then that which is poorer in quality. But you have kept the good wine until now!”

  When the bridegroom and the bride’s father tasted the miraculous wine, they too were amazed, for the servants were insisting that they had just filled the jars with nothing but water from the well. Then all the guests drank the new wine and fell silent from awe and reverence as they realized that they had indeed witnessed a striking miracle wrought by the Master, Jesus of Nazareth.

  Now the Saviour gave them a long talk on the deeper significance of what had taken place. Among other things He said that the world gives the strong wine first and then the poorer, but it was not so in the Kingdom of His Father. There pure water was changed into excellent wine, to demonstrate that negligence and lukewarmness should give place to love and zeal. He mentioned the party in His honor when He was twelve years old, which many of His present listeners had attended as His childhood friends. He reminded them that He had spoken then of bread and wine and of a wedding at which the water of lukewarmness would be changed into the wine of love and enthusiasm. All those promises, He said, had now been fulfilled. And He predicted that they would witness still greater miracles, that He would celebrate several Passovers with them and at the last one He would change bread and wine into His flesh and blood, and thus He would remain with them until the end, to strengthen and to console them. And He added that after that Last Supper they would see things happen to Him which they would not even believe if He revealed them now.

  All the men and women listening to Jesus were filled with awe and wonder. They were utterly changed in their attitude toward Him as a result of the miracle which they had witnessed and also due to the extraordinary qualities of the miraculous wine. As St. John observed, Jesus had “manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.”

  His new followers and His relatives were now suddenly convinced of His power, His dignity, and His divine mission. Henceforth they believed with firm faith that Jesus was indeed the promised Messiah.

  At the same time they had become better men and women, more devout and more united among themselves. Thus by performing this miracle on the first occasion when His closest future Apostles and disciples were gathered together, Jesus had succeeded in strengthening their faith in His leadership and their willingness to follow Him.

  After the banquet the young bridegroom went to Jesus and spoke to Him very humbly in private. He said that he now felt himself dead to all carnal desires, and that if his bride consented, he wished to live in continence with her. His wife then came to Jesus and said the same thing.

  The Master took them both aside and spoke to them about marriage and chastity in terms of sowing and reaping supernatural merit. He explained the rich fruit of the life of the spirit and mentioned the prophets and saints who had lived in continence and made of their bodies a pleasing sacrifice to the Father in heaven. Thus they had brought many sinners back to God and had inspired numerous followers who in turn formed holy spiritual families and communities.

  The young bride and groom now decided to take a vow of continence, and they resolved to live as brother and sister for three years. Then they knelt before our Lord, and He gladly gave them His blessing.

  The Wedding at Cana

  XXVI

  Mary During the Public Ministry

  hen Jesus and Mary returned to their home in Capernaum after the wedding at Cana, the Saviour explained to His Mother in a long talk one evening that His time had come and that He planned to leave for Judea and to celebrate the Pasch in Jerusalem. Then He would call His Apostles to join Him and would preach still more openly. Consequently, He predicted, He would be persecuted and His enemies would stir up opposition to Him in Judea and Galilee. Then Jesus described to Mary the principal events of His public ministry and explained how she and the other women were to co-operate in it.

  The Blessed Virgin wept at the thought of the great dangers to which her Son would be exposed on account of the intense feeling which His recent teaching and miracles were arousing among His enemies, for she had been informed of all the rumors and slanders that were being circulated against Him by persons who would not dare to utter them in His presence.

  That evening the Saviour also gave a talk in the Synagogue of Capernaum, in which He explained the story of Elias and the rain cloud in terms of the coming of the Messiah bringing new life to all who accepted His teaching. He declared that whoever was thirsty could now drink and whoever had prepared his field could now receive refreshing rain. He spoke so impressively that all His listeners, and especially Mary and the holy women, were moved to tears.

  A few days later Jesus traveled to Jerusalem with some of His first disciples. The women went there separately, and the Blessed Virgin stayed in the house of Mary Mark, the mother of one of the disciples. It was at this time that the Saviour first drove the merchants from the Temple. During these eight days Jesus hardly saw His Mother, for He was staying with Lazarus in Bethany outside the city. Mary did not go out, but spent her time praying for her Son, as the evil intentions of His enemies alarmed her.

  In fact, after the Sabbath the Pharisees decided to arrest Jesus, and they went to seize Him in Mary Mark’s home. But when they found only His Mother and the holy women there, they rudely insulted them and ordered them to leave the town. Deeply troubled by this harsh treatment, the Blessed Virgin and the other women fled to the sisters of Lazarus in Bethany. Soon afterward they returned to Galilee.

  The Saviour visited His Mother briefly in Capernaum on His way northward to Tyre and Sidon. And during His absence Mary received visits from the holy women and some of the disciples, who brought her news of her Son. Several times she refused to see persons from Nazareth and Jerusalem whose only motive was curiosity. A very old servant woman was living with the Blessed Virgin, but she was so weak that Mary had to serve and take care of her. The house which they occupied was very much like its neighbors and quite roomy. They were hardly ever alone now that this home had become the Master’s headquarters. The Mother of God did not own any land or cattle, and she was supported by the gifts of her friends. Besides the many hours that she spent in prayer, she worked at sewing, spinning, and knitting with small wooden needles. She did her own housework, and she often instructed and encouraged the other women.

  At this time Mary was very youthful looking, tall, and delicately built. Her forehead was very high, her nose rather long, and her eyes quite large and usually downcast. Her lips were a beautiful red, while her complexion seemed rather dark, yet lovely, and there was a light, natural rose tint in her cheeks. She far surpassed all the other women in her unique heavenly beauty, for, although some of them may have had certain external features that were more striking, the Blessed Mother
of God outshone them all because of her indescribable simplicity, modesty, sincerity, kindness, and gentleness. She was so entirely pure in soul and body that she reflected in a marvelous way the image of God in His creature. The only person whom she resembled at all in her bearing was her divine Son. The expression of her features revealed her innocence, gravity, wisdom, peace, and holiness. Her whole appearance was one of true sanctity and nobility, and yet she also seemed like a simple child. She was always serious and very quiet, and often very pensive. Even when she wept, her grief did not spoil the loveliness of her features, for the tears just flowed softly down her calm face.

  When Jesus returned to Capernaum alone, having sent His disciples ahead, Lazarus came out to meet Him and washed His feet in the vestibule of Mary’s house. As the Master entered the big central room, the men bowed low before Him. He greeted them and went up to His Mother, holding out His hand to her. She also bowed humbly and lovingly. Since He had begun His public ministry, she treated Jesus as a mother might treat a son who was a great prophet or ruler. She never embraced Him in public now, but only extended her hand when He offered His. When they were alone, however, Jesus always embraced Mary upon arriving or leaving. But in the presence of others they treated each other with such restrained and holy affection that everyone who saw them was deeply touched. Next the Saviour greeted the other women, who sank onto their knees before Him, as He gave His blessing to all who were there. Then He calmed the fears of His disciples who were greatly disturbed by the recent arrest of John the Baptist.