After the 3rd Lect. r. Then said Jesus unto them plainly,* Lazarus is dead; and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless, let us go unto him.—v. He was beloved of God, so that, living among sinners, he was translated.* Lazarus is dead, &c.-John, xi.; Wisd. iv. IN THE SECOND NOCTURN. Ant. When Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already.— John, xi. Ant. Many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother.-John, xi. Ant. Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him, but Mary sat in the house.-John, xi. v. Mine eyes fail for thy word, -r. saying, when wilt thou comfort me?-Ps. cxix. SERMON OF THE ABBOT S. BERNARD. LECTIO IV. Let not bodily exercise alone be found in us, which profiteth little, but godliness rather, which is profitable unto all things and spiritual exercise. A woman named Martha received Jesus into her house, and she had a sister, named Mary. They are sisters, and, as is meet, both dwelling together. The one is taken up with much serving; the other is intent on the words of the Lord. The adorning of the house is Martha's, but the fulness is Mary's. For in a heart open to receive him, and empty of all things else, there is fulness. But to whom shall we attribute cleansing? For, in a house where the Saviour is received, there must be cleansing, and adorning, and fulness. If it seems good to you let us assign this to Lazarus. Forasmuch as the house is common to him with his sisters, in the rights of brotherly union. He it is who, when he had been dead four days, and when it was said of him, " by this time he stinketh," the voice of divine energy raises from the dead, so that it would not be unsuitable that he should sustain the character of the Penitent. Let the Saviour enter the house, and often visit the same, which the penitent Lazarus cleanseth, which Martha adorneth, and Mary filleth, being given up and devoted to divine contemplation. r. Martha said unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died, but I know that even now* whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.v. Hear my prayer, O Lord, and with thine ears consider my calling; hold not thy peace at my tears,* whatsoever thou wilt ask, &c.-John, xi.; Ps. xxxix. LECTIO V. Martha receiveth the Saviour into her house on earth; Mary considereth rather how she may be received by him into that house, not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. Mary is silent, and Christ speaketh for her. "Mary," he saith, "hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her." That one thing which is needful. That one thing which the prophet so earnestly desired. "One thing," saith he, "have I desired of the Lord, which I will require." But let us consider, my brethren, how these three things are arranged in the order of charity: the serving is Martha's, contemplation is Mary's, and repentance is the part of Lazarus. The soul which is perfect will have in itself the union of the three; yet each of these may more particularly appertain to different persons, that some should be given up to sacred contemplation, others should be engaged in a brother's service, while others, in the bitterness of their souls, recollect the years that are past, like them that are wounded and lie in the grave. The part and duty of each is plain-that Mary should think of God with piety and sublime affections, Martha of her neignbour with kind services and compassion, Lazarus of himself with self-abasement and lowliness of heart. r. Jesus saith unto Martha, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha said unto him,* I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.. -v. In the hand of the Lord is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind. I know that he shall rise again, &c.-John, xi.; Job, xii. LECTIO VI. * They to whom no dispensation is intrusted, no service committed, they must all sit down either at the feet of Jesus, with Mary, or with Lazarus, within the precincts of the tomb. What if Martha be careful and troubled about many things, yet to thee, on whom no such necessity is imposed, one of two things is needful: either that thou be not troubled at all, and have thy delight in God, or, if thou art unequal to this, that thy trouble and care be not about many things; but (as the prophet speaketh of himself) about thyself alone. But it is requisite that Martha, too, should be admonished, that what is chiefly required among stewards is that one be found faithful. This fidelity will consist in her not seeking the things which are her own, but those which are Christ Jesus'; so will her intention be pure and single, in doing not her own will, but that of the Lord; so will her conduct be rightly regulated. Let Mary take care that she may have a heart, without distraction, to see how gracious the Lord is. Let her take care that it be with a devout spirit and a tranquil mind, that she sits at the feet of Jesus, setting him ever before her, seeing him, and receiving instruction from his mouth, whose aspect is full of delight, and full of grace his words. Rejoice thou, and give thanks, Mary, who hast chosen the good part! Blessed are the eyes which see what thou seest, and blessed are the ears to which it is given to hear what thou hearest! Yea, blessed art thou who perceivest the gentle whisperings of the divine voice, in that silence in which it is good that man should wait for his God! r. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God, which should come into the world.- —-v. Thou, O Lord, hast power of life and death, thon leadest to the gates of hell, and bringest up again.*—Thou art, &c.-John, xi.; Wisd. xvi. IN THE THIRD NOCTURN. Ant. Martha went her way, and called Mary, her sister, secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee.-John, xi. Ant. Mary, as soon as she heard it, arose quickly, and came unto him.-John, xi. Ant. The Jews which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary that she rose up hastily and went out, followed her.-John, xi. v. O come hither and behold the works of the Lord—r. What wonders he hath wrought upon the earth.-Ps. xlvi. Lectio from the Gospel according to St. John. LECTIO VII. Cap. xi. Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus. Et reliqua. Homily of St. John Chrysostom. Many, when they see good men fall into some calamity, such as sickness, poverty, or the like, are troubled at it, and do not consider that this is very consistent with their being friends of God. For Lazarus was a friend of Christ's, and he was sick; the very words of those who went were-" Behold, he whom thou lovest is sick." And the evangelist relates that he had loved his sisters also, and yet he permitted Lazarus to die. Let us never be offended, or take it ill, if men of piety and the friends of God fall into sickness. "Behold, he whom thou lovest is sick!" They wished to excite the pity of Christ; for as yet they thought him to be man, as their words would indicate" If thou hadst been here he would not have died." And what is Christ's reply? "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified thereby.' Observe how, again, he speaks of his own glory, and that of the Father as the same "This sickness is not unto death." When he had stayed there two days, he sends them with this answer. On this account we may wonder that the sisters, when they heard that it was not unto death, and perceived that the event was otherwise, were not offended. But they drew near unto him, nor did they think that he had not spoken the truth. r. When Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him,* Lord, if thou hadst been here my brother had not died.v. My tears have been my meat day and night; while they daily say unto me, where is now thy God? Lord, if thou hadst been here, &c.-John, xi.; Ps. xlii. LECTIO VIII. Many of the Jews were present to comfort Mary and Martha. This the evangelist mentions in confirmation of Lazarus' death. But why does Martha come to meet Christ without her sister accompanying her? She wishes to see him apart, and to mention what had occurred. But after that Christ had given her a good hope, she then goes and calls Mary, and she finds her in the height of her grief. She it is of whom He had said, "Mary hath chosen the good part." How is it, therefore, you will say, that Martha now appears the more zealous. It is not that she is so, but that the other had not been acquainted with his coming; for Martha was the weaker sister. For when she had heard such and so many things, she still says, By this time he stinketh, for he has been buried four days." But Mary, before she heard anything, or spoke anything of this sort, at once believing, says, "Lord, if thou hadst been here my brother would not have died.' Behold the great philosophy of the women, notwithstanding the weakness of their minds; for, on seeing Christ, they do not break forth into grief, and wailing, and groans, as we are wont to do when we see any of our acquaintance coming to condole with us; but they immediately revere their Lord. For they both believed in Christ, though not aright; for they did not as yet perfectly understand, neither that he was God, nor that he did these things by his own independent authority and power, both of which he taught them. r. Jesus, when he saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, and said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see.v. Man dieth and wasteth away, yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? *Lord, come and see.-John, xi.; Job, xiv. LECTIO IX. He came, therefore, to the sepulchre, and saith, Take away the stone. Why did he not call him while yet absent, and bid him arise? Or why did he not now, before the stone was removed, call him forth?-for he who could move the dead body by his voice, and shew him alive, much more could he have moved the stone by his word; he who could cause that one who was wrapped and bound in grave-clothes should walk, with much more ease could he have removed the stone. Why did he not so? That he might make them all witnesses of the miracle, lest they might say, as they did of the blind man, this is he, this is not he. Their own hands, and their coming to the sepulchre, might be a testimony to them that it was the same. If they had not come thither, they might have thought either that it was a phantom, or that it was another person that they saw. But now they had come to the grave and removed the stone, and loosed the bands, and his friends, who brought him out of the grave, recognised him. His sisters were there, and one of them said, "by this time he stinketh, for he hath been dead four days." Now all these things were abundantly sufficient to have retained the most unbelieving as witnesses of the miracles. Therefore he commanded them to remove the stone, shewing that he himself would raise him. Therefore, also, he asked "Where have ye laid him," that they who said-" Come and see," and they who led him thither, might acknowledge that it was the same person that he had raised. the voice and the hand might bear testimony, the voice that said "Come and see" the hand that removed the stone and loosed the grave-clothes. Yea, the sight and the hearing bear testimony; the latter, which perceived the voice; the former, which witnessed his coming forth. Yea, the sense of smell also bears testimony; " by this time he stinketh," saith she, "for he is dead four days;" for it was a stupendous miracle to raise to life a dead body after four days, and in a state of corruption. That r. Jesus wept. Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him.v. A friend loveth at all times; and a brother is born for adversity. Behold how he loved him.-John, xi. ; Prov. xvii. AT THE LAUDS. Ant. Jesus cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, take away the stone.-John, xi. Ant. Martha saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh, for he hath been dead four days.-John, xi. Ant. Jesus saith unto her, said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldst believe thou shouldst see the glory of God?-John, xi. Ant. Jesus cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth.-John, xi. Ant. He came forth bound hand and foot with grave-clothes; and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him.-John, xi. Capitulum. Ezek. xxxvii. Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves. And ye shall know that I am the Lord. v. Thou hast delivered my soul from death.. -r. That I may walk before God in the light of the living.-Ps. lvi. AT THE SECOND VESPERS. The five Antiphones are here omitted; they are taken from the narrative as before, from the supper at Bethany, in the 12th chapter of St. John. The Capitulum. Rev. iii. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. The Hymn. Lo, Christ hath gone to Bethany, There let us stand and see the Lord. What doth the busy Martha seek? Hanging her locks, in holy fear, Oh, let not whispering Envy blame, Where o'er the earth, from clime to clime, So far shall bear recording time, v. Thy garments smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia.glad. -r. Whereby they have made thee Ant. at the Magnif. Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you: for I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in.-Matt. xxv. The Prayer. Grant, we beseech thee, O Lord, that we, walking with Lazarus in newness of life, may, with Martha, feed thee in thy members, and, with Mary, may be fed by thee in the medita tion of thy word, who livest and reignest with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen. SACRED POETRY. THE COUNTRY PASTOR. SWEET day, let not the clouds of earthly care And with thee listen at the heavenly door. THE CHURCHMAN IN SOCIETY. CLEANSE, thou, the fount whence our affections flow, All like herself. With love fresh hues are born, DEATH OF THE CHRISTIAN. As once, to him who his adventurous keel Wafted from that new world, more sweet than aught Φ. SONNET. ON SEEING THE PORTRAIT OF MR. JOHN HUNTER, BY SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. what a great architect Life is.”—Abernethy's Lectures. From what omniscient Soul all Nature flows! Of Life mysterious!-Lo! Hunter rose, One who, in every change of matter, sought VOL. IX. May, 1836. • Columbus. 3 U |