THE WONDERFUL EXPRESSION OF THE LOVE OF THE BRIDE
/ am His. Simple words they are, but how sweetly they sound! And this we shall treat of farther in the sequel.
2. She commences by love, and goes on to speak of Her Beloved, showing thus that she knows no other than He. It is clear of whom she speaks; not so clear to whom she is speaking. For it is not permitted to us to suppose that He is present, or that she is conversing with Him. This appears plainly from her calling to Him immediately afterwards, as if He were at a distance, to return to her: Turn, my Beloved. From this we are drawn to believe that, after having brought to a close what He had been saying to her, He had again, according to His custom, absented Himself from her, and that she continues, nevertheless, speaking of Him, who is never absent from her mind. Thus, in fact it is; and He continues to be upon her lips who did not depart, and never does depart, from her heart. That which is upon her lips comes forth from her heart, for of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh (Luke vi. 45). Therefore she speaks of her Beloved as one truly loved and truly deserving to be loved, inasmuch as she loves much. We know, then, of whom she speaks, but with whom we know not; nor can I conjecture, unless it be with her maidens, who cannot be absent from their mother when the Bridegroom has departed. But we shall better suppose, as I think, that she is speaking to herself, not to any other person; especially as her words seem abrupt and unconnected with what has been spoken before; plainly insufficient to be intelligible to an auditor, which in a conversation is the object intended. My Beloved^ she says, is mine, and I am His. Nothing more? Then the discourse hangs suspended; or, rather, it is not suspended, but falls. Anyone who listens is held in suspense; he is not instructed, but is waiting to be so.
3. What, then, is the signification of her words: My Beloved is mine, and I am His? We do not comprehend what she says, because we do not feel what she feels. O holy soul, what is thy Beloved to thee, and what art thou to Him? What is, I pray thee, that mysterious gift which is reciprocally made each to the other, by Him and by thee, with so much kindness and familiarity? For thee is He, and for Him thou art. But is He to thee that which thou art to Him, or does He stand in some other relation to thee? If thou speakest for us, and for our understanding, speak forth clearly thy thought. How long dost thou hold our minds in suspense? Or is thy secret to be, according to the saying of the Prophet, for thyself? (Is. xxiv. 16). It is thus: the affection has spoken, not the understanding, and therefore what is said is scarcely understood. For what end, then, is this spoken? For no end at all, except it be that the Bride, having been vehemently affected, and filled with extreme joy and delight, by the long desired interview with her Beloved, when it has come to an end she is neither able to refrain altogether from speaking, nor yet, when she speaks, to express her feelings fully. Nor did she speak thus by way of expressing them, but in order not to be altogether silent Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, but not in proportion to its abundance. The affections have their own language, in which they express themselves, even against their will. For instance, fear has its timid words, grief its mournful, and love its joyful ones. Are the lamentations of those who are in trouble, the sobs and sighs of mourners, the sudden and ungovernable screams and cries of those who are frightened or stricken, or even the yawns of the satisfied and sleepy, are these either caused by habit, aroused by reason, ordered by reflection, or shaped by premeditation? It is certain that all such expressions of feeling are not the products of a deliberate purpose, but are caused by sudden and unforeseen impulse. Thus burning and vehement love, especially that towards God, not being able to restrain itself, takes no heed of the order nor connection of the words it employs, nor even of their fewness, provided that it suffers no diminution of its vigour. Sometimes it does not seek for words, not even for articulate language at all, but is content with the wordless aspirations of the spirit alone. Thus it is that the Bride, burning inconceivably with holy love, seeks some relief and solace in the ardour which she endures, and in seeking it takes no heed of how she speaks, but, urged on by her love, bursts forth with the first words which come into her mouth. And what should she speak, except that with which her heart is so filled?
4. Recall to your mind the wording of this marriage song, from its beginning to this point, and see if, in the interviews and conversations of the Bridegroom with the Bride, He has ever addressed her with the same indulgent kindness as here, or ever held so many or so cheering discourses with her. What wonder, then, when her wishes have been satisfied to the full, that a burst of joy should come from her, rather than words? Or if she makes use of words, that they should burst forth without premeditation or studied completeness? For the Bride judges it not robbery to apply to herself the words of the Psalmist: My heart hath uttered a good word (Ps. xlv. i), since it is with the same Spirit that she is filled. My Beloved is mine, and I am His. There is no prayer in the saying, and there is no conclusion drawn from it What then? it is an outburst of feeling. In such an utterance what connection of sentiments, what solemnity of phrases do you seek? What laws or rules do you impose upon your own? It does not admit of your control, it does not wait for your careful and exact expression, it does not submit to your time, nor consult your convenience at all. It bursts forth of its own accord from within, without your will and even without your knowledge, forcibly rather than by choice. And it yields sometimes a good odour, sometimes a bad, according to the different qualities of the natures whence it arises. For a good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things; and an evil man evil things (Matt xii. 35). The Bride of my Lord is a vase of good treasure, and sweet is the odour which comes from her.
5. I give thanks to Thee, O Lord Jesus, that Thou hast deigned to admit me at least to perceive that odour so sweet. Yea, Lord, so let me be admitted, even as the dogs, though of such small account, are allowed to eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table (Matt. xv. 27). This utterance of the feelings of Thy beloved is to me, I confess it, very agreeable; and of her fulness I receive, however little it be, with gratitude. The memorial of Thy abounding sweetness arises in me, and I am suffused with I know not what ineffable perfume of Thy love and condescension, so to speak, in those few words of hers: My Beloved is wine, and I am His. Let her, as it is fitting, eat and drink in Thy Presence, and rejoice exceedingly at the sight of Thee; yea, let her be transported out of herself for Thy sake, that for our sakes she may have full selfpossession. Let her, then, be abundantly satisfied with the good things of Thy house, and let her drink of the river of Thy pleasures; but let there be for me, Thy poor servant, I entreat, at least a slight
.odour of those good things, breathed forth from the bosom of her fulness. The thought of Moses was uttered to my benefit, and from his words I gather the sweetness and greatness of the idea of creative power: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. i. i). Isaiah also exhales the most sweet odour of mercy and redemption when he thus speaks: He hath poured out His Soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of many; and made intercession for the transgressors (Is. liii. 12), that they should not perish. And what odour equals in sweetness that of mercy? Good also is the utterance from the mouth of Jeremiah; and from that of David, when he said: My heart is inditing a good matter (Ps. xlv. 1). They were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and by their utterance replenished all things with His goodness. Do you ask for the utterance of Jeremiah? I have not forgotten it, I was preparing to give it to you. // is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord (Lam. iii. 26). That is his, I do not mistake; inhale its sweetness, the fragrance it brings of Him who recompenses righteousness, which excels the most exquisite perfume. He wills me, if I suffer for righteousness* sake, to await a recompense hereafter, and that I should not receive one at present, because the salutary wages of righteousness is from the Lord, not from the world. If it tarry, says the Prophet, wait for it (Hab. ii. 3). Therefore I will do what he exhorts me; I will wait for the Lord my Saviour.
6. But I am a sinner, and a long road still is before me to traverse, because salvation is far from sinners. Yet I will not murmur, and in the meantime I shall be consoled by the fragrance1 of it. The righteous shall rejoice in the Lord, having tasted and known that of which I perceive the fragrance afar off. That which the righteous has in full view, he who is a sinner expects and waits for, and it is that expectation which I call the fragrance of it For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God (Rom. viii. 19). To behold, is to taste and see how sweet the Lord is. Or is it rather the righteous who expects this, and the blessed who possesses it? For the hope of the righteous shall be gladness (Prov. x. 28). But the sinner has nothing to hope for. And, therefore, the sinner, not only because he is attached to the good things of the present time, but also because he is content with them, hopes for nothing from the future, and is deaf to that precept of the Lord: Expect Me in the day of My Resurrection that is to come (Zeph. iii. 8, Douay). Simeon was righteous because he waited for and already presaged Christ in the spirit, when as yet he did not as yet adore Him in the flesh. And in his expectation he was blessed, because through the odour of expectation he attained to taste, that is, to the beholding Him. For he says: Mine eyes have beheld Thy salvation ( Luke ii. 25). Righteous also was Abraham, who desired and expected to see the day of the Lord; nor was he confounded in this hope, for he saw it, and was glad (John viii. 56). The Apostles, too, were righteous, for to them it was said: Ye yourselves [are] like unto men that wait for their Lord (Luke xii. 36).
7. Was not David righteous also when he said: I waited patiently for the Lord? (Ps. xl. 1). He is the fourth of those of whom I have said that they had longed for the Lord with all their heart (Ps. cxix. 131), whom I had almost passed over; but it is not advisable so to do. He opened his mouth and panted; then, when filled [with the consolations of the Lord], he not only poured out his heart in thankfulness, but sang for joy. O good Lord Jesus, how great is the fragrance and the sweetness which he has caused me to feel and experience in those utterances and songs, filled with that oil of gladness with which God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee above Thy fellows, from that myrrh and aloes and cassia out of the ivory palaces wherewith Thy garments are fragrant, because the daughters of kings have perfumed them in Thy honour and for Thy delight! (Ps. xlv. 8-10). O that Thou wouldest honour me so far as that I might meet that great prophet, Thy friend, in that day of solemn gladness, when he shall come forth from Thy chamber, singing his sacred marriagehymn with the psaltery and joyful harp, overwhelmed with delights, steeped in perfumes of a sweetness beyond words, and diffusing them on every side! In that day, I have said, but rather in that hour; and perhaps it is not even an hour, but in that half-hour, according to that saying of the Scripture: There was silence in Heaven about the space of half an hour (Rev. viii. 1); therefore in that hour my mouth will be filled with gladness and my tongue with joy, when I shall feel the fragrance, I do not say of each Psalm, but of each verse of every Psalm, a fragrance far exceeding that of the most precious perfumes. What can be more fragrant than the utterances of St. John, who brings to me the solemn sweetness of the Eternal Generation and Divinity of the Word? What can I say of those of St. Paul, which have filled the world with the odour of their great sweetness? In truth, the sweet savour of the knowledge of Christ was made manifest by them in every place (2 Cor. ii. 14, 15). And although the unspeakable words which he had heard he does not offer for me to listen to, he offers them for me to desire; and it is permitted to discern their fragrance, though to utter them is not lawful (2 Cor. xii. 4). I know not how it is, that those which are the most deeply hidden have the greatest charm, and that we sigh most eagerly for those which are denied to us. But now notice a similar fact with regard to the Bride, namely, how in the passage before us she, like St. Paul, does not wholly reveal her secret, and yet does not pass it over wholly unmentioned, as if she wishes to gratify us with somewhat of the fragrance of that treasure which she judges it not advisable as yet to lay open to our touch and taste, whether on account of our unworthiness or on account of our incapacity.
8. My Beloved is mine, and I am His. There can be no doubt that in this passage is apparent the flame of an ardent and reciprocal love of two persons, one for the other; while in this love appears also the supreme felicity of the one and the marvellous condescension of the other. For it is not an attachment and union between two persons who are of equal condition. Now, who could venture to lay claim to the full knowledge of what [the Church] glories in having received in this prerogative of love, and in having repaid it in turn by an affection so great, if not she, who by her eminent purity and holiness of body and of mind, has been found worthy to have experience in her own self of a fortune so exalted? It is in the sphere of the affections that this takes place, nor is it attained to by the reason, but by conformity of spirit. But how few there are who aie enabled to say: We all with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into t/ie same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor. iii. 18).
9. But that what we read here may be brought in some degree under the grasp of the intellect I leave to the Bride her unique secret, to which it is not permitted to us to draw near, especially while we are so imperfect; and I propose to you something at once more easily understood, and of a more ordinary character, so that those who are as children in understanding may be able to grasp the sense and the relation of the words used by the Bride. To me, then, it seems that it will suffice for our dense and, as it were, popular apprehension if in saying My Beloved is mine we understand 'gives His thought and attention,' so that the sense will be: ' My Beloved gives His thought and attention to me, and I to Him.' Nor am I the first or the only one to suggest this sense, for the Psalmist has said before me: / waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me and heard my cry (Ps. xl. 1). You see here that the Lord gave attention to the Psalmist; you see also the patient waiting of the Psalmist for the Lord. For he who waits gives attention to him for whom he waits. The sense, then, of the Psalmist's words is the same as of those of the Bride, nor are the words far different, only in the former they are used in another order; for he sets first that which she sets last, and conversely.
10. But in this the Bride has spoken more accurately, inasmuch as she does not put forward any merit of her own, but begins with the benefit she has received, and thus acknowledges that she has been prevented by the grace of her Beloved. She has well done in expressing herself thus. For who hath first given to Him and it shall be recompensed unto him again? (Rom. xi. 35). Hear also what St. John thought on this subject Herein is love, he says in his Epistle, not that we loved God, but that He loved us (1 John iv. 10). Though the Psalmist has not spoken of preventing grace, he has not denied, or been silent upon, following grace. But listen to his declaration upon that point in plainer terms in another place: Thy mercy (he was speaking to the Lord) will follow me all the days of my life (Ps. xxiii. 6, Douay). Hear also his declaration as to preventing grace; it is no less plain and unmistakable: My God, His mercy shall prevent me (Ps. lix. 10, Douay); and again to the Lord: Let Thy tender mercies speedily prevent us, for we are brought very low (Ps. lxxix. 8). It is with much beauty that the Bride a little farther on (if I do not mistake) uses again the same words, but not placing them in the same order; for she follows the order of the Psalmist, and speaks thus: / am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine (Cant vi. 3). Why does she express herself thus? It is to show that she is more full of graces when she attributes all to grace, and ascribes to the Lord the beginning and the end of them all. Otherwise, how could she be full of grace if there were in her anything which was not of grace? There is no room for grace to enter where merit has already taken its place.1 That full acknowledgment, then, of grace is itself a mark of the fulness of grace in her who makes it. For if there were in her anything which came from the soul as from itself, to whatever extent that existed, it must of necessity take the place of grace. Whatsoever you impute to merit you take away from grace. I will not have merit, because it excludes grace. I shrink from all that is of me that I may be my own: unless, perhaps, that is especially mine which makes me to be my own. Grace restores me to myself freely justified, and thus delivered from the slavery of sin. For where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (2 Cor. iii. 17).
11. O Synagogue, Bride insensate, which, despising the righteousness of God — that is, the grace of thy Bridegroom— and desiring to set up a righteousness of thy own, hast not submitted thyself to the righteousness of God! For this reason that unhappy one was repudiated, and is now no longer the Bride; which title belongs to the Church, to whom it is said: / will betroth thee unto Ate in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindncss, and in mercies; I will even betroth thee unto Me in faithfulness (Hos. ii. 19, 20). Nor hast thou chosen Me, but I have chosen thee; nor have I found merits in thee for the reason of My choice, but have foreseen thy merits. It is, then, in faith that I have betrothed thee, not in the works of the Law; in faith, and in the righteousness which is by faith, not by the law. It remains that thou shouldest form a right judgment between Me and thee, the judgment in which I have betrothed thee; and recognise that I have done this, not because of thy merits, but purely of My goodness. This, then, is the judgment, that thou shouldest not extol thy own merits, nor prefer the works of the Law, nor boast that thou hast borne the burden and heat of the day; knowing that thou hast been betrothed in faith and the righteousness which is of faith: in mercies and in lovingkindness.
12. She, then, who is truly the Bride recognises these things, and confesses that she has received each kind of grace; that which is first, and is preventing grace; and that also which comes afterwards, to follow and to render perfect. Therefore she says now, My Beloved is mine, and I am His, attributing the beginning of the work of grace to her Beloved. But afterwards she says also: / am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine; and thus attributes to Him the ending and consummation of it also.
Let us now see, then, what is the meaning of those words she speaks, My Beloved is mine. If we are to understand with them • gives attention to,1 as I have already suggested, and as the Psalmist says, / waited patiently for the Lord, and He inclined unto me, I find that the words contain somewhat of no small interest and importance. But it is a subject worthy of our closest attention, and not to be entered upon to wearied ears and minds. If you please, it shall be deferred for a little while, and the sermon of to-morrow shall be commenced with it. Only let me ask you to pray, in the meantime, that I may be preserved from the encroachments of pressing cares, by the grace and mercy of Him who is the Bridegroom of the Church, Jesus Christ our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. Amen.