but thy fault deserueth fauor because thy charity is so great and therefore O mercifull Iesu giue me leaue to excuse whom thou art minded to forgiue Shée thought to haue found thée as shée left thée shée sought thee as shée did last sée thée being so ouercom with sorrow for thy death that shée had neither roome nor respite in her mind for any hope of thy life and being so déeply interred in the griefe of thy buriall that shée could not raise her thoughtes to any conceite of thy resurrection For in the graue where Ioseph buried thy body Mary together with it entombed her soule and so straightly combined it with thy corse that shee could with more ease sunder her soule from her owne bodie that liueth by it then from thy dead bodie with which her loue did bury it for it is more thine and in thée then her owne or in herselfe and therefore in séeking thy bodie she séeketh her owne soule as with the losse of the one shee also lost the other What maruaile then though sence faile when the soule is lost sith the lanterne must néeds be dark when the light is out Restore vnto her therefore her soul that lieth imprisoned in thy body and shée will soone both recouer her sense and discouer her errour For alas it is no errour that procéedeth of any will to erre and it riseth as much of vehemency of affection as of default in faith Regard not y e error of a woman but the loue of a disciple which supplieth in it self what in faith it wanteth O Lord saith she If thou hast carried him hence tell me where thou hast laid him I will take him away O how learned is her ignoraunce and how skilful her errour Shée charged not the Angels with thy remoning nor séemed to mistrust them for carrying thée away as though her loue had taught her that their helpe was néedelesse where the thing remoued was remouer of it selfe Shée did not request them to enfourme her where thou wert laide as if shée had reserued that question for thy selfe to answere But now shée iudgeth thée so likely to be the author of her losse that halfe supposing thée guilty shée sueth a recouery and desireth thée to tell her wher the body is as almost fully perswaded that thou art as priuy to the place as well acquainted with the action So that if shée be not altogether right shée is not very much wrong shée erreth with such aime that shée litle misseth the truth Tell her therefore O Lord what thou hast done with thy selfe sith it is fittest for thy owne spéech to vtter that which was onely possible for thy owne power to performe But O Mary since thou art so desirous to know wher thy Iesus is why doest thou not name him when thou askest for him Thou saidst to the Angels that they had taken away thy Lord and now the second time thou askest for this him Are thy thoughtes so visible as at thy onely presence to be séene or so generall that they possesse all when they are once in thee when thou speakest of him what him doest thou meane or how can a stranger vnderstand thée when thou falkest of thy Lord Hath the worlde no other Lords but thine or is the demanding by no other name but him a sufficient notice for whom thou demandest But such is the nature of thy loue thou iudgest that no other should be intitled a Lord sith the whole worlde is too litle for thy Lordes possession and that those few creatures that are cannot chuse but knowe him sith all the creatures of the world are to fewe to serue him And as his worthies can appay all loues and his only loue content all heartes so thou deemest hym to be so well worthy to bee owner of all thoughtes that no thought in thy conceite can be well bestowed vppon anie other Yet thy speeches seeme more suddaine then sound and more peremptorie then well pondered Why doest thou say so resolutely without anie further circumstance that if this gardiner haue taken him thou wilt take him from him If he had him by right in taking him away thou shouldest do him wrong If thou supposest hee wrongfully took him thou laiest theft to his charge and howsoeuer it be thou either condemnest thyselfe for an vsurper or him for a theese And is this an effect of thy zelous loue first to abase him from a God to a Gardiner and now to degrade him from a Gardiner to a theese Thou shouldest also haue considered whether he tooke him vpon loue or malice If it were for loue thou maiest assure thy selfe that he wil be as wary to keepe as hee was ventrous to get him and therefore thy pollicie was weake in saying thou wouldest take him away before thou knewest where he was sith none is so simple to bewray their treasure to a known théefe If he tooke him of malice thy offer to recouer him is an open defiance sith malice is as obstinate in defending as violent in offering wrong and he that woulde be cruell against thy maisters dead body is likely to be more furious against his liuing disciple But thy loue had no leysure to cast so many doubts Thy teares were interpreters of thy words and thy innocent meaning was written in thy dolefull countenance Thy eyes were rather pleaders for pity then Heralds of wrath and thy whole person presented such a paterne of thy extreame anguish that no man from thy presence could take in anie other impression And therefore what thy wordes wanted thy action supplied and what his eare might mistake his eye did vnderstand It may be also that hee wrought in thy heart that was concealed from thy sight and happily his voyce and demeanor did import such compassion of thy case that hee seemed as willing to affoord as thou desirous to haue his helpe And so presuming by his behauiour that thy sute should not suffer repulse the tenour of thy request doth but argue thy hope of a grant But what is the reason that in all thy speeches which since the misse of thy maister thou hast vttered where they haue put him is alwaies apart So thou saydst to the Apostles the same to the Angels and nowe thou doest repeat it to this supposeo gardiner verie sweete must this word be in thy hart that is so often in thy mouth and it would neuer be so readie in thy tongue if it were not verie freshe in thy memorie But what maruell though it fast so swéete that was first seasoned in thy maisters mouth which as it was the treasurie of trueth the fountaine of life and the onely quire of the moste perfect harmonie so whatsoeuer it deliuered thy eare deuoured and thy heart locked vp And nowe that thou wantest himselfe thou hast no other comfort but his wordes which thou déemest so much the more effectuall to perswade in that they tooke their force from so heauenly a speaker His
not from thy crosse after death shee came to dwell with thee at thy graue Why then dost not thou say with Noemi Blessed bee shee of our Lord because what courtesie shee afforded to the quicke shee hath also continued towardes the dead A thing so much the more to be esteemed in that it is most rare Doe not sweet Lord any longer delay her Behold shee hath attended thee these three daies and shee hath not what to eate nor wherewith to foster her famished soule vnlesse thou by discouering thy selfe doest minister vnto her the bread of thy body feede her with the foode that hath in it all taste of sweetnesse If therefore thou wilt not haue her to faint in the way refresh her with that which her hunger requireth For surely shee cannot long enioy the life of her body vnlesse shee may haue notice of thee that art the life of her soule But feare not Mary for thy teares will obtaine They are too mighty oratours to let any suite fall though they pleaded at the most rigorous bar yet haue they so perswading a silence and so conquering a complaint that by yeelding they ouercome and by intreating they commaund They tie the tongues of all accusers and soften the rigour of the seuerest Iudge Yea they win the inuincible and bind the omnipotent When they seeme most pittiful they haue greatest power and being most for saken they are most victorious Repentant eies are the Cellers of Angels and penitent teares their sweetest wines which the sauor of life perfumeth the taste of grace swéetneth and the purest colours of returning innocency highly beautifieth This dew of deuotion neuer falleth but the sunne of iustice draweth it vp and vpoÌ„what face soeuer it droppeth it maketh it amiable in Gods eie For this water hath thy heart beene long a limbecke sometimes distilling it out of the weedes of thy owne offences with the fire of true contrition Sometimes out of the flowers of spirituall comforts with the flames of contemplation and now out of the bitter hearbs of thy Maisters miseries with the heate of a tender compassion This water hath better graced thy lookes then thy former alluring glaunces It hath setled worthier beauties in thy face then all thy artificiall paintings Yea this onely water hath quenched Gods anger qualified his iustice recouered his mercy merited his loue purchased his pardon brought forth the spring of all thy fauors Thy tears were the proctors for thy brothers life the inuiters of those Angels for thy comfort and the suiters that shall be rewarded with the first sight of thy reuiued Sauiour Rewarded they shal be but not refrained altered in their cause but their course continued Heauen would weepe at the losse of so pretious a water and earth lament the absenee of so fruitefull â—owers No no the Angels must still bathe themselues in the pure streams of thy eies and thy face shall still bee set with this liquid pearle that as out of thy teares were stroken the first sparkes of thy Lordes loue so thy teares may be the oyle to nourishe and feede his flame Till death damme vp the springs they shall neuer cease running and then shal thy soule be ferried in them to the harbour of life that as by them it was first passed from sinne to grace so in them it may be wasted from grace to glorie In the meane time réere vp thy fallen hopes and gather confidence both of thy spéedie comforte and thy Lordes well being Iesus saith vnto her Maria She turning said vnto him Rabboni O louing maister thou didst onely deferre her consolation to increase it that the delight of thy presence might be so much the more welcome in that through thy long absence it was with so little hope so much desired Thou wert content shee shoulde lay out for thée so manie sighs tears and plaints and diddest purposely adiorne the date of her paiment to requite the length of these delaies with a larger loane of ioy It may be she knewe not her former happinesse till shee was weaned from it nor had a right estimate in valuing the treasures with which thy presence did enriche hir vntill her extreame pouertie taught her their vnestimable rate But now thou she west by a swéete experience that though she paied thée with the dearest water of her eyes with her best breath and tenderest loue yet small was the price that shee bestowed in respect of the worth that shee receiued She sought the dead and imprisoned in a stonie gayle and now she findeth thée both aliue and at full libertie Shée sought the shrined in a shrowd more like a leaper then thy selfe left as the modell of the vitermost miserie and the onely paterne of the bitterest vnhappinesse And now shee findeth thée inuested in the robes of glorie the president of the highest and both the owner and giuer of all felicitie And as all this while shee hath sought without finding wéept without comforte and called without aunswere so no we thou satisfiest her séeking with thy comming her tears with thy triumph and al her cries with this one word Marie For when she heard thee call her in thy woonted maner and with thy vsuall voyce her onely name issuing froÌ„ thy mouth wrought so strange an alteration in her as if she had béene wholly new made when she was only named For whereas before the violence of her griefe had so benummed her that her bodie séemed but the hearse of her dead heart and her heart the cophin of an vnliuing soule and hir whole presence but a representation of a double funeral of thine and of hir owne now with this one word her senses are restored her minde lightened her heart quickened and her soule reuiued But what maruell though with one word hee raise the dead spirites of his poore disciple that with a word made the world euen in this very worde sheweth an omnipotent power Marie she was called as well in her bad as in her reformed estate and both her good and euill was all of Maries working And as Marie signifieth no lesse what she was then what she is so is this one word by his vertue that speaketh it a repetition of all her miseries an Epitome of his mercies and a memorial of all her better fortunes And therefore it laid so generall a discouerie of her self before her eyes that it awaked her most forgotten sorows and mustered together the whole multitude of her ioyes and woulde haue left the issue of their mutinie verie doubtfull but that the presence and notice of hir highest happinesse decided the quarrell and gaue her ioyes the victory For as he was her only sunne whose going downe left nothing but a dumpishe night of fearefull fansies wherein no starre of hope shined and the brightest plannets were chaunged into dismall signes so the serenitie of his countenance and authoritie of hys worde brought a calme and well tempered day that chasing away all darknesse and
the vsuall vaine should haue beene no eye-sore to those that are better pleased with worse matters Yet sith the copies therof flew so fast and so false abroad that it was in danger to come corrupted to the print it seemed a lesse euill to let it flie to common viewe in the natiue plume and with the owne wings then disguised in a voate of a bastard feather or cast off from the fist of such a corrector as might happily haue perished the sound and impedâ—n some sicke and sory fethers of his owne phansies It may be that courteous skill will recken this though eourse in respect of others exquisite labors not vnfit to entertaine well tempered humours both with pleasure and profit the ground therof being in scripture and the forme of enlarging it an imitation of the ancient doctours in the same and other pointes of like tenour This commodity at the least it will carie with it that the reader may learne to loue without improofe of puritie teach his thoughts eyther to temper passion in the meane or to giue the bridle onely where the excesse cannot be faultic Let the work defend it self and euerie one passe his censure as he seeth cause Manie Carpes are expected when curious eyes come a fishing But the care is alreadie taken and the patience waiteth at the table readie to take away when that dish is serued in and to make roume for others to set on the desired fruit S. VV. MARY MAGDALENS Funerall Teares EMONGST other mourneful accidents of the passion of Christ that loue presenteth it selfe to my memory with which the blessed Mary Magdelen louing our Lord more then her life followed him in his iourney to his death attending vppon him when his Disciples fledde and being more willing to die with him then they to liue without him But not finding the fauour to accompany him in death and loathing after him to remaine in life the fire of her true affection enflamed her heart and her enflamed hart resolued into vncessant teares so that burning and bathing betwéen loue and griefe shee led a life euer dying and felt a death neuer ending And when hee by whome shée liued was dead and shée for whom he died enforcedly left aliue shée praised the dead more then the liuing and hauing lost that light of her life shee desired to dwell in darkenesse and in the shadow of death choosing Christs Tombe for her best home and his corse for her chiefe comfort For Mary as the Euangelist saith Stoode without at the Tombe weeping But alas how vnfortunate is this woman to whome neyther life will afforde a desired farewell nor death alow any wished welcome Shée hath abandoned the liuing and chosen the company of the dead and now it seemeth that euen the dead haue forsaken her sith the corse shee séeketh is taken away froÌ„ her And this was the cause that loue induced her to stand and sorrow enforced her to wéepe Her eie was watchful to séek whom her heart most longed to enioy and her foote in a readinesse to runne if her eie shoulde chaunce to espy him And therefore shée standeth to be still stirring prest to watch euery way and prepared to goe whether any hope should call her But shée wept because shée had such occasion of standing and that which moued her to watch was the motiue of her teares For as shée watched to finde whom shée had lost so shée wept for hauing lost whom shée loued her poore eies being troubled at once with two contrary offices both to be clear in sight the better to séeke him and yet cloudy with tears for missing the sight of him Yet was not this the entrance but the increase of her griefe not the beginning but the renewing of her mone For first shée mourned for the departing of his soule out of his body and now shée lamented the taking of his body out of the graue being punished with two wreckes of her onely welfare both full of misery but the last without all comfort The first originall of her sorrow grew because shée could not enioy him aliue yet this sorrow had some solace for that shée hoped to haue enioyed him dead But when shée considered that his life was already lost and now not so much as his body could be found shee was wholly daunted with dismay sith this vnhappinesse admitted no helpe Shee doubted least the loue of her master the onely portion that her Fortune had left her would soon languish in her cold brest if it neither had his wordes to kindle it nor his presence to cherishe it nor so much as his dead ashes to rake it vp Shee had prepared her spices and prouided her ointments to pay him the last Tribute of eternall dueties And though Ioseph and Nichodemus had already bestowed a hundred pounds of Mirthe and Aloes which was in quantity sufficient in quality of the best and as well applied as art and deuotion could deuise yet such was her loue that shée would haue thought any quantity too little except hers had béene added the best in quality too meane except hers were with it and no diligence in applying it inough except her seruice were in it Not that shée was sharpe in censuring that which others had done but because loue made her so desirous to doe all her selfe that though all had béene done that shée could deuise and as wel as shee could wishe yet vnlesse shee were an Actor it would not suffice sith loue is as eager to bee vttered in effects as it is zealous in true affection Shee came therefore now meaning to enbalme his corps as shee had before annointed his feet and to preserue the reliques of his body as the only remnant of all her blisse And as in the spring of her felicitie shee had washed his feete with her teares be wailing vnto him the death of her own soule so nowe shee came in the depth of her misery to shedde them a freshe for the death of his body But when she saw the graue open and the body taken out the labour of embalming was preuented but the cause of her wéeping increased and he that was wanting to her obsequies was not wanting to her teares and though shée founde not whom to annoint yet found she whom to lament And not without cause did Mary complaine finding her first anguishe doubled with a second griefe and being surcharged with two most violent sorrowes in one afflicted heart For hauing setled her whole affection vppon Christ and summoned all her desires and wishes into the loue of his goodnes as nothing could equall his worthes so was ther not in the whole world either a greater benefit for her to enioy then himselfe or any greater domage possible then his losse The murdering in his one death the life of all lifes left a general death in all liuing creatures and his disease not onely disrobed our nature of her most roiall ornaments but impouerished the world of
and the losse is manifest My eies haue answered them with teares my brest with sighes and my heart with trouble what néed I also punish my toonge or wound my soule with a newe rehear sall of so dolefull a mischance They haue taken away O vnfortunate worde They haue taken away my Lord. O afflicted woman why thinkest thou this word so vnfortunate It may be the Angels haue taken him more solemnly to entombe him and sith earth hath done her last homage happily the Quires of heauen are also descended to defray vnto him their funerall duties It may be that the Centurian and the rest that did acknowledge him on the crosse to be the sonne of God haue béene touched with remorse and goared with the pricke of conscience and being desirous to satisfie for their heinous offence haue nowe taken him more honourably to interre him and by their seruice to his bodie sought forgiuenesse and sued the pardon of their guiltie soules Peraduenture some secret Disciples haue wrought this erploit and maugre the watch taken him from hence with due honour to preserue him in some fitter place and therefore being yet vncertaine who hath him there is no such cause to lament sith the greater probabilities march on the better side why doest thou call sorrowe before it commeth without which calling it commeth on thee too fast yea why doest thou create sorrow where it is not sith thou hast true sorrowes inough though imagined sorrowes helpe not It is follie to suppose the worst where the best may be hoped for and euerie mishappe bringeth griefe enough with it though wée with our friendes doe not goe first to méete it Quiet then thy selfe till time trie out the trueth and it may be thy feare will proue greater then thy misfortune But I know thy loue is litle helped with this lesson for the more it loueth the more it feareth and the more desirous to enioy the more doubtfull it is to loose It neyther hath measure in hopes nor meane in feares hoping the best vpon the least surmises and fearing the worst vppon the weakest grounds And yet both fearing and hoping at one time neither feare withholdeth hope from the highest atteÌ„pts nor hope can strengthen feare against the smallest suspitions but maugre all feares loues hopes will worke to the highest pitch and maugre al hopes loues feares will stoupe to the lowest downcome To bidde thée therefore hope is not to forbid thée to feare and though it may be for the best that thy Lord is taken from thée yet sith it may also be for the worst that wil neuer content thée Thou thinkest hope doth inough to kéepe thy heart from breaking feare little enough to force thée to wéeping sith it is as likely that he hath béen taken away vpon hatred by his enimies as vpon loue by his friendes For hitherto saiest thou his friends haue all failed him and his foes preuailed against him as they y t would not defend him aliue are lesse likely to regard him dead so they that thought one life too litle to take from him are not vnlikely after deathe to wreake new rage vpon him And though this doubt were not yet whosoeuer hath taken him hath wronged me in not acquainting me with it for to take away mine without my consent can neither be offered without iniurie nor suffered without sorrow And as for Jesus he was my Jesus my Lord and my maister Hée was mine because he was giuen vnto me and borne for me he was the author of my being and so my father hée was the worker of my wel doing and therefore my Sauiour hee was the price of my ransome and thereby my redeemer Hee was my Lord to command me my maister to instruct mée my pastor to féede mée He was mine because his loue was mine and when he gaue me his loue hee gaue me himselfe sith loue is no gift except the giuer be giuen with it yea it is no loue â—â—lesse it be as liberall of that it is as of that it hath Finally if the meat bee mâ—â—â— that I eate the life mine wherewith I liue or he mine all whose life labours and death were mine then dare I boldly say that Iesus is mine sith on his bodie I feede by his loue I liue and to my good without any neede of his owne hath hee liued laboured and died And therefore though his Disciples though the Centurion yea though the Angels haue taken him they haue done me wrong in defeating mee of my right sith I neuer meane to resigne my interest But what if he hath takeÌ„ a way himself wilt thou also lay vniustice to his charge Thogh he be thine yet thine to command not to obey thy Lord to dispose of thee and not to be by thée disposed and therefore as it is no reason that the seruant should be maister of his maisters secretes so might hee and peraduenture so hath he remoued without acquainting thee whether reuiuing himselfe with the same power with which he raised thy dead brother and fulfilling the wordes that he often vttered of his resurrection It may be thou wilt say that a gift once giuen cannot bee reuoked and therefore though it were before in his choise not to giue himselfe vnto thée yet the deede of gift being once made he cannot be taken from thee neyther can the doner dispose of his gift without the possessors priuitie And sith this is a rule in the lawe of nature thou maiest imagine it a breach of equitie and an impeachment of thy right to conuey himselfe away without thy consent But to this I will aunswere thée with thine owne ground For if he be thine by being giuen thée once thou art his by as many gifts as daies and therefore hee being absolute owner of thée is likewise full owner of whatsoeuer is thine and consequently because he is thine hee is also his owne and so nothing liable vnto thée for taking himselfe from thée Yea but he is my Lord saiest thou and in this respect bound to kéepe me at the least bound not to kill me and sith killing is nothing but a seuering of life from the body he being the chiefe life both of my soule and body cannot possibly go from me but he must with a double death kill me And therefore he being my Lord and bound to protect his seruant it is against all lawes that I should be thus forsaken But O cruel tongue why pleadest thou thus against him whose case I feare me is so pitifull y t it might rather moue all tongues to plead for him being peradueÌ„ture in their hands whose vnmercifull hearts make themselues merrie with his miserie and build the triumphes of their impious victorie vpon the dolefull ruines of his disgraced glorie And now O griefe because I know not where he is I caÌ„not imagine how to helpe for they haue taken him away and I knowe not where they haue put him Alas Mary why dost thou consume