XXXI. Verba in Canticis canticorum.

XXXI. Verba in Canticis canticorum.

Show me whom my soul loves, where you graze, "where you rest at noon, so I won’t wander among the flocks of your companions; such is the longing of my heart." Wisdom spoke these words through Solomon. For Solomon, when he felt himself imbued with wisdom, spoke to it as if to a woman, in the habit of love. And I, Wisdom, say: Then I arose, shook off my cloak, and drenched him with a thousand and a hundred drops of dew, in which gift God counts the man. So we spoke to each other. For just as I arranged all things when I circled the heavens, so too I spoke in Solomon about the love of the Creator for the creature and the creature for the Creator; how the Creator adorned the creature when He made it, because He loved it very much; and how the creature sought a kiss from the Creator when it obeyed Him, since in all things it was obedient to Him, because the creature also received a kiss from the Creator when God gave it everything necessary. I also compare the love of the Creator for the creature and the creature's love for the Creator to the love and faith with which God joined man and woman, so that life might come forth from them. Just as every creature comes forth from God, so too does every creature look to God in its duties, doing nothing without His command, just as a woman looks to her husband to fulfill his wishes and to see how he may be pleased. Thus, all creation is drawn to the Creator when it obeys Him in all things, and the Creator is present to creation when He infuses it with vitality and strength. But a creature becomes dark when it is hindered in some duty by divine judgment; yet it is beautiful when it fulfills all its duties justly, so that a good reputation reaches those who cling to it in their need for life, because it produces everything it ought to, well and in order. Therefore, she speaks to her Creator with diligent love, as to her beloved, seeking from Him where she may find nourishment, where she may find peace, that He may produce these things in her strength, which she may receive from Him with readiness, and that she may not wander in error through idols that falsely claim the name of divinity. When the shadow of sin darkens someone, repentance makes them beautiful again, so that from Him a good and holy fragrance arises toward the daughters of the heavenly Jerusalem, as they desire to rise from their sins through divine admonition. Therefore, he speaks to his Redeemer Christ, saying: "Through the beauty of your commandments, show me whom I hold in my soul with all my love, because in your incarnation you redeemed me, and raised me from death, where you feed in the virgin nature, in which you assumed flesh, and through which you perfected all your works, just as good aromas waft in the garden of spices." For humility in your humanity has watered all your works, just as the dew falls from heaven to irrigate the earth. Show me where I can rest, in the grave of death, because in the fullness of faith, the most intense heat of the sun, namely the Holy Spirit, has filled the faithful; for after the resurrection, your ascension transformed the old Law into a deeper understanding through the same Holy Spirit; so I don’t send my paths into that error, lest I wander again through the old legal precepts or through the ancient philosophers who were in your company when they wisely spoke what they said through divine inspiration. Yet I neglect to do this, so that I don't fall into corrupt habits and idleness in my actions, with which I have been separated from all usefulness and happiness.