Tractatus Alter, Pars Prior, Cap. 3. De apparitione lesu coram Maria Magdalena in specie hortulani. *o

Tractatus Alter, Pars Prior, Cap. 3. De apparitione lesu coram Maria Magdalena in specie hortulani. *o

I bless you and give thanks to you, Lord Jesus Christ, creator of all things and knower of the secrets of hearts, for your friendly appearance, by which you deigned to appear to the most blessed Mary Magdalene, your most fervent lover, standing and weeping by the tomb, to appear in the form of a gardener and to speak with her familiarly, revealing to her many secrets of your divinity and the hidden mysteries of your humanity through special grace, certifying her first about your glorious resurrection before all mortals, and after her tearful complaints and lengthy inquiries, further bringing her joy. I praise and exalt you magnificently for your kind visitation and sweet conversation with the desolate Mary Magdalene, asking her and inquiring: "Why are you weeping, and whom are you seeking?" O good Jesus, sweetest Master, who knows all things before they happen, why do you ask her what is already perfectly known to you? You know that she seeks nothing else, desires nothing else, but you alone, whom she truly loves above all things. And because she did not find you in the tomb, she grieves and weeps, for she has lost the best thing she had in the whole world. Whenever she thinks of you, hears someone speaking about you, sees your tomb, watches the cross, or anything that relates to you, her heart is immediately stirred, and she weeps, because love cannot rest until it finds what it seeks, holds what it loves, and keeps what it longs for. So, Lord, don’t be angry if she weeps before you today on such a great and holy feast of Easter; for this is what your love does, and the great devotion she has for you doesn’t let her sleep or rest, but compels her to rise before dawn to anoint you. And because she can no longer find you, she weeps and grieves deeply for you. With such fervent love and burning desire to seek you, that if it could fly like an angel, it would surely soar to you above all mountains and hills and beyond the stars of heaven, to seek you in heaven even above the cherubim and seraphim, to find you in your kingdom, so that it might see you sitting on the highest throne of your Father. But this has not been granted to him on this day, nor has it been given to everyone to be taken up with Paul to the third heaven, but only to those who are prepared by your Father and at the opportune time set by God. O loving Jesus, comforter of sorrowful souls, be with Mary as she weeps, help her in her pain, and speak to her in love. Say just one word, and his pain will be healed. Lord, let your voice echo in his ears, and soon his spirit will come back to life. Show your face, most beautiful Jesus, and his soul will rejoice in you most sweetly. Call her by name, and she will immediately cease to be troubled. Why, Lord, do you hide your face from me, who diligently seeks you and is so anxiously searching for you, weeping for you? Why do you pretend to be someone else and act like a gardener, when you are the beloved Lord and Master, the one who guides and teaches? Say then: I am Jesus, whom you seek; be quiet. And do not weep, but be at peace in this moment. But good Jesus, what good do you claim in this, and for what reason do you draw out the desire of your soul? I know that you act and arrange everything with providence, and you don't deceive anyone, nor can you be deceived, since you are a just, merciful, and truthful God in all your ways. Therefore, you concealed the clarity of your face from Mary as she wept, so that she wouldn't recognize you, to stir her heart's desire for you even more, to test her patience, and to purify her through suffering and delay, leading her to greater joy after a long time of sorrow and many tears. In this way, you also demonstrated an example of patience and holy repentance for those devoted to you who are in tribulation, as a great comfort. Though she was greatly loved by you and adorned with many gifts, she often suffered in this life, was troubled, weighed down, and at times left desolate, for the increase of her merits and for the progress of other Christians; yet she was not completely abandoned or despised. O how wisely and kindly you act, Lord, with your beloved ones, whether by afflicting them or comforting them, until you lead them to you for eternal rest in the heavenly paradise. However, they must be tested in various ways through temptations and refined like gold in the fire of tribulation. In order to be worthy of the Kingdom of God and to enjoy the vision of heaven, they must receive all that comes to them from your hand as a better gift and a pledge of eternal life, which you have promised to the devoted soul that perseveres. I weep and pray, just as Mary Magdalene did before you today. O how good you are, God of Israel, to those who are pure of heart, who seek you in truth and humility, with sorrow and tears, just as Mary sought and found you. Everything that is sought with great effort and found with difficulty is loved more when it is possessed, and it is kept more carefully. After a long hunger, bread tastes sweeter, and after a bitter drink, water becomes more pleasant to the thirsty. After the night, the day is more pleasant to the eyes, and after the cold, fire delights even more. After sorrow, the harp sounds sweeter, and after hard labor, rest and sleep are more pleasant. After hard battles, peace becomes more pleasant for those who are troubled. The stars shine brighter in the falling mist; the birds sing more joyfully as the sun rises. In this way, the troubled soul is renewed like the eagle when Christ comes with grace. These things are clearly evident in the beloved Mary Magdalene, who, after a long period of weeping, was abundantly consoled by the Lord. O how great is the abundance of your sweetness, Lord, which you have hidden from those who fear you! Truly, you are a hidden God, as Isaiah said, and there is no one like you who knows how to wisely arrange all things with your beloved. O good Jesus, eternal wisdom of the Father, how humbly and devoutly you lived among men, teaching them what is useful and beneficial: to despise earthly things, to love heavenly things, and to endure adversity. O sweet conversation of Mary with Jesus, the Savior of the world, with the King of angels, with the Lord of lords, with the Prince of the heavenly citizens, with the Ruler of all ages. Truly, Lord, if Mary had perfectly known you, she would never have thought of you as the gardener, nor would she have asked, as if you were a stranger, what you were doing there or what you were looking for. Lord, she said, if you took him away, tell me where you laid him. O Mary, how can you speak to him whom you do not know, about what power he has? Therefore, you have such strength that you can boldly say: 'I will take him.' How can you dare to assume that you can carry such a great man all by yourself? Tell me, where do you want to take him? Who gave you permission to lift up what you did not set down? You don't know what you're talking about. First, call your companions and see if you can carry together the one you seek. But perhaps you can't, because you're worn out from the journey and greatly weakened by fasting and weeping yesterday and today without finding the sacred Body of Christ. O Mary, if you are alone and the others have gone away, what will you do? Ask that gardener to help you seek and carry your beloved, wherever he may be, whom you love and seek and for whom you weep and often groan. No one can help and comfort you better than this gardener; no one knows better, if he wants to say, where your Lord has been taken or hidden. I believe that out of great compassion he has come here to you, to tell you where he is, whom you seek, and who has taken him from the tomb at night. O great longing of this holy woman, who is ceaselessly seeking and weeping! I beg you, Lord, speak once more, even briefly, one word, so that your dove, hearing your voice, may recognize you and sing for joy at her bridegroom and cease her lamenting. She seeks you, she longs for you; she isn't satisfied with angels or creatures or any human comforts. Speak, Lord, for your servant, who is devoted to you, is listening. Say to her, as you have often been accustomed to say to your beloved and hospitable one: Maria. This is his name; no one hears it with more pleasure than you, who are his only hope. He doesn't want anything else; you are everything in everyone. O Mary, recognize Jesus, from whom you are recognized; love Him, from whom you were loved first. Respond, beloved, to your beloved Master, the gardener of your heart. Lord, I give you thanks, for you have appeared to me. Behold, I now have the one I sought; I see him for whom I wept, and it has turned out better for me than I expected. Blessed is the day and the hour in which, Mary, after the angelic vision and message, you were deemed worthy to see the Lord of angels and hear His sweet words speaking to you: "Go to my brothers and tell them: I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." So Mary did as Jesus commanded her, and immediately she went without delay, without complaint, announcing to the disciples the good news filled with joy: "For I have seen my Lord after a long sorrow and grief." O how grateful and acceptable those tears were, poured out from a pure heart and fervent love, and much sweeter than precious perfumes in alabaster prepared for anointing. Now, therefore, I pray to you, most merciful Jesus Christ, through the depths of your mercy, who deigned to visit and comfort the holy Mary Magdalene in her great sorrow, that you would also grant me a similar mercy, when my soul is troubled with weariness and weighed down by the labor of body and the sorrow of heart from some opposing passion, or from the hidden withdrawal of the sweetness of your grace, whatever it may be due to my fault, known to you better than to me, or even from a bad conscience pressing upon me with the memory of the future judgment, terrifying me from all sides because of my negligence and the daily lukewarmness in many good things omitted and mixed with vain cares. Lord, I ask you not to withdraw your hand from me in my tribulation, as I hope for the forgiveness of my sins. But because of your immense mercy, open to me the embrace of your mercies, which are eternal and will endure forever for all who seek you with their whole heart and desire to love you. And grant me, through the usual kindness of your consolation, the grace I earnestly desire, and through the prayers and tears of Saint Mary Magdalene, show me the joyful countenance of your face after the death of my body. Amen.