After three years' sojourn here Mary had a great longing to see Jerusalem again, and was taken there by John and Peter. Peter, who was the celebrant, wore a robe which was very long at the back but did not trail on the ground. Undoubtedly, a sword did pierce Marys soul as she watched Jesus blood pour from His body, knowing there was nothing she could do to comfort Him. It was during Mary's engagement that she learned through an angelic visitation of the plans God had for her to serve as Jesus Christ's mother on Earth. The two Apostles did a good deal of work in it, and also arranged a door to close the entrance to the tomb. The fireplace was on the floor opposite the door; it was sunk into the ground beside a wall which rose in steps on each side of it up to the ceiling. He came and went in the course of his travels. [On the afternoon of August 14 ^th Catherine Emmerich said to the writer: Now I will tell of the death of the Blessed Virgin if only I am not disturbed by visits. But I do know that in the sacrifice of the New Covenant they always had near the altar the bones of prophets and later of martyrs, just as the Patriarchs at their sacrifices always placed on the altar the bones of Adam or of other progenitors on whom the Promise rested. So he went still farther north, right across China, to where Russia is now, where he received a second summons which sent him hurrying to Ephesus. There may be a confusion here (unless other persons are intended): Joseph Barsabas Justus was the candidate proposed with Matthias in Acts 1.. 23; Joseph Barnabas, later the companion of St. Paul, first appears in Acts 4.. 36. Part of this submission included His baptism, which mirrored the requirements of the Melchizedek priesthood (Matthew 3:13-15). For this purpose they had taken away or arranged differently the movable wickerwork screens which divided it into sleeping compartments. Later Philip came with a companion from Egypt. A little altar had been set up by the Apostles in the alcove beside the Blessed Virgin's couch. 5. April 29, 2023 - 8 likes, 1 comments - Humans of Heaven (@humansofhvn) on Instagram: "April 30: St. Catherine of Siena Catherine, the daughter of a humble tradesman . Jewish marriages were contracted between the bride and grooms families, usually within a narrow circle of familial clans. Even her hands were covered except when she was alone. That is one reading. As they came out they made affecting gestures of prayer or grief. Only a few women remained with the Blessed Virgin. (She was twenty years older than the Blessed Virgin.) John carried a vessel with ointment, and Peter, dipping the finger of his right hand into it, anointed the breast, hands, and feet of the Blessed Virgin, praying as he did so. I saw Peter again bringing her the Blessed Sacrament after the service; he brought it to her in the cross-shaped vessel. James the Greater, who had a narrow pale face and black hair, came from Spain to Jerusalem with several disciples, and stayed some time in Sarona near Joppa. The floor sank at the entrance, and then one saw the burial-place before one like a narrow altar with the rock-wall projecting over it. In front of the altar was a stand covered with a cloth over which hung a scroll. Luke 3:23 tells us, "Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry.". In front of the Blessed Virgin's bed stood a small, low, three-cornered stool, like the one on which the kings had laid their presents before her in the Cave of the Nativity. The Bible does not tell us directly how old Mary was when she gave birth to Jesus. The reason why I saw the Blessed Virgin with such particular clearness in this vision may be my possession of a little relic of a garment which she wore on this occasion. (SB)[185] These visits to Jerusalem may be the source of the legends that suppose her death to have taken place there. Opposite it, to the left of the oratory, was a cell where her clothes and other belongings were kept. She was living in the spirit, as it were. It was told me that the pale stem of the cross was cypress, the brown arm cedar, and the other arm of yellow palm-wood, while the piece added at the top, with the title, was of smooth yellow olive-wood. She came to Jerusalem from Ephesus once again, [185] eighteen months before her death, and I saw her again visiting the Holy Places with the Apostles at night, wrapped in a veil. The Council cannot be that of Acts 15, which took place some years later. The newcomers tenderly embraced those who were already there, and I saw many of them weeping for joy and for sorrow, too -- happy to see each other again and grieved that the occasion for their meeting was so sad. Five of them who assisted in offering the Holy Sacrifice (just as I had seen done when Peter first officiated in the new church at the pool of Bethsaida after the Ascension) put on the big, rich, priestly vestments. Before taking Mary into his home, Joseph's previous wife (with whom he had had several children) died. As she grew older, her face became ever paler and more transparent. The unchallenged facts about her life establish that Jesus cleansed her of seven demons (Luke 8:2 and Mark 16:9), probably . [184] This hill slopes steeply towards Ephesus; the city as one approaches it from the south-east seems to lie on rising ground immediately before one, but seems to change its place as one draws nearer. The altar was a table covered with a red cloth with a white one over it. This Herod reigned AD. Some of them had a pouch hanging from their girdles. At that time I saw no picture and no fixed cross to designate the Stations, nothing but plain memorial stones with inscriptions, but afterwards, as the result of constant visits and attention, I saw the place becoming increasingly beautiful and easy of approach. He was very handsome and had a great resemblance to Our Lord, whence he was called by all his brethren the brother of the Lord. That was the . The dogmatic decree of Nov. 1st, 1950, however, makes no pronouncement about the death of Our Lady. The cave was not as spacious as Christ's and hardly high enough for a man to enter it upright. Back then, it made sense for the grooms family to offer payment for a wife. The Old Testament Practical Tools for Christians . Andrew, who was on his way from Jerusalem, where he had suffered persecution, was not far from him. In the center one was the Blessed Sacrament, and in the others chrism, oil, salt, other holy things, and some shreds of what was perhaps cotton. If she was then sixty-four years old (as AC says here), she was born in 20 B.C. (SB)[195] All the ancient legends describe the pure soul of Mary leaving her body. They found their son in the temple courts three days later, astounding all who heard Him (Luke 2:41-48). The Bible doesnt tell us what Mary thought, how she felt, or even how old she was when Jesus died. ], After Christ's Ascension Mary lived for three years on Mount Sion, for three years in Bethany, and for nine years in Ephesus, whither St. John took her soon after the Jews had set Lazarus and his sisters adrift upon the sea. Peter then gave her Holy Communion. This made me think of the power of healing in the name of Jesus which is specially bestowed upon priests, and how in our days this grace has been particularly manifested in the person of Prince Hohenlohe. At first they were just rough stones to mark the places, afterwards everything was made more elaborate. When she was living in Jerusalem, she had never failed, ever since Our Lord.s. At each of these places she put up a stone, or, if there was already a tree there, she made a mark upon it. The dogmatic decree of Nov. 1st, 1950, however, makes no pronouncement about the death of Our Lady. I also saw coming into Mary's house Mary Heli, the elder sister of the Blessed Virgin, and her younger stepsister, a daughter of Anna by her second husband. Only those were summoned who were relations or acquaintances of the Holy Family. Amazingly, a number of others in the house, including Myrtle's husband Karl & his aunt, were still alive, although trapped, and would survive. The Blessed Virgin received the Blessed Sacrament. The theory is made more credible by the fact that Jesus, while dying on the cross, commissioned the apostle John to care for Mary. Well, there they are, the Apostles, ask them yourself, you are much more learned than I am, you can ask them better than I can. Based on the context of the scriptures, it is likely that something like 25-30. It completely covered only the back, where it fell to the feet in a few long folds. There was no standing cross there, but only one cut into a stone. Feb. 16, 2005. The sides of this box were covered with carpets reaching down to the floor and were decorated with tassels and fringes. After His baptism, Scripture reveals that Jesus attended three annual Passover feasts (John 2, John 6, John 12). The Blessed Virgin soared through them all to the Throne of God and of her Son, whose wounds shone with a light transcending even the light irradiating His whole Presence. (SB), [189] St. Susanna was a Roman maiden, martyred in AD. 44 at the latest. They had come here to escape violent persecution. He was ordained a priest in 1827, and engaged in the parochial ministry for . " [H]aving completed the course of her earthly life" is ambiguous; it allows for the possibility that Mary may not have died before her Assumption. Some of the Apostles and disciples went on ahead, others followed with the women. The ceiling of the Blessed Virgin's room disappeared, the lamp hung in the open air, and I saw through the sky into the heavenly Jerusalem. The Apostles prayed for a while, and then, raising herself rather less, she received the Chalice from John. The years given here probably include parts of years, since on p. 166 AC states clearly that Mary lived fourteen years and two months after the Ascension, or, as on p. 169 , thirteen years and two months. He was killed in India by being pierced with a lance. [On the morning of August 13 ^th, 1822, Catherine Emmerich said: Last night I had a great vision of the death of the Blessed Virgin, but have completely forgotten it all.' What word does Luke use that hints at Mary's age range . I believe that this grave must still exist under the earth and will one day come to light. When she said this, she was already seeing what happened after Mary's death. She then, once more, spoke to them all, doing everything that Jesus had commanded her at Bethany. By the time Mary was about 12 or 13 years old, historians believe, she was engaged to Joseph, a devout Jewish man. In front of the cave there was a little garden with a wooden fence round it, as there had been in front of Christ's sepulcher. If she was then sixty-four years old (as AC says here), she was born in 20 B.C. Her head and whole figure were wrapped in a long cloth; she was covered by a brown woolen blanket. Such was the impression I had at the sight of the cloth beside the cross. As Easter Sunday approaches and Christians everywhere remember Jesus journey to the cross, we cant help but wonder about his mother who stuck by His side till the bitter end. Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mothers sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. It was made of different kinds of wood. Peter in rich, priestly vestments. Mary may have been around 47 to 49 years old when Jesus died. InThe Characters of Easter,youll become acquainted with the unlikely collection of ordinary people who witnessed the miracle of Christs death and resurrection. Ordained priest in 1815, he became a canon of Bamberg in 1821. [188] These were James the Less and Matthew, who is his step-brother, since Alpheus married when a widower Mary the daughter of Cleophas, having had Matthew by a former wife. In the evening I was following two of Mary's friends on the Way of the Cross behind her house. I saw the Blessed Virgin as very full of years, but no sign of old age appeared in her except a consuming yearning by which she was as it were transfigured. She was radiant with longing; I could feel this longing, which was bearing her upwards -- ah, my heart was longing to ascend with hers to God! The writer: You are going to tell of the death of the Blessed Virgin.' Jesus, in all ways, submitted Himself to the law so that He might fulfill the law. time. RT @rich33301: Virgin birth begot from rape of a 14 yr old married virgin, Mary & was probably too scared to scream & wake up her husband. Another of the women living in Mary's neighborhood, whom I had also seen on her way to Nazareth before Jesus' baptism, was a niece of Elizabeth's called Mara. 3 Surprising Reasons to Be Like Doubting Thomas. for the birth of Christ, 30 A.D. for his death, and the marrying age of 13 years old for young Jewish women at the time. ET on EWTN: Holy Mass and Rosary on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 - The Feast of Saint Mark. Four times did I see the Apostles relieve each other in watching and praying by the holy body. This woman was related to the Holy Family through Anna, for Anna was related to St. Anne and still more closely to Elizabeth, St. Anne's niece. In the meantime Peter had completed the Holy Sacrifice. Today the Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Peter Chanel (1803-1841). (SB), [191] The mission-fields of the various Apostles as mentioned by AC on these pages generally correspond to the traditional legends as preserved in the Lives of the Saints, the Breviary, the Acta Bollandiana, and local cult. Whereupon the holy virgin and martyr Susanna [189] came to me and encouraged me, saying that she would be my companion on the journey. It was the Apostles' custom to carry this cross on their travels hanging on their breasts under their garments. There was one man whom I saw more often than others going in and out of the house; I always took him to be John, but neither here nor in Jerusalem did he remain permanently near the Blessed Virgin. Her face was white as snow and as though transparent. I forget where James the Less was when the summons reached him. If she was then sixty-four years old (as AC says here), she was born in 20 B.C. In the meantime the altar was set up and the Apostles vested themselves for the service in their long white robes and broad girdles with letters on them. He was a very long way off. After the Blessed Virgin had prayed that the Apostles should come to her, I saw the call going forth to them in many different parts of the world. I also saw that several disciples had arrived, among whom I remember John Mark and the aged Simeon's son or grandson, who had killed Jesus' last Easter lamb and had the duty of supervising the sacrificial animals in the Temple. Gethsemani is on one side of the valley. Since she was a virgin, Mary couldnt understand how this blessing could occur. We don't know where exactly John lived. This is not properly written out; but I see them as separate figures because I do not understand big sums in Roman letters. Women typically married in their early to mid teens. He usually stayed in Ephesus and its neighborhood, and it was here that the summons reached him. At the same time I found myself in the presence of other priests who possessed this power of healing in the same degree, but failed to exercise it owing to distractions, preoccupations with other things, fear of other people, or lack of perseverance. Then they crossed the arms on the breast, wrapped the holy body in a great grave-cloth, and wound it round with a band fastened under one arm so that it looked like a child in swaddling clothes. Mary.s couch, which was placed against the wall, was a box one and a half feet high and of the breadth and length of a narrow plank. The Blessed Virgin lay still and as though near death in her little cell. Catholic friar Paul Gaechter argues that Mary was probably betrothed between 12 and 13. Ordained priest in 1815, he became a canon of Bamberg in 1821. Nor can I for the moment be sure whether Christ.s Cross itself was made of these different kinds of wood, or whether Mary had made this cross in this way only for devotional reasons. I saw the Apostles standing in prayer together on the right-hand side of the front part of the house, where they had arranged an oratory. Why Is it Important for Us to Be Restored? During this time it was announced more than once that she was dead, and the rumor of her death and burial was spread abroad in Jerusalem and in other places as well. She could only say a few words to them. To my great joy I saw that Mary's soul, as it entered heaven, was followed by a great number of souls released from purgatory; and again today, on the anniversary, I saw many poor souls entering heaven, amongst them some whom I knew. He had a short black curly beard, divided in the middle. 19K views, 788 likes, 658 loves, 4.4K comments, 240 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from EWTN: Starting at 8 a.m. Her sleeping cell was opened on all sides, and she sat upright on her couch, shining white as if suffused with light. This approximation comes from multiple informed but inexact calculations, including the date of 4-6 B.C. The Apostles then returned to the altar in the front part of the house in a solemn procession with the sacred vessels and continued the service. Mary and Joseph started home without Him, thinking He . Towards evening the Blessed Virgin realized that her end was approaching and therefore signified her desire, in accordance with Jesus' will, to bless and say farewell to the Apostles, disciples and women who were present. The Apostles stood in two rows reaching from the altar to her couch, and bowed low as Peter passed between them bearing the Blessed Sacrament. They must have changed places, for later on I saw six of the Apostles acting as bearers -- at the head, James the Greater and James the Less; in the center, Bartholomew and Andrew; and behind, Thaddeus and Matthew. Yesterday evening and this morning I saw the assembled Apostles holding a service in the front part of the house. During Mary and Josephs betrothal period, God sent the angel Gabriel to visit Mary and inform her that she was the chosen vessel to bring the Son of God into the world (Luke 1:26-38). Afterwards she arranged the Stations better, and I saw her inscribing on the stones the meaning of each Station, the number of paces and so forth. "According to the customs of her time and country, Mary, at her betrothal with Joseph, was between twelve and twelve and one-half years old. 4. Today I saw two more Apostles coming in with girt-up garments like travelers. After she had marked this Way of the Cross with twelve Stations, she went there with her maidservant in quiet meditation: at each Station they sat down and renewed the mystery of its significance in their hearts, praising the Lord for His love with tears of compassion. Luke 3:23 tells us, Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. This makes sense, given Jewish traditions prohibiting rabbinical teaching until age 30 (Numbers 4:3). She gave her blessing first to James alone, and then to his three companions together, after which James went to join in the service. MARY.S MAIDSERVANT AND JOHN THE APOSTLE. (SB), The Death of the Blessed virgin Mary at Ephesus, [182] The chronology here is not quite plain. Mary's house was the only one built of stone. If the Ascension took place in A.D. 30, the date of the Assumption would be A.D. 43 or 44, which will fit with the subsequent martyrdom of James the Great under Herod (42-44). AC suggests that James went directly to his martyrdom after the Assumption, in which case the Assumption must have taken place in AD. Mary was probably about 16 when Jesus was born, so she would have been born around the year 20 BC.The Blessed Virgin Mary is assumed to have been about 14 years old when she married. The Blessed Virgin lived here alone, with a younger woman, her maidservant, who fetched what little food they needed. The men then went back into the front part of the house and prepared for the service, while the women who were present came up to the Blessed Virgin's couch, knelt down and received her blessing. Great avenues lead up to the city, and the ground under the trees is covered with yellow fruit. Then I saw the coffin lifted onto a bier and carried out of the house on the shoulders of Peter and John. When Our Lord appeared to me I no longer saw St. Susanna beside me. Nov 23, 2017 at 18:10. Thus all three came to Mary's house, where they met John. So I saw all the Blessed Virgin's garments and will describe them later. Maroni had by this Eliud a son whom Our Lord raised from the dead in Naim after his mother had become a widow for the second time. Several, the Latin (3), the Greek (3), and Pseudo-Joseph of Arimathea (4), refer to her visit to the sepulcher. Matthew and Andrew followed the Blessed Virgin's Way of the Cross till the last Station, the cave which represented Christ's sepulcher. We know many of the wonderful events that occurred in connection with Mary before the year 1000.