The Life of the Virgin by Maximus;Shoemaker Stephen J.;

Author:Maximus;Shoemaker, Stephen J.;
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
ISBN: 9780300175042
Publisher: Yale University Press

CHAPTER 7

ON THE RESURRECTION

92 Nevertheless, the immaculate mother was inseparable from the tomb, and she was watching and listening to everything that was happening and being said. She saw the great earthquake that woke the first fruits1 of those who have fallen asleep (cf. 1 Cor 15.20) and put the guards to sleep and rolled away the stone (cf. Matt 28.2, 4), and then the waking of the guards again and their entry into the city (cf. Matt 28.11). All this the women who had gone and come back again were not able to see, but the blessed mother of the Lord, seized by love of her son and standing inseparably at the tomb, was a witness to everything until she saw even his glorious Resurrection. For the other women saw the stone rolled away and the angel sitting on it; but when and how this took place, they did not know this at all. Only the immaculate mother of the Lord standing there knew everything. And because of this, she received the good news of the Resurrection before everyone else, and before everyone else she became worthy of the longed for height of every good thing and divinely beautiful vision of her Lord and son. And she heard the sweet voice and believed in all the mysteries of his divine economy: as previously in those of the Incarnation, so now in those of the Resurrection. Not only because she was the immaculate and holy mother, but also because she thus remained with him willingly at the time of the Passion and ardently cared for him, when she was enabled by him through desire2 as if to die with him, that is why she is living and glorified with him. So then the all-holy mother of the Lord saw the Resurrection of her son before anyone else. And she informed his disciples and announced it before the myrrh-bearing women.3 Even though the evangelists mentioned none of this in the account of the Resurrection, it is for this reason that they left out the mother's witness: to preclude any doubt and so that no one would take it as reason for disbelief that the vision of the Resurrection was reported by the mother. And furthermore, some would also have said that the evangelists wrote this in order to bestow favor and respect on the holy queen.4 On account of all this, they mentioned nothing about this but wrote the things said by the other myrrh-bearing women.

93 So then the holy Theotokos saw with her eyes the Resurrection of her son and king, and she was filled with joy, and she went from there to the house of the beloved disciple and was awaiting the time of Christ's Ascension. Nevertheless, this house was Zion, as was written above: for after the death of his father Zebedee, John the Evangelist sold the hereditary property and possessions that he had in Galilee, and he purchased the house of Zion in Jerusalem where he received the holy Theotokos according to the command of his Lord and master, and he served her.

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