Sermons on the Song of Songs

“Behold thou art fair, O My love, behold thou art fair, thy eyes are as those of doves.

“Behold thou art fair, my Beloved, and comely.”

“Behold thou art fair, O My love, behold thou art fair, thy eyes are as those of doves.” How beautiful, my brethren, how admirable! Love is the cause of the Bride’s presumption, and the cause of the Bridegroom’s severity is also love. This is manifest from the event. For presumption has been followed by correction, correction by amendment, and now amendment obtains its reward. Dignity is put off, reverence is forgotten, the Master is gone, the Monarch has retired, only the Lover is present. Thus, wherever love reigns supreme, there is no room for pomp and ceremony. And just as of old Moses spoke to the Lord “as a man is wont to speak to his friend,” and the Lord replied to him, so here the Word Divine and the holy soul, like two intimates, converse familiarly together. Nor should this surprise us. For the same power of love binds them together in mutual affection and leads them to delight in each other’s company. Sweeter than honey, therefore, are the words that pass between them; the very glances they interchange are full of tenderest feeling and speak the language of holy love. The Bridegroom calls the Bride His love, He pronounces her fair and that with reiteration, whilst she, in her turn, addresses Him in the very same terms. Such repetition is not without meaning. It points to the intensity of their mutual love. Perhaps it also points to some mystical truth which we shall do well to investigate.

Now, it appears to me that the repetition of the epithet “fair” in my present text implies the existence of a twofold loveliness in the soul. Let us therefore inquire what this double beauty may be. Humility is beyond question one principle of spiritual beauty. I am not saying this of myself. The inspired Psalmist has said the same before me. “Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop,” so he sang, “and I shall be cleansed.” Hyssop, which is a lowly herb valued for its medicinal properties, symbolises humility. It was by this virtue, then, that the Royal Prophet hoped to be purified after his terrible fall, and to recover the snowy whiteness of his former innocence. Even in a sinner, humility has doubtless wherewith to attract our love, but it can hardly excite our wonder: it is amiable without being admirable. But if he who has preserved his innocence should likewise show himself humble, will you not allow that such a one is adorned with two kinds of spiritual beauty? The Blessed Virgin Mary never soiled her first sanctity, yet was never otherwise than humble; and therefore “the King hath desired her beauty,” which resulted from this union of humility with innocence. So she sings in her canticle, “He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid.” Therefore, “Blessed is he that keepeth his garments clean,” that is, the robes of innocence and simplicity, if yet he be careful to set them off with the ornament of humility. Certainly, the soul that is such shall hear herself addressed in the words, “Behold thou art fair, my beloved, behold thou art fair.” Lord Jesus, how I wish that Thou couldst say to this soul of mine, even once and without reiteration, “Behold thou art fair!” How I wish that Thou wouldst help me to maintain myself in humility! My first robe of innocence I have soiled by sinning. Therefore, I can only say, “I am Thy servant.” For I dare not presume to call myself Thy friend, unworthy as I am to hear Thee bearing repeated testimony to my beauty, and saying, “Behold thou art fair, O my love, behold thou art fair.” Well content should I feel wert Thou even once to call me fair. But what if this also should be beyond my desert? “I know what I will do.” Being but a slave myself, I will reverence her who is Thy beloved. A miserable wretch, full of deformity, I will occupy myself with admiring her multiplied beauties. I will exult and be glad at the sound of the Bridegroom’s voice, marvelling at its ravishing sweetness. Who knows but I may so find favour in the eyes of the Spouse, and be numbered for her sake amongst the friends of her Beloved? For “the friend of the Bridegroom, who standeth and heareth Him, rejoiceth with joy because of the Bridegroom’s voice.” Behold, His voice is now sounding in the ears of His Spouse. Let us listen and be glad. The Bridegroom and the Bride are present to each other. They converse together. Let us stand by. Let no worldly cares, no allurements of the flesh be allowed to distract our attention from this sacred colloquy.

“Behold thou art fair, O my love,” says He, “behold thou art fair.” The first word here, “behold,” is expressive of admiration, the others of praise. And surely she is well worthy of admiration, in whom not the loss but the preservation of sanctity furnished the motive of humility. Rightly, too, is she pronounced to be fair, as being adorned with the double beauty of humility and innocence. Such a combination is rarely found on earth, for either innocence is lost, or, where it is preserved, humility is excluded. Consequently she is truly blessed in whom both are found coexistent. She is proved to be innocent in that she is conscious to herself of nothing, and humble because she has willingly endured correction. What a contrast, my brethren, between this Spouse and ourselves! We can hardly bear to be reproved, even when we are guilty of grave offences; whereas she, although blameless, submits with humble patience to the bitterness of reproach. For surely there was nothing wrong in the desire she expressed to see her Bridegroom’s glory. Rather it was deserving of praise. Nevertheless, on being reprimanded she does penance, and exclaims, “A bundle of myrrh is my Beloved to me, He shall abide between my breasts.” As if she should say, “It is enough for me. I wish to know nothing henceforth but ‘Jesus and Him crucified.’” O admirable humility! She who never contracted the stain of sin assumes the disposition of a penitent! She who has done nothing needing to be atoned for, yet does not dispense herself from making atonement! You may ask, why she is rebuked if she has done no evil. My answer shall commend the providence and the prudence of the Bridegroom, so be attentive. Just as of old the Lord tried the obedience of Abraham, so now He puts to the test the humility of His Spouse. And as the Patriarch, after proving his obedience, heard addressed to him the words, “Now I know that thou fearest God,” so the Bride receives here a similar testimony to her humility, though expressed in different words. For the encomium, “Behold thou art fair,” is intended to signify something like this, “Now I know that thou art humble.” And the compliment is repeated in order to indicate that the beauty of humility has been added to the glory of innocence. Thus the Bridegroom seems to say, “Now I know that thou art beautiful, not only by reason of My grace and love, but also through the merit of thine own humility. I do not now pronounce thee to be fair among women, or beautiful in thy cheeks or neck only, as I did before. But I proclaim thee beautiful, simply and absolutely, not relatively beautiful, not beautiful with qualification or distinction.”

The Bridegroom goes on to say, “Thy eyes are as those of doves.” This plainly is another commendation of the Bride’s humility. For it is intended to reward the docility she showed when, having been corrected for her presumption in inquiring into things too sublime, she immediately descended to the lowliness that became her, and said, “A bundle of myrrh is my Beloved to me.” There is surely a vast difference between the vision of glory which she asked for before and the bundle of myrrh which now contents her. Hence it is a sign of no ordinary humility to be willing to receive the latter grace instead of the former. It is by such acquiescence that she has earned the eulogy, “Thy eyes are as those of doves.” “Now,” we may fancy the Bridegroom saying to her, “now thou art not ‘walking in great matters nor in wonderful things above’ thee. Like the dove, thou art satisfied with what is lowly; and just as that most simple of birds builds her nest in the fissures of the rock, so dost thou abide in My Wounds, contemplating Me with thy dove-like eyes, at least in the mysteries of My Incarnation and Passion.”