1. The position of woman, between her humiliation in Eden and her restoration in Bethlehem, was in many respects sad to contemplate.
She was more of a slave than an equal. Eve pa.s.ses, unrecognized and unnamed, to her grave. Sarah, the wife of Abram, finds mention, and is described in such a manner that you behold her sharing her husband"s love, though the picture of her in the home is not a pleasant one. We can hardly understand how Abram could have suffered her to enter the house of Abimelech, nor how she could have taken Hagar to her husband, and thus again have led man astray--the man whom G.o.d called to be the Father of the Faithful. Eve, the mother of the race, tempted Adam, and Sarah, the mother of the patriarchs, tempted Abram; and lack of faith in G.o.d was the cause of their ruin, and consequent humiliation. There is something sad about the manner of her life. Her home was a simple tent, surrounded by flocks and herds, and crowded with rubbish of every description. Woman in the East is very much to-day what Adam saw her on his first entrance into the wilderness. The effects of sin followed her from generation to generation. The gloom of the night is still over her as she spends her days in out-door labor. She weeds the cotton, and a.s.sists in pruning the vine and gathering the grapes.
She goes forth in the morning, bearing not only her implements of husbandry, but also her babes in the cradle; and returning in the evening, she prepares her husband"s supper and sets it before him, but never thinks of eating of it until after he is done. One of the early objections the Nestorians made to the Female Seminary was, that it would disqualify their daughters for their accustomed toil. In after years woman might be seen carrying her Spelling-book to the field along with her Persian hoe, little dreaming that she was thus taking the first step towards the subst.i.tution of the new implement for the old.
Nestorian parents used to consider the birth of a daughter a great calamity. When asked the number of their children, they would count up their sons, and make no mention of their daughters. The birth of a son was an occasion for great joy and giving of gifts. Neighbors hastened to congratulate the happy father, but days might elapse before the neighborhood knew of the birth of a daughter. It was deemed highly improper to inquire after the health of a wife, and the nearest approach to it was to ask after the house or household. Formerly a man never called his wife by name, but in speaking of her would say the mother of "so and so," giving the name of the child; or the daughter of "so and so," giving the name of her father; or simply that woman did this or that. Nor did the wife presume to call her husband"s name, or to address him in the presence of his parents, who, it will be borne in mind, lived in the same apartment. They were married very young, often at the age of fourteen, and without any consultation of their own preference, either as to time or person.
There was hardly a man among the Nestorians who did not beat his wife when the missionaries commenced their labors. The women expected to be beaten, and took it as a matter of course. When the men wished to talk together of anything important, they usually sent the women out of doors or to the stable, as unable to understand or unfit to be trusted. In some cases, says the author of "Woman and Her Saviour,"
this might be a necessary precaution; for the absence of true affection, and the frequency of domestic broils, rendered the wife an unsafe depositary of any important family affair.[A]
[Footnote A: Woman and her Saviour, pp. 18 and 19.]
In Paraguay a female child is described by Southey as lamenting, in heart-breaking tones, that her mother did not kill her when she was born; and Sir A. Mackenzie declares that there is a cla.s.s of women in the north who performed this pious duty towards female infants, whenever they had an opportunity. But wherever Christ is known and loved, the daughter is a gift of G.o.d as well as a son. Woman owes to her Saviour all she has of joy in time, as well as all she has of hope in eternity. Though she does not obtain the headship, though her sorrow and her pain are not removed, though her desire continues to be to her husband, and though the rule of the husband continues in every well-regulated home, yet woman is elevated to become a shareholder of the pleasures of the home, of the honors and emoluments of life, of the riches obtained by toil, and of the enjoyments derived from culture. Woman in the Christian home is the soul, the pride, the ornament, and the helper. Through Christ she obtains a recognition, so that when we speak of man we mean the race, men and women, for these become the two halves of one thought, so that no especial stress is laid on the welfare of either, but the development of one is secured by the development of the other. To such an extent have the disabilities been removed from the s.e.x, that a leading writer has been compelled to admit, that "in our own country, women are, in many respects, better situated than the men. Good books are allowed, with more time to read them. They are not so early forced into the bustle of life, nor so weighed down by demands for outward success. They have time to think, and no traditions chain them, and few conventionalities, compared with what must be met in other nations.
Doors swing open to them, and they are invited to walk the fields of literary and artistic success, and whatever tends to the development of their higher nature is freely placed within their reach."
2. _The trials of motherhood deserve notice_. We have seen the hopes that came to Eve, and beheld their realization in and through Christ.
The trials were born of sin. Eve"s eldest child, Cain, possessed a narrow, selfish nature. He was a tiller of the ground. Abel was a keeper of the sheep. The first born met this curse in the soil. The second born looked forward to the restoration. In process of time Cain brought of the fruit of the ground. Tradition has it that he brought what was left of his food, of light and tempting things, flax or hemp seed.
Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock, which was a proper type of Christ. His offering pleased G.o.d, Cain"s n.i.g.g.ardly gift displeased G.o.d. The selfish man wreaked his vengeance in the usual way. He slew his brother, who was better than himself. The heavens are black with gathering gloom. Murder is in the air. The shock is felt everywhere.
G.o.d comes, and sternly asks, "_Where is thy brother?_" Cain impudently replies, "Am I my brother"s keeper?" Then comes the curse. It is a self-invited curse, for the gift he gave to G.o.d is the harvest in future for himself. Ah, what a lesson. How early it is taught. If you hate G.o.d, if you regret what you give, if you make it small, if you see to it that you give the leavings rather than the firstlings, then beware. Cain said his punishment was greater than he could bear. He is getting back what he gave. The command is, Give, and it shall be given back. The converse is true--Keep, and it shall be kept back.
The hopes of Eve were centred in the victory to be achieved over the enemy of her life, by means of the triumph to be won by her children.
Her trials really began when she saw that sin was not an accident. It was rebellion which bore fruit. Her treachery to G.o.d came back to her in this treachery of her first born to her second child, whom she loved with maternal tenderness. Thus the gates of evil were thrown open, and they filled the land with violence, and the flood became a necessity.
What was true of Eve was more or less true of woman until Christ came. She inherited sorrow, and was born to a life of humiliation and wretchedness. The history of woman in the olden time and at this hour, wherever Christ is not known, is full of sorrow. In Christ she finds an emanc.i.p.ator from sorrow.
There is another strange fact. In the Old Dispensation, the first born son is the child of promise. But wherever the influence of Christ"s gospel rules, there the rule of the first born disappears, and all, both sons and daughters, share in the patrimony of the house and in the honors of the household. Despite this, it is natural for a father to love his first born son the best, and for the mother to find her heart clinging involuntarily to the younger and weaker. From the unfortunate the father may turn, but the mother never. She will bind her love tightest about the birdling that, from some misfortune, is unable to leave the maternal nest.
Turn we to the Old Testament, we find that whenever man was brought near to G.o.d, as was Abram, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and others, woman was held in respect, and was permitted to exercise an elevating influence in the home; and yet it remains true, that in nearly every instance she failed to prove herself a helpmeet.
Sarah introduced Abraham to polygamy, Rebekah was a pattern of lying, and Rachel of deception. The three celebrated women of history are dest.i.tute of those characteristics which make of a wife a companion, counsellor, and friend.
Do we study the history of Miriam, of Deborah, and Esther? we behold women rising up in the name of G.o.d to help their people to save their kindred. They were the introduction to a n.o.ble succession. Woman then, as now, is loved for bringing _help_ to those on whom G.o.d devolves responsibility.
The picture best loved and most praised in the Old Testament is that of Hannah, the mother of Samuel, as she fits him for his post of duty in the service of the Lord. In Hannah the world finds their beau ideal of a mother, actuated by principle and ruled by love, recognizing her allegiance to G.o.d, and her obligations to her child and husband, and there is hardly a child in this Christian land who does not dwell with delight upon this fact, that each year the mother made for her boy a little coat. It was a motherly deed, and links her to the history of the race by the blessed tie which finds its origin in maternal care.
Ruth comes next, because of her fidelity to her mother, and her love of virtue. It is by her life we are introduced afresh to the golden vein of prophecy that runs through the Old Testament, and which ever pointed towards the coming of Christ as the hope of woman and the hope of the world. Esther"s love of her race, and her n.o.ble daring of Eastern despotism for the good of her people, lifts her to a high place, though as a wife and mother we know nothing more than that she was hedged round by the iron regulations of a paganized court. The revelations made concerning the daughter of Jacob, or of Bathsheba, the loved wife of David, and in fact of nearly all of the women of the Bible, prove that the women of the olden time left as well as received an inheritance of shame. The names we have mentioned are among the brightest and the best. We will draw a veil over the characters of women such as the wife of Lot, or of Potiphar, the would-be seducer of Joseph, or of Job, the betrayer of her husband in misfortune, of Jezebel, the fury, or of Delilah, the traitress to her husband, and of a score of others, that make the age in which they lived seem like the night of humanity.
3. _Woman obtains her recognition in Christ._ From the moment G.o.d p.r.o.nounced sentence upon Eve to the moment when the angel appeared to Mary, man was recognized as the head. Even Miriam wrought through Moses, and Deborah, the judge and prophetess, lays no claim to personal communication with G.o.d, but quotes his promises, and stimulates Barak to action, So also when the angel came from the court of heaven to foretell the joy that was to come to the world in the birth of John, the forerunner of Christ, he came to Zacharias instead of to Elisabeth. But when the message related to Christ, _then the angel pa.s.sed by man, and approached woman direct_. G.o.d never forgets.
A thousand years are but as a day to Him. Yesterday, in Eden, he foretold the coming of Christ to Eve. To-day, in Nazareth, the angel comes to Mary, and makes her heart glad with the fact, that she was chosen to become the mother of our Lord. Eve lost by sin G.o.d"s companionship. Mary obtained, through Christ, favor with G.o.d and man.
The valley is spanned with this arch of hope. The night of woman"s humiliation is pa.s.sing away. And the angel came in unto her, and said, "Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women."
Strange words these, as we can readily perceive, from the position held by woman previously. No wonder that when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, "Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with G.o.d. And behold, thou shall conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord G.o.d shall give unto him the throne of his father David, and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." No wonder that the air seemed full of music. Woman, made so beautiful, woman, so beloved of G.o.d, and so prized by Adam, before sin blighted the bud of hope and spoiled the flower of beauty, was now to come forth from the darkness and gloom of her life of shame to the light of an unclouded day, henceforth to be made glorious by her ministrations of love. The glory of motherhood "is the man gotten from the Lord," and raised to work for G.o.d in this sinful world. The glory of woman is to share this man"s home as a helpmeet, and contribute by her love, and sympathy, and efforts to his happiness and usefulness here, that she may wear the crown of joy in heaven.
MARIOLATRY NOT OF CHRIST.
If ever woman had reason to sing, "My spirit hath rejoiced in G.o.d my Saviour," it was Mary, the Virgin Mother of Christ. G.o.d recognized her as a helper in restoring man from the ruins of sin. To her the angel spake, saying, "Hail, thou that art highly favored. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women." And in pondering in her heart the strange coincidences, she exclaimed, "G.o.d hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed."
From these words it is evident that Mary appreciated the honor conferred upon her by her Creator and rightful Ruler. It is a singular fact, that Eve, betrayed by Satan, betrayed the race. Mary held steadfast to G.o.d and to truth; and yet Satan has the second time taken woman and used her as an ally, and so has brought an influence to bear upon the minds of men which has led millions astray, and covers vast portions of the world with the gloom of a moral night. Mary, the "Mother of Jesus," is made to take the place of "Christ, the Son of G.o.d," and is declared to be the Mother of G.o.d. In this land we can form no conception of the extent to which this worship of Mary is carried in Roman Catholic countries. To the Italians Mary is G.o.d, and worship is simply the adoration of the Virgin. Viewing Romanism in the light of the Bible, this is its crowning sin; viewing it as a system combined to seduce and enslave, this is its masterpiece. To understand how it is so, let us think how deep in man"s nature is placed the feeling of the need of a being like unto himself, to mediate between him and G.o.d. The Bible completely meets this want in the G.o.d-man. But Popery blots out the G.o.d-man as mediator, and in his stead presents us with Mary, who is to the devotee the "one living and true G.o.d;" for, though the Father and Son are known, they are accessible only through Mary, and they stand so far behind and beyond her, that to the Romanist they are vague, shadowy, and unknown. Mary is the first name to be lisped in childhood, the last to be uttered by the quivering lips before they are closed in death. Around the neck of the infant is suspended a small image of the Virgin; when the babe seeks the breast it must kiss the image, and thus literally does it draw in the adoration of Mary with its mother"s milk. "Were the New Testament to be written at this hour, Rome would blot out the name of Christ and subst.i.tute that of Mary. Take a proof: The church close by the Vatican has upon its marble pediment, graven in large letters, "Let us come to the throne of the Virgin Mary, that we may find grace to help us in our time of need." The Roman sees Heb. iv. 16 quoted, but cannot verify it if he would, seeing the Bible is forbidden to him." Pius IX., at the foot of the column of the Immaculate Conception, erected to perpetuate the fact that he was permitted to decree the dogma, has Moses, David, Isaiah, and Jeremiah casting crowns before the Virgin, saying, "Thou art worthy; for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to G.o.d by thy blood." When it was announced that the French occupation of Rome should cease, the Pope published a decree calling on all Rome to go with him to the feet of Mary, if haply by cries and tears they might prevail with her to avert from the throne of G.o.d"s vicar the dangers that threaten it; and in that act the Pope led the way.[A]
[Footnote A: Minister _versus_ Priest, page 7.]
For this worship of the Virgin Mary there is a reason. Satan could not successfully lead astray so many millions of people, despite a preached gospel and a printed Bible, unless there was some truth lying at the root of this ineradicable Virgin worship. This root we shall discover when we recall woman"s position prior to the advent of Christ, the place she was called upon to fill in the scheme of redemption, and the influences set in motion by the life of Christ upon the earth.
1. _Let us notice woman"s position previous to the advent_. Before Christ came, woman was regarded as inferior to man. She had lost her equality. She was excluded from general intercourse, and her confinement to her own home and apartments, without education, without social recognition, left her without strength of character, self-reliance, or resources with herself. "Woman"s safety in society lies in two elements: her own virtue and intelligence, and the consequent respect for her which such a character inspires. Where these two things are found, she may partic.i.p.ate in general society, mingling freely with men as their equals, and regarded, it may be, even as their superiors. Here, it may be worthy of note, that no such estimate or honor is ever put upon woman except when Christianity has given her this elevation."
Before Christ appeared, the qualities honored as divine were peculiarly the virtues of the man--courage, wisdom, truth, strength.
Womanly virtues were regarded as puerile and contemptible, and woman herself was little better than a slave.
2. _Notice the place woman filled in the scheme of redemption_. It is admitted by those who recognize the Word of G.o.d as authority, that the Atonement required the sacrifice of one whose nature represents equally the dignity of the Law-maker and the humanity of the transgressor. In him Deity and humanity must be united: Deity, that he may give value to the offering; humanity, that he may obey the positive precepts and endure the penal sanction of the law human nature has violated. It was therefore essential that the prophecy of Isaiah, uttered six hundred years before the advent, should be fulfilled, viz., "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel--G.o.d with us." This work had been accomplished, and Mary was honored with the privilege of taking the words of Eve, "I have gotten a man with Jehovah," and making it no longer a prophecy, but a fact. So we sing,--
"Thou wast born of woman; them didst come, O, Holiest! to this world of sin and gloom, Not in thy dread omnipotent array; And not by thunder strewed Was thy tempestuous road,-- Nor indignation burned before thee on thy way; But thou, a soft and naked child, Thy mother undefiled, In the rude manger laid to rest, From off her virgin breast."
Then, for the first time, the mother resumed her place. When the wise men came into the house they saw the young child, with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshipped him; and when they had opened their treasures they presented unto him gifts, gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. The old Eastern custom, which placed the child before the mother, was now understood. G.o.d guarded against making Mary first, and at the same time provided for her a place. When G.o.d appeared to Joseph in a dream, he did not say, Take the mother and child, but the "young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt." This brings us naturally to consider--
3. _The influences set in motion by the life of Christ upon the earth_. First, let us review the history of Christ"s personal relations to Mary. Up to twelve years of age, his home was in Nazareth; and Luke declares (second chapter, fortieth verse), "The child grew and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of G.o.d was upon him. And when he was twelve years old, his parents went up to Jerusalem, after the custom of the feast. And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. For three days he was away from them. When they found him he was in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us?
Behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing."
It is noticeable that Luke mentions Joseph before he mentions the mother; and when Mary speaks, she ignores the miraculous conception, and calls him the son of Joseph. But Jesus _does not forget_ his origin, nor does he recognize Joseph as father, but says, How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father"s business? And they understood not the saying he spake unto them. And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them; but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. "And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with G.o.d and man."--Luke ii. 42.
Again, at Cana of Galilee, there was a marriage, and the mother of Jesus was there. Eighteen years have pa.s.sed since we last saw him in the temple, when Mary ignored his miraculous conception, and when Jesus rebuked her, by a.s.serting his Sonship and by claiming G.o.d as Father. At Cana both Jesus and his disciples are invited to the wedding. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, "Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come." Plainly, and in the most emphatic manner, Christ refuses to recognize Mary as intercessor or director. A third instance is still more marked. Jesus is talking to an immense mult.i.tude, and is making a hand-to-hand fight with Pharisees and Scribes. "While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him."
Evidently Mary had no idea of the character or the mission of the Man Christ Jesus, but feeling that he was popular, she was glad to exhibit her relationship in a public manner, and so through the throng sent in word, saying, "Tell Jesus his mother and his brethren stand without, desiring to speak with him." But he answered, and said unto him that told him, "Who is my mother? and who are my brethren?" It is not difficult to picture the G.o.d-man shaking off the trammels of the flesh and rising to the height of his great work. What a contrast is presented between the second and the first Adam! The first Adam yielded without remonstrance to Eve, who had worshipped the creature rather than the Creator, and thus paved the way for the introduction of idolatry; while the second Adam--the Lord of Glory--withstood the influences of Mary, rebuked her intermeddling and dictation, and stood forth to his work in the declaration as he Stretched out his hand towards his disciples, and said, "Behold my mother and my brethren.
For whosoever shall do the will of my Father who is in heaven, the same is MY BROTHER, AND SISTER, AND MOTHER."
Again, while Christ was conversing with his disciples, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, "Blessed is the womb that bore thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked." Thus suddenly flamed up this pa.s.sion for Mariolatry. It was instantly rebuked by the words, "Yea, rather, blessed are they that hear the Word of G.o.d and keep it." Thus he tore the crown from the brow of Mary woven by the irreligious, and intimated that, as Mary was greater than Eve, because of her identification with Himself, so whosoever should believe in Christ, and serve him, should be the equal of Mary. The purpose of G.o.d in forming Eve, should be realized in the womanly character resulting from a reception of the truth as it is in Jesus, and by doing the will of G.o.d on the earth.
Thus he severed the tie binding him to family, and proclaimed himself the Son of Man, and the Son of G.o.d, the Brother of the Faithful. From this declaration came the brotherhood and sisterhood of the church of Christ, so that no matter what be the rank or position of the worldling redeemed by the blood of Christ, he becomes an equal shareholder in love, and is recognized as a partaker in the fellowship of the church.
At the cross we find Mary standing with others. When Jesus therefore saw his mother and the disciple standing by whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, "Woman, behold thy son." Then saith he to the disciple, "Behold thy mother." And from that hour the disciple took her unto his own house. Once more she appeal"s as worshipper, and not as the worshipped. Her name is mentioned, with others, in Acts i. 14, as being with the disciples in the Pentecostal chamber waiting for the descent of the Holy Spirit.
From this scriptural testimony, it is apparent that the Saviour, by his conduct towards his mother, shielded the church from the curse of Mariolatry. Had he yielded in one instance, reasons for supporting the claims of Romanism had been furnished. Mary was only a woman. She was honored of G.o.d just as far as she served G.o.d, and when she turned aside she was no more than any other person. Her perceptions of Christ"s work were not as distinct or comprehensive as were those of Mary the sister of Lazarus, or of Mary Magdalene. In this Mary was not peculiar. Very frequently women a.s.sociated with great workers fail to appreciate the character of the work committed to them to do. To the world a worker may seem to be a wonder. To the one most intimately a.s.sociated with him he is a very ordinary individual. It is said a man is never a hero to his servant. Is it not almost as true of his wife?
A living great man is ordinary in so many things in his daily life, that the wife forgets his greatness. The wife of John Milton saw but a blind man in the bard, dwelling upon his immortal thought and evolving his world-renowned poem. As the eagle stirs up her nest, compelling her broodlings to exert themselves, so G.o.d sometimes suffers a good man to link his fortunes with a woman who is ill-mated with him in every way. In the light of the fact that Jesus found little or no appreciation in the society of Mary, and sought the home-joys elsewhere, woman ought to learn a lesson. Is it not possible that you mistake your mission, and strike the rock of stumbling in your home, rather than avoid it by ignoring that which is grand and admirable in the life of him with whom you are a.s.sociated? Doubtless in a busy man, now full of joy, and now morose; now engrossed by a thought or scheme to such an extent that he forgets himself and his family, and now idle and listless as a boy,--it may be hard, yet it is none the less a duty for woman to love him for what he is, and to see to it that he be ministered unto in his efforts. O, how dear to the heart of a working man--no matter whether he toil with brain or hand--who feels that his wife understands him, defends and protects him, and keeps the home bright with love, though tempests may sweep across the path that leads him into the world! There is a lesson here which belongs to men.
Mary"s lack of appreciation did not turn Jesus from his work. It permitted his true character to appear to better advantage. It tore down the scaffolding of Mariolatry, and permitted the G.o.d-man to stand forth in his grand proportions. "Wist ye not I must be about my Father"s business?" said Jesus. Many men make trouble at home an excuse for going to the bad. It is not an excuse. The design of home trouble may be to send a man to Jesus; to make the tendrils of love twine about the heavenly rather than the earthly. It surely is not to induce a man to twine his affections about the devilish and earthly.
It is not manly thus to do.
_Man moves in three circles_. The first is that of Self; the second that of Family; the third that of Country. A man who properly performs duties that pertain to himself, we shall not call n.o.ble. By neglecting family he becomes less than a man. By performing them never so well he comes not to merit applause. Distinctive n.o.bleness begins with the third cla.s.s. It is when he rises above self and family, when he looks abroad on the family of mankind, that he takes the alt.i.tude which in a man is distinctively great; when he feels no longer the little necessities which compel, or the little pleasures which allure, and yet is able to contemplate men as a great brotherhood of immortals, with a gaze a.n.a.logous to Him in whose image he is made; when he can look on the world through the light of eternity, and is willing to suffer all things, and to endure all things, that by him and through him blessings may reach others,--then it is he does that which it is the high privilege of man on this earth to do, and becomes a power to which under G.o.d humanity owes all it has achieved in time. "I serve"
is the law of the living forces of mankind. Each man and woman has a place. If they fill it, they furnish a channel along which G.o.d"s beneficent purposes find their way to a lost world. If they do not fill it, they are set aside, and the verdict of the world is, Served them right.
It if surprising that, after Mary had been rebuked at Cana of Galilee, that she should have presumed to have interrupted Jesus in the presence of the mult.i.tude. It is instructive that Christ taught us that the tie binding us to G.o.d and to humanity, is the most sacred of all; for while it made the G.o.d-man a brother to us, it makes us co-workers with G.o.d in carrying forward the enterprises with which men are identified on the earth. When a man is true to self, to humanity, and to G.o.d, and so girds himself with the strength arising from confidence, he deserves the support, if not the admiration, of those with whom he is a.s.sociated. It was unworthy of Mary to ignore the Divine origin of Jesus, and call Joseph his father before the elders.
She thought to raise herself by lowering him. He would not be lowered.
By his mother and by the world he knew that he had a right to be recognized as the Son of G.o.d. This tendency to belittle greatness lives yet. Men are seldom known until they die. We praise the dead and ignore the living, as a rule. There is too little respect shown to men occupying positions of public trust. There is too little respect shown in the household. The father and mother are not honored in the home as they deserve to be, and in the state the same principle rules. "Thou shall not speak evil of the ruler of thy people," is an apostolic precept, and the command, "Honor thy father and thy mother," was repeatedly reiterated by Christ.
It is a significant fact, that Eve was led astray by Satan in the same direction that was Mary. Mariolatry is only the outgrowth of the seedling that lay dormant in Mary"s heart, and is indigenous. It is not natural for us to be contented with being used as an instrument for glorifying G.o.d. We desire to be honored, as something more than an instrument. In fact, it is true, that all are, no matter what their powers or capacities, instrumentalities employed of G.o.d for distinct purposes. Against this power we revolt and are thrust aside. The _really_ great delight to recognize this truth, and their prayer is, "Use me for thy glory" and for the world"s advantage.
Another truth incidentally appears, and furnishes the root of Mariolatry. We come to appear to the world what we really are. Mary was tempted to place herself above Christ, and so we are not surprised that those who have turned against Christ should join the tempter in placing Mary above her Son. The refutation is the life of Christ, who died for man, and the life of Mary, who never forgot herself in thinking of others. The triumph of Mary was won by submission. Had she revolted against Christ, she had lost all. In the First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, the apostle speaks of the glory of the women as of a thing distinct from the glory of the men. They are the two opposite poles of the sphere of humanity. "Their provinces are not the same, but different. The qualities which are beautiful when predominant in one are not beautiful when predominant in the other.
That which is the glory of the one is not the glory of the other." The glory of true womanhood is a combination of various qualities, many of which were ill.u.s.trated by the life of Mary. She was considerate of others. She was submissive. As has been said, "In the very outset of the Bible, submission is revealed as her peculiar lot and destiny.
If you were merely to look at the words as they stand declaring the results of the fall, you would be inclined to call that vocation of obedience a curse but in the spirit of Christ it is transformed, like labor, into a blessing." The origin or root of Mariolatry has been accounted for in the following manner: "In all Christian ages the especial glory ascribed to the Virgin Mother is purity of heart and life. Gradually in the history of the Christian church, the recognition of this became idolatry. The works of early Christian art commonly exhibit the progress of this perversion. They show how Mariolatry grew up. The first pictures of the early Christians simply represent the woman. By and by we find outlines of the mother and the child. In an after age, the Son is seen sitting on a throne, with the mother crowned, but sitting, as yet, below him. In an age still later, the crowned mother is on a level with the Son. Later still, the mother is on a throne above the Son. And, lastly, a Romish artist represents the Eternal Son, in wrath, about to destroy the earth, and the Virgin Intercessor interposing, pleading by significant att.i.tudes her maternal rights, and redeeming the world from his vengeance. Such was, in fact, the progress of virgin worship."