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invito al cielo
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 8,213
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THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV
Chapter 4 - Cana of Galilee
continued ...
"And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him,
They have no wine"... Alyosha heard.
"Ah, yes, I was missing that, and I didn't want to miss it, I love
that passage: it's Cana of Galilee, the first miracle.... Ah, that
miracle! Ah, that sweet miracle! It was not men's grief, but their joy
Christ visited, He worked His first miracle to help men's gladness....
'He who loves men loves their gladness, too'... He was always
repeating that, it was one of his leading ideas... 'There's no
living without joy,' Mitya says.... Yes, Mitya.... 'Everything that is
true and good is always full of forgiveness,' he used to say that,
too"...
"Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what has it to do
with thee or me? Mine hour not yet come.
"His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever
he saith unto you, do it". . .
"Do it.... Gladness, the gladness of some poor, very poor,
people.... Of course they were poor, since they hadn't wine enough
even at a wedding.... The historians write that, in those days, the
people living about the Lake of Gennesaret were the poorest that can
possibly be imagined... and another great heart, that other great
being, His Mother, knew that He had come not only to make His great
terrible sacrifice. She knew that His heart was open even to the
simple, artless merrymaking of some obscure and unlearned people,
who had warmly bidden Him to their poor wedding. 'Mine hour is not yet
come,' He said, with a soft smile (He must have smiled gently to her).
And, indeed, was it to make wine abundant at poor weddings He had come
down to earth? And yet He went and did as she asked Him.... Ah, he
is reading again"...
"Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water.
And they filled them up to the brim.
"And he saith unto them, Draw out now and bear unto
the governor of the feast. And they bear it.
"When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water
that was made wine, and knew not whence it was
(but the servants which drew the water knew);
the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,
"And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth
set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk,
that which is worse; but thou hast kept
the good wine until now."
"But what's this, what's this? Why is the room growing wider?...
Ah, yes... It's the marriage, the wedding... yes, of course. Here
are the guests, here are the young couple sitting, and the merry crowd
and... Where is the wise governor of the feast? But who is this?
Who? Again the walls are receding.... Who is getting up there from the
great table? What!... He here, too? But he's in the coffin... but he's
here, too. He has stood up, he sees me, he is coming here.... God!"...
Yes, he came up to him, to him, he, the little, thin old man, with
tiny wrinkles on his face, joyful and laughing softly. There was no
coffin now, and he was in the same dress as he had worn yesterday
sitting with them, when the visitors had gathered about him. His
face was uncovered, his eyes were shining. How was this, then? He,
too, had been called to the feast. He, too, at the marriage of Cana in
Galilee....
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