The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1906-07-22

ing ways of<these four authors, Weiss
thinks has been given in order that
we may have such a vivid conception
of the words and the life of Jesus as
will produce in US the fruit of eternal
life. In this sense he deems that the
most exalted of the four pictures is
the one given in the fourth gospel. This
portrayal done by the apostle John, is
the work of the beloved disciple
whose life stood closest to the Lord s.
He preserves for US a life of Christ
as ii formed a living picture in his
remembrance and had become the
source of his faith and life"
AS an illustration of>the value of the
four gospels, thus used in combination.
TO give US a completer picture. and of
the worth of a commentary to throw
some light upon that picture, a man
might select the story of the Magdalen
and her alabaster box of exceeding
pl ecious ointment. Reading in turn
the four gospel accounts, and then
searching through the volumes of
Weiss work for some additional facts
traced by the scholar from old tradi-
ton, we get a mental picture of that
memorable Magdalen event in Christs
life which will render it more vivid to
our minds eye than If we neglected to
seek through this combination a Gull
mination of the impressions.
Let US note first what impressed
Matthew most and so influenced his
choice of what parts of the story he
selected 10 relate He tells US of Jesus
seated at meat in the house of Simon
the leper, and a woman coming unto
him with an alabaster box of very pre-
cious ointment and pouring it upon his
head; then the displeased, indignant
looks of those disciples who saw no
commendable purpose in this beautiful
act of the woman, but criticised it as
waste; then Christs quick approval
which exalted the woman's act into one
OF the worlds most memorable and
typical deeds. We are made aware that
this is an amounting of the doomed
Christ for his burial. The vast i'm
portance of what these people in ST.
mons house had witnessed is empha-
sized in the closing sentence, which
the writer leaves ringing in our ears,
so that for all time those who in imag-
ination witness the beautiful woman
in the performance of this loving
anointment may realize how memory
worthy is the mental pictures Where
soever this gospel shall be preached in
the whole world, there shall also this
that this woman hath done be told for
a memorial of her"
When Mark gives his version of this
story he enriches the picture with an
addition that makes it distinctly more
dramatic and full Of poetic feeling. He
alone tells US that the woman broke
the alabaster box as she poured the
"spikenard very precious" upon the
head of Christ. The act meant that
all. every drop, of the costly nard was
given generously in token of completest
penitence, and that the costly box, made
sacred by this loving service, should
never be put to any other use. If 1t
be true that all material things of ex-
traordinary beauty, or made lovely to
the thoughts because Of hallowed as
sociations, have their spiritual coun-
terparts. then surely in some ethereal
lied form heaven preserves and treas
Ures that alabaster box-broken when
on earth by 3 type of that broken and
contrite heart" which the Psalmist
says, 20 Lord, thou wilt not despise."
Lukes word picture of the event is
the most beautiful of all OF all the
four gospel writers he has the finest
literary talent and his added touches
to the picture of Mary Magdalen' $
anointment of Christ are what make
that picture linger fairest in the mem
Dry He has put passion into it and
made it a thing of tears. Among the
things that helped him to do this with
so much power, one may be the fact
that Luke was physician, and a be
loved. physician" This no doubt put
him closer in touch with the divine
compassion of his Master, whose mis-
sion on earth was guided by this mot
to: They that are whole need not a
physician, but they that are sick"
Luke, being a Greek. was probably
also aided by that art sense" which
comes naturally to the Greeks by right
of race 1t is he who adds to the pic
ture by telling us that the woman who
came with the precious ointment and
mingled it with her tears was peni-
tent sinner--a soul in pain, coming for
healing TO the great physician-and
then. it is Luke, the physician, who
alone among the reporters remembers
to tell us of the passion of that act
of amounting:
And she stood at his feet behind
him weeping, and began to wash his
feet with tears, and did wipe them
with the hairs of her head, and kissed
his feet, and anointed them with the
ointment"
It is Luke. too, who adds to the
dramatic force of the scene that ia
nous, Her sins, WHICH are many, are
forgiven, for she loved much" The
closing lines that Luke leaves. with
US as an accompaniment of the mem
DRY of his word picture are: Thy
faith hath saved thee; go in peace"
st. John remembers to add an ex-
quisite enrichment to this impressive
picture by telling us, and the house
was filled with the odor of the ONT
nent" Another of Johns touches is
that he informs US that Mary's brother.
that Lazarus, whom Christ had raised
from the dead, was at the feast and
therefore must have witnessed Mary
proffered penitence and beheld with
throbbing heart Christ's gracious ac-
ceptance of it. John, too, adds to the
group that sister of Mary and Lazarus,
who is painted so true to herself in
the two words, Martha served" 1t
is this disciple. whom Jesus loved"
who is careful to tell US that Jesus
knew that Mary Magdalen had been
keeping-we are not told just how
long nor with what sacrifices of peni-
tent saving-that cruise Of precious
ointment against the day of his bury
ing.
BY searching through the common
tary for further light on this picture
we learn several things of interest
which are not related in the gospels.
One is that Simon, the Pharisee. at
whose house this feast was given. was
leper whom Christ had cured. An
other is shat the feast was one of
rejoicing by, the friends of Lazarus
because ne was raised from the dead,
and Christ was. called to 1T In gratitude