Page:SermonsFromTheLatins.djvu/475

 to Him  on  earth  shall  be  honored  by  His  Father in heaven,  therefore  was  the  Virgin,  at  the  close of her  life,  taken  up  to  Christ's  heavenly  house and made  the  queen  thereof. We can  imagine how she  spent  her  time  after  the  Resurrection of Our  Lord,  visiting  again  each  spot  hallowed  by His  presence;  visiting  the  homes  of  His  youth  and manhood, and  going  over  the  sad  scenes  of  His  Passion and  death  and  burial,  while  all  the  time  she sighed in  spirit  to  be  dissolved  and  go  to  God. As the stag  thirsts  after  the  fountains  of  water,  so  did her soul  long  for  God. At length  the  happy  day came when  she  heard  the  summons:  "  The  winter is  passed,  and  the  snow  is  melted  and  gone;  arise, My  beloved,  and  come." Because she  was  a  poor child of  Eve  like  ourselves,  and  so  subject  to  the death from  which  not  even  her  Son  was  exempt, therefore at  the  call  of  God  she  sank  into  the  painless sleep of  death. But not  for  long,  for  though  it  is  a general  law  of  humanity  that  each  soul,  on  coming, find a  body  here  and,  departing,  leave  that  body  behind, still  neither  the  King  of  men  nor  the  Queen  His Mother, are  bound  by  the  laws  framed  for  their  subjects. Hence, just  as  Christ  arose  body  and  soul, after three  days,  from  the  dead,  so  Mary,  after  a brief  space,  arose  body  and  soul  and  was  assumed  into the home  of  her  Father. For how  can  I  believe  that that body  of  Mary  which  bore  and  nourished  the Saviour Himself — that  body,  of  which  Christ's  body was bone  of  its  bone  and  flesh  of  its  flesh — that  body which is  so  intimately  connected  with  Christ  my