goodly inhabitants, and then of heaven with glorious saints, depended upon the conjunction of man and wife, when there was but a man alone, God made him a woman and a helper Gen. 2. 22. for him; a helper for many ends, for the propagation of his kind, for the education of his children, for the rule of his servants, for the guiding of his estate; and therefore man and woman, being to join themselves for such purposes, they had need have some insoluble knot to tie them together, and that is the bond of matrimony, which, when God hath tied, no man can unloose again. This is the state that is here spoken of; that you here are to undertake; a state that hath been ever more or less esteemed of as a thing sacred and religious; the title which the heathens give it is holy, Toûs iepovs yáμovs, saith Dionysius Halicarnassus k, and the rites wherewith these Jews here did solemnize it in their rituals, as in ours, are called 'Sancta1' For the time. The third day there was a marriage.' What this third day was, is needless to let you know, whether the third day of the week, or the third day after His baptism m; but be it as it was, a fit time it was for Christ to be there, and to manifest Himself at it. Christ chose this time to be at a marriage"; had it been at some other time, perhaps He would not have been there; but this was a fit time both to make good the testimony of John Baptist, and to shew wherefore He came into the world. St. John Baptist had told wonderful things of Him but a few days since, and no doubt but the people wondered what manner of person He should be, That should take away the sins of the world. A wonder lasts not long, yet three days at least it useth to tarry °, that they might have proof therefore of St. John Baptist's testimony in time. The third day, Latin, by Suicer, Thesaur. in voce aplevià; Bellarm. de Monachis, 1. ii. C. 28. vol. 1. col. 1664. ed. Ingolst. 1586; and Gerh. Loc. Theolog. xvi. 25. edit. Cottæ. κ . . . ἐκάλουν δὲ τοὺς ἱεροὺς οἱ παλαιοὶ γάμους Ρωμαϊκῇ προσηγορίᾳ· περιλαμβάνοντες Φάρῥάκια. Dion. Halic. edit. Huds. i. 92. 1 On the religious character of the the same treatise in Ugolini's Thes. The different opinions held upon The opinions of the Fathers upon this subject also may be seen in the author just cited, and also in Barradii Harm. ii. 135. Proper seasons for marriag SER M. as there fell a marriage upon it, not wit dence came Christ to work a miracle and what St. John had said of Him, that the ceive He had no false prophet to His foreru And the third day, (that is, presently Christ chose to do His beginning of miracl it was to tell us wherefore He came, to unit Church, and make a heavenly marriage, &c. Now as Christ chose His time, and as t chose this time to propound the story of t must we choose our times for it too; we hav work, but we have times to observe; there things, a time to laugh and a time to we "butts, 'i.e. Weeping time; it is a time of joy, it butts1 adjoins. time, it is the third day since we began to cel vity of Christ, and a marriage time fits well w of mourning would not have done so well; met with a marriage as He had been going to to fast forty days, surely He would never ha it; but now when His time of fasting was done marriage. There is an order of the Church the solemnizing of marriages at certain times not that it is unlawful at any time, but that pedient at some. For duties belonging to mirth, and offices appertaining to penance and things altogether unsuitable; all the Prophets Apostles tell us as much. And therefore as w think it a marvellous absurd thing to see in solemn wedding kept upon a public and sol fasting, so likewise our predecessors thought it fi the liberty of marriages during the time whi pointed either for preparation unto, or for exercis humiliation in prayer, and fasting, and weeping upon some days, which we commit all the days and perhaps should never think of any sorrow for not the Church ordained such times to moan a thereunto: such are the times of Advent, of Lent, times, and the like; for if all times were open, and Gerh. Loc. Com. The Bellarm. de Matrim. cap. The guests invited. 51 &c. it is enough that some are open then, and it will be the greater commendation for you then, and the less trouble to your minds, that you are come hither in a due time to celebrate your marriage, even in a time of joy, when Christ came to this, without breaking any order or godly discipline of the Church. For the place, in Cana of Galilee, we shall not need to say much; it was in that very place whereabout John Baptist was a-baptizing and preaching to the people of Christ; that so in the same place his doctrine might be confirmed, and the people's faith strengthened. The place which you have chosen is in your father's house, as Jacob was married to his Gen. 29, wife in Laban's, her father's and her mother's own home; which will be a joy to them that see it, and a better confirming of their hope for God's blessing upon you. Now for the guests; 'And the Mother of Jesus was there.' Clandestine and stolen marriages, whereat nobody might be present, were ever odious to God and men; this was none of them. It was the glory of our predecessors solemnly to celebrate their marriages, and to have as many vitnesses at them as they could get '; and all to a good end; hat they might pray, and testify how religiously the espoused gave their faith one to the other, to remain inviolable to heir lives' end; that if they kept it so, it might be a joy to hem; if they brake it, so many witnesses might rise up gainst them. 28. Witnesses and guests in this time, then, might be many; we are to speak of them that were extraordinary only; for it as St. John's intent, by naming those more than any other, o have us take some especial heed of them. Here is first, e Mother of Jesus. Mary was a woman that had found ace and favour with God, a woman that was saluted from eaven with an Angel, one whom all generations were to call Lu. 1. 28, lessed,' who was then a saint on earth, who is now a most Lu. 1. 48. orious saint in heaven. Sure they must needs think some eat blessing would come upon the marriage, the rather by ving her there. The custom was then to call grave See Bingham, Orig. Eccl. xxii. iv. . and § 3; Gerh. Loc. Com. xv. note on the word 'Friend,' in the 30. III. SER M. matrons to the wedding of young people, have a pattern of modesty, and gravity, honesty, for them to imitate all their life world goes in our days, these customs are for we use to call the youth of the parish of the country; music and melody are the look after; Venus for the Virgins, and B A sad difference! as if men and women n jollity enough for one day of their marriag enough for all the days of their life after. for gentiles; the people of the nations ma non sic, it must not, and I am glad it is 1 with you, who (God be thanked) have been 'And Mary the Mother of Jesus was the there commended the marriage as a thing lightly, or suddenly undertaken, (as God kn often so with us,) but solemnly and deliber of God, as they were then, as they ought to ing to order, as our Church book teache Had it been otherwise, surely she would n there; but being so, and her being at it, i better guest than she was; which is the no Jesus was also called to the marriage.' I have wondered often why Mary should and Jesus after her; why not Jesus before Ma it is for nothing else but to tell us that u been there first, Jesus would never have Mary's being there made it a solemn and a to such a meeting Christ would come; had i Mary, that is, without gravity and sobriety, H turned another way, and never have vouchsafe at it. And the only reason why Christ comes our weddings than He does,-as you see by most on them,-is because we invite not His that is, sobriety and temperance, and a holy re to be joined together now, to live together he fear of God, and keeping of His commandmer sooth, all our thoughts must be taken up with and jollity that we shall now come to enjoy, with the honour and worship that shall now be done us, over that we had before; with the wealth that we shall wallow in, especially if the portion and the jointure be any thing great; and therefore Christ seldom or never comes among us at such times. 15. For He hath sent His Mother before Himself, and if she finds the place fit for her, then good, He will come after; if otherwise, there is no place for Him. He would have our thoughts taken up with a wife's virtues, when we marry one, and not with her visage; with her goodness that she brings, and not with her goods: the worst wives having many times the best portions, and the best wives (such a one as Esther Esth. 2. 7. was) having oft times none at all. Marry, the world runs now for wives as Judas ran to the High-Priests for money, with quantum dabis, what will ye give? no matter what she Mat. 26. hath besides, though both would do well together, howsoever. And if the maiden chance to say, with Peter, aurum et argen- Acts 3. 6. 'um non est mihi, 'gold and silver have I none, but such as I have shall be yours,' let her be as obedient as ever Sarah was, as devout as Anna, as loving as Rebecca, as virtuous as he Virgin Mary,-yet all shall be esteemed as nothing, quæenda pecunia primum est", other things may mend it, but noney makes the match. It will hardly be believed, if we ell the world that money commonly mars it; but believe it ›r not, that which makes it good, is goodness; and to have he Mother of Jesus, and the blessing of Jesus with it, is worth the greatest dowry that now-a-days is given; to want hem, be the dowry what it will be, be the beauty of the aid, the credit of her house, the greatness of her stock, ever so great, all will be but vanity, and turn to vexation of pirit. A woman is like a ship, saith Solomon; she is like a Prov. 31. hip indeed; if she hath not gravity to balance her, and dis- 14. retion to guide her, she flies up and down without a pilot; constant, light-headed and vain; now she loves, and anon he hates; now she obeys, and anon she scorns; gentle to Si uxorari oportet, causa sit amor non census et faciem uxoris stola Valerii ad Ruffinum de uxore non |