Mark § 63

(de Con. Evan. ii. 79) I however think that nothing else can be meant, but that the sinner who then came to the feet of Jesus was no other than the same Mary who did this twice; once, as Luke relates it, when coming for the first time with humility and tears she merited the remission of her sins. For John also relates this, when he began to speak of the raising of Lazarus before He came to Bethany, saying, It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. (John 11:2) But what she again did at Bethany is another act, unrecorded by Luke, but mentioned in the same way by the other three Evangelists. In that therefore Matthew and Mark say that the head of the Lord was anointed by the woman, whilst John says the feet, we must understand that both the head and the feet were anointed by the woman. Unless because Mark has said that she broke the box in order to anoint His head, any one is so fond of cavilling as to deny that, because the box was broken, any could remain to anoint the feet of the Lord. But a man of a more pious spirit will contend that it was not broken so as to pour out the whole, or else that the feet were anointed before it was broken, so that there remained in the unbroken box enough to anoint the head.

(de Con. Evan. ii. 78) It may appear to be a contradiction, that Matthew and Mark after mentioning two days and the Passover, (John 12:1) add afterwards that Jesus was in Bethany, where that precious ointment is mentioned; whilst John, just before he speaks of the anointing, says, that Jesus came into Bethany six days before the feast. But those persons who are troubled by this, are not aware that Matthew and Mark do not place that anointing in Bethany immediately after that two days of which he foretold, but by way of recapitulation at the time when there were yet six days to the Passover.

We should not doubt that this was that same woman, once a sinner, who, as the Evangelist Luke reports, came to our Lord with an alabaster vase of ointment "and, standing behind him at his feet, began to bathe his feet with her tears, and she wiped them with the hair of her head, and kissed his feet and anointed them with ointment." This is the same woman, but there, she bent over and anointed only our Lord's feet, and she did this amid her tears of repentance. Here amid the joy of her righteous action she did not hesitate both to anoint his feet and to stand up to anoint his head also.

And when He was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, and sat at meat. About to suffer for the entire world and to redeem all nations with His blood, He stayed in Bethany in the house of obedience, which once belonged to Simon the leper; not that the leper remained at that time, but because he who had been a leper was later cleansed by the Savior, the former name remaining, so that the power of the healer might appear. For even in the catalog of the apostles, Matthew the publican is named with his former vice and office, who certainly had ceased to be a publican. Some wish to understand Simon the leper as part of the people who believed in the Lord and were cured by Him. Simon is also called obedient.

A woman came having an alabaster jar of very costly ointment of spikenard, and having broken the jar, she poured it out on his head. This woman was Mary of Magdala, the sister of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead, as John openly mentions, who also attests that this happened six days before the Passover, the day before he came to Jerusalem sitting on a donkey with palms and the praise of the crowds. She is the one, not another, who once (as Luke writes) was still a sinner, coming to the Lord's feet, washed them with tears of repentance and anointed them with the ointment of pious confession. And because she loved much, she earned forgiveness of many sins from the merciful judge. Now having been justified and made familiar with the Lord, she not only anointed his feet (as the same John narrates) but also his head (as Matthew and Mark testify) with sacred oil. Alabaster is a kind of white marble, speckled with various spots, which is typically hollowed out for ointment vessels because it is said to preserve them uncorrupted. It is found around the Thebes of Egypt, and the whitest around Damascus of Syria, but the best is in India. Nard itself is an aromatic shrub, with a heavy (they say) and thick root, but short and black and brittle, although rich, smelling like a rose or cypress, with a bitter taste, small and dense leaf, whose tips spread into spikes. Therefore, perfumers celebrate the spikes and leaves of nard for their dual property. And this is what Mark says: Very costly ointment of spikenard. Because indeed, the ointment which Mary brought to the Lord was not only made from the root of the nard, but also, to make it more precious, its perfume and power were enhanced by the addition of its spikes and leaves. Moreover, naturalists say about nard that it is principal among ointments. Therefore, it was rightly offered for the anointing of the Lord's head and feet. There are many kinds of it, but all are less potent except for the Indian, which is the most precious. Mystically, this devotion of Mary ministering to the Lord signifies the faith and piety of the holy Church, which speaks in the Song of Songs saying: While the king was at his table, my nard gave forth its fragrance (Song 1). Undoubtedly, these words, both once literally fulfilled by the hands of Mary, and daily spiritually fulfilled in all its members, who, spread throughout the world, glorify and say: But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ, and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ (2 Cor. 2). When it acknowledges with worthy reverence the power of his divine strength, which he shares with the Father, it truly anoints his head with precious ointment. But when it equally regards with worthy reverence the mysteries of his assumed humanity, it surely anoints the Lord's feet with pure nard ointment, that is, faithful and true, because it piously commends and devoutly venerates that nature of his in which he deigned to touch the earth, that is, to live among men.

(ubi sup.) The Lord when about to suffer for the whole world, and to redeem all nations with His blood, dwells in Bethany, that is, in the house of obedience; wherefore it is said, And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman.

(ubi sup.) He says of Simon the leper, not because he remained still a leper at that time, but because having once been such, he was healed by our Saviour; his former name is left, that the virtue of the Healer may be made manifest.

(ubi sup.) Alabaster is a sort of white marble, veined with various colours which is often hollowed out for boxes of ointment, because it keeps things of that nature most uncorrupt. Nard is an aromatic shrub of a large and thick root, but short, black, and brittle; though unctuous, it smells like cypress, and has a sharp taste, and small and dense leaves. Its tops spread themselves out like ears of corn, therefore, its gift being double, perfumers make much of the spikes and the leaves of the nard. And this is what is meant by Mark, when he says spikenard very precious, that is, the ointment which Mary brought for the Lord was not made of the root of nard, but even, what made it more precious, by the addition of the spikes and the leaves, the gratefulness of its smell and virtue was augmented.

This woman is outside the temple and carries with her a jar of ointment containing nard, genuine nard, from which she has prepared the ointment. This is why the faithful are called "genuine" or pure nard. The church, gathered from the nations, is offering the Savior the abounding faith of believers. The alabaster jar which had been sealed is broken that all may receive its perfume. Homilies of Saint , Homily

Just as the grain of wheat, unless it falls into the ground and dies, does not bring forth any fruit, so, also, unless the alabaster jar be broken, we cannot spread its fragrance.

This woman has a very special message for you who are about to be baptized. She broke her alabaster jar that Christ may make you "christs," his anointed. Hear what it says in the Canticle of Canticles: "Your name spoken is a spreading perfume, therefore the maidens love you. We will follow you eagerly in the fragrance of your perfume!"

For the fawn amongst the stags ever comes back to his couch, that is, the Son, obedient to the Father even unto death, seeks for obedience from us.

Again in a mystic sense, Simon the leper means the world, first infidel, and afterwards converted, and the woman with the alabaster box, means the faith of the Church, who says, My spikenard sendeth forth its smell. It is called pistic nard, that is, faithful, and precious. (Cant. 1:12). The house filled with the smell of it is heaven and earth; the broken alabaster box is carnal desire, which is broken at the Head, from which the whole body is framed together, whilst He was reclining, that is, humbling Himself, that the faith of the sinner might be able to reach Him, for she went up from the feet to the head, and down from the head to the feet by faith, that is, to Christ and to His members. It goes on: And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this loss of the ointment? By the figure synecdoche, one is put for many, and many for one; for it is the lost Judas who finds loss in salvation; thus in the fruitful vine rises the snare of death. Under the cover of his avarice, however, the mystery of faith speaks; for our faith is bought for three hundred pence, in our ten senses, that is, (denarii i. e. ten asses.) our inward and outward senses which are again trebled by our body, soul, and spirit.

"And when He was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, and was reclining at table, a woman came." The ointment is mentioned by all four Evangelists. And some think that in all of them the same woman is meant. But this is incorrect: these are two different women, one of whom is mentioned by John (Jn. 12:3), she being the sister of Lazarus, and the other by the three remaining Evangelists. But if you look more carefully, you will find that there were three: one is mentioned by John, another by Luke (Lk. 7:37–38), and a third by the other two Evangelists. For the one mentioned by Luke was a harlot and anointed the Lord in the midst of His preaching, while the one mentioned by Matthew did the same near the time of the Passion, and moreover she was not a known harlot. The Lord accepts her devotion, as one who spent so much on the ointment.

But although the four Evangelists record the anointing by a woman, there were two women and not one; one described by John, the sister of Lazarus; it was she who six days before the Passover anointed the feet of Jesus; another described by the other three Evangelists. Nay, if you examine, you will find three; for one is described by John, another by Luke, a third by the other two. For that one described by Luke is said to be a sinner and to have come to Jesus during the time of His preaching; but this other described by Matthew and Mark is said to have come at the time of the Passion, nor did she confess that she had been a sinner.

Or as is said in Greek, of pistic nard, that is, faithful, because the ointment of the nard was made faithfully and without counterfeit.

There were some who were indignantly saying among themselves, "Why has this waste of ointment been made? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii, and given to the poor." Mark, like Matthew, speaks synecdochically, using the plural for the singular. For John, speaking more distinctly, testifies that Judas said this, and that out of greed, because he was a thief and had the money box and carried what was put in it. It can also be understood that other disciples either thought this or said it, or were persuaded by Judas saying it, and Matthew and Mark expressed the will of all in words, but John said it of Judas because he was a thief, while the rest rejoiced for the sake of the poor. John, however, wished to mention only him who from this occasion believed he should intimate his habit of stealing. And what follows:

And they rebuked her harshly. I do not believe it was said of the good and diligent apostles who loved Christ, but rather of the one who, under the plural number, was proven neither to have adhered faithfully to the Lord nor to his disciples, nor to have cared for the poor.

To him [Judas], it seemed to be wasting the ointment because the jar is broken, but, for us, it was a great good because the perfume spread throughout the world. Why are you indignant, Judas, because the alabaster jar is broken? God, who made you and all the nations, is blessing us with that precious perfume. You wanted to keep the perfume sealed up so that it would not reach others.

"And some were indignant," the evangelist remarks. But John says that Judas was indignant (Jn. 12:3–5). One may suppose that the other apostles also rebuked the woman, since they constantly heard from Christ teaching about almsgiving. But Judas was indignant at the woman not with the same thought as the others, but out of love of money, for the sake of base gain. For this reason John mentions him alone, as one who reviled the woman with a wicked intention. "And they murmured against her," that is, they were indignant, reproached, and reviled her.

Or else, it appears to be aptly implied that many disciples murmured against the woman, because they had often heard our Lord talking of alms. Judas, however, was indignant, but not with the same feeling, but on account of his love of money, and filthy gain; wherefore John also records him alone, as accusing the woman with a fraudulent intent. But he says, They murmured against her, meaning that they troubled her with reproaches, and hard words.

(ubi sup.) And in that he says, And they murmured against her, we must not understand this to be spoken of the faithful Apostles, but rather of Judas mentioned in the plural.

The traitor Judas, who in appearance championed the cause of the poor, said with indignation, "This ointment might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor." But in reality he "was a thief, and as he had the money box he used to take what was put into it." If, then, any one in our time who has the money box of the church speaks like Judas as if speaking for the poor, but steals what is placed there, let there be assigned to him the same portion along with Judas.