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The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ.Anne Catherine Emmerich141the houses were built with their windows looking on the street, and, generally speaking, their doorswere in inner courts, which gave the streets a still more gloomy appearance than is usual. at thishour. The steps of all were directed towards Sion, and an attentive listener might have heard personsstop at the doors of their friends, and knock, in order to awaken them—then hurry on, then againstop to question others, and, finally, set off anew in haste towards Sion. Newsmongers and servantswere hurrying forward to ascertain what was going on, in order that they might return and give theaccount to those who remained at home; and the bolting and barricading of doors might be plainlyheard, as many persons were much alarmed and feared an insurrection, while a thousand differentpropositions were made and opinions given, such as the following:—‘Lazarus and his sisters willsoon know who is this man in whom they have placed such firm reliance. Joanna, Chusa, Susannah,Mary the mother of Mark, and Salome will repent, but too late, the imprudence of their conduct;Seraphia, the wife of Sirach, win be compelled to make an apology to her husband now, for he hasso often reproached her with her partiality for the Galilæan. The partisans of this fanatical man,this inciter of rebellion, pretended to be filled with compassion for all who looked upon things ina different light from themselves, and now they will not know where to hide their heads. He willfind no one now to cast garments and strew olive-branches at his feet. Those hypocrites whopretended to be so much better than other persons will receive their deserts, for they are all implicatedwith the Galilæan. It is a much more serious business an was at first thought. I should like to knowhow Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea will get out of it; the High Priests have mistrusted themfor some time; they made common cause with Lazarus: but they are extremely cunning. All willnow, however, be brought to light.’Speeches such as these were uttered by persons who were exasperated, not only against the disciplesof Jesus, but likewise with the holy women who had supplied his temporal wants, and had publiclyand fearlessly expressed their veneration for his doctrines, and their belief in his Divine mission.But although many persons spoke of Jesus and his followers in this contemptuous manner, yet therewere others who held very different opinions, and of these some were frightened, and others, beingovercome with sorrow, sought friends to whom they might unburden their hearts, and before whomthey could, without fear, give vent to their feelings; but the number of those sufficiently daringopenly to avow their admiration for Jesus was but small.142Nevertheless, it was in parts only of Jerusalem that these disturbances took place—in those partswhere the messengers had been sent by the High Priests and the Pharisees, to convoke the membersof the Council and to call together the witnesses. It appeared to me that I saw feelings of hatredand fury burst forth in different parts of the city, under the form of flames, which flames traversedthe streets, united with others which they met, and proceeded in the direction of Sion, increasingevery moment, and at last came to a stop beneath the tribunal of Caiphas, where they remained,forming together a perfect whirlwind of fire.The Roman soldiers took no part in what was going on; they did not understand the excited feelingsof the people, but their sentinels were doubled, their cohorts drawn up, and they kept a strict lookout; this, indeed, was customary at the time of the Paschal solemnity, on account of the vast numberof strangers who were then assembled together. The Pharisees endeavoured to avoid theneighbourhood of the sentinels, for fear of being questioned by them, and of contracting defilement80
The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ.Anne Catherine Emmerichby answering their questions. The High Priests had sent a message to Pilate intimating their reasonsfor stationing soldiers round Ophel and Sion; but he mistrusted their intentions, as much ill-feelingexisted between the Romans and the Jews. He could not sleep, but walked about during the greatestpart of the night, hearkening to the different reports and issuing orders consequent on what he heard;his wife slept, but her sleep was disturbed by frightful dreams, and she groaned and wept alternately.143In no part of Jerusalem did the arrest of Jesus produce more touching demonstrations of grief thanamong the poor inhabitants of Ophel, the greatest part of whom were day-labourers, and the restprincipally employed in menial offices in the service of the Temple. The news came unexpectedlyupon them; for some time they doubted the truth of the report, and wavered between hope and fear;but the sight of their Master, their Benefactor, their Consoler, dragged through the streets, torn,bruised, and ill-treated in every imaginable way, filled them with horror; and their grief was stillfarther increased by beholding his afflicted Mother wandering about from street to street,accompanied by the holy women, and endeavouring to obtain some intelligence concerning herDivine Son. These holy women ware often obliged to hide in corners and under door-ways for fearof being seen by the enemies of Jesus; but even with these precautions they were oftentimes insulted,and taken for women of bad character—their feelings were frequently harrowed by hearing themalignant words and triumphant expressions of the cruel Jews, and seldom, very seldom, did aword of kindness of pity strike their ears. They were completely exhausted before reaching theirplace of refuge, but they endeavoured to console and support one another, and wrapped thick veilsover their heads. When at last seated, they heard a sudden knock at the door, and listenedbreathlessly—the knock was repeated, but softly, therefore they made certain that it was no enemy,and yet they opened the door cautiously, fearing a stratagem. It was indeed a friend, and they eagerlyquestioned him, but derived no consolation from his words; therefore, unable to rest quiet anylonger, they issued forth and walked about for a time, and then again returned to their place ofrefuge—still more heartbroken than before.The majority of the Apostles, overcome with terror, wore wandering about among the valleys whichsurround Jerusalem, and at times took refuge in the caverns beneath Mount Olivet. They started ifthey came in contact with one another, Spoke in trembling tones, and separated on the least noisebeing heard. First they concealed themselves in one cave and then in another, next they endeavouredto return to the town, while some of their number climbed to the top of Mount Olivet and castanxious glances at the torches, the light of which they could see glimmering at and about Sion;they listened to every distant sound, made a thousand different conjectures, and then returned tothe valley, in hopes of getting some certain intelligence.144The streets in the vicinity of Caiphas’s tribunal were brightly illuminated with lamps and torches,but, as the crowds gathered around it, the noise and confusion continued to increase. Mingling withthese discordant sounds might be heard the bellowing of the beasts which were tethered on theoutside of the walls of Jerusalem. and the plaintive bleating of the lambs. There was somethingmost touching in the bleating of these lambs, which were to be sacrificed on the following day inthe Temple,—the one Lamb alone who was about to be offered a willing sacrifice opened not hismouth, like a sheep in the hands of the butcher, which resists not, or the lamb which is silent before81
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