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| Please pray for the soul of Esther Clark. R.I.P. She gave a framed copy of this painting to the author in the 1980's. |
The work is offered on behalf of my family to Our Blessed Lady, Regina Martyrum et Consolatrix Afflictorum.
For EEKPTEE&EA.
👈The Tears of St Peter (1587-1596)
El Greco (Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos) 1541-1614
Museo Soumaya at Plaza Carso, Mexico.
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Faire Absalons foule faults, compard with mine,
Are brightest sands to mud of Sodome Lakes.
High aymes, yong spirits, birth of royall line,
Made him play false where kingdoms were the stakes.
He gazde on golden hopes, whose lustre winnes [545]
Sometime the gravest wits to grievous sinnes.
King David had a most handsome son called Absalom who committed a series of terrible sins; and yet, in contrast to my own sins, his are like bright, clean sands compared to the murky sludge in Sodom’s salt lake. His lofty ambitions, youthful energies and his birth of a royal line, all these made him use lies and treachery in a contest to win his father’s kingdom.
He set his hopeful eyes on dazzling dreams, whose bright splendour can sometimes lure even the most sober-minded into grievous sin.
541. Faire. fair. Absalom was noted for his personal beauty and for his extraordinarily profuse and rich head of hair.
“But in all Israel there was not a man so comely, and so exceedingly beautiful as Absalom: from the sole of the foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.” [2 Kings xiv. 25]
foule faults. These faults include: the killing of his half-brother Amnon (David’s eldest son); betraying his own father who loved him dearly and who had forgiven him the fratricide by plotting his overthrow as king; defiling ten women in the royal household; rebelling against his father at the cost of 20,00 men's lives and of his own, when his long hair caught in thick branches as he sought to flee the scene off the last battle.
542. Sodome. Sodom, one of the five cities of the plain which the Lord God destroyed on account of the terrible sinfulness of their inhabitants:
“And the Lord rained upon Sodom and Gomorrha brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven. And he destroyed these cities, and all the country about, all the inhabitants of the cities, and all things that spring from the earth.” [Gen. xix. 24-25].
Lakes. The waters of the salt lake nowadays known as the Dead Sea.
The mud may perhaps refer to a) the putrid remains of those who were punished by this destruction; or b) to their dark sins, which darkened and tarnished the site of the destruction.
543. aymes. Aims. The ambitious plans of Absalom for his own advancement.
Birth of royall line. His father was King David and his mother was Maacha, daughter of Tholmai, King of Gessur.
544. play . . . stakes. Suggesting the metaphor of a game or contest, with the chief protagonists being Absalom and his own father, King David.
play false. To play a person false: to deceive or betray a person. Absalom secretly plotted his father’s betrayal and overthrow.
545. gazde. gazed.
golden. Superficially or misleadingly attractive; fair-seeming. 1543 Chron. J. Hardyng f. xv And kynge Edwarde beynge rauished with their golden promises, thoughte nothyng more payneful or wretched, then to tary one daye lenger.
lustre. Luminosity, brilliancy, bright light; luminous splendour. Brilliance or splendour of renown; glory. 1580 Sir P. Sidney tr. Psalmes David xxxvii. iv Like the light, he shall display Thy justice in most shining lustre.
546. gravest. grave. Having weight or importance; influential, respected. 1599 F. Thynne Animaduersions (1875) 22 Chaucer was a grave manne, holden in greate credyt.
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But I, whose crime cuts off the least excuse,
A kingdome lost, but hop’d no mite of gaine;
My highest marke was but the worthlesse use
Of some few lingring howres of longer paine. [550]
Ungratefull child, his parent he pursude,
I, Gyants’ warre with God Himselfe renude.
Unlike Absalom, my sin of betrayal can claim no justification whatsoever; instead of trying to win a kingdom, I threw one away and did so without the hope of gaining anything at all. The most I was aiming for was useless and could lead only to a few extra hours dragged out in pain for myself.
Absalom was an ungrateful son who pursued war against his own father. The giants of old made war against Jove; I renewed this war, but I was at war with God Himself.
548. A kingdom. The kingdom of heaven or the kingdom of God. There are over 150 references to these two expressions in the New Testament. Perhaps Peter may have been recalling the following:
“Jesus saith to them: But whom do you say that I am? Simon Peter answered and said: Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answering, said to him: Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee, but my Father who is in heaven. And I say to thee: That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven.” [Matt. xvi. 15-19]
The phrase kingdom of heaven is traditionally understood as having several senses, e.g., 1. the kingdom of heaven within a baptised soul in a state of grace; 2. a realm here on earth, of which Christ is acknowledged as king; 3. the kingdom of heaven where the souls of the just enjoy the beatific vision of the Holy and Undivided Trinity.
mite. 1. Any small coin of low value; originally applied to a Flemish copper coin, but in English used mainly as a proverbial expression for an extremely small unit of monetary value. 1577 D. Gray Store-house Breuitie Arithm. 5 Firste giue heede howe many Mites make one Farthyng, and that beeyng 6. you shall for euery 6 Mytes cary one Farthyng to the place of farthynges. 2. A jot, a whit. 1591 in I. W. Archer et al. Relig., Politics, & Society in 16th-cent. Eng. (2003) 228 It is to mee noe small comforte that my poore myte is acceptable to your lordshipp.
549. marke. 1. A target, butt, or other object set up to be aimed at with a missile or projectile. Hence also: a person or animal targeted by an archer, spear-thrower, etc. Also in figurative contexts. 1536 J. Gwynneth Confutacyon Fyrst Parte Frythes Boke xi. sig. d.iiiv All though they were bothe, of an equall euyll, yet so myche thou arte wyde of the marke, that he is farre, the worst of them bothe. 2. a post or other object indicating the terminal point of a race. Frequently figurative: an object desired or striven for, a goal, an objective, a standard for attainment. 1561 T. Norton tr. J. Calvin Inst. Christian Relig. ii. viii. f. 61 Lette this bee our perpetuall marke, to ayde all men faithfully.
522. Gyants’ warre. This seems to be a reference to the giants’ unsuccessful war with Zeus (Jupiter, Jove) and the Olympian gods (see, e.g., Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Book 1).
renude. renewed.
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Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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