Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrays me is at hand.
Read Chapter 14
Augustine of Hippo
AD 430
De Con. iii, iv: He said not, if He could do it, but if it could be done; for whatever He wills is possible. We must therefore understand, “if it be possible,” as if it were; if He iswilling. And lest any one should suppose that He lessened His Father’s power, He shows in what sense the words are to be understood; for there follows, “And He said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto Thee.”By which He sufficiently shows that the words, “if it be possible,” must be understood not of any impossibility, but of the Will of His Father. As to what Mark relates that He said not only Father, but “Abba, Father”, Abba is the Hebrew for Father. And perhaps the Lord said both words, on account of some Sacrament contained in them; wishing to she that He had taken upon Himself that sorrow in the person of His body, The Church, to which He was made the chief cornerstone, and which came to Him, partly from the Hebrews, who are represented by the word, “Abba”, partly from the Gentiles, to whom “Fa...
The place Gethsemane, in which the Lord prayed, is shown up to this day at the foot of the Mount of Olives. The meaning of Gethsemane is, the valley of the fat, or of fatness. Now when our Lord prays on a mountain, He teaches us that we should when we pray ask for lofty things; but by praying in the valley of fatness, He implies that in our prayer humility and the fatness of interior love must be kept. He also by the valley of humility and the fatness of charity underwent death for us.
As being God, dwelling in the body, He shows the frailty of flesh, that the blasphemy of those who deny the Mystery of His Incarnation might find no place; for having taken up a body, He must needs also take up all that belongs to the body, hunger, thirst, pain, grief; for the Godhead cannot suffer the changes of those affections.
He does not mean natural sleep bythe sleep which He forbids, for the time of approaching danger did not allow ofit, but the sleep of unfaithfulness, and the torpor of the mind....
After that the Lord had foretold the offence of His disciples, the Evangelist gives an account of His prayer, in which He is supposed to have prayed for His disciples; and first describing the place of prayer, he says, “And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane.”
In the valley of fatness also, the fat bulls beset Him. There follows, “And He saith to His disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray;” they are separated from Him in prayer, who are separated in His Passion; for He prays, they sleep, overcome by the sloth of their heart.
By this also we are taught to fear and to be sorrowful before the judgment of death, for not by ourselves, but by Him only, can we say, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in Me.” There follows: “Tarry ye, here, and watch.”.
By which also He ceases not up to the end to teach us to obey our fathers, and to prefer their will toours. There follows: “And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping.” For as they are asleep in mind, so also in body.
But he is said to enter into temptation, who neglects to pray. There follows: “The spirit indeed iswilling, but the flesh is weak.”.
The threefold sleep of the disciples points out the three dead, whom our Lord raised up; the first, in ahouse; the second, at the tomb; t...
It was also His custom always to pray by Himself, in order to give us an example, to seek for silence and solitude in our prayers. There follows: “And He taketh with Him Peter, and James and John.” He takes only those who had been witnesses of His glory on Mount Tabor, that they who had seen His glory might also see His sufferings, and learn that He is really man, in that He is sorrowful. Wherefore there follows: “And began to besore amazed, and very heavy.” For since He had taken on Himself the whole of human nature, He took also those natural things which belong to man, amazement, heaviness, and sorrow; for men are naturally unwilling to die. Wherefore it goes on: “And He saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death.”.
But after His prayer, the Lord coming, and seeing His disciples sleeping, rebukes Peter alone. Wherefore it goes on: “And saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thouwatch with me one hour? As if He had said, If thou couldest not watch one ho...
