Goldenrod and the Transfiguration

 

Upcoming on Thursday August 6 is the Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord.  The liturgical color is white.  (It should be remembered here than when the liturgical color is white, the rules permit the priest to wear gold or silver,  Therefore, if you are arranging church flowers you should check with the sacristan to find out which vestment the priest will use and which altar frontal will be selected.)

A flower associated with this feast is the field blossom commonly known as the goldenrod.  Its official name is solidago and that name is used by florists.

There are some interesting aspects to the association of this flower with the feast.

As Mary Gardener John Stokes notes in his essay Wayside  Marian Shrines, in some parts of Germany goldenrod is known as "Heavenly Radiance" (Himmel-Brand).  When it is bloom in the fields, one can "see the goldenrod as infused and radiant with God's aura, which we would follow back to its source in the divine radiance."

A review of the scriptures presenting the Transfiguration make clear the connection of the flower to the feast:

"And it came to pass about eight days after these words, that he took Peter, and James, and John, and went up into a mountain to pray. And whilst he prayed, the shape of his countenance was altered, and his raiment became white and glittering."  (Luke  9:28-29;)

"And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter and James and John, and leadeth them up into an high mountain apart by themselves, and was transfigured before them.  And his garments became shining and exceeding white as snow, so as no fuller upon earth can make white." (Mark 9:1-2.)

"And after six days Jesus taketh unto him Peter and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart: And he was transfigured before them. And his face did shine as the sun: and his garments became white as snow." (Matthew 17:1-2,)

While it is true that the scriptures refer to white rather than gold, I think the idea is that the divine radiance rendered Jesus's clothing white while that radiance itself was and is golden. Jesus face "did shine like the sun" (referring to the uncreated divine light) and his garments became white (the garments are the created objects that turned a bright white when exposed to the divine light).

It seems then that the best flowers for the day are a combination of white and golden blossoms.  As for how to do a good arrangement utilizing goldenrod, sources I have read suggest using white roses or calla or other sculptural bloom at the base, then place goldenrod feathering upwards. Trim away the lower leaves of the goldenrod to help with the radiant effect.

Magdalene Art Series: Tissot

 

The first image above is Tissot's 19th century Noli Me Tangere depicting the immediate post-Resurrection event where Mary apparently tries to embrace Christ and he tells her not to touch him.  It is opaque watercolor on gray wove paper and measures 11-1/8 by 7-1/2 inches.

The second image is Tissot's  Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene.  This 9 X 6 inch opaque watercolor shows Magdalene carrying out Jesus' instruction to tell his brethren that he will be ascending to the Father.

These two watercolors relate to John 20:17

"Jesus saith to her: Do not touch me, for I am not yet ascended to my Father. But go to my brethren, and say to them: I ascend to my Father and to your Father, to my God and your God."

I chose these two images for Magdalene's feast day today because I think they capture something very special about her love for Christ.  That is, although Jesus distanced her from physical contact, this did not diminish or interrupt her love for him.  He gave her a mission and she hurried to carry it out rather than being caught up in grief.

The propers for today's feast day Mass can be found here.

Magdalene Art Series: Rossetti

 

This is Dante Rossetti's 19th century Magdalene at the Door of Simon the Pharisee. It is pen and ink on paper and measures about 30 inches by 18 inches. It is found in the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, England. 

Like Veronese's Conversion of Mary Magdalene, it depicts the threshold moment when Mary Magdalene turns from a worldly life toward Christ.  

This artwork is obviously very complex and packed with symbolism.  For anyone really interested in unpacking it, there is an abundance of information readily available on the web.  But here is a start:  Magdalene is tearing away a garland of roses from her hair.  In this context, the roses are symbolic of her worldly life.  The man next to her is trying to restrain her from entering Simon's to connect with Jesus, whose radiant face is visible in the window.

The sunflowers symbolize Magdalene turning to Jesus in that sunflowers turn toward the sun.  The three lilies, which represent purity, stand for Magdalene seeking purification. A fawn quietly nibbles at a vine, a Eucharistic symbol. The blouseless beggar girl and the chickens pecking at the ground symbolize the humility that is the groundwork for receiving divine grace.

Rossetti was a leading member of the artistic movement called the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood.  He labored intensively at this artwork and wrote sonnets about some of its elements.