THE MYSTICAL CITY OF GOD

Attributed to Sister Mary of Jesus, a/k/a Sister Mary of Agreda

This paper is based upon my reading of the unabridged, four-volume set of The Mystical City of God, a collection of "visions" customarily attributed to Sister Mary of Jesus, who more often has been known as Sister Mary of Agreda.  This translation was by "Fiscar Marison," the pen name of Reverend George J. Blatter.  The four-volume set was printed by Tan Books and Publishers, Inc., Rockford, Illinois 61105, United States of America.

We are told by Reverend  Blatter that  Sister Mary of Agreda was born in Agreda, Spain, on April 2, 1602, and died in 1665. (Vol.1, p.XIV) That she began her manuscript in 1655, and finished it in 1665. (Vol.1,p.XV)  Reverend Blatter assures us that his translation is an exact rendition of the original Spanish into English. (Vol.1,p.XIX)

Sister Mary of Agreda tells us,  regarding her visions, that she saw in Heaven "a most  precious veil covering a treasure." (Vol.1,p.27) She writes that when "the veil fell entirely," she "saw a great and mysterious sign" which she describes as "a most beautiful Lady and Queen, crowned with the stars, clothed with the sun, and the moon was at her feet." (Vol.1,p.27)  Her obvious  reference is to Revelation 12:1. Sister often makes reference to the Revelation  because her major thesis is that Mary the Mother of Jesus is that Lady and Queen, and that, allegorically speaking, Mother Mary also is the Mystical City of God!  (Vol.1,pp.57,226,228)

Sister Mary of Agreda tells us she saw "a vision as it were of the Lord seated on a throne of great majesty, where, always within mortal limitation, I perceive his attributes distinctly.  A veil, which seems like purest crystal intervenes, through which the wonderful attributes and perfections of God appear distinctly and clearly perceptible; yet this vision is not entire, immediate or intuitive, or entirely free from obstruction, but always comes through a medium, which is nothing else than this crystalline covering above mentioned." (Vol.1,p.36)

Those of my readers  who are familiar with my writings (such as those found in Passion, at page 5 of 23 pages)  realize that the "veil" being described by Sister  is the "Heavenly Veil" or mandala (line pattern) known variously as the "Pargod," "Bar Goda," "Katapetasma," or "Greille," and that the "wonderful attributes and perfections of God," which "appear distinctly," and are "clearly perceptible," to Sister, are the rainbow-colored halo, nimbus or glory  which appear to Sister as a result of the "obstruction" or "medium" of the "purest crystal" or "crystalline covering."

My readers understand that, beyond any reasonable doubt, Sister's visions are being inspired by the rainbow-colored "Uniaxial Interference Pattern" of ancient and modern, mathematical crystallography, which pattern can be seen with the "naked eye" (without use of a scientific instrument) inside of a clear quartz crystal which is being struck  by sunlight at the proper angle. A clear quartz  crystal, beyond any reasonable doubt, is the "purest crystal" or  "crystalline covering" which  is the "obstruction" or "medium" to which  Sister is referring in her visions!  See, SECTION FIVE of  Passion..   Anyone who understands the mathematics of probability also understands why no contrary argument can be advanced.  See the rainbow-colored  pattern for yourself  at: Img 6.

Note that Sister's 17th-Century use of the word "obstruction" remains scientifically and mathematically correct in the 21st-Century because the rainbow-colored halo, nimbus, or glory ("wonderful attributes and perfections of God") which Sister tells us she sees around what she perceives as  "God" actually is a result of the "interference" by the "crystalline" prisms of the quartz "crystal" with the passage of white light (sun light) through the clear quartz crystal!

More than one of my readers will wonder whether Sister's religious acumen was as correct as her scientific acumen!  Is she really seeing "God"?  Or, does the following quotation from the King James Bible suggest the most probable truth of Sister's words quoted above?  "Now  faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1.

Many readers of this writing will recognize the rainbow-colored "Uniaxial Interference Pattern" as the pattern for Irish and Scottish Ring Crosses.  Img 7.  Many Christians will recognize the "Uniaxial Interference Pattern" as the pattern for the halo, nimbus, or glory seen in Christian iconography around the heads of Christ and the Saints.  See this for yourself at Img 8.  Other mathematical, scientific, and religious uses for the "Uniaxial Interference Pattern" are discussed and illustrated rather extensively at SECTION FIVE of  Passion.

Having found the above-discussed images in the first volume of the four-volume set of visions usually, but not always, attributed to Sister Mary of Agreda (Vol.3, p.XV) , I expected Sister Mary of Agreda to shower me with more images inspired by the Grail Mandala. That expectation seemed reasonable after my review of  The Dolorous Passion Of Our Lord Jesus Christ, visions dated to 1823, which usually, but not always, are attributed to Sister Anne Catherine Emmerich.    Passion and also Passion 2.  Because one Catholic sister, Sister Emmerich, was familiar in 1823 with the traditional ways to use the lines and circle-segments of the Grail Mandala to compose so-called "holy visions," it was not unreasonable, in my opinion, to expect Sister Mary of Agreda to know such techniques in 1655-1665. 

However, the so-called "visions" of Sister Mary of Agreda are almost devoid of our familiar Grail images!  Why?  The short answer is that I do not know why.  But I am willing to venture an educated guess, which I submit is not far wrong!

In my opinion, Sir Thomas Malory's 15th-Century Morte d'Arthur attempted to Christianize the previous Medieval Grail legends, which were restatements of earlier Brythonic Celtic and Goidelic Celtic, and Sarmatian,  legends.  I submit that Sister Mary of Agreda's 17th -Century Mystical City of God took another whack at removing both pagan and "origins of Christianity" Grail images from the corpus of religious literature. But that effort of Sister Mary of Agreda, or those persons, unknown to me, who wrote in her name, failed, because, as we have seen in Passion and in  Passion 2 either Sister Emmerich, or those persons who wrote in her name, during the 19th Century, were well aware of Medieval and earlier Grail Mandala images. 

Read all four of the unabridged volumes usually, but not always, attributed to Sister Mary of Agreda for yourself, provided you can endure readings of Roman Catholic doctrines and dogmas stated ad nauseam.  See if you can find something which I missed.  Otherwise, I shall stand by my speculation about why the Mystical City of God was composed, that is, to preach Catholic doctrines, and to hide from the eyes of modern pewsitters the origins of Pauline, Nicaean, Augustinian Christianity in visions inspired by the Grail Mandala.

Lee Perry (Mr.)

e-mail: cainte@mindspring.com

You may return to the text by using your browser's "back" key.