3. Mary Rice

People know you are woman of worth. Ruth 3:11

“Edmund’s daughter was born in heartbreaking circumstances. A young widower, Edmund with the help of his stepsister Joan, now cared for and loved his growing daughter. His love for her was enduring and he ensured she was well cared for. She lived in Callan until she was seventy years old.”

Working from his brokenness Edmund’s priorities change. Alleviation of the misery of others becomes his primary concern. Loving his daughter Mary, Edmund’s gentle, fatherly love moulds into Christ’s compassion in which he saw God’s image in everyone, especially the young in need.

 Edmund’s left hand caresses the head of a child. There is gentleness, love and fatherliness in the caress. The child is his handicapped daughter, Mary Rice, the broken reed (whom Christ promised not to crush), and he draws her close to him.

What mysterious part she may have played in directing the course of her father’s life, and in unfolding the divine plan, is beyond human wisdom to gauge, but here she is a central figure in the symbolic treatment of the mystery and meaning of brokenness and suffering.