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B00875
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The Pomander of prayer.
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Whitford, Richard, fl. 1495-1555?
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1530
(1530)
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STC 25421.3; ESTC S124473
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37,614
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66
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in Heremo Ora ergo ê“ defuÌ„ctis c. Pray for the soules of theÌ„ that be deed And whaÌ„ they come to the lyfe eternall / they wyl not forgette to pray for you But it these dayes there be many heretykes that saye and affyrme that there is no purgatory / in the whiche the soules of them that then departed fro this lyfe be purged fro the fylthnesse of synÌ„e But anone as they departe they go eyther to heuen or to hell I myght bryng in dyuers auctorytees of holy scrypture to confute this false opynyon with / but as now I wyll lete them passe / partely bycause thatof late catholycall grete famous clerkes in theyr bokes lately compyled hath confuted suche opynyons moche more strongly than my symple lerning is able to do And partely bycause it was my purpose in the begynnyng to wryte this poore treatyse as an erudicion of prayer to suche as haue but small or none vnder staÌ„dyng in holy scrypture / not as a coÌ„futacion of heretykes But I wyll beseche you all my spuÌ„all freÌ„des for whome I haue taken this laboure / in the blyssed woundes of our sauyour Iesu Cryste / yf ye here any ê‘sones speke eyther of this / or of any suche other false erronyous opynions that ye gyue to them no credence / nor argue ye not with them in the cause yf they be lerned pe vnlerned / lest peradueÌ„ture they myght seduce your intellygence by subtyll argumentes apperyng to your naturall reasoÌ„ as they were true / whaÌ„ it is the contrary But rather withdrawe your pÌ„sence fro theyr coÌ„pany / dyscussing nothyng in your mynde that excedeth your lernyng / but mekely and stedfastly beleue as the chyrche of Cryst dooth instruct you And as holy doctours and sayntes inspyred with the holy goost hath left here behinde theÌ„ on this erthe for our erudicion ¶ I wyll speke nomore of this matter now / but torne agayne to my purpose / desyring you ouer in your deuout prayers to remeÌ„ber the soules in purgatory specially the soules of your pareÌ„tes kinsfolke and frendes / and benefactours And of youre benigne charite for those soules the whiche I your poore seruauÌ„t beedman am moost bounden to pray for And generally for all the soules in purgatory / that it wyll please almyghty god of his infynyte mercy to release theÌ„ fro theyr paynes take theÌ„ to his grete glory and ioye / the whiche the same god omnipoteÌ„t grauÌ„t to vs all immedyatly after that we departe fro this lyfe Amen ¶ How he that wyll haue his prayer ascende to god must make it .ij. wynges Ca. xiiij â—er lx deâ—â—â—orâ— SAynt Augustin sayth that who so euer wyll haue his prayer fle or ascend to god / must pÌ„pare for it .ij. winges that is to say / fasting almes dedes And saynt Bernard in his fourth sermon vpon the epiphany of our lorde affirmeth the same / callyng these .ij. wynges afflyccion of the flesshe / coÌ„teÌ„pt or dyspysyng of the worlde And though these .ij. doctours differ in the wordes yet do they coÌ„corde in the significacion of theÌ„ For fastyng is an afflyccion or punysshemeÌ„t of the flesshe / gyuing almes is a dyspising of the worlde For ye shall se but fewe men that hath grete affeccion loue to the goodes of the worlde that wyll vse moche to gyue almes But the lesse affeccion that a man hath to worldly godes the more large wyll he be in gyuynge almes These doctours do say that whan a deuout prayer hath these .ij. winges it wyll fle into heueÌ„ swyftly / and there wtout doubt it shal gracyously be herde wherfore I wyll exhort euery deuout ê‘sone dyscretely to vse fastyng gyuing of almes But ê‘chauÌ„ce some maÌ„ wyl say to me I am aeged or gretely diseased with infyrmytees sekenesse that I may not fast Also I am so poore that I am not able to giue almes / how thaÌ„ sholde I pÌ„pare these .ij. wynges for my prayer ¶ As to the fyrst I make this answere sayng / the abstineÌ„ce fasting was not ordeyned for suche as be of grete aege / nor for suche as be moche vexed with infyrmytees But it was ordeyned for suche ê‘sones as be lusty stronge to subdue chastyse the suê‘fluous fyersnes of the flesshe / that by the meanes therof the sensuall appetites may be the better subgected vnto reason Wherfore yf you that be aeged or vexed with iÌ„firmitees haue a good mynd to fast if ye were able therto I doubt not but almighty god wyl accept your good wyl / as yf ye dyde ê‘forme the thing in dede This I speke of corporall abstinence or bodyly fastyng But there is another called spuÌ„all abstineÌ„ce / that is to abstene fro vyces synÌ„es / in the whiche a maÌ„ hath ben accustomed by along season He that is olde or seke may kepe this abstyneÌ„ce / as wel or better than he that lusty strong And this euery true crysten man is bounde to kepe as wel the olde as the yong / the seke as the hole The other that is to say corporall abstinence is ordeyned as for a meane or helpe to this The other is good profitable for suche as be able to kepe .ij. but this is the better more ê‘fite it shold be obserued of euery ê‘son wherfore yf the olde seke ê‘sones kepe this abstineÌ„ce in dede / the other in wyll / that is to say / that they wolde be glad to kepe it yf they were able / it is not to be feared but they do suffycieÌ„tly pÌ„pare this one wyng of prayer And yf the other ê‘sones that be lusty strong in theyr bodyes do wysely discretely obserue bothe corporall the spuÌ„all abstyneÌ„ce / thaÌ„ do they also on theyr parte well pÌ„pare this one wynge of prayer ¶ As to the seconde where the seke man sayth he is so poore that he is not able to gyue almes I make this answere / sayng that after the mynde of saynt Augustyn there is .ij. â—ruâ—â—ia xlii maner of almes the one is to forgyue theÌ„ hertely that hath offended you Or after saynt Gregory to gyue instruccyon of vtues to them that be ignorant / to gyue councell to them that haue nede therof / to gyue coÌ„solacion to theÌ„ that be coÌ„fortles / so forth of other lyke And this maner of almes he that is in pouerte for teÌ„poral goodes maye gyue as largely as he that hath grete rychesse worldly substauÌ„ce The other almes that saynt Augustyn speketh of â—is to gyue meate to the hongry / drynke to the thyrsty / clothe the naked c. To giue this almes couÌ„celeth vs our lorde spekyng by his prophete ysay / where he sayth Frange esurienti paneÌ„ tuuÌ„ c. â— lviii that is to say Breke thy brede to hym that is hongry Gyue hospytalyte to the poore people that labour in iourney And whan thou seest a man that is naked /
ther be clene vncorrupte in body but for lack of custody of theyr hert fro the for sayd vyces hath fallen in to grete teÌ„ptacyoÌ„ of the body / so hath ben sore trobled with vnclene thoughtes / specially in tyme of prayer de soÌ„nâ— bono lâ— il j. Caâ— xxxviij And al this is suffred of god / for to suppresse theyr pryde norysshed by suche fedyng dissolucyon For the grcte clerke ysid sayth god suffreth that proude ê‘son bycause he wyll not se himself to fall in teÌ„ptacion of lechery / which is so manyfest that sensibly he may se his owne bestlynes / so lerne to meke himself yet some there be that be cleue / bothe vtuous holy / yet be sore troubled with suche vnclene thoughtes steringes of the body which trobleth theÌ„ / specially in tyme of prayer ii Cor xij this is suffred of god to kepe theÌ„ in mekenes So had saint Poule the stimulacioÌ„ of his flesshe sore was trobled with it / al was to kepe hyÌ„ in mekenes / lest the grete habuÌ„dauÌ„ce of grace reuelacioÌ„s shold make hyÌ„ proud wherfore such faÌ„tasies vnclene cogitacions workith no hurt / where ther is no consent to theÌ„for more profyte is the custody and preseruacyon of mekenes with exercyse of temptacyon to the meke person than is hurte to haue sometyme dystraccyon Some be so dull in spyrite that albeit theyr conscience dooth not moche reproue them of synne / yet they be very slowe to exercyse themselfe in vertue And suche comynly be slepy sluggysshe in theyr prayer And the cause therof I suppose is not onely heuynesse of complexyon / but also by reason of hotenesse of conscyence they thynke themselfe sure wtout synÌ„e And so put not themselfe to payne to labour for the encrease of grace deuocion / whiche ê‘adueÌ„ture they myght haue aboue other yf they wolde put theyr dylygece therto / for they haue lesse impedymentes than other / that causeth theÌ„ somtime to thynke in theyr hertes how they nede not to fast / nor pray moche / nor watche / for they haue no grete synÌ„es But all suche which be neyther colde nor hote / but rather do begyn to be lothesome to our lorde as scrypture sayth I wolde aduise them to marke this poynt wel Better it is after many fynÌ„es remyt forgiuen strongly to fyght for the loue of god for theyr owne saluacyon / than in fewe synÌ„es wtout batayle weykely to desyre heuen Appoc ij ¶ In all these dystraccions in suche otherlyke which cometh by reason of sekenesse or inordynate thought Remoue the cause and ye shall fynde remedy But those persones whiche be dull in spyrite I wolde counsell to vse oftentymes depely some artycle or poynt of Crystes passion suche as moost sensybly may moue them to deuocion ¶ Example who may consyder that vnspekeable payne whiche the sone of god dyde suffer for our synÌ„es vpon the crosse / where neyther standynge vpon carpytes / nor syttyng vpon cuysshyns / but hangynge with all the weyght of his blyssed body vpoÌ„ boystous nayles of yren / whiche dyde teare rent his handes and fete wherin were most synewes / vaynes bones to his importable payne And who may this in true faythe depely consyder but it wyl styre moeue hym to loue and deuocion / to take paynes for theyr owne saluacyoÌ„ For as the flaÌ„me cometh of the fyre / so cometh deuocyon of loue charyte wherfore holy persones sholde be moche inwarde attent in the tyme of theyr prayer For whan the flaÌ„me of deuocyon is tendre / somtyme the leest cast of the syght asyde / or alienacyoÌ„ of ony other of the senses may extinct it put it out notwtstanding that the fyre of charyte remayneth in theyr soules whiche yf they wyll labour blowe well by the exercyse of this forsayde holy poynt of our lordes passyon or ony suche other / they may kyndell and recouer the flaÌ„me of deuocyoÌ„ agayne to theyr coÌ„fort which flaÌ„me yf they can not recouer / makyng theyr prayer in charyte / albeit they fele the lesse swetnes in prayer / yet so coÌ„tynuyng they shall not lose theyr meryte iiii sen di xv As sayth saynt Thomas other doctours mo ¶ How a man may ordre hymself in tyme of prayer Ca. x. HEre before after my simple lerning I haue spoken of certayne meanes that whiche vsed tofore the begynning of prayer may excitate gretely dispose the mynde to the feruour of deuocyon in the prayers folowiÌ„g But it is oftentymes sene that some men at the begynnyng of prayer be wel deuoutly disposed afterwarde as they procede theyr affeccyon decayeth / theyr deuocyoÌ„ begynneth by lytell lytel to be colde The cause of this as I suppose / is the multytude of faÌ„tasmes vayne thoughtes the which by the suggestion of our goostly enmy / wyll enterpryse to haue possession dominion in the soule of man / so to exclude the feruour of deuocion spiritual affeccion wherfore how to auoyde suche vnprofityble cogytacions I shall shewe you a remedy the whiche I thinke is very expedient for to vse ¶ This remedy I haue red in a boke of reuelacions the which it pleaseth god to shewe to a certayn holy coÌ„teÌ„platyf fader There he sayeth he sawe in his coÌ„templacion the soule of a Carthusian assuÌ„pted vnto heueÌ„ of a grete coÌ„pony of glorious auÌ„gels fayntes / where as it was magnyficeÌ„tly gloryfyed / for the manyfold vertuous dedes that he vsed in the tyme of his lyfe past but in specyall he had one grete accidentall rewarde bycause that he vsed in the tyme of sayng his seruice for euery verse that he sayd / to remeÌ„ber one of the blyssed wouÌ„des of our sauiour Iesu cryst moost pleÌ„teously blediÌ„g as hangyng on the crosse This is the remedy that I wold haue my spyrytuall frendes to vse agaynst the vayne vnprofytable cogitacyoÌ„s that in tyme of prayer wyll importunely knocke at the gates of our hertes Vnto this councelleth the holy apostle saynt Peter in the .iiij. chapyter of his fyrst epystle / sayenge Christo igitur passo in carne vos eadem cogitatione armamini Seynge that Chryst suffred passyon in his passyble body / loke that ye vse the remembraunce of the same as a stronge armour or defence The remembraunce of this blyssed passyoÌ„ may well be called a stronge armour For it is so stronge and of suche vertue / that agaiÌ„st it there can none of our mortall enemyes that is to say neyther the world / nor the flesshe / nor the deuyll preuayle nor haue the vyctory But whanso euer we be moost troubled with them / yf we cal this to mynde / they wyll anone vanyshe away / as doth the smoke of fyre in the ayre ¶ There is no teÌ„ptacions no trybulacions nor none other aduersytees that may haue the better or vpperhande