sayde Remember thou my pouertie my wormwood and gall And in an other place our Lorde him selfe doth likewise lament vs that we haue likewise forgotteÌ„ him and that which he hath done and suffered for vs. That we maye therefore the better exercise our selfe in this kind of meditation it behoueth often to reade the historie of the passion as the foure Euangelistes do set foorth the same and is to be founde in certayne godly bookes or els to be learned at sermons or by other spiritual talke so that thou must trauell to haue the same well fixed and rooted in thy memorie imagining and thinking alwayes vpon it chewing it in thy minde vntill thou finde thy selfe so ready and prompt in it that if thou were apposed in any part of the historie of the passioÌ„ thou mightest be able to answer to it declare it perfectly And to this it shal helpe thée often to exercise thy selfe in meditation of Christes passion Also to this maner it doth apperteine to cal to thy remembraunce according to that which thou hast read or learned by bookes or preaching that whatsoeuer thou seest in thy contemplation thy sauiour to haue suffred they were before figured and foreshowen by many holy Prophetes And so thou shalt knowe and well perceiue that the truth of that thou goest about to meditate doth answere to the olde figures and auncient prophecies the which shall minister gret cause of consolation and more confirme thée in faith and also chase and driue away all other fancies whiche distract the minde and make the same more attentiue and benâ— to the matter in meditation And so this shall be as a beginning to passe further to the other considerations ¶ A declaration of the seconde manner of meditation which is by way of compassion The seconde maner of meditation vpon the blessed passion which is by way of compassion is more acceptable to our Lord and that is to endeuour to trauell in sorrow and griefe with him And it is also no lesse profitable for vs for that as Saint Paule sayth if we will suffer with Christ we shal also reigne together with Christ In this kinde the matter of meditation is so plentiful and copious that it shuld be long to write or meditate the same at large and therfore it shall suffice to consider therein two poyntes to the which the other may be reduced that are vsed for that purpose to be considered of The first is to consider the person that suffereth The seconde to consideâ— the thing which he suffereth thâ— which two poyntes well considered of may suffice to moue any hard hart to compassion Foâ— what hart will not mollifie oâ— melt to consider first the qualities which do concurre in the person that would suffer béeing very God man And touching his diuine nature no man is able to declare or comprehende neither his generation nor his dignitie nor his maiestie nor his highnesse nor his eternitie nor yet the fulnes of his perfections And touching his humanitie he is most noble of blood royal the sonne of the most cleare Virgin mother formed by the operation of the holy Ghost the most beautifull body that euer was séene amongst men the most gracious swete humble meeke â—ouing with all other excellencies more then can be thought And touching the soule in him is the fulnesse of grace of charitie of holynes of all other noble vertues and heauenly giftes in more high degrée then euer was communicate to any creature And this such and so mightie a Lord did suffer béeing most innocent without any faulte or sinne more grieuous payns and terrible tormentes then mans tongue or Angels can expresse Nowe let this be the seconde poynt that is to say the things which he hath suffred and therof thou hast to remember in thy meditation howe he suffered in his body from the crowne of his head to the sole of his foote from top to toe yea and in al his sences and féelings and so running in through discourse of them thou shalt finde that there remayned in him no one part nor sence or féeling in the which he did not suffer so many sortes of tormentes as can not be thought yea and that in fleshe moste tender delicate and quicke to féele for the perfection of his complexion Consider here withall that he dyed in the flowre of his age when to liue was most swéete and death the cause of more sorrowe Remember also the blasphemies they gaue him the iniuries the reproches the scornings mockings they deuised against him sometimes clothing him in one fashion of garment somtimes in an other with so many kinds of mockinges and finallye in spoyling and stripping him bare and crucifying him naked before suche a multitude of people that it can not be declared and it passeth mans wit to expresse howe great the spite and shame was they wrought against him O infinite heape of sorrowes and reproches so great that there can not be found the wit or vnderstanding to thinke nor yet tong finde words to expresse and vtter them yea or howe much soeuer they were able to thinke or vtter yet should it be the least part of all that he suffered O my Redéemer how well worthy maye those wordes be spoken of thée by the Prophet Ieremie O all ye that passe by the way consider and sée if there were euer any sorow like vnto mine And so truly it is O our Lorde that like as there was neuer loue to be compared to thine so also verily there was neuer sorrowe like nor equall vnto thine neither in quantitie nor in qualitie nor yet in all other circumstances that can be imagined How then good brother can thy hart holde out and not with pitie relent and melt and with compassion be moued when thou shalt consider these and many other things whiche thou mayest call to thy remembrance and which do aggrauate and make more lamentable the bitternesse the sorrowes the tormentes and great iniuries done to thy Sauiour And this is that he suffered in his body and to our sight outwardly which in déede was the least part because muche more grieuous and percing were the inwarde sorowes paynes and afflictions of his moste blessed soule As that his sorrowe vnto death did witnesse which he said he felte and also that agonie which he suffered in his prayer hauing diuers and infinite obiectes of paynes before his glorious sight whiche so troubled and tormented him that it caused him to sweate that bloody sweate trickling downe from his face and body to the ground The causes of that so greate heauinesse and affliction of his blessed soule may in our meditation be gathered to be these First the coÌ„sideration he had of the sinnes of all people from the beginning of the world in time past time present and time to come the number the malice and wickednes the abhomination he both saw and euidently knewe and playnly vnderstood how great iniurie and dishonor they committed
thereby against his eternall father whom he aboue all other things loued and desired to honour the which did gréeue and torment him more then all those outward tormeÌ„ts Secondly he sorrowed for the vnkindnes and vnthankfulnes of men and chiefly Christians for whom he gaue his life and offred him selfe to so great and bitter payne and yet he sawe they would not endeuour nor begin to know nor estéeme or care to helpe them selfe with so great and inestimable benefite and so through their owne fault he should not gayne by his grieuous passion death that fruite for the whiche he traueled so sore and which he might haue had if they them selues would haue disposed their good willes thereto which did more grieue him then death it selfe And that he playnly showeth where he lamenteth by the mouth of the Prophet Esay saying in vayne haue I traueled and without cause and fruite haue I consumed my strength Thirdly he sorowed much the damnation of Iudas and of so great a multitude of people otherwise whome he knewe shoulde be damned for despising of that moste holsome medicine he should leaue for them in his precious blood and that by howe muche the more with infinite charitie he desired their health and saluation so muche the more it grieued him to sée their perdition and also considering the inestimable ryches they loste and the horrible tormentes wherein they should for euer be punished This was a cause of more bitter sorrowe to him then the cup of his passion Fourthly the representation of that sword of sorowes which he knewe should passe through the virgin hart of his most dere mother was likewise a cause of great griefe and sadnes For he knew she would accompanie him in the middle of his tormentes and the sight of her did encrease the same through the tender compassion he had of her And likewise he did sorowe and pitie the solitarines cares and trauels his disciples should be left in and all his friends both present and all other his elect that should come vnto the ende of the world of whose persecutions torments tribulations he did no lesse grieue at féele then the head doth féele payne griefe when any of his members doth suffer Sée then how diuers sorts of sorowes besides many other a man may call to remembraunce and meditate that perced and ranne through his most sacred soule and those he felt euery payne by it selfe the one not letting the griefe of the other and that without all consolation or comfort without ease or rest and béeing forsaken of all parts as he declared vpon the crosse when he sayd O God my god why hast thou forsaken me And as it is sayd of him in an other place That he was made as a man without helpe For so it pleased his entier loue the more to suffer for vs and so to make the greater satisfaction to the iustice of God O loue without measure O infinite clemencie and pitie most euidently declared in that thou wouldest showe thy selfe cruell to thy self to be pitiful towards vs And that thou more estéemedst our health then thy owne comfort and life Séeing that béeing depriued of all comforte and helpe thou wast drowned in a bottomlesse pit of so great griefes and sorowes and wast content to be swallowed vp as an other Ionas in the belly of the whale of death What man then can finde in his heart to be so voyde of all pitie that thinking vpon these thinges will not be mollified and moued to compassion Séeing he woulde be sorie I trowe for the greatest enemie he had if he should sée him in like torment of body and soule without all ease and comfort Lo then my dere brother how in these poyntes hitherto is declared what was the person that suffered and what he suffred as well in body as in soule wherin thou shalt finde sufficient matter to styrre thée to compassion which is the ende we purposed in this part For if thou meditate and consider in thy minde after this sorte this holy mysterie it can not be but if thou remember well the aforesayde things with good attention and â—euotion it shall moue breake â—hy hart were it neuer so hard â—eing that the very stones in the stréete brake and shiuered in peces in the death of the very same thy Sauiour A declaration of the third manner of meditation by way of contrition and compunction The third maner we purposed to teache thée howe to meditate on the blessed passion is by the way of contrition and compunction the ende wherof is to haue an inward sorowe and repentance of thy sinnes committed against the maiestie of God and to find out the fruit of this which is not a litle it behoueth a man to ground him selfe vpon this veritie that all which christ our redéemer hath suffred was for the sinnes of the world In so much that if man had not sinned Christ had not suffred nor dyed for so the diuine scripture affirmeth that for the sinnes of the people he was stroken of his â—ternal father and that he layde â—pon his shoulders the sinnes of â—s al and that he was scourged â—nd wounded for our iniquitie â—nd beaten and buffeted for our â—eseruing And this veritie is â—onfirmed by many other auâ—horities aswell of the olde as â—he new Testament Now then this so béeing when thou shalt be disposed to make discourse and occupie thy minde in meditation of the death and passion of thy Redéemer thou haste to think verily that thou wast the cause of all those sorrowes tormentes and iniuries whiche thou seest him to haue suffered For notwithstanding he suffered and dyed for all yet neuerthelesse he dyed as well for thée alone as he dyed for all So that thou mayest truely saye with Saint Paule that he was offred for thée that he was scourged for thée that he was nayled on the Crosse for thée and dyed for thée And likewise that thy sinnes killed him thy pride crowned him with thorne thy dishonesties filthy life scourged him thy drunkennesse and gluttony gaue him the eysel and gall thy disorderlye doinges and sinnes were the causes of his grieuous sorowes and that thy sins were those many dogs and great bulles of whom he said he was enuironed or compassed round about and so when thou shalt beholde him in the piâ—â—full image where Pilate sheâ—eth him to the Iewes when he â—ayde Beholde the man then â—â—so remember that our Lorde sayth the very same wordes vnto thée Behold O man the rewarde I haue receiued for thée Behold howe I am handled for thée Beholde howe I suffer the scourge of thy deseruings Behold what thy vnthankfulnesse hath caused me to haue Behold the deformed picture and image which thy sinnes haue giueÌ„ me in recompence of my good wil to make thée partaker of my beautie Of this coÌ„sideration we shaâ— soone conceiue in our mindâ— what an horrible thing sinne is which in such sort hath handleâ—
the sonne of God and how abhominable the filth thereof is which hath outwardly so berayed darkned stayned and soyled him which is the very myrror and glasse without spotte the brightnes of eternall life This wel considered and called to thy remembraunce shall strike into thy hart gret hatred and repentance of thy sinnes which were the cause of so sore paynes and punishmentes of thy Redéemer which neuer committed sinne neither anye guyle was euer â—ouÌ„d in his mouth And so much â—he more thou oughtest to sorâ—ow and lament thy sinnes by â—ow much the oftener thou hast â—allen into theÌ„ For euery time thou hast sinned as the Apostle saith so often thou hast gone about to crucifie and despise the sonne of God And if they for their parte should repent them selues and be grieuously sorye which once onely offended him mortally and crucified him how much more oughtest thou to repent and be sory whiche haste crucified him so many times This coÌ„sideration and remembraunce maye strike into thée sometimes suche sorowe and feare of thy selfe that it shall prouoke thée to say these or the like wordes Ah my God and gracious Lorde where was my iudgement wit when I was so bolde to commit suche sinnes against thy diuine maiestie where was my vnderstanding that could not remember howe that eury time I sinned I went about to crucifie thée againe how is it possible that I should imploy my hands to offend thée thou hauing thy hands nayled on the crosse to saue me howe could I open my mouth to blaspheme thée thou hauing opened thy mouth so often to pray for me howe is my harte become so harde and stubborne to loue thée and obay thée séeing thine hart with a spere euen through perced to shewe the great loue thou barest me Thou shalt not onely learne by this consideration how to hate and be sory for thy sinnes passed but also it shal moue thée with more earnest purpose euer after to flye suche sinnes fearing agayne to runne vnto the horrible abhomination to go about to crucifie Christ agayne and likewise cause thée to be afrayed of the great punishment which thou shouldest deserue if with newe sins thou go about to defile thy self again If the sonne of a Prince would be afrayed when for the fault that he him selfe committeth he doth sée his page or slaue beateÌ„ how much more ought the slaue to feare when he séeth the sonne of the Prince beaten for the fault which he the slaue him self committeth Feare thou then and tremble miserable wretch séeing for thy fault the sonne of God thy king and Lorde is beaten and so cruelly handled and call to thy remembraunce the words he spake to the women that wept when they sawe him â—eare the crosse If they do this â—n the gréene trée what shall be â—one in the dry wood That is â—o say If in Christ which is the â—réene trée full of the leaues of most holy words and fruites of most excellent works so seuere punishment is vsed for that he hath taken vpoÌ„ him our sinnes what shal be done to thée which art a dry withered trée yéelding no good fruites neither of patience nor of charitie nor of any vertue nor yet is there to be séene in thée so much as the leaues of words profitable to thy selfe or any other and much lesse any one flowre of liuely desire to amende thyne owne life If thou then shalte be a trée not onely barren and fruitlesse but also vitious and laden with most euill and wicked fruites whaâ— shall become of thée but that which is vsed to be done of the like trée that is to be cut down and cast into the fyre And that shalt thou haue worse then any other trée for that the fyre of other wood is soone consumed but thy fyre shall be euerlasting Sée therfore how this meditation of Christes holy passion shal cause thée to sorrow for thy sinne passed to feare the sins to come because thou wouldest not willingly fall into the iustice of god the which thou séest so rigorouâ—ly and sharply executed vpon thy sauiour in that he was offered to pay thy raunsome The fourth maner of meditation which is by way of imitation or following The fourth maner howe to meditate and consider vpon the blessed passion we sayde it was by the way of imitation which is of muche fruite and highly commended by holy men For as the chiefe of the Apostles S. Peter saith one cause why that Christ suffered for vs was to leaue vs an example to followe his steps And Christ him selfe sayth that he hath giuen vs an example to do as he hath done Which so being wheÌ„ thou shalt occupie thy selfe in meditating vpon his passion marke wel the manyfold and marueilous vertues which he teacheth therein as well in that he suffered as in the maner of his suffering the which thou must desire to follow by his grace as much as is possible in thée staying thy selfe chiefly vpon the consideration of that vertue which thou knowest principally to be lacking in thée And because it may seme impossible to coÌ„sider all the vertues whiche shine in his moste glorious passion who was the most perfect paterne of all vertue and perfection I will onely â—et here before thy eyes those which thou oughtest most often to remember and whiche be moste necessarie for thy turne And first to beginne with those two vertues whiche our Lorde specially commendeth vnto vs by his owne example and to be learned of him saying Learne ye of me because I am méeke and humble of heart Consider I say howe perfectly he teacheth them in his blessed passioÌ„ Humilitie which is the foundation of all vertues he declareth playnely in humbling him selfe to so shamefull a death as that of the crosse disdaining not that the very thief Barrabas found more friendship and fauour to be deliuered before him and being content to be crucified betwéene two théeues In many other things thou mayst by discourse call to mind consider that louely humilitie which he setteth forth in the rest of his life aswel as in his passion as that in washing the féete of Iudas of his other disciples not long before in being born in an oxe stall or stable with many other examples of the same vertue whereof both the rest of â—s life death are full For in â—s birth in his liuing in his â—ing he neuer ceassed to leaue vs all examples that might be of so necessarie a vertue for vs. He shewed also a marueilous example of méekenes in his holy passion when he was led vnto death as the Prophet Esaâ— spake of him euen as shepe anâ— stoode as gentle as a lambe before them who so cruelly hanâ—led him not once opening hiâ— mouth to speake an euill word against them which railed vpoâ— him nor yet to threaten theâ— which tormented him In lykâ— maner he declared his modestâ— and sobernesse in that clere anâ— lightsome countenance of
that Lorde before whose sighte the powers of heauen feare and tremble Who can but wonder when he remembreth that he dyed who is the lyfe of all thinges liuing O howe aptly to this did the Prophete Abacuc vnderstanding in the spirite of prophesie say Lorde I considered thy works and I was afrayde And truely the causes of wonder be so greate to make a man muse thereat that it is more maruell to sée one not maruel and muse then one that dothe muse and maruell at it For howe can it be deare brother but thou must maruell and wonder if thou consider the greatnes the mightinesse the highnesse and the eternall maiestie of him that suffered so many kindes of paynes of iniuries of tormentes and of so shamefull a death And contrariwise the basenes the vilenesse and the vnthankfulnes of men for whom he suffered And if any of these things being by itselfe considered haue cause sufficient to make thée maruell what shal it be if thou ioyne all together that his high maiestie hath suffred suche and so great tormentes for so base and vile creatures That is to say that the iudge of the liuing and the dead was crucified betwéene two théeues that the king of glory which is adored of Angels was blasphemed of most vile men who woulde not maruell who would not be afrayd who would not be astonnied to thinke vpon it This is one thing that shall giue thée copious matter to woÌ„der and maruell to consider the infinite loue bountie and mercy of God in this worke of thy redemption declared And thou shalt no lesse maruell if thou consider the great wisedome he sheweth in the same his passion and crosse in that he found out so conuenient and apt meane to vanquish and ouercome our aduersarie euen as it were with the same weapon wherwith he ouercame vs. And this is it that the Catholike Churche singeth That he ordeined the trée of the crosse to be the instrument and meane of our saluation because the diuell like as he wanne the victorie ouer vs by one trée so likewise he might be vanquished and troden vnder foote by an other trée Also his crosse and passion was a most present remedie for all our infirmities For he humbling himselfe euen to the death of the crosse did pay sufficiently the price of our disobedience and pride Geuing vs the greatest example that might be of his humilitie which is so necessarie a vertue for vs besides diuerse examples els as of despising the worlde and of many other vertues spoken of before By meanes whereof we maye knowe our owne vices and amende them and chiefly renounce and forsake our selfe-love which is the roote of all vice Also the remembraunce of his Crosse and passion may encourage vs to suffer and patiently beare the manyfolde trauels miseries and griefes whereof our life is full For what greater comforte can there be had then to beholde Christ nayled on the Crosse whose woundes are sufficient to heale our woundes whose paynes and griefe if we well consider them may cause vs not so impatiently to take our troubles whatsoeuer they be And likewise to inflame and kindle our loue towardes him there can not be founde a better meane then to lay before our eyes how gretly and entierly he loued vs in suffering so much for vs and that he hath left vs so great ryches of his mercies of Sacraments of examples of coÌ„forts of satisfactions of fayth of hope of deuotion of consolation Beholde Christ with diligent eyes vpon the Crosse and thou shalt finde hid therein so great and so wonderfull treasures that they will cause thée to crye out say with Saint Paule O the depâ—nesse of the ryches of the wisedome and knowledge of God Thou shalt finde also good cause to maruell if thou consider his great power and might whiche he shewed in his passion for so muche as thereby he ouercame the diuell and being exalted on the Crosse he drew all things to him as he saide before dying he destroyed death triumphing ouer the world and hell Thou shalt likewise finde good cause to wonder if thou marke well the iustice he obserued in his passion and death in that he would not our sinnes and offences should remayne without recompence and satisfaction and by it giue remission and pardon of them and that more fréely and fully then of our part was due or deserued And by howe much more thou art willing to consider search out the secrets of the Crosse so muche the more high mysteries shall be reuealed vnto thée and cause thée not only to maruell but also to be greatly amased And then shalte thou knowe that Saint Paule the Apostle spake not without great cause when he sayde He would preache none other nor would learne to knowe any other thing but Iesus Christ and him crucified By this then hitherto said thou mayst gather and perceiue how copious matter thou haste to maruell and wonder at when thou art in this maner disposed to meditate vpon the death and passion of thy Redéemer All whiche the better to retayne in memorye thou mayest reduce and bring them to these poyntes The first is to consider the infinite highnesse and maiestie of thy Lorde that suffered for thée The seconde is the seruile and base estate of them for whom he suffered Thirdly the wonderfull tormentes and iniuries which he suffered Fourthly the wisedome power and iustice which he declared in his blessed passion and death These things in maner before specified and others that may happen to come into thy remembraunce whiles thou art in thy meditation if thou consider them as thou oughtest attentiuely shall minister occasion vnto thée greatly to maruell and wonder at this diuine mysterie A declaration of the seuenth manner of meditation which is by way of hope and reioysing The seuenth manner of meditation we sayde was by waye of reioysing and hope Whiche kinde of meditation is very necessarie also sometime to vse For when a man shal with him selfe consider howe great the wickednesse and euill of sinne is howe odious it is and howe muche it displeaseth God séeing for the due punishment thereof and for to repaye and repayre the great losses it had caused in the worlde our Lorde him self came downe from heauen and after so great trauels and paynefull life at the laste he would suffer so bitter passion and death And when he shall likewise call to minde that he hath runne and fallen into his haynous euill and sinfulnesse not only once but many times and in diuerse sortes he shall then rest so sad and dismayed that he shall néede of some speciall helpe for to comfort him that he dispayre not in him selfe when he remembreth that he shall appeare before the iudgement seate of the fearfull iudge to yéelde the account of all his life To remember this it hath made not onely many sinners to feare and tremble but also iuste men and persons of holy life as