like a man who indeed is holy be austere and rigorous towards thy selfe and benigne and pitteous towards others and let men see and heare it said of thee that thou commaundest others to doe thinges which are light and easy to be performed and that thy selfe vndergoest heauy and performest hard thinges As for that which concerneth the chastisement and correction of inferiours the vertue of Benignity doth not teach that they should not be corrected for this vertue is not contrary either to that of Iustice or to that of Charity both which oblige Princes that they should correct chastise their vassailes Lords and Masters their seruants slaues parents their children For the Apostle faith of that Superiour who gouerneth the cōmōwealth It is not in vaine that he hath power and authority to punish as we see by the sword he carrieth but it is giuen him vpon great cause and reason and for a great good vse for he is the Minister of God for the punishment of such as doe ill and for the execution of iustice vpō their persons That which Benignity doth teach and exact is this that since correctiō and punishment is necessary and most important for the generall good of the commonwealth and for the particular members therof which is to the end that they who are faulty may amend and the rest may feare punishment and take warning by others it must be executed with that moderation sweetnes which may carry most proportiō to this end as Christ our Lord hath taught vs by his example This moderation sweetnes consisteth in that when the inferiours commit small faultes the Superiours doe not exaggerate and enforce them too much nor correct them with too grieuous punishments but that they moderate their wordes and deedes according to the fault So faith Saint Dorotheus Be not to great nor too seuere a punisher of faultes and defects which are not great And so also when faultes are cōmitted through ignorāce or through great weakenes or vpon some vehement temptatiō and not with malice obserue that moderation in making the reprehension and inflicting the punishment as that you affront not the offender with ill wordes but that the paine he is to suffer may lessen according to the ignorāce and weaknes wherewith the fault was made And sometimes when the person who sinned through ignorance or passion is such as that of himselfe he growes to know his fault and hath much compunction for it and doth cordially put himselfe vpon amendment and that noe hurt or ill example of others groweth by it the vertue of Benignity doth require that the punishment be remitted or moderated at least very much So saith Saint Gregory Some faultes are to be punished very gently for when men sinne not by malice but by ignorance or weakenes it is necessary that the correction and punishmēt be tempered with great moderation And in another place as the fault of them who sinne by ignorance may be tolerated in some sorte so they who commit it wittingly and wilfully must be seuerely punished And that it is more conuenient to pardon a fault sometimes then to inflict punishment the Venerable Bede doth affirme saying Not allwaies are they to be punished who offend for sometimes clemency doth more good both to the Superiour for the exercise of his patience and to the inferiour for his amendment When faultes are great vnexcusable by any ignorance and that it be necessary to inflict due punishment that which Benignity requires is that the Superiour who correcteth and punisheth be not moued to it by anger and passion but that in his heart he haue pitty of the delinquent and that he commit no excesse in punishing but that he temper and moderate it in such sorte as that it may not seeme cruelty or too much rigour for els he who correcteth and punisheth will receiue more hurt by his owne passion and the excesse which he vseth then he who is punished will receiue good So doth Saint Gregory aduise speaking to a Superiour Let such as are good finde by experience that thou art sweet towards them and let such as are euill finde by experience that thou hast zeale in correcting and punishing their faults In which punishment thou art to obserue this order that thou loue the person and that thou abhorre and persecute the vice procuring that the vice may be destroyed that the person may be amended and preserued and according to this let the punishment be moderated in such sorte that it reach not soe farre as to proue cruelty so thou happen to hurt and to loose him whom thou desirest to amend keepe And to the end that the correction punishment may be imposed with that moderatiō which Benignity requires let the Superiout procure that he do it not whilest he findes himselfe angry and altered or enflamed with choler but let him stay till his heart be calme and quiet And before he punish or reproue let him lift vp his heart to God and desire fauour and grace from heauen to the end that he may do it with such moderation as is fit and to such end as he ought which is that the delinquēt may amend and so others may take warning by his example that the diuine Maiesty may be serued and glorified by all This doth S. Dorotheus declare to vs by these wordes Our Predecessors forefathers the holy men did teach vs that if any Superiour being in anger did reprehend his subiect chollerickely in such sorte as reprehending the other he satisfied his owne passion anger it did amount to be a kinde of reuenge and he discouered the vitiousnes of his owne heart wherby he disedified them whom he was to reforme And for this reason it is fit that first he bridle his owne choler and be wholly in the hands of reason before he punish other folkes All this moderation which is necessary to the end that correction and punishment be imposed with Benignity the Apostle teacheth vs speaking thus to his disciple Saint Timothy Argue that is to say conuince such as erre with reasons and authorities and entreate thē also Which is as much as to say admonish the good by way of request and in sweet manner to the end that they may profit such others as are weake and pusillanimous to the end that they may get vp into heart and reprehend and correct the wicked with feruour zeale but yet this you must doe with much patiēce In a word you must correct such as are faulty without shewing your selfe angry or in passion but let them see that you haue a calme and quiet heart THE VI. CHAPTER Of the Benignity which Christ our Lord did vse in touching sicke and leprous persons with his owne sacred hands IT belōgeth to Benignity to shew the sweetnes of loue in life and conuersation with men And a great sweetnes of loue it is that a man placed in dignity should drawe neere to
going in his company might hould themselues secure inough and that without his will they could receiue no harme and that they ought to make themselues wholly subiect to that will of his But they forgetting all this and distrusting his power and protection would haue hindred his going into Iudea and would needes haue dissuaded him from the resolutioÌ„ which he had taken in that behalfe as if he had been either ignorant of the danger which there he might incurre or impuissant in defending himselfe from the same and they were full of apprehension and feare as if our Lord had not been able to protect them And these defects of theirs being so great our most merciful Lord was not yet offended with them nor did he shew any disgust nor did he reproue them with sharpe wordes for the meane conceit which they had of him but he informed them in sweet termes that there was no danger in his iourney and that they might hould themselues safe in his company by saying thus to them Are there not perhaps twelue houres in the day He who goes by day stumbles not because the day light lets him see the way but he who walkes by night may stumble and fall because he seeth not the light Whereby he would let theÌ„ know that iust as whilest the naturall day lasteth which hath twelue houres of light it is not in the skill or power of any creature to take away or diminish any one of these houres or any part thereof and that during this time a man may walke securely without stumbling or falling iust so as long as that time of his life was to last in this world which had been determined by the will of his eternall Father in which time he was to illuminate the world with his doctrine and by his miracles there was no cause for them to feare for that all the power of the world was not able to take one moment of that time from him and that so both himselfe and al they of his company were very safe With this Benignity did he tolerate their boldnes and cure their rudenes and their want of that faith and confidence which they ought to haue had in our Lord. THE IV. CHAPTER Of other examples of that Benignity which our Lord vsed towards his disciples enduring their imperfections and sweetly curing their ignorances and other defects THE two brothers Saint Iames and Saint Iohn came to Christ our Lord Matt. 10. Luc. 22. to demaund at his hands the two prime dignities of his kingdome and herein they serued them selues of the intercession of their mother Now the rest of the Apostles seeing the pretension of these two grow into indignation against them and were offended and troubled much to see that they would offer to outstrip all the rest and it moued a strife amongst them to know which of all the company was to be the greatest in the schoole and kingdome of Christ our Lord. These faults of the Apostles being so worthy of repreheÌ„sion for faults they were as wee haue declared elswhere in some of them of ambition in the rest of enuy and such faultes in men who had been so long aduised and instructed by the doctrine and example of Christ our Lord which was euer preaching and perswading humility and charity did well deserue to make our Lord offended with them that he should reproue them after a serious and sharpe manner that he should punish theÌ„ seuerely yet our most meeke Lord hauing compassion of their ignorance and rudenes which was the roote from whence those faultes did spring vsed so great Benignity towards them and cured their defects with so great sweernes that as for the two with onely looking vpon them and giuing them answere to that petition which their mother had presented he made them see that fault into which they had fallen by making their mother their intercessour for that suit and by desiring to couer vnder the piety of a mother the inordinate appetite which they had to be preferred before the rest and with onely saying You know not what you aske he corrected and cured all the ambition which they had and so reprehending their fault he did withall excuse them by imputing it not to malice but to the ignorance of men who knew not what was best for themselues And as for the other ten he reformed them also by calling them to him aduertising them that to desire commaund and aduantage ouer others was the vice of Gentiles who lodged not their heart vpoÌ„ heaueÌ„ly but on earthly thinges and that they were not to doe so but to imitate their Lord and Master who came into this world not to be serued by men but to serue them yea and to giue his life for them With this Benignity Christ our Lord did tolerate and cure those so great defects of his disciples So saith S. Chrysostome As those two Apostles did obey the inordinate appetite of flesh blood and did beg of our Lord the two chief seates in his kingdome so also the other ten obeying the like euill inclination of flesh and blood were offended and afflicted by the demaund and pretension of the former two For it was ill done by the two to desire to be preferred before the rest and the rest conceiued it to be an affront to them that the two should be preferred before them And Saint Hierome addeth That our Lord who was al meeke and and humble did not sharpely reprehend that inordinate appetite of honour wherewith those two came to him nor yet the indignation and enuy which the ten conceiued against the two but he treated them and instructed theÌ„ and â—ured them all with supreme Benignity and meeknes The Apostles being in the garden with our Lord the night of his PassioÌ„ he admonished them to remaine watchfull in prayer least otherwise they might fall into that temptation tribulation which was coÌ„ming towards them But they the while laid themselues to sleepe and our Lord hauing been at Prayer and going to visit them and finding that they were fallen a sleepe did wish them a second time to watch and pray and he said Why sleepe you rise vp to watch and pray least els you be ouercome by temptation And hauing giuen them this lesson he returned againe to Prayer and after went to see them a second time and finding them asleepe yet againe he said nothing to them A third time he went to Prayer and a third time he went to see them and finding them still sleeping as being oppressed by the great sorrow they had he said to them sleepe on and take your rest And so he left them for a while till the time was come wheÌ„ his enemies who were to apprehend him were approaching Then he turned towards them said It is enough rise vp let vs goe for the hower is already come wherein the Sonne of maÌ„ is to be deliuered ouer into the hands of sinners This was a
them good and to giue them comfort and that although wee may be placed in high estate and they in lowe wee must not yet disdaine to vse this charity and sweetnes towards them And that when our neighbours make vs expect ◅ while and come not so soone as wee desire wee must not yet be angry with them nor loose the peace of our heart but wee must endure with patience and expect and speake to them with Benignity i◠imitation of this example of Christ our Lord. THE IX CHAPTER Of the Benignity which Christ our Lord shewed to little children and what he taught vs thereby THe parents of little childrē Matth. 19. Marc. 10. Luc. 18. seeing the power which Christ our Lord had to cure all diseases by touching sicke persons brought those little children to him and not onely them who were able to goe vpon their owne feet but also their sucking babes who could not speake nor goe but in the armes of others and they offered thē to him that he might touch them and giue them his benediction and they had confidence that by this meanes such of thē as were sicke would recouer their health and they who were not not sicke would continue whole Their parents vsed this very often and with much importunity for they who had children were many and did so much esteeme this good of their children that no man would want it by his will and euery one desired to preuent his neighbour and be the first to get a blessing for his sonne The Apostles seeing this and conceiuing that it was a thing vnworthy of the authority and grauity of our Lord to employ himselfe vpon such a light and meane thing as this and thereby to hinder greater matters thinking also that because the exercise was so frequent and vsed with so great importunity and ill manners by those parēts who brought their children that our Lord would be troubled and vexed thereby did vse seuerely to reprehēd such as brought the children and would shake them off as threatening them that so they might not come to our Lord. So saith Saint Chrysostome giuing a reasō therof The disciples droue away the little children and forbad them to come to our Lord in respect of his dignity and the authority of his person And S. Hierome declaring another reason saith The disciples thought that as other men are wont to be disquieted and displeased by such importunities so also would our Lord be by the frequency and importunity wherby they offred their children And Saint Ambrose addeth another cause to this and faith The disciples also did thus least otherwise our Lord might haue beē oppressed that is much straigthened and tired by the multitude of people which came to him some thrustling and iustling others by occasion of the children whō they brought Now our Lord perceiuing how the Apostles hindred litle children frō approaching to him though he knew their zeale and the intention wherewith they did it which was not ill yet he liked it not because it was not so agreable to the diuine spirit of the same Lord but to the humane spirit of the disciples And shewing both by his countenance and his wordes that he liked it not he called reprehended them saying Suffer little children to come to mee and doe not hinder them for of such is the kingdome of heauen I meane that heauen doth belong not onely to those little children for the purity innocency and grace they haue but that the same kidgdom of heauen shall be also giuen to men who in their practise of humility simplicity and purity of life will become like little children And so for that which little children are in their owne persons by diuine grace which is to be acceptable to God worthy of heauen and for that also which they represent in others namely to be men who are humble innocent and pure whom I loue and esteem much and embrace with my very bowells and blesse with my gifts therfore will I suffer them to approache to me and I will admit them to my embracements and blessings and therefore see you giue them noe impediment in comming Our Lord hauing thus reprehended his disciples he called them who brought the children and making those children come neer him he put his hands vpon their heads and embraced them and gaue them his holy blessing with his hands with his words he recommēded them to his heauenly Father and he made them partakers of his diuine grace by the efficacy of his benediction By this act Christ our Lord discouered to vs his Benignity and most sweet condition in that a Lord of so great Maiesty and who was euer ēployed in so great and high workes should descend to a thing which in all apparance was so poore and meane and belonging wholly to men who had no waighty businesse in hand and that he should doe it with so cheerfull a countenance and with so much gust and sweetnes that their parents others of kinne who brought the children should presume to bring them so often and so importunately and to interrupt the continuance of his discourses and the working of his miracles and to ēploy so large spaces of time in this so meane exercise And not onely did Christ our Lord discouer his Benignity to vs by this proceeding but he manifested it to be so great and so admirable that it doth incomparably exceed all that which men can conceiue and beleiue therof For although it were much which the Apostles knew of the Benignity and piety and meeknes of our Lord yet they could not beleiue or vnderstand how it could possibly arriue so farre as this but did rather thinke that our Lord was to disdaine such a poore imployment and that he would be troubled and offended by the disquiet and importunity which they gaue him in this kinde But indeed it was farre otherwise with him for the meannes of the action pleased him much and the time it cost was held by him to be well employed and the labour trouble which they put him to was sweetly and gladly endured by him Let vs imitate this Benignity of our Lord in descending to doe such thinges as are poore and meane in the account of men when charity requires it at our hands and to treate and conuerse with poore and meane people though wee may seeme perhaps to loose somewhat of our right and dignity thereby if yet it doe import for the assisting and comforting them in their necessities for gaining them to Christ our Lord doing that which the Apostle did in imitation of Christ when he said I haue made my selfe all thinges to all men I haue accommodated my selfe to the inclination and gusts of all men in all lawfull thinges thereby loosing somewhat of mine owne right liberty that I might saue as many as I could THE X. CHAPTER Of the Benignity which Christ our Lord shewed towards wicked persons who came to him with a