Delight The Fourth Discourse That Pleasure is the soul of Morral Vertues NOthing is so great a Scandal to the Stoicks as the low and petty Rate that is put upon Vertue they look upon all those little less then Sacrilegious that do dishonor her and never think any punishment too rigorous to chastise their Insolence As they are inamoured with her Love they call her the Divinity of the Earth they make her the Standard of all their Noble Actions and they wish Monarchs would as well relie upon her conduct as the meanest of their Subjects Epicurus who is just of an opposite Sentiment and who has given Pleasure the preference to Vertue is reckoned among them no better then a Monster they have thought a Man must quit his reason to side against her and prostrate a Soveraign unto Her whom she disdain'd to accept of for a Slave But without doubt those Philosophers are too severe in their condemnation which makes me think they have not sufficiently conceiv'd the meaning of their Adversary in that they have charg'd him with so many Reproaches For did they take the pains to examine Soveraign Good in its nature they would find themselves in no disagreement at all with him they seek that in effect which they blame in Appearance and are no otherwise enemies to him but in their way of expression For if they affirm that Vertue is contented with her own perfections that she despises all advantages that are forrein to her and only to be possest of her is sufficient to make one live happy in the world The Epicureans likewise will yield this Gâ—ory to her and make their protestations that they look upon her as the most profitable of al good things But they will never acknowledg her to be Man's felicity since she only conducts him to it and never makes her self desirable but for the love of that pleasure which she promises For that happy life which they would have begin from an enjoyment of her is nothing but the pleasure which they establish and which seperating the means from the end that leads to it they are oblig'd to prefenâ— to Vertue Indeed Pleasure seems Natural to the Vertues the most severe of them do seek her as well as the most diverâ—ive and though their contentment is more reserv'd and hid it is no whit the less true and real As she is the chief and peculiar good of Man clearing up his reason and fortifying his will she very agreeably slides into his soul and if she somtimes amazes her Spectators she still affords her admirers most plentiful Delights and Satisfaction Those Heroes who make Fortune their diversion and laugh at it contemning her power and with an equal unconcern beholding her favors and affronts have done well to acknowledg that there is a certain pleasure in the Vertue that charms them since they preferr its injoynments to Riches and Honors accounting themselves happy in their poverty and extracting Glory from that which makes others Miserable That Philosopher who has made himself Tamous in History in his choice of a Tubb for his Mansion house and so as it were to bury himself alive in the midst of Athens speaks but the satisfactions that he there received and though he was depriv'd of all things he did not forbear disputing his Felicity with the most pompous and lofty Soveraigns His abode was more pleasant to him then their Pallace he considered it as a Temple from whence he delivâ—red his Oracles and depising the Ornaments of rooms of Entertainment he look'd upon his own as very well accommodated since it had vertue for its Hostess the Water that quench'd his thirst and the dry parched Bread that satisfied his hunger he thought need give no place to to their Delicacies and as they did purely satisfy Nature they left no disgusts which are the usuall punishments of their extravagant seeding He got the conquest of all the passions that insulted o'r Kings Fear and Grief were banished from his soul and while these lament the loss of Battles and afflict themselves with the revolt of their subjects and groan under the weight of their Diadems he enjoy'd a sweet Repose and liv'd in a profound and undisturbed Tranquility If he shun'd the Courts of Princes it was because he knew the troublesom cumber and distraction of them if he refus'd publick Dignities it was because he counted them as specious Servitudes and if he preferr'd the caelibate life to Marriage it was because the name of Zantippe was odious to him and that he look'd upon the society of Women as such who would always be commanding though they were born to obey In short this Philosopher enjoy'd a perfect freedom his miseries were only in appearance and contemning the grandeurs of the World he could boast in this of being the most happy Man amongst all the Philosophers and the most puisant of all Kings If Pleasure has triumph'd over Poverty in the person of Diogenes if its sweetness has overcome its cruelty and has put an agreeableness into the most incompliant and unwelcome of all vertues it has no less Empire over the rest of her companions Those that seem to be the most dis-interessed do propound her to themselves iâ— all their enterprizes and though they would be thoâ—ght to shun her yet they take their measures by her movements Friendship which derives all her Glory from the sincerity of her Affections has yet a passionate earnestness for her it loves it in the object it reveres its presence contributes to her happiness and she never makes her approaches to it but to receive from thence satisfaction There is nothing more pure then the vertue of the Ancients who have expos'd themselves to dangers not valuing their lives but choosing an inevitable death to preserve their Countries from those mischiefs which have threatned them It seems those generous Spirits had no other Sentiments then those of Honor they had only a regard to Vertue when they made themselves Victims to her Notwithstanding we may say that Pleasure was the life and soul of all their actions they stirr'd not but as she did move them and though they sought out miseries they were not less the Slaves of Pleasure They imagined that Posterity would give them Elogies that their Children would become the peoples love Histories would publish their Valour their Statues would be Ornaments and Decorations of publick places and all Mouths expanded in the celebration of their Names and all Pens imployed in relating their Merits Death which is so terrible to the Cowardly did appear to them but a petty Evil in comparison of the honors they promised to themselves and as they were animated by the desire of Glory they only considered the Immortality that would crown their actions Justice which pleases it self with Rigour and most of her time is taken up in the chastisements of Criminals has not any Sentiments more pure and reâ—in'd When a Father is inrag'd against his Son and
support of States the glory of their Army the defence of their Frontiers and as the inhancement of their Reputation and Wealth But as this advantage is Pompous so it is difficult to acquire to deserve the name of Victorious we must ingage our selves in Wars expose our persons to infinite Dangers and abandon to the Discretion of Fortune both our Liberty and Life Now Force and Magnanimity â—urmounts all these difficulties it glories in seeking out the Enemy in setting upon Afflictions in faceing Death and in making up to whatever appears Terrible in the world Iâ— we will credit a Roman Philosopher it is a generous vertue exalting us beyond a capacity to â—ear a Science that teaches us to beat back Dangers contemn Travels and provoke unto Sufferings and Calamities For Evil is the object of this Noble Habitude and it cannot be said to subsist in nature if it has not Enemies to combat with and Difficulties to conquer Some have confounded Force with Valour they have thought that Courage was reserv'd for Conquerors and that one ought to be constantly in Battles and gaining Kingdoms to merit the name of Mighty and Victorious But Certainly they have but imperfectly known the nature of Force the most Glorious Actions are not always the most Dangerous An affliction is often more difficult to get the master of then an Enemy and I question if a Man deserves not more to be Renown'd for induring Death with a firm resolution in his Bed then for despising it in a Battle Who is there but knows that the valour practised in Armies is more â—ure and true in Beasts then in Men that those of the Female kind are as capable of it as the Males and that both of them do strive with as earnest a contention for the possession of a Meadow as Kings do for the Conquest of a Nation But there is this difference that the force of Beasts is true and real and that of Men oft-times but in shew and appearance the one is Natural the other is mixt with Artifice the one purely regards Profit or Glory the other ingages us in Perils but â—â—ough the fear of Death or apprel 〈◊〉 of the Poverty which threatens us Who observes the addresses of Humane Valour wilâ—â—te that it is but a Sage dejection and weakness of mind that fore-sees the Danger so as to avoid it that overcomes one Passion by another and that suffers one Mischief to secure himself from a greater To what purpose serve the managing of Horses and the Hall of Arms but to teach us how to turn tail with a good Grace and to become an honorable Coward there 's no doubt but a Shop-prentice might overcome the most Couragious if that Valour consists in taking his time keeping himself in Posture and in observing all those rules that teach us to beat back our Adversary But true Valour despises Artifice it considers it to be the evil but not the means of escaping and it is as little accustomed to ward off Blows as to fear them The Lacedemonians have bannish'd all masters of Arms out of their States and chose rather to be redevable for their victory to Nature then Industry There is none but will commend the valour of that person who dares ingage with a Bear cope with a Lyon and grapple with a wild Boar that is coming with full force and power upon him because Art and Cunning has no part in this combat but he makes an absoâ—ute Exposal of himself to the fury of his enemy As Valour rejects all craft so it is an enemy to all Circumventions it will not have a victory that shall be Dishonorable it fancies it derogates from its Grandeur when it has recourse to Fraud for the obtaining of it It hopes to conquer as soon as it begins its combats by Counsel Arms and looks upon it self inferior to its Adversary to make use of Stratagems to subdue him Fraud is a discovery of weakness and we must confess our selves conquer'd when we are fain to use shameful means to arrive at our designs If Force should be without disguise and if it should contemn those low subtleties that may give it advantage it is also necessary that it should be illuminated in its Conduct that it should know the danger it has to surmount the difficulties that may hinder its Victory and that it find out ways of vanquishing or at least diverting them For Force is not a blind Temerity that loves danger or that ingages its self in it but upon necessity but a Science that teaches us to distinguish Evils to seperate them from their contrary and to preferr the imaginary and apparent ones to those that are effectual and true That Man is not to be accounted valiant that 's push'd on by the violence of his Choller or relying upon the strength of his body praecipitates himself into dangers and seems to be afraid of nothing only because he would be thought above the power of being frightned and shaken but well may he who knowing the evil and abhorring it does yet attacque it with Courage and put himself in a posture of giving it a Repulse according as it needs and the occasion will suffer him A valiant Man's ingagements ought also to be Just he should not fight but for the defence of Equity and he should rather regard the subject of his Enterprizes then their recompence Victory is not always the reward of Valour the most Couragious are generally the most unfortunate and oft-times they are forc'd to yield to their Enemies who have neither their conduct nor courage To teach us that true Valour resides in the heart that it is rather a product of the Soul then Body and that he may call himself no longer Victorious then whilst he is braving of Dangers despising Death and making head to his Enemies From all that has been said it is easy to inferr that force as well as what accompanies it is obtain'd for Pleasure that it does not give Battles but to obtain it that it is as well its end as its recompence and that it never attacques Troubles but to procure us Pleasure For Evil is odious it shocks our inclinations instead of drawing them and we should never resolve to destroy it if we did not promise to our selves joy and satisfaction from the Defeat Death is the terriblest of all evils it makes a seperation between the Soul and Body it breaks the most strict and perfect Friendships that ever were in the world and taking upon it the state of a Soveraign it brings down the goodliest works of Nature to the Dust and nothing This snatches the dear Wise from the arms of her most affectionate Husband robs the Father of his only Son and brings sadness into Families and desolation into Kingdoms But have we overcome the fear of Death then will this Monster appear to us as a favor from Heaven and we shall look upon it as a way that
leads us to Felicity Our Repose begins from its contempt and we derive our Pleasure and Contentment from having obtained a preheminence over an enemy that triumphs over Victors and Conquerors The Second Discourse That the sufferings of Martyrs are mingled with abundance both of Profit and Pleasure THose that are Idolizers of their bodies and think they offend a Divinity when they do any thing to hurt them cannot be persuaded that Parricide can be innocent among Christians that a Man may lawfully conspire against his own person and expose his life for the glory of his Creator They condemn all those of Simplicity and Folly who render themselves up to this Generous Passion and who abandon themselves to Executioners upon the hopes of Recompence What say they is God become a Tyrant since he has sent his Son upon the Earth has he who has Saved us now a design to Destroy us and will he have us dye because he has given us our lives he suffered for all Men his Death procures their Happiness and we but unprofitably aspire to be Martyrs since he has expiated upon the Cross all our Offences by the sacrifice of himself God is not delighted with Cruelty he refuses the blood of Bulls and Goats and he is satisfyed when he finds Repentance in our hearts and hears his Praises in our mouths These Reasons though they have some semblance of Truth only content base and abject Spirits who have a horror for all things that may incommode them and who reject the Martyr because they know not his advantages and his pleasure But those brought up in the school of the Son of God know that Martyrdom is a favor and not a cruelty that if he is bleeding yet he is dutiful that he comes to help our weaknesses that he wounds us but to heal us and that he does not give us death but to lead us to a life of Immortality Tyrants are the Ministers of Heaven the blood they draw from our Veins open to us the Gates thereof and makes us enter into it with violence Also God proposes Martyrdom to us under the name of a Combat that so we may vanquish the Demon that has overcome us beat down him that has defeated us and cause Glory to succeed Infamy and Servitude Vertue is the Dispensatrix of Honor she distinguishes the orders of the Happy seperates the Widdows from the Virgins and establishes the Martyrs in a throne above the Confessors But where should be this diversity if there was an equality of Merits in Heaven and how would these Starrs differ between themselves if they had all one and the same beauty and lustre Preference is the mark of Merit not to be obtain'd but by Force and Sufferings Life must be despised here on earth if we will pretend to injoy an honorable place in Heaven So that Martyrdom is an ingenious Tyrant that kills us to save us and an innocent Crime that o'rwhelms us with Confusion to crown us with Glory If we will believe Tertullian it is an obliging Cruelty that tears away our life to give it us again that despoils us to make us Rich and that making us to be the imitators of the Son of God assures us to have a part in his felicity In short Tyrants rather deserve the name of Benefactors then Enemies since they oblige in persecuting us and it is more for our advantage to have their hatred then their kindness and their promises For all the cruelty they can invent conspires to our happiness Torments stifle our Passions flames kindle our Charity their rage is the beginning of our Merit and carries us up to Heaven to receive its recompence From thence it is that we call the passion of Martyrs their birth-day because it ingenders them to Life in engaging them to Death and causes them to begin an Eternity in ending their miserable life But that which still he igntens the glory of Martyrs and renders their death more Illustrious is that they seem to add a perfection to the passion of Jesus Christ and to end what he begun on the Cross St. Paul presum'd to boast of this honor he was assur'd that his afflictions were the accomplishment of his torment and that his dejections and his miseries deriv'd their Elogies from his sufferings He knew his actions were valuable only from the motives that begat them that his passion might dispute preheminence with his since the cause of it was more Noble and Lofty St. Paul suffred for Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ suff'red but for the World St. Paul was persecuted for his Saviorus sake but the Son of God indur'd death for the sake of Rebels St. Paul combated for the glory of his Master and Jesus Christ was expos'd to infamy and death to give liberty to Slaves Tertullian likewise whose Sentences are so Pompous and weighty has said the passions of Martyrs might be desir'd by those in Bliss that the Son of God might wish for them in Heaven and that their wounds were capable of making him jealous if he was susceptible of this passion Then if Sufferings are so advantagious to Martyrs they are not sure less agreeable to them if they exercise their Courages they charm their Wills and if they cause paâ—n and anguish in their Bodies they fill their Souls with delights and pleasures They rejoyce in the midst of Torments because they rest upon their Soveraign's word whom they know is as true as he is powerful and that he who is a spectator of their combat will be the glory and recompence of it They know that what they indure is nothing comparatively to what they hope for that their Pain is short and their happiness will be Eternal that their torments are not of many moments continuance and the reward they look for will be more lasting then all the Ages yet to come This hope relives their Courage charms their Griefs confirms their Constancy and renders them Victorious in the midst of all their afflictions This pleasure then must needs be mighty since it works such strange Effects and makes these Champions contemn all the sentiments of Nature For as if Pleasure had inchanted their minds they still are preferring Infamy to Honor they go into Prisons as into places of safety they receive Stripes as favors they are thankful to those Executioners that tear them in pieces lye down on burning Coals as on beds of Roses and with joy they suffer the plucking out of their Eyes cutting off their Arms and the distilling of their Bodies drop by drop upon flaming Coals The grace that works all these Miracles is a charm that elevates their minds increases the strength excites their courage and causes them without Pain to triumph over the cruelties of their Tormentors over the malice of Demons and over the extremity of their Tortures Though the quality of a Martyr be so Illustrious and that Almighty God hath reserv'd it for these Heroes whom he has brought
different from them both As they make diverse species their proprieties do no whit agree together the Passive Generation cannot be attributed to the Father nor the procession to the Son without confounding the power of the Father the wisdom of the Word and the love of the Holy Spirit Yet notwithstanding they are all Three reconciled in one and the same Divinity and the diversity of their Persons is no hindrance at all to the unity of their Nature What appears so difficult to the conception in Theology seems evident in the Morall The Good that is the object of it and which makes the Glory of all its instructions is expanded in all its branches its Division stands not in opposition to its Unity and if it makes use of different Names it neither changes Quality or Condition It is every way agreeable the Pleasure makes its principal difference and it never does attract the Mind before it has stirr'd it up by its surprising Charms Vtility which is as the soul of Polititians appears always under its habits and Philosophers are not such courtiers of Honesty but that they hope from it to receive Satisfaction But the better to mix this confusion we must observe that the Desire is continually under disquietudes that its violence keeps us in suspence and its Languishing does often equal the vigor of the most rigorous Distempers For it is as Shame-fac'd as it is Cruel and we ought to confess our Miseries as oft-times as we make any Wishes Nothing but their accomplishment can afford us satisfaction and put us into a Sedate and quiet temper Indeed we swim in Pleasure when our desires change into Effects when we possess whatsoever we did propose for our Content and when we see our Fears vanished and our Hopes established But this Joy is of no longer a continuance then whilst we are ingaged in the search of a Good It lessens it self by its possession and we cease to be satisfied and contented as soon as we see our greedy desires in repose and our ambitions have their satisfaction He who to secure himself from Poverty passes the Seas despises dangers finds out Lands Incognito with the hazard both of his Safety and his Life and all to get him Riches is no longer affected with the pleasure of them then whilst he is heaping them up and as the profitable Gain does charm his Travels so is his delight of them lost and gone as soon as they are loâ—k'd up in his Coffers He languishes after the Treasures he has not and disregards what are in his own possession and only those good things which he hopes for can give his Thoughts contentment The Ambitious Man is as much unhappy as him that is Covetous for when he is sweating with the pains he takes to get himself Honors imploying the credit of his Friends hat so he may come to be above them and often taking on him an undecent humility that at last he may arrive at some Eminency in the World the Glory only then appears delightful to him when he beholds it as the recompence of all his Labors and Humiliations But no sooner are his desires accomplish'd and he has made his Inferiors of his Equals but he languishes in the midst of his Honors he only regards those that are yet wanting to him and being push'd on by the inquietude of his desires he does acknowledg no other happiness then that which promises him the Dignity and Preferment he earnestly thirsts for What is the joy of a Philosopher when he is become conqueror of his Passions and master of those slaves that would oppress his Liberty he does no violence to himself but such as gives him Pleasure all his pains are agreeable to him and he reckons all his Combats happy ones since they lead him unto Victory But has he excluded Vice from his breast is the object of his affection become that of his hate and has he subjected that which before did Tyrannize over him His vertue is forsaking him his pleasures dwindle and he must combat with new Difficulties if he would procure to himself Delights This Principle granted it is no hard task to prove that honesty and Profit are in affinity with Pleasure and it is only she that ingages us in their pursuit For the profitable good is not disireable only for its self sake since that the possession of it is Sterile and gives no satisfaction to those who are once made masters of it It must be Pleasure that moves them to it representing it under a form that is agreeable and appearing beautiful as well as profitable to make one be in love with it Eating which is so necessary to Man is ever follow'd with pleasure and I doubt whether we should be at the trouble of self-preservation if we were not invited to it by the contentment as well as by the necessity Riches which are made the Divinities of the world and which most Men idolize would be in little esteem amongst us if they did not discover the pleasures they give to those that have them ayeâ— and flatter them with an assured Felicity For they display all that possibly can make them divertive they show them stately Structures rich Habits Tables spread with all the varieties capable to please their Tast advanâ—agious Marriages and a vast retinue of Servants who attend their Persons and observe their Commands All this Pompous Gayety ravishes their Affections and makes them without any Difficulty consecrate their cares and diligence in the Acquest of those goods which promises them so many advantages 'T is true the seeking of that good we call Honest is more pure it is not beholding to strange â—avors to satisfie its Lovers and it is to do an injury to its Merit to desire any thing above its self But yet it ceases not to have its Charms as well as Profit it is the Glory as well as the Ornament of those who possess it all Mankind has a Reverence for it and as it has the Wicked for its admires so all good Men too load it with their Panegyricks Honor is its Appanage and portion all persons that regard it give it their praises and those spectators must become enemies to it that can refuse it this recompence Knowledg which is one part of it does it not create a bundance of delight and pleasure in the Learned And can they mount up into the Heavens make a discovery of the Stars sound Nature and penetrate into the Abysms of the Earth without a transport As she is the light of our Understanding she with it infuses joy into our Souls exalts us above our self and without ever changing our condition the seems to make us pass out of darkness into light from a Prison unto Freedom and from Death to Life None but those who are ignorant can question this truth and who having never been exempted from the phlegmy conceits of their dull and gross bodies are not sensible of its Sweetness and