of God and you will not allow it him till after you have a long time prostituted it to the Devil for his Retiring-place and after you have defil'd it with a vast number of Crimes All your Life ought to be Consecrated to the Service of God and you will Employ the first and better Part in the Service of the Devil reserving to God only that which would be no more useful to Sin. Can there be an Indignity equal to this What would you say of a Man that would Serve up to the Table of a Prince nothing but the Remainders and Scraps of Dogs and Swines-meat This you would say were horrible and have not you a horror for the same thing which you perform far more criminally towards God keeping for his Service only the Remainders of your Passions which you have brutishly satisfy'd during your Youth Is not this a horrible Affront you offer to God Offertis super altari meo panem pollutum Mal. 1. If God complain'd so much of those of the Old Law because they Offer'd upon his Altar profane and unclean Bread what Complaints will he not make of you who shall Offer unto him only the Remnant of your Life defil'd with all sort of Impurity If he lays a Curse upon him who retains the better Part for himself and Presents the worst to him in Sacrifice Maledictus dolosus qui habet in grege suo masculum votum faciens immolat debile Domino Ibid. Cursed says he is the Deceiver who chuseth the Lame to make an Offering of it to God What Maledictions ought not you to stand in dread of you who not only Sacrifice to him the worst but make it your Design to give him nothing but the remainder of what hath serv'd to the Pleasure and Disorder of your Youth I would to God we had not seen so many Effects of this Curse of God upon many young People as we take notice of every Day by dreadful Accidents sudden Deaths rejecting of God obdurateness in Vice and many other Misfortunes which are the Effects of Thy just Choler O Almighty God! by which Thou daily Punishest those who offer Thee this Injury who forget Thee in their Youth to follow their wicked Inclinations and who would not Serve Thee but after they had Serv'd Sin their Passions and the Devil CHAP. VI. How God hath an Aversion for wicked young People Considerable Examples upon this Subject AFTER what we have said Sixth Consideration the Anger of God against vicious young Persons there is no need of Proving this Proposition which is a necessary Consequence from the Three former For how can it be but that God should have an extream Aversion for those who contemn the Honour he does them in particularly desiring their Service who are not mov'd with the Love he bears them and who on the contrary treat him with so much Indignity and Contempt as we have shewn God hath an Aversion for all Sinners as he himself hath said Odio sunt Deo impius impietas ejus Sap. 14. Aversor Impium I detest the Wicked But this Aversion is greatest against those to whom he hath testify'd most Love and Benevolence and who unworthily abuse it Love offended is chang'd into Indignation and Bounty contemn'd and ill treated becomes a merciless Fury That this is so besides these Reasons which clearly demonstrate it Experience makes it appear with undoubted Certainty by the Effects which God frequently shews of that Aversion he hath for vicious young People I shall recount here Four very notable Examples all taken out of the Sacred Scripture that no one may doubt of them and that from these one may give a Judgment of others The First Example is of the Two Children of Judas the Son of the Patriarch Jacob. This Man had Seven Children the Two elder whereof were Wicked and Vicious Behold what the Scripture saith of the First Gen. 38. whose Name was Her Fuit quoque Her nequam in conspectu Domini ab eo occisus est Her the eldest Son of Judas was wicked in the sight of God and his Life was taken away by him And immediately after it is said of the Second nam'd Onan that God struck him with Death for a Sin of Impurity which he had committed which the Scripture in that place calls Detestable Idcirco percussit eum Dominus eo quod rem detestabilem faceret God struck him with Death because he had done a detestable Action This Sin altho' detested by God himself and chastis'd with so Exemplary a Punishment by a deplorable Misfortune is but too common amongst Youth upon which it draws the Divine Indignation either visibly or invisibly The Second Example is of the Two Children of the High Priest Heli 1 Reg. 3. 4. call'd Ophni and Phinees These Two young Men were Employ'd by their Father in the Ministry of the Temple and Sacrifices wherein they behav'd themselves very ill committing great Irrevrences in the Temple and high Injustices towards the Faithful who came to Offer their Sacrifices to God requiring from them by an insatiable Avarice more than justly was their due Insomuch that the Sacred Scripture says that they were the a Porro filii Heli filii Belial nescientes Dominum Children of Belial so it calls those whom it would signifie to be very wicked and absolutely ruin'd For Belial is as much as to say Absque jugo having lost the Fear of God and the remembrance of their Duty and it adds that their b Erat ergo peccatum puerorum grande nimis coram Domino Sin was very enormous in the sight of God. Their Iniquity drew upon them so great an Indignation of God that he sent by a c Videbis aemulum tuum in Templo in universis prosperis Israel non erit senex in domo tua omnibus diebus pars magna domus tuae morietur cum ad virilem aetatem venerit Prophet to tell the Father too negligent in Correcting his Children That he would take a Revenge which should serve as an Example to all Posterity That he would exclude his Family from the High Priesthood to give to another That the greatest part of his Offspring should die in the Flower of their Youth and should not arrive at a perfect Age And that his two Sons Ophni and Phinees should die both in one Day and that all their Race should d Juravi domui Heli quod non expietur iniquitas domus ejus victimis muneribus usque in aeternum bear for ever the Marks of their Iniquity which should never be Expiated by Victims and Sacrifices All this happen'd as he had foretold A little while after Ophni and Phinees were kill'd in a Defeat of the Philistians On the same Day the Father hearing the News of their Death fell down backward broke his Head and dy'd upon the Place Many other Misfortunes happen'd that Day and amongst others the Ark
Dan. 13. like to him whom Daniel calls by that Name Inveterate dierum malorum O thou that ard old in a wicked Life and that the hasten'd Death of the Just who dy'd in the Flower of his Age condemns as the Wise-man says * Condemnat autem justus mortuus vivos impios juventus celerius consummata longam vitam injusti Sap. 4. Sicut vita mala quanto magis fuerit prolongata tanto magis delinquentibus multiplicat poenam sic vita bona quamvis hic brevi tempore terminata sempiternam conquirit bene viventibus gloriam Vita igitur mala immaturos acerbosque senes demergit in Tartarum vita verò bona defunctos juvenes maturos perducit ad regnum S. Fulgen. Epist 2. cap. 3. the long Life of the Wicked Because this is made worthy of Heaven in a small time he liv'd and the long life of those who serv'd only to multiply their Crimes and encrease their Damnation But I say that it is also most true that many die in Youth in punishment of their Sins and that the Sins of that Age advance the Death of many The Scripture expresly shews this in many places it alledges a vast number of Examples and daily Experience makes it appear most evident Job speaking of the Wicked says that * Antequam dies ejus impleantur peribit manus ejus arescent laedetur quasi vinea in primo flore botrus ejus quasi oliva projiciens florem suum Job 23. Ver. 3 2. He shall perish before the number of his Days be accomplish'd and shall be like a Bunch of Grapes which a blasting Wind nips in its Flower or like an Olive whose Bud breaking forth is strucken with a Tempest Solomon in his Proverbs says Timor Domini apponet dies anni impiorum breviabuntur Prov. 10. v. 25. Quasi tempestas transiens non erit impius v. 2. ibid. The Years of the Wicked shall be shortned and the Sinner shall be like a Storm which passeth in a moment * Ne impie agas multum noli esse stultus ne moriaris in tempore non tuo Eccl. 7. In his Ecclesiastes Chap. 7. he admonishes you to have a care not to abandon your self to Sin nor to be of the number of the Unwise that is of Sinners lest you should die in a time not design'd for you that is sooner than you should have done according to the natural Course of your Life And in the Eighth Chapter he desires by a just Indignation Non sit bonum impio nec prolongentur dies ejus sed quasi umbra transeant qui non timent faciem Domini Eccl. 6. that the Wicked should receive no Good nor his Days be prolong'd and that all those who have no Fear nor Respect for the Majesty of the All-seeing God and who are so bold as to offend him before his Face and in his Presence should pass like a Shadow which hath no substance and which perisheth in a moment All these Expressions are clear in Scripture and the Effects are there yet more evident See the Examples we have brought in the precedent Chapter in the Persons of Ochosias Amon Joachim and Sedecias In the Sixth Chapter in the Persons of the Children of Juda and Heli and in that of Amnon and Absolom And altho' we had no other Proofs of this Verity the Examples we daily see do but discover it too clearly How many young People do we see die some by a burning Fever or such like Malady Others in a Quarrel or some wicked Encounter Others in Duels which now reign so freely Others kill'd in War Others by certain dreadful and unexpected Accidents All these Deaths which are but too frequent are the Effects of the Divine Anger against young People who contemn his Favours and refuse to Serve him in the Time wherein they are oblig'd to it O Theotime have a dread lest these Punishments should befall you ARTICLE II. The Second Evil which springs from Sins committed in Youth Blindness of Mind and Obdurateness in Vice. Corporal Death is not the only nor the saddest Effect of the Sins of Youth that which they cause in the Soul by interiour Blindness and Obdurateness in Evil into which they cast her are no less common yet far more deplorable and dreadful a Super mortuum plora defecit enim lux ejus super fatuum plora defecit enim sensus Eccl. 22. Luctus mortui septem dies fatui autem impii omnes dies vitae illorum We must lament the Dead says the Wise-man because he loseth the light but we must lament a Sinner because he hath lost his Judgment The Sorrow for the Dead ought to continue but Seven Days that is a small time but we must lament a Sinner all the space of his Life For how can we consider without Tears and Sorrow so great and universal a Misfortune which we see in many young People whom the Sins of their Youth bring to a prodigious Obdurateness which abandons them to Vice without any restraint b Obdurateness of Youth in Vice. The multitude of those is innumerable who after having spent the prime time of their Youth in the Disorders of Sin and principally in those of Impurity become insensible of their Salvation blind in their proper Interest obdurate in Evil contemning the most wholsom Admonitions glorying in their Iniquities scoffing at all the Good they see perform'd by others and having no other thought than to take their Pleasures and follow all the Motions of their deprav'd Inclinations running thus blindly on their Perdition so that nothing is able to withhold them O Theotime is not this a deplorable Misfortune But I wish to God it were not so frequent as it is great S. Augustin had notably experienc'd it in his own Person as he himself reports in his Confessions where he deplores his Misfortune with Words which are able to move the hardest Hearts and which deserve to be here cited at length to teach young People how they ought to fear the misfortunate Effect of the Sins of Youth * Exhalabantur nebulae de limosa concupiscentiâ carnis scatebra pravitatis obnubilabant atque offascabant cor meum ut non discerneretur serenitas dilecsionis à caligine libidinis Utrumque in confuso aestuabat rapiebat imbecillam aetatem per abrupta cupiditatum atque mersabar gurgite flagitiorum Lib. 2. Conf. cap. 2. That lascivious Concupiscence of the Flesh and boiling of my Youthful Blood exhal'd such Clouds into my Mind that they overspread it with great obscurities and in such a manner cast a Mist over it that it could not discern the Serenity of chast Love from the Darkness of impure Lust Both of these raising turbulent Motions in me dragg'd my frail Youth into the Precipice of all sort of Concupiscence and plung'd it into the Gulf of Wickedness And afterwards he adds Obsurdueram stridore
long time For in the Ninth Year of his Reign the City of Jerusalem was Besieg'd by Nabuchadonosor King of Babylon and after Two Years Siege it was Taken Sackt and put to Fire and Sword the Temple Ransackt and Burnt those of the People who had escap'd the fury of the Sword or Famine were sent into Captivity And he flying with his Children was taken and brought before the proud King who after having receiv'd him with Expressions of Fury and Indignation caused his Childrens Throats to be cut before his Face and afterwards pull'd out his Eyes and made him be sent Captive into Babylon where he dy'd miserably undergoing the just Punishment of his Iniquities We must add to these Examples those which we have recounted in the Sixth Chapter being that all those of whom we spoke in that place are dead in their Sins and by Sins begun in their Youth These Examples are very common in Sacred Scripture the contrary are there very rare and as I have said we shall find but one only in the Old Testament who was truly Converted after he had liv'd wickedly in his Youth viz. Manasses and that by so strange a Means that it manifests more clear than Day the dreadful Difficulty with which one Corrects the wicked Inclinations of his younger Years This Prince having lost his Father Ezechias 4 Reg. 21. one of the most pious Kings of Juda at the Age of Twelve Years was Inheritor of his Crown but not of his Vertues For blotting out of his Mind presently the holy Examples and wise Documents he had receiv'd from him he addicts himself to all sorts of Vices and Impieties such as the Scripture recounts His Iniquities went on encreasing until the Fifteenth or according to others till the Two and twentieth Year of his Reign wherein God sent him an extreme Affliction He was taken by the Assyrians in the City of Jerusalem sent Captive into Babylon loaden with Irons and Chains cast into a frightful Prison where he was daily afflicted with a vast number of Miseries and Persecutions Being reduc'd to this extremity of Misery he began to open his Eyes and call upon him in his Afflictions whom he had forgotten in his Prosperity He acknowledg'd his Iniquities and begg'd Pardon for them with a truly contrite Heart and by the force of Tears and Prayers obtain'd from God his Deliverance After which he did Penance for his Sins and liv'd in Holiness all the remainder of his Life even to the Age of Sixty seven when he dy'd St. Jerom adds to this History a very remarkable Particularity which he took out of the Tradition of the Hebrews For Explicating what the Scripture says in general Terms * Qui posteaquam coangustatus est oravit Dominum Deum suum Hieron in ques Heb. in Paral. That Manasses being opprest with Affliction had recourse to God he saith that it was in the Extremity of a frightful Death to which he was expos'd He should have been put to Death in a great brazen Vessel pierc'd with many Holes set upon a hot Fire which heating the Vessel and penetrating it on every side should consume that miserable Prince by its Flames by so much the more cruel as it was tedious in duration He was shut up in this Vessel and the Fire kindled under him In this dreadful Representation of Death this misfortunate Prince apply'd not himself to God but first to the Idols which he had ador'd so strangely was he blinded with his former Sins But when he perceiv'd that it was to no end to invoke their Assistance he call'd to mind a Sentence of the Sacred Scripture which he had often heard from his Father in his Youth by which God promis'd his Succours * Dum quaesi eris Dominum Deum tuum invenies eum si tamen tâ—â—o corde quae ieris tota tribulatione animae tuae Deut. 4. to those who had recourse to him in their Tribulations and converted themselves to him with all their Heart and had a great Sorrow for their Sins He presently raises his Heart to God with Sighs and Lamentations and begs of him his Deliverance with such a Contrition for his Sins that God shew'd him Mercy and not only deliver'd him from that frightful Death but from his Slavery and made him return to Jerusalem where he spent the rest of his Life after the manner I have already touch'd See here Theotime a Conversion after a wicked Life of Youth but a Conversion purchas'd at a dear Rate CHAP. XIII Of the great Evils which spring from the wicked Life of Youth THE greatest of Evils is that whereof we speak Tenth Motive which obliges young People to Vertue viz. The loss of Salvation and Eternal Ruine which befalls many by the Sins of their Youth it being certain that Sins committed in that Age are the original Cause of Damnation to many But besides that there are many others issuing from the same Fountain which are necessary to be known dear Theotime to the end that knowing them you may conceive a greater horror of the Cause which produces them ARTICLE I. The first Evil viz. Death which the Sins of Youth hasten to very many I put in the first place Death hasten'd which happens to many young Persons in punishment of their Sins I do not mean that all those who die in the Flower of their Age die in punishment of the Sins they have committed nor also that all those who follow Vice in their Youth should be punish'd with an untimely Death I know very well that the Pious sometimes depart in the prime of their Youth and that this Death is a Recompence of their Vertue and an Effect of the Love God bears them according to that Testimony of the Sacred Scripture in the Book of Wisdom If the Just says the Wiseman Justus si morte praeoccupatus fuerit in refrigerio erit placens Deo factus dilectus vivens inter peccatores transsatus est Raptus est ne malitia mutaret intellectum ejus ne fictio deciperet animam illius facinatio enim nugacitatis obscurat bona inconstantia concupiscentiae transvertit sensum sine malitia consummatus in brevi explevit tempora multa placita enimerat Deo anima illius propter hoc properavit Dominus educere illum de medio iniquitatum Sap. 4. be prevented by Death he will find therein Repose and Salvation his Vertue having render'd him agreeable to God made him purchase his Love and merit to be taken out of this World where he liv'd amongst Sinners God withdrew him betimes lest Corruption should slip into his Mind and his Soul be deceiv'd with the false appearance of the Vanity and Pleasures of the World which delude Men and make them love those things which are most opposite to their Salvation I know also very well that there are many Sinners who live a long time and who grow old in the Vices they had contracted in their Youth
thereof Danti mihi sapientiam dabo gloriam And you will receive the Advantage which will continue with you for all Eternity The Approbation VVE underwritten Doctors of Divinity of the Faculty of Paris do Testifie That we have Read a Book Intitled The Instruction of Youth in Christian Piety Compos'd by M. Charles Gobinet also Doctor and Principal of the College of Plessis-Sorbon wherein the Author hath Collected all the necessary Maxims for the Education of Youth in the Science of Salvation The Devotion which it inspires is Solid the Sentiments Catholic and the Morality very Pious and Profitable Paris June 12. 1655. Charmolûe Le Blond Minindre The Division of the Book PART I. OF the Reasons and Motives which oblige Men to apply themselves to Vertue in their Youth PART II. Of the necessary Means to acquire Vertue during Youth PART III. Of the Obstacles which divert young People from Vertue PART IV. Of the Vertues necessary for young People PART V. Of the Choice of a State of Life The Table PART I. OF the Reasons and Motives which oblige Men to apply themselves to Vertue in their Youth Pag. 1. Chap. 1. Of the End for which Man is created ibid. Chap. 2. Of our Vocation to the Grace of Baptism Pag. 8. Article 1. Of the Excellence of the State of a Christian and of the Favor God hath bestow'd on him whom he hath call'd to this State. Pag. 9. Artic. 2. Of the great Obligations of a Christian Pag. 12. Chap. 3. That God requires and singularly accepts the Service of young People Pag. 16. Chap. 4. That God particularly loves young People and takes a delight to bestow upon them many Favors Pag. 19. Chap. 5. That they who Consecrate not themselves to God in their Youth offer him a most heinous Injury Pag. 25. Chap. 6. How God hath an Aversion for wicked young People Considerable Examples upon this Subject Pag. 29. Chap. 7. That Salvation ordinarily depends on the time of Youth Pag. 36. Chap. 8. That those who have follow'd Vertue in their Youth conserve it easily all the remainder of their Life Pag. 39. Chap. 9. Proofs concerning the same Subject by notable Examples taken out of Sacred Scripture of those who having been Vertuous in their Youth have continu'd so all their Life and chiefly of those who have resisted in great Occasions Pag. 44. Chap. 10. That those who have been addicted to Vice in their Youth are very difficultly corrected and it often happens that they never amend but miserably Damn themselves Pag. 52. Chap. 11. Examples upon the precedent Subject And first of those who have corrected the Vices of their Youth but yet with very great Difficulties Pag. 57. Chap. 12. Examples of those who have never amended the Vices of their Youth Pag. 66 Chap. 13. Of the great Evils which spring from the wicked Life of Youth Pag. 72. Artic. 1. The First Evil viz. Death which the Sins of Youth hasten to very many ibid. Artic. 2. The Second Evil which springs from Sins committed in Youth Blindness of Mind and Obdurateness in Vice. Pag. 76. Artic. 3. The Third Evil The loss of many fair Hopes Pag. 78. Art. 4. The Fourth Evil springing from the Sins of Youth The Excess of Vice amongst Men. Pag. 82 Chap. 14. That the Devil uses all his Endeavors to move young People to Vice. Pag. 84. Chap. 15. The Conclusion of all that hath been said above Pag. 88. PART II. OF the necessary Means to acquire Vertue during Youth Pag. 94. Chap. 1. Wherein true Vertue consists Pag. 95. Chap. 2. That to acquire Vertue we must desire it Pag. 98. Chap. 3. Of Prayer the Third Means to acquire Vertue Pag. 100. Chap. 4. That they must love and seek after Instructions Pag. 103. Chap. 5. Of the necessity of a Guide in the Way of Vertue and particularly during Youth Pag. 105. Chap. 6. Of Confession and first of a General Confession Pag. 110. Chap. 7. Of ordinary Confession Pag. 115. Important Advices concerning Confession Pag. 118. Chap. 9. Of Holy Communion Pag. 122. Chap. 10. An Advice for Communicating well Pag. 124. Chap. 11. Of Morning Prayer Pag. 127. Chap. 12. Of Evening Prayer Pag. 131. Chap. 13. Of Assisting devoutly at the Holy Sacrifice of the Altar Pag. 134 Chap. 14. Of Labor and Employment of Time. Pag. 136. Chap. 15. Of the Knowledge of ones self very necessary for young People Pag. 138. Chap. 16. Of the Reading of pious Books Pag. 143. Chap. 17. An Advertisement concerning bad Books Pag. 147. Chap. 18. Of pious Conversation Pag. 150. Chap. 19. Of Devotion to the Blessed Virgin and S. Joseph Pag. 153. Chap. 20. Of Devotion to the Angel-Guardian and to the Saint of ones Name Pag. 159. Chap. 21. Of keeping of Feasts and particularly of Sundays Pag. 163. Chap. 22. Of being present at Divine Service Pag. 170. PART III. OF the Obstacles which divert young Persons from Vertue Pag. 181. Chap. 1. The First Obstacle of the Salvation of Youth the want of Instruction Pag. 182. Chap. 2. The Second Obstacle the too much Indulgence of Parents their ill Example and the bad Instruction they give their Children Pag. 185. Chap. 3. The Third Obstacle of the Salvation of Youth the Untractableness of young Persons Pag. 189. Chap. 4. The Fourth Obstacle Inconstancy Pag. 194. Chap. 5. The Fifth Obstacle A Shame to do Good. Pag. 197. Chap. 6. The Sixth Obstacle wicked Company Pag. 200. Artic. 1. How hurtful it is ib. Artic 2. How there are two things hurtful in wicked Company Discourse and Example Pag. 204. Artic. 3. Of four sorts of wicked Companions which must be avoided Pag. 206. Chap. 7. The Seventh Obstacle of the Salvation of Youth Idleness Pag. 209. Chap. 8. The Eighth Obstacle Impurity Pag. 215. Artic. 1. That the Sin of Impurity is the greatest Enemy of Youth and Damns more than all other Vices together Pag. 216. Artic. 2. Of the sad Effects of the Sin of Impurity Pag. 218. Artic. 3. Examples of the miserable Death of those who were addicted to the Sin of Impurity Pag. 225. Artic. 4. Remedies against Impurity And first that this Sin must be resisted at the beginning Pag. 230. Artic. 5. That we must avoid the Causes of Impurity Pag. 233. Artic. 6. Other particular Remedies against Impurity Pag. 239. Chap. 9. Of Temptations Pag. 242. Artic. 1. What Temptation is and of the Means to know whether one hath sinn'd in a Temptation Pag. 243. Artic. 2. That one cannot avoid being tempted and that we must be provided betimes to resist Temptations Pag. 245. Artic. 3. Considerations to fortifie the Mind in Temptations Pag. 247. Artic. 4. How we must behave our selves in Temptations Pag. 252. Artic. 5. Of some Artifices by which the Devil deceives Men in Temptations and principally young Men. Pag. 255. Artic. 6. Of two considerable Faults which ordinarily happen to young Persons in Temptations Pag. 259. Artic. 7. What is to be done after the Temptation
God from his Youth and kept his Commandments he complain'd not against God for the Affliction of Blindness which he sent him but continu'd immoveable in the Fear of God giving him Thanks all the Days of his Life O how admirable is the Effect of a Vertue which hath always increas'd with Age b Sexagenarius lumen recepit reliquum vero vitae in gaudio fuit cum bono profactu timoris Dei porrexit in pace Tob. 14. He was deliver'd from that Affliction Four Years after and liv'd to the Age of 110 when he dy'd in peace after he had made as the Scripture takes notice a continual Progress in the Fear and Service of God. Thus Theotime do they Live thus do they Die who have spent their Life vertuously in their Youth I cannot finish this Chapter Third Example of Eleazar which is already too long without bringing a Third Example in the Person of that great Martyr of the Old Testament Eleazar 2 Machab. 6. He was an ancient Man very Venerable for the number of his Years but yet more for his Vertue wherein he had liv'd from his Infancy When King Antiochus Persecuted the Jews to make them Renounce their Religion and the Adoration of the true God this holy Man was Apprehended to be constrain'd thereto by force of Torments which could never make his ancient Piety to stagger And when some of the Standers by exhorted him to obey the Persecutor at least in exterior shew and appearance to free himself from the Torture The Scripture saith that he took into Consideration the Dignity of his Age At ille cogitare caepit aetatis ac senectutis suae eminentiam dignam ingenitae nobilitatis canitiem atque à puero optimae conversationis actus which was grown gray in Vertue not having committed any thing yet unworthy of his Extraction and of a true Son of Abraham and the Religious Life he had led from his Infancy and having reflected on these things he immediately Answer'd with an invincible Courage That he would rather Die than consent to such a criminal Action And presently his Torments were redoubled and he suffer'd Death with an incredible Patience Learn dear Theotime from this Example and the precedent what a Vertue acquir'd in Youth is able to do when setled by a continual Exercise of good Actions and labour to be such now as you would wish to be all the remainder of your Life CHAP. X. That those who have been addicted to Vice in their Youth are very difficultly Corrected and it often happens that they never Amend but miserably Damn themselves O Theotime Ninth Motive the great Importance of Living well during Youth that I had a Pen that were able to Engrave this important Truth more deeply in your Heart than in Brass or Marble and make you perfectly comprehend the great and dreadful Difficulty with which he Corrects himself who hath led a wicked Life in his Youth A Difficulty so great that it is almost impossible sufficiently to express it and on the other side so general that we cannot consider it attentively without being touch'd with a lively Sorrow seeing so vast a number of Christians and principally of young People who grone under the tyranny of a vicious Habit which being contracted in their Youth and increas'd with Age leads them to Perdition from whence if it chance they recover it is with incredible Pains and Combats and by a manifest Miracle of Divine Grace Learn O dear Theotime to avoid this Danger and endeavour to comprehend the greatness either entirely to prevent it or quickly to withdraw your self if you be already engag'd therein This so great a Difficulty springs from three Causes The First is the incredible Power and Force of a wicked Habit which being once rooted in the Soul cannot be pluckt up but with great trouble All Habits have commonly this Quality that they continue a long time and are very hardly destroy'd But amongst others wicked Habits are such as adhere more strongly and are not so easily chang'd Because it is far more difficult to corrupt Nature to raise it self to Good than to do Evil. Hence it comes that the Scripture says Perversi 〈◊〉 cilè corrigeâ—tur 〈◊〉 rum infinitus est numerus Eccles 1. That the Wicked are hardly Corrected which makes the number of Fools that is of Sinners to be infinite But amongst wicked Habits those which are contracted in Youth are the strongest and with most difficulty overcome For the Passions which are the Instruments of Vice not being moderated in that Time by Vertue encrease with Age and encreasing augment and fortifie Vice giving it daily new Forces which render it at length unconquerable For this Reason the same Scripture having a Mind to express the force of a vicious Habit contracted in younger Years delivers a Sentence which young People ought to have frequently before their Eyes Job 20. Ossa ejus implebuntur vitiis adolescentiae ejus cum eo in pulvere dormient The Wicked shall be fill'd with Vices from his Youth and they will follow him to his Grave That is the Vices and ill Inclinations of Youth become so deeply and strongly rooted in the Soul that all the remainder of his Life is sensible of them and opprest with them and they continue even until Death as we daily see And the Cause thereof is very evident for Vice which has once gotten possession of a Soul encreases and strengthens the Passions the Passions corrupt the Judgment and make it conceive that Good which is Evil esteem Evil that which is Good The Judgment perverted corrupts the Will which is carry'd blindly to Sin and from thence proceeds all the remainder of Wickedness because as S. Augustin says a Ex voluntate perversa facta est libido dum servitur libidini facta est consuetudo dum consuetudini non refistitur facta est necessitas Aug. lib. 8. Confes cap. 3. The Will deprav'd settles its Affection and takes Pleasure in Ill. Pleasure produceth a Custom and a Custom not resisted becomes a Necessity And when a Soul is arriv'd at this Point she is out of hopes of Amendment because as another Author adds b Actio consuetudinem parit consuetudo necessitatem necessitas mortem S. Isid Necessity is the Mother of Death The Second Cause of this great Difficulty is the Diminution of the Divine Grace For as God augments his Favours to those that humbly receive them and make use of them for their Salvation so he diminisheth them to those who abuse and contemn them Now if he treat Men in this manner it seems that he more ordinarily deals so with young Men on whom as he bestows many Favours when they worthily dispose themselves as we have said above so he withdraws his Kindnesses from them when they abuse them as we have made appear by the Experience of those who having been favour'd with particular Obligations from
of his pious Mother who had follow'd him by Sea and Land from her own Country to Carthage from Carthage to Rome from Rome to Milan to withdraw him from his Disorders and gain him to God to whom next to God he is indebted for his Salvation After the powerful Exhortations of his best Friends after many Conferences with the great S. Ambrose and with other Persons eminent for Vertue and Learning after all the powerful interior Motions of Divine Grace for his entire Conversion he must have the Miracle of a Voice from Heaven which cries aloud to him Tolle lege Tolle lege Take and Read Take and Read Admonishing him to open the New Testament which he had by him He takes it and having open'd it found these Words of the Apostle by which the Holy Ghost wrought in his Soul her entire Conversion and perfect Reconciliation Rom. 13. Ver. 13. Non in comessationibus ebrietatibus non in cubilibus impudicitiis non in contentione aemulatione sed induimini Dominum Jesum Christum carnis curam ne feceritis in desideriis Not in Banquetings and Drunkenness not in Beds and Wantonness not in Strife and Emulation but put on our Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the Flesh in Concupiscences O God is it possible that the change of a Soul should be so difficult and that Vices contracted in Youth should cost so much Pains and so many Remedies to cure them This is not yet all O Theotime S. Augustin being absolutely Converted was not at all freed from the precedent Difficulties For altho' he never return'd back after his Conversion in consequence whereof he perform'd an exact Penance and liv'd a very Saintly and altogether Angelical Life Nevertheless he was sensible a long time after of * Adhuc vivunt in memoria mea talium rerum imagines quan ibi consuetudo mea fixit Lib. 10. cap. 30. the Remainders of his former Life and of frequent and very violent Temptations which being caus'd by the old Habits of his Youth gave him much Trouble and Exercise to conserve himself in Holiness according to the Account he hath given in the Tenth Book of his Confessions and in the others following where he describes the different Temptations with which he was much tormented O Theotime read over and over again this Example consider attentively therein all the Particularities and see to what Extremity a vicious Habit of Youth not resisted in time is able to carry one Fly the Danger where this Saint was like to perish and where many make daily deplorable Shipwreck of their Souls There is yet the Example of Manasses in the following Chapter and that of S. Jerom. Pag. 3. Cap. 9. Art. 8. CHAP. XII Examples of those who have never Amended the Vices of their Youth AS in a Shipwreck where a Ship is broken by a Tempest there are always many who perish and very few who save themselves by Swimming or otherwise Thus in the Shipwreck of Vertue which many fall into in their Youth the number of those who are entirely destroy'd therein is very great and of those who escape very small You will understand the smalness of this Number when you shall know Theotime that in all the Holy History a thing almost incredible there is found but one only Example in the Person of Manasses King of Juda the Account whereof I shall give you hereafter and that for this one it produces a vast number of others who were miserably Shipwreckt in the Storm and are dead in the Vices of their Youth some having liv'd a long time after others being snatcht away by Death in the prime of their Age. I shall here recount you some Examples First of all the Kings of Israel who to the number of Nineteen Reign'd over the Ten Tribes of Israel after the Division that was made of that Kingdom from that of the Tribe of Juda after the Death of Solomon there was not one but was extremely wicked from his Youth nor any that was Converted before his Death And altho' the Scripture doth not make express mention at all of the Life of their Youth nevertheless it gives us sufficiently to understand that they were wicked in that Age saying of each of them absolutely that they were vicious and not reporting of them one Action of Vertue except of one viz. Jehu of whom it recounts some good Works which he perform'd at his beginning altho' afterwards he was perverted like the rest Amongst the Kings of Juda who Reign'd to the number of Nineteen after Solomon there were Six who were good that is Asa Josaphat Osias Joathan Ezechias Josias and all the others were wicked Those who were good began from their Youth and continu'd such all their Life the greatest part of those who were vicious began their Wickedness in their younger Years and were never chang'd Thus it is said of King Ochosias That he began to Reign about Twenty two Years of Age and was wicked an Imitatator of the Idolatry of impious Achab King of Israel who was taught by his Mother Athalia Sister of that wicked King And he Reign'd but a Year at the end whereof he dy'd in his Wickedness It is said of Achaz 4 Reg. 6. That he was Twenty Years of Age when he began to Reign and that he apply'd not himself to Good 2 Para. 28. and to the Service of God but to follow the Examples of the Idolatrous Kings of Israel and that he far surpass'd them in Naughtiness wherein he dy'd after he had persever'd in Wickedness the space of Sixteen Years Amon Reign'd at the Age of Twenty two 4 Reg. 21. and became an Imitator of the Vices of his Father Manasses but not of his Repentance and dy'd in his Sins at the end of Two Years 4 Reg. 23. Murther'd by his Domesticks Joachim began at the Age of Twenty five 2 Para. 36. and Reign'd Eleven Years during which Time he was wicked like his Father's and dy'd in his Iniquities without being lamented by any one Non plangent eum vae frater vae soror non concrepabunt ei vae Domine vae inclyte Sepultura asini sepelietur putrefactus projectus extra portas Jerusalem Jerem. 22. and also depriv'd of the Honour of a Sepulcher according to the Menace of the Prophet Jeremy His Son Jechonias having Succeeded at the Age of Eighteen 4 Reg. 24. Reign'd but Three Months at the end whereof he deserv'd for his Sins to be brought under the Subjection of Nabuchadonosor and sent into Babylon where he dy'd a long time after Sedecias 4 Reg. 24. 25. the last of the Kings of Juda being come to the Crown at the Age of Twenty one was also wicked like his Predecessors and having persever'd in his Iniquities the space of Eleven years he drew upon himself and his People the utmost Effect of the Revenge which God had threaten'd the Jewish Nation with for a
catenae mortalitatis meae poena superbiae animae meae ibam longius à te c. That the brutish Passion of immodest Love was a Chain which kept him bound and that the Noise of this Chain continually mov'd and agitated had made him interiorly Deaf and hinder'd him from hearkning to any thing that admonish'd him for his good like a Beast strongly Chain'd up the motion of whose Chain did hinder it from hearing the Noise which was made about it And that which is yet very remarkable is that this Deafness was a Punishment of the Pride of his Soul contracted by the Disorders of his Life wherein he continually banish'd himself from God plunging himself more and more in the Abyss of Vice. Behold dear Theotime whether the Sins of Youth lead one and whither yours will infallibly bring you if you withdraw not your self intirely and that in good time This Subject of Blindness and Obdurateness in Vice caus'd by the Sins of Youth and particularly by the Sin of Impurity deserves a longer Discourse but it shall be more amply Treated in Part 3. Chap. 8. Art. 2. whither I send you ARTICLE III. The Third Evil the loss of many fair Hopes This Evil is too visible and there needs no other Proof than daily Experience How many young Souls do we see who give fair Hopes by the excellent Qualities wherewith they are endow'd who might make themselves capable of some great Action and one day succeed in some considerable Employment where God might be Honour'd and the Publick considerably Serv'd who go and destroy themselves at the Entrance and coming to be misled in Youth make themselves unfit for Noble Enterprises for which they seem'd to be born and frequently become idle Companions and absolutely unuseful like to some Trees all cover'd with Blossoms in the Spring which a nipping Frost blasts and makes unfruitful all the rest of the Year This happens not only to those to whom the Sins of Youth either hasten Death or bring an Obdurateness in Vice as we have said but also very frequently to those who are withdrawn from Sin after the first Disorders of their Youth who having lost by Idleness which ordinarily accompanies Sin in that Age the most precious Time of all their Life are made uncapable of any thing and unuseful for what is good Or if they have not absolutely lost that Time they are become by their reiterated and multiply'd Sins unworthy of the Employments they were capable of and to which God had design'd them Comprehend this well Theotime and that you may comprehend it better take notice of what follows viz. That God by his Providence designs young People to different Conditions wherein he would Employ them for his Service and their Salvation but upon this Condition that they render themselves fit by their Labour during their Youth and also make not themselves undeserving by their Sins From whence it falls out that when they addict themselves to Vice and forget God in their Youth God in punishment of their Sins excludes them from those Employments to which they were call'd and he had appointed for them in his first Intention This Truth is grounded upon Sacred Scripture when God promis'd to David the Kingdom of Israel for himself and his Posterity it was upon this Condition * Si custodierint filii tui testamentum meum Psal 131. Ita tamen si custodierint filii tui vias meas 2 Par. 6. Ita duntaxat si custodierint quae praecepi eis 2 Par. 3.3 That he and his Offspring should live in the Observance of his Commandments A little while before he had taken away the Honour of Priesthood from the Family of the High Priest Heli because he and his Children were become unworthy by their Sins Altho' in his first Intention he had appointed * Loquens locutus sum ut domus tua ministraret in conspectu meo in sempiternum nunc autem absit hoc à me sed quicunque honorificaverit me glorificabo eum qui autem contemnunt me erunt ignobiles 1 Reg. 2. that the Priesthood should always remain in that Family but with this Condition that they should not render themselves unworthy The words are very clear in the First Book of Kings Chap. 2. This Procedure appears most evident in the Case of Saul first King of Israel God had given that Kingdom to him and to his Family but upon Condition that they should particularly observe his Commandments It happen'd that this Prince transgress'd the Orders of God in two Occasions amongst others in consequence whereof he was rejected from the Kingdom which God had prepar'd for him The First was when being one Day in his Camp press'd by his Enemies to Engage in a Battel he Offer'd Sacrifice not expecting the arrival of the Prophet Samuel who had forbidden him Enterprising any thing before his Return The Sacrifice was scarce ended when the Prophet came and * Dixitque Samuel ad Saul Quid fecisti stultè egisti nec custodisti mandata Domini Dei tui quae praecepit tibi quod si non fecisses jam tunc praeparasset Dominus regnum tuum super Israel in sempiternum sed nequaquam regnum tuum ultra consurget 1 Reg. 13. said to him What have you done you have done foolishly you have not kept the Commandment of the Lord your God which he had commanded you for the Lord had lately Establish'd your Kingdom upon Israel for ever But now your Kingdom shall not continue The Second Occasion was when having overcome the Amalecites he spar'd the Life of their King and preserv'd their Flocks and all their Riches against the Command God had given him not to spare any thing but to consume all with Fire and Sword. Samuel comes and reproches him for his Disobedience and declares unto him on the Part of God that he should be no more King of Israel * Pro eo quod abjecisti sermonem Domini abjecit te Dominus ne sis Rex 1 R. 15. Because says he you have rejected the Word of God he hath also rejected you so that you shall be no more King. Learn from these Examples Theorime that God sometimes designs Men to Employments which their Sins hinder them from obtaining An important Advice or continuing a long time in them after they have gotten them And be assur'd that if you live wickedly in your Youth you have great reason to fear that God will reject you from that Condition to which he had design'd you and that you shall never atchieve any thing considerable God refusing you the Honour to be Serv'd by you when you shall be at a fit Age as you have neglected to Serve him in your Youth ARTICLE IV. The Fourth Evil springing from the Sins of Youth The Excess of Vice amongst Men. This Evil will seem to you at present incredible but you will understand it clearly when you have made the least reflection upon it For First
of your Soul she must answer for you to God she must conduct you during your Life to the Point of Salvation and assist you at the Hour of Death Love her tenderly as a Child loves his Mother be obedient to her receive from her your spiritual Sustenance of Doctrin and of the holy Sacraments walk under her Eye and Government with Respect and Confidence receive from others all the assistance you can but expect from her your principal Conduct and be zealous to follow that great Advertisement of the Apostle Obedite Praepositis vestris subjacete eis Ipsi enim pervigilant quasi rationem pro animabus vestris reddituri ut cum gaudio hoc faciant non gementes hoc enim non expedit vobis Heb. 12. Obey your Superiors and be subject to them for they watch over you as being to give an account of your Souls that they may perform their Duty with joy and not with sorrow for that is not convenient for you The End of the Second Part. THE INSTRUCTION OF YOUTH IN Christian Piety PART III. Of the Obstacles which divert young Persons from Vertue IT is not sufficient for him who Conducts another in a Voyage to shew him the Way he must keep and the Means he must make use of to arrive at the Place assign'd he must also advertise him of the Dangers he will Encounter in the Way and arm him against all Obstacles which may retard or hinder the happy Success of his Voyage Thus the Angel Raphael of whom we have spoken above did not content himself to guide young Toby but secur'd him from the Obstacles which presented themselves to him in the Way and amongst others from the Monster he met with upon the brink of the River Tigris from which he not only protected him but caus'd him to reap a great Advantage by it For this reason dear Theotime after having shew'd you the Way to Salvation and the Means you ought to practise to acquire Vertue in your Youth it is necessary I should discover unto you the Impediments you shall find in the Way This is what I shall perform in this Third Part wherein I shall lay open the Causes which are accustom'd to destroy those of your Age in withdrawing them from Vertue and casting them into Vice and I shall shew you the Means how to preserve and even advantage your self very much by them for your improvement in Vertue CHAP. I. The first Obstacle of the Salvation of Youth the want of Instruction THE first Hindrance of the Salvation of young Persons is Ignorance or want of Instruction We must know a Good that we may love it and to know it it is necessary we should be Instructed therein we not being able to our selves to learn it who bring nothing with us into the World but Ignorance and Sin. God says by his Prophet that a Propterea captivus ducuts est populus meus quia non habuit scientiam Isa 5. his People were sent into Captivity because they had not Science that is the Instruction and Knowledge of their Salvation And the Wiseman says that b Ubi non est scientia animae non est bonum Prov. 19. where there is no Science there is no good for the Salvation of Souls This Impediment is great and it is the first Fountain of the corruption of Youth It is by so much more to be deplor'd as it is common and extended to many it being certain that the greatest part of Youth is lost for want of Instruction and not being solidly Train'd up in the Maxims of Vertue Fathers neglect to Instruct their Children in true Piety and bestow all their Care in Educating them in Vanity in Pleasures in the love of Earthly Goods and in the Maxims of the World. Masters employ often the greatest part of their Labor to advance their Scholars in Learning and very little to make them understand the Science of Salvation Children concern themselves little to be Instructed and frequently fly Instruction all they can which is the reason why they continue in Ignorance in wicked Habits and are lost without remedy For the Proof of this Verity I shall recount you here two Examples quite contrary * Quis enim hominum non extollebat laudibus tunc patrem meum quod ultra vires rei familiaris suae impenderet fillo quidquid etiam longè peregrinanti studiorum causa opus esset cum interea non satageret idem pater qualis crescerem tibi aut quam castus essem dummodo lessem disertus aut potius desertus à cultura tua Deus qui es unus verus bonus Dominus agri cordis mei Aug. lib. 2. Conf. cap. 3. S. Augustin in his Confessions deploring the Corruption of his Youth attributes a great cause of it to the want of Instruction and to the blindness of his Father who using all Endeavors to advance his Son in his Studies and make him Learned and Eloquent neglected in the mean time the most necessary thing viz. the Care of his Manners and of his Instruction in Vertue without which all Science could but serve to render him more displeasing to God and more remov'd from his Grace On the contrary the Scripture making a recital of the generous Action of chast Susanna who chose rather to expose her self to the false Accusations of those two infamous old Men and to be prosecuted to Death than to Sin in the sight of God by consenting to a detestable Crime which those wretched Men solicited her to attributed the Cause of this holy Action to her Piety and to her Instruction receiv'd from her Parents the Words it makes use of are remarkable * Joachim accepit uxorem nomine Susannam filiam Helciae pulchram nimis timentem Deum parentes enim ejus cum effent justi erudierunt filiam suam secundum legem Moysi Dan. 13. She had the fear of God because her Parents being just had instructed her according to the Law of Moses O dear Theotime Practice have a care of this Obstacle as of one of the greatest Impediments of your Salvation love and seek Instruction And if God hath bestow'd upon you Parents or Masters who are solicitous to put you into the Path of Vertue give him Thanks for this incomparable Favor and use your Endeavor to advantage your self thereby But if your Parents have not sufficient care of your Instruction in Vertue seek after it your self by the Means we have pointed at above in Part 2. Chap. 3 4 5. and call to mind often that excellent Sentence of Solomon * Cor sapiens quaerit doctrinam os stultorum pascitur imperitia Prov. 15. A wise Heart seeks Instruction and the unwise is pleas'd with Ignorance CHAP. II. The Second Obstacle the too much Indulgence of Parents their ill Example and the bad Instruction they give their Children IT is but too true that the Ruin of Children springs most commonly from
Esteem Value not your self for any thing whatsoever neither for your Riches nor for your Quality nor Beauty or good Behavior for the Glory one takes in these things is base and impertinent and belongs only to vain Spirits Nor for your Wit or Science for these are the Gifts of God and you offer him an Injury when you raise your self Esteem from thence Nor much less for Vertue for it springs far less from you and he who glories therein puts himself in danger of absolutely losing it Besides we often imagin we have Perfections which we have not and when we find in our selves any Advantage we ought to give the Glory to God who is the Author of it and not to our selves who have receiv'd it and say from our Heart Non nobis Domine Psal 113. non nobis sed nomini tuo da gloriam It is an excellent Maxim of S. Bernard Gloriam meam alteri non dabo quid ergo dabis Domine Quid dabis nobis Pacem inquit do vobis pacem relinquo vobis Sufficit mihi gratanter accipio quod relinquis relinquo quod retines sic placet sic mea interesse non dubito Abjuro gloriam prorsus ne forte si usurpavero non concessam perdam merito oblatam Pacem volo pacem desidero nihil amplius Cui non sufficit pax non sufficis tu tu es enim pax nostra qui secisti utraque unum Et infra Gloria in Excelsis Deo in terra Pax hominibus bonae voluntatis At vero non bonae sed planae iniquae voluntatis est qui nequaquam pace contentus superbo oculo insatiabili corde inquietus anhelat ad gloriam Dei nec pacem proinde retinens nec gloriam apprehendens S. Bern. Serm. 13. in Cant. which ought to be deeply engraven in your Mind That amongst all the Favors God hath bestow'd upon us he hath reserv'd nothing to himself but the Glory of being the Author of them and having committed to us the whole Fruit of them it is a very unjust and criminal thing that we should take to our selves the Profit and also the Glory of them retaining our Part and usurping that which belongs to God after he hath declar'd that he would give it to no one I will not give says he my Glory to another Weigh well this Reflection Theotime 2. 2. Towards God. Be humble towards God in consideration of his incomprehensible Greatness before which you are nothing in contemplation of that Power Substantia mea tanquam nihilum ante te Psal 38. of that Sovereign Majesty which makes the Angels themselves to tremble Acknowledge the Offences you have committed against this infinite Greatness the Favors which without number you have received from his Bounty the Abuses you have offer'd it the Account you must give in his Judgment the Necessity you have of his Graces for your Salvation with a thousand like things and you will find reason enough to humble your self or rather annihilate your self before God. 3. 3. Towards Men. Be humble towards Men. There are those who are humble towards God for how should not a wretched Creature abase it self before its Creator its Lord and its Judg but they are proud in respect of Men and so have not true Humility To practise this Humility be careful never to despise any Person and be ready to honor every one amongst Men Some are above you others equal to you others Inferiors As to the First Respect towards Superiors be Respectful Tractable and Obedient to all those who have any Authority over you Suffer humbly to be reprehended if you do otherwise you are proud Honor also all those who surpass you in any thing in Age in Science in Quality As for your Equals Towards Equals endeavor to treat them always with Esteem with Honor with Deference without being well-conceited of your self without being offended at his Rank of Honor nor desiring to precede you must leave these Vanities to those who affect them As for your Inferiors Towards Inferiors be mild and benign to all those who Serve you considering them as your Brethren a Et vos domini eadem facite illis remittentes minas scientes quia illorum vester Dominus est in coelis personarum acceptio non est a pud eum Ephes 6.9 And you Masters says the Apostle S. Paul treat sweetly your Servants refraining from Threats remembring that you have a common Master with them in Heaven who hath no respect of Persons Shew your self humble and affable to all others that are of a meaner Condition than you according to that excellent Precept of the Wiseman b Congregationi pauperum affabilem te facito Be affable to the company of the Poor be ready to serve and assist them in their Necessities In fine A great Means to repress Pride is to consider what Man is his Baseness his Miseries the shortness of Life and what follows after Death c Quid superbis terra cinis omnis Potentatus vita brevis Rex hodie est cras morietur cum morietur homo haereditabit serpentes bestias vermes Eccl. 10. Dust and Ashes what dost thou glory in says the Wiseman All Authority is but of a short continuance To day a King to morrow nothing and when Man shall be dead he will inherit Beasts Serpents and Worms O God what a Motive is this of Pride Respect not Theotime many exterior things which environ you and raise in you Pride and Vanity but consider what you are in your self and you will find reason enough to be humble It is the Advice S. Bernard gives you in those excellent Verses which I shall present to you to meditate attentively on Forma favor populi S. Bern. Medit. cap. 3. fervor juvenilis opesque Subripuere tibi noscere quid sit homo Vnde superbit homo Cujus conceptio culpa Nasci paena labor vita necesse Mori Post hominem vermis post vermem faetor horror Sic in non hominem vertitur omnis homo Youth and Beauty Wealth and th' Worlds Applause Make Man forget his Nature and her Laws His Life 's a Toil Conception Sin a Pain His Birth and needs must die Why then so vain His Crops will Worms possess and Stench and Dread Will Worms succeed See then what 's Man when dead The Meaning is That if Man will consider himself attentively he will find reason enough to repress his Pride he will find that his Conception casts him into Sin his Birth into Misery that his Life is a continu'd Chain of Labors that Death is an unavoidable Necessity and that after Death he shall possess nothing but Stench Corruption and Horror as to his Body But as for his Soul she is to be presented before the Judgment of God to receive there the Decree of her Eternal Happiness or Misery and this Judgment shall be terrible
which the great Apostle wishes particularly to his dear Disciples and to all Christians * Non cessamus pro vobis orantes postulantes ut impleamini agnitione voluntatis ejus in omni sapientia intellectu spirituali ut ambuletis digne Deo per omnia placentes in omnibus in opere bono fructificantes crescentes in scientia Dei. Colos 2. I cease not says he to pray for you and to beseech God that you may be fill'd with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and understanding and that you may walk worthily pleasing God in all things fructifying in all sorts of good works encreasing in the knowledge of God. MAXIM V. That we cannot be in the Grace of God without having a constant Resolution never to offend him upon any score In this Resolution consists the Practice of the great Commandment of loving God above all things without which it is impossible to please him and be in his Grace for he who loves him not remains in death Now we cannot love God without this Resolution of never offending him * Si quis diligit me sermones meos servabit Qui non diligit me sermones meos non servat Joh. 14. If any one loves me says the Son of God he keeps my Commandments He who loves me not observes not my words MAXIM VI. That Sin is the greatest Evil which can befall a Man. Sin offers an infinite Injury to God which all Men and Angels know not how to repair It deprives Man of the Grace of God and makes him incur his Hatred and Indignation It causes him to lose Heaven for ever and puts him in the State of Eternal Damnation It renders him unworthy of all the Graces necessary to raise him from that deplorable Condition wherein God may justly leave him as he does many O God is there any Mischief in the World to be compar'd to this MAXIM VII That the worst of all Misfortunes is to die in Mortal Sin. It is the Misery of Miseries because it is the beginning of Eternal Calamities the loss of all Happiness the Source of all Evils and that without remedy without recovery and without any hope in a word it is Eternal Damnation To comprehend this Misfortune consider if you can what it is to lose God and that for ever to be banish'd from Heaven and that for ever to be condemn'd to the Flames of Hell with the Devils and that for ever without end without cessation without comfort without hope always in Rage always in Despair for being fall'n into this dreadful Calamity having been able to avoid it having despis'd God's Grace having lost such Means of Salvation O Theotime is it possible to think on this Misfortune and not stand in dread of it MAXIM VIII That this Misfortune happens to many and to those who think not of it It happens to all those who have not time to do Penance before their Death or having time were not Penitent at all or as they ought dying without the Dispositions necessary for Salvation For this reason the Son of God hath so often advertis'd us to * Vigilate orate nescitis enim quando tempus sit Mat. 13. Watch to be upon our guard We know not when the time will come We know neither the day nor the hour To be always prepar'd because he will come at the hour we think not on Vigilate quia nescitis diem neque horam Mat. 25. Et vos estote parati quia qua hora non putatis filius hominis veniet Mat. 24. Luc. 12. Quod autem dico vobis omnibus dico vigilate Marc. 13. What I say to you I say to all watch MAXIM IX That we must think frequently on Death Judgment and Eternity This is the chief Means to avoid that so common a Misfortune He who shall reflect well on the Judgment of God will be afraid to fall into Sin or to continue in it never so little This is the great Advertisement of the Wiseman which all Men ought to have continually in their memory * In omnibus operibus tuis memorare novissima tua in aeternum non peccabis Eccl. 7. In all your Actions remember your last things and you shall never sin MAXIM X. That we must serve God for himself and by Love. Altho' the Considerations of Death Judgment and Eternity be effectual and necessary to move us to Vertue nevertheless we must not stop there Read Part 4. Chap. 2. 3. and the Instruction about Communion Part 2. Ch. 3. Art. 4. it appertains only to servil Souls to be conducted by Fear alone generous Souls serve for Love and because he deserves to be belov'd honor'd and serv'd Fear is good but it must not be alone Love must perfect what Fear hath begun O Theotime how is it possible for a Soul to serve a God so amiable in himself and from whom she hath receiv'd all she possesseth otherwise than by Love MAXIM XI That we must have a Rule of our Actions and that this Rule ought to be the Law of God the Example and Doctrin of Jesus Christ and not the World nor the Example of others nor Custom It is a common Maxim amongst Men To do as others do and to bring for a Reason of their Actions That the World does so That it is the Custom That such and such act so This is a wicked false and pernicious Maxim Men are not our Rule but God. The World is all full of Error Men whatsoever they be are subject to Failings God is Truth himself he hath given us his Law to conduct us he hath sent his Son Jesus Christ to teach us * Hic est filius meus dilectus in quo mihi bene complacui ipsum audite Mat. 17. he hath commanded us to hearken to him ipsum audite that is the Rule we ought to follow Let not those says S. Jerom who make profession to be the Disciples of Truth Nec turbam sequantur errantem qui se veritatis discipulos confitentur Hunc certe imitari tutissimum est atque ejus vestigia sequi qui dixit ego sum via veritas vita nunquam errat qui sequitur veritatem S. Hieron Epist ad Celant Magister vester unus est Christus Mat. 18. Qui Ecclesiam non audierit sit tibi sicut Ethnicus Publicanus Mat. 18. Qui vos audit me audit qui vos spernit me spernit Luc. 10. follow the erring Multitude It is most safe to follow him who saith He is the Way the Truth and the Life Never govern your self by the World by Custom or by Example of others And in all your Actions look not upon the Practice nor Judgment of Men but upon the Law of God and the Doctrin of Jesus Christ and his Church which he hath commanded us to hear and follow and act nothing but what shall be conformable to that infallible Rule MAXIM XII That the World is