shall enter in to tast the Divinity shall go forth to tast or assay the humanity and she shall find a Pasture full of all sufficiency and satiety O how blessed are they that shal be called to the marriage e-Supper of the Lamb. There also a blessed life is drunkin its fountaine Whereupon sometimes part thereof is sprinkled as it were on this our humane life whereby we may become in temptations stronger mere Juste temperate and wiser There alwayes thirst and satiety are joyned together but after a wonderfull manner necessity shall be far from thirst and loathing far from satiety For they shall be inebriated with the plenty of thy house and thou shalt give them to drink of the Torrent of thy pleasure according to the Prophet SOVLE ANd when shall this be MAN I Beleive nor before that time Manciple untill when that sweet dispenser of the highest King the splendour of the Paternall glory the candour of the eternall light the Figure of the divine substance the mirrour without spot of the extraordinary Godlike clearnesse on whom all those celestiall spirits desire to look when such a one and so great a one shall gird himselfe and shall make them to sit down and personally passing by them shall minister unto them O my soule here devoutly consider how great joy those good spirits shall then conceive of so stupendious a dignity of him that serves them of so admirable a charity of every particular companion banqueting of the plenty of very delitious dainties of the numerous Assembly of the servitours of the sweet sounding-Eccho of the Musicall Instruments and of others playing singing and praysing the King of Glory God the Son of God In this great Celestiall and admirable banquet thou shalt hear Angels rejoycing Virgins dancing Apostles singing Martyrs sporting Confessors praysing Patriarchs and Prophets making merry all the Saints and Elect of God unanimously collauding the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost and with one voyce saying Holy Holy holy Lord God of Sabath all the Earth is full of thy Glory O how glorious is that Kingdome wherein all the Saints raigne with Christ cloathed with white stoles following the Lamb which way soever he shall go O my soule how can there be the want of any good when there is such variety of matter for the rejoycer For then shall be opened all those treasures of the Eternall God where there are all riches all delights laid up and divers and pretious gifts shall be given to every one according to their deserts But if yet these are not sufficient consider in the third place all the Colledge of Saints nere unto thee which the Divine clemency hath assembled together for an addition of thy beatitude Because the possession of any Good is not pleasant without a Companion as saith Seneca See then what tongue or what vnderstanding is able to conceive how great the joyes are of that supernall City to be present with the Quiers of Augels alwayes to assist with the most blessed Spirits the glory of our Creator and never to depare from the most blessed society of them but continually with them and of their joy to rejoyce for ever Saint Anselme For there all are known of every one there every one are known of all Nor shall it be a secret to any of them to know of what Country of what Nation of what kindred every one is borne For there shall be so blessed and perfect a charity of the Just that every one of them will love his Neighbour as much as himselfe Whereof that inestimable good shal follow that every one shall so rejoyce at the joy or good of another as though it were of his own merit Therefore when there is such an innumerable number of the Elect who thinkest thou is sufficient to declare the joy of the blessed St. Hierome describing these Joyes saith Go forth I pray hee O my soule In the end of an Epistle to Eustochius a little from the Pavilion of thy body that standing in the doore thou mayest perceive the Glory of God passing by and before thy eyes describe the reward of thy present labour What a day shall that be unto thee when out Lord shall meet thee accompanied with his Heavenly Quier when the Spouse himselfe shall meet thee with all his Saints saying Arise come make hast my beloved my deare my Dove now the Winter is over the shower is gone and past Then the Angels shall admire at thy Glory saying Who is this that ascendeth from the desert flowing with delights and leaning on her beloved The Daughters of Sion shall see thee and praise thee Then those 144 thousand in sight of the Throne and Elders shall hould their Harps and sing a new song Then thou shalt flye securely into the embraces of the Spouse saying with Jubilation I have found him whom my Soule loveth I have held him and will not let him depart Haec Hieronimus Then those seven Sonnes of that great Job who is more excellent then all that remaine in the blessed Easterne Region every one on his proper day shall make Feasts and shall invite thee their Sister thee their Companion And every one of them shall say unto thee Drink now and sit down with pleasure for thou hast found favour of the highest Prince And thou shalt answer with Joy saying I will drink and become merrier because to day my soule is magnified more then all the dayes of my life O truely unheard of magnificency O joyfull and pleasant Excellency the like whereof was never heard on Earth I beleive that all the Pompe of this World in comparison thereof would scarce be as a little drop SOVLE O Man now I have long held my peace now I haue been sufficiently silent because those things which thou hast proposed I have heard with exceeding much delight and admiration Do not prolong me I pray thee but expound to me more particularly and perfectly something of this banquet of the Heavenly spirits for that a little before thou hast touched something thereof but hast passed them over toe quickly MAN O My Soul I would rather again passe over with silence what thou requirest then with a polluted tongue utter the least thing of the Celestiall secret mystery yea or conceive in mind because I that am alas as yet too often entangled with worldly superfluous things that am alas as yet with other worldlings fed O pitty with husks of swine I very much blush and am confounded to discourse of such familiar operations of the divine Spirit Yet because I am not able to contradict thy pious desires I will speak breifly what some times the Holy Ghost instigating me though unworthy I often mentally thinke of For although in that celestiall Court where fulness of all good is perfectly in all of them although there for the difference of merits some things are bestowed in excellency yet nothing shall be possessed according to Sr. Gregory there
that thou mayest begin to cry out with St. Peter in great Jubilation of heart O Lord it is good that we remaine here here is our Father here our Sister here our Brother here our Country O Lord permit us to be here and never to depart from hence St. Amb. Let us fly O my soule into our most true Country because there is our Countrey for that which we were created there our Father by whom we were created there is that Hierusalem that Heavenly City which is our Mother O my soule thy love here in this mortall life ought to be so great Saint Ansel and desire to come to that for which we were created and so great thy griefe because as yet thou art not there and so great thy feare least perchance thou never comest there that thou oughtst to feel no Joy but from these things which do either bring thee aid or hope to come thither CHAP. III. Of the Interminable Eternity SOVLE O Man whilst that sometimes I think of these things whilst that silently I consider with my selfe what is that which then shineth in me and woundeth my heart without hurting me and I am afraid yet am inflam'd I admit sometimes mentally into my affection something which is unusuall St. Aug. but I know not what sweetness it is which if it were perfected in me I know not what it shall be that this life shall not be But I fall into a relapse with ponderous burthens and am swallowed up with my wonted cares Here I am able to be but not willing there I am willing to be but am not able miserable in both Haec August MAN O My Soul consider that these celestiall things can not so much as be thought upon of those that are worthily disposed without foretasting of the sweetnesse But I am ignorant what that shall then be when they can be perfectly without intricacy tasted or perceived in thee wherfore it is not to be marvled at if the foretasting of such things cause in thee a wearinesse of this Exile because nothing is more bitter then after that the Soul hath been accustomed to be comforted with the joy of such delights if again it shall begin to be intangled with worldly and transitory things From hence it is that the Soul laboureth struggles and is vexed there she alwaies desires to be and yet it sufficeth not here she is compelled to be yet after this she endeavoureth to ascend to that which she hath already tasted for now having tasted of the Spirit all flesh is distastfull Thou hast seen the joy of the blessed from these that are below thee and from these which are neer thee now behold if thou canst what joy is to come from these which are within thee For man shal be rewarded in body and in mind and with the eternall and inseperable union of these two for our body is composed of four Elements wherfore it shall be remunerated with four gifts of Nature the Earth then shall have eternall immortality the water all manner of impassibility the Air exceeding great agility and the fire most transparent and bright shining clearness then shall the Just shine like the Sun and shall run like sparkles among the reeds for God will wipe away all tears from the eyes of his Saints and then there shall not be any more either lamentation or roaring or greif but everlasting peace and gladness In this sempiternall Kingdome the hearts of the blessed shall shine in clearnes one against another and shalâ— in purity be transparent there every ones Countenance is beheld and conscience penetrated there the bodily substance of any one hideth not his intent from the eyes of another Also at an instant wheresoever the mind would be there the body shal be also presently St. Aug. For as then the mind most perfectly obeyeth its Creator so also the body shal most readily obey its Moover God will make the Soule then so powerfull that from the most full beatitude thereof it shall returne into the body from the superabundance whereof it shall receive the vigor of impassability the splendor of clearness the aptitude of subtilty the promptitude of agility there all the senses shall be imployed in their proper actions for there the eye shall see a most beautifull comliness the tast shall feele a most most sweet Savour the sence of smelling shall be perfumed with a most pleasant odour the touch shall imbrace a most delicious object the Hearing shall be changed by a most delicate Sound for there when the mind is ravished by exultation the Tongue is elevated into a Song of praise SOVLE O Man I have heard these wonderfull things long ago and seeing that these are all true what other thing is this present life but a certain shadow of death MAN O My Soul thou hast sayd well because temporall life compared to the eternall is rather be called death then life for what other thing is this defect of our daily corruption then a certain prolongation of death therfore holy men because they incessantly look into the shortness of this life live as though they were dayly dying and therefore more carefully prepare themselves not minding an abode be cause they alway consider that all these things are nothing in the end But men carnally minded therefore love things present frr that they never weigh how fleeting mans life is for if they should looke into the swiftnes of their passege yea they would in no wise love this prosperity Haec Gregorius Let therefore O my Soule the love of this present life passe from thee and let the fervency of the life to come take place where no adversity disturbeth noe necessity distresseth no trouble disquieteth but ever lasting gladness raigneth and consider how great the future felicity is to be where there shal be no evill thing nor good thing shall be hidden all being imploeyd to the praises of God who shall be All in All for there shall be no end of rest nor shall any want pinch there our being shall have no Death our knowledge shall have no Errour our Love shall have no offence There all slowness all corruption all deformity all infirmity shall be absent There is a new Heaven and a new Earth there we shall be like unto the Angells of God and although not in age yet truly in happines St. Aug. O my Soul Thou shouldest imbrace that Life where there is Life wthout Death Youth without old Age Joy without Sadnesse Peace without Discord Will without Injury Light without Darknesse a Kingdom without Change Consider how much the spirit may rejoyce when it shall resume such a body as now thou hast heard not such a one as thou hast sustained with great griefe and hast overcome with great strife of whom oftentimes thou patiently impatient and meekly angry hast said to thy self Who will free from the body of this death Not surely such a one but now perfectly obeying and spirituall such a
Trinity and Unity blessed for ever Amen The end of the last part The humble and Contrite sinners thankfulness to Almighty God for his mercy and goodnesse towards him O Eternall God my Creator behold me wretched sinner thy poore Creature prostrate at the seet of thy mercy craving pardon most humbly of thy Divine Majesty for my horrible ingratitude towards thee in that being made by thee of nothing to thy owne Image and ordained to enjoy thee eternally I have made no account of thee but preferred every trifle before thee and heaped sinne upon sinne with extreame contempt of thy Justice and abuse of thy mercy longanimity and patience Therefore how admirable hath thy clemency been towards me in that thou hast forborne to poure downe thy vengeance upon me to strike me with suddaine death and to cast me headlong to Hell as thou hast done many others not so greivous sinners as I whiles neverthelesse thou hast spared me But seeing it hath pleased thee out of thy infinite goodnesse now to open my eyes and to discover unto me both the horrour of my own Conscience and the bottomless pit whereinto I was ready to fall vouchsafe I beseech thee to consummate and perfect thy owne good work in me giving me an humble and contrite heart that my eyes may be conduites and fountaines of Water to bewaile my sinnes that my teares may be my Bread day and night and that I may bring forth fruits worthy of repentance that thy Justice being satisfied by the merits of thy Son and my Saviour the inevitable and dreadfull houre of my death may serve me for a happy and sure passage to those everlasting and incomprehensible joyes whereto out of thy infinite mercy thou hast ordained me Amen F. Fits-Herbert A BUNDLE OF MYRRHE Concerning the Passion of Christ made by St. BONAVENTURE that famous Dr. of the Church This Tractate is devout and full of all piety wherein a Bundle of Myrrhe is put between the breasts of the spouse that the study of vertues and the desire of compassion to the sufferings of Christ may be increased The first Bundle Of our Lords Praying in the Garden and of his taking MY beloved is to me a Bundle of Myrrhe he shal rest betwixt my breasts The devout soule speaketh thus signifying the bitternesse of the passion of Christ that shee moreover continually beareth about this gathered to gether in her breast And as thou also whosoever thou art that desirest to reforme thy memory by the meditation of Christs passion mayest have these bundles in readinesse which may rest in thy memory The passion of Christ here handled we have compendiously compiled only in order of the Evangelists that from these few the work the manner and the Cause thou mayst have matter copiously to meditate and maist from these few collect many more Think therefore and consider how in that Sollemne Supper Above spoken of whereof it is spoken of before being celebrated and a hymn said Christ God and man seeing his time to approach rise up that hee might go to the Mount this is the work which he did Consider the manner how he carried himselfe within and without going he foretold the flight of his Disciples He affirmed that Peter should thrice deny him and other things he spoke and again consider this work Consider also how he declared those words with exteâ—iour love and with how great interiour affection he disclosed them Thus thou maist do every where neither is it needfull alwayes to repeat them Taking with him Peter James and John he saith my Soule is sorrowfull even unto death leaving them he prayeth alone on the Mount The third time of his prayer being ended through the imagination of death and internall griefe and feare his sweat is made like unto blood demonstrating his unspeakable pain thereby for we read no such thing of any other Then one Angell comforteth his Lord. Consider how Christ mett his Enemies and of his owne accord offered himselfe and with his word prostrated them upon the earth Afterward he is kissed of Judas apprehended by the Iews drawnbound and lead unto Annas house and all his Disciples fled And let this be one bundle for thee to keep in memorie And here if it pleaseth thee thou mayest look upon Christ what hee was that suffered these things and thou maist commit thy self unto him by assent of reason Beleeve there fore and think that he is truly the Sonne of God the Beginning of all things the Saviour of all People and the rewarder of all The Second Bundle Of the mocking of him before Annas and Caiphas and Peter denying him BEfore Annas speaking the truth he is smitten of a wicked Servant Think here of the work the manner and the cause or at least some of them as it liketh thee After this in Caiphas house where the Scribes and Pharisees expected him he is led scorned and strucken as if he were a blasphemer A false witnesse is sought for and is not found he is adjured of the high Priest thrice denyed of Peter But Christ looking back on Peter constrained him to go forth and to weep most bitterly morning being come he is brought bound unto Pilate Think on the manner how they brought him because it was in the worst kind as though he were a theef and a malefactor c. Judas perceiving that they intended to put Christ to death repented so much in himselfe that he had betrayed so good a man hanged and himselfe brought back the money wherewith a field was bought as the Prophet Hieremie foretold Before Pilate he is many wayes falsly accused he is sent unto Herod of him he is scorned at as a fool Here most diligently consider what he is that suffered and make thy selfe like unto him that thou mayest partake in sufferance with the most innocent most meek most loving and most noble And let this be the second bundle The third Bundle Of his Crowning and Crucifying AFter this at the Jews request Pilate dismisseth Barabbas and delivereth Jesus to be crucified being overcome by the importunity of the Iews and the feare of Caesar Then Iesus after the manner and form of a King is diversly scorned is roabed with a mantle crowned with Thornes strucken with a Reed and as a King is adored in scorne Here O man think on the manner consider the cause to wit how Christ carried himselfe and how the Jewes behaved themselves the cause why he suffered so great torments going that he might be crucified carrying his own cross the peopl following the women weeping to whoÌ„ he said weep not for me but weep for your selves He is crucified on Mount Calvarie And here diligently consider the manner of his Crucifying For they either first raised up the Crosse and Christ ascended thereon or surely they put the Cross on the earth and there fastened him thereon with nailes For there appeareth no other manner And here in the third place it is convenient more
particularly to consider how great he is that suffered so great things that thou mayst go forth to him by viewing him with admiration because he is infinite in power in comelinesse in happinesse and in Eternity Admire therefore that Majesty should be annihilated that Beauty should be discoloured that Felicity should be tormented that Eternity should dye and this is the third bundle The fourth Bundle Of those things which were done whilst Christ hanged on the cross and of the giving up of his Spirit Christ hanging on the Cross thirsteth THinke on the work how Christ hanged thinke on the Manner and Cause consider that hee thirsted prayed for his Crucifiers he is blasphemed on the Cross hee is mocked of them that pass by of the Rulers of the Theif A true and indeleble Title is written Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jewes His dolefull Mother standeth under the Cross whom he pitieth and commends her to John darkness is made At last evidently shewing how great his pain was and that his humanity was forsaken in that that there was no assistance of his superiour powers or faculties in which it resided unto the inferiour in which he suffered Crying out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Having taken Vinegar now all things being consummate that nothing remained to be done crying with a loud voice he gave up his Spirit signifying that as long as hee pleased so long he could live and that no one could take from him his Soul but that hee layd it down of his own accord And here thou oughest to consider in what manner he suffered being cloathed in thy forme or likeness For he suffered like unto a true Lamb most freely in respect of himself most obediently in respect of his Father most wisely in respect of his Adversaries Study therefore to put on the habit according to the representation of that forme he put on to wit of Bounty Severity Humility and perfect Knowledg or Prospicacity And this is the fourth Bundle The fifth Bundle Of those things which were done after his death hanging yet on the Cross THe bones of the Theivs were broken a bone of Christ was not bruised least the Effigies thereof might be made void His side is opened from whence the Sacraments of the Church do flow the vail is rent asunder the Graves of the dead are opened that thereby they might rise againe with Christ in the day of his Resurection Here consider how grat he is that suffered for thee and imbâ—ace the Cross with desire of suffering that even as hee hath suffered Injuries Reproaches Mocks Torments so by imitating the Passion of Christ imbrace thou for him all Sufferings full of Injuries Reproaches Scorn and Torments And this is the fifth Bundle The sixth Bundle Of the seven Seals opened by the passion of Christ THE Passion of Christ doth not only reform the memory by devout Meditation nor only inflame the desires unto Devotion but moreover principally illustrateth the understanding and leads it to the knowledge of Truth Even as in the knowledg of the whol frame of the World there were seven things shut up before the passion of Christ which now are opened The first Seal was the admirable Excellency of the Godhead who by the Cross hath manifested himself to be the cheif wisdom in that that he hath destroyed the Devill with the great Justice in as much as hee hath payd the price of our Redemption the greatest mercy because hee hath given his Son for us The second Seal was the intelligible Spirit which is manifested by his Suffering of how great bounty hee is in respect of the Angels who permitted Christ to be crucified of how great dignity in respect of men for in regard of them Christ was crucified of how great cruelty in respect of the Devills who caused their Lord God to be crucified The third Seal is the sensible World which by the death of Christ is prooved to bee a place of Darknesse wherein Blindnesse raigneth because it knew not the true Light wherein barrennesse raigneth because it reputed Christ as unprofitable Impiety and wickednesse in that it condemned the Innocent The fourth Seale was Paradise which by the Cross appeareth to be a place of Glory of Gladness and of plenty therein in respect that Christ for the restitution thereof is made vile poor and miserable Fifthly by the Death of Christ Hell is manifested to be full of all penury viseness and poverty because he hath suffered these things for the exterminating of sinne much more the damned shall suffer these for the just retribution of works The sixth Seale was the â—audable virtue by which the Cross of Christ is prooved to be pretious beautifull and profitable precious because Christ would loose his corporall life before that he would contradict vertue Beautifull because he shined much in his very reproaches profitable because one perfect act of Christs virtue ransacked Hell opened Heaven restored that which was lost The seventh Seale is opened by the Cross and therin appeared how detestable the culpable guiltiness is when for the Remission thereof it needed so great a price so grand a Sacrifice so difficult a medicine The seventh Bundle Of the Resurrection Ascension and sending of the Holy Ghost AND the third day Christ the Conquerour of death rise again and shewed how that we are to rise again also If therefore thou hast suffered with Christ suffering now rejoice with him rising again consider devoutly in what manner the Soule of Christ descended into Hell what it did there and of the joy of the holy Fathers and of the Sorrow of the Devils Think of the fear of the Keepers thinke of the watching of the Angells about the Sepulchre how one only now is reported to fit and then to stand upon the stone now in the Sepulchre then two and these diversly whereby is shown the multitude of Angels about the Sepulchre and the severall uisitations of the women Think how Love and Desire constrained Mary Magdalen and other weomen often to run and to visit the Sepulchre of our Lord thinke upon the divers apparitions of Christ Think upon the sweet discourses of him with his Disciples Consider why Christ would appear in Galilee but that thou oughtest to fly from vices whereupon the Passover is called a passing over But in Galilee that is in the transmigration and change of our bodies we shall behold and see Christ in the Kingdome of Heaven after the generall resurrection Forty daies after the Resurrection Christ ascending on high lead the Captivity of the holy Fathers captive Meditate on the glorious procession of them that ascended with Christ for the Saints followed him the Angels came to meet him and then they did frame those Questistions among themselves whereof the Prophet Isay speaketh who is this that cometh c. Think of the sorrow of the Apostles and the joy of the Angels Think how the Angels returned to comfort the Apostles Learn thou to ascend to