very rapture Death shall seize us and as it were by a deep Sleep so soon as the Soul goes out it shall return in a moment for when they shall be carry'd up they shall dye that coming to the Lord at the Lords presence they may receive their Souls because with the Lord they cannot be dead And the same Opinion is approv'd by the Authority of S. Austin lib. 20. c. 20. in his Books concerning the City of God Seeing therefore it much concerns us to be throughly perswaded that this very and therefore the same Body which is each of our own tho it be corrupted and reduc'd to Ashes yet that it shall be rais'd to Life the Curate shall diligently undertake to teach this point This is the Apostles meaning when he says This corruptible must put on incorruption 1 Cor. 13.25 plainly shewing by the word This every ones own proper Body Job also has most clearly propheci'd hereof Job â—9 26 And in my flesh says he shall I see God whom I my self shall see and my Eyes shall behold and not another This very thing is gather'd from the Definition of the Resurrection Damasâ—n l. 4. de Fide Oâ—â—h â— 28. For the Resurrection as Damascen defines it is a Recalling back to the state from which you fell Lastly if we consider for what reason there will be a Resurrection as a little before has been shew'd 1 Cor. 5.10 we shall have no ground to doubt of this matter For therefore as we have taught will the Body be rais'd again that every one might give an account of his own works done in the Body whether Good or Evil. Man therefore must rise again with that very Body with the help whereof he has serv'd God or the Devil that with the same Body he might either receive his reward and Crown of Victory or else endure the most miserable pains and punishments Nor will the Body only rise again IX In what state the Body shall rise again S. Aug. l 22. de Civit. Dei c. 19 20 21. â—â—ch c. 86 87 88 89. Hier. Ep st 59. 6â— but whatsoever does belong to the Truth of its Nature and to the comliness and ornament of Man shall be restor'd Very excellent is the Testimony of S. Austin in this matter There shall then be no deformity or fault in our Bodies if any have been loaded or grown unweildy with Fat he shall not assume that Load of his Body but whatsoever exceeds the true measure thereof will be accounted supertiuous And on the contrary whatsoever either Sickness or Old Age has done in the Body shall by Christ's Divine Power be repair'd as if any have been overpin'd and made thin by Leanness baecause Christ not only has repair'd our Body but whatsover elses has been taken from us through the Miseries of this life And in another place S. Aug. Enâ—h c. 89. Man shall not have again that Hair which he had but that which would best become him according to that The hairs of your head are all number'd which according to the Divine Wisdom shall be repair'd And first X None mâ—â—'d after the Resurrection All the Members because they belong to the Truth of Humane Nature shall be restor'd together for those who were Blind even from their very Birth or by any Disease had lost their Sight the Lame and the Creeples and those who were impotent in any of their Members shall rise again with intire and perfect Bodies for otherwise the Desire of the Soul which is prone to conjunction with the Body would be dissatisfi'd whose desire notwithstanding in the Resurrection we believe without doubt shall be fulfill'd Besides it is sufficiently apparent that the Resurrection no less than the Creation is to be reckon'd among the Special works of God As therefore in the beginning of the Creation all things were made perfect by God so also we must affirm that it will be in the Resurrection Nor ought this to be allow'd concerning the Martyrs only XI Scars of the Martyrs wounds will remain after the Resurrection to their Glory but of the Wicked to their Msery S. Aug. lib. 22 de Civit. Dei c. 20. of whom S. Austin thus testifies They will not be without their Members for Martyrs that Dismembring which they suffer'd can be no blemish to the Body otherwise they who are Beheaded should rise again without a Head but yet in the parts of those Members shall remain the Scars of the Sword shining far above the Gold and Pretious Stones even as do the Scars of Christ's Wounds And this also is truly said of the Wicked tho their Members were cut off by their own fault for by how much the more Members they shall have with so much the more bitter Torment of Grief shall they be loaded Wherefore this restitution of Members will redound not to their Happiness but to their Calamity and Misery when their Merits will not be ascrib'd to the particular Members but to the Person to whose Body they were joyn'd For to those who have done Penance they shall be restor'd to be Rewarded but to those who neglected it to be punish'd Now if these things be seriously consider'd by the Curats they will never want Sentences and matter enough to stir up and inflame the minds of the Faithful to the study of Piety that considering the Troubles and Afflictions of this Life they may earnestly long for that blessed Glory of the Resurrection which is propos'd to the Just and Pious Now it remains that the Faithful understand XII The Body will rise again immortal in the consideration of those things which constitute or make up the substance of the Body altho that very same Body shall be rais'd from the dead which before dy'd yet the Condition thereof shall be far different For to omit other things all the Bodies at the Resurrection shall differ from themselves very much in this thing that whereas before they were subject to Death after their Resurrection to Life they shall all be Immortal without any difference of Good and Bad. And this admirable Restitution of Nature Christs famous Victory has merited XIII Whence our Bodys made immortal Esa 25.8 Oâ—c 13.14 1 Cor. 15.26 Apoc. 21.4 Apoc. 9.4 which he got over Death as the Holy Scripture testifies for it is written He shall throw down Death headlong for ever And elsewhere O Death I will be thy death Which the Apostle explaining says In the last place The enemy Death shall be destroy'd And we read in S. John Death shall be no more For it was very fit that by Christ's merit whereby the power of Death was overthrown the Sin of Adam at the long run should be overpower'd And it was agreeable to the same Divine Justice That the Good should for ever enjoy a bless'd Life And the Bad suffering eternal Torments should seek for Death but should not find it Should wish to dye but
Extream-Unction is to be receiv'd that nothing may hinder the Grace of this Sacrament and yet that nothing is more contrary to it than the Conscience of any mortal sin the perpetual Practice of the Church Catholic is to be observ'd That before Extream-Unction the Sacraments of Penance and of the Eucharist are to be administer'd And then let the Curats endeavor to perswade the Sick Person to yield the same Faith to the Priests anointing him as those of old times were us'd to give when they were to be heal'd by the Apostles But first of all XXIV The intention of him that desires Extream-Unction the Health or Salvation of the Soul is to be pray'd for and then the Recovery of the Body with this Adjunct if it may be for his Eternal Glory Nor ought the Faithful to doubt XXV This Sacrament to be receiv'd with very great Trust but that those Holy and Solemn Prayers are heard of God which the Priest not bearing his own but the Person of the Church and of our Lord Jesus Christ uses Who in one thing especially are to be exhorted That they will take care Holily and Religiously to administer this Sacrament of the Oyl of Health and Salvation when a sharper Fight seems to begin and the strength both of Soul and Body seems to decay And now who the Minister of Extream-Unction is XXVI A Priest the Minister of this Sacrament we have learn'd of the same Apostle who has publish'd the Law of our Lord For he says Let him call for the Elders By which name he means not those who are elder in Age as by the Synod of Trent has wisely bin expounded or those who have chief place among the People but the Priests who are rightly ordain'd by the Bishops by the Imposition of Hands Ja. 5.14 Sess 14. c. 3. To the Priest therefore the Administration of this Sacrament is committed Nor yet XXVII Of whom this Sacrament to be receiv'd according to the Decree of Holy Church is this power giv'n to every Priest but to the proper Pastor who has Jurisdiction or to some other to whom he has given the Power to discharge his Office But this is specially to be observ'd Note that the Priest in this Administration as it is in the other Sacraments also carries the Person of Christ and of the Holy Church his Spouse The Advantages also of this Sacrament are diligently to be explain'd XXVIII The Fruit of this Sacrament That if nothing els would draw the people to the use thereof they may be led by the very advantage of it seeing it is so order'd as that we may turn almost all things to our own profit The Pastors therefore shall teach The First that in this Sacrament Grace is given which forgives sins and specially the Lesser and as they are commonly call'd Venial For Deadly Sins are taken away by the Sacrament of Penance For neither was this primarily instituted for the Remission of Greater Sins but Baptism only and Penance effect This. There is another Advantage of Sacred Unction The Second that it frees the Soul from Sickness and Infirmity which it has contracted by Sin and from all the other Relics of Sin But that time is to be thought most seasonable for this Cure when we are afflicted with any grievous Sickness and our Life is in danger For it is natural to Man to fear nothing in the World so much as Death Now the Remembrance of former sins very much increases this Fear especially when the Conscience most sharply accuses For as it is written Sap. 4.21 The Fearful shall come into the Consideration of their Sins and their Iniquities shall stand up against them And then the Care and Thought grievously presses them that shortly after they must stand before the Tribunal of God from whom we must receive a most just Sentence according as we have deserv'd But it often happens that the Faithful being strick'n with this Fear feel themselves wonderfully puzzl'd But there is nothing conduces more to the Tranquility of Death The Third than to cast away sorrow and cheerfully to wait for the Lords coming and to be ready willingly to restore what he has intrusted us with whensoever he pleases to call for it from us That therefore the Minds of the Faithful be freed from this Trouble and that the Soul be fill'd with a pious and Holy Joy The Sacrament of Extream-Unction brings to pass Besides The Fourth from hence we get another which may well seem the greatest of all For tho the Enemy of Mankind never ceases as long as we live to endeavor our Ruin and Destruction yet that he might destroy us and if he could possibly bring it about that he might take from us all Hope of God's Mercy he never uses his utmost might and main more violently than when he perceives we draw towards our End Wherefore there is Strength and Weapons minister'd to the Faithful in this Sacrament wherewith they may break the Force and Violence of the Adversary and stoutly fight against him For the Soul of the Sick is eas'd and encourag'd with the Hope of Gods Goodness and being confirm'd therewith she lightly endures all Inconveniencies and more easily escapes the Wiles and Subtilties of the Devil endeavouring treacherously to insnare her Lastly The Fifth follows Health of Body also if it be good for him But if at such Time XXIX Why this Sacrament not so effectual as ir might be the Sick Recover not their Health this comes not by the Fault of the Sacrament but it must be believ'd to come to pass for this Reason because in a great part The Faith either of those who are anointed with Sacred Oyl or of those by whom it is administer'd is weak For the Evangelist testifies Mat. 13.38 That the Lord did not do many mighty works among his own Countrymen because of their Vnbelief Altho it may truly be said That Christian Religion by how much the deeper it has taken Root in the Souls of Men does stand in less need of the proof of such Miracles as these than formerly in the Infancy of the Church it seem'd to do But yet our Faith is here to be excited For XXX The Faith and Hope of the Sick to be incourag'd Howsoever by the Will and Counsel of God it shall happen to the Health of the Body yet the Faithful ought to be strengthen'd with an assur'd Hope that by vertue of the Sacred Oyl they shall get Spiritual Health and that it shall be that if it chance that they go out of this Life they shall have the benefit of that excellent Word Apoc. 14.13 Blessed are the Dead which dye in the Lord. Thus much has bin spoken briefly concerning the Sacrament of Extream Unction But if these Heads of Matters be more largely explain'd by the Pastors and with the diligence as becomes them it is not to be doubted but the
for two Reasons The one is If any one being imploy'd in an unjust matter kills a Man For example If any one with his Fist or Foot strike a Woman with Child The First whereupon follows an untimely Birth This happens indeed beyond the Design of the Striker yet he is not blameless because it was no means lawful for him to strike a Woman with Child The other is The Second If he carelesly and heedlesly kill any one not looking well about him For which cause also Sixthly if any one for defence of his own Safety using all the care he can kill another it appears plain enough that he is not guilty of this Law And these are the Slaughters we have now mention'd VIII What Killing is forbidden here which are not contain'd in this Commandment of the Law which being excepted all the rest are forbidden whether we consider the Slayer or the Person slain or the Means by which the Slaughter was done As to those that are the Slayers IX Who forbidden to kill there is none excepted neither Men of Wealth nor of Power neither Masters nor Parents but without all difference and distinction all are forbidden to kill If we consider those who are kill'd X. Who may not be kill'd this Law belongs to every one nor is there any one of so mean and base a Condition but he is defended by vertue of this Law Nor is it lawful for any one to kill himself XI None may kill himself seeing no one has so much the power of his own Life that at his own pleasure he may kill himself And therefore by the words of this Law it is not thus appointed Thou shalt not kill another but simply Thou shalt not kill But then if we respect the manifold ways of Murder XII Every way of killing forbidden there is none excepted For it is not only unlawful to take away any Mans Life either with his Hands or Sword or Knife or with a Stone or with a Staff or with a Halter or with Poison but it is utterly forbidden to be done either by Counsel Help or Assistance or by any other Means And here the great Dulness and Stupidity of the Jews appears Note in that they believ'd that they observ'd this Commandment if they restrain'd their Hands only from Murder But to a Christian XIII None may be angry at nor kill another who as Christ has interpreted it has learn'd that this Law is Spiritual and teaches us not only to have our Hands clean but our very Souls chaste and sincere that is not enough which the Jews thought sufficient to themselves For in the Gospel we are taught That it is not lawful so much as to be angry since our Lord says But I say to you Every one that is angry at his Brother shall be guilty of the Judgment but he that says to his Brother Racha shall be guilty of the Council but he that shall say Thou Fool shall be guilty of Hell-fire De ira vide Basil. hom 10 Chrysost hom 29. ad Pop. Antioch D. Thom. 2.2 q. 158. per totam From which words it is evident XIV This place of the Gospel explain'd That he is not free from Sin that is inwardly inrag'd at his Brother tho he contain his Anger shut up in his Mind but he that gives any Token of that Anger sins grievously but he sins yet much more grievously who is not afraid to handle his Brother hardly and to reproach him Vide Aug. de Serm. Dom. in Monte lib. 1. D. Thom. 2.2 q. 158. a. 3. And verily this is true XV. What Anger not forbidden if there be no cause of Anger For the Cause of Anger which is allow'd by God and his Laws is This When we are displeas'd at those who being under our Government and Power are guilty of a Fault for a Christians Anger ought to proceed not from Carnal Sense but from the Holy Ghost 1 Cor. 6.17 seeing it is fit that we be the Temples of the Holy Ghost in which Jesus Christ may dwell There are XVI The perfect Observation of this Commandment besides many other things taught by our Lord which belong to the perfect following of this Law of which sort are these Not to resist Evil but if any one smite thee on thy right Cheek turn to him the other also and he that will go to Law with thee and take away thy Coat give him thy Cloak also and he that will compel thee to go a Mile go with him two Vide Aug Epist 5. ad Marcel de Serm. Domini in Monte lib. 2. c. 20. From what has been already said XVII How many offend against this Commandment we may observe how prone Men are to those Sins which are forbidden in this Commandment or how many may be found who tho they commit not Wickedness with their Hands yet do it in their Hearts And because there are Remedies for this Disease in the Sacred Scripture XVIII The Curat 's Duty it is the Curat 's Duty to teach them diligently to the Faithful And this is the Chief XIX How great a Crime it is to kill a Man That they understand how wicked a Sin the killing of a Man is And this may be seen from very many and very evident Testimonies of Holy Scripture for God in Holy Scripture so detests Murder that he says he will punish even the very Beasts for the killing of Men Gen. 9.6 and commands that Beast to be kill'd that hurts a Man Nor would he have Man abhor Blood for any other cause Note but that by all means he should restrain his Mind and his Hand from the Wickedness of killing a Man For Men-slayers are the worst Enemies of Mankind XX. Murderers injure God himself and consequently of Nature who as much as in them lies overthrow the universal Work of God when they destroy a Man for whose sake he testifies that he made all things whatsoever were created Yea and even in Genesis since it is forbidden to kill a Man because God created him after his own Image and Likeness he do's a notable Injury to God and seems as it were to lay violent hands upon him who removes his Image out of the way David having with Divine Cogitation of Mind meditated hereof XXI How prone Man is to Murder Psal 13.36 very grievously complain'd of Blood-thirsty Men in these words Their Feet are swift to shed Blood Nor did he simply say They kill but They shed Blood Which words he uttered for amplification of that Wickedness and to shew their exceeding Cruelty and to shew especially how headlong they are carried by the impulse of the Devil to that VVickedness he says Their Feet are swift But now the things which Christ our Lord in this Commandment requires us to observe XXII The end and scope of this Commandment Mat. 5.24 tend to this That we may
have Peace with all Men For interpreting this Place he says If thou offer thy Gift at the Altar and shalt there remember that thy Brother has any thing against thee leave there thy Gift before the Altar and go first be reconcil'd to thy Brother and what follows VVhich things shall so be explain'd by the Curat XXIII Catholic Charity commanded as that he teach That all without any Exception are to be embrac'd with Love VVhereto in the Explication of this Commandment he shall stir up the Faithful as much as may be because therein the Vertue of Loving our Neighbor shines most clearly For since Hatred is plainly forbidden by this Commandment XXIV Hatred forbidden 1 Joh. 3.5 because he that hates his Brother is a Murderer it certainly follows that here is given a Commandment of Love and Charity And since in this Law there is a Command concerning Love and Charity Offices of Love commanded there are Rules given of all those both Offices and Actions which use to follow that Charity Charity is patient Patience Luc. 21.19 says St. Paul Therefore we are commanded Patience in which we shall possess our Souls as our Saviour teaches Kindness next is the Companion and Associate of Charity XXV Offices of Kindness because Charity is kind But the Vertue of Benignity and Kindness largely extends it self and its Office is chiefly concern'd in these things to relieve the Poor with things necessary to give Meat to the Hungry Drink to the Thirsty to cloath the Naked and wherein any one most wants our Help therein to bestow our greater Liberality upon him These Offices of Kindness and Goodness XXVI Kindness to be shew'd towards our enemies Mat. 5.44 Rom. 18.20 which of themselves are illustrious are made so much the more illustrious if extended to our Enemies For our Saviour says Love your Enemies do good to them which hate you which the Apostle also advises in these words If thy Enemy hunger feed him if he thirst give him Drink for in doing thus thou wilt heap Coals of Fire on his Head Be not overcome of Evil but overcome Evil with Good Lastly XXVII Long-suffering and Gentleness if we consider the Law of Charity which is kind we must understand that by that Law we are commanded to do all Offices whatsoever that pertain to Long-suffering Gentleness and other Vertues of the like kind But that Office which is far the most excellent of all XXVIII A chief Office of Charity to forgive and which is most full of Charity wherein most of all we ought to exercise our selves is this With a cheerful Mind to forgive and pardon the Wrong we have receiv'd which to do fully the Scriptures of God as before was said often warn and exhort us since they do not only call them bless'd that really do so See Deuteron 32.35 Also 1 Reg. 25.32 33. Also 26.6 7 8.9 Also 2 Reg. 19.20 Psal 7.5 Eccles 28. throughout Isai 58.6 Matth. 6.14 And in the Gospel in many places See also Tertul. in Apolog. c. 31 37. Aug. in Joan. Tract 81. lib. 50. Hom. hom 6. Item Serm. 61 168. de tempore Note But they affirm that Pardon of their Sins is also given them of God but those who either neglect or utterly refuse so to do lose their own Pardon themselves But because the desire of Revenge is commonly rooted in Mens Minds XXIX Forgetting of Injuries to be inculcated it is necessary that the Curat use very great Diligence herein not only to teach but also earnestly to perswade the Faithful That a Christian ought to forget Injuries and to forgive them and since there is very much mention of this Matter made among Sacred Writers let him consult them for the overcoming of their Stubborness who are of an obstinate and fixt Resolution on the Lust of Revenge Let him have the Arguments in readiness which those Fathers devoutly us'd they being very weighty and very suitable to the Matter Vide quae citantur n. 18. But especially these Three are to be explain'd The First is XXX Three Arguments for this purpose The First That he that thinks he has receiv'd an Injury should be earnestly perswaded that he whom he desires to be aveng'd of was not the principal cause of his loss or Injury So that admirable Man Job did who being grievously assaulted by the Sabeans Chaldeans and by the Devil yet took no Regard of them but as an upright and right pious Man truly and devoutly us'd these Words Job 1.28 The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away By the Words and Example of that most patient Man therefore XXXI Gods goodness in inflicting Punishments let Christians perswade themselves what is most true that all things whatsoever we suffer in this Life come from the Lord who is the Father and Author of all Justice and Mercy Nor does he punish us as Enemies which is his infinite Kindness but corrects and chastises us as Sons Nor indeed XXXII How they are to be accounted that persecute us if we rightly consider it are Men in these cases any other thing at all but the Ministers and Officers as it were of God And tho a Man may wrongfully hate another and wish him very ill yet unless by Gods Permission he can by no means hurt him For this Reason Joseph patiently endur'd the wicked Counsels of his Brethren Gen. 45.8 2 Reg. 16.10 so David did the Injuries done him by Shimei To this Matter also belongs properly that kind of Argument Tom 3 in Hom. Quod nemo laeditur nisi a seipso which S. Chrysostom gravely and excellently handl'd to wit That none is hurt but by himself For those that think themselves to be injuriously dealt with if they consider the matter well with themselves will certainly find that they have received no wrong or damage from others for tho the things are outward wherein they are hurt yet they most of all hurt themselves when they wickedly pollute their Soul with Hatred Lust Envy The Second is The second Argument That it contains two special Advantages which belong to those who being led with a pious Endeavour to please God freely forgive Injuries The First whereof is this Two Advantages The First Matth. 18.33 That God has promis'd that they shall obtain Pardon of their own Sins that forgive others their Offences from which Promise it easily appears how acceptable this Office of Piety and Love is to him The other Advantage is The second Advantage Matth. 5.46 That we get a kind of Nobility and Perfection because by forgiving Wrongs we are made in a manner like God Who causes his Sun to rise on the Good and Bad and rains on the Just and Vnjust Lastly The third Argument the Disadvantages are to be explain'd into which we then fall when we will not forgive the Wrongs that are done us Let the Curat therefore lay before
our Weakness when we thus pray to God Thy Will be done For whereas by casting off our Obedience and neglecting the Will of God we fall into these Miseries God offers us only this one Remedy of all our Evils that at last we would live according to his Will which by Sin we have despis'd and that we would measure all our Thoughts and Actions by that Rule which that we may be able to do we humbly beg it of God Thy Will be done They also XIII This Petition necessary even for the Just in whose Souls God already reigns and who are illuminated with the Rays of Divine Light by benefit of whose Grace they obey the Will of God must heartily beg it Which things tho thus obtain'd yet properly they are against our Desires by reason of our proneness to Evil which is rooted in Mens Hearts So that tho we were such kind of Persons yet in this case we are in very great danger from our selves lest being drawn away and entic'd by our Lusts which war in our Members Jac. 4.1 we again turn aside from the way of Salvation Of which Danger our Lord admonishes us in these words Mat. 26.41 Watch and pray that ye enter not into Temptation The Spirit indeed is ready but the Flesh is weak Vide Hier. lib. 2. advers Jovin Aug. de Haeresi 6. For it is not in the power of Man XIV Even j stified Persons endure the Affections of the Flesh no not even in his who is justified by the Grace of God so to subdue the Affections of the Flesh as never after to rise up against him for when the Grace of God heals the Minds of those that are justif'd he heals not their Flesh also of which the Apostle writes thus For I know that in me i. e. in my Flesh dwells no good thing Rom. 7.18 For as once the First Man lost his Original Justice XV. Since Adam's Fall no one could govern his Desires whereby his Desires were govern'd as with a Bridle his Reason could never so contain them in their Duty as not to seek after those things which are even against Reason In that part of Man therefore Sin dwells i. e. the Incitement to Sin as the Apostle writes that we may know that it abides not with us a Guest for a time but that it always remains as an Inhabitant in our Body in the House of our Members as long as we live Therefore that we may stoutly withstand our domestic and inbred Enemies Note we easily see that we are to fly to God's Help and to beg that his Will may be done in us And now the Faithful must be made to know XVI What Will of God is here understood what the Force of this Petition is where omitting many of those things which are profitably and largely disputed by Learned Schoolmen concerning God's Will we say That here the Will is taken for that which they use to call a Sign i. e. for that which he has commanded or warn'd us either to do or to beware of Wherefore by the word Will XVII This Will signifies all God's Commandments in this place are comprehended all things that are propos'd to us for the obtaining of the Bliss of Heaven whether they belong to Faith or Manners and lastly all things whatsoever Christ our Lord either by himself or by his Church has commanded or forbidden us to do Of which Will the Apostle writes thus Be ye not unewise but understanding what the Will of God is Ephes 5. v. 17. When therefore we pray XVIII What is here pray'd for First Secondly Thy Will be done we first of all pray That our Heavenly Father would give us Power to obey his Divine Commands and to serve him in holiness and justice all our days To do all things according to his Will and Pleasure Thirdly To do those Duties of which we are admonish'd in Sacred Scriptures To perform all other things by his Direction Fourthly which they teach them that are born not of the Will of the Flelh but of God following the Example of Christ our Lord who became obedient to Death even the Death of the Cross To be ready to endure all things Fifthly rather than in the least to depart from his Will Nor is there any one that more ardently burns with the Love and Study of this Petition XIX Who pray this heartily than he to whom it is given to behold the exceeding great Dignity of those that obey God For he understands that Saying to be most true Whosoever says our Lord will do the Will of my Father which is in Heaven he is my Brother and Sister and Mother that is I am most closely join'd with him in all the Bonds of Love and Good-will Bern. Serm. 3. de S. Andrea There is scarcely any of the Saints but earnestly besought God for the exercise of this Petition XX. How often this Petition repeated by the Saints all have very often us'd this Prayer tho in a different Expression among whom we see the admirable and excellent David thus in a different manner praying For one while he says Would God my Ways were directed to keep thy Justifications another while Lead me into the Way of thy Commandments another while Order my Steps according to thy Word and let no Injustice rule over me Hither belong those Sayings Give me Vnderstanding that I may know thy Testimonies He often uses the same Sense in different words and these Places are diligently to be observ'd and explain'd to the Faithful that all may know how great a Store and Plenty of wholesom Matters is contain'd in the First Part of this Petition In the second place XXI What we detest by this Petition in the seventh place Gal 5 19. Rom. 8.13 when we pray Thy Will be done we detest the Works of the Flesh whereof the Apostle writes thus Now the Works of the Flesh are manifest which are these Fornication Vncleanness Immodesty Wantonness c. And If ye live according to the Flesh ye shall die And we pray That God would not suffer us to accomplish those things which our Sense our Lust our Weakness would perswade us to but that he would govern our Will Now voluptuous Persons are Strangers from this Will of God XXII This Petition not well made by the Voluptuous being bent wholly upon the thought and care of Earthly things For they are carried headlong by their Lust to the enjoyment of that they desire and place their Happiness in the enjoyment of their evil Desires insomuch that they call him happy that obtains whatsoever he lusts for VVe What we here pray for in the sixth place on the contrary pray God as the Apostle says That we may not follow the care of the Flesh in its Desires but that his VVill may be done Not that we are easily brought to beg of God XXIII Hard to make
our Sins be forgiven us And here we pray not for Forgiveness of small Mistakes only Note and such as are easy to be forgiven but for great and deadly Sins which Prayer will have no strength against great Sins but what it receives from the Sacrament of Penance taken either in Deed or at least in Desire as has before been said But we say Our Debts after a far different manner XXVII Our Sins and our Bread are ours in a different manner than when we say as before Our daily Bread for that Bread is Ours because it is given us of the Gift of God but our Sins are Ours because the Guilt of them is in our selves for we do them wilfully which would not have the Nature of Sin in them if they were not voluntary VVe therefore undergoing and confessing this Guilt XXVIII In this Petition we accurse our selves Gen. 3.12 implore Gods Mercy which is necessary to expiate our Sins In which case we use no Excuse at all nor lay the Blame upon any other as our first Parents Adam and Eve did but we judge our selves using if we are wise that Prayer of the Prophet Psal 144.4 O my heart decline not thou into words of malice to make excuses for thy sins Nor do we say XXIX Why we here pray in the plural number forgive me but forgive us because the Brotherly Relation and Charity which is between all Men requires of us all that being careful for the common Salvation of our Neighbors when we pray for our selves we should also pray for Pardon for them And this manner of Praying delivered by Christ our Lord XXX Whence we had this manner of Praying and from him receiv'd by the Church of God and always kept by her the Apostles themselves held in bighest Veneration and requir'd others to observe it Of this ardent Care and Desire in praying for the Salvation of our Neighbors we have in both Testaments the famous Examples of those Holy Men Moses and Paul whereof the one pray'd God in this manner Exod. 32.32 Either forgive them this Sin or if thou will not do it blot me out of thy Book The other thus Rom. 9.8 I my self wish'd to be an Anathema from Christ for my Brethren As we also forgive our Debtors THis word As XXXI The twofold Acceptation of the Particle As. may be understood two ways for it has both the Nature of a Similitude as when we pray God that he would pardon our Sins so as we forgive them their Wrongs and Reproaches that have injur'd us And besides it is a Note of Condition in which Sense Christ our Lord interprets this Petition For says he Matth. 6.14 if ye forgive Men their Offences your heavenly Father will also forgive you your Trespasses but if ye forgive not Men neither will your Father forgive you your Sins Now there is need to know both these Senses XXXII It is here taken in both Senses that if we would have God to give us Pardon of our Offences we must needs spare them of whom we have receiv'd VVrong and he so far requires mutual Love and Care that he rejects and despises the Gifts and Sacrifices of them that are not reconcil'd to each other For even by the Law of Nature it is appointed that wâ— be such to others as we would they should be to us that he is really very impudent that desires God not to punish him for his Sins when himself bears a Revengeful Mind against his Neighbor VVherefore those that have suffered injuries ought to be ready and easily inclin'd to pardon XXXIII He that will be forgiven must also forgive Luc. 17.5 since they are strongly urg'd to it both by this Form of Prayer and in S. Luke God commands it If thy Brother have trespass'd against thee reprove him and if he be penitent forgive him and if he trespass against thee seven times in a day and seven times in a day and return to thee saying I repent forgive him And in S. Matthew's Gospel Matth. 5.44 Love your Enemies And the Apostle and long before him Solomon wrote If thine Enemy hunger give him meat Rom. 12 20. Prov. 15.2 if he thirst give him drink And in S. Mark the Evangelist Mâ—rc 11.2 When thou comest to pray if thou hast any thing against another forgive it that your Father which is in Heaven may also forgive you your Offences But because by the Fault of Corrupt Nature XXXIV What is to be done when Men will hardly be reconcil'd there is nothing that Man does more against the Hair than to forgive one that injures him let the Curats use all the Skill they have both of Prudence and of Affection to turn and bend the Minds of the Faithful to this Indulgence and Mercy so necessary to a Christian Let them continue a while in handing of such of the Divine Oracles First wherein they may hear God himself commanding them to pardon their Enemies And let them teach them by an Argument Secondly which indeed is most true and likely to prevail with Men that they are the Children of God if they are ready to forgive Injuries and love their Enemies from their Heart For when we love our Enemies Note there shines forth in us a kind of Resemblance that we have with God our Father who has reconcil'd to himself the most envious and wicked Race of Men having redeemed them from eternal Destruction by the Death of his Son And for the Close of this Admonition and Precept Thirdly let them make use for an Argument of the Empire and Government of Christ our Lord which we cannot refuse without the utmost Shame and Ruine Matth 5. Pray for them that persecute and spitefully use you that ye may be the Children of your Father which is in Heaven But here is requir'd a greater Prudence than ordinary in the Pastors XXXV What kind of forgetfulness of Injuries requir'd to Vertue lest any one knowing the Difficulty and yet the Necessity of this Precept should despair of Salvation For there are some who knowing that they ought resolutly to forget Injuries and to love those that have wrong'd them do desire so to do and according to their Power do so but find that they cannot utterly put all the Remembrance of Injuries out of their Minds for there do stick in the Mind some Reliques of secret Grudgings for which cause their Consciences are afflicted with great Struglings fearing lest not simply and candidly forgetting Injuries they obey not Gods Command Here therefore the Pastors shall explain the Contrary Motions of the Flesh and of the Spirit XXXVI The strugling betwixt the Flesh and Spirit to be here explain'd that the Sense of the One is prone to Revenge The Nature of the Other is ready to forgive hence it comes that there is a perpetual Quarrel and Wrangling betwixt them Wherefore they shall shew that
to beg of God not to suffer us to be led into Temptation but also in that Sermon which he made to the Holy Apostles about the time of his Death when indeed he said that they were clean he admonish'd them of this Duty in these words Joh. 13.10 Mat. 26.4 Pray that ye enter not into Temptation Which Admonition being made again by Christ our Lord he said a great Charge upon those that have Cure of Souls to be diligent in stirring up the Faithful to the frequent use of this Prayer that when every hour there are so great Dangers of this kind intended against Men by their Enemy the Devil they may earnestly beg of God who alone is able to drive them away in this Prayer Lead us not into Temptation But the Faithful will understand how much need they have of this Divine Help IV. How great the necessity of this Petition is if they but remember their own Weakness and Ignorance if they remember that Sentence of Christ our Lord The Spirit indeed is ready but the Flesh is weak if they remember what heavy and destructive Accidents Men would fall into by the Devil's means if they were not upheld by the help of God's Right Hand What clearer Example of Man's Weakness can there be Examples of our Weakness than that of Sacred Quire of Apostles who before were of a stout Courage but upon the first Terror laid in their way forsook our Savior and fled Altho that of the Prince of Apostles himself is yet more clear who after so large a Profession of singular both Resolution and Love to Christ our Lord when but a little before being very confident of himself he said thus If I were to die with thee yet I will not deny thee yet presently at the Voice of a silly Maid he protested with Oaths that he knew not our Lord. Mat. 26.35 And the Reason is Note because his Strength was not answerable to that very great Willingness of his Spirit But if the most holy Men have grievously sinn'd thro the Weakness of Human Nature Note again to which they trusted too much how are others to fear who come far short of them in Holiness VVherefore let the Curat propose to the Faithful the Fights and Dangers wherein we are daily engag'd V. To how many Dangers of Temptations Men are expos'd while our Souls continue in these mortal Bodies which on every hand the Flesh the VVorld and Satan oppose VVhat Anger what Lust or Covetousness can do in us how few are there in the VVorld that are not compell'd to their great damage to feel VVho is there that is not wearied with these Goads who feels not these Thorns VVho is not scorch'd with these secret Firebrands And indeed their Blows are so many and their Importunities so various that it is a very hard matter not to receive some grievous VVounds And besides these Enemies which lodge and live with us there are moreover those most bitter Enemies of whom it is written Eph. 6 22â— We wrestle not against Flesh and Blood but against the Rulers of this World of Darkness against Spiritual Wickedness in Heavenly things For to the inward Combats VI. How great the violence of the Devils is the outward Violence and Assaults of the Devils join themselves for they seek to catch us both by open Force and secret Snares cast upon our Souls so that we can very hardly escape them Now these the Apostle calls Princes for the Excellency of their Nature VII Why the Devils call'd Princes for by Nature they excel Men and all other Creatures that fall under Sense he also calls them Potestates or Powers because they not only excel in Strength of Nature but of Power also he also calls them Rulers of the World of Darkness for they govern not the Clear and Light VVorld i. e. Good and Pious Men but the Dark and Gloomy VVorld to wit those who being blinded with the Spots and Darkness of a naughty and wicked Life are delighted with the Devil the Prince of Darkness He also calls the Devils Spiritual Wickednesses VIII Why Spiritual Wickednesses What Carnal Wickedness What Spiritual Wickedness i.e. the VVickedness both of Flesh and Spirit The VVickedness which is call'd Carnal kindles our Desires to sensual Lusts and Pleasures But Spiritual Wickedness are evil Purposes and corrupt Desires which belong to the Superior part of the Soul which are by so much worse than the rest by how much the Mind and Reason it self is higher and more excellent Which Wickedness of Satan Note because he chiefly aims at this to deprive us of our Heavenly Inheritance therefore the Apostle said in Heavenly things Whence we may learn IX The Devil's Malice that the Enemies Forces are great their Courage undaunted their Hatred against us cruel and infinite That they wage perpetual War so that there can be no Peace or Truce with them And how bold they are that word of Satan shews which we read in the Prophet Isa 14.13 I will climb up even to Heaven He set upon our first Parents in Paradise he withstood the Prophets he sought for the Apostles and as our Lord says in the Evangelist Luc. 12.31 He would have winnow'd them as Wheat nor did the very Face of Christ himself make him blush or asham'd The Apostle therefore express'd his insatiable Desire and indefatigable Diligence when he said 1 Pet. 5.8 Your Adversary the Devil as a roaring Lion wheels about seeking whom he may devour And yet not one Devil only tempts Man X. Many Devils oppose one Man but sometimes many Devils join together against particular Men which thing that Devil confess'd who being ask'd of Christ our Lord what his Name was Marc. 5.9 Luc. 8.30 answered My Name is Legion to wit a Multitude of Devils which vex'd that miserable Man Mar. 12.45 And it is written of another That he took with him Seven other Spirits more wicked than himself and entring in they dwelt there There are many indeed who feel not the Impulse and Force of the Devil in themselves XI The Devils tempt not wicked Men and why and therefore think there is no such matter who that they are not oppos'd by the Devil there is no wonder seeing they have freely given up themselves to him They have no Piety no Charity none of that Vertue worthy a Christian and therefore they are wholly in the Power of the Devil nor is there any need of Temptations to destroy them in whose Souls they give him leave to abide But those that have dedicated themselves to God XII The Devil chiefly tempts the Pious leading a Heavenly life while they are on Earth Satan seeks most of all by his Incursions These he most bitterly hates for these at all times he says Snares The History of Sacred Scripture is full of the Examples of Holy Men whom tho they were of a strong Resolution