Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	bring_v	fruit_n	word_n	3,570	5	4.8691	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A17282	The practice of meditating with profit The misteries of our Lord, the Blessed Vergin & saints. Gathered out of diuers good authors, and published by the very Reuerend Master Iohn Alberto Buronzo, chanon of the cathedral church of Verselles. Reuiued and augmented by the same author, & translated into English by a Father of the Societie of Iesus.	Berzetti, Nicolas.; Talbot, Thomas, 1572-1652.	1613 (1613)	STC 4125; ESTC S104826	77,217	308

with consent of his free will with his cooperation and endeauour did much of his part to attayn vnto that degree of sanctity yt notwithstanding Christ our Lord was he who after a particular manner like vnto some most exquisite master continued to labour so gratiously in that soul that he wrought in yt both sanctity and perfection Secondly acknowledging him to be the meritorious cause for that whatsoeuer beauty or goodnes ys found in the blessed saints although yt hath his proportion and proper dignity as the partiall meanes towards grace glory notwithstanding yt proceeds from the merits of Christ as being the head of the vniuersall church all the dignity which the workes of holy saints haue ys foūded in the self same merits of him who making himself man for mans sake and continually labouring for the space of thirty three yeares and some moneths besides euen vnto the ignominious death of the crosse opened an euerflowing foūtayn of liuely merits for his holy church which should be sufficient to giue life to all thw workes of men be they neuer so many Thirdly considering him as a most excellent master who whilst he liued by word of mouth and after his ascending into heauen by internall instruction gaue such precepts of all vertue to all men and inparticular to the saints that from remembrance of that doctrine hath proceeded that diligent care to exercise vertue in which the saints haue beene so eminent Fourthly behoulding him not only as a master teaching by words but as the paterne example in deeds for that he hauing beene the true and first parterne of all sanctity by inspiration from his heauenly father who ceaseth not to exhort all men to imitate him with these wordes Behould and doe according to the Patren the holy saints with good reason haue beheld him after such a manner that they haue copied out his liuely image in theyr soul diuerse after a different sort according to the variety of theyr actions yt none with out some laudable degree of perfection Fiftly behoulding him as the finall cause the crown and glory of his saints after the triumphant victory obteyned of the world the flesh and the diuell for that he was proposed vnto them for a soueraigne reward most great and high aboue all comparison as the garland of triumph which might sustaine theyr hopes vphould theyr weaknes from dangerous falles vnder the troublesome burthen and oppositions of theyr enemyes who aymed at nothing els but to bereaue them of the glorious palme prepared for the victory This done to the end the meditation may be so much more fruitfull let him endeauour to see yf our Lord Iesus doe deale with him also after the fiue foresaid manners and how he doth dispose himself to obtayne so much fauour at his hands After that let him stirr vp in himself a desyre to be so fauoured and let him seeke out the reasons and causes which may hinder him from receiuing such graces let him reprehend and blame himself for not answering to the gratious helps receiued frō God as the saynts haue done before him and let him serue himself of other māners which will come after helping to moue the will and more to kindle the affection The third manner of meditation for feasts AN other manner no lesse profitable thē the former may be that he take the gospell occurring in that feast and deuiding the matter into three or more principall parts procure to apply eyther in proper or misticall sense all those things which the gospell referrs vnto the vertuous actions of that glorious saint and lastly making reflexion vnto himself aswell in the first as in this second manner procuring to see if in his manner of life he discouer conformity or contrariety to the doctrine of the gospell to the life of the saint whether Christ Iesus haue not so dealt with him in all these fiue meanes before named for the gayning of vertue as he hath with the saints whose feasts he celebrats And after this let him reprehend himself for that he giueth not correspōdence vnto the helps giuen him from our Lord nor to the vertuous exāples of his saints The manner how to meditate the text of scripture LASTLY yt ys good also to know how to imploy our selues profitably when we meditate eyther one only word of the holy scripture or els some sentence of the same or els some particuler parables which are things full of doctrine both holy and profitable for all mē And this altgough yt be here spoken principally to serue for the meditation of misteryes when by occasion of some cōditions which concerne eyther the persons vvords or workes vve are to meditate vppon some passage of the text as before hath beene declared yt shall serue notvvithstanding in like manner for him that vvill meditate all by himself and cheesly for those that vvill first meditate vppon the Psalmes that he may aftervvards say them vvith more deuotion eyther in his canonicall houres or in the office of our B. Lady c. He may therefore first examine yt in the literall sēse vvhich ys no other then that vvhich ys agreable vnto the signification of that vvord sentence or parable and to the intention of him that spake yt or els agreable to the intention of the holy ghost vvho caused him to speake yt Thē let him cōsider yt eyther in the tropologicall or morall sense vvhich consisteth in accommodating the thing signifyed by that vvord sentence or parable vvith misticall conceits seruing to the amending of his owne life and manners or those of others or els let him consider yt in the sense called allegoricall in which the things signifyed in that word sentece or parable are taken as shadowes and figures of things to come eyther in respect of the Messias and of the church his spouse yf we speake of the old testament or els accordingly towards others things appertayning also to the church or to some other mistery yf we speake of the new or lastly in the anagogicall sense whereby the signification of the wordes sentences or parables are applyed to a more high vnderstāding of celestiall and supernaturall things of the life to come As for example when there occurs one only word as Hierusalem you shall interpret yt literally according to Cassian that so often named city of the Iewes tropologically the soul of man allegorically to the holy church of Christ Anagogically for the blessed city of Paradise Then meditating that sentence of our Sauiour Nisi granum frumenti cadens in terram mortuum fuerit c. Vnlesse the graine of wheat falling into the ground dye c. he shall vnderstand by the word seed first literally the wheat corns or other seed which to bring forth yoūg buds must first be corrupted yt self in the earth Then tropologically spirituall persons who that they may bring forth the fruit of vertuous actions like corne must also first be mortefied and so dye

redound euen to the sense at the least will giue content and satisfactiō vnto reason in some excellent degree Fiftly the honour he shall gaine by the study and excellēcy of this vertue not only with God in heauen but also with men vppon earth who cannot choose but approue and praise the vertue wheresoeuer they see yt Sixtly the ioy yt will cause to the Angells in heauē who as being replenished with charity both towards God and man doe greatly reioyce to see that men doe also proceed in vertue and doe giue in this respect great glory vnto his diuine maiesty Seauenthly the displeasure yt will procure to the diuell who cannot indure to see vertue put in practise to the glory of God and profit of man for the deadly hate he beareth to the one who doth punishe him according to his deserts to the other for that they would enter the possession of that place from which he was iustly banished Eightly the exāple of Christ of the B. Virgin and of the holy saints eyther drawn out of the mistery he doth then meditate or out of others which he hath meditated before or shall meditate after As for exāple After one hath drawn out that light which ys before set down in the first manner of discoursing to wit that to the imitation of God who being independāt of men yt dit looke vppon them with the eyes of pitty he also in like māner yea although which ys impossible he were independāt of God ought to lift vp very often the eyes of his soul to his diuine majesty with acts of loue he shall then propose vnto his will these motiues following to the end he may raise the desyre of so doing and shall say thus And ys yt not then a decent thing and much to be desired to lift vp the mind often to that diuine Lord from whom we haue receaued yt yt ys a fine thing to see a child who ys still looking vp towards his father yt ys pleasant to see a young bird or other creature that haue theyr eyes fixed vppon theyr breeder yt ys comely to see a disciple who hath dis aspest towards his master or a souldiour that often looketh towards his captayn God ys our father our mother our master our captayn yt ys therefore a most fit and conuenient thing that we often lift vp our eyes towards him for so many titles Let vs add herevnto how necessary yt ys for vs to cary our selues towards him in this manner although we were not dependant vppon his diuine maiesty for admitting all that cā be said yet he ys God that ys the most perfect nature that can be imagined I a man replenished with a thousand imperfections and all reason would that the things which be inferiour and of small perfection should acknowledg theyr superiours and those whose perfection ys much greater Now how can we better acknowledg him for most perfect then by lifting vp our mindes often vnto him by meanes of prayer and by acts of loue and how great will be the fruit which the practise of this action will bring when yt ys done well often as yt ought to be Yf the diuell should tempt vs neuer so violently and should endeuour to draw vs from our estate and cast vs to the ground yf then we cast our eyes vppon God we shall fynd that he ys then àt hand and by him we shal be established in such sort that we shall not be remoued on hayre from the place we were in and so we know yt happened to the Prophet who said Providebam dominum in conspectu meo semper quoniam a dextris est mihi ne commouear I fore saw our Lord in my sight alwayes because he ys at my right hand that I be not moued And yf yt should chaunce that the diuell should take vs in his snares before we be aware yet euen then lifting vp our eyes to God we shal be deliuered Oculi mei semper ad dominum quoniam ipse euellet de laqueo pedes meos My eyes alwayes to our Lord for he will pull my feet out of the snare Yf we be afflicted either with coporall or spirituall hunger fixing our eyes vppon God we shal be aboundantly replenished Oculi omnium in te sperant domine tu das illis escam in tempore opportuno The eyes of all hope in thee o Lord and thou giuest them meat in tyme conuenient Yf we stand in need of spirituall light and particular grace lifting vp our selues and drawing neere to his diuine maiesty we shal be satisfyed Accedite ad eum illuminamini facies vestrae non confundentur Come to him be illuminated your faces shall not be cōfounded Delectare in domino dabit tibi petitiones cordis tui be delighted in our Lord and he will giue thee the petitions of they hart He which intendeth to travaile to some strang country shall fynd yt very profitable yf he learn the language of that country whilest yt he remayneth in his owne yf then we doe purpose to goe to heauen why doe we not learn in the meane tyme to lift vp our eyes to God whom we are to behould without intermission or wearines when we are in that happy place But put the case we should not reape any profit thereby at all yet what a delight cótentment ys yt to haue leaue to fixe our eyes vppon the most beautifull pleasant thing that possible can be found to be permitted to stay behoulding the fountayne of all delights what an honour ys yt to be admitted to behould that first chefest pattern of all beauty the which whosoeuer doth continually behould eyther ys God or an Angell or a saint what contentment doe we giue to those blessed spirits in so doing who as they doe thē selues continually fixe theyr eyes vppon God with all delight and perseuer in his praises so yt ys most gratefull vnto them that all creatures should doe the same especially reasonable creatures who were made to that end How much doth yt displease and torment the diuell who ys Loth we should doe the least thing in acknowledging our duty to almighty God and truly yt were well done of vs thus to doe though yt were for no other respect then to shew our selues to be contrary to so cruell an enemy who would not acknowledg God as his maker nor humble himself vnto him Finally how reasonable a thing ys yt that we should imitate the word incarnate of whō yt ys read that he did often lift vp his eyes not only those of his soul but of his body also towards heauen thereby to raise himself towards God the father although he needed no such help In like manner to imitate also the saints who vsed often to looke vp and behould the heauens seeking thereby to vnite themselues to God and to shew the loathing they had to earthly loue Motiues for the better flying of that

the second person in trinity no other person should be incarnat But because in likelyhood the history would seeme to contayne more then this the memory shall passe further shall propound other conditions of God and shall say The diuine nature ys so perfect yt ys naturally so proper vnto yt to be most farr from all imperfection and defect especially of that kind which hath any resemblāce or shadow of sinne that yt will not by any meanes admit the least iott thereof eyther in yt self or in any thing that belongeth vnto yt but rather to speake after our manner supposing he could suffer himself to be ouerruled by passion of hate or colher he should be so ouerruled with them towards synne and synfull defects that he would wholy destroy them Here shall the vnderstanding reply Therefore that he might not contract any like stayne in making himself man for that he well knew the castisement which he had ●aid vppon Adam for the synne that he had committed to wit that all should be borne in originall synne proceeding from him by way of generation betweene man and woman he did therefore resolue not to begotten or brought forth in this manner And as he ys wisdome yt self he did presently see that the fittest manner would be to be borne of a woman without ceparation of mā Nor did his most perfect nature content yt self with this but would vnite vnto himself a body which should be in all respects most perfect And because a tinge ys then more perfect when yt ys framed of more perfect matter and when yt hath also other accidentall dispositions more perfect in theselues he did therefore resolue that the woman of whom he would be borne should be amost pure Virgin to the end that framing his body and flesh of her purest bloud the same should also be most pure and without all imperfection Here shal the memory suggest God doth not only permit himself according to our manner of vnderstanding to be ouercome with the passion of Loue in bearing affection to mankind but likewise in his affection to vertue and in particular to humility Yea I doe remember I haue read in S. Bernard that humility ys so pleasing o God that yt seemeth to haue power ouer him yea to commaund him and that Virginity yt self doth not please without yt Hereof the vnderstanding shall inferr Therefore he would not take flesh of any one that had beene only a virgin vnlesse shee had beene also humble And therefore with his diuine vnderstanding vnto which all things are present and manifest he did clearely see that Mary the spouse of Ioseph in Nazareth had both these vertues ioyned together in great perfection so determined to make her his mother Here finally the memory shall adioyne God hath imperiall digniti and absolute dominion ouer all creatutures Then the vnderstanding shall say Here vppon as supreame King and Lord of the Angels to vvhom yt belongeth to serue himself of his subjects he called vnto him Gabriell the archanhell and deliuered and declared his diuine vvill and pleasure committing vnto him the embassage vvhich in his name should be deliuered to the Virgin vvherefore the Euangelist saith very vvell Missus est Angelus Gabriel c. The Angell Gabriell vvas sent c. The discourse being ended in this manner yf peraduenture he desyre not to make so long stay as to search out the cause why almighty God made choise rather of the archangell Gabriell then any other let him 〈…〉 en beginne to apply yt vnto himself as he did in the first manner of dilating afore set down to draw out thereof some one or two lights according to his need and according as his discourse doth lead him For example here he may say Yf almighty God before he sent the Angell dovvn to the earth do ponder and think so diligently vppon the matter he had in hand yf he permit himself to be ouercome by the passiō of Loue tovvards men yf he doe presently and vvithout delay goe about to remedy theyr miseryes yf the three diuine persons doe striue in such manner who shall be in●arnat yf God doe so carefully avoid ●n the manner of his conception all re●emblance and shadow of synne yf he make choise of a mother that ys both ●ure a Virgin and humble yf he ●mploy that dominion he hath ouer An●el in the seruice of men yt ys then doubtlesse most conuenient that I doe ●se to forethink prudently what vville ●he successe of my actions before I be●eginne them that I also doe suffer my self to be transported vvith the passion of loue tovvards his diuine majesty to the accomplishment of his diuine vvill vvhatsoeuer that I presently goe in ●and vvith the vvork and shevv in effect vvhat I haue in affection that I striue and contend euen vvith the best for my greater vnion vvith God and better performance of his seruice that I fly from all perilles yea and from the ●hadovv of sinn that I haue in most high estimation bo●h humility and peuer●y and finally that I imploy all h●● I haue can in the seruice of almighty God Hauing gathered out these lights he shall stirr vp in himself answerable vnto them or vnto some of them which be more necessary for him at that present such affections as be most corespondent to thē fit for his estate as ys aboue s 〈…〉 he shall dilate them continue the in such manner as shal be said heareafter drawing thē to practicall purposes as ys before touched in the most effectuall manner he can to the end he may draw out of the meditation the 3. vtilityes before specified to wit Lighs Affections a●● Resolutions The differences betvveene the tvvo foresaid manners of dilating THis ye the second manner of exercising the powers of the soule in tyme of meditation which ys different from ●he first principally in two ●heefe points First because ●hat former manner doth suppose for a ground that we be●inn with seeking out the per●ons the actions and words which are cōtayned in the mi●tery and these supposed doth endeuour to search out whe●her there be conveniency or ●n conveniency from one to the ●ther obseruing what conformity there ys betweene the cōditions of the party and the actions or words which procude from the same and so on the contrary side what condition or coherence the actions and words haue with the person from which they proceed an● this supposing one actiō or or● word alone Then he goeth about to search what othe● words or actions were requisite in decorum or likely in probability that should be done o● spoke by that person to who● belongeth that word or action● Yea in the meane tyme while this ys searching out he considereth also whether in lykelyhood there were not in dee● some such spokē or performe● by that person and for the be●ter fynding out there of he doth serue himself of the known conditions of the same