they are cruel who unbraid and deride them or expose them to the derision of others by discovering their sins to whom they should be as merciful and charitable in concealing as if they were their own not forgetting the severe sentence of S. James Judgement without mercy be unto him that doth no mercy Consider how God is so pleased with mercy shewed to our Neighbour that to such only as do it he hath promised mercy And withall hath commanded us to beg for pardon and remission of our sins as we remit and fully forgive them who trepass against us And that so freely and absolutely as not to retain the least rancor or malice in our hearts Which to accomplish when any enmity or uncharitable thought is slily creeping into thy heart reflect thine eye on Christ crucified who as saith S. Bernard to heap mercies on mercies gave his life and out of his wounded side brought forth the price of satisfaction whereby he fully pacified his Father according to the words of David With our Lord is mercy and plentiful redemption Hereupon thou mayst infer that whosoever seek for mercy and security in Christs wounded side must come like Noe's Dove to the window of the Ark that brought an Olive-branch in his Beak which is the type of mercy and peace To signifie they must be merciful and charitable to others who expect to find mercy there O my soul arise and shake off those dull cogitations of enmity that surcharge thy heart that thou mayst nimbly fly and be like the Dove nestling in the hole of the Rock the pierc'd and patient side of thy Saviour That when thou art pursued by the Enemy like a Dove by the Hawk that shrowds himself in the hole of a rock here thou mayst find succour and secure thy self Here is the gate of mercy and pity which always stands wide-open where at all times thou mayst find habour in the secure calm of mercy To be merciful is to have a grievous and pitiful heart Ah! how pitiful was that wounded heart of thy Saviour which for thy sake was pierc'd through with a Spear Compassionate and have with him a heart wounded with grief and pity Commiserate the distressed members of his mystical Body in him and then thou canst not but be merciful to thy self and find mercy for thy self being one of his O merciful Redeemer I behold blood and water streaming from thy heart and issuing out of thy wounded side By that precious blood I was redeemed and made one of thine And by the water of Baptism I was purified and made one of thine To persevere still and continue one of thine still may that door of mercy thy wounded side be open unto me May I be dead to the world and sin that wounded as with a Spear with true love and charity I may never by sin cause this gate of mercy to be shut against me Thou O Lord didst vouchsafe to give freely the last drops of blood which were in thy heart for a more compleat Redemption Grant I beseech thee that I may spend the remnant of my days in thy holy service in works of mercy spiritual and corporal that finally I may obtain mercy through thee my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Amen O my soul consider what it is to find mercy through Jesus Christ to which thou so often sayst Amen or So be it It is to find mercy by the vertue and merits of his bitter Passion Yet this will not suffice if thou beest not merciful to him likewise in his So great is the vertue of Mercy saith S. Leo that without it all other vertues will not profit thee No though a man be faithful chaste and sober and endued with singular ornaments yet if he be not merciful he deserves not mercy And remember that thy works of mercy must be done through Christ our Lord to be dignified by vertue of his Passion and for his sake otherwise they shall have no reward The right hand must not know what the lest hand doth No sinister or by-intention must intrude A charitable work must be a work of justice when we render to God the glory only due to him and to our selves reserve the reward which promised we expect Nay more an Alms hath the honour to be call'd Justice it self For our Saviour adviseth us to beware that we do not our Justice before men that we may be seen by them and have the applause and praise of men In fine Who would not in this manner be merciful that knows in the old Law no Sacrifice Ox or Sheep might be offered in the Temple that had not a tail which in a mystical sense might prefigure that even in the Law of Grace no work of mercy which is a kind of Sacrifice to God can be acceptable which hath not an end that is a right intention tending to Gods honour and for his sake If we cry out with Zachaeus Ecce Behold when he gave so great an Alms as the moity of his Goods it may seem to savour of ostentation till we add farther with him Domine Behold O Lord I give to thee what is thine as to Caesar what is his in respect of his figure stamp'd in it So in my Alms I behold thee and contribute thine for thy sake like Zachaeus little considering my poor ability yet present a work like the Widow with her Mite great in regard of a free and willing heart Should I give it to be magnified by others What could I behold therein but mine own shape like a Narcissus enamored with himself court the shadow and lose the substance An Alms is a work of Redemption Redeem thy sins by Alms works of mercy It is an entire Expiation Give Alms and all shall be pure unto you The Sixth BEATITUDE Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God EMBLEME VI. The Fig-Tree Nec Cornisi punctum 6. So pierc'd and pierc'd with sorrow's dart Compunction from a sinners heart And eyes extracteth tears while grace The opposite to sin takes place OF this Tree there are several kinds differing according to the several Countries wherein they grow the name being generally attributed to all those Trees which bear a fruit that hath some resemblance to the Fig. But that which is the subject of the present Emblem grows commonly in Spain and Italy though possibly brought thither at first from some other parts of the World It bears a Fig without the production of any precedent Blossom which as it should seem hath in it during the time of its greenness a raw humour whose crudity is such that it ripeneth not till a certain Fly or Gnat gives it a prick or wound Soon after the Fig hath receiv'd that wound there distills from it a kind of tear which falls to the earth After which the Sun entring in at that narrow passage made by the Fly the Fig by degrees comes to maturity Behold here the Emblem of a Heart truly contrite wounded by
then he should do who loves any thing besides him according to Saint Augustine's opinion Fourthly He that is in mortal sin hath an impure Heart and loves not God Therefore to be clean of Heart and thereby blessed and by Grace in the way to see God I must imitate the pure white Ermine a little beast which rather chooseth to fall into the hands of the Hunter than make an escape through a dirty place and defile it self Me-thinks Christ our Saviour stretch'd and nail'd to the Cross resembles a Cross-bow which while I behold his Heart darting forth fiery Arrows of Love a clean and pure Heart seems like the White plac'd in the midst of a Butt at which it is aimed upon which representation I shall here insert a short Descant I long since made in Verse Tender Arms for our offence Drawn and stretch'd with violence Like a Bow-string now I see While upon the bloody Tree Cruel nails both long and rough Sacred Hands are piercing through Thus while tender Arms extend The string 's fastned at each end Jesus Heart is like the Nutt Of the Cross-bow where are put Nimble shafts with vigour sent Thus the Bow stands ready bent Sinners then prepare your Hearts From this bow flie wounding darts Stand his Butt th' Arrows glow As th' are flying from this bow Midst the Butt to place the White Stand his mark and let him smite Let him pierce and wound thy Heart With his torments pain and smart Shafts of sorrow grief and pain For thy sins return again So thy Soul being cleans'd from sin And by Grace made pure within Stand Christ's Butt that when contrite A clean Heart may be the White Such is a Heart disengaged and disenteressed from all inordinate desires that may soil or streighten that habitacle design'd and resign'd to God In such an absolute manner is this to be imagin'd that one may confidently say with King David Tuus sum ego Lord I am totally thine not mine own nor the worlds nor of the flesh nor of sin but entirely thine by a full resignation submission and oblation of my self To thee I dedicate an entire Heart with all my senses and cogitations all my words and works And restore unto thee what I had from thee a Soul washt and purified by Baptism and a Heart contrite with Grief and cleans'd again by true Repentance Yet still again and again to be wash'd and more and more purified If by the least mote the corporal Eye be obscur'd much more that of the Soul If I never cease till I have cleans'd and clear'd the one that I may have a perfect sight of each object which occurrs shall I not alwayes be cleansing and purifying that inward Eye which is capable when clear of the sight of God The Seventh BEATITUDE Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be called the Children of God EMBLEME VII The Wood-Bind Pacis conjunctio firma Thus while two foster deadly hate A third steps in to end debate Makes Peace unites both Hearts and Hands How blest is he who makes such bands TO make a better comprehension of this Beatitude the Devout Christian is to imagine that he sees two limber Stands or young shoots hardly able to support themselves on their tender roots and in perpetual agitation by reason of the violence of the wind which causes them to assault and injure each other till the Peace-making Wood-Bind gently twining it self about them takes away that opposition and disposes them to a certain reconciliation and friendship According to this representation the Wood-Bind which bears the Honey-Suckle a name derived from sweetness may well be the Emblem of the blessed Peace-maker who by the sweetness of his Couversation and Amicable Interposure in the Differences of his Neighbours endeavours to reconcile them In the Latine Tongue the Wood-Bind is called Mater Sylvae viz. The Mother of the Woods And peradventure it is for this reason That as a loving and indulgent Mother huggs and embraces her Child so this Plant clasps and twines it self about every other Tree that it can fasten on In like manner is it the endeavour of the blessed Peace-maker to dispose all those between whom he heareth there are any differences to Unity Peace and Concord making all other interests and concernments subservient to that grand one of bringing all things to composure and quiet And this is that whereto the Apostle writing to the Ephesians exhorts them viz. to walk with all lowliness and meekness long-suffering and forbearing one another in love endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace For Peace is the Hand-maid of Charity whose property it is to unite and take away all animosities jealousies distrusts and heart-burnings Justly therefore hath our Blessed Saviour pronounc'd him Blessed and the Child of God who like the Hony-Suckle by a sweet insinuation and affability endeavours to compose the Minds of the litigious and like the Wood-Bind is as ready to unite the contentious and dissatisfi'd into Amity as he is to make Peace within himself as in Charity he is bound And to this is it that the Apostle exhorts us when he sayes Have Peace and the God of Peace and Love will be with you But how comes it that the Peace-maker hath this particular prerogative and advantage to be called the Child of God We may imagine it proceeds hence that as God our Father is the God of Peace so we may pretend to the title of his Children if we are like him and look on it as our concernment to make Peace between Men. We may also upon this further consideration be called the Children of God that he who came into the world to reconcile it and to bring us that Peace which passeth all understanding hath vouchsafed to call us Brethren Nay that great Saviour and Peace may seem to have their birth at the same instant for then was it that there was a Proclamation made by Celestial Heralds to wit the Angels that Peace should be on Earth and good will towards Men. Then like the chearful break of day appear'd that beauteous Peace fore-told by the Prophet Esay whereof there should be no end inasmuch as it came with that Son whose other titles are clos'd with this that he was to be the Prince of Peace It is no other then our Blessed Saviour Christ himself who is the great Peace-maker and came like the Wood-Bind to unite a pair of shoots as I may term them to wit Justice and Mercy which were opposite while the wrath of God like a violent wind incited Justice to Revenge which Mercy oppos'd What a conflict was between these two till our Lord on the Cross like a Wood-Bind united them in one As David by a prophetique spirit said Mercy and Truth that is to say Justice have met together Justice and Peace or Mercy have kissed each other like two branching shoots surrounded by a Wood-Bind which onely Christ could do the great
art always displease thee if thou wilt arrive to what thou art not For saith he elsewhere wherever thou makest a stop without proceeding any further there thou pleasest only thy self A man must not therefore six a Ne plus ultra to his better thoughts and Actions but go on like this Tree and be continually supply'd with good Desires as that produceth new shoots which as it were grasp the Earth to take a firmer and fuller possession thereof Moreover we finde by experience that when a Tree is slightly planted or its roots decay'd there needs no great storm to overthrow it Such is that man who is not humbly meek and patient One violent puff of anger is able to dispossess him of the Land yea and of his own Soul which cannot be possess'd but by patience nor by any but the meek and humble Now if you demand why the meek are rather said to possess the Land than any other Element I answer While our Saviour was mortal he appeared to his Disciples walking on the waves of the Sea to intimate thereby the mutability of man during this life But after his Resurrection having a glorified Body he stood on the firm Land to signifie as S. Gregory expounds that after this life man shall enjoy a permanent tranquillity and repose in the Land of the Living The Earth patiently as I may say supports all and continues immovable So doth the meek and humble man while the haughty and impatient are inconstant like the Air turbulent like the Sea and crackle and sparkle like the Fire When the like happeneth unto thee reflect thine eye on the sacred Head of thy Redeemer meekly bowing down while the ungrateful Jews revile and blaspheme against him where he saith Learn of me for I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest in your Souls tranquillity in your though is and in fine that solid land that shall render you for ever happy the Land of the living which I now purchase for you the Land of Promise into which I am your Joshua to conduct you from Egypt the World a Land of Servitude to a Land of Freedom and Immunity from feeding on Garlick and Onions to taste the sweet Repast of Angels CONSIDERATIONS ON THE II. BEATITUDE Of the bowing down of our Blessed Saviour's Head HAving in the precedent Beatstude learn'd a lesson of Poverty by the consideration of our Saviours nakedness on the Cross behold here his sacred Head meekly bowing down whereby is expressed the second Beatitude Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit or possess the Earth Now as those Waters which lye next the Shore may be said to possess the Shore at least during a Calm so it can only be affirmed of the meek and patient man that he possesseth his Soul according to the words of our Saviour In your patience you shall possess your Souls and Learn of me for I am meek and humble of heart and you shall find rest to your Souls a quiet calm and sweet repose To be meek is to converse without giving offence and to bear injuries without thought of Revenge or perturbation of Mind as our Lord did with head meekly inclin'd while the Jews uttered Blasphemies and Contumelies against him Having this Precedent still before my eyes I will resolve in this Book to study meekness and patience not rendring evil for evil but by good to overcome evil And the better to conceive the excellency of Meekness I will make a lively representation to my self of the Vice which is contrary thereto by a swelling and tempestuous Sea whose Billows rais'd by the Winds violently beat against the Rocks on the Shore Foaming thus with fury are the wrathful and impatient Then reflect thine eye on our Lord meekly bowing down his Head like a calm Sea or like a Sheep despoil'd of his Fleece naked on the Cross opening not his mouth but to pray for his Enemies saying Father forgive them for they know not what they do Think what Land it is which the meek shall possess If the Earth thy Body thou shalt have possession of it and dominion over it by meekness while thy Passions are subject to reason Contrariwise the wrathful are so transported that losing as 't were themselves they are cast out of possession of themselves while the Heart swells with Envy the Eyes sparkle with Fury the Feet are running and the Hands ready to execute Revenge like one fallen into a deep River who not able to swim nor touch ground with his Feet is overwhelmed and in danger of drowning Behold the state of an angry and revengeful Man who possesseth not the Land of solid Patience being wholly drown'd in his turbulent Passions loseth himself utterly for a time as a man distraught whom by meekness God should here possess in the Land of the Dying that he may be possessed of God for ever in the Land of the Living which is promised to the meek Let him therefore who is become so absolutely a slave to that passion make this short Ejaculation to the great Exemplar of Meekness O patient Redeemer and meek Lamb who takest away the sins of the World If by beholding the brazen Serpent the poyson of Serpents was expelled how can I behold thee the pure and unspotted mirror of Meekness and yet retain enmity and rancor in my heart If no storms and blustring winds are predominant at Sea while the Halcyon is nestling and brooding neer the shore grant all stormy Passions may be allay'd by thy powerful presence in my heart by thee only who art the solid Land and my total happiness which I beseech I may possess here on Earth by Grace and afterwards in Glory Let Worldlings contend and vex themselves about recovery or possession of Lands of which they must in fine be dispossess'd It is good for me to adhere to God and seek him in the Land of the Living where the humble meek and patient whose Hearts on Earth were a place of sweet repose enjoy him in eternal tranquillity The Kingdom of Heaven is within you saith our Lord And consequently that firm and compleat tranquillity of Heaven begins on Earth by Grace to be perfected by Glory Within this little Kingdom of ours what a commotion is rais'd by wrath what a perturbation by enmity what a rebellion when Meekness and Patience is banished out of the Soul by Passion When such mutinies therefore arise within me whither shall I hasten for redress To whom shall I seek for assistance but to the wounded Head of my Saviour meekly bowing down to give me the kiss of Peace and infuse meekness into my Soul But now alas he is not able by words to command the storm to cease as he did when his Apostles feared drowning No. But will it not suffice to pacifie thee O my Soul enrag'd to behold thy Lord and meek Lamb more firmly fix'd by patience and meekness then by the nails that transfix'd his hands and feet What a commotion
compunction and pierc'd with sorrow which before while it was green was not in a capacity to receive the influences of the Sun of Righteousness and consequently could not be ripned till a passage was made for the evacuation of the peccant humour that so the beams of grace might efficaciously work upon it Let us then consider that if this delicate fruit does upon its piercing or wounding distil tears and that in order to its attainment of maturity it is much more requisite that the devout Christian should endure the stings of remorse and compunction in order to his being advanc'd to that perfection which is requir'd in the pure of Heart To this end is it that a Man ought sometimes as Saint Augustine sayes to make his appearance at the Tribunal of his own Soul where his own Thoughts will be his Accusers his Conscience the Witness and Grief the Executioner to wound the sinful Heart Then saith he let the blood as it were of the Soul fâ—w and issue forth by tears Notwithstanding all this Who saith Solomon will glory that he hath a clean Heart True it is no Man should glory herein but give the Glory onely to God Yet since the pure of Heart shall onely see God such purity of Heart is required as is produc'd by the expulsion of sin and infusion of Grace Therefore David humbly desired that his sin might be blotted out and that within him might be created a clean Heart Not a new Heart created but purity therein which being produc'd without any precedent merit of the finners part may be term'd a Creation Therefore Saint Paul tells us That Charity which is the same spiritual quality with Grace is transfus'd into our Souls which gives life and vigour in some sort as the Soul created and infus'd informs and gives life and motion to the body Me-thinks a Fig when but green pierc'd and wounded as it were by the Gnat lies expos'd to the bright and hot beams of the Sun as the Heart of a sinner doth to the Sun of Justice when 't is plerc'd by compunction Ah! what Light of Faith and heat of Love enters through those new â—ade passages of the Contrite Heart by which it becomes as it were a new Heart ripened by Virtue and embellished by Grace Now elevate thine Eyes to behold the wounded Heart of our Lord not with the sting of a Gnat but with a sharp Spear not to receive any light or heat of Consolation but to lay out the entire summ of that infinite treasure of his precious blood besides water to purifie thy impure Soul that thou mayst be blessed and see God thereby to enjoy eternal Beatitude CONSIDERATIONS ON THE VI. BEATITUDE On our Blessed Saviour's wounded Heart HAving in the Fifth Beatitude like a Dove nestling in the hole of a Rock as at the Gate of Mercy entred by Contemplation into Christ's wounded side now make a step farther or rather with reverence stay and view his wounded Heart most pure and clean where sin could never find entrance and say with the Patriarch Jacob Verily here is no other than the House of God and the Gate of Heaven This is the Blessed One pure of Heart who ever had the happy sight of God Consider what it is to be clean of Heart It is to be the Temple of the Holy Ghost To be in the state of Grace that is not guilty of any mortal sin And since the Heart is the Source and Fountain whence our thoughts perpetually flow to suppress all impure cogitations as they are rising is to have a clean Heart when it is accompanied with a pure intention directing all our actions to the Honor and Glory of God And as Saint Augustine saith Whatsoever we do whatsoever we laudably desire must tend to obtain the Vision of God beyond which nothing can be desired Think of the Question propounded by King David O Lord Who shall dwell in thy Tabernaele or who shall rest in thy holy hill And then attend to the Answer which is this He that liveth uprightly and worketh righteousness c. This is a hard saying Must the Heart be so clean as not to have one spot The Child but a day old is not free and in his Angels God found iniquity Who then shall be justified in his sight Or who can be clean of Heart while the All-seeing Eye of Heaven beholds it Appeal then to the pure Heart of thy Saviour rely on his Innocence not on thine own on his merits not on thine Seeing that Vessel of Election said he was guilty of nothing and yet in that he was not justified yet doubted not to say A Crown of righteousness was due unto him which the just Judge would give him I will therefore say with David O Lord turn away thy face of thy severe Justice from my sins And with him add further Shew me thy face that is to say of thy mercy and I shall be saved According to thy great mercy and multitude of thy mercies cancell my iniquity wash me again from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin that I may be clean of Heart to enjoy thy sight O my Soul Keep thy Heart as the Wise man adviseth thee with all kind of custody for out of it saith he proceeds life Keep it pure let not in one mortal sin to defile it for then from the Heart would proceed Death destruction of Grace and loss of the sight of God for Grace is the seed of Glory Let thy Heart be ploughed by Contrition harrow'd and cleans'd from the weeds of sin that this divine seed may be sowen in thy Heart which springs up by holy desires and is ripened by virtuous exercises O my God thou hast commanded me to love thee with an entire pure and sincere Heart Give me I beseech thee what thou commandest by creating in me a clean Heart and renewing a right Spirit in my bowels that I may love thee with all my Soul that my Will may be resign'd to thine without any contradiction with all my Mind and Memory alwayes to think of thee and with all my powers that I may employ them in thy service To perform all these things I must observe four things First Seeing all I am and have Body and Soul spiritual and temporal blessings I have from God I must be alwayes mindfull of his benefits Serve honour and thank him for all love him above all and for him my Neighbour Secondly I must consider the excellency of God And seeing he is infinitely greater than our Heart though we serve him with all our Heart and powers of our Soul yet are we defective and insufficient and must therefore think we never do enough Thirdly We must not suffer the world to usurp the least corner of our Heart by disordinate Love for that were injurious to God as was the placing of the Idol Dagon by the Ark. He is too covetous saith Saint Jerom whom God cannot satiate And he loves God less
unmindful amidst the jollity of a life spent in delights and vanities that they are blessed who mourn 4. Can I fix mine eye on his sacred Mouth crying out I thirst and not be presented with a remembrance of that true happiness which he pronounc'd to those who hunger and thirst after righteousness as he himself did while he conceiv'd himself streightned and thought the time tedious till his hour was come to suffer and satisfie for us in all rigor of justice 5. As for his wounded Side streaming forth bloud and water how can it but revive and rub up the memory of the dullest and most unmerciful man How can he behold that side pierc'd and not be wounded with pity and commiseration towards the necessitous How can he see that side exhausted of its last treasure of precious bloud for his redemption and yet forget the poor and not relieve the miserable 6. But when he passeth further and by the rift comes to behold his Saviour's wounded Heart O what a copious and fertile place is there for a devout Art of Memory Who reads not there Blessed are the pure of heart Who finds not there the Urim and Thummim words which were inserted in the High Priest's Brest-plate but now in a more perfect manner enclos'd within the pure heart of our High Priest Christ Jesus What illuminations what ardors which Urim signifie what perfections what integrities expressed by Thummim were confin'd within the narrow limits of that divine heart which still open still invites the sinner to cleanse with that sacred water and purifie with that precious bloud his spotted and defiled heart which must be by receiving a wound of true compunction in his own for the cleansing whereof the most innocent and pure heart of his Lord and Saviour was so pierced 7. Now for as much as there is a secret sympathy and correspondence between the heart and the hand who can elevate his eyes to Christ's right hand nail'd to the Cross and not call to minde that Blessed are the peace-makers and among them that great Peace-maker who being our Mediator interpos'd himself between God and us and received the wounds and heavy chastisement which our heinous sins deserved Who can behold both his hands lifted up to heaven and not call to mind our innocent Abel whose bloud cries to heaven for mercy to reconcile us to his Father Who can see those sacred hands fasten'd to the Cross and not reflect that he ought to be so far from inciting others to dissention that it should be his main endeavour to fasten their hands by an amicable composure of their differences and a charitable mediation between them 8. Lastly inasmuch as Persecution belongs to the Feet either to fly or stay and suffer descend from thy Saviour's sacred Hands to his Feet in like manner transfix'd with nails Who is it that can humbly kiss the right foot with a kind of hope to be plac'd on Christ's right hand and forbear to do the like to the left with a compliant heart ready to suffer persecution for righteousness sake Can our memory so far fail us as when we fix our eyes on these tender feet to be forgetful how they were blister'd with long journies in the search of lost souls and at last how with weary and feeble steps they ascended Mount Calvary to that extream persecution thereby to enfranchise us and make us capable of admission into the Kingdom of Heaven Thus may we behold our second Adam naked yet encompassed with Beatitudes that he might cloath the sinful naked Adam who was environed with miseries If to remember the last things be not to sin certainly to be vers'd in this Art of Memory will be not only to eschew evil but also to do good and to acquire that Beatitude which makes a man eternally happy And whereas I have so often mentioned this Art of Memory I now come to bestow some few lines by way of direction to satisfie their curiosity who are lovers of it in order to the advantage they may make thereof LOCAL MEMORY depends on several places dispos'd at a certain distance one from the other purposely consign'd to quicken the Memorative power And this is wrought by presenting one thing to it by the representation of some other accompany'd with a reason why that other was there placed this means Remembrance or Reminiscence which is an attendant to Reason presents us with that which we had otherwise forgotten Nay to use S. Augustine's words We had forgotten it in some sort yet by that part of the thing which we remembred which was the reason why we seek the other part which we remember not For the Memory being at a loss for want of a full notion desireth what is wanting may be added which is the Reason left in the place and the thing which I left there that at my return I might find it by Reminiscence To render what hath been said the more easily comprehensible by example My place which like the first matter stands in an indifferency as to all forms or as soft Wax susceptible of all impressions shall be Jonas swallowed up by the Whale which I seem really to behold Now if I am for instance to commit Vsury to this place I give my reason to my self to wit because it devours men in their Estates Again if the word or matter of Obedience occur I place it on the Whale which commanded by the power of Heaven was ready to receive Jonas cast over-board by the Mariners If afterwards at some other time Innocence either in word or matter is to be placed on or about the Whale I dispose it in the jaws of that Monster with my reason because they did not crush or so much as hurt Jonas in the reception of him Nay to be short what is there but may be according this Art placed on the Whale swallowing Jonas For instance If solemn vows or promises if prayers and repentance I place them on Jonas If I would remember Pride I place it on the Nostrils of the Whale spoutiâ—â— out water into the air If Humility I place it on Musculus a little fish which as some affirm always goes before the Whale If Arrogance occur or Ambition I lay it on the Mountain of Water which its vast back raises up If Strength and Impetuosity I place them on the tail In fine if Combination of little ones to confront the greater I place it on a shole of Herrings attempting to encounter the Whale The like Method is to be us'd as to other heads And this is a summary account of Local or Artisicial Memory Now if the Prophet David doubted not to say to God himself Why dost thou turn away thy face Why hast thou forgotten to be gracious And Lord remember David and all his troubles Why may not I and that I hope without offence affirm that a kind of Local Memory may be attributed to God Nay why not much rather remembrance then forgetfulness
desolations of soul Then make a generous resolution for the time to come with a humble resignation to desire or have nothing but with conformity to his holy Will and Pleasure and say O most poor and most enriching Lord who dost invest and cloath all yet on the Cross art naked Bounteous in thy spiritual Graces and Favours yet so poor in Spirit and Desire that thou hast no place whereon to rest thy dying head yet hast promised a Kingdom to those who with thee are poor in Spirit Behold I renounce here whatsoever the flattering World shall allure me with I abandon all rather than forsake thee Nay not only these exterior things but I also desire to be so naked and poor in Spirit as not to have a Memory but to call to mind and think often of thy infinite Mercy and Love towards me no Vnderstanding but to ruminate and seriously ponder thy manifold Sufferings and Benefits conferred on me no Will but to love thee and my Neighbour in and for thee In such sort that being entirely resign'd to thy holy Will and Pleasure I may say with thine Apostle I live now not I but Christ lives in me Were not he in some sort poor in Spirit that should if it were possible live and breathe move and speak by 〈…〉 own Such was S. Paul's in whom Christ I may say lived and breath'd mov'd and spake Contrariwise How rich were he in Spirit in Will and Desire whose Soul should be wholly addicted to Self-love and proper Interest That breathes nothing wherein Christ is concerned but pursues only Ambition a Spirit that swells and puffs up the heart That moves not but by the agitation of a coveting Spirit Like a Silk-worm in fine to involve it self in a web of darkness and oblivion It is a great and shameful abuse saith S. Bernard for Man a poor and abject Worm greedily to covet Riches for whom the Lord of Majesty vouchsafed to bee poor A shame to be always toiling and weaving like a Silk-worm which as it shrowds it self more and more is the nearer death to leave to Posterity a silken web for Pride as a Parent doth often-time his Inheritance after a life unhappily consum'd in avaritious Desires which like a gloomy Cloud had so darkened the eye of the Soul that she which had been infus'd into the Body like a ray from Heaven was even obscurity it self As S. Augustine complains The blindness of mans heart is so great and the inward ear of the Soul so deaf that he desires to have all things but himself which must be such a Self as he may truly say with David What is there in Heaven for me and being poor in Spirit what do I desire on Earth but thee My flesh and heart faints and languisheth my Spirit is poor and enfeebled to all that which this World presents me with Thou O Lord art the God of my heart my portion my God for ever Unhappy then are the avaritious who have a god Gold their Idol but not for ever rich in the desire of earthly trash but unhappily poor in Spirit that aspire not to the possession of that Treasure which no rust shall canker nor length of time consume How can I behold the naked Blossom springing from the Cornell-Tree in cold February and not remember how I came into this wretched World exposed to Hunger Thirst cold heat weariness Infirmities Death Poor Blossom Man How soon blasted how suddenly withered which all thy leafy Riches cannot prevent Who then would not rather be poor in Spirit as naked in his Affections to worldly pelf as his Saviour dying naked on the Cross But naked to enrich me hungring and thirsting there but to save me cold to infuse into my Soul the ardors of his Love expos'd to heat but to quench my immoderate Desires weary to refresh me weak to strengthen me and finally dying to give me a life of eternal Beatitude in a Kingdom which he hath promised to the poor in Spirit I will consider why King Danid is said to have swept his Spirit meditating with his heart in the night Was it not by sweeping to cast out of doors the dust of worldly cogitations and terrene desires which like dust obscures and even blinds the eyes of the Soul Was he not poor in Spirit when he had swept together and cast out the dust of transitory things that he might contemplate the eternal Therefore he said in the precedent verse That he had thought of the ancient days and time of Mans life wherein he enjoys Riches and worldly felicity to which he opposing the Riches of Heaven and Eternity says He retain'd in mind the everlasting years If we have our several rooms in the vast habitacle of our Soul none is so often to be swept as that where intrudes sollicitude to be harboured accompanied with care and anxiety of mind together with fear that presents us with the future losses or crosses which may occur And therefore for prevention all the powers of the Soul are summoned to be vigilant and cautious for the safegard and increase of wealth by which poverty in Spirit and Will is cast out of doors The Second BEATITUDE Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the Earth EMBLEME II. The Indian Fig-Tree Sic suvat esse tenacem-2 So do the Meek to fix their Roots Humbly let down as many Shoots As good Desires which spring from Love Take root in Heaven the Land above THis Tree above all others may be said to be possessed of or to inherit the Earth For the Branches of it bending downwards to the ground no sooner touch it but they immediately take root and grew up into other Trees which afterwards produce others so that in time they spread over all the ground they meet with and yet all though stragling over a great quantity of ground way be sold to be but one Tree Another thing commonly observ'd of these Trees is that they afford a secure retreat not only to the wild Boars and other Beasts but also to the Inhabitants of those Countries where they grow who having garrison'd themselves within them defie all Enemies In like manner a pious and fructifying Soul in order to her possession of the Land of the Living produceth many active thoughts diffuses her self into good actions which yet obeying the check of Humility descends to be more deeply rooted Thus the Meek 〈◊〉 on and lay hold of that which is their heavenly Inheritance de virtute in virtutem passing from one Virtue to another and saying with S. Augustine As yet I follow yet I profit yet I walk yet I am in the way yet I dilate my self yet I arrive not Behold how like this Indian Fig-Tree the devout Soul makes her progress and advances forward still taking new root still laying faster hold never accounting her self secure or that she hath done enough as submitting to the advice of the same S. Augustine to wit this Let that which thou
what Saint Jerome saith That it will not suffice to desire Justice but we must hunger and thirst after it Yet never think our selves just enough but must more and more thirst after Justice as our Lord commands He that is just let him be more just and he that is holy more holy Consider what a hunger and thirst that is of the Worldling who still covets more and more Wealth The Voluptuous Man more and more Pleasure And the Ambitious Man more and more Honour Neither of these can have their fill because the Soul is of infinite capacity and therefore cannot be fill'd with all the world can poure into it Unhappy then are those Men who hunger and thirst yet never are satisfied And contrariwise Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness to whom is promised such fullness as shall wholly inebriate and satiate the Soul and Heart whose Capacity is immense and being created to enjoy God is insatiable and restless till it enjoyes his sight As Saint Augustine saith Because thou O Lord hast made us for thee our Heart is never at quiet until it comes unto thee O my soul be ever languishing and thirsting after this compleat happiness Is it possible thou shouldst have such a drought that naturally desiring to be blessed and fill'd with the glory of God thou shouldst notwithstanding hunger and greedily desire things upon earth and not those above O blessed Saviour thou didst thirst and they gave the vinegar and gall but to quench my thirst thou hast promised me the water of life so that I shall never thirst more Give me O Lord of this water for hitherto I have digg'd and sought it in the broken and leaking Cisterns of thy Creatures or in riches dignities and pleasures which never satiate Thou wert hungry after a fast of forty days and the Enemy presented thee with stones to be turn'd into bread But for me if I truly hunger after righteousness thou hast and dost give me the bread of life thy real body to feed and strengthen my soul to life everlasting This is the daily and supersubstantial bread which I should hunger after and for which I daily beg and without which I cannot subsist This was prefigured by Manna which relieved the Israelites in the Wilderness without which they had been famish'd Such is the desart of this world such thy true Body which unless a man eat and worthily eat he shall not have life in him Jesu be unto me a Saviour and redeem me from worldly vanities which like air never fill or satiate an hungry soul Thou art the Way lead and direct me Thou the Life revive and quicken me Thou my greatest and only Good make me hunger and thirst after thee Only after thee because all that can be desired may be found in thee which may incite to love If beauty thou O God art the fairest If benefits thou daily and liberally conferrest them on me If love to invite to love again thine is the greatest As my Creator thou gav'st me a being As my Redeemer thou freedst me from thraldom as a Preserver thou didst and dost deliver me from perils spiritual and corporal Therefore thy Prophet David said My soul hath thirsted after thee the living fountain To thee he thirsted who art the most amiable the most noble and most excellent Good a God and all things To thee he thirsted a strong God a good permanent immutable and eternal To thee a living God operative vigorous intellectual loving and conferring on me innumerable benefits How then can I do less then hunger and thirst after thee who art so good so gracious so bountiful so loving Nay how can I contain my self within the limits of thy Creatures that was created to so noble an end as is the blisful sight of Thee How can I forbear from crying out with thy servant David When shall I come and appear before thy face If I am a pilgrim thou wilt conduct me to my desired Countrey If I am hungry and thirsty thou wilt satiate me with the fruition of thy sight If I am naked thou wilt there cloath me with glory These things have I call'd to mind said David Psa 41. and thereupon I poured forth my soul within my self like a streamling to return to God my Ocean as a river doth to the sea whence it was deriv'd I have dilated my soul and extended her thirsting desire which nothing can satiate and fill but God only Nay more I have poured out my soul upon my self And there alas what could she find but one so poor as not any way able to quench her thirst who is capable of a Good immense Or when I poured out my soul upon my self as water streaming on the superficies of the earth I suffered it not to be suckt and swallowed up by self-love but to stream sorth towards that River which makes joyful the City of God Because I will said David pass on to enter into the place of the admirable Tabernacle even unto the house of God Even as a poor Beggar travelling on the rode in the heat of Summer being very weary leaves the high way to find some good Gentleman's house to be refresht and to quench his thirst so doth David thirsting say He will pass through all difficulties and obstacles whatsoever to arrive at Gods house there to quench his thirst lodg in that admirable Tabernacle But his arrival at the house of God being deferred he resolves to make use of local memory And to this end designs two special places the River Jordan and Mount Hermonijm When he beholds the first it puts him in mind of the River above which makes joyful the City of God and of the Torrent of delight of which the blessed are given to drink And when he casts his eye on the second he calls to mind the holy and blissful Mount of Heaven where God manifests himself to his Angels and Saints Therefore saith he I will be mindful of thee O God from the land of Tordan while I behold this river and likewise when I see the little Mount Hermonijm Who then fixing his eye on Mount Calvary can forget his Saviours sufferings or who can but remember how he hungred and thirsted after righteousness when he hears him cry out I thirst that is to say the salvation of mankind and that righteousness for us sinners whereby we are adopted and made the children of God The Fifth BEATITUDE Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy EMBLEME V. Adam's Apple-Tree Dum detrahis exigis auge Man merciful t' augment his store So cloaths and feeds the naked-poor For giving less he more receaves Such Trees are known by fruit and leaves THere hath such a particular notice been taken of this Tree in the several Countries where it grows that it is accordingly called by several names which yet we shall not give an account of in regard it is not so much the denomination as the Vertues
and Qualities that make it contribute to our design And therefore we shall with Gerard call it Adam's Apple-tre The merciful man which in the Latine Tongue is called Misericors is he who hath a sorrowful and compassionate heart for anothers misery a heart inclining him to relieve and succour such as stand in need of his assistance in their extream wants Such a merciful man may be design'd by this Tree whose Roots being as it were but small threads or fibres do shoot forth leaves that are five or six foot in length and near three in breadth Insomuch that they serve for Table-cloaths and Napkins and being dry'd they may serve for Mattresses and Quilts very convenient and soft to lye upon Behold here the Emblem of a merciful Man who parts with his leafy substance to cloath the naked to relieve the poor to supply the wants of the needy to succour the necessitous This is the man who by his charitable endeavours conceals the miscarriages and imperfections of his Neighbour For mercy when it is the issue of Charity hath the same prerogative with the Parent which is as St. Peter saith To cover a multitude of sins Moreover this Tree which groweth above the reach of an Elephant would continue a low shrub and the Leaves would bend downwards to the ground if they were not cut off from time to time by which means the Tree grows up higher and the Leaves become larger What can more pertinently denote the Merciful man who by a voluntary defalcation of the things of this World is rais'd so much the nearer Heaven I and the more freely he parts with the transitory goods of this life the greater treasure does he lay up for that hereafter By these advantages doth he still ascend higher and higher while others keeping all to themselves do like shrubs lye groveling on the Earth in their covetous desires There is this further Remark made upon this Tree that it needs be planted but once though it bears but one year For it continually shooteth forth new stalks as the old decay and in some Countries they are soon ripe after they spring and the Inhabitants will have ripe fruit from some of the Plants at all times The case is the same with the Merciful man who as soon as he hath done one act of Charity is ready to do another and so successively as if he were oblig'd to exhaust himself to supply others and this from time to time till his own be come to its period and that he leaves the young shoots of his posterity to succeed him in his good works Hereto we may add this further observation that besides this Tree there is only one other that hath a strange property to wit that which way soever their fruit be cut when it is come to maturity the meat thereof which is white as snow represents in the midst of it the figure of a Cross especially if it be cut in thin slices as commonly we do Cow-cumbers Thence is it that the Spaniards and Portugueze think it a crime to put a knife into it and are extreamly scandaliz'd to see it broken otherwise then with the teeth Hath not this some resemblance to the heart of a Merciful man who hath a certain fellow-feeling of the miseries and calamities of the poor whom he views with affliction of mind Which way soever he casts his eye of pity and beholds the distressed he compassionates them as if the like cross of adversity were fix'd in his heart If he behold his Saviour on the Cross his heart is wounded with pity as if the passion were figured in it Again if he view his Neighbour oppressed with wrongs or miseries he is so sensible thereof as if that very cross of affliction were engraven in his heart In a word he sees no man poor whom he pities not no man miserable whom he does not compassionate still like the fruit of this Tree cut bearing in his heart a cross by which he suffers with him Nay more while he beholds Christ in a poor man whom he pities and relieves he bears Christ's shape in his heart whom he likewise relieves Happy therefore is the merciful man that bears such a cross as renders him for ever blessed who no doubt may say with St. Paul God forbid I should glory in any thing but in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ Now fix thine eye on the bleeding side of Christ whose blood issued from a wounded heart where was always engraven a cross not only the instrument of his passion but as many crosses as were the sins of the World And as many as were the acts of mercy and compassion which he produc'd towards sinners Verè pius verè misericors And shall he evacuate not only his veins but likewise his heart Shall he disburse all the treasure of his most precious blood and yet wilt thou be so penurious and pitiless as not to relieve the necessitous with part of thy dross Ah! view and view again that bountiful and pitiful heart that streameth forth at his side and proclaims them blessed who are merciful and promiseth they shall obtain mercy CONSIDERATIONS ON THE V. BEATITUDE On the side of our Blessed Saviour bleeding FRom his sacred Mouth descend to his pierced side which may be likewise term'd a mouth as were all the wounds of his body that speak and proclaim him a bounteous and merciful Lord who having given all the blood of his body and veins for our Redemption would finally suffer his heart to be pierc'd that the last drops of his precious bloud might stream from thence for a fuller satisfaction or rather expression of his infinite Love Whereas the least drop thereof might have redeem'd many Worlds and reconcil'd to his Father as many Nations as he shed drops of blood Consider what a merciful giver was God the Father who so exceedingly loved man that he gave unto him his only begotten Son a Son likewise so good bounteous and merciful that he would annihilate and lessen himself by taking upon him the form of a Servant And after as the Factor did for one precious Pearl gave all his precious blood and life to purchase and redeem thy Soul and thereby obtain mercy for it Which notwithstanding thou shalt never find unless thou also be Merciful To whom To thy self and thy Neighbour To thy self according to the words of the Son of Syrach Take pity and compassion on thine own soul pleasing God Think how many Souls are languishing in sin How many starve for want of the food of Life the Blessed Sacrament How many groan under the heavy burden of sin And how merciless they are to themselves that rescent not the dangerous estate of their own souls To these thou art merciful when thou prayest for them or by word or example endeavourest to reclaim them Thou art merciful likewise when thou forgivest injuries or when thou dost commiserate and condole the defects and imperfections of others Contrari-wise
will be in the last slumbers of a dying life to say with the Prophet David In peace will I sleep and rest because thou O Lord hast singularly put me in hope to see an accomplishment of that peace which a soul enjoys or should enjoy on earth Which to acquire a man should imitate the Prophet David who sware and vowed to the mighty God of Jacob that he would not enter into the Tabernacle of his house nor go to his bed nor give sleep to his eyes nor slumbers to his eye-lids untill he had found out a place for the Lord an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob So great was his desire to build a Temple And as great should be my care and sollicitude to build at least prepare a place of repose for my Lord which must be in a quiet and peaceful conscience without which who can give sleep to his eyes or slumber to his eye-lids O my soul when shalt thou be so happy as to say with that peaceful King Solomon Arise O Lord into thy rest thou and the Ark of thy strength Where is that repose of mind Where that tranquillity of conscience to which thou shouldst invite him to arise and come into his rest he and the Ark of his strength which is his powerful grace whereby enabled thou mayst silence and pacifie thy mutinous thoughts that rise up against thee to disturb thy peace Here I will seem to behold the Kine yoked drawing the Ark toward Bethsames while their Calves shut up were bleating To which they as it were shut their ears and went on not declining to the right hand nor to the left Thus must he do that bears the Ark of strength What are our brutish appetites what disordinate concupiscence what avaricious desires what are injuries that call upon us for revenge but calves that would be suckled and pampered These are they that disturb our peace these that are so obstreperous as to disquiet the soul never ceasing to allure her to return with loss of that peace and rest which is acquired by bearing the Ark of strength and sanctification which is the peace of God that overcomes all sense fortifies the heart in such sort that it resents not injuries and temporal losses or at least bears all with such patience as if it were insensible Such a heart may be both Altar and Sacrifice resembling the Pacifique oblation in the old Law which was an Ox or a Sheep or Goat being a figure of a triple peace with God our Neighbour and our self With God who by our submission and hearty contrition is instantly pacified With our Neighbour resembled by the Sheep who when good is soon appeas'd if bad figured by the Goat when mov'd and exasperated continues a long time as remote from peace and charity as the Goat leaving the fertile Valleys to climb and graze on barren rocks But when Man is such to himself still in motion unquiet anxious timorous and pensive what is he but a Goat skipping to and fro from a barren rock of distaste to a precipice of desolation O my God and merciful Saviour thou art my rock my safety my peace and only refuge From thee proceeds the Holy Ghost from whom springs the fruit of Charity Joy and Peace Send forth I beseech thee thy holy Spirit and these three shall be created and established in my soul Charity to love and have peace with thee and with my Neighbour for thee Joy and alacrity in serving thee and Peace in thee the rock and support of my heart my God for ever in heavenly Jerusalem the vision of peace where to see thee is to enjoy eternal tranquillity which thou O Lord hast purchased with thy most percious blood Amen The Eighth BEATITUDE Blessed are they that suffer persecution for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven EMBLEME VIII The Vine Sterilis nisi falce putetur 8 So prun'd a Christian brings encrease To branch too far were to surcease Grow barren when unprun'd What harm Impair'd to spread a larger arm THe Catholick Church in divers places of Scripture is called the Vineyard of our Lord where every good Christian is a flourishing and fruitful Vine And if any Plant or Tree cut or lopt may he said to suffer persecution much more may the Vine the Emblem of a Christian For as the one is prun'd in February a cold and blustring Moneth not impair'd thereby but enrich'd both in branch and fruit So is the other in a time as rigorous when he suffers persecution for righteousness sake Let the Vine dilate it self from year to year in branches without pruning how soon does it become barren Such would a man be that never suffers loss of goods nor feels any grievance or affliction neither in body by sickness nor in worldly substance by persecution or otherwise For seeing it is certain that all who will live piously in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution as S. Paul assures us it follows that they who like a Vine are never pruned in their branching estate nor otherwise afflicted can hardly be numbred amongst the vertuous and devouter servants of God When I behold a Vine in a sunny place pruned and despoil'd of its branches and the residue supported and orderly nail'd and fix'd to a wall it presents unto me a man persecuted and depriv'd of branching superfluities yea and liberty whereby he becomes like a Vine more fruitful not wanting the Sun-shine of heavenly grace to render him as plentiful in Merits as the other in Grapes Now if the Vine to secure it self extend here and there a winding tendrel that clasps about the neighbouring boughs a devout Christian wants not the like while for his support and constant perseverance he produceth like so many tendrels several acts of Faith Hope and Charity All which clasp and wind about the Cross whereon Christ crucified is the Vine of vines Naked like a Vine in the fall of the leaf and prun'd in February Wounded like a Vine bleeding and in Vintage like Grapes in the Wine-press like a Vine with branches extended and fix'd to a wall with his Arms and Feet stretch'd forth and nail'd to the Cross where he lay expos'd to the scorching beams of most severe justice And when I observe the many riffs and chincks in the trunck of the Vine out of which issue the branches I seem to behold my Saviours body full of wounds out of which issued forth his most precious blood But if the Vine have tendrels to twist and wind about what bough or branch soever is neighbouring by what tendrels had our Saviour but rough and sharp nails what support what to lay hold on when he cried out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Ah Sinner it was want of will and desire in thee to suffer with him that made him complain in this manner This he foreseeing notwithstanding all he had suffered was cause of this heavy and sad complaint as if he had said
Father why hast thou forsaken me so soon If it be thy will I desire to live and suffer more pains more injuries reproaches for man who to requite me for all I have endured will I foresee repine at the least oppression and be dejected with the least cross and affliction which he undergoes for my sake Why hast thou forsaken me so soon yet I desire to survive and suffer more the more to attract and incite the hearts of men to love and suffer with me as branches united to me the Vine that being pruned by suffering with me they may become fruitful and be glorified with me CONSIDERATIONS ON THE VIII BEATITUDE On the wounded Feet of our Blessed Saviour LAstly from our Blessed Saviour's sacred Hands descend to his wounded Feet and there reade Blessed are they who suffer persecution c. Which properly belongs to the Feet either to fly as our Lord advis'd from one City to another or to stay and suffer as he himself did till his hour was come Wherefore when any affliction or cross hapneth unto thee be assured that thy hour is come for thee to suffer persecution and consequently to be blessed if thou bear it with patience Now since it is decreed and recorded in holy Writ that all who will live piously in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution one way or other Consider in particular what tribulations thou heretofore hast or now dost suffer which were they far greater then they are or have been yet thou mayst say with the Apostle The passions and sufferings of this time are not worthy of the future glory which shall be revealed in us And therefore we ought to be willing and ready to suffer more for his sake who for us suffered so much persecution Consider that in the end of this last Beatitude our Saviour intimates a triple persecution proceeding from the Heart Word and Deed. You are Blessed saith he when men shall revile you and persecute you and speak all manner of evil against you or persecute you by casting you out of the Synagogue c. Against these three sorts of persecutions a triple patience is necessary The first to forgive them that hate me The second to compassionate and pity them that revile me The third to pray for them that persecute me by any corporal or temporal affliction The better to put this in practise often call to mind our Saviours persecutions on the Cross which began in the hearts of the Jews for whom notwithstanding he pray'd Father forgive them Next it was expressed by word in Blasphemies whom nevertheless he pitied saying For they know not what they do Thirdly his manifold persecutions caus'd by the Jews were made too apparent by the many wounds they inflicted and ignominious death they put him to All which notwithstanding his first care on the cross was to pray for them Consider what King David saith Thy rod and thy staff O God have comforted me That is the Rod of affliction and persecution which that we may patiently bear it is accompanied with a staff to wit his all-strengthning grace to support and bear us up that we may go on with alacrity Here be confounded for that in light sufferings and slighter afflictions thou hast been dismaid and dejected though this staff were not wanting to support thee And so out of heart that thou hast desired to be freed from them before thou hadst tasted the least drop of Christ's bitter cup. Whereby in suffering with him thou mightest have tasted and seen how sweet our Lord is in his consolations to them who suffer persecution Call to mind what God saith by his Prophet Zachary Chap. 11. ver 7. And I took unto me two staves one I called Beauty and the other I called Bands and I fed the flock All Christians are his flock and have all straid If to recall or try us he with his rod chastise us or suffer us to be persecuted to refine and purifie us from the dross of sin it is in our power assisted by his heavenly grace to bear all with patience which if we do perform the rod of chastisement is called Beautie because it beautifie and purifies our souls But if we murmur and repine at every cross and affliction that falls upon us and think we deserve not to be punish'd the other rod is ealled Bands wherewith we are faster tied and more and more entangled in our sins O my soul why droopest thou Christ suffered for thee leaving thee an example that thou mayst follow his steps It a little wind of persecution penetrate thy tender heart remember where thou art where thou sailest what thy vessel is In a stormy and dangerous Sea where winds bluster surges rise both within and without passions and persecutions which disturb the crasie Ship thy Body and as much afflict thy Soul the Passenger Thou art traduc'd or derided 'T is a wind Anger is the billow and thou art in danger Thou preparest to render scoff for scoff malediction for malediction and one revenge for another Now thou art in danger of shipwrack Christ in the Ship thy Heart is asleep awake him and he will relieve thee and keep it from sinking Thy Lord hears and patiently suffers yet thou his servant art angry Thou must suffer with me if thou wilt reign with me The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force The body of Christ that is to say his Church saith S. Augustine is detain'd in the wine-press of persecutions and oppressions But in this wine-press affliction is beneficial While the Grape is on the Vine it suffers not it appears sound and whole nothing then distills from it untill it be put into the press and there crush'd and trampled on This might seem injurious to the grape but not without benefit Nay were it not thus handled it would remain but to it self barren and grateful to none A SHORT RECAPITULATION OF THE VIII BEATITUDES By way of MEDITATION O Blessed Saviour thou hast left for us a Ladder of eight steps to ascend to Heaven If by thy assisting grace I ascend but to the first step mine is the Kingdom of Heaven and being arrived at the highest step by suffering persecution for righteousness sake I can asceud no higher I end where I began for to suffer persecution is to be poor in spirit ready rather to lose all then deny thee ready to be deprived of transitory things then lose the eternal I. Thy Nakedness tells me thou wert poor in Spirit and desire coveting nothing but me and my Salvation What then would I have on earth but thee II. By thy Head inclined I understand thou wert Meek and humble humbled even unto the death of the Cross So may I assisted by thy powerful grace bear all afflictions with patience and be angry with none but such as seek to deprive me of thee my God and all things III. On thine Eyes distilling tears I read Blessed are they that mourn May
I never mourn but for my sins nor grieve but for the loss of thee IV. On thy sacred Mouth crying out I thirst I read thou didst hunger and thirst after righteousness that I might be justified by thy Death and Passion Grant sweet Jesu I may ever hunger and thirst after this V. By thy wounded Side I find thou wert merciful giving all thy precious blood for my redemption May I be merciful to thee in thine that I may finally find mercy VI. Let thy pierced Heart most pure and exempt from all fin teach me to prepare a pure and clean heart for thee VII By thy sacred Hands nailed I understand thou wert the grand Peace-maker Vouchsafe to infuse into my soul true and perfect Charity that I may have peace withall for thee and during this life make my peace with thee VIII Lastly By thy Feet pierced with nails I read they are blessed that suffer persecution which thou didst even unto the death of the Cross Grant me grace to suffer for thee to bear afflictions patiently that with thee I may reign eternally Amen O good Jesu to reign with thee is to suffer with thee On the Cross thou art surrounded with the eight Beatitudes Here I must seek them exemplified in thy self on Mount Calvary to find them perfected on Mount-Sion the heavenly Jerusalem I. I behold the Cornel-tree where without leaves to shrowd it the blossom lies naked and expos'd to the blustring winds And on the Tree of the Cross as naked I behold my Saviour poor in Spirit poor in Will and Desire as naked dying as born for us Uncloath thy self then O my soul and be as naked in thine affections to the leafy vanities and riches of this life which is but a so journing for poor mortality II. I see the arch'd Indian-Fig-tree greedy to possess the Land with a thousand shoots which descend to take deep root in the earth And on the Tree of the Cross I behold our Lord meekly bowing down his Head humbled even to the death of the Cross to take possession of the Land of the Living for me an exile by as many shoots as sighs prayers tears and drops of blood as he shed for me a lost sinner O my soul where are thy humble shoots that should descend that they may ascend to the Land of promise where are thy submissive thoughts that should lowly bend to the earth by acknowledgment of thy unworthiness and ingratitude to so good and merciful a Lord Thou art now in possession of a barren Land thy body where thou canst not nor must not take deep root Heaven is thy Land this thy place of banishment Thither let thy thoughts ascend to be deeply rooted by an eternal possession III. I view the Myrrhe-tree weeping drop after drop but when prick'd and wounded it more abundantly distills Thus came I weeping and mourning into a vale of tears like a taper by the wind soon extinguish'd like a spark in the Sea as soon swallowed up like a froth suddenly vanishing and a vapour scatter'd in the air Have I not then cause to weep to prevent a future mourning and acquire a happiness and consolation which is promised to Mourners Then I cast mine eyes on Christ crucified and weeping on the Cross why for my sins Why like a Myrrhe-wee wounded over all his body distilling blood To give light to my glimmering taper fire to my spark substance to my frothy soul and purer air to my dusky vapour Thirdly I will summon my heart and expostulate with my soul why she would be usher'd by her eyes to the aspect of vainer objects yet never made use of them to bewail her sins with tears And if the Myrrhe tree stab'd or launc'd with a knife dissolves it self into tears why doth she not procure by her sighs and prayers that my heart woulded with true compunction may be liquified into tears of grief IV. I seem to behold the Clove-tree hungring as it were and thirsting after the strengthning moisture of the earth which it continually attract Then I seem to hear my Saviour cry out I thirst to express his ardent desire of our Salvation And then O my soul say I canst thou hear thy Lord crying out I thirst and yet present him with no other potion then a cup full of absinth thy sins which are more bitter to him then Vinegar and Gall of which he tasting would not drink O my soul taste and see how sweet our Lord is who to revive and refresh thee which wert like dry and barren earth showred down his precious blood from his wounded body veins and heart till it was totally exhausted O what an excessive thirst did this cause in thy Saviour what a Consummatum est was this what bounty when hereserv'd not to himself so much as one drop of blood O my soul if he gave thee all that was most precious doubt not to say with his royal Prophet What shall I give unto our Lord for all he hath given me what less then an entire heart and soul with all her powers to love honour and serve him V. Next I imagine I see the fruit of Adams Apple-tree cut in two which presents us with a cross which bare the Saviour our of the World in whom I behold as many crosses as stripes and scourges enterlac'd in his tender flesh It was the fruit of the forbidden Tree wherein being eaten were included as many crosses as miseries now incident to wretched man As hunger thirst cold heat infirmities c. which render him miserable and consequently to be pitied O my soul commiserate at least thine own self encompassed with so many frailties casualties and anxieties of mind Turn which way thou wilt thou canst not be long exempted from one calamity or other Wherefore seeing to be Misericors that is to say merciful is to have an agrieved and pitiful heart as it were always bearing a cross let thine he dolor sorrow and compunction for thy sins VI. Imagine you behold the green Fig pick'd and pierc'd by a little Gnat or Fly whence distills a drop as it were of hony And then say O my green hard and immature Heart where is that compunction that is requisite for thee O that thou wert thus pierc'd and wounded with grief for thy fins that sweet delight like a honey-drop might issue forth for while it resides within thee thou canst never come to maturity for where sin predominates Grace must needs be an Exile Then reflect your Eye on our Saviour's Heart wounded with a Spear and say Lord Were not thy larger wounds in thy Hands and Feet sufficient pledges and testimonies of thy excessive Love Why then after thy death wouldst thou receive so deep a wound in thy Heart Ah! If Death were stronger than Love in thee when by him thou wert vanquisht he seizing by Heart Love again even after Death was more powerful by opening that sacred rift whence issued the Sacraments and where the Gate of
Should I behold thee in the poor and not commiserate thee or behold thee in the naked and not cloth thee or in the sick and not visit thee or in the hungry and not feed thee Thou gavest all even to the last drop of Blood to redeem me a vile Sinner O that I could give and surrender all I am and have to thee my God and Saviour O that I could love thee with an entire Heart and with all the powers of my Soul On his Heart Against Impure Thoughts O Good Jesu I behold thy tender Heart pierc'd through with a cruel Spear and seem to hear thee say Blessed are the clean of Heart for they shall see God O that my sinful Heart were transfixt with sorrow for my sins by true compunction that I may have the happiness to behold my God by having a clean Heart and purified Soul by true Contrition Jesu be merciful to me a Sinner that I may have a Contrite Heart deeply wounded and transfixt with sorrow as often as I behold thy wounded Side and Heart whence flowed Blood and Water With which thou O Lord shalt sprinkle me and I shall be clean thou shalt wash me and I shall be whiter than Snow On Christ's Hands Against perturbations of Mind O Good Jesu I behold thy sacred Hands pierced through with nails and seem to hear thee say Blessed are the Peace-makers for they shall be call'd the Children of God Thou O Lord wert the great Peace-maker who didst interpose thy self betwixt thy Heavenly Father and us Sinners Thou hast made our Peace yet still I find disquiet of Mind upon sleight occasions vain fears and worldly respects Therefore I appeal to thee the great Peace-maker and Son of God and beseech thee to assist me with thy powerful Grace that I likewise may be a Peace-maker not onely externally amongst such as are at variance but likewise inwardly that I may pacifie my own Soul and thereby become the peaceful Child of God who seeks repose in a Soul free from anxious thoughts and worldly perturbations Amen On his Feet Against Fear of Persecution O Good Jesu I behold thy sacred Feet pierced through with nails and seem to hear thee say Blessed are they that suffer Persecution for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven Thou O Lord wert persecuted unto death even the death of the Cross For which God gave thee a Name above all Names O Blessed Saviour since thou hast promised a Kingdom to them that suffer with thee and for thee I must not I cannot presume to reign with thee unless I suffer for thy sake And since no Man shall be crowned but he that lawfully fights for thy Honour and suffers for thy Glory why should I be so backward so timorous so unwilling to undergo whatever Persecution it pleases thee to send or to permit which I should receive as a Favour from Heaven and certain pledge of thy Love and Favour who being a Loving Father receivest no Child whom thou dost not chastise Under whose Rod of Correction may I humbly through thy powerful Grace submit and fully resign my Will to be a chosen Member of that Kingdom which thou hast promised to them that suffer Persecution for thy Names sake Amen Amen Part of the 143. Psalm paraphras'd concerning true Beatitude O Rescue me out of the hand Of such as thy behests withstand Degenerate Children they wholly And utter naught but vanity Whose powerful Arms in my distress Were Arms stretch'd forth to wickedness Whose Youthfull Sonns like to a Spring Of vigorous shoots are flourishing Whose Daughters dress'd their Pride display Deckt Temple-like in rich array Whose store of Corn abundant lies Heapt up in their rich Granaries Whose Ewes are fruitful flocks that go Mantling the Earth like drifts of snow Whose Oxen prosper fat and fair And in whose Walls no ruins are Nor noyse of Thieves or Rogues that meet Or hideous out-cries in the Street Such some admire and Happy call Cause they have blessings temporal But I him Blest have understood Whose Lord to him is God all good FINIS