too great Love of this Life SOME there are who afflict themselves too much at the approach of Death through an over-great fondness of this Life the grief they conceive of parting with it being such that they cannot submit themselves to the Pleasure of God but die much against their Wills Which ill disposition produces in the Heart of a Sick Person these three dismal Effects I. That by how much the greater his reluctance is so much the more he is troubled and confounded with the apprehension of Death according to the Son of Sirach's Saying O Death how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liveth at rest in his possessions II. That by this Reluctance of his he not only deprives himself of the Comfort he would receive from his voluntary Resignation to Death but runs a great risque of offending God III. That he does not prepare himself as he ought for Death nor can resolve to think of his Eternal State And the Condition of such a One is so much the more deplorable in regard no body dares speak to him of Dying But on the contrary they are apt to turn their Discourse upon the hopes of his Recovery for the sake of entertaining him in an agreeable idea though in the end most pernicious to him by reason of its diverting him from the thoughts of his Salvation As therefore they tender his Eternal Welfare let both the Minister and his Friends take heed that he be not thus dallied with when his Condition is become dangerous but that he be in a prudent manner apprised of the same to the end he may examine the State of his Soul making him sensible that his Preparation for Death will be no impediment to his Recovery if it pleases God to spare him longer in this Life But if he cannot resolve to die let the Minister endeavour to bring his mind over by Arguments Examples and Words in Form of Ejuculatory Prayers First By Arguments which the Minister is to ground as much as he can on the Holy Scripture to the end they may be not only in themselves the stronger but of more Authority and Force with the Patient For Example he shall with St. Paul tell him That it is appointed for all Men once to die That on this condition it is we are born and wherein no distinction is made between Princes and Subjects That we all die soon or late and flow like the Waters into the Bowels of the Earth yea we are like Water that is spilt on the ground from whence it cannot be gathered up He shall also represent to him that though he should recover his Health he may in a little time relapse again and not have the means he now has for his Preparation That he ought to look upon himself as a Pilgrim travelling through this World as through strange Regions in his Way to Heaven which is his Native Country That he should consider the many Tokens God has given him of his Love and that which he at present gives him in assisting him with his Grace That God now calls him to Himself in order to the making him happy and that a longer Life here might be ruinous to him by the snares and inticements of this Sinful World That Death is not terrible to the Righteous but meerly a Passage to Eternal Glory And better is the day of our Death than that of our Birth forasmuch as we are born to die and do only die to live forever In short That Christ assures us in his Gospel that whosoever believes in him shall have Everlasting Life and that his Death shall be but the beginning of his Eternal Happiness Moreover let the Patient be induced to reflect on the Miseries of this present Life Let him as much as he is able call to mind the whole Course of his Life from his Infancy to this very moment and consider before God whether he has pass'd one day of it without affliction That we are to expect here nothing but Sufferrings God having set us in this World as in a Valley of Tears to live in a constant State of Penitence That therefore we ought not to be grieved when God is pleased to remove us from the Place of our Exile into our own Country and far from wishing our selves Citizens of this World we should with St. Paul remember that here we have no continuing City but are to look for one that is to come which will abide for ever Let him further consider that being now under the Gospel we should be so much the more desirous to die because Jesus Christ has by his Merits open'd Heaven to us That Death is both the End of a false and perishable Life and the Entrance into a Happy and Eternal State That God is not the God of the Dead but of the Living That a Christian ought to raise himself above the things of this World and solely to fix his Thoughts and Hopes upon his Saviour That this Life is a continual Warfare with our Lusts and Passions and Death the welcome End of this War and Beginning of our Rest That the Spirit of God declares those and those only to be happy that die in his Grace because they are going to enjoy an Everlasting Peace In a word let the Minister omit nothing that may conduce to the perswading him to receive his Death with Submission making him sensible that how averse soever he be to it yet die he must and that since neither Life nor Death are within his power or disposal he can never be at rest till he submits himself with all humility and resignation to the Will and Pleasure of Almighty God Secondly The Minister may perswade the Sick Person to a willingness to die by laying before him several Examples of this kind carrying force and authority with them and in the first place that of Christ himself who in the Garden of Olives foreseeing the Torments that were waiting for Him at Jerusalem was seized with fear and pray'd to the Father to deliver Him therefrom but immediately after submitting himself to Him added these Words Not as I will but as Thou wilt That he ought to imitate this Sacred Model of Self-resignation by a free Offering of his Life to God notwithstanding the terror he has of Death and all the reluctances of Nature thereto Let him also be put in mind of David who finding himself over-whelm'd with the Miseries of this present Life us'd frequently to cry out to God in terms like these Wo is me that I am constrained to dwell with Mesech and to have my Habitation among the Tents of Kedar My soul has long dwelt with them that hate peace Many are my Persecutors and mine Enemies Consider my affliction and deliver me I long for thy Salvation O Lord Whereto he may add the words of St. Paul O wretched Man that I am Who shall delive me from this body of Death I ardently desire to be dissolved that I may
be us'd when the Patient does not resign himself as he ought to the Will of God and is afraid of Death through a too great Love of this Life p. 68. Chap. X. What is to be said to a Sick Person whose unwillingness to die proceeds from an excessive Love for the Things of this World p. 77. Chap. XI What is to be done to a Sick Person that is Impatient p. 84. Chap. XII How those Persons ought to be managed that lie under Temptations against the Faith p. 89. Chap. XIII How to comfort a Sick Person that is mistrustful of God ' s Mercy and troubled with Despairing Thoughts p. 94. Chap. XIV What is to be said to such as shew too great a Confidence and presume too far upon their Salvation p. 101. Chap. XV. How a Sick Person is to be managed when bereft in a great measure of his Senses and Understanding p. 104. Chap. XVI What the Minister is to do when he finds the Sick Person posess'd of his Speech and Understanding but likely to die very soon p. 107. Chap. XVII How the Minister is to apply himself to a Sick Person who has the Vse of his Reason but no Disposition to such things as are necessary to the making a Happy End p. 109. Chap. XVIII What in the last place the Minister is to do if the Patient dies and What in case it shall please God to restore him to his Health again With regard on the one hand to the Standers-by and on the other to the Person Recover'd p. 117. Being concluded with A Prayer and Thanksgiving to be offer'd to GOD by One newly Recover'd from a Dangerous Sickness p. 124. THE Dying Man's Assistant OR Short Instructions For those who are concern'd in the Preparing of Sick Persons FOR DEATH CHAP. I. The Duty of a Minister in assisting Persons who are in danger of Death THOSE whom it shall please Almighty God to call to the Assistance of Dying Christians in order to their making a Happy End ought well to consider that this is an Office of the highest Consequence for as much as no less than our Neighbour's Salvation may depend thereon As we die but once so if in the last moment of our Lives we omit ought that is necessary to our Eternal Welfare we are gone for ever the Fault is irreparable And what should still the more excite the Zeal and Charity of Ministers on this Occasion is this Consideration That oftentimes the Divine Providence marks out some particular Persons to contribute to the Salvation of others who without their Assistance might eternally perish But though this were not so certain it is that they who are aiding to Dying Persons may perform their Duty in such a manner as to dispose them at least to die in more abundant Grace and contribute to their enjoying a greater degree of Felicity in Heaven If it be an Act of Charity to preserve in Grace those that are in Health by exhorting them to a frequent Participation of the Blessed Sacrament and the Use of other Pious Means What ought the Minister's Zeal to be in assisting those poor Souls that are drawing near the time of their Departure it being certain that wheresoever the Tree shall fall be it on the South or be it on the North there it will for ever lie Let the Minister therefore remember that of himself he is by no means capable of performing this important Part of his Ministry but must apply himself to God for the Assistance of his Holy Spirit herein A Sick Person has often-times his Mind disturb'd through the violence of his Distemper and sometimes a Prospect of Hell too raises in him an inward Terror and Disquiet and whil'st he is in this Agony and just upon the point of giving up the Ghost the Devil n'ere fails to use all his Arts for improving the little time that remains to his final Destruction The Consideration of all which should oblige the Minister humbly to acknowledge his own Weakness to be mistrustful of his own Strength and repose in God alone all his Hopes of contributing to the Salvation of Dying Persons His intention of assisting them in the Condition they are in must be sincere remembring they are the Images of God and Members of Jesus Christ who has redeemed them with his Blood and appointed him in his stead to take care of their Salvation and that by how much the better End they make so much the more God will be glorified Let all these Motives serve to raise in him a fervent desire of saving them by all the Means the Divine Providence shall inspire him with Let him every day ask of God the Talent necessary for this Function Let him pray for the Sick in general and particularly for those to whom he is called Let him renew his Zeal by Exultations of the Heart and short and frequent Ejaculations which he may apply to them and let him recommend their Souls to God not only in his private Prayers but above all in the Publick Prayers of the Church 'T is advisable that the Minister think afore-hand of what he is to say or do on this Occasion and so to order and dispose it in his memory as to omit nothing that may be necessary both for the Comfort of the Sick Person and Edification of those that are present This he ought to be very intent upon forasmuch as the same things are not always proper to be said or at least not to be said in the same manner but must be caâ—efully suited to Time and Place and the Disposition he shall find in the Patient of hearing them A Person of Quality is to be dealt with after a quite disferent manner from one of a low Condition They that abound with Wit and Learning and are of a sweet Temper and have exercised themselves in the Practice of Devotion are not to be addressed to in the same Stile as those that are ignorant rude and of a moâ—ose Nature To the former a few Words well chosen and seasonably spoken are sufficient Whereas the latter need common things to be said to them adapted to their Apprehensions and those to be also inlarged upon But here the Minister is to consider whether they retain or have lost their Sences whether their Distemper puts them to great Torment or not whether they may for some time be spoken to or whether their Pain will not permit it All which shews that there is a great deal of Prudence requisite in the Minister for his making a good and seasonable use of those Things he has prepar'd speaking them sometimes interruptedly and by intervals sometimes softly and at other times in a different tone to the end the Sick Person may the better relish them be less troubled therewith and reflect on the same with more leisure He may also propound Questions to him if he perceives in him Strength and Understanding enough to answer them And above all he must not omit Praying
by him and causing those that are present to join with him therein In short let his whole Discourse be plain tender and affectionate particularly with Persons of Piety and Understanding who are not to be spoke to by way of Instruction but as it were only to refresh their Minds with those Virtues they have already known and practis'd But if the Minister has no knowledge of or acquaintance with the Sick Person the first thing he is to do when he goes to his House is to get information concerning him with respect to the Qualities and Circumstances above mention'd Viz. Whether he be a Man of Learning or not Whether of a meek and sweet Nature whether he has still his Senses good and the use of his Reason Whether he is at the point of Death Whether he has been already visited by any other Minister and has receiv'd the Sacred Viaticum What Course of Life he has led Whether there be any particular thing of which he ought to be put in mind necessary to his Salvation Whether he lies under any secret trouble or affliction and whether he has his Hearing so good as to be able to hear what may be spoken softly to him As soon as the Minister is come into the Sick Person 's Chamber let him begin his Exhortation with greeting him in an affectionate manner that so by his Civility he may render himself the more agreeable and welcome to him Then if he finds it convenient he may ask him some Questions about the State of his Conscience but this he must do gently and with a modest liberty And when the Sick Person shall give him Answers he ought to hear him patiently taking care not to disturb him with any Discourse forrein to the purpose or with vain repetitions And thus having made himself acquainted with his Temper and Disposition of Mind let him not omit any thing of Gentleness Tenderness or the like that may win the Sick Person to a Confidence in him whereby he may the more easily perswade him of what he shall say and in case he be oblig'd to come again the Patient may receive him with pleasure and delight CHAP. II. What things are requisite for the disposing a Sick Person to die well THEY are two-fold Some absolutely necessary which are such as may put him into a State of Grace Others only useful to the comforting him and strengthening his Hope To which is to be added the Disposal of his Body and of his Estate for the benefit of his Relations And though there are different ways of effecting this according to the Condition he is in and the time he has for it yet we shall hereafter treat thereof as if he had all the leisure he could desire for the same and from thence shall proceed to speak of what he ought to do when he wants time and his Understanding grows weaker What therefore the Minister is principally to take care of is to put the Patient into a State of Grace To which end he ought to dispose him to the receiving of the Blessed Sacrament of the Lord's Supper which is the Channel whereby the Holy Ghost descends into our hearts He must also read to him some proper Places in the Gospel and the Service for the Sick And that done he may go on to the asking him Questions and let his Discourse fall upon his Distemper insinuating to him that the Physicians are apprehensive of his Life and therefore he should not rely too much upon Human Means or what Help his Friends and Relations can give him but put his whole Trust and Confidence in God Who loving him with an unbounded Love and being able to do all things will if it be for the good of his Soul restore him to his Health again or else afford him those means whereby he may attain to Everlasting Bliss That he ought with all his heart to turn himself towards Jesus Christ his most true Friend whose Love to him extended so far as to the shedding even his Blood for him as himself expresseth it in his Holy Gospel Who is the only Faithful Friend that never abandons us at the point of Death whereas our other Friends either will not or cannot in that last moment be of any avail to us Who is also a Wise Physician that is able not only to cure the Body so as to continue it still in life for many Years but even to heal the Soul too and make it happy for evermore Having thus spoken to him and hereon inlarg'd according to his discretion the Minister should in the next place ask him whether he has any thing which troubles his Conscience and ought to be reveal'd so that if he finds his Distemper to be violent and dangerous he may admonish him forthwith to disburthen himself by Confession But if he be in no present danger of Death he may be allow'd more time for it to the end he may the better recollect himself of all he has done amiss and heartily beg God's pardon for the same the Minister putting him in mind of the Words of the Prophet to this purpose In the bitterness of my Soul O Lord will I call to remembrance before Thee all the Years that I have spent in Sin But in case the Patient desires no time to examine himself and the Minister knows that this is only to avoid the trouble of searching his Conscience perhaps out of fear that in reflecting upon his sinful Life past he may unhappily meet with some new Temptation or at the best not reap much fruit there-from he ought to perswade him that to be re-established in Grace he must without delay make an humble Confession of all his Sins to Almighty God and according to the Advice of the Son of Sirach in his Ecclesiasticus not defer his Conversion from day to day Forasmuch as we cannot promise to our selves one hour longer and that according to our Repentance or Obdurateness of Heart we shall be for ever happy or miserable On which occasion let the Minister remember him of what the Wiseman saith That delay of Conversion has been the Destruction of many Sinners who flattering themselves with the hopes of long life often fall into a Delirium and lose their Senses or else are surpris'd by a sudden Death and so being prevented of time and opportunity to repent are irrecoverably lost adding that he who is not ready to be converted to day will be less so to morrow In short the Minister ought to stir him up to a true Contrition of heart by representing to him the heinousness of his Sins yet with such moderation as not to affright him and cast him into Despair It will be sufficient that he make him sensible of the Majesty of that God he has offended before whom the Angels themselves tremble of his inflexible Justice which severely punishes the Devils and all Reprobates and no less of his Holiness that bears so great a hatred to Sin that whoever
thereof and not leave it to be done by his Heirs or Executors who perhaps will forget it as soon as he is dead What we have here said of Restitution is to be understood of things that are undoubtedly another Man's or Debts that he has legally contracted and admit of no dispute But if it be a doubtful Debt and the Sick Person be able to give a clear account of it he must by all means be advis'd to do it in order to the restoring what is not his own Or if he cannot presently clear the Matter as may happen in the Case of a Guardian to a Minor or a Steward or Agent to One of a great Estate or Dealings he must be told that he ought by a special Clause in his Last Will and Testament to oblige his Heirs Executors or Administrators under a certain penalty to prepare immediately after his Death the Accounts he should have given-in himself had he lived and what shall be found to be remaining due to pay without delay And if he ow'd a clear Sum which he was not then in a condition to pay he ought likewise to oblige his said Administrators to discharge it as soon as may be But if it were at all possible 't would be much better and safer for him to make all those Restitutions himself before his Death than to charge them that come after him therewith Again if the Sick Person be publickly known to have been at Enmity with any one he ought not only to be now in Charity with him but if possible see him and as his Hatred has made a noise in the World so it would not be amiss that his Reconciliation were made before Witnesses to remove the Scandal occasioned thereby And if it was he that gave the first offence to his Neighbour he ought to send to him to beg his Pardon for his misbehaviour and make him satisfaction for the Wrong he may have done him This is meant of publick Injuries But if it be a private Grudge or Spleen Prudence requires That Satisfaction should be made in private and only with the Persons concern'd therein And if he is under an Obligation of repairing the Honour and Reputation which by Slander he may have taken away from his Neighbour let him do it in the best manner he can either by himself or another by word of Mouth or in Writing And Lastly If he has had the misfortune to incur the Publick Censure of the Church he should be exhorted to an humble submission and acknowledgment of his Crime This being over the Minister shall more particularly dispose him to receive the Holy Sacrament of the Lord's Supper preparing him thereto by Acts of Faith Hope and Charity and above all a profound Humility before God who has said by his Prophet That he dwelleth with him that is of a contrite and humble Spirit CHAP. III. Advice to be given to a Sick Person concerning his Relations his Body and his Estate THE Minister having done with the Patient in whatever he thought necessary for the good of his Soul he must now proceed to the advising him to think of his Relations to declare where he will be Buried and to dispose of his Worldly Goods Of which he might have put him in mind before he administred the Holy Sacrament to him But if he omitted it then he ought now to do it and first of all to offer to him the consideration of his Wise and Children especially if the latter be under Age that he may appoint an honest and careful Person for their Guardian whom he can trust with their Education and Estate And in case he has any Daughters not yet dispos'd of that he may leave them according to his Ability wherewith to live either a Single or Married Life as it shall please God to order it And if he has Nephews or other Relations under his Care or Servants he owes any Wages to or is in conscience oblig'd to provide for that he be not remiss in his Justice and Charity to every of them In like manner if the Sick Person has had the Management and Administration of any one's Estate or Affairs or has been in any Publick Employment or concerned in any part of the King's Service let the Minister exhort him strictly to examine his Conduct and Behaviour with relation thereto that if he finds any thing respecting the discharge of such his Duty or Trust that troubles his Conscience he may tell it him or cause it to be told by some body else to the Parties concerned He should be ask'd also what Place he desires to be Buried in in case he has not yet declared it But above all should be desired to prohibit any superfluous Pomp at his Funeral which does not in the least contribute to the Salvation of the Soul but is commonly done by the Friends and Relations out of Pride and Vain-glory Shewing him that a good Christian ought to direct and enjoyn that his Burial be made in an humble and modest and decent manner and at most but suitable to his Quality and Condition In the making his Will and disposing of his Estate let the Minister exhorâ— him carefully to avoid all unjust Partialities which are often-times very ill grounded Or if he has made his Will already 't is fit he be ask'd whether he has any thing to add to take from or alter in it which may be done by a Codiciâ— annext putting him in mind to order therein the payment of his Domesticks Wages and what other Debts he owes If his Estate be so considerable as to admit of Pious Legacies the Minister may shew him the Order he ought to observe herein And much better and safer it would be for him to see the Distribution of his own Charities before he dies than to charge his Heirs or Administrators with them it too often falling out that they prove very hard and backward in the acquitting themselves therein Whereas if he saw the same done in his Life-time the Poor would reap the greater benefit and himself the more satisfaction from it and he might say with St. Lawrence The hands of the Needy have carried up my Alms to Heaven And if among his pious Legacies he designs to found an Hospital or Almshouse or ought of this kind that may remain a Monument to Posterity let him take great care that he does it not more out of Pride and a Vain-glorious Expectation of being celebrated for his Munificence than through a sincere Love to God making him sensible that those Foundations that are laid purely for Charity-sake and the Service of God and true Religion are infinitely more pleasing and acceptable to Him than the bestowing of a Man's whole Estate upon the Poor with any other prospect or intention Upon which the Minister shall advise him to make a serious reflection and to take notice also that though the Foundation of Hospitals and other Places of Charity be a very commendable Work yet the
Merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Then he shall rehearse the Apostles Creed or if he cannot himself do it endeavour to follow in heart and mind the Minister that shall pronounce it for him who at the same time may encrease his Hopes of Salvation by remembring him of Christ's great Love to him by whose Sufferings it is that the Gates of Heaven do now stand open ready to receive him by whose Wounds and Torments he is heal'd and by whose Death he shall obtain Everlasting Life and Happiness The Minister shall also represent to him the precious Blood which ran from his Saviour's Feet Hands and Head and from all his Sacred Body even from his Side that was so barbarously and inhumanly pierced with a Spear He shall likewise put him in mind of the Crown of Thorns that was set on his Head out of derision and contempt of the Scourges that cruelly tore his Flesh as if He had been a Slave of the Blows He received upon His Sacred Face which were not only painful and dolorous but full of ignominy and confusion All which he shall lay before him in order to the raising his Confidence and perswading him that Jesus Christ did thus suffer and humble Himself for no other end but his Redemption making him sensible that God who has done so much for him surely will not now abandon him at a time when he has the greatest need of his Assistance and telling him therefore that if the Devil inwardly reproaches him and endeavours to affright him with the heinousness of his Sins he must boldly answer him My God in whom I believe and repose my trust has by his Blood shed on the Cross wash'd them away and is now at the Right Hand of his Father making intercession for me and shewing Him His Body still cover'd as it were with that most precious Blood by which He made full Satisfaction and Atonement for all my Transgressions And then go on in these Words My God I put my trust in Thee O shut not up the Bowels of Thy tender Mercies from me Arise O God of my Salvation and scatter abroad all my Enemies Let them that hate Thee flee before Thee Even as the smoke let them vanish away and melt at Thy Presence as Wax melteth before the Fire But let Thy Servant rejoyce In short the Minister shall again and again exhort him to Charity and a Love of God by the several Motives before propos'd and above all the rest by that of the exceeding great Love which the Son of God has shewn in dying for us Whereupon he shall cry-out with David What reward shall I give to the Lord for all the benefits that he has done unto me I cannot better express my love to Him than by receiving this his Visitation with patience and humility Most ready I am O Lord to embrace Death it self to the end my Soul may be united to Thee for evermore In like manner ought he to resign himself into the Hands of God and commend his Spirit to His Mercy To Thee O Lord I give up my Soul for Thou hast both created and redeemed it Thine I am yea Thine alone Therefore Thy Holy Will be done in me and by me Be Thou only pleased to inlighten mine Eyes that they may readily discover the Snares which the Enemy is laying for me and never suffer them to be surpris'd by the slumber of Death If he languishes by slow degrees and remains sensible in his last Agony the History of Christ's Passion shall be read to him out of the Gospel together with some Chapters of St. Paul's Epistles as the 1st and 2d to the Corinthians the 2d to Timothy and the two last Chapters of the Revelation of St. John choosing the Places in those Chapters that are proper for a Dying Person and passing over the rest Some Psalms may be also recited to him suitable to the occasion In a Word let not the Minister abandon him one Minute whilst he appears to have the least remainder of Sense For at this last Moment it is as St. Gregory tells us upon the Nineteenth Chapter of St. Luke that the Devil redoubles his Endeavours to destroy us So that the Minister continuing his Exhortation to him may if he finds him capable thereof desire him to pursue his Applications to God after this manner Lord I believe that Thou art my God and my Redeemer I humbly beg of Thee the pardon and forgiveness of all my Sins I am exceedingly sorry for the Commission of them and wish my Sorrow were still greater If I have omitted any thing that Thou requirest for my Repentance Lord I pray Thee give me a due sense thereof and fit me for Thy Self Supply all my imperfections and make me such as Thou would'st have me to be Lord I do for Thy sake freely forgive whatever wrongs and injuries I have received and heartily ask forgiveness of them whom I have any ways offended If I have ought that is another's due I desire to restore it as far as my Abilities will permit In Thee O Lord I place all my Hope though I know my self unworthy of the least of Thy Mercies Thy Sufferings and Thy Blood assure me of my Salvation Both my Life and my Death are in Thy Hands Do Thou with me as it shall seem good to Thee 'T is sufficient for me to love and bless Thee to all Eternity If the Sick Person be in a condition of bearing with any more Discourse the Minister shall go on in the same Method of assisting him to lift up his Soul to God and to that end make use of the Words mention'd in the 5th 6th and 7th Chapters of this Book not omitting to admonish him to beg of God to accept the Prayers whether publick or private put up by the Church or his Friends for him As to the Third Head Which respects the Minister's solemn Recommendation of the Dying Person 's Soul to God the proper time to go about it is when he perceives him to be struggling with the Pangs of Death and just upon the point of his Departure The Form thereof is prescribed by the Church To which if he finds the Patient to continue longer than he expected and possest of any remains of his Senses he may add such further Sentences of Scripture as he shall judge convenient like these O Son of David have mercy upon me Haste Thee to deliver me make haste to help me O Lord. With how much Sincerity Zeal and Attention this last Office ought to be performed I hope no good Christian much less those of the Sacred Function whose more particular Province it is need to be admonish'd As to the Fourth Head Which concerns the Edification of those that are present we shall treat thereof in the last Chapter of this Book CHAP. IX What means are to be us'd when the Patient does not resign himself as he ought to the Will of God and is afraid of Death through a
forever live with Christ who is my Life And these of the Wise Son of Sirach Fear not the Sentence of Death Remember them that have been before thee and that come after For this is the Sentence of the Lord over all flesh And why art thou against the pleasure of the most High There is no inquisition in the grave whether thou hast liv'd ten or an hundred or a thousand years Let him represent to him St. Hilarion surpris'd by Thieves who with Sword in Hand are just going to murther him when astonish'd to see him so unconcern'd and asking him why he fear'd not Death 'T is answered he because I have been a long time preparing my self for it He may also observe to him the Words of St. Cyprian who says that such only ought to fear Death as lack Faith and have no Hope of reigning with Christ To all which the Minister may superad divers Examples and Sayings of other Saints and Martyrs who have wish'd and long'd for their Dissolution whereby to pacifie and calm the trouble with which the Sick Person 's mind is disturbed Thirdly The last means we propos'd for removing the Patient's Fear of Death is by Ejaculatory Prayers the Minister teaching and assisting him to say after this manner O my God! I feel the horrors of Death upon me but as much as in me lies I sacrifice them to Thee and am ready to die if it be thy Pleasure I humbly submit my will to Thine O Lord who hast created me preserved me and by a special Grace caused me to be born within thy Church to the end I might be saved What reward shall I give unto Thee for all these Benefits I will receive at Thy Hand this Cup of my Death which Thou presentest to me I take it O my God with all my heart in testimony of my Love and Submission to Thee If Thou O Lord hast so decreed it notwithstanding my natural reluctance thereto I am most ready and willing to die hoping my Death will through thine infinite Goodness be follow'd by Eternal Rest O Father of Mercy and God of all Comfort I thank Thee that I am now come to my last hour which will put an end to all my Sins I thank Thee especially that Thou hast been pleas'd to afford me time to prepare my self for Death O help Thou me in my troubles and anguishes Strengthen my Soul that stands surrounded with the dangers of Hell Support my weakness and be my strong Defence against Satan that so I may die in Thy Favour and Love I know that my Redeemer lives and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the Earth And though after my Skin Worms destroy this Body yet in my flesh will I see God Whom I shall see for my self and mine Eyes shall behold and not another Lord I beseech Thee encrease my Faith and Confidence in Thee and comfort thou me in all my Afflictions Thus may the Minister entertain the Sick Person in devout Meditations and Prayers making use also of such other Words and Sentences as he shall judge proper for the raising his Soul and fixing his Thoughts and Desires upon God CHAP. X. What is to be said to a Sick Person whose unwillingness to die proceeds from an excessive Love for the Things of this World OThers there are who are very loath to think of Death not so much like those mentioned in the preceding Chapter from an over-fondness of Life it self as a difficulty of quitting some particular Things and Circumstances attending it such as Riches and Honours and Pleasures and above all the Persons they most dearly love their Wives and Children c. On which last account the Poor Man's Case claims our greatest pity and attention For whilst his heart is fill'd with grief and anxious thoughts what will become of his distressed Family the Devil ne're fails to lay hold on this Occasion to divert his Mind from the Business of his Salvation If therefore the Minister find this to be the Condition of the Patient having first exhorted those that are present humbly to implore Almighty God to allay his Disquiets and render his Mind free and composed to the end he may think of nothing but Eternity let him make use of the following Means for comforting him And in the First place let him cause all such Persons to withdraw whether Wife or Children or others whose presence may attract the Patient's Affection to this World and keep up those melancholy thoughts he is in taking care to prevent as much as possible his being spoken to about them further than he shall think of absolute necessity with regard to their future Settlement After which he may proceed to inform him that this Disquiet of his is not only useless both to himself and Family but most prejudicial to his Soul in that it obstructs its due Preparation for Death That the Poverty under which he leaves his Family is an Evil that soon or late will have an end but the Torments of the other World have none and that therefore in these last moments of his Life he ought to entertain no other thoughts but how to avoid his own Eternal Misery That his Family is under the Conduct of the Divine Providence that loves them and will watch over them and bestow on them Temporal Goods sufficient perhaps too great a measure thereof so that instead of afflicting himself with the Consideration of the sad Condition he leaves them in he ought on the contrary to rejoyce in God and to lift up his Heart and Mind to Him and to beg his Grace to forget and reject whatever respects not his Everlasting Salvation with full perswasion that God to whom he is to recommend his Wife and Children as Christ when ready to die did his Disciples will be their Protector and Helper and Defender who being also more their Father than he himself is of his own Children and governing all things both in Heaven and on Earth by his Almighty Providence will supply them with whatsoever is necessary as well for their Bodies as their Souls This Trust and Confidence the Minister shall say to him will be more available to the good of your Family then all the disquieting thoughts you can entertain about them For God is Merciful and will grant us every thing we ask according to his Will Moreover remember that he who undertakes a long Journey should not carry ought about him that is combersom You are setting-out upon your Journey to Eternity and may within a little time appear before the Tribunal of God Take upon you therefore no such unnecessary Burden as that of the care of your Wife and Children Peradventure they have been the cause of your committing many Sins in the course of your Life Beware they be not that of your undoing now Disburthen your heart of this heavy Load that so it may be able to raise it self up to God and savour nothing but things Eternal Consider
that both your Life it self and all the Goods you have enjoy'd in this World were not yours but God's who lent them you only for your use as means of engaging your Love to him And if he takes them away again you have no reason to complain but your Duty is freely to lay them down remembring that Jesus Christ who is Lord of all died upon the Cross naked and divested of all Worldly Desires You know that God took from Job all that he possess'd and yet that Prince said only this Naked came I out of my Mother's Womb and naked shall I return thither The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away blessed be the Name of the Lord. Endeavor to be as disintangled and loose from the World as that Holy Person was Which Exhortations the Minister shall conclude with moving the Patient to repeat after him some Sententious Prayers like these Deliver me O Lord from all affections for the things of this World and fix in my heart the sole desire of possessing thee How amiable are thy Dwellings O Lord of Hosts My soul longeth yea even fainteth for the Courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh crieth out for the Living God For one day in thy Courts is better than a thousand I had rather be a Door-keeper in the House of my God than live in the Palaces of Worldly Princes There shall I be satisfied as it were with marrow and fatness and shall drink of thy Pleasures as out of the River For with Thee is the Well of Life and in thy presence is the fulness of joy and at thy right hand there is pleasure for evermore Whereto the Minister may add according to his discretion what of any of the foregoing Chapters he shall judge necessary for putting the Sick Person into a frame of dying like a good Christian Thus far of those whose Reluctances to Death proceed from a too great Love of this Life and the Pleasures and Satisfactions attending it For such whose terrors arise only from an imagination that there may not be time enough remaining for them to explain as they ought some particular Matters which disturb their Consciences For such we say till we come to give them more ample Instructions in the sequel of this Discourse let us in the mean time excite them to be very good Husbands of those Moments which are yet behind which may not be so few as they apprehend Let them employ the same in Self-Examination Prayer and Communion in an immediate Restitution of what is not their own or if that cannot be in providing by their Testament or Codicil that it be done with all possible Expedition as we have said in the preceding Chapters And lastly for such as are troubled to die for this only reason because they had resolved to alter their Course of Life and propos'd to themselves the doing of many pious Works they must be perswaded to resign themselves up to the Will of God and instead of that Good which they intended to have done to offer up their Lives to Him as a Sacrifice with a disposition humbly and readily to receive whatever it shall please his Divine Providence to determine concerning them Than which they cannot offer to God any thing greater or more acceptable CHAP. XI What is to be done to a Sick Person that is Impatient IMpatience in a Sick Person may proceed from either of these two Causes The languishing Condition which the Severity of his Distemper has reduced him to Or Poverty which leaves him destitute of the Helps and Remedies necessary for his Recovery The Case being such the Minister is in the first place to comfort him by assuring him how much he is grieved to see him in that deplorable Condition and using all the Means he can to procure him Ease and Relief that so he may the more effectually perswade him of his partaking sincerely with him in his affliction Which charitable manner of proceeding cannot fail of winning his Heart and engaging him to hearken with more patience and willingness to whatever shall be said to him concerning his Salvation Then let the Minister represent to him that his Impatience is so far from diminishing his illness that it does but encrease it and deprive him of the Comfort and Satisfaction he would reap from the taking this his Visitation with patience and submission the best and most effectual Means for rendring those Evils lighter and more supportable which are not within Human power to remove For according to the saying of St. Chrysostome Tribulations do pursue with much greater vehemence those that fly from them than those that receive them without murmuring or repining Moreover he should be admonished to consider That God sends these afflictions only for him to make a good use of them as Helps for his Sanctification That therefore instead of being grieved and displeased thereat he ought to praise and thank His Divine Goodness for them as being Graces necessary to his Eternal Salvation That upon this account it is that Solomon will not have us to fly from the Chastisements of the Lord nor grow weary and impatient under the troubles He is pleas'd to dispense to us He correcting only those He loves and administring thereby an occasion to us of drawing Consolation from the very pains which He inflicts on us provided we bear them with due Meekness and Resignation Let him reflect on the vast Number of Sins he has committed and the severe punishment he deserves for them The consideration of which will certainly if any thing oblige him with the deepest Contrition and humility to commit himself into the Hands of God and readily embrace whatever troubles or anguishes his Divine Wisdom shall think fit to exercise him with even Death it self in hopes of appeasing God's wrath thereby and rendring Him more favourable and gracious to him Of which the Minister may give him Confidence Adding that Afflictions are only sent us to take off our Minds from this World and raise them to the Contemplation of Things Eternal and that God is pleased to be with the Afflicted who are of a yielding and submissive Spirit Saying by his Prophet I am with him in trouble I will deliver him and he shall glorifie me In a word let him seriously consider that we are visited with pains and griefs to try our Virtue exercise our Faith and encrease our Contrition and that for this Cause it is that the Son of Sirach advises us to receive all kinds of Afflictions with humbleness of heart for as Gold is try'd by the Fire so are Men by the Tribulations of this present Life Lastly The Minister shall represent to him that Heaven is prepared for those that patiently suffer in this World that the Hand of God does by Calamities polish us as it were like Stones of which He will Build his Heavenly Jerusalem and that therefore in order to our being made happy we ought submissively to bear whatever Burthen He
pleases to lay upon us Which Arguments the Minister may greatly inforce by inculcating to him the Examples of Job the Holy Apostles Martyrs and Confessors and CHRIST Himself Crucified especially by displaying to him the excessive Torments of the Cross and at the same time proposing to his Meditation by way of Prayer and Self Resignation these Words of St. Austin's Lord burn me cut me into pieces scourge me and correct me in this World so Thou pardon me in the next Or these O God who chastisest those whom Thou do'st love admit me I beseech Thee after my Death into the Number of Thy Blessed Children since Thou makest me to endure thy Corrections in this Life My God! and my Father Who art my only Refuge and Defence succour me in all my Afflictions and Miseries either by asswaging and moderating them or giving me strength to sustain the same without repining I thank Thee O Merciful Father for the troubles Thou hast laid upon me Thou that knowest my weakness vouchsafe to fortifie and support me so as I may not fall into impatience and murmur but that I may truly humble my self under Thy Afflicting Hand and wholly submit to Thy Chastisements To which the Minister may still add what other Words of the like kind he shall judge convenient with regard to the Condition of the Sick Person CHAP. XII How those Persons ought to be managed that lie under Temptations against the Faith OF Persons tempted against the Faith there are two Sorts Either they are such as have not a clear apprehension of all that is necessary to be believed in the Law of Grace whom how to instruct we have shewn in the First Chapter Or they are such as are tormented by Satan who is continually endeavouring to cast Doubts into their Minds about their Faith in general or some particular Article of it The former of which Cases being as we have said provided for in the First Chapter we shall here need only to speak to the latter Which the Minister perceiving to be the Sick Person 's shall advise him not to dispute with the Devil whose sole aim is to destroy his Faith Without which as the Apostle tells us it is impossible to please God but humbly to implore the Holy Ghost so to inlighten him as that he may never fall into Infidelity nor the Enemy have any advantage over him Let him cry out with the Prophet Lord thou seest how I am tempted be thou pleased to answer for me Adding thereto if occasion be what is before mentioned in the Fifth Chapter and making an humble Confession of that Faith which is founded not upon human Reasons but the Eternal Truth Which will secure him against all the ill suggestions wherewith the Devil may labour to assault and disturb him and set him entirely at liberty to think of those things that will administer pleasure and comfort to him such as the unspeakable Joys of Heaven which he is hoping for the infinite Love of God towards him and Spiritual Graces He has confer'd upon him And for a yet further diversion of those Temptations he finds himself obnoxious to it may be convenient for him to speak sometimes to those that are present But if notwithstanding all these Precautions he shall still perceive his Faith to be wavering let him first pray to God to help his Unbelief and then protest before Him and all the Standers by that he resolves to die in that Faith which Jesus Christ is the Author of and the Martyrs have sealed and attested by their Blood And here if the Patient's illness will permit it the Minister may offer him some general Reasons to confirm him in the Christian Faith and Religion as that it flows directly from the Divine Wisdom and is not like others grounded only upon Human Arguments but the Authority and Truth of God himself who has been pleas'd to reveal it to his Church But at the same time he must be very cautious of descending to any particular Point least it should provoke the Sick Person to Disputation a thing most dangerous on such an occasion unless he desires to be inform'd about some of the Mysteries of our Religion Which is to be done too in as few words as may be Let him be shewn that the Christian Faith is establish'd upon no less than the Testimony of the Eternal Father who said of Christ He is my beloved Son hear ye him Than the Word of Jesus Christ himself who assures us that his Father and He are but One God and commanded his Apostles to Preach these Truths throughout the World saying that they who believe shall be saved and that there is no Salvation but in Him For the reasonableness thereof he may be refer'd to the Jews themselves who though the very Enemies of Christ gave sufficient Testimony to his Divinity when being astonish'd at the Miracles wrought by Him they openly profess'd that unless a stop was put thereto by securing his Person and forbidding his Doctrine all Nations would believe in Him Nor have their Historians alone but other Unbelievers also own'd the Christian Religion to be of all others in the World the best theirs only excepted which they 〈◊〉 before it either through ignorance or prejudice For indeed what Religion could ever shew such Marks and Tokens of the Hand of God as this of the Christian through the whole Course of its Propagation In its first Institution by how many Miracles was it confirm'd As we find them recorded in the Holy Scriptures by those who were Eye-witnesses thereof and whose plainness and simplicity apparent in all their Relations of the same is proof sufficient of their Sincerity Nor is it less to be admired how succesfully it was Preached and Established by Persons of neither Learning Eloquence nor Authority but on the contrary destitute of all outward Accomplishments exposed to Poverty and the Contempt of all Mankind Who yet by the meer force of Truth reduced both Learned and Unlearned whole Empires and Nations to the same Christian Faith and under which by the special Providence of Almighty God they have for so many Ages been preserved notwithstanding its containing not only Mysteries above the Reach but Precepts again the Inclinations and Passions of Men's Minds In a Word That he need not doubt of believing that which those Blessed Spirits so divinely proclaim'd who foretold the Birth of Jesus Christ and published it with Songs of Rejoycing giving Glory to God and promising Peace to all Men Who also were Witnesses of his Resurrection and Ascension into Heaven That which so many Saints and Holy Men and Women enlighten'd by God have profess'd which such vast Numbers of the Faithful in all Ages have by their Mortification and Self-denial sacrificed the Pleasures of this World to and through the midst of so many cruel Persecutions maintained at no less a Price than that of their Blood as knowing what sure Grounds they were on even the Authority as we have
well to ponder that from his Reflections thereupon which may be shorter or longer according as his pains will allow him more or less opportunity for it he may receive Spiritual Help and Comfort Lastly He should be admonished to look up to Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith and God of our Salvation to fix in his Mind the continual remembrance of his Sufferings and break forth to Him in these Words O Lord who hast shed thy precious Blood for me have mercy upon me Thou Lord who for the attonement of my sins didst in the midst of so many torments and with so much ignominy resign thy Divine Spirit upon the Cross have mercy upon me O Lamb of God that takest away the sins of the World have mercy upon me I commend my Soul to Thee I commit it into Thy Hands Lord receive it Lord vouchsafe to save it Amen To this the Minister may add the Words set down in the Sixth Chapter if he judges them necessary for the fortifying of the Patient's Hope and administring Comfort to him CHAP. XIV What is to be said to such as shew too great a Confidence and presume too far upon their Salvation AS the Devil labours nothing more than the undoing of us to all Eternity so he endeavours to bring this his pernicious Design about by quite contrary Means sometimes by suggesting too great a Fear of God's Judgments and sometimes too great a Confidence in his Mercy If the Minister shall perceive that the Sick Person is flattering himself with the good Works he has done and so from them presumes too much upon his Salvation he ought meekly to admonish him to enter into and recollect himself in order to the making him sensible that our Felicity depends only upon Christ on whom we are wholly to build our Hope of Salvation That God alone enables us to act and that to Him it is we owe all the Honour and Glory of our Good Works That of our selves we are but Weakness and capable of nothing that is good not so much as one good Thought without his preventing and assisting Grace That we ought to give Him Thanks and Praise for what we are and what we have That all our Virtue is derived from Him and that we should find a terrible Account if when He comes at the last Day to judge us He would look upon our Merits only That we must always remember what is said in the Gospel That when we have done all that we are commanded to do we are but unprofitable Servants In a word that we are bound to God by so many Ties of Favours and Blessings that though we should humble our selves even to nothing before Him yet should we be very far from expressing a due acknowledgment to Him for the same But if the Sick Person shall still run upon an excess of Hope and rely so far upon the Merits of Christ as not to be at all afflicted or concerned for his Sins 't will be expedient to affright him into a due sense of them by recalling to his Memory the many Transgressions of his past Life and shewing him the heinousness of them that so he may be made apprehensive of the necessity of a sincere Repentance and Humiliation before he can expect to obtain Pardon The Minister may tell him that his Hope is laudable but considering what great Sinners we are we should mix with our Confidence a Filial Fear accompanied with Sorrow and Contrition for our having offended so Good so Gracious and so Benign a Father adding hereto what further he shall think conducive to the raising in him the just Notion he ought to have of God's Mercy CHAP. XV. How a Sick Person is to be managed when bereft in a great measure of his Senses and Understanding IN the first place the Minister is to inform himself whether the Sick Person has already been pray'd with and received the Holy Communion Whether he has set his House and Affairs in order and thought of every thing requisite for him to do of which we shall speak in the Seventeenth Chapter If they answer him that nothing has yet been done of all this as it often happens to those that are backward in preparing themselves for Death or are struck on a sudden with a violent and unforeseen Distemper he shall call to the Patient with a loud Voice and ask him whether he hears him and if he perceives him to have still some remainder of Understanding he is to advertise him of the danger his Life is in and of the great Concern of his Salvation which without delay lest it should prove fatal to him he ought to secure by Repentance and true Contrition of heart for all the Sins known and unknown he has committed against his Maker his Neighbour and Himself and to restore or cause to be restored as far as he is able whatever he may have of another Body's Then he shall ask him whether he be not desirous to receive the Blessed Sacrament as well for the Confirmation of his Faith as Assurance of God's Pardon of all his Transgressions and intitling him to Christ's Merits To which if the Minister finds him dispos'd he shall administer it to him declaring that God has put away his Sins and will remember them no more and that the same moment this Breath shall depart from him God will receive him to Himself and admit him into the Number of the Righteous that are Sanctified With whom he shall live a Life full of Joy and Bliss which never shall have end If the Patient be in a Condition of doing any thing which he hath omitted towards the future settlement of his Family or Estate the Minister shall advise him to do â—â— now as we have said elsewhere And this done he shall go on with entertaining him in Devotion and Spiritual Contemplations But if the Minister is told that the Patient has been already visited by another and has received the Holy Sacrament he may spare asking him many Questions about the State of his Soul especially if he finds him very weak and apply himself only to the comforting him and raising his Hope and Affections more and more to God and there fixing them Or if the Patient be fallen into a Delirium or Lethargy the Minister shall either wait till he is come to himself again or desire to have notice so soon as those that look after him shall find his Judgment return'd to him Which interval of sensibleness it will concern the Minister to improve as much as he is able by exciting in him those good Motions and Dispositions that may help him to die in a true State of Regeneration as well as with solid Comfort and Satisfaction making use to that purpose of those means we have proposed in the preceding Chapters particularly in the Eighth and what else in his prudence he shall see fit CHAP. XVI What the Minister is to do when he finds the Sick Person posess'd of
fly for shelter to his Redeemer who by his Death has deliver'd him from the Empire of Satan and from the Power of Darkness Adding thereto what-ever he shall think proper to keep up the Patient's Hope and dispose him in case he be restored to Health again to do what shall be directed him for the good of his Soul and security of his Eternal Salvation 4. If this Obstinacy proceeds from his adhering to some particular Sin that he is loath to disengage himself from such as the being possess'd of Goods unlawfully gotten which he knows not how to think of restoring the Minister shall represent to him that in all appearance his last Minute is now drawing nigh when he will not be able to avoid leaving these Goods behind him which he refuses to make Restitution of That his Soul is just going to be separated at once from his Body and all those Worldly Pleasures he so fondly embraces and will not renounce and that within a little time he will be summon'd before the Tribunal of God where he must expect to receive Sentence according as he has done whether good or bad If the fear of leaving his Children in want be the main Obstruction to his performance of this Essential part of his Duty let him be advis'd to consider how great an Enemy he will be to himself thus to expose both his Body and Soul to the danger of Everlasting Flames only to enrich his Children who far from being the better for this ill-gotten Wealth may live to curse it as an Occasion of their utter Ruin and Damnation That indeed with much greater Pleasure and Satisfaction he should cast them upon the Divine Providence who if they prove Virtuous will not fail to take careof them and give them a far better and more secure Settlement than any they could have procured to themselves by this unlawful Treasure Which joyn'd with a lively Representation of God's infinite Goodness and Love to us the Favours we daily receive from his Hands and the Glory which He is preparing for us compared with the dreadful Torments of Hell and the miserable State of the Damned Souls may prevail upon him to prefer Spiritual Riches and Enjoyments before all other Considerations And as he shall be observ'd to be most affected with any of the foregoing Motives such Motive may be prudently insisted on to the softening of his heart and making it contrite 5. Lastly If a drouzy Laziness be the Sole Impediment to his Preparation for Death the Minister shall awaken him from this Spiritual Lethargy by shewing him the great danger his Soul is in offering him the assistance of his Advice and Prayers and exhorting him to confess his Sins to God with a Declaration of God's readiness to pardon him on condition of his sincere and hearty Repentance In short whatever may be the Cause of his Reluctance the Minister shall as we have said already desire his Friends and Relations not only themselves to pray for him but to procure him the Publick Prayers of the Church not ceasing to admonish the Patient also while he is able to pray for himself Which the Minister perceiving he is not likely to remain long in a capacity of doing by reason of his approaching Dissolution he ought by no means to abandon him but on the contrary redouble his Fervor in recommending his Soul to God and administring Ghostly Comfort to him to the last moment unless it be that he knows some other particular Minister that may be more acceptable to him whom in such Case he shall cause to be sent for especially if he be a Man of Authority by his Office and Reputation By all which Holy Means and the Blessing of God attending them the Patient being brought as we hope he will to a through Repentance and fit Composure for receiving it the Blessed Sacrament shall be administred to him whereby his Conscience will be much quieted and his Friends and Relations comforted CHAP. XVIII What in the last place the Minister is to do if the Patient dies and What in-case it shall please God to restore him to his Health again With regard on the one hand to the Standers-by and on the other to the Person Recover'd HAving conducted the Patient through all the Circumstances of his Illness and as we hope left nothing wanting towards the Security of his Everlasting Salvation it remains only that we suppose this Sickness of his to terminate either in his Death or Recovery and instruct the Minister how to make the proper Uses of both Events If Death be the Issue the first thing calling for the Minister's regard is the Comforting of the Friends and Relations of the Party Deceas'd A Subject so copious that to be particular therein would be as endless as superfluous I shall therefore content my self with mentioning some of the common Topicks of Consolation on this Occasion and leave it to the Minister's Discretion to inforce and inlarge upon them according to the various Circumstances of Persons Time and Place This then in general may be said to all That they ought by no means to give way to a Grief that cannot possibly avail them any thing but may by being too far indulg'd prove both highly displeasing to God and prejudicial to their own Healths That they are not to look upon those as lost whom God is pleas'd to take to Himself And as to this Separation from their Departed Friend it will not be of any long continuance forasmuch as within a little while they shall meet him again in a happy and joyful Resurrection Nay that 't is even still in their power to possess him as fully as ever they did whilst in the Flesh if as all good Christians should labour to do they possess God with Whom and in Whom he now is On which account if their Love to him was sincere they ought instead of repining at his Death to rejoyce at his being thus remov'd from the Calamities and Miseries of this World into the Bosom of Eternal Bliss and Glory Whereby having brought them into a Condition of attending to and profiting by his Ghostly Admonitions the Minister is to represent to them and the rest of the Company the Necessity of preparing our selves for Death whilst we are in Health by frequently receiving of the Lord's Supper and strictly examining our Lives and Conversations especially upon the Article of doing right to our Neighbour as being that which commonly most burthens our Consciences when we come to die And how near we may be to this last Moment God only knows who has number'd our Days and set bounds to our Lives beyond which we shall not pass That therefore it highly imports us to think seriously thereon and so to regulate all our Actions as if we liv'd under a constant Expectation of it Let him observe to them how precious the present time is and how worthy of being laid hold on for the security of our Eternal Happiness That
the Days of Salvation pass away apace and when once gone it being for ever out of our power to recall them again we ought to employ them with the Care and Circumspection becoming good Christians by weaning our selves without delay from the Things of this World and dispossessing our Hearts of all other Thoughts but what relate to God alone Nor need we any other Arguments than the sight of this very Dead Body to convince us how vain and transistory how deceitful and perishable all those false Enjoyments are which the Devil makes use of to dazzle our Eyes and allure us to Sin Neither Riches nor Honours are able to procure one Minute's Respit from the Stroke of Death When she summons we must immediately obey and quit them all nay and our very Bodies too as straightly as we are ty'd to them and resign them to unavoidable Corruption In a word That the Goods of this World are so far only to be desired as may serve for the necessary support of our selves and enable us to be assisting to others From whence he may take occasion of saying something to them about the Settlement of their Temporal Concerns advising them to make their Wills and Testaments whilst in a state of perfect Health and Understanding that so they may be able to deliberate the more maturely thereon and dispose of their Estates with the greater satisfaction to themselves as well as Justice and Equality to others by a due regard to Relation Friendship and Deserts it often happening where this Caution is not us'd that a Feaver or some other violent Distemper surprises a Man and puts it out of his power to do the Good he intended to have done Or some of his greedy Friends and Relations finding him in a helpless condition do by their tiresome importunities oblige him to make an unequal Testament Or lastly not to mention more of the many inconveniencies arising from this neglect he dies Intestate and leaves his Estate for a Prey to the Lawyers and a standing occasion of Discord in his Family But when by a prudent timely and just disposal of his Earthly Possessions he has convey'd the Blessings of Peace Plenty and Prosperity to his Family When by an upright and unspotted Life he has preserved himself fit to enter into the Holy of Holies the Sacred Mansions of the Most High And last of all when by his Merciful Deeds he has secur'd to himself Mercy from his Blessed Saviour Oh! with what unspeakable Comfort may he end his days and with what Confidence and Alacrity appear before the Tribunal of God to receive his Everlasting Reward applying to himself the Words of the Revelation I heard a Voice from Heaven saying to me Write From henceforth blessed are the Dead which die in the Lord even so saith the Spirit for they rest from their Labours and their Works follow them Thus much in case the Patient shall die IF it shall please God to restore him to his health again The Minister is to visit and congratulate him thereon and with so much the more fervency by how much the more dangerous his Sickness has been Which will give him the fairer Opportunity of inlarging upon and rendring him sensible of God's transcendent Mercies to him and the Gratitude on his part due for the same A Debt he may tell him no other ways to be discharg'd than by his making such good use of this Visitation as may tend to the Glory of God the Edification of his Neighbour and the Amendment of his own Life for the future In order whereto the Minister shall remind him of what pass'd between them during his Illness upon the Subject of his Spiritual Welfare Of the Difficulties met with in his Preparation for Death for want of a timely regard thereto Of the Defects in his Repentance still remaining to be supply'd Of the particular Frailties against which he is chiefly to arm himself for the time to come And Lastly Of his Pious Vows and Resolutions concerning these or any other Points founded upon the Condition of his Recovery and requiring to be now confirm'd and made good Adding thereto to conclude all That as when Sick he desired and had the Publick Prayers of the Church as well as those of his Private Friends so is it meet and his bounden Duty that having received the Benefit of them in his Redemption from the Grave and the Gates of Death he should now Give Thanks unto the Lord with his whole heart not only secretly but among the Faithful and in the Congregation Where he ought also with the first Opportunity to Offer his Vows unto the Most High by receiving the Cup of Salvation and calling upon the Name of the Lord with humblest Supplications for the Assistance of his Holy Spirit towards enabling him duely to perform the same In the mean time and ever continuing fervent in his Private Devotions and sering himself in some measure therein with the Prayer and Thanksgiving hereto annext Which God of his Infinite Mercy accept Amen A PRAYER and THANKSGIVING to be offer'd to GOD by One newly Recover'd from a dangerous SICKNESS O MOST GRACIOUS GOD and MERCIFUL FATHER Who art a Physician to the Sick Strength to the Weak Comfort to the Afflicted Relief to the Needy and Succour to the Helpless I Thy poor Wretched Creature having so deeply tasted of Thy Mercies do with a profound sense of Thine Infinite Goodness and of my own unworthiness yeild Thee most humble and hearty Thanks and Praise for Thy manifold Benefits and Favours towards me and particularly for that Thou hast been pleased in so fatherly a manner to visit me and to bring me back from the Grave and from the Gates of Death restoring me to my former Health and Strength LORD What shall I render unto Thee as for all other so more especially for this tender Mercy of thine in thus sparing me longer in the Land of the Living and affording me still a larger space for my Repentance Thou hast chasten'd and corrected me but hast not given me over unto Death Thou hiddest not Thy Face from me when I was in trouble Thou hast not made my Life like them that go down into the pit nor cast Thy Servant away in Displeasure O sanctifie this Thy Fatherly Correction to me that it may prove an effectual Means for my Thorough-amendment And grant I humbly beseech Thee that through the Assistance of Thy Divine Spirit I may be enabled hereafter to make such good use of the Time which Thy unspeakable Goodness hath now inlarged to me and so husband and improve the same to Thy Service as that it may not repent Thee to have lent it me Grant that I may seriously ponder and admire Thy transcendent Favours to me and my just Obligations of Gratitude to Thee as well as Encouragement continually to depend upon Thee and may without further delay set about the Business Thou hast appointed for me here even the 〈◊〉 Business of my Eternal Salvation 〈◊〉 I may spend the precious Remainder of my â—ife in a constant practice of my Duty towards Thee O MY GOD and towards my Neighbour and my self That I may redeem the time which alas I have so unworthily mispent by living in ignorance and after the Corruptions and Vanities of the World And that considering how short this my time is which is but a Vapour that vanishes away I may never imploy it in making provision for the Flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof but live in Righteousness Purity and Holiness all my days That I may apply my Heart to that true Wisdom which is to know and serve Thee That I may begin even here on Earth that blessed Work I shall continue in Heaven to all Eternity namely to love and adore Thee and to walk before Thee with all humility and uprightness to Praise Laud and Magnifie Thy Holy Name for Thy great Glory and for Thy Goodness-sake Inlighten my mind that I may have a more perfect Knowledge of Thee and inflame my heart with a greater Love towards Thee Teach me to do the thing that pleases Thee for Thou art my God Let Thy loving Spirit lead me forth into the Land of Righteousness O give me grace to do Thy Will in all Things and to delight in nothing more than in obeying Thy Laws and Commandments wherein there is Great Pleasure and Great Reward And to all the Favours I have already received at Thy Merciful Hand LORD Vouchsafe to add this one more That I may never depart from Thee or be abandoned by Thee but that I may in my whole Life please Thee and in my Death praise Thee That when ever Thou shalt see fit to call me out of this World I may be ready to obey Thy Heavenly Summons and to follow Thee and be admitted into Thine Everlasting Kingdom of Bliss and Glory with this most sweet and comfortable Invitation of my BLESSED SAVIOUR's Well done Good and Faithful Servant Enter thou into the Joy of thy Master Grant this O MERCIFUL FATHER for Thine own sake and for the sake of this Dear Son of Thy Love for whom I and all that is within me give Praise and Adoration to Thee and in whose most prevailing Name I further implore Thy Divine Majesty humbly and earnestly praying as He Himself has taught me in his Holy Gospel Our Father c. FINIS