endeuored himselfe to precipitate them which seeing he could not so quickly performe he fumed in himselfe and curst them till at length lifting vp his head towards Heauen he espied the sweete and most coÌ„passionate Sauiour of our soules moued with an extreame pitie and compassion of that which passed rysing from his Throne and descending to the place where the two poore miserable wretches were stretch towards them his helping hand as also the Angels round about them did catching hold of them to hinder them from falling into this dreadfull Gulfe and in Conclusion the amiable and milde IESVS turning himselfe to the stormie CARPVS hold CARPVS saied he henceforth beate vpoÌ„ me for I am readie to suffer oÌ„ce more for maÌ„s saluation and it should be pleasant vnto me if it could be performed without the offence of other men as for the rest aduise with thy selfe which thou likest better to be in this gulfe together with these serpents or to liue with Angels who are so great friends to men THEO the holy man CARPVS had iust reason to be zealously moued at these two men and his Zeale had but rightly raysed his stomacke against them but being once moued he left reason and Zeale behind him ouer ruÌ„ning the bounds and limits of holy loue and consequently Zeale which is loue in its heate Anger changed the hatred of sinne into the hatred of the sinner and the most mild Charitie into an outragious crueltie 6. Some there are of that disposition that they thinke one cannot be very Zealous vnlesse they be very angrie thinking that nothing is done well vnlesse all be spoyled whereas contrariwise true Zeale rarely makes vse of choler for as we neuer applie the lance and the fire to sicke but in meere extreamities so holy Zeale doth not imploie choler but in extreame necessities That the examples of diuers saints which seemed to exercise their Zeale with Anger make nothing against the aduise of the precedent Chapter CHAPTER XVI 1. IT is true indeede my deare THEO that MOYSES PHINEES HELIE MATHATIAS and diuers great seruaÌ„ts of God made vse of choler to exercise their Zeale in sundrie remarkable occurrences yet note also I praie you that those were great personages who could well manage their choler not vnlike to that braue Captaine of the Ghospell who saied to his soldiers goe and they went come and they came but we who are in a manner all but a kind of poore people we haue no such power ouer our motions our horse is not so well broken that we caÌ„ both spurre and make him stope at our pleasure Old and well trayned hounds doe come in or fall off according to the huntsmans call but vntrayned younge hounds doe disordely flie out The great Saints that haue trayned vp their passions in a continuall mortification by the exercise of vertue can at euery turne of a haÌ„d turne and winde their passions giuing the scope or gathering theÌ„ vp at their pleasure But we who haue vnbridled passions young or at least mistaught we cannot giue bridle to our anger but at great perill of disorder for hauing once gotten head one cannot restrayne and order them as were fitting 2. S. DENIS talking with that DEMOPHILVS who would haue giuen the name of Zeale to his rage and furie he that would correct others quoth he must first beware that anger doe not turne reason out of the power and Dominion wherein God hath established it ouer the soule aÌ„d that it doe not stirre vp a reuoult sedition and confusion within our selues so that we doe in no sort approoue your impetuosities to which you were pricked forward with an vndiscreete Zeale though you should a thousand times repeate PHINEES and HELIE for the like words did not please IESVS CHRIST being spoken to him by his Disciples who were not yet made partakers of this sweete and benigne spirit PHINEES THEOT seeing a certaine accursed Israelite offend God with a Moabite slew them both HELIE foretold the death of OCHOSIAS who wrothfull at this presage sent two Captains one after another with fiftie men a peece to take him and the man of God made fire descend from heaueÌ„ which deuour'd them Our Sauiour on a day passing through Samaria sent into a towne to take vp his lodging but the inhabitants knowing that our Sauiour was a Iewe by nation and that he went to Hierusalem they would not lodge him which S. IOHN and S. IAMES seeing they saied vnto our Sauiour shall we commande the fire to descend and burne them And our Sauiour turning towards them chid them saying you know not what spirit moues you to this the Sonne of man came not to distroye soules but to saue them This it is then THEOT that S. DENIS would saie to DEMOPHILVS who alleaged the example of PHINEES and HELIE for S. IOHN and S. IAMES who would haue imitated PHINEES and HELIE in making sire descend from Heauen vpon men were reprehended by our Sauiour who gaue them to know that his Spirit and Zeale was sweete milde and gracious which rarely made vse of wroth or indignation but onely in some circumstaÌ„ces where there was no other hope left to preuaile S. THOMAS of Aquine that great Starre of Diuinitie being sicke of the desease whereof he died at the Monasterie of Fossanoua of S. BERNARDS order the Religious besought him to make them some short expositioÌ„ vpon the CANTICLE OF CANTICLES to the imitation of S. BERNARD and he answered them Deare Fathers giue me a S. BERNARDS Spirit and I will interprete this diuine Canticle as did S. BERNARD so verily if one should saie to one of vs small miserable imperfect and wretched Christians serue your selues of Anger and indignation in your Zeale as did PHINEES HELIE MATHATHIAS S. PETER and S. PAVLE we ought to replie giue vs the Spirit of perfectioÌ„ and pure Zeale with the interiour light which those great Saints had and we will arme our selues with choler as they did It is not a common performaÌ„ce to discerne when and in what measure we are to be angrie 3. Those great Saints were immediatly inspired by God and therefore might boldly imploye their anger without perill for the same Spirit which did embolden them to this exploite did also gouerne the raynes of their iust wroth least they might out raye their prefixed bounds An Anger that is inspired or excited by the holy Ghost is not now the anger of a maÌ„ and it is mans wroth that we are to be â—ware of because as S. IAMES saieth it worketh not God's Iustice And indeede when those worthy seruants of God made vse of anger it was in so sollemne occurrences and vpon so inordinate crimes that there was no danger that the punishment should passe the fault 4. Are we thinke you to take libertie to iniurie sinners to blame nations to controll and censure our Conductors and Prelats because S. PAVLE once cals the Galatians senslesse represents to the Candiots their lewde inclinations and
resisted the glorious S. PETER his Superiour in his face Certes euery one is not a S. PAVLE to know how to doe those things in the nicke But hot harsh presumptuous and reprochfull spirits following their owne inclinations humours auersions and the high conceits they haue of their owne sufficiencie draw the vaile of Zeale ouer their iniquitie and vnder the name of this sacred fire permit themselues to be burnt vp with their proper passions It is the Zeale of the health of soules that makes the Prelatshipe be sought after if you will beleeue the ambitious man that makes the Monke ordained for the Quire course about if you will giue credit to his disquieted spirit that causeth all those censures and murmuratiōs against the Prelates of the Church and tēporall Princes if you will giue eare to the arrogant You shall heare nothing frō him but Zeale nor yet see any Zeale in hī but onely opprobrious and rayling speaches hatred ād rācore disquiete of the heart and tōgue 5. Zeale may be practised three wayes first in exercising high actions of Iustice to repell euill and this belongs onely to publike officers to correct censure and reprehend in the nature of a Superiour as Princes Prelates Magistrats Preachers but whereas this office is worshipfull euery one will vndertake it euery one will haue a fingar in it Secondly one may vse Zeale in actions of great vertue for the good example of others by suggesting the remedies of euill and exhorting men to applie them by working the good that is opposite to the euill which we desire to banish which is a thing that belongs to euery one and yet it hath but few vndertakers Finally the most excellent vse of Zeale is placed in suffering and enduring much to hinder or diuert euill and scarce will any admit this Zeale A specious Zeale is all our ambition vpon that each one willingly spends his talant neuer taking notice that it is not Zeale indeede which is there sought for but glorie ambition's satisfaction choler churlishnesse and other passions 6. Certainly our Sauiours Zeale did principally appeare in his death vpon the Crosse to distroy death and sinne in men wherein he was soueraignly imitated by that admirable vessell of election and dilection as the great S. GREGORIE Nazianzen in golden words represents him for speaking of this holy Apostle he fights for all saieth he he poures out praiers for all he is Zealously passionat towards all he is inflamed for all yea he dared yet more for his brethren according to flesh so that if I may dare also to saie it he desires through charitie that they might haue euen his owne place nere our Sauiour O excellencie of an incredible courage and feruour of Spirit He imitats IESVS CHRIST who became a curse for our Loue who put on our infirmities and bore our deseases Or that I may speake a little more soberly he was the first after our Sauiour that refused not to suffer and to be reputed wicked in their behalfe Euē so then THEO as our Sauiour was whip't condemned crucified as man deuoted bequeathed and dedicated to beare and support all the reproches ignominies and punishments due to all the offenders in the world and to be a generall sacrifice for sinne being made as an ANATHEMA forsaken and left of his eternall Father so according to the true doctrine of this great Nazianzen the glorious Apostle S. PAVLE desired to be loden with ignominie to be crucified left abandoned and sacrificed for the sinnes of the Iewes that the curse and paine which they merited might fall vpon him And as our Sauiour did so take vpon him the sinnes of the world and became a curse was sacrificed for sinne and forsaken of his Father that he ceased not continually to be the well-beloued Sonne in which his Father pleased himselfe So the holy Apostle desired indeede to be a curse and to be separated from his Maister to be left alone to the mercy of the reproches and punishments due vnto the Iewes yet did he neuer desire to be depriued of Charitie and the grace of God from which nothing could separate him that is he desired to be vsed as one separated from God but he desired not in effect to be separated or depriued of his Grace for this cannot be piously desired So the heauenly Spouse confesseth that though loue be strong as death which makes a separation betwixt the bodie and the soule Yet Zeale which is an ardent loue is yet stronger for it resembles Hell which separats the soule from our Sauiours sight but it was neuer saied nor can euer be saied that Loue or Zeale was Like to sinne which alone separats from the grace of God And indeede how could the ardour of Loue possibly make one desire to be separated from grace since Loue is grace it selfe or at least cannot consist without grace Now the Zeale of the great S. PAVLE was in some sort practised by the little S. PAVLE I meane S. PAVLINE who to deliuer a slaue out of bondage became himselfe a slaue sacrificing his owne libertie to bestow it vpon his neighbour 6. Happie is he saieth S. AMBROSE who knowes the gouernment of Zeale The Deuil will easily scofe at thy Zeale if it be not according to science let therefore thy Zeale be inflamed with Charitie adorned with science established in cōstancie True Zeale is the child of Charitie as being the ardour of it Wherefore like to Charitie it is patient benigne not troublesome nor contentious not enuious or spightfull but reioycing in Truth The ardour of true Zeale resembles that of the huntsman being diligēt carefull actiue industrious and eager in the pursuit but without choler anger or trouble for if the huntsman's labour were cholerike harsh and wayward it would not be so earnestly loued and affected Zeale in like manner hath extreame feruours but such as are constant solide sweete laborious equally amiable and infatigable whereas contrariwise false Zeale is turbulent confused insolent arrogant cholericke wauering no lesse impetuous then inconstant How our Sauiour practised all the most Excellent acts of Loue. CHAPTER XVII 1. HAuing spoken at large of the acts of Diuine Loue that you may more easily and holily conserue the memorie thereof I present you with a collection or abridgement of it The Charitie of IESVS CHRIST doth presse vs saieth the great Apostle Yea truly THEO it doth force or vse a violence against vs by its infinite sweetenesse which shines in the whole worke of our Redemption wherein appeared the benignitie and loue of our Sauiour towards men For what did not this Diuine Louer doe in matter of Loue 1. he loued vs with a LOVE OF COMPLACENCE for his delightes were to be with the children of men and to draw man to himselfe becōming man 2. he loued vs with a LOVE of BENEVOLENCE enriching man with his diuinitie so that man was God 3. he vnited himselfe vnto vs in an incōprehensible coniunctiō whereby he
and Memorie for of the diuersitie of things which the Vnderstanding hath a power to vnderstand and the Memorie a power to remember the will doth determine those to which she will haue her faculties applie them selues or from which diuert themselues It is true she cannot manage or range them so absolutely as she doth the hands feete or tongue by reason of sensitiue faculties namely the Fantasie which doth not obaye the will with a prompt and infallible obedience which are necessarily required to the operations of the Vnderstanding and Memorie notwithstanding the will doth moue imploy and apply these faculties at her pleasure though not so firmely and constantly that the light and variable Fantasie doth not often diuert and distract them so that as the Apostle cries out I doe not the good which I desire but the euill which I hate so we are often compelled to thinke not the good which we loue but the euill which we hate How the will gouerns the sensuall appetite CHAPTER III. 1. THe Will then THEOTIME beares rule ouer the Memorie Vnderstanding and Fantasie not by force but by authoritie so that she is not infallibly obayed like as the Maister of the Familie is nor alwayes obayed by his children and seruants The like is touching the sensatiue appetite which as S. AVGVSTINE saieth is called in vs sinners concupiscence and remaines subiect to the will and Vnderstanding as the wife to her Husband because as it was saied to the woman Thou shalt returne to thy Husband who shall gouerne thee so was it saied to Cain that his appetite should returne home to him and that he should maister it And no other thing is ment by Returne to man then to submit and subiect it selfe vnto him O man saieth S. BERNARD it is in thy power if thou wilt to bring thine enemy so to be thy seruant that all things should succeede well with thee Thy appetite is vnder thee and thou shalt dominere ouer it Thy enemy can moue in thee the feeling of temptation but it is in thy power to giue or refuse consent In case thou permit thy appetite to carrie thee away to sinne then thou shalt be vnder it and it shall dominere ouer thee for whosoeuer sinneth is made slaue to sinne but before thou sinne so long as sinne getteth not entrie into thy consent but onely into thy sense that is to saie so long as it staies in the appetite not goeing so farre as thy will thy appetite is subiect vnto thee and thou Lord ouer it While an Emperour is not yet created he is subiect to the Electors Dominion in whose hands it is to reiect or elect him to the Imperiall dignitie but being once elected and eleuated by their meanes from thence they begin to be his subiects and he their Lord. So long as the will denies consent she presides but hauing once giuen consent she becomes slaue to her owne appetite 2. To conclude this sensuall appetite in plaine truth is a rebellious subiect seditious and stirring and we must confesse we cannot so defeate it that it doth not rise againe encounter and assault the reason yet hath the will such a strong hand ouer it that she is able if she please to bridle it breake it's designes and repulse it syth that not to consent to the suggestions therof is a sufficient repulse One cannot hinder concupiscence to conceiue yet well may we staie it from bringing foorth and accomplishing sinne 3. Now this concupiscence or sensuall appepetite hath 12. motions by which as by so many mutinous Captaines it raiseth sedition in man And because ordinarily they trouble the soule and disquiet the bodie in so much as they trouble the soule they are called perturbations in so much as they disquiete the bodie they are named passions as witnesseth S. AVGVSTINE All place before them selues Good or Euill that to atchiue it this to auoyde it If Good be considered in it selfe according to it 's naturall goodnesse it excites Loue the prime and principall passion If Good be represented as absent it prouokes a desire of it selfe it being desired we apprehend it possible it enters in vs a Hope if impossible Dispaire begins to sease vs. But when we enioie it as present it moues vs to ioie Contrariwise as soone as we discouer Euill we Hate it if it be absent we flie it if we propose it as ineuitable we Feare it if we think we can eschew it we doe emboulden and encourage our selues But if we feele it as present we Greeue and thē Anger and Indignation sodainely runnes out to resist and repulse the Euill or at least to be reuenged of it Which if it succeede not according to our mind we remaine in Griefe But if we repell or be reuenged of it we feele satisfaction and content which is a Pleasure of Triūphe for as the possessiō of Good doth glad the heart so the victorie ouer Euill doth satiate the courage And ouer all this multitude of sēsuall passiōs the will beares Empire reiecting their suggestiōs repulsing their embracements hindring their effects or at the very least stifly denying them consent without the which they can neuer endamage vs and by refusall of which they remaine vanquished yea euen a farre off weakned deiected defeated repressed and if not altogether slaine at least mortified and brought lowe 4. And THEOTIME this multitude of passions is permitted to reside in our soule for the exercise of our will in vertue and spirituall vallour In so much that the STOIKES who denied that passions were found in wise men did greatly erre and so much the more for that they shewed in effect that which in words they denied as S. AVGVSTINE shewes recounting this pleasant historie AVLVS GELIVS hauing embarked himselfe with a famous STOIKE a great tempest takes them whereat the STOIKE being affrighted begun to waxe white and Pale and sensibly to Tremble so that all in the boate perceiued it and tooke precise notice of him albeit they did runne the same hazard with him In the interim the sea waxed calme the danger passed and assurance did restore to eche of them Libertie to blame yea euen to raile at him A certaine voluptuous ASIATIKE gybed at the STOIKE and reproched vnto him his Feare which had made him become white and Pale by apprehension of danger whilst he for his part remained firme without Feare to which the STOIKE replyed by relation of that which ARISTIPPVS a SOCRATICAL Philosopher had answeared one who for the same reason had quipped him with the like reproch saying vnto him for thee thou hadst no reason to be troubled for the death of a wicked Rascall but I should haue wronged my selfe not to haue feared to loose the life of an ARISTIPPVS And the best of it is that AVLVS GELIVS an eye witnesse recites the storie but touching the STOIKES reply contained therin it did more commend his wit then his Cause sythens alleaging a companion of his Feares he left
feeblenesse and tendernesse of the one doth exalt and make more apparant the prudence and assurance of the other and euen this dissimilitude is agreeable on the other side children loue olde men because they see them buisie and carefull about them and that by a secret instinct they perceiue they haue neede of their directions Musicall concord stands in a kind of discord in which vnlike voices doe correspond making vp altogether one sole Close of proportion as the dissimilitude of precious stones and flowres doe make the gratefull compositiō of Imbosture and Diaprie so Loue is not caused alwayes by Resemblance and Sympathie but by Correspondance and Proportion which consisteth in this that by the vnion of one thing to another they may mutually receiue one anothers perfection and so be bettered The head doth not resemble the bodie nor the hand the arme yet they haue such a Correspōdance and are seated so neerely together that by their mutuall neighbourhood they doe meruelously enterchāge perfection so that if these parts had each one a distinct soule they would haue a perfect mutua◠Loue not by Similitude but by Correspondance which they haue in their mutuall perfection For this cause the melancolie and ioyefull soure and sweete haue often a correspondance of mutuall affection by reason of the mutuall impressions which they receiue one of an other by which their humours are reciprocally moderated But when this mutuall Correspondance meetes with similitude Loue without doubt is engendred more efficaciously for Similitude being the true picture of Vnitie when two like things are vnited by a proportion to the same end it seemes rather to be an Vnitie then an Vnion 11. The Sympathie then betwixt the Louer and the Beloued is the first source of Loue and this Sympathie or Conueniencie consisteth in a Correspondance which is no other thing then a mutuall aptitude making things proper to be vnited and mutually to communicate their perfections but this will be cleared in the processe of this booke That loue tends to vnion CHAPTER IX 1. THe great Salamon in a delitiously admirable ayre doth sing our Sauiours loues and those of the deuote soule in that diuin worke which for it's excellent sweetnesse is instyled the Canticle of Canticles And to rayse our selues in a more easie flight to the consideration of this spirituall loue which is exercised betwixt God and vs by the correspondance which the motions of our hearts haue with the inspirations of his diuine Maiestie he makes vse of a perpetuall representation of the loues of a chaste Shepheard and shamefast Shepheardesse Now making the Spouse or Bride first begin the parlie by manner of a certaine surprise of loue he makes her at the first onset lance out her heart in these words let him deigne me a kisse of his mouth Doe you marke THEOTIME how the soule personated by this Shepheardesse doth pretēd no other thing by the first expression of her desire thē a chast vnion with her spouse protesting that it is the highest ayme of her ambition and onely thing she breathes after For I pray you what other thing would this first sigh intimate Let him deigne me with a Kisse of his mouth 2. A Kisse from all ages as by naturall instinct hath bene imployed as a representation of perfect loue that is the vnion of hearts and not without cause we send out and muster the passions and motions which our soule hath common with brute beasts by our eyes eye-browes forehead and countenance in generall by his face a man is knowē saieth the Scripture and Aristotle giuing a reason why ordinarily great mens faces onely are pourtrated t' is saieth he that the countenances teach what they are 3. Yet doe we not vtter our discourse nor the thoughts which proceede from the spirituall portion of our soule called reason by which we are distinguished from Beasts but by words and in consequence by helpe of the mouth in so much that to poure out ones soule and scatter ones heart is nothing else but to speake Poure out your hearts before God saieth the PSALMIST that is expresse and turne the affections of your hearts into words And SAMVEL'S pious Mother pronouncing her praiers allthough so softly that one could hardly discerne the motion of her lips I haue poured out saieth she my heart before God in this wise one mouth is applyed to another in kissing to testifie that they desire to poure our one soule into the other reciprocally to vnite them in a perfect vnion and for this Reason in all times and amongst the most saintly men the world had the kisse hath bene a signe of loue and affection and such vse was vniuersally made of it amongst the auncient Christians as the great S. PAVLE testifieth when writing to the ROMAN'S and CORINTHIANS he saieth Salute mutually one another in a holy kisse And as diuerse doe witnesse IVDAS in betraying our SAVIOVR made vse of a Kisse to discouer him because this diuine SAVIOVR was accustomed to kisse his Disciples when he met them and not onely his Disciples but euen little Children whom he tooke louingly in his armes as he did him by comparison of whom he so solemnely inuited his APOSTLES to the loue of their Neighbours who as IANSENIVS reporteth was thought to haue bene S. MARTIAL 4. Thus then the Kisse being a liuely marke of of the vnion of hearts the Spouse who hath no other pretention in all her endeuours and pursuits then to be vnited to her beloued let him kisse me saieth she with a kisse of his mouth as if she had cryed out so many sighes and inflamed grones as my heart incessantly sobs out will they neuer impetrate that which my heart desires I runne alas shall I neuer gaine the prise for which I lance my selfe out which is to be vnited heart to heart spirit to spirit to my God my Spouse my life when will arriue the happie houre in which I shall poure my soule into his heart and that he will turne his heart into my soule that we may liue inseparable in that happie vnion 5. When the holy Ghost would expresse a perfect loue he alwayes in a manner makes choice of the word Vnion or Coniunction amongst the multitude of the faithfull saieth S. LVCKE there was but one heart and one soule our SAVIOVR praied for all the faithfull that they might be but on same thing SAINT PAVLE doth aduertise vs to conserue vnitie of minde by the vnion of peace These Vnities of heart soule and spirit doe signifie the perfection of Loue which ioynes many soules in one for so it is saied that IONATHAS his soule was glewed to DAVIDS that is to saie as the Scripture addeth He loued DAVID as his owne soule The great APOSTLE of FRANCE as well according to his owne Dictamē as that of HIEROTHEVS who he citeth writeth I thinke a thousand times in one Chapter OF DIVINE NAMES that Loue is of a Nature vnifying vniting referring recollecting
into a more noble and eminent estate they are as much Angels by the operation of their soule as men by the substance of their Nature and are either to be instiled Humane Angels or Angelicall men On the contrarie side those that enticed with sensuall pleasurs giue them selues ouer to the enioying of them descend from their middle condition to the lowest of brute Beasts and merit as well to be called Brutall by their operations as men by Nature vnhappie to be out of themselues for no better end then to enter into a condition infinitly vnworthy of their naturall estate and calling 7. Now according as the Extasie is more great either aboue or below vs by so much it doth more hinder the soule to returne to her selfe and produce contrarie operations to the Extasie in which she is so those Angelicall men which are rauished in God and heauenly things during their Extasie doe quite loose the vse of the attention of sense motion and all exteriour actions because their soule to th' end she may applie her vertue and actiuitie more entirely and attentiuely to that diuine obiect doth retire and withdraw it from all her other faculties wholy to deturne them from thence And in like manner brutish men rauished by sensuall pleasure especially by that of sense in generall doe wholy loose the vse of reason and vnderstanding because their miserable soules to haue a more entire and attentiue gust of their brutall obiect doe diuert themselues from spirituall operations to giue themselues with more vigour to brutall and bestiall ones mystically imitating herein the one HELIAS taken vp in the fierie Chariot to the Cōpanie of Angels th' other NABVCHODONOSOR debased to the ranke of brute beasts 8. Hence then I saie that when the Soule practiseth Loue by actions of sense so that she is carried below her selfe it is impossible that therby the exercise of her Superiour loue should not be so much the more weakned In such sort that true and Essentiall loue is so farre from being ayeded and conserued by the vnion to which Sensuall loue tends that it is impared dissipated and perisheth therby IACOBS Oxen plowed the ground as long as the idle Asses fed by them eating the pasture dew to the labouring Oxen. As long as the Intellectuall part of our soule is employed in honest vertuous loue vpon any obiect worthy therof it comes to passe often times that the senses and faculties of the inferiour part tend to their proper vnion and graise thervpon though Vnion be onely due vnto the Heart and Soule which alone is able to produce true and Substantiall Loue. 9. HELISEVS hauing cured NAMAN the SYRIAN pleasing himselfe in the obligation he had put vpon him refused the gold money and other moueables which were offered him But his trustlesse seruant IESSE running after him demanded and tooke against his Maister pleasure that which he had refused Intellectuall ād cordiall loue which either is or should be the Maister of our Heart doth refuse all sorts of corporall and Sensible Vnions and is contented with good-will onely but the powers of the Sensitiue part which are or should be the Hand-maids of the Spirit doe demande seeke after and take that which reason refused and without her leaue doth make after their abiect seruile and dishonorable loues as another IESSE violating the puritie of their Maisters intention to wit the Spirit And in what proportion the Soule doth conuert her selfe to such grosse Vnions in the same she doth diuert her selfe from the delicate Intellectuall and cordiall vnion 10. You see then planely THEOTIME that these Vnions which tend to Sensible Complacence and passions are so farre from producing or conseruing Loue that they doe greatly hurt and render it extreamely weake So when the incestuous AMMON who languished and died as it were in the Loue of THAMAR had once arriued at these Sēsuall and Brutall Vnions his heart was so robbed of Cordiall loue that neuer after he could endure to see her but with indignitie pushed her out violating no lesse cruelly the Right of loue then he had impudently stained that of blood 11. Basill Rosmarie Marigouls Isope Cloues Camimell Nutmeygs Lemmans and Muske put together and incorporated doe yeeld a truly delightfull odour by the mixture of their good smells yet not nigh that of the water which is thence distilled in which the sweetes of all these Ingredients squised from their bodies are mixed in a more excellent manner meeting to the making vp of a most perfect odour which doth penetrate the sense of smelling farre more liuely then it would if together with the waters the bodies of the Ingredients were found mingled and vnited So loue may be found in the Vnions of sensuall powers mixed with the Vnions of intellectuall powers but neuer so excellently as then when the sole Heart and Courage abstracted from all corporall affections vnited together doe purifie and Spiritualize Loue. For the sent of affections by such mixture is not onely sweeter and better but more liuely actiue and solide 12. True it is that many hauing rustike earthy and vile hearts doe put a rate vpon Loues as vpon pieces of gold where the most massiue and weightie are the best and most currant for so their opinion goes that Brutish loue is more strong because it is more violent and turbulent more solide because more grosse and terreane greater because more sensible and rough but contrariwise Loue is as fire which by how much more it's matter is delicate by so much the flames are more cleare and faire which cannot be better extinguihed then by depressing them and couering them with earth for in like manner by how much more abstract and spirituall the subiect of loue is by so much his actions are more liuely subsistent and permanent nor is there a more easie way to ruinate it then by prostituting it to vile and terreane actiōs The difference as S. GREGORIE saieth betwixt spirituall and corporall pleasurs is that corporall ones beget a desire before we obtaine them and being obtained a disgust but spirituall ones contrariwise bring disgust before we haue them and being had pleasure so that brutall loue which thinkes by the Vnion which he maketh with the Beloued to perfect and crowne his desires finding that to the contrarie he destroieth them in ending them is left in disgust of such Vnion Which moued the great Philosopher to saie that almost euery beast after the enioying of his most ardent and pressing corporall pleasure remaines sad mournefull and astonished as a Marchant who hauing fed him selfe with hope of great gaines doth finde his hopes frustrated and his barke engaiged in a rude Hauen whereas Intellectuall loue finding in the Vnion made with her obiect contentment passing his hopes accomplishing in the surplus his complacence he continewes it in vniting himselfe and continually doth further vnite himselfe in continuing it That there are two portions in the soule and how CHAPTER XII 1. VVE haue but
are good for the beginning of ChristiaÌ„ wisdome coÌ„sisting of penance but he who deliberatly would not attaine to loue the perfectioÌ„ of penaÌ„ce should greatly offend him who ordained all to his owne loue as to the end of all things 4. To coÌ„clude the penaÌ„ce which excluds the loue of God is infernall like to that of the damned The repeÌ„tance which doth not reiect the loue of GOD though as yet it be without it is a good penaÌ„ce but imperfect and caÌ„not giue saluatioÌ„ vntill it attaine loue aÌ„d ioyne it selfe vnto it So that as the great Apostle saied that though he should deliuer his bodie to be burnt aÌ„d all his goods to the poore wanting charitie it should be vnprofitable vnto him so we may truly saie that though our penaÌ„ce were so great that it should cause our eies dissolue into teares aÌ„d our hearts breake with sorow without the sacred loue of God all this were nothing auailable to eternall life How there is mixture of Loue and sorrow in Contrition CHAPTER XX. 1. NAture did neuer that I know coÌ„uert fire into water though diuers waters are coÌ„uerted into fire yet God did it once by miracle for as it is writteÌ„ in the booâ—â— of MACHABIES when the childreÌ„ of Israel were coÌ„ducted into BabiloÌ„ in the time of SEDECIAS the Priests by HIEREMIES couÌ„sell hide the HOLY FIRE in a vallie in a drie well aÌ„d vpoÌ„ their returne the children of those that had hid it went to seeke it following the directions their fathers had giuen them and they found it conuerted into a thike water which being drawen by them and poured vpoÌ„ the sacrifices according to NEHEMIAS his ordinance as soone as the sunne beames had touched it it was conuerted into a great fire 4. THE amoÌ„gst the sorrowes of a liuely repeÌ„taÌ„ce GOD doth ofteÌ„ put in the botome of our heart the sacred fire of loue this loue is conuerted into the water of teares they by a secoÌ„d chang into a greater fire of loue Thus the famous PENITENT-LOVER loued first her Sauiour that loue was coÌ„uerted into teares and those into an excelleÌ„t loue whence our Sauiour told her that many sinns were pardon'd her because she loued much And as we see fire doth turne wine into a certaine water called AQVA-VITAE which doth so easily coÌ„ceiue fire that it is also term'd hot so the consideration of the soueraignly amiable Bountie offended by sinne doth produce the water of holy Penance and thence the fire of Diuine Loue doth issue properly term'd AQVAVITAE or hot water Penance is indeed a water in it's substance being a true dislike a reall griefe and repentance yet is it hot for that it containes the propertie of Loue whence it springs and giues the life of Grace So that PenaÌ„ce hath two effect's by sorrow and detestation it seperats vs froÌ„ sinne aÌ„d the Creaturs and by loue it reunits vs to God at once reclaiming vs froÌ„ siÌ„ne in qualitie of repentance and in qualitie of Loue reuniting vs to God 5. Yet will I not affirme that the perfect loue of God by which we loue him aboue all things doth alwayes preceede this repentaÌ„ce nor that this repentance doth alwayes preceede this loue for though it doth happen so many tymes yet so as that otherwhiles also at the same instant that diuine loue is conceiued in our heart penance is coÌ„ceiued by loue and often times penance entring into our heart loue doth enter with it and as when ESAV came out of his mothers wombe IACOB his twinne-brother held him by the foote to the end that their births might not onely follow the one the other but also might hold and entangle one an other so repentance rude and rough in regard of it's sorrowe was first borne as another ESAV and loue sweete and gracious holds him by the foote and doth cleeue so vnto him that their birth was one sith the end of the birth of repentance was the beginning of that of perfect loue Now as ESAV did first appeare so repentance doth ordinarily make it selfe to be seene before loue but loue as another IACOB although the younger doth afterwards subdue penance conuerting it into consolation 6. Marke I praie you THEO the well-beloued MAGDELEINE how she weepes with loue they haue taken vp my Sauiour quoth she melting into teares and I know not where they haue put him but hauing by teares and sobbs found him she holds and possesseth him by loue Imperfect loue desires and requires him penance doth seeke and find him perfect loue doth hold and tye him Euen as it is saied of the Ethiopian Rubies whose fire is naturally very blew but being dipped in vineger it shins and casteth out its cleare raies for the loue which goeth before repentance is ordinarily imperfect but being steeped in the bitternesse of penace it gaines strengh and becomes excellent loue 7. Yea it happens some times that penance though imperfect containes not in it selfe the proper action of loue but onely the vertue and proprietie of it you will aske me what vertue or proprietie of loue can repentance haue if she haue not the action GOD's goodnesse is the motife of perfect repentance whom it displeaseth vs to haue offended now this motife is for no other reason a motife then that it doth stire and moue vs. But the motion which the diuine goodnesse giues vnto the heart which considers it can be no other then the motion of loue that is of vnion And therefore true repentance though it seeme not so and though we perceiue not the proper effect of loue receiues alwayes motioÌ„ from loue and the vnitiue nature therof by meanes of which she doth reunite and reioyne vs to the diuine goodnesse Tell me I praie is it the propertie of the ADAMANT to draw and ioine iron vnto it selfe Doe we not see that iron touched with the ADAMANT without either it or its nature but onely its vertue and attractiue power doth notwithstanding draw and vnite vnto it an other iron So perfect repentance touched with the motife of loue without hauing the proper action of loue leaues not to haue the vertue and qualitie therof that is an vniting motion to reioyne and reunite our hearts to the diuine will But you will replie what difference is there betwixt this vniting motion of penance and the proper action of loue THEO the action of loue is indeede a motioÌ„ to vnion but it is performed by complacence wheras the motion of vnion which is in penance is not done by way of complacence but by dislike repentance reparatioÌ„ reconciliation for so much therefore as this motion doth vnite it is indued with the qualitie of loue in so much as it is bitter and dolorous it receiues the qualitie of penance and in fine by its naturall condition it is a true motion of penance yet so as it retaines the vertue and vniting qualitie of loue 8. So Treacle-wine is not so named for that it doth containe the proper Substance of
which came from the eies of his maister permitting himselfe freely to be moued and carried by the gentle blast of the holy Ghost and looking vpon those comfortable eies which had stirred him vp he read's in thē as in the booke of life the inuitations to pardon which the diuine clemencie doth offer him drawes frō it a iust motife of hope goes out of the Court cōsiders the horror of his sīne ād detests it He weeps he sobbs he prostrats his miserable heart before his Sauiours mercy craues Pardon for his faults makes resolution of an inuiolable loyaltie and by this Progresse of motiōs practised by the healpe of grace which doth continually conduct assist and further it he comes at length to the holy remission of his sinns and passeth so from grace to grace according to that which S. PROSPER doth auerre that without grace a mā doth not runne to grace 4. So then to conclude this point the soule preuented by grace feeling the first essaies and consenting to their sweetnesse as returning to her selfe after so long a sownd she begins to sigh out these words ah my deare SPOVSE my friend draw me I beseech thee and take me by the hand otherwise I am not able to walke but if thou doest draw me we runne thou in helping me by the odour of thy perfumes and I by corresponding by my weake consent and by relishing thy sweet's which doth recreate and strengthen me till the Balme of thy sacred name that is the wholsome ointment of my iustification be spred within me Doe you marke THEO she would not Praie if she were not excited but as soone as that is done and that she perceiues the draughtes she Praies that she may be drawen being drawen she runns marrie she would not runne if the perfums which inticeth and by which she is drawen did not reuiue her heart by the vertue of their odour and as her course is more swifte ād as she approacheth neerer her heauenly Spouse she hath a more delicious taste of the sweetenesse which he sends out in such sort that in the end her heart begins to melt like scattered Baulme whence she cries out as being surprised by this contentment not so quickly expected but vnlooked for ô my spouse thou are as Baulme poured into my bosome it is not strang that young soules dearely esteeme thee 5. Thus my deare THEO the diuine inspiration doth come vnto vs and preuent vs mouing our wills to sacred loue And if we doe not repulse her she walkes with vs and doth enuiron vs continually to incite and aduance vs not abandoning vs if we abandō her not till such time as she hath brought vs to holy Charities Gate performing for vs the three good offices which the great Angell RAPHAEL did for his deare TOBIE for she is a guide to vs through all our iorney of holy penance she is our warrant from daungers and assaults of the the diuell and doth comfort loue and fortifie vs in difficulties A short description of Charitie CHAPTER XXII 1. BEhould at length THEO how GOD by a progresse full of ineffable sweetenesse conducteth the soule which he made goe out of the Egipt of sinne from Loue to Loue as from Lodging to Lodging till she haue made her entrie into the LAND OF PROMIS I meane of most holy Charitie which to saie in one word is Friendshipe not a loue of proper interest for by Charitie we loue God for his owne sake by reason of his most soueraignely amiable Bountie But this friendshipe is a true friendshipe being reciprocall God hauing loued all such eternally as haue doe or shall loue him temporally it is showen and acknowledged mutually sith that GOD cannot be ignorant of the loue we beare him he himselfe bestowing it vpon vs nor can we be ignorant of his loue to vs seeing it is so published and that we acknowledge all the good we haue as true effects of his beneuolence and in fine we haue continuall communication with him who neuer ceaseth to speake vnto our hearts by inspirations allurements and sacred motions he ceaseth not to helpe vs and giue all sorts of testimonies of his holy affection hauing openly reuealed vnto vs all his secrets as to his confident friends and for the accomplishment of his holy LOVE-COMMERCE with vs he made himselfe our proper foode in the most holy Sacrament of the Eucharist and as for vs we haue freedome to treate with him at all times whē we please in holy Praier we hauing our whole life motion and beeing not onely with him but euen in and by him 2. Nor is this friendshipe a simple friendshipe but a friendshipe of dilection by which we make election of God to loue him with a speciall loue He is chosen saieth the sacred spouse from amongst a thousand she saieth from amongst a thousand but she would saie from amongst all whence this loue is not a loue of simple excellencie but an incomparable loue for charitie loues God by a certaine esteeme and preferance so high and transcending all other esteemes that other loues either are not true loues in comparison of this or if they be true loues this loue is infinitly more then loue and therefore THEO it is not a loue which the force of nature either angelicall or humane can produce but the holy Ghost doth giue it and poure it into our hearts and as our soules which animate the bodie haue not their origine from the bodie but are there put by the naturall prouidēce of God so Charitie which giues life to our hearts hath not her extraction from thence but is poured into them as an heauēly liquour by the supernaturall prouidence of his diuine Maiestie 3. For this reason and for that it hath reference to God and doth tend vnto him not according to the naturall knowledge we haue of his goodnesse but according to the supernaturall knowledge of faith we name it supernaturall friēdshipe Whence she together with faith and hope keepes residence 4. And as a Maiesticall Queene is seated in the will as in her Throne whēce she conueies into the soule her dainties and sweetes making her therby faire agreeable and amiable to the diuine Goodnesse so that if the soule be a kingdome wherof the Holy Ghost is the king Charitie is the Queene set at his right hand in a Robe of gold wrought in varietie If the soule be a Queene Spouse to the great king of heauen Charitie is her Crowne which doth roially adorne her heade yea if the soule with the bodie be a little world Charitie is the Sunne which beautifies all heates all and reuiues all 5. Charitie then is a loue of friendshipe a friendshipe of dilection a dilection of preference yea and an incōparable soueraigne and supernaturall preference which is as a Sunne through all the soule to lighten it with his raies in all the spirituall faculties to perfect thē in all the powers to moderate them but in the will as in his
puts them by the practise of holy loue 3. In heauen THEO the louing attention of the blessed is firme constant inuiolable and cannot perish or decrease their intention is pure and freed from all mixture of any inferiour intention In some this felicitie to see God clearely and loue him vnchangably is incomparable And who would euer compare the pleasure one might take by sea if any can be had to liue amidst the dangers continuall torments agitations and mutatiōs which there are to be endured with the content of a royall Pallace where all things are at a wish yea where delights doe incomparably passe our wishes 4. There is then more content pleasure and perfection in the exercise of sacred loue amongst the heauenly inhabitants then in that of the pilgrims of this poore land some notwithstanding haue bene so happie in their pilgrimage that they passed in Charitie diuers of those Saints who were already possessed of the eternall Countrie for certainly it were strang that the Charitie of a great S. IOHN of the Apostles and Apostolicall men were not greater yea euen while they were detained heare belowe then that of little children who dying in the onely grace of Baptisme enioyed immortall glorie 5. It is not ordinarie that shepheards are more valiant then soldiers and yet the little shepheard DAVID cōming into the Armie of ISRAEL foūd that euery one was more expert in the vse of armes then he neuerthelesse he was more valiant then all they Nor is it ordinarie that mortalls haue more charitie then the immortall and yet there haue bene some mortalls inferiour in the exercise of loue to the immortall who notwithstanding haue gone before them in charitie and habits of loue And as making comparison betwixt hote iron and a burning lampe we saie the iron is hotter yet the lampe is clearer and lighter So if we parallel a glorious child with S. IOHN as yet prisoner or S. PAVLE a captiue we shall saie that the child in heauen hath more brightnesse and lightnesse in his vnderstanding more heate and exercise of loue in the will yet S. IOHN or S. PAVLE had euen in earth more fire of Charitie and heate of loue Of the incomparable loue of the mother of God our B. Lady CHAPTER VIII 1. BVt what or whersoeuer I speake my meaning is not to make comparison with the most Sacred virgin Mother our B. Lady ô God no FOR SHE IS THE DAVGHTER OF INCOMPARABLE DILECTION the onely doue the most perfect spouse Of this heauenly Queene from my heart I pronounce this louing and true thought that at least towards the end of her mortall daies her charitie passed that of the Seraphins for though many Daughters heaped together riches she surpassed the all The Saints and Angels are but cōpared to starrs and the prime of those to the fairest of these but she is faire as the moone as easie to be singled and discerned from all the Saints as the Sunne from the starrs And yet I thinke further that as the Charitie of this MOTHER OF LOVE excells that of all the Saints of heauen in perfection so did she exercise it more perfectly yea euen in this mortall life neuer offending venially as the Church esteemes she had then nor change nor stop in the way of Loue but by a perpetuall aduancement ascended from Loue to Loue. She neuer felt any contradiction of the sensuall appetite whence her Loue as a true SALOMON reigned peacebly in her soule and was exercised at her pleasure the virginitie of her heart and bodie was more worthy and honorable then that of Angels So that her spirit not diuided or separated as S. PAVLE saieth was occupied in diuine thoughts to please her God And in fine a mothers loue most pressing actiue and ardent an vnwearied and insatiable loue what could it not work in the heart of such a mother and for the heart of such a sonne 2. Ah! doe not saie I pray you that this virgin was subiect to sleepe no saie not so THEO for doe you not see that her sleepe is a sleepe of Loue so that it is euen her Spouse his will that she should sleepe so long as she list ah take heede I coniure you saith he that you awake not my well-beloued till she please No THEO this heauenly Queene neuer slept but of loue sith she neuer gaue repose to her precious bodie but to reenforce it the better thence to serue God which is a most excellent act of Charitie for as the great S. Augustine saieth Charitie doth oblige vs to loue our bodies conueniently in so much as they are necessarie to good works as they make a part of our person and as they shall be participant of eternall felicitie Certes a Christian is to loue his bodie as a liuing Image of our Sauiour incarnate as issue of the same stocke and consequently of his kindred and consanguinitie especially after we haue renewed the alliance by receiuing really the diuine bodie of our Redeemour in the most adorable Sacrament of the Altar and when by Baptisme Confirmation and other Sacraments we haue dedicated and consecrated our selues to the Soueraigne Goodnesse 3. But for the B. Virgine ô God with what deuotion was she to loue her virginall bodie not onely because it was a sweete humble pure bodie obeissant to diuine Loue and wholy embaumed with a thousand sacred sweetes but also for that it was the liuely source of our Sauiour's and did so strictly belong vnto him by an incomparable dependance For which cause when she gaue her angelicall bodie to the repose of sleepe goe to aied she repose ô TABERNACLE OF ALLIANCE ARKE OF SANCTITIE THRONE OF THE DIVINITIE ease thy selfe a little of thy wearinesse and repaire thy forces by this sweete repose 4. Besides deare THEO doe you not know that bad dreames voluntarily procured by the dayes depraued thoughtes are in some sort sinnes in so much as they are dependances and executiōs of the precedent malice euē so the dreames which proceede from the holy affections of such as are a wake be reputed vertuous and holy O God THEO what a consolation it is to heare S. CHRYSOSTOME recounting on a certaine day to his people the vehemencie of his loue towards them the necessitie of sleepe quoth he pressing my eye-lids the tyrannie of my loue towards you doth excite the eyes of my mind and euen while I sleepe me thinks I speake vnto you for the soule is wonte in sleepe to see by imagination what she thought in the day time so while we see not one an other with the eyes of flesh we supplie it with the eyes of Charitie O sweete IESVS what dreames was thy sacred Mother to haue when she sleept her heart watching Did she not dreame that she had thee yet folded in her wombe as thou wa'st for nine monthes space or else hanging at her breasts and pretily pressing the sacred nible of her virginall dugge Ah what sweetenesse was in this soule
admirable in their Maiestie if they were set at a lesse distance with our capacitie 4. Let vs crie out then THEO in all occurrences but let it be with an affectionat heart towards the most wise most puissant and most sweete prouidence of our eternall father O the depth of the riches wisdome ād knowledge of God O Sauiour IHESVS THEOT how excessiue are the riches of of the diuine goodnesse His loue towards vs is an incomprehensible Abisse whence he hath prouided for vs a rich sufficiencie or rather a rich abundance of meanes proper for our saluation ād sweetely to applie them he makes vse of a soueraigne wisdome hauing by his infinit knowledge foreseene and knowen all that was requisite to that effect Ah what can we feare nay rather what ought not we to hope for being the children of a father so rich in goodnesse to loue and desire to saue vs so vnderstanding to prouide meanes cōueniēt so wise to applie thē so good to will so cleare sighted to ordaine and so prudent to execute 5. Let vs neuer permit our minds to flutter by curiositie about Gods iudgemēts for as little Butterflies we shall burne our wings ād perish in this sacred flame These iudgmēts are incōprehensible or as S. GREGORIE Nazianzen saieth inscrutable that is one cannot search and sound the motiues the meanes and wayes by which he doth execute and finish them cannot be discerned and knowen And though the power of smelling be neuer so perfect in vs yet shall we at euery turne be at default not finding the sent for who can penetrate the sense the vnderstanding and intention of God Who was euer his Consellour to know his purposes and their motiues or who did euer preuent him with seruice Is it not he contrariwise who doth preuent vs in the benedictions of his grace to crowne vs with the felicitie of his glorie ah THEO all things are from him as being their Creatour all things are by him as being their Gouernour all things are in him as being their Protectour To him be honour for euer and euer Let vs walke in peace THEO in the waye of holy loue for he that shall enioye diuine loue in dying after death shall enioye loue eternally Of a certaine remainder of loue which oftentimes stayes in the soule that hath lost Charitie CHAPTER IX 1. THe life of a man who languishing on his deathes bed by little and little decaies doth hardly deserue to be termed life sith that though it be life yet is it so mingled with death that it is hard to saie whether it is a death as yet liuing or a life dying Alas how pitifull a spectacle it is THE but farre more lamentable is the state of a soule which vngratfull to her Sauiour goes hourely backward withdrawing her-selfe from God's loue by certaine degrees of indeuotion and disloyaltie till at length hauing quite forsaken it she is left in the horrible obscuritie of perdition and this loue which is in it's declining and which fades and perisheth is called imperfect loue because though it be entire in the soule yet seemes it not to be entirely that is it hardly keepes in the soule any longer but is vpon the point of forsaking it Now Charitie being separated from the soule by sinne there remaines oftentimes a certaine resemblance of Charitie which doth deceiue and put vs into a vaine muse and I will tell you what it is Charitie while it is in vs produceth many actions of loue towards God by the frequent exercise whereof our soule gets a habit and custome of louing God which is not Charitie but onely an impression and inclination which the multitude of actions leaues in our hearts 2. After a long habit of preaching or saying Masse deliberatly it happens often that in dreaming we vtter and speake the same things which we would saie in preaching or celebrating so that custome and habit acquired by election and vertue is in some sort afterward practised without election or vertue sith the actions of such as sleepe generally speaking haue nothing of vertue saue onely an apparent image and are onely the similitudes or representations thereof So charitie by the multitude of actes which she produceth doth imprīt in vs a certaine facilitie to loue which she leaues in vs euē after we are depriued of her presence I remember when I was a young scholler that in a village neare Paris there was a certaine well with an ECHO which would repeate the words that we pronoūced by it diuers times And if some Idiote without experience had heard this repetition of words he would haue beleeued that there had bene some bodie in the botome of the well who had done it But we had euen then knowen by Philosophie that none was in the well to reiterate our words but that there were onely certaine concauities in some one whereof our voices were assembled ād not finding through passage least they might altogether perish and not imploy the force that was left them they produced secōd voices ād they gathering together in an other cōcauitie produced a third the third a fourth ād so consequetly to the eleauenth so that those voices heard in the well were not now our voices but resemblances and images of the same And indeede there was a great difference betwixt our voices and those For when we made a long continuance of words we had but some few of them rendred by the ECHO shortning the pronunciation of syllables which she slightly passed ouer with tones and accents quite different from ours nor did she begin to forme her words till we had quite pronounced them In fine they were not words of a liuing man but as one would saie the words of any emptie and vaine Rocke which notwithstanding did so well counterfeit man's voice whence she sprung that a simple bodie would haue bene misled and beguiled by her 3. Now this is it that I would saie when holy CHARITIE meets a pliable soule wherein she doth long reside she produceth a second loue which is not a loue of Charitie though it issue from Charitie but it is a humane loue which is yet so like to Charitie that though she leaues behind this her picture and likenesse which doth so represent her that one who were ignorant would be deceiued therein not vnlike to the birds on Zeuxis his painted raysins which they deemed to be true raysins so generally had Art imitated nature And yet there is a faire difference betwixt Charitie and humane loue which she doth beget in vs for the voice of Charitie doth pronoūce denoūce and worke in our hearts Gods Commandments humane loue which remaines after her doth indeede pronounce the commandments and denounceth sometimes all of them yet doth neuer effect them all but some few onely Charitie doth pronounce and put together all the sillables that is all the circumstances of Gods commandments humane Loue alwayes leaues out some of them especially straightnesse and puritie of
to the end I may praise thy holy name the iuste expects me till thou restorest vnto me my desired repose Behold THEO I beseech you this soule who as a heauenly Nightingale shut vp in the cage of his bodie in which it cannot at wish sing the benedictions of his eternall loue knowes that he could better recorde and practise his melodious ditties if he could gaine the aire enioye the freedome and societie of other Philomels amongst the gaie and flowrie hillockes of the Land of the Blessed and thence he cries alas o Lord of my life ah by thy wholy sweete bountie deliuer my pouertie out of the cage of my bodie free me from this little prison to th' end that released from this bondage I may flie to my deare companions who expect me aboue in heauen to make me one of their Quiers and enuirone me with their ioye the Almightie according my voice to theirs I with them will make vp a sweete harmonie of delicious aires and accēts singing praising and blessing thy mercy This admirable Saint as an Orator who would end and cōclude all he had saied in some short sentence made this the happie periode of all his wishes and desires whereof these last words were a Breefe Words to which his soule was so fixed that in breathing them he breathed his last My God THEO what a sweete and deare death was this a happily louing death a holily mortall loue How we practise the LOVE OF BENEVOLENCE in the praises which our Sauiour and his mother giue to God CHAPTER XI 1. VVE ascend then stepe by stepe in this holy exercise by the creaturs which we inuite to praise God passing from the sensible to the reasonable and intellectuall and from the Church militant to the triumphant in which we raise our selues vp to the Angels and Saints till aboue them all we haue met with the most sacred virgin who in a matchlesse manner doth praise and magnifie the Diuinitie more highly holily and deliciously then all the other creaturs together are able 2. Being two yeares agoe at Milan whither the veneration of the fresh memorie of the great Archbishope S. CHARLES had drawen me with certaine of our Church-men we heard in diuers Churches diuers sorts of musike but in a Monasterie of Nunnes we heard a Religious woman whose voice was so admirably delicious that she alone filled our minds with more delight incomparably then all the rest together which though otherwise excellent yet seemed they to serue onely to giue luster and raise the perfection and grace of this singular voice So THEO amongst all the Quires of men and Angels the most sacred Virgine's loftie voice is heard which raised aboue all renders more praise to God then doe all the other creaturs And indeede the Heauenly king inuites her to sing in a particular manner shew me thy face saieth he my well-beloued let thy voice sound in my eares for thy voice is entirely sweete and thy face wholy faire 3. But the praises which this Mother of honour and faire dilection together with all the creaturs giues to the Diuinitie though excellent and admirable come yet so short of the infinite merite of Gods goodnesse that they carrie no proportion with it and therefore albeit they meruellously please the louing heart 's holy beneuolence to the well-beloued yet doe they not saciate it Wherefore it goes forward and inuites our Sauiour to praise and glorifie his eternall Father with all the Benedictions which a Sonnes loue can fournish him withall And then THEO the soule is put to silence being able onely to admire O what a Canticle is this of the Sonne to his Father ô how faire this deare well-beloued is amongst all the children of men ô how sweete is his voice as issuing from the lipps vpon which the fulnesse of grace was poured All the others are perfumed but he is the perfume it selfe the others are embaumed but he is Baulme poured out the eternall receiues others praises as smells of peculiar flowres but vpon the odour of the praises which our Sauiour giues him doubtlesse he cries out ô these are the odours of my sonns praises as the odour of a field full of flowres which I haue blessed I my deare THEO all the Benedictions which the Church militant and triumphant offers to God are Angelicall and humane benedictions for beit they are addressed to the Creatour yet proceede they from a Creature but the Sonns are diuine for they doe not onely tend to God as the others but they flow from God the Redeemour being true God they are not onely diuine in respect of their end but of their beginning diuine because they tend to God diuine because they issue from God God prouokes the soule endewing her with sufficient grace for the production of other praises But the Redeemour being God produceth his owne himselfe and thence they are infinite 4. He that in a morning for a good space hauing heard in the neighbour woods the sweete chaunting of a great companie of Canarie birdes Linnets Goldfinches and such like little birdes should in the end heare a Maister Nightingale who in perfect melodie would fill the aire and eare with her admirable voice doubtlesse he would preferre this one grouie Chaunter before the whole Quires of the others So hauing heard all the praises which so many different sorts of of creaturs in emulation of one another renders vnanimously to their Creatour when at length one markes that of our Sauiour they find in it a certaine infinitie of merite valour sweetenesse which passe all hope and expectation of heart and the soule as awaked out of a deepe sleepe is then sodenly rauished with extreamitie of the sweetenesse of that melodie ah I heare it ô the voice the voice of my well-beloued The Queene-voice of all voices a voice in comparison wherof all the other voices are but a dume and sad silence See how this deare friend doth spring out see how he comes tripping ouer the mountaines transcending the hills his voice is heard aboue the Seraphins and all other creaturs he hath the sight of a Goate to penetrate deeper then any other the beautie of the Sacred obiect which he desires to praise He loues the melodie of the glorie and praise of his Father more then all the rest and therefore he takes his Fathers praises and benedictions in a straine aboue them all Behold this diuine loue of the Beloued as he is clothed in his humanitie making hīselfe to be seene through the holes of his wounds and his open side as by windowes and as by lattises by which he lookes vpon vs. 5. Yes The Diuine Loue being seated vpon our Sauiours heart as vpon his royall Throne beholds through the passage of his pearced side all the hearts of the sonnes of mē for this heart being the king of hearts keepes his eye still fixed vpon hearts But as those that looke through a lattise doe plainely discouer others and yet are not
contrarie to corporall drunkennesse doth not alienate vs from spirituall but from corporall sense not dulling or besotting vs but Angelizing and in a sort Deifying vs putting vs out of our selues not to abase vs and ranke vs with beastes as doth terreane drūkennesse but to raise vs aboue our selues and range vs with Angels so that we might liue more in God then in our selues being attentiue and busied by loue to see his beautie and be vnited to his Bountie 4. Now whereas to attaine vnto contemplation we stand ordinarily in neede to heare the word of God to haue spirituall discourse and conference with others as had the auncient Ancorets to reade deuote bookes to praie meditate sing canticles conceiue good thoughtes for this reason holy contemplation being the end and aime of all these exercises they are all reduced vnto it and such as practise them are called CONTEMPLATIVES as allso the practise it selfe a CONTEMPLATIVE life by reason of the action of our vnderstanding by which we behold the veritie of the diuine Beautie and Bountie with an attention of loue that is with a loue that makes vs attentiue or with an attention which proceedes from loue and augments the loue which we haue to loue infinite sweetenesse Of the louing recollection of the SOVLE IN CONTEMPLATION CHAPTER VII 1. I Speake not here THEO of the recollection by which such as are about to praie vse to place themselues in God's presence entring into themselues and as one would saie retiring their soule with in their heart there to speake with God For this recollection is made by Lous commaund which prouoking vs to praie moues vs to serue our selues of this meanes to praie well so that we our selues are cause of this retiring of our soule But the recollection of which I meane to speake is not made by lous commaund but by loue it selfe that is we doe not make it by free choise it nor being in our power to haue it when we please not depending of our care but God at his pleasure works it in vs by his holy grace He saied the B. Mother Saint Teresa of IESVS who wrote that the Praier of Recollection is made as when an VRCHIN or TORTIS doe drawe themselues together saied well sauing that these beastes drawe themselues vp when they please whereas recollection is not in our will but onely when it pleaseth God of his grace to bestowe it vpon vs. 2. Now thus it is done Nothing is so naturall to good as to draw and vnite vnto it selfe such things as are sensible of it as doe our soules which draw continually and tend towards their treasure that is towards that which they loue Herevpon it fals out sometimes that our Sauiour doth imperceptibly poure into the bottome of our hearts a certaine agreeable sweetenesse in argumēt of his presence and then the powers yea the very exteriour senses of the soule by a certaine secrete contentment doe turne it vpon that inward part where the most amiable and dearest spouse is lodged For as a young swarme of Bees while they are ready to take flight and chang their countrie is recalled by the softe sound of a bason the smell of Metheglin or else by the sent of some odoriferous hearbs so that they staie by the inticements of these sweetes and enter into the hyue prepared for them So our Sauiour pronouncing some secret word of his loue or pouring out the odour of the wine of his dilection more delicious then honie or else streaming the perfumes of his garments that is some sense of diuine consolations in our heartes and therby making them perceiue his most gratefull presence he drawes vnto him all the faculties of our soule which gather about him and staie in him as in their most desired obiect And as he that should cast a peece of an Adamant amōgst many needles should instantly see them turne all their pointes towards their well-beloued Adamant and hang vpon it so when our Sauiour makes his delightfull presence to be felt in the midst of our heartes all our faculties turne their points that way to be vnited to that incomparable sweetenesse 3. O God saieth then the soule imitating S. AVGVSTINE whither doe I wander searching thee ô infinite Beautie I sought thee with out and thou wast in the midst of my heart All Magdalens affections and all her thoughtes were scattered about the Sepulcher of her Sauiour whom she went questing here and there and though indeede she had found him and he spoke to her yet leaues she them disperced because she doth not perceiue his presence but as soone as he had called her by name behold her gathered together and laied fast at his feete one onely word puts her into Recollection 4. Propose to your selfe THEOT the most holy Virgin our Lady when she had conceiued the Sonne of God her onely Loue the soule of this well-beloued mother doth wholy recollect it selfe about this well-beloued child and because this heauenly friend was harboured in her sacred entrals all the faculties of the soule doe gather thēselues within thēselues as holy bees into their hyue wherein their honie was And by how much the diuine greatnesse was by māner of speach more restrained ād lessened in the virginall wombe by so much her soule did more dilate it selfe ād magnifie the praises of that infinite clemencie and her Spirit within her bodie lept with ioye as S. IOHN in his mothers wombe in presence of his God which she felt She lanched not her affections out of her selfe sith that her loues her delightes were in the midest of her sacred wōbe Now this same contentmēt may be practised by imitatiō amōgst such as hauing communicated doe perceiue by the certaintie of faith that which neither flesh nor blood but the heauenly Father hath reuealed vnto them that their Sauiour is in bodie and soule present by a most reall presence to their bodie and soule in the most adorable Sacrament for as the Mother-pearle hauing receiued the fresh morning drops of dewe doth shut her selfe not onely to conserue them pure from all mixture of sea-water but also for the delight she taks to feele the gracious freshnesse of this gift from heauen so it fals out with diuers holy and deuote soules that hauing receiued the Blessed Sacrament which containes all the dewe of heauēly benedictions their soule shutteth it selfe and all her faculties are retired not onely to adore this soueraigne king newly present by an admirable presence in their breastes but also for the incredible consolation and spirituall refreshing which they receiue to perceiue by faith the diuine shute of immortalitie within them where you are diligently to note THEO that indeede all this recollection is made by loue which perceiuing the presence of the well-beloued by the baits it castes in the midest of the heart doth gather and drawe all the soule towards it by a most amiable inclination most sweete turning and most delicious winding of all
soule saieth she melted as soone as my well-beloued spoke The loue of her Spouse was in her heart and breast as a strong new wine which cannot be contained within the peece For it ouerflowed one euery side and the soule being led by her loue after the Spouse had saied thy breastes are better then wine streaming out precious ointments she addes Thy name is oile poured-out and as the Spouse had poured out his loue and soule into the heart of the Spouse so she againe turnes her soule into the Spouse his heart and as we see a honie-combe touched with a hote sunne-beame goe out of it selfe forsaking its forme doe also flowe on that side where the sunne toucheth it so the soule of this louer runns that ward where her well-beloued is heard going out of her selfe and passing the limits of her naturall beeing to follow him that spoke vnto her 3. But how is this sacred liquifaction of the soule into the well-beloued practised An extreame complacence of the Louer in the thing beloued begets a certaine spirituall impotencie which makes the soule not finde any more power to remaine in her selfe And therefore as dissolued Baulme that hath no more firmenesse or soliditie she permits her selfe to slide and runne into the thing beloued for she neither casteth her selfe by way of iaculation nor locks her selfe by way of vnion but lets her selfe gently glide as a liquide and fluent thing into the Diuinitie which she loues And as we see cloudes which thickned by the winde at Noonetide resoluing ād turning into raine cannot containe themselues but doe fall and showre downe and mixe themselues so inly with the earth which they moisten that they become one thing with it so the soule which though otherwise in loue remained before in her selfe goes out by this sacred liquifaction and saintly flowing and forsakes her selfe not onely to be vnited to the well-beloued but to be entirely mingled and moistened with him 4. You see then deare THEOT that the liquifaction of a soule into her God is a true extasie by which the soule trenscendes the limits of her naturall behauiour being wholy mixed absorpt and engulfed in God Hence it happens that such as attaine to these holy excesses of heauenly loue afterward being come to themselues can finde nothing in the earth that can content them and liuing in an extreame annihilation of themselues remaine much weakned in that which toucheth sense ād haue perpetually in their hearts the B. Mother Teresa her Maxime ALL THAT IS NOT GOD IS NOTHING And it seemes that such was the louing passion of the great friend of the well-beloued who saied I liue now not I but IESVS-CHRIST in me and our life is hid with IESVS-CHRIST in God For tell me I praie you THEOT if a drope of Elementarie water throwne into an Ocean of liue water were liuing could speake and declare it's condition would it not crie out with ioye O mortalls I liue indeede but I liue not I but this Ocean liues in me and my life is hidden in this Abisse 5. The soule that runnes into God dies not For how can she die by being shut vp in life but she liues without liuing in her selfe because as the starrs without loosing their light shine not in the presence of the Sunne but the Sunne shines in thē and they are hid in the light of the Sunne so the soule without loosing her life liues not being mixed with God but God liues in her Such as I thinke were the feelings of the great S. PHILIPPVS NERIVS and S. FRANCIS ZAVERIVS when ouercloied with heauenly consolations they petitioned to God that he would withdrawe himselfe for a space from them sith his will was that their life should a little longer appeare vnto the world which could not be while it was wholy hidden and absort in God Of the wound of loue CHAPTER XIII 1. All these termes of loue are drawne from a certaine resemblance which is betwixt the affections of the minde and the passions of the bodie GRIEFE FEARE HOPE HATRED and the rest of the affections of the soule enters not into the heart but when loue doth drawe thē after it We doe not hate euill but because it is contrarie to the Good which we loue We feare future euill because it will depriue vs of the good we loue Though an euill be extreame yet doe we neuer hate it but according to the opposition it hath to the good which is deare vnto vs. He that doth not much affect the Commonwealth is not much troubled to see it ruin'd He that doth not much loue God doth also not much hate sinne LOVE is the first yea the Source and origine of all the Passions And therefore it is LOVE that first enters the heart ād because it doth penetrate ād that well nigh to the very bottome of the will where his seate is we saie he wounds the heart It is sharp-pointed saieth the Apostle of France and enters the heart most deeply the other affections doe also enter but by the meanes of loue for it is he that pearcing the heart makes passage The onely point of the dart woundeth the rest of it doth but enlarge the wound and encrease paine 2. Now if it wound it doth consequently put vs to paine Pomegranats by their vermillion colour by the multitude of their cornes so close set and rancked and by their faire crownes liuely represēting as S. GREGORIE saieth most holy Charitie all redde by reasō of her ardour towards God crowned with the varietie of all vertues and who alone doth beare away the crowne of eternall reward 's but the iuice of Pomegranats which as we know is so delightfull as well to the sound as sicke is so compounded of sweete and soure that one can hardly discerne whether it delights the taste more by it's sweetish tartnesse or tarte sweetenesse Verily THEOT Loue is in like sorte bitter-sweete and while we liue in this world it hath neuer a sweetenesse perfectly sweete because it is not perfect or euer purely saciated and satisfied and yet it leaues not to be maruelous agreeable to the tartnesse thereof correcting the Lusshiousnesse of it's sweetenesse as the sweetenesse thereof sharpens the delight of it's tartenesse But how can this be there haue bene young men seene enter into conuersation free sound and frolicke who not taking care of themselues plainely perceiued lōg before they could get cleare that loue making vse of glaunces gestures words yea of the haire of a weake and fraile creature as of so many darts had smote and wounded their poore hearts so that you shall see them sorrowfull sad and dismaied Why I praie you are they sorrowfull With out doubt because they are wounded and who hath wounded them LOVE but loue being the child of Complacence how can it wounde and aggreeue Sometimes the beloued obiect is absent and then my deare THEO Loue woundes the heart by the desire which it excits which while it
cannot be saciated it doth much torment the mind 3. If a Bee had stung a child it were to sweete pourpose to saie to him ô my child the very Bee that stung thee is the same that makes the honie which likes thee so well for it is true might it replie her honie is very pleasant to my taste but her sting is painefull and while her sting stikes in my cheake I shall neuer be at rest and doe you not marke that my face is all swollen with it THEO Loue is indeede a Complacence and by consequence very delightfull so that it leaues not in our heart the sting of desire for when it leaues it there is left with it a great paine True it is this paine proceedes from loue and therefore is an amiable and beloued paine Heare the painfull yet louelie eiaculations of a royall Louer My soule thrisleth after her strong and liuing God Ah! when shall I come and appeare before the face of my God my teares haue bene bread to me night and day while it is saied vnto me where is thy God And the sacred Sunamite wholy possessed with dolorous loues speaking to the daughters Alas saieth she I coniure you if you meete my beloued tell him my griefe because I languish with the wound of loue Delaied hope afflicts the soule 4. Now the painfull wounds of loue are of diuers sorts 1. The first touches that loue giues our heart are called wounds because the heart that was sound entire and it 's owne before it loued being strook with loue begins to separate and diuide it selfe from it selfe to giue it selfe to the beloued obiect nor can this separation be made without paine seeing paine is no other thing then a separation of liuing things that were vnited 2. Desire doth incessantly sting and wound the heart in which it is lodged 3. TAEO speaking of heauenly loue in the practise of it there is a kind of wound giuen by God himselfe to the soule which he will perfect for he giues her admirable feelings and incomparable touches of his soueraigne goodnesse as pressing and soliciting her to loue him and then she forcibly bears herselfe vp as to soare higher towards her diuine obiect but lighting short not being able to loue with proportion to her desire ô God she feeles a paine without paragon At the same instant that she is powerfully drawen to flie towards her deare and well beloued she is powerfully retained and cannot flie as being chained to the seruile miseries of this mortall life and out of her owne impotencie she wisheth the winge of the doue to flie to her repose but finds it not So that she is roughly tormented betwixt the violencie of her desires and her owne impotencie ô miserable wretch that I am saied one of those that had tried this tormēt who will deliuer me from the bodie of this death And then if you marke it THEO it is not the desire of a thing absent that doth wound the heart for the soule perceiues that her God is present he had already led her into his wine celler planted vpon her heart the banner of loue but howbeit though already he see her wholy his he vrgeth her and from time to time toucheth her with a thousand thousand darts of his loue shewing her by new meanes how much more louely he is then he is beloued And she who hath not so much force to loue as loue to force her selfe seeing her forces so weake in respect of the desire she hath to loue him worthily to whose worth no force of loue can reach alas she finds her selfe stroock with an incomparable torment for in the same measure that she sobbs out more deeply the longings of her coueting loue the panges of her paine are augmented 5. This heart in loue with God desiring infinitly to loue sees notwithstanding that it can neither loue nor desire sufficiently Now this vnaccomplished desire is as a dart in the breast of a generous spirit yet the paine which proceedes from it is amiable because whosoeuer desires earnestly to loue loues also earnestly to desire And would esteeme himselfe the most miserable man aliue if he did not continually desire to loue that which is so soueraignely good Desiring to loue he receiues delight but louing to desire he is paied with paine 6. Good God THEOT what am I going to saie The Blessed in heauen seeing that God is more to be beloued then they loue him would sownd and eternally perish with a desire to loue him more if God's holiest will did not impose vpon theirs the admirable repose which they enioye for they so soueraignely loue this soueraigne will that the desire thereof doth quiet theirs and God's contentment doth content them being willing to be limited in their loue euen by that will whose Goodnesse is the obiect of their loue If this were not their loue would be equally delicious and dolourous delicious by the possession of so great a good dolourous through an extreame desire of a greater loue God therefore continually drawing arrowes if we may saie so out of the quiuer of his infinite beautie wounds the hearts of his Louers making them clearely see that they doe not loue him nigh so much as he is worthy to be beloued what mortall soeuer desires not to loue the Diuine goodnesse more loues him not enough sufficiencie in this diuine exercise doth not suffise him that will make a stand in it as though it suffised him Of some other meanes by which loue wounds the heart CHAPTER XIV 1. NOthihg doth so much wound a louing heart as to perceiue another heart wounded with the loue of it The Pellican builds her nest vpon the ground whence serpents doe often sting her younglings Now when this happens the Pellican as an excellent naturall Phisition with the point of her beake doth woūd her poore younglings on euery side to cause the poyson which the Serpents sting had spred ouer all the bodie to depart with the blood and to get out all the poison she lets out all the blood and consequently permits the little troope of Pellicans to perish in this sort but seeing them dead she wounds her selfe and spredding her blood ouer them she doth reuiue them with a more new and pure life her loue wounded them and fourthwith by the same loue she wounds her selfe Neuer doe we wound a heart with the wound of loue but we our selues are straight wounded with the same When the soule sees her God wounded by loue for her sake she receiues from it a mortall wound Thou hast wounded my heart saied the heauenly Spouse to the Sunamite and the Sunamite cries-out tell my well-beloued that I am wounded with loue Bees neuer wound but themselues are wounded to death And we seeing the Sauiour of our soules wounded by loue for vs to death and death of the crosse how can we but be wounded with him yea I saie wounded with a wound so much more dolorously
amiable as his was amiably dolorous nor can we neuer loue him as his loue and death requireth There is yet another wound of loue when the soule knowes well she loues God and he treates her in such sort as though he knew not she loued him or were diffident of her loue for then my deare THEO the soule is put into an extreame anguish it being insupportable vnto her to see or perceiue any apparence that God distrusts in her The poore S. PETER found his heart full of loue towards his Maister and his Maister making shew not to know it Peter quoth he dost thou loue me more then these Ah Lord saied the Apostle thou knowest I loue thee But Peter dost thou loue me replied our Sauiour My deare Maister saied the Apostle truely I loue thee thou knowest it But this so cote Maister to proue him and as shewing a diffidence of his loue Peeter saied he dost thou loue me Ah Sauiour thou woundest this poore heart who much afflicted cries out louingly yet dolorously Maister thou knowest all things indeede thou knowest well I loue thee Vpon a certaine day while a possessed person was exorcised the wicked spirit being vrged to tell his name I am quoth he that accursed creature DEPRIVED OF LOVE and S. CATHARIN who was there present sodenly perceiued all her bowells moued and disordered in onely hauing heard these words PRIVATION OF LOVE pronounced for as the Diuels doe so hate the diuine loue that they quake in seeing the signe of it hearing it named that is in seeing the crosse or be a rāg the name of IESVS pronoūced So such as doe entirely loue our Sauiour doe tremble with griefe ād horrour when they see any signes or seen by worde that doth brīg to mīd the priuatiō of this holy loue 2. S. PETER was certaine that God who knew all could not be ignorant how much he was loued by him yet because the repetition of this demaund Peter dost thou loue me hath some apparence of diffidence S. PETER is much afflicted in it Alas the poore soule that is resolued rather to die then offend her God and yet feeles not a sparke of feruour but contrariwise an extreame coldnesse which doth so benume and weaken all her parts that she frequently fals into very sensible imperfections this soule I saie THEO is all wounded for her loue is exceeding dolourous to see that God doth not seeme to see that she loues him leauing her as one that appertaines not to him and she apprehēds that amidst her defaults distractions and coldnesse our Sauiour doth strike her with this reproach how can'st thou saie that thou loue'st me seeing thy minde is not with me which is as a dart of sorrowe through her heart but a dart of sorrowe which proceedes from loue for if she loued not she would not be afflicted with the apprehension she hath that she loues not 3. Sometimes loue doth wound vs in the very memorie we haue that there was a time in which we loued not our God O how late I haue loued the auncient and new beautie saied that Saint who for thirtie yeares was Hereticke Life past is a horrour to his life present who passed his life past without louing the Soueraigne Goodnesse 4. Sometimes loue doth wound vs with the meere cōsideration of the multitude of those that doe contemne the loue of God so that hereby we sownd with griefe as he who saied my Zeale ô Lord hath withered me with griefe for that my enemyes haue not kept thy lawe And the Great S. FRANCIS thinking he had not bene heard wept vpon a day sobed and lamented so pitifully that an honest man ouer hearing him ranne to his succour as thinking some had offered to kill him and finding him all alone asked of him why dost thou crie so heard poore man Alas quoth he I weepe to thinke that our Sauiour endured so much for the loue of vs and none thinkes of it and hauing saied thus he begun againe to weepe and this good mā fell also a sobbing and weeping with him 5. But howsoeuer this is admirable in the woundes receiued from the diuine loue that their paine is delightfull and all that feele it consent to it and would not change this paine for all the pleasures of the world There is no paine in Loue or if any it is a beloued one A Seraphin on a day holding a golden arrowe from the heade whereof issued a little flame he darted it into the heart of the B. Mother Teresa and offering to drawe it out this virgine seemed to haue her bowells drawen from her the paine being so excessiue that she had onely force to cast out weake and smale sighes but yet it was a paine so amiable that she desired neuer to be deliuered of it Such was the arrowe that God sent into the heart of the great S. CATHARIN of Genua in the beginning of her conuersion whence she became another woman dead to the world and things created to liue onely to her Creatour The well-beloued is a posie of bitter Myrrhe and this posie is also the well-beloueds who remaines dearely seated betwixt the breastes of his well-beloued that is the best-beloued of all the well-beloueds Of the amourous languishment of the heart wounded with loue CHAPTER XV. 1. IT is a thing sufficiently knowne that humane loue doth not onely wound the heart but euen weaken the bodie mortally because as passions and the temperature of the bodie hath a great power to encline the soule and draw her after its so the affections of the soule haue great force in stirring the humours and changing the qualities of the bodie but further loue when it is violent doth beare away the soule to the thing beloued with such impetuositie and doth so wholy possesse her that she is deficient in all her other operations be they sensatiue or intellectuall so that to feede and second this loue the soule seemes to abandon all other care all other exercises yea and her selfe too whēce Plato saied that Loue was poore trent naked barefoote miserable without house that it laie without dores vpon the hard ground alwayes in want It is poore because it makes one quit all for the thing beloued It is without a house because it vrgeth the soule to leaue her owne habitation to follow hī cōtinually whō she loues It is miserable pale leane and ruinous for that it makes one loose sleepe meete and drinke It is naked and barefoote sith it makes one forsake all other affections to embrace that of the thing beloued It lies without vpon the hard ground because it laies open the heart that is in loue making it manifest its passions by sighes plaintes praises suspicions iealousies It lies all along at the gate like a begger because it makes the louer perpetually attentiue to the eyes and mouth of the beloued hanging continually at his eares to speake to him and begge of him some fauours wherwith it is neuer saciated
Now the eyes eares and mouth are the gates of the soule In fine the condition of its life is to be still indigent for if euer it be saciated it leaues to be ardent and consequently to be loue 2. True it is THEO that Plato spoke thus of the abiect vile and foule loue of worldlings yet are the same properties found in diuine and celestiall loue For turne your eyes a litle vpon those first Maisters of christian doctrine I meane those first Doctors of holy Euangelicall loue and marke what one of them who had laboured the most saied vntill this houre saieth he we doe both hunger and thrist and are naked and are beaten with buffets and are wanderers we are made the refuse of this world and as the drosse or skume as though he had saied we are so abiect that if the world be a Pallas we are held the sweepers thereof if the world be an aple we are the parings What I praie you had brought them to this state but Loue It was Loue that threwe S. FRANCIS naked before his Bishop and made him die naked vpon the ground It was Loue made him a begger all his life It was Loue that sent the great S. FRANCIS ZAVERIVS poore needie torne vp and downe amongst the Indians and Iaponians It was Loue that brought the great Cardinall S. CHARLES Archbishop of Milan to that extreamitie of pouertie amidst the riches which he had by the right of blood and his dignitie that as Maister Panigaroll the eloquent Orator of Italie saied he was as a dogge in his Maisters house eating a peece of bread drinking onely a little water and lying vpon a little strawe 3. Let vs heare I beseech you the holy Sunamite who cries almost in this manner although by reason of a thousand consolations which loue giues me I be more faire then the rich Tents of my Salomon I would saie more faire then heauen which is the lifelesse Pauillion of his royall Maiestie seeing I am his liuing Pauillion yet am I black torne squalled and spoiled with so many wounds and blows giuen me by the same Loue ah respect not my heu for I am truely browne because my beloued who is my Sunne hath streamed the raies of his loue vpon me raies which by their light doe illuminate yet by their heate I am sunn-burnt and made brownish and touching me with their splendour they haue berefte me of my colour The passion of loue hath done me too much honour in giuing me a Spouse such as is my King but the same passion which is a mother to me seeing she alone gaue me in mariage not my merits hath other children which doe wonderfully assault and vexe me bringing me to such a langour that as of one side I am like to a Queene who is beside her king so of the other side I am as a Vineyard-keeper who in a miserable cabinet lookes to a vine and a vine that is not his owne 4. Truely THEOT when the wounds and strokes of loue are frequent and strong they put vs into lāgour and into Lou's well-beloued sicknesse Who could euer describe the amourous langours of a S. Catharin of Sienna and Genua or a S. Angelo Folini a S. Bernard a S. Francis And as for the last his latter dayes were nothing but teares sighes plaints langours pinings Loue-traunces But in all this nothing so strange as the admirable communicatiō which the sweete IESVS had with him of his louing and precious paines by the impression of his wounds and Stigmats THEO I haue often pondered this wonder and haue made this conceipt of it This great Seruant of God a man wholy Seraphicall beholding the liuely picture of his crucified Sauiour represented in a glittering Seraphin which appeared vnto him vpon the Mount-Aluernus grewe softer then is imaginable taken with a soueraigne consolation and compassion For beholding this bright Myrrour of loue which the Angell could not saciate himselfe in beholding alas he sownded with delight and contentment but seeing also the liuely representation of the markes and woundes of his Sauiour crucified he felt in his soule the impetuous sworde which stroke through the sacred breast of the Virgin-Mother the day of the Passion with as much inward griefe as though she had bene crucified with her deare Sauiour O God THEO if the picture of Abraham fetching deaths blow ouer his deare onely-begotten to sacrifice him a picture drawen by a mortall hand had the power to soften and make weepe the Great S. GREGORIE Bishop of Nisse as often as he beheld it ah how extreamly was the Great S. FRANCIS softened when he beheld the picture of our Sauiour offering himselfe vpon the Crosse A picture which not a mortall hand but the Mistresse hand of a heauenly Seraphin had drawen and copied out of the originall it selfe representing so to the life and nature the heauenly king of Angels brused wounded murdered crucified 5. His soule then being thus mollified softened and almost melted away in this deare paine was therby greatly disposed to receiue the impressions and markes of the loue and paine of his soueraigne louer for his Memorie was wholy engaged in the remembrance of this Diuine Loue his imagination forcibly applied to represent vnto himselfe the wounds and wane blowes which his eyes then saw so perfectly well expressed in the present picture The Vnderstanding receiued from the Imagination infinitly liuelie Species And finally loue imploied all the forces of the will to take pleasure in and conforme her selfe to the Passion of her well-beloued whence without doubt the soule found herselfe trāsformed into a second Crucified Now the soule as the forme and Mistresse of the bodie exercising her authoritie vpon it printed the paines of the wounds with which she was strook in the partes correspondant to those wherein her Louer endured them Loue is admirable in edging the Imagination to penetrate to the exteriour Labans yewes while they were a ramming had so strong an imagination that it hit home vpon their Lambkins with which they were to make them become white or motley according to the rods they beheld in the troughs where they were watered And women with child hauing their Imagination refined by loue imprinte what they list vpon the child's bodie A strong Imagination makes a man waxe white on a night disturbing his health and humours Loue then droue out the inwarde torments of this great Louer S. Francis and wounded the bodie with the dart of sorrowe with which he had wounded the heart But loue being within could not well make the holes in the flesh without and therefore the burning Seraphin comming to helpe darted the raies of so penetrating a light that it really printed in the flesh the exteriour woundes of the Crucified which loue had imprinted interiourly in the soule So the Seraphin seeing Isaie not daring to speake because he perceiued his lips defiled came in the name of God to touch and purifie his lips with a burning
cole taken from vpon the Altar seconding in this sort his desire The Myrrhe-tree bringeth fourth her gumme and first liquor by way of sweate and transpiration but that she may be well deliuered of all her iuyce she must be helped by incision So the diuine loue of S. FRANCIS appeared in his whole life in manner of sweate for all his actions sauored nothing else but heauenly loue But to make the incomparable abundance of it plainely appeare the diuine Seraphin came to giue the incision and wounds And to th' end it might be knowen that these wounds were woundes of heauenly loue they were made not with iron but with raies of light ô deare God THEO how louing a paine aÌ„d how painefull a loue was this for not onely at that instant but eueÌ„ his whole life after this poore Saint went pining and languishing as being very sicke of loue 6. B. PHILIPE NERIVS at fourescore yeares of age had such an inflammation of heart through diuine loue that heate making way by the ribbs did greatly dilate them and broke the fourth and fift to receiue aire and be refreshed B. STANISLAVS BOSCA a young youth of fourteene yeares was so assaulted by the loue of his Sauiour that diuers times he fell downe in a sownd and was constrained to applie linnen dept in cold water to his breast to moderate the violencie of the burning which he felt To conclude THEOT how doe you thinke that a soule who hath once a little wishedly tasted diuine consolations can liue in this world so full of miseries without almost a continuall paine and languishing That great man of God S. ZAVERIVS hath often bene heard laÌ„ching out his voice to heaueÌ„ thinking him selfe all alone in these termes Ah my God doe not for pitie doe not beare me downe with so great abundance of consolations or if through thy infinitâ— goodnesse it will please thee to make me so abound in delights take me to Heauen for he that hath once tasted thy sweetenesse must necessarily liue in bitternesse while he doth not enioye thee And therefore when God hath somewhat largely bestowed his heauenly sweetes vpon a soule and after withdrawes them he wounds her by the priuation and she vpon it is left pining and sobbing which Dauid Alas the day when shall I see Thy sweete returne my heart shall free Out of her painefull panges And with the Apostle Vnhappie man that I am who will deliuer me out of the bodie of this mortalitie The end of the sixt Booke THE SEAVENTH BOOKE OF THE VNION OF THE SOVLE WITH HER GOD WHICH IS PERfected in Praier How loue vnits the soule to God in Praier CHAPTER I. I. WE speake not here of the generall vnion betwixt God and the soule but of certaine particular actes and motions which the soule recollected in God makes by way of Praier to be more and more vnited and ioyned to his diuine Goodnesse for in good-south there is difference betwixt ioyning and vniting one thing to another and thrusting or pressing one thing against or vpon another because to ioyne or vnite it is onely required that the one be applied to th' other so that they touch and be together as we ioyne vines to Elmes and Iasmins to the crosse-barrs of Arbors which are made in gardens But to thrust and presse together a strong application must be made which doth encrease and augment the vnion so that to thrust together is to ioyne strongly and closely as we see Iuie ioyned to trees which is not vnited onely but pressed so hard vnto them that it euen penetrats and enters into their barke 2. The comparison of little childrens loue towards their mother must not be left out by reason of its innocencie and puritie Behold then this fine little child to whom the mother being set downe presents her Pape it casts it selfe sodenly into her armes gathering and foulding all its little bodie into her bosome and louely breast and see the mother as mutually receiuing it close and as it were glewe it to her bosome and ioyning her mouth to it 's kisse it But see againe this little babie allured with it's mothers huggings how for it's part it doth concurre to this vnion betwixt his mother and it For it doth also as much as possibly it can shut and presse it selfe to it's mothers breast and cheeke as though it would wholy diue into and hide it selfe in this delightfull wombe whence it was extracted Now THEO in this case the vnion is perfect which being but one proceedes notwithstanding from the mother and the child yet so that it hath it's whole depâ—ndance of the mother for she drewe the child to her she did first locke him in her tresses pressed him to her breast nor had the babe such force as to betake and locke himselfe so hard to his mother yet the poore little on doth for his part what he can and ioynes himselfe with all his force to his mothers bosome not consenting onely to the delightfull vnion which his mother makes but contributing with all his heart his feeble endeauours which are so weake that they seeme rather to be essaies of an vnion then an vnion it selfe 3. Thus theÌ„ THEO our Sauiour shewing the most delightfull bosome of diuine loue to the deuote soule he drawes her wholy to himselfe gathers her vp and doth as it were fould all her powers in the bosome of his more theÌ„ motherly sweetenesse and then burning with loue he thrusteth ioyneth presseth and glueth her to the lips of his delightes and to his delicious breastes kissing her in the holy kisse of his mouth and making her taste his dugges more sweete theÌ„ wine The soule allured with the delightes of these fauours doth not onely consent and prepare her selfe to the vnion which God maketh but in the strife of her heart doth cooperate endeauouring more and more to ioyne and locke her selfe to the Diuine Goodnesse yet in such sort that she doth ingeniously acknowledge that her vnion and tye to this soueraigne sweetenesse is wholy dependant of Gods operation without which she could not so much as make the least essaie imaginable to be vnited vnto him 4. When wee see an exquisite beautie beholden with great ardour or an excellent melodie heard with great attention we are wount to saie such a beautie holds the Spectators eyes glued vnto it such a melodie holds their eares fastened and that such discourse doth rauish the Auditours hearts what is it to hold the eyes glued the eares fastened to rauish the heart but to vnite and closely to ioyne the senses and powers whereof one speakes to their obiectes And the soule is pressed and ioyned to her obiect when she doth intensely affect it that pressing being no other thing then the progresse and aduancement of the vnion and coniunction We make vse of this word in our tongue in morrall matters He presseth me to doe this or he presseth me to staie that is he doth not meerely vse
euen as the flame began to sease hpon her the Eagle came in with a quicke flight and beholding this vnlooked for and sad spectackle strooke through with griefe she loosed her talons let fall her prey and spred herselfe vpon her poore beloued Mistresse and couering her with her wings as it were to defend her from the fire or for pities sake to embrace her she remained there constant and immoueable couragiously dying and burning with her the ardour of her affection not giuing place to the ardour of flames and fire that by that meanes she might become the VICTIME ād HOLOCAVSTE of her braue and prodigious loue as her Mistresse was already of death and fire 3. O THEO to what a high flight this Eagle moues vs our Sauiour hath bred vs vp from our tender youth yea he formed vs and receiued vs as a louing Nource into the armes of his Diuine Prouidence euen from the time of our Conception Not beeing yet thy holy hand did make me Scarce borne into thy armes thy loue did take me He made vs his owne by Baptisme and by an incomprehensible loue doth tenderly nourish both our bodie and soule to purchace vs life he suffered death and with his owne flesh and blood hath fed vs Ah what rests then my deare THEO what Conclusion are we to draw from hence but onely that such as liue should liue no more to them selues but to him that died for them that is to saie that we should consecrate all the moments of our life to the Diuine Loue of our Sauiours death bringing home to his glorie all our preys all our conquests all our actions all our thoughts and affections Let vs behold THEO this heauenly Redeemour extended vpon the Crosse as vpon a funerall Pile of honour where he died of Loue for vs yea of loue more painefull then death it selfe or a death more pleasant then loue it selfe Ah doe we not spiritually cast our selues vpon him to die vpon the Crosse with him who for the loue of vs freely died I will hold him should we saie if we had the Eagles generositie and will neuer depart from him I will die with him and burne in the flames of his loue one and the same fire shall consume the Diuine Creatour and the miserable creature My IESVS is wholy myne and I am wholy his I will liue and die vpon his breast nor life nor death shall euer separate me from him Thus is the holy Extasie of true loue practised while we liue not according to humane reason and bent but aboue them following the inspiration and instinct of the heauenly Sauiour of our soules Of the supreame effect of affectiue loue which is the death of Louers and first of such as died in loue CHAPTER IX 1. LOue is strong as death death doth seperate the soule of him that dies from the bodie and from all earthly things Sacred loue doth seperate the Louers soule from the bodie and all earthly things nor is there any other difference sauing that death doth that in effect which loue ordinarily doe onely in affection I saie ordinarily THEO because holy loue is sometimes so violent that euen in effect it causeth a separation betwixt the bodie and the soule making the Louers die a most happie death much better then a thousand liues 2. As it is proper to the Reprobate to die in sinne so is it proper to the Elect to die in the Loue and Grace of God yet in a different manner The iust man neuer dies vnprouided for to haue perseuered in Christian Iustice euen to the end was a good prouision for death He dies indeede sometimes sodainely or a sodaine death For this cause the most wise Church in her Litanies doth teach vs not onely to demand to be deliuered frō sodaine death but sodaine ād vnprouided death It is no worse for being sodaine if it be not withall vnprouided If some weake and common soules had seene fire frō Heauen fall vpon the great S. SIMEON Stilits head and kill him what would they haue thought but thoughts of scandall yet are we to make no other conceit of the matter then that this great Saint hauing perfectly sacrificed himselfe to God in his heart already wholy consumed with loue the fire came from Heauen to perfect the Holocauste and entirely burne it for the Abbot Iulian being a dayes iorney off saw his soule ascend to Heauen and thervpon caused incense to be offered in thankesgiuing to God The Blessed man Good Cremonius on a certaine day set vpon his knees most deuotly to heare Masse rose not at the Ghospell according to custome whēce those that were about him looked vpon him and perceiued he was dead There haue bene in our time most famous men for vertue and learning found dead some in the confession seat others while they heard the Sermon yea some haue bene seene falling downe dead at their going out of the Pulpet where they had preached with great feruour and all these deaths were sodaine yet not vnprouided And how many Good people doe we see die of Apoplexies Lethargies and a thousand other wayes very sodainely others of madnesse and frensie without the vse of reason and all these together with children who are baptised died in Grace and consequently in the Loue of God But how could they die in the Loue of God since they thought not of God at the time of their departure 3. Learned men THEO loose not their knowledge while they are a sleepe for so they would be vnlearned at their awaking and be forced to returne to schoole The like it is of all the habits of Prudence Temperance Faith Hope and Charitie They are continually in the iust mans heart though they be not alwayes in action While a man sleeps it seemes that all his habits sleepe with him and when he awakes awake with him So a iust man dying sodainely or oppressed by a house falling vpon him kill'd by Thunder or stifled with a catarre or else dying out of his senses by the violence of a hote Ague dies not indeede in the exercise of holy Loue yet dies he in the habit thereof wher-vpon the wise-man saieth if the iust-man be preuented by death he shall be in a place of refreshing for it sufficeth to obtaine eternall life to die in the state and habit of loue and Charitie 4. Yet many Saints haue departed this life not onely in Charitie and with the habite of heauenly loue but euen in the act and practise thereof S. AVGVSTINE deceased in the exercise of holy contrition which cannot be without Loue. S. HIEROM in exhorting his deare children to the loue of God their neighbours and vertue S. AMBROSE in a Rapture sweetely discoursing with his Sauiour immediatly after he had receiued the holy Sacrament of the Altar S. ANTONIE of Padua after he had recited a hymne of the glorious virgin-mother and while he spoke with great ioye to our Sauiour S. THOMAS of Aquine ioyning his
forsaketh flesh and blood to be vnited to her Beloued Now it is the most violent effect that a loue worketh in a soule and which requires a great precedent puritie from all such affections as may detaine the soule prisoner either to the world or to the bodie so that like as fire hauing by little and little seperated the Essenâ—e from its masse and wholy purified it at length it also driues out the QVINT-ESSENCE euen so holy Loue hauing retired mans heart from all fantasies inclinatioÌ„s and assions as farre fourth as may be doth at length vrge the soule out to the end that by that passage pretious in the sight of God she might passe to eternall glorie 2. The great S. FRANCIS who in the matter of heauenly loue comes still before myne eyes could not possibly escape dying by loue by reason of the manifould and great langours Extasies and tranâ—es which his loue to God who had exposed him to the whole worlds view as a MIRACLE OF LOVE would not onely haue him die for loue but euen of Loue. For consider I beseech you his death Perceiuing himselfe vpon the point of his departure he caused himselfe to be laied naked vpon the ground where hauing receiued a habite for God's sake which they put on him he made a speach to his bretheren encouraging them to loue and feare God and his Church made our Sauiours passioÌ„ be red and then with an extreame feruour began the 141. Psalme With my voice I haue cried to our Lord with my voice I haue Praied to our Lord and hauing pronounced these last words o Lord bring forth my soule out prison that I may praise thy holy name the iust expect me till thou reward me he died the 45. yeare of his age Who sees not I besseech you THEO that the Seraphicall man who had so instantly desired to be martyred and to die for loue died in the end of loue as in another place I haue explicated 3. S. MAGDALEN hauing for the space of 30. yeares liued in a caue which is yet to be seene in PROVINCE rauished seuen times a day and borne vp in the aire by Angels as though it had bene to sing the seuen Canonicall houres in their Quire in the end vpon a Soneday she came to Church where her deare Bishop S. Maximinus finding her in contemplation her eyes full of teares and her armes stretched out he communicated her and soone after she deliuered vp her blessed soule who once a gaine for good and all went to her Sauiours feete to enioye the BETTER â—Aâ—â— which she had already made choice off neare belowe 4. S. BASILE had contracted a strict friendshipe with a Phisition a Iewe by nation and religion with intention to bring him to the faith of IESVS CHRIST which neuerthelesse he could not effect till such time as decaied by youth old age and labours being vpon the point of dying he enquired of the Phisition what opinion he had of him coniuring him to speake freely which the Phisition refused not but feeling his pulse told him there was no remedie quoth he before the Sunne let you will depart this life But what will you saie replied the patient if to morrow I shall be aliue I will become Christian I promisse you laied the Phisition With this the Saint praied to God and obtained a prolongation of his owne temporall life for the good of his Phisitions spirituall life who hauing seene this Miracle was conuerted and S. Basile rysing couragiously out of his bed went to the Church and baptised him with all his Familie then being returned to his chamber and gotten to bed after he had passed a good space with our Sauiour in Praier he holily exhorted the assistants to serue God with their whole heart and finally seeing the Angels approch pronouncing with an extreame delight these words ô God I recommend vnto thee my soule and restore it into thy hands he died But the poore conuerted Phisition seeing him thus deceased colling him and melting into teares vpon him ô great Seruant of God Basile quoth he indeede if thou hadst list thou had'st no more died to day then yesterday Who doth not see that this death was wholy froÌ„ loue And the Blessed S. Teresa reuealed after her death that she died with an impetuous assault of loue Which had bene so violent that nature not able to support it the soule departed towards the beloued obiect of her loue A wonderfull historie of the death of a gentleman who died of loue vpon the Mount-Oliuet CHAPTER XII 1. BEsides that which hath bene saied I haue light vpoÌ„ a historie which being extreamly admirable is yet more credible to sacred Louers since as the holy Apostle saieth Charitie doth easily beleeue all things that is she doth not easily suspect one of lying and vnlesse there be signes of apparent deceite in that which is proposed she makes no difficultie to beleeue it but especially when they are things which doe exalt and magnifie God's loue towards man or man's loue towards God because Charitie being the Soueraigne Qâ—eene of vertues following the manner of a Princâ—sse who takes coÌ„teÌ„t in things that are for the renowne of her Empire and dominion And beit the relation I am to make be neither so much diuulged nor confirmed as the greatnesse of the miracle which it containes would require yet is it not therefore voyde of truth for as S. Augustine saieth excellently well scarcely can we know miracles though most famous euen in the places where they are wrought and euen though such as haue seene them relates them we haue difficultie to giuâ— credit vnto them yet are they no lesse true for all this and in matter of Religion well borne soules take more delight to beleeue those things which containe difficultie and admiration 2. A valiant illustrious and vertuous knight went vpon a time beyond â—ee into Palestin to visit the holy Land where our Sauiour performed the work of our Redemption and to begin this holy exercise worthily he first of all confessed and communicated deuotely immediatly after went straight to Nazareth where the Angell announced vnto the most Sacred virgin the Blessed Incarnation and where the most adorable conception of the Eternall word was finished and there this worthy Pilgrime set himselfe to the contemplation of the heauenly Bounâ— is depth who daigned to put on mans nature to recouer him from perdition from thence he passed to Bethleem the place of the Natiuitie where it is not to be spokeÌ„ what an abundance of teares he poured forth in contemplation of those wherewith the Sonne of God the virgins little babe had watered that holy stable kissing and rekissing a thousand times that sacred earth and licking the dust vpon which the prime infancie of the Diuine child was receiued in Bethleem He went into Berthabara and from thence to that little place in Bethania where calling to mind that our Sauiour was there vnuested to be baptised he also
vnuested himselfe and going into Iordaine washing himselfe and drinking the waters thereof he thought he saw his Sauiour receiuing Baptisme at his Precursors hand and the holy Ghost descending visibly vpon him in the forme of a doue the Heauens remaining open from whence as it appeared to him the voice of the Eternall Father issued saying This is my beloued Sonne in whom I am pleased From Bethania he takes his way towards the Desert where he beheld with the eyes of his mind the Sauiour of the world-fasting fighting and vanquishing the Enemie together with the Angels who serued him with admirable foode From thence he makes towards the Mount THABOR where he saw our Sauiour transfigured thence to the mountaine of SION where he saw our Sauiour againe as he apprehended vpon his knees in the last supper washing the Disciples feâ—â— aÌ„d then distributing vnto them his sacred bodie in the holy EVCHARISTE he passeth the Torrent of CEDRON and betakes himselfe to the Garden of GETHSEMINâ— where with a most amiable dolour his heart dissolued into teares while he proposed vnto himselfe his deare Sauiour sweating blood in the extreame Agonie which he there endured and soone after takeÌ„ corded aÌ„d led to Hierusalâ— whither also he goes throughly to follow the footesteps of his Beloued and saw him in Imagination haled hither and thither to ANNAS to CAIPHAS to PILATE to HERODE whipped buffetted spit vpon crowned with thornes presented to the people sentenced to death loden with his Crosse which he carries and in carrying it met his dolorous mother and the daughters of Hierusalem bewailing him Finally this deuote Pilgrime mounts vnto the MouÌ„t Caluarie where he sees in Spirit the Crosse laied vpon the ground and our Sauiour quite naked whom they throw downe and most cruelly naile him to it hand and foote He goes on contemplating how they reare vp the Crosse and crucifie him in the aire blood flowing out from euery part of his diuine bodie He lookes vpon the poore sacred virgin traÌ„spearced with the sword of sorrow and then againe he eyeth his crucified Sauiour whose 7. last words he marks with an incomparable loue and at the length he saw him dying soone after dead Then receiuing the wound of thâ— Lance and by that holes passage shewing his Diuine heart then taken downe from the Crosse and carried to his Sepulcher whither still he followes him sending out a Sea of teaâ—es vpon the ground which was watered with his Redeemours blood he enters into the sepulcher and buries his heart with his Maisters bodie afterwards rising with him he goes to Emaus and sees what passed betweene the Maister aÌ„d his two Disciples In fine returning by the Mount Oliuet where thâ— Mysterie of the Ascension was accomplished and there seeing the last prints and footesteps of his heauenly Sauiours feete falling groueling vpon them and kissing theÌ„ a thousand thousand times with the sighes of an infinite loue he begunne to draw towards him the force of all his affections as an Archer the string of his Bowe when he is about to shoote then raising himselfe and stretching his eyes and hands to heauenward O IESVS saied he my sweete IESVS I haue now no further to search and follow thee in Earth Ah then IESVS IESVS my LOVE grant vnto my poore heart that it may follow thee and flie after thee to Heauen and in these feruent words he presently breathed out his sole to Heauen as a blessed arrow which he as a diuine Archer shot at the white of his most happie Obiect But his fellow 's and seruants who saw this Louer so sodainly fall downe as dead amaised at the accideÌ„t raÌ„ne with speede for the Doctor who when he came he found him quite dead and to giue a certaine Iudgment of so sodaine a death he made enquirie of what complection nature and dispositâ—on the deceased partie was and he found that he was of a most sweete aÌ„d amiable nature maruellous deuote and feruent in the loue of God Wherevpon quoth the Doctor doubtlesse his heart split with excesse and feruour of loue And to confirme his iudgment the more he opened him and found this generous heart open with this sacred Motto engrauen in it IESVS MY LOVE Loue then plaied Deaths parte in this heart seperating the soule from the bodie without the concourse of any other cause S. Bernardin of Sienna a learned and pious Authour relates this Historie in the first of his Sermons of the Ascension 3. An other Authour also well neare of the same Age who out of humilitie concealed his name worthy to be named in a booke intitled A MYRROR OF THE SPIRITVALL makes mention of an historie yet more admirable for he saieth that in PROVINCE there liued a Lord much addicted to the Loue of God and exceeding deuote to the Blessed Sacrament Now vpon a time being extreamly afflicted with a disease which caused him coÌ„tinually to reÌ„der the Holy CoÌ„munioÌ„ which was brought vnto him who not daring to receiue it least he might be forced to cast it vp againe he besought the Pastour to applie it at least to his breast and with it to make the signe of the Crosse ouer him This was done and in a moment his breast inflamed with Diuine Loue opened and drew into it selfe the heauenly foode wherin his beloued was contained and at the same instant departed life I must in very deede confesse that this historie is extraordinarie and such as would require a more waightie testimonie yet after the true historie of S. CLARE DE MONTE PALCO which all the world may euen to this day see and that of S. Francis his STIGMATS which is most certaine my soule meets with nothing which is hard to be beleeued amongst she effects of Diuine Loue. That the Sacred Virgin mother of God died of the loue of her Sâ—nne CHAPTER XIII 1. ONe can hardly well doubt but that the great S. Ioseph died before the Passion and death of our Sauiour who otherwise had not commended his mother to S. Iohn And how can one imagine that the deare child of his heart his beloued Nurse-child did not assist him at the houre of his departure Blessed are the mercifull for they shall obtaine mercy Alas how much sweetenesse Charitie and Mercy did this good Foster-father vse towards our little Sauiour at his â—ntrie into this world and who can then beleeue but at his departure out of it that diuine child rendred him the like with an hundredfold filling him with heauenly delights Storks are the true representations of the mutuall pietie of children towards their parents and of parents towards their children for being flitting birds they beare their decrepit parents with them in their iorney as their parents had borne them while they were yet young in the like occasion While our Sauiour was yet a little babe the great S. Ioheph his Foster-Father and his most glorious Virgin-mother had many a time borne him but especially in their iorney from Iudea
the Loue that strikes straight through afflictions towards the will of God walkes in assurance For affliction being in no wise amiable in it selfe it is an easie thing to Loue it onely for his sake that send 's it The hounds in spring time are euery foote at default finding hardly any sent at all because the hearbes and flowres doe then smell so freshly that the freshnesse put downe the rowt or sent of the Hart or hare In the spring time of consolations Loue is scarcely acquainted with Gods pleasure because the sensible pleasure of the consolation doth so allure the heart that it troubles the attention which it ought to haue to the will of God S. CATHARINE hauing from our Sauiour her choice of a Crowne of gold or a crowne of thornes choosed this as better suteting with Loue. A desire of sufferance saieth the B. ANGELA FOLIGNY is an infallible marke of Loue and the great Apostle cries out that he glories onely in the Crosse in infirmitie in persecution Of the vnion of our will to the Diuine will in spirituall afflictions by resignation CHAPTER III. 1. THe Loue of the Crosse makes vs vndertake voluntarie afflictions as for example fasting watching haire-shirts and other tamings of the bodie renouÌ„ce pleasures honours aÌ„d riches aÌ„d loue in these exercises is very delightfull to the beloued yet more when we receiue with patience sweetenesse and mildnesse the paines torments and tribulations by reason of the Diuine will which sends vs them But Loue then is at its hight when we receiue afflictions not with patience and sweetnesse onely but we doe euen cheerish loue and embrace theÌ„ in regard of the Diuine will whence they proceede 2. Now of all the essayes of perfect Loue that which is practised by the repose of the mind in spirituall tribulations is doubtlesse the most pure and highest The B. ANGELA OF FOLIGNY makes an admirable description of the interiour panges which sometimes she felt saying that her soule was tortured like to one who being tyed hand and foote should be hung by the necke without being strangled but should hang in this estate betwixt death and life without hope of helpe and neither being able to keepe herselfe vpon her feete nor assist herselfe with her hands nor crie out nor yet sigh or moane So it faires THEO the soule is sometimes so ouercharged with interiour afflictions that all her faculties and powers are oppressed by priuation of all that might releiue her and by apprehension and impression of all that might attristate her So that at the imitation of her Sauiour she begins to be troubled to feare to be disamayed and at length to waxe sad with a sorrow like vnto that of one dying Whence she may rightly saie My soule is heauie euen to death and with her whole hearts consent she desirs petitions supplicats that if it be possible this Calice may passe hauing nothing left her saue the very supreame point of her Spirit which cleeuing hard to the Diuine heart and will saieth in a most sincere submission O eternall Father ah not myne but thy will be done And which is diligently to be noted the soule makes this resignation amidst such a world of troubles contradictions repugnances that she doth euen hardly perceiue that she makes it at least it seemes to her to be done so coldly that it is not done from her heart nor as it were fitting since that which passeth there in fauour of the Diuine will is not onely done without delight and contentment but euen against the pleasure and liking of all the rest of the heart whom loue permits to bemoane her selfe at least to moane that she cannot bemoane herselfe and to sigh out all the LAMENTATIONS of IOB and Hieremie yet with charge that a sacred peace be still conserued in the very bottome of the heart in the highest and most delicate point of the Spirit and this submissiue peace is not tender or sweete nor yet in a manner sensible though otherwise sincere stroÌ„g inuincible aÌ„d full of Loue aÌ„d it seemes to haue betakeÌ„ it selfe to the very eÌ„d of the Spirit as into the dungeoÌ„ of the Fort where it remaines corragious though all the rest be taken and pressed with sorrow And by how much the more Loue in this case is depriued of all helpes forsaken of all the aide of the vertues and faculties of the soule by so much it is more to be prised for conseruing constantly its fidelitie 3. This vnion or conformitie to the diuine pleasure is made either by a holy resignation or a most holy indifferencie Now Resignation is practised with a certaine force and submission one would willingly liue in lieu of dying yet since it is Gods pleasure that die we must we yeeld to it We would willingly liue if it pleased God yea further we would willingly that it were his pleasure to prolong life we die willingly yet more willingly would we liue we departe with a reasonable good will yet would we stay with a better IOB in his afflictions made an act of resignation since we haue receiued the good saied he from the hand of God why shall we not sustaine the the toyles and vexations which he doth send vs marke THEO how he speakes of sustaining supporting enduring as it hath pleased our Lord so was it done our Lords name be praised These are the words of resignation and acceptance by way of sufferance and patience Of the vnion of our will to Gods will by Indâ—fferencie CHAPTER IV. 1. REsignation preferrs Gods will before all things yet doth it Loue many other things besides the will of God but Indifferencie passeth Resignation for it Loues nothing but meerely for the Loue of Gods will in so much that nothing at all can stirre the indifferent heart in the presence of the will of God True it is the most indifferent heart in the world may be touched with some affection while yet it discouers not where the will of God is Eliezer being come to the fountaine of HaraÌ„ had a full view of the virgin Rebecca aÌ„d without doubt saw her too too faire and pleasing howbeit he staied himselfe in an indifferencie till he knew by a signe from God that the Diuine will had ordained her a wife for his Maisters sonne for then he presented her with the eare-iewels and bracelets of gold Contrariwise if IACOB had onely loued in Rachel the alliance with Laban to which his Father Isaac had obliged him Lya had bene as deare vnto him as Rachel they being doth Labans daughters and consequently his Fathers will had bene as well fulfilled in the one as in the other But because beyoÌ„d his Fathers will he coueted to satisfie his owne liking taken with the beautie and louelinesse of Rachel he was troubled to Espouse LYA yet by resignation tooke her against his owne liking 2. But the indifferent heart stands not thus affected for knowing that tribulation though she be hard-fauered as another LYA leaues
a more solide and attentiue loue towards her father then though she had sheâ—en her selfe much sollicitous in begging his helpe to her cure in looking how they opened her veine or how the blood span out and in vsing a great deale of ceremonie in rendring him thankes certainely none can make any doubt of it For in taking vpon her the care of her selfe what had she gotten but an vnprofitable anxitie especially her father hauing care enough of her what had looking vpon her arme profited her but haue bene an occasion of horrour And what vertue had she practised in thanking her father saue that of gratitude Did she not better then to occupie her selfe wholy in the Demonstrations of her filiall affection which is infinitly more delightfull to her father then all other vertues 4. Myne eyes are alwayes to our Lord because he will deliuer our feete from the snare Art thou fallen into the snares of aduersitie ah looke not vpon this mishape nor vpon the Gyues wherein thou art caught looke vpon God and leaue all to him he will haue care of thee throwe thy thoughtes vpon him and he will nourrish thee Why dost thou trouble thy selfe with willing or nilling the euents and accidents of this world since thou art ignorant what were best for thee to will and that God will will for thee without thy trouble all that thou art to will for thy selfe Expect therefore in peace of mind the effect of the Diuine pleasure and let his willing suffice thee since he can neuer cease to be good For so he gaue order to his well beloued S. Catharine of Sienna Thinke of me quoth he to her and I will thinke for thee It is a hard thing to expresse to the full this extreame indifferencie of mans heart which is so reduced to and dead in the will of God for it is not to be saied me thinkes that she doth submit herselfe to Gods submission being an act of the soule declaring her consent nor is it to be saied that she doth accept or receiue it for as much as accepting or receiuing are certaine actions which in some sort may be termed passiue actions by which we embrace and take what soections befalls vs nor yet are we to saie that she permits permission being an action of the will and consequently a certaine idle emptie wish that will indeede doe nothing but onely let it be done And therefore me thinke the soule in this indifferecie that willeth nothing but leaues God to will what he pleaseth is to be saied to haue her will in a simple expectation since that to expect is not to doe or act but onely to remaine exposed to some euer And if you marke it the expectation of the soule is altogether voluntarie and yet an action it is not but a meere disposition to receiue whatsoeuer shall happen and as soone as the euents are once arriued and receiued the expectation becomes a coÌ„tentment or repose Marry till they happen in truth the soule is A PVRE EXPECTATION indiffereÌ„t to all that it shall please the Diuine will to ordaine 5. In this sort did our Sauiour expresse the extreame submission of his humane will to the will of his eternall Father The Almightie saieth he hath opened myne eare that is he hath declared vnto me his pleasure touching the multitude of torments which I am to endure and I saieth he afterwards doe not gainesaie or withdraw my selfe what would this saie I doe not gainesaie or withdraw my selfe but this my will is in a simple expectation and is readie for all that God shall send In sequele whereof I deliuer vp and abandone my bodie to the mercy of such as will beate it and my cheekes to such as will make them smart being prepared to let them exercise their pleasure vpon me But marke I praie you THEO that euen as our Sauiour after he had made his Praier of Resignation in the Garden of Oliuet and after he was taken left himselfe to be handled and haled by those that crucified him by an admirable surrender made of his bodie and life into their hands So did he resigne vp his soule and will by a most perfect indiffereÌ„cie into his eternall Fathers haÌ„ds For though he cried out My God My God why hast thou forsaken me Yet was that to let vs vnderstand the reall anguish and distresse of his soule but in no wise to impeach the most holy indifferencie of which it as possessed as shortly after he shewed concluding all his life and passion in these incomparable words Father into thy hands I commend my Spirit Of the perfect stripping of the soule vnited to Gods will CHAPTER XVI 1. LEt vs represent vnto our selues THEO the sweete Iesus in Pilats house where for the Loue of vs he was turned out of his clothes by the soldiers the Ministers of death and not content with that they take the skin with them tearing it with the blowes of rods and whipps as afterwards his soule was bereft of his bodie and his bodie of life by the death which he endured vpon the Crosse But three dayes being once ruÌ„ne ouer the soule by the most holy Resurrection did reinuest her glorious bodie and his bodie its mortall skin wearing sundrie garments now resembling a Gardener now a Pilgrime or in some other guise according as the saluation of man and the glorie of God required LOVE did all this THEO and it is LOVE also that entring into a soule to make it happily die to it selfe and liue to God which doth bereaue it of all humane desires and self-esteeme which is as closely fixed to the Spirit as the skin to the flesh and strips her at leÌ„gth of her best beloued affections as were those which she had to spirituall affections exercises of pietie and the perfection of vertues which seemed to be the very life of the soule 2. Then THEO the soule may by good right crie I haue put of my garment and how can I find in my heart to resume them againe I haue washed my feete from all sorts of affections and can I euer be so mad as to soile theÌ„ againe I came naked out of the hande of God and naked will I returne thither God gaue me many desires and God hath taken them away his holy name be blessed Yea THEO the same God that made vs desire vertues in our beginning aÌ„d which makes vs practise theÌ„ in all occurrences he it is that takes from vs the affection to vertues and all spirituall exercises that with more tranquillitie puritie and simplicitie we should affect nothing but the Diuine Maiesties good pleasure For as the faire Iudith reserued indeede her costly festiuall robes in her Cabinet and yet placed not her affection vpon them nor yet euer wore them in the time of her widowhood saue onely when by God's inspiration she went to ouerthrow Holofernes so though we haue learnt the practise of vertue and the exercise of deuotion yet are we
and fantomes of pleasurs for which we cast off the loue of the heauenly Spouse And how can we then truely saie that we loue him since we preferre so friuolous vanities before his grace 5. Is it not a deplorable wonder to see a DAVID so noble in surmounting hatred so generous in pardoning iniuries and yet so impotently iniurious in mater of Loue that not being satiated with the vniust detaining of a number of wiues he must needes yet wrongfully vsurpe and take away by rape the poore Vrias his wife Yea and by an insupportable treacherie put to slaughter her poore husband that he might the better enioye the Loue of his wife Who would not admire the heart of a SAINT PETER which was so brauely bold amidst the armed soldiers that he of all his Maisters troupe was the first and onely man that drew and layed about him and yet a little after so cowardly amongst vnarmed women that at the worde of a wench he denied and detested his Maister And how can it seeme so strange to vs that Rachel could sell the chast embracements of her Iacob for Aples of the Mandragore since that Adame and Eue forsooke euen grace for an Aple and that too presented by a Serpent 6. In fine I will tell you a word worthy of note Heretikes are Heretikes aÌ„d beare the name of such because of the Articles of Faith they choose at their gust and pleasure what likes them best and those they beleeue reiecting and disauowing the others And Catholiks are Catholiks because without choice or election at all they embrace with an equall assurance and without reserue all the faith of the Church Now it happens after the same manner in the Articles of Charitie It is an herasie in sacred loue to make choice of Gods Commandements which to obserue and which to violate He that saied thou shalt not kill saied also thou shalt not commite adulterie It is not then for the loue of God that thou killest not but it is some other motiue that makes thee rather choose this commandement then the other A choice that hatcheth heresie in matter of Charitie If one should tell me that he would not cut my arme out of a loue to me and yet would pull out myne eyes breake my head or ruÌ„ne me quite through ah should I saie with what face can you tell me that it is in respect of my Loue that you wound not myne arme since you make no difficultie to pull out myne eyes which are no lesse deare vnto me yet since you ruÌ„ne me quite through the bodie with your sword which is more perilous for me It is an Axiome that good comes from an entire cause but euill from each defect That the act of Charitie be perfect it must proceede from an entire generall and vniuersall Loue which is extended to all the Diuine Commandements And if we faile in any one CommandemeÌ„t loue ceaseth to be entire and vniuersall and the heart wherein it harbers cannot be truely called a louing heart nor consequently a truly good one That we are to Loue the Diuine Goodnesse soueraignely more then our selues CHAPTER X. 1. Aristotle had reason to saie that GOOD is indeede amiable but principaly euery ones proper good to himselfe so that the Loue which we haue to others proceedes from the loue of our selues for how could a Philosopher saie otherwise who did not onely not Loue God but hardly euen euer spoke of the Loue of God howbeit the Loue of God doth preceede all the Loue of our selues yea euen according to the naturall inclination of the will as I declared in the first booke 2. Certes the will is so dedicated and if we may so saie consecrated to goodnesse that if an infinite goodnesse were clearely proposed vnto it vnlesse by miracle it is impossible that it should not soueraignely loue it yea the Blessed are rauished and necessitated though yet not forced to loue God whose soueraigne beautie they clearely see which the Scripture doth sufficiently shew in coÌ„paring the contentment which doth fill the hearts of the happie inhabitants of the heauenly Hierusalem to a torrent or impetuous floode whose waters cannot be kept from spreeding ouer the neighbour plaines 3. But in this mortall life THEO we are not necessitated to loue soueraignly because we see him not so clearely In Heauen where we shall see him face to face we shall loue him heart to heart that is wheÌ„ we shall all see the infinitie of his beautie euery one in his measure with a soueraignely cleare sight so shall we be rauished with the loue of his infir it goodnesse in a soueraignely strong rauishment to which we neither would if we could nor can if we would make any resistance But here belowe when we behold not this Soueraigne Bountie aÌ„d Beautie but onely enter view it in our obscurities we are indeede inclined and allured yet not necessitated to Loue more then our selues but rather the contrarie and albeit we haue a holy naturall inclination to loue the Diuinitie aboue all things yet haue we not the strength to put it in execution vnlesse the same Diuinitie infuse holy charitie supernaturally into our heart's 4. Yet true it is that as the cleare view of the Diuinitie doth infallibly beget in vs a necessitie of louing it more then our selues so the enterview that is the naturall knowledge of the Diuinitie doth produce infallibly an inclination and pronenesse to loue it more theÌ„ our selues for I praie you THEOT since the will is wholy addicted to the loue of GOOD how can it in any degree know a soueraigne GOOD without being more or lesse inclined to loue it soueraignely Now of all the Good 's which are not infinite our WILL willeth alwayes in her affection that which is nighest to her but aboue all her owne But there is so little proportion betwixt an infinite and finite GOOD that our will hauing knowledge oâ— an infinite GOOD is without doubt put in motion inclined and incited to prefere the friendshipe of the Abisse of this infinite goodnesse before all other loue yea euen the loue of our selues 5. But principally this inclination is strong because we are more in God then in our selues we liue more in him then in our selues and are in such sort from him by him for him and to him that we cannot in very deede hit of what we are to him and he is to vs but we are forced to crie out I am thyne Lord and am to belong to none but to thee my soule is thyne and ought not to liue but by thee my will is thyne and ought not to loue but for thee my Loue is thyne and is onely to tend to thee I am to loue thee as my first PRINCIPLE sith I haue my beeing from thee I am to loue thee as myne end and Center since I am for thee I am to loue thee more then myne owne being seeing eueÌ„ my Bâ—EING doth sublist by thee I am to loue
loose it 3. Put me saied the Diuine shepheard to the Sunamite put me as a seale vpon thy heart as a seale vpon thy arme The Sunamits heart was full of the heauenly Loue of her deare Spouse who though he possesse all yet is he not content in that but by a holy distrust of iealousie he will be set vpon the heart which he possesseth and will haue her sealed vp with himselfe least any of the loue due to him might escape out or any thing get entrie which might cause a mixture for he is not satisfied with the loue in which the Sunamite is compleat vnlesse she be also vnchangeable purely and onely his And that he may not onely enioye the affections of our heart but also the effects and operations of our hands he will also be as a seale vpon our right arme that it may not be streched out or imployed saue in the works of his seruice And the reason of the Diuine Spouse his demande is that as death is so strong that it separats the soule from all things yea euen from her owne bodie so sacred loue which is come to the degree of Zeale doth diuide and put the soule at a distance withall affections and doth purifie her from all mixture for as much as it is not onely as strong as death but it is withall sharpe resolute stife and pitilesse in punishing the wrong done vnto it in the admittance of Competitors together with it as Hell is violent in punishing the damned And euen as Hell full of horrour rage and crueltie admits no mixture of loue so doth iealous loue tollerate no mixture of another affection striuing that the whole should be reserued for the Beloued Nothing is so sweete as the Doue yet nothing so mercilesse as he in his iealousie towards his hen If euer you tooke notice THEO you haue seene that this milde birde returning from his flight and finding his mate amongst her companions he is not able to suppresse in himselfe a certaine sense of distrust which makes him churlish and humourous so that at their first accosting he circles about her with a soure and out faceing countenāce trampling vpon her and beating her with his wings though he haue otherwise assurance that she is loyall and sees her snowie white in innocencie Vpon a certaine day S. CaTHARINE of Sienna was in a Rapture which did not bereeue her of her senses and while God was shewing her wonders a brother of hers passed by and with the noise he made diuerted her so that she turned towards him and eyed him one onely moment This little distraction which did on the sodaine surprise her was neither sinne nor disloyaltie but an onely shadow of sinne and an onely resemblance of disloyaltie and yet the most holy mother of the heauēly Spouse did so earnestly chide her for it and the glorious S. PAVLE did so confound her in it that she thought she should haue melted away in teares And Dauid reestablished in grace by a perfect loue how was he treated for the onely veniall sinne which he had committed in taking a List of his People 4. But THEO he that desires to see this Iealousie put downe in a delicate and excellent expression let him read the Instructions which the Seraphicall S. CATHARINE of Genua made in declaration of the proprieties of pure Loue amongst which she doth instantly inculcate and presse this which ensueth That perfect Loue that is Loue which is come to the perfection of Zeale cannot endure any mediation interposition or the mixture of any other thing not euen of God's gifts yea it is in this hight of rigour that it permit's not euen the loue of Heauen but with intention to loue more perfectly therein the Goodnesse of him that giues it So that the Lampes of this pure Loue haue neither oyle weeke nor smoake but are all fire and flame which no worldly thing can extinguish And such as carrie these burning Lampes in their hāds haue the saintly feare of holy Spouses not the feare of adulterous women Both feare indeede but differently saieth S. AVGVSTINE The chast Spouse feares the absence of her Spouse The adulrous the presēce of hers That feares his departure this his staie That is so deeply in Loue that it makes her iealous this is not annoy'd with iealousie because she enioyes not Loue This feares to be punished but the punishment which that feares is that she shall not beloued enough yea rather in very deede she feares not not to beloued as is the custome of the Iealous who loue thēselues and will needes be beloued but her feare is that she loues not him enough whom she sees so loue-worthy that none can loue him to the worth ād accordīg to the large measure of loue which he merit's as before I haue faied Wherefore her Iealousie is not a IEALOVSIE OF PROPER INTEREST but a pure Iealousie which proceedes not frō any concupiscence but from a noble and simple friēdshipe A Iealousie which extends it selfe to our neighbour together with the loue whence it issueth for since we loue our neighbour as our selues for Gods sake we are also iealous of him as of our selues for God's sake so that we would euen die least he might perish 5. Now as Zeale is an inflamed ardour or an ardent inflamation of Loue it hath also neede to be wisely and prudently practised otherwise vnder the cloake of it one may violate the termes of modestie and discretion and easily slipe out of Zeale into anger and from a iust affection to an vniust passion wherefore this not being the proper place to put downe the markes of Zeale my THEO I aduise you that for the execution thereof you haue alwayes recourre to him whom God hath giuen you for the direction of your deuote life Of the Zeale or Iealousie which we haue towards our Sauiour CHAPTER XIV 1. A certaine Caualeere gaue order to a famous Painter to draw him out a horse rūning and the Painter hauing represented him as in a curuet with him vpō his backe the Caualeere began to storme whervpon the Painter turning the picture vpside downe be not angrie Sir quoth he to change the postures of a horse in his Carriere into a horse in his curuet a man is onely to turne the Table vpside downe He that desires to discouer what iealousie or Zeale we are to exercise towards God he is onely to expresse to life the iealousie we haue in humane things and then turne it vpside downe for such will it be as that which God for his part requires at our hands 2. Imagine THEO what comparison there is betwixt those who enioye the light of the Sunne and those who haue onely the glimps of a Lampe they are not enuious or iealous of one an other for they plainely see that that great light is abundantly sufficient for all that the ones fruition doth not impeach the others and that nones possession in particular is lesse for that all in
adhered and ioyned himselfe so neerely indissolubly and infinitly to our nature that neuer was any thing so straightly ioyned and pressed to the humanitie as is now the most sacred Diuinitie in the person of the Sonno of God 4. he ranne wholy into vs and as it were dissolued his greatnesse to bring it downe to the forme and figure of our littlenesse whence he is instyled a Source of liuing water dewe and rayne of Heauen 5. He was in extasie not onely in that as S. DENIS saieth by the excesse of his louing goodnesse he became in a certaine manner out of himselfe extending his prouidence to all things and beeing in all things but also in that as S. Paule saieth he did in a sort forsake and emptie himselfe drayned his greatnesse and glorie deposed himselfe of the Throne of his incomprehensible Maiestie and if it be lawfull so to saie annihilated himselfe to stoope downe to our humanitie to fill vs with his Diuinitie to replenish vs with his goodnesse to rayse vs to his dignitie and bestow vpon vs the Diuine beeing of the children of God And he of whom it is so frequent written I LIVE SAIED OVR LORD pleased afterwards according to his Apostles language to saie I liue now not I but man liues in me man is my life and to die for man is my gaines my life is hidden with man in God He that did inhabit in himselfe lodgeth now in vs and he that was liuing froÌ„ all eternitie in the bosome of his eternall Father becomes mortall in the bosome of his temporall mother He that liued eternally by his owne Diuine life liued temporally a humane life And he that from eternitie had bene onely God shall be for all eternitie man too so did the loue of man rauish God and draw him into an Extasie 6. Sixtly how ofteÌ„ by loue did he admire as he did the Centurion and the Cananee 7. he beheld the young man who had till that houre keept the Commandements and desired to be taught perfection 8. he tooke a louing repose in vs yea euen with some suspension of his senses in his mothers wombe and in his infancie 9. he was wonderfull tender towards little children which he would take in his armes and louingly dandle a sleepe towards MARTHA and MAGDALEN towards Lazarus ouer whom he wept as also ouer the Citie of Hierusalem 10. he was animated with an incoÌ„parable Zeale which as S. DENIS saieth turned into iealousie turning away so farre as he could all euill from his beloued humane nature with hazard yea with the price of his blood driuing away the Deuil the Prince of this world who seemed to be his Corriuall and Competitor 7. He had a thousand thousand languors of Loue for from whence could those Diuine words proceede I haue to be baptised with a baptisme and how am I straitened vntill it be dispatched The houre in which he was baptised in his bloode was not yet come and he languished after it the loue which he bore vnto vs vrging him therevnto that he might by his death see vs deliuerâ—d from an eternall death He was also sad and sweate blood of distresse in the garden of Oliuet not onely by reason of the exceeding griefe which his soule felt in the inferiour part of reason but also through the singular loue which he bore vnto vs in the superiour portioÌ„ thereof sorrow begetting in him a horrour of death yet loue an extreame desire of the same so that there was a hote combat and a cruell agonie betwixt desire and horrour of death vnto the shedding of much blood which streamed downe vpon the earth as from a liuing source 8. Finally THEO this Diuine Louer died amongst the flames and ardours of Loue by reason of the infinite charitie which he had towards vs and by the force and vertue of Loue that is he died in Loue by Loue for Loue and of Loue for though his cruell torments were sufficient to haue kild any bodie yet could death neuer make a breach in his life who keepes the keyes of life and death vnlesse Diuine Loue which hath the handling of those keyes had opened the Port to death to let it sacke that Diuine bodie and dispoyle it of life Loue not being content to haue made him mortall onely vnlesse it had made him die withall It was by choice not by force of torment that he died No man doth take my life from me saieth he but I yeeld it of my selfe and I haue power to yeeld it and I haue power to take it againe He was offered saieth Isaie because he himselfe would and therefore it is not saied that his Spirit went away forsooke him or separated it selfe froÌ„ him but coÌ„trariwise that he gaue vp his Spirit expired rendred vp the Ghost yeelded his Spirit vp into the hands of the eternall Father so that S. ATHANASIVS remarketh that he stooped downe with head to die to the end he might consent and bend towards deaths approch which otherwise durst not haue come neere him and crying out with a lowde voice he gaue vp his Spirit into his Fathers hands to shew that as he had strength and breath enough not to die so had he so much Loue that he could no longer liue but would by his death reuiue those which without it could neuer eschew death nor pretend for true life Wherefore our Sauiours death was a true sacrifice and a sacrifice of Holocaust which himselfe offered to our Sauiour to be our Redemption for though the paines and dolours of his Passion were so great and violent that any but he had died of them yet had he neuer died of them vnlesse he himselfe had pleased and vnlesse the fire of his infinite Charitie had consumed his life He was then the Priest himselfe who offered vp himselfe vnto his Father and sacrificed himselfe in Loue to Loue by Loue for Loue from Loue. 9. Yet beware of saying THEOTIME that this death of Loue in our Sauiour passed by way of rauishment for the obiect which his Charitie had to moue him to die was not so amiable that it could force this heauenly soule therto which therefore departed the bodie by way of extasie driuen on and forced forwards by the abundance and force of Loue euen as the Myrrhetree is seene to send foorth her first iuyce by her onely abundance without being strayned or pressed according to that which he himselfe saied as we haue noted No man taketh my life away from me but I yeelded it of my selfe O God THEO what burning coles are cast vpon our hearts to inflame vs to the exercise of holy loue towards our best Sauiour seeing he hath so louingly practised them towards vs who are his worst seruants The Charitie then of IESVS-CHRIST doth presse vs. The end of the Tenth Booke THE ELEAVENTH BOOKE OF THE SOVERAIGNE authoritie which sacred loue holds ouer all the vertues actions and perfections of the soule How much all the vertues are aggreeable
not our soules in time of temptation in vaine shall they watch who keepe them That Diuine Loue makes the vertues more agreeable to God by excellencie then they are in their owne nature CHAPTER II. 1. SVch as studie Husbandrie doe admire the fresh innocencie and puritie of the little strawburie which though it lye vpon the grownd and is continually crept vpon by serpents Leazards and other venimous beastes yet receiues it no impression of poyson nor is infected with any venimous qualitie which is a signe that it hath no affinitie with poyson Such are the morall vertues THEO which though they be in a heart that is low earthly and greatly laboured with sinne yet are they not infected with the malice thereof being of so free and innocent a nature that they cannot be corrupted by the Societie of iniquitie as euen ARISTOTLE himselfe saied that vertue was a habit which none could abuse And though the vertues which are so good in themselues be not rewarded with an eternall Laurell when they are practised by infidells or by such as are not in the state of grace it is nothing strange since that the sinfull heart from whence they proceede is not capable of an eternall good and was otherwise auerted from God and since that none is to haue part in that celestiall inheritance which belongs to the sonns of God but such as are in him and his adoptiue brothers besides that the Couenant by which God promisseth heauen hath referrence to such onely as are in his grace and that the vertues of sinners haue no worth nor value saue that of their owne nature which by consequence cannot raise them to the merite of supernaturall rewards so called for that Nature withall her appurtināces can neither giue nor merite them 2. Howbeit the vertues which are found in the friends of God though they be onely morall and naturall in themselues are yet dignified and raised to the worth of holy workes by reason of the hearts excellencie which produceth them It is one of the properties of friendshipe to make the friend and all that is good and honest in him gratefull Friendshipe doth poure out its grace and fauour vpon all the actions of the beloued that are any wayes capable of them A friends tartnesse is sweete and the sweetes of an enemye are bitter All the vertuous actions of a heart that loues God are dedicated to God for the heart that hath giuen himselfe how hath not he giuen all that depends of himselfe He that giues the tree without reserue giues he not also the leeues flowres and fruite The iust man shall flourish like the palme tree and shall be multiplied as the Ceder of Lybanus they are planted in the house of our Lord and shall flourish in the courtes of the house of our God sithence the iust man is planted in the house of God his leeues his flowres and his fruite doe there encrease and are dedicated to the seruice of his Maiestie He is as a tree planted nigh to the streames of waters which shall giue his fruite in his time his very leaues shall not fall and all things whatsoeuer he doth shall prosper not onely the fruits of Charitie and the flowres of the works which she ordaines but euen the very leaues of morall vertues doe draw a meruellous felicitie from the loue of the heart which produceth them If you graffe in a Rose tree and put a graine of muske in the clift of the stoke all the roses that spring from it will smell of muske Cleeue your heart then by holy penance and put the loue of God in the clift afterwards ingraffe in it what vertue you please and the workes which spring from it shall be all perfumed with Sanctitie without taking any further care thereof 3. Though the Spartans had heard an excellent sentence from the mouth of some wicked man they neuer iudged it fit to receiue it till it were first pronounced againe by some good man And therefore to make it worthy of acceptance they onely made it be vttered againe by a vertuous man If you desire to make the humane and morall vertues of an EPECTETES a SOCRATES a DEMADES become holy cause them onely to be graced by a truely Christian mouth that is by one that is in charitie So God did first respect ABEL and then his offerings so that his offerings had their worth and dignitie in the sight of God from the goodnesse and pietie of him that offered them O the soueraigne Goodnesse of this great God who doth so loue his Louers who doth cherish their weakest endeauours and doth excellently enrich them be they neuer so weake Honouring them with the Title and qualitie of HOLY Ah it is in consideration of his beloued Sonne whose adoptiue children he will honour sanctifiing all that is good in them their bones their haires their garments their graues yea the shadowe of their bodies Faith Hope Charitie Loue Religion yea euen sobrietie courtisie affabilitie of heart 4. Wherefore my deare bretheren saied the Apost be constant and stable abounding in euery good worke knowing that your Labour is not without reward in our Lord. And marke THEO that euery vertuous worke is to be esteemed the worke of our Lord yea though it were euē practised by an infidell for his Diuine Maiestie saied vnto EZECHIEL that NABVCODONOZOR and his armie had laboured for him because he had waged a lawfull and iust warre against the Tyrians suffiently shewing therein that the iustice of the vniust is his tends and belōgs vnto him though the vniust who worke that Iustice are neither his nor doe tend and belong vnto him for as the great prince and Prophet IOB though of Pagan extraction and an inhabitant of the land of Hus did for all that belong to God so morall vertues though they proceede from a sinfull heart doe notwithstanding belong to God But when the same vertues are found in a truly christian heart that is in a heart endowed with holy loue then they doe not onely belong to God and are not vnfruitfull in him but become fruitfull and precious before the eyes of his goodnesse Giue a man Charitie saieth S. AVGVSTINE and all things are profitable vnto him depriue him of Charitie and all the rest profits him not And to them that loue God all things cooperate vnto Good saieth the Apostle That there are some vertues which diuine Loue doth raise to a higher degree of excellencie then others CHAPTER III. 1. BVt there are some vertues which by reason of their naturall alliance and correspondance with Charitie are also much more capable to receiue the precious influence of sacred Loue and consequently the communication of the dignitie and worth of the same Such are Faith and Hope which together with Charitie haue an immediate reference to God and Religion together with penance and Deuotion which are imployed to the honour of his Diuine Maiestie For these vertues haue naturally so great a reference to God
and are so capable of the impressions of heauenly loue that to make them participate in its Sanctitie they neede onely to be by it that is neare a heart which loues God So to make grapes tast like Oliues it is but planting the vine amongst the Oliue-trees for by their onely neighbourhoode without euer touching one another these plantes doe mutually enterchange fauours and properties so great an inclination and so strict a conueniencie is there betwixt them 2. Certes all flowres except those of the tree called the Pensiue Tree and others that are monstres in nature all I saie are gladded displayed and embellished at the Sunnes approch by the vitall heat which they receiue from his rayes But all yellow flowres and especiall that which the Grecians terme HELIOTROPIVM and we TVRNE-SOLE are not onely gladded ād pleased with his presence but euen follow his beames allurement by an amiable winding about to looke and turne themselues towards it euen from the rysing to the setting So all vertues doe receiue a new lustre and an excellent dignitie by the presence of holy Loue but Faith Hope the Feare of God Pietie Penance and all the other vertues which of their owne natures doe particularly tend vnto God and to his honour doe not onely receiue the impression of Diuine loue whereby they are eleuated to a great value but they hang wholy towards him associate themselues with him following and seruing him in all occasions for in fine my deare THEO the holy word doth attribute a certaine sauing sanctifying force and proprietie to Faith Hope Pietie Feare of God to Penance which is an euidence that those vertues are of great price and being practised by a heart in Charitie they become more fruitfull and holy by excellencie then the others which of their owne nature haue not so great an agreement with heauenly Loue. And he that cries if I had all Faith euen in such a measure that I could transport mountaines and should want charitie I am nothing doth sufficiently shew that with Charitie this faith would be very fruitfull Charitie then is a vertue without compare which doth not onely adorne the heart wherin she is but with her meere presēce doth also blesse ād sanctifie all the vertues which she meetes therein embalming and perfuming them with her celestiall odour by meanes whereof they are raysed to a high rate in the sight of God which yet she performes farre more excellently in Faith Hope and other vertues which of them selues doe naturally tend to pietie 3. Wherefore THRO of all vertuous actions we ought most carefully to practise those of Religion and Reuerence towards diuine things those of Faith of Hope and the most holy Feare of God taking occasion often to speake of heauenly things thinking and sighing after eternitie frequenting the Church and Diuine seruice making pious lectures obseruing the ceremonies of christian Religion for sacred Loue is fed according to its hearts desire in these exercises and doth in greater abundance streame out its graces and proprieties vpon them then it doth vpon those vertues which are purely naturall like as the heauenly rainebow makes all the plantes vpon which it lightes odoriferous but the Asphalatus incomparably more then all the rest That Diuine Loue doth yet more excellently sanctifie the vertues which are practised by his ordinance and Commandment CHAPTER IV. 1. THe faire RACHEL after an earnest desire of issue with her deare IACOB was by two meanes made fertill whence also she had children of two sundrie kinds for in the beginning of her marriage seeing she could haue no children of her owne bodie she made vse of her seruant BALA as it were by loue which she drew into her societie by the exercise of the functions of marriage saying vnto her husband I haue here my handmaide BALA take her in wedlocke and companie with her that she may beare vpon my knees and I may haue children of her and it fell out according to her desire For she conceiued and brought forth many children vpon RACHELS knees who receiued them as though they had bene truely her owne since they were begotten by two bodies whereof IACOBS belonged to her by the right of marriage BALA'S by the dutie of seruice and againe because the generation was effected by her order and will But she had afterwards two other children without her command or order which were conceiued begot and sprung from her owne bodie at her owne bent to wit Ioseph and the beloued Beniamin 2. I must tell you now THEOT that Charitie and holy loue a thousand times more faire then Rachel married to mans heart doth incessantly wish to produce holy operations And if in the begining she her selfe cannot bring forth of her owne extraction by the sacred vnion which is singularly proper vnto her she cals the other vertues as her faithfull handmaids makes them cōpanions with her in marriage commanding the heart to make vse of them and beget holy operations of them yet operations which she doth adopt and repute her owne as being produced by her order and commandment and of a heart which belongs vnto her sith as we haue formerly declared Loue is the Maister of the heart and consequently of all the acts of other vertues made by his consent But further heauenly Charitie hath two acts which are her owne issue properly and are of her owne extraction the one is EFFECTIVE LOVE who as another IOSEPH vsing the fulnesse of regall authoritie doth subiect and range the troopes of our faculties powers passions and affections to Gods will that it might be loued obeyed and serued aboue all things by this meanes putting the great celestiall commandment in execution Thou shalt loue thy LORD thy GOD with all thy heart with all thy soule with all thy Spirit with all thy strength The other is AFFECTIVE OR AFFECTIONATE LOVE who as a little Beniamin is exceedingly delicate tender pleasing and amiable but in this more happie then Beniamin that Charitie his mother dies not in his birth but as it were gaines a new life by the delight she takes in it 3. Thus then THEOT the vertuous actions of the children of God doe all belong to Charitie some of them because they sprung from her owne wombe others because she sanctifies them by her quickning presence and finally others by the authoritie and commāde which she exerciseth ouer the other vertues whence she made them spring And these as indeede they are not so eminent in dignitie as the actions which doe properly and immediatly issue from Charitie so doe they incomparably passe those which take their whole sanctitie from the presence and Societie of Charitie 4. A great Generall of an Armie hauing gayned some renowned bataile will without doubt haue all the glorie of the victorie and not without reason for he himselfe will haue fought in the forefront of the armie essaying many braue feates of armes he will haue rancked his troopes ordained and commanded all that was
to wrake Were it not for the nerues muskles and sinewes the whole bodie would be entirely defeated and without Charitie the vertues can neuer stand together Our Sauiour doth still tie the performance of the commandements to Charitie He that hath my Commandements saieth he and doth obserue them he it is that loues me He that loues me not keepes not my Câ—mmandements He that loues me will obserue my words which the disciple whom our Sauiour loued repeating he that obserues the Commandements of God saieth he the Charitie of God is perfect in him and this is the Charitie of God that we keepe his Commandements And he that had all vertues would keepe all the Commandements for he that loued the vertue of Religion would keepe the three first Commandements He that had Pietie would obserue the fourth He that had the vertue of mildnesse and gentlenesse would obserue the fift by the vertue of Charitie one would obserue the sixt by Liberalitie one would auoyd the breach of the seauenth by Truth one would effect the eight by frugalitie and puritie one would obserue the ninth and tenth And if without Charitie we cannot keepe the Commandements much lesse can we without her haue all the other vertues 2. True it is one may haue some one vertue and liue some small time without offending God though he want Charitie But euen as we sometimes see trees rooted out of the ground growe as it were yet fadingly and for a short time so a heart seperated from Charitie may indeede bring forth some acts of vertue but that cannot continew for any long time 3. All vertues separated from Charitie are imperfect since they are not able without it to arriue at their end which is Beatitude Bees in their birth are little groubs and wormes without feete wings forme or fashion in tract of time they change and become little flies but afterwards waxing strong and being come to their groth then they are saied to be perfect and accomplish't Bees as being furnished of all necessaries to flie abrode and make honie Vertues haue their beginnings their progresse and their perfection and I doe not denie but without Charitie they may both be borne and growe but that they should come to their perfection and beare the name of formed fashioned and accomplished vertues is a worke of Charitie which giues them the force to flie home to God to gather vp his mercy the honie of true merite and the sanctification of the heart wherein they are found 4. Charitie is amongst the vertues as the SuÌ„ne amongst the Starrs she distributs to them all their luster and Beautie Faith Hope Feare and Penance doe ordinarily come before as Herbingers to take vp her Lodging in the soule and vpoÌ„ her arriuall they with all the traine of vertues doe obeye and waite vpon her and she with her presence doth animate adorne and quicken them all 5. The other vertues can mutually aide and excite one another in their labours and exercises for who sees not that Chastitie doth call vpon and stirre vp sobrietie and that obedience doth moue vs to liberalitie Praier and humilitie Now by this communication which they haue amongst themselues they participate one of anothers perfections for Chastitie kept by obedience hath a double dignitie it s owne and that of obedience yea it hath euen more of the dignitie of obedience then of its owne for as ARISTOTLE saieth he that robbeth to th' end he may commite fornication is more a Fornicatour then a Thiefe because fornication was his affection's onely ayme he made vse of stelth onely as of a passage thither euen so he that keepes his chastitie through obedience is more obedient then Chast since he makes Chastitie serue obedience howbeit from the mixture of Chastitie and obedience a perfect and accomplished vertue cannot issue being they both want their last perfection which is Charitie so that if it were possible that all the vertues were put in one man and that he wanted onely Charitie this assemblie of vertues should indeede be a most perfect and compleate bodie in all its members as Adams was when God with his omnipoteÌ„t hand had formed him of the slime of the earth yet should it be a bodie wanting motion life and grace till God breathed into it the breath of life that is holy Charitie without which nothing doth profit vs. 6. For the rest the perfectioÌ„ of diuine Loue is so soueraigne that it doth perfect all the vertues and can receiue no perfection from them no not by obedience it selfe which yet is that which is most able to giue perfection to the rest For although loue be commanded and that in louing we exercise obedience yet so that loue drawes not its perfection from obedience but from the goodnesse of that which it loueth loue not being therefore excellent because it is obedient but because it loues an excellent Goop Truely in louing we obeye as also in obeying we loue but that this obedience is so extreamely louely is because it tends to the excellencie of Loue nor doth its excellencie consist in this that in louing we obeye but in this that in obeying we loue So that euen as God is as well the last end of all that is good as the first beginning eueÌ„ so Loue that is the source of euery good affection is likewise the last end and perfection therof A digression vpon the imperfection of the Pagans vertues CHAPTER X. 1. THe auncient SAGES of the world made of old glorious discourses in the honour of morall vertues yea euen in the behalfe of Religion but that which Plutarke obserued in the Stoicks is yet more proper for the rest of the Pagans We see ships quoth he which beare famous inscriptions Some are called VICTORIE others THE VALOVROVS others THE SVNNE yet are they not for all that exempt from their subiection to the winds and waues So the Stoicks bragged that they were exempt from passions that they were without Feare Griefe or Anger being people immoueable and vnuariable yet are they in effect subiect to troubles disquiets boisterousnesse and other impertinences 2. I beseech you for Gods loue THEO what vertues could those people haue who voluntarily and of set purpose ouerthrew all the lawes of ReligioÌ„ SENECA wrote a booke against SuperstitioÌ„ wherein he repreheÌ„ds the PagaÌ„ impietie with a great deale of libertie But this libertie saieth S. AVGVSTINE was fouÌ„d in his writings not in his life since he aduised that in affection one should reiect superstition yet practise it in action for marke his words Which superstitions the Sage shall obserue as commanded by the law not as gratefull to the Gods How could they be vertuous who as S. AVGVSTINE relates were of opinion that the wiseman was to kill himselfe when he could not or ought not longer to endure the calamities of this life and yet would not professe that calamities were miserable nor miseries full of calamities but maintained that the wiseman was continually
Maiestie then our crucified Maister 's crowne of thornes his scepter of a Reed his robe of scorne which they put vpon him and the Throne of his Crosse vpon which the sacred Louers had more content ioye glorie and felicitie then euer Salomon had in his Iuerie Throne 5. So is Loue often times represented by the Pomegranate which taking proprieties from the Pome-granate-tree may be saied to be it's vertue as also the gift thereof which out of Loue it offers to man and its fruit sith that it is eaten to refresh mâ—ns taste and finally it is as it were its glorie and Beatitude bearing the crowne and diademe How diuine Loue makes vse of all the passions and affections of the soule and reduceth them to her obedience CHAPTER XX. 1. Loue is the life of our heart and as the couÌ„terpoise giues motioÌ„ to all the moueable parts of a cloke so doth Loue giue all the motioÌ„ the soule hath All our affections follow our Loue and according to it we desire we reioyce we hope we dispaire we feare we take heart we hate we flie we sorrow we fall into choler we triuÌ„phe Doe not we see men who haue giuen vp their heart as a prey to the base and abiect Loue of women that they haue no desires but according to this Loue they take no pleasure but in it they neither hope nor dispaire but for this subiect they neither dread nor enterprise any thing but for it they are neither disgusted with nor flie from any thing saue that which doth diuert them from this they are onely troubled at that which doth depriue them of it they are neuer angrie but out of iealousie neuer glorie but in this infamie 2. The like may be saied of couetous misers and glorie-hunters for they become slaues to that which they loue and haue neither heart in their breast nor soule in their hearts nor affections in their soules saue onely for this 3. When therefore Diuine Loue doth raigne in our hearts it doth in a kinglike manner bring vnder all the other Loues and consequently all the affections thereof for as much as naturally they follow loue this done it doth tame sensuall Loue and bringing it to subiection all the sensuall passions doe follow it For in a word this sacred Loue is the soueraigne water of which our Sauiour saied he that shall drinke of this water shall neuer thirst No surely THEO he that hath Loue in a certaine abundance he shall neither haue desire dread hope courage nor ioye but for God and all his motions shall be quieted in this onely celestiall Loue. 4. Diuine Loue and selfe loue are in our hearts as IACOB and ESAV in the wombe of REBECCA there is a great antipathie and opposition betwixt them and doe continually presse on vpon another in the heart Whereat the poore soule giues an outcrie alas wretch that I am who will deliuer me out of the bodie of this death that the onely Loue of God may peaceably raigne in me Howbeit we must take courage putting our trust in our Sauiours word who promiseth in commaÌ„ding and commandeth in promising victorie to his Loue and he seemes to saie to the soule that which he caused to be saied to REBECCA two nations are in thy woÌ„be and there shall be a diuision betwixt two people in thy intrailles the one shall surmount the other and the elder shall serue the younger for as Rebecca who had onely two childreÌ„ in her wombe whereof two people were to descend was saied to haue two nations in her wombe so the soule hauing two loues in her heart hath consequently two great troopes of motions affections and passions and as Rebecca her two children by the contrarietie of their motions made her suffer great conuulsions and paines of the wombe so the two loues of our soulâ— puts our heart as it were into trauaill And as it was saied of Rebeccas two children that the elder should serue the younger so was it ordained that of these two loues of our heart the sensuall should serue the spirituall that is selfe-loue should serue the Loue of God 5. But when was it that the eldest of thaâ— people which was in Rebecca's wombe serued thâ— youÌ„gest Surely it was onely wheÌ„ Dauid ouercame the Idumeans in warre and that Salomon ouerruled them in time of Peace When shall it then be that sensuall loue shall serue Diuine Loue It shall then be THEO when armed Loue being arriued at Zeale shall by mortification subiect our passions but principally when aboue in heauen Blessed Loue shall possesse our whole soule in peace 6. Now the meanes whereby Diuine Loue is to subiect the sensuall appetite is like to that which IACOB vsed when for a good presage and beginning of that which was afterwards to come to passe ESAV coÌ„ming out of his mothers wombe IACOB held him by the foote as it were to trample vpon to suppliant and keepe him vnder or as they saie to keepe him tyed by the foote after the manner of a Hauke such as ESAV was in qualilitie of a hunter and as he was a fierce man For so holy Loue perceiuing some passion or naturall affection to rise in vs must presently catch it by thâ— foote and order it to his seruice But what is it to saie take it by the foote it is to bind it and bring it downe to a râ—solution of seruing God Doe not you see how Moyses transformed the serpent into a rod by taking her onely by the tayle euen so by bestowing a good end vpon our passions they turne vertues 7. But what methode are we then to obserue to order our affections and passions to the seruice of Diuine Loue Methodicall Phisitions haue alwayes this APHORISIME in their mouthes Tâ—at contraries are cured by their coÌ„traries tâ—â— Alchymists haue another famous sentence contrarie to this Saying that like are cured by their like Howsoeuer we are certaine that two contrarie things make the light of the starrs disappeare to wit the obscuritie of nightly foggues and the greater light of the sunne and in like manner we doe fight against passions either by opposing contrarie passions or greater affections of the same sort If any vaine hope present it selfe vnto me my way of resistance may be by opposing vnto it this iust discouragement O senselesse man vpoÌ„ what foundatioÌ„ dost thou build this hope dost thou not see that the great one to whom thou dost aspire is as neere to his graue as thy selfe Dost thou not know the instabilitie weaknesse and imbecillitie of the spirit of man To day his heart in whom thy pretentions are is thyne to morrow another carries it away from thee vpon what then is this hope grounded Another way of resisting this hope is to oppose to it another more strong hope in God ô my Soule for it is he that deliuers thy feete out of the snares neuer did any hope in him and was confounded throwe thy thoughtes vpon eternall and permanent