prouided a day for thy selfe wherein thou wilt complaine of this offence and say My name is blasphemed vpon your occasion amongst the infidells and to chastize him with seuere punishment who in steed of gathering togeather with thee that which was scattered as he ought to haue done doth eyther scatter that which was gathered or doth hinder it from being so And (l) Let men be as wicked as they will God will stil be iust good then wilt thou make the whole world vnderstand well mough that thou art good though thou haue seruantes that be wicked For the sinnes which they commit displease thee And thou doest forbid them by thy commaundmentes and thou doest seuerely punish them CHAP. XXXV That the very conscience of him that deâ—yreth to obtaine vertue doth testify that our Faâ—th is true and how the desire of leading an euill life doth both procure the loosing of Faith and hinder the getting it BY how much more the witnesse of any thing in question is nearer to vs and well knowne by vs so much doth his credit increase towards the making vs belieue that be sayth true And therefore since I haue â—old thee of some of the meanes which giue testimony of the truth of our Fayth Hearken heere to some others and those not past but present And they againe are so neere thee that they are in thy very hart if thou wilt receaue them and take particuler knowledge of them as thou vsest to take of those thinges which passe there This is grounded vpon the word which our Lord spake If (a) Ioan. 7. any man will doe the will of my Father he shall know whether my doctrine be of God or no. Blessed be thou O Lord who art so assured of the iustice of this thy cause that is the Truth of thy doctrine that thou leauest the sentence which is to proceed vpon it in the hands of whosoeuer will whether he be friend or enemy with this only condition That he who shall make himselfe the Iudge thereof will do the will of God which is but that he should be vertuous and so be saued It is (b) Note this well for it is a wise and most certayne truth certaynely so that if a man should cordially desyre to be good both towards God and towards himselfe and towards his neighbours and would seeke out the fittest doctrine that he could find for making himselfe such if before such an one I say they should lay all the Lawes and doctrines which are in the whole world both true and false to none of which he already carried any particuler affection or passion but did only ayme at the finding out of Truth this man laying aside all the rest would take in hand the Ghospell doctrine of Christ if he (c) According to the true sense therof which is only taught by the holy Catholique Church vnderstood it as a thing which might addresse him better to the end of his iust desires then any other And as he were practising the vertue that he aspired to he would be making experience of the efficacy of this doctrine how fit it were for all that is good for the soule and how wel it were framed for the reliefe of our necessityes and in how short a tyme with how great clarity it did help a man to be vertuous So that such a man comming on by the very experience of the power of this doctrine would confesse as our Lord hath sayd That it came from God and he would also say that which others sayd when they heard Iesus Christ our Lord preaching to them neuer did man speake so well And if euen they who know not Christ by fayth did but heare that admirable charitable word which our Lord himselfe did vtter with so loud a voice If (d) Ioan 7 any man be thirsty let him come to me and drinke and if they would come and make triall of that delicious fullnes and so take experience of this doctrine with desire of being vertuous it is certaine that they would not remain in their infidelity and blindnes But (c) Behold heere the most true cause why Catholik Religion is no more imbraced in England for as much as they are friendes of the world and not of true and perfect vertue nor do they seeke with care the certainty of Truth and the knowledge of God they continue without hearing receauing it And although they heard it yet would it not be receaued by some because it would be contrary to the things which they desire And for this our Lord sayd to the Pharisees certaine wordes which I cyted once before How (f) 1. Ioan. 5. will you be able to belieue since you seeke honour one of another and seeke not the honour which is of God alone And not without great waight of reason did S. Paul (g) 1. Tim 〈◊〉 affirme That some had lost their faith by giuing themselues to couetousnes Not that a man doth instantly loose fayth by committing of any sinne except heresy but for that a hart which is affected to thinges of the world disaffected from vertue when it finds in Christian doctrine certaine Truthes which are contrary to the wicked desires of the same hart and which condemneth vnder so grieuous paynes the thinges which it selfe desires to practise it growes by little and little to seeke other doctrine which may not be of so bad tast in the mouth nor keep such a barking against the ill affections actions thereof And (h) The case of most Protestants who are intelâ—â—gâ—â— so the will being ill inclined is wont to be a meanes of putting blindnes vpon the Vnderstanding and preuailes so farre at last as to make a man giue ouer that Fayth which cryeth out against wickednes that he may follow and belieue other doctrines wherin he may be more at ease and liue how he listes And as this corrupted will is a meanes sometymes to make him loose Fayth that hath it so is it also a meanes to deâ—aâ—ne him from it that hath it not For both these those carry a fastidious kind of mislike against perfect vertue without alleaging in very deed any other cause but only That it is vnsauoury or too highly good so they haue also such a mislike against the Truth of Fayth as being contrary to that wickednes which they loue CHAP. XXXVI That the admirable change which is made in the hart of sinners and the great fauours which our Lord doth to them who follow him with perfect vertue and do call vpon him in their necessityes is a great testimony to the Truth of our Fayth IN how much better case are they who with desire to serue God haue chosen to imbrace this perfectioÌ„ of vertue though al they that serue him do enioy otherwise if they will marke it many testimonyes which Fayth placeth in their hart But especially do they enioy it who serue him with a profiting and
But as god is far from being a deceauer so in this are we far from being deceaued Glory be to God for euer CHAP. XLIII That such is the greatnesse of our Fayth that none of the aforesayd motiues nor any other that can be deliuered are sufficient to make a man belieue with this diuine Fayth vnles our Lord doe incline a man to belieue by particular fauour HITHERTO thou hast heard some of the reasons which may incline a man to find that the Catholike Fayth is true to satisfy any man that should charge vs as if we were light in belieuing since we haue more â—otiues then any Nation of the world But with all this assure thy selfe that so great is the height of the Christian Fayth that although a man should haue both these and other motiues which might be thought of and although amongst the rest he shold haue also this other to see miracles wroght in confirmation of the Fayth with his owne eyes of flesh yet (a) Faith is the gift of God alone such a man shall not be able by his owne strength to belieue as a Christian must and as God commandeth him to belieue For the teaching hereof dependeth vpon an interiour Maister infusing Fayth into the vnderstanding whereby a man is taught and fortified towards this beliefe as Christ sayth That it is written in the (b) Isa 54. Prophets That (c) Ioan. 6. all shal be taught by God And the same Lord which S Peter had confessed for the true sonne of God and for the Messias promised in the law gaue him to vnderstand that he was not to thanke himselfe but to acknowledge that Fayth and confession as the guift of God and he sayd Plessed (d) Mat. 16. art thou Simon the sonne of Ionas for flesh and bloud hath not reuealed these thinges to thee but my Father which is in heauen And in another place he sayth All (e) Ioan. 6. they who heare and learne of my Father come to me A soueraigne Schoole is this where God the Father is he that teacheth and the doctrine which is taught is the Fayth of Iesus Christ his sonne and in that we are to walke by the paces of Fayth and Loue. This Fayth must not wholy rest vpon whatsoeuer motiues or reasons that may be brought for whosoeuer belieueth only vpon them doth not belieue in such sort as that his vnderstanding is so persuaded as to admit no place for doubt or scruple But the faith which God infuseth doth rest vpon the diuine Truth and maketh one belieue more firmely then if he saw it with his very eyes and touched it with his very hands and with greater certainty then That foure are more then three or the like which the vnderstanding seeth things with so great clarity as to haue no difficulty therein nor ability to doubt thereof though it would Then doth a man say to all the motiues which induced him to belieue as they of Samaria sayd to that Samaritan woman No longer now do we belieue for that which thou saydst for our selues haue seene and known that this is the Sauiour of the world But (f) Note although they say we haue knowne yet do not thou vnderstaÌ„d that they who belieue haue that kind of clarity of euideÌ„ce which the Philosophers cal Science For as before hath been expressed neither can the vnderstanding arriue by the reason thereof to haue clarity in thinges of Fayth nor can fayth haue euidence for so it should not be fayth nor would there be any merit in it It is true that fayth is sayd to be a kind of sight and that it is in the vnderstanding but because it is not with this clarity of euidence S. Paul sayth That we now see as by a glasse but heereafter we shall see in heauen face to face But the Samaritans say that they know Christ to be the Sauiour of the world to giue vs to vnderstaÌ„d That they belieue it with so great firmenes as that which they do most clearly know yea and much more then so For according to what we haue sayd he that imbraceth the fayth being infused by God belieueth it because it is affirmed by the Truth of God And (g) The reason of the infallibility of Fayth the great extent thereof now because this Truth is infinit and more certaine then all other Truths since by the participation thereof all other thinges receaue their strength of truth such a belieuer is so assured that he cannot be deceaued in what he belieueth as he is sure that God cannot faile to be true which certainty is the greatest of all others whatsoeuer And this maketh a man remayne so full of satisfactioÌ„ in this kind that there passeth not so much as a thought in his mind against this fayth or if any passe it passeth on so quickely as that it putteth him to little paine And if he be combatted by scruples or vayne thoughtes yet is he full of repose and quietnes in the interiour part of his vnderstanding for his beliefe is built vpon fine and firme stone which is Truth it selfe which he belieueth for the very Truth and not vpon other motiues Therfore can neither winds nor waters nor riuers driue it downe And if thou meruaile that in the vnderstanding of a man who is so various and changeable in his opinions who with so little firmenesse doth settle himselfe vpon the ground of reason there is yet in him so great a certainty and such a setled firme constancy that neither by meanes of argument or torment or example of others that loose their fayth nor for any thing either high or low he can be made to stirre from his beliefe I say that euen this may make thee know That this busines and this building is no effect of our force which cannot reach so farre A guift of God it is as S. Paul sayth which can neither be inherited nor merited not purchased by humane strength that no man may glory to haue it of himselfe but let them be faythfull in knowing that it is the fauour of God and giuen vs for his Sonne Christ Iesus sake as S. Peter sayth You were made faythfull by him Do not therfore meruaile that vpon the miserable sand of mans vnderstaÌ„ding so firme a building is erected For our Lord affirmeth thus It is the worke of God that you belieue in him whome he hath sent So that as God conducteth man to a supernaturall end which is to see him clearely in heauen so was he not content that man should belieue in him as meerely a man by the force of motiues miracles and other reasons But raysing him vp aboue himselfe and giuing him supernaturall force wherewith to belieue not with doubt scruple as a meere man would do but with certainty security as becommeth the Mysteryes of God And heereby we vnderstand That no man can call vpon Christ Iesus but in the Holy Ghost For
discourse both ouer thy body and thy soule and thinke how thou wert obliged to reuere him and to be gratefull to him and to loue him with thy whole hart seruing him with entiere obedience and obseruing the commaundements both of him and of his Church with all the power thou hast Consider how he hath conserued thee by a thousand other benefits that he hath bestowed vpon thee as many miseries from which he hath deliuered thee and aboue all things remember how to inuite thee to be good by his example and loue the same Lord of the world came into it by making himselfe a man and for the reliefe of thy miseryes and the remouing of the blindnes wherein thou wert would needs endure many afflictions and first did shee l many teares and afterwards his very bloud and he did cast away his precious life for thee All (e) Our Lord giue vs all grace to make great vse of this certaine truth which ponderation in the day of thy death and of the iudgement which must passe vpon thee shal be placed in one ballance laying it to thy charge as that which thou hast receaued and an account shal be demanded at thy handâ— how thou hast serued thy selfe of so great fauours and how thou hast carryed thy selfe in the seruice of God and with what care thou hast kept correspondence with that so great goodnes wherewith God hath desired and procured to saue thee Consider well and thou shalt see how much reason thou hast to feare since not only thou hast not answered by doing seruices according to thy debtes and obligations but thou hast payed him with euill for good and hast despised him who hath valewed thee at so high a rate turning thy backe and flying from him who did so fast follow thee for thy good What thanks doth it seeme to thee that thou art to giue him who by his infinite mercy hath deliuered vs from hell we hauing so iustly deserued it What shal we offer him for a present who hath so often stretched forth his hand towardes vs that the Diuells might not strangle and carry vs instaÌ„tly away to hel And to vs who haue been cruell offendours of his Maiesty he hath been a piteous Father and deare defendour Consider that (f) Yea without Perhaps perhaps there are soules in hell who haue committed fewer sinnes then thou And in such sort weigh thy selfe and serue God as if for thy sinnes thou hadst already entred into hell and that he hath fetched thee out from thence For it comes to the same account for him to haue hindred thee from going thither as thou didst deserue or to draw thee out from thence through his great (g) Nay the former is the greater mercy mercy after thou shouldst haue beene entred in And if by comparing the blessings which God hath affoarded thee and the sinnes which thou hast committed against him thou do not yet find in thy selfe that shame or sorrow which thou desirest be not yet afflicted therewith but continue in this discourse and lay before the eyes of God thy hart which is so wounded and so indebted to him and beseech him that he will tell thee who thou art and what account thou art to make of thy self For the effect of this exercise is not only to vnderstand that thou art wicked but to feele it and to tast it with thy will and to take fast hold of thy sinnefulnes and vnworthynes as a man would clap the stincking carren of a dead dogg to his nose Therefore are not these considerations to be certaine fleeting thinges not the work of one day alone but they are to be of good length and to be vsed with much quietnes that by little and little the will may go drinking vp that contempt and vnworthynes which by thy vnderstanding thou dost iudge due vnto thy self this thought of thyne thou art to present before God beseeching him that he will lodge it in the most internall part of thy hart And from thenceforth esteeme thy selfe with great simplicity and verity for a most wicked creature deseruing all contempt and torment though it were euen that of hell And (h) The true vse which is to be made of these considerations be thou ready for the patient suffering of any labour or neglect which shall occur considering that since thou hast offended God it is but reason that all the creatures should rise against thee to reuenge the iniuryes that are done to their Creatour By (i) Note this this patience of thyne thou shalt vnderstand if in very deed thou thinke thy selfe a sinner and worthy of hell saying within thy selfe All the mischiefe that they can do me is very little since I haue deserued hell Who is he that will complaine of the byting of flyes when he hath merited eternall torments And thus go thou wondering at the infinite goodnes of God how he can perswade himselfe not to cast off such a stincking worme but to maintaine it and to regale it and to powre blessings downe vpon it both in body and soule but al this must be for his glory and not that we haue any thing to glory in CHAP. LXII That the dayly examination of our faults helpeth much towardes the knowledge of our selues and of other great benefits which this practise of Examen doth bring and of the profit which commeth to vs both by the reprehension of others and those also which our Lord doth interiourly send vs. TO end the Exercise of thy knowing thy selfe two things there remaine for thee to heare The first that a Christian ought not to content himselfe with entring into Iudgment before God for the accusing himselfe of those sinnes which in former tymes he had committed but of them also which he committeth dayly because thou wilt hardly find a thing so profitable for the reformation of thy life as to take account how thou spendest it and of the defects which thou dost fall into For that soule which is not carefull to examine her thoughtes and wordes and deeds is like to some lazy husbandman who hath a vineyard and who as Salomon sayth passed by it and saw the hedge fallen downe the vineyard it self full of thornes Make account that they haue recommended the daughter of some King to thee of whome thou art to haue continuall care that she be well taught and that at night thou take account of her reprouing her for her faults and exhorting her to practise vertue Consider thy self (a) The great obligation which we haue to looke to our souls as a thing recoÌ„mended to thy self by God and teach thy selfe to know that thou art not to liue without a law or rule but in a holy kind of subiection and vnder the discipline of vertue that thou shalt (b) Marke this well neuer do any one thing that is iâ—â— but thou shalt be sure to pay for it Enter (c) An earnest an
to giue eare to God and of the admirable Language which our first Parents spake in the state of Innocency Which being lost by Sinne many ill ones did succeed in place therof Heâ—â—â—en O Daughter and behold Psal 4 4. and incline thine eare and forget thy people and the house of thy Father and the King shall with delight desire thy beauty THESE words O thou deuout Spouse (a) This Booke was writteÌ„ chiesly for the Lady DonÌ„a Sancha daughter to the Lord of Guadalcaçar who liued not in a Monastery but in her Fathers house though she consecrated her self to God by a vow of virginity of Iesus Christ doth the Prophet Dauid speake or rather God by him to the Christian Church aduising her of that which she ought to do that so the great King may be drawne to loue her by meanes whereof she may be endewed with all happines And because thy soule is by the great mercy of God a member of this Church I haue thought fit to declare these words to thee Imploring first the ayde of the Holy Ghost to the end that it may direct my pen and prepare thy hart that so neither I may speake vnfitly nor thou heare vnfruitfully but that both the one and the other may redound to the eternall honour of God the performing of his holy will The first thing that we are wished to in these wordes is that we hearken not without cause Because as the first beginning of our spiritual life is fayth this as (b) Rom. 10. S. Paul affirmes doth enter into the soule by meanes of hearing it is but reason that first we be admonished of that which we are first to put in practise For it will profit vs very litle that the voyce of diuine truth do sound exteriourly in our hearing (c) We must hear first practise after if withall we haue not eares which may hearken to the saâ—â— within It will not serue our turne that when we were baptized the Priest did (d) According to the ancient custome of the holy Catholike Church put his finger into our eares requiring them to be open if afterwardes we shall shut them vp against the word of God fullfilling so in our selues that which the Prophet Dauid sayth of the Idols (e) Psal 11â— Eyes they haue and they see not eares they haue and they d ee not heare But because some speake so ill that to heare them is no better then to heare the Syrens who kill their auditours it wil be fit for vs to see both whom we are and whom we are not to heare For this purpose it is to be noted that Adaw and Eue when they were created spake one only Language and that continued in the world till the (f) The confusion of tongues grew in punishment of the pride of man pryde of men who had a mind to build vp the Tower of confusion was punished Wherevpon insteed of one Language whereby all men vnderstood one another there grew to be a multitude of Languages which they could not mutually vnderstand By this we also come to know that our first Parents before they rebelled from their creatour transgressinge his Commaundement with presumptuous pride did speake also in their soules but one spiritual Language making a (g) A sweete happy Language perfect kind of concord which one mainteyned with another and each one with himselfe and so also with God liuinge in the quiet estate of Innocency the sensitiue part obeying the rationall and the rationall obeying God and so they were in peace with him in peace within themselues and in peace with one another But now when they rebelled with so bold disobedience against the Lord of heauen both they were punished and we in them In (h) The case is altered such sort that insteed of one good Language by meanes whereof they vnderstood one another so wel there haue succeeded innumerable other ill ones all full of such confusion and darkenes that neyther do men agree with others nor the same man with himselfe and least of all with God And although these Languages do keep no order in themselues since indeed they are but moore disorder yet to the end that we may speake of them we will reduce them to a kind of method and to the number of three which are the Language of the World of the Flesh and of the Diuell whose office as S. Bernard sayth is Of the first to speake vayne thinges Of the second delightfull things And of the third afflictiue bitter things CHAP. II. That we must not hearken to the Language of the World and Vayne-glory And how absolute dominion it exerciseth ouer the hartes of such as follow it and of the punishment that they shall incurre VVE must not hearkeÌ„ to the language of the VVorld for it is al but lyes and they most preiudiciall to such as credit them For they make vs forsake that truth which is indeed and to imbrace a lye which hath no being but only in appearance and custome Heereby man being deceaued presumes to cast Almighty God and his holy will behind his backe and he disposeth of his life according to that blind guide of pleasing the world and so he groweth to haue a hart all desirous of honour and to be esteemed amongst men He proues like those ancient proud Romans of whome S. Augustine sayth That (a) A strange and yet true state of mind for the loue of worldly honour they desired to liue and yet for loue of is they did not feare to dye So much do they prize it as not by any meanes to endure the least word that may be in preiudice thereof nor any thing which may tast or eueÌ„ sauour of neglect though neuer so far of Nay heerin there are such nyceties and puntillios that it is hard for a man to scape stumbling vpon some of them so the offending of this sensitiue worldly man yea (b) A miserable seruitude which pryd hath put vs in and often you shall fal out to offend him much against your wil. These men who are so facile to find theÌ„selues despised are no lesse vntoward and vntractable in passing ouer and pardoning the same And if one should yet of himselfe be disposed to do so what troupes of (c) Indeed they are truly sayd to be false freinds who perswade a man to the perdition of his soule false friendes and kinred will rise vp against him and alleadge such lawes and customes graunted by priuiledge of the world as whereby this proposition may be concluded That it is better to loose a mans fortune his health his house his wife and his children yea all this seemeth little to them since they do as good as say that he must euen loose the life both of body and soule and all the care that he hath both of earth and heauen yea that euen God himselfe and his law are to be contemned and troden
puffe vs vp with Vanity and Falsehood and afterwards to pull vs downe by giuing vs a reall and a miserable fall He puffes vs vp with thoughtes which incline vs to an estimation of our selues so he maketh vs fall into pryde And for as much as he knoweth by experience that this sinne is so (a) The power which pryde hath to do mischeife great that it sufficed to make himselfe of an Angell a Diuell he labours all he can to make vs partakers with him therein to the end that we may also partake with him in the torment that he is subiect to Full well he knowes how displeasing Pryde is to God and that it serues the turne to make vnprofitable whatsoeuer a man hath how good soeuer it seeme And he laboureth so hard to sow this vile seed in our soule that (b) Marke the craft of the Diuell and learne to â—â—y him he will not stick many tymes to speak truth and to giue good counsayle and feelinges of deuotion only to induce vs thereby to pryde making small account of what he looseth in that one doe some one good work that so he may gayne him to himselfe in grosse and others also who follow him by the sinne of pryde For as a King goeth accompanied with muoh people so doth pride with many other sins The scripture sayth The beginning of all wickednesse is pryde and he that hath that shal be full of maledictions That is to say both of sinnes and punishmentes We read of a solirary person to whom the Diuell appeared for a long tyme in the figure of an Angell of God and gaue him many reuelations and euery night made his cell resplendent as if there had byn some great light or lampe But at the end of all this he persuaded with him to kill his owne sonne that so he might be equall in merit to the Patriarch Abraham Which the solitary person being deceyued prepared to put in execution but that the sonne who had suspicion thereof fled away To another also he appeared in figure of an Angell and for a long tyme told him many truths thereby to gaine credit with him and afterward he told him a great lye against fayth which the other being deceyued did belieue So (c) A feaâ—ful example also do we yet read of another whom after he had liued fifty yeares in very singular abstinence and with more straite obseruation of solitude then was obserued by any of the rest in the wildernesse the diuell in forme of an Angell did persuade that he should cast himself into a deep wel that so he might know by experience That neither that nor any other thing could do hurte to one that had serued God so long and so well as he had done All which he belieued and put the same in execution And being with much difficulty taken out of the well euen halfe dead and being aduised by those other holy old men of the wildernesse that he should repent himselfe of so great a sinne being suggested by an illusion of the Diuell he would not belieue or do as they required him And that which is worse although indeed he died the third day after so deepely had that deceit conuayed it selfe into his heart as that notwithstanding he euen saw himselfe dye by reason of that fall he still neuerthelesse belieued that it had byn a reuclation of an Angell of God O (d) Be not high minded but feare how necessary is it for such as hauâ— euen profited in vertue that they liue with a holy feare of themselues as men who although they may make coniecture that they are well with God yet (e) We may haue great hope but no certainty of being in the state of grace can they haue no certainty thereof Nor do they know whether they be worthy of louâ— or hate euen at the present tyme and much lesse what they are to be in the rest of the life which they will lead And especially they ought to be very carefull not to belieue themselues Pryde deserueth to be deceiued And if as I haue related to you the deceites of men in former tymes I should also recounte such as haue happened in these dayes of ours neither would they be written in a small volume nor couldst thou read them without much labour On the one syde the case standeth thus according to that which we may iudg That (f) See the great reason that we haue both to loue God and to feare him God doth rayne vpon the hartes of many the water of particuler mercyes in vertue whereof they bring forth many fruits which euen to the exteriour are good but the same men haue a kind of interiour communication with our Lord and that so familiar that it can hardly be beleeued On the other side we haue also experience that by the permission of God the Diuel doth in these tymes vse particuler diligence for the deceauing by false motions and false speaches both interiour and exteriour and by appearing with false light to the vnderstanding of such as are proud and addicted to their owne opinion with conceit that it is the will of God And so also doth he suffer the Diuell to exercise by diuers wayes such as serue him in humility And therefore in these tymes when it seemeth that Satan is broken loose as S. Iohn sayth it is necâ—ssary for them that serue God to vse double diligence that they may not easily beleeue such thinges as those and to procure profound humility and holy feare that God may not permit them to be deceaued They must also endeauour with speed to giue account of what they find and feele in themselues vnto their Prelates and Superiours who may instruct them in the truth The Prophet sayth That vnder the tongue of wicked persons is the poyson of vipers how much more then will it be in the language of the Diuel who is the most wicked thing of all things that are wicked And if he shall puffe vs vp by occasion of the vertues that we may haue we are to humble our selues and to consider the ill which we dayly do and the sinnes which we haue committed Which were so many as that if our Lord had not beene close at hand and had not come into that way wherein we did walke with so much desire to forsake him as he did to S. Paul we should haue beene multiplying our wickednes to such a proportion as that euen the torments of hell would haue beene too little for our punishment O (g) An excellent admiration of Gods mercy thou Abyssus and euen bottomlesse pit of mercy and what could moue thee to cry out to our hart euen from heauen and to say Why doest thou persecute me with thy ill life By which wordes thou didst pull downe our pride and didst make vs profitably feare and tremble that with griefe for hauing offended thee and with desire of pleasing thee we might say O Lord
perfect life that he hath led and of many miracles that he hath wrought Whereof if any man were curious would make search he should find no difficulty euen in our tymes to meete with miracles amongst vs and in the Indies both Orientall and Occidentall in more aboundance CHAP. XXXIII Of how firme and constant and authorized witnesses our faith hath had who haue giuen their liues for the truth thereof IT is possible that some may doubt of the truth of our witnesses which speake and write of the multitude of miracles which haue byn wroght in the Christian Church For as they are people who detest our faith so it seemeth to them that if these witnesses should be true they must not fayle to confesse that we haue much more reason to belieue our Truth then they their Errour But I aske that since they will not giue credit to our witnesses and therefore they refuse to receyue our fayth why giue they credit to their owne witnesses in receiuing their false behefe Whereas (i) A wise and excellent consideration it is certaine and cleere that if they would take the paines to consider it our witnesses do far exceed theirs in all kind of weight of authority There haue byn men in the Christian Church whose (k) The high vertue and piety of many Catholike Christians life hath euidently byn so good as to prooue that they were free from all couetousnesse from all appetite of honour and from all that which flourisheth and is esteemed in the world being full of all vertue and Truth so farre as to dye rather then loose it To what interest can he pretend by the testimony that he giueth who doth not only not pretend to any thing of this world but euen that which he hath of his owne he casteth away What interest can mooue that man to be a false witnesse who giueth his life vnder most greiuous tormentes in confirmation of what he sayth And though some vse to be drawne by force of tormentes to confesse that which the Iudge desires although it be against truth yet if ours would say that which is desired by the Iudge not only should they not loose their goods and life but much more prosperous should they haue remayned by the much which the Iudges promised and would haue performed But despâ—â—ing all this they chose to dy that they might not abandon their faith or vertue which the Iudge would so faine haue had them loose So that they loued no temporall thing nor feared they any thing that was temporall how terrible soeuer No exception therefore can be taken to that which such men say and if it should seeme to any that these proofes were sufficient to make vs hold them for good men and that willingly they would deceaue no body but that themselues were yet deceaued and did so deceaue others without knowing it To this I answeare that in the Church there haue byn men shedding their bloud for Christ so euidently full of (l) The great wisdome of many Catholike Christians who haue suffered death in confirmation of the fayth of Christ wisedom that no reason can be giuen why we should belieue of them that they were deceaued in a matter of so great weight and that so far as to loose their liues for the same For the much interest that a man hath in any thing doth make him looke looke againe what it is that he ratifyeth nor doth a man vse to lay downe his life in confirmation of a truth if he be not sufficiently certifyed thereof And it is a thing notorious that so great wisedome hath byn found among the Christian people as therein they exceed all other generations of men no lesse then wise maisters do ignorant schollers And that there haue byn not one nor one hundred but a mighty number of such persons is a very great testimony of the truth of our faith in confirmation whereof they gaue their liues And (m) Let the false martyrs of foolish Iohn Fox be vnpartially compared with out true ones and their basenesse bestiality will soone appeare although we read of some who also dyed in confirmation of their Errour yet ours do incomparably exceed them in number vertue and in wisedome CHAP. XXXIV That the perfect life of such as haue belieued our fayth is a great testimony of the Truth therof and how farre Christians haue exceeded all other Nations in goodnesse of life SINCE we haue made mention of the goodnes vertue which hath been found in our Christian Martyrs it is not reason that I forbeare to let thee know how great a testimony of their Fayth is the perfect life of them that belieue it Since (a) Another excellent consideration of the perfection of the life of many of them who professe the Christian Catholike Fayth God being good and the maker of all thinges that are good al reason telleth vs that God is a friend to the good since euery one loueth another that is like himselfe euery cause the effect which is produced by it Now if he be a friend he is to help them in their necessityes wherof the greatest of all is the saluation of their soules And c saued they can neuer be without the knowledge of God nor can they know him so as to be saued by him if he do not discouer himselfe vnto them It therefore remaynes that since none of these things can be denyed if on earth there be any such knowledge of God (b) No saluation without fayth which iâ— entirely and precisely true as by which meÌ„ may be saued God giueth this to Christians since amongst them there haue byn and are people of the most eleuated life and most perfect manners that hath beene seene in any tyme or in any generation It seemes that the Philosophers were the flower of Nature and the very beauty thereof where it seemeth that she employed al her streÌ„gth towardes that which concerned liuing well in conformity of reason But laying aside those deformed sinnes which S. Hierome imputeth to the chiefe of those Philosophers and to speake of some who appeared to carry more resemblance of vertue in them then others did so much do they of the Christian Church exceed those others as that we haue weake and young women amongst vs of more vertue then they had who were yet amongst them esteemed for heroicall men For who amongst them will be able to equall the courage and â—oy wherewith S. Catherine S. Agnes S. Lucy S. Agatha with innumerable others like to them did offer themselues to most grieuous torments and to death it selâ—e for the loue of Truth and Vertue And if in the vertue of Fortitude which seemeth to be so much estranged from the weakenes of that sexe these did so farre exceed those others as well in number as in the greatnes of the torments and their â—oy in suffering them how much greater will the excesse be in Humility Charity
and other Vertues which are not so incompatible with their sexe And although we now giue but these for an example or pasterne of the rest yet thou seest the innumerable store of men and women who in euery particuler state haue serued our Lord with a perfect life in the Christian Church Some of which hauing beene sublimed in this world and abounding in al kind of riches and humane prosperity and then at the present possessing much and expecting to inherite great states and kingdomes haue despised all this and to please God the more haue chosen the life of the Crosse in pouerty and affliction and in obedience both to God and men And all this with so great testimony of vertue both in the interiour and exteriour as strooke them to admiration who conuersed with them People there hath been in our Church which as S. Paul sayth hath shined in the world like lampes of heauen and being compared to the rest of the world they are found to excell them beyond comparison which the most obstinate person cannot deny if he will but consider the life of a S. Paul and of the other Apostles and Apostolicall men who haue beene in the Church And since there hath beene so great goodnes in this Christian people as by their workes we find to be euident what scruple can we haue to affirme that either there is no knowledge of God on earth or els that these men had it as persons who were more beloued of God and did serue themselues better of his knowledge and employ themselues more vpon pleasing him that gaue it In no sort can it be sayd that the world is without some such knowledge of God as is necessary for saluation For this were to say that the chief creatures which God made vnder heauen and for whose sake he created all thinges should all be lost for want of meanes which God might giue them to be saued But (c) God is infinitely good God is no such thing as that he will thut the gate of saluation against vs nor can it stand so with the bowells of his mercy and goodnes as that he can be without friends to whome euen heere he may do great fauours and much more in heauen This proofe of our Fayth being taken from the life of Christians was much esteemed and recommended by the holy Apostles in the beginning of the Catholike Church Amongst whome S. Peter (d) 1. Tâ—â— 3. sayth I et women be subiect to their husbands that so if there be any who beleecue not the word of God euen without that word they may be gayned by the good conuersation of their wiues beholdâ—ng their holy manner of life in the feare of God Wher by (e) The heroâ—call vertue of â—eÌ„s hueâ— doth proue the truth of their Religion the force of vertuous life doth well appeare since it was able to conuert infidells which by the preaching of the Apostles though that had beene vsed with great efficacy and euen with working of miracles could not be gained S. Paul sayth That being to goe from one place to another he had no need that they to whome he had preached should giue him letters of fauour to countenance him with those others to whome he was about to preach And he sayth to the (f) 1. Câ—â— 1. Corinthians You are my letter which is knowne and read by all And this he sayth because the vertuous manner of life that they held by meanes of his preaching labours were a sufficient letter to declare who S. Paul was and how proficable his presence was and he sayth That all men did know and read this letter because any nation how barbarous soeuer it be howsoeuer it vnderstand not the language of wordes yet (g) Good life in others is a language which the most ignorant men aliue can vnderstand doth it vnderstand the language of good example and of the vertue which it seeth to be put in practise and thence it is that men grow to esteeme much the man who hath such disciples It is also for this that the same Apostle sayth in another place That seruantes who are Christians should serue their Lords and maisters with so good a will that they might in all thinges do honour to the doctrine of Christ our Sauiour The meaning is that their life was to be such as to testify that the Christian faith and doctrine should be held thereby to be true And how much this point importeth our Lord who knoweth all thinges did teach vs well when praying to his eternall Father and interceding with him for Christians he sayd these words I aske of thee that all they may be one thing as thou O Father art in me and I in thee that all they may be one and the same thing in vs that so the world may belieue that thou hast sent me Certainly (h) Note and liue accordingly this is a great verity which heere the supreme truth hath told vs That if we ChristiaÌ„s were perfect keepers of the Law which we haue the principall commaundment whereof is that of charity we should cause such an admiration in men of the world that see vs we being equall vnto them vnder the law of nature and much superiour to them in vertue that they would render themselues to vs as the weak do to the strong and as the low to the high they would belieue that God dwelleth in vs by seing vs made able to do those things to which their power doth not arriue and they would giue glory to God who is the maister of such seruantes And then would it be fulfilled that we should be the letter of Iesus Christ from which all might take their lessons and that we did set forth and commend his doctrine and that we were a good odour to him since we speake well of him by occasion of the life we lead But (i) Yea euen the wickedest diuell in hell must in his hart acknowledge it to be true thou O Lord doest know that although there haue byn in thy Church very many so alwayes there are some whose life doth shine like a great light which euen the Infidells if they would might be drawen to looke vpon for the discouery of Truth and so to saue themselues yet (k) A wofull thing it is to be a wicked Christian their damnatioÌ„ will be worse then that of Inâ—idells so doest thou also know O Lord how many there are in thy Church which conteineth Christians both good and bad who not only are no meanes to make infidells know and honour thee but rather to alienate themselues from thee and to blind their soules more and more and so insteed of the honour which they should giue thee vpon the hearing the name of a Christian they doe more pestilently blaspheme thee It seemeth to their deceaued iudgement that he cannot be true God or Lord who hath seruantes that liue so ill But thou O Lord hast
through the liknes which it hath to God And because in our spirit there is reason and there is a will and that it cannot be denyed but that a man oweth God seruice by his will for the same cause the seruice of the vnderstanding must not be denyed For there is no reason that man shold serue God with the lesser facultyes that he hath within him and not serue him with the cheife which are his vnderstanding and his will Nor yet is it reason that (b) Note well since the seruice that the will doth to God is by obeying him the vnderstanding should remaine without obedience to God And as the obedience of the will consisteth in denying a mans owne will for doing of the will of God so the seruice which the vnderstanding is to do him is to deny it selfe for the belieuing of the truth of God For if the seruice of the vnderstanding did consist in conceauing or consenting to any thing which it might be able to reach by the only hand of reason eyther it would not deserue the name of seruice or at least but seruice of an inferiour rancke since therein there were no obedience Or if there were any obedience it would be but of the will which God might commaund to impose vpon the vnderstanding that it should thinke this or that But to the end that the seruice and obedience of the vnderstanding may be proper only to it selfe it is necessary that it consent to somewhat which it selfe doth not vnderstand and thereby it doth truly abase and deny it selfe and obey and make it selfe captiue and do reuerence to the supreame God Fulfilling that which S. Paul (c) 1. Cor. 10. requireth That we must captiuate our Vnderstanding to the seruice of Fayth which in another place is stiled The obedience of faith So (d) Note this well also as the goodnes of God exacteth at our hands that we loue him and his liberality requireth that we hope for mercy from him in the same manner doth his truth require to be belieued since there is no lesse reason for the one of these then for the other And as the obedience which we giue to God by our loue presupposeth that we deny the loue of our selues and as the hope we haue in him is to worke by an independance vpon our selues in the same manner the obedience which we are to yeald to his truth is performed by a departure from our owne seeming and a beliefe of what he affirmeth with greater constancy then if our selues did vnderstand it For otherwise what should one be beholding for to another in belieuing that which that other sayth not because he sayth it but because himselfe doth so vnderstand it But belieuing beyond vnderstanding deserueth prayse as carrying difficulty with it as one would trust without a pawne or walke without a staffe or loue an enemy for Gods sake If therefore it be done for God it will be true vertue and worthy to be offered to God and to receiue a reward at his hands And since the will of a man is dedicated to God and sanctified by the abnegation of it selfe the vnderstanding must not rest as if it were profane by belieuing it selfe without obedience to God Since in heauen it is to be made happy by the cleare vision of his face For as S. Augustine sayth the reward of fayth is to See so that no discourse of reason will permit that the vnderstanding should forbeare to do seruice here on earth now the seruice which is proper to it is by belieuing CHAP. XXXIX Wherein answere is giuen to an obiection which some make against our Fayth by saying that God teacheth things which are too high SOME man may say being mooued eyther by these or other reasons That it is fit for a man to belieue that which he vnderstandeth not because God sayth it But that since this may be performed by belieuing diuers other things there is no cause why yet we shold belieue that which is belieued by Christians But tell me O you blind men what is the fault you find in that which we Christians do belieue And if your selues know not how to say what you thinke I will tell you what it is The (a) Note and take heed articles which of the height of God are to be belieued do seeme so high thinges to you that euen because they are so very high you belieue them not And the low or meane things which we belieue of the humility of God are so very low that euen for that very reason you hold them not to be worthy of God and so neither do you belieue them For tell me in that highest mystery of the most holy Trinity what other thing doth offend you but that it is so incomprehensible and that the sight of your vnderstanding being beaten back againe vpon your selues by the A bysse of that infinite light and the height of such a mystery you shut your eyes and with saying How can this be you forbeare to belieue it whereas it were agreable to all reason that we should thinke most highly of the most high and that we should ascribe to him the most high being and the most excellent being to which our vnderstanding could arriue And wheÌ„ we shal haue arriued to things very high we must yâ—â— belieue that in him there are stâ—l things higher which do wholy exceed our capacity This is to honour God and to hold him for God and for a great one For if our Vnderstanding could reach to all the height of God God would be little and consequently he could not be God For he could not be vnles he were infinite and the infinite is incomprehensible by any thing that is finite And since it is better that there be in God a supreme Communication since supreme Communication is due to a supreme goodnes and if this must also be it must be by communicating the very true and totall essence of it selfe and so there will be in God supreme fecundity as it is fit for God and not sterility which is a thing very far from him as he sayth (b) Isa 1â— by Isaias I who giue power to others that they may engender shall I perhaps remaine barren And although by making of Angells and men and the whole world he communicateth many fauours to it yet neither is this any such fecundity nor a Communication of an infinit Gooâ—â— because he giueth not his essence But he only giueth them the being and vertue which they hauâ—â— nor shall God leaue to be a solitary God notwithstaÌ„ding the many creaturs that accompany him since betweene him and them there is an infinite distance Iust so as Adam would not haue fayled to be solitary notwithstanding the many beastes and other creatures which were in the world how neere soeuer they had beene to him And that man might not remain alone God gaue him a companion which might hold resemblance and equality with
answere shall he make who sayth I belieued O Lord of thy highnesse and of thy goodnes all that possibly I could because I held thee O Lord to be infinite in all thinges And let it not please thee that thy workes should seeme ill to me because they contayne an excesse of goodnes and loue towards me as it doth to the infidelity of some who find no other fault in thee but that thou art so very good and so amorous to mankind It being indeed but reason that for this goodnes we should come to thee and should take thee for our God since euery one O Lord had rather that thou shouldest be a â—ouing Father and a pardoner then a seuere iudge who would make men tremble by chastizing them in rigorous manner And if the fashion of Gods treating with mankind and of redressing our miseries were put into the hand euen of a man he could chuse no other then that which God chose as most honourable to himselfe most vsefull to vs and full of all happy sweetnes CHAP. XLII Wherein it is proued that the Truth of our Fayth is infallible as well in respect of them that haue preached it as of them who haue receaued it and of the manner how it was receaued LET vs adde to that which hath been sayd how (a) This consideration alone may suffice to proue the vndoubted diuinity of Christ our Lord. this Fayth and beliefe was receaued in the world not by force of armes nor by fauour of men nor by humane wisedome but that the Truth of God fought single by meanes of a few Fisher men without knowledge or countenance against Emperours and against Priests and against the whole wisedome of mankind And it proued to be victorious by making them quit their old and false beliefe and by inducing them to entertayne a Truth which was so superiour to reason and that to be so cordially imbraced For to giue so firme credit to thinges so high is a great wonder of God as also it is that the same men who first did murther those that belieued should suffer themselues afterward to be murthered for the Truth of the same thinges and that with greater strength and loue then formerly they disbelieued them and then they persecuted others And withall there was a law preached to them most pure commandments giuen them so much against the haire of the inclination of their harts as that they could not thinke of things which carryed greater contradiction to one another then the law of the Ghospel the disposition which man hath to sinne as S. Paul sayth The law is spirituall but I am carnal sold vnder sinne And notwithstanding al this the same law was receaued by the same vertue of Christ Iesus their harts and their workes were so renewed towardes the accomplishing thereof as that it did euidently appeare that he who formerly had created men in their naturall being was the same who by his vertue did renew them And (b) A wise and worthy contemplation if this should haue beene preached amongst the bestiall people of Arabia where Mahomet did preach his lyes or amongst men like to them who were as easy to be deceiued as they vse to be who seeke and who carry lies some suspition might be had of such beliefe But what shall we say This Truth was preached in Iâ—wry where the knowledge of God and his scriptures were in Greece where was the top of humane wisedome and in Rome where was the Empire and gouernoment of the world And in all these places though it were persecuted yet in the end it was belieued and the triumphant title of the Crosse was verifyed being written in Hâ—breâ—â— Greeke and Latin whereby it was giuen to be vnderstood that in those tongues which were the principall of the world Christ was to be confessed for King If therefore such as they belieued vpon sufficient motiues it is reason that we follow them and if there were any want of humane motiues it is playne that they were led to it by light from God for as much as being people so aduised and so affected to their owne ancient beliefe so strong in power of armes such a deep plant of Faith could not haue byn so low rooted in a people so contrary to this Truth if the powerfull hand of God had not cooperated therewith S. Augustine obseruing this sayth That he who seing that the world belieueth will not yet belieue or demaundes new miracles for that purpose he himselfe is a prodigious and fearfull miracle since he refuseth to follow where so many so noble and so wise men haue gone before and which they haue imbraâ—ed with so great constancy Most iust cause haue we to do this who by the grace of God are Christians For as much as since the world was a world it neuer had appearing in it a man of such doctrine and of so heroicall vertue and of so wonderfull and miraculous works as Christ Iesus our Lord who preached himself to be true God and (c) Plaine proofes of the Diuinity of Christ our Lord and the nobility and sanctity of the Catholique fayth did prooue it by diuine scripture and by a multitude of miracles and by the testimony of S Iohn Baptist who was a witnesse auowed by all And the same hath also byn preached since and proued by a multitude of miracles in the Christian Church And there hath neuer appeared any Fayth which doth so honour God as this of his nor any law which doth so teach men how to serue him as doth the ghospel which if a man could well vnderstand no other motiue would be needfull for the making of a man belieue Neither haue there byn seene in the world men of so great sanctity as they of the Christian common weath nor haue there byn euer preached so great and so high rewards for them that follow vertue nor so horrible threates against men of vice in testimony that our God is a great friend to goodnesse and an enemy of wickednes Nor haue there byn wrought in the whole world so many and so great miracles in confirmation of any opinion as in confirmation of this Fayth Which if it were not true it would be vâ—ry iniurious to the honour of the true God since it ascribed an equality and vnity of essence with God himselfe to a man Nor would he haue suffered it to continue such a number of yeares nor would he so seuerely haue punished the people of the Iewes for hauing crucifyed such a man nor would he haue wrought so many and so great miracles in confirmation of this beliefe So that we may with reason say to God as Richardus doth If we be deceaued in that which we belieue God hath deceaued vs. For as much as this Truth hath of it selfe so much cleere euidence and such effects haue followed and such miracles haue byn wrought in confirmation thereof that other then God could not worke them
although it be not necessary that for belieuing a man must be in state of grace as heereafter I will shew yet can it not be done without the inspiration of the Holy Ghost For there S. Paul the Apostle is speaking of such workes of graces as these which the Deuines expresse to be giuen gratis This is that Fayth which inclineth the vnderstanding to belieue supreme Truth in that which the (h) Do not willfully mistake the Authour for whensoeuer he nameth the Christian fayth he meaneth the Catholike Roman as he sheweth plainly plentifully by this booke Catholike fayth affirmeth as the wil is inclined by loue to loue supreme goodnes And as the Mariners needle is carryed force of the North to turn straight towards the north so doth God moue the vnderstanding by that Fayth which he infuseth to go towards him by giuing a kind of credit which is (i) A true descriptioÌ„ of true Fayth which sheweth how noble and sublime a thing it is firme quiet and full of satisfaction And when this Fayth is perfect it carryeth in her company a certaine light whereby although it seeth not what it belieueth yet seeth it how fit it is to belieue the mysteryes of God And not only doth it feele no paine in belieuing but much delight as perfect vertue vseth to do which operateth with facility constancy and pleasure This is that Fayth which for much reason is to be prized and honoured since by it we honour God as S. Paul sayth that Abraham did giuing to God the honour of being so mighty as that he can do whatsoeuer he sayth This is that â—ayth which God hath erected in our soule as it were a Tower to the end that moâ—â—â—ng vp by it we may see though it be but as in a glasse that which is in heauen and in hell and that which happened in the beginning of the world and that which is to happen in the end And though a thing may be neuer so hidden yet can it not lye hidden from the eyes of fayth as is plame in the case of the good thiefe who seeing so much contempt and exteriour basenes vpon the person of Christ crucifyed did enter yet by his fayth into that which was most retyred and he knew him for the Lord of heauen and confessed him for such with great humâ—â—â—tâ— and constancy By (k) Note this and reuerence the church of Christ which hath power to declare which are the Sâ—â—â—tureâ— which are to be beâ—â—uâ—d by 〈◊〉 this Fayth we belieue that to be the scripture and word of God which the Church declareth to vs to be such And though it be spoken by the mouth of men we â—et do imbrace it for the word of God And therefore we do no lesâ—â— belieue that Euangelist or Prophet who wrote that which he did not see then him that wrote what he saw For our Fayth doth not cast her eye vpoÌ„ humane testimony which resteth vpon meanes that are humane but vpon this That God inspireth such an Euangelist or Prophet to write the Truth and that God assisted him that so he might not be deceyued in what he wrote Certayne it is that although S. Peter with his owne eares did heare that voyce of the Father which he sounded forth in Mount Thabor This is my wellbeloued sonne and who with his owne eyes saw Christ Iesus shine as brightly as the sunne yet if we should consider him but as a man giuing testimony of what he saw and heard more firmnesse and certainty hath the Scripture or speach of the Prophets who gaue testimony of Christ Iesus to be the sonne of God although they neither saw nor heard him euer with their corporall eyes and eares then that which S. Peter sayd by what he had both heard and seene But (l) Note this welâ— since the letter of S. Peter wherein this is written is declared by the Church to be diuine Scripture and so by consequence that whatsoeuer he sayth therein is the word of God it is certaine that God assisted him in saying it and assisted him so as that he might not be deceiued in what he eyther heard or saw vpon Mount Thaâ—or nor in that which he wrote when he recounted what had passed there And thus the word of the Prophets is not more firme or certayne because he or they did vtter them but because they spake by the instinct of the same holy Ghost who is Truth it selfe This habituall fayth God infuseth into the soules of children when they are baptized and into persons of discretion who want it he infuseth both habituall fayth and actuall when they dispose themselues to receâ—â—e it For he desireth that all should be saued and come to the knowledge of this Truth since without it God cannot be pleased nor man be saued He faileth not to giue it to euery one if there be no fault in him CHAP. XLIV That we must giue our Lord great thanks for the guift of Fayth and that we must vse it to the end for which it was giuen in such sort as that we attribute not that to it which it hath not and what both the one and the other is IT is much reason O thou Child of Christ that all we who are Christians be most cordially thankefull to our Lord who out of his grace bestowed this benefit of Fayth vpon vs whereby we might be gratefull to him Nor must we suffer a day to passe without confessing this Fayth at the least in the morning and euening and without giuing him particuler thankes for this benefit We must procure to conserue it in great sincerity and purity as a thing which importeth vs much considering to what end it was giuen vs both that we might not faile to vse it for that which it is that we attribute not that to it which it hath not It is giuen vs to the end that we may belieue that which God commaundeth vs to belieue and that it may be a light of knowledge which may help to mooue our will towards the louing of God and the keeping of his commandments whereby a man may be saued But if any one will attribute to this Fayth that by it (a) A greiuous errour it is to hold that sayth alone will saue our soules alone we ariue to haue iustice and pardon of our sinnes he shall fall into a (b) Note this discourse very wel for it doth much import grieuous erâ—our as they haue done who did affirme it because as already hath byn sayd by the authority of S. Paul No man can say that Iesus is our Lord but by inspiration of the holy ghost Whereby it is to be vnderstood that the same inspiration is reâ—uisite to belieue all the other mysteries of our Fayth And we know that our Lord sayd to some of them who heard him why do you call me Lord Lord and do not the things that I commaund you Now since they could so much as call
not performe that which it aduised but that which their owne peruerse will suggested And because the Truth of God is a most excellent thing he bestoweth it as a great fauour to the end that a man practising it with affection may honour it and obtaine vertue by it and so be saued and if he consider not â—eerof and do entertaine it in such a fashion as that he neither practiseth those things which it teacheth nor doth lodge it in so faire a place as it deserueth he doth thereby great dishonour to God that gaue it and to the Truth it selfe which was giuen by him And if it had a tongue wherewith to speake it would with a loud voyee demaund iustice against such a man For as much as it being so precious a Iewell and which is able so much to enrich men it is detayned without hearing what it sayth and without doing what it requireth and it is quartered out in the stincking company of sinne wher with the will of such a man aboundes And so in such sort as it is able it doth like the bloud of Abell cry out demanding vengeance Because although such an one depriueth not Truth of life because true fayth is compatible with a life that is wicked yet doth he depriue it of that efficacy which it would haue in working if insteed of hindring he did assist it towardes the performance of those thinges which it teacheth These cryes are heard by God for it is he that sayth The seruant who knoweth the will of his maister and doth it not shall be beaten with many stripes Amongst which the very greatest which he giueth in this world is to permit as we haue â—ayd before that in punishment of his sinnés he fall into errour of beliefe And so were those others punished by being suffered to fall into such blind Idolatry as that they came to worship for God euen birdes and serpents and other beasts And because they robbed God of that honour which was due to him as God and gaue it to such as it belonged not to God redoubled vpon them the punishment of this sinne of Idolatry by suffering them to fall into such other filthy sinnes as breed horrour to thinke of them and shame to name them And although such as are afflicted with this punishment of infidelity without doubt wil fall into other sinnes yet is that fall of theirs into those later sinnes as free as that whereby they fel into the former through their owne will Which yet how many soeuer they be either of one kind or of the other the mercy of God is not shut vp against them if they dispose themselues to retyre into the bowells of his pitty The power of God is manifested in the first of these his wisedome in the second and his goodnes and mercy in the third Now by the (g) The iust iudgments of God both against Iewes Gentilles same reason whereby the soueraigne Iudge did punish the proud Gentills he did also punish the vngratefull Iewes that vpon great cause Because he gaue more knowlege to them then to the Gentills wherof they serued themselues so il as that with infidelity they denyed the very true life it sâ—lfe which is Christ Iesus and they crucified him by the hands of the Gentills And because they had a mind to extinguish that soueraigne light without which there is no light nor Truth they remayned in obscure darknes and they will remayne in eternall perdition vnles they be conuerted to the seruice of our Lord whome they denyed But now let vs see what the motiue was which drew them on to so great a misery as to vnbelieue that light which stood there before their eyes S. Iohn (h) Ioan. 3. makes the answere thus Men loued darknesse more then light because their works were euill euery one that worketh euill abhorreth the light So that because our Lord his doctrine did addresse them to all vertue truth they loued falsehood and lyes they could not endure to heare or see him nor did they wish that there had by many light of doctrine in the world which might be able to discouer that counterfait sanctity which they professed Or that there should be any example of perfect life in comparison whereof their owne might be condemned for wicked And from this root of a will which was so depraued did grow that bitter fruit of denying and murthering that heauenly Phisitian who came to cure them And they found themselues to be such as the Prophet (i) Psal â—8 vers 24. Dauid had painted out long before when he sayd thus of them Let their eyes be obscured that they may not see and let their back go euer bending downeward for their eyes haue remayned without the light of fayth and their will hath been all imployed vpon thinges of the earth CHAP. XLVIII Wherein the former discourse is more particulerly prosecuted and it is declared what dispositions are requisite for the beginning to read and vnderstand the diuine Scriptures the holy Doctours BVT now if God did take into so zealous care the honour of that knowledge which he gaue the Gentills that which he also gaue the Iewes how much will he haue zeale of that which he giueth Christians since incomparably this is more then that which eyther of the other did enioy And (a) God inflicteth grieuous punishments vpon such as liue not according to the true fayth which they haue receaued since men do serue themselues very ill of the knowledge of this so excellent Fayth it is not to be meruayled at if sometymes God strike such persons by suffering them with a great chastisement to fall vpon heresies as he suffered those of former tymes Can it be sayd perhaps that we see not that accomplished with our owne eyes which S. Paul did prophesy of the latter tymes saying That God would send the operation of errour to certayne men that they might belieue a lye and this lye is against Fayth For no man can be ignorant of the miserable and great efficacy wherewith so much people hath cordially imbraced the Lutheran heresy so that we see plainely how God (b) Do not willfully mistake the Scripture or this authour but marke well that which instantly followeth hath sent this efficacy of errour for the belieuing of a lye as S. Paul sayth Not that God doth send these things by inciting men to belieue a lye or to worke any wickednesse For he is not the tempter of the wicked as S. Iames the Apostle (c) Iac. 1. sayth But he is sayd to send the operation of errour wheÌ„ by his iust iudgment he (d) Note suffereth the vnderstanding of men to be deceaued by false discourses or by false miracles which either some man or the peruerse Diuell may worke and withall they find in themselues such force towards the belieuing of that lye as to thinke themselues mooued to the beliefe of it
as if it were some great and wholesome Truth A (*) Heresy is one of the most terrible iudgmēts which God inflicts for the punishment for other sinnes great and extreame iudgment of God is this and since he is iust that sinne must needs be great whereof the punishment is such and what this sinne is S. Paul (e) Thess 2. himselfe declareth to vs by saying Because they receaued not the loue of Truth to be saued thereby For if thou consider how powerfull the Truth is of that which we belieue for the helping vs to serue God to be saued soone wilt thou acknowledge it to be a great fault not to loue this Truth and not to follow that which it teacheth and much more to worke wickedly against it How (f) A good and iust consideration far should he be from offending God who belieueth that for such as offend him there is prepared an euerlasting fire with other innumerable tormentes wherewith such an one is to be punished as long as God shal be God without all hope of the least remedy How will he presume to sinne who belieueth that when sinne entreth into the soule by one dore God goeth out by another And what kind of creature a man is without thee O Lord he well knew who prayed O (g) Psal 4◠Lord depart not thou from me For when God is gone we remaine in the first death of sinne which is but an introduction to the second death of infernall paine With great reason did Iob (h) Iob. 6. say Who can find in his heart to taste that which being tasted bringeth death Without doubt it is but reason that since we would not taste of any food which a Physitian whom we belieued should tell vs did carry death therin we should lesse taste of sinne since God hath sayd That (i) Ezech. 18. the soul which finneth shall dye For the Fayth or beliefe which thou hast in the word of God doth not worke that effect in thee which the word of that Physitian doth worke and yet this later both can deceaue and vseth sometymes to do it which God neuer doth And since God hath sayd That he is the eternall reward of such a seruant why doth not this make vs all go towards his seruice with great diligence and courage although we were to passe through many labours and that it should cost vs euen our liues Why do we not loue our Lord whome we belieue to be supreame goodnesse and whom we know to haue loued vs first yea and that so farre as to dye for vs And so (k) Note we should discourse in all other things which this holy Fayth doth so powerfully teach vs and inuite vs to for as much as concerneth it our selues are in great fault for leauing to follow it yea and for doing the very contrary things to it Can there be a more prodigious thing in the world then that a Christian should belieue the things which he belieueth and that yet he should do so wicked things as many of them do In punishment therefore of this that they did not loue the Truth whereby they might haue byn saued putting in practise that which they were taught thereby it is a most iust iudgement of God VVho (l) Psal 65. is terrible in his counsailes ouer the sonnes of men That this Fayth be taken from them they be permitted to belieue errour And if thou do consider how God doth suffer the snare to be prepared whereby Iewes and heretikes are chastised as we haue sayd it will appeare to thee that it is a thing rather to be trembled at then to be talked of Aske any of these that are so peremptory in following the obstinacy of their errour vpon what it is that they ground themselues The (m) Almost all heretikes do offer to shrowd thēselues vnder holy scripture one sort will say that it is the Scripture of the old Testament and the other of the New and thou shalt plainely see the prophesy of Dauid accomplished when he sayth The (n) A passadge of holy Scripture excellently pòdered Table of these people shall be turned into a snare and into a punishment and into a stumbling blocke Didst thou euer see a thing of so contrary appearance as that the Table of Life should be turned into a snare of death the Table of comfort and pardon into a punishment that Table where there is light which guideth men into a way that leadeth to life to conuert it selfe into a meanes of making one loose the way and fall vpon death Great without (o) A holy contēplation of the Authour of much terrour to such as are in heresy all doubt is the fault which deserueth such punishment that a man should be blinded in the light and that his life should be conuerted into death But thou art iust O Lord and thy iudgements are iust and there is no wickednes in thee but that wickednes is in them who serue not themselues well of thy goodnesse and therfore it is fit that they should but stumble vpon the same goodnes of thyne that the dishonour should be punished which they do both to it and thee A great blessing O Lord an extraordinary blessing is thy Fayth being reuered obeyed and put in excution as al reason doth require And a great blessing didst thou bestow in giuing vs thy holy Scripture which is so profitable and so necessary for vs in the way of thy seruice But (p) Note because the wind which bloweth vpon this sea is a wind that cōmoth from heauen and there haue byn some who would needes sayle by the earthly windes of their owne braynes and studyes they haue beene drowned and thou hast suffered it Because as in the Parables which thou O Lord didst preach on earth those men were secretly taught therby who had a good disposition thereunto whereas others were blinded euen thereby through thy iust iudgment so doest thou also gouerne the profound sea of thy diuine Scripture which is deputed for the shewing of mercy to the lambes of thy fold who may swimme therein to the profit both of themselues and others and so also is it designed for the shewing of iustice in suffering proud Elephants both to drowne themselues others also A fearefull and very fearefull thing it ought to be esteemed to enter into the diuine Scripture and no man ought to runne vpon it without much preparation as to a thing wherein there may be much danger to him Let him that (q) An-vnderstāding exercised in humility a lifeled in piety are good dispositiōs for the reading of holy Scripture with profit entreth into it carry with him the sense of the Catholike Roman Church and he shall auoyd the danger of heresy Let him for his further profit by it carry purity of life as S. Athanasius doth aduise by these wordes Goodnes of life and purity of the soule and Christian piety is
consider of many others as absurd and foolish as this is into which both in other tymes and these also such persons haue fallen as grew lightly to beliâ—ue that the notions or instinctes of their owne harts did come from God CHAP. LI. Of the way wherein we are to carry our selues that we may not erre by such illusions and how dangerous the desire is of Reuelations and such things as those THROVGH the desire I haue that thy soule may not be one of these I recommend to thee much that thou profit as the prouer be sayth by anothers harme and that thou be very carefull that in thy selfe there be no consent either great or small to any desire of these singular or supernaturall things for it is a signe either of pride or at least of curiosity which is full of danger There was a tyme when (a) Marke this Exemple S. Augustine was assaulted by this temptation his wordes are these By how many subtilties of temptation hath the enemy procured with me O Lord that I should beg some miracle at thy hands but I beseech thee for the loue of our Lord Iesus Christ and of our Citty the heauenly Hierusalem which is pure and chaste that as now all consent to this temptation is farre from me so it may euer be farre and further off S. Bonauenture sayth that many had fallen into great follies and errours in punishment of their hauing desired such things as these and he sayth further that they are not so much to be desired as feared If any such extraordinary things happen to thee without any desire of thyne be thou afraid and do not giue them credit but instantly haue recourse to our Lord beseeching (b) A holy wise and safe aduice him that he will be pleased not to carry thee by this way but that he will suffer thee to worke thy saluation in his holy feare and in the vsuall and plaine way of such as serue him Thou art especially to do this when any such Reuelation or instinct shall inuite thee to admonish or reprehend a third person of any thing that is secret much more if he be a Priest or Prelate or the like to whome particular reuerence is due In such case as this thou art to cast away these things withall the hart thou hast and to depart from them with saying that which Moyses sayd Send him O Lord I beseech thee whome thou art to send And Ieremy sayd I am but a child O Lord I cannot speake and both these did hold themselues for insufficient and fled from being sent to reproue others Do not feare least by this humble resistance God should be made angry or to absent himself if the businesse be his but (c) There is no danger of loosing any thing with God by doing acts of humility rather he will draw nearer to thee and he will assure and settle the thing in question For he that giueth grace to the humble will not take it away for an act of humility and if it be not of God the Diuell will fly away as being strooke with the stone of humility which giueth a blow that breaketh his head like that of Golias And so it happened to a Father that remayned in the Desert who vpon the appearing of the figure of a Crucifixe he would neither adore it nor belieue it But (d) See the sweet safe simplicity humility of thâ—se holy Ermites shutting his eyes sayd I will not see Iesus Christ in this world it shall serue my turne to see him in heaueÌ„ Vpon which answere the Diuell fled away who was desirous to deceaue him vnder that forme Another Father answered to one that told him that he was an Angell sent to him on the behalfe of God I haue no need nor am I worthy to receaue messages by the mouth of Angels and therefore consider well to whome it is that thou wert sent for it is not possible they should send thee to me Nor will I so much as heare thee And so with this humble answere the proud Diuell fled away By this way of humility and by a most cordiall driuing away such things as these many persons haue beene free through the mercy of God from great snares which by this meanes the Diuell had prepared for them Experimenting so in themselues that which Dauid (e) Psal 12. sayth Our Lord keepeth the little ones I humbled my selfe and be deliuered me And on the other side a false instinct or Reuelation of the Diuell finding any vaine contentment in the hart of him that doth receaue it taketh roote and force from thence to deceaue men out right God permitting it with iust iudgment For as S. Augustine sayth Pryde deserueth to be deceaued Thou must therfore be free from this vaine inclination and from thinking that thou art capable of these Reuelations that so thy hart may not vary the compasse in the least point from that humility wherein thou wert before vnder the holy feare of God And so carry thy selfe in them as if they had not come to thee And if notwithstanding this answere of thyne the matter do still go on giue thou instantly account to them that may tell thee what is fit although it will be better done to giue notice of it instantly after first it happened and to help him by meanes of prayer fastes other good works who is to giue thee counsaile that God may declare the truth to him in a matter that is of so much difficulty For (f) A great strayte if we hold the good spirit of God for the wicked spirit of the Diuell it is a great blasphemy and we shall so be like to those miserable Pharisees the contradictours of the truth of God who attributed to an euill spirit the workes which Christ Iesus our Lord did by the Holy Ghost And on the other side if with facility of beliefe we accept of the instinct of an euil spirit as if it were of the Holy Ghost what greater misery can there be then to seeke darkenesse and errour insteed of truth and which is worse the Diuell for God On both sides there is great danger eyther in holding God for the Diuell or the Diuel for God And how great necessity there is to be able to distinguish and to iudge of these thinges as indeed they are I thinke there is none who doth not see But as euident as this necessity is so difficult and hidden a thing it is to get assurance and light wherewith to cleare this doubt And therfore as it belongeth not to all men to prophesy or to worke miracles or to impart such other graces but to them to whome the Holy Ghost is pleased to impart them so also is it not giuen to the spirit of man how wise soeuer it be to iudge with certainty and truth of the difference of spirits vnles it were in a matter which were euidently (g) For in that ease
it is cleerlynaught against the Scripture and the Church of God That light therefore of the Holy Ghost which is called Discretion of spirits is wholy necessary in this case by the inward and sweet light wherof the man who hath this gift doth rightly iudge which is the spirit of Truth and which of Errour And if the matter be of importance it must be related to the Prelate and his resolution is to be followed CHAP. LII Wherein some signes are giuen of good and bad or false Reuelations or Illusions BESIDES that which I haue sayd thou art to consider what fruit or edification these thinges do leaue in thy soule And (a) This ballance is to be held by a steedy hand yet I say not this as if by these or other signes thou art to become the iudge of that which passeth in thy selfe but to the end that when thou giuest him account of whome thou art to take counsell he may so much the more certainly know teach thee truth as thou shalt giue him more particuler information Consider therefore if these things help thee towardes the reliefe of any spirituall necessity which thou hast or for any thing concerning thy soule of notable edification For if a good man will not speake idle wordes much lesse will God do it who sayth I am the Lord who teach thee things which are profitable to be known and who gouerne thee in the way where thou art to goe But when thou seest that there is nothing of moment but intricate and vnnecessary thinges esteeme it as a fruit which the Diuel setteth before such a one as he seeketh to deceaue and to make him loose his tyme and the tyme of others to whome he relateth it and when the Diuell can get no more he contenteth himselfe with this gaine Amongst those thinges which thou art to consider whether they worke them in thy soule or no let the chiefe be this Whether it leaue thee more humble then thou wert before For humility as a Doctour sayth giueth such weight to the coyne of spirit as that it doth sufficiently distinguish the mettall which is massy from that which is light And S. Gregory sayth The (b) In what case then be all Heretikâ— most euident distinctiue signe of a man elect is his humility and of the reprobate his pride Consider then I say what trace is left in thy soule by this vision or consolation or spiritual gust and if thou perceaue thy selfe to remaine more humble and in more confusion through thyne owne faults and with greater reuerence and trembling vnder the infinite greatnesse of God and hast no light inclination to communicate that to other persons which hath happened to thee nor doest busy thy selfe much in considering or making account thereof but doest procure to forget it as a thing which may make thee esteeme thy selfe and if at any tyme when it commeth to thy memory thou humble thy selfe and dostâ—wonder at the great mercy of God in shewing so great fauour to so base creatures if thou findest thy hart as quiet and more settled then it was before in the knowledge of it selfe it hath some shew to be of God because (c) Note this reasoÌ„ it is agreable to the instruction and doctrine of Christ which is That a man should abase himselfe and become despicable in his owne eyes and that for the blessings which he receaueth from God he must know himselfe to be more obliged and confounded giuing the whole glory of it to God from whose hand all good thinges proceed And with this S. Gregory agreeth saying The soule which is full of diuine vnderstanding hath these for most euident fignes namely Humility and Truth both which if they perfectly ioyne in any soule it is a thing notorious that they giue testimony of the presence of the Holy Ghost But when it is an abuse of the Diuel it falleth out very contrary to this For (d) Humility or Pride are the distinctiue signes wherby to know the truth or falsh god of spirituall gustes c. either in the beginning or at the end of the reuelation of consolation the soule doth find it selfe vayne and desirous to speake of what it feeleth with some estimation of it selfe conceauing that God is to do great matters in it or by it and it hath no desire to thinke vpon the defects of it selfe or to be reproued by others but all that persons busines is to be talking and rowling vp and downe in his mind that which he hath felt and he would be gladd that others also should be talking of it When thou shalt see these signes or the like which shew a kind of leuity of hart it may be affirmed without any doubt that the euill spirit walketh that way And how good soeuer the thing appeare though it bring teares or comfort or knowledge of matters belonging to God yea although thou be hoysed vp to the third heauen yet if thy soule withall do not remaine with profound humility put thou no confidence in any such thing which may happen to thee nor do thou accept thereof For how much the more high it is so much is it the more dangerous and so much the greater fall will it giue thee Aske grace of God that thou mayst know humble thy selfe and that being the ground let him giue thee what is most pleasing to him but if that be wanting all the rest how precious soeuer it appeare is not gold but copper nor is it the meale or floure of nourishment but the ashes of pryde Pride hath this mischeife belonging to it that it despoyleth the soule of the true grace of God and if it leaue any thing that may seeme good it is but counterfaite so it is not acceptable to God but the occasion of greater ruine to him that hath it We read of our Redeemer that when he appeared to his disciples vpon the day of the Ascension he first reprehended their incredulity hardnesse of hart after that he commaunded them to go preach giuing theÌ„ power to worke many and great miracles Making vs vnderst and thereby that (e) God doth first abase such as afterward he meanes to rayse whom he rayseth to great matters he first abaseth in themselues giuing them knowledge of their own weakenesse to the end that although afterward they grow to fly aboue the heauens they may still be fastned to their owne basenes without attributing any other thing to themselues but their own vnworthinesse Let therefore the summe of all be this that thou do well obserue the effects which are caused in thee by such things as these not thereby to make thy selfe the iudge thereof but for his information whose counsell thou art to aske and follow CHAP. LIII Of the secret pride whereby many vse to be much deceiued in the way of Vertue and of the danger that such are in to be snared by the illusions of the Diuell
BVT thou art further to note that many do find in themselues their own meanesse and that of themselues they are nothing and they seeme to attribute the glory to God for all the blessings that they receaue and they haue many other signes of humility but notwithstanding all this they are full of pride and that so much the more dangerously as they coÌ„ceaue themselues to be most free from it The reason of this is because although they do liue as in the sight of Truth by not attributing those blessinges to themselues yet do they liue in errour by conceauing them to be more and greater then indeed they are and they take themselues to haue so much light from God as that they are able not only to rule themselues in that way but others also and no man is of sufficiency in their opinion to gouerne them They are greatly friends to their own fancy yea and sometymes they make not much reckoning of that which former Saints haue sayd or that which the seruants of God liuing in their owne tyme conceaue They (a) This is still meant of those hereticall Illuminati boast themselues to haue the spirit of Christ and to be gouerned by it and to haue no need of human counsell since God with so great certainty and the vnction of his spirit doth giue them comfort in their prayers They thinke as S. Bernard sayth of other mens houses but that the sunne doth only shine in their own and they defye and despise all wisemen as Golias did the people of God Only he is good in their opinion who conformeth himselfe to them and to them nothing is more troublesome then to meet with a man that contradicteth them They will be the maisters of all men and belieued by al men and they will belieue none The wary discretion of men who are well experienced they call tepidity and feare but as for vnbridled feruours noueltyes full of singularity which are the occasions of tumult these men call the liberty of spirit and the strength of God and they haue almost euer in their mouthes This my spirit telleth me God satisfyeth me in this and the like At other tymes they alleadge the Scripture of God but they will by no meanes vnderstand it as the Church and the Saints haue vnderstood it but only as they list themselues Belieuing that they haue not lesse light then the former Saints nay that God hath taken them for instruments of greater matters then those others and so they make Idolls of themselues and place themselues vpon the heades of all men with intollerable presumption So miserable is the errour of these men that being extremly proud they hold themselues for perfectly humble and belieuing that God only dwelleth in them he is indeed far from them and that which they take to be light is profound darknesse Of these or such as these Gerson sayth There are some to whome it is a thing very agreeable to be gouerned by their owne conceit and they walke vnder the conduct of their owne inuentions or rather they are cast headlong vpon their owne opinion which is a most dangerous guide They (b) Euen in doing of pennance discretion is to be followed whensoeuer excesse therin is vsed and not accompanyed with docility other interiour vertue it is not only suâ—piâ—â—ouâ— but dangerous macerate themselues with too extreme fasting they watch too much they trouble and empty their braine with excesse of teares and in the middest of all this they follow no mans admonition or counsell They care not to aske the opinion of them that are wise in the law of God nay they care not to heare them when eyther they do heare or aske their counsell they despise their sayings And the cause of this is that they conceaue theÌ„selues to be some great men and that they know better then all the world what is fit for them to do Of these I pronounce that speedily they shall fall into the illusion of the Diuell speedily shall they fall vpon the stone of offence because they are conducted by a blind kind of rashnes and an excessiue kind of lightnesse And therefore what soeuer they shall tell thee of any extraordinary Reuelations know thou that it is to be suspected Al this sayth Cerson CHAP. LIIII Of some propertyes which they haue whome we sayd to be deceaued in the last Chapter and how necessary it is to take the opinion of others and of the mischiefe that men are brought to by following their owne THOV art to vnderstand that some of them of (a) He coÌ„tinueth to describe those aforesayd heretikes whome I spake in the last chapter are people without learning yea they are cordiall enemyes to men that are learned And if perhaps they haue a little Latin to read and to carry a new Testament about them they do belieue themselues so much conceauing the while that they belieue God and they rest so much vpon certaine light motiues and do answere themselues thereby in such blind errours that how manifest soeuer in themselues they be these men know not how to shake them off and they are so presumptuous and so impossibly to be perswaded that as the Scripture sayth A man were better encounter with a beare from whome they had taken her whelpes then with a foole that presumeth in his fault And yet they haue much in their memory and no lesse in their tongue that saying of S. Paul Knowledge doth blow vp but Charity doth build vp And by this they thinke they haue a pattent to contemne wise men as men that are pussed vp they valew themselues at a high rate as a kind of people that is full of charity The (b) Let heretikeâ— examine theÌ„selues by this rule and they will see their owne extreme pride whyle they marke not that themselues are the men that are puffed vp with the pride of sanctity which is more dangerous then the pride of science as a thing which riseth from that which is better and for the same very reason it is worse though indeed neither science nor good workes do of themselues produce this moath but it is the wickednes of the wicked which taketh occasion to swell by that which is good Since the case standeth so they ought not instantly to contemne such as are wise because wisedome of it selfe is no impediment but that withall a man may be humble and holy Yea to many it hath beene and still is a great occasion of their being so for others to esteeme that they are not so proceedeth from an erroneous iudgment and an excessiue pride in themselues But suppose they were not yet were those others to remember that it is written Vpon (c) Matt. 1â— the chaire of Moyses sit the Scribes and Pharisees do therefore that which they direct you to but do not that which they do Whereas these fellowes do iust the contrary for they receaue not the good
excellent lesson coÌ„cerning the strict examinatioÌ„ of our coÌ„science as it were into the chapter-house with thy selfe towardes night and iudge thy selfe very particulerly as thou wouldest do any third person Reprehend thy selfe and punish thy selfe for thy faultes and preach thou more to thy selfe then to any other body how much so euer thou loue him and where thou findest most fault there procure to apply most remedy For belieue me that by the continuance of this examen and reprehension of thy selfe thy thoughts cannot continue long without being reformed And thou shalt ariue to a science which will doe thee much good and it will make thee weepe not swell and it will keep thee from that dangerous infirmity of pride which entreth euen insensibly by little and little a man thinking well and taking contentement in himselfe Be very watchful against the approach there of and preserue thy selfe with all care Take not thy selfe into good conceite but know by the light of truth how to reprehend be displeasing to thy selfe and so the mercy of God wil be neere thee in whose right they only are pleasing who are displeasing in their owne And he pardoneth their faultes with a great liberality of goodnesse who know them and who humble themselues for them with (d) But it must be a true one a true iudgement and who lament them by their will Thou shalt also hereby decline two other vices which are the ordinary companions of pride and they are ingratitude sloth For by knowing and misliking thy defects thou wilt see thy weakenesse and thy vnworthynesse and the great mercy of God in suffering pardoning thee in bestowing benedictions vpon thee who hast deserued misery and by this meanes thou wilt be gratefull And on the other side considering the little good thou doest the many sinnes which thou committest thou wilt be awaked out of the sleepe of slouth and wilt euery day begin with new feruour to serue our Lord seing the little that thou hast done hitherto For this and many other benefittes which grow from a mans knowing and reproouing himselfe a holy old man of ancient tymes being asked whether a man might be more secure by seruing God in solitude or in company of others did answeare That is he knew how to reprehend himselfe he might be euery where safe and if not that he would be euery where in daÌ„ger And because through the inordinate loue which we beare our selues we cannot know or reprehend our selues with that vnpartiall iudgement which truth requires we must (e) A hard lesson but by the goodnes and grace of our Lord Ieâ—â—â— it is learâ—ed practised by 〈◊〉 in the Catholike Church thanke that person that doth it for vs. And we must earnestly beseech our Lord that himselfe will rebuke vs with loue bestowing vpon vs light and truth that so we may belieue of our selues as we ought in very deed to belieue And this is that which the prophet (f) Ierem. 10. Ieremy desired saying Correct me o Lord in iudgement and not in sury least otherwise thou do turne me into nothing To correct with fury doth belong to the last day when God will send the wicked to hell for their synnes and to correct in iudgement is to reprehend his children in this world with the loue of a Father Which reprehension carrieth a great testimony with it that God loueth such a person Nor is there any other so sure an one as that nor which bringeth so good newes as being the preface to vs of our receiuing great fauours from God So doth S. Marke relate that our Lord Iesus Christ appearing to his disciples did (g) Mare 10. reprehend them of incredulity and hardnesse of hart and then he after gaue them power to doe wonderfull thinges And the prophet (h) Isa 4. Isay sayth That our Lord doth wash away the vncleanes of the daughters of Sion and the bloud out of the middle of Hierusalem in the spirit of iudgement and in the spirit of heate Giuing vs so to vnderstand that for our Lord to wash way our faultes by comming to vs is first to make vs know who we are and this is iudgement And afterward he sendeth in a spirit of heate which is loue and that prouoketh vs to griefe and so he washeth vs giuing vs pardon by his grace Of this we must not presume to allow our selues any part of the glory since it is he who first gaue vs to vnderstand our owne wickednesse and rashnesse Nor (i) A description of that true â—orrow for sinne which is of God yet art thou to conceaue that this reprehension is any afflictiue kind of thing which may excessiuely oppresse thy soule by making it offensiue to thee For any such disposition as this is eyther of the Diuell or of a mans owne spirit and it must be fled But it is a quiet knowledge of a mans owne faultes and as a iudgâ—ment of heauen which is pronounced in the soule which makes this earth of our infirmity quake with shame and feare and loue which clappe spurres into the sides to make it mende to serue our Lord with greater diligence Yea it giues a man much confidence that our Lord loueth him as his sonne since he exerciseth the office of a Father with him as it is written And (k) Prou. 3. whom he loueth he correcteth Be therefore carefull to behold and reprehend and to present thy selfe in the presence of God before whom an humble acknowledgement of our owne faultes is a matter of more security then the proude altitude of any other science And be not like some who loue to haue themselues in good estimation who because they are loth to thinke ill of themselues they take pleasure in spending much tyme to thinke of other deuout thinges and to passe lightly ouer the knowledge of their owne defects because they find no sauour in them since they take no pleasure in the contempt of themselues Whereas in very Truth there is nothing so safe nor which so maketh God withdraw his sight from our sinnes as for vs to see and to reprehend them with griefe and pennance As it is written If we did iudge our selues we should not be iudged by God CHAP. LXIII Of the estimation which we are to make of our good works that we may not fayle thereby in the knowledge of our selues and of true Humility and of the meruailous example which Christ our Lord doth giue vs for this purpose THE second thing that thou art to obserue concerning this knowledge is that although it be good and profitable since therby we come to haue a contrite and humbled hart yet hath it this fault that it is euer grounded vpon our hauing committed sinne And it is not to be much meruailed at if a sinner do know and esteeme himselfe to be a sinner For being such he should withal be a hideous monster if he would esteem
aduised that this second thought may not come by some fraud of the Diuell that so thou making the leap of a Pye from one thing to another he may depriue thee of the fruit of prayer Or els that it proceed not from the leuity of thyne owne hart which finding not that which it desireth in some one thought disposeth it selfe to make triall of some other and yet another Thou art not therefore to forsake lightly thy former thought vnles thou be effectually inuited to do it from within and that with such a (i) Thou must not faile to aduise heerein with thy Ghostly Pather kind of satisfaction to thy selfe as the hart vseth to feele when God inuiteth it and when he interposeth himselfe And by asking light of our Lord and by taking accoumpt afterward what profit thou hast gotten by often taking of experience thou wilt grow to do thy duty in this busines To this (k) An aduise cōcerning reading and vocal prayer purpose it also maketh that if thou be reading or praying vocally and that our Lord do visit thee with any profound internall feeling thou art to cease from that which thou wert doing and to feed vpon the bit which our Lord hath sent thee and when that is done thou mayest begin againe where thou didst leaue For since this exteriour deuotion doth serue but to stir vp the interiour we must be sure not to vse it so as that it may be a meanes to hinder the other Nor would I speake of so many particulers if I had not seene some people so tyed to certaine rules and so resolued to taske themselues in such a fashion that although there were reason for them to belieue that our Lord would haue them interrupt a thought yet they will not do it And if he will conduct them by one way yet they will needs go by another relying vpon their owne prudence Whereas (l) Humility is th◠best disposition towardes Prayer notwithstanding it is an infallible Truth that nothing is more contrary vnto this Exercise then for men to thinke that they are able to play the maisters in it And I haue seene many men abound in rules cōcerning prayer to be talking of great secrets and the same men to be very empty in the practise of it For to rest vpon those rules and to reflect much vpon them in tyme of prayer depriueth them of that humility and simplicity of a child whereby this businesse is to be treated with God as I haue said before Yet (m) Note do I not deliuer this to disswade men from vsing that reasonable diligence which on our part we are to bring especially when we are beginners in it but only that we may performe it with such a kind of liberty as not to hinder vs from depending vpon God in expectation of his blessing in such sort as he shal be pleased to giue it And (n) Who are sure to profit most in being able to vse mentall Prayer be thou well assured that in this exercise he profits most who doth humble himselfe more and who doth vse more perseuerance and who sendeth out more deep sighes to our Lord and not he who hath more rules without booke CHAP. LXXVI That the end of the Meditation of the Passion is to be the imitation thereof and what is to be the beginning and ground of greater things which we are to imitate TO the end that thou mayst know how to profit by this exercise thou art to be aduertised that the end of the meditation of the passion is to be the imitation thereof and the accomplishment of the law of our Lord. And (a) A truth most necessary to be knowne this I tell thee because some there are who make much reckoning of the houres which they spend in prayer of the gust and sweetnesse which they find therein but they take no accompt of the fruit which they gather by it They conceaue with an erroneous iudgement that he that prayeth most and with greatest sweetnesse of delight◠that he forsooth is the greatest saint wheras indeed that other man is so who togeather with the profoūd (b) The perfection of a Christian consisteth in hauing profound humility ardent charity contēpt of himself hath the greatest charity wherin consisteth the perfection of Christian life and the fulfilling of the whole law And he that liueth well and he that prayeth well must do it all to this end and not content himselfe with only hauing spent such a piece of his tyme well in confessing or communicating or deuout praying or any other thing of the like nature We read of Moyses that hauing been fourty dayes and fourty nightes vpon the top of mount Sinay in continuall conuersation with the most high God and descending afterward to conuerse with men he told them no storyes or vistons or reuelations or curious secrets but he carried much light in his face and two tables of stone in his handes In the one whereof those (c) He deuideth the commandements by three seauen as we do and as S. Augustin did and not by foure and six as the Protestāts do three commaundements were written which appertaine to the honour of God and seauen in the other which belong to our duty towards our neighbour Giuing (d) The right fruit of Prayer thereby to vnderstand that he that treates with God by the tongue of prayer must haue light in his vnderstanding thereby to know what he is to do and then a fulfilling of the will of God put in execution as if the law were in his handes And since he hath the office of one that prayes he may also haue the life of one that prayes which must be such as that in all his actions it may appeare (e) If this proue not so in som proportiō thou dost loose thy labour that some part of that soueraigne truth and supreme purity wherewith he had so much to do hath stucke vnto him For they who employ a fit of tyme in weeping and in lamenting those buffetts which they gaue our Lord in his passion if departing from thence vpon the offer of the least of those affronts which were put vpon our Lord they haue yet little patience as if they had learnt nothing in prayer but to be able to suffer nothing I know not to whome I should compare them but to such as when they are sleeping do conceaue that they are doing some great matter who yet when they wake are found to haue done the expresse contrary What (f) A vicious and a foolish thing more absurd and foolish thinge can there be then that when I do so much esteeme the patience of our Lord in his paine I will yet haue none in myne But I will say Carry thy Crosse alone O Lord though it be deadly heauy for I haue no mind to help thee by carrying of mine though it he very light The Apostles had compassion and
make vs know that neither we haue that blessing of our selues nor yet that in our selues we can conserue it sometymes the Apostle sayth That (m) 1. Cor. 2. those blessinges are not ours and that we do not obtaine them for our selues as where our Lord sayth to his disciples You (n) Ioan. 15. chose not me but I chose you And in another place he sayth It (o) Matt. 10. is not you that speake but the spirit of your Father speaketh in you And least any body might vnderstand by this that a man were not able to workâ— well and with liberty the Scripture sayth in other places That (p) Ezech. 30. man doth performe such a good work without making mention of any thing which therein is done by God I sayth God by (q) Ezech. 1â— Ezechiel will giue you a new hart the same Prophet sayth Make to your selues a new hart S. Paul (r) Rom. 9. sayth in one place It is neither he that willeth nor he that runneth And yet elsewhere he sayth againe I (Å¿) 1. Cor. 9. will that which is good and I runne not as to any thing vncertaine And the like he sayth often elsewhere to giue vs therby to vnderstand That (t) The true Catholike doctrine concerning this point is heer summed vp into one sentence the good which we haue we haue of God that both God man do concur to the accomplishment of a good worke but yet so as that the glory both of the one and the other is due to God since all that which is good doth come from him And by the same manner of speach our Lord expressed himselfe when he sayd My (u) Ioan. 7. doctrine is not myne but his that sent me And so he might haue sayd My workes are not myne my iustice is not myne but of him that sent me And he that by this manner of speach should inferre that our Lord had not iustice or doctrine or other blessings in himselfe would be easily discerned to be in a grosse and wicked errour His saying My doctrine is not myne doth but affirme thus much I haue it not of my selfe but of my Father and so by the like wordes it ought not to be inferred That iust persons haue no iustice in them which is their owne And with this agreeth that which is sayd in the (x) Sess â—de Iustif Councell of Trent That the iustice is ours because we are iustifyed by it whilst it is in our soules as in a subiect And that which our Lord sayth both heere and elsewhere also by that speach of his The word which you haue heard is not myne doth also agree with that which hath heere beene sayd because howsoeuer iustice is in vs yet haue we it not of our selues but it is imparted by the hand of God and therefore it is sayd to be the iustice of God CHAP. XCII That we must fly fast from pride which is wont to grow vp apace by occasion of good workes considering the much which is merited by them and of a particuler instruction which Christ hath giuen vs whereby we may profit against this tentation THERE (a) It it a good thing to know a truth which it doth import vs to know but it is better if we know how to vse it wel is a great deale of difference betweene the knowing of a Truth and the knowing how to vse it rightly for the first without the later will not only profit nothing but do hurt For as S Paul sayth He that thinketh he knoweth somwhat may perhaps not know it as he ought And this he sayd because some Christians knew that the thing which was sacrificed vp to Idolls might as well be eaten as that which was not sacrificed but they serued themselues ill of that knowledge because they did eate thereof in the presence of such as were scandalized thereat All (b) The end that the Author had in making this discourie this haue I sayd to thee to the end that thou mayst not content thy selfe with knowing this Truth That such as are in the grace of our Lord are iust and acceptable by that grace and iustice which is in them and that the valew of their good workes is so high as to deserue that this grace should be augmented in them and that glory also should be imparted to them but that thou mayst also procure to lodge this truth in his true place For men there are who vse it ill more or lesse the former running hazard of being proud and the later of pusillanimity and sloath Many (c) It is often more easy to come to pennance froÌ„ sin then for men of vertue to mantaine themselus in humility haue I seene who by the goodnes of God became free in a short tyme from great miseries wherein they had remayned a long tyme and the same men haue not bin free in many yeares from those dangers which presented themselues by occasion of their good workes Remember that which Dauid (d) Psalm 139. said That wicked persons did spread a snare for him neere his way yea and that also they did spread it in the very way For not only do our enemies pretend to draw vs out of the good way by inciting vs to do ill but euen in the very way it selfe of good workes they procure to do vs mischiefe prouoking vs not to vse the good as we ought And so that cometh to be verifyed vpon vs which the (c) Eccles 5. Wise man saith Another mischeife haue I seene vnder the sunne Great riches heaped vp in preiudice of the owner For it were better for a man not to haue a thing then not to vse it as he ought To these men it happens that seing the good workes which they do and hearing talke of the much which they merit by them their heades run round with the vanity and conceited delight thereof (f) Consideration which may seruâ— for the preuenting of pride or at least for the curing of it without considering the many faultes which in those very workes they commit and without acknowledging them to come from the mercy of God as indeed they do and without procuring to passe further on like people of a little and empty hart which is satisfyed with small matters Whereas on the other side it is reason as S. Bernard saith That we should not be negligent whilest we coÌ„sider those things which God doth in vs but sollicitous to obtaine the much which yet is wanting to vs. Some others againe there are so blind through an ignorant kind of Pride as that how soeuer (g) This seemeth not so impossible as indeed it is true their tongue be saying somwhat else yet their hart doth really belieue that God is bound to giue theÌ„ all such benefittes for their meritts without considering that euen they are giuen them by the grace of God as they shall desyre or may hope for at his
pag. 166. Chap. 34. That the perfect life of such as haue belieued our fayth is a great testimony of the Truth therof and how farre Christians haue exceeded all other Nations in goodnesse of life pag. 169. Chap. 35. That the very conscience of him that desyreth to obtaine vertue doth testify that our Faith is true and how the desire of leading an euill life doth both procure the loosing of Faith hinder the getting it pag. 175. Chap. 36. That the admirable change which is made in the hart of sinners and the great fauours which our Lord doth do them who follow him with perfect vertue and do call vpon him in their necessityes is a great testimony to the truth of our Fayth pag. 179. Chap. 37. Of the many and great good things which God worketh in the soule that followeth perfect vertue that this is a great proofe that our Fayth is true because that did teach vs meanes how to obtaine those graces pag. 183. Chap. 38. That if the power greatnes of the worke of Belieuing be well pondered we shall find great testimony to proue that it is much reason that the vnderstanding of man do serue God by imbracing of Fayth pag. 188. Chap. 39. Wherein answere is giuen to an obiection which some make against our Fayth by saying that God teacheth things which are too high pag. 191. Chap. 40. Wherin answere is made to theÌ„ who obiect against the receauing of Fayth that it teacheth meane and low thinges of God and how in these meane thinges which God teacheth most high glory is contayned p. 193. Chap. 41. That not only the glory of our Lord doth shine in the humble thinges of God which our Faith teacheth but also our owne great profit our strength and vertue pag. 200. Chap. 42. VVherein it is proued that the Truth of our Fayth is infallible as well in respect of them that haue preached it as of them who haue receaued it and of the manner how it was receaued pag. 203. Chap. 43. That such is the greatnesse of our Fayth that none of the aforesayd motiues nor any other that can be deliuered are suffâ—cient to make a man believe with this diuine Fayth vnles our Lord doe incline a man to belieue by particuler fauour pag. 207. Chap. 44. That we must giue our Lord great thanks for the guift of Fayth and that we must vse it to the end for which it was giuen in such sort as that we attribute not that to it which it hath not and what both the one and the other is pag. 214. Chap. 45. Why our Lord did resolue to saue vs by the meanes of Fayth and not of humane Reason of the great subiection which we must yield to those thinges which our Fayth doth teach of the particuler deuotion which we owe in especiall manner to that which our Lord Iesus taught vs by his owne sacred mouth pag. 223. Chap. 46. That the holy Scripture must not be declared by what sense one will but by that of the Church of Rome and where that declareth not we must follow the vniforme exposition of the Saints And of the great submission and subiection which we must performe to this holy Church pag. 227. Chap. 47. VVhat a terrible chastisement it is when God permitteth men to loose their Faith and that it is iustly taken away from them that worke not in conformity of what it teacheth pag. 232. Chap. 48. VVherein the former discourse is more particulerly prosecuted and it is declared what dispositions are requisite for the beginning to read and vnderstand the diuine Scripture the holy Doctours pag. 237. Chap. 49. That we must not grow in pride for not hauing lost our Fayth as others haue done but rather we must be humble with feare and the reasons which we haue for being so pag. 244. Chap. 50. How some vse to be much deceaued by giuing credit to false Reuelations and it is particulerly declared wherein true liberty of spirit doth consist pag. 249. Chap. 51. Of the way wherein we are to carry our selues that we may not erre by such illusions and how dangerous the desire is of Reuelations and such things as those pag. 256. Chap. 52. VVherein some signes are giuen of good bad or false Reuelations or Illusions pag. 260. Chap. 53. Of the secret pride Whereby many vse to be much deceiued in the way of Vertue and of the danger that such are in to be ensnared by the illusions of the Diuell pag. 264. Cap. 54. Of some propertyes which they haue whoÌ„ we sayd to be deceaued in the last Chapter how necessary it is to take the opinion of others and of the mischiefe that men are brought to by following their owne pag. 267. Chap. 55. That we must fly fast from our owne opininion chuse some person to whome for the loue of God we must be subiect and be ruled by him and what kind of man he must be and how we must carry our selues with him pag. 274. Chap. 56. Wherein he beginneth to declare the second word of the verse and how we are to consider of the Scriptures and how we must restayne the fight of our eyes that we may the better see with those of our soule which the freer they are from the sight of creaturs the better shall they see God pag. 279. Chap. 57. That the first thing which a man must see is himselfe of the necessity which we haue of this knowledge and the inconueniences that grow vpon vs through want thereof pag. 284. Chap. 58. That we must be diligent to find out the knowledge of our selues by what meanes this may be done that it is fit for vs to haue some priuate place into which we may dayly retire our selues for a tyme. 291. Chap. 59. Wherin he prosecuteth the exercise which conduceth to the knowledge of ones selfe and how we are to profit in the vse of reading of Prayer pag. 296. Chap. 60. How much the Meditation of death doth profit towards the knowledge of a mans selfe and of the manner how it is to be meditated for as much as concerneth the death of the body pag. 299. Chap. 61. Of that which is to be considered in the meditation of Death about that which shall happen to the soule that so we may profit the more in the knowledge of ourselues pag. 302. Chap. 62. That the dayly examination of our faults helpeth much towards the knowledge of our selues of other great benefits which this practise of Examen doth bring and of the profit which commeth to vs both by the reprehension of others and those also which our Lord doth interiourly send vs. pag. 308. Chap. 63. Of the estimation which we are to make of our good works that we may not fayle thereby in the knowledge of our selues and of true Humility and of the meruailous example which Christ our Lord doth giue vs for this purpose pag. 313. Cha.
of this Church And although in these tymes of ours there be departed from her a certayne race of people full of (c) Heresy is both the Mother and the companion and the daughter of Pride pryde and who for that very pryde were fit to be deceaued by the diuell yet the Church doth not for this giue ouer to be what shee was nor must we leaue to belieue that which formerly we belieued And therefore against this Church let no reuelation moue thee nor inward feeling of spirit nor any other thing eyther greater or lesse although it might seeme to be an Angell from heauen which should go against it I say although it should seeme for to be so indeed it is not possible Much lesse art thou to be moued by the doctrine of heretikes whether they be past or present or to come who being forsaken by the hand of God through his iust iudgment do follow a false light insteed of a true and destroying themselues they are the cause of perdition to as many as follow them Obserue what end they haue had who in former tymes haue departed from the beliefe of this Church and how they haue resembled the blustring of a wind which quickly passed and soone after was forgotten And consider how this Church hath remained victorious And although euen since the infancy therof it haue byn assaulted yet neuer hath it byn conquered because it was grounded vpon a firme rocke against which neither the raine nor the wind nor the riuers nor the very gates of hell can preuaile Shut therefore thyne eares against all doctrine which is contrary to this Church and follow that beliefe which hath byn receiued and kept for such a multitude of yeares since it is certaine that an infinite number of men haue byn not only saued therein but haue heere byn Saintes For my part I cannot reflect vpon a greater folly then for a man to leaue a way by which so many persons so wise and so holy went to heauen to follow certaine other folkes who are incomparably inferiour to the former in euery thing that is good In pryde indeed and impudence they are superiour for they will needs be better belieued without any other proofe but of their owne opinion then a multitude of our forefathers who were indued with diuine wisedome and who lead a most excellent life and who wrought a multitude of great miracles Whereas their chiefe whom these deceaued creatures follow was a certaine (d) A strang fellow to make the reformer of Gods Church Luther a man so weake in the point of his flesh that he was not able to liue without a woman nor shee being dead could he liue then in chastity but (e) According to Luthers doctrine he must either do that or worse for he sayth it was not possible for a man to liue withoâ—â—â— woman was faine as the report goes to take a second though many others haue contented themselues with one and others agayne without any at al that so they might with greater liberty purity attend to the contemplation of God How then shall we call that a good spirit which liued in that wicked man since it had not force to giue him a chastity euen of the most vulgar streine whereas yet he had made a promise of it after the highest manner which many men did so possesse whom it had byn fit for him to follow as his betters And since our Lord hath sayd that by the fruites we should know the tree it must haue byn a spirit of earth and of infirmity of flesh and of the diuell which dwelt in that man since he yealded such fruites as these and worse then these Stay a whyle thou shalt see the end of these wicked persons and how God will vomit them out to their extreame reproach declaring the errour of them by some manifest punishment as he hath done with their predecessours CHAP. XLVII What a terrible chastisement it is when God permitteth men to loose their Faith and that it is iustly taken away from them that worke not in conformity of what it teacheth HE that could haue light to iudge that the true blessinges or miseries of a man are the spirituall would quickly discerne the seuere chastisement of God vpon that kind of (a) Heretiques people yea so great chastisement as that only hell is worse then it Who (b) Iâ—rem 20. Psal 39. will not feare thee O thou King of the Nations or who hath knowne the power of thy wrath or who shal be able to recount it through the great feare which is to be had thereof The greatest chastisements of God which are most to be feared are not the losse of goods or of reputation or of life but for God to suffer the will of man to be hardned in sin or to permit his vnderstanding to be blinded in errour especially in matters of Fayth these be the wounds which are inflicted by that celestial indignation they are not the corrections of a father but of a iust and rigorous iudge Of these it is with much reason vnderstood which God sayth in (c) Iâ—rem 30. Ierâ—â—y With the wound of an enemy with rigâ—rous chastisemenâ— I haue wounded thee Though indeed he vseth not this rigour of a iudge till first he haue imployed the mercy of a Father And if thou marke it well the blindnes of the Vnderstanding hath this particuler mischiefe belonging to it more then hath the hardnesse of the will that (d) Let Heretikes consider the sad case they are in this latter though it be a great one is capable of more hope to meete with remedyes For as long as a mans Fayth remaineth though it be dead yet stil he knoweth that there is help in the Church towards the cure of his sinne which is a great step towards his recouering and rising But he that looseth his Fayth how shall he seeke it or where shall he find it since it is not to be found out of the Church because it is no where els and that which is in the Church he will not seeke because he belieueth it not and so he remayneth in ruine This is a word which God speaketh in Israel whosoeuer shall heare it his very cares shall tingle againe with meere seare But so great a punishment is not inflicted without great cause which S. Paul (e) Rom. â—â— declareth thus The wrath of God discouereth it selfe from the heauens downeward vpon all the wickednes of those men who (f) A place of Scripture excellently pondered detayned the wrath of God in iniustice And the intent of the Apostle in that place is this That there were men who although they knew God did not serue him as God but rather did puffe themselues vp with a blind kind of pride and hauing Truth in their vnderstanding they wrought iniquity with their will So that the truth of God was detayned or imprisoned in them since they did
hartes of such as follow it and of the punishment that they shall incurre pag. 4. Chap. 3. Of what remedies we are to serue our selues towards the contempt of the Vayne-glory of the world And of the great force which Christ our Lord doth giue for the ouercomming thereof pag. 8. Chap. 4. In what degree and to what end it is lawfull for a man to desire Honour in the world and of the extreme danger which there is in holding places of Authority and Commaund pag. 13. Chap. 5. How much we ought to fly from the pleasure of flesh and bloud and what a most dangerous Enemy this is of what helpes we are to serue our selues for the subduing thereof pag. 20. Chap. 6. Of two causes that there are of sensuall tentations what meanes we must vse against them when they rise from the Malice of the Diuell pag. 25. Chap. 7. Of the great peace which our Lord God giueth to them that sight manfully against this Enemy of the much that it importeth vs for the ouercomming of him to fly from familiarity with women pag. 30. Chap. 8. How the Diuell vseth to deceaue spirituall men by meanes of this enemy of our Flesh and Bloud of the course that we are to hold in keeping our selues from errour pag. 33. Chap. 9. That one of the principall remedies for the conquering of this Enemy is the exercise of deuout and feruent Prayer whereby we many find gust in diuine considerations which maketh vs abhorre all worldly pleasures pag. 39. Chap. 10. Of many other meanes which we are to vse when this cruell Enemy doth assault vs with his first blowes pag. 44. Chap. 11. Of other meanes besides the former wherby some grow to loose their Chastity that we may fly from them if we also will not loose ours and by what meanes we may strengthen our selues pag. 49. Chap. 12. That God vseth to punish such as are proud 〈◊〉 by permitting them to loose the treasure of Chastity thereby to humble them and how necessary it is to be humble for the ouercomming of the enemy to this vertue pag. 55. Chap. 13. Of two other dangerous meanes which are went to make way for the losse of Chastity in such as endeauour not to auoyd them pag. 60. Chap. 14. How much we ought to fly from the vaine confidence of obteyning victory against this enemy by our owne only industry and labour and that we must vnderstand it to be the guift of God of whom it is to be humbly asked by the intercession of the Saintes and in particuler of the Virgin our Blessed Lady pag. 63. Chap. 15. How our Lord disposeth not equally of the guist of Chastity vnto all because to some he giueth it only in their soules and of the great profit which the temptations against Chastity do bring if they be well borne pag. 67. Chap. 16. How the guift of Chastity is graunted to some not only in the interiour part of the soule but in the sensuall part also this after two manners pa. 71. Chap. 17. Wherein he beginneth to discourse of the languages spoken by the Diuell how much we ought to fly them that one of them is to make a man proud so to bring him to great mischeife and errour and of the meanes how to auoyd this language of Pride pag. 77. Chap. 18. Of another snare all contrary to the former which is Despaire whereby the Diuell procureth to conquer Man and how we shall carry our selues against him pag. 87. Chap. 19. Of the much which God the Father gaue vs in giuing vs Iesus Christ our Lord how thankefull we ought to be to help our selues by this fauour and to strengthen our selues thereby for the excluding of all desperation wherewith the Diuell is wont to assault vs. pag. 92. Chap. 20. Of some meanes which the Diuell vseth against the remedy that is spoken of whereby to fright vs how for this we must not faint but animate our selues the more considering the infinite mercy of our Lord. pag. 96. Chap. 21. He proceeds in the discourse of Gods mercy which he sheweth to them that cordially aske pardon This is a consideration of power to conquere all Despaire pag. 100. Cap. 22. Where he prosecutes the treaty of the mercy of God which he vseth towards vs his Maiesty ouercomming our enemyes after an admirable manner pag. 106. Cap. 23. Of the great mischeife which despaire doth worke in the soule and how we must ouercome this enemy with spirituall alacrity and diligence and feruour in the seruice of God pag. 110. Chap. 24. Of two remedies for the getting of Hope in the way of our Lord and that we must not turne coward although the remooue of the temptation be differred and how there be certayne hartes which know not how to be humbled but by the knocks of tribulation and therefore that they must so be cured pag. 118. Chap. 25. How the Diuell procureth to draw vs to despayre by tempting vs against fayth and the diuine mysteries and of the remedies that we must vse against these temptations pag. 122. Chap. 26. How the Diuell endeauours by meanes of the aforesaid temptations to remooue vs from our deuotion and good exercises that our remedy is to increase therein laying aside all superfluous desyre of feeling spirituall sweetnesse in the soule and to what end these also may be desyred pag. 126. Chap. 27. That the conquest of these temptations doth consist more in hauing patience to beare them and in the hope of the fauour of our Lord then in procuring forcibly that they may not come pag. 132. Chap. 28. Of the great remedy which groweth against these tentations by seeking a wise and well experienced ghostly Father who must be entirely informed and credited and how the ghostly Father ought to proceed with such persons of the fruit which riseth from these temptations pag. 135. Chap. 29. How the Diuell procureth by exteriour meanes to make vs giue ouer good exercises And how we must strengthen our hart by confidence in our Lord for the ouercomming of him And of other things which help to free vs from this feare and of the fruite of this temptation pag. 139. Chap. 30. Of many reasons which there are why we must hope that our Lord will deliuer vs out of all tribulation how greiuous soeuer it be of two significations which this word Belieue may be accounted to haue pag. 150. Cap. 31. That the first thing which we are to heare is diuine Truth by meanes of Faith which is the beginning of all spirituall life and which teacheth vs so high things as that they exceed all humane discourse pa. 159. Chap. 32. How agreable to reason it is to belieue the Mysteries of our Fayth although they exceed all humane reason pag. 163. Chap. 33. Of how firme and constant and authorized witnesses our faith hath had who haue giuen their liues for the truth thereof