coufounded in that mighty abysse of what is past But the Moments thou givest to thy God are put in reserve thou wilt find them they will come before thee At the great Judgment they will be put to thy account and for some moments of Devotion thou shalt receive eternal Glory Do not therefore hang in suspence any longer O my Soul delay no more to renounce all the pleasures and all the hopes of the Age for to follow thy God only In him is the Well of Life in his Light thou shalt see Light thou shalt be fatted with the fat of his House and quench thy thirst in the Floud of his Pleasures In thy old age thou shalt not regret the loss of thy Youth Thy days shall not rise up in Judgment against thee to condemn thee when thou shalt be old and on the brink of Death The thought of thy God shall not put thee into an affright Thou wilt not look upon him as a Judge who comes to demand an account of so many years consumed in vain Pleasures but a Deliverer who will come to break thy Irons and as a Rewarder bringing days of Refreshment instead of painful and dolorous years which the World would make thee pass thorough Prayer O Most gracious and merciful Lord thou Guide of my Youth thou Light to the blind thou Instructer of the ignorant who enlightenest the simple bringest back those that have wandered into the way of Truth and perfectest praise out of the mouth of Babes and Sucklings teach me thy ways and draw me out of the paths of the World make haste that I may do so too leave me not any longer in the World and in Sin By the effusion of thy Grace into my Soul make my Heart to desire thee that in desiring thee it may seek thee and in seeking thee it may find thee in finding thee it may love thee and in loving thee it may find in that love a sovereign Joy It is now too long a time I have consumed my self in my vain desires I would go to thee but I find not strength to vanquish those Habits wherein I am engaged by Custom Come therefore and tear me O my God out of the arms of Voluptuousness suffer not these delays of mine and if I should say yet a little while stay a little longer draw me by thy Powerfull Word and say unto me Awaken thou that sleepest arise from the dead and Christ shall give thee Light If words be not efficacious enough to raise me up touch the biere strike the Body wherein the Soul is as it were buried It sleepeth in its Tomb or rather it is dead bodily Pleasures have overwhelm'd or slain it Smite therefore the Body that the Soul may awake for it is better that I enter into Life having but one eye than having two eyes to be cast into Hell-fire It is better that my Flesh here below suffer some pains and that my Soul one day taste those infinite Pleasures which thou preparest for it on high I abide in Sodom and I love my abode thou sendest thy Angels to draw me thence thy Word and thy Mnisters to make me depart before the terrible day comes in which thou wilt tumble down torrents of fire and brimstone upon this wicked World but I ever find pretexts to delay Lay hold then of my hand and draw me out by the force of thy Grace that I perish not among the wicked Shew me the way of thy holy hill that I may save my self and thence without danger behold the deluges of Corruption which overspread the Country and the Torrents of thy Wrath and Vengeance which suddenly and amazingly overwhelm the World Alas If it would please thee O my God to make me taste the speritual Delights of thy Love I should not be so sensible of Earthly Pleasures and I should not linger so long to seek thee for I most ardently wish after happiness If therefore I knew that my Beatitude lyes in thee I should flye to find in thee that happiness which I seek O Lord since Pleasure is the only Load-stone capable of drawing my Soul make me taste a little of that Joy which I ought to find in thee make me to feel thy infinite Goodness that without delay I may run after thee and consecrate my self to thy service walking in Holiness and Righteousness all the dayes of my Life and setting my Affections on things above that when Christ who is my Life and Pleasure shall appear I may also appear with him in Glory PART IV. Of helps towards Devotion CHAP. I. The first General Advice is to will desire and ask Devâ—tion WE have seen from how many Sources Indevotion springs let us now try to vanquish those Difficulties by some Advices that may lead us to Devotion Those Advices I would give here are either general or particular But before I pass further we are to presuppose that he whom we would make devout must have a Mind himself to become so he that has not this Disposition will very unprofitably pass farther How many indevout persons have we in the World that do not desire Devotion for themselves and contemn it in others Of this sort we find some that are so hardy as to perswade themselves they have a Religion I am it may be says one as religious as another though I laugh at Devotion and devout Persons If they believe what they say most assuredly they cheat their own Heart and we must confess that these People are really profane Others there are that esteem Devotion in another and yet like it not for themselves it doth not fit right with the Spirit of the World which they make their Idol They approve the better side they admire it but they fancy as to their own particular they may be saved with less Trouble I know not whether these be better than the former yet they are a little nearer to the Disposition we seek after but still alas in how bad a Condition is their Conscience They are in this worse than the former that they sin against their own Sentiment they know their Masters Will and do it not They are afraid of doing too much provided they be sav'd it 's of no great Importance how What a thought is this Is not Paradise worth the purchasing at the Expence of some Tears some Prayers some hours of Humiliation And how can we imagine we can obtain Heaven by the less since we shall find a hard Task to arrive thither by the greater If the righteous scarcely be saved where shall the Vngodly and the Sinner appear Do ye believe ye backward and lukewarm Souls that a truly devout Person has too much Righteousness to open to himself the gate of Heaven Do not you know that all the World praises that Saying of St. Austin Woe to the most praise-worthy Life if it be examined without Mercy and what the Psalmist says If thou should'st mark Iniquities O Lord who shall stand I
The Christians Guid to Devotion Printed for H. Rodes near Bride lane in Fleetst â—â—â—nford sc The Christians Guide TO DEVOTION WITH RULES and DIRECTIONS for the leading an Holy Life AS ALSO MEDITATIONS and PRAYERS Suitable to all Occasions By S. Smith The Second Edition LONDON Printed for Hen. Rodes next door to the Bear-Tavern in Fleet-street near Fleet-Bridge 1685. A Table of the Contents in this Tract PART I. Of the Nature and Effects of Devotion Chap. 1. WHerein Devotion generally consists Pag. 1. Chap. 2. Of its Effects Pag. 6. Chap. 3. The high necessity of Devotion Pag. 14. Chap. 4. Of its great Decay and Neglect Pag. 20. Chap. 5. That Indevotion is a greater Sin than it is commonly accounted Pag. 26. PART II. Of the Causes of Indevotion Chap. 1. First Impurity of Life Pag. 34. Chap. 2. Secondly Love of the World Pag. 39. Chap. 3. Thirdly The too great Passion we have for Earthly Pleasures Pag. 45. Chap. 4. Fourthly Worldly Cares and Troubles Pag. 52. Chap. 5. Fifthly Excessive Business Pag. 59. Chap. 6. Sixthly The custom of letting the Mind wander upon different Objects Pag. 66. Chap. 7. Lastly The Rareness and Interruption of holy Duties Pag. 73. PART III. Of the great Source of Indevotion the Spirit of the World and the love of Pleasure Chap. 1. That Voluptuousness is a mortal Enemy to Devotion What are the Sentiments and Maxims of the World concerning the Vse of Pleasure and Sensuality Pag. 81. Chap. 2. That Sensual Pleasures do not either in their Vse or in their Abuse agree with the Spirit of Christianity and of Devotion Pag. 94. Chap. 3. The same Truth more particularly and fully discuss'd Pag. 104. Chap. 4. What may be accounted innocent Pleasures That Devotion is no uneasie thing nor an Enemy to Pleasure Pag. 116. Chap. 5. That we are not to consult our own Heart and Senses upon the choice of Pleasures That Devotion leads us to true Pleasure Pag. 131. Chap. 6. That Young People have not any priviledge to use sensual Pleasures nor to dispence themselves from Devotion Pag. 147. PART IV. Of Directions and Helps conducive to Devotion Chap. 1. First General direction To will desire and ask it Pag. 159. Chap. 2. Secondly To lead an holy Life and practise all the Vertues Pag. 165. Chap. 3. Thirdly To be watchful over the Senses and not to let the Heart loose Pag. 172. Chap. 4. Fourthly To persevere in holy Duties and not to startle at any difficulties Pag. 177. Chap. 5. Fifthly To have God alwayes before our Eyes Pag. 183. Chap. 6. First particular direction To have our Hours of Devotion well chosen and ordered Pag. 189. Chap. 7. The second Help Solitude and Religious Assemblies Pag. 196. Chap. 8. The third Reading and Meditation Pag. 203. Chap. 9. The fourth Prayer Pag. 212. Chap. 10. The Fifth Fasting and mortification Pag. 218. Chap. 11. Touching the rash Judgment which is made of devout People Pag. 226. PART I. CHAP. I. What Devotion is and wherein it consists THIS is not a Subject to be defined according to Rules It has less of the School than the Closet and good ignorant Souls can instruct us better in it than those who have more Knowledge than Integrity Yet the Schools which busie themselves every where undertake to define Devotion as well as other things Some would define it by a tenderness of heart and 〈◊〉 mollified Spirit Others by an internal Comfort which the Devout are sensible of in their Practise of Piety A third sort say 't is a Quickness and Promptiâ—ude of Mind whereby holy People are carried to the Service of God Some there are who make it â—o consist in an unspeakable and a glorious Joy which â—lls the faithful and makes them say My Soul is satisfied â—s with Marrow and Fatness Others have defin'd it â—y the Affections In the first place to all this I say That it may be a piece of Rashness to go about to deâ—ne a thing we know not how well to express since 〈◊〉 is of the number of those which cannot well be conâ—â—ived but by them who feel it nor can well be deâ—â—ribed although one conceives it Nevertheless we cannot define it by one word alone nor by one motion of the Soul for it is composed of all the Species's of Passions it admits of contrary Sentiments 〈◊〉 has Desires and it has Fears Terrours and Hopes 〈◊〉 Love and Hatred Joy and Sadness Ardour and Zeaâ— Quickness and Alacrity It has Desires every Dâ—vout Soul vehemently desiring to be well with Goâ— and to be united to him As the Hart panteth after tâ—â— Water-brooks so panteth my Soul after thee O God 〈◊〉 Soul thirsteth for God for the living God When shall come and appear before God It admits of Fear for good Soul is ever afraid of its unworthiness to posseâ— the Graces which it so passionately desires I am 〈◊〉 worthy sayes it to our Lord Jesus that thou should'st coâ—â— under my Roof If it be in possession of its God it feâ—â— to lose him it watches even in sleep I sleep but 〈◊〉 Heart waketh fearing lest something should raviâ—â— away its Beloved Terrour also enters into the Compound of thâ— Vertue namely when the Soul is fall'n into soâ—â— great sin the presence of its God astonishes it and 〈◊〉 Majesty fills it with horrible Apprehensions Aâ—â— without this the devout Soul never presents it 〈◊〉 before God but it remembers that before him 〈◊〉 Angels tremble and it sayes Oh! how terrible is tâ— place this is the House of the living God Moreovâ—â— Love is to be found in it and we may say that Loâ—â— is as the Source and Basis of Devotion In considâ—ing both the Beauty and Goodness of God it is touch with a violent desire of Union It says with the Spoâ—â— Let him kiss me with the kisses of his Mouth for his Lâ—â— is sweeter than Wine There is also Hatred for 〈◊〉 devout Soul cannot love God unless it renounce Sâ— love and hate the World the love of which is incâ—patible with that of God There is Joy too for â—â—ty has its Feasts and the Wise man says the heaâ— a just man is a continual Banquet Thou hast put sayes David more Joy in my heart than the wicked have of their abundance My heart is glad my Glory rejoyceth my Flesh also shall rest in hope Yet we must confess that this Light is not altogether pure Devotion has its Melancholy amidst its Joyes and frequently it sighs at the sense of its Infirmities The last ingredient of Devotion is Promptitude and Ardour which is as it were the Body of Devotion and appears more than the rest in a devout Soul It has an inconceivable chearfulness in the exercises of Piety it hears the Word it Prays it Reads it Meditates it communicates as others do the most Pleasant things in the World It runs it flies to these actions and undertaking 'em with a Gaiety of heart does 'em with great ease These
neglects the other Life as if it were never to come I believe O my God but help thou my unbeleif Make me to see the Truth and Excellency of Eternal Life that I may flight the present Life that I may make me such Friends as may receive me into everlasting Habitations that I may acquire such Riches as I may carry along with me and that I may make choice of that good Part which shall not be taken away from me CHAP. VI. The Custom of letting the mind ramble 〈◊〉 different Objects A sixth Source of Indevotion I Believe that this is also another Source of 〈◊〉 Indevotion and especially of our Distraction During Prayer we know not how to fire oâ—â— Heart our mind wanders and our attention iâ— lost Whence proceeds this but from a pernicious custom we have of giving a soaring vaunt to our Imagination It is in man what Quick-Silver is in Mertals It rouls it runs glibly up and down A little fire makes it evaporate and as it were to vanish into Smoak it becomes so subtle We suffer it to 〈◊〉 what ever it pleases When 't is upon the Wing sometimes it flyes from East to West from South to North from Heaven to Earth and as if the limits of the Universe were too narrow for it it over-passes them and loses its self in the innumerable Whirle-pooâ— of Des-Cartes And no more can it contain it self within the bounds of Time it flyes to Eternity and asks what it is It would know what was when there was Nothing If it keeps its self within this World amidst this great space it curvets over all Beings it swims over all Matter and the compounds of it differently modified and yet penetrates none of them And as if the prodigioâ— Mass of Creatures did not furnish Imployment enough to its Actions it labours in the production or rather creation of Beings of its own forming It imagine Chimeras Phantomes it makes Mountains of Gold Worlds in the Moon Centaurs and Hippogryphicks And these motions for the most part are of such quick â—ispatch that in a quarter of an hours rambling we find â—ur selves so far off that the greatest Parted man in â—â—e World could never ghess by our last thought what was the first And after this shall we ask from whence â—ome those aberrations of our heart in the duties and exercises of Piety can we expect that a Soul accustomed to wander can fix and arrest it self all at once It is an Horse that has not as yet received the Bitt it does nothing night or day but kick and skip up and down in the Meadows When one would put the Saddle upon the back or the Rein in the mouth it flyes out and struggles it throws down him that gets up and returns from whence it came When we would gather our selves together it dissipates its self like a Flame it abandons us it breaks the Rein of Piety and before that we espy the first ways it took we find it plunged in the diversity of its vain thoughts St. Augustine â—acknowledges that this is the cause of our Distractions When our mind is fill'd with these Phantasins savs he and that incessantly it carries along with it an infinite number of vain thoughts thence it comes to pass that our Prayers are oftentimes troubled and interrupted thereby and that when being in thy presence O God we indeavour to make thee hear the voice of our heart An action of such importance is frequently traversed by frivolous Imaginations which come from I know not whence to break into the crowd in our minds If we did well comprize the nature of Evil we might easily conceive the Remedy Evils ought to be cured by their contraries So that let us learn to give bounds to our imagination and not permit it to go so far that we may have the less trouble to bring it back again That is to say For the disposing our heart to Devotion we ought to accustom our mind to think a little of things and of good things 't is a Mercury that must fix it self in being applied to Silver or Gold 't is a lively faculty whereto we must give the Bridle and the Rein. 〈◊〉 let us not imagine that the secret to cure this Malaâ—â— of the Soul consists in retaining our mind in a privatâ—â—â— of all thought this is not profitable to Nature nor useâ—â—â— to Grace The imagination of man is too active 't is iâ—possible to hold it from doing nothing 't is to bring 〈◊〉 Death upon it to leave it without imployment sincâ— it lives no longer than it acts God hath not given 〈◊〉 such noble faculties to bury them in an inglorious aâ—â— shameful Idleness In short a mind that is habituatâ—â— to think on nothing would nevertheless find it as muâ—â— trouble to fix it self upon the works of Piety as oâ—â— would to withdraw it from its ramblings and course that it formerly used From all which I conclude that the imployment of letter'd and knowing men are perhaps the most destructive to Devotion as any that are in the World The Eye is scarce ever weary with seeing nor the Eaâ— with hearing and we are so far from counting this among Defects that we reckon it a great Vertue Undeâ— favour to those Great Names of Sciences of fine knowledges of curious Researches of Sublime Speculations of miraculous Discoveries there is established in the World a method to mince the Soul and almost infinitely to subdivide it without Remedy would to God experience did not give us proofs of the Truth But it 's very certain and very well known that Atheists are not to be found in the croud of the common People The Epicures the Protagoras's and Diagoras's were knowing men of great Wit The thing is past into a Proverb And they say that they who by reason of the Art whereof they make profession are obliged to study Nature and the second Causes very much do â—ix themselves so strongly thereto that they forget to ascend to the first Cause These men so well read in Antiquity and that make so great a noise in the Common-wealth of Learning for their knowledge make none at â—ll in the Church for their great Devotion The study only of heavenly things can inspire an habit of Piety we also see enow great Divines continue bad Christians because they refer not their Labours to God nor to his Glory all their industry is for themselves and they are the end of all their own watchings I would never â—herefore advise him that has a mind to be very devout â—o imbrace so many things nor to fill his head with conjectures and his memory with these May-bees whereof those rare Sciences so called are composed besides that this Acquisition brings in a habit of self-conceited Pride and surly Scorn a great enemy to the Spirit of Devotion and it puts the Virtuosos up with Pyrrhonism and Doubt which from Philosophy passes into Divinity And whereas some find nothing
certain in humane Sciences they take the same liberty to doubt of Divine Revelations We accustom our selves to judge of things according to the light of Reason for to condemn whatever does not agree with it â—nd we are rash enough to introduce that Principle into the Church which ought to have been left in the Schools I do not say this as if I would be the advocate of Ignorance seeing we are Citizens of the World it is allowed us to inquire a little of what is done â—here But the Author of Nature whereof we make a part makes us see plainly with what discretion and advisedness we ought to advance in the Discovery of â—er Secrets He has not shewn us but the Effects and has hid from us almost all the Causes which teaches â—s that we may easily be without these knowledges by reason that hidden things are not for us I know not too whether a little Ignorance would not make more for â—he Glory of our Creator If we understood Nature â—s well as we would understand it perhaps we should have the less Admiration for its great Author for as they say Admiration is the Daughter of Ignoranâ— and it is certain that we get an habit of not admiriâ— the finest and most wonderful things because we see 〈◊〉 and are over-acquainted with them The desire of Knowledge deceives us but let 〈◊〉 guard our selves from its surprises our first Parents sted the effects on 't sufficiently for their liquorish haâ— kering after an equal knowledge of Good and Evil 〈◊〉 the Gods When they were in a good state thâ— knew not even if they were naked and they acquiâ— not this knowledge with the rest but in the loss of the Innocence Only the knowledge of God ought to be 〈◊〉 subject matter and end of our labours and this is implâ— ment enough for our whole life Blessed is he that know thee says St. Austin though he knows nothing else and 〈◊〉 ed is that creature that knows every thing with knowing thee But he who knows thee and every 〈◊〉 else is happy not because he knows those other things 〈◊〉 because he knows thee Run not therefore O my Soâ— after those vain shadows of Science or if thou ruâ—â— after them let it be as after shadows without fi 〈◊〉 and without Love Fix thy self only to the comâ— plation of thy God he is an admirable object he is 〈◊〉 finitely greater than all the Creatures together 〈◊〉 vertheless this vast Object will not cause that Dissipaâ— so inseparable from the contemplation of the Creatuâ— It is infinite but contracts it self in a point It 〈◊〉 Sun that re-unites all its rayes in the bottom of 〈◊〉 Heart to fill it both with Light and Flame Let the 〈◊〉 vout Soul says St. Basil be a Mirror and a pure Gâ— that it may not receive the Image of any thing but its 〈◊〉 vine Spouse Let it continue wholly imployed and tâ— up by this Image so as foreign things approaching nigh 〈◊〉 not find a place there to paint and contemplate themselâ—â— Thou eternal Star saith another who art the Source all created Lights pierce thorough my heart with 〈◊〉 thy beams which may purifie me and make me glad which may illuminate and quicken my Soul to unite all its power to thee If we do some violence to our mind to fasten it upon this one and sole Object we shall find the good we expect and seek after it being a remedy against our indevout Distractions When we have a long time held this slippery and evaporate Soul in the Chains of Divine Meditation it will become more stayed and weighty It will not escape us with so much ease and as in flying us it does not take its flight but in its known Roads and stumbles only on the Ideas that are familiar with it whilst that divers thoughts will become estranged from it by the little Commerce it will have with them it will not easily be able to get away Meditation HOW little do men know themselves or the extent of their Mind to embrace so many Objects at once Do thou O my Soul become wise by the faults of thy Neighbours Thou hast enough wherewith to busie thy self in the Contemplation of thy God Labour to know him only and if thou aimst to know other things do it in such a sort as that all other Knowledge may conduct thee to the Knowledge of thy God Vain is thy hope to joyn the Knowledge of the World with that of Heaven Thy Heart is already too little for that God that is infinite and for that Object which hath no bounds and if once thou sufferest thy self to be employed in the Images of all the Creatures where wilt thou find room for God's Image The Eyes of Owls being accustomed to darkness cannot endure the brightness and splendour of the Sun A Mind always taken up in the contemplation of bodily things cannot sustain the brightness of that Being of Beings of that pure Spirit that shines with so great a lustre Prayer O Invisible and glorious Sun that discoverest not thy beauries but to Souls purified from the vain Images of the World cleanse my Soul by the purity of thy Beams chase away that Darkness that blinds my Eyes And from my Imagination banish the vain Fantoms which hinder me from contemplating solely the pure Lights of thy Truth I know thee O my God because it has pleased thee to reveal thy self unto me But what is it that I know of thy Greatness in comparison of what is really and what may be known of it I see the obscurity I form to my self an Idea of thy Essence and Majesty which sinks infinitely below thy very self I do thee this wrong O my God yet I am not blame-worthy for I cannot do otherwise I ask thee forgiveness I am very sensible I do not know thee as thou art 'T is rather the fault of my Mind than of my Heart Purifie mine Eyes that I may behold thee which as vigourous an Aspect as that of an Eagle which looks upon the Sun Let the Knowledge of thy Beauty charm me and fill me in such sort as that I may conceive an holy distaste for all that is called in the World rare Knowledge and great Literature Let me not scatter my self in the circumference Let all my looks be toward thee who art the Center from whence flows all the Beauty and Truth in the World Let me but see thee and in seeing thee shall I see all that can be seen Let my Soul rally and recollect it self upon this Object only that it may penetrate it if it be possible O God aid me in this design make thy self visible make me to enter into the bottom of thy Mysteries and into the secrets of thy infinite Wisdome that I may slight and despise as unworthy of mee all the curious sciences whereof the men of the Age make so great a Mystery CHAP. VII The Rareness and interruption of holy
tasts it's chief Pleasure And if we please we may call this chief Pleasure the chief Happiness of man But men are terribly chows'd herein They are persuaded that the Soul is not capable of any true Pleasure without it be what comes from the Body Among men generally a spiritual pleasure and a chimerical pleasure are all one All those who make their felicity to consist in Contemplation and in Actions intirely removed from those which make up carnal pleasure pass in the World for visionary wights this Errour springs from the Heart and Senses And therefore I say that in the Judgment we ought to have of pleasures and in the choice we ought to make thereof we are not to consult either our Senses or our Heart This mistake I say is caused by the Heart and Senses because they believe nothing agreeable but what is agreeable to them We judge things good or evil only according to the relation they have to the Faculties whereunto they raise either pleasure or Pain And therefore the Heart and Senses which are corporeal cannot be touch'd by spiritual things They judge these cannot be agreeable because they are sensible of no Pleasure in them Just as a blind man if he would judge according to the report of his Senses undoubtedly he would judge that there are no colours or if there were they could not make any Impression upon his Senses This is then an Imposture which we must lay open and disperse First of all we ought to remember that Man is made up of two parts the Soul and Body Each of these parts hath it's separate and distinct Goods The Goods of the Mind are spiritual and those of the Body necessarily corporeal Of these two parts the Soul is infinitely the more excellent From this Man is properly denominated and the Body is but a Retainer to him so that consequently the Goods and Pleasures which belong to the Soul by its self are infinitely greater than those which come by the interposition of the Body Lastly 't is very easie to comprehend why the Senses and the Heart indge otherwise These being bodily Faculties we need not wonder they hold clearly for bodily things As for the Senses this is without dispute they are corporeal both in their Organs and in their Operations they perceive only the Superficies of Bodies This is no less true of the Heart it is corporeal too for I understand by the Heart the seat of the Passions and the Imagination 't is very evident that both these Faculties are bodily Faculties For the Imagination is the feat wherein are represented those Images that come from the Senses and offer themselves to our Mind in the absence of Objects The Passions also are corporeal because they are formed by Mechanical Movements This is manifest by those Characters they impress upon the Body as the motion of the Blood quick slow or precipitate Paleness or Ruddiness of Complexion the Fire and languishing which they impress upon the eyes The Senses and Heart which are corporeal being the Gates whereat Objects do enter and accost the mind bring nothing to it but bodily Images and raise in it only sensual Pleasures and the Soul hereby gets an habit of believing there are no other Pleasures besides these since it does not endeavour to disingage it self from the Body and to taste others But can it be possible we should be such enemies to our selves and so irrational as to believe our Senses touching a thing of so great Importance The Senses are unable to know the thousandth part of Bodies As soon as ever a Body ceases to have a considerable Extension we cease to see and feel it and would we make these very Senses to be judges of things absolutely Spiritual Certainly the Soul is very unhappy and very much a Slave if it cannot taste that Pleasure which is its sovereign Felicity but it must be beholden to the Body for it If Matter be the Spring of true Pleasure what do those Souls do I wonder that are separated from Matter what must be the Beatitude of Angels that have no Body Is it not true that their Pleasures ought to be as far above ours as Minds are above Matter Assuredly spiritual Pleasures spring from the knowledge of Truth from the practise of Virtue from our union with God by the tyes of Love and from that Action whereby God unites himself immediately to our Soul All this is intirely above the Senses they are not acquainted with Truth for their Office is to report the Appearances of Bodies They cannot judge of Virtue it is not under their Jurisdiction much less can they judge of that Union betwixt God and the Soul And yet although they make no report to us about any of these things we are not nevertheless to doubt of the real Impressions they make upon our Souls But from whence comes it say some that spiritual Pleasures are not so touching and make not such strong Impressions upon the Soul as bodily ones doe For you see not say they your devout People in those Transports of Joy and Pleasure as we see men have in the injoyment of Sensual Pleasures Is not this a proof that those intellectual pleasures are merely imaginary or at least that they are very weak and languishing This difficulty arises from that men know not how to distinguish the Soul from the body they believe it is concern'd in proportion to the greatness of the agitations of the Bodily Organs They are persuaded that it cannot receive an impression of Joy but by the interposal of these great corporeal motions But the thing is far otherwise 't is certain that in the great Pleasures which the Soul receives from the Body the great corporeal Agitations re'ncounter one another and it receives not those pleasures but by favour of these agitations and because the Bloud and Spirits are in a great heat and ferment But the Pleasures of holy Persons which are lock'd up in the Soul it self and which exert no external Characters do not fail to make very powerful Impression These Pleasures are so great and so touching that they carry the Soul out of the World And the Joy which springs from the possession of God from the Knowledge of his Truth and the imitation of his Vertues and Attributes must needs infinitely transcend all the pleasures of the Body Since that for these spiritual pleasures we not only renounce bodily ones but also expose our selves to all even the most sensible pains True it is the more the Soul is accustomed to let its self be moved by the Agitations which do cause corporeal Pleasures and Passions the more is it uncapable of tasting Internal joys and spiritual Pleasures And this is one of the greatest mischiefs that spring from the continual use of sensuality the Soul waxeth fat as the holy Ghost speaketh the heart of the Wicked is fat as grease he hath prophaned the Rock of his Salvation It covers its self as it were with
rain of thy Grace bless this Field to make it bring forth Fruits worthy of Repentance Let mine hands distill Myrrh and my fingers precious Spices Let them be alwayes opened to the miserable Let my feet run to the help of the afflicted Let my ears receive with earnestness thy Word and thy Praises Let my tongue continually celebrate thy most glorious Name and lift up even to Heaven the Acts of thy good Favour O Holy Spirit thou Principle of all good motions instill Life into me be thou the Soul of my Soul that it may be no more interred in the Grave of Sleep and Sin but that it may act mightily that it be inflamed by the fire of Charity that this Fire may never cease one moment to be at rest and without Action so that by continual practice of good Works I may be disposed to Devotion and to an Vnion with thee who art the Object of my Love O let me by this Purity invite Him more and more who is the Author of every good and perfect Gift to make me partake of the flames of Zeal and Piety CHAP. III. The third general Direction To be watchful over the Senses and not let the Heart loose SO near a commerce is there between the Heart and the Senses that our strife would be in vain to guard the one unless we set a strict watch over the other The Heart is the House the Senses are the Gates and Windows And hereat does the Devil enter and seises on our Souls This Enemy prepares so many batteries without as we have external Senses and if we escape Death on one side he sends it us on the other Notwithstanding this we may say in vindication of the Senses that they are more unhapy than criminal they have a sensation of what they ought to have according to the order of Creation and even the greatest part of Ideas which come to 'em are innocent but they are spoyled in arriving at the Heart The beauty of a Woman the glitter of Gold and Silver and precious Stones the sweetness of vocal Musick are the works of God and consequently they cannot be evil but 't is the Heart poysons these innocent Images Nevertheless since the Heart doth not scatter it's poyson but upon the Objects which are presented to it we should take away the matter of its Crimes and it 's mischievous Habits would be assuredly destroy'd and lost if they wanted Employment and therefore it 's of absolute necessity to have a constant guard over the Senses I made an agreement with mine Eyes says an holy man not to look upon all Women This has been ever the custom of those who would become truly devout to hold their Souls shut up to the multitude of Objects that might assault 'em on all sides True it is the usage of this Maxime has bin pusht on and wrested even to Superstition some have voluntarily banisht themselves into Desarts that they might see nothing at all Others have lock'd themselves up in Cells and Caves never to come forth And History tells us of an Egyptian Hermit who would never agree to let his Sister have the Pleasure of seeing of him He receiv'd Order from his Superiour at the intreaty of Athanasius to go and visit her he went but he presented himself before her with his Eyes shut and would by no means see her Glut thy self quickly sayd he to her with the sight of me These excesses do a greater wrong and injury to Reason than they bring help to Devotion The Soul draws a vast aid from its senses when it knows how to make a good use of them To stop all the Avenues whereby Knowledge may arrive to the Soul is to keep it in a darksome and lonely Prison and nourish it in Ignorance What is true herein is that 't is dangerous for it to be concern'd about evil Objects because it carries thence a tincture which indisposes it for Devotion 'T is no less dangerous to permit it to meddle too much with indifferent Objects fince this dissipates its strength and evermore it returns with somewhat of the Vain air of those Courses it takes Abroad This is the way of the Worlds living we give we receive Visits we expose our selves to conversation that is to the contagion of every Comer The eyes are always open'd to see new Objects the Ears to hear News Vain is our Discourse we say there a thousand impertinences and more of evil than good things One willl entertain you with a Dress Another with a little intrigue of the Town Others will pour profane or back-biting discourses into your Breast One will carry you to see a new House or any fine building One lately come from a new World will tell you strange things and enlarge his Recitals with Stories and Miracles which he himself had been concern'd in and your Soul will return to your House charged with these Toys and Gew-gaws When it would enter into its Closet it 's certain it will not find the Heart in its ordinary Dispositions and upon that account it is the more difficult to be Devout in great Cities where you can scarcely defend your selves from these Amusements so that I would advice the faithful Soul to keep its self up close The Souls of worldly people are like to your great Streets they are open to every Comer we are never there but in a crowd and Devotion which loves Privacy is not pleased with these publick places These are Inns where all Strangers are lodg'd well and the Master lyes oft out of Doors But the heart of the faithful Person ought to be for himself and God who is its Master is to be ever at Large A Garden inclosed is my Sister my Spouse a Spring shut up a Fountain sealed says Jesus Christ to his Spouse that is to every Christian Soul Lock up this Garden if thou wouldst preserve the Flowers and Fruits and let not the purity of thy living Waters be corrupted by unclean Beasts Temples and Oratories are not to be accessible to the prophane our Hearts are the Temples of the holy Ghost and therefore let us shut the Gates against a thousand indiscreet Ideas and vain Objects that would prophane them The Soul is a vessel which Grace fills with sweet Odours but we should not give it too much Air otherwise it would evaporate and become insipid If the vessel be full it can receive nothing new without losing what it had before If it be filled with Devotion and we bring it into the World according to the measure it is filled with Vanities these Vanities will send what it had good a packing away 'T is a truth we are to fix in our memories that at all times we make any sally into the World we lose so much of our own Dinah went out to see the Daughters of the Land and she lost her best ornament the flower of her Virginity But especially let us remember that in seeking out harmless Objects we