employ to reform it till the next Retreat And the better to preserve those Good dispositions we should first render thanks to God for the Graces he has bestow'd on us during the Retreat We should then offer up all our Resolutions to him and renew them with more earnestness beseeching the Blessed Virgin to intercede for us with her son that he would give us his Grace where by we way be render'd faithful to the End and begging that she would undertake for our fidelity which she can obtain for us But after all these Resolutions we must not rely so much upon them as to forget our weakness for nothing is more dangerous then too much security It very much concerns us to be exact in our watch the first three or four Days after this we shall find the difficulty'is lessen so that we shall execute our resolutions with Ease The greatest difficulties are in the beginning and the surest way to maintain our fervour is without any delay to declare our selves for virtue A MEDITATION to prepare for Retreat THe subject of this Meditation is taken out of the Parable in the thirteenth of Saint Luke Luâ—e 23.6 7. c. of the man who sought fruit on a Fig-tree planted in his Vineyard and finding none said to the dresser of the Vineyard It is now three years that I come seeking fruit on this Fig-tree and find none out it down why cumbreth it the Ground But his servant desir'd him to wait one year more that he might dig about it and dung it and if after all his care it should be still unfruitful then he would cut it down FIRST POINT Consider with what care God hath hitherto cultivated us that we might bring forth fruit We came into the world not only a barren tree but corrupted and spoil'd by original Sin fit for nothing but to be cast into Hell Fire The singular Mercy of God has preferr'd us to many others has planted us in his Church by making us Christians or in the fertile field of a Religious Life if by a greater effect of his Love he has call'd us to that state Have we ever truly known the advantage of being planted in this holy ground cultivated by the labours and water'd by the sweat and blood of him who is both God and man This ground in which we are hath produc'd those Hero's of Christianity and bears every day a multitude of saints of all sexes ages conditions Those excellent fouls with the same manuring that is with the same assistance that is given us have and do every day bring forth fruit worthy of Eternal Life They had no other Gospel no other Sacraments then we have The Grace of God abounds at all times ther Rules were not different from ours only they were more faithful to those Rules by the exact observation of which alone they are become great saints We have the benefit of their Examples and many proper helps which they wanted Add to these advantages the particular favours we have receiv'd from God call to mind all the pains he hath taken to make us fruitful all the good thoughts he hath inspir'd us with all the pious Resolutions he hath excited in us since we had the use of Reason his favours have been innumerable since we have been in his service how often hath he nourish'd us with the food of Angels his owne flesh how often have we heard him speaking to our hearts how often has he enlightned us how many Graces have we receiv'd from him in our Retreats and â—ommunions and and how many other favours hath he heap'd on us Half these are sufficient to make a great saint nay there are many blessed spirits now in heaven who never had all these advantages and yet they bare much fruit They made admirable use of their talents their Lives were full of good works which have adorn'd them with merits whereby they now possess everlasting happiness a just reward of their Fidelity Let us now consider seriously and impartially whether the same manuring the spinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ have made us like bear much fruit SECOND POINT Consider that the fruits God requires of us are not dry and barren devotions and appearances of virtue which serve for the most part onely to amuse the imperfect who with all their pretended good works pass their whole Lives in sloth tepidity without growing better in any one point Their specious virtues are but leaves but gaudy out sides which deceive men and themselves too making them take the effects of passion or humane respect of Education or of their natural temper for real virtues The Fruits which Saint Iohn calls Fruits worthy of pennance Matt. 3.8 Gal. 5.22.23 c. and Saint Paul the Fruits of the spirit are the effects of a true love to God and a perfect charity towards our neighbour They are such as a solid Piety produces an extreme horrour for the smallest sin a violent hunger after Righteousness an universall coâ—stant and continual Mortification a profound humility a great exactness in all the duty 's of our Calling they are an exceeding a version for every thing our Saviour hates and an high esteem for every thing he loves The Victory over our passions the reformation of our Lives and conduct are the Fruits that he expects from us This is the meaning of those words Matt. 3.8 Bringforth fruits worthy of pennance shew by your works by the whole course of your Life that you are really converted Here let us examine our selves Have we brought forâ—h many of these Fruits God hath been careful to cultivate us these three these ten years that we might be fruitful many would have been saints with much less Graces and yet all have not perhaps made one good Religious or one good Christian 'T is not the fault of the ground in which Jam planted it is holy ground and yields an hundred fold even many of my accquaintance with less advantages bring forth much more fruit then I. What benefit have I receiv'd by so many Masses what am I the better for so many Communions One single Communion is able to elevate a soul to a sublime perfection yet I who have receiv'd it may be one or two hundred times have not yet reform'd any one fault After so many Devotions am I more humble more exact more mortifyed Do I love my God and Saviour more What is become of all the good thoughts I have formerly had where is all my fervour what is become of that inward peace and true pleasure which I have sometimes experien'cd in my Devotions what is become of all my holy Resolutions and all my fair promises alas perhaps we find no traces of them all but a sad remembrance which serves only to shew us how far we are from the state in which we ought to be Has not our ingratitude towards God augmented proportionably to the increase of his blessings And do's it
not seem that his care to make us fruitful serves only to make us more unprofitable But that which ought to humble us more is that after having spent ten or twenty years in the way of Perfection we should think ourselves happy to be as much advanc'd as as we were when we began Yet still the time passes and the year draws towards an end when the owner weary of the barrenness of his Fig-tree after so much pains is resolv'd to cut it down cast it into the Fire THIRD POINT Consider the danger to which we expose ourselves while we are unprofitable and what Reason we have to fear least we draw upon our heads the vengeance of God and the terrible sentence of Reprobation which he has pronounc'd against the Barren Tree How many Graces have we lost Of how many have we depriv'd our selves Those Graces which we have made useless by our unfaith fulness are the fruits of the Death and of the blood of Christ were sufficient to convert the Heathens and increase the number of Saints in heaven after having augmented the number of true Christians on Earth How many years together has the blessed Jesus visited us to see if we would bring forth fruit and hath either found nothing but leaves oâ— such fruit as the Vale of Sodom produces fair to the Eye but rottenness and ashes at the heart Has he not then just reason to say to us as he did to his vineyard by the Prophet Quid est quod debuultra facere vincae meâ—â— non feci Is 5.4 What could I do more for my Vineyard that I have not done in it After all my care pains to improve it when Jexpected it should bing forth good grapes it brought forth wil'd Grapes May not our saviour make us the same reproach we know it is too well grounded what answer shall we give But let us fear and tremble when we come to consider the just vengeance which he resolves to take on this unfruitful vine Et uune vobis ostendam quid ego faciam vineae auferam sepem ejus ponam eam desertam non putabitur non fodietur ascendent vepres spinae nubibus mandabo ne pluant super eam imbrem x. 5.6 And now I will shew what I will do to my Vineyard I will take away the hedg thereof and it shall be eaten up I will break down the walls there of and it shall be trodden down I will lay it wast it shall not be prun'd or dig'd but there shall come brayars and thorns and that its ruine may be without remedy I will command the clouds not to rain upon such ungrateful ground which brings forth only bad fruit We may easily understand the meaning of these words let us now apply them to our selves we have hitherto brought forth only leaves rotten fruit God will therefore deprive us of those great helps which we render useless When that hedge is once taken away that inward recollection once lost our hearts will run after every object and we shall become a prey to our unruly Passions God will speak no more to our hearts All the exhortations and Counsells of wise and zealous Directors will make no impression on us the source of Grace will bedry'd up and what will become of a soul in this wretched state which every one that continues barren and unprofitable must certainly expect Is there no danger of our being like a dead branch which cut off from its trunk withers and is good for nothing but the Fire Let us remember Matt. 25.26 c. the slothful servant was not condemn'd for losing his Talent but for not improving it and 't is not only the tree that bringeth forth no fruit Matt. 3.10 but every Tree that bringeth not forth good Fruit shall be cut down burn'd We flatter our selves that God will wait a little longer Jam enim securis ad radicem arboris posita est Matt. 3.10 but perhaps the ax is already laid to the root of the Tree this perhaps is the last offer of Grace the last time that God will call upon us the last opportunity we shal ever have to become fruitful God hath already waited so long he hath so often warned and exhorted us he has so often look'd whether we began to bear fruit after all his care pains finding his expectation not comply'd with justly incens'd at our long barrenness he is it may be ready to pronounce the sentence which was given against the barren fig-tree Succide ergo illam ut quid terram occupat Luc 3.7 Cut it down why cumbreth it the ground throw that unprofitable tree into the fire why should Isuffer it any longer to take up the place of a tree that would bring forth good fruit This in consequence of this dreadful sentence that so many who began well but did not faithfully correspond with the divine grace have ended so ill That so many who were call'd did not persevere but have left their place and their Crown to others who became wise by their Example Have not we reason to fear it may be our case after all God has done to make us bear good fruit have we made suitable returns for all his pains have not the few good works we have done been spoil'd by ill motives And are we rich in virtues and merits O my God enter not into judgment with thy servant for no man living is innocent before thee I confess that I have been hitherto not only a barren but a rotten Tree I have been unprofitable in such fruitfull ground and am good for no thing but to be cast into the fiâ—e Patientiam habe in me Matt. 18.29 but oh have patience yet a little with me not for a year but for one day and I trust by the assistance of thy grace to make such good use of this day that I shall be no longer unfruitful I dare hope that thou would'st not have inclin'd my will to seek the insolitude thou would'st not have inspir'd me with the desire nor afforded me time for this retreat were it not that thou art willing to deferr the punishment I deserve for my unfaithfulness to thy Grace and for making no better use of thy assistance Perhaps this is the last Day of thy for bearance I have all the reason in in the world to apprehend that if I make not good use of this day thou hast determin'd to delay my sentence no longer But I rely wholly upon thy infinite mercy and am resolv'd so to spend this Day that if it should be the last of my Life I may be able to appear before thee and present thee the Fruits of it JANUARY AND JULY FIRST MEDITATION OF MANS END FIRST POINT Man was created to serve God SECOND POINT Man was created to save himselfe in serving God FIRST POINT COnsider that we came not into the world by chance God
did they do wisely did they do well to neglect nothing to do all they were able to avoid Hell Who would not give all he is worth to be freed from a dungeon who thinks any pains too great to prolong his Life But Oh! what do we do nay what do we not refuse to do to avoid Hell The divine Justice is terrible God punishes these that offend him with Eternal torments in Hell yet we offend him in the sight of this Hell certainly an Eternity of misery is not too severe a punishment for such malice if there were no hell already God should make one on purpose for such offenders The thoughts of Hell make us tremble we are unwilling to think of it least it thould affright us and yet we are not afraid to run headlong into it we are afraid to think of the Eternal duration of those bitter torments and yet we will not make one step out of the road that leads to them There is an Hell and yet we delight in pleasures and Sinh at h still charms for us we think the practise of virtue difficult and there are still careless and imperfect Religious and debauch'd Christians this seems as incomprehensible as Eternity it selfe You object that perfection is not necessary to avoid hell true it is not necessary but can you keep to farr from a Lake of Fire into which so many fail Can you take too much care and too many precautions to preserve your selfe from everlasting fire rage despair How cruel must the thoughts of a damn'd soul be who knows that he might have been eternally as happy as he is eternally miserable if he had pleas'd that he might have been a Saint with ease and is not because he was not pleas'd to be so that his Brethren are in heaven but he is in Hell he laugh'd at those who being afraid of the condition in which he is now liv'd otherwise than he did and now what would he not do to be what they are I call'd an holy exactness melancoly a Christian modesty reservedness I call'd stupidity scrupulousness Oh! that I had been so stupid so scrupulous and melancoly that exactness that reserve has made many Saints who are now in heaven absorpt in Joys but what is become now that I am in flames of all my mirth and good humour which I affected to shew by rallying every thing If I had imitated such and such of my acquaintance if I had made good use of the divine inspirations such a day if I had been faithful to such a grace if I had shun'd such an occasion of Sin if I had practis'd such a virtue if I had mortifyed my selfe if I had been truly willing I should be now in heaven instead of which I am damn'd to Eternity I am lost and lost for ever Oh terrible regret And that which aggravates my misery is the remembrance how often I have thought on the pains I now endure on that eternal regret I should one day feel if I were damned Yet after all this men damn themselves Great God! thy vengeance is just they deserve it all Is it possible that we can avoid thinking on Hell is it possible that we can think on it and not be converted Is it possible that we are converted and do not continue to think on it we must have it all wayes before our eyes after our conversion to prevent our falling the greatest Saints those pure fouls whose hearts were all inflam'd with the Love of God thought it absolutely necessary for them to meditate on Hell and the apprehensions of it made them tremble and can any who pretend to virtue can any Religious man imagine that it is unnecessary to think on Hell certainly such men dare not think on it they are conscious to themselves that they do not take pains enough to give them ground to hope that they shall not be condemn'd but have they less cause to fear because they have a greater account to give And how can they hope to be less severely punish'd because they are under greater obligations Christ had good reason to tell us that Hell is the onely evil we ought to fear for what is a man the worse for being hated and persecuted for being reduced to a mean and obscure Life and for being mortify'd if he escape being damn'd My God! if thou art resolved to punish me for my Sins chastise me in this Life but do not damn me I will satisfy thy justice here I will hope in thy mercy and will love thee what satisfaction will it be to thee to see me in Hell sur rounded with flames transported with rage and despair hating and cursing thee and eternally blaspheming thy name My God! hast thou given me time to think on the pains of Hell onely to augment my despair one day for being damn'd after having thought on these pains Remember I am sprinkled with the blood of Jesus and 't is through that blood that I beg and hope for mercy Thou hast paid too great a price for me to be indifferent whether I be lost or no. I will be sav'd suffer me not to be lost Hic ure hic seca modo in aeternum parcas if thou wilt punish me do it in time but let not my punishment be Eternal SECOND MEDITATION OF THE FRVITS of Pennance FIRST POINT Pennance is necessary for all sorts of men SECOND POINT What the Fruits of that Pennance ought to be FIRST POINT COnsider that mortification and pennance is the onely way to heaven Jesus-Christ shew'd us no other way and the Saints who from their infancy were confirmed in grace knew no other T is an error to imagine that pennance is necessary onely for great Sinners and no less an error to think that mortification is the virtue onely of the perfect if we be Sinners we must do pennance to endeavour to appease the wrath of God and to obtain mercy and pardon if we are so happy as not to have lost our innocence pennance is necessary for us to preserve that precious treasure we have sin'd we may sin again two powerful motives to do pennance Since we all confess that men sin more frequently in the world and that they are more expos'd to the danger of offending God than in a cloyster can we reasonably believe that pennance belongs onely to Monastery's and that none but Religious are oblig'd to mortification Do we consider that many of those Religious whom we think indifpensably oblig'd to do pennance never lost their innocence shall we who own our selves guilty of many Sins and who are in danger of committing more every moment shall we think to persuade our selves that mortification and pennance do not belong to us It we had nothing but our own passions to overcome could we reasonably hope to conquer them without the exercice of pennance and who can reasonably hope to be saved without subduing his passions It is an article of Faith
of Faith If we believ'd that the enjoyment of God that an Eternity of infinite happiness or misery which includes surpasses all other miserys depended on our diligence if we did really believe what we repeat so of ten that we can not serve God and the world at once that time is short and that Death approaches that each moment for ought we know may be our last if we did indeed believe that Salvation is our own work and that we onely can secure it that it is no matter what becomes of us here if we make sure of heaven that we loose all even temporal blessings by neglecting our Souls and that if we be truly careful of them we shall loose nothing not even worldly goods if we do seriously believe these things how can we be careful how can we be sollicitous for any thing but Salvation Of the false pretences of orldly men about Salvation T is very surprizing that men of Sence and wisdom who reason so well about every thing else should reason so very falsly when they are desired to think on and work out their Salvation they freely own that it is hard to secure it in the world they will make lively and pathetical deseriptions of the Corruptions of the Age they are very eloquent on the inevitable dangers to which men are expos'd in the world and they readily conclude that they who live in it stand in as much need of an Heroik virtue as the Religious in their Convents but when they are told that in order to Salvation it is necessary for them to overcome themselves to mortify their passions to follow the example of Christ and his Saints they pretend that these vertues do not belong to them that 't is not their business that their condition do's not oblige them to so great a Sacrifice and that none but Religious can live regulary and conformably to the maxims of Jesus-Christ Is it not natural to conclude from hence that either the work of Salvation is not a secular Christians business which is a most gross and damnable error or else that Secular Christians do indeed renounce their Salvation Of the Facility of Salvation Of the ill use of the means Salvation God could have put us under a necessity of seeking him continually as our ultimate End and of never departing from him but he must then have taken away our Liberty when we reflect on the vast number of Christians who loose their Souls we are ready to wish that he had subject'd us to that happy necessity of working out our Salvation that so we might not be tormented with the fear of Hell But could we desire him to secure our Salvation better than by putting into our own hands And because he has made me master of my destiny of my eternal happiness shall I therefore be unhappy Shal this render my Salvation doubtful shall this put me in greater danger I might have reason to be aftaid if it depended on another tho my best friend but it depends only on me by the help of grace which will never be wanting to me yet this is the chief cause of my ruine O my God! if I do not secure my Salvation now that thou hast made me master of it I must own that I deserve judgment without mercy nothing less than an Eteernal punishment Of the ill use of the means of Salvation Can we think of our unprofitableness under such powerful means of our slighting so many graces and rendring them useless to us without apprehending least God should say to us as the Apostle to the Ieâ—vs Vobis oporrebat primum loqui verbum Dei Act. 13.46 the word of God was first spoken to you You were born in the bosom of the Church you were transplanted into the fertile field of Religion into a ground cultivated by the Labours and water'd with the sweat and blood of him who is both God and man How many means and helps have we had to enable us to fulfill all the duty 's of our Station and to make us fruitfull in good works but since these means and assistances which were so proper to have made us bring forth an hundred fold have been useless to us have we not reason to fear least he should add But seeing you put that divine word from you Sed quoniam repellitis illud indignos vos judicatis aeternae vitae ecee conver timuâ— aâ—â— entes v. 46. judge your selves unworthy of everlasting Life be hold we turn to the Gentiles This sentence is already executed on Syria and on almost all the East where Christianity first began and a great part of the North particularly unhappy England those nations formerly such good Christians and who reckon among their Ancestors so many great Saints have in these latter times cut themselves off from the fold of Christ while the Indians and people of Iapan and many other barbarous nations are enter'd into the Church and have reviv'd the primitive fervour piety equalling the generosity of the most glorious Martyrs Of want of Faith Whence comes it that we make no difficulty of believing the mistery's of the Trinity of the Incarnation c. tho they are not only a bove our understandings but seem to shock our Reason Is it not because these mystery's do not contradict our passions but do we believe with the same facility the other truths of the Gospell the Doctrines of selfdenyal of contempt of the world of love of poverty and humiliation Yet my God! they are all grounded upon the same infaillible Authority thy holy word for ' t is as certain that we shall never enter into the Kingdom of Heaven if we do not deny our selves subdue our passions and love our Enemy's as it is that we shal never enter there if we are not baptis'd Yet we rely very much on our faith for every man pretends to be one of the faithful not considering that we have but a dead Faith and that we confound the knowledge of what we ought to believe with that true Christian Faith which is allway's fruitful in good works and without which there is no virtue Of the thoughts Hell We believe that there is an Hell of fire and dreadful torments and that one mortall sin is sufficient to condemn a soul to Eternal pains and yet are we much afraid of mortal Sin do we not fear Eternal flames and torment Our trembling at the thoughts of Hell shews we believe it If the thoughts of its pains be so terrible what will it be to feel them all how great will our despair and anguish be when we call to mind that we would not avoid that Hell at the thoughts of which we have so often trembled Of a miserable Eternity We talk very much of an unhappy Eternity but do we know what it is by often speaking of it we use our selves to the thoughts and so come to be very little affected with it A man