dies in impenitence though formerly he may have led a Righteous Life must expect to be adjudg'd to Everlasting Flames Yet let the Minister as is said before take care not to affright the Patient especially if he be naturally timorous but rather increase and support his Contrition by laying before him God's Mercies and Goodness in the order both of Nature and Grace shewing him what great Love He had for him in not sparing his only begotten Son but delivering him up to the Death of the Cross for the Redemption of him and all penitent Sinners What Glory He has prepar'd for him in Heaven How good and gracious He is and worthy of our Love and Praise who has both made him out of nothing and adopted him in his Son and our Redeemer Christ Jesus And so the Minister shall continue with an affectionate tenderness to represent to him that this is that Good God he has offended by his manifold Sins and for which therefore he ought sensibly to be afflicted and heartily repent Which having said the Minister may here make a pause and give the Sick Person time to reflect upon what he has now spoken so as he may be excited to Contrition And then he shall raise his Hope again and animate his Love by telling him that the same God forgives him all his Sins who in his infinite Mercy waited for his Repentance and has promised by his Prophet that at what time soever the Sinner shall return to Him He will pardon his iniquities and remember them no more That his Saviour has his Arms stretched out upon the Cross ready to embrace him and put him into the possession of Heaven which He has purchased for him with his Precious Blood After this let the Minister exhort him to say both with Heart and Mouth as the Publican in the Gospel Lord have mercy upon me a poor Sinner And with David Lord forgive me all my Sins Have mercy upon me O Lord according to thy great Goodness according to the multitude of thy Mercies do away mine Offences Wash me throughly from my Wickedness and cleanse me from my Sin O turn thee unto me and have mercy upon me for I am desolate and in misery Against Thee O my God! have I sinn'd and done evil in thy sight And if thou Lord wilt be extream to mark what I have done amiss I cannot abide it O enter not into Judgment with thy Servant for in thy sight shall no man living be justified My soul cleaves unto the dust O quicken thou me according to thy Word I am full of heaviness because I have offended thee My Soul also is sore troubled but Lord how long wilt thou punish me O be thou merciful unto me and help me for I put my trust in Thee Remember not O Lord the Sins and Offences of my Youth but according to thy mercy think thou upon me Turn thy face from my Sins and put out all my misdeeds O let me hear of joy and gladness that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoyce Make me a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit withinme Cast me not away from thy presence and take not thy Holy Spirit from me O give me the comfort of thy help again and stablish me with thy free Spirit Lord I am thine O save me and deliver me Shew the light of thy countenance upon me Make hast to help me O Lord Thou art my Helper and my Redeemer O Lord make no long tarrying Cast me not away in this time of distress forsake me not now my strength fails me but draw nigh unto my soul and save it for thy mercies sake Bow down thine Ear O Lord and hear me for I am poor and in misery Be merciful unto me O Lord for my spirit waxeth faint Comfort the soul of thy servant for unto thee O Lord do I lift up my soul For thou Lord art good and gracious and of great mercy unto all them that call upon thee Give ear Lord unto my Prayer and ponder the voice of my humble desires In the time of my trouble I will call upon Thee for Thou hearest me Teach me thy way O Lord and I will walk in thy Truth O knit my heart unto Thee that I may fear thy Name Lord Thou knowest all my desire and my groaning is not hid from Thee My heart panteth my strength has failed me and the sight of my Eyes is gone from me There is no health in my flâ—sh because of thy displeasure neither is there any rest in my bones by reason of my Sin Take thy plague away from me I am even consumed by the means of thy heavy hand O hide not thou thy face from me nor cast thy Servant away in displeasure Thou hast been my succour leave me not neither forsake me O God of my Salvation Hear my prayer O Lord and with thine ears consider my calling Hold not thy peace at my tears For thy hand is heavy upon me day and night and my moisture is like the drought in summer O spare me a little that I may recover my strength before I go hence and be no more seen These Divine Sentences or some of them or the like with which the Book of Psalms is abounding the Minister may use according as he shall judge most proper and suitable to the Capacity of the Sick Person and the Condition he shall find him in to the end he may still keep him in a state of Contrition and remove from his heart all inclinations to Sin But as we have intimated before let him take great care that this Contrition of his be not imperfect and grounded only upon fear of Punishment but be excited and supported by a true Love of God and perfect Charity towards all Men. And when the Minister shall perceive the Patient to be thus throughly affected with the sense of his Sins and to express a hearty Sorrow for them and fervent Love towards his offended Creator let him for his Comfort declare to him In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost that upon his sincere Repentance all his Sins are done away and will never more be remembred That the Gracious and Merciful God has passed by and forgiven his Iniquities and Transgressions has now received him into his Favour and will shortly admit him into the Company of his Holy Angels and Blessed Saints That He will make him sit at Table with him in the Kingdom of Glory and replenish him with Joy and Felicity for ever more But before this Declaration be made 't is necessary that the Minister exhort him to take his Sickness and if it should so please God his Death too with patience and submission it being a Tribute we are all obliged to and acceptable to God when freely paid He must also admonish him that if he has any Goods in his possession that belong to his Neighbour he should if possible make immediate Restitution
conjunction with him and giving him an Explanation of its Contents From which if the Patient shall think himself in some measure inlightened but not yet sufficiently acquainted with some certain Articles thereof the Minister may prudently and dexterously instruct him concerning the same without any shew of catechising of him but by way of Prayer exhorting him to say after him Lord I commend my Soul to Thee O most Holy Blessed and Glorious Trinity Father Son and Holy Spirit One only God in Three Persons and Unity of Substance have mercy upon me I commit my self to Thee O Father Almighty who hast created Heaven and Earth and all things visible and invisible I commend my self to Thee O Blessed JESU Saviour of my Soul who wast sent from Heaven by the Father Eternal Who wast conceived by the Operation of the Holy Ghost in the Womb of the Virgin MARY Who Suffer'dst Dyedst and wast Buried Who didst descend into Hell and rosest again on the Third Day Who ascendedst into Heaven and art sitting on the right Hand of God the Father Almighty From whence Thou shalt come to Judge all Men who are to rise again in their own Bodies giving Life to such of them as shall have dyed in Grace and adjudging the Reprobates to Eternal Fire I commend my self to Thee Holy Spirit who proceedest both from the Father and the Son and whom together with these Two Divine Persons I adore with one and the same Adoration who inlivenest and sanctifiest One Catholick and Apostolick Church on Earth in which Thou hast ordain'd Two Sacraments for the Remission of Sins and Communion with Thy Self I beseech Thee I humbly intreat Thee through Thine Own Merits O sweet JESU my Redeemer by Thy tender Love and Mercy and by all that Thou hast done and suffered for me to lead me to those Mansions of Eternal Bliss and Glory which Thou hast prepar'd for those that love Thee Amen The same thing may be done also by way of Oblation as I Offer up my Heart and my Soul to Thee O Lord who c. Or by way of Supplication as Have mercy upon me O Lord c. Or Lastly by way of Thansgiving as I thank Thee O most Holy Blessed and Glorious Trinity Father Son and Holy Ghost One only God in Three Persons who hast created c. as before The Minister may also instruct the Patient by raising his Hope towards God and shewing him what Father he has by Creation and at the same time explaining to him those Articles of Faith that respect the Divinity Then by shewing him who his Redeemer is and acquainting him with the Mystery of the Incarnation And lastly by telling him who is his Comforter discoursing to him of the Holy Spirit and of the Graces which he communicates to us In like manner may he teach him the Articles of his Belief by causing him to ponder the Benefits and Favours God has done him by representing to him that the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost have created all Things for him and that Jesus Christ who is the Word equal to his Father has been willing to put on Human Flesh in order to his Redemption from Sin and Death and the purchasing for him a Crown of Everlasting Glory All these different Ways of explaining the Articles of the Christian Faith to One that is not throughly acquainted with them may also be very useful to those that are the most perfect therein not for instructing but inciting them to Acts of Faith especially when drawing near to Death it being very necessary at that juncture to fix in the Patient a Belief of those Blessings he hopes to enjoy to all Eternity CHAP. VI. How the Minister is to raise and exercise the Hope of the Sick Person FIRST of all he must examine how his Soul is affected there being three sorts of Dispositions to be found in Sick Persons Some have little Hope with much Fear whether proceeding from a Natural Timorousness and the remembrance of their Sins that perhaps are very many and heinous or from the Craft and Malice of the Devil who having propos'd to them while they were in health God's Mercy alone abstracted from his Justice for the more easie inducing them to a Security in Sinning does now they are approaching Death and Judgment present to their Eyes the Severity of God's Justice unattended with his Mercy to the end he may cast them into Despair concerning their Salvation and so harden them to a thorough impenitence Others there are who on the contrary exceed in Hope even to Presumption as thinking of nothing but the Virtuous Actions and good Works they fancy to have done and regarding only the Divine Mercy and infinite Merits of Christ without reflecting at all upon their Sins or the Judgments denounced by God against them The third and last sort are such as have neither Hope nor Despair in whom it is therefore expedient to excite the former by the Means we shall next endeavour to shew referring it to another place to speak of raising the Hope of the Timerous and moderating that of the Presumptuous As the principal Object of Hope is God He being the Author of that Felicity we look for so there are two Things which the Minister is chiefly to attend to with regard to this Head The one is the raising and fixing the Sick Person 's Hope upon the Glory Eternal The other is the exciting him to a Christian Confidence that he shall attain to it He may raise his Hope and strengthen his Courage by telling him that within a little time the Torments and Afflictions which always accompany this present Life will be at an end He may comfort him also with that which made the Prophet rejoyce namely The glad Tidings of his being now going to the House of God Wherein he shall feel no more Pains nor Cares nor Grief the same Prophet assuring us that no Harms no Sufferings no Torments no Fears shall ever come nigh the Everlasting Mansions Where also as St. John says God shall wipe away all Tears from our Eyes The Minister shall endeavour to lift up his Heart and Mind to the Heavenly Jerusalem that Divine City and sure Refuge from all our Enemies where the World the Flesh and the Devil shall no longer be able to pursue after us and where we shall reap the Eternal Fruits of our Victories over them and be Crowned with immortal Life and Glory It may inspire the Sick Person with some sort of Joy too to put him in mind that he will shortly return his acceptable Thanks to Almighty God for his having led him as it were through Fire and Water into a Place of true Refreshment and Delight Let him repeat sometimes the Words which God spake by his Prophet Isaiah Behold I will extend Peace to them like a River and Glory like a flowing stream that is I will cause their hearts to overflow with joy and tranquility Let him remember with St.
well to ponder that from his Reflections thereupon which may be shorter or longer according as his pains will allow him more or less opportunity for it he may receive Spiritual Help and Comfort Lastly He should be admonished to look up to Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith and God of our Salvation to fix in his Mind the continual remembrance of his Sufferings and break forth to Him in these Words O Lord who hast shed thy precious Blood for me have mercy upon me Thou Lord who for the attonement of my sins didst in the midst of so many torments and with so much ignominy resign thy Divine Spirit upon the Cross have mercy upon me O Lamb of God that takest away the sins of the World have mercy upon me I commend my Soul to Thee I commit it into Thy Hands Lord receive it Lord vouchsafe to save it Amen To this the Minister may add the Words set down in the Sixth Chapter if he judges them necessary for the fortifying of the Patient's Hope and administring Comfort to him CHAP. XIV What is to be said to such as shew too great a Confidence and presume too far upon their Salvation AS the Devil labours nothing more than the undoing of us to all Eternity so he endeavours to bring this his pernicious Design about by quite contrary Means sometimes by suggesting too great a Fear of God's Judgments and sometimes too great a Confidence in his Mercy If the Minister shall perceive that the Sick Person is flattering himself with the good Works he has done and so from them presumes too much upon his Salvation he ought meekly to admonish him to enter into and recollect himself in order to the making him sensible that our Felicity depends only upon Christ on whom we are wholly to build our Hope of Salvation That God alone enables us to act and that to Him it is we owe all the Honour and Glory of our Good Works That of our selves we are but Weakness and capable of nothing that is good not so much as one good Thought without his preventing and assisting Grace That we ought to give Him Thanks and Praise for what we are and what we have That all our Virtue is derived from Him and that we should find a terrible Account if when He comes at the last Day to judge us He would look upon our Merits only That we must always remember what is said in the Gospel That when we have done all that we are commanded to do we are but unprofitable Servants In a word that we are bound to God by so many Ties of Favours and Blessings that though we should humble our selves even to nothing before Him yet should we be very far from expressing a due acknowledgment to Him for the same But if the Sick Person shall still run upon an excess of Hope and rely so far upon the Merits of Christ as not to be at all afflicted or concerned for his Sins 't will be expedient to affright him into a due sense of them by recalling to his Memory the many Transgressions of his past Life and shewing him the heinousness of them that so he may be made apprehensive of the necessity of a sincere Repentance and Humiliation before he can expect to obtain Pardon The Minister may tell him that his Hope is laudable but considering what great Sinners we are we should mix with our Confidence a Filial Fear accompanied with Sorrow and Contrition for our having offended so Good so Gracious and so Benign a Father adding hereto what further he shall think conducive to the raising in him the just Notion he ought to have of God's Mercy CHAP. XV. How a Sick Person is to be managed when bereft in a great measure of his Senses and Understanding IN the first place the Minister is to inform himself whether the Sick Person has already been pray'd with and received the Holy Communion Whether he has set his House and Affairs in order and thought of every thing requisite for him to do of which we shall speak in the Seventeenth Chapter If they answer him that nothing has yet been done of all this as it often happens to those that are backward in preparing themselves for Death or are struck on a sudden with a violent and unforeseen Distemper he shall call to the Patient with a loud Voice and ask him whether he hears him and if he perceives him to have still some remainder of Understanding he is to advertise him of the danger his Life is in and of the great Concern of his Salvation which without delay lest it should prove fatal to him he ought to secure by Repentance and true Contrition of heart for all the Sins known and unknown he has committed against his Maker his Neighbour and Himself and to restore or cause to be restored as far as he is able whatever he may have of another Body's Then he shall ask him whether he be not desirous to receive the Blessed Sacrament as well for the Confirmation of his Faith as Assurance of God's Pardon of all his Transgressions and intitling him to Christ's Merits To which if the Minister finds him dispos'd he shall administer it to him declaring that God has put away his Sins and will remember them no more and that the same moment this Breath shall depart from him God will receive him to Himself and admit him into the Number of the Righteous that are Sanctified With whom he shall live a Life full of Joy and Bliss which never shall have end If the Patient be in a Condition of doing any thing which he hath omitted towards the future settlement of his Family or Estate the Minister shall advise him to do â—â— now as we have said elsewhere And this done he shall go on with entertaining him in Devotion and Spiritual Contemplations But if the Minister is told that the Patient has been already visited by another and has received the Holy Sacrament he may spare asking him many Questions about the State of his Soul especially if he finds him very weak and apply himself only to the comforting him and raising his Hope and Affections more and more to God and there fixing them Or if the Patient be fallen into a Delirium or Lethargy the Minister shall either wait till he is come to himself again or desire to have notice so soon as those that look after him shall find his Judgment return'd to him Which interval of sensibleness it will concern the Minister to improve as much as he is able by exciting in him those good Motions and Dispositions that may help him to die in a true State of Regeneration as well as with solid Comfort and Satisfaction making use to that purpose of those means we have proposed in the preceding Chapters particularly in the Eighth and what else in his prudence he shall see fit CHAP. XVI What the Minister is to do when he finds the Sick Person posess'd of