of a sincere spirit of Devotion I have also made use of their pains for your profit and transferred hither by way of Explications whatsoever in that Edition seemed pertinent and conducing to the illustration of our Authour Yet still punctually observing the Text and division of his own originall Spanish and the Latin traduction of some learned Divines in the University of Doway where it was approved and reprinted in the year 1612. If you make your best advantage of these my labours your own souls will receive the true comfort and I the full reward I look for TO THE Devout Champions fighting in this Spirituall Warfare The Translator wisheth happy Victory the reward of eternal Felicity TO you dear Souls is this little work most fitly addressed who in this deplorable age when the deluge of all vices an universall inundation of wickedness covers the face of the Earth and to which that may be applied almost as properly as in the time of the generall flood All flesh hath corrupted his way having happily left the broad and beaten path of perdition and estranged your selves from the pernicious Contagion of the times imploy all your diligence and indeavours to preserve your souls pure and clean from all worldly filth and infection and whatsoever may displease the eyes of your Heavenly Spouse and take all possible paines that Gods sacred Image stamped upon you in Baptisme but defaced or at least much darkened through human frailty and infirmity may be again restored and imbellish'd within you An enterprise so high and heroique that no tongue of man can worthily praise or express it Take courage valiant Champions of Heaven and faint not in this holy pursute having Angels and Saints for your helpers and favourers and the Almighty himself stretching out his powerfull hand to conduct you with safety and security through all the throngs of difficulties and dangers and leading you as it were over the bellies of the Amorrheans Cananeans and all other uncircumcised and profane people into the true Land of promise the happy Land of Paradice replenish'd with Milk and Hony the blessed Land of heaven full-fraught with eternall and unexplicable solaces and sweetnesses You are also suited with such excellent armour of proof both offensive and defensive taken out of the rich store-house of sacred Scripture and the wholesom doctrin of the Catholique Church as will not only render you invincible against all opposition but make you glorious conquerors and triumphers over al your hellish adversaries It only remains that you seriously apply your selves to learn the use of these weapons to get the art and dexterity of fighting to your best advantage and to study well the manner of these spirituall skirmishes that so you may give home-blows both with point and edge and handsomly ward off those which are made at you by your enemies And then you may be confident of an assured victory And though this holy Science of Fencing is largely taught and plainly set forth by many spirituall and skilfull Masters both ancient and modern yet the whole doctrin therof is so briefly and familiarly comprised in this little Book that I know not of any other instruction which can be presented you in this kind more to your purpose and profit especially if you want leasure or conveniency to turn over many or greater volumes since you may here find the collected substance and as it were the marrow and cream of all the choycest precepts concerning the aforesaid necessary trade of training up your selves in the true and practicall knowledge of your spirituall weapons This ministred me the occasion to translate it that it might be accommodated to your benefit and to this I was urged and led on by the ardent desire of advancing your good to the utmost extent of that small power which the Divine goodness hath imparted unto me Receive it therefore gratefully and imbrace it willingly O most Dear Souls as an expert Tutor of arms and excellent School-master of the Spirituall Conflict by whose directions and documents you may fight undantedly and infallibly foil not only the Flesh and the World together which wage such cruell and continuall warre with you but also all the powers of darkness and malice of the Devil from whom neither peace nor truce can ever be expected waiting with patience perseverance for that happie hour in which it will please your loving Lord to give you a full deliverance to banish all war unto the utmost bounds of the earth to bruse the Bow break the Weapons burn the Buckler and withdraw your desirous souls from this place of tumults and alarms to the quiet residence of eternall peace and felicity To which his Divine goodnesâ— grant we may all at last joyfullâ— arrive THE SUBJECT OF THE SPIRITUALL CONFLICT THis Book correspondent to it's title is of warrs fights and combats not against the lawfull powers of this world but against the Eph. 6. 12. Against the rulers of the darkness of this world c. 2 Thes 2. 4 Shewing himself as if he were God c. Psal 11. 1. Truth is diminish'd amongst the children of men 2 Tim. 2. 5. No one shal be crowned who fights not 1 Thes 3. 3 We â—re appointed hereunto c. Job 7. 1. Man's life is a warfare 2 Tim. 2. 12. If we suffer we shall also reign usurped authority of the Prince of darkness who sits inthron'd as sole Monark of this inverted Universe in opposition to God and all goodness tyrannizing and trampling down all vertu piety and religion clipping Faith's sacred wings and blinding her with sin and sensuality destroying and driving out all justice and sincerity from amongst the sons of men and endeavouring to substitute double-harted fraud with all sort of prophaness impiety and infidelity in their stead The necessity of fighting against these monsters is a sufficient commendation of this our holy enterprise For we are put here expresly for this purpose All men are included in this Spiritual Warfare nor is there any exemption from combating where there is the least expectation of conquering or hope of being crowned How highly then doth it concern each Christian to learn so to combat that he may conquer if he attends ever to be crowned The Sum of this desired Conquest Ephes 4. 25. Depose all lying c. Coloss 3. 8 Depose all these wrath malice blasphemy c 1 Pet. 2. 1. Rom. 6. 12 13 14. Let not sin reign in your mortal body c. consists in deposing the devil and setting up God in our souls in subduing Sense to Reason's empire in bringing the Animal man under the feet of the Intellectual in raising up the Intellectual man to his proper Sphaer which is his Creator and in uniting the Spirit to it 's true object and Centre which is the Divinity The way to arrive at this high and happy Union is by continual and indefatigable tendencies of the soul to God in the track of sincere
sincere affection When shall I O onely life of my soul relinquish all self-will and vanquish all my passions and imperfections 8. In these and the like devotions thou maist spend the evening and morning to excite cherish and encrease thy desire to receive thy deare Saviour that so thou maist perfectly please him and be most happily united unto him And in thy pious practices of these things take this Caveat Be sure to keep each power and faculty of thy soule pure and But take heed of vanity and curiosity free from all curiosity of worldly things and from all idle and vaine thoughts Take also the like care of thy outward senses lest thy heart steale out by them and so thou lose all thy devotion EXPLICATION THe time of the sacred Communion At the time near the Communion drawing nigh think thou art to receive the Lord who created this great Universe and thee to his owne likenesse the Sonne of God who died for thee nâ—ked on the 1. Think what thou art going to doe Crosse that increased goodnesse which hath so often freed thee from danger death and damnation which thy sinnes deserved Thanke him with most profound Thank humility and adore him uniting Adore Implore all thy spirits and forces of body and soule togeather as true God and true man Beg also his pardon for thy faults and that the same love which moves him to grant thee this great gift may also induce him to purge thy soule from the staines of all sinne and uncleannesse thereby disposing it to a more pure and perfect union with his divine Majesty When the Priest pronounceth those sacred words Domine non When Domine non sum dignus is sayd sum dignus O Lord I am not worthy accompany him with these following and speak to thy Lord and love from the bottome of thy heart I am not worthy to receive thee ô my great Lord before whose Majesty the Angels of heaven tremblingly confesse their owne nothing I am not worthy ô my Lord that thou shouldest enter into my heart who am one of the meanest weakest and ungratefullest creatures upon earth I am not worthy ô my Lord that thou shouldest lodge with me because I love thee not and I remember thee not though these are prime reasons of thy instituting and remaining in this most blessed Sacrament Thus humble confound and abisme Humble and Confound thy selfe thy selfe at the serious consideration of thy sinnes malice and misery but then raising up thy heart with hope by the following words Sed But still raising up thy heart with hope tantum dic verbo sanabitur anima mea Doe thou onely speak the word ô my Lord and my soule will be saved Enter ô my love into this unworthy harbour and make use of thine infinite power and goodnesse in pardoning my sinnes supplying my defects and protecting me from my enemies 9. And after thou hast received Text. Having communicated entertaine thy guest with amorous expressions this divine Sacrament betake thee presently to the innermost closet of thy heart and there enter into communication with thy holy guest using these or the like loving and respectfull expressions What hath moved thee O great King of Kings to enter in to me who am nothing but a miserable despicable vild blind and naked creature And he will answer thee Love for thou art my dove my friend my sister my spouse and my dearely beloved Then thou maist reply O increated love ô sweetest dilection ô friendly and faithfull charity what wouldest thou have me doe what demandest thou what desirest thou I ask nothing saith he but love I would have nothing burne in the harth of thy heart but the fire of my love that it may devour all forraine love within thee and destroy all self-wil and seeking This this is my desire because I would be truly thine and would have thee likewise be totally mine Which can never be compassed untill thou freely deliverest up thy selfe to my will and pleasure For without this entire resignation thy fancy will be alwaies fastned to the loving and liking of thy selfe and thine owne actions be they never so meane I desire therefore that thou shouldest hate thy selfe that thou maist have the love of me I demand thy heart for my habitation that I may joyne and unite it unto mine for to this end was my heart opened to thee upon the altar of my Crosse My will is I say ô my dearly beloved spouse that thou desire nothing think nothing understand nothing see nothing feel nothing but my selfe onely that so I onely may be in thâ—e and thou totally turned into me and that thou maist possesse in me perfect quiet and I in thee pleasant context 10. Lastly thou shalt offer the holy And Lastly offer up the divine Sonne to his heavenly Father Sonne to his heavenly Father for thy selfe for the whole world and for the soules departed in memory and union of that divine oblation which he offered upon the holy Crosse presenting in like manner all the unbloody sacrifices to the divine Majesty which are that day offered up in his universall Church CHAP. XXXI Of Spirituall Communion ALthough my beloved thou canst receive thy sweeet Saviour 1. Thou maist thus often Communicate sacramentally onely once a day yet thou maist receive him spiritually every houre and moment For nothing can hinder thee from this but onely thine owne fault and negligence And this spirituall Communion may sometimes prove more profitable to thy soule and pleasing to thy Saviour than the sacramentall especially if there be a defect in thy due and diligent preparation 2. For as often as thou desirest By frequent desires to receive thy loving Lord God thus spiritually into thy soule thou shalt find him ever ready to feast thee with his owne sacred hands and thou mayest thus easily dispose thy selfe unto it Turning thy selfe to thy Saviour to this end reflect upon thine owne frailty and frequent failings and conceive an inward sorrow and detestation of thy defects then make thy supplication with a loving affection that he will not disdaine to enter thy poor cottage and feast thee with his owne true body and blood 3. So also when thou art moved And it is an excellent exercise against passions with a pious zeal against any perverse Passion and desirest efficaciously to mortify it or to plant some vertue in thy soule make use of this spirituall communion by converting thy thoughts towards thy Lord God and invoking his aid with ardent prayers beseech him to enter and possesse the secret part of thy soule Or calling to mind thy last sacramentall communion speak to him with an inflamed desire When ô my good God shall I againe welcome thee into the closet of my heart Come now O my Saviour and comfort me spiritually with the like strength and vertue EXPLICATION IF thou wilt practice this pious How to make
and solid Devotion This solid Devotion depends upon Religion as the branch on it's tree and since there can he but one right Religion as there is one only Faith one law one Lord one Jesus Christ Ephes 4. 5 One Lord one Faith one Baptisme c. so there can be but one real Devotion and all others must needs be concluded unsecure superstitions hypocriticall hypocondriacal Now lest we should miss this right way or mistake this real Devotion we may here fitly at our first entrance into these holy list take a general view of this Animal Sensual and Carnal man which is to be destroyed of this Counterfeit Hypocritical and Hypocondriacal man which is to be undeceived and of this Spiritual Supersensual and Perfect man which is to be brought into us and built up within us that so framing a right I dea of the end we aym at we may follow those means which appear most proportionable for the attaining therof THE ANIMAL CARNAL AND SENSUAL MAN Is he who gives up the raynes of his Reason to the intire conduct of Sensuality and puts his soul into the devils power by submitting to all sinfull suggestions to be driven and dragg'd on uncontrollably to all Ephes 2. 2 You walked according to the cours of this world according to the Prince of the ayr c. 1. Cor. 2. 14. The animal man perceives not the things of God's Spirit c. Philip. 3. 19. Whose God is their belly James 3. 15. This Wisdom descends not from above but is earthly sensual devilish c. Jude v. 19 Sensual having not the Spirit Ps 31. 9. wickedness He walks after the world 's perverse course and custom living in all things according to his own lust and liking acknowledging no other Superior than his own all-swaying affections no law but that of his own will no God but his belly He easily yields to all his untam'd passions and appetites glutting his senses unrestrainedly with all alluring objects and making pleasure his only end heaven and happiness Briefly he is all earth all sin all sensuality in whom is nothing of the Spirit of grace of God his Understanding is a dungeon of darkness his Memory a Magazin of bestial imaginations his Will a confusion of base and brutish affections and his whole man totally depraved and degenerate resembling the filthy swine the unclean goat and the unbridled horse and mule which have no understanding THE HYPOCONDRIACAL HYPOCRITICAL AND COUNTERFEIT MAN Tinnit inane est Tinnit Inane est Is he who makes a great shew of sanctity and devotion but hath Ps 143. 5. Touch the mountains and they will smoak nothing of substance sincerity and solidity Touch him and he turns into smoak sound him and you shall soon find him to be but a windy cask Nahum 20. 2. She is empty void and waste 1. Cor. 13. 1. As sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal Mat. 6. 2. to the 16. Luke 18. I am not as other men are tunnd up with ayr an empty eccho a hollow noyse a flatuous anâ— foolish nothing He wilfully mistakes the means for the end and places perfection in pompous forms Pharisaical fashions and external practices If he prays 't is in publick if he gives alms he sounds the trumpet if he fasts he disfigures his countenance if he seemingly punish his body 't is to deceive more surely under the guise of sanctity finally all his actions rather savour of self-satisfaction and hypocrisy than have any sense of true piety Yet he ever pretends to high lights of the Spirit finds out new and unheard-of ways of walking with God sleights all that is common though never so commendable and catches at all that is curious though never so dangerous Thus he loseth himself in his own Chymerical conceptions and pretending to refine ancient piety becomes puff'd up with secret pride and presumption and grasps nothing but froth and vanity THE SPIRITUAL SUPERSENSUAL AND PERFECT MAN Is he who walks not in the wayes of this wicked world nor follows the tenents of flesh and blood but of Reason Religion and Understandâ—ng Rom. 8. per totum If you live after the flesh you shall dy 1 Cor. 3. 16. You are the temple of God Gods Spirit dwels in you c Rom. 8. 36 Ps 44. 22. For thy sake we are mortified all the day long c. Coloss 3. 5 His only end and aym is the Perfection of God's love in his soul his unwearied endeavours are bent against Satan Sin Sensuality and all Selfishness his main study is to make his body obedient to the Spirit his Spirit to Reason his Reason to Faith and All to God and his daily practice is self-mastery and Mortification And having 1. Trampled down the Man of sin 2. Layd a sure and solid ground-work of Devotion 3. He faithfully applies himself to fight under Christ's banner and learns exactly the right use of his spirituall weapons 4. He carefully eschews his enemies Ambushes 5. He keeps himself to the continual practice of prayer introversion recollection abstraction annihilation contemplation 6. He couragiously climbs up to the mountain top of Perfection 7. And lastly he sweetly reposes in divine love and Union as is more amply held forth in these following Treatises Galathians 6. 8 9 c. What things a man shalâ— sow those also shall he reapâ— For he that soweth in his flesh of the flesh also shall reap corruption But he that sowetâ— in the Spirit of the Spiriâ— shall reap life everlasting Psalme 125. 6. They that sow in Teares shall reap in Joyfullness Going they went and wept casting their seeds But coming they shall come with Exultations carrying their Sheaves â—he INDEX of all the CHAPTERS of this Spirituall Conflict OR Arraignment of the spirit of Self-love and Sensuality â— I. WHerein Christian perfection consists and of four things necessary to obtain it pag. 1 â—ap II. Of Diffidence or distruct of our selves p. 10 â—ap III. Of Confidence in God p. 14 â—hap IV. Of Continuall exercise and first that the Vnderstanding is to be carefully kept from Ignorance and from Curiosity p. 20 â—hap V. Of the will and the end to which we are to direct all our actions p. 29 â—hap VI. Of a two-fold Will in man and the continuall combat between them p. 38 â—hap VII Of the fight with Sensuality and of the inward way of the Will to acquire Vertues p. 43 Chap. VIII What he must doe who feels his superior Will or Rcason overcome by his Sensuality p. 52 Chap. IX That we must not avoid the occasions of the combatâ— p. 57 Chap. X. Of thâ— fight against suddain tempâ—ations p. 60. Chap. XI Of the fight against our flesh and fleshly Concupiscence p. 64. Chap. XII How to fight against slackâ— and negligence p. 7â— Chap. XIII How to govern our Sâ—suality p. 7â— Chap. XIV Of the order to be observed â— fighting against our enemies p. 10â— Chap. XV. What course he must take
source of all goodnesse thank him for all his benefits and blessings for the inspirations he hath sent thee and the good desires of vertue he hath given thee for his deliverance from dangers and defence against thine enemies CHAP. XL. Being a Conclusion of the whole Worke. 1. MUch more might be said of This short booke weâ—l practised is sufficient these important matters but let this which is here delivered according to my poore Talent suffice for the present which surely if thou endeavourest to keepe in thy memory and accomplish in thy actions thou hast sufficiently learned and laboured 2. But in respect of thy weake capacity and my proposed brevity it will be necessary that thou use a studious diligence in often revolving and meditating upon these foregoing Precepts For by frequent consideration and continuall exercise thou wilt certainly increase thy inward strength whereby to conquer all thine enemies EXPLICATION ABove all things beg incessantly of the Divine Goodnesse the gift of perseverance in thy unwearied endeavours against thy passions and imperfections it being the chiefe weapon in this spirituall warfare against thy never-dying enemies which like ill weeds are ever budding and breaking forth so long as the Earth hath any life in it to nourish them 3. Resolve therefore to betake thy Texâ— If thou resolvest to fight manfully selfe to these proposed Armes of defence and to fight stoutly manfully and constantly because no man can avoid this combat without endangering the losse of the conquest Nor can there be any hope of Peace with such enemies which endommage them most who most dâ—sire to enter league and friendshâ—p with them 4. Neither be thou terrified at And not to be terrified at thy enemies power their seeming power and cruelty since all their force and fury is in the more powerfull hands of that Supreme Captaine for whose honour thou art ingaged in the battail wherein none can be vanquished but they that will themselves And if thy Lord for whom thou wagest this war doth seem sometimes to withdraw his Assistance and delay thy conquest over thine enemies for a time yet be not thou faint-hearted but fight on couragiously being most certain and secure that his Goodnesse Power and Providence directs all events and more especially all adversities to the best profit of his souldiers 5. These thoughts will beget in Though the victory seems to come slowly on thee a generous spirit and a constant heart to resist and fight with courage and therefore though the victory comes slowly on beleeve firmly that this deferring is either to free thy soule from secret pride and conserve thee in true humility Or else to perfect thee in vertue and to teach thee to become a tryed Souldier by these long continued conflicts Or surely for some other good of thine which thy Lord then conceales from thee for thy greater merit and improvement 6. Go on therefore O my dearly beloved and enter these lists with a cheerfull and heroick minde lest thou seem ungratefull to thy loving Lord God who so much tendred thy good that he suffered death for thy sake And attend carefully to every Counsell and Command of thy Captaine Christ Jesus that thou mayst totally rout and ruine all thine enemies For if thou permittest but one only to live and lurk in thy Soul it will be as a moat in thy eye and as a Launce in thy bowels and prove a perpetuall impediment in the progresse of so glorious a Victory APOC. 2. 7. To him that overcommeth I will give the hidden Manna 1. KINGS 15. 18. Thou shalt fighe against them untill their utter destruction The generall Table containing the severall Chapters of this Treatise as they stand divided into numbers And being a brief compendium of the whole worke The Spirituall Conflict Or The Arraignment of the Spirit of Self-love and Sensuality at the bar of Truth and Reason Chap. I. WHerein Christian perfection consists The importance of this knowledge is very great Numb 1. Some place perfection in austerity 2. Others in reciting many prayers 3. Others in exact observance 4. All which are good meanes but not directly tending to perfection 5. And they that rest in these lower exercises are in great danger 6. As may appeare by the rest of their actions 7. And especially by their want of resignation in time of affliction 8. True perfection therefore consists in the knowledge of God and our selves In the love of God and hatred of our selves In resignation to God's will and denying our owne 9. All which Christ hath taught us by word and example 10. And we must also do it if we meane to purchase victory 11. Nor is there any thing more glorious to our selves or more gratefull to God 12. But to obtaine it we wust provide foure necessary weapons 13. Chap. II. First Distrust of our selves which is gotten by a deep sense of our owne nothing 1. By Prayer 2. And by often reflecting upon our owne weaknesse 3. And this self-knowledge is a lesson must be well learn'd 4. And we must be carefull to rise speedily after our fall 5. The great necessity of this distrust in our owne strength is inforced by the corruption of our nature and the frailty thereof and by considering how much this acknowledgment pleaseth God and presumption displeaseth him 6. Chap. III. Secondly Confidence in God which is obtained 1. By prayer 2. By considering the divine power wisdome and goodnesse by which he can knowes how and is willing to help us 3. By meditating upon holy writ 4. Another means is by thinking on our owne frailty and Gods omnipotency at the beginning of each action Whereby we shall not be foolishly dejected at our frequent failings 5. A necessary Caveat for all spirituall people 6. By Gods assistance we can doe all things But many are deceived in presuming upon their owne strength 7. Chap. IV. Thirdly Continuall Exercise 1. Which consists in the right use of the Understanding 2. Which is to be kept from Ignorance by prayer and by a diligent discussion of our own actions judging things according to their true worth And this will open our eyes to see the meannesse of all worldly vanities 3. A necessary caution to keep the will from sixing its love untill the Understanding have first pondered the object 4. And the same caution is necessary also in holy things 5. The understanding is to be furthermore weaned from curiosity 6. How highly this conduceth to perfection and how cunningly the Devill plots against it by suggesting pride to our Understanding 7. Which is farre more dangerous and more difficultly cured than Pride of the Will 8. Chap. V. Of the Will and the end to which we are to direct all our actions A will to doe well sufficeth not But our actions must also be performed onely to please God 1. Which to attaine to Apply thy Understanding to know Gods will 3. And take heed of being deceived because nature is
perfectly perceive the abyss of my own nothing and naughtiness and rightly conceive the immensity of thy greatness and goodness whereby I may depress my self unfeignedly and exalt thee only in my soul Let me be content to be contemned by all creatures desire to be despised be willing to be troden on as dirt and dust and the very outcast of the whole world O let me really hate all honour and humbly pronounce with mouth and mind I am nothing have nothing deserve nothing desire nothing but only to please thee perfectly my Jesu praise thee perpetually love thee purely and live with thee eternally 3. Grant me also good Iesu by the merits of these thy wounds the vertue of perfect obedience O let me never tire in trampling down self-will in forsaking my own sense in subduing self-judgement in submitting my spirit inwardly to thy inspirations and outwardly not only to my Superiours injunctions but even to the commands of all thy creatures O let me have no propriety affection or affectation in my own proceedings but wholly mind thy holy pleasure in all things Let me lay down all my desires at thy sacred Feet O my Iesu saying Lord what wilt thou have me do so transforming my will into thine by an absolute forsaking denying and annihilating my whole self Let me receive O my Saviour as from thy secret providence and permission not only patiently but thankfully all pain all poverty all shame all sickness and all sufferings whatsoever acknowledging that I truly deserve worse and desiring willingly to endure more that so I may have a more perfect resemblance of thee my crucified Lord. Let me learn O my Lord by thy blessed example the holy lesson of discreet silence not only from ill and idle talk but even from all needless and unprofitable discourses Let me rather edifie by the purity of my life and conversation than by multiplicity of words and conceptions O give me sweet Iesu a free and frequent access to thy sacred Feet during the whole course of my life and a sure comfort in them at the hour of my death 4. From thy blessed Feet O my dear Lord I raise my humble devotion to thy al-holy Hands and beg leave to cast into the sweet fountain issuing from thy powerful right Paulm my manifold sins of malice and injustice with all my faults of hypocrisie and ingratitude falshood and infidelity rancor and revenge Renew O Lord God a right spirit within my bowels Let exact justice be the square of all my actions truth the touchstone of my words and sincerity the subject of my thoughts Let me be punctual in performing my duty to thee zealous in punishing my self and charitable in compassionating my neighbour Let me ever yield first unto thy sacred Majesty all honour and glory reverence and respect laud and love gratiâ—ude and obedience with my whole heart soul and strength next to my Superiors equals and inferiours and lastly to my own body soul and senses that which is my duty and each one of their respective dues O let me fully perform what I am bound to carefully eschew what is forbidden me and uprightly walk according to my calling O let me never presume to slight scorn suspect judge or condemn any person but sincerely serve succour and seek the temporal and spiritual good of all men whatsoever even of my profess'd and most peevish enemies Lord Iesu give me grace to imitate thy vertues to be gratefull for thy gifts and to make use of thy goodness in order to my souls advancement in the way of thy dear love and desired union with thy divine Majesty 5. And in the Sacred wound of thy left-hand I humbly intomb all my offences of Neglâ—gence tepidity sluggishness cowardise and pusillanimity all my covetous desires all impurity and all intemperance Purge me O my powerfull Lord purifie me O my merciful Savior Give strength comfort and courage to my feeble and frail nature that I may pass undauntedly through all difficulties and dangers to come to thee my Iesu to lay hold on thee and to repose in thee the only Centre of my desires Grant me O my Lord chastity of body and cleaness of heart temperance in my appetites and sobriety in my senses gravity in my deportment and moderation in all my proceedings that nothing may dislike thee in my soul nor dissolve the sacred knot wherwith thou hast fasten'd me unto thee Give me also O Iesu my Lord perfect poverty of spirit O permit not my soul intended to enjoy thee the only solid and satiating riches to be intangled with the least affection to the poor and perishable trifles of this world Behold I cast my self uncloathed from all creatures into thy naked embraces O crucified Saviour I desire to clip nothing in my folded arms but a breast burning with desires to please thee my Creatour and a heart melting away in thy love I make choice of thy bare Cross O Christ for my best inheritance I stretch out my opened folds to meet thy holy and heavenly huggings O let me never more be unclasped from thy blessed bosom Be thou O my great-little-naked-Iesu my rest during the short time of my life and my refuge at the dreadful hour of my death 6. And now O mercifull Saviour I humbly convert my eyes and contemplation to thy sacred Head crowned with thorns and thy divine Face all besmeared with gore and spittle for my sake Here I implore strength O Jesu for the weaknesses of my head and pardon for the wickednesses of my five wits and senses O my Lord I desire to bury in these thy innumerous wounds the enormous number of my iniquities and I beseech thee for these thy sufferings sake to adorn my weak capacity with so much solid wisdom as may fitly suit with my condition O let me never think speak or act any thing which is not seasoned with the salt of discretion Let me seriously weigh each circumstance and patiently wait thy leave and leasure before I leap into any work Inlighten me to see clearly thy will and pleasure and impower me exactly to fulfil and follow it Open the eyes of my Understanding to behold my own baseness and wickedness and give me thy gracious assistance to reform it Help me to form a right judgement of the real vileness and vanity of all transitory things and indue my heart with courage to contemn them Inebriate my affection ô amiable Iesu with the sweetness of thy love and let all worldly solaces savour of bitterness to my soul Let me be deaf blind and dumb to all things which are not thy self ô my crucified Saviour Let me prudently discern and piously perform each parcel of my duty in it's due circumstance of time place order measure and manner Let that holy and innocent simplicity which is the vertue of thy Saints shine in all my actions Let me not be curious to know much but careful to practise much and cordial to love thee much O
thy self and more in God and with a new-enkindled zeale and greater courage than before wilt follow thy begun enterprize to get the victory in this spirituall warfare and pursue thy enemies even to death 6. And would to God these A necessary caveat for all spiritual people truthes were diligently div'd into by some who seeme to bee spirituall and yet they no sooner fall into defects but they presently become impatient and cannot be quieted till they have recourse to their ghostly Father rather for their own solace than for any true devotion when as the prime motive of their comming to him should be to purge their soules from sin by absolution and to obtaine new strength against their enemies by the sacred Communion EXPLICATION AS we can promise to our selves By God's assistance we can do all things nothing but faylings fallings because we are of our selves nothing so also we may certainly promise to our selves from our God an intire victory over all our enemies if we arm our hearts with a lively confidence in his divine Majesty But Wherein many are deceived many deceive themselves in supposing that the pusillanimity and disquiet following their fall is an effect of virtue because it is accompanied with a displeasure for their offence when as indeed it springs from pride and presumption and is founded in selfe-confidence and conceit of their own strength to which they too By reason of their pride and presumption in their owne strength much trusting find by the wofull experience of their fall that they are truly weak and really nothing and thereupon they become troubled astonished as at a new thing and so lose their courage seeing that prop which sustained their vain confidence fallen down to the ground But this befalls not them who are truly humble For they confiding in God alone nothing presuming of themselves when they chance to fall into any fault feele indeed a true grief in their souls but are neither disquieted nor astonished seeing clearly by the light of truth that this proceeds from their own misery frailty and presumption CHAP. IV. Of continuall exercise and first that the Vnderstanding is carefully to be kept from Ignorance and from Curiosity IT hath been hitherto declared The third spirituall weapon is continuall exercise how much this Distrust of our selves and trust in Gods goodnesse help us on in our spirituall conflict But they alone are yet insufficient to gain the victory and keep us from relapses and therefore besides these two a third weapon is necessary which we above tearmed Continuall Exercise and this chiefly consists in the rectified use of our Understanding Which consists in the right use of the understanding and Will 2. First therefore the Understanding is to be carefully kept from two great evils Ignorance and Curiosity From Ignorance that it may bee pure and cleare and so we may The understanding is to be kept from Ignorance see what is necessary for the taming of our passions and overcomming of our affections 3. And this light may be obtained two manner of wayes First and chiefly by earnest Prayer invoking First by prayer and imploring God's holy Spirit to infuse this light into thy soule Secondly Secondly by a diligent search into our owne actions by daily practice of a profound and accurate search into all thine own actions and affairs not only as they appeare outwardly but rather as they are truly in themselves Doe but make tryall of this exercise for a time and thou wilt come easily to understand what things and actions are good and what are evill as also what are truly good and what are onely in shew promising much by their outward splendour but performing indeed nothing nor any way conducing to the quiet of thy conscience EXPLICATION THis point which is to estimate This search into all things according to their true worth will open our eyes to see the meanesse of all worldly vanities all things according to their true and reall worth and goodnesse being well practised will open our eyes to see the poornesse of all such toys which worldlings most desire and delight in It will shew us that earthly honours and pleasures are meer vanities and afflictions of spirit That injuries infamies and affronts patiently suffered are the harbingers of true happinesse and glory That afflictions are indeed freindships and that seeming crosses are followed with certain contentments That to despise the world is better than to be master of it and that to be willingly obedient for the love of God to the meanest creature is a more magnanimous action and the signe of a more generous spirit than to command the greatest Kings That the humble ackowledgment of our own nothing is more acceptable to the divine Majesty than to dive into the height and depth of all sciences That to quel and conquer our owne appetites and imperfections though they be never so small merits more praise than to force the strongest holds than to triumph over the greatest armies than to worke the greatest miracles or raise the dead out of their graves All which things and others of like nature are not sincerely discerned by us because before we enter into our selves to weigh them well as we ought and as they truly are we permit our fancy to be prevented prepossessed and surprized with some sensuall affection towards them which so darkens and dimms our understandings that they are rendred uncapable to judge of those objects rightly and impartially as they should and they truly deserve 4. Wherefore give an attentive Text. A necessary caveat to keep the will from fixing it's love care ô dearly beloved to what I shall now tell thee for it will much further thee to fight successefully The means to know the true nature and properties of all things which occurre in thy daily transactions is by taking speciall care to keep thy Will pure and free from all motion of love and affection which looke not directly upon God himself or upon the means leading unto him For to the end thy Vnderstanding may rightly distinguish good from evill it must first consider it before thy Will hath made it's election or Untill the Understanding have first pondered the object reprobation of it because when the Will hath fastned once it's affection upon the object the Vnderstanding is hindred from comming to a true knowledg thereof by reason that the consent of the Will intervening leaves it so involved and obscured that it appeares farre fairer to the Vnderstanding than it is in it self And hence it happens that the object being thus falsly represented to the Will becomes too too passionately beloved and embraced without the due enquiry of its reall goodnesse And by how much the desire or love of the Will is more vehement by so much the Vnderstanding is more grosly clowded in its judgement and being so deceived invites the Will to a◠encrease of
my whole delight 5. Another remedy against such-like Mark well the craft of the Devill surprises of pleasure may be To ponder presently with thy understanding how cunningly the Devill who onely seeks to kill or at least to wound thy soule mortally lies lurking under this bait Which when thou perceivest tell him boldly Ah thou cursed serpent how craftily and covertly dost thou lie in wait to infect me with thy poison And then lift up thy mind to God-ward saying O the goodnesse of my God bee thou eternally blessed and praised which hast discovered my hidden enemy lying in wait to destroy my soul 6. But in other accidents which But when things which are unpleasant befal thee thinke upon God's eternall decree go against the hair and rather procure pain than pleasure thou maist thus exercise thy self when somthing happens which is of hard digestion to thy Sensuality as heat hunger sicknesse blows or the like elevate thy mind to that eternall will who would have it so and even from all eternity decreed that thou shouldest suffer this or that calamity at this very time thus grievously and with these circumstances as thou now endurest the same Therefore ful of hearty joy say within thy selfe Now is thy divine will ô my eternall Lord and love accomplished in mee whereby thou wouldest from all eternity that I now in this manner measure and number should receive and carry this crosse and I acknowledge all this to be for thine honour and glory and my owne soules welfare and salvation 7. And make use also of such like So likewise in any sudden or dismall chance thoughts upon all dismall occasions of wind weather and the like which are out of mans power and providence to hinder or prevent So when thou readest any thing which tickles thy fancy turne presently all thy delight to thy Lord God and conclude that he infallibly is hid under those words and now by them sweetly discovers himselfe unto thee And in like manner when good thoughts occure with complacency And in all felfe complacency and delight as proceeding from the reflexion upon some good and vertuous action turne thy mind sodainly to thy Lord God and adoring him with all possible humility and reverence acknowledge that good to have sprung from his grace and therefore thou gratefully returnest it his glory EXPLICATION A larger Declaration of the foregoing Chapter concerning the government of our outward senses THat thou maist rightly study this usefull science and learne how to governe regulate thy outward senses it imports thee to use all exactnesse of custody all curiosity care and diligence and a perpetuall and never-intermitted practise because the appetite which sits as Captaine The appetite is violently bent to seeke it's pleasure and chief commander of our corrupted nature is violently and inconsiderately bent to search after worldly solaces earthly pleasures and outward contentments but being of it selfe unable to acquire them makes use of the senses as his Soldiers And makes use of the senses to obtaine it and naturall instruments to apprehend their objects from whence drawing their images it imprints them in the soule and proceeds on to pleasure which by reason of the sympathy between it and the flesh dilates it selfe through all those senses which are capable of such pleasure and from hence is derived the common contagion which infects corrupts both body and soule Secondly Now if thou art truly sensible of the danger of this poison apply speedily The Antidot against this poyson this antidote which I have here prepared against it Beware of giving up the reines to thy senses or letting them run at randome after the unruly fancy of their leading appetite and never make use of them in things tending to meere pleasure without any further good end profit or necessity but if unawares they have gotten And how to curb the senses roaming abroad vent and are roam'd too far abroad either recall them back or else so regulate and curb them that whereas they had at first basely yielded up themselves and were become wretched prisoners to vaine pleasure they may now bring home some noble spoile or other from each object and place it as a trophe in thy soule where she recollected within her selfe displayes the banners of her affections towards heaven in the contemplation of her Creatour Which thou maist thus practise So soone as any object is presented to one of thy outward senses separate in thy thought the spirit which is in that creature from the creature it By separating the spirit of each object from the thing it self materiall selfe and conclude that it hath nothing of it's owne nature which can charm thy sense but that all is the work of God whose Spirit bestowes invisibly this being upon it gives it this goodnesse and indues it with this beauty with all other its prerogatives and perfections Then rejoyce heartily that thy God is the onely cause and source of so many and so great excellencies which he eminently contains in his divine essence and whereof these are the least and lowest images 3. So when thou findest thy sense fastened upon some creature which Whether it be a creature which hath onely a Being hath onely a Being reduce it in thy thought to it's first nothing looking with the interiour eye of thy soule upon thy Soveraigne Creatour there present who beautified it with this Beeing and taking pleasure in him alone thou may'st say O Divine and desirable essence how doth my heart leap with joy that thou alone art the infinit beginning of all created Beeing 4. In like manner when thou Or hath a Vegetation and increase takest notice of Trees Plants Herbs Flowers and such other things thy understanding will soone distinguish how they have no life of themselves but from that quickning Spirit which falls not under the sense of thy fight to whom thou mayst thus breath forth Behold the true life from which in which and by which all creatures live and encrease O the lively and lovely contentment of my heart 5. Also beholding brute-beasts Or hath sense and feeling let thy spirit soare up to thy God the free bestower of all their sense and motion saying O prime mover of all things yet remaining in thy selfe immovable how great is my joy in thy firm stability 6. Moreover when thy sense is Or is indued with rare beauty touch't and tickled with some rare Beauty separate with all speed that which appeares to the eye from the inward spirit which appeares not at all and considering that all the outward fairenesse springs onely from the invisible Fountaine say with a gladsome heart Oh! the jubilation of my Soule when it thinkes on that eternall and immense beauty which is the originall source and essentiall cause of all created comelinesse 7. Furthermore upon the consideration of any perfection in Creatures Or excellent perfection first making
musicall charmes soare up in spirit to the sweete harmony of Heaven where Alleluja's do forever resound and beg of thy deare Lord that thou may'st become worthy to chant forth his perpetuall prayses amongst those heavenly quiristers 18. When thou walkest on the way Walking abroad ponder how each one of thy paces is a step towards thy death 19. When thou markest the Fowls Marking the swift flight of the Fowls of the Aire how swiftly they glide through that yielding Element and the running Waters hastning to their originall Ocean thinke how thy life slips away and thy Soule runs on to eternity with greater speed and celerity 20. When impetuous Winds are In time of Winds Thunder Stormes rais'd or Thunder and Lightning rage in the Skyes remember the â—earefull day of Judgement and â—rostrating thy selfe at the foot â—f the Crucifix adore thy Saviour â—nd implore his gracious assistance â—hat thou mayst now make such good use of the time hee lends thee â—hat thou mayst be then prepared â—o appear couragiously before his dread Majesty 21. As concerning divers Accidents Also upon all other Accidents and Occasions As of grief sorrow which are personall and peculiar to thy selfe thou mayst thus behave thee When Griefe or Sadnesse hath seized thy Heart when melancholy oppresseth thy minde or when any inconveniency troubles thy body raise up and resigne thy spirit to the supreme and eternall Will of God who is pleased this molestation should even now and thus touch and torment thee for thy good and his owne glory and bee glad of this occasion to serve him according to his owne Decree and Disposition 22. When thou castest thine eyes When thou lookest upon Christ crucified upon Christs sacred Crosse consider it as the banner of thy warfare from under which thou maist not step aside without eminent danger of being surprised by thy sworne enemies but following it closely and valiantly thou hast certaine hope to conquer them and climb up to heaven loaden with their glorious spoils and trophees 23. When thou seest the image Or the image of the Blessed Virgin representing the holy Virgin mother turne thy heart towards her now reigning in Paradise and give her thanks for having been ever ready to performe the divine will for bearing and bringing up the Redeemer of the world and for never denying her favour and succour to thee and all spirituall combatants humbly imploring it 24. So let the pictures of Saints seeme as so many representatives of And the pictures of Saints stout champions and Soldiers who by their courages and conquests have made thee a free and safe passage to follow them imitate them overcome with them and be crowned with them in eternall glory 25. Let the Churches which thou Or entrest into Churches frequentest put thee in mind that thy soule is Gods temple and should be therefore kept most purely and prepared most perfectly for his comming 26. Finally let each creature all Finally make all objects accidents instrumeÌ„ts to thy perfection objects and every accident be so spiritualized and distilled by thy understanding from their earthly and materiall drosse that they may serve thee as true instruments to the perfection of thy soule and become powerfull helps to thee contrary to thine enemies intention in thy tendance to divine union which is the onely end thou aimest at How to regulate the Tongue 1. And because the tongue hath a neere assinity with our senses for we willingly discourse of those things wherein we take delight I will here before I descend to the following doctrine briefly shew thee how thou art to regulate bridle and master this unruly member 2. Much pratling proceeds ordinarily Much talk proceeds from presumption from a certain presumption which perswades us that we are very knowing in the things we talk of and so pleasing our selves in our own conceptions we endeavour to imprint them in the hearers hearts with soperfluous repetitions and replications of the same subject to appeare thereby more masters of Reason than others and as if they stood in need of our instruction Few words cannot expresse the evill which ensues upon over-much talking for it is the parent of idlenesse an argument of ignorance the dore of detraction the instrument of falsehood and the blaster of all true devotion and spirituall fervour 3. Wherefore I advise thee in the Therefore avoid long discourses first place not to enlarge thy selfe in long discourses before unwilling hearers which is to break the lawes of civility nor yet before them who are willing to hearken to thee lest thou exceed the bounds of modesty 4. Avoid also all patheticall and And passionate expressions passionate expressions and an over-high elevation of voyce for both these are generally odious to the hearers and alwayes arguments of thine owne vanity and presumption 5. Speak not at all of thy selfe of And all talking of thy owne affaires thine owne affairs of thy patentage or kindred unlesse in case of evident necessity and then also with all possible brevity simplicity sincerity and modesty and if another seeme superfluous in such speeches concerning himself be thou edified thereat but imitate him not though his words tended to his self-abjection and accusation 6. Discourse not of thy neighbour Or of thy neighbours nor any thing concerning him unlesse a just occasion urge thee to defend him or speak well of him 7. Shew a willingnesse to talke But speak willingly of God alwayes of God and particularly of his love and liberality yet still with profound reverence for fear of failing and therefore take more content to hear others discourse than to talk thy self and conserve what good words are delivered in the cabin of thy heart 8. As for all other discourses let the only sound strick thy eares but keep thy mind fixed upon thy God And if thou needs must lend an eare because thy answer is expected yet let thy souls eye glance up to heaven And ponder in thy heart what thy tongue is to utter where thy Lord and love is and first examin briefly in thy heart what thou intendest thy tongue should utter wherby thou wilt quickly resolve whether speech or silence be now more to the purpose 9. Lastly thou wilt find by experience my dearly beloved that The praise and profit of Silence Silence is an excellent and usefull weapon for thy spirituall combat giving courage to fight constancy to continue and confidence to overcome It is his sure friend who distrusts himself and trusts in his God it conserves us in devotion and comforts us in the exercises of our duty And surely the bare consideration of the disasters caused by inconsiderate talking is a sufficient motive to make us in love with silence to which that thou maiest habituate thy selfe make frequent use of solitude and retirement from fruitlesse company and frivolous conversation whereby instead of men thou shalt
for that he is impeded from the practice of good wotks So that the cause of Divers pretences for our impatience his impatience relates not to the sicknesse or adversity it selfe but partly to himselfe as deserving it partly to others whom he must be forced to trouble against his will and partly to the omission of his spirituall exercises 5. Thus he who failes in his ambitious But all unwarrantable seeking of honours and offices will tell you he complains not for his owne sake but for the necessity of his family and friends whom he might thus have helped Now that such men deceive themselves is made apparent by this that they are not much troubled when the very same effects come to passe by some other meanes or persons which seemed to afflict them and under which they covered their owne imperfection 6. For example Thou tellest me As is explained by an example that thy sicknesse makes thee not impatient because it is in it selfe grievous to thee but for that they who are about thee are thereby overburdened But should they whom thou so much compassionatest be as much overburdened in serving other sick persons it would not much trouble thee From whence it is evident that not the sense of their trouble but thine owne desire and selfe-love was the true root of thy Impatience And in this manner thou maist discover the hidden deceits in the rest of thy affaires EXPLICATION TO remedy this I advise thee The remedy is to separate the pain from the pretended circumstances my beloved that as soone as thou doubtest of such a deceit thou presently separate by the help of thy conception the pain which presseth thee from those circumstances which are pretended excuses for thy impatience and then reflecting upon that alone force thy selfe to produce true and efficacious acts of patience and resignation to suffer it willingly Thus thou wilt either become a true practiser of vertue or at least thine eyes will be opened to discover thy owne defects whereof thou wert formally ignorant 7. Wherefore I exhort thee that Text. Therefore desire not to be freed from thy Crosse if thou art able to carry thy Crosse with patience thou never desire to be freed from it for this desire brings with it two great evills The one is that if it destroyes not thy patience yet it disposeth thee by little and little to impatience The other is That it deprives thee of merit before God who esteemes that only a work of perfect Patience though short in reference to time which is done with the resignation of our wils to his divine pleasure 8. In this therefore and in all But conforme thy will to God's thy other works and proceedings follow this Rule Withdraw and purge thy heart from all other desires and demands than that onely purely and simply which is conforme to God's will And this is the way to be no more disquieted with adversity since no such thing can befall thee without his will and liking 9. But when some lawfull meanes Yet thou maist use lawfull meanes so thou takest heed of self-love must necessarily be used for the expelling of some overburdening adversity take heed left selfe-love creep into thy heart with them and see thou apply them not to bee thereby freed from thy pressure but onely because it is Gods pleasure that thou shouldst make use of those instruments and then thou canst not be discontented in case they should not conduce to thy deliverance from adversity EXPLICATION How to oppose the Devill striving to deceive us with indiscretion VVHen the Devill perceives 1. How to oppose the Devill striving to deceive us with indiscreâ—ion that thou walkest on warily in the right track of vertue so that his common cunning is become uselesse to his designe of making thee goe astray he then transformes himself into an Angel of light and solicites thee with delightfull thoughts flatters thee with passages of sacred writ and suggests examples of the Saints that so conceiting thy selfe climb'd up to the top of perfection thou maist fall more dangerously into the precipice which he hath dig'd for thee To this end he presseth And pressing us to afflict our bodies thee to the punishment of the body with disciplines abstinence hair-cloath and other extraordinary austerities that either thou may'st be puffed up with pride as thinking thou dost very much or mayst destroy thy health and so become uncapable to doe good works or lastly that having endured much in this kind thou maist grow weary of doing penance and abhor thy spirituall exercises and so become a prey to thine enemies and a slave to fleshly and worldly pleasures which hath hapned to very many whose presumption having led them on and left them to the conduct and violence of an indiscreet zeale after they had gone beyond the limits of their owne vertue by immoderate rigours perish'd at last in their owne inventions and so became laughing stocks to their enemies all which disasters will never befall him who diligently observes this doctrine Whiâ—h though it is sometimes good Yet it must be tempered by discretion For all cannot imitate the Saints in austeâ—ity of life 2. For although these voluntary pernances are sometimes praise-worthy and may be meritorious when strength of body and humility of spirit doe correspond and accompany them yet they must be temper'd and moderated by discretion according to each one's nature and quality Thus hee that is unable of body to imitate the Saints in severity of life may right well be able to imitate their vertues by being fervent in devotion frequent in prayer continually aspiring to his Lord and love setting naught by the world and himselfe and loving silence and solitude HEE may be humble and affable to all patient in suffering affronts glad of the occasions to doe good to his greatest enemies and finally resolved to performe his Lords will and promote his honour to the utmost of his power and never to offend his divine Majesty in the least matter whatsoever 3. All which inward acts and But each one may imitate their vertues mortifications are far more pleasing to God thâ—n the outward macerations of the flâ—sh and therefore I counsell thee to be very punctuall in those things which concerne thy duty and obligation but as for extraordinary rigours be rather backward and fearfull than indiscreetly forward â—o embrace them 4. Yet I speak not here to those Yet take heed of too much addicting thy self to delicacies c. delicate ones who though in other things they are sufficiently spirituall are over-much inclined to indulgence towards themselves and to an exâ—ct doting and diligence in the preservation of their health under Under pretence of health or the better performance of thy duty pretence of being thereby better able to serve God and perform their duty for they strive to couple two capitall enemies together the Spirit and the flesh
victory into your own peacefull consciences and keep there a delicious Call'd by Isay Sabbatum delicatum Esa 58. 13 Sabbath of repose in the happy enjoyments of unspeakable delights The Seven chief Ambushes of our Enemies 1. SElf-love Which is the root of all sin and cause of all inproficiency in the way of perfection 2. Few are found free from it 3. To avoid this snare we must seek Gods honour in all our actions 4. To self-love belongs unmortified sensuality which must be tamed by cutting off superfluities 5. To the same pertain Pride Self-conceit c. Which must be remedied by the Practice of humility 6. Also the passions of our inferiour nature Love Hatred c. To which we must oppose Peace of heart 7. Lastly the adhering to our own wills and judgements which must be cured by Obedience 8. Note a triple Obedience 2. Immoderate affection to creatures 1. This distracts us from our Creator against which we must provide Poverty of spirit 2. Affections to persons corrupt our judgements 3. We must remedy it by loving all impartially in and for God 4. Spirituall comforts may be sometimes snares of the Devil therefore we must not stay in them but transcend them 3. Extroversion or an inordinate application of our selves to externall things 1. Which choakes up Devotion therefore we must not thrust our selves upon imployments 2. But curb our fancies 3. Perform works of obedience necessity and charity without ingaging our affections 4. And strive to get into our interiour 5. By fixing our heart on Christ crucified 4. Bitterness of heart sadness frowardnesse c. 2. All which proceed either from nature indiscretion thoughtfulnesse presumption or immortification 3. And must be sweetned with Charity 4. To this belong a certain grudging at Gods providence which must be avoided by a cordial Resignation 5. Scrupulosity inward affliction fearfulness c. 1. Which aym at the destruction of our Faith and Confidence in God 2. To avoid this we must rely upon God and our guide 3. And assure our selves that we cannot erre in Confidence if we fall not into Negligence 6. Excessive and unnecessary study 1. Which busies the Understanding but leaves the Will barren 2. Puffs us up with Vanity but leaves us empty of true Piety 3. The remedy is to rectify our intentions in our studies 7. Tepidity and coldness in Devotion 1. Which is the bane of all spirituality We must alwayes go forward towards perfection with perseverance and excite our sluggishness with frequent aspirations 2. An excellent document of Saint Anthony Latet hostis et otia ducis The first Ambush Self-love 1. THis in S. Austin's opinion is the root of Self-love is the root of all sin and cause of all inproficiency in the way of perfection all sin and we may fitly add and avouch it to be the cause of all inproficiency in the way of perfection For our subtil nature so constantly seeks her self in all her actions and omissions that even the spirituall man who treads in the pleasant paths of piety is subject to be drawn into this dangerous ambush He will find upon due examination some sinister and self-intention Read the second ch of the Spir. Con. creeping in and corrupting his sincerest endeavours and perceive unless highly illuminated that there is more of private commodity than pure and perfect charity in his most transcendent and heroique exercises 2. Who is not generally more diligent in the performance of his Few are found free from it duty for the fear of hell and hope of heaven than for the sole and substantiall love of his Creator who hath not rather some small clause and secret condition of self-interest in his actions than the only fulfilling of Gods holy will and the following of his Divine inspirations Whom shall we find though never so great pretenders to perfection so totally untangled from this net of Self-love that they neither hover after humane respects and praises nor look upon rewards or punishments nor overvalue their own wayes and exercises nor solace themselves with the sweets of sensible devotion nor please themselves with their high-towring contemplations and raptures into Gods immediate perfections nor finally dresse up devotion by the pattern of their own passions and so fall in love with their own conceptions and make to themselves in Bethel golden calves in stead of 3. Reg. 13. 8. the Cherubins in Jerusalem Whose will is so truly devested from all propriety as to remain untouch'd unmov'd undisquieted resolute and resigned in all temporall chances and changes and in all spirituall dryness desolation dereliction and affliction whatsoever 3. To avoid this pernicious snare To avoid this snare we must seek Gods honour in our actions we must strive to level all our actions at Gods pure honour and pleasure as the only end we aym at the only object of our love life and labour in whom only and not in the best of his creatures is found true quiet and content 4. Unmortifi'd Sensuality is the To self-love belongs unmortified sensuality dear darling of Self-love This proposes nothing but pleasure and pastime to our seduced appetites roamings abroad to our affections makes us sedulous to satisfie our fancies covetous to content our curiosities to hearken after vanities to Read the 7. ch of the Arraignment glut our gusts with dainties and to evaporâ—te our pretious time and talents in extravagant adhesions to creatures What hope Alas of internal repose and recollection where such tumults and troubles prepossess the spirit What place remains for the holy entertainments of heavenly love when such affections have fill'd up each corner of the heart Wherefore a soul that seeks God Which must be tamed by cutting off superfluities must scorn to rest in these seeming goods she mâ—st banish all superfluities and be content with the meer supplies of her necessities she must admit of no excesse in meat drink sleep attire talk or other solaces whatsoever if she really intends to make the body pliable to the spirit and the spirit proper to tend to perfection 5. Pride presumption vanity self-esteem self-complacency self-content To the same belong pride self-câ—nceit c. self-praise self-seeking self-delight with all the rest of like nature are but severâ—ll noozes of the same net and sprouts out of the same main root self-love And whosoever hopes for honour praise preferment or profit from others for any goods of nature gâ—fts of grace or prerogatives of vertue is faln into this snare of the Devil robs God of his proper due is rotten at the heart and hath already received his full reward The remedy of all this O dear Which must be remedied by the practice of humility souls is unfeigned humility Cast one glance of your souls eye upwards upon your Creators might and mercy all your perfections come out of his treasury and are lent you to be improved for his service not to be proud
confession into my mouth prayers into my lips remorse into my memory resolutions of amendment into my will T is Thou O gracious God who chiefly actest all this good in me by me and for me O my All do then all in me that thou desirest And particularly overwhelm I beseech thee my whole interiour with perfect contrition not coming from a slavish and servile fear but from a faithful and filial love Grant me a true and intire grief for having offended thee not because of thy promises or threats but because thou art in thy self good amiable adorable 3. Or if mercenary interest do yet more move thee O my sensual and sinful soul For how hainously dost thou take a small injury how deeply dost thou resent a little disgrace the loss of a dear friend of health of honour or the like temporall and perishable commodities O whence is it then that thou so little apprehendest thy loss of grace and thy eminent and imminent danger of eternall damnation Is it a small matter to be Gods enemy To lose the good will of all heaven To destroy Gods image To cut up life root and branch To side with the accursed devils thy Creators sworn enemies to hatch Treason enter Conspiracie with the damned Yea and to kill as much as in thee lyes him who by his own death gave thee life O brutall and unnatural ingratitude Surely the annihilating of heaven The reason is Because the least degree of a higher order surpasses the highest degree of the lower order earth Angels men and all Nature cannot be compar'd with this malicious evil and willfull destruction of thy grace O Lord in my soul O eternal God! what a monster have I then been in grace what a prodigie in nature who have so little car'd to commit such enormous sins But O my Lord I will even now change my life I here detest all sin I make firm purpose of amendment I have a ful confidence in thee my Creator a good wil to do satisfaction and a totall resignation to thy divine pleasure 4. I am the woful criminal O just judge of my soul and I will be also the accuser and witnes the advocate and executioner in this tribunal I summon you therefore O detestable pride O abominable envy O execrable avarice O beastly lubricity and all you accursed crew of sins how long will you reign on earth how long will you dispeople Gods inheritance who brought you in amongst Gods children T is the perverted Will of man O dread Soveraign which hath done all these mischiefs Rectify ô my Lord I beseech thee this my crooked Will and murder these horrible monsters in me and grant that I may henceforth rather expose my body to a thousand deaths than my soul to one deadly sin Thy Saints will rejoyce ô God at my amendment and thy Angels will make a Feast but thy own resentment of joy will be infinite because thy love is infinite which goes hand in hand with thy essence and comprehends all love in supream eminency I will therefore expect from thee O heavenly Father the exact remembrance from thee my Redeemer the perfect knowledge from thee ô holy Spirit a true repentance and from thee ô Sacred Trinity an intire absolution and plenary indulgence from all my iniquities The grief I feel for my past offences the hatred I have against each sin at this present and the resolution I make to avoid all iniquity for the future are not equivalent in me to their enormity and hainousness I therefore humbly crave ô holy Lord God! that thou wilt accept thine own hatred against sin for that which I should and would have and in stead of the sorrow I want I offer that of thy Son my sweet Redeemer with the Sacrifice of his immaculate life and innocent death And since I cannot be impeccable by nature O my Lord nor dare presume to ask to be so by grace give me leave to prostrate my self before thy infinite bounty and clemency and beg by the merits of Jesus Christ thy dear Son and by the desires of thy essential love the blessed holy Ghost that though I may not be impeccable yet I may never sin more and if I must somtimes sin through my frailty yet that I may never sin mortally This thou desirest O Lord this thou demandest this thou commandest O give me what thou commandest and command me what thou pleasest 5. O my good Lord Jesu who art Lord of my life and shouldst be the love of my soul had I not like an ungracious and ungratefull wretch given my heart and sold my affection to fond frail filthy and fading creatures and comforts which are so far from bringing me eyther quiet of mind peace of conscience purity of soul or perfection of spirit that they leave me nothing but trouble confusion and remorse with a world of disquiet and desperate thoughts violent passions and vitious inclinations I find no other refuge or remedy but to return to thee my Centre to convert my self to thee O my good Lord and Master to cast my self in all humility at thy sacred feet and heartily to beg thy mercy pardon and reconciliation O mercifull Father I truly acknowledge my prodigality and humbly confess my treachery and am sorry from my heart that ever I offended thee who deservest so much love and service from me Beseeching thee as a guilty prisoner to be pitifull to thy poor creature and mercifully to forgive me the manifold rebellions and grievous iniquities that I have committed against thy Divine Majesty and goodness and for the love of thee I freely forgive all them who have any way offended or contristated me sincerely acknowledging that I deserve no comfort from any creature but all contempt and confusion and not only to be troubled by all on earth temporally but even to be tormented by the Devils in hell eternally 6. O how ungratefull a child have I been to offend so often and so grievously so loving and liberal a Father so meek and mercifull a Redeemer and so â—weet and soveraign a Majesty who hath always shew'd himself so benigne and bountifull to me tolerating me in my sins and expecting me to his mercy wooing me to his love and calling me to his service by a thousand means all which I have either rejected or neglected and still nevertheless given me time and opportunity to do penance O my poor soul how blind and bewitched hast thou been to leave the bread of Angels and to feed on the husks of swine for vanities villanies shadows and nothings to abandon God and all goodness on whom depends all thy hope and happiness quiet and comfort for time and eternity O blindness O folly O frenzie Would God I had never sinned Oh that I might never sin more O my God what have I done Would I had suffered on the Cross pains of body and pangs of soul when I thus N. sinned Oh what can I say or do more
and securing lesson Leave all things and thou shalt find one thing which is all in all Take courage and fight valiantly against thy own bad nature pray suffer stoop bear repugnances swallow down contradictions disgest injuries the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence The end thou aymest at is perfection the reward of thy conqucst is eternall love eternal life eternall happiness Behold ô my Lord my strength and my salvation I am fully resolv'd to lay the ax to the root of this wicked tree Help me I beseech thee with thy grace from above that I may hew my self out of my self that I may kill crucifie and mortifie my inveagling sensuality cut off my evil inclinations rectifie my disordered passions and root out each thought or desire which tends not directly to thy honour will and love O my Lord and my God! 3. I know Lord that it is bootless to study perfection without the practice of mortification I confess I can never love thee truly but in as much as I hate my self really such is the antipathy between self-love and thy holy affection Ah! how can a spirit distracted with contrary inclinations be freely and fully vacant to thy divine contemplation Put therefore I beseech thee a sluce to my unmortified passions put a bound to my distraught heart and powerfully keep back those innumerous concupiscences and corrupt imaginations violently succeeding each other that my united affections may intend thee only the only object of all happiness Gather ô my Lord the dispersed forces of my soul from all multiplicity of worldly affections to the union of thy only love Keep I beseech thee my understanding will memory imagination and all my inward and outward sences from roaming abroad that carefully attending and entertaining thy divine presence in my soul I may attain true introversion simplification and union of my Spirit with thine Reform ô my Lord all the naturall corruptions of my outward man and redress all the spirituall infirmities of my inward man destroy and disperse all internal and external enemies and opposers of thy holy love possess me perfectly and dispose of me entirely according to thy divine will and pleasure 4. To this end O bless my weak endeavours al-mighty and al-merciful Lord God I will subtract all superfluities from my body and accustom it to all sorts of sufferings that so I may fit it up for thee O holy Spirit who dwellest not with them that are sensuall and subject to sin Alas I have not yet resisted to the effusion of my blood and should I spill each drop of blood in my body in this holy quarrel how little ought I to regard it in respect of the great good I expect I will therefore crucifie thee O my flesh with all thy concupiscences I will mortifie my outward senses the windows by which death steals into my soul the hinderers of my hearts tranquillity the destroyers of true devotion the dispersers of inward recollection and the utter ruiners of all the good desires which I conceive and kindle in my prayers Ah how soon is this divine fire cooled and quenched not only by sin but also by the distracting images of outward objects I will keep a speciall and strict watch over my tongue on which depends my spirituall life or death and cheerish thee ô beloved silence which art the key of piety the keeper of innocency and the preserver of purity I will trample down my inferior This is the chief exercise of Gods children not to be carried away with affections of flesh and blood but to conduct themselves according to Gods Spirit nature with all it 's evil affections and motions of love hatred joy sadness desire fear hope Anger c. I will order dispose and direct it according to the laws of reason and thy divine inspirations ô my Lord and my God Grant me courage I beseech thee to quell and curb this most dangerous and my greatest enemy which is the source of all my miseries the citadell from whence sin assails me and Satan fetcheth his forces to fight against me Grant good Lord that I may Therefore every one must strive to know his own natural inclinations and then imploy all his forces and apply all his prayers and spiritual exercises to quel them never yeild to this wicked Eve persuading Adam my Superior will to eat the forbidden fruit to consent to unlawfull pleasures O that I could tame these cruel beasts my naturall passions how soon should I be master of all morall vertues O that I could so till this vineyard so delve this garden so purge it from all ill weeds of affections and prune all superfluous surgeons and shoots of passions that the seed of thy grace ô heavenly husbandman might only there take root increase and fructifie 5. I will also mortifie my Superiour and rationall part with all the curious and fruitless speculations of my Understanding all conceits of self-wisdom naturall prudence proper judgement and good liking of my own proceedings All vain and foolish reflexions of my Memory And all petty desires and affections of my Will which relate not to thee the only object and Lord of my love I am resolved ô my Lord to nip off each budding passion as soon as it peeps up in my soul to trouble it in its true repose and to hinder its liberty and tendance to thy love I will by thy gracious assistance proceed faithfully and sincerely in the hatred denial and mortification of my self and in the prosecution of thy divine love And in order to this only end and aym I make in thy presence and from the very bottom of my heart and soul these particular acts following I renounce ô my Lord for the pure love of thee all affection to worldly things Give them unto me ô gracious God or take them from me as best liketh thy divine Majesty I resign up all my interest in any thing though never so near and dear unto me Behold ô my Lord and lover I uncloath my soul from all affections whatsoever to creatures and desire nothing but thy self-alone O happy nakedness O rich poverty of Spirit O pure obedience to the divine will in all things Be you my hearts delight my whole pleasure and patrinony 6. I renounce all self-seeking Ah! my corrupt nature I abhor thee Adieu all private-interest profit praise and preferment I will henceforth performe all my actions and exercises O my Lord God for thy only pure perfect love I will seek to please and praise thee with an inward ardent and amorous affection for thy self only and not for thy gifts or graces I renounce all sensuality whether it be in meat drink sleep apparel curiosity of my five senses or any thing else whatsoever O my Lord I will make no other use of any thy creatures than I am absolutly compell'd to by necessity of nature I look for no solace but from thee alone My only comfort and content I renounce all
affections 6. Then more still abstract and simple Prayer 7. After which come's Active Contemplation 8. And lastly Passive In which estate we may and must leave all Rules and help our selves by experience and the â—â—ght â—f Earth but especially by following and humbly obeying the internall motion and attraction of the holy Spirit of God upon whom chiefly depends the perfection of this great work For further explication whereof The seventh Maxim That the Contemplative must be very observant of the divine visits lights and calls WE must take heed of tying our selves to any set forms of words points or methods of Mental prayer after we have made We must ty our selves to no set methods some progress in this practice of Recollection for this were directly to impede the free operation of Gods holy Spirit within us When therefore we shall perceive our souls drawn from discourses to this higher exercise we must humbly and readily relinquish our former hold and give scope and leave to the divine invitation busying our selves no longer in our former fears and customs but making use of such inward or outward expressions as fervent love will suggest and furnish us withall conforming our selves perfectly to God's will and cooperating with his grace yet so as not to run before it which is the other extream equally hindring the divine Spirit 's intention Wherfore a quiet indifferent and industrious attention and correspondency still willingly giving way to Obedience for fear of delusion is the very best disposition to receive these heavenly visitations We must not then be troubled But willingly quit our old customs if we break our old customs to embrace Gods will he is the end of all our exercises and the end being obtained the means must cease O how many are called by God who refuse and resist him by tying their Spirits to this or that practice and so bar him from elevating their souls to himself as he pleaseth They are loath to leave God in their usuall Devotions for God in Contemplation If they begin not their prayers thus and thus end them they think they have done nothing and remain wholly unsatisfied Thus they become proprietarians in their Wils and slaves to their exercises and because they cast not themselves absolutely into the two arms of Gods will and love they make small progresse in the way of solid perfection The eighth Maxim That the only way to get true peace of mind is to be totally Resigned to God REsignation is a putting away of What Resignation iâ— our own Will and a placing of Gods Will in its stead it is as it were a certain transfusion of our Wills into his and an uncloathing our selves of all desires but only that God's holy Will be fully accomplish'd in heaven and earth Without this Resignation we There is no true quiet without it shall never find quiet in God nor our-selves and the way to attain to it is to receive all that happens as from Gods holy hands and to be content to bear it as long and in what manner and measure he pleaseth Let us not be troubled under a false pretence of zeal at this place that company c. For it is not that but our selves who stand in our own light First then let us seek God purely in all 2. See him present in all 3. Take from him all 4. Return to him all Let us be indifferent in all praise God in all bee quiet and content in all in sickness and health in light and darkness in peace and trouble in life and death To be expell'd out of Paradise with Adam to lye full of sores and sorrows with Job on a dunghil to be forsaken by all with Christ on the crosse to bee poor needy naked nothing being ever ready to say cordially cheerfully and with an humble and habituall indifferency Yes O Father yes I will It pleaseth thee it shall pleaâ—e me well good best of all So be it my good Lord for time and eternity in this and in all things A soul thus resigned can never be troubled with any cross or calamity for she eys Gods Will and embraces his Providence in all occurrences nothing toucheth her but only thâ—t his divine pleasure is not perfectly performed in her self and in all creatures If in her prayers she be seiz'd with How to be resigned in desolations drynesse dulnesse desolation shee gratefully confesseth that state to be best for the perfecting of her spirit She neither complains of nor considers her inproficiency in her pious exercises for she comes not to prayer for gusts or graces but to doe Gods will to receive what he pleaseth to suffer what â—e permitteth And because this Resignation is the Key of her true progress she makes frequent and fervent acts thereof in this or the like manner Take my Will totally to thee O Acts of Resignation my God! govern it absolutely and submit it perfectly to thine own and because I cannot deliver it up O my dear Lord as thou desirest take it from me by violence cut off all impediments break all my fetters for me bring me forcibly and bend me absolutely to a blessed conformity with thy Will and pleasure Let my whole employment in this life be the practice of this point Let me neither think of pain nor look upon recompense but resignedly behold thee because thou art in thy self so good so great so glorious so amiable so admirable I give up my Will O divine Artist to bee plung'd purified polished hammer'd filed and fired in the fornace of thy love O doe with it and with me as thou best knowest and pleasest 'T is for this I now come to prayer and for this only that I may be taught this happy lesson of denying mine own and doing thy Will Or thus briefly Lord I put my Will and alâ— that concerns me inwardly out wardly temporally eternally intâ— thy holy hands dispose of all aâ— thou pleasest and direct me in aâ— to doe thy divine Will Having made this act and oblation let us reflect seriously upon what we have said and done and that in giving away our Will wee have put the best pawn wee have into Gods hands and out of our own power let us then beware of so infamous and ignoble an action as to re-take the gift so solemnly delivered or to doe again our own wil in any thing whatsoever The ninth Maxim That a Contemplative soul must lay a solid groundwork to serve her in time of Desolation FOr no soul can in this life be alwaies elevated to the Divinity and therefore will sometimes need a stay to rest upon till she can take breath and repair her forces in order to her higher soarings in Contemplation This resting place This groâ—ndwork may be Christs humanity may most fitly be the Humanity of Christ which is the very way and dore to the Divinity upon which when she returns to her self after she hath been absorpt
most certain that whosoever leaves Recollection to look after earthly consolation enjoys neither God nor the world whereas a soul which retires her self from the world to possess God enjoys truly both God and the world together The 37. and last Maxim That we must walk and persever in these our Spiritual Exercises with the two feet of Faith and Obedience To perform this we must 1. Leave all for one All others for God Our selves for God God himself wheÌ„ he withdraws himself By recollection By abnegation By resignation 2. Leave one for all 3. Leave one and all The practice of this Maxim consists in these five points 1. TO have an ardent desire affection The practice and intention to love see please and enjoy God 2. To curb our senses from all curiosity vanity apprehensions c. which may either defile our souls or disturb our minds or distract our spirits Either seduce us from the right way or affright us when wee are in it 3. Then we must take Jesus by the right hand by faith and confidence abandoning our selves totally to his mercy and resting in his providence with a filiall indifferency 4. We must take our spirituall guide by the left hand by punctuall obedience 5. In our way wee must have these or the like thoughts recollections and devotions Well I am going to heaven to my Father and Creator to my eternall rest and Center to see love and praise my God for evermore There only is true life true love true light and true liberty O Jesu how long O Jerusalem when Jesus is with me and for me him I will follow after him I will sigh and for him I will suffer come what can If I erre let my guide look to it for I am obedient If I stumble Jesus will not let me fall for I am faithfull If I cannot have the fruit of Penance I will keep that of Obedience What I cannot get by Recollection I will procure by Resignation What I want by Indifferency I will supply by Confidence though my Deserts fail my Desires shall prevail What hath an end is nothing Live Eternity Sometimes let us hearken to Jesus speaking O my child my servant my spouse What are all things to thee follow thou me Let all pass I am here All is one and One is all trouble not thy self with multiplicity Be silent and I will answer for thee be content I am thy sufficiency Be indifferent all is my will be confident all is wel I forgive thee all thou demandest I will give thee all thou desirest I will never desert thee nor withdraw my eys hand heart from thee therefore goe on quietly couragiously confidently Other times let us answer him meekly and faithfully O good Jesu save me for I am thine O sweet Saviour support me for I am weak O loving guide direct me for I am blind c. Thus boldly let us keep on our way 1. Letting passe all by insensibility 2. Out-passing all by fervour 3. Passing under all by humility 4. Passing over all by generosity and elevation of spirit Under this Maxim are solv'd many materiall doubts arising in our daily progress to perfection The first Doubt If we fear that God will forsake us by reason of our Ingratitude and disloyalty 'T Is true we have been are still and ever shall be ungratefull tepid and defective in our correspondencies to the divine love and light and God may in justice forsake us and yet be a good God but wee must be confident in his mercy that he will not do it for Jesus sake in fury and rigour though hee may sometimes withdraw the feelings of his presence to try our loyalty His holy will be done Let us never say God will forsake us but say We will never forsake God Let us first say Doth God love us who can doubt it And doe we love him If we will we doe Let us never say We shall never amend all is lost But let us often say We are sinners wicked wretched weak none more than we but it truly grieves us to be so we will endeavour to remedy all sure we are our God is Almighty all-mercy all-meekness him we will serve and in him we will trust in despite of nature and maugre the devill and for him all desolation and death it self is most welcome unto us The 2. Doubt If our sins trouble us in respect of Confession and Satisfaction LEt us cast off servil fear and be confident that what is past is pardoned by Gods mercy and our humble confession what is to come may be prevented by Gods grace and our dilligence and endeavours The 3. Doubt If wee can neither Pray with fervour nor Suffer with patience neither feel God present nor be content in his absence LEt us have recourse to these four things which will supply our defects and satisfy for our faults 1. Obedience 2. Resignation 3. Confidence 4. Good desires Therefore in all our fears crosses and troubles let us make use of these four points in this or The practice the like manner O my Lord God who deservest from me all love and honour and whom I desire to serve with all my soul behold I come out of confidence in thy mercy having no other end but only to please and praise thee wherefore I resign my self to thy will beseeching thee to turn all to thy glory and my good The 4. Doubt If we are doubtfull that God is angry with us that we want grace that we only seek our selves that we yield to all temptations c. LEt us build upon these three foundations Humility in acknowledging our own deformity Sincerity in confessing it and Confidence of pardon for it and so persevering constantly and couragiously in a course of Prayer according to direction and obedience we shall soon find ease rest and peace The 5. Doubt If our Consciences are unquiet and our souls fearfull by reason of our proness to sin c. LEt us Apply these following plasters and put these tents into our spiritual wounds as deep as we can every day for a time till the cure be perfected 1. Let us be assured that we are Plasters for a troubled conscience now at this present in the state of grace supposing we have already or are now resolv'd to do what is necessary for the expiation of our past sins and the avoiding all sins for the future 2. That having a will to please God and perform our duties our Prayers are profitable to us and acceptable to God and we may without presumption take courage and comfort though we are yet full of passions and â—mperfections 3. That the feeling of troubles fears temptations c. are neither sins in us nor signs of Gods anger against us 4. That we are not bound to reflect continually whether we have consented to sin or not nor to judge whether this or that consent he mortall or veniall Nor to meddle with the sins of our