PHILOTHEA'S PILGRIMAGE TO PERFECTION.
The Preface to PHILOTHEA, Contayning Instructions for Solitude.
§. 1. Excellency of Holy Solitude.
SInce thou art in good earnest resolved, MY PHILOTHEA, to begin thy Pilgrimage to Perfection by entring holy Solitude, therein for a while, to conferr with the beloved of thy soul, touching the present & future state thereof, how thou standest affected to Piety, & how thou maist better thy selfe in thy progresse towards heaven, by cleansing thy heart intirely from those stains & blemishes which are incident to corrupt & fraile Nature, & by strengthning it [Page 2]with pious considerations, enflamed affections, & efficacious resolutions, to the redeeming of lost time & reforming such errours & evill inclinations, as are insensibly crept into thy soule; I cannot more fittly addresse my selfe to thee, then with the hearty well-wishes of holy Tobie to his Sonne: Walke well, God be in thy way, & his holy Angell accompany Thee.
Nor may we doubt, but that the same Divine Clemency which hath inspired Thee, with a will to undertake this Holy Voyage, will inable Thee with his blessings, & make Thee so to prosper & profitt thy selfe in the pursuance of this blessed designe, that it will be unto the eternall honour of the Divine Majestie, & an ample increase of Piety, & spirituall comfort in thy own soule.
If any employment be heavenly upō Earth, & doth consequently belong to the duty of a good & upright Christian, it is the serious practise of retired solitude; by which the soule doth unspeakably promote her selfe towards the end of her creation; which is, to know [Page 3]God, & to love him above all things created.
In Solitude we ransack our hearts, we discover our secret enemies there lurking in our breasts, & strongly armed grapple with them, expel them, & prevent their reentrance into our soules. By it, we dissable ill customes, settle our selves to an eager use of means to doe well, & fitt our minds to all good duties, & against all crosse events. By it we descry our naturall weaknes to vertue, obtain redresse, prevent temptations, cheere up our hearts, feeble & tyred out with temptatiōs & adversities, temper our use of creatures, gaine more light to our knowledge, more heate to our affections, more life to our devotions, more vigour & courage in our callings, & therby wee become strangers to the earth, by a just estimate of earthly things, which are transitory & vaine, & enter into a sweet fruition of invisible comforts.
Wee therein contemplate JESUS CHRIST, at the right hand of the Father, with Saint Steven; we discourse [Page 4]with Almighty God in his glory, with Holy Moses; & with the Great Saint Paul, ravisht into the heavenly Paradice, we heare & see, what we are loath to leave, & cannot utter.
Lastly, holy Solitude is the securest Remedy against wordly desires; it is the pastime of Saints, the ladder of heaven, & the best means to perfect a good Christiā soule, without which it cannot experience true joy & rest, during her aboad in this smoaky Cottage of her Mortality.
Although all vertuous Exercises, which occurr in the course of our tedious lives, doe aime at the profit of our soules, in order to the purchasing of life eternall; yet none comes neerer to this happy purpose, then the diligent use of holy Solitude, whereby our spirit is strōgly weaned from the love of perishing & transitory things, & soareth up to the contemplatiō & love of her Almighty Creatour, before whom, in silence & hope, she humbly discovers her wants & earnest desires, embraceth him with the arms of an innocent & reverentiall [Page 5]love, & in a manner entreth into the possession of the sweets of a never ending felicity, amidst the heavy presse of worldy trialls.
If therefore my Philothea, thou doest earnestly thirst after the delights of a spirituall Retreat, thou must seriously apply thy selfe to the use of it. For howsoever strong thou findest thy selfe in resisting temptations, & in the practise of vertues without a retyrement of thy spirit, yet will the greatest fervour soon slacken, & become faint, without the supply of Recollection, by reason that our enemies are many, powerful & restlesse; & vertue, how ever pleasant in the possession, is hard in the purchase, & our strongest resolutions, not supported, both by frequent reflection upon our soules, & those impediments that doe often occurre in our pursuit of Pietie, & by renovation of purposes unto that our happy end, will by insensible degrees, become weak & tepid.
But before thou undertakest this work of ten dayes Solitude, unto which I advise, & study to direct Thee; read [Page 6]attentively these few Rules, which I here insert, collected out of several great Contemplatives; whose experience in the schole of holy Solitude, may give them authority for thy instruction.
And indeed, without them a soule may miscarry, which would be great pitty, even in this holy & excelling work; & suffer illusions, where it endeavours, to shun & decline them.
§. 2. Preparation for Solitude.
WHerefore in the first place, be sure that entring into this holy Exercise, Gods honour be thy cheife Ayme; the next, a reformation of thy owne life, by a serious & deliberate reflection on thy past & present state, & what may happen for the future; that thou maist thereby prepare thy selfe to live well & dye happily, & that Death, when it comes, may not find Thee unprovided.
Nor doe thou much heed what the world may think of thy retyrement, Thou undertakest the employment of [Page 7]an Angell, & desirest to have a foretast of that blessednesse, which JESUS CHRIST hath purchased for us, by the effusion of his precious bloud; Blush not then, that thou beginnest now to be, what thou shouldst be alwayes, but rather that thou hast hitherto neglected a work, wherein much of thy life ought to be employed.
And because this Mountaine of Solitude ought not to be climed with a profane & ungodly foote, but as in the delivery of the Law, so here, no beast may touch Gods Hill, least he dyes, the sight of God being only promised to the pure of heart; the soule must therefore be well cleansed by hū ble Confession, from the dreggs of sin, before shee may profitably approach to this exercise, which beholds only objects that are pure & spirituall.
Thus the Royall Prophet would first wash his hands in innocency, & then compasse the Altar.
Make then a strickt examine of thy conscience, what sin may have been cō mitted by thee? what grace forfeited? [Page 8]what punishment deserved? & after this, in the evening before thou entrest thy Solitude, make an hūble & cordiall Confession, of what thou findest thy selfe faulty, since thy last examine. For since thy understanding is not yet enough cleered, nor thy affections sufficiently enflamed, for a Generall Confession, I should advise Thee to deferr it till the Fourth Day, where I shall say more of the profit thereof, & how it is to be performed.
This done, trouble not thy selfe, if thou finds't in thy soule some ill inclinations yet liveing there; this exercise requireth not absolute perfection, but is a means to attaine to it; Were wee all Saints, there would be no need to use the Solitude I speak of; Content thy selfe, that thou art not conscious of any mortall offense which thou hast not disclosed, with an humble repentance for what is past, & a firme purpose to amēd, endeavouring still an honest sinceritie & uprightnes of heart towards God.
Who finds him selfe in this dispositiō, let him not think, that either weakness [Page 9]to Vertue, or pronesse to vice, may be a lawfull barr to Recollection, whereby our viciousnesse is weakned, & Vertue revived in us; no man will starve him selfe with hunger, because he eates not with a strong appetite.
§. 3. Abstraction from usuall cares.
IN the next place, Philothea thou must disintangle thy selfe from worldly affaires; If thou wilt approach to Gods flaming bush, upon the Mountain of Visions, thou must putt of thy shoes; where our thoughts are glued to the world, the soule will be unable to soare up with wings so limed & intangled, unto a contemplation of heavenly things. For this, Elizeus left his oxen, S. Peter his boat, netts, & freinds too. The hill of Divine Meditation is high & steepe, & not to be ascended with a heart loaden with worldly cares & sollicitudes. Nor yet needest thou, what ever thy charge be, publick or private, secular or religious, cast it wholly off; lay it by a [Page 10]while, during thy spirituall retreat▪ in some other hand, whilst thou drawest there, more force & strength, for the mannagement thereof.
If thou lettest those cares enter in with thee, they will become troublesome companions, ever & anon distracting thy mind from her cheife buisnesse. And in this point, solitude admitts no smalnesse of matter, if thou givest place to one thought, which is not to thy purpose, hundreds will throng in with it, each will prove an impediment to the other, & all of them will trouble & divert the soule, which entertaines them, in this her Divine work. Wherefore be scrupulous in the observance of this advice; Experience will teach Thee, that distractions goe not single; admit one, & in a moment, thou wilt forget where thou art, & what thou art about.
And as thou must discharge thy selfe of thy ordinary employmēts, whē thou attemptest this great work, withdrawing, not thy hands only, but even thy thoughts from them: so also must thou observe a more strickt & profound silence, [Page 11]not entring into a conference (more then the Rules of obedience & well groūded charity will permit) with any one, but, with thy sprirituall Directour; nor with him, of any thing which hath not a streight reference to the work in hand.
Say rather with yong Samuel, Speak thou o Lord for thy Servant heareth Thee; By opening, the sweetest balsoms loose their odour, & by too much noys, we deprive our selves of hearing what the Holy Spirit would speak in our soule. If therefore thou desirest heartyly to heare the speeches of peace, which God speaketh to the soule, which he hath led into Solitude, stop thy Eares to all discourses of others, & putt â barr to thy own lipps. For much speech is not voyd of sin, & where sin is, Gods holy wisedome can make no aboad. No noyse was heard, whilst Salomons Temple was building, & a greater then Salomon is here.
§. 4. Choyce of Place.
SOlitarinesse of place helpeth much to the observāce of silence requisite. Retire from all others, if thou wilt discourse profitably with thy selfe. Our Blessed Saviour meditates alone on the Mountaine, holy Isaac in the feild, & Saint Iohn Baptist in the desert. Though God be in all places, as good to us, & as neer in one as in the other, yet is a Cell or Closet the most convenient for this great work, where our meditatiōs confined by kown walls, keep the mind from wandring abroad; wherefore a great Contemplative was wont to say, The Spouse of the soule is bashfull, & cometh not willingly to the Bride, in the presence of a multitude.
Abandon therefore, my Philothea, all worldly society, & change it happily into the company of God, & his blessed Angells. Abandon I say, all conversatiō with the world, not outwardly only, but also inwardly, least sequestring from the world in outward shew, we carry [Page 13]it within us in our owne bosoms. I know this counsell is of great perfectiō, not easily attained, for these thin species of things, insinuated into our minds frō outward objects, will appeare some times to us in our uery Cells, & private Closets, even against our best endeavours, S. Hierome in the deserts, had not his thoughts alwayes free, from the maskes, & dāces, of the Romā Matrons.
And truely, this inward society, is worse then the other. For it is more possible for a free Cōtemplative, to have a retired mind in the midst of a markett, then pestred thus with inward company, to be alone in the midst of a wildernesse. Make choyce therefore of that place, which admitteth fewest occasiōs, of withdrawing thy heart frō her own good thoughts. In my opinion, we cannot expect to find God neerer to us, then in that place where we have bin accustomed, more familiarly to meet him; because our thoughts are by custome more easily recollected, where we have used our selves, in our former Recollections, to converse with him.
§. 5. Due time for Solitude.
THe heart, now free from noise & distractions, must be constant in continuing this holy work, once begun, according to the course prescribed for it. Those who meditate by uncertain fits & snatches, only when other employments forsake them, or when good motions are thrust upon them, by necessity of example, or duty to Constitutions, cannot hope, in that their state of coldnesse, to climbe high upon this ladder of perfection. For although they may have some feeble beginnings of spirituall notions, & gracious Affections in the will, yet being the Issue of one fitt of Meditation, at random & unsettled, they are displaced & weakned at the first occurrence of a new employmēt. Wherefore having chosen a fitt time for the practice of solitude, be serious in keeping it; yeild to no occasion, withdrawing Thee from it. The beginning will be hard, but use will render it easy & delightfull.
The same constancy, which requires Thee, to make choyce of a proper time for Recollection, requireth also, that thou dwellest upon the matter, chosen or appointed Thee, without change or tediousnesse, till it hath attained some joyfull issue of spirituall profitt. Otherwise, my Philothea, thou wilt attempt much, & effect little, through thy owne ficklenesse & inconstancy; He deceiveth himselfe who thinketh Grace to be easily wonne. We must use much suit & importunity, before Christ will bestow his bread upon us; which is of that worth, that it may not be bestowed on any fickle petitioner. Even we our selves, generally speaking, sett little by that which is easily gayned, without labour, perils, importunity or resolution.
Thus much, for choyce of time, & dwelling upon the matter, in generall; whereof though both of them, require an unbroken constancy, yet not any perpetuity of either, through the whole course of our life. Our fraile nature, & ordinarie Duties, would not beare with [Page 16]such a fixed stability. It is for glorifyed spirits above, to be ever fixed on God, issueing flames of Love, towards so soveraigne a beauty. These poore things under the Moone, must have a change & variety; our vitall spirits, which the immortall mind uses, for her instruments, are of a strange kind of mettall; if not used at all, they rust; if too much, break, or at least grow dull & stupid; Truth is, the cheife object of our Solitude is so excellent, so glorious, that like the Sunne, look upon it we may, but not gaze thereon. We have known sad experience of some, who venturing too farr & hastily, have failed & weakned thē selves, to little fruit. Holy thoughts & affections are the food of the eternall Mind, yet since it works not in this our present state, without the fancy, her handmaid, she must needs flag, when fancy, her support, is tyred out, with too permanent & intense speculation, without variety of object. Let it suffice thee Philothea, to persever in thy Meditation, so long as Gods grace shall inable thee, without affectation of perpetuity, [Page 17]which is not granted us. And when thy spirits begin to blunt, leave off, without feare of ficklenesse; one halfe houre at a time, is a competent measure for a weake beginner. As God encreaseth thy devotion, he will inspire force, for longer continuance. But by no means passe thy prescribed time, without speciall advice, otherwise thou maist chāce to spoyle a good enterprize, & A moderate undertaking, with an anguishing conclusion, & hurt thy selfe.
Wherefore let me advise Thee, not to be too eager in this good work; Conserve alwayes a calme peace in thy spirit, for since this work depends more on the help of heaven, then our naturall industry, shouldst thou turmoyle thy Imaginatiō, with too earnest disquisitiō in the begining, unresigned to the time of heavenly assistance, thou wilt unhappily disable thy felfe, for further aspirations. Man is not alwayes, in a like disposition; sometimes he is longer in setling, through some unquietnesse of fancy, or more obstinate distraction; sometimes heavier in the perseverance, then [Page 18]in the first entry, sometimes more nimble & active to dispatch. How ever thou findest thy selfe, in the begining or continuance, persist gently, & thou wilt have victory. Other combats are on doubtfull hopes, this on assurance; for the successe depends on Gods promise, which cannot disapoint thee, if thou faile not in thy pursuance; persist then, & thou wilt prevaile; that which was begun with lāguishing remisseness & difficulty, shall end in joy & comfort.
One dayes meale, however large & liberall, strengthens not for to morrow. The body languisheth, if there be not a supply of food; Thou must therefore feed thy soule, by daily Meditation. The most serious affections are extinguisht, by intermission, & by disuse doe perish. Lett not therefore any one day passe, without a competent time, spent therein; break through all letts, except those of obedience & Charity; & when these shall have hindred thee, repay thy selfe afterwards, the time borrowed, & recompence thy losse with a doubled labour; for be assured, that too much [Page 19]neglect breeds unaptnesse to good. Thus much for thy daily Recollection, & for the time chosen or appointed thee; of which, hereafter I shall prescribe á fitt Methode.
But as for the Ten dayes exercise, which I intend specially to recommend unto Thee; I advise the use of it, only once a yeere; no lesse, no more. Our Nature is so feeble to good, so propense to evill, that unlesse we once a yeere, sett a speciall time a part, wherein to looke into our selves, after a more serious manner, & prune ill Customes & inclinations budding in us, these will grow so strong, that they will in time choake & kill our little plants of piety. The best clock will be out of order, unlesse taken in peices, & cleansed once a yeer. There is not any so good a Nature but may be corrupted by irregular affections, insensibly creeping upon us, which if not timely rectifyed, by a carefull industry, will gaine the upper hand, & become a second Nature.
Yet however necessary, a yeerly more serious inspection & survay of our [Page 20]lives, & conversations may be, to doe it too oft in one yeere would render a Mind perplext & anxiously scrupulous; which are distempers, incopatible with comfortable Solitude, that requires a generous freedome of the soule.
Wherefore let thy dayly Meditation suffice the rest of the yeere, for the correction of errours & misdemeanours, that creep upon us, in this fraile course of mortall life.
As for the time of the yeere, when this speciall Exercice is to be performed; 'tis hard to prescribe one generall Rule for all. Neither can a whole family or community, together, lay aside, at any one prescribed season, all their other duties, but while Mary meditates, Martha must look to household affaires. Could it be had, there is no time fitter then Lent and Easter, whē the weather is temperate, the body refreshed anew, by the Suns approach, & Mysteries then represented, doe strongly call upon us, for amendment of life; if we doe intend thē to partake in the benefitts of Christs Passion, & Resurrection. It is a signe, [Page 21]of a dead & frozen soule, not to have an impulse to Vertue, & a horrour of sin, when God him selfe becomes à Propitiation for us, by shedding his most precious Bloud upō the Altar of the Crosse, for our Redemption.
That is generally speaking, the best time, when we desire to be best disposed to piety; for thus have all Christians ever had some particular devotiō, on one or other particular solemnity, which suited best with their mind. And some are very devout on the day of their Patron, another on that day which had been blest with some speciall good accidēt to themselves or others, as their Regeneration to Christ by holy Baptisme, their Initiation in Orders, their Professiō in Religion, or Delivery by Gods providence, from some great evill. The memory of former good sentiments, are apt, at the recours of the season, to renew them; & reiteration, breeds stronger Inclinatiōs, to the like again. Choose then Ten dayes before that select time, therein to entertain thy selfe in thy happy solitude; & so behave thy selse [Page 22]therein, that that day may be a day of peace & Jubily of spirit to thee, that thou maist issue thence, as a sun forth a Cloud, with a cheerfull alacrity & livelynesse, witnessing the inward harmony of thy soule. It will then appear, that thy retreat was through a religious zeal of Perfection, not of a pensive scruple or dull custome; such a good Day will be a forceing motive to thy selfe, to blesse thy soveraigne Creatour, for that foretast of the joyes of Paradise, amidst the cumbersome cares which are incident to Mortality, & to which every one more or lesse stands subject; & edify others also, to the like felicity.
Yet neither are these Ten Dayes of speciall solitude, so to be spent, that the spirit should unchangably be bent upon Contemplation, even for that space; Our soule must be refreshed with some variety, it wil otherwise grow weary, & our thoughts remisse, & affections feeble, the time thereby seeming long to us, & the object tedious; but these divertisements must be short, & tending, at least a far of, to the great designe of piety in hand.
One time of the day cannot be prescribed to all, no more then one time of the yeere; for neither is Gods grace showred down at particular times, nor doe the various & contrary dispositions of all persons, agree in the choyce of opportunities. The Royall Prophet sayes, that In the evening, morning, & midday, he spoake to God, to redeem his soule, in peace; in my judgment, six, ten & five, would be fitt hours for secular persons; Religious, who rise at midnight, must observe an other Distribution, whereof in its due place; so David sayes, that He meditated upon God at the time of Mattins; all things being then still, the soule by the obscurity of night being recollected from the fancy of other objects, & the body some what released from the wearinesse of the past dayes cares, the mind will then easilyer grow into a likeing & love of heavenly things. Neither is the morning lesse fit for this heavenly service, for then the body newly raised, is fully calmed with its late rest; nor has the soule, as yet, had any motiues of distractiōs frō outward Creatures; wherefore [Page 24]the holy Prophet sayd, that his soule thirsted after God, from the morning watch. Neither is Isaacs time unfitt for this work, in the Evening he went forth to meditate in the feild, when the fumes of the middayes refection being dispersed, the soule might easily fasten upon divine objects; if thou intendest to reape a grounded & permanent benefitt from thy holy retreat, be sure that, first thou make choyce of the fittest hours for that purpose, then carefully sett those hours a part, from all other employments; for change breeds unsetlednesse, & this an unreasonable doubt, what time should be aptest; whē thy thoughts should be fixed on higher objects.
§ 6. Posture of Body.
THou must also Philothea, observe a due Gesture of thy body; for although God be a spirit, & therefore needs not so much the posture of the body, as of the soule, so it be reverent & respectfull; yet doth the due composition [Page 25]of the body much advantage the mind, in the practise of holy Meditation. In this, Experience will be every ones best Counseller.
If place permits no other, Isaacs posture, to meditate walking, is very good; But kneeling, with hands crossed on the breast, the eyes shutt, & face towards heaven, & sometimes prostrate on the ground, is a posture more genuine & naturall. How ever it be, be sure the frame of thy body testifie profound reverence towards God, & help to raise thy thoughts & affections thitherward. Our devotions will be most kindly, whē the composure of the body, which is the souls instrument, is most humble & respectfull; & this also must needs be sometimes varied, according to the subject of thy Contemplation.
§. 7. Subject of Solitary thoughts.
Now for the subject & matter wheron thou art to feed, during this holy Solitude, thou must use great circumspectiō, [Page 26]I doubt not, Philothea, there be many Contemplatiues, but not all good ones; One meditates how to doe his Neighbour a mischeife, another how to sin unseene; & these are those, who (as David sayes) Doe meditate Iniquity in their beds. Others are buisy, in the search of the hidden causes of visible effects; & so, seeking to be acquainted with the whole world, become strangers to their owne home; & whilst they seek to know others, are quite unknowne to them selves.
Doe you therefore choose to meditate, on that may doe thee good; The God that made us, the vilenesse of our body by Nature, the wretchednesse of our soule by sin; the aboundance of temptations, the danger of sudden death, the beauty of Vertue, JESUS CHRIST who bought us, the joyes of Heaven he purchased for us; the mysteries of his life, Death & Resurrection, the benefitt of the Sacraments, our vocation to Christianity, the payns of Hell, the glorious estate of the Blessed, & such like, are fitt objects, I should think, to entertayne thy felfe there in.
Earthly things proffer themselves, on their own accord, with importunity, but if they were any thing worth, they would not be so forward. Heavenly things must be sued unto, with eagernesse; their hardnesse to be obtayned, argues their worth, & the necessity of serious meditation, thereby to sollicite them. The harder they are to prosecute, the more precious they are being obtayned, & therefore the more worthy our Endeavour. While the soule is takē up with the thought of God & Godlinesse, it cannot miscarry. Yet I advise thee to be cautious in matters of faith, where more of beleife & admiration is to be used, then of reason & discourse. And that matter without exception is best herein, which workes compunctiō in the heart, most stirrs up to devotion, & incites strongly to the love of God, as the End, & to Vertue as the means to him, wherein experience will be a great mistresse.
§. 8. A Methode of Meditation.
IT remains now, that I say something of the forme & Methode, which thou art to observe in dividing thy Meditatiō, & in handling the parts & points thereof. But this hath much variety amongst Contemplatives, & each way is usefull & laudable, as it is fitted to persons that use it; For since there be different mansions in Gods glory, no wonder there should be different means to purchase them, according to the variety of each ones disposition; All are not equally, either worldly, or Contemplative; so neither equally disposed for the like Illuminations, nor capable of pursueing the same heads or points of Meditation. S. Bonaventures Methode, usually practised amongst us, & liked of by the best, is breife, easy, well ordred, & much helps the Memory, a faculty which hath great influēce in this blessed work.
According to this, Meditation or mentall prayer is divided into three parts, which are, Preparation, Meditation (w ch [Page 29]being the cheife part, retains the generall name) & Conclusion.
Preparation maketh way for Meditation; Meditation ruminates upon the matter, & giveth strength & life to our Recollection; Conclusion closeth up the whole Exercise.
Preparation first places us in the presence of God, with whom wee are to make our speciall conference, to our advancement & comfort, with all feare & reverence.
Then secondly it chooseth the Mystery or subject, whereon wee intend as present to settle our thoughts.
Thirdly it implores helpe from Heaven, whereby our weaknesse may be sustained in this heavenly work, & enabled resolutely to goe through with it. And truly, sith the ancient Heathens never attempted any notable businesse, without a solemne apprecation of good successe, a Christian or Religious soule should not presume to undertake a spirituall work, of such importance as this is, without first craving aide from heaven, wherein we are unable to doe well, [Page 30]without Gods assistāce. We must therefore beg earnestly that the progresse of our Meditation may be guided & blessed by him, & that he would banish all distractions, enlighten our understanding, quicken our judgment, rectify our will, whett our affections to heavenly things, kindle our devotion, & so enlarge our hearts towards himselfe, that wee may find our Imperfections abated, vertue strengthned, & our soule every way bettered, by our Solitude.
Meditation hath also three parts; Consideration ponders seriously the subject wee have chosen, thereby to stirr up our Affectiōs to God & goodnesse, & thereon to ground our ensueing Resolutiōs. But care must be taken, that the mind be not wracked, by a too vehement inquiry; for this will tire out the phansy, & interrupt the cheife work. It will suffice, to take the most pregnant & obvious. Lett these Considerations be but three at the most; And if thy soule finds sufficient satisfaction, light & fruit in the first of them, dwell there without going further, & give way to the Holy [Page 31]Ghost, to work his will in thee. But if thou findest not there the expected successe, passe quietly on to another; but besure to goe on sweetly & easily, in thy search, without tiring thy selfe too much; thou wilt find little pleasure in the Kernell, if thou breakest thy teeth with the shell.
Affection succeedeth, where to if our Consideratiōs reach not, they wil prove vain, or to little purpose. For this is the soule of Meditation, to which the former parts serve only as instruments. As we are reasonable Creatures by our reason & discourse, so are we Christians & Religious, by our good will & affections, towards heavenly things. Wherefore the former labour of the mind, being undertakē to move the Affective part of the soule, after the understāding hath traverst the point proposed, the will must endeavour, by applying herselfe therto with all earnestnesse, to find some feeling relish in it; which fruit, through Gods blessing, will follow a deliberate Consideration of some moveing object. And in these Affections, we [Page 32]must permit our soule to spread & dilate, as much as possible; if thou findest thy heart, to pant & swell, with aboundant sweetnesse, ease it by some gentle Aspirations, & amorous sighs, as God shall then inspire Thee.
The last is Resolution, wherein, the soule bewayling her poverty, dulnesse & imperfections, which may happily appear then in her, humbles her selfe, in regard of her wants & backwardnesse to Vertue, & descēds to particular good purposes, for her correction & amendment, according to the speciall defects, which she hath discovered in her selfe. By this means, Philothea, thou wilt soon correct errours & evill customes, which by generall Affections & barren desires, are seldome, or very slowly reformed.
Conclusion must be performed leisurely, & with profound humility, least by an over-much complacence in our good feelings & motions, which it pleased God to work in our soules, we loose the benefit & continuatiō of them, & by too sudden breaking off, we may shew [Page 33]our selves carelesse of the fruit, which wee have sought with so great labour.
First then, wee must give thankes for those Illuminations, Affections & Resolutions, which God has through his goodnesse bestowed upon us, during our Meditation. For since a Man naturally cannot be miserable & in povertie, but he must complayne & crave succour: so neither can a good heart & gratefull soule, find it selfe in a happy & peacefull conditiō without thankfullnesse for it. And this thankfullnesse gayns an encrease of tranquillity.
Next follows Oblation, wherein the soule recommends her selfe, & all her Affections & Resolutions, to the Protection of Gods holy grace; cheerefully giving up her selfe to him, submitting to him, & wholly reposing upon the goodnesse & mercyes of JESUS CHRIST; desiring in all things to glorify him, & to walk worthy of his gracious calling.
The last is Petition, by which wee earnestly begg, that Almighty God would furnish us, with his grace & heavenly blessings, whereby we may be [Page 34]enabled, faithfully to put in execution the good purposes made by us.
And here we must take heed, we cō pliment not with God, begging help, without an efficacious will to make use of it. For God knoweth our hearts, & will not be mocked with fashionable suits, but requireth holy & feeling requests, which will appeare in the execution of what we have resolved.
This forme of Meditatiō, being heartyly used, will prove (I hope) uery beneficiall; so that the soule which at the entrance of her Solitude, did but creep upon the Earth, will in the end, soare aloft in Heaven, & find herselfe neer that glorious God, before almost out of sight, transforming her into him selfe.
§. 9. Choyce of a Guide.
BUt because every one is apt to flatter him selfe, & judge partially in what concerns his own state & condition, & consequently is unfitt to judge of his own advancement & faylings, in [Page 35]his Pilgrimage to Perfection; it is uery expedient, Philothea, that besides the Instructions already given Thee, thou doest make choyce of a Directour, or Spirituall Guide, who may safely lead thee through thy Solitude. For although the way be plain & easy, yet is it not voyd of by-paths, which without the advice of a sufficient Guide, thou wilt not be able to discerne; & consequently thou art in great danger to goe astray, & fall into ambushes of temptations & perplexities of mind, which may expose thee to danger.
One reason, why many, even good persons, make not that progresse in Vertue which their calling aymes at, or which themselves have proposed, is an over-much confidence in their owne judgment, whereby their Eyes employed in others imperfections, are dimsighted in their own; by this conceit they make themselves, as unfitt to be guided by others, as unsufficiēt to guide themselves. Wherefore, my Philothea, if thou desirest in earnest to enter holy Solitude, & learne to tread the paths of [Page 36]perfection, thou must have some kind of suspition of thy own Wisdome, which hath so frequently mis-ledd Thee; & with a prompt & humble Obedience, submit thy selfe to be governed, & directed by an other. For A faithfull freind is a strong protection, sayes the Wise man, He is a Medecine of life & Immortality, if thou fearest God, thou shall find him. This hath beē the generall practise of all the Saints, who had never so happyly discovered their own Errours or the will of God for the reforming them, had they not attended to a spirituall Guide; Woe be to him that is alone, sayes Salomon, because, when he falleth he hath none to rayse him up. True it is, such a faith full Guide is hard to be found. Wherefor choose one, sayth Avila, amongst a thousād, nay one amongst ten thousand sayth S. Francis of Sales: for few are capable of this sublime charge.
Such an one, must be full of Knowledge, who is to discerne the hiddē paths, through which the Holy Ghost leads a Child of God, from the wiles & Paths of Satan, transform'd sometimes into an [Page 37]Angell of Light. He must be also full of Charity, that he may beare with the imperfections of the Soule, whome he undertakes to guide. And lastly he must be full of Discretion, that according to the various tempers of his spirituall Children, he may know when, & what remedies to apply, whereby to provoke thē, to a more eager pursuite of Perfectiō, & to a flight from the many Impedimēts, which disable, in a solitary & vertuous life; & which is above all, he must not so much desire to gayn upon their good esteeme, as to make a faithfull use of good Counsells, whereby he may advantage them in the feare & love of their Soveraign Creatour; If any of these three Qualities be wanting, his cōduct may be unsafe: Wherefore earnestly beg him of God, & doubt not, but he will rather send thee an Angell from Heaven, to direct thee, then lett thee fayle.
Having now obtayned such a Guide, blesse God for his mercies towards thee, remayne constant, & seek no other. But goe forward with him, humbly, innocently, [Page 38]& with confidence, esteeming him, as if he were an Angell of God indeed; & during thy holy retreate, have conference with him, at least once a day; disclose to him those lights, those affections & resolutions, which God hath raysed in Thee, with the spirituall feelings, thou hast either of thy own infirmities, or Gods presence. Let him have a full insight of thy inclinations & passions, & conceale not any notable motion of thy soule from him, but lay thy whole heart open before him, as freely & cheerfully, as if thou wert thē to give an account to God, at the great day. So doing, be assured, that he who hath promised, to resist the proud, & give his graces to the meeke & humble of heart, will by his means more aboundantly enlighten thy understanding, enflame thy will, & securely lead thee through all difficulties, to rest & peace. If wee doe not become as little ones by a sincere simplicity, humility & obedience, to him who is to give an account for our soules, where can these vertues appeare?
§. 10. Exercises in Solitude.
HAving spoken of the duty of a Solitary soule, to her spirituall Guid, & of her dependance on his lips, for such counsells & directions, as may be expedient, during her retreat, I need not add much concerning the use of Vocall Prayer, Reading of spirituall bookes, corporall Mortifications, & manuall Labours; of all which, the Prudence so the Directour can best judge, according to the different qualities & humours of the Persons he deales with; wherein, one generall rule cannot be fitted for all; However, thus in breife.
Since variety facilitates the use of that, which would otherwise prove irksome, it were not amisse, every day (besides thy Usual Recollection) to recite such Vocall Prayers, as (besides the Office of obligation) we are accustomed to say. But let them be few, & sayd attētively; & at such times, as thou findest thy spirit unfitt, to work on thy prescribed Considerations.
Aspirations are as flames darted forth the furnace of a burning soule. If thou findest thy heart forcibly inclined to them, keep them not in. If these offer not themselves, let thy spirit speak with God silently, by heaving its selfe up towards heavenly things; And if these fayle too, be contented to say such Vocall prayers, as the Church useth, till it pleaseth God, that the Mist falls, & thy Understanding receiveth new strength & cleerenesse.
Reading helps invention, & administers matter to the affective part, it matters not how little it be, so it be wel digested, & rightly applyed, to rayse up affections. I should advise thee to be sparing herein, least diversity of matters distract thee, from attending to the points of that dayes Exercise, which thou must carefully peruse, before the time of Recollectiō, that the mind may not want a fitt subject to discourse on. Thou mayest, before or after dinner, read the life of the Saint of that Day, or any other, as thy Directour shall judge expedient; but if thou wilt follow my [Page 41]advice, content thy selfe with reading thy daylie Meditations, frequently over; Experience will teach, that to be more profitable, to thy designe in hand.
As for corporall Austeriti [...]s, if moderate, they strengthē the spirit, by weakning the flesh; & are a means to rayse the soule, to the thought of heavenly things. One meale a day, is aboundantly enough: If thou beest Religious, eat in Gods name, what is set before thee, without scruple; & blesse God, that for thy humiliation, he makes thee descend, from Contemplation of his Glory, to the use of corporall sustenāce. The more sparing thy evening meale is, thy sleep will be the sweeter, & thyselfe apter for thy night watch; Yet herein stand scrupulously to the advice of thy Superiours & spirituall Guid; as also, for the use of Haire-cloath, Disciplines, & sueh like humiliations.
Manuall labours must not be assumed indifferently, but with advice & direction; By all means fly such, as require conference with others, or tyre out the body, & distract the mind.
Moderate walking after meales, helpes to a more intense recollection, yet let it be, as much out of sight of others, as may be, that the soule may have her full freedome, to launch herselfe forth, by holy aspirations, upon occurring objects, as God shall inspire thee.
§. 11. Distribution of Time.
I Will conclude with a distribution of time, which ought carefully, to be observed, during our spirituall retyrement, after the manner here prescribed, unlesse thy Directour appoint another, more conformable to thy calling & abilities, or as he shall find thee disposed for this great work.
Wherefor, Philothea, the happy evening being now come, when thou intēdest to bid adieu to worldly thoughts, & confine thy selfe, for the following Tē dayes, to thy private Cell or Closett, to ruminate upon the dayes of Eternity, in a holy & peaceable Solitude, quitt thy selfe of thy ordinary Employments, [Page 43]that thou mayst the more freely attend to this thy great affaire; purge thy soule by an entyre confession, of what thou findest offensive in thee; & having attentively read over the first point of the next dayes Meditation, take thy selfe to thy rest.
At the first signe of the Caller, to Midnight Office, signing thy selfe, arise, & in thy cloathing, say Miserere: or De profundis: for living or dead freinds. Then goe silently to the quire, & prepare thy heart, cheerfully to say, or heare the Divine Office. That ended, keep thy Meditation upon the first point of that mornings Exercise, according to the rules above prescribed. (For Preparation & Conclusion, may serve for Meditation, upō any subject whatsoever.) Then having ended thy Meditations, say thy Crosses, & stay some what longer then ordinary. For during this time of thy Solitude, thou must endeavour to be the first & last in the quire. After Crosses thou mayst take a Discipline for some space of time, if thy Directour thinkes it expedient; Otherwise it is upon no [Page 44]terms to be done. Then returne to thy bed.
Those who rise not to Mattins, may rise after their first sleep, & performe that point of Meditation, Crosses & Discipline, as aforesayd; otherwise let them not fayle to rise at Five in the morning.
The fourteen houres distribution begins with the morning watch.
Endeavour to rise some what before Six in the morning, that thou may stread the Second point of thy morning exercise, before thou goest to Prime, unto which, as also unto other houres, assist devoutly. After this, heare Masse attentively, joyning thy intention & good desires, with the Priest; then spend a good halfe houre, either in the quire or thy Cell, in discussiō of the secôd point; Observe alwayes the usuall time of Cō munion, according to the place where thou art. But this must be performed, the dayes thou entrest & comest forth thy Solitude, the better to enable & confirme thee in this great work of thy spirituall Retreat, & the effects thereof.
Between Eight & Nine, confer with [Page 45]thy Directour, touching, either the imperfections, or graces, thou hast felt in thy soule. If thou canst not then have his presence, read a Saints Life, & the rest of that houre, give some release to thy thoughts, by some Vocall Aspirations, towards Eternity, for time lost, thy drowsinesse to Vertue, & pronesse to vice.
From Nine to Ten, meditate upon the third point of that dayes Exercise; But alwayes endeavour to be moderate towards the end of thy Recollection, least too much intensenesse breed faintnes and render Thee unfitt to persever in this holie work.
From Ten, say the Penitentiall Psalmes, & Littanies; Then make a reveiw of thy infirmities discovered, & means propounded for amendment of Life.
At Eleven, take thy Noons repast, rather to satisfy Nature, them to please thy sense; And use such temperance therein, that neither by Excesse thou burthen, nor by overmuch nicenesse, weaken thy frayle body, which is to serve the soule in her Contemplations.
After dinner, some time being employed, in giving thankes to God, for the benefit of thy conservation, & praying for benefactours, living & dead, take some easy divertisement for one houre.
At One, read over the First point of thy Evening Exercise, & raise as many good thoughts & affections, as thou canst, whereby efficaciously to move thee, to a constant practise of what thou shalt then resolve.
Spēd the houre twixt Two & Three, as between Eight & Nine in the morning.
At Three read over attentively the Second part of thy Evening Exercise, reflecting seriously on every Instructiō, how thou mayest reduce thē to practice.
The other houres till Seven, admit of no sett rules for distribution of them, by reason of the different times of evening prayers & refection, according to the customes of severall families; However, one houre is to be spent in praying vocally, making Aspirations, & review of that dayes task, for confirmatiō of good purposes; another in saying Evensong; [Page 47]the last in taking thy evening repast, thanksgiving for benefits, & praying for benefactours, living & dead.
From Seven take some easy divertisement whereby to release thy thoughts, by walking, or using some moderate corporall Exercice, for the space of halfe an houre; then seriously examine thy Conscience, how thou hast employed that day, beg pardon for defects, make thy Crosses, read over the First point of thy next dayes Exercise, & going to bed, say with the Royall Prophet, In peace, I will sleep & rest, because thou O Lord hast singularly setled me in hope.
This is all, Philothea, I have to advise thee, Complayn not of my over-longnesse; The labour is mine, & my ayme thy benefit. I have according to my ability prescribed thee a Method of practising holy Solitude, according to the knowledge gaind from skilfull Masters in that Art, & what use & experience hath taught me to be most profitable; when custome & experience shall shew thee a better forme, feare not to use it in Gods name, for divers paths lead to the [Page 48]same place; & though the spirit of God be but One, yet ther is diversitie of graces. Use this way, till thou meet with a better, and pray for thy well willer. Farwell.
Philothea's Pilgrimage to Perfection. Described in a Practise of Ten dayes Solitude.
FIRST DAYES VOYAGE.
Inducements to Solitude.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Dignitie of Solitude.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That no other earthlie condition, can equall the happinesse, which may be attained by means of retyrement; Tis a Heaven upon earth, seperating us from the rest of the world, & contented with it's own tranquillitie & delights; such it will be to us, if we can alienate our hearts, from worldly cares & creatures, & walk innocently with our blessed [Page 50]God, in the observance of his commandements, & the performance of solitarie duties.
Tis the Schole of all Christian knowledg & vertues, wherein we may learn, that our body is composed of disagreeing elements, ever tending to a dissolution; that our dearest friends may be taken frō us by untimely death, & therefor no lasting hopes to be placed in them; That our nature is easly ledd away, with the allurements of visible objects, whereas God only can fill the longings of our soul; In a word, that all those things, wherein poore man is so miserably turmoild, are a meere Vexation & Vanitie, & hinder us from listning to those delicious whispers, which our Beloved desires to impart to our affectionate souls.
It is also a Sanctuarie of the ever blessed Deitie; for although our Immense God fils all places by an infinite diffusion of his Essence; yet he is specially in those, which are segregated to his contemplation & worship, where he opens the rich treasuries of his love & bountie, [Page 51]& reveals his will to his servants, in silent & secret conferences with them.
Since therfore Philothea, thy Beloved hath drawn Thee hither, here to parlie with thy heart, to disclose the hidden pathes of his ayding & comforting graces, & to take up his lodging in thy soul; see that nothing remain therein, offensive to his will, which may blūt the edg of thy conceived affections to pietie, or darken thy spirituall Eie from beholding his all-sufficing beauty. For onlie the clean of heart may see God, & rejoyce in the plentie of his holy house.
AFFECTION.
Oh how beloved are the Tabernacles of my God! better is one day there, then thousands in the Courts of Sinners, who love not to think on their Creatour; O Hierusalem, O sweet vision of Peace! O happy desart, O sacred Mansion of heaven aspiring Souls! be thou ever the begining of my joyes; I know, & acknowledg, O my God, My onlie refuge & comfort, that there is no pleasant peace, no saving knowledg, no true Repose but in Thee; that all things are Vanity, beneath Thee; but even that Vanity cannot I despise, without Thee; therfore, Thou [Page 52]O God, how long?
RESOLUTION.
Hence forth My Solitude shall be my Beatitude, My Eden, my Heaven, & the world shall keep what ever it calls its own, with all the perills, discontents & miseries that belong to it; & if my soul be at any time in distresse, I will stay my sorrows with the hopes of those true consolations, which my Divine Lord hath promised to those, whom he leads thither; And since I may there understand all divine truth, & obtain all helping Vertues & Graces, I will turne my heart from creatures, that I may under the conduct of Gods divine Spirit learn the wayes of Perfection; And I will carefully cleanse my soul from all sinns & affections to forbidden contents, whereby it hath hitherto been hindred, to walk to & with God, & to discover the depth of his greatness & goodness to me; Nor will I loos the precious time, which God hath alowed me, wherein to work my Salvation, & converse with him in holy Solitude. To Thee O Lord will I reveale the secrets of my heart, in Thee will [Page 53]I trust, & I shall not be ashamed, because Thou art A strong helper.
SECOND POINT. Innocencie of Solitude.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That Solitude is more Innocent & Holie, then that course of life, that spends it's selfe in conversing with creatures; Being exempt from manyfold occasiōs of offending, or being offended by others; from snares, scandals & irksome turmoiles, which are apt to shake our strongest Resolutions to pietie, & destroy the evennesse of our hearts in the performance of our usuall Christian duties.
Again, our conversation with worldly persons, oft engages our hearts in irregular affections & solicitudes, we being naturally over-prone to adheare to sensible satisfactions, & too feeble & weake in resisting their flattering alurements, & therfor are therby putt in hazard of loosing our best hopes; whereas [Page 54]Solitude, withdrawing our thoughts from such occasiōs of sin, give us means of purchasing that blessednesse here, which abroad we endanger; wherfor the now glorious Saints, whose lives should be our paterns, arrived to the joys they are possest of, by withdrawing from worldly conversation, & confining themselves to Innocent Solitude.
And hence it is, that abandoning superfluous conversation with earthlie Creatures, we begin to be conversant with God, & in some degree approach to, & imitate the Innocent & peacefull life of the already glorifyed Angells in heaven; Their life & conversation must needs be heavenlie, who disdayning earthlie blessings, thirst after those of the Saints, by knowing, loving & enjoying him, who alone can make them happy.
What greater happiness, My Philothea, then being sequestred from vaine, & tyresome Creatures, even amidst the toyls of our unhappy Mortality, to enjoy a sweet tranquillitie in our spirits, a readiness to Christian Duties, & to [Page 55]lead for a time the life of an Angell?
AFFECTION.
Oh Innocent Solitude, how happens it, that I have been so long a stranger to Thee? Alas, by conversing with worldly Creatures, I have too long wearyed my selfe in vain, sullied the bright garment of my baptismall puritie, & ocntracted a multitude of evill inclinations, which now press heavelie upon my conscience; O how deplorable is the condition of wretched worldlings, who busyed on creatures, are exposed to infinite dangers of sin, & scarce ever think of coming forth of them, even for a season, to promote their happiness for ever? I blesse Thee my bountifull Lord that thou hast inspired me to abandon them now, & to consider & love Innocent Solitude; Oh Innocent Solitude, My soul hath thristed after Thee, as a Hart after the fountain of living waters: I will not rest, night or day, till I enter into the joys of my Lord.
RESOLUTION.
I will hereafter embrace all occasions of Retiremēt from amongst Creatures, preferring the Innocent entertaynmēts of Solitude, to all other earthly conditions, that I may therby purchase a pure [Page 56]& quiet spirit; & being out of the reach of the allurements of sensible & transitorie things, may with the greater freedome, study the will of my divine Master, & become neerer to him, by Innocency of heart, tranquillitie of passions, & a readiness to all heavenly & divine actions.
THIRD POINT. Necessity of Solitude.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, that a Voluntarie withdrawing thy selfe from thy usuall cōmerce with Creatures for a time, is highlie necessarie; In order to that dutie thou owest to God; He being the supreame End of our whole selvs & actions, & this our mortall Pilgrimage being exposed to manifold distractions, some time must needs be sett a part, for a more serious reflection on that our blessed End, & the usefullest means wherby to attain to it; that therby we may renew in us the knowledg of our [Page 57]Christian & speciall Duties to God, & encrease in us a willingnesse to comply with them; This cannot be done more substantially, then in our Retyrement, where our Minds freed from the tumults of ourward cares, are aptest to receive more cleare lights from heaven, & stronger flames of love to spirituall & eternall good things.
Also in order to that state of life, wherin we already are, or by Gods providence may one day be; for by means of that state, God intends to bring Thee home to himselfe; in our Retyrement we may learne what love we owe to that our state of life, as the only way by which God means to lead us to the possession of life everlasting; & that therfor we must beare with the frailties of those weak mortalls, with whom we therein live, & labour joyntly to gain heaven; the Imperfections of some few, not at all derogating, from the sanctitie of that state in its selfe; & if we love it, that wil ever appeare in our Obedience to the Laws & Customes, therin required, & in the execution of their commands, [Page 58]whom God hath placed over us, & must be accountable for us.
Likewise in regard of our selus; That by help of this our Solitude, we may understand, how our hearts stand affected to good & evill? in what dangers of sin we now are, or by ill habits or conversation, may be? what rules of pietie may best help to settle us in the constāt practise of Vertue? That discovering our faults & wants, we may the more readily give eare to the inward Calls of our heavenly Espouse, suspect all motions of our own wills, & strengthen decayed fervour by strōger Resolutiōs; that nothing may stop us in our Pilgrimage to that comfortable Perfection, which Crowns all.
What are thy intentions Philothea, hast thou a reall desire to learn the art of well-living, to follow Gods call, to honour thy present state of life, to make a discovery of thy faylings, & work with those lights & graces, God bestows on thee, for that end?
AFFECTION.
O how vile is Earth, when I lift up my Eies to Heaven! O Ancient, O Eternall Beautie, why am I so long ignorant of Thee? Thou hast mercifully drawn me forth the tabernacles of sinners, inspired me to follow Thee in the companie of those who seek thy face alwaies, & walk the way that leads to Thee; O true light, O onlie life of my soul, say thou unto me, I am thy Salvation & strong helper; & I shall be able to keep my Covenant made with thee, reforming all disorders of my life past, & in all things seeking a conformitie to thy will.
RESOLUTION.
Farwell all yee vain & seducing Creatures: sith my God has made me for him selfe, my heart shall be restless till it rests in him; I will therefore henceforth place all my happiness, in studying to know & obey my spirituall Lord & Master, in loving & complying with the duties of my present state, as he hath commanded me, & in having a strickt guard over all my thoughts, words & actions, at all times, in all places & with all persons, that they may be agreeable [Page 60]to his holie will; Make me Thou O my God to know my End, that I may also know what is wanting to me.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Gods Favours to us.
THer's none but loves what is good, & therefor should love that most, which is best; when a Prince opens his Treasurie, & proclaimes a largess, every one is ready to run, & reach forth his hand, & open his bosome to receive part of his bountie, & covets what he values most; Philothea, we should be ever like our selus; Our divine Espouse inviting us to a spirituall conference in holie Solitude with him, offers many rich presents to us, lights of revealed truths to shew the secret paths that lead to him, helps of grace to support & encourage us that we may walk steadilie in them, & not faint before we come to our journeys end; harken then to his [Page 61]divine call, lay all things else aside, run to him, streach forth thy hand, open thy heart to entertain those precious guifts, he is so desirous to bestow on thee.
Every guift grows according to the proportion of miserie, from which it frees us, & the hapiness that it brings with it; the greater our crimes, the heavier our chains, the more noysome the dungeon wherin we lay, the greater also would be our pardon, freedom & ransom thence; but if we be moreover raised to the highest friendship, tranquillitie of spirit, & libertie of mind desirable, no guift can be greater then that; Thus t'is with thee My Philothea, in thy holie Retyrement; Worldly Conversation is full of dangers of sin, admitts of few helps to pietie, & causeth great tepiditie & remissness in Christian Duties, being either without God, or working contrary to his Commandements; but in our heavenlie solitude, there be ever great calms of passions, strong helps of pietie, & an earnest zeale of Gods honour, & our own duties to him; our aboad being there with God, & [Page 62]our employmēts in what belōgs to him.
Although nothing be more ours then we our selus, titles of honour, most cōforting delights & our dearest friends (as leaves & blossoms from the tree) being easily blown off from us; yet having our Being, with what ever appertains to it, from God, whatsoever we are in our selus, can doe, or may have, belongs to God, as the Soveraign Lord & Master of all; so that to him we owe all, & we should be guiltie of a most greivous disloyaltie, should we venture to dispose of our selus according to our own liking.
Gods inward Excellencie wherby he contains in himselfe all perfections disperst amongst Creatures; those sacred influences, wherby he preserus us, from falling into our Originall Ashes; his precept of loving him above all things, which includes the actions of all other morall & divine Vertues; the price of Christs precious Bloud, wherewith he bought us; & those unspeakable rewards of holiness of life, prepared above with his Angells for us, are strong tyes of [Page 63]Dutie to him, & challeng all homage & fidelitie from us; Wherfore Philothea, should we spend our whole liues, every thought, all our actions on him; we pay but the least part of what we owe to him; Now therfore at least show thy readiness to follow, love & obey him, sith he specially invites Thee to a more familiar conference & freedom with him, during thy Solitude.
COLLOQUIE.
Even so it is, My Dearest Lord; I am thine; O that I might for ever abide with thee! The world is a sea, full of tempests & confusion; holie Solitude is a safe harbour, where there are great calms & securitie; O that thou wouldest fill the sayles of my heart with a gracious gale, which may sweetly carry me forth of these turbulent depths, free me from the dangers of a spirituall shipwrack, & give me a sure shelter under thy comforting protection! then should my spirit have liberty to pant, after the escaped dangers; s [...]e the perills wherin she hath been hitherto tossed, & pay those duti [...]s which on so many titles are due unto Thee. Save me thou O Lord, & I shall be saved, & thou shalt be my praise for ever.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Our Returnes to God.
HAving now perswaded thy selfe to embrace Solitude, through reflection on the Dignitie, Innocencie & Necessitie therof, in order to thy freedom from worldly cares & solicitudes; as also that thou maist therby pay to God, part of that great Dutie, which on so many titles thou owest to him; fitt thy selfe for the due practise therof by Acknowledgment of Gods speciall favours to thee, in inspiring thee with so holie & just a design.
The same God that sanctifyed thee a Member of his holie Church, has by hidden means drawn thee now nigher to himselfe, & will that thou break in pieces those fetters of sensualitie, which have hitherto kept thee tyed to Creatures, without which thou hadst still wallowed in thy old vices, never look't into thy corrupted manners, or thought on begining this thy holie Pilgrimage. Wherfor acknowledge thy [Page 65]nakedness, povertie & weakness, to walk these sublime wayes of perfection; & that this divine Call, & all other favours thou shalt ther by reape, are pure effects of Gods mercies & bountie to thee.
O Philothea could we duely value the greatness of this favour of being thus cald to walk & converse with God, (whereas many others, who perhaps would make better use therof, are passed by, & left to work out their salvation amidst the tumults of worldly cares) we would esteem, no labours, no sufferings, enough to express our Gratitude to him. Resolve therefor to employ thy Memorie in thinking on God, & on the generall & speciall means (best known to thy own spirit) wherby he hath drawn thee thus far from Creatures towards himselfe; thy Understanding in searching forth means, wherby readily to execute his cōmandements & inspired counsells; & thy Will, & other inferiour powers of thy soul, in loving him, refrayning from what he hath forbidden, & performing whatsoever he hath or shall require of thee.
And because the aime of Solitude is, to lead thee to a private conference with God, wherin the Immortall Angells, & now glorifyed Saints will be spectatours, before whom none may appeare without his wedding Garmēt, or with feet sullied by sinfull affections; Thou must Philothea endeavour to Rectifie thy intentions in undertaking this Retyrement; for if thy motives be but customarie, the fruicts therof will soon fade.
Then Purge thy mind of worldly & vaine affections, by a deep act of repentance, least they ever & anon call upon thee, & disturb the repose of the spirit.
And lastly, Offer up thy heart to God, united with that of thy crucified Saviour, for whose sake thou art resolved to walk the hard ways of thy Pilgrimage to Perfection; so that henceforth, whether JESUS feasts thee with his disciples in Cana, or fasteth in the wilderness; be glorious on Mount Thabor, or prayeth in the Garden, or hangeth on the Crosse, thou must never forsake him; Thus wilt thou happyly walk through [Page 67]the varieties & dangers of this unconstant life, & make a fruitfull progress in this thy holy Retyrement.
COLLOQUIE.
Wellcome then O most delicious paradice of my God, O Sacred Solitude, wherein is again revived the decayed Image of our Originall Innocency, by conformity of will to God, Obedience of sensualitie to the precepts of reason, & sweet trāquillitie of all passions & powers in the Kingdome of the soul; I acknowledg O my God, thy great bounty in inviting me hither, & will endeavour to prun my spirit of all irregular Motiōs, that Imay be Afitt Offring to my heavenly Lord & Master; Sanctify O God these my earnest desires, & from thy holie Temple of Hierusalem, confirme the good things thou hast wrought in me. Amen.
SECOND DAYES VOYAGE. Entertainments in Solitude.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Humilitie & Austeritie.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, that there's a great difference between Solitude & Idleness; A wise & holie Soul will choose therefor to be alone, that shee may be better employed; whither it be, that the Retyrement be for the whole life, under some Religious Vows, or for some certain dayes; wherfor entring into Solitude, thou must Philothea make use of such Entertainments of spirit & body, as may consist with retyredness, & advance thee in the practise of Vertue.
Wherfore we must be well groūded in the use of Humilitie, which is the foundation of all other Vertues, & a fair disposition, [Page 69]both to acknowledg, & amēd what's amisse. For Solitude is a state, wherin the soul is raised to a private conference with God, & unlesse we have a perfect Humilitie, we are in danger of a precipice. Nay what ever other progresse we make in our Pilgrimage to Perfection, without a profound humilitie, we are never secure, as appears in Lucifer, & our first Parents; Therfor Our Lord JESUS by doctrine & exemple, exhorts to the practise therof, as the cheife work of Christianitie, the prefervative of inward peace, & fortifyer against all contradictions.
This ought to stir us up to humilitie in thoughts, by esteeming our selvs full of imperfections & wants, & to stand in need of great helps of Grace; in word, not discoursing on those perfections, which it pleases God to work in, & by us; & in Action, while we bend our selvs willingly to the performance of any Dutie, our Calling may require of us, though it may seem to others contemptible & vile; And to seek no preferment, either in dignitie or esteem of others, [Page 70]but with a true indifferency of spirit, with all persons, at all times, contentedly to abide in, or chang what ever condition fals to thy lott, or is appointed Thee.
And because Austeritie, which cōsists in fasting, watching, wearing course garments, & suck like mortifications of our sensuall appetite, much conduce to the gayning this inward humilitie of spirit, That also must be willingly embraced by a solitarie soul, whose aimes are to be truly perfect; for what society is there, between a Compliance with our inordinate concupiscences, & a separation from worldly conversation & cares?
What is the disposition of thy heart Philothea towards these Eminent vertues? Doest thou find a sweetness & quietness of spirit, when humiliations befal thee? Art thou willing to undergoe such Mortifications, as thy state requires of thee, without tediousness, & repining thoughts?
AFFECTION.
I abhorr yee, O fatall Enemies of Perfectiō, Pride, that cast the Angells down from heaven [Page 71]& made them Devils; & Selfelove, which expelled our first parents forth of Paradice, & made thē Vesfels of Gods wrath. Wilt thou My Soul, defile thy selfe with those black crimes, so abhominable to God? Oh, rather let me be trampled on as a worm of the Earth, & undergoe whatsoever Crosses & Mortifications, then hazard the losse of my friendship with God, & the joys he hath prepared for those that love him, with an humble & mortifyed spirit, For blessed be the poore in spirit, because there's is the Kingdom of Heaven.
RESOLUTION.
I will henceforth humble my selfe, under the powerfull hand of God; neither in thought, word or deed preferring my selfe to any Creature, or desiring any value or esteem from them; for I Know that God resists the proud of heart, & gives Grace to the humble; And I will accustome my selfe to those austerities, which my Vocation requires of me, contēting my selfe, with such diet, cloaths & rest, as may suffice to the support of Nature; for if we mortify our earthlie Members, we shall be children of our heavenlie Father.
SECOND POINT. Patience & Obedience.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That Patience being usefull to all Christians, is singularly necessary to the solitarie Soul, especially if the Solitude be religious & permanent; It is an easie matter out of a bravery of spirit, to undergoe some notable tribulation, & abandon worldly satisfactions for a while; but to remain constant in that Resolutiō, this is the speciall work of the Holie Ghost, & can never be fully accomplisht without a singular & profound Patience. It is necessary also for the practise of other Vertues, which are confederates & companions in our pilgrimage to Solitarie perfection; for Patience keeps our spirits in peace, what ever befals us; bends it to beare or forbeare, what the hand of providence appoints to us; & assembles all Vertues, wherby to preserve in us the hopes of heavenly blessings amidst the toyls of [Page 73]this wretched life; Therefore JESUS CHRIST tells us, that by Patience we shall possesse our Souls.
Wherfor Philothea, make a breife Reflection on the present state of this Vertue in Thee; wherin it is defective, & by what motives it may be advanced to a greater height? Canst thou with a patient & meek heart, converse with every one, temper others anger with a mild Answer, suffer injuries in words, & rapin of goods & honour without disturbāce; with bountie & good deeds overcome thy Enemies unjust persecutions, & endeavour to reconcile them to thee, even with losse of thy own right? Then maist thou lay some claym to the perfection of Patience, & reap some fruit from thy Solitarie Entertainments.
The practise also of a prompt Obedience, is very expediēt, even in our Retyrement for a few dayes; but especially, if thy calling be to live permanently in a Communion of Religious persons, under the conduct of one, whom God hath placed as his Vicegerent over the [Page 74]rest, by commands & counsells to direct them to their best happyness. In such a Communion, all good things may not be well done, either by all of them, or at all times. Austeritie (for exemple) is good, yet not to be practised against the express will of our spirituall Guid or Superiour, to the ruin of our own health, & the burthen of others. Fast with bread & water (saith a holie Man) weare a haire shirt, sleep on the ground, discipline the flesh to the bone, undergoe the most contemptible offices, communicate every daie; stand from morning till night in Contemplation of God & his attributes; I make no account of all this, if it goes against Obedience, & be done in a time, & place, & measure unseasonable.
Endeavour Philothea, to purchase in thy selfe this safe guid of holie Obedience. Be tractable in thy will; goe, come; ascend, descend, at the first call of thy Superiour; & that, not for feare, but love; Captivate thy judgment, quitt all Interests of body & mind, when Obedience commands; for the Superiour being in possession of his authoritie, our [Page 75]conscience cannot be secure, with an oppositiō to his will, who watches only our good; Submitt thy body also, either to undergoe readily such austerities, or to take freely such recreation & corporall comforts, as the Superiour shall judg reasonable for thee, although contrary to thy judgment & inclination, And here make a reflection on thy readiness to comply with Obedience, if it be firm & fixed as it ought, how far defective, & which way to be repayred?
AFFECTION.
It is true My dearest Lord, I have through Impatience often torturd my heart with revengfull thoughts; lavisht away much of my precious time, in disquieting & vexing my own spirit; & violently following my owne judgment & passions, incurred many a deep remorse of conscience, & greived those who Thou didst place over me; I confesse my errours, I acknowledg & repent my follies; O that I had a sea of tears wherwith to bath my heart, & wash it from the stains contracted through want of Patience & Obedience! Come O yee sacred Vertues, accompany me in my Pilgrimage, that [Page 76]amidst all Adversities, under all commands, I may secure my Vocation to this holie Retreat, & confirme my Soul in the hopes of a Communion with the Saints in the blessed glory of My God.
RESOLUTION.
I will hence forth seale up my lipps to all angry words, purge my mind from passionate thoughts, prevent each one with Courtosies, & promptly comply with the Commands of my Superiours, however painfull their Execution be, cōsidering God to speak by their lipps; & assuring my selfe, that He proportions helps to our wants, & what he requires of us, My Soul is prepared O God, My Soul is prepared, to sing & praise thee, & Imitate the Patience & Obedience of my Saviour JESUS.
THIRD POINT. Charitie & Perfection.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That as without Charitie, there is no true Vertue, or meritorious [Page 77]action; so no hopes to advance in Solitarie perfection, it being the aime & accomplishment of Gods Law; & therfor must be one of our cheife Entertainments in our spirituall retreat; first in order to God, whom we ought to love above all things created, as infinitely lovely in himselfe, & our supream Good; then in oder to others, as Images of God, & companions in our claim to heaven; but especially if our Solitude be claustrall or Religious, & consequently permanent, in the societie of many persons, joined in the same intention & profession, who are to be all united one with the other, in doing & suffring. Such a Societie represents that blessed Communion of the Saints in heaven, as well in God the Center of their Loves; as between themselvs, by a mutuall congratulation at each others Combatts with sensualitie, Victories over sin & Satan, & speciall favours from their blessed Redeemer. And indeed without Charitie, the highest state of Perfection is imperfect & ruinous, by reason of our naturall frailties, & crosse [Page 78]accidents, which through Gods permission, oft try our constancy in good purposes.
Have a care then Philothea, that a sweet complyance with the Inclinatiōs of others, a pleasant bearing with their Imperfections, an inviolable tie of love, be so deep rooted in thy Soul, that it never fade or faile, whatever difference of dispositions, qualities, or other Motive of dislike may arise. And of this be sure to make a strickt Examine, Where? How? With whom? and how oft thou hast herein beē defective? And whether thou beest able to complie with the duties of this Queen of Vertues? Without which no socretie, no place, no employment, can be pleasant; propounding likewise efficacious Motives & means, when, & how to practise it.
And that nothing may be wanting to compleat the happiness of our solitarie Entertainments, we must practise Perfection, that is, all vertuous & holie actions, which may give a perfect Integritie to the whole Christian Man. This is not gained by meer solitariness, but [Page 79]by living in Solitude with the traine of all good Vertues; for want wherof, the Angels were banisht the heavenlie, & Adam the earthlie Paradice, though both, places of exceeding Perfection. So that, it is not the place wherin thou livest, nor the attire thou wearest, nor the purposes or Vows thou maist make, will make thee perfectly vertuous, but an entire Integritie of thy life, in that thou doest now profess. Wherfor if it be a sin to live ill, t'is a sacriledg to be wicked in holie solitude.
Make here Philothea, a generall survay of all thy Imperfections & faults, together with a generous resolution of fullfilling all Justice in Perfection.
AFFECTION.
Oh deep fountain of divine Love, flow sweetlie into my Soul, wash thence the blotts of my Iniquities, & coole the heats of my inordinate passions! Oh heavenlie fire, consume the drosse of my sinfull actions, & warm my heart with holy desires; That I may serve Thee My glorious God with a clean heart, & love all Creatures in Thee & for Thee, compassionating their frailties, comforting them in their Combats; [Page 80]& treating with all as fellow servants of the great Lord of the world, & my future partners in his heavenly joys & blessings.
RESOLUTION.
I will enter Covenant with my God, to acknowledg him the fapream Lord of my life & actions, to sacrifice to him the first fruits of my heart, & to love him in himselfe, & all his Creatures; to beare with them, compassionate & releive them, & to prevent each one in the spirit of lenitie & mildness; & alwaies to study an integritie & uprightness of of life & conversation, before God & Man, that I may resist the evill Daie, & stand perfect in all things.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Love of solitarie places.
THe world being full of sin, & afflictions of spirit, t'is expedient we should fly to the Mountains of holie Solitude, there to secure our selvs from its dangers, to bewaile the perilous condition [Page 81]of worldlings, & rejoyce in the Sanctuarie of our Blessed God. To this we must dispose our selvs, by the love of solitarie & retired places, wherin our heavenlie Espouse delights to dwell. Tis there O Philothea, that the beloved of thy soul will give Thee the sweet caresses of inward joy & tranquillitie, which the world may promise, but can never bestow. Beware then, that whilst here retyred, thou suffrest not to be in Thee any desire of conversing with Creatures, howsoever deare unto Thee, for that will disorder the sweet serenitie of thy retreat. Say therfore with the Royall Prophet, Dilate my heart O Lord, & I will run the way of thy Commandements; & for the words of thy lips I will keep hard waies.
We must also wish well, even to a permanent state of solitude, & a constant perseverance therin, if God should call us to it; for thus have many happy Religious Souls been in all Ages of the Church inclosed in Monasteries, so that no accesse may be had to them, or so much as discourse with them, but by [Page 82]speciall licence, on some urgent occasiō, & that breifely, at their Grates. And in that their Retreat they enjoyed a content with God, not to be exprest, even by them that feele it. It is hard indeed at first, to abandon Parents, & all our antient freinds & acquaintance, & heartily to renounce the charms of worldly pleasures: yet no sooner is the foote sett into holie Solitude, but there follows some feeling content, even at the first entrance, which makes them say with Saint Peter, Oh how delightfull is it to abide here? And with holie David; This shall be my rest for ever & ever, here will I dwell, because I have chosen it. They discern perfectly that their Solitude is a Sanctuarie & a Tower of defence, against the assaults of spirituall Enimies. O unspeakable Happiness! to have not only a safeguard against the temptations of the world, but the very invisible attempts of the devill? The feet O Philothea, of a Solitarie Soul, are already standing in the immortall Courts of the heavenlie Hierusalem.
As soon therfore as thou art crept [Page 83]into thy private Cell or Closett, check presently all inclinations to outward things, & resolue henceforth to withdraw thy selfe, by degrees, from all such divertisements; which will prove at last to be empty & vain comforts,
COLLOQUIE.
Oh how heavie & tyresome are the chains of mortall cares & compliances, & yet how unwilling are we to shake them off? as if we loved & liked well our own miseries & dangers; far better O my God, far better is one houre with Thee in holie Contemplation, then Millions of years in the fading delights of this world; & yet with a heavy heart we abandon them, even for true joys that abide for ever. Wellcome then dearest Solitude, earthlie Paradice, Temple of God, haven of Eternall Bliss; I have propounded Thee in the begin̄ing of my Joys, thither will I retreat, there will I take up my rest, & offer up the desires of my heart, a morning & evening Sacrifice, in the odour of divine sweetness.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Exercises in Solitude.
IDleness is the mother of sin, our spirituall enimies taking that time, to suggest evill desires. Therfore we must at all times be well employd, but especially in our Solitude, whither it be permanent, or for some selected daies. This employment consists not only in Meditation, wherby the Soul is elevated to the bosome of the Divinitie, by the workings of Love; but in a due performance also of such Exercises, as shall be enjoyned for our profit, especially for the Exaltation of our Unitive life with God. Mentall Contemplations being awhile intermitted by corporall labours, return upon the spirit, with a greater force & feeling of delight.
One great Exercise in our Solitude is, Masse & Divine Office, The work of the Angels of God, who cease not night or daie, to sing forth the praises of the Almightie. O heavenlie & divine Exercise, [Page 85]wherin the glorious Angels accompanie us, & offer up for us our prayers to our great God! How much better is it, to be employed in the praises of our Creatour, then with the wicked of the world, to be buisyed in dācing, diceing, riotting, & perhaps blaspheming our Redeemer? Here examine thy readiness to frequēt the Church at due times, & whether thou abidest there as present in mind as body? & resolve henceforth, to assist with more attention, & greater diligence, in this heavenlie Worke.
Another Exercise of the solitarie Soul, is Mentall Prayer, wherby the heart raised above earthlie things, confers with God, & is as it were transformed into a Divine Beeing. To this, Thou must Philothea apply thy selfe with speciall diligence, according to the Rules prescribed Thee in Thy Preface.
For it is the Dew of Heavē, wherby the spirit is cherished in the knowledg & love of heavenlie things; It is the celestiall Man̄a, to sustayn us during our earthlie aboad in the wilderness of this world; It is the holie Mountain of divine [Page 86]Visions, where we enter into familiar conference with God, Who there shews us all good.
A third Dutie is Reading spirituall Bookes, by which I understand holie Ghospells, & such other devout books as treat of Vertue, & the Reformation of our Manners. This is to be performed duely thrice a daie; at our uprising, down-laying, & once between both; & that not at rādom or hap-hazard, sometimes in one, another time in another book, for that is an effect of curiositie, & rather breeds confusion then devotion. Let thy daily Lecture therfore be constantlie in one good book, recōmended to Thee by thy own Experience, or some Judicious person, & therin read till thou hast not left one line unpractised; for till then, thou canst not say, thou hast been a Reader, but rather an Overseer of the points therin handled.
Truely of all bookes I have read, I know none more universally profitable for all persons, of whatsoever condition, then the divine work called An Introduction to a Devout Life, composed by that [Page 87]Illuminated Man & great servāt of God Saint Francis of Sales; One who even from his Cradle, was singularly devoted to Seraphicall Saint Francis, as being born in a Chamber dedicated to his name & devotion. And that thou maist see, I recommend not this Book to Thee upon slight grounds; take the advice of Alexander the seventh, the late Pape & Soveraign Head of the Catholique Church on Earth, in a letter dated 1642. to his Nephew; where He sayes, That he had already used that work for the space of twenty years, & read it over a hundred times, & that he could never read it, without discovering some excellent document, not before marked; which thy own Experience will assuredly confirm.
Vocall Prayer & Aspirations, being also joyned with spirituall reading, much conduce to a greater thirst & benefit therin; for our reading must be ever intermixed with Consideration, Jaculatorie Prayers & Application to use; & therefore it matters not, how much we read, but how well, in order to our spirituall advancement.
The last is Manuall labour, which cō mōly should be only such as may divertise, rather then weaken our spirit of devotion, Care being taken with all heed, that the Soul tyres not herselfe by too Intense & permanent Applying its selfe unto Contemplation. And these works are to be persorm'd with as great prōptitude & eagernesse, as any other Christian or Solitarie Observance, being strong Fortifyers against Idleness, the bane of the spirituall & devout life, which are cheifly aimed at in our Retreat from worldly cares.
COLLOQUIE.
Thou O My God & supream Lord of my life & strength, hast bestowd many gracious talents on me, wherwith to traffique for the Kingdom of heaven, till Thou comest to take the generall Accounts of the world, & to render each one according to their deserts; Alas, I have vainly employed the powers of my Soul & the senses & members of my body, contrarie to thy holie Decrees, idelly lavishing away thy guifts of Grace, & the precious time allowed me for thy service, & my own everlasting profitt, not reflecting on the shortness of my life, thy severity [Page 89]that daie, & the length of happiness that crowns good works; It greives me for my neglects, henceforth I will employ all my forces in loving & serving Thee, doing good things whilst time is; Give Thou O God what Thou commandest, & command what Thou wilt; Perfect my steps in the paths of thy Commandements, & they shall not be moved for ever. Amen.
THIRD DAYES VOYAGE. Man in his Sinfull State.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Vilenesse of the body by Nature.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, that now being entred holy Solitude, & there fitted with due Entertainmēts, for thy happy Advance in thy designed Pilgrimage to Perfection, Thou must Philothea descend into thy selfe, & discover What thou art, that pretendest to so high & happy a state? That laying a strong foundation in the acknowledgment of thy own Nothing, thy spirituall Edifice may the more prosperously goe forward, with the blessings of peace & mercy.
JESUS CHRIST is the true Modell of all Sanctity, therefor we must in this our Retyrement, especially study his Imitation: If he for our sake, hides the [Page 91]glory of his God-head, under the weaknesse of our Mortalitie, our highest contemplations of God, & aimes to perfection, should begin from the consideration of our own Vilenesse, that re-ascending to God, with the greater eagernesse, we may drown our Weaknesse in the Vastnesse of his Divine Being.
What then art Thou Philothea, according to the Body, from the Womb to the Tomb? From all Eternity, Thou wert a meer Nothing, & so hadst for ever remained, had not Gods Wisedome & Power drawn Thee thēce, giving Thee that Beeing thou now hast. In thy Origin, thou art but a little matter of corruption; The Greatest, the Wisest, the Beautifullest amongst us, is of no better mould. In our birth, we enter the world with many greivous gripings & groans of our Parents, naked, blind, poore, unable to help our-selves, & ignorant how we come hither, & how, & whither to depart. In our lives, we are exposed to innumerable calamities, of sicknesse, povertie, wars, calumnies; with much [Page 92]pain must conserve our lives & health with fruits of the Earth & flesh of beasts; And at last, in our Deaths, dissolved into lāguors, sighs & teares, are hurried forth from the eies & thoughts of our dearest friends, & layd under groūd, there to rott into our Originall dust & ashes.
This is the pedigree of the best of us, as to our out-ward Man; so that we may justly cry out, What is Man O God, that thou art mindfull of him? If God be mindfull of our Nothing, surely we should have a continuall remembrance of it, least the sweetnesse of Divine Solitude, & the pleasing Entertainments we may therin experience, between our Souls & God, puff us up with affections of Vain Glory.
AFFECTION.
Unhappy Man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of Death? I am born poore & miserable, live amidst crosses & sorrows, must dye with groans & gasps, & shall rott into my mother Earth! Ah, my Soul, since the one halfe of Man is so vile, be thou still humble. Lucifers pride had some plea; if he were proud, [Page 93]he was immortall also; but Man can find nothing in himselfe, but filth, weaknesse & corruption. Shall I then presume to speak to God, who am but dust & ashes? Alas should I say I am better, the graves & carcasses of the Monarchs & beauties of the World, would beare witnesse against me.
RESOLUTION.
In what ever degree of comtemplation, or condition of life I am, I will ever be mindfull of my Originall Nothing, & the miserable progresse I must make, through wants, diseases & tribulations, of all sorts, from the Womb to the Tōb, & I will with holie Job, say to Rottennesse thou art my Father; my Mother & Sister to the Wormes; This is my kindred; & my Companions are, a multitude of too well known Infirmities. Therefor Gods Greatnesse, & my own Vilenesse, shall be the ballances of my thoughts; & I will hope, that the Mercy of God will one day raise the needy from the dust of the Earth, & lift the poore from the dung, & place them amongst the Princes of his people.
SECOND POINT. Wretchnesse of the Soul by Sin.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That, if thou beest nothing but corruption & rottennesse in thy body, thy Soul defiled by Sin renders thee worse then nothing; for by sin we become the unhappy vessells of Gods heavy wrath; he spared not the Angels in their sins, but deprived them of all their originall endowments of nature & grace, banishes them for ever from his blissfull presence, & confines them to the dreadfull prison & tormēts of Hell; nor will he spare us, but if we be partners in their crimes, he will also make us Companions in their bitter suffrings; Evident in our first Parents, whom for one sin, he deprives of the innocent state of their originall Creation, expells them the Earthly Paradice; & condemns them & us, to mourn out this wretched life, amidst labours, sweats & innumerable miseries, as chastisers [Page 95]of our guilt.
We also through Sin incurr an insufferable servitude under the Tyranny of Satan; He covets not, either honours, wealth or pleasures, but as to our Lord JESUS in the wildernesse, so to us still, offers all these; if we will doe homage & adore him; which we no sooner doe, but we become Slaves to him, he continually assaulting us with manifold greivous temptations, using all Creatures, even our own flesh & bloud, & passions of sensuality, to work our overthrow; still plying us with seducing suggestiōs, giving no respit from his snares & deceipts, & filling our hearts, with distrust of Mercy for past sins, despaire of delayd helps from heaven, & doubts of a finall perseverance in our duties, under so heavy a weight of tribulations, he raiseth against us.
Likewise thereby, we loose Gods gracious presence, & fatherly providence over us; our right & part in the merits of CHRISTS bitter & saving Passion, the friēdship & familiarity of Gods comforting spirit; All graces, guifts, [Page 96]fruits & blessings of the holie Ghost; the peace & security of our Consciences; our Communion in the Sacrifices, prayers & good deeds of the faithfull, & our claym to our heavenly inheritance; And more over we defile in our Souls the beautifull Image of God, are razed forth the book of life, are deprived of the protection & safeguard of the blessed Angels, contract greivous remorses of conscience, pronesse to greater sins, & a guilt of hell fire, unlesse with a repentant heart we by Confession confusibly discover our sins, known to God & our Souls only, & by corporall afflictiōs endeavour to appease Gods just indignation against us, for them; This is enough to humble the best of us, if we have any feeling of our sinfull State.
AFFECTION.
Ah my God, who can hide from thy all-seeing Eie, the abysse of wretchednesse, wherein my Sins have already sunck me? Alas, I am become the unhappy object of thy just wrath, the woefull servant of rebellious Satan, deprived of thy healing graces, & exposed to innumerable Miseries! Hold thy hand O my Almighty [Page 97]Lord, & rebuke me not in thy fury, for shouldst thou observe iniquities, who could sustain the heavinesse of thy displeasure? I will therefor confesse unto Thee, my unworthinesse to appear before thee, & to enjoy even the cōmon blessings of heaven & earth, which I have so oft vainly abused to satisfy my sinfull passions; & that I ought not to hope for any part in thy blessings of glorie; But thou O God, hast mercy on thousands, & wilt comfort the weak & afflicted; & if thou doest humble us, it is that we may thereby learn, that from thee are our Justifications.
RESOLUTION.
I purpose henceforth to have ever before my Eies, my sinfull condition, whereby I have rendred my selfe thus vile & abominable in the sight of God & his holy Angels, subject to the insolencies of Satan & my disorderly passions, & branded with the infamous mark of one banisht from the face of God; I will also acknowledg my selfe guilty of the innocent death of my Saviour JESUS, & not to deserve from him, the least favour, either of his justifying grace, or all-comforting Glory; but that I have [Page 98]rather incurd a just debt of everlasting ignominy & confusion; And therefor however it shall please God to reveale himselfe to me in this my Solitude, I will accept of it, as his most gracious guift; And the more he exalts me, the more will I humble my selfe, through the consideratiō of my sinfull State, whereby I have provoked his wrath against Mee.
THIRD POINT. Ignorance of our future State.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That although perhaps thou oft feelest in thy Soul, during thy holy Retyrement, or at other time, some delicious whispers of thy beloved Espouse, yet art thou wholly ignorant what will befall thee the next moment, how long or short thy life will be, whē, where, by what disease or misfortune, Death will seize upon Thee; & in what condition, of grace or sin, it will summon Thee before Gods barr, therto heare the sentence then to passe over [Page 99]Thee; & consequently, that as long as thou art in this life, thou art never certainly assured of thy Eternall Salvation; This ought to be a strong motive of humiliation vnto Thee.
Almighty God hath from all Eternity, chosen some to be heires of his glory, permitting others; yet doth not any one know, to what ranck he belongs, when, or by what means he shall come thither, till it pleaseth God to cite us forth this world, & assume us to his heavenly Paradice; which evidently layeth open our great Ignorance, & proves our unchangable dependance on the hidden disposition of the Divine Will; Is not this enough, to humble the haughtiest spirit in the world? Wherefor in whatsoever degree of contemplation, vertue or spirituall greatnesse thou art, thou must hūbly acknowledg thy universall dependance on Gods gracious inspirations & help; And that therefor thou oughtest not to judge any one, whom through Gods permission, thou maist see fall into some abominable sin, being thou art not thy selfe assured, [Page 100]how long thou shalt stand in thy duty to God; or how soon that person may arise again, through Gods Grace, aiding to a timely & profitable Repentance. Have a care therefor Philothea thou standest fast in the waies of God, working thy Salvation with a filiall & humble feare, reflecting continually on thy own Nothing, & the streight dependance thou hast on the grace & Mercies of JESUS CHRIST; who having redeemed Thee from the tyranny of Satā, & made Thee capable of life everlasting with himselfe, will not be wanting to the compleating that great work of thy Eternall Salvation, if thou dost humbly trust in him; say then with a lively faith, In Thee O Lord have I hoped, & I am not confounded; I have put my trust in Thee, & have found help.
AFFECTION.
Ah my Soul, wherein canst thou now glorie? Art thou placed in the family of Gods servāts? Hast many good Notions & Divine Motions in thy breast? Dost thou through some strong helps of heavenly Grace, delightfully performe hard & painfull duties? All this is very good; [Page 101]but alas! thou knowst not how long this will endure, whether for a yeer, or a day, or even the next Moment? Whether thou beest confirmed in grace, listed amongst the number of the Elect; or worthy of Love or hatred? Thou knowest nothing of all this; Even so it is; for thou O my God, art a most glorious & pure Father of spirits, & wilt still be worshipped in feare & trembling; However, although thou shouldest persecute me till Death, I will trust in Thee; even at the gates of Hell, I will not abandon my hopes in thy Mercy.
RESOLUTION.
I will cast my selfe into the sea of Gods aboundant Mercies, & therein fix the Auchor of my hopes, relying firmely on his undeceiving promises, & saving helps of Grace; & therefor I will annihilate my selfe in the consideration of his holy decrees, living in perpetuall feare of his judgments concerning me. Nor will I onely become humble in the sight of God, who knows the vilenesse of my body, & wretchednesse of my Soul, with whatever shal befall either, for time & Eternity; but I will also willingly become contemptible in the [Page 102]Eies of all Creatures, contenting my selfe with the lowest place, meanest fare, & vilest Employments; accounting my self the unworthyest of all; & will ever say with the Holy Prophet, I am a worme & not a Man; the Outcast of Men, & the Offcast of the Vulgar.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Our Weaknesse to good.
IF thou desirest Philothea, to enter the depth of thy own Nothing, thou must make yet a further search into the motives of humbling thy selfe before God; Wherefor having now waded through the vast Seas of thy vilenesse in body, wretchednesse in Soul, & wonderfull ignorance of thy future state of life & happinesse; discourse further on thy Naturall weaknesse to performe good & vpright actions.
Ever since, through our disobedience to Gods holy Commandements, we departed from his Temple & sanctifyed Citty of Hierusalē, & fell into the hands of spirituall murderers, we have had [Page 103]many deep wounds, and deadly soares in our Souls; whereof though some have beē oft cured by CHRISTS healing Sacraments, yet doe they often break out & fester, through the disorders of our Sinfull lives; others remaining for ever uncurable during this mortall life; whereby we are wholly unable, without the perpetuall help of our charitable Samaritan JESUS CHRIST, either to discerne the way that leads back to God, or securely to walk towards him, in this our Pilgrimage to heavenly Perfection.
Our manifold doubts, mistakes & errours, in the knowledge of Divine, & even Morall truths & Actions; our passionate affections to present & sensible delights, the variety & distractions of our fading & slippery life; & the Excellēcy of Gods waies, & those thoughts & works, whereby we walk in them, & purchase a blessednesse, which he alone can bestow on us; shew evidently that God liveth in an Unaccessible Light, not to be viewed with an Eie, not yet cleansed by divine Faith; nor to be aspired [Page 104]unto, without that Hope, which He only can inspire into us; nor in the least degree to be purchased, or pretended to, without the speciall guifts of inherent sanctity, & other supernaturall helps of cleering Lights & cooperating Graces, bestowed bountifully on us; so that we can neither doe any thing worthy his acceptation, or think on him according to his Majesty, or even say one word of him, as we ought, in order to our Everlasting happinesse, without his speciall inspirations, conduct & assistance.
Wherefore, as thou art by Nature a meer Nothing, & by sin worse then Nothing: so without the liberall guift of Gods aiding Grace thou canst doe nothing; If then thou perhaps art sometimes raised up in the Contemplation of God, his glory, & those allureing traces, whereby he leads his servants to the love of eternall good things; yet maist thou not take complacence therein, without an humble submission to Gods vnknown will towards thee; or esteeme thy selfe by them, to be in a setled condition [Page 105]of Holinesse; for if thou wer't (as easily thou maist be) deprived of those Lights of Graces, thou now hast, thy Soul would become as dark, & thy actions as imperfect, as any others.
These Divine helps, so necessary to us, and so much above our reach, ought profoundly to humble us in the presence of God, whom we must ever worship as a liberall & free Giver, as oft as we receive any favour from him; still remembring, that the Apostate Angels, & our First Parents, lost themselves, by a Complacence in their own naturall perfections & Gods Guifts, without due reference to him.
COLLOQUIE.
I know & acknowledg My Dearest Lord, that of our selves, we cannot, either think, or say, or doe any thing worthy of thee; & therfore I will confesse to Thee (the only Light & strength of my Soul) that without Thee I am nothing but Vanity, blindnesse & Misery; & unlesse thou do'st prevent me with thy blessings, & moisten my heart with the dew of thy heavenly Graces, I shall be unto Thee like a barren Earth, which is without water, & produce [Page 106]nothing but sin, death & confusion. Alas my Soul, flatter not thy selfe, for even so it is; & yet how often hast thou relyed on thy own judgment, force & abilities, for which God hath permitted thee to fall? It were much better to acknowledg thy inward weaknesse to Vertue & extoll Gods power, & Mercies, in thy poverty, that his greatnesse may be exalted in the vilenesse of thy Nothing. Grant me, O ever blessed Redeemer, thy holy Grace, but give me also true humility of heart, that I may ever think on my own Nothing without Thee, so shall the poore & needy praise thy Name.
SECOND DICOURSSE. Our Pronenesse to Evill.
SInce by help only of Gods grace we doe good, 'tis by our own bad Nature we incline to Evill; Had man stood in his originall Innocency, his Soul had ever been breathing forth the delicious odours of Morall & Divine Vertues, wherewith he was then full; no sooner doth he withdraw himselfe frō his due Obedience to God, but all those Vertues [Page 107]forsake him, his Soul & all her powers are smutted with sin; We loose our right to our heavenly inheritance; & as a raging Sea, having broken its banks, we swell with evill inclinations, break down all letts of Gods precepts & prohibitions, & run over to all sorts of evill actions, however contrary to our Allegiance vnto God.
Our Reason adorned with Prudence, could discerne the Excellency of Vertue, & dictate all due circumstances of good & laudable actions; but now by sin it is become dull & blind, nor can it without new helps, above our reach, perswade from evill, or direct in good. Our Will formerly hedgd in with holy Lawes, beautifyed with inclinations to Iustice, & strēgthned by heavenly lights & graces, was prompt to hearken to, & obey Gods Call, but having lost the safeguard of Justice, is weak in resisting sensual allurements, & ready to comply with every disorderly suggestion of lawlesse passions. Our Concupiscence, which guarded with Temperance, stirrd up our inward Man, to follow the prescripts [Page 108]of Reason, & seeke sweetnesse in laudable & vertuous actions, rebells against the spirit, drawes towards earthly delights, & leads us captive in the bonds of unlawfull desires. And the Irascible power of our Soul; which armed with Fortitude, helpt us to trample down all obstacles of piety, runs now stiffe-neckt against God, casts of the yoke of Obedience, & contemns all threts of his Justice, against Violaters of their Divine Covenant.
These be those heavy shackles Philothea, which keep us in the servitude of sin, & still presse our hearts down to the crimes we loath, & yet shun not; Ah! How oft hast thou felt in thy selfe the weight of thy corrupted Nature? How oft plunged in some greivous sin? How dull thy spiritt then? How black thy thoughts? What remorses in thy mind? and (as one hanging at a small string, over a deep lake, full of toads & serpents) how full of terrours & feares? and yet not in the least sort able to help thy selfe? How oft thus, through pronenesse to sin? Alas! neither Rich by their [Page 109]treasures, nor the Mighty by their power, not the Beautifull by their loving charms, can free themselves from this load of sin & sinfull desires; Nay even all Creatures are become so many snares, whereby to entrapp & enthrall our hearts; whilst Satan by inward temptatiōs presseth us forward to covet them, & outwardly masketh them with apparent sweenesse, to seduce us & work our ruine; plunging us in sin after sin, till we forget there's a God, that sees all, That marks all our stepps, & who will one day call us to an account for all.
COLLOQUIE.
O bitter servitude of sin, which tyrannizeth in my fleshly members, resisting the laws of the immortall Mind, & holding me captive in the fetters of my concupiscences! Ah, who will free me from the woefull slavery of my corrupted passions, which heavely press me down to sensuall & sinfull Desires? Only Thou, My bountifull Saviour: shouldst Thou leave me to my selfe, there's not any sin so enormous, into which I might not fall. It is thy Mercy, O Abysse of Mercies, which prevents my stubborn will, quells the rage of temptations, & graciously [Page 110]diverts those occasions which might intice me to offend Thee. Oh that thou wouldst break the chaynes which fetter my spirit, & wouldst fasten my footsteps, that I slip not in the way of thy holy Commandements! Then will I sacrifize to thee a Sacrifice of praise, and rejoyce & exult in God my Saviour, because he who is powerfull hath done great things for me. Amen.
FOVRTH DAYES VOYAGE. Man Repayred by Iesus Christ.
MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Institution of the Holy Sacrement.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That having descended into thy selfe, & there discovered What thou art, in thy sinfull state; thy Body how Vile? thy soul how wretched? thy ignorance how great? how weake thou art to good? & how prone to Evill? and that now Thou findest thy selfe Philothea, faln into the deep lake, (mentiōed last night) full of filth & Venom; where thou neither seest the light of heavē, nor enjoyest comfort frō any freind, or quiet in thy mind, nor canst hope for releife from any Creature; & that therein thou art like to sink deeper, stick faster, & abide for ever, if Almighty God harkens not clemently to thy woefull cryes, and [Page 112]take pitty on thy weaknesse, pouerty & miserable state.
God could send an Angel to free thee thence, or by his only word set thee at liberty, but his love & bounty is so great to thee, that he sends his own, only Son, equall to himselfe in Majesty, Wisedom & Power, cloathed in thy Mortality, to release thee frō that loathsome Dungeō, to wash Thee in his precious bloud; to give thee an easy & gracious Law to walk by, to encourage thee to piety by doctrine & Examples, to establish Sacramēts for healing thy spirituall soares & ulcers, & at lēgth that he may bestow his whole selfe on Thee in the Holy Eucharist, as a Pledg of love whereby to sanctify, & bind thy heart to him; as a Light to guid thee, as a Staffe to support thee, & as a Viaticum to strengthen & comfort thee, in thy holie Pilgrimage to Perfection.
In this divine Sacrament is really & substantially contained IESUS CHRIST, God & Man; his Divinity which is the fountain of grace, good workes & glory; his Soul, full of Wisedome & Holinesse; [Page 113]his Body, conceived of the Holie Ghost, in the womb of the Immaculate Virgin; & his Bloud, shed in his Passion to redeeme Man from the tyranny of sin & satan. What greater argument of Love, could God give to Miserable Man, then this? then when the Jews sought to destroy him, & all mankind had abandond him, even then to bestow on us (not fading honours, riches or pleasures, but) himselfe, who is the Maker of the whole world, & that, as a Ransom to discharge us from our Captivity, as a Physitian to cure our Spirituall diseases, as a Father to protect us, as an Espouse to comfort us, & as the Earnest of his eternall glory? what greater bounty then this?
If the Jews with so great Reverence, assisted at, & offred up their Sacrifices of beasts; surely, We should with far greater Veneration & piety approach to our Altars, whereon the living God in our Nature is offred up a Propitiatiō for the sins of the World, a Reconciliation between God & Man, & a Source of all blessings of grace & glory. No [Page 114]sooner does the Priest pronounce those words, whereby that Mystery is wrought, but the substance of the bread & wine is changed into the body & bloud of JESUS CHRIST, the sensible elements thereof only remaining; there he is whole in every part, & in all places where he is consecrated, without division or multiplication in him selfe, or departing from the right hand of the Father. Certainly Philothea, This guift, that bounty, these wonders, wrought for our reparation from our sinfull state, should strongly engage our hearts in Loue & Duty to God.
AFFECTION.
I adore Thee my soveraign Lord hidden in this Divine Mystery, & acknowledge Thee to be there really present, God & Man, my Redeemer, Sanctifyer & Glorifyer: Alas, My God & all my Good! how little have I hitherto thought on this thy inestimable love & bounty to me, whereby, to releiue me from the slavery of sensuality & satan, to heale the deep wounds of my sinfull soul, & fill it with enlivning & sanctifying graces; & what have I returned to God for all these favours [Page 115]bestowed upon me? I will approach to Gods Altar with a repentant heart, & eate there the bread of salvation, & will call on the Name of God.
RESOLUTION.
I will ever have a lively faith towards this Mystery of the Holy Eucharist, confirmed to me, by CHRISTS own words, the authority of Apostles & Fathers, & the consent of all ancient & modern Christians, united under one supream head, CHRISTS Vicar on Earth; & I will lay open all my wants & weaknessesse before my Soveraign Lord, here really present; confiding in his comforting helps, for the freeing my Mind from distractions, & Will from sinfull affections, that I may profitably approach to him, & eate of that living bread, & sacrifize my soul to him by abnegation of my will, & my body by Obedience to Christian Duties.
SECOND POINT. Fruits of the Holie Sacrament.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That approaching to Gods holy Altar, & there eating of that repayring fruit of the Tree of life, We become like the Sacred Virgin conceiving him in her womb, therefor should study to imitate her Humilitie, Obedience, Faith & Charity; whereby she was fitted to that great work, & raised to familiar conferences with JESUS CHRIST, which we specially aime at, in our holy Retyrement.
We become also Temples of God, & therefor our hearts should be Altars whereon to offer up our enflamed thoughts & desires, admitting no negotiation there, but what may tend to the cleansing our souls from evill affections, & adorning them with divine vertues, whereby it may be fitted to [Page 117]entertayn this heavenly Guest. Had JESUS CHRIST when on Earth, vouchsafed to make his aboade with us, as in Bethania with Mary & Martha, with what solicitude would we have prepared all things befitting his sacred presence, that nothing might appear in us undecent, or wanting, where with to give him a ioyfull welcome? The like care should now be had My Philothea, especially since he comes here to us in his glorifyed body environed with Angels invisibly present, & with hands full of blessings to bestow upon us.
In JESUS CHRIST abides the fulnesse of the Divinity, therefor He giving him selfe to us, in this heavenlie Manna, containing all sweetnesse, he gives withall the whole treasury of his heavenly guifts & graces, whereby the soul is cleansed from veniall sins, & mortall inculpably forgotten in confession, Reason receives cleerer lights of spirituall truths, the Will is enflamed to Christiā Duties, the Conscience eased, Inclinations to evil are weakned, & our Love to heavenly things strengthned & encreased. [Page 118]O living food of Angels be thou my Dayly bread, & fill my soul with thy divine sweetnesse, that my conversation may be in heaven, by the Imitation of the life of those blessed spirits, & by hopes of feeding for ever, on that bread, in the kingdom of thy Father.
AFFECTION.
Oh that I might conceive JESUS in my heart by Love, & bring him forth by performance of his Will! then should I truly feed on this bread of Angels. But alas, too often have I approached Gods Altar, with a Spirit full of earthly desires, too frequently have I entertaind the great Lord of the world in a soul defiled with sinfull affections, tepid in divine Exercises & distracted with worldly sollicitudes, & therefor I still remain dry & barren to good actions, & insensible to the comforting presence of JESUS within me; Oh that Gods holy Spirit would overshadow my soul, cleanse it from all imperfections, enflame it with heavenly loue, & replenish it with his gracious blessings, that it may be a fitt Sanctuary for the Saviour of Men & Angels.
RESOLUTION.
I will banish forth of my heart, whatever may displease my Divine Espouse, adorning it with Vertues & holy desires, whereby it may be prepared to entertain him, & experiēce the sweetnesse of his comforting presence. And I will endeavour that my outward decency in behaviour & conversation, may testify the inward tranquillity & alacrity of my spirit, & an earnest longing to be One with him; Live Thou O JESUS in my soul, that I may live by the heat of thy divine flames, & walk by the light of thy inspirations, from Vertue to Vertue, till I see Thee my God in thy holy Sion.
THE THIRD POINT. Intention in Communion.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That if in all actions of this life, we study to have a due & upright intention, this ought then especially [Page 120]to be, when we approach to the Holy Sacrament, that great proofe of Gods Love to mankind, that efficacious means of confirming us in our spirituall life, & a most assured pledg of our future blessed life above.
We may not then venture hither, of meer custome or for companie sake; nor to purchase a vain esteem of holinesse, or an encrease of temporall blessings; or some spirituall gust or sweetnesse, in that great Act of Christian worship; No Philothea, we must goe to God, for God himselfe; that our loue to him may be greater, our devotions quicker, & our Spirits stronger in performing the will of our Soveraign Lord and Master.
JESUS CHRIST offers him selfe on the Altar of his Crosse to his heavenly Father, a Sacrifice of Prayse, Impetration & Suffrage: with the same intention ought we to entertain JESUS in our hearts, by thankfulnesse for his manifold favours, imploring grace & mercy for our selves, & Spirituall releife for all distressed souls; ever mindfull [Page 121]of his bitter Passion, that the fruits thereof may be liberally applyed to us, & we may become suffring members with our Divine Head, encreasing in all perfection & freedom with God in our Contemplations, & being entirely transformed into Him, on whom our Spirits here feed, that we may have no life, knowledge, affection or motion in us, but what proceeds from, & ends in him.
AFFECTION.
Alas my Deerest Lord, I have been too carelesse in my adresses to Thee; How often have I frequented thy holy Altars with vain & weak desires, not loving Thee there for Thy selfe, but receiving Thee of dull custome, or for some present gust in Thee? Not solicitous to cherish the good desires conceived by thee, or a willingnesse to beare Crosses for thee; & thus am I become unworthy, that thou entrest the house of my soul & live there, but if thou Say'st the word, my Spirit shall be healed.
RESOLUTION.
I will hence forth set some speciall time a part, wherein to discusse & rectifye my intention, before I approach [Page 122]to, & eate of this living bread, that God may be glorifyed, & all Christian souls may reap spirituall profit, by the use of this great Mystery; & will say.
AN OBLATION BEFORE COMMVNION.
O Blessed JESUS, in union of that love, wherewith thou did'st offer thy selfe a Sacrifice to thy Father, on the Altar of the Crosse, and in conformity to that intention thou then hadst, I this day offer up to thee my Communion, as a Sacrifice of Praise, Impetration & Suffrage; for my selfe, & all others to whom I am obleiged, by Obedience, Iustice or Charitie: & in that degree I am obleiged; which I beseech thee, through the merits of thy bitter Passion, may be acceptable to Thee. Amen.
THE EVENING EXERCISE
FIRST DISCOURSE. Preparation to the Holie Sacrament.
NOne will undertake any great work, without carefull preparation of all things, necessary for its due [Page 123]performance. If we use a cautious providence in all our humane actions, & ordinary conversation, this should rather be observed, when we intend to enter the Holie of Holies, & there feed on the Bread of Angels, our powerfull Creator, mercifull Redeemer, & Just Judge.
The Paschall Lamb, was but a dark & barren figure of this gracious Sacrifice, yet the Jews eat not thereof, without much cleanesse, circumspection & alacrity of Spirit; Saint John Baptist esteems not himselfe worthy to unloose CHRISTS shoes, Saint Peter to fayle in the same Boat with him, & the devout Centurion to entertain him under his roofe; nor should we presume to appear before him in the Holy Eucharist, or there receive him within our breast, without great feeling of Love & Veneration. If JESUS CHRIST be a Mirrour without spot, no stain of sin should then be seen in our soul within, or undecency in the outward habit of our body: & if he be there, a God of Love & Peace to us, we may [Page 124]not touch, or feed on him, unlesse reconciled to Heaven & Earth, in Imitation of the Primitive Christians, who meeting at this great Mystery, were of one heart & one spirit.
ADVISES FOR A GENERALL CONFESSION.
Now therefore My Philothea, thy heavenly Espouse having led thee some steps down towards his Cellar of rich & Gracious wines, & there disclosed to Thee part of his spirituall treasures, & hidden pathes of divine Love, to the end thou maist duly prepare thy selfe to eate also of this Bread of life, & find no impediment in thy progresse to perfection, I advise thee to dispose thy selfe towards a Generall Confession, in case Thy spirituall Guid, iudg that expedient & profitable for Thee. Although perhaps thou art not conscious of any grevious sin, not formerly discovered, yet since, even of a forgiven sin, we may not be without feare, we cannot be too solicitous in cleansing our hearts, & removing all obstacles of divine Lights & Graces.
Wherefor Philothea, doe this now, once for ever, but doe it simply & plainly, without feare or anxiousness; & unto a person, chosen amongst a thousand; by whose advice thou maist be wholly directed, for the manner of it, & how thou art afterwards to behave thy selfe, should scruples arise. Which ended, blesse God for his mercies towards Thee, & prostrate in spirit, before thy Crucifix, pronounce the following Covenant.
PHILOTHEA'S COVENANT WITH GOD.
I N. Placed in the presence of Almighty God, & the whole Court of heaven, having considered the aboundant Love wherewith God hath created me, sanctifyed me in holy Baptisme, sustained me in my manifold sins & transgressions, & at length called me to this state of life, wherein I now am, preserving me there, from many dangers of offending him, inspiring sorrow for my failings, & a desire to love & obey him; Doe, with my whole soul, abhor all the sins of my life past; renew my promises, to be his loyall & obedient servant: & doe firmely purpose, all the dayes of my life, [Page 126]to shun all dangers of sin, & to apply my selfe to the observance of his holie Commandments, & my own Resolutions.
And if at any time I break this my Covenant, I will, as soon as I perceive my errour returne again to God, by a hearty repentance, & confession of all my sins & ingratitude.
Accept O my God, this my Protestation made before Thee, & grant me grace to observe it, to the end of my life, that I may alwaies abide in thy holy feare, die in thy sweet peace, & with ioy at the last day arise, to a blessed Communion of the Saints, in thy never ending glory. Amen.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Behaviour in receiving the Holie Sacrament.
BEing thus prepared to entertain JESVS CHRIST in thy heart, our endeavours must be, by amorous sighs, & aspirations full of ioy for the approach of our blessed Lord, to expresse the longing desire we have of his coming into us.
The happy Issue of an Important [Page 127]affaire, or purchase of some speciall temporall blessings, usually takes up the best thoughts & most serious wishes of earthlie minds: But if our minds be heavenly, we will ever think on, & thirst after, this delicious visit of our Divine Espouse.
Anciently, Christians frequented often this heavenlie banquet, & thence gayned that Sanctity & fervour, we admire in the Martyrs, Hermits & holie Virgins of that Age; Though worldly ties, & the manifold distractions whereto our mortality is subject, permits not daily Cōmunion, yet could we dayly eate this divine Bread, our hearts would be accustomed to pious affections, strengthned against occurring temptations, & weaned from those sensuall liberties, we now so unwillingly abandon.
That morning thou intendest Philothea to receive the holie Eucharist, think how earnestlie JESUS CHRIST longeth to take up his lodging within thee; therefor he sends his Heralds to proclaime the coming of the Espouse, & [Page 128]to invite thee to this gracious Supper; being thē decently prepared, & accompanied with thy choicest freinds of heaven, approach humbly & devoutly to Gods Altar, saying in thy spirit, Whence is it, that my Dearest Lord vouchsafeth to come to me, & abide within me? O Philothea, if thy soul be not quite frozen, thou wilt here feele the heat of this heavenly fire, & returne hence full of enflamed affections, panting & swelling, through an aboundance of divine Love.
If ever there be hopes of a spirituall advancement, any zeale of Christian duties, or constant resignation amidst temptations, it will now appeare, while this great Giver of all good things, lodges in thy bosome, as the soul of thy spirit; Manifest then to him thy wants & wishes, & say, Thou thalt not depart hence, unlesse thou doest blesse me, with the blessings of Peace & Mercy.
COLLOQUIE.
Ah, my soul, canst thou be hungry, hauing eaten of the bread of Angels? Or a thirst, hauing tasted of the fountain of living water? Or [Page 129]cold, having been at this divine fire? Alas, my Soveraign Lord, my carelesness in attending to thy presence in this sacred banquet, my frequent relapses into my old vices, & ungratitude for thy many wonderfull favours, has even deaded my heart, & rendred it insensible to the gracious influences of this heavenly food! Enliven my spirit, O my God, with thy grace, & fortify it with this bread of Angels; & in the strength thereof I will walk to thy holie Mountain, the Mountain where God delights to abide, where he liveth for ever. Amen.
FIFTH DAYES VOYAGE. Mortification of Sensualitie.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Mortification of the Senses.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, that the soul being now cleansed from all stayns of sin by Repentance, & strengthned in its Spirituall life, by that divine bread, which is JESSUS CHRIST, we must use all endeavours, to reforme such evill habits & inclinations, as may slacken our pious resolutions; & purchase those helps of Vertue, which may most efficaciouslie advance us in our Pilgrimage to perfection.
We must therefor Philothea withdraw our outward senses frō all those objects, which are apt to seduce our hearts from Gods Law, & engage them in sinfull affections, [Page 131]so contrary to the perfectiō of our designe. This is done, both by a carefull custody of our senses, from viewing & feeding on such sensible objects, as may allure us to take complacence in them; & by a moderate castigation of the body, by acts of pennance, that it rebells not against the dictates of reason & grace.
All Christians have a strickt obligation to endeavour this custody & castigation of the senses; For being Children of the earthly Adam, through whose sin all are borne enemies to God, & Rebells against his holy Law, we all find, both body & soul alienated from their due Obedience to reason & Gospell, which cannot be repayred, but by withdrawing our senses, even from lawfull objects, & undergoing hard & painfull duties. Being also in holy Baptisme, happily spoused to JESUS CHRIST, by a solemn Vow then made in our Name, to renounce Satan & all his works, & to apply our selves to the observance of all CHRISTS Precepts, we ought seriously to study the [Page 132]imitation of the life of Our Soveraign Lord, & fullfill our promises made to him, by mortifying our concupiscences, & performance of his Will.
But this must be especially done, during our spirituall retreat, that crucifying our sensualitie, by prayer, fasts watchings, & such like austerities, we may the more freely harkē to the whisperings of the Spirit, & thereby become wholly spirituall, according to our designe; And therefor those great Examples of solitary perfection, whose lives fill us with admiration, no sooner withdrew themselves from the noyse of worldly solicitudes, but they applyed themselves to corporall austerities, therby to quell the inordinate suggestions of corrupted sensualitie, & raise up their hearts in the contemplation of heavenly & permanent comforts.
AFFECTION.
O painfull pilgrimage of this mortall Life! how miserable, how fraile, how bitter art thou? And yet have I thus long loved thee, feeding my senses on perishing objects, & filling my heart with vain & emptie desires of sensuall [Page 133]pleasures, thereby forgetting that great ransom, my Saviour payd to redeem me from the tyranny of Satan, which the disorders of sensuality brought upon me; & neglecting that glorious inheritance, he by his bitter Passion purchased for me! Oh, I will rather suffer a thousand deaths, then abandon my selfe to these unclean & deceitfull delights! I renounce you for ever, O Impure suggestions; & doe defie any concupiscence, which may bring the wrath of God upon the children of distrust.
RESOLUTION.
I will make a covenant with my senses, not to admitt of any unlawfull or vain object; & will place a guard over them, that they seek not after what may be pleasing to flesh & bloud; & I will mortify them by a prudent & descreet use of corporall austerities, denying to my selfe all superfluities which may delight my sensuall inclinations, in conformitie to the counsells of holy Gospell; & by assuming particular acts of Mortification, sutable to my calling, & as far as Obedience will permit; And I will say with the Royall Prophet, For thy love O Lord, I have mortifyed my selfe, all the day long.
SECOND POINT. Mortification of the Passions.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That it sufficeth not, to mortify the outward senses, unlesse we reforme also the inward Man, by ordering and deading our inward passiōs. What availes it, to weare a haire cloath on the back, & in the bosome to beare a rancorous & proud heart? or what profit will it be to our spirit, to fast much, to pray often, to watch long & speak seldome; if Envie, Impatience, Pride or some other hidden affections poyson the soul within, & destroy that delicious harmony, which should be, between the Will of God, & our own?
It is a great mistake, Philothea, of some souls, otherwise wel-willing, & devout, that heeding the mortification of the outward man, they neglect to prune their hearts of vicious affections, so contrary to the spirit of JESUS CHRIST, & thereby misse of that [Page 135]tranquillitie & perfection, they seek after in their Retyrement.
Wherefor My Philothoa, make a carefull survay of all thy sensuall inclinations, what passions lay lurking in thy heart, how ready thou art to beare Crosses & forbeare carnall satisfactions; & sett a watch over every one, that they stirr not, but by the order of Reason, & direction of Grace.
AFFECTION.
Alas my Soul, it is the Way, but not the end of perfection, to mortify thy poore body, if thou beest thy selfe the cause of all disorders there! Be thou humble, & thy body will not be proud; be thou chast, & thy body will not be lascivious; be thou temperate, & thy body will not be gluttonous. Oh that the powerfull hand of my God, would quell the tumults of my inordinate passions, & putt bounds to the rowlings of my affections! I have strayed from Thee O my God, as a sheep that is lost; seek thou thy servant, & I will not be unmindfull of thy commandements.
RESOLUTION.
I will not only henceforth mortify the senses of my body, but the passions [Page 136]of my mind also, that with my heart, as well as lips, I may honour & glorifie my Saviour. And I will stricktly examine every motion of my sensuall appetite, that I may discover its maladies, order its affections, & prevent those disquiets, which my Passions have hitherto raised in Me; That My beloved may say to Me, Thou art a Garden of delights inclosed, a spring shut up, & a fountain sealed.
THIRD POINT. Mortification, the property of a Christian.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That by means of this Mortification of our senses & passions, we are placed in a degree of perfection above beasts, who being voyd of reason, seek their content & happinesse in sensuall delights; & therefor those carnall hearts, which still wallow in the puddle of earthly pleasures, following [Page 137]the allurements of sensible objects, & the disorders of their own passions, degenerate into beasts; Wheras Mortification is the speciall badg & property of a true Christian Man, who living according to reason & grace, crucifies the flesh with its concupiscences, & thereby belongeth to Christ.
But especially, this perfect mortification of our sensuall appetites, is the proper Companion & true signet of the solitarie soul, who retyring from worldly conversation obliges her selfe, to imitate JESUS CHRIST in his sufferings; & to follow the stepps of the most zealous Christians of all Ages, by resisting the irregular desires of sensualitie, that the flesh may obey the spirit, & our spirit the Will of God, for the Sanctification of the whole Man.
If therefor Philothea, Thy senses & passions have hitherto been loosly kept, & strayed after inordinate satisfactions, now thou must have a watchfull care over them, & fasten them to the Crosse of Mortification, promptly, joyfully, [Page 138]frequently, perseverently, & universally; that as all have been Ministers of vncleanesse, they may also be promoters of pyety; thy Eies, in contemplating thy Crucifyed Redeemer, & reading holy bookes; thy Eares, in harkning to devout sermōs; thy Tongue, in prayer & pious discourses; thy Hands, in performing good works; thy Feet, in visiting holy places; & thy whole body, in bearing patiētly the miseries of this mortall Life; & undergoing acts of pennance, for satisfaction of past, & prevention of new sins, so contrary to thy Christian profession, & the great design now in hand.
AFFECTION.
I acknowledg my Dearest Lord, that through thy precious bloud, I am regenerated from my sinfull state, sanctifyed to Christian & holy duties, & strongly fortifyed agaynst the corrupted inclinations of my own sensualitie, & outward charms of earthly delights; & yet, Alas! how oft, how vilely, have I transgressed thy commands & my own promises to be one of thy flock, to become a mortified Christian, to abandon all worldly contents, [Page 139]& suffer whatever austerities & tribulations, rather then to loose any part in Thee, & thy blessed Kingdome prepared for Me? But thou O Lord, art sweet, & mild, & aboundest with Mercies; Have Mercy upon me O God, have mercy upon me, for my soul hath trusted in Thee.
RESOLUTION.
I will take a speciall View, of all abuses committed through immortification of my senses & passions, & consider all my evill Inclinations, where, at what time, towards what Objects, I am aptest to comply with them; & I will waryly watch over all my waies, prevent dangers, & undertake such Mortifications, as may keep my heart closse to my God, & stedfast in the observance of his Holy Commandements; strengthen me O Lord with thy grace, & My Appetite shall be subject to Me, & I shall have power over it.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Dammages incurrd by Immortification.
AS the Love of God ioyned with selfe Contempt, builds up the Citty of God in us: so selfe Love, reaching to the contempt of Gods holy Commandements, that of Satan; This Selfe-love is the First Mover, in the sphear of the unmortifyed soul, of all the passions of our sensualitie, whence proceed all those calamities of sinfull desires, & the following disorders, which restlesly warr agaynst Gods spirit in Us, & heavyly presse Us down, even agaynst our Wills, to those Miseries we now groan under, & long to be freed from.
Our first Parents complying with an Immoderate Appetite of the fruit of one forbiddē Tree (amongst so many thousand excellent Ones, allowed by Almighty God, for their Use & pleasure, [Page 141]notwithstanding Gods severe prohibition, under payn of his high dispeasure, a tedious life, forrowfull death, & all those penalties, which daily draw so many teares from our Eies, & sighs from our hearts) has brought Gods heavy wrath upon themselves & us, & all those Rebellions of sensualitie, Errours in understanding, difficulties in obeying, & that torrent of cares & sorrows, which continually afflict our spirits; & yet We still add to our Miseries, by an over-ready sideing with these our unruly passions & Appetites.
What grater mishapp can befal a Soveraign Prince, then to be deposed his Throne, spoyled of his royall Prerogatives & dignity, & to be banisht forth his own Dominiōs? Thus it is with us now: Each one of us had a peacefull kingdom within himselfe, & was Supream Lord therein in his Originall state; No sooner did selfe Love creep in to our hearts, & seduce the powers of the soul, to prefer sensualitie to reason & Justice, but God permits our Passions to overrun us, & tyrannize within [Page 142]us; whence arise those varieties of Concupiscences, boylings & roulings of our affections, Love & Hatred, Hopes & Feares, & those numberlesse disquiets which torture our unmortifyed spirits; He takes from us the safeguard of Justice & Innocency, whereby we are become unable to governe our hearts in the flight of evill & pursuance of approved Good; And we are banisht forth that Paradice, which was the seat of our Earthly happinesse, & the Image of the heavenly, & are here condemn'd, through sweats & sighs, & Innumerable sorrows, to weare out an anxious & painfull Life.
These be the Miseries we have incurr'd Philothea, through Immortification of our senses & passions, & are still increased in us, by giving reynes to our heady & disorderly sēsualitie, as we dayly experience in the misgovernment of our lives & actions, which certainly none can seriously consider, without an extream horrour & confusion.
Thou must therefor earnestly endeavour to suppresse all inordinate suggestions [Page 143]& desires of flesh & bloud; through consideration, of the great humiliation, & bitter sorrows, the eating one forbidden Aple, cost the Son of God; The severe prohibitions God has made against unlawfall concupiscences, & his cōmands, that we mortify our carnall appetites, crucify our flesh, chastise our bodies, hate & deny our selves; The Examples of all the Saints & Lovers of solitude; & the great dammages we have already, & still may incurr, by consenting to our vicious affections; Then, by examining, what passions abound most in Thee? how thou maist timely prevent dangers of raising them? And by what means thou canst best moderate thy affections, in the presence of sensuall allurements, or when violently transported with them towards some beloved Object, most deare to Thee.
COLLOQUIE.
Oh! who will give Me water to my head, & a fountain of teares to my Eies; & I will night & day bewaile the disorders of my corrupted sensualitie; the tumults of my unbridled passions [Page 144]& the follies of my youth! Ah! my God, thou hast commanded it, & I find it by woefull experience to be true, That my inordinate mind is become a punishment to its selfe, & those Vanities, wherein I have endeavored to glutt my heart, & powre forth my spirit, has rendred me burthensome to my selfe. But thou art iust O God, & hast mett with me in my own wayes, & payd me in my own coyne, punishing me in that, wherein I sought my sollace, content & happinesse. Oh! that thou wouldst streach forth thy hand & touch my heart, & my wicked waies shall become streight & even; command O God these tempests & storms of my Passions to cease, & there shall be a calme in my spirit, & my flesh shall hope to see my God, my Salvation.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Necessity, & use of Mortification.
AS the Apostate Angells lost their glorious seats in Heaven, through an inordinate complacence in their own perfections; & our first Parents theirs in the Earthly Paradice, by complying [Page 145]with their immoderate concupiscence: so we must repayre the ruines of the One, & recover the happinesse of the other by chastising our sensualitie, & moderating its irregular & sinfull desires; which we shall easily experience to be the surest means of attaining to perfection, if we consider, that no true Vertue can be practis'd or preserved without this Mortification; & that by it, we purchase what ever happinesse a Christian may experience in this life, or hope for hereafter.
Holy Gospell tells us, That we cannot be CHRISTS Disciples, worthy of his love here, or his blessed society in heaven, unlesse we take up his Crosse, dispise all motions of sensualitie, & crucify our flesh, with its vices & concupiscences; and therefor if any danger arise of prevaricating Gods Law, or our own Vowes, we are oblidged under the heavy penalty of incurring Gods wrath, & loosing our right to his Glory, to suppresse the rebellious desires of our passions; As being the fomenters & rootes of all sin & disorders [Page 146]in us; wherefor the Holy Apostle, Whence doe warrs & strifes arise in us; but from the concupiscences, which war in our fleshly members?
These therfor must necessarily, My Philothea, be well guarded & ordred in thee if thou desire that Gods Spirit abide in thee, speak the language of peace to thy heart, & lead thee through the easy & even paths of his Love, to the Perfection thou aimest at.
This Mortification of senfes & passions, brings also with it a sweet repose & quiet of conscience; For being freed from inward commotions of sensuall affections, & not moved by outward allurements, there will be a pleasant harmony between sense, Reason & Grace, under the supream government of a blessed God; a resignation to all Varieties of this life, a willingnesse to accept of what ever condition may befall us; & a promptnesse to all actions of piety, selfe-contempt & mortification.
By this means Philothea, thou wilt enjoy a perfect tranquillity of spirit, in [Page 147]order to God, to whose will thou wilt promptly submitt, without repining at those adversities, which through his sweet providence are permitted to befall thee; In order to Thy selfe, being freed from the disquietts of a troubled Mind; whereas they who give themselves over to the satisfying their unmortifyed appetites, returning to themselves, by reflexion on their folly, find their hearts overcharged with remorse & terrours of their own guilt, wherby they become unsupportable to themselves; & lastly, thou wilt enjoy a most entire content in order to thy Neighbour, whose passions or malice will not be able to shake thy Resolutions, or disturbe thy inward tranquillity of spirit, now arrived to a high pitch of Insensibilitie, to all things of this life.
Moreover, by This Mortification is purchased an assurance of future happinesse; The ioyes of heaven Philothea, have many great Excellencies, & prerogatives; they abound with peace & plenty, which must be purchased by poverty of spirit; they afford a perfect [Page 148]rest, to be gayned by great Labour; they bring with them a solid & permanent Comfort, to be obtayned with much sorrow & patience; & they abide for an endlesse Eternity, which must be procured by an entire Mortification of our senses & passions, & a killing of those that would work Iniquity in Gods Holy Citty.
This is the way Philothea, which all the Saints have walked before us, & it is the advise of Our heavenly Lord, that we take up our Crosse & follow him; For what proportion can there be, between a Member flowing with sensuall delights, & a Head crowned with Thornes? Call thy selfe therefor to a strict account, & consider, what progresse thou hast made in this way to Paradice, & purpose seriously to practise this retyrednesse of thy senses & passions, from the disorders of sensuall pleasures & vanities of this World, unto the blessed content of the Inward Man.
COLLOQUIE.
Ah my God! I have been sick & sorely [Page 149]wounded, with the arrowes of my carnall desires, & the manifold charms of creatures; & still I lay fettred in the chains of my inordinate affections; & yet am unwilling to be healed of my distempers, or freed from my beloved captivity. How oft have I sayd to my soul, arise from thy drowsinesse, shake of thy shackles, & make hast to thy healing & saving Samaritan? And yet I have still lingred, loath to break off with my ancient passions, to abandon my accustomed follies. Oh! that Thou my God wouldst break in peices these chains of my passionate desires, heale my wounds, & deliver me from the prison of my sensuall affections! then shall I with ioy abide amidst the temptations & allurements of this wretched Mortality, & tast how sweet it is, to adhere to God, & shall hope to be filled with the torrent of heavenly pleasure, & the plenty of his Holy House. Amen.
SIXT DAYES VOYAGE. Flight of the heart to God.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Flight from Creatures.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That having now allayed the heats of inward passions, by a voluntarie restraint of the senses from outward objects, & readinesse to embrace mortifications; The solitarie soul must withdraw herselfe from all Creatures whatsoever, that the wings of the heart be not entangled by them, & we hindred in our Flight to God.
We must then have a simple Aversion from Creatures, & a quiet Conversion of the Heart into its selfe, in which God abides, teaches, & governs; since nothing beneath God can satisfy [Page 151]the languishing of the soul, no wonder she turns her selfe from Creatures, enters into her selfe, & there seeks what may be mett with unto her more cordiall satisfaction.
See therefor Philothea, what beloved Creatures lay lurking within thee in thy bosom, with what chaines thy heart is linked to them, & by what means they may be slackned, by what degrees broken a sunder? Are they Riches, Beauty, Cloaths, some deare Friend? all must be cast forth thy heart, that the God of purity & peace may enter therein, & abide with Thee; No prophane Altar may stand in Gods temple, nor can we together serve God & Mammon? If God be able to fill thy heart, & make it happy, let not any creature presume to challenge any corner thereof.
AFFECTION.
Oh that my God would break asunder all those chains, which so strongly bind me to creatures! then will I fly to him with the wings of an ardent Love, abandonning all for him. My heart has been too long fill'd & possest of [Page 152]Vanity; O that I had a new, a disinterested, an unspotted heart! that would be a fitt Temple, wherein to entertayn so glorious a Guest. Give me then a clean heart, a heart of Love, O Soveraign Lord of Hearts, & thou shalt for ever command therein, & I will ever abide with Thee, by contemplation of thy selfe.
RESOLUTION.
I will no longer delay my flight from Creatures to God, or only stand to file off the fetters that fasten me to them; but will presently break them in peices & cast them from Me, that I may freely & entirely possesse my God. Nothing that is agaynst him, nothing without him, nothing as my felicity besides him, shall enjoy any part in Me. Adieu therefor all yee Creatures that may hinder my society with God; Honours, wealth, pleasures, parents, friends, I abandon all that may possesse my heart unjustly, & hinder it from being the pure Temple of my eternall God. My heart O God I give to Thee, both because Thou lookest for it & lovest it, saying, My Child, give me thy [Page 153]heart; & because Thou only dost deserve it, & without thee it is never at rest.
SECOND POINT. Flight from our selves.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That as our first Flight towards God, is made by a withdrawing our affections from creatures forth of our selves, that we may the more freely unite our selves to God: so the second Flight must be, by abstracting our affections, even from the outward man that is part of our selves, & by reason of its great neernesse & intimacy with us, may the more easily doe us harme.
This is a dangerous Enemy indeed, because most neer, most dear, & most importune; & evermore worketh against our spirituall progresse; however Philothea, if thou dost trust in God & use strong endeavours, thou wilt soō [Page 154]make a considerable advance in this Victory over thy selfe.
When therefor selfe Love prompts thee, to seek after any sensuall satisfaction, take no notice at all of it; If it growes more petulant & importune, reproach it with its own corruption & blindnesse; But if it persevers, & becomes insolent, then Kill & slay it by the sword of Austeritie & rigorous Mortification; so wilt thou Philothea by degrees triumph over thy selfe, & be able to doe, beare or forbeare, what ever thy spirit will, with little repugnance or repining of thy sensuall appetite.
Thus thou feest how strict a guard, our Solitary pilgrim must have over her selfe, in her advance to Perfection; since to purchase true happinesse, 'tis not enough to quitt affections to outward Creatures, unlesse we also by a perfect abrenunciation of selfe Love & private interest, overcome that which is part of our very selves.
AFFECTION.
Oh that I could truly say, My heart now [...]th, but it is not my heart which liveth, [Page 155]but CHRIST who liveth in Me! Live then sweet JESU in my heart, as the heart, the life, the soul of my heart; possesse it wholly, & permit no love to harbour therin, which hath not its beginning from thee, or at least is not consistent with Thee; then will I sing, My God is a strong warrier, & has overthrown my enemies.
RESOLUTION.
I renounce & defie Thee, O treacherous selfe Love, which hast so often sought, & still intendest the ruin of my better selfe; I will henceforth only esteem that selfe Love, which will preserve my spirit safe in the last day, and will therefor warily watch over all the motions of my heart, examining all its designs & projects, & ordering it according to the Will of my Soveraign Lord & Master.
THIRD POINT. Flight from Spiritall Comforts.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That to accomplish our Flight to God in himselfe, wee must be willing even, to be abandoned of God himselfe when he so wils it; that is to say: Out of our sincere love to him, willingly to want those graces & comforts, whereby he uses to sustain his servants, in their combatts & advances in the way of Perfection.
This is that sublime state of perfection, whereunto the holy Espouse was arrived, when she cryed out, Fly from me, O my Beloved; A state wherein the soul seeks not after any sensible feeling of the sweetnesse of divine Inspirations, but is contented to be wholly abandoned of all inward consolations of the spirit, & the savory gusts of the gracious presence of Almighty God, & to be exposed to inward anxieties & spirituall conflicts, as if she were actually in the state of sin, & really deprived [Page 157]of Gods Love & his Sanctifying graces.
This is an admirable Flight indeed, Philothea, yet very necessary, if we ayme at the height of solitary Perfection, whereby the heart must be prepared to whatever condition God alots it; Examine then, whither thou hast a sincere Resolution to quitt all things beneath God, & to love him, although thou should'st not reap thence any sensible fruit or consolation, during this present life.
AFFECTION.
Oh infinite beauty of my wholly amiable Creatour! who would not love Thee, even for thy own sake, since thou art nothing but Goodnesse? O you Cittizens of the heavenly Hierusalem, I adjure you, when you meet my Beloved, that you tell him, I languish with Love, because he is wholly desirable, & chosen of thousands.
RESOLUTION.
I will Love my God, for his own sake, because he is wholly lovely, & not for any spirituall gust or comfort, which may arise from the presence of [Page 158]his graces, & those good thoughts & affectiōs it pleaseth him to work in me. I will so love Thee, My only Soveraign Lord, that if I were God, & not Thou, I would cease to be God, that Thou alone mightest be the God of my soul; My God & all.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Vanity of Creatures.
ALl creatures are, either things abroad, or wee our selves; both are full of Vanity, & hinder the solitary soul from flying unto God; We must therfor speedily goe forth the Sodom of this world, & seperate our selves from outward creatures; For how can The heart enjoy the sweetnesse of solitary perfection, if it wanders abroad after sensible contentments, & feeds upon the trash of earthly pleasures? Say then Philothea: Vanity of Vanities & all is Vanity, empty & unconstant, which is not my [Page 159]God; Why then shall I permitt my affections to be chained to these transitorie things, since with them I cannot enjoy God, my only comforter?
Wherefor Consider, what creature in the whole world, of what ever Excellency or worth, can be a fitt object of thy Love? Is it the world in generall, with all its beauty & delights? Or is it some select peice thereof? Some high dignity, aboundance of wealth, honorable friends, variety of pleasures, or some especially amiable Creature? Alas! Philothea, seest thou not, that all these things are subject to change, unconstant & empty goods? which once possest soon vanish, leaving nothing behind them, but a restlessenesse of new desires, & disquiets of conscience, & are consequently unable to appease the thirst of our languishing & fainting spirit. Make then a generous & strong Purpose, to abandon all Creatures for thy Creatour, since he alone can fill thy soul; & say to God, Oh! that I could die to all Creatures, that I may live only to Thee, & thou in Me!
Having thus stript thy selfe of all outward Creatures, Enter into thy selfe, make a diligent survay of thy heart, & search every corner thereof, till thou hast discovered, what passions of selfe Love & private interest, lay lurking therein; what difficulty thou hast to submit thy judgment, to quitt selfe esteem, to abandon old freindships & familiarities, to leave inbred customs, to wave thy affection to proper interest? What time hath been lost in giving way to inward heats of passions, what neglect in curbing & ordring thy appetites? & say with the holy Prophet, I will begin from the morningh watch to kill the sinners of the Earth, & chase them forth of the Citty of my God. This Citty of God Philothea, is thy own heart; thence must thou banish all inordinate desires, which are as the little foxes in the Cantiques, that destroy the Vineyard of our beloved.
COLLOQUIE.
I will goe to my God, & declare to him, the wandrings & rowlings of my disorderly spirit, whereby deserting him, I have followed [Page 161]the footsteps of those, who seeking content from Creatures, have gone astray from the holy folds of their Creator: I see my errour, O my God; My heart has too long sweated & fainted in searching happinesse from things beneath Thee, whereby I find my hands still empty, & my daies to have faded away in Vanity, because I sought not my comfort from Thee, who alone art All Good, & able to fill the longings of my thirsty soul. Oh that thou wouldst free me from the disorders of my concupiscences, & knock off those many strong chaines which bind me to the Vanities of this Life! Then will I soar up as an Eagle in Contemplation of thy glory, & fly with the wings of Love, & feed on Thee.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Spirituall Indifferency.
BEsides this abstraction of our spirit from all Creatures, abroad & at home in our own bosom, we must endeavour Philothea, to be wholly resigned to Gods Will concerning us, and willingly to be deprived of all savour & [Page 162]sweetnes of his Love towards us, so long as He pleaseth, as if he had abandoned us, leaving us to combat alone, with an army of desolatiōs & sorrowes.
To this end we must study, to Love God simply & purely, in & for himselfe, without any mixture of selfe love therin; Having a perfect Indifferency to all his counsels & decrees touching us; that, whither he leads us up Mount Thabor, to contemplate the glorious Transfiguration of JESUS CHRIST; or to Mount Calvarie, there to behold the Ignominy of his Passion, we may have a preparation of heart to either, & may confidently say, My heart is prepared O God, my heart is prepared, to run the way of thy Commandements.
Thou must also Philothea, have a readinesse, to be deprived of the sensible delights of Gods gracious presence in Thee, & a willingnesse to be excluded thence, till the soul quitting this Mortality arrives happily to the Haven of everlasting blisse. O happy indifferency! wherein the solitary soul, for the pure Love of her heavenly Espous, can [Page 163]be contented to want those amorous & delightfull embracements, where with he uses to entertain his best servants.
And since thou art thus resign'd to be deprived of these savoury feelings of Gods Love to Thee, thou must be further willing, to suffer all calamities with thy crucifyed Saviour. But alas! Philothea, this is a heavy tryall; nor may all the torments imaginable, of the body, be compared to this desolatiō of the spirit. Desire not therefor to experience it, but endeavour to bid even this tribulation welcome, when ever it pleases God, that it befalls Thee. And even at that time, be thou as ready to perform all good actions, to suffer all contradictions, & to stick close to thy accustomed Duties, during that aridity of thy spirit, with as great courage & alacrity, as if thy soul did then swim with excesse of spirituall comforts. This is an Eminent degree of Perfection, & a mark of inhabiting Grace in Thee, although perhaps thou feelest not then the sensible sweetnesse thereof. Nor shouldst thou at all complain of Gods hardnesse to [Page 164]Thee in that thy desolate state, but rather with affectionate sighs shouldst bewayl the absence of thy Beloved; yet caring not to be compassionated or comforted therein, but rather desiring so to cōtinue till thy dying day, without the least sense of love of thy heavenly Espous in Thee, if it so please him.
COLLOQUIE.
O happy Indifferency of heart to all earthly & heavenly consolations! thou alone canst free me from all anxious hopes & feares of this Miserable Life, & leave me wholly fixed in the will of God, to be ordred according to his holy pleasure. Oh that I could love the, My glorious Lord, purely for thy own sake; not seeking any comfort thence; but rather contenting my selfe, to be for ever banisht from the feeling of all spirituall sweetnesse, & exposed to any desolation; even then readily complying with the duties, belonging to my present calling, without bewayling my selfe, either for Gods severity towards me, or for my own misfortune. Then should I voluntarily Sacrifize to Thee, & confesse to thy Name O God, because it is good; for thereby I shall be delivered from all tribulation, & my Eie shall look down upon my Enemies. Amen.
SEVENTH DAYES VOYAGE. Tranquillity of Spirit.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Life of the Spirit.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That having taken A Flight from all things of this world, & raised our hearts above the spheare of all earthly Creatures & present comforts, through a desire to rest in God, as the only Center & scope of all our hopes; We must carefully study, to establish in our selves a perfect Tranquillity of our Spirit, that whatever befall us, or whatsoever our obligations be, according to our present calling, nothing may be able to disturbe its inward peace, or shake our divine Resolutions.
Endeavour therefor Philothea, that [Page 166]thy spirit live her own life, & not according to the flesh, wherein she abides, or the world that encompasses both; but wholly spiritually, as the blessed spirits of God now live in Heaven, by contemplating, loveing & delighting in God, & what appertains to his & their own blessed Life.
Although our soul, confined now to this corruptible body depends theron for action & motion, in this our sinfull state; & has ever a naturall inclination to abide with it, & therefor with pain departs from it; yet being she receives not her own life from the body, but is Life its selfe, & gives life, & action to the body, she may live within her selfe, having no regard to the inclinations & motions of the body. This she may soon perceive in her selfe, if she treads not the paths of sensuality, which lead to earthly contents; but those of the spirit, which tend to holy & divine actions, in Imitation of the Angelicall spirits, whose workings are, to be ever fix't in the Contemplation of God, & the execution of his commands.
Imagin therefor, That thou kneelest upon some high Mountain, before thy Crucifix, & thence dost behold all earthly Creatures, in their severall degrees & employments, each one busied in the search of happinesse, in that they love most; & that all these thinges suddenly fade away, & thy selfe fallest also into a trance & dyest, & so dost abide till JESUS descending from his Crosse, enters into thee, & now againe thou livest, & yet not thou, but JESUS CHRIST in Thee. Being thus dead to the World, & only living by the spirit of JESUS, how spirituall & divine should thy life & actions bee?
AFFECTION.
How happy, woulds't thou be, My soul, if wholly dead to flesh & bloud, & independent on all earthly creatures, thou couldst live the life of an Angell, wholly drowned in God, & relying upon the lights, Graces & comforts, which proceed from him! Oh, what ioy, what happinesse, to be dead to this World, & all the Vanities thereof; & to live & worke only by the enlivening Spirit of JESUS! How holy would thy thoughts, how heavenly thy [Page 168]desires, how enflamed would thy affections then be, towards spirituall & divine things?
RESOLUTION.
I will hence forth lead a spirituall life, having my mind still bent upon God, & his holy Will, even in all my ordinary duties; endeavouring to lead an Angellical life as if already seperated from this heavy burthen of Mortality, & without need of earthly supportations. And I will be so watchfull over my actions, as if I only lived by the Spirit of JESUS, & had no life or motion but what proceeded from him; Then, freed from the law of death which abounded in Me, through my sinfull passions, I shall serve God in the newnesse of my spirit, & heare what Gods Spirit speaketh to the Church.
SECOND POINT. Mentall Recollection.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That to improve the soul, in her inward Tranquillity, she [Page 169]must endeavour to be Recollected within her selfe, in all places, at all times, with all persons, & amidst whatsoever employments, we are by our present state of Life obleiged unto.
This inward Recollection of the Spirit, is easie & very delightfull; for although the soul be now lodged in the body as her prison, & the varieties of occasions which run through the cours of this mortall life, much solicite her abroad, to seek means how to make her prison more tolerable; & thereby hinders her in the free use of her spirituall faculties, & distract her thoughts from God & heavenly things; yet is she not a slave to any passion of the body, especially being now healed & repaired by JESUS CHRIST; & therefore she may, by means of a mentall retreat into her selfe, purchase a continuall Recollection, amidst the greatest tumults & distractions which may befall her.
Build up therefor Philothea, an Hermitage within thy heart, erect an Altar, & place thereon JESUS CHRIST, in the most amiable posture Imaginable; [Page 170]& whatsoever employment, distraction or spirituall distresse presses it selfe upon Thee, depart not thence, but there lay open thy wants & weaknesse, confer with him of thy progresse & impediments to Perfection, harkening carefully what he sayes to Thee; & if some violent disquiet compells thy thoughts abroad, endeavour to re-enter speedily into this thy Hermitage, bewaile thy inconstancy, & renew thy purposes of Mentall Recollection-
AFFECTION.
Ah my soul, upon how slight occasions has thy thoughts been distracted, & thy mind lost its frequently resolved Tranquillity, in the performance of thy usuall duties! How O my God, am I so suddenly carryed away with these outward objects & employments? Surely were I truly Spirituall, I should without pain or distraction, even in the midst of the Varieties of this life, convers with God. Oh that thou wouldest build up the ruins of Israël, & sanctify my heart a tabernacle to thy name! then may I seek my beloved within Me, & receive from him A Kisse of peace.
RESOLUTION.
I will not only love the solitude of the body, but of the Mind also; & will build up in my heart a holy Hermitage, befitting the presence of my JESUS, & thither will I stil retyre my selfe, ever conferring with him, of his loves to me, & my slownesse of returning love to him; discovering all my wants, & his helps to become perfect in a spirituall Way; that I may thereby enjoy the tranquillity of my spirit, what ever occasions of Obedience, Charity or complyance with my own necessities, call me forth this corporall Retirement; O Who will give me, that I may ever sett by this fountain of living waters in the solitude of my own heart! there will I sigh & mourn, while I think of the heavenly Sion.
THIRD POINT. Union of the Spirit with God.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That as God only, is the supream Good & happinesse of the Immortall soul, so cannot she experience any true & compleat Tranquillity within herselfe, unlesse being inwardly united to him, she becomes One spirit with him, & be as it were transformed into a supernaturall & Divine BEEING, by a reciprocation of Love, conformity of Will, & communication in all those guifts, graces & spirituall blessings, whereby in this her Pilgrimage, she may be cloathed with a likenesse to God; & enjoy that cleerenesse of Understanding, alacrity of Will, calmnesse of passions & universall purity, sweetnesse & ioy, in the whole spirit, which God usually imparts, only to his most speciall favorites.
This Deifying Union Philothea, of the soul with God, will wonderfully work in Thee, a cleer knowledge of the emptinesse, vanity & nakednesse of all Creatures, breed in Thee a Loathing towards the best of them, & cause in thy heart a restlesse Desire to see, possesse & embrace God, in the simplicity & purity of his own Essence, without mixture of any thing beneath himselfe; & for his sake, thou wilt Stripp thy selfe willingly of all Creatures, & in ward inclinations of Will & Passions; & welcome whatever calamities & miseries may befall Thee. For what is there in the whole World, which that soul will not readily want, doe, or suffer, to whom God is All-inall? surely in this delicious Union, Espousall & Transformation by Love, the soul must needs experience God, a rich, bountifull & most comfortable Giver!
If therefor, either the delighfull or profitable things of this life, has yet any power over thy affections; or the tribulations thereof doe still presse down thy [Page 174]spirit, to any greife or disquiet; Thou art not as yet strongly united to God, enamour'd on his ravishing Beauty, or arrived to the delicious harbour of spirituall peace & Tranquillity.
Wherefor, Thou maist imagin thy self, to be a Reed floating to & fro in the Sea of the Divinity, now tossed above, now under water; hither and thither, as thou art driven by the force of those Divine Waves; so that, in what ever condition thou art, & whatsoever happens to Thee, thou maist attribute all to Gods Spirit moving upon these divine Waters, in & by which, thou now livest & movest; Thus no comforts will puff up, or humiliation beat down thy spirit, but thou wilt ever have a generous courage & pleasant evennesse of thy whole selfe, amidst all the chances of this thy mortall state, how ever violent they be.
AFFECTION.
Ah my soul, why hast thou not hitherto aspired after this Divine BEEING, to live, & love, & move to God only, in the fullnesse of his own Essence! O Abysse of all comfont [Page 175]swallow up my heart in thy delicious depths, let me perish to all things but Thee, & never repine at any thing, being so nigh to Thee. O my JESU! O fathomlesse fountain of Love! Oh, who will give Thee unto me, My Brother, sucking the breasts of my Mother, that I may find Thee, & embrace Thee, & then none shall despise me.
RESOLUTION.
I will for ever fix my heart & earnest desires, only on my God, thirsting to be united wholly to him; & for his sake I will abandon, whatsoever is not consistent with him, or may separate my heart from him; & therefor, My whole study henceforth shall be, to discover the poverty of Creatures, to loath all earthly comforts, to empty my heart of all affections to them, & amidst all accidents of this life, to carry an even & calme heart; Then shall I tast & see, how sweet God is, to those who love the Peace of his holy Citty.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Loves Tryall.
GOds Spirit settles not, but upon an humble & meek heart, which having had a relish how sweet God is, earnestly sues to be admitted into the ioyes of her heavenly Lord, & enjoy a perfect Tranquillity & peace in her whole selfe; & yet willingly resignes her selfe to his Will, for the manner thereof, contentedly expecting the happy time of his delicious Visitation, and the fruits theirof.
To this Visitation she must prepare her selfe, by an Inward Retirement of her selfe within her selfe, whereby weaned wholly from all love towards creatures, she feels such a passionate & languishing desire to be One with God, that she has an extream pain & irksomnesse, when forced to use outward helps of meat, sleep, divertisements, & [Page 177]such like necessary supports of decaying nature; desirous rather (if so it may please God) to be ever employed in mentall Elevations, & to entertain her selfe in contemplating, conferring & caressing her beloved Espous, then to enjoy any earthly satisfaction, however necessary to her.
Neither may this heaven-thirsting foul, only content her selfe with this inward Retreat of the spirit into its selfe, by loathing all Creatures abroad; but she must also aspire to a Nakednesse of her selfe in her selfe; whereby raised, even to the highest degree of Contemplation, Love & Union with God, she is willing to be deprived of all sweetnesse which usually flowes thence.
And although, in this state, she looks on God as her only treasure, haveing right to Him, grounded on his own promises, To spouse himselfe to her, in Justice, kindnesse & mercies for ever, yet is she contented still to lay at the Gate of happinesse, there patiently & humbly begging some few crumms from Gods heavenly table, & to be admitted to tast [Page 178]of his delicious Wines; neverthelesse resigning her selfe, to be denyed that favour, as long as it so pleases him, ever esteeming, either her selfe unworthy thereof, or Gods time not to be as yet come.
COLLOQUIE.
How happy wert thou, My soul, hadst thou no other employment on Earth then to contemplate the beauty of God, love him, & glorify his Name? O my God that I were wholly exempt from the use of perishing Creatures, needing no other food then Thee, the only true Life of my Spirit! but yet far happier should I be, if loathing all Creatures, & drown'd in the Sea of the Divinity, I could be resigned to the losse of all sweetnesse which may arise from the greatest Illuminations & Extasies of Love in Thee, patiently expecting my gracious admittance unto thy comfortable presence; Then shall I be my Beloveds, & he will turne his face towards Me.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Loves Entertainments.
THe soul being thus resigned to the want of all Eartly comforts, sweetnesse of divine Love, & Gods delicious presence with her, may humby soare up to heaven, & endeavour an Union with God, & a fruition of him in Himselfe, by such helps, as he shall graciously inspire; which we must readily entertain, & carefully comply with, for our spirituall advance towards Perfection.
Wherefor Philothea, thou must accustome thy selfe to spirituall Introversions of the Mind into its selfe, therin quietly contemplating God in thy own Beeing, & often sallying forth by Jaculatory Aspirations & amorous sighs towards heavenly things; as, What art thou, O my God, & what am I? My God, my All! Oh that I could love Thee, as I ought! which must be leisurely made, & attentively consider'd, that they may work a feeling love in thy heart, whereby it [Page 180]may by degrees be enflamed, & melt into affections of hope, desire, joy, or such like, whence thou wilt find an admirable sweetnesse & calme to arise in thy spirit.
Thou must also endeavour to have a strong apprehension of Gods presence with Thee; which may be had, either by an efficacious beleife, that God is substatially present in all places of the World, as our soul is in all parts of the body, without any separation from its selfe; or by Imagining him to be especially in the Center of thy heart, as the soul, heart & life thereof, animating, & quickning it, by his presence. Whence we shall find our spirits stird up, to a cordiall reverence towards the Majesty of God, so nigh unto us; & a readinesse to referr all our thoughts, words & actions, to God seated in the Center of the heart, as the Judge of their Worth, & last happy End of all its Motions. And by this means without recourse to Creatures, only by a simple apprehension of Gods presence in Thee, & a reference of thy whole life to Him, as thy Mysticall [Page 181]life, thou wilt have an easinesse in abandoning creatures, & a great quietnesse in thy whole soul.
Having gained these Lights wherby to discern Gods greatnesse in himselfe, & presence to thee; Cast thy selfe into the immense Sea of his Essence, admitting no other motion in Thee, but of Admiration, Adoration, Thanksgiving to God, & Annihilation of thy selfe, now so wholly swallowed up in God, & become one spirit with him; whereby thou maist say, Possesse Me O Lord, for I am thine; and hence forth Nothing shall seperate me from the Charity of JESUS CHRIST. And frō hence will flow such an aboundant sweetnesse of peace & tranquillity into all the powers of the soul, that she will feele her selfe to be in a manner transformed into a Divine Being.
For having a lively Apprehension, Philothea that God is in Thee as the Life of thy heart, & has so united thy heart to himselfe, that thou livest, breathest & movest only by influences received from him; Thou wilt soon Imagine, that He is as much in Thee, & [Page 182]as carefull of thy Beeing & actions, as if He where no where but in Thee, nor cared for any creature besides Thee; Whence will arise so delightfull a serenity in thy Conscience, so admirable a Tranquillity in thy whole spirit, that Thou wilt think thy selfe beginning, actually to Possesse God gloriously: And wilt therefor fly from all creatures least they disturb thy conferences with thy heavenly Espous, & the chast Embracements he then gives Thee; Abandoning thy selfe wholly to his Providence, as if Nothing were in the world, but only God & Thy selfe.
COLLOQUIE.
Alas My God! how far am I from feeling these delicious Motions of thy all-comforting Spirit within Me? Thou fillest all Creatures, giving life & motion to all, & dost wonderfully lead them all to their proper Ends; & yet have I not yeilded my selfe up to Thee, to be guided by Thee the fountain of all Goodnesse, unto thy selfe My only Happinesse. O that thou woulds't powre into my heart a torrēt of Love, wherby I may be violently carried towards Thee, & drowned in Thee, O Infinite Sea, ever [Page 183]overflowing with sweetnesse & Mercy; Then shall I abandon all thinges for Thee, then nothing shall relish to me but Thee, nor will I then care how thou disposest of me. Draw Me, O Lord, & I will run after Thee in the odour of thy oyntments, & I will rejoyce, & be glad in Thee, mindfull of thy breasts above Wine; & the righteous shall then Love Thee. Amen.
EIGTH DAYES VOYAGE: God Speaking to the Soul.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Hearken to God.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That although, by our Flight from Creatures, & the frequent Sallies our heart makes towards God, we may arrive to some degree of spirituall Tranquillity: yet this will not be compleat or permanent, unlesse we grow dumb to all Creatures, oft enter into conference with God, & have our Eares open only to harken what the Holy Ghost speaks in us, whereby to confirme our hearts in the search of rest & joy in Him, as our substantiall happinesse.
We must therefor Philothea, observe a strict Silence as a most necessary preparation [Page 185]of our hearts to appeare in Gods presence, & conferr with him; for he reveales not himselfe to a soul, busied in harkning to, & conferring with Creatures; Nor can we profitably apply our minds to the practice of a recollected & spirituall Life, if our Eares be open to wordly tumults, or tongues loosened to discourse on the varieties thereof. No noyse was heard, in the building of Salomons Temple, nor may any disturbance be found in Us, while Gods Holy Spirit builds up our Heart into a Temple of grace & Holynesse. If thy heart be not warmed, & burn within thee, with the vehemency of divine Love, while JESUS confers with thee in thy way to perfection, 'tis because thou hast not been attentive to his Inspirations.
Be thou silent therefor Philothea at all times, but particularly when & wher it is required by the constitutions of that state thou hast chosen; least thy heart being opened, the balsom of Gods Grace evaporate & loose its Vertue, or be poysoned with the stenches which may [Page 186]proceed from sinfull conversation. Be silent too, when injur'd or reprehended, in conformity to JESUS CHRIST, when arraigned for his life; a sharp word provokes wrath, & excuses deprive patience of its due merit. But especially thou must be silent, during this thy spirituall Retirement; for the Holy Ghost will not make thy heart its Sanctuary, or deliver his Oracles therin, unlesse thou banish thence all danger of casting forth baits of sin to others by thy tongue, or sucking in the Venom of evill thoughts into thy own heart by thy Eares; & unles thou dost seriously apply thy selfe to harken unto what he reveales of himselfe to Thee, for thy encouragement to persever in thy blessed choyce, & the encrease of spitual comfort in thee.
AFFECTION.
Ah my soul, wilt thou abandon thy Creator, for Creatures? or deprive thy selfe of the delicious conferences & embracements of thy Heavenly Espous, for the vain & sinfull conversation of Worldlings? O my God, I perceive I am yet far off from the perfection of [Page 187]holy solitude, having hitherto lavisht away so much precious time in unprofitable & sinfull discourses! O that I could recall those many houres, dayes, yeeres of my life, now past & gone, whereof I must one day render a severe account! Alas my God, did st observe all moments of Time, allowed us to serve Thee, to sue for pardon of sins, encrease of Vertue, & freedom in holy conferences with Thee, who could sustain the bittern [...]sse of thy iust wrath! Speak now O Lord, & thy servant will give eare unto thee.
RESOLUTION.
I will hence forth place a strict guard upon my lips & eares, observing a religious silence, at all times & places conformably to my calling, & the example of my Saviour JESUS amidst his false accusers; but particularly during my Retirement; to the end I may heare the Voice of my Beloved speaking the language of peace & comfort within me; that I may improve my spirit by his heavenly Colloquies, & encrease my Love & duty to him; And therefor I will make a daily Examin of my selfe, how I spend my time, that no moment [Page 188]of my life may passe without some advance in piety, nor any of Gods Inspirations be uncomplyed with. Call therefor upon me now O Lord, & I will give eare unto Thee, & thou thalt blesse the works of my hands.
SECOND POINT. Gods Speaks by Visible Creatures.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That Our Glorious God created all the Visible Things in this Great World, not only to preserve us by their use in this mortall Life, but especially that in them he might shaddow out unto us his own Majesty, & the good things prepared for us in Heaven with Himselfe.
Their perfection, order & usefullnesse declare the greatnesse of his Glory, Wisdom & Bounty; they are stepps, whereby we may clime up to God, & in them discover, how admirable, how amiable, how adorable, he is in Himselfe; & they are so many Tongues, [Page 189]without cease speaking to us the Infinite Excellencies of their Creatour, & inviting us to admire, love & adore that Divine Essence, wherin all are contain'd, & from whence they all had, & still continue their Being.
Clime therefor up to this Great & glorious God, speaking to Thee by simple or unmixt bodyes, such as are the Elements & heavens; behold, how the Earth hangs ballanced in the midst of the World by its own weight, enriched within with mines of Gold, precious stones, & seeds of all sorts; without, garnished with flowers, fruits & many kinds of living creatures; how the Water cleaves sphearally to the Earth, & runs through & about it, in Seas, Rivers & Springs of different Vertues; How the Aire is perspicuous, dissolves into showres to moisten the Earth, & abounds with all sorts of birds, for our profit & pleasure; How Fire has its light, heat & flames; how Heaven is adorned with stars, moves without cease, & by its influences conserves things beneath in their Being & due [Page 190]temper. Then ascend to Mixt Bodyes voyd of life, & contemplate the Variety & Vertues of sulphurs, mettals, stones & gummes; consider then the perfection & multitude of Vegitable creatures, as seeds, plants, herbs, leaves, blossoms, flowers & fruits; Lastly take a View of Sensible Creatures voyd of Reason, such as be the severall sorts of Beasts of the Earth, fish in the sea, & fowles of the Aire.
God speaks to us Philothea, by all these Visible creatures; their Being, growth & properties declare his Power, whereby they are created; their Order, Varietie & number discovers his Wisdom; & their usefulnesse, both to preserve our bodyes, & raise up our souls, speaks his admirable Love & Bounty to us.
AFFECTION.
How full is the World of the Majesty & Glory of God! & how carelesse hast thou been my soul, in these Visible things to admire the Invisible Power, Wisdom & Bounty of the Maker, Governour & Lord of All? Thy own kingdom above, O God, where all obey thy [Page 191]Will, is surely very glorious, since Thou hast furnished this our earthly habitation, for sinners, & those who rebell agaynst thy holy Commandements, with such Excellent & admirable Creatures. Who would not in all these, love & adore the God of all! Let the Heavens speak forth thy Glory, & the firmament thy wonders, for thou art Great & Wonderfull, & thy Wisdom is without End.
RESOLUTION.
I will attentively read over the Book of Creatures, that I may therein learn, how full of Majesty, Wisdom & Goodnesse, God is, who has communicated such Perfection, Order & profitablenesse to Visible Creatures; & I will admire Him in All, using them as steps wherby to clime up to him; & therefor I will be carefull not to abuse them contrary to the End God has ordained, placing my felicity in his helps to it, least hereafter they become my chastisers, whē all Creatures shall fight Gods war agaynst Sinners. How wonderfull are thy works, O Lord? Thou hast created all things in Wisdom; Thou hast rejoyced me in them, & I will delight in the works of thy hands.
THIRD POINT. God speaks by Man.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That all Creatures beneath Man, are only the Footsteps of God, representing some one or other perfection of that infinite Abysse; but Man himselfe is the true Image & Likenesse of God. As a Little world he contayneth within himselfe the Excellencies dispersed through the Greater, & expresseth in some degree those in God, the Fountain & Authour of both; & therefor in the beginning of the Creatiō he is establish't Soveraign & Lord of all; the earth with its ornaments is his pavement, meadows and garden; Waters his baths & fishponds; Vallies his cellars & storehouses; Hills his Walls & pillars, Heaven the roofe that covers all, & the stars are the windowes wherby he has a glimpse of Gods glory, which shines upon him, enlightens the world, & discovers the beauty of this our earthly habitation.
Looke over the whole fabrik of Man; behold Philothea how the Immortall mind is linked to mortall flesh? In the body, what comelinesse of limmes, proportion of Members; variety, order & use of senses without, & Entrails within; what aptnesse of organs for life, action & motion; & what capacity of the spiritualizing Endowments, of Agility, Clarity, Impassibility, & Subtility; wherby it putts on the very likenesse of the glorifyed Angells? In the Soul, how Excellent the prerogatives of being an Immortall & Invisible spirit? The memory how vast, for objects, time & circumstances of both? the Understanding how active & boundlesse, reaching as high as God above, & diving into the Abysse of Nothing? The Will how free to good & evill? What variety of subordinate powers, passions & operations? What capacity of sciences, Arts, Vertues Morall & Divine, & also of the Sight & eternall Possession of God in himselfe? All which with a loud voice speak, how glorious God is in his own Being & happinesse, & how wonderfull [Page 194]his providence is in our creation & conduct to our supreme End; & should stirr us up to a serious attention, admiration & love of him; & strongly engage us to apply all these outward & inward Guifts, according to the intent of our Wise Creatour.
And although Mans disobedience to God wrought sin & darknesse in his soul, wherby she became unable to contemplate or move towards him; yet being repayred by the Mercies of JESUS CHRIST, the Light of our spirituall World, we are agayn establisht in a spirituall Life & capacity to supernaturall & gracious actions. By divine Faith we see & heare what God reveales of himselfe, & the way that leads towards him; by Hope we Savour the sweetnesse of Heaven & Vertue; by Charity we have a foretast of the ioyes of the Saints, & already touch & embrace God with the armes of an Extaticall love; & begin to sing Salomons Song of Songs, which by the sensible pleasantnesse of creatures abroad, leads the now Purged, Illuminated & Perfect soul, [Page 195]to an intellectuall Light, Harmony, Odour, Savour & Embracement of her heavenly Espous, Who seated in the midst of the heart, as on an Imperiall Throne (environed with a Mysticall Quire of Angelicall Spirits, Seraphins by Love, Cherubins by knowledge, Throns by Justice & Mercy, Dominations by Majesty, Principalities by Government, Powers by Salvatiō, Vertues by helping Graces, Archangels by speciall revelations, & Angels by continuall presence to us) by himselfe inspires a divine life, directs the powers & passions of the soul, & inclines to heavenly thoughts & actions; & by his Holy Spirit, sent into all parts of this our lesser World, produces those wonderfull workings of Love, feelings of Gods Intimacy to us, & tranquillity of the whole Man, We experience in our Pilgrimage to perfection, & performance of the duties thereof; & wherby we become Images of the heavenly Hierusalem, where God lives eternally in his glorious Saints.
AFFECTION.
Thou wert within Mee O most amiable God, & I have sought Thee abroad; & defiled my heart by Cleaving to these outward Beauties, whilst Thou O Soveraign Beauty of all Creatures, abidest in the sanctifyed soul, as in thy proper kingdom! What hopes may I have to contemplate thy glorious face, who livest in an unaccessible light; or to approach unto thy presence, who art an ever flaming fire; since I am ignorant of thy wonders wrought in my own Spirit, so nigh & intimate to Me? I have too late considered thee, O Ancient beauty shining in all creatures; I have too slowly given Eare to Thee, who speakest to me by all creatures; & by thy Guifts dost incessantly call upon Me, to admire & love Thee, the Giver of all! Thou hast engraven the light of thy face upon Me O Lord, & thereby given gladnesse in my heart,
RESOLUTION.
I will hence forth preserve Gods sacred Image, by him self Imprinted in my soul, frō being soyled or blasted by sinfull affections; that therin as in a cleer Myrrour, I may contemplate his [Page 197]Majesty, beauty & amiablenesse; admire him in all the perfections of my body & mind, order all the powers & endowments of both to the execution of his Will, & aspire to an endlesse conjunction with that divine Exemplar, wherby so many rich & beautifull Coppies have been drawn; Therefor all thy Works in me shall confesse unto thee, they shall tell the glory of thy kingdom, & shall speak the greatnesse of thy power.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. God speaks by his Son Incarnate.
GOd formerly spoke to Man by his Prophets, in figures & riddles; now in his own Son, by whom, as God, he in the beginning made all things; & now, as Visible in our Mortall flesh, discovers the breadth & length, height & depth of all divine Mysteries of grace & glory, that we may comprehend with all the Saints, his exceeding great Love towards us, & may be replenished with the fulnesse thereof.
If God descends to us, taking our Nature, we should by contemplation of the Incarnate Word ascend to God, & drown our selves in the Sea of his Essence; therefor JESUS CHRIST by his gracious Doctrine, and efficacious examples, is the Way we must walke in our Pilgrimage to heavenly Perfection; his sacred life & Crosse was the book of all the Saints, & unlesse we bath our hearts in the bleeding wounds of this Lamb, slayn for our sins, we may have no part in the Tree of Life, planted in the paradice of God.
This Union of God & Man in One Person, shows gods Infinite Power; Mans Redemption through CHRISTS sorrows & suffrings, speak him an Abysse of Wisedom; & the Guift of his only Son in our Weak nature, to dignify, save & sanctify it, declares his Wonderfull Bounty; Thus Philothea we have accesse to the Divinity of God by the Humanity of JESUS CHRIST, in whom he has reveal'd the treasures of all divine knowledg & Love.
Now therefor clime up Mount Calvary, [Page 199]& there contemplate this Man of sorrows fastned to the Tree of shame; See, who 'tis that suffers? The Creator of all things, the Saviour of Men & Angels, & the Rewarder of all good & evill deeds. What his condition? Gods only Son, an Innocent Man, one that loves us dearly. To what end? to free us from the tyranny of satan, to sanctify our sinfull hearts, & to restore us to our lost seats in Gods glorious kingdō. What were his torments? Much sorrow in the Garden, many stripes in Hierusalem, & a shamefull death upon the Crosse. And what profit thence? Therby is declared, the detestablenesse of sin, expiated by this bloudy sacrifice; the dreadfulnesse of hell fire, extinguisht by that precious bloud; the obstinacy of sinners, still crucifying in them selves the son of God by their ungratitude; the Amiablenesse of Vertue, recommended to us with so many sighs, teares & drops of bloud; the Ioyes of Heaven, recover'd at so deer a rate; & our Duty to God, through Mercy giving his only Son to us, through Justice sacrifyzing that Son [Page 200]for us, & through Wisdom exalting him from the Crosse to an equallity of glory att his Right hand, where we shall hereafter find him if we now follow him.
COLLOQUIE.
Thy words are living & full of force O Lord, & more peircing then a two edged sword; Oh that thou wouldst awake my slumbring soul, & deep wound my spirit with admiration of thy boundlesse Love in the humble Incarnation, gracious Doctrine, moving Examples, & bitter passion of thy beloved Son! My habitation & rest shall henceforth be in thy sacred Wounds, O Saviour of the World; by them I will find entrance to thy bowells of Mercy, & there discover the overflowings of thy Love-swelling heart towards sinners, & thy hidden Divinity; for by these we have plentifull redemption, strong helpes, & fulnesse of hopes. Oh stretch forth thy arms, once streached on the Crosse for me, & embrace my soul, languishing to be with Thee, Then will I live & dy in thy wounded heart, & by that Gate enter into the citty of my God, & find whom my soul loveth.
SECOND DISCOURSE. God reveales himselfe.
HAving now passed by all Creatures, who are the Guards of our Earthly Citty, in the search of thy Beloved, clime up Philothea the mountain of Visions, approach Gods Flaming Bush of reuealed Mysteries, & harken what he there speakes to Thee, of the Majesty of his own Essence, the Beauty of his heavenly Kingdom, & the Glory of his blessed Attendants, wherby to enflame thy amorous heart with new desires of Communion in happinesse, with the already glorifyed Saints & Angels.
Divine Scripture as Gods book, discovers those Excellencies of God, which reason reaches not; he only inspires, who invites the humble to ascend higher. Hence as from the fountain of Paradice, stream forth four sacred & delicious Rivers, not to be waded through without Divine Helps. History describes Gods Wonders to his chosē people, wherby to draw their hearts sweetly from things of this world; Allegories [Page 202]teach what we must beleive of God; Tropes inform us of what must be done or omitted, in order to the joyes of Heaven; but the pleasant streames of Anagogies, which are greatest & deepest, doe wonderfull enlighten, heat & raise our spirits up towards God, & there fix our thoughts & loves, where our hopes are already placed.
This Mysticall river empties it selfe in the vast Sea of the Divinity, where God One in Essence & Three in Persons, within himselfe Infinite in Being, Happinesse & all perfections, receives no addition of Good from our best Endeavours, nor any detriment by overflowing to us, & communicating his greatest Guifts amongst us. He without change or labour knows, produces & governs all things, in all times & places, leading each by their speciall wayes, to their last Ends. In his glorious Kingdom he is environed with many millions of immortall & blessed Spirits, who divided into nine Quires, make up the Heavenly Hierarchy of Saints & Angels, happy in the Vision & possessiō of God, [Page 203]& are distinguished by their proper Excellencies of nature, grace & glory; wherin there is no temptation, sin or misery feared; nor fulnesse of happinesse, joy or peace wanting to them; all enjoying God, & in him possessing, what soever may compleat the delightfulnesse of that glorious & blessed state, which Neither Eie has seen, nor tongue can rehearse, nor can the heart of Man conceive.
COLLOQUIE.
Oh how glorious, how pleasant, how delightfull is the Kingdom of the Saints! where Thou O God, happy in thy selfe, art the happinesse of thy glorifyed servants? No greife, all content is there where thou dost abide, through a fulnes of their Love, ever flowing towards thee. Oh that thou would'st transport me forth of this kingdō of darknesse & misery, that I may with a fixed Eie ever behold Thee, the Light which no darknesse comprehends; & possesse Thee, the Peace that surpasses all Imagination! then will the rowlings & longings of my faynting heart have an End, & it will appear in me, that I have been in a Region of Light & Peace, & am full of both; & I, in Iustice shall appear in thy sight, & shall be satiated, when thy Glory appears. Amen.
NINTH DAYES VOYAGE, Repose of the soul in God.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. The soul hidden in God.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That Beginners in the Contemplative life goe frō Creatures to God, admiring & loving Him, by the beauty & lovelynesse discoverd in them; Proficients look on God, as he is revealed by divine faith, & by that dimme light make pleasant sallies towards him, by acts of admiration & love, & restlesse desires to live & move in, by & to God; But they who are now happily arrived to the state of Perfection (which thou aymest at Philothea in this thy solitary Pilgrimage) doe contemplate Gods Majesty, Beauty & Glory, as if cleerly revealed [Page 205]& seen in Himselfe, by an Illapse of God into the sanctifyed soul, & of the soul into God; in whom she hides herselfe, reposeth without disturbance, & enjoyes a fulnesse of content without wandring abroad.
Thus S. Paul, even in this life, could say, that his life was hidden with CHRIST in God, & that his conversation was even then in heaven; having placed his happinesse in spirituall & divine actions, wherby his soul ever moved towards God & emptyed its selfe into him; & concealing himselfe from the World, by bearing with ioy the Miseries & mortifications therof, contrary to the custome of those who living in the World, live wordly; And thus the lives of the Saints have been ever accounted folly, & their deaths dishonourable, whereas they live with, & in God, a divine life, contented to know, love & move in him, according to the lights & helps received from him.
It is in our power Philothea, through divine helps, to lead this hidden life in [Page 206]God, & have our conversation in heavē, even abiding or Earth in our mortall flesh; but thou must then be very pure & holy, having thy Soul cleansed from all sin, & sinfull inclinations pressing towards earthly satisfactions; for no spot or stain enters that beautifull & cleer region of the Saints; Thou must also be cloathed with the garment of Charity towards all, & cōply with divine Inspirations, putting on JESUS Christ, by imitatiō of his mortifications, & prōptnesse in obeying his counsells. Thus abiding in the world, thou wilt not be of the World, or be known by it; having not its livery on, nor performing its actions; But God will acknowledge thee to be his, in whom thou now livest, & hast a Divine Being in Him, & therefor maist say, I live now, not in my selfe, but in God, my life, my sweet repose, & my finall happinesse.
AFFECTION.
O admirable sweetnesse of this Divine Being, of the Soul hidden from the World in God! even in this life thou maist ascend thither, my Soul, quitting earthly conversation & comforts, [Page 207]passing the Starrs, transported above the Quires of glorious Angels, & drowning thy selfe in the Abysse of Gods infinite Essence. O who will give me the wings of a Dove, & I will fly & repose in God? My heart hath desired his face, my Soul covets his presence: O beautifull Face! O delicious presence! O rich aboad! in God, & in the fulness of the Saints; only the clean of heart may abide there.
RESOLUTION.
I will hide my selfe from the world, casting off its livery, which are worldly & vain actions; & abandoning all earthly conversation, which may soyle my heart. And I will henceforth live in God, by contēplating his Glory, performing heavenly actions, & ordring my whole life according to his holy Will; not regarding what passeth here on earth, as if not att all belonging to Me, or the life of One hidden & living in God. Oh that my Soul were swallowed up in that Divine Sea! God in Me, I in God; & besides, Nothing! As I began from Thee, so will I end in Thee, O End without End!
SECOND POINT. Search of God in God.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider; That being now entred into God, & there, as Moses on Gods Holy Mountain, hidden in a Divine Mist, we must search into him, & endeavour to discover plainly what he is, & how amiable is his hidden beauty, we so thirst to behold & enjoy.
This must be performed by an act of pure Contemplation, without depending on created Images, or discourse of reason; but as if the Eie of the Soul were dazled, with the beams of Gods Divine & unaccessible Light, diffused through that Mist, She must simply consider God to be so full of Majesty, so Good, so Glorious, that he can never be seen, loved or admired, as he is, or we ought; so that, what ever we conceive of him, is far beneath the Excellencies of his Being; what ever we admire in him, he is incomparably more admirable; how [Page 209]ever we love him, he is infinitely more amiable, lovely & desirable; although each one should love him, as much as all the Saints & Angels together can for a whole Eternity love him.
Wherefor the amorous soul will be ever busied in searching into God, & discovering his hidden perfections, in that divine Mist, being unable to discern cleerly, even what she there already sees & therefor cryes out to God, Shew me thy face. And although she therein feeles a most excessive sweetnesse & ioy, yet she is ignorant, both what it is, & whence it comes; & therfor acknowledges him to be infinitely more excellent & delightfull, then she is able to expresse or imagine; as it hapned to S. Paul, in his divine rapture.
If thou wert extrem hungry Philothea, & didst stand betwixt two tables,, loathing the meat of the one, & not permitted to tast of the other, what conflicts would'st thou then feele? Thus it will be, if the soul be hidden in this divine Mist; for being wearied with the search of her beloved in created [Page 210]Likenesse, & not permitted to contemplate the naked Essence of God in its selfe cleerly, though present with her; she still inquires after him, loaths the obscurity wherein she is through her own weaknesse, thirsts to be filled with a cleer Vision & full Fruition of God in himselfe, oft looks forth to make a better discovery of him, entertains all his inspirations as so many Whisperings of her Espous, sighs amorously for his delaying the comfortable Revelation of himselfe to her, & as one drunk with love, sends messages to him, by all she meets, that She lanquishes with Love.
AFFECTION.
Oh! how happy are they O Lord who eate & drink at thy divine table, where they see Thee cleerly, love Thee ardently, praise Thee incessantly & possesse Thee with a fulnesse of ioy & Exultation, whilst I here perish with hunger & thirst in this sacred Mist of thy Divine Essence, & am not permitted to behold the cleere Light of thy glorious face? My soul O God thirsteth to behold Thee as thou art, & enjoy Thee fully, & yet thou hidest thy selfe from Me. Reveale thy face to Me, O my most [Page 211]amiable God, for my soul hath languished after my Beloved; Oh when shall I come & appeare in the presence of my God?
RESOLUTION.
I will night & day mourne for the absence of my Beloved, oft send missivs of Love & holy desires unto him, earnestly requesting Him to shew his face to Me; & therefor I will ever study to render my soul amiable to Him, that Nothing may be found in me displeasing to him, or which may make him hide his face from Me; & I will seek out all means whereby I may allure him to exhibite his gracious & glorious presence to Me in his own pure Essence, & therby alleviate the painfulnesse of this my earthly pilgrimage; for Thou O Lord hast promised, If we aske we shall receive, if we seek we shall find, & if we knock it shall be opened unto us, & our Ioy shall be full & none shall take it from us.
THIRD POINT. The souls repose in God.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That the sweet Repose of the soul in God, is attained sometimes by the naturall Industry of the Affective part thereof, aided by certain passing flashes of divine Lights & graces, whereby making Enquirie through Creatures, or contemplating God by what he has revealed of himselfe, she discovers him to be very Glorious & Amiable, & then by Anagogicall Motions, she sweetly powres herselfe into God by Acts of Admiration, Love, Adoration & Thanksgiving; & thus takes her Repose in him.
But this delicious Repose is more efficaciously & permanently obtain'd, by means of divine Irradiations, wherby our bountifull Espous compassionating the languors of the soul fainting in the search of him, dissipates the Mist wherin we hitherto sought Him, opens [Page 213]the treasures of his Majesty & shews his amiable face more plainly to her, infusing into her an attractive sweetnesse by his more cleer & gracious presence; whence still arise new Illustrations of the soul, & discoveries without end of Gods Intensive & extensive Perfections, & most delicious streamings of the heart towards her Beloved, by sublime acts of Love & Adoration; Whence proceed a hearty compunction for the sins committed by the World against so gracious & glorious a Father of pure Lights; restlesse strivings to be inseparably united with God, & transformed into him by likenesse in the powers & operations of the spirit, & at length has a most amorous slumber in God. For although the heart still watcheth in contemplation of the Beauty of her Beloved, yet she sweetly sleepes in his Embracements, wherby she is oft so abstracted from herselfe, & all feeling of sensible Creatures, that she seems wholly out of herselfe, through excesse of admiration & Love, causing an unexpressible [Page 214]sweetnesse, Tranquillity & Joy in all the Regions of the Soul.
This is a most sublime degree of Happynesse Philothea, nor may it be attained, but by a permanent Contemplation & most ardent Love of God in himselfe, & by extraordinary Illustrations & heats of divine Grace. Wherefor let it not suffice Thee, to have sued oft to be admitted unto a tast of these delicious Wines of thy Beloved, no Philothea Thou must be importune with God for it, closing up thy heart to all earthly cō forts imaginable, & powring it forth night & day by sighs & earnest Entreaties, ere God will come to Thee by an open discovery of his amiablenesse, make his aboad with Thee by stronger friendshipps, lead thee forth to the pleasant Orchards of his divine Love, & admitt thee to a sweet Repose in himself.
AFFECTION.
How happy wouldst thou be My soul, were there an universall silēce in al the Regions of the soul, no Clouds of distractions, a cleernesse & freedom in contemplating & embracing our Most Glorious God! O that this Orient Sun [Page 215]would arise in my heart, & dissipate the Mist wherein I now labour & sigh after my Beloved! then may I discover, how beautifull, how amiable, how desirable he is; Nor shall I then care for any earthly comforts, but shall ever rejoyce in the fulnesse of content & ioy of my heavenly Espous, & be filled with his sweetnesse: O Incomprehensible, O Ineffable Sweetnesse! above Honey & honey-comb, & the odour of sweetest spices.
RESOLUTION.
I will for ever abandon all desires of earthly consolations, only thirsting after comforts from God, the Fountain & Abysse of all sweetnesse. And therefor I wil ever keep my Mind fixt on God, earnestly craving to be admitted unto his amiable presence & delicious Embracements; opening my heart to entertain, & work with all his Irradiations of himselfe into Me, & Attraction of Me unto himselfe, to take my Repose in him. For Thy lipps O most Lovely above Men & Angels, are as a Honey combe distilling, honey & milk are under thy tongue, & the odour of thy garments as the odour of Frankincense.
THE EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Loves Ascents.
NO sooner is the Soul entred the Paradice of her God, & there admitted to the delicious Embracements of her heavenly Espous, but he opens the spring of his speciall graces, & powres into her heart, pure & plentifull streames of Divine Love, gentlely flowing in her with an excesse of sweetnesse & consolation. On the pleasant banks of this sacred River God plants two living Trees, one of Light to cleer the Understanding, the other of fire to enflame the Will; each bearing twelve most delicious Fruits, which are the Effects of the Unitive Life, of the soul transformed in to God by Love. Oh Philothea, how happy wilt thou be, maist be admitted to set by these Chrystall streams, repose under the shade of this Tree of Life, & tast its fruit!
First God Awakes the soul, fainting [Page 217]through long Enquirie & frequēt sighs after her Beloved, during her aboad & search of Him in the divine Mist; then he powres into her a most delicious Savour & feeling of his more immediate & cleer presence, which so seizeth on the heart, that it presently fills it with an Over-swelling Ioy, which makes the Eyes overflow with Teares of love, & the tongue by Spirituall Cantiques witnesse the inward Jubily of the spirit; Whence often proceeds a Spirituall inebriation, which renders the soul unable to discern where she is or what she doth, & sometimes causeth faintings & swoundings of the body; in which state the heart feeles a wonderfull Opening or dilatation, to welcome the caresses of her divine Espous, wherby she is Wounded deep with Love, & Languishes with new desires, of she knows not what it is, or how to expresse it, & thus she falls into a most heavenly Slumber, whereby freed from all noyse of Creatures, even in her Imaginative part, she enjoyes a perfect tranquillity of spirit & peace in her whole soul; Which is [Page 218]sometimes accompanied with Extasie, wherby the lower Regiō of the soul becomes Insēsible to what passes through the outward senses, being wholly absorpt by the intense workings of the superior portion thereof; which fixed on God through Vehemency of Admiration, love & sweetnesse, becomes Familiar with him, views all the treasures of his Glory, receives plenty of guifts & blessings, & converses with him face to face.
These are the delicious fruits Philothea, growing on the Tree of Life, which is planted by the River of Divine Grace, ever flowing in the Soul, which God admitts to his amiable presence & Embracements; That Soul needs no other Light to walk by, God himselfe being the Sun that gives light to her; nor any other fire to heat her, the Holy Ghost being diffused through all her powers, purging whatever is fraile & mortall, & transforming her into a supernaturall Being, wherby she is raised to the highest Happinesse Imaginable, & the Experience of whatever God has promised unto her.
COLLOQUIE.
O Divine Tree! how pleasant is it to repose under thy delicious shades, whence such fragrant smells, & sweet tranquillity are diffused through the amorous soul? O chrystall streames of overflowing Grace! how delightfull is it, to walk upon thy fruitfull banks, & in thee to contemplate the overflowings of Love in our breasts? O heavenly fruit! how sweet & confortable art thou, to the thirsty & languishing soul? since, what ever knowledg, love, ioy, tranquillity, pleasantnesse or Repose may be imagined, proceed thence. Oh! who will give Me, that I may for ever rest under the shade of this Living Tree! to walk upon those pleasant banks, to eate my fill of that heavenly fruit? Let the Spirit say, Come; & my soul shall melt within Me, because my Beloved bath spoken unto Mee.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Loves Descents.
GOds unsearcheable Counsells & Decrees are, that Perfection ever move on two poles, extremly opposite; [Page 220]which S. Paul calls Height & Depth; S. Francis, What is God, & What am I? Although God invites Us Philothea, to clime the Tree of Life, tast its fruits, & repose under the shadow thereof, in his Contemplation & Love; yet must we still descend into our selves, by Consideration of our present state, & the Obligations thereof, which must ever be complyed with.
Descend then Philothea, in regard of thy selfe; For the Exercise of Divine Contemplation raising us to an eminent knowledg, love & Union with God, unlesse we descend by humble acts, & seat our selves with holy Magdalene at the feet of our Beloved Espous, there may be danger of falling into presumption of our own perfection, & loosing his favour; trust then in the Mercies of God, yet feare his Justice & Power; & amidst the delights of thy Illuminations & spirituall Caresses, have ever a filiall Feare, & say, Not to Me, but to Thee O Lord, be all honour & glory. Then see, how oft thou hast had a complacence in thy sweet contemplations, & [Page 221]the amorous Embracements of thy Beloved? & assure thy selfe, if thou hast at any time faln into drynesse of spirit, that proceeded, from thy not humbling thy selfe, while exalted to those singular favours.
By these humble acts, thy inward Vertue will also become conspicuous in thy outward Conversation, to the Example & Edification of others; For our earthly conversation is sociable, & our actions are subject to many Censures; if then our outward lives expresse not that piety we harbour in our bosoms, we may be accounted singular, or guilty of hypocrisy; Wherefor let not any contemplation, or familiarity with God, withdraw thee from a friendly conversation with those thou livest, cause an affectation of thy own opinion & ways, or breed a harshnesse towards thy lesse (yet possibly more) perfect Neighbour; but towards all be humble, modest, cheerfull & courteous.
But especially the Contēplative Soul must oft apply her selfe to the exercises of the Active Life, therby to shun Idlenesse, [Page 222]the Nurse of all sin, & source of Temptations; For seing, tis hardly possible in this Life, to be permanent in our heavenly Contemplations, & affections towards God, we must accustome our selves to some bodily exercises; Especially if we have some singular Talent, wherby we may benefit others; At least, if Obedience requires that service from us; And the work be of that nature, that it rather adds, then diminishes of our Zeale to Perfection; But be thou ever carefull Philothea, that thou perform it with an upright Intention, promptly, in due time & place, fervently, cheerfully, & humbly; Thus thy labours, undertaken for God, will be gratefull to him, & cherish our Love towards heavenly things.
Thou must also descend in regard of thy Neighbour, whither Superior, Subject or Equall; for although nothing can be more pleasant to us, then sweetly to repose in the bosom of our heavenly Espous, & to dive into the Abysse of his Goodnesse, yet must we quitt all these overflowings of Love, when our [Page 223]Neighbour needs our help; so that, whither thou bewaylest thy sins Philothea, with Magdalene at the foot of the Crosse; or with S. Paul art rapt to the third heaven; or in thy private closett, conversest familiarly with thy Beloved, as S. Anthony of Padua; without delay, abandon all, & descend to comfort those who expect that duty of thee.
Art thou a Prince, or Governour, of a family? by thy office & duty, thou art bound to have as much care of thy subjects, as of thy selfe; especially, if by their own free choyce, guided by divine Inspirations, they be under thy custody & direction, not as slaves, but as tender Children; for whom, thou art to render an account, unto the Great Just Judge, who expects of every one, to his own extrem perill, that he be faithfull in his charge; Wherefor, if thou beest cald to any such trust, with feare & trembling accept of it, & comply with its duties; but if thou art not called thither, have a care, thou never covet a place of so much danger.
Art thou a subject? The Vow of Obedience, [Page 224]under which thou art born, or by which thou hast freely sacrifized thy Will to God & his Vicegerents, doth then oblige thee to leave God for God, that is, to quitt thy highest contemplations, & comply with the Will of God, revealed to thee by the lips of thy Overseer & Governour. Since the Word of the Eternall Father, equall to himselfe, in some manner quitts the bosom of his Father in heaven, to obey his Will, even to a most painfull & shamefull death; we may for his Love, submit our Judgements & Wills, to that of our Superior, ruling in his stead; promptly, entirely & perseverantly to our dying day.
Art thou equall to him? Thou must then endeavour, when Charity requires it, to releive his wants, unto thy power, either corporally or spiritually; by Visiting (for example) & helping the needy, weak & sick; & by counselling & comforting them in their desolations; for by these things, we doe homage to our Lord JESUS, in his distressed Little Ones; & deserve our [Page 225]selves, to be releived in the like case; according to the promises of our Lord, that, What ever we doe to One of his Little ones, we doe to him, nor shall a cup of cold water be unrewarded in the Kingdom of Heaven.
COLLOQUIE.
Alas My God! how barren has my Soul hitherto been, in complying with the precepts of true & solid Vertue? How many precious houres of my life have idly passed, without care of advancing my selfe, as well in humble & charitable deeds, as in searching into thy hidden Excellencies? Whereas thy Law is, That each one shall reap, according as he sowes; My solitude shall not be henceforth idle, but sometimes I will soare up as an Eagle, by the wings of Contemplation & love; & sometimes will I with the laborious Bee, exercise my self in outward works of charity & humility; as well to please God, the supream End & crown of all good works, as to releive my distressed neighbour, & to edify all by my outward Conversation; for, That which is momentany in this life worketh exceedingly in us an eternall weight of Glory. Amen.
TENTH DAYES VOYAGE. Highest Christian Perfection.
THE MORNING EXERCISE.
FIRST POINT. Union with Christ suffring.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, that how ever high & happy we be in our Divine Contemplation, & Unitive Life with God; or Low, by a prompt performance of the humble & charitable Duties of our present State, wee cannot hope, succesfully to finish our holy Pilgrimage to the sublime State of Perfection, we aime at in our Retyrement, unlesse we be united to JESUS CHRIST in his fuffrings. As each one by cordiall friendshipp is transformed into his Friend, & by an excess of heavenly Love into our glorious God: so by our joy & alacrity, amidst the tribulations & crosses of this [Page 227]life, we are transformed into, & become One, with our Crucified Saviour; whom we then put on, when his Spirit, Counsells, Grace & Mortifications shine in our Soul & actions.
The title of a good Christian Philothea should, besides the name, import a conformity in Life with CHRIST; & that Character of the Crosse, whereby in the laver of our Spirituall Regeneration, we are registred souldiers under the conduct of our Crucified Captain, should ever mind us of our profession then made, oft since renewed, & now so eagerly pursued; that as our Divine Lord & Master, with joy marched up towards Hierusalem the place of his Passion, encounters his raging persecutours, & voluntarily offers his body to be beaten on as an anvill, his bloud to be powred forth, & himselfe to become a saving Sacrifice on the Altar of the Crosse: so also we should with joy entertain, & patiently beare all losses, crosses & desolations, which may befall us in our Christian Warfar. This was S. Pauls Glory, the Perfect joy of S. Francis, [Page 228]& the Delight of the renowned Martyrs, who kissing their chains & scourges, embracing their. Racks, & singing amidst swords, whips & flames. purchased a coheritance with their glorified JESUS, whose partners they were in his bitter sorrows & suffrings.
It is the dignity of a Christian, to be thus United to CHRIST; nor doth any condition of this life render us more unhappy, then want of tribulation; Much Felicity makes us forget we are pilgrims to an endless, & endangers our falling into presumption, while relying on present comforts, we arm not our selves for ensuing combats, & by long peace leave our hearts unguarded against assaults of watchfull Enemies; whereas the bloud of Martyrs has ever been the encrease of the Church, & Crosses the preservation & strength of Christian Vertues; though Summer be the sweetest season, yet without cold winters, earth would become unhabitable; nor can our Souls long savour the sweetnes of piety, unless seasoned with contradictiōs; which wee neither [Page 229]may nor can escape, only can sweeten, while with joy & courage wee welcom them, when sent by Heaven, to try our Vertues, & unite us unto CHRIST.
Though Expectation diverts not, yet it diminishes the sharpness of tribulation, which when sudden, finds the mind unprovided, & unable to beare its weight, for want of Resolution, & Lenitive Medicines. What if a disease should bereave thee of health & rest? What if Poverty as an armed Enimie should rush upon Thee? What if calumnies should defame, degrade, or cast thee into prison or banishmēt? thou shouldst Philothea now prepare to welcome & encounter these crosses with joy, that their violence may not overwhelme Thee, & make thee loose thy Vertue, in what thou maist not avoyd.
As Gods wise providence in governing us, leads us to, & fastens us unto the Crosse: so his fatherly Love will ever temper its severity, & render it easy & delightfull; Savage beasts will be smitten by their keepers, 'tis God that strikes thee; it were rebellion, to [Page 230]murmur, or fly; he has appointed their weight to the last dram, for ends known to himfelfe, none cā add, or take thence; onely our constancy & love can make them light & pleasant; Although God be in himselfe immutable, yet for our tryall, he doth not always visit us after the same manner; if He comes as a Iudge, & condemns us to suffer, 'tis much less then our sins deserve, that a moments sorrow may expiate the enormous sins of an Age, that thou maist become like him upon his Cross, & nigh him in his glory; if as a tender Father, tis to chastise us now, that we perish not for ever; if as an Espous of Bloud, with a Cross in one hand, & the other pointing to his wounded heart, 'tis to show, thy heart must be peirced too, with the sword of tribulation; & if as a Friend, suspending the influences of his comforting graces, tis to try if thy heart be sound, not loveing his crowns more then his crosses, or his comforts more then himselfe.
Tribulations too are the cures of our sick minds; though the body be sound, the Soul may be distempred with pride, [Page 231]incontinency, envy, idleness or the like; 'tis a rare spirit that has no disease; no physick like an adversity; If thy heavenly Physitian sends this, to humble thy heart, to make the continent, meek, or diligent in thy duty, make him welcome; & be cheerfull in that sad state, having thy Eie fixt on thy Exemplar, & the great weight of merit & glory which it will work in the patient & resigned heart. Every bird can sing in a cleer heavē, but that is most cōmendable which is merryest in a shower; to stand silent before Herod, or be joyfull in desolation, is the property of a true Christian; Study therefor Philothea ever to have a cleare spirit amidst tribulations, thy righteousness will comfort Thee, Gods glory will attend thee, & after this minute of pain, an eternity of joy will crown thee.
AFFECTION.
O God, how high, & yet how low is the State of Christian Perfection! as Thou My Crucified Lord, art God & Man: so must my contemplation & Union be with Thee, a Glorious God & a suffring Man, by partaking the [Page 232]joys of One & sorrows of the other; I will therefor ever aspire to be with Thee in the glory of thy Father; yet will joyfully cast my self into the Sea of Love, thy bleeding heart, that through it I may swim to the haven of thy hidden Divinity. Come then all torments of heaven & Earth, presse heavy upon Me; I shall never sink as long as supported by the saving Grace of my Victorious Redeemer. Oh that I were grown'd by the teeth of wild beasts, torn by racks, scorched with burning flames, so I may enjoy CHRIST! Rather here, O Lord, rather here, then where thy wrath never ceases; for thou wilt lead me forth this prison, & shew me all thy Glory, & I shall confess unto thy Name.
RESOLUTION.
I will for ever make my habitation in the wounded heart of my Crucified Lord, & therein read over the vast book of Love Suffring, that by it I may govern my life & actions, not contenting my selfe with an empty Name, void of the substance & perfection of a Christian. Therefor I will joyfully welcome all tribulations, as speciall Guifts of God & tokens of his love, given to cure the soares [Page 233]of my sinfull Soul, exercise Vertue, & preserve to life everlasting; for who ever lives holyly shall suffer persecution, nor may the Crown of endless Glory be purchased at an easy rate. I will therefor cheerfully take up my Cross, rank my selfe amongst thy zealous servants, & follow thee my suffring Lord; for Blessed is he who suffers for thee, because when he is tryed, he shall receive a Crown of life & Immortality.
SECOND POINT. Expropriation of Friends.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, that to attain to this high state of Christian Perfection, & Union with CHRIST suffring, we must willingly abandon all earthlie contents, & embrace all tribulations with joy, in Imitation of JESUS CHRIST, it being much harder, & consequently a greater perfection, to beare great crosses with patience, then perform heroick acts of Vertue without difficultie; for our [Page 234]Vertue is not then firm, when not shaken; but when not shaken, though most assayled by adversity; therefor our perfection grows with proportion to our suffrings, in the society of our suffring Saviour, whose Pilgrimage from the cribb to the Cross, began in tears & ended in bloud; since therefor Philothea, thou art by profession à Christian, & by speciall Resolution a seeker of highest Perfection, CHRISTS sorrows, suffrings & cross, must be unto thee a Rule of life, & the Center of all thy motions; the more conformable thou art to him in these, the greater will thy perfectiō now be, & happiness hereafter.
Behold then with a stedfast Eie the Saviour of the World, hanging on the Cross, & as in his Passiō, so in his death abandoned by his Apostles, Disciples & al his usuall train of applauding attendāts. He who in his glory was guarded with millions of Angels, to whom all knees bowe, & who is the Image & Splendour of the glory of his eternal Father, is now forsaken by All. Love made him our Brother, by assuming our Nature; compassion [Page 235]our Physitian, by his healing doctrine & sacraments; Mercy our Ransom, by his own bitter death discharging our debts; & now alas he is abandon'd of all. He descended from the noblest Princes, Preists & Prophets of Israël, by his temporall birth; he healed lame, blind, dumb, lepers, all diseases, by his Divine power; All men & Angels, for ever glorious with God, are happy through the Efficacy of his peace-speaking bloud; & they have now alas all deserted him.
This is the paterne which we must Imitate Philothea, e're we can attain the perfection we aime at; We must be entirely resigned to abandon, & be abandoned by all, even our dearest, & most obliged friends; This may seem hard, & indeed it is so; For Friendship is a Vertue, & Charity is yet a greater; it is hard therefor to perswade from actiōs arising from so sublime a cause, yet is it mainly necessary, if we will become perfect; when the pruning time is come, superfluous shoots must be cutt off, else few & small fruit; All earthlie friendships [Page 236]are superfluous, in order to inward perfection, therefor should be lopt off, that the sap of grace may quietly fructify in us to life everlasting, under the conduct of our Divine Guide & Example.
Tell me, Philothea, canst thou like well a treason in thy bosom friend? Surely thou canst not: If David had been cursed by his enemies, he could have borne it, but to be hurt by a friend, by one that had prayd with him in Gods holy House; that was an unsupportable Cross. And whats more frequent, even with those, who abandoning the world, should abandon its weakness & mutability, & yet through variety of opiniōs & dispositions, oft break & betray a friends confidence? If then for the love of thy heavenly Espous, thou hast forsaken parents, kindred & all worldly friends, for the same love, enter not now, or at least break off any singularity of affectiō, even towards thy companions in the study of perfection; not onely because singularity is ever prejudiciall in professours of a Cōmon Life, whence [Page 237]propriety of affections, as well as of temporall goods must be banisht, as nurses of suspitions, jealousies & many private feudes; but especially because they hazard the loss of our inward tranquillity, in case our friend, to whom we have imprudently disclosed the secrets of our heart, betrays his trust, using our freedom to our confusion. Wherefor be cautious in trusting thy heart strings to any, but as the Wise Heathen sayd, Ever converse with thy friend, as one who may prove thy Enemy. For as it is the nature of fire to burne, so of sinners to be weak & selfe interested; take a View of they past life, & experience will teach Thee, most friendships of thy bosomfriends to have been grounded on selfprofit, & therefor have ended in discontents & enmities.
Besides the superfluity & treachery of friendships, they are great impediments of Vertue, while many thoughts are spent in them, to the breach of in ward peace, loss of precious time & neglect of heavenly conferences with our Divine Espous. I doubt not Philothea but [Page 238]thou hast had many speciall & deare friends, & much delighted to abide & conferr with them; & what profit thence? Alas, much Vanity, time lost languishings of heart, or sin. Even now then knock off these troublesome slackles, whereby thou art fettred to Creatures, however deare to Thee, least thou present God with a broken & divided heart, whereas he gave & demands A whole & sound; & that thou owest to him, hadst thou many thousands.
AFFECTION.
Ah! how hard is it, to be abandon'd by all friends who may comfort us in our desolations? But I know & will adore the power that works this happy separation; perhaps thou hadst for ever perished O my Soul, hadst not not thus lost thy friend, or abandond him for God. Alas, how superfluous, how treacherous, how dangerous has singularity of frienships hitherto proved unto Me? Adieu all friends, henceforth my only trust shall be in God, who hath loved me with a perpetuall charity, & hath engraven me in his hands, that he may be ever mindfull of me; forsake me not O Lord, & I will be always with Thee, & become [Page 239]as a Pilgrim to the children of my Mother.
RESOLUTION.
I will couragiously quitt all ties, even to my dearest friends, when my spirituall concernment requires it; whither they love me therefor or hate me, wish me well or persecute me; & I will equally prepare my heart, to be loved or persecuted, praised or condemned by them, behaving my selfe as a Pilgrime to all earthlie Creatures, & a Cittizen of Heaven. I have chosen my solitude with my abādoned Lord & Master, nor shall any false allurements, or harsh dealings change my Resolutions; He hath given me a glorious example, as he hath done, I will endeavour to doe also.
THIRD POINT. Selfe-Denyall.
CONSIDERATION.
COnsider, That JESUS CHRIST hanging on the Cross, is the true patern of selfe-Denyall; this was his Doctrin while he lived, & this his practise [Page 240]in his Passion & Death; therefor his prayer to his eternall Father was, Not mine, but thy will, be done. Behold then, how he looseth his bloud in his Agony, his Esteem by revilings & blasphemies, his strength by whipps & thorns, his comeliness by stripes & wounds, the joy of the lower Region of his Soul by excess of sorrows, & his life by a most bitter & ignominious Death. Thus the most beautifull amongst the children of Men, is become as One stricken of God, covered with leprosy, & a man of sorrows.
If thou desirest Philothea to become perfect, thou must also endeavour this selfe-Denyall, & seperation of thy selfe from thy selfe, by abandoning thy own will, & a readinesse to sacrifize unto God, thy tears, bloud, body, soul & all the calamities & afflictions, Gods providence may inflict on thee; willingly suffring what ever crosses may befall Thee, in conformity to his holy Will, & the coūsells & practise of thy suffring Lord & Master.
There is none, of what condition [Page 241]soever, but must more or less, take up CHRISTS Cross & follow him, by self-Denyall, & bearing some tribulation for his sake, & their own profit. Through sin, the flesh & spirit are at odds, & sensuality rebells against God; no wonder then, if wee feele contradictions within our own heart, & suffrings from the inordinate passions, desires or malice of others; neither Saint nor Sinner, nor any mortall creature is exempt from the Law of the Cross, of what Majesty, Wisdom, Power or Holiness soever he be; nor is any of these happy, unless resigned to beare all.
Thou sufferest not alone Philothea, All must, willingly, or against their will, suffer with thee; which should encourage Thee to an unbroken patience, amidst the heaviest press of tribulations, which may happen to Thee; especially since thy JESUS, thy Espous, the Giver of all good, suffreth so many, so long, so grievous torments, with Thee.
Nor may we hope, to enjoy the consolations of this, & the other Life; we must forgoe one, or the other; either [Page 242]suffer here, or else where; which wilt thou choose? Is it not much better, to undergoe a momentany tribulatiō, then an eternall? Only worldly pleasures can destroy thee, therefor fly frō Them; The Cross only, whereby the whole world was saved, can save Thee, Seek it then, & with it thou shalt find life & salvation; thy crown of thorns shall be changed into a Crown of never fading Glory; & if thou hast drunk of the torrent of tribulation, with thy crucified Redeemer, thou shalt also tast the delicacies of his heavenly Happiness, in his Glorious Kingdom.
AFFECTION.
If JESUS must suffer, ere he enters his glory, canst thou O my Soul, hope to purchase heaven at an easyer rate? No my Dearest Lord! since love moved Thee to transfigure thy selfe into a Man of sorrows for my sake, love also shall compell me, to be conformable to Thee, my Holy Espous. Let me but enjoy Thee, & then let what ever tribulations thou pleasest, fall upon Me! Here cutt, here burn, so thou sparest me for eternity; O Eternity! who can live with thy everlasting torments? Come therfor O delicious [Page 243]crosses, O amiable tribulations, by which I may purchase an Eternity of joys.
RESOLUTION.
I will prepare my selfe to this spirituall Combat, & not only endure the tribulations which my sensuality & disorderly passions may raise against Me, but what ever Crosses the malice of Satan, or the sweet providence of my heavenly Father shall inflict upon Me; & hūbly casting my selfe at the foot of the Cross, I will say, Behold here O Divine Lord, behold here, My whole self, my Body, my Soul, my All, ready to abandon all contents & to suffer all sorrows for Thee; Thy will be done; Pleasures or pains, thorns or diadems, life or death; all shall be indifferently welcome; Only, be thou with Me, O strong helper, & none shall prevaile against Me.
EVENING EXERCISE.
FIRST DISCOURSE. Spirituall Desolation.
ALthough our Lord JESUS wer the Beloved of the Eternall Father, equall to him in Essence, Wisedom & Power, yet for Us he would become an Outcast, deserted by Him. Harken Philothea to that lamentable Complaint he makes to his Father upon the Cross; My God! My God! why hast thou forsaken Me? Though his humane Nature lost not its Union with the Godhead, nor the Grace or friendship of God, yet the Influence of his Divinity on the inferiour Portion of his Soul was then suspended, & he left to struggle with the bitterest torments, & pangs of a most cruel & ignominious Death.
Our Solitary Pilgrim to Perfection, must be prepared to welcome this sublime state of Spirituall Desolation, if she aspires to an Union & Conformity with her heavenly Espous; she must not only [Page 245]contentedly abandon all friends, & beare what ever Crosses, but must also willingly be deprived of all those delights, which usually accompany a devout Life, undergoe Aridities of the spirit, & loose the savory influences of Gods gracious favours; & instead of pleasant Illustrations of the Understanding, Enflamings of the will, & flowings of Joy in the heart, to have the spirit loaden with dulness, barrenness, & insensibility to heavenly thoughts & actions.
If God thus tryes thy Constancy, assure thy selfe Philothea, he is even then present with Thee, watching in the Center of thy heart over Thee, causing aversions from Sin, desires to perform the duties of thy state, & longings to be with God, though in that distress, a darkness be spredd over thy Soul, & thou beest deprived of thy usuall cheerfulness & alacrity.
The cause of this our desolation oft is in our selves; either a too eager desire of, or delight in, spirituall consolations; or a neglect of timely entertainīg offred inspirations; or else too much proneness [Page 246]to seek & accept of sensuall satisfactions; But the cheife Cause thereof is God only, whose property it is, to create Light & Darkness, & separate the One from the Other. As God caused the brightness of Christs tranfigur'd body on Mount Thabor, which signifies the cleerness & cheerfulness of our Spirit in holy actions: so also he caused that darkness which o'respred the earth, whilst CHRISTS body was disfigur'd on Mount Calvarie, whereby is represented the droughts of a Soul in this state of spirituall desolation; Wherefor behave thy felfe very cautiously in the pursuance of Christian perfection, so that whither thou hast a feeling of piety, or whither God (for reasons known to himselfe) deprives Thee thereof, keep the same Evenness of heart, & constancy in thy duties, during both States; still multiplying acts of Love, renewing thy purposes, resigning thy selfe to Gods decrees concerning Thee, & following the direction of his Holy Spirit, under whose conduct, thou art now become conformable to thy sufferring Espous.
Imagine therefor, that JESUS CHRIST has nayled Thee to this Cross, through the great Love he has towards Thee, to the end thou flyest not from him, abandon the charge he has taken of thee, or quitt thy customary duties; & that he may behold thy conflicts, harken to thy mournfull sights & supplications, & may more readily infuse spirituall helps; wherefor humbly open thy heart to him, disclosing all thy wants & weakness; advise also with some prudent person, whom thou hast chosen for thy Guid, & follow his counsells punctually; ever closeing with an entire Resignation to his sacred Will, who thus Visits Thee.
COLLOQUIE.
What hast thou done, My Innocent Lord, that thou art thus severely treated? Thy body is covered with wounds, thy bloud streams forth from every part, thy hands & feet are nailed to the Cross, thy head is crowned with thorns, thy heart is peirced with a speare, & thy Soul fild to the brim with desolation, when thou cryedst: My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me? Oh, what Love, what Mercy is [Page 248]here? I have sinned, & the Son of God is smitten! Oh, rather let me fuffer, who have provoked thy wrath! Whither I feel the sweetness of thy comfortable presence, or thou dost permit Anxieties to oppresse my spirit, I will equally love Thee, & obey thy will. And I will blesse God at all times, his prayses shall ever be in my lips, because he will be my Salvation, in the day of sorrow.
SECOND DISCOURSE. Phìlotheas Choyce.
HAving thus prosperously Philothea, (though with much difficulty, in thy ten daies Voyage to Perfection) passed through thy holy Solitude, & arrived to Mount Calvarie, & there found thy Crucifyed Lord, the Author, Exemplar & Finisher of all Perfection, repose thy selfe with joy under the shade of the Crosse offring up thy heart to him, to be united with his by Love, & made conformable to his Will in all thy affections & actions; saying, Behold, I have gone far flying from the World & its Vanities, & made my habitation in the Wilderness; [Page 249]Under his shadow, whom my Soul desireth, will I sett; This is my Resting place, for ever & ever; here will I dwell, because I have chosen it. O blessed Flight! O pleasant Repose! O Divine Choyce! whereby thy Soul will become a stranger to the Earth where she lives, & freely converse with God whom she loves.
Then make a breife review of thy ten daies Retirement; See, whither thou hast that value of Solitude; & its Entertainments, which the perfectiō thereof deserveth; And what inclinations thou hast to persever therein? whither thou hast a cordiall apprehension of thy Sinfull State; & the Means God has established for thy salvation? Whither thy Passions be any thing abated, & thy heart unchayned from Creatures; that it may joyfully Fly to God? Whither thou hast a perfect Calme in thy Soul; canst Give eare to the whisperings of thy heavenly Espous; & beest every way fitted to take thy Repose in God? And lastly, whither thou hast a hearty resentement of the suffrings of thy Crucifyed Lord, a willingness to Imitate him in his bitter seperations, [Page 250]& a desire to be wholly united to him in that sad & ignominious state? for unless thy heart be now united ūto that of JESUS suffring, thou maist not hope hereafter to be united unto thy JESUS triumphing.
Fix thy Eie therefor steadily upon thy soveraign Lord, bleeding & dying upon the Cross, & thereby draw a Coppy in thy own heart; by his wounded feet order thy affections, by his peirced hands rectify thy actions, by his crowned head purify thy thoughts, by his opened side regulate thy Love, & by his sorrowfull Soul draw in thine the picture of Compassion & imitation, That for ever after, the life of JESUS may be made manifest in Thee.
COLLOQUIE.
Behold here, O Victorious Saviour of Men & Angels, my languishing & sighing heart, earnestly sueing to become One with Thee, transformed into the likeness of thy love-wounded heart, & dying to all things, but Thee, that henceforth Thou onely maist live in me, & I for ever in Thee, without being seperated from Thee. O Amiable Union! O delicious Transformation! [Page 251]O Divine Life! Oh that thou wouldest deep engrave in my heart the Image of thy Cross, & all thy suffrings thereon; that as a bundle of myrrhe they may ever lay in my bosom, by a perpetuall Memory of thy Love therein towards Me. To Thee therefor doe I now, for ever, sacrifize my whole heart, to be wounded with the darts of thy ever flaming love; that all my Affections, Actions, Thoughts, Desires & Ioyes may be ordred by Thee; begin from Thee, & end in Thee; O Endless End, and Abysse of all Happiness! Amen.