The Christians Guide to Devotion, Part 4 · Chapter 2
CHAP. II. The ſecond general Advice: To lead an holy Life, and practice all the Vertues.
WE have already ſaid ſomewhat of the neceſſity of living well, to become truly devout; but the Subject is too important to make a halt or ſtop there. …nd therefore let us now conſider, that there is no …ion more ſtreight than that of a faithful Soul with …s God in the acts of Devotion; 'tis a ſecret com…erce; 'tis to ſee God face to face, and ſpeak with …im as one intimate Friend ſpeaks with another. All …at is conceiv'd of the Union betwixt the Husband and …e Wife, between the Father and the Son, betwixt the …ody and a Member, is not ſtrong enough to repreſent … us the Union of a Soul that flies to Heaven upon …he Wings of Hope and Faith, and to which God diſ…vers the ineſtimable treaſures of his Love. God …nters into it and it into God, and ſo they be…me one. But who doth not ſee, that to ſmooth …he way to himſelf towards ſo ſtrict an union, he muſt be …ure even as he is Pure? the heavenly Lamp ſuffers no …ening, nor mixture of Day or Night. God who is …ight cannot be united to a Soul that is in Darkneſs.
If there be any Vertue, for which we are owing to the Holy Ghoft's preſence in us, it is Devotion. Now we know well enough, by what we may obtain this preſence of the H. Spirit. 'Tis not by the magnificence of the houſe, but its neatneſs: when the evil Spiri… goeth out of the houſe and at his return findeth i… ſwept and garniſhed, he returns aſham'd, and cannot enter thereinto without the help of ſix other Spirits more wicked than himſelf. That which drives the evil Spirit away, attracts the holy one? and he does not make our heart to be his Temple, unleſs we baniſ… thence all Impurity. Moſes carves and poliſhes two Tables of Stone, God engraves his Law thereon. A Painter cleanſes his linnen-cloth before he draws o… it the Picture of a Prince. We have two carnal tables of the Heart, the Underſtanding and Will: but we are not to hope, that God will write his Laws, or the H. Ghoſt paint his Image thereon, unleſs they be nea… and poliſhed. Thou devout and pious Soul, which wiſheſt to ſee God abiding in thee, and his love in thy heart, cleanſe the table of thy Underſtanding from thoſe many Errours, Prejudices, fond Imaginations and ev… thoughts, cleanſe the table of thy Will from thoſe ſinful Inclinations and vicious Habits. When both theſe tables ſhall become blank and white, undoubtedly God will come to paint and engrave his Image thereon.
Devotion is an entrance into Gods Cabinet; … brought me, ſays the Spouſe, to the Banquetting-houſe, but no one enters there unleſs he have the Wedding… Garment on, and be gracefully deck'd with Faith▪ Hope, and Charity; unleſs he put on the Lord Jeſ… Chriſt, and the Bowels of Mercy, of a meek Mind, … Righteouſneſs and Holineſs. Devotion is an Elevation… of the Soul, and Sin a Clog to it: If we burthen the Soul with theſe Weights, how ſhall it lift it ſelf up▪ We are therefore to diſcharge our Heart of one Sin to day, to morrow of another, to ſubdue Covetouſneſs one day to attack Pride, another Ambition; and the more thy Heart is thus engag'd, the more free will thy Devotion be. Above all, we ought to remember that our Heart is the moſt delicate and tender part of …s; there's no need of putting it into Diſorder: We …overthrow it with Age; but to re-eſtabliſh it is the …noſt Difficulty. It is the eye of the Soul; any chip, …ny grain of Duſt is able to deſtroy it. It is Milk, which is corrupted by the Air's Motion only, and by Thunder; 'tis a Lute that is put out of Tune by unſea…able Diſtempers of the Air: and certainly, true Sanctification has more parts than a Lute hath ſtrings; ſo that this holineſs of the Heart is ruined by the diſorder of one of thoſe parts, as one bad Sound deſtroys …ll the Harmony of a Conſort: and therefore, with a …onderful Care we ought to guard our Heart and every part thereof. The Soul reſembles a Sea, and it's Paſſions the Winds: If you do not bridle and keep in …heſe Paſſions, they will raiſe terrible Tempeſts in the …ea; and Devotion, which is a peaceable Vertue, will …arce be heard. Every Paſſion carries the Heart to it …elf, and Devotion, being a Stranger, and ſtanding only by it ſelf, will never gain it.
There is, moſt aſſuredly, a very near Relation be…wixt Words and Actions; they come from the ſame Source, and the ſame Heart produces them: wherefore, I think, we cannot better employ the Mouth than …o ſing the Praiſes of God; nor the Mind, than to con…emplate his Wonders; nor the Soul, than to lift it ſelf up by Piety and the practiſe of good Works. We have ſaid, that a Man is ill diſpoſed in coming from a Ball or Comedy, to fall to pious Ordinances. On the quite contrary, I ſay, that in returning from the Houſe of Mourning, where he has comforted the Afflicted, ſuccour'd the Miſerable, ſuſtained the Weak, …ed the Poor, and defended the Oppreſs'd, he finds himſelf in ſuch a Gayety of Heart, and ſuch a Diſpoſition to Prayer, as is inconceivable. He comes to God with the Lightneſs and Alacrity of a Servant, who preſents himſelf before his Maſter, after having done his Duty, to obtain the Reward: for, although he acknowledges he deſerves nothing at God's hands, yet he knows, that God liberally recompenſeth us for what we do only by the help of his Grace. He approaches to the Altar with the Confidence of a Subject that appears before his Prince with Preſents, which he knows are capable of opening the way to his Heart: for, though our good Works be moſt imperfect Gifts, that hold not what they have good in them but from God's Liberality, nevertheleſs, he is not ignorant, that he accepts them as if they were of great Price. Inſomuch, as I will not make any difficulty to ſay, that the Ancients and Moderns, who have diſtinguiſh'd the Active Life of a Chriſtian from the Contemplative, and have believed, that this can be without that, and even that the Contemplative Life was far more excellent than the other, are aſſuredly in a great errour: for, by ſeperating the Active life, which conſiſts in doing good to our Neighbour, and practiſing Charity to the afflicted and miſerable, from the contemplative life, to which they believed they could give themſelves up entirely, they have certainly depriv'd Devotion of a very great help. I have already confeſs'd there to be no need, that the Imployments of Martha, which have regard to the bodily Service of our Saviour and his Members, ſhould take away from us the time conſecrated to Mary's works, toreading Meditation and Prayer. But we have time enough for all: When Mary ſhall have been ſufficiently heard, then its fit ſhe take the place of Martha. Wherefore I would not counſel him that wou'd attain to perfect Devotion, to renounce that part of the World which conſiſts of the afflicted Members of our Lord Jeſus Christ. This is the School of Virtue and Piety; and ſo far is it, that this practiſe of works of Mercy can diſtract devout Souls, that it is the readieſt and ſureſt way to arrive at Devotion. The Ideas of the World I confeſs are incompatible with thoſe wherewith a devout Soul ought to be fill'd: A tragical event, the …ight of a triumph, the hope of a fortune for one's ſelf, the grandeur of that of another, a duel, a warr, all this (I ſay) hath no alliance with the ſweet Images of God, of his Love and Benefits. Wherefore it's good to ſhut and bar the Door againſt theſe firſt Repreſentations, if we would with ſucceſs labour to eſtabliſh others in their room: but the Images of a man languiſhing upon the Bed of Sickneſs, or another, that ſuffers for God's ſake agrees eaſily with the thought of our Lord Chriſt ſuffering for us. A multitude of poor Creatures, to whom thou openeſt thy Bowels, will eaſily lead thee to the Conſideration of thoſe Liberalities, thou receiveſt from God. The aid thou ſhalt lend one to defend his Life, another for the defence of his Honour and Reputation, will oblige thee to think on the Benefits and Helps, thou continually receiveſt from Heaven. Thou ſhalt have no-manner of need to baniſh the thoughts that attend an Active life; lodge thoſe in their place, which ſpring from Contemplation: They will be united in the ſame heart, and lend one another mutual Succour.
Meditation.
I HAVE been told ſometimes that the Vertues are Siſters, that walk hand in hand, that they are ſo many Rings in an holy chain, which is broken by the rupture of one of thoſe Rings. They can't be without one another; and therefore, O my Soul thou canſt not be truly devout, becauſe thou art not truly Vertuous, and thou haſt not in thy heart the Practice of all good works. Doſt not thou ſee, that the World is exactly …am'd to furniſh employ to thy Vertues, and to ſoilicit thee to good and holy actions? the heavens declare the Glory of God, and the extent of the Firmament ſheweth his Almighty Power; that thou mayeſt joyn thy Voice to thoſe praiſes which all Nature rings, and thy gratitude may have ſcope to act upon. The Air forms outragious Tempeſts, makes the Thunder and Lightning to break forth; ſo as the fear of God may ſpring up in thee, and thou mayeſt tremble under his hands which make the Mountains to tremble. Doſt not thou ſee that God here below makes miſerable wretches, that they may be the Objects of thy Compaſſion; poor ones, that thou mayeſt be liberal; afflicted, that thou mayeſt comfort them; weak for thee to uphold; ſick, that thou mayeſt viſit them? Doth not be permit too even that there be ſinners, ſtraying like loſt Sheep, that thou mayſt bring them into the right way; ignorant ones, for thee to inſtruct; imprudent, that thou mayeſt be their Director; ſome that fall, that thou mayeſt help them up again, and for thy ſelf that thou look to thy ſteps; and even wicked perſons, who periſh, that thou mayeſt be put into a wholeſom terrour for thy ſelf? does not he ſuffer examples of Vanity to be, that thou mayeſt ſlight and contemn the World; ſudden and unlookt for deaths, that thou ſhould'ſt watch and be ever upon thy Guard; proud men, that fall into ruine, while thou retaineſt thy ſelf in Humility; the wicked, who are puniſht for thee to dread ſin; good men, that are rewarded, for thee to ſeek Vertue? yet amidſt ſo many leſſons thou art deaf and immoveable. Thou makeſt thy Vertue to conſiſt in not doing evil, that is to ſay, in doing nothing; as if any one ſhould make life to confiſt in death, and in being depriv'd of Motion. Thou remembreſt not that the barren fig-tree was cut up by the root; that God will caſt out the unprofitable ſervant, and will baniſh out of his Paradice both him that hath loſt his talent, and him that had only buried it in the Earth.
Prayer.
COme then, O my Divine Redeemer, come and cultivate my heart, that it be no more a rocky and barren ground. Soften this Rock by the rain of thy Grace; bleſs this Field to make it bring forth Fruits worthy of Repentance. Let mine hands diſtill Myrrh, and my fingers precious Spices: Let them be alwayes opened to the miſerable: Let my feet run to the help of the afflicted: Let my ears receive, with earnestneſs, thy Word and thy Praiſes: Let my tongue continually celebrate thy moſt glorious Name, and lift up, even to Heaven, the Acts of thy good Favour. O Holy Spirit, thou Principle of all good motions, inſtill Life into me; be thou the Soul of my Soul, that it may be no more interred in the Grave of Sleep and Sin, but that it may act mightily, that it be inflamed by the fire of Charity; that this Fire may never ceaſe one moment to be at reſt and without Action; ſo that by continual practice of good Works I may be diſpoſed to Devotion, and to an Ʋnion with thee, who art the Object of my Love. O let me by this Purity invite Him more and more, who is the Author of every good and perfect Gift, to make me partake of the flames of Zeal and Piety.