Chapter 49
That we must not grow in pride, for not having lost our Faith, as others have done, but rather we must be humble, with fear; and the reasons which we have for being so.
DO not thou, by hearing of the fall of others, grow to such pride of hart, as to say, I am not like one of them, who so wickedly have lost their faith. Call thou to mind those men, who related to our Lord, how Pilate had caused certain Galileans to be killed, as they were in the midst of offering their sacrifices. And they that related this, carried in their hart, a kind of vain contentment, wherewith they held themselves for better than those others, who had deserved, that Pilate should cause them to be murdered. But now when this sovereign judge, did know their pride, without the manifestation of it on their parts; and being desirous to undeccave them, he said after this manner. Think you, that those Galileans were the greatest sinners of all the men in that Province, because that punishment came upon them? Or do you think, that those eighteen men, upon whom the tower of Siloe did fall, and slew them, were the greatest sinners, of all them that dwelled in Jerusalem? I tell you, No. But if you do not penance, you shall also perish. The same did S. Paul intent, when he said, For their incredulity, were the jews cut off, which had been the branches of the Olive tree of believers; and thou who by faith art on foot; do not thou grow proud, but fear; for else, thou shalt also be cut off.
The1 punishments which God hath inflicted upon others, ought to make us chaste, and humble, and not proud. For whither soever we cast our eyes, in these unhapy times of ours, they will find reason to weep: and to say with jeremy, If2 I go out into the field, I see that men are slain by the sword; if I enter into the city, I find them defeated, and dead of hunger. The former are they, who went out of the City; which is, the Church. A kind of people this is, without a head; for the sword of incredulity, hath taken off from them, the head which God gave to Christians, which is the3 Bishop of Rome. And the later, are those many, who in this city of the Church, have their Faith untouched; but they are miserably dead of hunger, because they took not the food, of obedience, to the commandments of God, & of his church.
These things deserve, that we should feel them much, if we have any feeling of Christ; and that we should bewail them in his high presence, and say to him, How long O Lord, wilt thou forbear to have mercy on them, for whom thou didst shed thy blood, and lose thy life, upon the Cross, in the midst of so many torments. And since the business is thine, let the remedy also come from thy hand, being impossible that it should come from any other. Be thou careful, O daughter, to feel, and to pray for this; for4 if thou love Christ, thou art to lodge in thy hart a tender and profound compassion, of the souls, for which Christ Jesus died. And so art thou also carefully to consider, how thou livest; and how thou dost profit by the Faith which thou hast, lest otherwise, God do also punish thee, by suffering thee to fall into some error; and so to lose it; since thine ears have heard the news, of so many that have lost it, by the heresies of that perverse Luther. And others there are, who have denied Christ amongst the Moors; to follow the bestial law of Mahomet; whereby thou shalt see accomplished that which Saint Paul saith, That some had lost their Faith for having cast away a good conscience in their life. And whether it be, (as we said before) when we spoke of the motives which induce a man to believe) because even their evil conscience, by little and little, draweth their understanding unto blindness, to the end that it may seek some doctrine which doth not contradict their wickedness; or else, because the supreme judge, in punishment of other sins, permitteth them to fall upon heresy; or whether it be, both for the one, and the other reason; it is a thing to make one fear, and to be full of care, to avoid it. And howsoever this happen not to all wicked Christians, since although they be in mortal sin, they do not, for that, lose their Faith, (as I have said before) yet in a matter that is of so high importance, the very having happened to one alone, giveth us all reason to fear, and care, that we may avoid the like occasion.
Without doubt, the hearts of all those eleven Apostles, were fare from any disposition of delivering Christ Jesus our Lord to death; yet because he said, that one of the twelve would do it, they were all afraid, and they said, Is it I O Lord? through a fear, least by their frailty, they might fall into actions, from which they were free at that tyme. Against all such inconveniences, the word which we have here in hand, is full of use, Incline thine ear, obeying God, and his Church by Faith. And have not thou a busy, and sifting understanding, lest it be oppressed by Majesty, as such, are threatened in holy Scripture that they shallbe. And5 they, who willbe descanting upon the ineffable mysteries of God, by the poorness of their own understanding and reason, shall find it happen to them, as it doth to such, as fasten the point of their sight upon the sun; which so, they do not only not come to see, but rather they lose their very sight itself; and it is beaten back again, through the great excess of the light which they see, to the eyes themselves, with which they would see it. So those men, seeking satisfaction by the way of curious understanding, and sifting; do find themselves full of unquietness & doubt. For the wisdom of God, is not communicated, but to such as are little and humble: & do approach to him with simplicity; inclining their ear to him, and to his Church; and such as these, receive extraordinary favours by his goodness, wherewith the soul resteth satisfied, and beautified, by Faith and good works; like the fair Rebecca, to whom were given in the name of Isaac certain pendents for her ears, and bracelets for her hands. And to the end, that this humble subjection might be so much the more recommended to our understanding; the holy ghost was not content with exhorting us to it, in the first word only, by saying, Harken O Daughter; but be adviseth to it yet, with another, by saying, Incline thyme ear. To the end that men may know, that since God doth speak no idle words, and that yet he delivered this doctrine to us in several words; his pleasure was to recommend, in particular manner, this simple, & humble manner of believing, as the beginning of our salvation; and if to this we will add love, it will then be entire, and perfect.
Footnotes
Chapter 51 of 115