Chapter 2. On the Joy of the Understanding.

SINCE it has been proved from Holy Scripture, that in the kingdom of heaven there is true joy, we will now explain what those joys are. And first, we will briefly

explain the joys of the Understanding, of the Will, and of the Memory, which relate to the mind : afterwards the joys of the other senses which relate to the body. We do not here mean to assert, that the understanding, memory, and the senses of the body are the proper seat of joy; sincere are not ignorant that joy as well as desire, properly belong to the will in the superior part, and to the appetite in the inferior. But we speak as men generally do-— who hesitate not to say, " The eye is delighted with the beauty of colour, and the ear with the harmony of sound/' By the joy of the understanding, therefore, or of the memory, or external senses, we mean the pleasure which men experience from those objects, which they either understand, or remem ber, or derive from their external senses.

The chief joy of the " Blessed" then will be, to behold with the eyes of the soul God face to face, as St. Paul mentions in his first Epistle to the Corinthians : and to behold Him as He is, according to St. John. And how great this joy will be, we can con jecture from what the prophet Isaias and the apostle Paul testify, that it exceeds all the joys which we have seen, or heard, or desired, or can imagine: " Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man, what things God hath prepared for them that love Him/' (1 Corinth, ii. 9.) The holy Scripture also speaks of a particular and essen-

tial happiness which consists in seeing God — according to the words of our Lord : " Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God :" and also : " Now this is eternal life : that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." (St. John, xvii. 3.) This truly seems a great privilege, that no one can see, or hear, or desire, or imagine any good equal to that which the sight of God will convey to us ; and yet this is no exag geration, but the simple truth, because the eyes, the ears, and the heart of man are accustomed to finite and limited joys : but the sight of G;od is a vision of light inacces sible, of an infinite Good which contains every good, according to what the Lord said to Moses when he had asked, (t Show me thy face." He answered, " I will show thee every good thing." But that we may prove this from reason, we learn from St. Thomas that delight which comes from knowledge requires three things — power, a sensible object suitable to that power, and an union of the object with this power; and that in proportion as the power is capable of knowledge, and the object more noble, and the union more intimate, so much the greater pleasure is derived. ^ But no one can doubt but that the mind is much more pure and noble, and more capable of knowledge than the exterior senses. ^ Now, all must admit that God is the highest and most noble object, placed not only above

all objects of sense, bat also above those of the mind, being infinite Goodness itself. But it is also equally certain, that a union of the mind with God by a clear vision is so intimate that the essence of God will pene trate the whole soul, whilst the soul herself will be transformed into God as if she were plunged into a great sea. Who, therefore, can imagine the greatness of this joy ? The sweetness of this embrace from an infinite Good, from a Spouse of infinite beauty? From the beautiful union of colour with the sense of sight, and the sweetest sounds with the sense of hearing, we certainly experience great pleasure ; and often it is so great, that many by it almost lose their senses. And yet the sense of feeling is material, and common to us with beasts : the objects also are corporal, and deceive us as often as they delight us. In fine, the union is superficial and external ; and in many of the senses it is not an union of the object itself, but of its image with the mind. But the spiritual union of God with the understanding is more firm, durable, and complete ; whilst corporal pleasures that are derived from the senses, because they are mutable, cannot be durable nor com plete, being given to us as it were by drops. Wherefore, without doubt, the pleasure of the mind is greater than that of the senses.

Wherefore, 0 Man ! recollect thyself, and weigh impartially the pleasure which the world offers thee, with that which God offers thee, when He promises Himself tc those that love Him: choose what thou wishest for. If thou love pleasure which is certainly pleasing to thee, thou wilt choose the greatest, rather than the least ; the ever-enduring, rather than the momen tary. But not oUy the sight of God is promised to the good^in heaven, but also the sight of all those things which God hath made. Here on earth we perceive by our eyes the sun, moon, stars ; the sea, rivers, animals, trees and minerals. But our mind does not know the substance of these created things, their essential difference, their properties or power: we cannot see even our own soul, but like blind men we feel for effects, and by reasoning, acquire a little knowledge. What then will be the joy, when our mind in the vision of God, will clearly see the substance of all things, their difference, properties and power ! And what great exultation will be ours, when we shall behold the innumerable army of angels, not one of whom resembles another, and shall clearly see the difference of all ! What unbounded joy will it be, when we shall behold those holy men, who have been from the beginning of the world even unto the end, united together with all the angels ! When we shall behold the merits of each, their crowns and palms of victory ! We shall also see with feelings of pleasure, the crimes and torments of the

damned, in which the sanctity of the good, and the justice of God will wonderfully shine forth; for then the just will wash their hands in the blood of the wicked, as the prophet saith. And what doth "wash ing their hands in the blood of the wicked" signify, but that the good works of the blessed will shine more Brightly, in compa rison with the works of the wicked ? The virginity of some will be more resplendent, when compared with the adulteries of others: and the fasts and alms-deeds of many, when compared with the gluttony and revellings of others. It will then be said: this young man was beautiful, and yet he observed perpetual chastity: this other youth was beautiful also, but not content with his own wife, he often committed adulteries and sacrileges. This man was rich and of noble extraction, and yet he fasted and prayed often, and gave abundant alms : another was equally rich and of noble extraction, but being addicted to gluttony and drunkenness, he spent his money in pleasures, so that he had nothing to give to the poor. Hence it^will be, that the joy of the ' Just ' will be increased, by knowing the crimes of the wicked. At the same time, their joy will also be great, from the contemplation of the justice which will be so conspicuous, in the rewards of the blessed and the punishment of the wicked. Now, in human affairs, we perceive a great anomaly, because crime is often united with

reward, and virtue with punishment, so that the justice of God seems in a manner to be obscured amongst men. But then every crime will have its punishment, and every virtue its reward, so that the beauty of God's justice will excite incredible joy in the minds of the blessed.