Chapter 1

O you, brethren, it is needful to speak of other truths than to those persons who are of the world; or, at least, to speak of them in a different manner. To them, if a preacher wishes to observe the order of teaching which the Apostle has prescribed (1 Cor. iii. 2), milk, not meat, is to be given. He himself teaches us, by his own example, to offer more solid nourishment to such as are spiritual, as when he says: “We speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” And also: “We speak wisdom among them that are perfect” (1 Cor. ii. 6, 13), such as I trust that you, my brethren, are; unless it is in vain that you have been long occupied in the study of heavenly things, in meditating upon the law of God day and night, and in training yourselves to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Prepare, therefore, to be nourished, not with milk, but with bread. There is bread in these words of Solomon, and that white and delicate; I mean in this book which is called “The Song of Songs.” Let us set it before us, and break it according to our need.

2. As for the Book of Ecclesiastes, you are, if I do not mistake, sufficiently well instructed by the grace of God to recognise and despise the vanity of the world, which is treated of therein. And what as to the Proverbs? Is not your life and conduct sufficiently formed and ruled on the teaching which they contain? Wherefore, having tasted of both of these, which you have accepted nevertheless as it were loaves offered from the chest of a friend, draw near and taste of this third loaf also, and see if it be not still better. There are, then, two evils, which are the chief, if not the only ones, which war against the soul, namely, the vain love of the world, and the excessive love of self. The two former books prescribe the remedy for each of these diseases: the former, by cutting away, with the sharp blade of discipline, whatever is corrupt in the character and superfluous in the desires of the flesh; the latter, by wisely penetrating with the light of reason the deceitful glamour of this world’s vanity, and distinguishing it accurately from that which is real and solid. Finally, Solomon prefers the fear of God and the keeping of His commandments to the pursuit of human knowledge and of worldly desires. And rightly so. For the first of these is the beginning of true wisdom, and the second its consummation; if, that is to say, true and perfect wisdom consists only in departing from evil and doing good; and if, also, no one is able perfectly to depart from evil without the fear of God, as no one is able to do good without the keeping of His commandments.

3. These two evils having then been put to flight by the reading of those two books, it is possible to approach fitly in order to listen to that sacred and sublime discourse, which, being, as it were, the fruit of both the previous books, is not to be listened to except by ears and hearts which are chastened and wise. For otherwise, unless the flesh has been mastered by discipline, and subjected to the spirit; unless the burdensome pomp of the world has been despised and cast away as insupportable, the heart is impure and unworthy to peruse the sacred Song. Just as the pure light is poured, vainly and to no purpose, upon blind eyes, or upon eyes that are closed, so “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. ii. 14). For the holy spirit of discipline will flee from the deceitful (Wisd. i. 5), that is, from one who leads an unregulated life. Never will He, who is the Spirit of Truth (John xiv. 17), have part or lot with the vain things of this world. What alliance can there be between the wisdom which is from above, and the wisdom of this world, which is foolishness with God (1 Cor. iii. 19), or the wisdom of the flesh, which is positively hostile to Him (Rom. viii. 7)? But I think that the friend who comes to us from his journey will have no reason to murmur against us, when he shall have taken of this third loaf.

4. But who shall break it? The Master of the house is present; do ye recognise the Lord in the breaking of bread. What other is there who is capable of doing this? As for me, I am by no means so rash as to arrogate the task to myself. If you look to me, yet do so as looking for nothing from me. For I myself am one of those who await their meat from God; I entreat with you, for the food of my soul, the sustenance of my spirit. Truly poor and needy as I am, I knock at the door of Him who openeth and no man shutteth (Rev. iii. 7), to obtain a knowledge of the deep mystery which lies hidden in this book. The eyes of all wait upon Thee, O Lord. Thy little children seek bread, and there is no one to break it for them. From Thy goodness we hope for that blessing. O most merciful One, break Thy bread to the hungering souls that are before Thee; by my hands, if Thou shalt see fit, but by the strength of Thy grace.

5. Make known to us, we entreat, by whom, and of whom this verse is said, and to whom it applies (Cant. i. 1). Why is it so abruptly spoken that it seems to plunge the hearer suddenly into the mid-action of a drama? The speaker breaks forth suddenly, as if someone had spoken before, and as if a second character in the dialogue were then introduced, whosoever it may be, who makes this impassioned request. Then again, why is this unusual manner of speech made use of? But assuredly the very novelty and abruptness of this manner of beginning is not otherwise than very pleasing. Thus is it with the Holy Scripture; it has an attractive countenance, which wins upon us at once, and carries us on to the reading of it, in such wise that, however laborious it may be to investigate the hidden mystery which it enfolds, that labour becomes pleasure, and however great the difficulty of the inquiry, it does not weary, inasmuch as the sweetness of the discourse recompenses and charms the inquirer. Who is there whom that commencing without commencement, that novel mode of speaking in a book so old, would not render attentive? From this it appears that this work is not due to human powers, but was thus composed by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit; so that, however difficult it might be to understand, the searching out of its meaning might be a delightful task.

6. But are we to pass over the title in silence? By no means. We ought not to neglect the least iota, remembering that our Lord gave command that the fragments should be gathered together, that nothing might be lost (John vi. 12). The title is thus worded: “Here begins the Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s.” Observe first that the name of Solomon, that is, the Peaceful, well becomes the beginning of this book, which commences by the sign of peace; and remark at the same time also that only the peaceful are invited to the consideration of this scripture, that is to say, those who have tranquil and peaceful souls, delivered from the agitation of evil passions, and the tumult of earthly cares.

7. Do not suppose either that it is without significance that the title of this scripture is not simply “a song,” but “the Song of Songs.” I have read many songs or canticles in Scripture, and I do not remember one on which such a title as this was set. Israel sang to the Lord a song of praise, because they had escaped both from the sword and the slavery of Pharaoh, because they had been at once wonderfully delivered, and avenged, as by a twofold miracle, at the Red Sea. But yet their song was not styled “Song of Songs.” The Scripture says, if I remember rightly, “Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord” (Exod. xv. 1). Deborah, too; Judith, and the mother of Samuel, each gave utterance to a song. Not a few of the Prophets also raised their voices in song; but we do not read that any of all these called his canticle “the Song of Songs.” You will find, I believe, that each and all of these sang to celebrate some advantage conferred upon themselves or their people; for example, because they had gained a battle, escaped from some peril, obtained some wished-for benefit, or object of that kind. They uttered their songs, then, each for some object more or less private, that they might not be found ungrateful for the Divine benefits, as it is written: “When Thou hast blessed him he will praise Thee” (Ps. xlix. 18, Vulg.). But this King Solomon, who was endowed with admirable wisdom, exalted glory, overflowing wealth, and enjoyed profound peace, is known to have needed nothing, the attainment of which would have given him occasion to lift up his voice in this song of praise. There is no statement of Scripture anywhere which seems to suggest any such reason.

8. It was, then, by inspiration from above that he sang the praises of Christ and His Church, the grace of holy love, and the mysteries of everduring marriage; and at the same time gave expression to the yearning aspirations of the holy soul. Thus he has composed a nuptial song or epithalamium, rejoicing in spirit, and in an ornamental and figurative style. Doubtless he veiled his face, as it were, after the example of Moses (Exod. iii. 6), which was perhaps not less resplendent in the glory of its meaning, as also because in that day there were few, or none, who were capable of sustaining that glory if fully revealed. Therefore I conclude that this nuptial anthem is named “Song of Songs” for its surpassing excellence, just as He who is above all is for that reason called alone “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (1 Tim. vi. 15).

9. If you consult your own experience, after the victory which your faith has gained over the world, and at your coming forth from the abyss of misery and filthy bog, have not you also sung a new song unto the Lord, because He hath done wonderful things? Again, when He has set your feet upon a rock, and ordered your goings, I think that then also in like manner, in thankfulness for the renewal of your life, a new song was put into your lips, even a thankfulness unto our God. And when, after your repentance for sin, He has not only put away your offences, but has even promised you rewards also, has not that joy with which you were inspired by the hope of future blessings made you to “sing in the ways of the Lord, that great is the glory of the Lord”? Again, when some one of you who had found some passage of Scripture to be hitherto obscure and impenetrable has gained a certain degree of light upon it, then, without doubt, in thankfulness for the nourishment of heavenly bread which he has received, he should delight the Divine ear with the voice of gladness and the sound of one that feasts. Finally, in the struggles and combats of every day, which are at no time wanting to those who live piously in Christ, whether it be with the flesh, the world, or the devil, so that the life of man upon the earth is a continual warfare, as you experience incessantly in your own selves, it is needful day by day to raise new songs of thanksgiving for the victories which you gain. As often as temptation is overcome, vicious inclination restrained, imminent danger escaped, a snare of the tempter discovered, or some ancient and inveterate fault of the soul healed perfectly and once for all, or as often as some special favour long desired and frequently besought from God is at length obtained from Him, ought we not so often, according to the prophet’s saying, to make the voice of joy and praise resound, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody (Is. li. 3), and at each of His benefits let God be praised in His gifts? Otherwise, he shall be counted as ungrateful in the day of judgment who is not able to say unto God: “Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage” (Ps. cxix. 54).

10. I imagine that you have yourselves already noticed that in the psalter we have psalms called not “Songs of Songs,” but songs or psalms “of degrees” (Pss. cxx.–cxxxiv.) because in the measure that you make progress in the spiritual life, according to the steps upward that each makes in his heart, he ought to render songs to the praise and glory of Him who is the inspirer of them all. I do not see how in any other manner that verse could be accomplished: “The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the dwellings of the righteous” (Ps. cxviii. 15), or that beautiful and salutary exhortation of the Apostle: “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord” (Eph. v. 19).

11. But there is a canticle which, by its excellence and incomparable sweetness, rightly surpasses those which I have mentioned and all others, if there be any, and this I may call “the Song of Songs,” seeing that it is itself the fruit of all others. That canticle the anointing of grace alone teaches, and experience only makes the soul to be familiar with it. Those who have had experience of it know it well; let those who have not had that happiness earnestly desire, not to know it, but to experience it. It is not a cry from the mouth, but the gladness of the heart; not the sounding of the lips, but the impulse and emotion of joys within; not a concert of words, but of wills moving in harmony. It is not heard without, nor does it make a sound in public. Only she who sings, and He in whose honour it is sung — that is, the Bridegroom and the Bride — hear the accents of that song. It is a nuptial song, which is expressive of the chaste and sweet emotions of souls, the entire conformity of character, the blending of affections in mutual charity.

12. But for the rest, this song is not to be sung or to be understood by a soul which is as yet a neophyte in the infancy of its virtue, and but newly turned from the world. It belongs to the advanced and instructed soul, which, by the progress in grace made by it through the power of God, has grown as far as to reach a perfect age, and, as it were, to have become marriageable — remember that I speak not of years, but of virtues — and fit for the nuptials with its heavenly spouse, such as will be more fully described in its place. But the hour is passing, at which both our poverty and the precept of our rule call us forth to the labour of our hands. Tomorrow we will continue in the name of God what we had entered upon with respect to the opening verse, since the sermon of to-day has furnished the explication of the title.

I think very often of the deep earnestness and ardour with which the ancient Fathers desired the presence of Christ in the Flesh, and I am touched with a feeling of extreme grief and shame in myself; I am scarcely able even now to restrain my tears, so much am I ashamed of the coldness and insensibility of the unhappy times in which we live. Who is there among us that feels joy as great at the actual showing forth of this wonder of grace, as the desire and longing wherewith the ancient saints were fired at the promise only of so great a thing? How many there are who will rejoice at that Festival of His Birth, which we are soon about to celebrate! But would that their rejoicings were, not on account of vain things, but really on account of His Birth! This verse seems, then, to me to breathe the ardent desire and pious impatience of those great men. The little band of those who then were animated by the Holy Spirit felt in advance how great would be the grace which would be diffused upon those Divine Lips. Therefore it was that, speaking in the ardour of that desire wherewith their heart was fired, they said these words, passionately wishing not to be deprived of happiness so great.

2. For each of these saintly souls would, as it were, say: To what end do these wordy utterances from the mouths of the prophets come to me? Let Him rather who is fair beyond the sons of men, let Him come to me with the touch of His Lips. Not now do I listen to Moses: he has become slow of speech to me, and of a slow tongue (Exod. iv. 10). The lips of Isaiah are impure (Is. vi. 5). Jeremiah knows not how to speak, for he is a child (Jer. i. 6); yea, all the prophets are speechless. Let Him of whom they bear witness, let Him speak Himself to me. Let Him speak to me no longer in them or by their means, for their words are as a darkening cloud in the air of heaven; but let Him whose presence is full of grace, whose teaching shall become in me a fountain of water springing up into eternal life (John iv. 14), let Him come to me with the touch of His Lips. Shall not He whom the Father hath anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows (Ps. xlv. 8), pour upon me from His fulness a more abounding grace, if He shall indeed deign to do this? He it is whose speech, living and powerful, is to me as a kiss, and that not the mere meeting of the lips, which ofttimes is but a deceptive sign of peace in the heart, but rather the imparting of joys, the revealing of things hidden, and a certain wonderful, intimate, and wholly ineffable mingling of the heavenly light which enlightens the soul, and the soul which is illuminated by it. For he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit (1 Cor. vi. 17). Rightly, then, do I receive neither visions nor dreams; I turn away from parables and metaphors; even angelic glories themselves I hold in disdain. For even these Jesus, who is mine, by His fairness and His attractiveness to my soul, far surpasses. Of no other, then, whether angel nor man, but of Him alone do I make this entreaty. Yet I have not the presumption to require to be kissed with His mouth. That is the unique privilege and incommunicable felicity of the Man whom the Word has assumed to Himself in the incarnation. My petition is more humble: and this is a privilege common to all who are able to say, “Of His fulness have we all received” (John i. 16).

3. Observe: it is the Word becoming Incarnate who is the Mouth that gives the kiss. It is the Human Nature which is assumed that receives it. The kiss, which is perfected equally by Him who gives and Him who receives it, is that Person constituted of each nature, the Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus. On this account none of the saints presume to say, “Let Him kiss me with His mouth,” but only “with the kiss of His mouth.” They reverently respected the sole prerogative of that Nature on which the adorable Mouth of the Word was impressed once for all, when the Fulness of the Godhead was united corporeally with it. Happy the sign, wonderful and stupendous the condescension, in which not lip is pressed to lip, but God is united to Man. There, indeed, the pressure of the lip does signify the union of souls, but here a union of Natures joins that which is Divine and that which is Human, and reconciles those things which are on earth and those in heaven. For He is our Peace, who hath made both one (Eph. ii. 14). It was, then, for this that every saint of the old time longed, because they felt the assurance beforehand that upon Him joy and gladness were abundantly poured, and in Him were hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col. ii. 3); and they earnestly desired to have part with Him and in His fulness.

4. I feel that what has been said meets with your assent; but listen to still another sense of the words. It was not hidden from holy souls, even before the coming of the Saviour, that God was meditating designs of peace towards the race of mortals (Jer. xxix. 11). Nor did He speak as regarding the earth without revealing His purpose to His servants the prophets (Amos iii. 7). Yet this saying was hid from many (Luke xviii. 34), for in that time faith was rare upon the earth, and hope faint among most of those who waited for the redemption of Israel. But those who had foreknowledge predicted that Christ should come in the Flesh, and that with Him should come peace. Thus one of them says: “Peace shall be in our land when He shall have come” (Micah v. 5). Nay, more, they confidently predicted what they had learned from above, that men through Him should recover the favour of God. And this John, the Forerunner of the Lord, recognized to have been fulfilled in his time, and declared: “Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (John i. 17), an assertion of the truth of which the whole Christian people has experience at this day.

5. But though they foretold peace, yet, as the Author of peace delayed to come, the faith of the people was weak and tottering, there being none to redeem or to save. That brought men to complain of the delay, because the Prince of Peace, so oft announced, had not yet come, as He had for so many ages promised by the mouth of His holy prophets; and holding these promises, as it were, in suspicion, they eagerly demanded the sign of the reconciliation, that is to say, the Incarnation. As if one of the people should reply to the messengers of peace: “How long do you hold our minds in suspense? You have long been foretelling peace, and it does not come; you promise every kind of good, yet behold trouble and misery. Behold, how many times and in what divers manners have angels announced this very thing to our fathers, and our fathers have handed it down to us, crying, Peace, peace, yet there is no peace (Jer. vi. 14). If God desires that I should be convinced of the determination of His good pleasure, which He so frequently promised by His messengers, but does not as yet make manifest, let Him come to me with the touch of His Lips, and the sign of peace shall be for me an assured pledge of peace. How can I put my trust any longer in words? It is instead needful to strengthen words by action. Let God approve His messengers, if, indeed, they be His, as men of truth, and let Him follow them Himself, as they have so often promised; for without Him they can do nothing (John xv. 5). He has sent a servant, and by the servant His staff; but there is neither voice nor breath thereby (2 Kings iv. 29–31). I rise not, I am not lifted up nor brought out of the dust, I do not breathe the free air of hope, unless the Prophet Himself shall come down, unless He shall come to me with the sign of peace.”

6. It is further to be added, that He who declares Himself our Mediator before God is the Son of God, is Himself God (1 Tim. ii. 5). And what is man that He takes knowledge of him, or the son of man, that He has consideration for him? What ground of confidence have I, that I should dare to trust myself to majesty so great? Wherefore, I repeat, should I, who am but dust and ashes, presume to think that God would take care for me? Between Him and His Father is indeed love; but He has no need of me, nor of my goods. How, then, shall it be made clear to me that He who is my Mediator is impartial? Yet if God has truly determined, as you say, to have mercy upon me, and still meditates greater acts of favour on my behalf, let Him establish a covenant of peace, let Him make a perpetual alliance with me by this sign. In order that the words which proceed out of His Lips be not made of no avail, let Him empty Himself, let Him humble Himself, let Him stoop from His high heaven, and kiss me with the kiss of His Mouth. Let the Son of God, if He will be a Mediator acceptable to both parties, and suspected by neither, become Man, become Son of Man, and establish my trust on a sure ground by this. With assured confidence shall I take the Son of God as Mediator when I perceive that He is also a son of my own human race. I can no longer retain any suspicion of Him, since He is my brother and my flesh. For I hope that He will then not be able to despise me, when He is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh.

7. It was thus, then, that the ancient plaint of humanity earnestly begged for that Kiss sacrosanct, that is, the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word; while faith failed, being exhausted with long and weary expectation, and the unbelieving people, abandoning itself to discouragement, murmured against the promises of God. This is not an invention of mine; you will find it for yourselves in the Scriptures. Thence arise those sayings mingled with complaint and blame: “Precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little” (Is. xxviii. 10). Thence those prayers also, coming from hearts anxious and troubled, yet loyal: “Recompense, O Lord, them that wait for Thee, and let Thy prophets be found faithful and true.” And again, “Accomplish, O Lord, the predictions of Thy ancient prophets.” From thence also those promises so sweet and full of consolation: “The Lord shall appear, and shall not lie: if He tarry, wait for Him; for He shall surely come, He shall not tarry” (Habak. ii. 3). And again: “His time is near to come, and His days shall not be prolonged” (Is. xiii. 22). And again, in the person of Him who is promised: “Behold, I will extend peace to her as a river, and the glory of the nations as a flowing stream” (Is. lxvi. 12). In which words are sufficiently apparent both the persevering constancy of the preachers, and the distrust of the people. Thus it was that the mass of men murmured, that faith was tottering, and that, according to the foreboding of Isaiah, “the angels of peace themselves wept bitterly” (Is. xxxiii. 7). Therefore, that the whole human race, while Christ so long delayed His coming, might not perish from mere despair, suspecting its feeble and helpless mortality to be contemned and scorned, and distrusting its reconciliation with God by grace, so often promised; the saints, who had been kept firm in faith by the Spirit which animated them, desired earnestly the confirmation of their faith by His presence in the flesh, and urged eagerly, on account of those who were weak and incredulous, the sign of peace to be regained.

8. O Root of Jesse, who standest for an ensign of the peoples, how many prophets and kings have desired to see Thee, yet have not seen! Surely of all the most happy was Simeon, whose old age was rich in mercy! He rejoiced that he saw the sign so greatly desired: he saw it, and was glad; and having received the kiss of peace, departed in peace; yet not before he had declared that Jesus was born, to be a sign; but a sign which should be spoken against (Luke ii. 25–35). And thus indeed it was. Opposition arose to the sign of peace, from the time that it appeared; but from those who hate peace. For it was peace to men of good will; but to the evil disposed a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence (Rom. ix. 33). Herod was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him (Matt. ii. 3), so it was that the Lord came unto His own, and His own received Him not (John i. 11). Happy were those shepherds in their watch by night, who were deemed worthy to behold that sign in a vision. Even then He was hiding Himself from the wise and prudent, and revealing Himself unto babes. Even Herod wished to behold Him, but he was not found worthy, for his motive was not pure. For this was the sign of peace, and was given only to men of good will; but to Herod, and to those like him, shall be given only the sign of Jonas the prophet (Luke xi. 29). To the shepherds, on the contrary, the angel said: “This shall be a sign unto you, you who are humble, who are obedient, who do not exercise yourselves in high things; you who are watchful, who meditate day and night in the law of the Lord — to you,” he says, “this shall be the sign.” What sign? The sign which the angels promised, which the peoples asked for, which the prophets had predicted; this sign the Lord has now brought to pass, and shows it to you; so that in it the unbelieving may obtain faith, those who are fearful hope, and they who are perfect entire security. This, then, he says, shall be to you a sign. Of what is it the sign? Of pardon, of grace, of peace; and of that peace which has no end. This is the sign: “Ye shall find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” Yet in Him is God reconciling the world unto Himself (2 Cor. v. 19). He shall die for your sins, and rise again for your justification; so that being justified by faith, you may have peace with God (Rom. v. 1). This sign of peace a prophet formerly proposed to King Ahaz, that he should ask it of the Lord his God, either in the heaven above, or in the depth beneath. But the impious king refused (Is. vii. 11, 12), not believing, unhappy man that he was, that in this sign the highest and the lowest should be joined in fellowship and peace: inasmuch as the dwellers in the very depths of the grave should receive the sign of peace, when the Lord, descending thither, should salute them with this holy kiss; and the celestial spirits also should share in it, and that with joy everlasting, when He should return to heaven.

9. This sermon must be brought to a close. But to sum up in a few words what has been treated of in it: it appears that this holy kiss was necessarily accorded to the world for two reasons — that it might produce faith in the weak, and satisfy the longing desire for it in the perfect, since by this kiss is meant no other than the Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

WE shall read to-day in the book of experience. Turn your minds inward upon yourselves, and let each of you examine his own conscience in regard to those things which are to be mentioned. I desire to make examination, whether to any of you it has been given to speak out of the deep desire of his heart, these words of the text which we are to consider. Not to all men does it belong to take these words upon their lips with sincere desire ; he alone is able to do so, who has received even once only, the spiritual kiss from the lips of Christ ; him his own experience incessantly urges to obtain a renewal of that which he found so full of sweetness. It is my strong opinion that no one can comprehend what it is, save he who has experienced it ; it is, as it were, a hidden manna ; and he who tastes of it, still hungers for it again. It is a fountain sealed, from which no stranger may draw; but he who drinks of it still thirsts to drink again. Listen to one who had experienced that which he again asks for : Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation (Ps. li . 13) . Let not a soul then which is laden with sin, and still subject to the passions of the flesh, which has not yet tasted the delights of the Holy Spirit, which is wholly ignorant of, and inexperienced in, inward joys ; in short, a soul like mine, make the least pretension to such a degree of grace.

2. Nevertheless, to such a one I will point out the position in regard to this saving grace which is befitting to him. Let him not have the rashness to lift himself so high as to the lips of the Divine Bridegroom, but let him, with holy fear, lie with me at the Feet of that Lord so severe ; let him, like the publican, tremble nor dare to lift up his eyes unto heaven (Luke xviii. 13), for fear lest his eyes, accustomed only to earthly gloom, should be dazzled by the light of heaven, should be blinded by its glory; and, being stricken by the unaccustomed splendour of that majesty, should be whelmed anew in a still deeper darkness. It is not for thee, O sinful soul, whosoever thou art, to regard that place and posture, in which the woman that had been a sinner and became a saint, laid down her sins and put on the garment of holiness, as being vile or contemptible. There the Ethiopian changed her skin, and, being restored to a new whiteness, was enabled to respond with as much confidence as truth to those who reproached her : Daughters of Jerusalem, though black, I am comely (Cant. i. 4). If you wonder how she was enabled to do this, or by what merits she obtained it, I will answer in a few words. She wept bitterly ; she drew long sighs of remorse from the depths of her soul ; her frame was convulsed with salutary sobs, and thus the deeply-seated poison was cast forth. The heavenly Physician came promptly to help ; for His Word runneth very swiftly (Ps. cxlvii. 15). Is not the Word of God a medicine ? It is so in truth, and a medicine strong and powerful, trying the very heart and reins ( Ps. vii . 10). For the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of the soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Heb. iv. 12). According to the example of this happy penitent, do thou also, O unhappy soul, prostrate thyself that thou mayst cease to be unhappy ; prostrate thyself even to the earth, embrace His Feet, appease them with kisses, bedew them with thy tears ; yet not that thou mayest wash them, but thyself ; and that thou mayest become one of that flock of sheep newly shorn, which come up from the laver of cleansing (Cant. iv. 2). And do not have the boldness to lift up your countenance suffused with tears of shame and grief, until you hear, you also, the words of absolution, Thy sins are forgiven thee (Luke vii. 36-48) ; until you hear, Arise, arise, O captive daughter of Zion ; shake thyself from the dust ( Is. lii. 2 ) .

3. Having then imprinted this first kiss upon the Feet, do not presume immediately to lift up thyself to the kiss of His Lips, but let the kiss of His Hand be for thee a gradation or second step by which to reach the higher blessedness. Take notice of the reason for this. If Jesus shall have said to me, Thy sins areforgiven thee ; what shall even this avail me if I do not cease to commit sin ? If I have put off my tunic, and then put it on again, what doth it profit ? Or if I wash my feet and then defile them anew, will it avail anything that they were once washed ? Long have I lain in the filthy mire, wallowing in every kind of vice ; but if, after escaping therefrom, I shall unhappily fall back into it, my state will undoubtedly be worse than it was at first. For I remember how He who healed me spake to me thus : Behold, thou art made whole : sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee (John v. 14). What is needed, then, is that He who gave me a goodwill to repent for the past, should also add to this another gift of grace, whereby I may abstain from sin for the future, so that I may not again commit crime upon crime, and my last state be worse than the first. Woe to me if He, without whom I can do nothing, shall suddenly withdraw His supporting Hand from me, even in the midst of my penitence ! Nothing, I repeat, am I capable of doing without Him ; neither to repent of the past, nor to keep myself from fresh sin. I bear in mind the counsel which the Wise Man gives : ' Do not make a vain repetition in thy prayer ' (Ecclus. vii. 14). And I tremble at the decree which the Judge has it in mind to pronounce against the tree which bringeth not forth good fruit ( Matt. iii. 10) ; I confess that on this account I shall not be wholly content with the former grace, by which I am enabled to be repentant for my former sins, unless I shall have received a second to make me bring forth fruits worthy of penitence, and thenceforth not to return to my former pollution.

4. This, then, remains for me to ask and to receive before I presume to approach the higher and more sacred degrees of blessedness. I do not desire to reach the highest point suddenly, but to proceed towards it by gradual steps . For inasmuch as the shamelessness of a sinner is displeasing to God, in the same degree is the modesty of a penitent pleasing to Him. Thou mayst the sooner please Him, if thou shalt observe a becoming measure in thy desires, nor seek for thyself the higher degrees of privilege. From the foot to the lips the ascent is long and difficult, and it would be wanting even in reverence to pass from one straight to the other. What ! shalt thou, still marked with recent duststains, touch those sacred Lips ? and having been but yesterday drawn out of the mire, aspire to-day to the glory of His Countenance ? For thee there must be a mid-stage of preparation ; and that is by His Hand ; it shall first cleanse thee from thy stains, and then it shall lift thee up. But how shall it raise thee up ? By bestowing upon thee that which shall be a ground for aspiring higher : the grace of continence, the fruits worthy of penitence, which are works of piety. These shall lift thee from the dunghill, and infuse into thee the hope of higher things. In receiving this gift, then assuredly thou shouldest kiss the Lord's Hand-that is, give the glory to Him, not to thyself. Give it to Him once, and yet again : the first time because of His pardon to your sins ; the second, because of the virtues He has bestowed. For otherwise, what reply have you to make to such reproaches as these : What hast thou that thou hast not received ? Now if thou hast received it, why dost thou glory, as though thou hadst not received it ? ( 1 Cor. iv. 7) .

5. After you have, then, made in those two kisses, a double proof of the Divine condescension, perhaps you may be so bold as to enter upon the endeavour to reach still higher and more sacred things. For in proportion as you grow in grace, your confidence also will augment, you will love more fervently, and knock at the door with more assurance of success, to seek that in which you feel you are wanting : for to him who knocks it shall be opened. And to you, when in such a disposition of mind and soul, I believe there will not be refused that kiss, the loftiest and most sacred of all, which contains in itself at once a supreme condescension and a sweetness ineffable. This is the way, and this the order, which must be followed. In the first place, we fall at the feet of the Lord, and lament before Him who has made us, the faults and sins which we ourselves have committed. In the second, we seek His helping Hand to lift us up, and to strengthen our feeble knees that we may stand upright. In the third, when we have, with many prayers and tears, obtained these two former graces, then at length we perhaps venture to lift our eyes to that Countenance full of glory and majesty, for the purpose not only to adore, but (I say it with fear and trembling) to kiss, because the spirit before us is Christ the Lord, to whom, being united in a holy kiss, we are by His marvellous condescension made to be one spirit with Him.

6. Rightly, O Lord Jesus, yea, rightly has my heart declared to Thee : My face hath sought Thee : Thy face, Lord, will I seek (Ps. xxvi.. 8). Thou hast made me to hear Thy mercy in the morning when I lay prone in the dust, and kissing the prints of Thy sacred steps, Thou didst pardon the evil of my former life. Then, as the day of my life went on, Thou hast rejoiced the soul of Thy servant ; since, by the kiss of Thy Hand, Thou hast accorded unto me the grace to live well. And now what remains, O good Lord, unless that in deigning to admit me, in the fulness of Thy Light, in the fervour of my spirit, to the kiss of Thy Divine Lips, Thou shouldest fulfil me with the joy of Thy Countenance ? Teach me, O most dear and tranquil One, teach me where Thou dost dwell, and at noonday dost repose. Brethren, it is good for us to be here ; but lo ! the evil of the day calls us away. They, indeed, who just now announced an arrival of guests, oblige me to break off, rather than conclude, a subject so agreeable. I go, then, to the care of these guests, lest anything be wanting in the discharge of those duties of charity of which we speak, and lest we should hear those words spoken of us : They say, and do not ( Matt. xxiii. 3). Do ye in the meantime pray that God will make the free will offerings of my mouth acceptable unto Him, that they may be to your edification, and to the honour and glory of His Name.

THE sermon of yesterday was occupied in describing the threefold progress of the soul, under the name of three kisses. That, I dare say, is still in your remembrance. In the discussion of to-day I propose to continue the same subject in so far as God in His goodness shall deign to assist my poor powers. I said, if you remember, that those were given severally to the Feet, to the Hand, and to the Lips of Christ our Saviour. In the first are dedicated the first fruits of our conversion ; the second shall be accorded to those who are making progress in holiness ; but the third is rarely experienced, and by those only who are perfect. From this alone, which is placed last, it is that the Scripture which we have undertaken to expound takes its point of departure, and for that reason I have joined the other two to it. Whether that was needful you will judge ; but I think that the very nature of the subject suggested, and indeed required, that course. And I think that you will observe also this, that the Bride desired to indicate a distinction when she said, using a phrase very unusual, ' of His Mouth. Why, when it would have sufficed simply to make her request, should she have added expressly and precisely beyond the usual phrase and manner of speaking, words which show that the grace for which she asked was not the only one, but was the highest ? When the Evangelist relates how the false Apostle betrayed our Lord with a kiss, he says, ' And he kissed Him' (Mark xiv. 45) ; nor does he add ' with his mouth,' or ' of his mouth. ' It is thus that everyone expresses himself either in writing or speech. There are, then, three states or modes of souls sufficiently well-known at least to those who have experienced them, when, as far as is possible in these weak bodies of ours, they are enabled to take knowledge either of the pardon which they have received for their evil actions, or the grace which has enabled them to do good ones ; or lastly, of the very presence of Him who is their patron and benefactor.

2. Let me repeat to you more plainly why I have spoken of the first and the second of these under this name. We all know that a kiss is a sign of peace. Now if, as the Scripture declares, our iniquities separate between us and our God (Is. lix. 2), let that be taken away which interposes between us, and then there is peace. When, then, we make satisfaction so that we are reconciled with God by the taking away of the sin which separates us, what else can I call the pardon which we receive except a kiss of peace ? Now, that kiss cannot be imprinted elsewhere than upon the Feet ; for the satisfaction, which is the remedy for a transgression of the law of God, which arose from pride, ought to be humble and shame-faced.

3. But when we are endowed with fuller grace, and in a manner, so to speak, more familiar, and so are enabled to lead a life purer and more worthy of God, we begin to lift up our heads from the dust with greater confidence, in order to kiss, as is usual, the hand of our benefactor, provided that we seek, not our own glory, but that of our Creator, in the good things we have received, and provided also that we ascribe His gifts to Him, and not to ourselves. For otherwise, if instead of glorying in the Lord you glory in yourself, you are plainly shown to be kissing, as it were, your own hand, not the Hand of God ; and this, according to the saying of the blessed Job, is a very great iniquity, and the denial of God who is above (Job xxxi. 28). If, then, following the testimony of Scripture, to seek one's own glory is, as it were, to kiss one's own hand, it follows that he who gives glory to God is said, not unfitly, to kiss the Hand of God. We see that it is thus even among men, that slaves are accustomed to kiss the feet of their offended lords when they are asking pardon of them for their faults ; and those who are poor kiss the hands of the rich when they have received assistance from them.

4. But as God is a Spirit, a pure Substance, not distinguished into parts or members, there will be, perhaps, someone who cannot at all accept what I have said of Him ; but will demand of me that I should show to him the Hands and the Feet of God, and so justify what I have said upon the kiss of the hand or foot. But if I, in my turn, shall become a questioner, what will he reply to me with regard to the mention in Scripture of ' the kiss of His Mouth ' ? For these [parts of a body] either exist together, or if the one is wanting, the others are wanting also. We say, then, that God has a Mouth, wherewith ' He teaches man knowledge ' ; and a Hand, wherewith ' He giveth food to all flesh ' ; and Feet, for which ' the earth is His footstool, ' and at which the sinners of the earth ' fall down low upon their knees . ' All these, then, God has ; but in making that assertion, we reason, as it were, from effects, for it is not by His Nature that He has these. A confession, full of penitence and shame, finds in God that at which [the sinner] may fall down and humble himself, an ardent devotion finds a source of refreshment and renewal, and a joyful contemplation an object of safe repose in its ecstasies. He who governs all things is all things to all His creatures ; yet, to speak with accuracy, He is not any of all these things. If we consider Him as He is in Himself, He dwelleth in the Light that no man can approach unto ( 1 Tim. vi. 16 ), His ' peace passeth all understanding ' (Phil. iv. 7 ), His wisdom is infinite (Ps. cxlvii . 5), there is no end of His greatness (Ps. cxlv. 3), and no man can see Him and live (Exod. xxxiii. 20). Not that He is far from everyone of us, for He is the Principle of Being (Esse) of all things that exist, and without Him they would fall back into nothingness ; but yet, to make a statement still more wonderful, though nothing is more certainly present than He, nothing is more incomprehensible. For what can be more surely present to everything than its own Principle of Being ? Yet what can be more incomprehensible to each individual than the Principle of Being of all things ? But when I say that God is the Principle of Being to all things, it is not that they are the same being as He; but it is that all things proceed from Him, subsist by Him, and are in Him (Rom. xi. 36). He, then, that has created all things is the Principle of Being to all things created ; but with regard to Cause and Principle, not with regard to substance. In such a manner it is that the Divine Majesty condescends to all His creatures. He is assuredly the Principle of Being to them all-He is life to all that live ; and, furthermore, He is Light to them who have the use of reason, Virtue to them who use their reason rightly, and, finally, He is Glory to them who triumph [in the probation of this life].

5. Finally, in the creation of all these things, in governing them, administering them, in giving them motion and growth, in renewing and in strengthening them, He has no need of any bodily instruments, since He created all things, both bodies and spirits, by His mere word. Souls have need of bodies and of bodily senses, by which they become known the one to the other, and are enabled to act the one upon the other. But it is not thus with the Almighty God ; for from the volition of His Will alone follows promptly the effect He bids, whether it be in the creation of things, or in the ordering of them according as He shall please. What He wills He carries into effect, and to the fullest extent of His good pleasure ; nor in performing it has He any need to employ bodily organs. What ! do you suppose that to have relation with those things which He has Himself created He requires the assistance of bodily senses ? Of all things that exist, nothing hides itself or escapes from His light, which is everywhere present ; nor has He any need, in order to take knowledge of anything, to make use of the ministry of any sense. Not only does He have knowledge of all things without Himself having body, but also without body He makes Himself known to those who are of pure heart. I am repeating the same truth in different words that you may understand it the better ; but as the little time remaining is insufficient for finishing the subject, it will perhaps be better to defer its farther consideration until the morrow.

FOUR orders of spirits are known to you-that of the animals, our own, the angelic, and His who created all these. To each of these a body is necessary, either for its own sake or for the sake of others, or for both of these reasons, excepting only that One to whom every creature, whether corporeal or spiritual, justly bears witness and says : Thou art my God : my goods are nothing unto Thee (Ps. xvi. 2 ) . As to the first order, that of animals, it is plain that it has such need of a body that it cannot in any wise exist without one ; for when the creature dies, that [class of] spirit ceases at once both to be the source. of vivifying power, and itself to live. But we live on after the body dies ; still, there is no access open to us, except through the body, to those things whereby we live in happiness. He had perceived this who said : The invisible things of God are clearly seen, being understood by those things which are made ( Rom. i . 20). For, indeed, those things which are made—that is, corporeal and visible things-unless they be perceived by the instrumentality of the body, do not come to our knowledge at all. The spiritual creature, therefore, which we are, must necessarily have a body, without which, indeed, it can by no means obtain that knowledge which is the only means of attaining to those things, to know which constitutes blessedness. If anyone object to me the case of little children who have been made regenerate [in Baptism], that should they go forth from the body without knowledge of things corporeal, they are believed to pass, nevertheless, into a life of blessedness, I reply, briefly, that it is grace, not nature, which confers this upon them. And what have I, now that I am discoursing of things in the course of nature, to do with a miracle of God ?

2. Again, that heavenly spirits have need of bodies is proved by that true and plainly Divine declaration : Are they not ministering spirits, sentforth to minister unto them who shall be heirs of salvation ? (Heb. i. 14) . But how can they without bodies fulfil their ministry, especially towards those who are living in bodies ? Then, again, it is a property of bodies only to move about, and to pass from one place to another, a thing which angels are shown to do by well known and undoubted authority. Hence it is that they were seen by the patriarchs, that they entered in unto them and ate with them, and washed their feet. Thus spirits both of the higher and the lower order require bodies of their own, but for this reason only, that they may render assistance, not that they may receive it .

3. But the lower animals, though under an obligation by their creation to perform service, are able to help only in matters of a temporal and corporeal kind, and therefore the spirit which is in an animal passes away with time and dies with the body. He which is but a servant does, indeed, abide not in the house for ever (John viii. 35), although those who use him will apply all the profit ofhis temporal servitude to the gaining of things eternal. But the angel performs these duties of benevolence with an entire freedom of spirit, showing himself to men, as to his future fellow citizens and coheirs of heavenly blessedness, a prompt and ready minister of good things to come. Both orders, then, without doubt, need bodies, that they may render service ; the one [the animal ) that he may serve us from obligation, the other [the angel] that he may assist us from benevolence. As for themselves, I do not see what advantage they derive from bodies, at least, with regard to eternity. The irrational spirit participates in the knowledge of things temporal by means of its body, nevertheless its body never assists it to such a point that, by the corporeal and sensible objects with which it is thus brought into connection, it should be led onwards to the knowledge of things spiritual and intelligible. Yet, as we know, it helps, by its service of body and, in time, to the attainment of such things, those who, using this world as though they used it not, transfer every use of temporal things to the profit of things eternal.

4. Moreover, the heavenly spirit, without any help from the body, or perception of those things which are felt by means of the body, is able to apprehend the highest things, and to penetrate the most secret, by its native force and the kinship of its nature to them. Was not this the Apostle's meaning when, having said, ' The invisible things of God are clearly seen, being understood by the things which are made,' he added forthwith, by the creature of the world ' ?1 Surely because it is not so with the creature of heaven. For what the spirit clothed in flesh and a sojourner upon earth strives laboriously, by slow degrees and by little and little, to attain from the consideration of things presented to his senses, that the dweller in the heavens can most swiftly and easily reach by his natural [ingenita] fineness and loftiness of perception, without help from bodily senses or from any limb or organ, nor yet as instructed by the contemplation of any material thing. Why should such a spirit search among corporeal things for spiritual meanings and spiritual truths which he reads in the Book of Life without contradiction, and understands without difficulty ? Why should he labour in the sweat of his face to thrash grain, to press wine from grapes and oil from olives, who has enough and to spare of all ready to his hand ? Who would beg his food at the houses of others that has abundance of bread in his own? Who would dig a well and seek for veins of water in the bowels of the earth if a living spring of limpid waters gushed up for him spontaneously ? Neither the brutish spirit nor the angelic, therefore, are assisted in any wise by their bodies in the requirement of those things which render a spiritual being blessed ; the former because it is unequal by the dulness of its nature even to the compre hension of them, the latter because it so excels in glory and power that it has no need of such help.

5. Now, the spirit of man holds a certain middle place between the highest and the lowest, and it is plain that a body is necessary to it for each of these two purposes, so that without one it can neither help others nor be helped itself. For, to say nothing of the other members of the body and their offices, how, I ask, could you either instruct a hearer if you had not a tongue, or if yourself without ears could you comprehend the words of an instructor ?

6. Since, then, without the assistance of a body neither the brutish spirit can perform the duties of its servile condition, nor the angelic and heavenly spirit can discharge its ministry of kindness, nor, again, can the rational soul be of service to his neighbour, nor, indeed, to himself, in regard to his salvation, it is plain that every created spirit has need of a body, whether simply to help others, or at once to help and to be helped. What if there are some animals which, as far as use is concerned, are unprofitable and altogether unadapted to the supplying of human necessities ? They are good to look at, if not to use ; and are of more advantage to the hearts of those who behold them, than to the bodies of those who make use of them. Though they appear to be injurious, and even dangerous to human safety in this world, still their bodies are not without that which works together for good to those who, according to the Divine purpose, are called to be saints. And although they be not beneficial by affording us good, or by rendering to us service, they are so, assuredly, by affording a subject on which to exercise the intellect, according to that helpful system of mental and spiritual training which is common to all who have the gift of reason, and by which ' the invisible things ofGod are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.' For both the devil and his satellites, whose intention is always malignant, are ever desirous to do injury ; but God forbid that they should succeed against those who are aiming at good, of whom it is said : Who is he that will harm you, ifye be followers of that which is good? (1 Peter iii . 13) ; yea, rather, they are of service to them, though against their will, and work together for good to those who are good.

7. On the other hand, whether the bodies of angels be natural to them, as those of men are to them ; and whether they are animal bodies, as [those of] men are, though immortal, which men are not yet ; whether, also, they change those bodies, and give to them such form and figure as they choose, when they desire to become visible ; rendering them as dense and solid as they will, although they are in reality subtle and impalpable, and imperceptible to our sight, because of the fineness and purity of their nature and substance ; or whether, again, remaining in their simple spiritual substance, they put on bodily forms when they require them, and when their need of them is over suffer them to dissolve again into the same material out of which they were taken : these are points upon which I am unwilling to reply.1 The Fathers appear to have held diverse opinions respecting them. I do not see any clear reason for teaching the one or the other, and confess that I do not know. I do not think, moreover, that a knowledge of these things will assist you much in your spiritual progress.

8. Know only this one fact, that no created spirit can by itself reach unto our minds—that is, supposing it to have no assistance from either our body or its own. No spirit can so mix with or be poured into us that we should become by the participation of it either learned or more learned, either good or better. No angel, no soul, is capable of possessing itself of me in such a manner ; nor am I capable of possessing any other. Nor have the angels themselves any such power with regard to each other [ i.e. , without bodily organs] . This prerogative is reserved for the supreme Spirit, who is not limited by time or space, and who alone, when He imparts knowledge either to angel or man, does not need that we should have ears to hear, or that He should have a mouth to speak. By His own inherent power He pervades our souls ; by His own inherent power He is made manifest ; and being Himself a pure Spirit, He is apprehended by the pure. He alone has no need of any person or thing ; He alone is sufficient, both to Himself and to all, by His Almighty Power alone.2 1 St. Bernard propounds the same doubt in ' De Consideratione, ' Bk. v. , c. 5 . Among the Fathers and chief Doctors of the Church there was great difference of opinion upon this point : some affirming that Angels are incorporeal (bodiless) ; others, and not a few, denying this, so that the Master of the Sentences, Bk. ii . , distinct. 8, has not ventured to define anything in face of this variety of opinions. I see that St. Augustine has spoken doubtfully upon this matter, but yet rather inclines to the view that Angels have bodies. For as he had been imbued with the Platonic teaching, he elsewhere mentions the opinion of the Platonists respecting the bodies of Angels in such a way as that he appears to agree with it (' De Civitate Dei, ' Bk. viii. , c. 14-16). And in other passages he frequently calls Angels living beings, and assigns bodies to them. In ' Enchiridion' (c. 59) he says that the question as to the bodies of Angels is a very difficult one. There is not space to point out other passages ; Estius has noted a great many in Sentences, Bk. ii. , distinct.

8. At the present time it appears certain, and the opinion is approved by all, that Angels are incorporeal ; that is to say, have not bodies united to them by their nature. (See St. Thomas, ' Summa, ' part i. , q. 50, art. 1 ; and q. 51 , art. I and 2. ) Whether this is a part of the faith or no is a question on which all are not agreed. (See Estius, loco citato. ) Sixtus of Sienna ( Biblioth. Sanct. , ' Bk. v. , annot. 8), commends St. Bernard's modesty in confessing ignorance and not hazarding an opinion on this question. 2 St. Bernard treats of this question rightly in ' De Consideratione ' ( Bk. v. , cv. 12) : ' An Angel is influential by the good thoughts which he suggests in us, not by the good which he works in us ; he exhorts us to good, but does not create itinus. God is in us in such a way that He affects our soul expressly, that He pours into it His gifts, or rather is Himself poured into our soul, and causes us to have union and participation with and in Him, in so much that a certain one has not feared to say that He is one Spirit with our spirit ( 1 Cor. vi. 17). An Angel, then, is with the soul, God is in the soul ; the former dwells with it under the same roof, but God is with it as its life.'

9. Yet He works effects unbounded and unnumbered by the creatures corporeal or spiritual which are subject to Him ; but as commanding them, not as entreating their aid. For example, He has at this moment employed my tongue to do His work, that is, to instruct you ; whereas He could undoubtedly have done it far more easily and sweetly. But this is through His indulgence, not through His indigence. In your spiritual progress He desires not a relief for Himself but the acquiring of merit by me. This every man who is doing any good needs to know, lest he should glory in himself, and not in the Lord, with regard to the good works of the Lord. There are those who do good without intending it, as an evil man or an evil angel. And in this case it is certain that the good which is done by his means is not done on His account, seeing that no good done can be of advantage to an unwilling doer of it. It is then only a dispensation which is entrusted to him. But (I know not how or why) we feel the good done by an evil minister to be more grateful and pleasant ; and that is the reason why God sometimes does good to the just by the means of evil men, not that He needs their assistance in doing good.

10. As for those creatures which have neither reason nor sense, who can doubt that God has still less need of them ? But when even they concur in the performance of some good work, then it appears how all things serve Him who can justly say, The world is Mine, and the fulness thereof ( Ps. 1. 12). Assuredly, seeing that He knows the means best adapted to ends, He does not in the service of His creatures which are in bodies seek efficacy, but suitability. Suppose, then, that the ministry of such creatures is generally made use of in carrying on the various works of Divine Providence-as, for example, in the showers falling to vivify the seeds, or to increase the crops, or to ripen the fruits-what need of a body, I ask, has He to whom all bodies whatever, whether heavenly or earthly, are known to yield instant obedience ? Clearly He, who finds no body alien to Himself, would find a body of His own superfluous. But if I tried to include in the present discourse all that occurs to me to be said upon this subject it would exceed its proper limits, and perhaps would overtax the strength of some of you, therefore I reserve for another occasion what remains unsaid on this. 1 Compare what is said upon the same subject in the treatise Concerning Grace and Free Will ( c. xiii. , n. 44, 45) . THE SUPREME AND INFINITE SPIRIT 29

In order that this sermon may be continuous with that which went before it, let me remind you of what was last said, that the Supreme and Infinite Spirit, and He alone, has no need of the help of any body or of the agency of any bodily organ to do whatever He wills to do. We have, then, no difficulty in saying that as God alone is truly immortal, so He alone is truly incorporeal, because He alone, of all spirits, is so raised above the entire nature of a body, and transcends it to such a degree, that He has no need of its ministry in any of His works, but when it so pleases Him, acts by the sole Fiat of His Will, and thus performs whatever is His good pleasure. It is that Divine Majesty alone, therefore, which has no need of any bodily organization, neither on its own account nor for the sake of others, because to Its omnipotent bidding obedience is swiftly rendered ; every high thing bends before it, every obstacle yields, every created thing submits, and this without the intervention or help of any creature, corporeal or spiritual. He teaches or He warns without a tongue ; He gives or withholds without the use of hands ; without feet He runs, and comes to the succour of those who perish .

2. Thus He was wont to do with our fathers in former ages. Men felt a continual stream of benefits, but they did not know who was their Benefactor. By His strength He did indeed order all things from the height even unto the depth ; but as He at this same time disposed them sweetly and gently, His action, though perpetual, was unfelt by men. In the good gifts of the Lord they rejoiced, but the Lord of Sabaoth was unknown to them, because all His judgments were calm and tranquil. From Him were men, but they were not with Him ; by Him they lived, but not for Him; it was from Him that they had any wisdom, but they did not use it to gain the knowledge of Him ; they were insensate, ungrateful, and altogether alienated from Him. Thus at length it came about that they no longer attributed their being, their life, their reason, to their Creator, but to nature, or even (which was still more utterly unreasonable) to chance ; while there were many who attributed not a few of the good things which came to them to their own labour and skill. How great praise these seducing spirits thus arrogated to themselves ! How much was given to the sun and moon ! how much attributed to earth and to water ! Even things which the hand of man had made, plants, shrubs, and the commonest of seeds, were honoured as divinities.

3. Alas ! it is thus that men have degraded the object of their worship, and changed their glory into the similitude of a calf that eateth hay (Ps. cvi. 20). And God had pity upon their errors ; He deigned to come forth from the clouds and darkness of His holy mountain, and to set His tabernacle in the light of the sun ( Ps. xviii. 6) . To those who knew only the flesh, He offered His Flesh, in order to teach them by it to know also the Spirit. For whilst He was in the Flesh, He made use of the Flesh indeed, but to do by it, not the works of the flesh, but the works of God ; commanding nature, fixing and rendering certain the uncertainty of chance, rendering the wisdom of men foolishness, and breaking down the tyranny of the demons, and thus plainly manifested that it was He by whom the same wonders were worked in earlier ages also. He did, 1 repeat, in the flesh and by means of the flesh actions of power, plainly miraculous; He spake words of salvation, He endured cruel indignities ; and yet He showed evidently that it was He who had created the world by His power, sovereign, though invisible ; who ruled it by His wisdom, and protected it in His love and mercy. Lastly, when He preached the Gospel to those ungrateful ones, when He gave signs and wonders to those who were unbelieving, when He prayed even for those who crucified Him, did He not clearly declare Himself to be that High and Lofty One, who, with His Father, makes His sun to shine daily upon the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain upon the just and upon the unjust ? ( Matt. v. 45). As He Himself said : If I do not the works ofMy Father, believe Me not (John x. 37).

4. Behold Him ! He who in a deep adorable silence imparts eternal wisdom to the angels in heaven, He in the Flesh opens His Mouth and teaches His disciples upon the mount. See how the leper is healed at the mere touch of His Hands, how blindness is dispersed, hearing restored, the silent tongue set free, the disciple about to be whelmed in the deep caught by the hand and saved : and can you fail to recognise that great Being to whom David had said long before : Thou openest Thine Hand and satisfiest the desire of every living thing (Ps. cxlv. 16) ; and again, Thou openest Thine Hand and they all are filled with good (Ps. civ. 28). See how the woman that was a sinner, now a penitent and upon her knees at His Feet, hears Him say : Thy sins are forgiven ( Luke vii. 48), and recognises Him of whom she may have read what had been written many ages before : The devil shall go forth from before His Feet (Hab. iii. 5, Vulg. ). For where sin is remitted, there without doubt, the devil is driven forth from the heart of the sinner. Therefore it is that He speaks in general terms of all true penitents : Now is the judgment of this world; now shall the Frince of this world be cast out (John xii. 31 ), because God forgives sins to him who humbly confesses them ; and thus the devil loses the dominion which he had usurped in the sinner's heart.

5. Lastly, He walks with the Feet of His Flesh upon the waves (Matt. xiv. 25) ; He of whom the Psalmist had sung before as yet He was incarnate : Thy way is in the sea, and Thy path in the great waters ( Ps. lxxvii. 19). That is to say, Thou shalt tread under foot the swelling hearts of the proud, and repress the disordered desires of carnal men; shalt render the ungodly righteous, and lower the pride of the arrogant. Yet because He does this invisibly, the carnal man does not recognize whose Hand it is that brings it to pass. Wherefore also it is that the Psalmist adds : And Thy Footsteps are not known. Hence also the Almighty Father saith to the Son : Sit Thou at My Right Hand until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool (Ps. cx. 1), that is, Until I shall render all those who despise Thee subject to Thy will, whether unwillingly and to their destruction, or gladly and to their happiness. Now, since the flesh was not capable of comprehending this, which is a work of the Spirit (for the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God ( 1 Cor. ii . 14), it was needful that the sinner should prostrate herself in the body, kneeling upon mortal knees, and with mortal lips imprinting a kiss upon the Feet of the Redeemer, and thus receive the pardon of her sins. Thus is this change which the Right Hand of the Most High hath wrought (Ps. lxxvii. 10), by which He marvellously, yet invisibly, justifies the unrighteous, made apparent even to carnal men.

6. But I must not omit to refer to those spiritual Feet of God which it behoves the penitent, first of all, in a spiritual and mystical sense, to kiss. I know the inquiring temper of your minds, which will not, with its own goodwill, pass over the least detail without thorough examination. Nor is it a matter to be neglected as of small importance to know what is meant by the Feet of God so frequently referred to in Scripture. At one time He is represented as standing, as in this : We will worship in the place where His Feet have stood ( Ps. cxxxii. 7) ; at another as walking, as in the verse : Iwill dwell in them and walk in them (Lev. xxvi. 12, and 2 Cor. vi. 16) ; at another even as running, as here : He rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race (Ps. xix. 5). If it seemed right to the Apostle to speak of the Head of Christ as the Deity ( 1 Cor. xi. 3), then I think that we may not unfitly speak of His Feet as the Humanity, and call the one mercy, the other judgment. These two words are well known to you, and if you reflect, many passages of Scripture will occur to you in which they are each so employed. That God has taken the Foot of mercy, in assuming the Flesh which He united with Himself, is taught in the Epistle to the Hebrews, whence we learn that Christ was tempted in all points like as we are, though without sin, that He might be compassionate and merciful ( Heb. iv. 15). And as for that other, which has been named the foot ofjudgment, does not He who is God and Man plainly signify that it belongs to Himself as Incarnate, where He declares that the Father hath given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man ? ( John v. 27).

7. With these two Feet, then, fitly conjoined under the one Divine Head, it was that the invisible Emmanuel was born of a woman, made under the Law, was seen upon earth, and had converse among men ( Baruch iii. 37). It is, again, on these two Feet that He passes to and fro even now, but spiritually and invisibly, benefiting and healing all those who are oppressed by the devil. On these, I repeat, He traverses the souls of those vowed to His service, enlightening and penetrating constantly the hearts and reins of the faithful. These are, it may be, the legs of the Bridegroom which are so strikingly commended by the Bride in a later passage of this book, where she likens them, if I do not mistake, to pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold ( Cant. v. 15). And this is very beautifully phrased, for it is in the Incarnate wisdom of God, which is represented as gold, that mercy and truth have met together (Ps. lxxxv. 10), and elsewhere it is said that all the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth (Ps. xxv. 10).

8. Happy is the soul in which the Lord Jesus has once set these His Feet ! There are two signs by which you may recognise the soul in which this is the case, and such a soul bears of necessity the prints of those Divine footsteps. These are fear and hope : the one bearing the print ofjudgment, the other of mercy. With reason it is that God taketh pleasure in them that fear Him, in them that hope in His mercy (Ps. cxlvii. 11) ; since the fear of the Lord is the beginning ofwisdom (Prov. i. 7) ; hope, the progress in it ; and charity its consummation and perfectness. And since that is the case, the benefit (functus) is of no small value which is derived from that first kiss2 which is imprinted upon the Feet of Christ, provided only that neither the one nor the other of them be neglected. For if you are deeply touched with grief for your sins and with fear of God's judgment, then you have pressed your lips upon the footprints of truth and of judgment. If you temper that fear and that grief by a consideration of the Divine goodness, and by a hope of obtaining pardon, then you may know that you are embracing the foot of mercy. But to embrace the one without the other is not expedient, for the remembrance of judgment alone precipitates the soul into the abyss of despair, and a deceptive assurance of mercy wherewith a mind flatters itself, generates a most pernicious security.

9. It has been given even to me, a miserable sinner, sometimes to sit at the Feet of the Lord Jesus, and to embrace now the one, now the other, with a devotion as full and complete as His benignity deigned to enable me to feel. But if it ever happened that, being pressed by the reproaches of conscience, I was forgetful of mercy, and attached myself too long to judgment, I was soon cast down by incredible fear and pitiable shame, and surrounded by the darkness of horror, so that trembling in the shadow, I could only cry : Who knoweth the power of Thine anger : even according to Thy fear, so is Thy wrath (Ps. xc. 11 ). But if, on the other hand, leaving that, I had embraced the other, the foot of Mercy, more than was meet, I was dissolved in negligence and indifference so great that I speedily became less earnest in prayer, less prompt in action, more inconsiderate in speech, more given to idle laughter-in short, less 1 Lit. mind, mens. 2 See Sermon IV. steady and stable in every part of my nature, whether of the inward or outward man. Therefore, having learned from that best of teachers, experience, I no longer dwell upon judgment alone, any more than upon mercy alone ; but unto Thee, O Lord, will I sing ofmercy and judgment (Ps. ci. 1). Those two sources of righteousness for ever I will not forget ; they shall both equally be my songs in the house of mypilgrimage ; until mercy having been exalted high above judgment, my unhappy condition shall cease and come to a full end, and the glory which shall be granted to me shall alone inspire my hymns of praise to Thee, without the least mingling of pain or grief, for ever.

I HAVE undertaken a new labour in inviting, of my own accord, your questioning. For, since on the first occasion I took pains to make clear to you, over and above indeed what was needed, the names and the meanings, spiritual and mystical, of the Feet of God, you are proceeding to inquire similarly what is the meaning of the Hand of God, which, as we said, was in the second place to be kissed. Well, I consent ; I will meet your wishes-nay, I will do more than you have asked, for I will show you not one Hand only, but two, and each bearing its distinct name. I call the one Liberality, and the other Force ; because God gives liberally, and preserves powerfully that which He has given. Now, he who is not ungrateful will , in recognising and confessing that God, as He is the liberal Bestower of all good things, so He is their powerful Preserver, will, I say, kiss each of these. Enough, I think, has been said of these two ; let us go on now to speak of the third.

2. Let Him kiss me withthe kisses ofHis Mouth. Who is it speaks these words ? It is the Bride. Who is the Bride ? It is the Soul thirsting for God. But I first specify the dispositions of men in various relations to each other, so that those which belong properly to a bride may appear more clearly. If a man is a slave, he fears the face of his lord ; if he is a hireling, he looks for wages from his lord's hand ; if a disciple, he gives attention to his teacher ; if a son, he renders honour to his father ; but she who asks this is held by the bond of love to him from whom she asks it. Of all the sentiments of nature, this of love is the most excellent, especially when it is rendered back to Him who is the principle and fountain of itthat is, God. Nor are there found any expressions equally sweet to signify the mutual affection between the Word of God and the soul as those of Bridegroom and of Bride ; inasmuch as between individuals who stand in such a relation to each other, all things are in common, and they possess nothing separate or divided. They have one inheritance, one dwelling-place, one table ; and they are, in fact, one flesh. On this account it is that a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife, and they shall be two in one flesh (Gen. ii. 24). A woman also on her part is bidden to forget her own people and her father's house, that her husband may have pleasure in her beauty (Ps. xlv. 11, 12). If, then, mutual love is especially befitting to a bride and bridegroom, it is not unfitly that the name of Bride is given to a soul which loves. It is a sign of her love that she makes this request. She asks neither for liberty, nor for wages, nor for an heritage, nor, finally, for knowledge, but only for this ; and she does this as a chaste and modest bride, who does not deny or dissimulate the sacred affection which she feels. Notice how abruptly she breaks into her discourse. She has a great favour to ask of one who is great, yet she does not have recourse, as is too often the case, to caresses or flatteries ; she does not wind her way to her request by gradual approaches. She employs no preface, nor makes any attempt to win goodwill or favour ; but her request bursts forth openly and abruptly out of the abundance of her heart, and, even, as it were, with a sort of effrontery.

3. Does it not appear to you that she wished to say : Whom have I in heaven but Thee, and there is none upon earth that I desire in comparison of Thee ( Ps. lxxiii. 25) ? Without doubt the love is chaste which seeks the object of its love alone, without care for anything he may possess. And that love is sacred which dwells not in fleshly concupiscence, but in purity of the spirit . That love is ardent which is so absorbed and, as it were, inebriated with its own affection that it loses all thought of the greatness of its object. What ! He looketh upon the earth, and it trembleth ( Ps. civ. 32 ), and from Him she presumes to ask this ? Is she inebriated ? Undoubtedly it is so with her ; and perhaps, when she burst forth thus passionately, she had come forth from the banqueting-house, into which, at a later time, she gloried so greatly to have been led (Cant. i. 3, and ii. 4). For this is what David also said of certain saints in addressing the Holy One : They shall be inebriated with the fatness of Thy House : and Thou shalt make them to drink ofthe rushing river of Thy pleasures (Ps. xxxvi. 8) . Oh, how great is the power of love ! how perfect the confidence which is felt under the influence of the Spirit of liberty. How abundantly manifest it is that perfect love casteth outfear ( 1 John iv. 18) !

4. It is, nevertheless, from a feeling of modesty and timidity that she directs her address, not to the Bridegroom Himself, but to others, as if He were not present. It is, indeed, a great thing that is asked, and there is every need that the petition should be accompanied with modesty, and that the petitioner should be recommended. That is wherefore she seeks, through the friends of her well-beloved and the dwellers in His house, to commend herself to Him. But who are these friends ? I believe that they are the holy angels who are present with human beings who pray, and offer to God their prayers and vows, since they are known to list up pure hands unto heaven without anger or variance. This is shown by the angel of Tobias, who said to Tobit : When thou didst pray, Idid bring the remembrance of thy prayers before the Holy One : and when thou didst bury the dead, I was with thee likewise (Tobit xii. 12, 15). I think you are sufficiently persuaded of that truth from other testimonies of the Scriptures also. Furthermore, that the angels deign to be present, and to associate themselves with the praises of those who sing Psalms, is shown with great plainness by the Psalmist : ' The chiefs ( principes) went before, and with them were joined the players upon stringed instruments : in the midst were the maidens who played the timbrel ' (Ps. lxviii. 25, Vulg. ). Wherefore he says also : ' In the presence of the angels will I sing praise unto Thee ' (Ps. cxxxviii. 1 , Vulg. ). On this account, I greatly regret that some of you are weighed down by heavy sleep during the sacred vigils. Such persons do not pay due reverence to the citizens of heaven, but, in the presence of the ' chiefs,' appear as men dead; whereas they are, on the other hand, touched by your vigilance when you are awake, and delight to assist at your solemn services. I fear lest, revolted by your sloth, they will some time or other withdraw with indignation, and that then each of you should begin thus late to say to God with a lamentable voice : Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me : Thou hast made me an abomination unto them ; and again : Lover and friend hast Thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness (Ps. lxxxviii. 8, 18) ; and again : My lovers and my friends stand alooffrom my sore, and they that seek after my life lay snaresfor me ( Ps. xxxviii. 11, 12). For if the good spirits thus depart from us, who will be able to sustain the attacks of evil spirits ? I say, then, to those who are in the habit of thus giving way to sleep : Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord negligently (Jer. xlviii. 10, Vulg. ). To them also saith, not I, but the Lord : Iwould thou wert cold or hot : so then, because thou art lukewarm, Iwill spew thee out of My Mouth (Apoc. iii. 15, 16). When, then, you are engaged (statis) in prayer, or the chanting of the Psalms, have some thought of your chiefs ; perform that in which you are occupied with reverence and according to the Rule, and you may glory in the thought that your angels always 1 Sixtus of Sienna ( ' Biblioth. ,' Bk. v. , annot. 216) makes the following observations upon this passage : ' Divines are in the habit of referring to words of St. Bernard in Sermon VII. in Cantic. to show that guardian Angels do sometimes abandon the charge of those of whom they have been given the care. ' Albertus Magnus, in the first volume of his ' Summa, quæs. 1-8, expounding this passage, says : ' Men are deserted by their Angel guardians, not as regards place or local guardianship, but only as regards power and efficacy ; but this is not because of any sloth on the part of the Angel, but is the fault of the man. ' The Saint was accustomed to say in a similar manner, that a sinner departs from God [and abides in] a region of unlikeness to Him, by distance not of place, but of merit ! behold the Face of the Father ( Matt. xviii. 10). They are, in fact, sent to perform their ministry for our benefit, who shall be heirs of salvation (Heb. i. 14) ; they bear to heaven our devotion, and bring back grace to us from thence. Let us take part in the functions of those with whom we are to be sharers in glory, that as in the mouth of babes and sucklings praise may be perfected (Ps. viii. 2). To them let us say : Singpraises unto our God, singpraises ; and let us hear their answering response : Sing praises, sing praises unto our King (Ps. xlvii. 6).

5. Associate yourselves, then, with the sweet singers of heaven to chant in common the praises of God, since you are yourselvesfellore'- citizens of the saints, and of the household of God; and Sing praises with understanding (Ps. xlvii. 7). As food is sweet in the mouth, so are Psalms in the heart. Only let the soul that is faithful and prudent grind them, as it were, between the teeth of his intelligence, for fear lest if they be swallowed in great fragments, and not masticated, the palate be defrauded of their sweetness, which is above honey and the honeycomb. Let us offer a honeycomb, as did the Apostles at the banquet of heaven, at the Table of the Lord ( Luke xxiv. 42) . Honey in the comb-that is, spiritual devotion in the letter of Scripture. The letter, says an Apostle elsewhere, killeth if it be swallowed down without the seasoning of the Spirit (2 Cor. iii. 6). If, then, with the Apostle, thou wilt sing with the Spirit, sing with the understanding also ( 1 Cor. xiv. 15), and then you, too, shall know the truth of that saying of Jesus : The words which I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life (John vi. 63) ; and also of that which we read as from the mouth of wisdom : My Spirit is sweeter than honey (Ecclus. xxiv. 20, Vulg. ).

6. Thus thy soul shall delight itself in fatness ; thy burnt offering shall be fat and perfect. Thus thou wilt placate the King ; thus thou wilt give pleasure to the chiefs of the heavenly hosts, and render all the dwellers above favourable to thee. At the sweet odours of thy devotion, they shall say of thee : Who is this that cometh up out of the wilderness like pillars ofsmoke, perfumed with myrrh andfrankincense, and with all powders of the merchant ? ( Cant. iii. 6). Replies the Psalmist : Theprinces ofJuda are their leaders, the princes of Zabulon and the princes of Naphthali ( Ps. lxviii. 27)-that is, the princes of those who praise God, who observe continence, and who love contemplation. For our princes know well that the praises of those who sing Psalms, the firmness of those who observe continence, and the purity of those who delight in contemplation, are accepted by their King ; and they have it much at heart to require from us the firstfruits of the Spirit, which are no other than the first and purest fruits of wisdom. For you know, brethren, that, in Hebrew, Juda signifies ' praising ' or ' confessing, Zabulon ' a settled or strong dwelling, ' and Naphthali ' a hind let loose ' (Gen. xlix. 21 ) ; for its leaps and bounds well typify the ecstasies of the speculative mind, and it is able to thread the closest thickets of forests, as those [of that disposition can penetrate] the greatest difficulties of meaning. We know, also, who it was that said : Whoso offereth the sacrifice of praise shall honour Me (Ps. 1. 23) .

7. But since ' praise is not seemly in the mouth of a sinner ' (Ecclus. xv. 9) , have you not extreme need of the virtue of continence, so that sin may not reign in your mortal body ? But continence has no merit before God when it seeks glory from man. Wherefore there is especial need of a pure intention, so that the mind craves to please God only, and is able to attach itself simply to Him. For to cleave to God is nothing else than to behold God ; and this is a singular felicity, and it is bestowed upon those only who are of a pure heart ( Matt. v. 8) . David had this pure heart, for he said to God, My soul has attached itself closely to Thee (Ps. lxiii. 8) ; and also, It is good for me to draw near to God (Ps. lxxiii. 28). In beholding God he was drawn near to Him ; and in drawing near to God he beheld Him. When, therefore, souls are in the continual exercise of these lofty virtues, the heavenly messengers converse frequently and familiarly with them, especially if they shall have perceived them to be frequent in prayer. Who shall accord unto me, O kindly chiefs of the heavenly hosts, the privilege of making known my requests before God by your means ? I do not say to God, for to Him the thoughts of man lie open, but before, and in the presence of, God ; that is to say, to those who are with God, the archangels (virtutibus), and those blessed ones who are delivered from the burden of the flesh. Who shall raise out of the dust, and free from the dunghill, a being as poor and as helpless as I am, that I may have a place among the princes, and sit upon a throne of glory ? I do not doubt that they receive with joy and affection in the palace him whom they have deigned to visit in a filthy hovel. After all, how can they, after having rejoiced in the conversion of a sinner, fail to acknowledge him in his exaltation ?

8. That is why I think that it is to them, who are the attendants and the companions of the Bridegroom, that the Bride communicates her prayer, and makes known the desire of her heart, in these words. And see with what familiarity and confidence the soul, sighing under the burden of the flesh, converses with the heavenly powers. She desires earnestly the affection of her Spouse ; she asks for that which she desires ; but she does not name Him whom she loves, inasmuch as she does not doubt of their knowledge, because she converses with them frequently of Him ; just as Mary Magdalene does not mention by name Him whom she sought, but said to Him whom she thought was the gardener, Sir, if thou have borne Him hence ( John xx. 15) . Of whom does she say Him ? It is not stated, because she believes that everyone knows Who it is that is not for one moment absent from her heart. So it is with the Bride. Speaking with the companions of her Spouse, as to her confidants, to whom she is aware that every thought of her heart is known, she does not mention the name of her Beloved, but bursts forth in these words. What is meant by this kiss I will not keep you longer to explain ; but you shall hear in the sermon of to-morrow what (in response to your prayers) shall be suggested to me by the goodness of Him who teacheth all things. For flesh and blood does not reveal this secret, but only He who searcheth the deep things of God ; that is, the Holy Ghost, who proceedeth from the Father and Son, with whom He liveth and reigneth for ever and ever. AMEN.

TODAY, in discharge of the promise made yesterday, I propose to consider the third and highest of these sacred mysteries. Listen very attentively to this hallowed secret, which is indeed of consummate sweetness, but which is rarely experienced, and is comprehended with difficulty. It seems to me (to go a little farther back still) that He who saith, No man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father but the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him (Matt. xi. 27), has here designated a certain kiss ineffable and unknown to any created being. For the Father loves the Son, and embraces Him with a love which is unlike every other the Supreme embracing His Equal, the Eternal His Coeternal, the One Being His Sole One. But He is united to the Son by an affection not less, proceeding from the Son, as He Himself attests when He says, That the world may know that I love the Father, arise, let us go hence ( John xiv. 31) ; that is, without doubt, to His Passion. Now, this cognition of mutual love between Him who Begets and Him who is Begotten, what is it but a kiss, as deeply mysterious as it is sweet ? Behold

2. I hold it for a thing certain that even the angelic creation is not admitted to the knowledge of that arcanum of Divine Love, which is at once so august and so sacred. And, in fact, St. Paul, knowing this, speaks of that peace which passeth all understanding (Phil. iv. 7 ), even that of angels. On this account even the Bride, although she may be so bold as to ask much, does not dare to ask for this, which is reserved for the Father only ; her request is a lesser one. the newly-made Bride receiving a new proof of the affection of her Bridegroom ; yet not that mentioned above. He breathed on them, says St. John, speaking of Jesus breathing upon His Apostles, that is, the primitive Church ; and said unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost ( John xx. 22). That was, without doubt, a kiss which He gave to them. What ? that physical breath ? Nay, but the invisible Spirit, who was thus communicated by the breathing of the Lord, so that by this very action it might be understood that He proceeds from the Son equally as from the Father. It is sufficient for the Bride if she receive the gift of grace from her Bridegroom, though it be not that highest grace of all. Let no one suppose that this is a small favour, or of little value ; for this signifies nothing else than to receive the inpouring of the Holy Spirit. For if the Father is rightly understood as bestowing the kiss, and the Son as receiving it, we shall not err in understanding by the kiss the Holy Spirit, inasmuch as He is the peace unalterable, the bond indissoluble, the indivisible love, the inviolable unity, between the Father and the Son.

3. It is, therefore, by the influence of the Holy Spirit, that the Bride has the boldness to ask trustingly, under this name or figure, that the inpouring of the Holy Spirit may be granted to her. She does indeed hold, as it were, a pledge, which deprives her request of any shadow of presumption. I mean the declaration of the Son, when He said : No man knoweth the Son but the Father ; neither knoweth any man the Father but the Son ; and then added, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him ( Matt. xi. 27). But the Bride has no doubt that if He wills to grant this knowledge to any, it will be to her. Therefore, she prays boldly that this may be given to her ; that is, that Holy Spirit, in whom both the Son is revealed, and the Father. For the One is not made known without the Other ; according to that saying : He that hath seen Me, hath seen My Father also ( John xiv. 9). Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father. But he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also ( 1 John ii. 23), from which it appears plainly that neither is the Father known without the Son, nor the Son without the Father. And it follows from this that he who said : This is life eternal, to know Thee, the only True God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent (John xvii. 3), placed the highest blessedness in the knowledge, not of either Divine Person, but of Each. Finally, we read that those who follow the Lamb have His Name, and the Name of His Father, written in their foreheads ; that is to say, that their knowledge of Each Divine Person is a glory to them.

4. But someone perhaps says : The knowledge of the Holy Spirit, then, is not necessary, since, when it is declared that life eternal consists in knowing both the Father and the Son, no mention is made of the Holy Spirit. That is true ; but how can anyone who knows perfectly the Father and the Son be ignorant of the Goodness of the One and of the Other ? And this Goodness is the Holy Spirit. For a man does not wholly know another man, as long as he is ignorant, whether the will of that other is good or evil. And we may add to this, that when it is said : This is life eternal, that they mightknow Thee, the only true God, andJesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent ; if mention be made of that mission as showing the goodness and benignity of the Father in deigning to send the Son, and that of the Son in willingly obeying, that proves that the speaker is not wholly silent respecting the Holy Ghost, since the goodness and grace of the Father and the Son are referred to, and Their Love and Goodness is the Holy Ghost.

5. When, therefore, the Bride is praying that this gift may be conferred upon her, her entreaty is for the inpouring of the grace of this threefold knowledge, as far as it can be experienced in this mortal body. But it is the Son of whom she entreats it, since it is the function of the Son to reveal it to whom He will. The Son reveals Himself then to whom He will, and He reveals also the Father. This revealing is doubtless made by the Holy Ghost ; for such is the sense of the words spoken by the Apostle : For God hath revealed [them] unto us by His Spirit ( 1 Cor. ii. 10). But in giving the Spirit by whom He reveals this knowledge, He reveals also the Spirit Himself ; in giving He reveals Him, and in revealing gives. Now, that revelation which is made by the Holy Ghost not only enlightens [the soul] to knowledge, but also enkindles it to love, as St. Paul says : The Love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us (Rom. v. 5). And therefore also perhaps it is not said of those who, when they knew God, glorified Him not as God, that their knowledge was an effect of the revealing of the Spirit, because when they had knowledge of God, they did not love Him ( Rom. i. 21) . It is true that you have : God hath showed it unto them (i. 19) ; but it is not added : ' By His Spirit,' lest those impious minds who were contented with the knowledge which puffeth up, and cared not for that which edifieth, should arrogate to themselves the having received the kiss which belongs to the Bride. Finally, the Apostle states by what means they had this knowledge : The invisible things of God are clearly seen, being understood by the things which are made ( 1. 20), whence it appears that they have not perfectly known Him for whom they had no love. For if they had known Him completely, they could not have overlooked that goodness which impelled Him to be born in the Flesh, and to die for our redemption. Listen, then, and learn what it was that had been revealed to them of God : His Eternal Power and Godhead (Ibid. ). You see that, exalting themselves in the presumption of their own spirit, and not under the influence of the Spirit of God, they wished to peer into those things which were great and sublime in God, and have failed to discern that God [Incarnate] was meek and lowly of heart. Nor is this wonderful, for we read that Behemoth, who is their head, scorns to cast his eye upon what is humble and low ; but beholdeth all high things (Job xli. 34). Whereas, on the contrary, David did not exercise himself in great matters, nor in things too highfor him (Ps. cxxxi. 1 ), lest the searcher out of glory should be overwhelmed with glory ( Prov. xxv. 27, VULG. ) .

6. And do you also, brethren, that you may conduct yourselves with prudence while searching out Divine mysteries, bear in mind the warning of the wise man : Seek not out the things that are too hard for thee, neither search the things that are above thy strength (Ecclus. iii. 21). Walk among those exalted subjects in the Spirit, and not in thy own judgment. The teaching of the HolySpirit does not sharpen curiosity, but kindles charity. Rightly thus does the Bride, when seeking Him whom her soul loveth, not trust herself to the judgment of the flesh, nor follow the futile reasonings of human curiosity, but, as here, prays for this Gift, that is, she invokes the Holy Spirit, so that through Him she may receive at once the love for knowledge, and the seasoning of grace to accompany it. Well is it said that the knowledge thus given is accompanied with love, since a kiss is the sign of love. But the knowledge which puffeth up, being without love, is not thus conveyed. Nor can they who have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge, arrogate this to themselves at all ; but this gift conveys both the one and the other of these graces ; both the light of knowledge and the unction of piety. For He is a Spirit of wisdom and knowledge ; and as a bee bears honey and wax, so He has in Himself both that which enkindles the light of knowledge, and that which infuses the savour of grace. Let not him who has understanding of the truth, but without love, nor him who loves, without understanding the truth, think that he has received that gift, for in it there is no place either for error or for lukewarmness. That is the reason why the Bride, in order to receive this twofold grace, presents her two lips ; I mean the reason full of intelligence, and the will full of love for heavenly wisdom; so that, being full of joy at having received an embrace so full and so perfect, she may have the happiness to hear : Grace is poured upon thy lips, therefore God hath blessed thee for ever (Ps. xlv. 3) . Therefore the Father, in His Kiss to the Son, communicates to Him the depths of His Divinity in their fulness, and breathes [upon Him] the sweetness of His Love. And Scripture intimates this, where it is said : Day unto day uttereth speech (Ps. xix. 2). In this Embrace, eternal, unique, and blessed, it is not given to any created being to have part ; the Spirit alone, who is both of the One and of the other, is conscious of that mutual Recognition and Love, and is a Witness of it. For who hath known the Mind of the Lord ? or who hath been His Counsellor ? (Rom. xi. 34).

7. But someone will perhaps say to me : ' How, then, have you come to a knowledge of that which you say is hid from the ken of every creature ?' Undoubtedly the Only Begotten Son, which is in the Bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him (John i. 18). Yes, it is He who hath declared Him, not to me, a miserable man, unworthy of such an honour, but to the friend of the Bridegroom, to John, whose words these are ; and not only to him, but to John the Evangelist, as the disciple whom Jesus loved. For his soul was pleasing to God, truly worthy of the name and of the dowry of the Bride, worthy of the embraces of the Bridegroom, worthy, finally , to recline upon the Breast of the Lord. In the Bosom of the only Begotten Son John drank in that which He had from the Bosom of the Father. Yet it was not He alone who received that great grace, but all those also to whom the same, who is the Angel of great counsel, said : I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you (John xv. 15) . This also did Paul drink in, who had received his Gospel neither from man, nor by man, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ (Gal. i. 11 , 12) . Assuredly all these holy men can say as truly as happily, ' The Only Begotten Son, who is in the Bosom of the Father, hath declared Him unto us. And that revelation, what was it but the bestowal of this embrace sacred and eternal ; as it is said : I and My Father are One. And again : The Father is in Me, and I in Him (John x. 30, 38). That is, indeed, as it were, a kiss, but one to which no creature draws near. Akiss it is of love and of peace, but the love surpasses all knowledge, and the peace all understanding. But that which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive, God revealed to Paul by His Spirit, that is, by the Kiss of His Mouth. Therefore the relation of the Father to the Son, and of the Son to the Father, is, so to speak, a kiss by the mouth. But that [relation] of which we read : We have received, not the spirit of this world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we may know those things which are freely given unto us by God ( 1 Cor. ii. 12), is of and from this.

8. Now, to distinguish more clearly between these two, he who receives the fulness itself has the one, but he who receives only of the fulness has but the other. Paul was indeed a great man, but how high soever he might lift his head (os), and even though it should reach unto the third heaven, he must of necessity remain far below the Countenance of the Most High (os Altissimi), and must resign himself to remain within the limits of his condition. And since he will not be able to attain to that Countenance of glory, he must humbly entreat that God will condescend to him, and send to him a gift from on high. But He who thought it not robbery to be equal with God ( Phil. ii. 6), so that He could say without fear I and My Father are One, because He is united to [His Father] as to an equal, and is embraced by Him as by an equal, He does not, from a lower station, beg for a gift, but is joined in an embrace with equality of rank, and by a privilege which is the right of Him alone. To Christ, therefore, the kiss is fulness, to Paul it is participation .

9. Happy, nevertheless, is the sign by which comes not only the knowledge of God, but also the love of Him as our Father, who cannot be fully known unless He be at the same time perfectly loved. What soul among you has ever felt in the depths of his conscience the Spirit ofthe Son crying, Abba, Father ? (Gal. iv. 6). That soul which feels itself animated by the same Spirit as the Son, that soul, I say, may believe that it is the object of the affection of the Father. Trust in Him, O soul, whosoever thou art, that hast the happiness to be in that condition ; trust in Him, doubting nothing. In the Spirit of the Son recognise that thou art a daughter of the Father, the sister, or the Bride, of the Son. Such a soul is, in fact, you will find, called by one or by the other name. The proof of this is at hand ; it will not be difficult to produce it. For what is the voice of the Bridegroom to her ? Is it not, Come into My garden, My sister, My spouse ? (Cant. v. 1). She is sister because she has the same Father ; she is spouse because she is in the same Spirit. And if a marriage in the flesh makes of two persons one flesh, shall not a spiritual bond much more join two into one Spirit ? And, in fact, the Apostle declares that he who is joined unto the Lord is one Spirit ( 1 Cor. vi. 17). But hear also with what affection and what condescension the Father names her His daughter, and as His daughterin-law invites her to the kind embrace of His Son : Hearken, Odaughter, and consider, incline thine ear; forget also thine own people and thy father's house ; so shall the King greatly desire thy beauty (Ps. xlv. 10, 11). It is from Him that she makes this request. But, O holy soul, maintain the deepest reverence, for He is the Lord thy God; not to be embraced, perhaps ; but rather to be adored, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. AMEN.

LET us come now to the exposition of the book, and give the reason for the words of the Bridegroom, as well as the result which follows from them. For without a commencement, they seem to hang in mid-air, and then abruptness, as it were, renders their sense obscure. Therefore it will be well, in the first place, to ascertain upon what previous facts or truths they rest. Suppose, then, that those whom we have called the companions of the Bridegroom now approach the Bride, as yesterday and the day before, to visit and to salute her. They find her plunged in sadness, uttering sighs and groans ; their surprise is excited, and they question her thus : What has occurred ? Why do we find you more sad than usual ? What is the cause of these unexpected sighs ? When, alienated and turned away from the path of right, you were following your earthly companions, you saw yourself obliged, by the sad condition to which their cruelties had brought you, to return at length to your true Lord, did you not entreat with many prayers and tears to be permitted but once to touch his feet ? ' I remember it,' she replies. ' Very well, then,' they continue, ' after having obtained that grace and received pardon for your offences in the permission to kiss His Feet, did you not again become impatient ; and not content with such a condescension, but desiring still greater favour, you asked with the same eagerness, and obtained the second grace, that you should kiss His Hand, and by that grace have obtained virtues neither few nor small ?' ' I do not deny it,' she replies again. But they still continue : ' Were you not accustomed to protest and declare with an oath, that if ever it were granted to you to attain to kiss His Hand, that favour would suffice for you, and that you would ask for nothing more ?' ' It was even so. ' ' What then ? Do you complain that anything has been taken away of what has been bestowed upon you ?' ' Nothing. ' ' Then, do you fear that you will fall again under condemnation for those offences of your past life which you believed had been pardoned ?' ' No, not at all. '

2. ' Come, then, say in what way we can satisfy your need. ' ' I shall not be at rest, ' she replies, ' unless He complete His goodness to me. ' I am thankful that I have been permitted to kiss His Feet ; it is still more a cause of gratitude to me to kiss His Hand ; but if He has any care for me at all, let Him grant unto me the third and crowning grace. I am not ungrateful, but I love. I have received, I confess it, favours which are far above my merits, but yet they are far below my desires. It is not reason which bears me on, but the vehement yearning of my soul. Do not, I entreat,, complain of my presumption, which is but the effect of my ardent love. It is true that shame would withhold me, but love overcomes shame. I am not unmindful that the King's honour loveth judgment (Ps. xcix. 4), but the violence of love does not wait for judgment ; it is not moderated by advice, nor restrained by shame, nor controlled by reason. I beg, I supplicate, I entreat again and again that He grant unto me this my request. Lo, in His grace for many years now I strive to live chastely and soberly, I apply myself to reading, I resist all manner of vices, I occupy myself continually in prayer, I. keep watch against temptations, I reflect upon my past years in bitterness of my soul, I study to conduct myself among my brethren as far as in me lies peacefully and without quarrel, I submit myself to the higher powers, going forth and coming in at the command of my elders ; I desire not the goods of any other-on the contrary, I have given up all that I have, and my own self also ; in the sweat of my face I eat my bread. But yet I go through all these practices of piety from mere custom, and not for the sweetness felt in them. What else am I, to borrow the language of a Prophet, than as Ephraim, an heifer that is taught to tread out the corn ? (Hos. x. 11 ). And is it not said in the Gospel, that he who does only that which it is his duty to do is an unprofitable servant ? ( Luke xvii. 10). I fulfil perhaps my appointed tasks as best I can, but throughout them all my soul does not cease to be as a land without water. That my offering may be a perfect one, let Him, I entreat, grant the grace for which I pray.

3. I remember that many of you also were accustomed in their private confessions to complain of a similar languor and dryness of soul, and of a kind of heaviness and stupor of mind which rendered them incapable of entering into high or refined thoughts, so that they felt little sweetness of spirit, or none at all. What do those souls yearn for, if not for this? Yes, they long and sigh for the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding ; of understanding that they may reach knowledge; of wisdom that they may love and take delight in that which they grasp with the understanding. I suppose that the Psalmist was referring to this disposition of mind when he uttered the prayer : Let my soul be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise Thee with joyful lips (Ps. lxiii. 5) . Не sought certainly for this mystical kiss, which, after having spread upon his lips the unction of special grace, should be followed by the effect which in another prayer he asks for : Let my mouth be filledwith Thy praise, that I may sing of Thy glory and honour all the day long (Ps. lxx. 8). Lastly, when he has tasted that heavenly sweetness, he bursts forth : Oh, how great is Thy goodness, O Lord, which Thou hast laid up for them that fear Thee ! (Ps. xxxi. 19). We have, however, lingered over [the explanation of] this, yet I have not, I fear, even yet expounded it as it deserves. But let us pass now to the rest, for that great truth is better known by the impression it makes [for itself], than by the expressions which are used of it.

4. The text goes on to say : Thy breasts are better than wine, and their fragrance than the choicest perfumes ( Cant. i. 1, 2 , Vulg.) . Whose are these words, the author does not say, and thus leaves us at liberty to assign them freely to the person they best befit. There seem to me to be reasons for attributing them not unsuitably to the Bride, or to the Bridegroom, or even to the Bridegroom's companions. First I will state those in favour of attributing them to the Bride. While she is conversing with the friends of the Bridegroom, He draws near who is the subject of their discourse. He is wont to approach those willingly who are speaking of Him. It was thus that He joined Himself to those who were going to Emmaus, and discoursing of Him by the way, and to them He showed Himself a pleasant and conversible companion ( Luke xxiv. 15). It is this very thing which is promised in the Gospel : Where two or three are gathered together in My Name, there am I in the midst of them 1 The monks under the charge of St. Bernard were in the habit of revealing to him their faults of negligence ( as the Saint calls them in Sermon I. for the Day of the Circumcision, n. 5) ; and they did this in private. Guy, the fifth Prior of the Chartreuse, gives this name to confessions made in private cells ; those which were made on Saturday, though in private, he calls common or public. See ' Life, ' Bk. i. , n. 28 . 2 Specialis. Another reading is spiritualis. (Matt. xviii. 20) ; and by the prophet : Before they call, Iwill answer, and while they are yet speaking, I will hear ( Is. lxv. 24). So also in this instance, though not called, He is present ; and delighting in the words spoken, He anticipates the petitions offered. And I judge that sometimes He does not wait for the spoken words, but appears in response to thoughts alone. Thus speaks the man who was found to be after God's own heart : Lord, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble : Thine ear has heard the preparation of their heart ( Ps. x. 17, Vulg.) . Do you also, brethren, keep watch over yourselves whereever you are, bearing in mind that God knoweth all your thoughts, that He trieth the very heart and reins, that He has fashioned the heart of each of you individually, and understands all your actions . The Bride, then, feeling that the Bridegroom is present, stops short. She is ashamed of the presumption in which she finds herself surprised. In her modesty, she had thought to make her attempt by means of intermediaries, but now she turns suddenly to Him, and endeavours to excuse her temerity as best she can : Thy breasts are better than wine, she says, and their fragrance than the choicest perfumes. As if she said : ' If I seem to raise my desire too high, it is Thou, O my Bridegroom, who art the cause of this, in that Thou hast deigned to nourish me with the sweetness of Thy breasts, and thus I have laid aside all fear, not because of my boldness, but of Thy lovingkindness, and am more bold in my requests than is fitting. This confidence renders me mindful only of Thy kindness to me, but unmindful of Thy Majesty.' All this is said to make clear the connection of the words which follow.

5. Now, let us consider after what manner the breasts of the Bridegroom are thus praised. These are the two evidences of His goodness by nature, that He patiently waits for the sinner, and receives the penitent with clemency. It is the very essence of sweetness, I repeat, that abounds in the Breast of the Lord Jesus, and it is twofold: patience in waiting for the sinner, and freeness in granting pardon to him when penitent. This is not a discovery of my own ; you may read of it in the Scripture, as with regard to His patience : Despisest thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering ? And again, Knowest thou not that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance ? (Rom. ii. 4). To this end, indeed, it is that He long suspends the execution of His vengeance against the despisers, in order that He may show the grace of remission to the penitent. For He desireth not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted and live. Let us give also some examples respecting [what I have called] the other breast-that is, of willingness to pardon. Of this you read, In the hour when the sinner shall lament for his sin, it shall be remitted unto him (Ezek. xxxiii. 11 , 12) ; and again, Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him ; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon (Is . lv. 7). David sums 1 Dulcedo suavitatis. both these attributes beautifully in few words : The Lord is merciful and gracious ; slow to anger, andplenteous in mercy (Ps. ciii. 8). It is just because the Spouse has made proof of this double goodness that she is emboldened, as she confesses, even to venture to ask of Him this grace. ' What wonder is it,' she says, ' O my Spouse, if I presume to ask so much of Thee, since I have had experience of such abundance of sweetness from Thy breast ? It is the sweetness of Thy breast, not any confidence in my own merits, which encourages me to be so bold in my request. '

6. Of that further saying, Thy Breasts are better than wine, the meaning is this : The unction of grace, which flows from Thy Breasts, is more efficacious to me for my spiritual advancement than the severe reprimand of those set over me. Not only better than wine, but their fragrance than the choicestperfumes, because, not content with nourishing those who are present with the milk of inward sweetness, you sprinkle over those who are absent the pleasant odour of a good reputation, and make them to have a good report both from those who are within and from those who are without. You have, I say, milk within and perfumes without, since there will be none for you to nourish with milk, if you do not first attract them to you by the sweet odour of your perfume. We shall see later on whether those perfumes contain any meaning worthy of consideration when we come to that passage, We will run after the odour ofThy perfumes (i. 3). Now let us consider, as I promised, whether the words which hitherto we have attributed to the Bride have any fitness for the Bridegroom also.

7. The Bride is speaking of the Bridegroom; suddenly, as I have before explained, He is present ; He gives assent to her petition ; He gives her the embrace asked, and fulfils in her the Scripture, which says : Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not withholden the request ofhis lips ( Ps. xxi. 2), of which the fulness of breasts is a witness . For so great is the efficacy of it, that the Bride, on receiving it, becomes fruitful, and thus gives testimony to its power. Those whose desire and endeavour it is to pray frequently, they have made proof of what I say. Often we approach the altar and begin to pray with a heart lukewarm and dry. But if we steadily persist, grace comes suddenly in a flood upon us, our breast grows full of increase, a wave of piety fills our inward heart ; and if we press on, the milk of sweetness conceived in us will spread over us in fruitful flood. The Bridegroom then speaks thus : ' Thou hast, O my Spouse, that which thou prayedst for ; and this is a sign to thee that thy breasts have become more precious than wine. Thence shalt thou know that thou hast received it because thou hast become fruitful. Therefore have thy breasts filled with abundance of milk better than the wine of worldly knowledge, which inebriates indeed, but with curiosity, not with charity, which fills but does not nourish ; which puffs up instead of edifying ; which gluts but strengthens not. '

8. But, again, let us attribute these words to the attendants. Unjustly it is, they say, that you murmur against the Bridegroom, because that which He has already granted to you is of more value than that which you ask for. For that is, indeed, for your own delight and gladness ; but the breasts from which you nourish the children you bring forth are better that is, more necessary, than the wine of contemplation. The one is that which maketh glad the heart of one man alone ; but the other that which edifies many. For, although Rachel be the fairer, Leah is the more fruitful. Do not, therefore, linger too much over the sweetness of contemplation, for the fruits ofpreaching are the better.

9. There occurs to me still another sense, which I had not thought of, but I cannot pass it over. Why should we not say that the words befit those who are as little children, and are the first care, as little children are to their mother or their nurse ? For souls still young, as it were, and tender, do not bear patiently to see those whose duty it is to instruct them fully in the faith, and to train them by their own examples, giving themselves wholly to the repose of contemplation. And is it not just such souls as these who become the prey of distress and inquietude of mind at a later time, when they are forbidden with solemn charges to disturb the repose of the Beloved until she please (ii. 7) ? Seeing that the Bride sighs for the grace of her Beloved, that she seeks retreat, that she flies from the world, that she avoids crowds, and prefers her own repose to the care which she ought to take of others, they cry, Do not thus, do not thus ; for in the helpfulness [of preaching] there is more fruit than in all the sweetness [of solitude] : for it is by the former that you deliver us from the desires of the flesh which war against the soul, that you take us from the world and gain us for God. It is this that they express in these words : Thy breasts are better than wine. The spiritual delights which thy breasts distil upon us are better than all the pleasures of the flesh, with which we were formerly enthralled and intoxicated as with wine.

10. It is with great beauty and fitness that they compare carnal desires to wine. For as the grape once pressed has nothing more to yield, but is condemned to lasting dryness, so the flesh, under the pressure of death, is exhausted of all its delights, and never after revives to the enjoyment of its passions. Wherefore the Prophet saith : All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field : the grass withereth, the flower fadeth (Is. xl. 6, 7) ; and the Apostle : He that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption (Gal. vi. 8) ; and again, Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats : but God shall destroy both it and them ( 1 Cor. vi. 13). But see how that comparison suits, not only the flesh, but also the world. For the world, too, passeth away, and the lust thereof; all things that are in the world have an end, and their end is unending. But not so with those things of which the Breasts are the type. For when they are exhausted they are renewed from the fount of the maternal breast, to nourish those who draw sweetness from them. Rightly, therefore, is it said that the breasts of the Bride are better than the love of the flesh or of the world, since they are never drawn dry by the number of those who receive of them, but are fed from the deep fount of Charity, and so flow ever new. Truly these streams come forth from the body of Charity, and [in him who receives them] become a well of water springing up into everlasting life (John vii. 38 and iv. 14). The praise of them far surpasses that of the choicest perfumes, because they are nourished not only with the taste and the savour of words, but they exhale the sweet fragrance which good deeds send forth . What remains to be said of them, with what milk it is that they are expanding, with what sweet odours they are perfumed, these things I will, Christ helping me, treat of in another sermon. Who with the Father and the Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth, ever one God, world without end. AMEN. I

I have neither such depth of knowledge, nor such brilliancy of genius, as to discover of myself anything new. But the mouth of St. Paul is a great and unfailing fountain which is open to us. From him it is that I draw what I am about to say on the subject of the bosom of the Bride, as, indeed, I am accustomed frequently to do. Rejoice, he says, with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep ( Rom. xii. 15). He here expresses, in a few words, the affections of a mother's heart, because little children cannot either be in pain and grief, or in health and gladness, without the close sympathy of their mother in either case, nor can she fail to feel with them. Thus, following the opinion of St. Paul, I shall assign those two affections to the breasts of the Bride-to the one compassion, to the other congratulation. If it were otherwise, if she had not these as yet-that is , if she had not learned to be quick in congratulating others, nor to be ready to condole with them in their grief-she would be but a child, and not of a marriageable age. If a person of such character as this is taken to discharge the oversight of souls, or to preach, he does not profit others, and to himself he does very great harm. And if he should thrust himself into these ministries, what a shameless action is that !

2. But let us return to these thus typified, to the differences between them, and to the graces they yield. Congratulation pours forth the milk of exhortation, and compassion that of consolation . Our spiritual mother feels her pious bosom abundantly supplied from above with both the one and the other of these as often as she is fulfilled with the love of God. You see her occupied in nourishing her little children out of her abundance ; to one she gives consolation, to another exhortation, according as each seems to have need. For instance, if she sees that one of her children in the Gospel has been taken unawares by some violent temptation so that he is rendered troubled and sorrowful, doubting and fearful, and is no longer able to bear up against the force of the temptation, how she condoles with him and soothes him ! how she sorrows for him and gives him comfort, and finds many a pious reason to enable him to rise out of his state of depression ! If, on the contrary, she sees one active, energetic, and making good progress in the spiritual life, she rejoices greatly, she plies him with beneficial advice, she animates him to advance still further, instructs him in that which is requisite to perseverance, and exhorts him so that he may go on from strength to strength. To all she adapts herself, in her own heart she reflects the feelings and the dispositions of all, and, lastly, she shows herself the mother no less of the feeble and failing soul than of the strong and progressive.

3. How many are there at the present day-I mean of those who have taken upon them the cure of souls--who are animated by sentiments the very reverse of these ? It is a fact not to be spoken of without groaning and tears ; they forge, so to speak, in the furnace of avarice, and make merchandise of, the very instruments of Christ's Passion-the scourge, the spitting, the nails, the lance, and, in fine, the Cross and the Death of Christ. They squander all these things for the making of shameful gains ; they hasten to huddle into their own pouches the price of the Redemption of the world. The only difference which distinguishes them from Judas Iscariot is that he, for the price of all these things, received but, comparatively speaking, a few pence ; while they, with a greed much more insatiable, exact uncounted sums of money as their gains. They have for riches a thirst which is insatiable ; well-nigh their sole fear is lest they may lose these ; and if they should do so they grieve. Upon the love of them they brood in satisfaction, if, perchance, there be a moment left free from the task of keeping what they have or of gaining more. As for the salvation of souls, or their loss, they think of it not at all. No maternal care for souls assuredly have they who, being too well nourished, having fattened and grown great upon the patrimony of the Crucified, are not grieved for the affliction ofJoseph (Amos vi. 6) . A true mother is unmistakably to be known (non dissimulat) ; she is never void of nourishment for her children. She ceases not to rejoice with them that do rejoice, and to weep with them that weep ; to press from her bosom the life-giving milk-from that of congratulation the milk of exhortation ; from that of compassion, of consolation. I need not say more of these, and of what they contain.

4. I have also to point out what are the perfumes with which the same are fragrant, provided that I am assisted by your prayers, so that by their means that which it is given me to think may also be spoken worthily, and to the profit of my hearers. The perfumes of the Bride differ from those of the Bridegroom, as they are different the one from the other. What was to be said of those of the Bridegroom is contained in a former discourse. Let us consider just now only the perfumes of the Bride ; and that with the greater care, because Scripture commends them particularly to our attention in calling them not only good, but best of all. I mention several kinds, so that out of many those most befitting the Bride may be chosen. There is the perfume of contrition, the perfume of devotion, and that of piety. The first is pungent, and causes pain ; the second is soothing, and relieves pain ; the third is curative, and removes disease. Now we will speak of these separately.

5. There is, then, a perfume or unguent which the soul-that is, if it be ensnared and entangled with many crimes-compounds for itself, if, when it begins to reflect upon its ways, it collects, heaps together, and pounds in the mortar of conscience its sins of many different kinds, and, putting them into the caldron, as it were, of a heart that heaves and boils [with distress], cooks them together over a kind of fire of grief and repentance, so that the man may be able to say, with the Psalmist : My heart was hot within me : while Iwas musing the fire burned (Ps. xxxix. 3). Here, then, is one unguent which the sinful soul ought to prepare for itself at the commencement of its conversion, and to apply to its still fresh wounds ; for the first sacrifice to be made to God is a troubled and contrite heart (Ps. li. 17) . Although the sinner is poor and needy, and therefore unable to compound for himself an unguent better and more valuable, yet let him not neglect to prepare this, though of poor materials and of no value, for a broken and contrite heart God will not despise (ibid. ) ; and it shall appear so much the less vile in the sight of God, as by remembrance of his sins it becomes the more so to the sinner himself.

6. Yet if we say that this invisible and spiritual unguent was designated in type by that visible ointment wherewith the Feet of God manifest in the Flesh were anointed by the woman who was a sinner, we shall not be able to regard it as being altogether worthless. For what do we read of it in the Scripture ? That the house was filled with the odour of the ointment (John xii. 3) . It was poured by the hands of a sinful woman, and poured upon the extremities of the body-that is, upon the feet ; yet it was not so vile and so con1 In this passage, as in several others, and particularly in Sermon III . on the Assumption, ' the woman who was a sinner, ' mentioned in Luke vii. 37, is confounded with Mary, sister of Lazarus and of Martha, who poured precious ointment upon the feet of the Lord Jesus in the village of Bethany (John xii. 3) , on which occasion, it is said, ' the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. ' But most ancient writers before Gregory the Great, and not a few since, distinguish, with exceedingly cogent arguments, between one of these persons and the other, and both from Mary Magdalene, out of whom Christ had cast seven devils (Mark xvi. 9) ; who, according to Luke (viii. 2, 3) , followed Christ with other holy women, even (as it seems) before the conversion of her who was a sinner. Compare Sermon XII . , n. 6. temptible that the power and the sweetness of its perfume could not fill the whole house. And if we consider with what fragrance the Church is perfumed by the conversion of one sinner, and how powerful an odour of life unto life each penitent becomes if his repentance is perfect and public, we shall be able to pronounce, without the least doubt, that the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. Assuredly the odour of penitence extends even as far as the mansions of the blessed in heaven, so that, as the Truth Himself declares, there is joy among the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth (Luke xv. 10). Rejoice, O penitents ; be strengthened, ye that are weak of heart. To you I speak who are but lately converted from the world and from your evil ways, who are feeling the bitterness and confusion of a mind touched with repentance, and in whom the excessive pain of wounds, as it were, yet recent, still throbs and torments. Your hands may with safety drop the bitterness of myrrh into this salutary ointment, for a broken and contrite heart God will not despise. Nor is such an ointment as this to be despised or counted vile, of which the odour not only draws men to conversion, but moves the Angels to joy.

7. Yet there is a perfume as much more precious than this, as the materials of which it is composed are of more excellent kinds. For the materials of the former do not require to be sought from far ; we find them without difficulty within ourselves, and in our own little garden-plots gather them easily in great plenty, as often as necessity requires. For who is there who [does not know himself to] have sins and iniquities of his own, enough and too many, always at his hand, unless he desires to deceive himself upon this point ? But these are, as you recognise, the materials of the former ointment, which I have described. But as for the sweet spices which compose the second, our earth does not produce them at all ; we must seek them in a land very far off. For is not every good gift, and every perfect gift from above, and does it not come down from the Father of Lights ? (James i. 17). For this perfume is compounded of the benefits which Divine goodness has bestowed upon the human race. Happy is he who with care and pains collects them for himself, and sets them before the eyes of his mind with acts of thanksgiving proportioned to their greatness. Assuredly when these shall have been bruised and pounded in the mortar of our breast, with the pestle of frequent meditation, then boiled together on the fire of holy desire, and finally enriched with the oil of joy, there will be as the result a perfume far more precious and more excellent than the former. Sufficient as proof of this is the testimony of Him who says : Whoso offereth praise glorifieth Me (Ps. 1. 23). Nor can we doubt that the remembrance of benefits is an incitement to praise of our benefactor.

8. Furthermore, while Scripture, when speaking of the former, testifies only that it is not despised by God ( Ps. li. 17), of this latter it is plain that it is the more commended, in that it is said to glorify God. Besides, the former is poured upon the Lord's Feet; the latter upon His Head. For if in Christ the Head is to be referred to His Divinity, as St. Paul declares the Head of Christ is God ( 1 Cor. xi. 3) , then, without doubt, he anoints the Head, who renders thanks ; for this is addressed (tangit) to God, not to man. Not that He who is God is not Man also, for God and Man is one Christ, but because every good gift, even that which is ministered through man, comes from God, not from man. For it is the Spirit which quickeneth ; the flesh profiteth nothing (John vi. 63). And we know that Cursed is the man that trusteth in man (Jer. xvii. 5 ) ; although all our hope rests rightly upon Him who is the God-Man, yet this is not because He is Man, but because He is God. Therefore, the former perfume is poured upon His Feet ; but this upon His Head, because the humiliation of a contrite heart is befitting to the humility of the flesh, but praise and glory to the [Divine] Majesty. See, then, of what a nature is this perfume which I have been describing to you, with which that Head, so august even to the Principalities and Powers of Heaven, does not disdain to be touched ; nay, rather regards it as an honour to Him, as He Himself declares : Whoso offereth praise glorifieth Me (Ps. 1. 23).

9. Wherefore it does not belong to him who is poor and needy and of small courage to compound such a perfume as this, inasmuch as it is confidence alone which commands the sweet spices which are its materials, but a confidence which is born of freedom of spirit and purity of heart. For the soul which is of small courage and of little faith is hampered by the consciousness of the little which it possesses ; its poverty does not permit it to occupy itself in the praises of God, or in the contemplation of those benefits which produce the praises. And if ever it has the wish to rise to that point, immediately it is recalled to the consciousness of its cares and uneasiness about its necessities at home, and is straitened in itself by the miseries which press it hard. If you ask of me the cause of that misery, I reply that you are, or have been, conscious in your own selves (if I do not mistake) of that which I refer to. It seems to me that this depression of mind and want of joyful trust usually comes from one of two causes . Either, that is to say, it is from newness of conversion, or, especially if the conversion is not recent, from lukewarmness of conduct. Both the one and the other cause humiliates and casts down the conscience, and throws it into trouble and inquietude, since it feels that its former passions are not yet dead in it, either because of the shortness of the time since its conversion, or because of the feebleness and want of zeal in its efforts, and thus it is obliged to occupy itself entirely with rooting up from the garden of the heart the thorns of iniquity and briers of evil desires, nor is it able to divert any thoughts from itself. What then ? how can one, who is wearily occupied in sighing and groaning [over such a task as this], at the same time rejoice in the praises of God ? How can thanksgiving and the voice ofmelody, to borrow the phrase of the prophet Isaiah ( li. 3) , sound forth from the mouth of one that is groaning and lamenting ? For, as the Wise Man teaches us, Music in mourning is a tale out of season (Ecclus. xxii. 6, Vulg.). And the giving of thanks follows the benefit, not precedes it. But the soul that is still in sadness needs to receive the benefit, and does not rejoice in having obtained it. It has a great reason to offer its prayers, but not to offer its thanksgiving. How is it to acknowledge a blessing which it has not, in fact, received ? It was correct, therefore, for me to say that it was not the privilege of a soul that is poor and needy and of small courage to compound this precious perfume, which requires to be composed of remembered benefits of God ; nor is such a one able to behold the light, as long as its gaze is fixed upon the darkness. For it is in bitterness-the sorrowful remembrance of past sins occupies it ; nor can it admit any thought of joy. It is to such that the prophetic spirit bears testimony, saying : It is vainfor you to rise up early (Ps. cxxvii. 2) ; as if he would remind them : It is in vain for you to rise up that you may behold bounties to be a delight to your soul, unless you have first received the light which shall comfort it with regard to the stains of sin which trouble it. This perfume, therefore, is not for the soul which is still in a state of spiritual poverty.

10. But see who they are who may rightly take the glory of having it in abundance. The Apostles departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for the Name of JESUS (Acts v. 41). Assuredly those men were well filled with that unction of the Spirit, whose cheerfulness did not abandon them, I do not say, because of words, but not even because of blows. They were indeed rich in charity, in whom it was exhausted by no spending, and who were enabled to offer themselves as a complete and worthy burnt sacrifice to God. Their hearts poured forth everywhere that holy unction, with which they had been imbued in plenitude, when they spake in various tongues the wonderful works of God as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts ii. 4, 11 ). Nor can it be doubted that they abounded in the same perfumes of whom the Apostle thus speaks : Ithank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ : that in everything ye are enriched by Him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that ye come behind in no gift ( 1 Cor. i. 4-7). Would that I too might be able to render the same thanksgivings on your account, and to see you rich in virtue, ready and prompt to praise God, and superabounding in this spiritual fatness in Jesus Christ our Lord.

I SAID at the end of the last sermon, and I willingly repeat it now, that I desire to see you all become sharers in that sacred unction, by which a holy devotion acknowledges the benefits of God with joy and thanksgiving. For this is extremely beneficial, inasmuch as it lightens the troubles of this present life, which become more supportable when we rejoice in the praises of God, and also because nothing represents so perfectly on earth the state of the blessed in heaven as the gladness of those who are occupied in praising God ; as the Scripture declares : Blessed are they that dwell in Thy House : they will for ever be praising Thee (Ps. lxxxiv. 5). I think it was this perfume that the Psalmist had particularly in view when he said : Behold, howgood and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity ; it is like precious ointment upon the head (Ps. cxxxiii. 1 , 2 ). This does not seem to be a description of the former kind. For though that be good, it is far from being pleasant, because the remembrance of sins causes bitterness, not pleasure. Nor do those who are compounding it dwell together, since each is occupied in separately lamenting his own sins. But as for those who are wholly occupied in praising God, they regard God only, and think but of Him ; and on this account, it is truly said that they dwell together in unity. Again, that which they are engaged in doing is not only good because they are ascribing glory to Him to whom it most justly belongs, but also pleasant, because they take delight in doing it.

2. On this account I counsel you, my friends, to turn yourselves away sometimes from the anxious and painful retracing of your past erring lives, and to pursue paths which are easier and afford more pleasant thoughts in the recalling of God's benefits, so that by fixing your thoughts and your eyes upon Him, you may obtain some relief from the shame and confusion of face which are caused by thinking of yourself. I would that you should make trial of the advice which the holy Psalmist gives when he says : Delight thou in the Lord, and Heshall give thee thy heart's desire (Ps. xxxvii. 4). Sorrow for sin is indeed necessary, but it ought not to be continual ; and there should be mingled with it the more joyful remembrance of the Divine goodness, lest the heart should be burdened because of the sorrow it feels, and despair should bring about the actual loss of it. With wormwood let us mix honey, so that the draught thus tempered with moderate sweetness may be able to be drunk, and that its bitter may be salutary. Listen how God Himself tempers the bitterness of a contrite heart, so as to draw back from the abyss of desperation him who is in fear and discouragement ; to console the sorrowful by the honey of a sweet and faithful promise ; to raise up him who is of little faith. He says by the prophet : With my praise will I restrain thee as with a bridle, that thou perish not (Is. xlviii. 9, Vulg. ) ; that is to say, ' For fear lest the sight of your sins should cast you into excessive sorrow, and that, carried away by despair, like a horse without rein, you should fall down a precipice and perish, I will rein you back (He says) by the bridle, as it were, of My mercy ; I will raise you up by My praises ; you shall breathe again at the sight of My benefits, instead of being confounded at the sense of your own demerits ; and the more blamable you find yourself to be, the more shall you find Me kind and forgiving.' If Cain had been restrained by this bridle, he would not have said : My iniquity is too great to obtain pardon (Gen. iv. 13, Vulg.). God forbid ! God forbid ! For His goodness is greater than any iniquity whatsoever. That is why the just man is not his own accuser always, but only in the beginning of his discourse, for his custom was to close his discourse with praises of God. Notice in what order a just man proceeds : Ithought on my ways, and turned my feet unto Thy testimonies ( Ps. cxix. 59) ; so that after having endured contrition and unhappiness in his own ways, he takes delight in the way ofthe testimonies of God, as in all manner of riches. Do you also, after the example of the righteous, if you have feelings of humility about yourselves, be assured also of the goodness of the Lord. For so you read in the words of the Wise Man: Think of the Lord in goodness, and in simplicity of heart seek Him (Wisd. i. 1 ). The frequent, or, I should say, the continual, remembrance of the Divine liberality will easily bring the mind to a firm belief in this. Otherwise, how can that precept of the Apostle be carried out, In everything give thanks ( 1 Thess. v. 18), if those benefits for which thanks are owed are suffered to fade from the heart ? I would not that you should be open to that opprobrium which was deserved bythe Jews, of whom Scripture testifies that they were not mindful of His benefits, nor of the wonderful works that He had showed them (Ps. lxxviii. 11 ).

3. But as it is impossible for any man to recount and enumerate all the blessings which our merciful and compassionate Lord does not cease to pour upon the children of men (for who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord, or who can showforth all His praise ? ( Ps. cvi. 2 ), at least that which is the chief and the greatest of His benefits, I mean the work of our redemption, ought never to depart for a moment from the memory of those whom He has redeemed. And in this work there are two principal things which occur to my mind at this time, which I will commend to your meditation and study. This I will do in as few words as possible, being mindful of that saying : Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser (Prov. ix. 9). These two things are : the manner in which it was accomplished, and the benefits which we derive from it. As for the manner, it was the selfemptying (exinanitio) of God ; as for the benefit derived by us, it is that we should be filled with Him. Meditation upon the former great mystery is the seed-ground of holy hope ; upon the latter, the incentive to the most exalted and ardent love. Both the one and the other are necessary to our spiritual progress ; to ensure, on the one hand, that our hope be not unaccompanied by love, and therefore mercenary ; and, on the other, that our love be not lukewarm, and so become unfruitful.

4. The fruit and final reward of our love which we await, shall be such as He, whom we love, has promised : Good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, they shall give into your bosom (Luke vi. 38) . That measure, as I hear, shall be without measure. But that which I long to know is what that is which shall be bestowed without measure, or rather, that eternal blessedness (immensitas) which is promised to us. But eye hath not seen, O Lord, except Thee, what Thou hast prepared for them that love Thee (Is. lxiv. 4, and 1 Cor. ii. 9) . O tell us what good things Thou dost prepare, O Thou who art preparing them ! We believe, we hope in absolute confidence, as Thou hast in fact promised, that we shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy House (Ps. lxv. 4). But with what good things, I pray, and of what nature ? Shall it be with corn and wine and oil that we shall be satisfied, or, perchance, with gold and silver and precious gems ? But these things we have known and seen ; we have seen and have even contemned. That which we seek, eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor hath the heart of any man risen to imagine it. This, of whatsoever nature it be, is what we choose and we desire ; and this it delights us still to seek. They shall all be taught of God, He saith (John vi. 45), and God shall be all in all (

1. Cor. xv. 28). As I apprehend it, then, the fulness [of blessedness] which we await from God shall be derived from no other than God Himself.

5. But who can comprehend how great a variety of blessedness and sweetness is comprehended in this brief saying, God shall be all in all? Not to speak of the body, there are in the soul three faculties-the reason, the will, and the memory and these three are, in fact, the soul itself. Everyone who walks in the Spirit feels how greatly each of these faculties is wanting in him during this present life. Wherefore is this the case, except that God is not yet all in all ? Hence it is that the reason very often errs in its judgments, the will is agitated by manifold (quadruplici) troubles and passions, and the memory is confused by the multitude of things which it has let slip. To this threefold power of vanity a creature so noble is subjected, though against its will, yet it hopes one day to be delivered. For He who satisfieth with good things the longing desire of the soul, shall Himself be to the reason fulness of Light, to the will the completeness (multitudo) of peace, to the memory an eternal continuity. O Truth, O Charity, O Eternity ! O Trinity, blessed and blessing ! To Thee the trinity of my unhappy being aspires in its unhappiness, caused by its grievous separation from Thee. In how many errors, sorrows and fears, has not that separation involved it ? Woe is me ! what a trinity have I accepted in exchange for Thee ! My heart panteth, and thence my pain ; my strengthfaileth me, and thence my fear ; the light of my eyes is also gonefrom me ( Ps. xxxviii. 11 ), and therefore my error and wandering. O trinity of my soul, how different a trinity hast thou found in the place of exile [from the Trinity of my God] .

6. Yet, why art thou cast down, O my soul ? and why art thou disquieted in me ? Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise Him (Ps. xlii. 5) when error shall have passed away from my reason, the pain of wavering from my will, and every kind of fear from my memory ; and to those troubles a marvellous peace, a perfect blessedness, an eternal security, shall have succeeded. God as Truth shall perform the first : God as Charity, the second; and God as Supreme Power, the third : and thus God shall be all in all, the reason receiving a light which shall never be extinguished, the will obtaining a state of peace which cannot be disturbed, and the memory eternally inhering in the unfailing Source of being and of fact. You will consider whether you should not rightly assign the first of these to the Son, the second to the Holy Ghost, the third to the Father ; yet so as not to withdraw either of these from either the Father, or the Son, or the Holy Ghost, lest with regard to either of the Divine Persons, either distinction should lessen the Plenitude, or Perfection take away from that which in each is Proper and Particular. Consider also that there is a similar threefold division in that which the children of this world make their own namely, the allurements of the flesh, the vain shows of the world, and the pomps of the devil ; and, nevertheless, it is by all this that the present world seduces those unhappy ones who are lovers of it, as St. John declares : All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John ii. 16). So much with regard to the benefits of redemption.

7. As for the manner of redemption which I defined, if you remember, to be the selfemptying of God, there are three chief points which I propose for your consideration. For this is not a simple inanition, or one which is only limited or partial ; but the Lord emptied Himself so far as to assume flesh, to undergo death, to endure the Cross ( Phil. ii . 7, 8). Who can possibly be able to form a just idea of the greatness of the humility, of the condescension, of the goodness, shown by the Lord of Glory in clothing Himself with Flesh, in suffering death, in bearing the ignominy of the Cross ? Someone will perhaps say : ' Could not the Creator repair His work without such difficulty ?' He could have done so, but He preferred to do it by the way of suffering, so that man might thenceforth find no ground for that worst and most odious vice of ingratitude. Unquestionably He endured many labours and pains that He might render man the debtor for much love, and that the difficulty of Redemption might carry gratitude to a much greater height in those whom the comparative ease of their Creation had so little inspired. For what did man, created and ungrateful, say in his own behalf ? ' I was of free grace brought into existence, but my Creator had no difficulty or labour in forming me ; for He spake, and I was made, as were all other works of His Hands. What great gift is it that you have bestowed at no greater cost than a word spoken ?' Thus did human impiety depreciate the benefit of creation, and draw a reason for ingratitude from that which ought to have been a ground for love, and for excuses, which themselves needed excuse, on behalf of human sins. But the mouth of those who spoke those evil words has now been stopped. It appears more clearly than light at what vast cost [God] has accomplished thy salvation, O man; for He has not disdained from being Lord to become a servant, from being rich to become poor, from being Son of God to become the Son of Man. Remember, then, that though thou wert created out of nothing, thou wert not redeemed for nothing. It was in six days that He created all things, and thee among the rest. But it occupied more than thirty years of life upon the earth to accomplish thy salvation. How great were [thy Saviour's] exertions, and how great His sufferings ! Did He not endure the wants and infirmities of the flesh, the temptations of the devil, and the ignominy of the Cross ; and was there not heaped upon them all the horror of His Death ? And all these were necessarily endured. Thus it was, thus, that Thou, O Lord, hast saved men and beasts ; how excellent is Thy loving kindness, O God ! (Ps. xxxvi. 6, 7 ) .

8. Meditate upon these things, revolve them continually in your minds. With such precious perfumes steep your hearts, that you may dissipate the evil odour of your sins which has long troubled them, and that you may abound in their odours, as salutary as they are sweet. Yet do not suppose that you possess the best of those which are upon the bosom of the Bride. The want of time, and the necessity of bringing this sermon to a close, forbids my beginning to speak of these now. What has been said of the others, retain in your memory, approve your possession of them by your life ; and finally, assist me by your prayers, that I may be enabled to speak worthily worthy words concerning these joys of the Bride which are so great ; and may build up your souls in the love of the Bridegroom , our Lord Jesus Christ. AMEN.

I REMEMBER that I spoke to you of two perfumes : the one, of penitence, which comprehends many sins ; the other, of devotion, which contains many benefits-both of them salutary, but not both agreeable. The first has a stinging power which makes itself felt, because the bitter remembrance of sins moves the soul to compunction, and causes pain, whereas the power of the other is soothing ; it gives consolation and relieves spiritual distress by bringing into view the goodness of God. But there is a perfume which far excels both of these ; I have called it the perfume of piety, because it is that which results from the necessities of the poor, the cares of the oppressed, the disquiets of the sorrowful, the faults of sinners, and finally, from all the misfortunes of those who are unhappy, even though they be our enemies. Those materials seem to be despicable, but the perfume which is distilled from them surpasses all other sweet odours. It is a perfume which cures, because blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy (Matt. v. 7). Many miseries, therefore, collected together, and regarded with an eye of compassionate goodness, are the materials from which is composed the best of all perfumes, worthy of the bosom of the Bride, and agreeable to the senses of the Bridegroom. Happy is the soul which has had the care to anoint and to enrich itself with these perfumes, pouring upon them the oil of mercy, and heating them with the fire of charity. Who, think you, is that happy man who has pity and lendeth ( Ps. cxii. 5), but he that is wont to compassionate others, who is quick to help them, judging it better to give than to receive ; to whom it is easy to forgive, hard to be angry, and almost impossible to take revenge ; and who in all things regards the interests of his neighbours even as his own ? O happy soul, whosoever thou art, who art of such a disposition, so imbued with the dew of mercy, so endued with charitable affections, so rendering thyself all things to all men, so regarding thyself as but a broken vessel, that thou mayest be at the service of others, and assist them in their need, whensoever and wheresoever it may be ; and who, finally, art dead to thyself, that thou mayst live to the benefit of all. O happy soul, thou plainly possessest this third and best of perfumes, and from thy hands have dropped all its sweetness. In the worst of times it shall not dry up, nor shall the fire of persecution exhaust it ; God shall be ever mindful of every sacrifice thou hast made, and shall render perfect thy burntoffering.

2. There are men in the city of the Lord who are rich in virtues ; are there any among them who possess this perfume ? The first who occurs to me, and who is met everywhere in the way of goodness, is Paul-that vessel of election, yea, in truth a vessel of odour and sweetness, filled with every kind of fragrant powder. For he was to God a sweet savour of Christ in every place (2 Cor. ii. 14). Assuredly that generous heart, which took so great care of all the Churches, scattered far and wide fragrance of surpassing sweetness. See of what nature those were which he has amassed for himself. I die daily, he says, throughyourglory ( 1 Cor. xv. 31, Vulg. ) ; and again, Who is weak, and Iam notweak ? who is offended, and Iburn not ? ( 2 Cor. xi. 29). And in many such passages, which are well known to you, that good man shows how he abounded in preparing these precious perfumes. It was fitly thus, that the bosom which nourished the members of Christ should be redolent of the rarest and most precious perfumes, for Paul was assuredly a mother to them, travailing in birth as it were, once and again, until Christ were formed in them (Gal. iv. 19), and the members reformed in the likeness of their Head. ...

3. Let me tell you also of another, who was rich in this respect, who possessed materials carefully chosen for the compounding of precious balms. What does he himself say ? The stranger did not lodge in the street, but I opened my doors to the traveller (Job. xxxi. 32). And again : Iwas eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame. Iwas a father to the poor. Ibrake the jaws of the wicked, and plucked the spoil out of his teeth (xxix. 15-17). If I have withheld the poorfrom their desire, or have caused the eyes ofthe widow tofail; Or have eaten my morsel myselfalone, and thefatherless hath not eaten thereof; If I have seen any perish for want of clothing ; If his loins have not blessed me, and if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep (xxxi. 16-20). With what a sweet odour must that good man have blessed the earth by these works of charity ! Each of such actions is a separate perfume, and with these he had stored his conscience, so as to counteract the exhalations of his noisome flesh by the sweet odour exhaled from his soul.

4. Joseph , after he had drawn in his train the whole of Egypt through the sweet odour yielded by his good deeds, afforded the same fragrance even to those who had sold him into slavery. He did, indeed, reproach them with an angry countenance ; but his tears burst forth from the fulness of his heart ; nor were they signs of his wrath, but betrayed the strength of his emotion (Gen. xliii. 30, and xlv. 2) . Samuel mourned for Saul, who sought to kill him ( 1 Sam. xv. 35, and xvi. 2 ), and the unction of his kindliness coming from within him, and warmed in his breast by the fire of charity, found issue by his eyes. And it was because of the sweet odour which his reputation spread throughout all the land that the Scripture says of him, All Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord (1 Sam. iii. 20). What shall I say of Moses ? With what rich perfume had he too filled his heart ! That rebellious house, in the midst of which he was for a time occupied, was never able, with all its murmurs, or its angry passions, to make him lose that unction of spirit with which he had once been imbued, or to hinder his retaining his gentleness of temper among their constant strifes and daily quarrels. Well deserved, therefore, was the witness which the Holy Spirit bore to him, that ' he was the meekest of all men who were upon the face of the earth ' (Num. xii. 3, Vulg.) . Even with those who hated peace, he was peacefully disposed, insomuch that he not only did not indulge anger against an ungrateful and rebellious people, but even interceded for them, so that the Divine anger was softened at his mediation ; as it is written, He said that He would destroy them, had not Moses His chosen stood before Him in the gap, to turn away His wrath, lest He should destroy them (Ps. cvi. 23). And lastly, he said : Forgive, if Thou wilt, their sin : but if not, blot me out of the book which Thou hast written (Exod. xxxii. 32). A man truly filled with the unction of mercy ! He obviously speaks with the feeling of a father, whom no happiness can delight apart from his children. It is as if a rich man should say to some poor woman who is a mother, ' Enter, and dine with me, but leave without the infant you carry in your arms, for fear that it should cry, and be a trouble to us. What would that mother answer, do you suppose ? Would she not rather choose to remain without food, than to dine with the rich man alone, after having abandoned her dear pledge of affection ? So also Moses did not choose to be admitted alone, even into the joy of his Lord, while his people remained without ; for although they were restless and ungrateful, he retained for them the affection, as he held the place, of a mother. The bowels of his affection suffer, but he prefers to bear the suffering that they cause, rather than they should be torn from him.

5. What again can be a proof of greater kindness of heart than the lament of David over the death of that man, who had always thirsted for his death (2 Sam. i. 11), and that he bore with so much regret the death of him, whom he succeeded in the kingdom ? How hard it was to console him for the death of a son, even though he was [in intention] a parricide ! ( 2 Sam. xix. 4). Assuredly a kindliness of heart so great was an infallible mark of an abundant measure of this best of perfumes ; therefore, also, he addressed with confidence his prayer to God : Lord remember David and all his kindness of heart (Ps. cxxxii. 1, Vulg. ). All these holy persons had then this best of perfumes, of which the fragrant odours are spread through all the Churches even at the present day. And not only they, but all those also who, during this life, have shown themselves benevolent and charitable, who have striven so to live humanely among men as not to keep for their own advantage, but to use for the common benefit of all, every grace which they possessed, regarding themselves as debtors, alike to enemies and to friends, to the wise and to the unwise. As they were useful to all, humble in all circumstances, and before all things showed themselves to be dear to God and to inen ; so their fragrance is held in pious memory. As many, I repeat, of those who have gone before, who have been in character such as this, were of good report as of sweet perfume in their own days, and their sweetness remains at the present time. Thus also with you, my brother, whosoever you are, if you shall willingly share with us, who are your companions, the gift which you have received from on high ; if you show yourself always helpful, sympathetic, kindly, tractable, humble, you, too, will have from all of us a similar testimony that you are fragrant with the richest perfumes . Everyone among you who not only patiently bears with the infirmities, whether of body or of mind, of his brethren, but also if it is permitted him, and if he has the ability to do it, to assist them by his services, to strengthen them by his exhortations, to train them by his wise counsels ; and if discipline does not permit him to do this, at least he does not cease to assist them in their weakness by his earnest prayers ; everyone, I say, who among you acts in this manner, exercises a precious influence among his brethren, sprinkles over them, so to speak, the costliest perfumes. Like sweet balm in the mouth, is such a brother as this in a community ; he is pointed out with the finger as a wonder, and all say of him : This is a lover of the brethren, who prayeth much for the people, and for the Holy City.

6. But let us now turn to the Gospel, and look if there be anything in it having reference to these perfumes. [And we so find that] Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, had bought sweet spices that they might come and anointJesus ( Mark xvi. 1). Now, what were these perfumes so precious that they were purchased and brought to anoint the Body of Christ, so abundant also that they suffice to anoint it completely ? For neither of the two former was either purchased or made for the service of the Lord, nor do we read that they were poured over His whole body. But suddenly a woman is brought before us, who kissed His feet; and in another place, either she, or another, having an alabaster box of ointment, brake it, and poured the ointment upono His Head ( Luke vii. 38 ; John xii. 3 ; Mark xiv. 3). But in the instance we are considering, it is said, They bought sweet spices, that they might come andanointJesus. They bought, not ointments, but sweet spices ; the ointment for embalming is not taken ready-made, it is newly compounded ; and that to anoint, not a part only of the Lord's Body, as His Head, or His Feet, but in the phrase used by Scripture, ' to anointJesus, ' that is to say, His entire Body.

7. Do you also [who hear me, whosoever you may be], who art putting on bowels of mercies, show yourself liberal and kindly, not to your relatives or connexions only, or to those who you think have helped you in the past, or, as you hope, may help you in the future ; for this even the Gentiles do (Matt. v. 46, 47) ; but, according to 2 Many MSS. omit purchased. St. Paul's precept, study to do good unto all men (Gal. vi. 10). So your constant principle should be that for the sake of God, the offices of humanity, whether corporal or spiritual, are not to be denied even to an enemy; and if you act upon this rule, you will abound in these most precious perfumes, and will have undertaken to anoint, not the Lord's Head or Feet only, but (as far as in you lies) His whole Body, that is, the Church. And perhaps it was for this very reason that the Lord Jesus would not have the sweet spices which had been prepared expended upon His Body dead, in order that they might be reserved for His Body living; for the Church is living, and subsists upon the Living Bread, which came down from heaven. It is that Body of Christ which is the more dear to Him, because it did not taste of death ; whereas the other, as no Christian is ignorant, He gave over unto death. It is this that He wishes to be cherished, to be anointed, and that its weak members should be restored to health by careful and salutary treatment. For this His Body, then, it was that He reserved those sweet spices, when anticipating the hour, and hastening His glory, He instructed, rather than avoided, the devotion of the holy women. He declined to be anointed, not as despising the ointment, but as sparing it ; not as refusing that pious service, but as reserving the usefulness of it to a later time. I say ' the usefulness, ' not as referring to the material ointment, but evidently to the spiritual, which was designated or typified by it. In those sweet spices, therefore, the Master of piety reserved for use those choicest perfumes of piety, which He earnestly desired should be employed for the needs of His members, whether those needs be bodily or spiritual. When, only a little while before, a sweet perfume, and costly, was poured upon His Head, or even upon His Feet, did He forbid it ? Not at all, but, on the contrary, reproved those who did so. To Simon, who was indignant that He should permit Himself to be touched by a woman who was a sinner, He addressed a long parable of reproof ; and to others, who complained of the pecuniary loss sustained by the expending of the perfume, He said : Why trouble ye the woman ? ( Matt. xxvi. 10) .

8. If I may make here a little digression, it has sometimes happened to me when, for my own good, I was sitting at the Feet of Jesus in great affliction, and offering to Him the sacrifice of a spirit troubled and afflicted at the remembrance of my sins ; and I might, as in rare instances has been the case, stand up and rejoice in the remembrance of His mercies, I, too, have heard those that said : Το what purpose is this waste ? That is, they complained that I was spending life to my own profit alone, while, as they thought, I might make myself useful to many. And they, too, said : This might be soldfor much, and given to the poor. But it would not be a profitable transaction for me, even though I should gain the whole world, to lose my own self and work my own destruction. And therefore I regarded such scoffs as realizing what Scripture says of dead flies, which corrupt the sweetness of perfumes (Eccles. x. 1 ) ; and I be thought myself of that utterance of Divine wisdom : Mypeople, they which lead thee cause thee to err ( Is. iii. 12). But let those who accuse me, as if I were slothful, listen to the Lord replying for me, and making my excuse : Why trouble ye the woman ? That is to say, you see only the surface of things, and judge according to what you see. This is not a man, as you suppose, who is able to set his hand to heavy tasks, but [one who is in his weakness] a woman. Why do you attempt to lay upon him a yoke which I perceive that he is not able to bear ? He hath done a good work upon Me. Let him remain in that which is good, as long as he has not strength to go on to that which is better. If ever, by progress in the spiritual life, from a woman he shall have become a man, and a perfect man, then he may take upon him the task of performing the work of perfection .

9. Brethren, let us revere Bishops, but let us have a dread of the labours in which it is the duty of their charge to engage. If we consider those labours, we shall not be desirous of the honours [which belong to them] . Let us recognise that our powers are unequal to these, and that the weak and delicate shoulders of women can have no call to support burdens which task men ; we ought to honour, but not to seek to obtain them. Now, there would be a want of good manners in criticising the actions of those, the burden of whose labours we shun.. What rashness is it of the woman who spins in the house to reproach her husband when returning from the field of battle ! I say, then, that if one who dwells in the cloister remarks that a prelate], whose daily duty lies among the people, conducts himself with less discretion and self-restraint than he should, for example, in speech, in his food, in length of slumber, in freedom of laughter, in indulging anger, or allowing himself liberty of judgment, let him not jump immediately to a conclusion, and that unfavourable, but let him remember that it is written : Better is the iniquity of a man than a woman who doeth good (Ecclus. xliv. 14), for you indeed do well in guarding yourself with vigilance ; but he who is of assistance to many does even better, and leads a more manly life. If such an one does not succeed in fulfilling this function without the commission of some faults, that is, without some want of uniform observance of rule in life and conversation, we must remember that charity covereth a multitude of sins ( 1 Pet. iv. 8). These warnings are given against a twofold temptation, by which men in religion are frequently assailed, that either they should be induced to seek for themselves by ambition the dignity of the Episcopate, or, by the instigation of the devil, rashly to condemn the actions of Bishops.

10. But let us return to the perfumes of the Bride. Do you not see how vastly to be preferred to the others is that perfume of piety which alone must not, under any circumstances, be lost ? So highly is it valued, indeed, that not even the gift of a cup of cold water is suffered to go unrewarded ( Matt. x. 42). Nevertheless, that of contrition and penitence, which is composed of the remembrance of past sins, and is cast at the Lord's Feet, is good also; for a broken and contrite heart God will not despise (Ps. li. 17). But I judge that which is called of devotion, and made of the remembrance of the benefits of God, to be far better, inasmuch as it is thought worthy of being used for the Head, and that God speaks of it thus : Whoso offereth praise glorifieth Me (Ps. 1. 23). But the unction of piety and charity, which comes from a regard to those who are miserable, and is diffused over the whole of the Body of Christ, vastly surpasses both the one and the other ; and when I say the Body of Christ, I mean not that which was crucified in His Passion, but that which was obtained by the suffering of the former. That perfume is, in truth, the best, of which He who says : I will have mercy and not sacrifice (Matt. ix. 13)-declares that He does not regard others in comparison with it. I think, then, that, among all the virtues, the bosom of the Bride exhales most of all the perfume of that, since she strives in all things to conform herself to the will of her Spouse. Was it not that odour of mercy which Tabitha exhaled even in death ? And if she was raised speedily to life again, it was because that odour of life in her overcame the odour of death.

11. Let me give you now, in conclusion, a brief abstract of the whole subject : Whosoever in words is full of fervour and stimulating strength (inebriat), and by benefits done to others gains a name of which the good report is fragrant, may claim the words : Thy breasts are better than wine, and their fragrance than the choicest perfumes. But who is it whom these words truly describe ? Who is there among us who possesses fully and perfectly even one of these two qualities in such a manner that he is not sometimes either unfruitful in his teaching or without earnestness in his actions ? But there is one who, with good right and without hesitation, may be praised as possessing both. It is the Church which, though the number of her children be so great, is never wanting in teaching to arouse and to stimulate them, or in good deeds of which the fragrance excites their admiration ; for that which is wanting in one, she finds in another [of her children] , according to the measure of the gift of Christ, and of the good pleasure of the Holy Ghost dividing unto everyone severally as He will ( Eph. iv. 7, and 1 Cor. xii. 11 ). The Church gives forth a fragrant odour of good report in those her children who make to themselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness ; and she gives forth teaching to arouse and to stimulate, in the ministers of the Word, who pour forth upon the earth the wine of spiritual joy, which, so to speak, inebriates it, and who bring forth fruit in patience. With safety and confidence she names herself Spouse, since her breasts are truly better than wine, and their fragrance than the choicest perfumes . And though none of us would presume so far as to venture to say that his soul was the Spouse of the Lord, yet, since we are members of the Church which justly glories in that name, and in the fact which the name signifies, we may claim, not unjustly, a participation in that glory; for that which the whole body of us possess, fully and entirely, each of us, as individuals, must surely have our part in. Thanks be to Thee, O Lord Jesus, for that Thou hast deigned to join us to Thy Church, which is to Thee so dear, that we might be not only of the number of Thy faithful, but also [that our souls] might be united to Thee, as Spouse, in embraces blissful, chaste, and eternal, when, with face unveiled, we shall behold Thy glory-the glory which Thou hast, equally and in common with the Father and the Holy Ghost, for ever and ever. AMEN.

THE sea is the source of fountains and rivers ; the Lord Jesus Christ is the source of every kind of virtue and knowledge. For who but He who is the King of glory is the Lord of every virtue ? So He, too, according to the song of Hannah ( I Sam. ii. 3), is a God of knowledge. Continence in the body, diligence of heart, rectitude of will, flow from that Divine source. Nor is this all ; for if anyone is of skilled and able intellect, or of striking and powerful speech, or of winning and saintly character, it is from hence that this ability comes. Whatever discourse is wise and full of knowledge has its origin from Him, for in Him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge ( Col. i . 3) . What ? are not pure purposes, just judgments, holy aspirations, one and all streams from that same source ? If all waters seek incessantly to return to the sea, making their way thither sometimes by hidden and subterranean channels, so that they may go forth from it again in continual and untiring circuit, becoming visible once more to man and available for his service, why are not those spiritual streams rendered back constantly and without reserve to their legitimate source, that they may not cease to water the fields of our hearts ? Let the rivers of divers graces return from whence they came, that they may flow forth anew. Let the heavenly shower rise again to its heavenly source, that it may be poured anew and still more plentifully upon the earth. In what manner, do you ask ? In the manner prescribed by the Apostle St. Paul : In everything give thanks ( 1 Thess. v. 18) . Whatever you think you have of wisdom and of virtue, attribute it to Him who is the Power of God and the Wisdom of God—that is, to Christ.

2. Who is so actuated by folly, you say, as to presume to think otherwise ? No one, truly ; even the Pharisee returned thanks to God ( Luke xviii. 11). Nevertheless, he had not praise from God for righteousness ; and that thanksgiving of his, if you remember well the Gospel, did not render him more acceptable to God. Wherefore ? Because an outward show in word of devotion does not suffice to excuse the pride of heart in the man before Him who from afar off recogniseth the proud (Ps. cxxxviii. 6). God, O Pharisee, is not mocked. Do you suppose for a moment that you possess anything which you have not received from Him ? No, you reply ; and therefore I render thanks to my liberal benefactor. If you do not possess anything at all of your own, then there was in you no antecedent merit on account of which you received those things upon the possession of which you boast yourself. If you confess this to be the case, then, in the first place, it is with unjustifiable presumption that you exalt yourself above the Publican who does not possess the same [merits] as you, only because he has not received them as you have. Farther, take care lest, by not attributing to God wholly and entirely the gifts which He has bestowed, but diverting to yourself some portion of the glory and honour of them, you may not justly be accused of fraud, and fraud towards God. For if you attribute to yourself somewhat of those merits of which you boast, I should suppose that it is because you are yourself deceived rather than that you desire to do an injustice ; and it is that error that I would correct. But now, since, by the act of returning thanks, you show that you arrogate nothing to yourself, and that you prudently recognise your merits to be the gifts of God, it is evident that, in despising others, you betray yourself, and show that you speak with a double hearton the one hand, lending your tongue to a falsehood ; on the other, usurping the glory of the truth. For you would not consider the Publican to be an object of scorn in comparison of yourself if you did not suppose that you were worthy of praise in comparison of him. But what do you reply to the Apostle who lays down this rule : To God alone be honour and glory ( 1 Tim. i. 17, Vulg. ) ? Or what to the angel who declares and distinguishes what it pleases God to reserve to Himself, and what He deigns to share with men ? For he says : Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of goodwill (Luke ii. 14). Do you not see how the Pharisee, in giving thankswith his lips, indeed-honours God, but in the thought of his heart gives honour to himself? And we see many persons act thus : in their mouths resound words of thanksgiving. But this is by a kind of habit rather than by their true impulse or intention ; insomuch that men, even of the most abandoned class. are in the habit of giving thanks to God for their good success, as they think it, in the carrying out of this or that crime or outrage. You hear, for example, a robber, after having carried out an evil plan, and deprived someone of his portmanteau (manipulum), exulting secretly, and saying : ' Thank God, I have not made fruitless watches, nor spent my night to no profit !' Similarly, he who has killed a man, does he not boast of it, and offer his thanksgiving that he has prevailed against his adversary, or avenged himself of his enemy? Even an adulterer, exulting in his success, thanks God that he has obtained his long-hoped-for pleasure.

3. Not every offering of thanks, therefore, is acceptable to God, but that only which proceeds from a pure and sincere heart. I say pure, because of those who boast themselves of their bad actions, and even offer thanks to God for them. Let anyone who is of this character listen to these terrible words : Thou thoughtest that Iwas altogether such an one as thyself, but Iwill reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes (Ps. 1. 21) . And I have added sincere, because of hypocrites, who, indeed, glorify God for their good works, but only with their lips ; while in heart they keep back all praise for themselves ; and since they act deceitfully in His presence, their iniquity is hateful. The former, in their impiety, attribute to God their own bad actions ; the latter fraudulently arrogate to themselves the good things which they have received from Him. As regards the former of these offences, it is so full of folly and worldliness, and, I might even say, is, in a certain sense, so brutal, that I need hardly warn you to avoid it. But the latter is, above all, a besetting temptation to those who are religious and spiritually minded men. It is without doubt a great and rare virtue to have no consciousness of greatness, although performing great actions ; and that the sanctity of a man, while it is manifest to all others, should be hidden from himself. Tο appear admirable to others, and to think humbly of yourself, this I judge to be the most marvellous among the virtues themselves. You are truly a faithful servant if you suffer nothing to remain with yourself (tuis manibus adhaerere) of all the glory of your Lord, when that glory, though it does not come from you, yet passes through you or by your means. It is then that, according to the saying of the Prophet ( Is. xxxiii. 15), you cast from you gains acquired by falseness, and keep your hands clean from every bribe. Then it is that, as the Lord commands, you let your light shine before men, that they mayglorify, not you, but your Father which is in heaven (Matt. v. 16) . Thus, too, you are an imitator of St. Paul and of faithful preachers, who preach, not themselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord (2 Cor. iv. 5) ; nor seek their own interests, but those of Jesus Christ (Phil. ii . 21) . And on that account you, too, as they, shall hear the greeting : Well done, thou good andfaithful servant ; thou hast beenfaithful over afew things, I will make thee ruler over many things ( Matt. xxv. 21) .

4. If Joseph, in Egypt, knew that the house and all the goods of his master had been entrusted to him, he was not ignorant at the same time that his mistress was an exception ; and because of this, he would not consent to her, saying : My master hath committed all that he hath to my hand, neither hath he kept back anythingfrom me but thee, because thou art his wife (Gen. xxxix. 9). He knew that the wife is the glory of her husband, and regarded it as a great injustice and a shameful ingratitude to dishonour one who had loaded him with so many honours. That man, prudent with the wisdom of God, knew that a husband is jealous of his wife as being his own honour, and that she is to be sacredly reserved to him, not passed on to another ; nor did he presume to stretch out his hand to that which was not given to him. What then ? Shall a man be jealous of his glory, and yet dare to wish to defraud God of His, as if He had no care for it ? But hear what God Himself says : Iwill not give My glory unto another ( Is. xlviii. 11). What, then, wilt Thou give, O Lord ; what wilt Thou bestow upon us ? Peace, He replies, I leave with you ; My peace I give unto you ( John xiv. 27). That is sufficient for me; I gratefully receive that which Thou leavest to me, nor do I grasp at that which Thou reservest. With this [partition] I am satisfied and I do not doubt that it is for myadvantage. Glory I wholly renounce, lest perchance in usurping what is not granted to me, I justly lose that which is bestowed. Peace I desire ; peace I long for, and nothing more. The soul for which peace does not suffice will not find even Thee sufficient. For Thou art our Peace, who hast made both one (Eph. ii. 14). That I should be reconciled with Thee, that I should be reconciled with myself, this is necessary for me; and this is enough. For from the moment that I am set in contrariety to Thee, I am a burden to myself (Job vii. 20). I am on my guard, and do not desire to be either ungrateful for the peace Thou hast bestowed upon me, or a sacrilegious usurper of Thy glory. Let Thy glory, O Lord, remain undiminished to Thee ; with me all will be well if I possess peace.

5. When Goliath was overthrown the people rejoiced that they had recovered peace ; but to David alone fell the great glory. Joshua, Jephtha, Gideon, Samson, Judith also, though a woman, triumphed gloriously in their day over their enemies ; but though the people had the enjoyment of the peace that these heroes had achieved, they did not share with them the glory. Judas Maccabæus also, a man illustrious by many victories, because he had so often fought valiantly, and thus given peace to his people, did he ever share with them his glory also ? ' There was, ' it is said, not great glory, but ' very great gladness among the people ' ( 1 Macc. iv. 58). Are the works which the Creator of all things has done less than those due to the great men named, that He should have less ground for a glory all His own and unshared by others ? Alone He created all things that exist ; alone He triumphed over the enemy ; alone He freed the captives, and shall He have a companion in His glory ? Mine own Arm, He says, brought salvation unto Me ; and again : I have trodden the winepress alone ; and of the people there was none with Me (Is. lxiii. 5, 3). What share can I, then, pretend to in the victory, when I had none in the battle ? It would be the extremest effrontery in me to claim either glory without victory, or victory without combat. But do ye, O mountains, bring peace unto the people (Ps. lxxii. 3) ; peace unto us, not glory ; reserving that to Him alone who alone has fought the battle and gained the victory. Thus, I entreat, thus let it be : Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth peace to men of goodwill. He, however, is not a man of good will, but evidently of very evil will, who is not at all content with peace, but restlessly aspires also to the glory which belongs to God, with an eye of pride and a heart never satisfied ; and such a man neither retains peace nor attains glory. Who would believe the wall if it should lay claim to produce the ray of light which is thrown upon it through the window ? or who would not laugh to scorn the clouds if they pretended that the showers which they let fall were engendered in them ? I am well assured that the rivers of water have not their source from the channel in which they run, nor words of prudence from the lips and the teeth which give utterance to them, even though my bodily senses do not enable me to reach this conclusion.

6. If, then, I discern something in the saints which is worthy of praise and admiration when I examine it in the clear light of truth, I find that though they appear to be admirable and praiseworthy it is another than they who is really so, and I praise God in His saints. Take, for example, Elisha, or that great prophet Elijah, each of whom restored the dead to life. It was not by any power of their own, but in the discharge of a ministry committed to them, that they achieved those new and unprecedented marvels ; it was God who abode in them and performed those marvellous works. He is invisible and unapproachable by His own Nature, but renders Himself visible and admirable in His saints, and alone admirable, since He alone doth wonderful things (Ps. lxxi. 19). Painting and writing are both arts worthy of praise, yet it is not the pen [or the brush] that is to be praised ; nor is the glory of an eloquent discourse given to the tongue or the lips which pronounce it. It is time that the Prophet should speak. Shall the axe, he says, boast itselfagainst him that cutteth with it? or shall the saw exalt itself against him by whom it is drawn ? as if a rod should lift itself up against him that lifteth it up, and a staff exalt itself, which is but wood ( Is. x. 15) ; so is everyone who glorieth against the Lord, unless he glory in the Lord (2 Cor. x. 17). If it be needful for a man to glory, St. Paul teaches us in whom, and in regard to what it should be done. Our glory, he says, is this, the testimony of our conscience ( 2 Cor. i. 12 ). I may glory without fear if my conscience bears me witness that I am usurping nothing of the glory of my Creator ; assuredly without fear, because I do it not against the Lord but in the Lord. This kind of glorying is not only not forbidden to us, but we are persuaded to employ it, for it is said : Ye receive glory one from another, and the glory which is from God alone you do not seek (John v. 44). In fact, the ability to glory in God alone comes but from God alone. Nor is this glory small, since it hath the Truth for its object, and is therefore true ; and, in truth, is so rare that even of the small number of those who are perfect there are but few who possess it perfectly. Leave, then, the sons of men, who are vain, who are untruthful : leave them by vanity to deceive each other (Ps. lxi. 10). For he who glories wisely will strictly prove his work, to examine it diligently by the light of truth ; and so he shall have glory in himself, and not in the mouth of another. Foolish am I if I shall have confided my glory to the vessel of your lips, and so be obliged to beg it of you when I would obtain it. For thus it would be in your power to approve or to disapprove of me at your will. But in retaining [this] in my own power I preserve it for myself 1 In some MSS. not is wanting. more faithfully. Or, rather, I do not trust it to myself at all, but commit it in preference to Him for safe keeping who is able to keep that which is committed unto Him until that day (2 Tim. i. 12) , for He is both watchful in keeping and faithful in rendering up His charge. Then shall every one have sure praise from God, but those only who have contemned the praises of men. For the glory of those whose taste is only for earthly things ends in confusion, as it is declared even by David : Those that please men have been confounded, because God hath despised them ( Ps. lii . 6) .

7. Brethren, if you know and feel these truths let none ofyou desire to be praised in this world, because every honour which you reach after and obtain in this life, and which you do not refer to God, is a theft from Him of which you are guilty. What ground have you for glorying, what ground, I repeat, you who art decaying dust ? Is it the sanctity of your life ? But it is the Spirit that sanctifieth ; and when I say ' spirit ' I mean not your spirit, but the Spirit of God. Even though you should be renowned for signs and wonders, they are performed by your hand indeed, but by the power of God only. Or does the popular favour attend you, because you have, perhaps, spoken something good in itself, or elegantly worded ? But it was Christ who bestowed upon you a mouth and wisdom. For what is your tongue but as the pen of the writer ? And this very thing you have received only as a loan ; it is a talent entrusted to you to be returned with usury. If you are found untiring in the work committed to you, faithful in bringing forth fruit [of the grace of God], you shall receive a reward for your labour. But if it be otherwise the talent shall be taken from you-its interest being required, nevertheless-and you shall be called a wicked and slothful servant. Every praise, therefore, on account of good actions, and of the manifold graces which are made apparent in you, is to be referred to Him who is the Author and Giver of all that is good and laudable. And these must be referred to Him, not in appearance only, as is the wont of hypocrites, or as a matter of form and custom, as by those who are worldly [secularibus, people in the world] , nor even by a kind of necessity, as beasts of burden are obliged to bear their loads, but as it becometh saints, with faithful sincerity, with careful devotion, with grateful but restrained and moderated cheerfulness. Therefore, while offering to Him the sacrifice of praise, and performing our vows from day to day, let us endeavour, with all the watchfulness in our power, to join intelligence to our accustomed service, fervour to our intelligence, gladness to our fervour, gravity to our gladness, humility to our gravity, freedom of spirit to our humility, so that in the meantime we may go forward with the free steps of a mind purified from evil passions, and pass, in a sense, out of ourselves by the extraordinary fervour of our desires and affections, to feel spiritual joys and gladsome delights, to dwell in the light of God, in the ineffable sweetness of the Holy Ghost, and may show that we are of those whom the Prophet had in view when he said : They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance ; in Thy Name they shall rejoice all the day, and in Thyjustice they shall be exalted ( Ps. lxxxviii. 16, 17) .

8. But perhaps someone will say to me : What you say is good, but it would be still better, that you should continue to speak of your precise subject. Wait a little, I reply ; I am not unmindful of it. Have we not taken in hand to expound these words : Thy Name is as oilpouredforth ? This is our subject ; this our endeavour.1 I leave you to judge whether the preliminary observations which I have made were necessary. Now, listen to these few words, in which I will show that they are not unconnected with the subject. Do you not remember that in treating of the bosom of the Spouse, the last thing referred to was the sweetness of the perfumes it exhaled ? What, then, follows more clearly than that the Spouse should recognise that this same fragrance is to be attributed to the gift of her Bridegroom, that she may not be thought to arrogate it to herself ? Now, you know well that all I have said tends towards that object. The fragrance, ' she says, ' which is exhaled from me, and which renders my perfume pleasing, I ascribe not to my own efforts, or my own merits, but acknowledge that it is due to Thy bounty, O my Bridegroom ; Thou whose adorable Name is as oil poured out. ' Thus much for the sense of the text.

9. As to the explanation of the verse, which has given me the occasion to speak to you at such length on the detestable vice of ingratitude, it requires another occasion, and the commencement of another sermon. At present it is sufficient for me to suggest to you one reflection. If the Bride does not venture to attribute anything to herself of all her virtues, and of all her graces, how much less should maidens young and untried ? and with these we may, so to speak, compare ourselves. Let us, then, in conclusion, follow the footprints of the Bride, and say with her : Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us ; but unto Thy Name give glory (Ps. cxv. 1 ). Let us say it, not with tongue and in word only, but in deed and in truth, lest (which I greatly fear) those words should be spoken of us also : They loved Him with their mouth, and with their heart they lied unto Him : but their heart was not right with Him, nor were they countedfaithful in His covenant (Ps. lxxvii. 36, 37). Let us say it, then, let us say it, with a voice that comes rather from the depths of the heart, than merely from the lips : Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to Thy Holy Name (not, observe, to our own), and may glory (not in our own praise, but) in Thy praise (Ps. cv. 47) for ever and ever. AMEN.

In Judah is God known: His Nameis greatin Israel (Ps. lxxv. 1. ). The people (of the Gentiles) who walked in darkness have seen a great light (Is. ix. 2), which was in Judah and in Israel, and have desired to approach it, and be enlightened ; so that those who once were not a people, now became the people of God ( 1 Pet. ii. 10) ; and one corner-stone united together the two walls which came from different sides, so that, thenceforth, the place of his abode was a place of peace. That which inspired [the nation] with confidence was the voice of invitation which it had heard: Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with His people ( Rom. xv. 10). Therefore He desired them to draw near ; but the Synagogue forbade them, asserting the Church gathered out of the nations to be unclean, and unworthy of a favour so great. Then, reproaching it as a sink of idolatry, and blaming the blindness of its ignorance, said [the Jew] : In what way have you merited this favour ? Touch me not. To which the other replied : Why must I not do so ? Is Hethe God oftheJews only? IsHenot also of the Gentiles ? ( Rom. iii. 29). And if merit is wanting in me, yet assuredly pity and compassion is not wanting in Him. He is not only righteous, but also compassionate. O Lord, let Thy tender mercies come unto me, and I shall live ; and again she says : Many, O Lord, are Thy mercies : quicken me according to Thy judgment (Ps. cxix. 77, 156), which, inasmuch as it is moderated and restrained, is itself mercy. What, then, will the Lord so just and so merciful do, if there be one who glories in the Law, and proudly attributes righteousness to himself ; who supposes that he does not need mercy, and despises another who does need it ; and, again, another who is aware of his offences, who confesses his unworthiness, who prays God not to deal with him according unto judgment, but to extend to him the Divine mercy ? What, I say, will the Judge do, and that Judge one to whom judgment and mercy are equally familiar, so that neither of the two belongs to Him more than the other ? What can possibly be more appropriate, than that He should deal with each according to his prayer, and dispense judgment to the one and to the other mercy ? The Jew seeks judgment ; let him be judged; but let the Gentiles honour God for His mercy. And it is judgment that those who despise the merciful righteousness of God, and desire to set up their own righteousness (which assuredly accuses, not justifies, them) , should be left to that same righteousness of their own, to be overthrown rather than justified.

2. For the Law, which has never rendered anyone perfect, is a yoke which neither their fathers nor they have ever been able to bear. But the Synagogue is strong; it cares not for an easy yoke, nor for a light burden. It is in health ; it has no need of a physician, nor of the anointing of the Spirit. It trusts in the Law ; let the Law deliver it, if the Law has the power. But there has been no Law bestowed which is able to give life ; nay, moreover, it is death that the Law gives : for the letter killeth ( 2 Cor. iii. 6). Therefore (said the Lord) Isay unto you, that ye shalldie in your sins ( John viii. 24) . This, then, O Synagogue, is the judgment which you, in your error, are clamouring for. O blinded and obstinate ! you shall be left to your error, until the fulness of the Gentiles, which you proudly despise, and reject by envy, shall come in, and you shall acknowledge as God Him who is known in Judæa, whose Name is great in Israel. For the rendering of this judgment it is that Jesus has come unto this world, that they who see not might see, and that they who see may become blind (John ix. 39). Yet this judgment is but in part, for the Lord will not cast off His people (Ps. xciv. 14) altogether ; He preserves to Himself as a seed His Apostles, and the multitude of the believers, who were of one heart and of one soul. He will not reject them to the end, but will save a remnant. He will again take to Himself Israel His servant, remembering His mercy (Luke i. 54) , so that mercy shall not fail to accompany judgment, even there where it finds no place. Otherwise, if He had treated them according to their merits, He would inflict judgment without mercy upon those who show no mercy (James ii. 13). For Judah hath in abundance the oil of the knowledge of God, and keeps it jealously to herself, as a miser, as it were in a closely-sealed vessel. I ask for it, and she does not take pity upon me ; nor will she even lend it. She desires to possess alone the worship, the knowledge, the great Name of God, not because she is jealous for her own happiness, but because she is envious of mine.

3. Therefore do Thou, O Lord, give judgment in my cause that Thy great Name may be henceforth magnified, and thy oil Divine be multiplied still more. Let it rise, let it bubble up, let it be poured forth and roll among the nations, and let all flesh have part in the salvation of God. Wherefore, as the ungrateful Jew desires, should the unction of salvation remain upon the beard of Aaron alone ? It is not for the beard, but for the head. Nor does the head exist for the beard alone, but for the whole body. Let it receive first, but not exclusively. Let that [unction] which it has received from on high be poured upon the lower limbs also. Let the heavenly fluid descenddescend upon the breast also of the Church. She does not disdain -she eagerly receives that which falls upon her from the beard [of her High Priest] ; and when saturated with the dew of grace, that she may not show herself ungrateful, she cries : Thy Name is as ointment pouredforth (Cant. i. 2). Let it roll farther yet, I entreat ; let it reach even to the skirt of her clothing that is to say, let it extend even to me, the last and lowest of all, and the most unworthy, yet still belonging, as it were, to that clothing. I earnestly entreat, appealing to the goodness [of my God], that this stream of grace may come to me, as it were, from the bosom of my mother [ Church], for I am as a babe in Christ. And if any man whose eye is evil because of Thy goodness should murmur, do Thou, O Lord, answer for me; let judgment come forth from Thy Countenance, not from the arrogance of Israel. Nay, more, do Thou reply on Thy own behalf, and say to the slandererfor it is of Thee that he utters slanders, because of Thy free grace Thou dost bestow Thy good gifts-declare, I say, to him : I will give unto this last even as unto thee (Matt. xx. 14). That displeases the Pharisee ; but why, O Pharisee, dost thou murmur ? My right is the will of the Judge. Is He not as just in discerning merit as He is rich in rewarding it ? May He not do as He will [with His own) ? To me, I confess, mercy is shown ; but to thee no injury whatever is done. Take what thine is, and go thy way. If He has decreed to bestow upon me also the gift of salvation, what dost thou lose by His so doing ?

4. Exaggerate your merits to any degree you will, and extol your labours, the mercy of the Lord is better than life (Ps. lxiii. 3). I have not, I confess it, endured the burden and heat of the day, but I bear an easy yoke and a light burden according to the good pleasure of our Father. My task has been of scarcely an hour long, and if it had been longer, love would have prevented me from perceiving it. Let the Jew busy himself in his own strength ; but as for me, my only care is to make proof what is the good and acceptable and perfect Will of the Lord. It is from it that I repair the losses in time and in labour which I have sustained. He trusts to the letter of an agreement ; I to the decree of God's good pleasure ; yea, I believe, nor shall I be confounded in my faith, for my life depends upon His Will. That grace reconciles the Father to me, that restores to me my lost inheritance, and with even a greater weight of grace delights me with sweet melody, delicious viands, and all the delightful joys of all His rejoicing family. If that elder brother of mine is indignant, and prefers to make merry with his friends upon a kid without the doors rather than with me in our Father's House upon the fatted calf, the answer shall be returned to him : It was meet that we should make merry and be glad; for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again ; and was lost, and is found ( Luke xv. 32). The Synagogue still feasts without, and with demons for friends, whom it delights to see that she is still so blind as to devour the kid [so to speak] of sin-to swallow, and, as it were, to hide it in the stomach of her folly and ignorance ; while, in her scorn of the righteousness of God and desire to establish her own righteousness, she declares that she has no sin, and no need of the death of the fatted calf, because she supposes herself to be pure and righteous by the works of the Law. But the Church, after having rent asunder, by the death of the Word crucified, the veil of the letter which killeth, is led by the Spirit of liberty to advance boldly into His secret things-to recognise and take delight in them, to be chosen into the place of her rival, to become the Bride, to enjoy the graces of which the other is deprived ; and, being everywhere bedewed and anointed with the oil of her gladness, clinging closely to the Lord Christ, and receiving the vital warmth of the Holy Spirit, she obtains this happiness beyond her fellows (Ps. xlv. 7 ), and says : Thy Name is as ointment poured forth. What wonder if she who embraces Him who is filled with this sacred unction should herself be anointed therewith !

5. The Church, then, reposes within, but as yet the Church of those who are perfect ; yet for us also there is hope. Let us who fall short of this perfection rest without, and rejoice in the hope which is given to us. In the meantime, the Bridegroom and the Bride are alone within ; they enjoy mutual and ineffable delights, untroubled by any tumult of carnal desires, or by the fleeting images of earthly things. Without await them the company of virgin souls, who cannot be as yet free from such disquietudes ; but they wait in assured peace, knowing that of them it has been said : The virgins, her companions thatfollow her, shall be brought [unto the King] (Ps. xlv. 14). And that each of them may know of what spirit they are, I call those virgin souls who, having been covenanted to Christ before they were defiled by the embraces of the world, persevere constantly in the love of Him to whom they have devoted themselves, and are so much the more happy the earlier they did so. And I call those ' their companions ' (proximas) who, after having shamefully given themselves over in bondage to the princes of this world that is, to impure spirits-yet, at length, being ashamed of their own defilement in which they were once conformed to this world, came forth from it, and hasten to put on the likeness of the new man, and that with the greater sincerity the later they were in their reformation. Both the one and the other class go forward together; they do not fail, nor are they wearied, even though they do not feel as yet in full that inward consolation which moves souls to say : Thy Name is as ointment pouredforth. For these souls do not venture to address themselves directly to the Bridegroom, yet their endeavour is to press closely in the footsteps of her who leads them on ( magistra) ; they will enjoy the delightful perfume of the oil poured forth, and will be incited by it to desire and to seek for still higher and better things.

6. I am not ashamed to confess that often, and particularly at the commencement of my conversion, I myself experienced extreme coldness and hardness of heart. I sought after Him whom my soul was desirous to love ; for it was not then able to love one whom it had not yet found, or, at least, it loved Him less than it wished to do, and on that account was seeking Him that it might love Him with an increased affection, though assuredly it would not have sought Him without having some degree of love for Him previously. While, then, I was seeking Him in whom my frozen and languid spirit might find warmth and repose, and no one came from any side to my help, to dissolve the icy torpor of my spiritual senses and to bring back the sweetness and fruitfulness of the spring-at that time, I say, my soul languished and drooped in torpor, a prey to hard and hopeless depression and dull discontent. At such times it would murmur to itself : Who is able to abide the rigour of His frost ? ( Ps. cxlvii. 17). Then, on a sudden, at a word, at the sight of some holy or piously-minded person, or at the mere remembrance of one dead or absent, the Holy Spirit would breathe upon [my frozen soul], and the waters would flow ; then tears were my food dayand night. What was that but the perfume exhaled by that anointing with which that holy one was endued ? It was not the anointing itself, for that did not reach me except through the medium of some man ; and though the gift caused me joy, yet I was confounded and humiliated to know that I enjoyed but a passing gust of sweetness, and that the unction from which it arose was not vouchsafed to me. And having only the pleasure to perceive it at a distance, but not to draw near and touch it, I understood that I was unworthy that God should communicate to me its sweetness directly (per se ipsum). And if now the same thing occurs to me, I receive, indeed, eagerly the favour accorded to me, and I feel thankful ; but I am touched with extreme grief not to have merited it by myself, nor received it, so to speak, from hand to hand, as I earnestly entreated that I might do. I am ashamed to be moved more at the remembrance of man than at that of God. And then I cry with groaning : When shall Icome and appear before God ? (Ps. xlii. 2). I think, too, that some of you have gone through the same experience, and do so sometimes even now. What are we to think of this, except that God permits it either to warn us of pride, to preserve our humility, to nourish brotherly charity, or to increase our desire for holiness ? One and the same kind of food serves both as medicine for the sick, and as diet for the sickly (aegrotativis). Even more, it strengthens the weak, and delights those who are in health ; it both heals disease, and preserves health ; nourishes the body, and, at the same time, is agreeable to the taste .

7. But let us return to the words of the Bridegroom ; let us be careful to listen to what He says, and to delight in that which delights Him. The Bride, as I have said, is the Church. She it is to whom more has been forgiven, and who loves the more. That with which her rival hastens to reproach her, she herself turns to her profit. Thus she is the more gentle for chiding, more patient to endure, more ardent in love, more prudent in self control ; thus she becomes the humbler for the consciousness of her faults, more acceptable by her modesty, more prepared to obey, more earnest and devoted in thanksgiving. Finally, while the Synagogue, as has been said, murmurs, recalls her merits, her labours, and the burden and heat of the day which she has borne, the Church, on the contrary, recounts but the benefits which she has received, and cries : Thy Name is as ointment pouredforth.

8. This is evidently the testimony which Israel gives to celebrate the Name of the Lord; yet not the Israel which is according to the flesh, but that which is according to the Spirit. For how could the former speak thus ? It is not that he has not oil, but that he has it not poured forth. He has it, but it is hidden ; he has it in his books, but not in his heart. He attaches himself to the outward letter ; he clasps in his hands a vase filled with fragrant oil, but it is closed, and he opens it not that he may be anointed therewith. The anointing of the Spirit is inward-yea, it is inward ; open, then, and be anointed, and no longer shalt thou be a rebellious house. Of what avail is oil in thy vases, if thou hast it not to anoint thy limbs ? What does it profit thee to read the life-giving Name of the Saviour in books, and not to have faith in Him in thy heart and obedience in thy life ? Thou hast oil; pour it forth, and thou shalt feel its threefold virtue. But the Jew disdains these things ; do you, then, listen. I wish to tell you what I have not yet mentioned, why the Name of the Bridegroom is compared to oil. Now, for this there are three reasons. But since He is called by many names, inasmuch as that which is proper to Him is known to none (for it is Ineffable), we must first of all invoke the Holy Spirit that He will deign, by His Divine wisdom, to reveal to us, since it has not pleased Him to declare it in the Word written, that Name, out of all those which have been given to Him, which He would have us to understand in this passage ; but of this also at another time. For although I am quite prepared to speak of all these things, yet that neither you should be burdened, nor I wearied with speaking, the hour warns us to make an end. Keep in mind what I have drawn your attention to, that it may not be needful to repeat it to-morrow. This is what I have in hand and propose to speak of next ; namely, why the Name of the Bridegroom is compared to oil ; and what is that special Name among the many given to Him. And since I am able to speak nothing of myself, let your prayer be offered that the Bridegroom Himself, Jesus Christ our Lord, may by His Spirit reveal it to us. To Him be honour and glory, for ever and ever. AMEN.

THE Spirit of wisdom is benevolent, and He is not accustomed to show Himself unapproachable to those who invoke Him, since often, before even He is called upon, He saith, Lo, Iam here (Is. lxv. 24). Listen, now, to what at your prayer He has deigned to make known by means of me upon that subject, of which we treated yesterday, and receive in due season the fruit of your prayers. Behold, I show you a Name which is rightly compared to oil, and I will explain to you by what right it is thus compared. You read, upon 1 Wisd. i. 6, Vulgate and Douay version. every page of the Divine Scripture, many Names given to the Bridegroom, but these I will sum up in two only. None of these you will, in my judgment, find, which do not express, either the grace of His beneficence, or the power of His majesty. The Holy Spirit thus instructs by the mouth of one through whom He frequently speaks : These two things have I heard, that power belongeth to God, and mercy to Thee, O Lord. Again, as to His Majesty, we read : Holy and terrible is His Name ( Ps. cx. 9). As to His goodness towards men, There is none other Name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved ( Acts iv. 12). Let me render this still more clear by examples. This is His Name, whereby He shall be called, The Lord our Righteousness (Jer. xxiii. 6). It is here a name of power. Again : Andhis Name shall be called Immanuel ( Is. vii. 14) , here implying His goodness to men. Also He speaks thus of Himself : Ye call Me Master and Lord ( John xiii. 13)-the former a name of grace, the latter of greatness. For it is no less a deed of beneficence to bestow knowledge upon the mind than to give food to the body. Again, the Prophet says : His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty One, God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace (Is. ix. 6). The first, the third, and the fourth attributes, express His majesty ; the others, His goodness to men. Which, then, of these is ' as oil poured forth ?' Evidently the Name of His Majesty and Power is in some mysterious manner transfused into that which is the Name of His Goodness and Grace ; and this last is poured forth abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour. For example, does not the Name of ' God ' pass into and become transfused in that which is ' God with us, that is, in ' Immanuel'? So the name of ' Wonderful ' into that of ‘ Counsellor ' ; ' God, the Mighty One ' into those of the Everlasting Father ' and ' the Prince of Peace ' ; and ' The Lord our Righteousness ' into ' the Lord gracious andfull of compassion ' (Ps. cxi. 4). In this I say nothing new, for Abram also was, in an earlier age, changed into Abraham, and Sarai into Sarah ; and in those cases also we find that a mystery of beneficence was prefigured and celebrated.

2. Where, now, is that Voice of thunder which made itself heard so frequently and so terribly by the people of old time : I am the Lord ! Iam the Lord ! (Exod. xx. 2). In its place there is dictated to me a prayer, which commences with the sweet name of Father, and thus affords good ground for confidence that the petitions which follow will be granted. Those who were servants are now called friends ; and the Resurrection of Jesus is announced, not even to disciples only, but to those who are named brethren. And I do not wonder that this pouring forth of the Holy Name was made when the fulness of time came ; for God thus fulfilled what He had promised by Joel (ii. 28) , and poured out His Spirit upon all flesh ; and I read that something similar had taken place among the Hebrews in ancient 1 Ps. lxi. 12, Vulgate and Douay version. 2 Saltem. So in MS. , but another reading is tantum. IN WHAT MANNER THE NAME OF JESUS IS A SALUTARY MEDICINE 81 times. Your minds, I dare say, outstrip my words, and you already know what I am about to mention. For of what nature was the answer, I would ask, which was given to Moses when he inquired at first who was speaking to him ? I AM THAT I AM ? and I AM hath sent me unto you ? ( Exod. iii . 14). I know not whether Moses himself would have understood it thus if the Name had not been already poured forth . But that was done, and it was understood ; not only poured (fusum), but poured forth ( effusum) ; for the inpouring (infusum ) was already achieved. Already the heavens possessed it ; already it had been made known to the angels. But it is [now] sent forth abroad ; and the Name which had been so infused into the angels that it was become even familiar to them, was sent forth among men also, so that thenceforth the cry of joy should be with justice raised from earth, Thy Name is as oil poured forth, if the odious obstinacy of an ungrateful people had not hindered. For He says : I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God ofJacob (Exod. iii . 6, 15 ) .

3. Approach, ye nations ; your salvation is at hand. That Name is poured forth which whosoever calls upon shall be saved. The God of angels names Himself the God of men also. He has shed forth oil upon Jacob and it has fallen upon Israel. Say, then, to your brethren, Give us of your oil (Matt. xxv. 8). But if they will not, pray ye the Lord for oil, that He may send it unto you also. Say ye unto Him, Take away our reproach ( Is . iv. 1) . Permit not, I entreat, an evil tongue to insult Thy beloved, whom Thou hast been pleased to call from the ends of the earth, and that with so much the greater bounty as he was less worthy [ of Thy goodness] . Is it fitting, I beseech Thee, that a wicked servant should shut out those whom their kind Father has invited ? Iam, Thou sayest, the God ofAbraham, the God of Isaac, and the God ofJacob. Andare there no more [than these] ? Pour forth, pour forth ; open still wider Thy Hand, and fill with blessing every living thing. Let them come from the east and from the west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven ( Matt. viii. 11). Let the tribes, the tribes of the Lord come, let them come ; unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the Name of the Lord (Ps. cxxii. 4). Let them come, and take the seats of guests ; let them feast in gladness of great joy ; let there everywhere be heard but one great chorus of thanksgivings and praises, one song of them that feast ( Ps. xlii. 4) : Thy Name is as oilpouredforth. Of one thing I am sure, that if we have Philip and Andrew for porters at the gate of heaven, whosoever among us seeks for this celestial oil, whosoever of us desires to see Jesus, will encounter no repulse. At once Philip cometh and telleth Andrew, and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. But what will Jesus say ? Without doubt what He has already said : Except a corn ofwheatfall into the ground and die, it abideth alone : but if it die it bringethforth much fruit ( John xii. 22-25). Let the grain, then, die, and let there rise from it the harvest of the Gentiles. It is needful that Christ should suffer, that He should rise from the dead, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His Name, not only in Judæa, but among all nations (John xxiv. 46, 47) ; insomuch that from one Name, which is Christ, thousands of thousands of believers shall be called Christians, and shall say : Thy Name is as oil pouredforth.

4. I recognise that Name also in that which I have read in Isaiah : The Lord God shall call His servants by another Name, in which he that is blessed in the earth shall be blessed in God. Amen. O Blessed Name ! O oil everywhere poured forth ! How far does it penetrate ? It spreads from Heaven to Judæa, and thence over the whole earth ; and from every part of the earth rises the adoring cry of the Church : Thy Name is as oil poured forth. Yes, that is indeed poured forth, with which not only the heavens and the earth are steeped, but even the abodes of the dead besprinkled ; so that in the adorable Name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess (Phil. ii. 10, 11 ), and say, Thy Name is as oil pouredforth. Behold the Christ, behold Jesus, whether infused into angels, or effused upon men-yea, upon men who had defiled themselves as beasts upon their dunghill, saving both men and beasts, in like manner as God has multiplied His mercy. How dear is that Name, but how common (vile) !-common, but precious in its power to heal ! If it were not common it would not have been poured out upon a sinner such as I ; and if it had no power of healing it would have profited me nothing. I am a sharer in that Name-a sharer, too, in its heavenly inheritance. I am a Christian ; I am even the brother of Christ ; and if I be truly that which I am thus called, I am an heir of God, and a joint heir with Christ ( Rom. viii. 17). What wonder is it if the Name of the Bridegroom be thus poured forth, when He. Himself is poured forth likewise ? For when He emptied Himself did He not take upon Him the form of a servant (Philipp. ii. 7) ? Therefore He says : I am poured out like water (Ps. xxii. 14) . The plenitude of His Divinity was poured forth when He dwelt in bodily form upon the earth ; so that we all who bear about a mortal body should participate in that plenitude, and, being filled with an odour of life, should say : Thy Name is as oilpouredforth. I go on to say, What is that Name which is poured forth, in what manner, and in what degree ?

5. First, why is it called oil ?--for this I have not as yet explained. I had begun to do so in a former sermon, but another subject suddenly presented itself which seemed to me to require to be treated of. But I have deferred to speak of this longer than I supposed, for which I see no other reason than this, that Wisdom is as the virtuous woman in the Book of Proverbs (xxxi. 10), who layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. For she knows how out of a little wool or flax to draw out the thread and to broaden the web with the shuttle, and so to clothe all her servants in garments both of linen and of wool. There is no doubt that oil has its points of resemblance to the Name of the Bridegroom, and that not without reason has the Holy Spirit compared the one to the other. Perhaps you may discern better than I the reasons for this ; but, as far as I am able to judge, the reasons are three : that it gives light, it gives nourishment, and it anoints. It maintains flame, it nourishes the flesh, it relieves pain ; it is light, it is food, and it is medicine. Notice now that the same thing can be said of the Name of the Bridegroom : for when preached it enlightens the mind, when it is meditated upon it is food to the mind, and when invoked it softens and alleviates the wounds of mind and soul. Let us examine each of these qualities separately.

6. Whence do you suppose so bright and so sudden a light of faith has been kindled in the whole world, except by the preaching of the Name of Jesus ? Is it not by the light of this sacred Name that Godhas called us into His marvellous light, so that when we had been enlightened by it, and in that light we had seen light, St. Paul was enabled to say to us : Ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord ( Eph. v. 8) . This Name, in conclusion, it was that the same Apostle was bidden to bear before the Gentiles, and Kings, and the children of Israel (Acts ix. 15) ; this Name he bore as a lamp to enlighten his country and his people, crying everywhere : The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us, therefore, cast off the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light : let us walk honestly, as in the day ( Rom. xiii. 12, 13). To all he displayed a lamp shining upon its pillar, when in every place he preached Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. How resplendent was that Light ; how it dazzled the eyes of all beholders, when, coming forth as a lightning flash from the mouth of Peter, it set the lame man upon sound and strong limbs ; when it restored to sight many who were spiritually blind ! Did it not shoot forth a light of fire, when he said, In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk ? (Acts iii. 6) . But the Name of Jesus is not only light ; it is also nourishment. Do you not feel spiritually strengthened as often as you meditate upon it ? What enriches the mind of the thinker as does the Name of Jesus ? What so restores exhausted powers, strengthens the soul in all virtues, animates it to good and honourable conduct, fosters in it pure and pious dispositions ? Dry and tasteless is every kind of spiritual food, if this sweet oil be not poured into it ; and insipid, if it be not seasoned with this salt. Abook or writing has no single point of goodness for me if I do not read therein the Name of Jesus ; nor has a conference any interest for me, unless the Name of Jesus be heard in it. As honey to the mouth, as melody in the ear, as a 1 St. Augustine, in his ' Confessions, ' makes a similar declaration about himself (Bk. iii. , c. 4) with respect to reading a book of Hortensius : ' There was only one thing in all that eloquent language which distressed me ; it was that the name of Christ was not to be found there and any writing in which that Name was wanting, however learned, polished, and veracious it might be, would not wholly satisfy me.' song of gladness to the heart, is the Name of Jesus. But it is also a medicine. Is any of you sad ? Let Jesus come into your heart ; let His Name leap thence to your lips, and behold, when that blessed Name arises [as a sun], its light disperses the clouds of sadness, and brings back serenity and peace. Is any falling into crime ? or even, in his despair, rushing upon death ? Let him call upon that life-giving Name; does he not speedily begin to breathe again and revive ? In the presence of that saving Name, who has ever remained fast bound (as is the case with some of us) by hardness of heart, ignoble sloth, rancour of mind, or cold indifference ? Who has not known the fountain of his tears, which seemed dried up, to burst forth anew, and with added abundance and sweetness, at the calling upon the Name of Jesus ? Who, when in fear and trembling in the midst of dangers, has called upon that Name of power, and has not found a calm assurance of safety, and his apprehensions at once driven away ? Where is the man who, when labouring under doubt and uncertainty, has not had the clear shining of faith restored to him by the influence of the Name of Jesus ? Or who has not found new vigour and resolution given to him at the sound of that Name full of help, when he was discouraged by adversities, and almost ready to give way to them ? Those are the diseases and ailments of the soul, and for them this is the remedy. And what I say is proved by these words : Call upon Me in the day of trouble : 1 will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me (Ps. 1. 15). Nothing is so powerful as the Name of Jesus to restrain the impulse of anger, to repress the swelling of pride, to cure the wound of envy, to bridle the impulse of luxury, and extinguish the flame of fleshly desire ; to temper avarice, and put to flight ignoble and impure thoughts. For, when I utter the Name of Jesus, I set before my mind, not only a Man meek and humble in heart, moderate, pure, benign, merciful, and, in short, conspicuous for every honourable and saintly quality, but also in the same individual the Almighty God, who both restores me to spiritual health by His example, and renders me strong by His assistance. All these things are said to me when the Name of JESUS is pronounced. From Him, inasmuch as He is Man, I derive an example ; inasmuch as He is the Mighty One, I obtain assistance. Of His example I make, as it were, medicinal and salutary herbs, and His help is an instrument to prepare them ; thus I obtain a remedy of power, such as none among physicians is able to compound.

7. In this sacred Name, O my soul, hidden in the Name of Jesus as in a vase, thou hast a saving antidote (electuarium), which shall never be found without efficacy against any disease or infection. Let it be always in thy bosom, always in thy hand, so that all thy affections, and all thy actions may be directed towards Jesus. To this you are invited, where it is said : Set Me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm ( Cant. viii. 6). But ofthis at another time. You have here (let us now consider) a sure remedy both for your heart and for your arm. You have, I say, in the Name of Jesus a means of correcting those actions in you which are bad, and of perfecting those that are defective ; of protecting your feelings and affections from being defiled ; or if defiled, of restoring them to health and purity.

8. There were in Judæa certain [others] named Jesus, in whom she glories ; but these are but empty names ; they render neither light, nor nourishment, nor healing. Therefore it is that the Synagogue is even to this day in darkness, weak with hunger, and languishing from disease. Nor will its hunger be satisfied, nor its disease healed, till it comes to know that it is our Jesus who rules in Jacob and unto the ends of the world [until then], at evening let them return, grin [for famine] like dogs, andgo about the city (Ps. lix. 14, 7 ), They, indeed, were sent on before, as the staff was sent before him by the Prophet to the presence of the dead child (2 Kings iv. 29-35) ; nor could they read a meaning in those names of theirs, for they were void of power. The staff was laid upon the face of the child ; but there was neither voice nor hearing, because it was but a staff. He came who sent the staff ; He descended and came unto His people ; and ere long He saved them from their sins, proving that to be the fact which was said of Him : Who is this that forgiveth sins also ? (Luke vii. 49). No doubt He is that One who saith, I am the salvation of My people (Ps. xxxv. 3). Now there is voice ; now there is hearing ; it is manifest that He does not, like those who came before Him, bear an empty name. The life and salvation poured into the soul is felt ; nor is so great a benefit passed over in silence. Within there is hearing ; without there is speech. I am touched with penitence ; I make confession [of my sins] ; and to confess shows spiritual life : Thanksgiving perisheth from the dead, as from one that is not (Ecclus. xvii. 28).1 Here is the proof of life, and of feeling. I am raised perfectly from the dead ; my resurrection is complete. What is the death of the body, but the depriving it of feeling and of life ? Sin, which is the death of the soul, had left unto me neither any feeling of compunction, nor utterance of confession, and I was dead. Then He came who taketh away sins, and He restored to me each of these powers, saying unto my soul, I am thy salvation ( Ps. xxxv. 3) . What wonder if death gives place, where Life descends from heaven ? Now with the heart the man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth makes confession unto salvation (Rom. x. 10). As the child opened widely his mouth, even seven times, so the man saith, Seven times a day do I praise Thee, O Lord (Ps. cxix. 164) . Note the number of seven. It is a sacred number, not without a mystical meaning. But it will be better to reserve this for another sermon ; so that we may draw near with keen appetite, not with distaste, to this repast so excellent, to which we are invited by the Spouse of the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

WHAT, then, is intended by that number seven ? For I suppose that none among us is so undiscerning as to suppose that the seven times which the child yawned was a number fortuitously reached, and without meaning. Nor do I think the fact is without signification that the prophet Elisha stretched himself upon the dead body of the child, setting mouth upon its mouth, eyes upon its eyes, and hands upon its hands (2 Kings xxxiv. 34) . The Holy Spirit has willed all these circumstances to take place thus, and thus to be recorded, for the instruction without doubt of those spirits whom the treacherous companionship of their body of corruption has led astray, and whom the wisdom of this world, which is foolishness, has taught to be without understanding. For the corruptible body presseth down the soul ; and the earthly tabernacle weigheth down the mind, that museth upon many things (Wisd. ix. 15) . Let no one, then, wonder or take it ill, if I seem to be minutely curious in searching into such things as these, which are, if I may say so, the treasure-houses of the Holy Spirit ; since I know that to do thus is truly to live, and that in such things is the life of my spirit. Yet I say to those who outstrip meby the quickness of their apprehension, and in every sermon are anxious to arrive at the end, almost before they have heard the beginning, that I have a duty towards those of slower minds as well, and that, indeed, it is much greater towards them than towards others ; nor is it nearly as much my object and my care to explain words as it is to touch and to influence hearts. It is my duty (so to speak) to draw water, and to give it to others to drink ; and this duty is not discharged by rushing through subjects in great haste, but rather by treating them with leisurely care, and making them frequently the occasion for exhortation. It is true that the discussion of these mysteries (sacramentorum) has detained us longer than I could have supposed. I thought, I must confess, that one sermon would suffice for all of those subjects, that we should quickly traverse that forest, sombre and shady with allegories, and arrive, in a journey of perhaps one day, at the open plain of the moral meanings of our subject ; but it has proved otherwise. We have been occupied in their consideration two days already, and we have still some distance to go. The eye of an observer at a distance traverses in a moment the tops of great masses of verdure, and marks the mountain peaks ; but it cannot pierce into the vast depths of the lowlying valleys, or penetrate the obscure coverts of the thickets. How could I foresee, for instance, that when treating of the calling of the Gentiles and the rejection of the Jews, the miracle of Elisha would present itself of a sudden to my mind ? But now, since we have fallen upon that incident, let us linger upon it for a little while, and we will return afterwards to the subject we have left ; and, in fact, this, as well as the other, has in it food for souls. Does it not happen to hunters also and their hounds often to leave the quarry they had started, and to follow another, which they rouse unexpectedly?

2. It is a fact which gives me no little confidence to reflect upon, that this great Prophet, mighty in word and deed, has deigned to descend from the height of heaven, and to visit me, who am but dust and ashes ; to have pity upon me in my state of death, to bend down to me as I lay prostrate, to be narrowed and made equal to my littleness, to share the light of His eyes with me in my darkness, to unloose the dumbness of my mouth with a kiss from His own, to strengthen my weak hands by the touch of His own in their strength. I meditate upon these benefits with sweetness unspeakable ; my heart is filled with joy, my soul receives new vigour, and all that is within me ; and my bones render praise to God. This He has once done for all the world ; this each of us feels to be in process of doing daily in us ; so that to his heart is given the light of intelligence, to his mouth the word of edification, to his hands the work of righteousness. It is He who gives us the power to think good and faithful thoughts, to express them usefully, to carry them out efficaciously in our life. In this is a threefold cable not easily broken, to draw souls out of the prison of the devil, and to draw them after one's self into the kingdom of heaven : it consists of three things ; to think rightly, to speak worthily, to conform also our life to that which we speak. He has touched my eyes with His own, thus adorning the forehead, as it were, of my inner man with two bright luminaries, faith and intelligence. With His Mouth He has touched mine, and has pressed upon one who was dead the sign of peace, since, when we were still sinners and dead to righteousness, He has reconciled us to God. He has, I say, with His sacred Mouth touched mine, thereby breathing a second time upon my face the breath of Life, and that life more holy than at first. For in the first place He created me to be a living soul ; but in the second, reformed me to be a quickening spirit ( 1 Cor. xv. 45). His Hands upon mine He placed, affording me an example of good works, a model of obedience. Or, at least, He has set His Hands to great and noble deeds, that He might teach my hands to war, and my fingers to fight.

3. And the child, it is said, yawned seven times. It would have been enough to manifest the glory of the miracle had the child yawned but once ; but the multiplicity, and the number itself being so noble, warn us of a mystery. If you consider that corpse as the type of the whole human race, which was spiritually dead, you will see that the universal Church, from the time of its receiving life from the Prophet stretched upon it, yawned, so to speak, seven times ; for it has been the custom of the Church to sing praises to God seven times a day. And if you yourself consider, you will perceive that you are living a spiritual life, and fulfilling this mystical number, if you hold in subjection your five organs of sense to a twofold charity, and, according to the Apostle's precept, make your members the instruments of righteousness unto sanctification, as you formerly yielded them as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin (Rom. vi. 13) ; or if you use those five senses for the salvation of your neighbours , and make up the number of seven by adding these two things-viz. , the praising God for His mercy, and for His justice.

4. Seven other yawnings I have to consider, which are seven experiences, without which a soul cannot be assured that it has truly regained life . Four of these have reference to the feeling of penitence for sin ; three to the outward sound of confession of it. If you are living, if you have a voice and spiritual consciousness, you recognise the same in yourself. That is to say, you know that you have entirely recovered spiritual sensibility if you feel your conscience keenly grieved by a fourfold penitence ; namely, a twofold shame, and a twofold fear. With the threefold confession, of which we will speak afterwards, the number seven is made up, and these are an unfailing proof of life regained. Does not the holy prophet Jeremiah also observe this number in his Lamentations ? And do you also, in that which you make for yourself, observe the form which the Prophet has prescribed, think of God as your Creator, your Benefactor, your Father, your Lord. You are a criminal before Him in regard to each of these His characters ; be, then, penitent as you think of each. To the first and the last of these let your fear respond ; to the second and third your shame. A father, just because he is a father, is, indeed, not the object of fear, because it is the nature of a father always to pity and to spare. Even when he punishes, it is with a rod that he strikes, not with a heavy staff, and Himself heals the wounds which he has made. It is a father's voice which says : I will strike, and I will heal ( Deut. xxxii. 39). You have, then, no cause for extreme terror of God your Father ; since though He sometimes strikes that He may bring about correction in you, He never strikes to avenge Himself. But when I consider that I have offended that heavenly Father, there is good reason for my feeling shame, though there be none for fear. He has begotten me of His own will by the Word of Truth, not urged by the spur of any necessity. Then, also, He did not spare His only begotten Son for me, who was thus begotten. Thus He, indeed, treated me with all the affection of a Father ; but I have not behaved in turn with the obedience of a son. With what assurance, I ask, can a son so evil venture to raise even his eyes towards the Countenance of a Father so good ? I am ashamed to have done actions so little worthy of my parentage ; I am ashamed to have degenerated from a Father so exalted. O my eyes, do ye cause streams of tears to flow; let my face be covered with shame and confusion, and let shadow fall upon it. May my life be worn away in grief, and my years in mourning. Shame upon me ! What profit have I of those things of which I am now ashamed ? If I have sown unto the flesh, from the flesh I shall reap only corruption (Gal. vi. 8) ; if to the world, both it and the lust thereof passes away ( 1 John ii. 17). Yet I, unhappy and devoid of reason, have not blushed to prefer such perishing and vain advantages as these, which are almost nothing, and of which the end is death, to the love and to the honour which I owe to the Eternal Father ! Well may I be covered with confusion to hear these words : If I be a Father, where is Mine honour ? ( Mal. i. 6) .

5. But even if He were not a Father, has He not overwhelmed me with benefits ? Without speaking of innumerable other blessings , He brings forward against me, as witnesses of my ingratitude, the sustaining of this my mortal body, the use of a lengthened time in this world, and, above all, the Blood of His dear Son, which cries out against me from the ground. My ingratitude puts me to shame, and to complete my confusion, I stand convicted also of having rendered evil for good, and hatred for love. It is true that, from a Benefactor, as from a Father, I have nothing to fear ; for He is truly beneficent, giving to all men liberally, and upbraiding not (James i . 5 ) [for what He has given]. He does not upbraid us for His gifts, because they are truly gifts ; nor does He sell His benefits, but bestows them. And, lastly, His gifts are without repentance. But the more benign and liberal I am obliged to think Him, the more unworthy I must consider myself to be. Blush with shame, O my soul, and be dissolved with grief; since, although it is according to the goodness of God to give without reproaching me or reclaiming what He has given, yet it is a disgrace to me to show myself ungrateful, and unmindful of these gifts. Alas ! what shall. I, even now, and thus late, render unto the Lord for all the benefits which He hath done unto me ?

6. Let me, if I am not affected, as I ought, with shame and regret, at least be open to feelings of fear, and let the fear come to the help of the regret ; let it be aroused, that it may arouse me. Putaside for a moment the tender names of Benefactor and Father, and turn to other Names more austere ; for He of whom we read as the Father of mercies, and the God ofall consolation ( 2 Cor. i. 3), we read of also as the Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth (Ps. xciv. 1 ) ; as God the Judge righteous and powerful (Ps. vii. 12) ; as terrible in His doings toward the children of men (Ps. lxvi. 5) ; as ajealous God (Exod. xx. 5) . It is for you that He is Father and Benefactor, for Himself He is Creator and Lord ; for, as Scripture declares, He hath made all things for Himself (Prov. xvi. 4). He, then, who defends and preserves with so much care that which is yours, will He not ever bejealous, think you, for Himself? will He not require the honour due to His sovereignty ? Because of this it is that the wicked hath provoked God; for he hath said in his heart, He will not require it ( Ps. ix. 13, Vulg.) . And what is it to say in his heart, He will not require it, except to be without fear of His requiring it ? But He will require it, and that to the last farthing ; He will require it, and will abundantly recompense the proud doer ( Ps. xxxi. 23). He will require service from him whom He hath redeemed ; He will expect honour and glory from His creature.

7. Let it be granted that as Father He will pass over offences, and as Benefactor forgive, yet not as Creator and as Lord; and He who will spare a son will not spare an evil servant, the work of His Hands. Consider what a fearful and terrible thing it is to have despised Him who is your Creator, and the Creator of all things--to have offended the Lord of glory ! It is the prerogative of Majesty, of Lordship, to be feared, and especially of this Lord and of this Majesty ; for if the laws of man punish with the supreme penalty one who shall be guilty of high treason against the royal majesty, though it be that of a man, what shall be the end of those who despise the Omnipotence of God ? If He do but touch the mountains, they shall smoke ( Ps. cxliv. 5) ; and shall a mere petty mass of vile dust that a puff of wind may scatter in a moment, not to be brought together again, dare to arouse the anger of a Being of Majesty so awful ? HE, HE is to be feared, who, after He hath killed the body, hath power even to cast into hell ( Luke xii. 5) . Hell it is I fear ; the Face of my Judge, before whom the angels veil their faces in fear-at this I fear and tremble. At the mere thought of the anger of the Almighty, of the beholding of His Face in wrath, of the crash of a perishing world, of the roar of the elemental fires bursting forth, of the tumultuous conflict of the powers of nature, of the voice of the Archangel, of the awful word of the Judge's doomat the mere thought of these I tremble and shake. Terrible to me is the mere idea of the teeth of the monster of hell, of the lions roaring for their prey, of the abyss which contains and which hides them. I shudder at the gnawing of the never-dying worm, at the ever-burning lake of fire, at the smoke, the sulphur, the livid clouds, the whirlwinds of flame, and, lastly, at the outer darkness which broods over all. Who shall make my head to be a river, mine eyes a fountain of tears (Jer. ix. 1), so that by my weeping day and night I might anticipate and so avoid the weeping and gnashing of teeth, the hard fetters upon hands and feet, the weighty and cramping chains, which strangle, which burn to the bone, and yet are never consumed ? Alas, my mother ! why hast thou borne me to be a son of sorrow, a child of wrath, reserved for fiery indignation and everlasting lamentings ? Why didst thou nurse upon thy knees, why didst thou nourish from thy breast, one born but to be consumed, to become food for the everlasting fire ?

8. He who is affected deeply with these thoughts has, without doubt, recovered spiritual sensibility-that twofold fear, accompanied bythat twofold shame, constitute, as it were, the four yawnings of the child raised up. The three which remain refer to the voice of confession [of sin] , and of him [who makes use of this] it cannot be said that he has neither voice nor feeling, provided that his confession comes from a humble, simple, and faithful heart. Confess humbly, purely, and faithfully, therefore, whatever gives you remorse of conscience, and you have fulfilled your duty in this respect. There are those who boast themselves in doing evil, and delight in the worst crimes (Prov. ii. 14), of whom the Prophet speaks when he says : They declare their sin as Sodom (Is. iii. 9). But I put these out of the question at present-they are people of the world ; and what have we to do with them who are without ?

9. It happens to us, nevertheless, sometimes to hear men even who have professed the religious life, and wear its garb, recall their past bad actions, and boast of them most impudently-as, for example, of the bravery they have shown in duels, or the cleverness in a dispute of words, or of similar things, which the vanity, indeed, of the world estimates highly, but which are hurtful, pernicious, and even dangerous to the salvation of the soul. This is an indication of a worldly mind, and the habit of humility which such persons wear is not a proof of the renewing of their mind in holiness, but a screen which hides their former temper still persisted in. Some recall such things as if they grieved over and repented of them ; but as they still glory inwardly in them, they do not efface the fault of them, but merely deceive their own selves, for God is not mocked (Gal. vi. 7). They have not put off the old man, but merely covered it with the new. The old leaven is not acknowledged nor abandoned by such a confession as that ; but is, on the contrary, established the more, according to the saying of the Psalmist : My bones grew old : whilst Icried out all the day long (Ps. xxxi. 3). I am ashamed to recall the extreme effrontery of others who have not scrupled to recount with pride things for which they ought to weep, as that, even after they received the sacred habit, they cunningly overthrew someone, or over-reached some brother in a matter of business, or that they took revenge on one who had done them injury by word or deed-that is, they boldly rendered evil for evil, and railing for railing.

10. There is a kind of confession so much the more perilous, as it conceals vanity in a manner more subtle. I mean that in which we do not hesitate to reveal discreditable and shameful faults ; not because we are really humble, but that we maybe thought to be so. Now, to seek praise for humility is the reverse of humility, not the virtue itself. The man who is truly humble wishes to be held in slight esteem, not to be proclaimed and praised as being humble. He rejoices to be contemned, and is proud only on this one point-that he despises praises. What can be more perverse and unworthy conduct than to make confession, which is the guardian of humility, contribute to the satisfaction of pride, and so wish to appear the better for the very reason that he seems to appear worse ? Oh, prodigy of boasting, to have no other means of being thought a saint than to be thought the wickedest of sinners ! But such a confession, having only the appearance, not the reality, of humility, not only does not deserve forgiveness, but even calls down anger. What did it profit Saul that, when chidden by Samuel, he confessed that he had sinned ( I Sam. xv. 30) ? No doubt that confession was itself criminal which did not blot out the crime confessed. Whenever did the Master of humility, whose natural desire assuredly is to give grace unto the humble, despise a really humble confession ? It would assuredly be a thing impossible that He should not be reconciled if the humility which the words express be manifested also in the heart. This is why I have said that confession of sin should be humble.

11. It must also be made with simplicity. Let not a soul (if it be guilty) delight in making excuse for its intention (under the pretext, perhaps, that it is not known to men), nor to pare down and diminish a grave fault, nor to ascribe it to the advice of another person, since no one is obliged to act against his own will. The first of these is not a confession, but a defence ; nor does it appease, but rather provokes , the wrath of God. The second is a mark of ingratitude ; for the less a fault is regarded as being, the more is the glory diminished of him who forgives it. To this must be added that a benefit will be accorded so much less willingly, as it is known that he who receives it will be less thankful for it, as supposing it to be less necessary to him. That person renders himself unworthy of pardon who depreciates the value of the grace he hopes to receive, and this is what everyone does who endeavours to make light of his offence in the words which he uses [to confess it]. As for the third, the example of the first man may serve to dissuade us from it (Gen. iii. 2 ) ; for though he did not deny his fault, yet he did not obtain pardon for it ; and this , doubtless, was because he mixed up with it the fault of his wife. It is a form of excuse to inculpate another when you are yourself accused. Holy David teaches us that the desire to make excuses for yourself, when censured, is not only useless, but exceedingly harmful ; for he calls to make excuses for sins ' evil words ' (Ps. cxl. 4, Vulg. and Douay), and entreats God not to incline His heart to them. Assuredly he was very right ; for a person sins against his own soul who excuses himself, repelling thereby from him the remedy of leniency, and with his own lips preventing the entrance of life. What perverseness can be greater than to take arms against his own salvation, and to transfix himself with his own tongue as with a sword ? He that is evil to himself, to whom will he be good (Ecclus. xiv. 5) ?

12. Finally, confession must be made in faith-that is to say, it must be filled with hope, free from distrust of obtaining pardon of our offences, or of fear lest by making it you should be rather condemning yourself than justifying. Judas, who betrayed our Lord, and Cain, who slew his brother, confessed their crime, but each despaired of God's mercy. The one said : I have sinned, in that Ihave betrayed the innocent Blood ( Matt. xxvii. 4) ; the other : My iniquity is greater than that I may deserve pardon ( Gen. iv. 13, Vulg.). Their confession was truthful ; but because it was made without faith, it profited them nothing. These three conditions of confession of sin, then, joined to the four formerly named of penitence for it, make up the number seven.

13. When you have thus been touched with heartfelt sorrow for your sins, when you have thus confessed them, and you thenceforth feel good assurance that the gift of life has been conferred upon you, you will be no less assured, I think, that the Name of JESUS is not empty nor fruitless, since He has been able and willing to perform such great works in your soul ; and that it was not in vain that He followed in person the staff which He had sent before. He has not come in vain, because He has not come empty. How, in fact, could He have been empty in Whom dwells the fulness of the Godhead ? (Col. i. 19 ; ii. 9). For God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him ( John iii. 34). So, also, He came in the fulness of time (Gal. iv. 4), as if to indicate that in every way He was full [of power]. Truly He was full, whom the Father hath anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows (Ps. xlv. 7 ) ; whom He hath anointed and sent into the world full of grace and truth (John i. 14). He has anointed Him, that He may anoint others ; and all those have been anointed by Him who have been found worthy to receive of His fulness. Therefore He saith : The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord hath anointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek ; He hath sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord (Is. lxi. 1). He came, as you hear, to anoint with the oil of salvation our contritions, and to soothe our griefs ; therefore it was that He came filled with a Divine anointing-He came meek and lowly in heart, and full of an infinite pity for all those who call upon Him for aid. He knew well that it was to people crippled and helpless that He was coming down from heaven, and He showed Himself in that capacity which their need required. And that wise and foreseeing Physician, because He had many maladies to cure, provided Himself beforehand with many remedies. He brought with Him the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and ghostly strength, the Spirit of knowledge and true godliness, and the Spirit of the fear of the Lord.

14. Do you see how many vials full of heavenly balms the Vacue, vacuus. Celestial Physician has prepared for the healing of the wounds of that unhappy man who fell among thieves ? Seven they are in number, seven suited, perhaps, to excite the seven yawnings of which we have spoken , for in each was the Spirit of life. From these He pours oil upon my wounds, and wine also, but in less quantity than the oil ; for it was in accordance with my infirmities that mercy should be exalted above judgment, as oil rises in a vessel above wine. He brought, therefore, five vessels of oil, but of wine two only ; for it is strength only and fear that are typified by wine; the remaining five signify oil, because of its softness and healing qualities. In the spirit of strength it was that, like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine (Ps. lxxviii. 65), He descended into hell, shattered the gates of brass, and brake asunder the bars of iron ; that He bound the strong man, and delivered them who were subject to bondage. Nevertheless, He descended also in the spirit of fear; but it was to inspire fear, not to feel it.

15. O Wisdom ! with what healing skill dost Thou re-establish the health of my soul by this wine and this oil, mingling strength with sweetness, and sweetness with strength. Strong Thou art on my behalf, yet towards me Thou art sweet. From one end of the world to the other Thy Almighty power extendest, and Thou dost dispose all things with sweetness, driving far away my enemy, and sustaining me when weak. Heal me, O Lord, and my healing shall be complete ; I will sing and give praises unto Thy Name, and say : Thy Name is as oil pouredforth. Not as wine poured forth (for I do not desire that Thou shouldest enter into judgment with Thy servant), but as oil, because Thou crownest me with lovingkindness and tender mercies (Ps. ciii. 4). Yes, it is as oil, for oil rises above all other liquids with which it may be mixed, and thus is an apt type of that Name which is above every name. O Name, infinitely dear and sweet ! O Name, glorious beyond all words ; foreordained and fore-ennobled, and of supremest exaltation for all ages ! This is truly the oil which maketh glad the face of man, which anoints the head of him that fasteth, so that he regardeth not the oil of the sinner. This is the new Name which the Mouth of the Lord hath named (Is. lxii. 2, Vulg.) ; which was so named of the Angel before He was conceived in the womb (Luke ii. 21). Not only the Jew, but whosoever shall call upon this Name shall be delivered (Joel ii. 32 ), wheresoever it is poured forth, far and wide. This Name the Father has bestowed upon the Son, the Bridegroom of the Church, our LORD JESUS Christ, who is above all, GOD blessed for ever. AMEN. APPROACH AND DEPARTURE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 95

Do you think that we have made sufficient advance in the sanctuary of God to venture to examine an admirable mystery ? or, rather, to follow the Holy Spirit into the deeper recesses of truth, and to search out that which still remains unknown to us ? For that Spirit searcheth, not the hearts and reins of men only, but also the deep things of God ; and I follow Him with safety whithersoever He shall lead, whether it be into the heights or into the depths of our own nature. Only, may He guard our hearts and our intellects that we may not believe Him to be present when He, perhaps, shall be absent, and be led into error by following the impulses of our own mind or senses in the belief that they are from Him. For He comes and goes according to His own will ; nor is it easy for any to know whence He cometh or whither He goeth ( John iii. 8). But it is possible to be ignorant upon those points without risk to our salvation ; but not to know when the Holy Spirit comes to us, or when He goes from us, is manifestly full of peril. For when these comings of the Spirit, in His dealings with the soul, and His goings, are not sedulously observed, it follows that you do not ardently desire His coming when He is absent, nor give Him glory when He is present. Indeed, He retires from the soul for the very reason that He may be sought for the more eagerly again ; and how can He be sought for if He is not known to be absent ? And, again, when He deigns to return in order to console the soul, how shall He be received with the reverence due to His Majesty if His presence is not even perceived ? The soul, then , which is unaware of His departure lies open to be seduced, and that which is not aware of his return will be unthankful for the honour done to it in His coming.

2. Once, when the prophet Elisha had learned that the departure from the earth of his master [Elijah] was about to take place, he made a certain request of him, and he obtained it, as you know, upon this condition only : that Elisha should behold him at the moment of his departure ( 2 Kings ii. 9, 10) . This happened unto them in figure, and was recorded on account of us. We are taught and warned by the prophet's example to be watchful and careful in the work of our salvation, which the Holy Spirit is incessantly carrying on in the depths of our souls with all the wonderful resource and sweetness of His Divine skill. Let that sacred and directing unction 1 Alta is the uniform reading of the MSS. , not alia. which teaches all things never be taken away from us, if we do not wish to be deprived of a twofold gift. Never, when He comes to us, let Him find us unprepared; but rather let Him find us with countenance uplifted, and hands spread out to receive an abundant benediction from God. What does the Lord require that we should be ? Like unto men that wait for their Lord, when He shall return from the wedding ( Luke xii. 36) ; and assuredly He never returns with empty hands from the abundant delicacies of the table of heaven. It behoves us, then, to watch, and to watch without intermission, since we know not when the Holy Spirit may come, or when He may again depart. He cometh and goeth ; and the soul which, while it has the advantage of His presence, is able to stand upright, cannot fail to fall when deserted by him ; yet it shall not be so cast down as to be injured, for the Lord upholdeth it with His Hand. These two conditions do not cease to occur alternately in all those who are spiritual ; or, rather, the Spirit visits those who are spiritual at daybreak, and suddenly puts them to proof [by His departure], in order that He may train and build them up in goodness. The just man falleth seven times and riseth up again (Prov. xxiv. 16), yet if he falls in the day it is to be understood that he sees that he falls, and, knowing that he has fallen, seeks the Hand of Him who is able to raise him up, saying, O Lord, in Thy favour Thou gavest strength to my beauty. Thou turnedst away Thy Facefrom me and I became troubled (Ps. xxix. 8, Vulg. and Douay) .

3. To doubt respecting the truth is another danger, which it is necessary to endure when the breathing of the Spirit is not granted to us ; and still another is that of embracing erroneous opinions, but this latter is easily avoided by keeping in mind our ignorance, so as to say also : Be it indeed that I have erred, mine error remaineth with myself ( Job xix. 4). That is the declaration of holy Job ; recognise it. Ignorance is the worst of mothers, and she has two daughters as evil-falsehood and doubt ; the one the more miserable, the other the more pitiable ; the former more hurtful, the latter more full of discomfort. When the Spirit speaks, both the one and the other of these give place ; and not only to truth, but to assured truth. For that is the very Spirit of truth, to whom falsehood is absolutely contrary. And He is also the Spirit of wisdom, since He is the very Light of eternal life ; and reaching everywhere, because of His purity, He suffers neither obscurity nor the uncertainty of doubt. When that Spirit does not speak, there is great need to beware, if not of unhappy doubt, assuredly of harbouring that which is completely false. There is a great difference between being in a state of uncertainty whether to think this or that, and rashly affirming as true that of which you are ignorant. Either, then, let the Holy Spirit always speak, though that, indeed, does not at all depend upon our will ; or when it pleases Him to be silent, let His silence at least have a significance to us, and point out to us this one fact ; lest, falsely supposing that He goes before us, we should follow in place of Him our own error, with a false and dangerous confidence. And if He holds our spirit in suspense, let it, at all events, not be left to fall into falsehood. There are those who doubtfully advance a statement which is untrue, yet these do not lie ; and there are others who affirm for truth that of which they know nothing, and these do lie. For the one class do not affirm that which is not the case, but that which they believe to be the case, and they speak truthfully, even though that which they believe be not true ; whereas the other class declare themselves certain of a thing of which they are not certain, and these do not speak truthfully, even though the thing which they assert should be true.

4. Having said thus much by way of caution to those who have no experience in such things, I shall now follow the Spirit, who is, as I have a good trust, leading me on ; yet observing, as far as I can, the same rule of caution of which I have spoken, and endeavouring to practise myself that which I have urged upon others, that it may not be said of me too, Thou that teachest another, teachest thou not thyself (Rom. ii . 21 ) ? The distinction is carefully to be observed between things which are manifest and others which are doubtful ; and as the one class are not to be brought into doubt, so the other are not rashly to be affirmed. Which, indeed, is to be hoped for from the authoritative guidance ( magisterio) of the Spirit ; for our own care and pains will not suffice to obtain it. What man is there who knows, for example, whether the judgment, of which I spoke in a former sermon (the third before this, if I recollect rightly), as pronounced by the Lord between men, was preceded by a judgment pronounced in the heavens ?2

5. A thought which occurs to my mind is this : Do you suppose that Lucifer, son of the morning, who lifted himself up by a presumptuous pride, that he, too, envied the human race this outpouring of the oil of Divine grace before he was cast forth into outer darkness ; and that in his indignation and jealousy he murmured in a manner to himself, saying, ' To what purpose is this waste ?" I do not assert that the Spirit says this, but neither would I assert the contrary ; I simply do not know. It may have been the case (nor does it seem incredible) that, being filled with wisdom and raised to a high degree of glory, he may have foreseen the creation of men, and that some of them would attain to an equal degree of glory with that he then held. But if he foresaw this he saw, without doubt, that it would come to pass] in God the Word ; and in his malice he envied men, and, scorning to have them as companions, determined to render them subject to himself. They are, ' he said, ' weaker than I, and inferior by nature ; it is not fitting that they should be fellow-citizens with me, and equals in glory.' Perhaps that ascension which he presumed 1 Sermon XIV. 2 In most MSS. the words ‘ præcesserit, utrumnam videlicet Lucifer, qui, ' etc. (as in n. 5) , are read here in a parenthesis ; and the first printed edition also has them. to attempt to make, and the seating himself, signifying mastery, of which he said , I will ascend above the heights of the clouds ; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north (Is. xiv. 13, 14), was intended that he might obtain some kind of resemblance to the Most High, and that as God, sitting upon the Cherubin, governs the whole race of angels, so he might sit upon a lofty seat and thence govern the whole human race. But God forbid ! He has meditated iniquity upon his bed, and iniquity has deceived itself. We recognise no other as our ruler than Him who created us. The Lord, not the devil, shall judge the whole world. He shall be our God for ever and ever, and shall eternally rule over us.

6. Therefore, as even in heaven he conceived sullen anger, so in Paradise he brought forth iniquity, the offspring of malice, the mother ofmiseries and of death ; and of all these the first parent was pride. For, although through the envy of the devil came death into the world (Wisd. ii. 24) , yet of every sin pride is the beginning ( Ecclus. x. 13). But what has it profited him ? None the less art Thou in us, O Lord, and upon us is Thy Name invoked ; none the less does the people whom Thou hast gathered, the Church of Thy redeemed, thankfully say, Thy Name is as oil pouredforth. When I am cast forth [for my sin], this oil (of consolation] Thou dost pour around and upon me, since even in Thy anger Thou didst remember mercy. Yet Satan received dominion over all the sons of pride ; he has become prince of the darkness of this world, so that even pride should strive in favour of the kingdom of the humble, and whilst his temporal and proud dominion exists, should establish many humble persons in a sovereignty exalted and eternal. Joyful will be the judgment to see that proud persecutor of those who are humble preparing for them, without knowing it, everlasting crowns, and while he attacks all, succumbing to the efforts of all. For the Lord shall judge the peoples everywhere and for ever : He shall save the children of the poor, and shall cast down him who treats them wrongfully. Everywhere and always He will protect His own ; He will put to flight the persecutors, nor suffer the rod of sinners to come into the lot of the righteous . lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity (Ps. cxxv. 3 ) . There shall come even a time when He shall destroy the bow, and break the weapons, and the shields He shall burn in the fire ( Ps. xlv. 10, Vulg. and Douay). As for thee, unhappy one, thou settest a seat for thyself in the north, a place of cloud and cold ; and lo ! the poor are raised out of the dust, and the needy out of the dunghill, that they may sit with princes, and occupy a throne of glory, whilst thou shalt lament to see those words accomplished : The poor and needy shall praise Thy Name (Ps . lxxiv. 21).

7. Thanks be to Thee, O Father of orphans and Judge of the helpless, a mountain fat and fertile has communicated to us its warmth ; the heavens have dropped dew from the presence of the God of Sinai, a saving oil is poured forth, a Name is spread abroad, a Name which the enemy envied for us and for himself ; it is spread abroad, I say, even into the hearts and into the mouths of children, and in the mouths of babes and sucklings is perfected praise. These things the sinner shall behold in useless anger ; and as his wrath shall be implacable, so the fire shall be inextinguishable which is prepared for him and for his angels. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts shall perform this. How great is the love, O my God, the object of my deepest affection (amor meus), wherewith Thou dost love me ! Everywhere Thou hast been mindful of me ; everywhere earnestly desiring the salvation of one poor and needy, and that in opposition not only to proud men, but also to proud and rebellious angels ! In heaven and on earth Thou, O Lord, dost judge those who do me harm, and repulse those who take arms to attack me. Everywhere Thou dost help and assist me ; and Thou art ever at my side, O Lord, that I may not be overwhelmed. These blessings I will celebrate in praises unto the Lord as long as I live ; I will praise my God while I have my being. These are His wonders ; these the mighty works which He hath done. This, the first and greatest of His judgments, it is which the [B.] Virgin Mary, conscious of His secret works, has revealed unto me in the words : He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He hath sent empty away ( Luke i. 52, 53) . The second also, which you have already heard, is similar to the first : That they which see not might see : and that they which see might be made blind (John ix. 39). In these two judgments let the poor be comforted, and let him say : Iremembered Thy judgments of old, O Lord ; and have comforted myself (Ps. cxix. 52) .

8. But let us return to ourselves, and let us examine our ways. And that we may be enabled to do this in truth, let us invoke the Spirit of Truth ; let us recall Him from that height of heaven whither He has led us [in thought], so that He may guide us thither to go ourselves ; for without Him we can do nothing. We need not fear that He will disdain to condescend to us, since, on the contrary, He would have reason to be indignant with us if we should endeavour to accomplish even the least spiritual work without His assistance. He is not a Spirit which departs and does not return ; He leads, and continues to lead us on from glory to glory as being the Spirit of the Lord. Sometimes He draws us to Himself, and into the sphere of His own Light ; sometimes, accommodating Himself to our capacities, He enlightens our darkness, so that whether He is above us, or whether He is in us, we should be always in the light, and walk as children of light. We have passed out of types and shadows ; we have reached the region of moral truths. Our faith has been built up, let our life and conduct be ruled and directed ; and as the understanding has been trained, let the actions be prescribed by it. Since a good understanding have all they that do the commandments of God (Ps. cxi . 10), let our acts and our understanding also be directed to the praise and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is above all, GOD blessed for ever. AMEN.

TWhat is it which the Holy as assuredly brought to pass first place, that it is the fact There is one operation, by HY Name is as oil pouredforth. Spirit reveals to us in this text, in us? It appears to me, in the of His operation in us being twofold. which He first establishes us inwardly in virtues, in order to our salvation ; and then the other, by which He adorns us outwardly with His gifts, to our profit and to the good of others. The former grace we receive for ourselves ; the latter for our neighbours. For example, faith, hope, and charity are given us for ourselves ; for without these we cannot be saved. But words of knowledge or of wisdom, the gift of healing the sick, of prophecy, and similar powers, in which we may be wanting without any detriment to our own salvation, these assuredly are bestowed upon us only that they may be used for the benefit, bodily and spiritual, of our fellow-creatures. And these two operations of the Spirit, which we experience either in ourselves, or in others, have names corresponding to the effects they produce ; let us name them, if you please, infusion and effusion. To which of these two, then, have the words, Thy Name is as oil poured forth, reference ? Is it not to effusion ? For if He had desired rather to refer to infusion, He would have said ' inpoured,' instead of ' poured forth.'1 Besides, it is because of this fragrance poured forth upon her Bosom that the Bride says, Thy Name is as oil poured forth, ascribing that fragrance to the Name of her Spouse, as it were oil poured upon it. And whosoever feels himself endued with a gift of outward graces, which he is able in turn to pour forth upon others, is also enabled to say to the Lord : Thy Name is as oil pouredforth.

2. But here we must take good heed of two dangers : that of giving to others what is meant for ourselves, and of keeping for ourselves what is given to us for others. You certainly are retaining for yourself that which belongs to your neighbour, if, for example, being not only full of virtues, but also outwardly adorned with the gifts of knowledge and of eloquence, fear perhaps, or sloth, or an ill-judged humility, restrains your good gift of speech, which might be of service to many people, in a useless, or, rather, blamable silence ; and thus 1 In the edition of Horst, and in others, the following sentence is inserted here : ' Besides, it is of the fragrance exhaled outwardly by the Bosom of the Bride, not of her inward virtues, that this is spoken. Thy Name is as oilpouredforth. Besides, it is because of this fragrance, ' etc.; but most MSS. , and also the first printed edition omit it. It is true that it is found in the St. Evroul Codex, but that omits the following sentence : ' Besides, it is because, ' etc. And in fact one or the other is superfluous. THE TWO OPERATIONS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT ΙΟΙ you are evil spoken of, because you withhold corn from the people (Prov. xi. 26) . On the contrary, you dissipate and lose that which is your own if, before you have received a complete inpouring from God, and while you are, so to speak, but half filled, you hasten to pour yourself forth, and thus violate the law not to plough with the firstling of thy cow, or to shear the firstling of thy sheep ( Deut. xv. 19). You defraud yourself both of life and of salvation when, without rightfulness of intention, but puffed up by a wind of vain glory, or infected by the poison of worldly cupidity, you thus impart yourself to another ; indeed, what you thus communicate is but the mortal imposthume which is swelling within yourself.

3. If, then, you are wise, you will show yourself rather as a reservoir than as a canal. For a canal spreads abroad water as it receives it, but a reservoir waits until it is filled before overflowing, and thus communicates, without loss to itself, its superabundant water, knowing that there is blame to one who deteriorates that which he receives ; and that you may not regard my counsel as to be despised, hear a wiser than I : Afool uttereth all his mind, but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards ( Prov. xxix. 11 ). But in the Church at the present day we have many canals, few reservoirs. Those by whom the dew of heaven distils upon us are of charity so great that they desire to pour it forth before they are themselves filled with it ; they are more prepared to speak than to hear, are quick to teach that which they have not learned, and long to preside over others, while they do not as yet know how to govern themselves. For my part, I think there is no degree of piety more helpful to salvation than that of which the Wise Man speaks : Have pity on thy own soul, pleasing God, and contain thyself ( Ecclus. xxx. 24, Vulg. and Douay). If I have but a little oil for my own anointing, why dost thou think that I ought to give it to thee and remain empty? That is for my own need ; nor do I bring it forth publicly, except at the order of a Prophet. If any of those who have perhaps an opinion of me above anything which they behold in me, or who hear somewhat concerning me, shall press me too hard with their requests, they will be answered thus : Lest there be not enough for us andyou, go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves (Luke xxv. 9). But charity, you reply, seeketh not her own ( 1 Cor. xiii. 5). And do you know for what reason she doth not ? It is because she is in want of nothing. For who seeks that which he already possesses ? Charity is never without those things which are hers ; that is, those which are necessary for salvation ; and these she not only possesses, but possesses them in abundance. In these she desires to abound for herself, that she may abound for all others also ; she desires to have sufficient for herself, that she may be wanting in nothing for any others. In other words, she is imperfect if she is not full.

4. But you, my brother, whose own salvation is not yet sufficiently assured, who have as yet no charity, or a charity so light and weak, that it is like a reed, believing every spirit, and blown about with every wind of doctrine ; or, rather, whose charity is so great, that going even beyond the commandment, you love your neighbour more than yourself; or again, who have so little, that going against the commandment, it dissolves under the influence of inclination, disappears under fear, is troubled by sadness, is reduced by avarice, narrowed by ambition, disquieted by suspicions, set aside by reproaches, racked by cares, puffed up by honours, and by envy made to pine away ; you, I say, who have such sentiments in matters which relate to yourself, by what folly do you desire, or consent, to busy yourself in those which relate to others ? Listen to the advice which a cautious and watchful charity gives : Not that other men be eased, andye burdened ; butby an equality ( 2 Cor. viii. 13). Be not righteous over much (Eccles. vii. 16). It suffices that you should love your neighbour as yourself; that is the equality of which the Apostle speaks. David says : My soul shallpraise Thee as with marrow and fatness : and my mouth shall praise Thee withjoyful lips (Ps. lxiii. 5), showing his desire first to be filled with the inpouring of grace, and then to begin to pour it forth : not merely to receive it, but to be filled with it, that he might give forth easily out of his fulness, and not gasp in the effort to do so out of an empty heart. In this he displayed caution, lest in doing good to others, he should do wrong to himself ; and yet [acted] with a pure motive, as imitating Him, of whose fulness we have all received. Do you also learn not to attempt to give forth except out of a full [heart and mind], nor to desire to be more liberal than God. Let the reservoir imitate its source, for that does not flow into a river, nor spread itself into a lake, until it is brimming over with its own waters. The reservoir must not be ashamed not to be more profuse than its source. Lastly, even He who is the Fountain of life, who is full in Himself, and full of Himself, did He not begin by leaping forth [as it were a fountain] into the secret recesses of the Heavens, which were nearest to Him, and filled them all with His bounty ; and then, at length, when He had filled those loftier and more secret regions, burst forth upon the earth, and multiplying His mercy by a gratuitous and superabundant overflowing of it, brought salvation both to men and beasts ? First He filled those inner regions ; and, then, thus bursting forth, as it were, with the multitude of His mercies, He visited the earth and made it glad (inebriavit) ; He enriched it and made it fruitful with every kind of good. Therefore do thou do likewise. Be thou first filled, then pour forth with care and judgment of thy fulness. The charity which is liberal, yet prudent, usually wastes not, but increases. My son, says Solomon, squander not ; and an Apostle declares, Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip (Heb. ii. 1). What then ? art thou more holy than Paul ? or wiser than Solomon ? Furthermore, be it far from me to grow rich by thy impoverishment. For if to thyself thou art evil, to whom shalt thou be good ? Assist me, if thou art able, of thy abundance ; but if otherwise, be sparing for thy own good. For

5. But now listen while I state how great things are necessary for our own salvation, and what they are ; how great and manifold is the infusion of grace, which we need, before we presume to give forth to others. I shall try to put them before you as briefly as I can. the sun (hora) is mounting high in the heavens, and presses me to reach the end of my discourse. The Physician draws near to the wounded man ; the Divine Spirit to our soul. For what soul is there which does not feel itself wounded by the sword of the devil, even after the wound of original sin was healed by the saving medicine of Baptism ? When, then, the Spirit draws near to that soul which says, My wounds stink and are corrupt because of myfoolishness (Ps. xxxviii. 5), what is it that it is needful He should first do ? Before all things, the ulcerous tumour which may have grown in and over the wound, and hinders its cure, must be removed. The ulcer of inveterate evil custom must be cut away with the sharp blade of a sincere repentance. But this cannot be done without severe pain ; let that, then, be alleviated with the healing ointment of devotion, which is, in fact, the comfort caused by the hope of forgiveness. Of that hope is born the mastery which is acquired over our passions, and the victory over sin. For we find the Psalmist giving thanks, and saying : Thou hast loosed my bonds, I will offer to Thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving ( Ps. cxvi. 16) . Then are applied the remedy of penitence, the apparatus of fasts, of vigils, or prayers, and of other exercises of the repentant. Let him be nourished in labour with the food of good works, that he fail not. That good works are nourishment to the soul, you may learn from these words of the Lord Himself: My meat is to do the will of Him that sent Me (John iv. 34) . Therefore let works of piety accompany the labours of penitence which strengthen the soul. Alms, says Tobit, shall be a great confidence before the Most High God (Tob. iv. 12, Vulg. and Douay) . Now, food arouses thirst, and drink is needed. To the nourishment of good works let there be added, therefore, the draught of prayer, blending works well done in the stomach, as it were, of conscience, and rendering them acceptable to God. Prayer is as wine which maketh glad the heart of man ; it is the wine of the Holy Spirit, a draught of which brings not only the gladness [of heaven], but entire forgetfulness of the pleasures of earth (carnalium voluptatum). It moistens the dry soil of the conscience, it brings about the perfect absorption of the food of good actions, and distributes them into all the members of the soul ; strengthening faith, giving vigour to hope, rendering charity active and yet methodical, and6. shedding When aansickadmirable man shall unction have over partaken the whole of foodcharacter and of. drink, what, then, remains for him to do but to repose, and in the quiet of contemplation to recover himself after the toils of busy life ? When he is thus in a holy slumber, he beholds God in a vision ; yet, as it were, in a glass and darkly, and not as yet face to face. Nevertheless, though it be true that he knows God rather by inference and 1 Malagma= an emollient poultice. surmise (conjectati) than by distinct view, and beholds Him but as He passes by, and by a flash of glory which disappears in a moment, yet that momentary and passing vision does not fail to arouse in him an ardent and burning love, and he says : With my soulhave Idesired Thee in the night ; yea, with my spirit within me will Iseek Thee early (Is. xxvi. 9) . Such a love is full of zeal ; it is worthy of a friend of the Bridegroom, and with that love a faithful and prudent servant, whom his Lord hath set over His household, ought to feel himself animated and glowing. It fills and warms the soul, it boils over and spreads itself fearlessly, it bursts forth in vehement waves, and it says : Who is weak, and I am not weak ? who is offended, and Iburn not ? ( 2 Cor. xi. 29). Let him who is possessed by that love preach, and bear fruit ; let him do marvels, let him even work miracles ; vanity will find no place in him who is wholly occupied by charity. For charity, if only it be perfect, is the fulfilling of the law (Rom. xiii. 10), and the perfectness of the heart. In truth, God is charity ( 1 John iv. 16) ; and there is nothing which is able to fill and satisfy a creature made in the image of God, except God, who is Himself charity, and who alone is greater than that creature. It is very full of peril to promote [to ecclesiastical functions] one who has not yet attained this perfect charity, however great be the talents which, in other respects, he may appear to possess. Though he have all knowledge, though he have bestowed all his goods to feed the poor, though he even give his body to be burned-without charity, he is nothing. Behold with how many and great graces it behoves us to be previously filled, that we may venture to impart to others, so that we may bestow out of fulness, not out of poverty. In the first place, we ought to have repentance ; secondly, devotion ; thirdly, a laborious penitence ; fourthly, works of piety ; fifthly, earnestness in prayer ; sixthly, the repose of contemplation ; and in the seventh place, the fulness of charity. All these things worketh in us one and the same Spirit, according to that operation which is called infusion ; thus and so far may the other, which is called effusion, be exercised safely, and with pure intention to the praise and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, who with the Father and the Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth, God, for ever and ever. AMEN.

THE loving Bride still continues to speak. She continues still to celebrate the praises of her Spouse, and to invite new graces from Him, while showing that those she has already received are not unfruitful. For hear what words she adds : Therefore do the virgins love Thee. As if she would say : ' Not in vain nor uselessly is it, O my Spouse, that Thy Name is poured forth upon my bosom, nor is Thy Name without effect : for therefore do the virgins love Thee. ' Wherefore do they love ? Because of this outpouring of His Name. It is that which has aroused their love for the Spouse ; they have taken of that grace, and therefore do they love Him. When the Bride has received that gift of infused grace, they who cannot be far from their mother's side have speedily discerned the fragrance of it, and, being filled with its sweetness, say : The Love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us (Rom. v. 5). Then the Bride, taking notice with joy of their devotion, says : ' Thou seest, O my Spouse, the fruit of Thy Name poured forth ; for because of it the virgins love Thee. ' They feel it when poured forth, though they were not capable of receiving it wholly ; therefore they have loved Thee. Thus the effusion of that Name renders it capable of being received, and when received it cannot but be lovable ; but this applies to virgins only. Those who are of greater capacity rejoice in it as a whole, nor do they need the effusion of it.

2. The angelic race behold in fixed contemplation the profound abyss of the judgments of God. They take supreme pleasure, and experience an unspeakable happiness, in the exalted righteousness of these, and, furthermore, regard it as their glory that it is by their ministry these are carried into execution and are made known, and because of this they deservedly love the Lord Jesus Christ. Are they not all, it is said, ministering spirits, sentforth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation ? ( Heb. i. 14). I believe that Archangels (for we must, doubtless, consider them as differing in some respect from those who are simply Angels) delight in a wonderful manner, because they are admitted more nearly into the counsels of the Eternal Wisdom, and that the same counsels are also carried out by them with the greatest wisdom and judgment as to time and place. And this is the cause why they, too, love the Lord Jesus. There are other blessed spirits, which are called Virtues ; perhaps for this reason, that they are ordained by God to examine with a happycuriosity, and, at the same time, to admire, the secret and permanent causes of miracles and wonders, and that they cause these signs of power to take place in the world when and where they please, having command over all the elements ; and on this account they, too, most justly have an ardent love for the Lord of all power, and for Christ who is the Power of God. For it is an employment full of sweetness and grace to contemplate the hidden and uncertain truths of wisdom in Wisdom itself, and it is none the less full of honour and glory that God deigns to make use of their ministry in order that the effects, of which the causes are hidden in His WORD, may be known and admired by men.

3. There are other spirits, who are named Powers, since they delight in beholding and magnifying the Almighty power of our Crucified Lord, which extends everywhere with invincible force; and they receive power to defeat and to put to flight the opposing powers of demons and of men, for the good of those who are to be heirs of salvation. And have not these, too, a most well-founded cause for loving the Lord Jesus ? Above these, again, are Principalities, who, beholding Him from a position more elevated, and discerning clearly that He is the Firstbegotten of all Creation, and the Principle of existence to the whole universe, receive a degree of dignity so great and exalted that it extends over the whole earth ; and that from the lofty and sublime eminence on which they are, they are able to change and vary kingdoms and dignities at their will to dispose of men and of things, making the last to be first, and the first last; putting down the mighty from their seat, and exalting the humble and meek. And this is to them a reason for loving the Lord Christ. But the Dominations also love Him. Wherefore ? Because they are led by a certain praiseworthypresumption to trace out and find something, I know not what, that is deeper and more sublime in the Dominion of Christ, which is bounded by no limit, and can be checked by no resistance. They consider that He fills all the world, not only by His power, but also by His Presence-that all things, from the height of heaven to the depth of the abyss, are obedient to His righteous and holy Will, which directs, and that in an admirable order, the revolutions of the seasons, the movements of bodies, and even the impulses and ideas of minds ; and that He does all this with a care and vigilance so exact that not one of all these things is able to fail in performing its functions even by (as the phrase is) one point or one iota, and yet with a facility so great that He who governs all feels no inquietude or anxiety whatever. These Angels, then, seeing that the Lord of Sabaoth judges all things with a tranquillity so complete, are, as it were, transported out of themselves, in their trance of sweet and intense contemplation, and rapt into that vast ocean (so to speak) of the Divine splendour ; they come to themselves again in a calm so wonderful and pervading, and in which they enjoy so great peace and security, that in their quiescence all the other spirits seem to serve and to defend them, as if, by a singular prerogative, they were, in truth, Dominations.

4. Upon the Thrones God is seated. And I suppose that this order of spirits have a cause more just, and reason more abundant, for loving, than have all the others who have been already mentioned. For even if you enter the palace of some human king, do you not find his royal seat in a place of high honour-among the benches, chairs, and seats of various kinds with which it is filled ? Nor is it necessary to inquire where the king is accustomed to sit, since his royal seat or throne presents itself at once to the eye, and is more lofty and more richly adorned than others. So, also, are we to understand that those spirits whom the Divine Majesty, by a singular and astonishing favour, has deigned to select for the Throne on which to sit, surpass all others in beauty and magnificence. To be seated ( sessio) signifies authority ; and I think that He, who in heaven and in earth is our only Master and Teacher, Christ the Wisdom of God, though He indeed reaches everywhere because of His perfect purity, enlightens particularly and principally, by His presence, those blessed spirits as being His throne, and that from thence, as from a solemn auditorium, He teaches knowledge to angels and to men. Thence it is that the Angels derive their knowledge of the Divine judgments, and the Archangels theirs of the Divine counsels ; there the Virtues hear when and where they are to work signs, and of what nature these are to be. There, in short, all the Angels, whether Powers, or Principalities, or Dominations, learn what are the duties of the offices they bear, and what are their honours and dignities ; and especially how (which is the caution given to all) they should use the power bestowed upon them without abusing it, either by acting according to their own will, or for the sake of their own glory.

5. As for those heavenly bands which are called Cherubin, I am inclined to think, following even the signification of the word, that they have nothing which they derive either from, or by means of, the Thrones, since it is permitted them to drink to the full from the Fountain itself, the Lord Jesus, who deigns Himself, and by Himself, to introduce them into all the fulness of truth, and to reveal to them abundantly all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge which are hidden in Him. Neither do those who are called Seraphin [require to learn from the Thrones), since God, who is Himself Love, has so drawn them to, and absorbed them in, Him, and raised them to the same ardour of holy affection, that they appear to be of one Spirit with Him, just as the fire which enkindles air, and impresses upon it heat and colour like its own, so that it is manifestly not merely ignited, but itself become fire. They love, then, above all things, to contemplate in God, the former, that knowledge which is in Him without measure or limit ; the latter, the love which is never absent from Him. It is from this that they have obtained names which express that which in each is pre-eminent. For the word Cherubin signifies fulness of knowledge ; and Seraphin, inflaming or inflamed.

6. God is, then, loved by the Angels because of the supreme righteousness of His judgments ; by the Archangels because of the supreme wisdom of His purposes ; by the Virtues on account of the most blessed showing forth of miracles and wonders by which He deigns to draw the unbelieving to faith ; but by the Powers on account of that power, equally just and prevailing, by which He is wont to defeat the cruelty of the wicked, and to defend the good against them ; by the Principalities on account of that eternal and primordial power which bestows the principle of existence, and existence itself, upon every creature, whether of higher rank or lower, spiritual and corporeal, extending with prevailing strength from one extremity of the universe to the other ; by the Dominations, also, because of the calm and untroubled Will which, though it everywhere dominates with irresistible strength, disposes all things with sweetness according to the goodness belonging to its nature, and with a tranquillity which nothing can disturb. He is loved also bythe Thrones because of the benevolence of His supreme Wisdom, which communicates itself without envy, and of the unction of grace, which teaches all things freely. Furthermore, He is loved by the Cherubin because He is God, the Lord of all knowledge, and as He knows what each has need of for salvation, so He distributes His gifts with judgment and providence, according to the necessity of the individual, to those who worthily make request for them; and, lastly, by the Seraphin, inasmuch as He is Himself Love, that He hateth nothing that He has made, and wills that all men should come to the knowledge of the Truth and be saved.

7. All these spirits, then, love God according to the degree of knowledge they have of Him. But there are souls which are childlike (adolescentula = young girls), which, as they know less, so they comprehend less, and are not adequate to these sublime heights of attainment ; and these are little children in Christ, to be nourished with milk and with oil. These it is who have need to draw from the bosom of the Spouse the nourishment for their love. The Spouse hath oil poured forth ; and from the fragrance which it exhales they are aroused to taste and know how gracious the Lord is. And when she sees and feels their ardent love she turns to her Lord, and saith : Thy Name is as oil poured forth, therefore have young maidens loved Thee beyond measure ( nimis, Vulg. ). What is ' beyond measure ' ? Greatly, vehemently, ardently. Or, rather, this spiritual discourse is addressed indirectly to you who have but lately come hither ; and it reproves that indiscreet fervour and immoderate zeal which you follow with too great obstinacy, and which we have so frequently endeavoured to repress. You are not willing to be contented with the common life. The appointed fasts, the solemn vigils, the ordinary Rule, the measure fixed as to food and to dress, in which we all share, does not suffice for you. You prefer your own private rules to those which are common to all. You who have once entrusted to me the care of your souls, why do you again interfere with it ? See, then, you have for a guide not me, but your own will once more, which, as you know, has so often caused you to offend against God. It is that which teaches you not to show any forbearance towards your nature, not to listen to reason, not to yield to the advice or example of your seniors, not to obey me. Do you not know that obedience is better than sacrifice ( 1 Sam. xv. 22) ? Have you not read in your Rule, that whatsoever is done without the will or consent of your spiritual father, shall be imputed to vainglory, and not as deserving any recompense (Rule of S. Benedict, c. 49) . Have you not read in the Gospel that Jesus, when a Boy, left to holy youth a pattern how to obey ? For when He had remained in Jerusalem, though He had said that it behoved Him to be about His Father's business, yet as His parents did not acquiesce in His words He did not disdain to follow them to Nazareth : the Master to follow His disciples, the Son of God to follow human beings, the Divine Word and Wisdom to follow a carpenter and his wife ! What does the sacred history even add ? And He was subject unto them (Luke ii. 43-51). How long will ye be wise 1 See Sermon XXXIII. , n. 1 , and ' Sermon on the Death of Humbert, ' n. 1 . in your own eyes ? God entrusts Himself and submits Himself to mortal men, and will you still walk in your own ways ? You had received a good intention, but you do not carry it out wisely. I fear lest, instead of a good spirit, you have harboured one who, under an appearance of good, will overthrow you, and that you who have begun in the Spirit, will complete your course in the flesh . Do you not know that Satan himself is often transformed into an angel of light (2 Cor. xi. 14) ? God is Wisdom, and He desires to be loved, not only to our own delight, but also wisely. Wherefore the Apostle says : Yours is a reasonable service ( Rom. xii. 1 ) . Otherwise, if you neglect knowledge, the spirit of error will with great ease lead you astray by means of your zeal ; nor has our cunning enemy any device more effectual in eliminating love from the heart than that of inducing us, if he can, to act without due prudence and caution. Wherefore I intend to give you certain rules, which it is necessary for those who love God to observe. But as it is time for me to bring my sermon to a close, I will endeavour to explain them to you to-morrow, if God shall continue to me life and the leisure to address you. For then we shall assemble in new vigour after the repose of the night, and (which is the chief thing) shall be rendered more willing and ardent by the preceding prayers to hear the discourse respecting love ; in dependence on the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be honour and glory for ever and ever. AMEN. L

ET this sermon take for a beginning the words of a master in the spiritual life : If anyone love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema ( 1 Cor. xvi. 22) . Without doubt He is altogether to be loved by whom I have my very existence, my life, and my reason ; and I cannot be ungrateful without being unworthy of all these. He is plainly worthy of death who refuses to live for Thee, O Lord Jesus ; and he is, in fact, dead, as he who does not devote his reason to Thy service is unreasonable, and he who cares to be anything except for Thee is good for nothing, and is nothing. Indeed, what is man, except that Thou hast taken knowledge of him (Ps. cxliv. 3) ? It is for Thine own self, O my God, that Thou hast created all things ; and he who desires to exist for himself, and not for Thee, begins to be as nothing among all things that are. is it that the wise man says : Fear God, and keep His commandments: for this is the whole [ duty of] man ( Eccles. xii. 13). If, then, this is the whole man, without this man is nothing. Incline towards Thyself, O my God, what Thou hast deigned to enable me to be, humble as What it is ; take wholly to Thyself, I entreat, the brief remainder of the years which pertain to my poor life ; and for all the years which I have lost, because I have occupied them in losing myself, despise not, I entreat, an humble and contrite heart. My days have declined as a shadow, they have perished without fruit. It is impossible for me to recall them; make me, in Thy goodness, at least to meditate upon them before Thee in the bitterness of my soul. Thou seest that wisdom is the whole desire and purpose of my heart : if there were any in me it is in Thy service I would employ it. But, O God, Thou knowest my simpleness ; unless it be perhaps a beginning of wisdom to recognise my ignorance ; and, indeed, this is by Thy gift. Augment it in me, I pray ; I shall not be ungrateful for the least of Thy gifts, but shall strive to supply that which is lacking in me. It is, then, for these Thy benefits that I love Thee with all my feeble powers.

2. But there is a fact which moves, and excites, and fires me much more than this. Above all things, it is the cup which Thou didst drink, O Jesu, merciful and kind, the great task of our redemption undertaken by Thee, which is a stronger motive than any other for love to Thee. It is this which easily draws to itself all the love I have to give, which attracts my affection more sweetly, which requires it more justly, which retains it by closer ties and a more vehement force. To this end the Saviour endured many and great things, nor in the making of the whole world did its Creator take upon Himself a task so laborious. For in that earlier work He spake, and it was done : He commanded, and it stoodfast ( Ps. xxxiii. 9) . But in the later one He had to bear with men who contradicted His words, met His actions with illnatured criticism, insulted His sufferings and even revived His Death. Behold, then, how He loved us ! Add to this that He loved us thus of His free gift, not to make return for any love which we had for Him. For who hathfirst given to Him, and it shallbe recompensed unto him again ( Rom. xi. 35) ? And St. John Evangelist says expressly : Not that we loved God, but that He [previously] loved us ( 2 John iv. 10). Indeed, He loved us while as yet we did not exist ; He did even more, for He loved us when we were opposed to, and were resisting, Him, as St. Paul testifies : When we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son ( Rom. v. 10) . In other words, if He had not loved us when enemies, He would not now have us for friends ; just as, if He had not loved those who did not as yet exist, they would not be existing now for Him to love.

3. In the next place, His love is tender, wise, and strong. I say that it is tender, since He has taken upon Him our flesh ; wise, since He has held Himself free of all sin ; and strong, since it reached to the point of enduring death. For those whom He visited in the flesh yet He loved not in the flesh, but in the foreseeing wisdom of the Spirit. For the Lord Christ is a Spirit who hath made Himself visible to us (Lam. iv. 10), being moved towards us with a zeal of God, not of man, and with a love wiser assuredly than the first Adam felt for his Eve. Therefore those whom He sought out in the flesh He loved in the spirit, and redeemed in His power and courage. It is a thing full of ineffable sweetness to behold the Creator of man as a Man. But while by His wisdom He separated [ human] nature from sin, by His power He banished death from [that] nature. In taking flesh He condescended to me ; in separating it from all stain of sin He consulted His own dignity ; in submitting to death He made satisfaction to His Father, and thus showed Himself at once the kindest of Friends, a prudent Counsellor, and a powerful Helper. In Him with full confidence I trust, who was willing to save me, who knew the means, who had the power to carry them out. The soul whom He sought out, whom He also called by His grace, will He cast out when it comes to Him ? But I do not fear that any violence or fraud will have the power to pluck me out of His Hand ; for in vanquishing death He vanquished all enemies, and in deluding the old Serpent, the seducer of the world, by an artifice more holy than that he had employed, He was at once wiser than the one and more powerful than the other. He took upon Him human flesh in truth, but only the likeness of sin ; in the former giving sweet consolation to weak and ailing man, and in the latter prudently concealing from the devil the snare by which he was deceived. Furthermore, that He might reconcile us with His Father, He bravely underwent death and overcame it, pouring forth His Blood as the price of our Redemption. If, then, that Sovereign Majesty had not tenderly loved me, He would not have sought for me in my prison. Butto this affection He joined wisdom to circumvent our tyrant, and patience to placate the just wrath of God His Father. These are the ways of loving which I promised to give you, but I have set them before you first as shown forth in Christ, that you might hold them in greater esteem.

4. Learn, O Christian, from the example of Christ the manner in which you ought to love Christ. Learn to love Him tenderly, to love Him wisely, to love Him with a mighty love. Tenderly, that you be not enticed away from Him ; wisely, that you be not deceived and so drawn away ; and strongly, that you be not separated from Him by any force. Delight yourself in Christ, who is Wisdom, beyond all else, in order that worldly glory or fleshly pleasures may not withdraw you from Him; and let Christ, who is the Truth, enlighten you, so that you may not be led away by the spirit of falsehood and error. That you may not be overcome by adversities, let Christ, who is the Power of God, strengthen you. Let charity render your zeal ardent, wisdom rule and direct it ; let constancy make it enduring. Let it be free from lukewarmness, not timid, nor wanting in discretion. Are not those the three things prescribed to thee in the Law, when God said : Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy strength ( Deut. vi. 5) ? It seems to me, if no other sense occurs to you better to give to that threefold distinction, that the love of the heart answers to the earnestness of affection ; the love of the soul to the purpose or judgment of the reason ; and love with the strength to the constancy and vigour of the mind. Love, then, the Lord thy God with the entire and full affection of the heart ; love Him with all the vigilance and all the foresight of the reason ; love Him with the full strength and vigour of the soul, so that for His love you would not fear even to die ; as it is written in a later verse of this Canticle : Love is strong as death, jealousy as hardas hell (Cant. viii. 6, Vulg. and Douay). Let the Lord Jesus be to your heart sweet and pleasant, so as to destroy the false attractiveness of the carnal life; let His sweetness overcome the other, as one nail drives out another. To your understanding and your reason let Him be a wise leader and a guiding light, not only to enable you to avoid the snares of heretical fraud, and to preserve the purity of your faith from their cunning devices, but also to make you cautious to avoid excessive or indiscreet vehemence in your conduct. Let your love be intrepid and constant, neither yielding to fear nor exhausted by sufferings. Finally, let us love tenderly, wisely, ardently, knowing that the love of the heart, which we call tender, is indeed sweet, but easily led astray at least, if it be not accompanied by the love of the soul ; while the latter, again, though it be rational, yet is apt to be weak, unless courage and ardour go with it to strengthen it.

5. And recognise in clear examples that what I say is true. When the disciples had heard with dismay their Master, shortly before His Ascension, speaking of His departure from them, they heard from Him : If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because Isaid I go unto the Father (John xiv. 28). What then ? Did they not love Him for whose departure they were grieving ? In a certain sense they loved Him, and yet they did not really love Him. That is, they loved Him tenderly, but not wisely ; they loved in a carnal way, not reasonably ; finally, they loved with all their heart, but not with all their soul. Their love was against the interests of their salvation ; wherefore He said to them also, It is expedientfor you that Igo away (John xvi. 7), blaming their deficiency in wisdom, not in affection. When, again, He was speaking of His coming death, Peter, as you remember, who loved Him, and desired to retain Him, replied, endeavouring to hinder Him ; to whom He made answer, so reproving him as to show that it was his want of prudence only that He blamed. For what is the force of the words following, Thou savourest not the things which be of God (Mark viii. 33), but, Thou lovest not wisely, as following the impulse of human affection against the design of God ? And He even called him Satan, inasmuch as in seeking to hinder the Saviour from dying he was an adversary of salvation, though unknowingly. And, therefore, having been thus corrected, he no longer opposed himself to the Saviour's death when the sad prophecy of it was again made by Him, but declared that he would die with Him. But that promise He did not fulfil, because he had not yet attained to the third degree of love, which consists in loving God with all our strength. He had learned to love [God] with all his soul, but he was still weak ; he knew well what he ought to do, but was without the help which would enable him to perform it ; he was not ignorant of the mystery [of salvation] but he shrank from martyrdom. That love was plainly not strong as death, which yielded to [the fear of] death ; but afterwards it became so, when being, according to the promise of Jesus Christ, endued with power from on high, he began to love with courage so great that, having been forbidden in the council of the Jews to preach the adorable Name of Jesus, he replied firmly to those who forbade him, We ought to obey God rather than men (Acts v. 29). Then, indeed, he loved God at length with all his power, since he did not spare his own life for that love. For greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends ( John xv. 13) ; and he laid down his life at that time, though he did not actually give it up. To be not drawn away by flattery, nor seduced by artifices, nor violently removed from it by injuries and outrages, that is to love God with all the mind, with all the soul, and with all the strength .

6. And notice, that that love of the heart is in a manner carnal, with which the heart of man is affected towards Christ according to the flesh, and towards the actions which He did or commanded while in the flesh . A person who is filled with that love is easily touched with any discourse which dwells on that subject. There is nothing he listens to more willingly, reads more attentively, recalls oftener to memory, meditates upon with greater enjoyment. His sacrifices of prayer receive from it a new perfection, and resemble, as it were, victims as fat as they are beautiful. As often as he prays, the image of the GOD Man arises before him, either in His Birth or His Infancy, either in His teaching or His Death, His Resurrection, or His Ascension ; and all these, or similar images, necessarily animate the soul to the love of holiness, drive away fleshly vices, put to flight temptations, and calm desires. I consider that a principal cause why God, who is invisible, willed to render Himself visible in the Flesh, and to dwell as a Man among men, was to draw, in the first place, to the salutary love of His sacred Flesh all the affections of carnal men who were unable to love otherwise than in a carnal manner, and so by degrees to draw them to a pure and spiritual affection. Were not those, for instance, who said to Jesus, Behold, we have left all and followed Thee ( Matt. xix. 27), still in this [first] degree of love ? They had left all things for the sole love of the bodily Presence of Jesus, so that they were not able even to listen with equanimity to the announcement of His salutary Passion and Death as near at hand, and even afterwards it touched them with a profound sadness to look up to the glory of His Ascension. For this reason it was that He said to them : Because I have said these things untoyou, sorrow hathfilled your heart (John xvi. 6). Thus in 1 Suspicere. Another reading is suscipere. 8 the meantime He had drawn them away, and kept them, from every carnal affection by the grace of His personal Presence in the Flesh.

7. But He afterwards pointed out to them a higher degree of love, when He said : It is the Spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing ( John vi. 64). I think that he who said, Though we have known Christ after the Flesh, yet now henceforth know we Him no more (2 Cor. v. 16), and perhaps the Prophet also, notwithstanding [that he lived before Christ], when he said, The Spirit before ourface was Christ the Lord, stood upon this higher ground ; for that which he adds, Under Thy shadow shall we live among the Gentiles, it seems that he speaks in the name of those who are beginning to rest at least in the shadow, since they do not feel themselves to be capable of sustaining the heat of the sun ; and being nourished with the sweetness of the flesh, are not as yet capable of perceiving the things which are of the Spirit of God. By the shadow of Christ I suppose to be meant His Flesh, with which Mary was overshadowed (Luke i. 35) , so that it was to her as a veil to temper the heat and light of the Spirit. Let him be consoled then, with the devotion of the flesh who has not as yet the life-giving Spirit, or, at least, who has Him not in the manner of those who say : The Spirit before our face was Christ the Lord, and, Though we have known Christ after the Flesh, yet now henceforth know we Him no more. For it is assuredly not without the Spirit that Christ is loved, even in the Flesh, though He be not loved in His fulness [thus]. And of this devotion the measure is this, that the sweetness of it occupies the whole heart ; draws it entirely to itself from all love of the flesh or of carnal things, and frees it from their temptations ; this it is to love with all the heart. Otherwise, if I prefer to the Flesh of my Lord any ties of relationship, or any pleasure that I may receive---I mean in such a way as to be able to perform fewer of those good works which He has taught me by word and by example while He abode in the Flesh-- does it not plainly appear that I do not love Him with all my heart, since it is divided, and I seem to have given a part to the love of Him, and a part to the love of myself? For He Himself says : He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy ofMe; and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me (Matt. x. 37) . Therefore, to express it briefly, to love Jesus with the wholeheart is to prefer the love of His most sacred Flesh to all things which engage our affections or our vanity, either in our own self, or that of another ; in which I equally comprehend the glory of the world also, because it is essentially carnal ; and those who delight in it are, without doubt, carnally minded.

8. But yet such devotion towards the Flesh of Christ is a gift of the Holy Spirit, and a great gift ; yet I must call such love carnal, at least in comparison with that other affection, which has regard, not so much to the Word as Flesh, as to the Word as Wisdom, as 2 See Sermon XXXI. , n.

9. Righteousness, as Truth, as Holiness, Goodness, Virtue, and all other Perfections of whatever kind. For Christ is all these, inasmuch as by God He is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption ( 1 Cor. i. 30). Does it appear to you that two persons have equal and similar love towards Christ, of whom the one sympathizes indeed piously with His sufferings, is moved to a lively sorrow by them, and easily softened by the memory of all that He endured ; who feeds upon the sweetness of that devotion, and is strengthened thereby to all salutary, honourable, and pious actions ; while the other, being always fired by a zeal for righteousness, having everywhere an ardent passion for truth, and earnestly desiring wisdom, prefers above all things sanctity of life, and a perfectly disciplined character ; who is ashamed of ostentation, abhors detraction, knows not what it is to be envious, detests pride, and not only avoids, but dislikes and despises every kind of worldly glory ; who vehemently hates and perseveres in destroying in himself every impurity of the heart and of the flesh ; and lastly, who rejects, as if it were naturally, all that is evil, and embraces all that is good? If you compare these two types of affection, does it not appear to you that the second is plainly the superior ? and that in comparison with it the former is in a manner carnal ?

9. Yet that love, by which a carnal life is shut out, and the world is contemned and overcome, is good, though it be carnal. In that type of affection it becomes rational as it makes progress, and it is perfected when it becomes spiritual. It is called rational when in all the sentiments cherished regarding Christ the proportion of the faith (ratio fidei) is so carefully observed that no deviation is made from the pure doctrine of the Church by any apparent similarity to truth, nor by any snare of heretical or diabolical deception. As also in our personal conduct this caution must be observed, that the bounds of discretion be not exceeded through the influence of superstition, or of levity, or of the zeal of an unregulated disposition. And this it is to love God with all the soul, as I have already said. If to this be added force so great, and an assistance so powerful, as that of the Holy Spirit, so that neither troubles nor sufferings, however violent, nor even the fear of death, can ever cause the desertion of righteousness, then God is loved with all the strength, and that is spiritual love. And I think this name peculiarly suitable to such love, because of the fulness of the Spirit which so particularly distinguishes it. But I think that these observations may suffice with regard to that saying of the Bride : Therefore have the virgins loved Thee beyond measure. May our Lord Jesus Christ, who is our Guardian, deign to open to us the treasures of His mercy, that we may be able to expound the words which follow. Who liveth and reigneth with the Father, in the Unity of the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. AMEN.

Draw me after Thee : we will run in the odour of Thy perfumes.1 What? is it needful that the Bride should be drawn to follow, and to follow after such a Spouse, as if she followed Him unwillingly, and not of her own impulse and wish ? But not everyone who is caused by force to move is thus moved against his will. For example, one who is infirm or weak, and is not able to walk alone, is not otherwise than glad to be drawn to the bath or to the table, though a criminal doubtless is reluctant to be brought to the judgment or to the place of punishment. Now, she who here speaks desires and entreats to be drawn ; but she would not do this if she were able to follow her beloved by her own strength, according to her wish. But wherefore is she unable ? Must we allow that the Spouse, too, is weak and infirm ? Ifit were one of her maidens who declared herself so, and entreated to be helped forward, we should in nowise wonder. But of the Spouse, who seemed to be able even to help others forward, so strong and perfect was she ; who is there who does not find it strange, that she needs to be drawn forward herself, as if she were weak or languishing ? Of what soul shall we feel any confidence, that it is strong and healthful, if we shall consent for her to be called weak, who for her singular perfection, and more excellent virtue, is named the Spouse of the Lord ? Is it the Church, perhaps, who spake thus, when she beheld her Beloved ascending up on high, and earnestly desired to follow Him, and be assumed with Him into glory ? For, to whatever degree of perfection a soul may have attained, as long as it groans under the body of this death, and is held captive in the prison of this evil world, as long as it is constrained by necessities, tortured by faults and wrong doings, it arises of necessity more slowly and sluggishly than it would desire to the contemplation of heavenly things, nor is it altogether free to follow the Bridegroom [who is the Lamb, Rev. xiv. 4] whithersoever He goeth. It was this which drew that lamentable cry from him who said : O miserable man that Iam, who shall deliver mefrom the body of this death ? (Rom. vii. 24). It was this which inspired the suppliant entreaty : Bring my soul out 1 Such is the reading of the old MSS. , and of the first editions, instead of ' to the odour ' of Thy perfumes, as we have elsewhere observed. Thus we run ' aroused by that odour ' ( nn. 4, 9, II ) and not in the confidence of our own merits. And again a little further on : ' As for Thee, O mySpouse, Thou wilt run in the unction itself, but I in the fragrance which it exhales. Thou in the fulness of the perfume : but I in its fragrance ' (n. 11 ) . of prison (Ps. cxlii. 7). And so also the Bride says, and says as it were with a groan, Draw me, and Iwill run after Thee : because the corruptible body presseth down the soul, and the earthly tabernacle weigheth down the mind, that museth upon many things ( Wisd. ix . 15) . Or perhaps she speaks thus in her desire to depart and be with Christ ; especially when she sees those souls, on account of which it seemed needful that she should remain in the flesh, making good progress, already having love for the Bridegroom, and remaining in the safe refuge of charity. This, indeed, she had referred to before : Wherefore the maidens have loved Thee exceedingly. Now, it seems as if she would say : ' Lo the maidens have loved Thee, and by that love are firmly united to Thee ; they have no need of me any longer ; there is no reason for my delaying still in this life ; therefore, Draw me, and I will run after Thee.

2. This I should have considered to be her thought, if she had said, ' Draw me to Thee. But as she says, ' after Thee,' that phrase seems to me rather to make request that she might have grace to follow the footsteps of His life, to be able to emulate His virtue, to hold fast, and by, His rule of life, to attain the perfection of His character. In these especially [the soul] has the greatest need of assistance, to be enabled to deny herself, to take up her cross, and thus to follow after Christ. In order to attain this, the Bride has great need to be drawn onward ; and by none other than He who says : Without Me ye can do nothing (John xv. 5). ‘ I know well, ' she says, ' that I am not able to reach Thee, except by following after Thee ; nor can I follow after Thee, except I am helped by Thee to do so : and, therefore, I pray that Thou wouldest draw me after Thee. ' In truth, Blessed is the man whose help is from Thee : in his heart he hath set steps in the valley of tears ( Ps. lxxxiv. 5) in order one day to reach Thee upon the mountains of everlasting joy. How few there are, O Lord Jesus, who are willing to follow after Thee ! and yet there is no one who does not wish to reach Thy Presence, since it is known to all that at Thy Right Hand there are pleasures for evermore ( Ps. xvi. 11). On that account, all desire to obtain happiness from Thee, but they have not a similar desire to imitate Thee ; they wish to reign with Thee, but not to suffer with Thee. Such was he who said : Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his (Num. xxiii. 10) ; he desired that the closing of his life might be similar to that of the righteous, but not that its beginnings might be so. Even carnal men desire for themselves the death of men who are spiritual, and yet shudder at the idea of leading their life. For they know that precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints ; since, when He giveth to His beloved sleep, lo ! the heritage of the Lord ( Ps. cxxvii. 2 , 3), and because Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord (Rev. xiv. 13) ; while, on the contrary, according to the declaration of the prophet, The death of the wicked is very evil ( Ps. xxxiii. 22, Vulg. and Douay). They do not care to seek Him, whom they yet desire to find; they wish to reach Him, but to do so without following Him. Not such were they, of whom He said : Ye are they which have continued with Mein My temptations (Luke xxii. 28) . Blessed are they who were found worthy to receive such a testimony from Thee, O good Jesus ! They did in truth come after Thee, both with their feet, and in the affections oftheir hearts. Thou hast made known to them the ways of life, in calling them after Thee, who art the Way, and the Life ; Thou sayest unto them, Follow Me, I will make you fishers of men (Matt. iv. 19) ; and again, If any man serve Me, let him follow me : and where I am, there shall also My servant be (John xii. 26). Therefore they congratulated themselves, saying : Behold, we have forsaken all and followed Thee ( Matt. xix. 27).

3. It is thus, then, that Thy Beloved, leaving all things for Thy sake, desires always to follow after Thee, to walk closely in Thy footsteps always, and to follow Thee whithersoever Thou goest, knowing that Thy ways are ways of blessedness, and all Thy paths are peace, and that therefore he who followeth Thee walks not in darkness. If she prays that she may be drawn onward, it is because Thy righteousness is as the mountains of God, and that in her own strength she is not able to attain unto it. She prays, as she is wont, that she may be drawn onward, because no man can come to Thee unless Thy Father shall have drawn him (John vi. 44) ; and those whom The Father draweth, Thou dost draw also ; for the works which the Father doeth, those also doeth the Son likewise. But the suppliant is more familiar with the Son, and makes this request to be drawn of Him, as of her own Bridegroom, whom the Father hath sent to be her Leader and her Guide, to go before her in the way of righteousness, to prepare for her the path of virtues, to train her up even as His own self, to teach her the way of wisdom, to bestow upon her the law of life and of discipline; and to bring her to such perfection that He may justly take pleasure in her beauty.

4. Draw me after Thee : we will run in the fragrance of Thy perfumes. I have need to be drawn for this reason, because the fire of Thy love has grown somewhat cold in us ; nor are we, on account of that coldness, able to run as we did yesterday and in former days . But we shall run when Thou shalt have restored to us the joy of Thy salvation, when the warmth of grace shall have returned to us, when the Sun of Righteousness shall have warmed us anew, and the cloud of temptation shall have passed away, which at this moment hides Him from us ; and at the gentle breath of a softer breeze, the perfumes have begun to dissolve and flow, and give forth their fragrance. Then, and in that fragrance, shall we run [on the way of righteousness ] . We shall run, I say, when the perfumes are breathed upon us, for the torpor in which we now are shall be dissipated, and devotion shall be reawakened in us, so that we shall have no need to be drawn on, but under the influence of that sweet fragrance shall advance of our own accord. But now, and until that happy change, 1 Some MSS. add ' Who hath pleasure in her beauty.' THE BRIDE FOLLOWS AFTER HER SPOUSE, draw me, and Iwill run after Thee. Do you perceive that he who walks in the Spirit does not remain always in one state, nor make progress always with the same ease, because the way of man, as the Scripture declares, is not in his own power ; but that he forgets the things which are behind, and presses forward to those which are before, now with more energy, and now with less, according as the Holy Spirit, who is the Dispenser of all graces, bestows them upon him with greater or less liberality ? I believe that if you well examine your own selves, you will find what I have said confirmed by your own inward experience.

5. When, therefore, you feel yourself affected with torpor, luke. warmness, and weariness, do not on that account give way to unbelief, nor desist from spiritual exercises, but seek the Hand of Him who is able to help, and, after the example of the Bride, entreat that you may be drawn after Him, until you are reawakened and reanimated by grace, and thus you become more cheerful and vigorous ; you are enabled to run [the race that is set before you] , and you say, I have run the way of Thy Commandments, since Thou hast set my heart at liberty (Ps. cxix. 32). But though you should rejoice in the grace of God, as long as it is present, do not, nevertheless, count upon that gift as if you held it by a right of inheritance, and be as secure of it as if you could not possibly lose it, lest suddenly God should draw back His Hand and withdraw His grace, and you should fall into excessive discouragement and sorrow. Do not ever say in your abundance, Ishall never be moved ( Ps. xxx. 6), for fear lest you should also be obliged to make use with grief of the words which follow : Thou didst hide Thy Face, and I was troubled. You will be cured rather, if you are wise, by following the counsel of the Wise-to be not unmindful of good things in the day of evil, nor of evil things in the day of good (Ecclus. xi. 25) .

6. Do not, then, in your day of strength, suffer yourself to feel secure, but lift up your voice towards God with the prophet, and say : Forsake me not when my strengthfaileth me (Ps. lxxi. 9). On the other hand, be consoled in time of temptation, and say with the Bride : Draw me, and I will run after Thee : we will run in the fragrance of Thy perfumes. Thus hope will not desert you in the evil day, nor Providence be wanting to you in the day of prosperity ; you will retain, among the changeableness of earthly conditions, [which are] at one time prosperous, at another adverse, as it were an image of eternity ; I mean to say that you will maintain this equableness of spirit, and a constancy not to be shaken by any event ; you will at all times bless God, and will thus make good for yourself a position, so to speak, of immovable stability among the changing events and certain disappointments of this inconstant world, until you shall begin to be renewed, and to take upon you once more that ancient and glorious likeness of God, who is eternal, with whom is no changeableness, neither shadow of turning (James i. 17). Thus as He is so shalt thou be, even in this world ; neither cast down in adversity nor in prosperity And made careless. It is in this, I say, that man, that creature so noble, made in the image and likeness of God who created him, indicates that he is even now on the point of regaining the dignity of his ancient honour, when he regards it as unworthy of him to be conformed to this perishing world ; and chooses rather, according to the precept of St. Paul, to be transformed by the renewing of his mind (Rom. xii. 2) . into that likeness in which he knows that he was first created. in this way he even compels the things of this world, which were, in fact, created on his account, to conform themselves to him, as it is becoming they should do; and thus all things begin to work together for good, and to regain, as it were, the form which is theirs, and natural to them, rejecting that [present one] which is degraded, and recognising their Lord, for whose service they were created.

7. On this account I think that the saying which the Only Begotten Son of God uttered of Himself, that He, if He were lifted up from the earth would draw all things unto Him (John xii. 32), may be applied also to all His brethren-that is, to those whom the Father has foreknown and predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brethren. I, then, even I, my brethren, am able boldly to say, ' If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things unto me.' Nor is it a rash thing of me to make use of the words of Him of whom I put on the likeness. If it be thus, then the rich of this world ought not to think that the brethren of Christ, because they hear Christ saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matt. v. 3) , possess heavenly things alone, because those only seem to be mentioned in the promise. They possess earthly things also ; and having indeed nothing, yet possess all things. They do not beg for them, as those who are poor and miserable, but possess them as masters ; and are so much the more the masters of them as they are less desirous to obtain them. For the whole world is a store of riches to the man who has faith . Evidently the whole world ; for whether he be in prosperity or in adversity, all things serve him equally, and work together for his good.

8. Thus, then, the man who is avaricious hungers for the things of this world like a beggar, while he who has faith despises them as their lord. The one, while he possesses them, is their servant ; the other, while despising them, uses them for good. Ask some one of those who pant with an insatiable heart for earthly riches, what is his opinion of those who sold all their goods and gave to the poor, and whether they did wisely or no. Doubtless he will reply that they did wisely. Ask him again why he does not himself practise what he approves in others. ' I cannot,' he will reply. Wherefore ? Plainly because avarice is the mistress of his heart, and will not permit him ; because he is not free ; because the things which he seems to possess are not his ; nor is he himself his own master. If they are truly yours, try to put them to profitable use ; and in exchange for earthly possessions obtain heavenly. If you are not able to do this, then confess that you are not the master but the servant of your money-only the. keeper of it, not the possessor. In short, you suit yourself to your purse as a slave to his mistress ; and just as such an one is obliged of necessity to be glad or to be sorrowful according to the mood of his mistress, so you : when your pouch is swelling with gain, your spirits rise ; and they fall similarly when it shrinks. For you are stricken with sorrow when that is exhausted, and when it is replenished are filled with joy, or, rather, puffed up with pride. Such is the man who is avaricious. But as for us, let us strive to imitate the freedom and the constancy of the Bride, who, being well instructed in all things, and preserving in her heart the teaching of Wisdom, knows how to endure both abundance and penury. When she entreats that she may bedrawn onward, she shows that what she needs is, not money, but spiritual strength ; and, on the other hand, when she consoles herself with the hope of the return of grace, she proves that even in privations she holds fast her faith .

9. She says then : Draw me, we will run after Thee : we will run in thefragrance of Thy perfumes. And what wonder is it that she needs to be drawn onward when she is following the footsteps of a giant ? Who is able to come up with Him who strides upon the mountains, who leaps over the hills ? His Word, saith the Psalmist, runneth very swiftly ( Ps. cxlvii. 15). She is not capable of keeping pace with, or of rivalling the speed of, one who rejoiceth as a giant to run His course ( Ps. xix. 5) ; that is not possible to her powers, and therefore it is that she prays to be drawn onward. ' I am weary, ' she says ; ' I am sinking from fatigue ; desert me not, but draw me after Thee, that I may not begin to wander after other companions, or to run hither and thither, as in uncertainty. Draw me after Thee ; for it were better for me that Thou shouldest keep me close to Thee, even by the use of a measure of violence, by making me afraid with Thy threatenings, or causing me to smart with chastisements, than that Thou shouldest spare me in my evil and slothful security, and leave me to myself. Draw me after Thee, even if it be in some sort against my will, that Thou mayst make me willing ; draw me, even in my sloth and slowness, that Thou mayst make me ready and swift. A time may come when I shall no longer need one to draw me onward, since we shall run voluntarily and with all willingness. But now I am not able to run alone, though alone I make my petition to be helped forward ; let the maidens also run with me. Let us run together, let us run with equal pace; I, aroused by the fragrance of Thy perfumes ; they by my example and my exhortation : and thus let us all runin the fragrance of Thy perfumes. ' The Bride has her imitators, as she herself is the imitator of Jesus Christ. And, therefore, she does not say, as of one person only, ' I will run, ' but ' We will run. '

10. But the question arises, wherefore the Bride, in imploring to be drawn onward, does not similarly join the maidens with herself, but says, Draw me, and not ' Draw us. What then ? Does the Bride need to be drawn, and the maidens, do they not need ? O thou who art beautiful, and happy, and blessed, explain to me the reason for this distinction. Wherefore dost thou say Draw me, and not us ? Is it that thou enviest them this honour ? God forbid. Nor wouldst thou (if that were the case) have added that they with thee would follow after the Bridegroom if thou hadst wished to follow Him alone. Why, then, shouldst thou have added in the plural, ' we will run, ' when thy request was in the singular, ' draw me ' ? Charity, she replies, would have it thus. Learn from me by this word to hope for a twofold blessing from on high in spiritual exercises ; that is, for correction and consolation. The one has its sphere of action without, the other visits us within. The former represses presumption, the latter raises up the heart and bestows confidence ; the one worketh humility, the other consoles in discouragement ; the one gives prudence, the other devotion. The former teaches the fear of the Lord ; the latter tempers that very fear with an infusion of salutary joy, as it is written : Let my heart rejoice, that it may fear Thy Name (Ps. lxxxv. 11 , Vulg. and Douay) . And again : Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling ( Ps. ii. 11 ) .

11. Now we are drawn onward when we are exercised by trials and tribulations ; but we run forward when we are visited with inward consolations and secret inspirations, and breathe, as it were, an atmosphere of perfume and fragrance. That, then, which appears hard and austere I reserve for myself, as to one who is strong, and healthy, and perfect ; and I say, speaking for myself alone, Draw me. That which is sweet and pleasant I share with you, as with one who is weak, and I say, We will run. I know that young souls (adolescentulas) are tender and delicate, and unfitted to sustain temptations, and, therefore, I desire that they should run with me, but not that they should be drawn with me ; I wish to have them for companions of my consolation, not of my labour and trouble. Wherefore ? Because they are weak, and I fear lest they should fail and fall by the way. But as for me, O my Spouse, take me, train me, try me, draw me after Thee, for I am prepared to suffer all chastisements, and I am strong to endure them. But as for the rest, let us run together ; alone I will be drawn onward, but together let us run. Yea, let us run, but in the fragrance of thy perfumes, not in any confidence of our own merits. We have not the presumption to believe that we can run in the greatness of our own strength, but we trust in the multitude of Thy mercies. For if ever we have run, and have been able to will voluntarily to do so, yet it was not of man that willeth, nor of man that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy (Rom. ix. 16). Let that mercy be turned towards us and we shall run. Thou, indeed, O Lord, dost run in the greatness of Thy strength, rejoicing in it as a giant ; but we cannot run at all unless we derive strength from the breathing of Thy perfumes. Thou, whom the Father has anointed with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows (Ps. xlv. 7), dost run in [the strength of] that unction itself, but we only in the fragrance which it exhales. Thine is the fulness of it, but ours its fragrance. This would be the time to discharge the promise which I remember to have made long ago, to speak to you of the perfumes of the Bridegroom, if the length to which this sermon has already extended did not forbid it. I will defer that, then, to another time, for the importance of the subject does not allow it to be confined within inadequate limits. Pray the Lord of Divine unction that He will deign to render acceptable the freewill offering of my lips, and that I may be able, at your desire, to recall to your minds the remembrance of the sweetness of His abundant grace ; of the grace, I say, which is in Him who is the Bridegroom of His Church, Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.

I F the perfumes of the Bride are so precious and so distinguished as they were found to be when they were treated of in your hearing, of what value must be those of the Bridegroom ? And if I am not capable of expounding these in a manner worthy of their great excellence, yet that their virtue is surpassingly great, and their grace efficacious, is shown, without doubt, by this fact alone, that their fragrance arouses not the young maidens alone, but the Bride herself, to run [in the way of righteousness] . If you take notice, you will see that she does not venture to promise anything of this kind, as to follow from her own perfumes. She does indeed re joice in thinking that they are most excellent, yet she does not say that in them she has run, or would run ; this she only promises to do in the perfumes of the Bridegroom . What would she have said, had she felt the outpouring upon her of that unction itself, of which even the fragrance alone, however slight it were, had such influence upon her as to cause her to run forward [in the way of godliness] ? It would be wonderful if she did not even fly. But someone, perhaps, says in himself : ' Cease your commendations ; it will sufficiently appear what they are when you have begun to define them. ' But no. I do not at all promise that. Believe me when I confess that I do not as yet know whether those ideas which are presented to my mind are well founded. I suppose that the Bridegroom has not a few kinds of perfumes and balms, that these are different in nature, that some of these are more a delight to the Bride than others, as being nearer and in closer relation to Him, and that they delight her only ; but that there are others which reach as far as the maidens, and some which find their way even to those who are most distant and most entirely strangers to Him, so that there are none hid from his life-giving heat. But although the Lord is good and kind to all, He is most markedly so to those of His own house ; and the more nearly anyone draws to Him by the influence of a pure mind and holy life, the more also, as I believe, He perceives the fragrance of newer perfumes and of a sweeter anointing.

2. But these things the intelligence does not comprehend any farther than it is led by experience. That is why I would not rashly arrogate to myself a prerogative which is given only to the Bride. The Bridegroom alone knows the delights which it is given to His Beloved to taste by the Holy Spirit, by what inspirations He marve! - lously revives her spiritual senses, and by what odours He soothes them. Let her be for thee, then, a fountain proper to Him alone, in which no stranger shares, nor does any unworthy drink thereof ; that is to say, a spring shut up, a fountain sealed ( Cant. iv . 12 ) ; but thence do streams flow into the streets. These, I confess, are at my disposal, provided that no one finds fault or is ungrateful if I drink of them and draw from them for the good of all. For, that I may commend a little my ministry in this respect, it is not without some labour and fatigue that I go forth day by day to draw from the open streams of the Scriptures, in order to distribute to each one according to his need ; so that without his own labour every one of you may have a supply of the spiritual waters for his various necessities ; as, for example, to drink, and for cleansing, as for cooking his food. For the Divine Word is the saving water of wisdom, not only to drink, but also for cleansing, as the Lord hath said : Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you ( John xv. 2 ). The Divine Word cooks, so to speak, over the fire which the Holy Spirit kindles, the crude reflections of the carnal mind, and turns them into spiritual teachings, which are nourishment for the soul, so that you may say : My heart was hot within me, and while I was musing the fire burned (Ps. xxxix. 3) .

3. Those who, being of a spirit perfectly pure, are capable of apprehending by their own selves truths more lofty than those which have been brought forward by me, I congratulate upon the fact, and I do not dispute their right ; but at the same time, they must allow me to bring forward simpler truths for simpler people. Would that it might be granted unto me that all might exercise the gift of teaching (prophetent), and that it might not be needful for me to occupy myself in it ! Would that this care might fall upon some other, or at least, which I would prefer, that there were no one among you who had need of it ; and that you were also open to the teachings of God Himself, that I might be able to remain in a profound repose, and contemplate the Bridegroom, who is God ! For now it is the case (and I do not say it without tears), that it is not permitted to me, I do not say to contemplate, but even to seek after the King in His glory, sitting upon the Cherubin, sitting upon His Throne, high and lifted up, in that Form in which He was begotten, Equal to His Father, in the splendour of His Saints, before the morning star [was created] , in which also the Angels always desire to behold Him, God of God. That which remains to me, who am but a man, is to speak of Him to men as Man, and in that Form in which, that He might in His exceeding condescension and love manifest Himself unto men, He was made a little lower than the angels, He who hath set in the sun His tabernacle, whence He cometh forth as a bridegroom out of His chamber (Ps. xix. 5). I speak of Him to you rather in His sweetness, than in His loftiness ; as the Anointed One, rather than the High and Lofty One, who inhabiteth Eternity ; of Him, that is, whom the Spirit of the Lord hath anointed, and sent forth to preach the Gospel to thepoor, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord ( Is . lxi. 1 , 2).

4. Leaving, then, to each individual whatever of more sublime and profound truth it has been granted to him by God's special grace to feel and experience regarding the perfumes of the Bridegroom, I offer for the common good what I have drawn from a source common to all. For He is the fountain of life, a Fountain sealed, springing forth from a walled garden, by the mouth of St. Paul, who made of himself a canal for that precious stream. He is truly that Wisdom which, according to the expression of holy Job, is drawn from secret places ( Job xxviii . 21 ) ; which divides itself into four streams, and flows into the open ways of men ; in which the Apostle declares to us the great truth that God hath made Him to be to us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption ( 1 Cor. i. 30). From these four streams, then, as it were of most precious perfumes--for it matters little whether we consider them as of water or of precious perfume, of water which cleanses, or of oil which perfumes-from these four, I say, as from precious ointments, composed of celestial balms upon the mountains of sweet spices, so great a sweetness and fragrance has filled the nostrils of the Church, that, being drawn from the four quarters of the earth by that perfume, [her people] hastened to the heavenly Bridegroom, as that queen of the East came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, being attracted by the good odour of his reputation (1 Kings x. 1-7).

5. Now, the Church was before not able to run towards the odour of her Solomon, until He, who was from all eternity Wisdom from the Father, was made by the Father to be for her benefit Wisdom also in time ; for it was from that time that she began to perceive the Divine odour which proceeded forth from Him. Thus He was made for her in the same way righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption, so that she might be able to follow after the odour of these also, which were in Him before the beginning of all things. For in the Beginning was the Word (John i. 1 ) ; but the shepherds made haste to come to see Him, only then at length when His Birth was announced to them. Then it was that they said the one to the other : Let us now go even to Bethlehem and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known to us ( Luke ii . 15, 16). And, it goes on, they came with haste. Before, when the Word was with God, they did not stir ; but when it came to pass that the Word was made [ Flesh] and shown unto men, then they came with hastethey ran. Just as the Word was in the beginning, but the Word was with God ; and yet the Word was made [Flesh] when He began to be among men also ; so He was Wisdom in the beginning, He was righteousness, He was sanctification and redemption. But to the angels, and in order that He might be these to men also, the Father has made Him all these things, and He has done so because He is the Father. For, says the Apostle, ofGod He is made unto us wisdom. He does not say simply is made, but is made unto us ; since that which He was unto the angels He is made unto us also.

6. But I do not perceive, you will say, how He was Redemption unto the Angels. For in no passage of the Scriptures does it appear that they were ever captives of sin, or subject unto death, so that they had need of redemption ; those only excepted, who, falling by the irremediable lapse of pride, have never deserved to be redeemed. If, then, the Angels have never been redeemed, some having no need to be, and others not deserving it ; the one class, because they have not fallen ; the other, because their fall was irrevocable : for what reason do you say that the Lord Jesus Christ has been to them redemption ? Listen, while I briefly declare it. He who has raised up man who had fallen granted to the Angel, who was upright, the grace not to fall ; thus, as He delivered the one from his bondage, so He protected the other from becoming subject to that bondage. And in this manner He was Redemption equally to each class, delivering the one from its fall, and preserving the other from falling. It appears, then, clearly that the Lord Christ was to the holy Angels redemption, as He was righteousness, wisdom, and sanctification ; and that, nevertheless, He was made to be these four blessings on account of men, who are able to behold the invisible things of God only by the beholding of the things that are made (Rom. i. 20). So, then, all that He was unto the Angels, He was made to be unto us ; that is to say, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemptionwisdom in preaching, righteousness in the remission of sins, sanctification in the close relation which He had with sinners by His Life ; and redemption by His Passion, which He endured on behalf of sinners. It is then when He was made by God to be all these things ; that the Church has perceived His fragrance, and has followed, nay, has run, after Him.

7. Recognise, then, this fourfold anointing ; recognise the abundant and inestimable sweetness of Him, whom the Father hath anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows (Ps. xlv. 7). Thou, O man, wast sitting in the gloomy shadows of death through ignorance of the truth ; thou wast sitting bound by the chains of thy sins. He descended to thee in thy prison, not to torment thee, but to deliver thee from the power of darkness. In the first place, that Teacher of truth dissipated by His wisdom the darkness of thy ignorance. 1 Tenebrosis ; another reading is tenebris. Then, by the righteousness which is of faith, He broke the bonds of thy sins, freely justifying the sinner. By that twofold benefit, He accomplished that word of the holy David : The Lord looseth the prisoners ; the Lord giveth sight to the blind ( Ps. cxlvi. 7, 8). More than this He did, by living a holy life among sinners, and so provided for thee a pattern of life, as a road whereby thou mightest return to thy own fatherland. Lastly, as it were to heap upon thee His goodness, He gave over His soul to death, and drew from His own side the price of thy redemption, and thus rendered satisfaction to the Father. In all this He plainly realized the verse : With the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption (Ps. cxxx. 7) . Truly it was plenteous : for it was not a drop, but a flood that poured forth plenteously, of His Precious Blood, from five parts of His Body.

8. What ought He to have done for thee, that He has not done ? He has restored sight to one blind, broken the chains of a captive, led back a wanderer, reconciled the guilty. Who will not run with ardour, with rapidity, after Him who delivers from error, and forgives offences ; who by His Life bestows merits, and by His Death acquires [for thee] rewards ? What excuse can there be for him who does not eagerly run in the fragrance of these perfumes, except perchance that their sweetness has not reached him ? But the odour of life has gone forth into the whole world ; for the whole earth is full of the mercy of the Lord, and His goodness is over all His works. Therefore he who has no perception of that fragrance, sweet, life giving, and everywhere diffused, and because of this does not run after Christ, is either dead, or he is corrupt. That fragrance is the renown of His Name. The fragrance of faith in Him extends everywhere ; it arouses to run the Christian course ; it brings to trial of His anointing, to the vision of Him for reward. All who attain it chant with one accord : Like us we have heard, so have we seen, in the city of the Lord ofHosts, in the city of our God (Ps. xlviii. 8). We follow after Thee, O Lord Jesus, because of the goodness and kindness which we are fully assured of finding in Thee ; because we learn that Thou dost not despise the poor, nor abhor the sinner. Thou didst not abhor the thief when he confessed, the sinful woman who wept tears of penitence, the Canaanite mother who came to Thee with her supplication, nor her who was taken in adultery, nor him who sat at the receipt of custom, nor the publican who implored pardon, nor the disciple who denied Thee, the persecutor of Thy disciples, nor Thy very crucifiers themselves. In the fragrance of these Divine virtues we run. Again, we perceive the fragrance of Thy wisdom from that word which we have heard, that if any lack wisdom, let him ask it of Thee, and Thou wilt give it to him ; for Thou givest to all liberally, and upbraidest not (James i. 5). And the great fragrance of Thy righteousness is spread abroad upon every side, inasmuch as Thou art not only Righteous, but also Righteousness itself yea, 1 Futidus, or putridus. 2 Pervenit, or prævenit. a Righteousness which renders righteous him who is unrighteous. And as powerful as Thou art to justify, so bountiful art Thou also to forgive. Wherefore, let whosoever is touched with a sincere sorrow for his sins, who hungers and thirsts after righteousness, believe without hesitation in Thee, who justifiest the ungodly ; and being justified by faith alone, he shall have peace with God. Of Thy holiness, also, the fragrance most sweet and full is spread abroad by Thy Conception, as by Thy Life. Sin, therefore, Thou hast neither committed nor contracted. Let those, then, who have been justified from their sins, who desire and propose to follow after holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord, let them attend to Thy voice : Be ye holy, for I am holy ( Lev. xix. 2). Let them consider Thy ways and learn from Thee, for Thou art righteous in all Thy ways, and holy in all Thy works (Ps. cxlv. 17). And the fragrance of Thy Redemption, what numbers does it arouse to follow Thee ! When Thou wert lifted up from the earth, Thou didst draw all men unto Thee. Thy Passion is the last refuge for men, and their only remedy. When wisdom is wanting, righteousness proves insufficient, and the merits of sanctity fail, Thy Passion comes to the rescue. For who can have the presumption to think his own wisdom, righteousness, or holiness sufficient for his salvation ? As says the Apostle : Not that we are sufficient ofourselves to think anything as of ourselves ; but our sufficiency is ofGod (2 Cor. iii . 5). Therefore, when my own strength shall have failed me, I am not troubled, I do not lose heart. I know what I have to do : I will take the cup of salvation and call upon the Name of the Lord (Ps. cxvi. 13). Enlighten mine eyes, O Lord, that I may know what is accepted before Thee at all times ( Wisd. ix. 10) ; and thus I am wise. Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions (Ps. xxv. 7) ; and [thus] I am righteous. Teach me Thy way, O Lord ( Ps. lxxxvi. 11 ) ; and I [thus] am holy. But yet, unless Thy Blood interpose for me, I am not saved. It is to obtain all these graces that we follow-nay, we run after 'Thee ; send us away [satisfied] , for we cry after Thee.

9. But we do not all run with equal attraction towards all these perfumes, for you will see that some are more ardently affected by the love of wisdom ; others are more carried towards penitence by the hope of obtaining pardon ; others, again, are more animated to the practice of virtues by the example of His life and conversation ; and others , still , are more fired with ardour for piety by the remembrance of His Passion. I think that we may be able to find examples of each of these classes. Those who had been sent by the Pharisees, for instance, were attracted by the fragrance of His wisdom, when they returned and said : Never man spake like this man (John vii. 46), for they admired His teaching, and confessed His wisdom. The holy Nicodemus did the same, when he came to Jesus by night (iii. 2), drawn by the great light of His wisdom, and returned, enlightened and instructed in many things. But Mary Magdalene came attracted by the fragrance of His righteousness ; she, to whom ness. many sins wereforgiven, for she loved much ( Luke vii . 47 ) . Doubtless, she was no longer a sinner, as the Pharisee reproached her with being, but righteous and holy ; he knew not that righteousness and holiness are the gift of God, not the work of man ; and that he to whom the Lord will not impute sin, is not only righteous, but also blessed. Had he forgotten the manner in which the Lord] in touching his [the Pharisee's] own bodily leprosy, or that of some other sufferer, had not contracted it Himself, but had cured it ? Thus that Righteous One, being touched by the woman who was a sinner, imparted righteousness, and did not part with it ; nor was He defiled with the stain of sin, of which He cleansed her. The Publican also followed after Christ, who, when he humbly implored pardon for his sins, went down to his house, as He who was Himself Justice declared, justified ( Luke xviii. 14). Peter followed [ Christ], he who wept bitterly for his fall (xxii. 62) , so as to wash away his sin and regain righteousAnd David, who, acknowledging and confessing his crime, was found deserving to hear : The Lord also hath put away thy sin (2 Sam. xii . 13). Then again Paul bears witness that he followed Christ, when he boasts that he was His follower, and says to his disciples : Beye followers of me, as I also am of Christ ( 1 Cor. xi. 1) . They also did so who said : Behold, we have left all and followed Thee (Matt. xix. 27). That is, they had left all things for the desire to follow Christ. This precept exhorts all people in general to follow after the same fragrance : He that saith he abideth in Christ ought himselfalso so to walk, even as He walked ( 1 John ii. 6) . If you wish to hear who they are who have run in the fragrance of the Passion of Christ, I will tell you : they are all the martyrs. You have, then, four kinds of odours : the first of wisdom, the second of righteousness, the third of sanctification, the fourth of redemption. Keep them in memory, avail yourself of the good of them, and do not institute any inquiry as to how they are composed, of what materials, or how mingled. For these things are not so easily to be ascertained with respect to the perfumes of the Bridegroom, as with regard to those of the Bride, which were previously considered. For in Christ all things are with a fulness which has neither measure nor limit. For His wisdom is infinite (Ps. cxlvii. 5) ; His righteousness is like the great mountains ( Ps. xxxvi. 6), the mountains of God ; His holiness so great as to be unequalled by any other, and His redemption is a mystery that cannot be discovered.

10. This also must be said, that it is to no purpose that the wise men of this world have disputed at such great length concerning the four great virtues , which they are in no wise able to attain, since they knew not Him, who of God is made unto us wisdom to teach us prudence, righteousness to remit offences, sanctification to give an example of living temperately and chastely, and redemption for a perfect pattern of patience in His Death bravely endured. Someone will perhaps say : The other qualities are very fitting for the virtues named ; but sanctification seems to have no proper relation to temperance. To which I reply, first, that temperance is the same as continence ; for it is usual in the Scriptures for continence or purity to be spoken of as sanctification. In fact, what did those sanctifications so frequent under the Law of Moses consist of but certain purifications of those who abstained from food, from drink, from indulgence, and suchlike ? But notice especially the Apostle himself, who commonly uses, or adapts, the word ' sanctification ' to, or in, this sense. This is, he says, the will of God, even your sanctification that every one ofyou should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour ; not in the lust of concupiscence. And, again : For God hath not called us to uncleanness, but unto holiness (1 Thess. iv. 3-7). It is plain that in such passages he puts sanctification for temperance.

11. After having made clear what seemed a little obscure, I return to the point whence I digressed. What have you to do with virtues who know not the power (virtutem) of God, which is Jesus Christ ? Where, I ask you, is true prudence, if not in the teaching of Christ ? or true righteousness, if not in His mercy ? Where is true temperance, if not in the Life of Christ ? or true fortitude, if not in the Passion of Christ ? Those only, therefore, who are imbued with His teaching are to be called prudent ; those alone to be regarded as righteous who from His mercy have attained the pardon of their sins ; those alone as temperate who study to imitate His Life ; and those alone as courageous who in adversities follow with constancy the example of His patience. That man labours in vain to acquire virtues who looks elsewhere than to the Lord in the hope of obtaining them ; for it is His teaching which is the seed-plot of prudence ; His mercy is a work of righteousness ; His Life a mirror of temperance ; and His Death a glorious pattern of courage. To Him be honour and glory for ever and ever. AMEN.

THE King hath brought me into His storerooms ( Cant. i. 3, Douay). Lo, here is the source of fragrance ; here is the point towards which we run . The Bride had said that we must press forward, and in what strength ; but whither our course was to be directed, she had not said. Now, then, she declares that it is towards the Lord's storerooms, and in the strength of the fragrance which is exhaled from them. This she presses with her characteristic eagerness, and desires to be introduced into His fulness. But, in the first place, what is to be understood by these storehouses ? Let us, to begin with, imagine that in the dwelling of the Bridegroom there are chambers fragrant with perfumes, and filled with all kinds of delights. It is in these that, as in a treasury, is stored and kept in reserve whatever is most rare and valuable of the products of garden and of field. Hither, then, do all those who run direct their steps ; but who are they that run ? These are the souls who are fervent in the Spirit, the Bride, the maidens in her train ; but she whose love is most ardent runs more swiftly, and arrives sooner. When she arrives, she suffers no repulse, and not even any delay. Forthwith the portals are opened to her, as to an inmate of the house, as to one greatly beloved, who is specially dear and welcome. But what as to her maidens ? They follow afar off ; they are still weak ; they cannot press forward with devotion equal to that of the Bride ; they cannot experience fervour and earnest desire such as hers ; therefore they arrive later, and they remain without. But the charity of the Bride does not rest, nor does she pride herself, as is frequently the case, upon her happy successes so as to be forgetful of them. On the contrary, she consoles them the more assiduously, and exhorts them to endure patiently and calmly the repulse they have received, and her absence. Then she declares to them the joy which she has attained, and that for the very reason that they may rejoice with her, in the hope of one day attaining to a share in the graces and blessings of their mother. For she does not so pursue her own [spiritual] advantage as to neglect the care of them, nor desires that her benefit should be hurtful or prejudicial to them. However far removed from them she is by superior merits, it is of necessity that her charity and tender care for them keep her with them always. It is her duty, moreover, to follow the example of her Bridegroom, both, on the one hand, in seeking the heavens, and, on the other, in promising to be ever upon earth with His people, even to the consummation of all things. So also the Bride, whatever progress she may make, and whatever advancement she may attain, is prevented by her care, her deep interest and affection for those whom she has begotten in the Gospel, from ever leaving them or forgetting them in the depths of her heart.

2. Let her say, then, to them : Take courage and rejoice. The King has brought me into His storerooms : regard yourselves as having been thereby brought in also. I alone seem to have entered in, but the advantage is not to me alone. Every advancement of mine is virtually yours ; it is for you that I make profit ; and I share with you the graces which more than you I have deserved. Do you wish for an unquestionable proof that her words are to be taken in this sense and intention ? Then listen to the reply which they make : We will be glad and rejoice in thee ; we do not deserve to do so in ourselves, but in thee. And they add : We are mindful of thy bosom (Cant. i. 4) ; that is, we shall endure patiently until thou come, knowing that thou wilt return to us with thy bosom filled with graces. We confidently hope, then, to rejoice and be glad ; meanwhile we are mindful of thee. The words which he adds, more than wine, signify that they are still touched with the remembrance of the desires of the flesh, which are spoken of as wine, and that, nevertheless, those desires are overcome by the thought of that abounding sweetness which, as they have experienced, flows from her. I should speak of this now, if I did not remember that I have done so above. But now you see what confidence they have with regard to their mother, how they look upon all her advantages and all her joys as belonging to themselves, and console themselves for their own repulse by her admission. They would not have so great confidence, if they did not recognise her as their mother. Let prelates, who like better to make themselves feared by those committed to their charge, than to be useful to them, take this to heart. Be ye learned, O ye that are judges of the earth. Learn from this that you ought to be as mothers, not masters, to your subjects ; study to make yourselves loved rather than feared ; and if there be need sometimes of severity, let it be that of a father, not of a tyrant. Show yourselves mothers in affection, fathers in reproof. Be gentle, not harsh ; be not forward to inflict stripes ; let the view of the maternal bosom promise indulgence ; let the hearts [of those under you] grow fat with milk, not swell with anger. Why do you lay your heavy yoke upon those whose burden it is rather your duty to bear ? Why does the young son, who has been bitten by a serpent, avoid displaying his wound to the priest, to whom he ought rather to resort as to the bosom of a mother ? If ye are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness ; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted (Gal. vi. 1). For otherwise he shall die in his sin but his blood will I require at thine hand ( Ezek. iii. 20). But of this at another season.

3. Now, since the context is clear by what I have said above, let us see what is the mystical meaning of ' the storehouse. ' Later on mention is made of the garden also and the chamber, and I take these three for the subject of our present discussion ; for when treated together, they throw light mutually on each other. Let us seek, then, if you please, these three words in the Holy Scriptures : the storehouse, the garden, and the chamber. For a soul that is athirst for God willingly occupies itself with, and lingers in, these, knowing that in them it will assuredly find Him whom it thirsts for. Let, then, the garden represent the plain and simple historical sense of the Scripture ; the storehouse the moral sense of it ; and the chamber the secret and mystical truth, reached by Divine contemplation.

4. In the first place, I think that the historic sense is not unfitly referred to the garden, because in the history are found men of many virtues, as it were fruitful trees in the garden of the Bridegroom and 1 Sermon IX. in the Paradise of God; and from their conduct and their actions you may take examples, as from a tree you gather fruit. Who can question that a good man is, as it were, a plant of God ? Hear what holy David sings concerning a good man : He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season ; his leaf also shall not wither (Ps. i. 3). Jeremiah also expresses himself to the same effect, and in almost the same words : He shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh ; but her leaf shall be green (Jer. xvii. 8). And the Psalmist : The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon (Ps. xcii. 12). And of himself he says : I am like a green olive-tree in the house of God ( Ps. lii . 8). History is, then, as it were, a garden, and it is threefold ; for it contains the creation, the reconciliation, and the reparation of heaven and of earth. Creation, that is like the sowing or planting of a garden. Reconciliation is, as it were, the germination of that which is sown or planted. For at the due time the heavens have distilled dew from above, the clouds have poured down righteousness, the earth has opened and brought forth the Saviour ( Is. xlv. 8), by whom was brought about the reconciliation of heaven and earth. For He is our peace, who hath made both one (Eph. ii . 14), reconciling by His blood all things, whether in earth or heaven ( Col. i. 20). Reparation, again, is to come to pass at the ending of the dispensation. For there shall be a new heaven and a new earth ; the good shall be gathered from among the evil, to be set in safety in the storehouse of God, as fruits from a garden. In that day, it is said, shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely (Is. iv. 2) . In this garden of the historic sense, then, you have three periods included.

5. In the Moral sense, secondly, you have a threefold discipline : three cells, as it were, in one storehouse. Therefore it is, perhaps, that they are spoken of in the plural as ' storerooms ' (cellaria), in contemplation of this number of cells. A little farther on, the Bride felicitates herself on having been brought into ' the cellar of wine ' (ii . 4, ' banqueting house,' A.V.). We, then, because we read, ' Give an occasion to a wise man, and he will be wiser' (Prov. ix. 9), take occasion from this name, which the Holy Spirit has thought fit to give to this cell, to give it also to the two others ; to call one the cell of perfumes, the other that of unguents. We shall explain presently the reasons for these names. But in the meantime notice that all which surrounds the Bridegroom is sweet, as all is salutary-wine, perfumes, and unguents. Wine, the Scripture declares, maketh glad the heart of man ( Ps. civ. 15). We read also that oil maketh his face cheerful ( Ibid. , Douay), and it is with oil and medicinal powders that ointments or unguents are compounded. Lastly, perfumes are not only agreeable by their odour, but are useful because of their medicinal virtue. It is, then, with good reason that the Bride rejoices at having been brought into a spot where graces are so great and so abundant.

6. But I have other names also for them, for which, as I consider, a still greater probability may be shown. To name them in their order, I take the first cell to be that of discipline, the second that of nature, the last that of grace. In the first you learn, following the rule of Christian ethics, to be the last of all ; but in the second to be equal to all, and in the last to be superior to all ; that is to say, you learn how to act as an inferior, how to act as an equal, and how to act as a superior ; or, again, to be below, to be beside, to be above others. In the first you learn to be a disciple, in the second to be a companion, in the third to be a master. Nature has, indeed, made all men equal ; but that natural order having been corrupted by pride, men have become impatient of that equality, desirous to elevate themselves above others, and full of efforts to do so ; greedy of vainglory, envying and provoking one another . Thus, first of all, insolence of character requires to be restrained by the yoke of discipline, until the stubborn will, worn down by observance of the severe and constantly repeated rules of the elders, may be humbled and cured, and regain by its obedience that good of nature which it had lost by the indulgence of pride, until the man shall have learned to possess his soul in patience, and to live peacefully and kindly, as far as in him lies, with his fellow creatures ; that is to say, with all men ; and that not by fear of punishment, but by the spontaneous impulse of the will. Then he will pass on into the cell of nature, and will make proof of that which is written : Behold how good and howpleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity ! It is like the precious ointment upon the head ( Ps. cxxxiii. 1, 2). For characters thus disciplined, are, as it were, sweet spices pounded together, from which is composed the oil of joy, which is the good of nature, and a sweet and excellent unguent is produced from it. The man who is, so to speak, anointed with this becomes peaceful and amiable ; one who provokes no quarrel, who deceives no one, who attacks no one, who offends no one ; who does not set himself above others, or prefer himself to everyone else, but, on the contrary, maintains with those around him a continual interchange of kindnesses given and received.

7. I think that if you have clearly understood the leading characteristics of the two former cells, you will be of opinion that I have not unfitly named the one that of perfumes, the other that of unguents. For in the former, as the forcible pounding of a pestle forces forth and extracts the strength and fragrance of spices, so the pressure of the rule and the rigour of discipline expresses, so to speak, and draws forth the natural force of the characters of those who are ruled. And in the latter the agreeable sweetness of a voluntary and, so to speak, innate affection runs eagerly of its own accord, like, as it were, the fragrant oil which is upon the head, and which at the slightest touch of warmth rolls downward and is diffused over the whole body. Thus in the cell of discipline are enclosed, as it were, the simple materials of perfumes in a dry state, and thus I have thought it ought to be called ' of perfume.' But in that which is said to be of nature, the unguents compounded of these are found and are stored, and therefore it is called ' of unguents.' As for the wine-cellar, I suppose that the reason for the name is no other than that in it is stored the wine of a zeal fervent with charity. One who has not as yet deserved to be brought into this cell should assuredly not be set in authority over others. For it is essential that one who has the direction of others should be fervent with this wine, in like manner as was the great Doctor of the Gentiles, when he said : Who is weak, and I am not weak ? Who is offended, and I burn not? ( 2 Cor. xi . 29) . Otherwise, it is altogether wrong that you should aspire to rule over those to whom you have no desire to be of service, and should claim for yourself, with excessive ambition, the subjection of those whose salvation you are not earnestly desirous to forward. This cell I have named that of grace, not because it is possible to obtain even the two others without grace, but because of the fulness of grace which is reached in this alone. For love is thefulfilling of the law, and He that loveth another hath fulfilled the law (Rom. xiii. το, 8).

8. You have seen the reason of the names, see now the different characters of the cells ; for it is one thing to repress by fear, and by the rigid rule of discipline, the wanton and wandering senses and the irregular appetites of the flesh, and another to preserve a kindly agreement with brethren by a spontaneous disposition to do so. These differ in difficulty, and, indeed, in the faculties which effect them ; and so also to live a regulated life under the authority of another, and to do so with our own will for the only constraining influence, are altogether distinct things. In the same way, no one will declare the living in peace and on good terms with others, and the ruling over them for their benefit, to be actions of equal merit and requiring the same powers. How many are there who live in peace under the direction of an intelligent guide, whom, if they were set free from the obligation to obey, you would speedily perceive not to be able to remain even peaceful and harmless to their neighbours ? And similarly there are very many who are seen to conduct themselves simply and without offence among their brethren who, if they were set over them, would behave themselves so as to be not only useless , but even unwise and harmful. Such persons ought to content themselves within the bounds of a mediocrity which is advantageous to them, following the measure of the grace which God has bestowed upon them ; not having, indeed, any great need of a master, but yet being unfitted to be masters themselves. These, indeed, are of a more excellent character than the former class ; but such as know how to govern well are superior both to the one and to the other. Those, too, who are faithful and wise in ruling over the Lord's household have it in promise from Him that He will make them rulers over all His goods (Matt. xxiv. 48). But as there are few who rule wholly to the advantage of others, so there are fewer still who do so with humility. Yet both the one and the other duty are easily fulfilled by him who has attained perfect discretion, the mother of all the virtues, and has drunk of the wine of charity to the point of contemning his own glory, and of entire forgetfulness of himself, so that he seeketh not his own ; and this state is reached only in the cell called of wine, and under the wonderful guidance of the Holy Spirit. The virtue of discretion lies prone and helpless without the fervour of charity, while the vehement fervour of charity without the moderating influence of discretion hurries on to the precipice. Therefore he is to be praised to whom neither is wanting, insomuch that fervour animates his discretion, and discretion regulates his fervour. So it behoves him to be constituted who rules over others. But I should regard him as the highest in character, and as having learned perfectly the sum of this discipline, upon whom has been bestowed the power to pass through and around all these cellars without stumbling ; who in no respect whatever either resists his superiors, envies his equals, or towards his inferiors commits either the error of being wanting in care for them, or ruling them in pride ; who is obedient to those who are above him, to his companions obliging, to those under him kindly condescending for their good ; which high degree of perfection, indeed, I have no hesitation in attributing to the Bride. This is intimated in the statement she has made, that The King hath brought me into His storehouses, since she mentions not some one only, but speaks in the plural, ' His storehouses.'

9. Now let us pass to the bedchamber. What is that chamber ? Have I the presumption to think that I know what it is ? By no means do I arrogate to myself any experience of so exalted a subject, nor do I boast of a prerogative, which is reserved to the happy Bride alone, being careful, according to that proverb of the Greeks, to ' know myself, ' and to know, as did the Psalmist [in a similar case] , that such knowledge is too wonderful for me ; it is high, I cannot attain unto it ( Ps. cxxxix. 6). If I had no knowledge whatever, I should say nothing. What little I do know I will not enviously keep back from you ; what I do not know, may He, who teacheth man 1 Γνῶθι σεαυτὸν, ‘ Know thyself. This precept was inscribed in letters of gold over the portico of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. It was attributed to Thales, one of the Seven Wise Men of Greece ; and indeed to Pythagoras, Chilo , Cleobulus, Bias, and Socrates, as well as to Phemonæ, a (mythical) Greek poetess of the anteHomeric period, said to have been the daughter of Apollo. knowledge (Ps. xciv. 10), vouchsafe to impart to you. I have already said, and I dare say that you remember, that the chamber of the King is to be sought in the secret and mystical truth reached by Divine contemplation. But, as in speaking of perfumes, I said that the Bridegroom has many, and of different kinds, and that all of these are not bestowed upon everyone, but that each has part in them, according to the various character of his discernings, so I think of the chamber of the King also, that it is not one, but many. Nor has He one queen also, but assuredly very many ; He has many woman friends, and of maidens the number is uncounted. Each of these has her secret confidence with the Bridegroom, and says : My secret is for myself, my secret is for myself ( Is. xxiv. 16). It is not granted to all to enjoy in the same degree the dear and secret Presence of the Bridegroom, but it is given to whomsoever it has been prepared by the Father. For we have not chosen Him, but He has chosen us, and established us in our place ; and wheresoever any soul has been placed by Him, there is He with that soul. One woman, moved with penitence, found her place at the Feet of the Lord Jesus ( Luke vii. 38) ; another, if it were really another, found the fruit of her devotion at the Head of Jesus (Matt. xxvi. 7) . St. Thomas attained the grace of that secret [ favour] at His Side ; St. 1 C. 3. 2 There is apparently a reminiscence of I Kings xi. 3 . 3 St. Augustine expresses himself in a similar manner (in Joannem Tract. ix. n. 3) Whether Mary, who anointed our Lord, as we read in several passages of the Gospel, and Mary, the sister of Martha, were the same, or different persons, has been a subject of much controversy among old writers. Jansenius Gandavensis ( ' Concordie Evang. , ' c. 48) treats the question with his usual solidity. There are some writers, especially among the Greeks, for example, Origen and Theophylact, who think that there were three distinct women named Mary mentioned in the Gospels. The first was the ' woman who was a sinner,' mentioned, but not named, by St. Luke (vii. 37). The second is also mentioned, but not named, by St. Matthew (xxvi. 7), and St. Mark (xiv. 3). The third was the sister of Martha (John xii. 3) . St. John Chrysostom, on the contrary ( Hom. 81 ), thinks that there were only two Marys-one who poured the perfume on the Head of Jesus, and that on two different occasions ; the other the sister of Martha. St. Jerome again ( in Matt. xxvi. ) would identify her who poured the perfume on the Head of Jesus with the sister of Martha ; and regards her who poured perfume on His feet, in the house of a Pharisee, as a different person ; St. Ambrose, in his Commentary on St. Luke, seems of the same opinion. St. Gregory the Great admits only one Mary, and many writers are of his opinion. St. Ambrose (loc. cit. ) , though he is not unwilling to believe that these were different persons, writes sometimes as if they appeared to him to be the same, 'who was changed through change of time and of character, ' so that she who began by being the ' sinner ' of the Gospel, in the end became holy. ' For although, he says, ' the Church does not change the person, as for the soul, it changes as it makes progress towards good. However that may be, St. Bernard expresses the same doubt in his Sermon XII . in Cantica, but in Sermon III. in Assumptione, n. 2, he asserts, and that at much length, that she who is referred to in Luke vii. is the same with her of whom mention is made in Matt. xxvi. , Mark xiv. , and John xii. He speaks thus : ' See the prerogative of Mary, and what an advocate she has in every circumstance. If the Pharisee is indignant ( Luke vii. ), if her sister complains (John xii. ), if even the disciples murmur ( Matt. xxvi. , Mark xiv. ), in every case Mary keeps silence, and Christ speaks for her. ' John leaning upon His Breast ; St. Peter in the Bosom of the Father ; and St. Paul in the third heaven.

10. Who of us can worthily distinguish between these varieties of merits, or rather of rewards ? Nevertheless, that I may not seem to pass over in silence that which is within our knowledge, notice that the former of the women mentioned sought her safety under the shelter of humility ; the latter in the seat of hope ; St. Thomas in firmness of faith ; St. John in breadth of charity ; St. Paul in the depth of wisdom ; St. Peter in the light of truth. If, then, in the [home of the] Bridegroom there are many mansions, each, whether Queen, or friend, and even she who is only of the number of the maidens, finds place and lodgment there proportioned to her merits, and is permitted to remain there until she passes beyond it by inspiring contemplation, enters into the joy of her Lord, and of the sweet secrets of the Bridegroom explores the utmost depths. This I will endeavour to make more clear in its place, as far as the Lord shall vouchsafe to enable me. But now it is sufficient to know that to none, whether of the maidens, or of the friends, or even of the Queens, is access opened to that secret of the inner chamber of the Bride groom, which He reserves for Her who is His dove, His undefiled, His only and perfect one. On that account I am not troubled or surprised if access to it is not given unto me, especially because it is to my mind quite clear that not even the Bride attains to the knowledge of all the secret things into which she desires to be admitted. For does she not earnestly ask the Bridegroom where He feeds His flock, and where He rests at noon ( Cant. i. 6) ?

11. But let me tell you to what point I have arrived, or rather that I think I have reached ; for you will not impute vanity to that which I say in the hope of serving you. There is, then, in the dwelling of the Bridegroom a chosen spot in which the Sovereign Ruler of the universe decrees His laws and shapes His designs, setting laws in weight, and measure, and number, to all things created. That place is lofty and secret, but it is by no means noiseless. For though He, as far as regards Himself, disposes all things with sweetness, yet He disposes them, and does not permit that one who has reached that point by contemplation should remain in quiescence ; but He wearies, and by a course, marvellous and yet delightful, renders full of unrest and lassitude the soul that searches out and admires these deep things. The Bride expresses beautifully, in a later part of this Canticle, each of these feelings, that is, the delight and, at the same time, the inquietude of this contemplation, as where she says : I sleep, but my heart waketh (v. 2). For in speaking of sleep she signifies that she tastes the repose of a trance most sweet, and the stillness of complete admiration ; but when of waking, that she endures the weariness of a restless curiosity and laborious research . Thus the holy Job says : When Ilie down I say, When shall I arise and the night be gone ? (Job vii. 4). Do you not understand by these words that a holy soul desires to escape from a repose which, in a certain sense, troubles it, and to seek again the same employment, troublous, and yet sweet ? For he would not have said, When shall Iarise ? if that repose of contemplation had been entirely pleasing to him ; nor, on the other hand, if it had been wholly displeasing, would he have awaited with impatience the hour of repose, that is to say, the evening. That, therefore, where entire rest is not attained, is not the bedchamber of the Bridegroom .

12. There is still another place, in which the vengeance, most severe and most secret, of God the Judge, just and terrible in His dealings with the children of men, watches ceaselessly over His creatures, gifted with reason, but doomed on account of sin. The awestricken beholder, I repeat, here regards God, who by a just and secret judgment neither washes away the evil actions of those who are reprobate, nor accepts their good actions ; and, moreover, He hardens their hearts, lest they should perchance repent and return, and be converted, and He should heal them. Nor is this without a sure and eternal reason, which is manifestly so much the more awful, as it is , in fact, immovable and eternal. That is a very fearful saying upon this subject which we read in the Prophet, where God, speaking to His Angels, says : Let us have pity on the wicked (Is. xxvi. 10). And when they are stricken with terror, and inquire : Will he, then, not learn to do righteousness ? No, He replies ; and he adds the reason : In the land of righteousness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majesty of the Lord. Let ecclesiastics, let the ministers of the Church, be seized with fear who commit so many wrongs in the lands of the Saints of which they have possession, and who, far from being content with the stipends which ought to suffice for them, keep for themselves, with wicked and sacrilegious greed, the overplus, which ought to go to nourish the poor ; who are not ashamed to consume for their own pride and luxury the sustenance of the needy, and thus are guilty of a double crime ; inasmuch as they seize upon what is not their own, and abuse holy things to the service of their vanities and lusts.

13. Who, then, in seeing that He, whose judgments are like the great deep, spares and pities such persons in this life, in order not to spare them in eternity, will seek rest in this place ? This vision is filled with the tremor ofjudgment, not with the peace and security of the bedchamber of the King. Terrible is that place, and wholly devoid of calm and rest. When brought into it, I shudder to the very heart, and revolve in my mind with fear that saying : Who knoweth whether he be worthy of love or of hatred ? (Eccles. ix. 1) . Nor is it wonderful if I (who am but as a leaf driven to and fro, or as the dry stubble, Job xiii. 25) should totter in that place, where that great man who contemplated with such marvellous insight [the doings of the Creator] declares that his feet were almost gone, and his treadings had well nigh slipped, saying : I was envious of the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Where 1 Job vii . 4, Vulg. and Douay. 2 Tremorem, otherwise terrorem. fore ? Because they are not in trouble as other men, neither are they plagued like other men ; therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain (Ps. lxxiii. 3-6), that they should not be humbled and made penitent, but be condemned, because of their pride, with the devil, who is proud, and with his angels. For those who have no part in the trouble of men shall assuredly have part in that of demons, and shall hear that terrible sentence from the Mouth of the Judge : Departfrom Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, preparedfor the devil and his angels ( Matt. xxv. 41). And yet this, too, is a habitation of God; it is plainly no other than the house of God and the gate of Heaven. It is here that God is feared ; here is His Name [beheld as] holy and terrible ; it is, as it were, the entering in of His glory ; for the fear of the Lord is the beginning ofwisdom (Ps. cxi . 10).

14. Let it not astonish you that I have set down the beginning of wisdom as belonging to this, and not to the earlier place. For as in the earlier we listen to Wisdom teaching of all things as a professor in his lecture-hall, so in this we receive these teachings in ourselves ; there we are indeed instructed, but here we are touched and influenced. Instruction renders men learned, but feeling makes them wise. The sun does not render all things warm upon which its light falls, so Wisdom also instructs many persons what they ought to do, without going on to give the earnestness and ardour needful to do it . It is one thing to know of the existence of great treasures, another to possess them ; and it is the possession, not the knowledge, which renders a man rich. Similarly, there is a difference between the knowledge of God and the fear of God, and it is not the knowledge, but the fear of Him, which renders a man truly wise, provided it be a fear which makes [ a durable] impression on the soul. Would you call a person wise whom his own acquirements render vain ? It is only the most foolish of persons who would call those wise who, when they had known God, glorified Him not as God, nor rendered thanks to Him. For my part. I am rather of the Apostle's opinion, when he says that their heart was manifestly foolish (Rom. i. 21, 22). And truly the fear of the Lord is the beginning ofwisdom, because the soul begins to have discernment of, and inclination for, God when He has stricken it with fear, not when He has communicated to it knowledge. If you fear the righteousness of God, if you fear His power, then, inasmuch as He is righteous and powerful, you incline to Him with preference and choice ; for fear is a kind of preference. It (preference) renders one wise (sapor sapientem facit), as knowledge makes one knowing. and riches render one rich . To what purpose, then, is the former place ? It serves only to prepare us for wisdom. There you are prepared for it, that here you may enter upon its possession. The preparation for it is the attainment of a certain degree of knowledge. But this is followed only too easily by the elation of vanity, unless this be repressed by fear ; and therefore it is rightly said, The fear of the Lord is the beginning ofwisdom, since this 1 Affectio= sentiment. fear first opposes itself to that which the Apostle declares is foolishness. The former, then, gives a certain approach, as it were, to wisdom, but the latter an entrance into it. Nevertheless, the beholder finds perfect rest neither in the one nor in the other, because in the one God appears, as it were, full of care, in the other full of trouble. Seek not, then, the bedchamber of the Bridegroom in these spots, whereof the one resembles rather the audience chamber of a professor, the other the tribunal of a judge.

15. But there is a place where God is beheld as truly tranquil and in repose ; it is, in fact, the place, not of a judge, not of a teacher, but of a Bridegroom. I do not know how it may be with regard to others, but as far as concerns myself, that is for me a chamber into which entrance has sometimes been granted unto me ; but, alas ! how rarely that has happened, and for how short a time it has lasted ! It is there that is clearly recognised the mercy of the Lord from everlasting and to everlasting upon them that fear Him. Happy is he who can say : I am a companion of all them that fear Thee, and of them that keep Thy precepts (Ps. cxix. 63). The decree of the Lord standeth fast ; His purpose of peace endureth upon them who fear Him, forgiving the evil actions and rewarding the good which they have done, and, by a marvellous method of His mercy, making, not only those things which are good, but also those which are evil, work together for their good. O truly blessed, and, indeed, the only blessed one is he, unto whom the Lord will not impute iniquity ! ( Ps . xxxii. 2). For there is none without sin, no not one ; for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Rom. iii. 23). But who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect ? ( Rom. viii . 33) . It is sufficient for all righteousness to me to have Him upon my side, against whom alone I have offended. Everything which He has decreed not to impute unto me is as though it had not been. Not to sin is the righteousness of God, but the forgiveness of God is the righteousness of man. I have seen these things, and can bear witness to the truth of that saying : Whosoever is born of Goddoth not commit sin, for His seed abideth in him ( 1 John iii. 9). Now, the heavenly seed is the eternal predestination, wherewith God hath loved His elect, and bestowed graces upon them in His Beloved Son, before the foundation of the world ; beholding them in Him with favour, that they might be rendered worthy to see His power and His glory, and be made sharers in the inheritance of Him, to whose image and likeness they were to be conformed. These, then, I have looked upon as having never sinned, because, even though they are seen to have sinned in time, their offences do not appear in eternity, because the charity of their Father covers the multitude of sins. He calls them blessed, then, whose iniquities areforgiven, and whose sins are covered 1 It is in the same sense that in the treatise upon ' Grace and Freewill, n. 29, the sins of the predestinate are said ' to be hidden in the charity, ' that is to say, of God. Compare Sermon IV. , De Diversis, n. 5, and Sermon I. for Septuagesima, with notes. (Ps. xxxii. 1) . Then I have felt on a sudden so great a joy and confidence arising in me, that it surpassed the fear which had gone before it in the place of horror-I mean in that of the second vision -and it seemed to me as if I were one of those blessed ones. 0 that it had lasted longer ! Again and again do Thou visit me, O Lord, with Thy salvation, that Imay see the good of Thy chosen, that Imay rejoice in the gladness of Thy nation (Ps. cvi. 4, 5) .

16. O place of true repose, and which I may not unfitly call by the name of chamber ! O place in which God is beheld, not, as it were, aroused and in wrath, nor as distracted with care [of all His great creation], but in which is experienced the influence of His good, and favourable, and perfect will ! That vision does not terrify, but soothes ; it does not arouse an unjust curiosity, but allays it ; and tranquillizes the spirit in place of wearying it. Here true rest is felt. The God of peace renders all things peaceful, and the soul, looking up with fixed gaze at His ineffable stillness, is itself awed into quiescence. It is as if one beheld some king or great judge, who, after the hearing of causes in his court all the day long, dismisses his crowds of attendants, puts an end to the labours of his office, returns with night to his peaceful palace, enters into his chamber with those few companions whom he condescends to honour with his intimacy in private, and there enjoys his repose with the more confidence because it is in such complete retirement, and because, as he looks peacefully around, he sees only the faces of those who are dear to him. If it should ever be the happy lot of any ofyou to be caught up and withdrawn for awhile into that hidden and mysterious sanctuary of God, and not to be called away from it either by the needs of the body, by the sting of some care, or, it may be, by the haunting pang of some sin, or, at least, by the inrushing flood of ideas and images belonging to this world, which are very difficult indeed to banish, such an one will be able in truth, when he returns to us again, to lift up his head and say : The King hath brought me into His chamber. And yet I would not rashly affirm that this would have been that very chamber into which the Bride rejoices to have entered. It is indeed a chamber, and the chamber of the King ; but of the three that we have pointed out as included in the threefold vision, there is that one alone in repose and peace. For, as we have already shown, in the first chamber there is but a brief and fleeting repose, and in the second none whatever ; because in the first God is beheld as wonderful and admirable, and the curiosity is violently excited to search out the numerous instances of His glory ; while in the second He is beheld as terrible, and human weakness is thrown into terror at the sight of Him. But in the third He is beheld not as terrible, and He even deigns to appear not so much admirable, as lovable, serene and peaceful, sweet and gentle, and full of mercy towards them who look unto Him.

17. Now that you may retain in memory a brief summary of what I have said to you about the cellar, the garden, and the chamber of the Bridegroom, at unusual length in this sermon, remember that there are three times, three merits, and three kinds of reward. In the garden, take note of the times ; in the cellar, of the merits ; and in the bedchamber, of the rewards, in that threefold contemplation of the soul that is seeking and searching for the chamber of the King. As for the cellar, we have spoken of it sufficiently. But with regard to the garden and the chamber, if there should appear to be something to be added or further explained, I will not pass over an opportunity of doing so. If not, let what has been said suffice, without repetition, so that I may not weary you (which God forbid ! ) by my words, which are spoken to the praise and glory of the Bridegroom of the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

NOW at length for the third time, dear brethren, the eye of Providence has looked favourably from heaven upon my return to you from Rome, and a more peaceful aspect of affairs has smiled upon us at length. The furious anger of the faction of Peter Leonis has cooled, their schism has come to an end, the Church has regained peace. That wicked one who for eight years almost has troubled it by a terrible schism, has been brought to nothing in the sight of all. Shall it be in vain that I have been restored to you after perils so great ? Since I have been granted to your desires, let it be for your spiritual advancement also ; the life which I owe to your merits, I desire to devote to cares for you and your salvation. Since then you wish that I should continue, what I began long since, my comment on the Song of Songs, I willingly do so, and I think it better to resume the discourse which was interrupted, than to commence something new. But I fear lest, my mind being at all times unequal to that duty, and having been for so long a time unused to the discharge of it, and distracted by matters very different, my thoughts should be too weak and unworthy for a subject so sublime. But that which I have, I give unto you ; and it may be that God, having regard to my faithful endeavour to serve Him, may enable me to give even that which I have not. If it be 1 Delivered in the year 1138, on his return from Italy, after the schism of Peter Leonis was at length brought to an end. otherwise, then let not my will, but my want of ability be blamed for it.

2. Now, the place where we ought to commence, I think, is at this passage : The upright love thee (i. 4). But before we begin to explain it, let us see who it is speaks thus. For we ought to supply what the author does not say. Perhaps, then, we may attribute these words to the young maidens, whose are the sentences which precede them. For after they had said to her, ' We will rejoice and be glad in thee, remembering thy bosom, which is better than wine' (and there is no doubt that there they speak to their mother) ; they continue with the words which follow : The upright love thee. I believe that they added this on account of some of their number who had not the same sentiments, although they seemed to run equally well ; who sought their own advantage, not walking sincerely and in simplicity, but taking occasion to murmur against her, because she entered alone into the storehouses of the Bridegroom. Which is no other than that the Apostle makes mention of : Perils fromfalse brethren ( 2 Cor. xi. 26). These are they, against whose taunts the Bride herself, later on, is obliged to defend herself, replying to them : Iam black, but comely, Oye daughters ofJerusalem (i. 5). It is then to console her because of those who murmur and blaspheme, that it is said by those others who are souls good, simple, humble, and gentle : The upright love thee. ' Have no care,' they say, ' for the unjust blame ofthose blasphemers, when it is quite clear that The upright love thee.' It is a goodly consolation, in truth, when we do good and are spoken ill of by the evil, if the righteous love us. The esteem of the good, with the approving testimony of conscience, is sufficient for us against the tongues that speak evil. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord : the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad ; yes, shall be glad ( Ps xxxiv. 2). Let me be pleasing to those who are gentle, and I shall endure with equanimity whatsoever the envy of the abandoned (perditarum) shall be desirous to utter against me.

3. It is, then, in this sense, that I understand what is here said : The upright love Thee. Not unfitly, as I think, since everywhere, 1 From the commencement of the sermon on to this point there is a great diversity of reading in the MSS. In some of them the entire exordium is omitted, and the sermon begins thus : ' The upright love Thee. Whom are we to suppose are they who speak these words ? If the young maidens, then without doubt they say this to their mother, in like manner as they had said to her " We will rejoice and be glad in thee, remembering thy bosom, which is better than wine " ; and continue " the upright love thee, " etc. Other MSS. have our reading. From this variety arises great confusion in most editions, in which both introductions are reproduced, but wrongly. The explanation of this confusion is that St. Bernard preached the same sermon twice-the first time with the shorter introduction, in the year 1137, before he went to Rome for the third time ; the second time in 1138, when he returned thence, and then he prefixed the longer introduction, in order to take up the interrupted work where he had left it in the previous sermon. One MS. in the Royal Library, No. 4,511 , reproduces the sermon with the twointroductions ; and one Colbertine has it once here with the one introduction, and again after Sermon LX. with the other. even in the choir of maidens, such are found who watch closely the actions of the Bride, not to imitate them, but to detract from their merit. By the good deeds of their elders they are tormented, but upon the evil they gloat and feed. You see them walking apart, drawing together, and making little knots, where they indulge themselves without restraint in insolent words and scurrilous whispers . They are joined close one to the other, so that not a breath can escape, so great is their eagerness to detract from others and to listen to detraction. They associate themselves together in order to speak ill of their neighbour, and are united to cause disunion. They form among themselves friendships full of unfriendliness, combine under a common impulse of malignity, and make odious cabals. It was thus that Herod and Pilate formerly acted, of whom the Gospel relates that in that day were they madefriends together (Luke xxiii. 12), that is, on the day of the Passion of Our Lord. When they assemble together in such a spirit, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper, but rather to give to others, and to drink themselves, of the cup of demons ; while some bear on their tongues the poison that slays the souls of others, and others willingly receive the mortal venom which enters their heart through their ears. That is how, according to the Prophet, death enters in through our windows (Jer. ix. 21), when with [slavering] mouths and itching ears we give to, and receive from, each other in turn the mortal cup of scandal and detraction. Let not my soul come into their meeting, for they are hated by God, as the Apostle bears witness : Detractors [are] hateful to God (Rom. i. 30, Vulg. and Douay). Listen in what terms God Himself, speaking in a Psalm, confirms that statement : Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will Idestroy (Ps. ci . 5).

4. Nor is that wonderful to us when we perceive that this vice conflicts with, and persecutes, more even than others, charity, which is [the nature of God Himself, as you yourselves can easily discern . For everyone who slanders his neighbour gives proof, in the first place, that he is wholly void of charity. In the second place, what other object can he have in uttering the slander than to induce others to hate or despise those of whom the slander is spoken ? The slanderous tongue strikes, therefore, a deadly blow at charity in all those who hear the calumny, and, as far as its power extends, entirely destroys and extinguishes it ; and not only in them, but in all those who are absent, but to whom the calumny is, perhaps, repeated, as words fly from lip to lip by those who have heard it. You see, then, how a malicious report may in a brief space of time easily infect with the plague of its malice a great number of souls. Wherefore the prophetic spirit says of such : Their mouth is full ofcursing and bitterness ; their feet are swift to shed blood (Ps. xiii. 3, Vulg. and Douay). And speech speeds as rapidly as the feet of a swift runner. If there be one only who speaks, and he speaks but one sole word, yet that one word enters into the ears of a multitude of hearers, and in one moment slays their souls ; for a heart full of the venom of envy ΙΟ can scatter bitter words only through its bitter instrument of the tongue, according to the saying of the Lord : Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh (Luke vi. 45). There are different varieties of this pest. There are some persons who vomit forth the poison of detraction, nakedly and without discrimination, as it comes into their heads. And again, there are others who take pains to conceal the malice they have conceived, and which they are no longer able to keep to themselves, with the cloak of an affected reserve. Before the slander is uttered, you see the man heaving deep sighs, putting on a grave look and a pretended sadness, casting his eyes down to the ground, speaking slowly, and uttering his slanders with a plaintive voice. Thus they produce so much the greater effect, as those who hear them believe that they are spoken with regret, and rather with reluctance than with malice. ' I regret it very much, ' he protests, ' on his account, because I have great love for him ; but I have never been able to correct him in this respect. ' ' I knew well, ' says another, ' that he was subject to that vice, though I should never have made it known. But since the fact has been declared by someone else, I am no longer able to deny the truth. I do it with regret, but it is true, nevertheless. ' And he adds : ' It is a great pity, for he has good qualities in other respects ; but in that matter he is, to speak the truth, inexcusable. '

5. Having said these few words respecting a vice so full of malignity, let me return to my orderly exposition, and show who are they who are spoken of here as the upright. I suppose that there is no one of right intelligence who imagines that it is ' uprightness ' in a bodily sense that is predicated of those who love the Bride, therefore it is to be explained of spiritual uprightness, that is, rectitude of heart and ofmind. It is the Spirit who speaks, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. Therefore God ' made man upright ' according to the mind, not according to the earthy and material body. For He created him in His own image and similitude (Gen. i. 27), and as you sing in the Psalms, The Lord our God is upright, and there is no unrighteousness in Him (Ps. xcii. 15). God, then, who is upright, made man upright and similar to Himself, that is to say, without unrighteousness, even as there is no unrighteousness in Him. Now, unrighteousness is a vice of the heart, not of the flesh, and from this you know that the likeness of God which you have is to be preserved, or to be restored, in the spiritual part of your nature, and not in its earthy and clayey part. For God is Spirit, and it behoves those who desire to become like Him, or to persevere in His likeness, to enter into their heart, and to employ themselves in the spirit in that blessed work ; so that with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, they may be changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor. iii. 18).

6. Perhaps it may be said, again, that God has bestowed upon man an upright stature in body also, so that this exterior and bodily uprightness, though of a lower kind, may admonish the inner man to preserve his spiritual uprightness, and the beauty of the perishable clay may rebuke the deformity of the mind ; for what can be more indecent than to bear a bent and deformed mind in an upright body? It is a thing unfitting and shameful that a frame of clay, which is what our earthly body really is, should have its eyes raised on high, directed freely towards heaven, and taking pleasure to contemplate the great lights of the heavens ; but that the being of spiritual and heavenly nature should, on the contrary, have its eyes, that is, its inward senses and affections, drawn downwards towards the earth, and that which ought to be nourished upon golden and precious sustenance should be clinging to the soil, wallowing in filth, like an unclean swine. Blush with shame, O my soul, to have changed the Divine likeness for that of the brute ; and being of the heavens, to be wallowing in the mire. Blush with shame, O my soul, says our body, when you consider yourself and me. You were created upright and similar to your Creator, and you received me for a helper like unto yourself, at least, as far as the lineaments of bodily uprightness were concerned. Whithersoever you turn, whether it be to God above or to me below (for no man ever hated his own flesh ) , on every side meet you the various kinds of your own excellence ; everywhere you have the familiar teachings of wisdom, bidding you preserve the nobleness and dignity of the state in which you have been placed. Why, then, are you not stricken with shame for having lost your glorious prerogative, while I have preserved and retained mine, which I only received in order to be a companion and helper to you ? Why shall the Creator have to behold His likeness obliterated in you, while He preserves yours in me, and it is always a representation of you ? But now you have turned that companionship and assistance, which was due to you from me, into a cause of confusion and shame ; you abuse the service which I render you ; and, as if you had become a brute and bestial spirit, treat unworthily the noble human body which you inhabit.

7. Souls which are thus bent and deformed are not capable of loving the Bride, because those who are lovers of the world are not of the Bridegroom. Whosoever will be a friend ofthe world is, it is said, the enemy of God ( James iv. 4). Therefore, to seek and to have a love for things which are on the earth is to bend down and deform the soul ; while, on the contrary, to think of, and to long for, the things which are above is its uprightness. And in order that this rectitude may be perfect, it must exist first in the mind, and then pass into the life (in sensu et consensu). I should, in fact, call you upright if you 1 In this passage, again, and for a similar reason to that given above, the discrepancy in the old MSS. has thrown the early editions into confusion. In those in which the lengthy introduction here given is wanting, we find the following reading : ' Andthis uprightness, that it may be perfect in all respects, must be first in the mind, then in the life. I should say that he is upright in heart who has right sentiments in all things, and whose actions differ in no respect from the right sentiments which he has felt. See of whom it is said to the Bride, " The upright love thee " : that is to say, those who know in all things what is right, and practise it accord think aright in all things, and your actions accord with your thoughts . Let your faith and your actions declare the condition of your mind, which is invisible. Consider as upright him whom you have ascertained to be Catholic in faith and righteous in actions. If one of these two be wanting, do not hesitate to conclude that he is deficient in uprightness ; for you have in the Scripture : Ifthou offerest rightly, but dost not rightly divide, thou hast sinned ( Gen. iv. 7). Whichsoever, indeed, of these two, faith and works, you offer to God, you do rightly ; but you do not rightly to divide either from the other. Since you are right in offering, be not wrong in dividing. Why do you divide works from faith ? Wrongly are you dividing, and the division destroys your faith ; for faith without works is dead (James ii. 20). Will you offer to God a service that is dead ? For if devotion is as a kind of soul to faith, what is faith which does not work by love but a dead corpse ? Do you think to honour God with a gift that is fœtid ? Do you think to please Him by being the murderer of your faith ? How can the offering be a cause of peace in which there is a discord so cruel ? It is not astonishing that Cain should have used murderous violence against his brother, when he had first slain faith in himself. Why do you wonder, O Cain, if He who despises you has no respect unto your offerings ? (Gen. iv. 5 ) . Nor is it matter for surprise that He has no respect unto you who are so divided against yourself. If you give your hand to the duties of religion, why do you give your heart as a sacrifice to jealousy ? While you are at discord with yourself, you cannot be at peace with God; and so far from winning His favour, you offend against Him anew ; not, indeed, as yet by offering violence to your brother, but by wrongly dividing your own offering . Though not yet guilty of the death of your brother, you are of the death of your faith (fratricida, fideicida). Can you possibly suppose yourself to be upright, when, even while you stretch your hand to God, jealousy and hatred of your brother are bending your heart down to the earth ? while your faith is dead, while your works are but death, while your heart is without devotion, but filled with bitterness ? Faith there was indeed in his offering, but no love in his faith ; a right oblation, but a cruel division of it.

8. Separation from charity is the death of faith. Do you believe in Christ ? do, then, His works, that your faith may continue living. Let love animate your faith, and action prove its reality. Let not him be bowed to the earth by the works of earth, whom faith lifts up towards heavenly things. You who declare that you are abiding in Christ ought even so to walk as He walked. But if you seek your own glory, if you envy the prosperous, if you slander the absent, if ingly.' Then the sermon is concluded in these words : ' May God grant that we may be of those, and numbered with those who are loved by the Bridegroom, by the grace of the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, liveth and reigneth, God for ever and ever. Amen. ' But other MSS. prefer our reading. you render back evil for evil, you act quite otherwise than Christ acted. You confess that you know God, but in words you deny Him. You have acted not uprightly, but impiously, in thus giving your tongue to Christ, but your heart to the devil. Listen to the Saviour's words : This man honoureth me with his lips, but his heart is far from Me (Is. xxix. 13, and Matt. xv. 7). Assuredly you are not upright, who are so far from right in dividing your offering. You cannot lift up your head, for it is pressed down under the yoke of the devil. Iniquity rules over you, so that you cannot raise yourself, and stand upright. Your iniquities have gone over your head, as an heavy burden they are too heavy for thee (Ps. xxxviii. 4). As says the Prophet, Wickedness sits upon a talent of lead (Zech. v. 7) . You see, then, that faith, which worketh not by love, even though it be right, does not make a man upright. But he who is without love is not able to love the Bride. Again, neither do works, however upright they be, suffice, without faith, to render the heart upright. For who can call a man upright, who is not pleasing to God ? But without faith it is impossible to please God ( Heb. xi. 6). And he who does not please God is not able to find pleasure in God. But on the contrary, he who does please God cannot fail to find pleasure in Him. Furthermore, he who finds no pleasure in God can find no pleasure either in [the Church, which is] His Bride. How, then, can a man be upright who loves neither God, nor the Church of God, of which it is said, The upright love thee ? If, then, neither faith without works, nor works without faith, are sufficient for uprightness of soul, let us, brethren, who believe in Christ, study to make the works of our hands and the desires of our hearts alike upright. Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to God, that we may be found upright wholly ; approving by right actions the rectitude of our faith, that we may be lovers of the Bride, and beloved by the Bridegroom, our Lord Jesus Christ, who is God blessed for ever. AMEN.

I HAD already said in a former sermon that the Bride is obliged to reply to the attacks and reproaches of those who are envious of her glory, and who, while in the body they appear to be of the number of her maidens, are yet far removed from her in spirit. To them it is that she says : I am black, but comely, O ye daughters ofJerusalem (i. 5). It is evident that they speak disparagingly of her, accusing her of being black. But consider her patience and gentleFor not only has she not rendered railing for railing, but contrariwise has returned to them a blessing, calling them daughters ness. of Jerusalem, who had deserved for their wickedness to be called daughters of Babylon, or daughters of Baal, or whatever other name of reproach had come to her mind. Surely she had learned of the prophet, or rather from that anointing which teaches gentleness, not to break the bruised reed, nor to quench the smoking flax ( Is. xlii. 3 ). Therefore she considered that those who were already angry should not be still farther irritated by her, nor anything added to the stings of envy, by which they were tormented. On the contrary, she strove the more to be pacific with those who were enemies unto peace, knowing that she was debtor, even unto the unwise. She preferred, then, to soothe them by a courteous word, because it was her care rather to labour for the salvation of those weak ones, than for the gratification of her own vengeance.

2. That perfection is indeed to be desired for all ; but especially does it befit those who would be good rulers in spiritual things. For those who are good and faithful pastors know that they are set over others in order to care for weak and languishing souls, not to live in pride and state. And when some of those committed to their charge utter murmurs, and perhaps even burst out into threats and violent words against them, they remember that they are not masters, but physicians of the soul ; and oppose at once to that spiritual madness, remedial and healing treatment, not harshness and punishment. This, then, is the reason why the Bride calls those ' daughters of Jerusalem ' whose ill-will and insulting words she is enduring, so as to soothe their murmurs by words full of sweetness, to compose their excitement, to heal their envy. It is written : A peaceful tongue appeaseth strife ( Prov. xv. 18). Also these were, in fact, daughters of Jerusalem in a certain sense, nor does the Bride speak falsely in so naming them. For whether it be on account of the Sacraments of the Church, which they receive indifferently with the good ; or on account of their profession of a common Creed and Faith ; or the companionship which they have at least according to the body with the faithful ; or even because of the hope of their future salvation, which ought not to be altogether abandoned, even with regard to those who live in so abandoned a manner, as long as life is continued to them they are called, with good reason, daughters of Jerusalem.

3. Let us examine now that which is said : I am black, but comely. Is not this a contradiction in terms ? By no means. I speak for the unlearned, who are unable to distinguish between colour and form-form is inherent in the composition of the thing spoken of ; colour is but a quality of it. Not everything, then, which is black, is necessarily on that account ill-favoured. For instance, blackness in the pupil of the eye is not unbecoming ; there are black gems which are highly prized in ornaments ; while black hair contrasted with a pale complexion augments the beauty and charm of a face. You will easily notice the same thing in a great number of instances, and will find many things which are not otherwise than graceful in form, but of which the colour is not agreeable. That is perhaps the case with the Bride, who is beautiful in form and features, though of dark, even black, complexion ; but, then, she is in the place of her pilgrimage. It shall be quite otherwise when the exalted Bridegroom shall present her to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing (Eph. v. 27). But if she should say at the present time that she has no blackness of hue, she would deceive herself, nor would there be truth in her. Therefore do not wonder that when she has said I am black, she adds with words of modest confidence, but comely. How is it possible that she should not be beautiful, to whom it is said : Rise up, my fair one, and come away (ii. 10). But she to whom it was said ' Come ' had not yet arrived ; lest perhaps any should suppose that this was spoken, not to her while still toiling on her way, her countenance darkened with the fierce rays of the sun; but to her already in blessedness, reigning in glory, having left behind every trace of blackness or stain.

4. In the next place, why does she say that, though black, she is at the same time beautiful ? She is black, perhaps on account of the life that she led formerly in the shadow, under the control of the prince of this world, in which she still bore the image of the earthly ; while she is beautiful with the image of the heavenly, with which, when afterwards she walked in newness of life, she was thenceforth invested. But if this is the case, why should she not say, as speaking of the past, ' I was black, ' rather than, ' I am black ?' But if anyone is pleased with this sense of the words, then those which follow, as the tents ofKedar, as the curtains of Solomon, ought to be understood as referring, ' Kedar,' to the former life, and ' the curtains of Solomon ' to the new. It is of the skins, or tents, of Kedar that the prophet speaks, when he declares : Suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment ( Jer. iv. 20). The former word, black, describes the mean and ignoble tents of Kedar ; the latter, comely, the curtains of the King of glory.

5. But let us see if both the one and the other do not refer better to the condition of the higher life. If we consider the exterior of those who are holy, how humble and abject it is, how vile and neglected in outward appearance ; and yet, at the very same time they are inwardly contemplating with unveiled face the glory of the Lord, they are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor. iii. 18), does it not seem to you that each of these souls will be able to reply to those who reproach him with his blackness : I am black, butcomely ? Would you that I should show you a soul which was at the same time black and yet beautiful? His letters, say they, are weighty and powerful ; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible ( 2 Cor. x. 10). This was Paul. So you, O daughters of Jerusalem, form your judgment of Paul from his bodily presence, and you despise him as being black and repulsive because you perceive him to be a man of small stature, afflicted by hungerand thirst, by cold and nakedness, by manyperils, by stripes above measure, by deaths oft (2 Cor. xi. 27, 23) ? These are the things which [in your estimation] blacken Paul. For reasons like this the Doctor of the Gentiles is reputed inglorious and ignoble, obscure, black, and in one word, as it were, the offscouring of this world. Nevertheless, is it not he who was caught up into Paradise, who, in his pureness of soul , passed through the first and the second heaven, and penetrated even to the third ? O soul truly most beautiful ! which, though inhabiting a body so weak and ailing, the heavenly glory did not scorn to admit, the highest angels did not reject, even the Divine splendour did not repulse. This soul do you style ' black ' ? Black it is, but beautiful, O daughters of Jerusalem. Black according to your judgment, but beautiful in the judgment of God and of His angels. Even though it be black, it is only outwardly. But to him it is a very small thing that he should be judged by you, or by those who judge according to the outward appearance. For man indeed looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart ( I Sam. xvi. 7) . If it be black without, it is, therefore, beautiful within, and pleasing to Him whom it has desired to please. It does not devote itself to be pleasing to you, knowing that if it did so it would not be the servant of Christ. Happy is the blackness which produces whiteness of soul, the light of knowledge, purity of conscience.

6. Hear now what God promises by His prophet to those who are black after this fashion, whom either the humility of penitence or the zeal of charity, as it were the burning rays of the sun, seem to have robbed of outward fairness. Though your sins be as scarlet, saith the Lord, they shall be as white as snow : though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool ( Is. i. 18). That outward blackness and disfigurement which appears in holy men is not to be contemned, for it produces inward whiteness, and prepares the soul to make wisdom its seat . For wisdom is the brightness of eternal life as the Wise man defines it ; and it is needful that the soul which it has chosen for its seat should be clear and white. But if the soul of the righteous is the seat of wisdom, then I may assert without hesitation that the soul of the righteous is clear and white ; perhaps even righteousness consists in this whiteness of soul. For Paul, for whom was laid up the crown of righteousness ( 2 Tim. iv. 8), was undoubtedly righteous. His soul, then, was white and clear ; in it wisdom dwelt, so that he spoke wisdom in a mystery among them that are perfect -the hidden wisdom, which none of the princes of this world knew ( 1 Cor. ii. 7 , 8 ). Moreover, it was that outward blackness and ruggedness, caused by a weak constitution of body, by many troubles and trials, by frequent watchings and fastings, which either produced in him, or rendered him deserving of, that brightness of wisdom and of righteousness. Therefore, that which was black in St. Paul was, in fact, a richer ornament to him than any degree of outward splendour, and than even royal magnificence. Not to be compared with him in essential comeliness are the greatest physical beauty, not the fair and polished skin, not the rose-tinted complexion, which must ere long be the prey of corruption, not the splendid dress, which grows old and tattered with time, nor the sparkle of gems, nor any things of that kind, which are, one and all, subject to corruption.

7. It is, then, with good reason that the saints, despising all unnecessary care and adorning of the outward man, which is corruptible, devote all their care and pains to cultivate and render fair that inward man which is in the likeness of God, and is being renewed from day to day. For they are well assured that nothing can be more acceptable to God than His own image if it be restored to its original beauty. It is for that reason that all their glory is inward, not outward : that is to say, it consists not in the flower of the field, or in the praises of the people, but in the Lord. Therefore they say, Our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience ( 2 Cor. i. 12) ; and of their conscience the sole judge is God, whom alone they desire to please ; and to please Him is, in their eyes, the true, and only, and highest glory. Nor, certainly, is this inward glory small, since the Lord of glory deigns thus to be glorified, as it is said in the Psalm, The King's daughter is all glorious within ( Ps. xlv. 13) . It is also safer than any other glory, since each person has it in himself and not in another. And it may be that not the inward brightness only, but the outward blackness also, is a reason for glory, since there is nothing useless in the saints, but all things work together for their good. They glory, therefore, not only in hope, but also in tribulations. Most gladly, therefore, says the Apostle, will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me ( 2 Cor. xii. 9). That infirmity is, in truth, to be desired which is compensated for by the power of Christ. Who will grant unto me, not merely to have infirmities, but even to fall into extreme weakness and helplessness , that I may be recovered and made strong by the strength of Him who is the Lord of all power and strength ? For His strength is made perfect in weakness. For, he continues, when Iam weak, then am I strong ( 2 Cor. xii. 9, 10) .

8. This being so, the Bride has good ground for counting that as a glory to herself which by her envious rivals is blamed as a deformity, and to boast not only of her beauty, but also of her blackness. She does not blush for that blackness, which she knows that her Spouse in former days likewise bore, for it makes her like unto Him ; and what glory can be so great ? For she assuredly regards no distinction as being so high as this, to bear the reproach of Christ. And this makes her say with joy and gladness : Godforbid that I should glory, save in the Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Gal. vi. 14). The very reproach of the Cross is welcome to him who is not ungrateful to the Crucified. It is, so to speak, a blackness, but a blackness which is the form and likeness of the Lord Jesus. Go to holy Isaiah, and he will describe to you the form and spirit in which you are to view Him. For is it not He of whom the Prophet says : He is a Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and that He hath no form nor comeliness ? And he has added : We did esteem Him as one who is a leper, as smitten of God and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruisedfor our iniquities ; andwith His stripes we are healed (Is. liii. 3-5, Vulg. ). See what has rendered Him black . Add to this what David has said : Thou art fairer than the children of men (Ps. xlv. 2), and you will find in the Bridegroom all that the Bride has declared of Him in this passage.

9. Does it not seem to you that, according to what has been said, He was able to reply rightly to the envious Jews : ' I am black, but comely, O ye sons of Jerusalem ?' He was truly black, who had no form nor comeliness ; black, because He was a worm and no man, a reproach of men, and despised of the people (Ps. xxii. 6). Lastly, He even caused Himself to be made sin [for us] ( 2 Cor. v. 21 ), and shall I fear to say that He is black ? Behold Him ! covered with rags, livid with stripes, defiled with spitting, pale with the pallor of death ; can you even then hesitate to confess that He is black ? But ask of the Apostles how they saw Him on the mount [of Transfiguration] ; learn of the angels [all the perfection of Him] upon whom they yearn to look, and you will declare in wonder and admiration that He is indeed beautiful. He is, then, beautiful in Himself ; His blackness is on thy account. O Lord Jesus, how perfect and adorable, even though Thou art clad in my human form, is Thy beauty to me ! Not only because of the wonders of Divine power with which Thou dost shine on every side, but because of Thy righteousness, Thy kindness, and Thy truth. Blessed is he who, considering diligently Thy life and actions as a Man dwelling among men, sets himself with all his endeavours to imitate Thee to the utmost. This blessed gift, the firstfruits of her dowry, she [Thy Church] who is Thy fairest and best beloved, has already received ; nor is she either slow to imitate that which is most beautiful in Thee, or ashamed to endure those sufferings of which the blackness is upon Thee. Therefore, it was that she said : Iam black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem. Therefore, also, she adds the comparison, As the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon. But that is a saying difficult and obscure, and not to be even attempted by those who are wearied. You have time to knock hereafter at that door. If you do so with sincere hearts, He who is the Revealer of mysteries will appear : nor will He who invites you to knock delay to open. For it is He who openeth, and no man shutteth---the Bridegroom of the Church, Jesus Christ Our Lord, who is blessed for ever and ever. AMEN. ST. BERNARD LAMENTS THE DEATH OF HIS BROTHER GERARD 155

As the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon. We must begin from this point, since it was here that we left off in the last Sermon. I know that you are expecting to hear what these words signify, and what relation they have to those which precede them, since they are used by way of comparison ; for it may be said that they are so connected, that the two parts of the comparison refer only to the first half of the sentence which precedes it : ' I am black,' or, again, that the two parts of the comparison refer respectively to the two sentences which precede them, each to each. The former sense is the more simple, the latter the more obscure. But let us try each of them, and that which is the more difficult first ; for it is not in the two former, but in the two latter words of each clause that there is any difficulty. For ' Kedar, ' which means ' darkness, ' seems to agree sufficiently clearly with the idea of blackness, but ' curtains of Solomon ' not so well with that of fairness or beauty. Then, who does not see that ' tents ' falls, nevertheless, into the same interpretation ? What are these tents, in fact, but the bodies in which we perform our pilgrimage ? For we have here no continuing city, but we seek one to come (Heb. xiii. 14). Furthermore, we have a warfare to carry on in them, as soldiers have in tents : for we have, as men violent, to take the kingdom of heaven by force (Matt. xi. 12) . For the life of man upon earth is a warfare (Job. vii. 1 , Vulg. and Douay), and as long as we combat in this body, we are exiled from the presence of the Lord, that is, from the light ; for the Lord is Light, and insomuch as anyone is not with Him, he is in darkness, that is, in Kedar. Let him recognise as his that lamentable exclamation : Woe is me ! that I sojourn in Mesech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar ! My soul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace (Ps. cxx. 5, 6). This, then, is the abode which we have in the body ; not the home of a citizen, or the domicile of one native-born, but either the tent of a soldier, or the temporary lodging of a traveller. This body, I repeat, is a tent, the tent of Kedar, because it surrounds the soul, and deprives it now for awhile of the enjoyment of the infinite Light, nor suffers it even to behold that Light, except, as it were, in a glass and darkly, but not face to face (1 Cor. xiii. 12). 1 Preached in A.D. 1138.

2. Do you see whence comes the blackness which is upon the Church, and how it is that some stains of rust and mould are upon even the fairest souls ? It is from the tents of Kedar, from the pursuit of a laborious warfare, from the long duration of an unhappy existence, from the hardships of a suffering and calamitous exile, from the body, in fact, which is both burdensome and weak ; for the corruptible body presseth down the soul, and the earthy tabernacle weigheth down the mind that museth upon many things (Wisd. ix. 15). Wherefore souls desire to be dissolved, that, being delivered from the body, they may depart (avolent) into the embrace of Christ. Therefore one of these unhappy souls, lamenting, said : O miserable man that I am ! who shall deliver me from the body of this death ? (Rom. vii. 24) . For such a soul is aware that in the tents of Kedar it is not possible to be entirely exempt from spot and wrinkle, or from some degree of blackness, and therefore it desires to go forth from the body that it may be free from all these defects. And this is why the Bride has said that she is black as the tents of Kedar. But how is she beautiful as the curtains ofSolomon ? There is somewhat sublime and sacred wrapped up in the veil of these words, but I know not what it is, and scarcely dare to approach it at all, except at the good pleasure of Him who has hidden and sealed the mystery. I have, in fact, read that he who is a searcher of [ the Divine] majesty shall be overwhelmed with its glory ' ( Prov. xxv. 27, Vulg. ) . This, therefore, I pass over and defer to another time. Let it be your care in the meantime to obtain for me this grace by your prayers, as you are accustomed to do, so that I may return more willingly, because with a greater degree of confidence, to that subject which needs the greatest attention. And perhaps one who knocks piously at the door will attain what the rash theorist can never reach. And besides, my grief, and the pain which I am enduring, compels me to come to an end.

3. For how long shall I dissemble and hide the fire which is within me, which consumes my sad heart, which feeds upon my vitals ?1 1 Here begins the funeral oration made by St. Bernard for his brother Gerard. Berengarius, that impudent disciple of Abaelard, reproaches the writer for it unjustly, declaring that he made an unsuitable mingling of sorrow with joy. ' Again, he objects that St. Bernard ' had borrowed, word for word, certain lines of the funeral oration made by St. Ambrose upon the death of his brother Satyrus. ' Now, those lines are not found at all in that oration ; nor if they were, would the fact furnish any charge against St. Bernard. It will be well to cite the two passages referred to by him. This is the first : ' My brother has quitted this life ; or, to speak more correctly, has quitted death for life. Yes, my brother, who was the standard of conscience, the mirror of a holy character, the bond of religion, has left us. Who will show more ardour in labour ? Who will comfort better the affliction of those in trouble ? The other is this : ' The ox seeks for his companion ox, and when he finds himself alone, gives proof, by his frequent lowing, of the tender attachment which he feels. Yes, even the ox requires the companion with whom he is accustomed to draw the plough with laborious neck. ' The latter passage is, in fact, found at the end of the opening of the oration in St. Ambrose ; neither the one nor the other in Bernard. It is true that, in order to escape the charge of falsehood or deception, Berengarius prefixes the words ' if I do not mistake.' ST. Though closely concealed, it rages the more fiercely, and does not cease to spread. What have I to do with this song ofjoy, who am myself in bitterness of soul ? The vehement power of grief interrupts my purpose, and the indignation of the Lord drinks up my spirit ; for he, by whose means my studies in the [ways of the] Lord were wont to be wholly free, has been taken away, and with him my very heart has left me. But hitherto I have put constraint upon my soul, and have concealed my feelings, lest affection should seem to overcome faith. While others are weeping, I, as you may have observed, followed with dry eyes the sad funeral train, and with dry eyes stood at the grave, until all the funeral services were performed. With my own lips I, clad in my priestly robes, completed the customary prayers for him, and with my own hands cast the earth, according to custom, upon the body, soon to become earth, of my beloved. Those who beheld me wept, and wondered that I did not weep also, since all commiserated, not him indeed, but me who had lost him ; for whose heart, though it were of iron, would not be moved at my condition, at seeing me surviving my Gerard ? The loss was common to all, but, in comparison with my individual trouble, it was not considered. But as for me, I resisted my feelings, with whatever force of faith I could command, striving not to be moved uselessly by this allotment of nature, this payment of the common debt due by all men, this customary incident of our mortal condition, brought about by the will of the Almighty, by the judgment of the Just One, by the stroke of Him who is to be feared, in a word, by the will of the Lord. In this way I then, and afterwards, constrained myself to refrain from the indulgence of much weeping, however sorrowful I was and full of trouble. I was able to command my tears, but not my sorrow, and, as it is written : I was so troubled that I could not speak (Ps. lxxvii. 4) . But my grief, thus suppressed, shot deeper roots into my heart, and became, as I feel, the more bitter, because it was allowed no expression. I am overcome, I confess, and what I suffer inwardly must come forth to the light. Let it come forth, then, to the eyes of my children , who, knowing the greatness of my loss, will pardon the excess of my grief, and be the more moved kindly to console me.

4. You know, my children, how well founded is my grief, how great and how painful iny wound ; for you are well aware how faithful a companion was he who has now left my side, in the way wherein I was walking, how vigilant, laborious, cheerful, and agreeable. Who was so peculiarly necessary to me ? By whom was I equally beloved ? He was my brother by blood, but still more closely related to me in religion. Mourn for my sad lot, I entreat you, to whom these things are known. I was weak in body, and he sustained me ; I was of feeble spirit, and he strengthened me ; I was slothful and negligent, and he urged me on ; improvident and forgetful, and he reminded me of my duty. Wherefore art thou thus torn from me ? 1 According to Geoffrey ( ' Life, ' Bk. iii . , c. 21) , Bernard scarcely ever rendered the last duties to any Religious without weeping.. Why art thou thus snatched from my hands, O man of one mind with me, man after my own heart ? We loved each other in life ; why in death are we separated ? A most bitter separation indeed, which Death only could have wrought ! For when did he living ever desert me ? It is a terrible sundering, the work of Death alone ! Who would not have spared the sweet tie of our mutual affection, except Death, the enemy of all that is sweet ? Ah, that is truly called death which, by snatching away one of us, has slain two at one blow ! Is not his death mine also ? It is, in fact, death for me even more than for him, since that which remains to me of life is more painful to me than all the deaths in the world. I live that I may endure a living death ; and shall I call that life ? You would have treated me more mercifully, O cruel Death, in depriving me of the use of life, than of the only fruit to be derived from it ; for life without fruit is more bitter than death. A twofold doom is preparing for the barren tree ; the axe and the fire (Matt. iii. 10) . Thou wert envious of my labours, and hast withdrawn from me my nearest relative and my friend, whose care was the principal cause of the fruit (if any) which followed them. It would have been far better for me to be deprived of my life, than of thy presence, my dear Gerard, who by thy zeal urged me on in my labours for the Lord, who wert a faithful helper and a cautious adviser. Why, I ask, have we loved, or have we lost? It is a hard condition, but my lot, not his, is the one to be pitied. For thou, dear brother, if thou hast lost those who are dear to thee, hast regained those who are dearer still. But what consolation remains for me, unhappy, after the loss of thee, my only (unicum) comfort ? The society in the body which was between us was agreeable equally to each of us, because of the union of our hearts ; but I alone feel the wound of our separation. That which was peaceful and sweet in our friendship belonged to us both ; that which is sad and sorrowful has fallen to me alone ; upon me has the wrath of God fallen, upon me is His anger weighing. To both of us equally were the welcome presence, the sweet companionship, the interesting conversation ; but I alone have wholly lost these delights ; you have but exchanged them for others still better, and assuredly you have gained much by the change.

5. How great, then, is the recompense of joys and blessings uncounted which thou, O dearest brother, hast received for the loss of me ! You have assuredly, in exchange for me who am of so little worth, the everlasting Presence of Christ ; nor do you feel any loss in your absence from me, since you are blended with the Choirs of Angels. You have, then, no reason to complain that my presence has been taken from you, since the Lord of Glory has deigned to give unto you abundantly of His Presence, and of that of His blessed ones. But what have I in exchange for thee ? How greatly could I wish to know what feeling thou hast now for me, once the object of thy dearest affection, now wavering under cares and pains, and deprived 1 Fidelis ; otherwise, fortis. ST. of thy support which used to sustain my weakness ; if it is permitted to thee still to give any thought to us unhappy ones, now that thou hast entered into the depth of light, and art absorbed in that great ocean of everlasting felicity ! For perhaps, even though thou hast known me according to the flesh, thou knowest me no more now ; and because thou hast entered into the sphere of the power and majesty of the Lord, thou art conscious of His righteousness only, and art unmindful of me. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit ( 1 Cor. vi. 17) with Him, and is wholly transformed into a certain feeling of the Divine presence ; he can no longer have thought or taste but for God only, and that which he thinks of, or desires, is God alone--he is, in fact, filled with God. But God is Love ; and the more closely anyone is united to God, the more filled is he with love. Although God is impassible, He is not incapable of compassion ; and it is His especial attribute always to have pity and to spare. Therefore it must necessarily be that you, my dear brother, should be pitiful, because you are joined unto Him who is Pity itself. Although you can no longer feel any unhappiness, although you can no longer suffer, yet you can still feel for the sufferings of others. Your affection, then, is not diminished, but changed ; nor, in putting on God, have you put off all sympathy for us, for He, too, careth for us ( 1 Peter v. 7). You have put off all that was weak, but not all that was charitable, for Charity never faileth ( 1 Cor. xiii. 8) , and you will not forget me for ever.

6. I seem to hear my brother, as it were, saying : Can a mother forget . the son of her womb ? yea, they mayforget, yet will I not forget thee (Is. xlix. 15). I have much need that it should be so. You know in what state you left me, how I totter even to falling ; I have none to give me a helping hand. In every new need which occurs, I look to Gerard, as I had been accustomed to do, and he is not here . Then, unhappy as I am, I sigh and groan, as one without help. Whom shall I consult in difficult matters? to whom have recourse in troubles ? Who will bear my burdens ? who put to flight dangers ? Were not the eyes of my Gerard wont to direct my steps everywhere ? Was not your breast, my brother, more familiar with my cares than even my own, you who bore them more than I, and felt them more acutely ? Was there not upon your lips speech so winning and persuasive that you were constantly able to relieve me from the burden of worldly conversation, and to restore me to my beloved silence ? The Lord had bestowed upon him judgment and discretion, so that he knew when and how to speak. He gave such satisfaction by the prudence of his replies, through the grace given unto him from above, both to those of the house and to strangers, that if anyone had conferred with 1 In connection with this assertion, reference may be made to the two appearances of Gerard after his death, related in the Life of St. Bernard, ' Bk. iv. , c. 2, n. 10 ; and Bk. v. , c. 3, n. 18. 2 Anteibant ; otherwise, animabant. 3 This is shown by his warning Bernard against pride on account of the miracles performed by him ( ' Life, ' Bk. i. , c. 9, n. 43). Gerard, he had scarcely anything to ask of me. He did, indeed, go to meet new-comers, and put himself in their way, that they might not break in suddenly upon my leisure. If he was unable to satisfy any by himself, those he conducted to me, and the others he sent away. O man of marvellous industry ! O faithful friend ! He sought to please his friend, and he was not wanting, at the same time, in the duties of charity. Who departed from him with empty hands ? If it were a rich man, he carried away advice ; if a poor, substantial help. Nor could he, who burdened himself with so many cares that I might be free from them, be said to seek the things which were his own. For he, being, in truth, the most humble of men, hoped that my leisure would be of more value to the house than his would be. Yet sometimes he required that he might be released from his task, and give way to another, as if someone else would perform it better than he. But where was such an one to be found ? Nor was he kept in office, as is often the case, by an impatient and restless disposition, but by the mere impulse of charity. For he used to labour more than all others, and to receive less than any; so that often while he ministered things necessary-for example, food and clothing-to others, he himself was in many respects in need of them. Lastly, when he felt that he was drawing near his departure, lifting up his voice to God, he said : ' Thou knowest, O God, that as in me lay, I always longed for quiet, for the care of my own soul, and to be occupied with Thee only. But I have been retained in the cares of duties by the fear of displeasing Thee, by the will of the brethren, by the desire to obey, and, above all, by the brotherly affection which I bore to him who is at once my abbot and my brother.' So it is. I render thanks, then, to thee, O my brother, for every result of my studies in Divine truth, if they have produced any. If I have made any progress in them, if I have been of service to any, it is to thee I owe it. Thou didst charge thyself with the care of the affairs of the house ; and I, thanks to thee, was able to sit at leisure, or, at least, to occupy myself more sacredly with the duties to which God called me, or to devote myself more usefully to my sons [in the faith] with their instruction and training. For how could I be otherwise than in peace of mind within, while I knew that thou wert busied without--thou who wert my right hand, the light of my eyes, my heart, and my tongue ? And, indeed, thy hand was tireless, thine eye candid and straightforward, thine heart full of wisdom, and thy tongue gave wise counsel, as it is written : The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment (Ps. xxxvii. 30).

7. But why have I said that Gerard was busied without, as if he were unacquainted with the inner life, and a stranger to spiritual gifts ? Those spiritually-minded persons who knew him, knew that his words were full of the Holy Spirit. Those of his chamber knew that his mind and his affections savoured not of the flesh, but were warmed by the fire of the Spirit. Who more rigid than he in the observance of the Rule ? who more strict in the mastery (castigando) of his body, ST. more absorbed and elevated in contemplation, or more keen and penetrating in discourse ? How often, in discussion with him, I have learned things which I knew not ! and I, who had come to instruct others, have returned myself instructed. Nor is it wonderful that this was the case with me, since eminent and learned men have testified to me that the very same thing had taken place with them also when with him. Though he had not acquired human learning, he had sound and powerful intelligence, enabling him to divine many of its truths ; and he had also the illuminating Spirit. Nor was he very accomplished in the greatest things alone, but also in the smallest. What was there which escaped his skill and knowledge-for example, in all that relates to buildings, in the culture of land and of gardens , in works for water, and in all the other arts and labours of country people ? He was easily the director of masons, of smiths, of agriculturists, of gardeners, of shoemakers, and even of weavers. Whilst in the judgment of all he was wiser than any, in his own eyes alone he was not wise. Would that the malediction which we find in Scripture, Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes ( Is . v. 21 ) , did not touch many far less wise than he more than it touched him ! Those to whom I speak know that what I say of him is true, and even much more than I have said. But I pass over many things, because he is my brother and my flesh. Yet this one thing I add in entire assurance : he was useful to me in all things, and beyond all other men ; he was of use in small things and great, in private affairs and public, in the monastery and out of it. It was with good reason that I was wholly attached to him, who was everything to me. He left to me the honour and name of Superior, and but little beyond, for the labours of that office he used to discharge. I was called Abbot, but he was so in effect, for he took upon him all the cares of that charge. Rightly did I rest upon him, by whose means it was that I was able to rejoice in the Lord, to preach and to pray with greater freedom and security from interruption. It was by thy means, O my brother, I repeat, that my mind was less disturbed, my rest more agreeable, my discourse more efficacious, my preaching fuller of edification, my reading more frequent, and the affections of my heart more fervent.

8. Alas ! thou hast been taken from me, and all these things with thee. With thee have passed away all the joys, and all the gladness, of my life. Already cares are breaking in upon me, already anxieties, hitherto unknown, press upon me on all sides, difficulties and annoyances from every quarter seek me, because I am alone ; in going from me, these are all thou hast left me, and under this burden I groan without a companion. I must of necessity lay it down, or be crushed under it, since you have withdrawn your shoulders from its support. Who will grant unto me speedily, after thee, to die ? For to die instead of thee, and so to deprive thee of the glory which thou art now enjoying, this I should not wish to have done. I shall live, as long as I live, in bitterness and in sorrow ; and let this be my only consolation, to mourn and to be afflicted. I will not spare myself ; I I I will assist the Lord's Hand ; for it is the Hand of the Lord that hath touched me. It is I, I say, whom He hath touched, whom He hath wounded; not him whom He hath called into rest : for He hath slain me in cutting short the days of my brother. For who could say that the Lord hath slain him, whom He hath caused to enter into life ? But that which has been to him the gate of life has manifestly been to me the gate of death ; and by that death I should say that I am the person dead, not he who has fallen asleep in the Lord. Flow forth, flow forth, ye tears, long since brimming over ; flow forth, since he who would have hindered your course has himself gone forth from this life ! Let the torrents of my suffering head be opened, and the fountains of waters burst forth, if perchance they may suffice to wash away the stains of those sins by which I have deserved the wrath of God ! When the Lord shall have had compassion upon me, then perhaps I, too, shall deserve to be consoled, provided that I do not spare to afflict myself; for they that mourn shall be comforted (Matt. v. 4). Therefore let every good man condescend to me, and let him who is spiritual uphold me in my sorrow, in the spirit of sympathy and gentleness. Let my grief be regarded, I entreat, with compassion, and not after the manner of men. we see day by day that those who are dead lament for their dead ; but in what manner ? There is with them much weeping, but no fruit. We do not blame their distress and grief, unless it be excessive, but the cause of it. Affection is from nature, and the distress which it causes us is a part of the penalty of sin ; but the cause is vanity and sin. For in the world what is lamented, if I do not mistake, is the deadly injury inflicted [by death] upon carnal glory, and upon the advantages of the present life. And those who weep thus are themselves to be wept for. Surely that is not the case with me ? Mygrief is similar to theirs, but the cause is different, and the intention of it quite unlike their intention. I do not complain at all of the loss of the things of this world. What I grieve for is only that I have lost faithful help and salutary counsel in those things which belong to God. It is myGerard for whom I mourn--Gerard, my brother according to the flesh , nearer still to me in the spirit, and in the work and purpose of my life ever my companion and associate. For

9. My soul clung closely to his, and it was rather unity of sentiment than unity of blood which made us two to be one. Our nearness of blood counted, no doubt, for something ; but it was companionship of mind and will, conformity of character and inclination, which united us more closely still. Since we were of one heart and of one soul, the sword [of death] has passed through my soul equally as through his ; but having severed them, it has placed one part in heaven, but left the other in the mire of earth. It is I, it is I, who am that unhappy portion which is left prostrate in the clay, mutilated by the loss of the better part of itself; and yet people say to me : ' Do not weep. ' My very bowels are torn away ; and it is ST. said to me, ' Do not feel any pain.' But I do feel pain, and that in spite of myself; I have not the insensibility of a stone, nor is my flesh of bronze ; I have feeling assuredly, and sharp pain, and my trouble is ever in my sight. He who has stricken me will not be able to accuse me of hardness and want of sensibility, as those of whom He said : I have stricken them, but they have not grieved (Jer. v. 3, but quoted inexactly) . I have confessed my great affliction, and denied it not. Someone has called this carnal ; I do not deny that it is human, just as I do not deny that I am a man. If that does not suffice, then I shall not deny that it is carnal. For I also am carnal, and one sold under sin, destined to death, and justly deserving of punishments and pains. Far from being insensible to penalties, I shudder at death, I confess, for myself and for those who are dear to me. And Gerard was not only mine, but was very dear. Was he not plainly mine, who by blood was my brother, by profession my son [in the faith] , my father for the care he had of me, my companion and colleague in character and wishes, as in affection he was most intimate and dear ? He has departed from my side : and I feel that his death has inflicted upon me a deep and terrible wound.

10. Forgive me, my sons ; or rather, if you are my sons, lament for the trouble of your father. Pity me, pity me, you at least who are my friends, who take notice how heavy is the stroke which I have received from the hand of the Lord for my sins. He has stricken me with the rod of His indignation : justly, in regard of my deserts ; but severely, in regard of my power to bear it. Who, except one who is ignorant by what bonds of affection Gerard and I were united, would suppose it a light thing to me to live without Gerard ? Nevertheless, I do not desire to oppose at all the decrees (sermonibus) of the Holy One ; I do not call in question His judgment, by which each one is caused to receive that which he deserves : Gerard, the crown which he has merited ; and I, the punishment which is due to me. Is it reasonable to declare that I call in question the sentence because I feel the penalty keenly? To feel is human, but to repine would be impious. It is human, I repeat, and unavoidable, that we should not be indifferent to those who are our friends ; that we should enjoy their presence, and lament its being taken from us. Social intercourse, particularly among friends, will not be tedious ; the reluctance to separate, and the pain which is felt by each when separated, shows plainly the effect that their mutual affection has had upon those who live together. I grieve on thy account, my dearest Gerard, not because thy condition is to be regretted, but because thou art taken away. And, therefore, perhaps it is my condition rather, I who drink the cup of bitterness, which calls for regret ; and still more, because I drink it alone. For thou hast no part in it, and I endure alone what those who have a mutual affection are accustomed to endure equally when deprived of the presence of each other.

11. May God grant that thou mayst not be lost to me, but only have gone before me, and that I may one day, whether soon or late, follow thee whithersoever thou hast gone. I do not doubt at all that thou hast gone to join those whom in the midst of thy last night on earth thou didst invite to praise God, when with a serene countenance and a voice of joy thou didst burst forth on a sudden, to the great astonishment of all, into that Psalm of David : Praise ye the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the heights (Ps. cxlviii. 1). While it was still midnight, my brother, the day was dawning for thee, and the night was as clear as the day. Assuredly that night was full of delights for thee, and it brought thee into the Light. I was summoned to witness that miracle, to see a man exulting in the hour of death, and scorning its approach. O Death, where is thy victory ? O Death, where is thy sting ? (1 Cor. xv. 55). Thou hast no sting any longer, but a song of praise and victory. For a man dies while singing, and sings while dying. Thou who art the mother of sorrow art taken as a subject for joy ; thou, the enemy of glory, as an occasion for glory ; thou, who art the gate of hell and the gulf of perdition, as the portal of the kingdom of God and the entrance into salvation ; and all this by a man who is a sinner. This, too, is justly done, since thou hast rashly and unjustly usurped dominion over One who is a Righteous Man and Blameless . O Death, thou art thyself dead, and pierced with the hook which thou hast incautiously swallowed, of which thus speaks the Prophet : O Death, I will be thy death ; O grave, I will be thy destruction (morsus) (Hosea xiii. 14) . Pierced, I say, with that hook, thou shalt open a broad and joyful passage into life for those faithful ones who pass through thee. Gerard does not fear thee, O shadowy phantom ! Gerard passes through thy jaws to his heavenly fatherland, not merely with security, but with joy and thanksgiving. When, then, I had come to him, and he had finished in my hearing, with a loud voice, the last verses of the Psalm which he had begun, looking up to heaven, he said : Father, into Thy Hands I commend My spirit (Luke xxiii. 46). And repeating often the same sentence, and pronouncing again and again Father, Father, he turned unto me and said, with a joyful countenance : ' How great is the condescension of God in being the Father of men ! and how great the glory of men to be the sons and the heirs of God ! For if they are sons, they are also heirs . ' So he whom we are lamenting sang when about to die : and I confess that he changed my grief almost into a song of joy, because, my mind being fixed upon the glory which was before his vision, I almost forgot my own unhappiness.

12. But the sharp pang of my grief recalls me to myself, and the pressure of care arouses me from the thought of that sweet and peaceful spectacle, as one rises from a light slumber. Let me mourn, then, but for myself, for reason forbids that I should mourn on his account. I believe, indeed, that, were occasion afforded him, he ST. would say to us now : ' Weep not for me, but for yourselves.' David was right to weep over his parricidal son ( 2 Sam. xix. 1 ), because he knew that, on account of the enormity of his crime, his issue from the power of death was for ever hindered. He was right to mourn over Saul and over Jonathan ( 2 Sam. i. 17), because, when they were once swallowed up by death, that they should emerge from it was not then within the bounds of hope. And certainly they shall rise again, but not to life ; or if to life, then in order that living they should die by a death still more calamitous. It is true that, with regard to Jonathan, there may be ground for a doubt ; but in my case I have still a reason for my grief, though it be not the same reason. I grieve, first, for my own trouble, and for the loss which this house has sustained ; secondly, I grieve on account of the necessities of the poor, of whom Gerard was the father. I grieve on account of our whole Order, and of our profession, which derived no small strength from thy example of zeal and wisdom, O Gerard ; and lastly, I grieve, not indeed for thee, but for the loss of thee. Yes, this this is what wounds me so deeply, because I love thee so devotedly. And let no one trouble me by saying that I am wrong thus to afflict myself, since the kind-hearted Samuel mourned without restraint over his abandoned King, and the devout David over his parricidal son, and that without wronging their faith, or calling in question the Divine judgment . ' Absalom, my son, my son Absalom !" said holy David (2 Sam. xviii. 33), and is not my brother more than Absalom ? The Saviour, too, when looking upon the city of Jerusalem, of which He foresaw the destruction, wept over it ( Luke xix. 41). And shall I have no feeling of my own bereavement, and that so recent ? Shall I not groan over a wound so fresh and so deep ? He wept over the sorrows of others, and shall I not dare to weep over my own ? Assuredly He did not at the sepulchre of Lazarus either rebuke those who were weeping, or forbid them to weep ; and even more than this, He wept with them, for it is said, Jesus wept ( John xi. 35) . Those tears were, it is certain, the evidences of His Humanity, not the signs of his disapproval (diffidentia = distrust). Moreover, at His Voice the dead man came forth from the tomb; so that you must not imagine that a person cannot yield to grief without prejudice to his faith.

13. It is thus with my tears also. They are not a sign of unbelief, but an indication of our human condition ; nor because, when stricken, I moan, do I therefore accuse Him who strikes ; I rather call upon His goodness, and endeavour to turn aside His severity. Thus, though my words are full of grief, there is no murmuring in them. Have I not expressed a feeling full of righteousness in acknowledging that in one most equitable sentence He hath both punished one who deserved punishment, and crowned one who was 1 St. Bernard appears here to express some doubt of the salvation of Jonathan. But other fathers and commentators assert that he is in blessedness. There is a slight variation here between the MSS. and editions. See Horst's note. worthy of reward ? Yes, the Lord is kind and righteous, and He has done everything well. I will sing to Thee, O Lord of mercy and judgment. Let the mercy which Thou hast shown unto Thy servant Gerard sing to Thee and praise Thee, and let the judgment also sing, which we ourselves are bearing. In the one Thou shalt be praised because Thou art good, in the other because Thou art righteous. Is praise due to Thee for Thy goodness alone ? It is due also for Thy righteousness. Righteous art Thou, O Lord, and upright are Thyjudgments (Ps. cxix. 137). Thou hast given Gerard ; Thou hast taken Gerard away; and though we grieve for the loss of him, we are not forgetful that he was given to us ; we render thanks that we have been deemed worthy to possess him, and our reluctance to be without his presence is wholly in submission to Thy Divine will.

14. I call to mind, O Lord, my covenant with Thee, and the pity Thou hadst upon me, that Thou mightest be the more justified in Thy saying, and clear when Thou art judged. For when I was at Viterbo last year on the business of the Church my brother Gerard was taken with serious illness, and the attack increased upon him until it seemed as if God were about to call him to Himself. I was unable to bear the thought of losing my travelling companion and being left alone in a strange land, nor, again, of not being able to restore him safe to those who had entrusted him to me ; for he was so engaging, that he was loved by all. In this distress I betook myself to prayer with tears and sobs. ' Lord, ' I cried, ' wait until my return. If Thou willest to take him away from me, let it be when he is restored to his friends, and I will not complain. ' And Thou didst hear my prayer, O Lord : he recovered ; we accomplished the work that Thou hadst given us to do, and we returned with joy, bringing with us the sheaves of peace. And then I became almost entirely forgetful ofthe compact which I had made with Thee, but so wast not Thou. I am ashamed of these sobs of grief, which accuse me of going from my word. What can be added to this ? Thou hast required again the treasure which was Thine, which Thou hadst committed to us for awhile, and hast received it. But tears again put an end to my words. Do Thou, O Lord, impose a limit to my tears, and bring them to an end. 1 St. Bernard sojourned at Viterbo on two occasions : the former time in 1133 , as we learn from his Letter 151 (vol. ii . , p. 479, of Eng. Ed. ), the latter in 1137 ; and it is that which is mentioned here. THE ADORNMENT OF THE BRIDE 167

NOW that we have rendered the last offices of affection to our dear friend on his return to his [ heavenly] country, I resume, brethren, the purpose of edification which was thus interrupted : for it is incongruous to continue long lamenting one who is in joy and gladness, and out of place to trouble with many tears one who is sitting at a banquet ; and although we may, with weeping, deplore our own loss, it behoves us to do even that with moderation, so that it may not seem to be the case that it is not so much the loss of our friend as of his service to us that we deplore. The grief of those who are bereaved should be tempered by the joy of the beloved one who is its object, and that he is with God should make it more easy to bear the fact that he is no longer with us. I desire, then, relying on the support of your prayers, to bring to light, if I am able, the sense which is hidden under those passages of our Song in which the beauty and adornments of the Bride are spoken of. This, if you remember, was touched upon, but left undiscussed ; all that was examined and concluded having been the sense in which she was said to be black as the tents of Kedar. In what way, then, is she comely as the curtains of Solomon ? as if Solomon, in all his glory, had had anything of equal worthiness to the beauty of the Bride, and the magnificence of her ornaments ! And, indeed, if we should say that those ' curtains ' refer rather to the blackness than to the beauty of the Bride, the same as the tents ofKedar, I do not know that we should be wrong ; nor would there be wanting reasons to support that reference, as we shall see in the sequel. But if we think that the beauty of curtains, however splendid they may be, is to be compared to the glorious beauty of the Bride, we have need to obtain the help of Him at whose door you have knocked in order to be able worthily to unfold a mystery so great. For what beauty is there in those things which are perceived by the outward senses which is to be compared with the inward beauty of a holy soul, or which, to a just judge, can appear other than common and defiled ? What is there, I ask, in the spectacle of this world which passeth away that is capable of equalling the fairness and beauty of a soul which has put off its former vesture of earthly and soiled humanity, and clothed itself anew in that which came from heaven, and is in every respect fair ? For gems, it is adorned with virtues ; it is purer and loftier than the air itself, and more brilliant than the sun. Do not, then, look back to [the curtains of] Solomon for a comparison when you desire to understand what is the degree of beauty and splendour to which the Bride declares herself to be like.

2. What means she, then, by these words : I am beautiful as the curtains of Solomon ? These words, as I think, contain a great and wonderful mystery-if we apply them, that is to say, not to the king who ruled over Israel, but to Him of whom it was said : Behold, a greater than Solomon is here ( Matt. xii. 42 ). He is so truly Solomon, that He is called not only ' Peaceful ' (as the word Solomon signifies in Hebrew), but Peace itself, as St. Paul declares : He is our Peace (Eph. ii. 14) ; and with this Solomon we shall no doubt find something worthy to be compared with the beauty of the Bride. Notice especially with regard to the curtains what is said in one of the Psalms : Who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain (Ps. civ. 2). Now, the earlier Solomon, very wise though he were and powerful, assuredly did not stretch out the heavens like a curtain, but rather He who is not merely wise, but Wisdom itself-yes, it is He who hath founded them and stretched them out. Thus, also, it was He, not the former Solomon, who speaks these words : When He ( that is , doubtless, God the Father) prepared the heavens I was there. His Power, no doubt, and His Wisdom, was there with Him who prepared the heavens. Nor must it be supposed that it was inactive, and, as it were, a spectator only, because it is said, ' I was there, ' and not also, ' I was preparing. ' Look a little farther on, and you will find the express assertion : Iwas with Himforming all things (Prov. viii. 27 and 30, Vulg. and Douay). Lastly, He says : What things soever the Father doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise ( John v. 19). So, then, it is He also who stretches out the heavens like a curtain. Abeautiful curtain indeed is that great expanse which, as a tent, covers the entire surface of the earth, and rejoices the eyes of men by the variety and beauty of sun, moon, and stars which adorn it ! What is there more beautiful than this curtain, or more splendid than the heavens ? Yet it is not worthy to be even compared to the glory and beauty of the Bride even in this respect that the beauty of the former, as being of a corporeal nature and apprehended by the bodily senses, is temporary and passing : For the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal (2 Cor. iv. 18).

3. But the beauty of the Bride is of an intellectual kind ; it is spiritual and eternal, for it is the image of eternity. Her beauty, for example, consists in charity ; and charity, as you read, never faileth (1 Cor. xiii. 8). It is also in righteousness, and His righteousness endureth for ever ( Ps. cxii. 3). It is also in patience, and we learn that the patient abiding of the poor shall not perishfor ever (Ps. ix. 18). What is to be said of voluntary poverty ? and of humility ? Has not the one the promise of the kingdom of heaven (Matt. v. 3), and the other of an everlasting exaltation (Luke xiv. 11) ? It is the same with the fear of the Lord ; it is holy, and endureth for ever ( Ps. xix. 9 ) . So, also, with respect to prudence, to temperance, and to fortitude, and to any other virtues, if such there be, what are they but, as it were, pearls in the Coronet of the Bride, which glitter with constant lustre for ever ? For ever, I say, because they are the base foundation of immortality. Nor is there any place whatever in the soul for the life of immortal blessedness except that which is provided by the means and the interposition of virtues. It is on that account that the Psalmist says to God, in whom, without doubt, is this life of blessedness : Justice and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne (Ps. lxxxix. 14). And the Apostle says that Christ dwells in our hearts, not in every way, but, as he states expressly, in our hearts by faith ( Eph. iii. 17). When our Lord was about to sit upon the ass, His disciples cast their mantles upon the animal to form His seat ; and this signifies that the Saviour and that salvation cannot rest upon souls that are unclad and bare that is to say, which are not clad in the doctrine and in the virtues of the Apostles. And therefore the Church, having promise of happiness to come, is careful in the meantime to prepare and adorn herself with a vesture enriched with gold, and decked with a variety of graces and virtues, so as to be found capable and worthy of the fulness of grace.

4. But I could in no way compare in beauty this visible and physical heaven, although most fair of its kind, and adorned with a bright galaxy of stars, with that other splendour of varying colours, spiritual and surpassingly beautiful, which sparkles even now on the robe of sanctification which the Bride has received. But there is a heaven of heaven of which the Psalmist says : Sing praises unto the Lord, who ascends above the heaven of heavens (Ps. lxviii. 32, 33) . This heaven is intellectual and spiritual ; and He who by His wisdom made the heavens (Ps. cxxxvi. 5) has created this and established it for ever, and it is this in which He dwells. Do not suppose, then, that the devotion of the Bride allows her to stop short of this heaven, in which, as she knows, her Beloved dwells ; for where her treasure is, there is her heart also (Matt. vi. 21). She has a holy jealousy of those who are before that Countenance, for [the sight of] which she sighs, and studies to render her life conformed to theirs with whom she is not as yet associated in that happy vision. She cries by her life more than by words : Lord, I have loved the habitation of Thy house, and the place where Thine honour dwelleth ( Ps. xxvi. 8).

5. She does not hold it at all unworthy of her to be compared to that heaven. It is stretched out as a curtain, if not extending over plains of space, yet over the affections and longings of souls. It has Divisions also, not of colours, but of degrees of beatitude attained. For [God] has created some Angels, others Archangels, but others Virtues, Dominations, Principalities, Powers, Thrones ; others, again, Cherubin, and others Seraphin. These are the stars with which His heaven is studded; these are the bright and glorious colours which adorn the curtains of this Solomon. This is one out of very many which are His, and the chief among them, which are each of them 1 Horst adds : ' Such as we have described in their place ' ; which words are wanting in the earliest editions and in all our MSS.-MABILLON. 2 All our MSS. have ‘ of colours,' except that of Jumièges, which has ' of places ' (locorum) . The editions have ' of heavens ' (caelorum). blessed and glorious, though there be a great variety in the conditions of their glory. They are benign, moreover, and of a charity so far reaching, that it extends even to us ; so that far from being jealous of the glory they enjoy, they desire that we should obtain it. And in order to attain that end, some of them do not think it burdensome to remain among us, to be actively employed in watching over us and doing us good ; they are, in truth, ministering spirits, sent forth to minister unto them who shall be heirs of salvation ( Heb. i. 14). Wherefore, as the whole multitude of the blessed are collected together, as it were, into one, they are called, in the singular, ' the heaven of heaven ' ; and, again, as each of them separately is, in a sense, heaven, they are called ' the heaven of heavens. ' It is of each of them that it is said : He stretcheth out the heavens like a curtain (Ps. civ. 2). So that you now perceive, I think, what are those curtains which the Bride takes pride in resembling, and to what Solomon they belong.

6. Contemplate, then, the glory of her who compares herself even to the heaven ; and to that heaven which is so much the more glorious as its origin is divine. Not unfitly does she select to be a point of comparison for herself that from whence she draws her origin. For if, on account of the body she has from the earth, she compares herself to the tents of Kedar, why should she not equally glorify herself as having a likeness to heaven, because her soul is from heaven ; especially when her life bears witness to her origin, to the dignity of her nature, and to the land to which she belongs ? She worships and adores one God, as do the angels ; she loves, as they do, Jesus Christ above all ; she is chaste as the angels, and that in a weak body of sinful flesh, as the angels are not; lastly, she desires and 1 Berengar, the disciple of Abaelard, in his treatise, Apologeticum, which he put forth on behalf of his preceptor, against the Council of Sens, and against St. Bernard himself, takes hold of these words, and tries to draw from them a proof that St. Bernard supposed souls to be created in heaven, and sent thence into the bodies they are to occupy. That writer thus rudely addresses the holy man : 'You have certainly erred in asserting that souls have their origin from heaven. It will be useful and easy for the intelligent reader to understand by what arguments you support that position ; and I will recount them throughout. There is a book named in Hebrew Firasirim ( Schirbaschirim) , and in Latin Canticum Canticorum, of which the sense hidden under the text reveals Divine mysteries to those who diligently watch for them. Then, further on, he adds : ' These words of yours, if carefully considered, savour of heresy to every Christian palate. For if you argue that souls draw their origin from heaven upon this ground, that they are one day to return to heaven in order to be happy there, you must say the same of the body, since it, too, is to be happy in heaven. Or, if you write that the soul is celestial as to its origin, because it originated, that is, was created, in the heavens (which, indeed, seems to be the sense of your words), you fall into the error of Origen.' Thus rashly writes the apologist. But, after all, why should not the soul be said to be celestial, seeing that it has a Father in heaven, that its conversation ought to be in heaven, that its own country is in heaven, and that, in the same way, its nature transcends all earthly things ? Wherefore St. Augustine says, in arguing against Julianus : ' Since we have a body which is from the earth , and a spirit which is from heaven, we ourselves are at the same time earth and heaven ' ( Bk. ii. , contra Julian. ). But enough as to Berengar, the unscrupulous calumniator of our saint.-MABILLON. seeks those things which are with the angels, not those which are upon earth. What can be a plainer proof of her celestial origin than that she preserves an inborn resemblance to the angelic spirits, and that in a region of unlikeness [to them], than to claim for herself on earth the glory of a life solitary and exiled [from heaven] ; and, lastly, to live as an angel in a body almost that of a beast ? Those actions are the signs of heavenly powers, not of earthly ; and they show clearly that the soul, which is able thus to act, draws, without a question, its origin from heaven. Yet listen to words which are unmistakable : I saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a Bride adorned for her husband. And the Apostle has added, And Iheard a great voice out of heaven saying, Beholdthe tabernacle of God is with men, and Hewill dwell with them (Rev. xxi. 2, 3) . To what end ? It was, as I believe, that He might obtain for Himself from among the children of men [the Church which is ] His Bride. O wonderful mystery ! He came for His Bride, and yet not without a Bride He came. He was seeking out His Bride, and yet His Bride was then with Him. Were there, then, two Brides ? By no means. For He says : My dove, My undefiled, is but one ( Cant. vi. 9). But just as He desired out of diverse flocks of sheep to make one, so that there should be one Fold, and one Shepherd ( John x. 16) ; so, having from the beginning of the world one Bride, with whom He was closely united-I mean the multitude of the angels-it pleased Him to call together a Church out of men also, and with this to unite that which is from heaven, so that there shall be one Bridegroom and one Bride. The one has been perfected, not multiplied, by the union of the other with itself; and she is aware that this is spoken of her : She who is Mine is one, she is perfect (vi. 8). Yes, their conformity [to the likeness of the Lord] makes them one ; and if for the moment the conformity is only in the same fervour of devotion, it shall hereafter be realized in the same glory.

7. Thus, then, each of them is from heaven-the Bridegroom, who is Jesus, and the Bride, the heavenly Jerusalem [ which is the Church] . As for the Bridegroom, in order that He might be made manifest upon earth, HeemptiedHimself, taking upon Himthe form ofa servant, and being made in the likeness of men, was found infashion as a Man (Philip. ii. 7 , 8). But as to the Bride : in what form or appearance, or with what degree of beauty think you was she beheld when she came down out of heaven ? Was it, perhaps, in the company of the angels whom St. John saw ascending and descending upon the Son of Man (John i. 51) ? But it were better to say that he saw the Bride when he saw the WORD made Flesh, and recognised two Natures in His one Person. For when He, our holy Emmanuel, brought to earth the rules of heavenly culture and training, whenthe visible form and image of the beauty of the heavenly Jerusalem, which is our mother, is expressed in Him and made known to us by His means, what have we beheld, except in the Bridegroom the Bride, and, gazing with admiration and reverence, have divined in one and the same Lord of Glory both the Bridegroom, decked with His Crown, and the Bride, adorned with her necklaces of precious jewels ? He, therefore , who descended is also He who ascended ; for no one can ascend into heaven but He who descended from heaven, who is one and the same Lord, both Bridegroom and the Head, as also Bride and the Body. Nor is it in vain that this celestial Man has appeared upon earth, since He has made many denizens of earth similar to Himself, and citizens of heaven, as it is said by the Apostle : As is the Man who is heavenly, such are they also who are made like unto Him, and therefore heavenly ( 1 Cor. xv. 48). A beginning is, then, already made by living on the earth in the manner of those who live in heaven, when, after the example of that heavenly and blessed creation, she who comes from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, is , nevertheless, attached with chaste love to her heavenly Spouse ; and, although not yet united to Him by outward sight, is yet betrothed to Him by faith, according to the promise of God speaking by the prophet : Iwill betroth thee unto Me in mercies : Iwill even betroth thee unto Me in faithfulness (Hosea ii. 19, 20). Therefore, she strives to be more and more conformed to the pattern which came from heaven : learning to be modest and temperate, chaste and holy, patient and compassionate, meek and humble of heart. And it is by these virtues that she endeavours, far removed as she is, to please Him upon whom the angels desire to look, so that, by sharing the same desire with which they are fired, she may approve herself as being a fellowcitizen with the saints, and of the household of God, that she may show herself His beloved and His Bride.

8. I think that every soul which is such as I have described is not only heavenly because of its origin, but may be not unfitly said to be itself heaven, because of its resemblance to heaven, which is thus brought about. And it is then that such a soul plainly shows that its origin is from heaven, because its conversation is in heaven. A holy soul is, then, a heaven, having understanding for a sun, faith for a moon, and for stars countless virtues. Or we may say that its sun is zeal for righteousness or fervent charity, and its moon is continence. For as the brightness of the moon is said to be wholly from the sun, so there is no merit in continence without charity or justice. Hence the Wise man says : How beautiful is a generation which joins continence to charity ( Wisdom iv. 1).1 As for the stars of this sky, I do not regret having called the virtues by this name when I consider the fitness of the similitude. For as the stars shine by night, and in the day are unseen, so true virtue, which often in prosperity is not apparent, shines out brightly in time of adversity. It is a matter of prudence to hide it in the one case, but in the other it is of necessity rendered visible. A virtue is, then, as a star, and a man of many virtues as a heaven of such stars, unless, perhaps, that which the Lord has spoken by the Prophet, Heaven is My Throne (Is. lxvi. 1 ), is to be understood of this visible heaven which rolls around us, and not rather in the sense which the Scripture elsewhere expresses more plainly : The soul of the righteous is the throne of wisdom. But whoso has learned from the teaching of the Saviour that God is a Spirit, and is to be worshipped in the spirit ( John iv. 24), will not hesitate to believe that His throne is spiritual. I should confidently affirm this, and not less with regard to the spirit of a righteous man than of the angels. Most of all I am confirmed in that opinion by that faithful promise of the Son of God : I and My Father will come to him ( that is, to a righteous man), and make our abode with him ( John xiv. 23). The Psalmist also seems to me to have spoken of no other heaven than this in the words : Thou dwellest in the holy place, the praise of Israel (Ps. xxi. 4, Vulg. and Douay). And again, the Apostle speaks unmistakably : That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith (Eph. iii. 17) .

9. And it is not wonderful that the Lord Jesus should dwell in this, as in heaven, since not only, as in the case of other living beings, did He speak the word and it came into existence, but He has striven in order to acquire it ; He has died to redeem it. Therefore, having after many sufferings and efforts made it His own according to His wish, He says : This is My rest for ever : here will Idwell, for I have desired it ( Ps. cxxxii. 14). Blessed is that soul to whom it is said : ' Come, Mine elect one, and upon thee will I place My Throne. Why art thou so heavy, O my soul, and why art thou disquieted within me ?' Dost thou think that not within thee canst thou find a place for the Lord ? What place is there, in truth, in us that is fit for the presence of a glory so great, or sufficient to receive so high a Majesty ? Would that I were worthy even to offer adoration in the place where His Feet have stood ! Who will grant unto me the grace to be able to follow closely in the footsteps of some holy soul which He has chosen for His habitation ? Yet if He shall deign only to pour into my soul the unction of His mercy, and to expand it, as a curtain is extended when anointed, then I may be able to say : I have run the way of Thy commandments, when Thou didst enlarge my heart ( Ps. cxix. 32, Vulg. and Douay) . Perhaps I shall be able to show in my soul, if not an upper chamber sufficiently large for Him to sit with His disciples, at least a pillow where He may lay His Head. At least, I may from afar look up to those blessed ones, of whom it is said : I will dwell in them, and walk in them ( 2 Cor. vi . 16).

10. O how broad the confines of that soul and how commanding its merits, which is found worthy to receive in itself that Divine Presence ; and not only worthy to receive it, but capable of so doing! What, again, shall I say of that soul, which affords, as it were, spacious avenues in which the grace of God may move without constraint ? Assuredly, it is not tunnelled with the windings of worldly interests and secular cares, nor occupied with luxuries and sensual pleasures ; nor with curiosity about the affairs of others ; nor is it filled with tumid pride, nor the desire to rule. For it is essential in the first place that a soul should be free from all things like this, that it may become a heaven, and be the dwelling-place of God. For otherwise how would it be able to contemplate God in peace, or even to see Him as He is ? Again, it must be free from all hatred, all jealousy, and all bitterness, for into a malicious soul wisdom shall not enter ( Wisd. i . 4) . Then it is necessary that it should grow in breadth and volume that it may be capable of receiving God. Now, the growth and extension of the soul is charity, according to the saying of the Apostle : Be ye enlarged in charity ( 2 Cor. vi. 13) . For although the soul, being of a spiritual nature, does not admit of material extension, nevertheless grace confers upon it what is denied by nature. It has growth and is extended, but in a spiritual manner ; it increases, not in substance, but in power and in glory ; it grows even into a temple holy to the Lord ; and attains unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ (Ephes. iv. 13). Thus the amplitude of a soul is estimated by the measure of the charity which it possesses ; so that, for example, the soul which has much charity is great, and that which possesses little, is itself little; while that which has none at all, is simply nothing, as St. Paul declares, If I have not charity, I am nothing ( 1 Cor. xiii. 2). If a soul has begun to have ever so little charity, so that at least it is careful to love those who love it, and to salute the brethren, and those who offer salutation, then I should say that that soul is something, however little, since it has at least the charity of society, which consists in the natural interchange of courtesy given and received. But as our Lord inquires, What does it more than others ? (Matt. v. 47). And I should regard a soul as being not of liberal, or even of moderate dimensions, but as being plainly narrow, small, and petty, which had no more charity than this strictly limited amount.

11. If, however, it progresses and grows greater, so as to overpass the limits of a love so petty and so narrow, let it, in the full liberty of the Spirit, reach the broad confines of a charity and kindness which is wholly free and gratuitous ; insomuch as out of the largeheartedness of its good-will, to extend its kindly cares to all men, and to love all and everyone as it loves its own self. And then the reproach could not be addressed to it : ' What doest thou more than is of obligation ?' in face of a charity so capacious. The charity, I repeat, which embraces all persons, even those with whom it has no bond of social relation, which is not allured by any hope of personal advantage, nor repelled by any feeling of dislike, which again is constrained by no obligation, except indeed by that of which it is said : Owe no man anything, but to love one another ( Rom. xiii. 8) ; that is indeed great. But if in addition to this you take by violence the realm of charity, and, like a pious invader, occupy it even to its farthest bounds, then you will regard the bowels of charity as not to be shut up even to enemies ; you will do good even to those who hate you, you will pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you, and ' strive to be peaceful even with those who are haters of peace ; then the breadth, and height, and beauty of your soul, will be as the breadth, and height, and beauty of heaven. Then will be fulfilled in it that which is spoken : He stretcheth forth the heavens like a curtain (Ps. civ. 2 ) ; and in it He in whom greatness, immensity, and glory are equally without bound will deign not only to dwell, but to go to and fro at His pleasure in a heaven so extended and so fair.

12. You see, then, what are the heavens which the Church includes, without ceasing to be in her universality, as a vast heaven, extending from sea even to sea and from the River unto the world's end. Consider also as a consequence, to what you can, in this respect, compare it ; provided that you have not forgotten what was said a little while ago with regard to ' the heaven of heaven, and the heavens of heavens ' (n. 9). Our mother [the Church] , though she be here below in a place of exile, has, even while she is performing her pilgrimage, heavens of her own, spiritual men, illustrious in their faith and by their life, pure in faith, unshaken in hope, of wide charity, of deep and lofty contemplation. And these heavens let fall the rain of the word of salvation, thunder by their rebukes, lighten by their wonderful works (miraculis). They declare the glory of God; they are spread, like a curtain, over all the earth ; they show in themselves the law of life and conduct written as by the Finger of God, to give the knowledge of salvation unto their people ; they also teach the Gospel of peace, because they are the ' curtains of Solomon. '

13. We must discern also upon these curtains the likenesses of things heavenly, which were described above when we spoke of the ornaments of the Bridegroom (n. 3) . We must discern similarly the Queen standing on His right hand, decked with ornaments similar, if not equal, to His ( Ps. xlv. 9). For although she has no little splendour and beauty for her portion, in the righteousness of the Saints, both in the place of her pilgrimage and in the day of her power, yet there is a difference between His crown of virtues and the consummation of the glory of the blessed. Yet I may say that the Bride is perfect and blessed, though it be in part. For in part she is as the tents of Kedar. Yet she is beautiful, whether in that part which is already blessed and reigns in heaven ; or in that, even while she is in the night of this world, she is adorned with men who are illustrious by their wisdom and their virtues, even as the midnight sky is adorned with its stars. Wherefore the Prophet says : They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament : and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever (Dan. xii. 3).

14. What humility is there here, and yet what sublimity ! It is to be at once the tents of Kedar, and the sanctuary of God ; at once a habitation on earth, and a palace in heaven ; a hut of clay, and a royal hall ; a body of death, and a temple of light ; an object of contempt to the proud, and yet the Bride of Christ. She is black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem ; and although labour and the sorrow of a prolonged exile have darkened her face, yet she is fair with the beauty of heaven, as the curtains of Solomon. If you are displeased with her blackness, yet you cannot but admire her beauty ; if you despise her as humble, yet look up to her as sublime. Yet in this condition in which she is, how remarkable a proof of wisdom, of discretion, of fitness, is to be gathered from the fact that this abasement and this elevation, are each so tempered, according to time, in the Bride, that among all the changes and chances of this world, this loftiness raises her up in adversities, so that she does not fail ; and this humbleness represses the tendency to pride, so that even in prosperity she does not grow forgetful of her Lord. These two results are each of them most beautiful, but are exactly contrary to each other ; nevertheless, they both work together for good to the Bride, and are helpful to her salvation.

15. So much with regard to the comparison which the Bride makes between herself and the curtains of Solomon. Yet there remains still to be treated another sense, which I referred to at the beginning, and promised to explain, namely, that which refers the whole comparison to the blackness of the Bride only. This promise I am fully intending to keep, but it must be deferred to the beginning of another sermon, as well because this is already sufficiently long, as also that the prayer prevents, which, according to our custom, we offer to the praise and glory of the Bridegroom of the Church, Jesus Christ our Lord, who is God blessed for ever. AMEN.

YOU remember, I doubt not, what were the curtains of Solomon, ' to which the beauty of the Bride was compared, and who was meant by Solomon, provided that the whole comparison is intended to be with the Bride's beauty. If, however, it be referred wholly to her blackness, as that of the tents of Kedar, then I have nothing more to say to you on the subject of those curtains of Solomon, except that they were, perhaps, those of which that King was accustomed to make use as a tent or screen when he thought fit to live under canvas, and which (if that were the case) would no doubt be stained and blackened by their exposure every day to the rays of the sun and the violence of weather. Yet that was not uselessly done, but in order that the costly furniture which was within might be preserved unsoiled and beautiful. In this point of view the Bride does not deny her blackness, but makes excuse for it ; nor does she regard as blameworthy such a condition, which charity excuses, and which the judgment of the Truth does not disapprove. For does not an Apostle ask, Who is weak, and I am not weak ? who is offended, and I burn not ? (2 Cor. xi. 29). She takes upon her the blemish (navum) of compassion, in order to lighten or to cure the malady of passion in another ; she allows herself to gather blackness, on account of her zeal for whiteness, and obtains fairness and beauty as her reward.

2. The blackening of One renders many white and fair ; not that He is tinged with their faults, but that He is touched by their sufferings. It is expedient, it was said, that one man should diefor the people, and that the whole nation perish not (John xi. 50). It is expedient that One, for the sake of all, should be blackened by the likeness of sinful flesh, and that the whole [human] race should not be condemned by the blackness of sin. Let the brightness and the image of the Divine Nature be obscured by the form of a servant, for the life of a servant. Let the radiance of eternal life gather blackness in the flesh, in order that the flesh may by it be purified. Let the Form that was fairer than all the sons of men be obscured in the darkness of the Passion, in order that the sons of men might see a great light and be enlightened by it ; let It be defiled upon the Cross ; let It grow pale in death ; let It have no form or comeliness, that the Divine Bridegroom may obtain for the Church His Bride to be altogether beautiful and glorious, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing. I recognise the curtain of Solomon-nay, rather, I embrace the monarch Solomon himself under his covering of black. He, too, has blackness, but it is ofthe skin alone ; it is an external blackness, not extending within ; for the King's daughter is all glorious within (Ps. xlv. 13) . Within is the brightness of Divinity, the beauty of His virtues, the shining of His glory, [otherwise gratia] , and the white lustre of His innocence ; but the appearance of infirmity conceals all these, and renders Him open to scorn from the beholders ; His countenance is, as it were, hidden, and He is despised, since He is tempted in all ways like unto [ His brethren], yet without sin. I recognise the image and likeness of a defiled and blackened human 1 Three MSS. vary slightly here, and make the preacher say : ' It is needful to recall to you the curtains with which Solomon used once to cover his pavilion. These were no doubt black, by their exposure every day to the rays of the sun, and the violence of weather. Yet that, ' etc. nature; I recognise those coats of skins, the coverings granted to our first parents, after they had sinned against God (Gen. iii. 21). For He has accepted blackness for Himself in taking upon Him the form of a servant, in being made in the likeness of men, and in being found in fashion as a man ( Phil. ii. 7) . I recognise under the covering of goatskin, which is the symbol of sin, both the Hands which did no wrong, and the neck (Gen. xxvii. 16) through which thought of evil never passed ; and on that account no guile was found in His Mouth (Is. liii. 9). I know, O Jesus, that Thou art of mild nature, meek and humble of heart, of benign look and kindly spirit, and that Thou art indeed anointed with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows (Ps. xlv. 7) . Whence, then, is it that Thou art rough and shaggy like Esau ? Wherefore is Thy Countenance wrinkled and blackened, and whence this shaggy growth of hair ? Mine, mine they are, and these Hands are rendered bristly with the likeness of me, a sinner. I acknowledge as mine this shaggy growth, and in my flesh I behold God my Saviour.

3. Nevertheless, it was not Rebekah, but Mary, who invested Him in this garment of flesh ; and He who accepted the benediction [of His Father] was so much the worthier as she who bore Him was the more holy. Well is it for me that He is found in my likeness, since the benediction is reserved by Him for me, since it is for me that the heritage is claimed. It was, in fact, said to Him : Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the utmost parts of the earthfor Thy possession (Ps. ii. 8) . Thine inheritance, He says, Thy possession, Iwill give to Thee. How wilt Thou give it to Him if it be His ? And why dost Thou warn Him to ask for it ? or how can it be His if it be necessary that He should ask ? It is, then, for me that He asks it ; and it is in order that He may undertake my cause that He puts on my nature. Wherefore, says the Prophet, The chastisement of our peace was upon Him ; and, The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all ( Is. liii . 5, 6). And the Apostle explains, In all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be merciful (Heb. ii. 17). So that His voice is truly the voice ofJacob, but the hands the hands of Esau ( Gen. xxvii. 22). That which we hear from His Lips is His ; but what we see in Him, that comes from us. The words which He speaks, they are spirit, and they are life ; but the Form upon which the eye rests is subject to death, and is death. One thing is beheld, another believed. The senses declare that He is black ; but faith protests assuredly that He is fair as the lily ( Cant. ii. 1 ) , and altogether beautiful. He is, indeed, black, but only to the eyes of those void of understanding ; for in the judg 1 Pelliceas. The preacher is playing upon the word pelles = skins, though rendered ' curtains ' throughout, in deference to A.V. and Douay V. Tents, though normally covered with curtains of the black fabric woven out of goats' hair, at all events, in historic times, were no doubt frequently covered with the skins themselves . ment of the faithful He is wholly beautiful ; black yet comely ; black in the opinion of Herod, but by the confession of the penitent Thief, as in the faith of the Centurion, beautiful altogether.

4. How beautiful the man who exclaimed, Truly this Man was the Son of God, had surely perceived. But into what he perceived it is for us to examine. For if the Centurion had considered only that which was apparent in the Man before him, on what ground could he have pronounced Him the Son of God, or beautiful ? What was there in Him to the eyes of the spectators, other than tortured and uncomely, when nailed upon the Cross with outstretched Hands, and between two malefactors, He was the subject of laughter to the malignant, of weeping to the faithful ? He alone was an object of laughter, who alone had the right to be the object of respect and of terror. Whence, then, did he learn the charm of the Crucified One ? Whence did he know that the Man who was numbered with the transgressors was in truth the Son of God ? To reply to that question is not for me ; nor is there need, for the care of the Evangelist has not failed to supply the answer. These are his words : When the Centurion, who stood over against Him, saw that He so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said : Truly this Man was the Son of God ( Mark xv. 39) . Therefore, he believed at [the hearing of] the Voice ; he recognised the Son of God by His Voice, not by His appearance. Was he not, then, perhaps one of the sheep of Him who said, My sheep hear My voice (John x. 14) ? 1

5. By the hearing is discovered a truth which the sight was unable to reach ; appearance has deceived the eye, and the truth has entered by the ear. The eye declared Him weak, defiled, miserable, condemned to the most ignominious of deaths ; while the ear gained the knowledge that He was Son of God, that He was beautiful altogether ; but not the ear of the Jews, who were uncircumcised in [heart and] ears . It was not without reason that St. Peter cut off the ear of the high priest's servant, as if to open an entrance for the truth, and that the truth should free him, that is, make him free. The centurion was a man uncircumcised, but not as to his ears, since he recognised the Lord, under so many marks of feebleness, and at the single voice of a dying Man. He did not despise that which he saw, because he believed that which he did not see. Nor did he believe because of what he saw, but, on the contrary, because, without doubt, of what he heard ; forfaith cometh by hearing (Rom. x. 17). It would have been indeed worthy of the truth that it should enter the soul by the eyes, which are its windows, and because sight is the worthier sense ; but that is reserved for us, O my soul, to the time when we shall see face to face. In the meantime, it is well that the remedy should enter where the disease entered, that life should follow death, and tread close upon its footsteps ; that Light should follow darkness, and 1 This is the reading of two MSS. One other, with the printed editions, adds : * and I know Mine, and My [sheep] know Me. ' The Colbertine MS. adds merely, ' and My [sheep] know Me.' that the venom of the serpent should be succeeded by the Truth, the remedy for it ; so that the eye, which was sick, might be cured, and, being cured, might calmly behold Him whom in its sickness it was unable to discern. The ear was the first portal by which death entered, let it now be the first inlet opened to life ; and let the hearing, which took away the power of sight, now restore it ; for, unless we have believed [ mysteries], we shall not comprehend them. Therefore, hearing has relation to the merit, and sight to the recompense [of belief] . Wherefore the Psalmist says : Thou wilt give to my hearing joy and gladness ( Ps . li. 8) ; because the recompense of faithful hearing is the Blessed Vision, and the merit [deserving] of that Blessed Vision is faithful hearing. Blessed are those who are pure in heart, saith Our Lord, for they shall see God (Matt. v. 8). And it is necessary that the eye which is to see God should be purified by faith, according to that which is written : Purifying their hearts by faith (Acts xv. 9) .

6. In the meantime, then, and while [that] sight is not as yet prepared, let the sense of hearing be aroused, let it be exercised, and receive the truth. Happy is he to whom the Truth bears witness, saying : At the hearing of the ear he obeyed Me ( Ps . xviii. 45). I shall be worthy to behold Him if before I have beheld I shall be found to have obeyed Him; I shall behold with confidence Him who has received the sacrifice of my obedience. How blessed is the man who says : The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and Iwas not rebellious, neither turned away back (Is. 1. 5. ). There you have a model of voluntary obedience, an example of perseverance. For he who does not contradict works voluntarily, and he who has not turned back perseveres. Both one and the other are necessary, because God loveth a cheerful giver ( 2 Cor. ix. 7), and he that endureth unto the end shall be saved ( Matt. x. 22). May the Lord deign to open mine ear also, may the word of truth enter into my heart, may He purify mine eyes, and prepare them for the joyful vision [of Himself] , so that I too may say to Him : Thine ear has heard the preparation of my heart (Ps. x. 17), and that I may be enabled also, with all that are obedient to Him, to hear from His Mouth : Now ye are clean through the word which Ihave spoken unto you (John xv. 3) . Not all who listen to His words are cleansed, but those only who obey them : Blessed are they that hear the Word of God and keep it ( Luke xi. 28). Such an hearing it is which He requires who gives command, saying, Hear, O Israel ( Deut. vi . 3 ) ; such a hearing it is that he offers who says : Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth ( 1 Sam. iii. 9) ; such, again, it is that he promises who speaks thus : Iwillhear what God the Lord will speak ( Ps. lxxxv. 8).

7. But in order that you may know that the Holy Spirit observes this order in the spiritual advancement of the soul-that is to say, that He forms the practice of hearing before He makes the soul glad 1 In some editions, ' let it be exercised ' is wanting. Perhaps the copyist, being doubtful whether the text were ' excitetur ' or ' exercitetur,' wrote them both down. with sight-notice what is said in a Psalm : Hearken, O daughter, and see ( Ps. xlv. 11 , Vulg. and Douay). Why dost thou open thine eyes ? Open rather thine ears. Dost thou greatly desire to see Christ ? It is necessary that you should first hear what He says, that you should hear what is said of Him, that you may say when you shall see Him : As we have heard, so have we seen (Ps. xlviii. 9) . That brightness is without measure, and your vision is feeble ; you cannot attain unto it. You may, perhaps, be able to hear His words ; to behold Him you are not able. When I had become a sinner I heard God calling in the garden, Adam, where art thou ? ( Gen. iii. 9), but behold Him I did not. But the hearing, if it be pious, watchful, and faithful, brings back the sight. Faith shall purify the eye which impiety has rendered diseased; and though disobedience had closed it fast, obedience shall open it again. Lastly, it is, as says the Psalmist, through Thy precepts I get understanding (Ps. cxix. 104) ; because the observance of the commandments of God restores the intelligence, which transgression has taken away. Consider that good man Isaac, how, when he was already very aged, his hearing retained its vigour beyond the other senses. The eyes of the Patriarch were obscured, his taste was led away, his hands were deceived, but not his ears. What is there wonderful in his ear perceiving the truth, since faith cometh by hearing, hearing by the Word of God (Rom. x. 17), and the Word of God is truth ? The voice, he said, is Jacob's voice, and nothing was truer than this ; but, he went on, the hands are the hands of Esau ( Gen. xxvii. 22) ; and nothing was more false. You are wrong ; the mere likeness of a hand has deceived you. Taste is not a reliable test of truth, though it discern that which is agreeable. Is it to know the truth to suppose that you are eating venison when, in truth, it is the flesh of a tame kid ? Much less is there dependence on the eye which sees nothing ; in it there is neither truth nor wisdom. Woe unto those, says the Prophet, that are wise in their own eyes (Is. v. 21). It is not a good wisdom which is thus condemned. It is but the wisdom ofthis world which is foolishness with God ( 1 Cor. iii. 19) .

8. The true wisdom is within, and is hidden (Job xxviii . 13), as holy Job knew. Why do you seek it without, and from the bodily senses ? Taste has its seat in the palate, but wisdom in the heart. Do not seek for wisdom with the fleshly eye, for flesh and blood doth not reveal it, but the Spirit ( Matt. xvi. 17). Nor is it found in the taste, for it is notfound in the land of the living ( Job xxviii. 13) ; nor in the touch of the hand, for Job says again : If my mouth has kissed my hand, this also were an iniquity to be punished by thejudge, for I should have denied the God that is above (xxxii. 27, 28). This, I consider, is the case when the gift of God that is, wisdom-is attributed not to God, but to the merits of [human] actions. Isaac was a wise man ; nevertheless, his senses led him into error. Has hearing alone the truth ? It is because hearing perceives the word. Rightly was it forbidden to the woman in the Gospel, who had only carnal wisdom, to touch the Flesh of the Risen Word, because she trusted more to her eyes than to the Divine oracles-that is, to the carnal senses rather than to the Word of God, for she did not believe that He whom she saw dead was raised again, although He had Himself promised that this should be so. Thus her eyes had no rest until they were satisfied by seeing, because she found no consolation in faith, nor in the promise given by God. Are not heaven and earth, and whatsoever is capable of being reached by the bodily eye, to pass away and perish before one jot or tittle out of all that God has spoken shall fail ? And yet she who was unwilling to be consoled by the Word of the Lord ceased to weep immediately upon the sight of Him, because she attached greater weight to the experience of her senses than to the certitude of faith . But that experience is deceptive.

9. We are thrown back, on that account, upon the surer cognition of faith, which comprehends that which sense is unable to reach, and which is not included in past experience. Touch Me not, says the Saviour-that is to say, Cease to rely upon this [carnal] sense, which is easily deceived ;2 rest upon My Word ; accustom yourselves to the exercise of faith. Faith cannot be deceived ; it does not feel the poverty which belongs to the senses, but comprehends things which are invisible indeed, it passes beyond the boundaries even of human reason, of the course of nature, of the limits of experience. Why do you ask of the eye that which it is not capable of knowing ? and why does the hand endeavour to examine that which is beyond its range ? Whatever these two senses bring you information upon is of subordinate importance. But faith reveals to you truths respecting Me, from the greatness of which nothing can detract. Learn to hold with firmer grasp, and to follow with greater confidence, that which it recommends to you. Touch Me not, for I am not yet ascended unto My Father (John xx. 17). As if it were only when He were ascended that He either could be, or desired to be, touched by her ! Yes, doubtless, He could be touched, but by the heart, not by the hand ; by prayers, not by the eyes ; by faith, and not by the bodily senses . ' Why, ' He says, ' do you wish to touch Me now, you who judge of the glory of My Resurrection only by the bodily senses ? Do you not remember that, even while I was yet mortal, the eyes of My disciples were not able to sustain for a moment the glory of My Body, though it were about to die ? (Matt. xvii. 6). I am still, indeed, in a certain relation to your senses, while I bear this form of a servant, which you are able to recognise through habit. But My glory is wonderful, and raised wholly above you, so that you cannot in any wise attain unto it. ' Defer, then, your judgment, suspend your belief, and do not trust at all to your senses for the determination of a matter so great, and which is reserved to faith . Faith will define it more worthily and more surely, inasmuch as faith comprehends it more fully, and, in its deep and mystical intelligence, apprehends the height and the depth, the length and the breadth of that mystery. That which the eye hath not seen, nor the ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man [even to imagine] , faith bears in itself-concealed, as it were, by an impenetrable covering, and safely sealed.

10. That faculty, then, can alone touch Me worthily, which shall contemplate Me sitting at the Right Hand of My Father, no longer in humble guise, but in celestial glory ; in My very Flesh, but in quite other semblance than aforetime. Why do you desire to touch It in Its disfigurement ? Wait till It be glorified, and you shall do SO. For that which is now disfigured shall then be beautiful ; and disfigured it is, to touch and to sight, even to you, who are yourself disfigured, as relying rather upon your senses than upon faith. But take to yourself [spiritual] beauty, and then the touch of Me will be possible to you ; for if you have faith, then you have this beauty also, and can touch Him who has it both more worthily and more happily. Touch Him with the hand of faith, with the finger of earnest desire, with the clasp of devotion, with the fixed gaze of the intellect. But will He still be black, Him whom you touch thus ? By no means. Thy Beloved is white and ruddy ( Cant. v. 10) . He is beautiful altogether, and is surrounded with the Roses of Sharon, with lilies of the valleys-that is, with the noble bands of Martyrs, and the choirs of Virgins. I who sit in the midst am akin to each, for I, too, am both Virgin and Martyr. How can I but belong to the white-robed choirs of Virgins, I who am a virgin, the Son of a Virgin, the Spouse of a virgin-bride ? How, again, can I but have a place among the empurpled ranks of the Martyrs, I who am the cause and the strength of martyrdom, the pattern and the reward of Martyrs ? Be thou like this, and touch thus Him who is thus described, and then say : My Beloved is whiteandruddy, the chiefest amongten thousand. Thousands of thousands are with Him-ten thousand times ten thousand are around Him ; but there is none of all these to whom He can be compared. Do you fear lest you should fall into some error while seeking Him whom you love in the midst of a multitude so great ? You will assuredly not hesitate in your choice ; you will easily distinguish Him who is chiefest among all those thousands, since He is more majestic than all, and you will say : He that is glorious in His apparel, travelling in the greatness ofHis strength (Is . lxiii. 1 ). Then He will not be in that complexion blackened by trouble and hardship in which, up to that time, He had presented Himself before the eyes of His persecutors that they might despise and put Him to death, as also before the eyes of His friends that they might recognise Him when He was risen again. No, I repeat, He will then appear no longer in that sable garb, but in a robe of white, and with a beauty which surpasses not only that of the sons of men, but also that of angels. Why [ He says] do you wish to touch Me when I am in a state so humble, in the form of a servant, and without form or comeliness ? Touch Me rather when I shall be adorned with heavenly beauty, crowned with glory and honour-inspiring fear, indeed, by My Divine Majesty, but full of the winning serenity and gentleness which is Mine by nature.

11. At this point we ought to notice the prudence of the Bride, and the marvellous profundity of her sayings, inasmuch as under the figure of the curtains of Solomon, that is, in the flesh, she has sought out God, and in death has discovered the Life, supreme glory and honour among unnumbered disgraces and shames, and under the dark and poor exterior of the Crucified One, the whiteness of innocence, and the splendour of all virtues ; just as under those tentcurtains, however black and despised, the ornaments and treasures of a great and rich king are hidden and preserved. Rightly, then, a person does not scorn the blackness of the curtains, who divines and reflects upon the beauty which they conceal. Therefore it is that some have despised the one because they did not know of the existence of the other ; for if they had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory ( 1 Cor. ii. 8 ). Herod knew it not, and therefore despised Him ; nor did the rulers of the Synagogue, since they reproached the gloom and infirmity of His Passion, saying : He saved others, HimselfHe cannot save. Let Christ the King ofIsrael descend now from the Cross, that we may see and believe ( Mark xv. 31, 22). But the thief knew Him from the cross where he was hanging, though He was upon the Cross too, and acknowledged His innocence : This Man hath done nothing amiss. And then at the same time he declared his belief in His royal Majesty and Glory : Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy Kingdom (Luke xxiii . 42). The Centurion knew Him, who cried out that He was the Son of God (Matt. xxvii. 54) ; and the Church knows Him now, and emulates His blackness in order to share in His glory and beauty. She is not confounded at appearing black or being called black, as she says to her beloved : The reproaches of them that reproached Thee are fallen upon me ( Ps. lxix. 9). For she is black as the curtains of Solomon, but without, and not within ; for my Solomon has no inward blackness. Also, she does not say, ' I am black as Solomon, ' but ' as the curtains of Solomon '; because the blackness of Him who is truly the Peaceful is only on the surface. The blackness caused by sin is inward, and sin defiles the soul before it appears to the eyes of men. Thus it is out of the heart that proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witnesses, blasphemies, and it is these which defile a man ( Matt. xv. 19, 20) ; but that is not the case (God forbid !) with our Solomon. You will assuredly not find any such defilements in Him who is truly the Peaceful; for it must absolutely be the case that He who taketh away the sins of the world is Himself without sin, that He may be found fit to bring peace to sinners, and have a right to claim for Himself justly the name of the Peaceful. 1 Luke xxiii . 41 ; but not quite verbatim. See verse 22.

12. But there is also a blackness of repentance which gathers upon one who makes lamentation for his sins. Perhaps He who is my Solomon will not abhor this in me, if I clothe myself with it of my own accord for my sins ; because a broken and contrite heart God does not despise (Ps. li. 17) . There is also that of compassion, with which one is affected who condoles with some other who is afflicted, and it darkens you with the suffering of a brother. Our Peacemaker has without doubt considered that He ought not to reject this blackness of sympathy, since He has deigned Himself to be indued with it for us, and has borne our sins in His own Body on the Tree (1 Peter ii . 24). There is also the blackness of persecution, which is counted as a rich and exalted ornament, when it is endured for the sake of righteousness and truth. Wherefore it is said of the Apostles that they departedfrom the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shamefor His Name (Acts v. 41 ) ; and again : Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake (Matt. v. 10) . It is, I consider, principally in this blackness that the Church takes glory to herself, and of all the dark coverings of the Bridegroom it is that which she imitates most willingly. Also, it is that which has been promised to her by the Saviour : If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you (John xv. 20).

13. On this account the Bride adds : Look not upon me because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me ( i. 6), that is, Do not consider me as repulsive, because it is the violence of persecution which renders me less attractive, and less glorious according to the glory of the world. Why do you impute as a blemish to me the blackness which the heat of persecution, and not any fault in my behaviour, has caused ? Or perhaps she intends by ' the sun ' the warm zeal for righteousness with which she is fired and consumed against the ungodly, saying to God : The zeal of Thine house hath eaten me up (Ps. lxix. 9) ; and again, My zeal hath consumed me, because mine enemies have forgotten Thy words ; and again, Horror hath taken hold upon me, because of the wicked that forsake Thy law (Ps. cxix. 139, 53) ; and again, Do Inot hate them, O Lord, that hate Thee? and am I not grieved with them that rise up against Thee ? (Ps. cxxxix. 21). She observes with care also that saying of the Wise Man : Hast thou daughters ? show not thyself cheerful towards them ( Ecclus. vii. 24) ; so that when they are slothful and luxurious, and backward in observance of rule, she shows towards them, not the serenity of satisfaction, but the troubled look of severity. Or, again, ' to be blackened by the sun ' means, perhaps, to her to burn with ardent charity towards the brethren, to weep with them that weep, to be weak with the weak, to feel acutely when another is affected with scandal. Or it may be read thus : It is Christ, the Sun of Righteousness, for whose love I languish, whose beams have looked upon me. That languishing draws the colour from the countenance, and that paleness arises from the violence of the soul's desire ; wherefore also the Psalmist says : I remembered God, and was delighted, and was exercised, and my spirit swooned away (Ps. lxxvi. 4, Vulg. and Douay). Therefore the ardour of its desire, like a burning sun, makes pale the countenance, while the soul is making its pilgrimage here below, and sighing for the glorious vision of its Lord ; the repulse that it receives makes it impatient, and the delay that it experiences gives it pain that is great according to the greatness of its love. Who is there among us who glows with a love so sacred, that the desire which he has to see Jesus Christ inspires him with distaste and scorn for all the varieties of glory, and all the joy, of this present life ; so that he says to God, with the Prophet, I have not desired the day of man, Thou knowest (Jer. xvii. 16, Douay) , and also with holy David, My soul refused to be comforted (Ps. lxxvii. 2), that is, scorns to be flushed with the empty joy of present good. Or, lastly, ' the sun hath discoloured me ' may mean, in comparison with His own splendour, because when I draw near to Him I find myself to be dusky, even black, and despise myself as disfigured and foul. But otherwise I am indeed beautiful ; and why do you call me black, when I yield in fairness only to the sun ? But the words which follow seem to agree better with the former sense, for she adds : My mother's children were angry with me, which plainly signifies that she has suffered persecution ; but that shall be the subject of another discourse. For the present this, which we have received by the gift of our Lord Jesus Christ, Bridegroom of His Church, will suffice, and may it be to His glory, who is God blessed for ever. AMEN.

MY mother's children [sons] were angry with me (i. 6). Annas and Caiaphas, and Judas Iscariot, were sons of the Synagogue ; and these fought most cruelly and bitterly against the Church at her very beginning, though she was equally a daughter of the Synagogue, inasmuch as they hung upon the Cross Jesus, who united her members into one body. At that time, and by means of them, God fulfilled what He had predicted long before by His Prophet, saying : I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered (Zech. xiii . 7). And perhaps in these words from the canticle of Hezekiah : My life is cut off, as by a weaver : whilst Iwas yet but beginning, He cut me off (Is. xxxviii. 12, Douay) . It is, then, of these and others from that race who are known to have opposed themselves to the Christian name that we must consider it to have been said by the Bride : The sons of my mother were angry with me. And it is with great propriety that she calls them ' sons of my mother,' not ' of my father, ' inasmuch as they had not God for their father, but were of their father the devil, and were murderers, as he was a murderer from the beginning (John viii . 44). Wherefore she does not say ' my brethren, ' or ' the sons of my father, ' but ' the sons of my mother were angry with me. ' Otherwise, if she did not distinguish thus, it would seem that even the Apostle Paul was included in those of whom she complains, since he too at one time persecuted the Church of God ( 1 Cor. xv. 9) ; but he obtained mercy, because he did it ignorantly and in unbelief ( 1 Tim. i. 13), and made proof that he had God for his Father, and thus by father, as by mother, had to the Church the relation of a brother.

2. But remark that she names none in her accusation except the sons of her mother, and accuses them alone, as if they only were in fault. Yet how many things has she endured from strangers ? According to the Psalmist, Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth ; and The plowers plowed upon my back ( Ps. cxxix. 1-3 ) . Why, then, do you accuse in particular the children of your mother, since you are well aware that you have been very often persecuted by many others also ? Now, it is said, When thou sittest at meat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee (Prov. xxiii. 1). Brethren, we are sitting at the table of Solomon, and who is a greater ruler, or richer, than he ? I do not speak of earthly riches, though Solomon abounded even in these ; but look upon the board which is before us, and see how it is loaded with heavenly dainties. Now, these that are set before us are spiritual and divine. And he continues : Consider diligently what is before thee, knowing that it behoves thee to prepare the like. On that account I consider as diligently as I am able that which is provided for me in these words of the Bride ; and it is doubtless for my instruction that she speaks only of the persecution which she endured from those of her own house, and passes over in silence so many and severe sufferings which she has endured in every part of the world, from every nation which is under heaven, as is well known, from infidels, heretics, and schismatics. I know too well the prudence of the Bride to suppose that it is by chance or by forgetfulness that these are passed over without mention. But without doubt she laments more particularly that which she feels more keenly, and thinks it needful for us to avoid with special care. What, then, is that ? Evidently it is domestic and intestine discord. That is plainly referred to in the Gospel by the mouth of the Saviour Himself, when He says : A man's enemies shall be they of his own household ( Matt. x. 36) . And by the Psalmist : Mine own familiar friend, in whom Itrusted, who did also eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me (Ps. xli. 9) . And again, It was not an enemy that reproached me : then Icouldhave borne it : neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me ; then I would have hid myselffrom him. But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance : we took sweet counsel together ( Ps.lv. 12-14). That is to say, What you who are my companion at table and chamber make me suffer I feel more keenly, and endure with greater reluctance. You know whose complaint this is, and of whom it is made.

3. Recognise, then, that the Bride complains of the sons of my mother ' with the same wounded feelings, and in the same spirit, when she says that they were angry with me. So she speaks in another place : My lovers and my friends stand alooffrom my sore : and my kinsmen stand afar off (Ps. xxxviii. 11 ). Keep far away from you always, I entreat, this evil which is so greatly to be hated and detested ; you, who have experienced, and experience daily, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity (Ps. cxxxiii. 1 ) ; and if in unity, then assuredly not in a habit of scandal. For otherwise, instead of being good and pleasant, it is of all things the worst and most deplorable. Woe to that man who is the cause that the sweet bond of unity is broken ! Whosoever it is shall assuredly bear the penalty. May it be mine rather to die than to hear any one among you crying out with good reason : The sons of my mother were angry with me. Are not you all sons of one community, and, as it were, of one mother, and, therefore, brethren one of the other ? What is there coming from without, which should be able to trouble or distress you if all is well with you within, if you rejoice in brotherly love ? Who is he that will harm you, it is said, if ye be followers of that which is good ( 1 Pet. iii. 13) ? Wherefore do ye covet earnestly the best gifts ( 1 Cor. xii. 31), and you shall prove yourselves to be followers of the good. Now, the best gift of all is charity ; there is assuredly no other to be compared with that, which the heavenly Bridegroom of a new Bride took occasion so often to inculcate, once saying, indeed : By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, ifye have love one to another ; and again, A new commandment I give you, that ye love one another ; and, This is My commandment, that ye love one another (John xiii. 34, 35 ; xv. 12 ) ; also praying that they might be one, as He and the Father are One (xvii . 11 ). See also if St. Paul himself, who invites you to seek the best gifts, does not place charity above all the others ; both when he says that it is greater than faith and than hope, and far above knowledge; as also when, after having enumerated many and wonderful gifts of grace, he leads us at length to a more excellent way, and explains that this is no other than the gift of charity. Lastly, what can we regard as comparable to a virtue which is preferred to martyrdom itself, and to faith, which removes mountains ( 1 Cor. xii. 31 ; xiii. 2, 3) ? This, then, is what I say to you : Let peace be yours and come from you ; then no danger which may seem to threaten you from without will appal you, for it will have no power to injure you. And, on the contrary, nothing that seems to allure you from outside will have any attraction for you if (which may God forbid !) the seeds of discord have begun their growth within you.

4. Therefore, dear brethren, let there be peace among you ; do not harm or give pain to each other by word, by action, or even by any sign, for fear lest any one among you, being embittered and preoccupied by his own weakness of spirit, and by the persecution he endures, should be driven to appeal to God to come to his aid against those who injure or distress him, and it should come to pass that he break forth into that grave complaint: The children of my mother were angry with me. For in thus sinning against your brother, you sin against Christ, who has said : That which you have done to the least of My brethren, you have done to Me ( Matt. xxv. 40, 45) . Nor is it enough merely to abstain from graver offences-for example, from open insult or abuse ; but also from secret and envenomed whispers against any. No, I repeat, it is not sufficient to guard our lips against these and other faults of a similar kind ; even slight injuries to others ought to be avoided, if, indeed, we can call any fault slight which is done with the intent of injuring a brother, since, according to the word of our Saviour, if any is angry with his brother without a cause, for this alone he shall be in danger of the judgment ( Matt. v. 22). And rightly so, for that which you think a little thing, and for that reason do it with too little hesitation, the person against whom it is done views in quite a different light as a man who looks upon the surface of things, and judges of them according to their appearance, is prepared to think a mote to be a beam, and a single spark a blazing fire. For that charity, which believes all things, is not in the hearts of all. But the spirit of man, and the thoughts of his heart, are disposed rather to suspect evil than to believe good ; especially when the Rule of silence neither permits you, whose conduct is in question, to excuse yourself, nor him who suspects you, to declare the wound which his sense of right feels, that it may be cured. Thus he burns inly, even unto death, and groans within himself, being wholly occupied with anger and irritation, and unable to occupy his mind with any other subject than the injury he has sustained. He cannot pray, he cannot read, nor meditate upon any holy or spiritual subject ; and while this soul, for which Christ died, is thus going on the way which leads to death, being cut off from the influence of the life-giving Spirit, and deprived of His benefits, what is the condition, I ask you, of your mind ? What pleasure can you take in prayer, or work, or any occupation that you may have in the meantime, you against whom Christ cries out in anxiety for your brother whose heart you have made sad ? The Son of My mother, He says, is fighting against Me, and he who partakes at My table of its sweet sustenance has filled Me with bitterness.

5. If you say that your brother] ought not to trouble himself so deeply for so slight a cause, I reply that the slighter the cause of offence is, the easier it is for you to abstain from giving it. However, I know not how you can call any cause whatsoever slight (as I have said) that is more than the occasion of anger, since even this, as you have learned from the lips of the Judge Himself, renders the offender liable to the judgment. Do you call that a light thing at which Christ is offended, and for which you are to be brought to judgment, since it is a fearful thing to fall into the Hands of the living God ? (Heb. x. 31) . When, then, you have received an injury, as may be the case sometimes (for it is a difficult thing to prevent this from happening in communities such as this) , do not, after the manner of those in the world, hasten to strike back your brother again with a hostile response. Do not ever venture to retort, under the pretext of reply, with cutting and ironical words, and thus pierce deeply a soul for which Christ deigned to be crucified ; do not make surly answer, nor grumble under your breath, nor take a sneering air, nor laugh mockingly, nor knit your brows, as if in wrath or threatening. Let your anger die away where it is born--do not permit it even to show itself, for it brings death with it, and it may slay some soul-that you may be able to say with the Psalmist : I was troubled, and I spoke not (Ps. lxxvi. 5, Douay) .

6. I have understood that there are some who interpret these words in a more mysterious manner, and regard them as having been spoken of the devil and his angels, who were also sons of the heavenly Jerusalem, which is our mother, from which they have fallen, and who do not cease to make war upon their sister-that is, the Church. Again, if anyone should take these words in a good signification, and as referring to spiritually-minded men who are in the Church, and who strike with the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, against carnal brethren wounding them for their salvation, and bringing them by this warfare to a love for spiritual things, against this explanation I should not contend. Would that the Just One would reprove me in mercy, would correct me, striking that He may cure, slaying that He may give life, so that I, too, may dare to say : I live : yet not I, but Christ liveth in me ( Gal. ii. 20). Agree, it is said, with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him ; lest he deliver thee to the judge, and the judge to the officer ( Matt. v. 25). A good adversary with whom, if I shall live in peace, there shall be no ground for the judge to speak against me, or deliver me to the torturer. For my part, I do not regret it if it has ever been my lot to make any among you sorry after this fashion, for you have been made sorry unto salvation. I do not know that I have ever done that without great sorrow to myself, according to that which is said : A woman, when she is in travail, hath sorrow (John xvi. 21 ) . But God forbid that I should keep in memory that sorrow now that I have fruit of my pain, inasmuch as I see Christ formed in you who are my offspring. I know not how it is, but I have even more tender sentiments towards those who have been, after and by means of my loving corrections, enabled to rise above some weakness or failing than towards those who have been strong from the beginning, and have had no need of such means of remedy.

7. It is, then, in this sense that the Church, or the soul that loves God, is enabled to say that ' the sun hath altered her colour' namely, in sending forth and arming certain men of the children of her mother to carry on against her a war for her salvation ; to make her a captive to the faith and love of Him, after having pierced her with many of those arrows of which it is written : The arrows of the Mighty are sharp (Ps. cxx. 4) ; and again : Thine arrows stickfast in me ( Ps. xxxviii. 2) . That is why the Psalmist goes on to say : There is no soundness in my flesh. But as for the soul, it is thus rendered more healthy and more strong, and says : The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak ( Matt. xxvi. 41 ) ; and with the Apostle : When Iam weak, then am I strong ( 2 Cor. xii. 10). Do you see how the weakness of the flesh strengthens the spirit, and increases its powers, while, on the contrary, the strength of the flesh is a cause of weakness to the spirit ? What wonder is it that you should be made stronger by the weakness of your enemy ? Unless, perhaps, you should, with excessive foolishness, regard that which is for ever lusting against the spirit ( Gal. v. 17) as your friend. See, then, if the prayer was not wise and well founded which was made by that holy man who asked of God : Pierce Thou myflesh with Thyfear ( Ps. cxix. 120, Douay) . That fear is the best of all arrows which pierces and slays the desires of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved alive. And does it not seem to you that he who keeps under his body and brings it into subjection (1 Cor. ix. 27) is himself aiding the Hand of Him who is carrying on the combat with it ?

8. There is yet one other arrow : it is the Word of God, which is living, powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword ( Heb. iv. 12) , of which the Saviour says : I came not to send peace, but a sword (Matt. x. 34). There is still another, a chosen arrow : it is the love of Christ, which not only pierced the soul of Mary, but transfixed it from side to side, so that it left no part of that virgin heart empty of this love, but she loved with all her heart, all her soul, and all her strength, and was full of grace. Or perhaps it may be thus, that it transpierced her, in order to penetrate even to us, and that we might all receive of that fulness ; that she might be the mother of charity, of which God, who is Love, is the Father ; that she might bring forth and might set her tabernacle in the Sun, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, which says : I will give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be My salvation to the ends of the earth (Is. xlix. 6). For this was fullfiled by means of Mary, who brought forth and rendered visible in the flesh Him who was invisible, and whom she had conceived, but not of the flesh, nor with the flesh. As for her, she received through all her being a wound of Love, deep, sweet, and wide. How happy should I consider myself if I could only feel myself touched with the point of the weapon which gave that wound, and if my soul, being touched with that light wound of love, might be able to say : Iam wounded with love (ii . 5) . Oh that I might be not only in that manner wounded, but also stricken to the entire extermination of that colour and warmth of the flesh, which war against the soul !

9. If the daughters of this world remark disdainfully upon such a soul as this, calling it pallid and bloodless, does it not seem to you that it might fitly reply : Look not upon me because Iam black, because the sun hath looked upon me ? And if it bears in mind that it has reached its present state through the exhortations or chidings of some servants of God, who were jealous over it with a godly jealousy, may it not therefore go on to say, and truly : Mymother's children were angry with me ? The sense, then, of these words, according to what has been said, will be, that the Church, or any pious soul, speaks them, not by way of grief or complaint, but in a feeling of joy, of thankfulness, and even of a sacred pride ; that for the Name of Christ, and for His Love, she has been deemed worthy to be swarthy and dusk, and to be reproached with it for His sake ; and this honour the Church attributes, not to her own merit, but to the grace and mercy which have prevented and followed her to bring this about. For who can believe without a preacher ? and how shall they preach, except they be sent ? ( Rom. x. 14, 15). She mentions that her mother's children have been angry with her, not in a spirit of anger, but rather of gratitude. On that account she adds : They made me the keeper of the vineyards. For this saying, if examined as to its spiritual sense, does not, in my opinion, appear to breathe any feeling of complaint or bitterness, but rather of satisfaction. But before we take in hand to explain that passage (which is a sacred one), let us endeavour, by our accustomed prayers, to call to our aid that Holy Spirit, who searches the deep things of God, or certainly the Only Begotten Son, who is in the Bosom of the Father, Jesus Christ Our Lord, the Bridegroom of the Church, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

THEY made me the keeper of the vineyards. Who did this ? Are they your adversaries, of whom you spoke last ? Listen and understand, if she does not confess that she has been entrusted with this charge by those very persons at whose hands she suffered. Nor is this strange, if the purpose of correction was the motive of the attack. For who does not know that opposition is frequently offered to many persons with a friendly intention, and with excellent results ? How many do we know of daily who are led on to a higher standard and to a far stricter mode of living by the pious rebukes of their superiors ? Let us therefore show, if we are able, how a contest against the Church may be carried on by her children in a spirit of hostility, and yet how the harm which they inflict may be for her good ; for there is nothing more agreeable than that those who intend to do harm should do good even against their will. The former interpretation given of the words covers either sense, because the Church has never been without those who have been well disposed towards her, or without others who have been ill disposed ; and each of these classes of people have attacked her, though from precisely opposite motives ; yet each kind of attacks have been to her profit. In fact, she is able so to glory in having profited by the trials which she has endured at the hand of her rivals, that for one vineyard, which they have seemed to have taken away from her, she rejoices in having been set over many. This, she says, is the benefit that they have done in contending against me and my vineyard, those, I mean, who say, Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation thereof (Ps. cxxxvii. 7), namely, that instead of one, I can number many vineyards as mine. It is that she says in effect, when she continues, My own vineyard I have not kept, as if she would explain the reason why she is no longer the keeper of one vineyard, but of many ; and that is, indeed, the literal sense of the words.

2. But if we follow it simply, and are contented with the most obvious meaning which occurs to us, we shall consider that the Holy Scripture intends to speak here of those earthly and material vineyards, which, as we see daily, receive from the dew of heaven and the fatness of the earth the elements from which they pour forth wine, in which is excess and riot (luxuria) ; and thus we draw out no sense befitting and worthy, I do not say of the Bride of the Lord merely, but of any modest and retiring matron, from the words of the Scripture. For what sort of fitness is there in married women to undertake the custody of vineyards ? And even if that were otherwise, what reason have we for supposing that the Church was ever destined to such an office ? Does God take a particular care of earthly vineyards ? But if we interpret in a spiritual manner, and understand by the vineyards Churches, that is, faithful nations, according to the thought of the Prophet, when he says, The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel ( Is. v. 7), then we shall, perhaps, begin to perceive how it is by no means unworthy of the Bride to become keeper of the vineyards.

3. Furthermore, I think that we shall find in this a veritable prerogative, and one of no small value, if anyone takes the trouble to consider carefully how greatly she has extended her bounds in vineyards of this kind in every part of the world since the day when she was attacked in Jerusalem, and driven forth by the children of her mother, with those who were of that her new plantation, I mean the multitude of them who believed, of whom we read that they were of one heart and ofone soul ( Acts iv. 32). And it is that vineyard which she here confesses that she had not kept, but that did not turn to her discredit ; for that was not in the persecution so torn up thence that it could not be planted elsewhere, and let out to other husbandmen, who should render up its fruits in their seasons . No, indeed, it did not perish ; it was but planted in other grounds, where it grew and waxed great, as the Lord gave it His blessing. And now lift up your eyes and see if the hills are not covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof like the goodly cedars ; if it has not sent out her boughs unto the sea, and her branches unto the river (Ps. lxxx. 10, 11 ). Nor is that wonderful, for it is God's husbandry, it is God's building ( 1 Cor. iii. 9) . It is He who makes it fertile, who extends it, who trains and who prunes it, so that it may bring forth more fruit. When has the care and labour of Him, whose Right Hand planted it, ever been wanting to it ? Assuredly that vine, which is the Lord Himself, of which the Apostles are the branches, and the Father the Husbandman ( John xv. 1 , 2, 5), cannot be neglected. In faith it is planted, and rooted in charity ; the soil in which it grows is stirred with the hoe of discipline, manured with the tears of penitents, watered with the exhortations of preachers ; and thus it gives wine in abundance, wine which makes glad, but does not inebriate ; wine which is full of sweetness, void of impurity. This wine not only renders glad the heart of man, but of it the angels drink with joy ; for they rejoice in the penitence and conversion of sinners, they thirst for the salvation of men. The tears of penitents are to them a wine which has the odour of life, the savour of grace, the taste of forgiveness, the joyfulness of reconciliation, the wholesomeness of returning innocence, the sweetness of a conscience rendered peaceful.

4. Then, again, from this single vine, which the violence of a cruel persecution seemed to have destroyed, how many shoots have been planted and have flourished in every part of the world ? And over all these the Bride has been set as guardian, that she might not sorrow, because her first vineyard she did not keep. Be consoled, O daughter of Sion ; if blindness in part has happened unto Israel, what hast thou lost by this ? Reverence in silence the mystery ; do not lament it as a loss. Rather make broad thy bosom, and gather in the fulness of the Gentiles. Say to the cities of Judah : It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you : but seeing ye put it fromyou, andjudge yourselves unworthy ofeverlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles ( Acts xiii. 46). The offer was made by God to Moses, that if he would give up a people which had quickly turned aside out of the way of God's commandments, and abandon it to the Divine vengeance, that he himself should become a great nation ; but he refused. Wherefore ? Because he felt for that people an exceeding love, which held him in close attachment to them ; and because he did not seek to advance his own interests but the honour of God, nor cared for that which should profit himself, but for that which should be to the good of many. That was his great desire .

5. For my part I think that in this was a secret design of Providence, and that this gift, so great and so excellent, was reserved to the Bride, so that she, and not Moses, should be developed into a great nation. For it was not expedient that a friend of the Bridegroom should prematurely snatch from the Bride her benediction . Therefore it was not Moses, but the new-made Bride to whom it was said : Go ye into all the world, andpreach the Gospel to every creature (Mark xvi. 15) ; it was she, I say, who was sent forth [to grow] into a great nation. For can any nation be greater than all the world ? And all the world easily yielded to her who offered grace and brought with her peace. That grace was far different to the Law. In how strong a contrast did the sweetness of the one and the austerity of the other present themselves to every conscience ? Who could look with the same eye upon her who condemned and her who consoled, her who punished and her who forgave, her who struck with revenging hand and her who embraced with gentle arms ?1 It was not possible to receive with the same ardour the darkness and the light, war and peace, judgment and mercy, the shadow and the reality, the rod of punishment and the heritage of reward, the restraining bridle and the joy-giving kiss. Heavy were the hands of Moses, as Aaron and Hur experienced ( Exod. xvii. 12 ) ; heavy was the yoke of the Law, as the Apostles themselves bore witness when they declared that neither their fathers nor they were able to bear it (Acts xv. 10) ; in truth, a heavy yoke ; and the reward to be earned by bearing it was but a paltry one, for it did not extend beyond the earth. It was for these reasons that Moses was not sent forth [to grow] into a great nation. But thou, O holy Church, who art our mother, who hast the promise, not only ofthe life that now is, but of that which is to come ( 1 Tim. iv. 8), shalt obtain an easy and willing welcome from all, because of the double grace which thou bearest, that thy yoke is light and easy, and the realm of glory assured to thee is great and illustrious. If thou wert driven from a single city thou hast been welcomed by the whole world ; as well because thy promises are engaging as because thy commandments are not alarming or grievous. Why dost thou still mourn the loss of one vineyard, when it has been repaid to thee with so great usury ? As a recompense to thee because thou hast been abandoned, and hated, so that none passed through thee, it is said : Iwill make thee an eternal excellency, ajoy ofmany generations: thou shalt also suck the milk ofthe Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast ofkings ; and thou shalt know that Ithe Lord amthy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob ( Is. lx. 15, 16). In such a sense as this, then, it is that the Bride speaks of herself as having been made keeper of the vineyards, and having failed to keep her own.

6. I am accustomed, when occasion is given to me by these words, and understanding souls to be meant by vines, I am accustomed to blame myself for having undertaken the cure of souls when I am not sufficient to guard and keep my own soul. And if you approve of this interpretation, notice also, that we may go on to call faith the root of the vine ; the various virtues the branches ; good works the bunch or cluster of grapes which it bears ; and devotion the wine they 1 Plectentem et amplectentem. yield. For as there can be no branch without the root, so without faith there is no virtue. For without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. xi. 6) ; nay, it will be perhaps impossible to be otherwise than displeasing to Him, since whatever is not offaith is sin ( Rom. xiv. 23). It behoved those persons, then, who set me as keeper in their vineyards, to have considered previously whether I had kept my own. Yet, alas ! how long did that remain untilled and desert, and became a mere solitude ! Upon it the vine had failed, and the vigorous shoots of the virtues had been dried up because its faith was sterile . There was, indeed, faith, but it was dead. For how could it be otherwise than dead without good works ? And that, indeed, was the case with me during my life in the world. It is true that afterwards, when I was converted unto the Lord, I began to keep my vineyard better, by a very little, yet not as I ought to have done. And who is, in fact, capable of doing this ? Not such was the holy Psalmist, who said : Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain (Ps. cxxvii. 1 ). To what snares of him who shooteth his arrows from his lurking-places against the innocent do I remember that I was then exposed ! How many times, O my vineyard, hast thou been robbed, and by unnumbered subtle devices, and that at the very time when I was endeavouring with increased vigilance and care to guard thee ! How many and how precious were the clusters of grapes-that is to say, the good works, which either were choked by anger, or borne away by feelings of pride, or trodden under foot and defiled by vainglory ! How great the ravages which carnal greediness, or lukewarmness of spirit, or weakness and timidity of disposition, or sudden temptation, have worked in my soul ! In such a state was I, and yet they set me as keeper of the vineyards, not considering what I had done, and was doing, with my own ; not listening to the accusations and warnings of that master in the spiritual life who said : If a man know not howto rule his own house, how shall he take care of the Church of God ? ( 1 Tim. iii. 5).

7. I wonder at the rash boldness of very many people who do not gather anything from their own vineyards, unless it be briers and thorns, and yet do not fear to obtrude themselves as keepers even over the vineyards of the Lord. Robbers they are, and thieves, not faithful guardians, nor laborious vine-dressers. But let us not occupy ourselves longer with these. Woe to me also for the peril in which the vineyard of my soul is even now-indeed, even more now than heretofore, inasmuch as being engrossed with the care of many, it is impossible but that I should become less careful, less occupied in loving thoughtfulness for that one. No opportunity is given to me to surround it by a protecting hedge, or to dig out the [place for] the wine-press. Alas ! the enclosing wall of it is broken down, so that all they who pass by pluck her grapes (Ps. lxxx. 12). It lies open and exposed on all sides to sadness, to wrath, to impatience. Certain little foxes of pressing necessities, which are, so to speak, constantly gnawing, demolish and lay it waste ; it is overrun in all quarters with anxieties, suspicions, cares, and there is scarcely an hour that is free from the crowd of discordant applicants, from the trouble and care of business. I have no power to stop their coming, and no possibility of refusing to receive them ; and they do not leave me even the time to pray. What shower of tears that I could hope to pour forth would suffice to moisten and melt away the sterility of my soul ? (Ps. xxxv. 12). I wished to say ' of my vineyard ' ; but I followed the words of the Psalm from habit, and the meaning is the same. Nor do I regret an error which draws my attention to the analogy between the two ; for the subject of the discourse is not the vineyard, but the soul. Therefore he is thinking of the soul when he speaks of the vineyard, and by the name and under the figure of the one, he deplores the sterility of the other. With what tears, then, can I water my vineyard, which is so barren ? All its branches are dried up for want of moisture ; they lie on the ground, and bear no fruit, for want of the life-giving sap which should sustain them. O good Lord JESUS ! Thou knowest what bundles of these twigs [of dried and perished good works] the fire of contrition which burns in my heart consumes every day in the burnt-sacrifice which I offer to Thee ! Receive, I entreat, the sacrifice of a broken spirit ; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise ( Ps. li. 17).

8. It is thus, then, that I apply, in my imperfect manner, the present passage to myself. But perfect will be everyone who is enabled in another sense to say, My own vineyard I have not kept ; namely, in that sense in which the Saviour says in the Gospel, He that loseth his lifefor My sake shallfind it ( Matt. x. 39). The person is evidently fit and worthy to be set as keeper over the vineyards, who is not prevented from, or even hindered in, the care of his own vineyard, by all the diligence and carefulness which he gives to watching over others committed to his charge ; while at the same time he seeks not the advancement of his own interests, or that which is of advantage to himself, but that which is useful and beneficial to many. Without doubt, if the care of so many vineyards (that is, souls belonging to the circumcision) was confined to St. Peter, it was because he was ready to go both into prison, and to death (Luke xxii. 33), so little was he restrained by the love of his own vineyard, that is, of his soul, from the care of those intrusted to his charge. It was also on a similar ground that so great a space of vineyards among the nations was confided to St. Paul ; because, so far from being too much engrossed in the care of his own, he was ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the Name of the Lord Jesus (Acts xxii. 33). He said, in fact, None of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself (xx. 24). It was to form a right estimate of things, to regard nothing that belonged to him as to be preferred to his own self.

9. How many persons there are who have preferred even the meanest of things, a little money, to their salvation ! But St. Paul did not prefer to it even his life. I count not my life, he said, dearer than myself (pretiosiorem quam me, Vulg.) Do you, then, O Apostle, make a difference between yourself and your life ? (animam = soul ; Douay ' life '). You are prudent in regarding yourself as of more value than anything that is yours. But in what sense is your life not yourself ? I suppose that because St. Paul was then walking in the Spirit, and in mind consenting to the law of God, that it was good (Rom. vii. 16) ; he therefore regarded this, his mind, as the principal and supreme entity in himself, and thought it more proper to call it [himself], than to give that name to any other element whatsoever in his nature. As for the remainder, which is plainly of an inferior character, and to be attached to an inferior and commoner essence (which is the body), to which belongs, not only the function of life and sensibility, but also of self preservation and self support ; the spiritual man, considering it, I say, an unworthy thing to give to this sensuous and carnal nature the name of himself, judged it more fitting to rank it in the class of things appertaining to him, than to call his entire personality by the name of it. When I speak of ' myself, ' he says, understand that which is more excellent in me ; that in which also I stand by the grace of God, that is to say, my mind and my reason. When I speak of ' my life ' or ' my soul,' understand that lower principle which animates my flesh and which participates in its concupiscence. That was ' me, ' indeed, once, but it is so no longer ; inasmuch as I walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit (Rom. viii. 4) . For I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me ( Gal. ii . 20) . It is I, according to the spirit (mentem), but not I, according to the flesh. For what, if even now my soul shares in carnal desires ? It is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me (Rom. vii. 17) . And therefore it is I said that it was not indeed I, but that which is carnal in me ; and that is no other than my [fleshly] soul (anima) . For in truth the carnal affections make a portion of the soul, as does that life, which it communicates to the body. This, then, is the life (or soul) which St. Paul held of little value in comparison with himself, prepared as he was, not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the Lord, and thus to lose his life, according to the Lord's precept ( Matt. x. 39) .

10. You also, if you abandon your own will ; if you perfectly renounce the pleasures of the body; if you crucify the flesh, with its desires and lusts, and mortify your members which are upon the earth, you will show yourself to be an imitator of St. Paul, in that you do not regard your life as dearer than yourself ; you will show yourself also a disciple of Christ, by even losing it, unto salvation. And indeed you wili act more prudently by losing it in order to preserve it, than by so preserving it as to lose it. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it ( Matt. xvi . 25) . What do you say to this, you who are close observers of the quality of your provisions, but negligent of your own characters ? Hippocrates and his followers teach how 1 See notes to Ep. 345. to preserve [ our] lives in this world ; but Christ and His disciples teach us how to lose them. Which of the two do you elect to follow as your master ? But that person makes it very clear which he has chosen whose discourse is all of his ailments, of this complaint in eyes or head, or that in chest or stomach. Each of them, without doubt, speaks what he has learned from the master he has preferred. Have you read these minute symptoms in the Gospel, or in the Prophets, or in the writings of the Apostles ? Flesh and blood have certainly revealed to you this wisdom, not the Spirit of the Father ; for this wisdom is of the flesh. And hear what they who are our physicians think of it : The wisdom of the flesh, they say, is death (Rom. viii . 5, 7), and again, The wisdom of theflesh is enmity against God. Do you think that I ought to propose to you the opinion of Hippocrates or Galen, or, forsooth, that of the school of Epicurus ? I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, and I speak to the disciples of Jesus Christ. If I had brought before you teaching other than His, I should have done very wrongly. Epicurus strives for the pleasure of the body, Hippocrates for its health ; but my Master bids us to contemn both the one object and the other. Hippocrates uses all his efforts to sustain the life of the soul in the body ; Epicurus seeks out, and teaches others to seek out, whatever can afford pleasure and delight during this life; but the Saviour warns us to lose this life [so that we may gain it] .

11. What other advice have you ever heard in the school of Jesus Christ than this which was just now repeated : He that loveth his life shall lose it (John xii. 25) ? Shall lose it, He says, whether by laying it down as a martyr, or by afflicting it as a penitent. Although to mortify the deeds of the flesh by the Spirit is a kind of martyrdom, and it is done with a spiritual weapon which does not, indeed, excite so much horror as that with which the limbs of the body are cut and carved, but is not less painful, since its action continues much longer. Do you see how, by this saying of the Master, the wisdom of the flesh is condemned that wisdom, I mean, which either ministers to the desire for bodily pleasure, or which cares for the good health of the body beyond what is needful ? To show us that the true wisdom does not expend itself upon pleasures, a wise man teaches (Job xxviii. 13 , Douay) that it is not even found in the land of them who live in delights. While he who has found it cries : I have loved it [wisdom] more than health and beauty (Wisd. vii. 10). But if above health and beauty, how much more above pleasure and shameful enjoyment ? But even though a man has severed himself from pleasures, what does this profit if he expends his cares and thoughts every day in investigating differences of constitution, or in devising variations in the cooking of food ? ' Beans, ' gravely reflects such a person as this, ' produce wind ; cheese is heavy upon the stomach ; milk causes headache ; the chest will not bear the drinking of water ; cabbages nourish melancholy ; leeks inflame the bile ; fishes from ponds, or from stagnant and muddy water, do not at all agree with my constitution. ' What then ? Is there nothing to be found in the rivers, in the fields, in the gardens, in the cellars, which you can eat ?

12. Consider. I pray you, that you are a monk, not a physician ; and that it is not your business to make a study of constitutions, but to obey your rule. Have consideration, I entreat, first for your own quiet, then for the labour of those who minister to your wants ; do not increase the charges upon the house-have some regard to conscience. To conscience, I say, not your own, but his who, sitting opposite you, eats what is set before him, and murmurs at your unaccountable abstinence. For he is scandalized, either at your hateful superstition, or at what he perhaps thinks the hardheartedness of him whose duty it is to make needful provision for you. Your brother, I repeat, is scandalized at your singularity ; he thinks you superstitious in that you require superfluities, or he accuses me of being unfeeling in that I do not seek out and provide the food necessary for you. It is to no purpose that some people flatter themselves that they have precedent in their favour by the example of St. Paul, who bade his disciple drink no longer water, but use a little winefor thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities ( 1 Tim. v. 23). They ought to notice, in the first place, that it was not to himself that the Apostle gave that direction ; and, in the next, that the disciple did not make this request on his own behalf. Then, it was not to a monk that this direction was given, but to a Bishop, whose life was of great importance to the nascent and still tender Church. This was Timothy. Give me another Timothy, and I will feed him even upon gold if you wish it, and give him precious cordial to drink. But it is you who make these dispensations, for your own self, and that through tenderness for your own feelings. That dispensation of yours, granted to yourself, is, I confess, a matter for suspicion to me, and I strongly suspect that carnal prudence is deceiving you under the cover and by the name of discretion. And I desire, at least, to admonish you if you allege the authority of the Apostle for drinking wine, that you do not overlook the limitation which he adds of ' a little.' And so enough of that subject. Let us return to the Bride, and let us learn from her not to keep our vineyards merely for our own good, especially we who seem to have been made keepers of the vineyards of JESUS CHRIST our Lord, the Bridegroom of the Church, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN. 1 Utiliter ; that is , to our own good. So the oldest MSS. , and printed editions. Horst and others read : ‘ Proprias utiliter nos custodire. ' THE EXCELLENCY OF THE VISION OF GOD 201

TELL me, O Thou whom my soul loveth, where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon ( i. 7) . The WORD, who is the Bridegroom, frequently appears to zealous souls, and not under one appearance only. Why is that ? Doubtless, because we are not yet able to see Him as He is ( 1 John iii. 2) . Also, that vision which we shall have of Him in Heaven is abiding, because the Form in which we shall then behold Him shall always abide. For He is, and He receives no change or alteration from anything which is, or has been, or shall be. Take away the Past and the Future, and where, then, is any place for change or vicissitude ? Everything which, passing from the condition of that which has been, does not cease to tend towards the condition of that which shall be, passes through the point of being, but it is not. For how can we say that a thing is which never remains in the same state ? Thus, that alone truly is which is neither cut offfrom its past, nor blotted out from its future, but alone remains without change. Because He [i.e. , God] has not been, therefore He is from all eternity ; and because He will not be, therefore He is to all eternity. On this account, therefore, He is the veritable Existence, Uncreated, Illimitable, Unchangeable. When, then, He who is thus, or, rather, is not thus or thus, is beheld as He is, that vision, as I have said, endures, since it is not mingled with, or altered by, any change. He, then, is that one and the same denarius which, as we read in the Gospel, is given to all ( Matt. xx. 9) who behold Him thus, because He is presented to them only in this appearance. For as that which He appears is unchangeable in Itself, so It is present without change to those who behold It ; and those who behold It neither desire, nor are capable of beholding, anything more delightful or more to be desired. When, then, can the eagerness of their gaze be satiated, the sweetness in which they delight be withdrawn, or the truth be exhausted-in one word, when can eternity come to an end ? For if both the will to behold, and the full ability of beholding, be equally enlarged to all eternity, what can be wanting to complete felicity ? What, I ask, remains to be experienced, or even to be wished for, by those whose desire is always to behold Him, and in whom that desire is being eternally satisfied ?

2. But such a Beatific Vision is not for the present life, but is reserved for the final state of existence ; to those, at least, who are able to say : We know that when He shall appear we shall be like Him : for we shall see Him as He is ( 1 John iii. 2). Even in the present life He appears to whom He wills ; but in the manner that He wills, not as He is. There is no man, however wise or holy, there is no prophet, who is able, or ever was able, to see Him, in this mortal body, as He is ; yet those who shall be found worthy shall do so when their body shall be immortal. Therefore He is indeed seen, but in the manner that seems good unto Him, and not as He is. For though you have seen that great luminary ( I mean that Sun, which you behold every day), you have never seen it as it really is, but only as it lights up other things ; for example, the air, or a wall, or a mountain. Nor would you be able to behold it even in a certain degree, if the light of your body, that is, the eye, did not resemble in some degree the light of heaven in its inborn clearness and serenity. For no other member of the body is capable of taking cognizance of light, on account of the essential unlikeness between it and them. Nor is the eye itself, when it is troubled, capable of receiving the light, and that is because it has lost its resemblance to light. Thus as the eye which is disturbed and confused cannot behold the sun, which is peaceful, because of its unlikeness to it, so it beholds the sun when clear and untroubled, on account of a certain similarity between the two. If the eye enjoyed an equal degree of purity with the object on which it gazes, it would behold that object without being dazzled, and as it is, because of the full similarity existing between them. So also he that is enlightened by that Sun of Righteousness, which lightens every man that comes into the world, is able to behold Him in the degree that he is enlightened by Him, and as being like Him in some degree ; but still, as he is not perfectly like Him, he is not able to see Him as He is . Wherefore the Psalmist says : They looked unto Him and were lightened, and their faces were not ashamed (Ps. xxxiv. 5). Thus it is in truth ; provided that we are enlightened as far as we have need, so that with openface, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord ( 2 Cor. iii. 18).

3. It is therefore necessary not to approach Him rashly and irreverently , but with respect and awe, lest the irreverent observer of His Majesty be crushed and destroyed by His glory. He is not to be approached by a change of places, but by an increase of excellences ; and those not bodily, but spiritual, since the Spirit of the Lord is our guide to Him. I saythat it is by the Spirit of the Lord that we draw near to Him, and not by [the power of] our own spirit, although it is in our own spirit that this takes place. Thus the more pure and virtuous a spirit is, the nearer it is to God, and to have attained absolute purity and virtue is to have come into the very Presence of God. For to be in His Presence is to see Him as He is ; and to do this is nothing else than to be as He is, and so not to be dazzled and confounded by being unlike Him. But that, as I have said, will be only in Heaven. 1 On this subject, compare Sermon IX. , De Diversis ; and, further on, with regard to Moses, Sermon XXXIII. , n. 6, and Sermon XXXIV. , n. 1 . But in the present sphere of existence what are that great variety of forms, and that vast number of different species among created things, but, as it were, rays from the Sun of the Divine Nature, showing indeed that He from Whom they derive their being truly exists, but not explaining in full what He is ? Therefore you discern somewhat concerning Him, but Himself you do not discern. But when you behold something relating to Him, though without beholding Him, you are assured, nevertheless, of the fact of His existence, and that ought to lead you to seek for Him. Nor will grace be wanting to him whoseeks, while he who neglects to seek will not have the excuse of ignorance. Now, this mode of beholding is common to all rational creatures. For it is easy, as we are taught by the Apostle, for all those who have the use of reason clearly to see the invisible things of God, as they are understood by the things which are made (Rom. i. 20) . But

4. It was, without doubt, in another manner that God deigned formerly to manifest Himself to the Patriarchs, granting to them a frequent and familiar communion with His Presence, although even to them He was not visible as He is, but as He deigned to make Himself known. Nor was it in one manner only that He was made known to all ; but, as the Apostle declares, at sundry times andin divers manners (Heb. i. 1 ), though in Himself He is one, as He declared to Israel, The Lord Thy God is one Lord (Deut. vi. 4). Nor was that manifestation common to all ; yet it was made from without, by appearances visible to the senses, or words heard by the ears. there was still another manner in which God was discerned, differing from those, inasmuch as it was inward : when God deigned of His own accord to make Himself known to a soul that sought for Him, and lavished on that seeking the entire love and ardour of its affections. And this is the sign of His coming thus to a soul, as we are taught by one who had experienced it : Afire goeth before Him, and burneth up His enemies round about (Ps. xcvii. 3). For it is needful that in every soul in which He is about to appear such an ardour of sanctified longing should go before His Face, as to consume every impurity of evil thoughts and works, and so to prepare a place for the Lord. And then the soul perceives that the Lord is at hand, when it feels itself consumed in that fiery longing, and it says with the Prophet : From above hath He sentfire into my bones, and it prevaileth against them (Lam. i. 13) ; and again : My heart was hot within me, and while Iwas musing the fire burned ( Ps . xxxix. 3) .

5. After a soul has been thus pressed by frequent aspirations towards God, or rather by continual prayer, and is afflicted by the violence of its longings, it is sometimes the case that He, who is so earnestly desired and longed for, has pity on that soul and makes Himself manifest to it ; and I think that, led by its own experience, it will be able to say with the prophet Jeremiah : The Lord is good to them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him (Lam. iii . 25). His Angel, too, who is one of the companions of the Bridegroom, who has been commissioned to [watch over] that individual soul, to be the minister and the witness of that secret and mutual communion, how greatly, I say, does that Angel rejoice ; how is he transported with joy, so that turning to the Lord he says : ' I thank Thee, O God of infinite majesty, for that Thou hast granted the earnest desires of that soul, and hast not denied to him the request of his lips ! It is that Angel which is the untiring attendant everywhere of the soul confided to his care, and does not cease to entreat and warn it by frequent suggestions, saying : Delight thyself in the Lord, andHe shall give thee thy heart's desire ; and again : Wait on the Lord, and keep His way (Ps. xxxvii . 4, 34) ; and again : Though he tarry, wait for Him ; for He shall surely come, He shall not tarry (Hab. ii. 3, Vulg. ). Then, addressing himself to the Lord, he says : As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so longeth that soul after Thee, O God (Ps. xlii . 1). It has desired Thee in the night, its spirit within it has sought Thee early ( Is. xxvi. 9). And again : Daily he has stretched out his hands unto Thee (Ps. lxxxviii. 9) ; send her away, for she crieth after Thee (Matt. xv. 23) ; Return, O Lord, how long, and be entreated in favour of Thy servant (Ps. lxxxix. 13, Douay) . Look down from heaven, and see, and visit that desolate soul. Faithful is the paranymph ; he is conscious of that mutual love, but without being jealous of it ; and far from seeking his own interest, seeks only that of his Lord. He goes and comes between the Bridegroom and the Bride, presenting the prayers of the one, bringing back the gifts of the other. The one he arouses, the Other he placates. And sometimes, though rarely, leading on and conducting, he introduces the one to the Other ; for he is a servant of God and of His House ; every day he beholds the Face of the Father, nor does he fear to be refused any request.

6. But be most careful not to allow yourself to think that there is anything imaginary, on the one hand, or corporeal, on the other hand, in this mingling of the Word with the soul of the believer. I am saying only that which the Apostle says, that he that isjoined unto the Lord is one spirit ( 1 Cor. vi . 17). I go on to express, in what words I am able, the absorption of a pure soul into God, or the hallowed and blessed descent of God into the soul, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. That union, then, is made in the spirit, because God is a Spirit, and is moved with love for the beauty of that soul which He may have seen to be walking according to the Spirit, and to have no desire to fulfil the lusts of the flesh, especially as He knows that it is filled with ardent love for Himself. A soul in this condition, with such feelings and so beloved, will be far from content that her Bridegroom should manifest Himself to her in the manner which is common to all ; that is, by the things which are made, or even in the manner peculiar to a few, namely, by dreams and visions ; such a soul desires that by a special privilege He should descend from on high into her, and pervade herwholly in the deepest affections, and to the very ground of the heart. She desires that He whom she loves should not show Himself to her in an outward shape, but should be, as it were, inpoured into her ; that He should not merely appear to her, but should enter into and dominate her ; nor is it doubtful that her happiness is so much the greater, as He is within rather than without. For He is the Word; He does not sound in the ears, but penetrates the heart ; He is not full of words, but full of power ; nor does He come to the ears with a sound, but to the affections with sweetness ineffable. The features of His countenance are not formed and defined, but exercise a formative power ; they do not strike upon the vision of the eye, but they rejoice the heart, not with charm of form and colour, but with the affection they excite.

7. I am not, however, able to describe the manner in which God manifests Himself as He is, although in this manner of manifestation He declares Himself no other than as He is. For however full of reverence and devotion souls may be, He will not continue His Presence in them permanently and precisely thus, nor with complete uniformity to all individuals. For, according as the desires of a soul vary, so the delight felt in the Divine Presence must needs vary also ; and that heavenly sweetness strikes in divers ways upon the palate of the soul, according to the variation of its desires and longings. Also, you have noticed in this Song of love how often He has changed His countenance, and in how great a number of winning forms He has deigned to appear before His beloved ; and how, like a modest spouse, at one time he seeks to enjoy in secret communion with a holy soul, and to take pleasure in its devotion ; at another He seems to conduct Himself as a physician, with oils and unguents-doubtless on account of weak and tender souls, which have still need of remedies and consolations, and therefore are called by the name of maidens to signify their delicacy. If anyone murmurs, let him recall that they that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick (Matt. ix. 12). Sometimes, again, He presents Himself as some traveller, joining Himself to the Bride and the young maidens who are walking with her, and solaces all that company during the fatigues of their way by His pleasant discourses, so that they say when He departs, Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked with us ofJesus, by the way (Luke xxiv. 32) ? How delightful a companion is He who by the sweetness of His manners and His discourse, as by the delightful odours which He breathes around Him, draws all to follow after Him ; and therefore they say, We will run in the odour of Thy perfumes (i. 4). Again, there are times when He appears as some opulent head of a family, in whose house are abundant provisions for all ; or, rather, as a King powerful and splendid, who appears to exalt the poverty of his timid bride, to display to her the treasures of his glory, and excite in her a desire for them ; to show to her his richlystored winepresses and granaries, the produce of his gardens and his fields, and, finally, to bring her into his inner chamber. For the heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, and he thinks that none of all these things should be hidden from her whom he hath raised out of poverty, whom he embraces as amiable and beloved, and whom he has proved to be faithful. And He does not cease to manifest Himself from above in this or that inward and spiritual manner to those who seek for Him, so that the word may be accomplished which He spake : Lo, Iam withyou always, even unto the end ofthe world (Matt. xxviii. 20).

8. In all these manifestations He is kind and gentle, and of tender mercy. For as in His embrace He shows Himself loving and tender, so the oil and perfumes and other remedies of which He makes use prove Him forgiving, and rich in pity and compassion. Then in the road He is found to be cheerful, affable, full of help and comfort ; in the showing forth His riches and possessions bountiful, and one who gives recompenses proportionate to His royal liberality. It is thus that you will find the Word shadowed forth under a great variety of figures all through this Song of Songs. It is that, I think, which is signified by the Prophet where He says : Christ the Lord is a Spirit before ourface : under His shadow shall we live among the Gentiles (Lam. iv. 20) ; which, however, we see now only in a glass, and darkly, and not yet face to face. But that endures only while we live among the nations of this world] ; for when we are among the angels it shall be otherwise ; then we shall enjoy a felicity similar to theirs ; then we shall see Him, no longer in types and shadows, but as He is -that is, in the form of God. For just as there were only types and shadows to make Him known to those of the elder dispensation, as I have said, but to us, through the grace of Christ present among us in the Flesh, the truth shines forth by its own light ; so also it cannot be denied that we ourselves, in comparison with the life to come, live now in, as it were, a shadow of the truth. Unless we shall contradict the Apostle when He says : We know in part, and we prophesy in part ( 1 Cor. xiii. 9) ; and again : Icountnot myself to have apprehended (Philip. iii. 13). Is not that the precise difference between him who walks by faith and him who walks by sight of the object aimed at ? Therefore the just lives by faith ( Hab. ii. 4), but the blessed rejoice in beholding [ Him whom they love] ; and so, also, while the man who is holy lives here below in the shadow of Christ, the angel, likewise holy, glories in the splendour and light of His countenance.

9. And if faith be a shadow yet it is good, for it tempers the Light to our weak and darkened eyes, and prepares them for its brilliance ; for it is written : Purifying their hearts by faith (Acts xv. 9). Faith, then, does not extinguish the light, but preserves it. Whatever that be, and however great, which is open to the vision of an angel, the shadow of faith preserves for me ; wraps it, as it were, in an ample and trusty bosom, to be revealed to me in due time. Is it not better for you to possess, though in a shrouded and hidden state, that which if uncovered and bare you would not be capable of grasping ? Even the Mother of the Lord lived in the shadow of faith, for ofher it was said : Blessed is she that believed ( Luke i. 35 and 45). She lived also in the shadow cast by the Body of Christ, according to the words of the angel : The power of the Highest shall overshadow thee. Nor is this a shadow to be lightly thought of, which is cast by the power of the Highest. There was assuredly power in the Flesh of Christ which overshadowed the Virgin, and that which was impossible to a mortal woman, to sustain the Presence and the unapproachable Light of the Divine Majesty, she was enabled to endure by the sheltering shadow or envelope of that vivifying Body. A strength, indeed, by which all opposing power was subdued. As strength it puts demons to flight ; as shadow it provides a safe shelter for men; a strength which gives vigour, a shelter providing pleasant coolness.

10. We, then, who walk by faith and are nourished with the Flesh of Christ, that we may live the life Divine, we live in the shadow of Christ. For His Flesh is meat indeed (John vi. 55). And perhaps it is for that very reason that in the passage quoted at first we have Him described under the figure of a shepherd or pastor, where the Bride seems to address Him as if He were some one of the shepherds, saying : Tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon. He is the Good Shepherd, who giveth His Life for His sheep (John x. 11 ) ; His Life He spends for them to redeem them ; His Flesh He gives to them to nourish them. A marvellous thing, indeed ; He the Pastor, the Pasturage, and the Price of redemption ! But this discourse is growing long, inasmuch as the passage is so extensive, and contains truths so great that it cannot be expounded in a few words ; and I see that this necessity obliges me to break off rather than to finish . It is needful, then, as the subject is not exhausted, that we should keep it still in mind, so that I may resume it where it has been dropped, and complete it, as far as I may be enabled to do by the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bridegroom of the Church, who is over all, God, blessed for ever. AMEN.

TELL me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon (i. 7). This is the point where we are ; from hence we proceed with our subject. But before commencing to speak of that vision and interview, I think it well to recapitulate, in a few words, the other modes of vision already treated of, and to show how they may be spiritually applied by us according to the prayers and merits of each ; so that having fully grasped them, if God give us the grace so to do, we may follow more easily, and with fuller understanding, what remains to be said upon the subject. But that is very difficult indeed; for although the words in which those visions or similitudes are described are corporeal, and describe objects in the physical sphere, yet they are intended to suggest things spiritual to our minds, and for this reason the causes and meanings of them are to be searched by the spiritual faculty. And who is competent to understand or to sound so many different affections and modes of progress in the spirit by which the manifold grace of the Divine Bridegroom is manifested ? Yet if we enter into ourselves, and the Holy Spirit deigns to show us by His light that which by His continual working in us He does not disdain to bring about in our souls, I think we shall not remain entirely without understanding of these deep things ; for I trust that we have received, not the spirit of this world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we may know the things which are freely given to us by God ( 1 Cor. ii. 12) .

2. If, then, any of us finds it, with the Psalmist, good for him to draw near to God ( Ps. lxxiii. 28), and to speak more plainly, if any among us is so filled with an earnest longing [for those things that are above] that he desires to be dissolved and be with Christ ; but desires it vehemently, thirsts for it ardently, and, without ceasing, dwells upon the hope of it : he shall, without doubt, receive the Word, and in no other form than that of the Bridegroom in the time of visitation ; that is to say, in the hour when he shall feel himself in wardly embraced, as it were, by the arms of wisdom, and shall receive a sweet inpouring of the Divine Love. For the desire of his heart shall be granted unto him, though he is still in the body as in a place of pilgrimage, and though only in part for a time, and that a short time. For when [the Lord] has been sought in watching and prayers, with strenuous effort, with showers of tears, He will at length present Himself to the soul ; but suddenly, when it supposes that it has gained His Presence, He will glide away. Again He comes to the soul that follows after Him with tears ; He allows Himself to be regained, but not to be retained, and anon He passes away out of its very hands. Yet if the devout soul shall persist in prayers and tears, He will at length return to it ; He will not deprive it of the desire of its lips, but will speedily disappear again, and not return unless He be sought again with the whole desire of the heart. Thus, then, even in this body the joy of the Presence of the Bridegroom is frequently felt ; but not the fulness of His Presence, because though His appearance renders the heart glad, the alternation of His absence affects it with sadness. And this the Beloved must of necessity endure, until, having laid down the burden of an earthly body, she shall be borne up upon the pinions, so to speak, of her earnest desires, and fly away, passing freely over the plains of contemplation as a bird through the air, and following in spirit her Beloved, whithersoever He goeth, without anything to hinder or retard. 1 Labore is wanting in many MSS.

3. Nevertheless, He will not present Himself, even in passing, to every soul ; but to that soul only which is shown by great devotion, vehement desire, and tender affection, to be His Bride, and to be worthy that the Word in all His beauty should visit her as a Bridegroom. For he who is not as yet in that state, but still is touched with repentance at the remembrance of his sins, and, speaking in the bitterness of his soul, says unto God : Do not condemn me (Job x. 2) ; or who perhaps suffers still from violent temptations, being drawn away and enticed by his own concupiscence-such a soul as this needs not a Bridegroom, but a Physician ; and on this account receives, not, indeed, approval and tenderness, but only remedies, oil and unguents, for the cure of its wounds. Is not this the condition in which we often find ourselves in our prayers, we who are every day either tried by the passions which are in us now, or touched with remorse for those which were in us formerly ? From what a degree of bitter sorrow hast Thou often delivered me by Thy appearance in my soul, O good Lord Jesus ! How many times, after having poured forth tears of distress, sobs and groans, untold, Thou hast anointed my wounded conscience with the unction of Thy mercy, and with the oil of gladness hast besprinkled me ! How often have I betaken myself to prayer, despairing almost of my salvation, and it has sent me back full of joy and confidence of pardon ! Those who are similarly afflicted know well that the Lord Jesus is indeed a Physician who healeth those that are of contrite heart, and giveth medicine to heal their sickness ( Ps. cxlvii. 3). And those who have not had this experience, let them believe what He says of Himself : The Spirit of the Lord hath anointed Me, to preach good tidings unto the meek, to bind up the broken-hearted (Is. lxi. 2 ; Luke iv. 17-21). If they still doubt, let them draw near and make trial of Him, and so learn in their own persons the meaning of that saying : Iwill have mercy, and not sacrifice (Matt. ix. 13). But let us continue the subject.

4. There are those who, being wearied with spiritual exercises, and fallen into lukewarmness, are in a kind of faintness of spirit, and walk in sadness along the ways of the Lord. Their heart is full of dryness and weariness in doing what is enjoined upon them, and their murmurs are frequent. They complain that their days and their nights are long, and they say, with holy Job : When I lie down, I say, When shall Iarise, and the night be gone ? and I amfull of tossings to and fro until the dawning ofthe day ( Job vii. 4). When a soul is in such a state as that, if the Lord, touched with compassion, draws near to it upon the road on which we walk, and He who is from heaven begins to speak of heavenly things, or to sing to us some sweet canticle from among the songs of Sion, to relate also somewhat of the City of God, the peace of that City, the eternity of that peace, of the fixedness of that eternity-I declare to you that the pleasantness of that narrative will be as a soft couch to that wearied and slumbering soul ; it will drive away every trace of aversion from the mind, and of weariness from the body, of the hearer. Does it not seem to you that he who wrote : My soul hath slumbered through heaviness : strengthen Thou me in Thy words (Ps. cxix. 28, Douay), must have experienced this trial, and have prayed for this very succour ? And when he has obtained it, will he not cry out : O how love IThy Law! it is my meditation all the day (Ps. cxix. 97) ? For our meditations on the Word who is the Bridegroom, on His glory, His greatness, His power, His grace, are so many words spoken by Him to our souls. And not only when He speaks, but when we meditate upon and revolve in our minds with eagerness His testimonies and the judgments of His mouth, when we meditate in His Law night and day, let us know for certain that the Bridegroom is present, and is speaking to us, so that the sweetness of His discourse may prevent our being wearied by our labours .

5. Do you, then, when you feel yourself to be dwelling upon such thoughts as these, not suppose that these thoughts are from yourself, but recognise that they are spoken within you by Him who says by the Prophet : I who speak righteousness ( Is . lxiii. 1) . For the thoughts of our own mind have a great resemblance to the words of the Truth speaking within us ; nor is it easy to distinguish what the heart produces of itself from within, from that which it hears spoken ; unless a man bears carefully in mind what the Lord says in the Gospel : Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts ( Matt. xv. 9) ; and again, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts ? (Matt. ix. 4) ; and again, When he [the devil] speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own (John ix. 44). And the Apostle remarks, We are not sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves (that is to say, anything good) ; but our sufficiency is of God ( 2 Cor. iii. 5). When, then, we dwell in thought upon things evil, the thought is of ourselves ; but if upon good, it is by the inspiration of God. In the one kind of thoughts our heart speaks ; but to the other it listens. I, says the Psalmist, will hear what the Lord God will speak in me : for He will speak peace unto His people ( Ps. lxxxv. 9, Douay). Therefore it is God who speaks within us thoughts of peace, piety, righteousness ; nor do we think those things of ourselves, but hear them spoken with us. Out of the heart there come murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false, witness, blasphemies (Matt. xv. 19) ; these we do not hear, but they are the utterance of our own hearts. For the fool hath said in his heart, There is no God ( Ps. xiv. 1 ). And because of this the wicked hath contemned God : because he hath said in his heart, Thou wilt not require it (Ps. x. 13). But there is still another kind of thoughts which are felt in the heart, but are not the utterance of the heart itself. For that does not come out of the heart, as do our thoughts. Nor is it that word of which we have been speaking, namely, that which is spoken by God the Word : since this other kind of words is evil. It is sent forth by powers which are hostile to us, and consists of thoughts suggested to us by evil angels ; such as, for instance, was that which, as we read, the devil sent into the heart 1 Subaudis, but subaudi is the reading of Tiraquellius. of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, that he should betray his Lord (John xiii. 2) .

6. But who is so skilled and watchful an observer either of the movements of his thoughts within, or of those that come to him from without, that in each forbidden desire he is able to distinguish betweenthe malady of his own, or the wound inflicted by the serpent ? To no mortal do I think this to be possible, except to him who has been enlightened by the Holy Spirit, and has thus received that special gift of grace which the Apostle, in enumerating it among other charismata, calls the discerning of spirits ( 1 Cor. xii. 10). Yet how greatly does it behove a man, as Solomon reminds us, to keep his heart with all diligence (Prov. iv. 23), and to observe all the movements within it with the most vigilant attention ! Even when you are well skilled in this by long experience and frequent trial, yet you may not be able to discern and distinguish with unerring correctness between the evil that is inborn, and the evil that is introduced from without. For who can understand sins ? (Ps. xviii. 13, Douay). Nor, after all, is it of great consequence to us to know whence an evil has come to us ; that which is really of importance is to know that it is in us, if that be the fact ; and from wheresoever it comes, our wisdom is to watch and pray, that we may not give the consent of our will unto it. From both one and the other kind of evil the prayer of the Psalmist asks deliverance : Cleanse Thou me from my secret faults, O Lord, and from those of others spare Thy servant ( Ps. xviii. 13, 14, Douay) . As for me, I am unable to impart to you that which I have not received. I can give you no precise rule, I confess, whereby to distinguish between the ideas emanating from your own heart, and those sown in it by the enemy. Both one and the other are evils ; each of them comes from an evil cause ; each of them is in the heart, yet they do not both come from the heart. I am sure that they are in me, though I am not sure which to attribute to my own heart, and which to an enemy. But from that inability arises, as I have said, no danger.

7. But there is another point in which it would be not only dangerous, but even fatal, to be deceived ; and deservedly so, inasmuch as a plain rule is laid down for us, not to attribute to ourselves that which is of God in us, or to think the visit of the Word to us to be only the working of our own thoughts. For as far as good is different from evil, so far different are these two from each other ; since evil cannot possibly come from the WORD, nor good come from the human heart, unless it has been first conceived there by the WORD ; because a good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit (Matt. vii. 18). But I believe it has been sufficiently stated what is of God in our heart, and what is of ourselves ; nor was that, I think, without need ; and that it will serve to show those who are enemies to grace, that without grace 1 This is, I think, an allusion to Abaelard, who reduced the grace of Christ to little more than the giving of reason to man, and to the good example given by the Saviour. See on the Eleventh Treatise of St. Bernard. the heart of man is not capable of thinking good thoughts, but that the capacity of doing so comes from God ; and that the good things which it thinks are due to the voice of God in it, and are not its own offspring . Do you, then, if you hear His Voice, be no longer as if ignorant whence it cometh, or whither it goeth ; but recognise that It comes forth from God, and into your heart. Only, take care that the word which comes forth from the Mouth of God does not return unto Him void, but prosper and accomplish all things for which He sent it, so that you, too, may be able to say, His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain ( 1 Cor. xv. 10) . Happy the soul of which the Word is the inseparable companion, showing Himself accessible at all times ; and who, being kept in continual delight by the sweetness of His companionship, frees himself without ceasing from every vice and tyranny of the flesh, redeeming the time, because the days are evil (Eph. v. 16). He shall not be cast down, he shall not be rendered weary ; as says the Scripture, There shall no evil happen to thejust ( Prov. xii . 21) .

8. But I think that the Lord [also] appears as a great Father of a family, or as a Sovereign of royal splendour, to those who, drawing near to Him with heart exalted, with greater liberty of spirit, and purity of conscience, and rendered more noble and courageous thereby, are accustomed to lift up their hearts to higher things. These are restless and eager to penetrate deeper mysteries, to attempt loftier achievements, to attain greater perfection, not in sensible things, but in sanctity. These, for the grandeur of their faith, are found worthy to be led forward into all fulness; and there is nothing so rare in all the treasure houses of wisdom that the Lord, who is the God of all knowledge, thinks fit to withdraw it from those heroic souls who thirst for truth, and are devoid of vanity. Such was Moses, who dared to say to God : f I have found grace in Thy sight . show me Thy glory ( Exod. xxxiii. 17, 18) . Such was Philip, who, for himself and his co-disciples, asked of the Lord that He would show them the Father (John xiv. 8) ; such, too, was Thomas, who refused to believe unless he should touch with his hand the wounds [of the nails], and the pierced Side of his Master (xx. 25). That was a want of faith, but it came from a greatness of soul which was wonderful in its way.2 Such also was David, who himself said to God : My heart said unto Thee, Thy Face, Lord, will I seek ( Ps. xxvii. 8). Such souls aspire to great things because they are great ; and because they aspire to them, they attain them, according to the word of promise made to them : Every place whereon the soles of your feet shall tread, shall be yours (Deut. xi . 24). For great faith merits great rewards ; and you 1 Accedentes, otherwise ascendentes. 2 How could it be from greatness of soul, if it came from weakness of faith ? St. Bernard distinguishes two things : one, that he refused to believe, which showed a weakness of faith ; the other, the condition he named, and this evinced a greatness of mind, the sign of which is to dare great things. See Sermon CLXII, in the Appendix to the works of St. Augustine, and William, Abbot of St. Thierry, ' De Contemplando Deo, ' chap. i. , n. 3 . shall obtain the good things of the Lord, in proportion as you shall attain to set upon them the foot of an assured confidence.

9. Thus God speaks to Moses face to face, and it is his eminent reward to behold the Lord openly, not by types and figures, whilst to other Prophets He is said to make Himself known only in vision, and to speak to them in a dream (Numb. xii. 6-8). To Philip, again, according to his heartfelt petition, was shown the Father in the Son, from whom he received, without doubt, the instant reply: Philip, he who hath seen Me, hath seen the Father : and, I am in the Father, and the Father in Me ( John xiv. 9, 10). Thomas He permitted to touch Him, according to the desire of his heart, and did not refuse him the request of his lips (xx. 27). What shall I say of David ? Does it not signify that he was not left wholly without the granting of his prayer, where he says that he will not give sleep to his eyes, nor slumber to his eyelids, until he find out a place for the Lord ( Ps. cxxxii. 4, 5) . Agreat Bridegroom, then, will present Himself thus to great souls ; and He will treat them magnificently, sending them His Light and His Truth ; leading them on and conducting them at length to His holy mountain and into its tabernacles, so that one thus blessed may say : He that is Mighty hath done to me great things (Luke i . 49) . His eyes shall see the King in His beauty (Is. xxxiii. 17) ; going before him towards oases in the desert, in which bloom the fragrant roses, and the lilies of the valleys, where are the pleasant shades of gardens, the gushing of silver fountains, the storehouses filled with all good things, the odours of perfumes, and lastly, the hidden precincts of the chamber of the King.

10. These are the treasures of wisdom and knowledge which are hidden in the Bridegroom ; these are the life-giving sustenance prepared for the refreshment of holy souls. Blessed is the man whose longing for them has been satisfied to the full ! Of this only let him be warned, that he ought not to wish to possess alone gifts which would suffice for the needs of many. For if, after all these things, the Bridegroom is described as appearing in the character of a pastor, it is perhaps to warn him who has obtained such great gifts that his duty is to feed the simpler ones of the flock, who are not able to attain by their own efforts to the knowledge of these good things ; just as sheep do not dare to go forth without their shepherd to seek the green pastures. Of this fact the Bride prudently takes note, and that is why she desires to be told where the Bridegroom feeds [His flock] , and takes shelter during the mid-day heat; being prepared (as may easily be understood from her words) to be nourished and to feed her flock with Him, and under His protection. She does not consider it safe for the flock to stray far from their Chief Pastor, because of the attacks of wolves upon them ; and especially of those who come to us in sheep's clothing ; it is for that reason that she desires to feed in the same pastures, and repose in the same shades, as He. And she gives her motive in the words, Why should I be as one that turneth aside by theflocks of Thy companions ? (i. 7) . These are they who wish to appear as friends of the Bridegroom, and are not; their care is to feed their own flocks, not His ; they are those who go about insidiously, saying : Lo, here is Christ ; or, lo, He is there ( Mark xiii. 21), so that they may lead away many, may withdraw them from the flock of Christ, and add them to their own. So far as relates to the letter of the text. As for the spiritual sense hidden in it, I propose to defer the consideration of it to another discourse, which, by the intercession of your prayers, and in the fulness of His mercy, may He deign to grant unto me to deliver, Who is the Bridegroom of the Church, JESUS CHRIST our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

TELL me, O Thou whom my soul loveth, where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon (i. 7). And another voice speaks thus : Tell me why Thoujudgest me thus (Job x. 2, Douay). Where he does not blame the sentence upon him, but examines the cause of it, and asks to be instructed by his afflictions, not destroyed by them. And still another prays in the same sense, saying : Show me Thy ways, O Lord ; teach me thy paths (Ps. xxv. 4). What he means by ' ways ' and ' paths ' he shows elsewhere : He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness (Ps. xxiii. 3) . Every soul, therefore, that is full of care to serve God does not cease to seek for these three things : righteousness, and judgment, and the place where dwelleth the glory of the Lord ; or, as it were, the path in which to walk, the precaution with which to walk, and the dwelling whither to direct our course. Of this dwelling the Psalmist speaks thus : One thing have Idesired unto the Lord, that will I seek after : that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life (Ps. xxvii. 4) ; and, again : Lord, I have loved the habitation of Thy House, and the place where Thine Honour dwelleth (xxvi. 8) ; while of the two others he says : Justice andjudgment are the habitation of Thy Throne (lxxxix. 14). It is with reason that the devoted soul seeks these three things, as being the throne of God, and the basis (præparationem) of His Throne. Beautiful it is to see how, by the peculiar prerogative of the Bride, all these things concur equally to the consummation of her virtues, so that she is beautiful by the form of righteousness, prudent by knowledge of judgments, and chaste by her desire for the presence and glory of her Bridegroom. Such it THOSE THINGS WHICH A becomes well the Spouse of the Lord to be beautiful, prudent, and chaste. Therefore the petition, which I have placed last, has reference to place : she seeks that He, whom her soul loves, will tell her where He feedeth, where He makes His flock to rest at noon.

2. And first remark with what beauty she distinguishes the love of the Spirit from that of the flesh, when, wishing to express her beloved more by her very affection than by His Name, she does not say simply, ' Him whom I love,' but, O Thou whom my soul loveth, indicating thereby that her affection is of the soul. Next, consider with attention what it is she finds so desirable in the place where He pastures His flock. Nor let it escape you that she speaks of the midday hour, and inquires especially respecting the place in which He who feeds His flock also reposes, which is a sign of great security. For I suppose that this word ' reposes ' was added because in that land it is not necessary at all to be on foot and wakeful in order to keep the flock in safety ; since even when the shepherd is inactive and reclining under the trees, his flock go to and fro upon the meadows as they please. Happy the region where the sheep go in and out at pleasure, and none make them afraid. Who will grant unto me to behold you, and myself with you, feeding upon the mountains with the ninety and nine, which, as we read in the Gospel (Matt. xviii. 12), the Shepherd of all had left there, while He deigned to go to seek that one which had strayed and was lost ? He, without doubt, reposes securely when He is beside His sheep, who did not hesitate to depart and go far from them, knowing that He left them in safety. Rightly does the Bride seek and sigh for that spot which is one both of pasturage and of peace, of repose and of security, of joy, of admiration-yea, of wonderment. But, alas ! how unhappy am I to be so far distant from it, to salute it only from afar ! The mention only of it makes me break into tears, excites my heart to affection, and my tongue to use the words of those who said : By the rivers of Babylon there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion (Ps. cxxxvii. 1 ). Our desire is to cry out with the Bride and with the Psalmist : Praise Thy God, O Sion, for He hath strengthened the bars of thy gates ; He hath blessed thy children within thee. He maketh peace in thy borders, andfilleth thee with the finest of the wheat (Ps. cxlvii. 13, 14). Who would not wish to be fed from thence for peace, and for fatness, and for satiety ? No fear is there, nor distaste, nor deficiency. Paradise is a safe dwelling-place, the Word a sweet nourishment, eternity abundance without limit.

3. I have the WORD also here below, but in the Flesh ; the Truth also is set before me for nourishment, but in the Sacrament. An Angel is rendered fat with the finest of the wheat, and filled with the pure grain; but it behoves me to be content during this life with the Sacrament, as with a husk ; with the flesh, as with bran ; with the letter, as with chaff ; with faith, as with a veil [upon the truth). And such things as these bring death in the tasting (Rom. viii. 6-13), unless they be seasoned in some degree with the firstfruits of the Spirit. Assuredly, I can find only death in the pottage, unless it be rendered sweet with the meal of the Prophet ( 2 Kings iv. 41). Indeed, without the Spirit even the Sacrament is received only to condemnation; the flesh profiteth nothing (John vi. 63) ; the letter killeth (2 Cor. iii . 6) ; and faith itself is dead. But it is the Spirit that quickeneth these [means of grace], that I may live in them. But with whatever abundance of the Spirit those things may be enriched, it is not possible to find the same sweetness in the husk of the Sacrament, and in the fatness of the wheat ; in faith as in vision ; in remembrance as in presence ; in time as in eternity ; in the reflection in a mirror as in the countenance itself that is reflected ; in the form of a servant as in the Image of God. Evidently, in all these things, faith is rich for me, but intelligence is poor. Is there not a great disparity between the degree of appreciation and enjoyment experienced by the understanding, and that by the faith, since the one is for a merit, the other for a reward ? You see, then, that there is as much difference between the nature of the nourishment as there is between the places referred to ; and as the heavens are exalted high above the earth, so do those who dwell in them abound far more, and in gifts which are far better, than those below.

4. Let us hasten, then, my children, let us hasten to reach a safer dwelling-place, a sweeter pasturage, a richer and more fruitful field. Let us hasten to attain a land where we may dwell without fear, have abundance that cannot be exhausted, and can be enjoyed without distaste. Thou, O Lord of Sabaoth, who judgest all things in an awful calm, Thou dost also support all things with justice and in security. Thou art at once the Lord of armies and the Shepherd of the sheep. Therefore Thou dost both pasture Thy sheep and, at the same time, remain in a Sabbath rest ; but not here. Therefore it was that Thou didst remain quiescent when Thou sawest from heaven one of Thy sheep (I speak of Stephen) beset with wolves upon the earth (Acts vii. 55) . And, therefore, I entreat, tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon ; for that noonday is the whole day, a day which knows no evening. And, therefore, that day in Thy courts is better than a thousand ( Ps. lxxxiv. 10), because it knows no set of sun. It has had perhaps a morning, namely, when the dayspringfrom on high hath visited us, through the tender mercy of our God, to give light to them that sit in darkness (Luke i. 78, 79). Then in truth we have received Thy mercy, O God, in the midst of Thy Temple (Ps. xlvii. 10, Douay) ; when (the Lord] rose from the midst of the shadow of death, and the morning light broke upon us, and in the morning we beheld the glory of the Lord. How many kings and prophets have desired to see it, and have not seen it ? Wherefore ? Because it was still the night, and that the morning, so long awaited, and to which mercy was promised, had not yet come. Wherefore, also, one thus prayed : Cause me to hear Thy lovingkindness in the morning, for in Thee is my trust (Ps. cxliii. 8).

5. For that day was heralded by an aurora lasting from the moment THOSE THINGS WHICH A in which the [rising of the] Sun of Righteousness was announced to the earth by the Archangel Gabriel, and that a Virgin had conceived by the operation of the Holy Ghost [ Him who was] God, and that a Virgin had brought forth ; and onwards, until He was beheld upon the earth, and lived among men. For up to that time only a feeble light, as it were, the light of an aurora, was visible, so that almost all the earth was ignorant that the Day was among men. And, in truth, if they had known they would not have crucified the Lord of glory (1 Cor. ii. 8) . To His few disciples He said : Yet a little while ye have the Light with you ( John xii. 35), inasmuch as it was the aurora, the beginning, or rather the indication of the day, while the Sun still concealed His beams, and scattered them but little upon the earth. St. Paul also said that the night was far spent, the day was at hand (Rom. xiii . 12), signifying that though the light was still dim, the day was approaching rather than was already come. But when did he say this ? It was when the Sun of Righteousness, having returned from the depths, had already mounted into the height of heaven. How much more would he have spoken thus when the likeness of a body of sin-as it were a thick cloud-veiled that dawning ; a body, I say, like ours in all its capabilities of suffering, so that neither the bitterness of death nor the shame of the Cross were wanting to it ! How much more dim and feeble was the light at that season than when the presence of the Sun was plain and evident !

6. All the Life of Christ upon the earth was, then, as it were, an aurora, or dawning, and even that somewhat indistinct, until, after His Death and Resurrection, He caused the dawning to disappear in the clearer light of His Presence, as it were, the sun full risen ; then the morning broke, and the night was swallowed up in victory. Thus we read in the Gospel : Very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising ofthe sun ( Mark xvi. 2) . Was it not the morning when the Sun was risen ? But that morning drew from the Resurrection of Christ a new beauty, a purer and more steadfast light than was its wont, since even though we have known Him after the Flesh, yet now henceforth know we Him no more (2 Cor. v. 16) . And the Psalmist writes : The Lord hath girded Himself, He is clothed with beauty and strength ( Ps. xcii. 1 , Douay) ; because He hath thrown off from Him as a cloud the infirmities of the flesh, and hath put on Him the robe of His glory. Just so is it with the sun : when he is risen above the horizon, and pours forth his rays upon the earth, he begins to increase by degrees in brightness to the sight and in warmth to the feeling. But though he increase ever so much in strength and in heat, though he multiply his rays in number and power, throughout the whole course of this mortal life of ours (for He shall be with us even unto the end of the world-Matt. xxviii. 20), yet He shall not attain unto His midday light, nor be beheld here below in that fulness of glory in which He shall hereafter reveal Himself, but to those alone to whom He shall deign to accord that vision. O true noontide, fulness of warmth and of light, abiding-place of the sun, which exterminates all shadows, dries up marshes, and drives forth pestilential odours ! O perpetual solstice, and day that declines not ! O mid-day light, enjoying at once the freshness of spring, the beauty of summer, the fruitfulness and abundance of autumn, and, not to omit anything, the deep rest and unbroken quiet of winter ! Or, at least, if you prefer it so, it is the winter only that disappears and is wanting. Show to me ' (says the Bride) ' this spot of brightness, peace, and abundance so great, that, like as Jacob, still abiding in his mortal body, saw the Lord face to face, and his life was preserved ( Gen. xxxii. 30) ; or as Moses beheld Him, not in types and figures, nor through dreams, as did other Prophets, but in a manner transcendent and known to no others but to God and himself ( Num. xii . 6-8) ; or as Isaiah, who, after the eyes of his heart had been opened, saw the Lord upon His Throne high and lifted up ( Is. vi. 1 ) ; or even in the manner of St. Paul, who was caught up into Paradise, and heard unspeakable words (2 Cor. xii. 4), and saw with his eyes Jesus Christ his Lord : so may I, too, be found worthy to contemplate Thee in Thy light and Thy beauty by means of a transport and rapture of soul ; and to behold Thee feeding Thy flock with fuller abundance and more complete security than now. '

7. For here, too, Thou dost feed Thy flock, but not to the full ; nor is it permitted to Thee to repose, but it is needful to stand and watch over them because of terrors of the night. Alas ! [here] the light is not clear, nor the nourishment full, nor the dwelling safe ; therefore tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon. Blessed dost Thou call me when I hunger and thirst after righteousness ( Matt. v. 6). What is this in comparison with the happiness of those who are satisfied with the goodness of Thy House (Ps. lxv. 4), who eat and rejoice in the sight of God, yea, who exceedingly rejoice ? (Ps. lxviii. 3.) But, and if I suffer anything for righteousness' sake, Thou sayest again that I am none the less blessed (1 Pet. iii . 14). And it is certain that to have nourishment where you apprehend suffering is to experience enjoyment, but not security. To have nourishment and suffering together, what is that but a grievous joy ? All things that I possess here fall short of being perfect ; many are beyond my prayer, nor is any safe. When wilt Thou fill me with joy with Thy Countenance ? ( Ps. xv. 11 , Douay) Thy Face, Lord, will I seek ( Ps. xxvii. 8). Thy Countenance is a noonday to me. Tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon. I know sufficiently where thou feedest without resting ; tell me where Thou doest both the one and the other. I am not ignorant where at other times Thou doest this, but I would know where Thou doest this at noon. For during the time of my mortal life, and in the place of my pilgrimage, I have been accustomed to be spiritually fed, and to feed others, with nourishment from Thee, in the Law, in the Prophets, in the Psalms. Thou dost feed us also THOSE THINGS WHICH A in the pastures of the Gospels, and with the Apostles I have rested. Often, also, I have sought, and have been able to find, spiritual nourishment for me and mine in the actions, the words, and the writings of the Saints. Still more frequently (because it was very close at hand to me) I have eaten the bread of sorrow, and drunk of the wine of regret ; my tears have been my meat day and night, while they daily say unto me, Where is now thy God ? ( Ps. xlii. 3. ) I have, indeed, been nourished from Thy Table : for Thou hast prepared a Table before me against them that trouble me (Ps. xxiii. 5), and from it, I repeat, I receive somewhat by the gift of Thy mercy, which imparts comfort and consolation, as often as my soul is sorrowful and disquieted within me. Those pastures I know, and following Thee, my Shepherd, have often sought them; but tell me, I entreat, those which I know not.

8. There are, however, other shepherds who call themselves companions of Thine, but are not so ; and these have their flocks, and their fields of pasture filled with deadly things ; to these they lead their followers, but not with Thee, nor by Thy bidding ; these I have not entered, nor drawn near to them. These are they who say : Lo ! here is Christ, or lo ! He is there ( Mark xiii . 21) , promising pastures fertile with wisdom and knowledge ; and the promise is believed, so that many hearers flock together to them ; and these they make twofold more the children of hell than themselves (Matt. xxiii. 15 ) . Why is this, except that there is not there the clear and noonday light, so that the pure truth should become known to them ; and thus they easily accept falsehood on account of a resemblance to the truth, from which, in the dim light, it is not easily distinguished, and especially also because stolen waters are sweet, andbread eaten in secret is pleasant (Prov. ix. 17). And for this reason I entreat that Thou wouldest tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thyflock to rest at noon, that is to say, in the clear light, that I may not be seduced, and begin to wander after the crowds of those who follow these [socalled] " companions of Thine " who are themselves but unsteady wanderers, having no certitude or steady grasp of true doctrine, who are ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2 Tim. iii. 7). This the Bride [that is, the Church] declares on account of the varying and vain dogmas of philosophers and heretics .

9. It seems to me that we ought to desire this noonday of Christ, not only on this account, but also on account of the wiles of invisible powers, of seducing spirits who hold themselves in ambush, and make ready their arrows within the quiver, that they may secretly shoot at those who are of a right heart, so that in clear light we may be able to discover the stratagems of the devil , and easily to discern, with the help of our good angel, that angel of Satan, who is able to transform himself into an angel of light ( 2 Cor. xi. 14). For we are not able otherwise to guard ourselves sufficiently from the attack of the demon ofnoonday(Ps. xci. 6) unless we walk also in noonday light . And I think that demon is so called because there are of the number of the evil some who, abiding although they do in a night which is perpetual on account of their will being gloomy and hardened in wickedness, yet know how to simulate the day, and even the mid-day, in order to deceive ; in the same way that their chief is not content to be equal with God, but opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped ( 2 Thess. ii. 4). That is why, unless the heart of one whom a demon of this nature is endeavouring to tempt be enlightened by the true light of noonday, which shines from heaven, which detects and convicts that which is false, he will not be able adequately to protect himself, but the demon will doubtless tempt and subvert him by an appearance of good, persuading the soul which is incautious and unprepared, to accept evil for good. And then the mid day-that is , the clearnessappears the greater, tempting since it offers a greater show of good.

10. How often, for example, has it suggested to anticipate the watches [of the night] in order to turn to derision some sleeper at the Offices of the brethren ? How often to prolong fasts in order to render an individual powerless, and therefore useless, in Divine service ? How often, envying those who were making good progress in communities, has it suggested to them, under the pretence of attaining greater perfection, to seek the solitude [of an hermitage] ? And those unhappy ones have learned at length the truth of that maxim which they had read to no purpose : Woe to him that is alone when hefalleth, for he hath not another to lift him up ( Eccles. iv. 10). How often has it urged a man to greater manual labour than he has strength to perform, and thus exhausting his powers has rendered him incapable of discharging his regular duties ? How often urged one to immoderate bodily exercise-which, according to the Apostle, profiteth little ( 1 Tim. iv. 8)-and so withdrawn him from practices of piety ? Lastly, have not some of you experienced-I say it to their shame-how at first they could not be restrained, with such ardour they were filled, and then after a time fell back into such a degree of remissness that, in the phrase of the Apostle, having begun in the Spirit, they were made perfect by the flesh (Gal. iii. 3), and have made a shameful alliance with the body after having entered upon an unrelenting conflict with it ? You see such persons-shame it is to say-demanding importunately things which are superfluous after having obstinately refused those which were necessary. Although I know not whether those who remain stiffly determined in their own will, making abstinences which are unwise and indiscreet, and gravely troubling by their marked singularity those to whom they ought to conform their conduct, as they dwell with them in one house ; I know not, I say, whether they are abiding by the rule of piety : they seem to me to have by thus acting, departed far from it. Let those THOSE THINGS WHICH A who are wise in their own eyes, and have determined to abide by no advice nor command but their own, let them see to it how they shall give account, not to me, but to Him who says : Rebellion is as the sin ofwitchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. And He had declared before that obedience is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams ( 1 Sam. xv. 23, 22) ; that is to say, than an abstinence which is disobedient and contumacious. That is why the Lord says by the Psalmist : Will I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood ofgoats ? (Ps. 1. 13), in order to show that the fastings of those who are proud or impure are far from being acceptable in His sight.

11. But here I fear, lest in condemning those who push their fasts beyond measure, I may seem to give licence to the gluttonous, and that they may hear to their peril what is spoken for a remedy to the others . Wherefore let both the one class and the other listen. There are four kinds of temptations, and they are thus described by the Psalmist : His Truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraidfor the terror by night ; norfor the arrow thatflieth by day ; for the pestilence that walketh in darkness ; norfor the destruction that wasteth at noonday ( Ps. xci. 4-6). And do ye all attend also, for I hope that you may all find profit in these words. All among us who have been converted to the Lord feel in ourselves the truth of what the Holy Scripture says : My son, if thou come to serve the Lord, prepare thy soul for temptation, set thy heart aright, and constantly endure (Ecclus. ii. 1). Therefore, according to the order of common experience, it is fear which first disturbs and troubles us at the beginning of our conversion ; and that fear is caused by the frightful image which we form to ourselves of the extremely strict life we are about to embrace, and of the austerity of an unwonted discipline. And this is called ' the terror by night, ' either because ' night ' in Scripture means usually ' adversities,' or because the recompense, on account of which we are preparing to endure adversities, is not yet revealed, but hidden from us as in a shroud of gloom. For if that day should shine in whose light we should discern equally both the trials and the recompenses, the desire of the recompense which would be clearly visible to us would render the fear of any trials whatever as nothing in comparison with the desire to obtain it. For the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us ( Rom. viii. 18). But now, since these things are concealed from our eyes and all is night around us, we suffer from the terrors of the night, and are a prey to fears of those evils which are present to us in place of the good things to come which are not visible. Those, then, who are newcomers ought to watch and pray against this first temptation, lest, being suddenly overcome by weakness of the spirit and by the difficulty of the moment, they fall back (which may God forbid !) from the good work they had begun.

12. But after having overcome that temptation, let us arm ourselves moreover against the praises of men who find occasion for praise in the laudable life we lead; for otherwise we shall be exposed to be wounded by the arrow which flieth by day that is, by vainglory. For fame is said to fly, and during the day, because it is born of the works of the light. If this is puffed aside as being empty air, there still remains to be feared something more solid-that is, the richest honours of this world ; for one who cares not for praises may desire place and dignity. And see if it was not this order of temptation that was observed towards Our Lord, to whom, after the suggestion was made that He should throw Himself from the pinnacle of the Temple from a motive of vanity alone, all the kingdoms of the world were shown and offered (Matt. iv. 6, 8). Do you, then, also reject these after the example of the Saviour ? otherwise you will inevitably be surprised by the pestilence which walketh in darkness, which is hypocrisy. For that descends from ambition, and has its dwelling in darkness ; there it hides what it really is, and pretends to be what it is not. At all times it has some secret object, and, retaining an appearance of piety to conceal itself, it is prepared to put even virtue up to sale in order to obtain honours.

13. The last temptation is the destruction that wasteth at noonday, which usually besets those who are perfect-namely, those brave and lofty souls who have overcome other temptations, whether pleasures, flatteries, or honours. For what remains to the tempter, or what means has he left to attack souls like these ? He approaches, then, in disguise, since he dares not do so openly, and attempts to overthrow, by a false pretence of good, the man whom he has found by experience to hold in horror that which is openly evil. For those who are able to say with the Apostle : We are not ignorant of his devices ( 2 Cor. ii. 11), the more advanced they are in virtue, the more careful are they to guard against this snare. Thus it was that Mary was troubled at the angelic salutation ( Luke i. 29), suspecting (if I do not mistake) some snare of the enemy ; and Joshua does not receive the angel as a friend before he knew that he was really a friend. In fact, he inquires whether the angel were for them or for their adversaries ( Josh. v. 13-15), as one who had had experience of the cunning devices of the demon of the noonday. The Apostles also, when they were once toiling in rowing, the wind being contrary, and the boat labouring in the sea, seeing the Lord walking on the sea, thought He was a phantom, and cried out for fear. Does not that show clearly that they suspected a delusion of the demon of the noon ? For you remember that the Scripture says that in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea (Matt. xiv. 24-27). Let, then, this fourth temptation, which is the last to be tried, be feared by us : and the higher anyone seems to have attained, the more careful and watchful let him learn to be against the attacks of the demon of noonday. But the true Noonday, the Lord Jesus, manifested Himself to the disciples in that He said : It is I: be not afraid ; and their unfounded suspicion was at once dispelled. May God grant that as often as the cloaked falsehood endeavours to creep upon us, the true THOSE THINGS WHICH A Noonday, rising from on high, may send forth His light and His truth to put it to flight-to separate the light from the darkness, so that we may not fall under the censure of the Prophet as putting darknessfor light, and lightfor darkness (Is. v. 20) .

14. If the length of this discourse does not weary you, I will now try to assign these four temptations, in their order, to the Body of Christ, which is the Church. And I will endeavour to do this as briefly as possible. Consider the Primitive Church. Was it not at first pervaded in an extraordinary degree with the terror that walketh by night? For it was then, as it were, a night, when everyone who slew the saints thought that he was thus doing God service. But after that temptation was overcome, and that tempest stilled, she became glorious and illustrious, and, according to the promise made to her, was speedily placed in a position of worldly distinction. Then the enemy, vexed to have been frustrated, turned cunningly from the ' nightly terror ' to the ' arrow that flieth by day,' and with it wounded certain members of the Church. Vain and ambitious men rose up, greedy of reputation, and desired to make for themselves a name ; and, going forth from the Church, their mother, they long afflicted her with various and perverse teachings. But this evil plague also was vanquished by the wisdom of the saints, as the former had been by the patience of the martyrs.

15. At the present time, by the mercy of God, the Church is free from each of these evils ; but evidently it is still contaminated by the pestilence that walketh in darkness. Woe to this generation [which is corrupted] by the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy ! If, indeed, that ought to be called hypocrisy which is so prevailing that it cannot be hidden, and so devoid of shame that it does not try to hide. At the present day a contagious corruption is creeping through the whole body of the Church, the more desperate of cure as it is universal, and the more dangerous because so deeply seated. If an heretic arose to wage against her an open war, she would exclude him from her bounds, and he would dry up and wither away ; or if one attacked her with violence, she would peradventure hide herself from him. But at the present time whom shall she exclude, or from whom shall she hide herself ? All are her friends, and all her enemies ; all are her intimates, and all her adversaries ; all are of her own household, and none at peace with her ; all are very nearly related to her, and yet all are seeking their own interests. They are Ministers of Christ, and they are serving Antichrist. They are advanced to honour upon the goods of the Lord, and to the Lord they render no honour at all. From this proceeds that meretricious splendour, that habit fit for a comedian, that magnificence almost royal which you see every day. Because of this you see gold upon the bits of their horses, upon their saddles, and even upon their spurs ; yes, their spurs shine more brightly than their altars. Because of this you see fine tables loaded with splendid services of plate, chased goblets, and, also, with viands correspondingly costly ; then follow merrymakings and drunkenness, the guitar, the lyre, and the flute. Thence come groaning winepresses and storehouses full and overflowing with all manner of good things. Thence come vases of rich perfumes, and coffers filled with immense treasures . It is for the attainment of such objects that they desire to be, and are, Provosts of churches, Deans, Archdeacons, Bishops, Archbishops. For these dignities are not given for merit, but are disposed of in that infamous traffic which walketh in darkness .

16. It was once predicted [of the Church], and now the time of its fulfilment draws near : Behold, in peace is my bitterness most bitter (Is. xxxviii. 17, Douay). It was bitter at first in the death of the martyrs ; more bitter afterwards in the conflict with heretics ; but most bitter of all now in the [evil] lives of her members. She cannot drive them away, and she cannot flee from them, so strongly established are they, and so multiplied are they above measure. The plague of the Church is inward ; it is incurable. It is that which makes its bitterness most bitter, even in the midst of peace. But in what a peace ! Peace it is, and yet it is not peace. There is peace from heathens, and from heretics ; but not from her own sons. At this time is heard the voice of her complaining : I have nourished and broughtforth children, and they have rebelled against me (Is. i. 2 ) . They have rebelled ; they have dishonoured me by their evil lives, by their shameful gains, by their shameful trafficking, by, in short, their many works which walk in darkness. There remains only one thing that the demon of noonday should appear, to seduce those who remain still in Christ, and in the simplicity which is in Him. He has, without question, swallowed up the rivers of the learned, and the torrents of those who are powerful, and (as says the Scripture) he trusteth that he can draw upJordan into his mouth (Job xl . 23)-that is to say, those simple and humble ones who are in the Church. For this is he who is Antichrist, who counterfeits not only the day, but also the noonday ; who exalts himself above all that is called God or worshipped-whom the Lord Jesus shall consume with the Spirit of His Mouth, and destroy with the brightness of His Coming ( 2 Thess. ii. 4, 8) ; for He is the true and eternal Noonday : the Bridegroom, and Defender of the Church, Who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds tents ( i. 8) . Once holy Moses, presuming much on the grace and familiarity into which he had entered by the goodness of God, ventured to aspire to a certain great vision, so as to say to God : If Ihavefound grace in Thy sight, show me Thy glory (Exod. xxxiii. 13 23). But in place of that vision which he had desired he obtained one of a far lower kind, by means of which, nevertheless, he might one day reach that which he wished for. The sons of Zebedee also, walking in the simplicity of their hearts, dared also to ask a great thing, but were, notwithstanding, relegated to a lower step, from which their course upwards must be made ( Matt. xx. 21-23) . So it is also here with the Bride. She seems to be asking for some great thing, and is repressed with a reply austere indeed, but faithful and helpful. For it behoves one who aspires to things lofty to have lowly thoughts of himself, lest while he exalts himself above his measure he fall below himself, not being steadied and rendered firm by sincere humility. And because very great graces are not to be obtained except with the merit of humility, it is essential that he who is to receive them should be humbled by reproof, that he may deserve them by humility. Do you, then, when you see yourself humbled, take it as a sign, and even as a certain proof, that some grace from God is drawing near to thee. For as pride goes before destruction (Prov. xvi. 18), so before honour comes humility. Each of these truths is expressed in that which you read, that God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble (James iv. 6). And, lastly, did He not think fit to recompense with abundant blessing His servant Job, after the great victory which he won over the demon, and after the eminent trial of his remarkable patience ? But note that He took care previously to humble him by many and severe trials, and so to prepare the way for that blessing.

2. But it is little that we endure willingly the humiliation which God of His own accord sends to us, if we do not welcome with a similar willingness that which He puts upon us by the agency of some other person. Wherefore receive a remarkable instance of this from holy David. He was once reviled, and that by one of his servants, but he did not even feel the insults which were heaped upon him, because his mind was preoccupied by Divine grace. What have I to do with you, he said, ye sons of Zeruiah ? ( 2 Sam. xvi. 10). O man truly ' after God's own Heart, ' who thought that it behoved him to be angry rather with him who would have avenged the repeated insults, than with him who offered them ! Hence he could say with a quiet conscience : If I have rendered to them that repaid me evils, let me deservedly fall empty before my enemies (Ps. vii. 5, Douay). He forbade, then, [his servants] to hinder the man who was attacking him with insolence, regarding his curses as a gain. And he added : It is the Lord that hath said unto him, Curse David. Truly he was a man ' after God's own Heart, ' since he knew so well the intention in the Heart of God. The tongue of an evil speaker was raging against him, but his concern was only to divine the secret purpose of God in permitting it. The voice of the reviler was in his ears ; but his heart was preparing itself in humility for the Divine benediction. Was God, then, in the mouth of the blasphemer ? By no means. But God used it for the humbling of David. Nor was that hidden from the Psalmist, for God had made known to him the hidden secrets of His wisdom ; therefore he says : It is good for me that Thou hast humbled me, that I may learn Thyjustifications ( Ps. cxix. 71, Douay).

3. Do you see that humility justifies us ? I say humility, not humiliation. How many are humiliated who are not humble ? Some are bitter and grudging because they are humiliated ; others bear it with patience ; some even with willingness. The first are blameworthy ; the second blameless ; but the last righteous. Although innocence is a part of righteousness, yet its perfection is to the humble. He who is able to say : It is good for me that Thou hast humbled me, is the truly humble. He who bears humiliation unwillingly cannot say this, much less he who murmurs at it. To neither of these do we promise grace merely because he is humiliated ; although indeed the two differ widely from each other, since while the one possesses his soul in patience, the other perishes in his murmuring. But although only one of these is deserving of anger, to neither is there a promise of grace, since it is not to those who are humiliated, but to the humble that God giveth grace (James iv. 6). He, therefore, is humble who turns humiliation into humility of soul, and it is he who says to God: It is good for me that Thou hast humbled me. To no one at all is that good which is endured merely with patience, for we know that God loveth a cheerful giver ( 2 Cor. ix. 7) . Wherefore also when we fast we are bidden to anoint our head with oil, and to wash the face (Matt. vi. 17), so that our good work may be seasoned, as it were, with spiritual joy, and our burntoffering be fat and without blemish. For it is a perfect and joyful humility which alone deserves the grace of God, of which it is a sign beforehand. That which is constrained or forced, such as he feels who possesses his soul in patience, although it obtains life because of the patience, yet will not have grace, on account of the sorrow and regret mingled with it. For such a person does not answer to the description given in this saying of Scripture : Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted (James i. 9), because his humiliation is not endured willingly or gladly.

4. But do you wish to look upon one who glories in the right way, and is truly worthy ofglory ? Mostgladly, says the Apostle, will Iglory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me (2 Cor. xii . 9). He does not say that he patiently endures his infirmities, but that he even glories, and that most gladly, in them, and thus he shows that it was good for him that he was humbled ; nor was it sufficient for him to possess his soul in patience when humiliated, unless he could accept it, as it were, by his own will, and thereby receive grace. Listen to that which is the general rule upon this question : He that humbleth himself shall be exalted ( Luke xiv. 11). The Lord here signifies that not every kind of humility shall be exalted, but that only which is willingly accepted, not of necessity, nor with sorrow 1 That is, the special grace promised to the humble, which is not only inward, but also outward, and consists in exaltation even in this life. 2Humilis. and reluctance. So, also, on the other hand, it is not everyone who is exalted that shall be abased ; but those only who exalt themselves of their own accord and through vanity. Thus, then, it is not he who merely is humiliated that shall be exalted, but he who willingly and cheerfully accepts humiliation, and that because his willingness is a merit. For grant that the material part of humility is supplied to you by another person, for example, by reproaches, losses, or sufferings, yet a person cannot be rightly said to be rendered humble by another in the same sense in which he is rendered humble by himself, when he is resolved to suffer all these things quietly and with a joyful mind, because it is the will of God that he should undergo them.

5. But whither am I being borne ? Very patiently, as I feel, are you enduring the excessive length of this discourse, though it be of humility and patience ; but let us return to the point whence we have digressed. For all this was suggested to us by the reply made by the Bridegroom to the Bride, who needed to be cautioned and repressed when aspiring to great things. For Him to do this was not to offer her reproaches, but to afford her an opportunity for a greater and more complete degree of humility, and to render her more capable and worthy of those loftier privileges and attainments which she sought. But since we are only, as it were, at the portals of the present chapter, we will resume the consideration of the subject, if you please, at the beginning of another discourse ; especially lest the words of the Bridegroom should be treated of with strength exhausted, or should fall on weary ears . Which may He avert from His servants, who is JESUS CHRIST our Lord ; above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

I Fthou knowest not, He says, goforth. This is a harsh and severe reproof; since He says, go forth. This is the phrase which servants are wont to hear from their lords when displeased and angry, or maidens from their mistresses, whom they may have deeply offended. ' Go forth, they say, ' leave me, depart out of my sight and out of this house. ' With this speech, severe and bitter, and having so sharp an edge of blame, it is that the Bridegroom addresses His beloved ; but all the blame is under the express condition ' if thou knowest not. ' Hecould say nothing stronger or more effectual to affright her, than to threaten her that she shall be sent away from Him. This you may easily realize, if you take notice whence she is bidden to go, and whither. What is she to leave, do you think, and for what exchange ? Is it not to go from the Spirit to the flesh, from the blessings of the soul to worldly desires, from the inward rest, in which the mind is at peace, to the din and bustle of the world, and the inquietude of outward cares ? All of these are things in which is nothing but labour, sorrow, and distress of spirit . For the soul which has once learned of the Lord, and received from Him the power to enter into itself, and in its inmost depths to sigh for the Presence of God, and at all times to seek His Face; for God is a Spirit, and those who seek Him must walk in the Spirit, not in the flesh, to walk after the flesh ; such a soul, I say, would think it less horrible and less insupportable to endure for a time even hell itself, than, after having once experienced the sweetness of that spiritual life, to go forth from it and leave it, in order to be exposed to the enticements, or rather to the troublous claims of the flesh, to be cast again upon the insatiable desire (curiositatem) of the senses, of which it is said in Ecclesiastes : The eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing ( Eccles. i. 8). Listen to a man who had experienced that of which I speak : The Lord is good unto them that waitfor Him, to the soul that seeketh Him ( Lam. iii. 25). If anyone should try to turn away from this supreme happiness that holy soul, I verily believe that it would feel as if torn away from Paradise, and from the portal ofglory. Listen, again, to another and a similar soul : Myheart said unto Thee, Thy Face, Lord, willIseek (Ps. xxvii. 8). Wherefore it was his wont to say: It is good for me [i.e. , it is for me the highest good] to draw near to God ( Ps. lxxiii. 28) ; and again, speaking to his soul, he declares : Return unto thy rest, O my soul: for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee ( Ps. cxvi. 7). I say, then, to you : There is nothing which he who has once received this blessing so greatly fears, as that he should be abandoned by grace, and find himself obliged to go forth to the consolations, or rather the desolations, of the flesh, and to support again the tumultuous assaults of the carnal senses .

2. Terrible, then, and greatly to be feared, is that threatening command: Go forth, and pasture thy kids. For it is as if He said : ' Know yourself to be unworthy of that sweet and familiar contemplation of things heavenly, intellectual, and Divine, which you now enjoy. Wherefore go forth from My sanctuary, which is your heart, in which you were accustomed to drink with pleasure such deep draughts of the hidden and sacred meanings of truth and wisdom; be as one of those in the world; entangle yourself again with the delights of the flesh , and feed upon them.' These are what He speaks of as ' kids ' (these signify sins, and are said to be collected, in the Last Judgment, on the left hand of the Judge), the wandering and wanton senses and desires of the flesh, by which, as by windows, death has entered into the soul. To these well apply the words which follow in the text : besidethe shepherds' tents. For kids are pastured, not as lambs, above the tents of the shepherds, but beside them. Now, those shepherds (pastores) who are true pastors, although they have tabernacles com posed of earth, and set upon the earth, that is to say, their bodies, in these days of their service here below, yet are wont to feed their Lord's flocks, not with things of earth, but from celestial pastures ; nor do they preach to them according to their own will, but to that of their Lord. But kids, that is, the senses of the body, do not seek for, nor desire, heavenly food, but feed beside the tents of the pastors ; that is to say, among the good things cognizable by the senses of the present world, which is the region of material bodies, and with these they do not indeed satisfy their desires, because these grow with habit, but indulge them.

3. Asad and shocking change of pursuits ! After having made it his endeavour to nourish the soul during the time of its exile and wandering here with holy meditations, as it were with food from heaven, to seek out the good pleasure of God and the mysteries of His will, to reach up to heaven by the fervency of his devotion, after having saluted Patriarchs and Apostles, and the choirs of Prophets, marked with admiration the triumphs of Martyrs, and viewed with wonder the glorious ranks of the Angels, now, to lay all these occupations aside, to subject himself in disgraceful servitude to the body, unto obedience to the flesh, to become a slave to gluttony or intemperance, and to seek throughout the world for means to satisfy, in some degree, or at least to soothe their imperious, yet insatiable, desires, by the resources of this world which passes away ! My eyes let fall a torrent of tears over such a soul as that, which, after being brought up in scarlet, embraces dunghills (Lam. iv. 5). He evil entreateth the barren whichbeareth not, anddoeth notgood to the widow (Job xxiv. 21 ) . For notice, it is not merely said, Go forth, but go forth by the flocks of thy companions, andfeed thy kids, in which, as it seems to me, a warning is given to us of no small importance. What is it ? Alas ! that a creature so fair, once made a member of the [Lord's] flock, but now rushing miserably to destruction, is not permitted even to remain among the flocks, but is bidden to fall behind them. How is that, do you ask ? It is in that manner of which we read in the Psalms : Man, when he was in honour, did not understand ; he hath been compared unto senseless beasts, and is become like unto them (Ps. xlviii. 13, Douay). See how this creature, so beautiful, came to belong unto the general body of the animals. And I think that these would say, if they were able to speak : Behold, Adam is become as one of us (Gen. iii. 22, Douay). Says the Psalmist : When he was in honour. If you ask, In what honour ? he dwelt in Paradise ; his life was passed in a place of entire pleasure ; he suffered no manner of pain or of privation ; his steps were among trees loaded with fragrant fruits ; he reposed upon a bed of flowers ; he was crowned with glory and honour, and set over all the works which the Hands of His Creator had made ; but above all, he excelled in glory, because he bore the Divine image and likeness ; he ranked with, and enjoyed the society of, the Angels, and all the powers of the army of heaven.

4. But he changed that glory of God into ' the similitude of a calf that eateth hay. ' Thence it is that the Bread of Angels is made to be, as it were, hay laid in the manger, and set before us as before the beasts in the stable. Indeed, the Word was made Flesh (John i. 14) ; and, according to the Prophet, All flesh is but grass. But that grass is not dried up, nor has its flower fallen, because the Spirit of the Lord hath rested upon it. And when once the end of all flesh came [by the Flood] , it was for this reason, namely, that the Spirit of life had left it ; for God said : ' My Spirit shall not remain in man for ever, because he is flesh (Gen. vi. 3, Douay). By the name of ' flesh ' in this passage it is man's sin that is specified, not his nature ; for it is sin, not nature, that drives away the Spirit. Because of sin it is, then, that allflesh is grass, and the glory thereof as the flower ofgrass. The grass withereth, he goes on, the flower fadeth, but not that Flower which springs out of the stem and root of Jesse, inasmuch as the Spirit of the Lord has rested upon Him (Is. xi. 2 ) ; not that grass which the Word was made, since the Prophet continues, But the Word of our God shall stand for ever (Is. xl. 6-8). For if the Word is made [Flesh, that is ] grass, and the Word abides for ever, then [that] grass abides for ever. Otherwise, how shall He bestow eternal life, if He Himself does not live eternally ? for He says : Ifany man eat ofthis bread, he shall live for ever. And of what bread He speaks He explains in adding : And the Bread that Iwill give is My Flesh, whichIwill givefor the life of the world (John vi. 51 ). How, then, can He, by whom eternal life is bestowed, be other Himself than eternal ?

5. But recall now with me, if you please, the declaration of the Son to the Father in the Psalm : Thou wilt not suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption (Ps. xvi. 10 ) . Doubtless, He refers here only to His Body, which lay for a time dead in the sepulchre. This is that Holy Thing of which the Angel declared to the Virgin : That Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God (Luke i. 35) . How, then, could that holy Flesh (grass, fenum) see corruption which was born of a pure womb, as it were of meadows ever flourishing in perpetual greenness, and which draws upon it without ceasing the gaze of the Angels, who regard it with never-failing delight ? It would surely lose its greenness if Mary lost her virginity. The food of man has, then, been changed into that of beasts, since man has changed into a beast. O sad and lamentable transmutation ! that man, the dweller in Paradise, the lord of earth, a citizen of heaven, and one of the household of the Lord of Sabaoth, the brother of blessed spirits, and co-heir of celestial Virtues, should have found himself, by a sudden transformation, and through his own weakness, lying in a stable, clamouring for food such as is the lot of beasts, because of his resemblance to their nature, and still more, bound fast to the manger, on account of his savage unruliness, like as those of whom it is written : With bit and bridle bindfast theirjaws, who come not near to thee (Ps. xxxi . 9, Douay). Yet know, O ox, thy owner, and thou, O ass, thy master's crib, that the Prophets of God may be found faithful in their predictions of these wonderful works of God. Recognise, now that thou art become a beast, Him whom, when thou wert man, thou didst not recognise ; adore in the stable Him whom in Paradise thou didst flee from ; honour the Manger of Him whose Throne of authority thou didst contemn; and that Bread-yea, that Bread of Angels, from which thou didst turn in distaste, now that it has become food suited to thy state of animal, take and eat.

6. But what is the cause, you would ask, of such an abasement ? It is certainly no other than that man when he was in honour, did not understand. What did he not understand ? The Psalmist does not explain ; but let me explain. He was placed in honour, and took such pleasure in the loftiness of his elevation, that he failed to remember that he was but clay ; and he soon experienced in himself the truth of what one of the sons of his captivity, at a period far later, both wisely observed and truly recorded, that ' if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself' (Gal. vi. 3) . Woe to that unhappy one, who was not then in existence when it was said of him : Why is earth and ashes proud ? ( Ecclus. x. 9). Hence it is that a creature so beautiful is confounded with the herd ; hence it is that its likeness to God is changed into the likeness of the brute creation ; and in place of the companionship of Angels a fellowship with beasts of burden entered upon. Do you see, then, how great reason we have for fleeing from that ignorance which has been the cause of so many hosts of evils to all our race ? For the Psalmist declares that man became like unto the beasts that perish, and are devoid of reason, because he did not understand. Ignorance, then, must at any cost be avoided by us ; lest, perhaps, if we are found to be still without understanding, after having been so severely disciplined and punished, evils greater and heavier than the former should find us out, and it be said of us : We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed (Jer. li. 9). And rightly so, since chastening has not enabled us to understand and take heed of what we have heard.

7. Is it not perhaps for this reason also that the Bridegroom, in order to turn His beloved from her ignorance by the thunder of His reprimand, said to her, not ' Go forth with the flocks ' ; or, ' Go forth to the flocks, but Go forth by [or after the footsteps of the flocks. Why is this ? Without doubt to show that a second ignorance is more shameful and more to be feared than the first, because it has rendered man equal to the beasts, or even inferior to them. For men justly deprived of the light of God's countenance (ignorati), that is reprobate, because of this ignorance of theirs, both have to endure His terrible judgment, and to be given over to the everlasting fire-a punishment to which beasts are not liable. Without doubt, then, the condition of those who will be in that state is worse than that of those who will not be liable to it at all. It were 1 The Bride, i.e. , the human soul ; or sometimes the word is used in the sense of the Church, which is the aggregate of regenerate souls.—ED. better for him [says the Scripture, of one] ifhe had not been born a man (Mark xiv. 21, Vulg. ). Not, you observe, that he had not been born at all, but that he had not been born a man ; but (for example) a beast of the field, or some other creature which, not having received the power ofjudgment, would not have to appear before the judgment of God, nor by consequence be liable to everlasting punishment. Let the rational soul, then, which is full of shame to have, by its former ignorance, made itself a companion of the beasts of the field in the enjoyment of the good things of earth, know that it will not have even them for companions if it incurs the penalty of enduring the torments of hell ; that it will be driven away with shame from their company; that it will be no longer with them, but obviously will be after them, since they will have no more evil to endure, while it will be exposed to every kind of suffering ; and from these it will not be delivered for ever, because it has added a second ignorance to the first. Therefore man comes forth, and goes away solitary after the bands of his companions, since it is he alone who is to be thrust into the depth of hell. Does it not seem to you that he who is cast, with hands and feet bound, into the outer darkness (Matt. xxii. 13) is found in the lowest place ? Assuredly the last state of that man shall be worse than the first ; since, instead of being made, as before, like unto the beasts that perish, he is now set below even them.

8. I think, farther, that if you examine the matter closely, you will conclude that even in this life [such a] man takes a place lower than the beasts of the field. Does it not seem to you that the man who is gifted with reason, and does not act according to reason, is in some sense more beastlike than the beasts themselves, which are without reason ? For if the beasts of the field do not govern themselves by reason, they have an excuse in their very nature, since the gift of reason has been denied to them ; but man, on whom it has been bestowed as his special endowment and prerogative, has no such excuse. Justly, therefore, on this account, ought man to be separated from other living creatures, and ranked after them all, since he alone has degenerated from his condition and violated the laws of his nature ; he alone, though gifted with reason, feels and acts similarly to those who are without it. It is shown, then, that man [if in a state of sin] is inferior to all the tribes of the brute creation, both in the present life, by the depraving of his nature, and in the future life, by the extremity of punishment which awaits him.

9. See, then, in what a miserable and accursed condition a man is who is found in ignorance of God. Ignorance of God, or of his own self, ought I to say ? Unquestionably both the one and the othereach kind of ignorance is fatal, and each suffices to bring about everlasting perdition. Would you know how this is the case ? As regards ignorance of God, you will, I think, have no doubt, if you believe without question that this only is eternal life, to know the true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent (John xvii. 3) . Listen, then, to the Bridegroom, who condemns clearly and unmistakably in the soul an ignorance of itself. For what does He say ? Not, ' if you know not God, but if thou know not thyself, etc. (Cant. i. 7, Douay). It is plain, then, that [the soul] which is ignorant will be left to be ignorant ( 1 Cor. xiv. 38), whether it be with regard to God, or with regard to itself. Of these two kinds of ignorance there is much to be said that will be useful, if God shall enable me to say it. I will not, however, say it now, lest you being wearied, and the discourse not having been preceded by your prayers, as is our custom, either I may expound with too little care, or you may listen with too little attention to, a subject of such great importance, and which is not to be entered upon except with a strong and eager desire. For if the food of the body, if taken without appetite, and in a state of repletion, not only does not profit, but even is the cause of much harm, much more will the food of the soul bring, not increase of knowledge, but merely unhappiness of mind, if it be taken without desire, or even with disgust. Which sad effect may He avert from us, who is the Bridegroom of the Church, Jesus Christ our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

I AM here in fulfilment of my promise, in order to comply with your requests, and in discharge of the duty I owe to God. It is a threefold reason, as you see, which urges me on to speak : respect for my promise, brotherly charity, and the fear of the Lord. If I be silent, my own mouth will condemn me. If, on the contrary, I speak, I still fear the same judgment, inasmuch as my mouth will none the less condemn me because I say and do not. Aid me, I entreat you, by your prayers, that I may be able to speak what is true and edifying, and to carry out in my actions that which I preach to others . You are aware that I propose to speak to-day of ignorance, or rather of the various kinds of ignorance ; for, if you remember, we distinguished two kinds--the one in regard to ourselves, the other to God -and I warned you that each was to be avoided, because each was a cause of condemnation. What I have to do now is to expound this subject more clearly and at greater length. But I think we must in the first place inquire whether every kind of ignorance be a cause of condemnation ? And it seems to me that this is not the case ; that it is not every [ kind or degree of] ignorance that is blamable, since there are many things-they are, indeed, innumerable-of which we are allowed to be ignorant without peril to our salvation. For example, if you are ignorant of some mechanical art, as that of the wheelwright, or of the mason, or some other of those industries which are carried on by men for the purposes of this present life, would that be an obstacle to your salvation ? How many men are there who have been saved, being acceptable to God in character and actions, without having been acquainted even with the liberal arts ( though these latter are more honourable and more useful both in learning and in practice) ! How many persons does the Apostle enumerate in the Epistle to the Hebrews, who became dear to God, not by their acquaintance with polite literature, but by a pure conscience and by faith unfeigned ! ( Heb. xi. ). Others there were who pleased God in their life by the merits, not of their knowledge, but of their life. Peter and Andrew, and the sons of Zebedee, and all the rest of their fellow-disciples, were not drawn from the school of rhetoric or of philosophy, and yet the Saviour used them as instruments [by which to bring about] salvation throughout the earth. It was not because the wisdom in them was greater than that of all other men (as a certain holy man confesses of himself-Eccles. i. 16), but because of their faith and gentleness, that He saved them ; yea, and made them Saints, and even teachers of others. They have made known to the world the ways of life, not by the sublimity of their preaching, or by the learning taught by human wisdom ; but after that the world in its wisdom knew not God ; it pleased Him to save by the foolishness of their preaching those who believed ( 1 Cor. ii. 1 ; i. 17, 21).

2. I mayseem to you, perhaps, to speak too severely of knowledge ; to blame, as it were, the learned, and to forbid the study of literature. But I would by no means do this. I am not ignorant how great are the services that have been rendered to the Church, and are rendered to her continually, by her learned sons, whether in repulsing the attacks of her enemies or in instructing the simple. Besides, I have read the words of the Prophet : Because thou hast rejected knowledge I will also reject thee, and thou shalt be no priest to Me (Hosea iv. 6) ; and also : They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever ( Dan. xii 3). But I know also where I have read : Knowledge puffeth up ( 1 Cor. viii . 1 ) ; and again : He that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow (Eccles. i. 18). You see that there is a difference between these [kinds of knowledge], for one kind renders [the possessor] vain, and another renders him sad. Now, I would ask you whether of the two is the more conducive to salvation, that which puffs up or that which saddens ? But I doubt not that you would prefer the latter, since pain is a means to health, of which tumour and swelling is but a semblance. But he who entreats for salvation is near to gain it, for he that asketh receiveth (Luke xi. 10). Also, He who heals the heart that is broken holds in abhorrence that which is swollen with pride, as the highest Wisdom teaches us : God resisteth theproud, but giveth grace unto the humble (James iv. 6). And the Apostle declares : Isay, by the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think [of himself] more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly (Rom. xii. 3) . He does not forbid knowledge, but only the knowledge which renders vain. And what does he mean by ' soberly' ? He means to guard with the greatest care that knowledge which is essential before and beyond everything else to our salvation, for the time is short. All knowledge, however, which is founded on the truth is good in itself. But you whom it behoves, on account of the briefness of the time, to hasten to work out with fear and trembling your own salvation, you must take care to acquire first and most carefully what you feel to be of nearer concern to your salvation. Do not the physicians of the body define a part of medicine to consist in the choice among different kinds of food, which should be taken first and which afterwards, and in what manner each should be taken ? For although all kinds of food, since God created them, must be good, yet you may certainly render them evil [to you] if you do not observe the proper manner and sequence in partaking of them. Apply, then, what I say of the food of the body to the various kinds of knowledge, which are food to the mind.

3. But it is better to send you at once to the Master, for this teaching comes not from us, but from him ; or, rather, it is ours, because it is the word of Truth. If any man, he says, think that he knoweth anything, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know ( 1 Cor. viii . 2). You see that he does not praise the person who knows many things if he is still ignorant of the right manner to know them, and that it is in that very point he places the fruit and usefulness of knowledge. What, then, does he understand by the manner of knowing ? What else can he mean by it than in what order, with what degree of eagerness, and with what intention and object we ought to acquaint ourselves with all things ? In what order ? that is to say, so as to acquire first that which is more fitted to the work of our salvation. With what degree of eagerness ? by which we learn that we ought to apply ourselves with the greatest ardour and vehemence to make progress in that which excites us the most strongly to the love of God. And lastly, with what intention and object ? not to learn, that is to say, in order to satisfy vainglory, to indulge curiosity, or any motive like that, but only for our own edification or that of our neighbour. For there are those who wish to learn merely in order that they may know, and such curiosity is blamable. There are others who wish to learn for no other reason than that they may be looked upon as learned, which is a ridiculous vanity ; and these will not escape the censure which a satiric poet levels against them when he says : ' To know a thing is nothing in your eyes, unless some other person is 1 John of Salisbury writes in a very similar way : ' Some are drawn towards learning by curiosity, others by the desire to be accounted learned, or even by motives of selfinterest. There are very few who pursue study in a disposition of charity or humility, to instruct themselves or to be of service to others ' ( ' Polycraticus,' Bk. vii . c. 15) . aware of your knowledge ' (Persius, Satire I., 27). And others, again, desire to learn only that they may make merchandise of their knowledge, for example, in order to gain money or honours ; and such trafficking is ignoble. But there are those who desire to learn that they may edify others ; that is charity. And, lastly, there are some who wish to learn that they may be themselves edified ; and that is prudence.

4. Of all these the two last are the only learners who do not fall into an abuse of knowledge ; since they wish to know only that they may do good. Says the Psalmist : Agood understanding have all they that do His commandments (Ps. cxi. 10). But let all the others note what is said by the Apostle : To him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin (James iv. 17) ; as if he had said by a metaphor : ' To take food, and not to digest it, is injurious to the health. For food badly cooked and ill-digested generates unhealthy humours, and injures the body instead of nourishing it. So also much knowledge stuffed into the memory, which is, as it were, the stomach of the soul, if it is not digested by the fire of charity, and transfused into the limbs, that is, into the actions and habits, so that it is made the means of good actions through the good that is known, shall not that knowledge be counted for sin, like food turned into bad and injurious humours ?' Is not sin, in fact, as a bad humour in the soul ? and are not bad tendencies and habits as depraved humours ? He who knows the good, and does it not, will his conscience not suffer from inflammations and torturing pains ? Will it not return in itself a response of condemnation and death , as often as that Divine saying comes into the memory : That servant which knew his Lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to His will, shall be beaten with many stripes ? ( Luke xii. 47) . It is perhaps the cry of such a soul to which the Prophet gives utterance, when he says : My bowels, my bowels ! Iam pained at my very heart (Jer. iv. 19). Except that perhaps the very repetition seems to point to a double sense in the words, and obliges me to look for some other than that I have given. I think that the Prophet may have spoken this in regard to himself, inasmuch as being full of knowledge and of charity, and earnestly desiring to communicate that knowledge, he could find no one who cared to listen to him, and thus his knowledge was, as it were, a burden to him, since he was unable to communicate it. Therefore the pious teacher of the Church laments, both for those who scorned the opportunity of learning their duty, and for those who, knowing it, yet lived evil lives. And on this account he repeats the word.

5. Do you observe with what emphatic truth the Apostle asserts that knowledge puffeth up ? I wish, then, that the soul should first of all commence by acquiring a knowledge of itself, as is required both by natural order and by that of usefulness. The natural order, because we are to ourselves the first and nearest fact ; but also that of usefulness, since the knowledge of ourselves does not puff us up, but rather humbles us, and prepares us for edification. For certainly the spiritual edifice cannot stand except on the firm foundation of humility. Now, the soul can find no motive more effective or more powerful for humility than a thorough knowledge of itself as it really is, only it must be honest in purpose and without guile, and standing in presence of itself, must ignore nothing that it beholds. When it views itself thus in the clear light of truth, it will find itself far different from what it had believed itself to be; and sighing at the sight of its truly miserable state, will it not cry to the Lord with the Psalmist : In Thy truth Thou hast humbled me ? (Ps. cxix. 75, Douay). For how can it be otherwise than humbled, in obtaining this true knowledge of itself, when it beholds itself laden with sins, heavily burdened with its mortal body, involved in earthly cares, infected with the corruption of carnal desires, blind, bent earthwards, weak, entangled with many errors, exposed to a thousand perils, trembling with a thousand fears, struggling with a thousand difficulties, the subject of a thousand suspicions and a thousand distressing necessities, prone to vices, but to virtues slow and backward ? How, after that revelation of himself to himself, can he lift up his eyes and walk with head erect ? Will he not rather be converted at the sight of so many miseries, at the sharp pang of the ' thorn which is fastened ' [into it] ? ( Ps. xxxi. 4, Vulg. ). He will be converted, I say, to tears, to sighs and groans ; he will be converted to the Lord, and in deep humility will cry to Him : Heal my soul, for I have sinned against Thee (Ps. xli. 4). And then, when converted unto the Lord, it shall receive consolation, because He is the Father of mercies, and the God of all consolation.

6. As for me, as long as I look at myself, I see only one subject after another for bitter regret. But if I look up, and lift up my eyes towards the help of the Divine compassion, the joyful sight of God tempers at once the bitter revelation of myself, and I say to Him : My soul is troubled within me, therefore will I remember Thee (Ps. xlii. 6). Nor is that vision of God of small avail, in which we have experience of His kindness and readiness to be entreated. For He is in truth good and merciful, so much better than we are evil, as to prevail over our ill (Joel ii. 13). His Nature is goodness, and to Him it belongeth to have mercy always and to spare. Through such an experience, and in such an order of events, then, does God make Himself known to us, and to our great benefit ; that is to say, after man has become aware of the deplorable condition in which he is, and has cried unto the Lord, the Lord hears and helps him, declaring : Iwill deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me (Ps . 1. 15 ) . Thus, the knowledge of thyself will be a step to the knowledge of God: He will become visible in His image, which is renewed in thee ; whilst thou, beholding with confidence as in a glass the glory of the Lord, art changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor. iii. 18) .

7. But now notice, finally, how each of these kinds of knowledge is necessary to your salvation, so that if you are wanting in one or in the other, you cannot be saved. For if you do not know yourself, you will not have the fear of God in you, and therefore you will have no humility. What ground, then, you can possibly have to hope for salvation, without the fear of God and without humility, you can see for yourself. You have done well to show me by that little murmur that you do not nourish any such vain expectation, or rather that your belief is entirely opposite to it ; and therefore we need not linger upon a question which is clear in itself. But listen to what remainsor had we better stop here, on account of those who are weighed down by sleep ? I thought that I would include in one sermon what I had promised respecting the two kinds of ignorance, and I would do so, only that I should seem to be excessively lengthy to those whom this sermon wearies and disgusts. For I see some yawning, and others are asleep. Nor is that strange ; the Vigils of the preceding night (which were, indeed, very long) are their excuse. But what shall I say to those who slept then, and yet are sleeping now all the same ? But I do not wish to put them to shame farther ; it is sufficient to have mentioned the fact. I think that henceforth they will keep awake better, and fear to be again remarked. In that hope I pass over the matter for this time, and in consideration for them will divide what remains to be said, and make an ending, where the end really was not. May the indulgence shown to them bring them to render glory with us to the Bridegroom of the Church, JESUS CHRIST our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

I THINK that there is no need to-day to urge you not to yield to sleep, because the exhortation given to you so recently as yes terday will doubtless be still in your minds, and being addressed to you in a kindly spirit has, I hope, produced a good effect. You remember, then, that you agreed with me in holding that no one is saved without a knowledge of himself, because from that knowledge is born humility, which is the mother of salvation, and the fear of the Lord which, as it is the beginning of wisdom, so it is the beginning of salvation. No one, I say, is saved without that knowledge; at least, no one who is of an age and capability to have it. This exception is made to cover the case of young children and of those wanting in the powers of reason, to whom another principle applies. 1 That office which we call ' Matins ' was thus named, according to the intention of St. Benedict ( Mabillon's note). But if you have not the knowledge of God, could there be a hope of salvation for you without that knowledge ? No, not even a hope. For you cannot love One whom you do not know, nor have eternal happiness in the possession of One whom you do not love. Attain, then, to the knowledge of yourself, that you may fear God ; and attain to the knowledge of Him, that you may love Him also. In the one is the beginning of wisdom, in the other is the consummation of it, because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Ps. cxi. 10), and love is the fulfilling of the law (Rom. xiii. 10). So great reason is there for your guarding against both the one and the other kind of ignorance, since without the fear and the love of God salvation is not possible. Other things are indifferent ; the knowledge of them does not ensure salvation, nor does ignorance of them prevent it.

2. Yet I must not be understood to say that the knowledge of literature is either to be neglected or despised, since it both instructs and adorns the soul, and renders it capable of instructing others. But it is needful and expedient that those two things, in which, as we have said above, consist the essentials of salvation, should precede that knowledge. Did not the Prophet have that order in view, and intend to inculcate it, when he said : Sow to yourselves righteousness, reap the hope of life ? And then, after that, light for yourselves, he says : the light ofknowledge. He has placed knowledge the last, as it were a picture, which cannot be drawn on the empty air ; and he has set in the first place the two things which form, so to speak, the solid substance upon which the picture is to be superposed. I may, then, apply myself in all security to gaining knowledge if I have previously received good assurance of life by the blessing of hope. You have, then, sown for yourself to righteousness if you have learned, from a true knowledge of yourself, to fear God ; if you have humbled yourself, wept sincerely for your sins, given liberal alms, and done other works of piety ; if you have afflicted your body with fasts and vigils and your breast with blows ; if, finally, you have wearied heaven with your prayers. This is indeed to sow to righteousness. Good works, pious pursuits, tears of penitence-these are the seeds. Going, they went, says the Psalmist, and wept, casting their seeds. But what, shall they weep always ? By no means. They shall come with joyfulness, carrying their sheaves ( Ps. cxxvi. 6). Rightly is it said with joyfulness, since they bring back fruits of glory, as it were, sheaves of grain. But that, you say, shall be in the resurrection at the last day ; and that is a very long time to await. But be not discouraged, do not in mere failure of heart lose hope ; in the meantime you have the first-fruits of the Spirit, which, even at the present time, you reap with joy. Sow to yourselves righteousness ; reap the hope of life. He does not merely put you off to the last day, when the object desired shall be possessed, not hoped for : but he speaks of the present. Our joy, no doubt, and exultation shall be very great indeed when [eternal] life shall come to be in our actual possession.

3. But shall the hope of so great a joy be itself without joy ? Rejoicing in hope, says the Apostle (Rom. xii . 12). And David said, not that he should rejoice, but that he did rejoice, because he hoped to go into the house of the Lord (Ps. cxxi. 1 ). He did not yet possess [ eternal ] life, but he had attained the hope of life ; and he experienced in himself the truth of that saying of Scripture that not only the reward, but the hope itself, of the righteous shall be gladness (Prov. x. 28). That gladness is produced in the soul of him who has sown to himself righteousness, by the assurance that his offences are pardoned, provided that the efficacy of the grace which he has received to live more holily for the future attests for him the certitude of that pardon. Everyone among you who feels this working in himself knows what saith the Spirit, whose words and whose working are never contrary the one to the other. That which is heard outwardly with the ears is felt inwardly by the heart, and therefore it is that the teachings of the Spirit are understood with full sympathy. For it is one and the same Spirit who speaks in us and who works in you, dividing to every man severally as He will (1 Cor. xii. 11 ) ; giving to some the grace to speak, to others the grace to do that which is good.

4. Whosoever, then, of you, after the first stages (so bitter and full of tears) of his conversion, has the happiness to breathe freely in hope, and to be raised as upon the wings of grace into the peaceful air of heavenly consolations, is even now reaping the harvest and receiving the fruit of the tears which for a time he shed ; he has attained to see God, and has had the happiness to hear Him say : Give to [him] of the fruit ofhis hands (Prov. xxxi. 31). For how can it be that he who has tasted and seen how sweet the Lord is (Ps. xxxiv. 8) has not seen God ? How full, O Lord Jesus, of sweetness and kindness has that soul felt Thee to be who has not only received of Thy bounty pardon for sins, but also the gift of holiness ! Nor is even that all, for, as if to load him with blessings, there has been added to it the promise of eternal life. Happy is he who has already reaped as much as this, and who has in the meantime his fruit unto holiness, and in the end eternal life ! It was with good ground that he who wept and lamented at the sight of himself as he really was, rejoiced when he had seen the Lord, since to the sight of that marvellous mercy he owed it that he returned home bearing sheaves of glory so great : remission, sanctification, most of all the hope of [eternal] life. How true is the prediction which we read in the Psalm : They that sow in tears shall reap in joy (Ps. cxxvi. 5) . In it is briefly referred to each kind of knowledge : the one the knowledge of ourselves, which causes us to sow in tears ; the other the knowledge of God, which enables us to reap in joy.

5. If, then, we begin with this twofold experience the knowledge of God and of ourselves-any knowledge which we may be able afterwards to add to this will not make us vainglorious, inasmuch as any worldly gain or honour which it can possibly bring us is far below the hope which we have conceived and the joy which that hope brings to us, and which is profoundly rooted in the soul. And that hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us (Rom. v. 5). It makes us not to be ashamed, because it fills the heart with an assured and settled conviction [of the mercy of God) . By this the Spirit itself beareth witness with our Spirit that we are the children of God(Rom. viii. 16). What, then, can come to us from any knowledge of our own, however great it be, which is not far below this glory, to be counted among the sons of God ? That is indeed too little to say, for the whole earth and all that it contains, if it were possible to put that into the possession of each one of us, would not deserve to be put into comparison with a gift so precious. But if we be ignorant of God, how is it possible for us to hope in One whom we know not ? And if we be ignorant of ourselves, how can we be humble, since we think ourselves to be something, while we are nothing ? But we know well that neither those who are proud, nor those who are without hope in God, have any part or lot in the inheritance of the saints.

6. Consider, then, now with me with what care and solicitude we ought to repel from us both these kinds of ignorance, of which the one produces the beginning, the other the consummation, of every kind of sin ; just as, on the contrary, of the two corresponding kinds of knowledge, the one is the beginning of wisdom, and the other its perfection-that is to say, the one produces the fear of the Lord, the other the love of Him. But with regard to these two kinds of knowledge, we have explained above ; let us now consider the two kinds of ignorance. Now, just as the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Ecclus. i. 14), so pride is the beginning of every sin (Ecclus. x. 13) ; and as the love of God is justly considered as the perfection of wisdom, so despair [of His love and mercy] is both the startingpoint and completion of malice. And in like manner, as from the knowledge of thyself is caused in thee the fear of God, and equally from the knowledge of God the love of Him, so, on the contrary, from ignorance of thyself comes pride, and from ignorance of God despair. For ignorance of yourself produces in you pride, inasmuch as your mind, being at the same time deceived and deceiving, causes you to think yourself better than you really are. In this way pride is the beginning of all sin, since you are greater in your own eyes than in the eyes of God, or than you are in fact and reality. And therefore the Scripture, speaking of him who first committed this great sin (I mean the devil), declares that he abode not in the truth, but was a liar from the beginning, inasmuch as he was not in truth what he was in his own imaginations. But suppose that he had erred from truth in thinking himself lesser and lower than he really was, what then ? Doubtless ignorance would then have been an excuse for him ; he would have escaped the snare of pride, and, instead of being brought into disgrace by [this] his iniquity, would perhaps have been brought back into grace and favour by his humility. For if we could know clearly the condition in which each of us individually is before God, we might have an opinion of ourselves which should be neither too high nor too low, but which should conform in all respects closely to the truth. But since it has pleased God that this should be hidden from us, so that no man knows whether he be worthy of love or of hatred (Eccles. ix. 1), it is assuredly both more fitting and more safe to choose for ourselves the lowest place, according to the advice of the Truth Himself ; from this we may afterwards be transferred to a higher, and that with honour, instead of being obliged to cede with shame the higher place to another (Luke xiv. 10).

7. There is, then, no danger, howsoever much you may humble yourself, that you will regard yourself as much less than you really are-that is to say, than truth holds you to be. But it is a great evil and a peril to be guarded against, to exalt yourself even in a small degree more than the truth, or in your own thoughts to prefer yourself even to one person whom, perhaps, the Truth regards as equal to you, or, perhaps, even superior. To explain this by a familiar illustration : when you pass through a low doorway you have nothing to fear from stooping, however low you may stoop ; but if you raise your head higher than the doorway, though it were but by the breadth of a finger, you will strike against the frame and injure yourself by the blow. So also with the soul : there is nothing to be feared from humbling yourself, to however great an extent, but much to be apprehended from even the least presumptuous self-exaltation. Therefore beware, O man, of comparing yourself either with those who are greater than you, or those who are less ; with many or with one. For how do you know whether that very one, whom you perhaps regard as the vilest and most miserable of mankind, at whose life you shudder as being infamous and defiled with crimes beyond all others ; whom you think is to be scorned therefore, not only in comparison with yourself, who are living, as you confidently think, in temperance, righteousness, and piety, but even in comparison with other criminals, as being of all the ungodly the worst ; how do you know, I say, whether he may not one day be made, by an exertion of the power of the Most High, to be better than you, and than those whom you prefer to him, or whether he is not so even now in the sight of God ? And for these reasons it is that the Lord has willed us to take our place, not in the midmost ranks, not in the lower, nor even among 1 John viii. 44. 2 See Sermon XX. , De Diversis. the lowest, but has said : Sit down in the lowest place ( Luke xiv. 10) -that is to say, alone and last of all ; and do not presume, I say not to prefer yourself to any, but even to put yourself in comparison with one. See what great evil is caused by ignorance of ourselves, since it produces the sin which is that of the devil, and is the beginning of all others-namely, pride. What is produced by ignorance of God we will see on another occasion. For, as we assembled today a little late, the shortness of the time will not permit of more now. Let it suffice on this occasion for each of us that he is warned against ignorance of himself; warned, not merely by this discourse, but by the condescension and goodness of Him who is the Bridegroom of the Church, JESUS Christ our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

WHAT, then, comes from ignorance of God ? For, as you remember, it was at this point we left off yesterday, and we have to take up our subject here. What, then, comes of it ? Despair, as I have already said ; but in what manner we have now to consider. A man perhaps, returning to a right frame of mind, and sincerely condemning himself for all the evil actions which he has done, proposes to reform, and to retire from the evil road on which he is, and from his sensual thoughts and actions. But if he is ignorant how good and merciful God is, how gentle and favourable to the penitent, and how willing to forgive, will not his carnal reason accuse him, and say : ' What are you doing ? do you wish to lose this life as well as the future life ? Your sins are too many and too great. If you were even to cut the skin off your bones, you could not make satisfaction for offences so numerous and aggravated. Your constitution is delicate ; you have lived in comfort, and you will not easily alter the habits of a life. ' And the unhappy man, rendered desperate by these and similar arguments, returns to his former errors, not knowing how easily the Almighty Goodness, who willeth not that any should perish, would break through all those obstacles [for him]. Then follows [a settled state of] impenitence, which is the worst of all crimes, and is indeed that blasphemy which cannot be forgiven ( Matt. xii. 31 ). He is deeply agitated, and swallowed up by excessive sadness, and by a profound melancholy, so that he refuses to emerge from it, or to receive any consolation. It is with him as it is said in Scripture : The wicked man, whenhe is come into the depth of sins, contemns [them] (Prov. xviii. 3). Or, at least, he shuts his eyes to his miserable state, and, flattering himself with some plausible reasoning, throws himself again, and irrevocably, into the business and the pleasure of the world, to enjoy and to profit by all its good things to the utmost of his power. But when he [and those like him] shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, like travail upon a woman with child : and they shall not escape ( 1 Thess. v. 3). Thus it is that from ignorance of God comes the consummation of all evil, which is despair.

2. The Apostle says that some have not the knowledge of God ( 1 Cor. xv. 31 ) ; but I say that all those who are unwilling to be converted to God are without the knowledge of Him. For, doubtless, they are not reluctant to do so for any other reason except that they imagine Him to be rigorous and severe who is good and kind ; hard and implacable, who is full of mercy ; cruel and terrible, who is most to be loved and iniquity deceives itself, imagining an idol in place of that which He really is. O ye of little faith, wherefore do ye fear ? Because you think He is unwilling to forgive your sins ? But when His Hands were nailed to the Cross He nailed your sins to it also with them. Because you are delicate, and nursed in habits of luxury ? But He knoweth the clay of which we are made. Because you are accustomed to evil, and bound by habits of sinning as by iron chains ? But the Lord looseth them that are fettered (Ps. cxlvi. 7). Are you perhaps afraid that He is enraged because of the number and greatness of your crimes, and will be slow to extend to you a helping Hand ? But you have the assurance that where sin abounded, there grace did much more abound (Rom. v. 20). Are you careful and anxious about food and clothing, and other things necessary for your body, and on that account are reluctant to give up your property ? Your Heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things (Matt. vi. 32). What more can you wish ? or what still holds you back from salvation ? But this is the very thing I say : you are ignorant of God, and you are not willing to believe that which I tell you of Him. I could wish that you would believe those at all events who tell you what they have themselves experienced ; for unless you believe you will not have true understanding. But that faith is not given to all.

3. May God grant us never to suffer from such ignorance as this, that is to say, respecting God, which the Bride is warned to avoid ; she on whom has been bestowed, not merely knowledge, but friendship and familiarity with Him who is as well her Bridegroom as her God, to whom is the favour of continual communion and conversation with Him, and who asks here with fearless directness : Tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon. In which she asks to be shown to her, not Himself, but the place where His glory dwelleth ; although, in truth, His place and His glory are no other than Himself. But He thinks fit to reprove her for pre sumption, and warns her to know her own self, and to consider by what limitations she is restrained, since she has regarded herself as fit for so great a Vision, whether because the excess [of her love] hindered her from considering that she was still in the body, or that she hoped, but fruitlessly, to be able to attain, even while remaining in the body, to that Brightness which is inaccessible. Therefore she is forthwith recalled to herself, is convicted of ignorance, and corrected for presumption. If thou know not, go forth. The Bridegroom thunders terribly against His beloved, not as Bridegroom, but as Master ; not as being angry, but because He desires to purify her by terror, so that being purified she may be rendered fit for that Vision to which she aspires . For that Vision is reserved for the pure in heart.

4. It is with great beauty that, instead of calling her simply ' beautiful, ' He styles herfairest amongwomen ; that is to say, beautiful, with a qualification, and in this way to humble her still more, that she may learn in what she is deficient. For I think that in this passage, under the name of ' women, ' He speaks of carnal and worldly souls, which have in them no manly force, displaying nothing constant or generous in their actions, but of which the whole life and character is soft, remiss, and, in a word, womanish. Now, although the soul that is spiritually minded is already beautiful, inasmuch as it walks, not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit, yet, because it is still in a mortal body, it still falls short of perfect beauty. Thus, it is not beautiful absolutely, but beautiful ' among women ; that is, among worldly souls, which are not spiritually minded as she ; but not among Angelic Beatitudes, not among Virtues, Powers, and Dominations. For as among the Patriarchs one was formerly said to bejust in his generation (Gen. vi. 9), that is, beyond all of his time and his generation ; and as Tamar was asserted to be righteous by Judah, that is to say, beyond Judah (Gen. xxxviii. 26) ; and as in the Gospel the Publican is declared to have gone down to his house justified, indeed, but justified rather than the Pharisee ( Luke xviii. 14) ; and as that great Saint John (the Baptist] was once commended as having no superior, yet only ' among those who are born of women ' (Luke vii. 28), not among the choirs of the blessed and heavenly spirits, so also is it here said of the Bride that she is fairest, but only among women, not among the blessed spirits of heaven .

5. Let the soul, then, desist henceforth, as long as she is on the earth, from searching out with too eager a curiosity the things which are in heaven, lest in seeking to view too nearly the majesty [of God], she should be overwhelmed by His glory. Let her desist, I say, as long as her lot is cast among women, from inquiring into the events which take place among those Powers which are on high, which are intelligible to them alone, and with which, because they are heavenly, it is lawful to heavenly beings alone to concern themselves. ' That Vision, ' He declares, ' which you ask, O My Bride, to be permitted to behold, is far above your powers ; nor are you now capable of sustaining the blinding splendour of that Glory, as of the noonday sun, in which I dwell. For you have said: Tell me where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock to rest at noon. But to be borne upon the clouds, to penetrate into the fulness of Light, to burst into the abysses of Glory, to dwell in the Light which none can approach unto, for this the present is not the time, nor is your mortal body capable of sustaining it. That felicity is reserved for you at the last, when I shall have caused you to appear before Me in a condition full of glory, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. Do you not know that as long as you remain in your present body, you are exiled from the Light ? How can you, who have not yet attained the full beauty of heaven, suppose yourself capable of beholding the Source of all beauty ? How, finally, can you, who do not yet know yourself, seek to know Me in MyGlory? For if you had known yourself more fully, you would be aware that your corruptible body is not capable of lifting its eyes to that blinding Splendour upon which the Angels desire to look, much less of fixing them upon it. The time will come when I shall appear [to judge], and then you shall be wholly fair, even as I am now; then you shall be like Me, inasmuch as you shall see Me as I am ( 1 John iii. 2). Then you shall hear the words : Thou art all fair, my love : there is no spot in thee (Cant. iv. 7). But now, though you are like unto Me in part, yet in part you are still unlike; therefore be content to know (Me) only in part. Have regard to your own powers ; seek not things too high for you, nor try to penetrate those that are too hard (Ecclus. iii. 21). Otherwise, if thou knowest not [ thyself], O thou fairest among women ; for I do not call you simply ' fairest,' but ' fairest among women,' that is, in part ; but when that which is perfect shall have come, then that which is in part shall be done away ( 1 Cor. xiii. 10). If, then, thou knowest not thyself; but the words which follow have been noted, and it is not needful that they should be repeated. I had promised myself to say something that might be useful respecting the two kinds of ignorance ; if, nevertheless, I seem not to have fulfilled this promise, forgive me ; it has not been for want of goodwill. For to will is present with me; but how to perform I find not, except in so far as Our Lord JESUS CHRIST shall of His goodness deign to bestow upon me [grace] for your edification. He is the Bridegroom of the Church, over all things, God blessed for ever. AMEN. THE CHARIOTS OF PHARAOH 247

I have compared thee, O my love, to my company of horsemen among Pharaoh's chariots (i. 9). In the first place we recognise willingly in these words that the Church has been prefigured in the Patriarchs of the ancient Law, and that the mysteries of our salvation have been foreshown [ in them]. In the Exodus of Israel out of Egypt, in that twofold wonder at the Red Sea, the giving passage to the people of God, while at the same time vengeance was executed upon their enemies, the grace of Baptism is clearly typified, inasmuch as it saves men and submerges offences. All ourfathers, says the Apostle, were under the cloud, and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea ( 1 Cor. x. 1, 2). But it is needful to notice, according to our custom, the succession of words [in our text] , and to show the connection between the former ones and those which follow them, and so to draw, if we can, some sweet and profitable lesson from them to bear upon our practice. So, then the Lord] , after having repressed the presumption of the Bride with grave and severe reproof, not wishing that she should remain in too great dejection, recalls to her memory some of the blessings which she has already received, and promises to her others which have not yet beer granted; He also gives testimony that she is beautiful, and even calls her ' love. ' ' If I,' says the Bridegroom, ' have spoken to thee harshly and severely, O my love, do not suppose that it was from mistrust of thee, from hatred, or bitterness of feeling. For the gifts which I have lavished upon thee are unmistakable proofs of my affection. Nor is it in my mind to take away from thee these honours and adornments, but rather to add more and greater ones. ' Or the words may be thus understood : ' Do not take it ill, O my love, that you do not receive instantly all that you ask, for you have already received very great gifts from Me, and shall receive still greater if you walk in My precepts, and persevere in My love.' Thus much with respect to the connection of the words .

2. Now let us see of what nature are the gifts which He mentions that He has given. First of all is this, that He has rendered her like unto His army among the chariots of Pharaoh, in freeing her from the yoke of sin by the destruction of all the works of the flesh, in like manner as the people of Israel was freed from slavery to Egypt, and the chariots of Pharaoh were overturned and submerged in the Red Sea (Exod. xiv. 28). That was indeed a very great mercy, and I shall not be wrong if I desire to glory in having received it. It is a great truth that I declare. I confess, and will confess, that. unless the Lord had been my helper, my soul had almost dwelt in hell (Ps. xciii. 17 , Douay). I am not ungrateful ; I am not forgetful ; I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever (Ps. lxxxix. 1). Let us leave there the resemblance which the Bride bears to my soul. For the rest, after she has been liberated by that unexampled condescension and goodness, she is taken by Him to be His dear friend, endued with glory and beauty as the Bride of the Lord ; but as yet her ornaments are only upon neck and cheeks. For there are promised to her jewelled necklaces for adornment, and golden earrings of price inlaid with silver for an added beauty. Who will not be pleased with the order itself of these gifts ? First, she is mercifully freed ; then condescendingly loved ; thirdly, with kindness cleansed and purified; lastly, she receives the promise of ornaments the richest and most precious.

3. I do not doubt that there are some among you who feel already in themselves the truth of what has been said, and, indeed, anticipate it, because they are forewarned by their own experience. But it is for me to be mindful of that verse of a Psalm : The entrance of Thy words giveth light: it giveth understanding unto the simple (Ps. cxix. 130) . And for their sakes it is that I think it advisable to explain these things at greater length, for loving is the Spirit of wisdom ( Wisd. i . 6) . And it pleases Him that a teacher should be loving and diligent, and that, while desirous to satisfy the intelligent and learned, he should so proceed as to make allowance for those who are of slower comprehension. Wisdom herself says : They that explain me shall have life everlasting ( Ecclus. xxiv. 31, Douay), and I should be unwilling to be deprived of that recompense. Furthermore, even in those things which appear plain there are often hidden meanings, and those of such a character that it is not superfluous to explain them with great care, even to those of the most capacious and swiftly-apprehensive minds.

4. But consider the comparison drawn from Pharaoh and his army and from the horsemen of the Lord. The comparison is not of the two armies between themselves, but of each with a third thing. For what concord hath light with darkness ? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel ? ( 2 Cor. vi. 15). The Bridegroom compares, no doubt, the holy and spiritual soul to the horsemen of the Lord ; and, again, Pharaoh to the devil, and the army of the one to the army of the other. You will not wonder that one soul is likened unto horsemen, who are a multitude, if you consider the array [as it were an arıny] of virtues which are found in that single soul which is holy. What order and regularity in its affections, what discipline in the use of all its faculties, what an armoury of strength in its prayers, what unshrinking resolution in its actions, how formidable is its zeal, what constancy in the combats it sustains with the enemy of souls himself, and how numerous the triumphs it obtains over him ! Therefore, it is that we read of it in a later verse : Terrible as an army with banners (Cant. vi. 4). And, again : What will ye see in the Shulamite ? As it were, the company oftwo armies (vii. 1). Or if that explanation does not please you, know that a pious soul is never without a guard of Angels, who vie with each other in watching over it with a care truly Divine, that they may keep it for Him to whom it belongs, and present it as a chaste virgin to Christ. Do not say in your heart : ' Where are they, then ; who has seen them ?' The prophet Elisha saw them, and obtained at his petition that his servant [Gehazi ?] should see them too. If you do not see them it is because you are not a Prophet, nor the servant of a Prophet. The Patriarch Jacob saw them, and said : This is God's host (Gen. xxxii. 2). The Apostle and Doctor of the Gentiles saw them too, and said of them : Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation ? (Heb. i. 14).

5. Therefore the Bride, being in all her ways protected by Angelic ministries and attended by a bodyguard of Angels, is rightly compared to the horsemen of the Lord ; to that army which on a former occasion, in the midst of the chariots of Pharaoh, triumphed over them by an astonishing miracle of Divine assistance. For if you notice with attention, you will find that all those circumstances in that former incident which you regard with wonder and admiration are to be discovered here, and to be admired no less. Indeed, it may well be thought that here the triumph is more magnificent still, since the former had to do with material things only ; but here the type is spiritually fulfilled. Does it not appear to you, in fact, that there is far more of glory as of bravery in overcoming the devil than Pharaoh, and in conquering the powers of the air than in overturning the chariots of Pharaoh ? There the combat is against flesh and blood ; but here against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph. vi. 12). Follow out with me the details of this comparison. There it is a people delivered from Egypt, here man drawn away from the world ; there Pharaoh is overcome, here the devil ; there the chariots of Pharaoh are overthrown, here carnal and worldly desires which war against the soul are destroyed ; those in the billows, these in floods of tears ; billows of the sea in one case, floods of bitter regret in the other. I believe that when the demons encounter such a soul as this they cry out, as did the Egyptians of old : Let us flee from the face of Israel, for the Lordfightethfor them (Exod. xiv. 25). Do you wish now that I should point out some of the chiefs of Pharaoh's army by their own names, and that I should describe some of his chariots, so that you may in a similar manner find out others for yourselves ? Learn, then, that one of the great captains of the spiritual and invisible king of Egypt is Malice, another is Sensuality, and a third is Avarice. These princes each possess under their king provinces bounded by such limits as are assigned to them by him. For Malice rules in the region of injuries and crimes ; Sensuality presides over all uncleanness of the flesh ; and Avarice over the province of rapine and fraud.

6. Listen also and learn of what kind are the chariots which Pharaoh has prepared for his princes that they may pursue the people of God. Malice has a chariot standing on four wheels, and these are cruelty, impatience, presumption, impudence. Swift is that chariot to shed blood ; it is not stayed by innocence, nor retarded by patience, nor restrained by fear, nor kept back by shame. It is drawn by two horses extremely vicious, and ready for any injury to others-worldly Power, and temporal Ostentation. This car of Malice advances with great rapidity, since on the one side it has Power to accomplish the malicious designs of its occupier, and on the other, Ostentation to approve and applaud them when completed ; so that the saying is fulfilled which is written : The wicked boasteth ofhis heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous (Ps. x. 3) ; and also another Scripture : This is your hour, and the power ofdarkness ( Luke xxii. 52). Over these two rule two drivers : Arrogance urges Pomp, and Jealousy Power. For the heart that is swelling with vanity is borne swiftly to the love of the pomps of the devil ; while that, on the contrary, which is restrained by fitting fear, which gravity renders modest, humility sincere, and purity healthy and clearsighted, will certainly not be borne lightly away by the wind of vainglory. In the same way is not the horse of worldly Power directed by Jealousy, and urged on with the two spurs of envy, I mean the apprehension of failing, and the uneasy fear of being surpassed. One of these is felt by him who is successful, the other by him who is trying to succeed ; and by one or the other of these the powers of the world are constantly galled. So much as to the car of Malice.

7. The car of Sensuality also rolls upon four wheels : the Gluttony of the belly, the Lust of sexual passion, the Luxury of dress and adornment, and the Languor of sloth. It also is drawn by two steeds, Prosperity in life, and Abundance of goods ; and directed by two drivers, Ease shameful and inglorious, and treacherous Security. For an abundance of all things easily produces sloth, and according to Scripture the prosperity offools shall destroy them (Prov. i. 32), and assuredly for no other reason than this, that it infuses into them an unfounded sense of security ; for when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them ( 1 Thess. v. 3). Now, these have no spurs, nor whip, nor anything of that kind ; instead of these they make use of a net of gauzel to give them shade, and of a fan to give them a cooling breeze. The gauze net may stand for Dissimulation, which casts a kind of shadow over the soul, and enables it to escape the heat and labour of cares. It is the mark of an effeminate and weak soul to seek to avoid even necessary cares for fear of feeling the anxiety and uneasiness of them ; and for that object to conceal itself under the shadow ofdissimulation. And the fan is Prodigality, which produces the breeze of adulation. For the luxurious are wont to be prodigal, and to purchase with their gold the breath of the mouth of flatterers ; but enough upon this subject.

8. Avarice also is drawn upon a chariot of which the four wheels are : Pusillanimity, Inhumanity, Disregard of God, and Forgetfulness of death. It is drawn by Stubbornness and Rapacity as steeds, and these have but one driver, Eagerness for gain. Avarice is content with one servant only ; he is not willing to bear the expense of more. But that servant performs what is commanded him with promptness and unwearied industry ; he urges on the steeds which draw his master's car with a whip of double thong-the Craving to acquire, and the Fear to lose.

9. The king of Egypt has other captains besides with their chariots, who serve their master in his wars : as Pride, who is one of his chief princes ; Impiety, the enemy of the faith, who holds a chief place in the household and realm of Pharaoh ; there are also lords and knights of lower rank in the army, whose number is very great, and I leave it to you to seek out the names and the offices, the arms and the equipment of these, to occupy you in these studies. It is thus that the invisible Pharaoh, full of confidence in the prowess of his captains and the strength of their chariots, charges to and fro, here, there, and everywhere, and as a cruel tyrant, wreaks his rage to the utmost of his power against the whole of the Lord's household, and pursues even at this very day Israel escaping from Egypt. The people of God are indeed neither clad in armour, nor borne onward in chariots ; nevertheless [ His army] is rendered strong by the Hand of the Lord alone, and sings aloud in cheerful confidence : Iwill sing unto the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously ; the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea (Exod. xv. 1) ; and again : Some put their trust in chariots, and some in horses ; but we will remember the Name of the Lord our God (Ps. xx. 7). All this bears on the comparison of the horsemen of the Lord, and the chariots of Pharaoh.

10. The Bride is called by the Bridegroom his Love. For she was beloved by Him, even before she was set free ; He would not have set free one whom He did not love. But as for her, she was drawn to love Him, because of the priceless blessing of freedom which He had conferred upon her. Hear, in fact, the confession which she herself makes : We love Him, because He first loved us ( 1 John v. 19). Now recall to your minds the history of Moses and the Midianite (Ethiopissa) woman, and you will see that in it is prefigured the mystical union of the WORD with the soul of a sinner ; and distinguish, if you can, what it is, in the consideration of that most sweet of all mysteries, which gives you most heartfelt consolation and pleasure. Is it the benignant condescension of the WORD, all too great as it is ? is it the priceless glory accruing to the soul ? or is it the sudden and unhoped for faith of the sinner ? But Moses was not able to change the skin of his Midianite wife; while Christ is able to change the complexion of the soul which He loves and saves. For He goes on to say : Thy cheeks are beautiful as the turtle dove's (Cant. i . 9, 10, Douay). But this is reserved for another sermon, so that we may take with eagerness and avidity the viands which are set out for us upon the table of the Bridegroom ; and may burst forth (eructemus) to His praise and glory who is JESUS CHRIST our Lord, God blessed tor ever. AMEN.

THY cheeks are beautiful as the turtle-dove's. Tender and sensitive is the modesty of the Bride, and I think that at the reproof of her Bridegroom her whole face was suffused with one blush, and its beauty made so strikingly apparent as to draw from Him the praise : Thy cheeks are beautiful as the turtle-dove's. But, nevertheless, that is not to be understood in an outward and carnal sense, as if He spoke of the flush due to the blood coursing in the veins, mounting into the countenance, and mingling there swiftly with the pearlwhite tints of the complexion. That causes, indeed, a beauty momentary and perishable, varying from one moment to another, as the bright colour now flames upon the cheeks, and now sinks into paleness ; but it is not of this that He speaks. For the substance of the soul, which is incorporeal and invisible, is neither portioned into limbs and organs, nor shadowed with visible colours. Try, then, to reach, in a spiritual way, the conception of a substance wholly spiritual, and in order to estimate justly the comparison made by the Bridegroom, for the face of the soul understand the intention of the mind. For it is by that you judge of the rectitude of an action, just as it is by the face that you judge of the beauty of the body. Understand, then, by the colour which mounts into the cheeks, modesty, which is, more than any other, the quality which beautifies the soul, and adds grace to it. Thy cheeks, then, are beautiful as the turtle-dove's. He was able to describe her beauty as that of the face, according to the ordinary phrase, in which one, whose beauty is praised, is said to have ' a sweet or beautiful face ' ; but I know not what could have been the intention in speaking of ' cheeks ' in the plural, yet I do not at all think that it was without an object. For it is the Spirit of wisdom who is speaking, and it is not permissible to attribute to Him a single word spoken in a faulty or even objectless way. There is undoubtedly some reason, then, whatever it may be, wherefore He preferred to speak of ' cheeks ' in the plural, rather than of ' face' in the singular ; and if you have nothing better to propose, I will explain my idea of what it is.

2. In an intention or purpose, which we have said to be the countenance of the soul, there are two elements necessarily required, namely, the act of the will, and the reason of that act ; that is, the thing that you intend, and the reason why you intend it. And it is by these two that you form an opinion of the excellence (that is, the moral beauty) or the defect of that soul. So that one in whom these two things are correct and pure may rightly and truthfully be addressed as here : Thy cheeks are beautiful as a turtle-dove's. But if any is wanting in one or the other of these qualities, this cannot be said of her, because of the want of symmetry which that defect causes. Much less is this praise due to her in whom both of these excellences are wanting. This will appear more plainly by examples. If, for instance, a person applies his mind to the discovery of truth, and does that from the love of the truth alone, does it not seem to you that the purpose, and the reason of it, are alike honourable, and that such a soul may rightly apply to itself what is said here : Thy cheeks are beautiful as a turtle-dove's ? since on neither of them does a speck (navus) of blame appear ? But if it seeks the truth, not from a pure desire of truth, but for vainglory, or in order to obtain some temporal advantage, whatever it may be, then, although on one side it may appear fair, yet you will not hesitate, I think, to pronounce that on the other it is deformed, since it is disfigured by the faultiness of the motive. But if you see a man who does not devote himself to any honourable pursuits at all, but is entangled in the nets of sensual pleasures, and given up to gluttony and self-indulgence, such as they are whosegod is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things (Phil. iii. 19), what of that man ? will you not declare that he is wholly foul, and evidently condemned for both intention and act ?

3. To have not God but the world for the motive and end is then the sign of a worldly mind, and it is to have none at all of this spiritual beauty. But to have a degree of regard for God, yet not to act wholly for the sake of God, is evidently the mark of a soul that is insincere. Although it has a fair appearance on one side, because it has a certain degree of regard and care for God, yet this insincerity not only destroys such beauty as there is in this, but spreads foulness over the whole countenance. If, again, the intention is directed towards God wholly or chiefly because of the necessities of the present life, that is not indeed insincerity, but it is a mark of lowness and poorness of heart which is far from being acceptable to Him. Further, to direct the mind towards some other object than God, though it be for the sake of God, is not the repose of Mary, but the care and trouble of Martha. I would by no means assert that a soul doing this has anything of deformity in it, yet I could not declare that it has reached the perfection of beauty, since, inasmuch as it is careful and troubled about many earthly things, it cannot help being covered, by the continual agitation in which earthly things continually exist, with some grains of the dust they scatter everywhere . No doubt these will be quickly and easily blown off again in the hour of a holy death by the breath of a pure intention and the answer of a good conscience towards God. Therefore, to seek only God, and that for Himself alone, is to have a countenance perfectly fair upon either side, and that because both of the intention and the act ; and this it is which is the special quality and prerogative of the Bride by which she merits these words : Thy cheeks are beautiful as a turtle-dove's.

4. But why as a turtle-dove's ? That bird is modest, and is said to consort not with many companions, but to lead its life with a single mate, so that, if it should lose that mate, it does not seek another, but thenceforth lives solitary. You, then, who listen to these words, and who wish to profit by these things which are written for your behoof, and which we are. dwelling on and discussing now for your edification, you, I say, if you feel within you the urgings of the Spirit of God, and are earnestly desiring so to act that you may make your soul to become the Bride of Christ (Dei), do you make it your study that the two sides of your intention--the act and the motive of it-should alike be beautiful; be like that bird so modest and chaste ; sit alone and keep silence, as says the Prophet, because thou hast laid it upon thee ? (Lam. iii. 28). It is indeed an aim altogether above you to be espoused to the Lord of the Angels. Is it not above you to be joined to God, and to be one spirit with Him ? Sit, then, solitary as the turtle-dove. Have nothing to do with crowds, nothing to do with the masses of mankind ; forget, also, thine own people and thy father's house ; so shall the King have pleasure in thy beauty (Ps. xlv. 10, 11). O holy soul, remain alone, so as to preserve thyself for Him alone, whom thou hast chosen to thyself from among all others. Avoid appearing in public, shun even those who dwell in the house with you, withdraw yourself from friends and intimates, yea, even from him who ministers to you. Do you not know that you have a Bridegroom who is diffident, and not willing to honour you with His presence when others are present ? Withdraw thyself, therefore ; I do not mean in body, but withdraw in mind, in intention, in devotion, in spirit. For the Lord Christ, who presents Himself to you, is a Spirit, and He requires solitude of spirit, not of body, although this last is sometimes not without its uses when you are able to maintain it, and especially in the time of prayer. You thus observe the precept of the Bridegroom and the practice He advises : Thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and, when thou hast shut thy door, pray ( Matt. vi. 6). And what He has said, that He Himself did. He would wear away the night alone in prayer, withdrawing Himself not only from the crowds which followed Him, but also from the company of His disciples and familiar friends (Luke vi. 12, 13) . He had indeed taken with Him three of His Apostles when He was hastening of His own accord to meet death, yet He withdrew Himself even from them when He desired to pray (Matt. xxvi. 36-39). Do you, then, do likewise when you wish to pray.

5. For the rest, the only solitude prescribed to you is solitude of mind and spirit. You are alone if you are not thinking of common things, if you are not interested in things present to you, if you think little of that which many estimate highly, if you despise what all others desire, if you avoid disputes, do not take to heart losses, nor bear injuries in mind. Otherwise you are not really alone, though there be no one with you. Do you not perceive that it is possible for you to be alone when you are in the company of many persons, and to be in company with many persons when you are alone ? However large be the throng of men in which you find yourself, you are alone, if only you take care not to listen eagerly to the conversation around you, nor to judge of it rashly. Even if you are witness of a bad action, do not judge your neighbour, but rather make excuses for him. Excuse the intention if you cannot the action ; suppose that it was done in ignorance, or by surprise, or by accident. If the case is so clear that there is no room to palliate it, yet strive to persuade yourself that there was some excuse, and say to yourself : ' The temptation was very strong, and it prevailed. What should I have done if I had been similarly tried ?' Now, remember that it is to the Bride I have said all this, not to the friend of the Bridegroom, who has another reason for being careful and observant not to commit sin, as also to examine whether he has failed in his duty, and to amend his conduct if in any respect he has done so. But the Bride is free from any such necessity ; she lives for herself alone and for Him whom she loves, who is at once her Bridegroom and her Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

THYneck is as chains ofgold (i. 10). It is the custom to adorn the neck with necklaces, not to compare it to them. But those who load themselves with jewels are they who seek to obtain from external ornaments the beauty which they do not find in themselves. But in the case of the Bride, the neck is so beautiful and becoming in itself, as it was formed by nature, that nothing could be added to it by outward ornaments. For what need is there to adorn with borrowed hues that of which the natural and, as it were, innate beauty suffices, insomuch that it is fully equal to the soft splendour of the pearls which are so sought for in order to adorn 1 Compare this with the Letter to the Monks of Mont Dieu. it ? This is what the Bridegroom desired to intimate in declaring not at all that the Bride has jewelled chains pendant from her neck, as is usually the case, but that it is itself as chains ofgold. Now, we must invoke the Holy Spirit, so that, as He was pleased to show us what was meant in a spiritual sense by the cheeks of the Bride, so He will deign now to show us what is spiritually meant by her neck. And as far as I have understanding (for I must say to you what I think), no explanation seems more reasonable and probable than to say that the intelligence of the soul is intended here by the ' neck ' of the Bride. You will agree to this opinion, I think, if you consider the reason for this metaphor. For does not the function of the neck [in the body] seem to you to answer to that of the intelligence, by which the soul transmits the vital nourishment of the spirit, and distributes it throughout all the viscera, that is, the faculties and affections ? As, then, the neck of the Bride, that is to say, the intelligence, is sufficiently admirable in its pure and simple truth, it has no need of any extraneous ornament, but itself adorns the soul, as it were a precious necklace ; and for that reason is described under the metaphor of golden and jewelled chains. Truth is a good necklace, as is purity and simplicity ; and wisdom that is sober and chastened is an ornament that is priceless . The intelligence of philosophers or of heretics has in it none of this pure lustre, none of the splendour of truth ; and therefore they take great pains to colour and to veil it with trappings of fine words, with ingenious tricks of logic, lest if it should be suffered to appear unadorned, its essential falseness and meanness should become visible also.

2. We will make thee borders of gold, with studs ofsilver. If the speaker had said, in the singular, ' I will make, ' and not ' we will make ' in the plural, I should have pronounced without hesitation the speaker to be the Bridegroom. But now consider whether we shall not do better, and with greater fitness, to attribute these words to His companions, who are consoling the Bride by such a promise as this, that while she is awaiting the vision of Him whom her soul so earnestly desires, they will fashion for her the beautiful and costly pendants which are wont to be ornaments for the ears . And this for the reason, as I think, that faith cometh by hearing, and that as long as we walk by faith, and not by sight, our efforts must be directed rather to the purifying and building up of [the soul] by means of hearing than to attaining a revelation by the sight. In vain is it that the eye is bent upon the truths of heaven, if it be not purified by faith, since to those alone who are of clean heart is that blessed vision promised ( Matt. v. 8). It is written also : Purifying their hearts byfaith (Acts xv. 9). Since, then, faith cometh by hearing, and from it is the purifying of the spiritual vision, there is good reason for directing endeavours to the adornment of the ears, since the hearing, as we are taught by reason, is the preparation for sight. ' You, O Bride, ' they say to her, ' are sighing for the glory of your Beloved ; 2 Exserendo, but otherwise exercendo. 1 Or pendants. but this grace is reserved for another season . For the present we bestow upon you these ornaments, to be both a consolation to you in the meantime, and a preparation for the glory which you crave. ' It is as though they spoke to her those words of the Psalmist : Hearken, Odaughter, and consider, incline thine ear (Ps. xlv. 10). You desire to behold ; but first hearken. Hearing is the step by which you reach sight. Therefore listen, and incline thine ear to the ornaments which we devise for thee, so that by the obedience of hearing thou mayest come to the glory of vision. Upon thine hearing we bestow joy and gladness. As for that Vision (in which is fulness of joy, and the fulfilment of all thy desire), it is not ours to give, but His alone whom thy soul loveth. It is for Him to show Himself to thee, so that thy joy may be full ; He shall make thy joy perfect with His countenance. In the meantime, do thou receive at our hand these jewelled pendants for a consolation ; but in His Right Hand are delights for evermore.

3. We must now consider what are the pendants which they offer . Pendants ofgold, it is said, and studs of silver. Now, gold denotes the splendour of Divinity, and the wisdom which is from above. It is this gold which the celestial workers, to whom that ministry is committed, promise to fashion into glittering signs and tokens (so to speak) of truth, and to insert them into the inward ears of the soul. That signifies, I believe, nothing else than to construct the similitudes of certain spiritual realities, and to bring the purest intuitions of the Divine wisdom before the perception of the soul absorbed in contemplation, so that it may behold, at least darkly and as in a glass, what it is not yet equal to beholding face to face. These things are wholly Divine, and are known only to those who have had experience of them ; they alone know how, while yet in this mortal body, while yet in the state of faith, while the real substance of Light perspicuous and lucid is not yet made manifest, it may nevertheless come about that contemplation of the pure truth may sometimes already mark out within us the outline of its form, at least in part, so that he from among us who is so happy as to have received that gift from on high may say with the Apostle : Now Iknow in part ; and again : Nowwe know in part, and we prophesy in part ( 1 Cor. xiii. 12, 9) . But when the spirit, coming forth, as it were, out of itself, and rapt in ecstasy, beholds somewhat of the more Divine and sacred Truth, which flashes before its vision with the rapidity of lightning, then, either in order to temper the exceeding brilliance of a light too penetrating to be endured, or to render us capable of communicating the substance of it to others, forthwith, I know not whence, there present themselves to our imagination images and figures of lower (that is, earthly) things, to which the truths revealed from above are accommodated, which veil in a certain sense that most pure and splendid ray of truth, and render it more supportable by the mind, and more able to be communicated to others. These are, I think, formed in our minds by the ministry of good angels, as, on the other hand, there is no doubt that those other [images] which are evil, are produced by the agency ofevil spirits.

4. And perhaps this is that very mirror [of the imagination] through which, as I have said, the Apostle saw darkly ( 1 Cor. xiii. 12), which is formed, so to speak, by the hands of Angels, and from which come gleams of pure light, beautiful and heavenly ideas and images. This, indeed, gives us the knowledge of God, who is discerned as pure Being, and without any phantasy of bodily semblance, and we must attribute to this Angelic ministry that similitude of supreme excellence which affords to us an idea of Him who is clad in majesty so awful. There is another version which seems to express this more strikingly still : We [artificers] will make for thee images ofgold, with [badges or] distinctions of silver. One says with badges of silver, [the other] with studs of silver. In which are signified, as it seems to me, not only that the inward images are suggested to our minds by the Angels, but also that the grace and eloquence of their outward clothing [of words] is ministered to us by the Angels also, so that by their fitting and graceful expression they are more easily received, and more fully enjoyed, by the hearers. If you shall say, What relation or likeness is there between words spoken and silver, the Psalmist replies to you : The words of the Lord are pure words, as silver tried in a furnace (Ps. xii. 6). Thus, then, it is that those heavenly and ministering spirits fashion for the Bride, while she is a pilgrim here on earth, pendants of gold with studs of silver.

5. But notice how, while desiring one thing, she receives another. She sighs for the repose of contemplation, and the labour of preaching is laid upon her ; and while she is thirsting for the presence of the Bridegroom, the care of bringing forth children for Him and of nourishing them is entrusted to her. Nor is this the only occasion when this was so ; for once before, as I remember, when she was sighing for the presence and affection of her Bridegroom, the reply to her was : Thy breasts are better than wine (i. 1), so that she might recall that she was a mother, and be reminded of her duty to impart milk to her little children and nourishment to her sons. Perhaps you may remark the same thing in other passages of this Canticle if you will take the trouble to seek them out. Was not the same truth once prefigured in the holy patriarch Jacob when he was defrauded of the nuptials with Rachel, which he had desired and long waited for, and instead of a wife who was barren, though beautiful, he received against his will, and even without his knowledge, one who was fertile though dim-eyed ? (Gen. xxix. 23-25). So, also, it is now ; the Bride, inquiring and longing to know where the Bridegroom feedeth, where He maketh His flock to rest at noon, receives, instead of that knowledge, pendants of gold with studs of silver-that is, wisdom with eloquence, without doubt for the work of preaching.

6. From this we are taught that it is often needful to leave spiritual contemplation, however sweet, for the sake of the practical labours which give nourishment, and that no one must live for himself alone, but for the good of all. Woe to those who have received the grace to think and to speak worthily of God, if they make a gain of Godliness ; if they turn into a reason for vainglory that which they had received that they might win souls to the glory of God ; if, having lofty and noble thoughts, they have not also lowly personal feelings. Let them listen in fear and trembling to that which the Lord speaks by the mouth of His prophet : Igave her silver and gold, which theyhave used in the service ofBaal ( Hosea ii. 8, Douay). Do you, then, hear what the Bride replies, having received on the one hand a reproof, and on the other a promise ; for she is not exalted by promises, not angered by a repulse, but practises that which is written : Rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee ( Prov. ix. 8) ; and also that which relates to gifts and promises : The greater thou art, the more humble thyself ( Ecclus. iii . 18), which will appear the more clearly in her reply. But the consideration of that we will defer, if you please, to the commencement of another sermon ; and for what has been said let us render glory to the Bridegroom of the Church, our Lord JESUS CHRIST, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

WHEN the King sitteth at His table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof (i. 12) . These are the words of the Bride, which we have deferred till to-day to speak of; this is the reply which she makes when reproved by the Bridegroom ; yet it is not made to Him, but to His companions ; the words themselves make this clear. For she does not say, as if addressing Him : ' O King, when Thou sittest at Thy table,' but When the King sitteth ; and it is clear that she speaks not to Him, but of Him. Thus, imagine that the Bridegroom, after having (as it appeared) reproved or repulsed the Bride, seeing by her blushes that she was covered with confusion, retired from the spot, that in His absence she might express her feelings more freely ; and that if, as was commonly the case, she yielded too much to depression and grief, the consolations of His companions might raise her up again ; which, nevertheless, He does not neglect to do Himself when He considers it the right time. For, to show clearly how much she pleased Him, even during the reproof given to her, because she received it with becoming 1 The first editions read : ' Sed omnes illi qui mortuus est pro omnibus, esse vivendum.' humility and submission, He wished, before leaving her, to express the praises of her which burst forth, there is no doubt, from the fulness of the heart, and extolled her as beautiful in cheek and neck. Therefore, those who remain with her, knowing the will of their Lord, speak to her courteously, and offer her gifts. It is to them, therefore, that her reply is addressed. So much as to the purpose and connection of the words of the text.

2. But before beginning to extract the kernel of spiritual meaning from this outer shell ( testa), I will make one brief reflection. Happy is he by whom reproofs are as well received as those of which we have here a pattern. Would that it were never necessary to reprove anyone, that would be better still ! But since in many things we offend all, it is not permitted to me to be silent ; my duty obliges me to censure those who do wrong, and charity urges me still more strongly to discharge it. But what if, in the discharge of my duty, I thus censure someone, and the reproof does not effect at all its intended purpose, does not accomplish that wherefor it is sent, but returns to me empty, like a javelin which strikes without piercing and recoils, with what feelings am I affected, do you think, brethren ? Am I not pained and angered ? And, to press into my service some words of a Master [in Israel] , because of my own wisdom I am unequal [to express my meaning as well] , Iam in a strait between two, and what Ishall choose Iknow not ( Phil. i. 23, 22) : whether to feel any pleasure in what I have said, because I have performed what was my duty, or whether to experience any regret regarding it, inasmuch as I have not attained the result I wished for. For I desired that an enemy should perish and a brother be delivered, and this I have not succeeded in, but the event has been precisely the contrary : I have wounded his soul and increased his fault, since scorn has been added to it. They will not hearken unto thee, says the prophet, for they will not hearken unto Me ( Ezek. iii . 7). You see what Majesty it is that is in this case contemned. You think that it is I only that have been scorned. But it is the Lord that has spoken [unto you through me] ; and what He said to the Prophet He said also to His Apostles : He that despiseth you despiseth Me (Luke x. 16). I am not a prophet, I am not an apostle, and yet I am bold to say I am fulfilling the duty of both the prophet and the apostle; though I am far from approaching their merits, I am charged and burdened with their cares. Though it be to my great confusion, though it be even to my extreme danger, yet I do, in fact, sit in the seat of Moses, though I am far from claiming that my life is such as his, or the grace committed to me equal to that he enjoyed. But what then ? Is not respect to be shown to that seat of authority because it is filled by an unworthy occupant ? Even when it was occupied by the Scribes and Pharisees, of them the Lord said : Whatsoever they bid you observe, that3. observe Very often and doimpatience ( Matt. xxiiialso . 2 , 3is). joined to disrespect, so that a person, when blamed, does not only take no care to correct himself, but shows irritation against his reprover, and, like one who is raving in insanity, repels the hand of the physician. Strange is that perversity ! He is angry with the man who is anxious to cure his wounds, but for the enemy who pierces him with the shafts of temptation he has no anger ! For there is one who shoots his arrows against those who are upright in heart (Ps. xi. 2), who has now wounded you even unto death, and yet against him you are not angry ! Your indignation is wholly against me, who desire to see you cured. Be ye angry and sin not, says the Apostle (Eph. iv. 26). If you are angry on account of [ your own] sin, not only do you commit no sin, but you root out the sin which you had committed. But now you retain the sin in rejecting the remedy, and you heap sin upon sin by being angry without reason ; this is indeed to sin beyond measure.

4. Sometimes even impudence is added to this ; not only reproof is borne impatiently, but the fault reproved is impudently defended ; and this is mere madness. Thou hadst, saith the Lord, a harlot's forehead : thou wouldst not blush ( Jer. iii. 3, Douay) ; and He says, My jealousy shall departfrom thee, I will be no more angry (Ezek. xvi. 42) . I tremble at the very hearing of the words. Do you feel what a perilous and horrible and fearful thing it is to attempt to defend sin ? For He says again : As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten (Rev. iii . 19). If, then, the anger [of God) has deserted you, so also has His love ; nor can you think yourself worthy of His love, if you do not think yourself worthy of His chastisements. You see, then, that it is when God shows no anger with the wicked that He is the more angry with them. Let favour be showed to the wicked, He saith, yet will he not learn righteousness ( Is . xxvi. 10). May such indulgence be far from me. To be thus spared appears to me more terrible than the most violent anger, because it closes up to me the ways of righteousness. Far better is it for me, according to the counsel of the Psalmist, to embrace the severity of discipline, lest the Lord be sometime angry with me, and so I perish from the right way ( Ps . ii. 12) . I desire that Thou wouldst be angry with me, O Father of mercies ; but with that anger wherewith Thou dost correct one who wanders from the way, not that with which Thou dost exclude such an one from it. That censure of Thine is the utterance of a compassion merciful and blessed for us ; but that concealment of Thy wrath is what we have to fear most of all. It is not when Thy wrath is concealed from me, but when it is displayed and felt by me that I have most trust in Thy coming favour; for it is especially in Thy anger that Thou rememberest mercy. Thou, says the Psalmist, wast a God that forgavest them, though Thou tookest vengeance of their inventions (Ps. xcix. 8). He speaks of Moses and Aaron, and of Samuel, whom He had sent before Him ; and he regards it as an instance of God's favour and goodness that He did not spare their faults and failings. After that, will you still go on defending your faults, and showing anger when reproved for them, and thus shutting against yourself for ever the door of the mercy of God? Is not that, in fact, calling evil good, and good evil ? Will not that odious impudence speedily produce impenitence, which is the mother of despair ? For who repents for that which he considers not to be wrong ? Woe to them, says the Prophet. And that woe is eternal. It is one thing for a person to be drawn away from the right and enticed by his own concupiscence ; and quite another and very different to seek out evil of free will, as if it were good, and thus in a false confidence to draw near to death as if it were to life. For this very reason, I assure you, I have sometimes preferred to hold my peace, and take no notice in words of an evil which I have observed, rather than to give occasion for so great a mischief in reproving it.

5. You will perhaps say to me that, in such a case, the good of my action would return to me again ; that I have delivered my soul, and am clean from the blood of that man to whom I have spoken, and have warned him to turn from his evil way that he may live. But although you should add an infinity of such reasons, they would still be no comfort to me while I am apprehending the spiritual ruin of a soul under my pastoral charge. As if I had sought only my own acquittal from blame in speaking to him, and not rather his good! For what mother is there who, when she has diligently nursed her child, and lavished upon him every care in her power, will be able to restrain her tears if she shall find that all her labours and pains were inefficacious, and that her child was dying in spite of them ? And she would feel this only with regard to the death of the body ; how much more ought I to weep and lament for the eternal death of a son of mine, even if I am conscious that I have left nothing undone to warn or to help him ? You see also from how great evils he escapes himself, and also delivers me, who, when reproved, replies with gentleness, acquiesces with modesty, avows his fault humbly, and obeys with submission. To such a soul I profess myself a debtor in all things ; I am his minister and servant, as to a soul which is a most worthy Bride of my Lord, and which is able to say with truth : When the King sitteth at His table, my spikenard sendethforth the smell thereof.

6. The odour of humility is excellent, since, rising up from this vale of tears, it is diffused everywhere around, and fills even the chamber of the King with grateful fragrance. Spikenard is a humble plant, which those who have studied with care the nature of herbs say is of a warm nature ; and therefore it may be taken here not unfitly, as it seems to me, to denote that virtue of humility which glows with the ardour of Divine love. I say this because there is a kind of humility which truth produces in us, and which is without warmth, as there is also another kind, which is produced and warmed by charity. The one has its seat in knowledge, the other in the affections. If, in fact, you look into yourself under the light of truth and without dissimulation, and judge unflatteringly of yourself, there is no doubt that you will be humbled, even in your own eyes, and that this true know ledge of yourself will render you more vile in your own sight, although, perhaps, you cannot as yet endure that this should be the case in the sight of others. You will then be humble, but as yet only by the working of truth, and not at all by the inpouring of love ; for if you had been, in addition to the working of truth, which has shown you to yourselfin a manner veracious and salutary, affected equally by love, youwould without doubt have wished, as far as in you was, that others should have the same opinion of you as you know that the Truth has. I should say that He is nevertheless in you, for it is often inexpedient that all which we know ourselves should be known to others, and we are forbidden by the love of truth itself, as also by the truth of love, to wish to discover to another that which would do him injury. But if you are restrained by self-love, and induced to keep hidden the judgment which truth has formed of you, who can doubt that your love of the truth is imperfect, since you make it subordinate to your own interest or your own reputation ?

7. You see clearly, then, that it is not the same thing whether a man, being constrained by light and knowledge, has a lowly opinion of himself, and whether he is assisted by the grace of charity, and accepts a humble position with willingness ; for the one is enforced, the other voluntary. He emptied Himself, says the Apostle, and took upon Him the form of a servant (Phil. ii. 7 ), thus giving to us a perfect form and model of humility. He emptied Himself, He humbled Himself, not from any necessity of fact or judgment, but by charity towards us. He was able to appear vile and despicable in the eyes of men without thinking Himself so, because He knew Himself well. He was, then, voluntarily humble, and not because He was judged to deserve so to be ; He presented Himself as if He had been such, as He knew Himself not, in fact, to be; but though He was not unmindful that He was the Highest, yet He preferred to be regarded as the least of all. He said, in fact : Learn ofMe, for Iam meek and lowly in heart ( Matt. xi. 29). He says ' in heart, ' in the feeling of the heart that is, in the will ; and in saying this He excludes all idea of necessity, for although I or you find ourselves, in truth, worthy of disgrace and contempt, worthy of the lowest rank and of the worst treatment, worthy even of stripes and punishment, yet it was not thus, it was far otherwise with Him ; yet He endured all these things, and as one humble in heart, because He chose so to do that is to say, He was humble with the humility which was prompted by the kindness of His heart, not enforced by the verdict of truth.

8. For this reason I have said that this kind of voluntary humility is not produced in us by the logical force of truth, but is created within us by the inpouring of charity, because it comes of the heart, the affections, the will ; whether I have spoken rightly you must judge. Consider also whether I have been right in attributing it to the Lord, inasmuch as it is clear that it was charity which led Him to empty Himself, to become a little lower than the Angels, to be subject to [those who were supposed His] parents, to bend His head under the hands of the Baptist, to endure the weaknesses of the flesh, to submit at length to death, and that the ignominious death of the Cross. I submit to your judgment again, whether I have beenright in deciding that this humility, thus warmed by charity, is denoted by spikenard, which is a herb unassuming in appearance and of a warm nature. And if you assent to both these opinions, which I think you will do, as they are supported by very plain reasons, then, if you feel yourself humbled bythat forced humility which the Truth, who searcheth the very hearts and reins, produces in the senses of a soul that is watchful, make a virtue of this necessity, and add to your humility a glad and willing acquiescence, since there is no true virtue without the assent of the will. That will be the case if you are unwilling to appear otherwise to the outward eye than you find yourself to be inwardly. Otherwise you may well fear lest that which you read in a psalm shculd apply to you : Heflattereth himselfin his own eyes, until his iniquity befound to be hateful (Ps. xxxvi. 2). And again : Divers weights and divers measures, both of them are alike abomination to the Lord ( Prov. xx. 10) . What ! do you at the bottom of your heart think lowly of yourself because you weigh yourself in the balance of truth, and yet outwardly you wish to deceive, to be regarded as of greater value, and to sell yourself at a higher price than that at which the truth values you ? Have regard to the judgment of God; do not by any means commit this most discreditable action of exalting yourself by your own selflove, while the truth requires you to be abased, for this is to resist the truth ; this is even to fight against God. Rather acquiesce in the Divine conclusion. Let your will be rendered submissive to truth, and not merely submissive, but willingly and devotedly so. Shallnot my soul, says the Psalmist, be subject to God ? ( Ps. lxi. 1 , Douay).

9. But it is not enough to be subject to God, unless you are subject also to every human creature for the sake of God ; whether to the Abbot, as to the superior of all, or to the Priors, as authorities constituted by him. I say even more than this : I say, subject to your equals, and even to those who are inferior to you. For thus it becometh us, says the Lord Himself, to fulfil all righteousness ( Matt . iii. 15). If, then, you wish to be perfect in righteousness, make the first step towards him who is less than you ; defer to your inferior, show respect towards your junior. For in doing this you shall make the words of the Bride apply to you : My spikenard sendethforth the smell thereof. That perfume is devotion ; it is the holy and saintly reputation which you obtain with all persons, so that you are a good odour of Jesus Christ in every place, visible to all, and by all regarded with affection. He whom truth alone obliges to be humble can never reach this degree of perfection, since his humility is only for himself, and does not flow forth to reach and delight others. It has, in fact, no odour, because it has no devotion, inasmuch as such humility is not voluntary and spontaneous, but enforced. But the humility of the Bride is like sweet perfume, and diffuses its fragrance, warm 1 Convenientia voluntatis. Another reading is conniventia voluntatis. with love and devotedness, and redolent of sweetness to all. The humility of the Bride is spontaneous, constant, fruitful, and it is as unaffected by severity as by praises. To her it had been said : Thy cheeks are beautiful as those of a turtle dove, thy neck as a string of pearls. She had received also the promise of golden ornaments, and yet she replies with humility ; the more she is raised up, the more humble she is in all respects. She does not boast of her merits, nor in the midst of the praises of herself which she receives is she at all forgetful of humility, which, indeed, she frankly avows, speaking of it under the name of spikenard. She speaks in the language of the Blessed Virgin Mary : ' I am conscious of no merit deserving of so great a condescension, except that God hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden ' (Luke i. 48) . For what is the signification of these words, My spikenard sendethforth the smell thereof, except this, ' My humility hath found favour in His sight ' ? ' Not my wisdom,' she says, in effect, ' not my nobleness, not my fairness, for these in me were nothing worth, but my humility, the only quality which was mine, it was this which gave forth its odour ' ; that is to say, that odour which was customary to it. Humility is accustomed to please God, and the Lord, who is high above all, is wont, according to His custom, to regard those things which are humble. Therefore when the King sitteth at His table, that is, when He is in His lofty habitation, the odour of humility ascends thither. He dwelleth on high, saith the Psalmist ; He humbleth Himself to behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth (Ps. cxiii. 5, 6) .

10. When, then, the King is in His habitation, the spikenard of the Bride gives forth its odour. The habitation of the King is the Bosom of the FATHER, for the Son is always in the FATHER. Doubt not, then, that this King is ever merciful, since His abiding-place continually is the home of Fatherly goodness. It is no wonder that the cry of the humble, rising up, reaches Him, who dwells always in the fountain-head of mercy, to whom gentleness and goodness are familiar, are natural, yea, are consubstantial with Him, who derives all that He is from the Father, so that the trembling glance of the humble penitent, looking up to Him, sees nothing in Him which is not fatherly. Therefore it is that for the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord ( Ps . xii. 6) . This the Bride knows, because she is of the household of the Lord and is His beloved ; she believes that her poorness in merits will not exclude her from the Bridegroom's grace, and she puts her confidence in humility alone. She calls Him ' the King, ' for she is terrified by the reproof she has received, and does not venture to call Him her Bridegroom. Nevertheless, though she confesses that He dwells in a high and lofty place, her humility does not lose confidence.

11. It is possible to apply this discourse, and that with much fitness, to the Primitive Church. If you recall the days in which the 1 Arcendam, otherwise arctandam. Lord ascended up where He was before, and sat on the Right Hand of the Father, in His ancient, august, and glorious dwelling-place, you remember how the disciples assembled with one accord in one place, continuing in prayer with the women, and Mary the Mother of Jesus, and with His brethren (Acts i. 13, 14). Does it not seem to you that in truth that was a time when the Bride, though so young and so fearful as yet, gave forth the odour of her spikenard ? Again, when suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting (Acts ii . 2), could she not, though so poor and undistinguished, have taken into her lips these words : When the King sitteth at His table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof? Assuredly it appeared to all who abode in that place, how sweet and how acceptable was that fragrance of humility which ascended to heaven, since it was immediately replied to with gifts so copious and so magnificent as a response. And she was not ungrateful for such a benefit. For listen how in her fervour of gratitude she shows herself to be prepared to suffer all possible evils for the Name of JESUs, for what words follow ? A bundle of myrrh is my Well-beloved unto me : He shall lie betwixt my breasts. But my weakness, which you know, does not permit me to go on longer. This only I add, that by the mention of myrrh she denotes that for affection to her Beloved she is prepared to endure bitter trials and persecutions. The rest of the verse we will finish another time ; if, that is to say, you obtain for me by your intercessions the assistance of the Holy Spirit, to enable me to understand and to interpret the words of the Bride, which He Himself, by His holy inspiration, has originated, and to grant unto me words befitting the praises of Him of whom He is the Spirit : I mean the Bridegroom of the Church, JESUS Christ our LORD, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

A BUNDLE of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me : He shall lie between my breasts. Before He was called ' the King,' now He is called ' well-beloved ' ; before he was in His royal banqueting- room, now He is abiding willingly with the Bride. Great is the virtue of humility, since the majesty of Godhead itself so easily condescends to it. A name of reverence is quickly changed into a term of friendship, and he who was afar off was in a brief time brought near. A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me. Myrrh, which is bitter, signifies the hard and rigorous facts of trouble and sorrow. The Bride, foreseeing that she is about to endure these for the sake of her Beloved, says these words with a feeling of gladness, trusting that she will endure bravely all that is laid upon her. As it is said of the Apostles : They departedfrom the presence ofthe Council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His Name (Acts v. 41 ). Wherefore, also, she speaks of Him, not as a great or weighty mass, but as a small bundle ; in order to convey that whatever labour and grief threatens her, she regards it as light for the sake of His love. She has well called it small and light, for He is a little Child who is born to us (Is. ix. 6). Again, it is a bundle small and light, since the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us (Rom. viii. 18). And the same Apostle says that our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory ( 2 Cor. iv. 17). That, then, which is now a little bundle of myrrh shall at some future period be to us a weight of glory exceeding great. Is it not a little bundle [ we have to bear], since His yoke is easy and His burden is light ? (Matt. xi. 30). It is not that it is light in itself, since the severity of suffering and the bitterness of death are not light, but that to the loving heart it seems a light thing to endure them. And for that reason the Bride does not say merely : My Beloved is a bundle of myrrh, but she adds unto me that is to say, ' to me who love Him. ' So, also, she calls Him her ' wellbeloved, ' meaning to declare that her love has force to overcome the bitterness of all troubles, and that it is strong as death (viii. 6) . And that you may know that she does not glory in herself, but in the Lord, and relies, not upon her own strength and bravery, but upon the help of the Lord, she declares that He shall lie between my breasts, and on that account she can say to Him in a Psalm with the fullest confidence : Though Iwalk through the valley of the shadow ofdeath Iwillfear no evil, for Thou art with me (Ps. xxiii. 4).

2. I remember that in one of my former Sermons I explained these as signifying sympathy in joy with others, and sympathy with them also in sorrow, according to the precept of St. Paul : Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep ( Rom. xii. 15). But because, as she lives between prosperity and adversity, she is aware that there is danger upon either side, she desires to have her Beloved upon her breast and near her heart, so that by His protection she may be continually strengthened against both the one danger and the other, and neither be unduly lifted up in time of rejoicing nor cast down in time of sorrow. You, also, if you are wise, will imitate the wisdom of the Bride ; you will not allow that bundle of myrrh, which you hold so dear, and which is the fellowship you have with the sufferings of your Master, to be torn away from your heart even for 1 Fascis, fasciculus. This fanciful play upon words can hardly be translated. 2 Sermon X. , n. 1 . an hour ; you will retain always in your memory all the bitter pains which He bore for you, and meditate upon them continually, so that you too may say with the Bride : A bundle of myrrh is my wellbeloved unto me : He shall lie between my breasts.

3. As regards myself, I, brethren, from the beginning of my conversion, set myself, in place of all the merits in which I knew that I was wanting, to bind up this little bundle of myrrh for my individual needs, collected from all the cares and bitter experiences of my Lord, and to keep it always close upon my breast ; in the first place, of the privations of His infant years ; then of the labours He underwent in preaching, His fatigues in journeying to and fro, His watchings in prayer, His fastings and temptations, His tears of compassion, the snares laid for Him in discourse ; and, lastly, of His perils among false brethren, of insults, spitting, blows, abuse, scorn, piercing by nails, and other such things, which He suffered for the salvation of our race, which in the Gospel history, as in a wood, may abundantly be gathered. And, among so many branches of that fragrant myrrh, I think that cannot be passed over, of which He tasted when uponthe Cross, nor that wherewith He was embalmed in the sepulchre. In the first of these He applied to Himself the bitterness of my sins, in the second He pronounced the future incorruption of my body. As long as I live I will proclaim loudly the abundance of the graces which come from these ; I will never forget those mercies, since it is by them that I have been restored to life.

4. It was these mercies of which holy David formerly entreated with tears : Let Thy tender mercies come unto me, that Imay live (Ps. cxix. 77). Of them, too, another saint recalled the remembrance, with weeping : Great are the mercies of the Lord. How many kings and prophets have desired to see the things which I see, and have not seen them ! They have laboured, and I have entered into their labours ; I have reaped the harvest of myrrh which they have planted ; it is for me that this salutary bundle has been reserved. No one shall take it from me ; it shall lie between my breasts. To meditate on these things I have called wisdom ; in these I have placed the perfection of righteousness for me, the fulness of knowledge, the abundance of merits, the riches of salvation. There is among them for me sometimes a draught of salutary bitterness ; sometimes, again, a sweet unction ofconsolation. In adversities they raise me up, and in prosperity repress my exuberant delight, and among the joys on the one hand, and the sorrows of the other, of this present life, they enable me to walk in safety along the royal road which leads to life by defending me from the perils on either hand. These conciliate on my behalf the Judge of all the world, showing to me Him who is so greatly to be feared, as one who is gentle and humble, and not only making Him willing to receive and to pardon, but even more, in giving me Him who is far above all powers, and terrible among the kings of the earth, as a model for me to imitate. It is for these reasons that I have these [sufferings of Jesus] frequently in mymouth, as you know, THE BRIDE MEDITATES ON the sufferings of Jesus and always in my heart, as God knows. These are familiar themes in all my writings, as is well known. In a word, my philosophy is this, and it is the loftiest in the world : to know JESUS, and Him crucified. I do not ask, as does the Bride in this passage, ' where reposes at noon ' Him who I embrace with joy and gladness, for He dwells ever upon my breast and in my heart. I do not ask ' where He feeds His flock,' for I behold Him as my Saviour, upon His Cross. The one object is loftier, the other has more of sweetness ; the one is bread, the other milk ; the one the children's food, the other the nourishment which infants find at their mothers' breasts, and therefore He shall lie betwixt my breasts.

5. Mydearest brethren, do you also gather for yourselves each a bundle so precious and beloved, give it a place in the depths of your heart, fortify with it the portal of your breast, that it may abide between your breasts also. Let [JESUS] be borne, not behind you and on your shoulders as a burden, but in front of you and before your eyes, lest Acurious and interesting incident is connected with these words of the Sermon : When the Abbey of Clairvaux had been suppressed by the Directory of France, the church and monastic buildings were sold, on the 10th February, 1792, to the ' Sieur PierreClaude Cauzon, architecte,' for the sum of 337,500 livres. He proceeded to set up a manufactory of glass there, and in order to carry out this purpose, required of the vendors, according to the conditions of sale, that all the relics of saints, as well as the remains of bishops, monks, and others, of which there were great numbers deposited in the church and its precincts, should be forthwith removed. The inhabitants of Ville, in which parish Clairvaux is situated, seem to have been shocked and outraged, as well they might be, at the contemplated spoliation and sacrilege. They desired that the relics of St. Bernard and St. Malachi and other holy men, ' for which their veneration is extreme, ' should be deposited, if they must be removed, in their parish church of Villesous- La Ferte. In order to meet their wishes, which (says the official charged to carry out the affair fair ) ' it might, perhaps, be dangerous to treat with disregard and contempt (fronder), ' order was given by the Directory of Barsur-Aube that this should be done, and that the bones of all the less distinguished persons should be deposited together in the churchyard of that parish. This seems to have been accordingly done in 1793. ( ' Report of M. Delaine, Administrateur du Directoire. ' ) The statement of these details was necessary to explain what follows. In 1855 the Count de Montalembert, the illustrious author of ' The Monks of the West, ' was collecting materials for that ' Life of St. Bernard, which, unfortunately, he did not live to finish. At his instance, M. Guignard, Town Librarian of Dijon , visited this Church of Villesous- La Ferte, and from his account of what he found there we extract the following interesting facts : ' In the little sacristy of that church there repose, in an old wooden chest, once used for treasure, the bones removed from the Church of Clairvaux in 1793. Before 1836 or 1837 they were in the shells used for their translation ; at or after that date they were thrown pêle mêle into this wormeaten coffer, and the shells were burned. It is half-filled by them.' After describing the nature and condition of the bones, and other mouldering fragments which were with them, he continues : Finally there was a very thin board, nearly 5 inches long, and 34 inches high, which was covered with a leaf of parchment turning up at the edges, along which it is fastened by small nails. A wooden link, nailed at its lower part to the board, suggests that it was intended to be hung up, or at all events, to be put in an upright position. This parchment bears four lines of writing ; it is entirely eaten away in if you bear Him and do not perceive His sweetness, you should be oppressed by His weight, without being refreshed by His fragrance rising up before you. Remember how Simeon took Him up in his arms (S. Luke ii. 28), how Mary bore Him in her womb, nursed Him on her bosom, how He who is the Bridegroom was laid upon her breast, and, not to pass over anything, how the word [of prophecy of Him] was spoken by the aged Zacharias ( i. 67), and, indeed, by others also. I suppose that Joseph, too, the husband of Mary, must frequently have taken the Child upon his knees to smile upon and to please Him. All these bore Him before them, and by no means behind. Let them be for an example to you. Do ye do likewise ; for if you have Him whom you are bearing, always before your eyes, it is certain that, beholding the pains and troubles which the Lord endured, you will more easily and willingly bear your own, by His help, who is the Bridegroom of the Church, above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN. the centre, but the ends of the lines are still legible. The writing is plainly of the twelfth century. This is afacsimile of the inscription : F dil inter L Erre commombi: The presence of this written quotation is a proof (were any needful) that the relics are those of St. Bernard. But it suggests even more than this. When we bearin mind the Saint's own words : ' Habetehuncfasciculum . ante præ oculis, ' and observe that we have here a text nailed upon a board, with a hook by which it might be hung up, for instance upon a wall, the inference is surely not a violent one that the Saint had carried into effect his own precept, and that this text was written out, it may be by his own hand, to hang upon the wall of his cell, and thus to be literally ' always before his eyes. ' Then his disciples, after his lamented death, would carry out the precept so dear to their master, a step further ; they would lay it upon his breast in his tomb, and thus his devout aspiration would be accomplished: 'inter ubera mea commorabitur.'

If the Bridegroom were beloved in the bitter myrrh, much more will He be so in the sweetness of the grape. Therefore my Lord Jesus Christ is to me in His Death myrrh, in His Resurrection a cluster of grapes ; and thus He has given Himself to me as a most salutary draught, though commingled with tears. For our sins He died, for our justification He was raised again from the dead (Rom. iv. 25 ), so that we, being dead unto sins, should live unto righteousness ( 1 Peter ii . 24). If, then, you have mourned for sins past, you have tasted the bitterness of the draught ; but if you have now entered upon a holier life, and are beginning to breathe in more and more the hope of eternal life, the bitterness of the myrrh is changed for you into wine, which maketh glad the heart of man. And, perhaps, when there was offered to the Saviour upon the Cross wine mingled with myrrh, and He would not drink it, this was signified, that He thirsted only for the former. You, then, after experiencing, as I have said, the bitternesses of the myrrh, and then tasting the wine of gladness, may yourself say without rashness : My Beloved is to me as a cluster ofcamphire [grapes] in the vineyards of Engedi. Engedi has a twofold meaning, and each sense tends to teach the same lesson, for it means ' the fountain of the kid ' and ' the washing of the nations ' ; and both the one sense and the other point to the tears of sinners. It signifies also ' the eye of temptation, ' which also pours forth tears, and looks onward to temptations, which are never wanting to the life of man upon the earth. But the people of the Gentiles, who walked in darkness, were never able to discover by themselves, nor, on this account, to escape, the snares of temptations, until, by His grace who gives light to the blind, they received the eyes of faith, until they came to the Church which has an eye to discover temptation, until they gave themselves to the instructions of spiritual men, who, having been enlightened by the Spirit of Wisdom, and rendered learned also by their own experience, are able to say truly that we are not ignorant of the snares of the devil nor ofhis devices ( 2 Cor. ii . 11).

2. It is said that in Engedi grow aromatic shrubs, which the people of the country train in the manner of vines ; and thence, perhaps, it is that they are here called vineyards. For otherwise, what would the cluster of camphire do in the vineyards of Engedi ? Whoever carried clusters [ of grapes] from one vineyard to another ? For wine is usually carried to places where there is none, and not whither there is a store of it already. He calls, then, by the name of the vineyards of Engedi the peoples of the Church, which possesses a liquid balm, that is, a spirit of gentle kindness, in which she tenderly cherishes the weakness of those who are still babes in Christ, and consoles the sorrows of penitents. If any brother, then, shall have fallen into some fault, the minister of the Church, who has already received of that Spirit, will at once take measures to restore him, and that in the same spirit of gentleness, considering himself lest he also be tempted (Gal. vi. 1 ). That material oil, with which the Church is accustomed to anoint all those who are baptized, is a type of this.

3. But as the wounds of that traveller who fell among thieves, and whom the charitable Samaritan took up and carried on his own beast to a hostelry, that is, to the Church, were not healed with oil alone, but with wine and oil together ( Luke x. 30-34), so the spiritual physician needs to mix the wine of fervid zeal with the oil of gentleness, since it behoves him not only to console the weak, but also to restrain the unruly. For if he perceives that the wounded man, that is, the sinner, is not at all amended by the gentle and kindly reprimands which he has first employed, but, on the contrary, abuses his forbearance, becomes more negligent by his patience, and sleeps the more securely in his sin, then, the oil of his gentle remonstrances being shown to be of no use, it behoves him to employ more powerful remedies, and so to pour in the wine of penitence that is, to have recourse to stern accusations and reproofs, and if need be, and the stubbornness of the offender be so great, to smite him with the staff of ecclesiastical censure . But whence shall he obtain that wine ? It is not wine, but oil, that is found in the vineyards of Engedi. Let him seek it in the isle of Cyprus, for that isle is fertile in producing wine, and that of the best ; let him gather there of those weighty clusters, which the spies of Israel formerly bore upon a strong pole (Numb. xiii. 23) between two, [in which they typified] the prophets who went before, and the Apostles who followed after, and in the midst JESUS in His beauty; let him take unto himself this cluster, and say : My Beloved is to me a cluster of the grape of Cyprus.

4. We have spoken, then, of this cluster; let us now see how the wine of fervent zeal is expressed from it. For if a man, being himself a sinner, does not show anger towards one who offends, but, on the contrary, manifests compassion for him, and, as it were, pours over him the dew of a sweet and healing balsam, we know whence that proceeds ; and you have already heard, though perhaps without taking notice, the source of it. For it has been said that everyone, from consideration of himself, should be gentle to all others ; and following the wise counsel of St. Paul, should know how to make kindly allowance for such as have been overtaken in a fault, considering himself lest he also be tempted (Gal. vi. 1). Is it not, in fact, from thence that the love of our neighbour, of which it is said in the Law as a commandment : Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself (Luke x. 27) derives its origin ? Brotherly affection has without doubt its first beginnings in the deepest feelings of human nature ; and from the deeplyseated principle of love to oneself, as from a terrestrial humour, the love of our neighbour draws without doubt a degree of life and increase by which, if grace from on high be breathed upon it, the fruit of charity is brought forth ; so that what the soul naturally desires for itself, it considers is not to be denied to another, who seems to have a right to share in it, as being a participant in the same nature, and by the mere right of humanity, but is, on the contrary, to be willingly and gladly shared, as far as it is possible, or there is need of it. Thus, that anointing of sweetness and kindness of disposition which is natural to man, if it be not decayed and ruined by sin, disposes him more to compassionate the faults and offences of sinners than to treat them with indignation and severity.

5. But since according to the word of the Wise man, Dyingflies spoil the sweetness of the ointment (Eccles. x. 1, Vulg.), and when that is once lost, nature has no means in itself of repairing the loss ; a man feels that a sad change has passed over him, and that he has fallen into that state, of which the Scripture says truly : The imagination of man's heart is evilfrom his youth (Gen. viii. 21 ). That youth was not well spent or good, of which we read in the Scripture that the younger son made demand that his portion of his father's substance should be given over to him, and began to wish to have in his separate possession that which he had enjoyed so happily in common with others, so as to possess alone that, which though it loses nothing by participation, is lost altogether by partition. For he spent all his substance, says the Scripture, in living riotously with harlots ( Luke xv. 13, 14). Who are these harlots ? Are they not those carnal concupiscences which banish and destroy the sweetness of this anointing, and of which the Scripture gives us the salutary warning : Go not after thy lusts (Ecclus. xviii. 30). Truly does the Wise Man describe them as ' about to die ' ; for the world passeth away, and the lust thereof ( 1 John ii. 17). When, therefore, we desire to indulge these, we deprive ourselves of the sweetness of good which is common and social for the sake of that which is individual and selfish. These are undoubtedly those foul and acrid flies which defile in us the beauty of nature, distract our mind with cares and anxieties, and 18 destroy the pleasure and charm of the common life. It is for this reason that such a man is figured [in the parable] as the younger son , because his nature is corrupted by the unregulated passions of youth, and is without the ripeness and the gathered wisdom which belong to manhood, so that when he has fallen into distress his mind becomes hardened and loveless, and he has no regard for any buthimself.

6. It is, then, from the commencement of such a most wicked and unhappy youth as this that the thoughts and inclinations of man turn easily to evil, and that he is by nature more prompt to anger with his neighbour than to compassion for his faults. Thus it is that a man is divested of almost every sentiment of humanity ; and while he still needs and expects the help of others, he is disinclined to render help to others in return. [Such] a man, though himself a sinner, judges others severely who are sinners as himself, and even ridicules and scorns them, not considering himself, lest he also should be tempted. From this evil, nature cannot, as I have said, recover by its own strength, nor regain the oil of that original sweetness and kindness which has once been destroyed in it. But yet, what nature is unable to do is in the power of Divine grace. And he upon whom the Holy Spirit shall in His pity deign to pour the salutary unction of His goodness will at once regain his former feelings of goodness and sympathy, and shall obtain from grace even more than he had at first by the gift of nature. It will render him holy in faith and in goodness, and will bestow upon him, not merely oil, but the balsam gathered in the vineyards of Engedi.

7. For there is no doubt that from the ' Fountain of the kid ' flow forth gifts more precious still, the anointing of which transforms kids into sheep, which enables sinners to pass from the left hand to the right, after they have been abundantly steeped in the oil of mercy ; and thus, where sins abounded, grace much more abounds (Rom. v. 20). Does it not appear to you that such a man is restored in a sense to his humanity, who, putting off the hardness of the spirit of the world, and recovering, by the help of grace, the abundance of human loving-kindness, which carnal lusts, as it were foul and acrid flies, had well-nigh destroyed in him ; so that he derives from the humanity which he bears, or, rather, which is himself, the means and the manner of compassionating other men ; and regards as something inhuman and brutal, not merely for a man to do to another that which he would not wish to have done to himself, but also the not doing to others whatsoever he wishes they should do to him ?

8. This, then, is the source of the oil. But whence is the wine ? Evidently from the cluster of the Cyprus grape. For if you love the Lord Jesus with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, could you possibly see and endure without emotion the injuries inflicted upon Him, and the contempt of which He is the object ? Assuredly not ; you would be at once actuated by a spirit of 1 Another reading is ritum exhorreat. CORRECTION TO BE ADAPTED TO THE CHARACTER of offenNDERS 275 judgment and of zeal, and would be as a strong man to whom wine has given new powers, and being filled with zeal like Phinehas, would say, in the words of David : My zeal hath consumed me, because mine enemies haveforgotten Thywords ( Ps. cxix. 139) ; and with the Lord : The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up ( Ps. lxix. 9 ; John ii . 17) . That most fervent zeal, then, is wine expressed from the cluster of Cyprus, and the love of Christ is as a cup which inebriates. For our God is a consumingfire (Deut. iv. 24), and a prophet once declared that a fire from above was sent into his bones (Lam. i. 13), insomuch that he burned with the love of God. When, therefore, the love of your neighbour has given you the oil of kindness, and the love of God has procured you the wine of zeal and emulation, you may safely draw near to heal the wounds of him who has fallen among thieves, and be a perfect imitator of that most charitable Samaritan. Safely also may you too say with the Bride : My Beloved is to me as a cluster of Cyprus grapes in the vineyards ofEngedi : that is to say, the love of Him who is dear to me imparts unto me a zeal for righteousness in feelings of brotherly kindness. But now enough of this ; for my weakness warns me, as it does often, to come to a close, and thus obliges me, as you know is frequently the case, to leave my discourses uncompleted, and to reserve for another day the remainder of the verses. But of what account is that ? For Iam ready for scourges (Ps. xxxvii. 18, Douay), and know that what I have hitherto received of chastisement has been less than I deserved. Strike me, O my God; strike me as a servant who labours ill, and perhaps the stripes may be reckoned to me as merits ; perhaps Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Spouse of the Church, who found not in me any good to reward, may yet find in my stripes and my sorrows a reason for exercising His mercy, and have pity upon me. He is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

HOW beautifully, how exquisitely is all this spoken ! From the love of the Bride comes her presumption, from that of the Bridegroom His anger. This is shown by the issue of the matter ; for reproof has followed presumption, amendment reproof, and recompense amendment. The Beloved One only is present, the master is withdrawn, the king disappears, dignity is put off, reverence laid aside ; for where affection is perfect and strong, there pride gives way. And as Moses once spake unto the Lord, as a friend to his friend ( Exod. xxxiii. 11), and the Lord replied to him, so there is now established between the Word of God and the devout soul a relation and communications as close and familiar as that between two neighbours. Nor is that strange ; for their love having but one source, it is reciprocal, and their affection mutually manifested. Therefore, words sweeter than honey are exchanged between them, and they exchange looks full of all sweetness, in token of the sacred love which unites them. Then He calls her His beloved one, pronounces repeatedly that she is fair, and receives from her in return similar tokens of affection. Nor is that a superfluous repetition, which is the confirmation of His love, and which perhaps also has some mystery indicated by it.

2. Let us inquire, then, what is the twofold beauty of the soul ; for it is that which seems to me to be referred to here. Now, the beauty of the soul is humility. I do not say this of myself, a prophet has said it before me: Thou shalt wash me with hyssop, and Ishall be clean (Ps. li. 7) ; signifying the humility of the heart by that herb, which is lowly and of a purifying nature. The writer, who was both king and prophet, having fallen into a grave offence, expresses in these words his good hope that he shall be cleansed, and thus recover his former whiteness of innocence. But the humility of one who has deeply offended, though it may be loved, yet it cannot be admired. But if one who has preserved innocence joins with it humility, does he not seem to you to possess a twofold beauty of the soul ? St. Mary lost not holiness, and yet was not wanting in humility. Therefore it was that ' the King desired her beauty,' because she joined humility to innocence ; for, as she herself says : He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid ( Luke i. 48, Douay) . Blessed are they who have kept undefiled their vestments (Rev. iii. 4)— that is to say, their simplicity and their innocence, if they are careful also to be clad in the beauty of humility. Assuredly the soul that is found to be such shall hear the words addressed to her : Behold, thou artfair, My love ; behold, thou art fair. May I, O Lord Jesus, hear Thee say but once to my soul : Behold, thou art fair. Do Thou preserve for me, at least, my humility, for I have ill-kept my first robe [of innocence) . I am Thy servant. I do not dare to profess myself Thy friend, for I do not hear Thy repeated testimony to my spiritual fairness . Even to hear it once is sufficient for me. But what shall I do if even that be in question ? I know what I will do : I, being a servant, will venerate Thy friend (amicam) ; being but a man deformed and dwarfish, I will dwell in admiration on her perfect beauty ; I will rejoice at the voice of the Bridegroom, who Himself admires a fairness so great. Who knows whether I may not at least find grace in the eyes of that friend, that by her favour even I may be found among the number of His friends ? For the friend of the Bridegroom remains in silence, yet rejoices greatly because of the Bridegroom's voice. This is His Voice in the ear of the Beloved ; let us hear it and be glad. They are in each other's presence, they are conversing together ; let us, too, pause and listen ; let no care of this world, no allurement of the flesh, withdraw us from that sacred colloquy.

3. Behold, thou art fair, My love ; behold, thou art fair. Behold expresses admiration, the rest praise. It is with reason that she is admired, because she has not adopted humility after the loss of holiness, and on account of it, but has retained it while remaining holy. And rightly, too, is she twice over called beautiful, since neither kind of beauty is wanting to her. It is a rare being (avis) upon the earth who has not lost innocence, or in whom sanctity, if retained, does not exclude humility ; and therefore happy is she who has retained both the one and the other. That she has done so is proved, inasmuch as though conscious of no fault, she does not reject the reproof of the Bridegroom. We, even when we have committed great faults, scarcely suffer ourselves to be reproved ; but she, even when she has done no wrong, listens meekly to bitter words addressed to her. For if she desires to behold the glory of her Bridegroom, that is no fault, but rather a ground for praise. And yet when she is blamed she repents, and says : A bundle of myrrh is my Beloved unto me; He shall lie between my breasts, which is as if she said : ' That is sufficient for me : I desire to know none but Jesus, and Him crucified. ' How great is this humility ! Though innocent in every act, she takes upon her the feeling of the penitent, and though she has nothing to repent of, yet she is able to repent. ' Why, then,' you ask, ' is she chidden, if she has done no wrong ?' But now listen to the prudence of the Bridegroom, and the dispensation of His grace. For as formerly the obedience of Abraham was tried and made proof of, so now is it with the humility of the Bride. And just as he, when his obedience was complete, heard these words spoken to him : Now I know that thou fearest God (Gen. xxii. 12), so in like manner, though in other words, it is said to the Bride, ' I know now that thou art humble ;' for that is the significance of what He says : Behold, thou art fair. And He repeats the commendation, to show that the beauty of humility is added to the glory of holiness. Now I know that thou art fair, not only by the love which I feel for thee, but also by thy humility. I say not now that thou art fairest among women, I praise not thy beauty of cheeks or of neck, as I did aforetime ; but I say simply, not in comparison of others, not in part, or with a qualification, but simply that thou artfair.

4. And He adds : Thou hast the eyes of doves. Plainly He is still continuing the praise of humility. For He sees that, being blamed and checked for placing so high her researches, she at once, and without delay, lowers them to things simpler, so as to say : A bundle of myrrh is my Beloved unto me. There is no doubt a great difference between a Countenance full of glory and a bundle of myrrh, and therefore it is a great mark of humility to suffer the being recalled from the one and to the other. Thus, to say : Thou hast the eyes of doves signifies : ' No longer dost thou hold converse with great matters, nor inquire into subjects too high for thee; but, like that gentle and artless bird, art content with simpler matters, making thy nest in the hollows of the rock (that is to say), abiding in My wounds, and contemplating of thy own free will, as it were with dove-like gaze, the things only which relate to Me Incarnate, and to My Passion.'

5. Or it may be that, because the Holy Spirit appeared in the form of a dove ( Matt. iii. 16), it is rather a spiritual vision than a simplicity of vision that is here commended under the term ' dovelike. ' If you approve of this supposition, it will be necessary to refer the verse before us to that which was spoken before by the companions of the Bridegroom, when they promised to her pendants of gold, with no intention, as I warned you at the time, of adorning the ears of the body, but rather of developing and training the spiritual hearing.1 And by this means it follows that, having the heart more completely purified by faith, which cometh by hearing, she is rendered more capable of discerning that which before was beyond her powers. And as by the receiving of these (symbolical) pendants she has obviously obtained an increased power of vision for the discerning of spiritual things, so she has also become pleasing to the Bridegroom, whose preference it is always (as far as relates to Himself) to be contemplated in a spiritual manner. Therefore He numbers this among her praises, and declares : Thy eyes are those of doves. Now thou regardest Me, He says, in the spirit, since Christ the Lord is as a spirit before thy face ( Lam. iv. 20). Thou art able to do this, because thou hast dove's eyes. Before thou hadst not this power, and so incurred rebuke ; now thou mayst behold me as thou wilt, because thou hast a spiritual vision, the eyes of the Dove. This, indeed, is not the grace for which thou madest petition, for not even now art thou capable of that ; but this shall suffice thee for the present. Behold Me now to the utmost of thy powers, and as these augment, thou shalt behold Me more clearly ; for assuredly, thou shalt be led on from glory to glory (Ps. lxxxiv. 7) .

6. I do not think, brethren - I repeat, I do not think that this Vision, which alone belongs to the present, is either mediocre or common to all, though it be inferior to that which shall one day be enjoyed. This may be inferred from the words which follow, for she goes on to say : Behold thou artfair, my Beloved. Now, consider the greatness and high elevation of a soul which claims the right to call Him, who is the Lord of the whole world, her Beloved. For notice that she does not even say simply Beloved, but my Beloved, to show that she had a right to call Him hers. Assuredly this Vision of Christ must be august and privileged, which confers upon the soul such confidence and authority that it regards the Lord of all, not as her Lord, but as her Beloved. For I suppose that in this instance there is not at all presented to the soul any defined image of the bodily form of Christ, or of the likeness of our weak flesh, or even of His Cross, for in these respects, according to the prophet, Hehathnoform nor come1 See Serm. XLI. , nn. 2-4. liness ( Is. liii. 2). But that she, beholding Him, now pronounces Him fair and comely, shows that He appeared to her by means of a nobler vision, for the Bridegroom speaks to the Bride face to face, as once He spake to Moses ( Exod. xxxiii. 11), and she beholds God clearly, not by symbols and types. Thus, beholding Him in the spirit, by a vision sweet and sublime, she declares Him to be such as in her vision she sees Him to be. Her eyes have seen the King in His beauty ; yet not as King, but as her Beloved. One prophet beheld Him upon His throne, high and lifted up (Isa. vi. 1), and ofanother it is testified that he saw God face to face, and his life was preserved (Gen. xxxii. 30) ; yet it seems to me that the Bride surpasses both, in that we read that the Lord was beheld by her, and that He was her Beloved. But He says : If Ibe the Lord, where is Myfear ? ( Mal. i. 6). If, then, to them this revelation was attended with fear, for where the Lord is there fear must be [to those who behold Him], I certainly, if the choice were given to me, would prefer the vision of the Bride, and that with so much more willingness and gladness, as I perceive that it is the occasion of a nobler feeling, that is, love. For fear hath torment, but perfect love casteth out fear ( 1 John iv. 18) . Great is the difference between [the Lord] appearing terrible in His doings toward the children of men ( Ps. lxvi. 5) and His appearing fairer than the children ofmen (Ps. xlv. 2). Behold Thou art fair, my Beloved, yea, pleasant ! These words express affection, not fear.

7. But perhaps thoughts arise in your heart, and you ask doubtfully : ' By what means can the words of the Word, spoken to the soul, and again those of the soul to the Word, be rendered audible, so that the soul should hear the Voice of Him that speaks to her, and praises her as fair, and should pour forth in turn her tribute to Him who has praised her ? How can that take place ? For it is not the word which speaks, but we speak by the word. Also the soul has no means of speech, except by the words which the bodily organs articulate for her for that purpose.' A very reasonable inquiry ; but consider that it is the spirit which speaks, and that [the speaking as well as] the things spoken are to be spiritually understood. As often, then, as you hear or read that the Word and the soul behold each other or converse together, do not imagine that they behold visible bodily forms, or that audible words pass from one to the other. This is what you ought rather to think. The Word is Spirit ; the soul is a spirit also ; they have faculties [linguas] of their own for indicating their presence, and for communicating the one with the other. The tongue of the Word is the favour of His condescension ; that of the soul is the fervour of its devotion. The soul which has no devotion is like an infant and speechless, and to such an one no discourse with the Word is possible. Therefore when the Word wishes to speak to the soul, and thus moves His tongue, the soul cannot but hear, for the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit (Heb. iv. 12). And, again, when the soul thus addresses the Word, He cannot possibly be unconscious of it ; not only because He is everywhere present, but still more and especially because the tongue of devotion is never stirred to speak, except by an impulse from Him.

8. Therefore for the Word to call a soul beloved, and say to it, thou artfair, is to pour upon it the grace which shall enable it to love, and to know itself loved. In like manner, when the soul in turn names the Word her Beloved and speaks of Him as full ofbeauty, it is that she ascribes to Him, without fiction or disguise, the grace that she has to love Him and to be loved by Him ; it is that she admires His condescension, and wonders at the greatness of His grace. Indeed, His fairness consists in His love, and that is the greater because it was the earlier (præveniens). For this reason it is that she cries in the depths of her heart, and with all the powers of her strongest affections, that she is bound to love Him, and with so much stronger an affection, because He first loved her. Therefore the speech of the Word is an infusion of grace, and the response of the soul is the giving of thanks and glory. She loves so much the more ardently, because she feels that the affection of her Spouse surpasses her own, and her admiration is the greater, because that affection preceded hers. On that account it is that she is not content with saying once that He is full of beauty ; she repeats her praise in order to heighten it by repetition .

9. Or perhaps that double phrase may be explained as applying to the two Natures in Christ-in the one the beauty of nature, in the other that ofgrace. How beautiful art Thou to Thy Angels, O Lord Jesus, in the Form of God, in Thy Eternal Nature, begotten before the morning star, in the splendour of Thy saints, who art Thyself the Form and Splendour of the Substance of the Father, in whom the glory and brightness of life eternal are resplendent from everlasting ! How august art Thou to me also, O my Lord, when I contemplate Thee in that state of glory which is Thine ! Even when Thou didst empty Thyself of Thy glory, when Thou layedst down the rays of splendour proper to that unfailing Light, even then Thy kindness shone the more brightly, Thy charity was more conspicuous, Thy grace the more radiant. O Star out of Jacob, how beautiful Thou art unto me in Thy rising (Num. xxiv. 17 ) ; O Branch springing out of the stem of Jesse ( Is. xi. 1) , how bright is Thy Flower ; O Dayspring from on High, in what joyful light hast Thou visited me, who sat in darkness ! ( Luke i. 78). What an object of admiration and wonder is He, even to the heavenly Virtues, in His Conception by the Holy Ghost, in His Birth of the Virgin Mary, in the spotless innocence of His Life, in the flowing streams of His doctrine, in the glistering brightness of His miracles, in the mysteries revealed by His Sacraments ! In what blaze of glory dost Thou rise, O Sun of Righteousness, from the heart of the earth, after Thy setting [in death] ! In what a resplendent vesture (Is. lxiii. 1 ), O King of glory, dost Thou enter again the highest heaven ! At the sight of all these marvels, how can I do otherwise than cry, All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee ? ( Ps. xxxv. 10).

10. Believe, then, that the Bride, in beholding her Beloved, saw these and similar excellences in Him when she said : Behold, Thou art fair, my love ; behold, Thou art fair. Nor is it these only, but without doubt some other wonder of the beauty of the higher nature which she had remarked, which transcends our capacity of knowledge, and lies altogether beyond our experience. That repetition points out, then, the perfection of Jesus in each of His two Natures. Hear also how, transported with the sight and at the words of her Beloved, she leaps, as it were, with joy, and sings before Him a nuptial song, full of tender and loving sentiments : Ourbedis flourishing; the beams ofour houses are of cedar, our rafters of cypress ( i. 16, Douay). But let us reserve that song of the Bride for another beginning in a newer day; so that, being rendered more willing and active by repose, we may the more readily be glad and rejoice with her, to the praise and glory of her Bridegroom, JESUS CHRIST our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.

THIS is an Epithalamium she is singing ; and she describes in graceful phrase the nuptial chamber and bed. She invites the Bridegroom to repose ; for, indeed, it is better for her to rest and be with Christ. It is only for the sake of saving souls that it is necessary for her to go forth. But now, believing that she has found a suitable opportunity, she announces that the chamber is decked ; she points out the couch, as it were, with the finger ; she invites, as I have said, the beloved one to rest there ; and, like the Apostles going to Emmaus, not being able to endure the fire of love burning within her heart, she constrains Him to accept the hospitality of mind and soul, to abide with her for the night (Luke xxiv. 29, 32), and says with Peter : Lord, it is goodfor us to be here ( Matt. xvii. 4) .

2. Let us now inquire what is the spiritual significance of all these things. First, it refers to the Church. And I consider that the ' bed' upon which rest is taken means the monasteries and cloisters in which a quiet and peaceable life is passed, exempt from the cares and inquietudes of the world. That bed is said to be decked or adorned, because the life and appointed course of the brethren is adorned and rendered bright by the examples and precepts of our fathers, as if bedecked with fragrant flowers. By ' houses ' we are to understand the great masses of Christians, which those among them who are set in offices of power and dignity, such as Princes of the Church and of the State, bind together, and retain them each strongly in his place, as the beams and rafters of a house retain the walls, by the just and firm laws laid upon them ; lest, if everyone lived in his own way and at his own pleasure, they should disunite from each other like walls that begin to bend and spread, and thus the entire structure of the edifice falls to pieces and is destroyed. As for the ' rafters,' which are firmly attached to beams, and are a striking ornament to the mansions of the great, I take the term to signify the kindly and regular lives and characters of a clergy properly taught and ordained, and of the rites of the Church rightly performed and administered. For how shall the Orders of the clergy be able to subsist, or the charges of the Church be administered, if Princes did not, like strong and substantial beams, both protect them by their power, and maintain them by their munificence ?

3. If the beams are said to be of cedar, and the crossing-rafters of cypress, it is, without doubt, because the nature of each of these kinds of wood has something which befits the meaning intended. The cedar being a tree of lofty height, and of which the wood is fragrant and incapable of decay, denotes with sufficient fitness the qualities needed in those men who are to hold, as it were, the place of beams in the Church. For those who are set over others need to be strong and steadfast, hopeful and patient, that their eyes and their mind should be lifted up to heavenly things ; and that, spreading abroad everywhere the good odour of their faith and life, they should be able to say with the Apostle : We are unto God a sweet savour of Christ in every place (2 Cor. ii. 15). The cypress, also, being similarly a fragrant and incorruptible wood, signifies and declares that every person, whosoever he may be, that is in Holy Orders ought to be of right faith and of pure life, that he may be worthy to serve as the ornament of the house of God, and to be in it, as it were, as its panelled ceiling, enriched with colours and gold. For what saith the Psalmist : Holiness becometh Thine House, O Lord, for ever (Ps. xciii. 5). In which words are well expressed both the beauty of holiness, and the endurance of a never-failing grace. It is obviously necessary that the man who is chosen to be the ornament and decoration of that House should be himself adorned with goodness of life and character ; and although he ought always to have the inward witness (that is, of his own conscience), yet he should also be such an one as has a good testimony from them who are without. There are other qualities still in these woods, which have no little relation to those spiritual truths of which we are treating ; but I pass them over for the sake of brevity.

4. As to the well being of the Church, it is happily expressed in a very few words: the authority of prelates, the good life and good report of the clergy, the disciplined obedience of the people, and the peaceful devotion of monks. When in each of these respects all is well, the holy Church, our mother, rejoices in the contemplation of them, and presents them to the sight of her Beloved ; she refers all things to His goodness as their cause, knowing that He is the Author and Giver of all good things ; nor does she attribute anything to herself. For she says : Our bed, and, The beams of our houses, and the rafters; this is a sign of her affection , not of her usurping the ownership of these things ; the very abundance of her affection gives her such confidence, that she regards nothing which appertains to Him whom she so loves as unconnected with herself. She believes that she is not to be excluded from the companionship of her Spouse, or from the sharing of His repose ; inasmuch as she is accustomed to seek, not her own interests, but His. And it is for that reason that she ventures to speak of, as common to both, the bed and the mansion which are His. She is bold to associate herself in the possession of those things which belong to Him, with whom she knows herself to be associated in love. It is not thus with that soul which has not yet given up her own will, but dwells amid her own possessions, and lies down by herself; or, I should say more accurately, not by herself, but who dwells and associates in disorder and shamelessness with harlots ; I speak of the lusts of the flesh, with whom that soul squanders its good things, and wastes its portion of the Father's substance, for which it had made request ( Luke xv. 12).

5. But is it the case with you, who hear or read these words of the Holy Spirit, that you think some of these things which are said capable of being applied to yourself ; that you recognise in your own soul somewhat of the felicity of the Bride which is chanted in this song of love by the Holy Spirit Himself ; and yet it is perhaps said to you also that you hear His Voice, but canst not tell whence it cometh, nor whither it goeth ( John iii. 8) ? Perhaps you desire also the repose of contemplation ; and in this you do well, provided that you do not forget the flowers with which, as you read, the couch of the Bride is strewed. Therefore do thou take great care similarly to wreathe around thine the blossoms of good works, and to make the exercise of virtues precede that sacred rest, as the flower goes before the fruit . Otherwise, it would be self-indulgent that you should so earnestly desire to rest before you have earned that rest by labour, and you would be neglecting the fruitfulness of Leah in desiring to enjoy only the society of Rachel. But it would be a reversing of the proper order to ask for the reward before having earned it, and to grasp at the mid-day meal before performing the labour, of which the Apostle says : If a man will not work, neither shall he eat ( 2 Thess. iii. 10). And what says the Psalmist ? Through Thy precepts I get understanding ( Ps. cxix. 104), so to teach you that the taste for contemplation is not due except to obedience to God's commandments. Do not, then, imagine that the love of your own repose is to be in any wise made a hindrance to works of holy obedience, or to the fulfilment of the traditions of the elders. Do not suppose that you will have the company of the Bridegroom for that bed, which you have strewed, not with the flowers of obedience, but with hemlock, and even with weeds and nettles, by your disobedient conduct. When it is thus with you, this is the reason that He will not hear and answer your prayers, and that when you call Him He will not come ; for He who is so great a lover of obedience that He preferred to die rather than not to obey [ His Father], will assuredly not bestow His gifts upon one who is disobedient. And how should He approve the inane idleness which you call contemplation ? For He says by the prophet : I have laboured with patience (Jer. vi. 11 ), referring to the time when, an exile from the heaven of perfect peace, which is His country, He accomplished salvation for us in the midst of the earth. But I fear the more lest that fearful judgment should involve you also which once thundered against the treachery of the Jews in these words : Your new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, Icannot away with ; and again : Your new moons and your appointed feasts Mysoulhateth ; they are a trouble unto Me (Is. i. 13, 14). And the prophet will weep over you, and say : The adversaries saw her, and did mock at her sabbaths ( Lam. i. 7). For why shall not an adversary mock at that which the Beloved rejects ?

6. I am extremely surprised at the shamelessness of some among us who, after having troubled us all by their singularity, annoyed us by their impatience, and contemned us by their contumacy and rebellion, have, nevertheless, actually the boldness to invite, and that with importunate prayers, the Lord of all purity to come into the foul restingplace of their conscience. But what does the Lord say to such ? When ye spreadforth your hands, I will hide Mine eyes from you ; yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear ( Is. i . 15). And why ? Because your bed, far from being strewed with flowers, is defiled with filth. And do you dare to invite the King of glory thither ? Do you think that He will rest there for a moment, or are you doing this to ensure reproof to yourself ? The centurion in the Gospel prayed that the Lord would not come under his roof, because of his unworthiness, and yet there was not found such faith as His even in all Israel ( Matt. viii. 8, 10) ; and you would have the Lord to enter your soul, reeking as it is with the foul vestiges of your vices ? The Prince of the Apostles cries out : Departfrom me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord ( Luke v. 8) ; and do you say : ' Come to 1 There is added here in many editions ‘ sua inobedientia coinquinaverint ' ; but this clause is wanting in most MSS. , and is a mere repetition of the words which precede. The earliest editions contain them, but omit ' suâ contumaciâ et rebellione contempserint. A certain degree of surprise may be felt that in a community of so high a character as that of Clairvaux, any members should be found so insubordinate as those referred to by St. Bernard in this passage. But the fact is shown still more clearly in Serm. LXXXIV. , n. 4, and in the ' Life, ' Bk. vii. It is evident that the evil are mingled with the good everywhere. me, Lord, and enter into my heart, for I am holy ?' Be ye all of one mind, says the same Apostle, love as brethren ( 1 Peter iii. 8). And he who was ' a chosen vessel ' says : Lifting up holy hands without wrath or doubting ( 1 Tim. ii. 8). Do you see, then, how the Prince of the Apostles and the Apostle of the Gentiles agree and speak in the same spirit with regard to the peace and tranquillity which the person who prays ought to possess ? You may stretch out your hands to God all the day long, you who all the day long are engaged in distressing your brethren, destroying tranquillity, and separating yourself from unity [but it is to no purpose] .

7. ' What, then,' you ask, ' would you have me to do ?' In the first place, I would have you cleanse your conscience from every defilement of anger, and murmuring, and envy, and dispute ; and that you should hasten to banish from the hiding-place of your heart all that evidently conflicts with the peace which ought to reign among brethren, and the obedience due to your elders. In the next place, I should wish you to adorn yourself with the flowers of good works and laudable studies of every kind, and seek the sweet perfumes of all virtues ; or, in other words, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise of discipline, think on these things (Phil. iv. 8, Vulg.), and endeavour to employ yourself in them. To that end you shall call upon the Bridegroom, and then with confidence, because when you shall bring Him into your soul you, too, shall be able to declare truthfully, our bed is adorned ; because your conscience shall everywhere be fragrant with the perfumes of piety, of peace, of gentleness, of justice, of obedience, of cheerfulness, of humility. Let this suffice as regards the bed.

8. As to the house. Each person, provided that he walks, not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit, ought to regard himself as spiritually a house of God. The Temple of God is holy, says the Apostle St. Paul, which Temple ye are ( 1 Cor. iii. 17). Take careful heed, then, brethren, of that spiritual building, which is no other than your own selves, lest, perhaps, when it begins to rise to a loftier height, if the beams of it be not strong, firmly fixed, and well bound and braced together, it should totter and fall ; take careful heed, I say, that the beams you use are such as are sound and will not decay, such as are massive and will not bend-that is to say, use the fear of the Lord, which is clean, and endurethfor ever (Ps. xix. 9 ) ; and patience, of which it is written, the patience of the poor shall not perish for ever ( Ps. ix. 18) ; longsuffering, also, which perseveres without bending under the weight of the structure laid upon it, whatever it be, and is extended even unto the unending ages of the life of blessedness, according to the saying of our Saviour in the Gospel : Whosoever endureth unto the end, the same shall be saved (Matt. x. 22 ) ; and, above all, use charity, which never faileth ( 1 Cor. xiii. 8), because, as is said in this Song, it is as strong as death ( Cant. viii. 6), though jealousy be cruel as the grave. Lastly, take careful heed to underprop and brace firmly together these, the great beams of the structure, with other timbers equally precious and beautiful, if you have it in your power so to do ; they will serve to form the panelled and fretted ceiling, and to render the house beautiful ; I mean the utterance and teaching of wisdom or knowledge, prophecy, the gift of healing, interpretation of the Scriptures, and other such gifts, which are known to serve rather to the beautifying and perfecting of the character than to be necessary to the salvation of the soul. Concerning these I have no precept to give you ; I have only this advice : that since, as it is abundantly evident, timbers (so to speak) of this kind must be sought with much labour, are found with difficulty, and, if found, are not made fit for use without considerable risk, for our earth, especially in these times, is found to produce but few such ; for these reasons my counsel and warning to you is, that such as these should not be too eagerly sought for, but that you should make use of other and humbler woods for the panelling of your roofs, which, though they be less splendid in appearance, are shown by experience to be not less useful and strong, and, moreover, are to be obtained with far greater safety and ease.

9. I earnestly desire, also, that I may be possessed of an abundance of those other woods which grow so freely in the garden of the Bridegroom-that is, the Church-I mean peace, goodness, gentleness, joy in the Holy Ghost, the showing mercy with cheerfulness, the giving with simplicity, the rejoicing with them that do rejoice, and weeping with them that weep. Do you not think that a house is (as far as regards the ceiling) sufficiently well adorned when you perceive that it is panelled with such woods as these, skilfully arranged, and in sufficient quantity ? Lord, I have loved the honour of Thy House (Ps. xxvi. 8). Bestow upon me always, I entreat, the materials wherewith to adorn the chamber of my own conscience, and of that of others, so that it may be made ready for Thy searching view. With these I shall be content. There will be those also who, following my judgment in this matter, will be content also, because they believe that Thou wilt be so ; the other [ and higher endowments] I relinquish to holy Apostles and apostolic men. But do you also, my beloved, even though you are without those more precious woods, yet if these others are yours, have no fear ; approach with confidence to that chief cornerstone, elect and precious, and be ye also built up, as living stones, upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, into a spiritual house, so that you are [made to be] a holy Priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God, by JESUS CHRIST our Lord, the Bridegroom of the Church, who is above all, God blessed for ever. AMEN.