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The love of men towards God takes its being, progress
and perfection from the eternal love of God towards
men. This is the universal sense of the Church our
mothers who with an ardent jealousy will have us to
acknowledge our salvation and the means thereof, to
proceed solely from Our Saviour's mercy, to the end
that on earth as in heaven to him alone may be honour
and glory.
What hast thou that thou hast not received? says the
divine Apostle, speaking of the gifts of knowledge,
eloquence, and other like qualities of
Church-pastors; and if thou hast received, why dost
thou glory as if thou hadst not received.(1) It is
true; we have received all from God, but especially
the supernatural goods of holy love. And if we have
received them, why should we take the glory of them?
Certainly if any one would extol himself for
having made progress in the love of God: Alas!
wretched man, should we say unto him, thou wast
aswoon in thy iniquity, having neither force nor life
left in thee to rise (as it happened to the princess
in our parable),(2) and God of his infinite goodness
ran to thy succour, and crying with a loud voice;
Open the mouth of thy attention and I will fill
it,(3) he himself put his fingers between thy lips
and unlocked thy teeth, casting into thy heart his
holy inspiration, and thou didst receive it; and when
thou wast brought back to thy senses, he went on by
divers movements and various means to strengthen thy
heart, till at length he infused into it his charity,
as thy vital and perfect health.
Well then, tell me now, miserable creature, what
hast thou done in all this of which thou canst boast?
Thou didst consent, I know it well; the motion of thy
will did freely follow that of heavenly grace. But
all this, what is it more than to receive the divine
operation without resistance? And what is there in
this, that thou hast not received? Yea, poor wretch
that thou art, thou didst receive the receiving in
which thou gloriest, and the consent which thou
vauntest: for tell me, I pray thee, wilt thou not
grant me, that if God had not prevented thee, thou
wouldst never have perceived his goodness, and
consequently never have consented to his love?
No, nor yet hadst thou thought a single good
thought of him. His movement gave being and life to
thine, and if his liberty had not animated, excited
and provoked thy liberty, by the powerful invitations
of his sweetness, thy liberty had been for ever
unprofitable to thy salvation. I confess thou didst
co-operate with the inspiration by consenting, but,
if thou knowest it not, I teach thee that thy
co-operation took being from the operation of grace
and thy freewill together, yet so, that if grace had
not prevented and filled thy heart with its
operation, never had thy heart had either power or
will to co-operate.
But tell me again, I beseech thee, vile and abject
man, is it not ridiculous of thee to think that thou
hast a share in the glory of thy conversion because
thou didst not repel the inspiration? Is not this a
frenzy of robbers and tyrants, to pretend they give
life to those from whom they do not take it? And is
it not a frantic impiety to think that thou gavest
holy efficacy and living activity to the divine
inspiration, because by resistance thou didst not
take it away?
We can hinder the effects of inspiration, but we
cannot give it any; it takes its force and virtue
from the divine goodness which is the place of its
starting, and not from man's will the place of its
arrival. Should we not be moved to wrath, to hear the
princess of our parable boast that it was she that
gave virtue and power to the cordial waters and other
medicines, or that she cured herself, because if she
had not received the remedies which the king gave her
and poured into her mouth (at such time as being half
dead there remained hardly any sense in her), they
had had no operation?
Yes, might one say to her: ungrateful that thou
art, thou mightest have obstinately refused to
receive the remedies, thou mightest, after thou hadst
received them into thy mouth, have cast them out
again, yet for all that it is not true that thou
gavest them force and virtue. This they had as their
natural property, thou didst only consent to receive
them, and let them operate; and besides, thou wouldst
never have consented, if the King had not first
reinvigorated thee, and then solicited thee to take
them; never hadst thou received them, had not he
assisted thee to receive them, opening thy very mouth
with his fingers, and pouring the potion into it. Art
thou not then a monster of ingratitude to wish to
attribute to thyself a benefit which by so many
titles thou owest to thy dear spouse?
The curious little fish, called echeneis, or remora,
has indeed the power to stay or not to stay a ship
sailing on the high sea under full sail: but it has
not the power to make it set sail, or proceed or
arrive; it can hinder motion, but cannot give it.
Our free-will can stay and hinder the course of
the inspiration and when the favourable gale of God's
grace swells the sails of our soul it is in our power
to refuse consent, and thereby to hinder the effect
of the wind's favour: but when our spirit sails
along, and makes its voyage prosperously, it is not
we that make the gale of the inspiration blow for us,
nor we that make our sails swell with it, nor we that
give motion to the ship of our heart; but we simply
receive the gale sent from heaven, consent to its
motion, and let our ship sail under it, not hindering
it by the remora of our resistance.
It is the inspiration then which impresses on our
free-will the happy and sweet influence whereby it
not only makes it see the beauty of good, but also
heats, helps, and strengthens it, and moves it so
sweetly that it thus turns and freely flows out
towards what is good.
The heavens in spring time prepare the fresh
dewdrops, and shower them down upon the face of the
sea, and the motherpearls that open their shells
receive these drops, which are converted into pearls:
but, on the contrary, the mother-pearls which keep
their shells shut do not hinder the dews from falling
upon them, yet they hinder them from falling into
them. Now have not the heavens sent their dew and
their influence as much upon the one as the other
mother-pearl? Why then did the one in effect produce
its pearl and the others not?
The heavens were as bountiful to that one which
remained sterile as was requisite to empearl and
impregnate it with its fair unity,(4) but it hindered
the effect of the heavens' favour, by keeping itself
closed and covered. And as for that which conceived
the pearl on receiving the dew, it has nothing in
that work which it did not receive from heaven, not
even its opening whereby it received the dew; for
without the touches of the morning's rays, which did
gently excite it, it had not risen up to the surface
of the sea, nor yet opened its shell.
Theotimus, if we have any love for God, his be the
honour and glory, who did all in us, and without whom
nothing were done; Ours be the profit and obligation.
This is the division his divine goodness makes with
us; he leaves us the fruits of his benefits, and
reserves to himself the honour and praise of them;
and verily since we are nothing but by his grace, we
ought to be nothing but for his glory.
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