maturity, has a sweetness in it, which delights the taste: so the acts of charity, joy, peace, patience, &c. abovementioned, are what proceed in our souls, through the grace of the Holy Ghost, as the fruits which are expected from that grace, and are accompanied with all spiritual delight. Amongst these charity has the first place, as being the most excellent, from whence all the rest proceed for by love, the soul having God always present, hence must follow joy: thence comes also peace and tranquillity of mind, while the fluctuating and restless passions of the soul are quieted by having our hearts fixed upon only one object of love: but as we must know how to endure the evils of this life, as well as how to expect, with untired minds, the good things of the life to come, in order to secure our peace, hence the fourth fruit of the Holy Ghost is patience; and the fifth, longanimity. From the love of God follows the love of our neighbour, which cannot be without a will to do good to others; hence the sixth fruit is goodness; and as this is not perfect, unless we do good to others, after a kind, affable manner, the seventh is benignity. But since charity is not yet perfect in us, unless, besides doing good, we bear the morose and troublesome manners of others, and allay all the motions of our anger and passions against them, the eighth is mildness; and of this charity we give a proof, by our fidelity, in every thing we undertake for others service, and never deceiving them, which is the ninth. Thus far the grace of the Holy Ghost disposes our souls well, towards God and our neighbour. As to ourselves we are well disposed in our exterior comportment, in our words, dress, &c. by modesty, which permits nothing indecent about us: and this therefore is the tenth fruit of the Holy Ghost and as to our interior passions; concupiscence of the flesh, which is the strongest, is quite suppressed by continency; by which, we resist the most violent temptations to pleasure, which is the eleventh and by chastity, by which, we abstain from all forbidden carnal delight, which is sometimes brought to so great perfection in the soul, by the grace of the Holy Ghost, as neither to be overcome by these pleasures, or even much tempted by them. : EXHOR.-These, christian, are the fruits which God expects from the grace he has so abundantly bestowed upon you; these will make your life comfortable, and your end glorious. Charity is the main of them; this must ever reign in your heart, and work in your life : upon this all other perfections are founded; and our virtues cease to be divine when charity fails. All virtue must be ingrafted therein, as in a vine, to bear fruit. With this St. Paul begins, when he numbers up the fruits of the Holy Ghost, as all proceeding from this first fruit, charity. All things then become good and virtuous, where charity, the love of God and our neighbour governs: good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a bad tree good fruit. A good christian, who has the love of God, while he so remains in God, can do no evil : a bad christian that is totally deprived of the love of God, can do nothing, in that state, that is meritorious before God. Live then by the grace of the Holy Ghost, not by the maxims of the world, live so that the fruits of the Holy Ghost, may appear visibly in your life, not the works of the flesh: those are quite opposite to these others; because one carries us to what is above ourselves, the other to what is below ourselves. Mistake not then, if you pretend to be a christian indeed. God will not be laughed at: what a man sows, that he shall reap; he that sows in the flesh, of the flesh he shall reap corruption: he that sows in the spirit, (he that works by the grace of the Holy Ghost) shall reap the spirit, life everlasting. Gal. viii. 6. One is the work of grace, the other of sin and corruption. Of the eight Beatitudes. Q. WHICH are the eight beatitudes ? A. 1. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 2. Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land. 3. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. 4. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be filled. 5. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall find mercy. 6. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God. 7. Blessed are the peace-makers, for they shall be called the sons of God. 8. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. St. Matt. v. 3. &c. INSTRUC. These great virtues, which the world rejected and abhorred, our Saviour brought into honour again, under the name of beatitudes; because we are to ascend, by these blessed steps, unto eternal beatitude in the next life, and to a kind of beatitude here; inasmuch as every one finds himself happy in proportion as he advances prosperously, and approaches nearer to his eternal beatitude. They were taught by our Saviour to his apostles on the mountain, to be by them delivered to all christians, in opposition to those the world falsely styles beatitudes; which have deceived many, and are a hindrance to that true beatitude we look for in heaven. 1. As those, who place their happiness in their pleasures, aim at pre-eminence and plenty, above others, in riches, and the honours that attend them; in opposition to these is the first beatitude: Blessed are the poor in spirit; who either actually forsake, or at least withdraw their affections and heart from their riches, even to a contempt of them: to them is promised the kingdom of heaven; where that pre-eminence of honour, and that of plenty is found, which others in their riches and greatness seek in vain. 2. As the lovers of this world think to establish their security by quarrels and wars, the better to destroy their enemies; in opposition to these is the second beatitude: Blessed are the meek, who moderate anger, and enjoy perfect tranquillity interiorly, and shew the same exteriorly in their words, countenance, and behaviour; speaking affably when they are reviled, seeking no revenge when injured, but overcoming evil with good to them is promised what the others often lose, a quiet, secure, and permanent possession of the land; the land of the living. 3. The lovers of the world have a violent passion for delights and pleasures; imagining to find some shelter and consolation in them, against the sorrows of this life: in opposition to those of the third beatitude: Blessed are they that mourn; who abstain from the joys of the world, bewail their own sins with true sorrow, and lament to see God offended by so much wickedness of others, and sigh in their absence from God and heaven: to them is promised what the others look for, but never find, true consolation, which will have no end. 4. But as it is not sufficient to remove the hindrances to beatitude, but we must ascend unto it by virtue ; hence is the fourth beatitude: Blessed are they that hunger and thirst for justice: that is, for virtue, striving daily to increase in it, and to make others virtuous also; to them is promised, what the wicked aim to acquire for themselves by wickedness and injustice, to be filled, and abound. 5. As the just themselves have still need to obtain mercy of God, to deliver them from their miseries, both corporal and spiritual; hence is the fifth beatitude; Blessed are the merciful, who are ready and inclinable to relieve all that suffer, both corporally and spiritually, whether friend or enemy, without regard to any consideration, but their wants: to them is promised, what the unmerciful would have, but deserve it not; to be freed from all the miseries both of this world and the other, by the mercy of God. 6. But as no one can see God, but those who are defiled with no sin or bad passions, and who have a holy and pure conscience; to those is promised the sixth beatitude: Blessed are the clean of heart; to them is promised what none of the wicked, defiled with sin, can have; to see God, by the clear vision of him, from all eternity. 7. As the clean of heart, who are free from sin, are at peace with God, with their own consciences, and with all men ; hence is the seventh beatitude; Blessed are the peace makers; who keep peace with all, and seek not to create, but to make up differences and quarrels amongst others: to them is promised the glory of being the sons of God; because by this they give proof of their likeness to God; as those, who breed quarrels and discord, are like the devil. Lastly, when we are perfect in the foregoing beatitudes, and are well established in these virtues, the consequence will be, that we shall suffer persecution for them, which the devils will procure out of their hatred against God and virtue, but not departing from them on : their trial, hence is the eighth beatitude: Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice sake: to them is promised a remission of all sin and punishment, if they die for it, and immediate entrance, after death, into the kingdom of heaven, and greater glory there than to others. These rewards are all one and the same in substance, eternal bliss; which is expressed in different words, and under different notions, and a reward adapted to every beatitude, that it might be more easily comprehended and as every beatitude is a step that approaches nearer and nearer to the enjoyment of God, so we may observe different steps and degrees in the rewards promised; as to have the kingdom of heaven is the first; to possess it, is still more: to be comforted in it, seems still greater; to be filled with comfort, is another degree to receive from the mercy of God, what exceeds all expectation, is still greater: to see God and enjoy him, is the very essence of beatitude, and expresses more than any of the foregoing: but to be the sons of God, is the greatest dignity in his kingdom, next to the king himself: and all these are comprehended in the glory which is promised to those who suffer persecution for justice sake; for theirs is the greatest of all, in the kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, terrible woes are pronounced against those who have no beatitudes but riches, honours, delights, and pleasures: Woe to you rich, because you have your consolation: Woe to you who are full, because you shall hunger: Woe to you who laugh now, because you shall weep and wail: Woe to you when men shall bless you, with praise, flattery, applause, St. Luke, vi. 24. &c. for so their fore-fathers did to the false prophets. As our Saviour taught and shewed his disciples these blessed steps to beatitude, he trod those steps before them, to encourage them to follow after. Who was more poor and contemned by the world than he? Who more meek, in bearing injuries? Who bewailed the sins of mankind with greater compassion? Who thirsted more after justice? Who more merciful than he, who forgave those that crucified him, and relieved the penitent thief upon the cross, with the comfortable promise of glory? Who |