Sermons on the Song of Songs

were, behind the flesh, so that one and the same Person was to the outward eye a Man, and though His Divinity was concealed, was the Almighty God.

3. To each of us, also, who desire His Coming, He is, as I believe, still standing ' behind the wall,' as long as our body, which is assuredly a body of sin, hides His Face from us, and hinders our perception of His Presence, for a while. And this was the experience of the Apostle: Whilst we are at home in the body, we are absetit from the Lord (2 Cor. v. 6). Not because we are in a body simply, but in this body — namely, a body which is from sin, and is not without sin. And that you may know that it is not our bodies, but our sins, which are the obstacle between God and ourselves, hear the Scripture: Your iniquities have separated between you and your God (Is. lix. 2). And would to God that this one wall of the body were the only obstacle; would that the sin which is in the flesh were the single barrier, and that many other walls and enclosures made by my vices did not also rise to shut me off from the Source of goodness. For I greatly fear lest, beside that obstacle which exists in my nature, I have added many others by my own iniquity, which have separated me only too far from the Bridegroom, so that, to speak the truth, I must confess that to me He stands behind many walls, and not behind one only.

4. But this I wish to state more plainly. The Bridegroom is indeed equally and indifferently present everywhere by the Omnipresence of His Divine Majesty, and by the Greatness of His Power. Nevertheless He is said to be, by the showing forth or communication of His Grace, nearer to some among His reasonable creatures — that is to say, of Angels and men, and farther off from others. For Salvation is far from the wicked (Ps. cxix. 155). And yet holy David says: Why standest Thou afar off, O Lord? (Ps. x. 1). But with the Saints, though He sometimes makes Himself to be, in a sense, at a distance from them, it is only partially and for a time, and even then it is by the dispensation of His goodness. But from sinners, from those of whom it is said in a Psalm: The tumult of those that rise up against Thee increaseth continually (Ps. lxxiv. 23); and, again: Their ways are always grievous (Ps. x. 5), from them He is always far removed, and that in anger, not in mercy. Wherefore the Psalmist prays to God: Hide not Thy Face far from me; put not Thy servant away in anger (Ps. xxvii. 9); knowing that the Lord was able to turn away also in mercy. Therefore the Lord is near to His saints and His -elect, even when He seems to be far from them; nor does He draw near equally to all, but to some more, to others less, according to the difference of their merits. For although the Lord is near to all them who call upon Him in truth, and is beside those who are of humble heart, yet perhaps He is not so near to all as to enable them to say with the Bride that He standeth behind tlu wall To her He is near indeed, for only a single wall separates them. Wherefore she desires to be dissolved, and the wall of division being thus broken through in the midst, to be with Him, who, as she confidently believes, is behind it.

5. But as for me, because I am a sinner, I am far from desiring to be dissolved, but, on the contrary, fear and tremble, knowing that the death of the wicked is very evil (Ps. xxxiii. 22, Douay). How can that death be otherwise than very evil where the Life does not come to bring His succour? I fear to go forth; I tremble when at the very entrance of my wished-for harbour, as long as I have no confidence that I shall meet Jesus coming forth from it to receive and to help me. Can I in anywise go forth securely [from the body] if the Lord do not guard my passing away? Alas! without His help to rescue and save me, I shall be intercepted by demons and made their sport. Nothing like this was to be feared by the soul of the Apostle Paul, between whom and the sight and embrace of the Beloved, one obstacle only interposed, namely, the law of sin, which he found in his members. This is the very concupiscence of the flesh, which he could not be altogether without, as long as he lived in the flesh. Yet it is certain that he did not wander far from the Lord, for this one wall only was interposed between them, wherefore he earnestly desired its removal, crying, Who shall deliver me from the body of this death f (Rom. vii. 24) knowing that by the short way of death he should come at once to life. By this one law, then, only, namely, that of concupiscence, St Paul confesses himself to be bound; and this he was obliged to endure, however unwillingly, because it was rooted in his flesh; for the rest, he says, I know nothing by myself (1 Cor. iv. 4).

6. But who is like unto St. Paul? who, that is to say, does not sometimes consent unto concupiscence, and obey it, even unto sin? Let hini who has given the consent of his will to any sin know that in this unlawful and evil consent he has raised up another wall between God and himself. And a person in that condition cannot indulge in the happy thought that for him the Bridegroom standeth but behind the wall; since, not one wall only, but several, intervene between them. Much less can he think this, if the consent of his will has passed into sinful action; for thus a third wall is raised against the approach of the Bridegroom, and that wall is the act of sin. What if repetition should even convert the sin into a habit, and the habit should root itself in defiance and contempt of the law? as it is written: The wicked man, when he is come into the depth of sins, contemneth (Prov. xviii. 3, Douay). Is it not true, that if you shall come into that state, you will be devoured a thousand times by the roaring lions which await their prey, and not be able to attain unto the Bridegroom from whom you are cut off by so great a number of walls? Of these the first is concupiscence; the second, consent of the will; the third, the actual fact; the fourth, the habit of sin; the fifth, hardened indifference and contempt Be careful, then, to resist with all your might the first approach of concupiscence, so that it may not draw you into an inward consent, and then the whole fabric of evil will disappear; nor is there anything to hinder the drawing near to you of the Lord, who is the Bridegroom, except only the barrier formed by your body, and you will be able to glory with the Bride, and to say of Him: Behold, He standeth behind our wall.

7. But this one thing you must look to also with all vigilance, that He may always rind open the windows, so to speak, and lattices of your nature — that is, your confessions of sins, so that by these He may look upon the secrets of your heart in His mercy and goodness, for the gaze of God is the advancement of your soul. For lattices {cancellos) are explained to be very narrow windows, such as those who are engaged in the writing of books are accustomed to make, so as to let the light fall upon the pages. For this reason it is, I suppose, that those whose charge it is to draw up official documents are called Chancellors,1 Since, then, there are two kinds of compunction, the one from sorrow for our faults, the other from joy for the Divine mercies bestowed upon us, it seems to me that as often as I feel the one, which cannot be without anguish of heart — that is to say, as often as I make confession of my sins, I throw open the lattice, that is, the narrower window of my heart. Nor is there any doubt that He, who is a kind and merciful Searcher of hearts, He who stands behind our wall, will look benignantly through that lattice; for a humble and contrite heart God will not despise (Ps. li. 17). And this He Himself bids us to do, saying by the Prophet: Declare thou [thy transgressions] that thou mayest be justified (Is. xliii. 25, 26). But if my heart is sometimes expanded with love and gratitude at the consideration of the condescension and goodness of God, and I desire to pour forth my feelings in the voice of praise and of giving of thanks, then I open, as I think, no longer a narrow aperture, but a broad and ample window to the Bridegroom, who ' standeth behind our wall/ through which, I believe, He gazes with so much the more willingness and satisfaction, as He regards the sacrifice of praise as more to His honour. I have at hand passages out of the Scriptures, showing that He approves both one and the other kind of confession; but I speak to those who are well instructed in those subjects, and you are not to be burdened with things unnecessary, since you have scarcely time for the investigation of those which are strictly needful. For very great indeed are the mysteries of this marriage song, and the proclamations of praise which are made in it to the honour of the Church, and of Him who is her Bridegroom, Jesus Christ our Lord,

THAT THE VISITATIONS OF THE LORD ARE TO BE CAREFULLY AND REVERENTLY OBSERVED, AND BY WHAT SIGNS AND TOKENS THEY MAY BE KNOWN.

EE the onward steps of grace, and mark the degrees of the

Divine condescension. Notice the devotion and promptness of the Bride, with what a vigilant eye she observes the coming of her Spouse, and then notes very diligently even His smallest actions. He comes, He hastens, He draws near, He is present, He looks at, and then addresses, her; and none of all these actions escapes the notice, or wearies the attention, of the Bride. He comes in the Angels, He hastens in the Patriarchs, He draws near in the Prophets, He is present in the Flesh, He has regard to the Church in miracles, and addresses her in the Apostles. Or we may explain it thus: He comes by the pity which He feels and the desire that He has to show mercy, He hastens by His zeal to bring help, He draws near to us by humbling Himself, He is present to each generation as it is present upon the earth, He has regard to those which are to come, He speaks of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God (Acts i. 3), teaching and persuading. Of such a nature, then, is the Coming of the Bridegroom. The blessings and the riches of salvation accompany Him; all things which are from Him are full of delights, and abound assuredly in joyful and salutary mysteries (sacramentis). She who loves Him watches and observes all these things. And blessed is that servant whom the Lord shall find watching. He shall not pass her by, He shall not pass away from her, He shall stay by her, and shall speak to her loving words, since He is, in truth, Her Beloved. And thus it is that you read here: My Beloved spake, and said to me. Well is He called her Beloved, who comes to speak to her, not words of blame, but of comfort and love.

2. For here the question is not of those who are deservedly blamed by the Lord; who know not how to discern the face of the sky, nor know at all the time of His Coming (Matt. xvi. 3). For [the Bride] is so prudent and so full of foresight that she sees Him coming from afar, leaping, as it were, in His haste, and, passing over the proud to draw near to her in her humility, humbling Himself so to do. This she has observed with vigilant care; and when at length He was at hand, yet concealed Himself, as it were, behind the wall, she, nevertheless, did not fail to recognise His Presence, and to discern that He looked in through the windows and lattices. Now, as a reward for her great devotion and religious care, she hears Him speaking; for if He had looked upon her and not spoken, she would have

' My beloved spake, and said to me.1— Cant ii. 10.

suspected that the look was one of indignation rather than of love. It was thus that He looked upon Peter without speaking a word to him, and that was perhaps the reason why Peter went out and wept bitterly (Luke xxii. 61, 62), because the Lord had looked upon him in silence. But the Bride, who has deserved not only to behold Him but to hear His voice, is so far from weeping that she rejoices, and cries out in her joy: My Beloved spake, and said to me. You see that the look of the Lord, though in itself it remains always the same, is not always of the same effect, but varies according to the deservings of those upon whom He looks, so that, while it strikes some with fear, it imparts unto others consolation and security. On the one hand, He looks upon the earth, and it shaketh (Ps. lxxvii. 16-18); on the other, He looks upon Mary, and it is to pour grace upon her. He hath regarded, she says, the low estate of His handmaiden: for behold, from henceforth, all generations shall call me blessed (Luke i. 48). These are not the words of one who weeps or trembles, but of one who rejoices. Similarly He is described here as looking upon the Bride, and she trembles not nor weeps like Peter, because she was not attached to things earthly, as at that time he was; but He filled her heart with joy, testifying by His words the affection with which He regarded her.

3. Listen to the words which He addresses to her — words, not of anger, but of affection: Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. Happy is the soul that may deserve to hear such words as these! Is there anyone among us, do you think, who is so wakeful and observant of the time of his visitation, who watches so diligently for the coming of the Bridegroom, as, when He shall come and shall knock, to open the door of the heart unto Him at once? For those words do not so apply unto the whole Church, as that we, who together make up the Church, should not have our individual share in these blessings. All of us are, in fact, called, whether severally or together, to this very end, that we should possess blessings as an heritage. Wherefore also the Psalmist dared to say unto the Lord: Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart (Ps. cxix. n 1). He speaks, I think, of that heritage on account of which he claimed to be the son of his Father which is in Heaven. And if a son, then an heir — heir of God, and joint-heir with Christ. And in that heritage he glories that he has acquired a thing of great price — the testimonies of the Lord. Would to God that I might be found worthy to possess for myself one testimony only of the Lord! Though he exults not in one only, but in many, and says again: / have rejoiced in the way of Thy testimonies as much as in all riches (Ps. cxix. 14). And, in truth, what is it that forms the riches of salvation, the delight of the heart, the true and safe security of the soul, except the testimonies which it has from the Lord? For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth (2 Cor. x. 18).

4. Why, then, do we hitherto defraud ourselves of these Divine testimonies or commendations, and deprive ourselves of this our paternal heritage? As if the Father had not at all begotten us of His own will with the Word of Truth (James i. 18), so we in no respect keep in remembrance the assurance that has been rendered to us of this, nor His testimonies concerning us. Where is that of which the Apostle says: The Spirit Itself beareth witness with our spirit that we arc the children of God (Rom. viii. 16). How are we children if we are without the heritage of children? Our poverty itself clearly convicts us of negligence and carelessness of our privileges. For if any of us brings a heart pure and perfect, according to the word of the Wise Man, to seek at daybreak the Lord who created him, and will pray before the Most High (Ecclus. xxxix. 5), and studies in all his petitions to prepare the ways of the Lord— according to the word of the prophet Isaiah (xl. 3), to make straight a highway for our God; in whose power it is to say with the Psalmist: Mine eyes are ever toivard the Lord (Ps. xxv. 15), and for this reason, that J have set the Lord always before me (Ps. xvi. 8), will not he receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation f (Ps. xxiv. 5). He shall, without doubt, be frequently visited, nor shall he ever be ignorant of the time of his visitation, however secretly and noiselessly his spiritual visitor, in His modest reserve, may come. The soul, then, that is watchful and disengaged from other cares shall see Him coming from afar, and shall discern in due course all the incidents which, as we have said, the Bride has remarked with as much precision as skill in the coming of the Bridegroom, for He says: Those that seek Me early shall find Me (Prov. viii. 17). She will recognise the earnestness and rapid approach of her Bridegroom: she will know at once when He is drawing near, or when He is actually present; when He looks upon her she will perceive with a happy eye that Divine gaze, as it were a ray of sunlight penetrating through the windows and the openings of her wall; and at length will hear His accents of joy and of affection, calling her His beloved, His dove, His fair one.

5. Who is wise and will understand these things, so as to be able to distinguish them, to define them each in its turn, and to explain them worthily to make others understand them also? If you hope for that from me, I, for my part, would rather listen to someone who has experience, who is fully conversant with, and accustomed to, such subjects. But since such men as this frequently prefer to hide in a modest silence what they have in silence learned, and judge it the safer course to keep to themselves their secret lore, I, the duty of whose charge obliges me to speak, and to whom it is not permitted to be silent, will declare what I know of these matters, either from my own experience or that of others, keeping to truths which most people may easily verify for themselves, and leaving higher and deeper ones for such as are able to apprehend them. If, then, I have been warned, either from without by a man, or inwardly by the Spirit, to have regard to righteousness, and to observe equity, 1 must consider that salutary counsel as a token of the speedy coming of the Bridegroom, and a kind of preparation for the worthy receiving of that heavenly Guest This is what I am taught by the Psalmist when he says that Righteousness shall go before Him (Ps. lxxxv. 14); and again, when addressing God: Justice and judgment are t)u preparation of Thy throne (Ps. lxxxviii. 1 5, Douay). Nor will the same hope fail if the counsel that I hear be of humility, or of patience, or, again, of brotherly charity and obedience to those set over me, and especially if it be of following holiness and peace, and of seeking pureness of heart, because a Scripture saith: Holiness becometh the House of the Lord (Ps. xciii. 5); and again: His place is in peace (Ps. lxxv. 3, Douay); and: The pure in heart shall see God (Matt. v. 8). Therefore whatsoever shall be suggested to my mind of these or of other virtues shall be to me, as I have said, for an intimation that the Lord of virtues is about to visit my soul.

6. But if a righteous man shall reprove me in loving-kindness, and correct me, I shall draw the same inference, knowing that the zeal of the righteous, and his goodwill, make a way for Him who ascendeth upon the west (Ps. Ixvii. 5, Douay). Happy is that fall,1 since a man rises again, and stands by the correction of one who is righteous; since it is his sin that falls, and the Lord ascends upon it, treading it under His feet, and crushing it so that it rises not again. The reproof of the righteous is therefore not to be scorned; it is the destruction of sin, health to the heart, and, as it were, the path of God towards the soul. Speaking generally, it is not safe to listen negligently to any discourse which tends to edification in piety, in virtues, in a good and holy character, since it is the way by which is shown the salvation of God (Ps. 1. 23). If a discourse which we hear be sweet and agreeable to us, if we listen to it without distaste and even with ardour, then we ought to believe, not only that the Bridegroom is coming to us, but that He is hastening— that is, is coming with eager wish [to be received in our soul]. For His wish produces yours, and that you hasten to receive His discourse comes from His eager haste to enter into your soul; for we did not first love Him, but, as St. John declares: He first loved us (t John iv. 10). If, then, you feel that His word is, as it were, a burning flame, and that your conscience is so touched by it as to burn within you at the remembrance of your sin, remember what the Scripture saith — that a fire goeth before Him (Ps. xcvii. 3); and do not doubt that He is near you. And, indeed, we know from another Psalm that the Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart (Ps. xxxiv. 18).

7. But if you are not only touched with penitence by His Word, but also wholly converted to the Lord, so that you resolve and vow to keep the statutes of His righteousness, know, then, that He is Himself present, and especially if you feel yourself glowing with the love of Him. You meet in Scripture with each of these statements con- cerning Him — namely, that fire goeth before Him, and that He Himself is a fire. For Moses says of Him expressly that He is a consuming fire (Deut. iv. 24). But there is a difference between these two: for that fire which precedes the Lord has ardour, but not love; it burns, but it does not dissolve; it moves that which it touches, but does not carry it wholly away. It is sent before Him by God only to arouse and prepare you, and also to make you aware of what you are in yourself, so that you may taste with the greater pleasure what you shall be hereafter by the grace of God. But that Fire which is God Himself consumes indeed, but causes no pain; it burns that which it takes possession of, but with a sweetness wonderful and indescribable; it destroys, and in destroying confers the supreme felicity. For it is truly a consuming fire; but though as a fire it burns up vices, yet in the soul it acts as a healing unction. Recognise, then, the presence of the Lord in the virtue which changes your heart, and in the love which fires it. For the Right Hand of the Lord worketh virtue (Ps. cxviii. 16). But this change worked by the Right Hand of the Most High takes place only in fervour of spirit, and in charity unfeigned, so that he who experiences it may say: My heart was hot within me, and ivhile I was thus musing the fire burned (Ps. xxxix. 3).

8. When, then, by this fire has been consumed every taint of sin and all the stains of past vices, when the conscience is purified and calmed,1 there follows a sudden and unusual extension of the mind, an infusion of light which illuminates the intellect either to the knowledge of the Scriptures, or to the comprehension of mysteries; whereof the one is bestowed, I think, for our own satisfaction, the other for the edification of our neighbour; that is, doubtless, the effect of the Divine Eye looking upon us, bringing forth thy righteousness as the lights and thy judgment as the noonday (Ps. xxxvii. 6), according to that prophecy of Isaiah: Then shall thy light break forth as the morning (Is. lviii. 8). But, in truth, that ray of brightness so great shall penetrate not as through open doors, but through small and narrow apertures, at least, as long as that ruinous and tottering wall, that is, thy body, shall endure. You mistake if you think that it shall be otherwise, to whatever degree of purity of heart you may attain, since he who had meditated so deeply upon heavenly things says: Now we see through a glass, darkly: but then face to face (1 Cor. xi. 12).

9. After this Divine look, so full of condescension and goodness, comes a Voice, gently and sweetly presenting to the mind the Will of God; and this is no other than Love itself, nor can it be without effect in soliciting and persuading to the fulfilment of those things which God requires. Thus the Bride hears that she is to arise and hasten, no doubt to work for the good of souls. This is indeed a property of true and pure contemplation that it sometimes fills the mind, which is warmed with Divine fire, with a fervent zeal and desire to gain for God those who are of a like mind in loving Him, and to that end it very willingly lays aside the calm and rest of meditation for the labour of preaching; and again, when it has attained the object desired, to a certain extent, returns with increased eagerness to that contemplation, which it remembers that it laid aside for the purpose of gaining more fruit. Then, when it has tasted again the delights of contemplation, it recurs with increased power, and with its accustomed willingness, to its labours for the good of souls. But the soul frequently hesitates between these continual changes, being profoundly anxious and fearful, lest when drawn to one or the other of these alternatives by the attractions and advantages which it discerns in each it should deviate ever so little from the Divine will. It was perhaps something of this kind that holy Job suffered, when he said: When J lie down, I say> when shall I arise? and again, I shall look for the evening (Job vii. 4, Douay); that is to say, when I am in repose I accuse myself of having neglected some work; and when busied in work, of having disturbed my repose. You see that even a holy man feels grave uncertainty between the claims of fruitful labour and of restful contemplation; and although he is always occupied about good things, yet he always feels a sense of regret as if he had been doing that which is wrong, and from one moment to another intreats with tears and sighing to be shown the Will of God. In these uncertainties, the one and only remedy is prayer and frequent upliftings of the soul to God, that He would deign to make continually known to us what we ought to do, and when, how, and in what manner we should do it. You have, as I think, these three things pointed out and commended in these three words of the Bridegroom — namely, preaching, prayer, and contemplation. For the Bride is fitly called My love, since she faithfully studies [to bring about] those objects which are dear to Him, by preaching, by advising, by ministering. Fitly also My dove, since she sighs and plains continually in prayer, entreating the Divine mercy without ceasing for her sins. And fitly, again, My fair one, since she is all bright and shining with heavenly desires, and devotes herself to celestial contemplation at all times that it is proper and opportune to do so; thus she enfolds herself more and more in their glory and beauty.

10. Let us see, however, if these three words describing that threefold blessing, which may be attained by one and the same soul, can be set in relation with those three persons spoken of in the Gospel, who dwelt in the same house, who were friends, and indeed very intimate friends of the Saviour. I refer to Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. For Martha served, Mary remained quiescent in contemplation, and Lazarus groaned, as it were, under the weight of death and of the stone that shut close his grave, and earnestly begged for the grace of the Resurrection (Luke x. 38-42, and John xi.). These things have been said on this account, because the Bride is described as being so watchful and so skilful in observing the paths of the Bridegroom that it cannot be concealed from her at what time, and with what degree of haste He will come to her. Whether He be afar off, or be drawing near, or be present, by no degree of suddenness can she be taken by surprise; and on that account she has merited, not only to be looked upon with favour, but that her Spouse should deign to make her glad with accents of love, and to give her great joy because of His Voice.

ii. I have added, somewhat boldly perhaps, to this that every soul (as, for example, among ourselves) which shall watch with the Bride, shall with her be saluted as well-beloved, consoled as dove, embraced as fair. Every man shall be counted as perfect in whose soul these three things shall be united with all fitness and propriety, so that he shall know how to repent for his own faults and failings, to rejoice in God, and at the same time to assist his neighbours with all his power; and thus to show himself pleasing to God, circumspect with regard to himself, and useful to others. But who is capable of uniting these three? Would that even after long years they might be found united among us; I do not say all together in each of us, but at least each of them in some of us! We have indeed among us a Martha, the friend, so to speak, of the Saviour, in those who faithfully administer our external affairs. We have a Lazarus (as it were), a mourning and plaining dove, in our novices, who, lately dead in trespasses and sins, labour and mourn under wounds yet recent, and from fear of the Divine judgment, and as those who, wounded unto the death, sleep in the tomb, and are out of the remembrance of all, as they themselves no longer believe that they are borne in mind, until at the bidding of Christ the fear which pressed them down as a heavy stone upon the mouth of a tomb is rolled away, and they are able to breathe in the hope of pardon. We have also a contemplative Mary in those who, in the course of a longer time, and by the co-operation of grace, have been able to attain unto a better and happier state, to presume already that the Divine pardon will be extended to them, and instead of anxiously reflecting upon their offences, to meditate day and night with delight upon the law of God, and never to grow weary of it. Sometimes, even, as they contemplate with ineffable joy the glory of the Lord the Bridegroom, they are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord (2 Cor. iii. 18). Now, to what purpose He bids the Bride to rise and come away, while but a little before He had forbidden that she should be aroused from her sleep, we must examine in another sermon. May He be present with us in the inquiry, and deign to reveal to us the reason of that mystery; He, I mean, who is the Bridegroom of the Church, Jesus Christ our Lord, who is above all, God blessed for ever. Amen.