lectures14+15-第6节

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Saviour；　but　she　must　immediately　write　about　them　and　exploiter



them　professionally；　and　use　her　expertness　to　give　instruction



to　those　less　privileged。　　Her　voluble　egotism；　her　sense；　not　of



radical　bad　being；　as　the　really　contrite　have　it；　but　of　her



〃faults〃　and　〃imperfections〃　in　the　plural；　her　stereotyped



humility　and　return　upon　herself；　as　covered　with　〃confusion〃　at



each　new　manifestation　of　God's　singular　partiality　for　a　person



so　unworthy；　are　typical　of　shrewdom：　　a　paramountly　feeling



nature　would　be　objectively　lost　in　gratitude；　and　silent。　　She



had　some　public　instincts；　it　is　true；　she　hated　the　Lutherans；



and　longed　for　the　church's　triumph　over　them；　but　in　the　main



her　idea　of　religion　seems　to　have　been　that　of　an　endless



amatory　flirtationif　one　may　say　so　without　irreverence



between　the　devotee　and　the　deity；　and　apart　from　helping　younger



nuns　to　go　in　this　direction　by　the　inspiration　of　her　example



and　instruction；　there　is　absolutely　no　human　use　in　her；　or　sign



of　any　general　human　interest。　　Yet　the　spirit　of　her　age；　far



from　rebuking　her；　exalted　her　as　superhuman。







＇206＇　　Furneaux　Jordan：　　Character　in　Birth　and　Parentage；　first



edition。　Later　editions　change　the　nomenclature。







＇207＇　As　to　this　distinction；　see　the　admirably　practical　account



in　J。　M。　Baldwin's　little　book；　The　Story　of　the　Mind；　1898。















We　have　to　pass　a　similar　judgment　on　the　whole　notion　of



saintship　based　on　merits。　　Any　God　who；　on　the　one　hand；　can



care　to　keep　a　pedantically　minute　account　of　individual



shortcomings；　and　on　the　other　can　feel　such　partialities；　and



load　particular　creatures　with　such　insipid　marks　of　favor；　is



too　small…minded　a　God　for　our　credence。　　When　Luther；　in　his



immense　manly　way；　swept　off　by　a　stroke　of　his　hand　the　very



notion　of　a　debit　and　credit　account　kept　with　individuals　by　the



Almighty；　he　stretched　the　soul's　imagination　and　saved　theology



from　puerility。



　



So　much　for　mere　devotion；　divorced　from　the　intellectual



conceptions　which　might　guide　it　towards　bearing　useful　human



fruit。







The　next　saintly　virtue　in　which　we　find　excess　is　Purity。　　In



theopathic　characters；　like　those　whom　we　have　just　considered；



the　love　of　God　must　not　be　mixed　with　any　other　love。　　Father



and　mother；　sisters；　brothers；　and　friends　are　felt　as



interfering　distractions；　for　sensitiveness　and　narrowness；　when



they　occur　together；　as　they　often　do；　require　above　all　things　a



simplified　world　to　dwell　in。　　Variety　and　confusion　are　too　much



for　their　powers　of　comfortable　adaptation。　　But　whereas　your



aggressive　pietist　reaches　his　unity　objectively；　by　forcibly



stamping　disorder　and　divergence　out；　your　retiring　pietist



reaches　his　subjectively；　leaving　disorder　in　the　world　at　large；



but　making　a　smaller　world　in　which　he　dwells　himself　and　from



which　he　eliminates　it　altogether。　　Thus；　alongside　of　the　church



militant　with　its　prisons；　dragonnades；　and　inquisition　methods；



we　have　the　church　fugient；　as　one　might　call　it；　with　its



hermitages；　monasteries；　and　sectarian　organizations；　both



churches　pursuing　the　same　objectto　unify　the　life；＇208＇　and



simplify　the　spectacle　presented　to　the　soul。　　A　mind　extremely



sensitive　to　inner　discords　will　drop　one　external　relation　after



another；　as　interfering　with　the　absorption　of　consciousness　in



spiritual　things。　　Amusements　must　go　first；　then　conventional



〃society；〃　then　business；　then　family　duties；　until　at　last



seclusion；　with　a　subdivision　of　the　day　into　hours　for　stated



religious　acts；　is　the　only　thing　that　can　be　borne。　　The　lives



of　saints　are　a　history　of　successive　renunciations　of



complication；　one　form　of　contact　with　the　outer　life　being



dropped　after　another；　to　save　the　purity　of　inner　tone。＇209＇　



〃Is　it　not　better；〃　a　young　sister　asks　her　Superior；　〃that　I



should　not　speak　at　all　during　the　hour　of　recreation；　so　as　not



to　run　the　risk；　by　speaking；　of　falling　into　some　sin　of　which　I



might　not　be　conscious？〃＇210＇　　If　the　life　remains　a　social　one



at　all；　those　who　take　part　in　it　must　follow　one　identical　rule。







Embosomed　in　this　monotony；　the　zealot　for　purity　feels　clean　and



free　once　more。　　The　minuteness　of　uniformity　maintained　in



certain　sectarian　communities；　whether　monastic　or　not；　is



something　almost　inconceivable　to　a　man　of　the　world。　　Costume；



phraseology；　hours；　and　habits　are　absolutely　stereotyped；　and



there　is　no　doubt　that　some　persons　are　so　made　as　to　find　in



this　stability　an　incomparable　kind　of　mental　rest。







＇208＇　On　this　subject　I　refer　to　the　work　of　M。　Murisier　（Les



Maladies　du　sentiment　Religieux；　Paris；　1901）；　who　makes　inner



unification　the　mainspring　of　the　whole　religious　life。　　But　ALL



strongly　ideal　interests；　religious　or　irreligious；　unify　the



mind　and　tend　to　subordinate　everything　to　themselves。　　One　would



infer　from　M。　Murisier's　pages　that　this　formal　condition　was



peculiarly　characteristic　of　religion；　and　that　one　might　in



comparison　almost　neglect　material　content；　in　studying　the



latter。　　I　trust　that　the　present　work　will　convince　the　reader



that　religion　has　plenty　of　material　content　which　is



characteristic　and　which　is　more　important　by　far　than　any



general　psychological　form。　　In　spite　of　this　criticism；　I　find



M。　Murisier's　book　highly　instructive。







＇209＇　Example：　　〃At　the　first　beginning　of　the　Servitor's



＇Suso's＇　interior　life；　after　he　had　purified　his　soul　properly



by　confession；　he　marked　out　for　himself；　in　thought；　three



circles；　within　which　he　shut　himself　up；　as　in　a　spiritual



intrenchment。　　The　first　circle　was　his　cell；　his　chapel；　and　the



choir。　　When　he　was　within　this　circle；　he　seemed　to　himself　in



complete　security。　　The　second　circle　was　the　whole　monastery　as



far　as　the　outer　gate。　　The　third　and　outermost　circle　was　the



gate　itself；　and　here　it　was　necessary　for　him　to　stand　well　upon



his　guard。　　When　he　went　outside　these　circles；　it　seemed　to　him



that　he　was　in　the　plight　of　some　wild　animal　which　is　outside



its　hole；　and　surrounded　by　the　hunt；　and　therefore　in　need　of



all　its　cunning　and　watchfulness。〃　　The　Life　of　the　Blessed　Henry



Suso；　by　Himself；　translated　by　Knox；　London；　1865；　p。　168。







＇210＇　Vie　des　premieres　Religieuses　Dominicaines　de　la



Congregation　de　St。　Dominique；　a　Nancy；　Nancy；　1896；　p。　129。















We　have　no　time　to　multiply　examples；　so　I　will　let　the　case　of



Saint　Louis　of　Gonzaga　serve　as　a　type　of　excess　in　purification。







I　think　you　will　agree　that　this　youth　carried　the　elimination　of



the　external　and　discordant　to　a　point　which　we　cannot



unreservedly　admire。　　At　the　age　of　ten；　his　biographer　says：







〃The　inspiration　came　to　him　to　consecrate　to　the　Mother　of　God



his　own　virginitythat　being　to　her　the　most　agreeable　of



possible　presents。　　Without　delay；　then；　and　with　all　the　fervor



there　was　in　him；　joyous　of　heart；　and　burning　with　love；　he　made



his　vow　of　perpetual　chastity。　　Mary　accepted　the　offering　of　his



innocent　heart；　and　obtained　for　him　from　God；　as　a　recompense；



the　extraordinary　grace　of　never　feeling　during　his　entire　life



the　slightest　touch　of　temptation　against　the　virtue　of　purity。　



This　was　an　altogether　exceptional　favor；　rarely　accorded　even　to



Saints　themselves；　and　all　the　more　marvelous　in　that　Louis　dwelt



always　in　courts　and　among　great　folks；　where　danger　and



opportunity　are　so　unusually　frequent。　　It　is　true　that　Louis



from　his　earliest　childhood　had　shown　a　natural　repugnance　for



whatever　might　be　impure　or　unvirginal；　and　even　for　relations　of



any　sort　whatever　between　persons　of　opposite　sex。　　But　this　made



it　all　the　more　surprising　that　he　should；　especially　since　this



vow；　feel　it　necessary　to　have　recourse　to　such　a　number　of



expedients　for　protecting　against　even　the　shadow　of　danger　the



virginity　which　he　had　thus　consecrated。　　One　might　suppose　that



if　any　one　could　have　contented　himself　with　the　ordinary



precautions；　prescribed　for　all　Christians；　it　would　assuredly



have　been　he。　　But　no！　In　the　use　of　preservatives　and　means　of



defense；　in　flight　from　the　most　insignificant　occasions；　from



every　possibility　of　peril；　just　as　in　the　mortification　of　his



flesh；　he　went　farther　than　the　majority　of　saints。　　He；　who　by



an　extraordinary　protection　of　God's　grace　was　never　tempted；



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