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Show I Jj , J" : I- Qtp! ; -rrr' ' 5Tiom&5 QIKenif'5.; i n. 1 Book 2, Chapter 4 Of a Pure Mind and a Simple Intention. Ey two wings is man lifted above earthly things, viz: by simplicity and purity. Simplicity must be in the intention, in-tention, purity in the affection. Simplicity aimeth at God, purity ap-prehendeth ap-prehendeth Him and tasteth Him. No good work will be a hindrance to thee, provided- thou be free interiorly from all inordinate affection. If thou aim at and seek after nothing noth-ing else but the will of God and thy neighbor's benefit, then Shalt thou enjoy en-joy interior liberty. If only thy heart were right, then every created thing would be to thee a mirror of life and a book of holy teaching. There is no creature so little and so vile, that it showeth not forth the goodness of God. If thou wert inwardly good and pure, then wouldst thou discern all things without impediment, and comprehend them well. A pure heart penetrates, heaven and hell. According as every one is interiorly, so doth he judge exteriorly. ex-teriorly. If there be joy in the world, truly the man of pure heart possesseth it. And if there be anywhere tribulation and distress an evil conscience doth the more readily experience it. As iron cast into the fire loses its rust, and becomes all bright with burning, burn-ing, so the man that turneth himself wholly to God is divested of all sloth, and changed into a new man. When a man beginneth to grow lukewarm luke-warm then he is afraid of a little labor, and willingly receiveth exterior consolation. con-solation. But when he beginneth perfectly to overcome himself, and to walk manfully man-fully in the way of God, then he maketh little account of things that before seemed to him grievous. , CHAPTER V. Of Self Consideration. We may not trust too much to ourselves, our-selves, for grace and understanding are often wanting ta us. There is in us but little light, and this we soon lose by negligence. Oftentimes we are quite unconscious how interiorly blind we are. We often do amiss, and do worse in excusing ourselves. Sometimes we are moved by passion, and think it zeal. We blame little things in others, and overlook great things in ourselves. We are quick enough in perceiving and weighing what we bear from others; but we think little of what others have to bear from us. He that should well and justly weigh his own doings would find little cause to judge harshly of another. The interior man regardeth the care of himself before all other cares: and he that looketh diligently to himself findeth it not difficult to be silent about others. Thou wilt never be interior and devout unless thou pass over in silence other men's affairs, and look especially to thyself. If thou attend wholly "to thyself and to God, what thou eeest abroad will affect thee but little. Where art thou when thou art absent ab-sent from thyself? And when thou hast run over all things, what hath it profited thee if thou hast neglected thyself. If thou wouldst have true peace and perfect union, thou must cast 'all things else aside, and keep thy eyes upon thyself thy-self alone. Thou wilt make great progress, if thou keep thyself free from every temporal anxiety. Thou wilt fall back exceedingly, if thou make account of anything temporal. tem-poral. Let there be nothing great, nothing high, nothing pleasant, nothing acceptable ac-ceptable to thee but only God Himself, or what comes from God. Think it all vanity, whatever consolation con-solation thu mayest meet with from any creature. The soul that loveth God despiseth all things that are less I than God. God only, the eternal and infinite, who filleth all things, is the solace of ' the soul and 'the true joy of the heart. |