Volume I, Treatise VIII, Chapter XVII

That During Our Sickness, We Are not to Repose Our Trust and Hope Tn the Assistance and Knowledge of Physicians, but in God Alone: and that We Are to Conform Ourselves to His Will, not Only as to the Sickness Tn General, but Also to Every and Each Particular Painful

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WHAT we have already said concerning sickness in general must also be understood concerning every particular circumstance during the same. St. Basil, upon this point, gives a very profitable instruction. He says, we are so to apply ourselves to physicians and remedies, as not to place therein all our hopes and confidence; as King Asa did, who was reprimanded by the holy Scripture: “For that in his sickness he had not recourse to our Lord; and confided more in the science of physicians.” (Paral. xvi, 13.) We must not attribute to them the good or bad success of remedies, but to God alone, who makes them operate as he pleases. And in case you are destitute of physicians and remedies, you are not, says this holy father, to despair therefore of your recovery. When our Saviour conversed upon earth, he cured the sick sometimes by his will only; as when he healed the leper, saying, “It is my will, be cured.” (Mat. viii.3.) Sometimes he applied some certain things, as when he made clay with his spittle, and anointed the eyes of the blind man, commanding him to wash them in the pond of Siloe. At other times he left them in their diseases, and would not cure them, whatever expenses they had been at in procuring physicians and remedies. God does the very same; sometimes he confers health, without any help of remedies or physicians; sometimes he operates by the means of things applied; and at other times he renders all the consultations, and all the remedies useless; to teach us thereby, that we are to put our confidence in him alone. Ezechias ascribed not his cure to the plaister of figs applied to him by the prophet Isaias, but to God only. You are to ascribe your cure, in like manner, not to the care and diligence of the physicians, or the efficaciousness of remedies, but to the goodness of God, who has power to cure all sorts of diseases. “For it is not herbs or fomentations which wrought the cure,” says the Wise Man, “‘ but, O Lord, it is your word which has the virtue to heal all diseases.” (Wisdom 16:12) But if, on the contrary, you recover not your health, you are not therefore to lay the fault on the physicians or their remedies; but must reflect that all comes from God, and it is his pleasure you shall not recover from this sickness.

When it likewise happens, that either the physician understands not your distemper, or has not used that diligence he ought; or the infirmarian has not had due care of you; you are to ascribe the cause to the sole will of God. And so you are not to say, it was through their defect you relapsed into your fever; but you must be convinced, God made use of them to occasion your relapse; and you must receive all as coming from his hand. For although, inasmuch as regards those who have the care of you, these things may be culpable; nevertheless, in respect of God who permits them so to happen, and with whom nothing happens by pure chance, it is an effect of his providence which has determined it after that manner. It was not merely casual that old Toby slept under the swallow’s nest, and that the dung which fell into his eyes struck him blind; but it was by an unalterable ordination of the divine will. “The Lord,” says the holy Scripture, “permitted this temptation to befall him; that posterity might have an example of patience, as it had in the person of Job.” (Tobias 2:12) And the angel himself, speaking to Toby after his cure, said: ‘“Because you were acceptable to God, it was requisite you should be proved by temptation.” (Ibid. 12:13)

It is recounted in the lives of the holy fathers, that Abbot Stephen falling sick, the brother infirmarian would needs make him a little cake; and by a mistake, instead of making it with sweet oil, he poured in the oil of linseed, which is extremely bitter. Having prepared, he offered it to the holy abbot; who perceiving by the taste what had happened, nevertheless eat some part thereof without taking the least notice. The brother made him a second cake in the same manner; and seeing the holy abbot, after he had tasted it, eat no more, being very urgent with him to eat, took a piece himself, thereby to excite him and shew him the way; but he had scarce put it in his mouth, when perceiving the bitterness, he was very sensibly troubled and afflicted thereat, calling himself a poisoner, and that he had poisoned the abbot. ‘Trouble not yourself, my scn, said the holy man; if it had not been God’s will that you should mistake one pot for another, this had not happened. We have several other examples of saints who submitted with wonderful patience and resignation to all the physicians’ prescriptions and remedies, although they were contrary to the nature of their distemper. And it is in this manner we are to consider the defects of the physicians, and negligence of infirmarians, and those who have care of us, without complaining of them, or casting the fault upon them, if any accidents befall us.

Our virtue never appears more than in trials of this sort; and a religious in his sickness edifies the whole community, when he receives all things as coming from the hand of God, with an equal temper and tranquillity of mind; and forgetting in a manner himself, delivers up himself to be entirely governed by his superiors, and such as have charge of him in his infirmity. You confide in your superiors, says St. Basil, in things appertaining to your soul; and why not also in things that regard your body? You put into bis hands the care of your salvation; and why do you not commit to him the care of your health? Our rules permit, and even command us, in our sickness, not to be solicicitous for our body; and since they acquit us of that trouble, we should most willingly embrace so profitable a permission, and so advantageous a command. But on the contrary, tbat religious person extremely disedifies a community, when he assumes to himself an over-great care of his body during his sickness; when he takes not patiently what is ordered him, nor after the manner it is ordered; and fails not to complain, and sometimes even murmur, if all things be not done as he desires.

Cassian says very well that the indisposition of the body is not prejudicial to the good disposition of the soul; but on the contrary, that it contributes very much to it, provided it be received as it ought. But take care, says he, lest the infirmity of the body goes so far as to infect the soul; and it will certainly communicate itself, and will cause the superior to be more concerned at your spiritual than at your corporal disease, if you behave so in your sickness, as to take occasion of doing nothing but your own will, and according to your own inclinations, and if you cast off all docility and obedience. We do not cease to be a religious, by being sick; and we must not think we are exempt from our obligations, when we are indisposed; and that then we have nothing to do but to think of our health and ease; and that we are for that time dispensed with making progress in our spiritual advancement. A sick person, says St. Ignatius, ought to endeavour, by shewing great humility and patience, to edify his brethren no less in time of sickness than in time of health. St. Chrysostom, upon these words of the Psalmist, “O Lord, you have covered us with your good will, as it were with a buckler” (Psalms 5:13); says, “This life is a perpetual warfare, where we are always to be-in readiness to give battle:” and adds—‘“as well sick persons, as those who are in health, are equally bound to the engagement. And the most proper time for this combat is the time of sickness, when our soul is assaulted on all sides with pains and afflictions, when it is seized with grief, and the devil incites us each moment to vent forth some complaining words, and lash out into some impatient expressions.” (Chrys. in (Psalms 5)) It is then we are chiefly to give more evident proofs of our virtue. In our very bed, says Seneca, amidst the torments and pains of a violent disease, we have as great an opportunity of exercising our courage in suffering, as, in the field ot battle, of fighting. The main part of our force consists in rather bearing with constancy, than in making a vigorous attack, This the Wise Man signifies in these words: ‘A patient man is better than the man of courage; and he who has a command over himself excels him who takes cities by force.” (Proverbs 16:32)

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