Volume III, Treatise V, Chapter XVIII

The Preceding Dectrine Confirmed by Several Examples

We read (Hier. Plat. 1. 3. de bono statu. Relig. c. 26), that Rabaudus, a French prince, was called miraculously to religion, but this new way of living seemed at first so difficult and painful to him by reason of his former life, that his abbot, Porcarius, was obliged to order him at every meal something that was better than what the rest of the community had, yet this did not prevent him from becoming daily more and more delicate and infirm. One day when he ate in the refectory with the rest, who had but bread and beans for dinner, he saw two venerable old men, of whom one was bald, with two keys about his neck, and the other in the habit of a monk, with a crystal vase in his hand, walking round the refectory, and pouring out of the vase something on every monk’s portion, but when they came to him they frowned upon him and gave him nothing. He ventured, however, to taste of his neighbour’s portion te see what had been given him, and found that it was far more delicious than anything he had ever eaten in his whole life. The same vision happening thrice, he acquainted his abbot with it, and begged to know who these two old men were. The abbot presently perceiving the matter, told him that one of them was St. Peter, patron of their church, and the other St. Honorius, founder of the monastery; and having given his judgment upon the matter, added that his not living up to the rule like the rest, was the reason why they withheld from him what they gave the other monks. Upon this Rabaudus resolved to live up to the exactness of his rule in every point, and he found it far easier than he thought it had been. Not long after he saw the same two saints making their round, from whose hands he now shared equally with the rest, and this was an extraordinary comfort to him, and gave him new courage and resolution to support for the future all the austerities of his order.

Cesarius relates (Lib. iii. Dial., c. 48) an example very like this of a Cistercian monk, who had indeed the name of a religious, but nothing more. This person, under pretence of having been a physician, was almost continually abroad, and appeared in the monastery only upon solemn festivals. When he was at matins with the rest upon one of the feasts of our Blessed Lady, he saw her enter the choir, bright and shining, and perceived she poured an Heavenly liquor into every monk’s mouth, which gave them new force and vigour to sing the praises of God; but when it came to his turn to receive the same, she passed by without giving him any, telling him that the sweets of Heaven were not destined _ for him who thought of nothing but Earthly pleasures. This reproach so sensibly afflicted him, that, entering into himself, he instantly changed his life, and commenced a course of mortification, never afterwards going out without leave of his superior. The next feast of our Blessed Lady he had the comfort, that on coming again into the choir, she stopped before him, and thus spoke to him: Since you have amended your life, and preferred the sweets of Heaven before those of the Earth, I will regale you as I do the rest of your brethren: and he no sooner tasted of the liquor than he felt himself confirmed in the love of mortification, and in a contempt of the vanities of this world, this liquor being nothing else than the unction of devotion, which makes all things sweet and easy.

The same Cesarius tells (Lid. iv. Dial., c. 80), of a clergyman who, after having lived in great delicacy, became a religious in the monastery of Clairvaux, where, finding nothing but very poor brown bread, he had scarce courage to look at it, and his stomach turned at the very thoughts of eating it. Our Blessed Saviour appeared one night to him and presented him a piece of - the same bread, but he replying that it was impossible for him to eat it, our Saviour dipped it in the wound of his sacred side, and then commanded him to taste it.. The religious obeyed, and found such an admirable taste in the bread, that from thenceforward, seasoning in a similar manner all the things he could not taste before, he found them most delicious,

The chronicles of the order of St. Francis, speaking (P. i. 1. i. c. 58) of that famous assembly which was held in the open fields, and was called the bulrush chapter, because cells of rushes were made there for more than five thousand persons, observe that the spirit of fervour and penance reigned then so much in that order that it was necessary to curb and restrain it. Many of them wore iron girdles and pointed coats of mail next their skin, and thence contracted such diseases that thereby they were quite disabled, and could neither attend to their prayers nor do their order any service, and several of them died; so that St. Francis was obliged to command them under holy obedience, to bring all those pious instruments of mortification to him, which amounted to the number of five hundred. Whilst this extraordinary fervour lasted, and when they held this their general chapter, purely for the spiritual perfection and advancement of their order, it was revealed to St. Francis that eighteen thousand devils were assembled between Portiuncula and <Assisium to consult and deliberate how to oppose the growth of his order, and that after several had given their opinions about it, one stood up and gave the following advice:—These people, says he, meaning St. Francis and the order he had founded, love this world so little and God so much, and are so much devoted to penance and prayer, that it is very difficult for us, or rather impossible, at present to prevail against them. Without giving ourselves any farther trouble, then, I advise you to have patience till their founder is dead and their number increased; then we will introduce young men amongst them who shall have none of this zeal for perfection, and the old ones too, who shall be looking for respect, as also people of quality, who have been tenderly and delicately brought up, and learned men, whose pride shall be great, but their piety little. Nor will they fail to receive persons of this kind, as well to maintain the credit of this order as to augment their number. By this means we shall draw them to a love of the things of the world—to a love of learning, dignity, and human praise; and when once they are thus corrupted, we may freely take our revenge upon them. The whole assembly of devils approved of this advice and separated, already enjoying in idea the pleasure to be derived from this promised success.

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