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26. Therefore let spiritual
delights succeed to the place of carnal delights in holy chastity;
reading, prayer, psalm, good thought, frequency in good works, hope
of the world to come, and a heart upward; and for all these giving
of thanks unto the Father of lights, from Whom, without any doubt,
every good gift, and every perfect gift, as Scripture bears
witness, cometh down.2288
For when, in stead of the delights
of married women, which they have in the flesh of their husbands,
the use of other carnal delights is taken, as it were to solace
them, why should I speak of the evils which follow, when the
Apostle hath said in short, that the widow, who lives in delights,
living is dead.2289
But far be
it from you, that ye be taken with lust of riches instead of lust
of marriage, or that in your hearts money succeed to the place of
love of a husband. For looking into men’s conversation, we have
often found by experience, that in certain persons, when wantonness
hath been restrained, avarice hath increased. For, as, in the
senses themselves of the body, they who see not hear more keenly,
and discern many things by touch, nor have such as have the use of
their eyes so great life in their touch; and in this instance it is
understood that, when the exertion of the power of attention2290
hath been
restrained in one approach, that is, of the eyes, it puts itself
forth into other senses, more ready with keenness to distinguish,
as though it essayed to supply from the one what was denied in the
other; thus also often carnal lust, being restrained from pleasure
of sensual intercourse, with greater strength reaches itself forth
to desire money, and when turned away from the one, turns itself
with more glow of passion to the other. But in you let the love of
riches grow cold together with the love of marriage, and let a
pious use of what property you possess be directed to spiritual
delights, that your liberality wax warm rather in helping such as
are in want than in enriching covetous persons. Forsooth into the
heavenly treasury are sent not gifts to the covetous, but alms to
the needy, which above measure help the prayers of widows.
Fastings, also, and watchings, so far as they disturb not health,
if they be spent in praying, singing psalms, reading, and
meditating in the Law of God, even the very things which seem
laborious are turned into spiritual delights. For no way burdensome
are the labors of such as love, but even of themselves delight, as
of such as hunt, fowl, fish, gather grapes, traffic, delight
themselves with some game. It matters therefore what be loved.
For, in the case of what is loved, either there is no labor, or the
labor also is loved. And consider how it should be matter for shame
and grief, if there be pleasure in labor, to take a wild beast, to
fill cask and purse,2291
to cast a ball, and there be no
pleasure in labors to win God!E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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