throat is dry, mine eyes fail, whilst I wait on the Lord; and yet he
perseveres. Be not dismayed, thou shalt be respected at last. God often
works by contrarieties, he first kills and then makes alive, he
woundeth first and then healeth, he makes man sow in tears that he may
reap in joy; 'tis God's method: he that is so visited, must with
patience endure and rest satisfied for the present. The paschal lamb
was eaten with sour herbs; we shall feel no sweetness of His blood,
till we first feel the smart of our sins. Thy pains are great,
intolerable for the time; thou art destitute of grace and comfort, stay
the Lord's leisure, he will not (I say) suffer thee to be tempted above
that thou art able to bear, 1 Cor. x. 13. but will give an issue to
temptation. He works all for the best to them that love God, Rom. viii.
28. Doubt not of thine election, it is an immutable decree; a mark
never to be defaced: you have been otherwise, you may and shall be. And
for your present affliction, hope the best, it will shortly end. He is
present with his servants in their affliction, Ps. xci. 15. Great are
the troubles of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth them out of all,
Ps. xxxiv. 19. Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh
in us an eternal weight of glory, 2. Cor. iv. 18. Not answerable to
that glory which is to come; though now in heaviness, saith 1 Pet. i.
6, you shall rejoice.
Now last of all to those external impediments, terrible objects, which
they hear and see many times, devils, bugbears, and mormeluches,
noisome smells, &c. These may come, as I have formerly declared in my
precedent discourse of the Symptoms of Melancholy, from inward causes;
as a concave glass reflects solid bodies, a troubled brain for want of
sleep, nutriment, and by reason of that agitation of spirits to which
Hercules de Saxonia attributes all symptoms almost, may reflect and
show prodigious shapes, as our vain fear and crazed phantasy shall
suggest and feign, as many silly weak women and children in the dark,
sick folks, and frantic for want of repast and sleep, suppose they see
that they see not: many times such terriculaments may proceed from
natural causes, and all other senses may be deluded. Besides, as I have
said, this humour is balneum diaboli, the devil's bath, by reason of
the distemper of humours, and infirm organs in us: he may so possess us
inwardly to molest us, as he did Saul and others, by God's permission:
he is prince of the air, and can transform himself into several shapes,
delude all our senses for a time, but his power is determined, he may
terrify us, but not hurt; God hath given His angels charge over us, He
is a wall round about his people, Psal. xci. 11, 12. There be those
that prescribe physic in such cases, 'tis God's instrument and not
unfit. The devil works by mediation of humours, and mixed diseases must
have mixed remedies. Levinus Lemnius cap. 57 & 58, exhort. ad vit. ep.
instit. is very copious on this subject, besides that chief remedy of
confidence in God, prayer, hearty repentance, &c., of which for your
comfort and instruction, read Lavater de spectris part. 3. cap. 5. and
6. Wierus de praestigiis daemonum lib. 5. to Philip Melancthon, and
others, and that Christian armour which Paul prescribes; he sets down
certain amulets, herbs, and precious stones, which have marvellous
virtues all, profligandis daemonibus, to drive away devils and their
illusions. Sapphires, chrysolites, carbuncles, &c. Quae mira virtute
pollent ad lemures, stryges, incubos, genios aereos arcendos, si
veterum monumentis habenda fides. Of herbs, he reckons us pennyroyal,
rue, mint, angelica, peony: Rich. Argentine de praestigiis daemonum,
cap. 20, adds, hypericon or St. John's wort, perforata herba, which by
a divine virtue drives away devils, and is therefore fuga daemonum: all
which rightly used by their suffitus, Daemonum vexationibus obsistunt,
afflictas mentes a daemonibus relevant, et venenatis Jiimis, expel
devils themselves, and all devilish illusions. Anthony Musa, the
Emperor Augustus, his physician, cap. 6, de Betonia, approves of betony
to this purpose; [6812]the ancients used therefore to plant it in
churchyards, because it was held to be an holy herb and good against
fearful visions, did secure such places as it grew in, and sanctified
those persons that carried it about them. Idem fere Mathiolus in
dioscoridem. Others commend accurate music, so Saul was helped by
David's harp. Fires to be made in such rooms where spirits haunt, good
store of lights to be set up, odours, perfumes, and suffumigations, as
the angel taught Tobias, of brimstone and bitumen, thus, myrrh, briony
root, with many such simples which Wecker hath collected, lib. 15, de
secretis, cap. 15. ♃ sulphuris drachmam unam, recoquatur in vitis
albae, aqua, ut dilutius sit sulphur; detur aegro: nam daemones sunt
morbi (saith Rich. Argentine, lib. de praestigiis daemonum, cap. ult.)
Vigetus hath a far larger receipt to this purpose, which the said
Wecker cites out of Wierus, ♃ sulphuris, vini, bituminis, opoponacis,
galbani, castorei, &c. Why sweet perfumes, fires and so many lights
should be used in such places, Ernestus Burgravius Lucerna vitae, et
mortis, and Fortunius Lycetus assigns this cause, quod his boni genii
provocentur, mali arceaniur; because good spirits are well pleased
with, but evil abhor them! And therefore those old Gentiles, present
Mahometans, and Papists have continual lamps burning in their churches
all day and all night, lights at funerals and in their graves; lucernae
ardentes ex auro liquefacto for many ages to endure (saith Lazius), ne
daemones corpus laedant; lights ever burning as those vestal virgins.
Pythonissae maintained heretofore, with many such, of which read
Tostatus in 2 Reg. cap. 6. quaest. 43, Thyreus, cap. 57, 58, 62, &c. de
locis infestis, Pictorius Isagog. de daemonibus, &c., see more in them.
Cardan would have the party affected wink altogether in such a case, if
he see aught that offends him, or cut the air with a sword in such
places they walk and abide; gladiis enim et lanceis terrentur, shoot a
pistol at them, for being aerial bodies (as Caelius Rhodiginus, lib. 1.
cap. 29. Tertullian, Origen, Psellas, and many hold), if stroken, they
feel pain. Papists commonly enjoin and apply crosses, holy water,
sanctified beads, amulets, music, ringing of bells, for to that end are
they consecrated, and by them baptised, characters, counterfeit relics,
so many masses, peregrinations, oblations, adjurations, and what not?
Alexander Albertinus a, Rocha, Petrus Thyreus, and Hieronymus Mengus,
with many other pontificial writers, prescribe and set down several
forms of exorcisms, as well to houses possessed with devils, as to
demoniacal persons; but I am of [6813]Lemnius's mind, 'tis but damnosa
adjuratio, aut potius ludificatio, a mere mockery, a counterfeit charm,
to no purpose, they are fopperies and fictions, as that absurd
[6814]story is amongst the rest, of a penitent woman seduced by a
magician in France, at St. Bawne, exorcised by Domphius, Michaelis, and
a company of circumventing friars. If any man (saith Lemnius) will
attempt such a thing, without all those juggling circumstances,
astrological elections of time, place, prodigious habits, fustian, big,
sesquipedal words, spells, crosses, characters, which exorcists
ordinarily use, let him follow the example of Peter and John, that
without any ambitious swelling terms, cured a lame man. Acts iii. In
the name of Christ Jesus rise and walk. His name alone is the best and
only charm against all such diabolical illusions, so doth Origen
advise: and so Chrysostom, Haec erit tibi baculus, haec turris
inexpugnabilis, haec armatura. Nos quid ad haec dicemus, plures
fortasse expectabunt, saith St. Austin. Many men will desire my counsel
and opinion what is to be done in this behalf; I can say no more, quam
ut vera fide, quae per dilectionem operatur, ad Deum unum fugiamus, let
them fly to God alone for help. Athanasius in his book, De variis
quaest. prescribes as a present charm against devils, the beginning of
the lxvii. Psalm. Exurgat Deus, dissipentur inimici, &c. But the best
remedy is to fly to God, to call on him, hope, pray, trust, rely on
him, to commit ourselves wholly to him. What the practice of the
primitive church was in this behalf, Et quis daemonia ejiciendi modus,
read Wierus at large, lib. 5. de Cura. Lam. meles. cap. 38. et
deinceps.
Last of all: if the party affected shall certainly know this malady to
have proceeded from too much fasting, meditation, precise life,
contemplation of God's judgments (for the devil deceives many by such
means), in that other extreme he circumvents melancholy itself, reading
some books, treatises, hearing rigid preachers, &c. If he shall
perceive that it hath begun first from some great loss, grievous
accident, disaster, seeing others in like case, or any such terrible
object, let him speedily remove the cause, which to the cure of this
disease Navarras so much commends, [6815]avertat cogitationem a re
scrupulosa, by all opposite means, art, and industry, let him laxare
animum, by all honest recreations, refresh and recreate his distressed
soul; let him direct his thoughts, by himself and other of his friends.
Let him read no more such tracts or subjects, hear no more such fearful
tones, avoid such companies, and by all means open himself, submit
himself to the advice of good physicians and divines, which is
contraventio scrupulorum, as [6816]he calls it, hear them speak to whom
the Lord hath given the tongue of the learned, to be able to minister a
word to him that is weary, [6817]whose words are as flagons of wine.
Let him not be obstinate, headstrong, peevish, wilful, self-conceited
(as in this malady they are), but give ear to good advice, be ruled and
persuaded; and no doubt but such good counsel may prove as preposterous
to his soul, as the angel was to Peter, that opened the iron gates,
loosed his bands, brought him out of prison, and delivered him from
bodily thraldom; they may ease his afflicted mind, relieve his wounded
soul, and take him out of the jaws of hell itself. I can say no more,
or give better advice to such as are any way distressed in this kind,
than what I have given and said. Only take this for a corollary and
conclusion, as thou tenderest thine own welfare in this, and all other
melancholy, thy good health of body and mind, observe this short
precept, give not way to solitariness and idleness. Be not solitary, be
not idle.
SPERATE MISERI—UNHAPPY HOPE. CAVETE FELICES—HAPPY BE CAUTIOUS.
Vis a dubio liberari? vis quod incertum est evadere? Age poenitentiam
dum sanus es; sic agens, dico tibi quod securus es, quod poenitentiam
egisti eo tempore quo peccare potuisti. Austin. Do you wish to be freed
from doubts? do you desire to escape uncertainty? Be penitent whilst
rational: by so doing I assert that you are safe, because you have
devoted that time to penitence in which you might have been guilty of
sin.
INDEX.