afked it with figns of a fincere converfion to God (k): which is confirmed by the firft general council of Nice, in the following words: "Concerning those who are at the "article of death, the ancient and exact law shall be ob"ferved, that no one be deprived of the last, and most ne"ceffary viaticum. In general, to every one in his last paffage, the Bishop fhall give it, after having tried him "by examining his difpofitions (81)." Hence Pope Innocent I. (82) declares, with regard to those who pretended that abfolution is not to be given to certain penitents in their laft paffage: "We tremble with horror to think that any one can be capable of fo great hardness and impiety. "What is this but to add death to death, and barbarously "to murder his foul which is departing unabfolved." Which words are inserted in the canon law.

Though the feverity of this difcipline of canonical penance be now disused, still fin is the fame, and the nature, law,

(81) Conc. Nicen. 1. Can. 13. T. ii. Conc. p. 42. See Conc. Carthag. 4. can. 78. T. ii. Conc. p. 1205. Conc. Arauf. 1. Can. 3. T iii. 3. Conc. p. 1448. S. Nyffen. ep. Canonic. ad Letoium, Can. 2. &c. (82) Ep. 2. Conc. T. ii. p. 1619. & Cap. Agnovimus Causa 27. de Pœnit.

(k) St. Cyprian, indeed (ep. 52. ad Antonian. Fello 55, p. 248). forbids thofe to receive the communion and peace who did not ask it before their laft fickness, giving this reafon: "Because the fear of death "extorts this defire, not fincere repentance. Nor does he deferve to "receive this comfort in death, who did not think in the time of his "health, that he was to die." But he seems only to speak of the canonical abfolution from public penance, fuch as Deacons could give by a fpecial cominiffion, or he must be understood of the holy Eucharist. The fame feems to be the meaning of the ancient Council of Elvire in Spain (Can. 1, 2, 3, 11, 12, 66, 73.) which forbids those who had lapfed into idolatry or inceft; and to informers and flanderers, and bauds or procurers to be admitted to communion, even at their death. If abfolution was meant, it could only be for a terror to others, not to encourage defpair. But even the refufal of the holy Eucharift at death, if the dying perfon gave marks of repentance, was contrary to the general and most approved discipline. Such certainly was the inhuman Jaw of ftate in France (never approved by the clergy) by which criminals condemned to death were denied the benefit of confeffion and abfolution, till at the requeft of the clergy it was abolished by Charles VI. in 1396. The custom ftill fubfifts in that kingdom of refufig the holy Eucharift or viaticum to criminals, who are to be hanged, out of a falle pretence of respect for fo great a facrament: a pretence which the church has never authorized, and it is to be wifhed, the practice was abolished out of Chriftian charity, and holy zeal. Though the church might eftablish such a custom for certain extraordinary cafes, "not in defpair "of pardon, but out of zeal for maintaining the vigour of difcipline:" to ufe the words of St. Auftin (Ep. 185. ol. 50. ad Bonifac.)

S 2

and

and conditions of penance, are the fame. For we cannot have received a new gofpel, or have learned another road to heaven: we have received no new nor more easy means of appeafing the divine juftice which we have provoked by our fins. We must then study in the rules of this ancient difcipline, to proportion our remedies to the depth of our wounds: not to fpare ourselves in the practice of neceffary mortification; and efpecially to excite in our hearts the most perfect fpirit of compunction, and confecrate this time to tears and affiduous prayer. To ftir up these difpofitions in our hearts, the church, by the afhes we receive, puts us in mind of death, which lies in wait like a thief to furprise us when we leaft expect it. Alfo by this ceremony we are folemnly dedicated to the practice of penance, and bear its badge as if we were clad with fack-cloth. With what fervour ought we to run its career, uniting in fpirit our weak endeavours with the fufferings of our divine Redeemer, and carrying the enfigns of his crofs and precious wounds in the mortification of our flefh, that dying to the old man, we may be transformed into his image, and renewed by and through him. A Chriftian must be all fire, and full of zeal to found and cleanse all the corruption of his heart, to repair by works of penance, all the remains of fin, and all the havock it has made in his foul, to deftroy its empire there, to weaken concupifcence, fubdue the paflions, and form in his heart the true fpirit of Chrift, by all virtues of which he is the perfect model, especially humility, meeknefs, charity, mercy, the fpirit of prayer and holy zeal. Not only the load of our own debts, and the neceffity we lie under of fubduing cur paffions, call upon us to do penance but the fins of the whole world, and the chastisements which hang over it, increase our obligation. Fellow-members mult feel each others miferies and dangers, and look upon themselves as charged with each others burthens. For Achan's facrilege the whole people did penance. Every one must be penetrated with a feeling compaffion for the diforders of the world; must weep, figh and humble himself for them, making up with all the faithful one body, of which Jefus Chrift is the head; he must look upon every one's wounds as his own, and take part in them, and implore the divine mercy for all. Thefe fighs and groans, this compassion are a duty fo infeparable from Lent, as to make a part of all the prayers and offices of the church. How many finners have been refcued from eternal perdition, how many public calamities

calamities averted by the prayers and fafts of the church? Men, certainly, had never greater reafon to dread the weight of the divine anger than in the present age. The evils under which the world groans, and the fcourges with which God afflicts Christendom on every fide, ought to excite us to deprecate his judgment and juft vengeance, and labour by our tears and fafts to appeafe his anger. Not to infift on the temporal calamities, though even these are the chaftisements of fin, and manifeftations of the divine indignation, can we behold without floods of tears the fpiritual blindness and miseries which overspread the face of the universe, and seem to prepare the way to that great defection from the faith of which Chrift faid: "When the Son of "man fhall come, do you think he fhall find faith upon "earth?" The frightful growth of impiety, irreligion, and downright infidelity; the overflowings of vice which has opened its very floodgates, and publicly fet up its ftandard both in the cities and in the country, fo as to leave little traces of virtue in the lives of the generality of Chriftians, and to banish the holy maxims of the gofpel out of their hearts, fubftituting in their room thofe of the world which it so feverely condemns. If we have any zeal for the divine honour which we see every day fo outrageously injured; or if we have any love of the fpiritual beauty, or any joy in the exaltation of the church of Chrift, any bowels of affection for our neighbour, and defire of his falvation, why do we not clothe ourselves in fack-cloth, cover our heads with afhes, and in tears, watching and fafting implore the mercy of God, who in his indignation has abandoned fo many Chriftian fouls a prey to their lufts and pride, and made them a laughing-flock to devils? Mofes was fo moved to fee the anger of God kindled against his people, that he prayed even to fee himself blotted out of the book of those who were to enter the promised land, provided God would fpare them. St. Paul prayed to be himself an anathema, if that could have been a means of procuring the falvation of his brethren, the Jews. The faints, whofe lives were fo innocent and fo holy, imputed to their own faults and floth, a fhare of the public guilt which armed the anger of heaven against mankind, and fet no bounds to their fervour in doing penance in order to move God to mercy and fhall we, who have fo great reafon to fear that God's anger is kindled against the world in part, on account of our fins, remain hardened and infenfible amidst the arrows of divine yengeance? Shall we

fee

fee fo many fouls perifh without ufing our utmost endeavours to engage the divine mercy to rescue and fave them, and to avert thofe judgments in which we deferve to be involved with them?

С НА Р. IX.

On the FIRST SUNDAY in LENT.

N this day the church fets before our eyes the holy retirement and faft of Chrift in the wilderness, to put us in mind of our obligation of striving to form our interior difpofitions and fpirit upon this divine model, and though we cannot fast as he fasted for us, that we may imitate him as we are able, and according to our strength, to use the words of St. Gregory Nazianzen.

Our divine Redeemer entered upon this extraordinary fast immediately after his baptism, to fhew us with what care we are bound to preferve and strengthen the treasure of grace after we have received it. He fafted and prayed before he was tempted, to teach us how we are to arm ourfelves against the affaults of the enemy; it was before he produced himself to the world, in his public ministry, that he made this wonderful retreat, fetting us an example also in what manner we ought earnestly to fue for the divine bleffing before we undertake any confiderable enterprife, and to proportion our preparation and endeavours to the importance of the work. The exercises he recommends to us in the defert, are chiefly holy retirement, mortification, penance, and prayer.

Immediately after his baptifm, before he was tempted, and before he manifefted himself to the world by his preaching and miracles, he withdrew into the wilderness. By flying from the world we fhun many dangerous occafions of fin, of vanity, and lofs of time, to which its flavery unavoidably exposes us. Entire folitude is indeed a state to which very few are called, and in which others, for want of neceffary fervour, would often find the most dangerous occafions of floth, and become their own worft tempters. But every Christian is bound with great watchfulness to fhun the dangerous amusements of the world, its poisonous pleasures and entertainments, its floth and idleness, the hurry of its conftant diffipation, its vanities, and the company, or familiar converfe with those who are intoxicated with its spirit and falfe maxims of ambition, pride, revenge, jealoufy, envy,

cove

covetousness, intemperance, and fenfuality; who walk enemies of the cross of Chrift, ftrangers to the fpirit of his holy gofpel. These are the rocks which every one in the world must keep at a distance from, being careful, whilst he fails in no duty of charity and civil fociety to any one, not to cultivate an intimacy but with the fmall number, and only with fuch whofe converfation and example breathe an air of piety, religion, and the gofpel, and which is moft pure and free from the baneful contagion of vice in all its fhapes. He must be employed in regular, ferious, and rational occupations, and referve to himself hours for retirement, and Chriftian devotions and confiderations. Thus far Chriftian folitude is the firft part of penance, and belongs to our general and most indifpenfable obligation of fhunning the vanities and dangers of the world, which we folemnly renounced in our baptifmal engagements. From time to time, especially in the holy feafon of Lent, we ought to embrace a clofer retirement, if our circumftances will permit, in order to enter seriously into ourselves, and difengage our hearts more and more from the world.

This general retirement, and habitual fpirit of recollection, as alfo fet hours or times of clofer folitude, are not only a duty of penance, for the fequeftration of our hearts from fin and the world, but they are alfo a neceffary preparation for the effential and great duty of prayer. A Chriftian life is a life of prayer; and in it certain intervals ought to be dedicated entirely to this heavenly exercife. Now folitude removes the impediments, and difpofes the heart to purity, recollection, and fervour in devotion. In folitude fouls are difengaged from the world, which is fure, more or less, to entangle and defile the affections. The Jews in Egypt were forbid by God to offer him a facrifice amidst the abominations of a land overrun with idolatry and vice; and were commanded to go three days march into the wilderness, and there to offer him pure Holocaufts. It is in hóly retirement that fouls pour forth their pureft affections before their Creator; and are reciprocally difpofed to liften to his voice, whilst he speaks more freely to their hearts by his interior infpirations, vifits them with his moft abundant graces, and feeds them with his heavenly confolations. The children of Ifrael were only favoured with manna, the bread of heaven (1), whilst they were in the defert: it failed them as foon as they tafted the fruits of the country (2). And God himself declares (1) Exod. xvi. 31. (2) Jof. v. 12,