when thou boastest that thou wilt follow the and she who was watering with tears His feet,
OF HOLY VIRGINITY. 431
38. I send thee not, soul that art religiously chaste, that hast not given the reins to fleshly appetite even so far as to. allowed marriage, that hast not indulged thy body about to depart even to the begetting one to succeed thee, that hast sustained aloft thy earthly members, afloat to acccustom them to heaven; I send thee not, in order that thou mayest learn humility, unto publicans and sinners, who yet enter into the kingdom of heaven bethy flesh that thou hast been born, thou yet conceive of the fear of the Lord, and give birth to the spirit of salvation.® '* Fear,'' indeed, '*there is not in charity, but perfect charity,'' as it is written, ''casteth out fear:''® but fear of men, not of God: fear of temporal evils, not of the Divine Judgment at the last. '°* Be not thou high-minded, but fear." * Love thou the goodness of God; fear thou His severity: neither suffers thee to be proud. For by loving you fear, lest you grievously offend One Who is loved and loves. For what more grievous offense, than that by pride thou displease Him, Who for thy sake hath been displeasing to the proud? And where ought there to be more that '"chaste fear abiding for ever and ever,™ than in thee, who hast no thought of the things of this world, how to please a wedded partner; but of the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord?" That other fear is not in charity, but this chaste fear quitteth not charity. If you love not, fear Jest you perish; if you love, fear lest you displease. That fear charity casteth out, with this it runneth within. The Apostle Paul also says, "' For we have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but we have received the spirit of adoption of sons, wherein wecry, Abba, Father.''*% I believe that he speaks of that fear, which had been given in the Old Testament, lest the temporal goods should be lost, which God had promised unto those not yet sons under grace, but as yet slaves under the law. There is also the fear of eternal fire, to serve God in order to avoid which is assuredly not yet of perfect charity. For the desire of the reward is one thing, the fear of punishment another, They are different sayings, ** Whither shall I go away from Thy Spirit, and from Thy face whither shall I flee?''™ and, "' One thing I have sought of the Lord, this I will seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord through all the days of my life, that I may consider the delight of the Lord, that I be protected in His temple:'' *® and, °*' Turn not away Thy face from me:''* and, '' My soul longeth and fainteth unto the courts of the Lord." Those sayings let him have had, who dared not to lift up his eyes to heaven; and she who was watering with tears His feet, in order to obtain pardon for her grievous sins; but these do thou have, who art careful about the things of the Lord, to be holy both in body and spirit. With those sayings there companies fear which hath torment, which fore the proud: I send thee not to these: for they, who have been set free from the gulf of uncleanness, are unworthy that undefiled virginity be sent to them to take pattern from. I send thee unto the King of Heaven, unto Him, by Whom men were created, and Who was created among men for the sake of men; unto Him, Who ts fair of beauty above the sons of men,' and despised by the sons of men on behalf of the sons of men: unto Him, Who, ruling the immortal angels, disdained not to do service unto mortals. Him, at any rate, not unrighteousness, but charity, made humble; '' Charity, which rivalleth not, is not puffed up, seeketh not her own; ''? forasmuch as '' Christ also pleased not Himself, but, as it is written of Him, The reproaches of such as reproached Thee have fallen upon
Me.? Go then, come unto Him, and learn, in that He is *"'meek and lowly of heart.'' Thou shalt not go unto him, who dared not by reason of the burden of unrighteousness to lift up his eyes to heaven, but unto Him, Who by the weight of charity came down from heaven.4 Thou shalt not go unto her, who watered with tears the feet of her Lord, seeking forgiveness of heavy sins; but thou shalt go unto Him, Who, granting forgiveness of all sins, washed the feet of His own disciples.> I know the dignity of thy virginity; I propose not to thee to imitate the Publican humbly accusing his own faults; but I fear for the Pharisee proudly boasting of his own merits.° I say not, Be thou such as she, of whom it was said, °' There are forgiven unto her many sins, in that she hath loved much;''7 but I fear lest, as thinking that thou hast little forgiven to thee, thou love little.
39. I fear, I say, greatly for thee, lest, when thou boastest that thou wilt follow the
Lamb wheresoever He shall have gone, thou be unable by reason of swelling pride to follow Him through strait ways. It is good for thee, O virgin soul, that thus, as thou art a virgin, thus altogether keeping in thy heart that thou hast been born again, keeping in
8 Is. xxvi. 18. see LXX. 91 John, iv. 18. [See R.V.] 10 Rom. Xi. 20. 11 Ps, xix. 9. 12 1 Cor. vil. 32, 13 Rom. vill. 15. 14 Ps, CxxX1X. 7. 15 Ps, xxvil. 4. 16 Ps, xxvii. 9. 17 Ps. IxxxIv. 2.
3 Rom. xv. 3. 2x Cor. xiii. 4, 5. ye 6 Luke xviii. 10-14. 5 John xiii. 5. Ps. xly. 2. 4 John vi. 38. 7 Luke vii. 38, 47.