That we should be very cautious how far we fuffer our felves to be engaged in the Love of any Thing, because there is nothing but disappointment in the Enjoyment, and uncertainty in the Poffeffion. We must needs therefore be miferable in our Love, unless God be the Object of it. But neither is our Happiness fufficiently fecured by making God the Object of our Love, unless we concenter our whole Affections upon him, and (in the ftricteft fenfe of the Phrafe) Love him with all our Heart, and with all our Soul. For otherwife, whatever portion of our Love does not run in this Channel, muft neceffarily fix upon difproportionate and unfatisfying Objects; and confequently, be an inftrument of Difcontent to us. 'Tis neceffary therefore, to the compleating of our Happiness, that that Object fhould engross all our Affections to it felf, which only can satisfie them; and (according to the comparison of an ingenious Platonist) Marfilius Ficimus, that our Minds fhould have the fame Tom. 2. pag. 315. habitude to God, that the Eye has to Light. Now the Eye does not only love Light above other Things, but delights in nothing else. I confefs, fuch an abfolute and entire Dedication of our Love to God as this, is not always practicable in this Life. It is the priviledge and happiness of those confirm'd Spirits, who are fo fwallow'd up in the Comprehenfions of Eter nity, and fo perpetually ravish'd with the Glofies of the Divine Beauty, that they have not the power to turn afide to any other Object. But tho' this Superlative Excellency of Divine Love, be not attainable on this fide of the thick Darkness, it being the proper effect of open Vifion, and not of Contemplation; yet however, by the Help of this later, we may arrive to many degrees of it; and the more entire and undivided our Love is to God, the fewer difappointments and diffatisfactions we fhall meet with in the World; which is a very strong Engagement to Heroic Piety.

15. Fourthly, I confider, That the degrees of our Reward fhall be proportionable to the degrees of our

Piety: We fhall Reap as plentifully as we Sow; and at the great Day of Retribution, we fhall find, that befides the general Collation of Happiness, peculiar Coronets of Glory are prepared for Eminent Saints. Indeed, all hearty and fincere Lovers of God and Religion, fhall partake of the Glories of the Kingdom; but fome fhall fit nearer the Throne than others, and enjoy a more intimate Perception of the Divine Beauty. All the true Followers of Jefus fhall indeed Feaft with him at the great Supper; but fome fhall be placed nearer to him than others; and ftill there fhall be a Beloved Difciple that fhall lean on his Bofom. I know this Doctrin concerning different degrees of Glory, is (and indeed what is there that is not) very much queftion'd by fome, and peremptorily deny'd by others; but fince it is fo highly agreeable to the Goodness and Bounty of God, and to the Catholick Measures of Senfe and Reason; and is fo mightily favour'd if not exprefly afferted in many places of Scripture, I fhall not here go about to establish the Truth of it; but taking it for granted, do urge this as another Confideration of great Moment, toward encouraging the Practice of Heroic Piety.

16. Fifthly, and Laftly, I Confider, That we have indeed but very little Time to ferve God in. The Life of Man at longeft, is but short; and confidering how small a part of it we Live, much shorter. If we deduct from the Computation of our Years (as we muft do, if we will take a true Estimate of our Life) that part of our Time which is spent in the incogitancy of Infancy and Childhood, the impertinence and heedlefnefs of Youth, in the Neceffities of Nature, Eating, Drinking, Sleeping, and other Refreshments; in Business and Worldly Concerns, engagements with Friends and Relations, in the Offices of Civility and mutual Intercourfe; befides a thousand other unneceffary Avocations: We fhall find that there is but a fmall Portion left, even for the Retirements of Study, for our improvement in Arts and Sciences, and other intellectual Accomplishments. But then, if we confider

confider what great disbursements of our Time are made upon them allo, we fhall find, that Religion is crowded up into a very narrow compafs; fo narrow, that were not the Rewards of Heaven matter of exprefs Revelation, twould be the greatest Prefumption imaginable, to hope for them upon the Condition of fuch inconfiderable Services. Since then our Time of ferving God is so very fhort, fo infinitely difproportionate to the Rewards we expect from him, 'tis but a reafonable piece of Ingenuity, to work with all our might, and do as much in it as we can: To fupply the poverty of Time by frugal Management, and intenfeness of Affection; to ferve God earneftly, vigorously, and zealously; and in one Days Devotion, to abbreviate the ordinary Piety of many Years. 'Tis faid of the Devil, that he profecuted his malicious defigns against the Church with greater earnestness and vigour, because he knew he had but a fhort time, Rev. 12. 12. And fhall not the fame Confideration prevail with a generous Soul, to do as much for God and Religion, as the Devil did against them? 'Tis a fhame for him that has but a fhort Part to Act upon the Stage, not to perform it well; efpecially when he is to Act it but once. Man has but one ftate of Probation, and that of an exceeding fhort Continuance, and therefore, fince he cannot ferve God long, he fhould ferve him much, employevery Minute of his Life to the best Advantage, thicken his Devotions, hallow every day in his Kalendar by Religious Exercifes, and every action in his Life by Holy Refe rences and Defignments; for let him make what hafte he can to be Wife, Time will out-run him. This is a Confideration of infinite Moment to him that duly weighs it; and he that thus numbers his days, will find great Rea fon to apply his Heart to more than ordinary degrees of Wifdom.

Cont

Contemplation and Love: Or, the Methodical Affent of the Soul to God, by Steps of Meditation.

I.

CONTEMPLATION I.

That 'tis neceffary Man fhould have fome End.

IN

N the Depth of Solitude and Silence, having withdrawn my felf not only from all Worldly Commerce, but from all Thoughts concerning any Thing without my own Sphere; I retire wholly into my felf, and there fpeculate the Compofition of my Intellectual

Nature.

2. And here, befides that faculty of Perception whereby I apprehend Objects, whether Material or Immaterial, without any Material Species; (which in the Cartefian Dialect I call Pure Intellect) and that other of apprehending Objects as prefent, under a corporeal Image or Representation; (which I distinguish from the other Power of Perception by the Name of Imagination) I say, befides these two,I obferve an Appetitive Faculty, where by I incline to Apparent Good; and that either by a bare Act of Propenfion, or endeavour to Unite with the agreeable Object; which anfwers to Pure Intellect, and may be call'd Will, (or rather Volition) or by fuch a Propension of the Soul, as is alfo accompany'd with a Commotion of the Blood and Spirits; which anfwers to Imagination; and is the fame with the Paffion of Love.

3. And of this I further meditate, and by felf-reflexion experiment; that altho' the Perceptive Faculty be not always in actual Exercife, or at lealt not in the fame degree of it (For, if according to the Cartefian Hypo

the fis

thefis there be no intermiffion of Cogitation, yet 'tis most certain, that its Applications are not always equal and uniform) tho' this I fay, be true as to the Perceptive; yet, I find by attending to the Operations of my Nature, that the Appetitive Faculty is not only al ways in Act, but in the fame degree of Intention and Application. As it never has any total Intermiffion, fo neither is it fubject (as indeed every Thing else in Man is) to Ebbs and Flows, but acts uniformly as well as conftantly. This Amorous Biafs and Endeavour of the Soul, is like that Stock of Motion which the French Philofopher fuppofes the Univerfe at firft endowed with, which continues always at the fame rate, not to be abated or increas'd. Not that this Equality of Love is to be understood in reference to particular Objects, any more than that of Motion in reference to particular Bo dies; but only, that it gains in one part, as much as it lofes in another; fo as in the whole, to remain equal and - uniform.

4. For however various, and unconftant I may be in my Love of particular Objects according to the various Apprehenfion I have of their refpective Excellencies; yet certainly, I purfue Happiness in general with the fame Earneftnefs and Vigour; and do not love, or wishwell to my felf, more at one time than at another.

5. And indeed, fince all my inconftancy in the profecution of particular Objects proceeds from the variety of my Apprehenfions concerning their Excellency; and the only reason why I withdraw my Affection from this, or that thing, is, because I difcern, or fufpect, that Happiness not to be there which I expected, it is hence plainly argued a pofteriori, that I ftand at all Times equally affected towards Happiness it felf. As he that is therefore only variously affected towards the Means, according as he varioufly apprehends their ferviceablenefs to the End, may be truly faid, to affect the End it felf always alike.

6. Nor can it poffibly be otherwife, than that I fhould

thus