A heavenly treasure of confortable meditations and prayers written by S. Augustin, Bishop of Hyppon in three seuerall treatises of his meditations, soliloquies, and manual. Faithfully translated into English by the R. F. Antony Batt monke, of the holy order of S Bennet of the Congregation of England

Of the future dignitie of man. CHAPT. VIII.

WHen that therfore which is perfect is arriued, that which is partly onely shalbe disanulled, which will be, when we shall be admitted to beholde thy face ap∣parentlie. What will then hinder vs to be almost equall to the Angells? whom thou (o Lord) at that time wilt crowne with a crowne of hope, which is adorned with glorie and renowne: whom thou with vnspeakeable fauoures wilt grace as thy friends, yea we shalbe in all thinges like, and equall to the Angells. Thy truth doth likewise testifie the same, saying; They are equall to the Angells, and are the sonnes of God. What are they but the sonnes of God, if they are equall to the Angells? They shall without doubt be the sonnes of God, because the sonne of man is become the sonne of God.

Through this consideration I durst bold∣lye affirme, that man is not onely almost equall to the Angells, noe not equall one∣ly, but higher in dignitie and surpassing the Angells, because man is God, and God is man, not an Angell. Wherfore I durst auouche, that man is the most excellent of

all creatures: because the Worde, which in the beginning was God with God; the Worde, by which God sayed: let light be made, and light was made, to witt, the An∣gelicall nature; the Worde, by which God in the beginning created all thinges, the same Worde hath become fleshe, and dwelt in vs, and we haue seene the glory of it. Loe this is the glorie, by which I glo∣rie, whensoeuer I glorie, as I ought. Loe this is the ioy, by which I reioyce, when∣soeuer I reioyce as I shoulde, euen thou o Lord my God, the life, and onely glorie of my soule.

I confesse therfore vnto thee (o Lord my God) that thou hast created me, in a manner equal to the Angells, in that thou hast created me capable of reason: for that by meanes of thy diuine Worde, I am in possibilitie to become equall to the An∣gells, that by meanes of thy onely begot∣ten Worde, I may be adopted to be thy sonne (o Lord) to be thy sonne I say, by the meanes and merits of thy beloued sonne lesus Christ, in whom thou hast beene well pleased, being thy onely sōne, and heare, and our onely Lord and redee∣mer, enligthner, and comforter: being our aduocate with thee, and the light of our eies; who is our life, our Sauiour, and our onely hope, who hath loued vs more then

himselfe, by whom we haue an assured trust and confidence, and accesse to come to thee, because he hath giuē them power to be the sonnes of God, that beleiue in his name.

I will for euer o Lord, praise thy holy name, who by creating me according to thine owne image and likenes, hast made me capable of soe greate glorie, as to be the sonne of God.

The trees, stones, and all thinges els whatsoeuer, that are mou••d, or growe, in the ayre, or in the sea, or on the earthe, haue not this priu••ledge and prerogatiue; because thou hast not giuen them power by meanes of thy Worde, to be the sonnes of God, for that they are dep••iued of rea∣son, because this power doth depende of the reason, by which we knowe God. But he hath giuen this power to men, whom he hath created reasonable according to his owne image and likenes. And I (o Lord) like as by thy grace I am a man, soe likewise by thy grace, I am in possibilitie to be thy sonne, which is a prerogatiue which they cannot attaine vnto.

Whence proceedeth this soe greate a good vnto me o Lord, the most soueraigne truth, and true soueraigntie, the origina••l and beginning of all creatures? What is the cause heereof o Lord, that I shoulde

be able to become thy sonne, and they cannot? Thou art the cause (o Lord) who remainest for euer, who hast created as∣well the one as the other. Thou hast crea∣ted both men and beastes, the stones, and the greene grasse growing on the groūde. There were not any precedent meritts or precedent grace, because thou hast created all thinges, being moued there vnto by thy onely goodnes. All creatures before theire creation were equall in meritts, for that they were all voide of merits.

What then hath caused, thy goodnes to be more liberall towardes me thy crea∣ture, whom thou hast endewed with rea∣son, then towardes all others that are voide of the same? Why am not I like vnto all them, or all they like vnto me, or I alone like vnto them? What merits of mine, what grace or goodnes was there in me to deserue the same? to witt, that thou shouldest make me capable to be the sonne of God, which prerogatiue thou hast graunted to none of them? Be it farr, o Lord, from mine imagination, that I shoulde thinke this to proceede from any merits of mine. Thy onely grace and goodnes hath been the cause of this, to the end I might be pertaker of the sweet∣nes thereof.

I beseeche thee therefore by that gra∣ce,

by the which thou hast created me, that thou wilt giue me grace, to the end I may be gratefull for this grace receiued from thee.