The rule and exercises of holy dying in which are described the means and instruments of preparing our selves and others respectively, for a blessed death, and the remedies against the evils and temptations proper to the state of sicknesse : together with prayers and acts of vertue to be used by sick and dying persons, or by others standing in their attendance : to which are added rules for the visitation of the sick and offices proper for that ministery.

SECT. VIII. Remedies against fear of death, by way of exercise.

1. HE that would willingly be fearlesse of death, must learn to despise the world; he must neither love any thing passionately, nor be proud of any circumstance of his life.* 1.1 O death how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liveth at rest in his possessions, to a man that hath nothing to vex him, and that hath prosperity in all things, yea unto him that is yet able to receive meat?* 1.2 said the son of Si∣rach.

But the parts of this exercise help each other. If a man be not incorporated in all his passions to the things of this world, he will lesse fear to be divorced from them by a super∣vening death; and yet because he must part with them all in death, it is but reasonable he should not be passionate for so fugitive and transient interest. But if any man thinks well of himself for being a handsome person, or if he be stronger and wiser then his neigh∣bours, he must remember that what he boasts of will decline into weaknesse and disho∣nour; but that very boasting and compla∣cency, will make death keener, and more un∣welcome, because it comes to take him from his confidences and pleasures, making his beauty equal to those Ladies that have slept some years in Charnel houses, and their strength not so stubborn as the breath of an infant, and their wisdom such which can be looked for in the land where all things are forgotten.

2. He that would not fear death, must streng∣then his spirit with the proper instruments of Christian fortitude. All men are resolved upon this, that to bear grief honestly and tempe∣rately and to dye willingly and nobly is the duty of a good and of a valiant man: and they that are not so, are vitious, and fools, and cowards. * 1.3 All men praise the valiant, and honest, and that which the very Heathen admired in their noblest examples, is especially patience and contempt of death. Zeno Eleates endured tor∣ments rather then discover his friends or be∣tray

them to the danger of the Tyrant: and Calanus the barbarous and unlearned Indian willingly suffered himself to be burnt alive: and all the women did so, to do honour to their Husbands Funeral, and to represent and prove their affections great to their Lords. The religion of a Christian does more com∣mand fortitude, then ever did any institution; for we are commanded to be willing to die for Christ, to dye for the brethren, to dye ra∣ther then give offence or scandal; the effect of which is this; that he that is instructed to do the necessary parts of his duty; is by the same instrument fortified against death: As he that does his duty need not fear death: so neither shall he; the parts of his duty, are parts of his security. It is certainly a great basenesse and pusillanimitie of spirit that makes death terrible and extremely to be a∣voided.

3. Christian prudence is a great security a∣gainst the fear of death. For if we be afraid of death it is but reasonable to use all spiritual arts to take off the apprehension of the evil: but therefore we ought to remove our fear, because fear gives to death wings and spurres, and darts. Death hastens to a fearful man: if therefore you would make death harmlesse and slow; to throw off fear is the way to do it; and prayer is the way to do that. If there∣fore you be afraid of death, consider you will have lesse need to fear it, by how much the less you do fear it: and so cure your direct fear by a reflex act of prudence,* 1.4 and consideration. Fannius had not dyed so soon, if he had not feared death: and when Cneius Carbo begged the respite of a little time for a base imploy∣ment

of the souldiers of Pompey, he got no∣thing, but that the basenesse of his fear disho∣noured the dignity of his third Consulship; and he chose to dye in a place, where none but his meanest servants should have seen him. I remember a story of the wrastler Polydamas that running into a cave to avoid the storm, the water at last swelled so high, that it began to presse that hollownesse to a ruine: which when his fellowes espied they chose to enter into the common fate of all men, and went abroad: but Polydamas thought by his strength to support the earth till its intolerable weight crushed him into flatnesse and a grave. Many men run for shelter to a place, and they onely finde a remedie for their fears by feeling the worst of evils: fear it self findes no sanctuary but the worst of sufferance; and they that flye from a battel are exposed to the mercy and fury of the pursuers, who if they faced about, were as well disposed to give laws of life and death, as to take them; and at worst can but die nobly; but now even at the very best, they live shamefully or die timorously. Cou∣rage is the greatest security; for it does most commonly safeguard the man, but alwayes rescues the condition from an intolerable e∣vil.

4. If thou wilt be fearlesse of death, en∣deavour to be in love with the felicities of Saints and Angels: and be once perswaded to believe that there is a condition of living better then this; that there are creatures more noble then we; that above there is a countrey better then ours; that the inhabitants know more and know better; and are in places of rest and desire: and first learn to value it, and

then learn to purchase it; and death cannot be a formidable thing, which lets us into so much joy & so much felicity. And indeed who would not think his condition mended if he passed from conversing with dull mortals, with ignorant and foolish persons, with Tyrants and enemies of learning, to converse with Homer and Plato, with Socrates and Cicero, with Plutarch and Fabricius? So the Heathens spe∣culated: but we consider higher. The dead that die in the Lord shall converse with S. Paul, and all the Colledge of the Apostles, and all the Saints and Martyrs; with all the good men whose memory we preserve in honour: with excellent Kings and holy Bishops, and with the great Shepherd and Bishop of our souls Iesus Christ, and with God himself. For Christ dyed for us, that whether we wake or sleep we might live together with him. Then we shall be free from lust and envy, from fear and rage, from covetousnesse and sorrow, from tears and cowardice; and these indeed properly are the onely evils that are contrary to felicity and wisdom.* 1.5 Then we shall see strange things and know new propositions, and all things in another manner, and to higher purposes. Cleombrotus was so taken with this speculation, that having learned from Plato's Phaedon the souls abode, he had not patience to stay natures dull leisure, but leapt from a wall to his por∣tion of immortality. And when Pomponius Atticus resolved to die by famine, to ease the great pains of his gout, in the abstinence of two dayes found his foot at ease: But when

he began to feel the pleasures of an ap∣proaching death, and the delicacies of that ease he was to inherit below, he would not withdraw his foot, but went on and fi∣nished his death; and so did Cleanthes; and every wise man will despise the little evils of that state, which indeed is the daugh∣ter of fear, but the mother of rest, and peace, and felicity.

5. If God should say to us, Cast thy self into the Sea (as Christ did to S. Peter, or as God concerning Ionas) I have provided for thee a Dolphin, or a Whale, or a Port, a sa∣fety or a deliverance, security or a reward, were we not incredulous and pusillanimous persons if we should tremble to put such a felicity into act, and our selves into possession? The very duty of resignation, and the love of our own interest are good antidores against fear. In fourty or fifty years we finde evils enough, and arguments enough to make us weary of this life: And to a good man there are very many more reasons to be afraid of life then death, this having in it lesse of evil and more of advantage. And it was a rare wish of that Roman, that death might come onely to wise and excellent per∣sons,* 1.6 and not to fools and cowards, that it might not be a sanctuary for the timerous, but the reward of the vertuous; and indeed they onely can make advantage of it.

6. Make no excuses to make thy desires of life seem reasonable; neither cover thy fear and pretences, but suppresse it rather, with arts of severity and ingenuity. Some are not willing to submit to Gods sentence and arrest

of death,* 1.7 till they have finished such a designe, or made an end of the last paragraph of their book, or raised such portions for their chil∣dren, or preached so many sermons, or built their house, or planted their orchard, or or∣dered their estate with such advantages; It is well for the modesty of these men that the ex∣cuse is ready; but if it were not, it is certain they would search one out: for an idle man is never ready to die, and is glad of any ex∣cuse; and a busied man hath alwayes some∣thing unfinished, and he is ready for every thing but death: and I remember that Pe∣tronius brings in Eumolpus composing verses in a desperate storm, and being called upon to shift for himself when the ship dashed upon the rock, cried out to let him alone till he had finished and trimmed his verse, which was lame in the hinder leg; the man either had too strong a desire to end his verse, or too great a desire not to end his life. But we must know Gods times are not to be measu∣red by our circumstances; and what I value, God regards not, or if it be valuable in the accounts of men, yet God will supply it with other contingencies of his providence: and if Epaphroditus had died when he had his great sicknesse S. Paul speaks of, God would have secured the work of the Gospel without him, and he could have spared Epaphroditus as well as S. Stephen, and S. Peter, as well as S. Iames: Say no more, but when God calls, lay aside thy papers and first dresse thy soul, and then dresse thy hearse.

Blindnesse is odious, and widow-hood is sad, and destitution is without comfort, and persecution is full of trouble, and famine is

intolerable, and tears are the sad ease of a sadder heart; but these are evils of our life, not of our death. For the dead that die in the Lord are so farre from wanting the commo∣dities of this life, that they do not want life it self.

After all this, I do not say it is a sin to be afraid of death: we find the boldest spirit that discourses of it with confidence, and dares undertake a danger as big as death, yet doth shrink at the horror of it when it comes dressed in its proper circumstances; And Brutus who was as bold a Roman to undertake a noble action, as any was since they first reckoned by Consuls, yet when Fu∣rius came to cut his throat after his defeat by Anthony, he ran from it like a girl, and being admonished to die constantly, he swore by his life, that he would shortly endure death. But what do I speak of such imperfect persons? Our B. Lord was pleased to legitimate fear to us, by his agony and prayers in the gar∣den. It is not a sin to be afraid,* 1.8 but it is a great felicity to be without fear, which feli∣city our dearest Saviour refused to have, be∣cause it was agreeable to his purposes to suffer any thing that was contrary to felicity, every thing but sin. But when men will by all means avoid death, they are like those who at any hand resolve to be rich: The case may hap∣pen in which they wil blaspheme, and dishonor providence, or do a base action, or curse God, and die: But in all cases they die miserable and insnared, and in no case do they die the lesse for it. Nature hath left us the key of the Churchyard, and custome hath brought Cae∣meteries and charnell houses into Cities and

Churches,* 1.9 places most fre∣quented, that we might not carry our selves strange∣ly in so certain, so expe∣cted,* 1.10 so ordinary, so unavoydable an acci∣dent. All reluctancy or unwillingnesse to obey the Divine decree, is but a snare to our selves, and a load to our spirits, and is either an intire cause, or a great aggravation of the calamity. Who did not scorn to look upon Xerxes when he caused 300. stripes to be given to the Sea, and sent a chartell of defiance a∣gainst the Mountain Atho?* 1.11 Who did not scorn the proud vanity of Cyrus when he took so goodly a revenge upon the river Cyndus for his hard passage over it? or did not de∣ride or pity the Thracians for shooting ar∣rowes against heaven, when it thunders? To be angry with God, to quarrell with the Divine providence,* 1.12 by repining against an unaltera∣ble, a naturall, an easie sentence, is an argu∣ment of a huge folly, and the parent of a great trouble; as man is base and foolish to no pur∣pose, he throwes away a vice to his own mi∣sery and to no advantages of ease and pleasure. Fear keeps men in bondage all their life, saith Saint Paul, and patience makes him his own man, and lord of his own interest and person.* 1.13 There∣fore possesse your selves in patience, with reason, and religion, and you shall die with ease.

If all the parts of this discourse be true; if they be better then dreams, and unlesse vertue be nothing but words,* 1.14 as a grove is a heap of trees; if they be not the Phantasmes of hy∣pochondriacall persons, and designes upon the interest of men, and their perswasions to evil purposes; then there is no reason, but that

we should really desire death, and account it among the good things of God, and the sowre and laborious felicities of man. S. Paul un∣derstood it well, when he desired to be dissol∣ved: he well enough knew his own advan∣tages, and pursued them accordingly; But it is certain that he that is afraid of death, I mean, with a violent and transporting fear, with a fear apt to discompose his duty, or his pati∣ence, that man either loves this world too much, or dares not trust God for the next.

Notes

• * 1.1

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Pindar.
• * 1.2

  Ecclus. 41.1.
• * 1.3

  Amittenda fortitudo est aut sepeliendus dolor. Cic. Forrem polce animum mortis terrore carente •• Qui spatium vitae extremu•• inter munera ponat.
• * 1.4

  Hostem cum fu∣geret se Fan••nius ipse pere∣mit. Mar.
• * 1.5

  Beati er••mus cum corporib{us} ••e lictis & cupiditatu•• & aemu••a∣tionum erimus expertes quod{que} nunc facimus, cum laxati{que} cu∣ris sumus, ut spectare aliquid yelimus & vi••ere.

  Tuscul. Qu.
• * 1.6

  Mor utinam pavi∣dos vita subducer•• nolle•• Sed virtus te sola •• daret— Lucan.
• * 1.7

  Maneant opera in∣terrupta, minae{que} Murorum ingentes.
• * 1.8

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• * 1.9

  Quam pellunt lachrymae fo∣vent sor••em: dura negant ce∣dere mollibus.
• * 1.10

  Siccas si videat genas Durae ced∣et hebes sors pati∣entiae.
• * 1.11

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Il. o.
• * 1.12

  Et cum nihil im∣minuat doloris, cur f••u∣stra tur∣pes esse volumus? Senec.
• * 1.13

  Non le vat mise∣ro, dolor
• * 1.14

  virtutem verba pu¦cas ut l••∣cumligna