The worthy communicant, or, A discourse of the nature, effects, and blessings consequent to the worthy receiving of the Lords Supper and of all the duties required in order to a worthy preparation : together with the cases of conscience occurring in the duty of him that ministers, and of him that communicates : to which are added, devotions fitted to every part of the ministration / by Jeremy Taylor ...

SECT. III. Of an actual supply to be made of such actions and degrees of good as are wanting; against a Communion-day.

1. IF on a Communion-day, we need very much examination, we can make but little supply of those many defects which it is likely a diligent in∣quiry will discover; and therefore it is highly ad∣visable, that as we ought to repent every day, and not put it all off till the day of our Communion or our death; so we should every day examine our selves, at the shutting in of the day, or at our going to bed; for so St. Basil, St. Chrysostome,* 1.1 St. Anthony and St. Austin, St. Ephrem and St. Do∣rotheus do advise. Others advise that it be done twice every day: and indeed the oftner we recol∣lect our selves: 1. The more weaknesses we shall observe, and 2. the more faults correct, and 3. watch the better, and 4. repent the more perfectly, and 5. offend less, and 6. be more prepared for death, and 7. be more humble, and 8. with ease prevent the contracting of evil habits, and 9. inter∣rupt the union of little sins into a chain of death,

and 10. more readily prevail upon our passions, and 11. better understand our selves, and 12. more frequently converse with God, and 13. oftner pray, and 14. have a more heavenly conversation, and in fine, 15. be more fitted for a frequent and holy Communion.

2. The end of examination is, 1. That we grieve for all our sins. 2. That we resolve to amend all. * 3. That we actually watch and pray against all: Therefore it is necessary that when we have ex∣amined against a Communion day; 1. We alwaies do actions of contrition for every thing we have observed to be amiss; 2. That we renew our resolutions of better obedienc••, 3. And that we pray for particular strength against our failings.

3. He that would communicate with fruit must so have ordered his examinations, that he must not alwaies be in the same method. He must not al∣waies be walking with a candle in his hands, and prying into corners; but they must be swept and garnished, and be kept clean and adorned. His examinations must be made full and throughly and be productive of inferiour resolutions, and must pass on to rules and exercises of caution. That is, 1. We must consider where we fail oftenest. 2. From what principle this default comes. 3. What are the best remedies. 4. We must pass on to the real and vigorous use of them: and when the case is thus stated and drawn into rules and resolutions of acting them; we are only to take care we do so; and every day examine whether we have or no. But we must not at all dwell in this relative and preparatory and ministring duty. But if we find

that we have reason to do so; let us be sure that something is amiss; we have played the hypo∣crites, and done the work of the Lord negligently or falsly.

4. If any passion be the daily exercise or tem∣p••ation of our life, let us be careful to put the greatest distress upon that, and therefore against a Communion-day, do something in defiance and diminution of that; chastise it, if it hath prevailed: reenforce thy resolutions against it, examine all thy aids, see what hath been prosperous, and pursue that point; and if thou hast not at all prevailed, then know, all is not well; for he communicates without fruit, who makes no progressions in his mortifications and conquest over his passions. It may be we shall be long exercised with the remains of the Canaanites; for it is in the matter of Passi∣ons as Seneca said of Vices,* 1.2 We fight against them not to conquer them intirely, but that they may not ••onquer us; not to kill them, but to bring them under command; and unless we do that, we cannot be sure that we are in the state of grace; and therefore cannot tell if we do, or do not worthily communicate. For by all the exteriour actions of our life we cannot so well tell how it is with us, as by the observation of our affections and passions, our wills and our desires.

For I can command my foot,* 1.3 and it must obey; and my hand, and it cannot resist; but when I bid my appetite obey, or my anger be still, or my will not to desire, I find it very often to rebell against my word, and against Gods word

] Therefore let us be sure to take some effective course with the appetite, and place our guards upon the inward man; and upon our preparation daies do some vio∣lence

to our lusts and secret desires, by holy reso∣lutions, and severe purposes, and rules of caution, and by designing a course of spiritual arts and exer∣cises for the reducing them to reason and obedi∣ence: something that may be remembred; and something that will be done. * But to this let this caution be added; that of all things in the world we be careful of relapses into our old follies or infirmities; for if things do not succeed well after∣wards, they were not well ordered at first.

5. Upon our communion daies, and daies of prep••ration; let us endeavour to stir up every grace which we are to exercise in our conversation; and thrust our selves forward in zeal of those graces: that we begin to amend our lukewarmness, and repair our sins of omission. For this is a day of sa∣crifice; and every sacrifice must be consumed by fire, and therefore, now is the day of improvement, and the proper season for the zeal of duty; and if upon the solemn day of the soul we do not take care of omissions, and repair the great and little forget∣fulnesses, and omissions of duty, and pass from the infirmities of a man to the affections of a Saint, we may all our life time abide in a state of lukewarm∣ness, disimprovement and indifference; To this purpose,

6 Compare day with day, week with week, Communion with Communion, time with time, duty with duty, and see if you can observe any advantage, any ground gotten of a passion; any further degree of the spirit of mortificaton, any new permanent fires of devotion; for by volatile, sudden and transient flames we can never guess steadily. But be sure never to think you are at all

improved unless you observe your defects to be, 1. fewer: 2. or lighter: or 3. at least not to be the same; but of another kind and ins••ance, against which you had not made particular provisions for∣merly; but now upon this new observation and ex∣perience you must.

7. Upon or against a Communion day endeavour to put your soul into that order and state of good things, as if that day you were to die; and consi∣der that unless you dare die upon that day, if God should call you, there is but little reason you should dare to receive the Sacrament of life, or the ministry of death. He that communicates worthily is justified from sins; and to him death can have no sting, to whom the Sacrament brings life and health; and therefore let every one that is to com∣municate place himself by meditation in the gates of death, and suppose himself seated before the Tri∣bunal of Gods Judgment, and see whether he can reasonably hope that his sins are pardoned, and cured, and extinguished. And then if you judge righteous judgement, you will soon find what pinches most, what makes you most afraid, what was most criminal, or what is least mortified; and so you will learn to make provisions accord∣ingly.

8. If you find any thing yet amiss, or too suspi∣cious, or remaining to evill purposes, the reliques of the scattered enemy after a war, resolve to use some general instrument of piety or repentance, that may, by being useful in all the parts of your life and conversation, meet with every stragling irregularity, and by perpetuity and an assiduous force clear the coast. 1. Resolve to have the pre∣sence

of God frequently in your thought. 2. Or endeavour and resolve to bring it to pass to have so great a dread and reverence of God, that you may be more ashamed and really troubled and con∣founded to sin in the presence of God than in the sight and observation of the best and severest man. 3. Or else resolve to punish thy self with some proportionable affliction of the body or spirit for every irregularity or return of undecency in that instance in which thou sets thy self to mor∣tifie any one special passion or temptation: Or 4. Firmly to purpose in every thing which is not well, not to stay a minute, but to repent instantly of it, severely to condemn it, and to do something at the first opportunity for amends: Or 5. To resolve against an instance of infirmity for some short, sure, and conquerable periods of time: as if you be given to prating, resolve to be silent, or to speak nothing but what is pertinent for a day; or for a day not to be angry; and then sometimes for two daies; and so diet your weak soul with little por∣tions of food till it be able to take in and digest a full meal: Or 6. Meditate often every day of death, or the day of judgment. By these and the like in∣struments it will happen to the remains of sin, as it did to the Aegyptians; what is left by the Hail, the Catterpiller will destroy; and what the Catter∣piller leaves, the Locusts will eat. These instruments will eat up the remains of sin as the poor gather up the gleanings after the Carts in harvest.

9. But if at any Communion and in the use of these advices you do not perceive any sensible pro∣gression in the spirit of mortification or devotion; then be sure to be ashamed, and to be humbled for thy indisposition and slow progression in the disci∣pline

of Christ: and if thou beest humbled truly for thy want of improvement, it is certain thou hast improved. And if you come with fear and trembling, it is very probable you will come in the spirit of repentance and devotion.

These exercises and measures will not seem many, long and tedious * 1.4 as the rules of art; if we consider that all are not to be used at all times, nor by every person; but are instru∣ments fitted to several necessities,* 1.5 and useful when they can do good, and to be used no longer. ••or he that uses these or any the like advices by way of solemnity, and in periodical returns, will still think fit to use them at every Communion as long as he lives; but he that uses them as he should, that is, to effect the work of reformation upon his soul, may lay them all aside, according to his work is done. But if we would every day do something of this; if we would every day prepare for the day of death, or which is of a like consideration, for the day of our Communion; if we would every night examine our passed day, and set our things in order; if we would have a perpetual entercourse and conversa∣tion with God; or, which is better than all exa∣minations in the world, if we would actually at∣tend to what we do, and consider every action, and speak so little that we might consider it, we should find that upon the day of our Communion we should have nothing to do, but the third particular, that is, the offices of Prayer and Eucharist, and to renew our graces by prayer and exercises of devo∣tion.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Serm. 1. de instit. Monach. Serm. de poenit. in illud Psalmi. In Cubilibus ve∣stris compungimini. lib. 50. homil. 44.
• * 1.2

  Pugna∣mus, non ut penitus vincamus, sed ne vincamur.
• * 1.3

  S. Aug. lib. 8. confess. cap. 9.
• * 1.4

  Quisquis amore venit, ne∣scit se ferre laborem Nemo laboret jacet, quis∣quis amore venit.
• * 1.5

  Ven. Fortunat. lib. 3. epigr. 37.