A treatise of the loue of God. Written in french by B. Francis de Sales Bishope and Prince of Geneua, translated into English by Miles Car priest of the English Colledge of Doway

That the Sacred Virgin mother of God died of the loue of her S••nne. CHAPTER▪ XIII.

1. ONe can hardly well doubt, but that the great S. Ioseph died before the Passion and death of our Sauiour, who otherwise had not commended his mother to S. Iohn. And how can one imagine, that the deare child of his heart, his beloued Nurse-child, did not assist him at the houre of his departure? Blessed are the mercifull, for they shall obtaine mercy. Alas! how much sweetenesse, Charitie, and Mercy did this good Foster-father vse towards our little Sauiour at his ••ntrie into this world: and who can then beleeue, but at his departure out of it, that diuine child ren∣dred him the like with an hundredfold, filling him with heauenly delights? Storks are the true repre∣sentations of the mutuall pietie of children to∣wards their parents, and of parents towards their children: for being flitting birds, they beare their decrepit parents with them in their iorney; as their parents had borne them while they were yet young in the like occasion. While our Sauiour was yet a little babe, the great S. Ioheph his Foster-Father, and his most glorious Virgin-mo∣ther, had many a time borne him, but especially in their iorney from Iudea to Egipt, ād from Egipt

to Iudea. Ah who can then doubt, but this holy Father being come to the period of his dayes, was reciprocally borne by his diuine Nurse-child (in his passage from this to another life) into Abra∣hams bosome, to translate him from thence to Glorie in the daie of his Ascension? A Saint that had loued so much in his life, could not die but of loue; for his heart not being able to loue his deare IESVS so much as he desired, while he continued amongst th•• distractions of this life, and hauing alreadie performed the dutie which he ought to his non-age, what remained, but that he should saie to the Eternall Father, O Father I haue accom∣plished my charge: and then to the Sonne, •• my child, as thy heauenly Father put thy tender bodie into my hands the daie of thy cōming into this world, so doe I render vp my soule 〈◊〉〈◊〉 thyne, this daie of my departure out of this world.

2. Such, as I conceiue, was the death of this great Patriarch, a man elected to performe the most deare and louing offices, that euer was, or shall be performed to the Sōne of God, saue those that were done by the Sacred Spouse, the true na∣turall mother of the saied sonne: of whom it is not possible to make a conceit, that she died of any other kind of death, then of loue. A death the most noble of all, and consequently due to the most noble life that euer was amongst creaturs. A death whereof the very Angels would desire to die, if die they could. If the primatiue Chri∣stians were saied to haue but one heart and one soule, by reason of their perfect mutuall loue? If S. Paule liued not himselfe, but IESVS

CHRIST liued in him, by reason of the close vnion of his heart to his Maisters; wherby his soule was as dead in the heart which it quickened, to liue in the heart of the Sauiour which it loued? O Good God how much more true it is, that the Sacred Virgin and her Sonne had but one soule, one heart, and one life, so that this heauēly mother in liuing, liued not, but her sonne liued in her. She was a mother the most louing and the most beloued that euer could be, yea louing and beloued with a loue incomparably more eminent, then that of all the Orders of Angels and men, like as the names of an onely Mother, and an onely Sonne, are names passing all other names in matter of loue; and I saie of an onely mother, and an onely Sonne, because all the other sonne•• of men, doe diuide the acknowledgment of their production betwixt their Father and mother; but in this sonne as all his humane birth depēds of his mother alone, who alone, contributed that which was requisite to the vertue of the holy Ghost for the cōception of this heauenly child; so to her alone, all the loue which sprung from that production was rendred as due, In such sort, that this Sonne, and this mo∣ther, were vnited in an vnion by so much more excellent, as her name in loue is different, and a∣boue all other names: for which of the Seraphins can saie to our Sauiour, thou art my true Sonne, and as such, I loue thee? And to which of his creaturs did our Sauiour euer saie, Thou art my true mother, and as my true mother I loue thee? Thou art my true mother, entirely myne, and I am thy true sonne wholy thyne: And if a louing

seruant durst, and did indeede saie that he had no other life then his Maisters: Alas, how confident∣ly and feruently might this mother proclame. I haue no life, but the life of my Sonne, my life is wholy in his, and his wholy in myne; for there was not a meere vnion, but an vnitie of hearts betwixt this mother and this sonne.

3. And if this mother liued by her Sonns life she also died of her Sonns death: for such as is the life, such is the death. The Phenix, as the report goes, growen very aged, gathers together in the top of a mountaine, a quantitie of aromaticall woods, vpon which, as vpon he bed of honour she goes to end her dayes: for when the Sunne, being at his highest doth streame out his hotest beames, this most singular bird, to contribute the aduantage of action to the Sunns ardour, ceaseth not to beate with her wings vpon her bed, till she haue made it take fire, and burning with it, she consumes, and dies in those odoriferous flames. In like manner, THEO: the virgin Marie hauing assembled in her heart all the most amiable Myste∣ries of the life and death of her sonne, by a most liuely and continuall memorie of them, and with∣all RECTA LINEA receiuing the most ardent inspirations, which her Sonne, the Sonne, of Iustice, darted vpon mortalls, euen in the heate of his charitie. And further, of her part, making a perpetuall motion of Contemplation: in the end the sacred fire of this heauenly loue, did wholy consume her as an Holocaust of sweetenesse, so that she died of it, her soule being altogether ra∣uished, and transported into the armes of her

Sonns loue. O death louingly vitall, ô Loue vital∣ly mortall!

4. Many sacred Louers were present at our Sa∣uiours death: amongst whom such as did most loue, did also most greeue: for Loue was then sleeped in griefe, and griefe in Loue: and all such as were feruent in loue towards their Sauiour, fell in loue with his passion and paine. But the sweete mother who passed all in loue, receiued a deeper wound from the sword of griefe then all the rest. Her Sonns paine was then a sharp sword which rāne through his mothers heart, it being glewed, ioyned ād vnited to her sonns in so perfect an v∣nion, that nothing could hurt the one which did not as deeply hurt the other. Now this motherly heart being in this sort wounded with loue, did not onely not seeke to haue her wound cured, but euen loued her wound better then all cures: deare∣ly conseruing the darts of sorrow which she had receiued in her heart, because it was loue that shot them at her; and continually desiring to die of thē, as her sonne died thereof who, as the holy Scripturs▪ and all the Doctours doe witenesse, died amidst the flames of Charitie, a perfect HO∣LOCAVST for all the sinnes of the world.