A memoriall of a Christian life Wherin are treated al such things, as appertaine vnto a Christian to do from the beginning of his co[n]uersion, vntil the end of his perfection. Deuided into seauen treatises: the particulars whereof are noted in the page following. Written first in the Spanish tongue, by the famous religious father, F. Lewis de Granada, Prouinciall of the holy order of preachers, in the prouince of Portugall.

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VNTO all these paines, there is also ad∣ded the paine of that euerlasting cō∣sumer, which is the worme of conscience,

whereof the holy Scripture maketh so of∣tentimes mention, saying.

Their worme shall neuer die, and their fire shall neuer bee quenched. This worme is a furious raging despite, and a bitter repen∣tance without any fruit, which the wicked shall alwaies haue in hell, by calling to their remembrance the oportunitie and time they had, whiles they were in this world, to escape these most grieuous and horrible tormentes, and how they would not vse the benifit thereof, and therefore when the miserable sinner seeth himselfe thus tormented and vexed on euery side, & calleth to minde how many dayes and yeares he hath spent idlely in vanities, pa∣stimes, and pleasures, and how oftentimes he was aduertised of this perrill, and how little regard he tooke thereof, what shall he thinke? What anguish and sorrow shall there be in his heart? Haste thou not read in the Ghospell, that there shall be weeping, & wailing, and gnashing of teeth. Now these and others the like shall be the causes of this so great and excessiue griefe. For the better vnderstanding hereof, beeing a matter of so great importance, I will giue thee a like example. Let vs call to minde the History of Ioseph, and that great famine which con∣tinued

for the space of seauen yeares in E∣gypt, before which famine (as the Holie Scripture saieth) the abundance of corne in the other seauen yeares before was so great, that it might be compared with the sands of the sea, and exceeded all measure. But after that these seauen yeres were en∣ded, there followed other seauen yeres of so great barrennes, and dearth, that euen in the first yeare of them, all the people of Egypt came before King Pharao, crying out and saying: giue vs somewhat to eat. The king sent them to Ioseph, who required of them, al the money they had, & gaue them for the same corne sufficient for that yere. When that was consumed and spent, they returned the yeare following vnto Ioseph, saying: giue vs to eate: what? Wilt thou suffer vs to die for hunger in thy presence, because wee haue no more money to giue the? To whome he answered: deliuer vnto me all your heards of cattel, & for the same I will giue you corne in exchange, sithence you haue no more money left. After that they had deliuered vnto him all their cat∣tell, & that their prouision was also spent, they came againe to him the next yeare, saying: Nowe thou knowest my Lord that we haue no more mony nor cattell to giue

thee, & that there remaineth nothing else but onely our bodies & landes, how canst thou suffer vs to die here for hunger in thy sight? Our persons & our lands which are only left of all our substance are thine, buy vs as slaues for the King, & giue vs (if it be thy pleasure) corne to ••ow the land that it lie not vntilled, & desolate, when they are all dead that should till and inhabit it. By this meane came Ioseph to buy all the land in Egypt, for euery one sold his possessions by reason of the great extreame famine which they suffred. This is the history, now let vs take that out of it that serueth to our purpose. Tel me then I beseech thee, what a griefe was it vnto these miserable men, whē they remembred themselues of those seauen plentifull yeares past, and saw well with howe little money they might haue prouided corne before hand, yea, and haue laide vp also and gathered great treasures, & enriched themselues during their liues? How iustlie might they lament and re∣proue themselues, saying. O how vnfor∣tunate & cursed men are we, that might so easly haue prouided for this derth, & pro∣cured abundance for our selues during our liues, & would not! If we had not bin ad∣monished of this before hand, thē perhaps

our negligence might haue had some ex∣cuse, but being thereof aduertised so long time before, and knowing that hee would surely tell the truth of thinges to come, that had foretold the truth of thinges pre∣sent, and seeing with all, what speed & dil∣ligence the kinges purueiours made to ga∣ther together, & lay vp all the corne they could get, the which was sufficient to giue vs to vnderstand what wee ought to haue done in that behalfe, and yet for all this to be so slouthfull, and carelesse as we were, what excuse can wee haue? O how much worth would that bee vnto vs at this pre∣sent, which then we despised and contem∣ned? What riches might we now get with the same corne which we did then wilful∣ly cast away? Where was our iudgement at that time? Where were our senses and wits become, that wee would not vse the benefit of so great an opportunitie? These and such other more grieuous accusations spake those wretched men against them∣selues, and it seemeth that they stoode all that time as mē in vtter dispaire & trouble of mind, musing vppon their great misfor∣tune, and negligence. But tell me now my good Christian brother, what is all this in comparison of that which wee here speake

of, but as it were a shadow compared with the truth. That famine in Egypt endured only for seauen yeares, but this in hell shall endure euerlastingly: That found a reme∣dy though with great difficulty & charge, but for this there shall neuer be any reme∣dy found: That might be redeemed with money and cattell, but this can neuer bee redeemed with any manner of exchange. this punishment can not bee pardoned. This paine cannot bee exchanged. This sentence cannot be reuoked. To conclude those men of Egipt, after that the seauen yeares were once ended, began to lift vp their heades, and to come out of their mi∣serie: But in hell whosoeuer once ente∣reth to bee punished, shall neuer know a∣gaine what rest and ease meaneth. Now if they then notwithstanding all this were during that time somuch afflicted, & vex∣ed, in how much worse case shal he be, that shall see himselfe in hell fire so horibly tor∣mented, and vexed, and that without all hope of remedie? O if thou knewest, and wouldest consider, how euery one of them shall there stand tormenting, and renting himselfe, weeping & wailing, and saying. O miserable and vnfortunate wretch that I am! what times, and what opportunities

haue I suffered to passe in vaine? A time there was, when with one cup of cold wa∣ter I might haue purchased vnto my selfe a crowne of glory, and when also with such like necessary works of mercy in releeuing the pore, I might haue merited life euerla∣sting? wherfore did I not look before me? How was I blinded with thinges present? how did I let passe those fruitfull yeares of such abundance, and did not enrich my selfe? Yet if I had bin brought vp amongst Infidels and Pagans, & had beleeued that there had bin nothing els, but onely to be born, & to die, thē might I haue had some kind of excuse, and might haue said that I knew not what was forbidden me. But for so much as I haue liued among Christians, and was my selfe one of them, and helde it for an article of my beleefe, that the houre should come, when I should giue vp an ac∣count, after what order I had spent my life: for somuch also as it was daily cryed out vnto mee by the continuall preaching and teaching of Priestes, and Religious persons in the Catholicke Church, whose aduertisementes manie following, made preparation in time, and laboured earnest∣ly for the prouision of good workes, whose life also and example was a greater proofe

of that which they spake: for somuch I say as I made light of all these examples, and preachinges, and perswaded my selfe verie fondly, that heauen was prepared for me, though I tooke no paines for it at all, what deserue I that haue thus led my life? O yee infernall furies, come and rent mee in peeces, and deuoure these my bowels, for so haue I iustly deserued! I haue deserued to bee hunger staruen for euer, seeing I would not prouide for my selfe while I had time. I deserue not to reape, because I haue not sowen. I am worthy to be de∣stitute, sith I haue not laid vp in store. I deserue that my request should now bee denied me, sith when the poore made re∣quest vnto me, I refused to releeue them. I haue deserued to sigh & lament in vain, so long as God shal be God I haue deser∣ued that this worme of conscience should gnaw my intrails for euer, & euer, by repre¦senting vnto me the litle pleasure which I haue inioyed, & the great felicitie which I haue lost, & how far greter that was which I might haue gained, by forgoing that litle which I would not forgoe. This is that im∣mortall worme that shall neuer die, but shal lie euerlastingly gnawing their intrails which is the terriblest paine that can be.

Notes

• The worme of consciēce.
• Esaie. 66. verse. 24.
• Luke. 13.
• Gen. 41.
• Gen. 47.
• The lamen∣tation of a damned person.