A treatise of benignity written by Father Francis Arias ... in his second parte of the Imitation of Christ our Lord ; translated into English.

THE XVII. CHAPTER. Of the Benignity, wherewith a Chri∣stian is to be glad of the good of his neighbour, and to approue and praise the same: and of the example, which Christ our Lord gaue vs thereof.

ONe of the principall things (besides those whereof wee haue spoken) which belong to the vertue of Benignity, and the sweet manner of conuersing with our neighbours is, to be glad of their good, and to praise them; yet with that moderatiō, which pru∣dence requireth, and to that end which Charity seeketh. For this maketh a seruant of God to be amiable and sweet, and thus he augmenteth Charity, towards his neighbours, & he groweth more

able to be of vse to soules. For by this meanes, his instruction and admonition, will be the better re∣ceiued, and the example of his good life better allowed: and he will haue more efficacy to moue others. So saith the worthy Do∣ctor, and Bishop Guiltelmus Pari∣siensis. Benignity is the loue of an∣others good; and wee call those men Benigne, who as soon as they discouer a good thing in their neighbours, doe instantly loue it, and loue him for it; and from hence it growes, that they praise, and set him forth in wordes.

For the exercise of this vertue, there is need of great considera∣tion, and much discretion, and light from heauen. For as by the vse therof with moderatiō, being directed to the right end, it is of great profit, and edification to∣wards the encrease of vertue; so

vsing it without moderation, and without rectitude of intention; it is both very hurtfull to his soule, who praiseth, and to his also who is praised. For this reason, Saint Bonauenture approueth this saying of Seneca, praise that with mode∣ration, which is praise worthy; & dispraise that, which is blamable, with more moderation. For super∣fluity of praise is liable to re∣proof, as well as tēperate dispraise.

Well then, let vs goe on de∣claring the errour, which is com∣mitted, and the hurt which grow∣eth, by inordinate praise and the manner & intention which praise must haue, to the ēd that it may be truly giuen according to vertue.

For a man to praise his neigh∣bour, for that which is naught, is a great sinne; and not onely doe they fal into it, who praise a man for some reuenge, which he may

haue taken of an enemy; or for hauing affrōted that person, who did him iniury by some word, or for hauing vttered some carnall speech, performing some actiō of that kind: but they also who praise sūptuous buildings, superfluous humours & gifts, curious & rich cloathes, delicious & costly dyet; and all that which hath any tin∣cture of vanity and pride, and the regalo of this flesh & blood, and the loue of the world. For all these thinges, are ill, and hurt∣full to the soule of a Christian; who, to the end that he may get to heauen, must deny himselfe, and imbrace the Crosse of Christ our Lord. To all these flatterers who praise that which they should reprehēd, Esay chap. 5. saith, Woe be to them, who praise wicked thinges, as if they were good; and who hould the dark∣nes of errour for the light of truth; and

true light for darkenes; and who esteem the bitter life of sinners, to be sweet; and the sweet life of vertue, to be bitter.

In like manner, it is vitious for a man to praise temporall, & naturall thinges, as if they were the greatest, & principall gifts of God; as riches, nobility, strength, and beauty of the body. For these are blessings of little value, and they make not a man to be bet∣ter in himselfe, or more estimable in the sight of God: & such praise breeds much hurt to the soule, for it makes a man greatly loue and praise those thinges which he should despise, & from which he should estrange his heart. The holy scripture condemneth this vice saying, doe not praise men for the corporall beauty which they haue; nor despise them for their poore, & meane apparance. Consider that the Bee, being but

a very little creature, giueth so excellent a fruite, as that it is the most sweet of all sweet thinges; for there is nothing more sweet, then hony. The meaning is, that as the little Bee, hath efficacy to produce such a fruite; so may a little body, & a meane presence, haue much vertue. And that which the Holy Ghost saith of the beauty of the body, he will haue vs vnderstand of all other naturall, and temporall gifts, which are of so little value, that a man is noe further worthy of estimation or praise for them, thē if he had them not; but onely so farre forth, as there may result some profit to the soule thereby. This was taught vs, both by the example, and diuine wordes of Christ our Lord: For a certaine de∣uoute womā, hauing seen his mi∣racles, and hauing heard his do∣ctrine,

was not able to conteine herselfe, but that she must needes praise that Mother aloud, who had brought forth such a Sonne, say∣ing; Blessed is the wombe, which have thee, and the brests which gaue thee sucke. But Christ our Lord gaue her this answere; Nay, rather bles∣sed are they who heare the word of God, and keepe it. By which wordes he discouered to vs, how that free & gratuite blessing, whereby the most sacred Virgin was made Mother of the naturall Sonne of God, did not alone, and of it selfe make her happy or blessed, nor worthy of the reward of heauen: nor more great in the sight of God; but the vnspeakeable ver∣tue, and suauity, and grace, wher∣by Almighty God did exalt, and dignify her, for such an office: & that which afterward he gaue her, in regard of so high a dig∣nity,

was the thing which made her so truly happy.

If then so admirable a gift, as that was, did not deserue great praise for it selfe alone, but for that vertue and sanctity which went in company thereof: how much more, must all temporall blessings, and gifts of nature, which in themselues are so poore and perishing, be vnworthy of praise; but onely so farre forth, as they may be found to assist, and concurre towards the good of the soule?

So saith Saint Chrysostome, de∣claring these wordes of Christ our Lord. By this sentence, Christ our Lord did make vs know, that it would not haue profited the Vir∣gin, to haue brought forth the Sonne of God, if shee had not withall, been endowed with that faith, and incomparable sanctity

which shee had. And therefore, as I said, if so great a dignity, would not haue profited the blessed Virgin, without the vertue, and sanctity of her soule; how much more clear is it, that it will serue vs to little purpose, before Almighty God, to haue Saints to our Fa∣thers, or sonnes, or kinred, or such other externall gifts; if withall, wee haue not goodnes and ver∣tue, and doe not lead a spirituall life? For this is that which ma∣keth men to be of value, & wor∣thy of praise, in the sight of God.

It is also an errour, and fault of flattery, to praise our neigh∣bour for any vertue, which he may haue, and thereby to delight and comfort him principally, for the temporall gaine and profit, which he hopeth to receiue of him. For the praise of true ver∣tue, which principally is to be or∣deined

to some spirituall good, and to the seruice of God, is or∣deined by him to his owne pri∣uate interest, which is a sinnefull thing; & so much the more grie∣uous it will be, as there is more inordinatenes in the thing. And when it is very great, that will be fulfilled in their persons, which is spoken of by the Psalmist, Psal. 2. God will defeare and destroy, the strength and authority of them, who desire and procure to please, and giue gust to men: and haue that for their end, not look∣ing vp towards God, but downe vpon their owne priuate interest and humour. Especially they who procure to please worldly men, forbearing to doe those thinges which they owe to God, in respect of them: these indeed, shall be confounded, and put to shame, by Almighty God. For both in

this life, euen all their temporall hopes shall prooue vaine; and be∣sides, in the other life, they shall be fulfilled with shame, and deli∣uered ouer to eternall torments.

Besides it is a defect, and the fault of soothing, to praise a man either for his wit, or learning, or for the talents, and parts which he hath: yea or euen for his true vertue; when it is likely, that through his weakenes, or vnmor∣tified ill inclination he may fall into pride, and vaine complacēce in himself, or into any other pre∣iudice of his soule. Saint Augustine obserued this, in these wordes. A hard thing it is, that some little impurity of errour, doe not stick to the hart of a man, (euē though it be cleane) vpon the praises of another; vnles indeed he should haue it so very cleane, as that be should take no gust in them, nor

be touched by any vapour of thē; and vnles the praise which they giue him, should more content him for the good of them, who praise him, then for the comfort, or honour, or estimation, which may growe thereby to himselfe. And thē he may know, that their praise of him, is profitable to thē, if in their life they honour not him, but God; not fastning their mindes vpon him, by the praise, & honour, which they giue him, but rising vp by him, towards Al∣mighty God, whose most sacred temple euery man is, who liueth well. So that it may be fulfilled in him, which is spoken of, by the Psalmist; My soule shall be prai∣sed by such, as are good; not in it selfe but in our Lord; that is to say, for the gifts which it hath of our Lord, and for the glory of the same Lord.

This is the danger to which they are ordinarily subiect, who are much praised by men; vnles they be possessors of true and so∣lid vertue, whereby they may re∣sist vaine complacence, and refer the praise to the Author of all good thinges, which is God. For so saith the holy Scripture; Better is it, to be corrected by a discreet and wise man, then to be praised by an im∣prudent man, who with his smooth kinde of praising leaues vs in errour. And declaring the danger wherin man is, when he who praiseth, doth not obserue the moderatiō, and end which ought to be kept. Saint Hierome said; There is no∣thing which doth so easily infect, and corrupt the hearts of men as flattery; and the tongue of a flat∣terer doth more hurt, then the sword of a persecutour.

Another fault is also commit∣ted

in praising some, when it is for the dispraise of others. A man will not dare expressely to speake ill of his neighbour, especially to one who hath auersion from hea∣ring it; and therefore to doe it the more couertly, he doth it by meanes of praising another man for the same vertues and gifts of his, and then the detracter would haue it thought, that the man whom he meaneth to dis∣praise, doth want those vertues, or else is subiect to the contrary defects. Saint Chrysostome noteth this vice, in these wordes: We doe many good thinges; but not all∣waies with a good minde. Wee praise many; but not to the end, that we may speake well of them, but to detract and speake ill of others. Now that which wee say is good, because we praise vertue in another; but the minde, wher∣with

with wee say it, is infected with sinne, and set on worke by Satan: for wee pretend not to doe him good, whom wee praise, but hurt to him whom wee dispraise.

These are the defects, and vi∣ces, which growe by praisinge o∣thers, when it is done without discretion and moderation; and without that end to which it ought to be addressed; and so it leaueth to be vertue, as is turned into the vice of flattery. And now wee will declare, how praise is to be vsed, to the end that it may be a fruite of the vertue of Charity & Benignity. And wee will produce some examples, which Christ our Lord shewed vs, concerning the manner and intention, which we were to hould in praisinge our neighbours,