Meditations collected and ordered for the vse of the English colledge of Lisbo by the svperiovrs of the same colledge.

THE FIRST MEDITATION. Of our Sauiours flight in Egypt.

1. COnsider first, how truely it is sayd of our Sauiour Christ, In laboribus à iuuentu••e

mea: in labours from my youth. You haue feen the pouerty and nakednes, in vvhich he vvas borne; witnes the cold and ruinous stable of Be∣thlem: but now they are come home to Naza∣reth little also and poore, yet better, because at home; and welcomed by their friends and kin∣dred: S. Ioseph falleth to his trade, to earne bread for his houshold, the Sonne and Mother of God; the B. Virgin settleth and accommoda∣teth vvith in doore, a poore houshold stuffe for a quiet life at least, how sparing so euer. When behold a sudden & fearefull voice of an Angell, at midnight, rouseth Ioseph out of his sleep, vvith a Surge & accipe puerum & matrem eius, & fuge: arise, and take the child, and his mother and flee: but vvhither; ô Lord? to Bethlem againe? noe, you vvere there amongst your kindred and vvell vsed. To Ierusalem the royall City? no, Qui in domibus Regem sunt, mollibus vestiuntur. They that are in Kings houses are clothed in soft garments. To the furthest countryes of the East, to the late three Kings. nothing lesse; but Fuge in Aegyptum; flee into Aegypt. that barbarous nation, that oppressed you so long, and made you slaues a nation, that euer hated a lew, & vsed him cruelly; thither must be your banishment, till you heare further from me. O vvho can expresse the fright of pore Joseph? the affliction of the B. Uirgin, vvhen shee saw him come halfe distracted vvith feare to tell her of it? and yet the sudden resignation of both to the vvill and command of God?

Conclude to vnderstand at length & embrace willingly and promptly the vvayes and exerci∣ses, vvherewith God doth vse to traine vp his best seruants; not suffering them to fasten a foot in the ease and commodities of this vvorld; but raise their hopes euer vpward to himselfe: re∣member what Christ hath told thee; Non est seruus maior Domino suo; si me persecuti sunt & vos persequentur. The seruant is not greater then his maister; if they hane persecuted me, you alsoe vvill they persecute.

Consider secondly, vvith vvhat hast they de∣part away before day, without taking leaue of their neighbours and kindred; vvithout making any prouision for their long iourney; vvithout leauing order about their house or furniture, for∣cibly left behind; all vvhich vvould haue cost other gossips a fornights time: but this holy couple take care for nothing, but to saue their best iewell, that is, Jesus Christ from the hands of his enemies; for the rest they remitted all to Gods prouidence; Execunt de domo sua & de cognatione sua, they goe forth out of theire house, and out of theire kindred. And take a long iour∣ney of twenty dayes, at least, ere they enter into Egypt, going the nighest vvay; but farre lon∣ger, trauelling as they did, (as it is thought) tound about, thorough the same desart, by vvhich the Israelites had anciently passed; for feare, lest going, through peopled places, they should be descryed and stopped. Ponder novv vvho can, the toile, vvants and discommodityes

incident to such a way, so long, so barren; and to such trauellers so poore, so vnprouided, so ha∣stened with feare. O my soule compassionate at least, the B. Virgin vvith her Sonne in her armes so oft in the day tired, vvearied and siting dow∣ne; S. Iosephs care also and anguish for a bit of bread in the day, and a poore lodging in the night. O potent Infant, Lord of heauen and earth; couldst not thou vvith one of thy millions of miracles for the freedome of others, haue now freed thy parents from all these miseries?

Conclude vvith a most tender compassion of these holy pilgrimes; vvishing from thy heart thou couldst doe them any the least seruice: le∣arne of them to breake through all naturall affe∣ctions, obligations and commodities, vvhen any thing of the seruice and vvill of God comes in thy vvay: and hauing once receiued thy Christ into thy breast, fly rather into a thousand Egypts and slaueries, then hazard to lose or be robbed of him.

3. Consider thirdly; how being at length ar∣riued in Egypt, we may well say, that though their iourney vvere at an end, yet their labours and discommodities began a fresh: for if in Be∣thlem amongst their owne nation and kindred they found no better entertainment than a sta∣ble for their lodging: vvhat comfort, may vvee imagine, could they find in a nation barbarous, infidell, and a peculiar enemy to that of the He∣brews? ô my soule, open thine eyes and thou thalt see great and large matter of pity and com∣miseration,

in the space of seuen or eight yeares, vvhich, as it is thought, this their banishment endured S. Ioseph getting some small cottage or roofe to couer his head in, fell presently to his trade of carpenter, to earne daylie food for the Sonne and Mother of God: neither vvas the B. Virgin idle, but vvith her heauenly modesty, humility and gracious be hauiour, gaining fa∣uour vvith the grauest matrons of the place, got of them some worke to spin, sow, or the like; vvherwith she holpe to feed and cloth her little Iesus; vvho, as he increased in age, doubtles in∣creased also their ioy and comfort vvith his bles∣sed company: and gained amongst the neigh∣bours more loue and esteeme by his more then Angelicall sweetnes and demeanour.

Conclude to accompany in spirit & deuotion this diuine family of Iesus, Maria, Ioseph; offe∣ring and wishing thou couldest stead them in any thing: and learne of them such humility, modesty and mildnes of carriage that thou maist liue vvith, nay gaine vpon the fiercest and most vntamed dispositions, and vvay vvard∣nes that, can be.

4. Consider fourthly, how the bloudy Herod vvith neuer heard of cruelty and rage, hauing massacred all the Infants of Bethlem, and the places round about; nay, to be sure, his ovvne Sonne also; and yet missing of his intent, which vvas amongst so many, to kill Christ, fell after∣wards into infinite miseries and diseases so that vvith despaire he killed himselfe, and died euer∣lastingly.

When the Angell returning to Ioseph, bad him take the child and his mother and re∣turne home into the land of Jsrael; Defuncti sunt enim, qui quaerebant animam pueri: for they are dead, that sought the life of the child. Ioyfull ti∣dings for all, and for little Iesus himselfe, when his parents told him of it. See how they goe to take leaue of their neighbours, and those to whom they had been any vvay beholding: than∣king them for the courtesies receiued of them, and humbly asking pardon, if they had any way offended or molested them: ô vvhat heart so frozen, as vvould not be inflamed? vvhat eyes so stony, as vvould not melt into teares; at the thankes & farevvell of such Saints? no doubt but many vvere heartily grieued to lose their com∣pany; many conducted them to the tuwnes end, many gaue them some almes, to helpe them on their vvay: and vvas there none, thinke you, that kissed little Jesus vvith melting soules & filled his apron or pockets, vvith some small knekes or plummes? surely I cannot belieue, but that he had in so long time wonne vnto him the hearts and soules of many.

Conclude to leaue Egypt, that is thy vicious and inordinate affections and passions; that thou maist goe vvith thy Christ, thy Jesus, into the land of promise, take heed thou bee not left be∣hind. Fly ambition, nothing vvill bring thee sooner to ruine; Deus enim superbis resistit, humi∣libus autem dat gratiam. For God resisteth the proud, and giueth grace to the humble.