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When, O when fhall it be, Gracious Lord, that I fhall be content with thy Judgment of me, without looking further, or confidering what others think of me? St. Anthony us'd to hear the Devil often crying out make way for the Servant of the Lord, behold the beloved of God: Or fuch like. In his folitude the Devil difcovered himself more plainly to him than he does ¿ to us whofe thoughts are involv'd in the multiplicity of worldly matters: Yet we may be fure the Devil is in all fuch founds. เ come they from the Mouths of never fo good, Perfons, we may well have leave to fay get 'thee behind me Satan.O make me watchful and 'careful of my felf that I be not circumvented by his Deceits and the fraud and treachery of my own finful Heart. Amen.

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And how his Prayers for Humility, were anfwer'd; and what a happy progress he made in that heavenly Virtue, the following Meditation will fhew.

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• To administer Arfenic, is no injury to a Man, that has made Poifon his Diet. A little Disrespect is no injury to me, who 'love my own Abjection; who can, God be bleffed, bear a great many Slights and Affronts, nay, and delight in them too, But how or on what Ground is it that a Man can love his own Abjection? It is because I believe these Slights and Affronts fent on purpose by God, for the "good of my Soul: I take them as tokens of his Love, and therefore I love them. Shou'd he encrease my Eftate, or caufe great PreH 2

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fents and Honours to be given me, I flor'd not fo heartily delight in them, because I 'fhou'd not fo furely know, that they were • fent out of love, and for the good of my < Soul. But all things that cause my Abjecti<on, I am fure, are fo; having a natural tendency to this end, namely,the bettering my Mind. I immediately find, that they take my Heart off from the World, that they abate my Pride (which is a tickling Pain) and introduce a due efteem of my felf, and that Humility, in which confifts the fafety of my Soul, and by confequence the joy of my Life.

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Thus did he conquer Pride and Vanity in himself; and no Man feems to have been better acquainted with the Remedies that are most proper for that outragious Distemper; which, fome of his Advices, will fufficiently make appear.

If you are fubject (Says he,) to Spiritual Pride, go to Prayers, to Churches, where you are not known; and fhift Churches, that you may not feem conftant. But if C you have furmounted this weakness, keep to the fame Church where you are known; that your Example may edifie Others, as well. as the Prayers edifie your felf.

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In another place, he prefcribes this Cure for Vanity.

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When your fit of Paffion lies in Vanity, converse not with the things that make you think much of your felf; Read rather than Write, Hear rather than Speak:

Talk ⚫ not

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not of your Self, of your Sickness, or your Health, of your Love or Diflike, of your way of Living or Humour, or any thing 6 that belongs to you.

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To the fame purpofe is the following Meditation.

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Watch and be Sober. I Theff. 5. 7. Be • Sober be Vigilant. I Pet. 5. 8. Whatever 'makes our Minds drunk, is opposite to this Sobriety; and every thing that makes us think unreasonably, does thus Intoxicate us, that is, makes us think otherwise, than fober Reafon wou'd dictate to us; which is the true Notion of Drunkenness. Most forts of Pleasures do this, but particularly, that which we take in the Efteem of Men. These unhappy words, I and Me, what a 'Ferment do they raise in our Blood! How 'troublesome yet pleafing! How unquietly importunate, how fond are we, to talk and 'tell Stories of our felves! And yet how fick does it make our Souls! If we hear our felves well spoken of, it may perhaps pass over, and we may recover our Minds. Yet there is danger, that even this will return again to our Thoughts, and perhaps when we are better employ'd. But furely I had almost as willingly meet the Devil (under Gods Chain) as thefe Thoughts; that is, the Devil in his ugly and frightful Drefs, as in this (for it is the Devil ftill) Tawdry, pleafing Disguise. If then there be fo much danger, from a few words tranfiently spoWhat fhall we fay, when we put forth H 3

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all our strength for hours together, in comC pany; to fhew our Parts, our Reafon, our Learning, or whatever else we please our felves, or may pleafe others in. What is this but to bath our felves in Poifon, and let it foak into our Blood, and fill all our Veins! Lord in the midst of what snares do we walk; on what Precipices do we ftand It is a Miracle of thy Almighty Goodness, that makes it poffible for Creatures thus befet, to be ever able to get to Heaven. Nothing less than thy Mercy and Power, cou'd fave us out of them.

Agreeable to all these Meditations, Advices, and Prayers, was Mr. Bonnell's Practice. A modeft unaffected Humility appear'd in his Words, his Actions and very Countenance : Not (as he himself, in one place, defcribes this Virrue) an affected Humility, fuch as defires to be taken notice of; but fuch a true Humility, as makes

firft look upon our felves as Nothing; and then, not so much as once reflect, whether others take notice of us, or no : Such a true Humility, that diffufes it felf through the whole Body and Soul; That influences and impregnates every Motion, Thought, and Word; that shines in every gesture, and look, and all our Deportment.

But this Spirit of Humility, did in a particular manner, direct and govern his Devoti

He fometimes found that fing his Voice in Private Prayer, was of great ufe to him, to quicken his Zeal, and keep his Thoughts attentive; and he always had his Lodging fo contriv'd, that he might use his Voice without being heard; and in his Sickness, he never (be

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fore his Marriage) allow'd any one to be conftantly in the Room with him; because the prefence, even of a Servant, restrain'd him from Praying with his Voice. And after Marriage, he was not pleas'd when any were prefent upon thofe occafions, but She alone, with whom he was free from thefe Referves. Such deep impreffions had Humility made in his Soul, that no Sickness, no Pain, cou'd in the leaft get the better of it.

His Charity to the Poor, tho' very great and extenfive for his Fortune, (as will be afterwards fhewn) yet was always manag'd with the greatest Secrecy and Modefty imaginable; it being his great endeavour to conceal it as much as poffible; of which we may be convinc'd by the following Meditation, wherein he enquires, why, by doing our Alms openly, we have no Reward.

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The end of Alms is not folely to relieve the Poor; for what was the Widows Mite (which yet was a great Charity) to this purpofe? God needs not our Alms for this end, no more than he did the Sacrifices of old, to enrich himself. All the Beasts of the Foreft are mine, faith God. In like manmanner with one act of His Will, He cou'd enrich (if he thought fit) all the Poor in the World. But he requires our Alms, as he did the Sacrifices of old, only as Testimonies, or Fruits of the inward Graces of our Minds. A Sacrifice, without Contrition was a vain Oblation; but the Sacrifices of f God,are a broken Heart. Again, the Poor are as truly reliev'd by Alms without Cha

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grity,

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