D. Maximus , in his book de chantatc, com-

manded
Nature oj Spirits . 2 i 9
mandeth us to bind and kill the devils. He faith we do then bind them, when by diligent obfer- vation of the Commandments of God, we do diminifh and quafh thofe afFe&ions that do boil up in us: and we are faid to kill them, when we fo truly mortify our lull, that we cut him of from all occalions of accufing; faying with die Prophet, Depart, O homicide, the Lord the ftrong warrior is with me: thou fhalt fall, and fhalt be vanquifhed from me for ever. Olympi - •adorns, 10 chap, faith that all fenfual appetites are to be fhut out and excluded, fo that the de- vil may not be admitted, neither by the allure- ments of the eyes, nor by itching ears, nor by the petulency and frowardnefs of an hurtful tongue: for this he accounteth to be the moft abfolute feal againft the power of the devils. -Some do admonifh us, in our going forth to war .again fl the devil, to ule two forts of weapons : the one is pure prayer, which my raife up our .affections unto heaven; and true and peifed -knowledge, which may communicate and fill iour undei Handings with wholefome do61 lines, -and may fugged unto us what we are to pray [or, ithat we may pray ardently, according to St. jams, and not doubtingly. In the Prophecy of yamh, and the Epiflles of St. Paul , we may find ■the fame things; IJai.5q.Eph 6. and 1 The II e,
K2 ' wh ch
220 A Difcourje on the
which may be as a remedy againfl vain Ghofts that they may be expelled.
Pollux. For a remedy againfl Ghofts? doft thou conceive that a Ghoft is diverfe and diffe- rent from a fpirit ?
Caflor. f know net truly what I may think hereof: for flowing in fo fpacious a fea of many opinions, I am fo led in doubt, that I cannot eafi- ly attain to a certain port ofjudgment: for there are lome which do fuppofe that thefe Ghofts are devils, by reafon of the great fear and tenor wherewith they ragingly molefl men by night in their houfes; and fometimes for their innate nature to do hurt. There are others that do believe thefe fpirits are deceitful fantafies, de- ceiving thofe that are of evil belief : who by their fallacious vifions and imaginations do de- ceive and frighten the inhabitants in their houfes and do deny that they are fpirits indeed, bccaufe the fpirits have a body without hands or feet ; wherefore they can hurt no man, nor make any tumult: being ignorant that the Angel (who alfo hath a body without hands and feet) did carry Habakkuk with his whole dinner, by the hair of his head, into Babylon , and afterwards brought him back again, and fet him in his own place; neither confidering that the fpirit of the Lord, alfo without a body, fnatch'd up Philip , and
carried
Nature of Spirits. 22|
carried him to Aeolus-, that I may forbear to fpeak
did forrTf * 5 3 “kT incorP°rcal which
bl tt f qU'et r e1h0"re °f my godfather, that by the (pace of almoft thirty years he caufed
,‘° be uninhabitable, unlefs it were when a
thenfoF* bu,m,n? thereini neither did that en fufScemly quiet the fame ; for going out of
‘C‘10j‘fe’ theV d'd /o molefl them with (tones
out oM ,VC|‘n ' 1C 'lreet5- that ‘hey would call
thev ul K ‘Jni tthC htam Pi'ie-trees, which
harnne . I0l n°rCr ConcerninS ‘he Ghofl that ■haunted the houfe of Anthcnodorus the Philofo-
’ andLthe tumultuous fpirit of C. Caligula,
diere may be more fpoken : but thou haft under-
• tood the relation of them already in the forego-
g ifcouife. from all which, we may eafily
■convince the opinions of thofe, who deny that
e pints can walk., or make any motion : but
o how much truth we may hold the aflertions ot them, wnci do foppofe that thefe tumultuous iPuusaiene,, her devils nor phamaf.ns, but the ■ uls of the dead, now hearken unto.
lion *’ ArC thCre they Wh° 3rC °f that °Pt'
There are they who are of both oni- ons . for they do declare that thefe are the fouls them who have departed from their bodies la- cn and clogged in their Cns ; which are there-
^ 3 fore
2o2 A Difcourfe on the
fore heard to be more or lefs turbulent in houfes, according as they have any fenfible ardent lpark of that fin more or lefs; fo that except in the mean time they are expelled and driven away from thence, or expiated by alms and intercelit- * ons, they are compelled to a certain bound or liberty, wandering thereabouts in expectation o
the la ft judgment.
Follux. Wherefore?
Cater. Bccaufe I believe that the fouls of them which fleep in Chrill, do live with Chrift, and \lo not wander about the earth; and the fouls of i hem who are oppreffed and burthened with the 'grievous weight of then Sins, fmee they are the members of Satan, are bound with Satan in the chains ofdarknefs, expeflmg judgment in he 1. ' Pollux. But Finnianus, a Writer of no mea "judgment, thinketh the contrary, in his Book which lie hath written dc devino pretmo.
Caftvr. How is that ?
' Pollux. Thcfe ate his words; Let not any man conceive that the fouls o t e c“
iud'cd immediately alter death: for they are al detained in one common cuflody unit the t.m fhall come, wherein the Almighty Ju ge '3
make examination and inquifiuon of their d
Then they who (hall be found righteous al receive the reward of immortality, ^ j
Mature of Spirits . 2
whofe fms and wicked nefs {hall then be detecl- ed, (hall not rife again, but (hall be inclofed witli the wicked in darknefs, and defined to eternal punifhments.
Caflor St. Angujhne fubfcribeth to Laftantius in his Enchiridion, faying, that the time which is interpohd between the death of mankind and the la(l iefurre£hon, cotameth the fouls in fecret hidden receptacles, where every foul receiveth condign red ormifery, for the good or evil which he end in the body while he lived.
Pollux. Neither doth St. Ambrofe difagrec fiom this: in his fecond book of Cain and Abel, he faith, that the foul is loofed from the body, and after the end of this life, is fufpended to the ambiguous time of the lad judgment.
Cajloi. So alfo fome have declared, that the foul of lrajanus Catfar did wander about : but
the foul of St. George was freed from fuch fuffrage.
Pvt/iix riiou had even now fpoke, and that tiuly, that fpacious is the fea of various opini- ons concerning thefe fpirits; for fo indeed it is- but what port thou touched at, 1 defire thee it may not feem troublefome to thee to tell me- for l am not as yet fadsfied of the certainty hereof by our difeourfe. 7
Cajlor. That which thou defiteft, I conceive
^ 4 to
224 A Difcourfc on the
to be this : I hold that thefe tumultuous fpirits are meer Images of Satan, which are not to be feared, neither is their any credit to be given to _ their anfwers: and are in no wife the fouls of the dead, which either live with Chriit, if they have d tan if they have done evil.
Pollux , It remaineth that we fift out this, Cajlor : for it happeneth now fometimes, that my Father appeareth to me in my deep; perhaps that may feem alfo unto thee to be a Ipirit.
Cajlor . It may feem fo: but I will not in any thing contradid thee beyond reafon: ofmyfelf I will add nothing; but at leaflwife 1 will.an- niliate thy opinion with the alTertions if St. Augnjline
Pollux. What alTertions are thofe ?
Caflor. In his i 1 book, which he intitleth De morluorum cur a. he offereth them as a means, faying. Human infirmity doth fo believe of liirn- felf, that when he feeth any one that is dead, in his fleep, he fuppofeth that he feeth the foul of that dead perlon ; but when he dreameth of any one that is alive, he then is out of douot, that neither his foul nor his body, but the firni- litude of the man appeared unto him : as if they could be ignorant, that the fouls of dead men do not appear unto them in dreams, but only
the
Nature oj Spirits . 225
the fimilitudes of the perfons deceafecl. And he proveth both thefe to be done, by two examples which were as Mediolanus\ whereof thefirfl he fheweth to have been the image of a certain fa- ther that was dead, who appeared to his fon, admonifhing him that he fhould not pay again a debt to an unjufl creditor, which the father had paid him befote: for he faith the cafe was thus : the lather had paid a debt to a certain creditor, which after the death of the father, the creditor endeavoured by force to recover the fame again of his fon, who was ignorant of the payment theieof : to whom the image of his father ap- peared when he was fleeping, and fhewed him where the writing was hid. Whereupon, the fon awaking from his deep, fought for the paper Jin the place he was dire&ed, and found it, and ‘thereby overthrew the malice of his deceitful .ci editor. 1 he fecond example is, whereby the fame St. Angujline fheweth that the living do ap- pear to the living, in their deep : for he faith, diat Eurologius the Rhetorician, proleding the Rhetoric of Cicero at Carthage , he found a diffi- cult and obfeure place that was not declared unto him; fo that waking and deeping he vex- 'd himfelf by reafon of his ignorance; but. in a tertain night, the image of Aurelius Augvjline ap- peared to him, and taught him in what manner
k 5 tire
I - *
’226 A Difcmtrfe on the
the dark and difficult place was to be under-
Hood.
Pollux. Augufline doth therefore conclude ‘ without doubt, that they are not fouls.
Cnjloi. He doth fo conclude: and the greatei to flrcngthen fuch his judgment, he addeth, that if the fouls of the dead have any interefl 01 council in the affairs of the living, he undoubted- ly knew, that his own pious mother did not de- fert him not for one night, but when fhe wa; living, followed him both by fea and land : nei- ; ther did he at any time fuftain any anguifh oi heart but comforted his forrows. And that this - may not feem too hard a fpeech. the prefidcn of Chrifl teacheth, that they do not err who af firm that the good Angels, by the appointment of God. and divine difpenlation, do fometimej come to, and vifit men, both living and fleeping and fometimes to the place where fouls endurd punifhment: notwithffanding, it is not unto all but only unto thofe who have fo lived, that Got fhall judge them worthy of his mercy : or unit thofe upon whom, without any relpetft untc their defens, God will be pleafed to glorify hi unfpeakable mercy ; that by the ptayers of th living they may obtain pardon ol their fins, an deliverance from the prifon of torments.
■■ • \ } aye fometimes read, that the fam
St
Nature of Spirits. 527
St Augu/line did write, that it is better for a mail to doubt of fecret things, than to contend about things uncei tain.
Cajlor. That is certainly true ; neither doth he declare himfeif to be an offence to thofe who do leave all thefe things to the unfearchable judg- ments of God, and labour not to find out the fecrets thereof.
Pollux Becaufe I have eafily underflood thy anfvver hitherto, 1 will not defifl till thou hafl fully refolved me concerning this fubjetfl. I de- fire therefore to know whether all miracles which the devils perform, are done really, or imagina- ry phantafies.
Cajlor. [ hat they perform many things realy, and many things only feemingly, we have al- ready manifefled out of the writings of St. An - gujiine for that great prelate of the Chriflian Church, vvriteth, in the 11 chapter of his book de Trim talc, that it is a very eafy thing for the wicked Spirits, through the airy fubftance of their bodies, to perform many things which feem wonderful (to the fouls that are oppreffed with earthly bodies) to be done. He alfo faith, that eaithly bodies may be fo qualified with art and exercife, that in public Theatres they may per- form fitch wonderful things, that thofe who ne- ver have feen them will not believe them, but
& 6 that
22 8 A Difcourfe on the
that they are done by the afftftance of the devil and his minifters, to make their bodies of fuch an airy element, that the fiefh wondeis at. Or elfe which is much, he faith alfo, that they do contrive with occult infpirations, forms, and fantafies of images, to delude human fenfe: wherewith, waking or fleeping, they may be deceived. Thus far Augujline , But, if thou wilt, I will produce alfo another witnefs without ex- ception, Pollux.
Pollux . I would have thee tell me who that
is.
Ca/lor. Abbas Tritemius , in his third queftion to St. Maximus Emilianus , which is fpoken of before, faith thus: The devils, amongft un- faithful people, do feem to raife up the dead to life, and to fhew miracles to curious men, that that they might as it were fwallow them up with error inhead of miracles; and are altogether pertinacious and obftinate: but they cannot truly and really raife up the dead, but do vari- oufly deceive the fenfes of men, fhewing them feigned rcfemblances of the dead. For it is cer- tinly manifefl, that the devils can do all things but only in a falfe fimilitude of holy miracles in
truth.
Pollux. Some fay that the devils are obedient
to
Nature of Spirits . **$
to wicked men, becaufe of the fimilitude of their malice How feemeth that to thee ?
Cajlor* It feemeth to me, that they are obe- dient to evil men, but not to all men.
Pollux But to whom ?
Caflor. I'o thofe certainly with whom they have contracted and made compacts and cove- nants ; as th are accounted, who have vowed themfelves by promife unto him.
Pollux. But although they are compelled to be fo ferviceable unto them, yet is this fervice true or feigned?
Cajlor . It is feigned, certainly: for they are fubfervient unto men of their own accord, and genuine work, that they may deceive them, and allure them to themfelves. Although we do not deny that their fcrvice is fometimes true, but only towards thofe men, whofe faith in the Lord Jefus Chrift, by the merit of his holinefs. hath caufcd them to be acceptable, and friends unto him. And that Laclantius alfo teflifies, in thefe words, in his fecond book De origine Er~ rorb, and it) chap. That the devils do fear the juft that is, thofe that worfhip God, in whofe name they are conjured to depart out of bodies, and with whofe words they are beaten with feourges, and they do not only confefs that they
arc
230 A Difcourfe on the
are devils, but do declare their names: neither can they lye unto the juft. And the fame Lac- tantius in his fourth' book Dc vera Safnentia,