Page:Sermons by John-Baptist Massillon.djvu/250

 you will  be  still  more  exalted  in  its  opinion;  and  you  will  teach your equals  that  misplaced  valour  is  nothing  but  a  brutal  fear;  that wisdom and  moderation  ever  attend  true  glory;  that  whatever  dishonours humanity  can  never  do  honour  to  men;  and  that  the  gospel, which  inculcates  and  commands  forgiveness,  hath  made  more heroes than  the  world  itself,  which  preaches  up  revenge.

You will  perhaps  say  that  these  maxims  do  not  regard  you;  that you have  forgotten  all  the  subjects  of  complaint  which  you  had against your  brother;  and  that  a  reconciliation  hath  put  an  end to the  eclat  of  your  misunderstandings,  and  of  your  quarrel. Now, I say,  that  it  is  more  especially  on  this  point  that  you  are  grossly deceived; and,  after  having  shown  to  you  the  injustice  of  our hatreds, it  is  my  duty  now  to  prove  to  you  the  falsity  of  our  reconciliations.

Part II. — There is  not  a  precept  in  the  law  which  leaves  less room for  doubt  or  for  mistake,  than  that  which  obliges  us  to  love our brethren;  and,  nevertheless,  there  is  none  upon  which  more illusions and  false  maxims  are  founded. In effect,  there  is  not  almost a  person  who  doth  not  say,  that  he  hath  heartily  forgiven  his brother, and  that  his  conscience  is  perfectly  tranquil  on  that  head; and, nevertheless,  nothing  is  more  rare  than  sincere  forgiveness,  and there are  few  instances  of  a  reconcilement  which  changes  the  heart, and which  is  not  merely  a  false  appearance  of  renewed  amity, whether it  be  considered  in  its  principle,  or  whether  the  proceedings and  consequences  of  it  be  examined.

I say,  in  its  principle;  for,  my  brethren,  in  order  that  a  reconciliation be  sincere  and  real,  it  is  necessary  that  it  take  its  source  in charity,  and  in  a  Christian  love  of  our  brother. Now, human motives engross,  in  general,  a  work  which  can  be  the  work  of  grace alone. A reconciliation  takes  place,  in  order  not  to  persist  against the pressing  entreaties  of  friends;  in  order  to  avoid  a  certain  disagreeable eclat,  which  would  necessarily  follow  an  open  hostility, and which  might  revert  upon  ourselves;  in  order  not  to  exclude ourselves from  certain  societies,  from  which  we  would  be  under  the necessity of  banishing  ourselves  were  we  obstinately  to  persist  in being  irreconcilable  to  our  brother. A reconciliation  takes  place through deference  to  the  great,  who  exact  of  us  that  compliance, in order  to  acquire  a  reputation  for  moderation  and  greatness  of soul,  in  order  to  avoid  giving  transactions  to  the  public  which would not  correspond  with  that  idea  which  we  would  wish  it  to have  of  us;  in  order,  at  once,  to  cut  short  the  continual  complaints and the  insulting  discourses  of  an  enemy,  who  knows  us  perhaps only too  well,  and  who  has  once  been  too  deep  in  our  confidence, not to  merit  some  caution  and  deference  on  our  part,  and  that,  by a  reconciliation,  we  should  endeavour  to  silence  him. What more shall I  say? We are  reconciled  perhaps  like  Saul,  in  order  more securely to  ruin  our  enemy,  and  to  lull  his  vigilance  and  precautions.

Such are,  in  general,  the  motives  of  those  reconciliations  which every day  take  place  in  the  world,  and  what I say  here  is  so