Page:Sermons by John-Baptist Massillon.djvu/447

 thereby proclaim  the  insufficiency  and  the  inutility  of  the  external and pharisaical  worship  of  the  synagogue;  it  was  likewise  required, that to  him  they  should  sacrifice  their  reason,  as  to  their  wisdom and to  their  eternal  truth,  and  thus  be  undeceived  with  regard  to the  vain  researches  and  the  conceited  knowledge  of  philosophers.

Now, the  sole  birth  of  a  Man-God,  the  ineffable  union  of  our nature with  a  divine  person,  disconcerts  all  human  reason;  and  this incomprehensible mystery  held  out  to  men  as  their  whole  knowledge, their  whole  truth,  their  whole  philosophy,  their  whole  religion, at  once  makes  them  feel  that  the  truth,  which  they  hitherto had in  vain  sought,  must  be  sought,  not  by  vain  efforts,  but  by  the sacrifice of  reason  and  of  our  feeble  lights.

But, alas! where among  us  are  believers  who  make  a  thorough sacrifice of  their  reason  to  faith;  and  who,  rejecting  their  own  lights, humble their  eyes,  in  a  respectful  and  sile/it  adoration,  before  the majestic impenetrability  of  religion? I speak  not  of  those  impious, still to  be  found  among  us,  who  deny  a  God. Ah! we must  leave them to  the  horror  and  the  indignation  of  the  whole  universe  which knows a  Divinity,  and  which  worships  him;  or  rather  leave  them to the  horror  of  their  own  conscience,  which  inwardly  invokes  and calls upon  him  in  spite  of  themselves,  while  outwardly  they  are  glorifying themselves  in  professing  not  to  know  him.

I speak  of  the  majority  of  believers,  who  have  an  idea  of  the Divinity, almost  equally  false  and  equally  human,  as  had  formerly the pagan  philosophers;  who  consider  him  as  nothing  in  all  the accidents of  life;  who  live  as  if  chance,  or  the  caprice  of  men,  determined all  things  here  below;  and  who  acknowledge  good  luck and bad  luck  as  two  sole  divinities  which  govern  the  world,  and which preside  over  every  thing  relative  to  the  earth. I speak  of those  men  of  little  faith,  who,  far  from  adoring  the  secrecies  of futurity  in  the  profound  and  impenetrable  councils  of  Providence, go to  search  for  them  in  ridiculous  and  childish  prophecies;  attribute to  man  a  knowledge  which  God  hath  solely  reserved  to  himself;  with  a  senseless  belief  await,  from  the  dreams  of  a  false  prophet, events  and  revolutions  which  are  to  decide  the  destiny  of nations  and  empires;  found  thereupon  vain  hopes  for  themselves, and renew  either  the  folly  of  pagan  augurs  and  soothsayers,  or  the impiety of  the  pythoness  of  Saul,  and  of  the  oracles  of  Delphi  and Dodona. I speak  of  those  who  wish  to  penetrate  into  the  eternal ways of  God  on  our  lots;  and  who,  being  unable,  by  the  sole powers of  reason,  to  solve  the  insurmountable  difficulties  of  the mysteries of  grace  with  regard  to  the  salvation  of  men,  far  from crying out  with  the  apostle,  "  O  the  depth  of  the  riches  both  of the  wisdom  and  knowledge  of  God  V*  are  tempted  to  believe,  either that  God  doth  not  interfere  in  our  salvation;  or,  if  he  do,  that  it  is needless  for  us  to  interfere  in  it  ourselves.  I  speak  of  those  dissolute characters  in  the  world,  who  always  find  plausible  and  convincing, though,  in  fact,  weak  and  foolish  in  the  extreme,  whatever unbelief  opposes  to  faith;  who  are  staggered  by  the  first  frivolous doubt  proposed  by  the  impious;   who  appear  as  if  they  would  be