for the perfection of souls. This I could not hide from Father La Combe. It seemed to me as if I en tered into the inmost recesses of his heart. Our Lord shewed me he was his servant, chosen a-mongst a thousand, singularly to honour him; but that he would lead him through total death, and the entire destruction of the old man; that he would have me contribute thereto, and be instrumental to cause him to walk in the way in which he had led me first; in order that I might be in a condition to direct others therein, and to tell them the tracks through which I have passed; that GoD would have us to be conformed, and to become both one in him; that though my soul was more advanced now, yet he should one day pass beyond it, with a bold and rapid flight. God knows how I rejoiced herein, and with what joy I would see my children surpass their mother in glory.

In this retreat I felt a strong propensity to write, but resisted it till I fell sick. I had nothing to write about, not one idea to begin with. It was a divine impulse, with such a fulness of grace as was hard to contain, or bear, like mothers full of milk, which suffer much. I opened this disposition of mine, to Father La Combe. He answered. me" that he had a strong impulse to command

' me to write but had not dared to do it yet, on "account of my weakness." I told him, " that "weakness was the effect of my resistance, and "I believed it would, through my writing go off

again, he asked me, " But what is it you will "write?" I replied, "I know nothing of it, nor "desire to know, leaving it entirely to GOD to di"rect me." He ordered me to do so. At my taking the pen I knew not the first word I should write; but when I began, suitable matter flowed

copiously,

copiously, nay impetuously; and as I was writing I was relieved and grew better. I wrote an entire treatise on the interior path of Faith, under the comparison of torrents, or of streams and rivers *; and though it is pretty long, the comparison in it holds out to the end.

As the way, wherein GoD now conducted Father La Combe, was very different from that in which he had formerly walked; which had been all light, knowledge, ardour, assurance, sentiments; but now the poor, low, despised path of faith, and of nakedness; he found it very hard to submit thereto, which caused me no little suf fering. Who could express what it has cost my heart before he was formed according to the will of God? The more this soul is precious in the eyes of God, the more dearly have I been obliged to pay for it. Mean time the possession which God had of my soul became every day stronger, insomuch that I passed whole days without being able to pronounce one word; for GOD was pleased to make me pass wholly into him by an entire internal transformation †. He became more and more the absolute master of my heart, to such a degree as not to leave me a movement of my own, in order that I might be continually supple to every intimation of his will. This state did not hinder me from condescending to my sister, and the others in the house. Nevertheless

*This Treatise was written by her in 1683, entitled The Torrents. It has been twice printed in Holland, among her spiritual works, in the first Volume in 1704, and more correctly in the second Volume in 1712. + John, xvii. 21. 23. 1 Cor. vi. 17.. N n

Nevertheless the useless things with which they were taken up could not suit my state. That was what induced me to ask leave to make a retreat, to let myself be possessed of him who holds me so closely united to himself after an ineffable manner. At this time he purified me from a relick of nature very subtil and delicate, so that my soul was brought into very great purity. All partitions were utterly consumed. Then it was given me to write in a manner purely divine. All that I had wrote, before the time of my probation, was condemned to the fire. Our Lord united me more closely in his spirit with Father La Combe. He required me to tell him my thoughts, to the very least of them, or to write them to him as he was often absent. It was a thing which I had never done before, when I might have done it more commodiously. I said with the spouse, (Cant. v. 3.) "I have put off

cr

my coat, how shall I put it on? I have wash"ed my feet, how shall I defile them?" Must my spirit, which is so naked and empty, again be furnished and filled? And after having been subject to GoD only, must I become so to the creature? I could have wished to avoid it, had I been mistress of myself; but I was taken up with the thought till I had obeyed. Far from having its former purity, the heart became sullied by such thoughts, even though they were of good things: For to trouble the water with a stick of wood, or a staff of gold, it still muddies it alike. I found that the stronger the union grew between us, the more we were united to GOD, and drawn off from human sentiments. I was the more constrained to forgive him nothing which was amiss, to desire the thorough destruction thereof, that GOD only might reign; and

was

was obliged to tell him faithfully whatever the LORD made known to me that he required of him :--And this was a hard place to pass. I was constrained to tell him the essential defects of the sister who took care of my daughter: As he was prepossessed in her favour, from her gifts and graces which she had told him of, he rejected with displeasure what I said about her: But the LORD allowed me not to rest till I told him all I thought of her, in regard to her faults. On every occasion I was forced to suffer for his infidelity. Long has been the martyrdom I have suffered on this account, and beyond whatever can be expressed concerning it.

O

СНАР, XII.

UR blessed LORD had fully determined that I should enter into, and experience all his states, beginning with the first, and going on even to the last. Reducing me even to a perfect child-like simplicity, he gave me such a wonderful obedience to my director Father La Combe, that into whatever extremity of bodily illness I was plunged, I was immediately cured at his command. I seemed to be a representative of JESUS CHRIST in his Childhood, obedient to his Father's will. Also a sign and testimony to this good Father, who having been hitherto conducted by testimonies, could not get out of that way. In all that was said to him, and all that GOD cause ed him to experience, he was ever seeking for

some

* That is to say, sensible Marks, perceptible Proofs, and evident Reasons. Editor's Note,

some testimonies, reasons or demonstrations. It was the point wherein he had the most pain to die to himself, and by which he has caused me to suffer so much. Our LORD to make him enter the more readily into what he required both of him and of me, gave him the greatest of all testimonies, which was this wonderful obedience; in order to make him see that it did not depend upon me, but that GOD gave it me for him; when he grew strong enough to bear the loss of every testimony, and GOD would have him learn to walk without such helps, this obedience was taken from me in such sort, that without an immediate attention thereto, I could no longer obey him. This was ordered to make him enter the more into death to himself, and to deprive him of the sup port of this testimony; for now all my efforts to revive it were useless. I was obliged to follow the internal dictates of my Sovereign. He gave me this repugnance to obey my external director; but it continued no longer than was necessary to make him lose the support he had drawn from thence, and perhaps I myself also.

I HAD at that time so ardent a desire for his perfection, and to see him thoroughly die to himself. that I could have wished him all the crosses and afflictions, imaginable (far from pitying him in them) that might conduce to this great and blessed end. Whenever he was unfaithful, or looked at things in any other light than the true one. viz. to tend to this mystic death, I felt myself on the rack, which, as I had till then been so indifferent, very much surprized me. To the LORD I made my complaint, who graciously encouraged me, both on this subject and on that