XXII. Qtiomodo anima ad Deum anhelat.
XXII. Qtiomodo anima ad Deum anhelat.
But just as water and the abyss reveal the power and possibility of God, so too does the soul of man, which longs for God, manifest His power and possibility through good works. For the strength of the soul, in which God, through the power of those who descend, reveals the hidden mysteries of secrets, is like the roots that reach down to the plants; so too, even above that same soul, in the performance of good works, when it inspires holiness through just and faithful actions, it stands as if above an abyss, possessing comfort and steadfastness of holiness through divine assistance against the diabolical arts, as if it were the strength of that same man; for where they deny the devil and confess God, they recover all things to righteousness; and where they cleanse themselves of the filth and contagion of sins through contrition and confession, they purify all things; and where they avoid evil and dangers through good deeds, they sanctify all things; and where they water good works in themselves through the infusion of tears, so that they do not fail, they sustain all things; and where they do not differ from one another in the unity of blessed virtues, they carry all things, because then all their works pierce through with true and sweet compunction, and they bind them together with a heavenly desire just as God has joined the world, so that it does not dissolve from one another.
Read the original Latin
Sed et quemadmodum aquae et abyssus virtutem et possibilitatem Dei ostendunt, sic etiam cum viribus suis anima hominis, quae ad Deum anhelat, virtutem et possibilitatem ejus in bonis operibus manifestat.
Nam vires animae, in quibus Deus per fortitudinem descendentium ad occulta mysteria secretorum, velut a suris deorsum ad plantas suas est, ita quod etiam supra eamdem animam in operatione bonorum operum, cum ei sanctitatem per justa et fidelia opera inspirat, quasi supra abyssum stat, confortationem et constantiam sanctitatis per divinum adjutorium adversus diabolicas artes habentes, quasi robur virtutis ejusdem viri sunt; quoniam ubi Diabolum abnegant, et Deum confitentur, ad justitiam omnia recuperant; et ubi sordes et contagia peccatorum per contritionem confessionum ^ a se abstergunt, omnia purificant; et ubi mala et pericula moriis devitant, ea quae bona sunt operantes, omnia sanctificant; et ubi per infusionem lacrimarum bona opera in se irrigant, ne deficiant, omnia continent; et ubi in unanimitate beatarum virtutum ab invicem non discrepant, omnia portant, quia tunc etiam omnia opera sua vera et suavi compunctiono perfodiunt, et ea coelesti desiderio ita conglutinant, quemadmodum Deus mundum compaginavit, ne ab invicem dissolvatur.
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