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Jeremy Taylor Day: "the work of Heaven is not done by a flash of lightning"

On this day in 1667, Jeremy Taylor died.  To mark the commemoration, words from his Sermon XIV, 'Of Growth in Grace'.  In many ways, this extract serves as a rather wonderful summary of the Conformist and Laudian vision, of why the routines and cycles of Common Prayer, parish life, and ordinary duties matter:

And now the first part of this duty is, to make religion to be the business of our lives;–for this is the great instrument which will naturally produce our growth in grace, and the perfection of a Christian. For a man cannot, after a state of sin, be instantly a saint; the work of Heaven is not done by a flash of lightning, or a dash of affectionate rain, or a few tears of a relenting pity: God and his church have appointed holy intervals, and have taken portions of our time for religion, that we may be called off from the world, and remember the end of our creation, and do honour to God, and think of heaven with hearty purposes and peremptory designs to get thither. 

But as we must not neglect those times, which God hath reserved for his service, or the church hath prudently decreed; nor yet act religion upon such days with forms and outsides, or to comply with customs, or to seem religious: so we must take care, that all the other portions of our time be hallowed with little retirements of our thoughts, and short conversations with God, and all along be guided with holy intention; that even our works of nature may pass into the relations of grace, and the actions of our calling may help towards the "obtaining the prize of our high calling;" while our eatings are actions of temperance, our labours are profitable, our humiliations are acts of obedience, and our alms of charity, and our marriages are chaste; and "whether we eat or drink," sleep or wake, we may "do all to the glory of God," by a direct intuition, or by a reflex act; by design, or by supplement; by foresight, or by an after-election. 

And to this purpose we must not look upon religion as our trouble and our hinderance, nor think alms chargeable or expensive, nor our fastings vexatious and burdensome; nor our prayers a weariness of spirit: but we must make these, and all other the duties of religion, our employment, our care, the work and end for which we came into the world; and remember that we never do the work of men, nor serve the ends of God, nor are in the proper employment and business of our life, but when we worship God, or live like wise or sober persons, or do benefit to our brother.

Comments

  1. Ryan Clevenger18 August 2020 at 18:21

    This isn't directly relevant to this post here, but I wanted to say that I've lurked around catholicity and covenant over the years and I've appreciated the topics you are covering here, especially when you delve into the Old High Church tradition (which I know so little about). So thanks!

    I suppose I picked this post because I've become interested in Taylor's Ductor dubitantium (thanks to Martin Thornton's English Spirituality), and I was curious if you've read any of it, what your thoughts were on it, and it's value for today.

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    Replies
    1. laudable Practice29 August 2020 at 16:16

      Ryan, many thanks for your comment.

      'Ductor dubitantium' is the classic example of how a tradition emerged within the 17th century CofE reforming casuistry. As McAdoo stated, casuistry was redefined around scripture and reason rather than ecclesiastical authority and the confessional.

      It certainly has continued relevance and value today, insofar as it exemplifies a model of spiritual counselling/spiritual direction appropriate for Anglicanism.

      Delete

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