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lectures11-13-第14部分

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as if they were your private possession。  But if; when you give



up your cell; or yield possession of this or that object or



exchange it for another; you feel repugnance and are not like a



statue; that shows that you view these things as if they were



your private property。'







〃And this is why our holy founder wished the superiors to test



their monks somewhat as God tested Abraham; and to put their



poverty and their obedience to trial; that by this means they may



become acquainted with the degree of their virtue; and gain a



chance to make ever farther progress in perfection; 。 。 。 making



the one move out of his room when he finds it comfortable and is



attached to it; taking away from another a book of which he is



fond; or obliging a third to exchange his garment for a worse



one。  Otherwise we should end by acquiring a species of property



in all these several objects; and little by little the wall of



poverty that surrounds us and constitutes our principal defense



would be thrown down。  The ancient fathers of the desert used



often thus to treat their companions。 。 。 。 Saint Dositheus;



being sick…nurse; desired a certain knife; and asked Saint



Dorotheus for it; not for his private use; but for employment in



the infirmary of which he had charge。 Whereupon Saint Dorotheus



answered him:  'Ha! Dositheus; so that knife pleases you so much!



Will you be the slave of a knife or the slave of Jesus Christ! Do



you not blush with shame at wishing that a knife should be your



master?  I will not let you touch it。' Which reproach and refusal



had such an effect upon the holy disciple that since that time he



never touched the knife again。' 。  。  。







〃Therefore; in our rooms;〃 Father Rodriguez continues; 〃there



must be no other furniture than a bed; a table; a bench; and a



candlestick; things purely necessary; and nothing more。  It is



not allowed among us that our cells should be ornamented with



pictures or aught else; neither armchairs; carpets; curtains; nor



any sort of cabinet or bureau of any elegance。  Neither is it



allowed us to keep anything to eat; either for ourselves or for 



those who may come to visit us。  We must ask permission to go to



the refectory even for a glass of water; and finally we may not



keep a book in which we can write a line; or which we may take



away with us。  One cannot deny that thus we are in great poverty。







But this poverty is at the same time a great repose and a great



perfection。  For it would be inevitable; in case a religious



person were allowed to own supernuous possessions; that these



things would greatly occupy his mind; be it to acquire them; to



preserve them; or to increase them; so that in not permitting us



at all to own them; all these inconveniences are remedied。 Among



the various good reasons why the company forbids secular persons



to enter our cells; the principal one is that thus we may the



easier be kept in poverty。  After all; we are all men; and if we



were to receive people of the world into our rooms; we should not



have the strength to remain within the bounds prescribed; but



should at least wish to adorn them with some books to give the



visitors a better opinion of our scholarship。〃'192'







'192' Rodriguez:  Op。 cit。; Part iii; Treatise iii。; chaps。 vi。;



vii。















Since Hindu fakirs; Buddhist monks; and Mohammedan dervishes



unite with Jesuits and Franciscans in idealizing poverty as the



loftiest individual state; it is worth while to examine into the



spiritual grounds for such a seemingly unnatural opinion。  And



first; of those which lie closest to common human nature。







The opposition between the men who HAVE and the men who ARE is



immemorial。  Though the gentleman; in the old… fashioned sense of



the man who is well born; has usually in point of fact been



predaceous and reveled in lands and goods; yet he has never



identified his essence with these possessions; but rather with



the personal superiorities; the courage; generosity; and pride



supposed to be his birthright。  To certain huckstering kinds of



consideration he thanked God he was forever inaccessible; and if



in life's vicissitudes he should become destitute through their



lack; he was glad to think that with his sheer valor he was all



the freer to work out his salvation。  〃Wer nur selbst was hatte;〃



says Lessing's Tempelherr; in Nathan the Wise; 〃mein Gott; mein



Gott; ich habe nichts!〃  This ideal of the well…born man without



possessions was embodied in knight…errantry and templardom; and;



hideously corrupted as it has always been; it still dominates



sentimentally; if not practically; the military and aristocratic



view of life。  We glorify the soldier as the man absolutely



unincumbered。  Owning nothing but his bare life; and willing to



toss that up at any moment when the cause commands him; he is the



representative of unhampered freedom in ideal directions。  The



laborer who pays with his person day by day; and has no rights



invested in the future; offers also much of this ideal



detachment。  Like the savage; he may make his bed wherever his



right arm can support him; and from his simple and athletic



attitude of observation; the property…owner seems buried and



smothered in ignoble externalities and trammels; 〃wading in straw



and rubbish to his knees。〃  The claims which THINGS make are



corrupters of manhood; mortgages on the soul; and a drag anchor



on our progress towards the empyrean。







〃Everything I meet with;〃 writes Whitefield; 〃seems to carry this



voice with it'Go thou and preach the Gospel; be a pilgrim on



earth; have no party or certain dwelling place。' My heart echoes



back; 'Lord Jesus; help me to do or suffer thy will。 When thou



seest me in danger of NESTLINGin pityin tender pityput a



THORN in my nest to prevent me from it。'〃'193'







'193' R。 Philip:  The Life and Times of George Whitefield;



London; 1842; p。 366。















The loathing of 〃capital〃 with which our laboring classes today



are growing more and more infected seems largely composed of this



sound sentiment of antipathy for lives based on mere having。  As



an anarchist poet writes:







〃Not by accumulating riches; but by giving away that which you



have;







〃Shall you become beautiful;







〃You must undo the wrappings; not case yourself in fresh ones;







〃Not by multiplying clothes shall you make your body sound and



healthy; but rather by discarding them 。  。  。







〃For a soldier who is going on a campaign does not seek what



fresh furniture he can carry on his back; but rather what he can



leave behind;







〃Knowing well that every additional thing which he cannot freely



use and handle is an impediment。〃'194'







'194' Edward Carpenter:  Towards Democracy; p。 362; abridged。















In short; lives based on having are less free than lives based



either on doing or on being; and in the interest of action people



subject to spiritual excitement throw away possessions as so many



clogs。  Only those who have no private interests can follow an



ideal straight away。  Sloth and cowardice creep in with every



dollar or guinea we have to guard。  When a brother novice came to



Saint Francis; saying:  〃Father; it would be a great consolation



to me to own a psalter; but even supposing that our general



should concede to me this indulgence; still I should like also to



have your consent;〃 Francis put him off with the examples of



Charlemagne; Roland; and Oliver; pursuing the infidels in sweat



and labor; and finally dying on the field of battle。  〃So care



not;〃 he said; 〃for owning books and knowledge; but care rather



for works of goodness。〃  And when some weeks later the novice



came again to talk of his craving for the psalter; Francis said: 



〃After you have got your psalter you will crave a breviary; and



after you have got your breviary you will sit in your stall like



a grand prelate; and will say to your brother:  〃Hand me my



breviary。〃。  。  。 And thenceforward he denied all such requests;



saying:  A man possesses of learning only so much as comes out of



him in action; and a monk is a good preacher only so far as his



deeds proclaim him such; for every tree is known by its



fruits。〃'195'







'195' Speculum Perfectionis; ed。  P。 Sabatier; Paris; 1898; pp。



10; 13。















But beyond this more worthily athletic attitude involved in doing



and being; there is; in the desire of not having; something



profounder still; something related to that fundamental mystery



of religious experience; the satisfaction found in absolute



surrender to the larger power。  So long as any secular safeguard



is retained; so long as any residual prudential guarantee is



clung to; so long the surrender is incomplete; the vital crisis



is not passed; fear still stands sentinel; and mistrust of the



divine obtains:  we hold by two anchors; looking to God; it is



true; after a fashion; but also holding by our proper



machinations。  In certain medical experiences we have the same



critical point to overcome。  A drunkard; or a morphine or cocaine



maniac; offers himself to be cured。  He appeals to the doctor to



wean him from his enemy; but he dares not face blank abstinence。 



The tyrannical drug is still an anchor to windward:  he hides



supplies of it among his clothing; arranges s
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