The Sermons of Johannes Tauler · 107 of 124

Sermon for the Feast of St. Lawrence, Martyr

If any man minister to Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there also shall My minister be. — John xii, 26.

There is rich meaning in these words. One could write a whole book on each of them. Here we shall only explain what kind of a man Christ’s true minister is, serving God in truth and following Him wherever He leads. God does not lead His minister in one way, one work, one manner of devout living; He leads him where He is Himself, namely, into all ways, works and manners of devout life. God is in all things; He is the only and supreme Good. And hence a man does not minister to God rightly, who cannot serve Him except in his own self-chosen way, whether it be in choir or in certain ways of praying — all according to his own choice. If such a man cannot serve God as he chooses, or if God would lead him to some other way, he turns his back on Him, and then he pours himself out on this thing and that which interests him. Such a man is not God’s minister, for he has turned away from God. One can be God’s minister only if he follows God in all places, and in all works and ways of piety. For in all these God is; His minister must simply and solely follow nim in his choice of them; Him alone timst he keep in mind and serve in all his conduct. God is not in any man who herein fails. Such a one becomes involved in multiplicity, his spirit is externized; and besides the self-injury he does, he is a disturbing element to the people about him in whatever place he may be, and in whatever way he may be occupied.

What is the cause of this state? It is this: God is not within thy soul. Thou hast, indeed, a fictitious God within thee, but essentially it is not God. Hence as soon as thou hast interrupted thy devotions the Divine presence is gone from thee; this shows that thou art not truly God’s minister. The other reason is that a man empties his soul out on the external things of the senses and cleaves to them. If any man would be freed from multiplicity, he ought to let things of the senses flow on past him. If he must be concerned with them out of duty, it should be as one who stops for a little while to attend to something in which he is by no means deeply interested, and then hurries away; nor should he touch such matters except out of necessity. He has no inner converse with them; he is empty and free of creatures, giving them no time nor place to engage him, except when God’s interests are plainly involved. It is exactly as if he said: I seek nothing, I mean nothing, I pursue nothing but God alone. Whatsoever crosses my path I say God bless you to it, and go on my way to God.

What worse harm can hell and devils do to me than hinder my loving Him for whom all creatures continually yearn? Let a man press onward with all his might to God through everyone of his life’s happenings; let him make no great matter of what occurs to him, whether sweet or bitter. Let it all flow away behind you; meddle with it no more, for it has ceased to concern you; follow God with all your best reason. Thus may one attend to every external duty without externizing himself; thus does God remain present to his mind amid a multiplicity of affairs, while he remains safe from the effects of that multiplicity. That happy state comes only from refusing to fasten one’s spirit upon anything whatsoever except God alone. Go not forward or backward or sideways; take no account of pleasure or profit, men’s favor or their disfavor, but simply and solely consider God.

If thou shouldst unwittingly fail in this, and some motive that is not God should for a moment control thee, rise up again very quickly with an act of thy reason; turn the good ship into the right course by the rudder of holy discretion. If God’s servitor begins his work with an upright intention, and so continues it, then no matter what feeling of multiplicity he may experience, it will not essentially hurt him; it will not be enough to mislead him. God may not be present faults, nor to cleave wilfully to creatures, let not his outward occupations or any occurrences whatsoever disturb his peace of soul. In case his devotional exercises or his external duties do disturb his peace, that plainly shows that he has failed in interior recollection, and has not done his task rightly; he has not based his doing and his not doing exclusively upon God.

When a man becomes aware that God is not his only motive, then he must strive with all his might to make Him so. He must cast out all else but God, of whatever name or nature it may be. Otherwise he is like a man shot with an arrow, and which he will not allow to be extracted because of the pain that it will cause — meantime his flesh swells and putrifies. So in very truth is it with thy soul. If anything that is not God, or not on account of God, holds place there, be sure that God will not abide in thee. If thou wilt not suffer the first sharp pain of detachment from creatures, then the later pain will be much worse, misery upon misery increasing beyond all comprehension. The spirit of a man must go to God clean and empty of creatures. It must stand ready for the word and beck of God, as if to say: Dear Lord, if I could but give Thee joy in all my good works and in all my dealings with men, to that task I would humbly devote myself. Another thing is this: Whenever opportunity serves, one must fly from multiplicity and gladly choose to turn inwardly to solitude with all his faculties.

A man must serve God not as he himself wills, but according to the blessed will of God, and this rule extends to everything, both of the outer and the inner life. When one has not God as his interior guest he goes onward with uncertain step, as the Scripture says: “Woe to him that is alone, for when he falleth he hath none to lift him up” (Eccles. iv, 10). But if a man be on his guard, and if his soul is like a well-garrisoned fortress, then the enemy assaults him in vain. God is our soul’s garrison; keep Him with you securely, always realize His holy presence. When one thus possesses God he stands in need of little else; any little provision of this world’s comfort suffices him; nor is he disturbed by contradictions in his labors, or opposition from the men around him. If God be felt within the soul, it makes more progress in virtue under external difficulties than

The best state of things for us is not prosperity; then everything goes on of itself, and very smoothly. How can one tell if he be in reality a true minister of Christ if he suffers no adversity for Him? But thou mayest ask: Suppose a man fails in fidelity under stress of adversity? Let him rise up again quickly, acknowledge his misery and nothingness before God, and renew his spirit of recollection — all this the sooner the better. But do not dwell too long on thy faults, discussing sadly how this happened or how that; such a practice is indiscreet. Hast thou been unequal to duty? Then how shalt thou be made equal to it but by secretly entering deep into God? How shalt thou better run away from death than by running into Life? Life eternal and essential. Is there any better way to be warmed than to come near the fire? Lay all thy cares upon God, and He will arrange everything for the best. For thy part, trust Him implicitly and in everything that concerns thee; that done, accept all the happenings of thy life in peace of mind, and make the best of them.

But if a man will not trust God nor abandon himself to Him, if he insists on striving and straining and worrying, God often permits him to fall into deep misery and want. This is to show him how far he can go under self-guidance. But if a man sincerely turns all care over to God, then does God better manage his affairs than could all creatures together. Oh, God is full of grace; He is the fountain head of wisdom; and whoever seeks his guidance with sincere trustfulness will undoubtedly obtain it. We cannot love God too much; we cannot confide in Him too blindly — supposing our intention to be entirely upright and our fidelity unfeigned.

Now how shall this way of life be learned? How shall we acquire trust in God, all peaceful and joyful, extending over all our devotions, all our good works, felt in every place and under all conditions? This can only be learned in the interior life; it comes to us from constantly turning into the inmost depths of our spirit. For this end one needs holy leisure, some freedom from external duties, fit places and times for retirement. It is in interior recollection that this peculiar virtue of trust in God is planted and grows, puts forth

You should know, children, that some men, while outwardly spiritual, are in reality devoted to their own self-chosen spiritual ways, and on that account their lives pass along and away without their knowing how they stand with God. And they finally grow to be content with this state, calling it resignation. But, as a matter of fact, it is nothing but gross spiritual negligence. Into this slothful emptiness of soul other defects insinuate themselves; God’s holy rights in the soul are usurped by self-love or other love of creatures. For it is as impossible not to have some love or other in one’s soul as to exist without any soul at all. Whether one is or is not quite aware of this sad state, it often enough exists; and one goes along blindly, trusting to a certain sort of spirituality, certain devout practices and good works, but with no real spiritual fruit. Such a man thinks he stands on solid ground, bcause he never investigates the foundation of things in his inner spirit. At last he comes to the end and passes into eternity. He has not trodden the way that is Christ, who says: “I am the way, and the truth and the life” (John xiv, 6). Whosoever walks not in that way goes astray. It is a deadly shame that a man will study and learn many things, and himself he will neither know nor want to know.

Dear children, no man should remain in doubt about his interior life; he should know it positively — not merely by surmise, but actually — how deep God dwells in his heart, and how strong is his own yearning for God. If he is void of this holy wisdom, then let him seek it from devout and instructed men. Not fancies and surmises, but something like certainty should possess his mind about his standing with God. Let hkn realize that what he neglects now he shall never make up for hereafter, where the Blessed Virgin and all the Saints could not win him a hair’s weight of merit; no, not with tears of blood. They themselves, in their lifetime, were ever ready; they responded instantly to the heavenly Bridegroom and entered into the wedding

(Matt, xxv, 12). They were not His own; they were not in the ranks of His familiar friends gathered now close around him.

6t. Augustine says: “Nothing is so certain as death, nothing is of death. Who knows the time, who knows the manner of his departure?” Hence, nothing is so necessary as that we shall be well prepared; that we shall be sure we are well prepared, not trusting to fancies or surmises. It is to that end that we are here in our time of probation; it is not for the sake of good works alone, but for the sake of that truly instructed mind from which the good works spring as the fruit is generated by the tree.

Let all our pious exercises have that aim — more knowledge of God’s interior ways, and a nearer approach to union with Him. Whatsoever man has broken away from his life’s external ism, and is elevated in spirit above the things of time, and has ordered his ways according to God’s intimate guidance, the same cannot be involved in multiplicity. Whatsoever touches him cannot lay hold on him, nor distract his thoughts and affections from his inner life. The more a man’s spirit is joined to God the more quiet-minded he is the better ordered is his life, the less likely to be worried by his responsibilities. Here is a sign of a right-minded man: that all his work and rest shall be motived and done in such a manner as shall win his approval afterwards when he is in his better spiritual condition. So that when his dead body shall be buried in the earth his soul may instantly be united to the infinite Godhead. It is for this end alone that God has placed us in this life; and if we fail to attain it now we fail forever.

Whose image and superscription is stamped on the coin? To him, whether God or a creature, the tribute must be paid without fail. Look often, therefore, into thy deeper thoughts, and read the superscription on them: that is to say, who or what is thy best beloved? Whom dost thou have mostly in view in thy purposes? What, for the most part, solaces thee and rejoices thee and stirs thy affections? Thou art, perhaps, really inclined towards God and heavenly things, of it, that draws thee and holds thee, rather than divine things considered in themselves? If any man will discreetly question his soul about these matters, he will obtain true knowledge of himself. That will give him humble confidence that he really knows himself; surmises and guesses and uncertainties are done. If there is anything in thy deeper spirit that is not simply and purely God or has not God for its origin, whether it be thy own self or anything else, great or little, then thou hast not God within thee — supposing, of course, that this be wilful and deliberate. Thou mayst weep an ocean of tears, that helps nothing; thou must give thy spirit up wholly to God, or do without Him in time and eternity.

O, children, what ails these poor men, that, having open eyes, they yet will not see? They are not alarmed at the cunning self-deceptions of our fallen nature, its secret tendencies to selfhood, its constant return to self, its steadfast regard to self alone in all communication with creatures, and even in the service of God. A man must hasten forward without stopping. Time is short, and whatsoever has to do with God, even the smallest of His affairs, is of greater weight than all this earth’s treasures put together. Therefore, set to work earnestly, both inwardly and outwardly, to make everything point to God, and to God alone. Pray for a heart quite disengaged, so that God may work His blessed will within thee. May He help us to that freedom and detachment of spirit. Amen.