The Works of John Dryden, now first collected in eighteen volumes. Volume 16

by John Dryden

No man perhaps was ever known to have run more dangers, both by land and sea, without reckoning into the account the tempests which he suffered in ten years of almost continual navigation. It is known, that being at the Moluccas, and passing from isle to isle, he was thrice shipwrecked, though we are not certain of the time or places; and once he was for three days and nights together on a plank, at the mercy of the winds and waves. The barbarians have often shot their arrows at him, and more than once he fell into the hands of an enraged multitude. One day the Saracens pursued him, and endeavoured to have stoned him; and the Brachmans frequently sought after him to have murdered him, even to that point of merciless barbarity, as to get fire to all the houses where they imagined he might lie concealed. But none of all these dangers were able to affright him; and the apprehension of dying could never hinder him from performing his ordinary functions. It seemed that even dangers served to the redoubling of his courage, and that, by being too intrepid, he sometimes entered into the extreme of rashness. Being at Japan, he reprehended the king of Amanguchi so severely for the infamy and scandal of his vices, that Father John Fernandez, (who served him for interpreter, as being more conversant than the saint in the language of the court) was amazed and trembled in pronouncing what the Father put into his mouth; as we are given to understand in a letter written by the same Fernandez. Xavier, one day perceiving the fear of his companion, forbade him absolutely either to change or soften any of his words: "I obeyed him," says Fernandez, "but expected every moment when the barbarian should strike me with his scymiter, and confess my apprehensions of death were as much too great, as the concernment of Father Francis was too little."

In effect, he was so far from fearing death, that he looked on it as a most pleasing object. "If we die for so good a cause," said Xavier on another occasion, "we ought to place it amongst the greatest benefits we receive from God; and shall be very much obliged to those, who, freeing us from a continual death, such as is this mortal life, shall put us in possession of an eternal happiness: So that we are resolved to preach the truth amongst them, in despite of all their threatenings, and, encouraged by the hopes of divine assistance, obey the precept of our Saviour, who commands us to prefer the salvation of others above our lives."

In the most hazardous undertakings, he hoped all things from God, and from thence drew his assurance of daring all things. Behold what he says himself concerning his voyage of Japan: "We set out full of confidence in God, and hope, that, having him for our conductor, we shall triumph over all his enemies.

"As to what remains, we fear not to enter into the lists with the doctors of Japan; for what available knowledge can they have, who are ignorant of the only true God, and of his only Son our Lord Jesus? And besides, what can we justly apprehend, who have no other aim than the glory of God and Jesus Christ, the preaching of the gospel, and the salvation of souls? supposing that we were not only in a kingdom of barbarians, but in the very dominion of devils, and that naked and disarmed, neither the most cruel barbarity, nor the rage of hell, could hurt us without God's permission. We are afraid of nothing but offending God Almighty; and provided that we offend not him, we promise ourselves, through his assistance, an assured victory over all our enemies. Since he affords sufficient strength to every man for his service, and for avoiding sin, we hope his mercy will not be wanting to us. But as the sum of all consists in the good or evil use of his benefits, we also hope he will give us grace to employ ourselves for his glory, by the prayers of his spouse, and our holy mother the Church, and particularly by the intercession of our Society, and those who are well affected to it. Our greatest, comfort proceeds from this, that God beholds the scope of this our voyage, that our only aim is to make known the Creator of the universe to souls which are made after his own image; to bring those souls to give him the worship due to him, and to spread the Christian religion through all regions.

"With these encouragements, we doubt not but the issue of our voyage will be prosperous; and two things especially seem to assure us, that we shall vanquish all the opposition of hell; the one is the greatness of our holy enterprize, the other is the care of Divine Providence, whose dominion is of no less extent over devils than over men. I acknowledge, that in this voyage, I foresee not only great labours, but also dangers of almost inevitable death; and this imagination is frequently presented to my thoughts, that if those of our Society, who are endued with the greatest stock of knowledge, should come into the Indies, they would certainly accuse us of too much rashness, and would be apt to think, that, in exposing ourselves to these manifest dangers, we tempted God. Nevertheless, upon a more serious reflection, I cease to fear; and hope that the spirit of our Lord, which animates our Society, will regulate their judgments concerning it. For my own particular, I think continually on what I have heard our good Father Ignatius often say, that those of our Society ought to exert their utmost force in vanquishing themselves, and banish from them all those fears which usually hinder us from placing our whole confidence in God. For, though divine hope is purely and simply the grace of God, and that he dispenses it, according to his pleasure, nevertheless, they who endeavour to overcome themselves, receive it more frequently than others. As there is a manifest difference betwixt those, who, abounding with all things, trust in God, and those, who, being sufficiently provided with all necessaries, yet bereave themselves of them, in imitation of Jesus Christ; so is there also, in those who trust in God's providence, when they are out of danger, and those who, with the assistance of his grace, dare voluntarily expose themselves to the greatest hazards, which are in their proper choice and power to shun."

It was in the spirit of this holy confidence, that the saint, writing to Simon Rodriguez, speaks in this manner to him:—

"Our God holds in his hand the tempests which infest the seas of China and Japan; the rocks, the gulphs, and banks of sands, which are formidably known by so many shipwrecks, are all of them under his dominion. He is Sovereign over all those pirates which cruize the seas, and exercise their cruelties on the Portuguese: and for this reason I cannot fear them; I only fear lest God should punish me for being too pusillanimous in his service; and so little capable, through my own frailty, of extending the kingdom of his Son amongst those nations who know him not."

He speaks in the same spirit to the Fathers of Goa, in giving them an account of his arrival at Japan: "We are infinitely obliged to God, for permitting us to enter into those barbarous countries, where we are to be regardless, and in a manner forgetful of ourselves; for the enemies of the true religion, being masters every where, on whom can we rely, but on God alone? and to whom can we have recourse besides him? In our countries, where the Christian faith is flourishing, it happens, I know not how, that every thing hinders us from reposing ourselves on God; the love of our relations, the bonds of friendship, the conveniences of life, and the remedies which we use in sickness; but here, being distant from the place of our nativity, and living amongst barbarians, where all human succours are wanting to us, it is of absolute necessity that our confidence in God alone should be our aid."

But the saint perhaps never discoursed better on this subject, than in a letter written at his return from the Moluccas, after a dangerous navigation. His words are these: "It has pleased God, that we should not perish; it has also pleased him, to instruct us even by our dangers, and to make us know, by our own experience, how weak we are, when we rely only on ourselves, or on human succours. For when we come to understand the deceitfulness of our hopes, and are entirely diffident of human helps, we rely on God, who alone can deliver us out of those dangers, into which we have engaged ourselves on his account: we shall soon experience that he governs all things; and that the heavenly pleasures, which he confers on his servants on such occasions, ought to make us despise the greatest hazards; even death itself has nothing in it which is dreadful to them, who have a taste of those divine delights; and though, when we have escaped those perils of which we speak, we want words to express the horror of them, there remains in our heart a pleasing memory of the favours which God has done us; and that remembrance excites us, day and night, to labour in the service of so good a Master: we are also enlivened by it to honour him during the rest of our lives, hoping, that, out of his abundant mercy, he will bestow on us a new strength, and fresh vigour, to serve him faithfully and generously, even to our death."

"May it please the Divine Goodness," he says elsewhere, "that good men, whom the devil endeavours to affright in the service of God, might fear no other thing besides displeasing him, in leaving off what they have undertaken for his sake. If they would do this, how happy a life would they then lead! how much would they advance in virtue, knowing, by their own experience, that they can do nothing of themselves, but that they can do all things by the assistance of his grace!"