[Le Pere Croiset, S.J., was born at Marseilles, about the middle of the seventeenth century. His "Exercises of Piety," and his other religious works, are sufficient to prove that he was one of the great masters of the spiritual life.]
Why fear? says St Augustine; you have a God for a protector and His Providence for a guide.
What! says the holy doctor, you fear to perish under the guidance of God, and under the protection of His Providence? Times ergo ne pereas f Is it that you know not that not a single hair can fall off without His approval? Cujus capillus non peribit. Ah! if He takes so much care of things that are of little or no consequence, how safe ought we not to feel when we know with what care He watches a soul which is so precious to Him?
I am under the protection of the Lord, says the prophet; there is nothing He will not fail to supply me with. It is true that I am poor and am destitute of everything, but the Lord takes care of me, and He has undertaken to provide for my wants; nothing can happen to me — sin excepted — without His concurrence. What have I to fear?
What a host of consoling reflections cannot we not find in the Divine Providence over His creatures! How sweet to think with what wisdom our Lord disposes of everything for His glory and our salvation! The cunning and malice of an enemy, the ill-will of an envious man, a hundred accidents of this life, all end advantageously to those who love their God.
It is true that we are but exiles and travellers in this fleeting world, that we therein journey through difficult and dangerous paths, but what does God not do — yes, and daily too — to prevent His servants from straying or from, perishing? He not only is their guide and protector, but He showers down His graces, and even makes use of His angels to help them. He warns them, by secret inspira-
