PREFACE.

...too little. original: parum (completing the word from the previous page fragment "pa-") More earnestly must true wisdom be investigated, because it has revealed to men a long life secure from all poverty, a contempt for the world, divine contemplation, a knowledge of mysteries both natural and supernatural, and a pure revelation of divine majesty, all to be received with wonder.

But truly, in reflecting on this, I am distressed with no small grief that the ancient wise men sowed the tree and the fruit of their knowledge so sparingly and greedily The author critiquing the "hermetic" or secretive nature of ancient philosophers who did not share their findings. that they have benefited our own age not at all. For where in the world (alas!) and in what corner of the globe should we search for the fountain and origin of that ancient wisdom? If we flee for the sake of counsel to the Sacred Bible, in which the most precious treasure of all is stored, we will surely find there letters that kill and lead into error, so that without the spirit of the living God—whose role alone is to give life—we cannot draw divine mysteries from it. As seen in 2 Corinthians 3 Refers to 2 Corinthians 3:6: "the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.", for under the husk original: cortice (literally "bark" or "cortex"); a common metaphor for the literal meaning of scripture hiding a spiritual core. of words, divine secrets lie hidden and concealed.

But since the Lord God is gracious and full of mercy, he has promised that he would open the door of his knowledge and revelation to us if we knock. Therefore, let us seek; let us not quench the spirit nor despise prophecies, but test all things and hold fast to what is good (1 Thessalonians 5).

The Fama The Fama Fraternitatis (The Discovery of the Brotherhood), the first Rosicrucian manifesto, which caused a sensation in Europe upon its publication in the early 17th century. of the Society of the Rosy Cross has traveled through almost all the provinces of Europe and has at last reached our ears, [proclaiming] its admirable knowledge...

A 4