Speculum amatorum mundi

saying: There is nothing but vile love in this age, nor secure faith, because pride, avarice or greed, and luxury have contaminated all things that are its own. For law has receded from priests; justice from princes; counsel from the elders; religion from the clerics; love from parents; faith from the people; reverence from subjects; the love of chastity from virgins; modesty from the married. And why is it that the Antichrist does not come? For already by many Christ is unknown, and by the powerful he is held as if a stranger. Thus Bernard. We must strive, therefore, that by devoutly attending to the sound doctrine of the Doctor of the Gentiles original: "doctoris gencium", referring to St. Paul previously mentioned, we may cautiously and wisely fix our steps in this valley of tears, and with open eyes, at least of the inner man, walk perseveringly upon the royal road that leads to the heavenly fatherland from which we have been exiled by sin, not looking back nor wandering by declining from it, and thus fall into the deep of eternal damnation. To which the Lord exhorts us through the prophet Isaiah, saying: This is the way, walk in it, neither inclining to the right nor to the left. Therefore, some directive of this way must here be devoutly and diligently attended to in the following, by which Christians may be guided directly, with all deviation excluded, along the royal road that leads to the heavenly fatherland. Which road, indeed, since it is strict and narrow, few find, and alas, fewer pass through it; which the Savior hints to us in Matthew 7: Enter through the narrow gate, for the path that leads to heaven is narrow and few find it. But the gate is wide and the way is spacious that leads to the perdition of hell, where indeed is the perdition of nature, grace, and glory, and many enter through it. Regarding these words, the interlinear gloss says: Although charity is wide, yet through the narrow and arduous it leads man away from the earth. There also Augustine: It is sought, but not by all

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