Ms C 20r

[20r°] they conclude that Jesus loves them less than this soul, and that they cannot be called to the same perfection. Since when has the Lord no longer the right to make use of one of His creatures to dispense necessary nourishment to souls whom He loves? The Lord, even at the [5] time of the Pharaohs, had this right, for in Scripture He says to this monarch: “And therefore have I raised you, that I may show MY POWER in you, and my name may be spoken of throughout all the earth.” Century has followed on century since the Most High has spoken those words, and since then His conduct has undergone no [10] change, for He is always using His creatures as instruments to carry on His work in souls.

If a piece of canvas painted on by an artist could think and speak, it certainly would not complain at being constantly touched and retouched by the brush, and would not envy the lot of that instrument, [15] for it would realize it was not to the brush but to the artist using it that it owed the beauty with which it was clothed. The brush, too, would not be able to boast of the masterpiece produced with it, as it knows that artists are not at a loss; they play with difficulties, and are pleased to choose at times weak and defective instruments.

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