Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

100 THE MUST AND THE SECOND MAN.virginal life ; in others keeps conjugal fidelity; inthese one thing, O / in those another ;/each have theirproper work, but all alike live. Now, what thesoul is to the human body, that is the Holy Spiritto the body of Christ, which is the Church : whatthe soul does in all the limbs of an individual body,that does the Holy Spirit in the whole Church.But see what you have to avoid, what to observe,and what to fear. It happens that, in the humanbody, or in any other body, some member may becut off, hand, finger, or foot. Does the soul followit when cut off ? As long as it was in the body itlived: when cut off, it loses life. So too the Christianman is a Catholic while he lives in the body ;when cut off, he becomes a heretic; the Spirit does31not follow the amputated limb."But what is this " power of the Holy Ghostcoming upon men"? It is the whole treasure oftruth and grace, which dwelt first in the naturalbody of Christ, which He came to bestow on men,which He withdrew not when He ascended, but ofwhich He promised the continuance in the Personof the Holy Ghost, and fulfils by that Person indwellingin the Church. It was the imparting thewhole treasure of truth and grace by such an in-dwelling which made it expedient for Him to go,which made His bodily departure not a loss, but again, which was " the promise'7 of which He spokeon that last night, and which was expressly declared31 S. Aug. serm. 267, torn. v. p. 1090 e.