without a just knowledge of the goodness of God and the malice of sin.
Grace, as you have already learned, causes God to dwell in our souls; and as God, in the words of St. John, is "the true Light, which enlighteneth every man that cometh into this world,"[1] "the purer a soul is the brighter will this Light shine in her, just as glass, according as it is clearer, reflects more strongly the rays of the sun. Hence, St. Augustine calls God the "wisdom of a purified soul,"[2] because He fills her with His light, which enables her to apprehend all that is necessary for salvation. Nor should this surprise us when we consider with what care God provides even the brute creation with all that is necessary for the maintenance of life. For whence is that natural instinct which teaches the sheep to distinguish among plants those which are poisonous and those which are wholesome? Who has taught them to run from the wolf and to follow the dog? Was it not God, the Author of nature? Since, then, God endows the brute creation with the discernment necessary for the preservation of their animal life, have we not much more reason to feel that He will communicate to the just the knowledge necessary for the maintenance of their spiritual life?
This example teaches us not only that such a knowledge really exists, but also marks the character of this knowledge. It is not a mere theory or speculation; it is eminently practical. Hence the difference between knowledge di-
