The second tome of homilies of such matters as were promised, and entitled in…The second tome of homilees of such matters as were promised, and intituled in…

Now shall be showed briefly what time is meet for fasting, for all times serve not for all things. But as the wise man saith: All things have their times. There is a time to weep, and a time again to laugh, a time to mourn, ¹and a time to rejoice. &c. Our Saviour Christ excused his disciples, & reproved the Pharisees, because they neither regarded the use of fasting, ⟨p. 191⟩nor considered what time was meet for the same. Which both he teacheth in his answer, saying, The children of the marriage can not ²mourn, while the bridegroom is with them. Their question was of fasting, his answer is of mourning, signifying unto them plainly, that the outward fast of the body, is no fast before God, except it be accompanied with the inward fast, which is a mourning and a lamentation in the heart, as is before declared. Concerning ³the time of fasting, he saith? The days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, in those days they shall fast. By this it is manifest, that it is no time of fasting while the marriage lasteth, and the bridegroom is there present. But when the marriage is ended, and the bridegroom gone, then is it a meet time to fast. Now to make plain unto you what is the sense and meaning of these words: We are at the marriage, and again, The bridegroom is taken from us. Ye shall note, that so long as GOD revealeth his mercy unto us, and giveth us of his benefits, either spiritual or corporal, we are said to be with the bridegroom at the marriage. So was that good old father Jacob at the marriage, when he understood that his son Joseph was alive, and ruled all Egypt under king Pharaoh. So was David in the marriage with the bridegroom, when he had gotten the victory of great Goliath, and had smitten of his head. Judith and all the people of Bethulia were the children of the wedding, and had the bridegroom with them, when God had by the hand of a ⟨p. 192⟩woman slain Holofernes, the grand captain of the Assyrians host, and discomfited all their enemies. Thus were the Apostles the children of the marriage while Christ was corporally present with them, & defended them from all dangers, both spiritual and corporal. But the marriage is said then to be ended, and the bridegroom to be gone, when almighty God smiteth us with affliction, and seemeth to leave us in the middest of a number of adversities.