This means of escape has been relied
upon, with greater or less faith, from those days to these.
Various medieval saints and reformers, and devoted men in all
centuries, from St. Giles to John Wesley, have used it with
results claimed to be miraculous. Whatever theory any thinking
man may hold in the matter, he will certainly not venture a
reproachful word: such prayers have been in all ages a natural
outcome of the mind of man in trouble.[340b]
But against the "power of the air" were used other means of a
very different character and tendency, and foremost among these
was exorcism. In an exorcism widely used and ascribed to Pope
Gregory XIII, the formula is given: "I, a priest of Christ,...
do command ye, most foul spirits, who do stir up these
clouds,... that ye depart from them, and disperse yourselves
into wild and untilled places, that ye may be no longer able to
harm men or animals or fruits or herbs, or whatsoever is
designed for human use." But this is mild, indeed, compared to
some later exorcisms, as when the ritual runs: "All the people
shall rise, and the priest, turning toward the clouds, shall
pronounce these words: `I exorcise ye, accursed demons, who have
dared to use, for the accomplishment of your iniquity, those
powers of Nature by which God in divers ways worketh good to
mortals; who stir up winds, gather vapours, form clouds, and
condense them into hail.
Pages:
598
599
600
601
602
603
604
605
606
607
608
609
610
611
612
613
614
615
616
617
618
619
620
621
622