and strive still against it,
matter of conflict and merit and not any sin at all.

Some have, with holding a knife in their hand, suddenly thought
upon the killing of themselves, and forthwith, in devising what a
horrible thing it would be if they should mishap to do so, have
fallen into a fear that they would do so indeed. And they have,
with long and often thinking thereon, imprinted that fear so sore
in their imagination, that some of them have not afterwards cast
it off without great difficulty. And some could never in their
life be rid of it, but have afterward in conclusion miserably done
it indeed. But like as, where the devil useth the blood of a man's
own body toward his purpose in provoking him to lechery, the man
must and doth with grace and wisdom resist it; so must the man do
whose melancholy humours and devil abuseth, toward the casting of
such a desperate dread into his heart.

VINCENT: I pray you, uncle, what advice would be to be given him
in such a case?

ANTHONY: Surely, methinketh his help standeth in two things:
counsel and prayer.

First, as concerning counsel: Like as it may be that he hath two
things that hold him in his temptation; that is, some evil humours
of his own body, and the cursed devil that abuseth them to his
pernicious purpose, so must he needs against them twain the
counsel of two manner of folk; that is, physicians for the body
and physicians for the soul. The bodily physician shall consider
what abundance of these evil humours the man hath, that the devil
maketh his instruments, in moving the man toward that fearful
affection. And he shall proceed by fitting diet and suitable
medicines to resist them, as well as by purgations to disburden
the body of them.

Let no man think it strange that I would advise a man to take
counsel for the body, in such spiritual suffering. For since the
body and the soul are so knit and joined together that they both
make between them one person, the distemperance of either one
engendereth sometimes the distemperance of both twain. And
therefore I would advise every man in every sickness of the body
to be shriven and to seek of a good spiritual physician the sure
health of his soul. For this shall not only serve against peril
that may peradventure grow further by that sickness than in the
beginning men think were likely, but the comfort of it (and God's
favour increasing with it) shall also do the body good. For this
cause the blessed apost