On Sunday, the day of his death, he had the passion of our blessed
saviour read to him out of St. John's gospel, as on every other day of
that week, and spoke of the mercy of his redeemer, and his confidence
in his merits.
As his end evidently approached, the brethren of the convent came to
pronounce the last prayers, with which he could only join in his
thoughts, being able to pronounce no more than these words, "Esto
perpetua," mayst thou last for ever; which was understood to be a
prayer for the prosperity of his country.
Thus died father Paul, in the seventy-first year of his age; hated by
the Romans, as their most formidable enemy, and honoured by all the
learned for his abilities, and by the good for his integrity. His
detestation of the corruption of the Roman church appears in all his
writings, but particularly in this memorable passage of one of his
letters: "There is nothing more essential than to ruin the reputation
of the jesuits; by the ruin of the jesuits, Rome will be ruined; and
if Rome is ruined, religion will reform of itself."
He appears, by many passages of his life, to have had a high esteem of
the church of England; and his friend, father Fulgentio, who had
adopted all his notions, made no scruple of administering to Dr.
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