Introduction to the

Devout Life

St. Francis de Sales
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Preface by the Author

DEAR reader, I request you to read this Preface for your own satisfaction as
well as mine.

The flower-girl Glycera was so skilled in varying the arrangement and
combination of her flowers, that out of the same kinds she produced a great
variety of bouquets; so that the painter Pausias, [1] who sought to rival
the diversity of her art, was brought to a standstill, for he could not vary
his painting so endlessly as Glycera varied her bouquets. Even so the Holy
Spirit of God disposes and arranges the devout teaching which He imparts
through the lips and pen of His servants with such endless variety, that,
although the doctrine is ever one and the same, their treatment of it is
different, according to the varying minds whence that treatment flows.
Assuredly I neither desire, nor ought to write in this book anything but
what has been already said by others before me. I offer you the same
flowers, dear reader, but the bouquet will be somewhat different from
theirs, because it is differently made up.

Almost all those who have written concerning the devout life have had
chiefly in view persons who have altogether quitted the world; or at any
rate they have taught a manner of devotion which would lead to such total
retirement. But my object is to teach those who are living in towns, at
court, in their own households, and whose calling obliges them to a social
life, so far as externals are concerned. Such persons are apt to reject all
attempt to lead a devout life under the plea of impossibility; imagining
that like as no animal presumes to eat of the plant commonly called Palma
Christi, so no one who is immersed in the tide of temporal affairs ought to
presume to seek the palm of Christian piety.

And so I have shown them that, like as the mother-of-pearl lives in the sea
without ever absorbing one drop of salt water; and as near the Chelidonian
Isles springs of sweet water start forth in the midst of the ocean [2] and
as the firemoth [3] hovers in the flames without burning her wings; even so
a true stedfast soul may live in the world untainted by worldly breath,
finding a well-spring of holy piety amid the bitter waves of society, and
hovering amid the flames of earthly lusts without singeing the wings of its
devout life. Of a truth this is not easy, and for that very reason I would
have Christians bestow more care and energy than heretofore on the attempt,
and thus it is that, while conscious of my own weakness, I endeavour by this
book to afford some help to those who are undertaking this noble work with a
generous heart.

It is not however, my own choice or wish which brings this Introduction
before the public. A certain soul, abounding in uprightness and virtue, some
time since conceived a great desire, through God’s Grace, to aspire more
earnestly after a devout life, and craved my private help with this view. I
was bound to her by various ties, and had long observed her remarkable
capacity for this attainment, so I took great pains to teach her, and having
led her through the various exercises suitable to her circumstances and her
aim, I let her keep written records thereof, to which she might have
recourse when necessary. These she communicated to a learned and devout
Religious, who, believing that they might be profitable to others, urged me
to publish them, in which he succeeded the more readily that his friendship
exercised great influence upon my will, and his judgment great authority
over my judgment.

So, in order to make the work more useful and acceptable, I have reviewed
the papers and put them together, adding several matters carrying out my
intentions; but all this has been done with scarce a moment’s leisure.
Consequently you will find very little precision in the work, but rather a
collection of well intentioned instructions, explained in clear intelligible
words, at least that is what I have sought to give. But as to a polished
style, I have not given that a thought, having so much else to do.

I have addressed my instructions to Philothea, [4] as adapting what was
originally written for an individual to the common good of souls. I have
made use of a name suitable to all who seek after the devout life, Philothea
meaning one who loves God. Setting then before me a soul, who through the
devout life seeks after the love of God, I have arranged this Introduction
in five parts, in the first of which I seek by suggestions and exercises to
turn Philothea’s mere desire into a hearty resolution; which she makes after
her general confession, by a deliberate protest, followed by Holy Communion,
in which, giving herself to her Saviour and receiving Him, she is happily
received into His Holy Love. After this, I lead her on by showing her two
great means of closer union with His Divine Majesty; the Sacraments, by
which that Gracious Lord comes to us, and mental prayer, by which He draws
us to Him. This is the Second Part.

In the Third Part I set forth how she should practise certain virtues most
suitable to her advancement, only dwelling on such special points as she
might not find elsewhere, or be able to make out for herself. In the Fourth
Part I bring to light the snares of some of her enemies, and show her how to
pass through them safely and come forth unhurt. And finally, in the Fifth
Part, I lead her apart to refresh herself and take breath, and renew her
strength, so that she may go on more bravely afterwards, and make good
progress in the devout life.

This is a cavilling age, and I foresee that many will say that only
Religious and persons living apart are fit to undertake the guidance of
souls in such special devout ways; that it requires more time than a Bishop
of so important a diocese as mine can spare, and that it must take too much
thought from the important duties with which I am charged.

But, dear reader, I reply with S. Denis that the task of leading souls
towards perfection appertains above all others to Bishops, and that because
their Order is supreme among men, as the Seraphim among Angels, and
therefore their leisure cannot be better spent. The ancient Bishops and
Fathers of the Primitive Church were, to say the least, as devoted to their
duties as we are, yet they did not refuse to undertake the individual
guidance of souls which sought their help, as we see by their epistles;
thereby imitating the Apostles, who, while reaping the universal
world-harvest, yet found time to gather up certain individual sheaves with
special and personal affection. Who can fail to remember that Timothy,
Titus, Philemon, Onesimus, Phekla, Appia, were the beloved spiritual
children of S. Paul, as S. Mark and S. Petronilla were of S. Peter (for
Baronius and Galonius have given learned and absolute proof that S.
Petronilla was not his carnal but spiritual daughter). And is not one of S.
John’s Canonical Epistles addressed to the “elect lady” whom he loved in the
faith?

I grant that the guidance of individual souls is a labour, but it is a
labour full of consolation, even as that of harvesters and grape-gatherers,
who are never so well pleased as when most heavily laden. It is a labour
which refreshes and invigorates the heart by the comfort which it brings to
those who bear it; as is said to be the case with those who carry bundles of
cinnamon in Arabia Felix. It is said that when the tigress finds one of her
young left behind by the hunter in order to delay her while he carries off
the rest of her cubs, she takes it up, however big, without seeming
over-weighted, and speeds only the more swiftly to her lair, maternal love
lightening the load. How much more readily will the heart of a spiritual
father bear the burden of a soul he finds craving after perfection carrying
it in his bosom as a mother her babe, without feeling weary of the precious
burden?

But unquestionably it must be a really paternal heart that can do this, and
therefore it is that the Apostles and their apostolic followers are wont to
call their disciples not merely their children, but, even more tenderly
still, their “little children.”

One thing more, dear reader. It is too true that I who write about the
devout life am not myself devout, but most certainly I am not without the
wish to become so, and it is this wish which encourages me to teach you. A
notable literary man has said that a good way to learn is to study, a better
to listen, and the best to teach. And S. Augustine, writing to the devout
Flora, [5] says, that giving is a claim to receive, and teaching a way to
learn.

Alexander caused the lovely Campaspe, [6] who was so dear to him, to be
painted by the great Apelles, who, by dint of contemplating her as he drew,
so graved her features in his heart and conceived so great a passion for
her, that Alexander discovered it, and, pitying the artist, gave him her to
wife, depriving himself for love of Apelles of the dearest thing he had in
the world, in which, says Pliny, he displayed the greatness of his soul as
much as in the mightiest victory. And so, friendly reader, it seems to me
that as a Bishop, God wills me to frame in the hearts of His children not
merely ordinary goodness, but yet more His own most precious devotion; and
on my part I undertake willingly to do so, as much out of obedience to the
call of duty as in the hope that, while fixing the image in others’ hearts,
my own may haply conceive a holy love; and that if His Divine Majesty sees
me deeply in love, He may give her to me in an eternal marriage. The
beautiful and chaste Rebecca, as she watered Isaac’s camels, was destined to
be his bride, and received his golden earrings and bracelets, and so I rely
on the boundless Goodness of my God, that while I lead His beloved lambs to
the wholesome fountain of devotion, He will take my soul to be His bride,
giving me earrings of the golden words of love, and strengthening my arms to
carry out its works, wherein lies the essence of all true devotion, the
which I pray His Heavenly Majesty to grant to me and to all the children of
His Church that Church to which I would ever submit all my writings,
actions, words, will and thoughts.

ANNECY, S. Magdalene’s Day, 1608.
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[1] 1 Pausias of Sicyon (B.C. 368); see Plin. Hist. Nat. xxxv. 11-40. A
portrait of Glycera, the young flower-girl whom he loved, with a garland of
flowers, was one of his masterpieces. It was called the Stephane-plocos
[??????????????], or garland wreather, and was purchased by L. Lucullus at
Athens for two talents.

[2] These islands are in the Mediterranean Sea, in the Gulf of Lycia.

[3] ??????????

[4] The address to Philothea by name has been omitted, as being somewhat
stiff and stilted, and the term child or daughter used instead, but the
omission in no way alters the sense or application of any sentence.

[5] This is probably the person mentioned as “our most religious daughter
Flora” in S. Augustine’s Treatise “On care to be had for the Dead”,
addressed to his fellow Bishop Paulinus. See Library of the Fathers, S.
Augustine’s Short Treatises, p. 517.2 Plin. Hist. Nat. l. xxv. c. 10.

[6] Plin. Hist. Nat. l. xxv. c. 10.
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CONTENTS.

Preface by the Author . . . v

PART I.

COUNSELS AND PRACTICES SUITABLE FOR THE SOUL’S GUIDANCE FROM THE FIRST
ASPIRATION AFTER A DEVOUT LIFE TO THE POINT WHEN IT ATTAINS A CONFIRMED
RESOLUTION TO FOLLOW THE SAME.

I. What True Devotion is . . . 1 II. The Nature and Excellence of Devotion .
. . 5 III. Devotion is suitable to every Vocation and Profession . . . 8 IV.
The Need of a Guide for those Who Would enter upon and advance in the Devout
Life . . . 11 V. The First Step must be Purifying the Soul . . . 15 VI. The
First Purification, namely, from Mortal Sin . . . 18 VII. The Second
Purification, from all Sinful Affections . . . 20 VIII. How to effect this
Second Purification . . . 22 IX. First Meditation—Of Creation . . . 24 X.
Second Meditation—Of the End for which we were Created . . . 27 XI. Third
Meditation—Of the Gifts of God . . . 30 XII. Fourth Meditation—On Sin . . .
32 XIII. Fifth Meditation—On Death . . . 35 XIV. Sixth Meditation—On
Judgment . . . 38 XV. Seventh Meditation—Of Hell . . . 41 XVI. Eighth
Meditation—On Paradise . . . 43 XVII. Ninth Meditation On the Choice open to
you between Heaven and Hell . . . 45 XVIII. Tenth Meditation—How the Soul
chooses the Devout Life . . . 48 XIX. How to make a General Confession . . .
51 XX. A hearty Protest made with the object of confirming the Soul’s
resolution to serve God, as a conclusion to its Acts of Penitence . . . 53
XXI. Conclusion of this First Purification . . . 56 XXII. The Necessity of
Purging away all tendency to Venial Sins . . . 57 XXIII. It is needful to
put away all Inclination for Useless and Dangerous Things . . . 60 XXIV. All
Evil Inclinations must be purged away . . . 62

PART II.

CONTAINING SUNDRY COUNSELS AS TO UPLIFTING THE SOUL TO GOD IN PRAYER AND THE
USE OF THE SACRAMENTS.

I. The Necessity of Prayer . . . 64 II. A short Method of Meditation. And
first, the Presence of God, the First Point of Preparation . . . 68 III.
Invocation, the Second Point of Preparation . . . 72 IV. The Third Point of
Preparation, representing the Mystery to be meditated to your Imagination .
. . 73 V. Considerations, the Second Part of Meditation . . . 74 VI. The
Third Part of Meditation, Affections and Resolutions . . . 75 VII. The
Conclusion and Spiritual Bouquet . . . 77 VIII. Some Useful Hints as to
Meditation . . . 78 IX. Concerning Dryness in Meditation . . . 81 X. Morning
Prayer . . . 83 XI. Evening Prayer and Examination of Conscience . . . 85
XII. On Spiritual Retirement . . . 87 XIII. Aspirations, Ejaculatory Prayer
and Holy Thoughts . . . 90 XIV. Of Holy Communion, and how to join in it . .
. 98 XV. Of the other Public Offices of the Church . . . 101 XVI. How the
Saints are united to us . . . 103 XVII. How to Hear and Read God’s Word . .
. 105 XVIII. How to receive Inspirations . . . 107 XIX. On Confession . . .
111 XX. Of Frequent Communion . . . 116 XXI. How to Communicate . . . 120

PART III.

CONTAINING COUNSELS CONCERNING THE PRACTICE OF VIRTUE.

I. How to select that which we should chiefly Practise . . . 124 II. The
same Subject continued . . . 131 III. On Patience . . . 136 IV. On Exterior
Humility . . . 142 V. On Interior Humility . . . 147 VI. Humility makes us
rejoice in our own Abjection . . . 153 VII. How to combine due care for a
Good Reputation with Humility . . . 158 VIII. Gentleness towards others and
Remedies against Anger . . . 163 IX. On Gentleness towards Ourselves . . .
169 X. We must attend to the Business of Life carefully, but without
Eagerness or Over-anxiety . . . 173 XI. On Obedience . . . 176 XII. On
Purity . . . 180 XIII. How to maintain Purity . . . 182 XIV. On Poverty of
Spirit amid Riches . . . 185 XV. How to exercise real Poverty, although
actually Rich . . . 188 XVI. How to possess a rich Spirit amid real Poverty
. . . 193 XVII. On Friendship: Evil and Frivolous Friendship . . . 196
XVIII. On Frivolous Attachments . . . 198 XIX. Of Real Friendship . . . 201
XX. Of the Difference between True and False Friendship . . . 205 XXI.
Remedies against Evil Friendships . . . 208 XXII. Further Advice concerning
Intimacies . . . 212 XXIII. On the Practice of Bodily Mortification . . .
215 XXIV. Of Society and Solitude . . . 223 XXV. On Modesty in Dress . . .
227 XXVI. Of Conversation; and, first, how to Speak of God . . . 229 XXVII.
Of Unseemly Words, and the Respect due to Others . . . 231 XXVIII. Of Hasty
Judgments . . . 234 XXIX. On Slander . . . 241 XXX. Further Counsels as to
Conversation . . . 249 XXXI. Of Amusements and Recreations: what are
allowable . . . 252 XXXII. Of Forbidden Amusements . . . 254 XXXIII. Of
Balls, and other Lawful but Dangerous Amusements . . . 255 XXXIV. When to
use such Amusements rightly . . . 259 XXXV. We must be Faithful in Things
Great and Small . . . 260 XXXVI. Of a Well-balanced, Reasonable Mind . . .
264 XXXVII. Of Wishes . . . 267 XXXVIII. Counsels to Married People . . .
270 XXXIX. The Sanctity of the Marriage Bed . . . 280 XL. Counsels to Widows
. . . 281 XLI. One Word to Maidens . . . 289

PART IV.

CONTAINING NEEDFUL COUNSELS CONCERNING SOME ORDINARY TEMPTATIONS.

I. We must not trifle with the Words of worldly Wisdom . . . 290 II. The
need of a Good Courage . . . 294 III. Of Temptations, and the difference
between experiencing them and consenting to them . . . 296 IV. Two striking
illustrations of the same . . . 300 V. Encouragement for the Tempted Soul .
. . 302 VI. When Temptation and Delectation are Sin . . . 304 VII. Remedies
for Great Occasions . . . 307 VIII. How to resist Minor Temptations . . .
310 IX. How to remedy Minor Temptations . . . 311 X. How to strengthen the
Heart against Temptation . . . 313 XI. Anxiety of Mind . . . 315 XII. Of
Sadness and Sorrow . . . 319 XIII. Of Spiritual and Sensible Consolations,
and how to receive them . . . 323 XIV. Of Dryness and Spiritual Barrenness .
. . 333 XV. In Illustration . . . 340

PART V.

CONTAINING COUNSELS AND PRACTICES FOR RENEWING AND CONFIRMING THE SOUL IN
DEVOTION.

I. It is well yearly to renew Good Resolutions by means of the following
Exercises . . . 346 II. Meditation on the Benefit conferred on us by God in
calling us to His Service . . . 348 III. Examination of the Soul as to its
Progress in the Devout Life . . . 351 IV. Examination of the Soul’s
Condition as regards God . . . 354 V. Examination of your Condition as
regards yourself . . . 357 VI. Examination of the Soul’s Condition as
regards our Neighbour . . . 358 VII. Examination as to the Affections of the
Soul . . . 359 VIII. The Affections to be excited after such Examination . .
. 361 IX. Reflections suitable to the renewal of Good Resolutions . . . 362
X. First Consideration—Of the Worth of Souls . . . 363 XI. Second
Consideration—On the Excellence of Virtue . . . 364 XII. The Example of the
Saints . . . 366 XIII. The Love which Jesus Christ bears to us . . . 367
XIV. The Eternal Love of God for us . . . 369 XV. General Affections which
should result from these Considerations, and Conclusion of the Exercise . .
. 370 XVI. The Impressions which should remain after this Exercise . . . 372
XVII. An Answer to Two Objections which may be made to this Book . . . 373
XVIII. Three Important and Final Counsels . . . 375
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PART I. COUNSELS AND PRACTICES SUITABLE FOR THE SOUL’S GUIDANCE FROM THE FIRST
ASPIRATION AFTER A DEVOUT LIFE TO THE POINT WHEN IT ATTAINS A CONFIRMED
RESOLUTION TO FOLLOW THE SAME.
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CHAPTER I. What true Devotion is.

YOU aim at a devout life, dear child, because as a Christian you know that
such devotion is most acceptable to God’s Divine Majesty. But seeing that
the small errors people are wont to commit in the beginning of any under
taking are apt to wax greater as they advance, and to become irreparable at
last, it is most important that you should thoroughly understand wherein
lies the grace of true devotion;—and that because while there undoubtedly is
such a true devotion, there are also many spurious and idle semblances
thereof; and unless you know which is real, you may mistake, and waste your
energy in pursuing an empty, profitless shadow. Arelius was wont to paint
all his pictures with the features and expression of the women he loved, and
even so we all colour devotion according to our own likings and
dispositions. One man sets great value on fasting, and believes himself to
be leading a very devout life, so long as he fasts rigorously, although the
while his heart is full of bitterness;—and while he will not moisten his
lips with wine, perhaps not even with water, in his great abstinence, he
does not scruple to steep them in his neighbour’s blood, through slander and
detraction. Another man reckons himself as devout because he repeats many
prayers daily, although at the same time he does not refrain from all manner
of angry, irritating, conceited or insulting speeches among his family and
neighbours. This man freely opens his purse in almsgiving, but closes his
heart to all gentle and forgiving feelings towards those who are opposed to
him; while that one is ready enough to forgive his enemies, but will never
pay his rightful debts save under pressure. Meanwhile all these people are
conventionally called religious, but nevertheless they are in no true sense
really devout. When Saul’s servants sought to take David, Michal induced
them to suppose that the lifeless figure lying in his bed, and covered with
his garments, was the man they sought; and in like manner many people dress
up an exterior with the visible acts expressive of earnest devotion, and the
world supposes them to be really devout and spiritual-minded, while all the
time they are mere lay figures, mere phantasms of devotion.

But, in fact, all true and living devotion presupposes the love of God;—and
indeed it is neither more nor less than a very real love of God, though not
always of the same kind; for that Love one while shining on the soul we call
grace, which makes us acceptable to His Divine Majesty;—when it strengthens
us to do well, it is called Charity;—but when it attains its fullest
perfection, in which it not only leads us to do well, but to act carefully,
diligently, and promptly, then it is called Devotion. The ostrich never
flies,—the hen rises with difficulty, and achieves but a brief and rare
flight, but the eagle, the dove, and the swallow, are continually on the
wing, and soar high;—even so sinners do not rise towards God, for all their
movements are earthly and earthbound. Well-meaning people, who have not as
yet attained a true devotion, attempt a manner of flight by means of their
good actions, but rarely, slowly and heavily; while really devout men rise
up to God frequently, and with a swift and soaring wing. In short, devotion
is simply a spiritual activity and liveliness by means of which Divine Love
works in us, and causes us to work briskly and lovingly; and just as charity
leads us to a general practice of all God’s Commandments, so devotion leads
us to practise them readily and diligently. And therefore we cannot call him
who neglects to observe all God’s Commandments either good or devout,
because in order to be good, a man must be filled with love, and to be
devout, he must further be very ready and apt to perform the deeds of love.
And forasmuch as devotion consists in a high degree of real love, it not
only makes us ready, active, and diligent in following all God’s Commands,
but it also excites us to be ready and loving in performing as many good
works as possible, even such as are not enjoined upon us, but are only
matters of counsel or inspiration. Even as a man just recovering from
illness, walks only so far as he is obliged to go, with a slow and weary
step, so the converted sinner journeys along as far as God commands him but
slowly and wearily, until he attains a true spirit of devotion, and then,
like a sound man, he not only gets along, but he runs and leaps in the way
of God’s Commands, and hastens gladly along the paths of heavenly counsels
and inspirations. The difference between love and devotion is just that
which exists between fire and flame;—love being a spiritual fire which
becomes devotion when it is fanned into a flame;—and what devotion adds to
the fire of love is that flame which makes it eager, energetic and diligent,
not merely in obeying God’s Commandments, but in fulfilling His Divine
Counsels and inspirations.
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CHAPTER II. The Nature and Excellence of Devotion.

THOSE who sought to discourage the Israelites from going up to the Promised
Land, told them that it was “a land which eateth up the inhabitants
thereof;” [7] that is, that the climate was so unhealthy that the
inhabitants could not live long, and that the people thereof were “men of a
great stature,” who looked upon the new-comers as mere locusts to be
devoured. It is just so, my daughter, that the world runs down true
devotion, painting devout people with gloomy, melancholy aspect, and
affirming that religion makes them dismal and unpleasant. But even as Joshua
and Caleb protested that not only was the Promised Land a fair and pleasant
country, but that the Israelites would take an easy and peaceful possession
thereof, so the Holy Spirit tells us through His Saints, and our Lord has
told us with His Own Lips, that a devout life is very sweet, very happy and
very loveable.

The world, looking on, sees that devout persons fast, watch and pray, endure
injury patiently, minister to the sick and poor, restrain their temper,
check and subdue their passions, deny themselves in all sensual indulgence,
and do many other things which in themselves are hard and difficult. But the
world sees nothing of that inward, heartfelt devotion which makes all these
actions pleasant and easy. Watch a bee hovering over the mountain thyme;—the
juices it gathers are bitter, but the bee turns them all to honey,—and so
tells the worldling, that though the devout soul finds bitter herbs along
its path of devotion, they are all turned to sweetness and pleasantness as
it treads;—and the martyrs have counted fire, sword, and rack but as
perfumed flowers by reason of their devotion. And if devotion can sweeten
such cruel torments, and even death itself, how much more will it give a
charm to ordinary good deeds? We sweeten unripe fruit with sugar, and it is
useful in correcting the crudity even of that which is good. So devotion is
the real spiritual sweetness which takes away all bitterness from
mortifications; and prevents consolations from disagreeing with the soul: it
cures the poor of sadness, and the rich of presumption; it keeps the
oppressed from feeling desolate, and the prosperous from insolence; it
averts sadness from the lonely, and dissipation from social life; it is as
warmth in winter and refreshing dew in summer; it knows how to abound and
how to suffer want; how to profit alike by honour and contempt; it accepts
gladness and sadness with an even mind, and fills men’s hearts with a
wondrous sweetness.

Ponder Jacob’s ladder:—it is a true picture of the devout life; the two
poles which support the steps are types of prayer which seeks the love of
God, and the Sacraments which confer that love; while the steps themselves
are simply the degrees of love by which we go on from virtue to virtue,
either descending by good deeds on behalf of our neighbour or ascending by
contemplation to a loving union with God. Consider, too, who they are who
trod this ladder; men with angels’ hearts, or angels with human forms. They
are not youthful, but they seem to be so by reason of their vigour and
spiritual activity. They have wings wherewith to fly, and attain to God in
holy prayer, but they have likewise feet wherewith to tread in human paths
by a holy gracious intercourse with men; their faces are bright and
beautiful, inasmuch as they accept all things gently and sweetly; their
heads and limbs are uncovered, because their thoughts, affections and
actions have no motive or object save that of pleasing God; the rest of
their bodies is covered with a light shining garment, because while they use
the world and the things of this life, they use all such purely and
honestly, and no further than is needful for their condition—such are the
truly devout. Believe me, dear child, devotion is the sweetest of sweets,
the queen of virtues, the perfection of love. If love is the milk of life,
devotion is the cream thereof; if it is a fruitful plant, devotion is the
blossom; if it is a precious stone, devotion is its brightness; if it is a
precious balm, devotion is its perfume, even that sweet odour which delights
men and causes the angels to rejoice.
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[7] Numb. xiii. 32.
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CHAPTER III. Devotion is suitable to every Vocation and Profession.

WHEN God created the world He commanded each tree to bear fruit after its
kind; [8] and even so He bids Christians,—the living trees of His Church,—to
bring forth fruits of devotion, each one according to his kind and vocation.
A different exercise of devotion is required of each—the noble, the artisan,
the servant, the prince, the maiden and the wife; and furthermore such
practice must be modified according to the strength, the calling, and the
duties of each individual. I ask you, my child, would it be fitting that a
Bishop should seek to lead the solitary life of a Carthusian? And if the
father of a family were as regardless in making provision for the future as
a Capucin, if the artisan spent the day in church like a Religious, if the
Religious involved himself in all manner of business on his neighbour’s
behalf as a Bishop is called upon to do, would not such a devotion be
ridiculous, ill-regulated, and intolerable? Nevertheless such a mistake is
often made, and the world, which cannot or will not discriminate between
real devotion and the indiscretion of those who fancy themselves devout,
grumbles and finds fault with devotion, which is really nowise concerned in
these errors. No indeed, my child, the devotion which is true hinders
nothing, but on the contrary it perfects everything; and that which runs
counter to the rightful vocation of any one is, you may be sure, a spurious
devotion. Aristotle says that the bee sucks honey from flowers without
damaging them, leaving them as whole and fresh as it found them;—but true
devotion does better still, for it not only hinders no manner of vocation or
duty, but, contrariwise, it adorns and beautifies all. Throw precious stones
into honey, and each will grow more brilliant according to its several
colour:—and in like manner everybody fulfils his special calling better when
subject to the influence of devotion:—family duties are lighter, married
love truer, service to our King more faithful, every kind of occupation more
acceptable and better performed where that is the guide.

It is an error, nay more, a very heresy, to seek to banish the devout life
from the soldier’s guardroom, the mechanic’s workshop, the prince’s court,
or the domestic hearth. Of course a purely contemplative devotion, such as
is specially proper to the religious and monastic life, cannot be practised
in these outer vocations, but there are various other kinds of devotion
well-suited to lead those whose calling is secular, along the paths of
perfection. The Old Testament furnishes us examples in Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob, David, Job, Tobias, Sarah, Rebecca and Judith; and in the New
Testament we read of St. Joseph, Lydia and Crispus, who led a perfectly
devout life in their trades:—we have S. Anne, Martha, S. Monica, Aquila and
Priscilla, as examples of household devotion, Cornelius, S. Sebastian, and
S. Maurice among soldiers;—Constantine, S. Helena, S. Louis, the Blessed
Amadaeus, [9] and S. Edward on the throne. And we even find instances of
some who fell away in solitude,—usually so helpful to perfection,—some who
had led a higher life in the world, which seems so antagonistic to it. S.
Gregory dwells on how Lot, who had kept himself pure in the city, fell in
his mountain solitude. Be sure that wheresoever our lot is cast we may and
must aim at the perfect life.
_________________________________________________________________

[8] Gen. i. 12.

[9] It is probable that S. Francis here means to indicate Amadeo IX., Duke
of Savoy, who died 1472.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER IV. The Need of a Guide for those who would enter upon and advance in
the Devout Life.

WHEN Tobias was bidden to go to Rages, he was willing to obey his father,
but he objected that he knew not the way;—to which Tobit answered, “Seek
thee a man which may go with thee:” [10] and even so, daughter, I say to
you, If you would really tread the paths of the devout life, seek some holy
man to guide and conduct you. This is the precept of precepts, says the
devout Avila,—seek as you will you can never so surely discover God’s Will
as through the channel of humble obedience so universally taught and
practised by all the Saints of olden time. When the blessed Teresa read of
the great penances performed by Catherine of Cordova, she desired
exceedingly to imitate them, contrary to the mind of her Confessor, who
forbade her to do the like, and she was tempted to disobey him therein. Then
God spoke to Teresa, saying, “My child, thou art on a good and safe
road:—true, thou seest all this penance, but verily I esteem thy obedience
as a yet greater virtue:”—and thenceforth S. Teresa so greatly loved the
virtue of obedience, that in addition to that due to her superiors, she took
a vow of special obedience to a pious ecclesiastic, pledging herself to
follow his direction and guidance, which proved an inexpressible help to
her. And even so before and after her many pious souls have subjected their
will to God’s ministers in order the better to submit themselves to Him, a
practice much commended by S. Catherine of Sienna in her Dialogues. The
devout Princess S. Elisabeth gave an unlimited obedience to the venerable
Conrad; and one of the parting counsels given by S. Louis to his son ere he
died was, “Confess thyself often,—choose a single-minded, worthy confessor,
who is able wisely to teach thee how to do that which is needful for
thee.” [11] “A faithful friend,” we are told in Holy Scripture, “is a strong
defence, and he that hath found such an one hath found a treasure;” [12] and
again: “A faithful friend is the medicine of life; and they that fear the
Lord shall find him.” [13] These sacred words have chiefly reference, as you
see, to the immortal life, with a view to which we specially need a faithful
friend, who will guide us by his counsel and advice, thereby guarding us
against the deceits and snares of the Evil One:—he will be as a storehouse
of wisdom to us in our sorrows, trials and falls; he will be as a healing
balm to stay and soothe our heart in the time of spiritual sickness,—he will
shield us from evil, and confirm that which is good in us, and when we fall
through infirmity, he will avert the deadly nature of the evil, and raise us
up again.

But who can find such a friend? The Wise Man answers:—“He that feareth the
Lord:” [14] that is to say, the truly humble soul which earnestly desires to
advance in the spiritual life. So, daughter, inasmuch as it concerns you so
closely to set forth on this devout journey under good guidance, do you pray
most earnestly to God to supply you with a guide after His Own Heart, and
never doubt but that He will grant you one who is wise and faithful, even
should He send you an angel from Heaven, as He sent to Tobias.

In truth, your spiritual guide should always be as a heaven-sent angel to
you;—by which I mean that when you have found him, you are not to look upon
him, or trust in him or his wisdom as an ordinary man; but you must look to
God, Who will help you and speak to you through this man, putting into his
heart and mouth that which is needful to you; so that you ought to hearken
as though he were an angel come down from Heaven to lead you thither. Deal
with him in all sincerity and faithfulness, and with open heart; manifesting
alike your good and your evil, without pretence or dissimulation. Thus your
good will be examined and confirmed, and your evil corrected and
remedied;—you will be soothed and strengthened in trouble, moderated and
regulated in prosperity. Give your guide a hearty confidence mingled with
sacred reverence, so that reverence in no way shall hinder your confidence,
and confidence nowise lessen your reverence: trust him with the respect of a
daughter for her father; respect him with the confidence of a son in his
mother. In a word, such a friendship should be strong and sweet; altogether
holy, sacred, divine and spiritual. And with such an aim, choose one among a
thousand, Avila says;—and I say among ten thousand, for there are fewer than
one would think capable of this office. He must needs be full of love, of
wisdom and of discretion; for if either of these three be wanting there is
danger. But once more I say, ask such help of God, and when you have found
it, bless His Holy Name; be stedfast, seek no more, but go on simply, humbly
and trustfully, for you are safe to make a prosperous journey.
_________________________________________________________________

[10] Tob. v. 3.

[11] “Confesse-toi souvent, eslis un confesseur idoine, qui soit prudhomme,
et qui te puisse seurement enseigner a faire les choses qui te seront
necessaires.”

[12] Ecclus. vi. 14.

[13] Ecclus. v. 16.

[14] Ecclus. vi. 17.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER V. The First Step must be Purifying the Soul.

“THE flowers appear on the earth,” [15] says the Heavenly Bridegroom, and
the time for pruning and cutting is come. And what, my child, are our
hearts’ flowers save our good desires? Now, so soon as these begin to
appear, we need the pruning-hook to cut off all dead and superfluous works
from our conscience. When the daughter of a strange land was about to
espouse an Israelite, the law commanded her to put off the garment of her
captivity, to pare her nails, and to shave her head; [16] even so the soul
which aims at the dignity of becoming the spouse of Christ, must put off the
old man, and put on the new man, forsaking sin: moreover, it must pare and
shave away every impediment which can hinder the Love of God. The very first
step towards spiritual health is to be purged from our sinful humours. S.
Paul received perfect purification instantaneously, and the like grace was
conferred on S. Magdalene, S. Catherine of Genoa, S. Pelagia, and some
others, but this kind of purgation is as miraculous and extraordinary in
grace as the resurrection of the dead in nature, nor dare we venture to
aspire to it. The ordinary purification, whether of body or soul, is only
accomplished by slow degrees, step by step, gradually and painfully.

The angels on Jacob’s ladder had wings, yet nevertheless they did not fly,
but went in due order up and down the steps of the ladder. The soul which
rises from out of sin to a devout life has been compared to the dawn, which
does not banish darkness suddenly, but by degrees. That cure which is
gradually effected is always the surest; and spiritual maladies, like those
of the body, are wont to come on horseback and express, while they depart
slowly and on foot. So that we must needs be brave and patient, my daughter,
in this undertaking. It is a woeful thing to see souls beginning to chafe
and grow disheartened because they find themselves still subject to
imperfection after having made some attempt at leading a devout life, and
well-nigh yielding to the temptation to give up in despair and fall back;
but, on the other hand, there is an extreme danger surrounding those souls
who, through the opposite temptation, are disposed to imagine themselves
purified from all imperfection at the very outset of their purgation; who
count themselves as full-grown almost before they are born, and seek to fly
before they have wings. Be sure, daughter, that these are in great danger of
a relapse through having left their physician too soon. “It is but lost
labour to rise up early and late take rest,” unless the Lord prosper all we
do.

The work of the soul’s purification neither may nor can end save with life
itself;—do not then let us be disheartened by our imperfections,—our very
perfection lies in diligently contending against them, and it is impossible
so to contend without seeing them, or to overcome without meeting them face
toe face. Our victory does not consist in being insensible to them, but in
not consenting to them. Now to be afflicted by our imperfections is
certainly not to consent thereto, and for the furtherance of humility it is
needful that we sometimes find ourselves worsted in this spiritual battle,
wherein, however, we shall never be conquered until we lose either life or
courage. Moreover, imperfections and venial sins cannot destroy our
spiritual life, which is only to be lost through mortal sin; consequently we
have only need to watch well that they do not imperil our courage. David
continually asks the Lord to strengthen his heart against cowardice and
discouragement; and it is our privilege in this war that we are certain to
vanquish so long as we are willing to fight.
_________________________________________________________________

[15] Cant. ii. 12.

[16] Deut. xxi. 12.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER VI. The First Purification, namely, from Mortal Sin.

THE first purification to be made is from sin;—the means whereby to make it,
the sacrament of penance. Seek the best confessor within your reach, use one
of the many little books written in order to help the examination of
conscience. [17] Read some such book carefully, examining point by point
wherein you have sinned, from the first use of your reason to the present
time. And if you mistrust your memory, write down the result of your
examination. Having thus sought out the evil spots in your conscience,
strive to detest them, and to reject them with the greatest abhorrence and
contrition of which your heart is capable;—bearing in mind these four
things:—that by sin you have lost God’s Grace, rejected your share in
Paradise, accepted the pains of Hell, and renounced God’s Eternal Love. You
see, my child, that I am now speaking of a general confession of your whole
life, which, while I grant it is not always necessary, I yet believe will be
found most helpful in the beginning of your pursuit after holiness, and
therefore I earnestly advise you to make it. Not unfrequently the ordinary
confessions of persons leading an everyday life are full of great faults,
and that because they make little or no preparation, and have not the
needful contrition. Owing to this deficiency such people go to confession
with a tacit intention of returning to their old sins, inasmuch as they will
not avoid the occasions of sin, or take the necessary measures for amendment
of life, and in all such cases a general confession is required to steady
and fix the soul. But, furthermore, a general confession forces us to a
clearer selfknowledge, kindles a wholesome shame for our past life, and
rouses gratitude for God’s Mercy, Which has so long waited patiently for
us;—it comforts the heart, refreshes the spirit, excites good resolutions,
affords opportunity to our spiritual Father for giving the most suitable
advice, and opens our hearts so as to make future confessions more
effectual. Therefore I cannot enter into the subject of a general change of
life and entire turning to God, by means of a devout life, without urging
upon you to begin with a general confession.
_________________________________________________________________

[17] S. Francis suggests Grenada, Bruno, Arias, Augez, authors little known
now, though we have the substance of their teaching in numerous valuable
helps for those who are preparing for confession: such as “Pardon through
the Precious Blood,” “Helps for Confirmation and First Communion” (Masters),
“Manual for Confession,” “Repentance,” (Rev. T. T. Carter), “Hints to
Penitents” (Palmer), Brett’s “Guide to Faith and Piety,” Crake’s “Bread of
Life” (Mowbray), “Paradise of the Christian Soul,” etc.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER VII. The Second Purification, from all Sinful Affections.

ALL the children of Israel went forth from the land of Egypt, but not all
went forth heartily, and so, when wandering in the desert, some of them
sighed after the leeks and onions,—the fleshpots of Egypt. Even so there are
penitents who forsake sin, yet without forsaking their sinful affections;
that is to say, they intend to sin no more, but it goes sorely against them
to abstain from the pleasures of sin;—they formally renounce and forsake
sinful acts, but they turn back many a fond lingering look to what they have
left, like Lot’s wife as she fled from Sodom. They are like a sick man who
abstains from eating melon when the doctor says it would kill him, but who
all the while longs for it, talks about it, bargains when he may have it,
would at least like just to sniff the perfume, and thinks those who are free
to eat of it very fortunate. And so these weak cowardly penitents abstain
awhile from sin, but reluctantly;—they would fain be able to sin without
incurring damnation;—they talk with a lingering taste of their sinful deeds,
and envy those who are yet indulging in the like. Thus a man who has
meditated some revenge gives it up in confession, but soon after he is to be
found talking about the quarrel, averring that but for the fear of God he
would do this or that; complaining that it is hard to keep the Divine rule
of forgiveness; would to God it were lawful to avenge one’s self! Who can
fail to see that even if this poor man is not actually committing sin, he is
altogether bound with the affections thereof, and although he may have come
out of Egypt, he yet hungers after it, and longs for the leeks and onions he
was wont to feed upon there! It is the same with the woman who, though she
has given up her life of sin, yet takes delight in being sought after and
admired. Alas! of a truth, all such are in great peril.

Be sure, my daughter, that if you seek to lead a devout life, you must not
merely forsake sin; but you must further cleanse your heart from all
affections pertaining to sin; for, to say nothing of the danger of a
relapse, these wretched affections will perpetually enfeeble your mind, and
clog it, so that you will be unable to be diligent, ready and frequent in
good works, wherein nevertheless lies the very essence of all true devotion.
Souls which, in spite of having forsaken sin, yet retain such likings and
longings, remind us of those persons who, without being actually ill, are
pale and sickly, languid in all they do, eating without appetite, sleeping
without refreshment, laughing without mirth, dragging themselves about
rather than walking briskly. Such souls as I have described lose all the
grace of their good deeds, which are probably few and feeble, through their
spiritual languor.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER VIII. How to effect this Second Purification.

THE first inducement to attain this second purification is a keen and lively
apprehension of the great evils resulting from sin, by means of which we
acquire a deep, hearty contrition. For just as contrition, (so far as it is
real,) however slight, when joined to the virtue of the Sacraments, purges
away sin; so, when it becomes strong and urgent, it purges away all the
affections which cling around habits of sin. A moderate, slight hatred makes
men dislike its object and avoid his society; but when a violent, mortal
hatred exists, they not only abhor and shun the person who excites it, but
they loathe him, they cannot endure the approach of his relations or
connexions, nor even his likeness or anything that concerns him. Just so
when a penitent only hates sin through a weakly although real contrition, he
will resolve to avoid overt acts of sin; but when his contrition is strong
and hearty, he will not merely abhor sin, but every affection, every link
and tendency to sin. Therefore, my daughter, it behoves us to kindle our
contrition and repentance as much as we possibly can, so that it may reach
even to the very smallest appearance of sin. Thus it was that the Magdalen,
when converted, so entirely lost all taste for her past sin and its
pleasures, that she never again cast back one thought upon them; and David
declared that he hated not only sin itself, but every path and way which led
thereto. This it is which is that “renewing of the soul” which the same
Prophet compares to the eagle’s strength. [18]

Now, in order to attain this fear and this contrition, you must use the
following meditations carefully; for if you practise them stedfastly, they
(by God’s Grace) will root out both sin and its affections from your heart.
It is to that end that I have prepared them: do you use them one after
another, in the order in which they come, only taking one each day, and
using that as early as possible, for the morning is the best time for all
spiritual exercises;—and then you will ponder and ruminate it through the
day. If you have not as yet been taught how to meditate, you will find
instructions to that purpose in the Second Part.
_________________________________________________________________

[18] Ps. ciii. 5, Bible version.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER IX. FIRST MEDITATION.

Of Creation.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God. 2. Ask Him to inspire your heart.

Considerations.

1. Consider that but a few years since you were not born into the world, and
your soul was as yet non-existent. Where wert thou then, O my soul? the
world was already old, and yet of thee there was no sign.

2. God brought you out of this nothingness, in order to make you what you
are, not because He had any need of you, but solely out of His Goodness.

3. Consider the being which God has given you; for it is the foremost being
of this visible world, adapted to live eternally, and to be perfectly united
to God’s Divine Majesty.

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Humble yourself utterly before God, saying with the Psalmist, O Lord, I
am nothing in respect of Thee—what am I, that Thou shouldst remember me? O
my soul, thou wert yet lost in that abyss of nothingness, if God had not
called thee forth, and what of thee in such a case?

2. Give God thanks. O Great and Good Creator, what do I not owe Thee, Who
didst take me from out that nothingness, by Thy Mercy to make me what I am?
How can I ever do enough worthily to praise Thy Holy Name, and render due
thanks to Thy Goodness?

3. Confess your own shame. But alas, O my Creator, so far from uniting
myself to Thee by a loving service, I have rebelled against Thee through my
unruly affections, departing from Thee, and giving myself up to sin, and
ignoring Thy Goodness, as though Thou hadst not created me.

4. Prostrate thyself before God. O my soul, know that the Lord He is thy
God, it is He that hath made thee, and not thou thyself. O God, I am the
work of Thy Hands; henceforth I will not seek to rest in myself, who am
nought. Wherein hast thou to glory, who art but dust and ashes? how canst
thou, a very nothing, exalt thyself? In order to my own humiliation, I will
do such and such a thing,—I will endure such contempt:—I will alter my ways
and henceforth follow my Creator, and realise that I am honoured by His
calling me to the being He has given; I will employ it solely to obey His
Will, by means of the teaching He has given me, of which I will inquire more
through my spiritual Father.

Conclusion.

1. Thank God. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and praise His Holy Name with all
thy being, because His Goodness called me forth from nothingness, and His
Mercy created me.

2. Offer. O my God, I offer Thee with all my heart the being Thou hast given
me, I dedicate and consecrate it to Thee.

3. Pray. O God, strengthen me in these affections and resolutions. Dear
Lord, I commend me, and all those I love, to Thy neverfailing Mercy. OUR
FATHER, etc.

At the end of your meditation linger a while, and gather, so to say, a
little spiritual bouquet from the thoughts you have dwelt upon, the sweet
perfume whereof may refresh you through the day.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER X. SECOND MEDITATION

Of the End for which we were Created.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself before God. 2. Ask Him to inspire your heart.

Considerations.

1. God did not bring you into the world because He had any need of you,
useless as you are; but solely that He might show forth His Goodness in you,
giving you His Grace and Glory. And to this end He gave you understanding
that you might know Him, memory that you might think of Him, a will that you
might love Him, imagination that you might realise His mercies, sight that
you might behold the marvels of His works, speech that you might praise Him,
and so on with all your other faculties.

2. Being created and placed in the world for this intent, all contrary
actions should be shunned and rejected, as also you should avoid as idle and
superfluous whatever does not promote it.

2. Consider how unhappy they are who do not think of all this,—who live as
though they were created only to build and plant, to heap up riches and
amuse themselves with trifles.

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Humble yourself in that hitherto you have so little thought upon all
this. Alas, my God, of what was I thinking when I did not think of Thee?
what did I remember when I forgot Thee? what did I love when I loved Thee
not? Alas, when I ought to have been feeding on the truth, I was but filling
myself with vanity, and serving the world, which was made to serve me.

2. Abhor your past life. I renounce ye, O vain thoughts and useless
cogitations, frivolous and hateful memories: I renounce all worthless
friendships, all unprofitable efforts, and miserably ungrateful
self-indulgence, all pitiful compliances.

3. Turn to God. Thou, my God and Saviour shalt henceforth be the sole object
of my thoughts; no more will I give my mind to ideas which are displeasing
to Thee. All the days of my life I will dwell upon the greatness of Thy
Goodness, so lovingly poured out upon me. Thou shalt be henceforth the
delight of my heart, the resting-place of all my affections. From this time
forth I will forsake and abhor the vain pleasures and amusements, the empty
pursuits which have absorbed my time;—the unprofitable ties which have bound
my heart I will loosen henceforth, and to that end I will use such and such
remedies.

Conclusion.

1. Thank God, Who has made you for so gracious an end. Thou hast made me, O
Lord, for Thyself, that I may eternally enjoy the immensity of Thy Glory;
when shall I be worthy thereof, when shall I know how to bless Thee as I
ought?

2. Offer. O Dearest Lord, I offer Thee all my affections and resolutions,
with my whole heart and soul.

3. Pray. I entreat Thee, O God, that Thou wouldest accept my desires and
longings, and give Thy Blessing to my soul, to enable me to fulfil them,
through the Merits of Thy Dear Son’s Precious Blood shed upon the Cross for
me. OUR FATHER, etc. Gather your little spiritual bouquet.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER XI. THIRD MEDITATION.

Of the Gifts of God.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God. 2. Ask Him to inspire your heart.

Considerations.

1. Consider the material gifts God has given you—your body, and the means
for its preservation; your health, and all that maintains it; your friends
and many helps. Consider too how many persons more deserving than you are
without these gifts; some suffering in health or limb, others exposed to
injury, contempt and trouble, or sunk in poverty, while God has willed you
to be better off.

2. Consider the mental gifts He has given you. Why are you not stupid,
idiotic, insane like many you wot of? Again, God has favoured you with a
decent and suitable education, while many have grown up in utter ignorance.

3. Further, consider His spiritual gifts. You are a child of His Church, God
has taught you to know Himself from your youth. How often has He given you
His Sacraments? what inspirations and interior light, what reproofs, He has
given to lead you aright; how often He has forgiven you, how often delivered
you from occasions of falling; what opportunities He has granted for your
soul’s progress! Dwell somewhat on the detail, see how Loving and Gracious
God has been to you.

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Marvel at God’s Goodness. How good He has been to me, how abundant in
mercy and plenteous in loving-kindness! O my soul, be thou ever telling of
the great things the Lord has done for thee!

2. Marvel at your own ingratitude. What am I, Lord, that Thou rememberest
me? How unworthy am I! I have trodden Thy Mercies under root, I have abused
Thy Grace, turning it against Thy very Self; I have set the depth of my
ingratitude against the deep of Thy Grace and Favour.

3. Kindle your gratitude. O my soul, be no more so faithless and disloyal to
thy mighty Benefactor! How should not my whole soul serve the Lord, Who has
done such great things in me and for me?

4. Go on, my daughter, to refrain from this or that material indulgence; let
your body be wholly the servant of God, Who has done so much for it: set
your soul to seek Him by this or that devout practice suitable thereto. Make
diligent use of the means provided by the Church to help you to love God and
save your soul. Resolve to be constant in prayer and seeking the Sacraments,
in hearing God’s Word, and in obeying His inspirations and counsels.

Conclusion.

1. Thank God for the clearer knowledge He has given you of His benefits and
your own duty.

2. Offer your heart and all its resolutions to Him.

3. Ask Him to strengthen you to fulfil them faithfully by the Merits of the
Death of His Son. OUR FATHER, etc. Gather the little spiritual bouquet.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER XII. FOURTH MEDITATION.

On Sin.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God. 2. Ask Him to inspire your heart.

Considerations.

1. Consider how long it is since you first began to commit sin, and how
since that first beginning sin has multiplied in your heart; how every day
has added to the number of your sins against God, against yourself and
against your neighbour, by deed, word, thought and desire.

2. Consider your evil tendencies, and how far you have followed them. These
two points will show you that your sins are more in number than the hairs of
your head, or the sand on the seashore.

3. Apart from sin, consider your ingratitude towards God, which is in itself
a sin enfolding all the others, and adding to their enormity: consider the
gifts which God has given you, and which you have turned against the Giver;
especially the inspirations you have neglected, and the promptings to good
which you have frustrated. Review the many Sacraments you have received, and
see where are their fruits. Where are the precious jewels wherewith your
Heavenly Bridegroom decked you? with what preparation have you received
them? Reflect upon the ingratitude with which, while God sought to save you,
you have fled from Him and rushed upon destruction.

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Humble yourself in your wretchedness. O my God, how dare I come before
Thine Eyes? I am but a corrupt being, a very sink of ingratitude and
wickedness. Can it be that I have been so disloyal, that not one sense, not
one faculty but has been sullied and stained;—not one day has passed but I
have sinned before Thee? Was this a fitting return for all my Creator’s
gifts, for my Redeemer’s Blood?

2. Ask pardon;—throw yourself at the Lord’s Feet as the prodigal son, as the
Magdalene, as the woman convicted of adultery. Have mercy, Lord, on me a
sinner! O Living Fountain of Mercy, have pity on me, unworthy as I am.

3. Resolve to do better. Lord, with the help of Thy Grace I will never again
give myself up to sin. I have loved it too well;—henceforth I would abhor it
and cleave to Thee. Father of Mercy, I would live and die to Thee.

4. In order to put away past sin, accuse yourself bravely of it, let there
not be one sinful act which you do not bring to light.

5. Resolve to make every effort to tear up the roots of sin from your heart,
especially this and that individual sin which troubles you most.

6. In order to do this, resolve stedfastly to follow the advice given you,
and never think that you have done enough to atone for your past sin.

Conclusion.

1. Thank God for having waited till now for you, and for rousing these good
intentions in your heart. 2. Offer Him all your heart to carry them to good
effect. 3. Pray that He would strengthen you.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER XIII. FIFTH MEDITATION.

Of Death.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God. 2. Ask His Grace. 3. Suppose
yourself to be on your deathbed, in the last extremity, without the smallest
hope of recovery.

Considerations.

1. Consider the uncertainty as to the day of your death. One day your soul
will quit this body—will it be in summer or winter? in town or country? by
day or by night? will it be suddenly or with warning? will it be owing to
sickness or an accident? will you have time to make your last confession or
not? will your confessor or spiritual father be at hand or will he not?
Alas, of all these things we know absolutely nothing: all that we do know is
that die we shall, and for the most part sooner than we expect.

2. Consider that then the world is at end as far as you are concerned, there
will be no more of it for you, it will be altogether overthrown for you,
since all pleasures, vanities, worldly joys, empty delights will be as a
mere fantastic vision to you. Woe is me, for what mere trifles and
unrealities I have ventured to offend my God? Then you will see that what we
preferred to Him was nought. But, on the other hand, all devotion and good
works will then seem so precious and so sweet:—Why did I not tread that
pleasant path? Then what you thought to be little sins will look like huge
mountains, and your devotion will seem but a very little thing.

3. Consider the universal farewell which your soul will take of this world.
It will say farewell to riches, pleasures, and idle companions; to
amusements and pastimes, to friends and neighbours, to husband, wife and
child, in short to all creation. And lastly it will say farewell to its own
body, which it will leave pale and cold, to become repulsive in decay.

4. Consider how the survivors will hasten to put that body away, and hide it
beneath the earth—and then the world will scarce give you another thought,
or remember you, any more than you have done to those already gone. “God
rest his soul!” men will say, and that is all. O death, how pitiless, how
hard thou art!

5. Consider that when it quits the body the soul must go at once to the
right hand or the left. To which will your soul go? what side will it take?
none other, be sure, than that to which it had voluntarily drawn while yet
in this world.

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Pray to God, and throw yourself into His Arms. O Lord, be Thou my stay in
that day of anguish! May that hour be blessed and favourable to me, if all
the rest of my life be full of sadness and trial.

2. Despise the world. Forasmuch as I know not the hour in which I must quit
the world, I will not grow fond of it. O dear friends, beloved ones of my
heart, be content that I cleave to you only with a holy friendship which may
last for ever; why should I cling to you with a tie which must needs be
broken?

I will prepare for the hour of death and take every precaution for its
peaceful arrival; I will thoroughly examine into the state of my conscience,
and put in order whatever is wanting.

Conclusion.

Thank God for inspiring you with these resolutions: offer them to His
Majesty: intreat Him anew to grant you a happy death by the Merits of His
Dear Son’s Death. Ask the prayers of the Blessed Virgin and the Saints. OUR
FATHER, etc.

Gather a bouquet of myrrh.
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CHAPTER XIV. SIXTH MEDITATION.

On Judgment.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God. 2. Intreat Him to inspire you.

Considerations.

1. When the time comes which God has appointed for the end of this world,
and after many terrible signs and warnings, which will overwhelm men with
fear,—the whole earth will be destroyed, and nothing then left.

2. Afterwards, all men, save those already risen, shall rise from the dead,
and at the voice of the Archangel appear in the valley of Jehoshaphat. But
alas, with what divers aspects! for some will be glorious and shining,
others horrible and ghastly.

3. Consider the majesty with which the Sovereign Judge will appear
surrounded by all His Saints and Angels; His Cross, the Sign of Grace to the
good and of terror to the evil, shining brighter than the sun.

4. This Sovereign Judge will with His awful word, instantly fulfilled,
separate the evil and the good, setting the one on His Right Hand, the other
on His Left—an eternal separation, for they will never meet again.

5. This separation made, the books of conscience will be opened, and all men
will behold the malice of the wicked, and how they have contemned God; as
also the penitence of the good, and the results of the grace they received.
Nothing will be hid. O my God, what confusion to the one, what rejoicing to
the other! Consider the final sentence of the wicked. “Depart from Me, ye
cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” Dwell
upon these awful words. “Go,” He says—for ever discarding these wretched
sinners, banishing them for ever from His Presence. He calls them
“cursed:” O my soul, what a curse: a curse involving all other maledictions,
all possible evil, an irrevocable curse, including all time and eternity;
condemning them to everlasting fire. Think what that eternity of suffering
implies.

6. Then consider the sentence of the good. “Come,” the Judge says—O blessed
loving word with which God draws us to Himself and receives us in His Bosom.
“Blessed of My Father”—O blessing above all blessings! “inherit the Kingdom
prepared for you from the beginning of the world.” O my God, and that
Kingdom will know no end!

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Tremble, my soul, at the thought. O God, who will be my stay in that hour
when the pillars of the earth are shaken?

2. Abhor your sins, which alone can cause you to be lost when that fearful
day comes. Surely I will judge myself now, that I be not judged;—I will
examine my conscience, accuse, condemn, punish myself, that the Judge may
not condemn me then. I will confess my faults, and follow the counsels given
me.

Conclusion.

Thank God for having given you means of safety in that terrible Day, and
time for repentance. Offer Him your heart, and ask for grace to use it well.
OUR FATHER, etc.

Gather your bouquet.
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CHAPTER XV. SEVENTH MEDITATION.

Of Hell.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in God’s Presence.2. Humble yourself, and ask His Aid.3.
Picture to yourself a dark city, reeking with the flames of sulphur and
brimstone, inhabited by citizens who cannot get forth.

Considerations.

1. Even so the lost are plunged in their infernal abyss;—suffering
indescribable torture in every sense and every member; and that because
having used their members and senses for sin, it is just that through them
they should suffer now. Those eyes which delighted in impure vicious sights,
now behold devils; the ears which took pleasure in unholy words, now are
deafened with yells of despair;—and so on with the other senses. 2. Beyond
all these sufferings, there is one greater still, the privation and pain of
loss of God’s Glory, which is for ever denied to their vision. If Absalom
cared not to be released from exile, if he might not see his father’s face,
[19] how much sorer will it be to be deprived for ever of the blessed vision
of God?

3. Consider how insupportable the pains of Hell will be by reason of their
eternal duration. If the irritating bite of an insect, or the restlessness
of fever, makes an ordinary night seem so long and tedious, how terrible
will the endless night of eternity be, where nought will be found save
despair, blasphemy and fury!

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Read the Prophet’s descriptions of the terrors of the Lord, [20] and ask
your soul whether it can face them—whether you can bear to lose your God for
ever?

2. Confess that you have repeatedly deserved to do so. Resolve henceforth to
act differently, and to rescue yourself from this abyss. Resolve on distinct
definite acts by which you may avoid sin, and thereby eternal death.

Give thanks, offer yourself, pray.
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[19] 2 Sam. xiv. 32.

[20] Isa. xxxiii. 14. “Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who
among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?”
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CHAPTER XVI. EIGHTH MEDITATION.

On Paradise.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God.2. Invoke His Aid.

Considerations.

1. Represent to yourself a lovely calm night, when the heavens are bright
with innumerable stars: add to the beauty of such a night the utmost beauty
of a glorious summer’s day,—the sun’s brightness not hindering the clear
shining of moon or stars, and then be sure that it all falls immeasurably
short of the glory of Paradise. O bright and blessed country, O sweet and
precious place!

2. Consider the beauty and perfection of the countless inhabitants of that
blessed country;—the millions and millions of angels, Cherubim and Seraphim;
the glorious company of Apostles, martyrs, confessors, virgins, and saints.
O blessed company, any one single member of which surpasses all the glory of
this world, what will it be to behold them all, to sing with them the sweet
Song of the Lamb? They rejoice with a perpetual joy, they share a bliss
unspeakable, and unchangeable delights.

3. Consider how they enjoy the Presence of God, Who fills them with the
richness of His Vision, which is a perfect ocean of delight; the joy of
being for ever united to their Head. They are like happy birds, hovering and
singing for ever within the atmosphere of divinity, which fills them with
inconceivable pleasures. There each one vies without jealousy in singing the
praises of the Creator. “Blessed art Thou for ever, O Dear and Precious Lord
and Redeemer, Who dost so freely give us of Thine Own Glory,” they cry; and
He in His turn pours out His ceaseless Blessing on His Saints. “Blessed are
ye,—Mine own for ever, who have served Me faithfully, and with a good
courage.”

Affections and Resolutions.

1. Admire and rejoice in the Heavenly Country; the glorious and blessed New
Jerusalem.

2. Reprove the coldness of your own heart for having hitherto so little
sought after that glorious abode. Why have I so long lingered indifferent to
the eternal happiness set before me? Woe is me that, for the sake of poor
savourless earthly things, I have so often forgotten those heavenly
delights. How could I neglect such real treasures for mere vain and
contemptible earthly matters?

3. Aspire earnestly after that blessed abode. Forasmuch, O Dear Lord, as
Thou hast been pleased to turn my feet into Thy ways, never will I again
look back. Go forth, my soul, towards thy promised rest, journey unweariedly
to that hoped-for land; wherefore shouldest thou tarry in Egypt?

4. Resolve to give up such and such things, which hinder you on the way, and
to do such others as will help you thitherwards.

Give thanks, offer, pray.
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CHAPTER XVII. NINTH MEDITATION.

On the Choice upon to you between Heaven and Hell.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God.2. Humble yourself before Him, and
ask His inspiration.

Considerations.

1. Imagine yourself alone with your good angel in an open plain, as was
Tobit on his way to Rages. Suppose the Angel to set before you Paradise,
full of delights and joys; and on the other hand Hell, with all its
torments. Contemplate both, kneeling in imagination before your guardian
Angel. Consider that you are most truly standing between Hell and Paradise,
and that both the one and the other are open to receive you, according to
your own choice.

2. Consider that the choice you make in this life will last for ever in the
next.

3. Consider too, that while both are open to receive you according to your
choice, yet God, Who is prepared to give the one by reason of His Justice,
the other by reason of His Mercy, all the while desires unspeakably that you
should select Paradise; and your good Angel is urging you with all his might
to do so, offering you countless graces on God’s part, countless helps to
attain to it.

4. Consider that Jesus Christ, enthroned in Heaven, looks down upon you in
loving invitation: “O beloved one, come unto Me, and joy for ever in the
eternal blessedness of My Love!” Behold His mother yearning over you with
maternal tenderness—” Courage, my child, do not despise the Goodness of my
Son, or my earnest prayers for thy salvation.” Behold the Saints, who have
left you their example, the millions of holy souls who long after you,
desiring earnestly that you may one day be for ever joined to them in their
song of praise, urging upon you that the road to Heaven is not so hard to
find as the world would have you think. “Press on boldly, dear friend,”—they
cry. “Whoso will ponder well the path by which we came hither, will discover
that we attained to these present delights by sweeter joys than any this
world can give.”

The Choice.

1. O Hell, I abhor thee now and for ever; I abhor thy griefs and torments,
thine endless misery, the unceasing blasphemies and maledictions which thou
pourest out upon my God;—and turning to thee, O blessed Paradise, eternal
glory, unfading happiness, I choose thee for ever as my abode, thy glorious
mansions, thy precious and abiding tabernacles. O my God, I bless Thy Mercy
which gives me the power to choose—O Jesus, Saviour, I accept Thine Eternal
Love, and praise Thee for the promise Thou hast given me of a place prepared
for me in that blessed New Jerusalem, where I shall love and bless Thee for
ever.

2. Dwell lovingly upon the example set before you by the Blessed Virgin and
the Saints, and strive to follow where they point you. Give yourself up to
your guardian Angel, that he may be your guide, and gird up your courage
anew to make this choice.
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CHAPTER XVIII. TENTH MEDITATION.

How the Soul chooses the Devout Life.

Preparation.

1. PLACE yourself in the Presence of God.2. Humble yourself before Him, and
ask His Aid.

Considerations.

1. Once more imagine yourself in an open plain, alone with your guardian
Angel, and represent to yourself on the left hand the Devil sitting on a
high and mighty throne, surrounded by a vast troop of worldly men, who bow
bareheaded before him, doing homage to him by the various sins they commit.
Study the countenances of the miserable courtiers of that most abominable
king:—some raging with fury, envy and passion, some murderous in their
hatred;—others pale and haggard in their craving after wealth, or madly
pursuing every vain and profitless pleasure;—others sunk and lost in vile,
impure affections. See how all alike are hateful, restless, wild: see how
they despise one another, and only pretend to an unreal self-seeking love.
Such is the miserable reign of the abhorred Tyrant.

2. On the other hand, behold Jesus Christ Crucified, calling these unhappy
wretches to come to Him, and interceding for them with all the Love of His
Precious Heart. Behold the company of devout souls and their guardian
Angels, contemplate the beauty of this religious Kingdom. What lovelier than
the troop of virgin souls, men and women, pure as lilies:—widows in their
holy desolation and humility; husbands and wives living in all tender love
and mutual cherishing. See how such pious souls know how to combine their
exterior and interior duties;—to love the earthly spouse without diminishing
their devotion to the Heavenly Bridegroom. Look around—one and all you will
see them with loving, holy, gentle countenances listening to the Voice of
their Lord, all seeking to enthrone Him more and more within their hearts.

They rejoice, but it is with a peaceful, loving, sober joy; they love, but
their love is altogether holy and pure. Such among these devout ones as have
sorrows to bear, are not disheartened thereby, and do not grieve overmuch,
for their Saviour’s Eye is upon them to comfort them, and they all seek Him
only.

3. Surely you have altogether renounced Satan with his weary miserable
troop, by the good resolutions you have made;—but nevertheless you have not
yet wholly attained to the King Jesus, or altogether joined His blessed
company of devout ones:—you have hovered betwixt the two.

4. The Blessed Virgin, S. Joseph, S. Louis, S. Monica, and hundreds of
thousands more who were once like you, living in the world, call upon you
and encourage you.

5. The Crucified King Himself calls you by your own name: “Come, O my
beloved, come, and let Me crown thee!”

The Choice.

1. O world, O vile company, never will I enlist beneath thy banner; for ever
I have forsaken thy flatteries and deceptions. O proud king, monarch of
evil, infernal spirit, I renounce thee and all thy hollow pomp, I detest
thee and all thy works.

2. And turning to Thee, O Sweet Jesus, King of blessedness and of eternal
glory, I cleave to Thee with all the powers of my soul, I adore Thee with
all my heart, I choose Thee now and ever for my King, and with inviolable
fidelity I would offer my irrevocable service, and submit myself to Thy holy
laws and ordinances.

3. O Blessed Virgin Mother of God, you shall be my example, I will follow
you with all reverence and respect.

O my good Angel, bring me to this heavenly company, leave me not until I
have reached them, with whom I will sing for ever, in testimony of my
choice, “Glory be to Jesus, my Lord!”
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CHAPTER XIX. How to make a General Confession.

SUCH meditations as these, my daughter, will help you, and having made them,
go on bravely in the spirit of humility to make your general confession;—but
I entreat you, be not troubled by any sort of fearfulness. The scorpion who
stings us is venomous, but when his oil has been distilled, it is the best
remedy for his bite;—even so sin is shameful when we commit it, but when
reduced to repentance and confession, it becomes salutary and honourable.
Contrition and confession are in themselves so lovely and sweet-savoured,
that they efface the ugliness and disperse the ill savour of sin. Simon the
leper called Magdalene a sinner, [21] but our Lord turned the discourse to
the perfume of her ointment and the greatness of her love. If we are really
humble, my daughter, our sins will be infinitely displeasing to us, because
they offend God;—but it will be welcome and sweet to accuse ourselves
thereof because in so doing we honour God; and there is always somewhat
soothing in fully telling the physician all details of our pain.

When you come to your spiritual father, imagine yourself to be on Mount
Calvary, at the Feet of the Crucified Saviour, Whose Precious Blood is
dropping freely to cleanse you from all your sin. Though it is not his
actual Blood, yet it is the merit of that outpoured Blood which is sprinkled
over His penitents as they kneel in Confession. Be sure then that you open
your heart fully, and put away your sins by confessing them, for in
proportion as they are put out, so will the Precious Merits of the Passion
of Christ come in and fill you with blessings.

Tell everything simply and with straightforwardness, and thoroughly satisfy
your conscience in doing so. Then listen to the admonitions and counsels of
God’s Minister, saying in your heart, “Speak, Lord, for Thy servant
heareth.” It is truly God to Whom you hearken, forasmuch as He has said to
His representatives, “Whoso heareth you, heareth Me.” [22] Then take the
following protest, as a summary of your contrition, having carefully studied
and meditated upon it beforehand: read it through with as earnest an
intention as you can make.
_________________________________________________________________

[21] S. Mark xiv. and S. Luke vii. 39.

[22] S. Luke x. 16.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER XX. A hearty Protest made with the object of confirming the Soul’s
resolution to serve God, as a conclusion to its acts of Penitence.

I, THE undersigned,—in the Presence of God and of all the company of Heaven,
having considered the Infinite Mercy of His Heavenly Goodness towards me, a
most miserable, unworthy creature, whom He has created, preserved,
sustained, delivered from so many dangers, and filled with so many
blessings: having above all considered the incomprehensible mercy and
loving-kindness with which this most Good God has borne with me in my
sinfulness, leading me so tenderly to repentance, and waiting so patiently
for me till this—(present) year of my life, notwithstanding all my
ingratitude, disloyalty and faithlessness, by which I have delayed turning
to Him, and despising His Grace, have offended Him anew: and further,
remembering that in my Baptism I was solemnly and happily dedicated to God
as His child, and that in defiance of the profession then made in my name, I
have so often miserably profaned my gifts, turning them against God’s Divine
Majesty:—I, now coming to myself prostrate in heart and soul before the
Throne of His Justice, acknowledge and confess that I am duly accused and
convicted of treason against His Majesty, and guilty of the Death and
Passion of Jesus Christ, by reason of the sins I have committed, for which
He died, bearing the reproach of the Cross; so that I deserve nothing else
save eternal damnation.

But turning to the Throne of Infinite Mercy of this Eternal God, detesting
the sins of my past life with all my heart and all my strength, I humbly
desire and ask grace, pardon, and mercy, with entire absolution from my sin,
in virtue of the Death and Passion of that same Lord and Redeemer, on Whom I
lean as the only ground of my hope. I renew the sacred promise of
faithfulness to God made in my name at my Baptism; renouncing the devil, the
world, and the flesh, abhorring their accursed suggestions, vanities and
lusts, now and for all eternity. And turning to a Loving and Pitiful God, I
desire, intend, and deliberately resolve to serve and love Him now and
eternally, devoting my mind and all its faculties, my soul and all its
powers, my heart and all its affections, my body and all its senses, to His
Will. I resolve never to misuse any part of my being by opposing His Divine
Will and Sovereign Majesty, to which I wholly immolate myself in intention,
vowing ever to be His loyal, obedient and faithful servant without any
change or recall. But if unhappily, through the promptings of the enemy, or
human infirmity, I should in anywise fail in this my resolution and
dedication, I do most earnestly resolve by the grace of the Holy Spirit to
rise up again so soon as I shall perceive my fall, and turn anew, without
any delay, to seek His Divine Mercy. This is my firm will and intention,—my
inviolable, irrevocable resolution, which I make and confirm without any
reserve, in the Holy Presence of God, in the sight of the Church triumphant,
and before the Church militant, which is my mother, who accepts this my
declaration, in the person of him who, as her representative, hears me make
it. Be pleased, O Eternal, All-Powerful, and All-Loving God,—Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit, to confirm me in this my resolution, and accept my hearty
and willing offering. And inasmuch as Thou hast been pleased to inspire me
with the will to make it, give me also the needful strength and grace to
keep it. O God, Thou art my God, the God of my heart, my soul, and spirit,
and as such I acknowledge and adore Thee, now and for all eternity. Glory be
to Jesus. Amen.
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CHAPTER XXI. Conclusion of this First Purification.

HAVING made this resolution, wait attentively, and open the ears of your
heart, that you may in spirit hear the absolution which the Lord of your
soul, sitting on the throne of His Mercy, will speak in Heaven before the
Saints and Angels when His Priest absolves you here below in His Name. Be
sure that all that company of blessed ones rejoice in your joy, and sing a
song of untold gladness, embracing you and accepting you as cleansed and
sanctified. Of a truth, my daughter, this is a marvellous deed, and a most
blessed bargain for you, inasmuch as giving yourself to His Divine Majesty,
you gain Him, and save yourself for eternal life. No more remains to do,
save to take the pen and heartily sign your protest, and then hasten to the
Altar, where God on His side will sign and seal your absolution, and His
promise of Paradise, giving Himself to you in His Sacrament, as a sacred
seal placed upon your renewed heart. And thus, dear child, your soul will be
cleansed from sin, and from all its affections. But forasmuch as these
affections are easily rekindled, thanks to our infirmity and concupiscence
(which maybe mortified, but which can never be altogether extinguished while
we live), I will give you certain counsels by the practice of which you may
henceforth avoid mortal sin, and the affections pertaining thereto. And as
these counsels will also help you to attain a yet more perfect purification,
before giving them, I would say somewhat concerning that absolute perfection
to which I seek to lead you.
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CHAPTER XXII. The Necessity of Purging away all tendency to Venial Sins.

AS daylight waxes, we, gazing into a mirror, see more plainly the soils and
stains upon our face; and even so as the interior light of the Holy Spirit
enlightens our conscience, we see more distinctly the sins, inclinations and
imperfections which hinder our progress towards real devotion. And the
selfsame light which shows us these blots and stains, kindles in us the
desire to be cleansed and purged therefrom. You will find then, my child,
that besides the mortal sins and their affections from which your soul has
already been purged, you are beset by sundry inclinations and tendencies to
venial sin; mind, I do not say you will find venial sins, but the
inclination and tendency to them. Now, one is quite different from the
other. We can never be altogether free from venial sin,—at least not until
after a very long persistence in this purity; but we can be without any
affection for venial sin. It is altogether one thing to have said something
unimportant not strictly true, out of carelessness or liveliness, and quite
a different matter to take pleasure in lying, and in the habitual practice
thereof. But I tell you that you must purify your soul from all inclination
to venial sin;—that is to say, you must not voluntarily retain any
deliberate intention of permitting yourself to commit any venial sin
whatever. It would be most unworthy consciously to admit anything so
displeasing to God, as the will to offend Him in anywise. Venial sin,
however small, is displeasing to God, although it be not so displeasing as
the greater sins which involve eternal condemnation; and if venial sin is
displeasing to Him, any clinging which we tolerate to mortal sin is nothing
less than a resolution to offend His Divine Majesty. Is it really possible
that a rightly disposed soul can not only offend God, but take pleasure
therein?

These inclinations, my daughter, are in direct opposition to devotion, as
inclinations to mortal sin are to love:—they weaken the mental power, hinder
Divine consolations, and open the door to temptations;—and although they may
not destroy the soul, at least they bring on very serious disease. “Dead
flies cause the ointment to send forth a stinking savour,” says the Wise
Man. [23] He means that the flies which settle upon and taste of the
ointment only damage it temporarily, leaving the mass intact, but if they
fall into it, and die there, they spoil and corrupt it. Even so venial sins
which pass over a devout soul without being harboured, do not permanently
injure it, but if such sins are fostered and cherished, they destroy the
sweet savour of that soul—that is to say, its devotion. The spider cannot
kill bees, but it can spoil their honey, and so encumber their combs with
its webs in course of time, as to hinder the bees materially. Just so,
though venial sins may not lose the soul, they will spoil its devotion, and
so cumber its faculties with bad habits and evil inclinations, as to deprive
it of all that cheerful readiness which is the very essence of true
devotion; that is to say, if they are harboured in the conscience by delight
taken therein. A trifling inaccuracy, a little hastiness in word or action,
some small excess in mirth, in dress, in gaiety, may not be very important,
if these are forthwith heeded and swept out as spiritual cobwebs;—but if
they are permitted to linger in the heart, or, worse still, if we take
pleasure in them and indulge them, our honey will soon be spoilt, and the
hive of our conscience will be cumbered and damaged. But I ask again, how
can a generous heart take delight in anything it knows to be displeasing to
its God, or wish to do what offends Him?
_________________________________________________________________

[23] Eccles. x. 1.
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CHAPTER XXIII. It is needful to put away all Inclination for Useless and
Dangerous Things.

SPORTS, balls, plays, festivities, pomps, are not in themselves evil, but
rather indifferent matters, capable of being used for good or ill; but
nevertheless they are dangerous, and it is still more dangerous to take
great delight in them. Therefore, my daughter, I say that although it is
lawful to amuse yourself, to dance, dress, feast, and see seemly plays,—at
the same time, if you are much addicted to these things, they will hinder
your devotion, and become extremely hurtful and dangerous to you. The harm
lies, not in doing them, but in the degree to which you care for them. It is
a pity to sow the seed of vain and foolish tastes in the soil of your heart,
taking up the place of better things, and hindering the soul from
cultivating good dispositions. It was thus that the Nazarites of old
abstained not merely from all intoxicating liquors, but from grapes fresh or
dried, and from vinegar, not because these were intoxicating, but because
they might excite the desire for fermented liquors. Just so, while I do not
forbid the use of these dangerous pleasures, I say that you cannot take an
excessive delight in them without their telling upon your devotion. When the
stag has waxed fat he hides himself amid the thicket, conscious that his
fleetness is impaired should he be in need to fly: and so the human heart
which is cumbered with useless, superfluous, dangerous clingings becomes
incapacitated for that earnest following after God which is the true life of
devotion. No one blames children for running after butterflies, because they
are children, but is it not ridiculous and pitiful to see full-grown men
eager about such worthless trifles as the worldly amusements before named,
which are likely to throw them off their balance and disturb their spiritual
life? Therefore, dear child, I would have you cleanse your heart from all
such tastes, remembering that while the acts themselves are not necessarily
incompatible with a devout life, all delight in them must be harmful.
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CHAPTER XXIV. All Evil Inclinations must be purged away.

FURTHERMORE, my daughter, we have certain natural inclinations, which are
not strictly speaking either mortal or venial sins, but rather
imperfections; and the acts in which they take shape, failings and
deficiencies. Thus S. Jerome says that S. Paula had so strong a tendency to
excessive sorrow, that when she lost her husband and children she nearly
died of grief: that was not a sin, but an imperfection, since it did not
depend upon her wish and will. Some people are naturally easy, some
oppositions; some are indisposed to accept other men’s opinions, some
naturally disposed to be cross, some to be affectionate—in short, there is
hardly any one in whom some such imperfections do not exist. Now, although
they be natural and instinctive in each person, they may be remedied and
corrected, or even eradicated, by cultivating the reverse disposition. And
this, my child, must be done. Gardeners have found how to make the bitter
almond tree bear sweet fruit, by grafting the juice of the latter upon it,
why should we not purge out our perverse dispositions and infuse such as are
good? There is no disposition so good but it may be made bad by dint of
vicious habits, and neither is there any natural disposition so perverse but
that it may be conquered and overcome by God’s Grace primarily, and then by
our earnest diligent endeavour. I shall therefore now proceed to give you
counsels and suggest practices by which you may purify your soul from all
dangerous affections and imperfections, and from all tendencies to venial
sin, thereby strengthening yourself more and more against mortal sin. May
God give you grace to use them.
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PART II. CONTAINING SUNDRY COUNSELS AS TO UPLIFTING THE SOUL TO GOD IN PRAYER
AND THE USE OF THE SACRAMENTS.
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CHAPTER I. The Necessity of Prayer.

1. PRAYER opens the understanding to the brightness of Divine Light, and the
will to the warmth of Heavenly Love—nothing can so effectually purify the
mind from its many ignorances, or the will from its perverse affections. It
is as a healing water which causes the roots of our good desires to send
forth fresh shoots, which washes away the soul’s imperfections, and allays
the thirst of passion.

2. But especially I commend earnest mental prayer to you, more particularly
such as bears upon the Life and Passion of our Lord. If you contemplate Him
frequently in meditation, your whole soul will be filled with Him, you will
grow in His Likeness, and your actions will be moulded on His. He is the
Light of the world; therefore in Him, by Him, and for Him we shall be
enlightened and illuminated; He is the Tree of Life, beneath the shadow of
which we must find rest;—He is the Living Fountain of Jacob’s well, wherein
we may wash away every stain. Children learn to speak by hearing their
mother talk, and stammering forth their childish sounds in imitation; and so
if we cleave to the Savior in meditation, listening to His words, watching
His actions and intentions, we shall learn in time, through His Grace, to
speak, act and will like Himself. Believe me, my daughter, there is no way
to God save through this door. Just as the glass of a mirror would give no
reflection save for the metal behind it, so neither could we here below
contemplate the Godhead, were it not united to the Sacred Humanity of our
Saviour, Whose Life and Death are the best, sweetest and most profitable
subjects that we can possibly select for meditation. It is not without
meaning that the Saviour calls Himself the Bread come down from Heaven;—just
as we eat bread with all manner of other food, so we need to meditate and
feed upon our Dear Lord in every prayer and action. His Life has been
meditated and written about by various authors. I should specially commend
to you the writings of S. Bonaventura, Bellintani, Bruno, Capilla, Grenada
and Da Ponte. [24]

3. Give an hour every day to meditation before dinner;—if you can, let it be
early in the morning, when your mind will be less cumbered, and fresh after
the night’s rest. Do not spend more than an hour thus, unless specially
advised to do so by your spiritual father.

4. If you can make your meditation quietly in church, it will be well, and
no one, father or mother, husband or wife, can object to an hour spent
there, and very probably you could not secure a time so free from
interruption at home.

5. Begin all prayer, whether mental or vocal, by an act of the Presence of
God. If you observe this rule strictly, you will soon see how useful it is.

6. It may help you to say the Creed, Lord’s Prayer, etc., in Latin, but you
should also study them diligently in your own language, so as thoroughly to
gather up the meaning of these holy words, which must be used fixing your
thoughts steadily on their purport, not striving to say many words so much
as seeking to say a few with your whole heart. One Our Father said devoutly
is worth more than many prayers hurried over.

7. The Rosary is a useful devotion when rightly used, and there are various
little books to teach this. It is well, too, to say pious Litanies, and the
other vocal prayers appointed for the Hours and found in Manuals of
devotion,—but if you have a gift for mental prayer, let that always take the
chief place, so that if, having made that, you are hindered by business or
any other cause from saying your wonted vocal prayers, do not be disturbed,
but rest satisfied with saying the Lord’s Prayer, the Angelic Salutation,
and the Creed after your meditation.

8. If, while saying vocal prayers, your heart feels drawn to mental prayer,
do not resist it, but calmly let your mind fall into that channel, without
troubling because you have not finished your appointed vocal prayers. The
mental prayer you have substituted for them is more acceptable to God, and
more profitable to your soul. I should make an exception of the Church’s
Offices, if you are bound to say those by your vocation—in such a case these
are your duty.

9. If it should happen that your morning goes by without the usual
meditation, either owing to a pressure of business, or from any other cause,
(which interruptions you should try to prevent as far as possible,) try to
repair the loss in the afternoon, but not immediately after a meal, or you
will perhaps be drowsy, which is bad both for your meditation and your
health. But if you are unable all day to make up for the omission, you must
remedy it as far as may be by ejaculatory prayer, and by reading some
spiritual book, together with an act of penitence for the neglect, together
with a stedfast resolution to do better the next day.
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[24] S. Bonaventura, Louis of Grenada, and Da Ponte’s works are still
available and are admirable helps to meditation. Among more modern works
might be suggested Isaac Williams on the Passion, Avrillon’s Lent Guide, &c.
&c.
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CHAPTER II. A short Method of Meditation. And first, the Presence of God, the
First Point of Preparation.

IT may be, my daughter, that you do not know how to practise mental prayer,
for unfortunately it is a thing much neglected now-adays. I will therefore
give you a short and easy method for using it, until such time as you may
read sundry books written on the subject, and above all till practice
teaches you how to use it more perfectly. And first of all, the Preparation,
which consists of two points: first, placing yourself in the Presence of
God; and second, asking His Aid. And in order to place your self in the
Presence of God, I will suggest four chief considerations which you can use
at first.

First, a lively earnest realisation that His Presence is universal; that is
to say, that He is everywhere, and in all, and that there is no place,
nothing in the world, devoid of His Most Holy Presence, so that, even as
birds on the wing meet the air continually, we, let us go where we will,
meet with that Presence always and everywhere. It is a truth which all are
ready to grant, but all are not equally alive to its importance. A blind man
when in the presence of his prince will preserve a reverential demeanour if
told that the king is there, although unable to see him; but practically,
what men do not see they easily forget, and so readily lapse into
carelessness and irreverence. Just so, my child, we do not see our God, and
although faith warns us that He is present, not beholding Him with our
mortal eyes, we are too apt to forget Him, and act as though He were afar:
for, while knowing perfectly that He is everywhere, if we do not think about
it, it is much as though we knew it not. And therefore, before beginning to
pray, it is needful always to rouse the soul to a stedfast remembrance and
thought of the Presence of God. This is what David meant when he exclaimed,
“If I climb up to Heaven, Thou art there, and if I go down to hell, Thou art
there also!” [25] And in like manner Jacob, who, beholding the ladder which
went up to Heaven, cried out, “Surely the Lord is in this place and I knew
it not” [26] meaning thereby that he had not thought of it; for assuredly he
could not fail to know that God was everywhere and in all things. Therefore,
when you make ready to pray, you must say with your whole heart, “God is
indeed here.”

The second way of placing yourself in this Sacred Presence is to call to
mind that God is not only present in the place where you are, but that He is
very specially present in your heart and mind, which He kindles and inspires
with His Holy Presence, abiding there as Heart of your heart, Spirit of your
spirit. Just as the soul animates the whole body, and every member thereof,
but abides especially in the heart, so God, while present everywhere, yet
makes His special abode with our spirit. Therefore David calls Him “the
Strength of my heart;” [27] and S. Paul said that in Him “we live and move
and have our being.” [28] Dwell upon this thought until you have kindled a
great reverence within your heart for God Who is so closely present to you.

The third way is to dwell upon the thought of our Lord, Who in His Ascended
Humanity looks down upon all men, but most particularly on all Christians,
because they are His children; above all, on those who pray, over whose
doings He keeps watch. Nor is this any mere imagination, it is very truth,
and although we see Him not, He is looking down upon us. It was given to S.
Stephen in the hour of martyrdom thus to behold Him, and we may well say
with the Bride of the Canticles, “He looketh forth at the windows, shewing
Himself through the lattice.” [29]

The fourth way is simply to exercise your ordinary imagination, picturing
the Saviour to yourself in His Sacred Humanity as if He were beside you just
as we are wont to think of our friends, and fancy that we see or hear them
at our side. But when the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar is there, then this
Presence is no longer imaginary, but most real; and the sacred species are
but as a veil from behind which the Present Saviour beholds and considers
us, although we cannot see Him as He is.

Make use of one or other of these methods for placing yourself in the
Presence of God before you begin to pray;—do not try to use them all at
once, but take one at a time, and that briefly and simply.
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[25] Ps. cxxxix. 7.

[26] Gen. xxviii. 16.

[27] Ps. lxxiii. 26.

[28] Acts xvii. 28.

[29] Cant. ii. 9.
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CHAPTER III. Invocation, the Second Point of Preparation.

INVOCATION is made as follows: your soul, having realised God’s Presence,
will prostrate itself with the utmost reverence, acknowledging its
unworthiness to abide before His Sovereign Majesty; and yet knowing that He
of His Goodness would have you come to Him, you must ask of Him grace to
serve and worship Him in this your meditation. You may use some such brief
and earnest words as those of David: “Cast me not away from Thy Presence,
and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.” [30] “Shew me Thy Ways, O Lord, and
teach me Thy paths.” [31] “Give me understanding, and I shall keep Thy Law:
yea, I shall keep it with my whole heart.” [32] “I am Thy servant, O grant
me understanding.” [33] Dwell too upon the thought of your guardian Angel,
and of the Saints connected with the special mystery you are considering, as
the Blessed Virgin, S. John, the Magdalene, the good thief, etc., if you are
meditating in the Passion, so that you may share in their devout feelings
and intention,—and in the same way with other subjects.
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[30] Ps. li. 11.

[31] Ps. xxv. 4.

[32] Ps. cxix. 34.

[33] Ps. cxix. 125.
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CHAPTER IV. The Third Point of Preparation, representing the Mystery to be
meditated to Your Imagination.

FOLLOWING upon these two ordinary points, there ere is a third, which is not
necessary to all meditation, called by some the local representation, and by
others the interior picture. It is simply kindling a vivid picture of the
mystery to be meditated within your imagination, even as though you were
actually beholding it. For instance, if you wish to meditate upon our Lord
on His Cross, you will place yourself in imagination on Mount Calvary, as
though you saw and heard all that occurred there during the Passion; or you
can imagine to yourself all that the Evangelists describe as taking place
where you are. In the same way, when you meditate upon death, bring the
circumstances that will attend your own vividly to mind, and so of hell, or
any subjects which involve visible, tangible circumstances. When it is a
question of such mysteries as God’s Greatness, His Attributes, the end of
our creation, or other invisible things, you cannot make this use of your
imagination. At most you may employ certain comparisons and similitudes, but
these are not always opportune, and I would have you follow a very simple
method, and not weary your mind with striving after new inventions. Still,
often this use of the imagination tends to concentrate the mind on the
mystery we wish to meditate, and to prevent our thoughts from wandering
hither and thither, just as when you shut a bird within a cage, or fasten a
hawk by its lures. Some people will tell you that it is better to confine
yourself to mere abstract thought, and a simple mental and spiritual
consideration of these mysteries, but this is too difficult for beginners;
and until God calls you up higher, I would advise you, my daughter, to abide
contentedly in the lowly valley I have pointed out.
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CHAPTER V. Considerations, the Second Part of Meditation.

AFTER this exercise of the imagination, we come to that of the
understanding: for meditations, properly so called, are certain
considerations by which we raise the affections to God and heavenly things.
Now meditation differs therein from study and ordinary methods of thought
which have not the Love of God or growth in holiness for their object, but
some other end, such as the acquisition of learning or power of argument.
So, when you have, as I said, limited the efforts of your mind within due
bounds,—whether by the imagination, if the subject be material, or by
propositions, if it be a spiritual subject,—you will begin to form
reflections or considerations after the pattern of the meditations I have
already sketched for you. And if your mind finds sufficient matter, light
and fruit wherein to rest in any one consideration, dwell upon it, even as
the bee, which hovers over one flower so long as it affords honey. But if
you do not find wherewith to feed your mind, after a certain reasonable
effort, then go on to another consideration,—only be quiet and simple, and
do not be eager or hurried.
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CHAPTER VI. The Third Part of Meditation, Affections and Resolutions.

MEDITATION excites good desires in the will, or sensitive part of the
soul,—such as love of God and of our neighbour, a craving for the glory of
Paradise, zeal for the salvation of others, imitation of our Lord’s Example,
compassion, thanksgiving, fear of God’s wrath and of judgment, hatred of
sin, trust in God’s Goodness and Mercy, shame for our past life; and in all
such affections you should pour out your soul as much as possible. If you
want help in this, turn to some simple book of devotions, the Imitation of
Christ, the Spiritual Combat, or whatever you find most helpful to your
individual wants.

But, my daughter, you must not stop short in general affections, without
turning them into special resolutions for your own correction and amendment.
For instance, meditating on Our Dear Lord’s First Word from the Cross, you
will no doubt be roused to the desire of imitating Him in forgiving and
loving your enemies. But that is not enough, unless you bring it to some
practical resolution, such as, “I will not be angered any more by the
annoying things said of me by such or such a neighbour, nor by the slights
offered me by such an one; but rather I will do such and such things in
order to soften and conciliate them.” In this way, my daughter, you will
soon correct your faults, whereas mere general resolutions would take but a
slow and uncertain effect.
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CHAPTER VII. The Conclusion and Spiritual Bouquet.

THE meditation should be concluded by three acts, made with the utmost
humility. First, an act of thanksgiving;—thanking God for the affections and
resolutions with which He has inspired you, and for the Mercy and Goodness
He has made known to you in the mystery you have been meditating. Secondly,
an act of oblation, by which you offer your affections and resolutions to
God, in union with His Own Goodness and Mercy, and the Death and Merits of
His Son. The third act is one of petition, in which you ask God to give you
a share in the Merits of His Dear Son, and a blessing on your affections and
resolutions, to the end that you may be able to put them in practice. You
will further pray for the Church, and all her Ministers, your relations,
friends, and all others, using the Our Father as the most comprehensive and
necessary of prayers.

Besides all this, I bade you gather a little bouquet of devotion, and what I
mean is this. When walking in a beautiful garden most people are wont to
gather a few flowers as they go, which they keep, and enjoy their scent
during the day. So, when the mind explores some mystery in meditation, it is
well to pick out one or more points that have specially arrested the
attention, and are most likely to be helpful to you through the day, and
this should be done at once before quitting the subject of your meditation.
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CHAPTER VIII. Some Useful Hints as to Meditation.

ABOVE all things, my daughter, strive when your meditation is ended to
retain the thoughts and resolutions you have made as your earnest practice
throughout the day. This is the real fruit of meditation, without which it
is apt to be unprofitable, if not actually harmful—inasmuch as to dwell upon
virtues without practising them lends to puff us up with unrealities, until
we begin to fancy ourselves all that we have meditated upon and resolved to
be; which is all very well if our resolutions are earnest and substantial,
but on the contrary hollow and dangerous if they are not put in practice.
You must then diligently endeavour to carry out your resolutions, and seek
for all opportunities, great or small. For instance, if your resolution was
to win over those who oppose you by gentleness, seek through the day any
occasion of meeting such persons kindly, and if none offers, strive to speak
well of them, and pray for them.

When you leave off this interior prayer, you must be careful to keep your
heart in an even balance, lest the balm it has received in meditation be
scattered. I mean, try to maintain silence for some brief space, and let
your thoughts be transferred gradually from devotion to business, keeping
alive the feelings and affections aroused in meditation as long as possible.
Supposing some one to have received a precious porcelain vessel, filled with
a most costly liquid, which he is going to carry home; how carefully he
would go, not looking about, but watching stedfastly lest he trip or
stumble, or lest he spill any of the contents of his vessel. Just so, after
meditation, do not allow yourself forthwith to be distracted, but look
straight before you. Of course, if you meet any one to whom you are bound to
attend, you must act according to the circumstances in which you find
yourself, but even thus give heed to your heart, so as to lose as little as
possible of the precious fruits of your meditation. You should strive, too,
to accustom yourself to go easily from prayer to all such occupations as
your calling or position lawfully require of you, even although such
occupations may seem uncongenial to the affections and thoughts just before
forming part of your prayer. Thus the lawyer should be able to go from
meditation to his pleading, the tradesman to his business, the mistress of a
family to the cares of her household and her wifely duties, so calmly and
gently as not to be in any way disturbed by so doing. In both you are
fulfilling God’s Will, and you should be able to turn from one to the other
in a devout and humble spirit.

It may be that sometimes, immediately after your preparation, your
affections will be wholly drawn to God, and then, my child, you must let go
the reins, and not attempt to follow any given method; since, although as a
general rule your considerations should precede your affections and
resolutions, when the Holy Spirit gives you those affections at once, it is
unnecessary to use the machinery which was intended to bring about the same
result. In short, whenever such affections are kindled in your heart, accept
them, and give them place in preference to all other considerations. The
only object in placing the affections after the points of consideration in
meditation, is to make the different parts of meditation clearer, for it is
a general rule that when affections arise they are never to be checked, but
always encouraged to flow freely. And this applies also to the acts of
thanksgiving, of oblation and petition, which must not be restrained either,
although it is well to repeat or renew them at the close of your meditation.
But your resolutions must be made after the affections, and quite at the end
of your meditation, and that all the more because in these you must enter
upon ordinary familiar subjects and things which would be liable to cause
distractions if they were intruded among your spiritual affections.

Amid your affections and resolutions it is well occasionally to make use of
colloquies, and to speak sometimes to your Lord, sometimes to your guardian
Angel, or to those persons who are concerned in the mystery you are
meditating, to the Saints, to yourself, your own heart, to sinners, and even
to the inanimate creation around, as David so often does in the Psalms, as
well as other Saints in their meditations and prayers.
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CHAPTER IX. Concerning Dryness in Meditation.

SHOULD it happen sometimes, my daughter, that you have no taste for or
consolation in your meditation, I entreat you not to be troubled, but seek
relief in vocal prayer, bemoan yourself to our Lord, confess your
unworthiness, implore His Aid, kiss His Image, if it be beside you, and say
in the words of Jacob, “I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me;” or
with the Canaanitish woman, “Yes, Lord, I am as a dog before Thee, but the
dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their master’s table.”

Or you can take a book, and read attentively till such time as your mind is
calmed and quickened; or sometimes you may find help from external actions,
such as prostrating yourself folding your hands upon your breast, kissing
your Crucifix,—that is, supposing you are alone. But if, after all this, you
are still unrelieved, do not be disturbed at your dryness, however great it
be, but continue striving after a devout attitude in God’s Sight. What
numbers of courtiers appear a hundred times at court without any hope of a
word from their king, but merely to pay their homage and be seen of him.
Just so, my daughter, we ought to enter upon mental prayer purely to fulfil
our duty and testify our loyalty. If it pleases God’s Divine Majesty to
speak to us, and discourse in our hearts by His Holy Inspirations and inward
consolations, it is doubtless a great honour, and very sweet to our soul;
but if He does not vouchsafe such favours, but makes as though He saw us
not,—as though we were not in His Presence,—nevertheless we must not quit
it, but on the contrary we must remain calmly and devoutly before Him, and
He is certain to accept our patient waiting, and give heed to our assiduity
and perseverance; so that another time He will impart to us His
consolations, and let us taste all the sweetness of holy meditation. But
even were it not so, let us, my child, be satisfied with the privilege of
being in His Presence and seen of Him.
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CHAPTER X. Morning Prayer.

BESIDES your systematic meditation and your other vocal prayers, there are
five shorter kinds of prayer, which are as aids and assistants to the great
devotion, and foremost among these is your morning prayer, as a general
preparation for all the day’s work. It should be made in this wise.

1. Thank God, and adore Him for His Grace which has kept you safely through
the night, and if in anything you have offended against Him, ask
forgiveness.

2. Call to mind that the day now beginning is given you in order that you
may work for Eternity, and make a stedfast resolution to use this day for
that end.

3. Consider beforehand what occupations, duties and occasions are likely
this day to enable you to serve God; what temptations to offend Him, either
by vanity, anger, etc., may arise; and make a fervent resolution to use all
means of serving Him and confirming your own piety; as also to avoid and
resist whatever might hinder your salvation and God’s Glory. Nor is it
enough to make such a resolution,—you must also prepare to carry it into
effect. Thus, if you foresee having to meet some one who is hottempered and
irritable, you must not merely resolve to guard your own temper, but you
must consider by what gentle words to conciliate him. If you know you will
see some sick person, consider how best to minister comfort to him, and so
on.

4. Next, humble yourself before God, confessing that of yourself you could
carry out nothing that you have planned, either in avoiding evil or seeking
good. Then, so to say, take your heart in your hands, and offer it and all
your good intentions to God’s Gracious Majesty, entreating Him to accept
them, and strengthen you in His Service, which you may do in some such words
as these: “Lord, I lay before Thee my weak heart, which Thou dost fill with
good desires. Thou knowest that I am unable to bring the same to good
effect, unless Thou dost bless and prosper them, and therefore, O Loving
Father, I entreat of Thee to help me by the Merits and Passion of Thy Dear
Son, to Whose Honour I would devote this day and my whole life.”

All these acts should be made briefly and heartily, before you leave your
room if possible, so that all the coming work of the day may be prospered
with God’s blessing; but anyhow, my daughter, I entreat you never to omit
them.
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CHAPTER XI. Evening Prayer and Examination of Conscience.

AS I have counselled you before your material dinner to make a spiritual
repast in meditation, so before your evening meal you should make at least a
devout spiritual collation. Make sure of some brief leisure before
suppertime, and then prostrating yourself before God, and recollecting
yourself in the Presence of Christ Crucified, setting Him before your mind
with a stedfast inward glance, renew the warmth of your morning’s meditation
by some hearty aspirations and humble upliftings of your soul to your
Blessed Saviour, either repeating those points of your meditation which
helped you most, or kindling your heart with anything else you will.

As to the examination of conscience, which we all should make before going
to bed, you know the rules:

1. Thank God for having preserved you through the day past.

2. Examine how you have conducted yourself through the day, in order to
which recall where and with whom you have been, and what you have done.

3. If you have done anything good, offer thanks to God; if you have done
amiss in thought, word, or deed, ask forgiveness of His Divine Majesty,
resolving to confess the fault when opportunity offers, and to be diligent
in doing better.

4. Then commend your body and soul, the Church, your relations and friends,
to God. Ask that the Saints and Angels may keep watch over you, and with
God’s Blessing go to the rest He has appointed for you. Neither this
practice nor that of the morning should ever be omitted; by your morning
prayer you open your soul’s windows to the sunshine of Righteousness, and by
your evening devotions you close them against the shades of hell.
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CHAPTER XII. On Spiritual Retirement.

THIS is a matter, dear daughter, to which I am very anxious to win your
attention, for in it lies one of the surest means of spiritual progress.
Strive as often as possible through the day to place yourself in God’s
Presence by some one of the methods already suggested. Consider what God
does, and what you are doing;—you will see His Eyes ever fixed upon you in
Love incomparable. “O my God,” you will cry out, “why cannot I always be
looking upon Thee, even as Thou lookest on me? why do I think so little
about Thee? O my soul, thy only resting-place is God, and yet how often dost
thou wander?” The birds have nests in lofty trees, and the stag his refuge
in the thick coverts, where he can shelter from the sun’s burning heat; and
just so, my daughter, our hearts ought daily to choose some resting-place,
either Mount Calvary, or the Sacred Wounds, or some other spot close to
Christ, where they can retire at will to seek rest and refreshment amid
toil, and to be as in a fortress, protected from temptation. Blessed indeed
is the soul which can truly say, “Thou, Lord, art my Refuge, my Castle, my
Stay, my Shelter in the storm and in the heat of the day.”

Be sure then, my child, that while externally occupied with business and
social duties, you frequently retire within the solitude of your own heart.
That solitude need not be in any way hindered by the crowds which surround
you—they surround your body, not your soul, and your heart remains alone in
the Sole Presence of God. This is what David sought after amid his manifold
labours;—the Psalms are full of such expressions as “Lord, I am ever with
Thee. The Lord is always at my right hand. I lift up mine eyes to Thee, O
Thou Who dwellest in the heavens. Mine eyes look unto God.”

There are few social duties of sufficient importance to prevent an
occasional retirement of the heart into this sacred solitude. When S.
Catherine of Sienna was deprived by her parents of any place or time for
prayer and meditation, Our Lord inspired her with the thought of making a
little interior oratory in her mind, into which she could retire in heart,
and so enjoy a holy solitude amid her outward duties. And henceforward, when
the world assaulted her, she was able to be indifferent, because, so she
said, she could retire within her secret oratory, and find comfort with her
Heavenly Bridegroom. So she counselled her spiritual daughters to make a
retirement within their heart, in which to dwell. Do you in like manner let
your heart withdraw to such an inward retirement, where, apart from all men,
you can lay it bare, and treat face to face with God, even as David says
that he watched like a “pelican in the wilderness, or an owl in the desert,
or a sparrow sitting alone upon the housetop.” [34] These words have a sense
beyond their literal meaning, or King David’s habit of retirement for
contemplation;—and we may find in them three excellent kinds of retreats in
which to seek solitude after the Saviour’s Example, Who is symbolised as He
hung upon Mount Calvary by the pelican of the wilderness, feeding her young
ones with her blood. [35] So again His Nativity in a lonely stable might
find a foreshadowing in the owl of the desert, bemoaning and lamenting: and
in His Ascension He was like the sparrow rising high above the dwellings of
men. Thus in each of these ways we can make a retreat amid the daily cares
of life and its business.

When the blessed Elzear, Count of Arian-enProvence, had been long separated
from his pious and beloved wife Delphine, she sent a messenger to inquire
after him, and he returned answer, “I am well, dear wife, and if you would
see me, seek me in the Wounded Side of our Dear Lord Jesus; that is my sure
dwelling-place, and elsewhere you will seek me in vain.” Surely he was a
true Christian knight who spoke thus.
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[34] Ps. cii. 6, 7.

[35] The Egyptians used the pelican as a symbol of parental devotion; and
among the early Christians, as may be seen in the Catacombs, it was employed
to shadow forth the deep mysteries of Christ’s love. On many a monumental
brass, church window, or chalice of old time, occurs this device, with the
motto, “Sic Christus dilexit nos.” “Thus hath Christ loved us.” And so Saint
Thomas in his Eucharistic Hymn “Adoro Te devote,”—“Pie Pelicane, Jesu
Domine, Me immundum munda, Tuo sausguine!”
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CHAPTER XIII. Aspirations, Ejaculatory Prayer and Holy Thoughts.

WE retire with God, because we aspire to Him, and we aspire in order to
retire with Him; so that aspiration after God and spiritual retreat excite
one another, while both spring from the one Source of all holy thoughts. Do
you then, my daughter, aspire continually to God, by brief, ardent
upliftings of heart; praise His Excellence, invoke His Aid, cast yourself in
spirit at the Foot of His Cross, adore His Goodness, offer your whole soul a
thousand times a day to Him, fix your inward gaze upon Him, stretch out your
hands to be led by Him, as a little child to its father, clasp Him to your
breast as a fragrant nosegay, upraise Him in your soul as a standard. In
short, kindle by every possible act your love for God, your tender,
passionate desire for the Heavenly Bridegroom of souls. Such is ejaculatory
prayer, as it was so earnestly inculcated by S. Augustine upon the devout
Proba; and be sure, my daughter, that if you seek such nearness and intimacy
with God your whole soul will imbibe the perfume of His Perfections. Neither
is this a difficult practice,—it may be interwoven with all our duties and
occupations, without hindering any; for neither the spiritual retreat of
which I have spoken, nor these inward upliftings of the heart, cause more
than a very brief distraction, which, so far from being any hindrance, will
rather promote whatever you have in hand. When a pilgrim pauses an instant
to take a draught of wine, which refreshes his lips and revives his heart,
his onward journey is nowise hindered by the brief delay, but rather it is
shortened and lightened, and he brings it all the sooner to a happy end,
pausing but to advance the better.

Sundry collections of ejaculatory prayer have been put forth, which are
doubtless very useful, but I should advise you not to tie yourself to any
formal words, but rather to speak with heart or mouth whatever springs forth
from the love within you, which is sure to supply you with all abundance.
There are certain utterances which have special force, such as the
ejaculatory prayers of which the Psalms are so full, and the numerous loving
invocations of Jesus which we find in the Song of Songs. Many hymns too may
be used with the like intention, provided they are sung attentively. In
short, just as those who are full of some earthly, natural love are ever
turning in thought to the beloved one, their hearts overflowing with
tenderness, and their lips ever ready to praise that beloved object;
comforting themselves in absence by letters, carving the treasured name on
every tree;—so those who love God cannot cease thinking of Him, living for
Him, longing after Him, speaking of Him, and fain would they grave the Holy
Name of Jesus in the hearts of every living creature they behold. And to
such an outpour of love all creation bids us—nothing that He has made but is
filled with the praise of God, and, as says S. Augustine, everything in the
world speaks silently but clearly to the lovers of God of their love,
exciting them to holy desires, whence gush forth aspirations and loving
cries to God. St. Gregory Nazianzen tells his flock, how, walking along the
seashore, he watched the waves as they washed up shells and sea weeds, and
all manner of small substances, which seemed, as it were, rejected by the
sea, until a return wave would often wash part thereof back again; while the
rocks remained firm and immoveable, let the waves beat against them never so
fiercely. And then the Saint went on to reflect that feeble hearts let
themselves be carried hither and thither by the varying waves of sorrow or
consolation, as the case might be, like the shells upon the seashore, while
those of a nobler mould abide firm and immoveable amid every storm;—whence
he breaks out into David’s cry, “Lord, save me, for the waters are gone over
my soul; deliver me from the great deep, all Thy waves and storms are gone
over me;” for he was himself then in trouble by reason of the ungodly
usurpation of his See by Maximus.

When S. Fulgentius, Bishop of Ruspe, heard Theodoric, King of the Goths,
harangue a general assembly of Roman nobles, and beheld their splendour, he
exclaimed, “O God, how glorious must Thy Heavenly Jerusalem be, if even
earthly Rome be thus!” [36] And if this world can afford so much
gratification to mere earthly lovers of vanity, what must there be in store
hereafter for those who love the truth?

“If thus Thy lower works are fair,—If thus Thy glories gild the spanOf
ruined earth and guilty man,—How glorious must the mansions beWhere Thy
redeemed dwell with Thee!”

We are told that S. Anselm of Canterbury, (our mountains may glory in being
his birthplace [37] ) was much given to such thoughts. On one occasion a
hunted hare took refuge from imminent death beneath the Bishop’s horse, the
hounds clamouring round, but not daring to drag it from its asylum, whereat
his attendants began to laugh; but the great Anselm wept, saying, “You may
laugh forsooth, but to the poor hunted beast it is no laughing matter; even
so the soul which has been led astray in all manner of sin finds a host of
enemies waiting at its last hour to devour it, and terrified, knows not
where to seek a refuge, and if it can find none, its enemies laugh and
rejoice.” And so he went on his way, sighing.

Constantine the Great wrote with great respect to S. Anthony, at which his
religious expressed their surprise. “Do you marvel,” he said, “that a king
should write to an ordinary man? Marvel rather that God should have written
His Law for men, and yet more that He should have spoken with them Face to
face through His Son.” When S. Francis saw a solitary sheep amid a flock of
goats; “See,” said he to his companion, “how gentle the poor sheep is among
the goats, even as was Our Lord among the Pharisees;” and seeing a boar
devour a little lamb, “Poor little one,” he exclaimed, weeping, “how vividly
is my Saviour’s Death set forth in thee!”

A great man of our own day, Francis Borgia, then Duke of Candia, was wont to
indulge in many devout imaginations as he was hunting. “I used to ponder,”
he said, “how the falcon returns to one’s wrist, and lets one hood its eyes
or chain it to the perch, and yet men are so perverse in refusing to turn at
God’s call.” St. Basil the Great says that the rose amid its thorns preaches
a lesson to men. “All that is pleasant in this life” (so it tells us
mortals) “is mingled with sadness—no joy is altogether pure—all enjoyment is
liable to be marred by regrets, marriage is saddened by widowhood, children
bring anxiety, glory often turns to shame, neglect follows upon honour,
weariness on pleasure, sickness on health. Truly the rose is a lovely
flower,” the Saint goes on to say, “but it moves me to sadness, reminding me
as it does that for my sin the earth was condemned to bring forth thorns.”

Another devout soul, gazing upon a brook wherein the starlit sky of a calm
summer’s night was reflected, exclaims, “O my God, when Thou callest me to
dwell in Thy heavenly tabernacles, these stars will be beneath my feet; and
even as those stars are now reflected here below, so are we Thy creatures
reflected above in the living waters of Thy Divine Love.” So another cried
out, beholding a rapid river as it flowed, “Even thus my soul will know no
rest until it plunge into that Divine Sea whence it came forth!” S. Frances,
as she knelt to pray beside the banks of a pleasant streamlet, cried out in
ecstasy, “The Grace of my Dear Lord flows softly and sweetly even as these
refreshing waters” And another saintly soul, looking upon the blooming
orchards, cried out, “Why am I alone barren in the Church’s garden!” So S.
Francis of Assisi, beholding a hen gathering her chickens beneath her wings,
exclaimed, “Keep me, O Lord, under the shadow of Thy Wings” And looking upon
the sunflower, he ejaculated, “When, O Lord, will my soul follow the
attractions of Thy Love?” [38] And gathering pansies in a garden which are
fair to see, but scentless, [39] “Ah,” he cried out, “even so are the
thoughts of my heart, fair to behold, but without savour or fruit!”

Thus it is, my daughter, that good thoughts and holy aspirations may be
drawn from all that surrounds us in our ordinary life. Woe to them that turn
aside the creature from the Creator, and thrice blessed are they who turn
all creation to their Creator’s Glory, and make human vanities subservient
to the truth. “Verily,” says Saint Gregory Nazianzen, “I am wont to turn all
things to my spiritual profit.”

Read the pious epitaph written for S. Paula by S. Jerome; it is marvellous
therein to see how she conceived spiritual thoughts and aspirations at every
turn.

Now, in the practice of this spiritual retreat and of these ejaculatory
prayers the great work of devotion lies: it can supply all other
deficiencies, but there is hardly any means of making up where this is
lacking. Without it no one can lead a true contemplative life, and the
active life will be but imperfect where it is omitted: without it rest is
but indolence, labour but weariness,—therefore I beseech you to adopt it
heartily, and never let it go.
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[36] Was it in imitation of this that the hymn was written?

[37] S. Anselm was born at Aosta in Piedmont, A.D. 1033.

[38] Moore has preserved the graceful imagery of the sunflower, anciently
called “tourne-soleil” (as by S. Francis here). “Oh the heart that once
truly loved, never forgets, But as truly loves on to the close, As the
sunflower turns to her God when he sets The same look which she turned when
he rose.”

[39] “Pensees.” This play on words is common—as Ophelia says in Hamlet, Act
iv. sc. 5: “There is pansies—that’s for thoughts.” But the name of this
pretty viola is really derived from panacea, signifying all-heal, just as
Tansy is derived from Athanasia, i.e. immortelle or everlasting. Its other
name of heart’s-ease also refers to the potent virtues ascribed to it of
old. Cawdray, in his Treasurie of Similies, London, 1609, says: “As the herb
Panax or Panace hath in it a remedy against all diseases, so is the Death of
Christ against all sin sufficient and effectual.” In the preface to our
English Bible of 1611, the translators speak of “Panaces, the herb that is
good for all diseases.”
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CHAPTER XIV. Of Holy Communion, and how to join in it.

1. SO far I have said nothing concerning the Sun of all spiritual exercises,
even the most holy, sacred and Sovereign Sacrifice and Sacrament of the
Eucharist,—the very centre point of our Christian religion, the heart of all
devotion, the soul of piety;—that Ineffable Mystery which embraces the whole
depth of Divine Love, by which God, giving Himself really to us, conveys all
His Graces and favours to men with royal magnificence.

2. Prayer made in union with this Divine Sacrifice has untold power; through
which, indeed, the soul overflows with heavenly grace, and leaning on her
Beloved, becomes so filled with spiritual sweetness and perfume, that we may
ask in the words of the Canticles: “Who is this that cometh out of the
wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with
all powders of the merchant? ” [40]

3. Strive then to your utmost to be present every day at this holy
Celebration, in order that with the priest you may offer the Sacrifice of
your Redeemer on behalf of yourself and the whole Church to God the Father.
Saint Chrysostom says that the Angels crowd around it in adoration, and if
we are found together with them, united in one intention, we cannot but be
most favourably influenced by such society. Moreover, all the heavenly
choirs of the Church triumphant, as well as those of the Church militant,
are joined to our Dear Lord in this divine act, so that with Him, in Him,
and by Him, they may win the favour of God the Father, and obtain His Mercy
for us. How great the blessing to my soul to contribute its share towards
the attainment of so gracious a gift!

4. If any imperative hindrance prevents your presence at this sovereign
sacrifice of Christ’s most true Presence, at least be sure to take part in
it spiritually. If you cannot go to Church, choose some morning hour in
which to unite your intention to that of the whole Christian world, and make
the same interior acts of devotion wherever you are that you would make if
you were really present at the Celebration of the Holy Eucharist in Church.

5. In order to join in this rightly, whether actually or mentally, you must
give heed to several things: (1) In the beginning, and before the priest
goes up to the Altar, make your preparation with his—placing yourself in
God’s Presence, confessing your unworthiness, and asking forgiveness. (2)
Until the Gospel, dwell simply and generally upon the Coming and the Life of
our Lord in this world. (3) From the Gospel to the end of the Creed, dwell
upon our Dear Lord’s teaching, and renew your resolution to live and die in
the faith of the Holy Catholic Church. (4) From thence, fix your heart on
the mysteries of the Word, and unite yourself to the Death and Passion of
our Redeemer, now actually and essentially set forth in this holy Sacrifice,
which, together with the priest and all the congregation, you offer to God
the Father, to His Glory and your own salvation. (5) Up to the moment of
communicating, offer all the longings and desires of your heart, above all
desiring most earnestly to be united for ever to our Saviour by His Eternal
Love. (6) From the time of Communion to the end, thank His Gracious Majesty
for His Incarnation, His Life, Death, Passion, and the Love which He sets
forth in this holy Sacrifice, intreating through it His favour for yourself,
your relations and friends, and the whole Church; and humbling yourself
sincerely, devoutly receive the blessing which our Dear Lord gives you
through the channel of His minister. If, however, you wish to follow your
daily course of meditation on special mysteries during the Sacrifice, it is
not necessary that you should interrupt yourself by making these several
acts but it will suffice that at the beginning you dispose your intention to
worship and to offer the holy Sacrifice in your meditation and prayer; since
every meditation includes all the abovenamed acts either explicitly or
implicitly.
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[40] Cant. iii. 6.
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CHAPTER XV. Of the other Public Offices of the Church.

FURTHERMORE, my daughter, you should endeavour to assist at the Offices,
Hours, Vespers, etc., as far as you are able, especially on Sundays and
Festivals, days which are dedicated to God, wherein we ought to strive to do
more for His Honour and Glory than on others. You will greatly increase the
fervour of your devotion by so doing, even as did S. Augustine, who tells us
in his Confessions, that in the early days of his conversion he was touched
to the quick, and his heart overflowed in happy tears, when he took part in
the Offices of the Church. [41] Moreover (let me say it here once for all),
there is always more profit and more consolation in the public Offices of
the Church than in private acts of devotion, God having willed to give the
preference to communion in prayer over all individual action. Be ready to
take part in any confraternities and associations you may find in the place
where you are called to dwell, especially such as are most fruitful and
edifying. This will be pleasing to God; for although confraternities are not
ordained, they are recommended by the Church, which grants various
privileges to those who are united thereby. And it is always a work of love
to join with others and take part in their good works. And although it may
be possible that you can use equally profitable devotions by yourself as in
common with others,—perhaps even you may like doing so best,—nevertheless
God is more glorified when we unite with our brethren and neighbours and
join our offerings to theirs.

I say the same concerning all public services and prayers, in which, as far
as possible, each one of us is bound to contribute the best example we can
for our neighbour’s edification, and our hearty desire for God’s Glory and
the general good of all men.
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[41] “Nor was I sated in those days with the wondrous sweetness of
considering the depth of Thy counsels concerning the salvation of mankind.
How did I weep, in Thy hymns and canticles, touched to the quick by the
voices of Thy sweet-attuned church The voices flowed into mine ears, and the
truth distilled into my heart, whence the affections of my devotion
overflowed, and tears ran down, and happy was I therein.”—conf. bk. ix. 14.
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CHAPTER XVI. How the Saints are united to us.

INASMUCH as God continually sends us inspirations by means of His Angels, we
may fitly send back our aspirations through the same channel. The souls of
the holy dead, resting in Paradise, who are, as our Lord Himself has told
us, “as the Angels in Heaven,” [42] are also united to us in their prayers.
My child, let us gladly join our hearts with these heavenly blessed ones;
for even as the newly-fledged nightingale learns to sing from the elder
birds, so by our sacred communing with the Saints we shall learn better to
pray and sing the praises of the Lord. David is continually uniting his
prayers with those of all the Saints and Angels.

Honour, revere and respect the Blessed Virgin Mary with a very special love;
she is the Mother of our Sovereign Lord, and so we are her children. Let us
think of her with all the love and confidence of affectionate children; let
us desire her love, and strive with true filial hearts to imitate her
graces.

Seek to be familiar with the Angels; learn to realise that they are
continually present, although invisible. Specially love and revere the
Guardian Angel of the Diocese in which you live, those of the friends who
surround you, and your own. Commune with them frequently, join in their
songs of praise, and seek their protection and help in all you do, spiritual
or temporal.

That pious man Peter Faber, the first companion of Saint Ignatius, and the
first priest, first preacher and first theological teacher of the Company of
the Jesuits, who was a native of our Diocese, [43] once passing through this
country on his way from Germany, (where he had been labouring for God’s
Glory,) told how great comfort he had found as he went among places infested
with heresy in communing with the guardian Angels thereof, whose help had
often preserved him from danger, and softened hearts to receive the faith.
He spoke with such earnestness, that a lady who, when quite young, heard
him, was so impressed, that she repeated his words to me only four years
ago, sixty years after their utterance, with the utmost feeling. I had the
happiness only last year of consecrating an altar in the place where it
pleased God to give that blessed man birth, the little village of Villaret,
amid the wildest of our mountains.

You will do well to choose out for yourself some individual Saint, whose
life specially to study and imitate, and whose prayers may be more
particularly offered on your behalf. The Saint bearing your own baptismal
name would seem to be naturally assigned to you.
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[42] S. Mark xii. 25.

[43] Faber was a Savoyard.
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CHAPTER XVII. How to Hear and Read God’s Word.

CULTIVATE a special devotion to God’s Word, whether studied privately or in
public; always listen to it with attention and reverence, strive to profit
by it, and do not let it fall to the ground, but receive it within your
heart as a precious balm, thereby imitating the Blessed Virgin, who “kept
all these sayings in her heart.” [44] Remember that our Lord receives our
words of prayer according to the way in which we receive His words in
teaching.

You should always have some good devout book at hand, such as the writings
of S. Bonaventura, Gerson, Denis the Carthusian, Blosius, Grenada, Stella,
Arias, Pinella, Da Ponte, Avila, the Spiritual Combat, the Confessions of S.
Augustine, S. Jerome’s Epistles, or the like; and daily read some small
portion attentively, as though you were reading letters sent by the Saints
from Paradise to teach you the way thither, and encourage you to follow
them. Read the Lives of the Saints too, which are as a mirror to you of
Christian life, and try to imitate their actions according to your
circumstances; for although many things which the Saints did may not be
practicable for those who live in the world, they may be followed more or
less. Thus, in our spiritual retreats we imitate the solitude of the first
hermit, S. Paul; in the practice of poverty we imitate S. Francis, and so
on. Of course some Lives throw much more light upon our daily course than
others, such as the Life of Saint Theresa, which is most admirable, the
first Jesuits, Saint Charles Borromeo, Archbishop of Milan, S. Louis, S.
Bernard, S. Francis, and such like. Others are more the subjects of our
admiring wonder than of imitation, such as S. Mary of Egypt, S. Simeon
Stylites, S. Catherine of Genoa, and S. Catherine of Sienna, S. Angela,
etc., although these should tend to kindle a great love of God in our
hearts.
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[44] S. Luke ii. 51.
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CHAPTER XVIII. How to receive Inspirations.

BY inspirations I mean all drawings, feelings, interior reproaches, lights
and intuitions, with which God moves us, preventing our hearts by His
Fatherly love and care, and awakening, exciting, urging, and attracting them
to goodness, to Heavenly love, to good resolutions, in short, to whatever
tends to our eternal welfare. This it is of which we read in the Canticles,
when the Bridegroom knocks at the door, awakens His beloved, calls upon her,
seeks her, bids her eat of His honey, gather the fruit and flowers of His
garden, and let Him hear her voice, which is sweet to Him. [45]

Let me make use of an illustration of my meaning. In contracting a marriage,
the bride must be a party to three separate acts: first, the bridegroom is
proposed to her; secondly, she entertains the proposal; and thirdly, she
gives her consent. Just so when God intends to perform some act of love in
us, by us, and with us; He first suggests it by His inspiration; secondly,
we receive that inspiration; and thirdly, we consent to it: for, like as we
fall into sin by three steps, temptation, delectation, and consent, so there
are three steps whereby we ascend to virtue; inspiration, as opposed to
temptation; delectation in God’s inspiration, as opposed to that of
temptation; and consent to the one instead of to the other. Were God’s
inspirations to last all our lives, we should be nowise more acceptable to
Him, unless we took pleasure therein; on the contrary, we should rather
offend Him as did the Israelites, of whom He says that they “grieved Him for
forty years long, refusing to hear His pleadings, so that at last” I “sware
in My wrath that they should not enter into My rest.” [46] And (to recur to
my first illustration) one who has long been devoted to his lady-love, would
feel greatly injured if, after all, she would not consent to the alliance he
seeks.

The delight we take in God’s inspirations is an important step gained
towards His Glory, and we begin at once to please Him thereby; for although
such delectation is not the same thing as a full consent, it shows a strong
tendency thereto; and if it is a good and profitable sign when we take
pleasure in hearing God’s Word, which is, so to say, an external
inspiration, still more is it good and acceptable in His Sight when we take
delight in His interior inspirations. Such is the delight of which the Bride
says, “My soul melted within me when my Beloved spake.” [47] And so, too,
the earthly lover is well satisfied when he sees that his lady-love finds
pleasure in his attentions.

But, after all, consent only perfects the good action; for if we are
inspired of God, and take pleasure in that inspiration, and yet,
nevertheless, refuse our consent to His inspiration, we are acting a very
contemptuous, offensive part towards Him. We read of the Bride, that
although the voice of her Beloved touched her heart, she made trivial
excuses, and delayed opening the door to Him, and so He withdrew Himself and
“was gone.” [48] And the earthly lover, who had long sought a lady, and
seemed acceptable to her, would have the more ground for complaint if at
last he was spurned and dismissed, than if he had never been favourably
received.

Do you, my daughter, resolve to accept whatever inspirations God may
vouchsafe you, heartily; and when they offer themselves, receive them as the
ambassadors of your Heavenly King, seeking alliance with you. Hearken gently
to their propositions, foster the love with which you are inspired, and
cherish the holy Guest. Give your consent, and let it be a full, loving,
stedfast consent to His holy inspirations; for, so doing, God will reckon
your affection as a favour, although truly we can confer none upon Him. But,
before consenting to inspirations which have respect to important or
extraordinary things, guard against self-deception, by consulting your
spiritual guide, and let him examine whether the inspiration be real or no;
and that the rather, because when the enemy sees a soul ready to hearken to
inspirations, he is wont to set false delusions in the way to deceive it,—a
snare you will not fall into so long as you humbly obey your guide.

Consent once given, you must carefully seek to produce the intended results,
and carry out the inspiration, the crown of true virtue; for to give
consent, without producing the result thereof, were like planting a vine
without meaning it to bear fruit. All this will be greatly promoted by
careful attention to your morning exercises, and the spiritual retirement
already mentioned, because therein you learn to carry general principles to
a special application.
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[45] Cant. v. vii. ii.

[46] Ps. xcv. 10, 11.

[47] In the English version this passage is, “My soul failed when he
spake.” (Cant. V. 6.) But in the Vulgate it is in the far more expressive
form quoted by S. Francis de Sales, “Anima mea liquefacta est, ut locutus
est.”

[48] Cant. v. 6.
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CHAPTER XIX. On Confession.

OUR Saviour has bequeathed the Sacrament of Penitence and Confession to His
Church, [49] in order that therein we may be cleansed from all our sins,
however and whenever we may have been soiled thereby. Therefore, my child,
never allow your heart to abide heavy with sin, seeing that there is so sure
and safe a remedy at hand. If the lioness has been in the neighbourhood of
other beasts she hastens to wash away their scent, lest it should be
displeasing to her lord; and so the soul which has ever so little consented
to sin, ought to abhor itself and make haste to seek purification, out of
respect to His Divine Gaze Who beholds it always. Why should we die a
spiritual death when there is a sovereign remedy available?

Make your confession humbly and devoutly every week, and always, if you can,
before communicating, even although your conscience is not burdened with
mortal sin; for in confession you do not only receive absolution for your
venial sins, but you also receive great strength to help you in avoiding
them henceforth, clearer light to discover your failings, and abundant grace
to make up whatever loss you have incurred through those faults. You
exercise the graces of humility, obedience, simplicity and love, and by this
one act of confession you practise more virtue than in any other.

Be sure always to entertain a hearty sorrow for the sins you confess,
however small they are; as also a stedfast resolution to correct them in
future. Some people go on confessing venial sins out of mere habit, and
conventionally, without making any effort to correct them, thereby losing a
great deal of spiritual good. Supposing that you confess having said
something untrue, although without evil consequences, or some careless
words, or excessive amusement;—repent, and make a firm resolution of
amendment: it is a mere abuse to confess any sin whatever, be it mortal or
venial, without intending to put it altogether away, that being the express
object of confession.

Beware of unmeaning self-accusations, made out of a mere routine, such as,
“I have not loved God as much as I ought; I have not prayed with as much
devotion as I ought; I

have not loved my neighbour as I ought; I have not received the Sacraments
with sufficient reverence;” and the like. Such things as these are
altogether useless in setting the state of your conscience before your
Confessor, inasmuch as all the Saints in Paradise and all men living would
say the same. But examine closely what special reason you have for accusing
yourself thus, and when you have discovered it, accuse yourself simply and
plainly of your fault. For instance, when confessing that you have not loved
your neighbour as you ought, it may be that what you mean is, that having
seen some one in great want whom you could have succoured, you have failed
to do so. Well then, accuse yourself of that special omission: say, “Having
come across a person in need, I did not help him as I might have done,”
either through negligence, or hardness, or indifference, according as the
case may be. So again, do not accuse yourself of not having prayed to God
with sufficient devotion; but if you have given way to voluntary
distractions, or if you have neglected the proper circumstances of devout
prayer—whether place, time, or attitude—say so plainly, just as it is, and
do not deal in generalities, which, so to say, blow neither hot nor cold.

Again, do not be satisfied with mentioning the bare fact of your venial
sins, but accuse yourself of the motive cause which led to them. For
instance, do not be content with saying that you told an untruth which
injured no one; but say whether it was out of vanity, in order to win praise
or avoid blame, out of heedlessness, or from obstinacy. If you have exceeded
in society, say whether it was from the love of talking, or gambling for the
sake of money, and so on. Say whether you continued long to commit the fault
in question, as the importance of a fault depends greatly upon its
continuance: e.g., there is a wide difference between a passing act of
vanity which is over in a quarter of an hour, and one which fills the heart
for one or more days. So you must mention the fact, the motive and the
duration of your faults. It is true that we are not bound to be so precise
in confessing venial sins, or even, technically speaking, to confess them at
all; but all who aim at purifying their souls in order to attain a really
devout life, will be careful to show all their spiritual maladies, however
slight, to their spiritual physician, in order to be healed.

Do not spare yourself in telling whatever is necessary to explain the nature
of your fault, as, for instance, the reason why you lost your temper, or why
you encouraged another in wrong-doing. Thus, some one whom I dislike says a
chance word in joke, I take it ill, and put myself in a passion. If one I
like had said a stronger thing I should not have taken it amiss; so in
confession, I ought to say that I lost my temper with a person, not because
of the words spoken so much as because I disliked the speaker; and if in
order to explain yourself clearly it is necessary to particularize the
words, it is well to do so; because accusing one’s self thus simply one
discovers not merely one’s actual sins, but one’s bad habits, inclinations
and ways, and the other roots of sin, by which means one’s spiritual Father
acquires a fuller knowledge of the heart he is dealing with, and knows
better what remedies to apply. But you must always avoid exposing any one
who has borne any part in your sin as far as possible. Keep watch over a
variety of sins, which are apt to spring up and flourish, often insensibly,
in the conscience, so that you may confess them and put them away; and with
this view read Chapters VI., XXVII., XXVIII., XXIX., XXXV. and XXXVI. of
Part III., and Chapter VII. of Part IV., attentively.

Do not lightly change your Confessor, but having chosen him, be regular in
giving account of your conscience to him at the appointed seasons, telling
him your faults simply and frankly, and from time to time—say every month or
every two months, show him the general state of your inclinations, although
there be nothing wrong in them; as, for instance, whether you are depressed
and anxious, or cheerful, desirous of advancement, or money, and the like.
_________________________________________________________________

[49] S. Matt. xvi. 19, xviii. 18; S. John xx. 23.
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CHAPTER XX. Of Frequent Communion.

IT is said that Mithridates, King of Pontus, who invented the poison called
after him, mithridate, so thoroughly impregnated his system with it, that
when eventually he tried to poison himself to avoid becoming the Romans’
slave, he never could succeed. The Saviour instituted the most holy
Sacrament of the Eucharist, really containing His Body and His Blood, in
order that they who eat it might live for ever. And therefore whosoever
receives it frequently and devoutly, so strengthens the health and life of
his soul, that it is hardly possible for him to be poisoned by any evil
desires. We cannot be fed by that Living Flesh and hold to the affections of
death; and just as our first parents could not die in Paradise, because of
the Tree of Life which God had placed therein, so this Sacrament of Life
makes spiritual death impossible. The most fragile, easily spoilt fruits,
such as cherries, apricots, and strawberries, can be kept all the year by
being preserved in sugar or honey; so what wonder if our hearts, frail and
weakly as they are, are kept from the corruption of sin when they are
preserved in the sweetness (“sweeter than honey and the honeycomb”) of the
Incorruptible Body and Blood of the Son of God. O my daughter, those
Christians who are lost will indeed have no answer to give when the Just
Judge sets before them that they have voluntarily died the spiritual death,
since it was so easy for them to have preserved life and health, by eating
His Body which He gave them for that very end. “Miserable men!” He will say,
“wherefore would ye die, with the Bread of Life itself in your hands?”

As to daily Communion, I neither commend nor condemn it; but with respect to
communicating every Sunday, I counsel and exhort every one to do so,
providing the mind has no attachment to sin. So says S. Augustine, and with
him I neither find fault nor unconditionally commend daily Communion,
leaving that matter to the discretion of every person’s own spiritual Guide;
as the requisite dispositions for such frequent Communion are too delicate
for one to advise it indiscriminately. On the other hand, these very special
dispositions may be found in sundry devout souls, and therefore it would not
be well to discourage everybody. It is a subject which must be dealt with
according to each individual mind; it were imprudent to advise such frequent
Communion to all, while, on the other hand, it would be presumptuous to
blame any one for it, especially if he therein follows the advice of some
wise director. Saint Catherine of Sienna, when blamed for her frequent
Communions, under the plea that Saint Augustine neither commended nor
condemned daily Communion, replied gently, “Well, then, since Saint
Augustine does not condemn it, neither, I pray you, do you condemn it, and I
shall be content.” But Saint Augustine earnestly exhorts all to communicate
every Sunday. And as I presume, my daughter, that you have no attachment
either to mortal or venial sins, you are in the condition which Saint
Augustine requires; and if your spiritual Father approves, you may
profitably communicate more frequently. Nevertheless, there are various
hindrances which may arise, not so much from yourself, as from those among
whom you live, which may lead a wise director to tell you not to communicate
so often. For instance, if you are in a position of subjection, and those
whom you are bound to obey should be so ignorant or so prejudiced, as to be
uneasy at your frequent Communions, all things considered, it may be well to
show consideration for their weakness, and to make your Communion
fortnightly; only, of course, where there is no possible way of overcoming
the difficulty otherwise. But one cannot give any general rule on such a
point, each person must follow the advice of their own spiritual Guide; only
this much I will say, that monthly Communions are the very fewest which any
one seeking to serve God devoutly can make.

If you are discreet, neither father nor mother, husband nor wife, will ever
hinder you from communicating frequently, and that because on the day of
your Communion you will give good heed always to be more than usually gentle
and amiable towards them, doing all you can to please them, so that they are
not likely to prevent your doing a thing which in nowise inconveniences
themselves, unless they were most particularly unreasonable and perverse, in
which case, as I have said, your Director might advise you to yield. There
is nothing in the married life to hinder frequent Communion. Most certainly
the Christians of the Primitive Church communicated daily, whether married
or single. Neither is any malady a necessary impediment, except, indeed,
anything producing constant sickness.

Those who communicate weekly must be free from mortal sin, and also from any
attachment to venial sin, and they should feel a great desire for Communion;
but for daily Communion people should furthermore have conquered most of
their inclinations to evil, and no one should practise it without the advice
of their spiritual Guide.
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CHAPTER XXI. How to Communicate.

BEGIN your preparation over-night, by sundry aspirations and loving
ejaculations. Go to bed somewhat earlier than usual, so that you may get up
earlier the next morning; and if you should wake during the night, fill your
heart and lips at once with sacred words wherewith to make your soul ready
to receive the Bridegroom, Who watches while you sleep, and Who intends to
give you countless gifts and graces, if you on your part are prepared to
accept them. In the morning rise with joyful expectation of the Blessing you
hope for, and (having made your Confession) go with the fullest trust, but
at the same time with the fullest humility, to receive that Heavenly Food
which will sustain your immortal life. And after having said the sacred
words, “Lord, I am not worthy,” do not make any further movement whatever,
either in prayer or otherwise, but gently opening your mouth, in the fulness
of faith, hope, and love, receive Him in Whom, by Whom, and through Whom,
you believe, hope, and love. O my child, bethink you that just as the bee,
having gathered heaven’s dew and earth’s sweetest juices from amid the
flowers, carries it to her hive; so the Priest, having taken the Saviour,
God’s Own Son, Who came down from Heaven, the Son of Mary, Who sprang up as
earth’s choicest flower, from the Altar, feeds you with that Bread of
Sweetness and of all delight. When you have received it kindle your heart to
adore the King of our Salvation, tell Him of all your own personal matters,
and realise that He is within you, seeking your best happiness. In short,
give Him the very best reception you possibly can, and act so that in all
you do it may be evident that God is with you. When you cannot have the
blessing of actual Communion, at least communicate in heart and mind,
uniting yourself by ardent desire to the Life-giving Body of the Saviour.

Your main intention in Communion should be to grow, strengthen, and abound
in the Love of God; for Love’s Sake receive that which Love Alone gives you.
Of a truth there is no more loving or tender aspect in which to gaze upon
the Saviour than this act, in which He, so to say, annihilates Himself, and
gives Himself to us as food, in order to fill our souls, and to unite
Himself more closely to the heart and flesh of His faithful ones.

If men of the world ask why you communicate so often, tell them that it is
that you may learn to love God; that you may be cleansed from imperfections,
set free from trouble, comforted in affliction, strengthened in weakness.
Tell them that there are two manner of men who need frequent Communion—those
who are perfect, since being ready they were much to blame did they not come
to the Source and Fountain of all perfection; and the imperfect, that they
may learn how to become perfect; the strong, lest they become weak, and the
weak, that they may become strong; the sick that they may be healed, and the
sound lest they sicken. Tell them that you, imperfect, weak and ailing, need
frequently to communicate with your Perfection, your Strength, your
Physician. Tell them that those who are but little engaged in worldly
affairs should communicate often, because they have leisure; and those who
are heavily pressed with business, because they stand so much in need of
help; and he who is hard worked needs frequent and substantial food. Tell
them that you receive the Blessed Sacrament that you may learn to receive it
better; one rarely does that well which one seldom does. Therefore, my
child, communicate frequently,—as often as you can, subject to the advice of
your spiritual Father. Our mountain hares turn white in winter, because they
live in, and feed upon, the snow, and by dint of adoring and feeding upon
Beauty, Goodness, and Purity itself in this most Divine Sacrament you too
will become lovely, holy, pure.
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PART III. CONTAINING COUNSELS CONCERNING THE PRACTICE OF VIRTUE.
_________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER I. How to select that which we should chiefly Practise.

THE queen bee never takes wing without being surrounded by all her Subjects;
even so Love never enters the heart but it is sure to bring all other
virtues in its train; marshalling and employing them as a captain his
soldiers; yet, nevertheless, Love does not set them all to work suddenly, or
equally, at all times and everywhere. The righteous man is “like a tree
planted by the water side, that will bring forth his fruit in due season;”
[50] inasmuch as Love, watering and refreshing the soul, causes it to bring
forth good works, each in season as required. There is an old proverb to the
effect that the sweetest music is unwelcome at a time of mourning; and
certain persons have made a great mistake when, seeking to cultivate some
special virtue, they attempt to obtrude it on all occasions, like the
ancient philosophers we read of, who were always laughing or weeping. Worse
still if they take upon themselves to censure those who do not make a
continual study of this their pet virtue. S. Paul tells us to “rejoice with
them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep;” [51] and Charity is
patient, kind, liberal, prudent, indulgent.

At the same time, there are virtues of universal account, which must not
only be called into occasional action, but ought to spread their influence
over everything. We do not very often come across opportunities for
exercising strength, magnanimity, or magnificence; but gentleness,
temperance, modesty, and humility, are graces which ought to colour
everything we do. There may be virtues of a more exalted mould, but at all
events these are the most continually called for in daily life. Sugar is
better than salt, but we use salt more generally and oftener. Consequently,
it is well to have a good and ready stock in hand of those general virtues
of which we stand in so perpetual a need.

In practising any virtue, it is well to choose that which is most according
to our duty, rather than most according to our taste. It was Saint Paula’s
liking to practise bodily mortifications with a view to the keener enjoyment
of spiritual sweetness, but obedience to her superiors was a higher duty;
and therefore Saint Jerome acknowledges that she was wrong in practising
excessive abstinence contrary to the advice of her Bishop. And the Apostles,
whose mission it was to preach the Gospel, and feed souls with the Bread of
Life, judged well that it was not right for them to hinder this holy work in
order to minister to the material wants of the poor, weighty as that work
was also. [52] Every calling stands in special need of some special virtue;
those required of a prelate, a prince, or a soldier, are quite different; so
are those beseeming a wife or a widow, and although all should possess every
virtue, yet all are not called upon to exercise them equally, but each
should cultivate chiefly those which are important to the manner of life to
which he is called.

Among such virtues as have no special adaptation to our own calling, choose
the most excellent, not the most showy. A comet generally looks larger than
the stars, and fills the eye more; but all the while comets are not nearly
so important as the stars, and only seem so large to us because they are
nearer to us than stars, and are of a grosser kind. So there are certain
virtues which touch us very sensibly and are very material, so to say, and
therefore ordinary people give them the preference. Thus the common run of
men ordinarily value temporal almsgiving more than spiritual; and think more
of fasting, exterior discipline and bodily mortification than of meekness,
cheerfulness, modesty, and other interior mortifications, which nevertheless
are far better. Do you then, my daughter, choose the best virtues, not those
which are most highly esteemed; the most excellent, not the most visible;
the truest, not the most conspicuous.

It is well for everybody to select some special virtue at which to aim, not
as neglecting any others, but as an object and pursuit to the mind. Saint
John, Bishop of Alexandria, saw a vision of a lovely maiden, brighter than
the sun, in shining garments, and wearing an olive crown, who said to him,
“I am the King’s eldest daughter, and if thou wilt have me for thy friend, I
will bring thee to see His Face.” Then he knew that it was pity for the poor
which God thus commended to him, and from that time he gave himself so
heartily to practise it, that he is universally known as Saint John the
Almoner. Eulogius Alexandrinus desired to devote himself wholly to God, but
he had not courage either to adopt the solitary life, or to put himself
under obedience, and therefore he took a miserable beggar, seething in dirt
and leprosy, to live with him; and to do this more thoroughly, he vowed to
honour and serve him as a servant does his lord and master. After a while,
both feeling greatly tempted to part company, they referred to the great
Saint Anthony, who said, “Beware of separating, my sons, for you are both
near your end, and if the Angel find you not together, you will be in danger
of losing your crowns.”

Saint Louis counted it a privilege to visit the hospitals, where he used to
tend the sick with his own royal hands. Saint Francis loved poverty above
all things, and called her his lady-love. Saint Dominic gave himself up to
preaching, whence his Order takes its name. [53] Saint Gregory the Great
specially delighted to receive pilgrims after the manner of faithful
Abraham, and like him entertained the King of Glory under a pilgrim’s garb.
Tobit devoted himself to the charitable work of burying the dead. Saint
Elizabeth, albeit a mighty princess, loved above all things to humble
herself. When Saint Catherine of Genoa became a widow, she gave herself up
to work in an hospital. Cassian relates how a certain devout maiden once
besought Saint Athanasius to help her in cultivating the grace of patience;
and he gave her a poor widow as companion, who was cross, irritable, and
altogether intolerable, and whose perpetual fretfulness gave the pious lady
abundant opportunity of practising gentleness and patience. And so some of
God’s servants devote themselves to nursing the sick, helping the poor,
teaching little children in the faith, reclaiming the fallen, building
churches, and adorning the altar, making peace among men. Therein they
resemble embroidresses who work all manner of silks, gold and silver on
various grounds, so producing beautiful flowers. Just so the pious souls who
undertake some special devout practice use it as the ground of their
spiritual embroidery, and frame all manner of other graces upon it, ordering
their actions and affections better by means of this their chief thread
which runs through all.

“Upon Thy Right Hand did stand the Queen in a vesture of gold wrought about
with divers colours.” [54]

When we are beset by any particular vice, it is well as far as possible to
make the opposite virtue our special aim, and turn everything to that
account; so doing, we shall overcome our enemy, and meanwhile make progress
in all virtue. Thus, if I am beset with pride or anger, I must above all
else strive to cultivate humility and gentleness, and I must turn all my
religious exercises,—prayer, sacraments, prudence, constancy, moderation, to
the same object. The wild boar sharpens its tusks by grinding them against
its other teeth, which by the same process are sharpened and pointed; and so
when a good man endeavours to perfect himself in some virtue which he is
conscious of specially needing, he ought to give it edge and point by the
aid of other virtues, which will themselves be confirmed and strengthened as
he uses them with that object. It was so with Job, who, while specially
exercising the virtue of patience amid the numberless temptations which
beset him, was confirmed in all manner of holiness and godly virtues. And
Saint Gregory Nazianzen says, that sometimes a person has attained the
height of goodness by one single act of virtue, performed with the greatest
perfection; instancing Rahab as an example, who, having practised the virtue
of hospitality very excellently, reached a high point of glory. [55] Of
course, any such action must needs be performed with a very exceeding degree
of fervour and charity.
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[50] Ps. i. 3.

[51] Rom. xii. 15.

[52] Acts vi. 2.

[53] The Preaching Friars.

[54] Psalm 5. 13, 14. “En son beau vestement de drap d’or recame, Et
d’ouvrages divers a l’aiguile seme.”

[55] S. Francis evidently alludes here to the mention made of Rahab by S.
Paul. Heb. xi. 31.
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CHAPTER II. The same Subject continued.

SAINT AUGUSTINE says very admirably, that beginners in devotion are wont to
commit certain faults which, while they are blameable according to the
strict laws of perfection, are yet praiseworthy by reason of the promise
they hold forth of a future excellent goodness, to which they actually tend.
For instance, that common shrinking fear which gives rise to an excessive
scrupulosity in the souls of some who are but just set free from a course of
sin, is commendable at that early stage, and is the almost certain
forerunner of future purity of conscience. But this same fear would be
blameable in those who are farther advanced, because love should reign in
their hearts, and love is sure to drive away all such servile fear by
degrees.

In his early days, Saint Bernard was very severe and harsh towards those
whom he directed, telling them, to begin with, that they must put aside the
body, and come to him with their minds only. In confession, he treated all
faults, however small, with extreme severity, and his poor apprentices in
the study of perfection were so urged onwards, that by dint of pressing he
kept them back, for they lost heart and breath when they found themselves
thus driven up so steep and high an ascent. Therein, my daughter, you can
see that, although it was his ardent zeal for the most perfect purity which
led that great Saint so to act, and although such zeal is a great virtue,
still it was a virtue which required checking. And so God Himself checked it
in a vision, by which He filled S. Bernard with so gentle, tender, and
loving a spirit, that he was altogether changed, blaming himself heavily for
having been so strict and so severe, and becoming so kindly and indulgent,
that he made himself all things to all men in order to win all.

S. Jerome tells us that his beloved daughter, S. Paula, was not only
extreme, but obstinate in practising bodily mortifications, and refusing to
yield to the advice given her upon that head by her Bishop, S. Epiphanius;
and furthermore, she gave way so excessively to her grief at the death of
those she loved as to peril her own life. Whereupon S. Jerome says: “It will
be said that I am accusing this saintly woman rather than praising her, but
I affirm before Jesus, Whom she served, and Whom I seek to serve, that I am
not saying what is untrue on one side or the other, but simply describing
her as one Christian another; that is to say, I am writing her history, not
her panegyric, and her faults are the virtues of others.” He means to say
that the defects and faults of S. Paula would have been looked upon as
virtues in a less perfect soul; and indeed there are actions which we must
count as imperfections in the perfect, which yet would be highly esteemed in
the imperfect. When at the end of a sickness the invalid’s legs swell, it is
a good sign, indicating that natural strength is returning, and throwing off
foul humours; but it would be a bad sign in one not avowedly sick, as
showing that nature was too feeble to disperse or absorb those humours.

So, my child, we must think well of those whom we see practising virtues,
although imperfectly, since the Saints have done the like; but as to
ourselves we must give heed to practise them, not only diligently, but
discreetly, and to this end we shall do well strictly to follow the Wise
Man’s counsel, [56] and not trust in our own wisdom, but lean on those whom
God has given as our guides. And here I must say a few words concerning
certain things which some reckon as virtues, although they are nothing of
the sort—I mean ecstasies, trances, rhapsodies, extraordinary
transformations, and the like, which are dwelt on in some books, and which
promise to raise the soul to a purely intellectual contemplation, an
altogether supernatural mental altitude, and a life of pre-eminent
excellence. But I would have you see, my child, that these perfections are
not virtues, they are rather rewards which God gives to virtues, or perhaps,
more correctly speaking, tokens of the joys of everlasting life,
occasionally granted to men in order to kindle in them a desire for the
fulness of joy which is only to be found in Paradise. But we must not aspire
to such graces, which are in nowise necessary to us in order to love and
serve God, our only lawful ambition. Indeed, for the most part, these graces
are not to be acquired by labour or industry, and that because they are
rather passions than actions, which we may receive, but cannot create.
Moreover, our business only is to become good, devout people, pious men and
women; and all our efforts must be to that end. If it should please God
further to endow us with angelic perfection, we should then be prepared to
become good angels; but meanwhile let us practise, in all simplicity,
humility and devotion, those lowly virtues to the attainment of which our
Lord has bidden us labour,—I mean patience, cheerfulness,
self-mortification, humility, obedience, poverty, chastity, kindness to our
neighbour, forbearance towards his failings, diligence, and a holy fervour.
Let us willingly resign the higher eminences to lofty souls. We are not
worthy to take so high a rank in God’s service; let us be content to be as
scullions, porters, insignificant attendants in His household, leaving it to
Him if He should hereafter see fit to call us to His own council chamber. Of
a truth, my child, the King of Glory does not reward His servants according
to the dignity of their office, but according to the humility and love with
which they have exercised it. While Saul was seeking his father’s asses, he
found the kingdom of Israel: [57] Rebecca watering Abraham’s camels, became
his son’s wife: [58] Ruth gleaning after Boaz’ reapers, and lying down at
his feet, was raised up to become his bride. [59] Those who pretend to such
great and extraordinary graces are very liable to delusions and mistakes, so
that sometimes it turns out that people who aspire to be angels are not
ordinarily good men, and that their goodness lies more in high-flown words
than in heart and deed. But we must beware of despising or presumptuously
condemning anything. Only, while thanking God for the pre-eminence of
others, let us abide contentedly in our own lower but safer path,—a path of
less distinction, but more suitable to our lowliness, resting satisfied that
if we walk steadily and faithfully therein, God will lift us up to greater
things.
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[56] Ecclus. vi. 2, 32, 36.

[57] 1 Sam. ix.

[58] Gen. xxiv.

[59] Ruth ii. iii.
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CHAPTER III. On Patience.

“YE have need of patience, that, after ye have done the Will of God, ye
might receive the promise,” says Saint Paul; [60] and the Saviour said, “In
your patience possess ye your souls.” [61] The greatest happiness of any one
is “to possess his soul;” and the more perfect our patience, the more fully
we do so possess our souls. Call often to mind that our Saviour redeemed us
by bearing and suffering, and in like manner we must seek our own salvation
amid sufferings and afflictions; bearing insults, contradictions and
troubles with all the gentleness we can possibly command. Do not limit your
patience to this or that kind of trial, but extend it universally to
whatever God may send, or allow to befall you. Some people will only bear
patiently with trials which carry their own salve of dignity,—such as being
wounded in battle, becoming a prisoner of war, being ill-used for the sake
of their religion, being impoverished by some strife out of which they came
triumphant. Now these persons do not love tribulation, but only the honour
which attends it. A really patient servant of God is as ready to bear
inglorious troubles as those which are honourable. A brave man can easily
bear with contempt, slander and false accusation from an evil world; but to
bear such injustice at the hands of good men, of friends and relations, is a
great test of patience. I have a greater respect for the gentleness with
which the great S. Charles Borromeo long endured the public reproaches which
a celebrated preacher of a reformed Order used to pour out upon him, than
for all the other attacks he bore with. For, just as the sting of a bee
hurts far more than that of a fly, so the injuries or contradictions we
endure from good people are much harder to bear than any others. But it is a
thing which very often happens, and sometimes two worthy men, who are both
highly well-intentioned after their own fashion, annoy and even persecute
one another grievously.

Be patient, not only with respect to the main trials which beset you, but
also under the accidental and accessory annoyances which arise out of them.
We often find people who imagine themselves ready to accept a trial in
itself who are impatient of its consequences. We hear one man say, “I should
not mind poverty, were it not that I am unable to bring up my children and
receive my friends as handsomely as I desire.” And another says, “I should
not mind, were it not that the world will suppose it is my own fault;” while
another would patiently bear to be the subject of slander provided nobody
believed it. Others, again, accept one side of a trouble but fret against
the rest—as, for instance, believing themselves to be patient under
sickness, only fretting against their inability to obtain the best advice,
or at the inconvenience they are to their friends. But, dear child, be sure
that we must patiently accept, not sickness only, but such sickness as God
chooses to send, in the place, among the people, and subject to the
circumstances which He ordains;—and so with all other troubles. If any
trouble comes upon you, use the remedies with which God supplies you. Not to
do this is to tempt Him; but having done so, wait whatever result He wills
with perfect resignation. If He pleases to let the evil be remedied, thank
Him humbly; but if it be His will that the evil grow greater than the
remedies, patiently bless His Holy Name.

Follow Saint Gregory’s advice: When you are justly blamed for some fault you
have committed, humble yourself deeply, and confess that you deserve the
blame. If the accusation be false, defend yourself quietly, denying the
fact; this is but due respect for truth and your neighbour’s edification.
But if after you have made your true and legitimate defence you are still
accused, do not be troubled, and do not try to press your defence—you have
had due respect for truth, have the same now for humility. By acting thus
you will not infringe either a due care for your good name, or the affection
you are bound to entertain for peace, humility and gentleness of heart.

Complain as little as possible of your wrongs, for as a general rule you may
be sure that complaining is sin; [62] the rather that self-love always
magnifies our injuries: above all, do not complain to people who are easily
angered and excited. If it is needful to complain to some one, either as
seeking a remedy for your injury, or in order to soothe your mind, let it be
to some calm, gentle spirit, greatly filled with the Love of God; for
otherwise, instead of relieving your heart, your confidants will only
provoke it to still greater disturbance; instead of taking out the thorn
which pricks you, they will drive it further into your foot.

Some people when they are ill, or in trouble, or injured by any one,
restrain their complaints, because they think (and that rightly) that to
murmur betokens great weakness or a narrow mind; but nevertheless, they
exceedingly desire and maneuvre to make others pity them, desiring to be
considered as suffering with patience and courage. Now this is a kind of
patience certainly, but it is a spurious patience, which in reality is
neither more nor less than a very refined, very subtle form of ambition and
vanity. To them we may apply the Apostle’s words, “He hath whereof to glory,
but not before God.” [63] A really patient man neither complains nor seeks
to be pitied; he will speak simply and truly of his trouble, without
exaggerating its weight or bemoaning himself; if others pity him, he will
accept their compassion patiently, unless they pity him for some ill he is
not enduring, in which case he will say so with meekness, and abide in
patience and truthfulness, combating his grief and not complaining of it.

As to the trials which you will encounter in devotion (and they are certain
to arise), bear in mind our dear Lord’s words: “A woman, when she is in
travail, hath sorrow, because her hour is come; but as soon as she is
delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a
child is born into the world.” [64] You, too, have conceived in your soul
the most gracious of children, even Jesus Christ, and before He can be
brought forth you must inevitably travail with pain; but be of good cheer,
for when these pangs are over, you will possess an abiding joy, having
brought such a man into the world. And He will be really born for you, when
He is perfected in your heart by love, and in your actions by imitating His
life.

When you are sick, offer all your pains and weakness to our Dear Lord, and
ask Him to unite them to the sufferings which He bore for you. Obey your
physician, and take all medicines, remedies and nourishment, for the Love of
God, remembering the vinegar and gall He tasted for love of us; desire your
recovery that you may serve Him; do not shrink from languor and weakness out
of obedience to Him, and be ready to die if He wills it, to His Glory, and
that you may enter into His Presence.

Bear in mind that the bee while making its honey lives upon a bitter food:
and in like manner we can never make acts of gentleness and patience, or
gather the honey of the truest virtues, better than while eating the bread
of bitterness, and enduring hardness. And just as the best honey is that
made from thyme, a small and bitter herb, so that virtue which is practised
amid bitterness and lowly sorrow is the best of all virtues.

Gaze often inwardly upon Jesus Christ crucified, naked, blasphemed, falsely
accused, forsaken, overwhelmed with every possible grief and sorrow, and
remember that none of your sufferings can ever be compared to His, either in
kind or degree, and that you can never suffer anything for Him worthy to be
weighed against what He has borne for you.

Consider the pains which martyrs have endured, and think how even now many
people are bearing afflictions beyond all measure greater than yours, and
say, “Of a truth my trouble is comfort, my torments are but roses as
compared to those whose life is a continual death, without solace, or aid or
consolation, borne down with a weight of grief tenfold greater than mine.”
_________________________________________________________________

[60] Heb. x. 36.

[61] S. Luke xxi. 19.

[62] “Qui se plaint, peche.”

[63] Rom. iv. 2.

[64] S. John xvi. 21.
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CHAPTER IV. On Greater Humility.

ELISHA bade the poor widow “borrow vessels, even empty vessels not a few,
and pour oil into all those vessels;” [65] and so in order to receive God’s
Grace in our hearts, they must be as empty vessels—not filled with
self-esteem. The swallow with its sharp cry and keen glance has the power of
frightening away birds of prey, and for that reason the dove prefers it to
all other birds, and lives surely beside it;—even so humility drives Satan
away, and cherishes the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit within us, and
for that reason all the Saints—and especially the King of Saints and His
Blessed Mother—have always esteemed the grace of humility above all other
virtues.

We call that vainglory which men take to themselves, either for what is not
in them, or which being in them is not their own, or which being in them and
their own yet is not worthy of their self-satisfaction. For instance, noble
birth, favour of great men, popular applause, all these are things nowise
belonging to ourselves, but coming from our forefathers, or the opinion of
others. Some people are proud and conceited because they ride a fine horse,
wear a feather in their hat, and are expensively dressed, but who can fail
to see their folly, or that if any one has reason to be proud over such
things, it would be the horse, the bird, and the tailor! Or what can be more
contemptible than to found one’s credit on a horse, a plume, or a ruff?
Others again pride themselves upon their dainty moustaches, their
well-trimmed beard or curled hair, their white hands, or their dancing,
singing and the like: but is it not a petty vanity which can seek to be
esteemed for any such trivial and frivolous matters? Then again, some look
for the world’s respect and honour because they have acquired some
smatterings of science, expecting all their neighbours to listen and yield
to them, and such men we call pedants. Others make great capital of their
personal beauty, and imagine that every one is lost in admiration of it; but
all this is utterly vain, foolish and impertinent, and the glory men take to
themselves for such matters must be called vain, childish and frivolous.

You may test real worth as we test balm, which is tried by being distilled
in water, and if it is precipitated to the bottom, it is known to be pure
and precious. So if you want to know whether a man is really wise, learned,
generous or noble, see if his life is moulded by humility, modesty and
submission. If so, his gifts are genuine; but if they are only surface and
showy, you may be sure that in proportion to their demonstrativeness so is
their unreality. Those pearls which are formed amid tempest and storm have
only an outward shell, and are hollow within; and so when a man’s good
qualities are fed by pride, vanity and boasting, they will soon have nothing
save empty show, without sap, marrow or substance.

Honour, rank and dignity are like the saffron, which never thrives so well
as when trodden under foot. Beauty only attracts when it is free from any
such aim. Self-conscious beauty loses its charm, and learning becomes a
discredit and degenerates into pedantry, when we are puffed up by it.

Those who are punctilious about rank, title or precedence, both lay
themselves open to criticism and degradation, and also throw contempt on all
such things; because an honour which is valuable when freely paid, is
worthless when sought for or exacted. When the peacock opens his showy tail,
he exhibits the ugliness of his body beneath; and many flowers which are
beautiful while growing, wither directly we gather them. And just as men who
inhale mandragora from afar as they pass, find it sweet, while those who
breathe it closely are made faint and ill by the same, so honour may be
pleasant to those who merely taste it as they pass, without seeking or
craving for it, but it will become very dangerous and hurtful to such as
take delight in and feed upon it.

An active effort to acquire virtue is the first step towards goodness; but
an active effort to acquire honour is the first step towards contempt and
shame. A well-conditioned mind will not throw away its powers upon such
sorry trifles as rank, position or outward forms—it has other things to do,
and will leave all that to meaner minds. He who can find pearls will not
stop to pick up shells; and so a man who aims at real goodness will not be
keen about outward tokens of honour. Undoubtedly every one is justified in
keeping his own place, and there is no want of humility in that so long as
it is done simply and without contention. Just as our merchant-ships coming
from Peru with gold and silver often bring apes and parrots likewise,
because these cost but little and do not add to the weight of a cargo, so
good men seeking to grow in grace can take their natural rank and position,
so long as they are not engrossed by such things, and do not involve
themselves in anxiety, contention or ill-will on their account. I am not
speaking here of those whose position is public, or even of certain special
private persons whose dignity may be important. In all such cases each man
must move in his own sphere, with prudence and discretion, together with
charity and courtesy.
_________________________________________________________________

[65] 2 Kings iv. 3, 4.
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CHAPTER V. On Interior Humility.

TO you however, my daughter, I would teach a deeper humility, for that of
which I have been speaking is almost more truly to be called worldly wisdom
than humility. There are some persons who dare not or will not think about
the graces with which God has endowed them, fearing lest they should become
self-complacent and vain-glorious; but they are quite wrong. For if, as the
Angelic Doctor says, the real way of attaining to the Love of God is by a
careful consideration of all His benefits given to us, then the better we
realise these the more we shall love Him; and inasmuch as individual gifts
are more acceptable than general gifts, so they ought to be more specially
dwelt upon. Of a truth, nothing so tends to humble us before the Mercy of
God as the multitude of His gifts to us; just as nothing so tends to humble
us before His Justice as the multitude of our misdeeds. Let us consider what
He has done for us, and what we have done contrary to His Will, and as we
review our sins in detail, so let us review His Grace in the same. There is
no fear that a perception of what He has given you will puff you up, so long
as you keep steadily in mind that whatever is good in you is not of
yourself. Do mules cease to be clumsy, stinking beasts because they are used
to carry the dainty treasures and perfumes of a prince? “What hast thou that
thou didst not receive? Now, if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory
as if thou hadst not received it?” [66] On the contrary, a lively
appreciation of the grace given to you should make you humble, for
appreciation begets gratitude. But if, when realising the gifts God has
given you, any vanity should beset you, the infallible remedy is to turn to
the thought of all our ingratitude, imperfection, and weakness. Any one who
will calmly consider what he has done without God, cannot fail to realise
that what he does with God is no merit of his own; and so we may rejoice in
that which is good in us, and take pleasure in the fact, but we shall give
all the glory to God Alone, Who Alone is its Author.

It was in this spirit that the Blessed Virgin confessed that God had done
“great things” to her; [67] only that she might humble herself and exalt
Him. “My soul doth magnify the Lord,” she said, by reason of the gifts He
had given her.

We are very apt to speak of ourselves as nought, as weakness itself, as the
offscouring of the earth; but we should be very much vexed to be taken at
our word and generally considered what we call ourselves. On the contrary,
we often make-believe to run away and hide ourselves, merely to be followed
and sought out; we pretend to take the lowest place, with the full intention
of being honourably called to come up higher. But true humility does not
affect to be humble, and is not given to make a display in lowly words. It
seeks not only to conceal other virtues, but above all it seeks and desires
to conceal itself; and if it were lawful to tell lies, or feign or give
scandal, humility would perhaps sometimes affect a cloak of pride in order
to hide itself utterly. Take my advice, my daughter, and either use no
professions of humility, or else use them with a real mind corresponding to
your outward expressions; never cast down your eyes without humbling your
heart; and do not pretend to wish to be last and least, unless you really
and sincerely mean it. I would make this so general a rule as to have no
exception; only courtesy sometimes requires us to put forward those who
obviously would not put themselves forward, but this is not deceitful or
mock humility; and so with respect to certain expressions of regard which do
not seem strictly true, but which are not dishonest, because the speaker
really intends to give honour and respect to him to whom they are addressed;
and even though the actual words may be somewhat excessive, there is no harm
in them if they are the ordinary forms of society, though truly I wish that
all our expressions were as nearly as possible regulated by real heart
feeling in all truthfulness and simplicity. A really humble man would rather
that some one else called him worthless and good-for-nothing, than say so of
himself; at all events, if such things are said, he does not contradict
them, but acquiesces contentedly, for it is his own opinion. We meet people
who tell us that they leave mental prayer to those who are more perfect, not
feeling themselves worthy of it; that they dare not communicate frequently,
because they do not feel fit to do so; that they fear to bring discredit on
religion if they profess it, through their weakness and frailty; while
others decline to use their talents in the service of God and their
neighbour, because, forsooth, they know their weakness, and are afraid of
becoming proud if they do any good thing,—lest while helping others they
might destroy themselves. But all this is unreal, and not merely a spurious
but a vicious humility, which tacitly and secretly condemns God’s gifts, and
makes a pretext of lowliness while really exalting self-love,
self-sufficiency, indolence, and evil tempers. “Ask thee a sign of the Lord
thy God; ask it either in the depth or in the height above.” [68] So spake
the prophet to King Ahaz; but he answered, “I will not ask, neither will I
tempt the Lord.” Unhappy man! he affects to show exceeding reverence to God,
and under a pretence of humility refuses to seek the grace offered by the
Divine Goodness. Could he not see that when God wills to grant us a favour,
it is mere pride to reject it, that God’s gifts must needs be accepted, and
that true humility lies in obedience and the most literal compliance with
His Will! Well then, God’s Will is that we should be perfect, uniting
ourselves to Him, and imitating Him to the utmost of our powers. The proud
man who trusts in himself may well undertake nothing, but the humble man is
all the braver that he knows his own helplessness, and his courage waxes in
proportion to his low opinion of himself, because all his trust is in God,
Who delights to show forth His Power in our weakness, His Mercy in our
misery. The safest course is humbly and piously to venture upon whatever may
be considered profitable for us by those who undertake our spiritual
guidance.

Nothing can be more foolish than to fancy we know that of which we are
really ignorant; to affect knowledge while conscious that we are ignorant is
intolerable vanity. For my part, I would rather not put forward that which I
really do know, while on the other hand neither would I affect ignorance.
When Charity requires it, you should readily and kindly impart to your
neighbour not only that which is necessary for his instruction, but also
what is profitable for his consolation. The same humility which conceals
graces with a view to their preservation is ready to bring them forth at the
bidding of Charity, with a view to their increase and perfection; therein
reminding me of that tree in the Isles of Tylos, [69] which closes its
beautiful carnation blossoms at night, only opening them to the rising sun,
so that the natives say they go to sleep. Just so humility hides our earthly
virtues and perfections, only expanding them at the call of Charity, which
is not an earthly, but a heavenly, not a mere moral, but a divine virtue;
the true sun of all virtues, which should all be ruled by it, so that any
humility which controverts charity is unquestionably false.

I would not affect either folly or wisdom; for just as humility deters me
from pretending to be wise, so simplicity and straightforwardness deter me
from pretending to be foolish; and just as vanity is opposed to humility, so
all affectation and pretence are opposed to honesty and simplicity. If
certain eminent servants of God have feigned folly in order to be despised
by the world, we may marvel, but not imitate them; for they had special and
extraordinary reasons for doing extraordinary things, and cannot be used as
a rule for such as we are. When David [70] danced more than was customary
before the Ark of the Covenant, it was not with the intention of affecting
folly, but simply as expressing the unbounded and extraordinary gladness of
his heart. Michal his wife reproached him with his actions as folly, but he
did not mind being “vile and base in his own sight,” but declared himself
willing to be despised for God’s Sake. And so, if you should be despised for
acts of genuine devotion, humility will enable you to rejoice in so blessed
a contempt, the cause of which does not lie with you.
_________________________________________________________________

[66] 1 Cor. iv. 7.

[67] S. Luke i. 46-49.

[68] Isa. vii. 11, 12.

[69] Islands in the Persian Gulf.

[70] 2 Sam. vi. 14.
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CHAPTER VI. Humility makes us rejoice in our own Abjection.

BUT, my daughter, I am going a step further, and I bid you everywhere and in
everything to rejoice in your own abjection. Perhaps you will ask in reply
what I mean by that. In Latin abjection means humility, and humility means
abjection, so that when Our Lady says in the Magnificat that all generations
shall call her blessed, because God hath regarded the low estate of His
handmaiden, [71] she means that He has accepted her abjection and lowliness
in order to fill her with graces and favours. Nevertheless, there is a
difference between humility and abjection; for abjection is the poverty,
vileness and littleness which exist in us, without our taking heed to them;
but humility implies a real knowledge and voluntary recognition of that
abjection. And the highest point of humility consists in not merely
acknowledging one’s abjection, but in taking pleasure therein, not from any
want of breadth or courage, but to give the more glory to God’s Divine
Majesty, and to esteem one’s neighbour more highly than one’s self. This is
what I would have you do; and to explain myself more clearly, let me tell
you that the trials which afflict us are sometimes abject, sometimes
honourable. NOW many people will accept the latter, but very few are willing
to accept the former. Everybody respects and pities a pious hermit shivering
in his worn-out garb; but let a poor gentleman or lady be in like case, and
they are despised for it,—and so their poverty is abject. A religious
receives a sharp rebuke from his superior meekly, or a child from his
parent, and every one will call it obedience, mortification, wisdom; but let
a knight or a lady accept the like from some one, albeit for the Love of
God, and they will forthwith be accused of cowardice. This again is abject
suffering. One person has a cancer in the arm, another in the face; the
former only has the pain to bear, but the latter has also to endure all the
disgust and repulsion caused by his disease; and this is abjection. And what
I want to teach you is, that we should not merely rejoice in our trouble,
which we do by means of patience, but we should also cherish the abjection,
which is done by means of humility. Again, there are abject and honourable
virtues; for the world generally despises patience, gentleness, simplicity,
and even humility itself, while, on the contrary, it highly esteems
prudence, valour, and liberality. Sometimes even there may be a like
distinction drawn between acts of one and the same virtue—one being despised
and the other respected. Thus almsgiving and forgiveness of injuries are
both acts of charity, but while every one esteems the first, the world looks
down upon the last. A young man or a girl who refuses to join in the
excesses of dress, amusement, or gossip of their circle, is laughed at and
criticised, and their self-restraint is called affectation or bigotry. Well,
to rejoice in that is to rejoice in abjection. Or, to take another shape of
the same thing. We are employed in visiting the sick—if I am sent to the
most wretched cases, it is an abjection in the world’s sight, and
consequently I like it. If I am sent to those of a better class, it is an
interior abjection, for there is less grace and merit in the work, and so I
can accept that abjection. If one has a fall in the street, there is the
ridiculous part of it to be borne, as well as the possible pain; and this is
an abjection we must accept. There are even some faults, in which there is
no harm beyond their abjection, and although humility does not require us to
commit them intentionally, it does require of us not to be disturbed at
having committed them. I mean certain foolish acts, incivilities, and
inadvertencies, which we ought to avoid as far as may be out of civility and
decorum, but of which, if accidentally committed, we ought to accept the
abjection heartily, out of humility. To go further still,—if in anger or
excitement I have been led to use unseemly words, offending God and my
neighbour thereby, I will repent heartily, and be very grieved for the
offence, which I must try to repair to the utmost; but meanwhile I will
accept the abjection and disgrace which will ensue, and were it possible to
separate the two things, I ought earnestly to reject the sin, while I
retained the abjection readily.

But while we rejoice in the abjection, we must nevertheless use all due and
lawful means to remedy the evil whence it springs, especially when that evil
is serious. Thus, if I have an abject disease in my face, I should endeavour
to get it cured, although I do not wish to obliterate the abjection it has
caused me. If I have done something awkward which hurts no one, I will not
make excuses, because, although it was a failing, my own abjection is the
only result; but if I have given offence or scandal through my carelessness
or folly, I am bound to try and remedy it by a sincere apology. There are
occasions when charity requires us not to acquiesce in abjection, but in
such a case one ought the more to take it inwardly to heart for one’s
private edification.

Perhaps you will ask what are the most profitable forms of abjection.
Unquestionably, those most helpful to our own souls, and most acceptable to
God, are such as come accidentally, or in the natural course of events,
because we have not chosen them ourselves, but simply accepted God’s choice,
which is always to be preferred to ours. But if we are constrained to
choose, the greatest abjections are best; and the greatest is whatever is
most contrary to one’s individual inclination, so long as it is in
conformity with one’s vocation; for of a truth our self-will and
self-pleasing mars many graces. Who can teach any of us truly to say with
David, “I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell
in the tents of ungodliness”? [72] None, dear child, save He Who lived and
died the scorn of men, and the outcast of the people, in order that we might
be raised up. I have said things here which must seem very hard to
contemplate, but, believe me, they will become sweet as honey when you try
to put them in practice.
_________________________________________________________________

[71] S. Luke i. 48.

[72] Ps. lxxxiv. 10.
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CHAPTER VII. How to combine due care for a Good Reputation with Humility.

PRAISE, honour, and glory are not bestowed on men for ordinary, but for
extraordinary virtue. By praise we intend to lead men to appreciate the
excellence of certain individuals; giving them honour is the expression of
our own esteem for them; and I should say that glory is the combination of
praise and honour from many persons. If praise and honour are like precious
stones, glory is as an enamel thereof. Now, as humility forbids us to aim at
excelling or being preferred to others, it likewise forbids us to aim at
praise, honour, and glory; but it allows us to give heed, as the Wise Man
says, to our good name, and that because a good name does not imply any one
particular excellence, but a general straightforward integrity of purpose,
which we may recognise in ourselves, and desire to be known as possessing,
without any breach of humility. Humility might make us indifferent even to a
good reputation, were it not for charity’s sake; but seeing that it is a
groundwork of society, and without it we are not merely useless but
positively harmful to the world, because of the scandal given by such a
deficiency, therefore charity requires, and humility allows, us to desire
and to maintain a good reputation with care.

Moreover, just as the leaves of a tree are valuable, not merely for
beauty’s sake, but also as a shelter to the tender fruit, so a good
reputation, if not in itself very important, is still very useful, not only
as an embellishment of life, but as a protection to our virtues, especially
to those which are weakly. The necessity for acting up to our reputation,
and being what we are thought to be, brings a strong though kindly motive
power to bear upon a generous disposition. Let us foster all our virtues, my
daughter, because they are pleasing to God, the Chief Aim of all we do. But
just as when men preserve fruits, they do not only conserve them, but put
them into suitable vessels, so while Divine Love is the main thing which
keeps us in the ways of holiness, we may also find help from the effects of
a good reputation. But it will not do to be over-eager or fanciful about it.
Those who are so very sensitive about their reputation are like people who
are perpetually physicking themselves for every carnal ailment; they mean to
preserve their health, but practically they destroy it; and those who are so
very fastidious over their good name are apt to lose it entirely, for they
become fanciful, fretful, and disagreeable, provoking ill-natured remarks.

As a rule, indifference to insult and slander is a much more effectual
remedy than resentment, wrath, and vengeance. Slander melts away beneath
contempt, but indignation seems a sort of acknowledgment of its truth.
Crocodiles never meddle with any but those who are afraid of them, and
slander only persists in attacking people who are disturbed by it.

An excessive fear of losing reputation indicates mistrust as to its
foundations, which are to be found in a good and true life. Those towns
where the bridges are built of wood are very uneasy whenever a sign of flood
appears, but they who possess stone bridges are not anxious unless some very
unusual storm appears. And so a soul built up on solid Christian foundations
can afford to despise the outpour of slanderous tongues, but those who know
themselves to be weak are for ever disturbed and uneasy. Be sure, my
daughter, that he who seeks to be well thought of by everybody will be
esteemed by nobody, and those people deserve to be despised who are anxious
to be highly esteemed by ungodly, unworthy men.

Reputation, after all, is but a signboard giving notice where virtue dwells,
and virtue itself is always and everywhere preferable. Therefore, if it is
said that you are a hypocrite because you are professedly devout, or if you
are called a coward because you have forgiven an insult, despise all such
accusations. Such judgments are the utterances of foolish men, and you must
not give up what is right, even though your reputation suffer, for fruit is
better than foliage, that is to say, an inward and spiritual gain is worth
all external gains. We may take a jealous care of our reputation, but not
idolise it; and while we desire not to displease good men, neither should we
seek to please those that are evil. A man’s natural adornment is his beard,
and a woman’s her hair; if either be torn out they may never grow again, but
if only shaven or shorn, they will grow all the thicker; and in like manner,
if our reputation be shorn or even shaven by slanderous tongues (of which
David says, that “with lies they cut like a sharp razor ” [73] ), there is
no need to be disturbed, it will soon spring again, if not brighter, at all
events more substantial. But if it be lost through our own vices or meanness
or evil living, it will not be easily restored, because its roots are
plucked up. And the root of a good name is to be found in virtue and
honesty, which will always cause it to spring up afresh, however it may be
assaulted. If your good name suffers from some empty pursuit, some useless
habit, some unworthy friendship, they must be renounced, for a good name is
worth more than any such idle indulgence; but if you are blamed or slandered
for pious practices, earnestness in devotion, or whatever tends to win
eternal life, then let your slanderers have their way, like dogs that bay at
the moon! Be sure that, if they should succeed in rousing any evil
impression against you (clipping the beard of your reputation, as it were),
your good name will soon revive, and the razor of slander will strengthen
your honour, just as the pruning-knife strengthens the vine and causes it to
bring forth more abundant fruit. Let us keep Jesus Christ Crucified always
before our eyes; let us go on trustfully and simply, but with discretion and
wisdom, in His Service, and He will take care of our reputation; if He
permits us to lose it, it will only be to give us better things, and to
train us in a holy humility, one ounce of which is worth more than a
thousand pounds of honour. If we are unjustly blamed, let us quietly meet
calumny with truth; if calumny perseveres, let us persevere in humility;
there is no surer shelter for our reputation or our soul than the Hand of
God. Let us serve Him in good report or evil report alike, with S. Paul;
[74] so that we may cry out with David, “For Thy Sake have I suffered
reproof, shame hath covered my face.” [75]

Of course certain crimes, so grievous that no one who can justify himself
should remain silent, must be excepted; as, too, certain persons whose
reputation closely affects the edification of others. In this case all
theologians say that it is right quietly to seek reparation.
_________________________________________________________________

[73] Ps. lii. 2.

[74] 2 Cor. vi. 8.

[75] Ps. lxix. 7.
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CHAPTER VIII. Gentleness towards others and Remedies against Anger.

THE holy Chrism, used by the Church according to apostolic tradition, is
made of olive oil mingled with balm, which, among other things, are
emblematic of two virtues very specially conspicuous in our Dear Lord
Himself, and which He has specially commended to us, as though they, above
all things, drew us to Him and taught us to imitate Him: “Take My yoke upon
you, and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart.” [76] Humility makes
our lives acceptable to God, meekness makes us acceptable to men. Balm, as I
said before, sinking to the bottom of all liquids, is a figure of humility;
and oil, floating as it does to the top, is a figure of gentleness and
cheerfulness, rising above all things, and excelling all things, the very
flower of Love, which, so says S. Bernard, comes to perfection when it is
not merely patient, but gentle and cheerful. Give heed, then, daughter, that
you keep this mystic chrism of gentleness and humility in your heart, for it
is a favourite device of the Enemy to make people content with a fair
outside semblance of these graces, not examining their inner hearts, and so
fancying themselves to be gentle and humble while they are far otherwise.
And this is easily perceived, because, in spite of their ostentatious
gentleness and humility, they are stirred up with pride and anger by the
smallest wrong or contradiction. There is a popular belief that those who
take the antidote commonly called “Saint Paul’s gift,” [77] do not suffer
from the viper’s bite, provided, that is, that the remedy be pure; and even
so true gentleness and humility will avert the burning and swelling which
contradiction is apt to excite in our hearts. If, when stung by slander or
ill-nature, we wax proud and swell with anger, it is a proof that our
gentleness and humility are unreal, and mere artificial show. When the
Patriarch Joseph sent his brethren back from Egypt to his father’s house, he
only gave them one counsel, “See that ye fall not out by the way.” [78] And
so, my child, say I to you. This miserable life is but the road to a blessed
life; do not let us fall out by the way one with another; let us go on with
the company of our brethren gently, peacefully, and kindly. Most
emphatically I say it, If possible, fall out with no one, and on no pretext
whatever suffer your heart to admit anger and passion. S. James says,
plainly and unreservedly, that “the wrath of man worketh not the
righteousness of God.” [79] Of course it is a duty to resist evil and to
repress the faults of those for whom we are responsible, steadily and
firmly, but gently and quietly. Nothing so stills the elephant when enraged
as the sight of a lamb; nor does anything break the force of a cannon ball
so well as wool. Correction given in anger, however tempered by reason,
never has so much effect as that which is given altogether without anger;
for the reasonable soul being naturally subject to reason, it is a mere
tyranny which subjects it to passion, and whereinsoever reason is led by
passion it becomes odious, and its just rule obnoxious. When a monarch
visits a country peaceably the people are gratified and flattered; but if
the king has to take his armies through the land, even on behalf of the
public welfare, his visit is sure to be unwelcome and harmful, because,
however strictly military discipline may be enforced, there will always be
some mischief done to the people. Just so when reason prevails, and
administers reproof, correction, and punishment in a calm spirit, although
it be strict, every one approves and is content; but if reason be hindered
by anger and vexation (which Saint Augustine calls her soldiers) there will
be more fear than love, and reason itself will be despised and resisted. The
same Saint Augustine, writing to Profuturus, says that it is better to
refuse entrance to any even the least semblance of anger, however just; and
that because once entered in, it is hard to be got rid of, and what was but
a little mote soon waxes into a great beam. For if anger tarries till night,
and the sun goes down upon our wrath (a thing expressly forbidden by the
Apostle [80] ), there is no longer any way of getting rid of it; it feeds
upon endless false fancies; for no angry man ever yet but thought his anger
just.

Depend upon it, it is better to learn how to live without being angry than
to imagine one can moderate and control anger lawfully; and if through
weakness and frailty one is overtaken by it, it is far better to put it away
forcibly than to parley with it; for give anger ever so little way, and it
will become master, like the serpent, who easily works in its body wherever
it can once introduce its head. You will ask how to put away anger. My
child, when you feel its first movements, collect yourself gently and
seriously, not hastily or with impetuosity. Sometimes in a law court the
officials who enforce quiet make more noise than those they affect to hush;
and so, if you are impetuous in restraining your temper, you will throw your
heart into worse confusion than before, and, amid the excitement, it will
lose all self-control.

Having thus gently exerted yourself, follow the advice which the aged S.
Augustine gave to a younger Bishop, Auxilius. “Do,” said he, “what a man
should do.” If you are like the Psalmist, ready to cry out, “Mine eye is
consumed for very anger,” [81] go on to say, “Have mercy upon me, O Lord;”
so that God may stretch forth His Right Hand and control your wrath. I mean,
that when we feel stirred with anger, we ought to call upon God for help,
like the Apostles, when they were tossed about with wind and storm, and He
is sure to say, “Peace, be still.” But even here I would again warn you,
that your very prayers against the angry feelings which urge you should be
gentle, calm, and without vehemence. Remember this rule in whatever remedies
against anger you may seek. Further, directly you are conscious of an angry
act, atone for the fault by some speedy act of meekness towards the person
who excited your anger. It is a sovereign cure for untruthfulness to unsay
what you have falsely said at once on detecting yourself in falsehood; and
so, too, it is a good remedy for anger to make immediate amends by some
opposite act of meekness. There is an old saying, that fresh wounds are
soonest closed.

Moreover, when there is nothing to stir your wrath, lay up a store of
meekness and kindliness, speaking and acting in things great and small as
gently as possible. Remember that the Bride of the Canticles is described as
not merely dropping honey, and milk also, from her lips, but as having it
“under her tongue;” [82] that is to say, in her heart. So we must not only
speak gently to our neighbour, but we must be filled, heart and soul, with
gentleness; and we must not merely seek the sweetness of aromatic honey in
courtesy and suavity with strangers, but also the sweetness of milk among
those of our own household and our neighbours; a sweetness terribly lacking
to some who are as angels abroad and devils at home!
_________________________________________________________________

[76] S. Matt. xi. 29.

[77] “La grace de Saint Paul,” in one old edition: in another, “la graisse
de Saint Paull;” the latter probably is the true reading, as there was a
quack salve formerly in use for the bites of snakes, partly compounded of
adders’ fat. The name is obviously derived from S. Paul’s adventure with the
viper in the Island of Melita. (Acts xxviii.)

[78] Gen. xlv. 24.

[79] S. James i. 20.

[80] Eph. iv. 26.

[81] In the English version it is, “Mine eye is consumed for very
heaviness” (Ps. xxxi. 9), but in the Vulgate we find, “Conturbatus est in
ira oculus meus.” (Vulg. Ps. xxx. 10.)

[82] Cant. iv. 11.
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CHAPTER IX. On Gentleness towards Ourselves.

ONE important direction in which to exercise gentleness, is with respect to
ourselves, never growing irritated with one’s self or one’s imperfections;
for although it is but reasonable that we should be displeased and grieved
at our own faults, yet ought we to guard against a bitter, angry, or peevish
feeling about them. Many people fall into the error of being angry because
they have been angry, vexed because they have given way to vexation, thus
keeping up a chronic state of irritation, which adds to the evil of what is
past, and prepares the way for a fresh fall on the first occasion. Moreover,
all this anger and irritation against one’s self fosters pride, and springs
entirely from self-love, which is disturbed and fretted by its own
imperfection. What we want is a quiet, steady, firm displeasure at our own
faults. A judge gives sentence more effectually speaking deliberately and
calmly than if he be impetuous and passionate (for in the latter case he
punishes not so much the actual faults before him, but what they appear to
him to be); and so we can chasten ourselves far better by a quiet stedfast
repentance, than by eager hasty ways of penitence, which, in fact, are
proportioned not by the weight of our faults, but according to our feelings
and inclinations. Thus one man who specially aims at purity will be
intensely vexed with himself at some very trifling fault against it, while
he looks upon some gross slander of which he has been guilty as a mere
laughing matter. On the other hand, another will torment himself painfully
over some slight exaggeration, while he altogether overlooks some serious
offence against purity; and so on with other things. All this arises solely
because men do not judge themselves by the light of reason, but under the
influence of passion.

Believe me, my daughter, as a parent’s tender affectionate remonstrance has
far more weight with his child than anger and sternness, so, when we judge
our own heart guilty, if we treat it gently, rather in a spirit of pity than
anger, encouraging it to amendment, its repentance will be much deeper and
more lasting than if stirred up in vehemence and wrath.

For instance:—Let me suppose that I am specially seeking to conquer vanity,
and yet that I have fallen conspicuously into that sin;—instead of taking
myself to task as abominable and wretched, for breaking so many resolutions,
calling myself unfit to lift up my eyes to Heaven, as disloyal, faithless,
and the like, I would deal pitifully and quietly with myself. “Poor heart!
so soon fallen again into the snare! Well now, rise up again bravely and
fall no more. Seek God’s Mercy, hope in Him, ask Him to keep you from
falling again, and begin to tread the pathway of humility afresh. We must be
more on our guard henceforth.” Such a course will be the surest way to
making a stedfast substantial resolution against the special fault, to which
should be added any external means suitable, and the advice of one’s
director. If any one does not find this gentle dealing sufficient, let him
use sterner self-rebuke and admonition, provided only, that whatever
indignation he may rouse against himself, he finally works it all up to a
tender loving trust in God, treading in the footsteps of that great penitent
who cried out to his troubled soul: “Why art thou so vexed, O my soul, and
why art thou so disquieted within me? O put thy trust in God, for I will yet
thank Him, Which is the help of my countenance, and my God.” [83]

So then, when you have fallen, lift up your heart in quietness, humbling
yourself deeply before God by reason of your frailty, without marvelling
that you fell;—there is no cause to marvel because weakness is weak, or
infirmity infirm. Heartily lament that you should have offended God, and
begin anew to cultivate the lacking grace, with a very deep trust in His
Mercy, and with a bold, brave heart.
_________________________________________________________________

[83] Ps. xlii. 11, 15.
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CHAPTER X. We must attend to the Business of Life carefully, but without
Eagerness or Over-anxiety.

THE care and diligence due to our ordinary business are very different from
solicitude, anxiety and restlessness. The Angels care for our salvation and
seek it diligently, but they are wholly free from anxiety and solicitude,
for, whereas care and diligence naturally appertain to their love, anxiety
would be wholly inconsistent with their happiness; for although care and
diligence can go hand in hand with calmness and peace, those angelic
properties could not unite with solicitude or anxiety, much less with
over-eagerness.

Therefore, my daughter, be careful and diligent in all your affairs; God,
Who commits them to you, wills you to give them your best attention; but
strive not to be anxious and solicitous, that is to say, do not set about
your work with restlessness and excitement, and do not give way to bustle
and eagerness in what you do;—every form of excitement affects both judgment
and reason, and hinders a right performance of the very thing which excites
us.

Our Lord, rebuking Martha, said, “Thou art careful and troubled about many
things.” [84] If she had been simply careful, she would not have been
troubled, but giving way to disquiet and anxiety, she grew eager and
troubled, and for that our Lord reproved her. The rivers which flow gently
through our plains bear barges of rich merchandise, and the gracious rains
which fall softly on the land fertilise it to bear the fruits of the
earth;—but when the rivers swell into torrents, they hinder commerce and
devastate the country, and violent storms and tempests do the like. No work
done with impetuosity and excitement was ever well done, and the old
proverb, “Make haste slowly,” is a good one, [85] Solomon says, “There is
one that laboureth and taketh pains, and maketh haste, and is so much the
more behind;” [86] we are always soon enough when we do well. The bumble bee
makes far more noise and is more bustling than the honey bee, but it makes
nought save wax—no honey; just so those who are restless and eager, or full
of noisy solicitude, never do much or well. Flies harass us less by what
they do than by reason of their multitude, and so great matters give us less
disturbance than a multitude of small affairs. Accept the duties which come
upon you quietly, and try to fulfil them methodically, one after another. If
you attempt to do everything at once, or with confusion, you will only
cumber yourself with your own exertions, and by dint of perplexing your mind
you will probably be overwhelmed and accomplish nothing.

In all your affairs lean solely on God’s Providence, by means of which alone
your plans can succeed. Meanwhile, on your part work on in quiet
co-operation with Him, and then rest satisfied that if you have trusted
entirely to Him you will always obtain such a measure of success as is most
profitable for you, whether it seems so or not to your own individual
judgment.

Imitate a little child, whom one sees holding tight with one hand to its
father, while with the other it gathers strawberries or blackberries from
the wayside hedge. Even so, while you gather and use this world’s goods with
one hand, always let the other be fast in your Heavenly Father’s Hand, and
look round from time to time to make sure that He is satisfied with what you
are doing, at home or abroad. Beware of letting go, under the idea of making
or receiving more—if He forsakes you, you will fall to the ground at the
first step. When your ordinary work or business is not specially engrossing,
let your heart be fixed more on God than on it; and if the work be such as
to require your undivided attention, then pause from time to time and look
to God, even as navigators who make for the haven they would attain, by
looking up at the heavens rather than down upon the deeps on which they
sail. So doing, God will work with you, in you, and for you, and your work
will be blessed.
_________________________________________________________________

[84] S. Luke x. 41.

[85] “Festina lente.” “Il faut depescher tout bellement.”

[86] Ecclus. xi. 11.
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CHAPTER XI. On Obedience.

LOVE alone leads to perfection, but the three chief means for acquiring it
are obedience, chastity, and poverty. Obedience is a consecration of the
heart, chastity of the body, and poverty of all worldly goods to the Love
and Service of God. These are the three members of the Spiritual Cross, and
all three must be raised upon the fourth, which is humility. I am not going
here to speak of these three virtues as solemn vows, which only concern
religious, nor even as ordinary vows, although when sought under the shelter
of a vow all virtues receive an enhanced grace and merit; but it is not
necessary for perfection that they should be undertaken as vows, so long as
they are practised diligently. The three vows solemnly taken put a man into
the state of perfection, whereas a diligent observance thereof brings him to
perfection. For, observe, there is a great difference between the state of
perfection and perfection itself, inasmuch as all prelates and religious are
in the former, although unfortunately it is too obvious that by no means all
attain to the latter. Let us then endeavour to practise these three virtues,
according to our several vocations, for although we are not thereby called
to a state of perfection, we may attain through them to perfection itself,
and of a truth we are all bound to practise them, although not all after the
same manner.

There are two kinds of obedience, one necessary, the other voluntary. The
first includes a humble obedience to your ecclesiastical superiors, whether
Pope, Bishop, Curate, or those commissioned by them. You are likewise bound
to obey your civil superiors, king and magistrates; as also your domestic
superiors, father, mother, master or mistress. Such obedience is called
necessary, because no one can free himself from the duty of obeying these
superiors, God having appointed them severally to bear rule over us.
Therefore do you obey their commands as of right, but if you would be
perfect, follow their counsels, and even their wishes as far as charity and
prudence will allow: obey as to things acceptable; as when they bid you eat,
or take recreation, for although there may be no great virtue in obedience
in such a case, there is great harm in disobedience. Obey in things
indifferent, as concerning questions of dress, coming and going, singing or
keeping silence, for herein is a very laudable obedience. Obey in things
hard, disagreeable and inconvenient, and therein lies a very perfect
obedience. Moreover, obey quietly, without answering again, promptly,
without delay, cheerfully, without reluctance; and, above all, render a
loving obedience for His Sake Who became obedient even to the death of the
Cross for our sake; Who, as Saint Bernard says, chose rather to resign His
Life than His Obedience.

If you would acquire a ready obedience to superiors, accustom yourself to
yield to your equals, giving way to their opinions where nothing wrong is
involved, without arguing or peevishness; and adapt yourself easily to the
wishes of your inferiors as far as you reasonably can, and forbear the
exercise of stern authority so long as they do well.

It is a mistake for those who find it hard to pay a willing obedience to
their natural superiors to suppose that if they were professed religious
they would find it easy to obey.

Voluntary obedience is such as we undertake by our own choice, and which is
not imposed by others. Persons do not choose their own King or Bishop, or
parents—often not even their husband; but most people choose their confessor
or director. And whether a person takes a vow of obedience to him (as Saint
Theresa, beyond her formal vow to the Superior of her Order, bound herself
by a simple vow to obey Father Gratian), or without any vow they resolve to
obey their chosen spiritual guide, all such obedience is voluntary, because
it depends upon our own will.

Obedience to lawful superiors is regulated by their official claims. Thus,
in all public and legal matters, we are bound to obey our King; in
ecclesiastical matters, our Bishop; in domestic matters, our father, master
or husband; and in personal matters which concern the soul, our confessor or
spiritual guide.

Seek to be directed in your religious exercises by your spiritual father,
because thereby they will have double grace and virtue;—that which is
inherent in that they are devout, and that which comes by reason of the
spirit of obedience in which they are performed. Blessed indeed are the
obedient, for God will never permit them to go astray.
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CHAPTER XII. On Purity.

PURITY is the lily among virtues—by it men approach to the Angels. There is
no beauty without purity, and human purity is chastity. We speak of the
chaste as honest, and of the loss of purity as dishonour; purity is an
intact thing, its converse is corruption. In a word, its special glory is in
the spotless whiteness of soul and body.

No unlawful pleasures are compatible with chastity; the pure heart is like
the mother of pearl which admits no drop of water save that which comes from
Heaven,—it is closed to every attraction save such as are sanctified by holy
matrimony. Close your heart to every questionable tenderness or delight,
guard against all that is unprofitable though it may be lawful, and strive
to avoid unduly fixing your heart even on that which in itself is right and
good.

Every one has great need of this virtue: those living in widowhood need a
brave chastity not only to forego present and future delights, but to resist
the memories of the past, with which a happy married life naturally fills
the imagination, softening and weakening the will. Saint Augustine lauds the
purity of his beloved Alipius, who had altogether forgotten and despised the
carnal pleasures in which his youth was passed. While fruits are whole, you
may store them up securely, some in straw, some in sand or amid their own
foliage, but once bruised there is no means of preserving them save with
sugar or honey. Even so the purity which has never been tampered with may
well be preserved to the end, but when once that has ceased to exist nothing
can ensure its existence but the genuine devotion, which, as I have often
said, is the very honey and sugar of the mind.

The unmarried need a very simple sensitive purity, which will drive away all
over-curious thoughts, and teach them to despise all merely sensual
satisfactions. The young are apt to imagine that of which they are ignorant
to be wondrous sweet, and as the foolish moth hovers around a light, and,
persisting in coming too near, perishes in its inquisitive folly, so they
perish through their unwise approach to forbidden pleasures. And married
people need a watchful purity whereby to keep God ever before them, and to
seek all earthly happiness and delight through Him Alone, ever remembering
that He has sanctified the state of holy matrimony by making it the type of
His own union with the Church.

The Apostle says, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no
man shall see the Lord:” [87] by which holiness he means purity. Of a truth,
my daughter, without purity no one can ever see God; [88] nor can any hope
to dwell in His tabernacle except he lead an uncorrupt life; [89] and our
Blessed Lord Himself has promised the special blessing of beholding Him to
those that are pure in heart.
_________________________________________________________________

[87] Heb. xii. 14.

[88] S. Matt. v. 8.

[89] Ps. xv. 2.
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CHAPTER XIII. How to maintain Purity.

BE exceedingly quick in turning aside from the slightest thing leading to
impurity, for it is an evil which approaches stealthily, and in which the
very smallest beginnings are apt to grow rapidly. It is always easier to fly
from such evils than to cure them.

Human bodies are like glasses, which cannot come into collision without risk
of breaking; or to fruits, which, however fresh and ripe, are damaged by
pressure. Never permit any one to take any manner of foolish liberty with
you, since, although there may be no evil intention, the perfectness of
purity is injured thereby.

Purity has its source in the heart, but it is in the body that its material
results take shape, and therefore it may be forfeited both by the exterior
senses and by the thoughts and desires of the heart. All lack of modesty in
seeing, hearing, speaking, smelling, or touching, is impurity, especially
when the heart takes pleasure therein. S. Paul says without any hesitation
that impurity and uncleanness, or foolish and unseemly talking, are not to
be “so much as named” [90] among Christians. The bee not only shuns all
carrion, but abhors and flies far from the faintest smell proceeding
therefrom. The Bride of the Canticles is represented with “hands dropping
with myrrh.” [91] a preservative against all corruption; her “lips are like
a thread of scarlet,” the type of modest words; [92] her eyes are “dove’s
eyes,” [93] clear and soft; her “nose is as the tower of Lebanon which
looketh towards Damascus” [94] an incorruptible wood; her ears are hung with
earrings of pure gold; [95] and even so the devout soul should be pure,
honest and transparent in hand, lip, eye, ear, and the whole body.

Remember that there are things which blemish perfect purity, without being
in themselves downright acts of impurity. Anything which tends to lessen its
intense sensitiveness, or to cast the slightest shadow over it, is of this
nature; and all evil thoughts or foolish acts of levity or heedlessness are
as steps towards the most direct breaches of the law of chastity. Avoid the
society of persons who are wanting in purity, especially if they are bold,
as indeed impure people always are. If a foul animal licks the sweet almond
tree its fruit becomes bitter; and so a corrupt pestilential man can
scarcely hold communication with others, whether men or women, without
damaging their perfect purity—their very glance is venomous, and their
breath blighting like the basilisk. On the other hand, seek out good and
pure men, read and ponder holy things; for the Word of God is pure, and it
will make those pure who study it: wherefore David likens it to gold and
precious stones. [96] Always abide close to Jesus Christ Crucified, both
spiritually in meditation and actually in Holy Communion; for as all those
who sleep upon the plant called Agnus castus become pure and chaste, so, if
you rest your heart upon Our Dear Lord, the Very Lamb, Pure and Immaculate,
you will find that soon both heart and soul will be purified of all spot or
stain.
_________________________________________________________________

[90] Eph. v. 4.

[91] Cant. v. 5.

[92] iv. 3.

[93] i. 15.

[94] vii. 4.

[95] There is no mention of earrings in the Canticles, but S. Francis
probably was writing from memory, and had in mind “Thy cheeks are comely
with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold.” (i. 10.)

[96] Ps. cxix. 127.
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CHAPTER XIV. On Poverty of Spirit amid Riches.

“BLESSED are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God;” [97] and
if so, woe be to the rich in spirit, for theirs must be the bitterness of
hell. By rich in spirit I mean him whose riches engross his mind, or whose
mind is buried in his riches. He is poor in spirit whose heart is not filled
with the love of riches, whose mind is not set upon them. The halcyon builds
its nest like a ball, and leaving but one little aperture in the upper part,
launches it on the sea, so secure and impenetrable, that the waves carry it
along without any water getting in, and it floats on the sea, superior, so
to say, to the waves. And this, my child, is what your heart should be—open
only to heaven, impenetrable to riches and earthly treasures. If you have
them, keep your heart from attaching itself to them; let it maintain a
higher level, and amidst riches be as though you had none,—superior to them.
Do not let that mind which is the likeness of God cleave to mere earthly
goods; let it always be raised above them, not sunk in them.

There is a wide difference between having poison and being poisoned. All
apothecaries have poisons ready for special uses, but they are not
consequently poisoned, because the poison is only in their shop, not in
themselves; and so you may possess riches without being poisoned by them, so
long as they are in your house or purse only, and not in your heart. It is
the Christian’s privilege to be rich in material things, and poor in
attachment to them, thereby having the use of riches in this world and the
merit of poverty in the next.

Of a truth, my daughter, no one will ever own themselves to be
avaricious;—every one denies this contemptible vice:—men excuse themselves
on the plea of providing for their children, or plead the duty of prudent
forethought:—they never have too much, there is always some good reason for
accumulating more; and even the most avaricious of men not only do not own
to being such, but sincerely believe that they are not; and that because
avarice is as a strong fever which is all the less felt as it rages most
fiercely. Moses saw that sacred fire which burnt the bush without consuming
it, [98] but the profane fire of avarice acts precisely the other way,—it
consumes the miser, but without burning, for, amid its most intense heat, he
believes himself to be deliciously cool, and imagines his insatiable thirst
to be merely natural and right.

If you long earnestly, anxiously, and persistently after what you do not
possess, it is all very well to say that you do not wish to get it unfairly,
but you are all the time guilty of avarice. He who longs eagerly and
anxiously to drink, though it may be water only, thereby indicates that he
is feverish. I hardly think we can say that it is lawful to wish lawfully to
possess that which is another’s:—so doing we surely wish our own gain at the
expense of that other? and he who possesses anything lawfully, surely has
more right to possess it, than we to obtain it? Why should we desire that
which is his? Even were the wish lawful, it is not charitable, for we should
not like other men to desire what we possess, however lawfully. This was
Ahab’s sin when he sought to acquire Naboth’s vineyard by lawful purchase,
when Naboth lawfully desired to keep it himself;—he coveted it eagerly,
continually, and anxiously, and so doing he displeased God. [99]

Do not allow yourself to wish for that which is your neighbour’s until he
wishes to part with it,—then his wish will altogether justify yours,—and I
am quite willing that you should add to your means and possessions, provided
it be not merely with strict justice, but kindly and charitably done. If you
cleave closely to your possessions, and are cumbered with them, setting your
heart and thoughts upon them, and restlessly anxious lest you should suffer
loss, then, believe me, you are still somewhat feverish;—for fever patients
drink the water we give them with an eagerness and satisfaction not common
to those who are well.

It is not possible to take great pleasure in anything without becoming
attached to it. If you lose property, and find yourself grievously afflicted
at the loss, you may be sure that you were warmly attached to it;—there is
no surer proof of affection for the thing lost than our sorrow at its loss.

Therefore, do not fix your longings on anything which you do not possess; do
not let your heart rest in that which you have; do not grieve overmuch at
the losses which may happen to you;—and then you may reasonably believe that
although rich in fact, you are not so in affection, but that you are poor in
spirit, and therefore blessed, for the Kingdom of Heaven is yours.
_________________________________________________________________

[97] S. Matt. v. 3.

[98] Exod. iii. 2.

[99] I Kings xxi.
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CHAPTER XV. How to exercise real Poverty, although actually Rich.

THE painter Parrhasius drew an ingenious and imaginative representation of
the Athenians, ascribing sundry opposite qualities to them, calling them at
once capricious, irascible, unjust, inconstant, courteous, merciful,
compassionate, haughty, vain-glorious, humble, boastful, and cowardly;—and
for my part, dear daughter, I would fain see united in your heart both
riches and poverty, a great care and a great contempt for temporal things.

Do you take much greater pains than is the wont of worldly men to make your
riches useful and fruitful? Are not the gardeners of a prince more diligent
in cultivating and beautifying the royal gardens than if they were their
own? Wherefore? Surely because these gardens are the king’s, to whom his
gardeners would fain render an acceptable service. My child, our possessions
are not ours,—God has given them to us to cultivate, that we may make them
fruitful and profitable in His Service, and so doing we shall please Him.
And this we must do more earnestly than worldly men, for they look carefully
after their property out of self-love, and we must work for the love of God.
Now self-love is a restless, anxious, over-eager love, and so the work done
on its behalf is troubled, vexatious, and unsatisfactory;—whereas the love
of God is calm, peaceful, and tranquil, and so the work done for its sake,
even in worldly things, is gentle, trustful, and quiet. Let us take such a
quiet care to preserve, and even when practicable to increase, our temporal
goods, according to the duties of our position,—this is acceptable to God
for His Love’s Sake.

But beware that you be not deceived by self-love, for sometimes it
counterfeits the Love of God so cleverly that you may mistake one for the
other. To avoid this, and to prevent a due care for your temporal interests
from degenerating into avarice, it is needful often to practise a real
poverty amid the riches with which God has endowed you.

To this end always dispose of a part of your means by giving them heartily
to the poor; you impoverish yourself by whatever you give away. It is true
that God will restore it to you, not only in the next world, but in this,
for nothing brings so much temporal prosperity as free almsgiving, but
meanwhile, you are sensibly poorer for what you give. Truly that is a holy
and rich poverty which results from almsgiving.

Love the poor and poverty,—this love will make you truly poor, since, as
Holy Scripture says, we become like to that we love. [100] Love makes lovers
equal. “Who is weak and I am not weak?” [101] says St. Paul? He might have
said, Who is poor and I am not poor? for it was love which made him like to
those he loved; and so, if you love the poor, you will indeed share their
poverty, and be poor like them.

And if you love the poor, seek them out, take pleasure in bringing them to
your home, and in going to theirs, talk freely with them, and be ready to
meet them, whether in Church or elsewhere. Let your tongue be poor with them
in converse, but let your hands be rich to distribute out of your abundance.
Are you prepared to go yet further, my child? not to stop at being poor like
the poor, but even poorer still? The servant is not so great as his lord; do
you be the servant of the poor, tend their sickbed with your own hands, be
their cook, their needlewoman. O my daughter, such servitude is more
glorious than royalty! How touchingly S. Louis, one of the greatest of
kings, fulfilled this duty; serving the poor in their own houses, and daily
causing three to eat at his own table, often himself eating the remains of
their food in his loving humility. In his frequent visits to the hospitals
he would select those afflicted with the most loathsome diseases, ulcers,
cancer, and the like; and these he would tend, kneeling down and
bare-headed, beholding the Saviour of the world in them, and cherishing them
with all the tenderness of a mother’s love. Saint Elizabeth of Hungary used
to mix freely with the poor, and liked to dress in their homely garments
amid her gay ladies. Surely these royal personages were poor amid their
riches and rich in poverty.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. In the
Day of Judgment the King of prince and peasant will say to them, “I was an
hungred, and ye gave Me meat, I was naked, and ye clothed Me; come, inherit
the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” [102]

Everybody finds themselves sometimes deficient in what they need, and put to
inconvenience. A guest whom we would fain receive honorably arrives, and we
cannot entertain him as we would; we want our costly apparel in one place,
and it all happens to be somewhere else: all the wine in our cellar suddenly
turns sour: we find ourselves accidentally in some country place where
everything is wanting, room, bed, food, attendance: in short, the richest
people may easily be without something they want, and that is practically to
suffer poverty. Accept such occurrences cheerfully, rejoice in them, bear
them willingly.

Again, if you are impoverished much or little by unforeseen events, such as
storm, flood, fire, drought, theft, or lawsuit; then is the real time to
practise poverty, accepting the loss quietly, and adapting yourself
patiently to your altered circumstances. Esau and Jacob both came to their
father with hairy hands, [103] but the hair on Jacob’s hands did not grow
from his skin, and could be torn off without pain; while that on Esau’s
hands being the natural growth of his skin, he would have cried out and
resisted if any one had torn it off. So if our possessions are very close to
our heart, and storm or thief tear them away, we shall break forth in
impatient murmurs and lamentations. But if we only cleave to them with that
solicitude which God wills us to have, and not with our whole heart, we
shall see them rent away without losing our sense of calmness. This is just
the difference between the clothing of men and beasts; the beast’s clothing
grows on its flesh, and man’s is only laid on so that it may be laid aside
at will.
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[100] “Their abominations were according as they loved.” Hosea ix. 10.

[101] 2 Cor. xi. 29.

[102] S. Matt. xxv. 34-36.

[103] Gen. xxvii.
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CHAPTER XVI. How to possess a rich Spirit amid real Poverty.

BUT if you are really poor, my daughter, for God’s Sake be so in spirit;
make a virtue of necessity, and turn that precious stone poverty to its true
value. The brilliancy thereof is not perceived in this world, but
nevertheless it is very great.

Patience then! you are in good company. Our Dear Lord, Our Lady, the
Apostles, numberless Saints, both men and women, were poor, and although
they might have been rich, disdained to be so. How many great ones of this
world have gone through many difficulties to seek holy poverty amid
hospitals and cloisters! What pains they took to find it, let S. Alexis, S.
Paula, S. Paulinus, S. Angela, and many another witness; whereas to you, my
child, it has come unasked—you have met poverty without seeking it—do you
then embrace it as the beloved friend of Jesus Christ, Who was born, lived
and died in poverty, and cherished it all His Life.

There are two great privileges connected with your poverty, through which
you may acquire great merit. First, it is not your own choice, but God’s
Will alone, which has made you poor. Now, whatever we accept simply because
it is God’s Will is acceptable in His Sight, so long as we accept it
heartily and out of love:—the less of self the more of God,—and a
singlehearted acceptance of God’s Will purifies any suffering very greatly.

The second privilege is, that this poverty is so very poor. There is a
be-praised, caressed poverty, so petted and cared for, that it can hardly be
called poor like the despised, contemned, neglected poverty which also
exists. Now, most secular poverty is of this last kind, for those who are
involuntarily poor, and cannot help themselves, are not much thought of, and
for that very reason their poverty is poorer than that of religious,
although religious poverty has a very special and excellent grace, through
the intention and the vow by which it is accepted.

Do not complain then of your poverty, my daughter,—we only complain of that
which is unwelcome, and if poverty is unwelcome to you, you are no longer
poor in spirit. Do not fret under such assistance as is needful; therein
lies one great grace of poverty. It were overambitious to aim at being poor
without suffering any inconvenience, in other words, to have the credit of
poverty and the convenience of riches.

Do not be ashamed of being poor, or of asking alms. Receive what is given
you with humility, and accept a refusal meekly. Frequently call to mind Our
Lady’s journey into Egypt with her Holy Child, and of all the poverty,
contempt and suffering they endured. If you follow their example you will
indeed be rich amid your poverty.
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CHAPTER XVII. On Friendship: Evil and Frivolous Friendship.

FOREMOST among the soul’s affections is love. Love is the ruler of every
motion of the heart; drawing all to itself, and making us like to that we
love. Beware, then, my daughter, of harbouring any evil affection, or you
too will become evil. And friendship is the most dangerous of all
affections, because any other love may exist without much mental
communication, but as friendship is founded thereon, it is hardly possible
to be closely bound by its ties to any one without sharing in his qualities.

All love is not friendship, for one may love without any return, and
friendship implies mutual love. Further, those who are bound by such
affection must be conscious that it is reciprocal,—otherwise there may be
love but not friendship; and moreover, there must be something communicated
between the friends as a solid foundation of friendship.

Friendship varies according to these communications, and they vary according
to that which people have to communicate. If men share false and vain
things, their friendship will be false and vain; if that which is good and
true, their friendship will be good and true, and the better that which is
the staple of the bond, so much the better will the friendship be. That
honey is best which is culled from the choicest flowers, and so friendship
built upon the highest and purest intercommunion is the best. And just as a
certain kind of honey brought from Pontus is poisonous, being made from
aconite, so that those who eat it lose their senses, so the friendship which
is based on unreal or evil grounds will itself be hollow and worthless.

Mere sensual intercourse is not worthy of the name of friendship; and were
there nothing more in married love it would not deserve to bear the name;
but inasmuch as that involves the participation of life, industry,
possessions, affections, and an unalterable fidelity, marriage, when rightly
understood, is a very real and holy friendship.

Whatever is founded on mere sensuality, vanity, or frivolity, is unworthy to
be called friendship. I mean such attractions as are purely external; a
sweet voice, personal beauty, and the cleverness or outward show which have
great weight with some. You will often hear women and young people
unhesitatingly decide that such an one is very delightful, very admirable,
because he is good-looking, well-dressed, sings, or dances, or talks well.
Even charlatans esteem the wittiest clown amongst them as their best man.
But all these things are purely sensual, and the connections built on such
foundation must be vain and frivolous, more fitly to be called trifling than
friendship. They spring up chiefly among young people, who are easily
fascinated by personal attractions, dress, and gossip—friendships in which
the tailor and hairdresser have the chief part. How can such friendships be
other than shortlived, melting away like snow wreaths in the sun!
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CHAPTER XVIII. On Frivolous Attachments.

SUCH foolish attachments between man and woman without any matrimonial
intentions as are called amourettes,—mere abortions, or rather phantoms of
friendship,—must not, idle and empty as they are, profane the name of
friendship or love. Yet such frivolous, contemptible attractions often snare
the hearts of both men and women, and although they may end in downright
sin, there is no such intention on the part of their victims, who
consciously do but yield to foolish trifling and toying. Some such have no
object beyond the actual indulgence of a passing inclination; others are
excited by vanity, which takes pleasure in captivating hearts; some are
stimulated by a combination of both these motives. But all such friendships
are evil, hollow, and vain; evil, in that they often lead to sinful deeds,
and draw the heart from God, and from the husband or wife who is its lawful
owner; hollow, in that they are baseless and without root; vain, in that
neither gain, honour, nor satisfaction can come from such. On the contrary,
nothing comes of them but a loss of time and credit, and unreasoning
excitement, mistrust, jealousy, and perturbation.

S. Gregory Nazianzen speaks very wisely on this subject, admonishing vain
women, and his words are equally applicable to men:—“Your natural beauty
will suffice your husband, but if it is exhibited to all, like a net spread
before birds, what will be the end? You will be taken by whoever admires
you, looks and glances will be exchanged, smiles and tender words, at first
hesitatingly exchanged, but soon more boldly given and received. Far be it
from me to describe the end, but this much I will say, nothing said or done
by young men and women under such circumstances but is perilous. One act of
levity leads to another, as the links in a chain.” They who tamper with such
things will fall into the trap. They fancy that they only mean to amuse
themselves, but will not go too far. Little you know, forsooth! The tiny
spark will burst into a flame, and, overpowering your heart, it will reduce
your good resolutions to ashes, and your reputation to smoke. “Who will pity
a charmer that is bitten with a serpent?” asks the Wise Man; [104] and with
him I ask, Do you, in your folly, imagine that you can lightly handle love
as you please? You think to trifle with it, but it will sting you cruelly,
and then every one will mock you, and laugh at your foolish pretension to
harbour a venomous serpent in your bosom, which has poisoned and lost alike
your honour and your soul. What fatal blindness this to stake all that is
most precious to man! Yes, I say it advisedly, for God desires to have us
only for the sake of our soul, or the soul through our will, and our will
for love’s sake. Surely we have not by any means a sufficient store of love
to offer God, and yet in our madness and folly we lavish and waste it on
vain frivolous objects, as though we had enough and to spare. Our Dear Lord,
Who demands nought save our love in return for our creation, preservation
and redemption, will require a strict account of the senseless way in which
we have frittered and wasted it. If He will call us to account for idle
words, how will it be with respect to idle, foolish, pernicious friendships?
Husbandmen know that the walnut tree is very harmful in a vineyard or field,
because it absorbs the fatness of the land and draws it away from the other
crops; its thick foliage overshadows and deprives them of sunshine; and,
moreover, it attracts passers-by, who tread down and spoil all that is
around while striving to gather its fruit. So with these foolish love
affairs and the soul; they engross it, so that it is unable to bring forth
good works; their superfluous foliage—flirtations, dallyings and idle
talk—consume profitable time; and, moreover, they lead to so many
temptations, distractions, suspicions, and the like, that the heart becomes
altogether crushed and spoiled. Such follies not only banish Heavenly Love,
they likewise drive out the fear of God, enervate the mind, and damage
reputation. They may be the plaything of courts, but assuredly they are as a
plague spot of the heart. [105]
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[104] Ecclus. xii. 13.

[105] “C’est en un mot le jouet des cours, mais la peste des coeurs.”
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CHAPTER XIX. Of Real Friendship.

DO you, my child, love every one with the pure love of charity, but have no
friendship save with those whose intercourse is good and true, and the purer
the bond which unites you so much higher will your friendship be. If your
intercourse is based on science it is praiseworthy, still more if it arises
from a participation in goodness, prudence, justice and the like; but if the
bond of your mutual liking be charity, devotion and Christian perfection,
God knows how very precious a friendship it is! Precious because it comes
from God, because it tends to God, because God is the link that binds you,
because it will last for ever in Him. Truly it is a blessed thing to love on
earth as we hope to love in Heaven, and to begin that friendship here which
is to endure for ever there. I am not now speaking of simple charity, a love
due to all mankind, but of that spiritual friendship which binds souls
together, leading them to share devotions and spiritual interests, so as to
have but one mind between them. Such as these may well cry out, “Behold, how
good and joyful a thing it is, brethren, to dwell together in unity!” [106]
Even so, for the “precious ointment” of devotion trickles continually from
one heart to the other, so that truly we may say that to such friendship the
Lord promises His Blessing and life for evermore. To my mind all other
friendship is but as a shadow with respect to this, its links mere fragile
glass compared to the golden bond of true devotion. Do you form no other
friendships. I say “form,” because you have no right to cast aside or
neglect the natural bonds which draw you to relations, connexions,
benefactors or neighbours. My rules apply to those you deliberately choose
to make. There are some who will tell you that you should avoid all special
affection or friendship, as likely to engross the heart, distract the mind,
excite jealousy, and what not. But they are confusing things. They have read
in the works of saintly and devout writers that individual friendships and
special intimacies are a great hindrance in the religious life, and
therefore they suppose it to be the same with all the world, which is not at
all the case. Whereas in a well-regulated community every one’s aim is true
devotion, there is no need for individual intercourse, which might exceed
due limits;—in the world those who aim at a devout life require to be united
one with another by a holy friendship, which excites, stimulates and
encourages them in well-doing. Just as men traversing a plain have no need
to hold one another up, as they have who are amid slippery mountain paths,
so religious do not need the stay of individual friendships; but those who
are living in the world require such for strength and comfort amid the
difficulties which beset them. In the world all have not one aim, one mind,
and therefore we must take to us congenial friends, nor is there any undue
partiality in such attachments, which are but as the separation of good from
evil, the sheep from the goats, the bee from the drone—a necessary
separation.

No one can deny that our Dear Lord loved S. John, Lazarus, Martha,
Magdalene, with a specially tender friendship, since we are told so in Holy
Scripture; and we know that S. Paul dearly loved S. Mark, S. Petronilla, as
S. Paul Timothy and Thecla. [107] S. Gregory Nazianzen boasts continually of
his friendship with the great S. Basil, of which he says: “It seemed as
though with two bodies we had but one soul, and if we may not believe those
who say that all things are in all else, at least one must affirm that we
were two in one, and one in two —the only object that both had being to grow
in holiness, and to mould our present life to our future hopes, thereby
forsaking this mortal world before our death.” And S. Augustine says that S.
Ambrose loved S. Monica by reason of her many virtues, and that she in
return loved him as an Angel of God.

What need to affirm so unquestionable a fact! S. Jerome, S. Augustine, S.
Gregory, S. Bernard, and all the most notable servants of God, have had
special friendships, which in nowise hindered their perfection. S. Paul, in
describing evil men, says that they were “without natural affection,” [108]
i.e. without friendship. And S. Thomas, in common with other philosophers,
acknowledges that friendship is a virtue, and he certainly means individual
friendships, because he says that we cannot bestow perfect friendship on
many persons. So we see that the highest grace does not lie in being without
friendships, but in having none which are not good, holy and true.
_________________________________________________________________

[106] Ps. cxxxiii. 1.

[107] S. Thecla (V.M.) was a native of Lycaonia, converted (so say S.
Augustine, S. Ambrose, S. Epiphanius, and others of the Fathers) by S. Paul,
who kindled so strong a love of virginity in her heart that she broke off
her intended marriage, and devoted herself to Christ. She is said to have
followed S. Paul in several of his journeys, and a very ancient Martyrology,
which bears the name of S. Jerome, published by Florentinus, says that she
was miraculously delivered unhurt from the persecutors’ flames at Rome. It
seems doubtful whether she died a natural or a martyr’s death. The first
Christian Emperors built a great Church at Seleucia, where she died.

[108] Rom. i. 31.
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CHAPTER XX. Of the Difference between True and False Friendship.

TAKE notice, my child, that the honey of Heraclyum, which is so poisonous,
altogether resembles that which is wholesome, and there is great danger of
mistaking one for the other, or of mixing them, for the virtue of one would
not counteract the harmfulness of the other. We must be on our guard not to
be deceived in making friendships, especially between persons of the
opposite sexes, for not unfrequently Satan deludes those who love one
another. They may begin with a virtuous affection, but if discretion be
lacking, frivolity will creep in, and then sensuality, till their love
becomes carnal: even in spiritual love there is a danger if people are not
on the watch, although it is not so easy to be deluded therein, inasmuch as
the very purity and transparency of spiritual affection show Satan’s stains
more promptly. Consequently, when he seeks to interpose, he does it
stealthily, and strives to insinuate impurity almost imperceptibly.

You may distinguish between worldly friendship and that which is good and
holy, just as one distinguishes that poisonous honey from what is good—it is
sweeter to the taste than ordinary honey, owing to the aconite infused;—and
so worldly friendship is profuse in honeyed words, passionate endearments,
commendations of beauty and sensual charms, while true friendship speaks a
simple honest language, lauding nought save the Grace of God, its one only
foundation. That strange honey causes giddiness; and so false friendship
upsets the mind, makes its victim to totter in the ways of purity and
devotion, inducing affected, mincing looks, sensual caresses, inordinate
sighings, petty complaints of not being loved, slight but questionable
familiarities, gallantries, embraces, and the like, which are sure
precursors of evil; whereas true friendship is modest and straightforward in
every glance, loving and pure in caresses, has no sighs save for Heaven, no
complaints save that God is not loved sufficiently. That honey confuses the
sight, and worldly friendship confuses the judgment, so that men think
themselves right while doing evil, and assume their excuses and pretexts to
be valid reasoning. They fear the light and love darkness; but true
friendship is clear-sighted, and hides nothing—rather seeks to be seen of
good men. Lastly, this poisonous honey leaves an exceeding bitter taste
behind; and so false friendship turns to evil desires, upbraidings, slander,
deceit, sorrow, confusion and jealousies, too often ending in downright sin;
but pure friendship is always the same—modest, courteous and loving—knowing
no change save an increasingly pure and perfect union, a type of the blessed
friendships of Heaven.

When young people indulge in looks, words or actions which they would not
like to be seen by their parents, husbands or confessors, it is a sure sign
that they are damaging their conscience and their honour. Our Lady was
troubled [109] when the Angel appeared to her in human form, because she was
alone, and he spoke to her with flattering although heavenly words. O
Saviour of the world, if purity itself fears an Angel in human shape, how
much more need that our impurity should fear men, although they take the
likeness of an Angel, if they speak words of earthliness and sensuality!
_________________________________________________________________

[109] S. Luke i. 29.
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CHAPTER XXI. Remedies against Evil Friendships.

HOW are you to meet the swarm of foolish attachments, triflings, and
undesirable inclinations which beset you? By turning sharply away, and
thoroughly renouncing such vanities, flying to the Saviour’s Cross, and
clasping His Crown of thorns to your heart, so that these little foxes may
not spoil your vines. [110] Beware of entering into any manner of treaty
with the Enemy; do not delude yourself by listening to him while intending
to reject him. For God’s Sake, my daughter, be firm on all such occasions;
the heart and ear are closely allied, and just as you would vainly seek to
check the downward course of a mountain torrent, so difficult will you find
it to keep the smooth words which enter in at the ear from finding their way
down into the heart. Alcmeon says (what indeed Aristotle denies) that the
goat breathes through its ears, not its nostrils. I know not whether this be
so, but one thing I know, that our heart breathes through the ear, and that
while it exhales its own thoughts through the mouth, it inhales those of
others by the ear. Let us then carefully guard our ears against evil words
which would speedily infect the heart. Never hearken to any indiscreet
conversation whatsoever—never mind if you seem rude and uncourteous in
rejecting all such. Always bear in mind that you have dedicated your heart
to God, and offered your love to Him; so that it were sacrilege to deprive
Him of one particle thereof. Do you rather renew the offering continually by
fresh resolutions, entrenching yourself therein as in a fortress;—cry out to
God, He will succour you, and His Love will shelter you, so that all your
love may be kept for Him only.

If unhappily you are already entangled in the nets of any unreal affection,
truly it is hard to set you free! But place yourself before His Divine
Majesty, acknowledge the depth of your wretchedness, your weakness and
vanity, and then with all the earnestness of purpose you can muster, arrest
the budding evil, abjure your own empty promises, and renounce those you
have received, and resolve with a firm, absolute will never again to indulge
in any trifling or dallying with such matters.

If you can remove from the object of your unworthy affection, it is most
desirable to do so. He who has been bitten by a viper cannot heal his wound
in the presence of another suffering from the like injury, and so one bitten
with a false fancy will not shake it off while near to his fellow-victim.
Change of scene is very helpful in quieting the excitement and restlessness
of sorrow or love. S. Ambrose tells a story in his Second Book on Penitence,
of a young man, who coming home after a long journey quite cured of a
foolish attachment, met the unworthy object of his former passion, who
stopped him, saying, “Do you not know me, I am still myself?” “That may
be,” was the answer, “but I am not myself:”—so thoroughly and happily was he
changed by absence. And S. Augustine tells us how, after the death of his
dear friend, he soothed his grief by leaving Tagaste and going to Carthage.

But what is he to do, who cannot try this remedy? To such I would say,
abstain from all private intercourse, all tender glances and smiles, and
from every kind of communication which can feed the unholy flame. If it be
necessary to speak at all, express clearly and tersely the eternal
renunciation on which you have resolved. I say unhesitatingly to whosoever
has become entangled in any such worthless love affairs, Cut it short, break
it off—do not play with it, or pretend to untie the knot; cut it through,
tear it asunder. There must be no dallying with an attachment which is
incompatible with the Love of God.

But, you ask, after I have thus burst the chains of my unholy bondage, will
no traces remain, and shall I not still carry the scars on my feet—that is,
in my wounded affections? Not so, my child, if you have attained a due
abhorrence of the evil; in that case all you will feel is an exceeding
horror of your unworthy affection, and all appertaining thereto; no thought
will linger in your breast concerning it save a true love of God. Or if, by
reason of the imperfection of your repentance, any evil inclinations still
hover round you, seek such a mental solitude as I have already described,
retire into it as much as possible, and then by repeated efforts and
ejaculations renounce your evil desires; abjure them heartily; read pious
books more than is your wont; go more frequently to Confession and
Communion; tell your director simply and humbly all that tempts and troubles
you, if you can, or at all events take counsel with some faithful, wise
friend. And never doubt but that God will set you free from all evil
passions, if you are stedfast and devout on your part. Perhaps you will say
that it is unkind, ungrateful, thus pitilessly to break off a friendship.
Surely it were a happy unkindness which is acceptable to God; but of a
truth, my child, you are committing no unkindness, rather conferring a great
benefit on the person you love, for you break his chains as well as your
own, and although at the moment he may not appreciate his gain, he will do
so by and by, and will join you in thanksgiving, “Thou, Lord, hast broken my
bonds in sunder. I will offer to Thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and
will call upon the Name of the Lord.” [111]
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[110] Cant. ii. 15.

[111] Ps. cxvi. 14, 15.
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CHAPTER XXII. Further Advice concerning Intimacies.

FRIENDSHIP demands very close correspondence between those who love one
another, otherwise it can never take root or continue. And together with the
interchange of friendship, other things imperceptibly glide in, and a mutual
giving and receiving of emotions and inclinations takes place; especially
when we esteem the object of our love very highly, because then we so
entirely open our heart to him, that his influence rules us altogether,
whether for good or evil. The bees which make that oriental honey of which I
spoke, seek to gather nought save honey, but with it they suck up the
poisonous juices of the aconite on which they light. So here, my child, we
must bear in mind what our Saviour said about putting out our money to the
exchangers; [112] we must seek to make a good exchange, not receiving bad
money and good alike, and learning to distinguish that which is valuable
from what is worthless, since scarcely any one is free from some
imperfection, nor is there any reason why we should adopt all our friend’s
faults as well as his friendship. Of course we should love him
notwithstanding his faults, but without loving those faults; true friendship
implies an interchange of what is good, not what is evil. As men who drag
the river Tagus sift the gold from its sands and throw the latter back upon
the shore, so true friends should sift the sand of imperfections and reject
it. S. Gregory Nazianzen tells us how certain persons who loved and admired
S. Basil were led to imitate even his external blemishes, his slow,
abstracted manner of speaking, the cut of his beard, and his peculiar gait.
And so we see husbands and wives, children, friends, who, by reason of their
great affection for one another, acquire—either accidentally or
designedly—many foolish little ways and tricks peculiar to each. This ought
not to be; for every one has enough imperfections of their own without
adding those of anybody else, and friendship requires no such thing; on the
contrary, it rather constrains us to help one another in getting rid of all
sorts of imperfections. Of course we should bear with our friend’s
infirmities, but we should not encourage them, much less copy them.

Of course I am speaking of imperfections only, for, as to sins, we must
neither imitate or tolerate these in our friends. That is but a sorry
friendship which would see a friend perish, and not try to save him; would
watch him dying of an abscess without daring to handle the knife of
correction which would save him. True and living friendship cannot thrive
amid sin. There is a tradition that the salamander extinguishes any fire
into which it enters, and so sin destroys friendship. Friendship will banish
a casual sin by brotherly correction, but if the sin be persistent,
friendship dies out,—it can only live in a pure atmosphere. Much less can
true friendship ever lead any one into sin; our friend becomes an enemy if
he seeks to do so, and deserves to lose our friendship, and there is no
surer proof of the hollowness of friendship than its profession between
evil-doers. If we love a vicious person, our friendship will be vicious too;
it will be like those to whom it is given.

Those who draw together for mere temporal profit, have no right to call
their union friendship; it is not for love of one another that they unite,
but for love of gain.

There are two sayings in Holy Scripture on which all Christian friendship
should be built:—that of the Wise Man, “Whoso feareth the Lord shall direct
his friendship aright;” [113] and that of S. James, “The friendship of the
world is enmity with God.” [114]
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[112] S. Matt. xxv. 27.

[113] Ecclus. vi. 17.

[114] S. James iv. 4.
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CHAPTER XXIII. On The Practice of Bodily Mortification.

IT has been said that if one writes a word on an almond, and then replace it
carefully in its husk, and sow it, all the fruit borne by that tree will be
marked by the word so inscribed. For my own part, I never could approve of
beginning to reform any one by merely external things,—dress, the
arrangement of hair, and outward show. On the contrary, it seems to me that
one should begin from within. “Turn ye to Me with all your heart;” [115] “My
son, give Me thine heart; ” [116] for as the heart is the fount whence all
our actions spring, they will be according to what it is. And the Heavenly
Bridegroom, calling the soul, says, “Set Me as a seal upon thine heart, as a
seal upon thine arm.” [117] Yes verily, for whosoever has Jesus Christ in
his heart will soon show it in all his external actions. Therefore, my
daughter, above all things I would write that precious and Holy Name JESUS
in your heart, certain that having done so, your life—like the almond tree
in the fable—will bear the stamp of that Saving Name in every act; and if
the Dear Lord dwells within your heart, He will live in your every action,
and will be traced in every member and part of you, so that you will be able
to say with S. Paul, “I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” [118] In
a word, whosoever gains the heart has won the whole man. But this heart
needs to be trained in its external conduct, so that it may display not
merely a true devotion, but also wisdom and discretion. To this end I would
make one or two suggestions.

If you are able to fast, you will do well to observe some days beyond what
are ordered by the Church, for besides the ordinary effect of fasting in
raising the mind, subduing the flesh, confirming goodness, and obtaining a
heavenly reward, it is also a great matter to be able to control greediness,
and to keep the sensual appetites and the whole body subject to the law of
the Spirit; and although we may be able to do but little, the enemy
nevertheless stands more in awe of those whom he knows can fast. The early
Christians selected Wednesday, Friday and Saturday as days of abstinence. Do
you follow therein according as your own devotion and your director’s
discretion may appoint.

I am prepared to say with S. Jerome (to the pious Leta) that I disapprove of
long and immoderate fasting, especially for the young. I have learnt by
experience that when the colt grows weary it turns aside, and so when young
people become delicate by excessive fasting, they readily take to
self-indulgence. The stag does not run with due speed either when over fat
or too thin, and we are in peril of temptation both when the body is overfed
or underfed; in the one case it grows indolent, in the other it sinks
through depression, and if we cannot bear with it in the first case, neither
can it bear with us in the last. A want of moderation in the use of fasting,
discipline and austerity has made many a one useless in works of charity
during the best years of his life, as happened to S. Bernard, who repented
of his excessive austerity. Those who misuse the body at the outset will
have to indulge it overmuch at last. Surely it were wiser to deal sensibly
with it, and treat it according to the work and service required by each
man’s state of life.

Fasting and labour both exhaust and subdue the body. If your work is
necessary or profitable to God’s Glory, I would rather see you bear the
exhaustion of work than of fasting. Such is the mind of the Church, who
dispenses those who are called to work for God or their neighbour even from
her prescribed fasts. One man finds it hard to fast, another finds it as
hard to attend the sick, to visit prisons, to hear confessions, preach,
minister to the afflicted, pray, and the like. And the last hardship is
better than the other; for while it subdues the flesh equally, it brings
forth better fruit. And as a general rule it is better to preserve more
bodily strength than is absolutely necessary, than to damage it more than is
necessary. Bodily strength can always be lowered if needful, but we cannot
restore it at will. It seems to me that we ought to have in great reverence
that which our Saviour and Redeemer Jesus Christ said to His disciples, “Eat
such things as are set before you.” [119] To my mind there is more virtue in
eating whatever is offered you just as it comes, whether you like it or not,
than in always choosing what is worst; for although the latter course may
seem more ascetic, the former involves greater submission of will, because
by it you give up not merely your taste, but your choice; and it is no
slight austerity to hold up one’s likings in one’s hand, and subject them to
all manner of accidents. Furthermore, this kind of mortification makes no
show, inconveniences no one, and is admirably adapted to social life. To be
always discarding one dish for another, examining everything, suspicious as
to everything, making a fuss over every morsel—all this to my mind is
contemptible, and implies too much thought of meats and platters. To my mind
there was more austerity in S. Bernard’s drinking oil by mistake for wine or
water than if he had deliberately drunk wormwood, for it showed that he was
not thinking of what he drank. And the real meaning of those sacred words,
“Eat such things as are set before you,” lies in such an indifference to
what one eats and drinks. I should make an exception of any food which is
unwholesome, or likely to be injurious to the mind’s energies, such as
certain hot, spiced, or stimulating dishes; as also on certain occasions
when nature requires to be refreshed and invigorated in order to perform the
work needful for God’s Glory. At all times a constant habitual moderation is
better than occasional excessive abstinence, alternated with great
indulgence. The discipline has a surprising effect in rousing the taste for
devotion, if used moderately. The body is greatly subdued by the use of the
hair shirt, but it is not fit for ordinary people, married persons, those
who are delicate, or who have to bear considerable fatigue. On certain days
of special penitence it may be used, subject to the counsel of a judicious
confessor.

Every one must take so much of the night for sleep, as his constitution, and
the profitable performance of his day’s work, requires. Holy Scripture
continually teaches us that the morning is the best and most profitable part
of the day, and so do the examples of the Saints and our natural reason. Our
Lord Himself is called the Sun, risinig upon the earth, and our Lady the
Day-star; and so I think it is wise to go to sleep early at night in order
to be ready to waken and rise early. Moreover, that is the pleasantest, the
freshest, and the freest hour of the day,—the very birds stimulate us to
rise and sing God’s praises. Early rising promotes both health and holiness.

Balaam saddled his ass and went to meet Balak, but his heart was not right
with God, and therefore the Angel of the Lord stood in the way, with a sword
in his hand to kill him, had not the ass three times turned out of the way
as though she were restive; whereat Balaam smote her with his staff, until
at last she fell down beneath him, and her mouth being miraculously opened,
she said unto him, “What have I done unto thee that thou hast smitten me
these three times?” Then Balaam’s eyes were opened, and he saw the Angel,
who said to him, “Wherefore hast thou smitten thine ass? unless she had
turned from me surely now I had slain thee, and saved her alive.” Then
Balaam said to the Angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I knew not that
thou stoodest in the way against me.” [120] Do you see, my daughter, it was
Balaam who did wrong, but he beat the poor ass, who was not to blame. It is
often so with us. A woman’s husband or child is ill, and forthwith she has
recourse to fasting, the discipline, and hair shirt, even as David did on a
like occasion. [121] But, dear friend, you are smiting the ass! you afflict
your body, which can do nothing when God stands before you with His sword
unsheathed. Rather correct your heart, which idolises your husband, and has
indulged your child, letting him give way to pride, vanity, and ambition.
Or, again, a man falls often into fleshly sins, and the voice of conscience
stands before him in the way, rousing him to a holy fear. Then recollecting
himself, he begins to abuse his flesh for betraying him, he deals out strict
fasts, severe discipline, and the like, to it, and meanwhile the poor flesh
might cry out like Balaam’s ass, Why smitest thou me? It is you yourself, O
my soul, that are guilty. Wherefore do you force me into evil, using my
eyes, and hands, and lips for unholy purposes, and tormenting me with evil
imaginations? Do you entertain only good thoughts, and I shall feel no
unholy impulses, frequent none save pious people, and I shall not be kindled
with guilty fire. You cast me yourself into the flames, and bid me not to
burn! you fill my eyes with smoke, and wonder that they are inflamed! But
God bids you deal chiefly with your heart, for that is the chief offender.
When a man suffers from the itch, there is less need to bathe him, and
cleanse the surface, than to purify his blood; and so, in order to purge our
vices, no doubt it is well to mortify the flesh, but above all it is
necessary to purify the affections and renew the heart. Make it a rule then
never to undertake any bodily austerities without the advice of your
spiritual guide.
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[115] Joel ii. 12.

[116] Prov. xxiii. 26.

[117] Cant. viii. 6.

[118] Gal. ii. 20.

[119] S. Luke x. 8.

[120] Numb. xxii.

[121] 2 Sam. xii. 16.
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CHAPTER XXIV. Of Society and Solitude.

EITHER to seek or to shun society is a fault in one striving to lead a
devout life in the world, such as I am now speaking of. To shun society
implies indifference and contempt for one’s neighbours; and to seek it
savours of idleness and uselessness. We are told to love one’s neighbour as
one’s self. In token that we love him, we must not avoid being with him, and
the test of loving one’s self is to be happy when alone. “Think first on
thyself,” says S. Bernard, “and then on other men.” So that, if nothing
obliges you to mix in society either at home or abroad, retire within
yourself, and hold converse with your own heart. But if friends come to you,
or there is fitting cause for you to go forth into society, then, my
daughter, by all means go, and meet your neighbour with a kindly glance and
a kindly heart.

Bad society is all such intercourse with others as has an evil object, or
when those with whom we mix are vicious, indiscreet, or profligate. From
such as these turn away, like the bee from a dunghill. The breath and saliva
of those who have been bitten by a mad dog is dangerous, especially to
children or delicate people, and in like manner it is perilous to associate
with vicious, reckless people, above all to those whose devotion is still
weakly and unstable.

There is a kind of social intercourse which merely tends to refresh us after
more serious labour, and although it would not be well to indulge in this to
excess, there is no harm in enjoying it during your leisure hours.

Other social meetings are in compliance with courtesy, such as mutual
visits, and certain assemblies with a view to pay respect to one another. As
to these, without being a slave to them, it is well not to despise them
altogether, but to bear one’s own due part in them quietly, avoiding
rudeness and frivolity. Lastly, there is a profitable society;—that of good
devout people, and it will always be very good for you to meet with them.
Vines grown amid olivetrees are wont to bear rich grapes, and he who
frequents the society of good people will imbibe some of their goodness. The
bumble bee makes no honey alone, but if it falls among bees it works with
them. Our own devout life will be materially helped by intercourse with
other devout souls.

Simplicity, gentleness and modesty are to be desired in all society;—there
are some people who are so full of affectation in whatever they do that
every one is annoyed by them. A man who could not move without counting his
steps, or speak without singing, would be very tiresome to everybody, and
just so any one who is artificial in all he does spoils the pleasure of
society; and moreover such people are generally more or less self-conceited.
A quiet cheerfulness should be your aim in society. S. Romuald and S.
Anthony are greatly lauded because, notwithstanding their asceticism, their
countenance and words were always courteous and cheerful. I would say to you
with S. Paul, “Rejoice with them that do rejoice;” [122] and again, “Rejoice
in the Lord alway: let your moderation be known unto all men.” [123] And if
you would rejoice in the Lord, the cause of your joy must not only be
lawful, but worthy; and remember this, because there are lawful things which
nevertheless are not good; and in order that your moderation may be known,
you must avoid all that is impertinent and uncivil, which is sure to be
wrong. Depreciating this person, slandering another, wounding a third,
stimulating the folly of a fourth—all such things, however amusing, are
foolish and impertinent.

I have already spoken of that mental solitude into which you can retire when
amid the greatest crowd, and furthermore you should learn to like a real
material solitude. Not that I want you to fly to a desert like S. Mary of
Egypt, S. Paul, S. Anthony, Arsenius, or the other hermits, but it is well
for you to retire sometimes within your own chamber or garden, or
wheresoever you can best recollect your mind, and refresh your soul with
good and holy thoughts, and some spiritual reading, as the good Bishop of
Nazianzum tells us was his custom. “I was walking alone,” he says, “at
sunset, on the seashore, a recreation I am wont to take in order somewhat to
lay aside my daily worries.” And S. Augustine says that he often used to go
into S. Ambrose’ room—his door was open to every one,—and after watching him
absorbed in reading for a time, he would retire without speaking, fearing to
interrupt the Bishop, who had so little time for refreshing his mind amid
the burden of his heavy duties. And we read how when the disciples came to
Jesus, and told Him all they had been doing and preaching, He said to them,
“Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest awhile.” [124]
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[122] Rom. xii. 15.

[123] Phil. iv. 4, 5.

[124] S. Mark vi. 30, 31.
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CHAPTER XXV. On Modesty in Dress.

S. PAUL expresses his desire that all Christian women should wear “modest
apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety;” [125] —and for that matter he
certainly meant that men should do so likewise. Now, modesty in dress and
its appurtenances depends upon the quality, the fashion and the cleanliness
thereof. As to cleanliness, that should be uniform, and we should never, if
possible, let any part of our dress be soiled or stained. External
seemliness is a sort of indication of inward good order, and God requires
those who minister at His Altar, or minister in holy things, to be attentive
in respect of personal cleanliness. As to the quality and fashion of
clothes, modesty in these points must depend upon various circumstances,
age, season, condition, the society we move in, and the special occasion.
Most people dress better on a high festival than at other times; in Lent, or
other penitential seasons, they lay aside all gay apparel; at a wedding they
wear wedding garments, at a funeral, mourning garb; and at a king’s court
the dress which would be unsuitable at home is suitable. A wife may and
should adorn herself according to her husband’s wishes when he is
present;—if she does as much in his absence one is disposed to ask in whose
eyes she seeks to shine? We may grant somewhat greater latitude to maidens,
who may lawfully desire to attract many, although only with the view of
ultimately winning one in holy matrimony. Neither do I blame such widows as
purpose to marry again for adorning themselves, provided they keep within
such limits as are seemly for those who are at the head of a family, and who
have gone through the sobering sorrows of widowhood. But for those who are
widows indeed, in heart as well as outwardly, humility, modesty and devotion
are the only suitable ornaments. If they seek to attract men’s admiration
they are not widows indeed, and if they have no such intention, why should
they wear its tokens? Those who do not mean to entertain guests should take
down their signboard. So, again, every one laughs at old women who affect
youthful graces,—such things are only tolerable in the young.

Always be neat, do not ever permit any disorder or untidiness about you.
There is a certain disrespect to those with whom you mix in slovenly dress;
but at the same time avoid all vanity, peculiarity, and fancifulness. As far
as may be, keep to what is simple and unpretending—such dress is the best
adornment of beauty and the best excuse for ugliness. S. Peter bids women
not to be over particular in dressing their hair. Every one despises a man
as effeminate who lowers himself by such things, and we count a vain woman
as wanting in modesty, or at all events what she has becomes smothered among
her trinkets and furbelows. They say that they mean no harm, but I should
reply that the devil will contrive to get some harm out of it all. For my
own part I should like my devout man or woman to be the best dressed person
in the company, but the least fine or splendid, and adorned, as S. Peter
says, with “the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit.” [126] S. Louis said
that the right thing is for every one to dress according to his position, so
that good and sensible people should not be able to say they are
over-dressed, or younger gayer ones that they are under-dressed. But if
these last are not satisfied with what is modest and seemly, they must be
content with the approbation of the elders.
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[125] 1 Tim. ii. 9.

[126] 1 Pet. iii. 3.
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CHAPTER XXVI. Of Conversation; and, first, how to Speak of God.

PHYSICIANS judge to a great extent as to the health or disease of a man by
the state of his tongue, and our words are a true test of the state of our
soul. “By thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be
condemned,” [127] the Saviour says. We are apt to apply the hand quickly to
the place where we feel pain, and so too the tongue is quick to point out
what we love.

If you love God heartily, my child, you will often speak of Him among your
relations, household and familiar friends, and that because “the mouth of
the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.” [128]
Even as the bee touches nought save honey with his tongue, so should your
lips be ever sweetened with your God, knowing nothing more pleasant than to
praise and bless His Holy Name,—as we are told that when S. Francis uttered
the Name of the Lord, he seemed to feel the sweetness lingering on his lips,
and could not let it go. But always remember, when you speak of God, that He
is God; and speak reverently and with devotion,—not affectedly or as if you
were preaching, but with a spirit of meekness, love, and humility; dropping
honey from your lips (like the Bride in the Canticles [129] ) in devout and
pious words, as you speak to one or another around, in your secret heart the
while asking God to let this soft heavenly dew sink into their minds as they
hearken. And remember very specially always to fulfil this angelic task
meekly and lovingly, not as though you were reproving others, but rather
winning them. It is wonderful how attractive a gentle, pleasant manner is,
and how much it wins hearts.

Take care, then, never to speak of God, or those things which concern Him,
in a merely formal, conventional manner; but with earnestness and devotion,
avoiding the affected way in which some professedly religious people are
perpetually interlarding their conversation with pious words and sayings,
after a most unseasonable and unthinking manner. Too often they imagine that
they really are themselves as pious as their words, which probably is not
the case.
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[127] S. Matt. xii. 37.

[128] Ps. xxxvii. 30.

[129] Cant. iv. 11.
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CHAPTER XXVII. Of Unseemly Words, and the Respect due to Others.

SAINT JAMES says, “If any man offend not in word, the same is, a perfect
man.” [130] Beware most watchfully against ever uttering any unseemly
expression; even though you may have no evil intention, those who hear it
may receive it with a different meaning. An impure word falling upon a weak
mind spreads its infection like a drop of oil on a garment, and sometimes it
will take such a hold of the heart, as to fill it with an infinitude of
lascivious thoughts and temptations. The body is poisoned through the mouth,
even so is the heart through the ear; and the tongue which does the deed is
a murderer, even when the venom it has infused is counteracted by some
antidote preoccupying the listener’s heart. It was not the speaker’s fault
that he did not slay that soul. Nor let any one answer that he meant no
harm. Our Lord, Who knoweth the hearts of men, has said, “Out of the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” [131] And even if we do mean no
harm, the Evil One means a great deal, and he will use those idle words as a
sharp weapon against some neighbour’s heart. It is said that those who eat
the plant called Angelica always have a sweet, pleasant breath; and those
who cherish the angelic virtues of purity and modesty, will always speak
simply, courteously, and modestly. As to unclean and light-minded talk, S.
Paul says such things should not even be named [132] among us, for, as he
elsewhere tells us, “Evil communications corrupt good manners.” [133]

Those impure words which are spoken in disguise, and with an affectation of
reserve, are the most harmful of all; for just as the sharper the point of a
dart, so much deeper it will pierce the flesh, so the sharper an unholy
word, the more it penetrates the heart. And as for those who think to show
themselves knowing when they say such things, they do not even understand
the first object of mutual intercourse among men, who ought rather to be
like a hive of bees gathering to make honey by good and useful conversation,
than like a wasps’ nest, feeding on corruption. If any impertinent person
addresses you in unseemly language, show that you are displeased by turning
away, or by whatever other method your discretion may indicate.

One of the most evil dispositions possible is that which satirises and turns
everything to ridicule. God abhors this vice, and has sometimes punished it
in a marked manner. Nothing is so opposed to charity, much more to a devout
spirit, as contempt and depreciation of one’s neighbour, and where satire
and ridicule exist contempt must be. Therefore contempt is a grievous sin,
and our spiritual doctors have well said that ridicule is the greatest sin
we can commit in word against our neighbour, inasmuch as when we offend him
in any other way, there may still be some respect for him in our heart, but
we are sure to despise those whom we ridicule.

There is a light-hearted talk, full of modest life and gaiety, which the
Greeks called Eutrapelia, and which we should call good conversation, by
which we may find an innocent and kindly amusement out of the trifling
occurrences which human imperfections afford. Only beware of letting this
seemly mirth go too far, till it becomes ridicule. Ridicule excites mirth at
the expense of one’s neighbour; seemly mirth and playful fun never lose
sight of a trustful, kindly courtesy, which can wound no one. When the
religious around him would fain have discussed serious matters with S. Louis
at meal-times, he used to say, “This is not the time for grave discussion,
but for general conversation and cheerful recreation,”—out of consideration
for his courtiers. But, my daughter, let our recreation always be so spent,
that we may win all eternity through devotion.
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[130] S. James iii. 2.

[131] S. Matt. xii. 34.

[132] Eph. v. 3.

[133] 1 Cor. xv. 33.
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CHAPTER XXVIII. Of Hasty Judgments.

JUDGE not, and ye shall not be judged,” said the Saviour of our souls;
“condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned:” [134] and the Apostle S. Paul,
“Judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, Who both will bring to
light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of
the hearts.” [135] Of a truth, hasty judgments are most displeasing to God,
and men’s judgments are hasty, because we are not judges one of another, and
by judging we usurp our Lord’s own office. Man’s judgment is hasty, because
the chief malice of sin lies in the intention and counsel of the heart,
which is shrouded in darkness to us. Moreover, man’s judgments are hasty,
because each one has enough to do in judging himself, without undertaking to
judge his neighbour. If we would not be judged, it behoves us alike not to
judge others, and to judge ourselves. Our Lord forbids the one, His Apostle
enjoins the other, saying, “If we would judge ourselves, we should not be
judged.” [136] But alas! for the most part we precisely reverse these
precepts, judging our neighbour, which is forbidden on all sides, while
rarely judging ourselves, as we are told to do.

We must proceed to rectify rash judgments, according to their cause. Some
hearts there are so bitter and harsh by nature, that everything turns bitter
under their touch; men who, in the Prophet’s words, “turn judgment to
wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth.” [137] Such as these
greatly need to be dealt with by some wise spiritual physician, for this
bitterness being natural to them, it is hard to conquer; and although it be
rather an imperfection than a sin, still it is very dangerous, because it
gives rise to and fosters rash judgments and slander within the heart.
Others there are who are guilty of rash judgments less out of a bitter
spirit than from pride, supposing to exalt their own credit by disparaging
that of others. These are self-sufficient, presumptuous people, who stand so
high in their own conceit that they despise all else as mean and worthless.
It was the foolish Pharisee who said, “I am not as other men are.” [138]
Others, again, have not quite such overt pride, but rather a lurking little
satisfaction in beholding what is wrong in others, in order to appreciate
more fully what they believe to be their own superiority. This satisfaction
is so well concealed, so nearly imperceptible, that it requires a clear
sight to discover it, and those who experience it need that it be pointed
out to them. Some there are who seek to excuse and justify themselves to
their own conscience, by assuming readily that others are guilty of the same
faults, or as great ones, vainly imagining that the sin becomes less
culpable when shared by many. Others, again, give way to rash judgments
merely because they take pleasure in a philosophic analysis and dissection
of their neighbours’ characters; and if by ill luck they chance now and then
to be right, their presumption and love of criticism strengthens almost
incurably.

Then there are people whose judgment is solely formed by inclination; who
always think well of those they like, and ill of those they dislike. To
this, however, there is one rare exception, which nevertheless we do
sometimes meet, when an excessive love provokes a false judgment concerning
its object; the hideous result of a diseased, faulty, restless affection,
which is in fact jealousy; an evil passion capable, as everybody knows, of
condemning others of perfidy and adultery upon the most trivial and fanciful
ground. In like manner, fear, ambition, and other moral infirmities often
tend largely to produce suspicion and rash judgments.

What remedy can we apply? They who drink the juice of the Ethiopian herb
Ophiusa imagine that they see serpents and horrors everywhere; and those who
drink deep of pride, envy, ambition, hatred, will see harm and shame in
every one they look upon. The first can only be cured by drinking palm wine,
and so I say of these latter,—Drink freely of the sacred wine of love, and
it will cure you of the evil tempers which lead you to these perverse
judgments. So far from seeking out that which is evil, Love dreads meeting
with it, and when such meeting is unavoidable, she shuts her eyes at the
first symptom, and then in her holy simplicity she questions whether it were
not merely a fantastic shadow which crossed her path rather than sin itself.
Or if Love is forced to recognise the fact, she turns aside hastily, and
strives to forget what she has seen. Of a truth, Love is the great healer of
all ills, and of this above the rest. Everything looks yellow to a man that
has the jaundice; and it is said that the only cure is through the soles of
the feet. Most assuredly the sin of rash judgments is a spiritual jaundice,
which makes everything look amiss to those who have it; and he who would be
cured of this malady must not be content with applying remedies to his eyes
or his intellect, he must attack it through the affections, which are as the
soul’s feet. If your affections are warm and tender, your judgment will not
be harsh; if they are loving, your judgment will be the same. Holy Scripture
offers us three striking illustrations. Isaac, when in the Land of Gerar,
gave out that Rebecca was his sister, but when Abimelech saw their
familiarity, he at once concluded that she was his wife. [139] A malicious
mind would rather have supposed that there was some unlawful connection
between them, but Abimelech took the most charitable view of the case that
was possible. And so ought we always to judge our neighbour as charitably as
may be; and if his actions are many-sided, we should accept the best. Again,
when S. Joseph found that the Blessed Virgin was with child, [140] knowing
her to be pure and holy, he could not believe that there was any sin in her,
and he left all judgment to God, although there was strong presumptive
evidence on which to condemn her. And the Holy Spirit speaks of S. Joseph as
“a just man.” When a just man cannot see any excuse for what is done by a
person in whose general worth he believes, he still refrains from judging
him, and leaves all to God’s Judgment. Again, our Crucified Saviour, while
He could not wholly ignore the sin of those who Crucified Him, yet made what
excuse He might for them, pleading their ignorance. [141] And so when we
cannot find any excuse for sin, let us at least claim what compassion we may
for it, and impute it to the least damaging motives we can find, as
ignorance or infirmity.

Are we never, then, to judge our neighbour? you ask. Never, my child. It is
God Who judges criminals brought before a court of law. He uses magistrates
to convey His sentence to us; they are His interpreters, and have only to
proclaim His law. If they go beyond this, and are led by their own passions,
then they do themselves judge, and for so doing they will be judged. It is
forbidden to all men alike, as men, to judge one another.

We do not necessarily judge because we see or are conscious of something
wrong. Rash judgment always presupposes something that is not clear, in
spite of which we condemn another. It is not wrong to have doubts concerning
a neighbour, but we ought to be very watchful lest even our doubts or
suspicions be rash and hasty. A malicious person seeing Jacob kiss Rachel at
the well-side, [142] or Rebecca accepting jewels from Eleazer, [143] a
stranger, might have suspected them of levity, though falsely and
unreasonably. If an action is in itself indifferent, it is a rash suspicion
to imagine that it means evil, unless there is strong circumstantial
evidence to prove such to be the case. And it is a rash judgment when we
draw condemnatory inferences from an action which may be blameless.

Those who keep careful watch over their conscience are not often liable to
form rash judgments, for just as when the clouds lower the bees make for the
shelter of their hive, so really good people shrink back into themselves,
and refuse to be mixed up with the clouds and fogs of their neighbour’s
questionable doings, and rather than meddle with others, they consecrate
their energies on their own improvement and good resolutions.

No surer sign of an unprofitable life than when people give way to
censoriousness and inquisitiveness into the lives of other men. Of course
exception must be made as to those who are responsible for others, whether
in family or public life;—to all such it becomes a matter of conscience to
watch over the conduct of their fellows. Let them fulfil their duty
lovingly, and let them also give heed to restrain themselves within the
bounds of that duty.
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[134] S. Luke vi. 37.

[135] 1 Cor. iv. 5.

[136] 1 Cor. xi. 31.

[137] Amos v. 7.

[138] S. Luke xviii. 11.

[139] Gen. xxvi.

[140] S. Matt. i.

[141] S. Luke xxiii. 34.

[142] Gen. xxix. 11.

[143] Gen. xxiv. 22.
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CHAPTER XXIX. On Slander.

FROM rash judgments proceed mistrust, contempt for others, pride, and
self-sufficiency, and numberless other pernicious results, among which
stands forth prominently the sin of slander, which is a veritable pest of
society. Oh, wherefore can I not take a live coal from God’s Altar, and
touch the lips of men, so that their iniquity may be taken away and their
sin purged, even as the Seraphim purged the lips of Isaiah. [144] He who
could purge the world of slander would cleanse it from a great part of its
sinfulness!

He who unjustly takes away his neighbour’s good name is guilty of sin, and
is bound to make reparation, according to the nature of his evil speaking;
since no man can enter into Heaven cumbered with stolen goods, and of all
worldly possessions the most precious is a good name. Slander is a kind of
murder; for we all have three lives—a spiritual life, which depends upon the
Grace of God; a bodily life, depending on the soul; and a civil life,
consisting in a good reputation. Sin deprives us of the first, death of the
second, and slander of the third. But the slanderer commits three several
murders with his idle tongue: he destroys his own soul and that of him who
hearkens, as well as causing civil death to the object of his slander; for,
as S. Bernard says, the Devil has possession both of the slanderer and of
those who listen to him, of the tongue of the one, the ear of the other. And
David says of slanderers, “They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent;
adders’ poison is under their lips.” [145] Aristotle says that, like the
forked, two-edged tongue of the serpent, so is that of the slanderer, who at
one dart pricks and poisons the ear of those who hear him, and the
reputation of him who is slandered.

My daughter, I entreat you never speak evil of any, either directly or
indirectly; beware of ever unjustly imputing sins or faults to your
neighbour, of needlessly disclosing his real faults, of exaggerating such as
are overt, of attributing wrong motives to good actions, of denying the good
that you know to exist in another, of maliciously concealing it, or
depreciating it in conversation. In all and each of these ways you
grievously offend God, although the worst is false accusation, or denying
the truth to your neighbour’s damage, since therein you combine his harm
with falsehood.

Those who slander others with an affectation of good will, or with dishonest
pretences of friendliness, are the most spiteful and evil of all. They will
profess that they love their victim, and that in many ways he is an
excellent man, but all the same, truth must be told, and he was very wrong
in such a matter; or that such and such a woman is very virtuous generally,
but and so on. Do you not see through the artifice? He who draws a bow draws
the arrow as close as he can to himself, but it is only to let it fly more
forcibly; and so such slanderers appear to be withholding their
evil-speaking, but it is only to let it fly with surer aim and go deeper
into the listeners’ minds. Witty slander is the most mischievous of all; for
just as some poisons are but feeble when taken alone, which become powerful
when mixed with wine, so many a slander, which would go in at one ear and
out at the other of itself, finds a resting-place in the listener’s brain
when it is accompanied with amusing, witty comments. “The poison of asps is
under their lips.” The asp’s bite is scarcely perceptible, and its poison at
first only causes an irritation which is scarcely disagreeable, so that the
heart and nervous system dilate and receive that poison, against which later
on there is no remedy.

Do not pronounce a man to be a drunkard although you may have seen him
drunk, or an adulterer, because you know he has sinned; a single act does
not stamp him for ever. The sun once stood still while Joshua and the
children of Israel avenged themselves upon their enemies; [146] and another
time it was darkened at mid-day when the Lord was crucified; [147] but no
one would therefore say that it was stationary or dark. Noah was drunk once,
and Lot, moreover, was guilty of incest, yet neither man could be spoken of
as habitually given to such sins; neither would you call S. Paul a man of
blood or a blasphemer, because he had blasphemed and shed blood before he
became a Christian. Before a man deserves to be thus stigmatised, he must
have formed a habit of the sin he is accused of, and it is unfair to call a
man passionate or a thief, because you have once known him steal or fly into
a passion. Even when a man may have persisted long in sin, you may say what
is untrue in calling him vicious. Simon the leper called Magdalene a sinner,
because she had once lived a life of sin; but he lied, for she was a sinner
no longer, but rather a very saintly penitent, and so our Lord Himself
undertook her defence. [148]

The Pharisee looked upon the publican as a great sinner,—probably as unjust,
extortionate, adulterous; [149] but how mistaken he was, inasmuch as the
condemned publican was even then justified! If God’s Mercy is so great, that
one single moment is sufficient for it to justify and save a man, what
assurance have we that he who yesterday was a sinner is the same to-day?
Yesterday may not be the judge of today, nor to-day of yesterday: all will
be really judged at the Last Great Day. In short, we can never affirm a man
to be evil without running the risk of lying. If it be absolutely necessary
to speak, we may say that he was guilty of such an act, that he led an evil
life at such and such a time, or that he is doing certain wrong at the
present day; but we have no right to draw deductions for to-day from
yesterday, nor of yesterday from today; still less to speak with respect to
the future.

But while extremely sensitive as to the slightest approach to slander, you
must also guard against an extreme into which some people fall, who, in
their desire to speak evil of no one, actually uphold and speak well of
vice. If you have to do with one who is unquestionably a slanderer, do not
excuse him under the expressions of frank and free-spoken; do not call one
who is notoriously vain, liberal and elegant; do not call dangerous levities
mere simplicity; do not screen disobedience under the name of zeal, or
arrogance of frankness, or evil intimacy of friendship. No, my child, we
must never, in our wish to shun slander, foster or flatter vice in others;
but we must call evil evil, and sin sin, and so doing we shall serve God’s
Glory, always bearing in mind the following rules.

If you would be justified in condemning a neighbour’s sin, you must be sure
that it is needful either for his good or that of others to do so. For
instance, if light, unseemly conduct is spoken of before young people in a
way calculated to injure their purity, and you pass it over, or excuse it,
they may be led to think lightly of evil, and to imitate it; and therefore
you are bound to condemn all such things freely and at once, unless it is
obvious that by reserving your charitable work of reprehension to a future
time, you can do it more profitably.

Furthermore, on such occasions it is well to be sure that you are the most
proper person among those present to express your opinion, and that your
silence would seem in any way to condone the sin. If you are one of the
least important persons present, it is probably not your place to censure;
but supposing it to be your duty, be most carefully just in what you
say,—let there not be a word too much or too little. For instance, you
censure the intimacy of certain people, as dangerous and indiscreet. Well,
but you must hold the scales with the most exact justice, and not exaggerate
in the smallest item. If there be only a slight appearance of evil, say no
more than that; if it be a question of some trifling imprudence, do not make
it out to be more; if there be really neither imprudence nor positive
appearance of evil, but only such as affords a pretext for malicious
slander, either say simply so much, or, better still, say nothing at all.
When you speak of your neighbour, look upon your tongue as a sharp razor in
the surgeon’s hand, about to cut nerves and tendons; it should be used so
carefully, as to insure that no particle more or less than the truth be
said. And finally, when you are called upon to blame sin, always strive as
far as possible to spare the sinner.

Public, notorious sinners may be spoken of freely, provided always even then
that a spirit of charity and compassion prevail, and that you do not speak
of them with arrogance or presumption, or as though you took pleasure in the
fall of others. To do this is the sure sign of a mean ungenerous mind. And,
of course, you must speak freely in condemnation of the professed enemies of
God and His Church, heretics and schismatics,—it is true charity to point
out the wolf wheresoever he creeps in among the flock. Most people permit
themselves absolute latitude in criticising and censuring rulers, and in
calumniating nationalities, according to their own opinions and likings. But
do you avoid this fault; it is displeasing to God, and is liable to lead you
into disputes and quarrels. When you hear evil of any one, cast any doubt
you fairly can upon the accusation; or if that is impossible, make any
available excuse for the culprit; and where even that may not be, be yet
pitiful and compassionate, and remind those with whom you are speaking that
such as stand upright do so solely through God’s Grace. Do your best kindly
to check the scandal-bearer, and if you know anything favourable to the
person criticised, take pains to mention it.
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[144] Isa. vi. 6, 7.

[145] Ps. cxl. 3.

[146] Josh. x. 13.

[147] S. Luke xxiii. 44.

[148] S. Luke vii. 37-39.

[149] S. Luke xviii. 11.
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CHAPTER XXX. Further Counsels as to Conversation.

LET your words be kindly, frank, sincere, straightforward, simple and true;
avoid all artifice, duplicity and pretence, remembering that, although it is
not always well to publish abroad everything that may be true, yet it is
never allowable to oppose the truth. Make it your rule never knowingly to
say what is not strictly true, either accusing or excusing, always
remembering that God is the God of Truth. If you have unintentionally said
what is not true, and it is possible to correct yourself at once by means of
explanation or reparation, do so. A straightforward excuse has far greater
weight than any falsehood.

It may be lawful occasionally to conceal or disguise the truth, but this
should never be done save in such special cases as make this reserve
obviously a necessity for the service and glory of God. Otherwise all such
artifice is dangerous; and we are told in Holy Scripture that God’s Holy
Spirit will not abide with the false or double-minded. Depend upon it there
is no craft half so profitable and successful as simplicity. Worldly
prudence and artifice belong to the children of this world; but the children
of God go straight on with a single heart and in all confidence;—falsehood,
deceit and duplicity are sure signs of a mean, weak mind.

In the Fourth Book of his Confessions, S. Augustine spoke in very strong
terms of his passionate devotion to a friend, saying that they had but as
one soul, and that after his friend’s death his life was a horror to him,
although he feared to die. But later on these expressions seemed unreal and
affected to him, and he withdrew them in his Retractations. [150] You see
how sensitive that great mind was to unreality or affectation. Assuredly
straightforward honesty and sincerity in speech is a great beauty in the
Christian life. “I said I will take heed to my ways, that I offend not in my
tongue.” [151] “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and keep the door of
my lips.” [152]

It was a saying of S. Louis, that one should contradict nobody, unless there
was sin or harm in consenting; and that in order to avoid contention and
dispute. At any rate, when it is necessary to contradict anybody, or to
assert one’s own opinion, it should be done gently and considerately,
without irritation or vehemence. Indeed, we gain nothing by sharpness or
petulance.

The silence, so much commended by wise men of old, does not refer so much to
a literal use of few words, as to not using many useless words. On this
score, we must look less to the quantity than the quality, and, as it seems
to me, our aim should be to avoid both extremes. An excessive reserve and
stiffness, which stands aloof from familiar friendly conversation, is
untrusting, and implies a certain sort of contemptuous pride; while an
incessant chatter and babble, leaving no opportunity for others to put in
their word, is frivolous and troublesome.

S. Louis objected to private confidences and whisperings in society,
especially at table, lest suspicion should be aroused that scandal was being
repeated. “Those who have anything amusing or pleasant to say,” he argued,
“should let everybody share the entertainment, but if they want to speak of
important matters, they should wait a more suitable time.”
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[150] “My dearest Nebridius . . . I wondered that others subject to death
should live, since he whom I loved, as if he should never die, was dead; and
I wondered yet more that myself, who was to him as a second self, could
live, he being dead. . . . I felt that my soul and his soul were one soul in
two bodies, and therefore my life was a horror to me, because I would not
live halved, and therefore perchance I feared to die, lest he whom I had
much loved should die wholly.”—Confessions, Oxf. Trans. Bk. iv. p. 52. ”. .
. which seems to me rather an empty declamation than a grave
confession.”—Retract., Bk. ii. c. 6.

[151] Ps. xxxix. 1.

[152] Ps. cxli. 3.
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CHAPTER XXXI. Of Amusements and Recreations: what are allowable.

WE must needs occasionally relax the mind, and the body requires some
recreation also. Cassian relates how S. John the Evangelist was found by a
certain hunter amusing himself by caressing a partridge, which sat upon his
wrist. The hunter asked how a man of his mental powers could find time for
so trifling an occupation. In reply, S. John asked why he did not always
carry his bow strung? The man answered, Because, if always bent, the bow
would lose its spring when really wanted. “Do not marvel then,” the Apostle
replied, “if I slacken my mental efforts from time to time, and recreate
myself, in order to return more vigorously to contemplation.” It is a great
mistake to be so strict as to grudge any recreation either to others or
one’s self.

Walking, harmless games, music, instrumental or vocal, field sports, etc.,
are such entirely lawful recreations that they need no rules beyond those of
ordinary discretion, which keep every thing within due limits of time,
place, and degree. So again games of skill, which exercise and strengthen
body or mind, such as tennis, rackets, running at the ring, chess, and the
like, are in themselves both lawful and good. Only one must avoid excess,
either in the time given to them, or the amount of interest they absorb; for
if too much time be given up to such things, they cease to be a recreation
and become an occupation; and so far from resting and restoring mind or
body, they have precisely the contrary effect. After five or six hours spent
over chess, one’s mind is spent and weary, and too long a time given to
tennis results in physical exhaustion; or if people play for a high stake,
they get anxious and discomposed, and such unimportant objects are unworthy
of so much care and thought. But, above all, beware of setting your heart
upon any of these things, for however lawful an amusement may be, it is
wrong to give one’s heart up to it. Not that I would not have you take
pleasure in what you are doing,—it were no recreation else,—but I would not
have you engrossed by it, or become eager or over fond of any of these
things.
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CHAPTER XXXII. Of Forbidden Amusements.

DICE, cards, and the like games of hazard, are not merely dangerous
amusements, like dancing, but they are plainly bad and harmful, and
therefore they are forbidden by the civil as by the ecclesiastical law. What
harm is there in them? you ask. Such games are unreasonable:—the winner
often has neither skill nor industry to boast of, which is contrary to
reason. You reply that this is understood by those who play. But though that
may prove that you are not wronging anybody, it does not prove that the game
is in accordance with reason, as victory ought to be the reward of skill or
labour, which it cannot be in mere games of chance. Moreover, though such
games may be called a recreation, and are intended as such, they are
practically an intense occupation. Is it not an occupation, when a man’s
mind is kept on the stretch of close attention, and disturbed by endless
anxieties, fears and agitations? Who exercises a more dismal, painful
attention than the gambler? No one must speak or laugh,—if you do but cough
you will annoy him and his companions. The only pleasure in gambling is to
win, and this cannot be a satisfactory pleasure, since it can only be
enjoyed at the expense of your antagonist. Once, when he was very ill, S.
Louis heard that his brother the Comte d’Anjou and Messire Gautier de
Nemours were gambling, and in spite of his weakness the King tottered into
the room where they were, and threw dice and money and everything out of the
window, in great indignation. And the pure and pious Sara, in her appeal to
God, declared that she had never had dealings with gamblers. [153]
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[153] It is not very clear what S. Francis means by this. In the English
version, Sara only says, “Thou knowest, Lord . . . that I never polluted my
name, nor the name of my father” (Tobit iii. 15). In the Vulgate the words
are “Numquam cum ludentibus miscui me; neque cum his, qui in levitate
ambulant, participem me praebui” (iii. 17).
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CHAPTER XXXIII. Of Balls, and other Lawful but Dangerous Amusements.

DANCES and balls are things in themselves indifferent, but the circumstances
ordinarily surrounding them have so generally an evil tendency, that they
become full of temptation and danger. The time of night at which they take
place is in itself conducive to harm, both as the season when people’s
nerves are most excited and open to evil impressions; and because, after
being up the greater part of the night, they spend the mornings afterwards
in sleep, and lose the best part of the day for God’s Service. It is a
senseless thing to turn day into night, light into darkness, and to exchange
good works for mere trifling follies. Moreover, those who frequent balls
almost inevitably foster their Vanity, and vanity is very conducive to
unholy desires and dangerous attachments.

I am inclined to say about balls what doctors say of certain articles of
food, such as mushrooms and the like—the best are not good for much; but if
eat them you must, at least mind that they are properly cooked. So, if
circumstances over which you have no control take you into such places, be
watchful how you prepare to enter them. Let the dish be seasoned with
moderation, dignity and good intentions. The doctors say (still referring to
the mushrooms), eat sparingly of them, and that but seldom, for, however
well dressed, an excess is harmful. So dance but little, and that rarely, my
daughter, lest you run the risk of growing over fond of the amusement.

Pliny says that mushrooms, from their porous, spongy nature, easily imbibe
meretricious matter, so that if they are near a serpent, they are infected
by its poison. So balls and similar gatherings are wont to attract all that
is bad and vicious; all the quarrels, envyings, slanders, and indiscreet
tendencies of a place will be found collected in the ballroom. While
people’s bodily pores are opened by the exercise of dancing, the heart’s
pores will be also opened by excitement, and if any serpent be at hand to
whisper foolish words of levity or impurity, to insinuate unworthy thoughts
and desires, the ears which listen are more than prepared to receive the
contagion.

Believe me, my daughter, these frivolous amusements are for the most part
dangerous; they dissipate the spirit of devotion, enervate the mind, check
true charity, and arouse a multitude of evil inclinations in the soul, and
therefore I would have you very reticent in their use.

To return to the medical simile;—it is said that after eating mushrooms you
should drink some good wine. So after frequenting balls you should frame
pious thoughts which may counteract the dangerous impressions made by such
empty pleasures on your heart. Bethink you, then—1. That while you were
dancing, souls were groaning in hell by reason of sins committed when
similarly occupied, or in consequence thereof.

2. Remember how, at the selfsame time, many religious and other devout
persons were kneeling before God, praying or praising Him. Was not their
time better spent than yours?

3. Again, while you were dancing, many a soul has passed away amid sharp
sufferings; thousands and tens of thousands were lying all the while on beds
of anguish, some perhaps untended, unconsoled, in fevers, and all manner of
painful diseases. Will you not rouse yourself to a sense of pity for them?
At all events, remember that a day will come when you in your turn will lie
on your bed of sickness, while others dance and make merry.

4. Bethink you that our Dear Lord, Our Lady, all the Angels and Saints, saw
all that was passing. Did they not look on with sorrowful pity, while your
heart, capable of better things, was engrossed with such mere follies?

5. And while you were dancing time passed by, and death drew nearer. Trifle
as you may, the awful dance of death [154] must come, the real pastime of
men, since therein they must, whether they will or no, pass from time to an
eternity of good or evil. If you think of the matter quietly, and as in
God’s Sight, He will suggest many a like thought, which will steady and
strengthen your heart.
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[154] S. Francis de Sales doubtless had in his thoughts the then common
pictorial representations of the Dance of Death, with which (although to our
own modern ideas there would be almost irreverence if reproduced) we are
familiar through Holbein’s celebrated Dance, and others. The old covered
bridge at Lucerne is one of the most striking illustrations.
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CHAPTER XXXIV. When to use such Amusements rightly.

IF you would dance or play rightly, it must be done as a recreation, not as
a pursuit, for a brief space of time, not so as make you unfit for other
things, and even then but seldom. If it is a constant habit, recreation
turns into occupation. You will ask when it is right to dance or play? The
occasions on which it is right to play at questionable games are rare;
ordinary games and dances may be indulged in more frequently. But let your
rule be to do so chiefly when courteous consideration for others among whom
you are thrown requires it, subject to prudence and discretion; for
consideration towards others often sanctions things indifferent or
dangerous, and turns them to good, taking away what is evil. Thus certain
games of chance, bad in themselves, cease to be so to you, if you join in
them merely out of a due courtesy. I have been much comforted by reading in
the Life of S. Carlo Borromeo, how he joined in certain things to please the
Swiss, concerning which ordinarily he was very strict; as also how S.
Ignatius Loyola, when asked to play, did so. As to S. Elizabeth of Hungary,
she both played and danced occasionally, when in society, without thereby
hindering her devotion, which was so firmly rooted that, like the rocks of a
mountain lake, it stood unmoved amid the waves and storms of pomp and vanity
which it encountered.

Great fires are fanned by the wind, but a little one is soon extinguished if
left without shelter.
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CHAPTER XXXV. We must be Faithful in Things Great and Small.

THE Bridegroom of the Canticles says that the Bride has ravished His heart
with “one of her eyes, one lock of her hair.” [155] In all the human body no
part is nobler either in mechanism or activity than the eye, none more
unimportant than the hair. And so the Divine Bridegroom makes us to know
that He accepts not only the great works of devout people, but every poor
and lowly offering too; and that they who would serve Him acceptably must
give heed not only to lofty and important matters, but to things mean and
little, since by both alike we may win His Heart and Love.

Be ready then, my child, to bear great afflictions for your Lord, even to
martyrdom itself; resolve to give up to Him all that you hold most precious,
if He should require it of you;—father, mother, husband, wife, or child; the
light of your eyes; your very life; for all such offering your heart should
be ready. But so long as God’s Providence does not send you these great and
heavy afflictions; so long as He does not ask your eyes, at least give Him
your hair. I mean, take patiently the petty annoyances, the trifling
discomforts, the unimportant losses which come upon all of us daily; for by
means of these little matters, lovingly and freely accepted, you will give
Him your whole heart, and win His. I mean the acts of daily forbearance, the
headache, or toothache, or heavy cold; the tiresome peculiarities of husband
or wife, the broken glass, the loss of a ring, a handkerchief, a glove; the
sneer of a neighbour, the effort of going to bed early in order to rise
early for prayer or Communion, the little shyness some people feel in openly
performing religious duties; and be sure that all of these sufferings, small
as they are, if accepted lovingly, are most pleasing to God’s Goodness,
Which has promised a whole ocean of happiness to His children in return for
one cup of cold water. And, moreover, inasmuch as these occasions are for
ever arising, they give us a fertile field for gathering in spiritual
riches, if only we will use them rightly.

When I read in the Life of S. Catherine of Sienna of her ecstasies and
visions, her wise sayings and teaching, I do not doubt but that she
“ravished” her Bridegroom’s heart with this eye of contemplation; but I must
own that I behold her with no less delight in her father’s kitchen, kindling
the fire, turning the spit, baking the bread, cooking the dinner, and doing
all the most menial offices in a loving spirit which looked through all
things straight to God. Nor do I prize the lowly meditations she was wont to
make while so humbly employed less than the ecstasies with which she was
favoured at other times, probably as a reward for this very humility and
lowliness. Her meditations would take the shape of imagining that all she
prepared for her father was prepared for Our Lord, as by Martha; her mother
was a symbol to her of Our Lady, her brothers of the Apostles, and thus she
mentally ministered to all the Heavenly Courts, fulfilling her humble
ministrations with an exceeding sweetness, because she saw God’s Will in
each. Let this example, my daughter, teach you how important it is to
dedicate all we do, however trifling, to His service. And to this end I
earnestly counsel you to imitate that “virtuous woman” whom King Solomon
lauds, [156] who “layeth her hands” to all that is good and noble, and yet
at the same time to the spindle and distaff. Do you seek the higher things,
such as prayer and meditation, the Sacraments leading souls to God and
kindling good thoughts in them, in a word, by all manner of good works
according to your vocation; but meanwhile do not neglect your spindle and
distaff. I mean, cultivate those lowly virtues which spring like flowers
round the foot of the Cross, such as ministering to the poor and sick,
family cares, and the duties arising therefrom, and practical diligence and
activity; and amid all these things cultivate such spiritual thoughts as S.
Catherine intermingled with her work.

Great occasions for serving God come seldom, but little ones surround us
daily; and our Lord Himself has told us that “he that is faithful in that
which is least is faithful also in much.” [157] If you do all in God’s Name,
all you do will be well done, whether you eat, drink or sleep, whether you
amuse yourself or turn the spit, so long as you do all wisely, you will gain
greatly as in God’s Sight, doing all because He would have you do it.
_________________________________________________________________

[155] Cant. iv. 9. In the English version this passage stands as “one chain
of her neck;” but in the Vulgate it is “uno crine colli tui.”

[156] Prov. xxxi. Those who desire a helpful book will find one in Mgr.
Landriot’s “Femme Forte,” a series of lectures on this chapter of Holy
Scripture, which, as well as his “Femme Picuse” is largely imbued with the
spirit of S. Francis de Sales, who is frequently quoted in both.

[157] S. Luke xvi. 10.
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CHAPTER XXXVI. Of a Well-Balanced, Reasonable Mind.

REASON is the special characteristic of man, and yet it is a rare thing to
find really reasonable men, all the more that self-love hinders reason, and
beguiles us insensibly into all manner of trifling, but yet dangerous acts
of injustice and untruth, which, like the little foxes in the Canticles,
[158] spoil our vines, while, just because they are trifling, people pay no
attention to them, and because they are numerous, they do infinite harm. Let
me give some instances of what I mean.

We find fault with our neighbour very readily for a small matter, while we
pass over great things in ourselves. We strive to sell dear and buy cheap.
We are eager to deal out strict justice to others, but to obtain indulgence
for ourselves. We expect a good construction to be put on all we say, but we
are sensitive and critical as to our neighbour’s words. We expect him to let
us have whatever we want for money, when it would be more reasonable to let
him keep that which is his, if he desires to do so, and leave us to keep our
gold. We are vexed with him because he will not accommodate us, while
perhaps he has better reason to be vexed with us for wanting to disturb him.
If we have a liking for any one particular thing, we despise all else, and
reject whatever does not precisely suit our taste. If some inferior is
unacceptable to us, or we have once caught him in error, he is sure to be
wrong in our eyes whatever he may do, and we are for ever thwarting, or
looking coldly on him, while, on the other hand, some one who happens to
please us is sure to be right. Sometimes even parents show unfair preference
for a child endowed with personal gifts over one afflicted with some
physical imperfection. We put the rich before the poor, although they may
have less claim, and be less worthy; we even give preference to well-dressed
people. We are strict in exacting our own rights, but expect others to be
yielding as to theirs;—we complain freely of our neighbours, but we do not
like them to make any complaints of us. Whatever we do for them appears very
great in our sight, but what they do for us counts as nothing. In a word, we
are like the Paphlagonian partridge, which has two hearts; for we have a
very tender, pitiful, easy heart towards ourselves, and one which is hard,
harsh and strict towards our neighbour. We have two scales, one wherein to
measure our own goods to the best advantage, and the other to weigh our
neighbours’ to the worst. Holy Scripture tells us that lying lips are an
abomination unto the Lord, [159] and the double heart, with one measure
whereby to receive, and another to give, is also abominable in His Sight.

Be just and fair in all you do. Always put yourself in your neighbour’s
place, and put him into yours, and then you will judge fairly. Sell as you
would buy, and buy as you would sell, and your buying and selling will alike
be honest. These little dishonesties seem unimportant, because we are not
obliged to make restitution, and we have, after all, only taken that which
we might demand according to the strict letter of the law; but,
nevertheless, they are sins against right and charity, and are mere
trickery, greatly needing correction—nor does any one ever lose by being
generous, noble-hearted and courteous. Be sure then often to examine your
dealings with your neighbour, whether your heart is right towards him, as
you would have his towards you, were things reversed—this is the true test
of reason. When Trajan was blamed by his confidential friends for making the
Imperial presence too accessible, he replied, “Does it not behove me to
strive to be such an emperor towards my subjects as I should wish to meet
with were I a subject?”
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[158] Cant. ii. 15.

[159] Prov. xii. 22.
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CHAPTER XXXVII. Of Wishes.

EVERYBODY grants that we must guard against the desire for evil things,
since evil desires make evil men. But I say yet further, my daughter, do not
desire dangerous things, such as balls or pleasures, office or honour,
visions or ecstacies. Do not long after things afar off; such, I mean, as
cannot happen till a distant time, as some do who by this means wear
themselves out and expend their energies uselessly, fostering a dangerous
spirit of distraction. If a young man gives way to overweening longings for
an employment he cannot obtain yet a while, what good will it do him? If a
married woman sets her heart on becoming a religious, or if I crave to buy
my neighbour’s estate, he not being willing to sell it, is it not mere waste
of time? If, when sick, I am restlessly anxious to preach or celebrate, to
visit other sick people, or generally to do work befitting the strong, is it
not an unprofitable desire, inasmuch as I have no power to fulfil it? and
meanwhile these useless wishes take the place of such as I ought to
have,—namely, to be patient, resigned, self-denying, obedient, gentle under
suffering,—which are what God requires of me under the circumstances. We are
too apt to be like a sickly woman, craving ripe cherries in autumn and
grapes in spring. I can never think it well for one whose vocation is clear
to waste time in wishing for some different manner of life than that which
is adapted to his duty, or practices unsuitable to his present position—it
is mere idling, and will make him slack in his needful work. If I long after
a Carthusian solitude, I am losing my time, and such longing usurps the
place of that which I ought to entertain—to fulfil my actual duties rightly.
No indeed, I would not even have people wish for more wit or better
judgment, for such desires are frivolous, and take the place of the wish
every one ought to possess of improving what he has. We ought not to desire
ways of serving God which He does not open to us, but rather desire to use
what we have rightly. Of course I mean by this, real earnest desires, not
common superficial wishes, which do no harm if not too frequently indulged.

Do not desire crosses, unless you have borne those already laid upon you
well—it is an abuse to long after martyrdom while unable to bear an insult
patiently. The Enemy of souls often inspires men with ardent desires for
unattainable things, in order to divert their attention from present duties,
which would be profitable however trifling in themselves. We are apt to
fight African monsters in imagination, while we let very petty foes vanquish
us in reality for want of due heed.

Do not desire temptations, that is temerity, but prepare your heart to meet
them bravely, and to resist them when they come.

Too great variety and quantity of food loads the stomach, and (especially
when it is weakly) spoils the digestion. Do not overload your soul with
innumerable longings, either worldly, for that were destruction,—or even
spiritual, for these only cumber you. When the soul is purged of the evil
humours of sin, it experiences a ravenous hunger for spiritual things, and
sets to work as one famished at all manner of spiritual
exercises;—mortification, penitence, humility, charity, prayer. Doubtless
such an appetite is a good sign, but it behoves you to reflect whether you
are able to digest all that you fain would eat. Make rather a selection from
all these desires, under the guidance of your spiritual father, of such as
you are able to perform, and then use them as perfectly as you are able.
When you have done this, God will send you more, to be fulfilled in their
turn, and so you will not waste time in unprofitable wishes. Not that I
would have you lose any good desires, but rather treat them methodically,
putting them aside in one corner of your heart till due time comes, while
you carry out such as are ripe for action. And this counsel I give to
worldly people as well as those who are spiritual, for without heeding it no
one can avoid anxiety and over-eagerness.
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CHAPTER XXXVIII. Counsels to Married People.

MARRIAGE is a great Sacrament both in Jesus Christ and His Church, and one
to be honoured to all, by all and in all. To all, for even those who do not
enter upon it should honour it in all humility. By all, for it is holy alike
to poor as to rich. In all, for its origin, its end, its form and matter are
holy. It is the nursery of Christianity, whence the earth is peopled with
faithful, till the number of the elect in Heaven be perfected; so that
respect for the marriage tie is exceedingly important to the commonwealth,
of which it is the source and supply.

Would to God that His Dear Son were bidden to all weddings as to that of
Cana! Truly then the wine of consolation and blessing would never be
lacking; for if these are often so wanting, it is because too frequently now
men summon Adonis instead of our Lord, and Venus rather than Our Lady. He
who desires that the young of his flock should be like Jacob’s, fair and
ring-straked, must set fair objects before their eyes; and he who would find
a blessing in his marriage, must ponder the holiness and dignity of this
Sacrament, instead of which too often weddings become a season of mere
feasting and disorder.

Above all, I would exhort all married people to seek that mutual love so
commended to them by the Holy Spirit in the Bible. It is little to bid you
love one another with a mutual love,—-turtle-doves do that; or with human
love,—the heathen cherished such love as that. But I say to you in the
Apostle’s words: “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the
Church. Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands as unto the Lord.” [160]
It was God Who brought Eve to our first father Adam, and gave her to him to
wife; and even so, my friends, it is God’s Invisible Hand Which binds you in
the sacred bonds of marriage; it is He Who gives you one to the other,
therefore cherish one another with a holy, sacred, heavenly love.

The first effect of this love is the indissoluble union of your hearts. If
you glue together two pieces of deal, provided that the glue be strong,
their union will be so close that the stick will break more easily in any
other part than where it is joined. Now God unites husband and wife so
closely in Himself, that it should be easier to sunder soul from body than
husband from wife; nor is this union to be considered as mainly of the body,
but yet more a union of the heart, its affections and love.

The second effect of this love should be an inviolable fidelity to one
another. In olden times finger-rings were wont to be graven as seals. We
read of it in Holy Scripture, and this explains the meaning of the marriage
ceremony, when the Church, by the hand of her priest, blesses a ring, and
gives it first to the man in token that she sets a seal on his heart by this
Sacrament, so that no thought of any other woman may ever enter therein so
long as she, who now is given to him, shall live. Then the bridegroom places
the ring on the bride’s hand, so that she in her turn may know that she must
never conceive any affection in her heart for any other man so long as he
shall live, who is now given to her by our Lord Himself.

The third end of marriage is the birth and bringing up of children. And
herein, O ye married people! are you greatly honoured, in that God, willing
to multiply souls to bless and praise Him to all Eternity, He associates you
with Himself in this His work, by the production of bodies into which, like
dew from Heaven, He infuses the souls He creates as well as the bodies into
which they enter.

Therefore, husbands, do you preserve a tender, constant, hearty love for
your wives. It was that the wife might be loved heartily and tenderly that
woman was taken from the side nearest Adam’s heart. No failings or
infirmities, bodily or mental, in your wife should ever excite any kind of
dislike in you, but rather a loving, tender compassion; and that because God
has made her dependent on you, and bound to defer to and obey you; and that
while she is meant to be your helpmeet, you are her superior and her head.
And on your part, wives, do you love the husbands God has given you
tenderly, heartily, but with a reverential, confiding love, for God has made
the man to have the predominance, and to be the stronger; and He wills the
woman to depend upon him,—bone of his bone, flesh of his flesh,—taking her
from out the ribs of the man, to show that she must be subject to his
guidance. All Holy Scripture enjoins this subjection, which nevertheless is
not grievous; and the same Holy Scripture, while it bids you accept it
lovingly, bids your husband to use his superiority with great tenderness,
lovingkindness, and gentleness. “Husbands, dwell with your wives according
to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife as unto the weaker vessel.” [161]

But while you seek diligently to foster this mutual love, give good heed
that it do not turn to any manner of jealousy. Just as the worm is often
hatched in the sweetest and ripest apple, so too often jealousy springs up
in the most warm and loving hearts, defiling and ruining them, and if it is
allowed to take root, it will produce dissension, quarrels, and separation.
Of a truth, jealousy never arises where love is built up on true virtue, and
therefore it is a sure sign of an earthly, sensual love, in which mistrust
and inconstancy is soon infused. It is a sorry kind of friendship which
seeks to strengthen itself by jealousy; for though jealousy may be a sign of
strong, hot friendship, it is certainly no sign of a good, pure, perfect
attachment; and that because perfect love implies absolute trust in the
person loved, whereas jealousy implies uncertainty.

If you, husbands, would have your wives faithful, be it yours to set them
the example. “How have you the face to exact purity from your wives,” asks
S. Gregory Nazianzen, “if you yourself live an impure life? or how can you
require that which you do not give in return? If you would have them chaste,
let your own conduct to them be chaste. S. Paul bids you possess your vessel
in sanctification; but if, on the contrary, you teach them evil, no wonder
that they dishonour you. And ye, O women! whose honour is inseparable from
modesty and purity, preserve it jealously, and never allow the smallest
speck to soil the whiteness of your reputation.”

Shrink sensitively from the veriest trifles which can touch it; never permit
any gallantries whatsoever. Suspect any who presume to flatter your beauty
or grace, for when men praise wares they cannot purchase they are often
tempted to steal; and if any one should dare to speak in disparagement of
your husband, show that you are irrecoverably offended, for it is plain that
he not only seeks your fall, but he counts you as half fallen, since the
bargain with the new-comer is half made when one is disgusted with the first
merchant.

Ladies both in ancient and modern times have worn pearls in their ears, for
the sake (so says Pliny) of hearing them tinkle against each other. But
remembering how that friend of God, Isaac, sent earrings as first pledges of
his love to the chaste Rebecca, I look upon this mystic ornament as
signifying that the first claim a husband has over his wife, and one which
she ought most faithfully to keep for him, is her ear; so that no evil word
or rumour enter therein, and nought be heard save the pleasant sound of true
and pure words, which are represented by the choice pearls of the Gospel.
Never forget that souls are poisoned through the ear as much as bodies
through the mouth.

Love and faithfulness lead to familiarity and confidence, and Saints have
abounded in tender caresses. Isaac and Rebecca, the type of chaste married
life, indulged in such caresses, as to convince Abimelech that they must be
husband and wife. The great S. Louis, strict as he was to himself, was so
tender towards his wife, that some were ready to blame him for it; although
in truth he rather deserved praise for subjecting his lofty, martial mind to
the little details of conjugal love. Such minor matters will not suffice to
knit hearts, but they tend to draw them closer, and promote mutual
happiness.

Before giving birth to S. Augustine, S. Monica offered him repeatedly to
God’s Glory, as he himself tells us; and it is a good lesson for Christian
women how to offer the fruit of their womb to God, Who accepts the free
oblations of loving hearts, and promotes the desires of such faithful
mothers: witness Samuel, S. Thomas Aquinas, S. Andrea di Fiesole, and
others. [162] S. Bernard’s mother, worthy of such a son, was wont to take
her new-born babes in her arms to offer them to Jesus Christ, thenceforward
loving them with a reverential love, as a sacred deposit from God; and so
entirely was her offering accepted, that all her seven children became
Saints. [163] And when children begin to use their reason, fathers and
mothers should take great pains to fill their hearts with the fear of God.
This the good Queen Blanche did most earnestly by S. Louis, her son: witness
her oft-repeated words, “My son, I would sooner see you die than guilty of a
mortal sin;” words which sank so deeply into the saintly monarch’s heart,
that he himself said there was no day on which they did not recur to his
mind, and strengthen him in treading God’s ways.

We call races and generations Houses; and the Hebrews were wont to speak of
the birth of children as “the building up of the house;” as it is written of
the Jewish midwives in Egypt, that the Lord “made them houses;” [164]
whereby we learn that a good house is not reared so much by the accumulation
of worldly goods, as by the bringing up of children in the ways of holiness
and of God; and to this end no labour or trouble must be spared, for
children are the crown of their parents. [165] Thus it was that S. Monica
stedfastly withstood S. Augustine’s evil propensities, and, following him
across sea and land, he became more truly the child of her tears in the
conversion of his soul, than the son of her body in his natural birth.

S. Paul assigns the charge of the household to the woman; and consequently
some hold that the devotion of the family depends more upon the wife than
the husband, who is more frequently absent, and has less influence in the
house. Certainly King Solomon, in the Book of Proverbs, refers all household
prosperity to the care and industry of that virtuous woman whom he
describes. [166]

We read in Genesis that Isaac “entreated the Lord for his wife, because she
was barren;” [167] or as the Hebrews read it, he prayed “over against”
her,—on opposite sides of the place of prayer,—and his prayer was granted.
That is the most fruitful union between husband and wife which is founded in
devotion, to which they should mutually stimulate one another. There are
certain fruits, like the quince, of so bitter a quality, that they are
scarcely eatable, save when preserved; while others again, like cherries and
apricots, are so delicate and soft, that they can only be kept by the same
treatment. So the wife must seek that her husband be sweetened with the
sugar of devotion, for man without religion is a rude, rough animal; and the
husband will desire to see his wife devout, as without it her frailty and
weakness are liable to tarnish and injury. S. Paul says that “the
unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is
sanctified by the husband;” [168] because in so close a tie one may easily
draw the other to what is good. And how great is the blessing on those
faithful husbands and wives who confirm one another continually in the Fear
of the Lord!

Moreover, each should have such forbearance towards the other, that they
never grow angry, or fall into discussion and argument. The bee will not
dwell in a spot where there is much loud noise or shouting, or echo; neither
will God’s Holy Spirit dwell in a household where altercation and tumult,
arguing and quarrelling, disturb the peace.

S. Gregory Nazianzen says that in his time married people were wont to
celebrate the anniversary of their wedding, and it is a custom I should
greatly approve, provided it were not a merely secular celebration; but if
husbands and wives would go on that day to Confession and Communion, and
commend their married life specially to God, renewing their resolution to
promote mutual good by increased love and faithfulness, and thus take
breath, so to say, and gather new vigour from the Lord to go on stedfastly
in their vocation.
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[160] Eph. v. 25, 22.

[161] 1 Pet. iii. 7.

[162] S. Francis de Sales himself is an instance, his mother having offered
him up to God while yet unborn.

[163] Cf. Marie Jenna’s lovely poem, “L’aimeras-tu?” “Je ne veux plus
d’enfants, si ce ne sont des saints.”

[164] Exod. i. 21.

[165] Prov. xvii. 6.

[166] Prov. xxxi.

[167] Gen. xxv. 21.

[168] 1 Cor. vii. 14.
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CHAPTER XXXIX. The Sanctity of the Marriage Bed.

THE marriage bed should be undefiled, as the Apostle tells us, [169] i.e.
pure, as it was when it was first instituted in the earthly Paradise,
wherein no unruly desires or impure thought might enter. All that is merely
earthly must be treated as means to fulfil the end God sets before His
creatures. Thus we eat in order to preserve life, moderately, voluntarily,
and without seeking an undue, unworthy satisfaction therefrom. “The time is
short,” says S. Paul; “it remaineth that both they that have wives be as
though they had not, and they that use this world, as not abusing it.” [170]

Let every one, then, use this world according to his vocation, but so as not
to entangle himself with its love, that he may be as free and ready to serve
God as though he used it not. S. Augustine says that it is the great fault
of men to want to enjoy things which they are only meant to use, and to use
those which they are only meant to enjoy. We ought to enjoy spiritual
things, and only use those which are material; but when we turn the use of
these latter into enjoyment, the reasonable soul becomes degraded to a mere
brutish level.
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[169] Heb. xiii. 4.

[170] 1 Cor. vii. 30, 31.
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CHAPTER XL. Counsels to Widows.

SAINT PAUL teaches us all in the person of S. Timothy when he says, “Honour
widows that are widows indeed.” [171] Now to be “a widow indeed” it is
necessary:—

1. That the widow be one not in body only, but in heart also; that is to
say, that she be fixed in an unalterable resolution to continue in her
widowhood Those widows who are but waiting the opportunity of marrying again
are only widowed in externals, while in will they have already laid aside
their loneliness. If the “widow indeed” chooses to confirm her widowhood by
offering herself by a vow to God, she will adorn that widowhood, and make
her resolution doubly sure, for the remembrance that she cannot break her
vow without danger of forfeiting Paradise, will make her so watchful over
herself, that a great barrier will be raised against all kind of temptation
that may assail her. S. Augustine strongly recommends Christian widows to
take this vow, and the learned Origen goes yet further, for he advises
married women to take a vow of chastity in the event of losing their
husbands, so that amid the joys of married life they may yet have a share in
the merits of a chaste widowhood. Vows render the actions performed under
their shelter more acceptable to God, strengthen us to perform good works,
and help us to devote to Him not merely those good works which are, so to
say, the fruits of a holy will, but to consecrate that will itself; the
source of all we do, to Him. By ordinary chastity we offer our body to God,
retaining the power to return to sensual pleasure; but the vow of chastity
is an absolute and irrevocable gift to Him, without any power to recall it,
thereby making ourselves the happy slaves of Him Whose service is to be
preferred to royal power. And as I greatly approve the counsels of the two
venerable Fathers I have named, I would have such persons as are so favoured
as to wish to embrace them, do so prudently, and in a holy, stedfast spirit,
after careful examination of their own courage, having asked heavenly
guidance, and taken the advice of some discreet and pious director, and then
all will be profitably done.

2. Further, all such renunciation of second marriage must be done with a
single heart, in order to fix the affections more entirely on God, and to
seek a more complete union with Him. For if the widow retains her widowhood
merely to enrich her children, or for any other worldly motive, she may
receive the praise of men, but not that of God, inasmuch as nothing is
worthy of His Approbation save that which is done for His Sake. Moreover,
she who would be a widow indeed must be voluntarily cut off from all worldly
delights. “She that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth,” S. Paul
says. [172] A widow who seeks to be admired and followed and flattered, who
frequents balls and parties, who takes pleasure in dressing, perfuming and
adorning herself, may be a widow in the body, but she is dead as to the
soul. What does it matter, I pray you, whether the flag of Adonis and his
profane love be made of white feathers or a net of crape? Nay, sometimes
there is a conscious vanity in that black is the most becoming dress; and
she who thereby endeavours to captivate men, and who lives in empty
pleasure, is “dead while she liveth,” and is a mere mockery of widowhood.

“The time of retrenchment is come, the voice of the turtle is heard in our
land.” [173] Retrenchment of worldly superfluity is required of whosoever
would lead a devout life, but above all, it is needful for the widow indeed,
who mourns the loss of her husband like a true turtle-dove. When Naomi
returned from Moab to Bethlehem, those that had known her in her earlier and
brighter days were moved, and said, “Is this Naomi? And she said unto them,
Call me not Naomi (which means beautiful and agreeable), call me Mara, for
the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord
hath brought me home again empty.” [174] Even so the devout widow will not
desire to be called or counted beautiful or agreeable, asking no more than
to be that which God wills,—lowly and abject in His Eyes.

The lamp which is fed with aromatic oil sends forth a yet sweeter odour when
it is extinguished; and so those women whose married love was true and pure,
give out a stronger perfume of virtue and chastity when their light (that
is, their husband) is extinguished by death. Love for a husband while living
is a common matter enough among women, but to love him so deeply as to
refuse to take another after his death, is a kind of love peculiar to her
who is a widow indeed. Hope in God, while resting on a husband, is not so
rare, but to hope in Him, when left alone and desolate, is a very gracious
and worthy thing. And thus it is that widowhood becomes a test of the
perfection of the virtues displayed by a woman in her married life.

The widow who has children requiring her care and guidance, above all in
what pertains to their souls and the shaping of their lives, cannot and
ought not on any wise to forsake them. S. Paul teaches this emphatically,
and says that those who “provide not for their own, and specially for those
of their own house, are worse than an infidel;” [175] but if her children do
not need her care, then the widow should gather together all her affections
and thoughts, in order to devote them more wholly to making progress in the
love of God. If there is no call obliging her in conscience to attend to
external secular matters (legal or other), I should advise her to leave them
all alone, and to manage her affairs as quietly and peacefully as may be,
even if such a course does not seem the most profitable. The fruit of
disputes and lawsuits must be very great indeed before it can be compared in
worth to the blessing of holy peace; not to say that those legal
entanglements and the like are essentially distracting, and often open the
way for enemies who sully the purity of a heart which should be solely
devoted to God.

Prayer should be the widow’s chief occupation: she has no love left save for
God,—she should scarce have ought to say to any save God; and as iron, which
is restrained from yielding to the attraction of the magnet when a diamond
is near, darts instantly towards it so soon as the diamond is removed, so
the widow’s heart, which could not rise up wholly to God, or simply follow
the leadings of His Heavenly Love during her husband’s life, finds itself
set free, when he is dead, to give itself entirely to Him, and cries out,
with the Bride in the Canticles, “Draw me, I will run after Thee.” [176] I
will be wholly Thine, and seek nothing save the “savour of Thy good
ointments.”

A devout widow should chiefly seek to cultivate the graces of perfect
modesty, renouncing all honours, rank, title, society, and the like
vanities; she should be diligent in ministering to the poor and sick,
comforting the afflicted, leading the young to a life of devotion, studying
herself to be a perfect model of virtue to younger women. Necessity and
simplicity should be the adornment of her garb, humility and charity of her
actions, simplicity and kindliness of her words, modesty and purity of her
eyes,—Jesus Christ Crucified the only Love of her heart.

Briefly, the true widow abides in the Church as a little March violet, [177]
shedding forth an exquisite sweetness through the perfume of her devotion,
ever concealing herself beneath the ample leaves of her heart’s lowliness,
while her subdued colouring indicates her mortification. She dwells in
waste, uncultivated places, because she shrinks from the world’s
intercourse, and seeks to shelter her heart from the glare with which
earthly longings, whether of honours, wealth, or love itself, might dazzle
her. “Blessed is she if she so abide,” says the holy Apostle. [178]

Much more could I say on this subject, but suffice it to bid her who seeks
to be a widow indeed, read S. Jerome’s striking Letters to Salvia, and the
other noble ladies who rejoiced in being the spiritual children of such a
Father. Nothing can be said more, unless it be to warn the widow indeed not
to condemn or even censure those who do resume the married life, for there
are cases in which God orders it thus to His Own greater Glory. We must ever
bear in mind the ancient teaching, that in Heaven virgins, wives, and widows
will know no difference, save that which their true hearts’ humility assigns
them.
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[171] 1 Tim. v. 3.

[172] 1 Tim. v. 6.

[173] Cant. ii. 12. in the Vulgate, “Tempus putationis advenit; vox turturis
audita est in terra nostra.”

[174] Ruth i. 20, 21.

[175] 1 Tim. v. 8.

[176] Cant. i. 3, 4.

[177] “Quarn gloriosa enirn Ecclesia, et quanta virtutum multitudine, quasi
florum varietate! Habet hortus ille Dominicus non solum rosas martyrum, sed
et lilia virginum, et conjugatorum hederas, violasque viduarum Prorsus,
Dilectissimi, nullum genus hominum de sua vocatione desperet: pro omnibus
passus est Christus.”—S. Aug. Serm. ccciv., In Laurent. Mart. iii. cap. 1-3.
“How glorious is the Church, how countless her graces, varied as the flowers
of earth in beauty! This garden of the Lord bears not only the martyr’s
rose, but the virgin’s lily, the ivy wreath of wedded love, and the violet
of widowhood. Therefore, beloved, let none despair of his calling, since
Christ suffered for all.”

[178] 1 Cor. vii. 40. “Beatior autem erit si sic permanserit.”—Vulgate.
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CHAPTER XLI. One Word to Maidens.

O YE virgins, I have but a word to say to you. If you look to married life
in this life, guard your first love jealously for your husband. It seems to
me a miserable fraud to give a husband a worn-out heart, whose love has been
frittered away and despoiled of its first bloom instead of a true,
whole-hearted love. But if you are happily called to be the chaste and holy
bride of spiritual nuptials, and purpose to live a life of virginity, then
in Christ’s Name I bid you keep all your purest, most sensitive love for
your Heavenly Bridegroom, Who, being Very Purity Himself, has a special love
for purity; Him to Whom the first-fruits of all good things are due, above
all those of love.

S. Jerome’s Epistles will supply you with the needful counsels; and inasmuch
as your state of life requires obedience, seek out a guide under whose
direction you may wholly dedicate yourself, body and soul, to His Divine
Majesty.
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PART IV. CONTAINING NEEDFUL COUNSELS CONCERNING SOME ORDINARY TEMPTATIONS.
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CHAPTER I. We must not trifle with the Words of Worldly Wisdom.

DIRECTLY that your worldly friends perceive that you aim at leading a devout
life, they will let loose endless shafts of mockery and misrepresentation
upon you; the more malicious will attribute your change to hypocrisy,
designing, or bigotry; they will affirm that the world having looked coldly
upon you, failing its favour you turn to God; while your friends will make a
series of what, from their point of view, are prudent and charitable
remonstrances. They will tell you that you are growing morbid; that you will
lose your worldly credit, and will make yourself unacceptable to the world;
they will prognosticate your premature old age, the ruin of your material
prosperity; they will tell you that in the world you must live as the world
does; that you can be saved without all this fuss; and much more of the like
nature.

My daughter, all this is vain and foolish talk: these people have no real
regard either for your bodily health or your material prosperity. “If ye
were of the world,” the Saviour has said, “the world would love his own; but
because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world,
therefore the world hateth you.” [179]

We have all seen men, and women too, pass the whole night, even several in
succession, playing at chess or cards; and what can be a more dismal,
unwholesome thing than that? But the world has not a word to say against it,
and their friends are nowise troubled. But give up an hour to meditation, or
get up rather earlier than usual to prepare for Holy Communion, and they
will send for the doctor to cure you of hypochondria or jaundice! People
spend every night for a month dancing, and no one will complain of being the
worse; but if they keep the one watch of Christmas Eve, we shall hear of
endless colds and maladies the next day! Is it not as plain as possible that
the world is an unjust judge; indulgent and kindly to its own children,
harsh and uncharitable to the children of God? We cannot stand well with the
world save by renouncing His approval. It is not possible to satisfy the
world’s unreasonable demands: “John the Baptist came neither eating bread
nor drinking wine; and ye say he hath a devil. The Son of Man is come eating
and drinking, and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, the
friend of publicans and sinners.” [180] Even so, my child, if we give in to
the world, and laugh, dance, and play as it does, it will affect to be
scandalized; if we refuse to do so, it will accuse us of being hypocritical
or morbid. If we adorn ourselves after its fashion, it will put some evil
construction on what we do; if we go in plain attire, it will accuse us of
meanness; our cheerfulness will be called dissipation; our mortification
dulness; and ever casting its evil eye upon us, nothing we can do will
please it. It exaggerates our failings, and publishes them abroad as sins;
it represents our venial sins as mortal, and our sins of infirmity as
malicious. S. Paul says that charity is kind, but the world is unkind;
charity thinks no evil, but the world thinks evil of every one, and if it
cannot find fault with our actions, it is sure at least to impute bad
motives to them,—whether the sheep be black or white, horned or no, the wolf
will devour them if he can. Do what we will, the world must wage war upon
us. If we spend any length of time in confession, it will speculate on what
we have so much to say about! if we are brief, it will suggest that we are
keeping back something! It spies out our every act, and at the most trifling
angry word, sets us down as intolerable. Attention to business is avarice,
meekness mere silliness; whereas the wrath of worldly people is to be
reckoned as generosity, their avarice, economy, their mean deeds,
honourable. There are always spiders at hand to spoil the honey-bee’s comb.

Let us leave the blind world to make as much noise as it may,—like a bat
molesting the songbirds of day; let us be firm in our ways, unchangeable in
our resolutions, and perseverance will be the test of our self-surrender to
God, and our deliberate choice of the devout life.

The planets and a wandering comet shine with much the same brightness, but
the comet’s is a passing blaze, which does not linger long, while the
planets cease not to display their brightness. Even so hypocrisy and real
goodness have much outward resemblance; but one is easily known from the
other, inasmuch as hypocrisy is short-lived, and disperses like a mist,
while real goodness is firm and abiding. There is no surer groundwork for
the beginnings of a devout life than the endurance of misrepresentation and
calumny, since thereby we escape the danger of vainglory and pride, which
are like the midwives of Egypt, who were bidden by Pharaoh to kill the male
children born to Israel directly after their birth. We are crucified to the
world, and the world must be as crucified to us. It esteems us as fools, let
us esteem it as mad.
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[179] S. John xv. 19.

[180] S. Luke vii. 33, 34.
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CHAPTER II. The need of a Good Courage.

HOWEVER much we may admire and crave for light, it is apt to dazzle our eyes
when they have been long accustomed to darkness; and on first visiting a
foreign country, we are sure to feel strange among its inhabitants, however
kindly or courteous they may be. Even so, my child, your changed life may be
attended with some inward discomfort, and you may feel some reaction of
discouragement and weariness after you have taken a final farewell of the
world and its follies. Should it be so, I pray you take it patiently, for it
will not last,—it is merely the disturbance caused by novelty; and when it
is gone by, you will abound in consolations. At first you may suffer
somewhat under the loss what you enjoyed among your vain, frivolous
companions; but would you forfeit the eternal gifts of God for such things
as these? The empty amusements which have engrossed you hitherto may rise up
attractively before your imagination, and strive to win you back to rest in
them; but are you bold enough to give up a blessed eternity for such
deceitful snares? Believe me, if you will but persevere you will not fail to
enjoy a sweetness so real and satisfying, that you will be constrained to
confess that the world has only gall to give as compared with this honey,
and that one single day of devotion is worth more than a thousand years of
worldly life.

But you see before you the mountain of Christian perfection, which is very
high, and you exclaim in fearfulness that you can never ascend it. Be of
good cheer, my child. When the young bees first begin to live they are mere
grubs, unable to hover over flowers, or to fly to the mountains, or even to
the little hills where they might gather honey; but they are fed for a time
with the honey laid up by their predecessors, and by degrees the grubs put
forth their wings and grow strong, until they fly abroad and gather their
harvest from all the country round. Now we are yet but as grubs in devotion,
unable to fly at will, and attain the desired aim of Christian perfection;
but if we begin to take shape through our desires and resolutions, our wings
will gradually grow, and we may hope one day to become spiritual bees, able
to fly. Meanwhile let us feed upon the honey left us in the teaching of so
many holy men of old, praying God that He would grant us doves’ wings, so
that we may not only fly during this life, but find an abiding resting-place
in Eternity.
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CHAPTER III. Of Temptations, and the difference between experiencing them and
consenting to them.

PICTURE to yourself a young princess beloved of her husband, to whom some
evil wretch should send a messenger to tempt her to infidelity. First, the
messenger would bring forth his propositions. Secondly, the princess would
either accept or reject the overtures. Thirdly, she would consent to them or
refuse them. Even so, when Satan, the world, and the flesh look upon a soul
espoused to the Son of God, they set temptations and suggestions before that
soul, whereby—1. Sin is proposed to it. 2. Which proposals are either
pleasing or displeasing to the soul. 3. The soul either consents, or rejects
them. In other words, the three downward steps of temptation, delectation,
and consent. And although the three steps may not always be so clearly
defined as in this illustration, they are to be plainly traced in all great
and serious sins.

If we should undergo the temptation to every sin whatsoever during our whole
life, that would not damage us in the Sight of God’s Majesty, provided we
took no pleasure in it, and did not consent to it; and that because in
temptation we do not act, we only suffer, and inasmuch as we take no delight
in it, we can be liable to no blame. S. Paul bore long time with temptations
of the flesh, but so far from displeasing God thereby, He was glorified in
them. The blessed Angela di Foligni underwent terrible carnal temptations,
which move us to pity as we read of them. S. Francis and S. Benedict both
experienced grievous temptations, so that the one cast himself amid thorns,
the other into the snow, to quench them, but so far from losing anything of
God’s Grace thereby, they greatly increased it.

Be then very courageous amid temptation, and never imagine yourself
conquered so long as it is displeasing to you, ever bearing in mind the
difference between experiencing and consenting to temptation, [181] —that
difference being, that whereas they may be experienced while most
displeasing to us, we can never consent to them without taking pleasure in
them, inasmuch as pleasure felt in a temptation is usually the first step
towards consent. So let the enemies of our salvation spread as many snares
and wiles in our way as they will, let them besiege the door of our heart
perpetually, let them ply us with endless proposals to sin,—so long as we
abide in our firm resolution to take no pleasure therein, we cannot offend
God any more than the husband of the princess in my illustration could be
displeased with her because of the overtures made to her, so long as she was
in no way gratified by them. Of course, there is one great difference
between my imaginary princess and the soul, namely, that the former has it
in her power to drive away the messenger of evil and never hear him more,
while the latter cannot always refuse to experience temptation, although it
be always in its power to refuse consent. But how long soever the temptation
may persist, it cannot harm us so long as it is unwelcome to us.

But again, as to the pleasure which may be taken in temptation (technically
called delectation), inasmuch as our souls have two parts, one inferior, the
other superior, and the inferior does not always choose to be led by the
superior, but takes its own line,—it not unfrequently happens that the
inferior part takes pleasure in a temptation not only without consent from,
but absolutely in contradiction to the superior will. It is this contest
which S. Paul describes when he speaks of the “law in my members, warring
against the law of my mind,” [182] and of the “flesh lusting against the
spirit.” [183]

Have you ever watched a great burning furnace heaped up with ashes? Look at
it some ten or twelve hours afterwards, and there will scarce be any living
fire there, or only a little smouldering in the very heart thereof.
Nevertheless, if you can find that tiny lingering spark, it will suffice to
rekindle the extinguished flames. So it is with love, which is the true
spiritual life amid our greatest, most active temptations. Temptation,
flinging its delectation into the inferior part of the soul, covers it
wholly with ashes, and leaves but a little spark of God’s Love, which can be
found nowhere save hidden far down in the heart or mind, and even that is
hard to find. But nevertheless it is there, since however troubled we may
have been in body and mind, we firmly resolved not to consent to sin or the
temptation thereto, and that delectation of the exterior man was rejected by
the interior spirit. Thus though our will may have been thoroughly beset by
the temptation, it was not conquered, and so we are certain that all such
delectation was involuntary, and consequently not sinful.
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[181] The English language does not contain the precise relative terms
equivalent to “sentir et con-sentir.”

[182] Rom. vii. 23.

[183] Gal. v. 17.
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CHAPTER IV. Two striking Illustrations of the same.

THIS distinction, which is very important, is well illustrated by the
description S. Jerome gives of a young man bound to a voluptuous bed by the
softest silken cords, and subjected to the wiles and lures of a treacherous
tempter, with the express object of causing him to fall. Greatly as all his
senses and imagination must inevitably have been possessed by so vehement an
assault, he proved that his heart was free and his will unconquered, for,
having physical control over no member save his tongue, he bit that off and
spat it out at his foe, a foe more terrible than the tyrant’s executioners.

S. Catherine of Sienna has left a somewhat similar record. The Evil One
having obtained permission from God to assault that pious virgin with all
his strength, so long as he laid no hand upon her, filled her heart with
impure suggestions, and surrounded her with every conceivable temptation of
sight and sound, which, penetrating into the Saint’s heart, so filled it,
that, as she herself has said, nothing remained free save her most acute
superior will. This struggle endured long, until at length Our Lord appeared
to her, and she exclaimed, “Where wert Thou, O most Dear Lord, when my heart
was so overwhelmed with darkness and foulness?” Whereupon He answered, “I
was within thy heart, My child.” “How could that be, Lord,” she asked, “when
it was so full of evil? Canst Thou abide in a place so foul?” Then our Lord
replied, “Tell Me, did these evil thoughts and imaginations give thee pain
or pleasure? didst thou take delight, or didst thou grieve over them?” To
which S. Catherine made answer, “They grieved me exceedingly.” Then the Lord
said, “Who, thinkest thou, was it that caused thee to be thus grieved, save
I Myself, hidden within thy soul? Believe Me, My child, had I not been
there, these evil thoughts which swarmed around thy soul, and which thou
couldst not banish, would speedily have overpowered it, and entering in, thy
free will would have accepted them, and so death had struck that soul; but
inasmuch as I was there, I filled thy heart with reluctance and resistance,
so that it set itself stedfastly against the temptation, and finding itself
unable to contend as vigorously as it desired, it did but experience a yet
more vehement abhorrence of sin and of itself. Thus these very troubles
became a great merit again to thee, and a great accession of virtue and
strength to thy soul.”

Here, you see, were the embers covered over with ashes, while temptation and
delectation had entered the heart and surrounded the will, which, aided only
by the Saviour, resisted all evil inspirations with great disgust, and a
persevering refusal to consent to sin. Verily the soul which loves God is
sometimes in sore straits to know whether He abideth in it or no, and
whether that Divine Love for which it fights is extinguished or burns yet.
But it is the very essence of the perfection of that Heavenly Love to
require its lovers to endure and fight for Love’s sake, without knowing even
whether they possess the very Love for which and in which they strive.
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CHAPTER V. Encouragement for the Tempted Soul.

GOD never permits such grievous temptations and assaults to try any, save
those souls whom He designs to lead on to His own living, highest love, but
nevertheless it does not follow as a natural consequence that they are
certain to attain thereto. Indeed, it has often happened that those who had
been stedfast under violent assaults, failing to correspond faithfully to
Divine Grace, have yielded under the pressure of very trifling temptations.
I would warn you of this, my child, so that, should you ever be tried by
great temptations, you may know that God is showing special favour to you,
thereby proving that He means to exalt you in His Sight; but that at the
same time you may ever be humble and full of holy fear, not overconfident in
your power to resist lesser temptations because you have overcome those that
were greater, unless by means of a most stedfast faithfulness to God.

Come what may in the shape of temptation, attended by whatsoever of
delectation,—so long as your will refuses consent, not merely to the
temptation itself, but also to the delectation, you need have no fear,—God
is not offended. When any one has swooned away, and gives no sign of life,
we put our hand to his heart, and if we find the slightest fluttering there,
we conclude that he still lives, and that, with the help of stimulants and
counter-irritants, we may restore consciousness and power. Even so,
sometimes amid the violence of temptation the soul seems altogether to faint
away, and to lose all spiritual life and action. But if you would be sure
how it really is, put your hand on the heart. See whether heart and will yet
have any spiritual motion; that is to say, whether they fulfil their own
special duty in refusing consent to and acceptance of temptation and its
gratification; for so long as the power to refuse exists within the soul, we
may be sure that Love, the life of the soul, is there, and that Jesus
Christ, our Lord and Saviour, is within, although, it may be, hidden; and
that by means of stedfast perseverance in prayer, and the Sacraments, and
confidence in God, strength will be restored, and the soul will live with a
full and joyous life.
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CHAPTER VI. When Temptation and Delectation are Sin.

THAT princess, whom we have already taken as an illustration, was not to
blame in the unlawful pursuit we supposed to be made of her, because it was
against her will; but if, on the contrary, she had in any way led to it, or
sought to attract him who sought her, she were certainly guilty of the
pursuit itself; and even if she withheld her consent, she would still
deserve censure and punishment. Thus it sometimes happens that temptation in
itself is sin to us, because we have ourselves brought it upon us. For
instance, if I know that gaming leads me to passion and blasphemy, and that
all play is a temptation to me, I sin each and every time that I play, and I
am responsible for all the temptations which may come upon me at the gaming
table. So again, if I know that certain society involves me in temptation to
evil, and yet I voluntarily seek it, I am unquestionably responsible for all
that I may encounter in the way of temptation therein.

When it is possible to avoid the delectation arising out of temptation, it
is always a sin to accept it, in proportion to the pleasure we take, and the
amount of consent given, whether that be great or small, brief or lasting.
The princess of our illustration is to blame if she merely listens to the
guilty propositions made to her but still more so if, after listening, she
takes pleasure in them, and allows her heart to feed and rest thereupon; for
although she has no intention of really doing that which is proposed, her
heart gives a spiritual consent when she takes pleasure in it, and it must
always be wrong to let either body or mind rest on anything unworthy,—and
wrongdoing lies so entirely in the heart’s co-operation, that without this
no mere bodily action can be sin.

Therefore, when you are tempted to any sin, examine whether you voluntarily
exposed yourself to the temptation, and if you find that you have done so by
putting yourself into its way, or by not foreseeing the temptation, as you
ought to have done, then it is sin; but if you have done nothing to bring
about the temptation, it is not in anywise to be imputed to you as sin.

When the delectation which attends temptation might have been avoided, but
has not been avoided, there is always a certain amount of sin according to
the degree to which we have lingered over it, and the kind of pleasure we
have taken in it. If a woman who has not wilfully attracted unlawful
admiration, nevertheless takes pleasure in such admiration, she is doing
wrong, always supposing that what pleases her is the admiration. But if the
person who courts her plays exquisitely on the lute, and she took pleasure,
not in the personal attentions paid to herself, but in the sweetness and
harmony of the music, there would be no sin in that, although it would be
wrong to give way to any extent to her pleasure, for fear of its leading on
to pleasure in the pursuit of herself. So again, if some clever stratagem
whereby to avenge me of an enemy is suggested, and I take no satisfaction
and give no consent to the vengeance, but am only pleased at the cleverness
of the invention, I am not sinning; although it were very inexpedient to
dwell long upon it, lest little by little I should go on to take pleasure in
the thought of revenge.

Sometimes we are taken by surprise by some sense of delectation following so
closely upon the temptation, that we are off our guard. This can be but a
very slight venial sin, which would become greater if, after once we
perceive the danger, we allow ourselves to dally with it, or question as to
admitting or rejecting it,—greater still if we carelessly neglect to resist
it;—and if we deliberately allow ourselves to rest in any such pleasure, it
becomes very great sin, especially if the thing attracting us be
unquestionably evil. Thus it is a great sin in a woman to allow herself to
dwell upon any unlawful affections, although she may have no intention of
ever really yielding to them.
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CHAPTER VII. Remedies for Great Occasions.

SO soon as you feel yourself anywise tempted, do as our little children when
they see a wolf or a bear in the mountains. Forthwith they run to the
protection of their father or mother, or at least cry out for help. Do you
fly in like manner to God, claiming His compassion and succour,—it is the
remedy taught us by our Lord Himself: “Pray that ye enter not into
temptation” [184]

If, nevertheless, the temptation persists or increases, hasten in spirit to
embrace the holy Cross, as though you beheld Jesus Christ Crucified actually
Present. Make firm protests against consenting, and ask His Help thereto;
and, so long as the temptation lasts, do you persist in making acts of
non-consent. But while making these acts and these protests, do not fix your
eyes on the temptation,—look solely on Our Lord, for if you dwell on the
temptation, especially when it is strong, your courage may be shaken. Divert
your mind with any right and healthy occupation, for if that takes
possession and fills your thoughts, it will drive away temptation and evil
imaginations.

One great remedy against all manner of temptation, great or small, is to
open the heart and lay bare its suggestions, likings, and dislikings, to
your director; for, as you may observe, the first condition which the Evil
One makes with a soul, when he wants to seduce it, is silence. Even as a bad
man, seeking to seduce a woman, enjoins silence concerning himself to her
father or husband, whereas God would always have us make known all His
inspirations to our superiors and guides.

If, after all, the temptation still troubles and persecutes us, there is
nothing to be done on our side save to persist in protesting that we will
not consent; for just as no maiden can be married while she persists in
saying No, so no soul, however oppressed, can be guilty while it says the
same.

Do not argue with your Enemy, and give but one answer,—that with which Our
Lord confounded him, “Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.” [185] Just as the
pure wife would make no reply, and cast no glance on the foul seducer who
strove to lead her astray, but would straightway fly from him to her
husband’s side, not arguing, but cleaving to her lawful lord in renewed
fidelity;—so the devout soul when assailed by temptation should never trifle
with it by answer or argument, but simply fly to the Side of Jesus Christ,
its Bridegroom; renewing its pledges of unchanging devotion and faithfulness
to Him.
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[184] S. Luke xxii. 40.

[185] S. Matt. iv. 10.
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CHAPTER VIII. How to resist Minor Temptations.

WHILE it is right to resist great temptations with invincible courage, and
all such victories will be most valuable, still there is perhaps more
absolute profit to our souls in resisting little ones. For although the
greater temptations exceed in power, there are so infinitely more in number
of little temptations, that a victory over them is fully as important as
over the greater but rarer ones. No one will question but that wolves and
bears are more dangerous than flies, but they do not worry and annoy us, or
try our patience as these do. While is not a hard thing to abstain from
murder, but it is very difficult to avoid all passing fits of anger, which
assail us at every moment. A man or woman can easily keep from adultery, but
it is less easy to abstain from all words and glances which are disloyal.
While is easy to keep from stealing another man’s goods, but often difficult
to resist coveting them; easy to avoid bearing false witness in direct
judgment, difficult to be perfectly truthful in conversation; easy to
refrain from getting drunk, difficult to be absolutely sober; easy not to
wish for a neighbour’s death, difficult not to wish anything contrary to his
interests; easy to keep from slander, difficult to avoid all contempt.

In short, all these minor temptations to anger, suspicion, jealousy, envy,
levity, vanity, duplicity, affectation, foolish thoughts, and the like, are
a perpetual trial even to those who are most devout and most resolute; and
therefore, my daughter, we ought carefully and diligently to prepare for
this warfare. Be assured that every victory won over these little foes is as
a precious stone in the crown of glory which God prepares for us in
Paradise. So, while awaiting and making ready for a stedfast and brave
resistance to great temptations should they come, let us not fail diligently
to fight against these meaner, weaker foes.
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CHAPTER IX. How remedy Minor Temptations.

NOW as to all these trifling temptations of vanity, suspicion, vexation,
jealousy, envy, and the like, which flit around one like flies or gnats, now
settling on one’s nose,—anon stinging one’s cheek,—as it is wholly
impossible altogether to free one’s-self from their importunity; the best
resistance one can make is not to be fretted by them. All these things may
worry one, but they cannot really harm us, so long as our wills are firmly
resolved to serve God.

Therefore despise all these trivial onslaughts, and do not even deign to
think about them; but let them buzz about your ears as much as they please,
and flit hither and thither just as you tolerate flies;—even if they sting
you, and strive to light within your heart, do no more than simply remove
them, not fighting with them, or arguing, but simply doing that which is
precisely contrary to their suggestions, and specially making acts of the
Love of God. If you will take my advice, you will not toil on obstinately in
resisting them by exercising the contrary virtue, for that would become a
sort of struggle with the foe;—but, after making an act of this directly
contrary virtue (always supposing you have time to recognise what the
definite temptation is), simply turn with your whole heart towards Jesus
Christ Crucified, and lovingly kiss His Sacred Feet. This is the best way to
conquer the Enemy, whether in small or great temptations; for inasmuch as
the Love of God contains the perfection of every virtue, and that more
excellently than the very virtues themselves; it is also the most sovereign
remedy against all vice, and if you accustom your mind under all manner of
temptation to have recourse to this safety-place, you will not be
constrained to enter upon a worryingly minute investigation of your
temptations, but, so soon as you are anywise troubled, your mind will turn
naturally to its one sovereign remedy. Moreover, this way of dealing with
temptation is so offensive to the Evil One, that, finding he does but
provoke souls to an increased love of God by his assaults, he discontinues
them.

In short, you may be sure that if you dally with your minor, oft-recurring
temptations, and examine too closely into them in detail, you will simply
stupefy yourself to no purpose.
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CHAPTER X. How to strengthen the Heart against Temptation.

EXAMINE from time to time what are the dominant passions of your soul, and
having ascertained this, mould your life, so that in thought, word and deed
you may as far as possible counteract them. For instance, if you know that
you are disposed to be vain, reflect often upon the emptiness of this
earthly life, call to mind how burdensome all mere earthly vanities will be
to the conscience at the hour of death, how unworthy of a generous heart,
how puerile and childish, and the like. See that your words have no tendency
to foster your vanity, and even though you may seem to be doing so but
reluctantly, strive to despise it heartily, and to rank yourself in every
way among its enemies. Indeed, by dint of steady opposition to anything, we
teach ourselves to hate even that which we began by liking. Do as many
lowly, humble deeds as lie in your power, even if you perform them
unwillingly at first; for by this means you will form a habit of humility,
and you will weaken your vanity, so that when temptation arises, you will be
less predisposed to yield, and stronger to resist. Or if you are given to
avarice, think often of the folly of this sin, which makes us the slave of
what was made only to serve us; remember how when we die we must leave all
we possess to those who come after us, who may squander it, ruin their own
souls by misusing it, and so forth. Speak against covetousness, commend the
abhorrence in which it is held by the world; and constrain yourself to
abundant almsgiving, as also to not always using opportunities of
accumulation. If you have a tendency to trifle with the affections, often
call to mind what a dangerous amusement it is for yourself and others; how
unworthy a thing it is to use the noblest feelings of the heart as a mere
pastime; and how readily such trifling becomes mere levity. Let your
conversation turn on purity and simplicity of heart, and strive to frame
your actions accordingly, avoiding all that savours of affectation or
flirting.

In a word, let your time of peace,—that is to say, the time when you are not
beset by temptations to sin,—be used in cultivating the graces most opposed
to your natural difficulties, and if opportunities for their exercise do not
arise, go out of your way to seek them, and by so doing you will strengthen
your heart against future temptations.
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CHAPTER XI. Anxiety of Mind.

ANXIETY of mind is not so much an abstract temptation, as the source whence
various temptations arise. Sadness, when defined, is the mental grief we
feel because of our involuntary ailments;—whether the evil be exterior, such
as poverty, sickness or contempt; or interior, such as ignorance, dryness,
depression or temptation. Directly that the soul is conscious of some such
trouble, it is downcast, and so trouble sets in. Then we at once begin to
try to get rid of it, and find means to shake it off; and so far rightly
enough, for it is natural to us all to desire good, and shun that which we
hold to be evil.

If any one strives to be delivered from his troubles out of love of God, he
will strive patiently, gently, humbly and calmly, looking for deliverance
rather to God’s Goodness and Providence than to his own industry or efforts;
but if self-love is the prevailing object he will grow hot and eager in
seeking relief, as though all depended more upon himself than upon God. I do
not say that the person thinks so, but he acts eagerly as though he did
think it. Then if he does not find what he wants at once, he becomes
exceedingly impatient and troubled, which does not mend matters, but on the
contrary makes them worse, and so he gets into an unreasonable state of
anxiety and distress, till he begins to fancy that there is no cure for his
trouble. Thus you see how a disturbance, which was right at the outset,
begets anxiety, and anxiety goes on into an excessive distress, which is
exceedingly dangerous.

This unresting anxiety is the greatest evil which can happen to the soul,
sin only excepted. Just as internal commotions and seditions ruin a
commonwealth, and make it incapable of resisting its foreign enemies, so if
our heart be disturbed and anxious, it loses power to retain such graces as
it has, as well as strength to resist the temptations of the Evil One, who
is all the more ready to fish (according to an old proverb) in troubled
waters.

Anxiety arises from an unregulated desire to be delivered from any pressing
evil, or to obtain some hoped-for good. Nevertheless nothing tends so
greatly to enchance the one or retard the other as over-eagerness and
anxiety. Birds that are captured in nets and snares become inextricably
entangled therein, because they flutter and struggle so much. Therefore,
whensoever you urgently desire to be delivered from any evil, or to attain
some good thing, strive above all else to keep a calm, restful
spirit,—steady your judgment and will, and then go quietly and easily after
your object, taking all fitting means to attain thereto. By easily I do not
mean carelessly, but without eagerness, disquietude or anxiety; otherwise,
so far from bringing about what you wish, you will hinder it, and add more
and more to your perplexities. “My soul is alway in my hand, yet do I not
forget Thy Law,” [186] David says. Examine yourself often, at least night
and morning, as to whether your soul is “in your hand;” or whether it has
been wrested thence by any passionate or anxious emotion. See whether your
soul is fully under control, or whether it has not in anywise escaped from
beneath your hand, to plunge into some unruly love, hate, envy, lust, fear,
vexation or joy. And if it has so strayed, before all else seek it out, and
quietly bring it back to the Presence of God, once more placing all your
hopes and affections under the direction of His Holy Will. Just as one who
fears to lose some precious possession holds it tight in his hand, so, like
King David, we ought to be able to say, “My soul is alway in my hand, and
therefore I have not forgotten Thy Law.”

Do not allow any wishes to disturb your mind under the pretext of their
being trifling and unimportant; for if they gain the day, greater and
weightier matters will find your heart more accessible to disturbance. When
you are conscious that you are growing anxious, commend yourself to God, and
resolve stedfastly not to take any steps whatever to obtain the result you
desire, until your disturbed state of mind is altogether quieted;—unless
indeed it should be necessary to do something without delay, in which case
you must restrain the rush of inclination, moderating it, as far as
possible, so as to act rather from reason than impulse.

If you can lay your anxiety before your spiritual guide, or at least before
some trusty and devout friend, you may be sure that you will find great
solace. The heart finds relief in telling its troubles to another, just as
the body when suffering from persistent fever finds relief from bleeding. It
is the best of remedies, and therefore it was that S. Louis counselled his
son, “If thou hast any uneasiness lying heavy on thy heart, tell it
forthwith to thy confessor, or to some other pious person, and the comfort
he will give will enable thee to bear it easily.”
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[186] Ps. cxix. 109.
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CHAPTER XII. Of Sadness and Sorrow.

S. PAUL says that “godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be
repented of, but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” [187] So we see
that sorrow may be good or bad according to the several results it produces
in us. And indeed there are more bad than good results arising from it, for
the only good ones are mercy and repentance; whereas there are six evil
results, namely, anguish, sloth, indignation, jealousy, envy and impatience.
The Wise Man says that “sorrow hath killed many, and there is no profit
therein,” [188] and that because for the two good streams which flow from
the spring of sadness, there are these six which are downright evil.

The Enemy makes use of sadness to try good men with his temptations:—just as
he tries to make bad men merry in their sin, so he seeks to make the good
sorrowful amid their works of piety; and while making sin attractive so as
to draw men to it, he strives to turn them from holiness by making it
disagreeable. The Evil One delights in sadness and melancholy, because they
are his own characteristics. He will be in sadness and sorrow through all
Eternity, and he would fain have all others the same.

The “sorrow of the world” disturbs the heart, plunges it into anxiety, stirs
up unreasonable fears, disgusts it with prayer, overwhelms and stupefies the
brain, deprives the soul of wisdom, judgment, resolution and courage,
weakening all its powers; in a word, it is like a hard winter, blasting all
the earth’s beauty, and numbing all animal life; for it deprives the soul of
sweetness and power in every faculty.

Should you, my daughter, ever be attacked by this evil spirit of sadness,
make use of the following remedies. “Is any among you afflicted?” says S.
James, “let him pray.” [189] Prayer is a sovereign remedy, it lifts the mind
to God, Who is our only Joy and Consolation. But when you pray let your
words and affections, whether interior or exterior, all tend to love and
trust in God. “O God of Mercy, most Loving Lord, Sweet Saviour, Lord of my
heart, my Joy, my Hope, my Beloved, my Bridegroom.”

Vigorously resist all tendencies to melancholy, and although all you do may
seem to be done coldly, wearily and indifferently, do not give in. The Enemy
strives to make us languid in doing good by depression, but when he sees
that we do not cease our efforts to work, and that those efforts become all
the more earnest by reason of their being made in resistance to him, he
leaves off troubling us.

Make use of hymns and spiritual songs; they have often frustrated the Evil
One in his operations, as was the case when the evil spirit which possessed
Saul was driven forth by music and psalmody. It is well also to occupy
yourself in external works, and that with as much variety as may lead us to
divert the mind from the subject which oppresses it, and to cheer and kindle
it, for depression generally makes us dry and cold. Use external acts of
fervour, even though they are tasteless at the time; embrace your crucifix,
clasp it to your breast, kiss the Feet and Hands of your Dear Lord, raise
hands and eyes to Heaven, and cry out to God in loving, trustful
ejaculations: “My Beloved is mine, and I am His. 1 [190] A bundle of myrrh
is my Well-beloved, He shall lie within my breast. Mine eyes long sore for
Thy Word, O when wilt Thou comfort me! [191] O Jesus, be Thou my Saviour,
and my soul shall live. Who shall separate me from the Love of Christ?”
[192] etc.

Moderate bodily discipline is useful in resisting depression, because it
rouses the mind from dwelling on itself; and frequent Communion is specially
valuable; the Bread of Life strengthens the heart and gladdens the spirits.

Lay bare all the feelings, thoughts and longings which are the result of
your depression to your confessor or director, in all humility and
faithfulness; seek the society of spiritually-minded people, and frequent
such as far as possible while you are suffering. And, finally, resign
yourself into God’s Hands, endeavouring to bear this harassing depression
patiently, as a just punishment for past idle mirth. Above all, never doubt
but that, after He has tried you sufficiently, God will deliver you from the
trial.
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[187] 2 Cor. vii. 10.

[188] “Multos enim occidit tristitia, et non est utilitas in illa.” Ecclus.
xxx. 25.

[189] S. James v. 13.

[190] Cant. ii. 16.

[191] Ps. cxix. 82.

[192] Rom. viii 35.
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CHAPTER XIII. Of Spiritual and Sensible Consolations, and how to receive them.

THE order of God’s Providence maintains a perpetual vicissitude in the
material being of this world; day is continually turning to night, spring to
summer, summer to autumn, autumn to winter, winter to spring; no two days
are ever exactly alike. Some are foggy, rainy, some dry or windy; and this
endless variety greatly enhances the beauty of the universe. And even so
precisely is it with man (who, as ancient writers have said, is a miniature
of the world), for he is never long in any one condition, and his life on
earth flows by like the mighty waters, heaving and tossing with an endless
variety of motion; one while raising him on high with hope, another plunging
him low in fear; now turning him to the right with rejoicing, then driving
him to the left with sorrows; and no single day, no, not even one hour, is
entirely the same as any other of his life.

All this is a very weighty warning, and teaches us to aim at an abiding and
unchangeable evenness of mind amid so great an uncertainty of events; and,
while all around is changing, we must seek to remain immoveable, ever
looking to, reaching after and desiring our God. Let the ship take what tack
you will, let her course be eastward or westward, northern or southern, let
any wind whatsoever fill her sails, but meanwhile her compass will never
cease to point to its one unchanging lodestar. Let all around us be
overthrown, nay more, all within us; I mean let our soul be sad or glad, in
bitterness or joy, at peace or troubled, dry and parched, or soft and
fruitful, let the sun scorch, or the dew refresh it; but all the while the
magnet of our heart and mind, our superior will, which is our moral compass,
must continually point to the Love of God our Creator, our Saviour, our only
Sovereign Good. “Whether we live, we live unto the Lord, or whether we die,
we die unto the Lord; whether we live therefore or die, we are the Lord’s.
Who shall separate us from the Love of Christ?” [193] Nay, verily, nothing
can ever separate us from that Love;—neither tribulation nor distress,
neither death nor life, neither present suffering nor fear of ills to come;
neither the deceits of evil spirits nor the heights of satisfaction, nor the
depths of sorrow; neither tenderness nor desolation, shall be able to
separate us from that Holy Love, whose foundation is in Christ Jesus. Such a
fixed resolution never to forsake God, or let go of His Precious Love,
serves as ballast to our souls, and will keep them stedfast amid the endless
changes and chances of this our natural life. For just as bees, when
overtaken by a gust of wind, carry little pebbles to weight themselves,
[194] in order that they may resist the storm, and not be driven at its
will,—so the soul, which has firmly grasped the Unchanging Love of God, will
abide unshaken amid the changes and vicissitudes of consolations and
afflictions,—whether spiritual or temporal, external or internal.

But let us come to some special detail, beyond this general doctrine.

1. I would say, then, that devotion does not consist in conscious sweetness
and tender consolations, which move one to sighs and tears, and bring about
a kind of agreeable, acceptable sense of self-satisfaction. No, my child,
this is not one and the same as devotion, for you will find many persons who
do experience these consolations, yet who, nevertheless, are evilminded, and
consequently are devoid of all true Love of God, still more of all true
devotion. When Saul was in pursuit of David, who fled from him into the
wilderness of En-gedi, he entered into a cave alone, wherein David and his
followers were hidden; and David could easily have killed him, but he not
only spared Saul’s life, he would not even frighten him; but, letting him
depart quietly, hastened after the King, to affirm his innocence, and tell
him how he had been at the mercy of his injured servant. Thereupon Saul
testified to the softening of his heart by tender words, calling David his
son, and exalting his generosity; lifting up his voice, he wept, and,
foretelling David’s future greatness, besought him to deal kindly with
Saul’s “seed after him.” [195] What more could Saul have done? Yet for all
this he had not changed his real mind, and continued to persecute David as
bitterly as before. Just so there are many people who, while contemplating
the Goodness of God, or the Passion of His Dear Son, feel an emotion which
leads to sighs, tears, and very lively prayers and thanksgivings, so that it
might fairly be supposed that their hearts were kindled by a true
devotion;—but when put to the test, all this proves but as the passing
showers of a hot summer, which splash down in large drops, but do not
penetrate the soil, or make it to bring forth anything better than
mushrooms. In like manner these tears and emotions do not really touch an
evil heart, but are altogether fruitless;—inasmuch as in spite of them all
those poor people would not renounce one farthing of illgotten gain, or one
unholy affection; they would not suffer the slightest worldly inconvenience
for the Sake of the Saviour over Whom they wept. So that their pious
emotions may fairly be likened to spiritual fungi,—as not merely falling
short of real devotion, but often being so many snares of the Enemy, who
beguiles souls with these trivial consolations, so as to make them stop
short, and rest satisfied therewith, instead of seeking after true solid
devotion, which consists in a firm, resolute, ready, active will, prepared
to do whatsoever is acceptable to God. A little child, who sees the surgeon
bleed his mother, will cry when he sees the lancet touch her; but let that
mother for whom he weeps ask for his apple or a sugar-plum which he has in
his hand, and he will on no account part with it; and too much of our
seeming devotion is of this kind. We weep feelingly at the spear piercing
the Crucified Saviour’s Side, and we do well,—but why cannot we give Him the
apple we hold, for which He asks, heartily? I mean our heart, the only
love-apple which that Dear Saviour craves of us. Why cannot we resign the
numberless trifling attachments, indulgences, and self-complacencies of
which He fain would deprive us, only we will not let Him do so; because they
are the sugar-plums, sweeter to our taste than His Heavenly Grace? Surely
this is but as the fondness of children;—demonstrative, but weak,
capricious, unpractical. Devotion does not consist in such exterior displays
of a tenderness which may be purely the result of a naturally
impressionable, plastic character; or which may be the seductive action of
the Enemy, or an excitable imagination stirred up by him.

2. Nevertheless these tender warm emotions are sometimes good and useful,
for they kindle the spiritual appetite, cheer the mind, and infuse a holy
gladness into the devout life, which embellishes all we do even externally.
It was such a taste for holy things that made David cry out, “O how sweet
are Thy words unto my throat, yea, sweeter than honey unto my mouth.” [196]
And assuredly the tiniest little comfort received through devotion is worth
far more than the most abundant delights of this world. The milk of the
Heavenly Bridegroom, in other words His spiritual favours, are sweeter to
the soul than the costliest wine of the pleasures of this world, and to
those who have tasted thereof all else seems but as gall and wormwood. There
is a certain herb which, if chewed, imparts so great a sweetness that they
who keep it in their mouth cannot hunger or thirst; even so those to whom
God gives His Heavenly manna of interior sweetness and consolation, cannot
either desire or even accept worldly consolations with any real zest or
satisfaction. It is as a little foretaste of eternal blessedness which God
gives to those who seek it; it is as the sugar-plum with which He attracts
His little ones; as a cordial offered to strengthen their heart; as the
first-fruits of their future reward. The legend tells us that Alexander the
Great discovered Arabia Felix by means of the perfumes carried by the winds
across the ocean upon which he sailed, reviving his courage and that of his
comrades. And so the blessings and sweetnesses, which are wafted to us as we
sail across the stormy sea of this mortal life, are a foretaste of the bliss
of that Ever-blessed Heavenly Home to which we look and long.

3. But, perhaps you will say, if there are sensible consolations which are
undoubtedly good and come from God, and at the same time others which are
unprofitable, perilous, even harmful, because they proceed from mere natural
causes, or even from the Enemy himself, how am I to know one from the other,
or distinguish what is most profitable even among those which are good? It
is a general rule, with respect to the feelings and affections, that their
test is in their fruits. Our hearts are as trees, of which the affections
and passions are their branches, and deeds and acts their fruits. That is, a
good heart, of which the affections are good, and those are good affections
which result in good and holy actions. If our spiritual tenderness and
sweetness and consolation make us more humble,—patient, forbearing,
charitable and kindly towards our neighbours,—more earnest in mortifying our
own evil inclinations and lusts, more diligent in our duties, more docile
and submissive to those who have a claim to our obedience, more simple in
our whole manner of life,—then doubtless, my daughter, they come from God.
But if this sweetness and tenderness is sweet only to ourselves, if we are
fanciful, bitter, punctilious, impatient, obstinate, proud, presumptuous,
harsh towards our neighbour, while reckoning ourselves as half-made saints,
indocile to correction or guidance, then we may be assured our consolations
are spurious and hurtful. A good tree will bring forth none save good fruit.

4. If we are favoured with any such sweetness, we must humble ourselves
deeply before God, and beware of being led to cry out “How good I am!” No
indeed, such gifts do not make us any better, for, as I have already said,
devotion does not consist in such things; rather let us say, “How good God
is to those who hope in Him, and to the souls that seek Him!” If a man has
sugar in his mouth, he cannot call his mouth sweet, but the sugar; and so
although our spiritual sweetness is admirable, and God Who imparts it is all
good, it by no means follows that he who receives it is good. Let us count
ourselves but as little children, having need of milk, and believe that
these sugar-plums are only given us because we are still feeble and
delicate, needing bribes and wiles to lead us on to the Love of God. But, as
a general rule, we shall do well to receive all such graces and favours
humbly, making much of them, not for their own importance, but rather
because it is God’s Hand which fills our hearts with them, as a mother
coaxes her child with one sugar-plum after another. If the child were wise,
he would prize the loving caresses of his mother, more than the material
sugar-plum, however sweet. So while it is a great thing to have spiritual
sweetnesses, the sweetest of all is to know that it is the loving parental
Hand of God which feeds us, heart, mind and soul, with them. And, having
received them humbly, let us be diligent in using them according to the
intention of the Giver. Why do you suppose God gives us such sweetness? To
make us kinder one to another, and more loving towards Him. A mother gives
her child a sweetmeat to win a kiss; be it ours reverently to kiss the
Saviour Who gives us these good things. And by kissing Him, I mean obeying
Him, keeping His Commandments, doing His Will, heeding His wishes, in a
word, embracing Him tenderly, obediently, and faithfully. So the day on
which we have enjoyed some special spiritual consolation should be marked by
extra diligence and humility. And from time to time it is well to renounce
all such, realising to ourselves that although we accept and cherish them
humbly, because they come from God, and kindle His Love in our hearts, still
they are not our main object, but God and His Holy Love;—that we seek less
the consolation than the Consoler, less His tangible sweetness than our
sweet Saviour, less external pleasure than Him Who is the Delight of Heaven
and earth; and with such a mind we should resolve to abide stedfast in
God’s Holy Love, even if our whole life were to be utterly devoid of all
sweetness; as ready to abide on Mount Calvary as on Mount Tabor; to cry out,
“It is good for us to be here,” whether with our Lord on the Cross or in
glory.

Lastly, I advise you to take counsel with your director concerning any
unusual flow of consolations or emotions, so that he may guide you in their
wise usage; for it is written, “Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is
sufficient for thee.” [197]
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[193] Rom. xiv. 8, and viii. 35.

[194] This notion seems to have arisen from the habits of the solitary mason
bee, which early writers did not distinguish from other bees.

[195] 1 Sam. xxiv.

[196] Ps. cxix. 103.

[197] Prov. xxv. 16.
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CHAPTER XIV. Of Dryness and Spiritual Barrenness.

SO much for what is to be done in times of spiritual consolations. But these
bright days will not last for ever, and sometimes you will be so devoid of
all devout feelings, that it will seem to you that your soul is a desert
land, fruitless, sterile, wherein you can find no path leading to God, no
drop of the waters of Grace to soften the dryness which threatens to choke
it entirely. Verily, at such a time the soul is greatly to be pitied, above
all, when this trouble presses heavily, for then, like David, its meat are
tears day and night, while the Enemy strives to drive it to despair, crying
out, “Where is now thy God? how thinkest thou to find Him, or how wilt thou
ever find again the joy of His Holy Grace?”

What will you do then, my child? Look well whence the trial comes, for we
are often ourselves the cause of our own dryness and barrenness. A mother
refuses sugar to her sickly child, and so God deprives us of consolations
when they do but feed self-complacency or presumption. “It is good for me
that I have been in trouble, for before I was troubled I went wrong.” [198]
So if we neglect to gather up and use the treasures of God’s Love in due
time, He withdraws them as a punishment of our sloth. The Israelite who
neglected to gather his store of manna in the early morning, found none
after sunrise, for it was all melted. Sometimes, too, we are like the Bride
of the Canticles, slumbering on a bed of sensual satisfaction and perishable
delight, so that when the Bridegroom knocks at the door of our heart, and
calls us to our spiritual duties, we dally with Him, loath to quit our idle
and delusive pleasures, and then He “withdraws Himself, and is gone,” and
“when I sought Him, I could not find Him; I called Him, but He gave me no
answer.” [199] Of a truth we deserved as much for having been so disloyal as
to have rejected Him for the things of this world. If we are content with
the fleshpots of Egypt we shall never receive heavenly manna. Bees abhor all
artificial scents, and the sweetness of the Holy Spirit is incompatible with
the world’s artificial pleasures.

Again, any duplicity or unreality in confession or spiritual intercourse
with your director tends to dryness and barrenness, for, if you lie to
God’s Holy Spirit, you can scarcely wonder that He refuses you His comfort.
If you do not choose to be simple and honest as a little child, you will not
win the child’s sweetmeats.

Or you have satiated yourself with worldly delights; and so no wonder that
spiritual pleasures are repulsive to you. “To the overfed dove even cherries
are bitter,” says an old proverb; and Our Lady in her song of praise says,
“He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He hath sent empty
away.” They who abound in earthly pleasures are incapable of appreciating
such as are spiritual.

If you have carefully stored up the fruits of past consolations, you will
receive more; “to him that hath yet more shall be given,” but from him who
has not kept that which he had, who has lost it through carelessness, that
which he hath shall be taken away, in other words, he will not receive the
grace destined for him. Rain refreshes living plants, but it only brings
rottenness and decay to those which are already dead. There are many such
causes whereby we lose the consolations of religion, and fall into dryness
and deadness of spirit, so that it is well to examine our conscience, and
see if we can trace any of these or similar faults. But always remember that
this examination must not be made anxiously, or in an over-exacting spirit.
Thus if, after an honest investigation of our own conduct, we find the cause
of our wrongdoing, we must thank God, for an evil is half cured when we have
found out its cause. But if, on the contrary, you do not find any particular
thing which has led to this dryness, do not trifle away your time in a
further uneasy search, but, without more ado, and in all simplicity, do as
follows:—

1. Humble yourself profoundly before God, acknowledging your nothingness and
misery. Alas, what am I when left to myself! no better, Lord, than a parched
ground, whose cracks and crevices on every side testify its need of the
gracious rain of Heaven, while, nevertheless, the world’s blasts wither it
more and more to dust.

2. Call upon God, and ask for His Gladness. “O give me the comfort of Thy
help again! My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.”
“Depart, O ye unfruitful wind, which parcheth up my soul, and come, O
gracious south wind, blow upon my garden.” Such loving desires will fill you
with the perfume of holiness.

3. Go to your confessor, open your heart thoroughly, let him see every
corner of your soul, and take all his advice with the utmost simplicity and
humility, for God loves obedience, and He often makes the counsel we take,
specially that of the guides of souls, to be more useful than would seem
likely; just as He caused the waters of Jordan, commended by Elijah to
Naaman, to cure his leprosy in spite of the improbability to human reason.

4. But, after all, nothing is so useful, so fruitful amid this dryness and
barrenness, as not to yield to a passionate desire of being delivered from
it. I do not say that one may not desire to be set free, but only that one
ought not to desire it over-eagerly, but to leave all to the sole Mercy of
God’s special Providence, in order that, so long as He pleases, He may keep
us amid these thorns and longings. Let us say to God at such seasons, “O my
Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; ”—but let us add
heartily, “Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done,” and there let us
abide as trustingly as we are able. When God sees us to be filled with such
pious indifference, He will comfort us with His grace and favour, as when He
beheld Abraham ready to offer up his son Isaac, and comforted him with His
blessing. In every sort of affliction, then, whether bodily or spiritual, in
every manner of distraction or loss of sensible devotion, let us say with
our whole heart, and in the deepest submission, “The Lord gave me all my
blessings, the Lord taketh them away, blessed be the Name of the Lord.” If
we persevere in this humility, He will restore to us His mercies as he did
to Job, who ever spake thus amid all his troubles. 5. And lastly, my
daughter, amid all our dryness let us never grow discouraged, but go
steadily on, patiently waiting the return of better things; let us never be
misled to give up any devout practices because of it, but rather if
possible, let us increase our good works, and if we cannot offer liquid
preserves to our Bridegroom, let us at least offer Him dried fruit—it is all
one to Him, so long as the heart we offer be fully resolved to love Him. In
fine weather bees make more honey and breed fewer grubs, because they spend
so much time in gathering the sweet juices of the flowers that they neglect
the multiplication of their race. But in a cold, cloudy spring they have a
fuller hive and less honey. And so sometimes, my daughter, in the glowing
springtide of spiritual consolations, the soul spends so much time in
storing them up, that amid such abundance it performs fewer good works;
while, on the contrary, when amid spiritual dryness and bitterness, and
devoid of all that is attractive in devotion, it multiplies its substantial
good works, and abounds in the hidden virtues of patience, humility,
self-abnegation, resignation and unselfishness.

Some people, especially women, fall into the great mistake of imagining that
when we offer a dry, distasteful service to God, devoid of all sentiment and
emotion, it is unacceptable to His Divine Majesty; whereas, on the contrary,
our actions are like roses, which, though they may be more beautiful when
fresh, have a sweeter and stronger scent when they are dried. Good works,
done with pleasurable interest, are pleasanter to us who think of nothing
save our own satisfaction, but when they are done amid dryness and deadness
they are more precious in God’s Sight. Yes indeed, my daughter, for in
seasons of dryness our will forcibly carries us on in God’s Service, and so
it is stronger and more vigorous than at a softer time. There is not much to
boast of in serving our Prince in the comfort of a time of peace, but to
serve Him amid the toils and hardness of war, amid trial and persecution, is
a real proof of faithfulness and perseverance. The blessed Angela di Foligni
said, that the most acceptable prayer to God is what is made forcibly and in
spite of ourselves; that is to say, prayer made not to please ourselves or
our own taste, but solely to please God;—carried on, as it were, in spite of
inclination, the will triumphing over all our drynesses and repugnances. And
so of all good works;—the more contradictions, exterior or interior, against
which we contend in their fulfilment, the more precious they are in God’s
Sight; the less of self-pleasing in striving after any virtue, the more
Divine Love shines forth in all its purity. A child is easily moved to
fondle its mother when she gives it sweet things, but if he kisses her in
return for wormwood or camomile it is a proof of very real affection on his
part.
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[198] Ps. cxix. 67, 71.

[199] Cant. v. 2-7.
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CHAPTER XV. An Illustration.

LET me illustrate what I have said by an anecdote of Saint Bernard.

It is common to most beginners in God’s Service, being as yet inexperienced
in the fluctuations of grace and in spiritual vicissitudes, that when they
lose the glow of sensible devotion, and the first fascinating lights which
led them in their first steps towards God, they lose heart, and fall into
depression and discouragement. Those who are practised in the matter say
that it is because our human nature cannot bear a prolonged deprivation of
some kind of satisfaction, either celestial or earthly; and so as souls,
which have been raised beyond their natural level by a taste of superior
joys, readily renounce visible delights when the higher joys are taken away,
as well as those more earthly pleasures, they, not being yet trained to a
patient waiting for the true sunshine, fancy that there is no light either
in heaven or earth, but that they are plunged in perpetual darkness. They
are just like newly-weaned babes, who fret and languish for want of the
breast, and are a weariness to every one, especially to themselves.

Just so it fell out with a certain Geoffroy de Peronne, a member of S.
Bernard’s community, newly dedicated to God’s Service, during a journey
which he and some others were making. He became suddenly dry, deprived of
all consolations, and amid his interior darkness he began to think of the
friends and relations he had parted from, and of his worldly pursuits and
interests, until the temptation grew so urgent that his outward aspect
betrayed it, and one of those most in his confidence perceiving that he was
sorely troubled, accosted him tenderly, asking him secretly, “What means
this, Geoffroy? and what makes thee, contrary to thy wont, so pensive and
sad?” Whereupon Geoffroy, sighing heavily, made answer, “Woe is me, my
brother, never again in my life shall I be glad!”

The other was moved to pity by these words, and in his fraternal love he
hastened to tell it all to their common father S. Bernard, and he, realising
the danger, went into the nearest church to pray for Geoffroy, who meanwhile
cast himself down in despair, and, resting his head on a stone, fell asleep.
After a while both rose up, the one full of grace won by prayer, the other
from his sleep, with so peaceful and gladsome a countenance, that his
friend, marvelling to see so great and unexpected a change, could not
refrain from gently reproaching him for his recent words. Thereupon Geoffroy
answered, “If just now I told thee that I should never more be glad, so now
I promise thee I will never more be sad!” Such was the result of this devout
man’s temptation; but from this history I would have you observe:—

1. That God is wont to give some foretaste of His heavenly joys to beginners
in His Service, the better to wean them from earthly pleasures, and to
encourage them in seeking His Divine Love, even as a mother attracts her
babe to suck by means of honey.

2. That nevertheless it is the same Good God Who sometimes in His Wisdom
deprives us of the milk and honey of His consolations, in order that we may
learn to eat the dry substantial bread of a vigorous devotion, trained by
means of temptations and trials.

3. That sometimes very grievous temptations arise out of dryness and
barrenness, and that at such times these temptations must be stedfastly
resisted, inasmuch as they are not of God; but the dryness must be patiently
endured, because He sends that to prove us. 4. That we must never grow
discouraged amid our inward trials, nor say, like Geoffroy, “I shall never
be glad;” but through the darkness we must look for light; and in like
manner, in the brightest spiritual sunshine, we must not presume to say, “I
shall never be sad.” Rather we must remember the saying of the Wise Man, “In
the day of prosperity remember the evil.” [200] It behoves us to hope amid
trials, and to fear in prosperity, and in both circumstances always to be
humble.

5. That it is a sovereign remedy to open our grief to some spiritual friend
able to assist us.

And, in conclusion, I would observe that here, as everywhere, our Gracious
God and our great Enemy are in conflict, for by means of these trials God
would bring us to great purity of heart, to an entire renunciation of
self-interest in all concerning His Service, and a perfect castin