The Secret of Sanctity Accroding to SFS

There is no moment when God is not present with us under the appearance of some obligation or some duty.

All that is effected within us, about us, and through us involves and hides His divine action: it is veritably present, though in an invisible manner; therefore we do not discern it, and only recognize its workings when it has ceased to act. Could we pierce the veil which obscures it, and were we vigilant and attentive, God would unceasingly reveal Himself to us, and we could recognize His action in all that befell us. At every event we should exclaim, Dominus est ! It is the Lord ! And we should feel each circumstance of our life an especial gift from Him. (" Abandonment to Divine Providence.")

Just as Our Lord is in His sacrament of love by His real presence, so is He in each of our actions by His real will. . . . Jesus, only, in our minds to enlighten them; Jesus, only, in our hearts to possess them; Jesus, only, in our lives to sanctify them. (Father de Ravignan.)

Oh, that men would abandon themselves to God ! . . . There are so few who understand what God would make of them if they permitted Him to do as He wills. (St. Ignatius.)

CHAPTER I: OF THE REGULATION OF OUR ACTIONS.

I. ADVANTAGES OF A RULE.

Of the Blessing of a Life marked by Order. Order and virtue are almost synonymous terms. Order is the guide of virtue, and virtue is the guide of order. Whatever good you do, if you do it not in order, you do it not well. Reason requires some times that we depart from the order we have prescribed ; only to follow, however, a more perfect order required by necessity, charity, infirmity, or obedience. Inclination is the guide of beasts ; reason of man; the Gospel of Christians; the rule of religious ; order of all creatures. Which will you choose ? It is order which makes paradise, and disorder which makes hell. If your life is marked by order, you will be happy ; if your life is one of disorder, you will be miserable. Who may live in peace, making war against God ? And who makes war against Him if not he who disturbs His order?

Were you at peace when your life was one of disorder? Is not a soldier who leaves his post punished at once by his captain ? All that disturbs order disturbs peace, and he who is not at peace with God will never be at peace with himself. Seek the cause of your troubles.

Order assigns each thing its place ; it preserves to all creatures their rank, their office, their employment ; and this it is which constitutes their repose. If you keep order, it will keep you ; if you disturb order, it will disturb you ; if you destroy order, it will destroy you.

Contemplate the universe and you will see that it is order which constitutes the beauty, the perfection, the peace, and the happiness of all creatures. What is an army without order but a troop of victims led to death ? What is a kingdom without order but a horde of brigands living by murder and rapine ? What is religion without order but a body without a soul, all the parts of which are divided and detached? What is man without order but a chaos of passion waging mortal warfare and creating absolute confusion ?

If the Church is an army, it is order which places it in battle-array ; if the Church is a ship, order is its pilot and guide ; if the Church is a body, it is order which constitutes its life ; if the Church is a kingdom, by order is it governed. The same may be said of religion.

Order is the creator, so to speak, of the world ; this it is which preserves and repairs it. From order do we proceed, by order are we maintained, through order do we live. All that God does is marked by order, and all that bears not this mark of order is not of God. Order leads us to God. We cannot go to a contrary by its contrary. God is order by essence ; never will disorder lead us to God.

Reflection, Is your state one of order ? Is order your rule? Are your actions regulated ? Do you do each thing in its appointed time? Are you not guided by inclination or caprice ? Is your will sufficiently upright to serve you as a rule or guide ? If so, your sanctity equals that of God; for He alone can take His will as His guide and rule. Now what is more ill-regulated than yours ? What merit would you have in doing only as you please ? You serve God only by your actions, and if your actions are not marked by order how can they be pleasing to God ?

Practice. Prescribe a certain order for your day and let nothing disturb it short of a command of a superior to forego or interrupt it. Regulate the time for your meals, for your work, and for your recreation. Order is the law of heaven ; begin therefore here on earth a life which you will continue throughout eternity, a life which will be more pleasing to God, more convenient for those about you, and more profitable for your salvation. God dwells in order and peace ; the Evil One in trouble and discord. Which of these two do you wish to follow ? Which would you resemble ?

False Maxims Destroyed. There is no doubt that one must abandon a prescribed order to follow the inspiration of the Holy Spirit ; but how do you know that your impulse is a movement of grace and not of nature ; of the Spirit of God and not of the spirit of evil ? The Holy Spirit is a spirit of order that inspires in souls submission and dependence. He withdraws men from the servitude of their passions, but not from the obedience they owe to the law. When rules are not binding, He would have us follow them without being bound thereby ; when they are of precept, He would have us observe them without dispensing ourselves there from. The unction of divine grace does not make us reject the yoke of God s law, but helps us to bear it,

Happy he who abandons himself to the guidance of God and does nothing but by His orders, who constantly studies His will, who holds himself ever ready at the least sign to go forward, to pause, to watch, or to rest.

II. RULE OF LIFE:

I. Have a fixed hour for rising ; from seven to eight hours sleep are usually sufficient. Beware of beginning your day by sacrificing to sloth hours every moment of which may avail you for eternity.

Let your first thought be of God ; let it refer as much as possible to the subject of your meditation, and let it be accompanied with the resolution to combat the fault which is the subject of your particular examen.

II. Give as much time as possible each day to prayer; determine this time according to your occupation, your attraction, and the advice of your director. Let your heart take much more part in this holy exercise than your mind; and let the mysteries of the life and passion of your Saviour be the usual subject.

III. Do not voluntarily deprive yourself, even for a day, of the inestimable happiness of assisting at the holy sacrifice of the Mass. Unite yourself to Our Lord by means of spiritual communion; offer yourself with Him to God His Father, and ask with perfect confidence, through the merits of His sacrifice, the graces of which you stand in need. Do not fail to pray thus and to offer all your actions of the day in union with the merits of Jesus Christ, for the conversion of infidels, heretics, and sinners, for the progress of the just, and the triumph of our holy mother, the Church.

IV. Give a certain time each day to the reading of a good book according to the advice of your director. Read it in the presence of God, Who speaks to you Himself. Reflect upon what you read; relish it; ask God to give you the grace to carry out the good desires with which He inspires you by means of this reading. Reading made in this way is a sort of easy meditation, and when we are deprived of a sermon may take its place.

V. Say your rosary every day, either alone or with others, and as you recite it accustom yourself to meditate affectionately on the mysteries of Our Saviour and of His holy Mother. This is the easiest and frequently the most fruitful of all meditations.

VI. Make a daily visit, if possible, to the Blessed Sacrament; go to Our Lord with the simplicity of a child; confide to His heart your joys, your sorrows, your temptations, and your faults.

VII. The life of a Christian should be a continual exercise of penance. Mortify yourself in common and ordinary things; nothing is more necessary in order to establish in your soul the empire of grace and destroy that of nature. Here are a few practices to this end: Resist your inclination to do something which is useless. Keep careful guard over your eyes. Refrain from raillery. Withhold a clever word likely to wound, or intended merely to satisfy self-love. Do not seek what merely flatters sensuality. Regulate innocent pleasures. Refrain sometimes, through a spirit of penance, even from permitted pleasures. Moderate that excessive tenderness we all have for ourselves. Detach your mind from pleasurable sentiments. Speak little and with moderation. Be courteous and kind to persons for whom you feel an antipathy. Be silent under affliction, and bear your cross with resignation.

VIII. Devote yourself to your labor as well as to the fulfilment of all your duties energetically and with a pure intention to please God and make yourself useful to your neighbor. Do not forget that the most indifferent actions acquire, through a fervent intention, inappreciable merit for eternity. Raise your heart to God from time to time by means of fervent ejaculations, that it may not be narrowed and absorbed by earthly occupations.

IX. Let no meal pass without offering a slight mortification to your Saviour, Who accepted the bitter draught on the cross for love of you. These little sacrifices will avail you many graces, and will preserve you from the dangers of sensuality.

X. Go to bed as far as possible at a fixed hour, and before doing so carefully make your particular examen as well as a general examination of the day. Let there be, if possible, family prayer, that your petitions thus united maybe more efficacious before God, and more advantageous to your children and to your servants.

XI. Go to confession at least every fortnight) prepare yourself for it in the morning during your meditation and the holy sacrifice of the Mass. Give more care to exciting yourself to sincere contrition for your faults than to enumerating them with great accuracy.

XII. Receive Communion as frequently as your director permits; bring to this great action all the devotion and care of which you are capable; and remember that the disposition God asks of you is not sensible fervor, which is not always in your power, but profound humility and a sincere desire to be united with Him.

XIII. In your relations with the members of your family and those about you be full of consideration, kindness, and devotion; endeavor to make piety loved through you. Avoid with the greatest care that spirit of criticism, those little jealousies, petty weaknesses, and caprices which many vainly seek to reconcile with true piety.

XIV. When you go out into the world avoid with equal care unseemly levity and repellant austerity, and while the politeness of the old school seems to be disappearing more and more, endeavor to revive it in your social intercourse by that delicate courtesy, thoughtful consideration, and simple, modest bearing which are the natural outcome of humility and Christian charity.

XV. Be inflexible in regard to dangerous books and plays. Let even innocent pleasures be moderate. Banish evil pleasures. The day you yield in this point you will take the first step in downward course from which there is no redemption.

XVI. If God has placed you in a position to give yourself to good works, let them be your pleasantest recreation. Remember that in helping the poor and the afflicted you are helping Jesus Christ Himself, and that they, in thus affording you the means of meriting the gratitude of your God and the indulgence of your Judge, confer a greater benefit upon you than you can bestow upon them. Regulate your expenses, moderate your attachment to the things of this world, and remember that you will be judged by a God Who for love of you bore poverty, humility, and suffering. If your crucified Saviour wills to give you a small share of His sufferings, do not forget that the cross is the only incontestable mark of real love and the strongest bond by which your soul maybe united with God. This conviction will give you strength to overcome the repugnance of nature and to bless God in the midst of the most cruel trials.

XVII. Select a day each month to prepare yourself for death, and on that day perform each duty as faithfully as if it were to be the last of your life. Go to confession and receive Communion as viaticum. Examine what might trouble you at such an hour: unjust possessions, doubts, restitutions unmade, unreconciled quarrels, etc. Repeat the acts made by the dying : acts of resignation, acts accepting the time, the place, the manner of the death God wishes you to die; acts of thanksgiving, of lively faith, of hope, of confidence, of sincere sorrow, of love of God, etc. Invoke Jesus crucified; implore the Blessed Virgin, your angel guardian, your patron saint, to plead for you, and when you lie down to rest regard your bed as your tomb.

XVIII. Faithful devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and His blessed Mother is regarded as a certain means of salvation. Zealously embrace it. Unite yourself with confraternities established in their honor; practices enjoined by these associations are not onerous, do not oblige under pain of sin, and are enriched with numerous indulgences. Nourish also in your soul sincere devotion to St.

Joseph, the spouse of Our Lady, to the holy angels, and the saint whose name you received in Baptism. Finally pray frequently for the dying and for the souls in purgatory.

CHAPTER II: THE FIRST ACTIONS OF THE DAY.

THE FIRST-FRUITS OF OUR ACTIONS.

The beginning in everything is very important. The first-fruits of our thoughts, of our affections, of our works, are tributes due to God. The manner in which we spend our day depends very much upon the beginning; this is why the Evil One makes every effort to destroy the tree at the root and to rob God of this first homage due only to Him. Therefore when you get up in the morning your first thought, your first word, your first action, should be given to God. Do you do this ?

Rising. When we are in bed and inclined to sleep is not the time for deliberating whether we should get up or not. If you parley with nature it will inevitably triumph over you. It will tell you it is cold, that you are indisposed, that you have spent a bad night, that if you are not made ill by early rising, then you will fall asleep during prayer; that one prays better and grace acts more efficaciously when the body is well cared for; that rest is necessary if we would labor well, and that it is better to take too much than too little. Is it not with such arguments that nature persuades you to keep your pillow, and to resist the inspiration to overcome yourself and rise promptly ?

Determine the previous evening the hour for rising, and when the hour comes let nothing, short of serious indisposition, prevent you from being faithful to your determination.

Begin your day with this slight act of mortification; remember that if you refuse God this little sacrifice it will enable the Evil One to rejoice at your expense ; while, if you are generous, this act of fidelity will bring you many graces from Heaven and preserve you from many faults into which you are liable to fall during the day.

Believe me, you will lose nothing by making this little sacrifice of your rest to God; you have to do with a Master Who is magnificent in His rewards, and Who will not fail to let you reap at another time the sweet fruits of your patience.

Of too Great Care of One’s Health. There are some people so tender of their bodies that they imagine themselves prostrated by the least indisposition, and obliged to abandon their exercises of piety. They are constantly occupied with their ailments ; speak of them to every one ; leave no remedy untried ; consult innumerable physicians; in short, it would seem as though their life was one of the columns of nature with the destruction of which the world must come to an end. They consult Hippocrates and Galen as the gods of health; and never consult Jesus Christ, the sole Author and Preserver of our life.

Remedies and Recourse to God. I am far from blaming reasonable care of one s health or the consulting of physicians when the illness is serious; but unless you are obliged to keep your bed I would not advise you to do so. Do not yield to every little indisposition; keep about as long as you can. God desires to be the physician of your body as well as of your soul. How many saints have found their ailments increase with remedies and diminish when they took none. Happy is he who makes his body a continual victim and who can truly say with St. Paul, " I die daily."

I have dwelt upon this excessive care of health, because St. Thomas says that the temptation of the most spiritual persons is to be too much occupied with their health, as well as with the necessities of the body, under pretext of seeking the glory of God. Moreover, all the vigor of the soul depends upon morning prayer; for this reason the Evil One creates a thousand hindrances, chiefly little ailments, to make you lose it or to make it fruitless.

All the success of our meditation depends upon this first action that is, upon rising promptly and fervently. Alas ! what can one do who has lost the graces given in prayer ? They descended from heaven while you slept; then it was that you should have gathered this heavenly manna; the time for collecting it is past; there is none left for you, and then, how may you venture to present yourself before God to receive His gifts and to enjoy the delight of His company when you have begun your day by an act of infidelity sleeping while others were at prayer ?

The First Thoughts, Words, and Actions. What is your first thought on awakening? What is your first word ? What is your first action ? Your first thought should be raised to God. Your first word should be addressed to God. Your first action should be for God, the seed as it were of all the others. Observe great neatness in your attire. Repeat certain prayers, if you like, while dressing.

Remember to observe modesty at all times. If you do not pray occupy yourself, at least, with some good thought while you are dressing ; or, better still, consider the subject of your meditation, and conceive a great desire to make it well.

Morning Prayer, As soon as you are dressed render God the respect and homage due Him ; adore Him as the Author and Preserver of your being. Thank Him for the grace He has bestowed upon you. Offer Him the actions of the day. Ask Him to bless you ; to strengthen you to combat resolutely your great enemy, which is the sin to which you are most subject. Forecast the occasions of this sin.

Recommend yourself to your good angel and to your holy protectors. Then repeat some vocal prayers. The end depends on the beginning. You will end the day well if you begin it well. See how far you are wanting in this respect, and resolve to amend.

CHAPTER III: MENTAL AND VOCAL PRAYER.

I. MENTAL PRAYER:

We Must Never Neglect our Morning Prayers. As prayer is the food of the soul, the Evil One, who cannot take well a defended garrison, endeavors to weaken it by famine by cutting off all supplies and means of assistance. Therefore he will create pressing business and notable inconveniences to make you abandon meditation, or to persuade you at least to defer it. The morning is the most fitting time ; if you obey his suggestion, you will find no time to make it later, and you will be deprived of the graces destined for you that day. Are you faithful to render this duty to God ? Do you never fail in it ?

Would you be willing to spend a day without eating ? What has your soul done that you should treat it more cruelly and harshly than you treat your body ? " Blessed be God," says David, " Who hath not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me " (Ps. Ixv. 20). Mercy and prayer are two inseparable things; one is the tree and the other is the fruit; one is the source and the other is the stream. If you abandon prayer, God will withdraw His mercy. What! Do you think you can live without food, fight without arms, fly without wings, labor without strength ? Whence do you derive all this if not from prayer ?

What blessing can you expect from God the day that you fail to pray to Him ? But one infidelity of this kind is sufficient to ruin your fortune and prevent you from entering the nuptial hall, where the Bridegroom awaits you.

Method of Prayer. Our prayer should be simple, faithful, humble, respectful, free from negligence as well as excessive constraint. This science is acquired less by study than by experience. Innocent souls should go to God, in a simple childlike manner, as little ones run to the arms of their nurse. They whose minds are filled with the false maxims of the world must be rid of them by means of discourse and reasoning founded on the truths of the Gospel. But they who are convinced of the maxims of our religion should give themselves more to affections than to considerations.

They should ask, desire, call, seek, and sigh incessantly, until they have found the source of living waters, and the spirit tells them : "Thou hast labored! enough; it is now time to rest."

Preparation. Read in the evening before going to bed the subject of your meditation, read it again in the morning, if necessary, when you get up. Enter into the sanctuary of grace with profound, humility, a pure intention, an ardent and sincere desire to honor God and do His will. Occupy yourself with God without being occupied with yourself. Seek Him, like David, in the simplicity of your heart, upright) , and without any mixture of self-satisfaction. Peace of heart, indifference of will, interior satisfaction of soul, whatever our state, whether of consolation or aridity, of light or darkness, are marks that we are seeking God purely, and that our prayer is excellent.

How do you converse with God ? Do you find it difficult to converse with Him ?

Do you not yield to weariness and vexation when you find no satisfaction in prayer? Are you tempted to abandon it entirely ? Why do you not read and learn from books on prayer what you should do? You do much if you love much, and you love much if you suffer with patience the wandering of your mind, the instability of your imagination, bodily discomforts, the temptations of the Evil One, the murmurs of your passions, the vexation and weariness of nature.

Causes of Distractions. Are you favored with consolations ? Be not attached to them. Are you frequently distracted ? Learn the cause. Is it not because you reflect so little during the day ? Is it not because your heart is deeply attached to something? Or is it lack of preparation, or that you refuse God what He asks ? Or may it not be that God wishes to try your patience and make you recognize your weakness ?

Causes of Aridity. You are deprived of consolation; perhaps it is because you desire it too passionately; or you do not endeavor to mortify yourself; or you are unfaithful to the inspiration of God; or you lack a cross; or you are proud and negligent. It may also be that God wishes to purify your soul and detach it from the senses; that He wishes to awaken your love, to excite your desire, to test your fidelity. It may also be that He desires to make you merit some signal grace which He intends to bestow upon you.

Finally it may be that He desires to make you pass from meditation to affection, and from affection to union. Whatever it may be, understand well that dryness is as necessary to the earth as rain, night as day, winter as summer; that only in heaven will consolation be without alloy; that you will not merit it there if you always enjoy it here below; that a prayer of patience is incomparably better than a prayer of delight; and provided you are faithful in this state, and do not abandon meditation, God will visit you when you least expect it and lead you through this frightful desert to the promised land, where you will be fed with an abundance of milk and honey.

II. VOCAL PRAYER.

There are two kinds of vocal prayer; one of precept, like the breviary for bishops, priests, and religious, and the other is optional and of devotion. Prayers of obligation are preferable to those which are only of devotion, and should be recited in their proper time with attention and devotion. The others may be recited or omitted at any time; but if we say them it should be with the requisite devotion.

Illusions of Certain Contemplatives in Regard to Vocal Prayer. We must beware of despising vocal prayer; for besides being frequently of obligation, it is holy and approved by the Church. The Son of God gave us an example and prescribed the form of this prayer. What! Are only the imperfect to recite the Lord s Prayer? Are we not to honor God with the mind, the body, the tongue, and the heart?

Superstitious Devotees. Let your prayer be regulated by your director. Generally speaking, it is better to pray with the heart than with the tongue, and to say the Lord’s Prayer with attention than to recite innumerable prayers carelessly.

Choice of various Vocal Prayers. Among vocal prayers, give preference to the one which Our Lord composed and taught us, through the respect due its Author, or because of the things it contains, or because it is fitted to ask for all our needs. Next to-this come the Psalms of David and the Angelic Salutation. Generally speaking, love and recite with devotion the prayers used by the Church, but do not undertake to say them all. I should like to persuade you never to let a day pass without saying your rosary.

Take some time also for reciting the Litany of the Name of Jesus and of the Blessed Virgin.

Intentions in Reciting Office. Whatever your prayers, whether of obligation or devotion, you should never begin them until you have collected your thoughts and placed yourself in the presence of God. Consider yourself as the organ of the Holy Spirit, Who prays by your lips just as the wind plays upon the pipes of the organ when it is in proper condition. Give Him the whole disposition of your heart. Pause from time to time, principally between each psalm, and recall your mind if it has wandered. Ponder and appreciate the meaning of the words you utter; there are none which have not a divine taste and heavenly savor.

Some recite their office in all the stations where Our Lord suffered: Matins and Lauds in the cenacle and in the Garden of Olives; Prime at the house of Annas and Caiphas; Tierce in the palace of Herod; Sext in the pretorium of Pilate; None on Calvary; Vespers and Complin at the sepulchre. Others follow the attraction of grace and their present disposition. All this is good when it can be done without trouble or scruple.

Ejaculatory Prayers. It would be well if every breath could be a loving sigh, and every moment be filled with the thought of God. If this cannot be, form a habit of recollecting yourself from time to time; the more frequently the better. Let the striking of the hour be a signal for recalling the presence of God. Accustom yourself to the easy and frequent use of ejaculatory prayers. We need but to love in order to pray and to sigh for God. These outpourings of the heart proceed from the Holy Spirit; they are a language of. love readily understood by this God of love. We naturally think of what we love; hence we cannot say we love God if we rarely or never think of Him.

CHAPTER IV: SHORT METHOD OF PRAYER ACCORDING TO THE SPIRIT OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES, AND PRELIMINARY ADVICE ON PRAYER BY MGR. CAMUS, BISHOP OF BELLEY.

Preparation. 1. Presence of God. 2. Act of contrition. 3. Invocation of the Holy Spirit, and union with Jesus Christ.

If this preparation occupies all the time that you should give to prayer, thank God; it is the best prayer you could make; and if the same thing happens every day, continue to thank God, and do not be troubled because you have not followed a single point of the meditation. Your heart has been occupied with God and your miseries that is the essential.

Body of the Meditation. 1. Considerations. 2. Affections. 3. Return upon yourself that is, reflections upon the past, examination of the present, resolutions for the future.

There are some persons who, without any need of a book, have a special attraction for meditating upon the perfection of God, the mysteries of Jesus Christ or the Blessed Virgin, etc. We may follow this attraction after having asked the advice of an enlightened director.

If you have no special attraction, use a book for meditation; read a few lines, and make acts of virtue, of examination, of resolution.

When your heart begins to weary of a special thought, read further a few lines, and make similar acts upon a new thought. If one act suffices to occupy your heart, be satisfied therewith, and avoid troubling yourself to make others.

If it happen that you are filled with distractions, and find it impossible to be recollected, humble yourself before God. Keep your book always in your hand, and pause a moment after each thought that you read.

Make devout ejaculations; and read again until you find something which touches and occupies your heart.

Conclusion. 1. Thanksgiving. 2. Offering to God. 3. Prayer to Our Lord and to the Blessed Virgin. 4. Choice of a good thought.

CHAPTER V: ON THE PRESENCE OF GOD[1]

Now to assist you to place yourself in the presence of God, I shall set before you four principal means. The first consists in a lively and attentive apprehension of His presence in all things and in every place; for there is not a place in the world in which He is not truly present; so that, as birds, wherever they fly, always meet with the air, we, wherever we go, or wherever we are, shall always find God present.

Everyone acknowledges this truth; but few consider it with a lively attention. Blind men, who see not their prince, though present among them, behave themselves, nevertheless, with respect, when they are told of his presence; but the fact is, because they see him not, they easily forget that he is present, and having forgotten it, they still more easily lose their respect for him. Alas, Philothea! we do not see God, Who is present with us; and though faith assures us of His presence, yet, not beholding Him with our eyes, we too often forget Him and behave ourselves as though He were at a distance from us; for although we well know that He is present in all things, yet, not reflecting on it, we act as if we knew it not. Therefore, before prayer, we must always excite in our souls a lively apprehension of the presence of God, such as David conceived when he exclaimed: "If I ascend up into heaven, O my God, Thou art there; if I descend into hell, Thou art there!" (Ps. cxxxviii.) And we may also say in the words of Jacob, who, having seen the sacred ladder, exclaimed: " O how terrible is this place ! Indeed the Lord is in this

place, and I knew it not " (Gen. xxviii. 16); that is, he did not reflect on His presence, for he could not but know that God was present everywhere. When, therefore, you come to prayer, you must say with your whole heart, "O my heart, be attentive, for God is truly here."

The second means to place yourself in the sacred presence is to reflect that God is not only in the place in which you are, but that He is, in a most particular manner, in your heart; nay, in the very centre of your spirit, which He enlivens and animates by His divine presence, being there as the heart of your heart, and the spirit of your spirit; for as the soul, being diffused through the whole body, is present in every part thereof, and yet resides in a special manner in the heart, so likewise God is present in all things, yet He resides in a more particular manner in our spirit; for which reason David calls Him the God of his heart (Ps.LXXII.). And St. Paul says, that it is in God " we live and move and are" (Acts XVII.). In consideration, therefore, of this truth, excite in your heart a profound reverence toward God, so intimately present there.

A third means is to consider Our Saviour in His humanity, looking down from heaven on all mankind, but especially on Christians, who are His children, and more particularly on such as are at prayer, whose actions and behavior He minutely observes. This is by no means a flight of the imagination, but a most certain truth; for, although we see Him not yet, it is true that He beholds us from above. It was thus that St. Stephen saw Him at the time of his martyrdom. So that we may truly say with the spouse: " Be hold ! he standeth behind our wall, looking through the windows, looking through the lattices " (Cant. II.).

A fourth method consists in making use of the imagination, by representing to ourselves Our Saviour in His sacred humanity, as if He were near us, as we sometimes imagine a friend to be present, saying, methinks I see Him, or something of the kind. But when you are before the Blessed Sacrament, this presence is real and not imaginary, since we must consider the species and appearance of bread only as a tapestry, behind which Our Lord, being really present, observes us, though we can actually see Him.

CHAPTER VI: ADVICE ON PRAYER[2]

Distractions. As soon as you recognize that you are distracted, promptly return to God. Say, "O my God! all to Thee, all for Thee, all before Thee."

Then do not reflect upon your distractions, do not examine them, or let yourself be troubled about them.

You may also remain sometime before God, overwhelmed with confusion at sight of your want of respect in His presence.

Aridity. The more wearied and overwhelmed you feel, the more you must endeavor to remain with courage and submission in God s presence; remain on your knees if possible, your hands joined, your eyes humbly cast down, your mind and heart submissive to the pain you endure. Sacrifice yourself generously and unreservedly to the rigors of divine justice ; do not yield to weariness. Let yourself be crucified by all the wanderings of your mind and by all the vexations of your heart. Be convinced that, in your present state, God only asks you to suffer with patience, humility, and resignation before Him.

We do not profit by meditation for various reasons.

Obstacles to Meditation.

· 1^st We are not sufficiently penetrated with the truths upon which we meditate.

· 2^nd Our affections are not sufficiently ardent.

· 3^rd Our resolutions are vague and perfunctory.

· 4^th We do not dwell sufficiently on each affection, and we form them very lightly.

· 5^th We yield too easily to weariness and to the trouble we experience in prayer or meditation; we believe our meditation useless when we imagine we have done nothing in it; though it is very certain that to endure our miseries humbly before God is to make a good meditation.

Means of Profiting by Prayer.

· 1^st Our mind must be free and our heart detached.

· 2^nd We must frequently recollect ourselves during the day in the presence of God.

· 3^rd We must mortify our senses and our humor on all occasions.

· 4^th We must separate ourselves somewhat from society, as well as from worldly discourse; we must love solitude.

· 5^th Finally, we must prepare ourselves for it carefully; preserve during it great respect for God, Who is present, and we must avoid letting our mind be distracted immediately afterward.

Affective Prayer. If you find it difficult to reflect upon your subject, occupy yourself with affections, after you have made an act of faith in the truth which has impressed you most; but after you have formed an affection conformable to your subject, or to the inspiration God gives you, remain a moment in silence before God to let it penetrate your soul. Never pass on to a second affection until your heart is filled and satisfied with the first, for when we hurriedly multiply affections they make no impression upon the will.

Prayer of Recollection.

I. If the mere presence of God, Whom you behold within you, occupies you, keeps you recollected, fills you with a holy and respectful silence which diffuses a great calm in your heart, do not disturb this efficacious work of God by thoughts or affections likely to withdraw you from this attitude full of the respect due Him. This great God deigns to make you feel His presence by a sweet and intimate recollection. Content yourself with acquiescing in all that He does in you; abandon yourself completely into His hands without placing any obstacle to what He asks of you. " Thou art all, my God, and I am nothing." These words will be sufficient for you while this sacred silence lasts, and then, when it has passed, return to your subject.

II. Accustom yourself, according to the counsel of Jesus Christ Himself, to use but few words when you pray. That is, let your mind be satisfied with simply contemplating the truths upon which you meditate without wearying itself with long discourses, particularly if the simple view of some truths makes more impression upon your heart than discoursive reasoning, and you have had some practice in meditating upon these truths.

III. Do not permit your will to give itself very much even to affections; let it turn them insensibly into lively and ardent aspirations of the heart to ward God. If the Holy Spirit send you any sensible grace, receive it with humility, without reflecting upon it too much; fix your heart upon the Author of such graces rather than upon the graces

themselves.

IV. Act when God does not act, but be silent when He speaks. Do not be of those souls who remain in pure mental idleness, nor of those who talk incessantly, never pausing to hear God s voice. This idleness is not the prayer of quiet, which keeps the soul elevated above all the movements of inclination and self-love, which sustains it, reconciles it, which occupies it, which penetrates it with holy respect for God, which animates all its actions with the spirit of grace, which makes it relish and possess the sovereign good in a very real and veritable manner.

Contemplation.

I. Contemplation is an extraordinary state to which only God can raise the soul, and to which everyone is not called ; which few persons attain, because there are few who have sufficient courage and fidelity to die to themselves and to seek only God.

II. Here are the effects which contemplation produces in a soul truly favored with this gift,

· 1^st It keeps it raised above itself, and intimately united to God by faith, love, and abandonment.

· 2^nd It creates in the depth of the soul a holy respect, a humble fear, a pure and courageous love for God present there.

· 3^rd It causes the soul to speak little and do much ; to consent, to cling, and abandon itself to all that God effects in it, and in this way it truly acts. But as God acts more than the soul, and it does not reflect upon what passes in it, for this reason, says St. Francis de Sales, it cannot remember having done anything, or it believes it has done nothing.

III. This infused prayer detaches the soul from creatures and from itself, leads it to renounce itself and to practise all the Christian virtues; it makes it love retreat, silence, and recollection ; it gives it strength to overcome itself, to mortify its passions, and to repress the sallies of its humor ; makes it attentive to the movements of grace, in order to follow them, and to those of nature, in order to overcome them. In a word, this prayer is an excellent means for attaining great sanctity by the faithful practice of all the virtues, all the duties, and all the maxims of Christianity.

CHAPTER VII: ST. FRANCIS DE SALES RULES FOR MEDITATION.

As the body needs sleep to rest and refresh its weary members, in the same way it is necessary that the soul have some time to rest, and sleep in the chaste arms of its heavenly spouse, in order to renew the strength and vigor of its spiritual powers. That is why I would fix a certain time every day for this sacred sleep, in order that my soul, after the example of the beloved disciple, might sleep in all confidence on the loving breast and in the very heart of Our Saviour, so full of love, so worthy of being loved, and Whose infinite love is the object of all our affections.

Now, just as the operations of the body in temporal sleep never extend beyond itself, so, for a similar reason, I would retain all the faculties of my soul within itself, and I would that they performed no other functions than those which concern them, and are proper to them, humbly obeying the thought of the prophet : "Rise ye after you have sitten, you that eat the bread of sorrow." That is, you who choose to eat the bread of sorrow, either through contrition for your faults or through the compassion you feel for those of others, do not rise and plunge into the exterior occupations of this world, full of misery and pain, unless you have first been thoroughly refreshed by the contemplation of eternal things.

I would contemplate the infinite wisdom of the almighty and incomprehensible goodness of my God; I would occupy myself particularly in contemplating how these beautiful attributes shine forth in the sacred mysteries of the life and death and of the passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the very eminent sanctity of Our Lady, and in the perfections of the faithful servants of God, whom I must endeavor to imitate.

Then passing from the empyreal heaven, I would admire the glory of paradise, the eternal happiness of the angelic spirits and of the souls of the blessed. I would contemplate the power, goodness, and wisdom of the Holy Trinity in the rewards with which it rejoices the company of the saints for all eternity.

Finally, I would sleep and I would rest in the love of the one only goodness of my God, which is infinite ; I would relish it if I could, not in its effects, but in itself; I would drink of this water of life, not from vessels offered by creatures, but at its very source ; I would taste how good is this adorable Majesty in Himself and for Himself. Let me add that as He is goodness itself, all goodness, eternal, inexhaustible, incomprehensible goodness, I should say : " O Lord, Thou only art good by essence and by nature. Thou only art necessarily good, and the goodness of all creatures, whether natural or supernatural, is but a participation of Thy loving goodness."

I would begin by recalling all the benefits God had bestowed upon me; the good thoughts and pious sentiments with which He had inspired me in the past ; all the graces He had granted me, particularly the grace of certain maladies and in dispositions which, by enfeebling my body, were profitable to my soul ; and I would, therefore, resolve never more to offend God Who had been so good to me.

With this picture of God s goodness I would contrast the vanity of all human greatness, of the riches and the pleasures of this world, their short duration, their uncertainty, their end ; I would despise them, I would hold them in horror, and I would say, " Avaunt, deceitful pleasures with which the Evil One tempts and ruins souls ! I will have none of you ; I have nothing in common with you." Then I would consider the hideousness and malice of sin, which degrades man ; which is unworthy of an upright heart ; which, far from giving true and solid contentment, gives only remorse and bitterness; which finally displeases God a consideration more than sufficient of itself to make us forever detest sin.

With these reflections I would unite all that my conscience tells me of the excellence of virtue, which is so beautiful, so noble, so worthy of an upright, honest heart, which sanctifies man, makes him an angel and almost a God, which makes him taste on earth the pleasures of paradise, and lenders him an object of complaisance to his Creator. In order to excite in myself still greater horror of vice and love of virtue, I would admire the beauty of reason, that light sent from heaven to guide our steps. Alas ! all our wanderings are due to the fact that we close our eyes to this light. But I would consider particularly death, the judgment of God, purgatory, hell, saying to myself, " What, then, will all the present things avail me ?" After that I would raise my mind to the contemplation of the perfections of God, which I would study first in the life and death of Jesus Christ, in Mary and in all the saints. I would softly repose in the love of the divine goodness ; I would taste it in itself ; I would drink of this water of life at its very source, and I would say : " Thou only, O Lord, art good by essence ; goodness itself eternal, inexhaustible, incomprehensible goodness."

CHAPTER VIII: THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS.

What the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is. There is no worship on earth which renders as much honor to God as the sacrifice of the Mass. Hence, we should consider this action as the most important of our life, and accomplish it as perfectly as possible.

If the priest appreciated his position and the greatness of his ministry, he would never approach the altar but in a spirit of holy fear, and he would never leave it except with a feeling of ineffable gratitude.

Dignity of the Priest. The priest at the altar is the mediator between God and man. He is God s anointed; chosen by the Church to treat with God in the name of all creatures, to offer Him their homage, to adore His infinite grandeur, to thank Him for His benefits, to appease His justice, and to obtain pardon for sinners; finally to ask for the corporal and spiritual succor necessary to all men.

The priest should be not only the sacrificer, but also the victim, because he represents the Church, which in this holy action annihilates herself before her Sovereign, and is immolated in the victim substituted for her.

Manner of Hearing Mass. The faithful should assist at Mass with respect, attention, and devotion, and regard the priest as the very Son of God Who is about to offer Himself to the Father for them, and to give His life to save them from the eternal death they have merited. As Our Saviour died and was immolated for them, they also should die for Him. It is desirable that all who assist at the holy Sacrifice be in a state of grace ; but those who have had the misfortune to offend God should not believe that they are thereby prohibited from assisting at the holy Sacrifice ; on the contrary, if they ask pardon for their faults, they will obtain the necessary grace of conversion. The holy Council of Trent declares that " this sacrifice is truly propitiatory, and that if we draw near to God with a sincere heart and upright faith, with fear and reverence, contrite and penitent, we shall obtain, by means of it, mercy, and we shall find grace and the assistance we need. For God, appeased by this offering, grants pardon and the gift of repentance, and pardons the offences and even very grave sins of those for whom it is offered. 5

There are many beautiful ways of hearing Mass well. Make use of those which you find most devotional. Go to the church, like the shepherds, to seek the infant Jesus ; or, like the Blessed Virgin, to Calvary to assist at the death of our divine Saviour, in order to offer Him as a sacrifice for the salvation of the world; or, like the three apostles on Mount Tabor, to behold Him transfigured.

At the beginning of the Mass present yourself before God as a criminal imploring mercy ; make with a contrite heart a confession of your sins, repeating the Confiteor with the priest.

At the Gloria in Excelsis enter into the sentiments of the angels when they chanted this divine canticle, and into those of the apostles who completed it. Praise, adore, and bless God with the priest ; desire that His name be known and sanctified, and that His kingdom extend throughout the world.

During the Epistle and Gospel, if you understand the words, listen with attention ; if not, beg God to give the light of faith to infidels and the grace of conversion to heretics.

At the Creed renew your profession of faith ; affirm your faith in one God in three Persons the Father, your Creator ; the Son, your Redeemer ; the Holy Spirit, your Sanctifier.

At the Offertory place your body, your soul, your mind, your heart, your possessions, your hopes, your family, your friends, and all your desires upon the paten of the priest. Present them all to God to be immolated to Him with the body of His only Son in a perfect holocaust and odor of sweetness. Beg God to change and transform you as completely as the bread and wine are changed and transformed into His body and blood.

At the Preface raise your heart to heaven and prepare yourself for sacrifice. Praise and thank God with the Church; repeat with profound respect the canticle of the angel: " Holy, holy Lord God of armies." " Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory." " Blessed is He Who cometh in the name of the Lord, and Who is to come in the name of the Lord Which saved us."

After the Sanctus, until the consecration, meditate upon the Passion: divide it into seven parts or stations for the seven days of the week, as will be shown later on.

At the Elevation of the body and blood of Our Lord do not remain cold and unmoved, but adore your Lord with body and mind, bowing profoundly and accompanying this inclination with deepest respect.

Between the elevation of the body and the blood of Our Lord remain in profound silence with interior and exterior modesty, fully persuaded that it is the moment when the Victim is immolated, when the blood, in virtue of the sacramental words, is separated from the body, though one and the other remain truly united under each species; that heaven opens, the angels descend with their Lord, and that God floods with graces the hearts prepared to receive them graces of sanctity for the just, graces of repentance for sinners.

Finally, it is in this sacred moment that we obtain from God all that we ask through the death and the sufferings of His Son.

After the Elevation offer God the adorable Victim for the four ends of the holy sacrifice. This is the special object of the Mass.

For the glory of God, by making acts of faith in Him as your First Principle and your Last End; your Father, your King, your Redeemer, your Creator, your Strength, your Peace, your All.

Of hope, that He will pardon you all your sins, that He will give you paradise after having granted you here below temporal and spiritual favors.

Of charity, giving yourself to Him and sacrificing yourself to Him, to all His designs, however -contrary they may be to your inclinations; annihilating yourself with your Saviour and offering yourself to live and die for His glory.

You will thank God for all the favors He has lavished upon you, not only upon you, but upon all His saints, and you will offer the body and blood of Jesus Christ to supply for your lack of gratitude.

Offer the holy Victim as a sacrifice of propitiation for the sins of all men, and for your own in particular. It is the only reparation which can appease the divine justice.

Finally, ask all the graces necessary to you and to your neighbor; to stimulate your fervor ask each request through one of the wounds of our divine Saviour.

Contemplate Him on the cross, and ask through His thorn-crowned Head grace for the Church, for our holy Father the Pope, and for all Superiors.

Ask through the wound of the right hand grace for your family, friends, and benefactors.

Through the wound of the left hand pray for the enemies of the Church and your own, repeating with Our Lord upon the cross: " Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

Through the wound of the right foot pray for your subordinates, your domestics, and all those dependent upon you.

Through the wound of the left foot pray for the souls in purgatory, particularly those whom you may have offended or scandalized, for the souls dearest to the Blessed Virgin, for the souls of your relatives, and for all who stand in need of prayers.

Enter into the Heart of Jesus pierced for love of you ; give Him your own heart, and beg Him to fill it with His grace and His Spirit.

This prayer may continue until the Agnus Dei > when you should prepare yourself for spiritual communion. Ask pardon for your sins, receive the Sacred Host in spirit from the hands of the angels, and make your thanksgiving conversing with Our Lord as if you had received Him sacramentally.

After the last Collects receive the priest s blessing as that of God. Listen with devotion to the last gospel, particularly to the words Verbum caro factum est, "The Word was made flesh." If you have received Communion, persuade yourself that this incarnation is renewed, that the Word is made flesh in you and desires to dwell in you.

After the Mass adore and thank Our Lord ; return home penetrated with the grandeur of this mystery, and recite on the way the Te Deum Laudamus.

HOW WE SHOULD MEDITATE UPON THE PASSION DURING THE HOLY SACRIFICE OF THE MASS.

The sacrifice of the Mass is the same as that of the cross. Jesus Christ instituted it to recall His Passion ; hence we must never fail to honor it by meditating on His sufferings.

Monday. Consider the Son of God in the Garden of Olives, where He was bathed in a sweat of blood and water ; then at the house of Annas and Caiphas, where He was buffeted and offered every ignominy. Ask God through the merits of Jesus Christ to give you the grace to overcome your passions and to bear injuries with patience.

Tuesday. Consider your divine Saviour despised by Herod, treated as a fool, compared by Pilate to a thief and murderer. Love your abjection, and do not be offended at the elevation of your neighbor.

Wednesday. Represent to yourself Our Saviour scourged and crowned with thorns. Avenge upon your body the wounds it inflicted upon your Saviour, and upon your pride the painful ignominy with which it crowned Him. Remember that one must wear the crown of gold after the crown of thorns, or the crown of thorns after the crown of gold.

Thursday. Follow Jesus bearing His cross; bear yours after Him : if you bear it well, you will help Him to carry His. Place yourself in spirit upon the altar as upon Calvary, there to be fastened and sacrificed the rest of your days as a victim.

Friday. Listen to Our Saviour s seven words upon the cross ; repeat them with Him. After recommending to God your soul, your body, your passions, your life, all that is dearest to you in this world, die spiritually with Him, and live henceforth as one dead, with no care or desire for earthly things.

Saturday. Enter into the tomb of Jesus, and bury yourself in spirit there with Him. Persuade yourself that the world is dead to you, and you to the world. Descend into Limbo with the holy soul of Our Saviour to rescue a suffering soul from purgatory. Enter also into the heart of His blessed Mother to participate in her sorrows.

Sunday. Consider the glorious wounds of your risen Saviour ; enter by Communion into His heart, and establish your dwelling there forever.

CHAPTER IX: THE TWO EXAMENS

PARTICULAR EXAMEN.[3]

I. There is usually in all men a vice or evil inclination which we may call predominant and which is the cause and the root of all their faults.

" And even though we recognize several of these inclinations or faults in ourselves, it will nevertheless be well to choose one in particular and to attack it with all our strength. After extirpating it we should apply ourselves in the same manner to conquering the others one by one.

"This is the end of particular examen. " This examen is most useful particularly in acquiring purity of heart, as Cassien teaches (Conferences), and St. Bernard also in several parts of his works." (Directoire, Chapter XIII.)

II. Is this particular examen difficult?

Taken in itself or objectively it is not more difficult than meditation or any other exercise of piety. Any difficulty it could offer, therefore, would be only subjective; that is, it would arise only from our personal dispositions: for example, from our inconstancy, our frivolity, or levity of mind. We must acknowledge, however, that particular examen is something very serious. For it supposes in the first place, in one who wishes to make it profitably, a certain knowledge of himself. We often make our particular examen on exterior faults. It is, in fact, with these that we should begin, particularly when these faults are notable and a cause of disedification to our neighbor; but this is only a preparation for a more serious examen. There is no effect without cause. These exterior faults are streams; we must go to their source; we must search for it in the depth of our soul, and never desist until we have found it and can say, the evil is there. To insure more success in this search it is well to know that man s faults are usually the opposite of his natural qualities ; thus gentleness often becomes indolence, and firmness degenerates into harshness. The predominant fault is rooted in the character. We shall return to this subject later on.

Particular examen supposes, in the second place, courage, for we need courage to fight against ourselves in this vigorous way, to attack faults rooted, so to speak, in our very nature. Tell one who is imperious and proud that pride is his predominant fault, " It is my nature, " he will answer ; " I cannot change my nature."

When he says that his predominant fault is part of his nature he says what is very true; but he is mistaken in believing that he cannot correct and reform his nature, and that it is useless to try. It is, in fact, this very nature that he must attack; for it is the source which feeds so many infected streams, the trunk which nourishes so many branches bearing evil fruits. Only when we begin to attack ourselves in this vigorous way do we begin to accomplish something; before this our gains are trifling. In the third place, it is impossible to make the particular examen as St. Ignatius requires, without practising the virtues of vigilance over self, of interior recollection, of mortification of our passions; in a word without generous and persevering efforts. For these reasons we say that particular examen is something serious, though not difficult, considered in itself; for the law of God is not heavy: Mandata ejus gravia non sunt (I. John V. 3).

III. Particular examen is efficacious first, because by means of it a man attacks his real enemies; second, because it enables him to meet them one by one in order to conquer them successfully; third, because it supposes in one who undertakes it a firm and persevering will never to give up so excellent a practice.

IV. Particular examen requires our best and most earnest efforts. The enemy of our perfection laughs at our vague general resolutions; he knows their result by experience. "If he that makes a strong resolve often fails, what will he do who seldom or but weakly resolves ?" (Imit. i. 19.)

Particular examen is not a vague resolution; it is a very special and consequently the most efficacious resolution we can take. It attacks, in fact, that nature which we may fiercely drive from us, says a profane author, but which unceasingly returns. It hides whole years sometimes to surprise us when we least expect it; it never dies, it only sleeps. Cease to watch over, to distrust yourself, and this nature, I mean your predominant fault, will awaken more powerful and attack you more violently than ever. Special faults grow and increase with our age so much so that people, even people piously inclined but unaccustomed to overcome themselves, become, as they advance in life, insupportable to others. But if particular examen attacks the very foundation of our nature, is it astonishing that it requires our best and most earnest efforts ?

Conclusion: If you wish to become perfect, to know yourself, attack your predominant fault by means of particular examen, according to the method offered you here by St. Ignatius.

"We must always resolve on something certain, and in particular against those things which hinder us most." (Imit. i. 19.)

We rarely overcome one fault perfectly. " If every year we rooted out one vice we should soon become perfect men." (Imit. i. ii.)

PRACTICE OF EXAMEN[4]

Before the time of Examen. We must choose and prepare our subject in such a way as to be able to mark the number of our failings.

In the morning we must endeavor to foresee the occasions of our fault; during the day we must endeavor to resist it, and when we fail, strike our breasts and make a sincere act of sorrow.

At the time of Examination. We must place ourselves in the presence of God, and give our minds completely to what we are about to do.

1^st Examine the graces we have received, and thank God for His love, in order that we may be excited to be generous in overcoming ourselves.

2^nd Recall clearly to our memory the subject of our examen, and ask God for the grace to know our failings and to correct them.

3^rd Examine our morning or our afternoon hour by hour; help ourselves by means of questions. Mark the number of our failings; compare them with those of the preceding day. We should not give too much time to this third point.

4^th Excite in ourselves deep contrition, and earnestly express it. Give to this and the following point an entire quarter of an hour, if possible.

5^th Foresee the occasions of future failings, Form definite resolutions covering only the period from one examination to another. Above all, pray for grace to be faithful to them.

Many souls find in the practice of remembering the presence of God the most efficacious means of overcoming their faults.

It is well from time to time to return for two or three days to one of the subjects which are, so to speak, a form of perfection, such as regularity, exterior modesty, purity of intention, equanimity of soul, the presence of God, or the spirit of prayer, humility, etc.

General examen should be made each evening. It is a practice commonly adopted by all persons truly desirous of advancing in virtue. Many, however, find it difficult; they find it dry and monotonous. Hence they acquit themselves of it superficially and unprofitably, or they omit it from time to time, and then end by abandoning it altogether.

The method offered here by St. Ignatius re moves these objections by introducing a certain variety in the examination, which he divides into five points well fitted to console and strengthen the soul.

It will be well to make a few remarks on each of these points.

First Point. We must return thanks to God for the benefits we have received. Few writers teach us to begin the examen by an act of thanksgiving. Yet what is more consoling and more encouraging than the divine benefits we have received ? And when have we more need of courage than when we are about to require of our soul an account of its negligences and of its infidelities, when we are about to search and examine our weaknesses? Moreover, the thought of so many benefits will help us in the fourth point to understand our in gratitude.

Second Point. Ask grace, etc., less by vocal prayers than by outpouring of the heart. Sot vocal prayers, recited from memory, frequently become a matter of routine and destroy the devotion of the soul. The heart, on the contrary, has an infinite variety of prayers; it never repeats. Then recognize our sins and banish them from our heart. It is not sufficient to know our sins; we must detest them; we must drive them from our heart, and treat them as enemies to whom no quarter can be given.

Third Point. Ask an account of our soul. This examen should be made carefully, but without anxiety. It should not by any means exceed a fifth part of the time given to the whole exercise, since it is only one of the five points. Many per sons reduce almost the whole examen to this point, which is the reason of the weariness and dryness they experience in this exercise, of the little profit they derive from it, and, not unfrequently, of their want of perseverance.

Fourth Point. Ask pardon of God. We must excite ourselves to sorrow for our faults. Sorrow has the virtue of effacing sin. Then let our sorrow each day efface our daily offences.

Fifth Point. Form the resolution to amend with the assistance of grace. This last point is the most important of the whole examen and perhaps the least understood in practice. In fact, why do we make the examination of conscience ? To know our faults? No doubt; but for what further reason? In order that we may detest them. Certainly; in fact, I endeavor to know my faults that I may correct them; and to do this I need to renew each day the firm resolution not to relapse into the same faults.

"According as our resolution is will the progress of our advancement be," says the author of " The Imitation; " which is very certain in the sense that we often remain far below our resolutions and rarely go beyond them. " If thou canst not continually recollect thyself, do it sometimes, and at least once a day; that is, at morning or evening. In the morning resolve, in the evening examine, thy performances, how thou hast behaved this day in word, work, or thought, because in these, perhaps, thou hast often offended God and thy neighbor."

We ought every day to renew our resolutions and excite ourselves to fervor, as if it were the first day of our conversion, and to say : " Help me, O Lord God, in my good resolutions and in Thy holy service, and give me grace now this day perfectly to begin, for what I have hitherto done is nothing" (Imit. i. 19).

With the assistance of grace : an absolutely necessary condition. "The resolutions of the just depend on the grace of God, rather than on their own wisdom, in Whom they always put their trust, whatever they take in hand " (Imit. I. 19).

CHAPTER X: OF CONFESSION AND DIRECTION.

THE life of the body is preserved by food and repaired by remedies. In like manner the life of the soul depends upon confession and communion : confession is its remedy, and communion its life. These two sacraments must be received with the requisite dispositions.

Examination of Conscience, Examination of conscience is a necessary preparation for the Sacrament of Penance. It consists of five points:

1^st Thanksgiving.

2^nd Invocation of the Holy Spirit of light in order to know one’s sins.

3^rd A review of all one’s actions, thoughts, and words.

4^th Sorrow for having sinned.

5^th Firm purpose of amendment.

See upon which of these five points you can dwell with most advantage.

This Exercise is to be Made Daily. It is important to make a daily examination of conscience; it keeps the soul in a state of humility, and enables it to know itself. It wins new graces from Heaven by gratitude for those already received. It prepares the soul for confession, and prevents the omission of any grave sin in confession. It prevents vices from taking root in the soul. It renders contrition easy by frequent acts of sorrow; it regulates the future; it foresees the danger of offending God, and guards against the occasions of sin. In a word, it makes us more humble, more vigilant, more wise, more pure, and better prepared to meet death.

Are you faithful to your examen? For what reason do you neglect it?

A wise man foresees evil, guards against it as much as he can. You will be judged after your death. Forestall this judgment by judging yourself. If you excuse yourself, God will accuse you; if you pardon yourself, God will condemn you; while, on the contrary, He will defend you if you accuse yourself; He will pardon you if you condemn yourself.

Many complain of being unable to recall in the evening what they have done during the day; how then can they recall what they have done during a month or a year ? This shows how very difficult it is to make a good confession without daily examination of conscience.

Thanksgiving is one of the most important parts of the examen. Consider the benefits God has bestowed upon you this day, and you will, without difficulty, conceive true sorrow for your faults. But avoid anxiety and trouble in searching for your faults. If you have committed any grave sin it will present itself at once to your mind. If you recall a fault of this kind, stop there, and conceive a great horror for it; consider the best means of repairing it; take a firm resolution to avoid it in future, and you will, in this way, have made a good examen.

Particular Examen. It is particularly important to select one special fault to correct or one special virtue to acquire. This should be the principal subject of your examen. Many do nothing because they want to do too much; they declare war against all vices and destroy none.

This is an artifice of the Evil One to deceive and surprise them. Our forces are limited; we cannot do everything at once ; and we weaken our forces by dividing them. They must be united to overcome the enemy.

It is well to attack but one at a time and never lay down our arms until it is vanquished.

What is the subject of your examination ? What vice are you making war against ? How long have you been fighting it ? What advantage have you gained ?

Confession. The Sacrament of Penance is the second plank left us by God after shipwreck. Each time we confess our faults in the sacrament we acknowledge the wisdom of God by the acknowledgment of our ignorance; His power, by the manifestation of our weakness ; His sanctity, by the declaration of our sins. We offer reparation to His greatness and majesty, which we have offended ; we offer satisfaction to His justice; we humble our pride; we avert the chastisements we have merited; we sacrifice our honor, which we love most in the world; we purify the soul; we heal its wounds. We acquire a special right to the grace of God ; we extirpate our vices ; we secure our salvation ; we afford peace and rest to our conscience.

Faults of those Over-eager to omit Nothing. There are persons who believe that the excellence of their confession consists in remembering and accurately confessing all their sins and forgetting nothing. If anything escape them, they are troubled and believe their confession invalid. In this way they acquire a horror of the sacrament, believing that they never receive it properly. This scruple is dangerous, because it tends to keep people away from the sacrament and inspires them with aversion for this salutary remedy.

Are you one of such persons? Why do you torment yourself for a thing which is not in your power ? Is it not God Who gives you knowledge of your sins? If it is absolutely necessary for you to declare them, He will cause you to remember them. He does not oblige you to say what you do not know. After giving a suitable time to your examination, be at peace. If your sins occur to your mind after confession, they will not, for that reason, remain in your heart, whence they have been driven by the absolution of the priest.

Fault of those who think they must feel Contrition. Contrition to be true need not be sensible. If you do not feel sorrow for having offended God, beg Him to give it to you, and supply what you lack by sincere humility. Prostrate yourself before God, acknowledge your offences, and ask pardon for them. Go in good faith to confession without so much anxiety and self-seeking. Your kind Master sees your heart; He knows you do not wish to deceive^ and the very fact of your going to confession proves that sin is displeasing to you and that you desire to amend.

Relapse should not discourage us. One who relapses very easily into sins has reason to fear that his contrition was not very great. But, alas ! the sacraments do not make us impeccable, and when our relapses are numerous and great they prove that we are neither vigilant nor faithful; then we must renew our resolutions to watch over our selves more carefully and refrain from yielding to trouble or despondency.

We must listen to the Priest with Attention and Respect. Do not imagine that you have made a good confession by simply confessing your sins. Listen attentively to the advice of your confessor, for his words are in a measure sacramental; they impart grace, they have a special virtue to heal your sick soul.

Of Absolution. Do you know what takes place when the priest gives you absolution? Heaven opens, the Holy Spirit descends, the evil spirits are driven from your soul, which the Son of God has cleansed with His blood. You are released from your sins and the eternal punishment which you had incurred. You become again a child of God and heir to His kingdom; you receive infused graces and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Humble yourself, then, before God; conceive great sorrow for your sins; imagine yourself on Calvary, where the blood of Our Saviour flowed upon your soul to cleanse and purify it; remain thus in respectful silence, filled with true humility and gratitude.

Of Satisfaction. Perform the penance which the priest imposes; do not regard it as a penance, but as a very great grace which God bestows by permitting you to change in this way the sufferings of hell, which you have merited, into a brief and light expiation. The best penance is to avoid sin; and to do this we must hate it and punish ourselves for it.

Necessity of a Director. Have you a director ? Why have you not one? Do you know the way to heaven ? Is there any one on earth who can guide himself? Sheep require a shepherd; you are not of the fold if you are without a guide.

Who can assure you that you are in the right way if not they to whom God has confided the government of souls, saying, " He that heareth you heareth Me; he that despiseth you despiseth Me"?

You are, you say, well versed in spiritual things. You should have more humility and distrust of yourself, for St. Bernard says: "He who is his own guide has a fool for a disciple, and does not need the devil to tempt him, for he is to himself the most perverse and most dangerous of evil spirits." Cassien adds: " It is impossible that the soul abandoned to the guidance of his superiors should ever err." Therefore it is necessary to have a director to whom we may reveal our con science and from whom we may take advice.

Choice of a Director. There are certain devout souls who can never find a director to their

They would change every month. Persons so difficult to please need a master to teach them the elements of the spiritual life by making them walk in the ways of humility and mortification.

The Spirit of Faith with which we should regard our Director. It is very important never to separate the thought of God from one’s director, and therefore to speak to him with great respect, to obey him faithfully, and to open our hearts to him with confidence and gratitude, so that if God permits us to be deprived of him we may not be overwhelmed by trouble and anxiety. God will always give us grace and light in proportion to our fidelity.

CHAPTER XI: HOLY COMMUNION.

How we should prepare for it? As the Eucharist is the most august of our sacraments, Holy Communion is the most important action of our lives.

Of the Sanctity required for Holy Communion. Those who require perfect sanctity and extraordinary dispositions for approaching the Holy Table, thinking thereby to honor this sacrament, abuse and dishonor it, by rendering it useless to those who receive it and to those who refrain from it. In fact, if I am in a perfect state of sanctity what good will this sacrament do me, and when shall I receive it if I must have this sanctity?

Nothing could be more unreasonable than to require as preparation for a sacrament that which is the fruit and end of the sacrament. This beauty without stain, this perfection without blemish, this sanctity without spot, this grace, this perfect charity, are effects of the sacrament. It was to produce all these effects in our hearts by frequent reception of the Eucharist that it was instituted. Hence there is no justice in requiring such sanctity as a preparation for receiving it. If we measure our worthiness by the excellence of this sacrament, we should never receive it; if we measure it by our need, we should receive Communion daily. Jesus dwells in this sacrament, not to make Himself feared, but to make Himself loved. Bread is not food to be taken only at certain periods of the year, but every day. Why should He take this form if He did not wish to be our food ? If He wished to be feared by men, would He not have taken a more awe-inspiring and majestic form ? As we cannot do without this sacrament, Our Lord has made it easy for all to receive it. Draw near to the light and you will be enlightened; approach the fire and you will be inflamed; draw near to Jesus, Who is your life, your Sun, your Justice, your Sanctification; but go to Him without fear and He will examine you, He will instruct you, He will purify you, He will sanctify you.

Excessive Fear is Injurious. One thing which prevents us from profiting by Communion is that we have no hunger or relish for this heavenly food. How can we approach it with love when our heart is filled with fear? and who could not but fear when he believes that it is an abuse of this sacrament to receive it with other than angelic purity ?

Humility is an Excellent Preparation. Endeavor to make a good preparation, Christian soul, and remember that the best of all preparations is a knowledge of yourself, of your poverty, and of your indigence, combined with a firm hope that Our Lord in His goodness will supply all that you lack. Do not, like Martha, be over-eager to serve your Saviour; rather, like Magdalen, await from your Saviour, in peace and silence, the food of your soul and the reformation of your heart.

Whether it is well to refrain from the Holy Table. Do not keep away from the Holy Table through disgust or scruple. The soul is ill indeed that has lost all relish for this food. Salvation depends sometimes upon one Communion. How do you know whether this Communion may not be the one you omit?

Our Lord in this sacrament is not only the food of our soul, but also its remedy. How do you honor Our Lord by believing that you can do without Him and obtain sanctity without the assistance of His grace ? How can you resist temptation without strength ? and whence will you obtain that strength if not from this divine sacrament ?

For those who receive Communion Frequently. You communicate frequently, but do you receive the sacrament worthily ? If you would rather die than receive Communion in a state of mortal sin, you have reason to believe that you do not commune unworthily.

Necessary Dispositions for receiving the Fruits of the Sacrament. We may receive the principal effect of the sacrament, which is sanctifying grace, without receiving all the other fruits which it produces. To receive an increase of grace we must be free from mortal sin ; to receive all the fruits of the sacrament we must be free from voluntary attachment to venial sin.

Who are they who profit by Holy Communion ? Do not judge that you are growing worse because you feel your evil inclinations more strongly. Communion does not take away all evil inclinations. They are left us to make us distrust ourselves and depend upon grace. If it does not prevent our feeling them, it prevents, as St. Bernard says, our yielding to them.

Whether we should receive Holy Communion when we believe we derive no Profit therefrom. Humble souls usually believe they are going back instead of advancing. We cannot judge of our progress by our feelings. It is well that you should believe yourself the most wicked and the most unfaithful of creatures ; but if you were so in truth, it would not prevent you from receiving Communion, provided you truly desire to do better. For how could you amend without grace ?

Can we receive Communion when we have no Sensible Devotion? Sensible devotion is not necessary to communicate worthily, since it does not always depend upon our will, and the greatest saints are frequently deprived of it even on the greatest feasts, as in the case of St. Teresa at Easter, either because the soul is attached to these little consolations, or because it expects to acquire them of itself. Whatever it may be, true devotion does not consist in these sensible feelings, but in a prompt and ready will to do what God commands and to avoid that which He forbids. Do what you can with the grace of God, and make up by your humility, as St. Bernard says, for what you lack in charity, and you will be well prepared.

The Best Preparation is Humility and Desire. There are many beautiful practices for preparing yourself for Communion. The best, I think, after confession, consists in humility and desire. Humility makes us see our unworthiness ; and desire, our indigence. The first tends to keep us from the Holy Table ; the second sends us to it. One makes us say, with the centurion : " Lord, I am not worthy; " the other makes us say, as St. Peter did when the other disciples withdrew from the company of their Master : " Lord, to whom shall we go ? Thou hast the words of eternal life."

Motives of Humility, of Love, and Desire. To humble ourselves before Our Lord we need but ponder these words: " Who art Thou, my God ? and who am If" In order to desire to receive Him we must consider the honor and the advantage of going to this Holy Table, the infinite love which Jesus bears us, His desire to celebrate this passover with us, to enter into our hearts, and to impart His life to us.

The Intention we may have in Communicating. Purify your intention. Approach the Holy Table to honor God, to obey His will, to accomplish His designs, to unite yourself to Jesus Christ, to give Him the life of your heart, to apply to yourself the merits of His passion, or for any other similar end.

Do not be over-anxious in your devotions. Remember that everything consists in humbling yourself and remaining in peace at His feet. Are you capable of receiving a God? Have you where - with to entertain such a Guest? Beg God Himself, then, to prepare His dwelling.

There are many ways of occupying one’s mind and exciting devotion before Communion. Some make use of the following thoughts : Who am I, Lord, and who art Thou? What dost Thou come to accomplish in my heart? What shall I gain by receiving Thee? For what end do I receive Thee? Others go over the life of Our Lord, pausing upon the mystery which touches them most; for example: I am about to receive the Son of God, Who is seated on the throne of His Father, Who is adored by the angels, and Who took flesh for me in the womb of the Blessed Virgin. I am about to renew His incarnation by giving Him a new life in me.

If this thought does not occupy you, pass on to another and represent to yourself that you are about to receive Him Who was born in a stable, Who was visited by the shepherds, Who was adored by kings, Whom Simeon received in his arms in the Temple, Who was tempted in the desert, Who was transfigured on Tabor, Who worked so many miracles, Who gave sight to the blind, Who cured the sick, Who raised so many dead to life, Who never entered a house without leaving there marks of His kindness. Conceive a great desire to receive Him, and a firm hope that He will heal, sanctify, and enrich your soul with His merits.

Then pass on to His passion, and consider that you are about to receive Him Who, on the eve of His death, instituted this divine sacrament ; Who sweat blood in the Garden of Olives; Who shed it from all the veins of His body in the pretorium of Pilate ; Who shed the last drop of His blood on the cross ; and that this same blood is about to inflame your heart and flow in your veins.

Remember also that He Whom you are about to receive loves you so tenderly that He was willing to die for you ; that He comes to apply to you the fruit of His death and sufferings ; that for you He was placed in the tomb, and that He is about to descend into your heart as He descended from the cross to the tomb ; that you are about to receive this same body with its adorable wounds which He permitted His disciples to touch ; that He is about to open His side and give you entrance into His heart.

Finally, consider that you are about to receive Him Who ascended into heaven, and Who is to judge the living and the dead. Is there not sufficient here to occupy you, and to excite your devotion ?

Some find devotion in reading the Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus and pausing at the invocation which touches them most.

Thanksgiving, Now if it is very important to prepare ourselves for Holy Communion, it is no less necessary to make good use of the time after Communion. O Jerusalem, if thou knewest Who it is that comes to thee, and the blessing thou canst receive from this visit!

If Jesus in coming to you is pleased to give you sensible marks of His presence, and moves your heart, profit by these precious moments. If you are distracted, tepid, and languid, do not be troubled, but beg God to supply what you lack and to effect in your heart all that He came to do. Food is digested in your body without your giving any thought to it. provided you do not disturb the operation of nature. Let grace do its work ; if you do not hinder it by voluntary distractions, it will digest, so to speak, this heavenly food and transform you into Jesus Christ. He is the King of peace ; His abode must be one of peace. Do not disturb His repose, and He will give you peace.

It is well immediately after receiving to remain a few moments in quiet, peaceful silence, listening to Our Lord s voice, or, rather, permitting Him to do what He wishes in your heart. Do not judge of the effect of Communion by your feelings. The most perfect operations of God are usually the least sensible. When the Bridegroom has entered, close the door of your heart and rest on His breast.

Love is eloquent; it needs no instruction to speak. It speaks most when it is young; it is more silent when it has waxed strong and reached its maturity. Speak much, tender souls, pray, weep, sigh, but do not fail to listen also to what Our Lord will say to you.

With regard to perfect souls, they should abandon themselves entirely to His love and quietly enjoy the presence of their Beloved. If they wish to speak let them content themselves with these words : "My God and my All." Even this is too much : " Let all flesh be silent at the presence of the Lord."

Those who have no facility in conversing with Our Lord may find some assistance from considerations similar to those which we proposed as suitable before Communion. For example: Behold, He Who was born in a stable, Who died on the cross for me, has come into my heart. Let them pause and make acts of love and gratitude.

There are some persons who make the presence of God most irksome to themselves ; they are never so ill at ease as when in His company ; no sooner does He enter their hearts than they fly from Him, turn their backs upon Him to talk with creatures : this is certainly unparalleled incivility. You do not know what to say to Him ? Let Him speak. You cannot love Him ? Can you not humble yourself before Him ? Remain at His feet like Magdalen, and beg all the saints to thank Him for you ; recite at least a few vocal prayers, and offer your divine Guest the best entertainment your heart affords.

CHAPTER XII: THE OCCUPATIONS OF THE DAY.

We must acquit ourselves of the Duties of our State. Whatever your state in life, the first and most important of your devotions is to acquit yourselves faithfully of its duties, as we shall explain more particularly in another chapter. Let each one, as St. Paul counsels, remain in the state to which God has called him, and let him acquit himself of its duties as imposed by God Himself. In this does our perfection consist, and it is upon the manner in which we have fulfilled the duties of our state or position that we shall be principally judged.

Reflect upon this important truth ; see how you have acquitted yourself of the duties of your state. Do you consider it a state in which the providence of God has placed you; a state in which He wills you to find the graces He destines for you, as well as your peace and salvation, and in which He wishes you to honor and serve Him ?

Count all that you do as nothing if it is not done for God. The trouble attached to your employment does not dispense you from it ; if you do only what you please, can you be considered a servant of God ?

Avoid Over-eagerness. Over-eagerness and negligence are two faults which spoil a good action. What is your haste ? Whence is this unquiet heart? Whence this natural impetuosity ? It is not from God, for He does not dwell in the midst of such agitation and trouble.

Can you do anything without the assistance of God ? Are you trusting in Him when you are so excessively anxious ? Do you think He will bless what you undertake with such intemperate ardor ? If He loves you He will never permit your intemperate designs to have the effect you desire ; you must needs fail if you rely upon yourself. God desires the glory of your actions ; you rob Him of it when you act with such precipitation.

Labor but without labor, I mean without anxiety or disquiet. Consider yourself as the instrument of the divinity, and all that you do will be divine. An instrument must be lifeless to be used to advantage. What could a painter do with a brush that moved of itself in his hands? Be dead to your desires, and all your actions will have the reward of eternal life. Let reason and grace guide you, and all that you do will be just.

Place yourself in the hands of God when you labor, bodily or mentally. Pause before you enter any path. Do not let nature take the initiative and precede grace. Do what you ought, not what you please. Regulate all your plans by your duties. In all your movements rely upon Him Who is immovable ; preserve in all your actions a tranquil heart and mind. Hasten, if necessary, but never be precipitate.

We must avoid Negligence. If over-eagerness is to be feared, negligence is still more so. The first comes from esteem and ardor ; the second from contempt and sloth. One proceeds from a too ardent and the other from an indifferent heart. " He that is hasty with his feet shall stumble," says the Holy Spirit ; but He curses him who does the work of God negligently.

Is it for God you are laboring? Does He not merit that you should serve Him with pleasure? Has He not bestowed sufficient blessings upon you? Has He not promised you sufficiently great rewards? Is He slow to render you service? Does His sun ever fail to shine upon you What! The Creator serves His creature with pleasure, however wicked and unfaithful he may be, and the creature serves his Creator with reluctance?

Inconstant and Capricious Minds. Do you take pleasure in your work ? It is well that you should, but do not be attached to it. Purify your intention; labor, not because it gives you pleasure, but because God commands it. Let your pleasure be to please Him, and you will always work with pleasure. What should a servant think of if not of satisfying his master?

In performing your actions begin, not by the most agreeable, but by the most necessary; and let God be first in them all.

Amusements. Play is a remedy to be taken only when ill, that is, when the mind is over-wearied by work. There are some, the Wise Man tells us, who imagine the life of man a play; they never work and would always rest. They are in health and would always take remedies.

Play for the relaxation of the mind is a laudable recreation. Play merely for gaining money is a shameful traffic. Play merely to pass the time is reprehensible idleness. We have not come into the world to seek pleasure, but to do penance; not to win money, but to win heaven. Play rarely, play little, play only a short time, play without over-eagerness.

Consider what you stake as lost from the first and it will not disturb you. If it is permitted to stake trifling sums to increase the interest of the game, give whatever you win to the poor.

Regulate your play and your pleasures ; always bear in mind that St. Francis Borgia said: "We usually lose four things at play: time, money, devotion, and conscience." How do you spend your income? Are you parsimonious or extravagant in your dress, in your furniture, in your house, in your pleasure, in your table ?

Meals. We eat only to live; yet there are some who live only to eat. They can speak of nothing but entertainments, good cheer, a good table, and good wines. It would seem as though nature had erred in making them men; they should be animals.

Raise your heart to God as you go to the table; endeavor by purity of intention to convert this action, animal in itself, into a Christian duty. Grace before meals should never be omitted wherever you are. Its effect is more salutary than you think; if you neglect it, frequently food may injure more than it benefits you.

Beware of over-eagerness in eating, or of manifesting extreme pleasure or vexation when the food is well or ill prepared. Eat with the temperance and modesty which marked all the actions of Our Lord. Give to God the better part of what is served you, by depriving yourself for love of Him of something which especially flatters your palate.

If you neglect to thank God you do not merit that He should give you bread, and whatever your wealth you have reason to fear that you will lose it. God takes away from ungrateful souls blessings which they abuse and for which they are ungrateful.

Of the Word of God. Do you take as much pains to nourish your soul as your body?

How do you profit by the word of God? You speak to Him through prayer; but it is God Who speaks to you through good books and sermons. The word of God is never without its effect; it either converts its hearers or renders them more culpable. Are you not too curious? Are you not of those who cannot read a good book unless its style is perfect; who cannot hear a preacher unless his style is polished?

Seek in this tree of life the fruit rather than the flower. God, St. Paul tells us, has not willed to convert the world by eloquence, but by the fruit of His cross, which would have remained without effect if the apostles had employed the arts of oratory. It is not fine language which touches hearts, but the grace and unction of the Holy Spirit. The wisdom of God spoke to man in parables and popular language; it will never convert you by means of studied discourses, but by the strength of its spirit and the simplicity of its words.

Seek the books and preachers who touch your hearts and not those who flatter your ear. Never let a day pass without reading a good book. Reading, says St. Bernard, seeks God; meditation finds Him; contemplation enjoys Him. Reading helps meditation, and meditation leads to contemplation. If you like the end, adopt the means; if you desire to taste heavenly things, frequently read and meditate upon them.

CHAPTER XIII: OF A STATE OF LIFE.

How Important it is to be in the State of Life in which God wishes us. After admiring the beautiful order of the universe and the wise economy of Divine Providence, persuade yourself that it is God Who has created this great variety of states and conditions on earth to unite all men by the bonds of necessity and dependence; to raise them to the knowledge of their principle by this multitude of employments; to reveal to them the greatness of His house and the treasures of His magnificence. For it is through the multiplicity of beings that we reach unity of being, and by following the course of the stream that we reach the source.

Every reasoning mind is filled with astonishment when it considers this great multitude of creatures who form the court of the King of heaven; when it contemplates their riches, their beauty, their functions, their order, their disposition, and their industry ; but we must not stop here. To profit by this knowledge we must be further convinced that God, Who does everything with just weight and measure, as the Wise Man says, has from all eternity marked and destined for us a state in which He wishes us to serve Him; that He has attached to it our peace and made it the surest way of our salvation; our rest, because each thing is at peace when it is in its place; the surest way of our salvation, for the reason that the graces we need, and which are, so to speak, our wages, are given us according to the condition, the state, and the office in which God places us.

If the Church is an edifice, the faithful are the stones of which it is composed. If the Church is an army, the faithful are the soldiers. If it is a body, the faithful are its members. Now the stones of an edifice, the soldiers of an army, the members of a body, all have their place and employment, outside of which they are useless.

A man is happy when he performs his duties and faithfully follows the order marked by Divine Providence. He enjoys profound peace; he is under the protection of the Prince of order; he receives graces in abundance; graces which nourish him, graces which strengthen him, graces which cause him to grow in virtue, graces which lead him to perfection, because this food is proper and suitable to the disposition of his soul. As he is faithful to the law, the law is faithful to him. As he keeps order, order keeps him, defends and protects him. "Much peace have they," says David, "who keep Thy law, and to them there is

no stumbling-block."

How we must choose a State in Life. After considering this truth, reflect upon yourself, and see what your state is. If your state of life is not settled, and you have yet to choose it, pray God to make known the state in which He wishes you to serve Him. Listen to what He will say to you after Communion and during this retreat. See whither your inclinations lead you when your heart is at peace and undisturbed by passion. Reason is a divine light and a natural inspiration which never deceives those who follow it, particularly under the guidance of faith.

Consider, therefore, the end for which God has placed you in this world, which is to honor Him and to save your soul. Consider what state affords you the best means of attaining this end. Examine your disposition, your constitution, your character, your strength, your inclinations, your habits, the movements of your heart, the attractions of grace, the inspirations of the Holy Spirit.

Consider what you would wish to have done at the hour of death; what you would advise a friend to do in your place. And as it is difficult to distinguish the movements of nature from those of grace; and as the Evil One frequently transforms himself into an angel of light; and no one can judge in his own case, and there is danger of heeding the suggestions of self-love, the safest way, in order to proceed wisely in an affair of such importance, is to take the advice of a wise and experienced director ; to make known to him the sentiments of your soul, and to abide by his ad vice, convinced that God will never permit you to be deceived when you act sincerely with His representative, through whom He makes His will known to you.

What they should do who are settled in a State of Life. If you are settled in a state of life, consider how it was that you entered it through passion, interest, vexation, vanity, human respect ? Did you consult God? Did you ask His light? Is your state good or evil? If good, you must perfect it. If evil, you must abandon it. If you are settled in a state of life and cannot leave it, remain in it, but in a spirit of penance, repairing as far as possible the fault you have committed, and bearing all the trials God sends you in it. Persuade yourself that you can only be restored to His favor by the chastisements of justice; that you can recover peace only by patience, innocence only by penitence; that suffering supplies the place of action; that the only source of salvation for you is humility and suffering ; that peace will follow trouble; that calm will follow the storm.

Rules for Religious. If you are a religious, whatever the means which brought you to religion, be persuaded that it has happened for the best, and that you are where God wills you should be. Does not the Son of God desire that all shall be perfect even as His Heavenly Father is perfect; and does He not say that the means of this perfection is to abandon our possessions, to deny ourselves, to take up our cross and to follow His example and counsels ? This is the religious state. Therefore, though you have entered it thoughtlessly that is, from no serious motive yet you should believe it is the will of God, and that you are in the way of perfection. Make, then, a virtue of necessity. Embrace this state, however contrary it may be to your inclinations. Take upon your shoulders the sweet yoke of Jesus, and protest that you will bear it for love pf Him all the days of your life.

Special States. Graces are not only attached to the state and life in which God wishes us, but also to special places and employments prescribed us by obedience. Would you be a religious in an order to which God has not called you ? Why would you wish to be in a house, in a position, in an office which God has not given you ?

God s forethought embraces not only all mankind, but each of His creatures : to each one is assigned a special place, a special work ; consequently your graces are attached to the place and the employment destined for you by Providence and indicated by obedience.

Reflections. There are reasonable people who desire, it is true, only what is just, but desire it inordinately. They seek what is right unreasonably, that is, passionately.

Do you wish to live in peace and win blessings from Heaven ? Ask nothing, refuse nothing, abandon yourself to the providence of God ; be guided by obedience ; trust in your superiors. As you have entered religion only to serve God, be convinced that you render Him no service which is pleasing to Him if you are not where He wills you to be, and if you do not do as He desires.

Oh, how happy is he who confides in God and abandons himself to His guidance ! and how miserable is he who turns from God and follows the impulse of his passions !

CHAPTER XIV: OF THE EXERCISE OF ONE S CHARGE.

That we must Faithfully acquit ourselves of our Charge. As you do not belong to yourself but to God, you should labor not for yourself, but for God. You will never labor more advantageously for yourself than when you labor for God s interest. You are laboring for His interest when you fulfil your charge as an office which He has given you, and acquit yourself of its duties with all the energy, watchfulness, and fidelity of which you are capable.

Make no distinction between your interests and those of God. You have but one interest, which is to save your soul, and your soul is God s only interest as well as yours. He thought of the salvation of your soul from all eternity ; He labored for it from the beginning of the world ; to accomplish it He descended from heaven to earth, was born in a stable, and died upon a cross. Do you appreciate this ? Is it not worth your while to reflect upon it ?

Our Talents are given us only to do what God commands. A great ambition is a great cross. It is great folly to believe ourselves capable of all things. Our strength and our abilities are limited. God, St. Paul tells us, divides His graces : when He sends us to labor in His vineyard He gives us exactly what we need. When He places us in any position He assigns us a fund of graces to enable us to acquit ourselves worthily of our charge.

How we should fulfil our Charge. You will fulfil your charge faithfully if you receive it from God s hands, accept it by His orders, if you rely upon His grace, if you ask His blessing, if you aspire to no other charge, if you labor cheerfully, persistently, courageously, and perseveringly. Cheerfully, that is, without vexation ; courageously, avoiding indolence ; perseveringly, undeterred by weariness and vexations. With what fault does your conscience reproach you in the fulfilment of your charge ? Are you where you should be ? Do you do what you should and as you should ?

We should not be Passionately attached to our Charge. Do not judge that your charge is unsuitable to you because it does not please you. Inclination, it is true, is a mark of vocation, but it should be disinterested, peaceful, obedient, and free from all human respect and all ambition. Distrust an inclination which is turbulent, impetuous, rebellious, and impatient.

What True Devotion is. Never separate God s service from the duties of your charge. Do not think that it is laudable to be at church when you should be at the palace, to pray when you should work. The most beautiful of all devotions is the fulfilment of your duties. Work without prayer is a vain occupation ; prayer without work is false devotion. Satisfy your devotion after you have fulfilled your obligations. Precept is referable to counsel, and duties to works of supererogation.

If you would succeed in your labors never separate work from prayer. Pray before work, pray during work, pray after work. The spiritual is to the temporal what the soul is to the body. What can the body do separated from the soul ? " Seek first the kingdom of God and His justice, and all these shall be added unto you." Look after the principal, and the accessory will not be wanting.

Marks of Purity of Intention. For whom do you labor ? Are your intentions pure ? Here are marks of a pure intention: to labor with a tranquil heart; to be ready to leave or continue a work you have begun; to labor as if only you and God were in the world; to be content to have no sensible and natural satisfaction.

CHAPTER XV: OF VISITS AND CONVERSATION.

Visits should be Rare. There are two kinds of visits: one necessary, the other optional. We must pay those that are necessary and regulate those that are optional; that is, the last should be infrequent, brief, profitable, and modest.

Solitude is such a great blessing that we should never abandon it except for something better. It preserves us from sin and unites us with God.

Example is powerful; nature is frail. Love springs from resemblance; conversation enkindles love; if you frequent worldly society, you are worldly or you will soon become so.

You wish, you say, to do good to others; I would advise you to begin your apostolate with yourself. Only he who has one foot firmly rooted in solitude may, like the compass, describe a circle and a figure without leaving his centre. We never converse with others without giving something of ourselves and receiving something from them. We give what we have of good, and take, perhaps, what they have of evil.

Do not trust to your virtue; it is soft wax which will melt before fire; it is a shield of glass capably of being shattered by the first arrow of temptation. The Evil One is powerful in dangerous occasions, and grace is weak; the heart is cowardly, passions are turbulent, objects alluring, inclination to is evil strong and violent. There is everything to fear for one who fears nothing.

Visits should be Brief. If you are obliged to con verse with others, leave your solitude only as the stone leaves its centre, as the magnet leaves the pole with an inclination and desire to return. Let your visits and conversations be brief, and if you must give time to this kind of duties, let it be as little as possible.

I know no people more tiresome and more burdensome to others than they who imagine themselves least so. They are insupportable with their long stories, and exhaust the patience of those whom they visit. Moreover, how is it possible to speak at such length and do no harm ?

In any case, it is better to let people see too little than too much of you; better that they should long for you than dread you. We appreciate what is rare; we disdain what is common. If your society is profitable, you will not bestow it so readily. If it is not profitable, you should not be so ready to inflict it upon others.

However good and innocent a conversation may be, it excites suspicion when it is too protracted.

We give nothing without receiving something, and what can worldly people give you except sentiments of vanity and idleness? These are two evil spirits which rarely leave them.

How can you expect God to dwell with you if your heart is never at peace, if you are continually pouring it out upon creatures ?

A bird which continually thrusts its head through the bars of its cage shows that its dwelling does not please it, that it longs to leave it. Happy is the man who can remain at home and is independent of society.

Visits should be Profitable. If your position obliges you to go abroad somewhat, imitate St. Catharine of Siena, of whom it is said that no one approached her without becoming better. Let your conversation be holy and profitable.

Let there be nothing against God. This is St. Francis de Sales great maxim, which we must always observe in conversation. Banish all raillery and detraction. Never amuse yourself at the expense of others. Would you be willing that your shortcomings should furnish entertainment to the company ?

Do not be satisfied with doing no harm to any one; do good, if possible, to everyone. There is nothing more earnestly recommended to us in the writings of the apostles than edification and good example. "Dearly beloved, I beseech you," says St. Peter, " let your conversation be good among the Gentiles, that they may, by the good works which they shall behold in you, glorify God."

And in the same chapter he again tells the faithful: " According to Him That has called you, Who is holy, be you also in all manner of conversation holy." St. Paul gives the same exhortation to his disciple Timothy: "Be thou an example of the faithful in word, in conversation, in charity, in faith, in chastity." And he writes to the Philippians: " Only let your conversation be worthy of the Gospel of Christ."

From the fulness of the heart the mouth speaketh. When the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit they began to speak. You must be filled with the spirit of the world, since you speak only of its vanities. There is a time, it is true, for all things, and you must beware of preaching untimely sermons, or of wearying your hearers even with good things. Your conversation should be seasoned with prudence. Honey is good, says the Wise Man, but we should not eat too much of it.

Visits should be Modest. If you converse with others, and charity requires you to contribute to their amusement, never let it be at the expense of virtue or modesty. Be on your guard and watch over yourself, bearing in mind that there are no more dangerous occasions than such conversations. Avoid an imperious or oracular manner of delivering your opinion, as if there were no appeal from it; suffer others to differ with you without offence; do not take advantage of the modesty of others to monopolize the conversation and martyrize your hearers.

Speak but little, and speak well, and allow others the liberty you claim for yourself.

It is a mark of a trifling, ill-regulated mind to interrupt. A wise man speaks only in default of another, as it were, and to sustain the conversation. He follows the counsel of the Holy Spirit : "Where there is no hearing pour not out words." He knows that he needs the assistance of grace to speak wisely, and that God gives this grace only when He wills us to speak ; hence if we speak otherwise, that is, if we interrupt and speak without regard to others, we can hardly fail to fall into some error or fault. Believe me, if you would learn to speak wisely, you must begin by learning to be silent. There are persons who speak more with the body than with the tongue, and employ more gestures than words. Gesture is intended to emphasize, and sometimes to take the place of speech ; it is a mute language which speaks to the eye, and which is more readily understood by the heart than the mind. Speech is the interpreter of the mind, and gesture of the heart. But a profusion of gesture takes from the dignity of speech, and indicates, usually, an excitable mind.

If you do not allow yourself to be moved by passion, you will speak modestly and temperately, and your whole bearing will testify a temperate and well-regulated mind.

It is great wisdom never to give or to take offence; to suffer without making others suffer ; to be a martyr without martyrizing others; to be able to observe a certain amount of restraint in our communications with others. There are persons who open their hearts to any one and every one ; and others, again, who seem to be living behind a mask, either to surprise others or to guard against surprise themselves. Both extremes should be avoided ; the first shows great want of discretion, the second proceeds from malice or distrust.

Cultivate ease and dignity of manner ; be reserved without constraint, modest without affectation, obliging without flattery, merry without levity, serious without severity.

One never speaks wisely under the influence of passion. Good sense and piety counsel you to be silent under such circumstances, and even if you suffer confusion and mortification you will lose nothing thereby, but gain immeasurably by conquering your passion. Enjoy recreation or amusement with a pure intention ; ask God to govern your tongue ; keep yourself always in His presence ; put a bridle on your tongue, and whatever the company in which you find yourself, never forget that God and His angels are present.

Do not be of those whose principles change with the times ; rule your passions ; do not abandon yourself to their shameful caprices. You are a man and a Christian. As a man you are guided by reason, as a Christian by grace. Both tend to preserve peace of soul, tranquility of mind, and serenity of heart.

In your visits and social intercourse treat others with the kindness and courtesy you expect from them. Cultivate an equable manner, avoiding immoderate mirth or extreme solemnity ; graciously grant a favor in your power, and when obliged to deny a request soften the refusal with kindness and marks of affection.

Fidelity to God obliges you to prevent evil discourses by adroitly changing the conversation, or by paying no attention to it, or by making it evident that it displeases you.

Do not be of those weakly complacent characters who praise everything, whether good or evil ; or of those who indiscriminately censure and cavil at everything, and whom it is impossible to please.

Justice requires that you praise what is laudable; and charity, that you share in the joy of your neighbor.

Love, and do as you will. Love, I say, with that love which is charity, and your conversation will be like that of the angels, who bear with our defects, who counsel us in our doubts, who console us in our trials, who assist us in our miseries, who are with us only to help and benefit us. Bear yourself in like manner toward your neighbor, and your conversation will be angelic.

Friendship. To love through instinct is to love as an animal ; to love according to inclination is to love as a man ; to love against inclination is to love as a saint ; this is the supreme effort of Christian charity, and the triumph of divine love ; for only God, says St. Thomas, can enable us to love on who does not please us ; still more one who displeases us, who grieves and offends us.

CHAPTER XVI: SILENCE.

ENDEAVOR to secure yourself in the course of the afternoon fifteen minutes or a half hour of silence. During these moments think sometimes of the recollection of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, and unite your work with theirs ; at other times reflect upon the respectful silence which the saints ob serve in heaven, where they are completely rapt in God ; sigh for this blessed repose.

Speak heart to heart with your angel at your side ; thank him for his care of your salvation, promising him to respect and to faithfully follow his inspirations. Ask him to present the prayers and sighs of your heart to Our Lord.

You may also reflect upon the necessity of spending time profitably, and the strict account you will have to render, at the last day, of every moment of your life.

If you are alone recite some vocal prayers ; but do not impose this silence upon those about you ; if they speak to you answer without hesitation, without, however, prolonging the conversation.

Offer your silence to God to repair the faults you have committed by your words, and also in expiation of the sins of the tongue committed in the world. If you fail in charity during the day, or answer impatiently, punish yourself by observing silence for the space of time necessary to say a miserere; it would be generous to impose this silence on yourself when you feel most desirous to speak. You have no idea how pleasing these little sacrifices are to our divine Master.

INTENTIONS FOR THE OBSERVATION OF SILENCE. : We may have a special intention for each day of the week, and sanctify our silence, offering it as follows:

Sunday to the Holy Trinity, to honor the silence of Jesus in the bosom of His Father.

Monday to the Holy Spirit, to honor the silence of Jesus when He retired to the desert.

Tuesday to angel guardians, to imitate the silence of the angels before the Blessed Sacrament.

Wednesday to St. Joseph, to honor his silence and obtain an interior spirit.

Thursday to the Sacred Heart in the Sacrament of the Altar, where this divine Solitary observes a profound silence.

Friday to the mystery of the cross, to honor the silence which Jesus observed during His passion.

Saturday to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to obtain the grace to imitate the silence of our holy mother.

CHAPTER XVII: VISITS TO THE BLESSED SACRAMENT.

WE are pleased to be in the society of those we love. The Son of God delights to be with you. Do you delight to be with Him ? Do you pay Him a visit each day? He remains upon earth to counsel you in your doubts, to console you in your trials, to strengthen you in your temptations. Do you believe that He is on our altars? Can you believe this and abandon Him ?

Various Intentions in Visiting the Blessed Sacrament. Titles of Our Lord. There are some who find devotion in considering Our Lord under various titles: Sunday as King, Monday as Father, Tuesday as Friend, Wednesday as Physician, Thursday as Spouse, Friday as Redeemer, Saturday as glorious Conqueror and Vanquisher of demons.

We should make acts of faith, hope, love, confidence, thanksgiving, etc., in conformity with our present dispositions and the special title we are considering. They who receive Communion daily may follow this same method and receive Our Lord under a special title each day. Different Circumstances of the Passion. Others consider Our Lord in the course of His passion, of which this sacrament is a representation.

Monday, in the Garden of Olives, struggling with sorrow, and inviting you to struggle with Him. Tuesday, in the house of Annas and Caiphas, bearing ignominy and insult, and inviting you to bear injuries after His example. Wednesday, before Herod, classed with Barabbas, and mocked as a fool, teaching you to bear to be derided and contemned for His sake. Thursday, in the scourging and crowning with thorns, telling you how you must suffer for Him. Friday, bearing His cross to Calvary, and begging you to bear it with Him and to die with Him. Saturday, in the tomb and in limbo, exhorting you to descend thither with Him. Sunday, risen in Galilee, or in heaven, promising you that you will reign with Him.

Virtues and Mysteries of Our Lord. Others finally, after the example of P. de Gonnelieu, consider a virtue, a mystery of Our Lord corresponding to the day of the week.

Sunday: Contemplate Jesus gloriously risen. Ask, with confidence, a share in the joys of His glorious resurrection, and for this end receive the trials of life with submissive patience.

Monday: Honor Jesus in His state of victim in the Sacrament of the Altar; immolate yourself completely to His love by sacrificing to Him your passions, your ill-regulated desires, thoughts, and affections, and unite yourself with the expiation which Jesus offers to God His Father.

Tuesday: Honor the faithful obedience of Our Lord, Who descends upon the altar at the voice of the priest, and take the resolution to obey all your superiors for love of Him.

Wednesday: Meditate on the patience of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, where He endures the outrages and ingratitude of bad Christians. Ask pardon for your guilty brethren and for yourself, and beg the grace to bear without complaint the offences and trials which fall to your lot.

Thursday: Adore Jesus humbled, ignored, despised, and abandoned by men, for whom He is daily immolated. Bear Him company by uniting yourself with all your soul to His meek and humble heart.

Friday: Honor the love which impelled your divine Saviour to give Himself without reserve, in order to transform you into Himself. Return His love with true devotion.

Saturday: Thank Him for the liberality He has manifested toward you in the many graces He has bestowed upon you in your Communions. Ask pardon for the abuse you have made of them, and resolve again to love Him without reserve, and to with your whole heart.

CHAPTER XVIII: SPIRITUAL RECOLLECTION.

IT is to this point, my dear Philothea, that I wish to draw your particular attention, since in it consists one of the most assured means of your spiritual advancement. Recollect as often as you can, in the course of the day, by any of the four ways I have marked out for you, that you stand in the presence of God: observe what He does, and what you are doing, and you will find His eyes perpetually fixed upon you with an inconceivable love. Then say to Him: " O my God! why do I not turn my eyes toward Thee, as Thou always lookest on me ? Why dost Thou think incessantly on me, O my God? and why do I seldom think on Thee? Where are we, O my soul ? Our true place of rest is God, and where do we find ourselves?"

As birds have their nests on trees, to which they retire at need, and the deer thickets and forests in which they hide from pursuit, or enjoy the cool shade of summer, so will we, Philothea, choose some place every day, either on Mount Calvary or in the wounds of Our Lord, or some place near Him, as a retreat to which we may occasionally re tire, to refresh and recreate ourselves amidst our exterior occupations, and there, as in a stronghold, defend ourselves against temptations. Blessed is he that can say with truth to Our Lord: "Thou art my place of strength and my refuge, my de fence from storms, and my shadow from the heat " (Ps. Ixx. 3, Isa. xxv. 4).

Remember, Philothea, to retire occasionally into the solitude of your heart, while you are outwardly engaged in business or conversation. This mental solitude cannot be prevented by the multitude of those who surround you; for as they are not about your heart, but your body, your heart may remain in the presence of God alone. This was the exercise which the holy King David practised amidst his various occupations, as he testifies in the following, as well as in the several other parts of his psalms: O Lord, I am always with Thee. I beheld Thee, Lord, always before me. I have lifted up my eyes to Thee, O my God, Who dwellest in heaven. My eyes are ever toward Thee, Lord."

And indeed our conversation is seldom so serious or our occupation so absorbing as to prevent us from withdrawing our hearts occasionally from them, in order to retire into this divine solitude.

When the parents of St. Catharine of Siena deprived her of every opportunity, place, or leisure to pray and meditate, Our Lord inspired her to make a little oratory in the depth of her heart, whither she could retire in spirit amidst the painful labors which her parents imposed upon her. And she received no inconvenience from the attacks of the world, because, as she said, she shut herself up in her interior retreat, where she comforted herself with her heavenly Spouse. She found this practice so profitable that she afterwards counselled her spiritual children to adopt it.

Retire, therefore, from time to time, into the solitude of your soul, where, separated from all creatures, you may speak heart to heart with God on the affairs of your soul, as a friend speaks to a friend. Say with David: " I am become like to a pelican of the wilderness: I am like a night raven in the house. I have watched, and am become as a sparrow, all alone on the house top " (Ps. ci.). These words, taken in a literal sense, show us that this great king spent solitary hours in the contemplation of spiritual things. And taken in a mystical sense they reveal three excellent retreats whither we may retire to be with Our Saviour. The raven in the dark, silent house brings to mind the desolate stable where Our Saviour lay hidden from the world, expiating and mourning our sins. The pelican of the wilderness, which with her own blood nourishes and gives life to her young, indicates Calvary, where Our Saviour shed the last drop of His blood for us. The sparrow flying heavenward recalls the ascension of Our Saviour when He gloriously ascended from this earth to heaven. Let us frequently retire in this way to contemplate Our Saviour under these various circumstances. Blessed Elzear, Count of Provence, having been long absent from his devout and chaste Delphina, she sent a special express to him, to inquire after his health, by whom he returned this answer: " I am very well, my dear spouse, but if you desire to see me, seek me in the wound of the side of our dear Saviour, for it is there only that I dwell; there will you find me; if you seek me elsewhere, you will seek in vain." This was a Christian nobleman indeed.

CHAPTER XIX: OF ASPIRATIONS, EJACULATORY PRAYERS, AND GOOD THOUGHTS.

WE retire into God because we aspire to Him; and we aspire to Him that we may retire into Him: so that aspirations to God and spiritual retirement are the mutual support of each other, and both proceed from the same source, viz., devout and pious thoughts.

Make then, Philothea, frequent aspirations to God by short but fervent elevations of your heart. Admire the infinite excellence of His perfections; implore the assistance of His power; cast yourself in spirit at the foot of Jesus crucified; adore His goodness; converse with Him frequently on the affairs of your salvation; present your soul to Him a thousand times a day; contemplate His clemency and His sweetness; stretch out your hand to Him, as a little child to his father, that He may conduct you; place Him in your bosom, like a fragrant nosegay; plant Him in your soul, as the standard under which you will fight the enemy; rouse and appeal to your heart in innumerable ways, to en kindle and excite in it a passionate and tender affection for your Spouse. Ejaculatory prayer was strenuously recommended by the great St. Austin to the devout Lady Proba. And, Philothea, if we accustom our soul to treat familiarly with God in this way, it will be altogether perfumed with His perfections. Now there is no difficulty in this exercise, as it is neither difficult nor incompatible with other occupations, since in these spiritual and interior aspirations we only make short deviations which, instead of preventing, rather assist us in the pursuit of the object we have in view. The pilgrim, though he stops to take a little wine to re fresh himself, interrupts not his journey by doing so, but, on the contrary, acquires new strength to finish it with more ease and expedition, resting only that he may afterwards proceed the faster.

Many have collected a store of vocal aspirations, which may be very profitable; but I would advise you not to confine yourself to any set form of words, but to pronounce, either with your heart or your lips, such as love spontaneously suggests; for it will furnish you with all that you can desire. It is true there are certain words which have a peculiar force to satisfy the heart in this respect, such as the aspirations interspersed so copiously throughout the psalms of David; the frequent in vocations of the name of Jesus; the ejaculations of love expressed in the Canticles, etc. Spiritual hymns will also answer the same purpose when sung with attention. They who love with a human and natural affection have their hearts and thoughts incessantly engaged by the object of their passion, and their lips continually chant its praise. When absent they lose no opportunity of testifying their affection by letter, and meet not a tree on the bark of which they do not inscribe the name of their beloved. In like manner, such as truly love God can never cease to think of Him; they live and breathe only for Him; their only thought is the pleasure of loving Him; His praise is ever on their lips, and, were it possible, they would engrave the sacred name of Jesus on the breast of all mankind.

To this all things invite them, as there is no creature that does not declare to them the praises of their beloved; and, as St. Austin says, after St. Antony, everything in the world speaks to them in a silent yet very intelligible language in favor of their love. All things excite them to good thoughts, which give birth to many animated notions and aspirations of the soul to God. Behold some examples:

St. Gregory Nazianzen, walking on the sea-shore, observed how the waves, advancing upon the beach, left behind them shells, little periwinkles, stalks of weeds, small oysters, and the like, which the sea had cast upon the shore, and then, returning with other waves, took part of them back, and swallowed them up again, while the adjoining rocks continued firm and immovable, though the billows beat against them with so much violence. Upon which he made this salutary reflection: that feeble souls, like shells and stalks of weeds, suffer themselves to be borne away sometimes by affliction, and at other times by consolation, at the mercy of the inconstant billows of fortune; but that courageous souls continue firm and unmoved under all kinds of storms; and from this thought he proceeded to those aspirations of David (Ps. IXVIII.): " Save me, O God : for the waters are come in even unto my soul. O Lord ! deliver me out of these deep waters. I am come into the depth of the sea: and a tempest hath overwhelmed me." At that time he was in affliction for the unhappy usurpation of his bishopric attempted by Maximus.

St. Fulgentius, Bishop of Ruspa, being present at a general assembly of the Roman nobility, when Theodoric of the Goths made an oration to them, and beholding the splendor of many great lords, ranked each according to his quality, exclaimed:

"O God, how glorious and beautiful must the heavenly Jerusalem be, since earthly Rome appears in so much pomp ! For if in this world the lovers of vanity be permitted to shine so bright, what must that glory be which is reserved in the next world for the lovers and contemplators of truth ! "

St. Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, by whose birth our mountains have been highly honored, was admirable in the application of good thoughts. As this holy prelate was proceeding on a journey, a hare pursued by hounds ran under his horse, as to a place of refuge, suggested by the imminent danger of death ; whilst the hounds, barking around, durst not attempt to violate the sanctuary to which their prey had recourse. A sight so very extraordinary made the whole company burst into laughter ; but the saint, weeping and sighing, cried out: "Alas! you laugh, but the poor beast does not laugh ; the enemies of the soul, after hunting and driving it on, through various turnings and windings, into every kind of sin, lie in wait for it at the narrow passage of death, to catch and devour it ; but the soul, being terrified, looks for succor and refuge on every side ; and if it find none, its enemies mock and deride it." When the saint had thus spoken, he rode on, sighing.

Constantine the Great wrote with great respect to St. Antony ; at which the religious about him being greatly surprised, the saint said : "Why are you astonished that a king should write to a man? Be astonished rather that the eternal God has written His law to mortal men ; nay more, has spoken to them by word of mouth in the person of His Son."

St. Francis, seeing a sheep alone amidst a flock of goats, said to those about him : " Observe the poor sheep, how mild it is amidst the goats ; our blessed Lord walked thus meekly and humbly among the Pharisees." At another time seeing a lamb devoured by a hog, he exclaimed in tears: "Ah ! little lamb, how vividly dost thou represent the death of my Saviour ! "

The illustrious St. Francis Borgia, while yet Duke of Gandia, frequently recreated himself at the chase, during which amusement he was accustomed to make a thousand devout reflections. " I admired," said he afterwards, "how the falcons come to hand, suffer themselves to be hooded and to be tied to the perch ; and yet men are so rebellious to the voice of God."

The great St. Basil said that the rose in the midst of thorns makes this remonstrance to men : " That which is most agreeable in this world, O ye mortals ! is mingled with sorrow ; nothing here is pure ; regret always follows mirth ; widowhood, marriage ; care, fruitfulness ; and ignominy, glory. Expense follows honor ; loathing comes after delight ; and sickness after health." "The rose is a fair flower," said this holy man, " yet it makes me sorrowful, reminding me of my sin, for which the earth has been condemned to bring forth thorns." A devout soul standing over a brook on a very clear night, and seeing the heavens and stars therein represented, exclaimed, " O my God of these very stars which I now behold shall be one day beneath my feet, when Thou shalt have lodged me in Thy celestial tabernacles ; and as the stars of heaven are here represented, even so are the men of this earth represented in the living fountain of divine charity." Another, seeing a river flowing swiftly along, cried out, " My soul shall never be at rest till she be swallowed up in the sea of the divinity, her original source." St. Francisca, contemplating a pleasant brook, upon the bank of which she was kneeling in prayer, being rapt in ecstasy, often repeated these words: " The grace of my God flows thus gently and sweetly like this little stream." Another, looking on the trees in bloom, sighed and said: "Ah! why am I alone without blossom in the garden of the Church ?" Another, seeing little chickens gathered together under the hen, said: "Preserve us, O Lord, continually under the shadow of Thy wing." Another, looking upon the flower called heliotrope, which. turns to the sun, exclaimed : " When shall the time come, O my God ! that my soul shall faithfully follow the attractions of Thy goodness?" And seeing the flowers called pansies, which are beautiful but without fragrance, he said, " Ah ! such are my conceptions, fair in appearance, but of no effect, producing nothing."

Behold, Philothea ! how one may extract good thoughts and holy aspirations from everything that presents itself amidst the variety of this mortal life.

Unhappy they who withdraw creatures from their Creator, to make them the instruments of sin; and thrice happy they that turn creatures to the glory of their Creator and employ them to the honor of His sovereign majesty, as St. Gregory Nazianzen says : " I am wont to refer all things to my spiritual profit." Read the devout epitaph of St. Paula, composed by St. Jerome ; how agreeable to behold it interspersed with those aspirations and holy thoughts which she was accustomed to draw from occurrences of every nature !

Now as the great work of devotion consists in the exercise of spiritual recollection and ejaculatory prayers, the want of all other prayers may be supplied by them; but the loss of these can scarcely be repaired by any other means. Without them we cannot lead a good active life, much less a contemplative one. Without them repose would be but idleness and labor vexation. Wherefore I conjure you to embrace this exercise with your whole heart, without ever desisting from its practice.

CHAPTER XX: ST. FRANCIS DE SALES MANNER OF PERFORMING HIS ACTIONS.

I AM reliably informed that St. Francis de Sales, in the performance of exterior duties, represented to himself similar actions in the life of our perfect model, Jesus Christ. In conferring Holy Orders he beheld Our Lord consecrating priests and apostles. When he administered the sacraments, he thanked Him for instituting them, and for the great benefit the faithful derived from them. When he visited the sick he represented to himself Our Saviour visiting the mother-in-law of Peter and the daughter of the prince of the synagogue. When he conversed with companions, he remembered that Our Saviour repulsed no one.

When present at any social gathering, he contemplated Him at the marriage-feast of Cana in Galilee. When he found himself alone, he recalled Our Lord s solitude in the desert. When suffering under persecution, he contemplated Him forced to fly from the persecution of Herod. When he honored his parents, he thanked God for deigning to be subject to Mary and Joseph. In times of joy he adored Him on Mount Tabor. In times of suffering and spiritual dryness he contemplated Him on the cross on Calvary.

In a word, whatever he did, whatever befell him, he kept his thoughts fixed upon his tender Redeemer, from whom he learned innumerable wise things and pious sentiments.

[1] Introduction to a Devout Life, Part II, 36

[2] P. de Gonnelieu. S.J.

[3] 1 P. Roothaan, SJ. 56

[4] By a director of souls