A Benedictine recently published an article entitled, “Deux âmes fraternalles: S. Bernard et S. François de Sales” – “Two Brothers in the Spirit: St. Bernard and St. Francis de Sales.” Very true! A Cistercian feels very much “at home” in listening to St. Francis de Sales. But so, I believe, will any Christian and lover of Christ.

These sermons not only begin by evoking the name of the great Abbot of Clairvaux, but have much of his style and flavour. There is the rich allegorical use of the Song of Songs in three of the sermons, and indeed of all parts of Scripture. There is hardly a line that does not contain at least a scriptural allusion. They evoke a whole array of scriptural types: Jacob, Tobit, Job, David, John the Baptist and Paul.

At the same time, St. Francis de Sales is a man of Tradition, drawing from the richness of Tradition. He uses the most ancient sources, the Fathers of the Desert, Sts. Antony and Paul; then Fathers from East and West, Sts. Gregory Nazianzen, Augustine and Jerome; as well as “The Last of the Fathers,” St. Bernard of Clairvaux, and his contemporary, St. Bruno. The Franciscans are here, too; St. Francis of Assisi, Blessed Giles and St. Bonaventure; and the Dominican tradition in St. Catherine of Siena.

Yet Francis de Sales is a man of his times – the age of Scholasticism. Even if, right at the beginning of his treatment of his topic, he does bring in the age-old paradigm of lectio, meditatio, oratio and contemplatio, his main approach is to study his subject through its causes: the final cause, the most important one, first; then the efficient, material and formal causes. Distinctions abound: There are three kinds of prayer, and three kinds of vocal prayer, and three kinds of sinners; four levels of prayers and four parts of mental prayer. Seeming contradictions of the Fathers are reconciled by careful distinctions, and carefully wrought syllogisms prove that neither God the Father nor Jesus, His son, pray. Yet all this theology is never heavily laboured. The rich patristic tradition with all its biblical imagery is so enfolded into it, as are St. Francis’ own delightful images, that at times it cannot but evoke a smile. As a monk, I must confess I never imagined myself a pretty little bird held in the cage of the monastery to delight my Lord and King!

These sermons are well chosen for an introduction to St. Francis de Sales. They are very representative of the richness of his style. And they treat of what he himself declares to be at the heart of all his teaching: “Prayer is so useful and necessary that without it we could into come to any good.” At the same time, these sermons are immediately useful for our everyday life. Francis gives us some clear understanding of the stages of growth in prayer, while still warning against getting caught up in a quest to “locate” ourselves on the journey. He has a few lucid remarks on the importance of posture and symbol, and very practical ideas on preparation for prayer, the use of ejaculation, and praying the Our Father. Most important, he reminds us that we go to prayer not to be good prayers or to enjoy the consolations of prayer; we go to prayer to find God and be united to Him. Seek the God of consolation and not the consolations of God. His teaching on prayer is clear, concise, and practical, and yet sublime. It goes all the way, deftly handling the graces of contemplation and the exquisite purification of all the interior faculties – while the apex of the spirit clings to God, beginning “here below what we shall do eternally in Heaven.”

No matter where one is in the life of prayer, these sermons can be read again and again with immense profit and fruit. We can be grateful to Father Lewis S. Fiorelli and to TAN Books and Publishers for making them readily available to us in English.

Father M. Basil Pennignton, O.C.S.O