A DESCRIPTION OF MYSTICAL THEOLOGY WHICH IS THE SAME AS PRAYER
We have two principal practices of our love towards God. One is affective and the other is effective or, as St. Bernard says, active. In the first we tenderly love God and what he loves . In the second we serve God and do what he commands us. The first unites us to the goodness of God, the second makes us do his will. Affective love fills us with delight, benevolence, enthusiasm, yearnings, aspirations and spiritual fervour. It makes us receive graces poured out from above and mix our spirit with that of God. Effective love infuses in us strong decision, steadfast courage and unfailing obedience necessary for fulfilling the commandments of God’s will. It enables us to suffer, accept, consent to and welcome all that comes from his good pleasure. Affective love makes us delight in God, effective love makes us please God. By the first we conceive [virtue][1] by the second we bring it forth. By the first we place God in our heart as the standard of love towards which all our affections are directed. By the second we place him on our arms (Songs 8:6), like a sword of love by which we make heroic practice of virtues.[2]
The first practice [of love] chiefly consists in prayer. There are so many different interior movements in prayer that it is impossible to express them all. The difficulties arise not only because of their number but also because of their nature and quality. As they are spiritual, they are very subtle and almost unnoticeable to our understanding. Very clever and well trained hounds often make mistakes. They lose the track and scent due to the variety of tricks the stags make use of. They double back, change course and practise a thousand wiles to escape from the hounds. We often lose sight and knowledge of our own heart in the infinite variety of movements by which it turns in so many directions with such great swiftness that we can scarcely discern its trail.
God alone is the one who by his infinite knowledge sees, fathoms and penetrates the twists and windings of our hearts. He understands our thoughts from far. He finds out all our paths, our insinuations and change of directions. His knowledge is wonderful. It surpasses all our ability and we cannot reach it (Ps 139:3,5). If our minds want to return to themselves through reflections and probe their actions, they will enter into some labyrinths in which they will certainly miss the exit. It is an unbearable concentration to think what are our thoughts, to reflect on our considerations, to see all our spiritual views, to discern what we discern, to remember what we are remembering. These are entanglements which we cannot undo. Hence this Treatise is difficult, especially for the one who is not a person of great prayer.[3]
Here we do not use the word prayer for petition alone by which “a request for some good is presented before God by the faithful," as St. Basil calls it. Instead, it is like St. Bonaventure when he says that “generally speaking prayer includes all the acts of contemplation." Similarly, St. Gregory of Nyssa teaches that “prayer is an interview and conversation of the soul with God." So also, St. Chrysostom assures us that “prayer is a discussion with the divine Majesty." Finally, it is like St. Augustine and St. Damascene when they say that prayer is “an ascension or raising up of the spirit to God." If prayer is a colloquy, a “discussion" or a “conversation" of the soul with God, then we speak to God and God, in turn, speaks to us. We aspire to him and we breath in him reciprocally, he inspires in us and breathes on us.
But what do we talk about in prayer? What is the subject of our conversation? Theotimus, in prayer we speak only of God. For of whom can love, talk or converse except of the beloved? So prayer and mystical theology are one and the same thing. It is called theology because, just as speculative theology has God for its object so too mystical theology speaks only of God. However, there are three differences: 1. Speculative theology treats of God as God. Mystical theology speaks of God as he is supremely lovable. The former reflects on the Divinity of the supreme goodness, while the latter on the supreme goodness of the Divinity. 2. Speculative theology discourses on God with men and among men. Mystical theology speaks of God with God and in God himself. 3. Speculative theology tends to the knowledge of God and Mystical theology to the love of God. Thus the former turns its students into learned scholars and theologians. The latter makes its pupils into fervent, affectionate lovers of God, Philotheas and Theophiluses.
Prayer is called mystical because the conversation in it is entirely secret. Nothing is said in this talk between God and the human spirit except by a heart to heart communication. It is a communication impossible to share with any other except those who make it. The language of the lovers is so special that no one understands it except themselves. “I am sleeping" said the holy spouse, “and my heart is awake”. And here! “he is my Beloved”, he speaks to me. Who could guess that this spouse in deep sleep could still converse with her Spouse? However, where love reigns we do not need the sound of exterior words nor the use of senses to talk and to hear one another. Briefly, prayer and mystical theology are nothing else but a conversation by which the human spirit lovingly talks with God about his most loving goodness so as to unite itself and join itself to that goodness.
Prayer is a manna (Rev 2: 17). For it gives an infinite variety of delightful tastes and precious sweetness to those who use it. But it is hidden because it falls before the brightness of any knowledge in the solitude of the heart where the soul converses alone with its God alone. Can we say of her: What is that coming up from the wilderness like a column ofsmoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincence, with all the fragrant powders of the merchant? (Song 3:6)[4] The yearning for secrecy had induced her to make this request to her Spouse: Come, my beloved, let us go forth into the fields, and lodge in the villages (Song 7:11). For this reason the heavenly spouse is called turtledove (Ps 84:3;[5] Song 2:12, 14; 6:9). It is a bird which delights in shady and lonely places. There she sings solely for her mate, either to please him when he is alive or to mourn for him after his death. Because of this, in the Song, the divine Bridegroom and the heavenly spouse give expression to their loves by a continual conversation. If his friends and her friends sometimes interrupt their conversation, it is only casually. It is in such a way that they do not at all disturb the colloquy. Due to this, the Blessed Mother [St] Teresa of Jesus, in the beginning found greater profit in the mysteries where our Lord was quite alone, such as Jesus in the garden of olives or waiting for the Samaritan woman. She felt that being alone, “he would welcome her in to his presence sooner."
Love seeks for secrecy. Eventhough lovers have no secret to share, all the same, they feel happy to say it secretly. If I am not mistaken, this is partially because they want to speak by themselves. They feel that saying something loudly is not speaking for themselves alone. In part this is because they do not say ordinary things in an ordinary way. They speak with special accents which make them feel the special affection with which they speak. The language of love is common for the words used. But as regards the accent and intonation, the language is so special that no one understands it except the lovers. The name of a friend said in public has no importance. But said privately, in secret, in the ears, it means wonders. When it is said more secretly, its meaning becomes more lovable. O God, what a difference between the language of those ancient lovers of God, Ignatius, Cyprian, Chrysostom, Augustine, Hilary, Ephrem, Greogry, Bernard and that of our less affectionate theologians. We use the same words they used. Among them, these words are full of warmth and of the sweetness of loving fragrance. Among us, they are cold and without any sweet scent.
Love does not speak by tongue alone but also by sighs and facial expressions. Even silence and not talking take the place of words: “Come”, my heart says, “seek his face!" Your face, Lord, do I seek (Ps 27:8). My eyes fail with watching for your promise. I ask, “when will you comfort me"? (Ps 119:82). Hear my prayer, O lord, and give ear to my cry; do not hold your peace at my tears (Ps 39:12). Let not the pupil of your eye keep silent,, said the desolate inhabitants of Jerusalem to their own city (Lam 2:18). Do you see, Theotimus, the silence of the distressed lovers speaks through the pupil of their eyes and their tear's? Indeed, the most important activity in mystical theology is to speak to God and to listen to God speaking in the depth of the heart. Since this dialogue takes place by very secret aspirations and inspirations, we call it a colloquy of silence. Eyes speak to the eyes, and the heart to the heart. No one understands what is said except sacred lovers who speak.
--------------------------------------------------
[1] St. Francis de Sales (hereafter SFS) does not say explicitly what is conceived and brought forth. The context favours virtue.
[2] Exploits des vertus. Literally exploits of virtues. Exploits demands heroism.
[3] SFS himself felt that this Treatise is more difficult than the Introduction though he had tried to make it more simple. In the opinion of the French author De Vaugelas (son of Antoine Favre), this work is the masterpiece of SFS. To understand this work well, he says, one should be very devout and learned two qualities we rarely find in combination. See Pleiade, p. 1734, footnote 2 under page 608. Vaugela's remark is equally true even today.
[4] NRSV. The text is applied to the bridegroom. SFS is applying it to the bride.
[5] In the NRSV, Ps 84: 3 Even the sparrow.