THE UNION OF OUR WILL WITH GOD’S WILL IN THE INSPIRATIONS GIVEN FOR THE EXTRAORDINARY PRACTICE OF VIRTUES AND PERSEVERANCE IN VOCATION, THE FIRST SIGN OF INSPIRATION
Some inspirations serve only the extraordinary perfection of the usual practices of Christian life. Charity towards the poor sick people is a usual practice of true Christians. This ordinary practice was performed with extraordinary perfection by St. Francis [of Assisi] and St. Catherine of Siena. They licked and sucked the sores of leprous and ulcerous patients. The glorious king St. Louis, on his knees, head bare, served the sick. A Cistercian Abbot stood lost in admiration seeing the king in this posture, touch and bandage the horrible wounds, cancerous sores of a miserable person. It was another unusual practice of this saintly king to serve the most mean and abject poor at the table and to eat the rest of the soup left over by them.
St. Jerome received in his hospice at Bethlehem pilgrims of Europe who were fleeing the persecution by the Goths. He not only washed their feet but also lowered himself to wash and rub the legs of their camels. In this he was following the example of Rebecca of whom we have spoken earlier (Gen 24:12 19). She not only drew water for Eliezer but also for his camels.
St. Francis [of Assisi] not only went to extremes in the practice of poverty, as everyone knows, but he was also equally so in the practice of simplicity. He bought back a lamb fearing that it would be killed because it represented our Lord. He showed respect to almost all the creatures. For he contemplated their Creator in them by an unusual yet prudent simplicity. Many times he took care to remove worms from the paths lest someone trampled over them on the way remembering that his Saviour was compared to a worm (Ps 22:6).[1] He called the creatures his “brothers and sisters" by an admirable reflection which holy love suggested to him. St. Alexis, lord of a very noble family, practised self abasement perfectly. He remained unknown for seventeen years in his own father's house in Rome as a poor pilgrim.
All these inspirations were given for the ordinary practices yet performed with extraordinary perfection. Now in this kind of inspirations we must follow the rules which we have given for desires in our Introduction.[2] We should not desire to follow many practices at the same time. For often the enemy [the devil] strives to make us undertake and begin many plans. Thus weighed down by too much work we complete nothing and leave everything unfinished. Sometimes he [the evil spirit] suggests to us the intention to undertake and start some excellent work. He foresees that we will not complete it. It is to turn us away from beginning a less excellent one which we would have easily carried out. For he does not mind at all that we make many plans and beginnings provided that we achieve nothing. He does not want to prevent us any more than Pharaoh (Ex 1:16). He [devil] does not mind that the mystical women of Israel, that is, Christians bring forth males[3] provided that they are killed. On the contrary, the great St. Jerome says, “Among Christians, it is not so much the beginning as the end that matters". We are not to swallow so much food that we cannot digest what we have taken. The seductive spirit stops us at the beginnings and makes us happy with spring flowers. But the divine Spirit makes us look at the beginnings only to lead us to the end. He makes us rejoice in the flowers of the spring time only to enjoy the ripe fruits of summer and autumn.
The great St.Thomas [Aquinas] is of the opinion that it is useless to make too many consultations and considerations over the desire to enter a good, well established religious order. He is right since consecrated life is counselled by our Lord in the Gospel. If so, what is the need of too many consultations? It is enough to consult few good persons who are prudent and competent to give counsel on such a matter. They could help us to make a quick and strong decision. But once we have deliberated and decided on this matter we should be steadfast and unchanging. We must not allow ourselves to be shaken in any way by any kind of apparently greater good. For, very often, said the glorious St. Bernard, the evil spirit gives us an alternative. In order to turn us away from achieving something which appears to be better, he proposes to us another. Once we have begun it, to prevent us from completing it, he offers a third. He is happy that we make many beginnings provided we do not complete any. We should not pass from one religious order to another without most serious motives, said St. Thomas [Aquinas], following Abbot Nestorius as quoted by Cassian.
I borrow a beautiful simile from the letter of St. Anselm to Lanzon: “The sapling of a tree frequently transplanted cannot take root and grow into a full tree and cannot give the desired fruit”. Thus the soul which transplants its heart from project to project cannot make progress. It cannot reach the right growth in perfection. For perfection does not consist in beginnings but in achievements. The sacred animals of Ezechiel: Each moved straight ahead; wherever the spirit would go, they went, without turning as they went (Ezek 1:12). We should go wherever inspiration urges us without turning round, without going back. Thus we should walk to the side to which God has turned our face without changing the plan. He who is on the good path let him follow it. It happens sometimes that we abandon a good to seek a better one. On leaving it, we do not find a better one. The possession of a small treasure found, which we have at present, is better than the hope of a great one which we should go and seek. The inspiration which urges us to abandon a true good in order to go and seek a better one in the future is suspicious.
A Portuguese young man, by name Francis Bassus, was admirable not only in sacred eloquence but also in the practice of virtues, under the guidance of Blessed [St] Philip Neri, in the Congregation of the Oratory at Rome. He thought that he was inspired to leave this holy Society to join a formal religious order. Bl. [St.] Philip, assisting at his reception into the Order of St. Dominic, wept bitterly. Francis Mary Tauruse, later Archbishop of Siena and Cardinal, asked him why he was shedding tears. “I lament" said Bl. [St.] Philip, “the loss of so many virtues". In fact this young man who was so wise and devout in the congregation, soon after his entry into the religious order, became unsteady and fickle. He was disturbed by various desires for novelties and changes. Soon he gave many serious, unfortunate scandals.
If a hunter goes straight to the nest of a partridge, it will show itself to him pretending to be weak and limping. It will launch itself as if for a great flight. Then suddenly it will fall down as if it is unable to fly. So the hunter chasing after it thinks that he could catch it easily. Thus he is turned away from its little ones in the nest. When he has followed it for sometime and fancies that he could catch it, it takes to the air and escapes. Similarly, the evil spirit sees a person inspired by God undertake a profession and a way of life suitable for making progress in heavenly love; So it persuades him or her to follow another way apparently more perfect. Once he or she has gone astray from the first path, little by little, Satan makes the second impossible for him or her. Then the evil spirit proposes a third one. Thus, keeping people occupied with a continual search for different and new means of perfection, it prevents them from making use of any. Thus it becomes impossible to reach the goal, the perfection sought after.
Young hounds leave the pack at every new scent and change directions.[4] The old which are wise are not led astray by any new scent. They always follow the course on which they are. Once each one has found God’s will in one’s vocation, one has to remain holily and lovingly in it, practising the spiritual exercises proper to one’s vocation. In this follow the counsels of prudence with zeal for perfection.
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[1] NRSV, In the original Ps 21:7
[2] IDL, Pt III: Ch. 37.
[3] It means good works, plans, resolutions.
[4] Inexperienced new hounds leave the animal they are following when they get a new scent and follow another and lose both.