Potpourri of St. Francis de Sales in Context

I am revisiting books from the past and one of these is St. Francis de Sales Introduction to the Devout Life. Thanks to S. for sending me a copy, and an older one with an excellent introduction. I shall cover quickly some of his main points to add to this week's theme of the Indwelling of the Holy Trinity.

One of the main points of St. Francis' many guidelines is that the way of perfection, as noted on this blog, and in Garrigou-Lagrange, is for everyone, not merely those in convents or monasteries.

The writer of the introduction, from this copy of 2003, John K. Ryan, obviously, understands the way of perfection. He even refers to the first conversion, again, noted here on this blog, from mortal sin, and especially, as he notes, the sins which cry out to God for vengeance, which we now see made legal in too many countries on this small planet. The second conversion, as noted by many of the saints, and, again, here, is the elimination of venial sins, and, eventually, concupiscence.

This second conversion entails hard work. I can see that the daily reception of Holy Communion at Holy Mass and the daily prayer at Adoration on aids one in dealing more quickly with the destruction of the habits of venial sin and concupiscence. In my own life, as I am still so weak spiritually, I can see that the lack of daily Mass and daily Adoration, as well as weekly confession, as I cannot get to confession even monthly where I am living, interferes with growth. I need these daily influxes of grace and the weekly confession to break away from venial sins and concupiscence.

Another great help in aiding this second conversion, which leads to the illuminative state, is silence. The more a person can surround themselves with silence during the day, the less one sins venially. So many Catholics seem content to either live in mortal sin or continue to commit moral sins on a regular basis, not realizing that we are all called to so much more than this level of spiritual warfare. I have written of imperfections on this blog before, but want to refer today to St. Francis' comment on such. A good confessor of mine in the past, in Dublin, an Opus Dei priest, was well awared of the need to do away with imperfections in order to enter the illuminative state.

St. Francis writes that imperfections, such as inordinate grief, keep us from union with God. Imperfections sometimes are seen as part of one's personality or even character, (not the same thing). But, to allow one's self to accept such imperfections stops the movement of the second conversion.

The saint writes to a busy woman of the court of France and tells her to spend one hour a day meditating on the life of Christ. As noted in the posts on meditation, one centers on Christ, and not one's self. Meditation precedes contemplation. Look at the tags on the side for more definitions.

But, the point I want to emphasize today is this great necessity for an hour of meditation, if one is serious about growing up spiritually and moving through the second conversion. People tell me they do not have time, but like the teacher I am, I suggest they do a time management sheet and plot out every moment of the day and see how much wasted down time they actually do have.

When I worked with my students on time management, I would find at least twelve wasted hours a week, and usually more! With only seven days in the week, those twelve wasted hours can be translated into seven hours of mediation per week, plus time for more prayer and study.

How do we waste time? Television is the biggest waste of time here in the States, with possibly long commutes. One can listen to the rosary in the car, or even listen to other prayers. Do not waste any time; I say the rosary waiting for buses, if there are buses.

And so on. One can pray while doing chores in silence. If one has children, one can teach even the little ones to be quiet during part of the day. Husband and wives must give each other time for private prayers.

But, what I see here in the States is the wasting of time shopping. How many things do people really need, and the hours spent in cars going between stores must be seen as wasteful. I remember back when the gasoline became so high, in 2007, that my son and I did all our needed car drives all at once on one day of the week. This can be planned.

Sadly, Americans waste a great deal of time in noise. Noise must be seen as from the devil. Period.

The great advantage of times past was the lack of stimulus from noise. One of the great problems I experience at the Mac where I am blogging is the fact that people, including staff, yell at each other from great distances. This is simply considered bad manners in Europe, where one can read and type in coffee houses and noises in restaurants seem much more subdued. The shouting and the incessant “music” simply are not conducive to either good eating habits, or to the interior life. I can hardly stay an hour in such a place of chaos and noise. Sometimes, God gives me a grace of not noticing. For this I am thankful.

But, when shops have so-called music, and Mass is noisy, and people have to have the radio or player on in the car, something is taken away from our quality of life. St. Francis would sympathize with our general lack of silence.

Silence must be sought out. I cannot understand people who go camping in the woods and bring televisions and radios with them. What is the point?

God will not be heard in such noise. And, we are called to create silence within as well as without. St. Francis suggests praying in the church or chapel. Indeed, this helps, but like Teresa of Avila and all the great saints who teach us about prayer, we come to know that God is within us. He is always present, even in McDonald's. Most Catholics are aware of God above looking down on His creatures, His sons and daughters, as St. Francis reminds us. We are usually aware of Him in church, especially in the Eucharist. We also see Him in nature, in the little sparrows who beg me for food daily, or the wind in the trees.

But, to discover the God Within, the Indwelling of the Holy Trinity requires not only grace, but special attention to the movements of one's soul. St. Francis guidelines for meditation are almost exactly the same as St. Ignatius of Loyola's, including the composition of time and place regarding the Scriptures. But, this is still not the same as seeing the God Within.

None of what I am highlighting is new on this blog. The perfection series covers all of these points, but to see them again in the writings of St. Francis is like returning to a favorite garden and rejoicing in the fact that the roses are just as beautiful, if not more so, than last year.

Again and again, I am bought back to the fact that too many Catholics want to rest in the initial heady days of the first conversion, looking for consolations, instead of slogging through the winding paths of the second conversion.

May I suggest one idea today of St. Francis' wealth of knowledge as to how to proceed in holiness through this second conversion of ridding one's self of venial sin?

St. Francis notes that we too often judge others more harshly than we do ourselves. In a small section, Number 36, in the Third Introduction, the saint reminds us that we must see our neighbors in context in order not to judge. The destruction of venial sins relies on a reasonable mind. St. Francis writes that this reasonable mind must be fair, against any notion of self-love and self-deceit. Judgment of others takes a person away from the way of perfection and throws them back into the morass of venial sins, even habitual ones.

Here is a long selection from

St. Francis de Sales,  from an earlier section.

CHAPTER XXII. 

The Necessity of Purging away all tendency to Venial Sins. 

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

Venial sins weaken the will, allow bad habits to fester, and usually come from the predominant fault,

which must be destroyed. Ask God daily to reveal this predominant fault.

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

Those people yelling here around me have never had the type of quiet house in which I grew up, where no one yelled from room to room and no one imposed their presence on another unless necessary. We grew up with boundaries, which seem to be totally missing in the younger generations. Boundaries protect the soul, the mind, the imagination. How sad I am that these young people have never experienced the quiet of the Presence of the God Within because of noise. May we pray for those who live in distraction and noise. May we be grateful for the surrounding in which we have lived which help us understand St. Francis on having a reasonable mind. Gratitude for past graces must be part of the meditation one employs daily. St. Ignatius and his help with being grateful for the day's graces.

One of the new insights given to me in the past several months has been how far a Catholic who really lives the Catholic life dwells not only from the City of Man, but from other Christians as well. Sadly, the Protestant denominations have removed themselves so far from the path of truth that either these churches are imploding, as with the Presbyterians here who have now accepted ssm, or by concentrating on the Calvinistic Kingdom of God on earth ideal of material blessings to the point of forgetting the poor Christ.

Sometimes, I envision St. Joseph standing in the doorway of his humble shop, thinking of Jesus, thinking of the mystery of God's Plan for humanity. He looks out into the dusty street and knows that only a few, very few, will accept the message of his Foster-Son. Only a few will recognize and believe that the Messiah has come to the People of God.

St. Joseph reminds me to be humble and in this humility of his was a great patience. He did his daily work, most likely in the silent contemplation of the Holy Child near him. He worked for the most perfect creature ever made by God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, who shared Joseph's daily life of poverty and work. But, prayer, and the awareness of God filled this little house. Mary lived with the Indwelling of the Holy Trinity and there before them daily was the Second Person of that Trinity.

Over and over again, at least in the past, priests on the Feast of the Holy Family reminded us to be like them.

These words seemed impossible for most couples with children. These words seemed like a far away dream of perfection which was so far from the daily life of the families who sat in the church week after week. But, what would have helped these good parents see the possibility of having holy families was missing in these yearly sermons. One cannot create a holy family through will power, or discipline.

One cannot even create a holy family unless one has first discovered the God Within. Once parents are holy, then they can share, as did Mary and Jesus with Joseph, the great mystery of the Indwelling of the Trinity with their children. Priests would sometimes state on that feast day that the Catholic family should resemble the Trinity, and yes, this is so.

But, only through the process of becoming holy can parents share this with others in the family. One returns to the second conversion, the moving away from venial sins, and if each member of the family cooperates with grace, the family will become holy.

Parents, now, more than ever, create a little monastic atmosphere in your homes. Consider the home a sacred place, the place where saints can be fashioned. I wish I had done more and been involved with less trivia in raising my son. But, to not have television and not have the radio on except for storm warnings may be a good beginning. To face one's self-deceit and self-love, to help the children live in the life of the virtues, silence and boundaries begin the process at home.

St. Francis writes that the world is so demanding it can never be satisfied. In a great insight he writes, “It (the world) exaggerates our imperfections and claims they are sins, turns our venial sins into mortal sins and changes our sins of weakness into sins of malice.”

If I am strong about an issue in the Catholic Church, I am considered “bitchy”. If I am meek with regard to some opinion, I am considered weak or irresolute. The world judges unfairly from the viewpoint of its own comfort. I am content to take St. Francis' opinion that the world is mad.

St. Francis reminds us that even the great saints were tempted to the end of their lives. But, temptation is not sin,, nor is it imperfection. But, we must resist the smallest temptations.

Do the kids need two helpings of food, or can Mom train them to eat less? (Americans, food is not love.) Do I need extra sleep, even though six hours may be sufficient? Do I need to ask someone for a comforting word after a day of trial, even though God wants to teach me courage and perseverance on my own, in case I am called to be alone at the end? No, no, no...

One more selection to those who are still confused about giving Holy Communion to those in serious sin. One cannot enter into Communion without the great grace which sanctified us and allows us to approach God.

CHAPTER XIV. 

Of Holy Communion, and how to join in it. 

1. SO far I have said nothing concerning the Sun of all spiritual exercises, even the most holy, sacred and Sovereign Sacrifice and Sacrament of the Eucharist,--the very centre point of our Christian religion, the heart of all devotion, the soul of piety;--that Ineffable Mystery which embraces the whole depth of Divine Love, by which God, giving Himself really to us, conveys all His Graces and favours to men with royal magnificence. 2. Prayer made in union with this Divine Sacrifice has untold power; through which, indeed, the soul overflows with heavenly grace, and leaning on her Beloved, becomes so filled with spiritual sweetness and perfume, that we may ask in the words of the Canticles: "Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant? " [40] 3. Strive then to your utmost to be present every day at this holy Celebration, in order that with the priest you may offer the Sacrifice of your Redeemer on behalf of yourself and the whole Church to God the Father. Saint Chrysostom says that the Angels crowd around it in adoration, and if we are found together with them, united in one intention, we cannot but be most favourably influenced by such society. Moreover, all the heavenly choirs of the Church triumphant, as well as those of the Church militant, are joined to our Dear Lord in this divine act, so that with Him, in Him, and by Him, they may win the favour of God the Father, and obtain His Mercy for us. How great the blessing to my soul to contribute its share towards the attainment of so gracious a gift! 4. If any imperative hindrance prevents your presence at this sovereign sacrifice of Christ's most true Presence, at least be sure to take part in it spiritually. If you cannot go to Church, choose some morning hour in which to unite your intention to that of the whole Christian world, and make the same interior acts of devotion wherever you are that you would make if you were really present at the Celebration of the Holy Eucharist in Church. 5. In order to join in this rightly, whether actually or mentally, you must give heed to several things: (1) In the beginning, and before the priest goes up to the Altar, make your preparation with his--placing yourself in God's Presence, confessing your unworthiness, and asking forgiveness. (2) Until the Gospel, dwell simply and generally upon the Coming and the Life of our Lord in this world. (3) From the Gospel to the end of the Creed, dwell upon our Dear Lord's teaching, and renew your resolution to live and die in the faith of the Holy Catholic Church. (4) From thence, fix your heart on the mysteries of the Word, and unite yourself to the Death and Passion of our Redeemer, now actually and essentially set forth in this holy Sacrifice, which, together with the priest and all the congregation, you offer to God the Father, to His Glory and your own salvation. (5) Up to the moment of communicating, offer all the longings and desires of your heart, above all desiring most earnestly to be united for ever to our Saviour by His Eternal Love. (6) From the time of Communion to the end, thank His Gracious Majesty for His Incarnation, His Life, Death, Passion, and the Love which He sets forth in this holy Sacrifice, intreating through it His favour for yourself, your relations and friends, and the whole Church; and humbling yourself sincerely, devoutly receive the blessing which our Dear Lord gives you through the channel of His minister. If, however, you wish to follow your daily course of meditation on special mysteries during the Sacrifice, it is not necessary that you should interrupt yourself by making these several acts but it will suffice that at the beginning you dispose your intention to worship and to offer the holy Sacrifice in your meditation and prayer; since every meditation includes all the above named acts either explicitly or implicitly. 

St. Francis' book will take us out of this world and lead us to that famous cell of St. Catherine's--the cell of the mind--wherein we find the God Within. If you have not read it, do so. The treasures found here cannot be covered in one, or two, or three short postings. Read my other blogs on this great work.

I may not be able to post things tomorrow or the next day, if the weather forecast is for thunder showers, and I do not walk in the rain with lightning. I walk is soft rain but not in storms.

Some Sound Advice from St. Francis de Sales

I am not going to write more on this great saint for a while, but I wanted to share with you

these past few days some of the excellence of his thought. Those of you

who have read the perfection series, and who also know that one

of the themes of this blog is reason--how to think like a Catholic, will

recognize the importance here of a clear, Catholic mind.

Follow the tags for more posts connected to this theme. 

CHAPTER XXXVI. Of a Well-Balanced, Reasonable Mind.

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

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

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

   [158] Cant. ii. 15.

   [159] Prov. xii. 22.
 

On Pelicans And That Cell Again

     I have written many times on St. Catherine's instruction to create a little cell within the mind 

       to which to go when in the world. Here, St.Francis de Sales refers to this wonderful advice

       and image. He also refers to the symbol of the Pelican, frequently found in churches, in

       mosaics, in tiles, in paintings and so on.

      Let your heart withdraw and read this in solitude.

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

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

    [34] Ps. cii. 6, 7.

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

More from St. Francis de Sales

These two parts may be the most important chapter in The Introduction. 

We know that the Eucharist is the center of our Faith.

Good words for meditation today. 

  CHAPTER XIV. Of Holy Communion, and how to join in it.

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

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

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

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

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

   [40] Cant. iii. 6.
     __________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER XV. Of the other Public Offices of the Church.

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

   I say the same concerning all public services and prayers, in which, as
   far as possible, each one of us is bound to contribute the best example
   we can for our neighbour's edification, and our hearty desire for God's
   Glory and the general good of all men.
     __________________________________________________________________

   [41] "Nor was I sated in those days with the wondrous sweetness of
   considering the depth of Thy counsels concerning the salvation of
   mankind. How did I weep, in Thy hymns and canticles, touched to the
   quick by the voices of Thy sweet-attuned church The voices flowed into
   mine ears, and the truth distilled into my heart, whence the affections
   of my devotion overflowed, and tears ran down, and happy was I
   therein."--conf. bk. ix. 14.
     __________________________________________________________________

St. Frances de Sales on Paying Attention

St Francis shares several anecdotes from the lives of several saints about paying attention to things
around us for inspiration and prayer. We are too busy, to distracted, and miss the small voice of God in things.

These are lovely stories but meaningful in our times.

  St. Gregory Nazianzen tells his flock, how, walking along the seashore, he watched the waves as they washed up shells and sea weeds, and all manner of small substances, which seemed, as it were, rejected by the sea, until a return wave would often wash part thereof back again; while the rocks remained firm and immoveable, let the waves beat against them never so fiercely. And then the Saint went on to reflect that feeble hearts let themselves be carried hither and thither by the varying waves of sorrow or consolation, as the case might be, like the shells upon the seashore, while those of a nobler mould abide firm and immoveable amid every storm;--whence he breaks out into David's cry, "Lord, save me, for the waters are gone over my soul; deliver me from the great deep, all Thy waves and storms are gone over me;" for he was himself then in trouble by reason of the ungodly usurpation of his See by Maximus.

   St. Basil the Great says that the
   rose amid its thorns preaches a lesson to men. "All that is pleasant in
   this life" (so it tells us mortals) "is mingled with sadness--no joy is
   altogether pure--all enjoyment is liable to be marred by regrets,
   marriage is saddened by widowhood, children bring anxiety, glory often
   turns to shame, neglect follows upon honour, weariness on pleasure,
   sickness on health. Truly the rose is a lovely flower," the Saint goes
   on to say, "but it moves me to sadness, reminding me as it does that
   for my sin the earth was condemned to bring forth thorns."

More Later from St. Francis de Sales

Later today, I shall add more posts, but I am afraid I am coming down with something and am too tired to fight the Net.

Prayers, please

Again, on Obedience

CHAPTER XI. On Obedience. My comments in red...

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

I wrote about this before several times. The life of the monk and nun is one of perfection,

as the lifestyle is set up to be a shortcut for perfection.  But, as we are all called to be saints, our

way is not the same, and yet, we should strive to impose chastity, obedience, and poverty on ourselves.  

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

So, wives, obey your husbands and children obey your parents in all things but sin. 

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

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

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

This is why it is hard for singles to become holy-to whom are they obedient? To whom

do they daily defer and give up their wills? All singles need a spiritual director.

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

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

For The Proficients

thanks to wiki

For those who have achieved the Illuminative State, here is some advice from St. Francis de Sales on virtue.

I think that choosing a virtue will come naturally. Some people have one virtue which stands out above all the rest.

My comments in red....

First, the saint's comments.

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

Most modern day priests have told people to be like sugar. No. 

This is not the call of God in the world. 

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

 Deacons do not have the same role in the Church as priests. 

The corporal works of mercy are their primary duty. And

those who are working will not be effective if they have not

dealt with their own predominant faults and are free of egotism. 

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

 I know a saint by her cheerfulness.

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

  We are so afraid of suffering in our culture, that we cannot serve others as we should.

  The proficient, the ones who have been purified, know how to do this.

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

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

The proficients, unlike those full of egotism, know that work in the Kingdom of God is NOT

merely being seen on the altar. The hidden gifts are lay gifts of those who have come into the light. 

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

CHAPTER II. The same Subject continued.

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

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

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

Obedience is All.
Too often, people want to do something other than to what God is calling them. This is pride.

 
   So, my child, we must think well of those whom we see practising
   virtues, although imperfectly, since the Saints have done the like; but
   as to ourselves we must give heed to practise them, not only
   diligently, but discreetly, and to this end we shall do well strictly
   to follow the Wise Man's counsel, [56] and not trust in our own wisdom,
   but lean on those whom God has given as our guides. And here I must say
   a few words concerning certain things which some reckon as virtues,
   although they are nothing of the sort--I mean ecstasies, trances,
   rhapsodies, extraordinary transformations, and the like, which are
   dwelt on in some books, and which promise to raise the soul to a purely
   intellectual contemplation, an altogether supernatural mental altitude,
   and a life of pre-eminent excellence. But I would have you see, my
   child, that these perfections are not virtues, they are rather rewards
   which God gives to virtues, or perhaps, more correctly speaking, tokens
   of the joys of everlasting life, occasionally granted to men in order
   to kindle in them a desire for the fulness of joy which is only to be
   found in Paradise. But we must not aspire to such graces, which are in
   nowise necessary to us in order to love and serve God, our only lawful
   ambition. Indeed, for the most part, these graces are not to be
   acquired by labour or industry, and that because they are rather
   passions than actions, which we may receive, but cannot create.

The proficient does not seek after consolations. He knows that humility and suffering are the way to light.

  
   Moreover, our business only is to become good, devout people, pious men
   and women; and all our efforts must be to that end. If it should please
   God further to endow us with angelic perfection, we should then be
   prepared to become good angels; but meanwhile let us practise, in all
   simplicity, humility and devotion, those lowly virtues to the
   attainment of which our Lord has bidden us labour,--I mean patience,
   cheerfulness, self-mortification, humility, obedience, poverty,
   chastity, kindness to our neighbour, forbearance towards his failings,
   diligence, and a holy fervour. Let us willingly resign the higher
   eminences to lofty souls. We are not worthy to take so high a rank in
   God's service; let us be content to be as scullions, porters,
   insignificant attendants in His household, leaving it to Him if He
   should hereafter see fit to call us to His own council chamber. Of a
   truth, my child, the King of Glory does not reward His servants
   according to the dignity of their office, but according to the humility
   and love with which they have exercised it. While Saul was seeking his
   father's asses, he found the kingdom of Israel: [57] Rebecca watering
   Abraham's camels, became his son's wife: [58] Ruth gleaning after Boaz'
   reapers, and lying down at his feet, was raised up to become his bride.

Mums' jobs, and bloggers, those who encourage others to be holy, none of these things are great. 

 
   [59] Those who pretend to such great and extraordinary graces are very
   liable to delusions and mistakes, so that sometimes it turns out that
   people who aspire to be angels are not ordinarily good men, and that
   their goodness lies more in high-flown words than in heart and deed.
   But we must beware of despising or presumptuously condemning anything.
   Only, while thanking God for the pre-eminence of others, let us abide
   contentedly in our own lower but safer path,--a path of less
   distinction, but more suitable to our lowliness, resting satisfied that
   if we walk steadily and faithfully therein, God will lift us up to
   greater things.

I think the proficients discover in humility their real call.