The nun sanctified by the virtues of her state
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THE TRUE to communion, etc., obey him without hesitation, and be assured that he has understood you sufficiently. You should not entertain any doubt about the correctness of his advice, but should obey him blindly and without reply, not asking the grounds of his opinion, but submitting in all things to his direction. If you desire to understand the reason of his advice, you will always be more perplexed, and will relapse into your troubles of conscience. Obey blindly, that is, without asking reasons. Be careful, then, never to examine the directions of your confessor. Scruples are, as it were, a species of pitch, which the more it is handled the more it adheres; the more you reflect on them the more they will lill your mind with darkness. Keep before your eyes the following beautiful maxims of St. Francis of Sales:— First, a soul should be satisfied when she is told by her spiritual father that she is going on well, and should not seek greater certainty. Secondly, it is better for us to walk blindly under divine Providence, amidst the darkness and perplexities of this life. Thirdly, an obedient soul has never been lost. This last maxim should calm your mind on all occasions. In a word, keep before your eyes this great rule, that in obeying your confessor you obey God; force yourself, then, to obey him in spite of all fears. And be persuaded that if you are not obedient to him it will be impossible for you to go on well; but if you obey you are secure. But you say, if I am damned in consequence of obeying my confessor, who will rescue me from hell ? What you say is impossible; for it is not possible that obedience, which is the secure way to heaven, should be for you the road to hell. 11. Let us now come to what is practical. Ordinarily speaking, there are two sources of scruples by which the scrupulous are generally tormented. The first regards the past; the second regards the future; some are afraid of not having confessed their sins as they ought; others are afraid that they commit sin in every action. With regard to the past, scrupulous nuns would wish to be continually employed in making general confessions, with the hope of thus removing their fears and troubles. But what is the result? Their perplexities are increased; because new apprehensions and scruples of having omitted, or of not having sufficiently explained their sins, are continually excited. Hence, the more they multiply confessions the more their inquietudes increase. There is no doubt but a general confession is most useful for those who have never made one. It contributes greatly to humble the soul by bringing before her view all the irregularities of her past life. It also SPOUSE OF CHRIST. 353 contributes to increase her sorrow for her ingratitude towards God, and to make her adopt holy resolutions for the future. It also gives the confessor a better knowledge of the state of her conscience, of the virtues she needs, and of the passions and vices to which she is most inclined; thus he will be better able to apply remedies and to give advice. But for those who have once made a general confession it is not useful to repeat it. Should a doubt afterwards arise, a penitent who does not remember to have intentionally omitted any sin in confession is (generally speaking) not obliged to confess any sin unless she is certain that it is a grievous sin, and that she never mentioned it in confession. 12. But you may say, if the sin be really a mortal sin, and if I have not confessed it, will I be saved? Yes, you will be saved; for the divines, along with St. Thomas (Supp. 3, q. p. 10, a. 5,) teach, that if, after a diligent search, a mortal sin has been omitted through f orgetf ulness, it is indirectly remitted by the absolution. It is true that when the penitent remembers it, or has just reason to doubt whether it was ever confessed, she is bound to mention it; but when (as has been stated in the preceding paragraph) she can prudently judge that it was told in some past confession, she is not bound to confess it. I have said she is not obliged to confess it, and this holds for all; but a soul tortured by scruples is according to the divines, not obliged to confess a past sin unless she can swear that it was certainly a mortal sin, and that is was never told in any confession. For the repetition of past sins may be productive of grievous detriment to a soul, and may drive her to despair. And when a penitent finds herself greatly agitated and confused in endeavouring to decide whether she can swear or not to the certainty of the sin, the confessor can in such a case exempt her from confessing sins of her past life; for in a case of so much danger and evil to the penitent the obligation of providing for the integrity of the confession ceases: for, as the divines commonly teach, a less inconvenience excuses from the integrity of the confession. Hence, to conclude this point, scrupulous persons should understand that a general confession is useful for others, but very dangerous and injurious to them. Hence, good directors do not permit scrupulous persons to speak of past sins. The remedy for them is not to explain, but to be silent and to obey; hence, when they wish to speak of past sins, the confessor must not listen to them, for if he once permits them to speak, they will be always disturbed when they do not explain their doubts. 354 THE TRUE 13. I have said so much regarding general confessions: a* to the ordinary confessions, it is not necessary for religious, who seek perfection, and communicate frequently, to receive absolution before each communion; it is enough for them to receive absolution once or twice in the week, and when they fall into any deliberate venial sin. St. Francis de Sales, in one of his letters, says that even when persons who walk in the way of perfection commit a deliberate venial fault, they ought not to omit communion because they have not the opportunity of going to confession. For, as the Council of Trent teaches, there are other means of obtaining the remission of venial sins, such as acts of contrition and of love. I have read that St. Matilda, not having an opportunity of confessing certain acts of negligence, made an act of contrition and went to communion. After communion, Jesus Christ appeared to her, and said that she had acted rightly A certain learned priest used to say that it is sometimes more profitable to the soul to go to communion after a venial sin, without confession than if she had gone to confession and received absolution before communion. For the soul will then make so many acts of contrition for the fault she has committed that she will receive the holy communion with greater fervour and humility. 14. With regard to those who are afraid of committing sin in all their actions, or of consenting to every bad thought that starts up in the mind, it is necessary to know two things: first, that feeling is one thing and consent another. The motions of sense, which naturally arise, are never sins when the will resists them. Neither should a person scruple having given cause to them, when the cause has been placed for a good end — that is, for spiritual or temporal utility. The second is, that, in order to commit mortal sin, the full advertence of the understanding, as well as the full consent of the will, is necessary: if either be wanting, the sin is not grievous. And in cases of doubt, timorous, and particularly scrupulous souls (as has been already said, n. 13,) ought to feel certain that they have not sinned grievously unless they can affirm with certainty that they have consented to mortal sin. And here it may be useful to remark, that for certain very timid souls, who are always in doubt about having consented to bad thoughts, it is better sometimes not to accuse themselves of certain temptations: for example, of temptations to hatred, against faith, or purity because, by examining whether they have given a delibers^e consent, and how they shall explain their temptations, images of bad objects are excited still more SPOUSE OF CHRIST. 355 vividly in the mind, and their agitation is increased by the fear of having given a new consent. Such souls should be told to accuse themselves of such thoughts in a general way, saying: I accuse myself of all the negligences I have been guilty of in not banishing bad thoughts. 15. There are two privileges, then, given to the scrupulous soul, by the generality of divines (by St. Antonine, Navarre, Suares, and many others.) The first is, that by acting with a fear or scruple she is not guilty of sin as long as she acts through obedience. And it is not necessary for her to form expressly at each act a practical judgment of the lawfulness of her actions, by reflecting that she is acting according to obedience. To exempt her from all fault, it is enough for her to make a virtual judgment — that is, it is enough for her to act in virtue of a judgment already formed, that such fears ought to be disregarded. Nor can it be said that the soul then acts with a practical doubt about the unlawfulness of the action: it is one thing to act with a practical doubt, and another to act with a fear of its sinfulness. Gerson justly teaches, that to act with a doubt, which arises from a formed conscience, or after a person has examined the circumstances, and come to the conclusion that while the doubt remains he cannot act without sin, would be to act with a practical doubt, and would be sinful. But when the mind is perplexed, vacillating amid doubts, and not knowing what opinion to adopt, but, at the same time resolved not to do anything displeasing to God, such a doubt is not, according to Gerson, a practical doubt, but a vain fear and scruple, which should be as much as possible rejected and despised. Behold his words: "A conscience is formed, when, after inquiry and deliberation, a person judges by a definitive sentence that an act is to be performed or omitted. And to act against such a conscience is a sin. A fear or scruple of conscience consists in 1 a vacillation of the mind between doubts; the soul knows not whether she is bound to do or to omit the act, but would not wish to omit what she knows to be pleasing to the divine will; and such fear should be as much as possible rejected and extinguished" — Tract de Consc. et Scrup. Hence, when a soul has a firm purpose not to offend God, and acts according to obedience in overcoming scruples, she is not guilty of sin, though she acts with fear, and though she does not actually advert to the command of her director. 10. The second privilege of the scrupulous is, that after having acted they should believe that they have not given consent to any temptation, unless they are certain of hav- 356 THE TRUE ing fully adverted and consented to the malice of the sin. Hence, when they are doubtful, their very doubt is a certain sign that they either had not full advertence or that they did not give a full consent. Hence, if the confessor tells them not to confess such doubts, they ought to obey, and should not think of leaving him if he persists in refusing to listen to the explanation of their doubts. I add, that the spiritual father who is indulgent in hearing the doubts of scrupulous souls falls into a great error; for, by scrutinizing their consciences, they generally become disquieted, and are rendered more incapable of advancing in the way of God. What has been just said does not regard so much the direction of penitents as of confessors in the guidance of souls. Penitents have only to submit their judgment to their spiritual father, and to obey him in all things. However, it may be useful to certain penitents to know what has been just said for the direction of confessors, that when their confessor tells them not to accuse themselves of certain sins, nor to speak of them unless they are certain of having committed a grievous fault; or when, after having heard them, he sends them to communion without absolution, they may not begin to contend with him, but may obey blindly, without even asking a reason for the command which he has imposed upon them. 17. But some may say: I wish to act with a certainty of not giving displeasure to God. I answer, that the greatest security which you (who have a troubled conscience) can have is to obey your director, and to conquer scruples in spite of the actual fear which molests you. And you know that, though you were at the point of death, you would be obliged to act in this manner in order to avoid the delusions of the devil. And here I repeat what I have already said (n. 4,) that you ought to scruple not doing violence to yourself in order to conquer scruples by acting against them, in obedience to your spiritual father, even though you may not be persuaded that your scruples are vain fears. For if you omit an act on account of the scruple you shall not be able to make any further progress in the way of God, and (as has been said) you will expose yourself to the danger of losing your soul or your reason; and to expose yourself to such danger is a certain sin. Hence, the devil excites so many fears in scrupulous persons that they may either abandon themselves to a tepid life, or may become fools; or at least that they may not advance in perfection, and live always amid troubles and confusion, in which hell always gains something. St. Louis Gonzaga used to say, that in troubled water the devil always finds fish to catch. SPOUSE OF CHRIST. 35r 18. If, then, you wish to go on well and securely, obey punctually all the commands and directions of your confessor. And beg of him to prescribe not only particular, but also general, rules for your direction. I say general; for example to overcome and disregard scruples, as long as it is not evident that what you scruple is a grievous sin; or not to confess anything unless you can swear that it was certainly a mortal sin, and unless you can also swear that it was never told in confession: or to go to communion always when you are not certain of having committed mortal sin: or never to repeat the divine office, or any part of it, unless you are certain of having omitted it ; and other eimilar rules which are usually given to the scrupulous. For particular rules, that is, rules given by the confessor in particular cases which have occurred, are of little or no use for the direction of a soul tormented by scruples. She will always say that the second case is not like the first, on which she had the advice of the confessor, and thus the mind will be always full of confusion and inquietude. 19. I conclude by repeating always, obey, obey; and dc not treat God as a tyrant. It is true that he hates sin; but he cannot hate a soul that detests her sin, is sorry for it, and ready to die a thousand times rather than relapse into it. Tell me, if you had the love and affection for a fellowcreature which you now have for God, would you ever believe that a creature did not entertain a tender love for you? Oh ! how good is God to a soul that has a good will ! "How good," says the Royal Prophet, "is God to Israel, to them that are of a right heart" — Ps. lxxii. 1. The Lord cannot but receive with tenderness the soul that seeks him. " The Lord," says Jeremias, " is good to the soul that seeketh him" — Lam. iii. 25. Our Lord said one day to St. Margaret of Cortona: Margaret, you seek me; but I seek you with far greater ardour than you seek me. Imagine that God says the same to you, if you iove him and seek him. Abandon yourself into his arms, \* the Psalmist exhorts you to do, and cast upon him the ca*e of your soul, and he will preserve you, and will deliver you from all troubles. "Cast thy care upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee; he shall not suffer the just to waver for ever' — Ps. liv. 23. Be obedient, and cast away *o many fears. Jesus said to the same St. Margaret, that her fears impeded her advancement in the divine love. Do not imagine that Is long as you love him from the heart, God is provoked to wrath by every little fault which you commit. St. Teresa ased to say: My children, be assured that God does not, as you imagine, attend to so many trifles; do not suffer your 858 THE TRUE heart to be narrowed; if you do you may lose many blessings. Let your intention be pure, and your will resolved never to offend him. I repeat, then, and I say obey in all things your spiritual father and have confidence in obedience; for by the practice of obedience you shall always be secure. Keep always before your eyes this great lesson which St. Philip Neriused to repeat to his penitents: "Have confidence in your confessor, for the Lord will not allow him to err; there is no way of cutting the snares of the devil more secure than to do the will of another, and there is nothing more dangerous than to be directed by one's own opinion." In your meditations ask this grace of God, that he may make you practice obedience to your director. And fear not that if you practice it you will be saved, and will become a saint. PRAYER. My Jesus, because I love thee, all the pain arising from the troubles of my conscience, consists in the fear of displeasing and losing thee, who art an infinite Good. There was a time (and oh! that it had never been,) when I did not love thee, and cared but little to be loved by thee. But now I desire nothing but to love thee and to be loved by thee, my dear Redeemer. I do not wish ever more to displease thee. Thou knowest my wish to love thee at any cost; do not abandon me. If I have hitherto offended I now feel more pain at the offences I have offered to thee than if I lost all things, property, relatives, and life. Thou hast died for me, to thee I consign my soul; into thy hand I recommend it. "In manus tuas Domine commendo spiritu in meum." Thou Jovest me, and therefore I abandon myself entirely into thy hands, and hope never to see myself confounded and in enmity with thee. "In thee, O Lord, have I hoped; never let me be confounded." My Jesus, I wish always to love thee. This I repeat, and hope to repeat during life, at death, and for all eternity. My Jesus, I love thee, and wish always to love thee. Mary, my hope, mother of mercy, assist me, have pity on me. Amen. SECTION III. On Communion. On Spiritual Communion, and Visitation of the Blessed Sacrament. 1. Of all the sacraments the adorable sacrament of the altar is the most excellent. The other sacraments contain the gifts of God, but the holy Eucharist contains God himself. Hence, St. Thomas says (3 part, q. 73, art. 3,) that the other sacraments have been instituted by Jesus Chris* SPOUSE OF CHRIST. 359 to prepare men either to receive or to administer the blessed Eucharist, which, according to the holy doctor, is the consummation of the spiritual life; because from this sacrament is derived all perfection. For all perfection consists in an union with God; and of all the means of uniting the soul with him there is none better than the holy communion, by which, as Jesus Christ himself has said, the soul becomes as it were one with him. " He that eateth my flesh abideth in me, and I in him" — St. John, vi. 57. Hence, St. Chrysostom says, that Jesus has given his body to us under the species of bread, that we may become one with him. " Corpus suum in nos contemperavit ut unum quid simus" — Homily 61. And St. Cyril of Alexandria teaches, that as two pieces of wax melted together become one, so we, by holy communion, are similarly united with Jesus Christ. " Ut unum ex utrisque factum videatur" — St. Cyr. lib. 10, in Joan. c. 13. Hence, our Saviour instituted this sacrament under the form of food, to show that as corporal food is changed into our flesh, so this heavenly bread becomes one with us; but with this difference, that earthly food is converted into our substance, while this divine bread transforms those who eat it into Jesus Christ. " Eat and you shall be by grace what I am by nature" — Rupert in Exod. lib. 3, c. 12. "I will not be changed into you, but you shall be changed into me" — St. Augustine. 2. The principal effect of this sacrament is to preserve in the soul the life of grace. Hence, it is called bread; for as earthly bread supports corporal life, so this heavenly bread preserves the life of the soul, which consists in the grace of God. The Eucharist is, according to the Council of Trent, the divine medicine which purifies the soul from venial, and preserves her from mortal sins. " Antidotum quo liberamur a culpis quotidianis et a peccatis mortalibus preservamur" — Sess. 14, c. 2. Like a stream of water this sacrament extinguishes the ardour of the passions by which we are consumed. Let him in whose soul the flame of some particular passion is kindled approach the holy Communion, and he will find the passion altogether, or at least in a great measure, destroyed. " If any of you," says St. Bernard, " does not experience such frequent or such violent motions •of anger, of envy, or of lust, let him give thanks to the i)ody of the Lord, which produces fruit in his soul" — Serm. de Bap. ir Coena Dom. The angelic doctor teaches that he holy communion gives us strength to overcome all the attacks of the devil. "It repels every assault of the lemons" — St. Tho. 3, p. q. 19, art. 1. St. Chrysostom as'°rts, that when we receive the holy Eucharist the devils 360 THE TRUE are put to flight, and the angels run to our assistance. Moreover, this sacrament infuses into the soul great interior peace, a strong inclination to virtue, and a great willing* ness to practice it, and thus renders it easy to walk in the path of perfection. . 3. The holy communion, as St. Thomas teaches, infuses divine charity into the heart. Jesus Christ protested that he came into the world for no other purpose than to kindle in our souls the holy fire of divine love. "I came to cast fire on the earth, and what will I but that it be kindled" — Imke xii. 49. The venerable Father Olimpio, of the order of Theatines, used to say, that there is no mystery of redemption better calculated to inflame us with the love of Jesus Christ than the sacrament of the altar, in which he gives himself entirely to us and pours forth all his love. Hence, speaking of the institution of this sacrament, St. John says: " Jesus knowing that his hour was come, to pass from this world to his Father, when he had loved his friends who were in the world, he loved them even to the end" — John xiii. 1. "He loved them to the end," that is, according to the commentators, he loved them to the utmost of his power. Hence, the Council of Trent said, that in this sacrament Jesus " poured forth, as it were, all the riches of his divine love towards man" — Sess. 13, cap. 2. The holy communion has been called by St. Thomas, " the sacrament of love," (Opusc. 30, c. 35); and by St. Bernard, the "love of loves." St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi used to call the day of communion "the day of love;" and would say that a soul after communion might exclaim with J esus dying on the cross, " it is consummated." For after having given himself to me, God has nothing more to give; nor can I desire anything else from him. 4. Should not all, then, ardently desire to receive J esus as often as possible in the holy communion ? We know from the Acts of the Apostles that, in the first ages of the Church, all the faithful communicated every day. " Continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house" — Acts ii. 46. In the Syriac version, instead of "breaking bread," we find the words "breaking blessed bread," which express more clearly the blessed Eucharist. Besides, the interpreters of the Sacred Scripture, by the breaking of bread, understand theholy communion. Hence, according to St. Thomas (part 3, q. 80, art. 10, ad. 5,) it is certain that in the early ages all who assisted at mass received the communion. This fact is attested by St. Denis the Areopagite (Hier. eccl., c. 13,) and by St. Jerome, in his letters to Lucina and Pamachius, in SPOUSE OP CHRIST. 361 which he states, that this pious practice was preserved in Rome and Spain even in his own time. By degrees the piety of the faithful began to grow cold; such Vas their lukewarmness in the time of Pope Fabian, that he had to command all Christians to approach the holy communion at least three times in the year, that is, on the festivals of Easter, Pentecost, and Christmas. In after ages the tepidity of Christians became so great, that Innocent the Third obliged all the faithful, under very severe penalties, to communicate at least at Easter. The decree of Innocent was afterwards confirmed by the Council of Trent — Sess. 13, chap. 9. These enactments of popes and councils do not prove that the practice of frequent communion is not very laudable; they only show the decay of the fervour which animated the first Christians. |