which I always feared your great fervour would reduce you. And yet you
say that you fear to flatter yourself and are not sufficiently on your
guard against your own cowardliness. My true Father, for the love of God
make no such reflections: for believe me all these little apprehensions
that you are not doing enough are not half so pleasing to God as would
be your submission in accepting the relief you require both for body and
mind. God only wants your heart. Our uselessness and powerlessness when
lovingly accepted through reverence and devotion to His most holy will
are more agreeable to Him than if we were perpetually doing violence to
ourselves by great works of penance. Indeed, as you know, it is the
height of perfection to will in regard to ourselves as God wills. And
since He has given you a delicate constitution He wishes you to take
care of it, so do not want to exact from it what He in His gentleness
does not ask. A mild and tranquil inaction is what He requires of you,
resting near Him, without paying any attention whatsoever either to the
suggestions of your understanding or the movements of your will, unless
it be to say some words of love, fidelity, and simple acquiescence
offered gently and tranquilly without effort, and without desire to feel
consolation or satisfaction in them. This practised with peace and
repose of spirit will be very agreeable to God, more so, I think, than
anything else you could do. Bear this state then, letting it take the
place of the excessive application of mind which has reduced you to your
present condition. Just one word more. Believe me, if instead of the
four or five hours which you spend every day on your knees you would
spend one hour--that is a quarter of an hour after rising, another in
preparation for holy Mass, the same in thanksgiving, and one short
quarter for the evening examen--that should be quite sufficient. Try for
the love of God, by repose of body and mind, and by taking plenty of
good nourishing food, to regain your former strength. If I did not feel
it my duty to make this request I should not be writing to you so soon.
And I trust through your goodness and all your fatherliness towards us
that, for our consolation, you will not overlook anything which you feel
may help towards your recovery, or that you think will make you stronger
in the future. I have not written to our charming and lovable dearest
daughter,[B] because she does not know of your illness.
A word to the good mother, who, though we write seldom to each other, I
know to be so dear to you in Our Lord.
I pray God in His mercy to preserve you for many years for the service
of His glory and the happiness of our Congregation. Amen.
I am, Sir,
Yours, etc.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Noël Brulart, Commander of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem
(better known in the correspondence of St. Jane Frances as the Commander
de Sillery), after a brilliant career at Court, where as Ambassador to
the courts of Spain and Rome he displayed all the pride and splendour
that his great revenues enabled him to gratify, fell under the influence
of St. Vincent de Paul, and the Visitation Nuns, by whom he was excited
to a higher ambition, and in 1632, in the fifty-fourth year of his age,
giving up his worldly career, became a Priest and consecrated his wealth
to relieving the unfortunate and furthering the interests of religion. A
generous benefactor to the Visitation Order, amongst many other gifts he
built the Church of the first monastery of Paris (designed by Mansard),
where he was buried. It is now, alas! the Protestant temple of the Rue
St. Antoine, near the Bastille. Commander de Sillery closed a life of
rare sanctity on the 26th Sep., 1640, in the sixty-third year of his
age. The above letter is taken from the "Lettres de S^{te} Jeanne
Françoise Frémoit de Chantal." Tournei edition. J. Casterman, 1848.
[B] Presumably Mother Marie Jacqueline Favre.
XCVI. _To the Countess de Toulonjon, at Alonne._
Vive [+] Jésus!
ANNECY, 1634.
I see by your letter that you are in great grief, and it touches me
deeply. There is no doubt about it, your troubles are great, and viewed
in this world's judgement they are of a very distressing nature. But
look up, above these low and wretched passing things, to that blessed
eternity in which is to be found great and endless consolation, and you
will be glad that those for whom you mourn are in the happy possession
of it, and a sweet peace will fill your heart amidst the vicissitudes of
this mortal life. Ah! when shall we give a little reflection to these
truths of faith? When shall we, dearest daughter, relish the sweetness
of the divine will? When shall we see in all that happens to us the good
pleasure of God? Whether He sends prosperity or adversity, He intends
all equally for our greater good, and gives all with a love which to us
is incomprehensible. But, miserable creatures that we are, we turn into
poison the remedies meant for our cure. Let us not do this any more,
rather let us lovingly submit like obedient children and co-operate with
the designs of our heavenly Father, whose only aim in sending us
affliction is to unite us more intimately to Himself. If we so act, He
will be all to us, He will take the place of brother, son, husband,
mother, of all things. Take courage from these strengthening thoughts. I
pray Our Lord to give you a knowledge of the rich treasures which He, in
His goodness, shuts up in the afflictions He sends us.
XCVII. _Extract from a letter to M. Noël Brulart, the Commander de
Sillery, at Paris._[A]
Vive [+] Jésus!
ANNECY, 1634.
The state of your mind, which you narrate with so much simplicity, is
incomparably better and safer than if you were overflowing with
consolations and sensible love of God. This interior peace, this
stability in God, these lights, which although slight, transient, and
devoid of definite reasoning, yet retain the soul in the state in which
God has placed her, are all infallible marks that He reigns in you, and
give great hope that His goodness desires to lead you in a wholly
intellectual way to a state of great purity and simplicity; hence you
should, I think, my dearest brother, seek no other devotion than looking
unto God purely and simply, and letting Him accomplish His will in you.
This Divine Saviour being the only object of your affections and
desires, the solitary pleasure of your heart, all that He will
accomplish in you will be for His greater glory, and for your own
sanctification. Be, then, as content to be powerless, idle, dry, and
arid before God, as if you were actively at work, and in the enjoyment
of His gifts of devotion and contentment. As all consists in union with
God one state ought to be as pleasing to you as another. Age and health
no longer permitting you to be active, you will apparently have to spend
the remainder of your days in this heavenly exercise by which your mind
will be renewed. So will you be uninterruptedly employed in the love and
repose of God, and I believe that the fruit which will result therefrom
will enrich your soul, give glory to His divine Majesty, and even
edification to your neighbour, for this salutary exercise teaches
contempt of all earthly things, and is a great proof to the world of the
true piety and happiness that are to be so completely found in God.
FOOTNOTE:
[A] Taken from the "Life of Noël Brulart de Sillery," Paris, at the
Monastery of the Visitation of Holy Mary, Rue d'Enfer-Saint-Michel, 72.
1843.
XCVIII. _To the Countess de Toulonjon._
Vive [+] Jésus!
1634.
You wish, my very dear daughter, to have in writing my desires in your
regard. Here they are.[A] The strongest longing I have is that you
should live as a true Christian widow, modest in dress, reserved in
action, and above all in conversation. On this account you must avoid
having to do with vain and worldly young men. If you do otherwise, my
dearest daughter, although by the grace of God I hold your virtue to be
unapproachable and feel surer of it than of my own, it might easily be
sullied, and your conduct would surely be criticised when it became
known that you receive such persons and take pleasure in their society.
I beseech of you, trust me in this. Your honour and my own and my peace
of mind are involved. I know well that there is no living in this world
without some sharing in the pleasures it offers, but, believe me, you
will never find stable enjoyment save in God, in virtue, and in a just
and reasonable attention to the education of your children, to the
management of their affairs, and to the care of your household. If you
seek it elsewhere you will have a thousand tribulations of heart and
mind. Well do I know this. I would not have you refuse the lawful
pleasure that is to be found in the upright conversation of the virtuous
and in their visits, although in the circumstances in which God has
placed you it would be desirable to receive visitors but rarely. In a
word, dearest child, for God's glory, for the love and reverence you owe
to the memory of your dear husband, for the preservation of your good
name, and the edification of your daughter, who, without doubt, models
herself upon you, you must keep your inclinations a little in check,
submitting them to God, to reason, to your own well-being and to that of
your children. You must also bear in mind what is due and becoming to
your birth and your condition and to the comfort of your neighbours. You
will be greatly helped in this by faithfully following the little
practices of devotion of which I have spoken to you, and which I will
now again set down.
Upon awakening in the morning, turn your thoughts to God present
everywhere, and place your heart and your whole being in the hands of
His goodness. Then think briefly on the good that it will be in your
power to do that day, and the evil you should avoid, above all on that
defect to which you are most subject, resolving by the grace of God to
do good and avoid evil. Having risen from bed, kneel on your bed, or
elsewhere, and adore God from the depths of your soul, thanking His
goodness for all the graces and benefits that He has bestowed upon you,
for a moment's reflection will show you how you are surrounded by His
mercies and what a special care He has had of you. This thought ought
indeed to touch your heart, which offer Him anew with your resolutions,
affections, thoughts, words and works of that day, in union with that
sacred offering which our divine Saviour made of Himself upon the tree
of the cross, and ask Him for His holy grace and assistance to guide
you through the day. Beg afterwards for His holy blessing with that of
the Blessed Virgin, of your good angel and your holy patrons, saluting
them by a simple inclination of the head and an interior act of
reverence. All this can be done in the space of two Paters and Aves.
Next, do not waste time over your toilette. As far as possible assist at
holy Mass every day as attentively and devoutly as you can by using such
holy considerations as are taught in Philothea.[B] If you cannot be
present at Mass hear it spiritually as the same book teaches. Philothea
ought to be your book of predilection and your spiritual guide. Either
during holy Mass, if you cannot give other time, or at some other hour,
withdraw a little into some quiet place every morning, and make about a
quarter of an hour's prayer from your heart, placing yourself in God's
presence, or at His sacred feet, or at those of the most holy Virgin, as
a daughter before her father or her dear mother, and converse with the
divine Majesty in humble, filial confidence. Do this either by
reflecting on some mystery of Faith, or in accordance with some need you
may have, or as your mind suggests. Conclude all by an act of great
desire of loving and pleasing God, renewing your holy resolutions and
invoking His grace. Let your chief care be to do everything with purity
of intention, and often offer up your actions to God by holy
affections, frequently calling to mind His goodness as He will suggest
or your own heart will dictate.
Read every day for a quarter or half an hour some spiritual book,
preferably Philothea. Before supper, either walking about or retiring
apart, place yourself in the hands of God by some holy aspirations.
Before going to bed examine your conscience and, prostrate before God,
adore, thank, and invoke Him, offering Him your soul. If you are able,
add the Litany of Our Lady, your attendants making the responses.
Communicate at least on each first Sunday of the month and on the chief
feasts, such as those of Our Lord, and our Lady, and the feast of St.
Joseph, to whom I wish you to be devout.
Try to subdue your passions and bring them and your inclinations under
the law of reason and of the holy will of God: otherwise you will never
have anything but trouble and uneasiness of soul. God permits or sends
to His predestined children, for their good and as a means of bringing
them to His glorious beatitude, the afflictions and contradictions of
this life. My dearest daughter, if you are so happy as sweetly and
patiently to accept all that He sends, then be assured you will begin to
taste even here on earth something of the delights of the blessed
eternity of glory. But for this you must serve God willingly and love
Him supremely, seeking His pleasure, choosing His divine will through
holy obedience in preference to your own will, desires, or inclinations.
May God in His sweet goodness grant you this grace, dearest daughter; I
unceasingly implore it of Him from my heart, which is that of one who
loves you as her own with her entire capacity for loving. Amen.
FOOTNOTES:
[A] These counsels had been given verbally by St. Jane Frances to Madame
de Toulonjon at the time of her sojourn at Annecy, where she came to
pass the first months of her widowhood, and the Saint at the request of
her daughter wrote them down for her so that she might be able often to
read them over, and thus more faithfully adhere to her mother's pious
recommendations.
[B] "The Introduction to a Devout Life," by St. Francis de Sales,
Chapter XIV. of the second part.
XCIX. _To Sister Marie Aimée de Rabutin,[A] Mistress of Novices at
Annecy._
Vive [+] Jésus!
PARIS, 1635.
DAUGHTER DEAR,
You attribute everything to your negligence! Accept the good that comes
to you, and when God withdraws Himself do not run after Him. You are
always doing His will provided you keep yourself under His hand without
desiring anything whatsoever save to do His will. These doubts against
Faith that you tell me of He permits so that you may make frequent acts
of this virtue. For you see, my daughter, He only sends temptations to
souls whom He intends to raise to high perfection. All the doubts and
fears lest you may have consented come from the evil spirit. Pay no heed
to them, unless to say, "Get thee behind me, Satan, for I am at peace in
God."
FOOTNOTES:
[A] Marie Aimée de Rabutin possessed all the caustic wit for which the
de Rabutins were distinguished, and had no other thought than of
pleasure and of her independence, until St. Jane Frances won her to
Christ. "Make haste, my daughter," she said to her, "for God is the
enemy of delay." From the entrance of Mademoiselle de Rabutin into the
Monastery of Annecy (1624) her fervour was without bounds, and were it
not for obedience her austerities would have shortened her life. When
she was elected Superior at Thonon St. Jane Frances said to the
outsister who came to fetch her: "Make the most of the time your new
Superior rules you, for you have never had and perhaps never will have
her equal." She governed several monasteries and died in 1678. Her
praises are summed up in these words of St. Jane Frances: "When once
Mother Marie Aimée returns to Annecy she must not be taken away again,
for although she is my relative, I cannot help saying that she has
always been a living rule and a model of perfect observance." (Archives
of the Visitation, Annecy.)
C. _To M. Noël Brulart, Commander de Sillery, at Paris._
Vive [+] Jésus!
VALENCE,
_2nd July, 1636._
MY MOST HONOURED, BELOVED, AND DEAREST FATHER,
I certainly have no wish to delay in answering your kind and cordial
letter, which gives such a lucid account of the finale of this wicked
affair[A], and above all of the good odour of those little servants of
the Lord, our Sisters of the Faubourg, and of the reparation made to
them. Oh! how good God is! and how prompt in coming by ways which
confound the prudence of the worldly-wise to the succour of the
innocent. For the greatness of His mercies may He be for ever blessed!
You must have been deeply moved in the goodness of your heart on
witnessing such a marked and fatherly interposition of Providence in
this grave crisis. Truly happy are the souls who repose entirely in the
pitying and loving bosom of this heavenly Father. You cannot think what
this grace has wrought in my heart towards God, whom we can never
sufficiently thank for it, and towards you, my very dear Father, for the
incomparable assistance which you have given these poor daughters of
mine. It is quite impossible to express to you what I feel, and always
shall feel, for the succour and the support in all our necessities which
God has given us through you is a priceless treasure from which we draw
both spiritual and temporal profit. May the sweet Saviour bless you with
His richest graces and recompense you with His divine love. My poor
Sisters needed this experience so that they might learn to trust
themselves entirely to your paternal care. They have written to me
expressing their gratitude and begging of me to help them to return you
fitting thanks. It is a sweet Providence, I cannot but think, that has
permitted the evil act of that miserable man, so that by means of it a
more complete union should be established between our two monasteries
(of Paris), and that Our Lord should have made use of you as the bond of
union, for they themselves recognize this and write of it to me. God be
blessed! This story deserves to be recorded for posterity. But if it is
possible I should be glad to know every circumstance of it in detail,
for from certain things that have been written to me, it seems as if
this man took the money to invest it for the benefit of our Sisters. I
want to know the truth about this, and for what object it was confided
to him. My Sister, the Superior of the Faubourg, tells me that on
Sunday evening when I had said adieu to her, M. de Lamoignon took
fifty-four thousand francs of it to buy an office for his son. I am
asking Sister to write to me about this matter, for you must not trouble
to do so....
We have visited our houses of Pont-Saint-Esprit, Avignon, Montpellier,
Arles, Aix, and Marseilles, where certainly everything is blessed, and
in all of which the observance is kept with great exactitude. It is most
consoling to see on all sides how the Sisters love and esteem their
vocation. All these houses have excellent Superiors. When at Aix we saw
those of Digne, Draguignan, Grasse, and Forcalquier. The four are
invaluable Mothers capable of putting their hands to anything in which
divine Providence may employ them, and of rendering all manner of good
service to God and the Institute.
We also met at Aix the Superiors of Sisteron, Apt, and Toulon, humble
and virtuous souls, but not possessing the useful talents of the first
four. In returning from Provence I stopped at our house of Crest, where
I again found very good Sisters with a young Mother of thirty, but of a
capable mind, judicious and zealous. She keeps straight to the grand
road of the Rule, "for fear," she says, "of going astray." She gave me
great satisfaction. Now I am at Valence, where it appears to me the
community is feeling somewhat the effects of having had young Superiors
for eight years in succession; nevertheless they keep to the exterior
observance and manifest an ardent desire to profit by our stay. I have
not yet spoken with them, but I intend to do so. The Superior is good,
gentle, capable, and willing, but is wanting in experience; this, please
God, will come. These Sisters are in need of one who is firm and
experienced. I hope, as next year will be that of their election, that
God will look after them in this matter according to their needs.
Pardon my bad writing, but I forget half I wish to say. We went from
Marseilles to Sainte-Baume, a place of great devotion.
Always your very humble, obedient, and obliged daughter, and servant in
Our Lord.
FOOTNOTE:
[A] We quote the following extract from the "History of the Foundation
of the Visitation Order": "A person of good social position had, it is
said, borrowed a very large sum of money from the Second monastery of
the Visitation at Paris, promising immediately to send a written
acknowledgement of this loan, and to repay it at the end of a fortnight.
But upon receiving the money he at once absconded. Informed of his
departure, Mother Marie Agnes Le Roy took active steps to recover the
money, which was the entire capital of her community. The immediate
result of her inquiries was that the affair became public, and the
friends of the accused, who were very numerous, all took his part and
spread the grossest calumnies against the victims of his treachery. But
God taking charge of their defence providentially brought back to Paris
the culprit, who thus fell into the hands of those who were seeking him.
He made restitution, in so far as to acknowledge with confusion that he
had taken the money, intending to speculate with it, but he appears to
have been unable to restore to the Convent the entire sum."
The Nuns claimed no other punishment for him than the avowal of his
discreditable conduct.
CI. _To Mother Marie Agnes Le Roy, Superior of the Second Monastery of
Paris._
Vive [+] Jésus!
VALENCE, 1636.
MY WELL-BELOVED AND DEAREST DAUGHTER,
For this indeed you are to me in so peculiar and intimate a way that no
dearer term can I add to it, and no other feeling than this loving one
could my heart entertain towards you, seeing the way in which you look
upon the true and solid lights and affections of heart that God has
given you. My daughter, I am quite enchanted with your letter.[A] I
cannot keep myself from kissing it and pressing it to my heart, for
every word of it from beginning to end has deeply moved me. I shall
carefully treasure it. Nothing else have I to say, my true daughter, if
not that you ought, in order fully and worthily to correspond with such
graces, to keep your heart firmly set on God, and casting out all that
is not He, jealously and faithfully preserve the rare treasure which the
divine Goodness has confided to your hands. Spread the good odour all
you can in the hearts of your daughters, and may everyone who comes in
contact with you feel that the virtues of the crucified and despised
Saviour go out from you. Recommend my heart with your own to Him and let
them be as one in His divine love.
FOOTNOTE:
[A] This letter, which so charmed St. Jane Frances, contained an account
of the intimate feelings of Mother Marie Agnes Le Roy, when she found
herself under the calumny spoken of in the preceding letter to the
Commander de Sillery. To quote from her letter: "It seems to me," she
says, "that it is a particular grace to have been chosen to bear this
humiliation. Our Lord is so good that He gives me very great pleasure
and contentment in it, because it shows His special love for me, and
seeing that it has all happened to imprint in my heart the spirit of
lowliness and humility I am greatly consoled and incited to redouble my
little efforts to procure Him glory....
"Ah, my dear mother, how wise such occurrences make us, and what fruit
they bear!" (History of the Foundation of the Second Monastery of
Paris.)
CII. _To Sister Anne Louise de Marin de Saint Michel, Superior at
Forcalquier._
Vive [+] Jésus!
ANNECY,
_April 5th, 1637._
MY DEAREST DAUGHTER,