uttered in the depths of our hearts! If our senses, our reason, hear
not, penetrate not the truth and wisdom of these words, is it not
because of their incapacity to divine eternal truths? Should I be
surprised that a mystery disconcerts reason? God speaks; it is a
mystery; therefore it is death to the senses and reason, for it is
the nature of mysteries to immolate to themselves sense and reason.
Through faith mystery becomes the life of the heart, to all else it
is contradiction. The divine action killeth while it quickeneth; the
more we feel death the firmer our faith that it will give life; the
more obscure the mystery, the more light it contains. Hence it is that
the simple soul finds nothing more divine than that which is least so
externally. The life of faith wholly consists in this constant struggle
against the senses.
_CHAPTER VIII._
The Revelation of the Present Moment is the more Profitable that it is
addressed Directly to us.
We are only truly instructed by the words which God pronounces
expressly for us. It is neither by books nor curious research that we
become learned in the science of God: these means of themselves give us
but a vain knowledge, which only serves to confuse us and inflate us
with pride.
That which really instructs us is all that comes to us by the order of
God from one moment to another: this is the knowledge of experience,
which Christ Himself was pleased to acquire before teaching. It was
indeed the only knowledge in which, according to the words of the
Gospel, He could grow; for as God there was no degree of speculative
knowledge which He did not possess. But if this knowledge was needful
to the Incarnate Word Himself, it is absolutely necessary for us if we
would speak to the hearts of those whom God sends to us.
We only know perfectly that which we have learned by experience through
suffering and action. This is the school of the Holy Spirit, who utters
the words of life to the heart; and all that we say to others should
come from this source. Whatsoever we read, whatsoever we see, becomes
divine science only through the fecundity, the virtue, the light, which
the possession of this experience gives. Without this science all our
learning is like unleavened dough, lacking the salt and seasoning of
experience; the mind is filled with crude, unfledged ideas; and we are
like the dreamer who, knowing all the highways of the world, misses the
path to his own home.
Therefore we have only to listen to God’s voice from moment to moment
if we would learn the science of the saints, which is all practice and
experience.
Heed not what is said to others; listen only to what is uttered for
you and to you: you will find therein sufficient to exercise your
faith, for this hidden language of God by its very obscurity exercises,
purifies, and increases your faith.
_CHAPTER IX._
The Revelation of the Present Moment is an Inexhaustible Source of
Sanctity.
O all ye who thirst! know that you have not far to seek for the
fountain of living waters; it springs close to you in the present
moment. Hasten then to approach it. Why with the source so near do you
weary yourselves running after shallow streams, which only excite your
thirst and give you to drink in small measure? The source alone can
satisfy you; it is inexhaustible. If you would think, write, and live
like the Prophets, Apostles, and Saints, abandon yourself, like them,
to divine inspiration.
O Love too little known! Men think Thy marvels are o’er, and that we
have but to copy Thy ancient works and quote Thy former teachings! And
they see not that Thy inexhaustible action is an infinite source of new
thoughts, new sufferings, new works, new Patriarchs, new Prophets, new
Apostles, new Saints, who have no need to copy the life or writings
one of the other, but only to live in perpetual self-abandonment to
Thy secret operations. We are wont to quote the “first ages of the
Church!--the times of the saints!” But is not all time the effects of
the divine action, the workings of the divine will, which absorbs all
moments, fills them, sanctifies them, supernaturalizes them? Has there
ever been a method of self-abandonment to the divine will which is not
now practicable? From the earliest ages had the saints other secrets of
holiness than that of becoming from moment to moment what the divine
action would make them? And will not this action even to the end of
time continue to pour its grace upon those who abandon themselves to
it without reserve?
Yes, adorable, eternal Love! Love eternally fruitful and always
marvellous! Will of my God, Thou art my book, my doctrine, my science;
in Thee are my thoughts, my words, my deeds, my crosses. Not by
consulting Thy other works can I become what Thou wouldst make me, but
only by receiving Thee through all things in that one royal way of
self-abandonment to Thy will--that ancient way, that way of my fathers.
I will think, speak, and be enlightened like them; following in this
way, I will imitate them, quote them, copy them, in all things.
_CHAPTER X._
The Present Moment is the Manifestation of the Name of God and the
Coming of His Kingdom.
The present moment is like an ambassador which declares the will of
God. The heart must ever answer _fiat_, and the soul will go steadily
on by means of all things to her centre and her term--never pausing
in her course, spreading her sails to all winds; all ways, all methods
equally further her progress towards the great, the infinite. All
things afford her equal means of sanctification. The one only essential
the soul finds in the present moment. It is no longer either prayer or
silence, retirement or conversation, reading or writing, reflections or
cessation of thought, avoidance or seeking of spiritualities, abundance
or privation, illness or health, life or death, but simply what
comes to her each moment by the order of God. In this consists that
privation, abnegation, renouncement of created things, whether real or
in will, in order that a soul may be nothing of herself or for herself,
but live wholly by the order of God, and at His good pleasure content
herself with the duty of the present moment, as though it were the one
thing in the world.
If whatsoever comes to a soul thus self-abandoned is her one essential,
we see clearly that she lacks nothing, and therefore should never
complain; that if she murmur she lacks faith, and lives by reason and
the senses alone, which, failing to recognize this sufficiency of
grace, are ever discontented.
To bless the name of God according to the expression of the Scriptures
is to love Him, adore Him, and recognize His holiness in all things.
In fact, all things like words proceed from the mouth of God. The
events of each moment are divine thoughts expressed by created objects;
thus all things which intimate His will to us are so many names, so
many words, by which He manifests His desires. This will is one in
itself; it bears but one incomprehensible, ineffable name; but it is
multiplied infinitely in its effects, and assumes their names. To
sanctify the name of God is to study, adore, and love the ineffable
Being whom this name represents. It is also to study, adore, and love
His blessed will at all times, in all its effects; regarding all things
as so many veils, shadows, names of this eternally holy will. It is
holy in all its works, holy in all its words, holy in all its forms of
manifestation, holy in all the names it bears.
It was thus Job blessed the name of God. The holy man blessed his
terrible desolation which expressed the will of God: he called it
not ruin, but a name of the Lord; and blessing it he declared that
this divine will expressed by the most terrible afflictions was ever
holy, whatever form, whatever name it bore. David also blessed it
at all times and in all places. Therefore it is by this continual
manifestation, this revelation of the will of God in all things that
His kingdom is within us that His will is done upon earth as it is in
heaven, that He gives us our daily bread.
Abandonment to the divine will contains the substance of that
incomparable prayer which Christ Himself has taught us. We repeat it
vocally many times a day according to the order of God and His holy
Church; but we utter it in the depth of our hearts each moment that we
lovingly receive or suffer whatever is ordained by this adorable will.
What the lips need words and time to express, the heart effectively
utters with each pulsation, and thus simple souls unceasingly bless
Him in the depth of their hearts. They sigh nevertheless over their
inability to praise Him as they desire: so true it is that God gives
His graces and favors to such souls by the very means which seem to
deprive them of these blessings. This is the secret of the divine
wisdom--to impoverish the senses while it enriches the heart, and to
fill the heart in proportion to the aching void in the senses.
Let us learn then to recognize in the event of each moment the imprint
of the will of God, of His adorable name. This name is infinitely
holy. It is but just therefore to bless it and receive it as a form
of sacrament which by its own virtue sanctifies the souls in which it
finds no obstacle to its grace. Can we do other than infinitely esteem
that which bears this august name? It is a divine manna which falls
from heaven to continually strengthen us in grace. It is a kingdom
of holiness which is established in the soul. It is the bread of
angels which is given upon earth as it is in heaven. No moment can be
unimportant since they all contain treasures of grace, angelic food.
Yes, Lord, let Thy kingdom come to my heart to sanctify it, to nourish
it, to purify it, to render it victorious over my enemies. Precious
moment! how insignificant thou art to the eyes of the world, but how
grand to the eyes enlightened by faith! And can I call that little
which is great in the eyes of my Father who reigns in heaven? All that
comes thence is most excellent. All that descends therefrom bears the
impress of its origin.
_CHAPTER XI._
The Divine Will imparts the Highest Sanctity to Souls; they have but
to abandon Themselves to its Divine Action.
It is only because they know not how to profit by the divine action
that so many Christians spend their lives anxiously seeking hither and
thither a multitude of means of sanctification; these are profitable
when the divine will ordains them, but become injurious the moment they
prevent one from simply uniting himself with the will of God. These
multiplied means cannot give what we will find in the will of God--that
principle of all life, which is ever present with us, and which
imparts to its every instrument an original and incomparable action.
Jesus has sent us a master whom we do not heed. He speaks to all
hearts, and to each one he utters the word of life, the incomparable
word; but we hear it not. We would know what he says to others, and we
hearken not to what is said to us. We do not sufficiently regard things
in the supernatural light which the divine action gives them. We must
always receive and worthily meet the divine action with an open heart,
full confidence and generosity; for to those who thus receive it it
can work no ill. This illimitable action, which from the beginning to
the end of all ages is ever the same in itself, flows on through all
moments, and gives itself in its immensity and its virtue to the simple
soul which adores it, loves it, and solely rejoices in it. You would be
enraptured, you say, to find an occasion of sacrificing your life for
God; such heroism enchants you. To lose all, to die forsaken and alone,
to sacrifice one’s self for others--such are the glorious deeds which
enchant you.
But let me, O Lord, render glory, all glory, to Thy divine action! In
it I find the happiness of the martyrs, austerities and sacrifice of
self for others. This action, this will, sufficeth me. Whatever life
or death it ordains for me I am content. It pleases me in itself far
more than all its instruments and its effects, since it permeates all
things, renders them divine, and transforms them into itself. It maketh
heaven for me everywhere; all my moments are purely filled with the
divine action; and living or dying, it is my sole contentment.
Yes, my Beloved, I will cease to prescribe Thee hours or methods; Thou
shalt be ever welcome. O divine action, Thou seemest to have revealed
me Thy immensity. I will but walk henceforth in the bosom of Thy
infinity. The tide of Thy power flows to-day as it flowed yesterday.
Thy foundation is the bed of the torrent whence graces unceasingly
flow; Thou holdest the waters thereof in Thy hand, and movest them at
will. No longer will I seek Thee within the narrow limits of a book,
the life of a saint, a sublime thought. No: these are but drops of that
great ocean which embraces all creatures. The divine action inundates
them all. They are but atoms which sink into this abyss. No longer will
I seek this action in spiritual intercourse. No more will I beg my
bread from door to door. I will depend upon no creature.
Yes, Lord, I would live to Thy honor as the worthy child of a true
Father, infinitely good, wise, and powerful. I would live as I believe,
and since the divine action labors incessantly and by means of all
things for my sanctification, I would draw my life from this great and
boundless reservoir, ever present, and ever practically available.
Is there a creature whose action equals that of God? And since this
uncreated hand directs all that comes to me, shall I go in search of
aid from creatures who are impotent, ignorant, and indifferent to me?
I was dying of thirst; I ran from fountain to fountain, from stream
to stream; and behold at hand was a source which caused a deluge;
water surrounded me on all sides! Yes, everything becomes bread to
nourish me, water to cleanse me, fire to purify me, a chisel to give
me celestial form. Everything is an instrument of grace for my
necessities; that which I sought in other things seeks me incessantly
and gives itself to me by means of all creatures.
O Love! will men never see that Thou meetest them at every step, while
they seek Thee hither and thither, where Thou art not? When in the open
country, what folly not to breathe its pure air; to pause and study
my steps when the path is smooth before me; to thirst when the flood
encompasses me; to hunger for God when I may find Him, relish Him, and
receive His will through all things!
Seek you, dear souls, the secret of union with God? There is none other
than to avail yourselves of all that He sends you. All things may
further this union; all things perfect it, save sin, and that which is
contrary to your duty. You have but to accept all that He sends and let
it do its work in you.
Everything is a banner to guide you, a stay to uphold you, an easy and
safe vehicle to bear you on.
Everything is the hand of God. Everything is earth, air, and water to
the soul. God’s action is more universally present than the elements.
His grace penetrates you through all your senses provided you but use
them according to His order; for you must guard and close them to all
that is not His will. There is not an atom which, entering your frame,
may not cause this divine action to penetrate to the very marrow of
your bones. It is the source and origin of all things. The vital fluid
which flows in your veins moves only by order of the divine will;
all the variations of your system, strength or weakness, languor or
vigor, life or death, are but the instruments with which the divine
action effects your sanctification. Under its influence all physical
conditions become operations of grace. All your thoughts, all your
emotions, whatever their apparent source, proceed from this invisible
hand. No created mind or heart can teach you what this divine action
will do in you; you will learn it by successive experience. Your life
unceasingly flows into this incomprehensible abyss, where we have but
to love and accept as best that which the present moment brings, with
perfect confidence in this divine action which of itself can only work
you good.
Yes, my Beloved, all souls might attain supernatural, admirable,
inconceivably sublime states if they would but submit themselves to
Thy divine action! Yes, if they would but yield to this divine hand
they would attain eminent sanctity. All could reach it, since it is
offered to all. You have but to open your heart and it will enter of
itself: for there is no soul which does not possess in Thee, my God,
its infinitely perfect model; no soul in which Thy divine action labors
not unceasingly to render it like unto Thy image. If they were faithful
they would all live, act, speak divinely; they need only copy one
another; the divine action would signalize each one of them through the
most ordinary things.
How, O my God! can I cause Thy creatures to relish what I advance? Must
I, possessing a treasure capable of enriching all, see souls perish in
their poverty? Must I see them die like desert plants when I point out
to them the source of living waters? Come, simple souls, who have no
feeling of devotion whatever, no talent, not even the first elements
of instruction,--you who understand nothing of spiritual terms, who
are filled with admiration and astonishment by the eloquence of the
learned,--come and I will teach you the secret of excelling these
brilliant intellects; and I will make perfection so attainable that
you will find it within you, about you, around you, at every step. I
will unite you to God, and He will hold you by the hand from the moment
you begin to practise what I tell you. Come, not to learn the chart of
this spiritual country, but to possess it, and to walk at ease therein
without fear of going astray. Come, not to study the theory of divine
grace, nor to learn what it has effected in all ages and is still
effecting, but to be simply the subjects of its operations. You have
no need to learn and ingenuously repeat the words addressed to others:
divine grace shall utter to you alone all that you require.
_CHAPTER XII._
The Divine Action alone can sanctify us, for it forms us after the
Divine Model of our Perfection.
The divine action executes in time the designs of the eternal Wisdom in
regard to all things. God alone can make known to each soul the design
which it is destined to realize. Though you read the will of God in
regard to others, this knowledge cannot direct you in anything. In the
Word, in God Himself, is the design after which you should be formed,
and after which you are modelled by the divine action. In the Word the
divine action finds that to which every soul may be conformed. Holy
Scripture contains a portion of this design, and the work of the Holy
Spirit in souls completes it after the model which the Word presents.
Is it not evident that the only secret for receiving the impress of
this eternal design is to be passively submissive in His hands, and
that no intellectual effort or speculation will help us to attain it?
Is it not manifest that skill, intelligence, or subtlety of mind will
not effect this work, but passive self-abandonment to the divine will,
yielding ourselves like metal to the mould, like canvas to the brush,
or like stone to the sculptor? It is clear that a knowledge of the
divine mysteries which the will of God effects in all ages is not what
renders us conformable to the design which the Word has conceived for
us. No: it is the impress of the divine Hand; and this imprint is not
graven in the mind through the medium of thought, but upon the will
through its submission to the will of God.
The wisdom of the simple soul consists in contentment with what is
suitable to her, in confining herself to the sphere of her duties, and
in never going beyond its boundary. She is not curious to know the
secrets of the divine economy: she is content with God’s will in her
regard, never striving to decipher its hidden meaning by conjecture
or comparison, desiring to know no more than each moment reveals,
listening to the voice of the Word when it speaks in the depth of her
heart, never asking what the Spouse of her soul utters to others,
contenting herself with what she receives in the depth of her soul;
so that from moment to moment all things, however insignificant or
whatever their nature, sanctify her unconsciously to herself. Thus the
Beloved speaks to His spouse by the palpable effects of His action,
which the spouse does not curiously study, but accepts with loving
gratitude. Therefore the spirituality of this soul is simple, most
solid, and interwoven with her whole being. Neither tumultuous thoughts
nor words influence her conduct; for these, when not the instruments
of divine grace, only inflate the mind. Many there are who assign an
important part to intellect in piety, yet it is of little account
therein, and not unfrequently prejudicial. We must make use of that
only which God sends us to do and suffer. Yet many of us leave this
divine essential to occupy our minds with the historic wonders of the
divine work, instead of increasing these wonders by our fidelity.
The marvels of this work which gratify the curiosity of our readings
serve only to disgust us with the apparently unimportant events
through which, if we despise them not, the divine love effects great
things in us. Foolish creatures that we are! We admire, we bless, this
divine action in its written history; but when it would continue to
write its gospel in our hearts, we hold the paper in continual unrest,
and we impede its action by our curiosity to know what it effects in us
and what it effects elsewhere.
Pardon, divine Love, for I am writing my own defects, and I have not
yet learned what it is to abandon myself to Thy hand. I have not yet
yielded myself to the mould. I have walked through Thy divine studios,
I have admired all Thy works, but I have not yet learned the needful
self-abandonment to receive the marks of Thy pencil. At last I have
found Thee, my dear Master, my Teacher, my Father, my dear Love! I will
be Thy disciple; I will learn in no other school but Thine. I return
like the prodigal hungering for Thy bread. I abandon the ideas which
only serve to gratify my curiosity. I will no longer seek after masters
or books; no, I will use these means only as Thy divine will ordains
them, and then not for my gratification, but to obey Thee by accepting
all that Thou sendest me. I would confine myself solely to the duty of
the present moment in order to prove my love, fulfil my obligations,
and leave thee free to do with me what Thou wilt.
Book Third.
The Paternal Care with which God surrounds Souls wholly abandoned to
Him.
_CHAPTER I._
God Himself guides Souls who wholly abandon themselves to Him.
_Sacrificate sacrificium justitiæ et sperate in Domino: Sacrifice,
saith the prophet, a sacrifice of justice and hope in the Lord._ That
is to say that the grand and solid foundation of the spiritual life is
to give one’s self to God to be the subject of His good pleasure in all
things, interiorly as well as exteriorly, and to so utterly forget self
that we regard it as a thing sold and delivered, to which we have no
longer any right; so that our joy consists wholly in the good pleasure
of God, and His honor and glory are our sole contentment.
This foundation laid, the soul has but to pass her life rejoicing that
God is God, abandoning herself so completely to His good pleasure
that she is equally content to do one thing as another, according as
this good pleasure directs, never even pausing to reflect upon the
disposition which is made of her by the will of God.
Self-abandonment! this, then, is the grand duty which remains to
be fulfilled after one has faithfully acquitted himself of all the
obligations of his state. The perfection with which this grand duty is
accomplished is the measure of one’s sanctity.
A holy soul is a soul who, with the aid of grace, freely abandons
herself to the divine will. All that follows this pure self-abandonment
is the work of God and not of man. God asks nothing more of this soul
than to blindly receive all that He sends, in a spirit of submission
and universal indifference to the instruments of His will; the rest
He determines and chooses according to His designs for the soul as an
architect arranges and selects his materials according to the edifice
he would construct.
In all things, therefore, we must love God and His order; we must love
it as it is presented to us without desiring more. It is for God,
not for us, to determine the objects of our submission, and what He
sends is best for the soul. What a grand epitome of spirituality is
this maxim of pure and absolute self-abandonment to the will of God!
Self-abandonment, that continual forgetfulness of self which leaves
the soul free to eternally love and obey God, untroubled by those
fears, reflections, regrets, and anxieties which the care of one’s own
perfection and salvation gives! Since God offers to take upon Himself
the care of our affairs, let us once for all abandon them to His
infinite wisdom, that we may never more be occupied with aught but Him
and His interests.