that blood which he has so basely treated. God will then always abhor
him; and, as the aversion of God from His creature is that which makes
hell, it must be inferred that hell will be eternal. And in this, O my
God, Thou art sovereignly just, sovereignly holy, and worthy of our
praise and adoration. It is in this way that the beloved disciple
declared it even to God Himself in the Apocalypse. Men, said he, have
shed the blood of Thy servants and of Thy prophets; therefore
they deserve to drink it, and to drink it from the cup of Thine
indignation. "For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets,
and thou hast given them blood to drink." An expression which the
Scripture employs to describe the extreme infliction of divine
vengeance. Ah! if the blood of the prophets has drawn down the scourge
of God upon men, what may we not expect from the blood of Jesus
Christ? If the blood of martyrs is heard crying out in heaven against
the persecutors of the faith, how much more will the blood of the
Redeemer be heard!
Then once more, Christians, behold the deplorable necessity to which
we are reduced. This blood which flows from Calvary either demands
grace for us, or justice against us. When we apply ourselves to it by
a lively faith and a sincere repentance, it demands grace; but when by
our disorders and impieties we check its salutary virtue, it demands
justice, and it infallibly obtains it. It is in this blood, says St.
Bernard, that all righteous souls are purified; but by a prodigy
exactly opposite, it is also in this same blood that all the sinners
of the land defile themselves, and render themselves, if I may use the
expression, more hideous in the sight of God.
Ah! my God, shall I eternally appear in thine eyes polluted with that
blood which washes away the crimes of others? If I had simply to
bear my own sins, I might promise myself a punishment less rigorous,
considering my sins as my misfortune, my weakness, my ignorance. Then,
perhaps, Thou wouldst be less offended on account of them. But when
these sins with which I shall be covered shall present themselves
before me as so many sacrileges with respect to the blood of Thy Son;
when the abuse of this blood shall be mixed and confounded with all
the disorders of my life; when there shall not be one of them against
which this blood shall not cry louder than the blood of Abel against
Cain; then, O God of my soul I what will become of me in thy presence?
No, Lord, cries the same St. Bernard affectionately, suffer not the
blood of my Savior to fall upon me in this manner. Let it fall upon me
to sanctify, but let it not fall upon me to destroy. Let it fall upon
me in a right use of the favors which are the divine overflowings of
it, and not through the blindness of mind and hardness of heart which
are the most terrible punishments of it. Let it fall upon me by the
participation of the sacred Eucharist, which is the precious source
of it, and not by the maledictions attached to the despisers of Thy
sacraments. In fine, let it fall upon me by influencing my conduct and
inducing the practise of good works, and let it not fall upon me for
my wanderings, my infidelities, my obstinacy, and my impenitence.
This, my brethren, is what we ought to ask to-day from Jesus Christ
crucified. It is with these views that we ought to go to the foot of
the cross and catch the blood as it flows. He was the Savior of the
Jews as well as ours, but this Savior, St. Augustine says, the Jews
have converted into their judge. Avert from us such an evil. May He
Who died to save us be our Savior. May He be our Savior during all the
days of our lives. And may His merits, shed upon us abundantly, lose
none of their efficacy in our hands, but be preserved entire by the
fruits we produce from them. May He be our Savior in death. And at the
last moment may the cross be our support, and thus may He consummate
the work of our salvation which He has begun. May He be our Savior in
a blest eternity, where we shall be as much the sharer in His glory as
we have been in His sufferings.
FÉNELON
THE SAINTS CONVERSE WITH GOD
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
François de Salignac de La Mothe-Fénelon, Archbishop of Cambray, and
private tutor to the heir-apparent of France, was born of a noble
family in Perigord, 1651. In 1675 he received holy orders, and soon
afterward made the acquaintance of Bossuet, whom he henceforth looked
up to as his master. It was the publication of his "De l'Éducation des
Filles" that brought him his first fame, and had some influence in
securing his appointment in 1689 to be preceptor of the Duke of
Burgundy. In performing this office he thought it necessary to
compose his own text-books, such as would teach the vanity of worldly
greatness and the loftiness of virtue. He was promoted to the
archbishopric of Cambray in 1695, and subsequently became entangled
in the religious aberrations of Madame Guyon. Fénelon came into
controversy with Bossuet, whose severity against his friend was
rebuked by the Pope, who, nevertheless, condemned some of the
Archbishop of Cambray's views. Fénelon submitted, and withdrew to
his diocesan see, where he died in 1715. His deep spirituality and
eloquence are exemplified in the following sermon.
FÉNELON
1651-1715
THE SAINTS CONVERSE WITH GOD
_Pray without ceasing_.--I Thess. v., 17
Of all the duties enjoined by Christianity none is more essential, and
yet more neglected, than prayer. Most people consider this exercise a
wearisome ceremony, which they are justified in abridging as much as
possible. Even those whose profession or fears lead them to pray, do
it with such languor and wanderings of mind that their prayers, far
from drawing down blessings, only increase their condemnation. I wish
to demonstrate, in this discourse, first, the general necessity of
prayer; secondly, its peculiar duty; thirdly, the manner in which we
ought to pray.
First. God alone can instruct us in our duty. The teachings of men,
however wise and well disposed they may be, are still ineffectual, if
God do not shed on the soul that light which opens the mind to truth.
The imperfections of our fellow creatures cast a shade over the truths
that we learn from them. Such is our weakness that we do not receive,
with sufficient docility, the instructions of those who are as
imperfect as ourselves. A thousand suspicions, jealousies, fears, and
prejudices prevent us from profiting, as we might, by what we hear
from men; and tho they announce the most serious truths, yet what they
do weakens the effect of what they say. In a word, it is God alone who
can perfectly teach us.
St. Bernard said, in writing to a pious friend--If you are seeking
less to satisfy a vain curiosity than to get true wisdom, you will
sooner find it in deserts than in books. The silence of the rocks and
the pathless forests will teach you better than the eloquence of the
most gifted men. "All," says St. Augustine, "that we possess of truth
and wisdom is a borrowed good flowing from that fountain for which
we ought to thirst in the fearful desert of this world, that, being
refreshed and invigorated by these dews from heaven, we may not faint
upon the road that conducts us to a better country. Every attempt to
satisfy the cravings of our hearts at other sources only increases
the void. You will be always poor if you do not possess the only true
riches." All light that does not proceed from God is false; it only
dazzles us; it sheds no illumination upon the difficult paths in which
we must walk, along the precipices that are about us.
Our experience and our reflections can not, on all occasions, give us
just and certain rules of conduct. The advice of our wisest, and most
sincere friends is not always sufficient; many things escape their
observation, and many that do not are too painful to be spoken. They
suppress much from delicacy, or sometimes from a fear of transgressing
the bounds that our friendship and confidence in them will allow. The
animadversions of our enemies, however severe or vigilant they may
be, fail to enlighten us with regard to ourselves. Their malignity
furnishes our self-love with a pretext for the indulgence of the
greatest faults. The blindness of our self-love is so great that we
find reasons for being satisfied with ourselves, while all the world
condemn us. What must we learn from all this darkness? That it is
God alone who can dissipate it; that it is He alone whom we can never
doubt; that He alone is true, and knoweth all things; that if we go
to Him in sincerity, He will teach us what men dare not tell us, what
books can not--all that is essential for us to know.
Be assured that the greatest obstacle to true wisdom is the
self-confidence inspired by that which is false. The first step toward
this precious knowledge is earnestly to desire it, to feel the want of
it, and to be convinced that they who seek it must address themselves
to the Father of lights, who freely gives to him who asks in faith.
But if it be true that God alone can enlighten us, it is not the less
true that He will do this simply in answer to our prayers. Are we not
happy, indeed, in being able to obtain so great a blessing by only
asking for it? No part of the effort that we make to acquire the
transient enjoyments of this life is necessary to obtain these
heavenly blessings. What will we not do, what are we not willing
to suffer, to possess dangerous and contemptible things, and often
without any success? It is not thus with heavenly things. God is
always ready to grant them to those who make the request in sincerity
and truth. The Christian life is a long and continual tendency of our
hearts toward that eternal goodness which we desire on earth. All our
happiness consists in thirsting for it. Now this thirst is prayer.
Ever desire to approach your Creator and you will never cease to pray.
Do not think that it is necessary to pronounce many words. To pray is
to say, Let Thy will be done. It is to form a good purpose; to
raise your heart to God; to lament your weakness; to sigh at the
recollection of your frequent disobedience. This prayer demands
neither method, nor science, nor reasoning; it is not essential to
quit one's employment; it is a simple movement of the heart toward its
Creator, and a desire that whatever you are doing you may do it to His
glory. The best of all prayers is to act with a pure intention, and
with a continual reference to the will of God. It depends much upon
ourselves whether our prayers be efficacious. It is not by a miracle,
but by a movement of the heart that we are benefited; by a submissive
spirit. Let us believe, let us trust, let us hope, and God never will
reject our prayer. Yet how many Christians do we see strangers to the
privilege, aliens from God, who seldom think of Him, who never open
their hearts to Him; who seek elsewhere the counsels of a false
wisdom, and vain and dangerous consolations, who can not resolve to
seek, in humble, fervent prayer to God, a remedy for their griefs and
a true knowledge of their defects, the necessary power to conquer
their vicious and perverse inclinations, and the consolations and
assistance they require, that they may not be discouraged in a
virtuous life.
But some will say, "I have no interest in prayer; it wearies me; my
imagination is excited by sensible and more agreeable objects, and
wanders in spite of me."
If neither your reverence for the great truths of religion, nor the
majesty of the ever-present Deity, nor the interest of your eternal
salvation, have power to arrest your mind and engage it in prayer, at
least mourn with me for your infidelity; be ashamed of your weakness,
and wish that your thoughts were more under your control; and desire
to become less frivolous and inconstant. Make an effort to subject
your mind to this discipline. You will gradually acquire habit and
facility. What is now tedious will become delightful; and you will
then feel, with a peace that the world can not give nor take away,
that God is good. Make a courageous effort to overcome yourself. There
can be no occasion that more demands it.
Secondly. The peculiar obligation of prayer. Were I to give all the
proofs that the subject affords, I should describe every condition
of life, that I might point out its dangers, and the necessity of
recourse to God in prayer. But I will simply state that under all
circumstances we have need of prayer. There is no situation in which
it is possible to be placed where we have not many virtues to acquire
and many faults to correct. We find in our temperament, or in our
habits, or in the peculiar character of our minds, qualities that do
not suit our occupations, and that oppose our duties. One person is
connected by marriage to another whose temper is so unequal that life
becomes a perpetual warfare. Some, who are exposed to the contagious
atmosphere of the world, find themselves so susceptible to the vanity
which they inhale that all their pure desires vanish. Others have
solemnly promised to renounce their resentments, to conquer their
aversions, to suffer with patience certain crosses, and to repress
their eagerness for wealth; but nature prevails, and they are
vindictive, violent, impatient, and avaricious.
Whence comes it that these resolutions are so frail? That all these
people wish to improve, desire to perform their duty toward God and
man better, and yet fail? It is because our own strength and wisdom,
alone, are not enough. We undertake to do everything without God;
therefore we do not succeed. It is at the foot of the altar that we
must seek for counsel which will aid us. It is with God that we must
lay our plans of virtue and usefulness; it is He alone that can render
them successful. Without Him, all our designs, however good they may
appear, are only temerity and delusion. Let us then pray that we may
learn what we are and what we ought to be. By this means we shall not
only learn the number and the evil effects of our peculiar faults,
but we shall also learn to what virtues we are called, and the way to
practise them. The rays of that pure and heavenly light that visit
the humble soul will beam on us and we shall feel and understand that
everything is possible to those who put their whole trust in God.
Thus, not only to those who live in retirement, but to those who
are exposed to the agitations of the world and the excitements of
business, it is peculiarly necessary, by contemplation and fervent
prayer, to restore their souls to that serenity which the dissipations
of life and commerce with men have disturbed. To those who are engaged
in business, contemplation and prayer are much more difficult than to
those who live in retirement; but it is far more necessary for them
to have frequent recourse to God in fervent prayer. In the most holy
occupation a certain degree of precaution is necessary.
Do not devote all your time to action, but reserve a certain portion
of it for meditation upon eternity. We see Jesus Christ inviting His
disciples to go apart, in a desert place, and rest awhile, after their
return from the cities, where they had been to announce His religion.
How much more necessary is it for us to approach the source of all
virtue, that we may revive our declining faith and charity, when we
return from the busy scenes of life, where men speak and act as if
they had never known that there is a God! We should look upon prayer
as the remedy for our weakness, the rectifier of our own faults. He
who was without sin prayed constantly; how much more ought we, who are
sinners, to be faithful in prayer!
Even the exercise of charity is often a snare to us. It calls us to
certain occupations that dissipate the mind, and that may degenerate
into mere amusement. It is for this reason that St. Chrysostom says
that nothing is so important as to keep an exact proportion between
the interior source of virtue and the external practise of it; else,
like the foolish virgins, we shall find that the oil in our lamp is
exhausted when the bridegroom comes.
The necessity we feel that God should bless our labors is another
powerful motive to prayer. It often happens that all human help is
vain. It is God alone that can aid us, and it does not require much
faith to believe that it is less our exertions, our foresight, and our
industry than the blessing of the Almighty that can give success to
our wishes.
Thirdly. Of the manner in which we ought to pray. 1. We must pray with
attention. God listens to the voice of the heart, not to that of the
lips. Our whole heart must be engaged in prayer. It must fasten upon
what it prays for; and every human object must disappear from our
minds. To whom should we speak with attention if not to God? Can He
demand less of us than that we should think of what we say to Him?
Dare we hope that He will listen to us, and think of us, when we
forget ourselves in the midst of our prayers? This attention to
prayer, which it is so just to exact from Christians, may be practised
with less difficulty than we imagine. It is true that the most
faithful souls suffer from occasional involuntary distractions. They
can not always control their imaginations, and, in the silence of
their spirits, enter into the presence of God. But these unbidden
wanderings of the mind ought not to trouble us; and they may conduce
to our perfection even more than the most sublime and affecting
prayers if we earnestly strive to overcome them, and submit with
humility to this experience of our infirmity. But to dwell willingly
on frivolous and worldly things during prayer, to make no effort to
check the vain thoughts that intrude upon this sacred employment and
come between us and the Father of our spirits--is not this choosing to
live the sport of our senses, and separated from God?
2. We must also ask with faith; a faith so firm that it never
falters. He who prays without confidence can not hope that his prayer
will be granted. Will not God love the heart that trusts in Him? Will
He reject those who bring all their treasures to Him, and repose
everything upon His goodness? When we pray to God, says St. Cyprian,
with entire assurance, it is Himself who has given us the spirit of
our prayer. Then it is the Father listening to the words of His child;
it is He who dwells in our hearts, teaching us to pray. But must we
confess that this filial confidence is wanting in all our prayers? Is
not prayer our resource only when all others have failed us? If we
look into hearts, shall we not find that we ask of God as if we had
never before received benefits from Him? Shall we not discover there
a secret infidelity that renders us unworthy of His goodness? Let us
tremble, lest, when Jesus Christ shall judge us, He pronounce the same
reproach that He did to Peter, "O thou of little faith, wherefore
didst thou doubt?"
3. We must join humility with trust. Great God, said Daniel, when we
prostrate ourselves at Thy feet, we do not place our hopes for the
success of our prayers upon our righteousness, but upon Thy mercy.
Without this disposition in our hearts, all others, however pious they
may be, can not please God. St. Augustine observes that the failure of
Peter should not be attributed to insincerity in his zeal for Jesus
Christ. He loved his Master in good faith; in good faith he would
rather have died than have forsaken Him; but his fault lay in trusting
to his own strength, to do what his own heart dictated.
It is not enough to possess a right spirit, an exact knowledge of
duty, a sincere desire to perform it We must continually renew this
desire, and enkindle this flame within us, at the fountain of pure and
eternal light.
It is the humble and contrite heart that God will not despise. Remark
the difference which the evangelist has pointed out between the prayer
of the proud and presumptuous Pharisee and the humble and penitent
publican. The one relates his virtues, the other deplores his sins.
The good works of the one shall be set aside, while the penitence of
the other shall be accepted. It will be thus with many Christians.
Sinners, vile in their own eyes, will be objects of the mercy of God;
while some, who have made professions of piety, will be condemned on
account of the pride and arrogance that have contaminated their good
works. It will be so because these have said in their hearts, "Lord,
I thank thee that I am not as other men are." They imagine themselves
privileged; they pretend that they alone have penetrated the mysteries
of the kingdom of God; they have a language and science of their own;
they believe that their zeal can accomplish everything. Their
regular lives favor their vanity; but in truth they are incapable of
self-sacrifice, and they go to their devotions with their hearts full
of pride and presumption. Unhappy are those who pray in this manner!
Unhappy are those whose prayers do not render them more humble, more
submissive, more watchful over their faults, and more willing to live
in obscurity!
4. We must pray with love. It is love says St. Augustine, that asks,
that seeks, that knocks, that finds, and that is faithful to what it
finds. We cease to pray to God as soon as we cease to love Him, as
soon as we cease to thirst for His perfections. The coldness of our
love is the silence of our hearts toward God. Without this we may
pronounce prayers, but we do not pray; for what shall lead us to
meditate upon the laws of God if it be not the love of Him who has
made these laws? Let our hearts be full of love, then, and they will
pray. Happy are they who think seriously of the truths of religion;
but far more happy are they who feel and love them! We must ardently
desire that God will grant us spiritual blessings; and the ardor of
our wishes must render us fit to receive the blessings. For if we pray
only from custom, from fear, in the time of tribulation--- if we honor
God only with our lips, while our hearts are far from Him--if we do
not feel a strong desire for the success of our prayers--if we feel a
chilling indifference in approaching Him who is a consuming fire--if
we have no zeal for His glory--if we do not feel hatred for sin, and
a thirst for perfection, we can not hope for a blessing upon such
heartless prayers.
5. We must pray with perseverance. The perfect heart is never weary
of seeking God. Ought we to complain if God sometimes leaves us to
obscurity, and doubt, and temptation? Trials purify humble souls, and
they serve to expiate the faults of the unfaithful. They confound
those who, even in their prayers, have flattered their cowardice and
pride. If an innocent soul, devoted to God, suffer from any secret
disturbance, it should be humble, adore the designs of God, and
redouble its prayers and its fervor. How often do we hear those who
every day have to reproach themselves with unfaithfulness toward God
complain that He refuses to answer their prayers! Ought they not to
acknowledge that it is their sins which have formed a thick cloud
between Heaven and them, and that God has justly hidden Himself from
them? How often has He recalled us from our wanderings! How often,
ungrateful as we are, have we been deaf to His voice and insensible to
His goodness! He would make us feel that we are blind and miserable
when we forsake Him. He would teach us, by privation, the value of the
blessings that we have slighted. And shall we not bear our punishment
with patience? Who can boast of having done all that he ought to have
done; of having repaired all his past errors; of having purified his
heart, so that he may claim as a right that God should listen to
his prayer? Most truly, all our pride, great as it is, would not be
sufficient to inspire such presumption! If then, the Almightly do not
grant our petitions, let us adore His justice, let us be silent, let
us humble ourselves, and let us pray without ceasing. This humble
perseverance will obtain from Him what we should never obtain by our
own merit. It will make us pass happily from darkness to light; for
know, says St. Augustine that God is near to us even when He appears
far from us.