He always praised _common_ life very highly. His exalted opinion of its
merits made him refuse to allow the Sisters of the Visitation to practise
extraordinary austerities in respect to dress or food. For these matters
he prescribed rules such as can easily be observed by anyone who wishes to
lead a christian life in the world. His spiritual daughters, following this
direction, imitate the example of Jesus Christ, of His Blessed Mother, and
of the disciples of our Lord, who led no other kind of life. For the rest,
they have at all times to submit themselves to the discretion and judgment
of their superiors, whose duty it is to decide for them on the expediency
of extraordinary mortifications after hearing the circumstances of the case
of any individual sister.
Our Saint himself often, indeed, practised bodily mortifications, but
always with judgment and prudence, for he knew full well that the object of
such austerities is the preservation of purity of soul, not the destruction
of bodily health.
In one word, he practically set the life of Jesus Christ before that of St.
John the Baptist.