incurs his displeasure and deserves punishment; more so when he insults
his superior; and the offense is the greater in proportion as the party
insulted is more distinguished and the offender lower in comparison. Now
consider how great is God, who is insulted, compared to man, who insults
Him:
a. The meanness of man. What is one man compared to a thousand men, to a
thousand thousand, or million men? Like a little gnat flitting in the
sunshine. And what are a million men compared to the one thousand five
hundred millions of men now inhabiting the earth? And what are all these
together compared to all the former and the future generations? And what
are all men compared to the Angels of God?
And what are all creatures compared to the Creator Himself? Less than a
drop of water compared to the vast ocean. What then am I compared to
God? And yet, if I have ever sinned, I have put myself above God, my
will above His will. If then I have often sinned, what punishment have I
not deserved?
b. See the meanness of the body of man, which corrupts all it uses, and
needs constant care to keep it from becoming insupportable, even to
itself. See how death degrades it, how even sickness degrades it. And
the soul of man: see how it is ever inclined to conceive and foster evil
thoughts and desires, how it prompts to evil words and actions; so that
St. Ignatius, who had been a proud soldier, when he came to know himself
better, looked on himself as a running ulcer flowing with corruption.
And yet in sinning, this vile being, man, rises up to insult God.
c. On the other hand consider the greatness of God, by comparison with
the littleness of man: compare His power with man’s weakness, His
knowledge with man’s ignorance, His eternity with man’s short span of
life, His bounty with man’s selfishness, etc.
_POINT III._ I will arouse my will to detest my sinfulness, indignant
against myself, and wondering that God continues to bear with me, to
favor me, to have His Angels protect me, the earth support me; and He
forbids all men to injure me, commands them to love me.
_Colloquy_ with my crucified Lord, begging His mercy and His pardon.
CONSIDERATION
On the Confession of the Retreat
The direct purpose of the first days of the retreat is to purify the
soul of all guilt of sin and all attachment to sin. For this purpose the
Sacrament of Penance is the most efficient means, and the confession of
sins is an integral part of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius.
I
_Confession may be of three kinds_: a general confession of one’s whole
life, or a considerable portion of one’s life; the ordinary, or weekly
confession; and thirdly the annual or semi-annual review, which is of
rule in many religious institutions.
1. _A general confession_ is obligatory if the preceding confessions
have been badly made; it is useful at the age when a child has been
fully instructed in its religious duties; when a person enters on a
permanent state of life, and perhaps once more, when one approaches the
portals of eternity. The anxiety entertained by some souls to repeat
their general confessions over and over again is most unreasonable; it
fosters scrupulosity and is injurious to spiritual progress.
2. _In the ordinary, or weekly, confessions_, which, in the case of
religious, rarely include a mortal sin, earnest care must be taken that
one or more real sins, recently or formerly committed, be confessed, so
that matter be presented for absolution; and also that there be elicited
an act of supernatural contrition for those sins, or at least for some
one of them. Else the Sacrament would be invalid, for real supernatural
contrition is one of its essential parts.
3. _An annual or semi-annual review_ of the weekly confessions affords
marked advantages, especially when it is made during the retreat: a.
Faults are thus likely to be noticed which attracted little attention at
other times. As when a ray of sunshine enters into a rather dark room,
and reveals more dust on the furniture than was noticed before, so the
Divine light of grace, entering the soul during the Exercises, discovers
various defects of which there had been no clear perception. That is a
good occasion to obtain pardon for them.
b. When our faults are thus seen together, they are apt to arouse more
contrition, and thus secure more entire pardon.
c. Such a review gives us a clearer knowledge of ourselves and shows us
what defects we should chiefly labor to correct.
II
_To prepare for such a review_, we should consider those sins especially
which are more likely to be committed by religious. In mentioning them
we shall follow the order of the Decalogue.
_The First Commandment_ regards the worship of God. Under this head come
wilful distractions or negligences in prayer, which may spoil
considerable parts of our spiritual exercises; disrespectful handling of
holy things, and the unworthy reception of the Sacraments. This last sin
is of course rare among religious, but very grievous if it should occur;
for it bears the guilt of sacrilege.
_The Second Commandment_ requires the observance of our vows. The vow of
poverty is violated when a religious disposes of any temporal goods
without permission of his superior, acting as if it were his own
property. That of chastity attaches to the violation of the sixth and
ninth commandments the additional guilt of sacrilege. The vow of
obedience is violated when a religious refuses or neglects to do what he
is commanded to do under obedience, or does what he is thus forbidden.
_The Third Commandment_ is not likely to be violated by religious.
_The Fourth Commandment_ obliges subjects to reverence and obey their
superiors when they mean to impose an obligation of conscience; and they
must be supposed to mean it when the good of souls or the glory of God
requires them thus to use their authority. A precept of obedience in
virtue of the vow is rarely imposed; but commands in matters of some
importance derive from the natural law power to oblige any subjects to
obey their lawful superiors, independently of any vow. If serious
consequences are likely to follow from the violation of the command, the
sin may be grievous.
_The Fifth Commandment_ says: “Thou shalt not kill,” and forbids all
wilful injury to another’s or to one’s own body. Of course religious are
not likely to injure others violently; but this commandment may be
violated in many other ways. One may neglect his own health or injure it
by indiscretion in the use of food and drink, thus bringing on diseases
by which many a life is shortened. A superior or an infirmarian may
neglect the proper care of sick or delicate persons, a pastor or teacher
that of school children, etc. Injury done to the souls of others by
scandal, or bad example, may also be considered under this commandment;
and there are very many ways of giving scandal.
The Fifth Commandment also forbids quarrelling, unreasonable anger,
hatred and revenge. A religious teacher, for instance, must be careful
that, when obliged to punish children, he does not allow himself to be
prompted by passion; and revenge is totally opposed to the spirit of
Christ.
_The Sixth Commandment_ forbids any act of impurity wilfully committed;
and it has this peculiarity that it admits of no slight matter, but the
sin is always grievous when the impure pleasure is sought or admitted
with full knowledge and full consent.
_The Seventh Commandment_ forbids stealing and all injustice done to
others in their material possessions. The religious state is a strong
protection against these sins; still it does not make them impossible.
It may happen that a religious does not fulfill all the conditions of a
contract; as for instance, when a teacher neglects his class or some of
his pupils, so that these do not really get the value of the tuition
charges.
_The Eighth Commandment_ enjoins both truthfulness and regard for
another’s good name. A lie is never allowed, and mental reservations
must not be used but for good reasons, lest human intercourse lose the
charm and security of mutual confidence.
Any lessening of another’s good name without sufficient reason is
sinful, and it is doubly so when the accusation is false; even a rash
judgment or suspicion is wrong, yet it may be mistaken without being
rash. The great rule is: “See thou never do to another what thou wouldst
hate to have done to thee by another” (Tob. iv, 16).
_The Ninth and Tenth Commandments_ forbid sinful thoughts and desires in
matters forbidden by the Sixth and Seventh Commandments. On this point
St. Ignatius remarks that when an evil thought is promptly dismissed,
there is merit, not sin; and if it returns again and again and is always
resisted, there is more and more merit. But a venial sin is committed
when one listens to the evil suggestion so as to dwell a little on it,
or to admit some carnal delight, or to be somewhat negligent in
rejecting it. A grievous sin supposes that the thought or desire is
fully consented to.
THE THIRD MEDITATION
On Eternal Loss
_Remarks_: The purpose of the first days of the Exercises being to
inspire an intense and lasting hatred of sin, it is highly proper that
we should meditate on the principal punishment of sin, the eternal loss
of the soul, the pains of Hell. Many Saints have been led to Heaven by
the road of fear, some religious Orders acknowledge this as their chief
spirit. No one can afford to do without the fear of God; we should all
nourish it; so that, if ever our love of God should be too weak to keep
us from sin, the fear of Hell may restrain us. We descend into that
abyss in thought at present, that we may not hereafter be cast into it
in reality.
_1st Prelude._ Imagine you see in the center of the earth a vast ocean
of fire, in which are plunged countless souls condemned to eternal
punishment.
_2nd Prelude._ Beg earnestly from your Sovereign Lord for an intense and
abiding fear of those awful sufferings and for a firm purpose of never
sinning again.
_POINT I._ Recall to memory what we know of Hell; in particular:
1. That its existence and its dreadful nature are as clearly revealed in
Holy Writ as any truth whatever. For instance, Christ said: “If thy eye
scandalize thee, pluck it out. It is better for thee with one eye to
enter into the kingdom of God, than having two eyes to be cast into the
hell of fire; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not
extinguished. For every one shall be salted with fire” (St. Mark ix, 46,
48). Then there is the parable of Dives and Lazarus (St. Luke, xvi,
19-31).
2. That Hell awaits all those who die in mortal sin, whatever they may
have been in life, religious or seculars, bishops or priests.
3. That vast multitudes go there: “Broad is the way that leadeth to
destruction, and many there are who go in thereat” (St. Matth. vii, 13).
Many who were supposed to be holy. See St. Liguori, “Melancholy
Examples.”
Many who had begun well, as Judas had.
4. That I am in danger, as long as I live, of sinning mortally, of dying
in sin and losing my soul. Perhaps some are in Hell through my fault.
_POINT II._ _What are the sufferings of the body in Hell_?
All the senses will be tormented, as for their gratification God has
been offended. Chiefly the sense of touch, and that by the horrible
torture of fire: “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire” (St.
Matth. xxv, 41), “Which of you can dwell with everlasting burnings?”
(Is. xxiii, 14).
God showed St. Teresa in a vision the place the Devil had prepared for
her in Hell. She narrates it thus: “I was one day in prayer, when I
found myself in a moment, without knowing how, plunged apparently into
Hell. I understood that it was our Lord’s will that I should see the
place which the devils kept in readiness for me, and which I had
deserved by my sins. It was but a moment, but it seems to me impossible
that I should ever forget it, if I were to live many years. The entrance
seemed to be by a long and narrow pass, like a furnace, very low, dark
and close. The ground seemed to be saturated with water, mere mud,
exceedingly foul, sending forth pestilential odors and covered with
loathsome vermin. At the end was a hollow place in the wall, like a
closet, and in that I saw myself confined. All this was even pleasant to
behold in comparison with what I felt there” (Coleridge, “Life of St.
Teresa,” Vol. I, p. 133). “She says,” Father Coleridge adds, “she cannot
describe what she felt. There was a fire in her soul. She suffered
unendurably in her body. All that she had suffered in diseases, or in
what Satan had been allowed to inflict upon her, was as nothing in
comparison; and she saw there was to be no intermission, no end to the
pain. But the pains of the body were as nothing to the pains of the
soul. She describes the anguish as a sense of oppression and stifling in
the soul, all the while tearing itself to pieces with remorse and
despair.”
_POINT III._ _What are the sufferings of the soul?_
1. _The memory_ will recall the abundance of graces, by which salvation
could so easily have been secured; the example of companions who were
innocent or sincerely penitent, who are now in Heaven; the soul’s own
goodness and happiness at the time of its first Communion and at other
periods of its life.
2. _The understanding_ will then fully realize that one thing alone was
necessary while on earth, that life was given to work out salvation,
that all the rest was vanity, that all illusions are now dispelled, and
there is no happiness to be found by the creature except in God; there
is only total disappointment, absolute loss of all satisfaction; and
this pain of disappointed love will then be greater than all the other
sufferings.
3. _The will_ then will desire only God, for the love and possession of
whom all its nature longs, because it was made for Him alone. Therefore
the soul will hate its own perverseness with a sovereign hatred, and
curse itself in its absolute despair.
4. The soul will always have present to its mind _the awful sentence_
pronounced by the Supreme Judge: “Depart from me into eternal fire.”
“Eternal”: What, in comparison, are days, or nights, or months, or years
of suffering? Ever in pain, ever in despair; no end, no hope of an end
or of any mitigation.
_Colloquy_ with Jesus crucified, dying for our sins; with Mary, the
refuge of sinners.
THE THIRD DAY
THE FIRST MEDITATION
A Preparation for Death
_1st Prelude._ A captain of infantry had been ordered by his general to
lead his company at the first dawn of light the next morning up a
neighboring hill where the enemy had just planted a masked battery. To
spend the intervening night he had a log cabin allotted him. He felt it
was a dangerous task assigned him, as he was likely to be shot while
ascending the hill at the head of his men. Yet he faltered not, for he
was brave. But before lying down to rest, he lit a candle, pulled out
his prayer book, and knelt down to prepare himself for a good death.
Imagine that God gives you the present hour to prepare for your own
approaching death.
_2nd Prelude._ O Lord: give me the grace of making to-day a thoroughly
good preparation for death.
_POINT I._ _It is absolutely certain that I shall die_, it is only a
matter of more or less delay; “It is appointed unto men once to die”
(Hebr. ix, 27). “Dust thou art and into dust thou shalt return” is the
sentence pronounced on me, as on all men. No sensible man doubts this,
yet many try to forget it, and live as if the sentence were not for
them. O my Lord God! I will not be so foolish; and I accept with
humility the sentence of death. I have deserved it, and I will suffer it
in punishment and expiation of my sins.
_POINT II._ _All the circumstances of my death are very uncertain._ 1.
_The time._ No one but God can assure me of another day of life. Many
are at this moment in vigorous health who will be dead to-morrow. I may
be one of them: “If thou shalt not watch, I will come to thee as a
thief, and thou shalt not know at what hour I shall come to thee” (Apoc.
iii, 3). A thief comes when least expected. Many are sick for a time and
yet expire suddenly before they realize their danger. Even many of the
Saints were called away in the middle of their most important careers:
St. Francis Xavier when on the point of entering China, St. Thomas
Aquinas before he could finish his Summa of Universal Theology, St.
Bonaventure during the General Council of Lyons, etc. Am I ready? Was I
ready at any hour of last year?
2. _The place_ may be anywhere; we cannot find a spot secure against the
shafts of death.
3. _The manner_; It may be sudden, whether from a latent disease which
we never suspected, or from any of the multitudinous accidents so common
in the modern rush of life.
Or it may be preceded by weeks of suffering in an unconscious or
semi-conscious condition. Even when the danger is known to others, it is
often hidden from the patient. My Lord God! I humbly submit beforehand
to all the circumstances Thou hast determined shall attend my death, to
all its physical and mental sufferings, to its sudden stroke or
lingering approach. Only grant me the grace of being well disposed when
it shall arrive. Make known to me, I pray, what sacrifices I must make
that I may be well prepared.
_POINT III._ _What shall be my sentiments when death is nigh?_ Some
rejoice at its approach; like St. Paul, they wish to be dissolved and to
be with Christ. Many are horrified when it comes, and wish in vain that
they could live their lives all over again. Now is the time to prepare,
then it will be too late. Many again, even good Christians and
religious, would then wish to make some more or less important changes
before expiring. Now is the time to make them.
I have seen a novice dying most joyously, with these words on his lips:
“I know I am going to Heaven.” I have seen a religious priest, who had
led a pious and zealous life, bursting into tears on his deathbed,
explaining that he now realized how much more he could have done for God
and the good of souls, and how bitterly he regretted his former
negligences. And yet he was a model pastor of souls. What shall be my
sentiments?
_Colloquy_ with Jesus and Mary, begging earnestly to know now what is
still wanting to me, that I may provide in good time; “O Lord! make me
know my end—that I may know what is wanting to me!” (Ps. 38).
THE SECOND MEDITATION
On the Particular Judgment
_1st Prelude._ Imagine that your soul has left your body and is now to
be judged by Christ.
_2nd Prelude._ Ask earnestly that you may understand all things now as
you shall then, and that you may act accordingly.
_POINT I._ _Consider when that judgment will take place_: “It is
appointed unto men once to die, and, after this, the judgment” (Hebr.
ix, 27). Human tribunals delay trials to take evidence; not so God. One
moment we may be sinning or meriting, the next moment we are judged for
it. No warning is given beforehand, as for a college examination. The
rich man of whom Christ said that he was going to build new barns,
saying to his soul: “Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years;
take thy rest, eat, drink, make good cheer,” was rebuked by the Lord,
saying: “Thou fool, this night they will require thy soul from thee”
(St. Luke xii, 16-20).
Be ever ready. Make frequent acts of perfect contrition. Make every
confession as if it were to be the last of your life.
_POINT II._ _Consider the persons present_: 1. _The soul_; Father
Gaudier, S. J., describes it thus: “It receives a novel manner of
knowing, without the body, by which its entire life is represented to it
at a glance. It thoroughly understands what is the nature of created
things, its own present condition and the new aspect of things; and it
sees itself naked, solitary and deserted by all, with nothing but its
good and bad works, in the presence of its Judge. Hence arises a very
different view of its own concerns and all created and external things
from what it had before. Besides, its will is changed; for all love of
created goods is vanished, and in its stead there is a most powerful
impulse towards God as its last end. This tendency, now that the
hindrance of the body is removed, urges it most forcibly to this union”
(Introd. ad Solid. Perfect., p. 196).
2. _Christ_ is now manifested to the soul. He is the God who condemned
to eternal woe the rebel angels, Judas, and all who are in Hell, and who
has rewarded all the Saints with eternal bliss. As man, He is now going
to examine what fruit the soul now before Him has produced. No other
parties can well be expected to be present, except, perhaps the Guardian
Angel and an evil spirit, ready to execute the sentence.
_POINT III._ _Consider the account to be rendered_, of every thought,
word, action and omission from the first dawn of reason till the last
breath. Even good works may contain many imperfections, as St. Paul
explains by this comparison. “Other foundation no man can lay but that
which is laid, which is Christ Jesus. Now if any man build upon this
foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every
man’s work shall be manifest; for the day of the Lord shall declare it,
because it shall be revealed in fire; and the fire shall try every man’s
work, of what sort it is” (I Cor. iii, 11-16).
The examination will embrace all the Commandments of God and of the
Church, the duties of one’s state of life, the proper use of one’s
talents, one’s opportunities, etc.
a. There are _two consoling thoughts_ in this matter.
1. The religious vows probably act as a second Baptism, cancelling all
former debts. St. Thomas attributes this effect to the perfect
dispositions of the person making them. If this is the reason, then it
would seem that the renewal of vows may have the same effect, whenever
it is made with equally good dispositions.
2. Whatever has once been forgiven remains forgiven. Merit when lost may
return, but forgiven sins do not return.
b. Yet there are _two classes of sins that may well cause anxiety_.
1. Those of which we have never truly repented, perhaps because we were
too proud to admit we were to blame, and laid the blame on others
instead.
2. Those sins which we have very often confessed, but which we have made
no serious efforts to avoid in future, perhaps because we had no real
contrition for them.
_POINT IV._ _The sentence_ will be just what is deserved; for a judgment
is not an act of mercy, but of the intellect seeing the truth of things
and pronouncing accordingly: “I will judge thee according to thy ways,
and I will lay upon thee all thy crimes. My eye shall not spare, neither
will I show mercy” (Ezech. vii, 8, 9). “Then will he (the Son of man)
render to every man according to his works” (St. Matth. xvi, 27).
If a mortal sin be there, all is lost: “If a just man shall turn away
from his justice and shall commit iniquity—he shall die in his sin, and
his justices which he hath done shall not be remembered” (Ezech. iii,
20).
The sentence will be final, because there is no appeal to a higher
tribunal, and we can no longer merit a change: “The night cometh when no
man can work” (St. John ix, 4).
The sufferings of Purgatory come to an end, but merit neglected to be
acquired can never more be gained.
We may well exclaim with St. Magdalene de Pazzi: “It is a terrible thing
to have to stand before the judgment seat of God.”
_Colloquy._ Ask to understand all things now as you shall realize them
at the judgment.
CONSIDERATION
On Purity of Conscience
The main purpose of the first part of the Spiritual Exercises, or what
St. Ignatius calls the first week, is to purify the soul from all stains
of sin, and to strengthen it against all temptations to sin in future.
Of course mortal sin is the principal evil to be destroyed, it is the
greatest evil in the world. Since the religious life is essentially the
way of perfection, it presupposes the destruction of mortal sin; being
the way of the counsels, it supposes the observance of the Commandments.